Father: James Hastings, Jr.
Mother: Jennie A. Nelson

Spouse: Bessie Nannie Potts
  m: 30/Jun/1909 - Iola, Anderson Co., KS

Child-1: Margaret Eva
          2: Lillian Lucille
          3: Jacob (Jake) Warren
          4: Bessie Catherine
          5: Donald Eugene (Gene)
          6: James (Jim) Marshall
          7: Robert (Bob) William
          8: Wilma Nadine
          9: John (Johnny) Henry
        10: Cecil Lee
        11: Laurel Marie
        12: Dale Laverne

Biographical Details:

James Warren Hastings, known familiarly as "Warren" (or "Warnie"), was the youngest child of James and Jennie Nelson Hastings and according to archived Missouri birth records, was born in rural Washington Township in Nodaaay County, Missouri, on October 22, 1885.  Sarah Bell of Guilford was listed as the midwife for the birth.  This location is evidently near the eastern edge of Nodaway County close to its boundary with Gentry County.  Within this context, Warren Hastings always believed that he had been born in Cooper Township in Gentry County on a farm in the south half of Section eleven, Township sixty-two North, Range thirty-three West; however, this does not seem to have been accurate.  In any case, in the 1890's he moved with his mother and two siblings, viz., Lily and Arthur, to the town of Creston in Union County, Iowa.  Here he evidently completed his schooling.  At this time, Warren's older brother, John, apparently remained behind in Missouri since he had married there in 1890.  Warren Hastings and his brothers were evidently excellent mechanics and machinists and readily found work with railroads and machine shops in the early twentieth century.  According to family tradition, the Hastings brothers with their mother moved to Iola, Kansas, between 1900 and 1910.  At this time, Iola was a bustling town on the Leavenworth, Lawrence and Galveston Railroad and although the town had suffered economically in the 1870's with the failure of the King Bridge Manufacturing Company, by 1895 very large pools of natural gas had been discovered close by, which from 1895 to 1904 motivated rapid population growth, i.e., from a small town of just 1,567 people to a city with population over 11,000.  James Warren Hastings married Bessie Nannie Potts on June 30, 1909, in Iola.  Even so, the three brothers evidently believed that their fortunes lay elsewhere and census records indicate that in 1910 all three families were resident in the town of Sterling in Rice County, which lies in central Kansas about one hundred and fifty miles west of Iola.  Their occupations are listed as "machinist - automobile garage", which because Sterling was a small rural town, suggests that they were partners in an automobile repair business.  Unfortunately, according to family tradition the marriage of Arthur and Evelyn Hastings was in difficulty about this time and he is found listed both in the Rice County population schedule as well as the population schedule for Adams County, Nebraska, living with his wife and mother, respectively.  Warren Hastings (as well as his brothers) always seems to have been looking for new and better opportunities; hence, about 1915, he and his brothers, Arthur and John, evidently closed their business in Kansas and relocated to northeastern Colorado.  Here, they homesteaded on unclaimed public land still open for settlement.  Within this context, Warren and Arthur settled on parcels in Morgan County lying in Sections nine and three, respectively, of Township six North, Range fifity-six West, which are separated by about a half mile.¹  This location is at the extreme northern edge of Morgan County which was then near the early settlement of Antelope Springs and currently is about two miles west of Colorado Route seventy-one.  In contrast, John Hastings settled almost exactly twelve miles to the east in Logan County in Sections nine and four of Township six North, Range fifity-four West.²  This location is about eight miles west-northwest of the small town of Merino, which lies on the north side of the South Platte River.  It is not known why all three brothers did not settle together; however, contemporary maps of the area show that there were already many settlers; hence, it may not have been possible to find acceptable adjoining parcels.  Concomitantly, John may have preferred closer proximity to the South Platte River afforded by his homestead.  As might be imagined, these were some of the last public lands open for settlement within the continental United States and, as such, had been considered throughout the nineteenth century as part of the "Great American Desert".  Even so, they subsequently became quite productive of crops of dryland wheat.

According to the population schedule of the 1920 US Census for Morgan County, Colorado, James W. and Bessie N. Hastings were resident on a farm in Precinct Six, Antelope Springs, living with six minor children.  Even so, dryland farming evidently became unattractive to Warren Hastings and he sold his farm about 1925, moved about twelve miles to the south into the small town of Snyder and, again, opened an automobile repair business.  By all accounts, he was quite successful and became well-known as a meticulous and clever mechanic.  The family was resident in Snyder in 1930 and remained there until about 1939 when they moved to the larger, neighboring town of Brush.  Again, Warren opened an automobile repair business.  As might be expected, he was quite successful but, unfortunately, suffered a debilitating stroke in 1940 causing a loss of fine motor control as well as speech ability, which compromised his ability to work.  During his convalescence, he traveled to Missouri to visit his oldest daughter, Margaret, and her family then living a few miles northeast of Stanberry in Gentry County.  Perhaps, because of nostalgia since Warren had been born near this locality, he decided that he would relocate his family to Gentry County.  Consequently, the Hastings family left Colorado in 1941 and settled on a farm about three miles southwest of Stanberry in the Star rural school district.  Sadly, James Warren Hastings suffered additional strokes and died at home on March 4, 1949.  He was buried in the High Ridge Cemetery.  Subsequently, his widow returned to Colorado in 1954.  Family recollections of Warren Hastings portray him as a driven man with a high temper, who insisted on perfection.  He was also a lifelong smoker and, perhaps, this combination was at least in part responsible for his relatively early death.

1a. The United States of America, Sterling 022266 and 022275   To all to whom these presents shall come, Greeting:  WHEREAS, a Certificate of the Register of the Land Office at Sterling, Colorado, has been deposited in the General Land Office, whereby it appears that pursuant to the Act of Congress of May 20, 1862, "To Secure Homesteads to Actual Settlers on the Public Domain" and the acts supplemental thereto, the claim of
     James W. Hastings                has been established and duly consummated, in conformity to law, for the southwest quarter and the southeast quarter of Section nine in Township six north of Range fifity-six west of the Sixth Principal Meridian, Colorado, containing three hundred twenty acres
     according to the Official Plat of the Survey of said Land, returned to the GENERAL LAND OFFICE by the Surveyor-General:
     NOW KNOW YE, That there is, therefore, granted by the UNITED STATES unto the said claimant the tract of Land above described;  TO HAVE AND TO HOLD the said tract of Land with the appurtenances thereof, unto the said claimant and to the heirs and assigns of the said claimant forever; subject to any vested and accrued water rights for mining, agricultural, manufacturing, or other purposes, and rights to ditches and reservoirs used in connection with such water rights, as may be recognized and acknowledged by local customs, laws, and decisions of courts; and there is reserved from the lands hereby granted, a right of way thereon for ditches or canals constructed by the authority of the United States.
     IN TESTIMONY WHEREOF, I, Woodrow Wilson, President of the United States of America, have caused these letters to be made Patent, and the seal of the general Land Office to be hereunto affixed.  GIVEN under my hand, in the District of Columbia, the SIXTEENTH day of APRIL in the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred and NINETEEN and of the Independence of the United States the one hundred and FORTY-THIRD.   By the President: Woodrow Wilson, By M. P. LeRoy, Secretary. L. Q. C. Lamar, Recorder of the General Land Office
     RECORD OF PATENTS: Patent Number 674528    (US Land Patent Certificate Nos. 022266 & 022275; CO, Serial No. 674528, Bureau of Land Mamangement, Washington, DC, issued 16 Apr 1919. (BLM GLO Records, http://www.glorecords.blm.gov/default.aspx, 2016.))

b. The United States of America, Sterling 021824   To all to whom these presents shall come, Greeting:  WHEREAS, a Certificate of the Register of the Land Office at Sterling, Colorado, has been deposited in the General Land Office, whereby it appears that pursuant to the Act of Congress of May 20, 1862, "To Secure Homesteads to Actual Settlers on the Public Domain" and the acts supplemental thereto, the claim of
     William A. Hastings                has been established and duly consummated, in conformity to law, for the Lots three and four, the south half of the northwest quarter and the southwest quarter of Section three in Township six north of Range fifty-six west of the Sixth Principal Meridian, Colorado, containing three hundred twenty-two and eighty-hundredths acres
     according to the Official Plat of the Survey of said Land, returned to the GENERAL LAND OFFICE by the Surveyor-General:
     NOW KNOW YE, That there is, therefore, granted by the UNITED STATES unto the said claimant the tract of Land above described;  TO HAVE AND TO HOLD the said tract of Land with the appurtenances thereof, unto the said claimant and to the heirs and assigns of the said claimant forever; subject to any vested and accrued water rights for mining, agricultural, manufacturing, or other purposes, and rights to ditches and reservoirs used in connection with such water rights, as may be recognized and acknowledged by local customs, laws, and decisions of courts; and there is reserved from the lands hereby granted, a right of way thereon for ditches or canals constructed by the authority of the United States.
     IN TESTIMONY WHEREOF, I, Woodrow Wilson, President of the United States of America, have caused these letters to be made Patent, and the seal of the general Land Office to be hereunto affixed.  GIVEN under my hand, at the City of Washington, the TWENTY-SECOND day of AUGUST in the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred and EIGHTEEN and of the Independence of the United States the one hundred and FORTY-THIRD.   By the President: Woodrow Wilson, By M. P. LeRoy, Secretary. L. Q. C. Lamar, Recorder of the General Land Office
     RECORD OF PATENTS: Patent Number 646017    (US Land Patent Certificate No. 021824; CO, Serial No. 646017, Bureau of Land Mamangement,Washington, DC, issued 22 Aug 1918. (BLM GLO Records, http://www.glorecords.blm.gov/default.aspx, 2016.))
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2a. The United States of America, Sterling 020605   To all to whom these presents shall come, Greeting:  WHEREAS, a Certificate of the Register of the Land Office at Sterling, Colorado, has been deposited in the General Land Office, whereby it appears that pursuant to the Act of Congress of May 20, 1862, "To Secure Homesteads to Actual Settlers on the Public Domain" and the acts supplemental thereto, the claim of
     John N. Hastings                has been established and duly consummated, in conformity to law, for the northwest quarter of Section nine in Township six north of Range fifty-four west of the Sixth Principal Meridian, Colorado, containing one hundred and sixty acres
     according to the Official Plat of the Survey of said Land, returned to the GENERAL LAND OFFICE by the Surveyor-General:
     NOW KNOW YE, That there is, therefore, granted by the UNITED STATES unto the said claimant the tract of Land above described;  TO HAVE AND TO HOLD the said tract of Land with the appurtenances thereof, unto the said claimant and to the heirs and assigns of the said claimant forever; subject to any vested and accrued water rights for mining, agricultural, manufacturing, or other purposes, and rights to ditches and reservoirs used in connection with such water rights, as may be recognized and acknowledged by local customs, laws, and decisions of courts; and there is reserved from the lands hereby granted, a right of way thereon for ditches or canals constructed by the authority of the United States.
     IN TESTIMONY WHEREOF, I, Woodrow Wilson, President of the United States of America, have caused these letters to be made Patent, and the seal of the general Land Office to be hereunto affixed.  GIVEN under my hand, at the City of Washington, the TWENTY-FOURTH day of AUGUST in the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred and EIGHTEEN and of the Independence of the United States the one hundred and FORTY-THIRD.   By the President: Woodrow Wilson, By M. P. LeRoy, Secretary. L. Q. C. Lamar, Recorder of the General Land Office
     RECORD OF PATENTS: Patent Number 646134    (US Land Patent Certificate No. 020605; CO, Serial No. 646134, Bureau of Land Mamangement,Washington, DC, issued 24 Aug 1918. (BLM GLO Records, http://www.glorecords.blm.gov/default.aspx, 2016.))

b. The United States of America, Sterling 020606   To all to whom these presents shall come, Greeting:  WHEREAS, a Certificate of the Register of the Land Office at Sterling, Colorado, has been deposited in the General Land Office, whereby it appears that full payment has been made by the claimant
     John N. Hastings                according to the provisions of the Act of Congress approved March 3, 1877, entitled "An Act to provide for the sale of desert lands in certain States and Territories," as amended by the Act of March 3, 1891, and supplemented by the Act of March 4, 1915, for the southwest quarter of Section four in Township six north of Range fifty-four west of the Sixth Principal Meridian, Colorado, containing one hundred and sixty acres
     according to the Official Plat of the Survey of said Land, returned to the GENERAL LAND OFFICE by the Surveyor-General:
     NOW KNOW YE, That the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, in consideration of the premises, and in conformity with the several Acts of Congress in such case made and provided, HAS GIVEN AND GRANTED, and by these presents DOES GIVE AND GRANT, unto the said claimant and to the heirs of the said claimant the Tract above described;  TO HAVE AND TO HOLD the same, together with all rights, privileges, immunities, and appurtenances of whatsoever nature, thereunto belonging, unto the said claimant and to the heirs and assigns of the said claimant forever; subject to any vested and accrued water rights for mining, agricultural, manufacturing, or other purposes, and rights to ditches and reservoirs used in connection with such water rights, as may be recognized and acknowledged by local customs, laws, and decisions of courts; and there is reserved from the lands hereby granted, a right of way thereon for ditches or canals constructed by the authority of the United States.
     IN TESTIMONY WHEREOF, I, Woodrow Wilson, President of the United States of America, have caused these letters to be made Patent, and the seal of the general Land Office to be hereunto affixed.  GIVEN under my hand, at the City of Washington, the FIFTEENTH day of APRIL in the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred and NINETEEN and of the Independence of the United States the one hundred and FORTY-THIRD.   By the President: Woodrow Wilson, By M. P. LeRoy, Secretary. L. Q. C. Lamar, Recorder of the General Land Office
     RECORD OF PATENTS: Patent Number 674323    (US Land Patent Certificate No. 020606; CO, Serial No. 674323, Bureau of Land Mamangement, Washington, DC, issued 15 Apr 1919. (BLM GLO Records, http://www.glorecords.blm.gov/default.aspx, 2016.))
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Additional Citations:

3. 1910 US Census Population Schedule for Rice County, Kansas, National Archives, Washington DC:  pgs. 130B, 132A, & 136A, (microfilm: roll T624_838; imgs. 711, 714, & 722).

4. 1920 US Census Population Schedule for Morgan County, Colorado, National Archives, Washington DC:  pg. 172B, (microfilm: roll T625_168; img. 927).

5. 1930 US Census Population Schedule for Morgan County, Colorado, National Archives, Washington DC:  pg. 219B, (microfilm: roll T626_246; img. 441).

6. 1940 US Census Population Schedule for Morgan County, Colorado, National Archives, Washington DC:  pg. 406A, (microfilm: roll T627_472; img. 880).

7. Register of Births, Nodaway County, Maryville, MO: pg. 121; No. 1575, (Missouri State Archives, Office of the Secretary of State, Jefferson City, MO (microfilm: roll 4972; img. 134)) & Permanent Record of Births, Nodaway County, Maryville, MO: pg. 64; No. 1575, (Missouri State Archives, Office of the Secretary of State, Jefferson City, MO (microfilm: roll 4972; img. 254)).

8. World War I Draft Registration Cards, National Personnel Records Center, National Archives-Southeast Region, Morrow, GA, (microfilm: roll CO-1561826; img. 5444).

9. K. Bovaird, N. Newman, E. Miller, B. Phillips, N. Summa, and R. Pierce, Once Upon a Railroad, Stanberry, Missouri 1879-1979, Inter-Collegiate Press, Shawnee Mission, KS, 1979: pgs. 275-6.

10. Don Raymond,"High Ridge Cemetery", unpublished. (Gentry County MOGenWeb Archives, 2005.)

11. Laurel Hastings Evans, personal recollections.

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