"In 1886 John F. White, along with James and Edmond Woods and Will Burr, came here as young, single men from homes close to Salem, Kansas, near the Smith County line.  They took homesteads in Wichita County, all settling close together.  John F. White's homestead was thirteen miles north and one and one-half west of Leoti, where he built a little sod house on his land.  Needing an income and being an energetic man, he soon found a need he could fill, and so became a well digger.  That job called for someone with a strong back and no fear of being down in the ground.  In this job he didn't have to use his mind too much, releasing it to delve into the mysteries of the human body.  He spent his rest time and leisure moments reading books on the human anatomy, studying the "whys and the why nots."  The shortage of medical help drove him almost to desperation in his efforts to be self-educated in order to fill what he felt was his calling to serve his fellow man, often denying himself some of the necessities of life.

"A strong willed, outspoken man, and sometimes lacking tact in his speech, he didn't leave any doubt about what he meant.  But when someone needed medical care, he was always there and was both doctor and nurse as long as there was a need.  When called he would risk life and limb of both himself and his faithful horse, which he drove hitched to a top-buggy.  He didn't doctor for money but to fill a need out of love for the sick. (I couldn't feel he had much love to waste on the well people.).  He finally built a house and office in Sunnyside.  By the way, part of the house now stands on the R. L. Titus farm, moved there by Hiram Burr, when the doctor moved to Leoti, in his later years. 

"Babies and typhoid fever seemed to be his specialties.  Many of us owe our lives to his guiding hand.  Probably he kept no records of the number of babies he delivered.  I can't remember of ever seeing a doctor's certificate hanging on the wall of his office.  He did practice some fifty years. A thing that stands out as a permanent monument to his thorough and skillful practice is the fact - few graves in the Beulah Rest Cemetery are marked, "The infant of Mr. and Mrs. So-and-So" and giving only one date.  I have access to all burial records in the county and what a contrast to the other cemeteries.

"One of the thinks that stands out in my mind as a boy, was Doc calling, or he would stop by anytime of the night, knock and call out,  'Grace, I need you, Mrs. So-and-So is having her baby.'  Mother's specialty was being a mid-wife.  When Doc came after Mother, the thought that would come to my mind immediately, was 'not much for breakfast in the morning,' because Dad was a poor cook, almost no cook at all (I have inherited his cooking ability.)

"I remember quite clearly the time Ed Deaver and Doc came by in the top buggy.  They called for Grace to hurry as Anna (Blau) Deaver was going to have her first baby.  As they continued their cold ride, the men offered Grace a drink of whisky to help keep her warm.  Her reply (if you knew here) was that you guys better tend to the business at hand, you have much more important things to do.  Well, anyway, Elizabeth was born in November 1913.  It was near zero outside that night.

"The first new Ford car that Doc bought as in 1913.  it had a square dash and square fenders, in fact, I guess square everything would best describe this fancy 'runabout' as it was called.  I can't remember if it had a top or not.  This was something of an advancement toward modern living.  Everyone thought this would make it so his service would be speedier.  Well, low-and-behold when Doc wanted to be sure to make calls he stilled used his faithful but aging horse.  He was glad to pioneer, but still had little faith in this new contraption.

"Dr. White did kind of take the bull by the horns, when he encouraged the forming of the Sunnyside Telephone Company and volunteered his office as a central station.  There was a master switch in one room, which was convenient for his medical services.

"He always liked a little whisky and resented the Eighteenth Amendment.  He really didn't care to have anyone tell him what he could or could not do.  It's been told that they found his own private still in his house after his death.  I never did know of him to drink much.  Sometimes he would be outspoken in telling others it wasn't good for them to drink.  He just couldn't take his own advice.

"He was county health officer at one time and was county coroner near the end of his life.  Never married unless it was to his faithful black medical back, which was always at his side.  He passed away in 1937, and is buried in Leoti Cemetery, in circle B-3, Lot 5, space 2.

With his death, the community lost a true pioneer, a masterful servant, and a memorable charter."

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"Dr. J. F. White Dies in Scott City Hospital

"Dr. J. F. White died of pneumonia Saturday, March 13th, in a Scott City hospital after nine days' illness.

"On Thursday, Mar. 4, "Doc", as he was known to hundreds of people in western Kansas, attended the McBride sale and greeted friends as he was accustomed to doing, despite his age of nearly four score years.  That evening he said he took a "chill" and his health took a sudden turn into pneumonia.  Monday, of the week he passed away, he was taken to the Scott City hospital.

"At the time of his death Dr. White was County Health Officer, and also Coroner, positions which he faithfully fulfilled with the interests of the people in mind.

"Aug. 15, '36, he was elected tot he capacity of "Wichita County's Most Famous Citizen" by an overwhelming popular vote.  All the courtesies that accompanied that honor were accorded Dr. White at the Diamond Jubilee in Wichita, Kan., last October."

"Story of Dr. White (same article]

"Dr. J. F. White was born in Green[e] Co; Tenn, Sept. 8, 1857.  His parents were farmers, and he was one of a family of eleven children.

"August 13, 1886, J. F. White, then a young man of 29, arrived in this county.  That was 50 years ago last summer.  He was a single man and remained in that capacity.

"The young Mr. White took up a claim on the NW Qr. of 14-16-37 and built himself a sod shanty on his farm, 13 miles northwest of Leoti.  From 1886 to 1906 he lived in his sod shanty.

"He never had any school education, and he began, immediately after building his sod shanty, to read all the books that he could gather.  His favorite study was medicine, and he naturally took up the study that in a few years built his reputation for him. 

"His manner of study was not in line with state regulations as far as degrees are concerned, but the purpose and object in his case was no doubt far greater than most students.  Neighbors prevailed upon him to do their doctoring, after the community became aware that many of those weeks when they had not seen Doc, were spent in study at his shanty  In 1901, Doc...."(article cut off here).

MORE ABOUT JOHN WHITE'S FAMILY

John was my grandmother's half brother, the son of James Madison White and Margaret Yeagar.  He migrated with extended family and neighbors from Greene County, Tennessee to Salem, Jewell County, Kansas.  He moved down the road to Smith Center, Kansas, and then, in 1886, to Leoti, Wichita County, Kansas.  He never married, but led a very interesting life! 

My grandmother, Jennie B. White, taught school in Leoti, 1911-1912, before returning to Greene County TN to marry her childhood sweetheart. Her sister, Bertha White,  lived in nearby La Crosse, Kansas until late in her life, when she joined her nephew in Denver.  John's father married twice in Greene County, Tennessee, and had 19 children who survived to adulthood.  Our great-grandmother, Rachael Jane Campbell, was his second wife. Our grandmother was born when her father was 70.