George Metzger June 1901 to may 1902

George Metzger was born in Germany, on April 19, 1845, and five years later came to America with his par, ents, locating in New York. At the age of seventeen he enlisted in Company I, One Hundred and Twenty-fifth New York Volunteers. He was severely wounded at Gettysburg and again at Auburn Church, Virginia, and was mustered from service with honorable discharge in July, 1865. In the fall of 1869 he came to Iowa and engaged in business in Davenport. Always interested in politics he was active in the advancement of local and State affairs. In 1894 he was appointed custodian of public buildings by Governor Frank D. Jackson, and two years later he was reappointed by Governor Francis M. Drake. In 1898 he was appointed Postmaster of Davenport - a position which he held for several years. As a member of the Grand Army of the Republic and as Commander of August Wentz Post No. 1, he labored many years for the best interest of his comrades. In 1901 he was elected Commander of the Iowa Department. After his retirement from this office he continued to serve on important committees of the Grand Army and to prove his worth as a true soldier, serving his fellowman in peace as well as in war. He lived to attain the age of seventy-eight years, passing away quietly at his home in Davenport on September 23, 1923.

John Lindt  May 1902 to may 1903

John Lindt was an ardent worker in the interest of the Grand Army of the Republic. Born in the city of Erie, Pennsylvania, on the 27th day of March, 1848, he was a mere youth when the war broke out. Notwithstanding this fact he enlisted on January 28, 1863, as a Private in Company B, Pennsylvania Light Artillery, and served with that company until the close of the war. His military services at an end, he attended Oberlin College for a time, and in 1870 came to Council Bluffs, Iowa, and began the study of law. In 1872 he was admitted to the bar, and continued in active practice until the end of his career on August 30, 1912. He was a charter member of the Abe Lincoln Post No. 29, at Council Bluffs. In 1902 he was elected Department Commander and for several years he served on the Administrative Council of the National Grand Army of the Republic.

Levi B. Raymond  May 1903 to June 1904

Levi Beardsley Raymond was born in Allegheny County, New York, on July 3, 1836, and was educated at Beloit, Wisconsin. He learned the printer's trade and for two years prior to the Civil War he was a reporter on the Chicago Times and Chicago Post. In 1861 he enlisted in Company G, Sixth Wisconsin Volunteers - a part of the famous "Iron Brigade". In the Army of the Potomac he shared the perils and hardships of battle until in November, 1862, when he was severely wounded and discharged from service. Upon his discharge he returned to his former home in Wisconsin, but in 1865 he came to Iowa and located at Hampton in Franklin County. As editor of various newspapers in northern and northwestern Iowa he came to be widely known in that section of the State. He served for two terms as county superintendent of schools in Franklin County, and in 1906 was a candidate at the Republican Convention for the office of Lieutenant Governor. For many years Comrade Raymond was an interested and active member of the Grand Army of the Republic. He was a charter member of J. W. McKenzie Post No. 81, at Hampton. At the Annual Encampment held at Cedar Rapids in June, 1903, he was named Department Commander. In peace as in war he gave of his time and services freely. On April 18, 1911, he departed this life, but he is still remembered for his loyal and faithful service.

Robert T. St. John  June 1904 to May 1905

Robert T. St. John has long figured prominently in local and State affairs, and his entire career has manifested the same spirit of fidelity and service which prompted his enlistment in the Civil War at the age of sixteen. Mr. St. John was born in Jo Daviess County, Illinois, on July 14, 1846. He attended the common schools of Illinois and earned his first money "picking over waste in the Galena lead mines". In 1860 he came to Iowa with his parents, locating at Riceville. Two years later he enlisted in the Union army as a member of the Seventh Illinois Volunteer Cavalry, and proved himself to be a soldier of true worth. In 1882 he was elected sheriff of Mitchell County - a position which he held for many years, being elected in 1888 as president of the Iowa Sheriffs' Association. Throughout these years his name became a synonym for safety and law enforcement in that area. He was a member of the Twenty-fifth and Twenty,sixth General Assemblies where he served on important committees dealing with agriculture and taxation, and where he fostered legislation that was of interest to his comrades. Comrade St. John has long been a member of the Grand Army of the Republic. He served as Commander of Frank Brush Post, at Osage, and in 1904 was elected Commander of the Iowa Department. He is still a prominent resident of Riceville and one of the few surviving Past Commanders.

Samuel H. Harper  May 1905 to June 1906

Samuel Houston Harper, of Ottumwa, elected Department Commander of the Grand Army of the Republic in 1905, died suddenly at his home on December 17, 191 1, while still actively' engaged in public and business life. Mr. Harper was born at Zanesville, Ohio, on April 23, 1843. At the age of twenty years he came to Iowa riding on horseback from the Mississippi River to Ottumwa. He enlisted as a private in Company B, Thirty,sixth Iowa Infantry, and rose to the rank of captain. Upon his return home at the close of the war, he began his career in business in Ottumwa. As a hardware merchant and banker he was unusually successful, and came to be one of the outstanding businessmen of his day. In 1901 he was elected to the State Senate - serving in the Twenty-ninth, Thirtieth, and Thirty,first General Assemblies. In State, as in private and local affairs, he was always and everywhere an advocate of honest and efficient government. In the spring of 1911 he was elected Mayor of Ottumwa - a position which he filled with honor, dignity, and efficiency, but only for a brief period of eight months before his final passing. Throughout the later years of his career Captain Harper devoted much time and thought to the welfare of the Grand Army of the Republic and his comrades in service. Morally and religiously he stood for the highest and best, and left the world richer and better than he found it.

Charles A. Clark June 1906 to June 1907

Charles Armory Clark was born of Puritan ancestors at Sangerville, Maine, on January 25, 1841. He was one of eleven children, four of whom became soldiers in the Civil War. Two gave their lives in service, and the other two were wounded. Young Clark enlisted in the Sixth Maine. His military record is one of marked ability, by -which he won rapid promotion. For gallantry at Fredericksburg in 1862, he was brevetted major. For bravery at Rappahannock Station in 1863 he was promoted to lieutenant colonel. His brilliant and skillful maneuvering at Brooksford, Virginia, where in an emergency he assumed command, saved his regiment from capture and annihilation. Congress recognized his ability on this occasion and awarded him a gold medal. The Sixth Maine Infantry was in the thick of the fight from Bull Run to Appomattox. In thirty,eight of these battles Colonel Clark participated with gallantry. At the close of the war he studied law, was admitted to the bar, and in 1866 he came to Iowa, locating in Cedar Rapids where he practiced his profession for forty,seven years until his death in December, 1913. In 1906 Colonel Clark was elected to the office of Department Commander and he was both popular and efficient. His name was presented as a candidate for Commander-in-Chief, but he replied, "I have had my share of honors, give it to some of the other boys". His was a life of unselfish service.