Warden T. Jacks

WARDEN T. JACKS, a prominent and well known agriculturist residing in Wyandotte township, has, during many years, been identified with the development and upbuilding of Wyandotte county. He is the owner of two hundred acres of this valuable and most desirable section and until quite recently owned one hundred and thirteen more, which he has converted into money. In addition to his other distinctions, he is a veteran of the Civil war, sectional influences in the locality in which his youth was spent and loyalty to his southern ancestry having led him to adopt the Confenderate cause.

Mr. Jacks was born in Howard county, Missouri, April 14, 1835. His parents were Elias B. and Mary (Warden) Jacks, of whom more detailed mention is made in the sketch of William Jacks, elder brother of the subject. The education of the subject was obtained in the district schools of Missouri and his attendance was, on account of the primitive character of the schools and the necessity of assisting in the farm work, restricted for the most part to winter terms. Mr. Jacks resided beneath the home roof until his marriage which occurred December 15, 1864, the young woman to become his wife and the mistress of his household being Miss Mary V. Rogers, a native of Platt county, Missouri and a daughter of John and Sarah (Long) Rogers, both of Tennessee.

For seven years after his establishment of an independent household by marriage, Mr. Jacks resided on his father's old homestead in Platt county, Missouri. The old estate was then disposed of and Mr. and Mrs. Jacks followed the rest of the family to Kansas, where fine fortunes had been the portion of the forerunners. The subject secured a tract of one hundred and sixty acres, the northwestern quarter of section 9, town 11, range 24, Wyandotte township. The country was then most of it in a condition quite difficult to imagine from present day conditions. The land was almost entirely covered with timber and brush and there were many Indian wigwams, the redman still lingering a little before the westward advance of civilizations. On his newly acquired acres, Mr. Jacks built a log cabin and set up his household and with all the vigor and enthusiasm of youth set about clearing and improving the place. In the timber he found an immediate source of revenue, for he sold many hundred cords of wood in Kansas City, Kansas and the surrounding country. He and his family lived in the log house for about fifteen years and then found themselves in a position to build their present large frame house, in which they have since lived and which is so pleasantly known in this county for its hospitality. Mr. Jacks is a scientific agriculturist and belives in employing the best and most up-to-date methods in his cultivation of the soil. He has always been an extensive grain farmer and he has made a specialty of the raising of hogs, and on a smaller scale, of horses and cattle.

As previously mentioned Mr. Jacks is a Confederate soldier, having enlisted in the Missouri state militia in the fall of 1861, under General Sterling Price, major general in Missouri and former governor of the state. Mr. Jacks was in General Stein's division. The forces of which he was a part went to Arkansas and he participated in the battle of Pea Ridge. His military service was of comparatively short duration, for he became ill owing to the rigors of camp life, and returned to his father's home to recover. In 1862 he went to Jefferson county, Kansas and worked there until the fall of 1864, his career subsequent to that having been recounted. He has met with an excellent measure of success and is very loyal to the state in which and with which he has developed. For more than a decade Mr. Jacks has been retired from the more arduous duties of farm life, his son Leonard conducting the affairs of the estate in most satisfactory fashion.

Mr. Jacks and his worthy wife became the parents of the following children: Clarence E., accidentally killed when eight years of age; William B.; Richard E., of Wyandotte township; John M., a citizen of Leavenworth county, Kansas; Leonard Lee, mentioned before; Lena S., now Mrs. George Grinter, of Wyandotte county; Cora V., widow of John Grinter, of Wyandotte township; and Mary, now Mrs. Luther Mooney.

Mr. Jacks is independent in politics, esteeming the right man and the right measure far above mere partisanship. He and his family are affiliated with the Disciple church and he has been one of the most valued of the Sunday school workers.