John Powers Biography


	This biography is from "Memorial and biographical record; an illustrated
 	compendium of biography, containing a compendium of local biography,
	including biographical sketches of prominent old settlers and 
	representative citizens of South Dakota..." Published by G. A. Ogle & 
	Co., Chicago, 1899. Pages 1001-1002

	Scan, OCR and editing by Maurice Krueger,mkrueger@iw.net, 1998. 

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JOHN POWERS, one of the early settlers of Beadle county, is engaged in 
general farming on his land in section 13, in Broadland township, where 
he owns four hundred and eighty acres. He is a native of Ireland and 
was born December 25, 1844, the only son of John and Johannah (Kyely) 
Powers. The father died when our subject was but a lad, and the mother 
came with the family to America and settled in New York, where our 
subject worked in a brush factory. At the close of the Civil war he 
worked in New York for two years, afterward moving from the eastern to 
the western part of the state and worked in the woods. In 1871 he went 
to Allamakee county, Iowa, and from there removed to Dakota May 10, 
1880, filing a pre-emption on his present farm. He had a team and wagon 
and five hundred dollars and he assisted in grading the railroad. On 
his farm he built the first house built between Huron and Redfield. It 
was a frame house, 14x 16 feet, and is now in use as a kitchen. He owns 
three quarters of land and crops from one hundred and fifty to two 
hundred acres, and has from fifteen to twenty milch cows, which 
provides an independent competency. Our subject was married in 1867 to 
Miss Margaret Conners, who was born in County Waterford, Ireland, May 
25, 1839. No children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Powers, but they 
have adopted two orphans: Edward Carman, born in 1872, was adopted in 
1879; Charles McCarty, born in 1887, was adopted in 1895. 

August 21, 1862, Mr. Powers enlisted in Company K, One Hundred and 
Sixty-ninth Regular New York Volunteer Infantry. He served his country 
well and was in thirty three engagements, among them Eightington Roads, 
Bermuda Hundred, Suffolk, Petersburg (where he was at the mine 
explosion), Cold Harbor, Fort Fisher (where he was wounded in the 
face), Fort Wagner, Jacksonville, Foster's Plantation, Wilmington and 
Raleigh. He is a member of the G. A. R. 

Mr. Powers has been prominent in the affairs of his township, assisted 
in the organization of the same, and has since served in various 
offices of trust. In political sentiment he is a Republican, and favors 
state control of liquors, and advocates equal suffrage. As an old 
settlers he has been prominent in planning reunions, and in a grove 
near his house old settlers' picnics are annually held. He and his wife 
are members of the Catholic church.