In the books' own words, not ours, with obvious scanning errors fixed. The later printing (1901) is folded below the first. Families often supplied these stories to the publisher, so check key dates.
Born 1825, Sullivan County
From The history of Holt and Atchison counties, Missouri : containing a history of these counties, their cities, towns, etc., etc. : biographical sketches of their citizens, general and local statistics, p (1882), A biographical history of Nodaway and Atchison counties, Missouri; (1901)
HON. DAVID RANKIN.
Prominent among the self made men of Missouri is the subject of this biography. He was born on the 28th of May, 1825, in Sullivan County, Indiana. His father, William Rankin, was born in Jefferson County, Ohio, and was a wheelwright by occupation. He married Elizabeth Gross, who was a native of Guilford County, North Carolina, both of whom were of German-American origin. David accompanied his parents to Parke County, Indiana, when six years of age, and then to Vermillion County, Indiana, when eight years old. After remaining there three years, they immigrated west to Warren County, Illinois, in what is now Henderson County, in 1836. There the subject of this sketch was reared to manhood, spending his boyhood days on the farm and in his father's saw mill. He received the benefits of a common school education. Being a member of a poor family, he was obliged to work hard. When he became a young man, his father gave him a colt, and this was his commencement in the stock business. By trading and saving what money he could, he finally obtained enough to buy eighty acres of land, giving one hundred dollars for it. He still resides on this old homestead, which is located near Biggsville, Illinois, some twelve miles east of Burlington, Iowa. Mr. R. then went to work with a will, farming and stock raising. He possessed those sterling principles of honesty, integrity and attention to business, and has made a grand success in life. He owns thirty thousand acres of improved land, valued at one million dollars, about twenty-four thousand acres of which is located in Atchison County, and he may truly be called the land king of Northwest Missouri. He is president of the First National Bank, of Monmouth, Illinois, and is largely interested in several others, among which is the Savings Bank of Burlington, Iowa, Rankin, Stevenston & Co., of Tarkio, and others. He is a member of the Tarkio Town Company, and owns a sixth interest therein, and also owns a sixth interest in Fairfax and Westboro. He was elected on the Republican ticket to represent his district in the Twenty-eighth and Twenty-ninth general assemblies of the Illinois Legislature, in 1872, and was re-elected again the next term (1874). His district was a strong Democratic one, but he was elected the first time by sixty-seven majority, and the next time by over 1,800 majority. He was a candidate for congress in 1876, and received every vote of his district for twenty-five ballots. He superintend his business himself, and knows just how every department is conducted. His assistant superintendents generally have an interest with him, and are therefore working for themselves as well as him. He owns some 600 head of horses and mules, feeds his grain mostly to his stock, and owns a large stock ranch in Nebraska. He generally ships a train or two of cattle at one time. In his manners he is unassuming, yet cordial, kind-hearted and generous, every worthy public enterprise receiving his support. He has been an active member of the United Presbyterian Church since he was about twenty-six years of age. He is honored and respected by all! who are favored with his acquaintance, and none deserve success more than David Rankin. He has been twice married. First, on the 2ist ofl March, 1850, to Miss Sarah Tompson, a native of Guernsey County, Ohio, born in 1826. She was a daughter of Adam and Jane Tompson, who were natives of Ohio. She died in December, 1878, leaving three children: Nettie V., born July 28, 1855, (now Mrs. J. F. Hanna, of Tarkio) John A., born November 21, 1856, and William F., born January 1, 1860. Mr. R. was married again in January, 1879, to Elizabeth Gowdy. Her maiden name was Elizabeth Philipps, and she was born in Gibson County, Indiana, but was brought to Warren County, Illinois, when quite small. There she was reared. She has five children by her former husband: Ella (now Mrs. Joseph Ely, of this county), Mary, Roily, Chester and Grace.
As printed in The history of Holt and Atchison counties, Missouri : containing a history of these counties, their cities, towns, etc., etc. : biographical sketches of their citizens, general and local statistics, p (1882). See the original pages. Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.
DAVID RANKIN.
It is most appropriate that a place in this volume should be devoted to a brief resume of the life of the gentleman whose name appears above, as it is an excellent example how a man may overcome all obstacles if he have peserverance and determination enough, and how in the end his efforts may b crowned with success. He is now numbered among the worthy residents of northwestern Missouri, and his splendid prosperity is the merited reward of his own labor.
Mr. Rankin was born May 8, 1825, in Sullivan county, Indiana, and is of Scotch lineage. Hi&' father, however, was a native of Ohio and his mother of North Carolina. When he was six years of age the family removed to Parke county, Indiana, and two years later to Wermilion county, whence after three years they removed to \Varren county, Illinois, now known as Henderson. Mr. Rankin was reared to manhood on the home farm and acquired a common-school education. His indefatigable industry, which has ever been one of the strong points in his character, was early manifest. He got his first start in life as the owner of a colt given him by his father. Through his youth and early manhood he labored untiringly and finally possessed capital sufficient to purchase an eighty-acre farm near Biggsville, Illinois, where he carried on agricultural pursuits and stock-raising until 1885. There he was well known in connection with public affairs, being elected to the state legislature in 1872 and again in 1874.
In 1885 Mr. Rankin came to Tarkio, Missouri, one of the richest parts of the Missouri valley, and. has since devoted his' undivided attention to his large farming interests in this portion of the state. He is an excellent judge of land, quick to note its rich properties, and thus his investments were judiciously made. As opportunity has' offered he has purchased large and small tracts of land, often buying at a low price land that has rapidly increased in value. He does not believe in selling, and remarked that he never sold a piece of land in his life on which he did not lose money in the operation. At one time he purchased two thousand acres of bottom land near Riverton. in Fremont county, Iowa, paying from ten to twenty dollars per acre. He conceived the idea that by constructing a dike along the Nishnabotna river, which flows through his hmd, it could be reclaimed and used to the greatest advantage both for grazing and farming purposes. He at once went to work with a large force of men and continued his labors until midwinter, constructing a dyke seven miles long and of varying with. In one place it is fourteen feet high and forty feet wide, ana the total cost was not far from twenty thousand dollars. The floods have severely tested it and it is considered by all to be a great success. Mr. Rankin has accumulated not far from twenty-one thousand acres of choice farming land in Atchison county, Missouri, and Fremont county, Iowa, worth at a low average forty dollars per acre. He has in his pastures seven thousand head of cattle, from eight to ten thousand head of hogs and probably fi\e hundred head of horses and colts.
It will natural! be supposed that a man who has won such great success in farming will be identified with other lines of business; and such is the case with Mr. Rankin, who is the president and the principal shareholder in the First National Bank of Tarkio, Missouri, president of the Rankin Water Company, the Rankin Electric Light and Power Company and the Rankin Auditorium Company, all of which companies together have invested probably one hundred thousand dollars in Tarkio enterprises. Nor has he been forgetful of the interests of education. He has long l)een a fast friend of the Tarkio College, that has exerted a potent influence in holding and shaping the intellectual and moral character of the people of Missouri and adjoining states.
The management of his farm and stock-raising interests is under a perfect system. The land is divided into fourteen ranches, varying in size from six hundred and forty tc thirty-one hundred acres. Each ranch has an experienced foreman, who is paid a good salary, and a superintendent is also employed who has the oversight of all the ranches and manager the farming, stock, shipping and other interests. Mr. Rankin conducts a regular office, where he keeps a secretary constantly employed, having charge of the correspondence, bookkeeping and other clerical work. The foreman of each ranch is required to send each month to the office a full report of the men employed during the month, the cattle, hogs, farming implements and grain on hand and all changes and shipments that have been made. These reports are filed for reference and assist very materially in the management of a business of such magnitude. Like a great many men in his section. Mr. Rankin is a heavy cattle-feeder. The number of cattle aniuially fed varies from six thousand to ten thousand, and, while the yield of grain from his own land is very heavy, in some instances amounting to a half million bushels of corn in edition to other grain, he is compelled, in order to carry on his feeding operations', to buy from fifty to one hundred thousand bushels of corn each year. This furnishes a home market for a large amount of the grain raised in this section, thus helping to solve the great problem of condensing freights. He makes his purchases of cattle in large quantities', buying in Texas, Colorado, Iowa and Missouri, and he conducts some of the largest trade transactions in cattit known in the counrtrv.
[This passage is too damaged in the scanned book to reproduce. See the original book.]
As printed in A biographical history of Nodaway and Atchison counties, Missouri; (1901). See the original pages. Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.
Their biographies name David Rankin: John F. Hanna (b. 1847) Silas H. Prather (b. 1846) James Rankin (b. 1828)
The printed record stops around 1882. We trace your line from there down to you, with every source cited.