Born in Gattonside, Roxburyshire, Scotland, May 9, 1811, his parents being William and Isabel (Holmes) Hopkirk. When a lad of thirteen years he commenced work at his trade, that of manufacturer and colorer of cloth, serving an apprenticeship of five years, after which he worked some three years for wages. On March 3, 1834, he married Jane Redpath. Soon after their marriage, Mr. Hopkirk and his bride sailed for New York, reaching that city after thirty days. Thence he made his way to Rochester, but as he could not obtain work at his trade in that place, he engaged in quarrying until an opportunity offered for labors in his chosen line of business. Having worked in Rochester until 1837, he then removed to within six miles of Mt. Pleasant, Ohio, and later became a resident of Wellsburg, W. Va. The spring of 1842 witnessed the arrival of Mr. Hopkirk in Jefferson County, Iowa, where he entered one hundred and sixty acres of land on section 34, Lockridge Township. Work has been the motto of his life and to it he has faithfully adhered, yet in the intervals of business labor he has accomplished not a little for the advancement of public interests. The cause of education has ever found in him a true friend and during the thirteen years he served as Secretary of his school district he did not a little toward bettering the grade of schools and in procuring efficient teachers. He served as Trustee of his township for several years, for two terms was a member of the County Board of Supervisors and from 1870 until 1876, represented his district in the General Assembly of Iowa, being elected to the position for three consecutive terms. While a member of the House, he served on the railroad committee and gained the ill-will of all railroad incorporators by his introduction of the Hopkirk Bill, providing that railroad property should be taxed the same as other property. His re-election to the same position indicated that he served his constituency faithfully and well. He cast his first Presidential vote for John C. Fremont in 1856, and since has been a stalwart supporter of Republican principles. He is a faithful member of the Presbyterian Church and also belongs to the Old Settlers' Society.
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