Charles H. and Alice (King) Ruth, 6N 51W


In 1880 Madison County, Iowa, C.R. Ruth is 15, with parents H.R. 62 and C.A. 5. Sister E.R. is 27, sister I. H. is 18.
Alice is in Jasper County, Iowa in 1880, 12, with father William King, 47, a saloon-keeper, Mary 51, Pennelan L. 20, Julia 17, Margret 16, and George 11.

In 1885 Hugh is retired, 76, Elizabeth 60, both born in Pennsylvania. Emmma R. is 26, Charles H. 20, and Gertrude Mable 4.

One tree said Gertrude Mabel's parents and Martha A. Bruce and Joseph Ruth both died in 1883. Myrtle May Ruth 1878-1934 and Asban Lee Ruth 1882-184 were siblings.

An illness of four weeks proved fatal to Mrs. Myrtle Boyd of Winterset last week. She died Saturday, October 6, 1934 at the Lutheran hospital in Des Moines. She was 55 years old.
Mrs. Boyd was born Myrtle Ruth, eldest daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Ruth, on a farm near Winterset on December 2, 1878. On December 15, 1897, she was married to Claud U. Boyd. They were the parents of six children, five of whom are living. Mrs. Boyd was orphaned at the age of five, and was reared in the home of her grandfather, Richard Bruce. At her death she had been a member of the Baptist church for 37 years. She was also a member of the Crown Rebekah lodge of Winterset.
Mrs. Boyd is survived by the five children, Raymond Boyd and Mrs. Jessie Dunn of Winterset. Mrs. Lois Vernon of Des Moines, and Loren and Clair Boyd at home; and her sister, Mrs. Gertrude Squires of Newton. There are also six grandchildren.
Mrs. Boyd’s husband died in 1931 and her daughter Ida in 1932.
The funeral was held at the Baptist church at 2:30 p.m., Tuesday. The Rev. Fred W. Madson, Baptist pastor, was in charge, assisted by the Rev. H. L. Olmstead, of the Church of Christ. Burial was made in Winterset.

Early articles on the company, as well as obituaries for A. K., N. K. and C. K., all include references to “the old roller type washer made for W. H. L. King.” At the same time, a 1901 feature about W. H. L. King, as well as his 1903 obituary, refers only to his 1880s billiard business and the King Weather Strip Company he developed over the last six or seven years of his life. No mention of the Whirl. The inference would be that the roller type washer was indeed “old” by 1901, as referenced in the Skow articles, or that it “flew under the radar in Newton,” perhaps due to only being sold out of state, or both.

Here's the evidence, albeit circumstantial:

We know that Skow produced the old roller slat washer for W. H. L. King. We know that Skow produced a cultivator in 1884. We know that W. H. L. King patented a cultivator while living in Princeton, Iowa in 1865. C. K. Skow (woodworking) came to Newton in 1883. W. H. L. King left Newton for Pierre, Dakota Territory, in 1884, and returned in 1891. The Whirl washer is a similar design to the Doty, which was in Newton as early as 1869. The Whirl washer seems less sophisticated than the Ratchet Slat. There is a Whirl washer on exhibit in the 1881 Court House Museum in Custer, S.D.

Elizabeth (Funk) Ruth 1824-1911 is buried in Winterset, Iowa # 24677231, with Hugh 1808-1896.
January 21, 1896 "Just as we go to press, the news comes of the death at 2 o'clock this morning, of Mr. Hugh Ruth, of Lincoln Township, aged 88 years. Mr. Ruth came to this vicinity in 1875 from Johnson County, (Iowa) and made his home in Winterset. He leaves two sons and four daughters to mourn his loss, of these, his son Charles and daughter Miss Emma, reside here, and the other son, Alex, of Muscatine, has arrived since his death. Funeral services will be held at 10 o'clock next Thursday at the Baptist Church. (He is buried at the McDonald-Chase Cemetery in Douglas Township) "

In 1900 Madison County, Charles is farming, born 1864 in Iowa, with widowed mother Elizabeth July 1824 Pennsylvania. Sister Emma born Dec 1859 in Iowa, and niece Gertrude Ruth Sept 1880 in Kansas are with him.

Alice is in Jasper County in 1900, where W. H. L. born Sept 1834 in is an inventor, with Mary August 1829, both born in Pennsylvania. Julia Sept 1863 is a dressmaker, Margaret Feb 1865 is teaching school, and Alice October 1871 ! is a stenographer.

Gertrude Mable Ruth married Glenn Armstrong, and their son J. L. Armstrong married in 1927 in Madison County, age 22.

Judy McNamara wrote in 2015 "A hymnal was handed down to my grandmother Gertrude M. Ruth (b. 1880). I was raised by Grandmother Gertrude, and she was raised by her grandparents, Hugh and Elizabeth, in Winterset, Iowa, in Madison County. Gertrude was raised with her cousins Emma and Charlie Ruth, and their names are in the book. Every Sunday night, my grandparents and I would celebrate the day by singing."
On December 23, 1903, in Jasper County, Iowa, Charles Henry Ruth, a farmer of Winterset, Iowa, age 40, born in Johnson County, Iowa, son of Hugh Ruth and Elizabeth Funk, married Alice Valeria King, daughter of W. H. L. King and Mary E. Evans, age 36, born at Princeton, Iowa.

William H. L. King is buried in Newton Union Cemetery, Jasper County, with Mary E. )Evans) King.


Leroy Ruth 1906-1906 is buried in Winterset, Iowa.

In 1910 Logan County, Chas. is farming, 45, with Alice 42, Merwin 5, and Florence 1.

Charles claimed two quarters in 21, 6N 51W in 1914.


In 1920 Logan County, Charles is farming, 55, Alice V. 45, Merwin E. 14, Florence 11, and Jennette 9.

In 1930 Charles and Alice are farming, with only Jeannette 19.

In 1940 Charles and Alice are living on Cleveland Street in Sterling, no occupations.


Charles H. Ruth 1864-1948 is buried in Sterling # 38904991, with Alice Valeria (King) Ruth 1867-1952.
Merwin E. Ruth 1905-1982
Leroy Ruth 1906-1906
Florence L. (Ruth) Barton 1908-1974 is buried in Sterling.


Jeannette (Ruth) Grauberger 1911-1989 is buried in Sterling.