CHAPTER XXVII (Part 108)
BIOGRAPHICAL
Andrew J. Dunaway is a leading farmer and stockman of Shawnee township and a descendant of one of the early pioneer families of western Missouri. He was born in Bogard township, Henry County, April 9, 1856, and is a son of John and Zuba (Davis) Dunaway. John Dunaway was born in Johnson County, Missouri, in 1828 and died in Henry County in 1908. He was a son of Isaac Dunaway, a native of Kentucky, born in 1800, and who was among the very early settlers of Johnson County, Missouri, To John and Zuba (Davis) Dunaway were born the following children: Louisa Jane, married W. M. Howerton and resides in Big Creek township; Mary, married James Harness and lives in Oklahoma; Marshall, Chilhowee, Missouri; A. J., the subject of this sketch; Mrs. Malissa Dixon; Hannah, now deceased; Cynthia R., married Ed Anderson, Kansas City, Missouri; Miranda, married B. H. Gragg and is now deceased; Laura, deceased; Leonard, lives on the old homestead in Shawnee township, and Bell, married Frank S. Butcher, Lawrence, Kansas.
A. J. Dunaway was educated in the public schools of Henry County and remained with his parents until he was twenty-three years of age. He first purchased eighty acres of land and later added two hundred acres, and now owns two hundred eighty acres, which is one of the well-improved and productive farms of Henry County. The place adjoins the Johnson County line and is about three and one-half miles southeast of Chilhowee. Mr. Dunaway erected a large modern house in 1910, and the barn and other farm buildings are up to the high standard of the residence, which is one of the best in the community. Mr. Dunaway is extensively interested in breeding pure bred Percheron horses, Kentucky jacks, high grade Shorthorn cattle and Poland China hogs. He is one of the successful stockmen of the community.
On February 18, 1878, A. J. Dunaway was united in marriage with Miss Ocie Ann Prewette, a daughter of Jesse E. and Frances Elizabeth (Gillette) Prewette. The father was called to his door and murdered by bushwhackers during the Civil War, and the mother died on the home place in Shawnee township. After the death of her first husband, the mother was married to Lewis Beaty, who served as county judge of Henry County for several years. The following children were born to this second marriage: Dr. Joseph G., Huntingdale, Missouri; James C, Dick T. and Walter L., all of whom reside in Shawnee township.
Mr. Dunaway is a member of the Masonic Lodge of Agricola and he and his wife are consistent members of the Baptist Church, and are of Shawnee township's most honored citizens.
The Dunaway family deserves to be rated among the very early pioneers of Henry County. John Dunaway, father of Andrew J., hauled corn to Jackson's old mill, which was located on the Grand River south of Clinton, and after he had his corn ground into meal, he hauled the meal to Lexington with an ox team to get money to buy his first pair of boots. He worked for twenty-five cents per day, mowing with a scythe, during the harvest season. Many changes have taken place in farm economic conditions since those early days.
L. N. Dunaway, owner of the "Elmwood Valley Farm," is one of the progressive farmers and stockmen of Shawnee township. Mr. Dunaway is a native of Henry County, having been born on the place where he now resides December 22, 1866. Here he was reared and educated in the public schools and has made farming and stock raising his life's occupation. The "Elmwood Valley Farm" consists of three hundred twenty acres of valuable land and is one of the well-known stock farms of Henry County. The place is well-improved with a good residence and other substantial farm buildings. Mr. Dunaway raises horses, cattle, hogs and mules. He does not run to fancy stock, although he has some Shorthorn cattle eligible to registration.
September 8, 1892, L. N. Dunaway was united in marriage with Miss Mary Beaty, a daughter of Benjamin and Lovina (Kimsey) Beaty, both now deceased. Mrs. Dunaway was born in Shawnee township and reared and educated in this county. Her mother died in 1898 in Shawnee township and her father departed this life at Wilberton, Oklahoma, August 12, 1908. Mrs. Dunaway was one of five children born to her parents as follows: Samuel, lives in Florida; Joseph Y., Colorado; Mary, wife of L. N. Dunaway, the subject of this sketch; Jackson J., lives in Shawnee township, and Phineas, Wilberton, Oklahoma. To Mr. and Mrs. Dunaway have been born two children, Royston A., married Mabel Anderson, daughter of Charles and Alice (Simpson) Anderson, of Huntingdale, Missouri, and they reside on the Dunaway farm, and Letha R., a graduate of the Hardin College, Mexico, Missouri, residing at home with her parents.
Mr. Dunaway belongs to the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, holding membership in the Agricola Lodge No. 343. He takes a keen interest in political affairs, although he has never aspired to hold office. He is a Democrat and one of Henry County's most substantial and progressive citizens.
William T. Slayton, a descendant of a Henry County pioneer family, was born in Shawnee township May 22, 1850. He is a son of James and Susan Howerton Slayton, the former a native of Virginia and the latter of North Carolina, who came to Henry County and settled in Shawnee township about 1840. James Slayton was a son of Thomas Slayton, who came to this county in 1839 and settled in Big Creek township, and later settled in Shawnee township. He was one of the first settlers in that section.
W. T. Slayton is one of a family of three children born to his parents, the others being Fannie, who died at the age of thirteen years, and Nannie, married Isaac Adair and is now deceased.
William T. Slayton was united in marriage in 1874 to Miss Harriet Rogers, a daughter of Sterling and Kittie Ann Rogers, who came to Henry County shortly after the Civil War and are both now deceased. To Mr. and Mrs. Slayton have been born two children: Leonard, farmer in Big Creek township, married Emily Walker, and Mrs. Minnie Smith, on the home place with her mother.
W. T. Hastain, a progressive citizen and prosperous farmer and stockman of Shawnee township, belongs to a pioneer family of Henry County and western Missouri. W. T. Hastain was born in Bethlehem township, Henry County, July 16, 1867, a son of Woodson A. and Sarah (Walker) Hastain. W. A. Hastain was born near Calhoun, Henry County, in 1835. He spent his life in Henry County and died in 1914. His remains are interred in Englewood Cemetery and his widow now resides at 310 East Jefferson street, Clinton, Missouri. W. A. Hastain was a son of Daniel Hastain, one of the first settlers of Henry County, who settled in the northeastern part of the county near where Calhoun is now located. He died in Warsaw, Missouri, and his remains are buried in the cemetery there.
W. T. Hastain is one of the following children born to his parents: W. T., the subject of this sketch; Addie, married Ben Hoist, Los Angeles, California; Emma, married Thomas B. Wilson, Osceola, Missouri; Bertha, married Joe McCuan, Colorado Springs, Colorado; Sarepta, Boston, Massachusetts; George W., Searcy, Arkansas; Sadie, married W. A. Ellett, Tulsa, Oklahoma; Marie, married L. C. Farnum, Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Maude, married E. H. Carnick, Clinton, Missouri.
W. T. Hastain was reared on a farm in Bethlehem township and attended the district schools in Bethlehem township, and later, he attended high school in Clinton and Clinton Academy. He engaged in farming and stock raising in early life and has made that branch of endeavor his life's study and his life's occupation, and as a steward for his efforts, he has succeeded to a very satisfactory degree and is today one of the substantial and prosperous men of the community. He owns a splendid farm of three hundred acres about four miles north of Huntingdale, which he purchased in 1894. The place is well improved with a good six room, two-story farm residence, and the barns and other buildings on the place are up to the standard of the residence in modern appointments. Mr. Hastain carries on general farming, although raising cattle, hogs and mules is the leading feature of the Hastain farm.
Mr. Hastain was united in marriage in 1890 to Miss Fannie Goff, daughter of Ephraim and Jane Ann (Templeton) Goff. The mother now lives in Bethlehem township, Henry County, and the father died in February, 1914. Mrs. Hastain is one of the following children born to her parents: Ed, Clinton, Missouri; Mrs. Minnie Day, Lewis Station; Fannie, the wife of W. T. Hastain, and Charles F., Rupert, Idaho. To W. T. Hastain and wife have been born the following children: Willie Lee, now a soldier in the United States Army and trained at Camp Grant. He enlisted February 26, 1918, and is now in France with the American Expeditionary Force. The other children are: Alma, Pleasant N., Ina, residing at home, and Helen, who is the wife of Eustace Lake and resides in Shawnee township. The Hastain family are representative of the best citizenship of Henry County, and Mr. Hastain is progressive and public spirited.
Squire William Paul - This venerable pioneer of Henry County is the oldest man living today in Henry County. He is reasonably vigorous in mind and body, notwithstanding the fact that he lacks but a little over a year of reaching the century mark. William Paul is a native of Kentucky. He was born in Rough Creek, west of Elizabethtown, Hardin County, Kentucky, January 5, 1820. His parents were George S. and Elizabeth (Purcell) Paul, both natives of Hardin County, Kentucky. The mother was born in 1796 and died in Hardin County in 1869. George S. Paul was born on the Monongahela River in Pennsylvania in 1766. He was a soldier in the War of 1812 and was at the battle of New Orleans. He died in Hardin County, Kentucky, in 1837.
William Paul was reared to manhood in Hardin County, Kentucky, and in 1842, came to Missouri. He rode from Kentucky on horseback, in company with a man who was en route to Iowa. They crossed the river at St. Louis, which at that time was a small town. Mr. Paul came to what is now Shawnee township, Henry County, and settled near Huntingdale. He says there is but one person now living, besides himself, who was here when he came. That is Mrs. Eliza Royston, who resides at Huntingdale, in her eighty-ninth year. In 1845, Mr. Paul bought a claim which consisted of three hundred acres. This place is still his home. He has been successfully engaged in farming and stock raising and for many years, was an extensive feeder of cattle. During the last few years, his sons have operated the home place, which consists of three hundred acres, while, owing to his advanced age, Mr. Paul has been practically retired from business activities.
William Paul was united in marriage April 10, 1851, with Millie Ann Casey, who died about a year after her marriage to Mr. Paul. On March 26, 1856, Mr. Paul was united in marriage with Miss Angeleta Barker. She departed this life May 1, 1873. To this union were born the following children: John, Samuel and James, all residing near Huntingdale, Missouri, and Richard, George, William, Benona and Elizabeth, all of whom are deceased. After the death of his second wife, Mr. Paul married Mrs. Malissa McFarland, who died in 1917.
Mr. Paul has seen much of the early life and development of Henry County. He saw this county in almost its primitive state and has not only lived to see the marvelous improvements and advancement of considerably more than half a century, but has done his part towards the building up of Henry County. The result of the efforts of those noble pioneers is that the forest and prairie have been subdued and the present and future generations have been provided with a better place to live than these hardy pioneers of the thirties and forties ever dreamed of. Mr. Paul recalls many early day conditions, incidents and pioneers. He says Aaron and Samuel Cann started the first store in Huntingdale. These men began as peddlers in this section, walking from house to house, at a time when houses were few and far between. Later, they started a store at Huntingdale and were merchants there for a number of years.
Mr. Paul remained here during the Civil War and always gave his influence to the maintenance of law and order and did much for the restoration of civil authority after the great conflict ended. He was justice of the peace here for fifty-two years. Mr. Paul is one of the few pioneers of the early days left to tell the story of Henry County. He has done his part nobly and well and the present and future generations of Henry County cannot do better than to indelibly white the names of these noble pioneers in the imperishable record of Henry County. Squire Paul is the oldest living Mason in Missouri, having been made a Mason in 1842 - seventy-seven years ago.
James Paul, son of William Paul, was born in Shawnee township on the place where he now resides November 3, 1868. He was reared and educated in Shawnee township and has made farming and stock raising his life's occupation and is one of Henry County's most successful men in this line of endeavor.
On May 3, 1917, James Paul was united in marriage with Miss Anna R. Godwin, daughter of Rogers Godwin. He is now deceased. Mrs. Paul was born in White Oak township, Henry County.
C. W. Drake, a merchant of Huntingdale, Missouri, is one of the old pioneers of Henry County, having lived in the village of Huntingdale since November, 1855. Mr. Drake was born in Deer Creek township, Henry County October 22, 1848, the son of Jesse W. and Eliza (Pinnell) Drake.
Jesse W. was born in Kentucky in 1823 and came to Henry County in 1840, settling in Deer Creek township. In 1849, when gold was discovered in California, Mr. Drake joined a party and made the trip across the country in a rude ox wagon, enduring all of the hardships of those gold seekers. He died in 1850 at Sacramento, California. Mrs. Eliza Drake was born November 15, 1827, in Virginia and when a very small child her parents, F. A. Pinnell and family, came to Henry County, arriving in 1830. F. A. Pinnell was the first county clerk of Henry County, then known as Rives County. The offices of county clerk, circuit clerk and recorded were all one office and for eighteen years, Mr. Pinnell faithfully filled this office. Mr. and Mrs. Jesse Drake were the parents of two children: Mrs. Hattie Freeman, born September 3, 1846, now deceased, and C. W. Drake, the subject of this sketch.
Mrs. Eliza Drake was married a second time to Dr. E. C. Royston, who died July 10, 1898. Doctor Royston lived in Huntingdale since 1855 and was an old familiar figure in this locality. Mrs. Royston survives him several years, living to be at the age of ninety-one years, loved and revered by all that know her.
C. W. Drake was educated in the schools of Huntingdale and for a number of years followed farming. In 1880 he purchased the general merchandise store in Huntingdale from Ben Quarles, disposing of the same in 1884. In 1906, he purchased the present building and opened up a new stock of general merchandise.
The marriage of C. W. Drake and Lucy Covington was solemnized February 4, 1869. She was the daughter of John 0. and Eliza Ann Covington, the former, born in Delaware and the latter, in Kentucky. They are both deceased. Mrs. Lucy Drake passed away July 2, 1893. She was the mother of three children: Hattie E., deceased; William C. and Harvey W., deceased.
October 28, 1897, Mr. Drake was united in marriage to Maude Bailey, a daughter of J. W. and Julia Bailey. The former resides in Blaine County, Oklahoma, and the latter is deceased. By this marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Drake have two children: Jessie and Royston, both at home with their parents.
Mr. Drake is a Democrat and for forty years has filled the office of constable and served as justice of the peace for the past three years. He is a member of the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows.
