Henry C. Tucker

Letterhead from the office of H. C. Tucker

Dr. Henry C. Tucker was born on Jan. 20, 1833 in Chester County, Pennsylvania to John and Mary A. (McBride) Tucker. He and his siblings grew up in Tuscarawas County, Ohio. During the Civil War he served in the 161st Ohio Infantry as Assistant Surgeon for four months in 1864. On July 1, 1860 in Tuscarawas County, Ohio, Tucker married Mary J. Clark, the daughter of Justin and Mary (Minnich) Clark. His wife was a cousin to Albert and John Hout Minnich, two brothers who also came to El Paso. John Hout Minnich was one of the founders of the town. Henry’s sister, Hannah Tucker, married Albert Minnich in November 1863. 

Henry C. Tucker arrived in Sedgwick County in the fall of 1871, when El Paso was just starting to develop, and quickly became one of the community’s leading citizens. In addition to being a doctor, H.C. Tucker also established the first drug store in El Paso, and he served as the town’s postmaster for eight years. He was a charter member of the Presbyterian church, where he helped to establish the Sabbath school and served as its superintendent for a number of years. Since he arrived in El Paso before the first bridge was built, some people related stories about Tucker’s willingness to ford the river to provide medical care for residents of Salem or Waco townships, which endeared him to the community. 

Derby's early bank building. This photo, however, was taken many years later and the man standing out front is believed to not be Dr. Tucker.

Tucker came to Kansas along with two of his brothers, Anthony Wayne and John. The brothers both established successful farms while Henry practiced medicine.  

In 1884, Tucker tore down the small building that had housed his drug store as well as the town’s post office for numerous years and in its place built the building pictured above. In 1886 he also started the town’s first bank in that building and operated it along with his drug store. He retired from his medical practice in 1886 to concentrate his attention on the new bank, but the enterprise struggled and closed in just a few years. Tucker remained active in the community until his death in May 1897 at the age of 64 years. 

Dr. Henry C. Tucker was buried in the Tucker family plot in the El Paso Cemetery on May 29, 1897. His service was lead by Rev. H.A. Zimmerman of the Presbyterian Church of Derby. The Masonic orders from Wichita and Mulvane took charge after the service with the Odd Fellows of Derby, the members of the G. A. R. Baldwin Post (Grand Army of the Republic), and the Sons of Veterans paying their respects. His wife Mary J. (Clark) Tucker was born in Ohio on Sept. 30, 1835 and died on Aug. 29, 1911 in Wichita, Kansas. She was also buried in the Tucker family plot on Aug. 30, 1911. 

Some of the information was provided by the Derby Historical Museum. Read more about Derby history on their blog here: www.derbykshistorymuseum.org/blog