A list of folks who were born and/or spent significant years in Madison County and became nationally noteworthy in their adult years.

Madison County Ties

Robert, son of Benjamin and Bertha (Beerbower) Bare, was born in Winterset in 1901. At an early age he was enrolled in the Severn School, a prep school in Maryland aimed at preparing students to enter the US Naval Academy. He had a successful career as a US Marine, retiring in 1957 as a Lieutenant General.

After being denied entry to a Kansas college, George homesteaded in western Nebraska before arriving in Winterset in  mid-1888 where he took employment at the Shultz Hotel.  Local acquaintances encouraged him to enroll in Simpson College's art program in the fall of 1890, in nearby Indianola. His art teacher, whose father was a botany professor at Iowa Agricultural College, now Iowa State University, led him to enroll there where he received Bachelor's and Master's degrees. He went on to achieve national recognition as a botanist at the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama and was known world-wide for his work in providing uses for crops (peanuts and sweet potatoes) that enriched the soil being depleted by repetitive cotton crops.

Fred was born in Madison County to William and Lucinda (Cutler) Clarke in 1872. The family moved to Kansas and Fred became a professional baseball player and manager, inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1945.

Ed Conger was born in 1843 in Knox county, Illinois to Lorentus  and Mary (Hurd) Conger. Ed moved to Penn Township, Madison County in 1868 where he farmed. In the latter part of the 1870's Ed settled in Dexter where, in 1885, he became a US Congressman. He was subsequently appointed  US Ambassador to Brazil followed by US Ambassador to China.

Born in Winterset in 1856 to Nathan and Hannah (Swan) Garretson, Austin grew to adulthood in Madison County, went on to become a railroad conductor, culminating in his leadership of the Railway Conductors Union.

Henry Johnson Brodhead Cummings was born in Newton, New Jersey in 1831. At 9 years old, his family moved to Pennsylvania where he received his education, learned the newspaper business and then studied the law. in early 1856, he settled in Winterset and early on was instrumental in organizing the Republican party. He served as Colonel of the 39th Iowa  in the Civil War, and became publisher of the Winterset Madisonian. In 1876 he was elected to the United States Congress. After leaving congress, he continued as Madisonian publisher and remained a prominent figure in Winterset until his death in 1909.

Born in Keokuk County March 3, 1854, to Eleazer and Hannah (Lyons) Kinkade, his family came to Winterset after the Civil War.  Reynolds spent his youth here before moving to Ohio after 1870. He became a Justice of the Ohio Supreme Court in 1924.

Amy Leslie's birth name was Lillian West, born in West Burlington, Iowa in 1856, daughter of Albert and Katie (Webb) West. The West family moved to Winterset before 1860 where Lillian spent her childhood. She graduated from Notre Dame University, sang opera and eventually became a renowned drama critic, employed by the Chicago Daily News.

Glenn was born in Macksburg to Clarence and Minta (Delong) Martin in 1886, the family moved to Kansas in 1888. Glenn went on to become an aviation pioneer, forming an aviation company that today is part of the Lockheed Martin Corporation.

Born in Muscatine, Iowa in 1849, the John and Sarah (Bradley) Orman family moved to Madison County before 1856. James moved to Colorado in 1869, became politically active, eventually becoming Governor of Colorado in 1901.

Though not a county resident, Pammel had great influence here by creating Devil's Backbone State Park, later renamed Pammel State Park, and helping develop the Winterset City Park.  Pammel was a botany professor at Iowa State University and led the State Board of Conservation from its inception in 1917 to his retirement in 1929.  He was known world-wide for his study of plant diseases.  He greatly influenced the future work of his student, George Washington Carver.

Mark Pearson was born in Lafayette, Indiana to Robert and June (Weber) Pearson. He received a journalism degree from the University of Arizona And took a job at WHO radio in Des Moines. He held several jobs in radio and television, eventually settling on a farm in Madison County near East Peru.

Born in 1857 in Maquoketa, Iowa, to Rev. James H. and Nancy (Naylor) Potter, he came with his parents to Winterset where his father became pastor of  the First Presbyterian Church in 1870. William studied the law and was admitted to the Iowa bar. Later he moved to Pennsylvania where he practiced law and eventually served 18 years as a Justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.

George was born in Winterset in 1897 to Abraham and Lulu (McBride) Stout. He spent his formative years in Winterset, attended Grinnell College and went on to become accomplished in the field of art preservation and gained national notoriety for his role in art preservation in Europe during and after WWII.

Born in Ohio in 1840, he came to Winterset in 1854 and studied law for two years before moving on to Kansas to join the abolitionist movement. He eventually became a nationally renown author, politician, and Native American rights activist.

Henry C. Wallace was born in in 1866 in Rock Island, Illinois to Henry and Nancy (Cantwell) Wallace. His parents moved the family to Winterset in 1877. Henry C. left Winterset in 1885 to attend Iowa State College, eventually receiving a degree and taught dairying there. Over time, he began working with his father on the "Wallaces' Farmer" publication, becoming editor when his father died. He was appointed Secretary of Agriculture by President Harding and continued in that role under President Coolidge.

Born "Marion Morrison" in 1907 in Winterset to Clyde and Mary (Brown) Morrison, the family lived in Winterset and Earlham before moving to California. He became a famous Hollywood actor.