DAVID C. JOPLIN. Through the energetic prosecution of agricultural enterprises, Mr. Joplin has become well known throughout Jackson County as a successful farmer of Somerset Township. His farm ranks with the best in the township and consists of one hundred and twenty acres on section 6, upon which have been placed substantial buildings, including a commodious house and a number of outbuildings for the storage of machinery and shelter of stock.
Throughout Missouri the name of Joplin is well known, especially among the pioneers of the state, and the city of Joplin, one of the most progressive and thrifty there, was founded by the father of our subject. That gentleman. Rev. Harris G. Joplin, was a native of North Carolina and was descended from Irish ancestors. Becoming a minister in the Methodist Episcopal Church South, he preached the Gospel in western Missouri and met with an unusual degree of success in his labors. In 1835 he located in Greene County, Mo., he and two other gentlemen being the first settlers of what is now the city of Springfield.
Subsequently locating in Jasper County, Mo., Rev. Mr. Joplin became identified with its early history, and the city of Joplin was named in his honor. In the discharge of his ministerial duties he was accustomed to ride on horseback to meet his different appointments. His life was one of usefulness and untiring activity, and in his death, in 1853, the ministry of the state met with a severe loss. His wife, whose maiden name was Holly N. Sims, was born in Tennessee. Her father, as well as our subject's paternal grandfather, served with valor in the War of the Revolution.
Our subject is one in a family of five children, namely: David C, Wilber F.; Mary F., wife of John Martin; John F.; and Margaret H., wife of Smith Stouffer. In southwestern Missouri our subject grew to manhood, receiving his primary education in the subscription schools of the home district, and afterward entering Ebenezer College, in Greene County, Mo., where he conducted his studies for three terms. Afterward he engaged in teaching school for a time in that state. In the fall of 1861 he enlisted as a member of Company B, Sixteenth Missouri Infantry, C. S. A., and at different times served in the command of Generals Price, Hindman and Kirby Smith. At Helena he was taken prisoner, and for about twenty months was in the Federal prisons.
The first marriage of Mr. Joplin united him with Miss Parolee Harris, and they became the parents of four children, John F.; Mary F., wife of Harrison Childers; Laura, who married John Doty; and Etta, wife of Elijah Jackson. In October, 1871, Mr. Joplin married Mrs. Mary A. McDowell, the widow of John McDowell, formerly a prominent resident of this county. Mr. McDowell lost his life by an accident on the railroad at Mt. Carbon, being employed on the road at that time. Mrs. Joplin was born in Guernsey County, Ohio, October 15, 1837, and was reared in that state, where her parents, John and Sarah (Moreland) Kimble, continued to reside until death.
In religious belief both Mr. and Mrs. Joplin are identified with the Methodist Episcopal Church South, in which he has served as Steward, delegate to the annual conference and Treasurer of the joint board of finance. He has been chosen delegate to the general conference, which will meet at Memphis, Tenn., in May, 1894. While not a zealous partisan, he always votes the Democratic ticket and supports the principles of that party. Since 1865 he has been a resident of Jackson County, and in 1873 settled upon the farm where he has since resided. His first home was a log cabin, but as prosperity crowned his labors he was enabled to erect the present substantial structure in which he resides. He engages in mixed farming and successfully raises Short-horn cattle.
Extracted 22 Sep 2016 by Norma Hass rom Portrait and Biographical Record of Randolph, Jackson, Perry and Monroe Counties, Illinois, published in 1894, pages 481-482.