Edward V. Miles Biography


	This biography appears on pages 675-676 in "History of South 
	Dakota" by Doane Robinson, Vol. I (1904) and was scanned, 
	OCRed and edited by Maurice Krueger, mkrueger@iw.net.

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	EDWARD V. MILES is one of the well known and prosperous farmers 
of Jerauld county, where he has maintained his home for more than 
twenty years, so that he is well entitled to be considered a pioneer of 
this attractive section of the state. He is a native of Wessington, 
Hard' county, Virginia, where he was born on the 8th of October, 1838, 
being a son of Weston and Sarah (Simmons) Miles, of whose ten children 
eight are living at the present time. The subject attended the common 
schools in a somewhat irregular way in his early youth, while he had 
his full quota of experience in connection with the strenuous work of 
the farm. At the age of twenty years he left his native state and 
removed so Illinois, locating in Piatt county, where he was engaged in 
farming at the time of the outbreak of the Civil war. He forthwith 
manifested his intrinsic loyalty, enlisting, on July 10, 1861 as a 
member of Company F, Second Illinois Volunteer Cavalry, with which he 
proceeded to the front, his command being assigned to the Army of the 
Mississippi, and he participated in a large number of the most 
important battles of the great internecine conflict, being sent with 
his regiment to New Orleans after the battle of Vicksburg, and 
receiving his honorable discharge on the 11th of August, 1864. The 
history of his regiment stands as the history of his personal service, 
which was one of signal fidelity and honor. After the close of his 
military service of more than three years Mr. Miles returned to his 
home in Illinois, where he resumed his farming, and also engaged in the 
mercantile business and in the buying and shipping of grain, in Ogden, 
Illinois, and Indianapolis, Indiana, being successful in his efforts 
and thus continuing until the spring of 1882, when he disposed of his 
interests in Illinois and came to what is now Jerauld county, South 
Dakota, where he entered homestead, preemption and tree claims, about 
three and one-half miles northeast of the village of Wessington 
Springs, and here he developed and improved a valuable farm, still 
retaining the original four hundred and eighty acres and being known as 
one of the progressive farmers and representative citizens of the 
county. In June, 1903, Mr. Miles disposed of his farm, for a 
consideration of twenty thousand dollars, a fact which indicates the 
great appreciation of its value, and he then purchased property in 
Wessington Springs, where he has since maintained his home, being 
practically retired from active business and enjoying the rewards of 
his long years of earnest endeavor. Fraternally he is affiliated with 
the Masonic order and with E. O. C. Ord Post, No. 89, Grand Army of the 
Republic, at Wessington Springs, manifesting a deep interest in his old 
comrades of the Civil war, and it may be consistently noted in this 
connection that while in active service he was detailed by the colonel 
of his regiment to act as orderly to General Grant, in which position 
he served from April to the 4th of July on which occurred the fall of 
Vicksburg. He has been prominent in local affairs and assisted in the 
organization of Jerauld county, while he was a member of the 
territorial council at the time when South Dakota was admitted to the 
Union. He was bill clerk of the second state legislature, in session at 
Pierre, South Dakota, and his name figures in the records of that 
session. He and his wife are members of the Congregational church.  

	On the 7th of September, 1865, Mr. Miles was united in marriage 
to Miss Jennie H. Gale, who was born and reared in the state of New 
York, being a resident of Illinois at the time of her marriage. Of this 
union were born nine children, of whom four are deceased, while the 
names of the survivors are as follows: Mrs. Luella A. Gay, Nettie Miles 
Goepfert, Nora J. Rutherford, Mrs. Sadie Miles Hinter and Leon S. 
Miles. The names of the deceased children are as follows: Edward V., 
Gale W., Noble, and Boscoe C.