A J MAYER

A. J. Mayer, one of the well-known citizens of Brown county, Kansas, was born near Lexington, Kentucky, July 1, 1848. His father, John Mayer, also a native of that state, was of French descent. The mother bore the maiden name of Martha Chambers. About 1853 the family moved to Jo Daviess county, Illinois, and were among the early settlers of that section of the state. There the father of our subject died, but the mother is still living, her home now being in Leon, Decatur county, Iowa. In their family were five sons and five daughters.

A. J. Mayer, whose name introduces this review, was a youth of only five years when he went to Jo Daviess county, and there he was reared upon a farm, receiving his education in the public schools. He worked in the fields through the summer months and familiarized himself with the elementary branches of English learning during the winter. During the Civil war he loyally responded to the call for aid, joining the Seventeenth Illinois Cavalry, in which he served until hostilities had ended and peace was declared. After the war he came to Kansas and for some time located in the western portion of this state, also in the Indian Territory, and in Texas, where he was employed as a cowboy for some years. Ultimately he located in Brown county, Kansas, in 1874, and was married in Hiawatha the same year to Miss Matilda La Croix, who was born at Havre, France, but was reared and educated in Illinois and Missouri. Prior to her marriage she was accounted one of the most capable teachers of Brown county, Kansas. Her parents were John and Jane La Croix, also natives of France. By the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Mayer five children have been born: Thad, who is living in Grand Junction, Colorado; Carrie a resident of Powhattan; and Nellie, Tony and Daisy, at home.

After reading law in the office and under the direction of Ryan & Stewart, in Hiawatha, Kansas, Mr. Mayer was admitted to the bar in Jefferson county in 1897. He had previously practiced law in the justice courts for many years. He is now engaged in the practice of his profession and in the real estate business at Valley Falls, where he is the senior member of the firm of Mayer & Fulton. He is a close student of the principles of jurisprudence and prepares his cases with great thoroughness and precision, qualities which have enabled him to gain success at the bar. He is also one of the leading real estate dealers of the county and has for sale a number of excellent farms in northeastern Kansas. He is one of the best informed men on land values in the county, for his long term of residence in Kansas and his extended experience as a farmer in Brown county has made him an excellent judge of land. He prosecutes his business affairs with diligence and enterprise and his labors have brought to him creditable financial returns.