Biography of Rufus Whealy

	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, 1898. Pages 390, 393

	Scan and OCR by Joy Fisher, 1997. This file may be copied for non-profit 
	purposes. All other rights reserved. 


HONORABLE RUFUS WHEALY, one of the well-to-do, intelligent and 
enterprising agriculturists of the southern part of Moody county, whose 
portrait will be found on another page, has a fine farm near Flandreau, 
and is a native of the county of Huntington, Province of Quebec, Canada, 
born July 6, 1852. He is a son of Robert and Eliza (Bell) Whealy, both 
natives of the North of Ireland, who came to Canada when children, and 
were married in Canada, where the mother died in the year 1864. The 
father subsequently moved to the United States, and in 1880  settled in 
Jefferson township, Moody county, South Dakota, on the open prairie, 
where he homesteaded a piece of land, improved it and made himself a 
comfortable and pleasant home. He now lives in Fremont township, this 
county, and spends his time with his children, retired from active life. 
He and his estimable wife were the parents of a family of nine children, 
of whom we have the following record: James; Mima Andrews, of Wisconsin; 
Andrew; Honorable Rufus; Margaret Colgan, Clinton county, New York; 
Angeline McBride, Moody county; Thomas; Arthur; and Eliza Rowe, of Moody 
county.

	Our subject lived with his parents in Canada until fourteen years 
of age and then moved to Clinton county, New York, where he was employed 
in a store for a time, and later in a mill until 1875, He was married in 
1872 to Miss Mary J. Rowe, also a native of Canada, born November 26, 
1852. In 1875 Mr. and Mrs. Whealy moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota, where 
he was engaged in a sawmill one year, and May 5, 1876, moved to Valley 
Springs, Minnehaha county, South Dakota, and took up a claim in the 
country several miles from the village. He rented a farm in the vicinity 
which he operated one year in connection with his work of improving his 
own land. The following spring he moved to his own farm and resided 
there until the spring of 1881, got his farm well improved and all 
broken up, then moved to his tree claim in Jefferson township which he 
had previously taken, built a frame house upon it, improved and 
developed the farm and made his home there until 1890 when he sold it. 
He then traded his homestead in Minnehaha county for 160 acres in 
Jefferson township, Moody county, then bought 160 acres joining it, then 
moved to Flandreau where he has since resided.

	Mr. Whealy is a Mason, holding membership in the blue lodge, 
chapter and commandery, all of Flandreau. He is also a member of the El 
Riad Temple, Mystic Shrine, of Sioux Falls. He is a member of the A. O. 
U. W., of Flandreau. Politically, he formerly affiliated with the 
Republican party, but since the Populist party was organized Mr. Whealy 
has ably supported that party. He has several times been called upon by 
his fellow citizens to perform the duties of various public offices. He 
has been a member of the school board both in Minnehaha and Moody 
counties, was elected sheriff of Moody county in the fall of 1890 and 
served two terms, and in the fall of 1896 was elected state senator from 
Moody county. In this capacity he served as chairman on the committee of  
temperance and also the committee on agriculture, and a member of three 
other committees. In the spring of 1895 he bought the creamery situated 
onehalf mile west of Flandreau. This creamery was built by the village 
of Flandreau in 1889, has a separator process and is operated by steam. 
Since purchasing the creamery Mr. Whealy has given his attention to this 
enterprise, which is under his personal management.