Full text of "Portrait and biographical album, Mecosta county, Mich., containing portraits and biographical sketches of ... citizens ... also ... a complete history of the county, from its earliest settlement to the present time"

NYPL RESEARCH LIBRARIES

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©Or^TI^AITS AND BlOGP^APHIGAL Sl^E^TGHES
pi^onjinent and I^eprG^ei]tafciVE ditizeq^ of tlje Countif,

TOGETHER WITH PORTRAITS A!VD BIOGRAPHIES OF ALL THE GOVERNORS OF MICHIGAN
AND OF THE PRESIDENTS OB THE UNITED STATES.

ALSO CONTAINING A COMPLETE HISTORY OF THE COUNTY, FROM ITS EARLIEST SETTLEMENT

TO THE PRESENT TIME.

CHICAGO:

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traits of all the leading men and pioneers of the county.
("hicago, Dcccmher, 1883.

CHAPMAN BROTHERS.

ISHING to adhere to the time-honored but often unnecessary custom of introduc-
ing books with a preface, we now proceed to thus formally present the Portrait
AND Biographical Album of Mecosta County, Michigan. We promise, how-
ever, that the introduction shall be brief In reference to the value and import-
ance of biography, of which this work is largely composed, we wish to say a word.
It is conceded, not only by the best philosophical writers, but by intelligent
\ practical men the world over, that there is nothing which creates an aspiration so
noble and laudable within the heart and mind of the young man who is struggling
against adversity, poverty, and an humble position in society, as to read how other
men have risen to eminent and honored positions from the self-same lowly walks of
life he now occupies. It is a source of great encouragement to them. It is also a
duty that each generation owes to the succeeding ones, to record and preserve the
personal history of its leading and active men. There is no better way to preserve
the history of a nation than in the lives of the men who make such history. Our
forefathers were very largely negligent of this duty to _ posterity. We now only know
the names of our ancestors, and often not even so much has been preserved. We
know nothing of their lives, long and useful though they were.

In the preparation of the personal sketches contained in this volume, unusual

care and pains were taken to have them accurate, even in the smallest detail. Indeed,

nothing was passed lightly over or treated indifferently in the entire book, and we

flatter ourselves that it is one of the most accurate works of its nature ever published.

In reference to the history of the county, which is very fully treated, we wish to

call the attention of the reader to the extraordinarily rapid growth and development

of the county since its first settlement. But a few years ago the primeval forest was

occupied only by the wild beasts and the Red Man. To-day prosperous cities, busy

factories and mills, fine farms, school-houses and churches are to be seen everywhere throughout its

borders. Nowhere has the busy activities of our days, the march of progress, the wonderful advance of

science and art, contributed more to the rapid and remarkable development of any portion of the

Northwest than in the County of Mecosta.

As one of the most interesting features of this work, we present the portraits of numerous repre-
sentative citizens. It has been our aim to have the prominent men of to-day, as well as the pioneers,
(^ represented in this department; and we congratulate ourselves on the uniformly high character of the
gentlemen whose portraits we present. They are in the strictest sense representative men, and are
selected from all the callings and professions worthy to be represented. There are others, it is true,
who claim equal prominence with those presented, but of course it was impossible for us to give por-

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Acker man, David ... .42:

Adair, James M .421

Adair, Nelson V 241

Adams, John 53

Adams, John Quincy 39

Adams, Norman W 261

Aitken, James 555

Albro, Henry T 329

Aldrich, Forest W 4qo

Andrews, Wm, H 422

Ariss, Thomas 504

Armstrong, John V 443

Armstrong, Joseph A 284

Arthur, Chester A gq

Austin, Robert 455

Bacon, Barnabas 201

Eagle y, John J 157

Baker, L. S. 44Q

Baldwin, Henry P 153

Bane, Alexander 436

Barnard, Charles F 450

Bariihart, Noah 210

Barnhart, Wm z6o

Barry, John S T13

Barstow, Sumner 508

Barto, David W 303

Barto, Joseph B 242

Beebe, Nelson H 303

Bcgole, Josiah W. i6g

Bell, John A 250

Bell,Wm. A 269

Bellamy, John ... .346

Bemis, Luther 241

Benjamin, David M 538

Bennett, A.W 388

Bennett, Hasard 2S0

Benscoter, JohnW 416

Eentley, Ora F 380

Benthien, Carl 381

Bingham, Kinsley S 137

Bisbee, Jasper E 539

Blackmar, P 259

Blair, Austin 145

Blanchard, Herbert P ..290

Blossom, John 435

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Borst, Julius R 319

Boyd, Myron H 182

Bovay, Robert H 467

Brackett, George 363

Brady, George 433

Brander, Wm 374

Ereakey, Andrew 503

Briggs, Martin L 331

Brigham, Elisha A 5C2

Bright, John H 422

Brock way, Asa 227

Brockway, Wm 208

Eronson, Gen. Stephen 187

Broomfield, Wm 444

Brown, Dr. Benj. F. "vsiS

Brown, Benson E. 526

Brown, Harrison J 314

Brown, Henry D 272

Brown, Henry R 264

Brown, John F 556

Brown, Maria E .528

Brown, Hon. Michael 197

Brown, Silas 318

Brown, Stephen W 485

Brown, Wm. H 553

Bruce, Valorus W 480

Buchanan, James. 75

Buck, James H 555

Buck, Samuel 219

Buck, Wilber H 213

Bullcck, Danif 1 C 334

Bump, Wm. H 299

Eurdick, Eugene F 474

Burkart, Dr. John L ^86

Burrison, James 552

Cab ill, Joseph 223

Cahill, Peter. . : 350

Cahill, Thorr as ..283

Calkins, Charles W 282

Campbell, John R 228

Campbell, John S 214

Canaan, Asher L 330

Canaan, James S 339

Cannon, Edwin 271

Capen, Randall T 430

Carman, Mahlon 391

Carpenter, Charles D 203

Carpenter. Persons T .363

Carr, Elijah 351

Carr, John 450

Cartwright. Leroy . . . 455

Caudle, James 459

Cawthorne, fames P . 430

Chapin, Allen 479

Chipman , Lemuel F 208

Chipman, L. F 224

Chipman. S.S 191

Clark, Henry M 188

Clark, John Q. A ". 190

Clement, Aaron S 278

Clifton, Chas. W.. . 290

Clink, John 356

Coates, Nathan M 554

Colby, James M 509

Cole, Elijah '. , . . 193

Cole, Myron M ,-,261

Collins, Michael S 260

Collins, Richard .334

Compton, Bion H 330

Comstock, Chester W 540

Conner, John M 454

Corbett, Elizabeth 387

Corbett, William. 308

Corey, Benjamin F 332

Corey, Lanson F . -.320

Corneil, George P 515

Cornell, George W 550

Cota, Henry S 209

Crandell, Charles D 498

Crandell, Stephen R 491

Crane, Charles H 496

Crapo, Henry H 149

Creevey, William 453

Crocker, John M 248

Crocker, Thomas R . 312

Croswell, Charles M 161

Cunningham. Charles W 516

Dal/iel, Benjamin 279

Dalziel, James 280

Darrah, Charles M 337

Darrah, James M, 425

Darrah, Wilson E 440

Davenport, Byron S ■ -351

Davidson, A 376

Falardo, Joseph 456

Fairman, Ferdinand 247

Felch, Alpheus ■- 117

Ferguson, Wm- M 411

Ferris, Isaac W 281

Fillmore, Millard 67

Fitzgerald, Edward 340

Flake, John 406

Foglesang, Eli W 269

Ford Ira A 31B

Davidson, William 2gi

Davis, Bartley 344

Davis, Ellis 204

Davis, James 234

Davis, John 243

Decker, Gilbert A , 406

Decker, James N 317

Docker, John D 344

Decker, Peter S 527

Decker, Richard S 419

Degear, Michael 310

De Long, Joseph A 294

Denney, James M 486

Denney, Nathan 282

Denney, William F 538

Dewey, Elijah F 199

Dixon, James 324

Dopp, Matthew 299

Doyle, Michael 210

Dubois, Jacob M 466

Dumon, Frank 407

Dutcher, Mrs. Msry A..... 356

Dye, James R 421

Dye, Morris G 408

Eaton, John 407 V

Eaton, Noah 461

Edmonds, Timothy 214

Eldredge, A. W 420 .

Ely, Arnold 443 '

E,rikson, Patrick 277

Escott, Joseph T 519

Evans, John S 277

Evans, Henry C 289

Everhart, Joseph J. . 460

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INDEX.

-4^^f^4i

, Foster, John H 302

<> Frederick, Eli 483

':', Fredrickson, John, Jr 498

,, Freiberg, John 323

.■^ Fribley, John B 534

* Friedel, Adam 239

f Frj'e , Solomon F 202

-J Fuller, David C 401

Fuller, Hon. C. C 177

Fuller, James W 503

Gale & Hood 244

Ganong, Albert H . . . ' 4x5

Gardner, Theodore C 349

Garfield, Jamas A 05

Garlins^ David L 338

Gates, Dr. S. A 203

Gaunt, Joseph 545

Gay, Charlie 405

Gensman, Edward 222

Gilchrist, Edward 304

Gill, John G 229

Gilmore, Henry R 238

Gingrich, John B 351

Gingrich , Peter B . 352

Glidden, Durelle F 472

Glidden, Oliver D 553

Gottshall, George M 268

Grant, Ulysses S S7

Gray, Silvester H .231

Gray, Wm . S 234

Green, George \V 270

Greenly, William L 121

Grimme, Father Henry W 486

Grimes, George 466

Griswold, L. S 200

Groner, Dr. F. J 376

Groom, James H 408

Gross, Orsemus 232

Gruher, J. K iqi

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Haggit, George A 340

Haist, George F 203

Hale, fieorge I 324

Hall, Reuben N 249

Hane, Caleb V 294

Haney. Edward G 380

Hanifan. Thomas 254

Hanson, Andrew 333

Hanson, Henry D 2Tg

Harmon, Edward 309

Harrington, Harvey .346

Harrington, John 230

Harrison, Wm. H 51

Haskill. Sidney 345

Haslem, Edward 362

Hatfield, George E 322

Hathaway, Eli 491

Hayes, Eli 461

Hayes, Rutherford B 91

Heald, George W 323

Hearn, Henry 240

Helms, George 302

Hendryx, Wilbur A 465

Henry, Charles H 546

Hickey, John 556

Hicks, Wm. H 508

H jgbee, Nelson 267

Hill, Eli 262

H in man, Charles 230

Hinton, John 554

Hobart, Mart E 501

Hodskey, Leister C 394

Hood & Gale 244

Hooker, A. S 537

Hopkinson, Wm. D 415

Horton, Daniel 293

Horton, Edward T 313

Horton, Seneca 279

Horton, Thomas G . ■ 522

Howd, Walter S 387

Hoynes, Stephen 555

Hudnutt, Edward W 262

Hugh, William 453

Hughes, Rassel B 545

Huling, Jared P 373

Hullinger, James 298

Hummer, J- B^ iq8

Hunt, TheophitTis C 379

Hunter, James T 304

Hunter, John 231

Hurley, Thomas K 533

Hutchinson, L- N 212

Hyatt, Leonard .... 274

Hyatt, Wm- J 509

Hyde, Hannibal 253

Jackson, Andrew 43

Jacques, Wm. M. Jr , 485

Jamieson. Robert 460

Jefferson, Thomas 27

Jerome, David H it>5

Johnson, Amos 25S

Johnson, Andrew 83

Johnson, Charles O 323

Johnson, Christian 274

Johnson, Hugh 426

Johnson, James 474

Jones, Wm. T 297

Joslin, Frederick W 273

Judkins, Capt. James 467

Kassner, Matthias 199

Keegan, Michael 233

Kclley, Barnabas 430

Kelley , Charles W 308

Kelley, Darwin B 503

K.el!ey, Peter - .532

Kenrick, Edwin H 495

Kent, Monroe R 416

Kent, Rufus 381

King, Darwin C 460

Kinnee, Jesse 212

Kirvan, John E 183

Knapp, -■Vbel B 513

Knettles, G. M. D 456

Ladner, Herbert 515

Ladner, Hon. Wm 489

La Douceur, Charles H 214

Ladonceur, Napoleon 394

La Grange, Ephraim 289

Lake, William O 244

Lamb, Munson 434

Langworthy, Edward 284

Lazell, Thomas 189

Le Duke, John .328

Leggett, Dr. L J 398

Lincoln, Abraham 79

Lincoln, L. C 253

Lock man, Abram 498

Lonsdale, John 397

Loop, Philet 219

Losie, Leo 271

Loucks, Jacob H 338

Lcvejoy, Benjamin T 426

Lovejoy, Charles B .426

Loveless, Loren T 521

Lowe, William 313

Ludington, Charles H 198

Luther, Fredei ick R 311

Madison, James 31

Maguire, John .' 314

Main, Charles 310

Main, Henry 338

Main, John M 340

Malone, George R 343

M ann, James W 454

Mann, John F 528

Manning, Rev. Wm. H 52S

M ansfield , Henry 308

Marsh, Edwin J 328

Martiny, John 398

Martz, John G 184

Mason, Alfred S 540

Mason, Stevens T 105

Maxon, Frank S 540

Mc Arthur, Charles 208

McCamley, Wm. M 264

McClelland, Robert 129

McCombs, Wm. A 420

McConnell, Asa 218

McCormick, James 504

McCormick,Malcom 484

McDuffie, Henson 4S0

McElroy, J. F 502

McFarlan, Walter 546

McFarlane, Andrew 433

McGill, Joseph 220

Mcintosh, Ira 210

McKeon, Patrick 202

McKewen, John 357

McLellan, Duncan 507

McMullen, Dr. B. H 364

McPherson, Wm H 304

Menere, Levi S 264

M ero, Gilbert 212

Merrill, John B 224

Miller, George 339

Miller, William 490

Mills, Henry 218

Mills, James A 345

Milner, Jonathan 439

Mitchell, James 357

Mitchell, Nathaniel 299

Mitchell, Samuel S 237

Mitchell, Wm. G 549

Monroe, James 35

Montague, Charles H 319

Montonye, Wm. P 486

Moody. W. D ^ 273

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Moore, Chas. S 220

Moore, Henry H 352

Moore, Robert 402

Morse, Willis 422

Mortensen, Thomas P 264

Morton, John E 194

Mosher, Dewitt C 220

Munn, Park 274

Mynning, Christian F 301

Nethaway, Lyman 320

Newton, Samuel L 307

Nickens, Spencer 364

Nisbett,Wm. P 552

Northrup, Clarence L 361

O'Brien, Dominick 283

Olin, Giles 251

O'Neil, James 201

O'Neil, John 183

Orwig, Harry I 412

Osborn, Nathan 199

Osborne, Abel C 269

Osgood, Lucius L 230

Ostrander, Chas 201

Overton, Wm- E 331

Palmer, Floyd 314

Palmer. Gilbert S 291

Parkill, James M 462

Parks, Clarence .233

Parks, Robert D 311

Parrott, Jacob 440

Parsons, Andrew 133

Pattison , Dr . lacob W 332

Pearson, .Silas 444

Pease, Dr. Jerome F 447

Pease, Ziba W 3S2

Peck, Whitfield H 222

Peirce, Hon. Edgar 522

Pelton, Lon. A 473

Pemberton, C. O 221

Pfistner, Frederick 367

Phelps, Edgar O 300

Phelps, Hon- Fitch 327

Philleo, Wm. C 454

Philley, James E 331

Pierce, Alfred 204

Pierce , Franklin 71

Pierce, Isaac W 248

Pike, James H 260

Pike, Lendall I rgo

Piiman, Thomas B 540

Poling, Richard W 450

Polk , James K 59

Pordon, John 392

Porter, Frank J 223

Potter, John G 232

Powers, Benj. F - -278

Precious Geo. W 289

Preston, Alonzo C 221

Pullman, Chas. W 467

Quigley, David 183

Quigley, Erlward R 200

■r-^

INDEX.

VII

Quigley, Lysander 218

Ransom, Epaphro-iitiis 152

Raper, JohnM 388

Rathvon, Benj . F 233

Rathvou, Chas 33°

Rawson, Myron 382

Reed, Elias S 19^

Reed, G. W 525

Reed, Roland D 353

Reed, Thomas S 5^7

Reiter John E 250

Remus, William 401

Reynier, Julius : 37°

Reynolds, Hiram R 544

Rice, Frank G 322

Richards, Clifton D 352

Richardson Cyrus F 544

Richardson, Horace F 321

Rierdon, John 368

Rishridger, George i8i

Roach, Horace 301

Roben, Douglas 287

Roben, Matthew 357

Robinson , Jay D 539

Roe, Edwin R 25'

Rogers, Edward C 369

Rogers, James H 252

Romig Dr. E. A 259

Roof, Geo. A 268

Roosevelt, Sidney H 526

Rose, Frederick - 263

RoscJamesE 411

Rose, John A 250

Rose, Samuel W 313

Rowley, Ansel 497

Royce, Calvin 240

Ruger, Daniel H 311

Runyan, John P 292

Russ, Dr. Otto C 402

Russell, Lewis 229

Sales, Thomas 468

Sanford, David H 321

Schofield , Alanson R 472

Scott, Nicholas 402

Seaton, Henry... 203

Seaton,Wm. N 207

Sears, .Andrew J 484

Sebastian, Chas. W s32

Sedore, Isaac 22-?

Shankwiler, Kilward F 510

Sharpe, Thomas J 398

Shaw, Thomas, Sr 462

Shantz, Owen 282

Shields, James 334

Showers, Sidney .386

Shrouds, Benj . J 544

Shust, George 4ir

Simmons, James 213

Sims, John M 346

Skelton, Thomas 222

Slawson, Hiram H 332

Slawson, Wm. F 551

Smith, Francis 333

Smith, Frank P 214

Smith, Joseph 323

Smith, Joseph.... 44°

Smith, Wilbert W 514

Smith, Wm. W 492

Snider, Jacob 292

Snider, Silas 534

Snyder, John R 292

Sours, Lawrence 312

Sparks, George E 510

Sparks, John W 551

Squier, Wm. H 224

Staab, Gottlelb 358

Stearns, Daniel 510

Stearns, Geo. F 393

Stephens, James 3^0

Sterling, Murdoch 455

Stewart, D. W 385

Stewart, Selkirk A 288

Stickney, Edmund M 397

Stiffen, Ulrich 207

Streeter, Amos R 43^"

Streeter, Michael 221

Strong, Edward P. 4*5

Swager, N.J .408

Swarthout, Lewis 300

Sweet, John 318

Swisher, Nathan 294

Tagg, Benj. G 3''8

Tallman, Jacob J 473

Taylor, Zachary.'' 6^

Teachout,C.C 484

Telfer, Robert 204

Tenney, Justice W 293

Terrill,Dr. F. C 272

Thomas, John W 243

Thompson, Alexander 298

Throp, S. J 345

Thurkow, John E 217

Toan, Lewis 257

Tompkins, Alexander N 300

Tousey, G. C 209

Trussell,H. M 242

Tucker,W. S 492

Ti:ttle,Chas. L 429

Tyler, John 55

Van Alstine, Abraham 533

Van Alstine, Nelson 321

VanBuren, Martin 47

Vangilder, Alonzo 47^

Vandewater, Richard 291

Van Loo, Wm 53^

Verity, C A 496

Vincent, Col. Nathan H 477

Vogg, Gottlob 234

VoUnier, A . A 333

Vorce, Geo. P. . . . 211

Wadsworth, Wm. J 227

Wagener, Chas- H 213

Walch. Frederick 302

WaUlo, George 238

Walker, Wm. H 211

Wambold, Isaac ■*- -, 329

Waul, Luther O. R 263

Waring, Geo. F 435

Warner, Chas E 356

Warren, Chauncey 538

Warren, Geo. W 375

Warren, Wm 283

Washington, George ig

Waterman, A. H 350

Watson, Rev . R. H 370

Weaver, James P 249

Weber, Reuben J 436

Webster, Simon G 241

Webster, Wm. H 554

Weidman, John S 471

Welch, D. 1 364

Wells, M, A 254

Wendling, Joseph 532

Wernette, C.W 355

West, Joseph 543

Whitbeck, Nelson • 309

White, Jchr 440

White, Osrar T 368

Whitney, Dr. W. A 412

Whitney, W. S 374

Wilcox, L. A 462

Wilcox, Stephen S 459

Wilder, Harry M 434

Wilkinson, Chas 312

Willett, Richard 1 376

Willett, Wm 344

Williams, A. K 526

Williams, Franklin M 290

Williams, Haivey O 281

Williams, Jeste 278

Williamson, Byron B 194

Wilson, David 261

Wilson, G. F. C 192

Wilson, Martin E 228

Wiseman, John 358

Wisner, Mnses 141

Witbeck, Lucas 1 521

Wolcott, Benj. L 435

Wolcott, Henry B 304

Wolcott, S. K 309

Wood, Fred , B 468

Wood, Sanford B 193

Woodbridge, Wm icg

Woodward, Asa G 374

Woolley, Dr. Daniel F 550

Woolworth, Benj. F 49'

Wright, John H 369

Wright, Silas 228

Wylie, Thomas 4^6

Zettersteilt, C.nst 329

Adams, John 22

Adams, John Quincy 38

Arthur, Chester A.- 98

Bagley, John J 156

Baldwin, Henry P 152

Barry, John S 112

Begole, Josiah W 168

Bingham, Kinsley S 136

Blair, Austin 144

Brock way, Asa 226

Bronson, Stephen i86

Brown. M ig6

Buchanan. James 74

Carman , M 390

Corey, L. F 320

Crapo, Henry H 148

Croswell, Charles M 160

Darrah, CM 336

Darrah, James M 424

Decker, James N 31ft

Decker, R. S 418

■^^nmnnf^

Ely, Arnold 44=

Erikson, P. A 276

Escott, J. T 518

Fairman, F 246

Felch, .•\lpheu5 116

Frederick, Eli 482

Frederick, Mrs. Eli 48t

M^r^^^

^r|--

INDEX.

"^W--

■S"

-#t^fa^^^

Fillmore, Millard 66

Fuller, C. C 176

Gardner, T C 348

Garfield, James A 94

Grant, Ulysses S 86

(iay, Charlie 404

Greenly, William L 120

Harrison, William H 50

Hayes, Rutherford B go

Hendryx, W. A 464

Higbee, Mrs. C A 266

Higbee, Xelson 265

Hobart, M. E 500

Hooker, A. S 536

Hopkinson, W. D 414

Hugh, William 452

Huling, J. P 372

Hunt, T. C 378

Hutchinson, L. N 212

Jackson, Andrew 42

Jefferson, Thomas 26

Jerome, David H 164

Johnson, Andrew 82

Jones, W. T 296

Kenrick, E. H 494

Knapp, A B .512

Knapp, Mrs. A. B 511

Ladner, William 48S

Lincoln, Abraham 78

Madison, James 30

Malone, G. R 342

Mason, Stevens T 104

McClelland, Robert 128

McP'arlane, Andrew 432

McLellan, U .506

Milner, I 438

Mitchell, Samnel S ■ ■23'J

Mitchell, Wm. G 548

Monroe, James 34

Newton, Samuel L 306

Northriip, C. L 360

Parsons, Andrew 132

Pease, Jerome F 445

Pease, Mrs. Jerome F 446

Pfistner, F 366

Phelps. Fitch 326

Pierce, Franklin 70

Polk, James K 58

Ranson, Epaphroditus 124

Reed. G. W 524

Remus, William. . . . , 400

Roben, Douglas ,..286

Rogers, J. H •■-•252

Rose. Freeman 409

Rose, Mrs- Sally M 410 '

Seaton, Wm. N 206

Stewart, Daniel W 384/

Stickney, E. M 396

Taylor, Zachary 62

Thurkow, JohnE 216

Toan, Lewis ....256

Tuttle, Chailes L 428

Tyler, John 54

Van Buren, Martin 46

Van Loo, William 530

Vincent, Nathan H 476

Washington, George 18

Weidman, John S 470

Wernette, C. W 354

West, Joseph ";42

Wilcox, S. S ^58

Wisner, Moses 140

Woodbridge, William 108 1

llIST©iiICAE,

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Tlie Survivors

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TOWNSHIPS

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VALIE OF HISTORY

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Soldier--' Reunions

592

vEtna

620

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IMIYSK'AL FEATIRES

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AGRICILITHAL

598

Austin

622

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The Fairs

599

Big Rapids

622

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Hiaphital

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Farmers' In-tilulc

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Chippewa

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Geology

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RAILROADS

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I'dlfax

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Botaiiiral

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G. R. c<: I. R. R.

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Deej-field

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'I'lic Iiiiliaii Dcacl

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626

'I'lic Iiidians" Futuro

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EDI'CATIONAL

(107

Hinton

628

EARLY SETTLEMENT

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028

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Mecosta

629

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570

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629

sjiakos

570

Ri;;- Kapids Re^-ulator

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Morton

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571

Bin Rapids Current

nil

Sheridan

G32

ORGANIZATION

375

Big RapidslHerald

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633

OLD SETTLERS

577

Daily Jlornino- Enterprise

111 -J

CITY OF BIG RAPIDS

634

Old Settlers of the- :Mii-

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School-

646

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Life in a l.undier < 'amp

111;!

Tioga Manufacturin

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579

MISCELLANEOTS

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POLITICAL

5811

Forest Fires

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6-t«

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648

MECOSTA FOR THE UNION 5S9

"Hereof I'ail Not"

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649

First Erdistments

590

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Bank Rol)bery

659

1 'onntv Aid

v590

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650

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Model Marriage (.'eremony

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591

Population of Mecosta Co.

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654

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TTie End

591
591

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619
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654

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FIRST PRESIDENT.

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HE Father of our Country was
^) born in Westmorland Co., \'a.,
Feb. 22, 1732. His parents
were Augustine and Mary
(Ball) Washington. The family
to which he belonged has not
been satisfactorily traced in
England. His great-grand-
father, John Washington, em-
igrated to Virginia about 1657,
and became a prosperous
lilanter. He had two sons,
Lawrence and John. The
former married Mildred Warner
and had three children, John.
Augustine and Mildred. Augus-
tine, the father of Ceorge, first
married Jane Butler, who bore
him four children, two of whom,
Lawrence and Augustine, reached
maturity. Of six children liy his
second marriage, George was the
eldest, the others beint; ]5etty,
Samuel, John Augustine, Charles
and Mildred.
Augustine Washington, the father of George, died
in 1743, leaving a large landed property. To his
eldest son, Lawrence, he bequeathed an estate on
the Patomac, afterwards known as Mount Vernon,
and to George he left the parental residence. George
received only such education as the neighborhood
schools afforded, save for a short time after he left
school, when he received private instruction in
mathematics. His spelling v/as rather defective.

The

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Remarkable stories are told of his great physical
strength and development at an early age. He was
an acknowledged leader among his companions, and
was early noted for that nobleness of character, fair-
ness and veracity which characterized his whole life.

When George was 1 4 years ol d he had a desire to go to
sea, and a midshipman's warrant was secured for him,
but through the opposition of his mother the idea was
abandoned. Two years later he was appointed
surveyor to the immense estate of Lord Fairfax. In
this business he_ spent three years in a rough frontier
life, gaining experience which afterwards proved very
essential to him. In 175 t, though only 19 years of
age, he was appointed adjutant with the rank of
major in the Virginia militia, then being trained for
active service against the French and Indians. -Soon
after this he sailed to the West Indies with hislirother
Lawrence, who went there to restore his health. They
soon returned, and in the summer of 1752 Lawrence
died, leaving a large fortune to an infant daughter
who did not long survive him. On her demise the
estate of Mount Vernon was given to George.

Upon the arrival of Robert Dinwiddle, as Lieuten-
ant-Governor of Virginia, in 1752, the militia was
reorganized, and the province divided into four mili-
tary districts, of which the northern was assigned to
Washington as adjutant general. .Shortly after this
a very perilous mission was assigned him and ac-
cepted, which others had refused. This was to pro-
ceed to the French post near Lake Erie in North-
western Pennsylvania. The distance to be traversed
was between 500 and 600 miles. Winter was at hand,
and the journey was to be made without military
escort, through a territoiy occuiiied by Indians

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GEORGE WASHINGTON.

trip was a perilous one, and several times he came near
losing his life, yet he returned in safety and furnished
a full and useful report of his expedition. A regiment
of 300 men was raised in Virginia and put in com-
mand of Col. Joshua Fry, and Major Washington was
commissioned lieutenant-colonel. Active war was
then begun against the French and Indians, in which
Washington took a most important part. In the
memorable event of July 9, 1755, known as Brad-
dock's defeat, Washington was almost the only officer
of distinction who escaped from the calamities of the
day with life and honor. The other aids of Braddock
were disabled early in the action, and Washington
alone was left in that capacity on the field. In a letter
to his brother he says : " I had four bullets through
my coat, and two horses shot under me, yet I escaped
unhurt, though death was levelino my companions
on every side." An Indian sharpshooter said he was
not born to be killed by a bullet, for he had taken
direct aim at him seventeen times, and failed to hit
him.

After having been five years in the military service,
and vainly sought promotion in the royal army, he
look advantage of the fall of Fort Duquesne and the
expulsion of the French from the valley of the Ohio,
to resign his commission. Soon after he entered the
Legislature, where, although not a leader, he look an
active and important part. January 17, 1759, he
married Mrs. Martha (Dandridge) Custis, the wealthy
widow of John Parke Custis.

AVhen the British Parliament had closed the port
of Boston, the cry went up throughout the provinces
tliat "The cause of Boston is the cause of us all."
It was then, at the suggestion of Virginia, that a Con-
gress of all the colonies was called to meet at Phila-
deli)hia,Sept. 5, 1774, to secure their common liberties,
peaceably if possible. To this Congress Col. Wash-
ington was sent as a delegate. On May 10, 1775, the
Congress re-assemliled, when the hostile intentions of
England were plainly apparent. The battles of Con-
cord and Lexington had been fought. Among the
first acts of tliis Congress was the election of a com-
mander-in-chief of the colonial forces. This high and
responsible office was conferred upon Washington,
who was still a member of the Congress. He accepted
ic on June 19, but upon the express condition that he
receive no salary. He would keep an exact account
of expenses and expect Congress to pay them and
nothing more. It is not the object of this sketch to
trace the military acts of Washington, to whoin the
fortunes and liberties of the people of this country
were so long confided. The war was conducted by
him under every possible disadvantage, and while his
forces often met with reverses, yet he overcame every
obstacle, and after seven years of heroic devotion
and matchless skill he gained liberty for the greatest
nation of earth. On Dec. 23, 1783, Washington, in
a parting address of surpassing beauty, resigned his

commission as commander-in-chief of the army to
to the Continental Congress sitting at Annapolis. He
retired immediately to Mount Vernon and resumed
his occupation as a farmer and planter, shunning all
connection with public life.

In February, 1 7 89, Washington was unanimously
elected President. In his presidential career he was
subject to the peculiar trials incidental to a new
government ; trials from lack of confidence on the part
of other governments; trials from want of harmony'
between the different sections of our own country;
trials from the impoverished condition of the country,
owing to the war and want of credit; trials from the
beginnings of party strife. He was no partisan. His
clear judgment could discern the golden mean ; and
while perhaps this alone kept our government from
sinking at the very outset, it left him exposed to
attacks from both sides, which were often bitter and
very annoying.

At the expiration of his first term he was unani-
mously re-elected. At the end of this term many
were anxious that he be re-elected, but he absolutel)'
refused a third nomination. On the fourth of March,
1797, at the expiraton of his second term as Presi-
dent, he returned to his home, hoping to pass there
his few remaining yeais free from the annoyances of
public life. Later in the year, however, his repose
seemed likely to be interrupted by war with France.
At the prospect of such a war he was again urged to
take command of the armies. He chose his sub-
ordinate officers and left to them the charge of mat-
ters in the field, which he superintended from his
home. In accepting the command he made the
reservation that he was not to be in the field until
it was necessary. In the midst of these preparations
his life was suddenly cut off. December r 2, he took
a severe cold from a ride in the rain, which, settling
in his throat, produced inflammation, and terminated
fatally on the night of the fourteenth. On the eigh-
teenth his body was borne with military honors to its
final resting place, and interred in the family vault at
Mount Vernon.

Of the character of Washington it is impossible to
speak but in terms of the highest respect and ad-
miration. The more we see of the operations of
our government, and the more deeply we feel the
difficulty of uniting all opinions in a common interest,
the more highly we must estimate the force of his tal-
ent and character, which have been able to challenge
the reverence of all parties, and principles, and na-
tions, and to win a fame as extended as the limits
of the globe, and which we cannot but believe will
be as lasting as the existence of man.

The person of Washington was unusally tall, erect
and well proportioned. His muscular strength was
great. His features were of a beautiful symmetry'.
He commanded respect without any appearance of
haughtiness, and ever serious without being dull.

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SECOND PRESIDENT.

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OHN ADAMS, the second
President and the first Vice-
President of the United States,
was born in Braintree ( now
Quincy),Mass., and about ten
^ miles from Boston, Oct. 19,
1735. His great-grandfather, Henry
Adams, emigrated from England
about 1640, with a family of eight
sons, and settled at Braintree. The
parents of John were John and
Susannah (Boylston) Adams, His
father was a farmer of limited
means, to which he added the bus-
iness of shoemaking. He gave his
eldest son, John, a classical educa-
tion at Harvard College. John

graduated in 1755, and at once took charge of the
school in Worcester, Mass. This he found but a
"school of affliction," from which he endeavored to
gain relief by devoting himself, in addition, to the
study of law. For this purpose he placed himself
under the tuition of the only lawyer in the town. He
had thought seriously of the clerical profession
but seems to have been turned from this by what he
termed " the frightful engines of ecclesiastical coun-
cils, of diabolical malice, and Calvanistic good nature,"
of the operations of which he had been a witness in
his native town. He was well fitted for the legal
profession, possessing a clear, sonorous voice, being
ready and fluent of speech, and having quick percep-
~[ tive powers. He gradually gained practice, and in
,v?,, 1764 married Abigail Smith, a daughter of a minister,

fand a lady of superior intelligence. Shortly after his
marriage, (1765), the attempt of Parliamentary taxa-
„., tion turned him from law to politics. He took initial
v^ steps toward holding a town meeting, and the resolu-

tions he offered on the subject became very popular
throughout the Provnice, and were adopted word for
word by over forty different towns. He moved to Bos-
ton in 1768, and became one of the most courageous
and prominent advocates of the popular cause, and
was chosen a member of the General Court (the Leg-
lislature) in 1770.

Mr. Adams was chosen one of the fust delegates
from Massachusetts to the first Continental Congreas,
which met in 1774. Here he distinguished himself /S
by his capacity for business and for debate, and ad-
vocated the movement for independence against the
majority of the members. In May, 1776, he moved
and carried a resolution in Congress that the Colonies
should assume* the duties of self-government. He
was a prominent member of the committee of five
appointed June 11, to prepare a declaration of inde-
pendence. This article was drawn by Jefferson, but
on Adams devolved the task of battling it through
Congress in a three days debate.

On the day after the Declaration of Independence
was passed, while his soul was yet warm with the
glow of excited feeling, he wrote a letter to his wite,
which, as we read it now, seems to have been dictated
by the spirit of prophecy. "Yesterday," he says, "the
greatest question was decided that ever was debated
in America; and greater, [lerhaps, never was or will
be decided among men. A resolution was passed
without one dissenting colony, ' that these United
States are, and of right ought to be, free and inde-
pendent states.' The day is passed. The fourth of
July, 1776, will lie a memorable epoch in the history
of America. I am apt to believe it will be celebrated
by succeeding generations, as the great anniversary
festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of
deliverance by solemn acts of devotion to Almighty
God. It ought to be solemnized with pomp, shows,

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JOHN

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games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations
from one end of the continent to the other, from this
time forward for ever. You will think me transported
with enthusiasm, but I am not. I am well aware of
the toll, and blood and treasure, that it will cost to
maintain this declaration, and su[iport and defend
these States; yet, through all the gloom, I can see the
rays of light and glory. I can see that the end is
worth more than all the means; and that posterity
will triumph, although you and I may rue, which I
hope we shall not."

In November, 1777, Mr. Adams was appointed a
delegate to France and to co-operate with Benijamin
Franklin and Arthur Lee, who were then in Paris, in
the endeavor to obtain assistance in arms and money
from the French Government. This was a severe trial
to his patriotism, as it separated him from his home,
compelled him to cross the ocean in winter, and ex-
posed him to great peril of capture by the British cruis-
ers, wlio were seeking him. He left France June 17,
1779. In September of the same year he was again
chosen to go to Paris, and there hold himself in readi-
ness to negotiate a treaty of peace and of commerce
with Great Britian, as soon as the British Cabinet
might be found willing to listen to such proposels. He
sailed for France in November, from there he went to
Holland, where he negotiated imi)ortant loans and
formed important commercial treaties.

Finally a treaty of peace with England was signed
Jan. 21, 1783. The re-action from the excitement,
toil and anxiety through which Mr. Adams had passed
threw him into a fever. After sufTering from a con-
tinued fever and becoming feeble and emaciated he
was advised to go to England to drink tjie waters of
liath. While in England, still drooping anddes[iond-
ing, he received dispatches from his own government
urging the necessity of his going to Amsterdam to
negotiate another loan. It was winter, his health was
delicate, yet he immediately set out, and through
storm, on sea, on horseback and foot,hemade the trip.

February 24, 1785, Congress appointed Mr. Adams
envoy to the Court of St. James. Here he met, face
to face the King of England, who had so long re-
garded him as a traitor. As England did not
condescend to appoint a minister to the United
States, and as Mr. .\dams felt that he was accom-
plishing but little, he sought permission to return to
his own country, where he arrived in June, 1788.

When Washington was first chosen President, John
Adams, rendered illustiious liy his signal services at
home and abroad, was chosen Vice President. Again
at the second election of Washington as President,
Adams was chosen Vice President. In 1796, Wash-
ington retired from public life, and Mr. Adams was
elected President, though not without much opi>osition.
Serving in this office four vears,he was succeeded by
Mr. Jefferson, his opponent in politics.

While Mr. Adams was Vice President the great

French Revolution shook the continent of Europe,
and it was upon this point which he was at issue with
the majority of his countrymen led by Mr. Jefferson.
Mr. Adams felt no symiKithy with the French people
in their struggle, for he had no confidence in their
power of self-government, and he utterly abhored the
classof atheist philosophers who he claimed caused it.
On the other hand Jefferson's sympathies were strongly
enlisted in behalf of the French people. Hence or-
iginated the alienation between these distinguished
men, and two powerful parties were thus soon organ-
ized, Adams at the head of the one whose sympathies
were with England and Jefferson led the other in
sympathy with France.

The world has seldom seen a spectacle of more
moral beauty and grandeur, than was presented by the
old age of Mr. Adams. The violence of party feeling
had died away, and he had begun to receive that just
appreciation which, to most men, is not accorded till
after death. No one could look upon his venerable
form, and think of what he had done and suffered,
and how he had given up all the prime and strength
of his life to the public good, without the deepest
emotion of gratitude and respect. It was his peculiar
good fortune to witness the complete success of the
institution which he had been so active in creating and
supporting. In 1824, his cup of happiness was filled
to the brim, by seeing his son elevated to the highest
station in the gift of the people.

The fourth of July, 1826, which completed the half
century since the signing of the Declaration of Inde-
pendence, arrived, and there were but three of the
signers of that immortal instrument left upon the
earth to hail its morning light. And, as it is
well known, on that day two of these finished their
earthly pilgrimage, a coincidence so remarkable as
to seem miraculous. For a few days before Mr.
Adams had been rapidly failing, and on the morning
of the fourth he found himself too weak to rise from
his bed. On being reiiuested to name a toast for the
customary celebration of the day, he exclaimed " In-
DRPENDENCR FOREVER." When the day was ushered
in, by the ringing of bells and the firing of cannons,
he was asked by one of his attendants if he knew
what day it was? He replied, "O yes; it is the glor-
ious fourth of July — God bless it — God bless you all."
In the course of the day he said, "It is a great and
glorious day." The last words he uttered were,
" Jefferson survives." But he had, at one o'clock, re-
signed his spirit into the hands of his God.

The personal appearance and manners of Mr.
Adams were not particularly prepossessing. His face,
as his ])ortrait manifests,was intellectual and expres-
sive, but his figure was low and ungraceful, and his
manners were frequently abrupt and uncourteous.
He had neither the lofty dignity of Washington, nor
the engaging elegance and gracefulness which marked
the manners and address of Jefferson.

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THIRD F RESIDENT.

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HOMAS JEFFERSON was
born April 2, 1743, at Shad-
i^well, Albermarle county, Va.
His parents were Peter and
lane ( Randolph) Jefferson,
the former a native of Wales,
and the latter born in Lon-
don. To them were born six
daughters and two sons, of
whom Thomas was the elder.
When 14 years of age his
father died. He received a
most liberal education, hav-
ing been kept diligently at school
from the time he was five years ot
age. In 1760 he entered William
and Mary College. Williamsburg was then the seat
of the Colonial Court, and it was the obode of fashion
and splendor. Young Jefferson, who was then 17
years old, lived somewhat expensively, keeping fine
horses, and much caressed by gay society, yet he
was earnestly devoted to his studies, and irreproacha-
able in his morals. It is strange, however, under
such influences, that he was not ruined. In the sec-
ond year of his college course, moved by some un-
explained inward impulse, he discarded his horses,
society, and even his favorite violin, to which he had
previously given much time. He often devoted fifteen
hours a day to hard study, allowing himself for ex-
ercise only a run in the evening twilight of a mile out
of the city and back again. He thus attained very
high intellectual culture, alike excellence in philoso-
phy and the languages. The most difficult Latin and
Greek authors he read with facility. A more finished
scholar has seldom gone forth from college halls ; and

(^1

there was not to be found, perhaps, in all Virginia, a
more pureminded, upright, gentlemanly young man.

Immediately upon leaving college he began the
study of law. For the short time he continued in the
practice of his profession he rose rapidly and distin-
guished himself by his energy and accuteness as a
lawyer. But the times called for greater action.
The policy of England had awakened the spirit of
resistance of the American Colonies, and the enlarged
views which Jefferson had ever entertained, soon led
him into active political life. In 1769 he was chosen
a member of the Virginia House of Burgesses. In
r 77 2 he married Mrs. Martha Skelton, a very beauti-
ful, wealthy and highly accomplished young widow.

Upon Mr. Jefferson's large estate at Shadwell, there
was a majestic swell of land, called Monticello, which
commanded a prospect of wonderful extent and
beauty. This spot Mr. Jefferson selected for his new
home; and here he reared a mansion of nrodest yet
elegant architecture, which, next to Mount Vernon,
became the most distinguished resort in our land.

In 1775 he was sent to the Colonial Congress,
where, though a silent member, his abilities as a
writer and a reasoner soon become known, and he
was placed upon a number of important committees,
and was chairman of the one appointed for the draw-
ing up of a declaration of independence. This com-
mittee consisted of Thomas Jefferson, John Adams,
Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman and Robert R.
Livingston. Jefferson, as chairman, was appointed
to draw up the paper. Franklin and Adams suggested
a few verbal changes before it was submitted to Con-
gress. On June 28, a few slight changes were made
in it by Congress, and it was [Kissed and signed July
4, 1776. What must have been the feelings of

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THOMAS JEFFERSON.

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man — what the emotions that swelled his breast —
who was charged with the preparation of that Dec-
laration, which, while it made known the wrongs of
America, was also to publish her to the world, free,
soverign and independent. It is one of the most re-
markable papers ever written ; and did no other effort
of the mind of its author exist, that alone would be
sufficient to stamp his name witli immortality.

In 1779 Mr. Jefferson was elected successor to
Patrick Henry, ,-.s Governor of Virginia. At one time
the British officer, Tarleton, sent a secret expedition to
Monlicelio, to capture the Governor. Scarcely five
minutes elapsed after the hurried escape of Mr. Jef-
ferson and his family, ere his mansion was in posses-
sion of the British troops. His wife's health, never
very good, was much injured by this excitement, and
in the summer of 1782 she died.

Mr. Jefferson was elected to Congress in 1783.
Two ye irs later he was appointed Minister Plenipo-
tentiary to France. Returning to the United States
in September, 1789, he became Secretary of State
in Washington's cabinet. This position he resigned
Jan. T, 1794. In 1797, he was chosen Vice Presi-
dent, and four years later was elected President over
Mr. Adams, with Aaron Burr as Vice President. In
1804 he was re-elected with wonderful unanimity,
and George Clinton, Vice President..

The early part of Mr. Jefferson's second adminstra-
tion was disturbed by an event which threatened the
tranquility and peace of the Union ; this was the con-
spiracy of Aaron Burr. Defeated in the late election
to the Vice Presidency, and led on by an unprincipled
ambition, this extraordinary man formed the plan of a
military expedition into the Spanish territories on our
southwestern frontier, for the purpose of forming there
a new republic. This has been generally supposed
was a mere pretext ; and although it has not been
generally known what his real plans were, there is no
doubt that they were of a far more dangerous
character.

In 1809, at the expiration of the second term for
which Mr. Jefferson had been elected, he determined
to retire from political life. For a period of nearly
forty years, he had been continually before the pub-
lic, and all that time had been employed in offices of
tlie greatest trust and responsibility. Having thus de-
voted the best part of his life to the service of his
country, he now felt desirous of that rest which his
declining years required, and upon the organization of
the new administration, in March, 1809, he bid fare-
well forever to public life, and retired to Monticello.

Mr. Jefferson was profuse in his hospitality. Whole
families came in their coaches with their horses, —
fathers and mothers, boys and girls, babies and
nurses, — and remained three and even six months.
Life at Monticello, for years, resembled that at a
fashionable watering-place.

The fourth of July, 1826, being the fiftieth anniver-

sary of the Declaration of American Independence,
great preparations were made in every part of the
Union for its celebration, as the nation's jubilee, and
the citizens of Washington, to add to the solemnity
of the occasion, invited Mr. Jefferson, as the franier,
and one of the few surviving signers of the Declara-
tion, to participate in their festivities. But an ill-
ness, which had been of several weeks duration, and
had been continually increasing, compelled him to
decline the invitation.

On the second of July, the disease under whic!i
he was laboring left him, but in such a reduced
state that his medical attendants, entertained no
hope of his recovery. From this time he was perfectly
sensible that his last hour was at hand. On the next
day, which was Monday, he asked of those around
him, the day of the month, and on being told it was
the third of July, he expressed the earnest wish that
he might be permitted to breathe the air of the fiftieth
anniversary. His prayer was heard — that day, whose
dawn was hailed with such rapture through our land,
burst upon his eyes, and then they were closed for-
ever. And what a noble consummation of a noble
life! To die on that day, — the birthday of a nation,- -
the day which his own name and his own act had
rendered glorious; to die amidst the rejoicings and
festivities of a whole nation, who looked up to him,
as the author, under God, of their greatest blessings,
was all that was wanting to fill up the record his life.

Almost at the same hour of his death, the kin-
dred spirit of the venerable Adams, as if to bear
him company, left the scene of bis earthly honors.
Hand in hand they had stood forth, the champions of
freedom; hand in hand, during the dark and desper-
ate struggle of the Revolution, they had cheered and
animated their desponding countrymen; for half a
century they had labored together for the good of
the country; and now hand in hand they depart.
In their lives they had been united in the same great
cause of liberty, and in their deaths they were not
divided.

In person Mr. Jefferson was tall and thin, rather
above six feet in height, but well formed; his eyes
were light, his hair originally red, in after life became
white and silvery ; his complexion was fair, his fore-
head broad, and his whole countenance intelligent and
thoughtful. He possessed great fortitude of mind as
well as personal courage; and his command of tem-
per was such that his oldest and most intimate friends
never recollected to have seen him in a passion.
His manners, though dignified, were simple and un-
affected, and his hospitality was so unbounded that
all found at his house a ready welcome. In conver-
sation he was fluent, eloquent and enthusiastic; and
his language was remarkably pure and correct. He
was a finished classical scholar, and in his writings is
discernable the care with which he formed his style
upon the best models of antiquity.

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FOURTH FRF SI DENT.

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AMES MADISON, "Father
M) of the Constitution," and fourth
}/'"' President of the United States,
was born March 16, 1757, and
died at his home in Virginia,
'■*® June 28, 1836. The name of
James Madison is inseparably con-
nected witli most of the important
events in that heroic period of our
country during which the founda- '
tions of this great repubUc were
laid. He was the last of the founders
of the Constitution of the United
States to be called to his eternal
reward.

The Madison family were among
the early emigrants to the New World,
anding upon the shores of the Chesa-
peake but 15 years after the settle-
ment of Jamestown. The father of
James Madison was an opulent
planter, residing upon a very fine es-
tate called "Montpelier," Orange Co.,
Va. The mansion was situated in
the midst of scenery highly pictur-
esque and romantic, on the west side
of South-west Mountain, at the foot of
Blue Ridge. It was but 25 miles from the home of
^ Jefferson at Monticello. The closest personal and
political attachment existed between these illustrious
J men, from their early youth until death.

The early education of Mr. Madison was conducted

^ mostly at home under a private tutor. At the age of

18 he was sent to Princeton College, in New Jersey.

. Here he applied himself to study with the most im-

prudent zeal; allowing himself, for months, but three
hours' sleep out of the 24. His liealtli thus became so
seriously impaired that he never recovered any vigor
of constitution. He graduated in 177 i, with a feeble
body, with a character of utmost purity, and with a
mind highly disciplined and richly stored with learning
which embellished and gave proficiency to his subse-
quent career.

Returning to Virginia, he commenced the study of
law and a course of extensive and systematic reading.
This educational course, the spirit of the times in
which he lived, and the society with which he asso-
ciated, all combined to inspire him with a strong
love of liberty, and to train him for his life-work of
a statesman. Being naturally of a religious turn of
mind, and his frail health leading him to think that
his life was not to be long, he directed especial atten-
tion to theological studies. Endowed with a mmd
singularly free from passion and prejudice, and with
almost unequalled powers of reasoning, he weighed
all the arguments for and against revealed religion,
until his faith became so established as never to
be shaken.

In the spring of 1776, when 26 years of age, he
was elected a member of the Virginia Convention, to
frame the constitution of the State. The next year
(1777), he was a candidate for the General Assembly.
He refused to treat- the whisky-lovir.g voters, and
consequently lost his election ; but those wlio had
witnessed the talent, energy and public spirit of the
modest young man, enlisted themselves in his behalf,
and he was appointed to the Executive Council.

Both Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson were
Governors of Virginia while Mr. Madison remained
member of the Council ; and their appreciation of his

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JAMES MADISON.

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intellectual, social and moral worth, contributed not
a little to his subsequent eminence. In the year
1780, he was elected a member of the Continental
Congress. Here he met the most illustrious men in
our land, and he was immediately assigned to one of
the most conspicuous positions among them.

For three years Mr. Madison continued in Con-
gress, one of its most active and influential members.
In the year 17 84, his term having expired, he was
elected a member of the Virginia Legislature.

No man felt more deeply than Mr. Madison the
utter inefficiency of the old confederacy, with no na-
tional government, with no power to form treaties
which would be binding, or to enforce law. There
was not any State more prominent than Virginia in
the declaration, that an efficient national government
must be formed. In January, 1786, Mr. Madison
carried a resolution through the General Assembly of
Virginia, inviting the other States to appoint commis-
sioners to meet in convention at Annapolis to discuss
this subject. Five States only were represented. The
convention, however, issued another call, drawn up
by Mr. Madison, urgmg all the States to send their
delegates to Philadelphia, in May, 1787, to draft
a Constitution for the United States, to take the place
of that Confederate League. The delegates met at
the time appointed. Kvery State but Rhode Island
was represented. Ceorge Washington was chosen
president of the convention; and the present Consti-
tution of the United States was then and there formed.
There was, perhaps, no mind and no pen more ac-
tive in framing this immortal document than the mind
and the pen of James Madison.

The Constitution, adopted by a vote 81 to 79, was
to be presented to the several States for acceptance.
But grave solicitude was felt. Should it be rejected
we should be left but a conglomeration of independent
States, with but little power at home and little respect
abroad. Mr. Madison was selected by the conven-
tion to draw up an address to the people of the United
States, expounding the principles of the Constitution,
and urging its adoption. There was great opposition
to it at first, Imt it at length triumphed over all, and
went into effect in 1789.

Mr. Madison was elected to the House of Repre-
sentatives in the first Congress, and soon became the
avowed leader of the Republican party. While in
New York attending Congress, he met Mrs, Todd, a
young widow of remarkable power of fascination,
whom he married. She was in person and character
ipieenly, and probably no lady has thus far occupied
so prominent a position in the very peculiar society
which has constituted our republican court as Mrs.
Madison.

Mr. Madison served as Secretary of State under
Jefferson, and at the close of his administration
was chosen President. At this time the encroach-
ments of England had brought us to the verge of war.

British orders in council destioyed our commerce, and
our flag was exposed to constant insult. Mr. Madison
was a man of peace. Scholarly in his taste, retiring
in his disposition, war had no charms for him. But the
meekest spirit can be roused. It makes one's blood
boil, even now, to think of an American ship brought
to, upon the ocean, by the guns of an English cruiser.
A young lieutenant steps on board and orders the
crew to be paraded before him. With great nonchal-
ance he selects any number whom he may please to
designate as British subjects ; orders them down the
ship's side into his boat ; and places them on the gun-
deck of liis man-of-war, to fight, by compulsion, the
battles of England. This right of search and im-
pressment, no efforts of our Government could induce
the British cabinet to relinquish.

On the tSth of June, 1812, President Madison gave
his approval to an act of Congress declaring war
against Great Britain. Notwithstanding the bitter
hostility of the Federal party to the war, the country
in general approved; and Mr. Madison, on the 4th
of March, igiji was re-elected by a large majority,
and entered upon his second term of office. 'I'his is
not the place to describe the various adventures of
this war on the land and on the water. Our infant
navy then laid the foundations of its renown in grap-
pling with the most formidable power which ever
swe[)t the seas. The contest commenced in earnest
by the appearance of a British fleet, early in February,
i8t3, in Chesapeake Bay, declaring nearly the whole
coast of the United States under blockade.

The Emperor of Russia offered his services as me
ditator. America accepted ; England refused. A Brit-
ish force of five thousand men landed on the banks
of the Patuxet River, near its entrance into Chesa-
peake Bay, and marched rapidly, by way of Bladens-
burg, upon Washington.

The straggling little city of Wasliington was thrown
into consternation. The cannon of the brief conflict
at Bladensburg echoed through the streets of the
metropolis. The whole population fled from the city.
The President, leaving Mrs. Madison in the White
House, with her carriage drawn up at the door to
await his speedy return, hurried to meet the officers
in a council of war. He met our troops utterly routed,
and he could not go back without danger of Iieing
captured. But few hours elapsed ere the Presidential
Mansion, the Capitol, and all the public buildings in
Washington were in flames.

The war closed after two years of fighting, and on
Feb. 13, 18 15, the treaty of peace was signed at Ghent.

On the 4th of March, 1817, his second term f)f
office expired, and he resigned the Presidential chair
to his friend, James Monroe. He retired to his beau-
tiful home at Montpelier, and there passed the re-
mainder of his days. On June 28, 1836, then at the
age i:)f 85 years, he fell asleep in death. Mrs. Madi-
son died July 12, 1849.

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FIFTH PRESIDENT.

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AMES MONROE, the nfth
^I'residentof The United States,
'■ was born hi Westmorc.ndCo.,
Va., April 28, 1758. Kis early
life was passed at the place of
nativity. His ancestors had for
many years resided in the prov-
ince in which he was born. When,
at 17 years of age, in the process
mHa** of completing his education at
William and Mary College, the Co-
lonial Congress assembled at Phila-
delphia to deliberate upon the un-
just and manifold oppressions of
Great Britian, declared the separa-
tion of the Colonies, and promul-
gated the Declaration of Indepen-
dence. Had he been born ten years before it is highly
jirofiable that he would have been one of the signers
of that celebrated instrument. At this time he left
school and enlisted among the patriots.

He joined the army when everything looked hope-
less and gloomy. The number of deserters increased
from day to day. The invading armies came pouring
in ; and the tones not only favored the cause of the
mother country, but disheartened the new recruits,
who were sufficiently terrified at the prospect of con-
tending with an enemy whom they had been taught
to deem invincible. To such brave spirits as James
Monroe, who went right onward, undismayed through
difficulty and danger, the United States owe their
political emancipation. The young cadet joined the
ranks, and espoused the cause of his injured country,
with a firm determination to live or die with her strife

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for liberty. Firmly yet sadly he shared in the mel-
ancholy retreat from Harleam Heights and White
Plains, and accompanied the dispirited army as it fled
before its foes through New Jersey. In four months
after the Declaration of Independence, the patriots ^
had been beaten in seven battles. At the battle of
Trenton he led the vanguard, and, in the act of charg-
ing upon the enemy he received a wound in the left
shoulder.

As a reward for his bravery, Mr. Monroe was pro-
moted a captain pf infantry ; and, having recovered
from his wound, he rejoined the army. He, however,
receded from the line of promotion, by becoming an
officer in the staff of Lord Sterling. During the cam-
paigns of 1777 and 1778, in the actions of Brandy-
wine, Oermantown and Monmouth, he continued
aid-de-camp ; but becoming desirous to regain his
position in the army, he e.xerted himself to collect a
regiment for the Virginia line. This scheme failed
owing to the exhausted condition of the State. Upon
this failure he entered the office of Mr. Jefferson, at
that period Governor, and pursued, with considerable
ardor, the study of common law. He did not, liowever,
entirely lay aside the knapsack for the green bag ;
but on the invasions of the enemy, served as a volun-
teer, during the two years of his legal pursuits.

In 1782, he was elected from King George county, A;
a member of the Leglislature of \'irginia, and by that T
body he was elevated to a seat in the Executive |
Council. He was thus honored with the confidence
of his fellow citizens at 23 years of age ; and having
at this early period displayed some of that ability
and a[)titude for legislation, wiiich were afterwards
employed with unremitting energ'y for the public good,

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JAMES MONROE.

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he was in the succeeding year chosen a member of
the Congress of the United' States.

DeeptyasMr. Monroefelt the imperfections of the old
Confederacy, he was opposed to the new Constitution,
thinking, with many others of the Republican parly,
that it gave too much power to the Central Government,
and not enough to the individual States. Still he re-
tained the esteem of his friends who were its warm
supporters, and who, notwithstanding his opposition
secured its adoption. In 1789, he became a member
of the United States Senate; which office he held for
four years. Every month the line of distinction be-
tween the two great ])arties which divided the nation,
the Federal and the Republican, was growing more
distinct. The two prominent ideas which now sep-
arated them were, that the Republican party was in
sympathy with France, and also in favor of such a
strict construction of tlie Constitution as to give the
Central Government as little power, and the State
Governments as much power, as the Constitution wo\ild
warrant. The Federalists sympathized with England,
and- were in favor of a liberal construction of the Con-
stitution, which would give as much power to the
Central Government as that document could possibly
authorize.

The leading Federalists and Republicans were
alike noble men, consecrating all their energies to the
good of the nation. Two more honest men or more
pure patriots than John Adams the Federalist, and
James Monroe the Republican, never breathed. In
building up this majestic nation, which is destined
to eclipse all Grecian and Assyrian greatness, the com-
bination of their antagonism was needed to create the
right equilibrium. And yet each in his day was de-
nounced as almost a demon.

Washington was then President. England had es-
poused the cause of the Bourbons against the princi-
ples of the French Revolution. All Europe was drawn
into the conflict. We were feeble and far away.
Washington issued a proclamation of neutrality be-
tween these contending powers. France had helped
us in the struggle for our liberties. All the despotisms
of Europe were now combined to prevent the French
from escaping from a tyranny a thousand-fold worse
than that which we had endured. Col. Monroe, more
magnanimous than prudent, was anxious that, at
whatever hazard, we should help our old allies in
their extremity. It was the impulse of a generous
and noble nature. He violently op[)osed the Pres-
ident's proclamation as ungrateful and wanting in
magnanimity.

Washington, who could appreciate such a character,
developed liis calm, serene, almost divine greatness,
by appointing that very James Monroe, who was de-
nouncing the policy of the Government, as the minister
of that Government to the Republic of France. Mr.
Monroe was welcomed by the National Convention
in France with the most enthusiastic demonstrations.

Shortly after his return to this country, Mr. Mon-
roe was elected Governor of Virginia, and held the
office for three years. He was again sent to France to
co-operate with Chancellor Livingston in obtaining
the vast territory then known as the Province of
Louisiana, which France had but shortly before ob-
tained from Spain. Their united efforts were suc-
cessful. For the comparatively small sum of fifteen
millions of dollars, the entire territory of Orleans and
district of Louisiana were added to the United States.
This was probably the largest transfer of real estate
which was ever made in all the history of the world.

From France Mr. Monroe went to England to ob-
tain from that country some recognition of our
rights as neutrals, and to remonstrate against those
odious impressments of our seamen. But Eng-
land was unrelenting. He agam returned to Eng-
land on the same mission, but could receive no
redress. He returned to his home and was again
chosen Governor of Virginia. This he soon resigned
to accept the position of Secretary of State under
Madison. While in this office war with England was
declared, the Secretary of War resigned, and during
these trj'ing times, the duties of the \\'ar Department
were also put upon him. He was truly the armor-
bearer of President Madison, and the most efficient
business man in his cabinet. Upon the return of
peace he resigned the Department of War, but con-
tinued in the office of Secretary of State until the ex-
piration of Mr. Madison's adminstration. At the elec-
tion held the previous autumn Mr. Monroe himself had
been chosen President with but little opposition, and
upon March 4, 18 17, was inaugurated. Four years
later he was elected for a second term.

Among the important measures of his Presidency
were the cession of Florida to the United States ; the
Missouri Compromise, and the " Monroe doctrine.''

This famous doctrine, since known as the "Monroe
doctrine," was enunciated by him in 1823. At that
time the United States had recognized the independ-
ence of the South American states, and did not wish
to have European powers longer attempting to sub-
due portions of the American Continent. The doctrine
is as follows: "That we should consider any attempt
on the part of European powers to extend their sys-
tem to any portion of this hemis|ihere as dangerous
to our peace and safety," and "that we could not
view any interposition for the purpose of oppressing
or controlling American govemments or provinces in
any other light than as a manifestation by European
powers of an unfriendly disposition toward the United
States." This doctrine immediatel\' affected the course
of foreign governments, and has become the approved
sentiment of the United States.

At the end of his second term Mr. Monroe retired
to his home in Virginia, where he lived until 1830,
when he went to New York to live, with his son-in-
law. In that city he died, on the 4th of July, 1831.

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SIXTH PRESIDENT.

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OHN QUINCY ADAMS, the
iiixth President of the United
L^States, was born in the rural
home of his honored father,
John Adams, in Quincy, Mass.,
on the I ith cf July, 1767. His
mother, a woman 6f exalted
worth, watched over his childhood
during the almost constant ab-
sence of his father. When l)ut
eight years of age, he stood with
iiis mother on an eminence, listen-
ing to the booming of the great l)at-
tle on Bunker's Hill, and gazing on
upon the smoke and flames Ijillow-
ing up from the conflagration of
Charlestown.

When but eleven years old he
took a tearful adieu of his mother,
to sail with his father for Europe,
through a lleet of hostile British cruisers. The bright,
animated boy spent a year and a half in Paris, where
his father was associated with Franklin and Lee as
minister plenipotentiary. His intelligence attracted
the notice of these distinguished men, and he received
from them flattering marks of attention.

Mr. John Adams had scarcely returned to this
country, in 1779, ere he was again sent abroad. Again
John Quincy accompanied his father. At Paris he
applied himself with great diligence, for six months,
to study; then accom pained his father to Holland,
where he entered, first a school in Amsterdam, then
the University at Leyden. About a year from this
time, in T781, when the manly boy was but fourteen
years of age, he was selected by Mr. Dana, our min-
ister to the Russian court, as his private secretary.

In this school of incessant labor and of enoliling
culture he spent fourteen months, and then returned
to Holland through Sweden, Denmark, Hamburg and
Bremen. This long journey he took alone, in the
winter, when in his sixteenth year. Again he resumed
his studies, under a private tutor, at Hague. Thence,

in the spring of 1782, he accompanied his father to
Paris, traveling leisurely, and forming acquaintance
with the most distinguished men on the Continent;
examining arcfiitectural remains, galleries of paintings,
and all renowned works of art. At Paris he again
became associated with the most illustrious men of
all lands in the contemplations of the loftiest temporal
themes which can engross the human mind. After
a short visit to England he returned to Paris, and
consecrated all his energies to study until May, 1785,
when he returned to America. To a brilliant young
man of eighteen, who had seen much of the world,
and who was familiar with the etiquette of courts, a
residence with his father in London, under such cir-
cumstances, must have been extremely attractive;
but with judgment very rare in one of his age, he pre-
ferred to return to America to complete his education
in an American college. He wished then to study
law, that with an honorable profession, he might be
able to obtain an independent support.

Upon leaving Harvard College, at the age of twenty,
he studied law for three years. In June, 1794, be-
ing then but twenty-seven years of age, he was ap-
pointed by Washington, resident minister at the
Netherlands. Sailing from Boston in July, he reached
London in October, where he was immediately admit-
ted to the deliberations of Messrs. Jay and Pinckney,
assisting them in negotiating a commercial treaty with
Great Brilian. After thus spending a fortnight in
London, he proceeded to the Hague.

In July, 1797, he left the Hague to go to Portugal as
minister plenipotentiary. On his way to Portugal,
upon arriving in London, he met with despatches
directing him to the court of Berlin, but requesting
him to remain in London until he should receive his
instructions. \Vhile waiting he was niairied to an
American lady to whom he had been previously en-
gaged, — Miss Louisa Catherine Johnson, daughter
of Mr. Joshua Johnson, American consul in London;
a lady endownd with that beauty and those accom-
])lishment which eminently fitted her to move in the
elevated siihere for which she was destined.

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V^ He reached Berlin with his wife in November, 1797 ;
/w where he remained until July, 1799, when, having ful-
^ filled all the purposes of his mission, he solicited his
"^ recall.

T Soon after his return, in 1802, he was chosen to

-?,, the Senate of Massachusetts, from Boston, and then
was elected Senator of the United States for six years,
from the 4th of March, 1804. His reputation, his
ability and his experience, placed him immediately
among the most prominent and influential members
of that l)ody. Es[)ecially did he sustain the Govern-
ment in its measures of resistance to the encroach-
ments of England, destroying our commerce and in-
sulting our flag. There was no man in America more
familiar with tlie arrogance of the British court upon
these points, and no one more resolved to present
a firm resistance.

In 1809, Madison succeeded Jefferson in the Pres-
idential chair, and he immediately nominated John
Quincy Adams minister to St. Petersburg. Resign-
ing his professorship in Harvard College, he embarked
at Boston, in Augifst, 1809.

While in Russia, Mr. Adams was an intense stu-
dent. He devoted his attention to the language and
history of Russia; to the Chinese trade; to the
European system of weights, measures, and coins ; to
the climate and astronomical observations ; while he
kept up a familiar acquaintance with the Greek and
Latin classics. In all the universities of Europe, a
more accomplished scholar could scarcely be found.
All through life the Bible constituted an important
part of his studies. It was his rule to read five
chapters every day.

On the 4th of March, 1817, Mr. Monroe took the
Presidential chair, and immediately appointed Mr.
Adams Secretary of State. Taking leave of his num-
erous friends in public and private life in Europe, he
sailed in June, i8ig, for the United States. On the
i8th of August, he again crossed the threshold of his
home in Quincy. During the eight years of Mr. Mon-
roe's administration, Mr. Adams continued Secretary
of State.

Some time before the close of Mr. Monroe's second
term of office, new candidates began to be presented
for the Presidency. Tlie friends of Mr. .\dams brought
forward his name. It was an exciting campaign.
Party spirit was never more bitter. Two hundred and
sixty electoral votes were cast. Andrew Jackson re-
ceived ninety-nine; John Quincy .\danis, eighty-four;
William H. Crawford, forty-one; Henry Clay, thirty-
5' seven. As tliere was no choice by the people, the
I question went to the House of Representatives. Mr.
A, Clay gave the vote of Kentucky to Mr. Adams, and
''^ he was dected.

j/ The friends of all the disappointed candidates now

^ combined in a venomous and persistent assault iqion
'*' Mr. Adams. There is nothing more disgraceful in
^ the past histor)' of our countr\ than the abuse which

was poured in one uninterrupted stream, upon this ^
high-minded, upright, patriotic man. There never was ';■
an administration more pure in principles, more con- -4.
scientiously devoted to the best interests of the coun- "> "
try, than that of John Quincy Adams ; and never, per- 1
haps, was there an administration more unscrupu- yC^
lously and outrageously assailed.

Mr. Adams was, to a very remarkable degree, ab-
stemious and temperate in his habits; always rising
early, and taking much exercise. When at his home in
Quincy, he has been known to walk, before breakfast,
seven miles to Boston. In Washington, it was said
that he was the first man up in the city, lighting his
own fire and applying himself to work in his library
often long before dawn.

On the 4th of March, 1829, Mr. Adams retired
from the Presidency, and was succeeded by Andrew
Jackson. JohrwC. Calhoun was elected Vice Presi-
dent. The slavery question now began to assume
iwrtentous magnitude. Mr. Adams returned to
Quincy and to his studies, which he pursued with un-
abated zeal. But he was not long permitted to re-
main in retirement. In November, 1830, he was
elected representative to Congress. For seventeen
years, until his death, he occupied the post as repre-
sentative, towering above all his peers, ever ready to
do brave battle' for freedom, and winning the title of
"the old man eloquent." Upon taking his seat in
the House, he announced that he should hold him-
self bound to no party. Probably there never was a
member more devoted to his duties. He was usually
the first in his place in the morning, and the last to
leave, his seat in the evening. Not a measure could
be brought forward and escape his scrutiny. The
battle which Mr. Adams fought, almost singly, against
the proslavery party in the Government, was sublime
in Its moral daring and heroism. For persisting in
presenting petitions for the abolition of slavery, he
was threatened with indictment by the grand jury,
with expulsion from the House, with assassination;
but no threats could intimidate him, and his final
triumph was complete.

It has been said of President Adams, that when his
body was bent and his hair silvered by the lapse of
fourscore years, yielding to the simple faith of a little
child, he was accustomed to repeat every night, before
he slept, the prayer which his mother taught him in
his infant years.

On the 2ist of February, 1848, he rose on the floor
of Congress, with a paper in his hand, to address the f^
speaker. Suddenly he fell, again stricken iiy jiataly-
sis, and was caught in the arms of those around liim.
For a time he was senseless, as he was conveyed to
the sofa in the rotunda. With reviving conscious-
ness, he opened his eyes, looked calmly around and
said " This is the end of earth ;W\tx\ after a moment's
pause he added, "/ nw content" These were the
last words of the tir.iiul "Old Man Eloquent."

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SEVENTH PRESIDENT.

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NDREW JACKSON, the
seventh President of the
United States, was born in
Waxhaw settlement, N. C,
March 15, 1767, a few days
after his father's death. His
parents were poor emigrants
from Ireland, and took up
their abode in Waxhaw set-
tlement, where they lived in
deepest poverty.
Andrew, or Andy, as he was
universally called, grew up a very
rough, rude, turbulent boy. His
features were coarse, his form un-
gainly; and there was but very
little in his character, made visible, which was at-
tractive.

When only thirteen years old he joined the volun-
teers of Carolina against the British invasion. In
1781, he and his brother Robert were captured and
i imprisoned for a time at Camden. A British officer
% ordered him to brush his mud-spattered boots. " I am
■% a prisoner of war, not your servant," was the reply of
the dauntless boy.

The brute drew his sword, and aimed a desperate
blow at the head of the helpless young prisoner.
Andrew raised his hand, and thus received two fear-
""ul gashes, — one on the hand and the other upon the
lead. The officer then turned to his brother Robert
with the same demand. He also refused, and re-
ceived a blow from the keen-edged sabre, which quite
disabled him, and which probably soon after caused
his death. They suffered much other ill-treatment, and
were finally stricken with the small-pox. Their
mother was successful in obtaining their exchange.

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and took her sick boys home. After a long illness
Andrew recovered, and the death of his mother soon
left him entirely friendless.

Andrew supported himself in various ways, such as
working at the saddler's trade, teaching school and
clerking in a general store, until 1784, when he
entered a law office at Salisbury, N. C. He, however,
gave more attention to the wild amusements of the
times than to his studies. In 1788, he was appointed
solicitor for the western district of North Carolina, of
which Tennessee was then a part. This involved
many long and tedious journeys amid dangers of
every kind, but Andrew Jackson never knew fear,
and the Indians had no desire to repeat a skirmish
with the Sharp Knife.

In 179 1, Mr. Jackson was married to a woman who
supposed herself divorced from her former husband.
Great was the surprise of both parties, two years later,
to find that the ccnditionsof the divorce had just been
definitely settled by the first husband. The marriage
ceremony was performed a second time, but the occur-
rence was often used by his enemies to bring Mr.
Jackson into disfavor.

During these years he worked hard at his profes-
sion, and frequently had one or more duels on hand,
one of which, when he killed Dickenson, was espec-
ially disgraceful.

In January, 1796, the Territory of Tennessee then
containing nearly eighty thousand inhabitants, the
people met in convention at Knoxville to frame a con-
stitution. Five were sent from each of the eleven
counties. Andrew Jackson was one of the delegates.
The new State was entitled to but one member in
the National House of Representatives. Andrew Jack-
son was chosen that member. Mounting his horse he
rode to Philedelphia, where Congress then held its

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ANDRE W JACKSON.

sessions, — a distance of about eigiit hundred miles.

Jackson was an earnest advocate of the Demo-
cratic p-irty. Jefferson was his idol. He admired
Bonaparte, loved France and hated England. As Mr.
Jackson took his seat, Gen. Washington, whose
second term of office was then e.xpiring, delivered his
last speech to Congress. A committee drew up a
comi)limentary address in reply. Andrew Jackson
did not approve of the address, and was one of the
twelve who voted against it. He was not willing to
say that Gen. Washington's adminstration had been
" wise, firm and patriotic."

Mr. Jackson was elected to the United States
Senate in 1797, but soon resigned and returned home.
Soon after he was chosen Judge of the .Supreme Court
of his State, which position he held for si.x years.

When the war of 181 2 with Great Britian com-
menced, Madison occupied the Pre^dential chair.
Aaron Burr sent word to the President that there was
an unknown man in the West, Andrew Jackson, who
would do credit to a commission if one were con-
ferred upon him. Just at that time Gen. Jackson
offered his services and those of twenty-five hundred
volunteers. His offer was accepted, and the troops
were assembled at Nashville.

As the British were hourly e.xpected to make an at-
tack upon New Orleans, where Gen. Wilkinson was
in command, he was ordered to descend the river
with fifteen hundred troops to aid Wilkinson. The
expedition reached Natchez; and afteradelay of sev-
eral weeks there, without accomplishing anything,
the men were ordered back to their homes. But the
energy Gen. Jackson had displayed, and his entire
devotion to the comrfort of his soldiers, won him
golden opinions; and he became the most popular
man in the State. It was in this expedition that his
toughness gave him the nickname of " Old Hickory."

Soon after this, while attempting to horsewhip Col.
Thomas H. Benton, for a remark that gentleman
made about his taking a i)art as second in a duel, in
which a younger brother of Benton's was engaged,
he received two severe pistol wounds. While he was
lingering upon a bed of suffering news came that the
Indians, who had combined under Tecumseh from
Florida to the Lakes, to exterminate the white set-
tlers, were committing the most awful ravages. De-
cisive action became necessary. Clen. Jackson, with
his fractured bone just beginning to heal, his arm in
a sling, and unable to mount his horse without assis-
tance, gave his amazing energies to the raising of an
army to rendezvous at Fayettesvillc, Alabama.

The Creek Indians had established a strong fort on
one of the bendsof the Tallapoosa River, near the cen-
ter of Alabama, about fifty miles below Fort Strother.
With an army of two thousand men, Gen. Jackson
traversed the pathless wilderness in a march of eleven
days. He reached their fort, called l^ohojieka or
Horse-shoe, on the 27th of Man li. 1814. The bend

of the river enclosed nearly one hundred acres of ^'
tangled forest and wild ravine. Across the narrow i-.-'
neck the Indians had constructed a formidable breast- . '
work of logs and brush. Here nine hundred warriors, -
with an ample suply of arms were assembled.

The fort was stormed. The fight was utterly des- Vijp
perate. Not an Indian would accept of quarter. When
bleeding and dying, they would fight those who en-
deavored to spare their lives. From ten in the morn-
ing until dark, the battle raged. The carnage was
awful and revolting. Some threw themselves into the
river; but the unerring bullet struck their heads as
they swam. Nearly everyone of the nine hundred war-
rios were killed A few probably, in the night, swam
the river and escaped. This ended the war. The
power of the Creeks was broken forever. This bold
plunge into the wilderness, with its terriffic slaughter,
so appalled the savages, that the haggard remnants
of the bands came to the camp, beggingTor peace.

This closing of the Creek war enabled us to con-
centrate all our militia upon the British, who were the
allies of the Indians No man of less resolute will
than Gen. Jackson could have conducted this Indian
campaign to so successful an issue Immediately he
was appointed major-general.

Late in .\ugust, with an army of two thousand
men, on a rushing march, Gen. Jackson came to
Mol)ile. A British fleet came from Pensacola, landed
a force upon the beach, anchored near the little fort,
and from both ship and shore commenced a furious
assault. The battle was long and doubtful. At length
one of the ships was blown up and the rest retired.

Garrisoning Mol.)ile, where he had taken his little
army, he moved his troops, to New Orleans,
.\nd the battle of New Orleans which soon ensued,
was in reality a very arduous campaign. This won
for Gen. Jackson an imperishable name. Here his
troojjs, which numliered about four thousand men,
won a signal victory over the British army of about
nine thousand. His loss was but thirteen, while the
loss of the British was two thousand six hundred.

The name of Gen. Jackson soon began to be men-
tioned in connection with the Presidency, but, in 1824,
he was defeated by Air. Adams. He was, however,
successful in the election of 1828, and was re-elected
for a second term in 1832. In 1S29, just before he
assumed the reins of the government, he met with
the most terrible affliction of his life in the death of
his wife, whom he had loved with a devotion which has
perhaps never been surpassed. From the shock of
her death he never recovered.

His administration was one of the most memorable
in the annals of our country; applauded by one party,
condemned by the other. No man had more bitter
enemies or warmer friends. At the expiration of his
two terms of office he retired to the Hermitage, where
he died June 8, 1845. The last years of Mr. Jack-
son's life were th;il of a devoted Christian man.

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EIGHTH PRESIDENT.

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ARTIN VAN BUREN, the
ci^hth President of the
United States, was born at
Kinderhook, N. Y., Dec. 5,
1782. He died at the same
phice, July 24, 1862. His
body rests in the cemetery
at Kinderhook. Above it is
a plain granite shaft fifteen feet
high, bearing a simple inscription
about half way up on one face.
The lot is unfenced, unbordered
^ or unbounded by shrub or flower.

There is but little in the life of Martin Van Buren
of romantic interest. He fought no battles, engaged
in no wild adventures. Though his life was stormy in
political and intellectual conflicts, and he gained many
signal victories, his days passed uneventful in those
incidents which give zest to biography. His an-
cestors, as his name indicates, were of Dutch origin,
and were among the earliest emigrants from Holland
to the banks of the Hudson. His father was a farmer,
residing in the old town of Kinderhook. His mother,
also of Dutcli lineage, was a woman of superior intel-
ligence and exemplary piety.

He was decidedly a precocious boy, developing un-
usual activity, vigor and strength of mind. At the
acre of fourteen, he had finished his academic studies
I in his native village, and commenced the study of
A law. As he had not a collegiate education, seven

f years of study in a law-office were required of him
before he could be admitted to the bar. Inspired with
1^ a lofty ambition, and conscious of his powers, he pur-
.® sued his studies with indefatigable industry. After
^ spending si.x years in an office in his native village,

he went to the city of New York, and prosecuted his
studies for the seventh year.

In 1803, Mr. Van Buren, then twenty-one years of
age, commenced the practice of law in his native vil-
lage. The great conflict lietween the Federal and
Republican party was then at its height. Mr. Van
Buren was from the beginning a politician. He had,
perhaps, imbibed that spirit while listening to the
many discussions which had been carried on in his
father's hotel. He was in cordial sympathy with
Jefferson, and earnestly and eloquently espoused the
cause of State Rights ; though at that time the Fed-
eral party held the supremacy both in his town
and State.

His success and increasing ruputation led him,
after six years of practice, to remove to Hudson, the
county seat of his county. Here he spent seven years,
constantly gaining strength by contending in the
courts with some of the ablest men who have adorned
the bar of his State.

Just before leaving Kinderhook fur Hudson, Mr.
Van Buren married a lady alike distinguished for
Ijeauty and accomplishments. After twelve short
years she sank into the grave, the victim of consump-
tion, leaving her husband and four sons to weep over
her loss. For twenty-five years, JNIr. Van Buren was
an earnest, successful, assiduous lawyer. The record
of those years is barren in items of public interest.
In tS 1 2, when thirty years of age, he was cliosen to
the State Senate, and tiave his strenuous support tu
Mr. Madison's adminstration. In 1815, he was ap-
pointed Attorney-General, and the next year moved
to Albany, the capital of the State.

While he was acknowledged as one of the most
prominent leaders of the Democratic party, he had

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MARTIN VAN BUREN.

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the moral courage to avow that true democracy did
not require that " universal suffrage" which admits
the vile, the degraded, the ignorant, to the right of
governing the State. In true consistency with liis
democratic principles, he contended that, while the
path leading to the privilege of voting should be open
to every man without distinction, no one should be
invested with that sacred prerogative, unless he were
in some degree qualified for it by intelligence, virtue
and some property interests in the welfare of tlie
State.

In 182 1 he was elected a member of the United
States Senate; and in the same year, he took a seat
in the convention to revise the constitution of his
native State. His course in this convention secured
the approval of men of all parties. No one could
doubt the singleness of his endeavors to promote the
interests of all classes in the community. In the
Senate of the United States, he rose at once to a
conspicuous position as an active and useful legislator.

In 1827, John Quincy Adams being then in the
Presidential chair, Mr. Van Buren was re-elected to
the Senate. He had been from the beginning a de-
termined opposer of the .Administration, adopting the
"State Rights" view in opposition to what was
deemed the Federal proclivities of Mr. Adams.

Soon after this, in 1828, he was chosen Governorof
the State of New York, and accordingly resigned his
seat in the Senate. Probably no one in the United
States contributed so much towards ejecting John (J.
Adams from the Presidential cliair, and placing in it
Andrew Jackson, as did Martin Van Buren. Whether
entitled to the reputation or not, he certainly was re-
garded throughout the United States as one of the
most skillful, sagacious and cunning of politicians.
It was supposed that no one knew so well as he how
to touch the secret spiings of action; how to pull all
the wires to put his machinery in motion ; and how to
organize a political army which would, secretly and
stealthily accomplish the most gigantic results. By
these powers it is said that he outv.'itted Mr. Adams,
Mr. Clay, Mr. Webster, and secured results which
few thought then could be accomplished.

When Andrew Jackson was elected President he
appointed Mr. Van Buren Secretary of State. This
position he resigned in 1831, and was immediately
appointed Minister to England, where he went the
same autumn. The Senate, however, when it met,
refused to ratify the nomination, and he returned

home, apparently untroubled ; was nominated Vice
President in the place of Calhoun, at the re-election
of President Jackson ; and with smiles for all and
frowns for none, he took his place at tjie head of that
Senate which had refused to confirm his nomination
as ambassador.

His rejection by the Senate roused all the zeal of
President Jackson in behalf of his repudiated favor-
ite ; and this, probably more than any other cause,
secured his elevation to the chair of the Chief Execu-
tive. On the 20th of May, 1836, Mr. Van Buren re-
ceived the Democratic nomination to succeed Gen.
Jackson as President of the United States. He was
elected liy a handsome majority, to the delight of the
retiring President. " Leaving New York out of the
canvass," says Mr. Parton, "the election of Mr. Van
Buren to the Presidency was as much the act of Gen.
Jackson as though the Constitution had conferred
upon him the power to appoint a successor."

His administration was filled with exciting events.
The insurrection in Canada, which threatened to in •
volve this country in war with England, the agitation
of the slavery question, and finally the great commer-
cial panic which spread over the country, all were
trials to his wisdom. The financial distress was at-
tributed to the management of the Democratic party,
and brought the President into such disfavor that he
failed of re-election.

With the exception of being nominated for tlie
Presidency by the "Free Soil" Democrats, in 1848,
Mr. Van Buren lived ijuietly upon his estate until
his death.

He had ever been a prudent man, of frugal habits,
and living within his income, had now fortunately a
competence for his declining years. His unblemished
character, his commanding abilities, his unquestioned
patriotism, and the distinguished positions which he
had occupied in the government of our country, se-
cured to him not only the homage of his party, but
the respect ot the whole community. It was on the
4th of March, 184 1, that Mr. Van Buren retired from
the presidency. From his fine estate at Lindenwald
he still exerted a powerful influence upon the politics
of the country. From this time until his death, on
the 24th of July, 1862, at the age of eighty years, he
resided at Lindenwald, a gentleman of leisure, of
culture and of wealth; enjoying in a healthy old
age, probably far more happiness than he had before
experienced amid the stormy scenes of his active life.

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NINTH PRESIDKNT.

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ILLIAM HENRY HARRI-
SON, the ninth President of
the United States, was born
at Berkeley, Va., Feb. 9, 1773.
His father, Benjamin Harri-
son, was in comparatively op-
ulent circumstances, and was
one of the most distinguished
men of his day. He was an
intimate friend of George
Washington, w as early elected
a member of the Continental
Congress, and was consijicuous
among the patriots of Virginia in
resisting the encroachments of the
British crown. In the celebrated
Congress of 1775, Benjamin Har-
rison and John Hancock were
both candidates for the office of
s[>eaker.

Mr Harrison was subsequently
chosen Governor of Virginia, and
was twice re-elected. His son,
i William Henry, of course enjoyed

in childhood all the advantages which wealth and
intellectual and cultivated society could give. Hav-
ing received a thorough common-school education, he
entered Hampden Sidney College, where he graduated
with honor soon after the death of his father. He
then repaired to Philadelphia to study medicine under
^ the instructions of Dr. Rush and the guardianship of
Robert Morris, both of whom were, with his father,
signers of the Declaration of Independence.
11^', Upon the outbreak of the Indian troubles, and not-
withstanding the remonstrances of his friends, he
i) abandoned his medical studies and entered the army,
having obtained a commission of Ensign from Presi-

dent Washington. He was then but 19 years old.
From that time he passed gradually upward in rank
until he became aid to (General AVayne, after whose
death lie resigned his commission. He was then ap-
pointed Secretary of the North-western Territory. This
Territory was then entitled to but one member in
Congress and Capt. Harrison was chosen to fill that
position.

In the spring of 1800 the North-western Territory
was divided by Congress into two portions. The
eastern portion, comprising the region now embraced
in the State of Ohio, was called '' The Territory
north-west of the Ohio." The western [lorliuii, which
included what is now called Indiana, Illinois and
Wisconsin, was called the "Indiana Territory." Wil-
liam Henry Harrison, then 27 years of age, was a]5-
pointed by John Adams, Ciovernor of the Indiana
Territory, and immediately after, also Governor of
Upper Louisiana. He was thus ruler over almost as
extensive a realm as any sovereign upon the globe. He
was Superintendent of Indian Affairs, and was in-
vested with powers nearly dictatorial over the now
rapidly increasing white population. The ability and
fidelity with which he discharged these responsible
duties may be inferred from the fact that he was four
times appointed to tliis office — first by John Adams,
twice by Thomas Jefferson and afterwards by Presi-
dent Madison.

AVhenhe began his adminstration there were but
three white settlements in that almost boundless region,
now crowded with cities and resounding with all the
tumult of wealth and traffic. Oneof these settlements
was on the Ohio, nearly opposite Louisville; one at
Vincennes, on the Wabash, and the third a French
settlement.

The vast wilderness over which (iov. Harrison
reigned was filled with many tribes of Indians. About

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WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON.

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the year 1806, two extraordinary men, twin brothers,
of the Shawnese tribe, rose among them. One of
these was called Tecumseh, or " The Crouching
Panther;" the other, OUiwacheca, or "The Prophet."
Tecumseh was not only an Indian warrior, but a man
of great sagacity, far-reaching foresight and indomit-
able perseverance in any enterprise in which he might
engage. He was inspired with the highest enthusiasm,
and had long regarded with dread and with hatred
the encroachment of the whites upon the hunting-
grounds of his fathers. His brother, the Prophet, was
anorator, who could sway the feelings of the untutored
Indian as the gale tossed the tree-tops beneath which
they dwelt.

But the Prophet was not merely an orator: he was,
in the superstitious minds of the Indians, invested
with the superhuman dignity of a medicine-man or a
magician. With an enthusiasm unsurpassed by Peter
the Hermit rousing Europe to the crusades, he went
from tribe to tribe, assuming that he was specially sent
by the Great Spirit.

Gov. Harrison made many attempts to conciliate
the Indians, but at last the war came, and at Tippe-
canoe the Indians were routed with great slaughter.
October 28, 18 12, his army began its march. When
near the Prophet's town three Indians of rank made
their appearance and inquired why Gov. Harrison was
approaching them in so hostile an attitude. After a
short conference, arrangements were made for a meet-
ing the next day, to agree upon terms of peace.

But Gov. Harrison was too well acquainted with
the Indian character to be deceived by such protes-
tations. Selecting a favorable spot for his night's en-
campment, he took every precaution against surprise.
His troops were posted in a hollow square, and slept
upon their arms.

The troops threw themselves upon the ground for
rest; but every man had his accourtrements on, his
loaded musket by his side, and his bayonet fixed. The
wakeful Governor, between three and four o'clock in
the morning, had risen, and was sitting in conversa-
tion with his aids by the embers of a waning fire. It
was a chill, cloudy morning with a drizzling rain. In
the darkness, the Indians had crept as near as possi-
ble, and just then, with a savage yell, rushed, with all
the desperation which superstition and passion most
highly inflamed could give, upon the left flank of the
little army. The savages had been amply provided
with guns and ammunition by the English. Their
war-whoop was accompained by a shower of bullets.

The camp-fires were instantly extinguished, as the
light aided the Indians in their aim. With hide-
ous yells, the Indian bands rushed on, not doubting a
speedy and an entire victory. But Gen. Harrison's
troops stood as immovable as the rocks around them
until day dawned : they then made a simultaneous
charge with the bayonet, and swept every thing be-
fore them, and completely routing the foe.

Gov. Harrison now had all his energies tasked
to the utmost. The British descending from theCan-
adas, were of themselves a very formidable force ; but
with their savage allies, rushing like wolves from the
forest, searching out every remote farm-house, burn-
ing, plundering, scalping, torturing, the wide frontier
was plunged into a state of consternation which even
the most vivid imagination can but faintly conceive.
The war-whoop was resounding everywhere in the
forest. The horizon was illuminated with the conflagra-
tion of the cabins of the settlers. Gen Hull had made
the ignominious surrender of his forces at Detroit.
Under these despairing circumstances, Gov. Harrison
was appointed by President Madison commander-in-
chief of the North-western army, with orders to retake
Detroit, and to protect the frontiers.

It would be difficult to place a man in a situation
demanding mor' energy, sagacity and courage; but
General Harriijn was found eijual to the position,
and nobly and triumphantly did he meet all the re-
sponsibilities.

He won the love of his soldiers by always sharing
with them their fatigue. His whole baggage, while
pursuing the fo p the Thames, was carried in a
valise; and his bedding consisted of a single blanket
lashed over his saddle. Thirty-five British officers,
his prisoners of war, supped with him after the battle.
The only fare he could give them was beef roasted
liefore the fire, witlioul bread or salt.

In 18 16, Gen. Harrison was chosen a member of
the National House of Representatives, to represent
the District of Ohio. In Congress he proved an
active member; and whenever he spoke, it was with
force of reason and power of eloquence, which arrested
the attention of all the members.

In 1819, Harrison was elected to the Senate of
Ohio; and in 1824, as one of the presidential electors
of that State, he gave his vote for Henry Clay. The
same year he was chosen to the United States Senate.

In 1836, the friends of Gen. Harrison brought him
forward as a candidate for the Presidency against
Van Buren, but he was defeated. At the close of
Mr. Van Buren's term, he was re-nominated by his
party, and Mr. Harrison was unanimously nominated
by the Whigs, with John Tyler forthe Vice Presidency.
The contest was very animated. Gen. Jackson gave
all his influence to prevent Harrison's election ; but
his triumph was signal.

The cabinet which he formed, with Daniel Webster
at its head as Secretary of State, was one of the most
brilliant with which any President had ever been
surrounded. Never were the prospects of an admin-
istration more flattering, or the hopes of the country
more sanguine. In the midst of these bright and
joyous prospects, Gen. Harrison was seized by a
pleurisy-fever and after a few days of violent sick-
ness, died on tlie 4th of .April ; just one month after
his inaucruration as President of the United States.

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TENTH PRESIDENT.

OHN TYLER, the tenth
'ilf_,, Presidentof the United States.
He was born in Charles-city
Co., Va., March 29, 1790. He
was the favored child of af-
fluence and high social po-
sition. At the early age of
twelve, John entered William
and Mary College and grad-
uated with much honor when
but seventeen years old. .\fter
graduating, he devoted liim-
self with great assiduity tu the
study of law, partly with his
father and p.irtly with Edmund
Randolph, one of the most distin-
guished lawyers of Virginia.

At nineteen years of age, ne
commenced the practice of law.
His success was rapid and aston-
ishing. It is said that three
months had not elapsed ere there
was scarcely a case on the dock-
et of the court in which he was
not retained. When but twenty-one years of age, he
was almost unanimously elected to a seat in the State
Legislature. He connected himself with the Demo-
cratic party, and warmly advocated the measures of
,c^ Jefferson and Madison. For five successive years he
was elected to the Legislature, receiving nearly the
unanimous vote or his county.

When but twenty-six years of age, he was elected

v/ a member of Congress. Here he acted earnestly and

ably with the Democratic party, opposing a national

bank, internal improvements by the General Govern-

— "^^^^ — ^^-^m

ment, a protective tariff, and advocating a strict con-
struction of the Constitution, and the most careful
vigilance over State rights. His labors in Congress
were so arduous that before the close of his second
term he found it necessary to resign and retire to his
estate in Charles-city Co., to recruit his health. He,
however, soon after consented to take his seat in the
State Legislature, where his influence was powerful
in promotitig public works of great utility. With a
reputation thus canstantly increasing, he was chosen
by a very large majority of votes. Governor of his
native State. His administration was signally a suc-
cessful one. His' popularity secured his re-election.

John Randolph, a brilliant, erratic, half-crazed
man, then represented Virginia in the Senate of the
United States. A portion of the r)emocratic party
was displeased with !Mr. Randolph's wayward course,
and brought forward John Tyler as his opponent,
considering him the only man in Virginia of sufficient
popularity to succeed against the renowned orator of
Roanoke. Mr. Tyler was the victor.

Li accordance with his professions, upon taking his
seat in the Senate, he joined the ranks of the opposi-
tion. He opposed the tariff; he spoke against and
voted against the bank as unconstitutional ; he stren-
uously opposed all restrictions upon slavery, resist-
ing all projects of internal improvements by the Gen-
eral Government, and avowed his sympathy with Mr.
Calhoun's view of nullification ; he declared that Gen.
Jackson, by his opposition to th*e nuIHfiers, had
abandoned the principles of the Democratic party.
Such was Mr. Tyler's record in Congress, — a record
in perfect accordance with the principles which he
had always avowed.

Returning to Virginia, he resumed the practice of
his profession. There was a split in the Democratic

1^^

JOHN TYLER.]

party. His friends still regarded him as a true Jef-
fersonian, gave him a dinner, and showered compli-
ments upon him. He had now attained the age of
forty-six. His career had been very brilliant. In con-
sequence of his devotion to public business, his pri-
vate affairs had fallen into some disorder; and it was
not without satisfaction that he resumed the practice
of law, and devoted himself to the culture of his plan-
tation. Soon after this he removed to Williamsburg,
for the better education of his children ; and he again
took his seat in the Legislature of Virginia.

By the Southern Whigs, he was sent to the national
convention at Harrisburg to nominate a President in
1839. The majoritv of votes were given to Gen. Har-
rison, a genuine Whig, much to the disappointment of
the South, who wished for Henry Clay. To concili-
ate the Southern Whigs and to secure their vote, the
convention then nominated John Tyler for Vice Pres-
ident. It was well known that he vvas not in sympa-
thy with the Whig party in the North : but the Vice
President has but very little power in the Govern-
ment, his main and almost only duty being to pre-
side over the meetings of the Senate. Thus it hap-
pened that a Whig President, and, in reality, a
Democratic Vice President were chosen.

In 1841, Mr. Tyler was inaugurated Vice Presi-
dent of the United States. In one short month from
that time. President Harrison died, and Mr. Tyler
thus found himself, to his own surprise and that of
the whole Nation, an occupant of the Presidential
chair. This was a new test of the stability of our
institutions, as it was the first time in the history of our
country that such an event had occured. Mr. Tyler
was at home in Williamsburg when he received the
uae.\pected tidings of the death of President Harri-
son. He hastened to Washington, and on the 6th of
April was inaugurated to the high and responsible
office. He was placed in a position of exceeding
delicacy and difficulty. All his long life he had been
opposed to the main principles of the party which had
brought him into power. He had ever been a con-
sistent, honest man, with an unblemished record,
(len. Harrison had selected a Whig cabinet. Should
he retain them, and thus surround himself with coun-
sellors whose views were antagonistic to his own? or,
on the other hand, should he turn against the party
which had elected him and select a cabinet in har-
mony with himself, and which would oppose all those
views which the Whigs deemed essential to the pub-
lic welfare? This was his fearful dilemma. He in-
vited the cabinet which President Harrison had
selected to retain their seats. He reccommended a
day of fasting and prayer, that God would guide and
bless us.

The Whigs carried through Congress a bill for the
incorporation of a fiscal bank of the United States.
The President, after ten days' delay, returned it with
his veto. He suggested, however, that he would

approve of a bill drawn up upon such a plan as he
proposed. Such a bill was accordingly prepared, and
privately submitted to him. He gave it his approval.
It was passed without alteration, and he sent it back
with his veto. Here commenced the oijen rupture.
It is said that Mr. Tyler was provoked to this meas-
ure by a published letter from the Hon. John M.
Botts, a distinguished Virginia Whig, who severely
touched the pride of the President.

The opposition now exultingly received the Presi-
dent into their arms. The party which elected him
denounced him bitterly. All the members of his
cabinet, excepting Mr. Webster, resigned. The Whigs
of Congress, both the Senate and the House, held a
meeting and issued an address to the people of the
United States, proclaiming that all political alliance
l)etween the Whigs and President Tyler were at
an end.

Still the President attempted to conciliate. He
appointed a new cabinet of distinguished Whigs and
Conservatives, carefully leaving out all strong party
men. Mr. Webster soon found it necessary to resign,
forced out by the pressure of his Whig friends. Thus
the four years of Mr. Tyler's unfortunate administra-
tion passed sadly away. No one was satisfied. The
land was filled with murmurs and vituperation. Whigs
and Democrats alike assailed him. More and more,
however, he brought himself into sympathy with his
old friends, the Democrats, until atthe close of his term,
he gave his whole influence to the support of Mr.
Polk, the Democratic candidate for his successor.

On the 4th of March, 1S45, he retired from the
harassments of office, tothe regret of neitherparty, and
probably to his own unspeakable relief. His first wife.
Miss Letitia Christian, died in Washington, in 1842;
and in June, 1844, President Tyler was again married,
at New York, to Miss Julia Gardiner, a young lady of
many personal and intellectual accomplishments.

The remainder of his days Mr. Tyler passed mainly
in retirement at his beautiful home, — Sherwood For-
est, Charles-city Co., Va. A polished gentleman in
his manners, richly furnished with information from
books and experience in the world, and possessing
brilliant powers of conversation, his family circle was
the scene of unusual attractions. With sufficient
means for the exercise of a generous hospitality, he
might have enjoyed a serene old age with the few
friends who gathered around him, were it not for the
storms of civil war which his own principles and
policy had helped to introduce.

When the great Rebellion rose, which the State-
rights and nullifying doctrines of Mr. John C. Cal-
houn had inaugurated, President Tyler renounced his
allegiance to the United States, and joined the Confed-
erates. He was chosen a member of their Congress ;
and while engaged in active measures to destroy, by
force of arms, the Government over which he had
once presided, he was taken sick and soon died.

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ELEVENTH PRESIDENT.

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AMES K. POLK, the eleventh

.^President of the United States,

was born in Mecklenburg Co.,

N. C, Nov. 2, 1795. His par-

^ ents were Samuel and Jane

(Kno.x) Polk, the former a son

^ of Col. Thomas Polk, who located

at the above place, as one of the

first pioneers, in 1735.

In the year 1S06, with his wife'
and children, and soon after fol-
lowed by most of the members bf
the Polk fainly, Samuel Polk emi-
grated some two or three hundred
miles farther west, to the rich valley
of the Duck River. Here in the
midst of the wilderness, in a region
which was subsequently called Mau-
ry Co., they reared their lot; huts,
and established their homes. In the
hard toil of a new farm in the wil-
derness, James K. Polk spent the
early years of his childhood and
youth. His father, adding the pur-
suit of a surveyor to th;itof a farmer,
gradually increased in wealth until
he became one of the leading men of the region. His
mother was a superior woman, of strong conimun
^c\ sense and earnest piety.

Very early in life, James developed a taste for
reading and expressed the strongest desire to obtain
a liberal education. His mother's training had made
'V him methodical in his habits, had taught him punct-
^ uality and industry, and had inspired him with lofty
.* principles of morality. His health was frail ; and his
^_ father, fearing that he might not be able to endure a

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sedentary life, got a situation for iiim behind the
counter, hoping to fit him for commercial pursuits.

This was to James a Ijitter disappointment. He
had no taste for these duties, and his daily tasks
were irksome in the extreme. He remained in this
uncongenial occupation but a few weeks, when at his
earnest solicitation his father removed him, and made
arrangements for him to prosecute his studies. Soon
after he sent him to Murfreesboro Academy. With
ardor which could scarcely be surpassed, he pressed
forward in his studies, and in less than two and a half
years, in the autumn of 1S15, entered the sophomore
class in the University ■of North Carolina, at Chapel
Hill. Here he was one of the most exemplary of
scholars, punctual in every exercise, never allowing
liimself to be absent from a recitation or a religious
service.

He graduated in 1818, with the liighest honors, be-
ing deemed the best scholar of his class, both in
mathematics and the classics. He was then twenty-
three years of age. Mr. Polk's health was at this
time much impaired by the assiduity with which he
had prosecuted his studies. After a short season of
relaxation he went to Nashville, and entered the
office of Felix Grundy, to study law. Here Mr. Polk
renewed his acquaintance with Andrew Jackson, who
resided on his plantation, the Hermitage, but a few
miles from Nashville. They had probably been
slightly acquainted before.

Mr. Polk's father was a Jeffersonian Republican,
and James K. Polk ever adhered to the same politi-
cal faith. He was a popular iniblic speaker, and was
constantly called upon to address the meetings of his
party friends. His skill as a speaker was such that
he was popularly called the Napoleon of the stump.
He was a man of unblemished morals, genial and

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JAMES K. POLK.

courteous in his bearing, and with that sympathetic
,4'i nature in the jo) s and griefs of others which ever gave
him troops of friends. In 1823, Mr. Poll< was elected
to the Lcgishiture of Tennessee. Heie he gave his
strong influence towards the election of his friend,
Mr. Jackson, to the Presidency of the United States.
In January, 1824, Mr. Polk married Miss Sarah
Childress, of Rutherford Co., Tenn. His bride was
altogether worthy of him, — a lady of beauty and cul-
ture. In the fall of 1825, Mr. Polk was chosen a
J member of Congress. The satisfaction which he gave
''^ to his constituents may be inferred from the fact, that
for fourteen successive years, until 1839, he was con-
tinued in that office. He then voluntarily withdrew,
only that he might accept the Gubernatorial chair
of Tennessee. In Congress he was a laborious
member, a frequent and a popular speaker. He was
always in his seat, always courteous ; and whenever
he spoke it was always to the point, and without any
ambitious rhetorical display.

During five sessions of Congress, Mr. Polk was
Speaker of the House Strong passions were roused,
^ and stormy scenes were witnessed ; but Mr. Polk per-
«"• formed his arduous duties to a very general satisfac-
=1 tion, and a unanimous vote of thanks to him was
\y jjassed by the House as he withdrew on the 4t]i of
March, 1839.

In accordance with Southern usage, Mr. Polk, as a
candidate for Governor, canvassed the State. He was
elected by a large majority, and on the 14th of Octo-
ber, 1839, took the oath of office at Nashville. In 1841,
his term of office expired, and he was again the can-
didate of the Democratic party, but was defeated.
4 On the 4th of March, iS45,Mr. Polk was inaugur-
<^ ated President of the United States. The verdict of
^ the country in favor of the annexation of Texas, exerted
its influence upon Congress ; and the last act of the
administration of President Tyler was to affix his sig-
nature to a joint resolution of Congress, passed on the
3d of March, approving of the annexation of Texas to
the American Union. As Mexico still claimed Texas
as one of her provinces, the Mexican minister,
] Almonte, immediately demanded his passports and
*, left the country, declaring the act of the annexation
,!;g to be an act hostile to Mexico.

^ In his first inessage. President Polk urged that
''^ Texas should immediately, by act of Congress, be re-
V~^ ceived into tlie Union on the same footing with the
^ other States. In the meantime. Gen. Taylor was sent

)

with an army into Texas to hold the country. He was
sent first to Nueces, which the Mexicans said was the
western boundary of Texas. Then he was sent nearly '
two hundred miles further west, to the Rio Grande,
where he erected batteries which commanded the
Mexican city of Matamoras, which was situated on
the western banks.

The anticipated collision soon took place, and war
was declared against Mexico by President Polk. The
war was pushed forward by Mr. Polk's administration
with great vigor. Gen. Taylor, whose army was first
called one of " observation," then of " occupation,"
then of "invasion, "was sent forward to Monterey. The
feeble Mexicans, in every encounter, were hopelessly
and awfully slaughtered. The day of judgement
alone can reveal the misery which this war caused.
It v/as by the ingenuity of Mr. Polk's administration
that the war was brought on.

'Tijthe victors belong the spoils." Mexico was
prostrate before us. Her capital was in our hands.
^V'e now consented to peace upon the condition that
Mexico should surrender to us, in addition to Texas,
all of New Mexico, and all of Upper and Lower Cal-
ifornia. This new demand embraced, exclusive of
Texas, eight hundred thousand square miles. This
was an extent of territory equal to nine States of the
size of New York. Thus slavery was securing eighteen
majestic States to be added to the Union. There were
some Americans who thought it all right ; there were
others who thought it all wrong. In the prosecution
of this war, we expended twenty thousand lives and
more than a hundred million of dollars. Of this
money fifteen millions were paid to Mexico.

On the 3d of March, 1849, ^'f- ^'o"^ retired from
office, having served one term. Tiie next day was
Sunday. r)n the 5th, Gen. Taylor was inaugurated
as his successor. Mr. Polk rode to the Capitol in the
same carriage with Gen. Taylor; and the same even-
ing, with Mrs. Polk, he commenced his return to
Tennessee. He was then but fifty-four years of age.
He had ever been strictly temperate in all his haliits,
and his health was good. AVith an ample fortune,
a choice library, a cultivated mind, and domestic ties
of tlie dearest nature, it seemed as though long years
of tranquility and happiness were before him. But the
cholera — that fearful scourge — was then sweeping up
the Valley of the Mississippi. This he contracted,
and died on the igth of June, 1849,111 the fifty-fourth
year of his age, greatly mourned by his countrymen.

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TWELFTH PRESIDENT.

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ACHARY TAYLOR, twelfth
President of the United States,
was born on the 24th of Nov.,
1784, in Orange Co., Va. His
« father. Colonel Taylor, was
fy a Virginian of note, and a dis-
) tingLiished patriot and soldier of
the Revolution. When Zachary
was an infant, his father with his
wife and two children, emigrated
to Kentucky, where he settled in
the pathless wilderness, a few
miles from Louisville. Li this front-
ier home, away from civilization and
all its refinements, young Zachary
could enjoy but few social and educational advan-
tages. When six years of age he attended a common
>; ) school, and was then regarded as a bright, active boy,
rather remarkable for bluntness and decision of char-
acter He was strong, feailess and self-reliant, and
manifested a strong desire to enter tlie army to fight
the Indians who were ravaging the frontiers. There
is little to be recorded of the uneventful years of his
childhood on his father's large but lonely plantation.
In 1808, his father succeeded in obtaining for him
the commission of lieutenant in the United States
army ; and he joined the troops which were stationed
at New Orleans under Gen. Wilkinson. Soon after
this he married Miss Margaret Smith, a young lady
from one of the first families of Maryland.

Immediately after the declaration of war with Eng-
land, in 18 12, Capt. Taylor (for he had then been
promoted to that rank) was put in command of Fort
Harrison, on the Wabash, about fifty miles above
Vincennes. This fort had been built in the wilder-
ness by Gen. Harrison, on his march to Tippecanoe.
It was one of the first points of attack by the Indians,
. led by Tecumseh. Its garrison consisted of a broken

company of infantry numbering fifty men, many of
whom were sick.

Early in the autumn of 1812, the Indians, stealthily,
and in large numbers, moved upon the fort. Their
approach was first indicated by the murder of two
soldiers just outside of the stockade. Capt. Taylor
made every possible preparation to meet the antici-
pated assault. On the 4th of September, a band of
forty painted and plumed savages came to the fort,
waving a white flag, and informed Capt. Taylor that
in the morning their chief would come to have a talk
with him. It was evident that their object was merely
to ascertain the state of things at the fort, and Capt.
Taylor, well versed in the wiles of the savages, kept
them at a distance.

The sun went down ; the savages disappeared, the
garrison slept upon their arms. One hour before
midnight the war whoop burst from a thousand lips
in the forest around, followed by the discharge of
musketry, and the rush of the foe. Every :nan, sick
and well, sprang to his post. Every man knew that
defeat was not merely death, but in the case of cap-
ture, death by the most agonizing and prolonged tor-
ture. No pen can describe, no immagination can
conceive the scenes which ensued. The savages suc-
ceeded in setting fire to one of the block-houses-
Until si.x o'clock in the morning, this awfuV conflict
continued. The savages then, baffled at every point,
and gnashing their teeth with rage, retired. Capt.
Taylor, for this gallant defence, was promoted to the
rank of major by brevet.

Until the close of the war. Major Taylor was placed
in such situations that he saw but little more of active
service. He was sent far away into the depths of the
wilderness, to Fort Crawford, on Fox River, which
empties into Green Bay. Here there was but little
to be done but to wear away the tedious hours as one
best could. There were no books, no society, no in-

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"ST

ZACHARY TAYLOR.

tellectiuil stimulus. Thus with him the uneventful
years rolled on Gradually he rose to the rank of
colonel. In the Black-Hawk war, which resulted in
the capture of that renowned chieftain, Col Taylor
took a subordinate but a brave and efficient part.

For twenty-four years Col. Taylor was engaged in
the defence of the frontiers, in scenes so remote, and ni
employments so obscure, that his name was unknown
beyond the limits of his own immediate acquaintance.
In the year 1836, he was sent to Florida to compel
the Seminole Indians to vacate that region and re-
tire beyond the Mississippi, as their chiefs by treaty,
had promised they should do. The services rendered
here secured for Col. Taylor the high a|)preciation of
the Government ; and as a reward, he was elevated
to the rank of brigadier-general by brevet ; and soon
after, in May, 1838, was appointed to the chief com-
mand of the United States troops in Florida.

After two years of such wearisome employment
amidst the everglades of the peninsula. Gen. Taylor
obtained, at his own request, a change of command,
and was stationed over the Department of the South-
west. This field embraced Louisiana, Mississippi,
Alabama and Georgia. Establishing his headquarters
at Fort Jessup, in Louisiana, he removed his family
to a plantation which he purchased, near Baton Rogue.
Here he remained for five years, buried, as it were,
from the world, but faithfully discharging every duty
imposed upon him.

In 1846, Gen. Taylor was sent to guard the land
between the Nueces and Rio Grande, the latter river
being the boundary of Texas, which was then claimed
by the United States. Soon the war with Mexico
was brought on, and at Palo Alto and Resaca de la
Palma, Gen. Taylor won brilliant victories over the
Me.xicans. The rank of major-general by brevet
was then conferred upon Gen. Taylor, and his name
was received with enthusiasm almost everywhere in
the Nation. Then came the battles of Monterey and
Buena Vista in which he won signal victories over
forces much larger than he commanded.

His careless habits of dress and his unaffected
simplicity, secured for Gen. Taylor among his troops,
\.\\& sobri(/!ief of "Old Rough and Ready.'

The tidings of the brilliant victory of Buena Vista
spread the wildest enthusiasm over the country. The
name of Gen. Taylor was on every one's lips. The
Whig party decided to take advantage of this wonder-
ful popularity in bringing forward the unjiolished, un-
lettered, honest soldier as their candidate for the
Presidency. Gen. Taylor was astonished at the an-
nouncement, and for a time would not listen to it; de-
claring that he was not at all qualified for such an
office. So little interest had he taken in politics that,
for forty years, he had not cast a vote. It was not
without chagrin that several distinguished statesmen
who had lieen long years in the public service found
their claims set aside in behalf of one whose name

had never been heard of, save in connection with Palo
Alto, Resaca de la Palma, Monterey and Buena
Vista. It is said tliat Daniel Webster, in his haste re-
marked, " It is a nomination not fit to be made."

Gen. Taylor was not an eloquent speaker nor a fine
writer His friends took possession of him, and pre-
pared such few communications as it was needful
should be presented to the public. The popularity of
the successful warrior swept the land. He was tri-
umphantly elected over two opposing candidates, —
Gen. Cass and Ex-President Martin Van Buren.
Though he selected an excellent cabinet, the good
old man found himself in a very uncongenial position,
and was, at times, sorely perplexed and harassed.
His mental sufferings were very severe, and probably
tended to hasten his death. The pro-slavery party
was pushing its claims with tireless energy, expedi-
tions were fitting out to capture Cuba; California was
pleading for admission to the Union, while slavery
stood at the door to bar her out. Gen. Taylor found
the political conflicts in Washington to be far more
trying to the nerves than battles with Mexicans or
Indians

In the midst of all these troubles, Gen. Taylor,
after he had occupied the Presidential chair but little
over a year, took cold, and after a Ijrief sickness of
but little over five days, died on the 9th of July, 1850.
His last words were, " I am not afraid to die. I am
ready. I have endeavored to do my duty." He died
universally respected and beloved. An honest, un-
pretending man, he had been steadily growing in the
affections of the people ; and the Nation bitterly la-
mented his death.

Gen. Scott, who was thoroughly acquainted with
Gen. Taylor, gave the following graphic and truthful
description of his character: — " W'ith a good store of
common sense, Gen. Taylor's mind had not been en-
larged and refreshed by reading, or much converse
with the world. Rigidity of ideas was the conse-
quence. The frontiers and small military posts had
been his home. Hence he was quite ignorant for his
rank, and quite bigoted in his ignorance. His sim-
plicity was child-like, and with innumerable preju-
dices, amusing and incorrigible, well suited to the
tender age. Thus, if a man, however respectable,
chanced to wear a coat of an unusual color, or his hat
a little on one side of his head; or an officer to leave
a corner of his handkerchief dangling from an out-
side pocket, — in any such case, this critic held the
offender to be a co.xcomb (perhaps something worse),
whom he would not, to use liis oft repeated i>hrase,
'touch with a pair of tongs.'

".A.ny allusion to literature beyond good old Dil-
worth's spelling-book, on the part of one wearing a
sword, was evidence, with the same judge, of utter
unfitness for heavy marchings and combats. In short,
few men have ever had a more comfortable, labor-
saving contempt for Icirning of every kind."

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THIRTEENTH PRESIDENT.

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^■MILLflHn FILLfflnRE.'

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ILLARD FILLMORK, thir-
teentli President of the United
States, was born at Summer
Hill, Cayuga Co., X. Y ., on
the 7th uf lanuary, 1800. His
■=^ father was a farmer, and ow-
ing to misfortune, in humble cir-
cumstances. Of his mother, the
daughter of Dr. Abiathar Millard,
of Pittsfield, Mass., it has been
said that she possessed an intellect
of very high order, united with much
personal loveliness, sweetness of dis-
position, graceful manners and ex-
quisite sensibilities. She died in
1831 ; having lived to see her son a
young man of distinguished prom-
ise, though she was not permitted to witness the high
dignity which he finally attained.

In consequence of the secluded home and limited
means of his father, Millard enjoyed Init slender ad-
vantages for education in his early year.s. The com-
mon schools, which he occasionally attended were
very imperfect institutions; and books were scarce
and expensive. There was nothing then in his char-
acter to indicate the brilliant career upon which he
was about to enter. He was a plain farmer's boy ;
intelligent, good-looking, kind-hearted. The sacred
influences of home had taught him to revere the Bible,
and had laid the foundations of an upright character.
When fourteen years of age, his father sent him
some hundred miles from home, to the then wilds of
Livingston County, to learn the trade of a clothier.
Near the mill there was a small villiage, where some

enterprising man had commenced the collection of a
village librar}'. This i)roved an inestimable blessing
to young Fillmore. His evenings were spent in read-
ing. Soon every leisure moment was occupied with
books. His thirst for knowledge became insatiate;
and the selections which he made were continually
more elevating and instructive. He read history,
biography, oratory, and thus gradually there was en-
kindled in his heart a desire to be something more
than a mere worker with his hands; and he was be-
coming, almost unknown to himself, a well-infornied,
educated man.

The young clothier had now attained the age of
nineteen years, and was of fine personal appearance
and of gentlemanly demeanor. It so happened that
there was a gentleman in the neighborhood of ample
pecuniary means and of benevolence, — Judge Walter
\Vood, — who was struck with the prepossessing ap-
pearance of young Fillmore. He made his acquaint-
ance, and was so much impressed with his ability and
attainments that he advised him to abandon his
trade and devote himself to the study of the law. The
young man replied, that he had no means of his own,
i-.o friends to help him and that his previous educa-
tion had been very imperfect. But Judge Wood had
so much confidence in him that he kindly offered to
take him into his own office, and to loan him such
money as he needed. Most gratefully the generous
offer was accepted.

There is in many minds a strange delusion about
a collegiate education. .K young man is supposed to
be liberally educated if he has graduated at some col-
lege. But many a boy loiters through university halls
and then enters a law office, who is bv no means as

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MILLARD FILLMORE.

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well prepared to prosecute his legal studies as was
Millard Fillmore when he graduated at the clothing-
mill at the end of four years of manual labor, during
which every leisure moment had been devoted to in-
tense mental culture.

In 1823, when twenty-three years of age, he was
admitted to the Court of Common Pleas. He then
went to the village of Aurora, and commenced the
practice of law. In this secluded, peaceful region,
his practice of course was limited, and there was no
opportunity for a sudden rise in fortune or in fame.
Here, in the year 1826, he married a lady of great
moral worth, and one capable of adorning any station
she might be called to fill, — Miss Abigail Powers.

His elevation of character, his untiring industry,
his legal acquirements, and his skill as an advocate,
gradually attracted attention ; and he was invited to
enter into partnership under highly advantageous
circumstances, with an elder member of the bar in
Buffalo. Just before removing to Buffalo, in 1829,
he took his seat in the House of Assembly, of the
State of New York, as a representative from Erie
County. Though he had never taken a very active
part in politics, his vote and his sympathies were with
the Whig party. The State was then Democratic,
and he found himself in a helpless minority in the
Legislature, still the testimony comes from all parlies,
that his courtesy, ability and integrity, won, to a very
unusual degn e the respect of his associates.

In the autumn of 1832, he was elected to a seat in
the United States Congress He entered that troubled
arena in some of the most tumultuous hours of our
national history. The great conflict respecting the
national bank and the removal of the deposits, was
then raging.

His term of two years closed ; and he returned to
his profession, which he jiursued with increasing rep-
utation and success. After a lapse of two years
he again became a candidate for Congress ; was re-
elected, and took his seat in 1837. His jiast expe-
rience as a representative gave hmi strength and
confidence. The first term of service in Congress to
any man can be but little more tlian an introduction.
He was now prepared for active duty. All his ener-
gies were broughl to bear upon the public good. Every
measure received his impress.

Mr. Fillmore was now a man of wide repute, and
his popularity filled the State, and in the year 1847,
he was elected Comptroller of the State.

Mr. Fillmore had attained the age of forty-seven
years. His labors at the bar, in the Legislature, in
Congress and as Comptroller, had given him very con-
siderable fame. The Whigs were casting about to
find suitable candidates for President and Vice-Presi-
dent at the approaching election. Far away, on the
waters of tlie Rio Grande, there was a rough old
soldier, who had fought one or two successful battles
with the Mexicans, which had caused his name to be
proclaimed in tiumpet-tones all over the land. But
it was necessary to associate with him on the same
ticket some man of reputation as a statesman.

Under the influence of these considerations, the
names of Zachary Taylor and Millard Fillmore became
the rallying-cry of the Whigs, as their candidates for
President and Vice-Peesident. The Whig ticket was
signally triumphant. On the 4th of March, 1849,
Gen. Taylor was inaugurated President, and Millard
Fillmore Vice-President, of the United States.

On the 9th of July, 1850, President Taylor, but
about one year and four months after his inaugura- S
tion, was suddenly taken sick and died. By the Con- ^
stitution, Vice-President Fillmore thus became Presi- ^
dent. He appointed a very able cabinet, of which )C^
the illustrious Daniel Webster was Secretarj' of State. ^

Mr. Fillniore had very serious difficulties to contend ^
with, since the opposition had a majority in both
Houses. He did everything in his power to conciliate
the South ; but the pro-slavery party in the South felt
the inadequacy of all measuresof transient conciliation.
The pojiulation of the free States was so rapidly in-
creasing over that of the slave States that it was in-
evitable that the power of the Government should
soon pass into the hands of the free States. The
famous compromise measures were adopted under Mr.
Fillmore's adminstration, and the Japan Expedition
was sent out. On the 4th of March, 1853, Mr. Fill-
more, having served one term, retired.

In 1856, Mr. Fillmore was nominated for the Pres-
idency by the "' Know Nothing " party, but was beaten
by Mr. Buchanan. After that Mr. Fillmore lived in
retirement. During the terrible conflict of civil war,
he was mostly silent. It was generally supposed that
his sympathies were rather with those who were en-
deavoring to overthrow bur institutions. President
Fillmore kept aloof from the conflict, without any
cordial words of cheer to the one party or the other.
He was thus forgotten l)y both. He lived to a ripe
old age, and died in Buffalo. N. Y., March 8, 1874,

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FOURTEENTH PRESIDENT.

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RANKLIN PIERCE, the

fourteenth President of the

'United States, was born in

Hillsborough, N. H., Nov.

c?^^'.^^.--^^- =3. 1804. His father was a
\^_.",':.-: !^_fy Revolutionary soldier, who,

with his own strong arm,
hewed out a home in the
wilderness. He was a man
of inflexible integrity; of
strong, though uncultivated
mind, and an uncompromis-
ing Democrat. The mother of
Franklin Pierce was all that a son
could desire, — an intelligent, pru-
dent, affectionate. Christian wom-
an. Franklin was the sixth of eight children.

Franklin was a very bright and handsome boy, gen-
erous, warm-hearted and brave. He won alike the
love of old and young. The boys on the play ground
\ loved him. His teachers loved him. The neighbors
looked upon him with pride and affection. He was
by instinct a gentleman; always speaking kind words,
doing kind deeds, with a peculiar unstudied tact
which taught him what was agreeable. Without de-
veloping any precocity of genius, or any unnatural
ci^ devotion to books, he was a good scholar; in body,
in mind, in affections, a finely-develoiied boy.

When sixteen years of age, in the year 1820, he

. „ entered Bowdoin College, at Brunswick, Me He was

^ one of the most popular young men in the college.

The purity of his moral character, the unvarying

courtesy of his demeanor, his rank as a scholar, and

genial nature, rendered him a universal favorite.
There was something very peculiarly winning in his
address, and it was evidently not in the slightest de-
gree studied : it was the simple outgushing of his
own magnanimous and loving nature.

Upon graduating, in the year 1824, Franklin Pierce
commenced the study of law in the office of Judge
Woodbury, one of the most distinguished lawyers of
the State, and a man of great private worth. The
eminent social qualities of the young lawyer, his
father's prominence as a public man, and the brilliant
political career into which Judge Woodbury was en-
tering, all tended to entice Mr. Pierce into the faci-
nating yet perilous path of political life. With all
the ardor of his nature he espoused the cause of Gen.
Jackson for the Presidency. He commenced the
practice of law in Hillsborough, and was soon elected
to represent the town in the State Legislature. Here
he served for four yeais. The last two years he was
chosen speaker of the house by a very large vote.

In 1833, at the age of twenty-nine, he was elected
a member of Congress. Without taking an active
part in debates, he was faithful and laborious in duty,
and ever rising in the estimation of those with whom
he was associatad.

In 1837, being then but thirty-three years of age,
he was elected to the Senate of the United States;
taking his seat just as Mr. Van Buren commenced
his administration. He was the youngest member in
the Senate. In the year 1834, he married Miss Jane
Means Appleton, a lady of rare beauty and accom-
plishments, and one admirably fitted to adorn every
station with wliich her husband was honoied. Of the

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FRANKLIN PIERCE.

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three sons who were born to them, all now sleep with
their parents in the grave.

In the year 1838, Mr. Pierce, with growing fame
and increasing business as a lawyer, took up his
residence in Concord, the capital of New Hampshire.
President Polk, upon his accession to office, appointed
Mr. Pierce attorney-general of the United States ; but
the offer was declined, in consequence of numerous
professional engagements at home, and the precariuos
state of Mrs. Pierce's health. He also, about the
same time declined the nomination for governor by the
Democratic party. The war with Mexico called Mr.
Pierce in the army. Receiving the appointment of
brigadier-general, he embarked, with a portion of his
troops, at Newport, R. I., on the 27th of May, 1847.
He took an important part in this war, proving him-
self a brave and true soldier.

When Gen. Pierce reached his home in his native
State, he was received enthusiastically by the advo-
cates of the Mexican war, and coldly by his oppo-
nents. He resumed the practice of his profession,
very frequently taking an active part in political ijues-
tions, giving his cordial support to the pro-slavery
wing of the Democratic party. The compromise
measures met cordially with his approval ; and he
strenuously advocated the enforcement of the infa-
mous fugitive-slave law, which so shocked the religious
sensibilities of the North. He thus became distin-
guished as a "Northern man with Southern principles.''
The strong partisans of slavery in the .South conse-
quently regarded him as a man whom they could
safely trust in office to carry out their [ilans.

On the 12th of June, 1S52, the Democratic conven-
tion met in Baltimore to nominate a candidate for the
Presidency. For four days they continued in session,
and in tliirty-five ballotings no one had obtained a
two-thirds vote. Not a vote thus far had been thrown
for Gen. Pierce. Then the Virginia delegation
brought forward his name. There were fourteen
more ballotings, during which Gen. Pierce constantly
gained strength, until, at the forty-ninth ballot, he
received two hundred and eighty-two votes, and all
other candidates eleven. Gen. Winfield Scott was
the Whig candidate. Gen. Pierce was chosen with
great unanimity. Only four States — Vermont, Mas-
sachusetts, Kentucky and Tennessee — cast their
electoral votes against him Gen. Franklin Pierce
was therefore inaugurated President of the United
States on the 4th of March, 1853.

His administration proved one of the most stormy our
country had ever e.\perienced. The controversy be-
tween slavery and freedom was then approaching its
culminating point. It became evident that there was
an " irrepressible conflict " between them, and that
this Nation could not long exist " half slave and half
free." President Pierce, during the whole of his ad-
ministration, did every thing he could to conciliate
the South ; but it was all in vain. The conflict every
year grew more violent, and threats of the dissolution
of the Union were borne to the North on every South-
ern breeze.

Such was the condition of affairs when President
Pierce approached the close of his four-years' term
of office. The North had become thoroughly alien-
ated from him. The anti-slavery sentijnent, goaded
by great outrages, had been rapidly increasing; all
the intellectual ability and social worth of President
Pierce were forgotten in deej) reprehension of his ad-
ministrative acts. The slaveholders of the South, also,
unmindful of the fidelity with which he had advo-
cated those measures of Government which they ap-
proved, and perhaps, also, feeling that he had
rendered himself so unpopular as no longer to be
able acceptably to serve them, ungratefully dropped
him, and nominated James Buchanan to succeed him.

On the 4th of March, 1857, President Pierce re-
tired to his home in Concord. Of three children, two
had died, and his only surviving child had been
killed before his eyes by a railroad accident ; and his
wife, one of the most estimable and accomplished of
ladies, was rapidly sinking in consumption. The
hour of dreadful gloom soon came, and he was left
alone in the world, without wife or child.

When the terrible Rebellion burst forth, which di-
vided our country into two parties, and two only, Mr.
Pierce remained steadfast in the principles which he
had always cherished, and gave his sympathies to
that pro-slavery party with which he had ever been
allied. He declined to do anything, either by voice
or pen, to strengthen the hand of the National Gov-
ernment. He continued to reside in Concord until
the time of his death, which occurred in October,
1869. He was one of the most genial and social of
men, an honored communicant of the Episcopal
Church, and one of the kindest of neighbors. Gen-
erous to a fault, he contributed liberally for the al-
leviation of suffering and want, and many of his towns-
people were often gladened by his material bounty.

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I'IFTEENTH PRESIDENT,

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AMES BUCHANAN, the fif-
,teenth President of the United
States, was born in a small
frontier town, at the foot of the
eastern ridge of the Allegha-
nies, in Franklin Co., Penn.,on
the 23d of April, 1791. The ;-'lace
where the humble cabin of his
father stood was called Stony
Batter. It was a wild and ro-
mantic spot in a gorge of the moun-
tains, with towering summits rising
grandly all around. His father
was a native of the north of Ireland ;
a poor man, who had emigrated in
1783, witli little property save his
own strong arms. Five years afterwards he married
Elizabeth Spear, the daughter of a respectable farmer,

v=5)

and, with his young bride, plunged into the wilder-
'^gr-' ness, staked his claim, reared his log-hut, opened a
\ clearing with his axe, And settled down there to per-
form his obscure part in the drama of life. In this se-
cluded home, where James was born, he remained
for eight years, enjoying but few social or intellectual
advantages. When James was eight years of age, his
J. father removed to the village of Mercersburg, where
^^ his son was placed at school, and commenced a
i course of study in English, Latin and Greek. His
*■"?» progress was rapid, and at the age of fourteen, he

f entered Dickinson College, at Carlisle. Here he de-
veloped remarkable talent, and took his stand among
the first scholars in the institution. His application
^ to study was intense, and yet his native powers en-

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abled him to master the most abstruse subjects with
facility.

In the year 1809, he graduated with llie highest
honors of his class. He was then eighteen years of
age; tall and graceful, vigorous in health, fond of
athletic sport, an unerring shot, and enlivened with
an exuberant flow of animal spirits. He immediately
commenced the study of law in the city of Lancaster,
and was admitted to the bar in 1812, when he was
but twenty-one years of age. Very rapidly he rose
in his profession, and at once took undisputed stand
with the ablest lawyers of the State. When but
twenty-six years of age, unaided by counsel, he suc-
cessfully defended before the State Senate one of the
judges of the State, who was tried upon articles of
impeachment. At the age of thirty it was generally
admitted that he stood at the head of the bar; and
there was no lawyer in the State who had a more lu-
crative practice.

In 1820, he reluctantly consented to run as a
candidate for Congress. He was elected, and for
ten years he remained a member of the Lower House.
During the vacations of Congress, he occasionally
tried some important case. In 183 1, he retired
altogether from the toils of his luofession, having ac-
(juired an ample fortune.

Gen. Jackson, upon his elevation to the Presidency,
apj)ointed Mr. Buchanan minister to Russia. The
duties of his mission he performed with ability, which
gave satisfaction to all parties. Upon his return, in
1833, he was elected to a seat in the United States
Senate. He there met, as his associates, Webster,
Clay, Wright and Calhoun. He advocated the meas-
ures proposed by President Jackson, of making repri-

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/A MES B UCJIA JVA N.

sals against France, to enforce the payment of our
claims against that country ; and defended the course
;', of the President in his uni)recedented and wholesale
'^^ removal from office of those who were not the sup-
porters of his administration. Upon this question he
■ was brought into direct collision with Henry Clay.
He also, with voice and vote, advocated expunging
from the journal of the Senate the vote of cfensure
against (ren. Jackson for removing the deposits.
Earnestly he opposed the abolition of slavery in the
District of Columbia, and urged the prohibition of the
circulation of anti-slavery documents by the United
States mails.

As to petitions on the subject of slavery, he advo-
cated that they should be respectfully received; and
that the reply should be returned, that Congress had
no power to legislate upon the subject. " Congress,"
said he, " might as well undertake to Interfere with
slavery under a foreign government as in any of the
States where it now exists."

Upon Mr. Polk's accession to the Presidency, Mr.
Buchanan became Secretary of State, and as such,
took his share of the responsibility in the conduct of
the Mexican War. Mr. Polk assumed that crossing
the Nueces by the American troops into the disputed
territory was not wrong, but for the Mexicans to cross
the Rio Grande into that territoiy was a declaration
of war. No candid man can read with pleasure the
account of the course our Government pursued in that
movement.

Mr. Buchanan identihed himself thoroughly with
the party devoted to the i)>:rpetuation and extension
of slavery, and brought all the energies of Iris mind
to bear against the Wilmot Proviso. He gave his
cordial approval to the compromise measures of 1S50,
which included the fugitive-slave law, Mr. Pierce,
upon his election to the Presidency, honored Mr.
Buchanan with the mission to England.

In the year 1S56, a national f)cmocratic conven-
tion nominated Mr. Buchanan for the Presidency. The
political conflict was one of the most severe in which
our country has ever engaged. All the friends of
slavery were on one side; all the advocates of its re-
striction and final abolition, on the other. Mr. Fre-
mont, the candidate of the enemies of slavery, re-
ceived 1 14 electoral votes. Mr. Buchanan received
174, and was elected. The [)0|)ular vote stood
1,340,618, for Fremont, 1,224,750 for Buchanan. On
March 4th, 1857, Mr. Buchanan was inaugurated.
Mr. Buchanan was far advanced in life. Only four
years were wanting to fill up his threescore years and
^ ten. His own friends, those with whom he liad been
' ' allied in [lolitical |)rinci[)les and action for years, were
seeking the destruction of the Government, that they
x/ might rear upon the ruins of our free institutions a
_ nation whose corner-stone should be human slavery.
In this emergency, Mr. Buchanan was hopelessly be-
wildered. He could not, with his long-avowed prin-

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ciples, consistently ojjpose the State-rights party in
their assumptions. As President of the United States,
bound by his oath faithfully to administer the laws,
he could not, without pierjury of the grossest kind,
unite with those endeavoring to overthrow the repub-
lic. He therefore did nothing.

The oi)i)onents of Mr. Buchanan's administration
nominated .Abraham Lincoln as their standard bearer
in the next Presidential canvass. The pro-slavery
party declared, that if he were elected, and the con-
trol of the Government were thus taken from their
hands, they would secede from the Union, taking
with them, as they retired, the National Capitol at
Washington, and the lion's share of the territory of
the United States.

Mr. Buchanan's sympathy with the pro-slavery
party was such, that he had been willing to offerthem
far more than they had ventured to claim. All the
South had professed to ask of the North was non-
intervention upon the subject of slavery. Mr. Bu-
chanan had been ready to offer them the active co-
operation of the Government to defend and extend
the institution.

As the storm increased in violence, the slaveholders
claiming the right to secede, and Mr. Buchanan avow-
ing that Congress had no power to prevent it, one of
the most .pitiable exhibitions of governmental im-
becility was exhibited the world has ever seen. He
declared that Congress had no power to enforce its
laws in any State which had withdrawn, or which
was attempting to withdraw from the Union. This
was not the doctrine of Andrew Jackson, when, with
his hand upon his sword-hilt, he exclaimed, " The
Union must and shall be preserved!"

South Carolina seceded in December, 1S60; nearly
three months before the inauguration of President
Lincoln. Mr. Buchanan looked on in listless despair.
The rebel flag was raised in Charleston: Fort Sumpter
was besieged ; our forts, navy-yards and arsenals
were seized ; our depots of military stores were plun-
dered ; and our custom-houses and post-offices were
appropriated by the rebels.

The energy of the rebels, and the imbecility of our
Executive, were alike marvelous. The Nation looked
on in agony, waiting for the slow weeks to glide away,
and close the administration, so terrible in its weak-
ness At length the long-looked-for hour of deliver-
ance came, when Abraham Lincoln was to receive the
scepter.

The administration of President Ruchanan was
certainly the most calamitous our country has ex-
perienced. His best friends cannot recall it with
pleasure. And still more deplorable it is for his fame,
that in that dreadful conflict which rolled its billows
of flame and blood over our whole land, no word came
from his lips to indicate his wish that our countrv's
banner should triumph over the flag of the rebellion.
He died at his Wheatland retreat, June r, 1868.

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SIXTEENTH Pn 'iSIDENT.

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LINCOLN.

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BRAHAM LINCOLN, the
sixteenth President of the
i-'i$United States, was born in
Hardin Co., Ky., Feb. 12,
1 809. About the year 1 7 80, a

i^ man by the name of Abraham
//"^ Lincohi left Virginia with his
family and moved into the tlien
wilds of Kentucky. Only two jears
after this emigration, still a young
man, while working one day in a
field, was stealthily approached by
an Indian and shot dead. His widow
was left in extreme poverty witli five
little children, three boys and two
girls. Thomas, the youngest of the
boys, was four years of age at his
father's death. This Thomas was
the father of Abraham Lincoln, the
President of the United States
whose name must henceforth forever be enrolled
with the most prominent in the annals of our world.
Of course no record has been kept of the life
of one so lowly as Thomas Lincoln. He was among
the poorest of the poor. His home was a wretched
log-cabin; his food the coarsest and the meanest.
Education he had none; he could never either read
or write. As soon as he was able to do anything for
himself, he was compelled to leave the cabin of his
starving mother, and push out into the world, a friend-
less, wandering boy, seeking work. He hired liim-
self out, and thus s])ent the whole of his youth as a
laborer in the fields of others.

When twenty-eight years of age he buill a log-
cabin of his own, and married Nancy Hanks, the
daughter of another family of poor Kentucky emi-
grants, who had also come from Virginia. Their
second child was Abraham Lincoln, the subject of
this sketch. The mother of Abraham was a noble
woman, gentle, loving, pensive, created to adorn
a palace, doomed to toil and pine, and die in a hovel.
"All that I am, or hope to be," e.xclaims the grate-
ful son "I owe to my angel-mothcr.

When he was eight years of age, his father sold his

cabin and small farm, and moved to Indiana. Where
two years later his mother died.

Abraham soon became the scribe of the uneducated
community around him. He could not have had a
better school than this to teach him to put thoughts
into words. He also Became an eager reader. The
books he could obtain were few ; but these he read
and re-read until they were almost committed to
memory.

As the years rolled on, the lot of this lowly family
was the usual lot of humanity. Thi-re were joys and
griefs, weddings and funerals. Abraham's sister
Sarah, to whom he was tenderly attached, was mar-
ried when a child of but fourteen years of age, and
soon died. The family was gradually scattered. Mr.
Thomas Lincoln sold out his squatter's claim in 1S30,
and emigrated to Macon Co., 111.

Abraham Lincoln was then twenty-one years of age.
With vigorous hancfs he aided his father in rearing
another log-cabin. Abraham worked diligently at this
until he saw the family comfortaljly settled, and their
small lot of enclosed prairie [dantetl with corn, when
he announced to his father his intention to leave
home, and to go out into the world and seek his for-
tune. Little did he or his friends imagine how bril-
liant that fortune was to be. He saw the value of
education, and was intensely earnest to improve his
mind to the utmost of his power. He saw the ruin
wjiich ardent spirits were causing, and became
strictly temperate ; refusing to allow a drop of intoxi-
cating liipior to pass his lips. And he had read in
Cod's word, "Thou shalt not take the name of the
Lord thy God in vain ;" and a profane expression he
was never heard to utter. Religion he revered. His
morals were pure, and he was uncontaminated by a
single vice.

Young Abraham woiked for a time as a hired laliorer
among the farmers. Then he went to Springfield,
where he was employed in building a large flat-lioat.
In this he took a herd of swine, floated them down
the Sangamon to the Illinois, and thence by the Mis-
sissippi to New Orleans. Whatever Abraham Lin-
coln undertook, he performed so faithfully as to give
great satisfaction to his employers. In this adven-

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ABRAHAM LINCOLN.

ture his employers were so well pleased, that upon
his return they placed a store and mill under his care.

In 1832, at the outbreak of the Black Hawk war, he
enlisted and was chosen captain of a comjiany. He
returned to Sangamon County, and although only 23
years of age, was a candidate for the Legislature, but
was defeated. He soon after received from Andrew
lackson the appointmentof Postmaster of New Salem,
His only post-office was his hat. All the letters he
received he carried there ready to deliver to those
he chanced to meet. He studied surveying, and soon
made this his business. In 1834 he again became a
candidate for the Legislature, and was elected Mr.
Stuart, of Springfield, advised him to study law. He
walked from New Salem to Springfield, borrowed of
Mr. Stuart a load of books, carried them back and
began his legal studies. When the Legislature as-
sembled he trudged on foot with his pack on his back
one hundred miles to Vandalia, then the capital. In
1836 he was re-elected to the Legislature. Here it
was he first met Stephen A. Douglas. In 1839 he re-
moved to Springfield and began the practice of law.
His success with the jury was so great that he was
soon engaged in almost every noted case in the circuit.

In 1854 the great discussion began between Mr.
Lincoln and Mr. Douglas, on the slavery question.
In the organization of the Republican party in Illinois,
in 1856, he took an active part, and at once became
one of the leaders in that party. Mr. Lincoln's
speeches in opposition to Senator Douglas in the con-
test in 1858 for a seat in the Senate, form a most
notable part of his history. The issue was on the
slavery ([uestion, and he took the broad ground of
the Declaration of Independence, that all men are
created equal. Mr. Lincoln was defeated in this con-
test, l)ut won a far higher prize.

The great Republican Convention met at Chicago
on the i6th of June, i860. The delegates and
strangers who crowded the city amounted to twenty-
five thousand. .'\n immense building called "The
Wigwam," was reared to accommodate the Conven-
tion. There were eleven candidates for whom votes
were thrown. William H. Seward, a man whose fame
as a statesman had long filled the land, was the most
prominent. It was generally supposed he would be
the nominee. Aliraham Lincoln, however, received
the nomination on the third ballot. Little did he then
dream of the weary years of toil and care, and the
Ijloody death, to which that nomination doomed him:
and aslittle did he dream that he was to render services
to his country, which would fix upon him the eyes of
the whole civilized world, and which would give him
aplaceinthe affections of his countrymen, second
only, if second, to that of AVashington.

Election day came and Mr, Lincoln received 180
electoral votes out of 203 cast, and was, therefore,
constitutionally elected President of the United States.
The tirade of abuse that was poured upon this good

and merciful man, especially by the slaveholders, was
greater than upon any other man ever elected to this
high position. In February, i86i, Mr. Lincoln started
for Washington, stopping in all the large cities on his
way making speeches. The whole journey was frought
with much danger. Many of the Southern States had
already seceded, and several attempts at assassination
were afterwards brought to light. A gang in Balti-
more had arranged, upon his arrival to "get up a row,"
and in the confusion to make sure of his death with
revolvers and hand-grenades. A detective unravelled
the plot. A secret and special train was provided to
take him from HarrisL'urg, through Baltimore, at an
unexpected hour of the night. The train started at
half-past ten ; and to prevent any possible communi-
cation on the part of the Secessionists with their Con-
federate gang in Baltimore, as soon as the train had
started the telegraph-wires were cut. Mr. Lincoln
reached Washington in safety and was inaugurated,
although great anxiety was felt by all loyal people.

In the selection of his cabinet Mr. Lincoln gave
to Mr. Seward the Department of State, and to other
[irominent opponents before the convention he gave
important positions.

During no other administration have the duties
devolving upon the President been so manifold, and
the responsibilities so great, as those which fell to
the lot of President Lincoln. Knowing this, and
feeling his own weakness and inability to meet, and in
his own strength to cope with, the difficulties, he
learned early to seek Divine wisdom and guidance in
determining his plans, and Divine comfort in all his
trials, l)0*h jiersonal and national. Contrary to his
own estimate of himself, Mr. Lincoln was one of the
most courageous of men. He went directly into the
rebel capital just as the retreating foe was leaving,
with no guard but a few sailors. From the time he
had left Sijringfield, in 1861, however, plans had been
made for his assassination,and he at last fell a victim
to one of them. April 14, 1865, he, with Gen. Grant,
was urgently invited to attend Fords' Theater. It
was announced that they would be present. (ren.
Grant, however, left the city. President Lincoln, feel-
ing, with his characteristic kindliness of heart, that
it would be a disappointment if he should fail them,
very reluctantly consented to go. While listening to
the play an actor by the name of Johii Wilkes Booth
entered the box where the President and family were
seated, and fired a bullet into his brains. He died the
next morning at seven o'clock.

Never before, in the history of the world was a nation
plunged into such deep grief by the death of its ruler.
Strong men met in the streets and wept in speechless
anguish. It is not too much to say that a nation was
in tears. His was a life which will fitly become a
model. His name as the savior of his country will
live with that of Washington's, ils father; his country-
men being unable to decide whicli is the greater.

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SEVENTEENTH PRESIDENT.

\| NDREW JOHNSON, seven-
'■^ teenth President of the United
,:y'' States. The early life of
j Andrew Tohnson contains but
-j(®' ''^^ record of poverty, destitu-
"0 tion and friendlessness. He
7 was born December 29, 180S,
in Raleigh, N. C. His parents,
belonging to the class of the
"poor whites " of the South, were
in such circumstances, that they
could not confer even tiie slight-
est advantages of education upon
their child. When Andrew was five
years of age, his father accidentally
lost his life while heiorically endeavoring to save a
friend from drowning. Until ten years of age, Andrew
was a ragged boy about the streets, supported by the
labor of his mother, who obtained her living with
her own hands.

He then, having never attended a school one day,
and being unable either to read or write, was ap-
prenticed to a tailor in his native town. A gentleman
was in the habit of going to the tailor's shop occasion-
ally, and reading to the boys at work there. He often
read from the speeches of distinguished British states-
men. Andrew, who was endowed with a mind of more
than ordinary native ability, became much interested
in these speeches ; his ambition was roused, and he
was inspired with a strong desire to learn to read.

He accordingly applied himself to the alphabet, and
with the assistance of some of his fellow-workmen,
learned his letters. He then called upon the gentle-
man to borrow the book of speeches. The owner,

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pleased with his zeal, not only gave him the book,
but assisted him in learning to combine the letters
into words. Under such difficulties he pressed on-
ward laboriously, spending usually ten or twelve hours
at work in the shop, and then robbing himself of rest
and recreation to devote such time as he could to
reading.

He went to Tennessee in 1826, and located at
Greenville, where he married a young lady who pos-
sessed some education. Under her instructions lie
learned to write and cipher. He became prominent
in the village debating society, and a favorite with
the students of Greenville College. In 1828, he or-
ganized a working man's party, which elected him
alderman, and in 1830 elected him mayor, which
position he held three years.

He now began to take a lively interest in political
affairs; identifying himself with the working-classes,
to which he belonged. In 1835, he was elected a
member of the House of Representatives of Tennes-
see. He was then just twenty-sevea years of age.
He became a very active member of the legislature,
gave his adhesion to the Democratic party, and in
1840 "stumped the State," advocating Martin Van
Buren's claims to the Presidency, in opposition to those
of Gen. Harrison. In this campaign he acquired much
readiness as a speaker, and extended and increased
his reputation.

In 1841, he was elected State Senator; in 1843, he
was elected a member of Congress, and by successive
elections, held that important post for ten years. In
1853, he was elected Governor of Tennessee, and
was re-elected in 1855. In all these responsible posi-
tions, he discharged his duties with distinguished abil-

> 84

ANDREW JOHNSON.

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ity, and proved himself the warm friend of the work-
ing classes. In 1857, Mr. Johnson was elected
United States Senator.

Years before, in 1S45, he had warmly advocated
the annexation of Texas, stating however, as his
reason, that he thought this annexation would prob-
ably prove " to be the gateway out of which the sable
sons of Africa are to pass from bondage to freedom,
and become merged in a population congenial to
themselves." In 1850, he also supported the com-
promise measures, the two essential features of which
were, that the white people of the Territories should
be permitted to decide for themselves whether they
would enslave the colored people or not, and that
the free States of the North should return to the
South persons who attempted to escape from slavery.

Mr. Johnson was never ashamed of his lowly origin:
on the contrary, he often took pride in avowing that
he owed his distinction to his own exertions. "Sir,"
said he on the floor of the Senate, " I do not forget
that I am a mechanic ; neither do I forget that Adam
was a tailor and sewed fig-leaves, and that our Sav-
ior was the son of a carpenter."

In the Charleston-Baltimore convention of i860, he
was the choice of the Tennessee Democrats for the
Presidency. In 1861, when the purpose of the South-
ern Democracy became apparent, he took a decided
stand in favor of the Union, and held that " slavery
must be held subordinate to the Union at whatever
cost." He returned to Tennessee, and repeatedly
imperiled his own life to protect the Unionists of
Tennesee. Tennessee having seceded from the
Union, President Lincoln, on March 4th, 1S62, ap-
pointed him Military Governor of the State, and he
established the most stringent military rule. His
numerous proclamations attracted wide attention. In

1864, he was elected Vice-President of the United
States, and upon the death of Mr. Lincoln, April 15,

1865, became President. In a speech two days later
he said, " The American people must be taught, if
they do not already feel, that treason is a crime and
must be punished ; that the Government will not
always bear with its enemies ; that it is strong not
only to protect, but to punish. * * The people
must understand that it (treason) is the blackest of
crimes, and will surely be punished." Yet his whole
administration, the history of which is so well known,
was in utter inconsistency with, and the most violent

opijosition to, the principles laid down in that speech.

In his loose policy of reconstruction and general
amnesty, he was opposed by Congress ; and he char-
acterized Congress as a new rebellion, and lawlessly
defied it, in everything possible, to the utmost. In
the beginning of 1868, on account of "high crimes
and misdemeanors," the principal of which was the
removal of Secretary Stanton, in violation of the Ten-
ure of Office Act, articles of impeachment were pre-
ferred against him, and the trial began March 23.

It was very tedious, continuing for nearly three
months. A test article of the impeachment was at
length submitted to the court for its action. It was
certain that as the court voted upon that article so
would it vote upon all. Thirty-four voices pronounced
the President guilty. As a two-thirds vote was neces-
sary to his condemnation, he was pronounced ac-
quitted, notwithstanding the great majority against
him. The change of one vote from the not guilty
side would have sustained the impeachment.

The President, for the remainder of his term, was
but little regarded. He continued, though impotently,
his conflict with Congress. His own party did not
think it expedient to renominate him for the Presi-
dency. The Nation rallied, with enthusiasm unpar-
alleled since the days of AVashington, around the name
of Gen. Grant. Andrew Johnson was forgotten.
The Inillet of the assassin introduced him to the
President's chair. Notwithstanding this, never was
there presented to a man a better opportunity to im-
mortalize his name, and to win the gratitude of a
nation. He failed utterly. He retired to his home
in Greenville, Tenn., taking no very active part in
politics until 1875. On Jan. 26, after an exciting
struggle, he was chosen by the Legislature of Ten-
nessee, United States Senator in the forty-fourth Con-
gress, and took his seat in that body, at the special
session convened by President Grant, on the 5th of
March. On the 27th of July, 1875, the ex-President
made a visit to his daughter's home, near Carter
Station, Tenn. When he started on his journey, he was
apparently in his usual vigorous health, but on reach-
ing the residence of his child the following day, was
stricken with paralysis, rendering him unconscious.
He rallied occasionally, but finally passed away at
2 A.M., July 31, aged sixty-seven years. His fun-
eral was attended at Geenville, on the 3d of August,
with every demonstration of respect.

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EIGHTEENTH PRESIDENT.

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LYSSES S. GRANT, the
eighteenth President of the
I* United States, was born on
the 29th of April, 1822, of
Christian parents, in a humble
y) home, at Point Pleasant, on the
banks of the Ohio. Shortly after
his father moved to George-
town, Brown Co., O. In this re-
mote frontier hamlet, Ulysses
received a common-school edu-
cation. At the age of seven-
teen, in the year 1839, he entered
the Military Academy at West
t Point. Here he was regarded as a
solid, sensible young man of fair abilities, and of
sturdy, honest character. He took respectable rank
as a scholar. In June, 1843, he graduated, about the
middle in his class, and was sent as lieutenant of in-
fantry to one of the distant military posts in the Mis-
souri Territory. Two years he past in these dreary
solitudes, watching the vagabond and exasperating
Indians.

The war with Mexico came. Lieut. Grant was
sent with his regiment to Corpus Christi. His first
battle was at Palo Alto. There was no chance here
for the exiiibition of either skill or heroism, nor at
Resacade la Palma, his second battle. At the battle
of Monterey, his third engagement, it is said that
he performed a signal service of daring and skillful
horsemanship. His brigade had exhausted its am-
munition. A messenger must be sent for more, along
a route exposed to the bullets of the foe. Lieut.
Grant, adopting an expedient learned of the Indians,
grasped the mane of his horse, and hanging upon one
side of the animal, ran the gauntlet in entire safety.

From Monterey he was sent, with the fourth infantry,
to aid Gen. Scott, at the siege of Vera Cruz. In
preparation for the march to the city of Mexico, he
was appointed quartermaster of his regiment. At the
battle of Molino del Rey, he was promoted to a
first lieutenancy, and was brevetted captain at Cha-
pultepec.

At the close of the Mexican War, Capt. Grant re-
turned with his regiment to New York, and was again
'^■^nt to one of the military posts on the frontier. The
discovery of gold in California causing an immense
tide of emigration to flow to the Pacific shores, Capt.
Grant was sent with a battalion to Fort Dallas, in
Oregon, for the protection of the interests of the im-
migrants. Life was wearisome in those wilds. Capt.
Grant resigned his commission and returned to the
States ; and having married, entered upon the cultiva-
tion of a small fann near St. Louis, Mo. He had but
little skill as a farmer. Finding his toil not re-
munerative, he turned to mercantile life, entering into
the leather business, with a younger brother, at Ga-
lena, 111. This was in the year i860. As the tidings
of the rebels firing on Fort Sumpter reached the ears
of Capt. Grant in his counting-room, lie said, —
"Uncle Sam has educated me for the army; though
I have served him through one war, I do not feel that
I have yet repaid the debt. I am still ready to discharge
my obligations. I shall therefore buckle on my sword
and see Uncle Sam through this war too."

He went into the streets, raised a company of vol-
unteers, and led them as their captain to Springfield,
the capital of the State, where their services were
offered to Gov. Yates. The Governor, impressed by
the zeal and straightforward executive ability of Capt.
Grant, gave him a desk in his oflice, to assist in the
volunteer organization that was being formed in the
State in behalf of the (lovernment. On the 15th of

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UL 3 'SSES S. GRA NT.

i(S June, 1 86 1, Capt. Grant received a commission as

t Colonel of the Twenty-first Regiment of Illinois Vol-
unteers. His merits as a West Point graduate, who
j had served for 15 years in the regular army, were such
that he was soon promoted to the rank of Brigadier-
General and was placed in command at Cairo. The
rebels raised their banner at Paducah, near the mouth
of the Tennessee River. Scarcely had its folds ap-
peared in the breeze ere Gen. Grant was there. The
rebels fled. Their banner fell, and the stars and
sf stripes were unfurled in its stead.
f; He entered the service with great determination
^ and immediately began active duty. This was the be-
ginning, and until the surrender of Lee at Richmond,
he was ever pushing the enemy with great vigor and
effectiveness. At Belmont, a few days later, he sur-
prised and routed the rebels, then at Fort Henry
won another victory. Then came the brilliant fight
at Fort Donelsoii. The nation was electrified by tlie
victory, and tlie brave leader of the boys in blue was
immediately made a Major-General, and the military
district of Tennessee was assigned to him.

Like all great captains. Gen. Grant knew well how
to secure the results of victory. He immediately
pushed on to the enemies' lines. Then came the
terrible battles of Pittsburg Landing, Corinth, and the
siege of Vicksburg, where Gen. Pemberton made an
unconditional surrender of the city with over thirty
thousand men and one-hundred and seventy-two can-
non. The fall of Vicksburg was by far the most
severe blow which the rebels had thus far encountered,
and opened up the Mississippi from Cairo to the Gulf.
Gen. Grant was next ordered to co-operate with
Gen. Banks in a movement upon Te.xas, and pro-
ceeded to New Orleans, where he was thrown from
his horse, and received severe injuries, from which he
was laid up for months. He then rushed to the aid
of Gens. Rosecrans and Thomas at Chattanooga, and
by a wonderful series of strategic and tactical meas-
ures put the Union army in fighting condition. Then
followed the l.iloody battles at Chattanooga, Lookout
■y' Mountain and Missionary Ridge, in which the reliels
I were routed with great loss. This won for him un-
■:Jf bounded praise in the North. On the 4th of Febru-
-y ary, T864, Congress revived the grade of lieutenant-
^ general, and the rank was conferred on Gen. Grant.
!j^) He repaired to Washington to receive his credentials
V and enter upon the duties of his new office.

Gen. Grant decided as soon as he took charge of
the army to concentrate the widely-dispersed National
troops for an attack upon Richmond, the nominal
capital of the Rebellion, and endeavor there to de-
stroy the rebel armies which would be promptly as-
senrbled from all quarters for its defence. The whole
continent seemed to tremble under the trampof these
majestic armies, rushing to the decisive battle field.
Steamers were crowded with troops. Railway trains
were burdened with closely packed thousands. His
plans were comprehensive and involved a series of
campaigns, which were e,xecuted with remarkable en-
ergy and ability, and were consummated at the sur-
render of Lee, April 9, 1865.

The war was ended. The Union was saved. The
almost unanimous voice of the Nation declared Gen.
Grant to be the most prominent instrument in its sal-
vation. The eminent services he had thus rendered
tlie country brought him conspicuously forward as the
Republican candidate for the Presidential chair.

At the Republican Convention held at Chicago,
May 21, 1 868, he was unanimously nominated for the
Presidency, and at the autumn election received a
majority of the jxapular vote, and 214 out of 294
electoral votes.

Tlie National Convention of the Republican party
which met at Philadelphia on the 5th of June, T872,
placed Gen. Grant in nomination for a second term
by a unanimous vote. The selection was emphati-
cally indorsed by the people five months later, 292
electoral votes being cast for him.

Soon after the close of his second term, Cien. Grant
started upon his famous trip around the world. He
visited almost every country of the civilized worid,
and was everywhere received with such ovations
and demonstrations of respect and honor, private
as well as public and official, as were never before
bestowed uix)n any citizen of the United States. It
is not too much to say that his modest, courteous, and
dignified demeanor in the presence of the most dis-
tinguished men in the different nations in the worid,
reflected honor upon the Republic which he so long
and so faithfully served. The country felt a great
pride in his reception. Upon his arrival in San Fran-
cisco, Sept. 20, 1879, the city authorities gave him a
fine reception. After lingering in the Golden State
for a while, he began his tour through the States,
which extended North and .South, everywhere mark-
ed by great acclamation and splendid ovations.

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UTHERFORD B. HAYES,

the nineteenth President of
the United States, was born in
Delaware, O., Oct. 4, 1822, al-
most three months after the
death of his father, Rutherford
Hayes. His ancestry on both
the paternal and maternal sides,
was of the most honorable char-
acter. It can be traced, it is said,
as far back as 1280, when Hayes and
Rutherford were two Scottish chief-
tains, fighting side by side with
Baliol, William Wallace and Robert
Bruce. Both families belonged to the
nobility, owned extensive estates,
and had a large following. Misfor-
tune overtaking the family, George Hayes left Scot-
land in 1680, and settled in Windsor, Conn. His son
George was born in Windsor, and remained there
during his life. Daniel Hayes, son of the latter, mar-
ried Sarah Lee, and lived from the time of his mar-
riage until his death in Simsbury, Conn. Ezekiel,
son of Daniel, was born in 1724, and was a manufac-
5^ turerof scythes at Bradford, Conn. Rutherford Hayes,
son of Ezekiel and grandfather of President Hayes, was
born in New Haven, in August, 1756. He was a farmer,
blacksmith and tavern-keeper. He emigrated to
Vermont at an unknown date, settling in Brattleboro,
where he established a hotel. Here his son Ruth-
erford Hayes, the father of President Hayes, was

born. He was married, in September, 1813, to Sophia
Birchard, of Wilmington, Vt., whose ancestors emi-
grated thither trom Connecticut, they having been
among the wealthiest and best famlies of Norwich.
Her ancestry on the male side are traced back to
1635, to John Birchard, one of the principal founders
of Norwich. Both of her grandfathers were soldiers
in the Revolutionary War.

The father of President Hayes was an industrious,
frugal and opened-hearted man. He was of a me-
chanical turn, and could mend a plow, knit a stock-
ing, or do almost anything else that he choose to
undertake. He was a member of the Church, active
in all the benevolent enterprises of the town, and con-
ducted his business on Christian principles. After
the close of the war of 181 2, for reasons ine.xplicable
to his neighbors, he resolved to emigrate to Ohio.

The journey from Vermont to Ohio in that day,
when there were no canals, steamers, nor railways,
was a very serious affair. A tour of inspection was
first made, occupying four months. Mr. Hayes deter-
mined to move to Delaware, where the family arrived
in 1817. He died July 22, 1822, a victim of malarial
fever, less than three months before the birth of the
son, of whom we now write. Mrs. Hayes, in her sore be-
reavement, found the support she so much needed in
her brother Sardis, who had been a member of the
household from the day of its departure from Ver-
mont, and in an orphan girl whom she had adopted
some time before as an act of charity.

Mrs. Hayes at this period was very weak, and the

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subject of this sketch was so feeble at birth that he
was not expected to live beyond a month or two at
most. As the months went by he grew weaker and
weaker, so that the neighbors were in the habit of in-
quiring from time to time " if Mrs. Hayes' baby died
last night." On one occasion a neighbor, who was on
familiar terms with the family, after alluding to the
boy's big head, and the mother's assiduous care of
him, said in a bantering way, " That's right ! Stick to
him. You have got him along so far, and I shouldn't
wonder if he would really come to something yet."

" You need not laugh," said Mrs. Hayes. " You
wait and see. You can't tell but I shall make him
President of the United States yet." The boy lived,
in spite of the universal predictions of his speedy
death; and when, in 1825, his older brother was
drowned, he became, if possible, still dearer to his
"mother.

The boy was seven years old before he went to
school. His education, however, was not neglected.
He probably learned as much from his mother and
sister as he would liave done at school. His sjjorts
were almost wholly within doors, his playmates being
his sister and her associates. These circumstances
tended, no doubt, to foster that gentleness of dispo-
sition, and that delicate consideration for the feelings
of others, which are marked traits of his character.

His uncle Sardis Birchard took the deepest interest
in his education; and as the boy's health had im-
proved, and he was making good progress in his
studies, he proposed to send him to college. His pre-
paration commenced with a tutor at home; but he
was afterwards sent for one year to a professor in the
Wesleyan University, in Middletown, Conn. He en-
tered Kenyon College in 1838, at the age of sixteen,
and was graduated at the head of his class in 1842.

Immediately after his graduation he began the
study of law in the office of Thomas Sparrow, Esq.,
in Columbus. Finding his opportunities for study in
Columbus somewhat limited, he determined to enter
the Law School at Cambridge, Mass., where he re-
mained two years.

In 1845, after graduatmg at the Law School, he was
admitted to the bar at Marietta, Ohio, and shortly
afterward went into practice as an attorney-at-law
with Ralph P. Buckland, of Fremont. Here he re-
mained tliree years, acquiring but a limited practice,
and ap[)arently unambitious of distinction in his pro-
fession.

In 1849 he moved to Cincmnati, where his ambi-
tion found a new stimvilus. For several years, how-
ever, his progress was slow. Two events, occurring at
this period, had a powerful influence upon his subse-
quent life. One of these was his marrage with Miss
Lucy Ware Webb, daughter of Dr. James Webb, of
Chilicothe; the other was his introduction to the Cin-
cinnati Literary Club, a body embracing among its
members such men as Chief Justice Salmon P. Chase,

Gen. John Pope, Gov. Edward F. Noyes, and many
others hardly less distinguished in after life. The
marriage was a fortunate one in every respect, as
everybody knows. Not one of all the wives of our
Presidents was more universally admired, reverenced
and beloved than was Mrs. Hayes, and no one did
more than she to reflect honor upon American woman-
hood. Tiie Literary Club brought Mr. Hayes into
constant association with young men of high char-
acter and noble aims, and lured him to display the
qualities so long hidden by his bashfulness and
modesty.

In 1856 he was nominated to the office of Judge of
the Court of Common Pleas; but he declined to ac-
cept the nomination. Two years later, the office of
city solicitor becoming vacant, the City Council
elected him for the unexpired term.

In 1S61, when the Rebellion broke out, he was at
the zenith of his professional life. His rank at the
bar was among the the first. But the news of the
attack on Fort Sunqjter found him eager to take up
arms for the defense of his conntr}-.

His military record was bright and illustrious. In
October, 1861, he was made Lieutenant-Colonel, and
in August, 1862, promoted Colonel of the 79th Ohio
regiment, but he refused to leave his old comrades
and go among strangers. Subsequently, however, he
was made Colonel of his old regiment. At the battle
of South Mountain he received a wound, and while
faint and bleeding displayed courage and fortitude
that won admiration from all.

Col. Hayes was detached from his regiment, after
his recovery, to act as Brigadier-General, and jilaced
in command of the celebrated Kanawha division,
and for gallant and meritorious services in the battles
of Winchester, Fisher's Hill and Cedar Creek, he was
promoted Brigadier-General. He was also brevetfed
Major-Geiieral, "for gallant and distinguished services
during the campaigns of 1864, in West Virginia." In
the course of his arduous services, four horses were
shot from under him, and he was wounded four times.

In 1864, Gen. Hayes was elected to Congress, from
the Second Ohio District, which had long been Dem-
ocratic. He was not present during the campaign,
and after his election was importuned to resign his
commission in the army ; but he finally declared, " I
shall never come to Washington until I can come liy
the way of Richmond." He was re-elected in 1S66.

In 1867, Gen Hayes was elected Governor of Ohio,
over Hon. Allen G. Thurman, a jiopular Democrat.
In r869 was re-elected over George H. Pendleton.
He was elected Governor for the third term in 1875.

In 1876 he was the standard bearer of the Repub-
lican Party in the Presidential contest, and after a
hard long contest was chosen President, and was in
augurated Monday, March 5, 1S75. He served his
full term, not, hcwever, with satisfaction to his party,
but his administration was an average one.

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TWENTIETH PRESIDENT.

AMES A. ClARFIELD, twen-
tieth President of the United
States, was born Nov. 19,
I S3 1, in the woods of Orange,
Cuyahoga Co., O His par-
*"' ents were Abram and Ehza
(Ballon) Garfield, both of New
England ancestry and from fami-
lies well known in the early his-
tory of that section of our coun-
try, but had moved to the Western
Reserve, in Ohio, early in its settle-
ment.

The house in which James A. was
)orn was not unlike the houses of
poor Ohio farmers of that day. It
was about 20x30 feet, built of logs, with the spaces be-
tween the logs filled with clay. His father was a
hard working farmer, and he soon had his fields
cleared, an orcliard planted, and a log barn built.
The household comprised the father and mother and
their four children — Mehetabel, Thomas, Mary and
James. In May, 1823, the father, from a cold con-
tracted in helping to put out a forest fire, died. At
this time James was about eighteen months old, and
Thomas about ten years old. No one, perhaps, can
tell how much James was indebted to his brother's
toil and self-sacrifice during the twenty years suc-
ceeding his father's death, but undoubtedly very
much. He now lives in Michigan, and the two sis-
ters live in .Solon, O., near their birthplace.

The early educational advantages young Garfield
enjoyed were very limited, yet he made the most of
them. He labored at farm work for others, did car-
penter work, chopped wood, or did anything that
would bring in a few dollars to aid his widowed
mother in her struggles to keep the little family Xo-

gether. Nor was Gen. Garfield ever ashamed of his
origin, and he never forgot the friends of his strug-
glmg childhood, youth and manhood, neither did they
ever forget him. When in the highest seats of honor,
the humblest fiiend of his boyhood was as kindly
greeted as ever. The poorest laborer was sureof the
sympathy of one who had known all the bitterness
of want and the sweetness of bread earned by the
sweat of the brow. He was ever the simple, plain,
modest gentleman.

The highest ambition of young (jarfield until he
was about sixteen years old was to be a captain of
a vessel on Lake Erie. He was anxious to go aboard
a vessel, which his mother strongly opposed. She
finally consented to' his going to Cleveland, with the
understanding, however, that he should try to obtain
some other kind of employment. He walked all the
way to Cleveland. Tliis was his first visit to the city.
After making many applications for work, and trying
to get aboard a lake vessel, and not meeting with
success, he engaged as a driver for his cousin, Amos
Letcher, on the Ohio &: Pennsylvania Canal. He re-
mained at this work but a short time when he went
home, and attended the seminary at Chester for
about three years, when he entered Hiram and the
Eclectic Listitute, teaching a few terms of school in
the meantime, and doing other work. This school
was started by the Disciples of Christ in 1850, of
which church he was then a member. He became
janitor and bell-ringer in order to help pay his way.
He then became both teacher and pupil. He soon
" exhausted Hiram " and needed more ; hence, in the
fall of 1854, he entered Williams College, from which
he graduated in 1856, taking one of the highest hon-
ors of his class. He afterwards returned to Hiram
College as its President. As above stated, he early
united with the Christian or Diciples Church at
Hiram, and was ever after a devoted, zealous mem-
ber, often preaching in its pulpit and places where
he happened to be. Dr. Noah Porter, President of
Yale College, says of him in reference to his religion :

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" President Garfield was more than a man of
strong moral and religious convictions. His whole
history, from boyhood to the last, shows that duty to
man and to God, and devotion to Christ and life and
faitli and spiritual commission were controlling springs
of his being, and to a more than usual degree. In
my judgment there is no more interesting feature of
his character than his loyal allegiance to the body of
Christians in which he was trained, and the fervent
sympathy which he ever showed in their Christian
communion. Not many of the few 'wise and mighty
and noble who are called' show a similar loyalty to
the less stately and cultured Christian comnmnions
in which they have been reared. Too often it is true
that as they step upward in social and political sig-
nificance they step upward from one degree to
another in some of the many types of fashionable
Christianity. President Garfield adhered to the
cluirch of his mother, the church in which he was
trained, and in which he served as a pillar and an
evangelist, and yet with the largest and most unsec-
tarian charity for all 'wlio loveour Lord in sincerity.'"

Mr. Garfield was united in marriage with Miss
Lucretia Rudolph, Nov. i r, 1858, who proved herself
worthy as the wife of one whom all the world loved and
mourned. To them were born seven children, five of
whom are still living, four boys and, one girl.

Mr. Garfieldmade his first political speeches in 1856,
in Hiram and the neighboring villages, and three
years later he began to speak at county mass-meet-
ings, and became the favorite speaker wherever he
was. During this year he was elected to the Ohio
Senate. He also began to study law at Cleveland,
and in 1S61 was admitted to the bar. The great
Rebellion broke out in the early part of this year,
and Mr. Garfield at once resolved to fight as he had
talked, and enlisted to defend the old flag. He re-
ceived his commission as Lieut. -Colonel of the Forty-
second Regiment of Ohio Volunteer Lifantry, Aug.
14, i86i. He was immediately put into active ser-
vice, and before he had ever seen a gun fired in action,
was placed in command of four regiments of infantry
and eight companies of cavalry, charged with the
work of driving out of his native State the officer
(Humphrey M^.rshall) reputed to be the ablest of
those, not educated to war whom Kentucky had given
to the Rebellion. This work was bravely and speed-
ily accomplished, although against great odds. Pres-
ident Lincoln, on his success commissioned him
Brigadier-General, Jan. 10, 1862; and as "he had
been the youngest man in the Ohio Senate two years
l)efore, so now he was the youngest General in the
army." He was with Gen. Buell's army at Shiloh,
in its operations around Corinth and its march through
Alabama. He was then detailed as a memberof the
General Couit-I\Lirtial for the trial of Gen. Fitz-John
Porter. He was then ordered to report to Gen. Rose-
crans, and was assigned to the "Chief of Staff "

The military history of Gen. Garfield closed with

his brilliant services at Cliickamauga, where he won
the stars of the Major-General.

Without an effort on his part Gen. Garfield was
elected to Congress in the fall of 1862 from the
Nineteenth District of Ohio. This section of Ohio
had been represented in Congress for sixty years
mainly by two men — Elisha Whittlesey and Joshua
R. Giddings. It was not without a struggle that he
resigned his place in the army. At the time he en-
tered Congress he was the youngest member in that
body. There he remained by successive re-
elections until he was elected President in 1880.
Of his labors in Congress Senator Hoar says : " Since
the year 1864 you cannot think of a question which
has been debated in Congress, or discussed before a
tribunel of the American people, in regard to which
you will not find, if you wish mstruction, the argu-
ment on one side stated, in almost eveiy instance
better than by anybody else, in some speech made in
the House of Representatives or on the hustings by
Mr. Garfield."

Upon Jan. 14, 1880, Gen. Ciarfield was elected to
the U. S. Senate, and on the eighth of June, of the
same year, was nominated as the candidate of his
party for President at the great Chicago Convention.
He was elected in the following November, and on
March 4, 1881, was inaugurated. Probably no ad-
ministration ever opened its existence under brighter
auspices than that of President Garfield, and every
day it grew in favor with the people, and by the first
of July he had completed all the initiatory and pre-
liminary work of his administration and was prepar-
ing to leave the city to meet his friends at Williams
College. While on his way and at the depot, in com-
pany with Secretary Blaine, a man stepped behind
him, drew a revolver, and fired directly at his back.
The President tottered and fell, and as he did so the
assassin fired a second shot, the bullet cutting the
left coat sleeve of his victim, but inflicting no further
injury. It has been very truthfully said that this was
" the shot that was heard round the world " Never
before in the history of the Nation had anything oc-
curred whicli so nearly froze the blood of the people
for the moment, as this awful deed. He was smit-
ten on the brightest, gladdest day of all his life, and
was at the summit of his power and hope. For eighty
days, all during the hot months of July and August,
he lingered and suffered. He, however, remained
master of himself till the last, and by his magnificent
bearing was teaching the country and the world the
noblest of human lessons — how to live grandly in the
very clutch of death. Great in life, he was surpass-
ingly great in death. He passed serenely away Sept.
19, 1883, at Elberon, N. J., on the very bank of the
ocean, where he had been taken shortly previous. The
world wept at his death, as it never had done on the
death of any other man who had ever lived upon it.
The murderer was duly tried, found guilty and exe-
cuted, in one year after he committed the foul deed.

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HESTER A. ARTHUR,

twenty-first President of the

Ijy United States, was born m

Franklin County, Vermont, on

%fr,,,.-^., "' -LUb the fifthof October, 18^0, andis

the oldest of a family of two

sons and five daughters. His

father was the Rev. Dr. William

Arthur, a Baptist clergyman, who

emigrated to this countr)' from

the county Antrim, Ireland, in

)'A his i8th year, and died in 1875, in

Newtonville, near Albany, after a

long and successful ministry.

Young Arthur was educated at
Union College, Schenectady, where
he excelled in all his studies. Af-
ter his graduation he taught school
in Vermont for two years, and at
the expiration of that time came to
New York, with §5 00 in his pocket,
and entered the office of e.x-Judge
'W E. D. Culver as student. After
I being admitted to the bar he formed
a partnership with his intimate friend and room-mate,
'q\ Henry D. Gardiner, with the intention of practicing
in the West, and for three months they roamed about
in the Western States in search of an eligible site,
but in the end returned to New York, where they
hung out their shingle, and entered upon a success-
■{») ful career almost from the start. Ceneral Arthur
soon afterward married the daughter of Lieutenant

Herndon, of the United States Navy, who was lost at
sea. Congress voted a gold medal to his widow in
recognition of the bravery he displayed on that occa-
sion. Mrs. Arthur died shortly before Mr. Arthur's
nomuiation to the Vice Presidency, leaving two
children.

Gen. Arthur obtained considerable legal celebrity
in his first great case, the famous Lemmon suit,
brought to recover possession of eight slaves who had
been declared free by Judge Paine, of the Superior
Court of New York City. It was in 1852 that Jon-
athan Lemmon, of Virginia, went to New York with
his slaves, intending to ship them to Texas, when
they were discovered and freed. The Judge decided
that they could not be held by the owner under the
Fugitive Slave Law. A howl of rage went up from
the South, and the Virginia Legislature authorized the
Attorney General of that State to assist in an appeal.
Wm. M. Evarts and Chester A. Arthur were employed
to represent the People, and they won their case,
which then went to the Supreme Court of the Unitetl
States. Charles C)'Conor here espoused the cause
of the slave-holders, but he too was beaten by Messrs.
Evarts and Arthur, and a long step was taken toward
the emancipation of the black race.

Another great service was rendered by General
Arthur in the same cause in 1856. Lizzie Jennings,
a respectable colored woman, was put off a Fourth
Avenue car with violence after she had jiaid her fare.
General Arthur sued on her behalf, and secured a
verdict of $500 damages. The next day the compa-
ny issued an order to admit colored persons to ride
on their cars, and the other car companies quickly

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■ nue Comjiany ran a few special cars for colored jjer-

. ';. sons and the other lines refused to let them ride at all.

General Arthur was a delegate to the Convention
at Saratoga that founded the Republican i)art)'.
Previous to the war he was Judge-Advocate of the
Second Brigade of the State of New York, and Gov-
ernor Morgan, of that State, appointed him Engineer-
in-Chief of his staff In 1861, he was made Inspec-
tor General, and soon afterward became Quartermas-
ter-General. In each of these offices he rendered
great service to the Government during the war. At
the end of Governor Morgan's term he resumed the
practice of the law, forming a partnership with Mr.
Ransom, and then Mr. Phelps, the District Attorney
of New Yoik, was added to the firm. The legal prac-
tice of this well-known firm was very large and lucra-
tive, each of the gentlemen composing it were able
lawyers, and possessed a splendid local reputation, if
not indeed one of national extent.

He always took a leading part in State and city
politics. He was appointed Collector of the Port of
New York by President Grant, Nov. 21 1 87 2, to suc-
ceed Thomas Murphy, and held the office until July,
20, 1878, when he was succeeded by Collector Merritt.

Mr. Arthur was nominated on the Presidential
ticket, with Gen. James A. Garfield, at the famous
National Republican Convention held at Chicago in
June, 18S0. This was perhaps the greatest political
convention that ever assembled on thecontinent. It
was composed of the leading politicians of the Re-
publican party, all able men, and each stood firm and
fought vigorously and with signal tenacity for their
respective candidates tliat were before the conven-
tion for the nomination. Finally Gen. Garfield re-
ceived the nomination for President and (xen. Arthur
for Vice-President. The campaign which followed
was one of the most animated known in the history of
our country. Gen. Hancock, the standard-bearer of
the Democratic party, was a popular man, and his
party made a valiant fight for his election.

Finally the election came and the country's choice
was Garfield and Arthur. They were inaugurated
March 4, 1881, as President and Vice-President.
A few months only had passed ere the newly chosen
President was the victim of the assassin's bullet. Then
came terrible weeks of suffering, — those moments of
anxious suspense, when the hearts of all civilized na-

P^'

tions were throbbing in unison, longing for the re,
covery of the noble, the good President. The remark-
able i)atience that he manifested during those hours
and weeks, and even montlis, of the most terrible suf-
fering man has often been called upon to endure, was
seemingly more than human. It was certainly God-
like. During all this period of deepest anxiety Mr.
Arthur's every move was watched, and be it said to his
credit that his every action displayed only an earnest
desire that the suffering Ciarfield might recover, to
serve the remainder of the term he had so auspi-
ciously begun. Not a selfish feeling was manifested
in deed or look of this man, even though the most
honored |X)sition in the world was at any moment
likely lo fall to him.

At last Crod in his mercy relieved President Gar-
field from further suffering, and the world, as never
before in its history over the death of any other
man, wept at his bier. Tlien it became the duty of
the Vice President to assume the resix)nsibilities of
the high office, and he took the oath in New York,
Sept. 20, i88i. The position was an embarrassing ^^
one to him, made doubly so from the facts that all ™
eyes were on him, anxious to know what he would do, ^
what policy he would pursue, and who he would se- ^
led as advisers. The duties of the office had been ^
greatly neglected during the President's long illness, <
and many important measures were to be immediately
decided by him ; and still farther to embarrass him he
did not fail to realize under what circumstances he
became President, and knew the feelings of many on
this point. Under these trying circumstances President
Arthur took the reins of the Government in his own
hands ; and, as embarrassing as were the condition of
affairs, he has happily surprised the Nation, acting so
justly, so wisely, so well, that but few have criticised
his administration. Should he continue during the
remainder of his term to pursue the wise policy he
has followed thus far, we believe President Arthur's
administration will go down in history as one of the
wisest and most satisfactory our country has ever
enjoyed. His highest ambition seems to be to do his
duty to the whole Nation, even to the sacrifice of his
warmest personal friends. With the good of the
people at heart, and guided by the wisdom already
displayed, he will surprise his opponents, gratify his
friends, and bless the .American Republic, during '{^
the years he occupies the Presidential chair,

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GOVERNORS OF MICHIGAN.

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S-TEP'H E N' T. MAS O N ., i^

TEPHKN T. MASON, the
first Govurnorof Michigan, was
a son of Gen. John T. Mason,
of Kentucky, but was horn in
Virginia, in 1812. At the age
of 19 he was appointed Secre-
tary of Michigan Territory, and
served in that capacity during the
administration of Gov. George B.
Porter. Upon the death of Gov,
Porter, which occurred on the 6th of
July, 1834, Mr. Mason became Act-
ing Governor. In October, 1835, he
was elected Governor under theState
organization, and immediately en-
tered upon the performance of the
duties of the office, although the
State was not yet admitted into the Union. After
the State was admitted into the Union, Governor
Mason was re-elected to the position, and served with
credit to himself and to the advantage of the State.
He died Jan. 4, 1843. The principal event during
Governor Mason's official career, was that arising from
the disputed southern boundary of the State.

Michigan claimed for her southern boundary aline
running east across the peninsula from the extreme
southern point of Lake Michigan, extending through
Lake Erie, to the Pennsylvania line. This she
claimed as a vested right — a right accruing to her by
compact. This compact was the ordinance of 1787,
the parties to which were the original 13 States, and
the territory northwest of the Ohio; and, by the suc-
cession of parties under statutory amendments to the
ordinance and laws of Congress — the United States on
the one part, and each Territory northwest of the
Ohio, as far as affected by their provisions, on the

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other. Miclugan, therefore, clamicd it under tl
grant, or assignation of boundary,

Ohio, on the otherliand, claimed that the ordinance
had been superseded by the Constitution of the
United States, and that Congress had a right to regu-
late the boundary. It' was also claimed that the
Constitution of the State of Ohio having described a
different line, and Congress having admitted the State
under that Constitution, without mentioning the sub-
ject of the line in dispute, Congress had thereby given
its consent to the line as laid down by the Constitu-
tion of Ohio, This claim was urged by Ohio at
some periods of the controversy, but at others she ap-
peared to regard the question unsettled, by the fact
that she insisted upon Congress taking action in re-
gard to the'boundary. Accordingly, we find that, in
1S12, Congress authorized the Surveyor-General to
survey a line, agreeably to the act, to enable the people
of Ohio to form a Constitution and State government.
Owing to Indian hostilities, however, the line was not
run till 1818. In 1S20, the question in dispute
underwent a rigid examination by the Committee on
Public Lands. The claim of Ohio was strenuously
urged by her delegation, and as ably opposed by Mr,
Woodbridge, the then delegate from Michigan. The
result was that the committee decided unanimously
in favor of Michigan; but, in the hurry of Inisiness,
no action was taken by Congress, and the question
remained open till Michigan organized her State gov-
ernment.

The.Territory in dispute is about five miles in
width at the west end, and about eight miles in width
at the east end, and extends along the whole north-
ern line of Ohio, west of Lake Erie. The line claimed
liy Michigan was known as the " Fulton line," and
that claimed by Ohio was known as the" Harris line,"

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from the names of the surveyors. The territorj' was
vahiable for its rich agricultural lands; but the chief
value consisted in the fact that the harbor on the
Maumee River, where now stands the flourishing city
of Toledo, was included within its limits The town
originally bore the name of Swan Creek, afterwards
Port Lawrence, then Vestula, and then Toledo.

In February, 1835, the Legislature of Ohio passed
an act extending the jurisdiction of the State over
the territory in question; erected townships and
directed them to hold election* in April following. It
also directed Governor Lucus to appoint three com-
missioners to survey and re-mark the Harris line ; and
named the first of April as the day to commence the
survey. Acting Governor Mason, however, anticipated
this action on the part of the Ohio Legislature, sent
a special message to the Legislative Council, appris-
ing it of Governor Lucas' message, and advised imme-
diate action by that body to anticipate and counteract
the proceedings of Ohio. Accordingly, on the 12th
of February, the council passed an act making it a
crimmal offence, punishable by a heavy fine, or im-
prisonment, for any one to attempt to exercise any
official functions, or accept any office within the juris-
diction of Michigan, under or by virture of any au-
thority not derived from the Territory, or the United
States. On the 9th of March, Governor Mason wrote
General Brown, then in command of tlxe Michigan
militia, directing h.im to hold himself in readiness to
meet the enemy in the field in case any attempt was
made on the part of Ohio to carry out the provisions
of that act of the Legislature. On the 31st of March,
(Governor Lucus, with his commissioners, arrived at
Perrysburgh, on their way to commence re-surveying
the Harris line. He was accompanied by General
Bell and staff, of the Ohio Militia, who proceeded to
muster a volunteer force of about 600 men. This
was soon accomplished, and tlie force fully armed and
e(iuipped. The force then went into camii at Fort
Miami, to await the Governor's orders.

In the meantime, Governor Mason, with General
Brown and staff, had raised a force 800 to 1200
strong, and were in possession of Toledo. General
Brown's Staff consisted of Captain Henry Smith, of
Monroe, Inspector; Major J- J- Ullman, of Con-
stantine, Yj^'^rtermaster ; ^Villiam E. Broadman, of
Detroit, and Alpheus Felch,of Monroe, Aids-de-
camp. When Governor Lucas observed the deter-
mined bearing of the Michigan braves, and took note

of their number, he found it convenient to content
himself for a time with " watching over the border."
Several days were passed in this exhilarating employ-
ment, and just as Governor Lucas had made up his
mind to do something rash, two commissioners ar-
rived from Washington on a mission of peace. They
remonstrated with Gov. Lucus, and reminded him of
the consequences to himself and his State if he per-
sisted in his attempt to gain possessionof the disputed
territory by force. After several conferences with
bolh governors, the conunissioners submitted proix)si-
tions for tlieir consideration.

Governor Lucas at once accepted the propositions,
and disbanded his forces. Governor Mason, on the
other hand, refused to accede to the arrangement, and
declined to compromise the rights of liis people by a
surrender of possession and jurisdiction. When Gov-
ernor Lucus disbanded his forces, however. Governor
Mason partially followed suit, but still held himself
in readiness to meet any emergency that might arise.

Governor Lucus now supjxjsed that his way was
clear, and that he could re-mark the Harris Inie with-
out being molested, and ordered the commissioners
to proceed with their work.

In the meantnne. Governor Mason kept a watch-
ful eye upon the proceedings. General Brown sent
scouts through the woods to watch their movements,
and report when operations were commenced. When
the surveying party got within the county of Lena-
wee, the under-sheriff of that county, armed with a
warrant, and accompanied by a posse, suddenly made
his appearance, and succeeded in arresting a portion
of the party. The rest, including the commissioners,
took to their heels, and were soon beyond the dis-
puted territory. They reached Perrysburgh the fol-
lowing day in a highly demoralized condition, and
reported they had been attacked by an overwhelm-
ing force of Michigan malitia, under command of
General Brown.

This summary breaking up of tjie surveying party
produced the most tremendous excitement throughout
Ohio. Governor Lucas called an extra session of the
Legislature. But little remains to be said in reference
to the "war." The question continued for some time
to agitate the minds of the opposing parties ; and the
action of Conaress was impatiently awaited. Michigan
was admitted into the Union on the condition that
she give to Ohio the disputed territor)', and accept
in return the Northern Peninsula, which she did.

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ILLIAM WOODBRILXIE,

^';,>second (rovernor of Michigan,

was born at Norwich, Conn.,

Aug. 20, 1780, and died at

i^'^'^^rl^ Detroit Oct. 20, 1861. He

~ - ;' -^ ^y,jg of ,^ family of three brothers

"" ■ and two sisters. His father,

Dudley Woodbridge, removed to

Marietta, Ohio, about 1790. The

t'^ ' life of Wm. Woodbridge, by Chas.
Lauman, from which this sketch

islargelycompiled, mentions noth-
y ■ • ■

./A ing concernmg his early education

beyond the fact that it was such as
was afforded by the average school
of the time, except a year with the
French colonists at Gallipolis,
where he acquired a knowledge of
the French language. It should
be borne in mind, however, that
WW home education at that time was
fi^-'l) an indispensable feature in the
■ training of the young. To this and
and to a few studies well mastered,
is due that strong mental discipline which has served
as a basis for many of the grand intellects that have
adorned and helped to make our National history.
Mr. Woodbridge studied law at Marietta, having
as a fellow student an intimate personal friend, a
young man subsequently distinguished, but known
at that time simply as Lewis Cass. He graduated at
the law school in Connecticut, after a course there of
nearly three years, and began to practice at Marietta
in 1806. In June, 1806, he married, at Hartford, Con-
necticut, Juleanna, daughter of John Trumbell, a
distinguished author and judge ; and author of the

peom McFingal, which, during a dark period of the
Revolution, wrought such a magic change upon the
spirits of the colonists. He was happy in his domes-
tic relations until the death of Mrs. W., Feb. 2, 19, i860.
Our written biographies necessarily speak more
fully of men, because of their active participation in
public affairs, but human actions are stamped upon
the page of time and when the scroll shall be unrolled
the influence of good women upon the history of the
world will be read side by side with the deeds of men.
How much success and renown in life many men owe
to their wives is probably little known. Mrs. W. en-
joyed the best means of early education that the
country afforded, and her intellectual genius enabled
her to improve her tid vantages. During her life, side
by side with the highest type of domestic and social
graces, she manifested a keen intellectuality that
formed the crown of a faultless chaiacter. She was
a natural poet, and wrote quite a large number of fine
verses, some of which are preserved in a printed
memorial essay written upon the occasion of her
death. In this essay, it is said of her "to contribute
even in matters of minor importance, to elevate the
reputation and add to the well being of her husband
in the various stations he was called upon to fill, gave
her the highest satisfaction," She was an invalid
during the latter ixirtion of her life, but was patient
and cheerful to the end.

In 1807, Mr. W. was chosen a representative to the
General Assembly of Ohio, and in iSog was elected to
the Senate, continuing a member by re-election until
his removal from the State. He also held, by ai>
pointment, during the time the office of Prosecuting
Attorney for his county. He took a leading part in
the Legislature, and in 181 2 drew up a declaration and
resolutions, which passed the two houses unamiiiously

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WILLIAM WOODBRIDGE.

and attracted great attention, endorsing, in strongest
and most emphatic terms, the war measures of Presi-
dent Madison. During the period from 1804 to 1814
the two law students, Woodbridge and Cass, had be-
come widely separated. The latter was Governor of
the Territory of Michigan under the historic "Governor
and Judges" plan, with the indispensable requisite of a
Secretary of the Territorry. This latter position was,
in 18 1 4, without solicitation on his part, tendered to
Mr. W. He accepted the position with some hesita-
tion, and entered upon its duties as soon as he could
make the necessary arrangements for leaving Ohio.
The office of Secretary involved also the duties of
coUectorof customs at the port of Detroit, and during
the frequent absences of the Governor, the dischargeof
of his duties, also including those of Superintendent
of Indian Affairs. Mr. AV. officiated as Governor for
about two years out of the eight years that he held the
office of Secretary, Under the administration of "Gov-
ernor and Judges," which the people of the Territory
preferred for economical reasons, to continue some time
after their numbers entitled them to a more popular
representative system, they were allowed no delegate
in Congress. Mr. W., as a sort of informal agent of
the people, by correspondence and also by a visit to
the National capital, so clearly set forth the demand
for representation by a delegate, that an act was
passed in Congress in 1 8 r 9 authorizing one tobe chosen.
Under this act Mr. W. was elected by the concurrence
of all parties. His first action in Congress was to secure
the passage of a bill recognizing and confirming the
old French land titles in the Territory according to
the terms of the treaty of peace with Great Britain
at the close-of the Revolution ; and another for the
construction of a Crovernment road through the "black
swamps" from tlie Miami River to Detroit, thus open-
ing a means of land transit between Ohio and Mich-
igan. He was infiuential in securing the passage of
bills for the construction of Government roads from
Detroit to Chicago, and Detroit to Fort Gratiot, and
for the improvement of La Plaisance Bay. The ex-
pedition for the exploration of the country around
Lake Superior and in the valley of the Upper Mis-
sissippi, projected by Governor Cass, was set on foot
by means of representations made to the head of the
department by Mr. W. While in Congress he stren-
uously maintained the right of Michigan to the strip
of territory now fi>rming the northern boundary of
Ohio, which formed the subject of such grave dispute
between Ohio and iMichigan at the time of the ad-
mission of the latter into the Union. He served
but one term as delegate to Congress, de-
clining further service on account of personal and
family considerations. Mr. W. continued to discharge
the duties of Secretary of the Territory up to the tiine
its Government passed into the "second grade."

In 1824, he was appointed one of a board of
commissioners for adjusting private land claims in

the Territory, and was engaged also in the practice of
his profession, having the best law library in the Ter-
ritory. In 1828, upon the recommendation of the
Governor, Judges and others, he was appointed by the
President, J. Q. Adams, to succeed Hon. James With-
erell, who had resigned as a Judge of what is conven-
tionally called the "Supreme Court" of the Territory.
This court was apparently a continuation of the Terri-
torial Court, under'the "first grade" or "Governor and
Judges" system. .Although it was supreme in its ju-
dicial functions within the Territory, its powers and
duties were of a very general character.

In 1832, the term of his appointment as Judge ex-
piring, President Jackson appointed a successor, it is
supix)sed on political grounds, much to the disappoint-
ment of the public and the bar of the Territory. The
partisan feehng of the time extended into the Terri-
tory, and its people began to think of assuming the
dignity of a State government. Party lines becom-
ing very sharply drawn, he identified himself with
the Whigs and was elected a tnember of the Conven-
tion of 1835, which formed the first State Constitution.
In 1S37 he was elected a member of tVe State Senate.

This sketch has purposely dealt somewhat in detail
with what may be called Judge W's. earlier career,
because it is closely identified with the early his-
tory of the State, and the development of its politi-
cal system. Since the organization of the State Gov-
ernment the history of Michigan is more familiar, and
hence no review of Judge W's career as Governor
and Senator will be attempted. He was elected Gov-
ernor in 1839, under a popular impression that the
affairs of the State had not been prudently adminis-
tered by the Democrats. He served as Governor but
little more than a year, when he was elected to the
Senate of the United States.

His term in the Senate practically closed his polit-
ical life, although he was strongly urged by many
prominent men for the Whig nomination for Vice
President in r848.

Soon after his appointment as Judge in 1828, Gov-
ernor W. took up his residence on a tract of land
which he owned in the township of Spring Wells, a
short distance below what was then the corporate lim-
its of Detroit, where he resided during the remainder
of his life. Both in his public papers and private
communications. Governor W. shows himself a mas-
ter of language; he is fruitful in simile and illustra-
tion, logical in arrangement, happy in the choice and
treatment of topics, and terse and vigorous in expres-
sion. Judge W. was aCongregationalist. His opinions
on all subjects were decided ; he was earnest and
energetic, courteous and dignified, and at times ex-
hibited a vein of fine humor that was the more at-
tractive because not too often allowed to come to the
surface. His letters and addresses show a deep and
earnest affection not only for his ancestral home, but
the home of his adoption and for friends and family.

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GOVERNORS OF MICHIGAN.

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OHX STEWARD BARRY,
Governor of Michigan from
Jan. 3, 1842, to Jan. 5, 1846,
and from Jan. 7, 1850, to Jan.
I, 1852, was born at Amherst,
N. H., Jan. 29, 1802. His par-
-',-_=) ents, John and Ellen (Steward)
Carry, early removed to Rocking-
ham, Vt., where he remained until
to he became of age, working on his
father's farm, and pursuing his
studies at the same time. He mar-
ried Mary Kidder, of Grafton, Vt.,
and in 1824 went to Georgia, Vt.,
where lie had charge of an academy
for two years, meanwhile studying
law. He afterward practiced law in
that State. While he was in Georgia he was for some
time a member of the Governor's staff, with the title
of Governor's .Aid, and at a somewhat earlier period
was Captain of a company of State militia. In 183 1
he removed to Michigan, and settled at White Pigeon,
f where he engaged in mercantile business with I. W.
Willard.

Four years after, 1834, Mr. Barry removed to Con-

stantine and continued his mercantile pursuits. He
became Justice of the Peace at White Pigeon, Mich.)
in 1831, and held the office until the year 1835.
Mr. Barry's first puBlic office was that of a member
of the first constitutional convention, which assembled
and framed the constitution upon which Michigan
was admitted into the Union. He took an important
and prominent part in the proceedings of that body,
and showed himself to be a man of far more than
ordinary ability.

Upon Michigan being admitted into the Union,
Mr. Barry was chosen State Senator, and so favorably
were his associates impressed with his abilities at the
first session of the Legislature that they looked to him
as a party leader, and that he should head the State
ticket at the following election. Accordingly he re-
ceived the nomination for Governor at the hands
of his party assembled in convention. He was
elected, and so popular was his administration that, in
1842, he was again elected. During these years
Michigan was embarrassed by great financial diffi-
culties, and it was through his wisdom and sound judg-
ment that the State was finally placed upon a solid
financial basis.

During the first year of Gov. Barrj^'s first term, the
University at Ann Arbor was opened for the reception

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114

JOHN STEWARD BARRY.

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of students. The Michigan Central and Michigan
Southern railroads were being rapidly constructed, and
general progress was everywhere noticeable. In 1842,
the number of pupils reported as attending the public
schools was nearly fifty-eight thousand. In 1843, a
State land office was established at Marshall, which
was invested with the charge and disposition of all
the lands belonging to the State, In 1844, the tax-
able property of the State was found to be over
twenty-eight millions of dollars, the tax being at'the
rate of two mills on the dollar. The expenses of the
State were only seventy thousand dollars, while the
income from the railroads was nearly three hundred
thousand dollars. At this time the University of
Michigan had become so prosperous that its income
was ample to pay the interest on the University debt ;
and the amount of money which the State was able
to loan the several progressing railroads was one
hundred and twenty thousand dollars. Efforts were
made to increase the efficiency of the common schools
with good results In 1845, when Gov. Barry's sec-
ond term exjiired,' the population of the .State was
more than three hundred thousand.

The constitution of the State forbade more than two
consecutive terms, but he was called upon to fill the
position again in 1850 — the only instance of the kind
in the history of the State. He was a member of the
Territoiial Legislature, of the Constitutional Conven-
tion, and afterward of the State House of Represent-
atives.

During Mr. Barry's third term as Governor the Nor-
mal School was established at Ypsilanti, which was
endowed with lands and placed in charge of a board
of education consisting of six persons. A new con-
stitution for the government of the State was also
adopted and the " Great Railway Conspiracy Case "
was tried. Tiiis grew out of a series of lawless acts
which h.id been committed upon the property of the
Micliigan Central Railroad Company, along the line
of their road, and finally the burning of the dejxit
at Detroit, in 1850.

At a setting of the grand jury of Wayne County,
April 24, 1851, 37 men of the 50 under arrest for this
crime were indicted. May 20, following, tlie accused
parties ajipeared at the Circuit Court of Wayne, of
which Warner Wing was resident judge. The Rail-
road Company employed ten eminent lawyers, in-
cluding David Stuart, John V»an Annan, James A.
Van Dyke, Jacob M. Howard, Alex. D. Fraser, Dan-
iel Goodwin and William Gray. The defendants were
represented by six members of the State bar, led by
William H. Seward, of New York. The trial occupied
four months, during which time the plaintiffs exam-
ined 246 witnesses in 27 days, and the defendants
249 in 40 days. Mr. Van Dyke addressed the jury
for the prosecution ; William H. Seward for the
defense.

The great lawyer was convinced of the innocence

of his clients, nor did the verdict of that jury and the
sentence of that judge remove his firm belief that his
clients were the victims of purchased treachery,
rather than so many sacrifices to justice.

The verdict of " guilty " was rendered at 9 o'clock
p. M., Sept. 25, 185 I. On the 26th the i)risoners were
put forward to receive sentence, when many of them
protested their entire innocence, after which the pre-
siding judge condemned 12 of the number to the fol-
lowing terms of imprisonment, with hard labor, within
the State's prison, situate in their county : Ammi
Filley, ten years ; Orlando L. Williams, ten years ;
Aaron Mount, eight years; Andrew J. Freeland, eiglit
years; Eben Faniham, eight years; William Corvin,
eight years; Richard Price, eight years; Evan Price,
eight years; Lyman Champlin, five years; Willard
W. Champlin, five years; Erastus Champlin, five
years; Erastus Smith, five years.

In 1840, Gov. Barry became deeply interested in
the cultivation of the sugar beet, and visited Europe
to obtain information in reference to its culture.

He was twice Presidential Elector, and his last
public service was that of a delegate to the National
Democratic Convention held in Chicago in 1864.

He was a man who, throughout life, maintained a
high character for integrity and fidelitv to the trusts
bestowed upon him, whether of a public or a private
nature, and he is acknowledged by all to have been
one of the most efficient and popular Governors the
Slate has ever had.

Gov. fjarry was a man of incorruptible integrity.
His opinions, which he reached by the most thorough
investigation, he held tenaciously. His strong con-
victions and outspoken honesty made it impossible for
him to take an undefined position when a principle
was involved. His attachments and prejudices were
strong, yet he was never accused of favoritism in his
administration of public affiiirs. As a speaker he was
not remarkable. Solidity, rather than brilliancy, char-
acterized his oratory, which is described as argument-
ative and instructive, but cold, hard, and entirely
wanting in rhetorical ornament. He was never elo-
quent, seldom humorous or sarcastic, and in manner
rather awkward.

Although Mr. Barry's educational advantages were
so limited, he was a life-long student. He mastered
both ancient and modern languages, and acquired a
thorough knowledge of history. No man owed less
to political intrigue as a means of gaining posi-
tion. He was a true statesman, and gained public es-
teem by his solid worth. His political connections
were always with the Democratic party, and his opin-
ions were usually extreme.

Mr. Barry retired to private life after the beginning
of the ascendency of the Republican party, and car-
ried on his mercantile business at Constantine. He
died Jan. 14, 1870, his wife's death liaving occurred a
year previous, March 30, 1869. They left no children.

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LPHEUS FELCH, the third
(Governor of Michigan, was
lorn in Limerick, Maine, Sep-
tember 28, 1806. His grand-
father, Abijah Felch, was a sol-
"^^ dier in the Revolution ; and
when a young man, having with
others obtained a grant of land be--
tween the Great and Little Ossipee
Ri\ers, in Maine, moved to that Re-
gion when it was yet a wilderness.
The father of Mr. Felch embarked in
mercantile life at Limerick. He was
the first to engage in that business in
that section, and continued it until
his death. The death of the father,
followed within a year by the death of
the mother, left the subject of this sketch, then three
years old, to the care of relatives, and he found a
home with his paternal grandfather, where he re-
mained until his death. Mr Felch received his early
education in the district school and a neighboring
academy. In 1821 he became a student at Philliiis
Exter Academy, and, subsequently, entered Bowdoin
College, graduated with the class of 1827. He at
once began the study of law and was admitted to
"S practice at Bangor, Me., in 1830.

He began the practice of his profession at Houlton,
Me., where he remained until 1833. The severity
of the climate impaired his health, never very good,
v& and he found it necessary to seek a change of climate.
He disposed of his library and started to seek
a new home. Ifis intention was to join liis friend.

Sargent S. Prentiss, at Vicksbtirg, Miss., but on his
arrival at Cincinnati, Mr. Felch was attacked by
cholera, and when he had lecovered sufficiently to
permit of his traveling, found that the danger of the
disease was too great to permit a journey down the
river. He therefore determined to come to Miclii-
gan. He first began to practice in this State at Mon-
roe, where he continued until 1843, when he removed
to Ann Arbor. He was elected to the State Legisla-
ture in 1835, and continued a member of that body
during the years 1836 and 1837. While he held this
office, the general banking law of the State was enact-
ed, and went into operation. After mature delibera-
tion, he became convinced that the proposed system
of banking could not prove beneficial to the public
interests ; and that, instead of relieving the people
iVom the pecuniary difficulties under which they were
laboring, it would result in still furtlier embarrass-
ment. He, therefore, opposed the bill, and pointed
out to the House the disasters which, in his opinion,
were sure to follow its passage. The public mind,
however, was so favorably impressed by the measure
that no other member, in either branch of the Legisla-
ture, raised a dissenting voice, and but two voted with
him in opposition to the bill. Early in 1838, he was
appointed one of the Bank Commissioners of the
State, and held that office for more than a year. Dur-
ing this time, the new banking law had given birth to
that numerous progeny known as "wild-cat" banks.
Almost every village had its bank. The country was
flooded with depressed "wild-cat" money. The ex-
aminations of the Bank Commissioners brought to
light frauds at every point, which were fearlessly re-

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ALPHEUS FELCH.

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*^ ported to the Legislature, and were followed by crim-

% inal prosecutions of the guilty parties, and the closing
''\ of many of their institutions. The duties of the of-

fice were most laborious, and in 1839 Mr. Felch re-
signed. The chartered right of almost every hank
had, in the meantime, been declared forfeited and
the law repealed. It was subsequently decided to
be constitutional by the Supreme Court of the State.
In the year 1842 Governor Felch was appointed
to the office of Auditor General of the State; but
after holding the office only a few weeks, was com-
missioned by tlie Governor as one of the Judges of the
Supreme Court, to fill a vacancy caused by the resig-
nation of Judge Fletcher. In January, 1843, he was
elected to the United States Senate for an unexpired
term. In 1845 he was elected Governor of Michigan,
^ and entered upon his duties at the commencement of
the next year. In 1847 he was elected a .Senator
-1; in Congress for six years ; and at once retired from
>x», the office of Governor, by resignation, which took
=3 effect March 4, 1S47, when his Senatorial term com-
'y menced. While a member of tlie Senate he acted on
^ the Connnittee on Public Lands, and for four years
} was its Chairman. He filled the honorable position
of Senator with becoming dignity, and with great
credit to the State of Michigan.

During Governor Felch's administration the two
railroads belonging to the State were sold to private
^ corporations, — the Central for $2,0(50,000, and the
Southern for ,'{1500,000. The exports of the State
amounted in 1846 to §4,647,608. The total capacity
of vessels enrolled in the collection district at Detroit
was 26,928 tons, the steam vessels having 8,400 and
the sailing vessels 18,528 tons, the whole giving em-
ployment to 18,000 seamen. In 1847, there were 39
^ counties in the State, containing 435 townships ; and
t 275 of these townships vi^ere supplied with goodliljra-
♦jT ries, contaming an aggregate 01 37,000 volumes.
,/ At the close of his Senatorial term, in March, 1853,
i) Mr. Felch was appointed, by President Pierce, one of
"^ the Commissioners to adjust and settle tlie Spanish

||^U)«>^- ^^^ — — ^^D a

and Mexican land claims in California, under the
treaty of Gaudalupe Hidalgo, and an act of Congress
passed for that purpose. He went to California in
May, 1853, and was made President of the Commis-
sion. The duties of this office were of the most im-
portant and delicate character. The interest of the
new State, and the fortunes of many of its citizens,
both the native Mexican population and the recent
American immigration ; the right of the Pueblos to
their < ommon lands, and of the Catholic Church to
the lands of the Missions, — the most valuable of the
State, — wereinvolved in the adjudicationsof this Com-
mission. In March, 1856, their labors were brought
to a close by the final disposition of all the claims
which were presented. The record of their proceed-
ings, — the testimony which was given in each case,
and the decision of the Commissioners thereon, —
consisting of some forty large volumes, was deposited
in the Department of the Interior at Washington.

In June of that year, Governor Felch returned to
Ann .\rbor, where he has since been engaged piinci-
pally in legal business. Since his return he has
been nominated for Governor and also for II. S. Sen-
ator, and twice for Judge of the Supreme Court. But
the Democratic party, to which he lias always been
attached, being in the minority, he failed of an elec-
tion. In 1873 he withdrew from the active practice
of law, and, with the excejition of a tour in Europe,
in 1875 has since led a life of retirement at his home
in Ann Arbor. In 1877 the Lbiiversity of Michigan
conferred upon him the degree of LL. I). For
many years he was one of the Regents of Michigan
University, and in the spring of 1879 was appointed
'i'appan Professor of Law in tlie same. Mr. Felch is
the i.ildest surviving nienil)er of the Legislature from
Monroe Co., the oldest and only surviving liank Com-
missioner of the State, the oldest surviving Auditor
(xeneral of the State, the oldest surviving Governor of
the State, the oldest surviving Judge of the Supreme
Court of Michigan, and the oldest surviving United
States .Senator from the State of Michigan.

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GO VERNORS.

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ILLIAM L. GREENLY

E^Governor of Michigan for the
year 1847, was born at Hamil-
ton, Madison Co., N. Y., Sept.
'^^'^'iW 18,1813. He graduated at Un-
J ion College, Schenectady, in
1S31, studied law and was ad-
mitted to the bar in 1834. In
>\ 1S36, having removed to Michi-

gan, he settled in Adrian, where
he has since resided. The year
following his arrival in Michigan
he was elected State Senator and
served in that capacity until 1839.
In 1845 he was elected Lieut. Gov-
ernor and became acting Governor
by the resignation of Gov. Felch,
who was elected to the United
States Senate.
" The war with Mexico was brought

to a successful termination during Gov. Greenly 's
administration. We regret to say that there are only
few records extant of the action of Michigan troops
in the Mexican war. That many went there and
fought well are points conceded ; but their names and
nativity are hidden away in United States archives

and where it is almost impossible to find them.

The soldiers of this State deserve much of the
credit of the memorable achievements of Co. K, 3d
Dragoons, and Cos. A, E, and G of the U. S. Inf.
The two former of these companies, recruited in this
State, were reduced to one-third their original num-
ber.

In May, 1846, the Governor of Michigan was noti-
fied by the War Department of the United States to
enroll a regiment of volunteers, to be held in readi-
ness for service whenever demanded. At his sum-
mons 13 independent volunteer companies, 1 1 of
infantry and two of cavalry, at once fell into line. Of
the infantry four companies were from Detroit, bear-
ing the honored names of Montgomery, Lafayette,
Scott and Brady upon their banners. Of the re-
mainder Monroe tendered two, Lenawee County three,
St. Clair, Berrien and Hillsdale each one, and Wayne
County an additional coiripany. Of these alone the
veteran Bradys were accepted and ordered into ser-
vice. In addition to them ten companies, making the
First Regiment of Michigan Volunteers, springing
from various parts of the State, but embodying to a
great degree the material of which the first volunteers
was formed, were not called for until October follow-
ing. This regiment was soon in readiness and pro-
ceeded by orders from Government to the seatof vvar,

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HE HON. EPAPHRODI-
TUS RANSOM, the Seventh
Governor of Michigan, was a
native of Massachusetts. In

rv- . ' 1 - . ~Y-i 'ha' State he received a col-

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^" ■ T ' legiate education, studied law,

and was admitted to the bar.

Removing to Michigan about

the time of its admission to the

J V/l i\/ ^ Union, he took up his residence

at Kalamazoo.

Mr. Ransom served with marked
ability for a number of years in the
State Legislature, and in 1837 he was appointed As-
sociate Justice of the Supreme Court. In 1843 he
was promoted to Chief Justice, which office he re-
tained until 1845, when he resigned.

Shortly afterwards he became deeply interested in
the building of plank roads in the western portioi: of
the State, and in this business lost the greater portion
of the property which he had accumulated by years
(Q^of toil and industry.

1 Mr. Ransom became Governor of the State of

!^ Michigan in the fall of 1847, and served during one

(^ term, performing the duties of the office in a truly

j^ statesmanlike manner. He subsequently became

fs: President of the Michigan Agricultural Society, in

which position he displayed the same ability that

shone forth so prominently in his acts^ as Governor.
He held the office ot Regent of the Michigan Univer-
sity several times, and ever advocated a hberal policy
in its management.

Subsequently he was appointed receiver of the
land office in one of the districts in Kansas, by Pres-
ident Buchanan, to which State he had removed, and
where he died before the expiration of his term of
office.

We sum up the events and affairs of the State un-
der Gov. Ransom's administration as follows : The
Asylum for the Insane was establised, as also the
Asylum for the Deaf, Dumb and Blind. Both of
these institutes were liberally endowed with lands,
and each of them placed in charge of ji board of five
trustees. The appropriation in 1849 for the deaf and
dumb and blind amounted to $81,500. On the first
of March, 1848, the first telegraph line was com-
pleted from New York to Detroit, and the first dis-
patch transmitted on that day. The following figures
show the progress in agriculture : The land reported
as under cultivation in 1S48 was 1,437,460 acres; of
wheat there were produced 4,749,300 bushels; other
grains, 8,197,767 bushels; wool, 1,645,756 pounds;
maple sugar, 1,774,369 pounds; horses, 52,305; cat-
tle, 210,268; swine, 152,541; sheep, 610,534; while
the flour mills numbered 228, and the lumber mills
amounted to 730. 1S47, an act was passed removing
the Legislature from Detroit to Lansing, and tempo-
rary buildings for the use of the Legislature were im-
mediately erected, at a cost of $12,450.

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GOVERNORS OF MICHIGAN.

129 -^v

- i.

OBERT McClelland,

tiovernor of Michigan from
I, 1852,10 March S, 1853,
was born at Cireencastle, Frank-
'y% Un Co., Penn., Aug. i, 1807.
Among his ancestors were several
officers of rank in the Revohition-
ary war, and some of his family con-
\\, nections were distinguished in the
war of 1812, and that with Mexico.
His father was an eminent physician
and surgeon who studied under Dr.
Benj, Rush, of Pliiladelphia, and
practiced his profession successfully
until si.x months before his death, at
the age of 84 years. Although Mr.
McClelland's family had' been in good circum-
stances, when he was 17 years old he was thrown
upon his own resources. After taking the usual j)re-
liminary studies, and teaching school to obtain the
means, he entered Dickinson College, at Carlisle,
Penn., from which he graduated among the first in
his class, in 1829. He then resumed teaching, and
having completed the course of study for the legal
profession, was admitted to the bar at Chambersburg,
Penn., in 1831. Soon afterward he removed to the
city of Pittsburgh, where he practiced for almost a
year.

In 1833, Mr. McClelland removed to Monroe, in

tlie Territory of Michigan, where, after a severe ex-
amination, he became a member of the bar of Michi-
gan, and engaged in practice with bright prospect of
success. In 1835, a convention was called to frame
a constitution for the proposed State of Michigan, of
which Mr. McClelland was elected a member. He
took a prominent part in its deliberations and ranked
among its ablest debaters. He was apiwinted the
first Bank Commissioner of the State, by Gov. Mason,
and received an offer of the Attorney Generalship, but
declined both of these offices in order to attend to his
professional duties.

In 1838, Mr. McClelland was elected to the State
Legislature, in which he soon became distinguislied
as the head of several irajwrtant committees. Speaker
p}-o tempore, and as an active, zealous and efficient
member. In 1840, Gen. Harrison, as a candidate for
the Presidency, swept the country with an overwhelm-
ing majority, and at the same time the State of Michi-
gan was carried by the Whigs under the popular cry
of " Woodl)ridge and reform " against the Democratic
party. At this time Mr. McClelland stood among the
acknowledged leaders of the latter organization ; was
elected a member of the State House of Representa-
tives, and with others adopted a ])lan to regain a lost
authority and prestige.

This party soon came again into power in the .State,
and having been returned to the State Legislature Mr.
McClelland's leadership was acknowledged by his
election as Speaker of the House of Representatives

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ROBERT McClelland.

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in 1843. Down to this time Michigan had consti-
tuted one congressional district. The late Hon. Jacob
M. Howard had been elected against Hon. Alpheus
Felch by a strong majority ; but, in 1843, s° thoroughly
had tlie Democratic party recovered from its defeat
of 1S40 that Mr. McClelland, as a candidate for Con-
gress, carried Detroit district by a majority of about
2,500. Mr. McClelland soon took a prominent posi-
tion in Congress among the veterans of that body,
1 )uring his first term he was placed on Committee on
Commerce, and organized and carried through what
were known as the "Harbor bills.' Tlie continued
confidence of his constituency was manifested in his
election to the 2gth Congress. At the opening of this
session he had acquired a National reputation, and so
favorably was he known as a parlimentarian that his
name was mentioned for Speaker of the House of Rep-
resentatives. He declined the offer in favor of J. W.
Davis, of Indiana, who was elected. During this term
he became Chairman of Committee on Commerce, in
which position liis reports and advocacy of important
measures at once attracted public attention. The
members of this committee, as an evidence of the es-
teem in which they held his services and of their
personal regard for him, presented him with a cane
which he retains as a souvenir of the donors, and of
his labors in Congress,

In 1847, Mr. McClelland was re-elected to Con-
gress, and at the opening of the 30th Congress be-
came a member of the Committee on Foreign Rela-
tions. While acting in this capacity, what was known
as the " French Si)oliation Bill" came under his spe-
cial charge, and his management of the same was such
as to command universal approbation. While in
Congress, Mr, McClelland was an advocate of the
right of petition as maintained by John Q. Adams,
when the petition, was clothed in decorous language
and presented in the ])roper manner. This he re-
garded as the citizens'constitutional right which should
not be impaired by any doctrines of temporary e.xpe-
diency. He also voted for the adoption of Mr. Gid-
dings's bill for the abolishing of slavery in the District
of Columbia. Mr. McClelland was one of the few
Democrats associated with David Wilmot, of Penn-
sylvania, in bringing forward the celebrated "Wilmot
Proviso,' with a view to prevent further extension of
slavery in new territory which might be acquired by
the United States. He and Mr. Wilmot were to-
gether at the time in Washington, and on intimate
and confidential terms, Mr McClelland was in sev-
eral National conventions and in the Baltimore con-
vention, which nominated Gen. Cass for President,
in 184S, doing valiant service that year for the elec-
tion of that distinguished statesman. On leaving
Congress, in 184S, Mr. McClelland returned to the
practice of his profession at Monroe. In 1S50 a
convention of the State of Michigan was called to
revise the .State constitution. He v.'as elected a

member and was regarded therein as among the ablest
and most experienced leaders, His clear judgment
and wise moderation were conspicuous, both in the
committee room and on the floor, in debate. In 1850,
he was President of the Democratic State convention
which ado[)ted resolutions in support of Henry Clay's
famous compromise measures, of which Mr. McClel-
land was a strong advocate. He was a member of
the Democratic National convention in 1852, and in
that year, in company with Gen, Cass and Governor
Felch, he made a thorough canvass of the State.
He continued earnestly to advocate the Clay com-
promise measures, and took an active part in the
canvass which resulted in the election of Gen, Pierce
to the Presidency.

In 185 1, the new Stats constitution took effect and
it was necessary that a Governor should be elected
for one year in order to prevent an interregnum, and
to bring the State Government into operation under
the new constitution Mr McClelland was elected
Governor, and in the fall of 1852 was re-elected foi
a term of two years, from Jan, r, 1S53. His admin-
istration was regarded as wise, prudent and concilia-
tory, and was as popular as could be expected at a
time when party spirit ran high. There was really
no opposition, and when he resigned, in March, 1853,
the State Treasury was well filled, and the State
otherwise prosperous. So widely and favorably had
Mr. McClelland become known as a statesman that on
the organization of thecabinet by President Pierce, in
March, 1S53, he was made Secretary of the Interior, in
which capacity he served most creditably during four
years of the Pierce administration. He thoroughly
re-organized his department and reduced the expend-
itures. He adopted a course with the Indians which
relieved them from the impositions and annoyances
of the traders, and produced harmony and civilization
among them. During his administration there was
neither complaint from the tribes nor corruption among
agents, and he left the department in perfect order
and system^ In 1867, Michigan again called a con-
vention to revise the State constitution. Mr. McClel-
land was a member and here again his long experi-
ence made him conspicuous as a prudent adviser, a
sagacious parliamentary leader. As a lawyer he was
terse and pointed m argument, clear, candid and im-
pressive in his addresses to the jury. His sincerity
and earnestness, with which was occasionally mingled
a pleasant humor, made liim an able and effective
advocate. In speaking before the peoiile on political
subjects he was especially forcible and happy. In
1870 he made the tour of Europe, which, through his
extensive personal acquaintance with European dip-
lomates, he was enabled to enjo)' much more than
most travelers

Mr. McClelland married, in 1S37, Miss Sarah
E, .Sabin, of Williamstown, Mass. They have had
six children, two of whom now survive.

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GO VERNORS OF MICHIGAN.

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AKDREA\^ PitRSONS.

42-^

NDREW PARSONS, (iover-
nor of Michie;an from March
■■^8, 1853 to Jan. 3, 1855, was
born in the town of Hoosick,
£ County of Renssehier, and
^•= State of New York, on the 2 2d
day of July, 1817, and died June
6, 1855, at the early age of 38
years. He was the son of John
Parsons, born at Newburyport,
(Mass., Oct. 2, 1782, and who was tlie
sonof Andrew Parsons, a Revohitionary
soldier, who was the son of Phineas
Parsons, the son of Samuel Parsons,
a descendant of Walter Parsons, born
! in Ireland in 1290.
Of this name and family, some one hundred and
thirty }ears ago, Bishop Clilson remarked in his edi-
tion of Camden's Britannia: "The honorable family
of Parsons have been advanced to the dignity of
Viscounts and more lately Earls of Ross."

The following are descendants of these families :
Sir John Parsons, born 1 481, was Mayor of Hereford:
Robert Parsons, born in 1546, lived near Bridgewater,
England. He was educated at Ballial College, Ox-
ford, and was a noted writer and defender of the
Romish faith. He established an English College at
Rome and another at Valladolia. Frances Parsons,
born in 1556, was Vicar of Rothwell, in Notingham;
Bartholomew Parsons, born in 1618, was another
noted member of the family. In 1634, Thomas Parsons
was knighted by Charles I. Joseph and I'enjamin,
brothers, were born in (ireat Forvington, I'higland,

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and accompanied their father and others to New
England about 1630. Samuel Parsons, born at Salis-
bury, Mass., in 1707, graduated at Harvard College in
1730, ordained at Rye, N. H., Nov. 3, 1736, married
Mary Jones, daughter of Samuel Jones, of Bostor,
Oct. 9, 1739, died Jan. 4, 1789, at the age of 82, in
the 53rd year of his ministry. The grandfatherof Mary
Jones was Capt. John Adams, of Boston, grandson
of Henry, of Braintree, wIkj was among the first set-
tlers of Massachusetts, and from whom a numerous
race of the name are descended, including two Presi-
dents of the "United States. . The Parsons have be-
come very numerous and are found throughout New
England, and many of the descedants are scattered
in all parts of the United States, and especially in
the Middle and Western States. Covernor Andrew
Parsons came to Michigan in 1835, at the age of 17
years, and spent the first summer at Lower Ann
Ari)or, where for a few months he taught school which
he was compelled to abandon from ill health

He was one of the large number of men of sterling
worth, who came from the East to Michigan when it
was an infant State, or, even prior to its assuming
the dignity of a State, and who, by their wisdom,
enterprise and energy, have developed its wonderful
natural resources, until to-day it ranks with the proud-
est States of the Union. These brave men came to
Michigan with nothing to aid them in the conquest
of the wilderness save courageous hearts and strong
and willing hands. They gloriously tomiuered, how-
ever, and to them is due all honor for the labors
so nobly performed, for the solid and sure foundation
whi(;li the\ laid of a great Connnonwoalth.

4^np>>:IlIl^>

ANDREW PARSONS

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explored the Grand River
W Valley in a frail canoe, the whole length of the river,
'^1* from Jackson to Lake Michigan, and spent the following
J winter as clerk in a store at Prairie Creek, in Ionia,
~^ County, and in the spring went to Marshall, where he
resided with his brother, the Hon. Luke H. Parsons,
also now deceased, until fall, when he went to Shia-
wasseCounty,then with Clinton County, and an almost
unbroken wilderness and constituting one organized
township. In 1837 this territory was organized into
a county and, at the age of only 19 years, he (An-
drew) was elected County Clerk. In 1840, he was
elected Register of Deeds, re-elected in 1842, and
also in 1844. In 1846, he was elected to the State
Senate, was appointed Prosecuting Attorney in 1848,
and elected Regent of the University in 1851, and
Lieutenant Governor, and became acting Governor,
in 1853, elected again to the Legislature in 1854, and,
overcome by debilitated health, hard labor and the
yA responsibilities of his office and cares of his business,
^ retired to his farm, where he died soon after.
^ He was a fluent and persuasive speaker and well
^ calculated to make friends of his acquantances. He
) was always true to his trust, and the whole world
could not persuade nor drive him ti; do what he con-
ceived to be wrong. AV'hen Ciovernor, a most power-
I'ul railroad influence was brought to bear upon him,
to induce him to call an extra session of the Legisla-
ture. Meetings were held in all parts of the State
for that purpose. In some sections the resolutions
were of a laudatory nature, intending to make him do
tlieir bidding by resort to friendly and flattering words.
In other places the resolutions were of a demanding
nature, while in otliers tlie)' were threatening beyond
measure. Fearing that all these influences might
^ fail to induce him to call the extra session, a large
sum of money was sent him, and liberal offers ten-

igf dered him if he would gratify the railroad interest of
- - the State and call the extra session, but, immovalile.

he returned the money and refused to receive
\^ any favois, whether from any party who would at-
r tempt to corruiJt him by laudations, liberal offers, or

by threats, and in a short letter to the people, after
giving overwhelming reasons that no sensible man
could dispute, showing the circumstances were not
"extraordinary," he refused to call the extra session.
This brought down the wrath of various parties upon
his head, but they were soon forced to acknowledge
the wisdom and the justice of his course. One of
his greatest enemies said, after a long acquaintance :
"though not always coinciding with his views I never
doubted his honesty of purpose. He at all times
sought to perform his duties in strict accordance,
with the dictates of his conscience, and the behests
of his oath. " The following eulogium from a politcal op-
ponent is just in its conception and creditable to its
author: "Gov. Parsons was a politician of the Dem-
ocratic school, a man of pure moral character, fixed
and exemplary habits, and entirely blameless in every
public and private relation of life. As a politician he
was candid, frank and free from bitterness, as an ex-
ecutive officer firm, constant and reliable." The
highest commendations we can pay the deceased is
to give his just record, — that of being an honest man.

In the spring of 1854, during the administration of * n^
Governor Parsons, the Republican party, at least
as a State organization, was first formed in the United
States "under the oaks" at Jackson, by anti-slavery
men of both the old parties. Cireat excitement pre-
vailed at this time, occasioned by the settling of
Kansas, and the issue thereby brought u|i, whether
slavery should exist there. l''or the purpose of permit-
ting slavery there, the " Missouri compromise " (which
limited slavery to the south of 36" 30} was re-
repealed, under the leadership of Stephen A, Douglas.
Phis was repealed by a bill adnutting Kansas and
Nebraska into the Union, as Territories, and those who
were opposed to this repeal measure were in short
called "anti-Nebraska" men. The epithets, "Ne-
braska" and "anti-Nebraska," were temporally em-
ployed to designate the slavery and anti-slavery
parties, pending the desolution of the old Democratic
and Whig parties and the organization of the new
Democratic and Republican i)arties of the present.

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''v. GO VERNORS OF MICHIGAN.

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KiNSLKY ©. BiNQHAM. mm

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INSLEY S. BINGHAM,

y' Governor of Michigan from
1855 to 1859, and United
States Senator, was born in
Camillus, Onondaga County,
N. v., Dec. 16, 1808. His
father was a farmer, and his own
early hfe was consequently de-
voted to agricultural pursuits, but
notwithstanding the disadvan-
tages related to the acquisition
of knowledge in the life of a farmer
he managed to secure a good aca-
demic education in his native State
and studied law in the office of
Gen. James R. Lawrence, now of
Syracuse, N. Y. In the spring of
1833, he married an estimable lady
^ who had recently arrived from Scot-
land, and obeying the impulse of a
naturally enterprising disposition,
he emigrated to Michigan and
purchased a new farm in company
with his brother-in-law, Mr. Robert
Worden, in Green Oak, Livingston County. Here, on
the border of civilization, buried in the primeval for-
est, our late student commenced the arduous task of
preparing a future home, clearing and fencing, put-
ting up buildings, etc., at such a rate that the land

chosen was soon reduced to a high state of cultivation.
Becoming deservedly prominent, -Mr. Bingham was
elected to the office of Justice of the Peace and Post-
master under the Territorial government, and was the
first Probate Judge in the county. In the year 1836,
when Michigan iecanie a State, he was elected to the
first Legislature. He was four times re-elected, and
Speaker of the House of Representatives three years.
In 1846 he was elected on the Democratic ticket, Rej)-
resentative to Congress, and was the only practical
farmer in that body. He was never forgetful of the
interest of agriculture, and was in particular opposed
to the introduction of " Wood's Patent Cast lion
Plow" which he completely prevented. He was re-
elected to Congress in 1848, during which time he
strongly opposed the extension of slavery in the
territory of the United States and was committed to
and voted for the Wilmot Proviso.

In 1854, at the first organization of the Republican
party, in consequence of his record in Congress as a
Free Soil Democrat, Mr. Bingham was nominated
and elected Governor of the State, and re-elected in
1856. .Still faithful to the memory of his own former
occupation, he did not forget the farmers durint^ his (^
administration, and among other profits of his zeal in
their Ijchalf, he became mainly instrumental in the
establishment of the Agricultural College at Lansing.
In 1S59, Governor Bingham was elected Senator in
Congress and took an active pait in the stormy cam-
paign in the election of Abraiiam Lincoln. He wit-

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138

KINSLEY S. BINGHAM.

">li>"TJX»-''

nessed the commencement of the civil war while a
member of the United States Senate. After a com-
paratively short life of remarkable promise and pub-
lic activity he was attacked with appoplexy and died
suddenly at his residence, in Green Oak, Oct. 5, 1861.

The most noticable event in Governor Bingham's
first term was the completion of the ship canal, at the
Falls of St. Mary. In 1852, Angust 26, an act of
Congress was approved, granting to the State of Mich-
igan seven hundred and fifty thousand acres of land
ior the purpose of constructing a ship canal between
Lakes Huron and Superior. In iS53,the Legislature
accepted the grant, and provided lor the appointment
of commissioners to select the donated landfe, and to
arrange for building the canal. A company of enter-
prising men was formed, and a contract was entered
into by which it was arranged that the canal should
be finished in two years, and the work was pushed
rapidly forward. Every article of consumption, ma-
chinery, working implements and materials, timber
for the gates, stones for the locks, as well as men and
suiiplies, had to be transported to the site of the canal
from Detroit, Cleveland, and other lake ports. The
rapids which had to be surmounted have a fall of
seventeen feet and are about one mile long. The
length ot the canal is less than one mile, its width one
hundred feet, depth twelve feet and it has two locks
of solid masonary. In May, 1S55, the work was com-
pleted, accepted by the commissioners, and formally
delivered to the State authorities.

The disbursements on account of the construction
of the canal and selecting the lands amounted to one
million of dollars; while the lands which were as-
signed to the company, and selected through the
agency at the Sault, as well as certain lands in the
Upper and Lower Peninsulas, filled to an acre the
Government grant. The opening of the canal was
an important event in the history of the improvement
of the State. It was a valuable link in the chain of
lake commerce, and particularly important to the
interests of the Upper Peninsula.

There were several educational, charitable and re-
formatory institutions inaugurated and opened during
Gov. 'Bingham's administrations. The Michigan Ag-
ricultural College owes its establishment to a provision
of the State Constitution of 1S50. Article 13 says,
" The Legislature shall, as soon as practicable, pro-
vide for the establishment of an agricultural school."
For the purpose of carying into practice this provision,
legislation was commenced in 1S55, and the act re-
quired that the school should be within ten miles of
Lansing, and that not more than 1^15 an acre should
be paid for the farm and college grounds. The col-
lege was opened to students in May, 1857, the first of
existing argricultural colleges in the United States
Until the spring of 1861, it was under the control'
of the State Board of Education; since that time it
has been under the management of the State Board

of Agriculture, which was created for that purjxjse.

In its essential features, of combining study and
labor, and of uniting general and professional studies
in its course, the college has remained virtually un-
changed from the first. It has a steady growth in
number of students, in means of illustration and
efficiency of instruction.

■Phe Agricultural College is three miles east of
Lansing, comprising several fine buildings; and there
are also very beautiful, substantial residences for the
professors. There are also an extensive, well-filled
green-house, a very large and well-equipped chemical
laboratoiy, one of the most scientific apiaries in the
United States, a general museum, a meseum of me-
chanical inventions, another of vegetable products,
extensive barns, piggeries, etc., etc., in fine trim for
the purposes designed. The farm consists of 676
acres, of which about 300 are under cultivation in a
systematic rotation of crops.

Adrian College was established by the Wesleyan
Methodists in 1859, now under the control of the
Methodist Church. The grounds contain about 20
acres. There are four buildings, capable of accom-
modating about 225 students. Attendance in 1875
was 179; total number of graduates for previous year,
121 ; ten professors and teachers are employed. Ex-
clusive of the endowment fund ($80,000), the assets
of the institution, including grounds, buildings, furni-
ture, apparatus, musical instruments, outlying lands,
etc., amount to more than $137,000.

Hillsdale College was established in 1855 by the
Free Baptists. The Michigan Central College, at
Spring Arbor, was incorporated in 1845 It was kept
in operation until it was merged into the present
Hillsdale College. The site comprises 25 acres,
beautifully situated on an eminence in the western
part of the city of Hillsdale. The large and impos-
ing building first erected was nearly destroyed by fire
in 1874, and in its place five buildings of a more
modern style have been erected. They are of brick,
three stories with basement, arranged on three sides
of a (piadrangle. The size is, respectively, 80 by 80,
48 by 7 2, 48 by 72, 80 by 60, 52 by 72, and they con-
tain one-half more room than the original buildmg.
The State Reform School. This was established
at Lansing in 1855, in the northeastern portion of the
city, as the House of Correction for Juvenile Of-
fenders, having about it many of the features of a
prison. In 1859 the name was changed to the State
Reform School. The government and dicipline, have
undergone many and radical changes, until all the
prison features have been removed except those that
remain in the walls of the original structure, and
which remain only as monuments of instructive his-
tory. No bolts, bars or guards are employed. The
inmates are necessarily kept under the surveillance of
officers, but the attempts at escape are much fewer
than under the more rigid regime of former days.

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GO VERNORS OF MICHIGAN.

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OSES WISNER. Governor of
•'' Michigan from i8sg to 1861,
was born in Springport, Cayu-
ga Co., N Y., June 3, 1815.
His early education was only
what could be obtained at a
common school. Agricultural labor
and frugality of his parents gave
■SI I him a physical constitution of unus-
f\. ual strength and endurance, which
was ever preserved by temperate hab-
ts. In 1837 he emigrated to Michi-
p^' gan and purchased a farm in Lapeer
County It was new land and he at
once set to woik to clear it and plant
crops. He labored diligently at his
task for two years, when he gave up
the idea of uenig a farmer, and removed to Pontiac,
Oakland Co. Here he commenced the study of law
in the office of his brother, George W. Wisner, and
Rufus Hosmer. In 1841 he was admitted to the bar
and established himself in his new vocation at the
village of Lapeer. While there he was apppointed
by Gov. M'oodbridge Prosecuting Attorney for that
county, in which capacity he acquitted himself well
and gave promise of that eminence he afterward at-
(g> tained in the profession. He remained at Lapeer but
a short time, removing to Pontiac, where he became
a member of a firm and entered fully upon the
practice.

In politics he was like his talented brother, a Whig
of the Henry Clay stamp, but with a decided anti-
slavery bias. His practice becoming extensive, he

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took little part in politics until after the election of
Mr. Pierce to the Presidency in 1852, when he took an
active part against slavery. As a lawyer he was a
man of great ability, but relied less upon mere book
learning than upon his native good sense. Liberal
and courteous, was he yet devoted to the interest of
his client, and no facts escaped his attention or his
memory which bore upon the case. He was no friend
of trickery or artifice in conducting a case As an ad-
vocate he had few equals. When fully aroused by the
merits of his subject his elo(iuence was at once grace-
ful and powerful. His fancies supplied the most
original, tlie most pointed illustrations, and his logic
became a battling giant under whose heavy lilowsthe
adversary shrank and withered. Nature had be-
stowed upon him rare qualities, and his powers as a
popular orator were of a high order.

On the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act of
1854, repealing the Missouri compromise and opening
the Territories to slavery, he was among the foremost
in Michigan to denounce the shamful scheme. He
actively participated in organizing and consolidating
the elements opposed to it in that State, and was a
member of the popular gathering at Jackson, in July,
1854, which was the first formal Republican Conven-
tion held in the United States. At this meeting the
name " Republican " was adopted as a designation of ^'^
the new party consisting of Anti-slavery, Whigs, [
Liberty men. Free Soil Democrats and all otliers op-
posed to the extension of slavery and favorable to its :
expulsion from the Territories and the District of ^
Columbia. At this convention Mr. W. was urged to {«
accept the nomination for Attorney General of the -^

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142

MOSES WISNKR.

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State, but declined. An entire State ticket was nom-
inated and at the annual election in November was
elected by an average majority of nearly 10,000.
Mr. \V. was enthusiastic in the cause and brought to
its support all his jiersonal influence and talents. In
his views he was bold and radical. He believed from
the beginning tliat the political power of the slave-
holders would have to be overthrown before quiet
could be secured to the country. In the Presidential
canvass of 1856 he supported tiie Fremont, or Re-
publican, ticket. At the session of the Legislature of
1857 he was a candidate for United States Senator,
and as such received a very handsome support.

In 1S58, he was nominated for Governor of the
State by the Republican convention that met at De-
troit, and at the subsequent November election was
chosen by a very large majority. Before the day of
the election he had addressed the people of almost
ever)' county and his majority was greater even than
that of his popular predecessor, Hon. K. S. Bingham.
He served as Governor two years, from Jan. i, 1S59,
to Jan. I, i86r. His first message to the Legislature
was an able and statesman-like production, and was
read with usual favor. It showed that he was awake
to all the interests of the State and set forth an en-
lightened State policy, that had its view of the rapid
settlement of our uncultivated lands and the devel-
opment of our immense agricultural and mineral re-
sources. It was a document that reflected the highest
credit upon the author..

His term having expired Jan. i, 1861, he returned
to his home in Pontiac, and to the practice of his
profession. Tliere were those in the State who
counselled the sending of delegates to the peace con-
ference at Washington, but Mr. W. was opposed to all
such temporizing expedients. His counsel was to
send no delegate, but to prepare to fight.

After Congress had met and passed the necessary
legislation he resoUed to take part in the war. In
the spring and summer of 1862 he set to work to
raise a regiment o^ infantry, chiefly in Oakland
County, where he resided. His regiment, the 2 2d
Michigan, was armed and equipped and ready to
march in Septemljer, a regiment whose solid quali-
ties were afterwards proven on many a bloody field.
Col. W's. commission bore the date of Sept. S, 1862.
Before parting with his family he made his will. His
regiment was sent to Kentucky and quartered at

Camp Wallace. He had at the breaking out of the
war turned his attention to military studies and be-
came proficient in the ordinary- rules and discipline.
His entire attention was now devoted to his duties.
His treatment of his men was kind, though his disci-
pline was rigid. He possessed in an eminent degree
the spirit of conrmand, and had he lived he would
no doubt have distinguished himself as a good
officer. He was impatient of delay and chafed at
being kept in Kentucky where there was so little
prospect of getting at the enemy. But life in camp,
so different from the one he had been leading, and
his incessant labors, coupled with tliat impatience
which was so natural and so general among the vol-
unteers in the early part of the war, soon made their
influence felt upon his health. He was seized with
typhoid fever and removed to a private house near
Lexington. Every care which medical skill or the
liand of friendship could bestow was rendered him.
In the delirious wanderings of his mind he was dis-
ciplining his men and urging them to be prepared for
an encounter with the enemy, enlarging upon the jus-
tice of their cause and the necessity of their crush-
ing the Rebellion. But the source of his most poig-
nant griet was the prospect of not being able to come
to a hand-to-hand encounter with the "chivahy."
He was proud of his regiment, and felt that if it could
find the enemy it would cover itself with glory, — a
distinction it afterward obtained, but not until Col. W.
was no more. The malady baffled all medical treat-
ment, and on the 5th day of Jan., 1863, he breathed
his last. His remains were removed to Michigan and
interred in the cemetery at Pontiac, where they rest
by the side of the brave (ien. Richardson, who re-
ceived his mortal wound at the battle of Antietam.
Col. \V. was no adventurer, although he was doubtless
ambitious of military renown and would have striven
for it with characteristic energy. He went to the war
to defend and uphold the principles he had so much
at heart. Few men were more familiar than he with
the causes and the underlying princi]:)les that led to
the contest. He left a wife, who was a daughter of
Gen. C. C. Hascall, of Flint, and four children to
mourn his loss. Toward them he ever showed the
tenderest regard. Next to his duty their love and
welfare engrossed his thoughts. He was kind, gen-
erous and brave, and like thousands of others he
sleeps the sleep of the martyr for his country.

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Go VERNORS OF MICHIGAN.

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USTIN BLAIR, (iovernor
Michigan from Jan. 2,
'1861, to Jan. 4, 1865, and
kown as the War Governor, is
and illustration of the benifi-
cent influence of republican in-
stitutions, having inherited neith-
er fortune nor fame. He was born
in a log cabin at Caroline, Tomp-
Hns Co., N. Y., Feb. 8, 181 8.
His ancestors came from Scot-
land in the time of George I, and
for many generations followed the
'Sl^ pursuit of agriculture. His father,
I George Blair, settled in Tompkins
County in 1809, and felled the trees and erected the
^ first cabin in the county. The last 60 of the four-
-'^ score years of his life were spent on that spot. He
married Rhoda Beackman, who now sleeps with him
in the soil of the old homestead. The first 17 years
of Mr. Blair's life were spent there, rendering his
father what aid he could upon the farm. He then
spent a year and a half in Cazenovia Seminary pre-
paring for college ; entered Hamilton College, in
X. Clinton, prosecuted his studies until the middle of
1 the junior year, when, attracted by the fame of Dr.
I Nott, he changed to Union College, fiom which he
graduated in the class of 1839. Upon leaving col-
lege Mr. Blair read law two years in the office of Sweet
'& Davis, Oswego, N. Y., and was admitted to practice
in 1841, and the same year moved to Michigan, locat-

ing in Jackson. During a temporary residence in
Eaton Rapids, in 1842, he was elected Clerk of Eaton
County. At the close of the official term he returned to
Jackson, and as a Whig, zealously espoused the cause
of Henry Clay in the campaign of 1S44. He was chosen
Representative to the Legislature in 1845, at which
session, as a member of the Judiciary Committee, he
rendered valuable service in the revision of the gen-
eral statutes ; also made an able support in favor of
abolishing the color distinction in relation to the elec-
tive franchise, and at the same session was active in
securing the abolition of capital punishment. Li 1848
Mr. Blair refused longer to affiliate with the Whig
party, because of its refusial to endorse in convention
any anti-slavery sentiment. He joined the Free-soil
movement, and was a delegate to their convention
which nominated Van Buren for President that year.
Upon the birth of the Republican party at Jackson,
in 1854, by the coalition of the Whig and Free-soil
elements, Mr. Blair was in full sympathy with the
movement, and acted as a member of the Committee
on Platform. He was elected Prosecuting Attorney
of Jackson County in 1852 ; was chosen State Senator
two years later, taking his seat with the incoming Re-
publican administration of 1S55, and holding the
position of parliamentary leader in the Senate. He
was a delegate to the National Convention which
nominated Abraham Lincoln in i860. Mr. Blair
was elected Governor of Michigan in 1S60, and re-
elected in 1862, faithfully and honorably discharging
the arduous duties of the office during that most mo-

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146

AUSTIN BLAIR.

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mentous and stormy period of the Nation's life. Gov.
Elair possessed a clear comprehension of the perilous
situation from the inception of the Rebellion, and his
inaugural address foreshadowed the prompt executive
policy and the administrative ability which charac-
terized his gubernatorial career.

Never perhaps in the history of a nation has a
brighter example been laid down, or a greater sacri-
fice been made, than that which distinguished Mich-
igan during the civil war. All, from the " War Gov-
ernor," down to the poorest citizen of the State, were
animated with a patriotic ardor at once magnificiently
sublime and wisely directed.

Very early in 1S61 the coming struggle cast its
shadow over the Nation. Governor Blair, in his mes-
sage to the Legislature in January of that year, dwelt
very forcibly upon the sad prospects of civil war; and
as forcibly pledged the State to support the principles
a of the Repul)lic. After a review of the conditions
'<^' of the State, he passed on to a consideration of the
S relations between the free and slave Stales of the
;^/ Republic, saying: " While we are citizens of the State
of Michigan, and as such deeply devoted to her in-
) terests and honor, we have a still prouder title. We
are also citizeas of the United States of America. By
this title we are known among the nations of the earth.
In remote ipiarters of the globe, wjiere the names of
the States are unknown, the flag of the great Republic,
the banner of the stars and stripes, honor and protect
her citizens. In whatever concerns the honor, the
prosperity and the iierpetuity of this great Govern-
ment, we are deeply interested. The people of Mich-
igan are loyal to that Government — faithful to its con-
stitution and its laws. Under it they have had peace
and prosiierity; and under it they mean to abide to
'q^ the end. Feeling a just pride in the glorious history
of the past, they will not renounce the eipially glo-
rious hopes of the future. PnU they will rally around
the standards of the Nation and defend its integrity
and its constitution, with fidelity." The final ]>ara-
i-^ graph being:
^^ " I recommend you at nn early day to make niani-

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fest to the gentlemen who represent this State in the
two Houses of Congress, and to the country, that
Michigan is loyal to the Union, the Constitution, and
the laws and will defend them to the uttermost ; and
to proffer to tlie President of the United States, the
whole military power of the State for that purpose.
Oh, for the firm, steady hand of a Washington, or a
Jackson, to guide the ship of State in this perilous
storm ! Let us hope that we will find him on the 4th
of March. Meantime, let us abide in the faith of our
fathers — ' Liberty and Union, one and inseparable,
now and forever.

How this stirring appeal was responded to liy the
people of Michigan will be seen by the statement
that the State furnished 88,1 11 men during the war.
Money, men, clothing and food were freely and abun-
dantly supplied by this State during all these years of
darkness and blood shed. No State won a brighter
record for her devotion to our country than the Pen-
insula State, and to Gov. Blair, more than to any
other individual is due the credit for its untiring zeal
and labors in the Nation's behalf, and for the heroism
manifested in its defense.

Gov. Blair was elected Representative to the
Fortieth Congress, and twice re-elected, to the Forty-
first and Forty-second Congress, from the Third Dis-
trict of Michigan. Wliile a member of that body he
was a strong supporter of reconstruction measures,
and sternly opposed every form of repudiation. His
speech upon the national finances, delivered on the
floor of the House March 21, 1868, was a clear and
convincing argument. Since his retirement from Con-
gress, Mr. Blair has been busily occupied with his e.x-
tensive law practice. Mr. Blair married Sarah L.
Ford, of Seneca County N. Y., in February, 1849.
Tlieir family consists of 4 sons — George H., a law
partner of A. J. Gould ; Charles A., a law partner with
hir father, and Fred. J. and Austin T. Blair, at home.
Governor Blair's religion is of the broad type, and
centers in the "Golden Rule." In 1S83, Gov. Blair
was nominated for Justice of the Supreme Court
of the State by the Republican party, but was defeated.

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GO VERNORS OF MICHIGAN.

149

ENRY ROWLAND CRAPO,
Governor of Michigan from
1865 to 1869, was Ijorn May
24, 1804, at Dartmouth, Bris-
tol Co., Mass., and died at
Flint, Mich., July 22, 1S69.
He was the eldest son of Jesse
and Phoebe (Howland) Crapo.
His father was of French descent
and was very poor, sustaining his
)family by the cultivation of a farm^in
Dartmouth township, which yielded
I nothing beyond a mere livelihood.
His early life was consequently one
of toil and devoid of advantages for
intellectual culture, but his desire for
an education seemed to know no bounds. The in-
cessant toil for a mere subsistence upon a compara-
tively sterile farm, had no charm for him ; and, longing
for greater usefulness and better things, he looked for
them in an education. His struggles to secure this
end necessitated sacrifices and hardships that would
have discouraged any but the most courageous aiid
persevering. He became an ardent student antl
worker from his boyhood, though the means of carry-
ing on his studies were exceedingly limited. He
sorely feltthe need of a dictionary; and, neither having
money wherewith to purchase it, nor being able to
procure one in his neighborhood, he set out to compile
one for himself. In order to acquire a knowledge of
the English language, he copied into a book every
word whose meaning he did not comprehend, and
upon meeting the same word again in the newspapers
and books, which came into his hands, from the

context, would then record tlie definition. Wlienever
unable otherwise to olitain tlie signification of a word
in which he had become interested he would walk
from Dartmouth to New Bedford for tliat purpose
alone, and after referring to the books at the library
and satisfying himself thoroughly as to itsdeiinition,
would walk back, a distance of about seven miles,
the same night. This was no unusual circumstance.
Under such difficulties and in this manner he com-
piled quite an extensive dictionary in manuscript
which is believed to be still in existence.

Ever in pursuit of knowledge, he obtained posses-
sion of a book upon surveying, and applying himself
diligently to its study became familiar with this art,
which he soon had an opportunity to practice. The
services of a land surveyor were wanted, and he was
called upon, but had no compass and no money with
which to purchase one. A compass, however, he
must and would have, and going to a iflacksmith shop
near at hand, upon the forge, with such tools as he
could find in the shop, wliile the smith was at dinner,
he constructed the comjiass and commenced life as a
surveyor. .Still continuing his studies, he fitted him-
self for teaching, and took charge of tlie village school
at Dartmouth. When, in the course of time and un-
der the pressure of law, a high school was to be
0|)ened, he passed a successful examination for its
principalship and received the appointment. To do
this was no small task. The law re(pured a rigid
examination in various subjects, wliicli necessitated
days and nights of study. One evening, after con-
cluding his day's labor of teaching, he traveled on foot
to New Bedford, some seven or eight miles, called
U)x)n the preceptor of Friend's Academy and passed

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HENRY HOWLAND CRAPO.

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;i severe examination. Receiving a certificate that
he was quahfied, he walked back to his home the
same night, highly elated in being possessed of the
acquirements and requirements of a master of the
high school.

In 1832, at the age of 28 years, he left his native
town and went to reside at New Bedford, where he
followed the occupation of laud surveyor, and oc-
casionally acted as an auctioneer. Soon after becom-
ing a citizen of this place, he was elected Town Clerk,
Treasurer, and Collector of taxes, which office he held
until the municipal government was changed, — about
fifteen years, — when, upon the inauguration of the city
government, he was elected Treasurer and Collector
of taxes, a position which he held two or three years.
He was also Justice of the Peace for many years.
He was elected Alderman of New Bedford ; was
Chairman of Council Committee on E'ducation, and
as such prepared a report upon which was based the
order for the establishment of the free Public Library
of New Bedford. On its organization, Mr. Crapo was
chosen a member of the Board of Trustees. This
was the first free public library in Massachusetts, if
not in the world. The Boston Free Library was es-
tablished, however, soon afterwards. While a resident
in New Bedford, he was much interested in horticul-
ture, and to obtain the land necessary for carrying out
his ideas he drained and reclaimed several acres of
rocky and swampyjand adjoining his garden. Here
he started a nursery, which he filled with almost every
description of fruit and ornamental trees, shrubs,
flowers, etc. In this he was very successful and took
great pride. He was a regular contributorto the New
England Horticultural Journal, a position he filled
as long as he lived in Massachusetts. As an indica-
tion of the wide reputation he acquired in that field
of labor, it may be mentioned that after his death an
affecting eulogy to his memory was pronounced by the
President of the National Horticultural Society at its
meeting in Philadeliihia, in 1869. During his resi-
dence in New Bedford, Mr. Crapo was also engaged
in the whaling business. A fine barque built at Dart-
mouth, of which he was part owner, was named the
"II. H. Ci'apo" in compliment to him.

Mr. C. also took part in the State Militia, and for
several years held a commission as Colonel of one of
the regiments. He was President of the Bristol
("ounty Mutual Fire Insurance Co., and Secretary of
the Bedford Conmiercial Insurance Company in New
liedford; and while an officer of the municipal gov-
ernment he compiled and published, between the years
1836 and 1845, five numbers of the New Bedford
Directory, the first work of the kind ever pufilished
there.

Mr. C. removed U) Michigan in TS56, having l)een
induced to do so by investments made principally in
pine lands, first in 1S37 and subsecpiently in 1856.
He took up his residence in Ihe <ity nf Flint, and en-

gaged largely in the manufacture and sale of lumber
at Flint, Fentonville, Holly and Detroit, becoming
one of the largest and most successful business men
of the State. He was mainly instrumental in the
construction of the Flint & Holly R. R., and was
President of that corporation 11 mil its consolidation
with the Flint & Pere Marquette R. R. Company.
He was elected .Mayor of that city after he had been
a resident of the place only five or six years. In
1862 he was elected State Senator. In the fall of
r864 he received the nomination on the Republican
ticket for (lovernor of the State, and was elected by a
large majority. He was re-elected in 1866, holding
the office two terms, and retiring in January, i86g,
having given the greatest satisfaction to all parties.

While serving his last term he was attacked with a
disease which terminated his life within one year
afterwards. During much of this time he was an in-
tense sufferer, yet often while in great pam gave his
attention to public matters. .\ few weeks previous
to his death a successful surgical operation was per-
formed which seeined rapidly to restore him, but he
overestimated his strength, and by too much exertion
in business matters and State affairs suffered arelapse
from which there was no rebound, and he died July
33. 1S69.

In the early part of his life, Gov. Crapo affiliated
with the Whig party in politics, but became an active
member of the Republican party after its organization.
He was a member of the Christian (sometimes called
the Disciples') Church, and took great interest in its
welfare and prosperity.

Mr. C. married, June 9, 1825, Mary A. Slocum,
of Dartmouth. His marriage took place soon after
he had attained his majority, and before his struggles
with fortune had been rewarded with any great meas-
ure of success. But his wife was a woman of great
strength of character and possessed of courage, hope-
fulness and devotion, (pialities which sustained and
encouraged her husband in the various pursuits of
his early years. For several years after his marriage
he was engaged in teaching school, his wife living
with her parents at the time, at whose home his two
older children were born. While thus situated he
was accustomed to walk home on Saturday to see
his family, returning on Sunday in order to be ready
for school Monday morning. As tlie walk for a good
part of the time was 20 miles each way, it is evident
that at that period of his life no common obstacles
deterred him from performing what he regarded
as a duty. His wife was none the less consci-
entious in her sphere, and with added responsibilities
and increasing requirements she labored faithfully
in the ]ierfo'-mance of all her duties. They had
ten children, one son and nine daughters. His son,
Hon. Wm. W. Crapo, of New Bedford, is now an
honored Representative to Congress from the First
Congressional District of Massachusetts.

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ENRV P. liALDWIN, Gov-
ernor of Michigan from Tan.
4, 1869,10 Jan. I, 1873, is a
lineal descendant of Nathan-
3» ielBaldwin,a Puritanrof Buck-
inghamsliire, England, who set-
tled at Milford, Conn., in 1639.
His father was John Baldwin,
a graduate of Dartmouth Col-
lege. He died at North Provi-
dence, R. I., in 1826. His
paternal grandfather was Rev.
Moses Baldwin, a graduate of
Princeton College, in 1757, and the
first who received collegiate hon-
ors at that ancient and honored institution. He died
at Parma, Mass., in 1S13, where for more than 50
years he had been [)astor of the Presbyterian Church.
On his mother's side Governor B. is descended from
Robert Williams, also a Puritan, who settled in Ro.x-
bur)', Mass., about 1638. His mother was a daughter
of Rev. Nehemiah Williams, a graduate of Harvard
College, who died at Brimfield, Mass., in 1796, where
for 21 years he was pastor of the Congregationalist
Church. The subject of this sketch was born at
Coventry, R. I., Feb. 22, 1814. He received a New
England common-school education until the age of
12 years, when, both his parents having died, he be-
came a clerk in a mercantile establishment. He re-
mained there, employing his leisure hours in study,
until 20 years of age.

At this early period Mr. B. engaged in business on
his own account. He made a visit to the West, in
1837, which resulted in his removal to Detroit in the
spring of 1838. Here he established a mercantile
house which has been successfully conducted until
the present time. Although he successfully conducted

a large business, he has ever taken a deep interest in
all tilings affecting tlie prosperity of the city and
State of his adoption. He was for several years a
Director and President of the Detroit Young Men's
•Society, an institution with a large library designed
for the benefit of young men and citizens generally.
An Episcopalian in religious behef, he has been
prominent in home matters connected with that de-
nomination. The large and flourishing parish of St.
John, Detroit, originated with (lovernor Baldwin, who
gave the lot on which the parish edifice stands, and
also contributed the larger share of the cost of their
erection. Governor B. was one of the foremost in
the establishment of St. Luke's Hospital, and has
always been a liberal contributor to moral and relig-
ious enterprises whether connected with his own
Church or not. There have been, in fact, but few-
public and social improvements of Detroit during the
past 40 years with which Governor B.'s name is not
in some way connected. He was a director in the
Michigan State Bank until the e.xpiration of its char-
ter, and has been President of the Second National
Bank since its organization.

In 1S60, Mr. Baldwin was elected to the State
Senate, of .Michigan ; during the years of iS6i-'2 he
was made Chairman of the Finance Committee, a
member of Committee on Banks and Incorporations,
Chairman of the Select Joint Committee of the two
Houses for the investigation of the Treasury Depart-
ment and the official acts of llie Treasurer, and of
the letting of the contract for the improvement of
Sault St. Marie Ship Canal. He was first elected
(Governor in 1868 and was re-elected in 1870, serving
from i86g to 1872, inclusive. It is no undeserved
eulogy to say that Governor B.'s happy faculty of es-
timating the necessar}' means to an end — the knowing
of how much effort or attention to bestow upon the
thing in hand, has ijeen the secret of the uniform

'f<^^-^

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"54

HENRY P. BALDWIN.

<^:

success that has attended his efforts in all relations
of life. The same industry and accuracy that dis-
tinguished him prior to this term as Governor was
manifest in his career as the chief magistrate of the
State, and while his influence appears in all things
with which he has had to do, it is more noticeable in
the most prominent position to which he was called.
With rare exceptions the important commendations
of Governor B. received the sanction of the Legislat-
ure. During his administration marked improve-
ments were made in the charitable, penal an4 reforma-
tory institutions of the State. The State Public School
for dependent children was founded and a permanent
commission for the supervision of the several State
institutions. The initiatory steps toward building the
Eastern Asylum fur the Insane, the State House of
Correction, and the establishment of the State Board
of Health were recommended by Governor B. in his
message of 1873. The new Staff Capitol also owes
its origen to him. The appropriation for its erection
was made u]5on his recommendation, and the contract
for the entire work let under this administration.
Governor B. also appointed the commissioners under
whose faithful supervision the building was erected in
a manner most satisfactorj' to the people of the State.
He advised and earnestly urged at different times
such amendments of the constitution as would per-
mit a more equitable compensation to State officers
and judges. Thelaw of 1869, and prior also, permitting
municipalities to vote aid toward the construc-
tion of railro.ads was, in 1S70, declared unconstitu-
tional by the .Supreme Court. Many of the munici-
palities having in the meantime issued and sold their
bonds in good faith, Governor B. felt that the honor
and credit of the State were in jeopardy. His sense
of justice impelled him to call an e.xtra session of the
T^egislature to propose the submission to the peoijle a
constitutional amendment, authorizing the payment
of such bonds as were already in the hands of hona-
fidf holders. In his special message he says : "The
credit of no State stands higher than that of Michigan,
and the people can not afford, and I trust will not
consent, to have her good name tarnished by the repu-
diation of either legal or moral obligations." A spe-
cial session was called in March, 1S72, principally for
the division of the State into congressional districts.
A number of other important suggestions were made,
however, and as an evidence of the Governor's la-
borious and thoughtful care for the financial condition

of the State, a series of tables was prepared and sub-
mitted by him showing, in detail, estimates of receipts,
expenditures and appropriations for the years 1872 to
1 87 8, inclusive. Memorable of Governor B.'s admin-
istration were the devastating fires which swept over
many portions of the Northwest in the fall of 187 i.
A large part of the city of Chicago having been re-
duced to ashes. Governor B. promptly issued a proc-
lamation calling upon the people of Michigan for
liberal aid in behalf of the afflicted city. Scarcely had
this been issued when several counties in his State
were laid waste by the same destroying element.
.\ second call was made asking assistance for the suf-
fering people of Michigan. The contributions for
these objects were prompt and most liberal, more than
$700,000 having been received in money and supplies
for the relief of Michigan alone. So ample were
these contributions during the short period of about
3 inonths, that the Governor issued a proclamation
expressing in behalf of the people of the State grate-
ful acknowldgment, and announcing that further
aid was unnecessary.

Governor B. has traveled extensively in his own
country and has also made several visits to Europe
and other portions of the Old World. He was a pas-
senger on the Steamer Arill, which was captured and
bonded in the Carribean Sea, in December, 1862, by
Capt. Semmes, and wrote a full and interesting ac-
count of the transaction. The following estimate of
Governor B. on his retirement from office, by a leading
newspaper, is not overdrawn: "The retiring message
of Governor B., will be read with interest. It is
a characteristic document and possesses the lucid
statement, strong, and clear practical sense, which
have been marked features of all preceding documents
from the same source. Governor B. retired to private
life after four years of unusually successful adminis-
tration amid plaudits that are universal throughout the
State. For many years eminent and capable men
have filled the executive chair of this State, but in
painstaking vigilance, in stern good sense, in genuine
public spirit, in thorough integrity and in practical
capacity, Henr)' P. Baldwni has shown himself to be
the peer of any or all of them. The State has been un-
usually prosperous during his two terras, and the State
administration has fully kept pace with the needs of
the times. The retiring Governor has fulh' earned
the public gratitude and confidence which he to-day
possesses to such remarkable degree."

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GOVERNORS OF MICHIGAN.

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^r OMM J. BAeiET

Xy\,

OHN JUDSON BAG LEY,
Governor of Michigan from
18-3 to 1877, was born in
Medina, Orleans Co., N. V.,
^ July 24, 1832. His father, John
Bagley, was a native of New
Hampshire, his mother, Mary M.
Bagley, of Connecticut. He at-
tended the district school of Lock-
port, N. Y., until he was eight years
old, at which time his father moved
to Constantine, Mich., and he at-
tended the common schools of that
village. His early experience was
like that of many country boys whose
parents removed from Eastern States
to the newer portion of the AYest.
His father being in very poor circum-
yrri stances, Mr. B. was obliged to work
'i|, as soon as he was able to do so,
pif Leaving school when 13 years of age
S) he entered a country store in Constan-
\ tine as clerk. His father then re-
llf moved to Owosso, Mich., and he agam
j engaged as clerk in a store. From
early youth Mr. B. was extravagantly fond of reading
fg^ and devoted every leisure moment to the perusal of
I such books, papers and periodicals as came within
X. his reach. In r847, he removed to Detroit, where he
/® secured employment in a tobacco manufactory and
^ remained in this position for about five years.
''h) In 1853, he began business for himself in theman-
^ ufacturing of tobacco. His establishment has become

one of the largest of the kind in the West. Mr. B.
has also been greatly interested in other manufactur-
ing enterprises, as well as in mining, banking and in-
surance corporations. He was President of the
Detroit Safe Company for several years. He was one
of the organizers of the Michigan Mutual Life Insur-
ance Company of Detroit, and was its President from
1867 to 1872. He was a director of the Amer-
ican National Bank for many years, and a stock-
holder and director in various other corporations.
Mr. B. was a member of the Board of Education two
years, and of the Detroit Common Council the same
length of ti^ne. In 1S65 he was appointed by Gover-
nor Crapo one of the first commissioners of the
Metropolitian police force of the city of Detroit, serv-
ing six years. In November, 1872, he was elected
Governor of Michigan, and two years later was re-
elected to the same office, retiring in January, 1877.
He was an active worker in the Republican party, and
for many years was Chairman of the Republican
State Central committee.

Governor Bagley was quite liberal in his religious
views and was an attendant of the Unitarian Church.
He aimed to be able to hear and consider any new
thought, from whatever source it may come, but was not
bound by any religious creed or formula. He held
in respect all religious opinions, believing that no one
can be injured by a firm adherence to a faith or de-
nominadon. He was married at Dubuque, Iowa, Jan.
16, 1855, to Frances E. Newberry, daughter of Rev.
Samuel Newberr)', a pioneer missionary of Michigan,
who took an active part in the eariy educational mat-
ters of the State and in the establishment of its ex-
cellent system of education. It was principally

'W^

> 158

JOHJSr J. BAG LEY.

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through his exertions that the State University was
founded. Mr. B.'s family consists of seven children.
As Governor his administration was charac-
terized by several important features, chief among
which were his efforts to improve and make popular
the educational agencies of the State by increasing
the faculty of the University for more thorough in-
struction in technical studies,by strengthening the hold
of the Agricultural College upon the public good will
and making the general change which has manifested
itself in many scattered primary districts. Among
others were an almost complete revolution in the
management of the penal and charitable institutions
of the State; the passage of the liquor-tax law, taking
the place of the dead letter of prohibition; the estab-
lishing of the system of dealing with juvenile offend-
ers through county agents, which has proved of great
good in turning the young back from crime and plac-
ing the State in the attitude of a moral agent ; in se-
curing for the militia .the first time in the histoiy of
Michigan a systematized organization upon a service-
able footing. It was uix)n the suggestion of Gov. B.
in the earlier part of his administration that the law
creating the State Board of Health, and also the law
creating a fish commission in the inland waters of the
State, were passed, both of which have (iroved of great
benefit to the State. The successful representation
of Michigan at the Centennial Exhibition is also an
honorable part of the record of Gov. B.'s adminis-
tration.

As (Governor, he felt that he represented the State
— not in a narrow, egotistical way, but in the same
sense that a faithful, trusted, confidential agent rep-
resents his employer;- and as the Executive of the
State he was her "attorney in fact." And his intelli-
gent, thoughtful care will long continue the pride of
the people he so much loved. He was ambitious —
ambitious for place and power, as every noble mind
is ambitious, because these give opportunity. How-
ever strong the mind and powerful the will, if there
be no ambition, life is a failure. He was not blind to
the fact that the more we have the more is required
of us. He accepted it in its fullest meaning. He
had great hopes for his State and his country. He had
his ideas of what they should be. ^\"ith a heart as
broad as humanity itself; with an intelligent, able and
cultured brain, the will and the power to do, he
asked his fellow citizen to give him the opportunity to
labor for tlieni. Self entered not into the calculation.

His whole life was a battle for others ; and he entered
the conflict eagerly and hopefully.

His State papers were models of compact, busi-
ness-like statements, bold, original, and brimful of
practical suggestions, and his administrations will long
be considered as among the ablest in this or any
other State.

His noble, generous nature made his innuinerable
benefactions a source of continuous pleasure. Liter-
ally, to him it was " more blessed to give than to
receive."

His greatest enjoyment was in witnessing the com-
fort and happiness of others. Not a tithe of his char-
ities were known to his most intimate friends, or even
to his family. Many a needy one has been the recipi-
ent of aid at an opportune moment, who never knew
the hand that gave.

At one time a friend had witnessed his ready re-
sponse to some charitable request, and said to him :
"Governor, you give away a large sum of money ; about
liow much does your charities amount to in a year?"
He turned at once and said: "I do not know, sir; I
do not allow myself to know. I hope I gave more
this year than I did last, and hope I shall give more
next year than 1 have this." This expressed his idea
of charity, that the giving should at all times be free
and spontaneous.

During his leasure hours from early life, and espe-
cially during the last few years, he devoted much time
to becoming acquainted with the best authors. Biog-
raphy was his delight; the last he read was the "Life
and Woik of John Adams," in ten volumes.

In all questions of business or public aflaiis he
seemed to have the power of getting at the kernel of
the nut in the least possible time. In reading he
would spend scarcely more time with a volume than
most persons would devote to a chapter. After what
seemed a cursory glance, he would have all of value
the book contained. Rarely do we see a business
man so familiar with the best English authors. He
was a generous and intelligent patron of the arts, and
his elegant home was a study and a pleasure
to his many friends, who always found there a
hearty welcome. .At Christmas time he would spend
days doing the work of Santa Claus. Every Christmas
eve he gathered his children about him and, taking
the youngest on his lap, told some Christmas stor\',
closing the entertainment with " The Night Before
Christmas," or Dickens's "Christmas Carol."

^■.

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III

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— rr^K

aOVERNORS OF MICHIGAN.

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HARLES M. CROSWELL,

■ ^l Governor of Michigan from

Jan. 3, 1877 to Jan. i, 1881,

was born at Newburg, Orange

County, N. Y., Oct. 31, 1825.

He is the only son of John and

Sallie (Hicks) Croswell. His

father, who was of Scotch-Irish

extraction, was a paper-maker,

and carried on business in New

York City. His ancestors on

M his mother's side were of Knicker-

descent. The Croswell

may be found connected

K\ bocker
family

f^-, with prominent events, in New York
\> and Connecticut, in the early exis-
tence of the Republic. Harry Cros-
well, during the administration of
President Jefferson, published a pa-
per called the Balance, and was
prosecuted for lilielingthe President
under the obnoxious Sedition Law.
He was defended by the celebrated
Alexander Hamilton, and the decis-
ion of the case establised the important ruling that
the truth might be shown in cases of libel. Another
member of the family was Edwin Croswell, the fam-
ous editor of the Albany Argus ; also. Rev. William
rK Croswell, noted as a divine and poet.
^ When Charles M. Croswell was seven years of age,

his father was accidentally drowned in tlie Hudson
River, at Newburg ; and, within three months preced-
ing that event, his mother and only sister had died, —
tluis leaving him the sole surviving member of the
family, without fortune or means. Upon the death

of his father he went to live with an uncle, who, in
1S37, emigrated with him to Adrain, Michigan. At
sixteen years of age, he commenced to learn the car-
penter's trade, and worked at it very diligently for
four years, maintaining himself, and devoting his spare
time to reading and the ac(|uirement of knowledge.
In 1846, he began the study of law, and was ap-
pointed Deputy Clerk of Lenawee County. The du-
ties of this office he performed four years, when he
was elected Register of Deeds, and was re-elected
in 1852. In 1854, betook part in the first movements
lor the formation of the Republican party, and was a
member and Secretary of the convetion held at Jack-
son in that ^ear, which put in the field the first Re-
publican State ticket in Michigan. In 1855, he
formed a law partnership with the present Chief-Jus-
tice Cooley, which continued until the removal of
Judge Cooley to Ann Arbor.

In 1862, Mr. Croswell was appointed City Attorney
of .'Adrian. He was also elected Mayor of the city
in the spring of the same year; and in the fall was
chosen to represent Lenawee County in the State
Senate. He was re-elected to the Senate in 1864,
and again in 1866, during each term filling the posi-
tions above mentioned. Among various reiwrts made
by him, one adverse to the re-establishment of the
death penalty, and another against a proposition to
pay the salaries of State officers and judges in coin,
which then commanded a very large premium, may
be mentioned. He also drafted the act ratifying the
Thirteenth Amendment to the Federal Constitution,
for the abolishment of slavery, it being the first
amendment to the instrument ratified by Michigan.
In 1863, from his seat in the State Senate, he de-
livered an elaborate speech in favor of the Proclama-

Kn<

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^r 162

— --7<>lla>:Dtlv>T:^.;—
c^^7^z^5 M. CRO SWELL.

""25^^^^^

^-j, tion of Emancipation issued by President Lincoln,

'^ and of his general policy in the prosecution of the

war. This, at the request of his Republican associ-

J ates, was afterwards published. In 1867, he was

^ elected a member of the Constitutional Convention,
and chosen its presiding officer. This convention
was composed of an able body of men ; and though,
in the general distrust of constitutional changes
which for some years had been taking possession of
/ the people, their labors were not accepted by the pop-
ular vote, it was always conceded that the constitu-
"^ tion they proposed had been prepared with great care
and skill.

In 1868, Mr. Croswell was chosen an Elector on
the Republican Presidential ticket; in 1872, was
elected a Representative to the State Legislature
from Lenawee County, and was chosen Speaker of
the House of Representatives. At the close of the
session of that body his abilities as a parliamentarian,
and the fairness of his rulings were freely and form-
ally acknowledged by his associates ; and he was pre-
sented with a superb collection of their portraits
handsomely framed. He was, also, for several years,
Secretary of the State Board for the general supervis-
ion of the charitable and penal institutions of Michi-
gan ; in which position, his propositions for the amel-
ioration of the condition of the unfortunate, and the ■
reformation of the criminal classes, signalize the be-
nevolence of his nature, and the practical character
of his mind.

In 1876, the general voice of the Republicans of
the State indicted Mr. Croswell as their choice for
Governor; and, at the State Convention of the party
in August of the same year, he was put in nomination
by acclamation, without the formality of a ballot. Sx
the election in November following, he was chosen to
the high position for whicii he had been nominated,
by a ver>' large majority over all opposing candidates.
His inaugural message was received with general

^ favor; and his career as Governor was marked with
the same ipialities of head and heart that have ever
distinguished him, both as a citizen and statesman.

:<^:

;

Governor Groswell has always prepared his ad-
dresses with care ; and, as his diction is terse, clear,
and strong, without e.xcess of ornament, and his de-
liver}- impressive, he is a popular speaker; and many
of his speeches have attracted favorable comment in
the public prints, and have a permanent value. He
has always manifested a deep interest in educational
matters, and was for years a member and Secretary of
the Board of Education of Adrain. At the formal
opening of the Central School building in that city,
on the 24th day of April, 1869, he gave, in a public
address, an " Historical Sketch of the Adrian Public
Schools."

In his private life. Governor Croswell has been as
exemplary as in his public career he has been suc-
cessful and useful. In February, 1852, he was mar-
ried to a daughter of Morton Eddy, Lucy M. Eddy,
a lady of many amiable and sunny qualities. She
suddenly died, March ig, 186S, leaving two daugh-
ters and a son. Governor Croswell is not a member
of any religious body, but generally attends the Pres-
byterian Church. He pursues the profession of law,
but of late has been occupied mainly in the care of his
own interests, and the quiet duties of advice in
business difficulties, for which Jiis unfailing pru-
dence and sound judgment eminently fit him. Gov-
ernor Croswell is truly popular, not only with those of
like political faith with himself, but with those who
differ from him in this regard.

During Gov. Croswell's administration the public
debt was greatly reduced ; a policy adopted requiring
the State institutions to keej) within the limit of ap-
propriations; laws enacted to provide more effectually
for the punishment of corruption and bribrery in elec-
tions; the State House of Correction at Ionia and the
Eastern Asylum forthe Insane at Pontiac were opened, (*~
and the new capital at Lansing was completed and
occupied. The first act of his second term was to pre-
side at the dedication' of this building The great riot
at Jackson occured during his administration, and it
was only bv his promptness tliat great distruction of
both life and property was prevented at that time.

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GO VERNORS OF MICHIGAN.

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DAVID H. JEROME, Gover-
Sknor of from Jan. i, 1881, to

Jan. I, 1883, was born at De-
troit, Mich., Nov. 17, 1829.
His parents emigrated to
Michigan from Trumansburg,
Tompkins Co., N. Y., in 1828,
locating at Detroit. His father
died March 30, 1831, leaving
nine children. He had been
twice married, and four of the
children living at the time of his
death were grown up sons, the off-
spring of his first union. Of the
five children liy his second marriage, David H. was
the youngest. Shortly after Mr. Jerome's death, his
widow moved back to New York and settled in
Onondaga County near Syracuse, where they remained
until the fall of 1834, the four sons by the first wife
continuing their residence in Michigan. In the fall
of 1834, Mrs. Jerome came once more to Michigan,
locating on a farm in St. Clair County. Here the
Governor formed those habits of industry and ster-
ling integrity that have been so characteristic of the
man in the active duties of life. He was sent to the
district school, and in the acquisition of the funda-
mental branches of learning he displayed a precocity
and an application which won for him the admiration
of his teachers, and always placed him at the head
of his classes. In the meantime he did cliores on
the farm; and was always ready with a cheerful heart
and willing hand to assist his widowed mother. The
heavy labor of the farm was carried on by his two

older brothers, Timothy and George, and when 13
years of age David received his mother's permission to
attend school at the St. Clair Academy. While attend-
ing there he lived with Marcus H. Miles, now de-
ceased, doing chores for his board, and the following
winter performed the same service for James Ogden,
also deceased. The next summer Mrs. Jerome
moved into the village of St. Clair, for the purpose of
continuing her son in school. While attending said
academy one of his associate students was Sena-
tor Thomas W. Palmer, of Detroit, a rival candidate
before the gubernatorial convention in 1880. He
completed his education in the fall of his i6th year,
and the following winter assisted his brother Timothy
in hauling logs in the pine woods. The next stmimer
he rafted logs down the St. Clair River to Algonac.

In 1847, M. H. Miles being Clerk in St. Clair Coun-
ty, and Volney A. Rii)ley Register of Deeds, David
H. Jerome was appointed Deputy to each, remaining
as such during i848-'49, and receiving much praise
from his emisloyers and the people in general for the
ability displayed in the discharge of his duties. He
spent his summer vacation at clerical work on board
the lake vessels.

In 1 849- '50, he abandoned office work, and for the
proper development of his physical system spent
several months hauling logs. In the spring of 1850,
his brother "Tiff" and himself chartered the steamer
"Chautauqua," and "Young Dave" became her mas-
ter. A portion of the season tlie boat was engaged
in the passenger and freight traffic between Port
Huron and Detroit, but during the Litter part was
used as a tow boat. At that time there was a serious
obstruction to navigation, known as the "St. Clair
Flats," between Lakes Huron and Erie, over which

i^\i^m^

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166

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£>J Vin H. JEROME:.

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vessels could carry only about 10,000 bushels of grain.
Mr. Jerome coiiceived the idea of towing vessels
from one lake to the other, and put his plan into
operation. Through the influence of practical men, —
among them the sul.iject of this sketch, — Congress
removed the obstruction above referred to, and now
vessels can pass them laden with 60,000 or 80,000
bushels of grain.

During the season, the two brothers succeeded
in making a neat little sum of money by the sum-
mer's work, but subsequently lost it all on a contract
to raise the "Gen. Scott," a ves'iel that had sunk in
Lake St. Clair. David H. came out free from debt,
but possessed of hardly a dollar of capital. In the
spring of 185 i , he was clerk and actin'?; master of the
steamers "Franklin Moore" and "Ruby," plying be-
tween Detroit and Port Huron and Goderich. The
following year he was clerk of the propeller "Prince-
ton." running between Detroit and Buflalo.

In January, 1853, Mr. Jerome went to California,
by way of the Isthmus, and enjoyed extraordinary
success in selling goods in a new place of his selec-
tion, among the mountains near Marysville He re-
mained there during the summer, and located the
Live Yankee Tunnel Mine, which has since yielded
millions to its owners, and is still a paying investment.
He planned and put a tunnel 600 feet into the mine,
but when the water supply began to fail with the dry
season, sold out his interest. He left in the full of
1S53, and in December sailed from San Francisco for
New York, arriving at his home in St. Clair County,
about a year after his departure. During his absence
his brother "Tiff" had located at Saginaw, ana in
1854 Mr. Jerome joined him in his lumber operations
in the valley. In 1855 the brothers bought Black-
mer & Eaton's hardware and general supply stores,
at Saginaw, and David H. assumed the management
of the business. From 1855 to 1873 he was also ex-
tensively engaged in lumbering operations.

Soon after locating at Saginaw lie was nominated
for Alderman against Stewart P. Williams, a rising
young mail, of strong Democratic principles. The
ward was largely Democratic, Iiut Mr. Jerome was
elected by a handsome majority. When the Repub-
iican party was born at Jackson, Mich., David H.
Jerome was, though not a delegate tothe convention,
one of its "charter members." In 1862, he was com-
missioned by Gov. Austin Blair to raise one of the

six regiments apportioned to the State of Michigah.
Mr. Jerome immediately went to work and held
meetings at various points. The zeal and enthusiasm
displayed by this advocate of the Union awakened a |
feeling of patriotic interest in the breasts of many \^
brave men, and in a short space of time the 23d
Regiment of Michigan Volunteer Infantry was placed
in the field, and subsequently gained for itself a bril-
liant record.

In the fall of 1862, Mr. Jerome was nominated l)y
the Republican party for State Senator from the 26th
district, Appleton Stevens, of Bay City, being his op-
ponent. The contest was very exciting, and resulted
in the triumphant election of Mr. Jerome. He was
twice renominated and elected both times by in-
creased majorities, defeating George Lord, of Bay
City, and Dr. Chesenian, of Gratiot County. On tak-
ing his seat in the Senate, he was appointed Chair-
man of the Committee on State Affairs, and was ac-
tive in raising means and troops to carry on the war.
He held the same position during his three terms of
service, and introduced the bill creating the Soldiers'
Home at Harper Hospital, Detroit.

He was selected by Gov. Crapo as a military aid,
and in 1865 was appointed a member of the State
Military Board, and served as its President for eight
consecutive years. In 1S73, he was apiioinied by
Gov. Bagley a member of the convention to prejiare
a new State Constitution, and was Chairman of the
Committee on Finance.

In 1875, Mr. Jerome was appointed a member of
the Board of Indian Commissioners. In IS76 lie was
Chairman of a commission to visit Chief Joseph, the
Nez Perce Indian, to arrange an amicable settlement
of all existing difficulties. The commission went to
Portland, Oregon, thence to the Blue Hills, in Idaho,
a distance of 600 miles up the Columbia River.

At the Republican State Convention, convened at
Jackson in August, 1S80, Mr. Jerome was placed in
the field for nomination, and on the 5th day of the
month received the highest honor the convention
could confer on any one. His opponent was Freder-
ick M. Holloway, of Hillsdale County, who was su[)-
ported by the Democratic and Greenback parties.
The State was thoroughly canvassed by both parties,
and when the polls were closed on tlie evening of
election day, it was found that David H. Jerome had
been selected l>y the voters of the Wolverine State to
occupy the highest position within their gift.

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GOVERNORS OF MICHIGAN

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fJr JOSIAH W, BEG^Lg, ^,

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^ OSIAH ^V. BEGOLE, the
'a^piesent (1S83), (lovernor of
1^ Michigan was born in Living-
ston, County, N. V., Jan. 20,
1815. His ancestors were of
French descent, and settled at
an early period in the State of
Maryland. Hisgrandfather,Capt.
Bolles, of that State, was an offi-
cer in the American army during
\l the war of the Revolution. About
the beginning of the present cent-
.^■\%\ ury both his grandparents, having
^"^ ' ecome dissatisfied with the insti-

JSp^'i tution of slavery, although slave-
\\\':\> holders themselves, emigrated to
Livingston County, N. Y., then
a new country, taking with them a
number of their former slaves, who
volunteered to accompany them.
His father was an officer in the
American army, and served during
the war of iSi 2.
Mr. B. received his early education in a log school-
house, and subsequently attended tlie Teni[>le Hill
Academy, at Geneseo, N. Y. Being the eldest of a
family of ten children, whose parents were in moder-
ate though comfortable circumstances, he was early
taught habits of industr)', and when 21 years of age,
being ambitious to better his condition in life, he re-
solved to seek his fortune in the far West, as it was

then called. Li August, 1S36, he left the parental
roof to seek a home in tlie Territory of Michigan
then an almost unbroken wilderness. He settled in
Genesee County, and aided with his own hands in
building some of the early residences in what is now
known as the city of Flint. There were but four or
five houses where this flourishing city now stands
when he selected it as his home.

\x\ the spring of 1S39 he married Miss Harriet A.
Miles. The marriage proved a most fortunate one ,
and to the faithful wife of his youth, who lives to en-
joy with him the comforts of an honestly earned com-
[letence, Mr. Begole ascribes largely his success in
life. Immediately after his marriage he commenced
work on an unimproved farm, where, by his perse-
verance and energy, he soon established a good home,
and at the end of eighteen years was the owner of a
well improved farm of five hundred acres.

Mr. Begole being an anti-slavery man, Ijecame a
member of the Republican party at its organization.
He served his townsmen in various offices, and was
in 1856, elected County Treasurer, which office he
held for eight years.

At the breaking out of the Rebellion he did not
carry a musket to the front, but his many friends will
bear witness that he took an active part in recruiting
and furnishing su[)plies for the army, and in looking
after the interests of soldiers' families at home. The
deatli of his eldest son near Atlanta, Ga., by a Confed-
rate bullet, in 1864, was the greatest sorrow of his life.
When a few years Liter lie was a. member in Congress

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JOSIAH W. BEGOLE.

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Gov. Begole voted and worked for the soldiers'
bounty equalization bill, an act doing justice to the
soldier who bore the burden and heat of the day, and
who should fare equally with him who came in at the
eleventh hour. That bill was defeated in the House
on account of the large appropriation that would be
required to pay the same.

In 1870, Gov. Begole was nominated by acclama-
tion for the office of State Senator, and elected by a
large majority. In that body he served on the Com-
mittees of Finance and Railroads, and was Chairman
of the Committee on the Institute for the Deaf and
Dumb and Blind. He took a liberal and public-
spirited view of the importance of a new capitol
building worthy of the State, and was an active mem-
ber of the Committee that drafted the bill for the
same He was a delegate to the National Republi-
can Convention held at Philadelphia in 1872, and
was the chosen member of that delegation to go to
Washington and inform Gen. Grant and Senator
Wilson of their nominations. It was while at that
convention that, by the express wish of his many
friends, he was induced to offer himself a can-
didate for the nomination of member to the 43d Con-
gress, in which he was successful, aftercompetingfor
the nomination with several of the most worthy, able
and experienced men in the Sixth Congressional Dis-
trict, and was elected by a very large majority. In
Congress, he was a member of the Committee on
Agricultural and Public Expenditures. Being one of
the 17 farmers in that Congress, he took an active
part in the Committee of Agriculture, and was ap-
pointed by that committee to draft the most impor-
tant report made by that committee, and upon the
only subject recommended by the President in his
message, which he did and the report was printed in
records of Congress ; he took an efficient though an
unobtrusive part in all its proceedings.

He voted for the currency bill, remonetization of
silver, and other financial measures, many of which,
though defeated then, have since become the settled
policy of the country. Owing to the position which
Mr. Begole occupied on these questions, he became a
"Greenbacker."

In the Gubernatorial election of 1882, Mr. Begole
was the candidate of both the Greenback and Dem-
ocratic parties, and was elected by a vote of 154,269,
the Republican candidate, Hon. David H. Jeroiiie,

receiving 149,697 votes. Mr. Begole, in entering
upon his duties as Governor, has manifested a spirit
that has already won him many friends, and bids fair
to make his administration both successful and pop-
ular.

The very best indications of what a man is, is what
his own townsmen think of him. We give the fol-
lowing extract from the Flint GMi\ the leading Re-
publican paper m Gov. Begole's own county, and it,
too, written during the heat of a political campaign,
which certainly is a flattering testimonial of his ster-
ling worth:

" So far, however, as Mr. Begole, the head of the
ticket, is concerned, there is nothing detrimental to
his character that can be alleged against him. He
has sometimes changed his mind in politics, but for
sincerity of his beliefs and the earnestness of his pur-
pose nobody who knows him entertains a doubt. He
is incapable of bearing malice, even against his bit-
terest political enemies. He has a warm, generous
nature, and a larger, kinder heart does no: beat in
tlie bosom of any man in Michigan. He is not much
given to making speeches, but deeds are more signif-
icant of a man's character than words There are
many scores of men in all parts of the State where
Mr. Begole is acquainted, who have had practical
demonstrations of these facts, and who are liable to
step outside of party lines to show that they do not
forget his kindness, and who, no doubt, wish that he
was a leader in what would not necessarily prove a
forlorn hope. But the Republican party in Michigan
is too strong to be beaten by a combination of Demo-
crats and Gieenbackers, even if it is marshaled by so
good a man as Mr. Begole."

This sketch would be imperfect without referring
to the action of Mr. B. at the time of the great calamity
that in 1881 overtook the people of Northeastern
Michigan, in a few hours desolating whole counties
by fire and destroying the results and accumulations
of such hard work as only falls to the lot of pioneers.
While the Port Huron and Detroit committees were
quarrehng over the distribution of funds, Mr. Begole
wrote to an agent in the "'burnt district " a letter, from
which we make an extract of but a single sentence :
"Until the differences between the two committees
are adjusted and you receive your regular supplies
from them, draw on me. Let no man suffer while I
have money." This displays his true character.

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MECOSTA COUNTY.

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Iji ON. CEYLON C. FULLER,

Judge of the 27th Judicial
1^ Circuit of Michigan, was
lis born at Chardoii, ("leauga
Co., O., June 25, 1832.
Aside from his official em-
r_. ^s'-p' inence, his connection with
the history of Big Rapids and Mecos-
^^Ji>^' ta County "places him pre-eminent
;:p^^q^C among the citizens of both. Afove-
^ii/sS^ over, his stainless record, both in pub-
(pMsq I'c find in private life, his allegiance
, ^*;-?r^ |.Q f],g obligations of his manhood, his
solicitous interests in whatever could
l)ermanently affect the section where
he has established his home and
founded all that must be dearest to him in life, justly
entitle him to a respect commensurate with the posi-
tion he occupies.

It is a striking feature of our American institutions
that what one man accomplishes reflects a luster on
the career of others who serve their generation in other
capacities. So it chances that a man may be rev.ewed
in all his relations without detracting from the worth
of other men, or reflecting upon their achievemen's,
no less meritorious because less prominent in the same
avenue. Representative men are the bulwarks of our

local as well as national structure, and in according
to Judge Fuller the first place in the present work,
its publishers but harmonize with the sentiment of the
community which he so honors and which so hon-
ors him.

He comes of sturdy yeoman ancestry in both Imes
of descent. He is the type of the element which
underlies the true greatness of the British people; no
atroi'hy of aristocracy enfeebles, no taint of supersti-
tion or ignorance poisons the stock of his origin, and
in him are combined the best traits of his progenitors,
fostered under our institutions and developed under
the privileges of our country's dower to the humblest
of her sons — American citizenship.

Judge Fuller is the second son of Edson and Ce-
lira (Canfield) Fuller. The father was born at Caze-
novia, N. Y., in 1809, and died at Des Moines, la.,
April 4, 1879. His ancestors were among the early
English emigrants to this country, bringing here a
name illustrious because unblemished, and which has
been handed down to successive generations untarn-
ished. The record of Edson Fuller is inseparable
from that of Big Rapids and iMecosta County, whither
he brought his family in 1S59, when the now thriving
and beautiful Forest City showed only a nucleus of
three houses and one small saw-mill. He grew to
youth in his native State, and in the dawn of his

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earliest manhood went to Ohio. He was married
there and remained until 1845. In that year he came
to Grand Rapids, Mich., then but the hope and
promise of its present splendid estate. The journey
was accomplished in the manner common to that
period, in a prairie schooner, drawn by an ox team,
the days passing in slow but sure progress toward the
point of destination, the nights in the restful solitude
of the camp. Ten years of untiring energy and
activity at Grand Rapids brought substantial reward,
and in 1855 Mr. Fuller transferred his interests to
Mishawaka, Ind., where, in 1857, the accumulations
of years were swept away in the financial convulsion
which wrecked the hopes and the resources of the
business element of this land. From its foundations
was the structure of fortune once more to be reared,
and Mr. Fuller came to Big Rapids to begin again in
a field that seemed to promise a reasonable degree
of success. He opened the first store in the county.
A description of the miscellaneous character of
the merchandise he offered for sale would be as
interesting as any other possible detail of the pio-
neer history of Big Rapids. The stock was drawn from
Grand Rapids over roads which the record declares
" neither tongue nor pen can describe." The stoie
was located at tlie corner of Elm Street and Michigan
Avenue.

At the close of his commercial affairs, Mr. P'uller
moved to a farm in the townshi]") of Green, where his
family resided until 1S77. In that year they returned
to Big Rapids. In April, 1879, while visiting his eld-
est son at Des Moins, Mr. Fuller died, ripe in years,
leaving a wife and five children, who, individually,
without exception, have sustained his name among
men and glorified his memory in their lives of honor
and usefulness.

The record of Celira (Canfield) Fuller is one that
verifies the law of natural heritage and in the careers
of her four sons and surviving daughter, her womanly
worth and super-eminent intellectual qualities are
perpetuated. Her earliest recorded ancestors were
Huguenots, a fact which largely accounts for much
of her personal annals. Her family name had its
origin in the events which characterized the com-
mingled history of England and France in the 14th
century. A Huguenot family of Normandy, named
Dephilo, received from the British crown a grant of
land lying contiguous to the river Cam in England.
Tlie bestowal was for meri'orious services, and sucli

was the appreciation of the honor bestowed with it
that the event was made memorable by abnegation of
the old family cognomen, and the compounding of a
new one which should perpetuate the memory of the
act of the English Government to the remotest gen-
eration. Cam and Dephilo became Camphield, and
tlie orthography remained unchanged until the death
of Thomas Camphield, in the i6th century, when
the name was spelled Camfield, remaining thus until
1720, when it became Canfield. Matthew Camfield
came from England to New Haven, Ct., in 1 639.
When that province made haste to secure the favor
of the British Government in the early days of the
restored monarchy, the charter which the "scholarly
young VVinslow, the best and truest man" in all her
borders, carried to King Charles, bore the name ot
"Matthew Camfield" as one of the petitioners for a
royal patent. Winthrop's tact and sagacity secured
for the colony "the most liberal and ample" charter
ever granted by an English monarch, and upon the
people of Connecticut was conferred power to govern
themselves and this without qualification or restric-
tion. Under the provisions of this charter "Gold, Sher-
man and Camfield" were appointed judges and vested
with power to hold court at Fairfield, opening April
1,1669. Mr. Camfield afterward went with part of
his family to Newark, N. J., where he died and where
liis name is perpetuated by numerous descendants.
The distinction of his name and position is also
marked by the fact that his son Samuel (ist) was a
member of the General Assembly of Connecticut in
1 669. Samuel Camfield (2d) was born at Norwalk,
Ct., in 1672, and ma.ried Abigail Austin, of Stamford,
Ct., Aug. I, 1709. Samuel Camfield (3d) was born
June 4, 17 10, at New Marlborough, Mass. His estate
is yet in the possession of his descendants. Thomas
Canfield, son of the last named, was born at New
Marlborough, and married a lady named Burr. Oliver
Canfield, son of Thomas, married Sally Sherman in
1782, and of tliis marriage was born at Tyringham'
Mass., July 7, 1810, Celira, the mother of Judge
Fuller.

Her father died when she was in infancy, and her
mother remarried and went to Chardon, Geauga Co.,
O., wheie she grew to womanhood. She married
Edson Fuller, Feb. 4, 1 830. Her home in Ohio was
with that of the pioneer element, and she had but little
technical education, as she had tire advantage of but
ten weeks of scliool in her life. But she was ever a

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MECOSTA COUNTY.

179

student The profession of medicine afforded deep
interest to her alert mental organization and within
her scope she pursued its practice both in Indiana
and at Big Rapids, being signally successful in her
efforts to alleviate suffering and baffle disease. She
was ever prominent in educational, moral and religious
movements. In 1850, '51 and '52 she was in charge
of the primary department of the union school
at Grand Rapids, Mich. She organized the first
Sunday-school at Big Rapids, whose sessions were
held in the old red school-house. In moral avenues
her influence was sensibly felt among the pioneers
of the village and vicinity and extended through the
later years of her life, when Big Rapids had become
a city incorporate, and her population had increased
to thousands.

In 1873-4 she experienced a severe attack of ery-
sipelas and vacillated for weeks between life and
death. On her recovery she reviewed her situation
while suffering under her terrible affliction, express
ing her views in metrical language with vivid power
and beauty. It is as follows :

"irciivv, ;inil hinivicr ^X\\\ lit'i-'s l)in-(lcii i;i-c
I'ntil at last my weary fci't r<'t'us(Ml
To bear nie, ami I laid me down in p.-iiii.
So nt'iir the brink of the ilark mystic tido
That, as the surging waves ruslied nuidly by,
Tliey dashed their iey spraj- full in my faee;
And my swollen features, soon so loatlisonie g
That even tin' eye nf love must turn away.
Eartlfs ligbt went out. and njiilninbl daikuessre
Wliib' li(|nid tire seenieil lonrsiiig tbroughmy
A deatli-like eliilln(>ss tortured aH my l)ones.
Fire and iee, eonten<ling tVu-the vietory.
Filled my whole frame with mortal agony.
I prayed tor jjatienee to endiu'e, and soon
I tliought 1 heard beyonil the roaring flooil
A voice say, "< 'onn- and enter into rest."
A nmmentary fear came over me.
And tremlilingly 1 asked, Is this the way?
'J'liis awful door of tortm-e must 1 jjass,
To reacli my home upon the other shore?
I had for years felt sure that I eould nu-et
The last great Enemy, with trusting faith
In Him, who met the tyrant of the raee,
And all his hosts, in his own dark domain.
He seemed a captive.

All the powers of Ilell
Reveled in one mad carnival, until tlie hour
Apiiiunted for the vicfry. Then behold.'
The gates (if adamant, the bolted doors
Of Death's dread pi'isoii ojien, and a king!
A eon(|neror| (Jloriously triumphant
O'er the vaminislied hosts of death and hell,
The Christian's Lonl. the chosen Son of God.
Conies foi'th in majesty from the dark tomb,
■Widconu'd by all the retinue of Heaven.
With living taith in his victorioirs jjower,
I would serenely liid my friends adieu.
And leave my precious children in his care:

" .

igned
veins.

And while I clasped their loving hands in mine
I'd bid them meet me in my father's house:
But to go out in such shai-ji agon>-.
That all my words were broken into groans
Caused lieart and llesh for one brief hour to fail.
Then I remembered how this mighty i)rince.
'J'bough now by angels crowned, once jirayeil alone.
In suidi cleej) sorrow that great crimson dro[is
Fell (HI the gar<len sod. His friends asleep!
Three times tliat ]ileading voice went up to heaven
"If it be possible, let this eup pass,"'
Then meekly said, "Thy w ill, not mine, be done."
All fear was gone, and my glail lu'art set u])
The full resjyonse, "Thy will, not mine, be done."
Faith triinuphed, and uiy soul was filled withi)eace.
The deeji. dark tlooil tlnit tilled nu> with such dread
Was (piiet now. and seenii'd so narrow, too.
That 1 could almost reai'li the hands of those
Who beckoned to me tVoin the other shore.
While waiting, thus willing to cross the stream.
A ray of earthly light came to my eyes
Faint as the starlight at the nmriiing dawn.
But still enough to show what seemed to me
In the uncertain light, a giiard of men
Stamliiig beside my bed.'' I lieard the names
Of baby boys. whi> long, long years ago
Had lain upon my breast, and heard these men
(iive answer to these names : and fheu I knew
They were my boys.miw wearing maidiood's crown.
A whis])er breathed on the electl-ic cord
Keaehed the far west where dwelt my eldest son.
And he, too. stood beside his brother's here.
-Ml band in hand, guarding their mother's life;
.\iid girls. — well, call them WdUK'U if ycm will.
Who « alk life's tiulsoiin' jnnruey with' my boys.
\Vere there with loving hearts, faitlifnl and true.
When the tierce fever i)urned, soft hands w<'re laid
I'poii my forehead: tingers, soft and cool
As rose leaves spriid<led with th<' dew of .tune,
. Were on my throbbing temples geiUly pressed.
And to my weary senses brought relief:
Anil one whose earliest life was drawn trom mine,
Wliose veins were tilled w ith the same pmjile tide
That warms my own, stayed by me during days
Of lingering, painfid, convalescence.
And by her watchful care, cheered tlie <lark way
Through which my feeble and mirestful feet
Must walk a little wliile, — Cod knows how long.
He also knows that with a griiteful heart
I ble.ss His holy name for the rich gift.
The priceless treasure of my childi-en's love.

And so I take again the liurden of my lite.
With stronger faith in Ilim who knows n'ly heart
Faith that can trust, in dai-knes> as in liglit.
Faith that can claim the promises He made
To his disciples.

And wlien the thick darkness
(iathers round my ^\ay, I w ill remember
That He said to all the heavy laden.
"Come imto me and I \\\\\ give you rest."

Her religious ideas were in keeping with the sim"
plicity and majesty of the Center of the New Testa-
ment, and she fashioned them into articles for the
press, which were fraught with her own ardor and
strength. After the death of her husband she re-
sided with her children. In November, 1882, she
went to Des Moines to pass the remainder of her '

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S^ life, and during its closing months her intellectual ac-
-•^ tivity seemed to culminate. She commenced the
preparation of a series of lay sermons for the Newaygo
Tribune, the first of which reached its jniblishers
July 9, 1883, and appeared July 25, in the same
issue which contained the notice of her death. Tliat
event occurred July 12, three days after her communi-
cation reached its destination. Her five surviving
children watched the closing hours of her life and
[ilaced her in her pale sleep hy the husband at whose
side she walked in wifely dignity, in maternal beauty,
in Christian consistency, for nearly half a century.
In her children her earthly record yet lives; her sons
are all in honorable walks of life, and her daughter,
Mrs. Elma L. Hutchinson, of Des Moines, is a physi-
cian in regular practice and standing, representing the
one idiosyncrasy of the mother, as the sons typify the
race from which she sprung in sterling merit, honor-
able record and infle.xible courage. Corydon E.
Fuller, eldest son, resides at Des Moines, la., and has
held his present responsible incumbency of Treas-
urer of the Iowa Loan & Trust Company 12 years.
William D. Fuller, resident at Newaygo, editor and
proprietor of the Newaygo Tribune, is State Swamp
Land Commissioner and Chairman of the Greenback
State Committee. Orrin T. Fuller, resident at
Des Moines, la., is the Interest Clerk in the office of
) the Iowa Loan (S: Trust Company. Ellen J. M.
Fuller died at Grand Rapids in 1850, aged 3i.\teen.
In her memory, parents, brothers and sister kept
youth alive, and the oldest and youngest await the
restoration of the household liand in its entirety in
the realms of perpetual morning.

Judge Fuller was in his thirteenth year when his
parents went to Grand Rapids, and he attended the
union school there until he was 18 years old, when
he was sent to Hiram College, where James A. Gar-
field was then a student. Between the two boys of
18 and 19 years, a warm regard ensued which never
abated. They were room-mates at Hiram, and when
the chief honor in the Nation's gift was laid at the feet
(q\ of him whose tragic fate and heroic endurance chal-
I lenged the awe and admiration of the world. Judge
jj^ Fuller hastened to offer his congratulations, and, true
i/|) to the instincts which molded his matchless nian-
^ hood. General Garfield found time, in the midst of
(1j) the haste and clamor of the opening campaign, to
^ write a letter to his boyhood's friend, characteristic

in its kindly and grateful remembrance of him.

Judge Fuller left Hiram and returned to Grand
Rapids. He established himself in mercantile inter-
ests with Daniel McConnell, A. G. Smith and Wm.
H. McConnell, under the firm style of C. C. Fuller
& Co. This connection was of brief duration, Judge
Fuller selling out his claim. In the fall of 1856 he
went to McGregor, la., organized a company and em-
barked in the business of tanning leather, operating
with the Daniels patent process. Of this concern
Judge Fuller was treasurer and manager, but he
closed his relations with it not long after its establish-
ment and purchased a half interest in the Nortli
Iowa Times, a sheet of rank Democratic tendencies ;
but, notwithstanding the variance between the prin-
ciples of its proprietors, the journal was conducted
with marked harmony and success. In 1858 he re-
turned to Grand Rapids and in the winter of 1858-9
once more cast his hopes upon the tide of com-
mercial life, forming a partnership with O. R.
Wilmarth. In the fall of 1859 he decided in
a change in his purposes, and sold his busi-
ness interests to enter upon his preparation for the
profession of law. He read under the supervision of
Messrs. Ashley & Miller, of Grand Rapids, and in
June, i860, was admitted to the bar.

In May, i860, he established his home at Big
Rapids, where his personal e.xperience forms a link
in the pioneer history of the place, which contained
then five houses, scattered among the trees of the
forest. Judge Fuller bought a tract of land contain-
ing four lots lying (now) on the corner of Linden
Street and Michigan Avenue, and covered with tim-
ber. With his own hands he cleared the land and
laid the foundation walls of his residence, the first
stone work laid in mortar in the village, said mortar
being made from the first lime burned in the county,
and which was bought from the producer, John
Snyder, of Green Tp. He assisted personally in the
erection of the building until its completion.

Judge Fuller's public life commenced in the fall of
tlie same year. He was elected Court Commissioner
and held the office until 1868. He was also ap-
pointed Postmaster, in which capacity he acted un-
til his removal in 1866, which was effected by .\ndrew
Johnson for political purposes. In the fall of 1862,
he was elected Prosecuting Attorney of Mecosta
County and officiated two years. He was elected
Judge of Probate in 1864 and acted in that capacity

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ffour years. In 1868 he was elected to the State
Legislature, and was a member of the Committees on
.CK; Railroads and Engrossing and Enrolling. He intro-

Jditced several impoitant local bills, also a bill to pro-
vide for registration of electors in new townships.

While the county was yet new, Judge Fuller
bought 240 acres of land in the south part of the
Fourth Ward of the city of Big Rapids, 40 acres of
which was platted as Fuller's Addition. He is still
the owner of three acres, besides a number of city lots
and a splendid residence. In 1873, associated with
L. H. Green, he built the Opera block. The mone-
tary crisis and shrinkage of values of that year over-
whelmed the business interests of Big Rapids, the
individual loss of Judge Fuller being about $40,000.

Judge Fuller is a Republican of no uncertain ten-
dency, but his character and record have preserved
his popularity with all classes regardless of party is-
sues. His position before the people is evinced by
the fact of his being successively elected to the best
official positions. He was elected to his present po-
sition as Judge of the Twenty-seventh Judicial Circuil
in 1882, running against George Luton, of Newaygo,
and receiving a majority of 65 i votes. He is the first
incumbent of the position after the formation of the
Circuit by the Legislature of Michigan.

Judge Fuller was married at Davenport, Iowa,
ij Nov. 9, 1858,10 Frank A., daughter of John Mor-
rison, an early settler of that city. She was born
Aug. 31, 1838, at Gallipolis, Ohio. Of this marriage
were born, at Big Rapids, seven children, six sons and
a daughter. Louis M. was born April 24, 1S61, and
is telegraph operator and ticket agent in the Big
Rapids office of the G. R. & I. R. R. Herbeit C
is a telegraph operator, and was born Jan. 24, 1863.
Percy H. was born Feb. 17, 1866, and died Aug. 12^
1868; John E. was born Jan. 2, 1868; Ben H., Feb.
27, 1870; Frank M., Jan. 3, 1872; Daisy A., born
Nov. 12, 1872. For the life given a life was taken,
the mother passing to the spirit world Nov. i 2, 187 2.
The lonely little one soon sought the maternal pres-
W^ ence, winging her flight to heaven Aug. 4, 1873.
i Judge Fuller was a second time married, at Ypsi-

flanti, Mich., Jan. 5, 1876, to Sarah E., daughter of
Isaac H. and Eliza E. Voorhies. She was born at
^ Trumansburg, Tompkins Co., N. Y., Aug, 2, 1849.
''^ Two sons, Charles E., born April 26, 1877, and Leslie
^ L., April 14, 1879, have been born of this marriage.

eorge Risbridger, farmer, sec 1, Deerfield
WM[ Tp., P. O. Altona, was bora in England
f^ May 19, 1823. His parents, Isaac and
fl^W^Ann (Ridley) Risbridger, were natives of Eng-
land and lived and died in their native country.
Mr. Risbridger had his contest to make in
the world single-handed and alone, and his early life
in his native land was passed as a farmer. He came
to America in 1850 when 27 years of age, reaching
New York in the month of May. He went thence
to Portage Co, Ohio, and was there engaged durirg
three years in the manufacture of pota'^h and pearl-
ash. He next came to Kalamazoo Co., Mich., re-
moving a year later to Barry County. There he
bought 80 acres of unimproved land, built a house
and cleared 70 acres, setting out an orchard of 150
trees. After a residence of 15 years he sold his place
and bought 200 acres of well improved land in Bed-
ford, Calhoun County, where he resided 13 years. ^
Again disposing of his place, he came to Mecosta 1^
County and bought 40 acres of partially improved ^
land, where he has since resided. ^.^

. Mr. Risbridger was married March 2, 1850, in Eng-
land, to Sabina, daughter of George and Hannah.
Eager, also natives of England. She was born Dec
30, 1832, and died in Deerfield, July r2, 1883, leav-
ing seven of ten children born of her marriage to Mr.
Risbridger. Following is a record of their births:
George I , Dec. 30, 1854; Hannah M., Oct. 24, 1857;
Byron P., Aug. 29, 1859; Ida O., Dec. 4, 1863;
Francis H., Oct. 23, 1865; Charles J., Dec. 2, 1867 ;
Mary S., Feb. 2, 1869. Fanny, born March ig, 1851,
died Sept. 4, 1853; Henry, born Nov. 23, 1852, died
Sept. TO, 1853; Wm. W., l.iorn Aug. i, i86r, died
Oct. 27, 1863.

Mr. Risbridger has been actively interested in edu-
cational matters for many years. He is a voracious
reader; conversant with the affairs of the day and,
mindful of all the circumstances which surrounded
and b.'iffled his ambitions in his native land, has ever
been ready to lend his aid and influence to all re-
formatory measures which promised to correct popu-
lar evils and improve social grades. In politics he
acts independently ; is a prohibitionist in principle
and believes in the education of the masses as.a safe-

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MECOS TA CO UNT Y.

guard of the Ijest interests of the future. He early
identified himself with the Grange movement, and
himself and wife, who co-operated with him in his
views and efforts, were charter members of Bedford
Grange, No. 65, P of H., located in Calhoun County.
They were also charter members of Pomona Grange,
P. of H., in Calhoun County, and Mr. R. is still active
in its interests. He was one of the founders of a co-
operative store at Battle Creek and is one of its stock-
holders. Both himself and wife were zealous mem-
bers of the M. E. Church, in which he has been a
Class-leader eight years.

'yron H. Boyd, farmer, sec. 33, Deer-
Id Tp., was born in AHeglieny Co., Pa.,
Nj;Vi>-j;^ April 28, 1835. He is a third child of
^? John and Caroline (Bathah) Boyd, both na-
''.^ tivesof New York. His father was a lumber-
i'^ man and farmer, and in 1S49 went to Tioga Co.,
Penn., where he followed the same pursuits. He
died in Andover, x\llegheny Co.; the mother died
July 13, 1855, in Pennsylvania.

Mr Boyd was 14 years of age when he went to the
Keystone State with his parents, and with whom he
remained until he was 22 years old. His first labor
on his own account was as a day hand in a saw-mill,
and again at Williamsiiort in the same cai)acity. In
t865 he was engaged in reconstructing bridges in the
town which were washed out by the flood ot that year.
In 1866 he came to Deerfield and bought 80 acres of
land on sec. 33, where he proceeded to clear the forest
"^ preparatory to establishing a home. He obtained the
land for $3.00 per acre, the best timljer being re-
served. Mr. Jioyd has added to his original tract by
purchase until he now owns 160 acres on the same
section, 80 acres (about 37 of wliicli is swamp land)
on sec. 29 and 240 on sec. 22. The swamp land is
well stocked with hemlock, cedar and black ash
timber.

Mr. Boyd was married July 13, 1855, to Hannah

,.y A. Dickens, daughter of Alva and Lucy Minerva

^ (Campbell) Dickens, born Dec. 29, 1836, in Tioga Co.,

(S) Penn. The father of Mrs. Boyd was born in Rhode

T" Island, the mother in Pennsylvania. The former

died in April, 1863 ; the latter May 18, 1883. Seven
of the children of Mr. and Mrs. Boyd are living:
James C, Robert P., Addie V., Fred C, Alma. M.,
Emma J. and Francis H. Anna Belle is deceased.
Mr. Boyd is active in the interests of the Republi-
can party and was a member of the State Republican
Convention in 1881. He has held all the important
township offices. In religion he is a liberalist.

■•''°^^f ndrew Breakley, farmer, on sec. ti,Hin-
j[ ton Tp., P. O., Altona, was born at Roches-

PP°^ ter, N. Y., Nov. 23, 1844. His parents,
!)|!}ff xAndrew and Catharine (Crass) Breakley, were
W" natives respectively of Ireland and Canada
j and removed to New Y'ork prior to their mar-
riage, which took place in that city. Three years
after, Andrew Breakley, Sr., moved with his family to
the city of Rochester, N. Y., where he was employed
by the contractors of the Erie Canal as a stone
mason. Mr. Breakley, Sr., was em[iloyed in his native
country in peddling dry goods and linens and early
in his life was a companion of \. T. Stewart. Him-
self and wife died at Rochester.

Until he was 16 years of age, the subject of this
sketch attended the public schools of Rochester.
He liegan to prepare for the business of a boat-calker
and was so employed three years. The work was so
severe and the manager so exacting that the proprie-
tor himself remarked that ''that fellow would not stay
a week;' but he persisted and managed to accomplish
his business to the entire satisfaction of the parties
interested. In 1861 he went to Canada on a visit>
but concluded to remain there and was in the em-
jiloy of his brother-in-law for nearly four years. He
visited the city of New York and his old home at
Rochester, and in the summer of 1866 came to Me-
costa, Mich., and bought 40 acres of unimproved land
in Hinton Tp., where he built a log house and began
his career as a pioneer. Later on he added 40 acres
to his original purchase and now owns a fine farm
of 80 acres, with 50 acres under first-class improve-
ments. He also owns 40 acres in Millbrook Tp.

Mr, Breakley has been Constable of Hinton Tp.

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for nine years, School Inspector two years, Highway
Commissioner two years, Town Treasurer two years,
and in the spring of 1880 was elected Justice of the
Peace, and Supervisor in the spring of 1885, of whicli
positions lie is the [iresent incumbent. He has been
School Director six years, and is identified with tlie
issues and interests of the Democratic party; him-
self and wife were formerly communicants of the
English Church.

Mr. Breakley was married in Canada, July 19,
1864, to Matilda, fourth daughter of James N. and
Catherine (Flannagan) Decler. The father was a
native of the State of New York, the mother of
Canada, and are now residents of Hinton Tp. Mr. and
Mrs. Breakley have had six children — James G, Ijorn
Nov. 28, 1S67 ; Andrew N, July 15, 1872; Edward
and Edwin (twins), July 15, 1874; Nellie, Jan. 5,
1880. Ella was born Aug. 9, 1869, and died Oct. 11,
1S70.

^"?-ohn E. Kirvan, farmer, sec. 34, Morton T[

P. O., Sylvester, was born in Cray Co.,
,(-4- Province of ( )ntario. Can., Aug. 3, 1862.
He is a son of Elias and Jane Ann (Breakey)
Kirvan. His paternal grandfather was a pioneer
of the Dominion, and settled 80 miles from the
nearest point of supplies, having to travel that
distance in an Indian canoe for necessaries for the
family use. The father of Mr. Kirvan was one of
1 1 children, five boys and six girls. He came to
Michigan in 1870, bought 160 acres of land and en-
gaged in the duties of farming. He sold 80 acres
and cleared 60 acres of the remainder. He died
Feb. r8, 1879, all his responsibilities devolving on the
son. Since the father's death the latter has built a
new house and [mt all the buildings on the place in
thorough repair. The farm lies three miles from
Sylvester, which, when the family came here, was the
nearest point of neighbors and civilization. The
mother is still living in firm health and with unim-
paired intellectual powers.

Mr. Kirvan is still a young man, but the energy and
good judgment he displays in the management of his

affairs promises extended success in the avenues he
has already made prosperous.

He was married Dec. 24, 1882, to Minnie Adams, *^v»
of Hinton Tp. Her father is a man of good stand-
ing, and has served his people in several official ca- yS)
pacities.

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ohn O'Neil, farmer on seclion 35, Deer-
field Tp., was born in Ireland, June 10,
•y ■ 1828. His parents, Patrick and Jane
r^i};, (Garner) O'Neil, were natives of WicklowCc,
% Ireland, and emigrated to Canada, where they

are still living, in advanced age.

Mr. O'Neil was 18 years of age when he accom-
panied his parents to Canada. He was a resident
of the Dominion about 15 years and came to Shia-
wassee Co., Mich., buying 40 acres of land, which he
afterwards sold, and after a year's labor as a farm
hand he again bought another farm, of which he dis-
posed and came to Mecosta Co., and bought 80 acres
_of unimproved land in Deerfield Pp., wherehe now re-
sides ; he has 50 acres under the [)low. Mr. O'Neil
is independent in political action and, with his family
lielongs to the Catholic t^luirch.

He was married in 1851 to Mary, daughier of
James and Mary Martin. 'I'hey have had nine chil-
ren, five of whom are now li\'ing : Patrick, [ames,
John, Michael and Jane; those deceasetl were Mary,
\\'illiam, Margaret and Ambrose.

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avid Quigley is a farmer in sec. 4, Deer-
field 'Pi) ; P. O. Morley. His jiarents,
George and Jane Quigley, were natives re-
^KT- spectively of New York and Wales. They
Were married in the Dominion of Canada and re-
moved thence to Newaygo Co., Mich., in 1854.
After a brief residence there they came to Mecosta
Co., and located on sec. 4 of Deerfield Tp. They
were the first white settlers of town 13 north, of range

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9 west, now Deerfield, and there took up their resi-
dence in 1S59. James (^'lig'ey, brother of David,
was born in 1859, and was the lirst white
child whose birih occurred in Deerfield. (ieorge
Quigley was acting Justice of the I'eace and
performed the first marriage ceremony in the town-
shi[) in December, 1862 The contracting parties
were Isaac Sedore and Elizabeth Smith. Mr. Qnigley
afterwards went to Montcalm County, where he now
lives.

David Quigley was born in Canada, Feb. 22, 1850,
and came to Michigan with his parents when four
years of age. His early life was passed amid the
pioneer scenes of this section of the Peninsular -State.
He has spent all his life on a farm. At the age of 23
he bought, in Deerfield Tp., 58 acres of land, with
some improvements, .but took possession in 1876 and
was there resident until 1883, when he rented a farm
containing 60 acres.

He was married in Montcalm Co., in the winter of
1875, to Lavina, daughter of Robert and Jane Pixley.
They have two childien : liertie, born July 31, 1877,
and Earl R., Sept. 18, 1882. The parents of Mrs.
Quigley were both born in New York. Mr. Quigley
is a Republican; himself and wife are members of
the Methodist Church.

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pohn G. Martz, Jr., president of the Big
I'C Rapids Manufacturing Company, was born
JS^F^ at Newviile, Adams Co., Ind., June 26,
1848. His father was a native of Baden, Cer-
'i^ many, and his mother, Mary (Sauer) Martz,
'"i was born in Switzerland. They accoin[)anied
their parents from the "fatherland" to America
and settled with a German colony in Adams County,
at a date so early that the primeval forests, with their
i:oncomitants of wild game, were in their original
state.

Mr. Martz is one of a I'amily of eleven children,
ten of whom yet survive; the brothers and sisters
are Annie, Benjamin, David, Cliristian, Mary, Daniel,
Katie E., Susan and Sarah. Edward C. is deceased.

John G is second child and eldest son. When about
three years of age his father removed witli his family
to Fairfield Center, DeKalb Co , Ind., and purchased
a farm containing about 600 acres of land, in an un-
cultivated state, and in heavy timber. It has been
converted into one of the finest places in that section
of country.

Mr. Martz obtained his elementary education at
the common schools of DeKalb County, and at the
age of 14 was sent for a year of study to the graded
school of Fort Wayne. After a year at home he
went back to Fort Wayne and became a clerk in a
grocery and provi^,ion store, where he remained a
twelve-month and returned to the farm. In 1870 he
came to Big Rapids and entered the establishment of
Thos. I). Stimson as clerk, and the following summer
assisted his brother-in-law, F. E. Ahrens, (since de-
ceased) in erecting the Big Rapids Furniture build-
ing. In 1 87 2 a htock company was organized, under
the title and style of the Big Rapids Furniture
Manufacturing Company, which purchased the fac-
tory '['he ■iame year Mr. Martz bought a lot on
Michigan Avenue and aided in putting up a building,
which was rented to A. Levi. The latter opened a
gentleman's furnishing store, and three da) s later the
structure was blown down by the wind, entailing a
loss of $1,000. It was immediately reconstructed
and has since been occui}ied by its primal lessee, Mr.
Levi.

In 1873 Mr. Martz commenced business as a retail
furniture dealer on Michigan Avenue, where he oper-
ated until the fall of 1874, when he bouglit his pres-
ent place of business. At the same time he formed
a co-partnership with H i\I. Averill and added up-
holstering. Soon after he became sole owner by pur-
chase and later sold his entire stock. He made a
considerable investment in the stock of the Big Rap-
ids Furniture Manufacturing Company, and in the
spring of 1876 o|)ened a ijakery, which is the leading
institution of the kind in the city. In 1880, Mr.
Martz became a Director of the Furniture Company,
was elected Vice President in 1882, and in the spring
of 1882 was chosen to liis present position as chiel
official. He is also a Director of the Big Rai)ids
National liank. Prosperity has attended every busi-
ness venture of Mr. Martz. The various periods of
stringency in general financial affairs have affected
him to some degree, but by shrewd tact and careful

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management through times of peril, he has been
enabled to conduct his affairs safely.

He was married in Ottawa Co., Mich., May 10,
1876, to Mary Faling; she died in October, 1S78.
Mr. Martz was again married, at Auburn, Ind., Sejit.
I, 18S0, to Elizabeth Mader. Their two sons are
named J- ^V'., Theodore, and John Arthur.

■4t-/£/fc eneral Stephen Bronson, IMavor of Bis
'mMM, Rapids, (1883) is the son of Stephen and

,,^F^^ Polly (Page) Bronson, and was born in
i^^\ Broome Co., N. v., Aug. 3, 1817. He was an
ambitious, active boy, eager to Join in the
world's pursuits, and seek advancement througl;
his own efforts. He was reared as a farmer's son
and gave some attention to carpentry. At the age
of sixteen he was sent to the Oxford Academy, near
his home, and after two years study went to Mon-
trose, Susquehannah Co., Penn., and taught a term of
school, and the following winter was similarly engaged
at home. In 1840 the family removed to DuPage
Co., 111., (Naperville), where both father and son
bought farms, that of the latter including 150
acres of land. The ne.xt ten years he passed in the
varied pursuits of farming, teaching and working as
a builder. He sold his farm and went to Chicago,
engaging in mercantile affairs, banking and real es-
tate for a period of twelve years and was rewarded
for his efforts by a satisfactory degree of profit.

He next went to St. Paul, Minn., where he was in-
terested in the lumber trade. At the end of a year
he sold his mill there and in r859, in company with
several others, he crossed the plains of Colorado and
took up a mining claim at (now) Central City; he also
staked a claim in the "Gregory"' and. sold two weeks
later for $10,000. He then went to Golden City,
where he engaged one summer in lumbering He
returned to Illinois for the winter and went back to
Denver in the spring with Joseph Chadwick. They
erected a large store building during the summer, and
returned to Illinois in the fall. The following spring
they sold their store located at Denver and also some

mining claims, when they took a finalleave of
Colorado.

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\\\ the fall of i86i,\vhen the tide of war and dis-
union swept the country, Mr. Brorson enlisted as a
private in Company C, 12th Illinois Cavalry, serving
in that capacity until Feb. 28, 1862, when he was
commissioned Captain and went into active service
at the front. He was promoted to the rank of
Major, holding his post until the mustering out of the
regiment in the winter of 1863. He at once pro-
ceeded to raise another com|iany and was elected
Captain of Company F, 141st Illinois Volunteer In-
fantry. The regiment rendezvoused at Elgin, 111, and
Captain Bronson was appointed Colonel by Gov. Yates.
After a service of 100 days he returned to Chicago
and was murtered out. He proceeded to organize the
153rd 111. Vol. Inf, and was soon after appointed Bre-
vet Brigadier General by President Lincoln. His ap-
pointment was confirmed by the Senate and he was
assigned to the command of the First Brigade of
the Division of Western Tennessee, with head-cpiar-
ters at Memphis, and was in active service until the
close of the war. He was mastered out Oct. i, 1865,
at Springfield, III., after about four and a half years
of service. He was in action at Harper's Ferry,
Antietam, Gettysburg, Chancelloisville, Dumfries
*id a large number of other engagements. During
this period of service he received five commissions.

On leaving the United States service he wag the re-
cipient of many flattering proofs of appreciation from
the Department and his fellow officers. General
Oglesby, of Illinois, made a personal appeal to the
President for a lucrative and responsible position for
meritorious service, but General Bronson made no
])ersonal exertion to secure any place at the hands of
the already overburdened and struggling Government.

.\fter the war closed he went to Texas and bought
a large herd of beef cattle, which were driven to the
Chicago market and it proved a profitable venture. In
the spring of 1867 he came to Big Rapids, and, in
partnership with Sumner Stickney, established exten-
sive business interests, including trade in lumber and
real estate and banking oi)erations. Their invest- i
ments were profitaljle and their affairs in promising ^''
condition when the financial disturbance of 1873 W.
overwhelmed them and their property sunk to a ^^
minimum value. Aljout the same time their saw- @j
mill was destroyed by fire and Mr. Bronson proceeded ^

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lo begin at the foundation once more. His early ex-
perience as a carpenter became his best working
capital, and with the assistance of a boy he rebuilt
the mill of Bronson & Stickney, and they proceeded
with thfir lumber business. Ai>out one and a half
years after ihey lost their dam by a "wash out," sold
their site and built where they are now operating,
putting in steam power.

(}en. IJronson, in addition to his other public rela-
tions, has been active in political life. In Colorado,
in 1859, lie was elected Representative from Golden
City District, and officiated as Speaker of the House
during a part of the session. In 1868 hewas elected
Treasurer of Mecosta County, and held the post two
years He has been .Supervisor several years and
Chairman of the Board; has been a member of the
School Board 12 years, member of the Common
Council four years, and, at the municipal election of
> Big Rapids in the spring of 18S2, failed as' candidate
for its chief office by only three votes. In the fall
of that year his name was usedby the Fusion element
as candidate for Congress The District was Repub-
lican by 5, 000 votes, and Gen. Bronson was defeated
by only about 2,600 in the general count ; he car-
ried tlie cily by a majority of 46 votes. In the
spring of 1883, he was elected Mayor of Big Rapids
on the Union ticket by a majority of 45 votes, run-
ning against M. F. Gale, ex-Representative.

Gen. lironson was married at Naperville, DuPage
Co., Ill , Nov. 7, 1841, to Amelia Barker. Of tlieir
eight children but four survive. Following arc their
names: Amasa (dec); Charles D., of Big Rapids,
(cleikforA.S. Hobart); Sarah (dec); Lucy(Mrs.H. M.
Hobart, of Big Rajiids); Stephen (dec); .Mlie (wife
of A. A. S. Hobart) ; Carrie (wife of Frank ISeard,
merchant at Morley) ; Jessie (dec.) During the ab-
sence of General Bronson in Colorado his family re-
sided in Wheaton, 111., with the exception of his son
Charles, who spent two and a half years with his
father at Denver. Mrs. lironson died St\>{. 5, is'64,
while her husband was in the Union army. He con-
tracted marriage a second time at Wheaton, 111., Feb.
14, 1867, with Kate M. Ihown, a native of Vermont,
l)orn Nov. 23, 1830. Their children are Mollie, Kate
and Harry. The last died .March 25, 1S78.

It is but just to General Bronson to add that in the
community of which he is a member his character is
thoroughly appreciated. He is conscientious and

discerning in his opinions, trusted by all parties and
believes with all his might in the strength and
supremacy of the Government he so zealously de-
fended in the time of her peril. Big Rapids is hon-
ored Ijy his splendid military career, and his connec-
tion with the politics of the city has been of the
same type. His first candidacy for Mayor, notwith-
standing his defeat, was one of the most marked
triumphs on the records of local elections, his nom-
ination taking place in special caucus Saturday night
preceding Monday's election.

The testimonials above referred to comprise a let-
ter, signed by several individuals of acknowledged
position, addressed to Governor Yates, and the letter
of Richard J. Oglesby, the War Governor of Illinois,
and now on file in the Department at Washington,
D. C; also a private letter from Governor Oglesby
accompanying his Commission as Brigadier General,
United States Vobniteers by Brevet. The latter in
closing says: " It is a suitable recognition of your
valuable services in the late war against Treason and
Rebellion and in favor of Liberty and Union. " The
recommendations in the letters referred to were based
on the desire of General Bronson to remain connected
with the military service of the United Slates and
urged his cFiims on the grounds of his meritorious
conduct in behalf of the integrity of the Union.

^
^

^£enry M. Clark, farmer, sec. 26, Deerfield
;'■ Tp., P. O. Morley, was born in "York"
&S^ State, June 13, 1843. His parents, Henry
7y M. and Susan A. (Wilcox) Clark, were Ijorn in
'i^ the Empire Stale and removed thence to Mont-
calm Co., Mich., in 1854. The father died June
13, 1861; the mother is living in (Treenville,
Mich.

Mr. Claik grew to manhood on his father's farm
and at 1 8 went to work for his uncle, where he spent
one year. M 19 years of age, inspired by the enthu-
siasm to which tlie entire North was aroused by the
outlireak of the Southern Rebellion, he enlisted in
the OneHundred 'Phirty-sixth Reg. N .Y. Vol. Inf , for
three years, receiving honorable discharge June 13,
1S65, at Washington, D. C. His war record exhibits

©)^§^

<^D!l>^tllli^-=^

•^1

•r|^-

•ry

■v^Mmm>T

-«&>

MECOSTA COUNTY.

the deathless names of Fredericksburg, Chancellors-
ville and Gettysburg. His regiment was transferred
to the Army of tlie Cumberland wliere Mr. Clark was
under fire at Lookout Moiintain and Missionary
Ridge, and was in the historic "March to the Sea "
with Sliernian, Throughout the extent of his service
Mr. Clark was constantly on duty, excepting lo days,
when lie was on "sick leave " with ague.

On being mustered out lie came to Montcalm
County, and, in comi)any with iiis brother, bought the
old family homestead, containing 120 acres of land.
About the year 1868 he sold out to his brother and
bought another farm in the same county, where he
stayed three years. On selling the last named prop-
erty he went to Greenville and until 1879 was inter-
ested in the lumber trade. In that year he came to
Mecosta County and bought 40 acres of unimproved
land, and now has 16 acres under the plow. Mr.
Clark is a Democrat.

He was married in Greenville, Mich., May i, 1868,
to Letitia, daughter of James and Rhoda (Reynolds)
Swar;hoiit. Mrs Clark was born in the State of New
York Aug. 27, 1843. Mr. Clark's family includes
three children, born as follows: H. M., July 6, 1875 ;
George, June 11, 187S, and Maud, May 27, 1880.
Two ciiildren have gone to the land of the unknown:
Frank was born IMarch 23, 1070, and died Aug. 27,
1S70; Lewis, born March 9, 1872, died .Aug. 25,1872.

'homas Lazell, Police Magistrate of Big
Rapids, and resident of that city since i860,
^ was born Dec 3c, 1821, in tlie village of
Cliff, Kent Co , England. His parents were
'i'homas and l.ydia (Drake) Lazell, the latter a
lineal descendant of Sir Francis Drake, Ad-
miral of the British Navy in the reign of Queen
Elizabeth. The family history on the mother's
side is peculiarly significant and valuable, from the
connec'ion of Admiral Drake with the eariiest his-
tory of this continent. He was the first British ex-
plorer of the Eastern Pacific, and l.)estowed the first
English name. New Albion, on the western coasts of
North and Soutli America. This was about the year
1578; and the ambitious and successful navigation of

the high seas a few years later toucliing the Atlantic
seaboard, while returning from his career in the West,
ruined the initiatory colonization scheme of Sir Walter
Raleigh, by carrying the disheartened and desponding
colonists back to England. This act retarded the
settlement of this continent for more tiian a quarter
of a century, and it is impossible to estimate the ex-
tent of the changes made thereby on the Colonial
period of tiie history of the United States.

Mr. Lazell's father was a mason and builder by
profession, and supervised the training of his son in
the details of the craft, until the latter was sixteen
years old, when he was sent to Gravesend to acquire
the (pialifications of an architect. After two years
he became assistant architect of the House of
Lords (Parliament buildings) and served in that
capacity about one year, when he connected himself
with the English navy. During the contest waged
by the British Government with China, Mr. Lazell
went out with the Nankin expedition in 1842 and
tarried in the Celestial kingdom until 1844, when he
was transferred to the squadron of the Mediterranean,
where he was on duty nearly four years, first being
engaged in the suppression of the rebellion in Portu-
gal, at Lisbon, in the year of 1847, afterwards being
detailed for coast service on the west of Africa; and
hefe Mr. l,azell underwent the unicpie experience of a
genuine shipwreck. At the expiratio:i of ten months
he proceeded to the Cape of Good Hope, where the
flotilla was stationed about five years, and on the out-
l.ireak of the Caffre war he went to the coast of South-
eastern Africa.

In 1853 Mr. Lazell retraced his way to England,
left the naval service and at once set out for America.
In June of the same year he found himself in Grand
Rapids, wliere he remained until fall, going thence to
Chicago, where he made but a brief stay and came to
Grand Haven. Here he found ample scope for the
pursuit of his vocation, and he operated as a builder
until i860. In that year he decided upon Big Rap-
ids as his final destination, and he proceeded hither, via
Ionia, walking from that point to Big Rapids. He
was among the pioneer mechanics of this city, and
on his arrival built the house he still occupies on
Michigan Avenue. In the sjjring of 1865 he erected
a steam saw-mill north of State Street, the first
steam power in the county, and imported a planing
machine from Massachusetts. He sold this property

'V )

m^'^

TM>nM^<y^. — ^«»^

•ST

-r<>DII>:D(l>;>v

A-

190

MECOSTA COUNTY.

and built a store on Michigan Avenue, and embarked
in the grocery and piovision trade.

Mr. Lazell, in addition to his other business ven-
tures, has operated in real estate to some e.vtent, and
is now in possession of ,^0 acres of land in the third
ward of Big Rapids, and several small tracts of land
in various parts of the county. He was aijpointed
Postmaster during the administration of President
Grant, for a period of six years, and in April, 1882,
was elected Police Magistrate, a post to which he
was re-elected in 1883. He is deservedly popular
for the able and impartial method in which he dis-
charges the duties of his incumbency.

Mr. Lazell was married in London, England,
March 19, 1853, to Mary Ann Styles, a native of
Chatham, Kent Co. She joined her husband in
this county in 1862. Their son and only child,
Harvey G. Lazell, mail agent on the G. R. &. L R. R.,
was born at Grand Haven, and was the first male
child baptized in the Presbyterian Church in that
city; he married Emma McNutt, and they have one
child, Geori^e.

as practicable Mr. Clark 'removed himself from all
associations with that period of horror and loss. He
came to Mecosta County and bought 80 acres of tim-
bered land. The situation of his farm is fine; it is
level and lies somewhat higher than the adjacent
country, and is proportionately dry and tillable. He
has 15 acres cleared and under cultivation.

Mr. Clark was married Sept. 4, 1862, to Betsy
Moore. Mr. and Mrs. Clark have two children, the
elder a daughter, Florella AL, now wife of John E.
Bristol, and living at Lake View. The younger.
Homer, a boy of 13, resides with his parents.

-^tjiae^-fS^-

j^^msm^

MCohn Q. A. Clark, farmer, resident on sec. 25,
^^1(7 Morton Tp., was born March c. 1820, in
ISj''''^ Allegany Co , N. V. He is the son of Elijah
and Sabra (Philips) Clark. .\t the age of 13
jC he left the paternal roof to enter upon his work
\ ill life. He found employment on farms, which
he pursued in the laboring seasons and "worked for
his board" while securing the benefits of several
terms of winter school. Un reaching manhood he
learned the trade of carpenter, at which he worked
diUgently i 2 years.

Mr. Clark came to Michigan and settled in Tus-
cola County, where he entered a claim of 1 60 acres
of Government land, and there he lived and pros-
pered fairly until the memorable fall of 1871, when
that section of the Lower Peninsvila of Michigan was
devastated by fire, following so closely upon that of
Chicago, that both are inseparably connected in the
memories of men. The devouring flames swept
away everything in and about the place, and as soon

- ' 'endall I. Pike, retu'ed farmer, residing
'&&. at Morley, was born in Concord, N. Y.,
April 3, 1817. His parents, James and
Sarah (Day) Pike, were natives of New Hamp-
shire and settled in Erie County, N. Y. The
father left his wife and children in Concord and
pushed forward to Michigan, then known as
' way out West." He located in Fentonville, Oak-
land Co., built a grist-mill and was influential in or-
ganizing and building up the town. He contracted
yellow fever, from which he died. His wife was an
invalid from lameness 15 years. Tlie family remained
in the State of New York, where the motherdied.

Mr. Pike, of this sketch, was apprenticed at the
age of 12 years to spend the remainder of his mi-
nority in learning the trade of cloth manufacturer,
which he pursued as a journeyman three years after
he l)ecame of age, and then went to Canada, follow-
ing his business about 20 years at Pickering, Ontario
Co , where he built a woolen mill and had a prosper-
ous trade. He was also engaged some years in the
manufacture of bells at London, Can., in which he
also met with success. Finally he encountered dis-
aster in his transactions and his fine estate was swept
away.

In the fall of 1855 he came to Michigan and
rented a farm in Ionia County, which he managed
five years, and then bought 80 acres of unimproved
land in sec. 28 of the Township of Deerfield, Me

Mt'y^. — ^^^

T<>DIl^Iill^>v

•rr

MECOSTA COUNTY.

-^jjty^

•91

costa Co. He cleared it and erected buildings, put-
ting the place in first-class rank among the farms of the
county. He lost his barn by fire in the fall of 1880.
He has now placed the farm in charge of a tenant
and is passing the sunset time of life in retirement.

Mr. Pike was married to Mary, daughter of Asher
and Susan (Stotts) Wilson, a native of Pickering,
Ontario Co., Can. They have had seven children, —
James H., Sophia, Sarah S., Charles H., Lina and
Anna E.; Margaret is deceased. The cliildren are
all married with one exception. The family are mem-
bers of the liaptist Church. Mr. Pike is an ardent
supporter of the principles of the Republican party.

,"'8011161 S. Chipman, farmer on sec. 25, Deer-

JT field 'I'p., was born in Cenesee Co., N. Y.,
\ July 21, 1814. His parents. Fitch and
A. Sarah (Spaffoid) Chipman, were natives of
Vermont. His father was a farmer and re-
sided in Cienesee Co. until 1836, when he came
to Michigan and remained in Livingston Co. until
1844. He then went back to the State of New York
and in 1S54 again located in Livingston Co., Mich.,
where he resided untilhis death, Jan. 15, 1864. 'llie
mother died in LInadilla, Livingston Co., Dec. 26

1859

Mr. Chipman obtained a good education at the
public school and at Wyoming Academy, remaining
with his father until his twenty-second year, when he
began farming on his own account in Livingston Co.
He operated there about 20 years and in 1853 went
to California, where he remained one year, and he
returned to his farm. In 1854 he located in Everett,
Newaygo Co.; March J4, i860, he came to Mecosta
County, and settled on the river near where Mor-
ky now stands, removing a year and a half later to
the farm where he now resides, consisting of 240
acres, 125 of which is finely improved. He was
elected Supervisor of Deerfield Tp. in 1861, serving
nine successive years; later he was again elected and
held the position three years ; has also officiated as
'I'reasurer two years. Politically he 'adheres to the
principles promulgated by the Republican party.

Mr. Chipman was married Feb. 28, 1836, to Alta
H. Sutherland. She was born in Columbia Co.,
N. Y., Aug. 5, 1816, and died July 15, 1856, leaving
four children, — Henry C, Lemuel F., Ann Eliza and
Francis J. The second marriage of Mr. Chipman
occurred May 28, 1864, to Mary Eckert, a native of
Germany, and born April 2, 1844. Three children of
this union are living and three are deceased; the lat-
ter were named Maud, May and Eddie. The former
are Frank L., Samuel S. and Oscar M.

E. Gruber, M. D., physician and surceon

- ■ I ; ii _ ^ J O

lllill'r ^^ ^'''^"'''' ^^''^^ \^ox\\ in Clarion Co.,

\®^^t^

-^m\

5;^*^" Penn., Jan. 25, 1844. He is a son of Peter
' and Lydia (Mohney) Gruber, both natives of
Pennsylvania, where the mother died March 7,
1853. The father came to Michigan in the fall
of 1866 and located in Isabella County, engaging in
mercantile Ijiisiness and farming, and where he is yet
resident.

Dr. Cruber was a jiupil at the connnon schools
uptil he was 15 years of age, when he entered Rim-
ersburg Academy, Clarion Co., Penn. He was there
one year and then entered CUade Run Academy,
Armstrong Co., Penn., and studied two and one-half
years.

When he was between the ages of 18 and 19 the
war broke out, and, yielding to the patriotic influences
which swayed the entire North, he enlisted in Com-
pany IJ, 4th Pennsylvania Cavalry, and remahicd in
the service one year. After his enrollment he was
detailed from the regiment and sent West under
General Custer as a scout. tJn the expiration of his
period of enlistment he was honorably discharged
and went home, where he remained two years and
then set out on a somewhat extended tour of travel
going through Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Tennessee
and Arkansas. At Little Rock he entered the ser-
vice of the Government as a scout, and was stationed
at Fort Arbuckle, Indian Territory. He had head-
quarters there for about one year, when he left the
employ of the United States, and came North
through Kansas, Missouri and Iowa to Michigan,
where he was a partner with his father in mercantile

■J

theiv engaged in tlie same occupation ten years. Two
years thereafter he was variously occu]jied, and in
July, 1862, he enlisted in the 107th N. Y. Vol. Inf.,
serving three years lacking 16 days. At the battle of
Antietam he was shot through the ankle. Eleven
months after he was transferred to the Veteran Corps,
there remaining until he received honorable discharge.
In August, 1865, he came to Michigan and joined his
family in Hinton Tp. .Shortly after he went to Isa-
bella County, and bought 249 acres of land and
homesteaded 80 acres, making a farm of 329 acres.
He built a log house, and cleared 20 acres of land
and resided there until 1S75, when he exchanged his
property for a farm in Mecosta County, containing 80
acres of partly improved land, the place being known
as the David Moulton Farm. This he sold in 1880
and purchased 40 acres of land styled the George
Campbell Farm, now in his possession and to which
he has added 80 acres.

Our subject is a Republican in political belief and
action, and is a nieml)er of the Prohibition element.
He has held the office of Justice of the Peace, Town-
ship Treasurer. Highway Commissioner and was
Constable while resident in Isabella County.

He was married in Chemung Co., N. Y., Feb. 2,
1857, to Betsey, daughter of David and Sally (Ben-
nett) Moulton. The father of Mrs. Cole died in
Mecosta County, and the mother lives with her chil-
dren. Mr. and Mrs. Cole have nine children, born as
follows : Laura J., July 24, 185S; Alvina C, Jan. 18,
1 861; Elijah B, Oct 30, 1862; James H. T., Feb.
16, 1867; George E. E., June 12, 1869; Annie M.,
Feb. 13, 1871 ; Hattie B., Dec. 9, 1875 ; Mabel M.,
Aug. 14, 1877; Ernest F, April 27, 1879. The
family circle is intact, and long may it be before a
single earthly tie is sundered.

'S^'i?^^^^^^?i-S^

il'yron

B. Williamson, farmer on sec.

i®JP 28, Deerfield Tp., P. O. Morley, was born

in St. Joseph Co., Mich., Sept. 15, 1874.

^|gp Britton Williamston, his father, was a native

4^ of Massachusetts and died m St. Joseph

' I County; Mary (Smith) \\'illianison, his mother,

was born in Michigan, where she died. They were

L pioneers of St. Joseph County.

Mr. Williamson lived in the county where he was
born 28 years, and in the spring of 1875 became
the possessor by purchase of 80 acres of wild land
in Deerfield Tp. He has made fair progress in the
process of reclamation, and has a good farm house
and 55 acres of land in tillage. Responsive to his
country's call for aid, he enlisted in the war of the
Rebellion, enrolling in the Eleventh Mich. Inf , and
served aljout two years, receiving honorable discharge
at the end of the war He is a zealous Rejniblican.
The family are attendants at the M. E. Church.

Mr. Williamson was married at Coldwater, Mich.,
March 9, 1870, to Amanda, daughter of David and
Huldali (^Vells) Hazzard, l>orn in St. Joseiih County,
June 18, 1S51. One child died in infancy. Estella
was born Jan. 24, 1871.

■'\eji£2/&^^-~§£

^-^1— w-^^-Z^jrax-

"S^v^i-jJ-

ohn E. Morton, farmer on sec. 36, Morton
. Tp., was born in Nova Scotia, Nov. 5, 1820.
> He is son of Holmes and Christian (Web-

10' ster) Morton.

Mr. Morton is, /(V.f(', the leading citizen of the

"" township of ^Morton. His interest in and unflag-
ging efforts for its founding, growth and progress, are
recognized and periietuated by the fact of its bearing
his name. He came to ^Mecosta County in 1869, and
in 187 I bought 160 acres of land in what is now Mor-
ton Tp., then attached to Wheatland for judical pur-
poses and local management Observing the rapid
strides of civilization in adjoining townships and m
the County, and the benefits accruing to the com-
munities therein, he felt impelled to put forth all
possible effort to secure for his own township the ad-
vantages of organization and local government. He
framed and circulated a petition, securing the re-
quired number of names thereunto, and sent the
same to the Board of Supervisors in the fall of 1876,
suggesting that the township be named Hayes, in
honor of the Presidential candidate then before the
people. The Democratic voice in the Board defeated
the proposition, but, in recognition of the services of
Mr. Morton, the township received his name, which
certainly was very appropriate and just.

^i^n

i^l^-

VC>llB>^linr>^

MECOSTA COUNTY.

theit: engaged in the same occniKition ten years. Two
years thereafter he was variously occujiied, and in
July, 1862, he enlisted in the loytli N. Y. Vol. Inf.,
serving three years lacking 16 days. .At the battle of
Antietam he was shot through the ankle. Eleven
months after he was transferred to the Veteran Corps,
there remaining until he received honorable discharge.
In August, 1865, he came to Michigan and joined his
family in Hinton Tp. Shortly after he went to Isa-
bella County, and bought 249 acres of land and
homesteaded 80 acres, making a farm of 329 acres.
He built a log house, and cleared 20 acres of land
and resided there until 1875, when he exchanged his
property for a farm in Mecosta County, containing 80
acres of partly improved land, the place being known
as the David Moulton Farm. This he sold in 1880
and purchased 40 acres of land styled the George
Campbell Farm, now in his possession and to which
he has added 80 acres.

()ur subject is a Republican in political belief and
action, and is a member of the Prohibition element.
He has held the office of Justice of the Peace, Town-
ship Treasurer. Highway Commissioner and was
Constable while resident in Isabella County.

He was married in Chemung Co., N. Y., Feb. 2,
1857, to Betsey, daughter of David and Sally (Ben-
nett) Moulton, The father of Mrs. Cole died in
Mecosta County, and the mother lives with her chil-
dren. Mr. and Mrs. Cole have nine children, born as
follows : Laura J., July 24, 1858; Alvina C, Jan. 18,
1861; Elijah B , Oct 30,1862; James H. T., Feb.
16, 1867; George E. E., June 12, 1869; Annie M.,
Feb. 13, 1871 ; Hattie B., Dec. 9, 1875 ; Mabel M.,
Aug. 14, 1877; Ernest F, .Vpril 27, 1879. The
family circle is intact, and long may it be liefore a
single earthly tie is sundered.

yron B, Williamson, farmer on sec.
'■% 28, Deerfield Tp., P. O. Morlsy, was born
P^ in St. Joseph Co., Mich., Sept. 15, 1874.
^ Britton Williamston, his father, was a native
of Massachusetts and died \\\ St. Joseph
County; Mary (Smith) Williamson, his mother,
was born in Michigan, where she died. They were
'^^^ pioneers of St. Joseph County.

Mr. Williamson lived in the county where he was
born 28 years, and in the spring of 1875 became
the possessor by purchase of So acres of wild land
in Deerfield Tp. He has made fair progress in the
process of reclamation, and has a good farm house
and 55 acres of land in tillage. Responsive to his
country's call for aid, he enlisted in the war of the
Reliellion, enrolling in the Eleventh Mich. Inf , and
served about two years, receiving honorable discharge
at the end of the war He is a zealous Republican.
The family are attendants at the M. E. Church.

Mr. Williamson was married at Cold water, Mich.,
March 9, 1870, to Amanda, daughter of David and
Huldah (Wells) Hazzard, born in St. Joseph County,
June 18, 185 I. One child died in infancy. Estella
was born Jan. 24, 1871.

■'Jtisiaj^^^^—'^^^^^p—^'^i^Ty^''^

^■Itetti

fcohn E. Morton, fa

ler on sec. 36, Morton j(>'

Tp., was born in Nova Scotia, Nov. 5, 1820.
st;p4" He is son of Holmes and Christian (Web-
ster) Morton.

Mr. Morton \%,pcr sr, the leading citizen of the (
' ,' township of Morton. His interest in and unflag-
ging efforts for its founding, growth and progress, are
recognized and perpetuated by the fact of its bearing
his name. He came to Mecosta County in 1869, and
in 187 I bought 160 acres of land in what is now Mor-
ton Tp., then attached to Wheatland for judical pur-
poses and local management Observing the rapid
strides of civilization in adjoining townships and m
the County, and the benefits accruing to the com-
munities therein, he felt impelled to put forth all
possible efi'ort to secure for his own township the ad-
vantages of organization and local government. He
framed and circulated a petition, securing the re-
quired number of names thereunto, and sent the f*^
same to the Board of Supervisors in the fall of 1876, f
suggesting that the township be named Hayes, in |._
honor of the Presidential candidate then before the ^^
people. The Democratic voice in the Board defeated ^
the proposition, but, in recognition of the services of f^
Mr. Morton, the township received his name, which J

certainly was very appropriate and just.

'-f

)^tl

■evC^t]Ii:«llll>.>

MECOSTA COUNTY.

The first township meethig was held in the River
School-house, district No. 3, and the following officers
were elected : J. E. Morton, Supervisor, Enoch
Bartlett, Clerk, and Isaac Webster, Commissioner of
Highways.

Mr. Morton was Supervisor of Wheatland one
year previous to this. He is, and has been for eight
years. Justice of the Peace. He belongs to the Order
of Masonry.

Mr. Morton was reared to the calling which he has
made the pursuit of his life. He was an inmate of
the paternal home until August, 1843, when he went
to St. Francis, N. S., to engage in lumbering and
agriculture Five years later he moved to Aroostook
Co., Me., and rented a farm, and also mill property,
and operated in lumber, chiefly manufacturing sliort
siding, shingles, etc. The mill was of double utility,
^^ and the business in milling products — flour feed, etc.,
(> — was considerable.

After a period of 19 years he came, in October,
1867, to Newaygo Co., Mich., settling in Mecosta
County in 1869, and commenced operating exten-
sively in lumbering, buying pine and putting logs
into tlie East Branch of the Muskegon River, making
his sales there. He was thus engaged four years,
and in 187 i bought his farm of 160 acres on sec. 36.
He has 35 acres cleared, with good house, barn and
orchard, besides numerous minor improvements. Tire
premises include 120 acres, he having disposed of
40 acres.

He was married in Aroostook Co., Maine, to Eliza-
beth, daughter of John and Sophia Baker, born at
g Bakerbrook, N. B. Her father was an old settlor in
''^ the province and the stream was named for him. Of
eight children born to Mr. and Mrs. Morton si,\ are
living; Amanda, wife of Charles Plaid, farmer in Mor-
ton Tp.; Holmes (deceased); Christina (wife of
Enoch Brumley, a farmer near Areola, Mo.); Alice
(Mrs. Charles Heald, of Hinton Tp., and died in
March, 1883); John E.; Clara (wife of Alfred Young,
^S* hardware merchant at Salt River, Isabella Co.);
i Adaline and Susannah.

fThe best possible tribute to offer to a man's char-
acter is to name his services to the age and generation
^ to which he belongs. In the lapse of years Mr.
\,,_^ Morton's influence will never diminish ; the good he
— has accomplished is stable, and his efforts have

been exerted for the benefit of the future of Morton
Tp., of which he will ever l)e a part.

■'^aasism^^-^l'^^^^^p-'-^mmnr^

^ g#%? f on ■ Michael Brown, of Big Rapids, has
^\W^~ been connected with the judiciary of Me-
■ '. (Tii costa County since the year 186S, and has
^'^ a long and honorable record in the munici-

pal history of Big Rapids, and as attorney for
the business concerns of whose legal intersts he
is guardian and manager.

His parents, Ira and Sopliia (Pjlew) Brown, were of
Dutch extraction. He was liorn in Indian Creek
Tp., Pulaski Co., Ind., April 20, 1841. He was
reared on a farm, and attended winter terms of
school until 16 years of age, when he was sent to the
college at Franklin, Ind , and subsequently to that at
Crawfordsville, Ind. (The latter institution, in 1876,
conferred upon him the degree of Master of Arts.)

One month after he attained his majority he en-
listed at Indianapolis in Co. B, 2d Ind. Cav., Capt.,
John B. Edwards. He was in the Union service
three years, and was under fire at Stone River, Chick-
amauga. Mission Ridge, Siege of Knoxville, Mossy
Creek, Dandridge, and May 9, 1864, was taken pris-
oner at Dalton, Ga., and confined at Andersonville in
the stockade prison, whose unmitigated atrocities he
suffered five months. He weighed 90 pounds when
transferred to the prison-pens of Florence, where
(and at Charleston) he spent four move dreary months
under rebel surveillance. He was mustered out
at the expiration of his term of enlistment at Nash-
ville, Tenn.

In 1866 he came to Michigan, and in October
entered the Law Department of the University at
Ann Arljor, where he was graduated in March, i868.
He settled at Big Rapids in Septemiier of the same
year and commenced practice as an attorney, estab-
lish.ing ills desk in the office of John F. Brown & Co.,
lumber dealers. In the spring of 1869 he was elected
County Superintendent of Schools, serving one term.
In 1873 he was elected Mayor of the city of Big
Kai)ids, holding his incumbency one year. The Com-
mon Council of the city appointed him to revise the
municipal charter, which he did in 1875, and on the

®j

'^y^EScSti'*-

198

MECOSTA COUNTY.

:>:-

submission of the instrument to the State Legislature
it was passed without change.

The Hon. A. H. biddings, Judge of the Fourteenth
Judicial Circuit, died Dec. ro, 1876, and ten days
later, Gov. Bagley appointed Mr. Brown to fill the
remainder of the term. At the regular fall election
of 1878 Tudge Brown was elected to the same office
without dissent. He resigned the post Jan. 3, 1881,
and is now attorney for the B. R. Boom Company,
and has been the local legal adviser of the G. R. &
I. Railroad Company since the completion of their

road.

]udge Brown was married Aug. 3, 1870, to Mary A.,
daughter of Levi J. and Mary (Lyman) Osbourn.
She was born in Speedsville, Tompkins Co., N. Y.
in 1852. Of ?iwt children born to them, Maud S. and
Herbert I. are deceased ; the remainder are Carrie,
Lillian H. and an unnamed infant.

Judge Brown is a member of the order of Masonry
and Knights Templar. He owns his residence and
four city lots therewith, besides several lots in other
quarters of the city. We give his portrait in this Album.

-<i-

i>-Y— Y"'

has. H. Ludington, farmer, sec. 3.1, Deer-
'^field 'I'l)., P. ( >., Morley, was born in Diyden,

W^^ Tompkins Co., N. Y., Aug. 31, 1845 His
1*1^ father, Stephen Ludington, died in his native

"li? State in 1861. Emily (Stathoon) Ludington,

1^ his mother, died in 1849, when her son was
placed in charge of his grandparents, remaining in
their care for six months, after which he was "bound
out " to serve his minority. At the age of 1 7 he
came to .\llegan, Allegan Co., Mich , and engaged
four years as a lumberman.

At the age of 21 he came to Mecosta County and
bought 40 acres of land, built a log house, cut
down the forest and improved his land for the [lur-
pose of tillage. Five years later he added as much
more to his estate, and now has 70 acres in a fine
state of cultivation. Mr. Ludington is a Republican
in politics, and has been .Vssessor of his school dis-
trict eight years.

Our subject was married Nov. 20, 1 866, to Clara
>^tv-ii5™ ^:^..:<?'^>^ ^^: ; fj [j

E., eldest daughter of Horace and Clarissa Hill, iicf
Smith, natives of New York and Rhode Island, re-
spectively, who went at an early date to Tioga Co ,
I'enn., where they were farmers and passed the re-
mainder of their lives; the father died June 14, 184S,
the mother. May 17, '80. Mrs. Ludington was born
Oct. 27, 1843, and taught school four years previous
to her marriage in her native county. The only
child, Sarah E., was born Dec. 22, '67. The parents
belong to the M. E. Church. Mr. Ludington is
Steward of the society at Morley.

B. Hummer, farmer, sec. 25, Morton Tp. (P.
'£__ O., Mecosta), was born in New York, July
ipj^v^f^ ID, 1844. He is a son of George and Eliz-
abeth (Swezey) Hummer, then resident m Che-
mung Co., N. Y., near Elinira. The family
circumstances were such that Mr. Hummer re-
ceived but a limited education. When he
was but 17 years of age he enlisted at Elmira in Co.
B, First Reg. N. Y. Cavalry, which was atttached to
the command of Gen. Phil Sheridan. Mr. Hummer
was in action in 26 engagements, the last being at
Cedar Creek. The father was also a soldier for the
Union and was in the service one year, belonging to
Co. D, 107th Reg. N. Y. Vol. Inf. He was in two
battles, South Mountain and Antietam ; he now re-
sides on a farm adjoining his son's and is t reeling a
new frame house.

In 1874 Mr Hummer left the state of his nativity,
came to Michigan and purchased 80 acres of un-
broken forest, made a small clearing and established
his home. He now has 20 acres under the plow.
Mr, Hummer recently sold a part of his place with
the intention of buying to better advantage. He is
at present se.xton of Greenwood cemetery, which lies
adjoining his farm on the northwest ; has been
School 1 )irector four years, but recently resigned.

He was married Dec. 2, 1871, to Lydia, daughter
of Isaac and Mary Wood, of liradford Co., Penn.
They have had but one child — Owen, who died
with diphtheria wlien eight years old. The pangs of
their loss are still as keen as in its first freshness, and
the memory of their only son will ever be cherished

&^S#-

)^m^

MECOSTA COUNTY.

in the home made bright by his short life, and which
is rendered more dear because he was for a brief
period its hght and joy.

^S^fathan Osborn, farmer, sec.36, Deerfield Tp.,
P. ( >. Rustford, is a son of Stephen and

>^5

!^ Rachel (Ramsey) Osborn, natives and resi-
dents of New York.
,j(^ Mr. Osborn was born Dec. 19, 1844, in tlie
State of his ancestors, and remained under the guid-
ance of his father until about 17 years old, wlien he
enlisted as a Union soldier in Co. B, 35th N. Y. Vol.
Infantry. After serving a period of 18 months he
received his discharge for disability. During this
time he was in action at the battle of Rappahannock
Station, Va. On his recovery he re-enlisted in the
179th N. Y. Reg. Vol. Inf , Co. B, and served until
the end of the contest. He was under fire at Peters-
burg, Va., where he was captured by the rebels and
for three months endured the oft recited horrors of
the prison pens of the South. He was confined at
Libby and at Danville, Va. On being taken ill he
was sent to Annapolis under parole and one month
later was e.xchanged and rejoined his regiment^ then
stationed in front of Petersburg. Previous to the
surrender of Lee's army he was in action in several
important battles, .\fter the "Grand Review" at
Washington he returned to Elmira, N. Y., with his
regiment and was mustered out June 21, 1865.

He came to Michigan in the fall of that year and
bought 80 acres of land in Montcalm County, which
he sold, and in 1869 purchased 80 acres in Mecosta
County, under partial improvements. In 1874 he
sold 40 acres, went to Texas and "took up" 160
acres of land, and remained thereon three years, when
he made sale of it, and was occupied in lumbering
two years. He returned to Mecosta County in the
fall of 1879 and settled where he now resides.

He was married in this county to Nancy A., daugh-
ter of Alanson and Esther A. (Hedges) Rickar. Her
parents came to Mecosta County from the f.mpire
State in the winter of 1865, and in the spring of 1881
moved to lliciv jiresent location in Missaukee County-

Mrs. Osborn was born in New York, Sept. 10, 1846.
The five children born of this marriage are Ethelyn
born Oct. 13, 1866; Floyd, Aug. 10, 1870; Laura, ^_
Feb. 2, 1874; Jessie M., April 17, 1878; Ralph, Sept. I
26, 1882. >-

Mr. Osborn has been Justice of the Peace three y
years, and in politics is independent in thought and
action.

K— <-^-!4#^-^>— 5-

^!^M

Tlvathias Kassner, deceased, was a native

l-Mi of Germany, born Aug. 22, 1822. His
; "/-'v^ parents were also natives of Germany and
.^_W)\\\^ there passed their lives.
='^'- Mr. Kassner came to America in 1847 and

located in Canada, where he resided 15 years.
In 1862 he came hither with liis family and, under
the Homestead .\ct, made a claim of i 60 acres of
land, of which he cleared 30 acres. He died May 10,
1878.

Mrs. Magdalene (Neuswanger) Kassner, the wife
of tlie subject of this sketcii, was born in Ger-
many, Dec. I, 1 81 7. Three of the si.x children
of this marriage yet survive: Veronica, born Feb. 25,
1850; Amanda, Feb. 25, 1S52, and John E., June 20,
i860. The deceased are Christian, David and
Benjamin. The family still reside on the farm.

'yiSSlSM^r

l;J^<^w^3^.gW)OTT»v-

^fejL

^MM' lijah F. Dewey, attorney at law and justice

^Mirr of the Peace, Big Rapids, was born at

;<<s®-

ajj^fsS Ovid, Seneca Co., N. Y., May i,'i837.
°^^ His father was a millwright and carpenter.
Mr. Dewey was brouglit up on a farm and at-
tended the common schools until he was 19
years of age, when he became a student at Miami
University, Oxford, Ohio, his uncle being a Professor
at that institution. Here he pursued a full literary
and classical course of study, graduating in June, i860.
His first engagement was as Assistant Principal

MKCOSTA COUNTY.

^VfS

I3»

"^i

of the High School at Pontiac, Oakland Co., Mich.
Uix)n the expiration of this engagement he went to
Chicago as reporter on the Times, A year after, in
company with A. C. Wheeler, he started a literary
paper in Chicago, — The Spirit of the West, — which he
ran a few months, and subseijiiently accepted an en-
gagement in the office of the Provost Marshal at
Pontiac, Mich., meanwhile studying law with his
brother. Judge J. S. Dewey. He was admitted to the
bar in i866 and engaged in practice.

He came to Rig Rapids in the winter of 1868 and
at once entered upon the practice of his profession.
He served as Circuit Court Commissioner in 1870-
'71. During the year 1870 he was Recorder at Big
Rapids. He was first elected Justice of the Peace
in i86g, and has occuined the position most of the
time since. His business as attorney and magistrate
is successful and steady. He also ojierates to some
extent in real estate.

Mr. Dewey was married at Pontiac in December,
1867, to Sarah L , daughter of the late Hon. Rufus
and Sarah (Chamberlain) Hosmer. Her father was
a prominent politician, and was for some years the
editor of the old Detroit Advertiser, and was after-
ward editor and one of the proprietors of the \,\xx\-
lixwg Repiibliiaii. In 1861 he was appointed by Presi-
dent Lincoln Consul Ceneral to Frankfort-on-the-
Main, Germany, and died while making [ireparations
to assume the duties of the appointment. Mrs.
Dewey was born in Pontiac, Mich. The family in-
cludes four cliildren — Harry S., Josephine H., Mary
L. and Rufus H.

-<i

-1"T^

-^ y Y '

dward. R. Quigley, farmer, sec. 2, Deer-
field 'I'l)., P. (X, Altona, is a son of (jeorge
and lane (,)uigley, the former a native of
V York the latter of Wales. They were
T married in Canada, where their son was born
1 Dec. 19, 1845. When he was seven years of
age his parents came to Newaygo Co., Mich., after-
ward settling in Mecosta County, where they were
the first white settlers of the township of Deerfield.
(See sketcli of David t^uigley.)

Mr. Quigley passed the years of his early life in
acquiring an education, and as assistant on his
father's farm. At 17 he engaged in lumbering, and
pursued that branch of business until 1881, when he
began to devote his attention exclusively to fanning.
In 1876 he bought 56 acres of forest land, built a
house, and now has 25 acres under cultivation. Mr.
Quigley is an adherent to the I^emocratic political
tenets, and is zealous in the interests of the party.

He was married in Muskegon County, Sept. 3,
1863, to Fannie Barnhart. Her parents settled in
Mecosta County in the year 1862. She died, leav-
ing one child, Walter, Lorn July 4, 1864. Har-
riet, daughter of Benjamin and Betsey (Monroe) Whit-
man, became the wife of Mr. Quigley Nov. 22, 1868.
One child was born of tiiis marriage. Oriel, whose
birth occurred Oct. 15, 1869, and death Jan. 22, 1882.
The father and mother of Mrs. Quigley were natives
of the State of New York.

&\'.

aiir^»T2"eavitt S. Griswold, M. D., pliysician and

'Oif surgeun at llig Rapids (office in Roof block
"ifi Michigan avenue), was l}orn Jan. 3, 1853

iS^ in Trumbull Co., Ohio. His parents were
X Jesse and Helen (Mc Williams) Griswold, the
I father following the double occujiation of farmer

and stone mason.
Dr. Griswold was reared on a farm until he was
17 years old, meanwhile obtaining his elementary
education. He attended the union school at Green-
ville five years, and began the study of medicine
with Dr. Mulhern, of Greenville, going thence to the
Detroit Medical College, where he was graduated in
the spring of 1879, He had the benefit of several
months' practice as an assistant in Harper's and St.
Marv's Hospitals in Detroit, and first established his
business at Sand Lake, Kent Co., Mich., but decided
to make a transfer to Big Rapids, which he did in
October, 1881. He has a good i)ractice in the city
and adjacent country, both in medicine and surgery,
and is steadily rising in his profession.

Dr. Griswold was married at Vassar. Tuscola Co.,
Mich., June 12, 1879, to Mattie .A., daughter of John
Liston. She was born at Bowling Green, Wood Co .

^i^JS^ .

<^iifl^tiii;>

A^=^

-4^^^

'm.

^hT^^

-CT

•v<:Mmm>T

rrr

MECOSTA COUNTY.

20I "^

Ohio. Their two children, Carl A. and Roe Oscar'
infant, were born in Big Rapids.

Dr. Griswold is a member of the Union Medical
Society of Northern Michigan, of which, in 1882, he
was Secretary; also belongs to the State Medical
Society. He owns his residence at 223 West Pine
Street.

K'arnabas Bacon, farmer, sec. 26, Deerfield
% Tp., P. O., Rustford, is a son of Benjamin
\a and Polly (Hone) Bacon, the father a

native of New England and the mother born
in the State of New York: both are deceased.
Mr. Bacon was born in the State of New York,
Feb. 14, 1817. He spent the first 30 years of his life
in the Empire State, in Canada and Michigan. His
residence was fixed in Canada until the spring of
187 1, when he came to Deerfield and bought 40
acres of forest land. He has improved 20 acres and
has added 70 acres since by purchase.

He was married in 1848 to Mary, daughter of John
and Jane (Moul) Leach, natives of Canada. The
names of Mr. and Mrs. B's 12 children, all living, are
as follows: Mary J., Gad, Reuben, Annie, Margaret,
Timothy, David M., Eleanor, Barney, Henry, William
and Emerald.

Mr. Bacon is independent in politics.

".ames O'Neil, farmer on sec. 35, Deerfield
Tp., P. O. Morley, is the son of John and
Mary (Martin) O'Neil, natives of Ireland,
and now resident in Mecosta Co., Mich.

Mr. O'Neil was born in Camden Tp., Canada,
July 30, 1855. When he was 15 he came to
Shiawassee Co. with his parents and lived until the
fall of 1873, which time they removed to Mecosta Co.
Mr. O'Neil bought 40 acres of wild land and began
the life of a pioneer, building a primitive log house
and proceeding to clear up the forest. In 1877 he
bought another "40" and in 18S2 added 40 acres

more to his possessions. He has one of these tracts
under cultivation and is erecting a fine frame house.

He was married Oct 12, 1873, at Owosso, Shia-
wassee Co., to Marietta, daughter of Michael and Julia
(Leveck) McKeen. They have had five children, bom
as follows: James B.,Sept. 14, 1879; Mary E., April
31, 1881 ; John S., Oct. 5, 1882; Julia, born Nov. 29,
1875, died May 7, 1881; Ambrose, born June 5, 1877,
died May 8, 1881. These children died of diph-
theria, after eight days' illness.

Mr. O'Neil acts with the Democratic party and is
an adherent of the Catholic Church.

[~rj']l J harles Ostrander, miller, resident a> r
\ \' .Aj Rnstfnrd. Deerfield Tn.. was born in the

I 'j,dy" Rustford, Deerfield Tp., was born in the
'>,iii„--^ county of Elgin, Province of Ontario,
■'■ ^-' 15, 1838. He is the son of Andrew and

Wk\®^^^^

I Oct.

b Sarah (Buchner) Ostrander, who removed to
Bayham, Ont., in 1822. The ancestral descent
of Mr. Ostrander is German, his progenitors having
come to America at the close of the last century.

He received a common-school education and was
under his father's supervision until he was 21 years
of age, when he spent a year in the employ of John
McDonald, his first effort for himself, for which he re-
ceived eleven dollars a month. He next worked a
farm on shares for Ebenezer Buchner, remaining one
year, when he and his brother Simeon took their
father's farm to work on shares and carried it on two
years. At the end of that time his father gave each
a deed of one-half (75 acres) of the place. Mr. Os-
trander bought 50 acres adjoining. In 1874 he dis-
posed of his farm and located at Rustford , wliere he
now resides.

He bought and put in operation the grist-mill at that
place and entered into partnership with Ebenezer
Buchner, whose interest he purchased in 1880. He V
now carries on the grist and saw mill and is engaged 1
in the manufacture of shingles. In politics, Mr. Os- ^: _
trander is a Republican, and is now serving his sec- 1^
ond term as Township Treasurer. His home was ^
burned on the 22d of October, 18S0, and he at once fe^
erected his present substantial residence. ^

^ 202

ttV

<>PII^IlIl>>r

^^^^®\^

M F.COSTA COUNTY.

He was mnrried Jan. 13, i86i,to Margaret A. Mil-
ler, born in Canada, June 13, 1843. Their cliildren
were born in the following order : Alvonetta, Dec. 2,
1861; Carrie, Dec. 7, 1863; Sarah M., Aug. i, 1S71.
Mrs. Ostrander died March 29, 1874. Mr. Oslrandcr
was a second time married, Aug. 8, 1877, to Mary,
daughter of David and Martha (Glass) Dalzell. Siie
was born in Columbiana Co., Ohio, Aug. 4, 1841.
Her parents were natives of Pennsylvania, but re-
moved to Lake Co, Mich, where they now reside.
Mr. and Mrs. Ostrander have two children : Henry
D., born Jan. 3, 1879, and Lewis R., May 6, 1883.

IF^t atrick McKeon, fanner, sec. 27, Deerfield
Tp., was born in Canada, April 22, i86i.
jpj^ He is a son of Michael and Julia (Leveck)
Y^ McKeon, the former a native of Ireland and
'il the latter born in Canada. The father died in
Shiawassee Co., Midi., in February, 1882 ; the
mother resides with her son.

The parents located in Shiawassee County, in 187 i.
Our subject accompanied them and continued to re-
side there twelve years. Li '73 he bought 40 acres of
land in this county in a partly improved stale. He is
a believer in the faith of the Catholic Church, and in
politics endorses the principles of the National party.

•^sAl

Solomon F. Frye, Postmaster at Altona,

was bum in Pennsylvania, July 22, 1844.

^lEt His parents, David K. and Elizabeth (For-

'/i\V '^y'-'^) ^O'*^) wt^re born in tlie Keystone State
(?) and died in West Virginia when the son was
1 4 years of age.
From that time he had his own way to make in the
world. He found a home with his uncle, Archibald
Fordyce, the two years succeeding his parents' death.
He was then 16 years old, and enlisted at I'liila
delphia, enrolling in tiie regiment under Col. Paker.
He was finally assigned to the 71st Pennsylvania I

Volunteers, and remained in the service 14 months,
receiving honorable discharge for physical disability,
the result of excessive exposure. He saw active
service at Little Bethel, Munson Hill, Ball's Bluff
and Malvern Hill. He was captured at Ball's Bluff,
and the severe marching and hardships following his
capture were the cause of his impaired health. He
was without food for four days and three nights, and
then only received the small quantity of four ounces
of bread. The experiences of Mr. Frye at Libby prison
are those whose horrors are renewed every time they
are repeated, and never lose their dread character.
The strong man who weighed 176 pounds on being
incarcerated, on his exchange four months later
weighed but 60 pounds. Upon his being sent to Wash-
ington he received a furlough and returned to Harris-
burg, where, by special order of Gov. Curtin, he
acted as recruiting officer. In March, 1862, he re-
turned to his regiment, but soon after was seized with
the suiall-iiox, and sent to the small-pox hospital, ^ ',
near Fortress Monroe; but not long after he was or-
dered to Albany, N. Y., for treatment. Two months
later he rejoined his regiment in time to partici-
pate in the battle of Malvern Hill. In a month he
was discharged at Harrison's Landing and returned
to his native .State, He was so enfeebled that he
could not lalior for two years.

On regaining his health in a measure he was em-
ployed as watchman on the Ohio River for a year, and
was afterward in the service of the Pennsylvania
Railroad Co., where he worked for two years. He
came to St. Louis, Mich., and was first engaged in
rafting to Bay City, and then was in the employ of
different parties, locating lands in Northern Michigan.
In 1877 he returned to Pennsylvania and taught
primary schools two years. He came back to the
Peninsular State and located in Clare County. There
he was occupied four years as superintendent of a
shingle-mill. He formed a partnership with R. M.
Shumway, in mercantile business at Farwell, Clare
Co., selling out two years later, soon after coming
to Hinton Tp., Mecosta Co., and engaging in the
drug business with Dr. J. E. Gruber, of Altona.
This relation was dissolved in May, 1882. He le-
ceived his a[)pointment as Postmaster Oct. 31, 1882,
under President Arthur.

Air. Frye was married in Isabella Co., Mich.,
March 3, 1867, to Lucy, daughter of David, and

-^^ e^rWSmh^r

-*^ ^ 7(g^\-V:?y

MECOSTA COUNTY.

203

I
I

Sarah Leonard. Her parents were natives of Penn-
sylvania and spent their entire hves tliere. Of tiiis
marriage four children have been born — Edward B.
and EdwMi (twins), born June 5, 1878; Archibald
F., July 3, 1877, and Edith M., Aug. 13, 1882.

Mr. Frye is a Republican, and has been Town-
ship Clerk three terms, and is a member of the Re-
publican County Committee. He and his family at-
tend tlie United Brethren Church, of which Mr. Frye
is a member.

-5— <.^-G

)

'^T^M, eorge Y. Haist, farmer, sec. 8, Deerfield

^IsM^k ['p., was born Jur.e 12, 1844, in Canada.

Jjlfg^n-K He is a son of John and Christine (Sten-

t'W^ gel) Haist, natives of Germany, who came to

T* Canada in '31. Mr. Haist, senior, came with

f liis family to Newaygo County, Mich., in '53,

and after a residence there of seven years removed

to this county and pre-empted 80 acres of land.

This property he deeded in '73 ^'^ li's ^o"' retaining

a life leasa for himself and wife.

The subject of this sketch has spent his life thus
far with his parents, making the paternal interests his
own and has proved himself a faithful and devoted
son. He is a Republican and has been elected
several times as Constable; he is at present Scliool
Assessor. He was married in Morley, July 4, '78, to
Kate, daughter of Isaac and ("atherine (Cole) Os-
born. They have one child — Nelson iMederick, born
Jan. 31, "Si.

-S

Charles D. Carpenter, merchant, Big Rap-
j^ ids, was born in Lawrenceville, St. Law-

Wi^ rence Co., N. Y., Sept. 7, 1856. He is the

as son of John T. and Emily (Blish) Carpenter.

fjl? His father was a physician of prominence and

I gave his son a good education, sending him to

the common school until 12 years of age and to the

Academy at Lawrenceville until he was 18 years old.

At that age Mr. Carpenter came to Big Rapids and

r^J

-a^g^jKL

<^llll

engaged with the mercantile firm of Phelps & Parker
as clerk. He acted in this capacity 18 months, when
he bought the interest of Mr. Phelps and the liouse
became Paiker iN: Carpenter. Mr. Parker died May
7, 1882, ai.d his widow soon after sold her husband's
share of the business to the remaining partner and
his brother, Frank B. Carpenter, M. D. They oper-
ated togethei one year and May 26, 1883, Mr. Car-
penter of this sketch, b'.'came sole proprietor of the
establishment by purchase. He carries an average
stock of about $20,000 value in dry goods, carpets,
sewing-machines, etc., and transacts annually an
amount of business aggregating $70,000.

Mr. Carpenter was married at Evart, Newaygo Co.,
Oct. 19, i88r, to Nettie E., daughter of Howard and
Jeannette Wiltse. She was born at Evart, May 14,
1857, and her parents were among the earliest set-
tlers of Newaygo County. Her fatlier came to Me-
costa County in i860 and died at Big Rapids in 1865.
Her mother died in 1857. The father of Mr. Car-
penter died April 30, 1869; his mother is yet living,
at T^awrenceville. Mrs. Cari)enter was a teacher at
Big Rapids six years.

r "; F^; enry Seaton, farmer on sec. 17, Hinton
ii^l^^VI i'p., P. O., Altona, was born in Guelph,
i-"- Canada, April 7, 1S43. His parents, John
^ and Elizabeth (Smith) Seaton, were natives of
England, who came to America in 1S38. The
mother died in November, 1877, and the father
is still living, in Canada.
Mr. Seaton remained an inmate of his father's
house until he was 24 years of age, when he
rented the paternal farm for a period of two years.
Li the summer of 1866 he came to Mecosta County
and I)ought a half mterest in the saw-mill owned by
his brother, \V. N. Seaton and Bartley Davis, succeed-
ing to the claim of the latter. The Seaton brothers
managed the mill together six years, and sold out to
Wm. Egbert. Mr. Seaton and his brother were
again associated in farm interests, which they carried
on nearly four years, when they dissolved, and Mr.
Seaton established himself on the 80 acres which has

(

204

MECOSTA COUNTY.

'^\M.

since been his homestead. He is a Repiibhcan.
Mr. Scjaton was married in Canada, June 6, 1867,
to Agnes, daughter of Richard Kenning. Her
parents were natives of Ireland, and she was born in
Hamilton, Canada, Nov. 12, 1846. She died Dec.
26, 1879, leaving four of si.x children of whom she
was the mother. The)' were born as follows : Ida
M. E., June 6, 1869; Hervey J., April 16, 1872;
Albert N., Oct. 23, 1875 ; Gracie A , Jan. 11, 1877.
Asa and Lillian died in infancv.

si^'*'^^-^--^ —

^!lf^^ His Davis, farmer, sec. 6 of Deerfield
^^1 was born in Ireland, -Vug. 27, '27

He IS a
son of AVilliam and Mary (Laverty) Davis,
'5jS^ a^so born in the Emerald Isle, and came to
T America in '51. They located in this county
and continued to reside there until their death.
Our subject was an inhabitant of his native land
until he attained his majority, when he came to the
United States and settled in Mecosta Tp., this
county, continuing to reside here neariy ten years,
when he took up 240 acres of uncleared forest under
the State law. He commenced operations after the
most approved pioneer plan, built a log house and
went vigorously to work clearing away the timber to
make room for the plow and other appurtenances of
civilization. The 140 acres of cultivated land which
his labors have laid bare to the sun and other influ-
ences that quicken them to a marvelous life show the
character of their owner. The log house disappeared
in the summer of 1882 and a neat frame structure
succeeded it at an expenditure of $1,000. Mr. Davis
is a Democrat in political views. He resides with
his two sisters and with them belongs to the Presby-
terian Church.

obert Telfer, engineer of the City AV'ater

\Vorl\S, Big Rajjids, was liorn in Hamilton,

Lanarkshire, Scotland, Feb. 21, 1844. He

IS the son of (iavin and Janet Telfer, and

led the trade of tanner and currier in his

e town. At the age of 18 he lelt home

\^ and went to Glasgow and worked there at his

f^ trade until July 26, 1865, or until at"ter twenty-one.

On that day he started for the United States and
17 days later was in the city of Detroit at work.
When he reached Detroit he had one English shill-
ing in his possession, but he had pluck and energy,
and the day following his arrival there had secured
a paying situation. After four years of self-denying,
frugal labor in Detroit, he united his savings with the
small cai)ital of his brother Gavin, and established a
tannery at Chesaning, Saginaw Co., Mich., and after
operating it with gratifying success two years, their
buildirg, fixtures, etc., were destroyed by fire, involv-
ing a loss of $5,000, with no insurance. He still held
a considerable amount of stock, which he brought to
Big Rapids to avail himself of the facilities at the
tannery of Duncan McClelian.

In 1875 he entered into an engagement as assistant
engineer of the City Water Works, taking full charge
two years later, and holding the position continuously
ever since.

In the summer of 18S1 he built the block now
owned by L. S. Presburg, on Michigan ave., a brick
building erected at a cost of upwards of ,$6,000. He
built the Telfer Block, on the corner of Michigan
ave. and Pine St., in the summer of 1883. It is a
two-slory structure of brick, 40 x 60 feet, one store of
which he stocked with boots and shoes, and con-
fided to the management of his brother, John Telfer.
He also owns a residence and lot on Pine street and
Warren ave. He is a member of the Masonic fraternity.

He was married Dec. 30, 1869, to Mary C,
daughter of William and Eliza Burleigh. She was
born in Macomb Co., Mich. Mr. and Mrs. Telfer
have had two children, one of whom, Gavin, is now
living; Eliza, only daughter, died July 22, 1872.

. frTT^'' Ifred Pierce, farmer, sec. i, Hinton Tp ,
5ybj®»f^ was born Dec. 31, 1 841, in St. Lawrence
j!jfe«='~«'S Co., N. Y. His parents, David and Polly
'^ita C^^'y) I^ieice, were also natives of St. Law-
||i^ rence County. He started out alone in the
j waifare of life at the age of 15 years. His
parents had previously removed to Walworth Co.,
^Vis., and in the spring of 1856 he came to Michigan
with the family of Wm. Egbert (now deceased) and

^^C£36l/c^

■^,-T<-my^m^>7^

M^i COSTA COUNTY.

2o7

located in Berrien Co., Mich., remaining witli them
until 2 1 years of age, engaged in faruiing and specu-
lating. In the sining of 1863, he went to Minnesota
and bought a farm, which he managed for five years,
and meanwhile was one year engaged in conducting
a hotel at Rochester, Minn. He sold the farm and
came to Mecosta County, where he bought So acres
of wild land, in Morton Tp., which he sold in the
fall of 1881. In the spring of 1S80 he bought 80
acres of forest land in Hinton Tp., where he now re-
sides, with 20 acres under cultivation. In |)olitics
Mr. Pierce is a Republican ; has held the office of
Justice of the Peace four years, and was Highway
Commissioner three years in Morton Tp.

Mr. Pierce was married in Berrien Co., Mich., Nov.
26, 1863, to Mary E., daughter of Israel B. and Han-
nah Sackett, natives of Michigan. Mrs. Pierce was
born in Berrien Co., Dec. 25, 1840. Her father died
when she was ten years old, 'and she was thrown
upon her own resources for support. Of ten children
born to Mr. and Mrs. Pierce, eight survive, four of
them being twins; Charles A. was born Nov. 10,
1864; Fred L., Aug. 16, 1866; Walter, Dec. 16,
1868; Frank, Oct. 14, 1869; Etta, July 18, 1872;
Harry, May 14, 1877 ; Nathan, Aug. 13, 1879, and
Alfred, Nov. 15, 1882; Annie, born July iS, 1872,
died Dec. 26, 1880; Gertrude, born July 17, 1874, and
died Dec. 30, 1880. Mr. and Mrs. Pierce are both
members of the order of Good Templars, and are ac-
tive and prominent members of the M. E. Church,
with which they united at an early day. Mr. Pierce
is an earnest advocate of the temperance cause, and
is prominent in all the reforms of the day.

■ — — J — ^^^^^^^^^-^ s— — •

f Irich. Stiffen, farmer, sec. 35, Deerfield Tp.,

is a son of Michael and Elizabeth (Fischler)
Stiffen. They were natives of Switzerland

<i|fgl^ and came to America in 1853, locating in
d»^ Wayne Co., Ohio, where they passed the er-
mainder of their lives.

Mr. Stiffen was born Dec. 25, 1843, in Switz-
erland. He was 10 years old when his parents emi-
grated to the United States, and he worked as a farm
assistant nearly 20 years. He came to Michigan in
1867 and has been the ownerof various tracts of land
at various times, and now owns 80 in Deerfield Tp.,

which is his homestead, with 20 acres in cultivation.
Mr. Stiffen is a Democratin political sentiment and
belongs to the Mennonite Church

(

N. Seaton, merchant, Altona, was born
in Canada, Sept. 28, 1839. He is a son of
■^ John and Elizabeth (Smith) Seaton, na-
1^ tives of England, who came to America in
i^W 1838 and located in Canada, where the father
is still resident. The mother died in Novem-
ber, 1877.

Mr. Seaton remained in the home ot his parents
until the age of 25, and in the winter of 1864 came
to Mecosta County and bought 1 20 acres of unim-
proved land in Hinton Tp., on whicli a part of the
village of Altona is' located. M'ithin three years
(64-'65-'66) he cleared 40 acres of his farm. In
1868, associated with Bently Davis and Harrison J.
Brown, he built the Altona dam, and in the same
year he and Mr. Davis erected the first saw-mill.
Fifteen months after, William and Henry Seaton pur-
chased the interest of Mr. Davis, and continued to
operate the mill four years, selling out to Wm. Eg-
bert, who, some time after, disposed of the property
to H. J. Brown.

Mr. Seaton, after closing liis mill interests, turned
his attention to farming and rearing stock. He owns
180 acres of land, 100 of which is under a good
state of cultivation and improved by a fine set of
buildings. He rented his place in March, 1883, and
purchased a residence in Altona. In December,
1882, he formed a partnership with R. L. Willett for
the purpose of engaging in the sale of general mer-
chandise, which was effected Jan. i, 1883, and is
now being carried on with satisfactory results.

Mr. Seaton was married in Canada, to Char-
lotte, daughter of Benj. Budjen. Her parents were
natives of England, and about 1848 came to Amer-
ica and settled in C'-mada. One child, Charlotte
L. E., was born of tnis marriage, Feb. 27, 1869.
The mother died March 28, 1869. Mr. Seaton was ^
again married Dec. 4, 1879, to Mary J., daughter of )^
George and Jane Quigley, born Jan. 4, 1855. The 1^
parents of Mrs. Seaton reside in Montcalm County; ®j
the father is a native of New York, and the mother ^

Mi^

■x.^

r5-TC^I]D>:llIls>V

^t^^fg^-ii

208

MECOSTA COUNTY.

j^ was born in Wales ; the only cliild of Mr. and Mrs.

r*' Seaton, George R , was born Oct 7, 188 1.
Mr. Seaton is a Repiil)lican. He lias been Justice
. of the Peace one year, and School Director si.x
^^ years. He has been actively zealous for the best in-
terests and advancement of liis township, and has
done all in his power to enhance the growth and
prosperity of Altona, which is, so to speak, his foster-
child, he having, in connection vvitii H. J. Brown,
platted the village, which was accomplished May 21,
1S70. Mr. Seaton's family attend the M. E. Church.
He has been for a long time Superintendent of the
Sunday School, and has been Class-leader about 15
years. He is also radical in his views of tem|ier-
ance. Mr. Seaton's portrait is given in this work.

)

-a

-J-rr^

'T^

J£>-

^ ps-.rs^m „ , r IT- .

n^^^^m. Brockway, tarmer, sec. 20, Hniton
^Lwlftl'' 'P- ^^'''^ born in Pennsylvania, March 27,
^^k' 1826, and is a son of Andrew and Eliza-

1853; Caroline, Aug. 27, 1857 ; James H., Oct. 15,
i860; Charlotte, Feb. 23, 1865; Byron A, April 9,
1870; Elizabeth A., born Oct. 31, 1850, died Nov.
12, 1882; Mary E., born Aug. 18, 1867, died Jan.
22, 1882.

'W®f? '^^''^ (R5ssman) Brockway, both of whom
]?^ were natives of Pennsylvania. He went to
New York with his parents, and at the age of 21
came to Livinuston County, and after a residence
J of siv; years came to Mecosta County (before its organi-
zation) and settled in what is now /Etna Tp., buying
a farm of 200 acres. He resided on this place until
the spring of 1861, when he purchased 160 acres of
forest land in Hinton Tp., removed there, built a
log house and barn, and commenced clearing his
land. These primitive buildings have yielded to
modernized structures ; and the fine farm with 100
acres of cleared territory, with creditable and valuable
buildings, makes a fine exhibit of what energy com-
bined with perseverance and good judgment can ac-
complish. He belongs to the pioneer element of the
county and township, and was the first Postmaster
under Lincoln, serving about three years. He is a
Democrat in political faith and action.

He was married in Livingston Co., Mich., Jan. 6,
1848, to Margaret A., daughter of Z. P. and Anna
(Saxtoii) Mitchell. Her parents were natives of the

f Empire State, and Mrs. Brockway was liorn in
Steuben Co., N. Y., Aug. 24, 1828. Mr. and Mrs.
V^ Brockway have had eight children, si.\ surviving,
rr?'?!^ Emmet L., born Nov. 5, 1848; Alice V., Feb. 12,

— — ^n BEai^i

'' —-jm ^ emuel P. Chipman, farmer, sec. 36, Deer-

&1'+ ''"^''■' '^''■' ^^'^"' 1-'°'''^ '" Livingston County,
Mich., Jan. i, 1847. He is son of S. S. and
Alta (Sutherland) Chipman, who are both natives
of the State of New York.

In the fall of '64 Mr. Chipman, though l)ut 17
years of age, became a soldier for the Union
army, enlisting in the Third Mich. Inf. He was in
the service until May i8, '65, when he received hon-
orable discharge. After returning home he engaged
in the duties of a lumberman until the age of 22,
when he bought 40 acres of land in the township of
Deerfield. It was then in a perfectly wild state, and
he at once turned all his energies to bear upon its rec-
lamation, a.nd now has 20 acres under cultivation.
In politics he is a Republican.

The subject of this sketch was married June 27,
i86(), in Cato, Montcalm Co., to Catherine C, daugh-
ter of Austin and Harriet Butler, iicc Malolt, both na-
tives of New York.

The deadly scourge diphtheria removed three of
the cliildren of this household within 12 days. Their
record is as follows : Alta H., born March 27, 1870,
died Sept. 18, '81; Daisy M., born May 7, 18 — , died
Sept. 14, '8r ; Walter, born Feb. 22, 'So, died Sept. 6,
'81. Two children remain, Levi D., Iiorn Sejit. 27,
'72, and Zilpha E., born June 20, '74.

At the organization of the townshi[) of Deerfield
in '61, S. S. Chipman was elected Supervisor.

.^teif

4^:

J'jj harles McArthur, farmer, sec. 1 9, Deer-

hCI:" field Tp., was born in Canada, Jan. 16,

'^■:^

1839. His parents, Colin and Jeannette

'^41^ (McDonald) McArthur, were of Scotch origin

w and came to Canada early in their lives and

I there both died in the winter of '82.

The subject of this sketch was educated in Canada

and grew up under the personal care of his father.

ps/^©)(^^'

-trnr<4Hn^:il(ls>VT7

MECOSTA COUNTY.

remaining at home several years after attaining his
majority. In the winter of '52, at 26 years of age,
he came to Detroit and there was connected with a
raihoad construction corps about three years. In the
summer of '79 he can.e to tiie vilhige of Morley and
was engaged some months in the saloon and restaur-
ant business, after which he bought his present prop-
erty, 40 acres of land, then in an entirely unculti-
vated state, but now with 30 acres in an advanced
state of improvenjent. He lias held the post of Con-
stable two terms and Police Magistrate six months,
resigning his office before the expiration of his term.

He was married Aug. 7, 1866, at Charlotte, Mich.,
to Sarah, daughter of John and Ann Feehan, nee
Cokely. The parents of his wife were natives of
Ireland, who emigrated to Canada; the father is de-
ceased, tiie mother resides in this County. Tlieir
children were born as follows: Annie }., (une 6,
1869; Catherine M., Dec. 10, '72; Edith F., Jan. 29,
'75; Charles J., July 17, '77; Myrtle, Jan. 21, 'Si.
Two children died in infancy.

Our subject was a member of tiie Township School
Board during the year of 18S2. In religion, although
brouglit up in the Presbyterian faith, he is liberal,
He is also a liberal Democrat in politics.

~uii2£firS~-^-^— S||i|^^^^-^4— -'^•SWOTiv

¥£m. I'^iidison C. Tousey, farmer, sec. 34, Hm-
•a^few ton Tp.,is a son of Louzon and Lucy (Ly-
^jfSS^K man) Tousey, who were born in Connecti-
^feg'^ cut, and came to Michigan as pioneers of
"^l^ Wayne County. G. C. Tousey was born Nov.
19, 1832. He came with his parents, whsn a
lad, to Kahimazoo County, and there he was
occupied with farming until the spring of 1872.
He then came to Mecosta County and located in
Hinton Tp., where he had entered 160 acres of Gov-
ernment land in 1858. On this tract he has since
resided, and now has 70 acres under a good degree
of improvement.

Mr. Tousey is a Democrat in political faith, and
has been Justice of the Peace one year. He en-
listed in October, 1 86 1, in the 13th Miijiigan Vol.
Inf. and after an arduous service of three years was
honorably discharged Jan. 16, 1865, at Savannah,

Ga. He was never off duty a single day and did
not once answer the surgeon's call. He was in ac-
tion at Pittsburg Landing, Stone River, Perryville,
Ky., Ciiickamauga, Siege of Corinth, Missionary
Ridge, Lookout Mountain, and marched to the sea
with Sherman. He had a narrow escape from cap-
ture at Stone River. A retreat was ordered and by
some mischance he found himself wedged between
boulders, the rebel forces being soon within alarm-
ing distance of his singular prison house. Extricat-
ing himself with a great effort, he crawled back and
joined his regiment, making the transit between two
fires, but coming out unharmed. He is an honored
member of the G. A. R., and also belongs to the
M. E. Church.

Mr. Tousey was married in Kalamazoo Co., Mich.
June 28, 1867, to Elvira, daughter of Jared and Eliza-
beth (Holcorab) Goodrich, who was liorn March 19,
1828, in New York. The parents were born in New
York, also. Mr. and Mrs. Tousey have one child,
born June 28, 1868.

^^siosmM^r

>-^4— «^^S/^^^^^r»^~

^s>Ssj? enry S. Cota, farmer on section 16, .F^tna

Tp., was born m Carroll Co., Ohio, in 1837.

j^a-^^ His parents were born in France, emigrated

^'^ to the United States and settled in the Buckeye

.State, where his father was drowned while la-

I lioring in the river service.

Mr. Cota was in his infancy and his mother bound
him to a man named Adam Hardesty. He was so
very young that he lost all trace of her and does not
know that he has a relative by blood on the earth.
He remained with Mr. Hardesty until he was 18 years
of age, when he was released from his bonds and
found employment in Paulding Co., Ohio, and was
there occupied for five years.

In the fall of '61 he enlisted in the 6Sth Ohio Inf ,
serving three years, and receiving honorable discharge.
Leaving the army he spent a few months in Paulding
Co., Ohio, and in the spring of 1866 he came to
^F'tna Tp. and bought 40 acres of land, which he has
increased to 80 acres, with 30 under the plow.

Mr. Cota was married July 4, 1867, to Isabel,
daughter of William and P21izabeth (Woodcock)
Shoeck, natives of New York. Mrs. Cota was born

r?>

^^^^^f^ — @?^>0 !] 5? PIlf^A-^^ s,C^^

"-T

^•^tlIl>:llIl^•>v

-taii^y^

^%^m^iM}

MECOSTA COUNTY.

Feb. I, 1843. Of six children born to Mr. and Mrs.
Cota four are livini^, born as follows: Rousseau was
born June 10, 1868; George VV., Dec. i, 1875 ; Mil-
ton E., May 12, 187-; Retta E., June 30, 1881.
John, born March 13, 1870, died Nov. 4, 1SS2; (iuy
E., born Jan. 21, 1878, died Oct. 10, 1879.

The character and conduct of the life of Mr. Cota
have been such as to secure for him the advantages
always accruing to a man of upright and honorable
dealing.

•^ir^sA

^SJS^^S

i^?5.?5-

Dcerfiekl
844.

Mt-ii^iJI oah Barnhart, farmer, sec. 11, Dcerfi
\(^l '^l^-' ^^'^^ \io\n \w Canada. May 3, 18
liFs? '^ His father, Jacob Harnhart, was a native of
■^ ^ Vermont and died in Canada in the spring of
1^ 1853- His mother, now Mrs. Phebe McGill,
came to Deerfield with her children in tlie spring of
'60. See sketch of \\'m. Barnhar:.

Mr. Harnhart came to Detroit at the age of 13 and
soon after the removal of his family to this county in
i860 he joined them here. He "took up " 80 acres of
land under the Homestead Act, and about the
same date bought 40 acres more. He sold his estate
of I 20 acres in '67 and bought So acres where he now
lives.

He was married Dec. 17, 1866, to ElizaHovnby, wlio
is of English and Irish parentage. To them have been
born six children, as follows: Ellen, born Jan. i, 1867
Caroline, Feb. 28, '70; Edward, March 28, '73 ; Albert-
April 4, '79, and Ada, July 4, '82. Alice was born
June 10, '76, and died in February, '82."

-4— ^^^^'

% ra Mcintosh, farmer, sec. }
was born in Canada, July

Deerfield Tp.
10, 1834. His

parents, Louis and Elizabeth (Boxstead)
Mcintosh, were natives of Canada, of
Scotch and German lineage, and passed their
entire lives in their native land.

Mr. Mcintosh attended school and siTved as
his father's assistant on the home farm until he was
I 8 years of age, when he responded to the long cher-
ished desire to begin his life's work in independence.

He spent eleven years as a lumberman and farm
laborer, coming to Mecosta County in the fall of 1863
Ten months later he went to Kent County and bought
40 acres of partly improved land, on which he worked
two years, and then returned to Mecosta County.
Not long after he purchased 105 acres of railroad
land and began life as a pioneer. At this writing he has
73 acres under tillage. He has built a good barn on
the farm and is on the eve of a final leave of the log
house where he found shelter and home rest from his
cares and labors, and where his three promising sons
were born.

Mr. Mcintosh was married in Canada, Oct. 31,

1863, to Emma, daughter of J. P. and Drusilla (Aus-
tin) Weaver. The parents of Mrs. Mcintosh were
of Canadian nativity, came to Mecosta County in

1864, and now reside in Austin Tp. The sons were
born as follows : James E., born Dec 8, 1865; John
\V., Sept. 15, 1S67; Charlie, Nov. 12, 1877.

Mr. Mcintosh is a Republican in politics and has
served his township as Treasurer two years. Himself
and wife belong to the M. E. Church.

■ It'^lv)!' ichael Doyle, farmer, sec. 18, .Etna Ip.,
t_j was born in December, 18 15, and is son of
^■^N Michael and Jane (Dorsey) Doyle, natives

'S^\ of Ireland, where the son was also born.
^:."-;. The latter was five years old when his parents

^^ came to America and settled at Quebec, Prov-
ince of Quebec, where they lived until 1843.
On the death of his father he was left to make his
way alone in the world and remained in Canada un-
til r868. He spent three years prospecting in the
Dominion, and in the fall of 187 i came to /EtnaTi).,
Mecosta Co., and purchased 80 acres of land, and,
like earlier settlers, commenced to make improve-
ments for the purpose of securing a livelihood. The
result of their labors are shown by the condition of
the farm and its fixtures.

Mr. Doyle was married in Canada, in Apiil, 1839,
to Catherine, daughter of Michael and Mary (Dunn)
Carroll, who weic of Irish nativity, and went to Can-
ada, where they died, at the ages of 41 and 60 years
respectively. Mrs. Doyle was born in the North of
Ireland, June i, 1S16 She is at this writing 66 years

r^5>,te«»-

<:D!]:<nii^:>A^

-4^^^f(®>^^

i|^/^®))«^^

<^0I1^

MECOSTA

COUNTY.

-«%r®^^

old, but retains her health and vigor, and her memory

is perfect concerning all events that have passed un-
der her observation. Following is a record of their
ten children: Peter, born March 3, 1840; Michael,
Dec. 25, 1845 ; Jane, Aug. 12, 1850; Sarah, Aug. 17-
1854; John, Feb. i, 1847; Rose, Sept. 8, 1855'
Ella, June 10, 185 8. Those named are living; the de-
ceased were : Mary, bom Feb. 6, 1842, died in 1867 ;
Emilia, born July 25, 1854, died Aug. 23, 1867 ; Cath-
erine, born Jan. 6, 185 1, died Sept. 23, 1867. The
amily are zealous members of the Catholic Church.

, j^^.j i: illiam H. Walker, undertaker and funer-

'll^llJi? '*' director, Big Rapids, was born in Com-

•fc^^^po? inerce Tp., Oakland Co., Mich., and is the

'^^^^ son of Justin and Lucinda (Wilkins) Walker.

sR' He passed the years prior to attaining his

majority on his father's farm and attending

school. On reaching the age of 21 years he entered

the college at Kalamazoo, and took a preparatory

course of study, and after two years went to Normal,

111., and there attended the State Normal School 18

months. Having fitted for the position of an instruc-

V ) tor, he entered upon the duties of that calling, which
he discharged four years and then became a music
teacher, of which he had made a special study at
Normal, under the instructions of Prof. C. M. Cady.
He has spent 20 years of his life as a teacher of vo-
cal music, operating at many places in Michigan and
in several of the Western States.

After leaving school at Kalamazoo, Mr. Walker
made a prospecting journey through the West and
Southwest which occupied about eight montiis. In
1878, he located at Berlin, Ottawa Co., bought five
acres of land, and a wagon and blacksmith shop,
which he still owns and manages, employing three
men. He has a fine residence on his miniature farm

(^ of five acres, where his family live. He has made a
I specialty of bee culture, his location being peculiarly

t adapted to the purpose. At times he has had up-
wards of 200 colonies in stock, and his apiary now in-
Q^ eludes about 75.

/-k Mr. Walker came to Big Rapids in May, 1883, and
V. formed a partnership with J. Stillwell & Son, in the

furniture business. The relation terminated July 9,
following, by his sale of d lim to Charles Stillwell,
when he established his present business enterprise
in the basement of the Furniture Block. He holds
a stock of Si.°oo if burial cases and caskets and has
a very fine hearse.

Mr. Walker was married in Ottawa Co., Mich.,
March 25, 1865, to Marion, daughter of Loren and
Mary Oviatt, born in 'i'rumbull Co., Ohio, Dec. 11,
1842. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Walker are
Allen J., Mary and Lula. The musical abilities of
the father have every promise of reproduction in the
children, as each gives evidence of more than ordi-
ary capacity in that respect.

-K-^iiii>:tiii;>^

"JlMlr eorge P. Vorce, farmer, sec. 35, .F^tna
llgjf Tp., was born in Dutchess Co., N. Y.,Feb.
"^il^S"'"^ 29, 1824. He is a son of Benjamin and
rW~i Lovina (Cook) Vorce, of German nativity ; the
''Y father died in 1S33. Mr. Vorce came to this
I State when he was nine years old, with his
step-father, Jonathan Jackson, and remained 1 1 years.
He spent the ne.xl year in New York, and in the sum-
mer of 1844 came to Wayne County, this State, and
a year later to Ingham County. During this period
he was engaged in agriculture. Leaving Ingham
County, Mr. Vorce went to Kalamazoo County, and
thence to Iosco County, where he was engaged in
farming and lumbering until 187 i, the date of his
settlement in this County. He purchased 40 acres
of timbered land and entered upon the usual duties
of a pioneer, — built a small log house and proceeded
to place his farm in a suitable state for suiiport and
profit. He is an earnest Republican; has always
been prominent in promoting educational projects
and at present holds a school office. He and his
wife are active members of the M. E. Church.

He was married in 1846, to Amelia, daughter of
Zenas and Anna Walling Hor, of New England
birth, and she was born in Lyons, Wayne Co., N. Y.,
May 15, 1829. Of their six children two are dead, —
Henty, born Aug. 31, 1847, died Oct. 3, 1879, and
Charles L., born Sept. 19, 1855, died in 1S74. Those
who survive were liorn in the following order: Jen-
nie, Jan. 20, 1849; Frank A., Oct. 28, 1853; Anna

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MECOSTA COUNTY.

A., Nov. II, 1850; Ella G., Sept. 27, 1859. These
children have received a good education. Jennie is
a teacher of good standing and has a line reputation
for scholarship, and qualities peciiliarlv adapted to
her calling. She was a student for a long time at
Albion College, and taught in one position seven con-
secutive terms.

??^i?#g%r^

)

Silil ilbert Mero, farmer, sec. 28, Deerfield Tp.,
|f is a native of Lower Canada, and was born
His parents still reside in Canada.
Mr. Mero went to Upper Canada at 19 years
■'F of age, where he was married in the fall of 1S57
f to Huldah, daughter of Peter and .Mima
(Kyle) Newkirk. They went to Ohio and remained
four years, returned to Canada for a short time and
moved to Deerfield. Mr. Mero bought 40 acres of
uncultivated land and proceeded to do poneer duty
— build a log house and clear the forest. He has 32
acres under fair cultivation. The family religion is
Catholic.

The children of Mr. and Mrs. Mero now living
were born. as follows: Josephine, March 12, 1S66;
Richard, Oct. 28, 1S70: Louisa, July 8, 1873; Anna,
July, 4, 18 ; Crertrnde, July 8, 1877; Henrietta,
May 24, 1881. Jennie and Margaret died in infancy.

feesse Kinnee, Altona, Hintor. Tp., was born
£ in Canada, May 27, 1857. He is a son of
[W^i?^ Jesse and Harriet E. (Gent) Kinnee, na-
tives and residents of Canada. W'm. Kinnee
l)assed his youth and boyhood on his father's
farm, and at 18 was apprenticed for three years
to the lirm of Mitchell & I'.rood, to learn the
trade of blacksmithing. He left his native country
and went to iMoskako, Canada, and worked at his
trade in the lumber camps in the woods si.x months.
He returned to the township of ]'eel and en-
tered into partnership with James Mitchell, and in
company with him carried on blacksmithing six
months. Li July, 1878, he came to Coral, Mont-
calm Co., removing soon to Hinton Tp., and was

employed by W. W. Streator, at his trade, two and a
half years, when he bought the interest of his em-
ployer, and is still managing the same Inanch of
business, with the most satisfactory results.

Mr. Kinnee was married at Altona, Hinton Tp.,
April 16, 1881, to Ida M., eldest daughter of John
W. and Catharine (Austen) Thomas. Her parents
were natives of Canada, and came to Mecosta County
about 1864. They are still living. Mr. and Mrs.
Kinnee have had one child, Jesse H., born March
14, 1883. They are both active members of the
Church of the United Brethren. Mr. Kinnee is a
Republican in political sentiment and action.

HQ=

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I'uther N. Hutchinson, dental surgeon at

Big Rapids (office on the N. W. corner of

North Michigan avenue and i\Iaple street),

/!> was born in Westmoreland, Oneida Co., N. Y.,

April 8, 1823. His parents were natives of

Connecticut, and were married at Hartford,
June 6, 1 80 1. Warren Hutchinso:?, his father,
was born, Nov. 17, 1780; was a carpenter and joiner
by trade, and during a considerable period of his life
kept a hotel; he died Sept. 5, 1847. The mother
Mary (Goddard) Hutchinson, was born Feb. 19, 1781,
and died in March, 1855. The family included four
children — Warren S. (deceased), Ephraim F. (dec.)
and Fannie J., widow of Israel L. Adams, resid-
ing at Winona, Iowa. Dr. Hutchinson is the young-
est child. He accompanied the family to M'ashtenaw
County, this State, when 1 1 years old, and settled in
Scio, where his father built a hotel. Both parents
passed the remainder of their lives here, and their
children reached adult age. Early in life. Dr. Hutch-
inson developed a taste and genius for the career
of an artist, and he devoted the first years of his
manhood to portrait-painting; but was compelled to
abandon this inofession because of failing eyesight.
In 1845 he went to Ypsilanti, where he worked at
photograjihy about two years. In 1S47 he went to
Dexter, and siient about two and a half years in the
office of Dr. Hollywood, reading for the |iractice of
medicine. He went thence to Ann Arbor, and ap-
plied himself to the study of dentistry, and was under

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Mecosta county

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the instructions of Prof. Bennett one year. After two
years of practice at Ann Arbor, he went to Howell,
this State, and pursued his profession two years,
going thence to Sturgis, where he opened dental
rooms, and operated until 1870, the date of his re-
moval to liig Rapids.

Dr. Hutchinson was married at Scio, Jan. 2, 1S43,

to Ruth L Richmond. Their son, Ernest M., is now

living, and is a dentist at Cadillac, this .State. Aver

M. died Feb. 22, 1S65. The mother died, and the

■ Doctor contracted a second marriage, July 27, 1870,

I to Adda C. Foote, daughter of Jacob J. and Sarah H.

' (Secord) Foote, a native of Scio. Glen L., their only

■child, died Jan. 11, 1879. Daisy, an adopted

daughter, was taken to their hearts and home when

five weeks old. She was born May 9, 1S81.

S-ames Simmons, farmer, sec. 36, T)cerrield

'" Tp., was born July 11, 1830, in Middleton,

Norfolk Co., Canada. His parents, David

V ^}M and Sicily (Ronson) Simmons, were natives of

England and came to Canada about the year

1820. The mother still resides in Canada; the

father died Aug. 20, i86r.

At the age of 21 years Mr. Simmons commenced
his contest with the world, finding employment as a
farm l.tb'jrer until i860, when he came to Mecosta
county and pre-empted So acres of the unbroken ar.d
uncleared forest land. He built a log house, and
iP with his own hands cut the trees and prepared the
soil for tillage. He has now 40 acres under the
plow and in good cultivation.

He was married at Charlotteville Center, Canada,
Sept. 20, 185 I, to Catherine, daughter of James ana
Amy (Ostrander) Buchner. Eiglit of the eleven
children of Mr. and Mrs. Sinniions are living: WiL
(^ liam H., Nancy S., Amy M.,Ebenezer, Sarah J., Dan-
iel A., John and Chris. The family includes an
adopted son, Wm. H. Griffin. The names of the
deceased children were James C, George and Ada-
line.

(^ Mr. S. is a Democrat in politics, and himself
V» and family belong to the United Brethren Church.

tjB^a^-sl^ j^ijgj. jj_ Buck, farmer, sec. 7, j^^tna Tp.,

was born April 16, 1849, in Orange Co.,

N. Y., and is the eldest son of Samuel and

*v^O Harriet (Walters) Buck. He remained at

•^IW""' home laboring on his father's farm until the

fall of 1868

His father, Samuel Buck, came to INIichigan in '56,
and settled in Hillsdale County, where the family re-
mained until 1865, and about that year came to Me-
costa County, where they are residents of .F^tna Tp.,
and Mr. Buck, of this sketch, is with his family living
on the homestead and managing the farm.

He was married Jan. 3, 1883, to Sarah, daughter
of William R. and Chloe A. (Vredenburg) Rockwell,
who was born in Chemung Co., N. Y., Aug. 7, 1856.
She went to Iowa when seven years old, and in 186S
came to the State of Michigan. By an earlier mar-
riage Mr. Buck has two children — Hattie, born July
26, 1869, and Harry, June 6, 187 r. They are nearly
grown and well educated, and the light and blessing
of the household. In religious views, Mr. Buck is a
liberalist; in politics, a Prohibitionist.

,f rP|;g )^harles H. Wagoner, druggist. Big Rapids,
t' f. i.\\ -'' was born at Penn Yan, N. Y., Jan. 23,
gif'ir "*" 1835; a son of David and Maria (West)
i>\h Wagener. His father was a hotel-keeper,
pY and died when he was but two years old.
He attended school until the age of 14, when
he procured a situation as clerk in a drag store, and
after two years returned to school He completed
his education in three years, and again became a
clerk in a drug store in Penn Yan, where he remained
seven years. In February, 1864, he went to Austin,
Nevada, and bought a drug store of his brother,
where he transacted business four years, and then
returned to Penn Yan. In Februaiy, 1868, he settled
in Big Rapids and founded his present business.
He handles a full line of drugs and all articles com-
mon lo similar establishments, patent medicines, etc.
In April, 1S69, his store was burned, with a total loss
of $3'5°°- He had secured no insurance. Mr.

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MECOSTA COUNTY.

VVagener is a Freemason, and a member of the
Knights of Honor, and is Vice-President and Direc-
tor of the Northern National ISank. He was married
May 7, 1861, in Penn Yan, to Patience M. Hunt,
born in Milo, Yates Co., N. Y., Jan. 25, 1838.
Josephine M., their eldest child, was born in Penn
Yan, May 15, 1862, and Charles S. was born in Pig
Rapids, March 18, 1879.

^"' '7pi.fl'' rank P. Smith, farmer, sec. 5, Deerfield
■ liS'^l* ^Vi ^^•^s born Dec. 9, 1853, in the State of
|^"V?f New York. His parents, Hosea and Mary
(Fenton) Smith, were both liorn in the Empire
State. .\t the age of two years Mr. Smith was
placed in the care of his maternal grand-par-
ents, and continued to reside with them until the age
of 19 years.

He came to Michigan in the spring of 1882 and
purchased 40 acres of land undercultivation in Deer-
field Tp., where he now resides. He was married in
New York, June 19, 1878, to Elizabeth, daughter of
Alexander and Cornelia (Munson) Smith. Of two
children horn to them, but one survives: Albert,
born May 28, 18S3. Lewis, first-born child, died
Se)3t. 9, 1880.

H^^Pohn S. Campbell, farmer, sec. 25, ^F'.tna
'4^1- 'l' ' ^^'^^ born in Ireland, Jan. 10, 1842.
(S&;v"4' His parents Archibald and Elizabeth (Sin-
clair) Campbell, were born in the North of the
Emerald Isle, and emigrated to America in
1S47, settling at Stormont, Can.; Mr. Campbell
remained a resident of the Dominion until he reached
man's estate. At the age of 2 1 he went to California
to seek his fortune in the mining districts of the
Golden State, where he remained until the winter of
1S65. At that time he came back to Paulding Co.,
Ohio, and engaged one year in farming. In the fall
of 1866 he came to Michigan and settled in Mecosta
County, buying 160 acres of land in .F'.tna Tp., in
tlie vicinity of Morley. He went again to California
n 187 I, once more seeking material results in mining

operations with moderate realization of his hopes.
He came back in 1877 and remained two years, when
he made an expedition to Colorado, returning in 1882,
reaching his home Dec. 22; he has since been en-
gaged in the improvement of his fine farm.

Mr. Campljell was married Aug. 9, 1866, to Sybil
R., daughter of Bernard P. and Hannah J. (Davis)
Woodcock. The parents were natives of New Eng-
land, and the daughter was born March 2, 1836, in
Kno.x Co., Ohio.

In politics Mr. Camplicll is an earnest Republican.
Mrs. Campbell has been a member of the U. B.
Church since she was 14 years of age.

'*'^'*^%^^£s£isis'S^*'-*^

.";' fi{;^>)^harles H. La Douceur, dealer in cloth- O)
^' [ J,C|-'' ing and men's furnishing goods at Big ^
"••'■■^^^ R^.ipj(j^^ ■yyrjs 1jq,-|-| Sept. 27, 1857, at St. ^<
Eugene, East Oxbury Co., Pr. of ( )ntario. Can. ™
Uritil he was ten years old, his parents resided ^
on a farm, and then removed to Van Kleek *^
Hill, in the same county, where he was a student at ^'j^
school two years; becoming an assistant in a stoie in
1S69. In 1873 he came to Big Rapids, and went to
work in the lumber region, and in 1877 obtained a
position in the store of F. W. Joslin, where he was
a clerk three years. In June, 1880, he formed a
partnership with W. A. Aylesworth, and opened his
present line of business. The stock of Messrs. La
Douceur Ov Aylesworth is estimated at ,§8,000, and
includes full and complete lines of ready-made
clothing, furnishing goods, hats, caps, trunks, valises,
etc. Their yearly business aggregates about $30,000.

imothy Edmonde, dealer in boots, shoes,
rul)bers and hosiery, at Big Rapids, was born
^ in Jackson Co., Mich., May 23, 1849. His
i^y^ parents were Washington and Damarias (Buck- \i
(h ston) Edmonds, and he was trained to agricul- ^

I tural pursuits. At the age of 15 he became a J
soldier in the Union Army, enlisting at Dowagia.^, ^r :,

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MECOSTA COUNTY.

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Cass Co., this State, in March, 1863, in Company
L, 9th Michigan Cavalry, under Capt. W. Miller,
and was in the service until July 4, 1865. Among
other arduous engagements in which he was in action
was that of the pursuit of Morgan on his retrograde
movement before his ca[)ture by the brigade of Gen.
Shackelsford, near New Lisbon, Ohio. He was also
with the command of Gen. Burnside while attempt-
ing to hold East Tennessee, and was on the force
that held the foot of Cumljerland Mountain until
Gen. Frazier's surrender. He was among the vet-
eran troops which under Sherman made their tri-
umphant march to tlie sea. He was wounded Dec
4, 1864, at Waynesboro, Ga., by an ounce minie
ball, in the left thigh, which he still carries. He was
sent to the hospital, and, on the expiration of his
term of enlistment, was discharged at Jackson, Mich.

The father of Mr. Edmonds died in September,
1863, daring his army life, and, on being mustered
out of the United States service, he went to work on
the homestead on shares, and was thus occupied
three years. He spent the ne.Kt two years in St.
Joseph County, variously engaged, when he went to
South Haven, Van Buren Co. There he bought -40
acres of land, which he sold three years later and
purchased 80 acres in another location. Meanwhile
he was operating as a lumberman. He sold his land
again at the end of the year, and engaged in selling
stump machines, afterward embarking again inlumber-
ing until the fall of 1876. He then came to Big Rapids,
and two years later bought a farm of 45 acres ni the
township of Big Rapids, devoting a year to garden-
ing, and in 18S1 again sold out. In the winter of
that year he commenced his present business enter-
prise. His stock is wortli about $5,000, and he
transacts an annual business in merchandise of
$10,000.

Mr. Edmonds was married near Lawton, Van
Buren Co., to Clara Edwards. Of this marriage two
children were born, Grace, in March, 1868, and Dora,
in June, 1S70. The second marriage of Mr. Ed-
monds took place at Big Rapids, Oct. i. 1876, to
Laura Sinkler, who died at this place, Jan 26, 1S80,
leaving two children, Eugene E., born Jan. 23, 18S0,
and Clarence H., born June 18, 1878, and died Aug.
12,1882. Mr. Edmonds was married a third time in
Ottawa,Waukesha Co., Wis., Dec. 3, 1882, to Mrs. Eva
J. Boone, daughter of Thomas H. and Elvira T. Ham-

mond, born in Delafield, Wis., April 21, 1858. Mr.
Edmonds is a member of the G. A. R.

,'. P^'' ohn E. Thurkow, merchant and proprie-
tor of tlie gram warehouse at Morley, was
> born at NewBaltimore, Mich., Oct. 7, 1849.

'^-^ He is a son of Fred and Maggie (Kiess) Thur-
kow, who were natives of Germany.

Mr. Thurkow left home at the age of 15,
and was engaged as clerk in a general store at Fair
Haven, Mich., and there remained 15 years. He re-
linquished the position on account of ill health, and
took a trip to Colorado, where he remained nearly
five months. On his return he remained a few
months at hotiie ; coming to Morley in the spring
of 18S1, he purchased the store of D. W. Stewart
& Co., where he continues to do business. He car-
ries a full stock of goods in lines adaiited to the
demands of the community where he operates. Mr.
Thurkow has been the architect of liis own fortunes.
He is a keen business man, has managed his affairs
with honest sagacity, and by close attention to busi-
nees and well-directed effort has obtained a compe-
tence. In politics he is a Republican, has been twice
elected Treasurer of the village, and still holds the
position. He is a Master Mason, a Knight Templar
and a member of the Knights of Pythias. He is in
sympathy with the tenets of the Congregational
Church.

In September, 1881, Mr. Thurkow bought a shingle
mill in ^'Etna Tp., of Messrs. King & Lake, which he
operated until June 9, 1882. At that date it was
burned to the ground, entailing a loss of nearly
$3,000. He also owns the timber on 240 acres of
land in the township of ^'litna, and a house and lot
in Morley. He has recently erected a neat warehouse
for the storage of grain, potatoes, etc., of which he
handles a large ipiaiuity. He is also an extensive
dealer in wood, bark, shingles, etc., making him one
of the largest sliippers in this section.

As one of the representative men of Mecosta
Coiinty we give a portrait of Mr. T. in this volume.

Ir^'

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MECOSTA COUNTY.

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igpa," enry Mills, farmer, sec. 25, Deerfield Tp.,
was born in Canada, March 7, 1S37. He is
a son of VVm. and Rebecca Ann Mills, and
liis father died July 5, 1881 ; his mother lives in

1- Canada.
Mr. Mills was a resident of the Dominion until
the age of 24, growing up in the routine common
to farmers' sons. In 1 861 he "took up" 40 acres of land
in Deerfield Tp., Mecosta County, and underwent the
experiences of the pioneer element, building a log
house in the forest which he then made haste to clear
and improve for farming purposes. He now has 25
acres under tillage and as good a frame house as ex-
ists in the township.

He was married in Canada, Dec. 5, 1 861, to Loamy,
daughter of Ephraim and Sarah (Roszell) Burss. She
was born in Canada, Feb. 11, 1838. Of seven chil-
dren born of this marriage four survive, — Sarah A.,
born Oct. 6, 1862; Etta M., Nov. 12, 1864; Frank
P., Dec. 15, 1873; Henry O., Sept. 8, 1882; William
H., Nov. 28, 1866, died March 29, 18S1 ; Albert H.,
Oct. 23, 1868, died April 9, 18S1 ; Charles E., Nov
13, 1879, died April 7, 1881. These deaths all
occurred within 1 1 days.

Mr. Mills is a zealous Republican. The father of
Mrs. Mills died in Allegan Co., Mich. The mother
is living will; her daughter. (See sketches of D. C.
Bullock and Ceorgc Losie.)

1 ysander Quigley, farmer, sec. 4, I 'eerfield
p., is the oldest living inliabitant of tire

'Si^

' cR! ^ ysander Q
": U^l Tp., is th

-j "^ township in which he resides, and was one
'^ of its earliest settlers. In 1S59 he erected the
A first frame dwelling and has since been earn-
estly interested in the affairs of the township.
He was born in the State of New 'S'ork, Feb. 16,
1810, and there lived until 21 years of age. His pa-
rents, Mary and Martin Quigley, \Yere natives of the
Em))ire State, and tliere passsed their lives. On at-
taining his majority Mr. Quigley went to Canada and
engaged in agriculture until 18:^;;, then removed

until 1853,

to Michigan with his family, locating in Newaygo
Co. He resided there six years and in Dec, 1859,
came to Deerfield Tp. He "took up" 40 acres of
State land and bought 80 acres, all timber land. He
has placed 70 acres of his farm in a good state
of cultivation.

Mr. Quigley was married in Canada, in 1833, to
Mary, daughter of Godlove Most. Mr. and Mrs.
Quigley have had six children, all of whom have
reached adult age. Their names are Robert, Rosan-
na, Mary, John, Autheses and Margaret.

sa C. McConnell, farmer, resident on sec.
Jp 35, -Etna Tp., was born in Steuben Co., N.

p^sss °'a Y., Feb. 26, 1832 ; son of Lewis and Emma
(Ciofl^) McConnell, natives of the Empire State.
■jj?^ The subject of this sketch left home at ten

I years of age, and until 12 years old found such
emjiloyment as he could among the jieople to whom
he was known. At the age named, he went to the
Western Reserve, Ohio, and engaged with a man
named Robert Munay to herd cattle. Two years
later he went as cabin lioy on the lake steamers in
the summer seasons, spending the winters in the
woods. He lived thus five years, then came to Hills-
dale County, and thence to Ionia, Montcalm and
Kent Counties, settling in the last named in the
s|jring of 1855, and engaged in farming. Previous
to this he was engaged in lumbering. He remained
in Kent County five years, and during the two follow-
ing years he was variously employed.

In November, 1862, he enlisted in the Mich. Cav.,
and was in the army of the Potomac under Gen
Pleasanton, until Aug. 19, 1865, when he received an
honorable discharge. He passed through his period
of enlistment unharmed except by a gunshot wouiid
in the wrist, inflicted liy a guerrilla scout. On
leaving the army he went back to Kent County and
worked in the woods until the fall of 1871. The fol-
lowing year he spent in Indiana, came thence to
Mecosta County, and purchased 80 acres of land, on
which he is now resident.

Mr. McConnell is a Republican in jiolitical faith,
and has held the post of Assessor in his school dis-
trict for some time. He was married Oct. 12, 1872,

r^,

^mm\^>^^ — ^^^^ ^4^mj^^

MECOSTA COUNTY.

to Jennie, daughter of Jesse and Mary (Waters)
Upson, born Aug. 7, 1843. Of this marriage one
child — NVilhe F., was born April 27, 1S76.

"i('^M;/hilei' Loop, farmer and lumljcrman, sec.
ll^^o i(j, Deerfield Tp., was born in Pennsylvania
IllSri^ Dec. 16, 1828. His parents, R. and Mary
j|^ A. (Dikeman) Loo)), were also natives of the
.jijlL Keystone State, where they passed their entire
I lives.

At the age of 36 Mr. Loop came to Newaygo
County and was engaged there two yeais in lum-
bering, and was in the emi)loy of Nelson Higbee as
a farm manager 1 1 years. On the termination of his
service in that capacity he bought lOo acres
of land, with roc under tillage. The additional
[Hirchase of So acres adjoining has given him
a farm of 240 acres, — a fine place and under skilled
management.

Mr. Loop was married in the State of New York,
July 23, 1853, to Emmeline M., daughter of James
and lietsey (Loop) Drake. The jiarents of Mrs.
Loop were natives of New ^'ork, wlio removed to
Pennsylvania in 1857, where they have since con-
tinued to reside. Mrs. Loop was born in New York
July 12, 1837, and lived with her parents until she was
married. Only one of three children born to Mr. and
Mrs. Loop survive, — Enoch A , born March 8, 1875!
Guy .\., was born Feb. 27, 1878, and died July 28,
1880. Another child died in infancy.

Mr. Loop is an adherent of the Democratic party.

'i5%^#:lv-5;

>?i-i^

5S^&' enry D. Hanson, blacksmith and farmer.
i f*iJl sec. 27, Deerfield Tp., was born in Saratoga
vljgls"'^* Co., N. Y., July 23, 1849. He was educated
j^ in his native jilace and passed the years of his
'N minority in the home of his parents. He is a son
j of Jacob and Elmira (Oilman) Hanson, both na-
tives of the State of New York. The mother
died in New York .\[iril 18, 1866. 'Phe father came
to Michigan with his son and still resides with him.
Mr. Hanson settled in Ionia County in the fall of

^si^!^ — ^^^-^DIl

i&\®))e§^-

1869 and remained there until the fall of 187 i. He

bought a farm of 40 acres, built a log house and
proceeded to improve the place, which was in a state
of nature. Being a blacksmith by trade he added a
sho|} for the convenience of the local custom, and al-
ternates his farm labors with work in the shop.

Mr. Hanson was married Aiiril 16, 1870, to Mar-
garet, daughter of Lendoll and Polly (Wilson) Pike
She died Oct. 26, 1875. Two children were born to
them, — Osman C. was born Jan. 26, 187 i, and Carrie
B., born Sept. 9, 1875. Mr. ILinson was again mar-
ried April 28, 1878, to Susan E., third daughter of C.
O. and Eli/a J. Pemberton. She was born in Penn-
sylvania June 8, 1857, and came to Michigan with her
parents in the spring of 1863. Their two children,
Orville R. and Henry, were born respectively Oct. 7,
1879, and July 7, 1882.

Mr. Hanson has been P)rain Commissioner two
years. 'I'he family are all members of the Methodist
Church and Mr. Hanson has been a Class-leader
eight years. Li political sentiment he is a Republi-
can.

'^aniuel Buck, farmer, sec. 7, yF^tna 'Pp. (P.
^ O., Morley), was' born in AVashington Co., N.
^^'"^ Y., Nov. 4, 1813. He is son of Aaron and
ulia (Brown ) Buck

Mr. Buck spent the first 23 years of his life
in the pursuits common to farmer's sons and
then settled on a farm, where he lived 22 years, man-
aging his farm and practicing medicine, of which he
had acipiired considerable knowledge. On leaving
New York he came to Hillsdale Co., Mich., in the
fall of 1856, where he remained a resident nine years.
His next removal was to .h'tna 'Pp., where he founded
and built up his present home. 'Phe family belong
to the AL E. Church. Mr. Buck holds to no particu-
lar political views, but is a radical Prohibitionist.

In 1836 he was married to Harriet, daughter of
John and Mary Walters, natives of New York, where
the daughter was born in 182 1. Five children were
born of this marriage, as follows : \\'ilber, April 7,,
1849; Wesley, April 6, 185 i ; Mary, Aug. r i, 1847 ;
Estella, March 4, 1854. Josephine is deceased, but
dates of birth and death are not known. Mr. Buck's

^^:

^r^)^m^^

<mmh>T

MECOSTA COUNTY.

C^i

wife died, and he was married in Hillsdale County, to
Tane, daughter of Elijah and Anna Selsby, who was
a native of Wnniont, born Nov. 4, 181 1 ; she died in
/Etna Tp., and a few years after Mr. Buck married
Mrs. Emma E. Bigelow, daughter of Harry and
Nancy (t'vofut) Monroe. One child, Jessie, was born
Dee. II, 1S72. 'I'he wife died Oct. 11, 1877.

a^^feoseph McGill, farmer, sec. 12, Deerfield
Tp (P. (). Altona), was born in Ireland,
Nov. 17,1812. His parents, John and Jane
11(5' (McGinnis) McGill, were natives of the Emer-
ald Jsle, who emigrated to Canada about the
^1^ year 1838 and there died something like ten

years afterwards.
" Uncle Jo" belonged to the class which has strug-
gled so long in the iron grip of the British aristocrats
and monopolizers, and during the first 26 years of his
life passed most of his time as a weaver, which trade
he learned as early as his size and strength permitted.
He accompanied his parents to Canada and for
20 years was a laborer.

He came to Montcalm Co., Mich., in 1858, where
he remained one year, removing thence to Mecosta
County, and bought 80 acres of land in Deerfield Tp.
He built a good frame house and barn and put his
farm in good condition, clearing 39 acres, but he has
always been a member of the family of bis brother's
widow, Mrs. Phebe McGill, whose farm is adjoining.
In the spring of 'S3 he sold his farm to John Perry.
Mr. McGill is a Methodist in religious views and a
Re|)ublican in political faith and action. He has
held the [)OSt of School Treasurer ten years. Al-
though 7 2 years of age, he is a general favorite from
his gonial au;l i)leasant companionship.

-~v/-VA,^§S!^.

jsi^-w-—

ewitt C. Mosher, attorney al law, Morley,

was born in Mosherville, Hillsdale Co.,

|tgp^^ Mich., Sept. 5, 1S57. His parents were

s*T Ei)hraini E. and

i ......... ^.,.. ,, ....

^_ _j ___ _ . Henrietta (Raymond)

-jP Mosher, natives of N. Y., who came as pio-

4^ neers to Michigan, settling in Hillsdale County,

" there residing until the death of the father in

May, 1869: the mother died in Montcalm County,

Oct. 24, 1882. When 12 years old Mr. Mosher went
to Kalamazoo and attended the union school at
place three years. At 15 he entered the employ of
a farmer, where he was engaged nearly Wo years,
and then went to Montcalm County, engaging in
lumbering until the fall of 1878. At that date he en-
tered the law office of S. D. Clay at Grand Rapids,
and began the study of his profession. In May, 1879,
he was appointed assignee of T. M. Stryker, and
closed out a stock of drugs for the benefit of that
gentleman's creditors. That duty ended, he went to
Osceola County and began the practice of his pro-
fession. After a stay of four months he returned
home to Montcalm County, and remained there until
December, 1881, and then removed to Isabella County,
remaining until September, 1882. He was attacked
with typhoid fever, in consecjuence of which he dis-
continued his practice until January, and, on recov-
ery, settled in Morley, where he is earnestly engaged
in the practice of his profes^ion. He joined the Odd
Fellows in 1879.

i"^ii*.;':

-«A?

SfWlv, harles S. Moore, farmer, sec. 9, ^-J'^tnaTi).
)orn July 21, 1836, in New Vork.
His parents, Hiram and Mary A. (Torrey)
Sj10^ Moore, were of genuine English extraction and

*il^ natives of New York, where they lived to ad-

\ vanced age.

Mr. Moore was born in Allegany County, and re-
mained under the paternal roof until 24 years of age.
In the spring of 1867 he went to Kenosha Co., Wis.,
and three years later the family came to .^'^tna Tp.
and pitched their tent on sec. 9 with the determina-
tion to fi.\ a permanent abode. Mr. Moore purchased
80 acres of heavily timbered land, which 13 years of
toil has placed in fair rank with the liest farms in the
township, having 50 acres tillable and in a high state
of cultivation. Politically, Mr. Moore is a decided
Republican. The parents have been connected with '^
the M. E. Church several years, and are greatly in-
terested in the cause of education and moral eleva- \^.
tion of the young. ^^

Mr. Moore was married in i860 to Alida M., ^^
daughter of Asahel and Catheiine (Vrooman) Moors. @\
Her father was a native of Virginia, and her mother ^

^mM^<>^'r^

■^^'^^ -#^f®xp

<:^^DQ i$i I Ils>rr5 ^^'feNsr

■TT-r

MECOSTA COUNTY.

221 ^

of New York. Elrdy B., oldest child, born June 19,
1862, is devoted to the study of mechanics, and is
the object of the proud hopes ot his parents. Carl-
ton H. was born June 6, 1 864 ; Morrell E. was born
Dec. 10, 1S65. Bradley T., born March 22, 1870,
died Nov. 17, 1882.

■neasm/^^^—^iii^

.-^~S;OT7Tiv

^^^^

fW^^fJV \ch.a.e\ Streeter, far:
' fe£tiiS' '°" Tp.,is a son of (

farmer, on sec. 14, Hin-
" Geo. and Susan (Isen-
(rSfSJ^T/Y^ hour) Streeter. The father was born in
W]\^^^<^ England, and the mother in the State of New
V. York. After their maniage they settled in
i^ Canada, where Michael was born, June 5, 1843.
At the age of 24, Mr. Streeter commenced to
carve out his own fortune. He followed different
callings until August, 1875, at which date he came
to this county and bought 40 acres of forest land,
built thereon a log house, and now has 20 acres
cleared and under the plow. Mr. Streeter is inde-
pendent in politics. He was married in Canada,
March 4, 1868, to Harriet, eldest daughter of Alex-
ander and Emily (Knox) Watson. The latter were
natives of Canada, and the daughter was born there,
Oct. II, 1845. Mr. and Mrs. Streeter have had six
children : John W. and George A. (twins), born Dec.
24, 1869; Mary A, born Jan. i, 1872; Ella B.,
April 7, 1S74; Alexander G., June 15, 1879; Velma,
Oct. 9, 1882.

-S3=

-A-j

r-<^ — T'

" heney O. Pemberton, farmer, sec. 34,

I leerfield Tp., was born in Tioga Co., Pa.,

Nov. 10, 1 83 1. He is the first son of Orson

^fe and Harriet (Scott) Pemberton, the former a na-

*i^ tive of Ontario Co., N. Y., the latter born in

I Massachusetts. The father was a farmer and

himself and wife spent their lives in Tioga County.

Mr. Pemberton was educated at the common schools
of his native county and attended the Union Acad-
(*) emy at Knoxville. He lived with his parents until
^ June I, 1850, when he was married and immediately

after secured 120 acres of land in that county, which
he owned until the spring of 1863. He then sold it
and in the fall of the same year located in Mecosta
Co., Mich. He entered 80 acres of land under the
State law, erected a log house and made haste to clear
and improve his farm. He added to his acreage by
purchase until he now owns a tract of 160 acres, a
large proportion of which is under cultivation.

On the outbreak of the Southern Rebellion Mr.
Pemberton enlisted (in the fall of 1 861) in the Forty-
fifth Pa. Vol. Inf., and was in the service thirteen and
a half months, receiving honorable discharge on ac-
count of disability, caused by severe service at the
siege of Charleston, S. C, under Gen. Benham.

On returning home he sold his place and settled
in Michigan, as stated. He married Eliza J. Boyd,
who was born in Allegany Co., N. V. Mr. and Mrs.
Pemberton have 12 children. Two of these, Cyrus
and Joseph, are deceased. Those living are: Com-
modore C; Hattie B., wife of E. J. Royce ; Nellie
Yj.; Orson C; Susan, Mrs. Henry D. Hanson ; Addie ;
Charles; U. S. Grant ; William and Frank.

The family are active members of the M. E. Church,
and Mr. Pemberton has always been identified with
the Republican element.

•'"■"^"^Ii'lonzo C. Preston, farmer, on sec. 28, Hin-

(
A

C^v

(

¥'

\ ton Tp., is a son of Chester A. Preston, a
f^ °"* native of New York, and was born March
7, 1834. His parents came to Livingston
Co., Mich., when he was about ten years old.
When he reached the age of 22 years he
settled in Ingham Co., going eight years later to Shia-
wassee Co., and in the spring of 1S66 he located in
this township. He owns 41 acres of land, with 30
acres under the plow.

He was m.arried Nov. 12, 1854, in Plymouth,
\\'ayne Co., Mich., to Amanda A., youngest daughter
of Joel and Hannah (Lyon) Newman, born June 3,
1834, in Plymouth. Her parents were born in New
York, and were pioneers of Plymouth. Of nine
children born to Mr. and Mrs. Preston, five are liv-
ing: Hannah A., born Sept. 3, 1855 ; Mary J., March
18, 1857 ; Mina A., June 20, 1861 ; Sarah E., Jan. 4,
1866; Orson B., Maich 2, 1874. The records of the

MECOSTA COUNTY

-*#^C(®V!:^

deceased are as follows: Ida J-, born Dec. 23, 1858,
died June 21, 1867 ; Cora A., 'born Feb. 3, 1864,

s^|« and died June 25, '67 ; Lizzie M., born June 2, 1868,
* died June 27, 1869; Herbert C, born Feb. 6, 1870,

(%j died June 24, 1870. Tlie parents are membersofthe
Church of the United Brethren. Mr. Preston is a
Republican, and has been School Director several
years.

-K3

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"T~~T

J£k-

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[^^f hitfleld H. Peck, farmer, sec. 28, Deerfiel
V%@W Ti)., was born Sept. 11, 1848, at Newark,

N. J., and, in 1852, when four years old,
1\^> came with his parents, Enos and Harriet
[Hurd) Peck, to (Treenville, Montcalm Co.
Mich., where tliey died. The father was a
native of Connecticut, and the mother was born in
New Jersey.

When Mr. Peck was ten years old he was sent back
to the State of New York and remained with his
uncle, F. B. Peck, ten years. He was tlien 20 years
of age, and resolved upon prospecting to some extent
before making a final location, and passed the next
seven years at various points in Missouri, Iowa, Kan-
sas and Illinois. He then came to Greenville and
lived with his brother-in-law about six years. He
came to Mecosta County Feb. 25, 1881.

Mr. Peck was married Jan. 28, 1880, to Alice ).•
daughter of George and Angeline (White) Stewart
Her father was born in New York and died June 17
1882; her mother was born in New Hampshire and is
now living with her daughter. Mr. and Mrs. Peck
have one child, Enos G., born Nov. 2, 1881. Mr.
Peck is independent in politics.

-~-'^^^-f^S'VV^—

homas Skelton, of the firm of .Skelton &
Collins, proprietors of the Central Hotel at
Big Rapids, was born at Guel|jh, Pr. of On-
tario, Can., June 6, 1850. His parents became
,, residents of l!ig Rapids March 7, 1868, and
I 'I'iiomas, then 17 years of age, entered the em-
ploy of G. F. Stearns, as store and farm assistant,

and continued in this capacity about 7 years; Jan. i,
1875, he became proprietor of the National Hotel at
Big Rapids, and in company with James McCormick,
opened the house for public accommodation. The
association continued until May, 1878. In November
of that year he entered into a partnership with
Richard Collins, and opened the Central Hotel,
where they are still doing business. The house is
conveniently situated ; has 30 rooms, and secures a
good transient patronage, besides accommodating a
number of boarders, and keeps a sample room with
liquors and cigars. He was elected Supervisor of the
Second Ward in the spring of 1883. He was married
Aug. 12, 1874, to VVinnifred, daughter of Patrick
and Mary Kelley, born at Hartland Center, this State,
July 2, 1849. They have had four children, three of
whom are living: Sarah L.; John A. (dec); Mary
W. and Arthur E.

''■^^m-^ — H

I dward Gensman, farmer, sec.

Deer-

ttl lijSI "' ^'^^'^ "^I'"' ^- *^-' '^loi'l'^y. was born in Erie
|feHl Co., N. Y., April 23, 1842. Adam Gens-
'Sft"" man, liis father, was a German by birth and-
came to .America when he was 14 years of age;
married Abigail Churchill in New York, where,
she was born. They setded in Iowa in 1870, where
they are still living.

Mr. Gensman remained under the care and guid-
ance of his parents until the age of 18, when he went
to Vermillion Co., 111., and engaged as assistant in a
cheese factory one year. His ne.xt remove was to
Livingston Co., Mich., where he remained till 1870
then going to Hamilton Co., Iowa. He was there
engaged in agriculture seven and one-half years, re-
turning to Michigan in October, 1877, when lie lo-
cated in Deerfield Township and bought 40 acres of
(lartly improved land, where he now resides. In pol-
itics Mr. Gensman is independent.

He was married in May, 1865, to Ann Grady, of
Englisli descent. She died, leaving one child, — Ed-
mund, born Dec. 13, r866. He was again married
April 30, 1S67, to Harriet, daughter of George and
Sophia (Gage) Grady, the former a native of Eng-

MECOSTA COUNTS

V land, the latter of New York. There are two children
K — Martha E., born May 5, 186S, and George M.,
:^^ Sept. 2, 1870.

'ir«^^

«|:^?i-J^

^li^oseph Cahill, farmer, sec. 3, .■}':tna 'I'p.,
was horn in Canada, Dec. 25, 1S43. He is
a son of James and Catherine (Lebo) Cahill,
the former a native of Ireland, the latter of
Canada, where they spent their lives. Mr. Ca-
^r hill was reared to the pursuit of agriculture,
and in 1863 came to Michigan and was em-
ployed as a farm laborer in Oakland County. A
year later he went to Saginaw and was there on the
river service, engaged in boating. He passed a year
there, went back to Canada for a brief stay, and came
to Mecosta County. He found employment in
/Etna Tp., and until 1S72 worked as a farm assistant
and in the lumber woods. He bought 160 acres of
unimproved land, paying therefor %-,.1'i, per acre.
His first step toward improvement was the building
of a frame house, and he now has 35 acres under a
good degree of ctiltivation. Mr. Cahill has held the
office of Constable one term, and is amemberofthe
Greenback party. He was married in Grand Rapids,
Ivlay 12, 187 r,to Emma M., daughter of William and
Mary A. (Plimpton) Mitchell. Her parents are na-
tives of the State of New York, and reside in Michigan.
Of this marriage four children have been born, viz:
Mary A., June 27, 1873; Joseph W., July 13, 1877-
Thomas O., May 18, 1882: Rosetta, April i, 1879.
Mr. C. and famil)' are prominent in the Catholic
Church.

<=fe±ti*_

P v;s^ , ■ < saac Sed(

aac Sedore, farmer, on sec. 4, Deerfield
)orn in Canada, April 21, 1832.
At 23 years of age he left his home and
made his way westward, hoping to find
an opportunity to build up his fortune with sub.
stantial profit. He came to Mecosta Co., and
pre-empted 40 acres of Government land and
40 acres of swamp land, later buying an addi-
tional "40," of which he still retains possession, mak-
ing a good farm of 120 acres with 60 improved.

Mr. Sedore is a pioneer of Deerfield Tp., and has
been a resident of the county since 1857. He is a
marked individual in the records of "first things" in
his township, as his marriage was the initial event of
that character to transpire after its settlement and
organization. He was married in 1862, to Elizabeth,
daughter of Franklin B. Smith, George Quigley, first
white settler of Deerfield, performing the ceremony
of marriage under his authority as Justice of the
Peace. Mr. and Mrs. Sedore have six children : Su-
san, ^Vm. H., Phebe, David, Melvin and P' valine.

Mr. Sedoie is a member of the Rei)ublican party.
Religiously he is a liberalist.

He enlisted in the late war in 1864, in Co. A,
Third Volunteer iVIichigan Infantry, served until
the close of the war, and was honorably discharged.

^r~r^

'^^=4=e^

V^'

'^^f'

■^^^n

^iP rank J. Porter, proprietor of the shingle
mill on sec. 27, Hinton Tp., is the son of
Thomas and Sarah (Wilkinson) Porter.
^'Ite They were natives of New York and Vermont,
.^IV first settling in Ohio, and afterward coming to
• ^ Michigan and locating in Kent County. They
now reside at Grand Rapids.

Mr. Porter was born in Medina Co., Ohio, Feb. 27,
1S49. He was five years old when his parents came
to Michigan, and he remained at home until he was
16 years of age, attending the common schools.
After that, until 187O, he was chiefly employed in
different shingle mills in this section of country.
From 1876 to 1S79 '"i^ operated the lath mill of Ber-
nard & Stewart, at Caldwell, Montcalm Co., em-
ploying the help, etc. In 1879 he bought a shingle
mill at Lakeview, which he managed one year, and
in 1880 moved it. to Hinton Tp , where he now re-
sides and manages his mill, which has a capacity of
40,000 shingles daily. He bought the timber on 400
acres of land, which he is converting into shingles.

Mr. Porter was married Feb. 28, 1869, in Spencer,
Kent Co., to Ella, daughter of Ephraini and Eliza
(Lillie) Skinner, who died Feb. 19, 1S72. Mr. Porter
was again married in November, 1874, in Greenville,
Montcalm Co., to Minerva Brown, a native of the
State of New York. Of four children born to Mr. and
Mrs. Porter, two survive — Adda V.,born July 9, 1876,

(

c<.

«-

>• 224

r3V^Dn>^llIlr^

V ' ---'

MECOSTA COUNTY

and Anna A., born June 22, 1878. The deceased
were Thomas E. and Frank. The latter died Sept.
23, 1882. In politics Mr. Porter is identified with
the Republican |)arty.

"i^-i^- 3;^c**o

6lrl_-i|'iUiam H. Squier, jeweler at ISig Rapids,
was born in Vermontville, Eaton Co.,
Mich., July 9, 1857. He is a son of Geo.

jItSSP W. and Sophronia (Dickenson) Squier. His
father has been a farmer most of his life ; was
Treasurer of Eaton County six years, and is
dealer in agricultural implements at Charlotte.
\Vm. H. was reared on the farm of his father until
the age of 16, when the latter removed with his
family to Charlotte, where the son took a course of
commercial instruction. He then obtained a situa-
tion with J. N. Thrift, to learn the business which he
decided to make his calling in life, and remained
three years, going thence to the employ of \V. \V.
Childs, of Jackson, and a few months later returned
to his former employer, where he remained but a short
time. His next transfer was to Hastings, where he
was in the jewelry establishment of Ike Hendershott
& Co. three years. In June, 1880, he came to Big Rap-
ids and founded his business, which he has since
operated successfully, and is gradually building up a
permanent and substantial trade. His stock of
watches, clocks, jewelry, etc., is valued at $8,000; an-
nual transactions, $20,000. Mr. S. was married at
Hastings, Nov. 20, 1880, to Stella Hendershott, who
was born in Irving, Barry Co., this State. They have
one child, (iertrude, born Dec. 24, 1S82.

^|p.ohn B. Merrill, .Moiley. was born Feb. 15,
1833, in the State of New York. His pa-
:^f"|. rents, Waite and Minerva (Whitingt Mer-
rill, were natives of New York. Mr. Merrill
remained in his native state until he was 28
years old, and in the autumn of 1863, came to
Newaygo County, and soon after to Mecosta
County, and l)0ught 80 acres of land in Deerfield.
This he sold in a short time, and has since been en-

gaged in real estate brokerage to a considerable ex-
tent. He owns about 50 acres of land, with some
degree of improvments thereon. In company with J.
W. Arnett, he has charge of the feed store, lumber
interests, etc., of J. M. Carr of Grand Rapids. He
has been Justice of the Peace ten years, County Su-
perintendent four years, and been the incumbent of
nearly all the local offices of his township. He
has been a member of the Masonic Order for 17 years,
and in the society of Odd Fellows has held all the
posts of the lower order, and passed through the
Camp. In politics he is a Republican.

Mr. Merrill was married in the State of New York,
April t8, i860, to Eliza Ann, daughter of Amos A.
L. and Ann Tuttle, natives of Vermont, where she
was born Nov. 17, 1833. Mr. and Mrs. Merrill have
had three children, two of whom are living: Mahala,
born Oct. 29, 1866, and Alma, July 31, 1869. Ev-
erett, was born Jan 9. 1863, and died May 17, 1882.
Mr. and Mrs. Merrill are earnest and prominent
members of the M. E. Church. Mr. M. has been a
Class, leader for some time, and is considered a con-
sistent and valuable member of society.

^^(^|--*

-i<m

"T^J? emuel F. Chipman, deceased, was the son
'■'.[ J M;i of Fitch and Sarah (Spafford) Chipman, na-
■^JiS-T^ tives of Vermont, and was born in 181 1.
iphf- He came to Michigan when a young man, and
X* very shortly afterwards, in the spring of i860,
I came to Mecosta County. He had no assistance
in setting out in life and fortune had not been
propitious. He secured 40 acres of land under the
State law of Michigan, built a log house and, assisted
by his wife, who lent every aid within her power,
passed the career of a pioneer in every sense. 'I'he
county was scarcely in an organized state, supplies
were remote and the labor of clearing the land bur-
densome; but it was all borne with the patient heroism
which always marks the sturdy pioneer element. Mr.
Chipnian's death occurred Jan. 24, 1863.

He was married in the State of New York in 1830,
to Eliza, daughter of Solomon and Anna (Chapman)
Sutherland. She lived but a few years, and he was
again married, at Genoa, Livingston Co., Mich.,
May I, 1849, to Cynthia E., daughter of J. M. and

'**"^-— -- ,n^[

c4.

■•i^'^' c6k<y&A

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'T<:Mi^M'^>r^ :J^^

-'^ftcg

MECOSTA COUNTY.

227

Cynthia (Fisher) Abbey, born in New York, Sept. 11,
1824. Five of six children are living. They were
born as follows : Aha, April 16, 1852 ; Alexander M.,
May 5, '54; Lillian E., June 31, '56; Bertha L.,
Marcli 31, '58; Lemuel F., June 20, '60. Ida Belle
was born Aug. 24, '63, and died Sept. 3, '64. Mrs.
Chipman resides on the place upon sec. 25 where she
came with her husband and located many years ago.
She received a good education in the common schools
and seminary at Ann .\rbor, and though not a com-
municant in any Church is a consistent Christian lady.

fm. J. Wadsworth, lumberman and farmer,
ec. 32, Mecosta Tp. (P. O., Stanwood),

f Sf^^xpJ? was born in Belmont Co., Qhio, May i

iP 1838. His parents, Josiah and Anna G
^^* (Parker) Wadsworth, were of English and
and Irish descent, and natives of New York
i. early becoming residents of Ohio. His father aban-
=[ doned the family, and his mother married again be-
^ fore he was 15 years old. At that age he went out
^ into the world for himself His first employ was as
•^ a driver on the canal, which he followed until the
S fall of 1854, then engaging as hotel clerk; this po-
) sition affording him a little leisure, he attended school
and secured a moderate amount of education.
Leaving his situation, he was employed as a farm
laborer in Venango Co., Penn,, there operating until
1865. In the winter of that year he acted as a team-
ster, ne.\l embarking in lumber trade and farming.

He was married Oct. 16, 1859, to Delia A., daugh-
ter of William and Permelia (Hancock) Jay, natives
of New York, and lineal descendants of the Jays
and Hancocks, of Revolutionary fame. Mrs. Wads-
worth was born in Lorain Co., Ohio, Oct. 6, 1843.
Her uncle took her to Pennsylvania when she was a
mere girl. After his marriage Mr. Wadsworth was
interested in oil speculation until the civil war broke
out. July 16, 1861, he enlisted in the Third Reg.
U. S. Cav., under Lieut. Spaulding. Soon after
enlistment he broke his arm and was discharged
from the service. As soon as he was sufficiently re-
covered to warrant the step, he enlisted again, en-
rolling Aug II, 1862, in the i42d Pennsylvania Reg.
Vol. Inf., Co. I, Capt. Hasson. During the time
of his service he was under fire at Fredericks-

burg, Ciuincellorsville and at Fredericksburg second,
and Gettysburg, escaping unharmed. He received
his final discharge, Aug. 30, 1865.

He returned to Oil City, and thence to Ohio, where
lie rejoined his wife and went back to the oil regions,
where he was engaged in shipping oil until the sum-
mer of 1866. He returned again to Ohio and was
engaged two years in farming, then coming to Mich-
igan and finding a home in Mecosta Tp., in the fall
of 1868. He at once entered heartily into the busi-
ness of lumbering, and the next year homesteaded a
tract of 90 acres of land, where he has since oper-
ated as stated.

Mr. Wadsworth is a zealous and active Republi-
can. He has held various township and school
offices. Himself and wife are members in full stand-
ing of the Free Methodist Church. They have six
children, born as follows: William, June 8, 1862;
Myrtle G., July 14, 1864; Edith N., April 18, 1868;
Percy J., April 26, 1873; Lester V., Sept. 8, 1S75,
and Hadey A., March 10, 1883.

-I — ~A/\,;

|<^s>

.^^^^^

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.<|^3i'Sa Brockway, farmer, resident on sec. 20,
SSjiSir Hinton T13., is the son of Andrew and
l|p«^~°'*' Elizabeth (Rossman) Brockway, natives of
3J\ar Pennsylvania, where the son was born, June
If 16,1830.

) When Mr. Brockway was ipiite young his

parents moved to the State of New York, and there
he resided until he was 19 years old. In the summer
of 1849 he came to Michigan and settled in Livings-
ton County. Six years later he sold his farm and
came to Mecosta County, where he bought 80 acres of
wild land in Hinton Tp., on which he now lives.
The place is in fine condition, having 75 acres under
cultivation. In politics Mr. B. is a r-)emocrat and has
held offices of trust in township and school affairs.

He is a pioneer of Mecosta County, having come
here in 1855, five years before the organization of the
township. His father, Andrew Brockway, was for
some years the oldest resident living in the township.

Mr. Brockway was married in Washtenaw County,
Oct. 9, 1855, to Lydia S., daughter of Samuel and
Rhoda (Vanvelzer) Eaton. Mrs. Brockway was
born in Onondaga Co., N. Y., Feb. 10, 1836. Four
children were born of this marriage, as follows :

^.'l^

^!N^^^^m^

-^^&^ — ^V4^l]li:t:ntl^i>-r^

-«s#

)
A

228

MECOSTA COUNTY

Eva M., Nov. 6, 1856; Emma E., April 16, 1857;
'D' Andrew S, July 21, 186 1 ; Ida M, March 18, 1863.
.'^ We give a portrait of Mr. BroL-kway in tliis work.

■■'■-s^^^->-

i^Hfeilas Wright, farmer, sec. 7, Deerfield Tp.,

I ^M C" was born in Pennsylvania Dec. 29, 1843.

IliS^^ His parents, John and Sarah (Evers)

\ Wright, were also natives of the Keystone

State, and in 1863 came to Barry Co., Mich.,

and a short time afterwards to Allegan County,

where the father died soon after, and the mother is

yet living.

Our subject received a common-school education
and resided with his parents until the age of 27
years. He enlisted Oct. 16, 1862, in the 169th Penn-
sylvania Vol. Infantry, and received his discharge in
July, '63, leaving the army with health much im-
paired by sickness and exposure. In '70 he left
Allegan County and came to Mecosta County, where
he bought 80 acres of timber land and upon it built a
frame liouse, proceeding to clear and improve his
land, of which he now has 50 acres under tillage.

He was married in Canada, March 29, '71, to Sarah
T., daughter of James and Amelia B. Bell, ncc A.x-
ford, the former a native of England, and the latter of
New Jersey. They have three children — Frank M.,
Harry I^. and Nora E., born respectively Feb. 23, '72^
Oct., TO, '75 and July 4, '78. Mr. \\'right is an ad-
herent of the Democratic party.

-S

'^i^

"^i^

ohn R. Campbell, lioot and shoe merchant
\ at Big Rapids, was born in 1 )e^Vitt Co.,
III., May I, 1856. His parents, Barzillai
and Rosanna (Sacketl) Camiibell, went to La
Cygne, Kan., in 1865, where tliey engaged in
farming, and became prominent in tlie social
and political circles of that section, Mr. Camp-
bell, Sr., being elected in 1877 to represent his dis-
trict in the State Legislature.

The first business venture of Mr. Campbell was
that of jobbing in canned goods at wholesale at Kan-

sas City, Mo.; after three months he went to New
Brunswick, N. J., and ofticiated one year as book-
keeper for the Home Valley Preserving Company.
He then went to Indiana, where he engaged in the
insurance business. In May, 1882, he came to Big
Rapids and formed a partnership with P. Wait, in the
sale of boots and shoes, which connection was dis-
solved Aug. I, 1883, Mr. Campbell buying his part-
ner's interest. His stock is valued at $4,500, and his
business transactions amount to $1,200 monthly.

Mr. Campbell was married at South New Bruns-
wick, N. J., Oct. 24, 1882, to Julia Van Deventer,
who was born in New Jersey, Oct. 23, 1862.

-~-.<^.t44l^.^>..

^m^e^-

^^Jit?",^

•€^-

artin E. Wilson, farmer, ?ec. 25, Deer-
field Tp., was born in Genesee Co., N. Y.,
1^ July 21, 1836. His parents, Warren and ^A*,
i^\v<^ Naomi (Smead) Wilson, were natives of Ver- i=i
mont, but located in Genesee County in 1836.
Four years later they settled in Ingham Co.,
Mich., where the mother still resides on the farm
wliich was her first home in the Peninsular State.
The father died April 10, 1877.

Mr. Wilson passed his boyhood and youth on the
farm under the personal care of his parents, and at 18
went to Newaygo County, where he spent the winter
months in lumbering and the remainder of the years
was engaged in " breaking." In the spring of 1861
he came to Mecosta County and bought 80 acres ot
land, where he still resides. His land was then in a
state of nature and he proceeded to put it in propei
and comfortable condition for a home for his advanced
years. He has 70 acres cleared and under tillage.

Mr. Wilson was one of the earliest settlers of
Deerfield, and, from his integrity and constant zeal for
the best ifiterests of the public, has become a valuable
ar.d trusted citizen of the township. He has been
lustice of the Peace 20 years. In '64 he was drafted
into the Um'on service and assigned to the Fourteenth
Mich. \'ol. Inf, and was discharged at Detroit, July
10, '65, after ten months' active duty at Savannah,
Brier Creek, and Bentonville, N. C, under Sherman.
His regiment was mustered out at Louisville, Ky.

He was married in 1859 to Anna Chipman, who

:^dd;>^-^ — ^"^r^ -4^^

MECOSTA COUNTY.

was born in Livingston Co., Mich., and died in '73.

Two of the three children born to them are living, —
pt Naomi A. and Adelbert E. George is deceased.
• . Mr. Wilson again entered into the bonds of matrimony
A in '74. He married Eunice L. Royce, a native of
"^ Tioga Co., Pa. They have five children : Vernon R.,

Martin O., Alice M. and Helen. An infant child is

unnamed. Mr. Wilson is a Republican.

^^S.5 1

)

ri ohn G. Gill, junior member of the firm of

WJi'- '^ol'C'ii Hennett & Gill, ijisurance, real-

5;^^ estate and loan agents, at Big Rapids, was

born ni Cornwall, Eng., Jan. 8, 1838. His

parents, Richard and Maiy (Glanville) Gill,
\^ were natives of Cornwall, born respectively in
^ tSoo and in 1S02. They came to the United States
vS in 1842, and went to Hannibal, Mo., and two years
= later to Illinois. They bought a small farm near
(^ Galena, where the father also became interested to a
^ considerable extent in lead mines. Mr. Gill there
r^J obtained his elementary education, and at 14 years
^ of age became a clerk in a dry-goods store, where he
was employed one year. At 15 he went to Madison,
Wis., and commenced a course of study in the
scientific department of the University, remaining
three years. Returning to Illinois, he passed four
successive winters in teaching. He acted as clerk
on the Mississippi river steamers two summers, and
finally entered a claim of Government land in Kansas
which he improved to some extent.

In i860 he went to Colorado and commenced
staking claims near the "Gregory" mines. The
spring following he went to Delaware Flats, Brecken-
ridge Co , and worked out a placer mine in the sum-
mer of 1861. He was in company with James
McAllister, and continued his operations until tlie
summer of 1862. tW. that date he formed a partner-
ship with L. W. \Voodruff', and went to Bannock
City, Montana, where they were among the earliest
comers. Here they took up a bar claim, which
y proved an advantageous project. They went thence
\ to the site of Virginia City, and assisted in platting
^ the city, of which they owned one seventh. They
^ then went to Bevins' Gulch, where they again en-

gaged in successful claim traffic, and in addition
estal.)lished a freiglit train to and from different
points across the plains, consisting of 2.1 teams of six
yoke of oxen each. They managed this latter enter-
prise two years. The winters of 1863-4-5 they
spent in eastern cities, negotiating mining property.
Mr. Gill next went to Des Arc, Prairie Co., Ark., and
in company with his brother, R. G. Gil!, engaged in
the cotton trade. Two years later he went to
Kansas, and bought another farm near the locality of
his first agricultural investment, which, on leaving
Kansas for Colorado, he had transferred to Mrs.
Mary Elwell, his sister. He remained in Kansas
until 1875, when he sold his farm and came to Big
Rapids, and, associated with C. B. Lovejoy, founded
a grocery firm styled Gill & Lovejoy. In 1877 the
latter sold his interest to N. H. Beebe, and the new firm
continued to transact the most extensive business of
the kind in the city, until May i, 1883, doing an an-
nual business of $60,000. In June, 1883, he en-
tered the house of Roben & Bennett as partner.

Mr. Gill was married in Lynn Co., Kan., Jan. 25,
1 868, to Laura E., daughter of Hon. Barzillai and
Rosanna Campbell, who was born in Clinton, 111.,
March 19, 1850. They h;ive three children — Cora
E., Lewis C. and John G.

||. ewis Russell, proprietor of the shingle mill
on sec. 4, Hinton Tp , is a son of Morris
t^f^ ''"'^ Calista Russell, and was born at Glens
" Falls, Warren Co., N. Y., March 27, 1849.
His parents are natives of Canada, where they
now reside. At the age of 13 Mr. Russell went
to work on a farm, and was in the employ of one
man three years. His next employment was in a
cotton mill in Massachusetts, where he remained
nearly two years, and a part of the time officiated as
second foreman of the mill. He went back to the
Empire State, where he [lassed a year working on a
farm, and spent the year following on a farm in Ver-
mont. In 1868 he went to Wisconsin, where he com-
menced his career as a manufacturer of shingles,
which has since been his vocation. After operating
four years in the Badger State, in the summer of 1872

230

<^llli:t:Pli!.>T-

MECOSTA COUNTY.

•^^ti^-ih

Jt.

he came to Montcalm County and there remained
nine years. In the summer of 1881 he came to this
county and located in the township of Martiny,
where he bought and ran a shingle mill one year.
He removed his works to Hinton Tp., in the fall of
1882, where he is now operatingand employs 13 men.
The daily product of the mill is 40,000 shingles.

Mr. Russell was married May 28, 1872, in Green-
ville, Montcalm Co., to Isabella, third daughter of
Colin and EHzal)eth (McCarthy) Mclntyre. Her
parents were natives of .Scotland and settled in Can-
ada, where the daughter was born Sept. 23, 1854.
Thes came to Michigan about 1867, and have
since died. Mr. and Mrs. Russell have had four
children: Howard H., born March 3, 1873; Winnie
L., born Aug. 12, 1875; Harry H., March 20, 1S79,
and Bessie L , .Sept. 27, 1882. Mr. Russell is a
member of the order of Masonry and in politics is a
Republican.

^ ucius L. Osgood, general merchant at Big
Rapids, was born in Steuben Co., N. Y.,
Aug. 22, 1834. His father, Lebbeus Os-
good, died when he was about 12 years old,
and his mother, Philene Osgood, removed to
Penn Yan, Yates Co., N. Y., and there Mr. Os-
good learned the shoemaker's trade. He enlist-
ed in the service of the United States to quell tlie
Rebellion, in the second year of the civil war, en-
rolling Oct. 3, 1862, in Co. C, 44th N. Y. Vol. Inf,
as a jirivate soldier, and served until the termination
of the war. He was in action at Fredericksburg,
Chancellorsville, Mine Run, Gettysburg, all the battles
of the Wilderness, and at Cold Harbor, where he re-
ceived a severe gunshot wound in the left hip. He
was sent to Little York Hospital, Pa., where he was
laid up II months. He obtained his discharge at
I^ittle York, May 15, 1865. He remained there, and
commenced as a dealer in groceries and operated
about two and one half years.

In 1867 he came to Big Rapids, and soon after-
ward began to sell groceries in the upper part of the
city. In 1873 he relinquished his trade and bought
a farm containing 60 acres near Paris, Newaygo Co.
.\fter carrying on agriculture about two and one-half

years, he sold his place and came back to Big Rapids
opened a grocery, and in 1880 located on his present'
site, where he is doing a safe and substantial busi-
ness. His stock represents a value of $3,000, and
his annual sales amount approximately to $18,000.

He was married at Little York, Pa., Jan. 21, 1866,
to Mary, daughter of Lawrence and Ricca Markley,
born at Little York, Jan. 13, 1844. Mr. and Mrs.
Osgood have been the parents of four children, as
follows: Lucy P. (dec), Edwin L., Mary J. and
Essie I. Mr. Osgood is a member of the Knights of
Pythias. He owns his residence and a city lot.

^"^

^|m|il,harles Hinman, farmer, on sec. 14, Hin

f "

,£ ton Tp., is a son of Curtis and Almira
pi

iP?^" (De Witt) Hinman, who were natives of
v?|v the Empire State, and went thence to Pennsyl-
y^ vania, coming afterward to Michigan; they
first settled in Oakland Co., but soon after
moved to Clinton Co., where they died. Mr. Hin-
man was born in Oakland Co., Mich., Oct. 23, 1838.
He attended school and worked on his father's farm
until the age of 22 years, then leased the farm of his
grandfather for two years. The element of war was
tlien abroad in the land, and the patriotic blood that
courses in the veins of every man who loves his coun-
try beat high to act or die for the integrity of the
Union. Mr. Hinman enlisted Aug. 11, 1862, in the
23d Michigan Vol. Inf, and was in the service till
the close of the war, receiving honorable discharge
June 27, 1865, at Washington, D. C. Among the
engagements where he was under fire, were the
battles of the Wilderness, Spottsylvania C. H., Cold
Harbor, and at the siege of Petersburg. He was
captured at the battle of the Wilderness, but was at
once paroled. In that engagement, while storming
the defenses of the enemy, he met with an accident
that disabled him for several weeks. After the war
he went to his home in Ionia Co. and resumed the
pursuit of agriculture. After a residence of 12 years
he sold his fLirm and went to Clare Co. He purchas-
ed 160 acres of land, which he sold four years later,
came to Millbrook, Mecosta Co., and bought the
hotel property known as the Rowland Hor.se, which
he soon afterward e.xchanged for another hotel

-^<^DP^:^DD^>^-^^^ ^

^^?r'5^

-«4^

-c

v<^ni]^llll>i>-r

rr"

-*^^^^$^^aJ^

MECOSTA COUNTY.

231

located at Sylvester, Mich. He managed this one
year, and exchanged it for 40 acres of land on sec. z6,
Hinton Tp. About the same time he rented a farm
near Sylvester, which he managed two years, and in
the spring of 1880 purchased 40 acres of land, where
he now lives. He has placed it under good cultiva-
tion, and erected convenient commodious buildings.
In political sentiment Mr. Hinman belongs to the
Democratic party, and is a member of the Order of
Masonry. He has been Highway Commissioner two
years, and School Director three years. He was
married in Clinton Co., Mich., June 24, i860, to
Eliza, eldest daughter of Win. C. and Eliza (Bullard)
Ratcliffe, who were of English nativity and came to
America in 1841, settling in the State of New York,
where the mother died ; the father came to Michigan
to live with his children, and died in Ionia Co. Mrs.
Hinman was bo.'n in England, Nov. 5, 1836. Mr. and
Mrs. Hinman have had si.x children, three survive:
Stella E., born Oct. 7, 1866; Guy C, July 2, 1872;
Alma .A., Sept. 20, 1874. In this, as in many other
families in Mecosta Co., the diplitheria made cruel
ravages. Ella G., born July 23, i86i,died Oct. 20,
1 88 1. She was married and left a son four years old.
Fred I., born .March 18, 1863, died Oct. 19, 18S1, one
day preceding the demise of his sister; Rae A., born
Jan 22, 1869, died Dec. 22, i88r.

•"HJlSiaM^^

-^s—^-'^^mnm^

' """^'-ohn Hunter, farmer, sec 30, Mecosta Tp.,

was born in Montreal, Dec, 13, 1852. His

.J. parents, Robert and Sarah (Curry) Hunter,.

were born in Ireland, of Scotch parentage, and

were there married, coming shortly after the

event to Canada.

Mr. Hunter began his battle of life at 16
years of age, in Esse.x Co., N. Y., whither his parents
removed. His first employ was as a lumberman, work-
ing with a contractor who was "putting in" timber on
^^ the Hudson River, and remained until the winter of
1 i''^7.v "hen he returned to Montreal Meanwhile
^ his father and family had removed to Mecosta County,

tand he came hither to Big Rapids, and found speedy
employ as a lumberman winters, and a farm hand
summers, alternating these occupations three years.
^ His father and n.oiler, resident on ^ec. 3c, Mecosta

Tp., died, and he succeeded to his share of the es-
tate. In 1879 ^^ bought 40 acres of wild land in
Goodwin Tp., Newaygo Co.

He is an earnest Republican, is the present School
Moderator, and in religious faith a Presbyterian.

H. Gray, senior member of the
H. Gray & Co , manufacturers

!^ ylvester
W firm of S
[jK^^ of lumber, lath and shingles, at Big Rap-
ids, was born at Jersey Shore, Lycoming Co.,
Feb. 3, 1846. His parents were Hiram

c
A

C^'

T. and Susan (Minsker) Gray. .\t the age of
6 he was sent to \Vyer's Military Academy,
Westchester, Pa. The school was under the manage-
ment of Major Echendorf, a graduate from West
Point, whose pupils gained unusual proficiency, and
a considerable degree of public notoriety for drill ex-
hibitions in various places. Mr. Gray was a member
of Company B, with the rank of Orderly Sergeant.
On completing liis course of study lie went to Wil-
liatnsport in the employ of Slonaker, Howard & Co.
as book-keeper and partner. The business of the
Jiouse was heavy and prosperous, and the relation
e.xisted until r873. In that year Mr. Gray came to ( >
Big Rapids, and the partnership of Phippen, Gray &
Howard was formed. The concern operated in logs,
lumber and pine lands until Nov., r 87 8, doing a suc-
cessful business.

At the date named the present business relation of
S. H. Gray & Co. was established. The house is
engaged in extensive and prosperous operations.
They own a saw-mill on the lower dam, east of the #
river, whei'e they have a lumber yard and employ 20
hands; they also own a shingle mill on the west side
of the river, above the lower bridge, where 35 men
constitute the laboring force. They make 18-inch
shingles which they kiln dry, being thereby enabled
to facilitate shi[)ping. They manufacture about
20,000,000 annually, and sell chiefly in Easterr, mar-
kets. The shingles of their make, known to the
trade as the iS-inch XXX.K, are among the best
products in that line. The business of the firnr also
includes logs, lumber and pine lands.

Mr. Gray was married at Grand Rapids, June 16,
i 1S75, l-o Antha, daughter of Wm. S. and Margareita ^

232

MECOSTA COUNTY.

(Hill) Gray, born in Freeport, 111., April 8, 1849.

(gy They have one son, Vivian, born at Big Rapids, Nov.

'■%> 17, 1876.
I Mr. Gray is a stockholder and director in tlie

(z>j Northern National Bank, is Secretary and Treasurer in
the Big Rapids Boom Co., and Secretary of the Big
Rapids VVater-Povver Improvement Company.

)

- • -

S-ohn G. Potter, farmer, sec. 22, Austin Tp.
_ ( I'. O. Stanwood), was born in Niagara Co.,
|fe"*"^ N. Y., Nov. 9, 1849. His parents, Russell
Ju'^ and Enimeline C. (Grover) Potter, were natives
"^W of New York.

P Mr. Potter was reared as a farmer's son, sent
to the common schools and trained as farm assistant
until he was 22 years old. In 1S72 he came to Me-
costa County and bought the homestead property of
his father-in-law, William H. Olin, about 1877, com-
prising 40 acres of improved land.

He was married March 9, 1872, to Susan I!.,
daughter of William H. and Lydia (Corey) Olin, born
in Chemung Co., N. Y., April 9, 1854. Her parents
were natives of New England.

Mr. and Mrs. Potter have had six children, two of
whom are deceased : Stella E., born Aug. 20, 1874,
died May 10, 1876; and Alberta, born Aug. 3, 1879,
died Oct. 13, 1S79. The living children were born
in the ordei named : Florence E., March 28, 1873;
Gracie E., July 6, 1877; Claude E., July 13, 1880,
and Harry J., July 28, 1882.

Mr. Potter is a Democrat in political faith and ac-
tion, and is the present Supervisor of the township.

-irw*

ii^ii^iiii^S

■^pj-?s-

rsemus Gros.s, farmer, sec. 28, Deerfield

Tp., P. O. Morley, was born in New Lisbon,

[^•^^ Otsego Co., N. Y. His parents were natives

> of the same State. His mother, Nancy (Pat.

rick) Gross, died in the fall of 1843 ; his father,

Ellis Gross, resides in Steuben Co., N. Y.

At the age of 15 Mr. Gross went to Pennsylvania,

where he engaged in farming and lumbering three
years, and then obtained work on the Erie Canal.
On the outbreak of the rebellion of the Southern
States he enlisted in the Thirty-fourth N. Y. Vol. Inf.,
and served two years, the full period for which he en-
rolled, and received an honorable discharge. He was
in tlie engagement at Gaines' Mills, Antietam, Fairfax
Court-House and in the battle of the Wilderness. On
his discharge he returned to Pennsylvania and at once
proceeded to Mecosta Co., Mich., and bought 40 acres
of land in Deerfield Tp. It was then in a wild con-
dition, but he has nearly his entire acreage in a good
state of cultivation, and lately improved by a new
frame house. Mr. Gross adheres to the principles ad-
vocated by the Democratic party.

He was married Oct. 22, 1869, to Jeannelte, daugh-
ter of Alanson and Esther A. (Hedges) Rickar. Her
parents are natives of New York and came to Me-
costa County in the winter of 1865. Mrs. Gross was
l)orn May 22, 1849. To Mr. and Mrs. Gross three
children were born, as follows : Alphonso G., Aug.
22, 1870; Ella A , June 14, 1873; Mabel A., Dec.
24, 1878,

»v^

^iram H. Slawson, furniture dealer at Big
Rapids, was born in Orange Co., N. Y.,
March 30, iSio. He was reared on a farm,
and at the age of 16 learned the trade of car-
i penter and joiner, and afterward that of cabi-
] net-maker, and has since been engaged alter-
nately in their prosecution.
Mr. Slawson came to Michigan in the fall of 1848,
and worked in a furniture establishment at Grand
Rapids about two years, going at the end of that
time to Greenville, Montcalm Co., where he was en-
gaged in the furniture business about 20 years. He
ne.xt transferred his interests to Cedar Springs, Kent
Co , and in April, 1882, he came to Big Rapids and
purchased the stock and fixtures of E. A. Knight,
and is now operating with a fair degree of success.

Mr. .Slawson was married in Seneca Co., N. Y
Jan. I, 1835,10 Eusebia, daughter of John and Mary
Fleming, born in Seneca Co., Nov. 26, 1811. They
have had the following named children: Henry,
Charles and Morrison, farmers, near Greenville;

<>nii^nn^>T^

MECOSTA COUNTY.

William, who is deceased; Newell S., an attorney
at Cedar Springs several years, and who died in
Marshall, Texas, in March, 1882; Mary, wife of
Joseph B. Hammond, a grocer, in Ionia Co.; Will T.,
^ a reporter on the Pioneer Magnet, and a practical
printer. Mr. Slawson owns a residence and lot on
Henderson Street, two houses with lots at Cedar
Springs; also five vacant lots at that place. The
family are members of the Congregational Church.

enjamin F. Rathvon, senior member of

» the firm of Rathvon Bros., proprietors of

^^ the Mecosta Planing Mill, was born at

Bertie, Welland Co., Pr. of Out., Can., Feb.

8, 1848. He is a son of Jacob and Elizabetii

Rathvon. The father was a carpenter, and

died when Benjamin was seven years of age. The

mother removed to Springfield, Elgin Co., Ont.,

where she was again married, to Reuben Johnson,

a magistrate of that place.

Mr. Rathvon returned to Welland (Jounty when he
was 13 years of age, and was a member of the house-
hold of his uncle, a farmer, three years. He then
went to Ridgeway, same county, and engaged with
Eben Cutler to learn carpentering. He spent five
years acquiring his trade, then went back to Spring-
fiL-ld, where he operated as a builder three years,
going thence to St. Thomas, and there followed the
p same occupation. In September, r88o, became to
§ Ionia, and connected his fortunes with those of his
^ brother Charles, and at the end of a year they came
to Mecosta village and built their planing mill, at a
cost of nearly $4,000. They usually employ ten
men, and are doing a first-class business, with gratify-
ing success. They combine building with lumbering
interests. They expect to add machinery for maic-
> ing sash, doors, and also furniture. Mr. Rathvon is

a member of the A. O. U. W.
i. He was married .May 29, 187 r, to Emma A.,
5 daughter of Isaac and Elizabeth Gilbert, born June
t 15, 1850, in Southold Tp., Elgin Co., Can. Their
^ two children were born as follows: Lewis E. O., at
^ St. Thomas, Can., April 16, 1874; Ilau M., in Spring-
ifrj,field, Elgin Co., Oct. 15, 1875.

ichael Keegan, farmer, sec. 12, Hinton
J Tp., is a son of James and Lucy (Perent)
_ S Keegan, and was born in Van Buren,
j/l^)^xk: Aroostook Co., Maine, April 9, 1848. His
father was a native of Ireland and his mother
of Canada. They were among the earliest set-
tlers in the section of Maine, where they located and
reared their family.

At the age of 15, Mr. Keegan and his brother
James came to East Saginaw, Mich., and there found
employment on the river and in the ]jines one and a
half years. He went thence to Stillwater, Minn.,
and there engaged in the same business 18 months.
He returned to Saginaw for a brief time, and soon
after came to Mecosta County, and bought 40 acres
of forest land exclusively his own and, associated
with another person, purchased an additional 2oacres.
He operated as a lumberman until 1871, when he
began to improve his land, and soon after added 40
acres, making his homestead 80 acres in all, of which
60 acres are now under tillage with suitable and com-
modious farm buildings. Mr. Keegan was united in
nrarriage, in this township, Feb. 4, 1872, to Mary,
daughter of William and Sarah (Whitney) Cross and
widow of Joseph Moulton. The father was a native
ot England and the mother of Maine; they now re-
side with Mr. and Mrs. Keegan. In politics Mr.
Keegan is a Republican.

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^i,larence W. Parks, senior member of the
hardware firm of Parks Bros., and member
- iii the Council of Mecosta, Morton Tp.,
was born in Lyons Tp., Oakland Co , Mich.,
May 18, 1855. He is a son of William K.
and Ann E. (Dunlap) Parks. His parents
removed in March, 1S64, to Easton Tp.,
Ionia Co., and there bought 120 acres of land, resid-
ing thereon two years; they then went to Keene Tp ,
Ionia Co , and became the owners of 80 acres of land.
C. W. Parks rented this property in 1877, and man-
aged it three years. He came to Mecosta in 1880,
in company with C. H. Taylor, to engage in mercan-

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MECOS TA CO UNT ¥

4^ tile pursuits; and tliey founded a hardware trade.

(^)) Their relation continued one year, Mr. C. H. Taylor

*A* selling his interest to M. F. .Strong, of Saranac, who,
I one year later sold in turn to Robert 1 ). Parks. The

(5^ building which they occupy was bought by the senior
member of the firm, and Mr. Strong. It is 20 x 60
feet in dimensions; the main store with one adjoining,
24 X 36 feet, is utilized for a tin-shop, store-room, etc.
The present firm was established Feb. i, 1SS3, and
are doing a prosperous business, carrying a stock of
about $8,000, including hardware, stoves, tinware,
sash, doors, crockery, etc., with annual sales of about
$25,000. Mr. Parks was elected member of the W^-
lage Council in the spring of 1.S83 ; lie also belongs to
the .\. O. U. \V.

He was married in Vergennes, Kent (_'o., Mich.,
Sept. 28, :88r, at the residence of the bride's father,
to Agnes E., daughter of Sidney E. and Almira Hoag,
who was born May 7, 1852, and was reared on a
farm until her marriage. Sidney Hoag's father was

/5s a prosperous farmer, and one of the jiioneers of

a ^'ergennes.

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[^-ames Davis, farmer, on sec. 29, .\ustin Tp.,
' was born in Wales, July 9, 1816. He is a
W^ son of Tiiomas and Ann (Howell) Davis,
also bom in Wales, where they lived and died.
'^ At the age of 16 Mr. Davis went to work as a
farm laborer, and in the fall of 1840 was
married to Martha, daughter of William and Maryett
(Rogers) Harries. Mr. Davis and his wife at once
settled on a farm, where they lived and labored until
their removal to this country, in the fall of 1S57,
when they went to Quebec, Canada, thence to Ne-
waygo Co., Mich., residing there two years. In the
fall of 1859 they settled on the 40 acres, now their
homestead^ which they purchased in the earliest
days of the township, of which thev were among the
pioneers.

Mr. and Mrs. Davis have had seven children :
K\\\r\ E., born Aug. i, 183S ; Edward R., July 7, 1S42 ;
William H., Jan. 28, 1844; David D., born Oct. 28,
1846, died in February, 1851 ; Thomas, born April
II, 1S48, died in February, 1851; (these children
died of scarlet fever;) Margaret, born March 12,

1850, died in March, 1854; M. Ellir.or, born .Aug.
24, 1854, died June 30, 1882.

The family attend the Congregational Church.
Mr. Davis is liberal in his political views, and in his
actions Is independent of parly issues.

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illiam S. Gray, of the firm of S. H. Gray
iV" Co., manufacturers of lumber, lath and
'^jKvp-^ shingles, at Big Rapids, was born in
)} Chenango Co., N. Y., June 26, 1820.
He is a son of Bethuel and Cornelia
(Carter) Gray, and was brought up on a farm,
attending school winters. He left home at 18,
and attended the academies at Elmira and Corning.

"IfMIr ottlob Vogg, farmer-, sec. 18, DeerfieldTp.,

i^£|iL ^^'^^ \>ox\-\ in Germany in 1834. He is a son

■^'ii^fjj^ ^ of Christian Vogg and both his parents

^W^ were of German birth.

'r He left the "Faderland" for the L'nited

) States in '54 and stopped iir New \'ork (where
he landed) two years. In '56 he went to Massachu-
setts and there remained 12 years, removing in '68 to
Kalamazoo Co., Mich., and after a stay of two and
one-half years came to this county. He soon after
purchased 80 acres of land, in an uncultivated con-
dition. His industry, thrift and perseverance have
ever been manifested and his present circumstances
are a significant evidence of what a man may do un-
der the free institutions of this country. Si.\ty-five acres
of his land are in first-class condition, and he is en-
joying ail the rewards he has so justly earned.

The subject of this sketch was marr'ied in '58, in
the State of New York, to Friederika Krieger, a na-
tive of Germany. They have had eight children, six
of whom are living : Friederika C, Geo. W., Henry
C, Otto, Caroline and Flora. Louisa and Paulina
died in infancy.

Mr. Vogg is a member of the Luther-an Church
and acts with the Republican party.

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4^t^f®^-'^

MECOSTA COUNTY.

237

The first business experience of Mr. C.ray was as
@) clerk in a t;;enerat store ih Corning, Steuben Co.,
^ N. \'. He went two \ears later to Port Deposit,
Cecil Co., Md., in the interests of a linnber firm,
having charge of their sales and shipijing, nine
months. At the end of that time he went back to
Corning and opened a mercantile house, operating as
a knnl)er dealer in connection therewith, and manag-
ing a saw-mill near that place. He sold out at the
expiration of two years and went to New York,
where he was clerk in a store on Grand street,
going thence to Ithaca, Tompkins Co., N. Y., and
there attended the academy one year and taught one
term of schoDl. In 1S45, he entered the office of
Charles Coryell, M. D., and read medicine six
months ; thence he removed to Somerset, Lycoming
Co., Penn., where he taught school three terms.
He then went to Jersey Shore, in the same county,
and studied with Dr. Hepburn two years, supple-
menting his office reading with one course of lectures
J\ at Philadelphia.

In iH4(S, Mr. Gray went to Rock Run, Stephenson
Co , Hi., and was a medical practitioner there seven
years, and engaged in mercantile business, wagon
manufacturing and also in farming. He ne.xt went
to Freeport, in the same county, and there served
three terms as County Treasurer, and managed three
stock farms — one of 640 acres, in Carroll County,
and two others containing respectively 282 and 180
acres. He also owned a small farm near Freeport,
and had a book store there which he owned about a
year; he had also a store for the sale of furniture.
These establishments were managed personally by
parties employed for the purpose.

In 1S65 he built a woolen mill, in company with
Messrs. Rosenstiel & Sunderland, with which he was
connected until 1874, and owned a general store and
tailor shop at the same time. In 1876 he came to
Big Rapids, and became a member of the firm with
which he is at present connected. The company
own a saw-mill on the east side of the Muskegon
River, and a shingle-mill on the west side. Mr.
Gray owns his residence, and is a stockholder in the
National Bank, and in the Big Rapids Boom Com-
pany, and also is Director and President of the Big
Rapids \Vater-Power Company ; has served the
municipality six years past as Alderman.

Mr. Gray was united in marriage, at Uniontown,

Penn., April 21, 1848, with Margaretta, the daughter
of John and Margaretta Hill, born in N'orthumber-
lan<l Co., Pa., Aug, r2, 1S27. Their tour <;hildren
are all deceased save one. Antha, eldest daughter,
born April 8, 1849, in Rock Run, 111., is the wife of
Sylvester H. Gray, senior member of the fiim. (See
sketch.) The others were Ida May, William B. and
an infant child.

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"^^f^^'i' amuel S. Mitchell, farmer and lunibernian,
Di^. resident on sec. 28, Hinton Tp., whose
11.%; "'■• portrait we give in this .Mbum, was born in
«)■ Livingston Co., N. Y., June 5, 1819 He at-
tended school wint''rs and was engaged on his
father's farm summers until 25 years of age.
.\t the age of 22 years he assumed entire charge of
the family, which consisted of his parents, two broth-
ers and a sister. His father and inother removed
with their children to Allegany Co, N. Y., in 1829,
and went thence to Steuben County. In the fall of
1S44, Mr. Mitchell came to Livingston County, ac-
companied by his parents, and the family remained
there together seven years, going thence to Newaygo
County, where he left the father and mother in the
personal care of his brother William; after this they
resided together, Mr. Mitchell providing for their
needs, until the last few years of their lives, when
William Mitchell assumed entire care of them. Sam-
uel S. remained in Newaygo County nearly 20 years,
there owning a fann, which he managed in connec-
tion with lumbering until the spring of 1869. He
then came to Mecosta County and bought 80 acres
of wild land in Hinton Tp., with but few improve-
ments. He now resides thereon and has about 25
acres under good improvement. Mr. J^litchell is in-
dependent in politics. He has held the office of
Road Commissioner four years, and repeatedly been
offered other positions of trust in his township, but
has presistently declined. Himself and wife belong
to the First-Day Adventists, and Mr. Mitchell belongs
to the Order of Masons.

He was married in Livingston Co., Mich., Dec. 31,
1848, to Agnes, daughter of Andrew and Elizabeth
(Rossman) Brockway. Her parents were natives of

■^^v<>iin^nn>>T

238

MECOSTA COUNTY.

Pennsylvania, where she was born March 21, 1831.
Mr. and Mrs. Mitchell have had ten children, Har-
riet E., wife of Henry Moulter, born April 17, 1850;
Helen E., wife of Luther Bemis, born Aug. 7, 1852;
Robert P., born May 3, 1854; Charlotte A., wife of
Alden Bailey, born Sept. 14, 1856; Kate, wife of John
Right, born March 12, 1859; Clara, wife of Henry
A. Mann, born Sept. 2, 1861 ; Annette, wife of El-
bert Trail, born Nov. 4, 1863; Jessie D., born Dec.
25, 1865; Arthur, born April 10, 1868, and died
April 17, 1868; Edgar D., born Aug. 17, 1869, died
Oct. 31, 1 87 I.

As a prominent and representative citizen of Me-
costa County we give Mr. M's |)ortrait in this Album.

) ^>^^? enry E. Gilmore. resident on sec 34, Aus-
tin Tp.. was born in Niagara Co., Ontario,
pi% Oct. 15, 1832, and is a son of Henry and
^^ Mary A. (Hartsell) Gilmore, who were natives
^ respectively of New Jersey and Massachusetts,
I and were of German and Irish extraction.
Mr. Gilmore began at the age of 18 years to learn
the carpenter's trade, devoting his leisure to study in
( ) the district school, and by dint of much exertion he
managed to secure a fair education. He went ir.to
the country, where he pursued his trade some yearsi
and was married to Elizabeth A., daughter of Alfred
and Betsey (Cleveland) Butler. Her parents were
natives of Maine, where Mrs. Gilmore was born in
^ Somerset County, Feb. 17, 1831, going thence to On-
tario, Can., with her parents and there resided until
her marriage. May 14, 1851.

They settled in the town of Elgin, where Mr. Gil-
more was busy with his trade till the spring of 1853,
when they came to Newaygo County and settled on
the Muskegon River, and there he followed his trade
seven years. In i860 they removed to Austin Tp.,
and Mr. Gilmore purchased 80 acres of land and de-
voted his attention to farming. The entire place is
under cultivation.

Mr. Gilmore belongs to the National party and cast
•^ the first Greenback vote in the county. He has been

f Justice of the Peace 12 years. Highway Commis-
sioner two years, and has been a member of theSani-
- tarv Board some vears, besides having held other offi-

'^i<^i^^^

ces. Mr. and Mrs. Gilmore have been the parents of
12 children, six of whom are living. Following is their
record: Franklin P. was born Nov. i, 1852; James
H., June 15, 1856; Angela M., May 13, 1858; Ulys-
ses G., Oct. 17, 1864; Rosa L., Nov. 4, 1867; Mar-
shall N., May 11, 1877; Sarah N., Dec. i, 1862,
died March 14, 1879. Five children died in early
infancy. Mrs. Gilmore is a member of the M. E.
Church.

- -^^^^^f-^^S-^ —

eorge Waldo, farmer on sec. 8, Mecosta
Tp. (P. O. Big Rapids), was born in Spring-
field, Otsego Co., N. Y., Nov. 15, 1830.
^'W^ His parents, Samuel and Sally (Cowen) Waldo,

''i* were born in New York and Ireland respect-

I ively.

He accompanied his family to Ohio when five
years old, and at nine years of age left home to en-
gage as a stage driver, and pursued that calling seven
years, driving continually on one route. In the fall
of 1847 he came to Saginaw, Mich., and there en-
gaged in lumbering six years, going in 1854 to Kent
Co., where he was similarly occupied four years. His
next remove was to Jackson, Mich., to work on a
Government contract, and there operated until tlie
wave of civil warfare swept over the land and for the
time being obliterated private projects and aspira-
tions. Mr. Waldo enlisted Oct. 19, 1 861, in the First
Michigan Engineers and Mechanics. His terms of
enrollment entitled him to the position of road con-
structor, but he was in active service at Perryvillei
Ky., and Stone River, Tenn. and Shiloh. He was
made Sergeant in 1862 and continued his services
until he was discharged at Atlanta, Ga., in Oct., 1S64.

He returned to Mecosta and has since been en-
gaged in farming and lumbering. Soon after again
settling in the township he bought 40 acres of land,
on which he built the first house erected in this sec-
tion. Mr. Waldo is a Democrat and has served
several terms as Constable, with entire satisfaction.

He was married at Grand Rapids, April 29, 1846,
to Mary J., daughter of John and Jane (Campbell)
Smith. She died July 6, 1865, leaving one child,
Charles W., born Jan. ro, 1861. Mr. Waldo was a

W7*

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■^^C^^k: ^V<4n D ^: II ll^>

MECOSTA COUNTY.

second time married Nov. 12, 1(^65, at Cedar S[)riiigs,
Kent Co., to Mrs. Kate NVilcox, daughter of Samuel
and Ruth (Acers) SkiUman. Slie was born June 30,
1842, and was first married in 1859. Mr. and Mrs.
Waldo have seven children, born in the following
order: Orpha E., Feb. 6, 1867 ; Samuel, Aug. 26,
1868; Henry, March 9, 187 1; George, March 18,
1873; Bertha, March 26, 1875; Alma, Aug. 13,
1877 ; Walter, May 15, 1880.

|!^S>|j?dam Friedel, farmer, sec. 1 2, Morton Tp.
^ 'j^lr ^^'' ^■' '^I'^costa), was born at Darmstadt,
■_ .. Germany, March 27, 1846. His parents

'Wli^ left the " Faderland " when he was a lad, and
M located in Waterloo Co., Can., where they re-
j mained about seven years, and then came to
Mecosta County in the year 1862, the first settlers in
(^ Mecosta. They made the journey hither Ti'a Ionia
Mich., and cut their way through the woods 15 miles.
The fatlier (Justus) entered a claim of 80 acres of
land under the Homestead act. The selection of
i^ locality proved judicious, as the D., L. & N. R. R.
s, traverses the entire width of the farm, and the enter-
prising village of Mecosta has been located one mile
west. The primeval forest was in its original condi-
tion. The nearest inhabitants were two miles dis-
tant, located like themselves in a dense forest; their
place of supply was Greenville, Montcalm Co., 40
miles away — solid woods intervening — and at Big
y Rapids, the civilization center of Mecosta County, the
work of improvement was in its swaddling clothes.
To the original 80 acres of land 40 acres have been
added by purchase, and 80 acres are under the
plow.

The " Vater und Mutter " are the central figures
of the household. They have reached the respective
ages of 73 and 72, retain their old country habits of
1 early rising, and the wholesome hilarity that char-
acterizes their race. " Shermany " is warmly re-
membered; but they rejoice in their prosperity here
and the rapid strides of Mecosta County toward a fair
rank with the other counties of the Peninsular
State.

Mr. Friedel is now the proprietor and manager of
^the property described. He was married May 14,

1872, to Catherine, daughter of Sebastian and Chris-
tine Rrich, a native of the same place with her hus-
band, and was born June 20, 1852. She came to the
United States in 1861. Of the marriage of Mr. and
Mrs. Friedel six children have been born: Frederick
W., George Adam, Louise Catherine, Maria, Adam
Jacob and Ernest.

Mr. Friedel has officiated two terms as Treasurer
of his township, has been Supervisor, and is now
Highway Commissioner . He owns 25 head of good
cattle, and five horses.

, ohn E. Harrington, farmer, sec. 12, Mor-
ton Tp., was born May 13, 1854, in Wood-
biidge Tp., Hillsdale Co., Mich., and is a

^ son of John D. and Ellen S. (Sickler) Harring-
%r ton. His mother died when he was seven

^ years of age, and his father lived on the place
in Woodbridge Tp., two years, then removed to
Day Tp., Montcalm Co., Mich., where he bought a
farm, and is no\v a resident of that township. J. C.
Harrington found pioneer life somewhat distasteful,
and went back to his native county, where he readily
found employment, and was engaged until fall in
farm labor, when he took advantage of an opportunity
to work nights and mornings for his board, and go to
school through the winter. This arrangement pre-
cluded the necessity of using his hard-earned wages,
and he loaned his money at a fair percentage. In
the spring he bought a cow, took her to Montcalm
Co., and gave her to his father. In the spring of
1872 he went to Grand Traverse Co , Mich., where
he bought 80 acres of land in a primeval condition,
and began to clear a farm, working in true pioneer
method. He built a log house 12 x 14 feet, covered
it with hemlock bark, and secured a home (though it
was little more than a shelter), of which he took
possession with the utmost cheerfulness and courage.
He was married March 7, 1875, to Emily Stow-
ell, daughter of Robert and Mary Stowell, who was
born in Kent Co., Oct. 16, 1855; after which event
he settled on a farm near Stanton, Montcalm Co.,
where he resided until June, 1882. At that date he
purchased his present farm on sec. 12, in the village

'^y^mm^^^>^ — ^^^^

240

MECOSTA COUNTY.

-:2f«^^^

--#t55((SV(i§

of Mecosta, where he has made rapid progress

S) in improvements, clearing away timber, cultivating

/,^ the land, erecting farm buildings, and [jutting the

T place in the best possible state for farming.

j:f,j Although he has been resident but a year, the work

accomplished seems incredible.

Mr. and Mrs. Harrington are the parents of five

children: Cora E., born Feb. 14, 1S76; Edith I.,

10,1877; Ethel I.., born June 23, 1879;

born Feb. 14, 1881 ; Edwin D., born Feb.

born Oct.
Leon a E.,
10, 1883.

/■

(1-, alvin Boyce, farmer and carpenter, resid-
f ing on sec. 34 of Deerfield Tp. (P. U.,
^ Morley), was born Aug. 28, i8i7,in Ciiarles-
top, N. H. He is a son of Lemuel and Eunice
(Hoadley) Royce, natives of the "Old Granite
State," where they lived all their lives. The
father died at the age of 98.

Mr. Royce acquired a good education in the public
schools of New Hampshire and attended the New-
bury (Vt.) Seminary. He taught school winters and
worked as a carpenter summers until of age. In the
fall of 1845 he went to the State of Pennsylvania and
labored as a carpenter and farm hand a number of
years. He came to Deerfield, Mecosta Co., in the
spring of 1S65 and became the owner of i 20 acres of
land, all in an unimproved stale. He erected a frame
house, since his home, and at once entered upon the
task of reclaiming his land. He retains but 40 acres
of his original purchase, having disposed of 80 acres.
His farm is all under tillage.

Mr. Royce was married to Mary J., daughter of
Warren and Ruth (Hoag) Jenkins, natives of the
State of New York, where her tather still resides.
Five of the si.x children of Mr. and Mrs. Royce are
living — Eunice, Gertrude, Alice, < )smon C. and Elva.
The name of the deceased child was Ida ; she died
aged one year.

Mr. Royce was a delegate to the first Republican
Convention held in Tioga County for the purpose of
organizing that political element within its limits,
and has since been active in the interests of the

party. He has held several
the affairs of his township.

important positions in

Vto)

'3S^

Wtsstf

r'^^Pi'; enry Hearn, farmer on sec. 20, Austin Tp.
- iyV'-V|. ^l'. ().. Stanwood), was born in O.xfordshire
ii'i^*" Eng., Oct. I, 1834. He is a son of Benja-
/iV min and Sarah (Hearn) Hearn, both natives of
T England, where they lived and died.
I Mr. Hearn remained at home only till he was
seven years of age, when his boyish aspirations
impelled him to go among strangers and secure what
seemed to him the greatest boon on earth — personal
liberly. He was variously employed until he was
20 years of age; the last year of this period
he spent in the stables of English sporting men.
Li 1854 he came to the United States, landing
at the city of New York and remaining there but
a short lime. He came on to the city of Detroit and
found employ in the immediate vicinity as a farm
laborer for 10 years. He then went to Shiawassee
County, and thence to Austin Tp., in the spring of
1868, where he purchased 80 acres of land, and has
since added 40 acres, making 120 acres of wild land,
of which 60 acres are now under first-class improve-
ments.

Mr. Hearn was married in England, May 15, 1855^
to Mary, daughter of Thomas and Sarah (Rolfe)
Frost, both English by birth and inseparably wedded
to their native country. The daughter was born
Oct. 6, 1832. She accompanied her husband to the
United States and went bravely through all the trials
and privations of the pioneer days of the township.
She died .\pril 11, 1S72, leaving a large family and a
multitude of friends to mourn her irreparable loss.
Her seven sons and daughters all survive her. Their
record is as follows: Florence G. was born July 18,
1856; Mary E., Nov. 28, 1850; Sarah A., March 4.
1862; Alfred W., May 8, 1S64; Edward H., June
15, 1866; Lucy E., Oct. 4, 1868; Marliia T., Nov.

(

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-3jP^

Mr. Hearn and wife were members from youth ot
the Church of England, and Mr. Hearn is still an
adherent to belief in its tenets. He is a Democrat
and has always sustained the issues of his parly.

®^€^»<f*

MECOSTA COUNTY.

Zi^^O^

241 -s

J^J^^^j^

)

jt-lson V. Adair, tanner and car[)enter, sec.

6, Deerlield 'I'l)., was born in the State of

^ New York, Feb. 15, '46. He is a son of

Henry and Mary (X'antyle) Adair, who was

l^ born in the .State of New York, in Seneca Co.,
where the father died, Feb. 14, '81 ; the mother is still
living, in the Empire State.

Mr. Adair remained an inhabitant of his native
place until 1869, and in the spring of thai year he
came to Shiawassee Co., .Mich., where during two
years he followed his trade ; comingthence to Mecosta
Co., he bought 80 acres in the town of Deerfield.
It was partly improved and has since been his home-
stead.

Mr. Adair was married in Seneca l-'alls, N. Y.,
Nov. 7, 1866, to Mary, daughter of Alon/.o and Re-
becca (\yoolsey) Randolph. Of this mariiage one
child was born — Henty R., Dec. 20, "69. The mother
died in Mecosta Co , Dec. 20, '74, and Mr. Adair con-
tracted a second marriage July 4, 77, at Big Rapids,
to Emily H., daughter of Magnus and Christiana
(Ashman) Ulrich. The parents of Mrs. Adair were
natives of Germany. The family now includes two
children, — Jennie H., born Dec. 9, '79, and Lillian
M., May 18, '81. Mr. Adair is a Republican in po-
litical sentiment and has held the office of Supervisor
two terms. Himself and family attend the Meth-
odist Episcopal Church.

ejr^iuther Bemis, farmer, residenton sec. 29,
ilt^lii Hinton Tp., is a son of Aaron and Lovice
yJl^W (Holcomb) Bemis, the father a native of
a^ Springfield, Yt., and the mother, of the State of
"J^ New York. Mr. Bemis was born in St. Clair
Co., Mich., Oct. 9, 1843. He was thrown u])on
his own resources for support at 13 years of age, and
was first employed as a carpenters assistant; then
for six years worked by the month. In Deceml)er,
1861, he enlisted in Co. I, Berdan's Shar|)-shooters,
and after about eight months' service was discharged.
On his return lo [)rivale life he went to Ionia County,

^^¥^ ^T^^lltl

and there remained about 18 months in quiet en-
deavor to recruit his heallh. He was then engaged
in teaming for five years, then [(urchased 40 acres of
land in Montcalm County, wb.ere he lived eight years.
Tji,e financial stress of 1873 plunged him into nus-
fortune, and in the winter of 1874, when he came to
Mecosta County, he had scarcely a dollar. He toiled
and persevered and in the fall of 1875 bought 40 acres
of wild land. He has put the place in a fine state
of cultivation, with good buildings. Besides the
rest of his obligations, that he discharged in a becom-
ing manner, was the support of his parents and sis-
ters while in St. Clair County, where his father died.
The mother is still living, in Montcalm County.

Mr. Bemis was married in this county, (Jet. 16,
1873, to Helen E., daughter of S. S. and Agnes
(Brockway) Mitchell, of Hinton Tp., who was born
in Kent County, Aug. 7, 1852. Mr. Bemis is a Re-
publican.

s^frpSf;- inion G. Webster, County 1 reasurer, res-

^^;s

:(c

ideiit at Big Rapids, was born at Concord,
W^h Jackson Co., Mich., Aug. 24, 1843, atid is
(i^^^ son of Roswell and Harriet ( Fownsend)

A^^ Webster. He alternated farm labor summers
'K \\ilh school duties winters until he was 16
' years of age, and three years later came to
Big Rapids. He found employment as a clerk and
teamster, and at that period his and another team
drew all the goods that were sold in Big Rapids,
from Grand Rapids, Tia Newaygo, each trip consum-
ing from a week to ten days. Mr. Webster was him-
self a driver for two years.

In February, 1864, he enlisted at Big Rapids, en-
rolling in Company M, 3d Michigan Cavalry, under
Capt. Ives. The regiment was detailed for special
service among the bushwhackers of the West, and
proceeded thence to 'Fe.vas, where he was mustered
out on s;)ecial order in November, 1865, at San An-
tonio. Mr. Webster came back to Big Rapids, and
w^as employed in the general merchandise establish-
ment of G. F. Stearns, who discontinued the business
in the spring of 1861"). He then went to Middleville,
Barry Co., Mich., and again engaged as clerk. In
1868 he began mercantile business for himself, in

(

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242

J/^ COS TA CO UNI' y.

partnership with F. H. Degoha, continuing until 187 1,
operating with success. In the year named, because
of the impaired heahh of Mr. Degolia, the firm dis-
posed of the stock by sale. Mr. Webster returned
to Big Rapids and opened a grocery and produce
store, managing alone one year, then admkted J. F.
Clark to an equal interest ; they closed their business
in 1876. In 1877 Mr. AVebster received an appoint-
ment as Under-Sheriff with Col. Vincent, and held
the position until January, 1881 ; was elected Su]jer-
visor of the Fourth Ward in 1875, and remained the
incumbent of the office until 1S82 ; served two years
as Chairman of the Hoard. In 1882 he was Repiib-
Hcan nominee for County Treasurer, running against
C. B. Hannum, candidate of the Fusion party. The
vote stood 1705 to 950, in favoi of Mr. Webster. He
is a member of the Order of Masonry, and is at this
writing (1883) Commander of Pilgrim Commandery,
No. 23 ; lias held the place of Captain ( General of the
same division thiee years. He is also an active and
prominent member of the Fire Department; was
Chief Engineer, and organized the Alert Hose Co.,
which took the second national pri/.e at the tourna-
ment at Chicago in 1877. 'J'he prize included $300,
and the cart which was manufactured for the Cen-
tennial Exposition by the Silsby Manufacturing Co.

The marriage of Mr. Webster to Alice McDowell
took place Dec. 25, 1867. .'^he is a daughter of .Vd-
dison and Lavina McDowell, of Allegan Co., Mich.,
and was born at Ann Arbor, Michigan, Mr. and Mrs.
Webster have one daughter, Ethel M., bom May 10,
1872, at Middleville, Barry Co., Mich.

'7i>-n— 5l$$

? M. Trussell, proprietor ot the J/rivs/a

ff County Ai/vaiicr, and also of the Morley Ad-

?]@^"'^ '"'""'■''' was born in Jackson, Ohio, July 12,

7|Y '^57- He is a son of Jasper S. and Sarah A.

\ (Stout) Trussell, and until the age of 16 years

^ j was a student at school. He was early dis-

I posed to his present calling, and at the age named

he went into a printing-office in Clifton, W. Va., and

t remained there several months, aUerward becoming
local editor of the I ronton (Oliio) C,<iniiiadal. He
CS^ went from 1 ronton to Pittsburg, where he again en-
^^ icred a printing-office Ui complete his kno vledge of

the details of the business. His next advance was

to the position of proof-reader, and in 188 1 he became
reporter for the Daily Chronicle, published at Pitts-
burg. In August, 1882, he came to Mecosta County,
and September i, following, he became oroprictor by
purchase of the Mecosta County Advance. He is-
sued the first number of the Morley Advance, a
popular local journal, April 13, 1883.

The Mecosta Coi/ntv Advance was founded by F.
W. Harrison, the first number being issued April 7,
1881 . It was an eight-page sheet, but was afterwards
enlarged to a five-column ([uarto. Upon the failure
of the proi)rietor's health he sold out to Mr. Trussell.
The paper has always been well received and now
has a circulation of 600 copies.

-oseph B. Barto, farmer, sec. 20, Austin T

Mr. Barto commenced his single-handed contest
with the world at the age of 15 years and worked as
farm assistant until 17, when his father died, and he
left the 1 )ominion, joining his brother in New York,
and there engaged winters in the lumber business,
laboring summers on farms. He was married in Es-
sex Co., N. Y., Aug. 9, 1856, to Matilda daughter of
Isaac and Mary (Layno) Bennett, Ijoth of French
descent. Mrs. Barto was born Ap il 19, 1842, in
Essex Co., N. Y. After their marriage they remained
in the State of New York until 1872; Mr. Barto
meanwhile engaged in lumbering. They removed to
Michigan, where Mr. Barlo was engaged in logging
in Osceola County for one year, coming then to Big
Rapids, where he stayed initil 1874. He had
purchased a farm of 80 acres in Austin Tp., of
which he took possession, and now has 1 5 acres
under improvement. Mr. Barto and his family
are members of the Roman Catholic Church. He
is a Republican and ardently devoted to the is-
sues of the party. The French language is coin-
monlv spoken in the family and taught to the chil-
dren, of whom se\en survive, born as lullows:

,(-^<j _ (P. O. Stan wood), was born in Lower Can- ^cs

> ada, March, 1836. He is son of John and i=i

^ Beatrice (Covena) Barto, who were natives of fG^

P France, and emigrated to this country, settling c=

i"^ in Canada. ;. < •

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^^^^

MECOSTA COUNTY.

243

' Lewis, Sept. 7, 1857; Mary L., Nov. 25, 1862; Ida
|- R., Aijril 15, 1864; Flora E., Aug. 29, 1866; Koljert
L., Oct. 5, 1868; Frank E., March 5, 1874; Caroline
M., Nov. 6, 1 87 6. Five children are deceased;
James, born Feb., 1859, died March 2, 1859; Nelson,
born Dec. 30, i860, died in infancy; Joseph, born
Dec. 18, 1871, died July f4, 1872 ; Francis, born Jan.
29, 1872, died Feb. 14, 1872; Frank, born Jan. 29,
1872, died Feb. 24, 1S72. (The two last were twins.)

i^T^^i ,-

^^I'-ohn Davis, farmer, sec 27, Mecosta Tp.,
was born May 8, 1S26, at Belfast, Ireland.
His parents, William and Mary (Laverty)
^p" Davis, were \k)X\\ m Ireland; the father died m
'W 1852, the mother in 1851. When he was ten
'P years old, Mr. Davis ran away to sea, shipping
asa cabin l)oy on a sailing vessel. His career
as a sailor continued 22 years, and during the time he
S passed several promotions; and at last, in 1844, be-
^ came first mate, which [lOst he held until 1848,
^S when he abandoned a seafaring life. The recital of
>^ his adventures sounds like a romance. He traversed
S the Atlantic Ocean under all circumstances, and in
!( \ every possible direction, and visited all the seaboard
towns of Europe, and the countries lying on the
Mediterranean, as well as the ports open to com-
merce on the Asiatic shores and Africa, and the
islands of the East Indies. He was at Alexandria dur-
the Turkish war, at Canton, China, while the Chinese
war with England was in progress, and at Calcutta,
India. While the Kaffir war of 1842 was going on
in .Southern Africa, his vessel was at Cape Town.
One of his reminiscences is a visit to what was the
home of Napoleon while an e.xile at St. Helena.

In 1850 Mr. Davis came to -America, and passed a
season on the lakes. In 1851 he came to Michigan
and purchased 160 acres of land in what is now
Mecosta Tp., locating on sec. 27, where he has
since resided. He was one of the two white men
who first came to this county and settled permanent-
ly. He built the first barn — a frame building — in the
county, in 1856, and afterward erected a residence, at
that time the largest in the county. He has bought
considerable land since he made his original purchase,
his estate now aggregating 385 acres, 225 of which

^=^^ 'r^-DJ

are in cultivation. The reminiscences of Mr. Davis

contain a complete history of the growth of Mecosta
Co. About the time of his settlement, John Parish
located a mile below the point where the "Lower
Bridge " at Big Rapids spans the river, and until the
following year they had no other "neighbors." Mr.
Parihh left his first location, and to Mr. Davis belongs
the credit not only of being the first settler in this
county, but also of still holding his original tenure of
land.

He was married at Rockford, Kent Co., Mich.,
Nov. 8, 1867, to Sarah Jane, daughter of John and
Rosanna (Blancha) Probasco, born April 2, 1842, in
Huron Co., O. The parents were naiives of New
Jersey, and are both deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Davis
have three children: Ada M. J., born Oct. 2, 1868;
John William, March 6, 1870; and Frank E. B.,
June 20, 1872. In politics Mr. Davis is a Democrat.

';'P^' ohn W. Thomas, carriage and wagon maker
.'ISli'" '^^ Altona, Hint(Mi Tp., was born in Eng-
; :, . 'L^ land, Nov. 16, 1831. His parents, John
.^^fj" and Rebecca (Webb) Thomas, were naiives of
"W England, where the mother died. The father
\ came to Canada and i)assed the remainder of
his life; his death occurred in 1879. Mr.
Thomas came to America with his father when he
was 14 years of age. The circumstances of the elder
Thomas were such that he was enabled to give his
children a good education, and he sent his son lohn
to the common schools, and afterward to an academy
until he attained the age of 16 years, when he was
apprenticed for five years to learn the trade of wa"on
and carriage making. After fulfilling his indenture
he worked as a journeyman till 1850. In 1855 he
left Canada and came to Michigan, locating at Cro-
ton, .Mewaygo Co.. wliere he established himself in
the prosecution of his trade, and continued wagon
and carriage making for 15 years. He sold his
business, and went to work for his brother-in-law,
Aaron Austin, as general assistant, keeping books,
lumbering, etc., for si.\ months. After a biief visit to
Canada, he resumed his labors in the woods, for Mr.
N. Thurston, for a short time. He was then em-
ployed by the G. R. & I. Railroad Co., and while in

B^r^^^^^

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244

MECOSTA COUNTY.

their service received an injury. On recovery he was
occupied with liis trade for a lime, and then bought
40 acres in liarry Co., Mich., where he was resident
six years. He bouglit his place in good faitli, sup-
posing he hatl tlie right of every man to hold what
he paid for; but the event proved his litie poor, and
he was obliged to abandon the farm, and sustaineil a
loss of §300 He lived a year at Stanwood, Mecosta

Tf)., and

ght 32 acres of land in the township of

in his possession. In the
to .Mtona and establishetl

the

Deerfield, which is still
spring of 1879, he came
his ]3resent business.

Mr. Tiioi-ias has been married twice, an
father of seven children. Those living are Ida,
Adelaide and Drusilla. The deceased were \\'il-
liain and Jane, ami twin children who died in eady
infancy. Mr. Thomas is a Republican, and was
Constable three years while a resident in Newaygo
Countv.

5ffi^; illiam O. Lake, .Assistant Postmaster at

Morlev, was born at Port Rowan, Can.,

March 5, 1855. His i)aients, Robert O.

5^ and Margaret (Redker) Lake, are also

s" natives of Canada, where they at present

reside.

When Mr. Lake reached the age of i i years, he
was employed as clerk in a store liy .\le.\ander Fer-
guson, and there worked aliout 18 months. After-
wards he was variously employed until the fall of

1872, and then came to Bay City. In the spring of

1873, he came to Morley, and was employed by Nel
son Pike as clerk. .Six years later he formed a part-
nership with D. C. King in a mercantile enterprise,
which relation existed until the summer of 18S1,
when the business was <losed. In the spring of that
year lie made an extended trip to Colorado, return-
ing the same fall, and engaging temporarily at
Morley and Muskegon, in miscellaneous interests.
While his affairs were connected with those of I). C.
King in 1880, they built a shingle-miil in the western
part of /Etna Tp. They managed it aliout 18
months and sold to J- K- Thurkow. Jan r, 1883,
Mr. Lake assumed control of the iiostoffice at Mor-

'I'ownship Clerk, and in the same month succeeded
to the editorial chair ot the Morley Aihance. In
politics he is independent, and is a member of the
Order of Odd Fellows.

t
I

'«'w#

'^.^,t#i-!-JT-

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ley. In .\piil of the current year, he was elected

This is one of the most ex-
tensive and important of the business firms
of Big Rapids, and its components are
Thomas Hood and Martin P. Gale. They are
i manufacturers of pine lumber, chiefly, shingles,
I etc., and shiji their products throughout the
Fast. Their interests are widespread and
various, coni|irising saw-mills, landed property, etc.
Their steam saw-mill at Remus, Mecosta Co., pro-
duces 50,000 feet of lumber daily, and they employ
in the mill and woods about 100 workmen. In 1871
they bought the mill in upper Big Rapids, built by the
Tioga Manufacturing Co., which they sold in May,
1883. A mill owned by them in Leroy, Osceola
Co., was sold in May, 1S82, and Messrs. Baker &
Stearns, of J-Jig Rapids, are under contract with then,
to supply 20,000,000 feet of sawed lumber.

Messrs. Hood & Gale own 15,000 acres of land in
Lewis County, N. Y. ; also a two-thirds interest in
13,000 acres of farm lands in Oregon County, Mo.
liesides considerable tracts in different parts of this
.'^tate. They hold a two-fifths interest in the Big
Rapids Wagon Works, a stock company which com-
pletes half a dozen wagons a day, and of which
Mr. Gale is Treasurer. ' They own one-fifth of the \
water power of the lower dam at Big rapids, and are q
stockholders in the Northern National Bank, of which
Mr, Gale is a Director.

The office of the concern is in the Nortliern Hotel
Block. This magnificent structure, wholly the prop-
erty of Messrs. Hood & Gale, is one of the most
significant exhibits of the character of the spirit
which has endowed Big Rapids with its marvelous '^.^
Diestige. Its architecture is unique, and the f(>i// en-
semble challenges the admiration of every beholder.
It is situated on Maple street, with a south frontage
of 300 feet, and the west end running back on State
street. It is 40 to 140 feet deep, built of white brick,
is two-stories high, and no expense was spared in
rendering it beautiful and substantial in every detail.

MECOSTA COUNTY

247

'k One liundred and forty feet in the center of the first
ijj floor is occui)ied for hotel purposes, and the remam-

tder, lioth east and west, is devoted to luisiness offices.
The second lloor is divided into padors and sleeping
apartments. It is lighted throughout by gas, and

heated by steam.

The ai^^regate cost was $70,000,

h h

?. ^ A

f^ erdinand Fairman, senior nieinberol the
banking house of Fairman & Newton, Big
4|fcg5^^ Rapids, was born in the township of Lyme,
^S Jefferson Co., N. V., July 15, 1S33. His father,
jki^ Geo. \V. Fairnian, was born in the year 181 2,
{ near Ottawa, Canada; is a farm(ir by occupa-
tion and resides in Jefferson County. His mother,
Mary A. (Fox) Fairman, was born in Lyme Tp. ; her
? parents were pioneer settlers of Jefferson Co., and
were originally from the northeastern part of the

State of New York, on Lake Champlain.

^ Mr. Fairnian was brought up and educated as was
= the custom among the agricultural conimunUies -of
:A^ that locality and period. He was a Ijoy of energy
S and si.)irit, and early in life determined to make the
most of such advantages as presented theinselves.
By the time he was 18 years of age he had acquired
a solid and available education, which be turned Uj
account by teaching school winters, alternating with
farm labors summers, until he reached the age of 26
years, when, in company with Alpheus Parker, he
commenced a general mercantile business at Alexan-
dria in his native county. The firrn title and style
was Parker & Fairman, and the relation existed until
the winter of 1865. At that date he purchased the
interest of his partner, conducting the busine'.s alone
until 187 I, and with a fair degree of success. Sell-
ing his stock, he removed to Adams, Jefferson Co., in
order to secure better educational advantages for his
children, and because of his own impaired health.
He spent the two years following in traveling through
the South and Southwest, prospecting for a Inisiness
location.

He was afterwards impressed with the feasibility
of Big Raiiids as a business point, and in the sum-
mer of 1873 invested in real estate in that city. He
emoved his family to this pla iiurposing to enter

largely into real estate brokerage. The financial
demoralization that swept the country aboitt that time
unsettled his plans, and he accepted a proffered
situation as cashier of the Exchange Bank, where
he officiated one year. His health was still pre-
carious, and in the winter of 1874-5 he went to
Texas to obtain the advantages of the genial cli-
mate, and interested himself in the purchase of
lands. He came back to Big Rapids in the spring,
andin theautumnof 1875, in partnership with Samuel
T. Putter, of Jefferson Co., N. Y., opened a banking
house under the firm name of Fairman & Potter.
The partnership was dissolved in January, 1879, and
Mr. Fairman conducted the banking business alone
until November., 1881, when he admitted Mrs. M. J.
Newton, of Jefferson Co., to an interest with himself.
Mrs. Newton retired Aug. 10, 1882, her son, Samuel
L. Newton (the ward of Mr. Fairman), succeeding to
a one-half interest, and also to a moiety in the Fair-
man & Newton Block The business of the house
has since been prosperous and its relations constantly
increasing. Its advantages are based upon years of
experience and ample capital, together with the
stability afforded by the character and record of the
gentlemen who regulate its relations. The business
qualifications of Mr. Fairman, as well as his methods,
well-known and tested by those with whom he is con-
jiected in his financial transactions, are such as to
warrant the confidence which they inspire.

In 1876 Mr. Fairman loaned a considerable sum
of money to the parties controlling the Big Rapids
Iron Works, securing himself by mortgage. Tiie af-
fairs of the concern became involved and Mr. Fair-
man foreclosed in 1878. Heat once entered uiion
the duty of utilizing the power and fixtures and man-
a"ed the business with entire success, and by his
systematic methods and forethought built uii a cred-
itable trade. He sold the establishment in Octoljer,
1 88 1, to Messrs. Cannon & Gottshall. In 1879, the
disastrous fire of October ig, destroyed the new
Mason House Block, and in 1880 Mr. Fairman pur-
chased its site and erected wliat is known as the
Fairman & Newton Block, naming it in honor of the
young man who, in 1882, became his associate in
the banking house. Mr. Fairman has been for some
years, and still, is operating ([uite extensively in real
estate, on his own behalf and in the interest of other
parties.

He was marned July 3, 1855, to Juli.i M. Waters,

(

/^ 248

tdaaghtei' of Andrew and ("alliaiine Waters, who Wiis
born at Alexandria, Jefferson Co., N. Y., July ,5^
ti834. Mr. and Mrs. Fairman have three children;
Thyrza J. is the wife of E. W. Hudnutt, of the Fal-
/-§. con Planing Mills; George F. is acting as cashier of
in the bank of Fairman & Newton; Jessie M. is the
youngest child and hves with her parents.

We place the portrait of Mr. Fairman in tliis
Album in connection witli this sketch.

■€r^myM^>T-r-

MECOSTA COUNTY.

^#^^©^xJ

f()

% ohu M. Crocker,

enior member of the
firm of Crocker & Hudnutt, architects, con-
^^^i' tractors and builders, and proprietors of the
Falcon planing mill, has been a resident of Big
Rapids since 1875. He is a son of U'm. H.
and Mary A. (Holloway) Crocker, and was
born in the city of London, Eng., July 28,
1848. His parents came to the United States when
^^ he was two years old, and went to Milwaukee, Wis.,
° where his father operated as an arcliitect and builder
jijS until 1858, putting up some of the principal build-
° ings of the "Cream City." In the year named the
family removed to a farm in Manitowoc, Wis., wheie
the parents yet reside.

Mr. Crocker naturally inclined to mechanical arts,
and at 12 years of age commenced to prepare for the
vocation of his father, in whose shop he was trained
seven years, meanwhile obtaining an education. He
first went to the union school at Milwaukee, and
afterwards to the common schools at Manitowoc, and
also attended the union school at Ypsilanti, Mich.

Tiie civil war broke out when he was 13 years
old; and the conse(|uent discussion of the absorbing
topic, and intense feeling which pervaded all classes
at the North, aroused the boy's spirit, and in June,
1864, he enrolled at Manitowoc as a private soldier
in Company C, 39th Wisconsin Vol. Inf, under
Capt. Patchen. He was in the service si.\ months
and participated in several engagements. His reg-
iment was detailed to guard Memphis, and was in-
volved in some severe skirmishes with the rebel Gen.
Forrest. He was discharged at Milwaukee. When
19 years old he went to Grand Rapids and com-
menced his career as a contractor; remained eight
years and left a substantial record of his work there
in the form of a niimbc! of fine buildiuLrs. During

the period of his residence at Grand Rapids, he ful-
filled a number of contracts for stair-building in
Chicago. On coming to Big Rapids in 1S75 heat
once entered upon the prosecution of his trade, and
erected the brick school-house, and the magnificent
dwelling of Thomas. D. Stimson, corner of Elm
.Street and Warren avenues, now owned by AN'iltre
Stickney. He also constructed the building for the
Northern National Bank. Not long after locating
here he formed a partnershi|i with E. W. Hudnutt,
liought the planing mill of C S. Hanks, and com-
menced the manufacture of sash, doors, blinds,
mouldings and building materials generally. Their
rapidly extending business has necessitated two ad-
ditions to the establishment. As evidences of the
enterprise and architectural skill of the firm, Big
Rapids boasts of the Smith Block, the Northern
Hotel, Hood, Gale & Co's Block, Telfer, Morrissey i<:
Stickney's Block, and Furniture Block, Fairman &
Newton's Block, the Mercy Hospital, Moody and
Moore's Livery Stables, and a number of fine res-
idences. They employ at this writing 53 men, and
find demand wholly for their products within the
limits of the State.

Mr. Crocker was married at Coldwater, Mich ,
Di>c. 23, 1877, to Dora A. Stout, a native of the State
of New York. He was a member of the School
Board at Big Rapids two years, and belonged to the
Common Council the same length of time.

^i4~saac W. Pierce, member of the Council of
Mecosta village, was born in Naples, Onta-
rio Co., N. Y., Jan. 2, 1833, and is a son of
Jeris and Rachel (Watkins) Pierce. His
father was a farmer and carpenter, and came to
Michigan aljout the year 1835 and settled in
Leonidas, St. Joseph Co. He entered a claim of
160 acres of timbered land, and was a pioneer of
that community. He made a small clearing, built
his log house and labored until he cleared about 120
acres. His children were small, and at first could
be of IhU little assistance; but as time passed on,
their interest in the improvement of the homestead
grew with their years, and they lent no inconsiderable

aiil to the development of the place.

^#«-

:^ — (j v ^

MECOSTA CCUNTY.

-•%

^^J^^VI^

-M9

When 19 years old Mr. Pierce -turned his face
WListwanl to tlie golden promise of the Pacific coast.
He made his first essay in placer mining in the Ameri-
can River, and operated similarly on the Middle Fork
of Feather River, in lUitler C'ti., C'al. He finally
engaged in stot'k business, going at last to Long Val-
ley, Nev., where he was associated with Abner
Stimpson, William Prosser and John Ferris, and en-
gaged in rearing and shipping stock two antl one-
half years; they then sold out, and all returned to
California except Mr. Prosser. Shortly afterward
Mr. Pierce went to Idaho City and engaged actively
in mining for nine and a half years, with fair suc-
cess. In the fall of 1S66 he returned to Leonidas,
resumed his trade, and there has operated as a
buikler. In March, 1881, he came to Mecosta vil-
Lage. In the spring of 1883 he was elected Treas-
urer, and member of the Village Council. He
owns his residence and three lots on Franklin street,
in the southwest part of tine town; also 40 acres of
farming land in Martiny Tp., loi ated one mile north
of the village of Mecosta.

Mr. Pierce was married in Leonitlas, Jan. 3, 1867.
to Carrie, daughter of Henry and Louisa Porter,
born at Naples, Ontario Co., N. V., Sept. 5, 1839.
They have one child — Frank J , born in Leonidas,
Oct. 30, 1S67.

jj|«r,'"euben N. Hall, farmer on sec. i, Hinton
1^1' T|>., is a son of Gardner and Theory (Nott)
,j-V|.j'i?. Hall, and was born March 11, 181 9, in
'^'ii^^ Jefferson Co., N. Y. His father was a native
pJj"^ of Rhode Island, and the mother of Vermont:
' they were married in the State of New York.
Mr. Hall |)assed the first 20 years of his life
at school and on the farm. At 21 he engaged him-
self to learn the trade of tanner and currier, which
occupation lie followed until tlic fall of 1863, when
he came to Ionia Co., Mich. He has made agricul-
ture the pursuit of his life, and followed it in the
counties of Ionia and Montcalm, until the summer
of 1881, when he jiiirchased 40 acres of improved
^. land on sec. 1, of Hinton Tp. In the springof 1882,
J^ he moved his family from Montcalm County. In the
^ winter of 1S82 he bought 120 acres of land, cliielly
'^ in heavy timber, sec- 12. Having sold 40 acres to I

his son, his landed estate in Hinton Tp. includes 120
acres.

Mr. Hall was married in the State of New York,
July 15, 1844, to Lydia, daughtcrof James and Melin-
da (Kinney) Heald, natives of Vermont, who was born
in Pissex Co., N. Y., April 29, 1823. Of five chil-
dren born to Mr. and Mrs. Hall, only three survive:
Ellis W., born Mai'ch 7, 1849; Genevra, born Feb.
r6, r855, and Augusta C, Sept. 4, 1856.

In politics Mr. Hall is independent.

^i'

'" I'rJii'

ames P. Weaver, farmer and carjienter,
sec. 34, Austin Tp., is a son of William

1^.

']v and Eli/al.ieth (Townsend) Weaver', natives
p' of New Jersey and of German desceirt. They
became residents of Canada in early life, and
h were married there. Mr. Weaver was born in
the Province of Ontario, Can., March r8, iSiS.
He was a pupil at school, and an assistant on the
farm of his father until he reached the age of r9,
when he came to Michigan and located at Kalama-
zoo, where he began to learn the art of carpentering,
at wliich he worked untrl 1839. He then went back
to Canada for a brief stay, but on solicitation deter-
mined to r'emain. His parents lived in the city of
London, Ont., and he stayed with them, finding plenty
of emijloyment at his trade. His father died March
r I, 1849, and he succeeded to the car-e and responsi-
bilities of managing the farm and family affairs.
This he did, meanwhile folk wing his cccupation,
until the spring of 1865, when he came to this
county and purchased 80 acres of land in Austin Tp.,
besides entering another 80 acres under the home-
stead law, making a most valuable farm, ranking
fairly with the best locations in Austin Township.

Mr. Weaver was married in London, Ont , March
r2, r843, to Drusilla, daughter of lohn and Sarah
(Barley) Austin. 'I'he parents were natives of New
Jer-sey, and of German ancestry. Sewn after their
marriage they went to Canada and settled in 'I'u-
ronto, Ont., where Mrs. ^^'eaver was born, Dec. 25,
1825. She was well brought up, and received a fair
degree of education. She has been the inotlier of
si\ children — two boys and foin- girls. One son and
one daughter are deceased. The remaining son and

fs^s»-

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MECOSTA COUNTY.

->tf?K^^

-^ t^S \^

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three daughters are settled in hfe, with promising
families: The following are their names and dates of
^^ birth. Emmeliiie, Jan. 12, 1842; John, Dee. 10,
i<S4o; C)nthia, Feb. 25, 1X38; Josephine, May 10,
1S5S.

In his native city -Mr. Weaver was a member of the
Common Council, incumbent at times of several
offices, and was a Lieutenant of the local militia.
He has no political tendency whatever, but has been
Treasurer for several years, Justice of the Peace
three years, etc., and is now District Assessor.

At its organization, the township was named for the
brother of Mrs. AVeaver — Aaron .\ustin — now a resi-
dent of Mecosta village.

"'I)

/N r.ij^^iy-ohii A. Rose, deceased, was a son of An-

== "^ fej; '- drew \\". and ( )rmilla (Perry) Rose. His
■^ ite,[F^ parents were ijioneers of the State of New
i^ s\& York, where they passed their lives engaged
'ijF in farming. John k. was born in Ulster Co.,
'R N. v., March 13, 1821. He was an inmate of

the paternal home until 24 years of age. His
circumstances were such that he was never able to
attend school a single day in his life; but gathered
together such education as he could, and made the
most of his [)owers of observation, quickened into
keenness by his consciousness of his lack of earlv
opportunities. He came to Michigan in November,
1866, and purchased i 20 acres of land, on wl-^ich he
resided until his death, which occurred .^ug. 10, 1875.
Since that event Mrs. Rose has sold 80 acres and
with the assistance of her sons carries on the re-
mainder.

Mr. Rose was married Nov. 8, 1844, in Aurora,
Erie Co., N. Y., to Emily E., daughterof Ainasa and
Polly (Welch) Freeman, natives respectively of New
York and Connecticut. She was born in Onondaga
Co., N. Y, June 16, 1817. After marriage Mr. and
Mrs. Rose settled in Erie ('o., where they were en-
gaged in farming until their removal to Michigan.
All of the seven children born of this marriage yet
survive. Emily E. was lioin .\ug. 19, 1845; John T.,
July 5, 1847; Levi A., .March 16, 1849; Theo. L.,

June 27, 1S51; Polly, Dec. 13, 1853; Rosetta, Aujj

24, 1857 ; and .\ndrew J., Nov. 22, 1S59.

'■p^,-ohn E. Reiter, proprietor of steam saw-

^ir-y niill at Sylvester, Hinton Tp., was born in
;- New Jersey, Aug. 18, 185 i. His parents

|K^ were John B. and Mary A. (Burns) Reiter.

%, The father was born in Baden, Germany, and
i| the mother was a native of Ireland. They
were married in New Jersey, whither they emigrated
from their respective countries, and later removed
to Pennsylvania, where the father is still living, and
where the mother died, June 11, 1834. Mr. Reiter
went to Pennsylvania, with his parents, and was
there engaged in farming, lumbering, and attending
school, until 18 years of age. In 1876, he attended
Eastman's Commercial College three months. In
iS77,hecame to this county, and became one-half
owner by purchase of the steam saw-mill located at
Sylvester, and owned and managed by Joseph Misho
and Darum f]. Kelley. He bought the interest of
the latter. This was afterward burned, and in the
summer of 1882 he erected the mill which he now
operates. Its capacity is 10,000 feet of lumber
daily. Mr. Reiter is a Republican in politics, and
has been School Director two years. He is interest-
ed in the [irogress of the temperance work, and
lends his influence to all reformatory measures.

Mr. Reiter was married in Reed City. Mich., Sejit.
20, 187S, to Jane, daughter of James and Catherine
(Flanagan) Decker. (See sketch of James Decker.)

i?5-

ohn A. Bell, farmer and lumberman, sec.
- 0, 1 )eerlield Tp., was born March 3, r826i
- "., '>in Canada. He is a son of James and
liS^ .Amelia B. liell. His father was borir in Eng-
land and came to Canada in 1814, where he
married and [lassed his remaining years. Mr.
Bell's mother was a native of New Jersey.

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MECOSTA COUNTY.

-5' "S

Mr. Bell remained under the paternal roof until the
age of 23, engaged on the farm and fitting for fu-
ture usefulness. After managing his father's farm for
two years, he purchased 200 acres of land witli Hni-
ited improvements, on which was a saw-mill. He
carried on the farm and engaged in lumbering, and
operated in this two-fold method five years, when he
sold out and bought another farm of roo acres, which
he occupied four years, and again sold out. In the
fall of 1 86 1 he came to Michigan, and was engaged
in lumbering in Mecosta County al)out nine years,
when he bought 280 acres of land, chiefly unim-
proved, with the most primeval type of buildings,
They have passed to the oblivion of destruction and
decay, and have been replaced by others which rank
with the finest in the country. An additional pur-
chase of 160 acres adjoining his estate has increased
his landed possessions to 440 acres, 340 of which are
under a good state of cultivation. Mr. Bell is a Re-
publican of no uncertain type, and though often
urged to permit the use of his name in the interests
of his township, has always declined.

He was married in Canada, Nov. 6 1S50, to Mar-
garet Johnson, a native of Canada. Four of si.\
children from this union are living; W'm. .\ , born
June 30, 1852; James P., June 14, 1855; Theodore
A., Dec. 14, 1858, and Emily A., kwg. 29, 1861.
Mary L., Ijorn .Vpril 24, 1S57, was mariied |an. 23,

1878, to .\rthur .Vllen, of Mecosta County, and died
Aug. 9, 1883. One child died in infancy. Mrs.
Margaret Bell, the mother, died Feb. 22, 1866, at her
home in Mecosta County. Mr. Bell again contracted
marriage in Canada, Oct. 30, 1866, with Sarah, daugh-
ter of .Angus and .Sarah (McDougall) McCollum.
Her parents were natives of .Scotland who emigrated
to Canada at an early period of their lives. Her
father is yet living in Canada, where her mother died
about 1873. Three of the children of Mr. and Mrs
Bell are living, — Sarah .4., born Jan. 8, 1878; Clinton
R., born Jan. 23, 1876, and Edith C, born Nov. 22,

1879. John k. was born Jan. 23, 1873, and died May
II, 1876.

The family are communicants of the Episcopal
Church, and are esteemed and worthy members of
society, and lend every effort to elevate its standard.

. OCTO

'!^§f\®^^^ ^^^f^

'^^

^mmi'^

1^ iles Olin, farmer, sec. 22, .\ustin Tp., was
born in Chemung Co., N. V., ,\pril 13,
■^Wp'"^ [837. His parents, William H. and
^'ife' ' Lydia (Corry) Olin, were natives of New Eng-
';^* land. Giles grew up under the guidance of
\ his parents, and remained under the paternal
roof until his marriage to Lydia, daughter of David
and Sarah (Bennett) Moulter. This event occurred
Feb. 2, 1856. Mr. Moulter was born of German
parentage, and his wife was of mi.xed Scotch and
Irish ancestry. Mrs. Olin was born in Chemung Co.,
N. Y., Sept. 20, 1836. After marriage Mr. Olin
passed two years as a common laborei. He then
purchased 25 acres of forest land, and resided there-
on until the spring of 1S62, when the family came to
Mecosta County, and he bought i 20 acres of land in
Austin Tp. ; to this he has added 40 acres, and
now owns 160 acres of land, in one of the best locat-
ed sections of the township. Fifty acres of this are
under cultivation, and the owner has erected good
and suitable buildings thereon.

In this family are four children living: William
H., Dec. 4, 1857; Almeda E., July 22, i860; Eliza
J., Feb; 21, 1867; Sivillian, July 13, 187 i; .Sarah A.,
born .Sept. 12, 1858, died March 8, 1861. Mr. OHn
is a Democrat, and has served his township as
Treasurer six terms. Himself and wife are active
members of the M. E. Church.

'Y \''p'ij,f dwin R. Roe, farmer, residing on sec. 14,
K^tfiif 1 linton Tp., is a a son of Geoige P. and
__ ^T^ '' -Asenath (Hamilton) Roe, former a native of
'i.-^ JMigland and the latter of Ohio. They first re-
^' moved to Indiana, and soon after came to Ber-
rien Co.. Mich., wlieie the father died in 1867 ;
the mother was again married and went to
Missouri, and there died. Mr. Roe was born in St. \
Joseph Co., Ind., Ajiril 1 4, 1 83S, and in early youth ac- \
companied his parents to this State, where he resided ^
until he was 38 years old, meanwhile learning the (it
trade of carpenter .:ind also the art of telegraphy, ^
and working at intervals on the farm. In the fall of ^
1867 he came to this county, where he had previously ^[^.^^

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r<m]^m\i^>

MECOSTA COUNTY.

f^Vi

^tf bought 40 acres of wild land, in Hinton Tp.,on which
f«) he now resides. Mr. Roe is a Republican in politics
i%i, and cast his first Presidential vote for Abraham I,in-
J coin. He has held the post of Highway Conimis-
(^. sioner six years. He was married in Berrien Co.,
Mich., Aug. 7, 1861, to Dimniis, daughter of Nelson
and Almira (Pierce) Bromley. Her parents were natives
of New York, and removed thence to Cook Co., 111.,
and afterwards to Wisconsin, tiienceto Michigan, where
the father died, in 1872. The mother is still living, in
Missouri. Mr. and Mrs. Roe have had four children:
Louie A. was l)orn July 24, 1862; Orie M., Dec. 26,
1864; Liz/Je v., March 30, 1868, and Cora D., Nov.
10, 1870.

^ ■ Vc7\ • ames H. Rogers, lumberman ana farmer.

resident on sec. 14, Mecosta Tp., was a na-
tive of Broome Co., N. Y. His father,
\braham Rogers, was of English-Dutch descent

and was born in Canada. His mother, Han-
nah D. (Stickney) Rogers, was of pure English
descent and born in New Hampshire. Mr. Rogers
remained at home until he was 2 i years of age and
received as good an education as possible at the com-
mon schools, and attended a term at the Alfred
Academy in Allegany Co., N. Y. On arriving at his
majority he left home and went into the lumber busi-
ness, which he prosecuted until the fall of 1S54. At
that date he came to Newaygo County and pur-
chased a tract of land, including 500 acres of heavy
timber, lying on the Big Muskegon. Soon afterward
he engaged in the business of locating land, which
occupied him until 1856 and was a lucrative pursuit.
He abandoned it after two years, and came to Me-
costa Townshi|) to locate 100 acres of land. Here
he hired men and their families, established lumber
camps and gave a large amount of attention to the
trade in lumber, which was at that date the germ of
nearly all settlements made in this section of the
Peninsular State. During this time the State road
was ia process of building, and Mr. Rogers was
appointed Commissioner by Gov. Blair, and held
the post three years. He has been appointed special
Commissioner several times since. From 1865 to
1870 Mr. Rogers was actively engaged in the joint

-i-

^#fe'£^v

^paeob Snider, farmer, sec. 26, Austin 'I'l).
was born in Ontario, Can., l''eb. g, 1827, son
^^|, of Jacob and Rachel (Mclieady) Snider,

p* natives of New ISrunswick, and of German

P" and French

ancestry. Soon after their mar-
riage they went to Toronto, Can., and thence
to Ontario. Mr. Snider spent his early youth in
acijuiring his education at a select school in the
vicinity where he lived, and assisting on his father's
farm. At the age of 27 years he was married to
Teakles, daughter of Isaac and Elizabeth (McReady)
Halliday, natives of New Brunswick and of Irish de-
scent. Mrs. Snider was born in the same province,
lune 6, 1829, and was educated in the common
schools of her native town. Mr. and Mrs. Snider
estal)lished a home on 100 acres of the homestead,
where they carried on farming until tlieir removal to
Michigan, in the winter of 1S64. They lived a few
months at Croton, Newaygo Co., coming thence to
Austin I'l)., where they purchased So acres of

pursuit of managing a country store and hotel, in
which was also established the local postoffice, and
in connection, a large lumber interest. The store of
Mr. Rogers was opened in 1865, and was the first
mercantile estal)lishment in the township.

On the completion of the railroad to Big Rapids
in 1S69 Mr. Rogers closed his mercantile operations
and hotel business, and as the lumber trade dimin-
ished he devoted his attention almost exclusively to
farming. His homestead includes 350 acres of land,
with 120 acres in fair tillable condition. He has al-
ways been active in politics and is a zealous Repuljli-
can. .'\t the organization of the townshi[) he was
made Clerk, and held the [lost several years. He
has been School Superintendent and Inspector, and
has held various other official positions.

Mr. Rogers was married Feb. 14, 1867, to Sarah
B., daughter of Willard and Lois (Roberts) Salisbury,
natives of New York and of iMiglish descent. She
was born in Broome Co., N. Y., May 9, 1S42. She
went to McHenry Co., III., where she remained until ")
the fall of 1866, at which time she came to this
county. Mr. and Mrs. Rogers have two children:
Carrie K., born May 8, 1869, and Edgar R., born
Sept. 25, 1873.

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iAj.

MECOSTA COUNrV.

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253

timbered land, and entered upon the lives of pio-
neers, beginning with the usual log cabin and small
clearing, whicli gradually assumed larger proportions
until broad, fertile fields stretch out where everything
was formerly hidden by intricate forests. To the
original tract of land Mr. Snider has added another
80 acres, and now owns an entire quarter section of
well im])roved land. He has recently finished a
beautiful residence, at an expenditure of $1,500. All
his farm fi.xtures and appurtenances are of a class to
increase its value and attractiveness.

Of seven children born to Mr. and Mrs. Snider, six
are living: Rachel, born July 13, 1863, and died
May 28, 1864; Wellesley H., born Sept. 9, 1857;
Adaline S., Aug, 21, 1858; Lillie A., Sept. 17, i860;
Jennie R., Jan 11, 186 1 ; Herbert A., Aug. 19,
1865; Gideon C, Aug 79, 1867.

Mr. and Mrs. Snider have been members in full
standing of the M. E. Church for 25 years. Mr.
Snider is a radical Re])ublican; has been Supervisor
of his township two terms. Justice of the Peace four
years. Treasurer, etc. His eldest son, VV. H. Snider,
was married Oct. 18, 1877; his wife died Sept. i,
1878.

--5-

' 'W^^ C. Lincoln, wagon and carriage builder, at
^lii ^'''S Rapids, was born in Ticonderoga, Es-

't^r ^'^-'^ *--°-' '^^ ^'■' ^^^'^^ -7' '^"l-l ' *'^" °'^ Kufus
"61(y and Samantha (Bissell) Lincoln. At the age of
17 he went to learn the trade, which he has made
the business of his life. He located at l!ig
Rapids in the fall of 1867, and a year later he
opened a shop; formed a partnersliip with Peter Corn-
stock, which continued 18 months, when he bought out
the interest of his partner. One and a half years af-
terward he sold a half claim to Eli Frederick, and in the
autumn of 1879 they came to the stand now occu-
pied by Mr. Lincoln. Tiiey purchased three lots
and erected their shops, four in number. The wood
shop is 22x50 feet in dimensions, and the blacksmith
shop 24x50 feet. There are besides, the paint shop
and lumber room. A force of five blacksmiths are
usually em]jloyed, Mr. Lincoln and his brother doing
the wood work. Jan. i, 1883, Mr. Frederick with
drew from the concern, selling his interest in the
business to the present proprietor, who is now doing

i:^^^#^ ^^^ — ^^-•^ II !1

a very prosperous and steadily growing business.
Mr. Lincoln was married in Essex Co., N. Y., March
24, 1867, to Sarah J. Hunter, a native of Montreal,
Canada. Mr. ai.d Mrs. Lincoln have had three chil-
dren : Frederick, born March 20, 1869 and died Oct.
6, 1880; Charles H., born Aug. 15, 1873, and died
Oct. 6, 1880. George L., sole surviving child, was
born Feb. 11, 1883.

•-laacfi/S^^— fe^

.^%fumu!v

^>^j? annibal Hyde, farmer, resident on sec. 10,
-■-i^JI- ^lecosta Tji., is the son of James and
£1(5^3"'* Eunice (Puck) Hyde, natives of Connecti-
f\ cut; they settled m Vermont where the son was
'f born in Orange County, Nov. 5, 1810. On
I reaching his 21st year he set out to seek his for-
tune. His first exploit was to walk to Glens
Falls, N. Y., 90 miles distant, and thence to Albany,
but he soon retraced his ste])s and engaged in lum-
bering for a few months, finally finding regular em-
ployment on a farm at $11 per month. At the
expiration of his engagement he went lo work in a
saw-mill, where he was occupied some months. In
the summer of 1835 he left Glens Falls with a vague
.determination to make his way westward. He set
out with several companions but became dissatisfied
with appearances and took ]iis own route back to
Rochester, N. Y., and returned to Detroit, r'/V? lUiflalo.
In comitany with seven others lie chartered a team to
take him to A\'hite Pigeon, Mich. Mr. Hyde witli
several of his fellow travelers went to Indiana, whence
they shortly returned to Niles. Not yet satisfied with
the outlook he continued his prospecting to St. Joseph
County, and pushed on to Chicago. His own state-
ment is that he was "disgusted with the awful windy
httle village" and left in a few days for Sheboygan,
Wis. He was there engaged eleven months in the
management of a saw-mill. His next remove was to
Chicago, making the journey partly on foot and partly
by sail-boat. He worked there a short time as a car-
penter, then came to Muskegon Co., Mich. He
arrived in this State in the summer of 1837 and went
to work on the river. The winter following he came
to Newaygo County, and managed a saw- mill one
year, when he decided on a visit to Vermont., where
he spent some months, going thence to New V'ork,

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^>(iii^nn^>r

254

MECOSTA COUN7Y.

and thence to St. Louis, Mo., and Louisville, Ky.
This rambling existence he continued until 1844,
when he was married and made preparations for a
permanent settlement in life. He purchased 80
acres of wild land in Newaygo County, where he
lived and pursued agriculture until 1856. In that
year he settled in Mecosta T|). That section was
then in its infancy. The luwnshii) was unorganized
and settlers were few especially permanent ones.
Lumber interests invited transient comers, but for a
period ot ten years there were few who consid-
ered the place as having claims uijon their in-
terest, and no steps were taken toward arrang-
ing the municipal affairs of the township for five
years after the settlement of Mr. Hyde. He was
one of the most active in, the muvenient for the
organization of Mecosta, as he had been in that
of the townshi[>s of Newaygo County. He is the
oldest living inhabitaiU of his township, and his
youngest son was the first white child born within its
bo.ders.

Mr. Hyde was married in 1S44, to So[ihia Russell,
who was born in April, 1829, and reared in Newaygo
County, in the vicinity of the Big Muskegon River.
Mrs. Hyde became the mother of seven children.
She was a member of the Catholic Church, and died
Sept. 4, 1 88 1. Three children who survive her were
born as follows : Daniel, Oct. 4, 1S45; Francis F^.,
Jan. 19, 1850; Miranda J., March 20, 1858. The
deceased children were Eunice, Amanda S., Amos
H. and James. Mr. Hyde is an adherent to the
principles of the Democratic jiarty.

|homas Hanifan, of the mercantile firm of
Hanifan & Harmon, at Big Rapids, was
"^^ born at Pontiac, (Oakland Co., Mich., March
847. He is a son of William and Kate
(Cane) Hanifan, and was reared to the age of
15 years on his father's farm. At that jieriod
he became a clerk in a dry-goods store, and has been
assistant or [irincijial in tlie same line of business
most of the time since. Durmg the first three years he
spent a part of the time in school. In 1870 ho went
to Vernon, Shiawassee Co., i\lich., and entered the
employ of W. D &. A. Garrison, dry-goods mer-
chants, IS clerk, and remaineci until iS8t. In May,

1882, he came to Big Rapids and entered into part-
nership with Willard W. Harmon, and commenced
commercial transactions in the Fairman & Newton
Block, where they aie canying a fine assortment of
dry goods, carpets, etc., valued at $15,000; annual
sales amount to 1135,000.

Mr. Hanifan was married in Farmington, Oakland
Co., Mich., Jan. 28, 1S81, to Emma, daughter of
Daniel and Bridget Lapham. She was born in
Farmington in 1S54, and died at Big Rapids July 14,
1882.

(

■~ «" :=^ ^'S»<iii))>->s- ^=r=: — >-

J elvin A. Wells, farmer, sec. 26, Deerfield,

Tp., is a son of Nelson and Jane (Austin)

^ 'fs Wells. The parents were natives of New

^^^ York and settled in Washtenaw Co., Mich.

;.'k-. about the year 1838, afterward going to St.

fr Joseph Co., Mich. There the senior Wells died

at Centerville, May 11, 1881. The mother died

May 7, 1863.

Mr. Wells was born in Freedom, \\'ashtenaw ^=
Co., Aug. 6, 184S. He remained in the paternal As.'
home until 22 years of age, occupied in farming and =
acipiiring his education.

He was married in Ellenljurgh, Clinton Co., N. Y.,
Dec. 5, 1863, to Mrs. Ellen Jerome Wells, widow of
Henry Wells and eldest child of Lewis and Lucy
(Dragoon) Jerome. It falls to the duty of the com-
piler of personal records to transcribe much that
bears the impress of a deathless sorrow, but it is
rarely incumbent to record the loss of nine children
in one household, as in this instance devolves. Mrs.
Wells had laid away from her motherly arms, one after
another, eight infants, a rnercifuUy rare event. Can
one believe that her terrible experience lessened the
weight of sorrow when another child, the joy and
hope of the household, passed away at the dawn of
her early girlhood, when life and health seemed as-
sured ? Louise B. Wells, born June 14, 1 868, died,
of dipiitheria, Aug. 16, 1881. She is not forgotten;
the anniversary of her death is kept and sacredly ob-
served by the parents and sisters to whom her mem-
ory will ever be a living presence. Mr. and Mrs.
Wells have three children living: Lucy J., born
Aug. 5, 1866; Idella,Aug. 25, 1870; and Cora, \\m\
21, 1872. _

Mr. Wells is an earnest Republican and was a sol- "T

;^,

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c/AnnyJ JcciA^i^ .

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MECOSTA COUNTY.

257

dier of the Union in the war of the Rebellion. He
enlisted in the Third Mich. Vol Inf., Oct. 14, 1864,
and received honorable discharge in September 1S65.

'<JUiSiS!M^r'

>/^^)fUWtiv.

r^^'c^fewis Toan, Clerk of Mecosta County, and
|j!,|o| one of its representative citizens, resident
i^ at Big Rapids, was born in Ledyard Tp.,
'•^^ Cayuga Co., N. V., Nov. 25, 1835. His
liarents were natives of the Empire State, as
were their ancestors. His father, Lewis Toan,
was born Feb. 8, 1788, in Ledyard, on the same farm
where his children were born, and where he lived
and died. He married Hetsey Welsh, April 5, iSio,
and by this union l)ec-ame the father of four sons and
six daughters. Of these, one son, Harrison Toan, and
;> one daughter, Mrs. Sally J. Squires, survive him, the
iQ< former resident at Ehnira, N. Y., the latter living in
== Seneca Co., N. Y. The mother died l^ec. 15,
^ 1833. The father was married Feb. 26, 1835,10
= Mrs. Olive (St. John) Aiken. Of this marriage three
^ children were born: Lewis, of this sketch, Mrs. Mary
Jk A. Chai)in, and Mrs. Frances E. Langan, both resid-
(^ -V ing at Des Moines, Iowa. Mrs. Toan was born Dec.
31, 1803, and was married at Cayuga Co., N. Y., to
Ebenezer Aiken. Her children by this marriage are
yet living — a son in 1 )akota, one daughter at Des
Moines, Iowa, and one daughter, Mrs. Lewis Car-
man, in MillbrooV, Mich. Lewis Toan, Sr., died
March 29, 1842. He was a soldier in the war
of 18 1 2, with the rank of Captain; was a farmer by
occupation, and held the office of Justice of the
Peace i4year3, the incumbency ending with his death.
This fact is mentioned as evidence of the esteem
in which lie was held by his fellow-townsmen. His
death left all the family cares and responsibilities
upon the mother and widow. The son, who feels
that all he is or may be he owes to her faithful, wise
and judicious management, places upon record on this
page his sense of all she was in her strong, earnest
life, rearing her fatherless children in ail wisdom and
gentleness and self-sacrifice, and how precious to
him is her memory, crowned with what she achieved
on earth, and glorified by her entrance into the land
of the redeemed. She was married a third time in

(®

i860, to Zimri Allen, and died at Des Moines, la.,
Jan. 24, 1882.

Mr. Toan was seven years old when his father
died. His mother left the farm and he was sent to
school. In 1848 he went to live with an uncle-
Thomas Toan— in Wyoming Co., N. Y. A year
later he rejoined his mother, and the family went to
Olena, Huron Co., Ohio, where, associated with her
brother, she purchased a half interest in a steam saw-
mill, where the son was engaged chiefly summers,
and went to school winters. In the summer of 1855
he went to Milan, Erie Co., C, and worked in a ship-
yard and mill. In the spring of 1856 he went with a
half-brother — E. M. Aiken— to Bowen's Prairie, la.,
to assist in the management of a steam saw mill.
Returning in the fall of that year to Ohio, he bought
the interest in the null held by his mother, retaining
it until he disposed of it by sale in 1859. In the
winter of i860 he rented a farm in that vicinity and
managed it during the year. His next business ven-
ture was in the winter of 1861, when he formed a
l)artnership with Otis Smith, an old school-mate, and
went to Jackson Ti)., Seneca Co., Ohio, built a steam
saw-mill, and while engaged in its construction the
intelligence of the assault upon the national flag at
Fort Sumter electrified the wodd. Physical dis-
ability precluded Mr. Toan from going to the front to
'.aid in bearing the burden of defense, and to take the
chances of war; but the services he performed are
on record, and his efforts in raising recruits and sup-
plies for soldiers in the field; and exertions to protect
their interests at home, were as meritorious and
conducive to the successful prosecution of the war
as those of others who brought their efforts to bear
upon the issue on the field of action.

His association with Mr. Smith terminated at the
end of twj years, when he became sole proprietor by
the purchase of his partner's claim. The mill was
burned a year later, and in order to be able to re-
build, Mr. Toan formed a partnership with Daniel
Cox. In 1866 he sold his half of the concern to
Robert .\dams. During his residence at Jackson
he held the position of Postmaster three years, and
was Township Clerk one year.

Mr. Toan came to Southern Michigan, in the fall
of 1866, and settled near Ouincy, Branch Co., where
he had purchased 80 acres of land. Within the
year following he sold the farm and purchased
another in the vicinity ot Allen's Prairie, Hi!

4^11!1^I1I1>>

r ^

dale

^:^/^^

r 258

-2f€^is: — ^^v<^iia>:niis>

MECOSTA COUNTY.

#^C(®V!^

^ Co., Mich. In the fall of 1869 he exchanged this

^ property for a farm near Jonesville, of which he was

'^^ the possessor but a short time, as he made another

I transfer, and secured a farm about two miles from

(^ Allen's Prairie, of which he was owner until 1872.

In that year he came with his brother-in-law, Lewis

Carman, to Millbrook, Mecosta Co., and built a steam

saw-mill, selling his interest therein two years later

to Mr. Carman. He there engaged in mercantile affairs

with Messrs. Main &: Decker. The dissolution of

the fnin took place in the spring of 1877, and in the

fall of that year Mr. Toan went to Arkansas to oljtaiii

a practical idea of the South, returning the following

spring.

Mr. Toan has been a Republican from the outset
of his political life, and considers himself honored
in the record that his fust Presidential vote was cast
for the illustrious and martyred Lincoln. In the fall
' ) of 1878, after his return from the South, his pub-
lic career commenced, his party nominating him for
the office of County Clerk. The opposition candi-
dates were W. O. Lake, Democrat, and (ieorge (iot-
shall, (ireenlxick. Mr. Toan received 1,102 votes,
Mr. Lake 452 and Mr. Cotshall6Si. The general
opinion of Mr. Toan's discharge of the duties of his
liosition was clearly manifested in the circumstances
attending his second nomination in the fall of 1S80,
when his name was put on the ticket by acclamation.
He received 1,849 votes, hisop|)onent, tJreggB. Dou-
gall, receiving 861 votes on the Democratic ticket.
Mr. Toan was again elected in 1882, receiving 1,481
votes, in opposition to C. A. Munn, Independent
Republican nominee, and Richard Ladner, the popu-
lar Democratic candidate, who received 295 and S84
votes respectively. Probably the best index of a
man's status among his fellows is the record of his
local vote. On his first election he received Si votes
of 100 cast in the Tp. of Milllirook; on his second
nomination he received 102 of 124 votes in the town-
ship, and the third time, of an aggregate of 164, he
received 125 votes, — facts which attest that ])olitical
'?^ opponents supported him, and which were made
more significant because he had held many important
'iii town offices. He was Town Clerk in 1873-4, Super-
W. visor in '75-6, was Township Superintendent of
^ Schools two years, and Yilhige Scliool Director three
(M years.
^ Mr. Toan was married n ( )lena, Huron Co., ( )hio,

July 5, 1858, to Melissa M., eldest daughterof Nathan
H. and Lousia (Ijarjiite) Spencer, Rev. E. Jones of-
ficiating. Mrs. Toan's father is a resident of Olena.
He was born in New Jersey and is a blacksmith by
vocation He is an honored citizen in the commu-
nity to which he belongs, is a Presbyterian in religious
faith, and has occupied a number of prominent po-
sitions in religious and political relations. Her
mother died in 1859, after a useful and noble life.
Mrs. Toan was born in Cayuga Co., N. Y., Jan. 2,
1840. Of the children born of her marriage, eight
are living : Ida L., Grace E., Frank M., Clyde L., Fred
W., Ernest B., Olive F. and Bessie M. Grace E., second
daughterof Mr. Toan, was married Sept. 17, 1882,10
John A. Melton, and resides near her parents. Mr. T.
is peculiarly fortunate in all his domestic relations,
the character and influence of his wife rounding and
perfecting the fabric of his life, molded and directed
liy the clear prevision of his mother.

In January, 1859, Mr. Toan became a memlier of
the M. E. Church, and has since been prominently
and actively interested in all that pertains to its prog-
ress and interest. He has always been connected
with the work of the Sunday-school, and been several
times Superintendent. He is also a zealous advo-
cate and promoter of temperance, and is the present
W. C. T. of the Big Rapids Lodge of Good Templars.

We place the portrait of Mr. Toan in this work, as
a representative citizen of Mecosta County.

'«=>-

mos S. Johnson, President of Mecosta
village and general merchant (G. (iill)ert
-^fE^?^ '* & Co.), is the son of Stanton and Eliza
'sMt (Gilbert) Johnson. He was born in \Vy-
!i?^ oming Co., ,N ¥., Nov. 24, 1847. When he

was an infant his father died, leaving a widow
with seven children. He was brought up on a farm,
attending schools winters. At 20 years of age he came
to Michigan and engaged with Messrs. Wood & Gil-
l)ert in Stanton, where he remained two years. He
then formed ai)artnershii) with his employers and
estal)lished a l)ran(h business house at Sherman
City, Isabella Co., of which he was head manager.
At the end of two years, this business connection
i:eased, and Mr. Johnson became sole proprietor of
the concern by purchase, conducting its affairs

-^m

ir<

;iys-

-^^((®>HP

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MECOSTA COUNTY.

'""'^a^Si

259

singly. He owned in addition a farm of 240 acres,
with good buildings, fences and promising crops, all
of which were destroyed by the cyclone of Sept. 19,
1878. The farm fixtures, and the store with its con-
tents, were swept away, and Mr. Jolmson was well-
nigh overwhelmed with financial ruin.

In May, 1878, he came to Mecosta as agent for
the Village Company, real-estate brokers, etc., and
is still representing their interests. In March, r88o,
in partnership with K. L. Wood, he established a
mercantile house, located at present near the depot.
A year later Giles (".ilbert was admitted a member
of the firm. Their stock is valued at ,'§10,000,
and includes lumbermen's supplies, shelf and heavy
hardware, etc. They also handle all kinds of lum-
ber, shingles and saw-mill products, antl have a
yearly trade amounting to ;J;7S,ooo.

Mr. Johnson was Supervisor of the Township, anil
held the post since he came here until 1883; is also
) County Drain Commissioner; and when the village
was organized in the spring of 18S3 he was elected
^^ President.

° He was marrietl at Elkhart, Ind., March 10, 1S71,
^ to Stella Russell, born in Cattaraugus Co., N. Y.,
° March 10, 184S. iVfr. Johnson is a member of the
^ Masonic Order, and of the A. O. U. VV.

•^m^

I dward A. Romig, M. D., of the firm of
\f VVoolley & Romig, Big Rapids, was born in
tw^'^S. Bristol, Elkhart Co., Ind., Sept. 23, 1852.
S^ His father, .\dam Romig, was a merchant and
'4j died in i860. His mother, Flavilla L. (Adams)
Romig, is yet living, at Moberly, Mo. Dr. Romig
was a student at school until he was 14 years
old, after which he spent two years as a farm assist-
ant. He passed the ne.xt four years as a teacher, and
commenced to read for his profession in the office of
Dr. C. Earl, of Pontiac, Oakland Co., Mich. After a
year of study he went to Ann Arbor and became a
private student under Prof A. B. Palmer, completing
his preparation by three terms in the Medical De-
partment of the University of Michigan, where he
was graduated in March, 1S77. He entered at once
upon his practice at Clarkston, Oakland Co., and es-
tablished a lucrative and po|)ular business. He
stayed there nearly four and a half ye.irs, and in the

fall of 1 88 1 came to this city and opened an office at
upper r>ig Rapids. Four months later he formed his
present business relation with Dr. D. V. WooUey, a
fortunate association, the firm occupymg first rank as
medical practitioners. Dr. Romig's specialties are sur-
gery and diseases of the eye and ear. He is a mem-
ber of the Union Medical Society of Northern Mich-
igan.

Dr. Romig was married at Pontiac, Mich,, October
I, 1879,10 Mary W., daughter of julni I', and Mary
A. Wyckoff They have had two children, Maud
and Ethel. The former is deceased ; the latter was
born Feb. 26, 1883.

-'ik^i-

""~ii; Blackmar

of the firm of Paul Blackmar
Ui\'.^ &i Co., dealeis and manufacturers of lum-
1^ ber, shingles and lath, and pine-land deal-

^7K^^Dii:>:Dns>A:9 — ^»^^

yfe;

cf^ ers, at Big Rapids, was born at Detroit, Aug.
.f\\. 27, 1855. He is a son of Thomas S. and Mary
"v E. (Williams) Blackmar. His father was a
prominent attorney of Detroit, where he located
about i8t;o and opened a law office with Wm. A.
Moore, now an eminent member of the Michigan
bar. The senior Blackmar was Circuit Court Com-
missioner a long term of years, and died at Detroit
'ill the fall of 1869. The mother was a daughter of
Prof Ceo. P. Williams, of Michigan University,
where he held the first chair of Mathematics and
Metaphysics, which he retained a long period, and
was finally retired on half-i)ay. Mrs. Blackmar died
at Detroit, in 1864.

Mr. P. Blackmar olitained his elementary educa-
tion at the public schools, chiefly at the Cass union
school under Prof Nichols. After the demise of his
father, he went to Leavenworth, Kan., and there
studied and taught school. He went thence to Mount
Lincoln, Gray's Peak, and to the vicinity of Lead-
ville, and was there engaged as a miner and in
other occupations four years. He returned to
Detroit and entered the office of T. W. Palmer,
and about the year 1878 had charge of the entire
business of that gentleman, representing at that time
one and a half million dollars.

The manufacturing firm of McGraft & Montgom-
ery at Muskegon dissolved July i, 1882. Mr. Black-
mar bought an interest in the concern Jan. i, iS8i

2 -

MECOSTA COUNTY.

and on the dissolution named, in connection with Mar-
tin Kelly of Grand Rapids, he commenced the pur-
chase and sale of timber on the branches of tlie Mus-
kegon. T. W. Palmer, of Detroit, became interested
in the enterprise in the fall of 1882, and daring the
ensuing winter the firm purchased and put in the river
about twelve million feet of logs, a large proportion
of which is being sawed at the old Tioga Mills, bought
by Thomas S. Tew, of Hood, Gale & Co. In the
summer of 18S3 Mr. P>lackmar purchased the claim
of Mr. Kelly and is now managing the business alone ;
is also operating in the interest of Mr. Palmer. The
latter has, on the Muskegon and its tributaries near
this point, si.xty million feet of standing timber (pine).
The amount handled the current season will be twen-
ty million feet of lumber, from ten to fifteen million
feet of shingles and a large amount of lath.

Mr. Blackmar was married at Detroit, Sept. 9, 1879,
to Georgia .\., daughter of (Seorge and Ellen Rice,
born Aug. 18, 1855. Mr. and Mrs. Blackmar have
two sons, — Thomas P., born at Detroit, July 8, 1880,
and William E., born at Muskegon, Jan. 12, 18S2.

ichael S. Collins, dealer in choice wines,
liipiors and cigars, at Big Rapids, was
Yv born in Hastings County, Pr. of Ont.,
S^^^ March 16, 1841. He is a son of Richard
-"* and Bridget Collins, and at the age of 14
began life for himself as a lumlierman, and
spent five or six years in that employment. He then
came to Grand Rapids, Mich., and was engaged
until the autumn of 1865, in cutting ties for the
G. R. & I. R. R-, and in lumliering. He came to
Big Rapids in the fall of the year named, where he
carried on the lumbering business until 1876, and in
that year rented the Montreal House, which he man-
at^ed three years. He then purchased the building
he now occupies, and the lot where it stands, from J.
H. Foster. It is a Ijrick structure, and the third of
'-2^ its class erected in the town. He carries a stock
i valued at $3,000, and is transacting a thriving busi-
*»? ness. He owns a vacant lot on State Street, a house
i,^ and two lots on the corner of Bridge and Grant
^ Streets, and 10 acres of land in the Third Ward.
('•) Mr. Collins is a member of the Mutual Benefit
^ Association (Catholic order).

^^V^^€^#- ^^^^^ ^

He was married at Grand Rapids, July 8, 1S6S, to
Mary, daughter of James and Eliza Rice, a native of
Canada.

illiam Bai'nhart, farmer, sec. 1 1, Deerfield
■^ T|)., is son of Jacob and Phebe Barnhart,
ji^^rC '"'' Lcdore. The father was born in Ver-
1> mont, and died in Canada, in the spring of
^:}J ^ 1853. The mother was a native of the Do-
minion, and seven years after the death of her
husband came with her children to this county, where
she still resides. She married Mr. McGill and is now
his widow, residing on sec. 12 of Deerfield Tp. She
joined the pioneer element of the county before the
organization of the township, where she has lived 23
years, and, although advanced in years, is an active,
energetic woman and wins general esteem.

Our subject was born in Canada, May 14, 1846.
His mother came to this county when he was 15
years of age. In '63 he took 80 acres of Government
land under the homestead act, which he put under
partial improvement and sold in '68, buying 80 acres
where he is now located, 40 acres of which are under
the plow. He was married in Mecosta County Jan.
51, '62, to Emma Smith. To them have been born nine
children — John E., Mary E., deceased. Amy, Joseiih,
Louis, Mertie, deceased, Clara L., .\ddie, deceased
and Georgia A.

ames K. Pike, farmer, sec. 36, Deerfield
Tp., was born in Pickering, Can., July 4,
1843. His parents, Lendoll and Mary Pike,
»(•(- Wilson, were born in New York and Canada
respectively, and came to Mecosta County,
where they are now resident.
Mr. Pike spent the first 18 years of his life in the
Dominion and at that age went to Fredonia, Chautau-
(jua Co., N. Y., and was there engaged in fruit gar-
dening. .\fter four years became to Ionia Co., Mich.,
and there lived ten years. In the spring of '76 he
came to Mecosta County and bought 160 acres of
land, with some improvements, in Deerfield T]\,
where he has since lived. He acts and affiliates

(

^m'^M>^

^Hm

.iSt^ftL

-^^

5>^tf*

v<^iinsiin^>r

-*^i?@

MECOSTA COUNTY.

261

with the Republican party and has held the post of
Highway Commissioner one term.

Our subject was married in Ionia Co., Mich., to
Rachel E., daughter of Robert Patrick. The parents
of Mrs. Pike were of English birthandcame to America,
and soon located in Ionia Co., Mich., where the father
died. The mother is still living on the homestead in
Ionia County. Mr. and Mrs. Pike are the parents of
fourcliildren — Geo. W., Oriey D., Inez and Robert L-

■T '~^^^^■i^S■V~^~-

a avid Wilson, farmer on sec. 27, Hinton
f Tp., IS a son of Thomas and Jeannetle
M'lW^ (Steele) Wilson. They were both natives
W '^^ Scotland, and came to Canada in its
earliest period, where David was born, Dec. 24,
1848. He passed his time on the farm and at
school until he was 22 years of age. In the fall of
1876 he came to Michigan and bought 80 acres of
land, on which improvements had heen begun and
which is now his residence. He is a Republican in
political opinion ; holds the office of School Assessor,
and is a member of the Good Templars. He was
married in Canada, Dec. 27, 1870, to Abigail,
daughter of George and Sarah Taylor, natives re-
spectively of England and New York. Mrs. Wilson
was born in Canada, July 26, 1843. Mr. and Mrs.
Wilson have had seven children, six of whom sur-
vive: Sarah, George, Jeannette, \\'illiam A., Mal-
colm and Margaret S. Thomas died in Canada,
aged 14 months. Mrs. Wilson is a member of the
M. E. Church.

uncle to serve until he was 21 years of age. On the
expiration of his indentures he started overland for
California, but was taken ill at Council Bluffs and
returned to New York. Three years later he pur-
chased a farm and engaged in butter and cheese
making. In the spring of 1868 he came to this
county and bought 80 acres of land in Hinton Tp.,
which is now his homestead. He has cleared 40
acres of land, put it into a good state of cultivation
and erected suitable buildings. He is independent
in politics ; has held the office of Constable five
years, and in 1871 was elected Notary Public, a post
he still holds.

He was married in Genesee Co., New York, Sept.
15, 1853, to Nancy S., daughter of Amos and Dim-
mis (Rile)) Bailey. She was born in Wyoming Co.,
N. Y., Aug. 26, 1833, and her parents were natives
of Vermont. Mr. and Mrs. Adams have three chil-
dren, Jason E.,born March 4, 185S; Minnie D., born
Sept. 26, 1864, and Harrison P., born Nov. 8, 1870.

(^.

-^■

h f, J

M. Cole, of the hardware house

;jr 111 vole & Judson, Big Rapids, was born

- 'lii'jil '^'^ ''^ Lysander, Onondaga Co., N. Y., Jan.

y.'f^^^^'v I, 1857. His father, Jonathan Cole, was

ffeWyron :

(

^■•\

orman W. Adams, farmer on sec. 11, Hin-
<S ton Tp., is a son of Wm. and Lucy (Waite)
Adams, who were natives of Vermont and
""^ came to New York before the war of 18 12,
1(5 where they passed the remainder of their lives.
The father was a soldier of that war and was in the
battle of Niagara, or Lundy's Lane, where Gen. Scott
was wounded, Mr. Adams being one of the bearers
of the litter in which he was carried 12 miles. Nor-
man W. was born in Cattaraugus Co., N. Y., Feb.
21, 1 83 1. He was "bound out" at an early age to an

born in 1813, and was engaged during his
later years in the combined pursuits of farmer
and lumberman. His mother was born in
Bennington Co., Vt., in 1815. His father dying
when Myron was about 14 years old, Mr. Cole went
to live with his half brother, N. M. V/hite, at Bald-
winsville, N. Y,, and he remained there four years,
attending school. At the age of 18 he came to
Schoolcraft, Mich., wliere he attended school, and
afterward entered Parson's Business College at Kala-
mazoo, completing his commercial studies in five
months. He obtained a position as lumber inspector
for the firm of Putnam & Barnhart, at Fife Lake, (^
Grand Traverse Co., where he operated one sum- [
mer, returnin" to Schoolcraft the following winter to I
teach school. In the spring he entered into partner- ^
ship with Charles Barnhart, in the grocery and provis- (^
ion business. His partner died a year and a half^
later, and Mr. Cole bought his share of the stock and ^
continued the business successfully about a year.^j^,^

262

MECOSTA COUNTY.

While here he was burned out, but his stock was
well insured, and the loss slight. He closed his
business affairs, and connected himself with the
banking house of E. B. Dyckman & Co., acting in
various capacities, and at the expiration of 1 1 months
he acquired a one-third interest in the bank by pur-
chase. The institution continued to operate nearly
two years longer, but on the death of Mr. Dyckman
the remaining partners sold out. In February, 1882,
Mr. Cole came to Big Rapids and went into the
hardware house known as Cox, Overton & Cole.
Mr. Cole purchased the interest of Mr. Cox, in
October, 1882, and transferred the stock to his pres-
ent stand. In December, 1 882, he admitted C. P. Jud-
son as partner. The firm is considered one of the lead-
ing business houses of Big Rapids, and is having a
successful and increasing trade. They carry a full
line of the goods common to the hardware business
and such as the local trade demands. They are
agents for the Standard Oil Co., and are dealing e.x-
tensively in coal.

Mr. Cole was married Oct. 9, 1879, to Libbie,
daughter of Willis and Elizabeth Judson, and was
born in Schoolcraft, Oct. 16, 1S60. Mr. and Mrs.
Cole have one child — Clarence M. — born at Big
Rapids, Sept. i, 1882.

f li Hill, farmer, sec. 29 Deerfield Tp., was
born in Williams Co., Ohio, Feb. 14, 1856.
He is a son of Calvin C. and Louisa M.

following order: Geo. C, Aug. 9, '78; Frederick E.,

March 12, '80; Alonzo L., Feb. 10, '81. (^

Mr. Hill is a Republican in political belief and ^P-'
i)ractice.

^JH^*^

1^ (Stanbrow) Hill, natives of New York, who went

to (_)hio and located in Steuben County, where

the father died. The mother, on the occurrence

of that event, came to Hillsdale Co., Mich., and

afterward to Van Buren County. In the fall of 1878

she took up her residence at Morley.

Our subject acquired a good common school edu-
cation in the educational institutions of Ohio and
Michigan, and in 1879 came to Mecosta County and
"Y bought 80 acres of land in its primeval condition,
a For four vears he rented and carried on a farm, but

■% •

JK in the sprmg of 83 occupied his own farm, ot which

?y he had cleared 20 acres.

^ He was married Aug. 12, '76, in Van Buren Co.,

. Mich., to Agnes, daughter of (ieorge and Ann (Lover-

^=j^ington) Grant. Their three children were born in the

WM' dward W. Hudnutt, of the firm of Crocker &
Hudnutt, architects, contractors and build'
ers, and proprietors of the Falcon Planing
'5^ Mill at Big Rapids, was born at Louisville, Ky,,
Dec. 15, 1852; is a son of Joseph O. and
Marcia (Webster) Hudnutt. His father was a
civil engineer and was many years chief of the con^
struction corps of various canal and railroad com^
panies. In 1859 the family settled near Waverley,
Bremer Co., Iowa, and the following year the father
represented that district in the Legislature of the
State, resigning on the breaking out of the civil war
and returning to Waverley, where he enlisted in the
38th Iowa Vol. Inf., with the rank of Major. He was
chiefly on detached duty and assigned to the staff of =
Major Gen. Herron. He served as engineer of for- «^
tifications, and was in severe engagements with his ==
regiment. It was badly disrupted and finally con- SI/
solidated with the 34th Iowa Vol. Inf., when he was ^
promoted to a Colonelcy and afterward to the rank (
of Brigadier General. He served the Union cause
three years, and on leaving the army went to Chicago
and entered the University as Professor of Civil En-
gineering. Later he was employed by the Chicago &
Illinois River Canal Co., and afterward by the Chi-
cago & Northwestern R. R. Co.; was on the Union |
Pacific and Nor'hern Pacific R. R's. ; surveyed the X
route of the Grand Rapids & Indiana R. R., and f;
went to South Carolina and surveyed the Richmond
& Atlanta Air Line R. R. He came to Big Rapids in
1S69 and liought into the Tioga Manufacturing Co.,
afterward selling out and buying the Tioga Flouring
Mill, where he operated for a time and then went to
Leadville, Col., and became interested in mining and (T
in mining engineering. He went thence to Montana
to survey under a Government contract, where he is
occupied at present.

Mr. Hudnutt, of this sketch, was at the age of 14
connected with the engineering corps of the Union /?v~
Pacific R. R., and continued three years, when he 'j
became connected in the same capacity with the_^.^

m-/^

Mecosta countV.

■^^

263

G. R. & I. R. R., serving two years. He passed tlie
winters of these years in the University at Roches-
ter, N. Y., where he was graduated with the chiss of
1873. He was eini)loyed Ijy the Rochester Water
Works Co. as draughtsman two years, and in 1S75
came to Big Rapids and bought the Falcon Planing
Mill, with Caleb S. Hanks and Luther D. Hender-
son, the firm name being Hudnutt, Henderson,
Hanks & Co Mr. Henderson sold to his |)artners
the next year, and in 1S77 John M. Crocker suc-
ceeded to the position and interest of Mr. Hanks.
Messrs. Crocker and Hudnutt have liuilt the prin-
cipal business blocks of Big Rapids and many of its
residences. Their works are turning out a large
amount of sash, doors, blinds and all builders' ma-
terials. As their business has increased they have
made additions to their mills in proportion. They
are located in upper Big Rapids, near the upper
bridge.

Mr. Hudnutt was marriedjat Big Rapids, to Thyrza

? J., daughter of Ferdinand and Julia Fairman. She

is a native of Adams, N. Y., and is the mother of one

child, Marian Hudnutt. Mr. Hudnutt is a member

of the order of Masonry and Knights of I'ythias.

r^)

••H#f|>|3-V>-

uther O. R. Ward, farmer, sec. 34, Austin
Tp., is a son of John and Catharine ((Juig-
ley) Ward, natives of New York and both
now deceased. They were of mixed English,
Irish and German ancestry, and before their
marriage had moved to Ontan'o, Can., where
Mr. Ward was l.iorn, in the county of Brant,
April 3, 1 84 1. He passed the years of his early life
on his father's farm and at school, and when he was
20 years old he went to an adjoining county and
worked as a farm and mill hand until the spring of
1863, when he settled in Austin Tp. and bought 80
acres of tuiibered land. He built the usual pioneer's
cabin, with puncheon floor, and had no sawed lum-
(q^ ber in the house e.xce[it in the door. After a few
I months Mr. Ward returned to Canada and mar-
ried, at St. George, Brant Co., Dec. g, 1S63, Clarissa
A., daughter of David and Martha (Cornell) Davis,
of English descent and natives of Canada. She
was born Nov. 29, 1841, and died Feb. 8, 1873, at her
home in Austin Tp., leaving four cliildren : Laura,

born Nov. 15,1864; Rosa, May 7, 1866; John,
A|)ril 6, 1 868, and George, May 31, 1871.

Mr. Ward has been actively engaged in farming
since 1863, has put his place in first-class con-
dition, and owns 40 acres of land in an adjoining
township. He was again married June 8, 1874, to
Mrs. Sarah McGill, widow of Wm. McGill, who was
liorn in Ontario, Can., Aug. i, 1845, and died Nov
8, 1873, at Grand Rapids, leaving his wife and
one child, Mary, born Feb. 12, 1871. Mrs. Ward
was born in Ontario, Can., May 25, 1845, and is the
daughter of John and Sarah (Bruley) Austin, natives
of New England and of German descent. Of the
second marriage of Mr. Ward there is one child,
William, born May 12, 1875. Mr. and Mrs. Ward
are members of the M. E. Church, of which Mr.
Ward is Steward. He is a working Republican, and
has been Supervisor of his township one year, Treas-
urer one term, etc.

, jj /{ ' rederiek Rose, harness - maker, at Big i=i
^&|r' Rapids, was born in Germany, June 3,
'WS'-ix^ 1823. At the age of 14 he entered upon
his apprenticeship, and after a service of three
^ik years enlisted in the German army, enrolling in ^

T843 and remaining four years and three
months.

Mr. Rose came to America in 1854, and settled at
Buffalo, N. Y., where he established himself in busi-
ness, and remained about 18 months. He ne.xt
went to Waterloo Co., Canada, and there carried on
his business 15 years. In 1872 he came to Big
Rapids and formed a business connection with
Duncan McClellan, which existed 14 months. Since
that (late he has managed the same line of trade
where he is now located and employs several men.
His annual transactions amount to $3,000, and in-
cludes harness-making and saddlery, carriage trim-
ming, etc. He owns his residence on the corner of
Sanford avenue and Divisioii street, and 66 acres of
land in the township of Big Raiiids, southeast of the
city and located on the river.

Mr. ^ose was married March 18, 1854, in Ger-
many, to Wilhelmina Augstell, and they have had
two children: Matilda, wife of Cyrus Brecker, a
Canadian merchant; and Margaret, wife of John
Hoffiiian, a harness-maker in Canada. Mrs. Rose

<^llll>:illls>A

4^^^(^>N^;

264

MECOSTA

__ .

fdied in Canada, in 1859, and Mr. Rose was a second
time married, Aug. 16, i860, to Rebecca iVIosier, a
s'^ Canadian by birth and of German descent. The
parents of Mr. Rose were Ciiristian and ?',li/,al.)eth
Rose.

COUNTY.

-i^t^((®V(ii

enry R. Brown, farmer, sec. 27, Deerfield
0/1, Tp-, R. O. . Morley, was born Oct. 16, 1855,
in Pennsylvania. His parents, Michael
and Catherine (Moser) Brown, were natives of
Germany and came to America in 1850, finding
a home in the Keystone State, where they are
spending their final years.
Mr. Brown passed the first 23 years of his life in
Pennsylvania, in farm labor and studying at the com-
mon school. He came to Mecosta County in 1870 and
bought 120 acres of timber land, and still holds 80
acres of his original tract. He has built a frame
house and made other improvements on his estate.

Mr. Brown was married at Morley, April 4, 1883,
to Sarah E., daughter of Wm. and Ann M. (Belles)
Brink. She was born in Pennsylvania Dec. 31, 1861.
They are attendants at the M. E. Church, of which
Mr. IJrown is an active member. He is a Democrat
in political sentiment and action.

'l^r^fflf^'evi S. Menere, farmer, sec. i, Milllirook
?, I fr^it Tp., was born Sept 7, 1826, m Canada, son
fh of James and Rachel (Mayhew) Menere,
the former a native of Ireland and the lat-
ter of Canada. He remained at home until be
was 25 years old, when he started in life for
himself. His father deeded him 100 acres of
land upon which he lived six years, and managed
with profit. Later, he sold the place and bought
another, which he rented to a tenant for two years
and sold at the end of that time. In the winter of
1865 he bought 80 acres of unimproved land in Mill-
brook Tp. To this he has added 40 acres in this town-
ship, and also purchased 40 acres of land in Isa-
bella County. He has placed 80 acres under first-
class improvements, and has a finely located and
valuable farm.

He was married in Canada. May 26, 1851, to Mary

— %A<-^I1!1

E., daughter of Gilbert and Mary (Stanley) Decker,
who was born in the Dominion April 26, 1834. Mr.
and Mrs. Menere have had 14 children, 12 of whom
are living: Mary A., born July 25, 1853 ; Rachel, April
25, 1855 ; Sarah J., Feb. 20, 1857 ; Dinah A., Dec.
I, 1858; James G., July 27, i860; Edward S.,
April 26, 1862; Ellen E., June 13, 1866; Josephine,
April 2, 1868; Wm. S., Aug i, 1870; Caroline, Oct.
11,1872; Ruth, Sept. II, 1877; Floyd A., Feb- 29,
1880; Eliza, born March 1 1, 1852, died Sept. 9, 1S55 ;
Catharine, born Feb. 16, 1864, died May 20, 1865.

Mr. Menere is independent in politics and has
held several official positions. He is a member of
the ancient order of Odd Fellows.

-Hsl-

-Joii'-

^-«)S-<«i)>-fe>^

was l)orn.

They came with their family in 1832 to

Thomas P. Mortensen, senior member of
the grocery firm of Mortensen & Mynning,-

^ at Big Rapids, was born in Denmark, Feb.

26, 1846. He came to the United States in
873, and in 1874 established a laundry on

Canal street, Grand Rapids, which he managed
until 1879. Mr. M. then came to Big Rapids and em-
barked in the same enterprise, which he continued
three years. This was the first establishment in that
branch in the city. In the fall of 1882 he formed his
present business relation. The house is carrying a
stock worth $2,000, and is transacting a profitable
and growing business.

Mr Mortensen was married at Grand Rapids,
Nov. 25, 1873, to Matilda Anderson, a native of Nor-
way, born April i, 1845. The five children born of
this marriage are — Clara H., Alfred (dec), Alma,
Thora and Hannah. The family attend the Luther-
an Church. Mr. Mortensen belongs to the I. O. O. F.
Besides his residence he owns a house and lot on the
east side of the Fifth ward, and a farm of 40 acres on
sec. 12, township of Big Rapids.

'^'i m- M. McCamley, farmer, sec. 6, Austm

Pp., was born in Onondaga Co., N. Y.^

is June 8, 1828. His parents, Eleazer and

Ruth (Wheeler) McCamley, were natives

IIIS^ of Scotland, and emigrated to the United ^\

States, locating in the county where the son v*)J

-f^rte*'

<^r?''?

-%.

lyfh tf.o'/.t//.o /^ .

■ 'f 'i

t2€»k: — er-7<4on'^:nnj>r^

MECOSTA COUjyTV.

Calhoun Co., Mich., where they lived until January)
1847, when William enlisted as a soldier in the Mex-
ican war. He enrolled in the Michigan Vol., Co. G,
under Capt. Hicks, with Col. Stockson in command
of the regiment, which was attached to the division
of Gen. Taylor. He was in considerable active
service but escaped without injury, and was honor-
ably discharged in November, 1848. He then re-
mained at home until 1850, when he moved upon a
farm in Calhoun County, and lived there until the
spring of 1852. In that year he made an overland
journey to California, passing through the Mormon
"City of the plains." His search for gold continued
two years and he then returned to his home. In the
fall of 1856 he purchased a farm in Mecosta Tp.,
where he was resident until November, 1864, then
bought 80 acres on sec. 6, Austin Tp., to which he
has since added, by purchase, 40 acres more, and is
now the [iroprietor of a valuable farm of 120 acres
of finely improved land.

Mr. McCamley was married Dec. 4, 1850, to
Martha .S., daughter of John and Emma (Woodward)
Fish, respectively of Welsh and English descent,
who was born in Allegany Co., N. Y., Sept. i, 1832,
and came to Michigan when but five years old. Of
this marriage six children have been born, Delisle,
Jan. 18, 1856; Alice R., June 4, 1858; Flora M.,
May 31, 1S60; Mary J., March 30, 1862; Wm. B.,
July 9, 1864; Lou. A., Sept. 12, 1873. Mr. McCam-
ley is a Democrat in politics, and has held the post of
Township Treasurer two terms.

elson Higbee, farmer and lumberman, resi-
dent on section 9, Deerfield Tp., was born

„ in Broome Co., N. Y., Dec. i, 182;. He

g^ is a son of Loring and Mary (Roberts) Higbee,
M^ the former a native of Massachusetts, the latter
of Connecticut. The paternal grandfather of Mr.
Higbee settled in Broome County, in 1796, when his
son Loring was only a boy. The father of Mr. Higbee
died in 1862; the mother is living on the home-
stead with a younger son, and has attained the vener-
able age of 91 years.

Mr. Higbee received a fair education at the public
schools and finished study with a partial academic
course. He passed the years of his minority in the

home of his parents, and on reaching man's estate
he went to Tioga County, where he was occupied with
farming and limibering three years. In [853 he
came to Michigan and located in Croton, Newaygo
Co., devoting his attention to the same pursuits. He
bought there 300 acres of land and placed 200 acres
of the tract under fine improvements; he alsoerected
a number of buildings in Croton and exerted all his
influence toward the substantial progress of the jilace.
Meanwhile, in the year 1S65, he purchased of John
W. Forbes, John W. Brooks and Robert S. Watson,
of Boston, Mass., 1,700 acres of pine land in Deer-
field Tp., for which he paid ten dollars an acre. The
advance in value has swelled the estate (numerically)
to a comparatively enormous amount. Without de-
tails of purchase the following statement exhibits his
estate in Deerfield, aggregating 4,080 acres, sectionally
located as follows :

-. Oil

)m section

^...

.120

7...

. 40

'• '■

s. .

. . SO

■' '•

!t. .

. .(540

10..

..410

'•

. .120

12.

..240

I'i

200

14.

. .:i2o

('(i ion 1."). .

. .(lOOucrf

lO. .

. . 40 "

17..

..120 •'

20. .

..240 ••

21..

..100 "

^' 22

. ..■i20 '•

" 2(i..

..40 "

27..

. .100 ••

m..

. .200 "

^«§§#

Aside from his lands in the township of Deerfield,
Mr. Higbee owns, in company with others, 15,000
acres of land. He also owns 300 acres of valuable
land adjoining the city of Grand Rapids. He has
owned at different periods 5,000 acres in .Etna Tp.
alone. His home farm (so called), on which he lo-
cated in 1878, includes 720 acres, with 500 under
advanced improvement. He keeps 15 horses, lo
oxen and 15 cows to supply the wants of his estate
and employees, and even these are inadequate to the
necessities of the case. He cures five tons of jjork
annually, raises 1,500 bushels of onions, 2,000 of
corn, 1,200 of wheat, 2,000 of oats, 2,000 of potatoes
cuts 150 tons of hay and has a flock of sheep.

In 1873, in company with A. B. Watson, of Grand
Rapids, Mr. Higbee built a dam on his property in
Deerfield. He bought the claim of Mr. Watson soon
after and in company with William Hugh, Sr., built
the mill they are now managing, and commenced the
manufacture of lumber and lath and added planing
works to the mill facilities.

Mr. Higbee was married in 1S49 to Catherine A.,

i#«r

^^TV

<->iii]^nn^>

'^nrr

#^>§5C(®V|'

%*••;

)

268

Mecosta county.

f daughter of Jonathan and Phebe (Hoagland)
Truesdell. The latter venerable personages, aged re-
^ spectively 86 and 85 years, reside with and are the
I special care of their son-in-law. The daughter and
/§. wife died July 7, 1883. Mr. Higbee is a Republican
in political sentiment. Mr. and Mrs. Higbee's por-
traits are given in this work.

8.*-^^^

a| eo. M. Gottshall, of the firm of Cannon &
i'w5 Gottshall, Big Rapids, was born at Canton,

r=^ Ohio, June i, 1845. His parents, Daniel
and Rebecca (Martin) Gottshall, were of Ger-

*^ man lineage; the father was born in ^\ cst-
moreland. Pa., June 12, 1803, and mother, in
1815, in Lancaster, Pa. Mr. Gottshall learned the
printer's trade when a mere boy, but abandoned the
craft temporarily to contribute his part toward his
country's defense. His father was instrumental in
raising a cavalry company and was put in command
^>^ of Company K, 3d Ohio Cavalry, in which Mr. Gott-
=? shall enlisted, though but 16 years of age. Capt.
^ Gottshall contracted camp diarrhea and was sent
a home to recuperate, but died June 18, 1S62. The
•^*^ mother still survives and resides at Canton. Mr.
Gottshall was in action at Chickamauga, Stone River,
Kenesaw Mountain and at the siege of Atlanta un-
der Sherman; was with Kilpatrick on his raid in
Georgia, and at the batdes of Jonesboro, Ga., Frank-
lin and Nashville, Tenn. His period of enlistment
expired in Sept., 1864, but his command was net
mustered out until Dec. 30 of that year. He re-
turned to Canton and again enlisted in Company D,
2d Ohio Cavalry, Capt. H. C. Pike. This regiment
was in Custer's Brigade at Five Forks, Va., which
intercepted Lee and compelled him to jjlace himself
beyond the Appomattox previous to his final surren-
der. At the close of the war the regiment was sent
into Southwestern Missouri and the Indian Territory,
and was mustered out in September, 1865, at St
Louis, Mo. Previous to the engagement at Stone
I River Mr. Gottsliall was promoted as Corporal. At
. f the b;ittle of Chickamauga and also at the crossing
of Elk river near Deckert Station, he received slight

§ gunshot wounds, but throughout the entire period of
his army life he was not seriously injured or ill.
V l>aniel H. Gottshall, a lirother, enlisted in Company
^<,-. F, 4th Ohio Vol. Inf., and Martin V. B. Gottshall,

another brother, in Company B, 43d Ohio Vol. Inf.,
I Kith of whom served their time of enlistment safely.

Mr. Gottshall returned to Canton and resumed the
printer's business, himself and brother, M. V. B.,
starting a weekly paper — The National Dc?iwcrat.
After two year's successful prosecution of this enter-
prise he sold to his brother and engaged with E. Ball
& Co., manufactures of agricultural machinery, op-
erating alternately in the office and shop as contrac-
tor. He continued until 1869, when he went to Fort
Wayne, Ind., in the capacity of book-keeper with a
furniture liouse. After a year he entered the emi)loy
of a lumber company — Beaver, Miller & Co., — where
he acted as accountant, general manager, salesman,
etc., remaining five years. He came to Big Rapids
in [876 and in coniiiany with B. A. Webster estab-
lished himself as a lumber dealer, the firm adopting
the name of Gottshall & Webster. This relation was
dissolved at'the end of three years, when Mr. Gottshall
accepted an engagement with F. Fairman as travel-
ing salesman, selling lumber, etc. He afterward
went into the office of Mr. Fairman 's manufacturing
establishment known as the Big Rapids Iron Works
and officiated as manager and book-keeper. In Oct.,
1882, Mr. Edwin Cannon and himself bought the Iron
Works which they have since continued to operate, con-
structing all machinery necessary to the manufactnre
of lumber and shingles. They own the building and
site (315 X 195 feet) and have all the best facilities for
making light or lieavy work, from simple bolts to com-
plicated engines. Their products sell in the lumber
districts of Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota and
even Texas.

Mr.Gottshall was married at Canton, May 23,
1868., to Frances A., daughter of John E. and Maria
T. (Rodgers) Whitney, who was born Dec. 9, 1849,
at Cazenovia, N. Y. Edith A., their only ( hild, was
born at Fort Wayne, Ind., Dec. 7, 1S70.

<my.

PSlr eo A. Eoof, dealer in boots and shoes, at
|Mj? Big Rapids, was born at Plessis, Jefferson
Jl^^ Co., N. v., Sept. 19, 1852. His parents,
f^^ Daniel and Elizabeth (Shaver) Roof, came to
Big Rapids in August, 187 1. Mr. Roof re-
ceived his business training under the personal
supervision of his father, who was a boot and shoe

||Ilv.>Ae?^ ^3H^^ ^

^)^rmm^

^ w (o\ ^myM'-^>^

-m^m\M

kfc'jU'ii

MECOSTA COUNTY

269

dealer and manufacturer in Jefferson County, and
founded the same business at Big Rapids. He built
the structure on Michigan avenue, row occupied by
T. D. Mulbury. In July, 1873, Mr. Roof entered
into partnership with liis father, an association which
proved successful, as their business included a con-
siderable jobbing trade. Jan. i, 1879, he liecanie sole
owner by purchasing his father's interest. The lat-
ter died Feb. 13, 18S0. In June, 1883, Mr. Roof
moved the building he occupied to Maple street,
and then proceeded to the erection of the "Roof
Block," one of the finest in the city. It is built of
brick, 50 .X 100 feet in size, with tliree stories above
the basement.

Mr. Roof was married at Ottawa, Can., Jan. 12,
1874, to Laura McLaughlin, who died May 10, 1875,
leaving an infant, Charlie IX, born at Big Rapids,
April 28, 1875. Mr. Roof entered into a second
matrimonial alliance Nov. 20, 1876, with Mattie A.,
daughter of Jonas and Mary A. Crouse, who was
born Nov. 20, 1857. They have two sons, J. Fred,
bom at Big Raiiids, Aug. 26, 1881, and an infant not
yet named. Mr. Roof is a member of the Royal
Arcanum, Council, No. 174. He owns a fine residence,
which he built in 1882.

.^S=4j^.£^J.U

^^r#

-'IJ^Qirii W. Foglesang, farmer, sec. 13, Millbrook
'"^Rm";" Tp-) was born in Ohio, March 19, 1842.

rSf„

... r— , .•; His parents, Eli and Mary (Shoup) hogle-
•'-^-- sang, were born respectively in Ohio and Penn-
sylvania. In 1861 he came to St. Joseph Co.,
Mich., where he worked one year on a farm.
In the following year he came to Clinton County and
enlisted in the war of the Rebellion, enrolling Aug.
5, 1862, in the 23d Regiment Michigan Vol. Inf,and
served until July, 1865, when he received honorable
discharge. Among other engagements in which he
took part were the siege of Knoxville, Duck River,
Columbia, Franklin, Nashville and siege of Atlanta.
His regiment was for a time attached to Sher-
man's command, and detaclied to join the cor[)S de-
tailed to follow up the retreat of Hood's army. After
being mustered out of the United .States service he
came to Bay City, Mich., and worked for a short time
in a shingle mill, going thence to Clinton County,
.where he was resident about three vears. In the

spring of 1869 he bought 200 acres of unimproved
land in Millbrook Tp. Of this tract 160 acres have
passed from his proprietorship: the remaining 40 is
now his homestead and is practically all under culti-
vation.

He was married in Bay Co., Mich., Aug. 23, 1868,
to Mary, daughter of Thomas and Mary A. (Johnson)
Hested, who was born in Washtenaw Co., Mich.
Mr. and Mrs. Foglesang have had two children :
Cora B., born May 10, 1870, and Lewis W., May 14,
1872. In politics Mr. Foglesang is a Republican
and lias held several townsliip offices at various
periods.

jA/Wn.— ^

{ bel C. Osborne, proprietor of the Palace

l^filliam A. Bell, farmer on sec. 12, ylitna
'I'p., is a native of Canada, and is a son of
l&vvd^ John A. and Margaret (Johnson) Bell.
TG^P He remained with his parents until he was
22 years of age, acquiring his education and
fitting himself for the vocation of farmer. At
that age he bought 80 acres of land, under par-
tial improvements, where he now resides and on
which he has recently built a fine barn Sixty acres
of his land are cultivated. He is a Reiniblican in
principle and action, and himself and family attend
the M. E. Church.

He was married at Grand Rapids, July 6, 1874, to
Edna J., daughter of Edmund and Mary (House)
Groom, and their children are Alverta M., born Dec.
23, 1877, and Ray B., Ijorn Sept. 8, 1879.

e^:

T^i^M"^ Cazenovia, N. Y., June 3, 1841. He is a
Jl'Va son of Thomas E. and Salome (Hanks) Os-

'^^t<^

borne, and was sent to school in his native
I place until he was 16 years old. His first
occupation of any importance was in the capacity of
page to the Sergeant-at-Arms of the New York
Assembly, at the State Capitol at Albany, N. Y. At
the age of 18 he began to prepare for his vocation by
obtaining a position in al)arbershop at Oswego, N. Y.
In the fall of 1863 h§ went to Toledo, Ohio, and

Ife

272

Mecosta county.

-*®#

Si
/

winter of 1873 the firm took a contract to saw lum-
ber for Charles Barstow, at Himgerford, and the mill
was again removed. Mr. Cannon bought the inter-
ests of Mr. Tibbals in the summer of 1876, and
Aug. I, 1881, the mill was destroyed by fire, entail-
ing a loss of $6,000. He came to Big Rapids soon
after, and in partnership with Geo. M. Gotshall be-
came proprietor b)' purchase of the manufacturing
estaljlishment of F. Fairman, and has since been
engaged in constructing edgers, tram-cars, engines,
and mill machinery generally. The annual transac-
tions reach an aggregate value of $90,000.

Mr. Cannon owns a half interest in 600 acres of
land in Hungerford besides his residence, and eight
city lots on .S. State street at the west end of Oak
street. He was married at Mattawan, Van Buren
Co., Mich., April 20, 1872, to Leavana, daughter of
Levi Butler, a farmer and carpenter of Mattawan,
who was born Nov. 21, 1845. Mr. Cannon is a mem-
ber of the Order of Masonry.

■anklin C. Terrill, M. D., was born in

dMiiir i'lyiio'^'tl"') Wayne Co., Mich., Aug. 3, 1849.

jj^^cife pjg jg j]^g youngest son of Lyman and

»'© Catherine (Clark) Terrill, and was reared on

dj'k a farm to the age of 18. He attended the

^ common district school until the age of 14,

when he entered the high school at Northville and

two years afterward entered the union school at Ann

Arbor, Mich., where he pursued the English course.

In the fall of 1S69 he was chosen Principal of the
union schools at Ovid, Mich., v^'hich position he held
during the following year, when he went to Kansas
and was elected to the same position in the schools
at White Church.

Dr. Terrill followed the calling of teacher, reading
ad interim for his profession until 1875, when, owing
to ill health, he abandoned it and returned to Ovid,
Mich., where he embarked in the drug business with
Geo. C. Beebe; this relation and business continued
until the fall of 1877, when he entered the Depart-
ment of Medicine and .Surgery- at Ann Arbor, Mich.,
completed the course of study prescribed, and was
graduated June 26, 1879. He formed a partnership
for the practice of his profession with Dr. J. \V. Pat-
tison at Millbrook, Mecosta Co., and there practiced
until September, 18S1. In that month he came to

Big Rapids and established his business, which is now
in a prosperous condition.

Dr. Terrill is a member of the Union Medical
Society of Northern Michigan, and was elected first
Vice-President on its organization. He belongs to
the fraternity of Odd Fellows. In 1872, while resi-
dent at White Church, Kan., he connected himself
with the Order of Masonry, joining Delaware Lodge,
No. 96; he was made Senior Warden in 1872-3, and
was elected Master of his Lodge Dec. 29, 1874,
serving one year.

Lyman Terrill was born March 13, 1802, in On-
tario Co., N. v., and came to Plymouth, Wayne Co.,
Mich., where he was a prominent pioneer. He set-
tled on a farm, which he put under first-class im-
provements and continued to reside there until his
death, April 13, 1877. Mrs. Terrill, liis wife, was
born in Wyoming Co., N. Y., Dec. 13, 1810. Her
marriage to Mr. Terrill occurred Dec. 13, 1880, at
Ann Arbor, Mich. Of seven children born to them
six are now living, viz : Charles C. is an architect
in California ; was a member of the Legislature of
the Golden State for three successive terms; Nancy
resides at Ovid; Martha C. is the wife of Chas. M.
Morrison, a farmer at Ovid, Clinton Co., Mich.;
Jared D. is Chief Clerk in the Indian Bureau at
Washington, D. C, which position he has occupied
for 18 years. Francis G. is a farmer on the home-
stead at Plymouth ; Hoberl H. is deceased. The
mother died at Plymouth, Jan. 11, 1863.

rrtjpa? enry D. Brown, Postmaster at Milll)rook,
xliBjf was born in New York, Aug. 2;, 1820. He
(i'jpji*'"* is a son of Elijah and Abigail (Strong)
^1^ Brown, the former a native of Massachusetts,

, the latter of New York. They were married
I in the State of New York and there passed
their entire lives, the father dying at the age of 82
years; the mother died in 1832. Mr. Brown was
nearly 25 years of age when he took a final leave of
his childhood's home. A brief visit to Wisconsin in
earlier years had given him a favorable impression of
that State, and on leaving home he made his way
thither and remained three years, being a part of the
time in the employ of his brother as clerk. In 1857
he returned to New York, and during the next two
years carried on the grocery trade in his own inter-

7<>DB:^titl^>v

MECOSTA

C0UN7Y.

rid&s:

ests. He disposed of his business, and in the fall of
1859 came to Michigan and located in Branch
County, buying a farm and there operating two years.
He again sold out and removed to St. Joseph County,
where he rented a farm and worked a few months.
The continuous calls for men to aid in crushing the
Southern rebellion awakened his patriotism, and he
enlisted in the 17th Michigan Vol. Inf., and served
until the close of the war, receiving an honorable dis-
charge at Detroit. Among the most memorable ac-
tions in whicli he participated were the battles at
Jackson, Miss., Knoxville, Tenn., battle of the Wil-
derness and Spottsylvania Court House. At the last
named his regiment was nearly cut to pieces, tjie sur-
vivors being few. .'\fter this he was on detached ser-
vice until the close of the war. After his discharge
in 1865 he came to Mecosta County and settled in
Wheatland Tp., wliere he bought a farm and oper-
ated until 1878. He sold his place in that year and
came to the village of Millbrook to live In the fall
of 1879 he received his appointment as Postmaster
from President Ha)'es, and has since occupied the
position. While a resident of Wheatland he held
the office of Township Clerk several times, besides
other minor offices. In politics he is a Republican.

Mr. Brown was married in New York, to Mary E.,
daughter of Chauncey and Lorcnna Brown, Tlieir
only child died in infancy. The mother died Jan.
3, 1853. Mr. Brown was married in 1865 to Cassie,
only daughter of John D. and Margaret (Hopkins)
('leninient, and they have two children, Charlie D.
and Lottie C.

=^-

■/.SVAk:

-'rj/if' rederick W. Joslin, merchant tailor, cloth-
' iitj,(|;|p ier and hatter. Big Rapids, is a son of Will-
4]f^3^^^ iam and Cynthia (Greenwood) Joslin, and
^'■fe was born in Hul ibardston, Worcester Co., Mass.,
•ji^ May 25, 1845. He was reared on a farm and
J received the education of a farmer's son until
he was 17 years old, when he entered the Military
Academy at Leicester, Mass., and remained one and
a half years. He then came West to Fort Wayne,
Ind., and entered the employ of Messrs. Woodward,
Young & Co., clothiers, as clerk. In 1870 he formed
a partnership with N. B. Young. This relation ex-
isted nearly two years, when it was dissolved, and
Mr. Joslin came to Big Rapids in 1872. Here he

^^''^f^ ^rK^^DD

associated himself with W. C. Peters in the clothing
trade, and the firm transacted a prosperous bus-
iness until November, 1878, when he became sole
proprietor by purchase, and has since conducted his
business alone. He carries a stock of $25,000
value, consisting of a full line of cloaking, gentle-
men's furnishing goods and lumbermen's wear.
In the spring of 1882 he added merchant tailoring,
and is doing a good business in that department.

Mr. Joslin was married at Fort Wayne, Feb. 16,
187 I, to Etta K.. daughter of Isaac and Kate (Bow-
man) Beckley, who was born Feb. 23, 1847, near
Harrisburg, Pa. They have two sons, Frederick W.
and Roy G., the former born at Fort Wayne, A[)ril
3, 1873, the latter at Big Rapids, June g, 1878.

Mr. Joslin's place of business is situated on the
corner of Michigan avenue and Maple street, fronting
on both. He owns his residence and two lots, on
the corner of Stewart avenue and Linden street.

^j^? D. Moody, liveryman at Big Rapids, was
%%%} '""'"' "' Medma Co., Ohio, Feb. 25, 1844,
,,.^'v-vaJ? and is a son of Daniel and Sophia (Roaers)
G5P Moody. He was reared on a farm and
came with his parents to Grand Rapids in
852. In 1856 his father bought 320 acres of
and in Alpine Tp., Kent Co. Mr. Moody
enlisted, when 18 years of age, in the army, enrolling
Aug. 12, 1862, in Co. E, Second Mich. Cav., under
Capt. Nicholson. He went into the service as a pri-
vate, and during his period of enlistment passed the
various promotions to that of Sergeant He was in
the battles of Perryville, Carter's raid in East Ten-
nessee, Chickamauga, through the Georgia campaign
under Sherman, at Franklin, Nashville, Wilson's
cavalry raid, siege of Tuscaloosa, and was captured
by the rebels at Taladego. As the war was practi-
cally at an end, he was held but three days, and was
discharged from the service in June, 1865. His
father enlisted in the same regiment, and was killed
at his side by a cannon shot in a skirmish near Louis-
ville, Ky., Oct. I, 1862. Mr. Moody returned to
Kent County at the close of the war, and engaged in
farming. In 1873 he abandoned agriculture and en-
gaged as traveling salesman for W. C. Dennison,
manufacturer and dealer in agricultural implements.
In December of the same year he came lo Big Rap-

C,
A

-^&^ — ^v^iiiii>;iiiif>7^^

^^^f®'

MECOSTA COUNTY.

winter of 1873 the firm took a contract to saw lum-
ber for Charles Barstow, at Hungerford, and the mill
was again removed. Mr. Cannon bought the inter-
ests of Mr. Tibbals in the summer of 1876, and
Aug. I, 1881, the mill was destroyed by fire, entail-
ing a loss of $6,000. He came to Big Rapids soon
after, and in partnership with Geo. M. Gotshall be-
came proprietor by purchase of the manufacturing
establishment of F. Fairman, and has since been
engaged in constructing edgers, tram-cars, engines,
and mill machinery generally. The annual transac-
tions reach an aggregate value of $90,000.

Mr. Cannon owns a half interest in 600 acres of
land in Hungerford besides his residence, and eight
city lots on S. State street at the west end of Oak
street. He was married at Mattawan, Van Buren
Co., Mich., A])ril 20, 1872, to Leavana, daughter of
Levi Butler, a farmer and carpenter of Mattawan,
who was born Nov. 21, 1845. Mr. Cannon is a mem-
ber of the Order of Masonry.

f ranklin C. Terrill,

M. D., was born in

Plymouth, Wayne Co., Mich., Aug. 3, 1849.
He is the youngest son of Lyman and

(., Catherine (Clark) Terrill, and was reared on

^ a farm, to the age of 18. He attended the

common district school until the age of 14,

when he entered the high school at Northville and

two years afterward entered the union school at Ann

Arbor, Mich., where he pursued the English course.

In the fall of 1069 he was chosen Principal of the
union schools at Ovid, Mich., which position he held
during the following year, when he went to Kansas
and was elected to the same position in the schools
at White Church.

Dr. Terrill followed the calling of teacher, reading
ad interim for his profession until 1875, when, owing
to ill health, he abandoned it and returned to Ovid,
Mich., where he embarked in the drug business with
Geo. C. Beebe; this relation and business continued
until the fall of 1S77, when he entered the Depart-
ment of Medicine and Surgery at Ann Arbor, Mich.,
completed the course of study prescribed, and was
graduated June 26, 1879. He formed a partnership
for the practice of his profession with Dr. J. W. Pat-
tison at Millbrook, Mecosta Co., and there practiced
until September, 1881. In that month he came to

Big Rapids and established his business, which is now
in a prosperous condition.

Lyman Terrill was born March 13, 1802, in On-
tario Co., N. v., and came to Plymouth, Wayne Co.,
Mich., where he was a prominent pioneer. He set-
tled on a farm, which he put under first-class im-
provements and continued to reside there until his
death, April 13, 1877. Mrs. Terrill, his wife, was
born in Wyoming Co., N. Y., Dec. 13, iSio. Her
marriage to Mr. Terrill occurred Dec 13, 1880, at
Ann Arbor, Mich. Of seven children born to them
six are now living, viz : Charles C. is an architect
in California; was a member of the Legislature of
the Golden State for three successive terms ; Nancy
resides at Ovid; Martha C. is the wife of Chas. M.
Morrison, a farmer at Ovid, Clinton Co., Mich.;
Jared D. is Chief Clerk in the Indian Bureau at
Washington, D. C, which position he has occupied
for 18 years. Francis G. is a farmer on the home-
stead at Plymouth ; Hobert H. is deceased. The
mother died at Plymouth, Jan. 11, 1S63.

-.'$i^

'^W^^ enry D. Brown, Postmaster at Millbrook,
was born in New York, Aug. 23, 1829. He

.;,„,^- is a son of Elijah and Abigail (Strong)

M' Brown, the former a native of Massachusetts,

A the latter of New York. They were married

I in the State of New York and there passed

their entire lives, the father dying at the age of 82

years; the mother died in 1832. Mr. ISrown was

nearly 25 years of age when he took a final leave of

his childhood's home. .A brief visit to Wisconsin in

earlier years had given him a favorable impression of

that State, and on leaving home he made his way

thither and remained three years, being a part of the

time in the employ of his brother as clerk. In 1857

he returned to New York, and during the next two

years carried on the grocery trade in his own inter-

(^P^&m^

«rr

^>Il!l^DIlv>'-^ ^^'

MECOSTA CO UN 7 Y.

-3<€^^

273

ests. He disposed of his business, and in the fall of
1859 came to Michigan and located in Branch
County, buying a farm and there operating two years.
He again sold out and removed to St. Joseph County,
where he rented a farm and worked a few months.
The continuous calls for men to aid in crushing the
Southern rebellion awakened his patriotism, and he
enlisted in the 17th Michigan Vol. Inf, and served
until the close of the war, receiving an lionorabk- dis-
charge at Detroit. Among the most memorable ac-
tions in whicii he participated were the battles at
Jackson, Miss., Knoxville, Tenn., battle of the Wil-
derness and Spottsylvania Court House. At the last
named his regiment was nearly cut to pieces, the sur-
vivors being few. After this he was on detached ser-
vice until the close of the war. After his discharge
in 1865 he came to Mecosta County and settled in
Wheatland Tp., where he bought a farm and oper-
ated until 1878. He sold his place in that year and
came to the village of Millbrook to live In the fall
of 1879 he received his appointment as Postmaster
from President Hayes, and has since occupied the
position. ^Vhile a resident of Wheatland he held
the office of Township Clerk several times, besides
other minor offices. In politics he is a Republican.

Mr. Brown was married in New York, to Mary E.,
daughter of Chauncey and Lorenna Brown. Their
only child died in infancy. The mother died Jan.
3, 1853. Mr. Brown was married in 1S65 to Cassie,
only daughter of John U. and Margaret (Hopkins)
Clemnient, and they have two children, Charlie D.
and Lottie C.

^ij||^^ rederick W. Joslin, merchant tailor, cloth-
' " IP' ier and hatter, Big Rajiids, is a son of Will-

(Ms'-ij^ iam and Cynthia (Greenwood) Joslin, and
fe was born in Hubbardston, Worcester Co., Mass.,
May 25, 1845. He was reared on a farm and
received the education of a farmer's son until
he was 17 years old, when he entered the Military
Academy at Leicester, Mass., and remained one and
a half years. He then came West to Fort Wayne,
Ind., and entered the employ of Messrs. Woodward,
Young & Co., clothiers, as clerk. In 1870 he formed
a partnership with N. B. Young. This relation ex-
isted nearly two years, when it was dissolved, and
Mr. Joslin came to Big Rapids in 1872. Here he

associated himself with W. C. Peters in the clothing
trade, and the firm transacted a prosperous bus-
iness until November, 1878, when he became sole
jiroprietor by purchase, and has since conducted his
business alone. He carries a stock of $25,000
value, consisting of a full line of cloaking, gentle-
men's furnishing goods and lumbermen's wear.
In the spring of 1882 he added merchant tailoring,
and is doing a good business in that department.

Mr. Joslin was married at Fort Wayne, Feb. 16,
187 I, to Etta K., daughter of Isaac and Kate (Bow-
man) Beckley, who was born Feb. 23, 1847, near
Harrisburg, Pa. They have two sons, Frederick W.
and Roy G., the former iiorn at Fort Wayne, April
3, 1873, the latter at Big Rapids, June 9, 1878.

Mr. Joslin's place of business is situated on the
corner of Michigan avenue and Maple street, fronting
on both. He owns his residence and two lots, on
the corner of Stewart avenue and Linden street.

ff D. Moody, liveryman at Big Rapids, was
ij born in Medina Co., Ohio, Feb. 25, 1844,
and is a son of Daniel and Sophia (Rogers)
.'j^P Moody. He was reared on a farm and
,,K came witli his parents to Grand Rapids in
1852. In 1856 his father bought 320 acres ol r,
land in Alpine Tp., Kent Co. Mr. Moody
enlisted, when 18 years of age, in tlie army, enrolling
Aug. 12, 1862, in Co. E, Second Mich. Cav., under
Capt. Nicholson. He went into the service as a pri-
vate, and during his period of enlistment passed the
various promotions to that of Sergeant He was in
the battles of Perryville, Carter's raid in East Ten-
nessee, Chickamauga, through the Georgia campaign
under Sherman, at Franklin, Nashville, Wilson's
cavalry raid, siege of Tuscaloosa, and was captured
by the rebels at Taladego. As the war was practi-
cally at an end, he was held but three days, and was
discharged from the service in June, 1865. His
father enlisted in the same regiment, and was killed
at his side by a cannon shot in a skirmish near Louis-
ville, Ky., Oct. I, r862. Mr. Moody returned to
Kent County at the close of the war, and engaged in
farming. In 1873 he abandoned agriculture and en-
gaged as traveling salesman for W. C. Dennison,
manufacturer and dealer in agricultural implements.
In December of the same year he came 10 Big Rap-

^Ki^

-^^^^^^ — ■^-K^:tlti:<^:i)n^>

#^f^>.i®'

(i^^s^tt'

-^i^^K — ?=rv<>Dii^nn^>^

"^^^svm

274

05
V

MECOSTA COUNTY.

ids and opened a livery barn, connecting there with
an omnibus line. He moved to his present location
in July, 1882, where he has as fine an establishment
as can be found in Northern Michigan. He keeps
about 40 horses, and connects sales and board with
his regular livery business. In June, 1883, he sold
out his omnibus line. On opening his business at
Big Rapids he was associated first with L. S. Scranton,
of Grand Rapids, this relation e.xisting until March 26,
1881, when John Moore was admitted to a partner-
ship. Mr. Moody bought his interest April i, 1883,
and is now operating alone. He sold his farm in
Kent County, in Feb., 1882. The building he occu-
pies is situated on a lot 115 feet face, by 160 feet
deep, connected with a lot in the rear, 150 x 150
feet, whereon is located- a barn. The building has a
fine brick front and makes a creditable appearance, at
the foot of Maple avenue. Mr. Moody owns his res-
idence and several vacant lots at various points in
the city.

He was married Dec. 25, 1865, to Izora, daughter
of John and Jane Cofl'ee, a native of Alpine T]!.,
Kent Co., born Nov. 27, 1847. Two children were
born of this marriage — Daniel B. and Geo. F., de-
ceased. The mother died at Big Rapids, Feb. 22,
1876. Mr. Moody was again married, in ."Mpine,
Sept. 20, 1878, to Viola Coffee, a sister of his first
wife, born in .Mpine and died Ian. 10, 1881, at Big
Rapids. Feb. 25, 1883, Mr, Moody was married to
Miss Elizabeth Currie.

""fli^i liristian Johnson, farmer, sec. 36, Wheat-

^^^t?"" land Tp., was born in Germany, Dec. 30,
Iffjj"'^ 1835- He is a son of Josepli and Rachel

made many improvements. He is in sympathy with
the Republican party and acts in accordance with
their principles. Mr. and Mrs. Johnson have had
nine children, viz : Sophia, born March 15, 1864;
Henry, Aug. r7, 1867 ; Christian, born in 1870, died
in early infancy; Lewis, March 14, 1872; Ida, born
Dec. 26, 1873, died June 23, 1874; Alice, Aug. 28,
1875; Otto, Jan. 30, 1876; Irwin, .Sept. 25, 1879;
Frankie, July 20, 1883. The family attend the Lu-
theran Church.

^4'^^ik, &rk Munn, farmer, sec. 23, Wheatland Tp.,
IJlE^kS is the son of Henry and Jane (Snyder)
J|l|:ijici-.;^ Munn, natives of Pennsylvania and of
4- n Scotch and German descent. He was born in

It) (Miller) Johnson, natives ot Germany, who
(>' came to the United States in 1839, and set-
tled in Jefferson Co., Wis. Mr. Johnson was
married June 25, i86r, to Rachel, daughter of Fred
and Laura (Boarland) Miller, natives of Germany,
who was born in Wittenburg, Germany, March 15,
1842. She came to Wisconsin with her mother when
she was 20 years of age, and there lived until her
marriage. Mr. and Mrs. Johnson remained in Jeffer-
son County until the fall of 1875, when they came
to Michigan. Mr. Johnson bought 80 acres of land
in the Township of Wheatland, on which he has

.ilijl Bradford Co., Pa., Sept. 12, 1857 ; received his
' ' education chiefly in the common schools of his
native county, and resided there until he was of age,
when he came to Michigan. In 1878, he settled in
the township of Millbrook, where he worked on dif-
ferent farms for two years. In 1880 he went to
Isabella County, and was employed on the farm of
William Broomfield. (See sketch.) He w.is married
Dec. 23, 1881, to Ida B., daughter of William and
Ellen (McLin) Broomfield. Mrs Munn was born in
Canada, March i, 1861. Her parents came to Isa-
bella County when she was an infant.

After marriage Mr. and Mrs. Munn located on a
farm in Wheatland Tp., containing 160 acres belong-
ing to Mr. Broomfield, which they are conducting
with prudence and profit. They have one child —
William H. — born Nov. 26, r882. Mr. Munn is a
Democrat.

(i,

g[F4™g"eonai'd Hyatt, farmer, sec. 26, Green Tp.,
tIIoI^ was born in Allegany Co., N. Y., Aug. 28,
Sii^^It 1829. His parents, James and Martha

(Smalley) Hyatt, were natives of the State of
'il^ New York, and located in 1832, near Lodi I

Washtenaw Co., Mich. »««

Mr. Hyatt grew to manhood in the manner ('^

common to the sons of farmers, being trained to ^^

honest, thrifty habits, and ac(iuiring a fair elementary (ij\

education at tlie district schools. He was married in ^

m^^^^

Dllr>

J^ et, ^'^t-l^<ftrro ■

»/®))«^#"

zJ& K O v C^'?B P'^ D n^>^r5 ^iU^^fcr

MECOSTA COUNTY.

1856 to Catherine Gallady, born May 23, 1839, in
Stark Co., Ohio. In 1858 he entered a claim of 80
acres of land, and proceeded vigorously with (lie
work of cultivation and improvement.

Children: Marion M., James E., Walter L., and
Martha 15. Ida May and Alice are deceased.

-M

•3;

I-

Ksiil.^atriek Erikson, of the firm of Erikson &
V%m'° Hoshn, proprietors of the Big Rapids City
atj.t^ Brewery, was born in Sweden, Feb. 14, 1848.
^®^ He is a son of Chistopher and Anna (Peterson)
[\, Erikson, and in his native country followed the
calling of a drover. He came to America in
1872, and proceeded at once to Big Rapids, where
he settled and commenced to work on the railroad ;
he afterward contracted to build grades. In 1873
he took a contract to lay the water pipes in the city,
^^ and in August of that year he opened a saloon near
T— r his present location. In 1875 he associated himself
^ with Fred. Hoehn and built a brewery, where from
° the outset they have done a prosperous business, and
^J contemplate an extension of their facilities. Mr.
S Erikson was married at Big Rai)ids, June 20, 1875,10
Anna Shaw, a native of Sweden. They have two
children, Nellie E. and Anna. Mr. Erikson was
elected member of the City Council in 1S77, and
filled the position four years. He operates to some
extent in real estate. We give Mr. Erikson's por-
trait upon the opposite page in this volume.

\^' i¥

ohn S. Evans, dealer in musical merchandise
'^■'S'J -■ ^' ^'S Kiipids, was born at Ale.xandria Cen-
* IV. '','i'L ter, Jefferson Co., N. Y., July 19, 1835. His
^p" [)arents, Columbus and Friendly (Fisher) Evans,
are still living in Jefferson County, aged respect-
ively 89 and 87 years. Both are natives of
New Hampshire and of Welsh ancestry. At
15, Mr. Evans left the farm to learn the trade of
carpenter, in which line of employment he was
chiefly occupied for five years. At the age of 27 he
enlisted as a soldier of the civil war, enrolling at his
native place, Aug. 6, 1862, in Co. F, Tenth N. Y.

Artillery, under Capt. J. S. Vanderberg. He entered
the service as a private, and during the period of his
enlistment was in 64 engagements; among them were
Winchester, Petersburg, Bermuda Hundred on the
James River, and at the capture of Richmond. In
the last he was, tln-ougliout the action, involved in
hand to hand en.'ounters with tlie rebels. His regi-
ment suffered severely in all the battles in which it
participated, necessitating frequent recruiting. Mr.
Evans had charge of one of these e.xpeditions. His
command was also engaged in the battles of the
Shenandoah, at Newmarket and Cedar Creek, under
Sherman, and was mustered out June 25, 1865, at
Petersburg, Va., after three years of almost unremit-
ted warfare. After the engagement at Winchester,
Mr. Evans was promoted to the rank of Second *■-
Lieutenant.

He returned to Jefferson County and entered the
employ of Butler & Co., hardware merchants, of
Utica, N. Y, as traveling salesman, acting in that
capacity two years. In the fal! of 1865 he settled at
Big Rapids and (omnicnced dealing in furniture.
He conducted tne business about four years, trafiick-
ing meanwhile in real estate to some extent. The
crash of 1873 produced considerable stringency in
his affairs, and shrinkage of values involved him in a \j^
loss of several thousand dollars. He sold his busi- ^
. ness in 1874 and began to read for the profession of (
law in the office of Frank Dumon. In 1877 he was
admitted to practice, o|iened an office at Big Rapids,
and, in connection witli his legal o[:)erations, trans-
acted the branch of professional business styled
"Soldiers' Additional Homesteads." In 1881 he
made an entire transfer of his projects and interests
and opened trade in pianos, organs and all varieties
of musical merchandise. He deals in the pianos of
Henry F. Miller, Harper, Chase, McPhail, Decker
Bros., and Mathushek, and is agent for the Ithaca,
New Era, Western and Chicago Cottage Organs, etc.
His business was small at first, averaging two musi-
cal instruments monthly, and at present (t883)
amounts to $30,000 annually. He has established a
liranch store at Muskegon, Reed City, Cadillac,
Manistee and Chase, and employs eight traveling
salesmen. For variety he sometimes engages in a

the pnifes sion as j4f

Mr. Evans was married March 4, 1858,10 Philinda

law case, l)ut in no sense follow
a business.

^^^

■^^^^'^ — ^T^^D n SDii^>^r^ — ^"^f^

-«i^^^fii.

278

-rerT<>Un^|lIlv>r"

MECOSTA COUNTY.

-t^^(<§>iii;

S., daughter of Parley and Submit Brown, of Alex-
andria, N. Y., a native of Orleans, Jefferson Co.,
same State. Her father was a Baptist clergyman
and an old resident of Jefferson County. George B.,
oldest son of Mr. and Mrs. Evans, is married and
engaged in real-estate brokerage, and is a resident at
St. Paul ; Corielle P., also married, is employed in
the counting room of J. C\ininier & Son, of Cadillai',
Mich.; Nora S., only daughter, is a popular teacher
in Mecosta County.

icesse Williams, farmer, sec. 23, Green Tp.,
S||C was born Sept. 9, 1836, and is a son of
rpS??4' Lyman and Lucinda (Boyden) Williams.
_40' His father died when he was but 12 years of
age, and when he was 16 his mother died.
\ From that time until manhood, his fate was
that of those who are left to the cold charities of the
world. He did the best he could for h.imself without
guidance or care. He obtained a fair educaton, and
was compelled to work most of the time to secure
himself from want. He was usually employed
as a farm assistant, and worked, as he found oppor-
tunity, at the carpenter's trade.

Mr. Williams was married in 1863 to Ruth E.,
daughter of Joseph L. and Johanna I. Dickeison.
In 1865 they became residents of Mecosta County,
Mr. Williams buying a claim of 80 acres of land, of
which 65 are in tillage.

Mr. and Mrs. Williams liave five cliildren : Ida I.,
L. D., Capitola, George and Clarence. Mr. Wil-
liams is a Democrat.

i[|^^^j'aron S. Clement, farmer, sec. 26, Wheat-

vas born in Cayuga Co., N. Y.

iSry. His parents, Jolm I), and

Jf land Tp..

>iim^

'4i& Betsey E. (I)ilch) Clement, were natives re-
fr spectively of New York and New Jersey, and
j died wlieii Aaron was but 14 years old.
Thrown thus early upon his own resources, his op-
(lortunities for education were limited, his energies
being directed cliielly to the labor which earned for
him the necessaries of his existence. He was indus-
trious and of good habits, and readily found work in

— ^^^r- — ^-^^m

the section where he was born until he had entered

tnan's estate. In tlic autumn of 1839 he came to St
Joseph Co., Mich., where he entered upon the career
of a farmer. He was married July 25, 1841, to
Sarah C, daughter of Isaac and Persis (Wayne) Wat-
kins, natives of Massachusetts, and soon after their
marriage went to Naples, Ontario Co., N. Y., where
the daughter was born Dec. 3, 1820. Mr. Clement
rented a farm in St. Joseph County for a period of 25
years, and in the fall of 1866 removed his family to
Wheatland Tp., Mecosta Co. They located on 160
acres of land, one-half of which has been placed un-
der good tillage.

Mr. Clement is a Republican, but not an aspirant
for official notoriety, having always persistently de-
clined election to any position. He is a member of
the Masonic fraternity. Children: Eliza Jane, born
Nov. 2, 1842, died April 11, 1843; Mary J., April 20,
1844; Amine P., July 29, 1846; Viralda M., Dec.
28, 1848; Sarah E., Jan. 5,
1862.

1852 ; Lyda R., July 8,

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' enjamin F. Powers, farmer on sec. 28,
Austiii Tp , w;is born near Montreal, May
'VfBV®'''^ 7, 1817. He is a son of William and
^Mg)=' Elizabeth (Cutter) Powers, natives of Ver-
di' mont, who were pioneers of Canada, remov-
I ing to the Dominion soon after their marriage.

Mr. Powers received a fair common-school educa-
tion, and at 20 years of age left h's native county
and went to London, Ont., where he was a farm
lalwrer until 1849. In tliat year he came to what is
now Newaygo Co., then unorganized. When its
municipal condition was made self-sustaining by or-
ganization according to law, Mr. Powers was one of
the organizing Board. When Mr. Powers first be-
came a resident of Croton Co. (now Newaygo) there
was no habitation nearer than 25 niiles. He exerted
all his energies and influence for the advantage and
and prosperity of the people. In 1S69 he removed
to Austin Tp., this county, and bought 80 acres oi
land, to which he has since added 40 acres, making
a farm of 120 acres, with 60 under good good culti-
vation, which places it among the foremost in the
county in point of beauty and value. Mr. Powers
was married Dec. i, 1840, to Martha D., daughter of

M^^>

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MECOSTA COUNTY.

Garrett and Vesta (Tousley) Sievens, born near Lon-
don, Out., Aug. 26, 1819. Her father was a native
of Germany, and mother, of Canada. Mr. and Mrs.
Powers have had 12 children, six boys and six girls.
Three sons and four daughters yet survive. Then-
births occurred in the following order: Iran C,
March 22, 1845; Elizabeth, April 17, 1847; Lucy
A., Jan: 20, 1849; Charlotte, Feb. i, 1851; Benja-
min F., July 19, 1853; Mary A., July 13, 1856;
Charles H., Oct. 14, 1S62. The following are de-
ceased: William, born Aug. 28, 1841, died Oct. 29,
i84r; an infant child was born and died Sept. 17,
1844; Caroline M., died eight days after birth;
Martha, born May 25, 1859, died July 29, 1S60.

'Hie family attend the M. F,. Church, and though
not members are adherents to the principles of the
society. Mr. Powers is a Republican, but has always
declined elective positions among his townsmen.

-<■ ■ : T^,'-m»^f» ■ : ■ ■»-

ienjamin Dalziel, farmer, on sec. 34, tlreen
i Tp., was born in Ionia Co., Mich., Jan. 28,
J 1 84 1. He is a son of Alexander and
^ Jane (Marsh) Dalziel, the former a native of
Scotland, and the latter of the State of New
York. Mr. Dalziel was reared on a farm and
trained to the pursuit of agriculture. He was edu-
cated in the common schools of Ionia County, and
there resided at home until he was nine years old,
at which time he moved with his father to Newaygo
County. At the age of 27 he came to this county,
and located on the farm he has since owned, now
containing 200 acres.

He was married in Newaygo Co., Mich., in 1866,
to Harriet Ellen, daughter of John and Minerva
(Parsons) Miller, a native of Newaygo County. Her
father was born in Vermont, and her mother in New
York. They have had three children: Jane Henri-
etta and Minerva : the latter is deceased.

~7^ oneca Horton, farmer, sec. 25, Wheatland
7\^^i^', - Tp., was born in Athens Co., Ohio, Sept.

28, 1821. His parents, Daniel M. and
Anna (Kimball) Horton, were born in New
York, of English and German descent, and
became residents of Ohio shortly after their
marriage. Mr. Horton received a common
school education, and at the age of 18 years went to

Tioga Co., Penn., where he bought 100 acres of land
and entered actively upon the career of an agricul-
turist. He remained five years, and in the autumn
of 1845 went to Middlebury, Tioga Co., Penn., and
managed a farm in tliat vicinity. In April, 1848, he
sought another locality, going to Steuben Co., N. Y.,
where he purchased 70 acres of land and lived a
year. He then returned to Tioga County, sold his
original farm and bought another in the same county,
wiiere he lived about 17 years. In the spring of
1 866 he bought 120 acres of land in native timber in
the township of Wheatland, where he has established
a permanent home. His farm now contains 58 acres,
with 50 acres under tillage.

Mr. Horton was married in Tioga Co., Penn., Sept.
14, 1843, to Catherine, daughter of Daniel and Cath-
erine (Wood) Buckbee, natives of New York and of
English extraction. She was born in Steuben County,
May I, 1828. Mr. and Mrs. Horton have three
children: Mary, born Nov. 23, 1844; Edward T.,
Nov. 19, 1846, and Daniel D., July 6, 185 1. The
parents gave them a good education, and have the
great satisfaction of knowing that all are in substan-
tial circumstances in life. Mr. Horton is a Republi-
can and has held responsible offices in his district
nine years. Himself and wife are influential mem-
bers of the M. E. Church.

*IN^-^^

||rW| yman Nethway, farmer on sec. 24, /Etna
^'ifiiOt Tp.,was born in Ontario Co., N. Y., Feb.

'•■ypi/^ 3, 1810. His father, James Nethway, was
~6la °^ English parentage, and his mother, Eliza-
"^t^ beth (Neice) Nethway, was a native of Long
\ Island, N. Y., and was of Welsh extraction.
Mr. Nethway received a good education in early
life for the purpose of becoming a teacher, and at 18
years of age taught his first term at Perry, Genesee
Co., N. Y. He came thence to Michigan, and taught
during the years 1833-4. He then returned to his
his home, and having married, himself and wife
turned their faces westward and came to Hillsdale
Co., Mich., where Mr. Nethway purchased a farm
under the original land patent of 1835. In 1850 he
went to Sauk Co., Wis., and there engaged three
years in farming. Becoming dissatisfied he came
back to Lenawee County, and settled at Rollin, in
1853. In 1854 he decided to try the Hawkeye State,

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280

MECOSTA COUNTY.

and bought a farm in Buchanan County, where he
remained eight years. In 1856 he returned to Mich-
igan and settled in Mecosta County. He has been
engaged during eleven years in mercantile business
in Morley, and upon closing his commercial affairs
bought a farm, and now lives in retirement.

Mr. Nethway was married Sept. 6, 1835, to Lu-
cetta, daughter of Jonathan and Mary (Wood) Ralph,
respectively of English and Welsh origin, and resi-
dents of \Voodstock, Windsor Co., Vt. Three chil-
dren were born of this marriage, as follows :
Marcellus T., born May 13, 1836: Cassius Maicus,
born Jan. 17, 1848, died in the army from injuries
received at tire battle of Bull's Gap, E. Tenn., April
22, 1865; was a soldier in Co. D, Third Michigan
Vol. Inf; Florence A., born in 1849, and died March
10, 1850.

Mr. Nethway is a radical Republican, and actively
engaged in all social and moral reforms. Himself
and wife profess no particular creed, but hold to their
innate belief that honesty and genuine morality
are safe guides in their intercourse with the world.

Mr. Nethway has held offices of trust in his town-
ship for 15 years. He was Postmaster at Big Creek
nearly three years, under Lincoln's administration,
and was Supervisor of Deerfield Tp. several years,
also Treasurer and Assessor several years.

j-ames Dalziel, farmer, on sees. 33 and 34,

^ Green Tp., was born in Westchester Co.,

N. Y., June 18, 1835. He is the eldest

son of Ale-xander and Jeannette (Patterson)
Dalziel, both of Scotch extraction. They
came to the United States in 1830, and soon
after settled in Oakland Co., Mich., where the
mother died, and the father sold his property, re-
moving to Detroit with his family.

Mr. Dalziel was then very young, and after re-
maining a year in Detroit went to Genesee County
with a man named Jonas Valentine. He remained
with him one year, and then became an inmate of
the family of Robert Staly, a pioneer of P'lint. He
was in Mr. Staly's charge five years, when he return-
ed to the protection of Mr. Valentine. Eighteen
months afterward his father came and took him to
Michigan. He went to Big Prairie, Newaygo County,

and there lived 12 years. His next remove was to
Green Tp.

Mr. Dalziel was married in April, 1858, to Jane
Currie, a native of Canada, and daughter of Peter and
Catherine (Sterling) Currie. Two of their four chil-
dren are living; W. H. and Catherine Jane. Mr.
Dalziel is a Republican in political faith ; has been
Supervisor three terms, and served three years as
Town Commissioner. He owns 195 acres of land in
Green Tp.

—5-

#-*

p^'^SJ? asard Bennett, farmer, sec. 20, Austin Tp.,
* l-i-^^^- ^^'^^ \>ox\\ in Essex Co., N. Y.j Oct. 22, 1837,
SlJit^ ■"* son of Isaac and Mary Bennett, who were
natives of France, and came early in their lives

to the United States, settling in New York.
Mr. Bennett commenced life as a common la-
borer, and found various avenues of employ-
ment for several years, finally becoming a trapper,
which pursuit he followed for some time. He then
engaged in lumbering, at wliich he worked until Oct.
12, 1861, tlie date of his enlistment in the Union
army. He enrolled in Company K, First Vermont
Cavalry, and his first active service was under Gen.
Kilpatrick, in the valley of the Shenandoah. He
was in the Sharpshooters" brigade until 1863, when
the regiment was transferred to the command of
Gen. Custer, with whom he remained until his dis-
charge Oct. 19, 1864. Mr. Bennett was in all the
[irincipal engagements of the Rappahannock and
Shenandoah. At the second battle of Bull Run
he received a saber wound through the leg, and at
the time of Lee's attempted retreat across the Po-
tomac at Hagt rstown, was sliot through the shoulder.
He was promoted to Corporal for bravery in action.

He came to Big Rapids, iSIich., in the spring of
1865, and again interested himself in the lumlier busi-
ness, which he pursued until 1869. In that year he
purchased the place where he now lives, and took
immediate possession, proceeding to clear away the
timber and otherwise make improvements; has now
42 acres under the plow and in good tillable condi-
tion. He also owns a half interest in 160 acres in
Mecosta Tp. He was married Sept. 30, 1866, to
Elizabeth, daughter of Charles and Mary Smith, who
was born in Ireland, April 10 18.19, '^'^d died Feb.
'9> '873> leaving three children, Charles H., born

•V.

^|)||;-^A-^ 255^^jri

MECOSTA COUNTY.

-^4^^^<®

281

March 9, 1879; Ernest J., Feb. 22, 1871; Elizabeth
M., Feb. 5, 1873. Mr. Bennett contracted a second
marriage April 9, 1874, with Margaret, daughter of
William and Lydia (Wample) Smith, born in Michi-
gan, July 2, 1855. They have two children: Emma
M., born Nov. 9, 1874, and Minard L, May 7, 187-.
Mr. Bennett is a radical Republican and has
held all the important township and school offices
until he declines farther duties.

A \

'T~T^

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iSi'^^,? arvey O. Williams, farmer, si'c. 29, Wheat-
^Ifill!'' ''"^'^'^ ''P'' ^^'^'' ^oxw in Knox Co., Ohio, Dec.
"'■"^ 17, 1842. His parents, Louis and Olive

(Owen) Williams, were of German descent and
natives respectively of Pennsylvania and ( )hio.
I In 1844 .they settled in Kosciusko Co., Ind.
Mr. Williams attained to man's estate in In-
diana, and was just past his majority when the notes
of civil war in the United States startled her loyal
sons to activity in behalf of her threatened integrity.
Mr. Williams enlisted Oct. 19, 1861, in Co. A, 12th
Ind. Inf , under Capt. T. G. Morrison, and was dis-
charged May ig, 1862. Less than two months
subsequently he re-enlisted, enrolling July 10, 1862,
in Co. F, in the same regiment to which he had pre-
viously belonged. Of the acknowledged prowess of
the " 1 2th Indiana," Mr. Williams was a part. His
record bears the undying names of Richmond (Ky.),
Vicksburg, Jackson (Miss.), Missionary Ridge, Res-
aca, Dallas, New Hope Church, Kenesaw Islountain,
Nickajack Creek, the repulse of Hood at Atlanta, on
July 20, 22 and 28, Jonesboro, Savannah, Gris-
woldsville, Columbia (S. C), Bentonville and Ra-
leigh. In these, as well as in the numberless minor
engagements in which he was an actor, he escaped
without injury, although his uniform frequently suffer-
ed from flying fragments of shell and spent shot. Mr.
Williams was discharged from the service at Washing-
ton, D. C, June 8, 1865.

Meanwhile his parents had settled in St. Joseph
Co., Mich., and he repaired thither, remaining an in-
mate of the parental home until the fall of 1S67,
when he came to Mecosta county, and resided about
one year with his father-in-law, in Wheatland
Tp. In 1868 he located on 80 acres of wild land,

where he has since resided and improved until he has
63 acres under the plow, and good farm buildings.
His residence, which was in every way suitable, was
destroyed by fire Aug. 13, 1883, and at this writing
is in the process of rebuilding, and will cost about
|!r,ooo.. Another considerable addition to the value
of the place is an orchard, containing 160 trees in
the best condition.

Mr, Williams was married Feb. 24, 1867, to Amine
P., daughter of Aaron S. and Sarah C. (Watkins)
Clement (see sketch). Four children have been born
of this marriage ; Frank A., born Feb. 13, 1868, died
July 16, 1868; Lettie O. Oct, 24, 1869; Siddie S.,
July 30, 1872; Warren T., June 15, 1879. Mr. Wil-
liams is a Republican and is a School Director in his
district. He is a member of the A. O. U. W., and
holds the office of Financier.

^j*i

saac W. Ferris, Justice of the Peace,

-j- Township Supervisor, and member of the

^sii^^ ^T^^DD

v^ l^^ T Council of Mecosta village, was born in
6lj Sherwood Tp., Branch Co., Michigan, Jan.
^\ 25, 1840, and is the son of John C. and Mary

A. (Watkins) Ferris.
. At the age of 23 years Mr. Ferris went to Placer
Co., California, and was engaged one year in farming;
thence he moved to Omega, Nevada Co., and be-
came a clerk in a grocery and provision store, where
he was engaged about eight months, and then re-
turned to St. Joseph County. He was there occu-
pied with agriculture five years, when he went to
Branch County and engaged in the same pursuit two
years. He went to Vergennes, Kent Co., and in
September, 1873, opened a grocery, which he kept
until 1878. He sold out, went back to St. Joseph
Co., and took an interest in the mercantile establish-
ment of his brother-in-law, S. J. Schutt, in Leonidas.
He sold out in the fall of 1878, and in the spring of
1879 went to Butler Co., Kansas, and, after a brief
stay at Eldorado, came, in August, 1879, to Mecosta
village, then comprising three houses, two saloons
and a grocery. He erected the building where he
operates, and owns 11 lots on Main street, on the
west side of the river; also 80 acres of land on
sec. 14 of Morton Tp. He was elected Justice of the
Peace in the spring of 1880, which post he has since

(

M ECO ST A COUNTY.

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held, and was elected Member of the Village Coun-
cil in the spring of 1883. In the spring of 18S1 he
was elected Township Treasurer. He is a charter
member of the A. O. U. W.

Mr. Ferris was married at Union City, Branch Co.,
Dec. 10, 1868, to Carrie, daughter of Leonard and
Thankful (Havens) AVilson, born in the Tp. of Naples,
Ontario Co., N. Y., Aug. 20, 1842. Of this marriage
two children have been born, as follows : Eva, in St.
Joseph Co., Nov. 17, 1869, and Georgia, in the same
place, Sept. 7, 1879.

" athan Denney, Postmaster and jeweler,
1^ Remus, was born in Jay Co., Ind., Nov. 25,
1849. His parents, James M. and Lois E.
(Scranton) Denney, were natives of NewEng-
\\\s land, the father of German and Irish lineage,
the mother of Welsh and Scotch. They settled
soon after their marriage, in the State of Indiana,
and in 1864 removed to this county. On reaching
the period of his majority Mr. Denney learned the
carpenter's trade, which he pursued up to the date of
his appointment to the office of Postmaster. \\"\X\\
his official duties he combines the business of a sil-
versmith, the details of which he learned when 16
years old.

Mr. Denney was married in Millbrook, Jan. 16,
1872, to Ella, daughter of David H. and Sarah (Al-
bert) Humphrey, born in Knox Co., Ohio, Oct.
26,1844. Her parents were natives respectively of
Virginia and Ohio. Mr. and Mrs. Denney have had
three children, one daughter and two sons, all of
whom died in infancy. Mr. Denney is a member of
the Order of Good Templars, and himself and wife
are members of the Church of Christ, in which he
occupies the position of Elder.

fwen Shantz, farmer, sec. 26, Wheatland
^si«^» Tp., was born in Ontario, Can., near the'
(£^r^ city of Guelph, Jan. 27, 1850. His parents,
Isaac Y. and Catherine (Clemence) Shantz,
were natives of Pennsylvania.

Mr. Shantz received a fair education in the
common schools of his native province, ancl

when 20 years old, Feb. 27, 1870, was married to
Sarah, daughter of George and Nancy Shoemaker,
natives of Pennsylvania and of German descent.
The year following his marriage, Mr. Shantz resided
with his father, moving upon a farm in the vicinity
at the expiration of that time. Meanwhile he came
to Mecosta County and bought the farm on which he
now resides, and where he located in 1880. Nearly
one half of tliis is now improved. Mr. Shantz is a
progressive farmer, and is making rapid progress in
putting his place into the best possible condition for
agricultural purposes. Although his residence in the
county has been brief, his persistent efforts to advance
its place and position have made known his value to
the community to which he belongs, and he is secur-
ing a firm hold upon the respect and consideration oi
all.

Mr. and Mrs. Shantz have five children, born as
follows: Addison M., May 22, 1871; Nancy, Feb.
22, 1873; Ellen, Jan. it, 1877; George, Nov. 2,
1879; Lizzie, Nov. 30, 1882. The parents are mem
bers of the old Mennonite Church. Mr. Shantz is a
Republican in politics, and is present Assessor, an of-
fice he has held for several terms.

||>i,harles W. Calkins, Clerk of Mecosta vil-
JK latre, and dealer in all kinds of furniture,
"^ coffins, caskets and undertakers goods.

^^ was born in Ypsilanti, Mich., May 15, 185 1.

''M His parents, Lorenzo and Lurena (Payne)

\ Calkins, removed to Ann Arbor when he was
1 1 years old, and he there had the advantages
of the schools of that place. They made another
transfer of their interests four years later, going to
London, Monroe Co. There his father was a farmer,
and also worked at his trade of carpenter and joiner.

When Mr. Calkins was 20 years old, he left school
and learned his father's trade, under his instructions.
He followed the business several years, coming to
Mecosta in the fall of 1879. He established himself
as a mechanic, and after working at his trade two
years, founded his present business. He keeps a
stock that includes all merchandise common to his
lines of trade, and is prospering. He became agent
for the American E.xpress Co. Dec. 16, 1881. On
the incorporation of Mecosta village he was elected.

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MECOSTA COUNTY.

283

Clerk of the Board. He served as Township Clerk a
part of the year 1881, in 1882 and 1883. Mr. Calk-
ins owns his store, fi.xtures, adjoining building and
lots.

He was married in London Tp., Monroe Co.,
April 8, 1875, to Lillie E., daughter of John and
Harriet Taft, a native of Adrian, Mich. Mr. and
Mrs. Calkins have one child — Mabel E. — born in
London, Monroe Co., Mich.

^l^^^rilliam Warren, farmer on sec. 22, Hmton
nLW'ii '^l'-' ^^'^^ \iox\-\ July 18, 1825, in Carroll
•avySJ'^ili? Co., Oliio. His father, Peter Warren, was
m^P '-''" English descent and birth, and both his
Wf^ parents were natives of Pennsylvania, whence
they moved to Ohio in its pioneer days. Lhe
father was a carpenter and cabinet-maker, and
followed both callings most of his life. The mother's
name before marriage was .\nn Guthrie. The school
privileges of Mr. Warren were limited, and at 17 he
commenced to learn the shoemaker's trade. He
worked under the instructions of his brother-in-law,
and continued to follow that vocation until 1861.
He opened a confectionery establishment in Augusta,
Ohio, which was finally e.xtended into a general store.
This he managed nearly si-x years and accumulated
$3,500, which he lost in financial disaster. In April,
1867, he came with his family to Mecosta Co., Mich.,
and bought 80 acres of partly improved land in
Hinton Tp., where he now resides. Li politics Mr.
Warren is independent. He has held the office of
Supervisor of Hinton Tp. four years, Townsliip
Treasurer three terms, and School Director ten suc-
cessive years. The years of his labor have their
reward in the fine farm and convenient buildings
thereon.

He was married in Augusta, Carroll Co., Ohio,
Sept. 9, 1849, to Jane, daughter of John and Han-
nah (Shaw) Harrington. Her parents were natives of
Pennsylvania, and went to Carroll Co., Ohio, where
their daughter Jane was born Nov. 14, 1827. Mr.
and Mrs. Warren have had three children : John J.,
born in Augusta, Carroll Co., Ohio, May 8, r853, is
the only one surviving. He was married May 8,
1878, in this county, to Delia A. House, daughter of
Elias and Mary D. (Walrath) House, and they have

->-5-«g^ — o<^>!(((|)H«>o — S=— ;-<-

t f, - 2

two children; Ethel M. born Nov. 20, 1S80, and
Alice M., born March 9, 1883. Samantha A. was %\
born Nov. 22, 1850, and died Aug. 26, 1851; Mary
E. was boin Jan. 10, 1863, and died Nov. 25, 1876.
Mrs. Warren belongs to the Advent Church.

ominick O'Brien, member of the Council
of Mecosta village, and proprietor of the
Mecosta House, was born Dec. 26,1853,
at New Castle, County Limerick, Ireland, and
is the son of Dorr and Mary (Cofifin) O'Brien.
His father died when he was nine years old,
and he was reared on the firm by his mother
until he was 17 years old, when he left the Emerald
Isle and came to New York, making the passage on
the British steamer " Manhattan." He landed June
10, 1S69, and was a resident of New York about one
year, then came to Saginaw, where he engaged in
lumbering for a period of four years, working a
portion of the time on a section of the Chicago, Sagi^
naw & Canada Railroad, and was also engaged firing
on a locomotive for some time.

He came to Mecosta village, July 12, 1879, and
built a saloon on Main street. May i, i88r, he pur-
chased the Mecosta House, which he still owns and
manages. The building is 40 x 80 feet on the ground,
three-stories high, and with accommodations for 50
guests. The saloon conducted in connection with
the hotel is well fitted up, and stocked with choice
articles common to similar establishments. Besides
these buildings, Mr. O'Brien owns three lots in con-
nection with them, and 'two lots with barns on James
street. He transacts an annual business of $12,000,
Mr. O'Brien was married to Maggie, daughter of
Michael Dittell. They have one child, Johnny.

homas Cahill, farmer, sec. 15, yEtna Tp.,
was born in Canada, July 8, 1834. His
parents, James and Catherine (Lebo) Ca-
^a'J^ hill, were natives respectively of Ireland and
Canada; they passed the greater port of their
lives in Canada and there died. Mr. Cahill
spent his early life after the manner of farmers' sons,
and at 16 was apprenticed to learn the business of a
butcher. He devoted four years to the accomplish-

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MECOSTA COUNTY.

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ment of his purpose, and the succeeding four years
was occupied in buying stock and speculating. He
then located at Ypsilanti, Washtenaw Co., Mich.,
and worked at his trade two years, resigning his bus-
iness to enroll as a soldier in the Union cause. He
enlisted in 1861, in the 24th Mich. Vol. Inf., and
after six months service received honorable discharge.
He went at once to Sa,L;inaw, where he found employ-
ment as a lumberman about two years, and in the
fall of 1863, came to this county and passed three
years in the pineries. In 1866 he purchased 80 acres
of timber land and proceeded to put it in a habitable
condition. He built a house and cleared 70 acres.
A later purchase of 200 acres has swelled his real
estate to 280, acres where he is earnestly engaged in
the prosecution of agricultural pursuits.

He was married in Canada, Sept. 14, i860, to
Eliza, daughter of Samuel and Elizabeth (Wright)
Houghton. Of this marriage one child was born,
— Katie, March 14, 1861. The mother died at
Ypsilanti, Mich., in September, 1861, and Mr.
Cahill was again married, at Detroit, Mich., Oct. 9,
1864, to Mary E., daughter of Thomas and Mary
(Mitchell) Lovesy and widow of Ephraim G. Tucker,
who lost his life in the war of the Rebellion. Her
father is an Englishman by birth and is yet living in
this county, her mother was a native of New York
and died in 1870.

Mr. Cahill is a Democrat and has held theofficeof
Supervisor four years. Town Clerk one year, and has
occuiiied other important town and school offices.

--g ^'WV;

oseph A. Armstrong, farmer, sec. 20,
i Millbrook Tp., is a son of Isaac and Lu-
FeF*!' cinda (Hiney) Armstrong, natives respect-
fy ively of New York and Pennsylvania. Mr.
Armstrong was born in the Keystone State,
July 28, 1847. His mother died when he was
very young, and for two years subseipiently he was
cared for by a friend of his parents. In the fall of
1861, when but 14 years of age, he resolved to be-
come a soldier, and enlisted in defense of the Union
in the 51st Pa. Vol Inf, Co. H. He served three
years, and was in action at the siege of Richmond,
I® at Fredericksburg, and in the battle of the Wilder-
^ ness. He received a wound in his right arm in the

fight at Fredericksburg, and was incapacitated for
duty three months. He received his discharge at
Washington, 1). C, and returned to Pennsylvania,
where he continued to reside until the fall of 187 i,
when he came to Millbrook, and bought r6o acres of
land. He now owns iio acres, under partial im-
provement.

Mr. Armstrong was married in Millbrook, Sept. 22,
1872, to Johanna, daughter of Thomas and Mary A.
(Johnson) Histed, who was born in Bay Co., Mich.,
June 27, 1S53.

Children : Myrtle M , Nora A., Sarah J., Joseph
N. and Gertrude B. In political sentiment and ac-
tion Mr. Armstrong is a Republican; has served one
year as Constable, and three years as School
Director.

■"MSfi^

dward Langworthy, farmer, sec. 25,
V- ,^^....11 1. Green Tp., was born in Saratoga Co., N.
fe'j'-g^ Y., March 5, 1825. His parents, Elisha
^s^ and Elizabeth (Guile) Langworthy, were na-
X tives of Columbia Co , N. Y. The father was
a mechanic and followed his occupation until
1843, when he came to Michigan and located
80 acres of land in Lapeer County, where he farmed
until his death, which occured April 25, 1845. The
mother died March 4, 1874, in the township of Grant,
Mecosta Co.

Mr. Langworthy was 17 years old when he accom-
panied his parents to Michigan, and until he reached
man's estate, gave his father all the assistance in his
power, during the "seed time and harvest" seasons,
attending school winters. Soon after attaining his
majority be became a farmer on his own account and
owned 120 acres of land in Lapeer County, where he
was a resident about 25 years. He sold his place
and went to Genesee Co., Mich., and settled near
Flint. Six years after, in the spring of 1875, he bought
the i)roperty he now owns in Green Tp., consisting
of 80 acres of land, which he has put under good
improvements. He is an adherent of the Republi-
can party; was elected Justice of the Peace in 1877,
and has held the office continuously since. His posi-
tion in the community is one of credit to himself as a
man and citizen.

Mr. Langworthy was married Dec. 25, 1865, to
Maria Perkins, a native of Canada, born Jan. 31,

"^My^-^ — ^^^^ ^

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I I

MECOSTA COUNTY.

287

1828. They have six children; Willard E., Albert
H., Harvey J., Minerva, Susan and Ophelia. Anian-
'^ip' da and Charles are deceased. The parents are mem-
bers of theM. E. Church, at Big Rapids.

'Ij^Ml'f oiiglas Roben, of the lirra of Roben, Ben-

uFf nett & Gill, insurance, real-estate, and loan

luvp"^^ agents, of Big Rapids, was born May 4,
•^^^ 1S47, near Mount Gilead, Ohio; he is a son
'" of Matthew and Esther (Albach) Roben, a grand-

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son of Walter Roben, Esci., of Ryegate, Vt., and
a great-grandson of Matthew Roben, of Ren-
frew, Scotland, a gentleman of means and influence,
who was one of the chief founders and early pioneers
of the Scotch colony in Caledonia Co., Vt. On his
father's side, Mr. Roben is descended from an excel-
lent Scotch stock, whose line of descent is traced
i» back several hundred years, and is allied to various
^ Lowland families of distinction.
S His maternal grandfather was John Albach (or
^ AUpaugh, as the name was formerly and more cor-
° rectly spelled), a prominent and wealthy citizen -of
^ Northumberland Co., Penn., who was of good Hol-
S land Dutch ancestry. His father, Matthew Roben,
was a native of Ryegate, Caledonia Co., Vt., a teacher,
and after- ward a merchant by occupation. (See
sketch of Matthew Roben.)

Mr. Douglas Roben, the subject of this sketch, ob-
tained a good education in the public and high
schools of Mount Gilead, and at 15 received an ap-
pointment to the U. S. Naval Academy, then located at
Newport, R. I., and passing the initiatory examina-
tion, entered upon his academic course as midship-
man in 1862. In 1863, his class (126 in number) was
dispatched to the East Atlantic on a practice cruise,
stopping at various ports of England, France, Spain,
Portugal, and the Madeira Islands, sailing from the
latter place to New York. Several other practice
cruises were made on the coasts of the United States,
during the course of studies at the Academy. Mr.
Roben was distinguished while at the Naval
Academy for proficiency in matheiiiatical studies,
and graduated high in his class, in 1866, at Annapo-
lis, Md.

Soon after graduation he was ordered to join the
U. S. steamer " Ossipee," then at Philadeliihia, for

duty on the Pacific station. The " Ossipee " left the
United States in November, 1866, crossed the At-
lantic to the Madeira Isles, and after a brief visit
there went south to the Cape de Verdes, thence to
Rio Janeiro, and finally through the Straits of Magel-
lan to the Pacific Ocean. After a visit to various
ports in Chili, Peru, and the Isthmus of Panama, the
" Ossipee " reported at San Francisco, in August,
1867. Soon after arriving on the station, the "Ossi-
pee " was ordered to convey the U. S. and Russian
Commissioners to Alaska, that territory having recent-
ly been purchased by our Government.

Mr. Roben was a participant in the ceremonies of
transfer, tlie hauling down of the Russian flag from
the Governor's palace, the hoisting of the stars and
stripes, and the firing of the international salutes.
His name appears as a witness on the deed of trans-
fer of the Territory, executed and delivered at Sitka,
whereby Alaska became part and parcel of the
United States. The "Ossipee" returned with the
State papers to San Francisco, encountering a terrific
storm a short distance out from Sitka. She was then
ordered to the South, to visit all ports on the Pacific
coast of Mexico and Central America. This she pro-
ceeded to do, calling at each important harljor in
succession, till she reached the southernmost port of

Costa Rica.
. Returning north to Nicaragua, the yellow fever
broke out on board the " Ossipee," and a number of
men and officers died of the disease, Mr. Roben
fortunately escaping the contagion. The ship pro-
ceeded to Acapulco, in Mexico, on her way to San
Francisco. At Acapulco, Mr. Roben received the
news of his promotion to the grade of Ensign, together
with orders to proceed south by mail steamer to
Panama, and there to join the U. S. ship " Cyane '.
(originally a British vessel, and captured by the
"Constitution" in the war of 181 2). During Mr.
Roben's service on board the "Cyane," she was the
greater part of the time stationed at Panama, to ob-
serve the progress of a rebellion then existing in the
United States of Colombia, and to guard the interests
of our countrymen on the Isthmus.

Returning to San Francisco in the " Cyane " a few
months later, Mr. Roben received his second commis-
sion as Master in the Navy, together with three
months' leave of absence.

The Union and Central Pacific Roads having just
been completed, he crossed the continent by rail.

<>llll>:lll]>>

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MECOSTA COUNTY.

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At the exi>iration of liis leave he was ordered to
join the U. S. ship " Supply," at Boston, in the
capacity of Navigator. The " Supply " went to Eu-
rope for the purpose of establishing a U. S. naval
storehouse and depot at Spezzia, Italy ; but on arrival
there, diplomatic difficulties were found to be in the
way, and the depot was finally placed at Nice, France,
where it still remains. The expedition occupied
nearly a year, including time spent in various other
Mediterranean ports, and Mr. Roben received his
third commission as Lieutenant while in Europe,
dating March, 1870, he being then only 22 years of
age.

After arriving at home he was ordered to join the
U. S. steamer " Severn," fiag-sliip of the North
Atlantic Scjuadron; but a serious difficulty having
developed itself in Mr. Rol>en's eyes, during the
last cruise, arising from the use of astronomical
instruments in taking .solar observations, he re-
quested to be assigned to duty on shore, and
was accordingly ordered to the naval station at
Mound City, 111., as executive officer, where he re-
mained four months. He was then ordered to join
tiie U. S. steamer " Shawmut," at New York, for a
cruise in the South Atlantic. When the vessel reach-
ed the West Indies, the trouble in Mr. Roben's eyes
having become much worse, he was granted " sick-
leave," and brought by the "Shawmut " to Pensacola,
Fla., where he landed and proceeded home to Ohio.
In the month of November, 1872, he was summoned
before the Retiring Board at Washington, and after an
examination of his eyes by the medical officers of
that Board, he was placed upon the retired list,
with the rank of Lieutenant, for " disability received
in the line of duty," which position upon the retired
list he holds at the present time.

From Washington he went to Cassopolis, Cass Co.,
Mich., where he resided until May, 1S73. While at
Cassopolis he passed a successfid examination for
admission to the bar, and was admitted to practice in
the State courts of Michigan. In May, 1873, he
came to Big Rajjids, and opened his office, practicing
as s.\\ attorney, and giving his attention chiefly to
real-estate cases. In 1876 he formed a partnership
with E. J. Marsh, under the firm name of Roben &
Marsh. This relation continued two years, and in
Angust, 1S7S, he associated himself with A. W. Ben-
nett, in insurance, real-estate, and loan business.

(.See sketch of A. W. Bennett.) In June, 1883, John
G. Gill was admitted to the concern, which since
its inception has been transacting a successful and
extending business.

Dec. 26, 1876, Mr. Roben was married to Stella,
daughter of Judge William P. Bennett, of Cassopolis,
and a grand-daughter of Rev. Cephas Bennett, a
pioneer Baptist missionary at Rangoon, British Bur-
mah, who has done missionary work there for the
past 55 years, and has charge of the Baptist mission-
ary press of Burmah ; she is also a great-grand-
daughter of Rev. Alfred Bennett, one of the early and
leading Baptist ministers of New York State. She
was born in Cass Co., Mich., March 31, 1859. A
son, Donald B., was born to Mr. and Mrs. Roben,
July 19, 1878; a daughter, named Pansie — an
exceedingly sweet and beautiful child — was born
May 10, 1882, and died March 26, 1883.

Mr. Roben is a member of the Masonic fra-
ternity.

^elkirk A Stewart, fanner, sec. 14, Wheat-
land Tp., is a son of Neil and Angeline
||5^^ (Baker) Stewart, natives of New York, and
of Scotch and Irish descent. He was born
in Genesee County, N Y., Sept. 14, 1826. He
commenced a life of active toil at the age of 1 1
years, leaving the homestead of his [tarents
and engaging in the capacity of a farm laborer. He
continued to work in various localities, nntil the
spring of 1844, when he went to Waukesha Co., Wis.,
and there engaged in agricnlture in a similar manner
until his marriage, Nov. 5, 185 r, in Waukesha County,
to Angeline H., daughter of Isaac and Jerusha (Esta-
luooks) Wood, who was born in Genesee Co., N. Y.,
Dec. 5, 1832, and went to Wisconsin with her parents
when she was eight years old. The latter were
natives of the Empire State. Mr. Stewart took
farms on shares, until the fall of 1862, when he re-
moved with his family to Michigan, and purchased
240 acres of land on sec. 26, Wheatland Tp. He
made considerable progress in improving his land,
but sold it finally, and bought the homestead, con-
sisting of 160 acres, where he has since resided.
.Seventy-five acres of this he has improved, and has
one of the best of farms as to quality of the land, etc.,
in Mecosta County. It is traversed by a stream of
flowing water, fed by living springs. Mr. Stewart is

^>')5^€^-

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MECOSTA COUNTY.

289

making preparations to build a new house, and ex-
pects to invest about $1,000 therein. He is a Re-
publican in political faith ; has been Township
Treasurer three years, Justice of the Peace three
^ years, and held other minor offices.

Mr. and Mrs. Stewart have been the parents of
four children — Clara A., born Feb. 2, 1853; Cora E.,
July 31, 1855 ; Mary F., born July 28, i860, died
Feb. 31, 1874; Ida A., born Oct. 31, 1S66, died Oct.
7, 1879; Edward H. (son by adoption) was born
Aug. 2, 1869, and died Sent. 14, 1879.

.fiif' Idlil eorge W. Precious, Millbrook village,

vas lx)rn in Canada, Aug. 27, 1850. His

■^i^'"^ parents, William and Eve R. (Jones)

^ %,^ Precious, -were natives respectively of Eng-
;i; land and Germany, and are both deceased,
'f About 1863 Mr. Precious came to this State
and located in Washtenaw County, going afterward to
Detioit. He came to Stanton, Montcalm Co., Mich.,
in 1872, where he lived until 1S79. In the summer
of that year he made his entry into the village of
Millbrook, and embarked in the livery business,
which he continued to operate until May, 1883, when
he sold out and established himself in a saloon.

He was married April 22, 1874, to Laura A.,
daughter of Oriin N. and A, Jane Hoisington. Her
parents were natives of Michigan, and she was born
Oct. 7, 1859, in Montcalm County. Of two children
born of this marriage but one survives, Cora A.,
born Seit. 7, 1882. One child died in infancy. Mr.
Precious is a Democrat.

^[^^1 phraim ]ja Grange, liveryman at Me-
^l^S'S** '^°^''^' Morton Tp., was born in Albany Co.,

mr.

Nov. I, 1853, and is a son of

^^ Christopher and Jane (Blessing) La Grange.
About the age of 13 he began to drive stage in
the State of New York, and made that his
business for about 22 years. In April, 1S73, he
came to Stanton, Montcalm Co.. and there engaged
in the livery business one year, and afterward ran an
omnibus line, transporting mail and express matter,
and passengers. This he continued two years, and

^m^ ^"^€^«^^ — ^y^m

then engaged in drawing lumber. In 1879 he came
to Morton Tp., and cut the timber on the site of the
village of Mecosta, and put it into the mill of
George Webber. He built the Mecosta House, which
he managed two years, and finally exchanged with
I). O'lSrien for his residence and the adjoining store
building. Immediately upon his arrival here he
established the livery business, and has continued it
since. He added the drug trade to his store for six
months, but sold the stock, and is now exclusively
attending to his affairs as liveryman. He has usual-
ly eight horses in his stables, with all necessary livery
adjuncts. He is Street Commissioner, and belongs to
the A. O. U. W.

Mr. La Grange was married in Schoharie Co., N.Y.,
to Mary Townsend, a native of New York. Rufus,
elder child, is now clerk in the Mecosta House.
Mary L.. only daughter, is the wife of Henry Wal-
ler, M. D., of Mecosta.

■^^jI enry C. Evarts, farmer on sec. 28, Green
II '^"P' ^^'^s '"^"'" ''^ Monroe Co., N. Y., Feb.
19, 1833. His father Shadrach Evarts, was
yK' born near Saratoga, N. Y. ; was a farmer l)y vo-
i cation, and in 1845 came to Grand Rapids and
I there engaged in agriculture. He is yet living
in the care of his daughter, Mrs. C. H. Patten. The
mother, Eunice (Plumb) Evarts, was a native of Con-
necticut, and died in November, 1879. Mr. Evarts
was educated in the common and high schools
of Grand Rapids, residing with the family of Porter
Reed until he reached man's estate, after which he
engaged in summer in the vocation of a farm laborer
and taught school two winters. He came to Big
Rapids in June, 1856, and entered 160 acres of land
under the gradation act, and in March, 1858, began
to build, and otherwise imjirove the land on which he
has since made his home.

He enlisted as a soldier for the Union soon after
the outbreak of the rebellion. He was enrolled in the
Tliird Michigan Cavalry Oct. 12, 1861, remaining in
the service four and a half years. He was in action
at Corinth, luka, New Madrid, etc. He obtained
the commission of Second Lieutenant, for meritorious
services, and nine months later was promoted to the
rank of First Lieutenant, serving until the end of the

> 29°

vC^on^iin^^r

->#&^«sr

^m(s\^

MECOSTA COUNTY.

war, in the Fourth U. S. C. C. Cavalry, stationed at
Port Hudson, and was mustered out at New Orleans.
He came liack to his farm and has since personally
supervised the same. He is a Republican and has
held the posts of Town Clerk and School Inspector.
Mr. Evarts was married Jan. i, 1858, to Martha J.
Boyntoii, a native of Jackson Co., Mich., born March
4, 1833, and died June 26, 1867, leaving one child,
Mary L. Aug. 28, 1867, Mr. Evarts was married to
Hannah A., daughter of Jeremiah and Mary Boyn-
ton, natives of Vermont. She was born in Grass
Lake, Jackson Co., Mich., June 8, 1843; the follow-
ing are their children : Edgar C, Lizzie B., George C,
and Willie H.

^■«HlJH'^$s

Blanchavd, of the firm of P. G.
Blanchard & Son, dealers in lumber and
'^^ brick, Blanchard, Isabella Co., Mich , is the
son of Philip G. and Caroline M. (Touns)
Blanchard, and was born in Pennsylvania,
I April 30, 1856. The parents are natives of
Maine, and early in life settled in Michigan.
Mr. Blanchard came to Michigan in the fall of 1872,
and located at Grand Rapids, remaining there
nearly three years. In the spring of 1S76 he came
to Blanchard, where he has since been a citizen. He
is a Rei)ublican in politics, and has served in the
capacity of Treasurer of the village three years, and
Supervisor one year.

He was married in Grand Rapids, May 13, 1880,
to Nora, daughter of John and Johanna Condon.
Mr. and Mrs. Blanchard have two children — Belle
and Edith.

If ranklin M. Williams, hotel proprietor.

lip Remus, was born in Kno.x Co., Ohio, Nov.
Bs^'-'}^ 27, 1843. His parents removed to Kos-

ciusko Co , Ind., the year following his liirth.

ii-

w^ He received his education there and resided
with his parents until he waS 18 years old, at
which time he enlisted as a soldier for the Union in
the I 2th Ind. Vol. Inf., enrolling in Co. F. His com-
mand was attached to the Army of the 'I'ennessee
and was under fire in 28 engagements, among which
were the battles of Richmond, Ky., Missionary Ridge,
Jackson, Miss., and the fight at Atlanta. Thiough-
out his entire period of service he escaped all

wounds and casualties. After three years of hard
fighting he was discharged at Indianapolis, June 20,
1865. During the war his parents had removed to
St. Joseph Co., Mich., where he rejoined them and
resided two years. In the spring of 1866 he went to
Missouri, where he passed a summer, returning at its
close to his parents' home. In March, 1867, he
came to Wheatland Tp., and passed two years in
farming in the vicinity of Bloorafield. He purchased
80 acres of land in sec. 26, preparatory to the es-
tal)lishment of a home. March 4, i86g, he was mar-
ried to Elizabeth, daughter of David and Mary
(Smith) Ru.xton, who was born in Waterloo, Can.,
Feb. 17, 1847. Her father was a native of Scotland
and her mother of Pennsylvania, of German descent.
Elizabeth was educated in the Dominion, and was
for several years a teacher in the common schools of
Michigan. Mr. and Mrs. Williams have two chil-
dren ; Ralph, born Aug 4, 1876, and Maud M., Aug.
18, 1878. Mr. Williams is a radical Republican and
has been .Supervisor five years, Tp. Clerk several
terms and held other minor offices.

The hotel kept by Mr. Williams at Remus is one
of the best country establishments for public en-
tertainment in Northern Michigan. Its cost was
about $3,000. The house is well furnished and has
a good run of custom, which is constantly increasing.
Mr. Williams took |possession of the hotel in Jan.,
1882.

Ej^;;-^.!*.^

^^fVjf^^v harles W. Clifton, farmer on sec. 3 1 , Green
pilVj Englishman by nativity, and came to this

was born at Cleveland, Ohio, Feb. 10,
1838. His father, William Clifton, was an

\^ country wlien about 22 years old; located at

Cleveland and married Abigail Locke ; re
sided on a farm near the city during eight years, and
in October 1845, came to Kent Co., Mich., and set-
tled on a farm. He was crushed to death K\)x\\ 10,
1848, by a falling building. The mother died at
Clinton, Lawrence Co., Dec. 28, 1882.

Mr. Clifton obtained his education at the public
and high schools of Grand Rapids. He was trained
to the pursuit of agriculture, but in 1861, when the
country was plunged into the abyss of war by the in-
sane South, he became a soldier. He enlisted in the
First Michigan Regiment of the Engineers and Me-

J-^

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T<?OIl^;illl^>r

MECOSTA COUNTY.

->^<sr

-«s^

291

chanics, and served three years. He participated in
several engagements, and was mustered out at Nash-
ville, Tenn. On his return North he came to Mecosta
Co. and spent 10 months in the employ of T. Lazell,
of Big Rapids. He then became a resident at
Grand Rapids, where he was married, Oct. 2, 1866,
to Julia E. Sunderland, daugliter of Myron and
Louisa (Searles) Sunderland, a native of Kent Co.
Mr. Clifton was a fanner near Grand Rapids two
years, and then bought 160 acres of land in Green
Tp,, where he has since resided. The family in-
cludes six children : Frank S., Effie L., George M.,
Grace, Lois and Charles E.

ilbert S. Palmer, farmer, sec. 14, Green
Tp., was born Feb. 8, 1821, and is a son of

^i^ ''^ Nile and Catherine (Wing) Palmer, the
former a native of Vermont, and the latter of

j; Elizabethtown, Canada. Mr. Palmer was

\ reared on a farm, and, when 16 years of age,
went to Elizabethtown to learn the shoemaker's trade,
which was his business in life for many years. He
was a resident of the Dominion until the spring of
1867, when he became a citizen of Mecosta County,
buying 80 acres of land, which he has increased to 120
acres.

He was married in 1842 to Mary, daughter of
William and Lydia (Lee) Robbins, who was born in
Canada and died in July, 1S47, leaving one child,
Anna E., wife of Walter Clow, residing in Linn, Can-
ada. For a second wife, Mr. Palmer married Me-
lissa, daughter of Reuben and Hannah (Graham)
Moot. She and her parents are natives of the Do-
minion. Mr. and Mrs. Palmer have si.K children,
Mary A., Cimrlotte O.. Hannah P., George M., Wil-
liam H. and Nile E.

^^^f-^^-^/v^

(^l^^lp illiam Davidson, farmer on sec. 12,

i.Wlf!' .Etna Tp., was born in England, July 16,

1830. His parents, Joshua and Sarah

Davidson, were also natives of England, and
emigrated to Canada about the year 1842,
and remained there until their death. Mr-
Davidson resided in the Dominion until he was 2x

years of age, when he came to Newaygo County, and
three years later bought 135 acres of land in Mont-
calm County, on which he lived 12 years. In the
fall of 1 87 I he came to .^tna Tp. and bought 160
acres of unimproved land, where he settled and be-
gan to make improvements. He sold 40 acres, and
retains 120 acres of his original purchase, with 70
acres under advanced culture, having in late years
built a good frame house in which he now lives.
Mr. Davidson is a Democrat and has been School
Treasurer 12 years.

He was married in Canada in the fall of iS5i,to
Mary, daughter of Ember and Valina (Smith) Smith,
natives of Vermont : the father is deceased, and the
mother resides with a daughter in Deerfield Tp.
Mr. and Mrs. Davidson have had 10 children:
Aln-aham, born Aug. i8, 1852; William, Sept. i,
1854; Joshua, Aug. 18, 1853; Chauncey, Oct. i8,
i860; Henry, Dec. 9, 1863; Elmer, June 18, 1866;
Mary, Sept. 8, 1868; Jehu, Aug, 8, 1870; Alonzo,
born Oct. 18, 1858, died July i, 1880. One child
died in infancy. It was supposed that Alonzo died
from the effects of poison.

V V

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f^'iehard Vandewater, farmer, sec. 22, Hin-
ton Tp., is a son of Peter and Catherine
^. (Rutan) Vandewater, natives of New Jer-
sey and of Holland descent. They were pio-
J"^ neers of Washtenaw County and afterward
removed to Barry County, where the mother
died. The father lives in Adrian, with a
daughter. Mr. Vandewater was born in New Jersey,
Dec. 19, 1821, and accompanied his parents to
Michigan. They were in limited circumstances and
the son felt it his duty to contribute to the relief
of the household. He did this many years, even
after he was legally released from obligation,
was married in Hillsdale Co., Mich., Feb. 28,

1847, to Nancy Jane Fuller, who died in June,

1848, leaving one child, George W., born June
28, 1848. Mr. Vandewater was again married
in 1850, to Elvira J. Heath, a native of the State
of New York, Of this marriage one child was
born, Catherine E., who died when about two years
old. The mother died, and Mr. Vandewater was
again married May 28, 1864, to Esther A., daughter

( „
A

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7<^>nii^iiii^>

292

MECOSTA COUNTY.

#^((®vii

of David and Sarah Ann (Bennett) Moulter, who was
born March 31, 1844, in Chemung Co., N. Y. Of
this marriage were born Peter E., April 6, 1.S65;
Sarah E., Nov. 25, 1869; Elvira J., March 2, 1877.

In August, 1863, Mr. Vandewater was drafted to
serve during the war. He served nineteen and one-
half months, was honorably discharged Feb. 12,
1866, at Newberry, N. C. He was assigned to the
23d Mich. Vol. Inf., and was afterward transferred
to the 28th Mich. Inf. In justice to Mr. Vandewater
it should be said tlial he was prevented from enlist-
ing by the smallness of the number of settlers in the
township and his feeling that he was needed at home.
He was in the battle of Franklin, Tcnn., and when
Hood was captured his regiment pursued the rebel
general until his surrender.

Mr. Vandewater originally purchased 40 acres of
wild land, and later on, another 40. He has now 33
acres cleared and under tillage. In the spring of
1883 he sold 40 acres. Both himself and wife are
members of the Second-Advent Church. Mr. V.
was one of the earliest settlers and circulated the peti-
tion for the division of the four townships: Hinton,
Deerfield, Millbrook and /Etna. On the organization
of Hinton Tp., in January, i860, he was elected first
Supervisor. He has sincG,held various offices, among
them that of School Treasurer, to which position he
has been three times elected and of which he is the
present incumbent. In politics he is independent.

^ohn R. Snyder, farmer on sec. 32, Green
k Tp., was l)orn in Barton Tp., Canada, July
'■'i' 27, 1836. His father, Abraham Snyder,
i,,0' was born in Maryland, and was of German de-
'W scent. He went to Canada and followed agri-
i culture for a livelihood. He married Mary
Rammage and died in 1876. His wife died in 1861.
Mr. J. R. Snyder resided in Canada until he was 19
years old, then came to Mecosta County and lo;;atc(l
the farm whicli he now owns — a soldier's claim of
the war of 18 r 2, owned by his father — to which he
has added another 80 acres by purchase, and has 60
acres under tillage.

Mr. Snyder was married March 12, 1S60, to Sarah
A., daughter of William and Abigail Clifton, who was
born in 1843, ''•' Cleveland, Ohio. The children of

this marriage are ten in number: William C, Sarah
A., Grant, Fred, Nellie M., Glenn W., Mary and
Martha (twins), John and Dora V. Politically, Mr.
Snyder is a member of the National party.

«via£fir®-|§^— ^X

J^^lfSiTS^

(

■JK-na:*:nn->i

|John p. Runyan, farmer on sec. 19, Deer-
field Tp., was born in Franklin Co., Ind.
Aug. 18, 1 82 2. He is a son of Thomas
fli'L)' and Hannah (Stein) Runyan, both natives of
"■iP New Jersey, where they were married. In the
'-" year 1812 they removed to Indiana and there I
resided 14 years, going thence to Ohio, where '
they remained till death. Mr. Runyan was born
two years before the admission of Indiana into the
Union, and accompanied his parents to Ohio. He
was at home until the age of 19, attending school \
and working on the farm with his father. At that 1
age he was employed on the public works, building ^
locks three years. Afterward he followed the occupa- ^
tion of carpenter and joiner until 1878, with the ex-
ception of the period spent in the Union army. In
May, 186 1, he enlisted in the 14th Reg. Ohio Vol.
Inf., C'o. A, and was in the service four years, receiv-
ing honorable discharge in October, 1865. Among
other engagements he was on duty in the battle of
the Wilderness, siege of Richmond and before Peters-
burg. He received a slight saber wound by accident,
whicl) was his sole casualty.

Mr. Runyan came from Ohio to Micjiigan in 1878
and bought 40 acres of land, which liad been partly
improved, on sec. 30. This he afterwards sold and
bought property in Morley, of which he retained iws-
session but a short time. In politics he is a Re|jub-
lican, and is a member of the Order of Odd Fellows.
He was Deputy Sheriff while in Ohio and filled sev-
eral minor offices. He was married in Indiana, Oct.
5, 1844, to Lizzie, daughter of Piatt and Orilla
S(|uires. .Slie died Sept. 18, 1881. Two children
born of this marriage are both deceased. He was
again married June 29, 1882, in Big Rapids, to Sarah
J., daughter of John H. and Minerva (Bullock) Un-
derwood, and widow of Erastus A. Watrous, wlio
died .Vug. 19, 1880. The parents of Mrs. Runyan
were natives of New York, where the mother died,
in Chautauijua County. The father died near I'eters-

Mil

-Ci-

B»>|^^

<*.

®))^#*-

MECOS TA CO UNT V.

-#@§5C^xp^

burg, Va. Hale S. Watrous, born May i8, 1880, was
the only issue of the first marriage of Mrs. Runyan.
She is prominent in the Baptist Church.

ustice W. Tenney, deceased, was a native
of Livingston Co., N. Y., born Sept. 28,
181 1. His father, William Tenney, was of
English extraction, and a farmer by occupa-
tion. Mr. Tenney remained at home until
tlie age of 20, when he came to Walled Lake,
Oakland Co., Mich., where he was married, in
1839, to Marilla Loomis, a native of Michigan. Af-
ter their marriage they moved to Kent Co., near Grand
Rapids, and lived on a farm. Mrs. Tenney died in
1853. In 1856 Mr. Tenney came to Green Tp., and
settled on sec. 30, where he purchased 300 acres of
land. He was again mariied in 1857, to Mrs. Maretta
Willis, widow of George S. Willi'i, of Muskegon
County, who died in 1853. She was born in Water-
ville, Lamoille Co., Vt., June 4, 1S33, and is a daugh-
ter of John and Mary (Lowater) Millington, the
former a native of England and of Scotch-Irish an-
cestry; both parents are deceased. Of her first
marriage, one child was born, Lyman ( 1. The children
of Mr. and Mrs. Tenney are Herberts., Minnie M.,
Frank J. and Charles H. William is deceased. Mr.
Tenney died March 8, 1859. Mrs, Tenney is living
with her four children on the homestead, consisting
of 105 acres of land, a large i)roportion of which is
under tillage. Mr. Tenney 's children by his first
wife are, Orlando L., Maynard T., Harriet M. and
Ella M. ; Alonzo and Frederic are deceased.

->t

11?, aniel Horton, book-keeper and clerk in the

''" mercantile house of T. C. Gardener at

- r^£^^ Remus, was born in Tioga Co., Penn., July

J^^ S> ^^5°! 'ii'id is a son of Seneca and Catherine

^ (Buckbee) Horton, the father a native of Ohio,

"•< and the mother of New York. The family came

to Michigan in 1864 and settled in Wheatland Tp.

Mr. Horton passed the first 20 years of his life after the

method of farmers' sons generally, and was married

Feb. 4, 1870, to Mary, daughter of Ezra and Jane

(Brown) Mansfield, who was born Feb. 18, 1854, in

■^m

Genesee Co., N. Y., of which State her parents were na-
tives. She accompanied them to Michigan when quite
young. Mr. and Mrs. Horion settled on a farm of
40 acres on sec. 25, Wheatland Tp. On this Mr.
Horton labored until he had put 20 acres in a fit con-
dition for cultivation. He operated as an agricultur-
ist some years, eventually leaving his farm to engage
in the general store of his brother at Millbrook,
where he remained until February, 1881, the date of
his entering upon his present duties in the establish-
ment of Mr. Gardener. He has the entire manage-
ment of the business at Remus, and enjoys the un-
restricted confidence of his principal, who is a non-
resident, he having during the current year {1883)
fi.xed his dwelling place at Big Rapids. Mr. Hoiton
is a Republican in politics, and has been for some
time Township Clerk.

Mr. and Mrs. Horton have had four childien, viz.:
Orville E., born June 15, 1871; Fred E., Sept. 21,
1 87 4; Effie J., Oct. I, 1876 (died Nov. 4, 1887);
Carrie M., Oct. 15, 1882.

li?o'tephen A. Gatest M. D., practicing phy-
sician, Millbrook village, was born at Al-
iVi*^?. bany, N. Y., Sept. 7, 1855. His parents,
A. A. and Jane (Averill) Gates, were natives
of Otsego Co., N. Y , where the mother died
when the son was but two years of age. The
father died in 1872 Mr. Gates attended the
ward schools of Albany until he was 17 years of
age, after which he was a student at the high school
of Otsego, and was engaged in the profession of
teaching nearly three years. On reaching man's
estate he began the study of his profession in the
office and under the direction of Dr. J. W. Still, of
Morris, Otsego Co., N. Y., where he read medicine
one year, going thence to Buffalo, to attend a course
of medical lectures. He next went to Albany for the
same purpose, and studied in the office of Dr. J. S.
Mosher until the spring of 1878, when he completed
his studies and received his diploma. He remained
in Morris during the first year after entering upon the
career of a medical practitioner, and met with flatter-
ing success ; but owing to ill health, relinquished his
business, with all its promise, to seek another field
better adapted to the e.xigencies of the case. In

(

-^^ — (^v<^>ii n >: n Df :>?

MECOSTA COUNTY.

4^t^5^©V^^

1879 he came to Michigan and engaged in teaching
in Ionia and Montcahn Counties, where he was occu-
pied nearly two years, when he resumed the practice
of medicine in Ionia County, coming shortly after to
Mecosta County, and fixing his residence at Mill-
brook in the fall of 1881. His business has increas-
ed satisfactorily from the outset, and he has an
extending practice and a permanent place in the con-
fidence of the community that patronizes him.

Dr. Gates was married in Ionia County, July 21,
1882, to Arminda E., daughter of John and Eliza
Taft, who was born in Ionia County, whither her
parents removed from New York, their native State.
One child was born of the marriage of the Dr. and
Mrs. Gates: Myrtie M., born July 8, :88i, and died
July 16, 1883.

Dr. Gates is an adherent of the Republican party,
and himself and wife are members of the M. E.
Church.

WWM\ aleb V. Hane, druggist, Remus, was born
in Williams Co., Ohio, Feb. 14, 1853. He

\^'^ is a son of Joseph and Elizabeth (Barron)
'|jIc) Hane, natives of Pennsylvania. In 1855 the

^S^ parents came to Lebanon, Clinton Co., Mich.,

\ where the son attended the common schools
until he was 15 years old. He finished his educa-
tion at the graded school at Maple Rapids, where he
was a pupil three years. On completing his course
of study he entered the drug store of Mr. McDon-
ald at that place, where he was a clerk three years.
In 1873 he returned to Lebanon and worked two
years on a farm. He was married in Clinton County,
March 26, 1875, to Flora, daughter of Albert and
Lydia (Anersley) Cross, natives respectively of New
York and Ohio, and of English and Welsh descent.
Mrs. Hane was born in Madison Co., 111., April 18,
1854. Her parents removed to Maple Ra|)ids when
she was eleven years old, where she was educated.

Mr. Hane passed the year succeeding his marriage
on a farm. The next year he went to Maple Rapids
and operated a few months in the grocery business,
going thence to Pompei, Gratiot Co., and there em-
barked in the drug trade. He continued to carry on
his affairs there until the fall of 18S0, when he went
to Fowler, Clinton Co., and a short time after founded
his present business at Remus. His stock includes

all druggists' goods and is valued at $1,500, with an-
nual sales aggregating $2,000, and business interests
constantly mcreasing.

Mr. Hane is a Republican and is Ck-rk of the vil-
lage of Remus. One child is included in tjie family
circle, Jessie, born June 28, 1876. The property of
Mr: Hane embraces 120 acres of partly improved
land in Isabella County, 80 acres of timber land on
sec. 21, 40 acres on sec. 16, of Wheatland Tp., Me-
costa Co., and 120 acres in the township of Sheridan.

-irw^^^^t^j-^^

"siteii^

?[,>oseph A. De Long, faimer, sec. 22, Wheat-
land Tp., is the son of Martin and Maiy
[SK-,F^i (Edmonds) De Long, natives of New Eng-
land, and of French descent, who located in
the State of New York soon after their mar-
riage. Mr. De Long was born in Erie Co.,
N. Y., July 31, 1826. In 1830 his parents removed
to Victoria Co., Can., where he was married May 20,
1 84 7, to Almira, daughter of David and Anna
(McKague) Brintnall, who was born Oct. 18, 1826,
in Northumberland Co., Ont. Her parents were
natives respectively of Vermont and Ireland. Mr.
De Long was occupied in farming in various locali-
ties until the autumn of 1864, when he fixed his resi-
dence in Wheatland Tp., on 80 acres of wild land,
where he has since lived and prosecuted his farming
and other interests.

Mr. De Long is a Republican, and himself and
wife are members of the M. E. Church. Children :
Laura, born June 16, 1848; Eliza A., Nov. i, 1850;
Almeron, May 18, 1852; Clarissa, March 13, 1854
(died Jan. 2, 1858); Harrison, March 10, 1856;
William, April 20, 1858; Melissa, June 29, i860;
Benjamin, Sept. 24, 1862; John, March 18, 1865,
and Martin, Aug. i, 1867.,

—5 -^f>^ !—

S athan Swisher, farmer, sec.

I, Wheatlar.d
Tp., resident at Remus, was born in Allen
Co., Ohio, Nov. 5, 1837. His parents.

^ Michael and Salome (Stukey) Swisher, were

]{■■ natives of Pennsylvania and of German descent.

'•/ Previous to their marriage they were residents of

Ohio and removed thence, later in life, to Whitley

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A-

MECOSTA COUNTY.

297

Co., Ind. Mr. Swisher enlisted when he was 24
years old as a soldier for the Union. He enrolled
in the 17th Ind. Vol. Inf., Aug. 28,1862. His com-
mand was attached to the Army of the Cumberland,
and during his period of service he participated in
42 important actions, besides taking part in numer-
ous minor affairs. Among the principal battles were
Hoover's Gap, Duck River, Columbia, Tenn., and
Nashville, Farmington, Lookout Mountain, etc. He
went through all without wound or capture, though
his clothing was more than once riddled with bullets,
and a horse was shot under him on one occasion.
He was honorably discharged in August, 1865. On
his return from the war he was married in Van Wert
Co., Ohio, Nov. 29, 1865, to Esther, daughter of Lot
and Margaret (Arnold) Meeker, natives of New
York. After farming two years in Ohio, he came to
Michigan and bought a farm containing 80 acres of
forest in Wheatland 'I'li., now the site of the village
of Remus. Later he bought 120 acres additional,
making 200 acres, which is in good condition. Mr.
Swisher is erecting a substantial residence, at an ex-
penditure of $1,500.

Mr. and Mrs. Swisher have had nine children:
Joseph M., Roscoe P., Enos, L. G., William, A. D.,
Arnold, Stukey, Nathan R. and Lou. B. Arietta M.
is deceased. Mr. Swisher is a Repul.ilican in politics,
and has been Treasurer of Wheatland nine years.
He is a member of the Order of Good Templars,
and himself and wife belong to the M. E. Church.

'^Q^Qf^,

I^^Sfilliam T. Jones, manufacturer of lumber,
%f)J ) shingles, etc., resident at Morley, was

ifejRjw^ born at Waterdown, Wentworth Co., Up-
\(34? per Canada, March 10, 1847. His father,
\ Ezekiel Jones, was a native of Ireland, and
emigrated to Canada when he was 1 1 years of
age. He reached man's estate, and married in
the Dominion, where he resided until 1S51, in which
year he came to Michigan and settled in Croton, Ne-
waygo County, where he interested himself in lum-
bering, and kept a hotel until his death in 1S54.
This journey to Michigan was made by Mr. and
Mrs. Jones and family in a wagon, the distance from

.®)

-%M>m

Waterdown being 400 to 500 miles. Jane (Thomp-
son) Jones, mother of the subject of this sketch, re-
turned to her native province after the death of lier
husband, and is still living at Waterdown.

Mr. Jones obtained a fair education in the schools
of his native town, and there commenced his busi-
ness life, working as a salesman in a mercantile house
six years, after which he established himself in busi-
ness with a ].)artner, under the firm name of Jones,
Burns & Co., for the sale of general merchandise.
He sold out at the end of three years and came to
Michigan, locating at Morley. He at once engaged
in the lumber trade, and, under the firm name of
Cook, Pendleton & Jones, began the manufacture of
shingles. This relation lasted one year, when Mr.
Pendleton withdrew, and the business was maintain-
ed by Messrs. Cook & Jones until the death of the
former in 1882. Since that event Mr. Jones has con-
tinued to conduct the business in his own interest.
He is also associated in the proprietorship and man-
agement of a grist-mill at Morley, with William
Hugh.

The personal history of Mr. Jones is marked by the
same qualities which characterize the records of so
many of the substantial citizens of Mecosta County.
He inherited thrift and energy, was trained to indus-
trious habits, and built up his business and fortune
by economy and the exercise of good judgment in his
operations. He enjoys the confidence of the com-
munity where he lives, and has ably discharged his
obligations as the incumbent of various townshi[)
offices. He has belonged to the Masonic fraternity
since 1868, and is a member of the Lodge "Strict
Observance," No. 27, and Royal Arch Chapter No. 2,
at Hamilton, Out.

Mr. Jones was married in Mecosta Co., Mich.i
Aug. 24, 188 1, to Elizabeth, daughter of the late
John T. and Sarah A. J. (Dow) Cook, the former a
native of Connecticut, the latter born in Boston,
Mass. Mrs. Jones was bom in Earlville, 111., Sept.
14, 1843.

Politically Mr. Jones has always been a member ot
the Republican party, and has labored for its ad-
vancement and prosperity.

As a prominent and representative citizen of Me-
costa County, and a gentleman worthy the position,
we place the portrait of Mr. Jones in this Album.

MECOSTA COUNTY.

-#t^((®V#;

ooo

Ij-ames HuUinger, druggist, Mecosta village,

/7S

)

'§%-.'- ^'•■"^i born in Orleans Co., N. Y., March 6,
W^ 1S42. His father, Dr. ^\■illiam Hullinger,
was a practicing physician for 40 years. He
was a pioneer of Hillsdale Co., Mich., and was
connected with its settlement and the found-
ing of the village known as Bassvvood Corners.
He cut seven linden trees, from which he constructed
a house — the nucleus, as it proved, of a village of
respectable dimensions, which received its name
from the variety of wood which entered into the con-
struction of the first house erected on its site.

Dr. Hullinger was a man of adventurous character,
and spent much lime in travel. He went to Cali-
fornia in 1849, setting out from Reading, with four
yoke of oxen, traveling with them on foot from Port
Sarnia, at which place he left his company, and
reached the land of golden promise six months in ad-
vance of the cattle. He went four times to Califor-
nia, once to Pike's Peak, and once to the Black
Hills. He is now living in retirement, at Munica,
Ottawa Co., Mich.

At the age of 17 Dr. Hullinger went to Hillsdale
College, and after two years of study there enlisted
in the Union army, enrolling in the Fourth Mich.
Vol. Inf., under Col. Dwight A. ^Voodbury. He was
discharged June 20, 1864. During its period of ser-
vice the regiment to wliich he belonged was in 42
engagements. He was detailed as Hospital Steward,
and passed the lime of his enrollment in the dis
charge of the duties of that position.

On his return from the war he entered upon active
preparations for the calling of a carpenter and
builder, and was engaged at Stanton two years in the
manufacture of shingles. He was making fair prog-
ress in that business, when a disastrous fire destroy-
ed his mill, and he was obliged to seek employment
at his trade.

He came to Mecosta, Mecosta County, reaching
there the 20th day of October, 1879. He imme-
diately set about the erection of the building in
which he now prosecutes the Ijusiness that he
established, on his location in the village of Mecosta,
sheltering his stock of merchandise in a small shanty
near his store, initil the latter building was in readi-
ness for use. His stock was valued at $600: it now

represents $2,000, and includes all goods common to
a first-class drug store, and suited to the local de-
mand. His annual sales amount to $8,000.

Mr. Hullinger was married to Vanchie, daughter of
Z. B. and Jane A. Stillson, born in Huron Co., Ohio.
Two sons — Bailey, born June 6, 1866, and Otlo K.,
born Sept. 16, 1870 — are included in the household.
Tlie eldest son is his father's assistant in the drug
store.

Mr. Hullinger is a member of the A. O. U. W.,
and himself and wife belong to the Presbyterian
Church. He has been Superintendent of the Sunday-
scliool three years.

"tSSiSf®^^

^y§l— >^g|^i<^r^OT^~

lexander Thompson, farmer, sec. 14, Green
Tp., was born in Scotland, July 28, 1814,
'-'^ and is a son of John and Jeannette (Twed-
5j!fe^ del) Thompson, natives of " Auld Scotia,"
;(?''■ where they lived and died, — the father in 18 16,
! when the son was but two years old. Mr.
Thompson remained at home with his mother until
he was 34 years old, occupied with the business of
cloth-making. He came to the American continent in
1848, landed at New York, then went to Gault, Can.
He returned to the "States" at the end of the year
and located in Mercer Co., Pa., where he found em-
Ijloyment at his trade. He worked there iS months,
then went to the factories at Indianapolis, where he
remained four years. In the fall of 1854 he went
back to .Scotland and was there employed as a wea-
ver. In 1858 Mr. Thompson was married to Agnes,
daughter of James and Margaret (Richmond) Mor-
ton, who was born in Ayrshire, Scotland, Nov. 21,
1825. Her parents were natives of that place, and
there lie buried. Mr. and Mrs. Thompson have had
four children ; John, born April 12, 1859; James M.,
March 21 1861 ; Margaret M., Jan. 18, 1863 (now
Mrs. John Lord); Jeannette, June 21,1867, died ^^''^y
19, 18S2.

Early in the fall of 1861, Mr. Thompson, with his
wife and two children, sailed for the United States.
They landed at New York and then went to Trum-
bull Co., Ohio, where he followed his occupation un-
til the spring of 1868, when he came to Mecosta
County. He located at once upon a farm containing

^>/^®))(^tt* ■:2^& ^ o V

MECOSTA COUNTY.

4^^^

1 60 acres of land. Forty acres of his orignal tract
are now under cultivation. Mr. Tliompson is a Re-
publican of the most faithful type.

atthew Dopp, farmer, sec.

e"'F^£B\*f "^'■""'"' .^"ff nil. ..<,!, .^..v,. _5, Wheat-
' 'JCtV land Tp,, was borri luly 12, 1S40, in

'1 T^4.i;Sto2!

V,'5!J"'^ Lorain Co., Ohio, and is a son of John
^\i^ and Permelia (Reynolds) Doj)p, who came
.*;,'" to Michigan in 1S43. He was cared for by
ij" his parents until he was nine years old, when
he went to live with a neighbor. When 1 1
years old lie began a life of labor, finding employ-
ment on farms as best he could. He was just
entering manhood when the civil war broke oul, and,
not long after he had passed his minority, he yielded
to the influences which swayed the entire nation, and
became a soldier, enlisting in the First Michigan
Cavalry, Aug. 22, 1861, under Col. Broadhead. He
saw much active service, being in action at Win-
chester and Cedar Mountain, as well as in numerous
minor engagements. He was discharged Dec. 18,
1863 and re-enlisted within the same month in the
same regiment, with Col. Tower commanding. He
was in the Army of the Potomac, and was in much
hard service, receiving his final discharge March 22,
1866. He was wounded once, and once taken pris-
oner, being sent to the famous " Libby " at Rich-
mond, Va., but was exchanged after three months
confinement.

After being mustered out he came to Cass Co.,
Mich., and July 31, 1866, was mariied to Hattie,
daughter of Worden and Louisa (Spicer) Wells.
After that event he located in Kalamazoo County,
and a year later came to Mecosta County, where he
has since been a resident. He is a farmer, on 40
acres of land in Wheatland Tp. Children: Laura
J., born Sept 24, 1872 ; Mary A., May 5, 1878 ; John
R., June 15, 1880; Hattie P., Aug 17, 1882.

s*;-<(fl)K«>«:=

?I^^K*E^tlianiel Mitchell, farmer on sec. 26, j-Etna

f I pig

<: W^j>: I" p., was born July 29, 1840, in Yates Co.,

y .;=^H| N Y. He is a son of James and Susan
''' j;V (Weston) Mitchell, and until he was 21 years

,j^ old he remained at home occupied with agricul-
tural matters on his father's farm. In 1861 he came
to Mecosta County, and, becoming interested in the
fate of the Union, he enlisted Jan 4, 1S65, in the loth

Michigan Infantry, and served until the close of the
war. Ife was in action only twice during the period
of enlistment. Previous to entering the army he was
actively interested in farming projects, and on return-
ing he again threw all his energies into the plans and
purposes of his life. He owns So orres of land, witlf
20 acres under tillage. He is a Democrat and is at
present serving his township as Overseer of High-
ways.

Mr. Mitchell was married in 1861, to Emily M.,
daughter of David and Electa (Woodford) Ackernian,
of Newaygo County, who was born Feb. 24, 1839.
Freddie O. Mitchell, adopted son, was born Feb. 15,
1876. Tliey are Universalists.

('i

-amuv illiam H. Bump, farmer, sec. 25, VVheat-
i |ij.'w!.i land Tp., was born in Wyoming Co., N. Y.,
Oct. 7, 1832. He is a son of William and
Anna (Baker) Bump, natives of New York.
All the education he obtained was acquired
before he was 12 years old. At that age he be-
gan life for himself as a farm assistant, working
for the common compensation of the kind of labor he
was able to perform — $3 per month. This career
was followed until the fall of 1849, when, in company
•<vith his parents, he emigrated to Waukesha Co.,
Wis. On reaching there he readily found employ-
ment, and was in various positions as a farm laborer
for the six years following. He was married Oct. 7,
1855, to Marcia J., daughter of James and Marcia
(Bull) Klock, natives of New York, who was born in
Oneida Co., N. Y., June 29, 1836, and in her child-
hood accompanied her parents to the Badger State.
After his marriage Mr. Bump was engaged in the
lumber trade, together with other pursuits, until the
period of the Southern rebellion. Before the revolt
of the slavery element had attained a year's growth
he became a soldier. He enlisted Jan. 18, 1861, in
the three-months service, enrolling in the Fifth Wis.
Reg. Vol. Inf , Co. F, Captain Bean. At the expira- (^
tion of three months he returned to his former em- f
ployment as a farmer and lumberman, operating until «$<?
.\ug. I, 1862, when he again erlisted, in the 28th fh
Wis., Co. F, in command of Col. Lewis. After a ser- ^
vice of 13 months he was discharged for disability, !q^\
and on rejoining his family he resolved on a transfer ^

7^^D!l5?nil^>-^r^

^v©

<^IlIi:^IlDr>

">i'~\siir'*^

^^^^^m

MECOSTA COUNTY.

)

to the county of Mecosta. In the spring of 1S63, he
bought a farm in \Vheathind Tp., containing 120
acres of hind, and moved here with his family. He
has since purchased 60 acres additional, making a
tract of I So acres, 85 of wliich are under the plow.
Mr. Bump is a progressive farmer, and is managing
his agricultural interests to the best possible advan-
tage. He is a liberal Democrat in political principle,
and is present Constable of his township.

Children: Fannie A, born Aug. 1, 1857; Anna S.,
Dec. 24, i860; William J- G., May 18, 1861 ; Mary
E., Sept. 22, 1867; Geo. F., March i, 1S66, died
March 23, 1866.

a:'

-,,p._j~ewis Swarthout, farmer, sec. 36, Deerfield
-^lilff'lf 'I"|i-, "'as born in Ontario Co., N. Y., Tune

^^^^^>W '^' ■'^33- ^^ '^ '''• ^°" °^ J-iinesand Rhoda
^/i'/^ (Reynolds) Swarthout, natives of the Em-

■t^ pire State. His father was a farmer and went
't to Erie Co., Pa., where he remained three years,
^ then returned to Seneca Co., N. Y., where he
died, in July, 1847. Mr. Swarthout was brought up in
Seneca County in the manner common to farmers' sons
of that day. After the death of his father, he in 1850
moved to Erie, Pa., and in 1856 came to this county
and took up a homestead under the State law of Mich-
igan. This was several years previous to tiie organi-
zation of the township, and the forest was in its
primeval candition. Mr. Swarthout has cleared and
cultivated 80 acres of land.

In Marcli, 1S61, a meeting was held for organization
jHuposes, in which was represented the present towns
of Hinton, .litna, Millbrook and Deerfield. The
delegates were George Gilmore, Samuel Rose, George
Brady, Lysander Quigley, George Quigley, Lewis
Swarthout, Elam Sanborn, Frederick Luther, Frank
Hinton and George Hinton, — ten in number. The
meeting was held at the house of Frederick Luther
(/Etna Tp ), and Mr. Rose was appointed clerk, and
also elected Township Clerk, with George Gilmore,
Supervisor. Mr. Swarthout has held various school
and township offices.

He was married Sept. 16, 1854, to Charlotte E.
Trowbridge, who was born in the State of New York,
and their childien are Ch.trles E., Alpha T., Minnie,
Frank and Bert; James M. and Jessie N. are de-

ceased. Mr. Swarthout has acted generally with the
Democratic element. He now resides at Lake View,
Cato Tp., Montcalm Co., Mich.

p dgar O. Phelps, farmer, on sec. 13, Hin-

y,„, , ton Tp., is a son of Joseph and Louisa
W^ (Hogle) Phelps, natives of Vermont, and
^g^ pioneers of the State of New York. Mr. Phelps
was born in Vermont, Jan. 13, 1830, and lived
in the Empire State until the age of 20 years,
when he went to Canada and there engaged in farm-
ing about 20 years. In the fall of 1870 he came to
Michigan and settled at Grand Rapids, working
nearly two years in the pineries. He came to Me-
costa County in 1S72 and purchased 80 acres of
forest land in the township of Hinton, most of whicli
is now under tillage. Mr, Phelps is an adherent of
the Democratic party and its interests. He was mar-
ried in Canada, May 10, 1852, to Sarah, daughter of
John and Polly (Johnson) Burrison, natives respect-
ively of Vermont and Canada. The mother died
May 27, 1879, at the hospital at .\nn .\rbor, whither
she went for treatment for a tumor. The children of
Mr. and Mrs. Phelps are all living and were born as
follows: Charles E., Oct. 12, 1853; William E.,
Jan. 13, 1855; James H., in March, 1857; Edgar
O., Jr., in 1859; Truman N., May 21, 1S63.

■^

s^
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lexander N. Tompkins, lumbcrnun, re^i-
At^fiyi. dent at Altona, Hinton Tp., was born in
W^'"^' Canada, Aug. 12, 1848. His father. Goo.
'^' L. Tompkins, was a native of the State of New

;j7 York, and the mother of Canada ; in i S67 tliey
I came to iNIichigan and located in Ottawa
County, coming tlience to Big Rapids, where the
mother died, in March, 187 1; the father is living in
Wexford County. At 14 years of age Mr. Tompkins
was apprenticed to learn the blacksmith trade, but
after eight months was compelled to abandon the
project on account of difficulty with his eyes, and he
remained at home one summer. The next season he
worked on a farm and after that was engaged in lum-
bering for two years. When he was 19 years old, in
the fall of 1867, he came to Michigan, and in the fall

^tt<i'^

<mMh>^

"2I^«^"

is^

MECOSTA COUNTY.

of 1868, to Mecosta County, where he has since
lived, engaging in niiUing andhmibering. He is now
operating the shingle mill owned by H. J. Brown in
Altona and employs nine men. He is working under
a four years' contract and the mill product is about
35,000 shingles daily. Mr. Tompkins is identified
with the Repuiilicaii party, and is a member of the
I. O. O. F.

Mr. Tompkins was married at Cadillac, Mich., in
November, 1877, to Martha E., second daughter of
Levinas and Velinda (.Scouten) Engle. Her parents
were natives of tlie .State of New York, who came to
Allegan Co., Mich., in its pioneer days and afterwards
went to Wexford Connty, where they now reside.
Mrs. Tompkins was born in Allegan County, July 24,
1854, and after she was 14 years old supported her-
self until her marriage. One child was born of this
marriage — Carrie, July 23, 1879.

5^^3'^orace Roach, farmer and lumberman, on

"•| (w . sec. 19. Deerfield Tp., was bom March 22,

■ , '"'' 1820, in Argyle, Washington Co., N. V.

fHe is a son of Edward S. and Betsey (Reed)
, Roach, natives of Vermont, who settled in
I New York in pioneer days. They afterward
came to Michigan and located in Monroe
County, and later, in Calhoun County, going thence
to Barry County, where after a residence of 12 years
the father died. His death occurred in the spring of
1 87 I ; the mother is still living, with a son in Barry
County.

Mr, Roach remained under the care of his parents
until he was lO years of age, when he came to Mich-
igan, and resided in Whiteford five years, tlien re-
turned to the State of New York, coming back lo
Michigan five years later when he purchased 80
acres of land in St. Joseph County, for which he [laid
$3 an acre. He built thereon a small frame house
and proceeded to improve his property. He was
enabled two years later to purchase an additional 80
acres adjoining, which lie increased in five years to
240 acres of farming land of a high grade. This
was his home nearly 13 years. In 1857 he exchanged
this property for 500 acres of timber land in Cass
County, on which there was a steam saw-mill, having
a capacity of 12,000 feet jier diem. The mill was

•^^ rfil "5 hristian F. Mynning, Supervisor of the
'"'•"ii y^ iy fifth ward at Big Rapids, and grocer by
^AW^n^ vocation, is a native of Denmark, and was
^li) born Jan. 21, 1850. He came to Amenca m
^h the fall of 1 87 I, and located at Big Rapids,
I where he was variously employed until Octo-
ber, 1882, when he formed a [xirtnership with Thomas

301 • "s

- -- ^ ^- (e

destroyed by fire a year later, and was without delay ^
replaced by a more valuable structure, with a capac-
ity of 15,000 feet daily. This mill Mr. Roach man-
aged two years, employing 10 men. He made a
second exchange of property in i860, for 200 acres of
improved land with good buildings, and situated ad-
jacent to his old farm in St. Joseph County. This he
operated six years, and sold for $13,000. He then
removed to Ionia County, and passed six years in
lumbering. He made a purchase of 180 acres of
land in Ionia County, under partial cultivation, and
also 640 acres of pine land in Montcalm County.
He combined the business of a clothier in Ionia wiih
his other interests, hiring laborers to perform the
farm duties.

In 1872 he disposed of his entire projierty by sale,
and bought 400 acres of pine land in the townshi[) of
^tna, Mecosta Co., and also a shingle mill in
Morley, which he operated until 1879. He again
sold out all his interests and bought 200 acres in
Deerfield Tp., with limited improven.ents. Of this
latter purchase 120 acres are under a good state ot .*
cultivation. =

Mr. Roach was married in Detroit, Oct. 20, 1845, P^
to Caroline E., daughter of Charles and Polly (Burt) =
Macomber, natives of the State of New York, who Sj*
came to Michigan in 1844, locating in St. Joseph "^
County, where the father died in 1875. Her mother ('
resides at Three Rivers, Mich.

Mr. Roach saw the first train of cars tha' ])assed
from Albany to Schenectady, and was also an observ-
er of the first train which ran in the Peninsular State,
going from Toledo to Adrian. The latter was ren-
dered a conspicuous event by the fact that hundreds \
of Indians were ])rcsent on that occasion. Mr. R.
is an outs[)oken, zealous Reiniblican, has often been
proffered offices of trust in the various localities
where he lias resided, but always declined. The
family attend the M. E. Church.

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MECOSTA COUNTY.

)

p. Mortenson, in the grocery trade, which relation
still exists, and the firm is transacting a lucrative and
increasing business. Their store is owned by Mr.
Mynning, and the slock comprises full lines of goods
common to the trade.

Mr. Mynning was married in Denmark, Sept. 19,
1871,10 Johanna Sorenson. They have four chil-
dren — Charles, Holker, .S<jren and Mary.

Mr. Mynning was elected to his present position in
the spring of 1881, and re-elected in the spring of
1885. The family attend the Lutheran Church.

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|r rederick Waleh,

III" lanil Tp., is the son of Michael and Mar-
\'^^^ garet (Wolf) Walch, both of whom were
^|fe natives of France, and of German descent.
Ms^ He was born in the Province of Auvergne,
%. France .Aug. 20, 1831). He received a, fair
education in German, and was a laborer on the rail-
road and canal whic li were then in [irocess of build-
ing through the section where he was born and
reared. He left his native land in thespringof 1857,
and came to Ontario, Can., where he was a farm
laliorer. He was married in Waterloo Co., Out., in
March, 1863, to Margaret, daughter of Jasper and
Margaret (Horn) ()tted>eign, natives of Germany,
where Mrs. Walch was born, .\ug. 15, 1844. Her
parents came to America and located in Waterloo Co.
when she was ten years old. .-\fter his marriage Mr.
Walch was a farmer in Waterloo County until 1865.
In that year he removed to Montcalm Co., Mich.,
and settled at Greenville. He was there employed
four years in a saw-mill. In 1869 he came to \\'hcat-
laiid Tp., and bought 40 acres of wild land, to whicli
he has since added 80 acres. Of this land he has
by his own exertions [ilaced 60 acres under the best
improvements.

Mr. and Mrs. Walch have buiied five of their nine
children, '{'he four surviving are as follows: Philip,
born l-'eb. 14, 1862: M.irgarel, ()(i. 2, 1865; Fred-
eric, Nov. 15, 1872; Dora, Feb. 18, 1879. John
died in infancy; Angeline, born July 5, 1868, died in
August, 18S0; Michael, born ( )ct. 21, 1S70, died Oct.
31, 1876; I. aura, born Jan. i, 1873, died July 25,
1879; l.illie .M., born Nov., '7(1, died .\ug. 1, 1879.

Mr. Walch has not yet procured his papers of citizen-
shi|i; himself and wife are members of the German
Lutheran Church.

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•ge Helms, farmer on sec. 23, Deerfield

L Ujt Ti'- "'1^ Liorn in the Keystone State, Jan.
'TSil^i^'^'^ 3, 18 10. His parents, Conrad and Mary
*%^ (Swaggart) Helms, were born in Pennsylvania,
''\ and removed to Muskingum Co., Ohio, where y
^ they were among the first settlers. They went
thence to Whitley Co.,Ind., where they round-
ed the period of their lives. .Mr. Helms passed
nearly 30 years of his life in the Buckeye State.
Removing thence, he came to Mecosta County and
purchased 80 acres of land, with nine acres cleared,
and an orchard of 50 apple-trees. He has been a
thrifty and judicious farmer, and has 40 acu'es under
the plow. He afterwartl purchased 120 acres more,
which he has since sold He has been an active
and zealous Republican since the organization of ■> •

the p.irlv. =

. . . . v/

Mr. Helm was married m 1834, m Muskingum f^--

Co., Ohio, to Sarah, daughter of William and Eliza- i=a
beth ((jougar) Linton, natives of Pennsylvania. Of \j'
I 1 children born to Mr. and Mrs. Helms, three died "^
in infancy — Her.ry W., James H., and \N'esley C. (
'I'lie record of those yet surviving is as follows :
Geo. W., born Oct. 20, 1838; Joshua H., Dec. ir,
1840; (.'atherine H, April 24,_i845; Hibfuird C.,
Sept. 6, 1846; Cassius IM. C., June 23, 1849; Wil-
liam H., June 16, 1851; John 1,., Jan. 30, 1854;
Charles C, April 29, 1858.

^ohn H. Foster, mason and builder, and
uIKsIk dealer in masons' supplies, Big Rapids,
was born Feb. 11, 1842, at Franklin, Me.
He is a son of Joseph W. and Harriet (Scam-
mons) Foster, and after he had attained tlie
age of 17, spent four years in learning his ,
trade under the su[)ervision of William I ). .Moore, in
Franklin. October 15, 1861, he enlisted in C"o. M, 'vis
l'"irst .Maine Cavalry, Capt. P. M. Brown, and was in (^f:

the service nine months, during which time he was in

)sf^))^^

<mMh>r

MECOSTA COUNTY.

303

one of the heaviest eiigageiaents of the wav — that of
the Shenandoah Valley— during the retreat of Cen.
Banks. He was discharged at Williamspovt, Md,,
and returned to his engagement with Mr. Moore.
A year afterward he went to Calais, Me., spent a
year there in pursuit of his trade, and worked a year
successively at Richmond, Va., and Portland, Me.
He went from the latter place to New York City and
vicinity, and there and at Jersey City he constructed
a number of fine residences.

In 1870 he settled at Big Rapids, wliere he has
since carried on his business, and engaged in lumber-
ing on tracts of pine land which he purchased, and
put the timber on the market, and operated to a con-
siderable extent as a contractor, employing 50 men
in the busy seasons. Among the buildings of his
erection at Big Rapids, are the Baptist Churcli, the
Water \\'orks, Northern Hotel block, two Teifer
blocks, Collins block, tlie Union School house, Wil-
co.x hardware store, etc., etc. He l)elongs to the
Masonic Order, has been Alderman five successive-
years. Superintendent of the City Water Works, and
Street Commissioner two years, and is now a mem-
ber of the School Board.

Mr. Foster was married at Haverstraw, N. Y.,
Aug. 13, 1868, to (Jeorgiana, daughter of Thomas
ai'd Mary Dykins, a native of Haverstraw, N. \ .
Four children have been born to them — Percy J.,
Howard W., Charles and Bertie (deceased).

'mi '"'

'avid W. Barto, fanner on se<:. 2(), Deer-
d Tp-- '■^ '^ S"'^ of Orrin M. and Ksther
., .^^_,j ,^ (,\verill) Barto, who came from their native
(Jl\2)^ i , Vermont, to Kalamazoo Co.. Mich ,

+^ in 1840, and there passed the remaining
T years of their lives. David W. was born in
Kalamazoo County, July 4, 1843. He lived
there the first 22 years of his life, and spent the suc-
ceeding 18 months in Kansas and Neliraska. He

returned home, and remained two and one-half years,
when he again repaired to Kansas and pre-empted
160 acres of land. He sold out at the end of four
and one-half years, at which time he purchased So
acres of land in Mecosta County, now his Iromestead
® and under partial improvement.

Mr. Barto was married in Barry Co., Mich., Nov.

14, 1872, to Fannio A., daughter of J. W. and Mary
A. Miles, natives of Ohio, who emigrated thence to
Barry County, and later to Kansas, whence they re-
turned to Michigan, anil are now resident at Manistee.
Mr. and Mrs. Barto have two children — Ella P.,
born March 4, 1S76, and Lina B., Sept. 21, 1877.
Mr. Barto is an adherent of the Republican party.

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clson H. Beebe, grocer at Big Rapids, was

A : born in Newfane, Niagara Co., N. Y., Dec.

^[^--j^-l^ 2, 1843, and is a son of Aaron and Sarah

^° A. (Strickland) Beebe. His father was a
yU farmer and mill-owner. Mr. Beebe was a stu-
' dent at school principalU', until the breaking
out of the civil war, and he was among the earliest to
enroll as a defender of the Union flag. He enlisted
at Lockport, N. Y., .\pril 29, i86r, in Co. K, 28th
N. Y. Vol. Inf , and served until the end of the war.
His regiment was mustered out June 2, 1863, and he
re-enlisted Sept. 3, in the Second N. Y. Mounted
Rifles. He received his Lieutenant's commission
Oc t.31, 1864, and was released by the close of his
period of enlistment, Aug. 10, 1865. Among the en-
gagements where he was under fire were those ot the
Valley of the Shenandoah, Culpepper, Second Bull
Run, .\ntietam. Chancellorsville, Cold Harbor, Beth-
esda Church, siege of Petersburg, and a large num-
l>er of skirmishes.

On leaving the army he went to Omaha and en-
gaged in the insurance business in Nebraska and
Iowa. He afteiward engaged as traveling salesman
for the crockery house of Egner, Foutts & Co., of
Liverpool, Ohio, in which capacity he served two
years. In February, 1872, Mr. Heebe came to Big
Rapids, and purchased a, half interest in the grocery
of John Wiseman, and six months later purchased
tlie entire stock. In November, 1875, he sold to C.
A. Stickney & Co., and in April, T876, bought out the
business of J. H. Kilburn, which he managed imtil
Tan. 9, 1878, when he formed a co partnership with
[. Ct. Gill, and established his stand where he has
since transacted business. May i, 1883, he pur-
chased the interest of Mr. Gill. He carries a stock
of fancy and staple groceries, flour; feed and grain,
valued at Sj^ooo, and transacts an annual business of
,^(>5,ooo.

Mr. I'.eebe was married at Lock|)ort, M. V., Jan.

.^^p

^^--"»

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^ 304

'^]f 25, 1870, to Amy I,. Pollaul, lioni :U Wilson, Niagara

'.'..] Co., N. \'. Mr. and Mrs. I5eclie have llircc children

*', — Fern, l-'dincr and Xellie.

MECOSTA COUNTY.

•4^^5(<^V:;i

p.ames T. Hunter, tarnicr, sec. 30, Mecosta
Tp., was horn Dec. ji, 1857, in Essex Co.,
N. V. His narents, Roliert and Sarah

k^ (Curry) I lunter, were horn in Ireland, of , 'scotch
ancestors, and soon after their marriage came
to Essex Co., N. V. When Mr. Hiniter was 15
years old he came with his parents to ISig Rapids,
and thence, in the fall of 1872, to the tiiwnshij) of
Mecosta. His father located a tract of land, where
he proceeded to found a home for his family. He
died in the winter of iSSi, and Mr. Hunter of this
sketch received by will 60 acres of this farm, 50
acres of which is in fine farming condition. Mrs.
^[ary Hall, his sister, ac ts as the housekeeper and
manager of the domestic department.

Mr. Hunter is a young man, but is already estab-
lished as a citizen and farmer. His futin-e is jiromis-
ing and he seems destined to a fair rank in the
community to which he belongs. He holds to the
Presbyterian f.iith in religious views.

illiam H. McPherson, fanner on sec. i.

%§|i^ llinton Tp., is a son of Cyrus and Mary
*lifis>;V''^^ 1- (Pamfrey) McPherson ; the father a na-
^Plive of Maine, and the mother of Xew liruns-
'4\n wick, where they were married; they fi.xed
^1 their place of residence in Maine and still
live there. Willi, un 11. was born |uue j, iSji, in
New Brunswick, where he lived until he was 19 years
of age, occupied winters in the lumber woods and
spending the summer seasons in the slate quarries of
the section where he was reared. For about six
years, until he was 25 years of age, he was engaged
solely in the ipiarries. In the spring of 1875 he
came to .Mecosta County and bought 40 acres of land
in this township, whic h is now his homestead, with
,^j acres now under advanced improvement. .Mr.
.Ml I'herson is a third-degree member of tile Order
of Masonry and in politics is a Kepublican.

He was married in Maine, March i, 1870, to Sarah
E., eldest daughter of laike L. and Hannah H.
(Daniels) Perry. 'I'liey were natives of Maine, where
Mrs. McPherson was born Sejrt. 8, 185 i. The house-
hold includes four cdiildren : Mabel T., bom l-'eb.
2, 187 I ; Melissa E., .\ng. 4, 1873; Cyrus !•'., Oct. 3,
1879, and William H., July 21, 18S2.

• m^y| ^ dward Gilchrist, farmer on sec. 28, Me-
l\S^i:^~ costa Tp., was born in Canada, May 28,
sJf^r^ ■•'^SS- He is a son of Philip and Paulina
^^ (Kake) Gilchrist, natives of the Dominion.
^J His parents came to Saint Clair Co., Mich.,
when he was one year old. After a few years
they returned to Canada. They afterward came
back to Michigan to make a permanent settlement,
and located near Port Huron, going thence three
years later to Sanilac County, remaining about six
years. Edward Gilchrist continued to reside there,
and in the summer of 1871 began to interest himself
in lumbering, where he was occupied until 1876. In
that year Mr. Gilchrist bought 40 acres where he now
resides in Mecosta Tp, It was then a dense forest
and required laborious and unremitting exertion to
reduce it to a condition suitable to comfortable sup-
port. The place has 15 acres under tillage. Mr.
Gilchrist is a Democrat of but moderate preter;sions.
He is now Director of School District No. 5; has
liberal religious views.

He was married in February, 1878, to Emma,
daughter of Jacob and Lydia (Wadsworth) Mong.
Her parents were natives of Peiinsx Ivania, and of
German descent. The daughter was born in \'e-
nango Co., Pa., Aug 31, 1859, and came with her par-
ents to Michigan in 1869. The two children of Mr.
and Mrs. Gilchrist were born as follows: John |.,
Sept. 9, 1876, and Pead, Sept. 27, 1880.

Bif^^f enry B. Wolcott, fanner and lumberman,
f:|.^y[s' sec. 15, Millbrook Pp.. was born in Jirad-
^-'I'ii*"*'* ford Co., Pa., Jan. 6, 1824, and is a son of
(^ P>enj and Betsey (Merrell) Wolcott, the father

a native of New York, the mother of Pennsyl-
1 vania. The family went to the State of New
N'ork when Mr. Wolcott was 22 years of age, and he

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MECOSTA COUNTY.

07 <^

v^ remained an inmate of the household four years
/^-^ longer. He was married at the age of 26 and con-
^'^ tinned to carry on the business of farming there

<Af

until lie was 31 years old, when he came to Michigan
^-,_ and settled in Shiawassee County. He remained
there 18 months and went to Pe Kalb Co., Ill, and
engaged in farming three years. His health becom-
ing impaired he went back to his native State. Dur-
ing the si.x years of his residence there he held the
positions of Constable and CoIlectt)r, and [lassed tiie
remainder of the time in farming. He came again
to Michigan in 1866, and settled in Millbrook Tp.,
where he entered 160 acres of land under the pro-
visions of the Homestead Act. On this land he
erected the second frame house built in the town-
ship, and set about clearing the land for agricultural
purposes, working three years without a team. The
results of his persevering energy are manifest in the
appearance of his farm, 1 10 acres of the original 160
acres being under excellent cultivation. Although
he has bought and sold several hundred acres of
land in the township, he has always held his first
claim as a homestead.

Mr. Wolcott was married in Bradford Co., Pa.,
Nov. 8, 1849, to Ruth, second daughter of Wm.^L.
and Sally (Vosbinder) Taylor. The parents were
natives of New York, and settled in Bradford County,
where they passed the remainder of their lives. Mrs.
Wolcott was born in Tioga Co., N. Y., March 22,
1S32. Of 14 children of Mr. and Mrs. Wolcott,
eight are still living, born as follows: Sarah S., Oct.
30, 1850; Lewis E., May 7, 1852; Benjamin L.,
Dec. 5, 1853; Betsey E., Feb. 29, 1856; Ettie L.,
Dec. 4, 1863; Ruth A., June 16, 1869; Maurice D.,
Feb. 26, 1872; Alice M., Nov. 8, 1876. Thede-
ceased are as follows: George J-, born Feb. 17,
1858, died Sept. 19, 1863; Laura L., born June 17,
i860, died Sept. 17, 1863; Emma E., born Dec. 30,
1861, died Sept. 22, 1S63; Charles A., botn April 9,
1868, died April 11, 1868; Mary E., born July 8,
1874, died Feb. 3, 1881; William H., born Dec. 24,
1865, died Nov. 7, 1881.

Mr. Wolcott has held the office of Justice of the
Peace four years, Road Commissioner three years.
School Director nine years in succession, and has
been a member of the School Board nearly every
year. Both himself and wife are active and prom-
ment members of the M. E. Church. Mr. Wolcott

was four years a circuit preacher, was regularly or-
dained and has officiated two years as a local
preacher. His impaired health compelled him to
abandon circuit work, but he is still engaged in his
ministerial labors and e.xpecls to be so occui)ied
the remainder of his earthly life, believing that if he is
faitiiful to the end a crown of eternal hapiiiness will
be his reward.

-ra=f

£>-

amuel L. Newton, of the banking house

of Fairman & Newton, Big Rapids, and

'^ ""~^?, wliose portrait we place in this work, was

'^ born at Hagersville, Ont., Aug. 6, 1S61, and is
son of Luther G. and ALary J. (Waters)
Newton. In 1865 his parents went to Buffalo,
N. Y., where his father associated with his
uncle, J. S. Newton, embarked in the lumber trade
and carried on an extensive business untler the style
of J. S. & L. G. Newton. Mr. Newton was a pupil
at school in Buffalo from four years of age until the
second removal of his family to Adams, Jefferson
Co., N. Y., where he was again jilaced at school, and
remained a student there until he was 17 yeais old.
In 1877 he began a course of study at Hungeiford
Collegiate Institute, where he remained four years.
At the expiration of that period he came to Big
Rapids and engaged as book-keeper in the banking
house of Ferdinand Fairman, his guardian. In Oc-
tobe.-, 1881, Mrs. Newton purchased an interest in
the bank with Mr. Fairman, which her son in turn
bought from her on reaching his majority (Aug. 6,
1882), liecoming owner of halfits business relations.
In every respect he seems fitted for the houoralile
and important profession which he has chosen, pos-
sessing all the essential characteristics reipisite to the
calling.

The house ot Fairman & Newton ranks among the
most solid and reliable of the banking institutions of
Northern Michigan. Its affairs are conducted with
a sagacity and business acimien which secures the
confidence of the public and amplifies its financial
relations. The Fairman & Newton block, ranking
among the most substantial buildings in Big Rapids,
is owned by the firm whose rame it bears. The
building on Michigan avenue, occupied by the Mich-
igan Cigar Co,, is the private properly of Mr. Newton.

^«^#-

-K'^JH 3 >C Illls>-^^?^ ^s^^^je^

V-
^

<^I1Q>:I1D^.>

308

. o<r x>

<X..X>

)

t-'fc-r^-^ -"iUiain Corbett, faruiei-, sec. 22, Mecosta
'I"]!., is a native of Scotland, where he was
' horn Dec. 7, 1849. His parents, James
A-'-T^n and Eh/.abeth (Sjjears) Corbett, were also
natives of "Aiild Scotia," and came to this
country with their faniilv, settling in Canada in
i<S53. Si,\ years later they came to Michigan.
Mr. Corbett was but a lad when he was brought to
this country, and was still in early youth when he be-
came a resident of the Peninsular State. Until 1873
he worked at various places as a farm assistant, and
in that year purchased 120 acres of land m the town-
ship where lie is now a citizen, which acreage he has
increased by purchase until he now owns a valuable
farm containing 160 acres, with 140 acres under cul-
tivation and in extraordinarily good condition for agri-
cultural purposes. He has made rapid strides in
'* the improvement of his place, and has already erected,
'. in modern style, all buildings necessary to first-class
c= farming, excejjt a suitable residence, which will soon
/■^ be added to the substantial attractions of the jilace.
=1 Mr. Corbett was married at Hastings, Mich., May
^ 19, 1877, to Esther J., daughter of Jonas and Re-
becca A. (Stanley) Hall. She was born Jan. 17,
T) 1856. Mr. and Mrs. Corbett have three children,
born as follows: Cieorge, Sept. 27, 1879; May E.,
May 12, iS8t ; Maggie M., Oct. 5, 1882.

Politically Mr. Corbett is a Democrat and has held
various offices in the gift of his townsmen. The
family attend the Presbyterian church.

^^H;^ harlcs W Kelley, l.inner, sec. 3, MiUbrook
-iji^gfflf"" 'I'p., was born in Canada, Jan. 16, 1845.
^<te?^ He had his own fortune to carve, and at
^fe the age of 13 commenced the struggle for
pb home and the future. He was emiiloyed as
I a farm laliorer, and durmg the first year received
six dollars a month, lie passed some years in this
I manner in Canada, and in the fall of 1 S64 came to

f Ionia, Mich., returning three months later to the Do-
minion. After s|)ending a winter at lionn' he re-
^ turned to Ionia County, and not long after, in the
[^ autumn of 1865, came to Mecosta (bounty and

^ bought T Co .acres of timbered bind ni Millbn)ol< 'i'lx
.5 — . "

MECOSTA COUNTY.

He has made such good use of his energy and labor
that he has .jnit 65 acres in a good state of cultiva-
tion.

Mr. Kelley was married in MiUbrook, April 17,
1870, to Mary E., third daughter of James E. and
Rosanna (Purceley) Riley, who was born in New
York, April 5, 1854. Her parents came from Ireland
and settled in the Empire State. Mr. and Mrs.
Kelley have had six children, five of whom are liv-
ing : Rosa M., born Feb. 20, 1872; Myrtie I., March
10,1874; Nora B. Sept. 24, 1876; Ada, March tg,
1S77 ; Eva, Jan. 9, 1879. Rosanna died in infancy.
Mr. Kelley belongs to the Republican party. He
has held important official positions in the affairs of
his township, and himself and wife are members of
the Weslevan Methodist Church.

*«^-

jit enry Mansfield, farmer, sec. 35, Wheatland
Tp., was born in Genesee Co., X. \ ., Aug.
IF, 1818. His parents, Josiah and I.ncre-
tia (Byam) Mansfield, were natives of Massa-
chusetts. He passed the years precedilig his
majority under the care and supervision of his
father, attending school and receiving the training
and instruction necessary to fit him for his life's
work. On leaving home he spent the next four years
as a farm laborer. At 25 years of age he was mar-
ried to Charlotte, daughter of Elijah and Abigail
Brown, that event taking place at Byron, N. Y., Dec.
ig, 1842. Mrs. Mansfield was a widow, and survived
her second marriage until Dec. 6, 1847, when she
died, in Genesee County. Her illness was long and
involved her husband in debt to a considerable ex-
tent. He was again married May 25, 1848, in Gen-
esee County, to Caroline M., daughter of Chauncey
and Lorena (Wells) Brown, natives of New England,
and respectively of Irish and English extract'on.
Mr. and Mrs. Mansfield lived on a farm in the
county where they were married until 1S67. In the
spring of that year they settled on the farm where
they are still resident, containing 120 acres of land,
with 70 acres under advanced cultivation and sup-
plied with necessary and suitable farm buildings.
The family includes tjiree children, as follows:
Chauncey K., born July 12, 1849; Evert J., Jan. 26,
1852; Maiy .\., May 8, 1855.

{'he parents are in advanced life, but an active

(''

■m^y^^^4.. ■ " ^^^Dfl^'^nD^^'^ ^"^^^

^■#^f:®

MECOSTA COUNTY

309

life lias kept thcni vouny in [)urpose and stimulated
their ambition to keep i)ace with the i)roi;ress of the
age. Mr. Mansfield has always acted with the Re-
puliliian party; has served his township as Treasurer
seven years. He and his wife are zealous members
of the M. E. Church.

-}«'- -

(f^ K. Woleott, farmer, sec.

.MiUbruok Tp.,
is a son of JJenj. and Betsey (Merrill) Wol-
cott, the former a native of Pennsylvania,
/|||\ and the latter of Connecticut. In eaily life
they settled in Bradford Co., I'a., where they
lived more than 40 years. In the spring of
ot 1856 they came to Shiawassee Co., Mich.,
and after a brief stay went to Illinois. Five years
later they returned to the same count)' in Michigan
and remained three and one-half years, yoing then
to Pennsylvania, and residing there until the fall of
1S68, when they came to Millbrook, and both died
here in the spring of 1878.

Mr. Woleott was born in liradford C"o., Pa., Feb.
20, 1831, and was the support of his yarents as long
as they lived. On coming to Millbrook he entered a
claim of 120 acres of land under the homestead ai t,
and afterward, in 1869, bought <So acres of land ad-
joining. In 1878 he sold 40 acres of this land and
in April, 1883, he sold 80 acres; he still holds a valu-
able farm containing 80 acres under good improve-
ments. He was married in Bradford Co., Pa., Oct.
27, 1 88 1, to Countess D., daughter of A. P. and Es-
ther Woleott. Her parents were natives of Pennsyl-
vania, where Esther was born. Mr. and Mrs. Wol-
eott liad one child, Viola, born May 5, 1883, and
died Sept. 10, 1883. Mr. Woleott is identified witli
the Democratic party, and has been School Assessor
ten years.

'■ ; (i4X\ dward Harmon, landlord of the Millbrook
'^^r :" hotel, Millbrook village, was born in

. -- .-,. - Maine, Feb. 14, 1832, and is a son of John

^C '"^'^ "^"'^ ^" (^'-"ti") Harmon, natives of
Maine. The father died .in California in 1867'
and the mother resides at Boston, Mass. At

the age of 16 -Mr. Harmon engaged as a lumberman,

and also in the river service, which he pursued as a
vocation 25 years. In 1859 he left Maine and came
to Clearfield Co., Pa., and there engaged in lumber-
ing 14 years. He left the Keystone State in the fall
of 1873 and came to Mason (_'o., Mich., pursuing the
same business at which he had spent so many years
of his life, about iS months, during which time he
also kept a boarding house. At the termination of
the period named, in 1875, he came to Blanchard,
Isabella Co., Mich., and, forming a partnership with
H. P. Blanchard, continued to prosecute the lumber I
traile. At the end of one year this connection closed ^
and Mr. Harmon .:ame to Mecosta County, and in ^a
Deiember, 1876, located at Millbrook and estab-
lished himself in the hotel business, which still
monopolizes his time and energies. His house is the
leading one in that section and is the only one in
town.

Mr. Harmon was married in Pennsylvania, May
24, 1861. iMrs. Harmon was born in Center Co.,
Penn. She has one child by a former marriage. Deb-

orah. Mr. Harmon is a Democrat. He has been ^

connected with the Order of Odd Fellows about 20 ==

years; has held the office of Dei)uty Sheriff two and ^

a halt years, and been C^onstalile one vear. >=*

. — -^-sjq- — •:= —

'*^^^^^S ^Ison Whitbeck, farmer, sec. 22, Mecosta

Tp., was born in Wayne Co., N. \'., Jan. 26,

1834. His parents, Jasper and Mary

--^ (Ropp) Whitlieck, were natives of the State of

y(-, New York His mother died in Michigan, in the
spring of 1878, aged 93 years. His father died
in Oakland Co., Mich., in the fall of 1882. He was
a centenarian, and distinctly rememl)ered the first
election of Washington to the Presidency of the
United States l)y ballot. He was a soldier of 181 2,
and lived to see the fifth generation of his descend-
ants grow up about him. The family removed from
New York to Michigan, leaving the Empire State Nov.
4, 1 838, where the boyhood, youth and early man-
hood of Mr. Whitbeck were passed. After reaching
his majority he attended to the conduct of his father's
t'arm, and finally the old homestead passed into his fii
possession. In the fall of 1882 he came to Mecosta
Tp. and bought 160 acres of land, with 120 acres in
good condition for farming purposes. On this Mr.

rM^ntM^>^^. ^^^^

ri?

<^DD^iinr>

MECOSTA COUNTY.

^<s^\

svy

^te*l

Whitbeck is at [jresent engaged in progressive farming.
He was married March 19, 1857, to Sarah, daugh-
ter of Horace and Annie (House) Atwood, of Rose,
Oakland Co., where she was l)orn June 16, 183S.
Her father was born in New York and is still living.
The mother was a native of New Hampsliire. Ada
G., born April 27, 1859, and Howard M., born Feb.

1S52, are the two children of Mr. and Mrs. Whit-

beck.

ames Stephens, farmer, resident on sec. 34,
__^ - Hinton Tp. (P. ()., Lakeview), is a son of
|[^"v^ Ebenezer and Sarah (Vincent) Stephens.

('I V^'t'

~.\\r They settled in ('anada, where James was

born, Jan. 2
December,
Co., Mich., two years

1865,

]^ born, Jan. 25, 1836. There he resided until
'^ ' "' and then lived in Ottawa

In the summer of 1867 he
bought 80 acres of wild land, of which he has since
sold 40 acres, with 18 of the remaining 40 under till-
age and on whicli lie lives. He is a Republican in
politics.

Mr. Stephens was married in Canada, Nov. 10,
1864, to Annie, daughter of Joseph and Sarah Bar-
ton. The father was born in England, and the
motlier is a native of Pennsylvania Mrs. Stephens
was born in Canada. May 21, 1844. The five chil-
dren of whom she is the mother are all living, born
in the following order: Sarah. April 7, 1867; Jesse
M., Nov. 30, 1868; Abigail, Dec. 21, 1870; Ebene-
zer J., Nov. 16, 1S73; Allen J., Dec. 21, i88t.

its..

k harles Main, farmer, sec. 2, Millbrook Tp.,
^^^^^f is a son of George and ]\Iargaret Ann
||y?^ (Chandler) Main, and was born in Canada,

€

May 3, 1 84 1. He

to Michitran in

.,, the spring of 1865, when nearly 23 }'ears of
', age, to prospect and locate land, and in the
si)ring of the following year came to Montcalm
County, and was there engaged two years in farming.
In the spring of 1868 he came to Mecosta County
and bought 100 acres of land, with some improve-
ments, in Millbrook Tp. He conducted affairs on
this place nearly two years, sold it and purchased
another, containing 100 acres, which he likewise sold.

and in the spring of 1872 moved into the village of
Millbrook to engage in a general mercantile business,
having previously formed a partnership with E. S.
Decker, under the style of Main & Decker. After
conducting their business a year, another partner was
admitted and the firm style became Main, Decker &
Co. This connection existed five years ; during a
portion of this period Mr. Main was also interested
in the lumber trade. Becoming embarrassed finan-
cially, the firm closed its affairs, and Mr. Main again
turned his attention to farming; is also keeping a
hotel at West Milbrook, which he built in 1882. He
is a Republican in politics and has served three years
as Supervisor of his township.

Mr. Main was married in Canada, Sept. 26, 1864,
to Sarah, daughter of Henry and Rachel (Hunter)
Long, all natives of Canada. Mr. and Mrs. Main have
had three children, but one of whom, Irving H., sur-
vives. Blanche and Richard A. died in infancy.

^^5-H^j

■^~g-i^ki»~

^<'wm

""^771 iehael Degear, farmer on sec. 28, Deer-

^, fJ( field Tp., was born in the Dominion of

^ ^-.^i''- Canada Feb. 6, 1822. His parents, Mich-

,1)' \^C ael and Charity (Cupps) Degear, were also
'"* born in Canada, where the former died, in April,
' 1857, and the latter Aug. 15, 1847. Mr. De-
gear remained at the home place until the age of 20,
and was variously employed about nine years. He
then bought a farm containing 47 acres, which he sold
ten years later and removed to the township of Lan-
caster, Canada, there renting a farm which he car-
ried on three years. At the end of that time he
went with his family to Kent Co., Mich., and soon
afterward selected his present location in this county.
He purchased 80 acres of uncultivated land, wliich
he has increased by the addition of 120 acres; he
now has 84 acres under tillage. Mr. Degear is an
active member of the Republican party and himself
and family belong to the Methodist Church.

He was married in the summer of 1852 to Eliza-
beth, daughter of Amos and Sarah (Drake) Kitchen,
natives of New Jersey and residents of Canada.
She was born Jan. 10, 1822. The father died in
1824, the mother two years later. Three of the chil-
dren of Mr. and Mrs. Degear are living, and were

C =

MECOSTA COUNTY.

311

born as follows: Berthelda, Sept. i, 1857; Reuben
J., Feb. 22, i860; Henry K., Sept. 24, 1861. Sarah
died aged 12; two children died ni infancy.

jprederiek R. Luther, farmer on sec.' 2,0
yEtna Tp , was borii in Clinton Co., N. Y.,
j^4^ Sept. 18, 1808, and is a son of William
^Kj and Eunice (Allen) Luther. He was under
Jk^ the paternal roof until 23 years of age, when
{ he came to Michigan and settled in the vicinity
of Detroit, and was there engaged in various kinds
of farm labor three years. He then went to Wash-
tenaw Co., Mich., but remained only a short time,
and settled in Lenawee Co., where he pursued farm-
ing for five years. In 1839 he went to Ligham
County, where he was the first settler in Delhi Tp.
He was engaged in farming there until 1869, when
he came to Mecosta County and settled in ^tna Tp.
He owns 160 acres of land, with 60 acres under good
improvement. \\\ politics Mr. Luther is a Democrat,
and in religious views he is a liberalist.

He was married in September, 1835, to Cornelia,
daughter of Peler and Clara (Frisby) Lamoreaux,
natives of New York, born June 19, 1814, and
died Aug. 24, 1856. Mr. Luther was married again
in Lenawee Co., April 10, 1858, to Mrs. ALirgaret
Priest, daughter of Robert and Phebe (Denney)
Shultz. By this marriage one child was born, Aug 21,
1859. Mrs. T^uther, by a former marriage, has five
children.

^^1) obert D. Parks, of the firm of Parks Bros.,
^W; Mecosta village, Morton Tp., was born at
_ sptf. South Lyon, Oakland Co., Mich., .\pril 2,
^\\& 1847, and is a son of William R. and Ann E.
\<f\ (Dunla])) Parks. He remained on his
I father's farm until 20 years old, when he

was occupied about two years as a farm assist-
ant, and then learned the car[)enter's trade at South
Lyon, which he i>ursued about four years. In
company with Robert Danlap he built a saw, grist
^j^ and cider mill, which they managed together until
/(^ 1879, when Mr. Parks sold his interest and resumed
V^ farming, buying 120 acres of land in Lyon, on which

he resided until May 21, 1883. He then sold out
his agricultural interests, came to Mecosta and
purchased the interest of his brother's partner, and
has since been engaged in managing the business
devolving upon him as half owner of an e.xtensive
trade.

Mr. Parks owns, l.iesides his property at Mecosta,
two village lots in South Lyon.

Mr. Parks was ma.'ried at South Lyon Dec. 9, 1879,
to Sarah A., daughter of Walter and Henrietta Bow-
ers, born in New Hudson, Oakland Co., Mich. They
have two children — Floyd, born at South Lyon, Sept.
21, 1880, and Stanley, born in Mecosta, June 3,

188;

^- ^^'f^r-^ .

'ir^J#aj£££**

>J%JT-

ll aniel H. Ruger, farmer on sec. 32, ^Ctna
p* Tp., was born in Dutchess Co., N. Y., Feb.

I Si 4. His parents were David and
m^ Elizabeth (Hagaman) Ruger, and were na-
^ tivesof New York. When Mr. Ruger was two
\ years old his father died, and his mother was left
with the care and responsibilities of maintaining and
educating her children, which she did in the most
creditable manner. When Daniel H. was 16 years
old he was apprenticed to Wm. Phillips, of his na-
tive town, and remained in that sei'vice until the
, death of Mr. Phillips, which occurred in the winter
of 1831. Soon after that he went to Poughkeepsie,
N. Y., where he stayed but a few months, then set
out to pursue his trade on the "tramp journeyman"
plan. In 1848 he came to Cass Co., Mich., and pur-
chased property in Edwardsl)urg, where he remained
four years following his profession, and was justly
considered the leader in the calling which he pur-
sued. He next went to Elkhart, Ind., and was there
settled until 1863. In that year he enlisted in the
Union army, enrolling in the First Michigan Sharp-
shooters. He reached a Sergeant's rank and was dis-
charged July 23, 1865, having been in si.\ severe
engagements, each time escaping unhurt. Leaving
the army he went to Cassopolis, this State, resumed
his trade and operated there seven years. In 1872
he came to .^tna Tp. and settled on 160 acres of
land on sec. 32, where he has since operated in farm-
ing and lumbering.

Mr. Ruger was married in Ontario Co., N. Y.,
March 13, 1.S36, to Mary L., daughter of Newbery*

:i^KV«>)($^

K=^iiD:<iins>'-*^ — ^^€^-

►^#f^tHf'?ysii

*«»

<^:ati^nnf>

MECOS TA CO UNT Y.

-^^^^®\

f'^ and Mary (Smith) Lay. The parents were natives
of New York, where Mrs. Ruger was born, July 6,
■»- 1818. Of 13 children liorn of this marriage, seven
\ are living: Catharine, born May 21, 1838; Mary
i E., May 2, 1840; Arabella, Jan 7, (842; Alice A.,
■^ Jan. 5, 1844: Edna, Jan. 30, 1S52; Lillian A., Jan.
10,1854; Clementina A., Oct. 10, 1856. Silas H.,
l)orn April i, 1837, died in infancy; Anna, born
March 25, 1840, died in July, 1872; Daniel Smith,
born Dec. 10, 1850, died in 1852 ; Dan S.. born July
6, 1858, died May i, 1859; Louis, born March 15,
i860, and Josephine .4., born Eel). 2, 1848, are
deceased.

IJI^harles Wilkinson, farmer, sec. 25, .Etna
^ :' 'I'p., was born June 28, 1S33, in Harrison
Co., Ohio, and is a son of Philander and
d'l&i Thankful R. (Leach) Wilkinson. On attain-
W ing his majority, Mr. Wilkinson took his final

} leave of the paternal home, and sought his
fortune in the Peninsular State, and made his first
essay in business for himself in Hillsdale County,
findingemploy on a farm for some months. He went
thence to Barry Co., .Mic li., where he made another
investment, and secured a wife — Harriet, daughter of
Peter and Susan Mosier, who died Ajiril 8, 1882. Of
this marriage tliree children were born : Francis L.,
Sept. I y, 1857; Emma R.,()ct. 31. 1859, and Ella
v.. Aug 23, r86o.

Mr. Wilkinson was engaged in fainnng in Barry
County until the fall of i860, when lie went to St.
Joseph Co., Mich. On the first call for troops in
1S61, when the cry of an impugned nation rang like
a tnunpet blast over a startled world, Mr. Wilkinson
enlisted in defense of that nation's integrity, enrolling
in the Si.xth Mich. Vol. Inf , for three months, and on
the expiration of that period again recorded his name
on the list of defenders of the Union. He enrolled
.\ug. 20, 1862, and was in the service eight months.
After a brief stay at home when his period of enlist-
ment had expired, he re-entered the army as a hired
substitute, and served until the close of the war.

June 19, 1864, he was again married, to Mrs.
Wealthy r)ay, and immediately came to .h'.tna T|).,
since which time they have resided on a farm of 40
acres near Morley.. Of the second marriage four

children have been born, as follows: Franklin H.,
March 10, 1865; Elmer E., Sept. 30,1867; AVillie
C, born Oct. 8, 1877, and died Nov. 14, 187 8; Nora
died in infancy Mr. Wilkinson is a Republican.

irjV-

*^.^S3|fhomas R. Crocker, overseer lor Crocker,

fl itN®p Hudnutt & Co., builders at Big Rapids,

t;'4s^ "''^'' ''°'''^ ^' Milwaukee, Wis., March 18,

-■tp 1854. He is a son of William H. and Mary

tM (Holloway) Crocker. ^Vhen he was four years

I old his parents removed to Manitowoc, Wis.,

wliere his father was engaged in the occu[)ation of a

builder, and constructed several fine buildings there

and at Milwaukee, being also engaged in building

steamer cabins for Cioodrich, Ward & Co., at

Manitowoc.

Mr. Crocker was a school-boy until 14 vears of age,
when he commenced learning his father's trade,
which has been the calling of his life. He came to
Big Rapids in 1874, and was for a time connected
with his brother in Iniilding. When the firm of
Crocker & Hudnutt was formed in 1877, he took
charge of their outside Inisiness, and has since sui)er-
vised the construction of a number of the princi[)al
buildings of the city of Big Rapids. (See sketch of
John M. Crocker.)

(

■nsuumM^^

-"^^

5"awrence Sours (Cerman, Sauers)

farmer
on sec. 36, ^'Etna Tp., was born at Battle
H|i> Creek, Mich., April 24, 1850. His parents,
Mungus and Teresa (Boteshaim) Sours,
were of Cierman nativity. When AL'. Sours was
but a child, his parents went to the wilderness
of Wisconsin, but remained only a few months,
going thence to Rochester, N. Y., and residing there
until 1867. In that year they came to Kent Co.,
Mich., where they engaged in farming and lumbering
three years. Tliey went to Montcalm County, where
they lived one year, coming thence to this county,
settling in the township of .-J^tna. Tlie_\ liought 200
acres of heavily timbered land on the bank of the
Muskegon River, and have 70 acres improved.

The father of Mr. .Sours was born .Sept. 5, 1818,
and was killed near Morley, Sept. 5, 1878, by

H^u^^t'-

-K'^0[l>:i]Or>^^^ — ^"4^-

MECOSTA COUNTY.

313

a passenger train on the G. R. & I. R. R. The

^j mother was born April 25, 1S20, and is still living

.-f^'i with her son. The latter has thus far devoted his

I life to the care of his parents. He is now owner and

/^ manager of the homestead. The family belono; to

the Catholic Church.

jvi'amuel W.Rose, farmer, sec. 22, Hinton
V Tp., was born in New York, March 20,
"^ft 1829, and is a son of William and Sarah
(Elmondorph) Rose; the former was a native
of the Empire State, and died in March, 1876.
The latter was born in Holland, and died in
the State of New York. Mr. Rose came to Mecosta
Co., Mich., in 1853, and was married Oct. 23, 1856,
to Elizabeth, daughter of John and Phebe (Ribble)
Hinton. Her father was born in Wales, and her
) mother in Germany. Mrs. Rose was born Feb. iS,
* 1835, and died May 12, 1866, leaving five children,
/^ born as follows: James E., Sept. 3, 1857 ; Mary E.,
=i Nov. II, 1858: John E., Feb. 26, 1S60; William. E.,
■^ Sept. 2 I, 1862; Absalom E., Oct. 29, 1864. Mr. Rose
=a contracted a second marriage in Mecosta Co., July 4,
1867, with Lydia A., daughter of Thomas and Ann
(Day) Thomas, natives of England; her father is
still living. She was born in Canada, Aug. 30, 1850.
Mr. and Mrs. Rose have five children: Hubert E.,
born Aug. 29, 1868; George E., Jan. 4, 1870; Addie
E., Jan. 5, 1872; Alice E., Feb. 3, 1874; Lottie E.,
May 18, 1877.

In 1877 Mr. Rose bought 80 acres of land, on
which he resides. He has held the office of Town-
ship Clerk and Highway Commissioner.

^\ illiam Lowe, farmer on sees. 32 and 33,

Green Tp., was born in Oxford Co., Eng-
o? land, June 3, 182S. His parents, George

]

/iK^^ and Elizabeth (Athaway) Lowe, lived and
IKy: died in their native country, the father

native country,
liam was a child of seven years.

dying when Wi

He remained with his mother until the age of
15, when he went to London, and there was em-
ployed as gardener by a Mr. ,\nderson, where he re-
mained three years.

He was married in London, June 3, 1S51, to Sarah

Beasant, born in Wiltshire, Eng., July 26, 1829. She
is a daughter of Thomas and Sarah (Gay) Beasant,
natives of the same county of England.

In 1852, William Lowe came to the United States,
and first settled in Dunkirk, Chautauqua Co., N. Y.,
where he operated as a gardener. He came to Mich-
igan in the fall of 1853, and resided in Newaygo
County for 16 months, and in 1854 came to Mecosta
County, where he located land in Green Tp., under
the Gradation Act, buying 80 acres, for which he
paid 75 cents per acre. Here he built a house and
began to improve his land. He now owns 140 acres
in sections 32 and 33.

The children of Mr. and Mrs. Lowe are: Eliza,
now Mrs. George E. Moore; Louisa, wife of Fred. S.
Dickerson ; Anna, William T., Alice M., Oscar L.
and Chancey E. Mary A. and Emily are deceased.
Mr. Lowe is a Republican.

—I ^-^^ 5^

I dward T. Horton, merchant, Millbrook
village, is a son of Seneca and Catharine

(Buckbee) Horton, the former a native of
Ohio, the latter of New York. The parents
came to Michigan in the spring of 1866, and
settled in Wheatland Tp., where they still re-
side. Mr. Horton was born in Pennsylvania,
Nov. 19, 1847. He accompanied his parents to this
State, and was reared under their supervision to the
age of twenty years. The year preceding his ma-
jority he s]ient in various occupations, among them,
one term as teacher of a district school. The next
three years he passed in the employ of W. S. Howd,
general merchant at Milbrook. In 1870 he went to
Eaton Co., Mich., and bought a third interest in a
planing mill. He entered vigorously into the prose-
cution of his business venture, but at the end of two
months a distressing accident resulted in the loss of
his right hand, and he sold out and returned to Mill-
brook. He then formed a partnership with his
former employer, W. S. Howd, which existed two and
one-half years. In 1873, associated with A. J.

Howd, he purchased the interest of W. S. Howd, and
the new firm transacted business one year, when Mr.
Horton became sole owner, his partner retiring, and
he continued the prosecution of his mercantile inter-
ests two years; at the end of that period of time he
again connected himself with a i)artner, Mr. T. C.

,iie%>f^:

^^^■^t)(ir'''j£r

^314

'(^ =====

\V Gardner. This relation was of brief duration, the

hitter gentleman selling to Mr. Horton, who has since

V, managed the business alone. His trade is in athriv-

f ing condition, necessitating a stock worth $15,000,

comprising aline of merchandise adajrted to the local

T demand.

Mr. Horton was married in Hillsdale Co., Mich.,

Oct., 17, 1875, to Elizabeth, daughter of Charles and

Electa Tiney, who was born in Ohio, whither her

parents removed from New Vork, the State of their

, nativity. Of this marriage one child has been born,

' Thad S., Sept. 2t, 1880.

Mr. Horton is widely known and nnivevsally es-
^ teemed for his business integrity, as well as lor his
personal traits, which render him a popular and val-
uable member of society. His industry and atten-
tion to his business interests have brought him sub-
stantial results, and tliough he is yet a young man
he has attained an enviable and permanent i)lace
- among his fellow men. Himself and wife are ac-
/• lively interested in religious matters and belong to
•^ the M. E. Church. Mr. Horton is a Republican and
3 has held various offices in the township.

<^lil]>Kiiii>>

-5j5^^§^

MECOSTA COUNTY

)

!4— K'^^i/az'TOv

Sj^^ftohn Maguire, farmer on sec. 24, Green

''-■I'^iii i '^1''' ^^^ '^"'" "^'^"^ Prescott, Can., in Octo-
il^^^ ber, 1812. His father, Bartholomew Ma-
ul©^ auire, was a native of New York, and was in
^P the war of 181 2. His grandfather was in the
^ Revolutionary war, in which he fought five
years; he settled in the State of New ^'ork and mar-
ried Eleanor Bresee.

Mr. Maguire was married in the Empire State in
11S55, to Mary Miller, removing soon after to Penn-
sylvania, where he bought a farm and resided six
years. He then sold his property and returned to
the State of New Vork. Three years later lie went
to Canada West and remained 12 years near Port
Burwell, Elgin Co., where lie was engaged in luniber-
ini'. In i860 he located in CJreenville, Montcalm
Co., where he remained a year, and in the winter of
1862 came to this County, where he passed a year
on the farm of A. Clark. Meanwhile he homesteaded
So acres of land and now has 45 acres under tillage.

The children of Mr. and Mrs. Maguire are these:

Hugh, Francis, Emma and Amanda E;'two are de-
ceased. Mr. Maguire was one of the early settlers
and is a Democrat.

"^teWd' ^'^'^^ Palmer, farmer, sec. 22, Green Tp.,
AiEJIlP was born in Onondaga Co., N. Y., Jan.
■^Jll^srifc J, 18^0, and is a son of ^Villiam and
^te Elizabeth (Lowry) Palmer, natives of New
Shi^ York. His father was a soldier of the war
\ of 18 1 2, and was stationed at S.ackett's Har-
bor. His maternal great-grandfather was a na-
tive of Germany and was kidnaped by a press-
gang in 1732, when about the age of 18, and brought
to this country. He was compelled to labor during
his passage, and on landing upon the American
continent was sold for a pretended balance due for
his transportation. He died at 100 years of age.
The Palmer family can only be indefinitely traced to
English origin. William Palmer cameto Michigan with
his family in 1835, and settled in Washtenaw County,
going afterwards to Ionia County, where the son was
reared and educated. 'W'hen Floyd was 13 years old
his mother died, and since that time he has been the
architect of his own fortune. In 1858 he was mar-
ried in Washtenavk' County, to Eliza A., daughter of
Samuel and Maria (Masten) North, born in October,
1830, in Ulster, N. Y. Her parents were born in
New York, and settled in Washtenaw Co., Mich. Mr.
Palmer sold his interests in 188 1 and bought a fine
farm of 95 acres in Green Tp., Mecosta Co. Mr.
and Mrs. Palmer have liad si-x children, of whom five
survive: Alice M., Arthur E., Helen O., Wilsey C.
and Tennie 1. Nettie S. is deceased.

,,arrison J. Brown, miller at Altona, Hinton
Tp., was born in Warren Co., Pa., Nov. 11,
t'i'ii:^"'* 1S35. His parents, Peter and Mary (Lib-
^A by) Brown, were natives respectively of Con-
^^ necticut and New York. The father died in
I Pennsylvania, in 1855 ; the mother is still living,
with her son at Altona. Mr. Brown was a lumber-
man in Warren County until 32 years of age; two
years he vifas owner and operator of a steam saw-mill.

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<:iiii»:par>

MECOSTA COUNTY.

■^sj*^(ii''<cr

'■^•^

When 1 8 years old he commenced to lal)or in the
woods, putting in timber in the winter and rafting it
down, in which business he continued for three years.
In the spring of 1865 he was drafted for the Union
service and procured a substitute, to whom he paid
$1,000. Nine days later Lee surrendered at Appo-
mattox Court-House. Mr. Brown came to Michigan
in the spring of 1867, and spent some months in
prospecting in Flint, Chesaning and (ireenviUe; and
then came to Saginaw Co. and bought a farm of 100
acres. The summer following he built a house and
labored in clearing and improving his land. This
place he owned two years, when he settled in Me-
costa Co., in 1868. In the summer of that year he
built aflouring-mill on the Little Muskegon river, the
first in the townshijj. In later years he bought a
saw-mill of Wm. Egbert, and is now operating both
and employing 12 men. He has recently refitted his
shingle-mill, its capacity l)eing now 35,000 per diem.
The full product of the flour mill is 20 barrels daily,
besides feed grinding.

Mr. Brown was married in New York, June 9, 1865,
to Maryette E., daughter of Thomas and Susannah
(Stewart) Thomas. Mrs. Brown's father was born in
Pennsylvania, and her mother in (Canada 'I'he
daughter was born March 26, 1842, and is a meml)er
of the M. E. Churcli. Mr. Brovi n is a Republican,
and comes of patriotic ancestry, his grandfather
Libby having been a soldier of 1812.

ni, — ^p ames N. Decker, farmer, sec. 10, Hinton
" Tp., is one of the pioneer settlers of Me-
'^■^*^ costa County, and was born in Greene Co.,
N. Y., Sept. 8, 1 8 19. He is the eldest son of
Gilbert D. and Mary (Stanley) Deeker, both
natives of New York, who moved to Canada in
the fall of 1833, where the mother died. The
father came to Michigan to pass the closing years of
his life with his children, and died at the home of his
son, Edward S., in Millbrook, Sept. 20, 1869.

Mr. Decker passed his youth in the care of his
parents, and while in Canada was engaged in farm-

•^

ing. In the summer of 1865 he came to Michigan,
and bought 160 acres of land, principally in an un-
cultivated slate, paying therefor $750. Its value and
appearance have Ijeen so enhanced by cultivation
and improvements, that it is held now to be worth
$to,ooo. The convenient and suitable l>uildings
lately erected are a great ornament to the place.
After the purchase of the land he returned to Canada,
and passed the winter of 1865-6; and in the following
spring he came back with his son, built a log house,
and made such improvements as were possible,
clearing about seven acres of land, which was sown
with wheat. He brought his family in the fall of the
same year, and before winter, was finally settled in
the Peninsular State. Mr. Decker relates graphic-
ally his pioneer experiences, and the clearness of his
remembrance, with the interesting character of the
numberless incidents, entirely divest the recital of
uniformity and tameness, though the tale is one oft
repeated.

Mr. Decker shipiied the first wheat from Mecosta /^
County over the G. R. cS: I. Railroad, and in 1873,
harvested the heaviest crop ever raised in the county
— 500 bushels from 10 acres. He has been Town-
ship Clerk two years. Highway Commissioner three
years. Justice of the Peace 11 years. Township
Treasurer one year, and was elected Drain Commis-
sioner in the spring of 1883, to serve two years. In
politics he is a Republican.

Our subject was married in the township of Hope,
Canada, Nov. 4, 1840, to Catherine, daughter of
James and Mary (Walker) Flanagan* born July 20,
1818, in Canada. Her parents were of Irish nativity,
and settled in Canada in its pioneer period, and died
there many years ago.

Mr. and Mrs. Decker have Ijuried three of eight
children : Nelson, born Sept. 26, 1841, died Oct, 23,
1870; Elizabeth, born Sept. 2, 1843, died Nov. 20,
1870; Catherine, born Nov. 23, i85i,died Nov. 12,
1 88 1. The loss of their children has had telling
effect upon the parents. All had reached mature
years, and their lives were full of promise. The liv-
ing children are; Eliza, born June 2, 1S45 ; Hester
A., June 23, 1847 ; Matilda, April 12, 1849; Mary
J., Jan. 25, 1854; Amelia R., July 9, 1858. Mr.
Decker's father has about 112 living descendants,

>■

principally in this country.

**^'

^^v

<:llll>:illl^>

MECOSTA COUNTY.

As one of the leading agriculturists of this County,
^' and a gentleman altogether wortliy the position, we
i% present the iiortrait of Mr. Decker in connection with
I this sketch.

'^^rkAi!

ilas Brown, faimer, sec. 15, Green Tp.,was
born in Knox Co., Ohio, Jan. 30, 1838, and
^%. was the fifth child of his parents. His
IK father, Thomas D. Brown, was a native of
^ Pennsylvania, and a farmer by occupation.
His mother, Elizabeth (Adams) Brown, was
ilso a native of the Keystone State, and she and her
husband were among the first settlers of the section
where they resided. She died when her son was but
^1 18 months old. Her successor reared her little
children with care, and Mr. Brown remained at
/>^ home until he was 16 years old, when he went to
a Toledo, Ohio, and obtained employment in a dairy,
^^ remaining there two years. Coming thence to Clin-
ic ton Co., Mich., he bought 80 acres of land, and after
^ farming thereon two years, returned to Ohio.
S^ He was married in 1859, to Emmeline, daughter of
Valentine Ct. and Margaret (Stanley) Smith, natives
^ of Pennsylvania, who was bom Jan. 19, 1S37, in
Ohio. Four of their children are living: Emma E.,
Annie M., Maggie and Eugene. Two are deceased,
Martha A. and Eddie.

In i860, Mr.'Brown returned to Clinton Co., Mich.,
residing there about six months He went back to
Ohio, and after a residence of five years came to Me-
costa County, where he resided a year at Big Rapids,
moving thence to Paris. Six months later he settled
on the farm he now orcu|iies, consisting of 60 acres
of good fanning land.

\l ra A. Ford, farmer, sec. 26, Green Tp.,
^ was born in Kent Co., Mich., July 3, 1850^
and is a son of Richard and Lucinda (God-
frey) Ford. The father was bora in Ontario,
Can., Jan. 1 8, 1825 ; the mother was a native of
New \'()rk. Ira A. was reared to the pursuit of
ulture, and received the education of a fanner's

son. He was an inmate of his father's house until
after his marriage, which took place Dec. 6, 1874, to
Carrie, daughter of Samuel and Sarah A. (Cronk)
Reed, born in Defiance Co., Ohio, June 18, 1858.
Her parents were natives of Ohio, and removed to
Mecosta County, where they still reside. Soon after
marriage Mr. Ford located on 80 acres of land,
which he has since improved and cultivated. He
has placed 30 acres under fair improvement.

Mr. and Mrs. Ford have one child, Bertie J.,
born .Vug. lo, 1877. Mr. Ford lielongs to the Re-
publican party.

-W^^^S

>?5-?5-

'ohn Sweet, lumberman and farmer, sees.
14, 15, 22 and 23, Colfax Tp., was born
April 8, 1835, in New Brunsvifick, and is a
'0 son of John and Joanna Sweet. In 1849
Mr. Sweet came to the " States " with his
father and eldest sister, his mother having pre-
viously died. They settled in Milw.iukee,
where Mr. Sweet passed the remainder of his minor-
ity. When he reached the period of his legal free-
dom, he came to Michigan and embarked in the
lumber business, operating alone three years. He
then entered into a partnership with his brother
Benjamin, and, with their combined facilities, they
proceeded to construct one of the largest saw mills
at Manistee. This relation existed .about ten years,
when it was dissolved. Mr. Sweet remained at
Manistee, operating in lumber, until November, 1881,
when he took up his residence at Grand Rapids,
where he now lives, still retaining his lumber inter-
ests at the former place.

In January, 1883, Mr. Sweet bought 840 acres of
land in the township of Colfax, of which 600 acres
are under the best type of cultivation. He has a
large boarding house, with accommodations for 40
workmen, a good, frame dwelling-house, a large
store-house and two barns, ranking as the best in
Mecosta County, capable of containing 300 tons of
hay, with stone basements, where 1 25 head of cattle
can be stabled. The farm is at present stocked with
sheei> and cattle, and among the latter are some ex-
ceptionally fine thoroughbred Short-Horns.

Mr. Sweet has also extensive lumber relations in
Colfax, and is now engaged on a contract to " put in "
the Muskegon River 150,000,000 feet of pine lumber.

.l^|A^>(^^^-

<^ilii:<^:iiDi>

■^i!^^''^ ^^rvC:D D ^i I

MECOSTA COUNTY.

To facilitate his operations he has built a narrow-
/o gauge railroad, ii miles long, with steel rails, and
^y employs two locomotives in running the logs to the
^^l" river. He also owns a half interest in a new shingle
J mill in Rodney, built at a cost of |l7,ooo. It is fitted
^ with a fifty-horse-power engine, and has a capacity of
130,000 shingles daily. Mr. Sweet owns, in connec-
tion with his other property, a store of general mer-
chandise, at Rodney, in which the postoffice is
established and is managed by Benjamin W. Sweet,
eldest son of the proprietor.

Mr. Sweet was married in 1857, to Almina Rogers,
of Manistee, who died in 1866, leaving four children:
B. W,, Emma, William J. and Edwin. Mr. Sweet
was married again in 1868, to Susan E. Parr, of Wis-
consin. Two children have been born of this mar-
riage : Dora and Bertie.

In political connection, Mr. Sweet is a Republican.
He held the office of City Treasurer of Manistee,
and is a member of the Masonic fraternity, of the
Order of Odd Fellows, and Knights of Honor. He
/JS is a communicant in the Episcopal Church, and Mrs.
^ Sweet is a Baptist. Residence, No. 41 Sheldon St.,
V^ Grand Rapids.

:) \^

I' (^f\ harles H. Montague, farmer, sec. 27,

I r ',1

'^^

( Meen Tp., was born in Vergennes, Kent
■^^ Co., Mich., Dec. 13, 1848, and is a son of
James and Laura L. (Hungerford) Montague,
v^ The father was born Dec. 12, 18 10, in Maine,
and is a son of William and Anna (Crawford)
Montague, natives of England. William Montague
removed with his family to New York and left them
there while he participated in the war of 181 2. After
its close he removed to Canada, virhere he passed the
remainder of his life. Jaraes Montague went to
Lowell, Kent Co., Mich., and improved a farm of 160
acres, which he sold in the spring of 1S56 and came
to Mecosta County, where he entered 1 60 acres of land
under the homestead act, on sec. 27, his present es-
tate. He has at various times handled lands to con-
siderable extent, and has been the proprietor of 1,000
acres; is still holding 500 acres. His wife died Dec.
5, 1875. She was the mother of 11 children: Will-
iam J., Abigail, Laura E., Charles H., Mary, Joseph
K., Helen M., John T., Samuel H. and George W.
Mr. Montague married Mrs. Sarah Wheeler for a

second wife, and, after her death, was married to Mrs.
Polly Tanner.

The subject of this sketch was reared on a farm,
receiving a fair education, and remained under the
parental roof until he was married to Elizabeth Mc-
Gill, May 26, 187 1. She was born in Canada,
March 28, 1849, and of daughter of Malcolm and
Mary E. (Burt) McGill, the former of Scotch lineage
and the latter a native of Canada. Mr. and Mrs.
Montague have four children, viz : Minnie L., born
June 17, 1872; Nellie, June 2, 1874; James H., Nov.
2, 1876; George H., May 22, 1880. Mr. Montague
is a Republican in politics, and is the proprietor of
140 acres of land, now his homestead, with 71 acres
under cultivation.

Sjl^^U-ulius R. Boi'St, i)roprietor of the shingle
H'^^lr "^''^ °" ^^""^ '^' H'^ton Tj)., was born June
|(^^ 29, 1838, in New York. His parents,
-sli©' Henry J. and Anna (Vandelwgart) Borst, were
natives of the State of New York, where his
father owned and managed a saw-mill, and
irought up his son to the same vocation. Until he
attained his majority Mr. Borst alternated study at
the common schools with the labors of the mill, and
for the nine years that followed he was employed in a
lumber mill. He then moved to Pennsylvania where
he was employed at Corydon's Dane, on the Alle-
gheny River, in a lumber and shingle mill Five
years later he went to Allegheny City and passed 18
months there in the same business. He located in
Kent Co., Mich., in the sjjting of 1875, and pursued
his occupation about two years, and bought out the
mill owned by Peter Benson, located on Pine Lake,
five miles west of Cedar Springs. He operated this
mill five years, then removed it to Mecosta County,
locating on sec. 16 in Hinton Tp,, and has since re-
sided there, still running the mill, which has a capac-
ity of 40,000 feet daily. He has 20 men in his em-
ploy and is doing a thriving business. By undeviat-
ing attention to business, Mr. B. has earned the
reputation of running his mill more continuously
than any other mill-owner in the county. He owns
200 acres of timber land in Hinton Tp.

Mr. Borst is a Democrat in political faith. His
earnest devotion and loyalty to his country was

i^DIIv^-V^^ ^>^^

^ 320

"^i^^?!.?:

-r<>[lD>:DD>>T

"P^'ii

m^^j\M

MKCOSTA COUNTY.

proven Dec. 19, 1863, when he enlisted in Co. A,

& 50th N. Y. Rngs' Reg., which consisted entirely of

-f; skilled mechanics. He served until the close of the

i war, a period of 19 months, and received honorable

discharge Ji-ine 28, 1865, at Fort Barney, Va. He

^ belongs to the Masonic Order, and is a member of

Cedar Springs Lodge, No. 213. He was married at

Ceres, Pa., Dec. 6, i86i,to iMary, daughter of Henry

and Ann (Marilla) Knight, born in Chemung Co., N.

v., Dec. 6, 1840. Her parents were natives of the

State of New York, where her mother died. Her

father lives with her, a hale old gentleman, aged 76

\cars. Mr. and Mrs. Burst luivc had three children :

\ Julius T., l)orn April 29, 1864; James H., July 13,

866. One child died in infancy.

anson F. Corey, Supervisor of Grant Tp..
*>~!f .^;^j fjirnjev on sec. i 2, was born in Cra^v-
ford Co., O., -A.pril 7, 1841. He is a son of
Enos and Kh'/.a Corey, both natives of the
Buckeye State. His father died July 17, i860,
and his mother still resides in Ohio.
Mr. C'orey was reared to manhood in his naiive
, State, and was a citizen of the same until his removal
to Michigan in 1866. In that year he entered and
proved a claim under the homestead law, consisting
of 80 acres of land, on which he has since resided,
and which he has put in first-class condition, and fur-
nished with good and suitalile farm buildings. He
owns an additional 40 acres on sec. 10. Mr. Corey
was a soldier of the war of the Rebellion, and en-
listed in September, 1861, in Company K, 23d Ohio
Yol. Inf, under ('apt. Sills. His first engagement
was at I'erryville, and afterward he parlici|iated in
tl'ie fights at Resaca, l'eai:li-'rree Creek, Stone River,
('hickamauga, Lookout Mountain and many minor
skirmishes, to the siege of Atlanta, where he was
womidcd. Ill- was then in hosijital at Jeffersonville,
Ind., until within a few weeks of his discharge, which
took place in June, i>!64, at Camp Dennison, Ohio.
Mr. Corey was elected Su|)ervisor of his township
•p-^ in 1867, and re-elected in 18S3; he served as Town-
ij' shi|) I'reasurerin i88i-2;as Road Commissioner from
jMi 1867 to 1874 inclusive, and as Justice of the Peace
from 1867 to 1871. He belongs to the (1. .'\. R_
He w;us married Nov. 17, 1S63, to Margaret, daugh-

ter of Samuel and Sarah English. Her parents are
natives of Pennsylvania, and are both living. Of
this marriage si.\ children have been born, namely :
Naomi A., William Harvey, John Franklin, Sarah
Eliza, Samuel Wesley, and Zoe Luella. Mr. and
Mrs. Care members of the United Brethren Church.

^Wii^il y"'^'^ Nethaway, farmer on sec. 24, ^-Etna
d rHE '^P-' ^^''is hww in Ontario Co., N. Y., Feb. 3,
slllWr 1810. His father, James Nethaway, was of

English parentage, and his mother — Elizabeth
,k, (Neice) Nethaway, was a native of Long Island,
^ N. Y., and was of Welsh extraction.

Mr. Nethaway received a good education in early
life for the [lurpose of becoming a teacher, and at 18
years of age taught his first term at Perry, Genesee
Co., N. Y. He came thence to Michigan, and taught
during the years 1833-4. He then returned to his
home, and having married, himself and wife turned
their faces westward and came to Hillsdale Co.,
Mich., where Mr. Nethaway purchased a farm under
the original land patent of 1835. In the year 1850
he went to Sauk Co., Wis., and there engaged three
years in farming. Becoming dissatisfied he came
back to Lenawee County, and settled at Rollin, in
1853. In 1854 he decided to try the Hawkeye State,
and bought a farm in Buchanan County, where he
remained eight years. In 1856 he returned to Mich-
igan, and setUed in Mecosta County. He has been
engaged during eleven years in mercantile business
in Morley, and upon closing his commercial affairs
bought a farm, and now lives in retirement.

Mr. Nethaway was married Sept. 6, 1835, to Lu-
cetta, daughter of Jonathan and Mary (Wood) Ralph,
respectively of ICnglish and Welsh origin, and resi-
dents of Woodstock, Windsor Co., Vt. Three chil-
dren were born of this marriage, as follows : Mar-
cellus 'I"., born .May 13, 1836; Cassius Marcus, born
Jan. 17, 1848, died in the army from injaries received
at the battle of Bull's Gap, E. Tenn., April 22, 1865:
was a soldier in Co. D, Third Michigan \o\. Inf;
Florence A., liorn in 1849, and died March 10, 1850.

Mr. Nethaway is a radical Republican, and actively
engaged in all social and moral reforms. Himself
and wife profess no ])articular creed, but hold to their
innate belief thai honesty and genuine moralilv are

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■^<^0!l>:tlDv>

c^ ^ <^^ ^t^i^-e-^:^.

V\ 1

MECOS TA CO UN 7' i '

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safe guides in their intercourse with the world.
Mr. Nethaway has held offices of trust in his town-
shiii for IS years. He was Tostniaster at Bii; Creek
nearly three years, under Lincoln's administration,
and was Supervisor of Deerfield Tp. several years,
also Treasurer and Assessor several years.

':^^|orace F. Richardson, Township flerk of
^ "^ ' Colfax, and farmer on sec. 21, was born
(Bt'^' Oct. 21, 1848, in Genesee Co., N. Y., and
in 7856 came with his parents to Michigan and
settled at Benton, Eaton Co.
( Mr. Richardson came to Colfax Tp. in 1871,

and is chiefly engaged in lumbering interests and
managing shingle mills. He was married in 1S7 i to
Mary, daughter of John and Lydia Teachout, of
Grand Ledge, Eaton Co., Mich. Of this marriage
one child— Clyde E.— has been bom.

Politically, Mr. Richardson is a Republican. He
was elected to his official position in 18S3. P.O.,
Big Rapids.

E^<«H*'-i-«'^^

avid H. Sanford, dairyman at Big Rai)ids

was born at

Vermontville, Eaton Co.,
His father, Reu-

t)|H,,vp-'# Mich., Sept. 26, 1836.
4iW^ ben Sanford, came to the township of Ver-
j^'^ montville, with a colony from Vermont, in June,
"V 1836— at so early a period that they were
obliged to cut roads through the woods for their
teams, the distance of 17 miles. The mother,
Susannah Sanford, was the first white woman who
went to Eaton County, and she had to do the house-
keeping for the settlers.

Mr. Sanford, of this sketch, was born soon after
their arrival, and was the pioneer white baby of the
township. On reaching their destination, a log cabin
was hastily constructed, the weather was warm, and
the " chinking " altogether deficient. Ventilation
was perfect, and the father said the new comer
could easily be thrown through the cracks in the
walls of the cabin, which was reared in the woods
remote from the advantages of civilization; and David
H. had few privileges until 25 years of age, save
the rude experiences which have so often made bet-
ter men than have the comparative ease and facilities
of older communities.

His hard, laborious life fostered in him a spirit of
independence which found vent in a prompt re-
sponse to the call of his country in her bitterest
trial, and he enlisted in Marshall, Calhoun Co.,
Mi.h., Oct 21, i86i,in Co. C, First Mich. Engs. and
Mechs, and was discharged April 13, 1862, at Louis-
ville, Ky., on account of physical disability. The
first two summers thereafter he worked as a farm
assistant, and went to school winters. Li the spring
of 1864, his father having sold out in Vermontville,
settled at Lowell, Kent Co., and bought a farm,
whither his son accompanied him, and was employed
in the Grand River Valley nursery one season. In
1S65 he went to Greenville, Montcalm Co., where he
spent a year in agricultural pursuits, and then turned
his attention to carpentry, which occupied his time
for six years at Greenville, after which he went to
Cedar Springs and followed the same calling three
years. He \hen bought 40 acres^ in Algona Tp.,
Kent Co., and there resided three years. At that
time he experienced a severe loss by fire, which con-
sumed his barn, one horse, and his farming imple-
ments. He then gave up farming and went to
Greenville, where he commenced the business of a
draymaster, and continued in that vocation until
September, 1877. He then came to Big Rapids and
established himself in the same calling, and is now
running three drays steadily, and increasing his
draught faciliries on occasion. Mr. Sanford has
served four terms as Deputy-Marshal of Big Rapids,
and one year as Constable. He is a member of the
I. O. O. F., Royal Arcanum Lis. Co., and also be-
longs to the Encampment.

Mr. Sanford was married at Lowell, July 23, 1865,
to Arthalinda Tanner, born in Ontario, April 3, 1S48,
and they have four children : Emerson, Maiy, Susie
and Mina. The parents and eldest daughter are
members of the M. E. Church.

fj^^l'elson Van Alstine, farmer, sec. 15, Grant
III ill Tp., was born June 14, 1843, in Wolcott,
t'l^^l Wayne Co., N. Y. About the year 1857
ilW his parents settled in Shiawassee Co., Mich.,

k where they resided 14 years, the father dying in >

^'^ 1 86 1 ; the mother resides in Grant Tp. ^

Mr. Van Alstine began his career as an agncul- ^'^

> 322

MECOSTA COUNTY.

-mm^\^^

tiirist in Shiawassee Co., in 1864, where he lived five
years, then sold his farm and made a homestead
claim of 80 acres on sec. 10 in Grant Tp., on which
he resided five )'ears. In 1S75 he bought 40 acres
of choice land on sec. 15, where he is engaged in
farming, and is still proprietor of his original tract of
land. His farm is well improved and valuable.

Mr. Van Alstine was married Dec. 26, 1S64, to
Sarah Elizabeth Blyth, of Wolcott, N. Y., and of their
marriage five ciiildren have been born: James E.,
William H., Nettie O., Robert Emmet and Dora Isa-
bel. Mr. Van Alstine is a Republican in political
relations, and has been Constable two years. His
paternal and maternal grandsires were both soldiers
of the Revolutionary war.

,■ ;71^ rank G. Rice, fanner, sec. 5, (Ireen Tp.,
_J f„ was born in Burr. Oaks, St. Joseph Co.,
IW'^r Mich., Feb. 9, 1836, and is the son of
Gershom and Sarah (Boyden) Rice. His
'^ father was a native of Massachusetts, and was
a clothier in his native State. He came to
3 Michigan in 1835 and engaged in farming, an occu-
y pation he followed until 1S83, when, having reached
Si the age of 78 years, he retired. The mother was
born in Vermont, and died in 1872.

Mr. Rice remained with his father on the farm
until 1862, when he enlisted in the 1 gth Mich. Inf.,
Co. E, and was in the service until the close of the
war, receiving his discharge June 25, 1865, at Wash-
ington, D. C. Following are the principal battles in
which he was engaged: Thompson's Station, Re-
saca, New Hope Church, Peach-Tree Creek, siege of
Atlanta, siege of .Savannah, etc., etc. He did not
receive a bodily injury, but has a piece of a rebel
shell that startled his peace of mind for a short time
and concentrated his thoughts upon the question of
his personal security. He was taken prisoner Marcli
5, 1863, and confined at Libby for a few days, being
exchanged May 30, 1.S63. Mr. Rice is a member of
the Union Prisoners of War Association of the State
of Michigan, and was a delegate to the Convention.
After his return he remained in St. Joseph County
until the spring of 1867, when he came to Mecosta
County, and worked for some time at the masons'
trade at Big Rapids, after which he located on his
present farm, containing 160 acres of land, with 70

acres under improvement. He was married at South
Albion, Calhoun Co., Mich., April ig, 1866, to Al-
meda, daughter of Samuel W. and Sarah (Parsons)
Hamilton. She was born Jan. 13, 1836, in Bellevue,
Mich. Her parents were natives of Massachusetts,
came to Michigan in 1835 and resided in Homer,
Calhoun County, until their death, — that of the
father occurring in 185 1, and that of the mother in
July, 1864. Mr. and Mrs. Rice have four children:
Boyden H., Jasper F., Frederick E. and Edward H.

i-4--^'v\/\,i

^^■^^-^ — t'

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yfWmi' eorge E. Hatfield, farmer and miller, sec. i,

"'lifel'i Wheatland Tp., was born in Schenectady
^j|p^ Co., N. v., Sept. 29, 1829. He is the son
r%% of Stephen and Phebe (Priest) Hatfield,

4' natives of New York, of English descent. Mr.

I Hatfield was educated in the State Normal
School at .Albany, N. Y., where he was fitted for the
profession of teacher, a calling upon which he
entered when 20 years of age, and pursued until he
was 40 years old. He was married Feb. 10, 1S53, in
Wayne Co., N. Y., to Lois J., daughter of Orrin and
Betsey H. (Reed) Lapliam, of New York. She was
born in Wayne County, Sept. 28, 1S32, and was edu-
cated at Palmira, N. Y., preparatory to becoming a
teacher, which calling she followed but a brief period
lielore marriage.

Mr. Hatfield was engaged in agriculture sunnners
and in teaching winters, in his native State, until the
spring of 1858, when he came to Allegan Co., Mich.,
there resuming the same alternation of employment.
In 18O0 he made another transfer, going to Kalama-
zoo County, where he remained nine years. In 1869
he returned to Allegan County and enil>arked in tlie
mercantile business at Plain well, where he continued
to operate until the spring of 1878, the date of his
settlement in Mecosta County, He located on 160
acres of unimproved land, where he set himself vig-
orously at work, and has brought the place to a com-
paratively improved condition; has 45 acres under
the plow, and other evidences of successful effort are
manifest on the farm. He has erected a saw and
shingle mill, the former having a capacity of 10,000
feet per diem, the latter of 40,000 shingles daily.
Mr. Hatfield is an ardent supporter of the tenets of
the Republican party. The tendency and character-
istics of the family are clearly proven by the status

I
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MECOSTA COUNTY.

323

of the nine children, five danu,hters and four sons
all of whom arc following in the footsteps of the
parents. Their births occurred as follows: Mary
E., Nov. 7, 1853; Carrie P., Feb. 25, 1856; Wni. B.,
July 12, 1858; Ellen L., Apr. 21, 1862; Ira L., Aug.
16,1864; Justin K., Oct. 16, 1867; Cora A, May
23, 1870; Julius C, May 11, 1S73; Charles E., Dec.

6,1877. The oldest child
Academy, Mich.

s a graduate of I'lainwell

-S3^

_i i_

J, i_

Zk-

ohn Freiberg, farmer, sec. 22, (Ireen Tp.,

was born in Germany, Sept. 2t, 1823, and

is a son of Gerhart and Dora (Frenke)

Freiberg. He was taught in the lower-grade

schools of his native country, and afterward

learned the tailor's trade, which he pursued 36

years in Germany. In 1S76 he came to

America, and made his first location at Big Rapids,

later on buying his farm in Green Tp., where he has

since diligently pursued the business of farming.

Mr. Freiberg was married in Germany, in 1849,
to Johanna, daughter of John and Christina (Mann)
Bowman, born Aug. 26, 1S26. Twelve children have
been born of this marriage, nine of whom are living :
August F., Albert J., Henry W., Hermann F., Char-
lie J., Bertie C, Ida F., Emma C. and Huldah A.
Those deceased are Anna J., Johanna and Frank.
The family are members of the Lutheran Church.
Mr. Freilterg is a Democrat.

4^PMlTha

,^Z

|u],y|">,harles O. Johnson, proprietor of the bot-
tling Works at Big Rapids, was born in
"^ Norway, April 27, 1852. He is a son of
John and Annie Johnson, and in his native
country was engaged in farming and in vari-
i ous other occupations. In the spring of 1873
he came to this country and settled at Big Rapids,
where he had friends residing. He found employ-
ment as a farm laborer, and soon after made an en-
gagement with O. Seman to work on the farm and in
lumbering, which lasted five years. He opened a
Iiottling cstaljlishment on Hutchinson street, in Jan.,
1879, and on the i6th day of July following moved
to his present location opposite the Big Rapids Iron

Works. He manufactures soda water and ginger ale, ^
and puts up an average of 10,000 bottles monthly
for the trade in this and adjoining counties. Mr.
Johnson was married at Big Rapids, Aug. 8, 1883, to 1
Mary Stange, who was born in Canada, April 3, 1862. it

t-oseph Smith, farmer, sec.

was born near Toronto, Can., Aug.

,1, Green Tp.,
r, 1847,
IJK-,F*^ and is the tenth child of William and
Esther (Caller) Smith, natives of England, who
left the old country and became pioneers of
York Co., Ont. The father was a farmer by
occupation, and died July 13, 1881. The mother is
still residing on the homestead, which has been in
the possession of the family nearly 50 years.

Mr. Smith was reared on his father's farm to the
age of t4 years, when he commenced to learn the
wagon-making trade. After one and one-half years'
labor he turned his attention to blacksmithing for
about four months, when he resumed farming. In
the fall of 1865 he came to Michigan and located
first on the Big Prairie, in Newaygo County, where he
passed ten years, going thence to Barton Tp., where
he also purchased a farm. In he fall of 1879 the
bought his homestead, consisting of 65 acres of land,
of which he has 35 acres improved.

Mr. Smith was married April 13, 1866, to Nancy
M., daughter of John and Minerva Miller, born Jan.
17, 1847, in Kent Co., Mich. Her parents were
natives of Vermont. The family includes an
adopted daughter, Mabel M. (Haight) Smith. Mr.
Smith is one of the most esteemed citizens of the
township. Himself and wife are members of the
(-'hristian Church, and he is a Republican in his
political views.

' "|if eorge W. Heald, farmer, sec. 2, Millbrook
■ Tp., was born in Oswego Co., N. Y., May

-7i 1853- He is a son of William and
rWA Rosetta (Fitzch) Heald, natives of New York
'{* and of English descent. The family removed
^ to Van Buren Co., Mich., in 1858, where
Mr. Heald assisted his father on a farm until the
autumn of 1863, when another remove was made to
Ionia County, the father and son operating lliere as

W<^^^^'

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324

^rECOSTA COUNTY.

lumbermen two years. In the fall of 1865 they came
to Millbrook, settled on sec. 2, and started the first
grocery in the township, managing farming interests
in connection therewith. The grocery business was
finally suspended.

Mr. Heald was married May 27, iSSo, in Wheat-
land Tp., to Maggie, daughter of David and Agnes
(Smith) Ruxton, who was born in Huron Co., Can.,
July 2, 1863; her parents were also natives of
Canada. When she was 12 years old she came to
Michigan with an elder sister. Mr. and Mrs. Heald
have one child, Alfred R., born Jan. 27, 1SS2. Mr.
Heald is a Republican in politics, antl owns a farm
containing 40 acres of land.

.^k^ianm^

'ames Dixon, farmer, sec. 3, Green T]
\ born in Susse.K Co., N. J., Dec. 23,

, was
1810.

T^P^ His father, Isaac Dixon, was born in New
('ivj' York, and died in 1S13, when ihe son was

'.'•e* but three years of age. His mother, Phebe

\S (Clark) Di.xon, was born in New Jersey, and

after the death of her first husband became

the wife of James Martin, with whom Mr. Di.xon

remained until 22 years of age, assisting in the farm

labors and obtaining a common-school education

He was married Dec. i, 1832, to Julia, daughter of
John and Phebe (Mead) Adams. Mrs. Dixon was
born in Sussex Co., N. J., Nov. 22, 181 1. After
their marriage, herself and husband removed to
Steuben Co., N. V'.,and were occupied with the duties
of farming about five years. Mr. Dixon then " took
up" 50 acres of land, where he was occupied with
agricultural pursuits until he came West to seek a
home. In May, 1862, he came to Mecosta Co.,
Mich., bought a farm of 80 acres and proceeded to
establish his family and put his place in a fair condi-
tion for the [jurposes of agriculture.

Mrs. Dixon died Sept. 14, 1873, leaving two chil-
dren, — Harrison, born Nov. 19, 1833, and William,
born June 16, 1846. Four children preceded her in
their deaths: Pliebe, born March 13, 1836, died
Sept. 4, 1841; May E., born Jan. 14, 1839, died
Sept. 7, 1841; Milton, born Dec. 9, 1842, died Oct.
9, 1870; Sarah A., l.iorn Jan. 12, 1848, died Sept. 2,
[867. Mr. Dixon was married again May 13, 1875.
I lis second wife was Mrs. Maria M. (.Xdnnis) .^ustin,

sister of his first wife, and born in Sussex Co., N. J.
Mr. Di.xon is a Democrat politically. He held the
office of Postmaster of Crapo (Osceola Co.) from
187 1 to 1882, and is considered one of tJie solid
citizens of Mecosta County.

'SSiC eorge I. Kale, farmer, sec. 2, Grant Tp.,
j^j lf was liorn March 19, 1843, in Niagara Co.
iS.'P^ ^ N. Y., and is a son of Levi and Asenath
^'j^'S Hale, both parents being natives of Vermont,

where the father was born in 1813; he died in

\ Michigan in 1883. The mother was born in
i8i3,and is still living in Eaton, Mich.

The parents came to this State when the son was
but six months old, and he was under their supervis-
ion until he was 19 years of age, when he became a
soldier in the Union army. He enlisted August 8,
1862, in Co. D, 7th Mich. Cavalry, and rendezvoused
at Grand Rapids until February, 1863, when his reg-
iment was sent to the front. Following is the list of
engagements in which he took part: Thoroughfare
Gap, May 21, '63; Greenwich, May 30; Hanover,
May 30; Hunterstown, Gettysburg, Monterey, June 4;
Covertown, Smithton, Boonesboro, Hagerstown, Wil-
liamsport, Boonesboro (2d), Falling Waters, Sinker's
Gap, Kelly's Ford, Culpepper C. H., Raccoon Ford,
James' City, Brandy Station, Bucklin Mills, Stevens-
Inirg, Morton's Ford, Richmond, Wilderness, Beaver
Dam Station, Yellow Tavern, Meadow Bridge, Cold
Harbor, Trevillian Station, Winchester, Front Royal,
Leetown, .Shepardston, Smithfield, Beiryville, Sum-
mit, Occoijuan, Port Republic, Woodstock, Cedar
Creek, Madison C. H., Louisa C. H., Five Forks,
Appomattox C. H., Little Laramie, Dakota. He was
discharged Dec. 15, 1865, at Ft. Leavenworth, Kan.

On his return from the army he came to Grant Tp.
and entered a homestead claim of So ai res. Here
he has since resided and put his place under good
improvements. He was married July 4, 1866, to
Alice, daughter of Gideon and Mary Bentley. Mrs.
Hale was born in Manchester, Ontario Co., N. Y.,
Feb. 3, 1847, and is the mother of two children:
Lawrence M., born Oct. 19, 1867, and Clarence
G., Sept. 5, 1876.

Mr. Hale is a Republican in [mlilicnl prim iple,
has served ten years as Road Commissioner, and is

^
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<-^pa:<tlUv>T^

MECOSTA COUNTY.

321

a member of the G. A. R. He is earnestly interested
in the cause of education and in the schools of his
lownship.

)orn in Guilford,
o. i8?i. He

)

rt^B^on. Fitch Phelps was
-" "^ - c'henango Co., N. Y., June j
||^3^--'* traces his genealogy to the Phelps family
xAis; Q^ Tewksbury, Gloucestershire, Kngland. Wil-
liam Phelps, Major or Bailiff of Tewksbury in
] 1607, was l)orn about the middle- of the 1 6lh
century. The following entry is found in the Regis-
ter of Tewksbury Parish, during the season of Lent,
A. D. 1599:

" I granted a license to William Phelps, being then
extremlye sicke, to eate fieshe, which license to en-
dure no longer tyme than during his sickness.
Rev. Curties,

Curate of Tewksbury.''
S William Phelps, his son, was born at or neaf
J>V Tewksbury, about the year 1590. He emigrated
° with his wife and five children, and his two unm-nr-
^ ried brothers, George and Richard, sailing from
S Ply mouth, where the " Mayflower " with the loi Pil-
grim Fathers of 1620 waved her last farewell, on the*
ship "Mary and John," March 20, 1630, and laud-
ed at Hull, Massachusetts, May 30. In 1635, he
went to Windsor, Conn., where he won a prominent
position in the affairs of both Church and State, and
where he died in 1672. The family continued to re-
side in Connecticut for six generations. Joel Phelps,
the father of our subject, was born in Connecticut,

% but did not remain long in his native State. In the

% • ■

earlier years of his manhood, he was a lumberman on

the Hudson River, near Glens Falls, New York.
Later in life he removed to Chenango Co., N. Y., and
engaged in farming.

He married Hulda Dean, a native of New York.
His people were highly respected for that sort of
integrity, strength and purity of character that con-
stituted marked virtues among the agricultural classes
in the earlier years of our country. They had a fam-
ily of 14 children, the youngest son and 13th child
I)eing the subject of this sketch. He was raised
on the farm, and obtained his rudimentary education
by attending the district school keiit a short dis-

J>'5(^#ff=

mr^^

tance from his father's house, finishing with an aca-
demic course at Richburg, Allegany Co., N. Y. Here,
at the age of 2r, he engaged in tlie milling busi-
ness for two years. He then embarked in the mer-
cantile business, which he followed four years at
Friendship, Allegany Co., N. Y., and at Brock-
wayviile, Jefferson Co., Penn. \\\ the summer of
1S62 he went to California, where he spent five years
in ilie valley of San Mateo, in agricultural pursuits
and in speculation. In 1863, he was appointed
Provost Marshal for the county, enrolling it for army
draft. On returning, in 1868, he located in Colfa.x,
Mecosta Co., Mich. Here he purchased a fine tract
of pine land, built a mill and engaged in lumbering.
As an adjunct to the business he has cleared up a
large farm, making his honie on the shore of Clear
Lake, five miles from Big Rapids.

Mr. Phelps has always been an ardent Republi-
can, one who does not swerve from the views and
principles which are promvdgated and advocated by
those acting with him in that political organization.
He has never been an office-seeker. His career is
that of a practical business man, intensely devoted
to his private interests, and participating in public
affairs only as an incident, with no effort to secure
advancement. In 1876 he was the regular nominee
of the Republican Convention for Member of the
Lower House of the Legislature. The district com-
prised the counties of Mecosta, Osceola and Lake.
Elected by a handsome majority, he took a promi-
nent part in matters before the House, and did
thorough and conscientious work for his constituents.
Was member of the Committees on Railroads and
the University. In 1878 he was re-elected to the
House from Mecosta County, the State having in the
meantime been re-districted. At this session he
was Chairman of the Committee on the LTniversity
and member of the Ways and Means Committee.
His second term in the House was marked for the
active interest and zeal he manifested in working
for the cause of temperance. His sincerity, added to
a fearlessness of temper which never shrank from
the expression, on siutable occasions, of liis real
opinions and sentiments, gave weigh' to what he
uttered, and left no one who heaid without strong
convictions of his earnestness.

In the year 1882, he was the Republican candidate
for the Senate from the 27th District, cominising the
counties of Mecosta, Osceola, We\fi)rd and Manistee.

^;:^/^■)«>i^t^

328

>f It is a fact wortliN of mcnlion that he was the uiiani-
^ mous dioice of the Convention, there l)eing not adis-
.'jTj senting voice, and his nomination was by acclama-
j tion. He was elected by a majoiity of more than
^'^J 1,000 votes over the opposing candidate of the com-
bined Democratic and Greenback parties.

In the Senate, Mr. Phelps was prompt, regular
and constant in his attendance vqion the sessions
of tliat body and the meetings of his committees. He
introduced but few bills, believing that there are too
/ many matters of little importance brought before that
liody, which serve only to pass away time and length-
en the term of the session. He proposed an amend-
ment to the .State Constitution by a joint resolution
giving members of the Legislature a salary instead
of a pcr-dicm, and forbidding the use or acceptance
of free railroad passes. It was adopted by the Legis-
lature, and will be submitted to a vote of the people
in 1884. He was Chairman of the Committee on
the State House of Correction at Ionia, member of the
^ Committees on Public Health, Library, Geological
=3 Survey, Appropriations and Finance.
'■^ Mr. Phelps is favored with a superb physical con-
= stitution, and combines strictness of moral principles
y* with energy and decision of character. He has
made profitable investments, become interested in
'' remunerative enterprises, vi-un honorable success in
business and secured a competence, as the product
of personal industry and good judgment, put forth in
a field wisely selected. He was married Oct. tj,
1857, to Miss Harriet Wellman, a woman well edu-
^ cated and accomplished, a native of Friendship,
^=% Allegany Co., N. Y., and of English ancestry on the
^ side of her fuher, and Scoti h on lliat of her mother.
Her father, Arba Wellman, an enterprising and pros-
perous merchant in Friendsjiip, was born in Vermont ;
lier motlier, Esther Burt, was born in New V'ork
State.

Mrs. Phelps is well educated and accomplished,
amialile and kind, and accordingly lias rendered her

J liome one of contentment and happiness for her hus-

'^ ...

% band and mvUmg to friends.

/ As one of the most honored representative citizens

%) of Northern Miclrigan, we take [jleasure in present-

> iiig tlie |)ortrait of Mr. Plielps in this Album.

<:IlII>c>[lD^>

MECOSTA COUNTY.

WWWm dwin J. Marsh, attorney at Bis; Rapids, of

^ the firm of Glidden & Marsh, was born at
M^^^' Howell, Livingston Co., Mich., May 29,
°' °' 1850. His father, Z. H. Marsh, by professio'1
a physician, was liorn in Montague, Franklin
Co., Mass., and his mother, Luthera Marsh, was
l.iorn in Dana, Mass.

Edwin attended the puljlic school at Howell until
19 years old, when he entered Cornell University, at
Ithaca, N. Y. At the end of the first year he left
Cornell for Michigan Univei'sity, entering the Soph-
more Class of the Literary Department. His health
compelled him to leave the University at the end of
the year, and in hopes of recovering the same he join-
ed an engineer corps of the A., T. & S. F. R. R. Co..
and remained west until 1872. Returning in the
winter of 1872 to Howell, he entered the office of
H. H. Harmon and studied law; attended law lec-
tures at the LTniversity of Michigan, and was ad-
mitted to the Bar in 1874. In 1875 he removed to
Big Rapids, in company with N. W. Carpenter, with
whom he opened an office for the practice of law.
At the end of a year he entered into a partnershij)
with D. Roben, which existed about one year. Af-
ter the dissolution of this partnership, he remained
alone in the practice of his jirofession until 1879,
when he became associated with D. F. Glidden, his
present partner.

In 1876 he was married to Alma, daughter of
J. W. and Alvira Burr, of Ionia Co., Mich. They
have one child, Frank B., born March 4, rS8o.

-5 ^-^ J^

-JlOfjf ohn ]je Duke, boot and shoe dealer at Big
'^''^^1'" ^'T'^^i^' was born in East Hawkesbury, Pi-.
5;>^K' of Ontario, Feb. 21, 1843. He was reai'ed
a farmer until the age of 20, when he began
^F to acquire the details of the slioemaker's trade
at East Hawkesbury. In Octol>er, 1867, lie
came to this city and commenced the prosecution of
his trade, and in 1S73 established himself at his pres-
ent stand. He has a full line of all goods common to
tlie trade, valued at $5,000, with an annual busines
amounting to $20,000. His real estate in Biu l\;i

■ft

*7>

4f
I

I p.

.2^

<!ll!l:^DDi->^

« lft\^ <®^

<>I1D^I

MECOSTA COUNTY.

(hj

)

>
)

ids is considerable, consisting of two stores on Mich-
igan avenue, one of which is his stand of business;
the otlier is occufjied by Aylsworth & Ladoucer,
clothiers ; four stores on tlie same block north of
his own location, his residence on Rust avenue, and
two vacant lots on Michigan avenue, near Hemlock
street.

Mr. Le Duke was married at Syracuse, N. V., Jan.
2, 1867, to Julia, daughter of Martin Harris.

i[t saac Wambold, farmer and carpenter, resi-
dent on sec. 28, Wheatland Tp., was Ijorii
in Montgomery Co., Pa., Nov. 24, 1823.
His parents, John and Margaret (Gangler) Wam-
bold, were natives of Pennsylvania and of
German descent. They went to the State of
New York when the son was 18 months old, and he
remained under their personal supervision until the
age of 14, when he became assistant of an elder
brother, who had assumed control of the homestead
farm. He \vorked four years as a farmer, and at 18
was apprenticed to learn the carpenter's trade. He
only served a part of his time, but went into business
for himself. He was married Nov. 19, 1844, to Har-
riet J., daughter of Alonzo and Hannah Mace, and
they have one child, Cornelia A., born April 30,-
1852. He went to Dodge Co., Wis., in the s[)ring of
1854, where he followed his trade ten years. In
1864 he came to Berrien Co., .Mich, and bought a
small farm, which he worked in connection with his
profession, and afterward went to Ionia, thence to
Wheatland Tp , where he "took up" i6o acres of
land under the homestead act, which had then just
gone into effect. He has since resided here, and dur-
ing the time has been twice married, both wives dy-
ing shortly after marriage. He was married to his

present wife, Oct.

/D-

She was Mrs. Sarah
Schiedel, daughter of James C. and Elizabeth
(Bear) Smith, and was born June 29, 1832, in Water-
loo Co., Ontario, Can., of which county her i)arents
were also natives. She was an orphan at the age uf
seven years, and was cared for by an aunt until her
marriage.

Mr. Wambold began to teach school in the winter
of 1869, in Wheatland Tp., a profession he has since
pursued to some extent. He is indeiiendent in poH-
tics, has been Justice of the Peace 16 years, and

i^^^^eury T. Albro, farmer, sec. 36, Hig Rapids

Tp., was born in Clreenfield, Wayne Co.,

'^1^-- Mich., Jan. 5, 1841. The jjlace of his birih

^^ is now within the limits of the city of Detroit.

^ He is a son of Clark and Catherine (O'Neil)

I Albro, the former born July 5, 1819, at Cortland,

N. Y., of French and English extraction. The

served one term as County Superintendent of Schools.
He has been Township Clerk, and held nearly all
the minor local offices, lie is now Justice of the
Peace, Supervisor and Scliool Inspector, and belongs
to the Masonic Lodge at Big Rapids.

flic ust. Zetterstedt, dealer in foreign and dom-

estic liciuors, cigars, etc., at Big Rapids,
was born in Sweden, April 20, 1837, a son

k' ' of Emanuel and Mary Zetterstedt. In 1852,
when he was 15 years old, lie was placed in a

f mercantile establishment to serve a regular
term of years, under instructions preparatory to a
tonnriercial life, and at 21 he was at the head of an
establishment for the sale of general merchandise,
liquors, and the variety usually found in that class
of business in the countries. This he managed until
1864, when the entire town (Ronneby), built wholly r\
of wood, burned down, and he suffered total loss of
everything. Mr. Zetterstedt came to the United States
and to Big Rapids in 187 i, having received while at
home reports of the place which recommended it as
having for him a future of promise. He was em-
ployed on a construction corps of the G. R. & I.
railroad, and was connected with the repair force
about three years; then went to Grand Ra[)ids and
was engaged in the freight department. In 1878
he came to Big Rajjids and was emiiloyed by P.
Erikson about two years. He opened his present
business in the fall of 1880.

Mr. Zetterstedt was married at Big Rapids June 4,
1882, to Anna Peterson, a native of Sweden, born
Sept. 12, 1855. They have one child. The family
attend the Lutheran Church. Mr. Zetterstedt is a
member of Kronan's CeilUling, a Swedish society.

r?'

'I'*

mother was a native of County Tyrone, Ireland, born (§"
in 1 82 1, anc

in 1S21, and first came to the United States when ^

^ \

MECOSTA COUNTY.

-■^e^Qfi-^

-t^^^.^^,#:

^Jf very young. Her father u as a sua cajitain, and she
^ was on the Atlantic Ocean, chiefly, until she was six
years old. She died April 26, 1883, at Detroit.
I Mr. Albro was married May 9, 1867,10 Cynthia

,-?, . R., daughter of William and Rosanna Butler, of Eng-
lish and German descent on the paternal side, and
on the mother's, of Scotch and French origin. Mrs.
Albro was born in Detroit, Mich., Jan. 15, 1852.

Mr. Albro came to Mecosta County in September,
1867, and took up 2,2, acres of Government land on
^ sec. 36, on whicli he now resides, and has a good
portion under fine cultivation.

•tei-H—

— <-^-

hharles Rathvon, ot tlie firm of Rathvon
^^jf"" Bros., proprietors of the Mecosta Planing
P'^ Mil

I, 1850.

was born in Welland, Ont., March
He is a son of Jacob and Eliza-
5i' Ijetli (AUvard) Rathvon. The father was a
\ carpenter and joiner, and a native of Canada ;
he died in 1855, in his 34th year. The mother was
a native of the Dominion, and died in Elgin (_'o.,
Can., July 20, 1S83, aged 54 years. Until he was
r8 years old Mr. Rathvon was engaged as a farm as-
sistant, and was after that employed with his brother
in working as a builder, in which occupation his
brother had extensive interests. Four years later he
went to New York and found employment as a
builder at Tonavvanda, where he operated four years.
r)ne summer he spent in the employment of the
Government, building lake shore survey stations.
His next remove was to St. Thomas, Can., and two
years later he went to St. Johns, Clinton Co., Mich.,
and was employed by the St. Johns Manufacturing
Co., two years. In August, iS8i,he came with his
lirother, Benjamin, to Mecosta village, and engaged
in contracting and building. They built a planing
mill in November, 1882, and are now turning out the
customary products, planing, matching, siding, ceil-
ing, moldings, etc. Tiiey generally employ about ten
men and operate considerably in contracting and
l)uilding.

Mr. Rathvon was married in Welland Co., Ont.,
June 26, 1S72, to Ida A. Hershey, daughter of
George and Sarali Hersliey, born at Loville, Can., in
October, 1850. Of this marriage three children have
been born, as follows: Cora B., at Welland, April

18, 1872; Ida May, at Tonawanda, N. Y., Feb. 6,
1S74, and Grade, at St. Johns, Mich., Dec. 10, 1879.
The parents attend the M. E. Church.

%>l

slier L. Canaan, Treasurer of Grant T[).,

and farmer, sec. 21, was born March 25,

• 1850, in Buck Tp., Hardin Co., Ohio, son

of Jehu and Sarah L. Canaan. Both parents

were natives of Ohio; the mother died July

I 3, 1879, in Grant; and the father is still living,

in Michigan. The latter was a soldier in the civil

war and served two years and ten months in Co. B,

iiSth Ohio Vol. Inf.

Mr. Canaan began, when he had reached the age
of 13 years, to graiiple with the world on his own
account, and worked nearly three years as black-
smith. In 1874 he bought 70 acres of timber land,
where he has since resided; has the farm ]3artially
cleared and in tillage, with a comfortable home.
The place is increasing in value from the fact that
it is situated in one of the best belts of country in
Mecosta County, and the land is of the best ([uality.

Mr. Canaan was married Aug. 10, 1873, to Mary
E., daughter of Ira and Mary A. Hays. Her father
died Feb. 27, 1881. He was a minister of the
United Brethren Church four years, and died of apo-
ple.xy. She was born in Canada West Dec. 28, 1858,
and is the mother of three living children, born as
follows : Milton A., Nov. 19, 1874 ; Jessie A., March
I, 1879; Ira J., Oct. 24, 1882.

Mr. Canaan is a Republican in political senti-
ment and has been Constable nine successive years;
was delegate to the Republican County Convention
and District Convention in 1882. His maternal
grandfather was a soldier of the war of 1812. He
and his wife are both members of the Church of
United Uretliren, Grant Mission.

-> f=g ><-g<"«?a!"(g f==^

?>liS^'/- was born in Lapeer Co , Mich., March 10,
J'liigV&fJ-' 1857. and is a son of L. and Mary (Bur-

'fW@i^ nett) Compton. The father was born in Hun-
ter, Green Co., N. Y., May 10, 1859, and is of
German descent. The mother was born in

Monroe Co., N. V'., Feb. 13, 1839.

(

• ion H. Compton, farmer, sec. 31, Colta.x »

"S)

i^«8

..!i0:<^llll>>

'i<mi^m>T

-*4^^f^^

J//iC0S7Vi COUNTY

S^ Mr. Compton was married Dec. 24, 1882, to Flora

v.'J .M . N[(Caiiily, born at Big Rapids, May 31, 1859.

. \;i He settled in Big Rapids I'p., April i, 187 i, wliere

j' he has since been engaged in farming generally and

making a specialty of fruit and gardening. He is a

Republican in political sentiment.

— '^^^mr^ —

P?^''^|r ai'tin Luther Briggs, farmer and iumber-

i.(M' man, residing on sec. t,^, township of

Deerfield, is the third son of Samuel and

ijn\K Clarissa (Smith) Briggs. His father was a
native of New York and went to Pennsylva-
nia about the year 1830. He settled there
and improved a farm, and in 1832 married his first
wife, Mary Dickens, of Tioga Co., Pa., She died in
1849. and two years later he married Mrs. Clarissa D.
Hill, of the same county, and who was the mother of
our subject. 'I"he ekler Briggs died Aug 9, 1867.
The mother survived her husband nearly 13 years.
She died May 17, 1880.

Mr. Briggs was born May 17, 1853. He acquired
a common-school education in his native State, and
at 17 set out to begin his single-handed struggle with
the world. He spent four years in the business of a
lumberman and came to Mecosta Co., where he pur-
ciiased the farm he now occupies, consisting of 80*
acres of wild land, which is fast reaching a good con-
dition of improvements. Mr. Briggs passes about
three-fourths of his time in the woods in his lumber-
ing interests. He is a member of the Masonic fra-
ternity and an adherent to the principles of the Re-
publican party. Mr. Priggs was married Sept. 23,
1883, to Miss Ida M., daughte; of James and Susan
Harden, of Deerfield, Mecosta Co. She is a native
of Chenango Co., N. V., and was born May 3, 1863.

m. E. Overton, dealer in general hardware
at Big Rapids, was born in Henderson, Jef-
'- ferson Co., N. Y., June i, 1826. His
3^sSa^ parents, Elisha and Ruth Carter, were na-
.-|Wn tives of the Empire State. Mr. Overton was
{ ' reai'ed on a farm and obtained a good educa-
tion at the common schools, finishing with two
years study at Belleville Union Academy, in liis na-

%-:^^

tive county. In 1846, when he was 20 years old, he
went to New Bedford, Mass., and tcjok charge of a
sash and door factory owned by W'm. Wilcox and
David R. Pierce. He remained in this [wsition 1 2
years, relurnnig to Henderson, where, in company
with his brother Joshua Overton, he bought 700 acres
of land and for a period of eight years pursued agri-
culture. He then went to Adams and established
himself in the cabinet and undertaking lousiness,
which he continued to manage until September,
1877. He came to Big Rapids soon afterward and
oiiened a hardware trade, firm of Overton & Grenell,
in'the building now styled the Canada House. In
the fall ot 1880 the business was moved to the stand
it has since occupied. April 17, i88r, Mr. Grenell sold
his part of the stock to Messrs. Co.x and Cole, who re-
moved their share in about six months. The stock
of Mr. Overtoil represents al)out fli 6,000, and iiis an-
nual liusiness amounts to |!55,ooo. He also owns an
interest in the Big Rapids Water-Power Iminovemcnt
Co., besides his residence and two city lots.

He was married in Henderson, to Frances Salis-
bury, born in Ohio. Hattie, the elder child of Mr.
and Mrs. Overton, is the wife of C. D. Stimson, lum-
ber merchant of Muskegon ; Eugene, the only son, is
book-keeper in the business of his father.

Mr. Overton was elected Mayor of Big Rapids in
1882, and has served two years as member of the
School Board.

dftk^lr ames E. Philley, liveryman, Millbrook vil-
'^li^gll''- lage, was born April 27, 1852, in tlie State
sHj#*^ of New York. He is a son of Silas and

'A "^

fc fS' Patty (Thompson) Philley, who were natives of

-— 1.

<^m

F Scotland and Ireland respectively, and were
'r' married in the Empire State; in 1863 they
came to Ohio, when Mr. Philley was eleven years of
age, and he remained with them si-\ years. In the
fall of 1 868 he came to Michigan and was in the
employ of the O. R. &: I. R. R. Co. seven years, in
different capacities. In the spring of 1875 he went
to Petoskey, i\Iich., and there opened a saloon, sell-
ing out soon after and engaging in lumbering, in
which he was occupied five years. He came to
Millbrook in the spring of 18S1 and commenced the
prosecution of his present business, to whi( h he lias
since given his energetic attention.

f : ^0k>^'<^t*~ '

<my^m>7

MECOSTA COUNTY.

rr-

-4^^((®>§l

Mr. Philley was married in Hinton Tp., Oct. 14,

1882, to Sarali, daughter of Lev; and Mary Meiiera,
a native of Canada. She came from the Dominion
to MiclTigan with her parents, and before her marriage
was engaged as a teacher. In poHtical faith Mr.
Philley is a Republican; in 1882 he was elected

Constable, and in
office.

188; was re-elected to the same

^■«<-<(«i8>-$®-<5E

I :icob W. Pattison, M. D., [)racticing phy-
^'loW/ii - ^i<-ian at Millbrook, is a son of Oliver and
fW/'^^ Huldah (York) Pattison, the former a native
^Kr of Ireland, and the latter of tlie Dominion of
Canada. They were married in Canada, and
resided there some years. During the war of
1S12, the father was taken [jrisoner and con-
veyed to Buffalo, N. Y., where he claimed American
citizenship and was released. He afterwards became
a resident of Erie Co., N. Y., where himself and wife
completed their lives.

Dr. Pattison was born 111 Erie County, (_)ct. 8, 1821.
At the age of 1 i years he began life as a laborer, and
was occupied in various ways until he was 18 years
old. He became assistant in a hardware store, and
was in the same employ nearly two years. The
deficiencies of his education [jressed upon his under-
standing, and he accomplished much hard study
nights, and at other times as opportunity presented.
He wislies to record his sense of obligation to an
Irisir gentleman named Whalcn, who took an interest
in his [jrogress and assisted him uitli private lessons.
At the age of 23 years lie began teaching, which
occu[)ation lie followed three years.

Early in life he had decided upon his present call-
ing, and devoted his leisure to preparatory reading.
His circumstances prevented his attending lectLires,
and he turned his attention for the tune being to the
hardware business, forming a partnershi[) with his
firother, which relation existed two years. ( )ii its dis-
solution he conducted affairs alone one year, when
he sold out and resumed the study of medicine. In
the winter of 1856-7 he attended his first course of
lectures, at Ijiififalo, N. ^'., going afterward to the
University of Victoria, Ontario, where he received
his diploma anil (;o\ernnient right to practice medi-
( inc in Canada.

In i860 lie wenl 10 .\nn .'Vrbor, where he entered

the Medical Department of the University of Mich- \f
igan, and in 1862-3 he again attended lectures at A'
Buffalo. In the spring of 1864 he came to Bay City jj*,".
and practiced one year, going thence to Lapeer, and ]
operated there a twelvemonth, when he located in
Montcalm County, and continued to prosecute his
profession five jears. In .August, 1871, he came to
Millbrook, where he has established an extensive
practice, being spoken of far and near as an able and
e.xperienced physician. In addition to his medical
liractice, he is the sole representative of the drug y

trade at Millbrook.

Dr. Pattison has served several appointments as
Health Officer, and held the position (jf Justice of
the Peace one term. He was married in Canada,
in the spring of 1S45, to Mary, daughter of Ambrose
Pattison. .She died in the winter of 1857, leaving
four children ; Melissa, Ida, Ambrose and Appleton
J. Dr. Pattison was again married Feb. 22, 1861,
to Margaret Carpenter, of Buffalo, N. Y'., and their
four children are, Ida M., Jennie E., Thomas O. and
James C.

a-^**

benjamin F. Corey, Justice of the Peace_
and faraier,sec. 11, Grant Tp., was born
- ig^*^ l^c'c. 4, 1S42, in Crawford Co., Ohio: at the
'r1<Q)'^ age of 19 he became a soldier for the Union,
ii and enlisted May 19, 1861, under tiie first call
for troops. He served three months and on
his discharge again enrolled for three years'
service or during the war. After two years of severe
service and hardship he contracted camp diarthea
and was discharged for disaljility. He in time recov-
ered his health to some degree, and as soon as he'
could pass muster he again enlisted, Feb. 2, 1864,
and was in the army to the close of the war. His
final discharge bears the date of July 12, 1865. F'ol-
lowiug is the list of his engagements: Rich IMoun-
tain, Winchester, Port Republic, Wilderness (seven
days' fight), Chickamauga, Resaca, Chattahoochee
River, Atlanta, Nashville (repulse of Hood), Savan-
nah (with Sheniian), Columbia, Fayetteville, Raleigh
and Bentonvtlle.

Mr. Corey was married Feb. 4, 1864, to Eli/.a E.
Peoples, of Hardin Co., Ohio. She was born May
15, 1844, and is the daughter of James and Nancy
Peoples, both of whom are still living. Mr. and Mrs.

• ^ ■

Corey have had five childien : Ida Jane, born Nov.
i8, 1867, and died Feb. iz, 1876; Eliza A., boin
May 4, 1866, is now the wife of Wm. Downs; W'il-
ham, born May 4, 1868; James, July 4, 1870, and
Otis F., July 3, 1878. Mr. Corey is a Republican,
and has held his present position six years. He
owns a fine farm of 80 acres, which he has placed in
fair condition for farming purposes. Mrs. Corey
belont's to the M. E. Chun h.

)

s
:)

VoUmer, grocer, Big Rapids, is a
Milwaukee, Wis. His father,
Francis Volhner, was horn in Baden, Ger-
many, Oct. 4, 1824. His mother, Rasina
(Grass) Vollmer, was born Oct. 4, 1827. at
; Strasbourg, then belonging to France, but now
a city of Alsace, ceded to Germany May 10, 1S71.
The parents came to the United States in 1830, and
were married at Milwaukee, Wis., April 13, 1S47, and
still reside there. Five children were born to them:
Joseph E., Albert A., Mary E., Isadore D. and Ivo
V. Albert A. was born May 28, 1852, and grew to
manhood in the Cream City. He went to Evanston,
'^ 111., in 1877, and estal.ilished himself in the grocery
business, operating with satisfactory results. In Feb-
ruary, 1882, he settled at Big Rapids and founded
his present business. He carries a stock of goods
worth ^5,000, and his transactions annually amount
to $35>ooo.

He was married at Milwaukee, Ai)ril 13, 187:;, to
Rosa M., daughter of Herbert and Margaret Reck,
of West Bend, Wis., and they have had three chil-
dren: Agnes M., Francis E. and Mary J.

Ii'PIjM ndrew Hanson, attorney, at Big Rapids,
;¥SAS( was born in Jutland, Denmark, Sept. 20,
ijli^Lf" i^SSi ^'id IS a son of Hans and Christina
(9^ • Sj'ia (Nelson) Christiansoii. His patronymic arose
I 1;^ from the Danish custom of compounding the

t first and last names of the father. At the aue

of 15 he shi\)ped for service on a merchantman and
^ followed the sea three years and four months, be-
I'^i coming familiar with the principal ports of Europe.
^ In the winter of 1870 he studied chemistry, survey-

ing, etc., ai the 'ramjidrup High School, Jutland.

He came to the United States in August, 1872,
and to Morley, Mecosta Co., where he commenced to
study under L. G. Palmer, and at the same time
acted as night watchman for the protection of a saw-
mill. During, the several succeeding years he was
variously engaged, and a.;cumulated a considerable
amount of land; was in the meating business, and
also pursued lumljering energetically, winters, in Col-
fa.x Tp., where he owned 580 acres of land. He
was overtaken byreverses, and in the springof 1881
lost several thousands of dollars. He engaged in
teaching near Morley, where he was occupied three
years. Coiiimen-ing in June, 1882, he took a course
of study in Swensberg Business College at Grand
Rajiids. On leaving there he came to Big Rajiids
and again became a student of law in the office of
Palmer Bros., and was admitted to the Bar as an at-
torney April 6, 1883. In June he entered the office
of Frank Dumon, Prosecuting Attorney of Mecosta
County, as an assistant.

Mr. Hanson was nominated on the city ticket for
Recorder, in the spring of 1S83, but was unsuccess-
ful in his candidacy. While resident in Colfa.xTp.
he was Treasurer, in i879-'8o, and in Ihc latter year
was .Supervisor.

ij^' rancis Smith, farmer, sec. 13, Morton Tp.,
}^|r was l)0rn in Germany, Oct. iS, 1832. He
fV^i'""^? is a son of P]iili[) and Eli/abelh (Borne)
^'jj^ Smith, with u-hom he remained in his native
land and attended school until 1841. In that
year his father came to this country and lo-
cated on a farm lying near the ^\'elland Canal, be-
tween Lake F2rie and Ontario. This was retained
but a short time, his father selling out and moving to
Bnu;e Co., Ont., where he bought 100 aci'es of land
and is still resident there. The mother of Mr. Smith
died in Germany. She left nine children, five sons
and four daughters. Of his Ijrothers and sisters,
Mr. Smith knows comparatively nothing.

In 1872 he came to the State of Michigan and
l)Ought 80 acres of land in Morton Tp. Neai'ly the
entii'e acreage of his land is under culture and
is largely devoted to stock-raising, to which it is well
atlapted. It is located one and a half miles trom

<my^m>^

:iUim

Mt.COSTA COUNTS

Mecosta village, is well watered and generally is of a
grade that compares favorably with other farms in
the vicinity.

Mr. Smith was married April i6, iS6o, at Formosa,
Canada, to Marianna (latz. After his marriage he
rented a farm there, and in five years he came to
Michigan, as stated. Mr. and Mrs. Smith's children
are: Mary Ann, lujrn Feb. 8, 1861 (died in infan-
cy); Elizabeth, April 7, 1863; Joseph, Oct. 6, 1864,
Henry, Dec. 3, 1866; Michael, Sept. 26, 1876; John,
March 28, 1870; Mary, April 28, 1872; Caroline,
nee. 28, 1873; Frederick P., Oct. 18, 1875; Frank,
Aug. 2, 1878 (died two years later); Magdalena,
June 17, 1882.

ichard Collins, of the firm of Skelton &

Collins, proprietors of the Central Hotel,

{. wpK*. Big Rapids, was born in Hastings, Can-

y^ ada, Oct. 24, 1847, and is

a son of Richard
l)""" and Julia Collins. The father died in Can-
ada, in I S64, the mother in 1849.

Mr. Collins was engaged in farming and
clearing up land until 1872, when he came to Big
Rapids and passed five years, driving logs on the
river summers, and lumbering winters. In 1878 he
formed his present partnership with Thomas Skelton,
and opened the Central House, where they are keep-
ing a good hotel, ami doing a fiourishing business.
The bar is supplied witli all goods common to simi-
lar estaljlisliments.

Mr. Collins owns a lot in the Second ward, and
40 acres of land in the Fifth ward of Big Rapids.

i*ii'";">

contractor and

ji&Jij aniel C. Bullock, farmer.

^ was burn in tlie Domininnof Canada, May
5, 1828. His parents, Ira and Betsey Bul-

filMm builder, located on sec. 26, Deerfield Tp.

are now residents of Canada; father a na-
tive of the State of N'ew N'ork, and mother of
Canada.

Mr. Bullock remained a resi<lent of his native
place until 1863, the year in which he located in
Deerfield Tp. He bought 40 acres of I. ind in an en-

tirely uncultivated state, built a log house, and has
so persevered in his labors that he has 31 acres under
the plow, and has erected a good frame house, in
which he resides. In political sentiment he is a Re-
puljlican.

Mr. Bullock was married Feb. 22, 1859, in Canada,
to Sarah, daughter of Ephraim and Sarah (Ros/.ell)
BiU'ss, natives of Canada, who finally emigrated to
.MIegan County, and there resided until the father's
death. The mother resides with her son-in-law,
Henry Mills, of Deerfield. Mrs. Bullock was born in

Canada, Oct. 28, 18^

Of seven children born of

this marriage, three are living, born as follows : Ira
E., Dec. 10, 1 85 9; Charlie E., Aug. 19, 1867;
Franklin D., March 10, 1870; Minnie L., born June
21, 1862, died July 17, 1866; Alma M., Sept. 10,
1864, died July 25, 1866; Eddie G., Sept. 18, 1869,
died Nov. 23, 1869; Johnnie S., Sept. 8, 1872, died
March 28, 1881. The eldest son is the owner of 40
acres of land adjoining his father's farm; was mar-
ried in Deerfield Tp., Aug. 22, 1882,10 Lena, daughter
of William H. and Martha M. (Wilson) Kuhn, born
Feb. 18, 1862, in Livingston Co., Mich.: removed to
Mecosta County in the spring of 1882. 1'. O., Rust-
ford.

'ames Shields, of Big Rapids, was born in
■ Ncirfolk Co. ("an., Nov. 27, 1S45. He is a

,, . ,, '> son of .Vrchiliald and Frances (Reed)
§,p' Shields, and his father's calling was that of a
'2i\^ wagon and carriage maker. At the age of 19

Y he engaged as traveling salesman for a hard-
ware firm, where he continued three years. In 1867
he opened a hotel in Norfolk Co., wdiich he conducted
18 months, and then, in company with .Andrew Lees,
he engaged in buying lumber, ties, pail, shingle, cord
wood, etc., fi)r the market, and was thus occupied
three years. In 1S74 he came to GraiTd Rajjids, and
was there engaged in buying and selling garden
products. Three years later he went to Morley for
the purpose of buying a farm; was there taken sick
and continued ill aliout seven months. This disas-
ter put an end to his finances and to his agricultural
projects. His next removal was to Greenville, where
he engaged as a farm laliorer one season. He
opened an eating house at Greenville, which he man-
aged 18 months, going thence to Lakeview, in the

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MF.COSTA COUNTY.

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337

same county, where he built a grocery ; he ran it a
few months, and exchanged the property for a farm
of So acres in the township of Hinton. He there
built anothei store and conducted a mercantile busi-
ness with a satisfactory degree of success, selling
chiefly at auction, having a particular talent for that
method of disposing of goods.

Mr. Shields came to ISig Rapids in the fall of 1880,
purchased a store on Mai)le street and put in a stock
of gi'oceries. He continued to operate there ten
months, when he exchanged his business and fixtures
for 35 acres of land in the Fifth ward, which is still
in his possession. In the fall of 188 1 he embarked
in another grocery enterprise on the east side, where
he did business nearly a year. He bought the site
now occupied by his store, erected the building, put
ni a stock of groceries and operated until the spring
of 1883, when he again sold and began to deal in
liquor and all the articles common to a first-class
saloon. Mr. Shields was elected Alderman of liis
ward in the spring of 1883. He was married in Nor-
folk Co., Can., June 10, 1867, to Mary A., daughter
of William and Eliza Bunnings, born at Buffalo, N.
v., Nov. 3, 1848. 'I'heir children are Minnie E.,
Anna M., John A., Edith M., James A., William- A.
and an infant not named.

.*.+*.N

feSS'.f-

J/ MWM bi harles M. Darrah, of the firm of Darrah
"Wl^^^l/ Bros. & Co., i)roprietors of the City Flour-
S^il^''^ ing Mills, upper Big Rapids, and whose
f!''';; portrait we present on the opposite page, was
■ .,' born in Orange Co., N. Y., town of Beaver
\ Brook, June 19, 1S31. His parents, Robert
and Sinah (Mitchell) Darrah, moved to Jefferson Co.,
Pa., when he was six years old. His father was a
farmer and engaged to a considerable extent in lum-
bering. Mr. Darrah was brought up to the pursuits
of his father and spent his youth in the lumber
woods, early taking an active part in all the matters
[)ertaining to the business. At 20 he took a contract
to manufacture lumber by the thousand, and a year
later he bought a farm of 60 acres. In May, 1S56,
he transferred his interests to Battle Creek, where he
spent one summer in farming, coming to Big Rapids
in the followinL; fall. The intermediate country was,
in 1856, chiefly in its primeval condition, and Mr.

Darrah transported hither his family and household
effects with horses and wagon. The drive to Grand
Rapids consumed three days. The route thence to
Big Rapids was through a literally unsettled country,
and though the horses were good the journey re-
(piired seven days. Mr. Darrah located on what is
now sec. 6 of the township of Austin, which had no
organized local govermnent until 1869, nearly 13
years later.

The first winter Mr. Darrah spent in Mecosta
County he went to work for J. H. Rodgers and was in
his employ one year. In 1S58 he bought 40 acres on
sec. 3, Mecosta Tp., and in 1859 purchased 80 acres
adjoining. On this he made a clearing and l)uilt his
house, into which he moved as soon as it was habit-
able. He worked several ensuing years in the lum-
ber woods, taking contracts to cut timber and deliver
it at the river. From his small and arduous begin-
ning, Mr. Darrah has grown to be a landholder of no
mean rank. His homestead includes 400 acres, of
which he purchased 240 in 1865, and took possession
in 1866. His aggregate landed estate includes 1,000
acres, situated chiefly in Missaukee and Roscommon
Counties. The home farm of Mr. Darrah is among
the finest and largest in Mecosta County. His or-
chards and barns are a just matter of proud satisfac-
tion to the proprietor. He has continued to pursue
his lumber business and river driving, which he has
engaged in extensively. In the spring of 1883 he
employed 150 men in his driving operations on Clam
River.

In the spring of 1882 he rented his farm antl
moved to the city of Big Rapids. Aug. 14 of the
same year, associated with his brother, James M.
Darrah, and son, Wilson E. Darrah, he purchased
the City Flouring Mills, where the firm have since
been engaged in manufacturing mill products. They
have a large local and shipping trade, and em])loy
half a dozen hands in their business, which aggre-
gates about §60,000 annually. They have now in
process of erection a new iron-roller mill, adjoining
the old one. It will be 37 x 50 feet on the ground,
five-stories high, and be fitted with seven sets dI
double rollers and two run of stone. The new struc-
ture will be devoted to commercial pioducts ; the old
mill will be devoted to custom work and storage.

Mr. Darrah was married May 26, 1853, in Knox
Tp., Jefferson Co., Pa., to Sarah E., daughter of

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5^338

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MECOSTA COUNTY.

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James and Susan (Mason) Hall, Imrn in Jefferson
Co., Pa., May 29, 1836. Of four children bom of
this marriage three are jiving: Wilson E., Melviii P..
and Charles J. James E. is deceased.

-^-<-^'#f>^^>--

^ftefe

f-aeob H. Loucks, Postmaster and merchant

m^ Daniel and Mary (Cook) Loucks, na
"W New York, who came to Michigan in th'

at Sylvester, Hinton 'Pp., was born in Lewis
• Co., N. Y., May 6, 1836, He is a son of

atives of
gan m the spring
P of 1S67, with their son. The mother died
March i, iSyr; tlie father, July 23, 1S78. \\\ 1S67
Mr. Loucks came to Michigan and settled at first in
Ionia County, where he lived two years and then
bought 40 acres of land in a primeval condition in
(iratiot County. He built a frame liouse and went
on witli the work of [lutling the land under cultiva-
tion. He lived on the place 13 years, then rented it
and moved to Hinton 'Pp. \\\ the spring of 18S2 he
t. bought out tlie stock of general merchandise of Geo.
:3 W. Streeter, and has since carried on that business.
^i Li politics Mr. Loucks is independent. ^Vhile \
3: resident in Cratiot County he Jield tlie office of Jus-
tice of the Peace three years. He was married in
Copenhagen, Lewis Co., N. Y., Jan. C, 1865, to Sarah
A., daughter of Justus and Cynthia C. (Leonard)
Belcher. Her parents were natives of New York,
where her father died, ia April, 1881. The mother is
still living there. Mrs. Loucks was born Sept 11,
1844. She has become the mother of three children,
born as follows : Mary (."., Nov. 21, 1866; Martha
A., Feb. 28, 1 87 I ; Ceo. J., Nov. 15, 1874.

Mr. Loucks was :i|)puinted Postmaster by Presi-
dent .Arthur, in July, 1882.

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Efij'^^&enrv Main, firmer, sec. 2, Millbrook 'Pii.,
•jE^^ls was born in Michigan, Oct. 14, 1838. His
M^ father, Ceorge Main, was liorn in Pennsyl-

m vania, and his miitlier, Margaret A. (Chandler)
f Main, was a native of New York. Mr. Main
I lived at home with his p;i rents and assisted on
tile farm until he was 22 ycnrs of age, wlicn he went
i) from home and worked as a farm laborer four ye:irs ;
■^ then rented :i f.iim, whiih he conducted three \ears;

came to Mecosta County in the spring of 1869 and
bouglit 100 acres of wild land in the township t)f
Millbrook; built a board house, and proceeded to
clear his land, to which he has added by purchase,
and now owns 220 acres, with 120 acres under
advanced iminovements.

Mr. Main is a Republican in faith and act. He
has been Treasurer of his township nine years. Con-
stable two years, Road Commissioner one year, and
Supervisor one year. Himself and family are attend-
ants at the Church of United Brethren.

He was married in Canada, April 10, 1861, to
Roxey L., daughter of Thomas and Sarah A. (Hart-
well) Smith, natives of Canada. Mrs. Main was
born in Canada, Dec. 22, 1840. She was under the
paternal care until she was fifteen, after which she
depended upon her own resources. Mr. and Mrs.
Main have had eleven children, ten of whom yet
survive : Esther C, born June 5, 1862 ; Aramintha J.,
Dec. 24, 1863; Austin C, Aug. 3, 1865; Celestia A.,
Oct. 27, 1867: Lorenzo A., Aug. 14, 1869; Edward
IL, July 17, i87i;Walter H., May 18,1873; I-afay-
ette J., April 7, 1876; Elsie M., June 9, 1877 ; Sid-
ney O., born April 21, 1879, died Sept. 6, 1879;
Loren T., born Nov. 28, 1881.

'I'Wd), avid L. Garling, miller, proprietor of the

^MM% Mecosta County Mills, Big Rapids, was
5 CVP'^^ born at Seneca P'alls, Seneca Co., N. Y.,
'i^ST Jan. 17, 1846. He is a son of John and
Sarah (Hartranft) Garling. The father was
born in Pennsylvania, in 1795, of Dutch
l)arentage, and died in Cayuga, N. Y., Dec. 24, 1881.
The mother was also a native of Pennsylvania, born
in 1803, and died June 21, 1883,111 Seneca Falls,
Seneca Co., N. Y.

Mr. Garling was married Nov. 16, 1865, to Hen-
rietta Burtnette, born in Seneca Falls, N. Y., June
25, 1846, of hhiglish and French extraction. She is
a daughter of William and Rachel Burtnette. Mr.
and Mrs. Garling have four children, born as fol-
lows: Anna R. B., Sept. 13, 1869; Johnny E., July
29, 1872; Emma J., Aug. 20, 1875; Burtnette, May
9, 1878.

Mr. Garling came to Michigan in June, 1878, and
nmdc his first location at Percy, Osceola Co. In

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MECOSTA COUNTY.

)

1879 he came to Mecosta County, and on the lusl
day of AiJiil in that year purchased the mill property,
to the management of which he has since given his
attention. He is a Republican in political sentiment.

"ll'&ilC eorge Miller, fanner, sec. iS, Colfax 'i'p.,

:l^M| was horn in Delaware, Middlesex Co., Ont.,

-^IjSj^ '^ J'^''y '^' '849> 'T-''<J 's '>■ son of Thomas and

^{■^ Elizabeth Miller. The father was born in

'''^' Perthshire, Scotland, in 1824, and in 1.S45, on

f attaining his majority, came to Canada. In

the year following he married Elizabeth Chalmers,

born in 1S27, in .\biiond liank, Perthshire, Scotland.

She came to Canada with her parents at the age of

iS years, and in 1846 was married, at Quebec. They

settled in Delaware, where they remained until 1S68,

in which year they moved to Michigan and settled

on a farm in Colfa.x Tp., Mecosta Co., locating three

miles from Big Raiiids.

Mr. Miller resided with his parents until 1S80,
when he married Elida Hallock, the youngest daugh-
ter of Aaron E. and Harriet L. (Stevens) Hallock,
of Newaygo County. Her father was born Feb. 2,
1825, in New York, and settled in Barry Co., Mich.,
when 18 years of age. The mother was born Sept.
9, 1835, in the State of Michigan. Their marriage,
occurred in 1850, and five years later they settled in
Montcalm County, where they resided until 1862.
They removed to Newaygo County, where Mrs. Mil-
ler was born July 29, 1862. She remained in her na-
tive county until she was nine years old and then
went to Howard City, where she attended school
until she was 17. The following year she came to
Mecosta County, and taught school, and was married
May 5, 1880. Mr. and Mrs. Miller have a son, born
March 29, 1883, named George Ernest Miller. The
father of Mrs. Miller died April 15, 1872, leaving the
mother with five children. She removed to Howard
City, where she died, in November, 1872.

On his marriage, Mr. Miller settled on his own
farm, lying next his father's place on the same sec-
tion. They together had cleared 20 acres of the tract,
entered under the homestead act by the father ; and
Mr. JNIiller has cleared a like quantity on his own
property, and has charge of both places, containing
1 60 acres.

Mr. Miller's mother (lied June 9, 1881, aged 54

years. She was seized with sudden and violent ill-
ness, passing within three hours into a comatose state,
from which she never rallied, and about ten hours
after the attack she ceased to exist. She was dearly
beloved, not only in her own family circle but also
by a large number of neighbors and friends who felt
her loss almost as keenly as though it were personal.
"We had been so happy in believing that we siiould
keep her a long time with us that we were stunned,
by the sharpness and suddenness of tiie blow," said
one to whom her loss is irreparable. She has a better
monument than even queens have had. in the last-
ing memories of those whose hai)piness had been her
chief care and hearty delight.

[fames S. Canaan, farmer, sec. 21, (Irant
n^™,!',- 'l'[>., was born July 12, 1844, in Hardin
J[g;r4- Co., Ohio, and is a son of Jehu and Sarah
L. Canaan. (See sketch of Asher L. Canaan.)
% At the age of 1 1 years Mr. Canaan set out
I' to care for himself and to aid in the main-
tenance of his father's family. Just after he was
r8 years old he enlisted (Aug. 8, 1S62) in Co. ]!,
1 1 8th Ohio Vol. Inf, and remained in the service
until the termination of the war. He was discharged
at Salisbury, N. C, and paid off at Cleveland Ohio,
June 24, 1865. He was in precarious health when
his regiment went to the front, and was assigned
to guard duty until the date of the battle of
Atlanta, where he was first under fire. His corps
was afterwards dispatched to intercept the march of
the rebel Gen. Hood, and he was in the battle of
Smithville, on the Tennessee river. Hood's forces
and the Union army under Thomas kept up an in-
cessant skirmishing, and seven days' fighting took
place near Columbia, 'I'enn. Mr. Canaan was in the
terrible fights at Franklin and at Nashville, and was
then transferred to North Carolina. His first battle
was at Fort Anderson, and his last at a i)oint 10 miles
below ^\'ilmington. He returned to Ohio and in
October, 1866, settled in Grant Tp. He became a
landholder in 1873, buying 40 acres of choice land,
which he has improved to the best advantage, and
has a good frame house with all necessary farm
buildings.

Mr. Canaan was married Sept. 9, 1875, to Maria,
daughter of James and lieulah Stewart, ol Lake-

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MECOSTA COUNTY.

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fview, Montcalm Co., Mich. She was born in Clyde,
Ohio, Dec. 8, 1847. Her father died Jan. 19, 1878,
;J^ and her mother is still living, in Michigan. The
i three living children of Mr. and Mrs. Canaan were
^ horn as follows: Stewart E., June 25, 1876; Her-
V* bert L., Sept. 4, 1S78; Ernest J., May 16, 18S3;
Claude C, born Dec. 2, 1880, died July 6, 1881.

Politically Mr. Canaan is a Reiniblican, and has
lieen actively interested in local affairs. He has
served liis township as Supervisor, five years, Town-
ship Clerk, six years, School Director, two years, As-
sessor, three years, and was Deputy Sheriff under
J. T. Escott, four years. He has been Delegate vari-
ous times to the District and County Conventions.
Himself and wife are members of the United Breth-
ren Church.

^ '^Hs dwai-d Fitzgerald, farmer, resident on sec.
^| t' 29, Mecosta Tp,, was born in County Kerry,
%irsn?r'5fe Ireland, Aug. 15, 1833. He is a son of
Edward and Bridget (Rourke) Fitzgerald, na-
tives of Ireland, where they passed their lives.
Mr.Fitzgetald came to America at the age of
uid landed at Quebec, Can., staying there a brief
tune, going thence to Oswego, N. V , where he ob-
tained enployment in an elevator for a short time.

His next remove was to Defiance Co., O., reaching
there in Novemlier, 1853. He worked on the railroad
for a time and then rented a faun, where he worked un-
til the spring of 1861. On the outbreak of the late
war he enlisted in Co. C, 38th O. Vol. Inf, and his
regiment was attached to the connnand of Gen. Sher-
man in East Tennessee. Tliey marched through Sa-
vannah, da., and were participants in the severe figlit
at lonesboro, Sept. i,'64, where tlie regiment suffered
heavy loss, but -Mr. Fit/gerald escaped unhurt. He
was in the service four years and saw some of its
severest work, but was never injured. He was dis-
charged July 14, 1865, and received from his office a
most satisfactory testimonial a>- a brave and good
soldier. He returned to iiis rejoicing family and
resumed farming. In the tall of 1877 he settled in
Mecosta County and purchased a fine farm on the
bank of Big Muskegon River, in Mecosta Tp.

He was married Jan. 1, 1854, to Marcella, daughter
of Patrick and Marcella (West) Fnx, natives of Ire-

land. Mrs. Fitzgerald was born after her parents
emigrated to this country and settled in Defiance
Co., O. Five children have been born to Mr. and Mrs.
Fitzgerald, as follows: Ella M., May 13, 1859; Wm.
Nov. 13, 1861 ; Francis E., June 22, 1867 ; Anna E.,
Sept. I, 1869; Mary, born June 4, 1857, died Febru-
ary, 1 .87 4.

Mrs. fitzueraUl is a member of the M. E. Church.

'• '"^j^ , ohn M. Main, farmer, resident on sec. 2,
"' i(2.y - Mdlbrook Tp., was born in Waterloo Co.,
""> Can., Feb. 25, 1843. He grew to man's
iilfy"* estate in the manner common to the sons of
•hIP' farmers. When 2 r vears of age he rented a

IK - • '.

■* iarm m Canada, which he conducted three
years, and resolved to become a citizen of the
U. S. He came to Michigan, landing at Detroit,
Jan. 10, 1S66. He proceeded to Lakeview, Mont-
calm Co., and was occupied in lumbering during that
winter, and in the spring of 1867 came to Mecosta
County, locating on 100 acres of land in Millbrook
Tp., which had been given him by his father, to
which he has added 40 acres, and now has 100 acres
under improvement.

He was married in Canada, Nov. 18, 1863, to Mary
M., daughter of Charles and Arabella (iNIorrison) Per-
son, of English and French nativity. She was born
in Canada, July 5, 1847. Children: Margaret E.,
born Feb. 28, 1865 ; Melinda J., Feb. 18, 1867 ;
James W., Feb. 8, iS6g; Ferdinand O., Nov. 18,
1S70; John G., Dec. 20, 1872; Otto E., June 9,
1874; Nelson A., .-Vug. 28, 1876; Cliarlotte B., March
28, 1878; George W., Nov. 28, 1879; Charles H..
May 12,1881.

Mr. Main is a Republican, and has been the favor-
ed choice of his townsmen for resjionsible positions.
He is a zealous member of the M. E. Church.

"IW'Mm eorge A. Haggit, blacksmith, Millbrook

iiy^i village, was born in Huron Co., Can., Dec.

■^f^vsT" '^ 5- I'^'S?- He is a son of Edward and Eliz-

•''/f^ abeth (Cockedine) Haggit, natives of tlngland.

'!:' Mr. Haggit learned his trade in Canada^

I where he remained until Feb. i, 1883, and

worked four vears. At the date named he came to

Mecosta County and bought out the blacksmith shop

>)«^

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■e-7<:0li;<|jllr.>r^

MECOSTA COUNTY.

343

of John Mitchell at the village of Millbrook, where
he is manas^iiiL; a thriving business, and doing the
ciisloni work of a large section of country.

He was married in Huron Co., Can., Jan. 29, 1880,
to Alice M., daughter of John and Leah (Tremlitt)
Moss, natives of Canada, where the daughter was
horn June 6, i860. They have one child, Alonzo
W., born Sept. 19, 1S81. Mr. H. belonged in Can-
ada to the Ancient Order of Foresters, and was also
a member of the Reform parly.

eorge R. Malone, junior member of the

firm of Northrup & Malone, lawyers and

.eal-estate brokers, Big Rapids, Mich., was

^^ born near Columbus, Ohio, July 27, 1851.

He is the son of Joseph and Maria (Mc.Cad-

din) Malone, who jiioved from Columbus to

Woosler, Wayne Co., Ohio, when he was two years

old. His father died at that place in 1854, after

which his mother removed to Canal Fulton, Stark Co.,

near the home of her father, John J. McCaddin, who

in his younger days was a pioneer, and afterwards a

prominent farmer and business man in that locality.

At the age of six years the subject of this sketch

went to live with his uncle, where he worked on the

old homestead of his grandfather summers and weiU

to school winters till he was 15 years of age. After

this his entire time for several years was devoted to

study and teaching. He commenced teaching at

the age of si.xteen, receiving $16 a month for his

first term in Chippewa Tp., Wayne Co., Ohio. After

this he removed, with his mother and family, an older

brotlier and sister, to near Lansing, Mich., where he

continued alternately to teach and attend school till

187 1. At the age of twenty he was engaged as

Principal of the schools at Grand Ledge, Eaton Co.,

Mich., which position he also held during the years,

1875-6, having spent most of the intervening time

attending the Lansing High School and the State

Agricultural College.

Early in life Mr. Malone entertained a strong de-
-ya sire to study and practice law, and at the age of six-
^ teen he visited John McSweeny, a leading criminal

lawyer of Wooster, Ohio, and completed arrangements
to study with him; but this his friends dissuaded him

from doing, preferring that he become a teacher or
enter the ministry; however, as he always entertained a
love for the study of law, during the last years of his
teaching he found time to read the works of a num-
ber of leading law writers. After closing his second
year's work in the schools of C.rand I, edge he de-
voted a year almost exclusively to the study and
practice of law at Bell Oak, Ligham Co. After this
he spent two years in the mercantile business at Bell
Oak; but this enterprise, not being congenial to his
taste, did not prove successful.

In the spring of 1S81, he came to the village of
Mecosta, and recommenced the practice of law. He
was soon after admitted to the Bar of Mecosta
County, and in January, 18S3, he came to Big Rapids,
and the following summer went into partnership with
Mr. C. L. Northrup, an attorney of several years'
successful practice in Northern Michigan. Soon
after coming to the county Mr. Malone was elected
member of the County Board of School Examiners
and Secretary of that Board, which position he held
for two years. The untiring zeal with which he de-
voted himself to the duties of this office, and the
consequent advancement in educational interests
throughout the county, so identified him with the in-
terests of the people that his work will not soon be
forgotten.

Mr. Malone, though still a young man, is every-
where known as a man of the people; he is there-
fore an active agent in all matteis tending to advance
the interests of the community and esi-iecially of the
young. He is an earnest and ardent sjjeaker, and
has presented his views u[ion leading suljjectsof pub-
lic interest, not only in his own county but in differ-
ent parts of the State. He is an active worker in
the cause of temperance and a zealous advocate of
both moral suasion and prohibition. He is also a
total abstainer himself, having never partaken of in-
toxicating liipiors as a beverage in his life; neither
has he ever used tobacco in any form.

Mr. Malone was married in Locke Tp., Ligham
Co., June 30, 1875, to Miss Fanny E. Atkins, eldest
daughter of Harman A. and Harriet V. Atkins, both
of whom were pioneers of that county. Mr. Atkins
is a physician, having practiced in Ligham County
for more than thi.ty years. He is also a great reader,
and a profound student of natural sciences, being
the author of a work on ornithology, embodying his
daily observations for more than a (piarter of a cen-

;M^vi5

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■T<^|]|l^IlIlf>T^

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344

MECOSTA COUNTY

tury. Mrs. Malone was born in Locke Tp., Ingham
Co., March 5, 1854. She received a ULieial educa-
tion and taught school several terms in Ingham and
Katon Counties before her marriage; she still enter-
tains the same love for reading and study as that of
her father, and so far as possible still gives her time to
literary pursuits. Bertha ?"., only child of Mr. and
Mrs. Malone, was born Dec. 29, 1877.

In connection with this sketchwe take pleasure in
presenting the portrait of Mr. Malone.

: m. Willett, farmer on sec. s- Hinton Tp.

was liorn in England, March 28, 1810.

His parents were natives of England and
|> came to Canada in the early days of its set-
tlement, and there the mother, Martha (Skil-
' ton) Willett, finally died. The father, Richard
Willett, came to Michigan with his children, and died
at the home of his son George. William Willett
spent the first 23 years of his life in his native land,
and until 14 years of age was sent to school. He
worked four years with his father, who was a carpen-
ter, and then set out for his single-handed life strug-
gle. In 1833 he came to Canada and entered uijon
a life of labor, working at carpentry and milhvright-
ing, and was thus engaged for 2,Z years, coming to
Michigan in 1866. .Heat once purchased 120 acres
of land, on which he now resides and has 40 acres
under a good state of cultivation. Mr. Willet was
married in England, Feb. 3, 1830, to Charlotte,
daughter of Benjamin and Charlotte (Mann) Rose.
Her parents were natives of England, where Mrs.
\Villctt was born Sefit. 2r, 1812, and there her father
and mother died.

ftjlp^^feohn D. Decker, farmer, sec. 14, Millbrook

■ifwjp' Tp., was burn in the State of New York,

1^4" March 1 1, i>S28. He is a son of Gilbert

and Mary (.Stanley) Decker, and was reared

under the care of his parents, living at home

,'' until he was 22 years old, and occupied chiefly

with tarniing. His father removed with his

nly til Canada when Mr. Decker was about six

-K^^nfl

years old, who remained there until he reached the

age of 24 years, going thence to Illinois, .'\fter resid-
ing there seven years, engaged meanwhile in farm-
ing, he came in the autumn of 1866 to Mecosta
County, and bought 80 acres of wild land in Mill
brook Tp. He has since bought 40 acres more, and
of the aggregate 120 acres has 40 acres under cul-
tivation.

He was married in Canada, Feb. 10, 185 1, to
Harriet R., daughter of David and Lena (Mirkley)
Welch, the former a native of New England, the lat-
ter of Canada. She was born in Upper Canada,
Nov. 30, 1829. Mr. and Mrs. Decker have had nine
children, of whom eight survive: Louisa H., born
Jan. 25, 1852; Eva J., Oct. 25, 1856; Howard E.,
Feb. 25, 1859; Adella M., Jan. 21, 1862; William
A., Ai)ril 16, 1864; Janies E. C, March 12,1868;
Mary L., Dec. 29, 1871; Alberta E., Feb. 9, 1875;
Edward H., born Feb. 7, 1854, died Jan. 17, 1856.

;>;Egl]g artley Davis, deceased, was born .\ug. 18,
' iH^lJ' ■''^>5-- ^^ ^^^ ^ son of Francis and Mar-
|0|'gp>'i^ garet Davis, naUves of Belfast, Ireland.
'fC^vj'^ At the at;e of si.x years he came to Canada

<^ji> with his parents, and attended school at To-
1 routo until he was 13 years old. Two years
later he began to work in a saw-mill for Jonah Ugel,
where he continued until he was 21 years old. In
company with a son of his employer, he bought a
saw-mill, ami they went into business for themselves,
where Mr. Davis thus operated five years. He sold
his interest in the mill and went to live on a farm he
had previously purchased, which he managed until
186 1. He then came to Michigan, and purchased
80 acres of land in Hinton Tii., 70 acres of which
were under the plow at tiie time of his death. Asso-
ciated with William N. Seaton, Mr. Davis built and
operated the first saw-mill in the township, located at
Altona. He was connected with Mr. Seaton two
years, and was engaged in lumbering to a greater or
less extent eadi winter after coming to Hinton. 1 )ur-
ing his life Mr. Davis was Supervisor several years.
He died Feb. 13, 1879, after an illness of five years,
of consumption. He was i onfined to his house but
two weeks.

Mr. Davis was married Ajiril 10, 1858, in Canada,

:£>^«>i:^tf^

)

MECOSTA COUNTY,

to Lydia M., eldest daughter of William and Char-
lotte (Rose) Willett, liorii Jan. 17, 1832. Her [larents
reside in Hinton Tp. Of six children born to Mr.
and Mrs. Davis, three survive: Newton E., Viorn
April 12, 1859; Ella M., Nov. 22, 1861; riiarlutte
M., April 2, 1865. Two ( hildren died in infancy:

E/.ra \V',, born Oct. 7, i860, died Feb
Mrs. Davis resides on the homestead.

18, 18S1.

-5-

-{-

hidney Haskill, painter, resident on sec. 35,

^^ /Etna Tp., was born May29, '29, in Yates

[w^ Co., N. Y., and is son of Josiah and Chloe

(Cage) Haskill. At the age of 15 he was ap-
prenticed to Nathan Simson, a painter of that
vicinity, and as he acquired the details of the
trade with readiness and became a skilled workman
in much less than the- time re(iuired by the terms of
liis indenture, he was released and managed his
own business engagements for three years. He
then spent two years on the lakes; since 1S60 he
has been busy with his trade. During the time he
was in the Empire State he worked on the N. Y. C.
R. R, ; going thence to Kansas, he worked on the
Union Pacific R. R., as a bridge builder. He re-
turned to Michigan, stopped at Port Huron, and a .
few months later went to Grand Rapids, where he
arrived in the spring of 1S63. He followed his trade
14 years in that city and then settled in /h^tna Tp.,
on a farm near Morley. Since his location in the
townshii) he has worked with Higbee iV Co.

He vvas married in 1850, to Catherine, daughter of
Samuel and Anna Dutton, at Port Hope, Pr. of On-
tario. Children: Albert, born Nov. 25, 1857; Ro-
sanna W., August, 1859 ; Frank, Nov. 5, 1866. Mr.
and Mrs. Haskill are adherents of the M. F". Church.
Mr. H. is a Republican.

"^ coo ^

KiiJIf ames A. Mills, farmer on sec. 20, Mecosta
',:- T[)., was i)orn Sept. 7, 1847. He is a son
'^ of Alexander and Sarah (More) Mills,

^^m

^ natives of Scotland and early emigrants to St.

Johns, N. 15., where the son was born. Mr.

Mills took his fortunes into his own hands at
nine years of age. He ran away to sea in the caiiacity
of cabin boy, and was in that position two years when

\ ®))e^#^ ^^^'^^ ^— ^" ^ D !I

he became shipmate. He was promoted to the jiost
of second mate, and so [lerformetl his duties that he
was offered the position of first mate, but declmed,
as he had determined to withdraw from a seafaring
life. He had a desire to engage in the whale-fishing
service of the Northern Ocean, and spent some months
in the dangers and excitements of that life. He then
engaged in cod-fishing service and followed it on the
coast of Gaspe, Can. After four months he connect-
ed himself with a company of seal fishers and spent
a considerable time in that region of icebergs. He
tlien ipiilted ocean life and went to Upper Canada,
where he remained but a brief time. His next re-
move was to Texas, where he was occupied some
months in herding cattle. Coming North, via New
York, to Canada, in 1859, he visited his native place.
He came to Saginaw, Mich., and there operated as a
lumberman one year, and was also engaged some-
what in river driving.

Mr. Mills came to Big Rapids in the fall of i860,
wjiere he remained until his marriage. That event
occurred July 8, 1861, to Mary, daughter of Jesse R.
and Lydia (Mash) Green. Her parents were natives
of Canada, where she was born Sept. 17, 1847. Mr.
and Mrs. Mills have had one child, Alice May, born
May 31, 1875. Mr, Mills is a Democrat.

■ — »4 — ^^^^^^^^^^'^^^ — H

jvi, amuel J. Throp, of the firm of Fellows &
Throp, druggists, at Big Raiiids, was born
If^^^ at Fort Jeff"erson, Darke Co., Ohio, Oct. 28,
1845, and is a son of John A. Throp, born
Oct. 24, 1822, in Monmouth Co., New Jersey,
and Catharine Throp, born Dec. 3, 1825, in
Warren Co., Ohio. His mother never changed her
maiden name, yet there was no relationship trace-
able. His father was a wagon-maker, but on his
removal to Three Rivers, Mich., in 1857, became as-
sociated with a partnership manufacturing company,
in building the celebrated Invincible Vibrating
'i'hresher and general agricultural implements; he
sold his interest in the factory March 15, 1881, but
retained his claims in the patents. In 1867 Mr.
Throp went to Troy, 111., and engaged in the mer-
chant flouring mill of his uncle, Thomas A. Throp,
as accountant. The latter died in 1873, and Mr.
Throp was appointed administrator of the estate,

':^.m'^^

-■4r®^(j7'

r<^ll|]>^lllli>r

MECOSTA COUNTY

)

After an absence of seven year^, and the affairs per-
taining to the settlement were adjusted, he returned
to Three Rivers, and in 1S75 became secretary of a
new incorporated company, namely, Roberts, Throp
& Co., manufacturers of agricultural implements, m
which his father had been actively and steadily con-
nected for the past 25 years, being Director and
Vice-President as well as General Manager and
Superintendent. On account of failing health, sim-
ultaneously with his father's active withdrawal from
the concern, Mr. Throp and his father sold their half
interest in the capital stock, divided the notes and
accounts and retained their share of the same. Their
connection therewith liad been very laborious and
one of great responsiljility, yet successful and merito-
rious in a financial sense. They together engaged
in the collection of their outstanding accounts, untd
September, 18S2.

nuring that month Mr. Throp came to Big Rap\ds
and, in partnership with his l)rother-in-law, C. A.
Fellows, purchased a stock of drugs of C. 1'. Bige-
low, M. ])., which they removed to their present
place of business. They carry the largest stock of
drugs and sundries in the city, and have the most
complete and tastefully arranged l)usiness house, m
their line, in Northern Michigan. Their business
comprises wholesale as well as retail, and although
already e.xtensive, is steadily increasing.

Mr. Throi) was married at Three Rivers, May 28,
1870, to Clara A., daughter of Joseph and Elizabeth
Hiles. Mrs. Throp was born in Montour Co., I'a.,
Aut;. 27, 1848. Charies Henry, only child of Mr.
ancl Mrs. Throp, was born at Troy, 111., Sept. 16, '72.

Peter and Mary (McDonald) Gingrich, who was born
July 5, iS6i,in Waterloo Co., Can., and when si.x
years old accompanied her parents to Michigan. Mr.
and Mrs. Bellamy have two children : John H.,
born Dec. 25, 1879, and William A., Nov. 18, t8Si.
In politics Mr. Bellamy is a Democrat.

__^, if-ohn Bellamy, farmer, sec. 8, Wheatland

^llSijt Tp., is a son of Jolp and Jane (Cathcart)

1^^^ Bellamy, the fatlier a native of England,

Iff of mixed British and Irish l>lood, and the

#" mother of Ireland ; they came to America eariy

y in life and located in Ontario, Can., where they

were married. Mr. Bellamy was. born in ^\'atedoo

Co., Can., Sept. 5, 1855, and passed tlie first 23 years

of his life in school and assisting his father on the

farm. In the fall of 1S78 he came to Mecosta

(Jounty and jtassed one year in Wheatland Tp., with

John Gingrich, his brolliev-iu-law. Meanwhile he

was married, June 14, •187(1, in l.ronura, daughter oi

^;1K

iy{'f'?i arvey Harrington, proprietor of the hotel
'' IV'th: '^t Altona, Hinton Tp., was born in Ionia
r.-^i-'^ County, Mich., Aug. 2, 1848. His parents,
William and Margaret (Staley) Harrington, were
; natives of Ohio. Their first removal thence was
I to Montcalm Co., Mich., and successively to
Ionia, Gratiot and Calhoun Counties, and in 1869
went to Kansas, where they now reside. Mr. Har-
rington was 14 years of age when his parents wx'nt
to Gratiot County. Their stay there lasted one year,
and they then went to Calhoun County, where Mr.
Harrington lived with them until he was 21 years of
age. On attaining man's estate he went to Mont-
calm County, and there worked in a shingle-mill
eight years. In 1873 he bought 40 acres of partly
iniproved land in the township of Fairplain, in
Montcalm Co. He took possession of this place as
a residence in 1877, and in 1S81 exchanged the
property for 80 acres in Sheridan Tp., Mecosta Co.,
where he fi.xed his home in September, 1 88 1 . In Feb-
ruary, 1883, he exchanged his farm for the hotel at
Altona, which he is now managing.

Mr. Harrington was married in Montcalm County,
Oct. 24, 1869, to Lois A., youngest child of Nathan
and Mary A. (Rossmore) Rose. The latter were
natives of New York, where Mrs. Harring'on was
born, Oct. 24, 1852. Her father died Feb. 4, 1862,
and her mother lives with her. Mr. and Mrs. Har-
rington have had one child, George N., born ;\pril 3.
187 T, and died Oct. 12, 1871. As to political issues,
Mr. Harrington is a Republican.

ohn M. Sims, farmer, sec. 2, Green Tp.,

™, - was born Sept. 26, 1S45, in Greene Co.,

SF^ Pa., and is the son of Martin and Eliza

Jane (Mundy) Sims. Mr. Sims is descended

■tip from loyal ancestry, his great-grandfather hav-

Y ing fought in the war of the Revolution, and

also in that of 1812. His father was born in the

(>:

(','

-K^D!i^iini>

w^.

itf'»-

<?bh>:diis>

MECOSTA COUNTY.

-5iii>^^^j^

349

Keystone State, of English ancestry ; was a farmer
and millwright, and enlisted in the civil war as a
soldier for the Union, finally locating in Van Biiren
Co., Mich , where he died, in 1.S76. The mother,
born in County Down, Ireland, died Aug. 28, 187 i.
True to the patriotic instincts of his race, Mr.
Sims enlisted in the war of the Rebellion to defend
the flag his ancestors had fought to establish,
and is the youngest soldier recorded in this volume,
fie enrolled as his country's servant in the 12th W.
Va. Infantry, Aug 9, i86g, when he was 15 years, 11
months and rj days old. He was discharged June
16, 1865, having seen much active service in the
memorable engagements of the war, among them the
fight at Winchester, June 14, 1863, Harper's Ferry,
in July, 1864, Battle of \V'inchester, and of Cedar
Creek, Nov. 19, 1864, at Piedmont, Stanton, Lynch-
burg; and when transferred to the Army of the To-
toniac he fought at Hatcher's Run, near Petersburg,
March 29, 30, 31, 1865, and April i, following, at
Fort Grey, near Petersburg, whence his command fol-
lowed Lee on the extreme left of the Army Corps
1= until the rebel chief surrendered to the Federal
tt§ authority at Appomattox, of which event Mr. Sims
i^ was an eye witness. After Lee's capitulation tlie
«^ forces went from Lynchburg to Richmond, where
^ they were discharged, and were mustered out at
;^ } Wheeling. Mr, Sims sustained but one injury during*
the entire time, receiving a gunshot wound in the
left leg in a skirmish near Harper's Ferry. He was
taken [jrisoner at the Battle of Winchester, June 14,
1863, and was held in captivity three months. At
the end of that lime he made his escape and rejoined
his command, after isassing four days and nights
in the mountains almost wholly without supplies.

March 25, 1866, he came to Mecosta Co., Mich.,
and in 1868 bought 80 acres of land in Green Tp.,
where he has since followed farming. He was mar-
ried to Ellen E. Robins in 1867; she was born in
Potter Co., Pa , and is the daughter of James G. and
Olive (Slade) Ixol)ins. Of this marriage one child
was born, Otis Orlando. The mother died June 28,
1868. Mr. Sims was again married in 1869, to Eli/.a-
lieth, daughter of John and Amy (Clark) Kitchen, a
native of Canada, born Sept. 18, 1841. Her father
was born in New Jersey, and is now living near
Whitehall, Mich. Her mother was a native of New

«?•

Brunswick and died

,87;

Mr. and Mrs. Sims'

children are, Delbert, Anna B., Elsie M.

^^4'

and Viola.

<xr-o

~^5o~

heodore C. Gardner, of Big Rapids, a por-
trait of whom we present upon the opi>osite
page, was born Dec. 21, 1S43, in Medina
Co., Ohio, where he was reared under his
father's care. He is a son of Reuben and
Mary (Branch) Gardner, natives of New York,
and of English descent. Mr. Gard.ner became a sol-
dier v/hen he was 18 years old, enlisting y^pril 23,
i86r, in the Eighth Ohio Infantry, Company K,
Cai)t. W. F. Pierce. His command was attached to
the Army of the Potomac, and during the period of
his enlistment he was in 17 actions; among the
most prominent were the battles of Bull Run, An-
tietam and South Mountain. From all the casualties
of war Mr. Gardener fortunately escaped, and was
neither wounded nor taken prisoner. He was made
Sergeant soon after his first service in the war, and
during the time was transferred to the Sixth U. S.
Cavalry, in which he remained until he was mus-
tered out. May 26, 1864. He returned to Ohio, and
after two months entered the service of the Govern-
ment, operating chiefly as a harness maker. He was
thus employed about six months, and on the close of
the war returned to Ohio. Soon after he came to
Oceana Co., Mich., and entered 160 acres of land
under the homestead act.

He returned to Medina Co., Ohio, and was married
May 22, 1866, to Lydia A., daughter of Alden and
Luis (Morse) Apthorp, the father a native of Massa-
cluisetts, and the mother of New York. They
moved to Medina Co., Ohio, in 1840, where Mrs.
Gardner was born. May 16, 1844. She was well edu-
cated in the common schools of the Buckeye State,
and was a teacher some years previous to her mar-
riage. After that event she accompanied her hus-
band to Michigan, and they resided on his farm in
Oceana County until the fall of 1870, when Mr.
Gardner removed his interests to Millbrook, Mecosta
County, and established a general mercantile busi-
ness, with a stock of goods worth ^600. He con-
tinued to operate there until December, iSSi, and
during the time his business increased until it reach-
ed an aggregate of ;$4o,ooo annually. He sold out at
the time named to E. F. Horton, and moved to Re-
mus, Wheatland T|)., where he established a mercan-
tile business, on a basis of ^6,000. His annual sales

i-5^#^"

MECOSTA COUNTY

'i^\

"'^'^'•;^^-*^

reach a figure of $50,000, and he maintains one of
the finest stores and best assorted lines of goods in
Northern Michigan. He moved his family to Big
Rapids, but continues to own and manage his exten-
sive business interests at Remus.

In politics Mr. (lardner is a Re|)ublican, and has
held [lositions of trust and prominence where lie has
reiided. Coral). A|)tlKirp, ado|ited daughter ot Mr.
and Mrs. (lardner, was l>orn Dec. 30, 1871.

lanson H. Waterman, farmer on sec. 1 9,
f Deerfield Tp., was born in Massachusetts,
3, iSiy. He is a son of Oliver and

%W Miriam (Jennings) Waterman, who removed

'':'-' from the Bay State to New York and thence to
j Pennsylvania, where the mother died in 1863.
The father returned to New York soon after, and
in 1 868 jtiined his wife in the land of the hereafter.
Mr. Waterman was under the tutelage of his parents
until lie reached man's estate. He went with them
to the State of New York, and a year later to Penn-
sylvania, where he pursued agriculture ten years,
meanwhile arranging and preparing to enter the min-
istry. In 1849 he returned to New York and was
) installed pastor of the Southeast Stockton Baptist
Church, and in 1850 received ordination. He re-
taineil his charge three years, at the end of that time
accepting a call from the Baptist Church and society
at Sheridan, N. Y., where he officiated two years.
He resigned his post two years later and was in-
stalled pastor over the First Baptist Church at
Aurora, Portage Co., Ohio. After a successful pas-
torate of two years, he acccepted the charge at Auburn,
O., where he remained two years ; then went to Mec-
ca, Trumbull Co., Oliio, and was there engaged in ac-
tive ministerial work ten years. His health becoming
impaired in 1869, he relimpiished his connection with
the ministr\', resigned his charge, and came to Mont-
Jv calm Co., Mich., wiieie he bought 260 acres of unim-
S proved land, built a log house and underwent all the
I experiences of the pioneer. But he made marked
% progress in the improvements on his property, and
■y when he sold it in 1878, 120 acres of his farm was
'S in an advanced state of cultivation,
v-'^ In 1878 he came to Mecosta County and pur-

^_^ ( liased 40 acres of partially improved land, now his

home and the place wherein he designs to pass his
remaining life. He was married in Pennsylvania
July I, 1841, to Mary E., daughter of Lysander and
Elizabeth (Saltsman) Mitchell, natives respectively
of New York aijd Pennsylvania. They settled in
1878 in Montcalm Co., but returned to Pennsylvania,
where Mrs. Mitchell died Oct. S, 1882, and her hus-
band followed July 19, 1883. But three ol' the eight
children born to Mr. and Mrs. Waterman are living:
Frances M., born June 13, 1849; Chas. B., May 2,
1857, and Elmer B., June g, 1861. The jiarents
gave two sons to the Union cause, and both are at
rest in the soil which the lives they surrendered to
save fioin the ruin of disunion have consecrated for-
ever. Their honored names are Sylvester A., born
Feb. 19, 184-, and died July 18, 1864; and George
C, born Oct. 6, 1844, and died F"eb. 23, 1866. The
following is the record of three others who are in the
home of everlasting peace: Mary J., born Feb. 13,
1847, died Sept. 7, 1874; Judson V., born Sept 9,
1854, died Sept. n, 1854; Adaline C, born June 5,
1 85 I, and died Sept. 9, 1854.

After a useful and and active life of nearly 70
years, Mr. and Mrs. Waterman are passing the sun-
set of their life in serenity and trust. Thev are
devoted to Chiistian work and are zealous in the in-
terests of the Church of their choice. Mr. Water-
man is a Reiiublican.

-13=

=£*-

Iffls)'^ ; eter Cahill, tanner on sec. 15, ^Etna Tp.,
was born April 8, 1S41, in Canada. At
J t^'-^ the age of 15 he entered upon his single-

'If ■-'

handed contest with the world, and at 21 he
came to Michigan, working as a farmer and
''" lumberman until the fall of 1867. In 1868
he bought 40 acres of wild land, to which he added
by purchase 40 acres of railroad land, whereon lie
built a log house and proceeded to prepare his farm
for the sustenance of his family. He now has 30
acres under cultivation. In political sentiment Mr.
Cahill is a Greenbacker, and the family are all ad-
herents of the Catholic Church. Mr. Caliill has
been Highway Commissioner one year and School
Director two years. He was married in the township
of /Etna, Aug. 5, 1867, to Sarah, daughter of William
' and Mary A. (Plinii'ton) Mitchell, natives of the

()■:

(>)

^^/w^^

'(:rrr<^Um\h>T^

#^f

MECOS TA CO UN T V.

|uly 8, i8So. Ccr-

State of New York, and their children arc,' X'csta,
born May 22, 1S6.S; Alice, July 31, 1S70; Frances
\V., Oct. 17, 1876; James K.
trude is deceased.

t^l^lijah Carr, farmer on sec. 6, Hinton Tp.,
i^lj^' was born in New Jersey, Oct. 21, 1834.

His parents, Samuel and Catherine (Wise)

!;Kt Carr, were born in New Jersey, and were pio-
'■,. neers in Oakland County, removing later to
\ (xreenville, Mecosta Co., where they died.
Mr. Carr was but four years old when his parents
became residents of Michigan. He obtained his
education in the common schools, and worked on the
farm until he was 22 years old. In 1856 he bought
80 acres of timber land in Greenville, Montcalm Co.,
) and soon after purchased a similar acreage. He was
a resident of the place for 22 years. He sold it in
1878, and bought 160 acres in Hinton Tp., now his
residence and under his management.

Mr. Carr was married in Oakhind County, Dec. 13,
1S46, to Mrs. Mary H. Stewart, second daughter of
John and Amanda (Jordan) Clark. Her parents
were natives of Vermont, and in 1834 came to Mich-
igan, settling in Montcalm County, where the mother
died, June 5, 1849, the father dying several years
later. Mrs. Carr was liorn in Pontiac, Oakland Co.,
Aug. 2, 1835. The family circle includes six chil-
dren : Ellen E., John L., Alice M., Josephine 1! ,
Frances E. and Avery Cj. Mr. Carr is an adherent
to the |)rinci[)les and issues of the Democratic party.
Mrs. Carr's first .husband was Charles Stewart, and
of that maniage one child was born — .Sophia A.

>:^

)

f-llK^f ohn B. Gingrich, farmer, sec. 8, Wheatland
?m- I'l'-i 's a son af Jacob and Barbara (Burk-

wife to the home of his parents and lived with them
line year, coming in the fill of 1 S67 to iMichigan and
locating on sec. 8, where he secured 120 acres of
wooded land, with an old log hut thereon, which had
been previously built and which the family occui>ied
five years. 'I'he pioneer dwelling has given place to
one more pretentious and comfortable; and 20 acres
have been added to the farm, which now aggregates
140 acres, with too in first-class improvements and
furnished with ample and suitable farm buildings.

The children of Mr. and Mrs. Gingrich are as fol-
lows: Barbara J., born June 17, 1867; Rebecca,
Feb. 28, 1869; William J., born Aug. 27, 1870, died
Sejit. 2, 1S71 ; Joseph, born July 17, 1872, died Sept.
8, 18S1; Susan, born July 1, 1874, died Sept. 17,
1881, The tuo last named died of diphtheria, nine
days intervening between their deaths. Mr. Ging-
rich belongs to the Democratic party, and has held the
post of Constable si.\ years, 'l"he parents are mem-
bers of the M. E. Church.

hart) Gingrich, who were natives of Penn-
'■fK sylvania, and in early youth went to Canada,
where they were married and reared their fam-
ily. i\Ir. Gingrich was born in Waterloo Co.,
Can., May 2, 1847. He was married Nov. 15, 1866,
to Mary J., daughter of John and Jane (Cathcart)
Bellamy (see sketch), who was born in Wellington
Co., Can., Aug. 17, 1846. Mr. Gingrich took his

'§ij:«yron S. Davenport, Paris, Green Tp., was
^^f. born Jan. 2, 1862, in Barton, Newaygo Co.,
^1^ Mich., and is the youngest son of William
"?')'" and Jemima (Stanley) Davenport. The father
"v was born in Wayne Co., Ind., Sept. 24, 1824,
I and is a son of Jesse Davenport, a native of
England and a millwright by vocation. William Da-
venport moved to Columbia, Fayette Co., Ind., in
1845, where he engaged three years successfully in
mercantile business. In 1856 he went to PJarton,
and has since resided there, pursuing his trade of
millwright and mechanic. He [uirchased a half
section of Government land, which his sons cleared
and placed in good farming condition, leaving him to
pursue his trade. Jemima Stanley was born Oct. 7,
1824, in Richmond, Ind., of English descent, and
was married July 31, 1842, to William Davenport.
They are the parents of one daughter and five sons.
Mr. Davenport, of this sketch, ac(|uired his ele-
mentary education in the schools of Barton and in
the high school of Big Rapids, finishing his studies
at the Commercial College of Grand Rapids. In
1881, in company with his brother, he established
himself in business in Paris, which connection con-
tinued nearly a year, and was brought to a close by

;<f^

<^DD/^nil^>r

MECOSTA COUNTY.

•^^

the unfortunate management of liis brother, who in-
volved tlieir affairs in a hopeless intricacy and took
his departure. Mr. Davenport adjusted matters as
well as he was able, sold out the business and en-
j;aged. May 20, 1882, as salesman with D. Levy, of
liii; Rai)ids. A few months later he entered the em-
ploy of B. E. H^itchinson & Co., of Paris, as sales-
man, and remained with them until Feb. 22, 1883,
when the concern failed and he was appointed i)y the
assignee to sell out the stock. After this he engaged
with W. I), Hopkinson as book-keeper and salesman,
in which capacity he is stiU acting.

5f *^^i enry H. Moore, farmer, sec. 20, llinion
f'ii^ls ''"l'-> ^^''is horn .March 28, 1849, in the State
fj'tei '■'''* ot New York, and is the youngest of a
"^K family of seven children. }{is father, Hiram
Moore, was a native of New Ham|)shire, and
went to New York when a boy, where his father
was one of the first pioneers. The mother, Ann
(I'errey) Moore, was born in the Slate of New York,
where she was married in 1S29. Her husband was
luialile to labor for 35 years before his death, having
become disabled by over-e.xertion. He was cared
for by liis children during the later years of his life,
and was the especial charge of his son, H. H. Moore,
some years previous to his death, which occurred
March 13, 1873, of cancer of the stomach. He was
ol a radical character, and during all his life was a
consistent Christian man.

Mr. Moore of this sketch was 23 years old when
his father died, and on the occurrence of that event
removed to Kenosha Co., Wis., and was there oi:cu-
pied as a car[)enter six months, moving thence to
Janesville, and three months later to this county.
In the spring of 1874 he bought 160 acres of unim-
proved land in Hinton Tp., worth at that time
,91,000. He built a frame house, and the first year
cleared 20 acres ; he now has 60 acres imder
improvement.

He was married in the State of New York, Nov.
23, 1869, to Emma L., third daughter of Asa and
Louisa (Dow) Robliins, born in the Empire State,
Jan. 26, 1S48. Her parents were nati\-es of \'er-
mont, and were married in New York, where her

father died Dec. 8, 1S76. Her mother is yet living,
in Hinton Tji.

Mr. and Mrs. Moore are both [lersons of stable
character. Their tastes and inclinations lead them
into the best avenues of thought and action, and
thev are intimately associated with all popular move-
ments and reformatory issues, uiiether social,
moral or religious. ISoth were school-teachers, fond
of books, and are correspondents of several local
l)apers. They belong to two distinct temperance
organizations, and are actively interested in the M.
E. Church, in which Mr. Moore has been a Class-
Leader most of the time since the organization of the
society to which he belongs.

He is an inflexible Republican, and has officiated
in several township offices, and failed of appointment
to others only because of his radical temperance
views.

'VS*)^§^#*

_Si5'

'Wi' eter B. Gingrich, tarmer on sec. 7, W neat-
land Tp., is a son of Jacob and Barbara
,u,|!C3-Jfv (l)Urkhart) Cingrich, natives of Pennsyl-
^■' J '^''•"''1 '^'""J "f German descent, who went to
.l/j\. Ontario, Can., in their childhood, where they
^' were afterwards married. Mr. Gingrich was
born in Waterloo Co., Can., .Aug. 25, 1839. He had
fair eilucational advantages, and in 1858 he appren-
ticed himself to F. G. Locknar, of Hawksville, to learn
the art of lilacksmithing. After serving his full time,
three and one-half years, he became manager in tlie
same shop where he had lieen instructed, and con-
ducted the business two years. He was married
Oct. 4, i860, in Waterloo County, to ALrry, daughter
of James and Leonora (Newton) McDonald, natives
respectively of Scotland and New York, who went
early in life to the Dominion, wliere they were mar-
ried and where the daughter was born, Sept. 3, 1841.
After marriage Mr. C;ingri( h went into business on
his own behalf in the town of Flora, Ont., where he
pursued his trade until February, 1862, when he
went to W'infield, Wellington Co., Ont. After oper-
ating there for a time his health liecame impaired
and he sold out, starling in the s[)ring of 1863, on a
prospecting tour to Michigan, and worked to some
extent at his trade. Prospects were not verv flatter-
ing and he returned home and worked on a farm un-
til tlie fall of 1867, when he again resolved on seek-

<>il!l>:illlr.>^^-- —

fT**-"- •"^-'

■v<;'llDJ>:DDr>r

>7S

MECOSTA

ing a home in the Peninsular State. Himself and
brother exchanged loo acres of land in Ontario for
240 acres in Wheatland Tp., Mr. Gingrich becoming
the possessor of 120 acres, to which he has made an
addition of 20 acres more. Of this, 75 acres arc now
as well improved as any in the county, and the owner
has recently erected some very fine farm buildings
thereon.

The family of Mr. Gingrich includes six children,
born as follows: Leonora, July 5, 1S61 ; Samuel A.,
Aug. 3, 1864; William A"., Jan. 20, 1868; Henry W.
B , Aug. 8, 1870; Franklin V., Jan. 31, 1875; Lillie
G., May 25, 1878: Lavinia N., born Aug. 3, 1873,
died Dec. 6, 1881.

In politics Mr. Gingrich is a staunch Democrat,
and has held nearly every office of any prominence
in the local government of his township. He is act-
ively interested in the work of the society of Good
Templars, to which he belongs, and in which he oc-
cupies the chair of P. AV. C.

" feiJ^hristian W. Wernette, resident at Me-
i^Hf costa village, Morton Tp., is a son of
'^''^^ John and Mary (Veitheimer) Wernette,

Ijfc and was born June 15, 185 i, in Waterloo Q
y^ Canada. When he was 10 years of age his
parents sent him to Berlin, in his native
country, to college, with the view of educating him
for a Romish priest ; but his natural tastes were so
decidedly averse to such a life that he left school at
the end of the first year. In 1863 he came to Mich-
igan and engaged several years as a farm laborer,
and in 1865 went hack to New York and enlisted
in the State militia, but was not called into action.
He was the youngest and the tallest man in the
company. His regiment was mustered out of tlie
service in the spring of 1866, when he returned to
Mecosta County, and was employed about six
months in the lumber woods. His next engagement
was with the Chicago Lumber Co., cutting timber in
the vicinity of the Manistee River. In 1875 he
bought a farm of 290 acres, three miles southeast of
Mecosta village, where he lived until that place
was platted. Foreseeing the promising future of
the rapidly growing and plucky little village, lie
bought a lot on Main street, and built a saloon,
which he still carries on, holding a stock of about

113,000, embracing all articles common to his line of
business, his annual sales amounting to about
$11,000. He acceded to the possession of the
Wilson House, Sept. 15, 1882, which he afterward
rented to R. H. Duly for three years, and in the
spring of 1S83 he bought the building where the
Mecosta Advance is published, which is rented to
the proprietor of that journal. July i, 1883, he
bought a half interest in a meat market adjoining
his saloon, which is well patronized under the
firm name of Reed & Wernette. His residence
on North Franklin street was lately erected, at a cost
of $r,2oo; is handsomely fitted up with modern
appurtenances, and is an ornament to the place.
On his farm southeast of the city, he has built a
large and commodious barn, which he has so plan-
ned as to have one of the finest water privileges in
Northern Michigan. His place is stocked with a fine
lot of blooded cattle and China pigs. He owns, be-
sides, a 40-acre farm one mile north of Mecosta vil-
lage ; has also 40 acres of pine land, which he values
very highly. He also owns a blacksmith shop on
Main street, occupying two lots near the Town Hall.

Mr. Wernette is a Democrat in political faith. He
has officiated as Supervisor of Morton Tp., and in
1880 was nominated for Representative from his
district on the ticket of his party, but declined the
position on account of ill health. Mr. Wernette has
always been active in the interests of his township
and of the (ommnnity of which he is a member. To
him belongs the credit of securing the establishment
of mail privileges at Bingen (now Remus).

He was married July 3, 1S75, at Grand Ra[)ids, to
Mary Pickette, daughter of a prosperous farmer of
Kent County. Mr. and Mrs. Wernette have three
children: Lillie R., Joseph W. and Jessy J.

Among the portraits of prominent citizens jiresent-
ed in this volume may be found that of Mr. Wernette.

W-^-i^

oland. D. Reed, marketman (firm of Reed

|fW); & AVernette), Mecosta, Morton Tp., was

S?W. born in Hainsville, Medina Co., Ohio,

Sept. 23, 1849. His parents, James and

Elizabeth (Holcomb) Reed, are both deceased.

His father was a native of Medina Co., Ohio,

was a miller by trade, and died in Ionia,

Mich., Nov. 10, 1 86 1, aged 31 years, and his mother

r'iST

■rT^C^tlll>:llll^>r

'«^^

M F.COSTA COUNTY.

fi^C(®Vg^

died in Niles, Mich., May i, 1873, at the age of 41
years.

In 1877 Mr. Reed engaged in the meat trade at
Six Lakes, Montcahn County, and operated there with
success three years, closing his business in March,
iSSo. In May following lie opened a similar busi-
ness at Mecosta village. July i, 18S3, he admitted
C. W. ^\■ernettL■ as partner, and their business now
amounts to $r,ooo per month. Mr. Reed is a mem-
ber of the Maccabees' society. He owns his shop
and slaughter-house grounds, comprising 18 acres
and situated half a mile from town.

He was married March 24, 1876, to Millicent,
daughter of Sydney and Elizabeth Edie, born at
Lowell, Kent Co., Mich.

,, , rs. Mary A. Dvitcher, residing on sec. 29,
'■. tiii-J^ ^'^ (jreen Tp., was born in Liverpool, Eng.,
Aug. 16, 1820. She is a daughter of

/[.^V\'?<;^ Edward and Elizabeth (Fowle) Hudson, na-
tives of England. They came to America in
1823 and landed at Si. John, New Brunswick,
on the ninth of May. They were residents there
until their death. Mrs. Dutcher was married Dec.
26, 1840, to Alexander McPhee, a native of Halifax,
Nova Scotia. They went to Canada West and in
186 1 moved to Michigan, locating in Mecosta County,
where the husband followed farming until his death,
which 0(xurred May 21, 1S64. The widow was a
second time married in 1866, to Simeon S. Dutcher,
a native of dreenbush, N. Y. He died June 30,

iSSo. Mrs. Dutcher has been a member of the
Methodist Episi opal Church for 20 years.

ohn Clink, farmer, sec. 2,2,^ Deerfield T[i., is

son of John and Catherine (Brown) Clink.

^'i- They were natives of New York, and after

where the mother is yet living; tlie fatlier is

deceased.

Mr. Clink was born in Canada, Nov. 19, 1843, and
there grew to man's estate. In the autunni of 1862
he came to Deerfield townshiii and [jurchased 80
acres of unbroken forest land, now the homestead of

A-

George Helms. On selling his first landed estate, "^
Mr. Clink bought 80 acres, where he now resides and
has 20 acres under cultivation.

The marriage of Mr. Clink with Charlotte, fourth
daughter of John and Anna (Nunn) Sanger, took
place Feb. 23, 1862. Mrs. Clink's parents were na-
tives of Canada, and there remained resident until
their death. The seven children born of this mar-
riage are recorded as follows: John H., born May
10, 1866; Milhe, June 22, 1868; Deviio, May 24,
1870; Thomas, April 21, 1872; Clyde, March 15,
187s ; Annie (dec), June 21, 1864; VVm. (dec), Nov.
19, 1881.

Mr. Clink has been Constable in Mecosta County
nearly 10 years; was re-elected, and also chosen
Drain Commissioner in the spring of 1883, Init de-
clined the positions. He is a Democrat in political
princiijle.

-<i ■ : — ^■•:!'r-y-::?' ^=:: ■ •>- /- -

,", fSil'jharles E. Warner, farmer, sec. 20, /Etna /S
\ L— J: f P-, was born in Summit Co., Ohio, Sept. ==
|te7^ 12, 1842. He is a son of Andrew and ,^
fj'.'v Laura (Riley) Warner, who were born in New i=t
'i,' York and recently died in Micliigan. When
'. four years old Mr. Warner was taken to the
home of an uncle, where he remained until he was
19 years of age, when he returned to his childhood's
home. After a brief sojourn there, he set forth with
strong deteimination to make his way in the world,
and was variously occupied for several years, when
he came to Michigan and found employ in the mills
at Grand Rapids for some time. Meanwhile he took
advantage of a good opportunity to purchase a farm
near that city, on which he located in 1878. After a
few years he resolved on making another change,
and went to Indiana, wheie he remained some years,
operating summers as an engineer and spending the
alternate winters in lumbering. He had, during this
time, invested some money in a farm in ^^tna Tp.,
where he took up his residence in 1S78. The place
contains i 20 acres.

Mr. Warner was married March 26, 1866, to Etta
A., daughter of William and Susan J. (Reed) Hill, a
native of Massachusetts, born April 26, 1859. Their
children are Frank E., Dora B., Wm. E., Homer R.,
Harris L., Charies C. and Bertha M. Mr. and Mrs.
Warner are members of the M. E. Church. Mr.

Kif-^

^mmvi-^y^

®.

MhXOSTA COUNTY.

•)

^ Warner has been identified with the RepubHcan
••■) party since the beginning of his connection with
. '~f poHtics.

niiu?=sj^p; ames Mitchell, farmer, sec. lo, ^Etna 1 p.,
> was born Feb. 7, 1815, in the State of
New York, and is a son of Zephaniah P.
and Annie (Se.xton) Mitchell, natives of the
Empire State. He remained in his native
State until the fall of 1845, when he came to
% Wayne Co., Mich., and spent five years as a farm
laborer, coming thence to Sparta, Kent Co.; and a
year later he went to Nottawa, St. Joseph Co., and
bought 80 acres of land, which was in his possession
ten years. In the spring of 1861 he came to Me-
costa County and settled in JVAw-Sl 'I'p., where he
took 40 acres of wild land under the swamp act.
He built a log house and entered uiion the labor of
^ clearing the land. In 1868 he bought 40 acres lying
;-!; adjacent to his original purchase, making an aggre-
?? gate of So acres, Oo of which are under cultivation,
^ and on which he fi.xed his residence. He was mar-
^ ried to Susan, daughter of Jonathan Western, who
'^ died in 1863, and four of their seven children sur-
vive: Nathaniel, Oliver, Asa and Adeline. In 1865*
he was again married, to Kate, daughter of John and
Ellen Ciilluly, natives and life residents of Ireland.
The family belong to the Catholic Church, and Mr.
Mitchell is a Democrat.

the following year Mr. McKcwen took a journey
West on accoulit of the health of his wife, but all ef-
forts were unavailing, and she died A\ig. 20, 1881, of
liver disease, from which she was ill eight months.

In politics Mr. McKewen is independent; in re-
liirion he is a Roman Catholic.

,,,„,,_ „J! atthew Roben, retired merchant, residing

|( t S[ W> ' 1 "

^Vi'.Sitaf at Big Rapids, was born at Ryegate, Cale-
donia Co., Vt., Sept. I, 1814. He comes

Atacc/S^"

i/Si-a/SzrjW/.

ohn McKewen, farmer, sec. 27, Deerfield

I'p., was born in Canada, May 14, 1855.
(3^F'H' He is a son of Michael and Julia (Lcvick)
™ McKewen, the former a native of Ireland and

^ .^

^f the latter of Canada. In 187 1 the parents
^ moved to Shiawassee Co., Mich., where the
father died, in February, 1882, when the son was 16
years of age. Si.\ years later, John came to Deerfield
Ti>., and bought 40 acres of land on sec. 28, then in
a wholly unimproved condition, and has since \)ur-
chased 40 acres on sec. 27, where he is now resident.

He was married Oct. 30, 1S80, to Mary Elizabeth,
"^ daughter of John and Mary (Martin) O'Neil. In

"{^

\ of a long line of Scotch ancestry, originating
in Renfrewshire, Scotland, and traceable for
many generations — a family of means and in-
fluence in their native country. His great-grand-
father, Walter Roben, was born in 17 19, at Renfrew,
and died in 1784. His wife was Isabella (Gardner)
Roben. His son, Matthew Roben, grandfather of
the subject of this sketch, came to this country with
his family in 1S03. He was one of the original
founders of the Scotch colony in Caledonia Co., Vt.,
which is perhaps the most extensive Scotch settlement
in the United States. He was also a Mason of high
degree, and a prominent organizer of Masonic lodges
in Vermont at that early day. His wife was Jean
(Harvey) Roben, born near Glasgow, Scotland, and
of a family of prominence in that locality.

\V'alter Roben, father of the subject of this sketch,
was born in Renfrewshire, Scotland, near Glasgow, in
1786, and died at Ryegate, Vt., Aug. 13, T867, at the
age of 81 years. He was a farmer l)y occupation.
His wife, Polly (Thomas) Roben, mother of Matthew,
was born in New Hampshire, in 1788, and died at
Ryegate, Vt., in her 85th year.

Mr. Roben was reared on his father's farm, and
obtained a common-school education, which was
supplemented by attendance for a considerable time
at the Vermont Wesleyan University at Newbury.
He came to Ohio in 1835, where he engaged in
teaching school, at first in 'i'uscarawas County, and
afterwards in Morrow (then a part of Richland)
County. After several years he purchased a farm in
Morrow County, near the village of West Point, and
engaged in farming. Later, he added another farm
to this, and built a store in West Point, where for
some time he sold a general stock of goods, and at
the same time attended to the management of his

^Vi*

<;il!]^niiv>>^

Wf>-/^&^m^

T<<m^m>t

-*^^^

■u

3S8

^ farms. In these business operations he was iiuite
' successful.

Having been elected County Recorder of Morrow
♦ County, he removed to Mount Gilead, the county
seat, where he continued to reside during the re-
mainder of the time he lived in Ohio, a period of i8
years. Mr. Roben was a resident of what is now
Morrow County about 35 years in all, and was
thoroughly identified with the early growth and inter-
ests of that county.

Having contracted the asthma, and his health
being poor, he removed with his famil)- in 1 87 2 to
Cassopolis, Mich., where he resided one year; but
not finding his health much improved by the climate
of that place, he removed to Big Rapids, in May, 1 873.
Soon afterward he built a store and residence on
State street, and in 1874 went into mercantile busi-
ness again, carrying on a general store, and doing a
safe but linrited business, such as his health would
permit. In 18S1, he retired from business.

Mr. Roben was married in Knox Co., Ohio, in
1840, to Esther Albach, who was born in Northum-
a l)erland Co., Pa., in 1819, and came with her parents'
/^ family to Ohio when a young lady. Her father was
John Albach, a wealthy farmer, a leading citizen, and
an early i)ioneer of Northumberland County. Mr.
and Mrs. Roben have had seven children — two sc)ns
and five daughters. Their eldest son and daughter
died in childhood. Their surviving son, Douglas
(see sketch), and four daughters reside in Big Rapids.
Two daughters are married, and of the two remaining
unmarried, one is a teacher, and the other an artist.
Mr. Roben belongs to the Order of Odd Fellows,
(an Encampment member), and is a Royal Arch
Mason.

MRCOSTA COUNTY.

)

Nj;

"Sfglj ottleib Staab, farmer, on sec. 20, Green

||1^^/ Tp., was born Aug. 3, 18 1 6, in Wurtemburg,

-^kSJ^' ^ Germany, and is a son of Jacob and Eliza-

^W^ beth (Wilder) Staab. He was educated and

'{' lived in the "Faderland" until 1S47, when he

\ sailed for the New World, and landed on the

shores of this continent April 20 of that year. He

remained awhile in Pittsburg, Pa., going thence to

Wheeling, W. Va., and from there to Ohio, wliere he

labored as a I'arm hand. Later on he bought 40

acres of hind in Wheatland, Ind. After ]>ursuing

agriculture there six years, he sold and came to Bar-
ton, Newaygo Co., Mich., where he bought 160 acres
of land. He lives there three years and cleared 20
acres, after which he sold out, and in the si)ring of
i860 settled on section 20 of Green Tp., where he
now owns 82 acres of land, with about 50 under till-
age.

Mr. Staab was married in 1848, in Wheeling, Va.^
to Sophia Colder, who was Ijorn in Germany, and
died June 10, 1874. In 1878 Mr. Staab went to
Germany, returning in the fall of 1879. He was
married in 18S0 to Christina Guge, who died June 2,
1883. Mr. Staab is a Repulilican in politics.

fj^ohn Wiseman, Big Rapids, dealer in pic-
tures, picture frames, wall paper, brackets,
iK-''^^~^ t;tc., combines a news depot with his busi-
less, and makes a specialty of undertaking,
leing a funeral director. He was born June 29,
1830, in Columbiana Co., ( >hio. His father
was a farmer, and he was brought up to agricultural
pursuits, and acquired a common-school education.
In 1846 his parents removed to Marion County and
bought a farm. There Mr. Wiseman was married,
April 25, 1S52, to Hannah, daughter of Jonathan and
Susan Merrick. Of their two children, one — Morris
— grew to maturity, and is engaged in the restaurant
and boarding-house business at Stanton.

In 1854, Mr. Wiseman moved to Ottawa Co.,
Mich., where he bought a farm of 160 acres. His
wife died in 1857, and he afterward married Jane
McGinnis. Charles, Emily and John are the names
of the three children born to tiiem. The daughter is
a tailoress and dressmaker in Coldwater, Mich. The
youngest son is dead. The mother died Feb. 25,
1864. Mr. Wiseman was married a third time in
Ottawa County, to Eliza Waters. Emmet and Linda
are the names of tlieir two children.

In the s]iring of 1S71 Mr. Wiseman came to Big
Rapids, and opened a store for the sale of general
merchandise, whicli he transferred to a grocery busi-
ness. This he sold in 1S72, and established himself
as an undertaker and dealer in furniture. He closed
the latter and added the merchandise mentioned.
His estalilishment is tastefully arranged, and pre-
sents all the features of a first-class art and news

^^^^^ — -tK-D!]:-^:dii;->^

.■:sii^f^

a:v.

"^^^E^^^ei

■€-^M'^M^>r

MECOSTA COUNTY.

361

^ depot. His stock comprises a collection valued at

^K $7,000, and his yearly transactions reach a figure of
iX $1 2,000. Mr. Wiseman liclongs to the Order of Odd
Fellows at r.ia; Rapids.

-13=

A h

J^-i.

K-

larence L. Noi-thrup, senior member of

£]; tlie firm of Northrup & Alalone, attorneys

^"^ and real-estate dealers, was born in North

^ Adams, Hillsdale Co., Mich-, June 28, 1844,

d^ and is a son of Jabez S. and Mary A. (Mon-

\ roe) Northrui).

He traces his paternal lineage to the Colonial
period of this nation's history, when several brothers
of his patronymic came from England to Connecti-
cvit. A descendant of these, Daniel Northrup,
moved to Saratoga Co., N. Y., previous to the war of
) the Revolution. Lewis Northrup, son of Daniel, was
^ born there Jan. 15, 1768, was married September 15,
f^S 1792, to Robah Smith (born in Milton, Saratoga Co.,
= N. Y., May 20, 1772, and died Oct. 3, 1838), and
V^ died May 9, 1853, leaving four sons and one daugh-
== ter. Most of their descendants yet reside in Sa^a-
toga and Fulton Counties in the Empire State.
Jabez S. Northrup, third son, was born in Galway,
Saratoga Co., Apiil 20, 1803. He began teaching at
the age of iS, and continued in that vocation many
years. From 1S21 to 1825 he belonged to the State
militia, and was assigned to the Covernor's staff,
with the rank of IJeutenant. He was married Nov.
II, 1829, to Huldah Smith, and removed with his
family seven years later to the (then) Territory of
Michigan, and bought a considerable tract of land in
Hillsdale County, most of which is the present site
of North Adams. His wife died in 1842, leaving
four daughters. May 3, 1843, he married Mary
Celina, eldest daughter of Lester and Lorena (Rolfe)
Monroe, born Dec. 28, 1S21, and by this marriage
he became the father of seven sons and one daugh-
ter. Lester Monroe was born Ai)ril 16, 1796, at
'•■^ Cooperstown, Albany Co., N. Y., and was the son of
i David and Anna (Andrus) Monroe. The former
^ was born Sept. 26, 1768, and was cousin to James
!X Monroe, fifth President of the United States. The
^ Monroe stock is of Scotch origin, and its represent-
(^ atives are diffused through both sections of this
^ country. David Monroe and Anna Andrus were

married Jan. 16, 1794. The latter was born Oct.

23, 177 1, and died June 12, 1817. The former
died July 31, 1S37, leaving a large family of children.
Lester Monroe served with distinction in the war of
181 2, participating in the battles of Lundy's Lane,
etc., and at the close of the war retired to private
life. He was married Sept. 12, 1817, to Lorena
Rolfe, born April 9, 1801, of parents made conspicu-
ous by the fact that they were survivors of the
Wyoming massacre. In 1836 Lester Monroe moved
with his family to Pittsford, Hillsdale Co., Mich.^
and is now living in that county, aged 87 years.

Mr. Northrup of this sketch is the eldest son.
His father removed to Jefferson, Hillsdale County,
and bought a valuable farm near Osseo, where he
was reared and educated with care, his father and
step-sisters being experienced teachers. The under-
lying element governing his father in the rearing of
his children was to leave them as a heritage " liljeral
education, good business habits and strict religious
principles." Mr. Northrup was but 17 years old
when civil war in all its blind fury and with all its
ineffaceable disasters shook the nation throughout its
wide e.\tent. The studious, reflective boy, whose
every impulse had been disciiilined to revere his
country, and to regard her integrity as almost of
, divine origin, was inspired with the same ambition
that led the sons of the N-Drth t" rise as one man and
rescue the nation from the consequences of the in-
furiated folly of the South. In March, 1862, he left
school and hastened home. No remonstrance of
parent or friend availed aught to change his deter-
mination to dare the fate of war and die, if need be,
m the cause of home and country. He enlisted in
Co. E (Hillsdale Light Guard), Fourth Michigan
Vol. Inf., and was soon in front of Yorktown, his
regiment having been assigned to the Army of the
Potomac. He saw much hard service in that se-
verest, most disastrous campaign of the war, the
Peninsular struggle under McClellan. He was in
action through the Seven Days' Battles, was with
Pope in his short career with the Army of Virginia,
and fought at Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancel-
lorsville, Gettysburg, the Wilderness and Spottsyl-
vania Court-House. At the last, the Fifth Army
Corps, to which his regiment was attached, led the
advance; and during the struggle of May 10, 1S64,
he sustained a dangerous gunshot wound, lying si.x
hours on the field before he was discovered and

.>
Vp

>362

^ ~"

^ taken to Emory Hospital, at Washington. When
j) sufficiently recovered he was sent to the York (Pa.)
-.ii* Hospital. His period of enlistment expired before he
t was wholly recovered, and he received his discharge
^March i8, 1865, after more than three years'arduous
service. After the expiration of his term of service
he was in the Government employ until the Rebel-
lion was crushed and peace restored, when he again
traversed the fields where he had before met only
uncompromising conflict.

Mr. Northrup passed the next two years in farm-
;^Sing and study and as telegraph operator. He was
united in the holy bonds of matrimony April 6,
1867, to Katie Maud, youngest daughter of George
and Lanie (l'"ox) Wilson, born at Kalanio, Eaton
Co., Mich., Oct. 2, 1849. Her father was born in
England, and her mother in Montgomery Co., N. Y.,
and were pioneers of Eaton County, wheie they
located in 1837. Mrs. Northrup was educated at
^Marshall, Mich., and is a lady of earnest. Christian
»7S<-'''''i>''tcter, of retiring habits, and well known only to
=i those who see her in her private walks of life. She
■f.-. belongs to the Congregational Church, and is a quiet
13 worker in the Sunday-school.

'.' Mr. and Mrs. Northrup have had four children, viz.
V. Vannie P., born Dec. 25, 1868; Vernon W., April
,3, 1870; \'era Maria, born May 16, 1875, died July
30, 1S7C; Veda Maud, March 24, 187S.

.\fter his marriage Mr. Northrup went to Sherman,

We.xfordCo., Mich., where he remained but a sliort

time, and returned to Eaton County, going back to

Sherman a few months later, and there employing

^ his time as a farmer, siieculator, teacher, and sales-

,j man in a store, meanwhile reading for the profession

of law. He was admitted to the bar in 1874, and

soon after entered into partnershii) with the Hon, T,

A. Ferguson, While at Sherman he served as

Deputy Sheriff, acted several years as a member of

the Board of Supervisors, and was tiie first County

Superintendent of Schools. In 1875 he went to

^ Traverse County and taught school a year, going

> thence to Benzie County, and in June, 1876, he

J located at Benzonia, the county seat. He was ap-

'■{- pointed Deputy County Clerk, and the same year

'y was elected Circuit Court Commissioner of Benzie

-*■> County, which office he held six years. He was also

\^ Village Clerk of Benzonia three years. In 1S78 lie

7" was elected Prosecutim; Attorney <jf the county, and I

(.:/,^-t^l rr Ata3^,=« >mjy^«n^ V

— r-T<:l]Il>^DIl^>V-
J^/,£•cc6'^,^ COUNTY.

■S^

-o^i^

re-elected in 1880, During the campaign preceding
his second election, the opposing candidate said of
him : " I consider him the most industrious, care-
ful and painstaking lawyer in Benzie County. His
standing as a citizen in the community is well evi-
denced by the remarkable number of offices of profit
and honor he has been chosen to fill by the suffrages
of his fellow-citizens."

The records make a rare exhibit concerning the
private character, professional ability, manly integrity
and stainless reputation of Mr. Northrup, which need
no stronger testimony than the names of Judge
McAlvey and Hon. A. H. Dunlap, of Manistee,
Judge Hatch, of Traverse City, Judge Goodrich, of
South Frankfort, Hon, D, C. Leach, M. C, Colonel
Fowler, of Gov. Begole's staff, and Gen. Cutchen.

In the fall of 1882 Mr. Northrup sought a wider
field of effort, and made a prospecting tour of the
Upper Peninsula and Wisconsin, and a few months
later visited Iowa, Missouri, Kansas and Nebraska;
liut he resolved to adhere to his first love, and in
April, 1883, removed to Big Rapids and opened a
law office in the Opera block. Not long afterward
he formed an association with G. R. Malone, a young
attorney of high character and unmistakable promise,
under the style of Northrup & Malone, Lawyers and
Real-Estate Brokers, The business of the concern
is in a thriving condition, and the established probity
and worth of the gentlemen at its head are extending
its scope and giving permanency to its purposes.

We take great pleasure in presenting the portrait
of Mr. Northrup in tliis work.

il^^l dward Haslem, farmer, sec. 16, Green Tp.,

ktei f' was born in Queens Co., Ireland, Dec. 8,

^?^' 1830, and is a son of John and Ann (O'Con-

°-?|v. "or) Haslem. His father died in Ireland when

he was but six years old, and liis motlier came

y^f(^^»

<?Da

J to America in 1847, and located in Cayuga Co.,
N. Y., going thence to Noble Co., Ind,, where she re-
sided until her death, which occurred in 1870,

Mr, Haslem attended school in his native country,
walking five miles to obtain the privilege. He ac-
companied his mother to the United States and re-
mained with her in New Vork until 1852, when he

MECOSTA

COUNTY.

":as»^e?isr

came 'o Michigan and settled for a time in \\'ashte-
iiaw County. He came to Mecosta County in the
fall of 1855 and located a farm in the township
of Green, where he was one of the first residents,
and assisted in the organization of the township in
1858. He bought a farm of 80 acres where he now
resides, 40 acres of which are well improved.

Mr. Haslem enlisted in the war for the suppression
of the Southern Rebellion, in September, 186 r, in
the Second Mich. Cav., and was in the service three
years and two months. Among the engagements
where he was in action were, Island No. to, Corinth,
Murfreesboro, Chattanooga, Missionary Ridge, Look-
out Mountain, Dalton, Resaca, Big Shanty, Buzzard's
Roost, Marietta, Atlanta and Chickamauga, besides
numerous skirmishes. He was wounded at Spring
Hill, Miss., and also received a slight wound in the left
shoulder al Frankfort. He was discharged in 1864,
at Nashville, Tenn., and on his return home resumed
his farming.

Mr. Haslem was married in the fall of 1864, to
Mary, daughter of Patrick and Mary (McNally)
Montague, born in County Tyrone, Ireland, in 1837.
Her parents brought her to the United States when
she was three months old. After a stay of consider-
able time in New York they came to Washtenaw Co.,
Mich., and resided there until death. Mr. and Mrs.
Haslem belong to the Roman Catholic Church, and
have seven children ; Mary, James H., Margaret,
Frank Edward, John W., Catherine Agnes and
Knima Florence.

-5 — <«i-s

fe-V>— ?-

"IpM™ eorge Braekett, proprietor of the Brackett

I^^Siit House, Big Rapids, was born in North

^'W^ of George and Eleanor (Kelley) Brackett. and

f was reared a farmer, that lieing the vocation of

f his father.

At the age of 17 he became a soldier for the
Union, and enlisted in Bangor, Me., Nov. 23, 1861,
in Co. A, 13th Maine Vol. Inf. under Capt. Fred \.
Stevens, and was in the service a little more than
three years. Among his war e.xperiences were the
fights under Gen. Phil. Sheridan, in the Shenandoah
Valley, up the Red River with Banks, at Pleasant
Hill and Sabina Cross Roads, at the taking of Fort
Esperanza, in Te.xas, and in 1863 was in \Vashing-

ton during the attempted raids. He was in i
engagements and in numerous skirmishes, receiving
his discharge Jan. 7, 1864, at .Vugusta, Me. On
his return to his home he engaged as a drover and
butcher un'il November, 1867, when he came to
Big Rajjids, and engaged four years in lumbering.
He was then employed at the Big Rapids Furniture
Factory, and at the end of one year was made fore-
man, which position he held five years.

In 1876, Mr. Brackett built the hotel where he is
now operating, and rented it until 1879, wlien he
opened a furniture store therein and managed it
until the fall of 1880. It was then remodeled into a
hotel, to which purpose il has since been devoted.
The house h;is 30 rooms for guests, also a saloon with
liquors and cigars. He also erected a building
adjoining, where he keeps a res'aurant and Ijakery.

Mr. Brackett was married in Croton, Newaygo Co.,
to Ellen Stengel, a daughter of Joseph and Ellen
Stengel. They are the parents of five children :
Fred. T., Lillie B., Cora, F^dna and Charles P.
George Arthur is deceased. Mr. Brackett is a ir.em-
ber of the Masonic fraternity.

•> S^

^H-^

f Kw^'," ersons T. Carpenter, iarmer on sec. 2\,
I ^^''" -i^tna Tp.. was born in Clinton Co., Sept. 2 i,
\ ■ L^£i"--S i8j8. He is a son of Benjamin and Luna
i'i-' J' (Spicer) Carpenter, who were natives of New
■'/ .V. York, and moved to this State soon after their

•*■■

It.

marriage. Mr. Carpenter was under the pa-
rental guidance until eleven years of age, when, be-
ing a restless boy with an ambition to advance in the
world, he was allowed to take his fate into his own
hands, and labored as he was able to find emi)loy-
raent until the fall of i8:;6; then he returned home
and spent a year, attending the district school three
months. In 1857 he became a sailor, and was on a
"merchantman" until 1859. His ne.xt permanent
occupation was as a soldier of the L'nion army.
He enlisted in the Third U. S. Artillery, Co. K, and
was in the service four years, his regiment being at-
tached three years to the Army of the Potomac, dur-
ing which time he was under fire in 12 engagements,
escaping entirely without injury, and receiving hon-
orable discharge July 29, 1864. Immediately there-
after he went into the Navy as an ordinary seaman.

■*.,.

■5^

<>n!]:o:iiD>:>ir^^ — ^€^^

;f%---

\mh>^ —

MECOSTA COUNTY.

■T-r<n

^'i®--^

'#^9«®V^

was wounded and taken prisoner at Red Bluff, Ga.,
whence he escaped by taking " French leave," mak-
ing good his voluntary flight by the aid of his trusty
" understandings. "

On leaving the service of the United States in
1865 he came to Wayne Co., Mich., and engaged in
agriculture, which he followed until 1871, then came
to Mecosta County and settled at Morley, residing
there eight years. During this time he was in ac-
tive official duty as Township Clerk, City Marshal
and in various other positions. Meanwhile he had
purchased a farm on sec. 21, in the western part of
the township, and in 1880 he settled upon it to pass
the remainder of his life. He was married Nov. 21,
18C-, to Amelia, daughter of Thoinas and Mary
(Michel) Lovesy, who was born in Livingston Co.,
Mich., June 4, 1843. The five children of Mr. and
Mrs. Carpenter are all living and were born in the
following order: Henry J-, Oct. 3, 186-; William
F., Sept. 21, 1 868; Cracie, Aug. 8, 1870; Effie,
April 21. 1873; Frank, Aug. 13, 1876.

-v'p^cartlett H. McMullen, M. D., practicing

-: 1 ('- ;l iihysician at Morley, was born in Stratford,

JlJJloW''''^ Can., Sept. 15, iS57,son of John S. and

TOO*^ Margaret (Holland) McMullen, who were
Die

born in Canada and came to Michigan in

1S60, settling at Saginaw and moving after-
ward to Bay City, where they are now resident. Dr.
McMullen has Ijeen a resident of this State since he
was three years old. He remained under his father's
care until he was 17 years of age, ac(piiring his
primary education. He entered the Medical College
at Detroit, and studied there nearly five years. He
received his diploma and entered upon practice,
which he prosecuted six months, then came to Me-
costa County and settled at Morley, where he has
since resided, and has a large and continually grow-
ing practice. He is esteemed in his profession and
(^ is rapidly gaining popular confidence. The Doctor
is a Republican and a charter member of Hxcelsior
Lodge, K. of H, No 1830, at Howard City, Mich.
,. He was married at Morley, Mich., Sept. 7, 1882, to
>& Alice ^L, eldest daughter of Geo. W. and Eliza
,^i') (.\dams) Sams. Her parents were natives of Illinois,
V, but went to Ohio in its ])inneer days, coming thence

to Michigan, where they are yet living. i\h-s. McMul-
len was born Dec. 22, 1864. Dr. McMullen has
held the post of School Superintendent, and is now
Health Officer of .Etna Tp.

-iTiJ^^g

5^t^?i-?5-

-, pencer Niekens, l>arl)er, at Moriev, was

born May 2, 1840. His parents, Nathaniel

W- and Sinnia Niekens, were natives of the

lu Eastern shore of Maryland, and in that State
and in Virginia Mr. Niekens passed his early
life.

\\\ the summer of 1864 he came to Grand Rapids,
and the first year was employed as porter in a hotel,
and was ne-\t engaged in learning his trade. He
founded his Inisiness at Cedar Springs in the spiing
of 1870, and has since followed his present profes-
sion. He is a respected citizen of Morley, is a mem-
ber of the Order of Masonry, and belongs to the
Knights Templar.

In politics he is a Reiniblican ; a man of liberal
views, and an endorser and follower of the principles
of the Golden Rule. He is radical in his views of
temperance and morality.

The great-grandfather of Mr. Niekens was a soldier
of the war of 181 2, and was Color-bearer of his regi-
ment. When the civil war broke out, he, having no
employment, and his love of the Union very strong,
went into the employ of Gen. Birney, and during
three years acted as his valet. Mr. Niekens is a fine
type of what his race has become since the terrible
conflict that placed it on an equality with other men.
He proves that, notwithstanding the perplexities of
his color and profession, a man may, through moral
ipialities, take fair rank with more pretentious indi-
viduals.

r field Tp., was born in Wayne Co., N. Y.,
'(SC '^ April 9, 1838. His parents, Lyman H.

^^^i aniel L. Welch, farmer on sec. 27, Deer-

mS''^^ April 9,
r^ and Judith (Stansell) Welch, were natives of

A the Empire State, where the mother still lives;

the father died in the fall of 1839. Daniel

L. made his initial essay in life at the age of 17, and

was variously occupied until the age of 32, when he

fi.xed u])on agriculture .is a vocation in life. He

g> X^I '

— _!.

<>na^niii>

"r^

A"-,,-;

i>..

«)fe

<^[lDi«;iiDr>-r

•rr^

MECOSTA COUNTY

bought 50 acres of land in Montcalm Co., Mich.,
which lie sold in 1S79, and purchased 40 acres in
Deerfield, where he now lives. His farm was partly
improved, and he speedily put the place into the best
condition.

He was married in August, 1865, to Susannah M.,
daughter of Howland and Harriet (Conkling) Soule,
natives resjjectively of Pennsylvania and New York.
They settled in Lenawee Co., Mich., in the fall of
1845, removing thence to Montcalm County, where
they yet live. The two children of Mr. and Mrs.
Welch are deceased. Otto A. was born March i,
1873, and died Oct. 25, 1881. An infant died at
liirth.

Mr. Welch is an adherent of the Democratic party.

V,?

.rederic Pfistner, farmer, sec. 26, Mecosta
Tp., and whose portrait we give upon the
"^l^^^n opposite page, is a son of JoJin and Jen-
VW. nie (Rusler) Pfistner, natives of Germany,
^K,, where they were married and reared their
children. Mr. Pfistner was born in (iermany,

Feb. 7, 1S34, and remained at home until he was 19
- -' years of age. He studied nine years in the excellent
schools and colleges of Germany, acquiring a fine
education, particularly in languages. On completing
his studies he came alone to the United States, and
landed at New York in the spring of 1853, going
thence to Chicago. After paying his railroad fare
thither he had but three cents left, and he borrowed
$3 of a chance ac(iuaintance with which to pro-
cure food while on his journey. 'TJpon his arrival at
the Garden City lie pawned his trunk to obtain tlie
money to reimburse the confiding stranger. He took
passage for Muskegon, and the gentleman who ad-
vanced tlie sum he needed, on learning the circimi-
stances released his claim, and the captain permitted
him to work out his fare to his destination. He
arrived there friendless and penniless, but immediate-
ly found employment in getting out timber, for which
he received a dollar a day, and was enal>led to repay
the sum of his indel)tedness. He liad worked two
months, when he contracted the fever and ague and
^ was compelled to remain idle four months. After he

had paid his expenses he had $3 left, and set out
for Big Rapids on foot. He found lodging in a
lumber shanty, and had in his pocket one dollar to
supply his needs until he could secure work. This
he soon accomplished, engaging to work for the Long
Bros., in the lumber camp of that company a few
miles above the present site of the city. He worked
for Shaw & Ives two summers, helping to clear up
the land where the city of Big Raiiids now stands.
He remained in tlie eni|)loy of Long Bros, until the
following spring, then returned to Muskegon and took
a job of lumber driving, which occupied him some
montlis. On its termination he went to Osceola
County and worked with a man three years.

After the completion of the three years' service
above mentioned, Mr. Pfistner came to Mecosta
County and jiurchased 160 acres of valuable land
in Mecosta Township, whereon he settled, and has
since added 500 ai res to his landed estate. Two
liundred acres of this has been put into a good con-
dition of cultivation, and tlie entire proiierty is justly
rated the finest in Austin Ti). The farm buildings
are of the best, and his residence, acknowledged the
most valuable in the township at the time of its con-
struction, cost $8,000. Tlie farm is stocked with 51
head of cattle, 150 sheep and 50 hogs. Mr. Pfistner
was married Oct. 18, i860, to Mrs. Mary Yager,
daughter of Jacob and Mary (Lute) Roosh, and
widow of Lorence Yager, who was killed Nov. 19,
1859, by the falling of a limb. He left one child —
Herman — born ALay 31, 1859. and died Nov. i, 1881,
of typhoid fever. Mr. and Mrs. Pfistner have had
seven children, three of wjiom are deceased: Emma
and Alice (twins), born June 8, 1872, died Dec. 21,
1881 ; Fred., born June 22, 1875, died Jan. 22, 1882.
The rei ord of births of the children living is as fol-
lows : Mary, June 8, 1861: Amelia, July 31, 1863;
Jennie, June 6, 1866; Ida, Feb. 8, 1869.

Mr. Pfistner is a Democrat, and has held several
school and township offices. He built the first Y
school-house in the township, and. 1 onjointly with ^,,
his neighbors, secured a school two years before the
organization of school districts in the township.

In religious views Mr. Pfistner's family affiliate \*)\
with the German Lutheran Church. \

(

l>^

'^^r•>^

-3!^

;<ir"C^

368

MECOSTA COUNTY.

-«t^^5C(gvii

-'i'^^Cfc "^"^ Eierdon, farmer and tanner, Morley,
fi^^K" was born in Exeter, England, Sept. 24,
' 1842, and emigrated to America with his
parents, Thomas and Betsey (Osborne) Rier-
jf don, natives of England. On coming to this
country they settled in Ontario County, Can.,
in July, 1843, where they resided until death. Mr.
Rierdon was but ten months old at the time he was
brought to the Dominion, where he lived until 25
years of age. In 1867 he came to Grand Rapids
and was employed as a teamster two years. In 1870
he obtained a situation as inspector of lumber at
Pierson, Montcalm Co. and filled the position two
years. In the fall of 1873, he was engaged by Alex.
Stewart & Co., to keep a boarding-house and act as
general overseer of their mill, in the township of
^^tna, in this county, a duty he discharged 18
months. He purchased 40 acres of unbroken timber
land one mile west of Morley, on section 26, in 1876,
built a frame house and began to improve his land.
June 27, 1879, his house and nearly all its contents
were destroyed by fire. He then erected * house in
Morley, which he aftenvard bought.

Mr. Rierdon was educated in the common and
grammar schools of ("anada; has held several town-
ship and other offices, and been active in advancing
the interests of Morley. He was married in Toronto,
Canada, to Mary J., daughter of Thomas and Cecelia
(Hutton) Smith, born in Fond du Lac, Canada. Her
father died in the spring of 1864, and her mother
removed to Port Hope. Canada, and still resides
there. Mr. Rierdon is a Republican, and is at pres-
ent Supervisor of Morley.

IvE'Qjenjamin G. Tagg, farmer oti sec. 32, Deer-

5-,|§^|S field Tp., wa.-; born in Allegan Co., Mich.,

^ ^:'^^'^ Sept. 16, 1859. He was educated and

1 '''m§'' reared to the age of 18 years in his native

■;",^ '* county, and on leaving home came to Deer-

r^ field, Mecosta County. He is a son of Ben-

g^ jamin and Elizabetli (Pickles) Tagg, natives of Eng-

. V land, who emigrated to .America about the year 1850,

7» and found a residence near Roclicster, N. Y. They

M"Vl^«^Tr* ^^^ — ^

lived there five years and removed to Allegan C!o.,
Mich., where they are yet living.

Mr. Tagg left home at the age of iS to engage in
agriculture on his own responsibility. He bought 80
acres of wild land in Deerfield, Mecosta Co., built a
log house, and proceeded to improve his land after
the customary methods, and now has a well located
and profitable farm. He was married May 6, 1879,
to Annie C, daughter of Robert and Mary Little.
Mrs. Tagg was born May 6, 1857. She was the
mother of two children — Florence E. and George R.
Tiie latter died in early infancy, and the mother
passed from earth March 17, 1883.

</gi-S<3OT»v

^sd!~

; sear T. White, minister, ind farmer on sec.
^1 16, Mecosta Tp., was born in Crawford Co.,
'^ Pa., Sept. 6, 1848. His father, Jerome W