My Genealogy Hound

Judge James Rule, presiding judge of Polk County Court, was born in Knox County, Tenn., February 6, 1837, being one of six surviving members of a family of eight children born to Henry and Nancy (Tarwater) Rule, who were born in Virginia and Tennessee in 1813 and 1812, respectively. They emigrated to Missouri in 1866, and have since resided in Polk County. The father learned and worked at the blacksmith’s trade when a young man, and was also engaged in preaching the gospel, being a minister of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Since coming to Missouri he has been engaged in farming, and also does local preaching. Their children are as follows: William, a farmer of Kansas; James, the subject of this sketch; Martha, wife of H. Roberts, a farmer of Polk County; Harriet, wife of James Cox, of Knox County, Tenn.; Matthew A., of Knox County, Tenn.; and Nancy J., wife of James White, farmer of Barber County, Kan. Judge James Rule received his rudimentary education in the common schools of his native county, and afterward attended Ball Camp Academy. At the age of twenty-two years, he left his parents and began teaching school, and at the end of two years opened a grocery store, which he conducted about one year. He then came West, and located in Polk County, Mo., and was engaged in farm work until the breaking out of the Rebellion, and then joined the Home Guards, and after a few months enlisted in Company C of the Eighth Missouri State Militia, and served three years. He was lieutenant the latter part of the war, and was in several skirmishes, and for a time in the quartermaster’s department. After his return from the war he engaged in the peaceful pursuit of farming in Pettis County, and then returned to Polk County and began farming on Twenty-five Mile Prairie, buying, in 1866, a farm of 200 acres, to which he has since added 444 acres of as good land as can be found in Polk County; 400 acres are prairie land and under cultivation. Mr. Rule is a Republican in politics, and in 1880 was elected assessor of Polk County, and after serving two years, was elected presiding judge of the county, being re-elected in 1886. He also served some time as collector. He is now a member of the G. A. R. October 7, 1866, he was married to Miss Sarah Collins, who was born in Illinois, in 1844,.and by her he has a family of four children: Nancy A., wife of George W. Skidmore; Henry W., Grace and Myrtle. Mr. and Mrs. Rule are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church.