Mrs. D. T. McIntire, pioneer Comanche settler, passed away October 1 in San Marcos, Calif., lacking only 13 days of being 90 years of age.

Her body, accompanied by her son, Thomas McIntire, and wife, arrived in Dodge City Wednesday evening and was brought to Coldwater in the Hearldson funeral coach.

Funeral services will be held in the Coldwater Christian church Friday afternoon, October 7, at 2:30 and will be in charge of the pastor, George Brown.

Burial will be in Crown Hill cemetery by the side of her husband, who passed away September 12, 1929. An account of Mrs. McIntire's long and eventful life will be published in The Western Star next week.

Mrs. D. T. McIntire, one of the earliest pioneer settlers in southwestern Kansas, died in San Marcos, California on Saturday October 1, lacking only a few days of being 96 years of age.

Funeral services were held in the Coldwater Christian church last Friday afternoon, October 7, at 2:30 p.m. and were in charge of George Brown the pastor. Raymond and Martha Cline sang "Beautiful Isle of Somewhere" and "Beyond the Sunset," accompanied by Mrs. Jessie Robertson.

Burial was in Crown Hill cemetery. The pallbearers were Roy Platt, George Moores, Howard Burnett, Fred Lenertz, Jay Pounds, and Ralph Todd.

Aesnath Caroline McIntire, daughter of Thomas and Lucetta Plummer Bailey, was born in Alden, Iowa, October 14, 1853, and passed away in San Diego county, California, October 1, 1949, at the age of 95 years, 11 months and 17 days.

She had been in remarkable health, all of her life and shortly before her death returned from a 150 miles motor trip. She spent much of her time out of doors and was always a great lover of nature.

At the age of 16 she moved with her parents from Iowa to the new state of Kansas, settling at Ellinwood, Kansas. There she met and Davis Taylor McIntire on October 6, 1876.

They moved to Comanche county in 1877, seven years before the county was organized, and located a claim on Mule Creek. Thus they were among the first settlers in this county, and they continued to live here until the fall of 1929 when Mr. McIntire passed away.

Mrs. McIntire then moved to California and made her home with her son, Thomas J. McIntire of Escondido, Calif. She was always loyal and claimed Comanche county as her home.

Three children were born to Mr. and Mrs. McIntire - two sons, Frank Maynard, who died several years ago, and Thomas John, whose home is in California; also one daughter, Florence Ella, who died in childhood. She is survived by one granddaughter, Audrey McIntire-Hall of Minneola, Kans.; two sisters, Martha Bailey Proctor, age 93, of Seattle, Wash., and Frances Bailey Henry, age 90, of Dallas, Oregon; also two great-grandchildren, Myrna and Elston Hall of Minneola, Kans.

Mrs. McIntire pioneered in Comanche county in the days of drought, privation, prairie fires and Indian scares but reared her family with a stout heart and unflagging spirit.

She was a well-read woman, a faithful and loving wife and mother, and she retained her brilliant mind until the last. She was a great reader and she wrote articles, the script of which were used on many of the radio programs originating in California. She never wrote at a desk ot table but on sheets held in her left hand. She had a prodigious memory and few women in the United States lived a fuller life.

Thus passes Comanche county's eldest pioneer mother who chiseled for herself a place in the history of the Sunflower state.

Davis T. McIntire, one of the earliest settlers of Comanche County, was born in Mercer County, Kentucky, January 11, 1847, and spent his boyhood days on his father's farm in Kentucky.

He came west and was in Dodge City when the first house was built there. At this period of life buffalo still roamed the plains in large numbers and hostile Indians were not unusual. He came in contact with them several times. For two years he hunted the buffalo for their hides, making this activity his regular business during that period.

He came to Comanche County in 1877, locating on Mule Creek, where he entered the cattle business and participated in all activities of the cattlemen during the first and second periods of the industry. Mr. McIntire was a member of the first board of County Commissioners, after the organization of the county in 1885. In 1887 he was elected sheriff, serving four years. He was later elected sheriff for two more terms and in 1902 was elected to the state legislature.

On October 6, 1876, Mr. McIntire was married to Miss Acenith C. Bailey, who was born in Indiana in 1861. A very young bride to cope with the wilderness but born with the foundation of a true pioneer, one whose name will go down in history of Comanche County as being the first white woman in the country and who went through the Indian uprising of 1878 and assisted in caring for the wounded victims of the Redman.

-- Diamond Jubilee Historical Souvenir Program, Coldwater, KS: Western Star, 1959.

Also see:

Davis T. McIntire, husband of Asenath Caroline Bailey.

Thanks to Shirley Brier for finding, transcribing and contributing the above news article to this web site!

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