1914 Delaware Co., IA History pgs. 225-226

Hurlburt Moulton is living retired in Hopkinton after many years of varied and successful labor. He was born in Vermont on the 10th of December, 1829, a son of Reuben Moulton. His mother died when he was an infant but his father survived until he had attained the age of sixty-two years, when he met death by accident as he was hauling hay.

Hurlburt Moulton was educated in the public schools near his home and at the age of fifteen years he left home and made his way to Jo Daviess
county, Illinois, where he worked in the lead mines for five years. In 1849 he came to Delaware county, Iowa, locating in North Fork township,
two miles south of Rockville, which was then the only town of any size in the county although Delhi was the county seat. He purchased one hundred and sixty acres of land on a soldier's government warrant, paying sixty-six cents an acre, and a little later bought an eighty acre tract
adjoining his first purchase, paying seventy dollars for eighty acres. In 1882 he sold his land for forty dollars an acre, which was a great advance
over the price paid, but the same land would now easily bring one hundred and forty dollars per acre. For a number of years he has resided in
Hopkinton and in the evening of life is enjoying a leisure which is his by right of former labor.

At the time of the Mexican war Mr. Moulton desired to enlist but was not accepted as he was only sixteen years of age. In 1864 he journeyed with an ox team to the gold mines of Idaho, as there was no railroad west of Omaha leading in that direction, and it took his party from May to September to reach their destination. They returned by mule team to Denver, Colorado, but from that point traveled by railroad. They did not succeed in finding much gold but the experience that they gained was invaluable and Mr. Moulton declares that he has never regretted the five hundred dollars nor the time that the trip cost him.

In 1849 he was married, in Jo Daviess county, Illinois, to Miss Catherine Eggleston, a native of Ohio, born December 30, 1828. To this marriage were born eight children, Elma, Ella G., Carrie E., .Mary D., Clara M., Charles H., Clarence G. and Mabel B., of whom only three survive. Clara died at the age of twenty years and the others died when quite young. Ella is the wife of C. P. Joseph of Hopkinton; Charles lives at Grand View in the Yakima Valley of Washington; and Clarence is located at Kalispell, Montana.

Mr. and Mrs. Moulton belong to the Methodist Episcopal church and are always willing to do their shared in the furtherance of its work. Mr.
Moulton gives his political allegiance to the republican party and has served as township treasurer, as a member of the school board, as constable and as a member of the town council. His residence is situated at the end of Main street, which it overlooks, and is one of the
comfortable homes of the town. He and his wife are well known in Hopkinton and are among the most highly esteemed couples in that town. They recount many interesting incidents of the early days in the history of the state and so aid in making more vivid in the minds of the present generation the days when Iowa was not the prosperous agricultural section of today but instead a pioneer district with but little land under cultivation.

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