Eliphalet Price

As printed in 1916

Eliphalet Inthe Price was born on the "Glen Fruin" farm December 16th, 1851. It was several months after his birth before it was decided what his name should be. The mother of Judge Price resided in New York City and had for many years insisted that one of the boys should be named after her husband, whose name was Eliphalet Price, a life long minister, promulgating the Presbyterian doctrine and abolition, and who had baptized many hundreds of his followers in the Hudson river and along the ocean beach of New Jersey regardless of color, complexion or nationality. It was on a Sunday morning, when Judge Price took down from the shelf over the old fire place the Bible, and after dusting away the smoke dust with a turkey wing, he turned to the first chapter of Genesis, and read aloud to the family these words: "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth." The Judge stopped and said: "My mother insists that the boy must be named Eliphalet after Father. I now yield to her wish, but all our children must have a middle name. I will put together the first two words of this Bible, which I regard as the greatest historical work that has ever been compiled by man and read by the people of all the civilized nations of the world. His name shall be Eliphalet Inthe Price," He was postmaster of Colorado Springs for eight years. At the expiration of his term he removed to San Jose, in Santa Clara county, California, where he was married to Miss Ida Caufman, late of Henry county, Iowa, a lady of culture, and a kind and instructive mother of three boys born to them, to-wit: Eliphalet C. Price, born January 13, 1897. Oliver S. Price, born July 26, 1899. David W. Price born April 28, 1902. He has a fine home with a thirty-acre prune and apricot orchard.

Realto Exzeque Price was born in a log cabin on the "Black Spring" farm in Section 11 in Jefferson township, Clayton county, Iowa, on August ist, 1840. He passed his early life in the common school and at the Upper Iowa University at Fayette during the college year of 1857 and 1858, and on the farm. In May, 1860, he entered the law office of Murdock & Hunt, at Elkader, where he remained two years. The next nine months he worked in the law office of Odell & Updegraff, at McGregor, on a salary of eight dollars a month and board. In January, 1863, he was admitted to the bar, and at the same time entered into a partnership with B. F. Hunt in the practice of law at Elkader, which partnership continued for six years and was dissolved, Mr. Hunt having been elected Circuit Judge, retiring from the firm. Marvin Cook, who had practiced law for about one year in Elkader, then became a partner under the firm name of Price & Cook, which continued from November ist, 1869, to January ist, 1873, when Mr. Cook was elected County Clerk. Since then Mr. Price practiced law alone until his son, Valmah Tupelo Price, had finished a four year course in the collegiate department and a two year course in the law department of the University of the State of Iowa, receiving a diploma in each department. He then went into partnership with his father August ist, 1891, under the firm name of R. E. & V. T. Price, which partnership still continues. In politics R. E. Price was a Republican, but did not have any desire for office but preferred to follow his vocation and help other deserving candidates to office. However, at the time of incorporating the town of Elkader, he did accept the office of councilman and served twenty-two years and three months faithfully working with other councilmen in getting the town incorporated, and devoted much time personally in overseeing the work of putting in the construction of the waterworks and in compelling the C. M. & St. Paul Railroad Co. to extend their railroad four and one-half miles from Stulta in Pony Hollow to Elkader, by legal proceeding before the railroad commissioners of Iowa and many other services rendered the town and county, and all that he received was twenty-two and 50/100 dollars ($22.50). He is a stockholder in the First National Bank, has been director for thirty-two years, vice-president for eighteen years, and has been president since January 12th, 1904, twelve years. Realto Exzeque Price was married to Miss Sarah Filetta Stewart, in Elkader, Iowa, on October 16th, 1866. To them were born three sons, Valmah Tupelo Price, born at Elkader, Clayton county, Iowa, October 11th, 1867; James R. Price, born at Elkader, Clayton county, Iowa, February 17th, 1872, and died at the same place on May 22nd, 1877; Stewart Realto Price, born at Elkader, Clayton county, Iowa, October 22nd, 1879. Valmah Tupelo Price, son of Realto Exzeque and Sarah Filetta Stewart, was married to Miss Nelly Peery, a daughter of Judge Stephen and Mrs. Emma Peery, May 31st, 1894, at San Diego, Cal. To them were born three children, Filetta Winifred Price, born at San Diego, Cal., June 11, 1895, and died at Elkader, Iowa, March 21, 1890; Herbert Peery Price was born at Elkader, Iowa, July 17th, 1901; Valmah Tupelo Price, Jr., was born at Elkader, Iowa, July 2nd, 1910. All the rest of the Price family were born in the old log cabin on the farm named "Glen Fruin," being the east half of Section 14 in Jeflferson township, Clayton county, Iowa, except Alpine.

Trevereous Glorian Price was born on the "Glen Fruin" farm on June 27th, 1846. In 1863 he enlisted as a private in Company A, 4th Regiment Iowa Infantry Volunteers, and served until the close of the war. After being mustered out he studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1868. He received an appointment as Railroad Postal Clerk on the road between Dubuque, Iowa, and St. Paul, Minn., which he held for about four years, when he was elected and appointed postmaster at Elkader, which position he held four years, and then moved to Burlington, Kit Carson county, Colo., where he was elected Clerk of Kit Carson county, and held the office four years. He was elected a member of the legislature of Colorado from Kit Carson county, and served one term, and is now serving his second term as Mayor of the town of Burlington, Colorado. He has been a resident of Burlington for twenty-nine years. He was married to Mary Hawn who died in Elkader, Clayton county, Iowa, on August 18th, 1879, leaving one son, named Avalo Price, who resides in Denver, Colo. Miss Illyria Ann Price was born on the “Glen Fruin” farm July 7th, 1848, and kept house for her father in Colorado Springs until her death on June 3rd, 1873. Miss Mary Ellen Price was born on the "Glen Fruin" farm on March 16th, 1850. Ellen was an invalid all her life and died on March lath, 1914.

Valmah Valentine Price was born on the "Glen Fruin" farm September 15th, 1842. He enlisted as a private in Company H, of the Twelfth Regiment Iowa Infantry Volunteers, and under the command of Captain Henry J. Playtor was ordered to Kentucky, and on arrival there went into battle and captured Fort Henry and a number of prisoners, and then into battle at Fort Donelson, which was captured and many confederates taken. He was in the battle of Shiloh in company with the Twelfth, Eighth and Fourteenth regiments, who fought gallantly all day and at sunset surrendered, and were taken to that loathsome death hole at Andersonville, an everlasting disgrace to the chivalry and autocrats of the confederacy. They were exchanged in about eight months. Valmah again enlisted in Company H of the Twelfth Iowa Regiment Infantry Volunteers, and while acting orderly sergeant of the company at the battle of Tupelo in Mississippi on the 15th day of July, 1864, he was badly wounded and thrown into a freight car and taken to Mobile, where he died on July 28th, 1864. A patriotic Union lady at Mobile took charge of the bodies of the Iowa soldiers and had them buried in a cemetery and a stone placed at the head of their graves. This information was received by R. E. Price from a sealed letter addressed to him and postmarked at Mobile and containing a printed slip cut from a newspaper.

As printed in History of Clayton County, Iowa : from the earliest historical times down to the present : including a genealogical and biographical record of many representative families, prepared from data obtained (1916). See the original pages. Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.