Biographical Sketch of Isaiah Jacoby, Johnson County, Missouri, Hazel Hill Township >From "History of Johnson County, Missouri," by Ewing Cockrell, Historical Publishing Company, Topeka, Cleveland, 1918. ********************************************************************** Isaiah Jacoby, a proprietor of "Maple Grove Farm," the first registered farm in Johnson county, Missouri, was born in Marshall county, Indiana, July 22, 1855. He is a son of Elias and Margaret (Schaaf) Jacoby, the former a native of Pennsylvania, and the latter of Germany. Elias Jacoby was born October 8, 1815, at Schuylkill, Schuylkill county, Pennsylvania and Margaret (Schaaf) Jacoby was born January 9, 1819. To Mr. and Mrs. Jacoby were born twelve children: Samuel, who was born in Ohio and was killed at the battle of Corinth, Mississippi, on October 4, 1862, while serving in the Union army; John E., born July 1, 1839, in Ohio, a Civil War veteran, now residing in Columbus township, John- son county; Elias, born in Ohio, February 24, 1841, and in childhood was killed July 1, 1851, by the fall of a tree, in Marshall county, Indiana; Mrs. Mary Ann Stump, born December 6, 1842, and now resides in Columbus township, Johnson county; David, born November 22, 1844, in Ohio and died March 18, 1917, in Lane county, Oregon; Mrs. Catharine Grimm, born December 11, 1846, in Ohio, and died November 12, 1870; Mrs. Margaret Bondurant, born February 19, 1849, in Marshall county, Indiana, where she is now residing; Levi, born March 16, 1851, in Indiana and now resides in Columbus township, Johnson county, Missouri; Mrs. Eliza Jane Summers, born April 25, 1853, in Indiana and now resid- es in Hazel Hill township, Johnson county; Isaiah, the subject of this review; Mrs. Annette Eve Knaus, born April 3, 1859, in Marshall county, Indiana and is now residing in Knob Noster, Missouri; and William Dan- iel, born April 9, 1864, in Marshall county, Indiana and now resides in Holden, Missouri. The father's death occurred July 20, 1877, and the mothers on September 26, 1910. Mr. and Mrs. Jacoby were candid, up- right, noble minded citizens, who were unyielding in their condemnation of wrong doing, yet always charitable and kind to everyone with whom they came in contact. Elias Jacoby came to Johnson county, Missouri, in February, 1872 and settled on a farm of 170 acres of land in Colum- bus township, a place which he purchased from Abraham Winn. Mr. Jacoby lived but a very short time to enjoy his new home in the West, his death occurring five years after he came to Johnson county. Mrs. Jacoby made her home on this farm the remainder of her life and since her death, which came in 1910, the grandson, Lyle C., son of Isaiah Jacoby, purchased this farm in 1913 and now resides there. Isaiah Jacoby attended the public schools of Indiana and Missouri. After receiving a good common school education, he began farming. Mr. Jacoby has made his own way since he was 21 years of age. In May, 1880, he purchased his first land, a tract of 60 acres, which he later sold and purchased his present home. He acquired his farm, now comprising of 185 acres, by purchasing separate tracts at three different times. The original tract embraced 120 acres lf land, which had been entered from the gov- ernment by Mr. Adams and afterward became the Middleton homestead, and to this Mr. Jacoby has since added until "Maple Grove Farm" now con- sists of 185 acres of splendid farm land in Hazel Hill township. In August, 1883, Mr. Jacoby moved to this farm, upon which he has ever since resided. Ten years ago, he became interested in the Black Aber- deen Angus cattle and has annually raised a large number of this breed since, having at the time of this writing, in 1917, ten pure-bred and twenty-five good grade cows, with a registered male at the head of the herd. Mr. Jacoby usually keeps about 50 head of cattle on the farm. Eighty acres of the place are in pasture, forty acres in meadow, and the balance in corn and small grain. "Maple Grove Farm" is exception- ally well improved and equipped for handling stock. The residence, a structure of seven rooms, is modern throughout. It was built in 1906. There are two large, well constructed barns on the place. Mrs. Jacoby has charge of the poultry and she is making a splendid success of raising White Wyandotte chickens and White Holland turkeys. Perhaps no other farm in Hazel Hill township has so many beautiful maple trees growing on it as has the Jacoby farm. The seed was planted many years ago by James Middleton. September 15, 1880, Isaiah Jacoby and Ada Ellen Middleton were united in marriage. Mrs. Jacoby is a daughter of James and Jane Ann (Parsons) Middleton, the former, born May 11, 1825, in England, from which country he emigrated when he was 24 years of age and came to the United States, settling in Ohio, where he was married, and the latter, a native of Ohio. Mrs. Middleton was born June 5, 1833. James and Jane Middleton were the parents of the following children: William Arthur, Warrensburg, Missouri; George Albert, Columbus town- ship, Johnson county; Mary J., who died in infancy; Ada E., the wife of Mr. Jacoby, the subject of this review; Charlie J., deceased; Alfred Grant, Centerview, Missouri; and Walter Eugene, who died in infancy. To Isaiah and Ada Ellen Jacoby have been born four children: Earle M. and Pearle M., twins, Earle M., died at birth and Pearle M. is now the wife of Irwin K. Ramsey, of Columbus township; Lyle C., who married Vera Fay Henry and now resides on the Jacoby homestead in Columbus township; and Charlie Isaiah, who married Artie May Ogden and now resides on a farm in Columbus township. Mrs. Jacoby's father died September 1, 1877, and her mother died November 6, 1908. Mr. and Mrs. Jacoby are worthy and valued members of the Presbyterian church, as are all their children. This family has done much to further the cause of Christianity in their community. Jacoby Chapel, which is located on the Jacoby homestead, was named in honor of Elias Jacoby, who donated the land for the church site and the cemetery in 1872. The first burial made in the cemetery was made July 4, 1872, for Jeremiah Waldon. In 1906, Mr. and Mrs. Jacoby began a campaign for the purpose of raising funds with which to erect a church. They began soliciting in March and in two days one thousand dollars were subscribed. The church building was completed in the autumn of 1906 at a cost of nearly two thousand dollars, which were paid at the time of dedication without any aid whatsoever from any outside church or community. Reverend Burchfield, of Harrisonville, delivered the dedicatory sermon. The church site and the adjoining cemetery comprise 2 and one-fourth acres of land. Great praise and honor are due the Jacobys who have always stood for the best and high- est in the moral and social life of Johnson county. Mr. and Mrs. Isaiah Jacoby are numbered amoung the county's most noble and estimable citizens. ==================================================================== USGENWEB NOTICE: In keeping with our policy of providing free information on the Internet, data may be used by non-commercial entities, as long as this message remains on all copied material. These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or for presentation by other persons or organizations. 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