Alexander Dobbin & Catharine Zwilling Dobbin

From the 1912 book Past and Present of Marshall County, Iowa, Volume 1, pages 584-587:
ALEXANDER DOBBIN.
Holding prestige among the successful men of affairs of today, Alexander Dobbin has had much to do in advancing the material interests of the town of State Center, of which he is at present the efficient and popular mayor, and he is one of the progressive, public-spirited citizens of Marshall county. The study of such a life cannot fail of interest and incentive to the youth whose destiny is a matter for future years to determine.

Mr. Dobbin was born in Greenwich, Washington county, New York, August 15, 1843, the son of Samuel Dobbin, Jr., who was born in county Antrim, Ireland, in 1794, came to America when young and spent the balance of his life here, dying in Washington county, New York, May 16, 1866, and is buried at South Argyle United Presbyterian church, New York. He married Elizabeth Christy, who was born on the same farm as was her son, Alexander Dobbin, of this review, February 24, 1800, and her death occurred in DeKalb county, Illinois, February, 1877. They were the parents of thirteen children, all born in Washington county.

The Dobbin family can claim a sterling lineage, The subject's grandfather and brothers were in the rebellion of 1798 in Ireland and fled to America to avoid further severe prosecution from the English government. Previous to this the family had taken refuge in Ireland to avoid prosecution from the French government. The original name of the family was D'Aubin, and they were Huguenots.

Alexander Dobbin was reared and educated in Washington county, New York, and while still a resident of that locality the great war between the states came on and he enlisted from his native town in Company A, One Hundred and Twenty-third New York Volunteer Infantry, in 1862 and he served very faithfully until the close of the war. He was in every battle in which his regiment was engaged except Gettysburg. He was taken prisoner at Chancellorsville and confined at Castle Thunder, Richmond, but was paroled fifteen days later. He was with the Army of the Potomac until he was sent west to augment the Army of the Cumberland. He was with Sherman on his famous march to the sea and was in all the engagements in the Atlanta campaign and saw some strenuous service. He was in the Twentieth Army Corps in the Grand Review in Washington City at the close of the war. After being honorably discharged he returned to New York and remained in his home state until 1872, when he came to Marshall county, Iowa, and settled in State Center township and he has been a continuous resident here since. He was married on February 21, 1884, to Catharine Zwilling, who was born in Indiana, April 2, 1850. She is the daughter of Henry and Julia (Howald) Zwilling, natives of the province of Alsace, formerly France, now a part of Germany, the father's birth occurring on January 30, 1813, and that of the mother on July 25, 1811; they grew up in their native country and came to America in early life, and the father's death occurred in DeKalb county, Indiana, September 20, 1861, and the mother died in State Center, Iowa, January 28, 1892, having survived her husband over thirty years. They were the parents of ten children.

Two children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Dobbin, namely: Martha Z., born April 11, 1887, completed the high school course at State Center with the highest honors, later entered Grinnell College, from which institution she was graduated in 1909, being elected to the honorary fraternity of Phi Beta Kappa; she is at present engaged as instructor in languages in the public schools of Onawa, Iowa, and is regarded as a talented and most successful instructor. Henry Alexander Dobbin was born June 5, 1893, and he was graduated from the high school at State Center with the class of 1911.

Mr. Dobbin has been very successful as a business man, his chief life work having been agriculture, in which he still retains an interest, owning one of the choice farms of this part of the county, consisting of three hundred and twenty acres, which he has kept highly improved and which is one of the model farms of State Center township. He also owns valuable lands in Canada. Having secured a competency, he retired from active farming work some time ago and is living in State Center, of which city he is the present mayor, having been appointed to fill a vacancy, and he discharged his duties so faithfully that he was re-elected at the expiration of the term. For twenty years he has served as township trustee, and was a member of the school board while living in the country; and he has been honored in that capacity since moving to State Center. He was the first president of the Farmers' Co-Operative Creamery of State Center, serving two terms. He was assessor of State Center township for a number of years. Politically, he is a Republican and he had the honor of casting his first vote for Lincoln. He and his family attend the Presbyterian church at State Center.

March 3, 1938 State Center Enterprise.