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Berry, William H. (1849-1923)

BERRY

Posted By: Karon Velau (email)
Date: 4/28/2019 at 19:56:36

William H. Berry
(Oct 23, 1849 – Mar 25, 1923)

History of Warren County, Iowa; Containing a History of the County, Its Cities, Towns & Etc., by Union Historical Company, 1879, p.585
BERRY, WILLIAM H., Indianola, attorney; of the firm of Henderson & Berry; was born in Cass county, Illinois, in 1849, and removed with his parents to this county in 1867; he was educated at Simpson Centenary College, and graduated in the class of 1872; he read law, and was admitted to the bar before Judge Maxwell in 1873, and has been associated with J. H. Henderson in the practice of his profession since that time; he married Miss Alice M. Barker, daughter of M. R. Barker, Esq., one of Warren county's early settlers, in 1875; she was born in Indianola, and educated at Simpson Centenary College, and graduated in the same class with her husband.

W. H. Berry was born October 23, 1849 in Illinois. He graduated from Simpson College at Indianola in 1872. He studied law in the office of Hon. J. H. Henderson of Indianola, and in August 1873 was there admitted to the bar. He was elected by the Republicans to the twenty-sixth and twenty-seventh General Assemblies (1896-1900).
Source – Courts & Legal Profession of Iowa, vol.2, p.1073, by Chester C. Cole, Chicago, 1907.

History of Warren County, Iowa from Its Earliest Settlement to 1908, by Rev. W. C. Martin, Clarke Publishing Co., Chicago, Illinois, 1908, p.406
WILLIAM H. BERRY
William H. Berry, whose life record is regarded as a valuable asset in the history of the bar of Iowa, has for more than a third of a century been num­bered among the practitioners at Indianola and has easily taken rank with its foremost representatives. He was born in Cass county, Illinois, October 23, 1849, a son of Benjamin C. Berry and a grandson of William S. Berry. The last named, in 1833, removed with his family from Virginia to Illinois, settling in Cass County, where he entered land from the government and also purchased land. Only the year before had the Black Hawk War occurred and great sec­tions of the state were still uninhabited by the white man, while other districts gave but little evidence that the seeds of civilization had been planted. Ben­jamin C. Berry was a native of Virginia, probably of Orange county, and the family is of Welsh lineage. That the early representatives of the name in America came here in colonial days is indicated by the fact that William S. Berry was a soldier of the War of 1812.
Benjamin C. Berry was but a boy when his parents removed to Illinois, and there amid the wild scenes of frontier life he was reared. In 1869 he came to Iowa with his son, William H. Berry, and settled on the farm which he had purchased near Indianola. There he resided until two years prior to his death, when he retired from active business life and took up his abode in Indianola, where he remained until called to the home beyond. His widow still resides there. She bore the maiden name of Isabella Van Eaton, and is a daughter of Joseph and Marian Van Eaton. She lost her mother when only four or five years of age, and her father died in 1880. Benjamin C. Berry was an enterprising farmer and good business man and bore an unassailable reputa­tion for commercial integrity. The Methodist Episcopal Church found in him a most devoted and zealous member, and for many years he served as chairman of its board of trustees. His early political allegiance was given to the Whig party, but being thoroughly in sympathy with the principles which gave rise to the Republican Party, he joined its ranks on its organization and continued to march under its banners during the remainder of his life. He was a member of the board of supervisors and acted as its chairman.
At the time of the Civil War, Benjamin C. Berry espoused the Union cause, enlisting on the 15th of August 1862, as a member of the One Hundred and Fourteenth Illinois Volunteer Infantry. He went to the front with Company D and for three years defended the stars and stripes, being mustered out in March 1865. He had organized the company at Virginia, Illinois, and was elected its captain. At the time he was mustered out, however, he had been disabled by a gunshot wound in the wrist and had resigned his commission. For some time on active duty, he participated in the siege of Vicksburg, in the battles of Nashville, Guntown and Tupelo, and at the last named was wounded. He was also in a number of skirmishes and raids, including the raid on Jack­son, Mississippi. Throughout the period of his residence in Warren county he was as loyal to the interests of local advancement and national progress as he was when he followed the nation's starry banner on the battlefields of the south. His death occurred on the 8th of April, 1894.
William H. Berry was reared upon the home farm and attended the coun­try schools. Through the summer months he worked in the fields and was connected with the labors of the farm until about twenty years of age, when, desirous of enjoying better educational privileges than he had hitherto re­ceived, he entered Simpson College in 1867 and was graduated in 1872, completing a scientific course and winning the B. S. [Bachelor of Science] and M. S. [Master of Science] degrees. De­termining upon a professional career, Mr. Berry took up the study of law with J. H. Henderson as his preceptor, and after thorough preliminary reading was admitted to the bar in August 1873. On the 1st of September he formed a partnership with Judge Henderson and the relation was maintained until December 1, 1885, when the Judge was elevated to the bench. Mr. Berry then practiced alone until January 1, 1896, when Judge Henderson resigned and the old firm of Henderson & Berry was reorganized and maintained an exist­ence until August 1, 1901. Since that time Mr. Berry has been alone in practice and bears the reputation of being a most successful lawyer, devoting his whole time and attention to his professional duties. His practice is extensive and of an important character. He is remarkable among lawyers for the wide re­search and provident care with which he prepares his cases, and at no time has his reading ever been confined to the limitations of the question at issue. Combined with his legal learning are tact, patience and industry and he has moreover an analytical mind which enables him to recognize the points that constitute his case and to give to each it’s due relative value.
On the 12th of May, 1875, Mr. Berry was married to Miss Alice M. Barker, who was born in Indianola, July 25, 1853, a daughter of Moses R. and Rachel Barker, who came to this city in 1851, her father being one of the pioneer merchants here. Mr. and Mrs. Berry have but one child, Don L., who was born October 8, 1880, and is now farming on the Berry homestead, which his father purchased. He wedded Bertha Sloan, of Dexter, Iowa, and they have one child, Thomas S.
Mr. and Mrs. William H. Berry are members of the Methodist Episcopal church and they belong to that class of citizens whose well known position in support of all that tends to benefit the community in educational, social and moral lines gives them right to rank with the leading residents of Indianola.
Mr. Berry is a member of the Masonic fraternity, the Odd Fellows lodge, and the Ancient Order of United Workmen, and gives political support to the Republican Party. He was a member of the general assembly of Iowa as rep­resentative in the upper house from January 1, 1896, until December 31, 1900, and as senator he left the impress of his individuality upon the laws enacted during that period and labored for the interests of the commonwealth, plac­ing the general good before partisanship and the interests of the public at large before personal aggrandizement. He belongs to the Grant Club of Des Moines and also to the Loyal Legion of Iowa, while in more specifically professional lines he is connected with the Iowa State Bar Association. Since his admission to the bar he has attended every term of court with the exception of one, when his absence was occasioned by illness. He is a vigilant and attentive observer of men and measures and is not only well read in the law but always keeps abreast with the best thinking men of the age concerning those questions which are of vital importance to state and nation.


 

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