An Illustrated History of Central Oregon, Western Historical Publishing Company,
Spokane, WA. 1905, pp. 294-295.

JOHN S. PHIPPS resides on Center Ridge eight miles southeast from Boyd, where he
owns a half section of land, two-thirds of which are cropped. He was born in
Missouri, on August 18, 1851, the son of William and Sarah (Boone) Phipps,
natives of Indiana and Missouri, respectively. The father's parents were also
born in Indiana and died when he was a small child. They were of Scotch-English
extraction. The mother's parents were born in Missouri. Her grandfather was a
brother of Daniel Boone. Our subject's parents now live in Yakima county,
Washington. The father is aged nearly eighty and the mother is past seventy.
They crossed the plains to Oregon in 1853 settling on a donation claim in
Washington county, where they remained sixteen years, then journeyed to Yamhill
county and eight years later went thence to Polk county. John S. was educated in
the various places where the family lived during his youth and when twenty-two
started out in life for himself. He first rented land and about 1879, went to
Klickitat county, Washington and spent four years near Bickleton, then we find
him teaming in Portland for ten months after which he was in Polk county for two
years. Then he came to the east side of the mountains and filed on the claim
where he now lives and also purchased railroad land. Since then, he has given
his time and attention to the improvement and cultivation of this place and he
has a good farm which pays good annual dividends.      

On January 1, 1877 in Polk county, Mr. Phipps married Miss Arminda Davidson, the
daughter of Andrew and Rachel (Goodrich) Davidson. Her marriage occurred near
Ballston, Oregon. She was born in Polk county on November 24, 1858. The father
and his parents were born in Tennessee from an old colonial family of
Scotch-Irish ancestry. He died in 1884. The mother was born in Indiana and died
in August, 1901. Both were on the old Polk county donation claim at the time of
their death. They crossed the plains with ox teams in 1846 and settled on the
donation claim where they remained the balance of their lives. The trip was
fraught with great hardship and suffering. At the point where the Applegate cut
off branched from the old road, one-half of the train took that and the balance
came on the usual route. Mrs. Phipp's grandfather came to Oregon in 1844 and
when word was brought him that his son-in-law and family would come by the
Applegate cut off, he immediately with all speed fitted out a supply train to
meet them as he well knew what they would have to encounter. Hurrying to the
rescue, he arrived just in time as they were nearly starved to death and sick
besides. Their cattle were dead and he was obliged to leave the wagons and all
their luggage. He finally transferred them to the valley and they arrived in
Dayton in a condition well expressed by the homely phrase "more dead than
alive." To add to the trouble, the mother had broken her arm and her husband was
down with mountain fever and two small children were to be cared for. However,
they were nursed back to health in the Willamette valley and there lived for
many years. Mr. Phipps has one brother, Ellis, and five sisters, Mrs. Eliza
Goldie, Mrs. Annie McLean, Mrs. Wilmina Hayden, Mrs. Mary Godaberg, deceased and
Cassandra, who died when fifteen years of age.      

Mr. Phipps is a good active Democrat and has been school director for twelve
years. To our subject and his wife, the following children have been born,
Lillian, Inez, Blanche, Wanda, and Clarence.



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Submitted to the Oregon Bios. Project in January 2005 by Jeffrey L. Elmer. 
Submitter has no additional information about the person(s) or family mentioned
above.