Judge William H. Fahey, of Perry, who, on the 13th of April, 1907, was appointed superior judge in, recognition of pronounced legal ability which he had displayed in the private practice of law, is one of Iowa's native sons, having been born in Des Moines, on the 31st of July, 1872. His parents were William and Mary (Qualey) Fahey, the former born in Tipperary county, Ireland, and the latter in county Clare, Ireland. They were married, however, in Canada. William Fahey crossed the Atlantic on a sailing vessel in the early '40s and landed at Quebec. For some time he was in the railroad service in the employ of the Vermont Central Railroad Company and following his marriage, in the fall of 1854, he sought a home in the middle west, arriving in Des Moines in the spring of 1855. There he was engaged in teaming and contracting until 1872, when he turned his attention to farming, purchasing and cultivating a tract of land three and a half miles southeast of Perry. He was a very active man until he had passed the age of eighty years and the success which he had achieved was attributable entirely to his own well directed labors and unfaltering diligence. He belonged to the Roman Catholic church and in politics was a Jacksonian democrat. He died in November, 1906, and is still survived by his wife, who yet lives in Perry. They were the parents of six sons and two daughters, of whom four are now living: Mrs. Mary Aylwood, who is living in Perry; Thomas; Bridget; Jerry; John F.; and William H.

A student in the schools of Perry in his boyhood days, Judge Fahey afterward had the advantage of training in the Capital Commercial College at Des Moines, and prepared for the practice of law as a student in the Iowa College of Law in Des Moines. After completing his collegiate work he was for some time associated with Judge W. H. and Walter McHenry of Des Moines, and when twenty-one years of age was admitted to the bar. In the spring of 1894 he removed to Harrison county, Iowa, where he spent a few months, and in the spring of 1895 he came to Perry, where he has since engaged in practice. He was alone for several years and on the 7th of March, 1902, he became a partner of Walter W. Cardell, which relation was maintained until the 1st of October, 1906, when Mr. Cardell withdrew on account of ill health. Since that time Judge Fahey has been alone in practice. He served as justice of the peace for two years, was city solicitor for four years and deputy county attorney for one year. On the 13th of April, 1907, he received appointment to the position of superior judge of Perry and is now acting in that capacity, making an excellent record by reason of the fairness and impartiality of his decisions, which are based upon the law and the equity in the case.

On the 22d of August, 1899, Mr. Fahey was married to Miss Grace French, a daughter of George H. and Myra (DeGolyer) French, the former born in Massachusetts, September 9, 1835, and the latter in New York in 1839. They were married in the Empire state, March 14, 1861, and are now living in Perry, Iowa. Their family numbered five children, four of whom survive, Mrs. Fahey being the third in order of birth. By her marriage she has become the mother of one son, William L., born June 27, 1900.

Judge Fahey is a republican in politics, and while deeply interested in the growth and success of the party, the only offices which he has sought are in the direct path of his profession. He stands as a strong representative of that calling which has been depended upon to conserve the best and permanent interests of the whole people by furthering the ends of justice and maintaining individual rights.

Isaac J. Farlow  

Among the resident's of Adel who were at one time closely associated with agricultural interests but are now living retired is Isaac J. Farlow, who was born in Rush county, Indiana, April 11, 1827.  He has therefore reached the eightieth milestone on life's journey and is now comfortably situated in a pleasant home amidst many friends in the county seat.      

How blessed is he     
Who crowns in shades like these, 
A youth of labor     
With an age of ease.  

His father, Reuben Farlow, was born in North Carolina in February, 1785, and in 1811 emigrated to the territory of Indiana, into which few white settlers had made their way, that state being then largely under the dominion of the red race. He participated in the wars against the Indians and acted as guard in one of the block houses built on the frontier. He followed farming as a life work and died July 25, 1854. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Elizabeth Odell, was born in North Carolina in 1795 and spent her last days among her children, passing away November 10, 1873. The family numbered ten children, of whom three died in .infancy.   The others are: David, who died in Indiana in early manhood; Julia, the deceased wife of Henry Mills, an early settler of Colfax township, this county; Isaac J., of this review; Lucinda, the wife of John Bringham, of Colfax township; Lafayette, who is living in Louisiana; Deborah, the deceased wife of William Jenkins, of this county; and Matteson, an attorney of Madison county, Indiana.  

Isaac J. Farlow acquired a common-school education and when quite young began to work on the farm, doing such tasks in the fields and meadows as his age and strength permitted. He remained on his father's farm until twenty-one years of age and then learned the carpenter's trade, though he served no regular apprenticeship.  He also worked in a mill.  In 1853, in company with two men, he made a trip to Iowa, going down the Ohio river and up the Mississippi to Keokuk and from there walked to Adel and Panora.  He spent the winter here and then made the journey on foot as far as the Mississippi and by boat to his old home.  In 1854, however, he came here again and engaged in carpentering for about two rears. In 1853 he had entered one hundred and twenty acres of land but did not locate thereon until 1856, when he turned his attention to farming. He taught the first school in Colfax township in the winter of 1858-59 in his own home.  

For many years he successfully and perseveringly carried on general agricultural pursuits, bringing his fields under a high state of cultivation and making the place very productive. He then left the farm and has since lived in Adel, being retired from active business life at present, though after coming to the city he was interested in several business enterprises. For three years he conducted an elevator, buying and shipping grain and for three years owned a half interest in the Adel mill. When on the farm he engaged extensively in buying, feeding and shipping cattle and found this a profitable source of income. He has also dealt in land, owning at different times more than fifteen hundred acres, and he still owns an excellent farm of two hundred and thirty acres in Adel township, from which he derives a good annual income.  

Mr. Farlow was married in Adair county to Miss Ellen Bringham, who was born in Tippecanoe county, Indiana, July 18, 1837, a daughter of Jesse and Rachel Bringham, who lived on a farm in Cedar county, Iowa, but both are now deceased.  Mrs. Farlow has a brother, John Bringham, who resides in Colfax township.  Unto Mr. and Mrs. Farlow have been born eight children:  Henry, who is now county treasurer of Fremont county, Wyoming; Nelson, who owns and lives on a ranch three miles from Red Bluff, California; Edward, engaged in the real-estate business at Lander, Wyoming; Riley, a farmer of Dallas county; Emma, wife of Lon B. Smith, a merchant of Adel; Albert, who is living in Montana; Ida, who is at home; and Dolly, who died at the age of eighteen years.  

When Mr. Farlow came to this county there were only two houses between Adel and Des Moines. The broad prairie stretched away for miles, covered with its native prairie grasses and wild flowers, resembling a great billowy green sea. It was some years before the land was taken up by permanent settlers but now there is hardly an uncultivated acre.  He bore his full share in reclaiming the prairie for the uses of civilization and has also taken his full part in the work of the county's upbuilding and improvement. After their marriage he and his wife began housekeeping in a part of the old log building which had been used for the first courthouse of the county and he and his partner had a carpenter shop at one end of old courthouse No. 2. He well remembers the building of the third courthouse in 1858 and since that time he has been an interested witness of the various changes which have occurred and of the transformation which has been wrought in bringing the county to his present state of development and improvement. He came to Iowa a poor man and as the years have passed he has been quite successful in his business undertakings, until now he is very comfortably situated in life.  

In politics Mr. Farlow is a democrat but without aspiration for office.  He has been an Odd Fellow since 1864 and for the past ten years he and his wife have been consistent and faithful members of the Christian church.  They are worthy citizens, esteemed by all who know them, and it is with pleasure that we present their life record to our readers.  As pioneer settlers they are acquainted with almost the entire history of the county and their memory forms a connecting link between the primitive past and the progressive present.

P. G. Farnsley is one of the large landowners and prosperous farmers of Boone township, his home being on section 29, where he has a valuable farm, its rich and well tilled fields being proof of his practical and progressive spirit. In its midst stands a beautiful residence; supplied with all modern conveniences and in the pastures are found good grades of stock -- which indicates one branch of his business.

Mr. Farnsley is a native of the Hoosier state, his birth having occurred in Harrison county, Indiana, on the 3d of January, 1861. His father, David Martin Farnsley, was born in the same county in 1818, and was a son of David Farnsley, whose birth occurred in a block house -- one of the old forts of Kentucky -- now within the city limits of Louisville. The family comes of Scotch ancestry, the great-grandfather of our subject and one of his brothers emigrating to the new world and casting in their lot among the early settlers of Pennsylvania. The family was also established in Harrison county, Indiana, in pioneer days, and thus in three different states has contributed to the early development and upbuilding.

David Martin Farnsley was reared to manhood in Indiana and was there married to Miss Eliza Ann Zenor, a native of that state and an own cousin of William T. Zenor, member of congress from Indiana. Mr. Farnsley followed the occupation of farming in Harrison county and in the winter months ran a flatboat, loaded with stock and farm products, down the Ohio and Mississippi rivers to New Orleans. He reared his family in Harrison county and while living there lost his wife. Later he joined his son, P. G. Farnsley, in Paducah, Kentucky, where his last days were spent.

P. G. Farnsley, whose name introduces this review, and who is familiarly known as Peter by his numerous friends, was reared to manhood in Harrison county, Indiana, and is largely a self-educated as well as a self-made man. From his native state he went to Illinois and subsequently to Kentucky, where for three years he was engaged in truck gardening, making his home in Paducah. In 1884 he came to Iowa, making a permanent location in Boone township. He was first employed by the month as a farm hand by William D. Boone on the farm where he now resides. Here he became acquainted with and later married Miss Margaret Boone, a daughter of his employer and sister of Joshua Boone, who is mentioned elsewhere in this volume. The wedding was celebrated on the 19th of December, 1893. After their marriage Mr. Farnsley located on a farm in Madison county, which he had purchased a few years before, but later he purchased the old Boone homestead. His wife inherited one hundred and seventy-eight acres of land and this, together with the various purchases that he has made, makes their landed holdings one thousand acres. This includes some of the best land in Dallas county, a part of it lying along the bottoms of the branch of the Raccoon river. The soil is particularly fertile and productive and brings forth abundant harvests. After buying this farm Mr. Farnsley obtained a nine thousand dollar loan on the land at Russell Bank, Adel, and with this capital to assist him in its cultivation he proceeded to improve and develop the place. Knowing the value of drainage, he has tiled the fields, has fenced the place and it is now said to be one of the best improved farms in the entire county. He raises the cereals best adapted to soil and climatic conditions and in connection with this work he has made a business of raising, feeding and fattening stock for the market, while at the present time he has his farm rented, so that the active work of the fields is done by others. He still feeds and fattens about two hundred head of cattle and about one hundred and fifty head of hogs annually. He is widely recognized as a very energetic and diligent man, whose activity in business has won him gratifying prosperity. He has recently completed a large two-story residence near Boonesville, which is one of the most commodious and attractive farm homes in Dallas county. It is heated with hot water and there is also a coal grate in the sitting room that the light of an open fire may be enjoyed, while a similar arrangement prevails in one of the guest rooms above. There is a bath room, with hot and cold water piped to various parts of the house, and in fact this residence is one which would be most creditable to a large city. It is of pleasing architectural design and was erected at a cost of ten thousand dollars. Mr. Farnsley has built two or three barns and convenient outbuildings, and in tiling and fencing his improvements have cost him twenty-five thousand dollars. The expense and labor which he has put upon his place makes this one of the ideal farm properties of the great Mississippi valley. No longer do the city homes surpass in convenience, comfort and beauty those to be found upon the farms. On the contrary the country home often has opportunities for comfort not found in the crowded city, and the residence of Mr. Farnsley is such a one as would prove attractive to almost any individual. Moreover, it stands as a monument to his well directed thrift and industry.

Both Mr. and Mrs. Farnsley are members of the Booneville Methodist Episcopal church and in the work of the Sunday school he has taken a very active and helpful part, having served now for fifteen years as superintendent. He is an Odd Fellow, belonging to the lodge in Boonesville, in which he has filled all of the chain and is a past grand. His political views are with the principles of the democracy. His strong characteristics are such as make him in many respects an exemplary man and his strict integrity and worth under all circumstances have commended him to the good-will and confidence of the public. His name has become a synonym for honor in business transactions and, moreover, his record should serve as a source of inspiration and encouragement to others, showing what may be accomplished through individual effort. He started in life without capital, but realizing the force and value of industry and perseverance he has thus overcome all the difficulties and obstacles in his path.

Jacob Forret, a native son of Germany, was born August 1, 1856, and is a son of Nicholas and Margaret Forret, both natives of Germany. In 1863 they came to America, where they located in Dallas county, Iowa, on a farm. The mother is still living upon this place, while the father passed away in 1868. To their union were born eleven children, nine of whom are still living: Madaline, the wife of Nicholas Feller, who lives in Miner county, South Dakota; Nicholas, Jr., a resident of Boone township, Dallas county; Matt and John, who are living here; Anthony of Van Meter township; Edward, Champ, and Elizabeth, the wife of Thomas Chushing, all residents of Boone township; and Jacob, of this review.

Jacob Forret was only seven years of age when his parents came to America, so that he had scarcely time to acquire much of the German education. He has, however, received the advantages of the public schools of America, but like most farmers' sons, was obliged to divide his time between the schoolroom and the fields. His practical training came largely from the assistance which he gave his father upon the old home farm. When he started out for himself he rented a piece of land for ten years and worked it as conscientiously as though it had belonged to him. That he was well repaid for his labor on this ground is evidenced by the abundant returns which he received. He was thus enabled to buy three hundred and twenty acres of land in Sheridan county, Nebraska, and it was here that he lived for five years, improving the land and adding buildings necessary to carrying on his agricultural pursuits. He subsequently returned to Dallas county, where he bought the old home farm. With the sentiment which usually attaches to the place upon which one has spent his boyhood, Mr. Forret took an unusual interest in remodeling the buildings and in adopting the progressive methods and implements which should put his home place upon an equal footing with the newer farms of the vicinity. He has since then purchased three acres on section 16, where he has built a home and now lives a retired life. That his agricultural life has been a success is evidenced by the fact that he now owns two hundred and eighty acres of land in Dallas county and three hundred and twenty acres in Nebraska.

Mr. Forret was married in 1878 to Mary Kubitschek, a native of Bohemia, where she was born June 28, 1861. She is a daughter of Frank and Pauline Kubitschek, natives of Bohemia, who came to America in 1870 and located in Dallas county. To their union five children were born, four of whom are now living, namely: Mrs. Forret; Frank, who now lives at Eagle Grove, Wright county, Iowa; Adolph, a resident of the same place;and Pauline, the wife of Frank Christen, who is living in Bohemia. The parents of these children are still living in their native land, to which they returned in 1891 and where they anticipate spending the balance of their days. To Mr. and.Mrs. Jacob Forret no children have been born but they have adopted a son, whose name is Edward Kautzky. They recently presented him one hundred and sixty acres of their Nebraska land.