Robert O. Christian, M. D., a prominent physician and surgeon of Iola is a native son of Kansas. He was born in Iola, December 11, 1878, and is a son of James W. and Jane Barbara (Steele) Christian, both natives of Virginia. The family came to Kansas in 1860, locating on a farm in Allen county, near Iola, and here the father was successfully engaged in farming and stock raising until his death which occurred in 1888. The mother now resides at Iola. Dr. Christian was reared on the farm and attended the public schools of Allen county until he was fourteen years old. He then went to Iowa City, Iowa, where he attended school for a time and later his mother removed to Emporia, Kans., in order that the children might have better educational advantages, and Dr. Christian attended the College of Emporia three years. In 1898, when the Spanish-American war broke out, he enlisted in Company I, Twentieth Regiment, Kansas infantry, and served in the Philippine Islands with that famous organization, for eighteen months, when he returned to his Kansas home, after receiving his discharge in October, 1899. He then entered the University Medical College, Kansas City, Mo., and was graduated in the class of 1903, with the degree of Doctor of Medicine. After serving one year as interne in the University Hospital, Dr. Christian returned to his home town, where he has since been successfully engaged in the practice of his profession. In addition to his practice, he has been interested in various enterprises and has invested extensively in real estate. He owns six hundred acres of land in Allen county, and has farm property in the irrigated district of Texas. He was a member of the United States Board of Pension Examiners for a number of years, and is local surgeon for the Santa Fe Railroad Company, and is also medical examiner for the United States Marine Corps. Dr. Christian is a member of the County, State and American Medical Associations, and the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. He is a member of the Presbyterian church and his political views are Republican.