The personality of Mr. Howe as described by those who know him best, is that of a quiet, courteous gentleman, amiable and kind to all. His patience in teaching the young reporter and his indulgent ignoring of the mistakes of his office force, have been frequently remarked upon. It is said that he never discharged anyone, but always assisted them to make good. To those who have been associated with him he is a greater man than he is to those who only know him through the printed page, and the longer and closer the acquaintance, the more remarkable seems his genius.
WILLIAM F. SPEER.
William F. Speer showed his good judgment in coming to Kansas. It was not his fault that he was not born in the great Sunflower State, but he immediately recognized that the next best thing to being a native born “Jayhawker” was to spend as many years as possible in the prosperous State, and although he was only three months old at the time he has never had occasion to reverse his judgment. In fact, he likes it better every year, and in all the fifty-five years he has lived in Kansas he has always held to his first preference for Kansas territory.
William F. Speer was born January 8, 1860, but when spring came his parents, Joseph and Mary (Fountain) Speer, whose history is written under the name of Anna D. Speer, a sister, came to Atchison county, Kansas, from their former home in Madison county, Iowa. The parents settled on the farm which William Speer now owns and brought him up in the way he should go, including some schooling at the district school house. His meagre time in school was only a breathing spell for the heavier duties which awaited him on his father’s farm, and William was early drafted for service and had to help along with his eight brothers and sisters. When the father’s estate was divided he bought the home place of 160 acres, which he has improved a great deal since that time.
In 1889 Mr. Speer married Cora Spangler, who was born March 6, 1866, in Malden, Ill. She was the daughter of LeRoy and Lucendia (Smith) Spangler, both natives of Ohio, who came to Brown county, Kansas in 1870, where they remained until 1876, when they moved to Grasshopper township, Atchison county. They moved to Edmond, Okla., in 1900. The father died in 1913, at the age of seventy-four years, and the mother passed away in 1906, at the age of sixty-seven years. Mr. and Mrs. Spangler had six children, as follows: Alfred, of Marion county, Kansas; George, of Edmond, Okla.; Cora, the wife of William Speer; Joseph, deceased; Curtis and Irvin, of Kansas City, Mo. Mr. and Mrs. Speer have seven children, all of whom are living at home, with the exception of Ralph, who is manager of the Muscotah farmers’ elevator. The children living at home are: Lela, LeRoy, Lucy, Anna Belle, Frank, and Marjorie.
EDMUND BULLOCK.
Edmund Bullock, late of Muscotah, Kan., was born in January, 1838, at Cornwall, England, and departed this life July 27, 1892. He was a son of Frank Bullock, who with his family immigrated to Canada in 1846, and crossed the border to become a resident of the United States in 1853, finally settling in Wisconsin. Edmund was reared to young manhood in Wisconsin, and married there in 1869. Three years later, in 1872, he and his young wife came to Kansas, settling in Muscotah, Atchison county. Edmund Bullock was a skilled tinsmith, and his first work in Muscotah was the opening of a small shop which served as a place to ply his trade, and also as their home for some time. He prospered as time went on and added a stock of stoves and tinware, and later established a larger store and carried hardware of all kinds in stock. For several years after coming to Muscotah he made all of the tinware sold from his shop. For the first five years of their residence in Muscotah the tin shop was divided and half of it served as a residence for Mr. and Mrs. Bullock. A sister of Mrs. Bullock lived with them and conducted a millinery store in the living room. Mr. Bullock first worked in Greenleaf, Kan., when he came west, and Mrs. Bullock stayed with friends in Frankfort. He heard of Muscotah and decided to locate here.
Mr. Bullock was married in 1869 to Miss Emma Graham, a native of Wisconsin, and a daughter of Gustavus and Sarah Maria Graham, who were both born in New York State. For fifteen years previous to her demise Mrs. Bullock’s mother, Mrs. Sarah Maria Hale, made her home with her daughter, dying September 29, 1915, at the great age of 100 years and nine months.
Edmund Bullock was a Union veteran, who enlisted in 1862 in the Twenty-fifth Wisconsin regiment of volunteers and served until the close of the Civil war, participating in several hard-fought engagements with his regiment. He was affiliated with the Grand Army of the Republic and the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons. He was prominent in Masonic circles and was well versed in Masonry. Politically, Mr. Bullock was a Republican, who voted independently on local and county matters. He was reared in the Episcopalian faith, but was a liberal donator to all denominations who sought his assistance. He was an honest, straight-forward citizen who was blessed with a jolly disposition and had a fund of anecdotes which he was continually retailing to a crowd of interested listeners, especially children who would gather around him at times when he was not busy and listened enthralled to his wonder tales. Mr. and Mrs. Bullock lived an ideal married life and were deeply devoted to each other.