John S. Goodrell Biography


	This biography appears on pages 266-269 in "History of Dakota 
	Territory" by George W. Kingsbury, Vol. V (1915) and was 
	scanned, OCRed and edited by Maurice Krueger, mkrueger@iw.net.

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				JOHN S. GOODRELL. 

	As chief engineer of the Battle Mountain Sanitarium, John S. 
Goodrell, of Hot Springs, holds a position of much responsibility, but 
he has proved more than equal to all demands made upon his professional 
knowledge and executive ability. He was born in Washington county, 
Iowa, June 10, 1850, a son of Stewart and Elizabeth (Israel) Goodrell, 
both of whom were born in Westchester county, Pennsylvania. The father 
was engaged in carpentering in early life in Ohio and also in Iowa, and 
later he was in the employ of the Ohio & Iowa Railroad Company as a 
bridge builder. He became the owner of valuable farming land in Iowa 
and there passed away on the 23d of November, 1872, having survived his 
wife since August, 1854. He served as a private in an Ohio regiment in 
the Mexican war and was quite prominent in public affairs in Iowa, 
being a member of the legislature for three terms and having a seat in 
the first constitutional convention of that state. At the time of his 
death he was United States pension agent for Iowa and Nebraska. 

	John S. Goodrell is the next to the oldest of the living children 
born to his parents and his boyhood days were passed under the parental 
roof, while his early education was that afforded in the country 
schools of Iowa. When seventeen years of age he left home and went to 
New York city, where he began learning the machinist's trade, entering 
a shop there as an apprentice. He continued in that shop for four years 
and six months and at the end of that time was employed as an engineer 
on tug boats in New York harbor, being for four years chief engineer. 
He also made three voyages across the Atlantic as assistant engineer, 
and upon leaving the marine service entered the employ of the Chicago, 
Rock Island & Pacific Railroad. After serving with that company as 
engineer for a year he became, in April, 1873, chief engineer of the 
capitol at Des Moines, Iowa, which position he held for a number of 
years. He was next in the employ of the Des Moines City Street Railway 
Company as chief engineer and master mechanic for eleven years and 
later engaged in mining in the Ozark Mountains of Missouri for four 
years. In 1905 he was appointed chief engineer of the Battle Mountain 
Sanitarium of Hot Springs and is still serving in that capacity. He is 
also consulting engineer for the Water, Light & Power Company of Hot 
Springs and for the State Soldiers Home at Hot Springs. His long 
experience in his line of work well qualifies him for his duties and he 
keeps the plants under his supervision at the point of highest 
efficiency. 

	Mr. Goodrell was married on Christmas eve, 1874, to Miss Alice 
Hendricks, who was born near Fort Wayne, Indiana. Her parents, Joel and 
Leah (Gish) Hendricks, were both natives of Pennsylvania but were 
married in Ohio. The father was a civil engineer and an unusually fine 
mathematician. He passed away in 1899 in Des Moines, Iowa, to which 
place he had removed with his family, and his wife died in January, 
1915. He was made surgeon of an Indiana regiment in the Civil war and 
was wounded after about eight months, service, being mustered out 
subsequently on account of disability. He held a number of offices in 
Indiana, being both state senator and state representative and also 
filling the position of county surveyor. 

	Mrs. Goodrell is the fifth in order of birth in a family of nine 
children. To Mr. and Mrs. Goodrell have been born four children: Rose 
A., the wife of George L. Garton, a resident of Des Moines and cashier 
in the post office there; Mabel M., the wife of Albert Horning, a 
resident of Des Moines, where he is engaged in the insurance business; 
and Edna and Ethel, twins. The former is the wife of Clyde Martin, a 
farmer residing near Greenfield, Iowa, and Ethel is teaching 
stenography in the Des Moines high school. 

	Mr. Goodrell is a republican and has held a number of local 
offices, discharging his duties with ability and conscientiousness. 
Fraternally he belongs to Home Lodge, No. 370, F. & A. M., at Des 
Moines, and to Ben Hur Tribe. The respect which is so freely accorded 
him is but the fitting reward of a life of honorable and successful 
activity.