History of Le Claire, (Scott County) Iowa United States of America

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William Watson Gardner, is a direct descendant of one of the oldest Puritan families, one that landed in America in the year 1656. His grandfather, Benjamin Gardner, carried a musket through the revolutionary war; a great uncle, William Gardner, was aid-de-camp to General Washington. Governor Gardner, of Massachusetts, was one of this family, who are all descendants from John Gardner, of Hingham, Mass. He received from the crown, in 1856, a grant of land located in that region. William Gardner, the father of William Watson, was born in Plainfield, Mass., July 10, 1803, and July 3, 1828, married Ann Parkhurst. He was a contractor and builder and his early life was spent in Massachusetts and in Ontario county, N. Y. In 1840 he moved to Le Claire, Iowa, and lived until March 6, 1891.

Ann Parkhurst was the daughter of Sterling Parkhurst, of Ontario county, N. Y., who moved with his family in 1837 to what is now known as Le Claire, Iowa. The place was first called Parkhurst-town in honor of his family.

William W. Gardner was born March 20, 1841, at Le Claire, Scott county. He attended the village schools and then spent his early life in teaching. Later he studied medicine and became proficient in the theory of that profession but never practiced, and in 1870 he located at Avoca, in the drug business. In this business the knowledge of medicine has naturally been of great advantage to him. He has acquired a fine reputation as a careful, conscientious and reliable druggist. Having lived in Pottawattamie county for about twenty-seven years, he has a large acquaintance and is very favorably known throughout that section of the state. Mr. Gardner's father was a whig and he was raised in that faith, but when the party went to pieces in 1856, he became a democrat, and the son has always been associated with that party. He became a Mason as early as 1867 and has been prominent in the affairs of that fraternity. He has taken the Knight Templar degrees and presided as master and high priest for several terms. He served as postmaster during President Cleveland's second term. He was married November 2, 1873, to Frances Maud Smith, and they have had two daughters, one of whom died in infancy and the other, Frances Maud, was born in 1883.

SOURCE: Biographies and Portraits of the Progressive Men of Iowa published by Conway and Shaw, Des Moines: 1899.

History of Le Claire, (Scott County) Iowa

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