Howard F. Martindale, a native of the Sunflower State, and a member of one of the pioneer families of Greenwood county, was born in that county June 5, 1872. He is a son of William and Sallie (Mauser) Martindale. The father was a native of Darke county, Ohio, born February 12, 1835. His father was an Ohio pioneer and veteran of the War of 1812. William Martindale came to Kansas in 1857. He drove an ox team from Westport, now Kansas City, Mo., to Greenwood county, and located on Government land one mile east of the present town of Madison. He was one of the first white settlers in this section and endured the many hardships and privations incident to pioneer life. He fought Indians and lived on buffalo meat and other wild game, which was plentiful, while domestic meat was not only scare, but could not be had at any price. He was a successful farmer and cattleman, and prospered from the beginning. He bought and fed cattle on a large scale, and at the zenith of his career was one of the wealthy men of the State. He lived on his original homestead until 1886, when he removed to Emporia, and he, with some others, organized the old Neosho Valley Bank, which later became the First National Bank of Emporia. Previous to this he had organized the private bank of Martindale, Tucker & Company, at Eureka, in 1870. The First National Bank of Emporia failed in 1898, through the speculation of some of its officers, and when the president of the institution committeed suicide and the cashier fled to Mexico, Mr. Martindale, who was one of the principal stockholders, came forward and sacrificed a large portion of his fortune to liquidate the bank and pay the depositors. He always took an active interest in public matters, and was honored with many places of trust and responsibility. He was the first country treasurer of Greenwood county, and later served as clerk of the district court. He also represented Greenwood county in the lower house of the State legislature, and afterward served a term in the State senate from the Twenty-fourth district, and during both sessions was active and made a good record. He was a Knight Templar Mason, and prominent in Masonic circles. He had an extensive acquaintance throughout the State, and was a man whose judgment and counsel was sought on many important matters by those who knew him best. He quietly passed away at his Emporia home, November 6, 1909, and thus ended the career of another Kansas pioneer whose life's work was well done. William Martindale and Miss Sallie Ann Mauser were married in 1867, and nine children were born to this union, only two of whom are now living, Howard F., whose name introduces this sketch, and James Chester, born January 20, 1879, now a resident of Colorado Springs, Colo. He married Miss Mary Folsom in 1905, and they have one child, Mary Alice. Howard F. Martindal attended the public schools of Greenwood county and later the Emporia High School, where he was graduated in the class of 1893. He then attended the Kansas University two years, when he returned to the family ranch near Madison, where he followed farming and stock business until 1900. He then accepted a position as bookkeeper in the Madison Bank, and was elected assistant cashier, in 1903. In 1909 he became cashier and five years later was elected president and has been the active head of that institution since. The Madison Bank is the pioneer bank of Madison, and is one of the substantial financial institutions of the State. Mr. Martindale was married January 5, 1898, to Miss Erma, daughter of W. H. and Florence (Wasson) James, who came from Illinois to Kansas in 1872, settling in Greenwood county, where the father was a successful farmer. He died May 20, 1911. Mrs. Martindale was born near Madison, May 20, 1878, and was a teacher in Greenwood county prior to her marriage. To Mr. and Mrs. Martindale have been born three children, one of whom is living, Sallie, born September 16, 1898. Mr. Martindale is one of the capable financiers of Greenwood county, and enjoys the confidence of the business world. He is a Knight Templar Mason, and a member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks.