Hank “Henry” Perry was born on June 20, 1883, in Barton, Iowa to David and Margaret Cyphers Perry. David was a farmer, believed to be born in New York, but we don’t have his parent’s names so there’s no record. He married Betsey Camp in Wisconsin in 1857 and farmed there while raising 7 children with her. Sometime after 1870 the family relocated to Mitchell County Iowa and Betsey died in 1874. He then married Margaret Cyphers, who was 33 at the time, 10 years younger than David. The Cyphers family had moved to Iowa from New Jersey after the civil war. Margaret gave him 4 more children while raising those from his previous marriage, though only 2 of her sons survived her, Chris’s great grandfather, Henry Perry and his brother George Marvel Perry. Henry was the youngest son, born in 1883, his oldest half sibling already 25 at the time.
In the 1900 census at the age of 16 Henry was working as a blacksmith in Northwood, Iowa. He married Mattie Wheelock Finch in 1903 when he was 19 and she was 27. Mattie had been born in Northwood Iowa in 1875, the oldest child of Alpheus and Jeannette “Nettie” Mitchell Finch.
Mattie and Alpheus Finch are descendants of Isaac Finch Jr who was born in Stamford Connecticut in 1662. Isaac Finch Jr. is both Christopher’s 8x great grandfather and mine. My maternal grandfather’s grandfather, Rufus Taylor is the son of Elizabeth Finch whose 2x great grandfather was Isaac Finch’s son John. Christopher’s 2x great grandfather Alpheus’s 2x great grandfather was Isaac Finch’s other son, Jacob. I will tell the tale of how those branches split and then came together again with Chris and I another day.
Henry worked as an electrician in an electric plant in Northwood, IA over 40 years. Electric plants were a new industry at the turn of the century Iowa, People’s Gas and Electric was established in 1887 in Northwood. Henry and Mattie had 12 children together before Mattie died in 1925 at the age of 43, 6 years after their youngest, Forrest, was born. Mattie’s death certificate noted infected teeth may have contributed to a thrombosis in her coronary arteries. The fact she had 12 children in 17 years wasn’t mentioned. Christopher’s grandfather, Clifford Perry was their 5th of 7 sons; he had 4 older sisters, one younger. Clifford also worked as an electrician in a time before licenses for electricians was required.
Back Row Babe Nelson, Hank Dahms, Cecil Perry, Ross Perry, Russell Perry and Charles Randle
Middle Row- Veona Nelson holding Jerry, Barbara Perry, Grandpa (Henry) Perry holding Stanley Perkins, Ione Perkins, Ruth Perry holding Judy
Front Row- Marg Perry, Grace Kruse, Mildred Dahms, Ida Mae Perry, Deloris Perkins, Eugene Perry
In January of 1944 Henry was sent a Purple Heart medal which his youngest son, Forrest “Buster” Perry, was awarded posthumously as he was killed on the U.S.S. Utah at Pearl Harbor.
In 1947, at the age of 63, Henry moved to Oklahoma and married Pearl McCoy in Norman, Oklahoma. He died suddenly of a heart attack on July 20, 1949 at the age of 66, and was buried in Normal, OK.
