The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.
DAVID RANKIN: One of the early settlers of the county, coming here when he was a boy, was David Rankin, who died in 1910 at Tarkio, Mo.
His rise from poverty to become the proprietor of the largest farming industry conducted by a single individual in the U.S., is a striking example of the possibilities which, in former years at least, opened up before a young man of ability and determination.
He was nine years old when he came to Henderson county with his father in 1834. He went barefooted every summer until he was 28 years old.
He went to school in a log cabin which had greased paper windows; his home was in the same condition as to windows.
His father went into the sawmill business and finally met with financial reverses and became practically bankrupt.
(To be continued-1911 History of Henderson County)