WILLIAM WARNOCK, Jr.
Page 23

Was born October 2, 1833, near Bainbridge, Ross county, Ohio. The Warnock family were once inhabitants of the north of Ireland, but have been in this country since the beginning of the present century. They were a long-lived and hardy race, and it is narrated that the grand-father of William, Jr. was the only one out of a thousand troops at Sandusky, Ohio, in 1812, that could lift the breech of a cannon. William Warnock, sen., was born on the same farm where his son William first saw the light. His wife, whose maiden name was Harriet Young, was a native of Ohio, and they were married January 1, 1833. William Warnock, sen., received such advantages as were afforded by the Early Schools of Ohio, and acquired the rudiments of education in a log school-house with paper-glazed windows. He learned something of the blacksmithing business, and while a young man traveled in Virginia, Kentucky, and Tennessee; but when he was married, settled down at Rapid Ford and went into the business of manufacturing bar iron with Mr. Hiram Walker, now a wealthy resident of Springfield, Ills. The pig iron was brought by river and canal to Chillicothe and thence wagoned twenty miles to the place of manufacture on Paint Creek. The process used was the old fashioned kind. There were six brothers and five sisters in the family, of whom one brother and three sisters are yet living in Ohio. His father died at the age of 88 years, six months and three days, and his mother lived to an advanced age. They are both buried in the State of Ohio. In 1850, Mr. Warnock, sen., concluded to remove to the West, and with two good teams he started and all the family with him. For sixteen days they pursued their way to Illinois. They made their final stopping place in Mason county, in Salt Creek township, and the old gentleman informs as that he had his teams in good order, his family in good health, and three hundred dollars in money. Their children, named according to their ages, are: William, jr., Nelson, Caroline (widow of E. H. Sikes), Joseph C., James, Grace Ann (married to Wm. Kramer), and Z. T., who died in 1868. In 1863, Mrs. Warnock departed this life; she was a woman whose influence will long remain among her children, a devoted wife and mother, and William jr., whose name is at the head of this sketch, declares that his mother constantly stimulated him to exertion in study and made him improve all the advantages that the common schools of the country afforded. When he was twenty-one years of age, William, jr., left the farm and went into a country store at Walker's Grove with his uncle. After two years he removed to Hiawatha, in the same township. After one year here he sold out and came to Mason city. In the summer of 1859, he applied himself to the study of medicine with Dr. J. C. Patterson, and attended lectures in 1860 and 1861 at Rush Medical College. At this point in his life he determined to leave his profession and devote his time and ability to business. He went into a store with Cortes Humes, on the corner now occupied by La Forge's block, corner of Chestnut and Tonica streets. After three years he was admitted into partnership and continued in this business until 1868, when the firm sold to Andrews & Griffith, and dissolved. In addition to their mercantile business, Humes & Warnock carried on an extensive exchange and banking office, and were the first bankers in Mason city and did the largest business in that line done in Mason county. During the war this firm never refused credit to the families of soldiers, and when they could not get trusted for what they needed, they were always certain of accommodation there. When the town of Salt Creek was drafted, Mr. Warnock was among the number to furnish money to fill up the quota. During some of these years the town of Mason city was nearly deserted by physicians, who were in the army; and then the early study and knowledge of medicine became exceedingly useful to Mr. Warnock, and he was enabled to relieve many suffering persons by his professional assistance. He practiced in many families, and among them some of the most eminent in the place. In 1862, he was placed upon the Democratic ticket as candidate for county superintendent of schools and was elected to his second public office-his first being that of postmaster at Walker's Grove. Many teachers in Mason county received their first certificates from Mr. Warnock, among them Mr. S. M. Badger, the present county superintendent. He was naturally inclined to mathematical studies and in measuring corn by cribs' was the first to introduce the measurement of 3,800 cubic inches to the bushel. He proved this formula by weight and measurement and used to be very often called upon to measure cribs and estimate their contents. So far, Mr. Warnock has passed through life with vigorous health of mind and body, but not without experiencing some of the vicissitudes of fortune. He has handled large amounts of money and did much to promote the pecuniary interest of Mason City. He was expended more than twenty thousand dollars in making permanent improvements in the place, and his house and banking office are exhibited in a sketch on another page of this Atlas. In whatever state of circumstances financially Mr. Warnock has been placed, in easy times or trying times, he has always maintained the reputation of an honorable, honest man. He is one who has "charity for all and malice toward none," and his universal popularity in Mason city shows that he is generous and liberal-hearted. In politics he is not prejudiced in favor of any party, and prefers men to party, and has no object in voting except to put the right man in the right place. At the present time Mr. Warnock is cashier of the Mason City Bank, with J. B. Massey, and at his desk is constantly meeting old friends and doing business after his usual popular manner.

1874 Atlas Index

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