" WESTWARD HO !" 19 



averao^e country boy of the time and place. In winter 

 he attended school, and in summer assisted in the 

 family work, and necessarily acquaintance with horses 

 was with him, as with all boys so situated, a matter of 

 early commencement. His skill at horsemanship quickly 

 manifested itself, and, as a boy, his triumphs were in 

 the direction of managing balky horses, and in excel- 

 lent riding. 



A half century ago, those who longed to better their 

 worldly circumstances felt the magnetism of the West 

 as strongly as we do to-day; and in 1846 or 181:7, Don 

 A. Marvin and his family removed to Lowell, in Kent 

 County, Michigan, where they farmed and kept hotel 

 for six years. In 1852, another western move was 

 made to Rockford, Illinois ; then to Council Grove, 

 Illinois, and a few years later to Dubuque, Iowa, where 

 ]\[r. Marvin, Sr., was engaged for a time as a railroad 

 contractor. Later Mr. Marvin lived successively at 

 Coffin's Grove, Cedar Kapids, La Grange and Des 

 Moines, Iowa, and the latter city became the perma- 

 nent home of the familv. Mr. Don A. Marvin died at 

 Des Moines in 1869, and Mrs. Marvin in 1885. 



Before the removal to Des Moines, Charles Marvin 

 determined to strike out for himself, and in April, 

 1862, started for California overland. Taking a team 

 with him he began the journev with one George Bab- 

 cock as a companion adventurer. On the way to 

 Council Bluffs they fell m with a man whose destina- 

 tion was Pike's Peak, Colorado, and he persuaded 

 Marvin to transport a load of stores for him to that 

 point. In due time Pike's Peak was reached, and 

 Marvin tried his fortune in the mines, but soon gave it 



