Alfred Riley Werts

1860 - 1935

• Born	17 Aug 1860	Muskingum County, Ohio
  Gender	Male
  Died	30 Jul 1935	Russell, Iowa
  Buried	Russell Cemetery, Russell, Iowa
  Person ID	I2024	Virts
  Last Modified	16 Oct 2016

  
  

  Father	John Jackson Werts,   b. 6 Feb 1831, Muskingum County, Ohio ,   d. 27 Oct 1901, Russell, Iowa
  Mother	Esther Ann Wymer,   b. 18 Sep 1837, Muskingum County, Ohio ,   d. 14 Dec 1912, Russell, Iowa
  Married	29 Aug 1854	Muskingum County, Ohio
  Family ID	F926	Group Sheet

  
  

  Family	Ida Mellissa Goble,   b. 19 Dec 1867, Warren County, Iowa ,   d. 15 Aug 1942, Chariton, Iowa
  Married	17 Jun 1885	Russell, Iowa
  Children	1. Ethel May Werts,   b. 15 Aug 1886, Russell, Iowa ,   d. 18 Dec 1957, Nebraska   2. Helen Esther Werts,   b. 20 Dec 1889, Russell, Iowa ,   d. 1 May 1964, Mitchell, Nebraska
  Last Modified	7 Oct 2012
  Family ID	F1061	Group Sheet

  
  

• Photos

  Alfred Riley Werts, Oliver Osmond Werts, Charles Martel Werts, Clifton Elmer Werts, Jacob Leonard Werts and John Quincy Werts left to right: Alfred Riley Werts, Oliver Osmond Werts, Charles Martel Werts, Clifton Elmer Werts, Jacob Leonard Werts and John Quincy Werts Sons of John Jackson Werts and Esther Ann Wymer John Quincy was born June 25, 1855 in Zanesville, Ohio and died April 1, 1953 in Canton, Wisconsin. He married Melviana Davies April 2, 1879. She was born November 15, 1855 in Russell, Iowa and died April 9, 1906 in Russell, Iowa. He then married Mary McClellan on July 4, 1907. She was born November 15, 1857 in Edinburg, Virginia and died January 20, 1936 in Canton, Wisconsin. All three are buried in Russell Cemetery, Russell, Iowa. Alfred Riley was born August 17, 1860 in Muskingum County Ohio and died July 30, 1935 in Russell, Iowa. He married Ida Goble on June 17, 1885. She was born December 19, 1867 and died August 15, 1942 in Russell. Both are buried in Russell Cemetery, Russell, Iowa. Jacob Leonard was born March 3, 1862 in Muskingum County, Ohio and died March 16, 1944 in Garland, Wyoming. He married Margaret Jane Robinson on March 26, 1884. She was born September 21, 1862 in St. Charles, Iowa and died November 21, 1943 in Garland, Wyoming. Clifton Elmer was born October 12, 1868 in Russell, Iowa and died December 11, 1943 in Bartow, Florida. He married Clara Mae McCoy on March 14, 1889. She was born November 17, 1869 in Lagrange, Iowa and died March 26, 1950 in Chariton, Iowa. Both are buried in Russell Cemetery, Russell, Iowa. Charles Martel was born October 18, 1876 in Russell, Iowa and died January 4, 1946 in Des Moines, Iowa. He married Mary Grace Clark on June 21, 1902. He then married Helen Lee Garner. She was born September 2, 1888 in Ashland, Illinois and died November 5, 1973 in Coos Bay, Oregon. Charles is buried in Russell Cemetery, Russell, Iowa. Oliver Osmond was born November 17, 1878 in Russell, Iowa and died December 20, 1956 in Russell, Iowa. He married Grace Imogene Prather on January 8, 1902. She was died on July 20, 1957 in Russell, Iowa. Both are buried in Russell Cemetery, Russell, Iowa. Photo courtesy of Sharon Lyn Amore

  
  

  Albums

  John Jackson Werts and Margaret Maple (6)

  
  

• Notes

  THE RUSSELL UNION-TRIBUNE, August 8, 1935 ALFRED RILEY WERTS Alfred Riley Werts, son of John Jackson and Esther Ann Werts, was born in Ohio August 17th, 1860 and departed this life at his home west of Russell, Iowa July 30, 1935 at the age of 74 years, 11 months and 15 days. He received his education at the Ragtown School in Benton Township and his life was spent on the farm in Benton and the last 35 years on the present farm adjacent to Russell. He was married to Miss Ida M. Goble in the year 1885 and to that union two children were born, Ethel May and Helen Esther. On June 17th, 1935 they celebrated the 50th anniversary of the wedding in the basement of the Presbyterian Church. Mr. Werts was an active and faithful member of the Presbyterian Church having become a member over 50 years ago. He leaves to mourn his passing his beloved wife, two daughters, Mrs. Helen Morris of Scotts Bluff, Nebraska, and Ethel Werts of Sheridan, Wyo. and one granddaughter, Miss Thelma Chambers of Colorado; five brothers Cliff E. and Oliver O. of Russell, Jake Werts, of Powell, Wyoming, Dr. Charles Werts of Des Moines and John Werts of Cameron, Wisconsin, two sisters Mrs. Aylmer Allen of Russell and Mrs. Sherman McCoy of Imperial, Nebraska, besides a host of other relatives and friends. He was a faithful and beloved husband and father, highly respected by all his friends and neighbors. Funeral services were held Aug. 1, 1935 at the Russell Presbyterian Church. The rites, conducted by the Rev. W. P. Mitchell, were followed by burial in the Russell Cemetery. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Alfred Riley was the fifth child of John Jackson and Esther Ann. Like his older sister Lydia Jane, Riley always used his middle name. At the age of four he moved with the family of his parents, one brother and two sisters, to a farm in Lucas County, near Russell, Iowa. After rural schooling, he was married to Ida Goble. She was an unusually attractive and capable young lady. Riley s older sister, Mary, is reported to have said that he was fortunate to get her to marry him because she had three other ardent suitors. Riley owned and operated a farm about two miles west of Russell and also owned a farm near Murray, IA, some 40 miles west on the State Road (US 34). Their Russell farm was adjacent to the C.B.&Q. railroad tracks and they built a new modern house on it in the early 1920s. In the springtime before his death, Riley lost his renter on the Murray farm so he drove his own team of horses all the way to that farm, a days travel each way, and planted the crop, after planting the crop on his Russell farm. Like other members of the Werts family, Riley was always thinking of more efficient and less expensive way of doing things. At one time he had a contract with the county to build concrete culverts. He invented and patented slip forms that could be reused as molds for the concrete. Riley was a good carpenter and was willing to use his skill in helping his relatives upgrade their home. He could never pass up a bargain and found them by attending sales and auctions. After his death, when his brother Oliver was asked to clean out Riley s buildings, the barn was found to be full of nearly new farm implements, water pumps, even a new windmill. Ida won may prizes for her embroidery work. When Riley and Ida entertained their relatives, the children always enjoyed and remembered what was then called a stereopticon, actually a stereoscope. This was a device with two eyeglasses for helping the user to combine the images of two pictures taken from points of view a little way apart, thus getting the effect of depth. They had a large file of such picture pairs, showing numerous famous scenes.