Born in Guernsey County, Ohio, June 7, 1823. His early education was made in Middletown, Ohio, and in his teens he took up the study of medicine, in the old way, by reading with an old practitioner. Very soon he established himself in a good practice in his native state. Quite early he joined the Methodist Episcopal Church on profession of faith, and the brethren recognized his gifts, licensed him as a local preacher, and to give him large opportunities he was ordained successively to the offices of local deacon and local elder. In Ohio he was married to Miss Mary Oglebay. In 1864, allured by what he considered the better opportunities of the great west, he removed to Iowa. He entered upon a larger practice as a physician, in the northeast part of the county and the adjacent settlements. He also served successfully in the church. In political affairs he was also active. In the Civil War his sympathies were with the Union, and he offered himself for active service twice but was turned down due to physical disability. In 1872-1873 he served as a representative in the Fourteenth Iowa General Assembly.