My Genealogy Hound

Below is a family biography included in the book, The History of Knox County, Missouri published by Goodspeed Publishing Company in 1887.  These biographies are valuable for genealogy research in discovering missing ancestors or filling in the details of a family tree. Family biographies often include far more information than can be found in a census record or obituary.  Details will vary with each biography but will often include the date and place of birth, parent names including mothers' maiden name, name of wife including maiden name, her parents' names, name of children (including spouses if married), former places of residence, occupation details, military service, church and social organization affiliations, and more.  There are often ancestry details included that cannot be found in any other type of genealogical record.

* * * *

A. A. Towson was born in Franklin County, Penn., March 4, 1832. His father, Johnzee Towson, is a native of Maryland, and of Scotch-Irish descent, and his mother, Sarah (Snyder) Towson, is a native of Pennsylvania, and of German descent. The father farmed in Pennsylvania, and also engaged in distilling, but finally in November, 1841, after making several prospective trips to Missouri, located in that country, where he engaged in coopering and farming until 1849, when he was attacked by the gold fever, and started for California, where he died the following year, at which time he owned over 800 acres of valuable land in Northeast Missouri. In politics he was a Whig. Our subject, A. A., began life for himself at the age of eighteen, and having arrived in California too late to see his father alive he remained there some ten or more years, when he returned to his old home, and engaged in merchandising in Newark for two years. He then married Miss Rachel Manning, a native of this county, and daughter of Samuel Manning, of English descent. After his marriage he farmed near Newark for two years, and then engaged in the drug business at that place, which he afterward sold out and embarked in the dry goods trade with F. B. Snyder, an uncle, under the firm name of Snyder & Towson, but in 1876 bought out the uncle’s interest, and conducted the business alone until 1879, when he moved his stock to Knox City where he sold an interest this spring to Z. A. Lear. This firm now does, the leading dry goods business of the town, their sales amounting to about $20,000 per annum. Mr. Towson also runs the post office. Twenty-five years have passed since the wedding day of our subject, and this union has been blessed with three children: Jesse H., Maggie V. and Louis H., all living with their parents. Our subject is a Democrat, and belongs to the Masonic fraternity. His wife is a Baptist, but he inclines toward the Universalist faith. He is now very comfortably fixed, and owns a nice residence, several lots, a store house in Knox City, and a small farm at Newark.

* * * *

This family biography is one of 204 biographies included in the Knox County, Missouri portion of the book,  The History of Lewis, Clark, Knox and Scotland Counties, Missouri published in 1887.  For the complete description, click here: Knox County, Missouri History, Genealogy, and Maps

View additional Knox County, Missouri family biographies here: Knox County, Missouri Biographies

Use the links at the top right of this page to search or browse thousands of other family biographies.