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M. D. Snavely is one of the leading citizens of Ladora, being mayor of that town and also a prominent hardware
merchant. His birth occurred in Johnson county, Iowa, on the 12th of May, 1854, and his parents were John and Mary
(Green) Snavely, both natives of Lancaster county, Pennsylvania. About 1849 they accompanied their respective parents
to this state, the father being then about seventeen years of age. Both families settled in Johnson county, where
Mr. and Mrs. John Snavely were married, and they established their home upon a farm in that county, where they
lived during the remainder of their lives, the father dying on the 29th of May, 1914, when eighty two years of
age, while the mother passed away eleven years previously when seventy one years old.
M. D. Snavely was reared upon the homestead and early became familiar with agricultural pursuits. His education
was that afforded by the graded schools of North Liberty, with the addition of one winter's attendance at the Marengo
high school. He removed to Marengo when eighteen years of age and apprenticed himself to his uncle, W. A. Snavely,
a well known tinner of that city. After learning the tinner's trade Mr. Snavely of this review continued to follow
it in Marengo until 1877, when he went to Fort Dodge, where he worked for nearly two years at his trade. In the
spring of 1879 he came to Ladora, where he has since lived, the period of his residence here covering thirty six
years. He established a hardware and implement business and has been very successful as a merchant, the volume
of his trade increasing steadily from year to year. He knows the lines which he handles thoroughly and as he carries
only goods of high quality and as his prices are moderate it is but natural that his patronage should be large.
He also has other interests in the city as he was one of the organizers of the Ladora Savings Bank, of which he
is still a director, and the Ladora Lumber & Grain Company, of which he is a stockholder.
On the 21st of September, 1877, Mr. Snavely was married to Miss Sarah A. Bailey, of Marengo, and they have become
the parents of five children, four of whom survive: Frank LeRoy, who is a hardware and implement dealer of Wellman,
Iowa; Mary Edith, at home; Ralph Elmer, who is working for his brother in Wellman; and Helen Bailey, at home.
Mr. Snavely is a stalwart republican in his political affiliations and has served a number of times as a delegate
to county and state conventions. He is serving his second term, not consecutively, however, as mayor of Ladora,
his first record being so satisfactory to his fellow townsmen that he was again elected to the office. Fraternally
he is identified with Sharon Lodge, No. 287, A. F. & A. M., of Victor; and Jerusalem Chapter, No. 72, R. A.
M., of Marengo. His wife and children are members of the Presbyterian church and take a commendable interest in
furthering its work. He has been an important factor in the business, commercial and financial development of Ladora
but has not allowed material considerations to monopolize his time, realizing fully the value of the moral, intellectual
and social aspects of life, and has done his share to promote the interests of his community along those lines.
From:
History of Iowa County, Iowa
And its People
By: James C. Dinwiddie
Vol II
The S. J. Clarke Publishing Co.
Chiago 1915
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