One of Hampton’s First Physicians and The Builder of the Harriman-Nielsen House

On June 28, 1882, a small article in the Franklin County Recorder stated: “Dr. O.B. Harriman’s new residence at Evergreen Park is rapidly nearing completion. When finished, it will be a decided ornament to that part of our city.” Dr. Harriman, known in the community as Oscar or O.B., purchased the land in 1881. The house Dr. Harriman built is known today as the Harriman-Nielsen Historic Farm. Today’s article is about a young man who came to Hampton in 1865 and had a significant impact on the growing community.

Oscar Bryon Harriman’s family story in the United States began in 1638 when his orphaned fifth-great-grandfather, Leonard, immigrated to Salem, Massachusetts, with a group of 60 Puritans led by Rev. Ezekiel Rogers. His great-grandfather, Moses, served in the Revolutionary War with Col. Samuel Johnson’s regiment at Lexington. Moses’ wife, Jane Hale, was the first cousin of famed revolutionary patriot Nathan Hale.

Oscar’s father, John, was born in 1808 in Henniker, New Hampshire, and married Jane Colby in 1835. They had the following children: Oscar Byron, 1836; Edward, 1838; Walter Franklin, 1841; Henry, 1844; Clara, 1846; and Charlotte, 1848.

John and Jane with all their children except Oscar Byron came to Iowa in 1860. They came by train to Dubuque and then by wagon to Rockford, Iowa, where they stopped at a large stone hotel. Having a large family and no house, John purchased the hotel where they lived for some time. John purchased land for each of his sons in Iowa. John died in Hampton in 1875; Jane died in Rockford in 1864. They are both buried in Rockford in the cemetery created on land donated by John.

Before he left Warner, New Hampshire, in the early 1850s. Oscar taught school and was his town’s superintendent at the age of 22. In 1857 he began medical training. Oscar was attending Dartmouth Medical College when his parents moved to Iowa. He took post-graduate studies in New York and at the Chicago Polyclinic. For several months he was employed in the Federal Hospital Service at Keokuk and later practiced medicine in Rockford and Marble Rock.

He came to Hampton in 1865 and became a well-respected and sought-after physician.

Oscar’s brothers, Henry and Walter, also came to Hampton and had successful careers. Walter was an attorney, became State Senator, and was a candidate for Governor at one time. He served on the Iowa State Fair Board, served as county attorney, and was mayor of Hampton. Henry established a successful real estate business in Hampton. After his death, his widow, Helen, donated ten acres of land on the north side of Hampton for a park we all know as Harriman Park.

Oscar was a well-respected member of his profession and heavily involved in the development of Hampton. He was chosen president of the Franklin County Medical Society at its creation 1876. He was also a member of Austin Flint Medical Society, Iowa State Medical Society, Iowa State Association of Railway Surgeons, and the Board of Iowa State Medical Examiners (1895). He served as the county coroner six years, county physician for four years, and head of the Hampton Board of US Pension examiners.

O. B. Harriman was also an early civic leader in Hampton. He was the mayor of Hampton three times, served on the city council and was postmaster during President Grover Cleveland’s first administration. In February of 1891, he, along with other town leaders, founded the Hampton Globe and was the senior editor of the paper. It was the first Democrat paper in Hampton. In 1892 he was a delegate to the National Democratic Convention. In lodge circles, he was prominent in the Masonic order, Knights Templar Commandery, and Odd Fellows.

In 1870, Dr. Harriman built Hampton’s first drug store on Main Street east of the courthouse square. By the end of that decade, he built Harriman Hall on the corner of Main and Fourth streets, one of the most imposing buildings in town. The first floor was four storefronts wide and housed his offices. The second floor held the Harriman Opera House, which seated 700 people and offered live performances each month. The block of buildings was called Harriman Hall. In addition, Dr. Harriman owned One-Mile Horse Track, where horse racing was a popular activity. The area is now the home of the high school football field and track.

On a personal level, he married Ellen J. Donavon in Maysville on April 13, 1868. She was a schoolteacher who was born in New York. Her mother, Minerva Hazeltine, lived with the Harriman family until her death in 1887.

Oscar and Ellen had the following children:

John Edwin 1869

Jennie Ellen 1870

Dick 1872 - died at 1 ½ years after a brief illness (June of 1873)

Lillian 1875

Lura 1876 – died March 21, 1885

Vera 1879

Dea 1880

Oscar Byron 1882-Nov 1884

Bessie March 1884 - died Sept of 1884

Ellen died on December 3, 1886. Dr. Harriman continued to live in the house he had built until his death on July 8, 1905 from a stroke. His funeral was held on the lawn of his home. It was so well attended that that the funeral cortege was reported as five blocks long.

How do we remember this pioneer who was so instrumental in the development of Hampton?

O.B. Harriman was known as a man of knowledge, compassion, integrity, vision, humility and great strength. “While the house in Evergreen Park is the only surviving building associated with his productive life, Dr. Oscar Byron Harriman left an enduring legacy as a man who cared deeply about his community and dedicated his life to helping it grow and prosper.” Brian Thies, FCHS Newsletter July 2011.

Dr. Oscar Byron Harriman

Ellen Donavon Harriman

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