From a motherless Irish immigrant boy to one of the largest landowners in Pottawattamie County briefly summarizes the history of John F. Jackson, who spent most of his life between 1860 and 1925, when he died at the age of ninety, in Harrison and Pottawattamie Counties. Jackson like all other pioneers won his place in his community only by hard work, privation and hard business sense.

Born in Port-A-Down, County Armagh, Ireland, on December 4, 1835, he accompanied his parents to America one year later. His mother died aboard ship and was buried at sea. His father settled in Pennsylvania with the three children. John F. Jackson, reaching his twenty third birthday, started west to seek his fortune. In Illinois he got a job digging ditches at 50 cents a day -- the money being the well known "shin plasters" or state issued money. After working for some months at this job, and discounting his state money in order to turn it into gold, he traveled west to Gregory Town, Colorado, the site of the present city of Denver. For several years Jackson eked out a living as a gold prospector. Later he joined his brother, George.

In 1860 Jackson returned to Iowa and established himself at Council Bluffs. After being here for a short time he set himself up as a freighter. Money gained from Colorado gold mining purchased a team of oxen, and he started hauling supplies from here to Denver. Later mules were added to the business. For eighteen trips he strapped the rumps of oxen and mules from Kanesville to Denver and back in order that westerners could enjoy some of the necessities and comforts they had had while living in the east.

These trips found him fording the Platte River at flood stages, battling off thieving Indian tribes, facing blizzards on wind swept prairies. One of his proudest possessions was a mare purchased in 1863 and named Dolly. He retained ownership of the mare until her death in 1898 at the age of 43. He had always believed Dolly had lived to be one of the oldest horses in the United States.

In 1867 he decided to make Iowa his permanent home, and that year married Lydia Bradshaw, daughter of Jeremiah Bradshaw, pioneer settler of Lewis, Cass County. In 1867 he started taking The Nonpareil, and was a subscriber until his death.

He purchased 100 head of cattle, planning to drive them across the plains to the mining country in Colorado. But the Sioux Indian War broke out and he was advised against taking the cattle into Nebraska. He then rented a small farm near Logan and herded the cattle on government land for one year. The war was held on into the following year, so he purchased forty acres of land in Knox Township, Pottawattamie County.

In 1869 the Rock Island Railroad reached Avoca with its great construction crews. The crew needed great amounts of meat. Jackson butchered most of his herd of cattle, sold the meat to the railroad and with the captial purchased additional land. He finally became the owner of 560 acres between Walnut and Avoca.

On this farm his children were born and reared. They are: Mary A., William H., Charles, Lena and the late Edwin R. Jackson. In 1902 Mr. Jackson retired from his farm and moved to Avoca, where he lived until his death in 1925. The farm was operated by his two sons, Charles and William.

Before settling in Iowa for good, Jackson had many harrowing experiences with Indians. On one trip out of Denver, his oxen scattered in an attempt to find better grazing. Mounting his pony to rounded them up, he ran into a band of Indians, all equipped with old Springfield rifles. They gave chase, and only after a run of several miles did Jackson lose them.

In another encounter with Indians, who insisted they be given whisky, Jackson refused and beat them off with a blacksnake whip. The first attack Indians made on a wagon train which Jackson headed was in 1863 near here in Western Nebraska. While fighting the Indians, the wagon boss headed for Fort Kearney and got aid of United States troopers, who drove off the Indians.

[Nonpareil, Council Bluffs, Iowa, Published July 26, 1936, submitted by Ann]