George Herschel Whitcomb
WHITCOMB
Posted By: Gordon Felland (email)
Date: 11/8/2018 at 15:48:38
George Herschel Whitcomb, the subject of this sketch was born in Province of Rubeck, Canada, Sept. 11, 1837, and spent his minority principally there, receiving a common school education, finishing with n few terms at the academies in Westfield and Troy, Vermont. From the age of 21 to 24 he taught school winters and was engaged as farm hand, brick maker and mill hand, wherever the best wages could be obtained during summer seasons.
Mr. Whitcomb was married March 27, 1860, to Lucene A. Stebbins. of Westfield, Vermont. To this union six children have been born, Dana L., of Northwood: Morton S., of St. Paul, secretary of the Live Stock Sanitary Board of Minnesota; Lesley S., now of the firm of Simonson & Whitcomb, job printers and book binders, of Albert Lea. Minn., George E., abstractor of the firm of Whitcomb & Son, of Northwood: Liuceue A., who died at the age of 12 years, and Grace L., instructor in vocal music at Cornell College, Mount Vernon, Iowa.
His first venture after marriage was farming in Vermont until 1868. At this time, the family having increased to three boys, he deemed the time ripe to heed Horace Greeley's admonition to "go west and grow up with the country." From Vermont he moved to Stoughton, Wis., but being unalile to enter business or purchase a farm with his limited means, he decided to move on further west and came to Iowa in the spring of l869 and settled on a farm in Lincoln township, Worth county. During his residence in Lincoln township he served eight successive years as county superintendent of schools. Jan. 1, 1883. he moved onto his farm adjoining the town of Northwood. which he still owns, where he resided with his family until 1901, when he bought the real estate, loan and abstract business of B. K. Walker, since which time the family have been residents of Northwood.
Source: The Semi-Centennial Souvenir of Northwood, Iowa, 1907, page 45.
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