So closely is the history of William Garner interwoven with the story of the settlement and development of Pottawattamie County that no record of the county could be complete without extended mention of this honored pioneer, who has now departed this life. He came to the country before the townships were divided or the surveys made and aided in reclaiming the wild land and extending the frontier. He bravely bore all the hardships and faced the dangers incident to settling upon the very borders of civilization, his memory compassing the period when indians were numberous in this part of the state, while various kinds of wild animals were seen and wild game was to be had in abundance. Years passed and he worked diligently and persistently to convert the trackless prairie into productive fields. Few men indeed have done as much for the agricultural development of this portion of the state and he was fittingly honored when Garner Township was named for him.

A native of Fayetteville, Cumberland County, North Carolina, he was born January 22, 1817. His father, David Garner, whose birth occurred in the same state, died in Harrison County, Iowa. However, he had made his home for some time previously with his sons, William and Henry, passing away while visiting in Harrison County. His remains were brought back to Pottawattamie County for interment and he was laid to rest in Garner Cemetery. The date of his death was September 3, 1872, and he had attained the very venerable age of one hundred and four years. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Jennie Stephens, was born in North Carolina and died at the age of ninety-six years when visiting in California in 1868. She had made her home in Pottawattamie County previous to this time and had gone on a trip to the Pacific coast by way of the Isthmus of Panama with her son, George Garner. She was a cousin of Alexander Stephens, vice president of the Southern Confederacy.

William Garner spent the first seventeen years of his life in North Carolina and in 1834 accompanied his parents on their removal to Adams County, Illinois. He was one of a family of eleven children, all of whom came to Pottawattamie County with the exception of the third, Mrs. Nancy Wakefield, who went to California. The others, all now deceased, were George, Phillip, David, John, Mrs. Sarah Wakefield, William, Mrs. Elizabeth Harrison, Mrs. Eliza McCaffety, Henry and Mrs. Miranda Rose. The family remained in Adams County, Illinois, until 1846, when they drove across the country to Florence, Nebraska, where the wife and children lived for two years in a tent. It was about the same time that William Garner enlisted for service marching the entire distance on foot--two thousand miles. He participated in an engagement upon Mexican soil and was honorably discharged in San Diego, California, William Garner having done active duty under command of General Kearney.

Following the close of hostilities William Garner worked in California until he could earn a sum sufficient to pay his way home. He then bought pack ponies and traveled as far eastward as Salt Lake, where he spent the winter. He then continued on his way to Florence, Nebraska, where he arrived in the Spring of 1848 after an absence of two years. With his family he then came to Garner Township, Pottawattamie County, where he resided up to the time of his death on the 29th of March, 1892.

The county was fortunate in securing him for a citizen, as he stood for progess and improvement and contributed in substantial measure to the advancement that was here made along business, political and intellectual lines. At the time of his arrival he found a district largely wild and undeveloped. The county had not been surveyed nor divided into townships and one could ride for miles over the prairie without coming to a fence or house to impede his progress. Mr. Garner bought land from the government, built a log house and in true pioneer style began life here. He owned at one time between four and five thousand acres of land, cleared and improved a great deal of this and long before his death gave to each of his children a good farm, thus enabling them to start out in life in comfortable circumstances.

Mr. Garner had been married in Illinois to Miss Sarah Workman, a daughter of Henry and Sarah (Grady) Workman, both natives of North Carolina. Mrs. Workman was a second cousin of William Grady, "the silver tongued orator of the south," to whom a monument has been erected in Atlanta, Georgia, by the people of that section of the country. The Workmans became prominent residents of Adams County, Illinois, bearing the same relation thereto in pioneer times that the Garners did to Pottawattamie County. Both Mr. and Mrs. Workman died in May, 1863, having attained the ages of eighty-eight and seventy-eight years respectively. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Garner were born twelve children: Mrs. Elizabeth Dillon; Mrs. Sarah Jane Price; Mrs. Julia A. Kuhn; Mrs. Ellen Sutton; Adelaide, who died at the age of two years; William; John; Mrs. Rachel Ann Smith; Mrs. Mary Matheson; Mrs. Coqualla Pilling, who is deceased; Mrs. Georgiana Trephagan; and Mrs. Olive Benedict. The wife and mother died in Chicago, Illinois, where she was living with her daughter.

The first home of the family in Pottawattamie County was built of walnut logs--timber which is today very valuable. The claim which Mr. Garner secured was situated in what is today Garner Township. The district now comprised within the townships of Garner, Lewis and Kane when first divided as called Lewis and Kane. Later Lewis Township was divided, Garner being set off and named in honor of the subject of this review. Not only did Mr. Garner contribute largely to the agricultural development of the county and of western Iowa, owning large tracts of land in Pottawattamie and Harrison Counties, but likewise proved an active factor in its industrial development. In 1857 he built a gristmill in Garner Township, to which people went for many miles with their grists. In 1866 he erected a woolen mill, sold the machinery in the gristmill and used the building for the new enterprise, which proved an a very successful venture from a financial standpoint. He himself kept about seven hundred sheep, using the fleece in the mill and other people brought their wool to the mill from a distance of one hundred miles.

In 1868, in connection with John Hammer and Charles Bond he built the Ogden House at Council Bluffs, which at the time of its erection was the largest and best hotel in the city. Sometime afterward the hotel was destroyed by fire and Mr. Garner and his partners sold the site before the hotel was rebuilt. At the beginning of the Civil War Mr. Garner sold a horse to General Dodge known as Dan. This horse was shot in an engagement but recovered sufficiently from it's wounds to follow the command, which it joined again two days after sustaining the injury. It was so badly crippled, however, that it was unfit for further service.

In his political views Mr. Garner was a stalwart Democrat and served on the Board of Supervisors for several years. He was always loyal to the best interests of the county, withholding his support from no measure or movement that tended to prove of benefit to the public. He was noted for his great kindness of heart and his contributions to the poor of Pottawattamie County would amount to several hundred dollars. His wife, too, was a lady of most generous spirit and helpful disposition and in early days she would go for miles day or night to care for the sick or assist those in trouble. Both Mr. and Mrs. Garner will always be lovingly remembered by the pioneers of Pottawattamie County. Mr. Garner was everywhere known as Uncle Billy---a term expressive of the affection in which he was uniformly held. Entirely free from ostentation or display, he possessed those sterling traits of character which always warm the heart and win friendship. He was considerate in his opinions of others, courteous in his treatment, kind hearted and generous. He won success not by taking advantage of others in business transactions but by careful investment and able management. His labors at all times proved a benefit to the community as well as a source of individual prosperity and his efforts in behalf of the county's development were far reaching and beneficial. His death, which occurred in 1892, was the occasion of the most deep and wide spread regret but as long as memory remains to those who knew them the names of Mr. and Mrs. William Garner will be honored in Pottawattamie County.