Welcome to the Carlisle Area Historical Society

In 1870, Dr. J. D. Blake, M. D., settled in Palmyra, Iowa and began building up his practice which extended into the surrounding country. Dr. Blake was born in Ohio, attended Marietta College, taught school, attended lectures in Medicine at Starling Medical College, and engaged in practice in Lowell, Ohio. He re-entered college and again graduated in 1869, when he received his Medical degree. At the time this book was written, in 1908, Dr. Blake had “followed his chosen profession for forty-four years, with excellent success and his patients have the utmost confidence in his ability.” It was generally well-known that in 1860, at the age of 22, he walked fifteen miles to cast his first presidential ballot for Abraham Lincoln. In Palmyra he held every office in the Odd Fellows Lodge, and his wife was a member of the Presbyterian Church in Hartford. The Blake family is pictured at right.




















Blake house in Palmyra