Clark ELLIS

CLARK ELLIS<br>Clark Ellis of the village of Little Sioux, came from Brown County,Ohio with his mother and eight other children, in the spring of 1855,by the way of boat to St. Joseph, Missouri and by stage to Harrison County and located inJackson Township, where they rented a farm one year, after which his mother andsix of her sons preempted land in this county. Clark was a little past eleven years old. At the time there were but few people in the township and the nearestmarket point was Kanesville. The first winter their main food was hominy, and hewell remembers of even eating the siftings from corn meal. There was plenty ofgame which helped out their subsistence in a good degree. He tells of being obliged, in the winter of 1856-57, to go to bed through the day to keep from freezing while the snow sifted through theshakes of the roof until it was a foot deepall over the house. He remained at home and when seventeen years of age he wasthe main support for his mother and six children, as his two older brothers hadbecome soldiers in the Civil War. In the month of August, 1862, he and two brothers, A. B. M.and John H., enlisted in Company C, 29th Iowa Infantry. He went South and served three years, was mustered out at Davenport, Iowa, feeling that hehad done his share toward putting down the rebellion. He participated in the battles of Helena,Ark.,Vicksburg; fought their way to Little Rock and was in the battle at Saline River, Ark., which lasted seven or eight hours, and the mud was knee deep. They returned to Little Rock, then went to Spanish Fort by the way ofNew Orleans where they had a severe engagement, also Whistler Station. He was taken sick with the lung fever soon after the Saline River engagement, and was inthe hospital two weeks, after which he was detailed in the hospital department,where he commenced his first experience in the drug business; he got back to theranks a short time before he was discharged and resumed farm life in Little Sioux Township, which he followed ten years, during which time he studied the drugbusiness, and had been in the drug store at odd times in Little Sioux.<br>May 1,1875, he purchased his present location and moved in a stock of drugs, and hascontinued in this business ever since. As early as when he was eight years old,upon going into a drug store, he resolved that if he lived to be a man he wouldbecome a druggist.<br>Our subject was born in Brown County, Ohio, October 25, 1843, the son of John and Hannah Martin Ellis, and is the twelfth of a family of thirteen children, all of whom grew to be adults. He attended his first school inBrown County, Ohio, and after schools were provided in Harrison County he attended here, but most of his knowledge has been gained by home study and practicalexperience.<br>Mr. Ellis was united in marriage February 14, 1867 with Edna Hall, anative of Missouri, born January 14,1852, and the daughter of Andrew Hall. Her mother died when she was yet a small child. The home of Mr.and Mrs. Ellis, hasbeen blessed by the advent of three children;Rufus N., Effie May and Samuel Strausser.<br>Our subject is a member of Lodge No. 389, I.O.O.F. and Frontier LodgeNo. 382 of the Masonic Order at Little Sioux.<br><br>Harrison County History pp. 836-7 published 1891

Comments