The following biographical sketch was published in 1952 in The Story of Iowa, The Progress of an American State, Family and Personal History, Volume III.
WILLIAM VANCE WILLCOX – A pioneer in the insurance field in Iowa, William Vance Willcox devoted more than half a century of his life to that activity. There remained, however, a number of years not spent behind a desk; years of adventure, of service during the Civil War, of filling the office of sheriff in Hardin County when that area was, less settled and the gun was law. In all, William Vance Willcox led an active, full life, between the time when Iowa was the frontier and the time it achieved its present rank among the states of the Union.
William Vance Willcox was born in Columbus, Franklin County, Ohio, December 17, 1846. His father, Edmund Willcox, was a farmer, grain merchant, and store keeper in Solon and Iowa City, whither the family ultimately moved; his wife was the former Elizabeth Ingham. Their son attended rural school in Johnson County, near Iowa City; but while still a youth in his teens, enlisted in the Union forces for service in the Civil War. Mustered out of the Army at the end of that bitter conflict, Mr. Willcox determined to resume his education. He entered the University of Iowa, and spent one year in residence there before entering the employ of Moorman's General Store in Eldora, Hardin County. After his first job, he became associated with his father, Edmund, and his brother, George, in buying and selling grain. In the seventies, he entered the local insurance business in Eldora, in association with C. E. Albrook and James Hardin, selling fire insurance for the Hawkeye Fire Insurance Company of Des Moines.
The early eighties were an exciting period in Mr. Willcox's career. It was then that he was elected sheriff of Hardin County, and held that office for several terms during a period when the notorious Rainsbarger gang was terrorizing the county. The four brothers, who were the dominant figures in this outfit, were thoroughly unpopular with the local citizenry. Two of them were killed by a mob which broke into the jail while Sheriff Willcox was out of town placing the other two brothers under arrest. These survivors were later convicted of murder, and sentenced to life in state prison.
At the completion of his service as sheriff, Mr. Willcox accepted the more peaceful position of special agent for the Hawkeye Insurance Company for the northern half of Iowa. He was now the father of a family, and realizing the importance of education for his children, he moved his family to Des Moines, in 1889, to give them the opportunity of attending Drake University. In 1896. Mr. Willcox bought a half interest in the oldest insurance agency in Des Moines, the Ryman-Howell and Company, which then became Willcox-Howell and Company. When this agency was later incorporated, Mr. Willcox became its president, a position he held until his death on October 12, 1925, after he had completed more than a half century in the insurance business in the state of Iowa. In addition, he occupied for a time the position of pension agent in Des Moines, a post to which he had been appointed by the Hon. J. A. T. Hull, congressman. Mr. Willcox was a Republican in his politics.
In the activities of the Grand Army of the Republic, William Vance Willcox was interested from the time of his period of service with the Union Army. He had enlisted at sixteen, and became a bugler in Company H, 8th Iowa Cavalry. He became commander of Crocker Post, Grand Army of the Republic.
He was also a member of the Masonic Lodge and Adelphic Chapter, Consistory, and Ancient Arabic Order of Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. He was president of the Rainbow Class in 1919. Mr. Willcox was a communicant of the Church of Christ in Des Moines.
At Eldora, Iowa, October 13, 1868, William Vance Willcox married Elizabeth Anne Parks, daughter of George Washington and Rebecca (Copeland) Parks. Mr. and Mrs. Willcox were the parents of five children: 1. Elizabeth Willcox. 2. Jessie Lee, who married A. D. McKerchar. 3. Mona Anne, who married Burtram Collver Hopkins. 4. Maggie. 5. Myra. The two last-named daughters died in infancy.
On October 12, 1925, William Vance Willcox died. He had seen Iowa grow from a few sparsely settled frontier towns to its present position of importance in the economic scheme of the nation, and had contributed in no small measure to that growth. He had exercised the force of the law to bring peace to his community, had fought to bring victory to the northern states and union to the nation, and had built up a business which many times proved its value in the capital city. When he died it was recognized that in his passing one of the pioneers had departed.
WILLIAM VANCE WILLCOX – A pioneer in the insurance field in Iowa, William Vance Willcox devoted more than half a century of his life to that activity. There remained, however, a number of years not spent behind a desk; years of adventure, of service during the Civil War, of filling the office of sheriff in Hardin County when that area was, less settled and the gun was law. In all, William Vance Willcox led an active, full life, between the time when Iowa was the frontier and the time it achieved its present rank among the states of the Union.
William Vance Willcox was born in Columbus, Franklin County, Ohio, December 17, 1846. His father, Edmund Willcox, was a farmer, grain merchant, and store keeper in Solon and Iowa City, whither the family ultimately moved; his wife was the former Elizabeth Ingham. Their son attended rural school in Johnson County, near Iowa City; but while still a youth in his teens, enlisted in the Union forces for service in the Civil War. Mustered out of the Army at the end of that bitter conflict, Mr. Willcox determined to resume his education. He entered the University of Iowa, and spent one year in residence there before entering the employ of Moorman's General Store in Eldora, Hardin County. After his first job, he became associated with his father, Edmund, and his brother, George, in buying and selling grain. In the seventies, he entered the local insurance business in Eldora, in association with C. E. Albrook and James Hardin, selling fire insurance for the Hawkeye Fire Insurance Company of Des Moines.
The early eighties were an exciting period in Mr. Willcox's career. It was then that he was elected sheriff of Hardin County, and held that office for several terms during a period when the notorious Rainsbarger gang was terrorizing the county. The four brothers, who were the dominant figures in this outfit, were thoroughly unpopular with the local citizenry. Two of them were killed by a mob which broke into the jail while Sheriff Willcox was out of town placing the other two brothers under arrest. These survivors were later convicted of murder, and sentenced to life in state prison.
At the completion of his service as sheriff, Mr. Willcox accepted the more peaceful position of special agent for the Hawkeye Insurance Company for the northern half of Iowa. He was now the father of a family, and realizing the importance of education for his children, he moved his family to Des Moines, in 1889, to give them the opportunity of attending Drake University. In 1896. Mr. Willcox bought a half interest in the oldest insurance agency in Des Moines, the Ryman-Howell and Company, which then became Willcox-Howell and Company. When this agency was later incorporated, Mr. Willcox became its president, a position he held until his death on October 12, 1925, after he had completed more than a half century in the insurance business in the state of Iowa. In addition, he occupied for a time the position of pension agent in Des Moines, a post to which he had been appointed by the Hon. J. A. T. Hull, congressman. Mr. Willcox was a Republican in his politics.
In the activities of the Grand Army of the Republic, William Vance Willcox was interested from the time of his period of service with the Union Army. He had enlisted at sixteen, and became a bugler in Company H, 8th Iowa Cavalry. He became commander of Crocker Post, Grand Army of the Republic.
He was also a member of the Masonic Lodge and Adelphic Chapter, Consistory, and Ancient Arabic Order of Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. He was president of the Rainbow Class in 1919. Mr. Willcox was a communicant of the Church of Christ in Des Moines.
At Eldora, Iowa, October 13, 1868, William Vance Willcox married Elizabeth Anne Parks, daughter of George Washington and Rebecca (Copeland) Parks. Mr. and Mrs. Willcox were the parents of five children: 1. Elizabeth Willcox. 2. Jessie Lee, who married A. D. McKerchar. 3. Mona Anne, who married Burtram Collver Hopkins. 4. Maggie. 5. Myra. The two last-named daughters died in infancy.
On October 12, 1925, William Vance Willcox died. He had seen Iowa grow from a few sparsely settled frontier towns to its present position of importance in the economic scheme of the nation, and had contributed in no small measure to that growth. He had exercised the force of the law to bring peace to his community, had fought to bring victory to the northern states and union to the nation, and had built up a business which many times proved its value in the capital city. When he died it was recognized that in his passing one of the pioneers had departed.
The following biographical sketch was published in 1952 in The Story of Iowa, The Progress of an American State, Family and Personal History, Volume III.
WILLIAM VANCE WILLCOX – A pioneer in the insurance field in Iowa, William Vance Willcox devoted more than half a century of his life to that activity. There remained, however, a number of years not spent behind a desk; years of adventure, of service during the Civil War, of filling the office of sheriff in Hardin County when that area was, less settled and the gun was law. In all, William Vance Willcox led an active, full life, between the time when Iowa was the frontier and the time it achieved its present rank among the states of the Union.
William Vance Willcox was born in Columbus, Franklin County, Ohio, December 17, 1846. His father, Edmund Willcox, was a farmer, grain merchant, and store keeper in Solon and Iowa City, whither the family ultimately moved; his wife was the former Elizabeth Ingham. Their son attended rural school in Johnson County, near Iowa City; but while still a youth in his teens, enlisted in the Union forces for service in the Civil War. Mustered out of the Army at the end of that bitter conflict, Mr. Willcox determined to resume his education. He entered the University of Iowa, and spent one year in residence there before entering the employ of Moorman's General Store in Eldora, Hardin County. After his first job, he became associated with his father, Edmund, and his brother, George, in buying and selling grain. In the seventies, he entered the local insurance business in Eldora, in association with C. E. Albrook and James Hardin, selling fire insurance for the Hawkeye Fire Insurance Company of Des Moines.
The early eighties were an exciting period in Mr. Willcox's career. It was then that he was elected sheriff of Hardin County, and held that office for several terms during a period when the notorious Rainsbarger gang was terrorizing the county. The four brothers, who were the dominant figures in this outfit, were thoroughly unpopular with the local citizenry. Two of them were killed by a mob which broke into the jail while Sheriff Willcox was out of town placing the other two brothers under arrest. These survivors were later convicted of murder, and sentenced to life in state prison.
At the completion of his service as sheriff, Mr. Willcox accepted the more peaceful position of special agent for the Hawkeye Insurance Company for the northern half of Iowa. He was now the father of a family, and realizing the importance of education for his children, he moved his family to Des Moines, in 1889, to give them the opportunity of attending Drake University. In 1896. Mr. Willcox bought a half interest in the oldest insurance agency in Des Moines, the Ryman-Howell and Company, which then became Willcox-Howell and Company. When this agency was later incorporated, Mr. Willcox became its president, a position he held until his death on October 12, 1925, after he had completed more than a half century in the insurance business in the state of Iowa. In addition, he occupied for a time the position of pension agent in Des Moines, a post to which he had been appointed by the Hon. J. A. T. Hull, congressman. Mr. Willcox was a Republican in his politics.
In the activities of the Grand Army of the Republic, William Vance Willcox was interested from the time of his period of service with the Union Army. He had enlisted at sixteen, and became a bugler in Company H, 8th Iowa Cavalry. He became commander of Crocker Post, Grand Army of the Republic.
He was also a member of the Masonic Lodge and Adelphic Chapter, Consistory, and Ancient Arabic Order of Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. He was president of the Rainbow Class in 1919. Mr. Willcox was a communicant of the Church of Christ in Des Moines.
At Eldora, Iowa, October 13, 1868, William Vance Willcox married Elizabeth Anne Parks, daughter of George Washington and Rebecca (Copeland) Parks. Mr. and Mrs. Willcox were the parents of five children: 1. Elizabeth Willcox. 2. Jessie Lee, who married A. D. McKerchar. 3. Mona Anne, who married Burtram Collver Hopkins. 4. Maggie. 5. Myra. The two last-named daughters died in infancy.
On October 12, 1925, William Vance Willcox died. He had seen Iowa grow from a few sparsely settled frontier towns to its present position of importance in the economic scheme of the nation, and had contributed in no small measure to that growth. He had exercised the force of the law to bring peace to his community, had fought to bring victory to the northern states and union to the nation, and had built up a business which many times proved its value in the capital city. When he died it was recognized that in his passing one of the pioneers had departed.
WILLIAM VANCE WILLCOX – A pioneer in the insurance field in Iowa, William Vance Willcox devoted more than half a century of his life to that activity. There remained, however, a number of years not spent behind a desk; years of adventure, of service during the Civil War, of filling the office of sheriff in Hardin County when that area was, less settled and the gun was law. In all, William Vance Willcox led an active, full life, between the time when Iowa was the frontier and the time it achieved its present rank among the states of the Union.
William Vance Willcox was born in Columbus, Franklin County, Ohio, December 17, 1846. His father, Edmund Willcox, was a farmer, grain merchant, and store keeper in Solon and Iowa City, whither the family ultimately moved; his wife was the former Elizabeth Ingham. Their son attended rural school in Johnson County, near Iowa City; but while still a youth in his teens, enlisted in the Union forces for service in the Civil War. Mustered out of the Army at the end of that bitter conflict, Mr. Willcox determined to resume his education. He entered the University of Iowa, and spent one year in residence there before entering the employ of Moorman's General Store in Eldora, Hardin County. After his first job, he became associated with his father, Edmund, and his brother, George, in buying and selling grain. In the seventies, he entered the local insurance business in Eldora, in association with C. E. Albrook and James Hardin, selling fire insurance for the Hawkeye Fire Insurance Company of Des Moines.
The early eighties were an exciting period in Mr. Willcox's career. It was then that he was elected sheriff of Hardin County, and held that office for several terms during a period when the notorious Rainsbarger gang was terrorizing the county. The four brothers, who were the dominant figures in this outfit, were thoroughly unpopular with the local citizenry. Two of them were killed by a mob which broke into the jail while Sheriff Willcox was out of town placing the other two brothers under arrest. These survivors were later convicted of murder, and sentenced to life in state prison.
At the completion of his service as sheriff, Mr. Willcox accepted the more peaceful position of special agent for the Hawkeye Insurance Company for the northern half of Iowa. He was now the father of a family, and realizing the importance of education for his children, he moved his family to Des Moines, in 1889, to give them the opportunity of attending Drake University. In 1896. Mr. Willcox bought a half interest in the oldest insurance agency in Des Moines, the Ryman-Howell and Company, which then became Willcox-Howell and Company. When this agency was later incorporated, Mr. Willcox became its president, a position he held until his death on October 12, 1925, after he had completed more than a half century in the insurance business in the state of Iowa. In addition, he occupied for a time the position of pension agent in Des Moines, a post to which he had been appointed by the Hon. J. A. T. Hull, congressman. Mr. Willcox was a Republican in his politics.
In the activities of the Grand Army of the Republic, William Vance Willcox was interested from the time of his period of service with the Union Army. He had enlisted at sixteen, and became a bugler in Company H, 8th Iowa Cavalry. He became commander of Crocker Post, Grand Army of the Republic.
He was also a member of the Masonic Lodge and Adelphic Chapter, Consistory, and Ancient Arabic Order of Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. He was president of the Rainbow Class in 1919. Mr. Willcox was a communicant of the Church of Christ in Des Moines.
At Eldora, Iowa, October 13, 1868, William Vance Willcox married Elizabeth Anne Parks, daughter of George Washington and Rebecca (Copeland) Parks. Mr. and Mrs. Willcox were the parents of five children: 1. Elizabeth Willcox. 2. Jessie Lee, who married A. D. McKerchar. 3. Mona Anne, who married Burtram Collver Hopkins. 4. Maggie. 5. Myra. The two last-named daughters died in infancy.
On October 12, 1925, William Vance Willcox died. He had seen Iowa grow from a few sparsely settled frontier towns to its present position of importance in the economic scheme of the nation, and had contributed in no small measure to that growth. He had exercised the force of the law to bring peace to his community, had fought to bring victory to the northern states and union to the nation, and had built up a business which many times proved its value in the capital city. When he died it was recognized that in his passing one of the pioneers had departed.
Inscription
FATHER
WILLIAM VANCE
1846 - 1925
Gravesite Details
Surname WILLCOX
