Sedgwick County KSGenWeb

Portrait And Biographical Album of Sedgwick County, Kan.

Chapman Brothers 1888

Pages 685 - 686 

NEWTON A. STERNS, a leading citizen of Colwich, where he is engaged in the drug business, is one of the pioneers of Sedgwick County, having come here in the year 1871, when he took up, under the homestead act, the northwest quarter of section 4 of Union Township, and has since been identified in various ways with the development of that township, and with the town of Colwich.

            Mr. Sterns is a worthy descendant of good New England ancestry and is himself a native of Lake County, Ohio, where he was born Jan. 9, 1852. His father, Ziba Sterns, also a native of that county, was born and has always made his home on the same farm which became the birthplace of his children. His father, Abijah Sterns, was born in Boston, Mass., and there conducted the business of a merchant for several years until his removal to Lake County, Ohio, as one of the early pioneers who opened up that county for settlement. He cleared a farm in the forest, and there he and his good wife spent the remaining years of their wedded life.

            The father of our subject is a prosperous farmer, still residing in the home of his birth. The maiden name of his wife was Eliza Emmerson. Her death occurred in their home in 1868, she having been a live-long resident of Lake County. As a devoted wife, a true mother, and a kind neighbor, her memory is cherished in the hearts of many. Three children were born of that union - Lyman, Foster and Newton. Lyman is a wholesale produce dealer in Bradford, McLean Co., Pa.; Foster lives on the homestead in Ohio.

            Our subject is the youngest of the family. He received a judicious training from his parents, who also gave him the benefit of a good education, both in the public schools and at an academy in his native county, and he was thus well fitted for the life of a practical business man, At the age of sixteen he entered the mercantile calling as a clerk, serving in that capacity for one year. He then adopted the profession of a teacher, for which he was well adapted by education and temperament, continuing in that vocation until 1871. In the spring of that year he gave up teaching, and came to Kansas to assist in the development of its great agricultural resources and to secure a share of the wealth stored up in its alluvial soil. In Butler County he fell in with Mr. C. F. Hyde, who has since become a leading citizen of Southern Kansas, and with him came to Sedgwick County in search of a suitable location. They took up adjoining farms in Union Township, and soon after Mr. Hyde returned to his home in Missouri to harvest his crops, leaving Mr. Sterns in charge of his property and of the small store he had established. He shipped him more goods from Missouri, and later returned and resumed the management of his store. During the absence of his friend our subject had caused a house to be erected on Mr. Hyde's land, and when that gentleman returned he took his quarters with him, and continued to board with him for twelve years, engaged as a clerk in his store, employing his leisure hours to improve his own land.

            In 1883 our subject married and established a home of his own. His wife, whose maiden name was Margie Packard, is the daughter of Henry and Mary (Jones) Packard, of Colwich. Mrs. Sterns was born in Vinton County, Ohio, May 13, 1862. To her and her husband has been born one son, Irwin. After marriage they made their home on a farm in Union Township until 1886, and then removed to Colwich, that Mr. Sterns might manage more advantageously his drug business, which he had established the spring before. He still owns his farm, which is now very valuable, and has yielded rich harvests under his good management.

            During his residence in Kansas Mr. Sterns has been an important factor in advancing the cause of education in this part of the country. In 1874 he resumed his early profession as teacher, and opened the first school ever established in Union Township, teaching the summer, fall and winter terms, and also taught in the years 1875 and 1876. He is an able instructor, and his services were highly appreciated both by parents and pupils, In politics, he is a firm supporter of the Republican party. He has taken a prominent part in public affairs, always lending his influence to promote the best interests of the community where he resides. He was Township Clerk for several years, and Justice of the Peace for two years. His personal integrity, both in public and private life, is of the highest order. He is endowed with a clear, well-balanced intellect, sharpened by a sound education and keen powers of observation. In social circles he and his wife occupy a prominent position.

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