John H. Romkey was the third child and second son of Conrad Dederic Romkey and Katherine Klaus Romkey. Born in Defiance, Ohio, through which a large canal ran from Lake Erie at Toledo, Ohio, down to the Ohio River at Cincinnati.
C.D. Romkey owned and operate a dry dock where these canal boats were repaired and bottoms cleaned. He also built boats to sell. Some friends of theirs moved to Burlington, Iowa, named VonBehren, bought a home on West Avenue and kept writing for them to come to Burlington and about 1866 the C.D. Romkey family of 6 children, John H. being about 7 or 8 years old, came to Burlington. They bought the late Romkey farm, which is now in the Ordinance Plant, one mile north, in Union Township, of Shiloh Cemetery, where C.D. and Katherine R. are buried. Later C.D. Romkey bought one and a half sections of land in Marion County, Kansas and sold after the death of C.D. to be divided among the children as they became of age, 160 acres held until after the death of Mrs. C.D. Romkey in 1909.
John H. grew up on the farm in Union Township, attended country school and later business college, was always a hard worker and good student. Upon the death of his father C.D. Romkey in 1880 John H. managed the farm until he and his older brother, Frank, opened up a factory and hardware store on Agency. A short time later Frank moved to Toledo, J.H. having bought his interest.
During the winter of 1888 he married Louise Sudbrach and to them were born 3 children, Myrtle Katherine, Adah Marie and Glenn John.
One of the firms they did much manufacturing for is the firm of Donahue-McCash. John was so well liked by these men it was a common practice of Mr. Donahue to say to his sons, "Why can't you be like John Romkey"? And long after John Romkey's death the whole Donahue family would say when meeting me (Anna) "What a loss to the town his death was". And then McCash would say "There will never be another man as good as John Romkey" but they were mistaken -- there is another John Romkey who bids fair to outshine the John H. Romkey whom the men esteemed so highly, he is the grandson and namesake of John H. Romkey and will also be called the man who always told the truth. The Town's people always said of him "His word is as good as his bond."
Mary Romkey VonBehren, Toledo, Ohio born in Defiance, Ohio
Franklin Romkey, Toledo,
John Henry Romkey, Burlington, Iowa,
Emma Romkey Lauer, Mt. Union, Iowa,
Carrie Romkey Kester, Lovilia, Ia.,
and Sarah Romkey Gorham, Salt Lake City, Utah, all born in Defiance.
Anna Romkey Andre, Burlington, Elwood Wm. Romkey, Burlington, Chas. B.
Romkey, Moorehead, Minn., were all born in Union Township, Des Moines
County, Burlington, Iowa.
Aunt Anna Andre passed away at the St. Francis Hospital in Burlington in March 1943, just a few weeks after writing this above History. She had fallen and broken her hip on the icy sidewalk and which caused her death in a few weeks time.
At the bottom of this history is a handwritten note by her granddaugher, Bette Andre Farmer. It reads "Not true. She had a compound hip fracture. Was hospitalized a long time, & when they let the hip down out of traction a clot moved & struck her head. She died instantly."
Go to Anna Barbara Romkey's page.
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