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Gc 

977.401 
C27g 
pt.2 
1792591 


REYNOLDS   HISTORICAL 
GEN-EALOGY  COLLECTK>N 


1833  01074  8157 


A 

Twentieth  Centiir\'  Histor 


OF 


Cass  County.  Michigan 


L.  H.  GLOVER, 

Secretary  Cass  Cnunty  I'inneeiN'  Associ.ui.in, 
ELITOR. 


ILLLJSTR.V  lElJ. 


THE  LEWIS  PUBLISHING  COMPANY 

CHICAGO       ::       \H\V    YCRK 

1906 


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HISTORY  or  CASS  COUNTY 

1894—^.  H.  Honeyman,  E.  F.  Lewis,  \\".  Carl  Eogue. 

1895 — Chas.   W.  East,  L.  J.  Reynoida,  Jonas   Ruple. 

1S96— L.   L.   Laveiiberg,   Jolm   i\".   Coniuu,  James   ^J.   Eoniiie. 

1897— Henry  O.   Deal,   Chas.   \V.  East,  Lot  15.  James. 

1S98— Fred  \V.   Williams,  John   N.   Curtis. 

1899— G.   L.   lioliister.   Cl-.as.   W.   East,   Chas.   R.   Dodge. 

1900— James  ivl.  Lonine,  C.  F.  i'"ello\v5,  John  X.   Ijoninc. 

1901— Fred  G.   Pollock,  G.   L.  HoUister,  C.   IJ.   Donir.e. 

1902— Lot    B.    James,    E.    F.    Lewis,    Edwin    Ery. 

1903 — D.   K.  Thnrston,   Geo.  LungsdiitV,   ilariy  j.   Keen. 

1904 — Wm.   O.Kenford,   Gen.   Lonusdiitr,   Lot   I'..    Tames. 

190S— Flarry  J.  Keenc.  F.  \V.   Harris,  Geuruc  Longsdiirf. 

1906 — F".  D.  Lewis,  I'..  L.  Evans,  Lot  L.  Janie?. 


HON.  THOMAS  T.  HIGGINS. 

For  many  years  Hmi.  Thuuias  T.  Higgins  has  been  reganjed  as  a 
representalive  ami  piT.speruns  fainier  of  Cass  count}-,  and  at  the  present 
time  he  is  making  a  notaijie  record  as  a  member  of  the  general  assem- 
bly, being  ik'W  for  the  second  term  representative  from  his  district  in 
the  Michigan  legislatnre.  To  tlie  energetic  natures  and  strong  mental- 
ity of  sucli  men  )s  due  t'le  success  and  ever  increasing  prosperity  of  the 
RqjuVjIican  party,  in  this  state  and  in  the  hands  of  this  class  ..if  citizens 
there  is  every  :i?surance  that  the  best  interests  and  welfare  of  tlie  party 
will  be  attended  to,  resulting  in  a  successful  culmination  of  the  highest 
ambitions  and  expectations  entertained  Ln-  its  adherents.  Throughout 
his  life  Mr.  Higgins  has  been  a  loyal  citizen,  imbued  with  patriotism 
and  fearless  in  defense  of  bis  honest  convictions,  and  be  is  now  advocat- 
ing in  legislative  halls  and  before  the  people  the  principles  which  he  be- 
lieves will  best  advance  the  welfare  of  the  commonv.ealth.  Such  is  the 
man  whose  life  history  forms  the  theme  of  this  article.  He  makes  his 
home  on  section  17.  Jefferson  township,  and  when  not  engaged  witli  the 
weighty  duties  of  his  olTice  bis  time  and  energies  are  concentrated  upon 
the  successful  conduct  of  v,-hat  is  one  of  the  best  improved  farms  in 
Cass  county. 

Mr.  Higgins  was  born  in  Randolph  countv,  Indiana,  on  the  TOth 
of  February,  1844,  and  is  of  Irish  lineage,  the  family  having  been 
founded  in  America  early  in  the  eighteenth  century.  The  name  Hig- 
gins was  known  in  the  old  Emerald  Isle  as  Higginson.  but  now  is 
known  as  Higgins.  The  representatives  of  the  name  in  America  are 
descended  from  Thomas  Higgins,  an  early  settler  of  Delaware,  and 
the  family  has  furnished  to  various  states  prominent  representatives, 
who  have  held  important  public  positions.  This  number  includes  Gov- 
ernor Higgins.  of  New  York,  who  is  a  second  cousin  of  the  subject 
of  this  review.  His  paternal  grandfather,  Joseph  Fliggins.  was  a  native 
of  Ireland.  His  father.  James  T.  Higgins,  was  born  in  Wilmington. 
Delaware,  at  the  old  hnn\e  of  the  family  in  1S07,  and  there  -^pent  the 


410  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COL'XTY 

days  of  his  b(jyhoud  and  \(iutli,  while  in  the  pubHc  schools  he  acquired 
his  educatior..  In  18J9,  \\hen  a  young  man  of  Iwenty-two  years.  Pres- 
ident Andrew  Jackson  gave  him  charge  of  the  mail'  route'  frum  New 
Castle  to  Foit  Delaware.  While  still  a  young  man  he  assumed  the 
work  of  gradiiig  the  first  interiirban  railroad  in  the  country,  frnm  Xcw 
Castle  to  Chesapeake  Hay,  wniking  under  Joseph  Cannon.  ?\Iuch  of 
his  life.  howe\er,  was  d.evoted  to  agricultural  pursuits.  He  was  mar- 
ried in  the  east  hut  at  an  early  day  the  spirit  of  the  pioneer  led  him 
to  the  %vilrls  of  Indiana,  and  for  some  time  he  resided  in  Randolph 
county,  whence  in  1851^  he  came  to  Cass  county.  Michigan,  settling  in 
LaGrange  townslii)),  where  he  purchased  a  tract  of  land  and  improved 
a  farm.  Pie  \oted  for  McCIellan  in  1864,  but  early  gave  his  political 
support  to  the  K'epublicaii  jiartv.  [h.wever.  he  cast  his  ballot  f.ir  Fre- 
mont, its  first  ])resi(;,'iitial  candidate,  and  for  Lincoln  in  18^0.  He  wed- 
ded Miss  I\[ary  llig-iu-,.  who  was  a  native  of  Xew  Jersey  and  was  de- 
scended from  the  same  ancestry.  She  lived  to  le  hfty-nine  years  of 
age.  while  James  T.  Higgins.  the  father,  reached  the  very  venerable 
age  of  ninety-one  years.  In  their  family  were  eight  children,  three 
sons  and  five  daughters,  all  (if  whom  grew  to  manhood  or  womanhood, 
hut  only  three  are  now  living:  Tlioma-^  T..  of  this  review;  Ceorge; 
and   Mary,  the  wife  of  Williaiii   Ha.--;,  of  LaCr.an.^e  t.iwii-hi]i. 

Hon.  'idiomas  T.  Higgins  wa>  the  eldest  son  and  tifth  child  in  liis 
father's  famil\'.  He  was  reared  in  Richmond.  Wayne  county,  and  in 
Kandol]jh  county.  Indiana,  and  was  a  youth  of  sixteen  year-  when  he 
came  with  his  i^arents  to  Cass  county.  ^lichigan.  His  early  education 
had  been  acquired  in  the  <rhr,ols  of  Richmond,  and  he  afterward  con- 
tinued his  studies  in  what  is  known  as  the  ^lechanicsburg  school  in 
LaGrange  township.  He  has  largely  been  deiiendent  ui)on  his  own  re- 
sources from  the  a,c;e  of  sixteen  \ears  and  his  inherent  force  of  char- 
acter, his  utilization  of  opportunity  and  his  unremitting  diligence  in 
everything  that  he  has  undertaken  have  constituted  the  basis  of  his 
success.  When  about  twenty-one  years  of  age  he  went  south  and  was 
employed  as  government  teamster  for  about  dn-ee  months.  This  was 
at  the  close  of  the  war.  He  then  returned  to  Cass  county,  wliere  he 
began  farming  on  bis  own  account  and  throughout  his  active  luisincss 
career  he  has  carried  on  general  agricultural  pursuits. 

In  1867  \{r.  Higgins  was  united  in  marriage  to  3>Iiss  Caroline 
Rathbum.  a  daughter  of  Lucius  and  Sarah  (Click)  Rathbum  and  a 
native  of  Jefferson  township,  her  iieople  having  located  in  Jefferson 
township.  Cass  county,  at  a  ver>-  earlv  day.  Mr.  Higgins  lived  upon 
his  father's  farm  f^r  a  time  and  afterward  up<in  his  father-in-law's 
propertv.  but  in  1869  took  up  his  abode  upon  the  farm  on  which  he 
nov^r  resides  on  section  17.  Jefferson  township.  At  that  time  only 
twentv  acres  of  land  had  been  cleared  and  cultivated.  He  at  once. 
however,  continued  the  work  of  rlevelopment.  placed  the  ereatcr  part 
of  the  land  uufler  the  plow  and  has  put  all  of  the  improvements  upon 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COCXTY  411 

tlie  property,  which  is  now  a  splendidlv  cultivated  fanii.  comprising  two 
hundred  acres  ot  rich  and  arable  land,  from  which  he  annually  harvests 
arge  crops.  II, s  first  home  was  a  log  cabin,  but  this  has  long  since 
been  replaced  by  a  more  commodious  and  substantial  modern  resi- 
dence. In  all  of  his  farm  work  he  is  energetic  and  painstaking  He 
tlioruughly  uiulerstands  his  business,  and  in  fact  thoroughness  is  <ine 
of  his  marked  characteristics,  manifest  in  all  that  he  has  undertaken 
in  every  relation  of  life.  He  is  also  thoroughly  reliable  in  his  business 
-transactions,  his  name  being  a  synonvm  for  integrity  and  straifditfor- 
ward  dealing.  '  "      '  "'^ 

Unto  Mr.  and  .Mrs.  Higgins  ha\-e  been  born  five  children:  J.  P.. 
who  is  now  living  in  Dowagiac.  wedded  Mi^s  Mabel  I'almcr 
and  is  engageil  in  real  estate:  b'l.irence.  who  is  the  wife  of  bred 
Shurter.  a  resident  fanner  of  Jefferson  township:  Claurle,  who  was 
a  mail  carrier  on  a  rural  route,  but  now  an  agriculturist:  he  wedded 
Leona  Giffr-rd:  Leila,  the  wife  of  Fred  Whitmore,  also  living  in  Jef- 
ferson townshi]):  ami  Flsie.  the  wife  of  Hcnrv  AtLee.  of  the  state  of 
^Vashinglon. 

In  April.  1 87 1,  ^Ir.  Higgins  ".a^  made  a  Ma=nn  and  is  one  of 
tlie  oldest  representatives  of  C-f^sopolis  lodge.  He  also  belongs  to  the 
Chapter  at  Cassopolis  and  is  a  prominent  representative  of  the  frater- 
nity here.  In  politics  he  has  always  been  a  stanch  Republican,  taking' 
•m  active  interest  in  the  local  work  of  the  party  and  doing  everything 
in  Iiis  power  to  insure  its  success.  He  has  held  various '^local  offires, 
but  still  higiier  ]iolitical  honors  awaited  him.  for  in  1003  he  was  cho'^en 
to  represent  his  district  in  the  state  legislature  by  a  vote" of  tw.-)  hundred 
and  fifty-two.  He  proxed  an  acti\e  working  member  of  the  house  and 
that  his  constitutents  regarded  favorably  his  efforts  in  their  behalf  is 
shown  by  the  fact  that  in  1905  he  was  re-elected  by  a  largely  increased 
majority  of  nine  hundred.  He  has  deliverefl  various  campaign  speeches 
and  is  a  forceful,  earnest  speaker,  and  is  today  accounted  one  of  tlie 
prominent  representatives  of  the  party  in  the  county.  He  b.is  also  left 
the  impress  of  his  nuiividuality  uivm  state  legislation.  He  has  never 
pretended  to  lie  an  orator  anr!  tlie  members  of  the  house  who  at  first 
were  not  inclined  to  pay  much  attention  to  the  speeches  of  the  farmer 
representali\-e  soon  found  out  that  they  had  to  cope  with  a  force  on 
which  they  liad  little  reckonefl.  His  earnestness  and  his  honesty  were 
not  alone  his  strong  characteristics,  although  these  traits  are  most 
commendable.  His  fellow  members  found.  t^H^,  that  he  had  been  a 
student  of  the  questions  and  issues  of  the  day  and  that  he  had  a  keen 
and  shrewd  insight  into  matters  which  came  up  for  discussion.  A  pub- 
lication of  recent  flate  said:  "He  is  always  steady  and  honest  and 
when  he  set  himself  the  other  day  to  oppose  the  attorney  general's  bill 
to  allow  the  institution  in  Ingliam  county  of  state  cases  against  iiarties 
of  all  sections  of  the  state  he  won  a  victory.  The  house  voted  the  bill 
down.     His  speech  on  that  occasion  is  regarded  as  bis  best  address  to 


41-^  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY 

the  legislature."  Mr.  Higgins  also  won  wide  attention  by  a  plan  for 
the  solution  of  tlie  primary  reform  problem  and  his  suggestion  won 
approval  Horn  both  wings  in  the  reform  fight.  In  regard  to  this  meas- 
ure the  reporter  for  the  work  of  the  house,  11.  M.  Xinriuo,  said:  "xici,- 
resentative  Higgins  of  Cas?  has  come  forward  with  a  solution  of  the 
primary  reform  muddle  that  has  already  found  favor  with  sexeral  of 
the  opponents  of  direct  nominations,  including  Governor  Warner.  His 
compromise  proposition  is  this:  Retain  the  "state  conventions  to  name 
candidates  to  be  placed  on  tlie  party  ballots  and  give  the  people  a  chance 
to  choose  the  nonu"nee  by  direct  vote  from  among  the  candidates  for 
Slate  ohices  so  endorsed.  Higgins  has  also  accepted  the  suggestion  tliat 
each  candidate  be  endorsed  by  at  least  twenty-five  per  cent  of  the  del- 
egates uf  (he  state  convention  Iicfore  his  name  can  go  on  the  ballot. 
His  measure  has  received  the  endr-rscment  of  manv  men  prominent  in 
the  ranks  of  the  Reiniblican  party,  including  Governor  Warner,  Chair- 
man Stone  of  tlie  house  elections  committee,  banking  commissioner 
Moore  and  others."  As  stated.  '\\v.  Higgins  has  made  himself  felt  as 
a  forceful  factor  in  the  affairs  of  the  commonwealth,  and  thnt  he  has 
won  the  confidence  and  support  of  his  fellow  citizens  is  indicated  liy - 
the  fact  of  his  largely  increased  m;ijority  at  his  'second  election.  His 
career  has  been  one  of  activitw  full  of  incidents  and  results,  and  Iw 
his  excellent  public  service  and  upright  life  he  lias  lionored  the  comnm- 
nity  that  has  hon.ored  him  with  ofilcial  preferment. 

GEORGE  W.  JONES. 

George  W.  Jones,  at  one  time  closely,  actively  and  heliifully  con- 
nected with  tlie  substantial  develoj)ment  and  progress  of  Marcellus 
and  Cass  county,  was  l-orn  in  Treble  county.  Ohio,  on  the  t,vi\  of 
April,  1824,  and  died  April  29,  iRo'^i.  He  came  to  Michigan  aliout  1830, 
in  company  with  his  ]jarents,  Henry  and  Hannah  Jones,  who  located 
on  Young's  Prairie.  In  the  sprincr  of  iSiq,  attracted  by  the  discovery 
of  gold  on  the  Pacific  sb  pe,  be  made  his  way  to  California,  where  he 
turned  his  attention  to  nn'ning.  After  two  years,  learning  that  unless 
extraordinarv  efforts  \^■ere  made  the  large  possessions  of  his  father — 
nine  hundred  acres — would  be  lost,  he  returned  to  his  home  to  do  his 
share  toward  sa^'ing  the  property.  Six  weeks  after  his  return  the  father 
died,  leaving  the  weight  of  heavy  financial  obligations  on  bis  shoulder^. 
He  was  appointed  administrator  of  the  estate,  which,  however,  was 
much  encumbered,  and  capable  financiers  said  that  he  would  never  be 
able  to  pav  off  the  debts.  Xnthing  daunted,  however,  and  with  reso- 
lute spirit  and  determined  energy,  he  set  to  work,  .and  with  the  assist- 
ance of  his  two  younger  brothers.  P.  J.  and  J.  G.  Jones,  after  eleven 
years,  as  the  result  of  good  financiering,  economy  and  unfaltering  labi.ir, 
he  was  enabled  to  divide  twenty-two  thousand  dollars  among  the  eleven 
heirs  to  the  estate.     Having  purchased  the  interest  of  some  of  the  other 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  413 

heirs  in  tlie  home  property,  lie  erected  nn  the  farm  tlie  present  fine  res- 
idence now  owned  Isy  his  heirs.  T\\()  years  subseqnent  Georoe  W. 
Jones,  in  company  Avith  Orson  Riuld,  inirchased  two  hundred  and  se\-en 
acres  of  land  on  which  is  now  located  the  village  of  Wakelee  and  in 
18S2  he  owned  three- fourths  of  the  original  purchase.  In  all  of  his 
business  underlaking-s  he  displayed  remarkable  foresight  and  sagacitv. 
With  prophetic  eye  he  seemed  to  see  the  line  of  the  railroad  and  recog- 
nized that  the  present  site  of  Marcellus  would  prove  an  eligible  one  for 
a  village.  Accordingly  he  bought  two  hundred  and  ele\en  acres  of 
land  at  what  was  then  considered  the  extravagant  price  of  thirteen  thou- 
sand dollars.  In  1S70  he  began  to  lay  out  the  village,  and  the  success 
that  attended  his  efforts  rnay  l:e  readily  learned  by  a  visit  to  this  enter- 
prising and  prosperous  town.  In  1877.  becoming  impressed  with  the 
fact  that  ■Marcellus  needed  a  bank,  he  opened  such  an  institution,  al- 
though he  had  had  no  previous  experience  in  the  banking  business. 
He  made  his  son.  C.  S.  Jones,  his  cashier,  and  the  new  enterprise  proved 
successful  beyond  his  anticipation.  He  displayed  marked  business  abil- 
ity, executive  force  and  correct  judgment,  and  whatever  he  undertook 
seemed  destined  to  win  success.  The  secret  of  his  prosperitv.  however, 
is  found  in  his  unremitting  diligence,  careful  study  of  any  plan  which 
he  formulated  and  his  dctertninatiiiU  in  carrying  it  forward  to  com- 
pletion. 

On  tlie  28th  of  December.  1S53,  Mr.  Jones  was  united  in  marriage 
to  Miss  Emma  E.  Sherman,  a  daughter  of  E.  R.  Sherman  nf  Cassopo- 
lis,  by  whom  he  had  two  sons.  Frank  S.  and  Carroll  S.,  the  latter  the 
present  cashier  of  the  bank,  which  was  incorporated  as  a  state  bank 
in  1897.  Carroll  S.  Jones  was  married  to  I\Iiss  Bessie  E.  Caul,  a  daugh- 
ter of  Andrew  F.  Caul,  one  of  the  prominent  farmers  of  Marcellus 
township,  and  they  have  two  children,  Donna  V.  and  Carroll  B.  The 
senior  brother,  who  is  unmarried,  is  president  of  the  bank. 

In  1S70  George  \V.  Jones  was  called  u]^on  to  m<'urn  the  loss 
of  his  first  wife,  whu  ilicd  on  the  20th  cif  Novemlier  of  that  year.  On 
the  15th  of  ^larch,  1876,  he  wedded  ^liss  Lizzie  O.sborn,  a  daughter 
of  Nathan  Osborn,  who  was  a  real  estate  dealer  and  one  of  the  pioneers 
oi  St.  Joseph  county.  ^lichigan.  He  was  circuit  judge  of  that  county 
and  held  other  positions  of  importance.  His  birth  occurred  in  Con- 
necticut, but  his  daughter,  ^il'-s.  Jones,  was  born  in  St.  Joseph  county. 
Michigan,  was  educated  there  and  became  a  resident  of  South  Bend. 
She  was  one  of  eight  children,  being  the  fifth  in  order  of  birth.  Her 
brother,  Hon.  James  D.  Osborn.  was  on  the  bench  of  the  circuit  court 
at  Elkhart,  Indiana,  and  another  brother.  Hon.  George  W.  Osborn, 
represented  St.  Joseph  county  in  the  Michigan  legislature.  Unto  jMr. 
Jones  by  his  second  marriage  were  born  two  children :  Henry  B.,  who 
is  now  a  banker  at  Santa  Rosa.  New  ^Mexico,  and  \"era  :\Iay.  the  wife 
of  Walter  F.  Smith,  of  Goshen.  Indiana,  a  real  estate  dealer  of  that 
place. 


4U  HTSTORV  OF  CASS  COUXTY 

yh.  Tones  wa?  reared  in  tiie  faitli  of  the  Society  of  Friend^  hnt  did 
not  Leconie  a  member  of  anv  church,  althoucrli  he  frequentiv  attendcl 
reli-ious  services  and  contrihnted  liherallv  to  their  snnnort  l,pino-  a 
firm  beliexer  in  Jesus  Christ  and  His  tcachin-s.  His  political  allc-iance 
was  oiyen  to  the  Democrncv.  hnt  lie  was  witliout  aspiration  for  office 
preferrmcr  to  o.ve  his  time  and  his  ener-ies  to  his  business  interest^' 
which  were  capably  manarred,  winnino-  for  him  a  i^ratifvin-  measure 
of  prosperity  as  the  rears  went  bv.  Tie  died  in  1806.  honored  and  re- 
spected l)y  all  who  knew  iiim  not  onlv  hv  reason  of  the  success  he  had 
achieved,  but  also  because  of  the  straiohtforward  business  nnlicv  he 
bad  e\-er  followed.  ' 

ALEXAXDFR   TAYLOR. 

,_\lcxander  Taylor.  A\ho  is  q-jvin.e:  Ii's  attention  to  the  manao-ement 
of  a  tarm  m  Cass  countv  and  who  in  various  offices  has  proved  bis  lov- 
alty  to  the  seneral  welfare,  maintains  his  residence  in  Ararcelhis  He 
was  born  in  Scotland  in  1845  -Tid  is  a  .son  of  Alexander  and  Helen 
(Stuart)  Taylor,  both  of  whom  were  natives  of  Scotland.  The  father 
wlio  was  a  cattle  dealer,  spent  his  entire  life  there.  The  mother  was  a 
descendant  of  the  famous  roval  hou=e  of  Stuart.  Pv  thi<:  marria-e 
there  were  iiine  children,  all  of  whom  came  to  the  United  States,  namelv  • 
William,  who  died  in  Canada:  Jane,  who  is  the  deceased  wife  of  \\\]]. 
lam  Mattbewson.  a  farmer  of  Will  county,  Illinois:  Alexander,  of  this 
review:  John,  a  stonecutter  of  Illinois:  Ellen,  the  wife  of  loseph  Thomp- 
son, a  Cbicao:o  mechanic:  Jessie,  the  deceased  wife  of  Walter  Grave,  a 
farmer  of  W'ill  county.  Illinois:  Alarv  A.,  the  wife  of  Albert  French'  a 
capitalist  of  Chicago:  Lsabella.  who  married  Allen  Fleminir.  an  agri- 
culturist of  McHenry  county.  Illinois;  and  William  An(lre\\\  who  rbcd 
in  early  life. 

Alexander  Taylor  was  reared  upon  a  farm  and  attended  school  at 
Elgin,_  Scotland,  his  native  place.  The  lalwr  of  the  fields  claimed  bis 
attention  in  bis  later  youth  and  early  manhood,  and  in  1866.  hopinq-  to 
enjoy  better  business  privileges  in  the  new  world,  he  crossed  the  Atlan- 
tic to  the  United  States  and  located  in  Will  countv.  Illinois,  where  he 
began  contractin.s:  for  timber.  In  1875  ^e  came  to  Michi,?an.  settling 
in  Marcellus,  and  here  entered  into  partnership  with  A.  S.  Hunt  in 
the  sawmill  business,  under  the  firm  style  of  Hunt  &:  Tavlor.  This 
was  contimied  for  a  year,  at  the  end  of  which  time  he  purchased  bis 
•partner's  interest  and  admitted  Alexander  Doig  to  a  partnership.  That 
association  was  also  maintained  for  a  year.  The  firm  of  Hunt  &  Tay- 
lor lost  heavily  through  a  fire  before  Mr.  Taylor  formed  his  partnership 
with  Mr.  Doig.  whom  he  later  bought  out.  continuing  the  business  alone 
for  al>out  fifteen  years.  During  bis  partnership  with  Mr.  Doig.  bow- 
ever,  a  Ix^iler  exploded,  killing  three  men  and  injuring  Mr.  Tavlor.  He 
purchased  a  farm  of  two  hundred  and  forty  acres  at  Marcellus.  consti- 
tuting one  of  the  best  properties  of  the  countv.  and  for  a  number  of 


HISTORY  or  CASS  COUNTY  415 

years  liis  attentii->n  has  been  given  to  its  supervisiun  without  otiier  busi- 
ness interests,  save  that  he  is  executor  of  the  large  estate  of  J.  F.  Gofif. 

In  1876  ^Ir.  I'aylor  was  united  in  marriage  to  ^Miss  Lvdia  Beck, 
a  daughter  of  Levi  and  Catherine  Beck  and  a  native  of  Indiana.  Her 
fath.cr  was  a  tailor  by  trade  and  was  the  owner  of  considerable  land 
in  Marcellus  townshi]).  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Taylor  have  become  the  jia rents 
of  four  children:  Belle,  who  married  Arthur  Pyne.  a  profes-^. jr  of  mu- 
sic in  Geneva.  Xew  York:  Grace,  a  school  teacher  in  Minneapc/jis :  Flor- 
ence, the  wife  of  Earl  B.  Sill,  a  farmer  and  stock  buyer  nf  Mavcellus; 
and  Catherine,  who  is  attending  sclmnl  in  Marcellus, 

The  parents  are  members  (jf  the  ^lethodist  Episcopal  church,  and 
Mr.  Taylor  belongs  to  the  ^Vfasonic  fraternity,  while  his  political  su]v 
port  is  gi\en  to  the  Republican  party.  He  was  a])pointed  bv  the  state 
land  commissioner  as  appraiser  of  state  lands,  and  for  two  terms  he  has 
served  as  president  .if  the  village  of  Marcellus.  During  his  incumbency 
in  that  office  the  waterworks  were  built  and  modern  reforms  and  im- 
provements were  inaugurated  For  sixteen  years  lie  served  on  the  city 
council  and  during  that  time  was  instnunental  in  establishing  the  village 
electric  light  plant.  He  has  likewise  Ijeen  a  memlx:r  and  d.irector  of 
the  village  school  board  for  two  terms  and  has  been  chairman  of  the 
Ivlepublican  township  committee,  being  recognized  as  one  of  the  leaders 
of  his  partv  in  this  portion  of  the  county.  Coming  to  America  when 
a  young  man,  with  laudable  ambition  to  attain  success,  he  has  improved 
his  opportimities  and  so  directed  his  laliors  as  to  win  a  place  among  the 
enterprising  citizens  of  the  community  and  is  now  in  possession  of  a  com- 
fortable competence  that  has  been  acquired  entirely  through  his  well 
directed  efforts. 

J.  V.  BLOOD,  :^I.  D. 

Dr.  J.  V.  Blood,  who  is  engaged  in  the  practice  of  medicine  and 
surgen,-  in  Jones,  is  one  of  ^klichigan's  native  sons,  his  birth  having  oc- 
curred'in  Kent  cotuUy  on  the  13th  of  February,  1879.  Although  a  young 
man.  he  has  met  with  envialile  success  equal  to  that  of  many  a  practi- 
tioner of  twice  his  >ears.  His  father.  J.  M-  Blood,  was  also  a  native  of 
Kent  county,  :Michigan,  and  was  a  son  of  James  Blood,  who  was  born 
in  New  Yo'rk  and  became  one  of  the  early  settlers  of  this  state,  taking 
up  his  abode  in  Kent  county  when  it  was  a  pioneer  district.  He  was  of 
English  descent,  his  father  having  been  born  in  England.  He  saw 
Grand  Rapids  grow  from  its  infancy  to  its  present  state  of  development, 
and  in  the  countv  where  he  lived  took  an  active  and  helpful^  part  in  the 
work  of  public  progress  and  improvement.  Reared  in  Kent  county. 
J.  M.  Blood  became  a  prominent  fruit  farmer  of  Oceana  county,  :Mich- 
igan.  and  carried  on  business  successfully  there  for  many  years.  He 
wedded  IMiss  Sarah  Angell,  a  native  of  Ohio,  and  they  became  the  par- 
ents of  two  children,  the  daughter  b'eing  Lena  Rose,  now  the  wife  of 
Roy  Morgan,  of  Shelby.  Oceana  county.  ^Michigan. 


^IC  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY 

Dr.  Blood,  who  was  the  elder  of  the  two  children,  was  but  a  young 
child  when  taken  by  his  parents  to  Oceana  count\-.  wliere  he  was  reared 
from  the  age  of  lour  years.  He  began  his  education  in  the  district 
schools  and  afterward  attended  the  high  school  of  Hart,  from  which 
he  was  graduated  in  the  class  of  189S.  Having  determined  upon  the 
practice  of  medicine  as  a  life  work,  he  prepared  for  the  profession  as 
a  student  in  Hcring  Homeopathic  Medical  College,  in  which  he  c(.m- 
pleted  the  regular  course  and  was  graduated.  He  has  now  been  prac- 
ticing for  about  four  years.  He  located  in  Jones  in  1905  and  has  built 
up  a  good  practice  here,  having  demonstrated  his  abilitvto  succes^tullv 
cope  with  the  many  intricate  and  complex  problems  which  cnntinuall'v 
confront  the  physician  in  bis  efforts  to  check  the  ravages  of  disease  and 
restore  health. 

Dr.  Blood  was  married,  in.  1905.  to  ^liss  Marie  Vcm  Bokopf.  a 
daughter  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Herman  Von  Bokopf.  She  was  l;orn  and 
reared  in  Chicago,  acquiring  her  education  in  the  schools  there.  The 
young  couple  have  gained  many  warm  friends  during  tlieir  residence 
in  Jones  and  the  hospitality  of  their  own  pleasant  home  is  greatlv  en- 
joyed by  those  who  know  them.  Dr.  Blood  belongs  to  the  Knights  (jf 
the  AlaccaJjces  and  to  the  }ibidern  \\'oodmcn  camp  and  is  medical  ex- 
aminer of  the  latter.  He  was  assistant  surgeon  to  Dr.  R.  H.  Yun  Kotsch 
for  Swift  &  Company  and  for  Liljljy,  ]\IcNeill  &  Li];by,  of  Chicagcj. 
Dr.  \'on  Kotsch  is  now  a  resident  of  Cassopolis.  Dr.  Blood  is  a  mem- 
ber of  the  International  Homeopathic  ]\Iedical  Association  and  also  of 
the  State  Aledical  Society.  He  has  a  fine  practice  over  the  county  and 
is  making  gratifying  progress  in  his  profession,  where  he  has  alreadv 
won  a  wide  reputation  and  gained  the  respect  and  confidence  of  his  pro- 
fessional luethren  as  Avell. 

DUANE  WITHERELL. 

Duane  W'itherell,  whose  residence  in  the  county  dates  back  to  a 
period  of  early  progress  and  improvement,  Avas  born  on  section  35.  P.ik.-t- 
gon  tow-nship,  April  22,  1847.  The  traA'elcr  of  today,  looking  over  the 
splendidly  improved  farms  and  noting  the  varied  business  interests  of 
the  county,  can  scarcely  realize  the  great  change  that  has  been  wrought 
within  a  half  century,  and  yet  it  is  within  the  memory-  of  Mr.  Wither- 
ell  and  other  native  sons  of  the  county  when  much  of  the  land  was  un- 
cultivated and  there  w'as  on  every  hand  evidences  of  pioneer  life.  Hi^ 
father.  Oilman  \Yitherell,  was  a  native  of  Xew  ITampshire  and  in  1833 
arri\ed  in  Cass  county,  locating  in  Pokagon  township  abotit  1835.  He 
was  a  cooper  by  trade  and  followed  that  business  in  the  early  days, 
manufacturing  barrels,  which  he  would  then  haul  to  the  Chicago  mar- 
ket on  wagons.  He  afterward  turned  his  attention  to  farming  and  con- 
tinued in  the  work  of  tilling  the  soil  up  to  the  time  wdien  his  life's 
labors  were  ended  in  death.     He  passed  away  when  about  sixty-eight 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  417 

years  of  age.  wliile  liis  wife  died  in  i86S.  She  bore  the  maiden  name  of 
:\Iary  A.  Simpson  and  was  born  in  Xew  Hampshire  in  1S12.  By  her 
marriage  slie  became  the  mcjther  of  five  children,  two  of  whom  died  in 
early  youth,  while  Henry  lost  his  life  while  defending  his  country  in 
the  Civil  war,  as  a  member  of  Company  I,  Fourth  Michigan  cavalry. 
George  died  in  California,  leaving  lluane  Witherell  the  onlv  surviving 
member  of  the  family. 

The  youngest  of  the  five  cliildrcn.  Duane  Witherell  was  reared 
upon  the  old  homestead  and,  like  the  others,  acquired  a  common  school 
education,  while  in  the  work  of  the  farm  he  was  carefully  trained,  so 
that  he  was  well  qualified  to  take  charge  of  a  farm  of  his  own  when  he 
started  out  upon  an  independent  business  career.  Fie  has  alwavs  lived 
in  this  county,  and  the  days  of  his  youth  were  unmarked  bv  anv  event 
of  special  importance  until  he  was  seventeen  years  of  age,  when  he  re- 
sponded to  the  country's  call  for  aid.  enlisting  in  1S65  ks  a  member  of 
the  Twenty-fourth  Alichigan  Volunteer  infantry.  He  continued  with 
the  army  until  tlie  close  of  hcjstilities  and  then  returned  to  his  home  in 
Pokagon  township,  continuing  farm  work  there  upon  the  old  family 
homestead  up  to  the  time  of  his  marriage.  On  June  24,  1873,  he  wed- 
ded Miss  Dora  Stansell,  a  daughter  of  William  and  !^Iargaret  Stansell. 
Mrs.  Witherell  was  born  in  the  state  of  New  A'ork  .August  10,  1S52, 
and  was  brought  to  Cass  county  when  about  five  years  of  age.  At  the 
time  of  their  marriage  the  young  couple  located  on  a  farm  about  a  mile 
and  a  half  cast  of  Pokagon.  remaining  there  until  1901.  when  thev  re- 
moved to  their  present  home  in  Pol-cagon  township.  He  has  been  a  life- 
long farmer  and  in  his  work  disjjlays  a  practical  understanding  of  the 
business  in  all  of  its  departments,  combined  with  unremitting  industr\- 
and  energy  that  never  flags.  The  farm  comprises  three  hundred  and 
fifty  acres  of  rich  and  valuable  lantl  in  Pokagon  township,  and  in  addi- 
tion to  this  property  ■Mr.  AX'itherell  also  owns  one  hundred  and  fiftv  acres 
in  Tennessee.  He  is  now  practically  retired  from  the  active  work  of 
the  farm,  which  he  has  given  over  to  the  charge  of  others,  while  he  is 
now  enjoying  a  well  earned  rest. 

The  home  of  Air.  and  Mrs.  Witlierell  has  been  blessed  with  two 
children;  I\lorris  G.  and  Clarence  D.  The  family  is  well  known  in  the 
county  and  the  members  of  the  h-niselnold  nccup\-  an  en\-ialile  pu^ition  in 
the  regard  of  friends  and  neighbors.  Mr.  Witherell  belongs  to  the 
Masonic  lodge  at  Pokagon  and  ]\Irs.  ^^'itherell  is  a  member  of  the  Flast- 
ern  Star  of  Dowagiac.  Michigan,  and  he  has  been  a  life-long  Republi- 
can. He  has  met  with  a  fair  measure  of  success  in  the  business  world 
and  though  he  has  never  sought  to  figure  prominently  in  public  life 
his  career  is  that  of  a  citizen  of  worth  who  by  tlie  faithful  performance 
of  each  day's  duties  contributes  to  the  sum  total  of  prosperity  and 
progress. 


-ilS  HISTORV  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

JAMES  McAllister. 

James  ^rcAllister.  one  ..f  tlie  old  settlers  of  Pokaq-nn  to^nsliip 
living  on  section  29,  ^vas  bom  upon  this  farm  ^La^ch  12.  184S.  and 
conies  of  Scotch  lineage.  His  father,  John  .A[.  AJcAlli^ter.  was  a  native 
of  Scotland,  born  in  18 14.  and  in  tliat  countrv  he  was  married  to  :\Iiss 
IMarian  Forsyth,  who  was  al.so  a  native  of  the  land  f,f  hills  and  heather. 
They  remained  in  that  ctmntry  until  1S44,  when,  believing  that  he 
might  enjoy  better  business  opportunities  in  the  new  v.orlfl."  :Mr.  Mc- 
Allister came  to  tlie  L'nited  Slates  and  journeyed  at  (uice  intn  the  inte- 
rior of  the  county,  settling  upiii  tlie  farm  whereon  his  son  Lames  now 
resides.  He  secured  here  a  wild  and  unimproved  tract  of  land,  but 
in  the  course  of  time  he  had  dcvel..i)cd  it  into  good  fields  and  he  re- 
sided thereon  until  about  1870.  when  he  v/ent  to  Texas.  Lie  purchased 
land  with  the  intention  of  locating  there,  but  he  was  not  long  permitted 
to  enjoy  his  new  home,  fnr  his  death  occurred  in  1875,  when  he  was 
in  his  sixty-firstyear.  His  wi.I-w  long  survived  him  and  lived  to  the 
advanced  age  of  eighty-se\en  }ears,  spending  her  last  davs  upon  the 
old  homestead  farm  in  Pokagon  township.  In  the  faniilv'  were  seven 
children,  of  whom  the  eldest  two  were  born  in  Scotland,  while  the 
others  were  all  born  in  Cass  ciiup.t\-. 

James  McAllister,  the  fitth  child  of  his  father's  family,  spent  his 
boyhood  and  ycjuth  upon  the  old  linmestead  and  acquired  a' good  Eng- 
lish education  in  the  district  schools.  Ilis  training  at  farm  labor  was 
not  meager  and  he  has  always  given  his  attention  to  general  agricult- 
ural pursuits.  He  now  Ins  ninety-two  acres  of  land  on  section  2c>. 
Pokagon  township,  and  two  hundred  and  forty  acres  on  section  20  of 
the  same  townshi]),  so  that  his  realty  possessions  are  quite  extensive. 
The  land  in  this  part  of  the  state  is  rich  and  valuable  and  responds  read- 
ily to  cultivation,  so  that  his  fields  are  now  quite  productive.  He  votes 
with  the  Democratic  ])arty,  but  has  ne\er  been  an  aspirant  fdr  office, 
preferring  rather  to  give  his  attention  to  his  business  affairs. 

JAMES  H.  LEACH. 

James  H.  Leach  is  proprietor  of  an  attractive  summer  hotel  known 
as  Shore  Acres,  which  stands  in  the  midst  of  a  valuable  farm  of  eightv 
acres  de\oted  to  the  cultivation  of  fruit  and  garden  products.  In  his 
capacity  of  landlord  he  has  become  widely  known  and  popular  with 
many  patrons  and  is  meeting  with  gratifying  success  in  his  business 
affairs.  Numbered  among  Penn  trjwnship's  native  sons,  he  was  born 
on  the  25th  of  November,  1847,  '^"d  is  a  representative  of  one  of  the 
pioneer  families  of  this  part  of  die  state.  His  parents  were  Joshua  and 
]\latilda  (Smith)  Leach.  His  father  was  born  in  Vermont  in  18 12 
and  on  leaving  New  England  removed  to  Erie  county.  Pennsylvania, 
vhence  he  came  to  Cass  county,  Michigan,  in  1833,  casting  in  his  lot 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  419 

among  the  enrly  settlers  who  were  reclaiming-  the  wild  land  and  replac- 
ing the  evidences  of  frontier  life  1  y  the  conditions  which  indicate  im- 
provement and  progress.  Pie  settled  in  Penn  township,  where  he 
purchased  land,  upon  which  he  turned  the  first  furrows.  In  course  of 
time  he  had  brok-en  the  fields,  had  planted  seed  and  with  autumn  came 
good  crops.  He  cleared  up  a  great  amount  of  land  in  the  county  and 
his  efforts  were  beneficial  in  the  reclamation  of  what  was  once  a  wild 
and  unimproved  district.  He  died  in  his  seventy-ninth  \cnr.  His  wife. 
who  was  a  native  of  Ohio  and  a  daughter  of  Eleazer  Smith,  of  St. 
Joseph  county,  Indiana,  was  sixt}--fi\e  }ears  of  age  at  the  time  of  her 
demise.  In  their  family  were  eis.:ht  children,  of  whom  four  are  now 
living,  James  H.  being  the  fifth  child. 

In  taking  up  the  personal  history  of  James  H.  Leach,  we  present 
to  our  readers  the  life  record  of  cue  who  is  widel}-  and  favorably  known. 
In  retrospect  one  can  see  him  a  farm  boy.  trudging  daily  to  scliool  dur- 
ing the  contiiuiance  of  the  sessions  and  afterward  su]ip!emcnting  his 
early  educatic^nal  pri\ilegcs  In-  a  course  in  the  high  school  at  Cassopolis. 
He  worked  in  the  fields  upon  the  liome  farn:  through  the  summer 
months  and  after  completing  his  education  continued  to  assist  in  the 
farm  work  for  some  time.  He  afterward  engaged  in  the  grocery  bus- 
iness in  partnership  with  C.  E.  A'oorhis  for  five  years  and  on  the  expi- 
ration of  that  period  sold  out  to  his  partner  and  went  to  Florida,  where 
he  laid  out  an  orange  gro\-e  of  four  hundred  orange  trees  and  also 
planted  two  hundred  lemon  trees,  his  place  being  in  Hillsboro  county, 
while  his  postofiice  was  Limona.  For  four  years  his  attention  was  de- 
voted to  the  development  of  his  fruit  ranch  in  the  south,  and  he  then 
returned  northward,  locating  in  South  Bend,  Indiana,  where  he  engaged 
in  the  operation  of  a  planing  mill  and  the  conduct  of  a  lumber  yard,  be- 
ing actively  connected  with  the  business  for  about  thirteen  years.  On 
the  expiration  of  that  period  he  returned  to  Penn  township,  locating  at 
his  present  residence  on  the  n:irth  shore  of  Diamond  Lake.  The  place 
is  known  as  the  J.  C.  Moim  farm  and  the  house  is  called  Shore  Acres. 
He  has  a  tract  of  land  of  eighty  acres  and  he  also  owns  other  land  in  the 
old  homestead  farm.  He  conducts  the  summer  hotel  in  connection  witli 
his  general  farming  interests  and  the  raising  of  fnu't,  having  a  fine 
orchard,  while  from  his  fields  he  annually  harvests  good  crops  of  grain. 

On  the  4th  of  April,  1S83.  Mr.  Leach  was  united  in  marriage  to 
Miss  Fannie  Punches,  a  daughter  of  Moses  and  Jane  Punches.  Mr. 
Leach  votes  with  the  Democracy  and  is  a  member  of  the  Woodmen  of 
the  World.  The  family  name  has  long  figured  in  this  county,  being 
indelibly  inscribed  upon  the  pages  of  pioneer  history  as  well  as  of  later 
clay  progress  and  in-iproven-ient.  yir.  Lx;ach  has  been  watchful  of  bus- 
iness opportunities  pointing  to  success,  and  has  wrought  along  modern 
lines  of  progress.  He  possesses  a  genial  manner,  courteous  disposition 
and  deference  ior  the  opinion  of  others,  which  have  rendered  hini  a  pop- 
ular citizen. 


420  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTV 

CHAKiES   C.   RICKERT. 

Charles  C.  Rickcrt  deserves  mentiun  among-  tlie  old  settlers  of 
Cass  county,  for  during  sixty  years  he  has  lived  within  its  borders. 
This  covers  the  entire  period  of  his  life,  his  birth  having  occurred  upon 
the  old  family  homestead  where  he  now  resides  on  the  31st  of  Januarv. 
1846.  The  farm  is  situated  on  section  7,  Calvin  township,  and  is  well 
improved  property,  which  in  its  excellent  appearance  indicates  the  un- 
tiring labor  and  well-directetl  efforts  of  the  Rickerts.  The  paternal 
grandparents  of  our  subject  were  Abram  and  ]^Iagdalene  Rickert,  who 
on  emigrating  westward  from  Pennsylvania  to  ■Michigan  settled  in 
St.  Joseph  county.  Their  son,  Leonard  Rickert.  father  of  our  subject, 
was  born  in  the  Keystone  state  and  accompanied  his  parents  when  they 
sought  a  home  in  the  middie  west.  About  1S40  he  came  to  Cass  coun- 
ty, settling  on  the  farm  where  his  son  Cliarles  C.  now  resides.  It  was  a 
wild  and  unimproved  tract,  but  he  at  once  began  the  work  of  trans- 
forming the  raw  prairie  into  productive  fields.  Plowing  and  planting 
were  carried  on  and  the  summer  sun  ripened  the  grain  and  good  har- 
vests were  g.ithered  in  the  autumn.  He  continued  the  work  of  cultivat- 
ing and  improving  his  property  until  his  death.  He  married  ]\Iiss 
Margaret  .Ann  Crawford,  a  native  of  Ohio,  who  came  with  her  parents 
to  jMichigan  in  her  girlhood  days.  By  this  marriage  were  born  six  chil- 
dren, one  of  whom  died  in  early  childhood,  while  five  reached  mature 
years.  The  father  departed  this  life  when  about  forty-two  years  of 
age  and  the  mother  died  when  fifty-six  years  of  age. 

Charles  C.  Rickert,  the  second  child  and  eldest  son  in  the  family, 
was  reared  on  the  farm  where  he  yet  makes  his  home.  At  the  usual 
age  he  began  his  education  as  a  student  in  the  district  schools  of 
Calvin  township,  and  he  enjoyed  the  pleasures  of  the  play-ground  when 
not  occupied  with  his  book?  or  the  farm  work.  He  developed  a  self- 
reliance  and  force  of  character  which  have  been  strong  elements  in  his 
career.  On  the  2Stli  of  3\Iav,  1877.  he  was  married  to  Miss  Susanna 
Shaw,  a  daughter  of  Xathan  and  Marion  Shaw  and  a  native  of  Ohio, 
in  which  state  her  girlhood  days  were  passed.  At  the  time  of  his  mar-  ■ 
riage  T^Ir.  Rickert  located  upon  the  old  homestead  where  he  has  since 
lived,  giving  his  attention  to  general  farming  and  stock  raising.  He 
here  owns  one  hundred  and  two  and  a  half  acres  of  good  land,  most 
of  which  is  under  cultivation  and  in  addition  he  has  fifty  acres  of  tim- 
ber land  in  the  same  township. 

Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Rickert  were  bom  a  daughter  and  son;  El- 
len, who  is  now  engaged  in  teaching  in  Porter  township;  and  Charles 
Herman,  at  home,  assisting  in  the  work  of  the  farm. 

Susanna,  the  daughter  of  Nathan  and  ^Mariam  Shaw,  was  born  in 
Columbiana  countv,  Ohio.  October  2;th.  184;.  In  1856  she  came  with 
her  parents  to  ^Michigan,  settling  in  St.  Joseph  count\-.  afterwards  mov- 
ino-  to  Cass  county,  where  she  resided  up  to  the  time  of  her  death.  May 


CHARLES  C.  RICKERT  AND  FAMILY. 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  i-2l 

25th,  1897.  On  'Slay  24th,  1S77.  slie  was  united  in  marriage  to  Charles 
Rickert,  \\lio  with  two  children,  Ellen  S.  and  C.  Herman,  survive  her 
She  was  ever  a  faithful  and  consistent  Christian,  always  striving  to 
do  the  will  of  her  Alaster  and  ever  thoughtful  for  the  welfare  of  others. 
She  was  a  thorough  worker  in  whate\er  she  was  engaged  and  her  loss 
is  greatly  felt  by  all  who  knew  her. 

For  almost  twent}-  years  did  Mr.  and  ]\Irs.  Charles  C.  Rickert 
travel  life's  pathway  together,  sharing  alike  the  joys  and  sorrows  of 
life.  She  was  an  amiable  wife  and  a  loving  mother.  She  had  always 
stood  by  the  side  of  her  husband,  ever  ready  to  aid  him  in  advice  and 
counsel  in  the  building  up  of  their  comfortable  home.  She  was  a  de- 
vout member  of  tb.e  Friends'  Church,  known  as  Birch  Lake  Friends' 
Church,  in  Calvin  township.  Her  remains  are  interred  in  the  Reams 
and  Norton  cemetery,  where  a  beautiful  stone  marks  her  last  resting 
place.  There  is  a  vacant  chair  in  the  home  circle,  and  a  link  in  the 
mystic  chain,  which  cannot  be  again  filled. 

Mr.  Rickert  has  continuously  resided  in  Calvin  township  with  the 
exception  of  nine  months  spent  in  Cassopolis,  where  he  removed  in 
order  to  give  his  children  better  educational  privileges.  His  study  of 
the  political  issues  and  questions  of  the  day  has  led  him  to  give  his 
advocacy  to  the  Democratic  party.  He  is  a  memlx^r  of  the  Friends 
church  and  his  life  exemplifies  the  teachings  of  that  sect,  which  has 
always  promulgated  a  spirit  of  kindliness,  consideration,  charity  and 
righteousness.  He  has  been  identified  with  the  upbuilding  of  the  coun- 
ty through  six  decades,  bearing  his  full  share  in  the  workof  public 
progress  and  improvement,  and  is  justly  accounted  one  of  the  rep- 
resentative citizen?  of  Cass  county. 

J.  M.  LAKE. 

J.  M.  Lake,  living  on  section  7,  Penn  township,  where  he  owns 
and  controls  ninety-seven  acres  of  good  land,  his  home  being^known  as 
"Stone  Abutment' Farm,"  was  born  in  Chenango  county.  New  York, 
March  2^.  1842.  Flis  father,  Richard  Lake,  was  a  native  of  the  Empire 
state,  as  was  the  paternal  grandfather  of  our  subject,  Joseph  Lake,  who. 
however,  spent  his  last  years  in  Michigan.  He  lived  for  some  time  in 
Cass  countv.  where  his  death  occurred  in  Niles,  this  state.  It  was  in  the 
year  1844  that  Richard  Lake  took  up  his  abode  in  Cass  county,  locatmg 
on  section  iS.  Penn  township.  As  this  fact  indicates,  he  was  a  farrner  by 
occupation,  his  life  being  given  to  that  pursuit,  wherein  he  provided  a 
comfortable  living  for  his  familv.  He  married  Miss  PLannah  Crandall,  a 
daughter  of  Tanner  Crandall,  who  was  born  in  New  York.  In  the  family 
of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Richard  I^ake  were  seven  children,  three  sons  and  four 
daughters,  namelv:  Harrison  H. ;  James  M. ;  Qiarles  N.;  Mary,  wife  of 
Bvron  Sprague :  Sarah  J.,  wife  of  Cla^-ton  H.  Sigerfoos:  Rosetta,  wife 
of  B.  Frank   Slipper;  and  Flmma,  wife  of  Henry  Ferrel.     The  father 


422  HISTORY  OF  C.VSS  COUXTY 

died  in  the  ei-Iity-seoind  year  of  lii>  age,  while  the  nnjtlier  lived  to  be 
about  ?ixt}-  years. 

J.  M.  Lake  was  Ijut  two  years  old  when  brought  bv  his  [jarents  to 
Michigan  and  upon  the  Iiome  taim  in  F'enn  township  he  was  reared.  At 
the  usual  age  he  entered  the  pnl'lic  sehools  and  when  not  busv  with  his 
text  books  his  time  was  given  to  farm  labor.  After  leaving  schoul  per- 
manent])- he  gave  undivided  attention  to  farm  work  on  the  old  home- 
stead up  to  the  time  of  his  marriage,  which  occurred  in  1S73.  the  lady 
of  his  choice  being  Tsliss  Anna  Tripp,  a  daughter  of  Chester  Tripp. 
She  was  bnrn  in  Barry  couiitw  Michigan,  and  <Iied  in  iSyj.  leaving  a 
little  daughter,  who  died  in  iX()4.  ^.W.  L;tke  has  a  farm  of  ninetv- 
seven  acres,  which  he  has  im]>rovcd  with  modern  equipments  .and  which 
he  now  rents.  It  is  largely  devoted  to  the  production  of  fruit  and  he 
has  five  hundred  trees  of  peaches  and  apples  ujion  the  place.  His  trees 
produce  quite  alamdantly  almost  every  season  and  the  fruit  shipped 
from  his  jdacc  yields  a  good  fmanci.al  income.  Mr.  Lake  has  Ijeen  a 
resident  of  Cass  county  for  '-ixty-four  years,  with  the  exceiUion  of  (ine 
year,  which  he  S])cnt  in  I'cnnsylv.ania.  and  is  therefore  well  inlV.rmed 
concerning  the  history  of  the  cor.nty  and  the  progress  it  has  made  irum 
pioneer  con<litions  to  its  present  advanced  state  of  cultivation  and  im- 
provement, lie  has  been  a  lifed(jng  Democrat,  interested  in  the  growth 
and  success  of  his  jnirty.  ami  ha-^  '^er\ed  as  school  director.  He  for- 
merly belonged  to  the  Indeiiendent  Order  of  Odd  Fellows. 

JOSFT'H  C.  KYLE. 

Joseph  C.  Kyle,  a  \eteran  of  the  Civil  war,  who  has  been  equally 
loyal  to  his  country  in  the  performance  of  duties  that  devolve  upon 
him  in  conncctii  n  with  civic  (jffices  to  which  he  has  been  called,  has 
for  many  years  made  his  home  in  Union,  wdiere  he  has  long  been  en- 
gaged in  painting  and  plastering.  His  birth  occurred  in  Kosciusko 
count)-,  Indiana,  October  7,  1845,  '"^'i''  is  a  son  of  Andrew-  and  Frances 
S,  (Jones)  Kyle,  the  former  a  native  of  Pennsylvania  and  the  latter  of 
Virginia.  They  became  the  parents  of  four  children,  two  sons  and  two 
daughters,  all  of  whrmi  reached  adult  age.  Josejih  C.  and  ]\Iary  Cor- 
nelia are  twins  and  the  latter  is  now  the  w-ife  of  Henry  Borne,  of  Bata- 
gor,  IMichigan.  A  lirother,  .Vb.n^o  K.  Kyle,  is  living  in  Ellsworth, 
Kansas,  while  the  other  daughter.  Flora  A.,  is  the  wife  of  Charles  Xye, 
a  resident  farmer  of  Pokagon  townshi]).  On  leaving  the  east  Andrew- 
Kyle,  the  father,  became  one  of  the  early  settlers  of  Elkhart  county. 
Indiana,  and  in  1S49  'ic  went  to  California,  attracted  by  the  discovery 
of  gold  on  the  Pacific  coast.  He  afterward  returned  to  his  native  state. 
howex-er,  and  his  last  days  were  there  passed.  His  wife  lived  to  b*'  sev- 
enty-tw-o  years  of  age. 

Joscjih  C.  Kyle  of  this  re\-iew  has  been  a  resident  of  Cass  county 
from  the  age  of  three  years,  arrivir.g  here  in  1848.     He  was  reared  in 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  403 

P.^ter  township  n,i,l  was  onlv  eighteen  rears  of  a^^e  uhen  he 
enhsted  for  ser^■,ce  m  the  Civil  war.  liecomin-  a  private  of  Comnan;-  C 
iwent.;-^urth  Mid.i^an  Vohn.teer  Infantrv.^  Ur  serve.!  until  thcl.S 
of  hostilities  anri  after  the  war  returned  to  Union,  where  he  en-ac^ed  in 
pamtmo-  ard  phsterino-.  He  learned  the  trades  and  followed  the  hus- 
niess  for  thu'tv  vears.  Because  of  his  excellent  workmanship  manv 
important  contracts  have  hcen  awarded  him  and  his  services  have  heer 
in  constant  demand,  so  tint  he  has  won  a  -or^l  livin-  and  secured  a 
comtortahle  Iiome.  '^  .-,  •  . 

Mr.  Kyle  was  married  Seutemher  -^  i<'^'').;  to  Miss  :\raHssa  Brown 
a  daughter  of  Joshua  and  Sarah  A.  (  Tow)  Brown,  and  a  native  of  Tlk- 
hart  county.  Indiana.  Mr.  Kyle  has  resided  in  Cass  countv  for  fiftv- 
six  years  and  is  one  of  its  renresentati^•e  citizens.  His  political  alle-iance 
has  loiio;  been  earnestly  .qiven  to  the  Repuhlican  partv.  and  he  is  now 
servm^r  as  a  member  of  the  board  of  reviews.  Fratcrnallv  he  is  con- 
nected with  Carter  post.  Xo.  96.  G.  A.  R..  of  Union,  in  which  he  has 
tilled  some  of  the  offices,  and  he  also  belongs  to  the  Grange,  while  his 
religious  faith  is  indicated  by  his  membership  in  the  Freewill  Baptist 
c]nirch._  in  which  he  takes  a  helpful  part,  serving  as  one  of  its  deacons, 
and  doing  all  in  his  power  to  promote  the  various  cliurch  activities  and 
extend  its  iniluence.  He  is  widely  known  in  bis  ].art  of  the  county  Iw 
reason  of  his  interest  and  co-operati(jn  in  public  affairs  and  also  on  ac- 
count of  his  business  conrectinns.  He  has  been  found  reliable  at  all 
times  in  his  business  career,  faithfully  executing  his  work  in  accordance 
with  the  terms  of  his  contracts,  and  his  energ-y,  perseverance,  laudable 
ambition  and  resolute  purpose  have  been  the  strong  and  salient  features 
of  his  life  record. 

LESLIE  C.  WFTLS. 

Leslie  C.  Wells,  residing  on  secti.m  jG.  Pokagon  township,  was 
born  in  Wayne  township.  Cass  county,  on  the  Sth  of  November.  1855. 
His  paternal  grandfather.  Woden  Weils,  was  a  native  of  Connecticut, 
whence  he  removed  to  New  York,  and  at  an  early  .lay  he  came  to  Mich- 
igan,-taking  up  his  abode  in  Kalamazoo  county.  'Hc  was  of  Welsh 
lineage.  His  son.  Homer  \\'ells.  the  father  of  our  subject,  was  born 
in  the  Empire  state  and  when  a  youth  of  ten  years  accompanied  his 
parents  on  their  reiiKjval  to  Kalamazoo  county,  wliere  he  remained  until 
1849,  when  he  came  to  Cass  county,  taking  up  bis  abode  in  Wayne 
township,  where  he  engaged  in  general  farming.  He  was  for  many 
years  a  representative  and  leading  agriculturist  of  this  part  of  the  state 
and  his  dealli  occurred  in  1904.  when  he  had  reached  the  advanced  age 
of  seventy-tliree  )ears.  In  politics  he  was  a  stanch  and  earnest  Repub- 
lican, interested  in  the  W(jrk  of  the  party  and  doing  all  in  his  power  for 
its  growth  and  success.  He  held  a  number  of  local  offices,  to  which  he 
was  called  by  his  fellow  townsmen,  wdio  recognized  his  worth'  and  abil- 


-^24  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY 

ity  and  who  f,)uiul  in  him  a  capahle  official.  In  his  earlv  manhood  he 
wedded  Aliss  Laura  A.  Reed,  a  native  of  Oliio  and  a  dau.jjhter  of  A. 
H.  and  Maria  (Jenninjjs)  Rec^l.  who  went  originally  from  Vermont  to 
Ohio  and  thence  came  to  Michigan,  settling  in  W'a'vne  township,  Cass 
county.  Mrs.  Wells  was  at  that  time  a  voung  girl'and  she  died' when 
but  twenty  years  of  age. 

Leslie  C.  Wells,  the  only  child,  remained  with  his  father,  who 
afterward  married  again,  his  second  uniini  l.ieing  with  Fannie  Bever- 
stock.  In  the  ])ublic  schools  y\r.  Wells  acquired  his  education  and  dur- 
ing the  summer  months  aided  in  the  farm  work  until  seventeen  vears 
of  age,  when  he  left  home,  starting  out  upon  an  independent  business 
career.  He  entered  the  emi^l-.y  of  the  Michigan  Central  Railroad  Com- 
pany in  connection  with  the  construction  gang  and  in  the  following 
year  he  began  teaching  scliod,  which  profession  he  followed  for  twenty 
years  during  the  winter  months.  He  attended  the  Vicksburg  high 
school  during  that  time  and  he  continually  broadened  his  knowledge  by 
reading,  observation  and  investigation.  As  an  educator  he  was  capable 
and  eflicient,  imparting  readily  to  others  the  knowledge  that  he  had 
acquired  and  maintaining  good  discipline,  without  whicli  successful 
work  is  never  done  in  the  school  room.  During  the  summer  months  he 
worked  at  farm  labor  and  he  also  spent  some  years  in  California,  Wash- 
ington and  Oregon.  He  likewise  went  to  the  soutli,  passing  one  year 
in  Alabama. 

In  1881  I\Ir.  Wells  was  united  in  marriage  to  Miss  Mary  A. 
Shookman,  a  daughter  of  Otho  and  Elizabeth  (Wright)  Shookman. 
She  was  bom  in  Wayne  township  and  for  about  fifteen  years  engaged 
in  teaching  school,  being  also  one  of  the  successful  teachers  of  this 
part  of  the  state.  At  the  time  of  his  marriage  Mr.  Wells  located  in  La- 
Grange  township,  settling  upon  a  part  of  the  old  homestead  farm,  ujwn 
which  he  lived  for  three  years,  when  he  took  up  his  abode  upon  a 
rented  farm  in  Silver  Creek  township,  there  living  for  two  years.  On 
the  expiration  of  that  period,  with  the  money  which  he  had  managed  to 
save  from  his  earnings  he  purchased  forty  acres  of  land  in  LaGrange 
township  and  cultivated  that  place  for  three  years.  His  present  farm 
consists  of  one  hundred  and  twenty  acres  in  Pokagon  township,  where 
he  has  resided  for  the  past  eight  years.  His  farm  is  the  visible  evi- 
dence of  his  well-directed  thrift  and  energy,  for  when  he  started 
out  on  his  own  account  he  had  no  capital.  He  has  worked  per- 
sistently and  the  _\ears  have  brought  him  success,  owing  to  his 
diligence  and  capable  management.  Goethe  has  said,  "Merit  and 
success  go  linked  together,"  and  the  truth  of  this  assertion  is  veri- 
fied again  and  again  in  the  lives  of  such  men  as  ^Ir.  Wells,  whose 
prosperity  is  attributable  entirely  to  his  own  labors.  In  politics  he  is  a 
stanch  Republican,  interested  in  the  growth  and  success  of  his  party. 
He  was  tureu-ian  of  the  first  grand  jury  that  had  been  convened  in  the 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COl'XTY  425 

county  in  frrt\-six  year?,  actini::  in  that  capacity  in  iqo;.  He  is  a 
member  of  the  .ALascnic  fraternity  and  also  belontrs  to  the  Modern  Wood- 
men Camp. 

WlLLl.-VM  H.  GARWOOD. 

The  arduous  task  of  developing  and  cultivating  new  land  is  one 
familiar  to  William  H.  Garwood,  a  representative  farmer  of  Pokagon 
township,  who  in  the  successful  management  of  his  business  interest* 
has  displayed  excellent  business  aliility,  keen  discernment  and  unfalter- 
ing diligence.  He  was  born  in  the  township  where  he  yet  resides 
November  5,  iS>\G.  His  father,  Jesse  Garwimd.  was  one  of  the  old  set- 
tlers of  the  county  and  was  a  native  of  \\^arren  county,  Ohio,  where  his 
birth  occurred  on  the  15th  of  August,  i8o5.  There  he  was  reared  and 
educated,  and  on  leaving  the  Buckeye  state  he  removed  to  Terre  Coupe 
Prairie,  Indiana,  in  iSjj.  Fie  worked  at  the  Indian  mission  for  two 
summers  and  in  1829  he  came  to  Pokagon  township.  Cass  countv,  Mich- 
igan, settling  on  his  present  farm.  Pie  had  located  this  land  in  1832. 
It  was  all  raw  and  unimproved,  but  he  cleared  sixty  acres.  He  had  two 
hundred  and  forty  acres  in  the  original  tract  and  the  arduous  task  of  de- 
veloping a  new  farm  fell  to  him  and  was  successfully  carried  vn.  His 
marriage  on  the  6th  of  December.  1S44,  to  Miss  Rachel  Prather  uas 
celebrated  in  this  county.  The  lady  was  a  native  of  Madison  county. 
Indiana,  born  Se])tember  24.  1S08.  and  William  H.  Garwcmd  was  the 
only  child  born  of  this  marriage.  The  father  voted  with  the  Republican 
party  and  was  the  champion  of  many  progressive  measures,  especially 
those  which  contributed  to  substantial  progress  and  improvement.  Pie 
died  September  11,  1889,  while  his  wife  passed  away  in  1885. 

In  his  youth  William  PI.  Garwood  worked  upon  the  old  farm 
homestead  and  cleared  the  entire  place  save  the  sixty  acres  which  his 
father  brought  under  culti\'ation.  At  his  father's  death  he  took  posses- 
sion of  the  entire  farm  and  lias  since  been  one  of  the  representative 
agriculturists  of  the  community,  giving  undivided  attention  to  the  fur- 
ther improvement  of  his  property.  Everything  about  the  place  is  neat 
and  thrifty  in  appearance  and  the  fields  annually  return  to  him  golden 
harvests. 

On  the  2 1st  of  November,  1866,  Mr.  Garwood  was  united  in  mar- 
riage to  ]Miss  Lucinda  F.  Demmons,  a  native  of  ^Michigan,  born  on 
the  23d  of  November,  1S44,  ^"f'  ^  daughter  of  Alanson  Demmons,  w^ho 
was  a  farmer  by  occupation.  Unto  Air.  and  Mrs.  Garwood  have  been 
born  nine  children,  of  wdiom  six  are  deceased.  Those  living  are :  Aman- 
son  W.,  on  his  father's  estate;  Dwight,  in  Kansas  City,  ^Missouri ;  and 
Blanch,  wife  of  Charles  Phillips,  of  Pokagon.  All  were  born  upon  the 
old  homestead   farm. 

Mr.  Garwood  is  a  member  of  the  Masonic  fraternity  and  also  be- 
longs to  the  Woodmen  camp  at  Pokagon.  In  politics  a  Democrat,  he 
takes  an  active  part  in  the  local  work  of  the  party,  ser\-ed  as  supervisor 


426  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

for  two  vears  and  was  also  t<5\vnshii)  treasurer  f<ir  two  years.  His  ef- 
forts in  behalf  of  public  prog-ress  have  been  effective  and  beneficial  and 
his  support  can  alwa}'S  be  counted  upon  to  further  any  movement  for 
the  general  good.  He  has  spent  his  entire  life  in  Pokagon  township  and 
as  a  native  .son  and  pioneer  settler  of  Cass  county  well  deserves  repre- 
sentation in  this  volume,  while  his  genuine  worth  entitles  him  to  the 
confidence  rmd  gnod  will  which  are  uniformly  gi\'en  him  biy  his  fellow 
townsmen. 

C.  DELIVAX  AIcCOY. 

One  does  not  have  t<>  carry  his  invcstigatirms  far  into  tlic  history 
of  Cass  coiuitv  without  learning  that  the  IVfcCoy  family  became  iden- 
tified with  pioneer  progress  at  an  early  day.  Upon  the  nld  fru-m  home- 
stead C.  Delivan  AlcCoy  was  born  on  the  13th  of  Xnvemhcr.  1852.  He 
is  a  son  of  Richard  McCoy,  who  is  represented  on  another  page  of  this 
work.  He  was  reared  to  the  occupation  of  farming,  early  becoming 
familiar  with  the  labors  of  the  fields  as  he  assisted  in  the  work  of  plow- 
ing, planting  and  harvesting.  Tn  the  public  scb.ool  system  of  the  neigh- 
torhood  he  is  indeliled  for  the  eilucational  privileges  he  enjoyed. 

In  November,  1S75,  he  was  married  to  JMiss  Estella  Hartzel.  a  na- 
tive of  Pokagon,  born  July  2R,  1R59.  She  was  reared  in  Prikagon 
township,  and  is  a  daughter  of  Simon  Hartzel.  one  of  the  early  settlers 
of  Cass  countv,  who,  coniing  to  ibis  section  of  tlie  state,  gave  his  atten- 
tion to  farming  interests  and  aided  in  the  work  of  public  progress  and 
impro\ement.  JNIr.  and  Mrs.  McCoy  have  become  the  parents  of  eight 
children,  two  sons  and  six  daughters:  Lena,  now  the  wife  of  Henry 
Silvers;  Ida  and  Charles,  at  Imme ;  I^lla.  the  wife  of  AVilliam  Stewart, 
of  Dowagiac,  Michigan:  PTattie,  the  wife  of  Harry  Walworth:  ;Minnie 
•and  Cecil,  at  home;  and  Clyde,  deceased. 

When  tb.e  time  came  that  3.1r.  :\IcCoy  should  make  choice  of  a 
life  work  he  determined  to  follov.-  the  pursuit  to  which  he  had  been 
reared,  and  he  has  therefore  always  remained  upon  the  old  homestead, 
where  he  has  one  lumdred  acres  of  land,  the  greater  part  of  which  is 
under  cultivation.  This  ]il-'ce  was  cleared  and  improved  by  the  Mc- 
Cov  familv  and  the  subiect  of  this  review  is  carrying  on  the  farm  work 
in  keeping  with  the  general  spirit  of  advancement  that  has  been  char- 
acteristic of  the  McCoys  since  the  family  home  was  first  established  in 
this  countv. 

ALEX.\NDKR  ROP.ERTSON. 

Alex-nfler  Ro' ertsMi.  following  the  occupation  of  fanning  on  sec- 
tion 27.  Pokagon  township,  is  a  native  of  the  Empire  state,  his  birth 
having  occurred  in  Argvle.  Washington  county.  New  York,  on  the  3d 
of  March.  1826.  His  father,  .Vrcbibald  Rolwrtson.  was  likewise  a  na- 
tive of  Washington  county,  born  hi  Cambridge  in  1784,  and  in  that 
state  he  was  reared,  beconiing  a  farmer  by  occupation.  Pie  was  mar- 
lied  ill   Washington  countv  to  :\Iiss  .Amy  Robertson,  who  was  born  m 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY  427 

New  "^'firk  in  1787.  and  remained  a  resirlent  of  tliat  state  nntil  iier 
death,  wliicli  occurred  in  1852.  Unto  ]\[r.  and  Mrs.  Arciiihald  Rob- 
ertson were  liorn  nine  children.  fi\"e  .sons  and  four  daui^hters :  William, 
Peter  C,  -\Iartlia.  Mary,  .Archibald.  John,  Joanna  and  Ehzalieth.  all 
deceased:  and  Alexander,  wlio  is  the  youngest  and  only  sun,-iving  mem- 
ber of  the  family.  All  were  born  and  reared  in  W'ashinc^ton  countv, 
New  York.  The  mother  died  in  Onondacra  county,  that  state.  In  Fel)- 
ruary.  1S54,  the  father  emii^rated  westward  to  Cass  county,  Alichigan, 
settliiig-  in  Pdkaq-on  township  cm  the  farm  which  is  now  the  home  of 
his  son  Alexander.  Here  he  carried  on  general  agricultural  pursuits 
until  his  death,  which  occtUTed  June  28,  1867.  His  early  political  alle- 
giance was  given  to  the  \\'hig  party  and  upon  its  dissolutinn  he  joinef! 
the  ranks  of  the  new  Republican  party. 

Alexander  Robertsori  ob.tained  his  education  in  the  public  schotds 
of  New  York  and  worked  ujion  the  home  farm  there  until  twenty-seven 
years  of  age,  when  he  came  with  his  family  to  Michigan.  He  had  been 
married  in  the  Empire  state  on  the  13th  of  ^Nlarch,  1S50.  to  Aliss  Mary 
E.  Briggs,  a  native  of  Wayne  county,  Xew  York,  born  June  20,  1827. 
She  was  reared  in  Xew  York  and  was  a  daughter  of  \A'il!iam  and  Rrix- 
anna  (Ely)  Briggs,  who  -were  farming  peojjle.  .\ftcr  his  marriage 
]\lr.  Robertson  remained  for  four  years  in  X'cw  York  ami  was  a  teacher 
in  that  state  for  a  long  period,  becoming  actively  connected  with  the 
profession  when  seventeen  years  of  age.  After  his  arri\al  in  Michigan 
he  taught  school  for  two  years  at  Summerville  and  was  also  a  teacher  in 
LaGrange  township  for  two  terms,  while  in  the  winter  of  1874-5  be 
taught  the  village  school  at  Pokagon.  He  was  thus  closely  associated 
with  the  intellectual  development  of  the  community  and  ever  upheld  a 
high  standard  of  education  and  public  instruction.  His  fitness  frir  lead- 
ership being  recognized  by  his  fellow  citizens  he  was  elected  to  the  state 
legislature  in  1872  upon  the  Republican  ticket  and  served  as  a  mem- 
ber of  the  hou«e  for  tw(.i  years.  He  has  Ijeen  a  life-long  Republican, 
.taking  an  active  and  helpful  interest  in  the  local  work  of  the  party  and 
doing  all  in  his  power  to  promote  its  growth  and  insure  its  success.  He 
has  been  a  memlicr  of  die  school  hoard  since  living  in  the  countv  and 
the  cause  of  ]niblic  instruction  has  indeed  found  in  him  a  warm  and 
able  champion.  He  was  township  supervisor  for  eight  vears  during 
the  war  and  subseciuent  to  that  time.  At  his  father's  death  he  tnok  pos- 
session of  the  old  homestead  of  eightv  acres,  to  which  he  has  since  added 
a  similar  tract,  so  that  he  now  owns  and  operates  a  valuable  farm  of 
one  hundred  and  sixty  acres,  which  annually  returns  to  him  an  excel- 
lent income. 

By  his  first  marriage  Mr.  Robertson  had  eight  children,  a  son  and 
seven  daughters,  namely  :  Eudorn,  deceased  :  Ella  Evangeline  :  Ida  E. : 
Harriet  and  .\nn,  both  deceased:  .\my  L. ;  ]\Iartha,  who  has  passed 
away:  anrl  Erank  A.  Two  of  the  children  were  born  in  Xew 
York  and  the  others  upon  the  old  homestead  farm  in   Pokagon  town- 


4-2S  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

ship  after  the  reni'ival  of  the  family  u>  this  county.  Tlie  wife  and 
mother  died  March  jj,  1S74.  and  several  years  later,  on  the  24th  of 
April,  18S3.  Mr.  Rohcrt.vin  \va_-.  married  to  ]\[rs.  Uzziel  I'utnam,  the 
widow  of  L'zziel  Putnam,  the  hrst  while  child  born  in  Cass  county,  his 
natal  day  being  in  August,  1826.  Airs.  Robertson  is  a  native  of  Gales- 
burg,  Illinois.  Both  our  subject  and  his  wife  are  esteemed  by  a  large 
circle  of  friends  and  he  is  numbered  among  the  pioneer  settlers  of  the 
county,  having  cast  in  his  lot  with  its  early  residents.  From  that  time 
to  the  present  he  has  been  a  champion  of  progre5si\-e  public  measures 
and  has  rejoiceil  in  what  has  been  accomplished  in  the  county  as  the 
changes  have  lieen  wrought  that  have  transformed  it  from  a  i)ioneer 
region  into  one  of  rich  fertility,  bearing  all  the  evidences  of  an  ad- 
vanced civilization. 

JOSFPII  LYBROOK. 

Joseph  Lybrook  is  the  owner  of  a  valuable  farm  of  one  hundred 
and  cigh'L_\-ti\-e  acres  on  section  22,  LaGrange  to\s'nship,  and  in  addi- 
tion to  this  property  he  also  has  forty  acres  on  section  t,-  <^f  the  same 
township  and  is  one  of  tlie  stockholders  in  the  creamery.  His  business 
interests  are  characterized  l>y  close  application  and  unfaltering  diligence, 
which  constitute  the  basis  of  all  desirable  success.  Fie  seems  to  have 
realized  fully  that  "there  is  no  excellence  without  labor"  and  has  ex- 
emplified this  adage  in  his  life  wurk.  It  was  upon  the  farm  where  he 
now-  resides  that  he  first  opened  his  e\es  to  the  light  of  day,  his  liirth 
occurring  on  the  22nd  of  November,  1S45.  The  name  "Lybrook"  as 
now  si)elle<l  \vas  in  the  original  German  text  spelled  "Leibroch."  The 
grandfather,  Henry  Leibroch,  was  Iwrn  in  Virginia,  April  2,  1755, 
and  died  August  22,  1839.  ^^  ^^''^  ^  soldier  in  the  Revolutionary  war, 
and  many  times  saw  General  Washington.  Mr.  Lybrook  has  in  his 
possession  an  old  passport,  dated  Feliruary  27,  1787,  gi\-en  Flenry 
Leibroch.  which  is  written  in  a  beautiful  copper  plate  handwriting.  He 
also  has  four  of  the  parchment  deeds  bearing  the  following  dates  of 
execution:  two  on  November  10,  1S30.  February  8,  183 1  and  April 
I,  183 1,  and  these  deeds  are  all  signed  by  President  Andrew  Jackson 
and  are  valuable  as  relics. 

John  Lybrook,  father  of  Joseph,  was  a  native  of  Giles  county,  Vir- 
ginia, born  October  25.  T798,  and  in  181 1  he  accompanied  his  parents 
on  their  removal  to  Preble  county,  Ohio.  In  1S23  he  came  to  Mich- 
igan, making  the  journev  in  order  to  assist  Squire  Thompson  in  his  re- 
moval to  this  state.  When  he  made  the  start  he  intendefl  going  only 
fifty  or  sixtv  miles,  but  he  continued  with  him  on  the  journey  until 
Cass  countv  was  reached.  Ou  the  last  day  of  December  of  the  same  year 
he  started  back  on  foot  to  Ohio  accompanied  by  a  young  man  of  the 
name  of  Eaton.  Thev  first  camped  near  where  IMishawaka  now  stands, 
and  from  that  point  Mr.  Lybrook  continued  on  his  way  to  Fort  Wavne. 
where  he  procured  assistance  for  the  return  trip.     His  partner  had  his 


"1 


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^s. 


.  _.  .^ 

■■■■-  y\ 

'f  :. 

Lu^U,  iyU^e-^ 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  429 

foot  frozen  a1xn.it  that  time  and  y\r.  Lybrook  endured  many  hardships 
and  much  exposure  in  In's  endeavor  to  reach  his  home,  but  eventually 
the  journey  was  completed.  However,  he  had  become  interested  in 
the  western  country  and  its  possibilities  for  development,  and  in  1824 
he  came  once  more  to  Alichigan,  bringing  with  him  some  cattle.  In  the 
spring  of  1825  he  planted  eleven  acres  of  corn  in  what  was  known  as 
the  Second  b'ield  below  Xiles.  He  afterward  returned  to  Ohio  with 
a  yoke  ol  oxen  hitched  to  the  back  wheels  of  a  lumber  wagon.  In 
the  following  spring,  however,  he  returned  to  ^Michigan,  bringing  with 
him  a  barrel  of  wheat,  which  was  the  first  wheat  sown  in  southwestern 
Michigan.  In  the  spring  of  1828  he  removed  to  the  farm  where  Joseph 
Lybrook  ni3w  resides,  and  there  continued  to  make  his  home  until  his 
death.  It  was  wild  and  unimproved  land  when  it  came  into  his  posses- 
sion and  he  turned  the  first  furrows  upon  the  place  and  planted  the 
first  crops.  In  course  of  time  he  had  transformed  this  into  a  valuable 
properly,  which  he  continued  to  cultivate  with  success  for  many  years. 
He  gave  his  support  to  the  Democracy  during  the  greater  ])art  of  his 
life,  sa\e  that  he  voted  for  William  Henry  Harrison.  ?Ie  passed  awav 
May  25,  1881,  and  the  county  thus  lost  one  of  its  most  prominent  and 
honored  pioneer  settlers — a  citizen  who  from  the  earliest  epoch  in  the 
history  oi  this  section  of  the  state  had  been  identified  with  its  improve- 
ment. His  wife  bore  the  maiden  name  rif  Mary  Hurd  and  was  a  native 
of  England,  whence  she  came  to  America  at  the  age  of  seven  years. 
She  was  born  in  1821,  became  a  resident  of  jMichigan  in  1836  and  died 
January  25,  1903,  at  the  very  advanced  age  of  eighty-two  years.  In 
the  family  of  this  worthy  couple  were  two  sons  and  a  daughter,  but 
Henry  died  in  Oklahoma  and  Arminda  is  also  deceased,  leaving  Joseph 
as  the  only  surviving  memlier  of  the  family. 

Joseph  Lybrook  was  the  second  child  and  has  spent  his  entire  life 
upon  the  farm  where  he  now  li\-cs,  covering  a  period  of  more  than  six- 
ty years,  ^^^len  a  boy  he  took  his  place  in  the  fields,  and  as  his  age  and 
strength  permitted  he  assisted  more  and  more  largely  in  the  work  of 
the  home  farm  and  has  since  been  identified  wn'tli  the  growth  and  de- 
velopment of  the  county.  He  has  in  his  home  place  one  hundred  and 
eighty-five  acres  of  land,  and  also  forty. acres  on  section  32.  LaGrange 
township.  His  home  farm  is  under  a  high  state  of  cultivation  and  the 
fields  are  improved  with  modern  machinery,  while  the  work  is  carried 
on  along  the  most  progressive  lines.  He  is  also  owner  of  stock  in  the 
creamery.  His  political  support  has  been  given  to  the  Democracy.  A 
worthy  representative  of  an  honored  pioneer  familv,  he  has  carried  for- 
ward the  work  whkh  was  begun  by  his  father  and  the  name  of  Lybrook 
has  thus  long  been  closely  associated  with  the  substantial  improvement 
and  development  of  Cass  countv. 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COL'XTY 


CLIFFORD  L.  TAYLOR 


Clifford  L.  Taylor,  a  fanner  and  breeder  of  registered  P(jland 
China  hogs,  being  proprietor  ut  the  Runnd  Oak  herd,  makes  his  home 
on  section  34,  I'okagon  township.  He  is  a  native  son  of  the  middle 
west  and  in  his  life  has  exemplified  the  enterprising  spirit  which  has 
been  the  dominant  factor  in  the  rapid  and  substantial  improvement  of 
the  upper  }vlississippi  vallew  His  birth  occurred  in  Grant  county.  Wis- 
consin, on  the  17th  of  April,  1852.  His  father,  James  W.  Tayl.  .r,  also  a 
farmer  by  occupation,  was  a  native  of  Xew  York  state,  born  in  1S28, 
and  about  1846  he  l;ecame  a  resident  of  Wisconsin,  settling  on  a  farm 
there.  In  1800  he  left  that  state  and  with  his  family  removed  to  Water- 
loo, Iowa,  wliere  lie  was  engaged  in  farming  and  al.so  in  operating  a 
threshing  machine.  After  three  years  he  left  Iowa  and  tcxok  his  family 
to  Indiana,  settling  thirteen  miles  south  of  the  city  of  South  Bend. 
There  he  contracted  with  the  v.ell  known  Studebaker  firm  and  cleared 
•a  farm  of  thirty  acres  of  land.  On  leaving  Indiana  he  tor.k  up  his 
ab<jde  at  Xiles,  Michigan,  where  he  was  again  engaged  in  farming,  and 
in  187 1  he  located  in  I'okagon  township,  Cass  countv,  where  he  rented 
the  old  Garrett  Stancel  farm  of  one  hundred  and  five  acres.  Eventuallv, 
however,  he  removed  to  Xehraska.  where  he  has  remain.ed  to  the  pres- 
ent time.  In  his  political  views  h.e  is  an  earnest  Republican.  Unto  him 
and  his  wife  were  born  nine  children,  four  sons  and  five  daughters,  of 
whom  Clifford  L.  is  the  elde-^t.  Three  of  the  number  are  now  deceased. 
Clifford  L.  Taylor  acconiiianied  his  jjarents  on  their  various  re- 
movals until  ihey  went  to  Xebraska.  Continuing  a  resident  of  C.ass 
county  he  rented  his  present  farm  from  the  estate  of  Jacob  White,  hav- 
ing charge  of  one  hundred  acres  of  land.  He  remained  upon  this  place 
for  thirteen  years,  carrying  on  general  farming,  and  in  1889  he  removed 
to  Dowagiac,  where  he  became  connected  with  the  Colby  Milling  Com- 
pany, hauling  fiour  and  feed.  He  remained  for  two  vears.  nfter  which 
he  returned  to  the  farm  on  section  34,  Pokagon  township.  In  i8y8  he 
began  raising  registered  hogs  and  has  made  a  success  of  this  venture, 
having  to-dav  some  of  the  finest  animals  that  can  be  found  in  the  coun- 
try. 

On  the  15th  of  October.  1874.  Mr.  Taylor  was  married  to  ]\Iiss 
Addie  A.  White,  a  native  of  Indiana,  born  August  15.  1856.  and  a 
daughter  of  Jacr.b  and  Julia  A.  White,  who  were  farming  people  of 
Steuben  county,  Indiana.  Her  mother  was  a  native  of  Pennsvlvania, 
born  in  1838.  Following  the  ren>oval  of  the  family  to  Cass' county 
they  remained  upon  the  farm  where  Mr.  Taylor  now  resides  until  the 
death  of  :\rr.  White  in  1889.  Mrs.  \\"hite  is  still  living  upon  this  place. 
In  the  family  of  this  worthv  couple  were  three  children,  a  .son  and  two 
daughters,  namely:  I\Irs.  Taylor;  Chandler,  who  died  in  infancy:  and 
Libbie  May,  who  was  torn  in  1871  and  is  living  in  Pokagon  township, 
the  wife  of  Jonathan  L.  Dillman.     ;\Irs.  Taylor  was  nine  vears  of  age 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  431 

when  she  accompanied  her  parents  on  tlieir  lemoval  to  Cass  county,  and 
heie  she  was  reared  and  educated.  She  has  hecome  the  motlier  of  two 
children,  but  the  d:iUL;hter.  Bessie  May.  born  January  30,  i!^S6.  died  un 
tlie  J2d  of  I"ehruar\,  iSSS.  The  son,  Carl  |..  was  born  in  this  cnuntv 
May  _',  1893. 

}dT.  'Jayliir  has  been  a  lifelong-  Re]nibbcan,  i^iviuL;  unfaltering-  .ad- 
vocac}'  10  iti  men  and  measures.  He  beli>ui;s  tn  Iv'und  (Jak  camp.  Xo. 
1 167,  -M.  W.  .v..  at  iiriwai^iac,  and  i^  a  member  of  Cr\-t,d  Springs.  Xo. 
22S-  I-  ^^-  <-'■  i'--  ;it  Poka-MU.  His  business  interots  are  capably  cnn- 
ducted  and.  he  i>  numbered  ;imMU!.>  the  substantial  a,L;riculturi>ts  ami 
breeders  of  I'olantl  China  hii^s  in  tbn  part  of  the  state. 

W1LLI.\^[  H.  McCOY. 

William  H.  r^IcCoy.  who  follows  farming'  in  Pukai^on  township, 
was  l)orn  m  Pulaski  cimnty,  \'ir;4inia.  in  that  district  then  known  as 
Montgomery  county,  on  the  22d  of  April.  1S31.  His  father,  Richard 
McCoy,  was  one  of  the  old  pioneer  settlers  of  this  state,  and  he,  too, 
was  a  farmer  by  occupation.  His  liirth  occurred  in  Virginia,  and  when 
he  had  reached  manbonil  he  was  married  to  Miss  ^^laria  Sifford.  a  na- 
tive of  the  Old  Don.iiuion.  Mr.  ami  ]Mrs.  ^McCo}-  came  to  Cass  county 
when  the  work  of  progress  and  impro\-ement  b.ad  scarcely  been  begun 
in  tliis  portion  of  the  state,  and  they  shared  with  others  in  tlie  hard- 
ships and  jjrivations  of  pioneer  life  and  aided  in  reclaiming  this  district 
for  the  use  of  civilization.  In  their  family  were  .si.\  sons  and  six 
daugiiters.  of  whom  William  H.  is  the  eldest^  3<")n  and  third  child. 
Four  of  the  children  are  now  deceased,  two  iiaving  dieil  in  infancy.  All 
were  reared  and  educated  in  Cass  cmuity,  and  those  who  still  survive 
are  farming  people.  The  elder  members  of  the  household  were  students 
in  the  old-time  log  schoolhouses.  The  father  first  located  with  Henrv 
Sifford  at  Summerville,  where  he  spent  a  few  nion.ths,  and  in  the  fol- 
lowing spring  he  removed  to  a  farm  of  aliout  eighty  acres  on  section  2/. 
Pokagon  township.  This  was  all  raw  and  wild  land,  not  a  furrow  hav- 
ing been  turned  nor  an  improvement  made  upon  the  place,  but  he  at 
once  began  to  clear  and  cultivate  the  fields  and  with  the  help  of  his 
sons  brought  the  farm  to  a  high  state  of  culti\-ation.  As  his  financial 
resources  increased  he  also  added  to  his  original  holdings,  being  th.e 
owner  of  a  valuable  farm  property  of  three  hundred  and  twenty  acres 
in  Pokagon  township  at  the  time  of  his  death,  upon  which  he  resided 
until  1S32,  when  he  started  on  the  return  trip  to  A'irginia,  but  wdu'le  en 
route  was  taken  ill  and  died  within  fifty  miles  of  his  destination.  In 
politics  lie  was  a  lifelong  Democrat,  earnest  and  active  in  support  of 
the  i>arty. 

In  his  youth  \\'illiam  H.  McCoy  assisted  his  father  in  the  work 
of  the  home  farm  and  after  the  father's  death  remained  with  .his  mother 
upon  the  old  home  place,   supervising  the  jiropertv  and  the  culti\'ation 


432  HISTORY  01-   CASS  COUNTY 

of  the  fields.  His  privileges  and  advantages  in  youth  were  such  as  the 
pioneer  district  altorded.  In  1873  he  was  married  to  }iliss  Mary  J. 
Wilson,  a  native  of  Ohio,  who  was  born  August  25,  1S52,  and  is  a 
dauo-hter  of  Isaac  Wilson,  one  of  the  early  settlers  of  Berrien  county. 
The"  father  was  a  farmer  by  occupation.  At  the  time  of  his  marriage 
Mr.  ?\IcCoy  took  up  his  abode  upon  his  present  farm,  comprising  eighty 
acres,  and  with  characteristic  energy  began  its  further  cultivation  and 
development.  He  has  one  hundred  and  forty  acres  in  Casco  town- 
ship, Allegan  countv,  JNIichigan,  which  is  partially  a  fruit  farm.  He 
built  his  present  residence  and  has  added  many  modern  equipments  to 
the  place.  Unto  him  and  his  wife  have  been  born  three  children,  a 
son  and  two  daughters:  Ellura,  the  wife  of  Orrin  T.  Moore,  a  resi- 
dent farmer  of  Pokagon  township;  John;  and  Edna  Gertrude.  All 
were  born  and  reared  upon  the  present  farm. 

In  his  ix)litical  views  Mr.  McCoy  is  a  Democrat,  but  at  local  elec- 
tions usually  casts  his  ballot  without  regard  for  party  affiliations.  His 
entire  life  has  been  devoted  to  agricultural  pursuits,  and  he  regards 
farm  work  as  abundantly  worthy  of  his  best  effects.  His  labors  have 
been  characterized  by  perseverance  .and  diligence,  and  his  persistency 
of  purpose  has  been  one  of  the  strong  and  salient  elements  in  his  life 
work. 

CHARLES  II.  KIMMERLE. 

Charles  II.  Kimmerle  is  one  of  the  leading  representatives  of  Dem- 
ocracy in  Aliclngan.  and  his  invested  interc'^ts  are  so  extensive  and  im- 
portant as  to  render  him  a  leading  business  man  of  Cass  county.  Mure- 
over  he  deals  to  some  extent  in  real  estate,  but  finds  that  his  time  is 
largely  occupied  by  the  supervision  of  his  property.  He  has  long  been 
recognized  as  a  prominent  representative  of  the  Democracy  in  his  coun- 
ty and  moreover  ha?  a  very  extensive  and  favorable  acquaintance  among 
the  leaders  of  the  partv  in  the  state.  For  many  years  he  has  been  known 
for  his  sterling  qualities,  liis  fearless  loyalty  to  his  honest  convictions, 
his  sturdy  opposition  to  misrule  in  municipal  and  state  affairs  and  his 
clear-headednes~.  dibcretion  and  tact  as  manager  and  leader. 

Mr.  Kimmerle  is  a  native  of  Lagrange  township,  his  life  record 
having  begun  on  the  ulh  of  June,  1S60,  upon  his  father's  farm.  He  is 
a  son  of  Idenry  and  Mary  J.  (Hain)  Kimmerle  and  had  two^  sisters. 
His  public  school  course  was  supplemented  b.y  study  in  the  Northern 
Indiana  Normal  College  at  Valparaiso,  and  thus  well  equipped  he  en- 
tered upon  his  business  career.  His  father  was  one  of  the  early  Cali- 
fornia fortune  seekers  and,  unlike  many  others,  he  met  with  splendid 
success  in  his  efforts  to  achieve  financial  independence  on  the  Pacific 
coast.  At  the  time  of  his  death  in  February,  1905,  he  was  one  of  the 
wealthiest  men  In  Cass  county.  Although  Charles  H.  Kimmerle  has 
inherited  large  propcrtv  interests,  such  a  condition  of  affairs  has  never 


HISTORY  01'   CASS  COUXTY  433 

fostered  idleness  with  him,  and,  t>n  the  contrary,  he  is  a  busy  man,  his 
time  Ijeing  fully  occupied  with  his  private  or  public  interests. 

Happy  in  his  home  lite,  Air.  Kimmerle  was  married  in  18S2  to 
Miss  Ella  Dunning,  and  the_\-  ha\'e  five  children,  three  sons  and  two 
daughters. 

From  early  manhood  Mr.  Kimmerle  has  Ijeen  a  student  of  the  com- 
plex political  problems  before  the  people,  and  as  an  advocate  of  the 
Democracy  is  well  known  in  Michigan.  He  has  been  honored  with  the 
candidacy  of  his  party  on  various  occasions,  receiving  the  nomination 
for  county  clerk  in  1S80.  for  judge  of  probate  in  18SS  and  for  the  state 
legislature  in  1903.  the  strong  Republican  majorities,  however,  render- 
ing election  impossible.  He  has  been  a  delegate  to  two  national  con- 
ventions of  the  Democratic  party,  1S84  and  1900.  In  local  affairs,  wiiere 
party  lines  are  not  so  strongly  drawn,  he  has  been  a  factor,  serving  for 
twenty-one  years  as  supervisor  of  Lagrange  township,  while  for  the 
last  fifteen  years  he  has  rei)resented  Cass  county  at  the  state  equaliza- 
tion at  Lansing.  For  years  he  has  ser\-ed  as  chairman  of  the  county 
central  committee  and  also  as  a  memhier  of  the  state  central  committee, 
and  has  thus  been  the  associate  and  co-laborer  of  the  most  distinguished 
representatives  of  Democracy  in  ^lichigan. 

,  Perhaps  Mr.  Kimmerle's  most  notable  work  has  been  in  connection 
with  his  efforts  to  suppress  unjust  asses'^ment.  In  1903  the  state  tax 
commissioners  came  to  Cass  county  and  raised  the  valuation  of  real 
property  in  every  assessing  district  from  seventeen  to  sixty-five  per 
cent.  Mr.  Kimmerle  questioned  their  authority'  to  do  so  and  for  a  long 
time  refused  to  surrender  his  assessment  roll  to  them.  They,  however, 
finally  succeeded,  IMr.  Kimmerle  claiming  that  the  commissioners  made 
promises  to  him  which  were  not  kept,  and  raised  his  valuation  sixt\-- 
two  per  cent  on  all  real  projierty  assessments.  The  matter  was  taken 
into  court  and  Mr.  Kimmerle,  with  the  other  seventeen  assessing  offi- 
cers, w-ere  enjoined  from  using  the  state  tax  commissioners'  valuations 
ill  apportioning  the  tax,  but- directed  to  use  the  figures  adopted  by  the 
supervisors  and  board  of  reviev*-.  The  next  year  the  state  ta.x  commis- 
sion allied  on  "Mr.  Kimmerle  and  asked  him  to  make  a  general  raise  in 
tlie  values.  This  he  refused  to  do  at  their  dictation,  and  because  of  this 
refusal  the  commission,  through  Governor  Warner,  cited  him  to  appear 
and  show  cause  why  he  should  not  be  removed  from  office  for  wilfully 
undervaluing  property.  They  also  charged  him  with  favoritism  in 
making  assessments.  Between  forty  and  fifty  witnesses  were  called 
by  the  prosecution  and  examined.  The  commissioner  designated  by  the 
governor  to  take  the  testimony  reported  that  the  prosecution  had  failed 
to  make  out  a  case. 

Before  the  governor  acted  on  the  report  Mr.  Kimmerle  was  elected 
for  another  term  by  an  almost  unanimous  vote.  The  result  of  his  op- 
position to  the  state  authorities  led  to  the  repeal  of  some  objectionable 
features  of  the  law  creating  the  commission  and  two  of  the  commis- 


434  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

sioners  who  were  so  acting  were  legislated  out  of  ofiice.  Mr.  Kimmerle 
is  president  of  the  state  Supervisors'  Association,  composed  of  not  less 
than  sixteen  hundred  assessing  ot^kers.  He  is  at  this  writing  (Septem- 
ber, [906,)  the  Democratic  nominee  for  the  office  of  governor,  and  has 
warm  endorsement  in  \arious  sections  of  the  state.  He  is  a  man  with  an 
eye  to  practical  results  and  not  glittering  generalities.  It  will  be  observed 
that  his  turn  of  mind  is  eminently  judicial  and  free  from  the  bias  of 
animosity.  Strong  and  positive  in  his  Democracy,  his  party  fealty  is 
not  grounded  on  partisan  prejudice  and  he  enjoys  the  respect  and  con- 
fidence of  all  his  associates  irrespective  of  party.  Of  the  great  issues 
whicli  divide  the  two  great  parties,  with  their  roots  extending  down 
to  the  very  bed  rock  of  the  foundation  of  the  republic,  he  has  the  true 
statesman's  grasp.  \\'d\  grounded  in  the  political  maxims  of  die 
schools,  he  has  also  studied  the  lessons  of  actual  life,  arriving  at  his  con- 
clusions as  a  result  of  what  may  be  called  his  post-graduate  studies  in 
the  school  of  affairs.  Such  men,  whether  in  otfice  or  out,  are  the  natural 
leaders  of  whichever  party  they  may  be  identified  with,  especially  in 
that  movement  toward  higher  politics  which  is  common  to  both  parties 
and  which  constitutes  the  most  hopeful  political  sign  of  the  period. 

C.  E.  VOORHIS. 

C.  E.  Voorhis,  a  pioneer  merchant  of  Cassopolis,  is  well  deserving 
of  mention  in  this  volume,  having  made  a  creditable  record  in  commer- 
cial circles  and  belonging  to  that  class  of  representative  American  men 
who,  while  advancing  individual  interests,  also  contribute  to  the  gen- 
eral prosperity.  He  was  bom  in  Springfield  township,  Bradford  county, 
Pennsylvania,  on  the  25th  of  Xovember,  1S28.  His  father,  James 
Voorhis,  was  a  native  of  New  Jersey,  was  a  carpenter  by  tratle  and 
spent  much  of  his  life  in  Pennsylvania,  where  his  death  occurred.  His 
wife,  Mrs.  Charlotte  Voorhis.  was  a  native  of  the  Keystone  state,  and 
they  became  the  parents  of  four  sons  and  three  daughters,  of  whom  C. 
E.  Voorhis  is  the  youngest  son.  Only  two  children  are  now  living,  one 
sister,  Lucinda  Harkness,  being  a  resident  of  Pennsylvania. 

C.  E.  Voorhis  was  reared  in  the  state  of  his  nativity,  spending  his 
boyhood  days  uikju  the  farm,  and  acquired  his  education  in  the  public 
schools.  In  early  manhood  he  chose  a  companion  and  helpmate  for 
life's  journey,  being  married  in  the  east  to  Miss  Emeline  Crandall,  a 
native  of  New  York.  AlxDut  two  years  after  his  marriage  he  came  to 
Michigan,  settling  in  Cassopolis,  where  he  began  working  at  day  labor, 
following  any  work  that  he  could  secure  that  would  give  him  an  hon- 
est living.  In  1S63,  with  the  capital  that  he  had  managed  to  save  from 
his  earnings,  he  established  a  restaurant.  He  also  spent  one  year  as  a 
peddler,  and  alxiut  1865  ^^  embarked  in  the  mercantile  business,  in 
which  he  still  continues.  His  capital  and  stock  were  very  limited  at 
first,  but  he  has  built  up  a  magnificent  trade  and  now  carries  a  very  ex- 


;9i 


HISTORY  or-   CASS  COUNTY  435 

tensive  and  well  selected  stock.  He  owns  the  fine  building  in  which  he 
is  conducting  his  business  and  also  has  a  fine  home  in  Cassopolis,  and 
his  store  would  be  a  credit  to  a  city  of  much  larger  size. 

Unto  Air.  and  'Sirs.  Voorhis  have  been  born  two  living  children: 
William  H.,  who  is  now  in  charge  of  the  store;  and  Eva,  the  wife  of 
Elmer  Stamp.  Mr.  Voorhis  votes  with  the  Democracy,  but  has  never 
sought  or  desired  office,  preferring  to  concentrate  his  energies  upon  his 
business  affairs.  He  is  the  pioneer  grocery  merchant  of  the  city  and 
has  enjoyed  a  prosperous  career  in  this  line  of  business,  his  success  be- 
ing attributable  to  his  earnest  desire  to  please  his  patrons,  his  close 
application  and  his  reasonable  prices  and  straightforward  dealing.  He 
has  a  vei-y  wide  acquaintance  throughout  the  county,  having  lived  here 
for  half  a  centun.-,  and  not  to  know  j\Ir.  Voorhis  is  to  argue  one's  self 
unknown  in  this  section  of  the  state.  The  prosperity  of  any  commu- 
nity, town  or  city  depends  upon  its  commercial  activits',  its  industrial 
interests  and  its  trade  relations  and  therefore  the  real  upbuilders  of  a 
town  are  those  who  stand  at  the  head  of  its  leading  enterprises. 

B.  W.  HA  YD  EN. 

The  business  interests  of  Cassopolis  find  a  worthy  representative 
in  B.  \V.  Hayden,  a  hardware  merchant,  whose  activity  and  enterprise 
have  contributed  in  substantial  measure  to  the  commercial  prosperity 
and  upbuilding  of  the  village.  He  was  born  in  Calvin  township,  so  that 
he  is  numbered  among  Cass  county's  successful  native  sons,  his  birth 
having  occurred  on  the  lOtb  of  August,  1850.  He  is  the  second  son  in 
the  family  of  J<iseph  and  Hannah  (Lincoln)  Hayden,  who  were  among 
the  pioneer  residents  C'f  Cass  county,  coming  to  this  part  of  the  state 
about  18 iS.  Mr.  Hayden  was  reared  in  the  place  of  his  nativity,  spend- 
ing his  youth  upon  the  homestead  farm  in  Calvin  townshi])  and  as- 
sisting in  the  work  of  fields  and  meadows  as  his  age  and  strength  per- 
mitted. In  187 1  he  started  out  upon  an  independent  business  career, 
working  at  anything  that  he  could  find  to  do  that  would  yield  him  an 
honest  living.  He  entered  the  employ  of  the  Redfield,  Lacy  &  Bement 
Milling  Company  at  Redfield,  Michig-an,  driving  a  team,  and  for  three 
years  was  in  the  employ  of  that  firm,  on  tJie  expiration  of  which  period 
he  went  to  W'aukegan,  Illinois,  where  he  spent  three  years  and  three 
months.  During  five  years'  work  he  lost  just  one  week's  time.  At 
Waukegan  he  learned  the  milling  business  with  the  firm  of  Warren  S: 
George  and  afterward  went  to  Elkhart,  Indiana,  where  he  entered  the 
employ  of  the  Beardsley  Milling  Company,  with  which  he  continued  for 
three  months.  On  returning  to  Redfield,  Michigan,  he  took  charge  of 
the  Redfield  mills  and  continued  10  operate  the  plant  for  alwut  two  and 
a  half  years,  when  "Sir.  Bement,  one  of  the  partners,  died.  At  that  time 
Mr.  Hayden  rented  the  mill  and  carried  on  the  business  on  his  own  ac- 
count in  connection  with  farming  for  five  years.     Following  that  period 


436  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

he  returned  to  Cassopolis  and  \vit!i  capital  that  he  had  acquired  throug-h 
his  own  hibor  and  capable  management  he  embarked  in  the  hardware 
business,  in  which  he  lias  since  continued.  He  carries  a  full  line  of  shelf 
and  heavy  hardware,  also  agricultural  implements,  vehicles  and  harness, 
and  has  a  liberal  patronage,  his  business  being  now  large  and  profitable. 
Since  1SS4  iMr.  Hayden  has  been  in  business  in  Cassopolis,  and  from  the 
first  month,  January,  1SS4,  up  to  the  present  time,  1906,  he  has  kept 
a  faithful  and  true  file  of  the  increase  of  his  business,  which  has  been 
steady  and  solid.  In  the  months  of  January.  February,  INIarch  and 
April  of  1906  it  was  $1,867.54,  $2,307.46,  $3,046.31  and  $4,447.23  re- 
spectively, which  shows  a  phenomenal  growtJi  in  a  town  of  1.500  pop- 
ulation. He  has  been  agent  for  the  Standard  Oil  Company  for  four- 
teen years  and  for  seven  years  he  was  engaged  in  the  ice  business.  He 
is  also  local  treasurer  for  the  Standard  Savings  &  Loan  Comjiany  of 
Detroit,  Michigan,  having  occupied  the  position  for  eleven  years.  It 
will  thus  be  seen  that  his  efforts  iiave  not  been  confined  to  one  line,  for 
he  is  a  man  of  resourceful  laisincss  ability,  energetic  and  enterprising, 
who  has  not  only  quickly  noted  his  business  opportunities  but  has  also 
utilized  them  to  good  advantage  and  has  thus  gained  a  place  among  the 
successful  representatives  of  trade  relations  in  Cassopolis. 

In  1877  Air.  Hayden  was  united  in  marriage  to  Aliss  Tillie  Ful- 
ton, a  daugliter  of  William  Fulton,  of  Waukegan,  Illinois.  This  un- 
ion has  been  blessed  with  three  daughters  and  one  son:  Joseph,  who  is 
associated  with  his  father  in  business;  Belle,  the  wife  of  Melvin  Brown, 
who  is  also  connected  with  Mr.  Hayden  in  his  business  interests  in  Cas- 
sopolis; Stella  and  Bernice,  both  at  home. 

In  his  political  views  Mr.  Hayden  is  a  Democrat,  and  has  been 
called  to  several  local  offices.  He  was  a  member  of  the  school  board 
for  nine  years  and  a  member  of  the  village  council  for  eight  years,  and 
has  done  much  to  bring  to  the  city  a  public-spirited  administration  of 
its  affairs  that  will  result  in  permanent  benefit.  He  holds  membership 
with  the  Knights  of  Pythias  lodge  of  Cassopolis  and  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  church,  and  his  fraternal  and  church  relations  indicate  the 
character  of  the  man  and  his  interest  in  those  things  which  tend  to  ele- 
vate humanity  and  develop  a  strong  and  honorable  character.  What- 
ever he  has  accomplished  in  life  is  due  to  his  own  efforts.  Early  com- 
ing to  a  realization  that  energ\-  and  honesty  are  a  safe  basis  upon  which 
to  build  success  he  has  worked  }ear  after  year,  carefully  controlling  his 
labors  so  liiat  as  the  time  has  gone  by  his  efforts  have  been  crowned 
with  the  pnjsperity  which  is  ever  the  goal  of  business  endeavor. 

ROBERT  SNYDER.  .     .    '   .      ' 

Robert  Snyder,  one  of  the  early  settlers  of  Cass  county  now  living 
retired  in  Edwardsburg  after  long  and  active  connection  with  farming 
interests  in  Ontwa  township,  was  bom  in  Columbia  county,   Pennsyl- 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  437 

vania,  tlie  5th  of  July,  1S39.  His  father,  ^\'illiam  Snyder,  was  a  native 
of  New  Jersey,  born  September  i().  1797,  and  in  this  state  he  was  reared 
until  nineteen  years  of  age,  when  he  removed  to  Pennsylvania.  He 
"was  a  cabinet-maker  by  trade,  and  followed  that  pursuit  in  early  man- 
hood, but  in  his  later  years  turned  his  attention  10  farming.  In  184S 
he  remo'.-ed  vrith  his  family  to  Indiana,  settling  in  St.  Joseph  county  on 
the  8th  of  June  of  that  year.  There  he  followed  cabinet-making  to 
'soine  extent,  but  soon  concentrated  his  energies  upon  agricultural  pur- 
suits, and  was  thus  engaged  until  his  retirement  from  active  farm  work 
in  1879.  He  then  removed  tn  Edwardsburg,  where  he  lived  until  his 
death,  which  occurrerl  Feliruary  9,  18S2,  He  was  married  in  Pennsyl- 
vania to  Miss  Jerusha  iiobbins,  a  native  of  the  Keystone  state,  born 
June  26,  1797,  They  were  the  parents  of  ten  children,  four  sons  and 
six  daughters,  of  whom  Robert  Snyder  is  the  ninth  child  and  fourth 
son.  The  family  record  is  as  follows:  Hiram,  Joseph  and  John,  all 
deceased;  I\Iary,  Rachel,  Kathcrine,  Sarah  and  William,  all  nf  whom 
have  passed  away ;  Robert ;  and  Frances.  All  were  born  in  Columbia 
county,  Pennsylvania. 

Mr.  Snyder  was  educated  in  St.  Joseph  county.  Michigan,  and 
remained  at  home  throughout  his  boyhood  and  youth,  working  with 
his  father  in  the  fields  until  he  attained  his  majority.  He  was  mar- 
ried April  iG,  1863.  to  ^liss  ^Mary  Hess,  a  daughter  of  Joseph  Hess,  a 
pioneer  settler  of  Ca.^s  county,  who  is  mentioned  on  another  page  of  this 
work.  jMrs.  Snyder  was  Ixirn  and  reared  in  Ohio  and  with  her  parents 
came  to  Michigan.  For  four  years  after  their  marriage  ^Ir.  and  ^Irs. 
Snyder  lived  in  St.  Joseph  county,  and  then  in  1867  came  to  Cass  coun- 
ty, settling  upon  a  farm  of  ninety-three  acres  of  improved  land  in  Jef- 
ferson township.  To  the  further  cultivation  and  improvement  of  that 
property  Mr.  Snyder  devoted  his  energies  until  187S,  and  there  two  of 
the  children  were  born.  Clara  J.,  the  eldest,  born  in  18(^)8,  is 
the  wife  of  J.  H.  Keel_\-.  a  dry  goods  salesman  of  Edwardsburg. 
Laura  Etta,  born  ]\Iay  9,  iS''x),  is  the  wife  of  William  Wade,  an  elec- 
trician of  Edwardsburg.  The  youngest  daughter,  ^Nlary,  was  born 
September  5,  1888,  and  is  still  at  home. 

Mr.  Snyder  has  been  a  lifelong  Democrat  and  active  in  the  local 
ranks  of  his  party.  He  served  as  treasurer  of  JefYerson  township  for 
one  year  and  after  the  removal  to  Ontwa  township  acted  as  treasurer 
for  six  years  at  difl'erent  times.  He  was  also  justice  of  the  peace  for 
about  a  year  and  a  half  and  a  member  of  the  school  board  for  a  num- 
ber of  years,  and  in  these  different  ofifices  labored  earnestly  and  effect- 
ively for  the  general  welfare.  He  belongs  to  the  ^Masonic  lodge  at 
Edwardsburg  and  is  well  known  throughout  Cass  county,  having  for 
many  years  been  closely  associated  with  its  agricultural  pursuits,  mak- 
ing a  creditable  record  in  business  circles  and  sustaining  an  excellent 
reputation  in  public  office  and  in  private  life.  The  prosperity  tliat  he 
enjoys  has  been  well  earned  and  is  justly  merited. 


438  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

GEORGE  EMAIOXS. 

George  Emmons,  who  is  classed  among  the  leading  and  iniluential 
farmers  of  Porter  township,  his  hume  heing  on  section  ij,  is  a  native 
of  Ohio.  He  was  born  in  Lorain  county  on  the  14th  of  September, 
184S,  and  is  a  son  of  Lucius  and  Sabrina  (Adams)  Emmons.  His 
paternal  grandfather  was  James  limmons,  who  settled  in  Ohio  at  a 
very  early  day,  having  made  his  way  to  that  state  from  Massachusetts. 
His  maternal  grandfather,  William  Adams,  was  also  a  native  of  New 
England  and  removed  from  Connecticut  to  Ohio,  casting  in  his  lot  with 
the  pioneers  who  aided  in  reclaimmg  that  state  from  the  domain  of 
the  savages  and  con\erting  it  into  the  center  of  an  advanced  civiliza- 
tion. Lucius  Emmons  remained  a  resident  of  Ohio  until  185S,  wlien 
he  was  called  to  his  final  rest.  Flis  widow,  however,  still  survives  him 
and  of  their  family  of  five  children  three  were  sons  and  two  daughters. 

George  Emmons,  the  second  child  and  second  son,  was  reared  in 
the  county  of  his  nativity,  S|)ending  his  boyhood  days  upon  a  farm  and 
early  becoming  familiar  witli  all  the  duties  and  lalx>rs  that  fall  to  the 
lot  of  the  agriculturist.  X(i  event  of  special  importance  occurred  to 
vary  the  routine  of  farm  life  and  he  attended  school  and  worked  in 
the  fields  until  twenty-three  years  of  age.  About  that  time  he  was 
married,  having  in  1S71  wedded  ^liss  Sarah  Ann  Locke  who  died 
three  years  later,  in  1874.  For  his  second  wife,  whom  he  married  in 
18S0,  Mr.  Emmons  cho'^e  Mrs.  3.1ay  Loynes,  the  daughter  of  Charles 
and  Mary  (Tubbs)  Williams.  She  was  born  in  Blount  PLjlly,  Rut- 
land county,  Vermont,  February  4,  1S47,  and  has  one  son  born  of  her 
first  marriage,  Frank  Loynes,  v>ho  is  now  living  in  Chicago.  Mrs. 
Emmons  came  to  [Michigan  in  1874,  making  her  way  to  Cass  county, 
and  took  up  her  alxide  upon  the  farm  where  she  now  resides.  There 
has  been  one  child  born  of  this  marriage.  Zaida,  who  is  attending  school 
in  Hillsdale,  Michigan.  The  parents  of  ^Irs.  Emmons  were  I)Oth  na- 
tives of  Vermont  arid  they  had  Imt  two  children,  the  other  one  is  now 
deceased.  Her  mother  was  married  a  second  time,  becoming  the  wife 
of  Spencer  Arnold,  with  whom  she  removed  to  Michigan  from  Ohio 
in  1865,  locating  on  a  farm  where  I\Ir.  and  Mrs.  Emmons  now  make 
their  home.  There  was  one  child  of  the  second  marriage,  William 
Arnold. 

Mr.  Emmons  has  a  farm  of  one  hundred  and  eighty  acres  and  has 
devoted  his  attention  to  general  agricultural  pursuits  but  rents  most 
of  his  place,  thus  leaving  its  care  and  improvement  to  others,  while  he 
is  largely  enjoying  a  well  earned  rest.  He  has  ser\-ed  as  township 
treasurer  for  six  years  and  has  taken  an  active  part  in  public  affairs, 
laboring  earnestly  for  the  welfare  and  substantial  improvement  of  the 
community.  He  is  a  menilicr  of  the  Grange  and  is  well  known  in  Cass 
county,  where  lie  has  ]i\ed  for  twenty-six  years.  Li  1902  his  home 
was  de&tro^■ed  bv  fire  but  he  at  once  erected  another  dwelling  and  now 


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HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  439 

has  a  fine  two-story  house,  wliicli  is  one  of  the  attractive  features  of 
the  landscape.  There  are  also  good  bams  and  other  outbuildings  upon 
his  place  and  all  modern  improvements  and  equipments  in  keeping  with 
a  model  farm.  Everything  alwut  his  place  is  neat  and  thrittv  in  ap- 
pearance and  Air.  Emmons  has  long  been  regarded  as  one  of  the  prac- 
tical, enterprising  and   respected   farmers  of  his  communitv. 

CASSIUS  M  DEXXIS. 

Cassius  M.  Dennis,  at  one  time  a  factor  in  commercial  circles  in 
Edwardsburg,  where  he  was  engaged  in  dealing  in  hardware,  but  now 
giving  his  attention  to  the  real  estate  and  loan  business,  is  a  native  of 
St.  Joseph  county,  Indiana,  born  on  the  24th  of  October,  184^.  His 
father,  Xathanicl  B.  Dennis,  became  one  of  the  pioneer  residents  of 
Cass  county.  His  birth  occurred  in  Delaware-in  March,  1813.  He  was 
a  farmer  by  occupation  and  at  the  age  of  eighteen  years  became  a  res- 
ident of  St.  Joseph  county,  Indiana,  taking  up  his  abode  upon  a  farm 
there.  In  1847  he  removed  to  Milton  township.  Cass  county,  jnirchas- 
ing  a  tract  of  land  of  eighty  acres,  which  was  partially  improved.  He 
at  once  began  the  further  flevelopment  and  cultivation  of  the  place,  and 
there  he  resided  until  his  death,  which  occurred  on  the  Gth  of  February, 
1899.  He  was  identified  with  the  Republican  party  and  was  frequently 
called  to  fill  township  ofnces  by  his  fellow  citizens,  who  recognized  his 
worth  and  fidelity.  In  this  county  he  was  married  to  Miss  Margaret 
McMichael,  who  was  a  native  of  Pennsylvania  and  was  of  German 
lineage.  In  their  family  were  four  sons  and  two  daughters,  of  whom 
Cassius  M.  Dennis  was  the  second  son  and  second  child.  Four  of  the 
family  were  born  in  Cass  county.  Of  the  others  William,  Mary  Flor- 
ence and  George  are  now  deceased,  while  those  living  are  Cassius  IM., 
Cave  J.  and  Martha  E.  All  reached  manhocjd  and  womanhood,  how- 
ever, with  the  exception  of  George,  who  died  in  infancy. 

Mr.  Dennis  of  this  review  was  only  two  years  old  when  his  par- 
ents removed  to  ■\Iilton  township,  Cass  county,  and  in  the  district 
schools  he  acquired  his  education,  becoming  familiar  with  the  common 
branches  of  English  learning,  which  fitted  him  for  the  practical  duties 
of  life.  He  was  reared  to  farm  work,  early  becoming  familiar  with  the 
duties  and  labors  that  fall  to  the  lot  of  the  agriculturist,  and  to  his 
father  he  gave  the  Ijenefit  of  his  services  until  twenty-two  years  of  age. 
He  >vas  then  married,  on  the  12th  of  December.  1867,  the  lady  of  his 
choice  being  Miss  Alphonzy  Hopkins,  a  native  of  Cass  county,  born  in 
■  February.  1848,  and  a  daughter  of  Xathaniel  and  Ann  Hopkins.  One 
child  was  born  of  this  marriage,  Orville,  a  native  of  Cass  county.  On 
the  5th  of  May,  18S5,  Mr.  Dennis  was  again  married,  his  second  union 
being  with  Miss  Lenora  Shoup.  who  was  born  in  Burbank,  Ohio. 

Following  his  marriage  Mr.  Dennis  l:>egan  farming  on  his  own  ac- 
count and  in  the  spring  of  1882  he  removed  to  Edwardsburg,  where  he 


■ii"  HISTORY  OK  CASS  COUXTY 

eiitered  the  cnipl.-y  uf  .Mr.  Dunning  in  the  implement  business,  continu- 
ing with  him  until  the  death  of  Air.  Dunning-  in  July,  1885.  He  was  re- 
tained ill  the  sture,  h(j\\e\er,  by  the  management  of  the  estate  until 
J 886,  when  in  that  year  he  purchased  the  stock  and  bes^an  business  on 
his  own  account,  so  continuing  until  the  spring  of  1899.  "^s  a  hard- 
ware merchant  he  enjoyed  a  large  and  profitable  trade,  which  he  secured 
by  reason  of  his  straightforward  dealings,  his  practical  methods  and 
his  unremitting  diligence.  At  length,  however,  he  sold  his  hardware 
stock  and  retired  from  mercantile  fields,  while  at  the  present  time  he 
IS  giving  his  attention  to  the  real  estate  and  loan  business. 

Mr.  Dennis  is  a  Democrat  in  his  political  views  and  for  six  vears 
served  as  township  clerk.  He  is  numbered  among  the  pioneers  of'Cass 
county  and  with  the  exception  of  six  years  his  entire  life  lias  been  passed 
within  Its  borders.  He  came  t.5  the  countv  more  than  a  half  century 
ago,  so  that  he  has  largely  witnessed  its  growth  and  development  from 
a  primitive  condition  to  its  present  advanced  stage  of  civilization  where- 
in every  department  of  commercial  and  industrial  activity  is  represented 
while  the  work  of  the  agriculturist  is  seen  in  the  splendid  farms  that 
surround  the  enterprising  towns  and  villages.  While  there  have  fen 
no  exciting  chapters  in  his  life  record  the  history  of  Mr.  Dennis  may 
well  stand  as  an  example  for  worthy  citizenship, 'upright  manhood  and 
hdelity  to  every  trust. 

RUSSF.L   D.    MAY. 

_  Russel  D.  May,  a  retired  farmer  and  earlv  settler  of  Cass  county 
living  m  Edwardsburg,  is  a  native  of  the  Empire  state,  his  birth  hav- 
ing occurred  in  Chautauqua  countv.  New  York,  on  the  9th  of  Decem- 
ber, 1836.  His  father,  Russel  G.  May,  was  born  near  Pittsfield,  Mas- 
sachusetts, on  the  8th  of  May,  1S04,  and  was  reared  in  the  place  of  his 
nativitiy.  When  about  twenty-two  years  of  age  he  removed  to  Qiau- 
tauqua  county.  New  York,  where  he  settled  upon  a  tract  of  raw  land, 
not  a  -furrow  having  been  turned  nor  an  improvement  made  upon  the 
place.  He  began  clearing  the  farm  and  continued  its  cultivation  until 
1S37,  making  great  changes  in  its  condition  as  he  placed  acre  after  acre 
under  the  plow.  He  had  been  married  in  Massachusetts  to  :\Iiss  Han- 
nah Stanton,  a  native  of  that  state,  born  December  23,  1807.  and  there 
she  spent  her  girlhood  days.  By  this  marriage  Mr.  and  Airs.  May  be- 
came the  parents  of  two  sons  and  two  daughters:  Afartha  Ann,  de- 
ceased; Hannah  S.  and  Oliver,  who  have  also  passed  away;  and  Russel 
D._  The  children  were  largely  reared  and  educated  in  Cass  countv, 
Michigan.  In  the  year  1837  the  parents  left  New  York  and  came  west- 
ward, settling  m  St.  Joseph  county,  Michigan,  where  thev  lived  upon  a 
rentedfarm  for  four  years.  In  1S41  thev  came  to  Cass 'countv,  taking 
up  tlieir  abode  in  r^Iilton  township,  where  they  remained  for  four  vears. 
and  m  1845  they  settled  on  what  is  now  known  as  Mav  street,'  near 
Edwardsburg.  whicli  was  named  in  honor  of  the  father.'    The   family 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  4-41 

home,  l]uv,-e\-er,  v>as  a  farm  of  eighty  acres  of  woodland,  which  ^Ir. 
May  cleared  and  cultivated  with  the  assistance  of  his  son  Riissel.  mak- 
ing all  of  the  iniproxements  upon  that  place.  There  he  remained  until 
1S83,  when  he  remoxed  to  a  farm  upon  which  his  remaining  days  were 
passed,  liis 'death  occurring  on  the  8th  of  October.  1886.  His  political 
allegiance  was  given  to  the  Democracy  in  early  life,  hut  upon  the  forma^ 
tion  of  the  new  Republican  party  he  became  one  of  its  stanch  champions 
and  gave  it  his  support  until  within  four  years  of  his  death,  when  he 
voted  the  Prohibition  ticket,  believing  the  teniperancc  cause  one  of  the 
paramount  is-^ues  before  the  ]ieo]3]e.  An  earnest  Christian  gentleman. 
he  held  membershi])  in  the  Methodist  denomination  and  assisted  in 
building  the  first  church  of  the  town. 

Russcl  D.  May  was  a  little  lail  of  four  years  when  his  father  came 
to  Cass  county  and  he  was  reared  and  educated  in  C)ntwa  township.  He 
early  mastered  the  work-  of  the  fields,  taking  his  place  behind  the  plow- 
when  a  young  lad,  and  to  his  father  he  gave  the  ijenefit  of  his  services 
up  to  the  time  of  his  marriage.  That  important  event  in  his  life  oc- 
curred on  the  27th  of  April,  1839,  the  lady  of  his  choice  being  Miss 
Mary  E.  Adams,  who  was  a  nati\-e  of  New  York,  and  a  daughter  of 
the  Rev.  S.  C.  .\dams.  a  local  r^Iethodist  minister.  Her  mother  was 
Mrs.  Britania  Adam-,  and  both  the  parents  were  natives  of  Massachu- 
setts. In  1887  Mr.  ]\Iay  was  called  upon  to  mourn  the  loss  of  his  wife, 
who  died  on  the  2d  of  November,  of  that  year.  They  had  become  the 
parents  of  si.x  children,  all  of  whom  reached  adult  age,  although  Ida  is 
now  deceased.  The  others  are :  Jesse  E.  is  a  resident  of  La  Plata, 
Missouri,  and  is  a  horticulturist.  He  was  educated  in  the  district 
school.  He  wedded  ]Miss  ]\Iattie  Bishop,  and  they  have  two  living  chil- 
dren, Winnie  and  Dwight.  Henry  K.,  a  resident  of  Burr,  Minnesota,  is 
a  grain  dealer,  and  he  is  prosperous.  He  wedded  Miss  Henrietta  Davis. 
Frank  E.,  a  resident  of  Edwardsville.  ?^Iichigan,  is  a  physician  and 
surgeon,  and  graduated  from  Rush  Medical  College  of  Chicago.  He  is 
now  a  horticulturist.  He  wedded  ]Miss  Rose  James  and  they  have  two 
sons,  Leslie  and  Roy.  Florence  E.  is  the  wife  of  Dr.  J.  J.  Sweetland, 
a  resident  of  ilottville,  ^lichigan,  and  who  has  a  good  practice.  He  grad- 
uated at  Cincinnati,  Ohio.  They  have  one  son.  Dennis.  Floyd  B.,  a  resi- 
dent of  HunnewelL  Kansas,  graduated  at  Barnes  Medical  Cullege  of  St. 
Louis.  Adl  were  bom  and  reared  upon  the  old  homestead  farm,  for  at  the 
time  of  his  marriage  Mr.  3.1ay  rented  this  farm  from  his  father.  After  a 
few-  years  he  became  owner  of  the  property,  to  which  he  added  eighty 
acres,  and  subsequently  an  additional  tract  of  one  hundred  acres,  so  that  he 
had  altogether  three  hundred  acres  of  valuable  land.  Following  the  death 
of  his  first  wife  ]\[r.  May  was  again  married,  on  the  i8th  of  June,  1SS9, 
his  second  union  being  with  Mrs.  M.  Amelia  Ray,  a  native  of  New 
York,  born  in  Cato.  Cayuga  county,  on  the  28th  of  September,  1835. 
Her  parents  were  James  and  Rebecca  TPaine)  Burns,  the  former  a 
native  of  Washington  county,  b«rn  in  May,   1798,  while  the  mother's 


i42  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

birth  occurred  in  Vermtmt  in  May,  iSoi.  At  an  early  day  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Burns  removed  to  Orleans  county,  Xew  York,  settling  at  Albion 
in  1836.  There  they  remained  until  called  to  their  final  rest,  being 
respected  and  worthy  citizens  d  that  comnuuiity.  In  their  family  were 
five  children,  three  sons  and  two  daughters,  of  whom  two  died  in  in- 
fancy, while  Mrs.  May,  the  youngest  of  the  family,  is  the  only  one  now 
living.  The  others  were  Elias  Freer,  Oscar  FitzAlan,  James  Edgar  and 
Caroline  .-Vnianda.  ^Irs.  May  was  first  married  in  Albion,  Xew  York, 
in  1854,  to  David  \\\  Ray,  a  native  of  Columbia  county,  that  state, 
who  was  a  journalist  hy  profession.  In  1865  they  removed  to  Detroit, 
Michigan,  where  they  resided  until  the  death  of  Mr.  Rav  in  1S67.  In 
their  family  were  three  children:  Ida  A.,  a  graduate  of  Phipps  P'emale 
Seminary  of  Albion,  Xew  Yr)rk.  in  the  class  of  1870,  wedded  Charles 
R.  Critchell,  a  resident  of  the  city  of  Denver,  Colorado.  He  was  en- 
gaged in  nisurance  and  loans  in  Chicago,  and  was  successful.  Thev 
have  three  children.  Charles  fvay,  Dorothy  I.  and  Mary  Amelia.  D. 
Willis  Ray  is  a  resident  of  Chicago,  and  with  Farnum  \\'illoughby  Real 
Estate  Company,  which  is  one  of  the  largest  concerns  of  the  city.  He 
was  educated  in  Cornell  College  at  Cedar  Rapids.  Iowa.  He  wedded 
Miss  Anna  Burns.     Minnie  died  at  the  age  of  eighteen  months. 

'\\r.  May  has  been  a  resident  of  Cass  county  for  sixty  years.  He 
retired  frnni  acti\-e  farming  in  1883  to  enjoy  a  well  earned  rest  and  has 
since  lived  in  Fdwardsburg,  where  he  has  a  pleasant  home.  FIc  was  for 
many  years  an  active  anti  energetic  agriculturist  and  acquired  a  compe- 
tence that  now  enables  him  to  enjoy  the  comforts  of  life  without  re- 
gard for  further  labor.  He  was  a  member  of  the  school  board  for  over 
twenty  years  and  he  voted  with  the  Repui)lican  party  for  a  long  period, 
but  since  1883  has  been  a  stanch  Prohibitionist.  In  his  life  he  has  dis- 
played many  sterling  traits  of  character,  not  the  least  of  which  is  his 
loyalty  to  the  temperance  cause.  He  is  a  high  type  of  manhood,  believ- 
ing in  those  principles  which  develop  an  upright  character  and  regard- 
ing his  o\vn  self-respect  and  that  of  his  fellow  men  as  infinitely  of  more 
value  than  wealth,  fame  or  position. 

CHARLES  C.  AIKIX. 

Charles  C.  Aikin,  representing  the  business  interests  of  Edwards- 
burg  as  a  successful  and  enterprising  lumber  merchant,  was  born  in 
Summit  county,  Ohio,  on  the  27th  of  December,  1S46.  His  father, 
Nelson  C.  Aikin,  a  nati^-e  of  \'ermont,  was  bom  in  i8c8,  and  by  occu- 
pation was  a  farmer.  He,  however,  learned  and  followed  the  cooper's 
trade  in  Xew  York  state  and  in  Ohio,  and  in  Jul}',  1856,  he  came  to 
Michigan,  taking  up  his  abode  in  Berrien  county.  There  he  purchased 
a  farm  and  gave  undivided  attention  to  agricultural  pursuits  through- 
out his  remaining  days.  He  was  married  in  the  Empire  state  to  ]\Iiss 
Abigail  Van,  a  native  of  Xew  York,  and  unto  them  were  born  eight 


HISTORY  Ox^  CASS  COUNTY  443 

children,  lour  sons  and  fnur  dausjhters.  Seven  of  the  numljer  are  now- 
deceased,  two  having-  died  in  inf;incy.  Chades  C.  Aikin  was  the  seventh 
child  and  third  son  and  is  the  only  survivinc;  memher  of  tiie  tamilv. 
The  others  were :  Marcus.  Lucretia,  Mary,  Sarah,  Ahitrail,  Calvin  C. 
and  Albert.  The  three  eldest  sons  were  born  in  New  York  and  the 
other  members  of  the  family  were  natives  of  Ohio.  Charles  C.  Aikin 
was  a  lad  of  ten  years  when  he  nccmpanied  his  parents  on  their  removal 
from  his  native  state  to  Eerrien  county,  Michigan. 

HON.  JOHN  F.  COULTER. 

In  tliis  country,  where  no  man  is  born  to  public  office  or  to  public 
honor  or  comes  to  either  by  inheritance,  but  where  all  men  are  equal 
before  the  law,  where  the  race  for  distinction  is  over  t!ie  road  of  pul>- 
lic  usefulness  and  is  open  to  everyone  who  chooses  to  enter,  it  is  a  mat- 
ter of  just  pride  when  honors  and  distinction  have  been  won.  Among 
the  prominent  and  influential  residents  of  Cass  county  is  Hon.  John 
F.  Coulter,  -^vho  has  been  a  member  of  the  state  legislature  in  [Michigan 
and  has  also  aided  in  framing  legislation  in  Kansas  and  Nebraska.  A 
man  of  distinct  and  forceful  individuality,  he  has  left  and  is  leaving  the 
impress  of  his  public  spirit  and  work  upon  matters  of  general  moment 
and  his  influence  has  been  a  beneficial  factor  on  various  occasions.  He 
now  resides  on  sccti(-in  14,  Howard  township,  his  time  and  energies 
being  given  to  general  agricultural  pursuits.  His  birth  occured  in  this 
township  on  the  15th  of  November,  1S40.  His  father,  James  Coulter, 
was  a  native  of  Ohio,  born  near  Cincinnati,  and  was  reared  in  Clinton 
county,  that  state.  He  was  married  there  in  June,  1S36,  and  tlie  same 
year  came  with  an  ox  team  across  the  country  to  Cass  county,  Mich- 
igan, locating  in  Howard  township.  His  father,  John  Coulter,  was 
bom  in  Ireland  and  had  previously  come  to  Michigan,  making  the  jour- 
ney in  1834,  in  which  year  he  took  up  five  hundred  and  sixty  acres  of 
land  in  Howard  township.  On  his  removal  to  Cass  county,  James 
Coulter  settled  upon  the  farm  which  his  father  had  located  and  there 
continued  to  make  his  home  until  his  death,  which  occurred  in  1874. 
He  first  built  a  log  house,  in  which  all  of  his  family,  numbering  eight 
children,  were  bom.  In  1855,  however,  he  replaced  this  by  a  modem 
brick  residence,  which  is  still  sitanding  on  the  farm.  He  was  active  in 
public  affairs  and  his  efforts  were  always  on  the  side  of  right,  progress, 
reform  and  improvement.  He  was  a  stanch  Rep-jblican  after  the  organ- 
ization of  the  party  and  held  various  township  offices,  being  faithful  and 
loyal  in  the  discharge  of  the  duties  that  thus  devolved  upon  him.  He 
married  .Miss  Ann  Wilson,  a  native  of  Clinton  county,  Ohio,  and  a 
daughter  of  the  Rev.  Amos  Wilson,  a  minister  of  the  Baptist  church  and 
a  schoolmate  of  Henrv  Clay.  They  were  WHiigs  together,  stanchly 
supporting  the  principles  of  that  party.  Rev.  ^Vilson  was  of  Welsh  and 
English   lineage  and   displayed  many   of   the  sterling  characteristics   of 


.444  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY 

the  anceslrv  from  which  he  was  descended.  His  daughter,  ^Mrs.  Coulter, 
reached  the  advanced  age  of  eighty-three  years.  In  the  family  were 
eight  ciiildrcn.  of  whom  four  reached  manhood  or  womanhoofl.  Mrs. 
Margaret  White,  the  eldest,  is  now  living  on  the  old  family  homestead 
in  Howard  township.  William  H.  makes  his  home  in  Cassopolis  and  is 
mentioned  elsewhere  in  this  work.  Mrs.  Sarah  Douglas  is  living  in 
Con\'erse,  Indiana. 

John  F.  Coulter  of  diis  review  is  the  first  living  son.  He  was 
reared  in  Howard  township  and  acquired  his  preliminary  education  in 
the  district  schools,  after  which  he  continued  his  study  in  the  Niles 
high  school.  Suhscquently  he  engaged  in  teaching  through  twelve  win- 
ter terms  in  Jefferson  and  Floward  townships,  while  in  the  summer 
months  his  time  and  labors  were  devoted  to  farming.     He  was  married 

■  in  April,  1864.  to  Miss  Sarah  IJ.  Vary,  a  daughter  of  B.  O.  and  ]\Ieriha 
(Rogers)  \"arv.  who  came  to  Cass  county,  Michigan,  from  New  York 
in  18 ^8.  Mrs.  Coulter  was  horn  in  Chemung  county,  New  York,  .April 
23,  1842.  and  came  to  Michigan  with  her  parents,  since  which  time  she 
has  been  a  resident  of  this  state. 

At  the  time  of  their  marriage  the  young  couple  located  on  a  farm 
in  Howard  township,  where  Mr.  Coulter  and  his  brother  William  were 
engaged  in  general  agricultural  pursuits  together.  In  ^March,  1874, 
however,  John  F.  Coulter  went  to  the  west,  locating  in  Fillmore  county, 
Nebraska,  where  he  remained  for  eight  and  a  half  years,  during  which 
time  he  was  engaged  in  farming  and  stock  raising.  He  afterward  re- 
moved to  Kansas,  living  in  Wilson  county  for  three  and  a  half  years, 
when  he  went  to  Edwards  county.  Kansas,  and  later  to  Logan  county, 
that  state.     There  he  was  engaged  in  dealing  in  horses  and  cattle  and 

■  was  also  publisher  of  the  Logan  County  Republican  for  over  two  years 
in  connection  with  his  other  business  interests.  In  1S98  he  returned  to 
Howard  townshi]),  locating  on  the  farm  where  he  now  resides  on  sec- 
tion 14  and,  at  the  same  time  he  still  retains  the  ownershipof  property 
in  Kansas.  He  has  taken  a  very  active  and  influential  part  in  public  af- 
fairs and  his  influence  has  been  widely  felt  in  behalf  of  the  growth,  devel- 
opment and  success  of  the  Republican  party.  In  1870  he  was  elected  to 
the  state  legislature  fi^nm  the  <;econd  district  of  Cass  county  and  served 
during  the  term  of  1S70-71.     In  1878  he  was  elected  to  the  state  senate 

.for  the  counties  of  Clay  and  Fillmore  in  Nebraska  and  was  on  the  build-, 
ing  committee  to  build  the  first  wing  of  the  present  capitol  at  Lincoln, 
that  state.  He  was  also  elected  representative  from  ^\^ilson  county, 
Kansas,  in  1882.  and  in  1892  was  chosen  to  represent  Logan  county,  Kan- 
sas, in  the  state  legislature,  while  in  1895  he  was  elected  county  commis- 
sioner of  Logan  county.  He  was  chairman  of  the  board,  but  resigned 
that  office  in  order  to  return  to  :\Iichigan.  He  has  long  been  active  in 
politics  and  his  labors  have  been  of  a  practical  character  that_  accom- 
plishes results.  At  one  time  he  was  connected  with  the  Knights  of 
Pythias.     He  has  been  a  popular  factor  on  the  political  stage  and  his  is 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  445 

a  sturdy  American  character  and  a  stalwart  patriotism.  He  has  the 
strongest  attaclimcnt  for  free  institutions  and  is  ever  willing  to  make  a 
personal  sacrifice  for  their  preservation.  He  is  a  man  of  stern  integ- 
rity and  honesty  of  purpose  and  never  uses  unworthy  or  questionable 
means  to  secure  success  in  any  undertaking  or  for  any  purpose  or  to 
promote  his  own  advancement  in  any  direction  whetlier  political  or 
otherwise. 

ALEXANDER  COOPEK. 

Alexander  Cooper,  living  en  section  9,  Ho\vard  township,  owns 
and  operates  a  good  farm  and  in  his  business  management  displays 
the  qualities  which  eventually  lead  to  success.  A  native  of  Ohio,  he 
was  born  in  ]\larion  county  on  the  23th  of  December.  18^9.  The  Coop- 
er family  was  of  English  lineage.  The  grandfather,  John  Coo\ieT,  was 
a  native  of  England  and  came  to  America  with  the  British  troops  in 
1776,  but  tradition  has  it  that  he  deserted  the  British  Army  at  the  time 
of  the  battle  of  Bunker  Hill.  He  constructed  the  first  vessel  that  sailed 
on  Lake  Erie,  being  a  ship  carpenter  by  trade,  and  throughout  his  active 
business  life  he  followed  that  pursuit.  He  went  to  Ohio  at  an  early 
period  in  the  development  of  that  state,  taking  up  his  alxDde  in  ^^larion 
county,  and  was  accompanied  by  his  son,  Benjamin  Cooper,  the  father 
of  our  subject.  They  also  came  together  to  Cass  county.  Michigan,  in 
1832,  and  here  John  Cooper  made  the  first  blinds  that  were  manufac- 
tured in  the  state  of  jMichigan  at  Niles.  They  settled  on  a  farm  in 
Jefferson  township,  comprising  two  hundred  acres  of  land,  which  was 
secured  from  the  government.  The  father,  Benjamin  Cooper,  was  a 
farmer  during  much  of  his  life,  but  in  early  manhood  learned  and  fol- 
lowed the  shoemaker's  trade.  He  was  born  in -the  state  of  New  York 
and  v\as  there  reared,  remaining  in  the  east  until  after  his  marriage.  He 
was  a  member  of  the  state  militia  of  New  York  and  was  called  out  dur- 
ing the  war  of  1S12.  When  about  twenty-two  years  of  age  he  was 
joined  in  wedlock  to  Miss  Clarinda  Jones,  also  a  native  of  the  Empire 
state,  where  her  girlhood  days  were  passed.     She  was  of  Dutch  descent. 

As  before  stated.  Benjamin  Cooper  went  with  his  father.  John 
Cooper,  to  Ohio,  and  together  they  came  to  Michigan  in  1832.  Having 
secured  a  tract  of  land  of  two  hundred  acres  in  Jefferson  township. 
Cass  county.  Benjamin  Cooper  began  to  clear  and  cultivate  this  place, 
soon  transforming  the  wild  land  into  productive  fields.  As  a  pioneer 
settler  he  contributed'in  substantial  measure  to  the  progress  and  prosper- 
it\-  of  the  county,  his  labors  being  of  direct  and  permanent  good.  By 
his  first  marriage  he  had  twelve  children,  eight  sons  and  four  daughters, 
namely:  John  and  Benjamin,  both  deceased;  Horace;  .Alonzo.  who  has 
also  passed  away;  Alexander;  Daniel;  Jefferson.  Thomas.  Cicero.  Clar- 
inda. Almira.  Ann  and  Alvira.  all  deceased.  The  wife  and  mother  died 
in  Jefferson  township  at  the  age  of  forty-four  years  and  for  his  second 
wife  Benjamin  Cooper  chose  Miss  Nancy  Gothop.     There  was  one  child 


446  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

by  this  marriage.  Jeanette.  In  early  life  Benjamin  Cooper  gave  his  po- 
litical allegiance  to  the  Whig  party  and  afterward  became  a  stanch  Dem- 
ocrat. He  served  as  justice  of  the  peace  for  many  years  and  his  deci- 
sions were  fair  and  impartial,  winning  him  "golden  opinions''  from  the 
general  public.  He  died  at  the  age  of  ninety-three  years  and  three 
months,  honored  and  respected  by  all  who  knew  him  because  of  his 
activity  and  success  in  business  life,  his  devotion  to  the  general  good  and 
his  effective  labor  for  the  benefit  of  his  adopted  county. 

Alexander  Cooper  was  only  about  three  years  old  when  brought  by 
his  parents  to  IMichigan  and  he  remained  under  the  parental  roof  until 
twenty-two  years  of  age.  aiding  in  the  arduous  task  of  developing  and 
cultivating  new  land.  After  attaining  his  majority  he  removed  to  his 
present  farm,  which  first  comprised  eighty  acres.  Of  this  he  cultivated 
and  cleared  forty  acres.  He  has  since  added  twenty  acres  to  the  original 
tract  and  altogether  has  placed  eighty  acres  under  the  plow,  transform- 
ing it  from  the  raw  ]irairie  into  productive  fields.  His  farm  is  now 
valuable,  well  equipped  and  rich  harvests  are  annually  gathered. 

As  a  companion  and  helpmate  for  life's  journey  Mr.  Cooper  chose 
Miss  Elizabeth  Garwood,  to  whom  he  was  married  on  the  7th  of  Octo- 
ber, 185 1.  They  are  the  parents  of  two  sons,  Z.  S.  and  William  A. 
Cooper,  1»th  born  and  reared  on  the  old  homestead  farm  in  Howard 
township.  Mrs.  Cooper  was  liorn  in  Pokagon  township  May  12,  1S30, 
and  was  a  daughter  of  Joseph  and  Marietta  Ann  (Burden)  Garwood. 
Her  father  was  a  native  of  Pennsylvania,  where  he  was  reared  and  edu- 
cated, and  at  an  early  day  he  went  to  Ohio,  whence  he  came  to  Cass 
county,  Michigan,  in  1829,  settling  on  Pokagon  prairie,  where  he  se- 
cured three  hundred  acres  of  land  from  the  government.  Not  a  furrow 
had  been  turned  nor  an  improvement  made  on  the  place,  and  with  char- 
acteristic energy  he  began  to  till  the  virgin  soil  and  cultivate  the  crops 
best  adapted  to  the  climate.  His  wife  was  a  native  of  New  Jersey, 
where  she  spent  her  girlhood.  Mr.  Garwood  had  conducted  a  grist 
mill  in  Ohio,  but  after  coming  to  tlu's  state  his  entire  attention  was  de- 
voted to  farming.  In  his  family  were  nine  children,  five  daughters  and 
four  sons,  of  whom  se\en  are  now  deceased,  Mrs.  Cooper  having  been 
the  eighth  child  and  fifth  daughter.  Her  parents  were  worthy  and 
honorerl  pioricer  residents  here  and  their  names  are  deeply  engraved  on 
the  minds  of  the  early  settlers  of  the  county.  Mr.  Garwood  gave  his 
political  allegiance -to  the  Whig  party  until  its  dissolution  and  then  be- 
came a  stanch  champion  of  Republican  principles.  He  remained  upon 
the  old  homestead  farm  throughout  the  period  of  his  residence  in  Cass 
county  and  at  the  time  of  his  death  was  the  owner  of  six  hundred  acres 
of  valuable  land  in  addition  to  the  home  place.  He  passed  away  when 
about  seventy-six  years  of  age.  Mrs.  Cooper  was  educated  in  one  of 
the  old-time  log  school  houses  and  like  her  husband  is  familiar  with  the 
history  of  Cass  county  from  the  period  of  its  early  development  down  to 
the  present  day,  when  all  the  evidences  of  later-day  progress  are  seen. 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  447 

Mr.  Cooper  has  al\va_\s  \-otetl  with  the  Democrac}'  and  has  liehl  all 
the  olTices  in  the  township  save  that  oi  supervisor,  heinsi^  continuously  in 
official  service  for  alxjut  a  quarter  of  a  century.  He  is  a  member  of  the 
Free  Baptist  church  at  Pokagon.  With  one  exception  he  is  the  oldest 
living  settler  in  his  township  and  he  has  a  very  \\ide  acquaintance  in 
the  county,  having  lived  here  since  early  pioneer  times  and  witnessed 
its  entire  growth  and  development.  Like  others  he  shared  in  tlie  hard- 
ships and  privations  incident  to  the  establishment  of  a  home  on  the 
frontier,  but  as  tlie  years  went  by  he  was  enabled  to  overcome  all  diftkui- 
ties  and  obstacles  in  his  path  and  while  promoting  his  individual  suc- 
cess he  also  contributed  to  the  general  welfare  l>y  the  active  co-oi:>eration 
which  he  gave  to  all  plans  formulated  for  public  progress.  He  can  re- 
late many  interesting  incidents  of  pioneer  days  and  is  indeed  a  worthy 
citizen  and  honored  early  settler  of  Cass  county 

S.  M.  HOWSER. 

On  the  roll  of  Cass  county's  honored  dead  appears  the  name  of 
S.  M.  Hovvser,  who  at  one  time  was  an  enterprising  and  prosperous 
farmer  of  Howard  township.  He  came  to  this  section  of  the  state  at  an 
early  period  in  its  development  and  assisted  in  the  work  of  general  prog- 
ress and  improvement.  At  all  times  he  rejoicetl  in  what  was  accom- 
plished in  the  county,  for  he  was  public  spirited  in  citizenship  and  had 
a  deep  and  sincere  interest  in  his  adopted  state.  His  birth  occurred  in 
Preble  county,  Ohio,  on  the  27th  of  June.  1S29,  while  his  father,  Henn,' 
Howser.  was  a  native  of  Tvlaryland.  bom  in  1800.  Having  spent  tlie 
days  of  his  boyhood  and  youth  in  that  state  Henry  Howser  removed  to 
Ohio,  settling  in  Preble  county.  He  was  married  to  Aliss  Mary  Brown, 
a  native  of  Ohio,  and  in  1836  they  came  to  Cass  county-,  ^Michigan,  tak- 
ing up  their  abode  in  Pokagon  township,  where  Mr.  Howser  entered 
land  from  the  government,  l>ecominig  owner  of  about  two  Iiundred  and 
sixty  acres.  Not  a  furrow  had  been  turned  nor  an  improvement  made 
•upon  this  place,  for  the  entire  tract  was  covered  with  the  native  growth 
of  timber,  but  he  cleared  the  farm  and  in  course  of  years  made  splendid 
improvements  there,  transforming  the  once  wild  land  into  a  ven,-  pro- 
.ductive  tract.  The  Howsers  were  one  of  the  oldest  families  in  the 
county  and  upon  the  homestead  the  parents  reared  their  family  of  sev- 
en children,  five  sons  and  two  daughters.  Henr\'  Howser  died  in 
Dowagiac  in  his  seventy-seventh  year,  having  spent  his  last  days  in 
honorable  retirement  there  after  a  long,  active  and  sticcessful  connec- 
tion with  agricultural  pursuits.  He  was  a  Republican  in  his  political 
views  and  while  he  never  sought  or  desired  office  he  was  always  inter- 
ested in  the  work  of  public  progress,  and  as  a  private  citizen  contributed 
in  substantial  measure  to  the  task  of  reclaiming  this  part  of  the  state 
for  the  uses  of  civilization. 

S.  M.  Howser  remained  upon  the  old  homestead  farm  up  to  the 


44H  HISTORY  OI'   CASS  COUXTY 

time  of  his  marriage.  Me  had  sr.ciit  about  thirteen  years  in  his  native 
state  and  had  then  accompanied  hi>  parents  to  r^Iichigan.  Here  he  not 
only  shared  in  tiie  hardshi])^  and  trial-  of  pioneer  Hfe  but  also  assisted 
in  the  arduous  task  of  developing  a  new  farm,  cutting  down  the  trees, 
clearing  away  the  I  ■rush  and  ^tumps  and  I'reaking  the  first  furrows  in 
the  fields.  He  not  only  cleared  most  of  the  place  but  he  also  split  the 
rails  with  which  to  fence  the  farm  and  the  early  years  of  his  manhood 
were  fraught  with  earnest  and  unremitting  toil. 

On  the  24th  of  December,  iSfio,  was  celebrated  the  marriage  of 
Mr.  Howser  and  Miss  Minerva  Kniglit,  wlio  was  Iwrn  at  Eerrien 
Springs,  Berrien  county,  .Michigan,  December  29.  1S42,  and  was  a 
daughter  of  Jonathan  Knight,  a  farmer  of  Eerrien  county,  who  was 
bom  i_n  Ohio  on  the  6th  of  June,  1S17.  There  lie  spent  the  days  of  his 
boyhood  and  youth  and  about  1S39  he  removed  to  Eerrien  Springs,  talc- 
ing up  his  abode  upon  the  farm  where  he  resided  up  to  the.  time  of  his 
death,  wliich  occurred  in  his  eighty-third  year.  He  endorsed  Repub- 
lican principles  and  though  be  never  sought  office  was  always  faitliful 
in  friendship  and  interested  in  the  public  welfare.  Unto  him  and  his 
wife  were  Ixirn  two  sons  and  three  daughters,  ^Mrs.  Howser  being  the 
eldest  daughter  and  second  child  in  the  family.  She  was  reared  in 
Berrien  county,  where  she  remained  up  to  the  time  of  her  marriage. 
Mr.  and  iSlrs.  Howser  removed  to  tlie  homestead  farm  in  Howard  town- 
ship al>out  1S68,  purchasing  here  two  hundred  and  sixty-three  acres  of 
land,  wdTich  he  cultivated  and  improved,  transforming  it  into  a  valu- 
able and  productive  farm.  At  a  laLer  dale  a  portion  of  the  land  was  sold 
but  the  farm  still  comprises  one  iiundred  and  eighty-two  acres  and  re- 
turns a  gratifying  annual  income  for  the  care  and  labor  bestowed  upon 
it.  As  the  years  passed  by  three  children  came  to  bless  the  home  of  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Howser,  but  the  elder  daughter,  Man,-  Jane,  is  now  deceased. 
The  others  are  Hcr.r}'  J.  and  Cora  M}-rtle.  who  were  Ixirn  on  the  present 
homestead,  while  Mary  was  born  in  Berrien  county. 

Mr.  Howser  voted  with  the  Republican  party  but  never  sought  or 
desired  office,  preferring  to  give  his  undivided  attention  to  his  business 
aflfairs.  In  this  way  he  acquired  a  comfortable  competence  for  his  fam- 
ily and  he  also  left  to  them  an  honorable  name  by  reason  of  his  straight- 
forward business  dealings.  He  was  widely  known  as  an  honored  pioneer 
settler  of  the  count}-  and  a  man  who  merited  and  received  the  respect 
and  good  will  of  those  with  whom  he  was  associated. 

PERRY  \KIX. 

Perr}-  .-Xkin  has  had  an  eventful  and  interesting  experience  during 
a  residence  in  California  in  the  early  period  of  its  development  and 
also  by  reason  of  his  connection  with  Cass  countv-  in  pioneer  days.  He 
is  now  the  owner  of  the  old  homestead  farm  and  resides  in  Jefferson 
township,  where  he  has  valuable  landed  possessions.     He  was  bom  in 


Mj^ 


OIL>    fl^ 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTV  44'.> 

Montgomery  county,  Ohio,  on  the  17th  of  July,  1835,  and  traces  liis 
anccsti}-  hack  to  Ireland.  His  lather,  William  Akin,  came  to  Cass 
county  in  1839,  tirst  settling  in  Calvin  township,  where  he  purchased  a 
sawmill,  h'or  a  numher  of  years  he  was  closely  connected  with  indus- 
trial interests  of  the  county  ihrough  the  operation  of  this  mill  and  the 
manufacture  of  lumber.  He  had  a  very  wide  acquaintance  among  the 
pioneer  settlers  and  he  belonged  to  that  class  of  representative  men  who 
while  promoting  individual  success  also  advance  tlie  general  welfare. 
He  died  in  this  county  in  1847.  His  wife.  Miss  Catherine  Benner,  was 
a  native  of  Penns}lvania  and  was  of  German  lineage.  She  li\ed  to 
be  about  sixty  years  of  age  and  was  the  mother  of  eleven  children, 
nine  of  whom  reached  adult  years.  Perry  Akin  was  the  fifth  in  order 
of  birth  and  the  fourth  son.  He  was  only  four  years  of  age  at  the 
"time  of  the  removal  of  the  family  to  Michigan  "and  he  was  therefore 
reared  amid  the  wild  scenes  of  frontier  life,  sharing  with  the  family  in 
the  hardships  and  trials  incident  to  the  establishment  of  a  home  in  a 
frontier  district  far  removed  from  the  comforts  and  conveniences  of  the 
older  east.  He  is  today  the  owner  of  the  old  h.omestead  property  and  the 
residence  whicli  was  built  by  his  father  when  he  came  to  the  county 
more  than  sixty-ti\e  years  ago.  When  about  six  years  of  age  he  be- 
gan his  education  in  one  of  the  old  time  log  school  houses  common  at 
that  day.  It  was  a  little  building  seated  with  slab  benches,  while  the 
writing  desk  was  formed  by  laying  a  board  upon  wooden  pins  (lri\en 
into  the  wall.  Reading,  writing  and  arithmetic  were  the  principal 
branches  taught,  and  to  some  extent  instruction  was  given  in  grammar 
and  geography.  When  not  busy  with  the  duties  of  the  school-room 
Perry  Akin  learned  the  value  of  industry  and  economy  in  the  active 
affairs  of  life  and  worked  earnestly  and  energetically  to  supixjrt  his 
mother,  to  whom  he  gave  the  benefit  of  his  services  until  twenty-seven 
years  of  age.  Pie  was  married  on  the  27th  of  November.  1S62.  to  Miss 
Melissa  Dan  forth,  who  was  liorn  in  Logan  county,  Ohio,  on  the  14th 
of  June,  1842,  and  was  a  daughter  of  Samuel  Danforth.  a  native  of 
Vermont,  while  her  mother,  who  bore  the  maiden  name  of  Elizabeth  ^Ic- 
Donald,  was  born  in  Pennsyh-ania  and  was  also  of  Scotch  lineage.  In 
'  the  Danforth  family  were  eight  children,  six  sons  and  two  daughters, 
of  whom  Airs.  .Akin  is  the  eldest.  She  came  to  Cass  county  in  1854, 
when  a  maiden  of  twelve  summers,  in  company  with  her  parents,  who 
settled  in  Calvin  township,  and  there  her  father  developed  and  im- 
proved a  farm.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Akin  spent  the  first  winter  after  their 
marriage  in  this  county  and  in  the  spring  of  1S63  Mr.  Akin  started  for 
California,  where  he  remained  for  seven  years.  He  then  returned  and 
took  his  wife  to  the  west  with  him.  locating  at  Fish  Lake,  Nevada. 
There  he  was  the  owner  of  a  valuable  farm  of  eight  hundred  acres, 
upon  which  he  resided  tor  fourteen  years.  His  place  was  largely  a 
hay  and  stock  rar.ch  and  in  connection  with  its  cultivation  he  harvested 


450  HISTORY  OI-   CASS  COUNTY 

and  sold  a  large  amount  of  hay.  He  also  had  considerable  stock  upon 
his  place.  After  spending  about  twenty  years  in  the  west  he  sold  his 
property  in  that  part  of  the  country  about  1883  and  returned  to  Cass 
county,  locating  on  the  old  homestead,  where  he  resided  until  1902. 
In  that  year  he  took  up  his  abode  upon  the  farm  in  Jefferson  township 
upon  which  he  yet  lives. 

Unto  Mr.  and  iMrs.  Akin  have  been  born  si.x  children,  three  of 
whom  are  yet  living:  Alma,  now  the  wife  of  R.  H.  Kidder,  a  resident 
of  Montana;  Clara,  who  was  the  wife  of  Charles  Foreman  and  is  now 
deceased;  Charles  E.,  residing  upon  the  old  homestead;  and  Ora  B., 
who  is  the  wife  of  Delbert  Closson,  of  Redfield,  Cass  county.  Two 
other  children  have  also  passed  away.  The  family  is  one  of  prominence 
in  the  community  and  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Akin  occupy  an  enviable  position 
in  social  circles,  having  the  warm  regard  of  many  friends  and  acquaint- 
ances. They  have  an  elegant  collection  of  beautiful  and  valuable  stones 
and  ores  from  the  foothills  of  the  Sierra  Nevada  mountains  in  Nevada, 
and  also  have  a  lariat  over  twenty-three  feet  long  made  from  the  hair 
of  Mrs.  Akin's  head,  an  instance  not  found  in  the  entire  county  of 
Cass.     This  is  a  valuable  souvenir. 

Mr.  Akin  has  made  eleven  trips  to  California  by  rail  and  one  by 
water  and  is  thoroughly  familiar  with  the  western  part  of  the  country, 
the  growth  and  development  of  which  he  has  witnessed  to  a  great  ex- 
tent. He  has  always  voted  with  tlie  Republican  party  and  has  kept 
well  informed  on  the  questions  and  issues  of  the  day,  but  has  never 
sought  or  desired  office,  preferring  to  give  undivided'  attention  to  his 
business  interests.  Coming  to  Cass  county  in  his  early  Iwyhood  days, 
he  still  has  many  friends  among  those  who  have  known  hi'm  from  his 
youth  to  the  present  time,  a  fact  which  indicates  that  his  life  has  l:ieen 
honorable  and  upright.  Great  changes  have  occurred  here  since  his 
youth  and  in  his  farm  work  he  has  always  kept  abreast  with  ideas  of 
modern  progress  and  improvement.  He  has  never  placed  his  depend- 
ence upon  any  fortunate  coml>ination  of  circumstances  or  waited  for 
anything  to  turn  up  to  assist  him  in  his  business  career,  hut  has  labored 
zealously  and  earnestly  and  has  found  that  honesty  and  persistency  of 
purpose  constitute  an  excellent  foundation  ujwn  which  to  rear  the  super- 
structure of  prosi)erity. 

SAMUEL  C.  THOMSON. 

The  fanning  interests  of  Howard  township  find  a  worthy  represent- 
ative in  Samuel  C.  Thomson,  who  capably  manages  his  business  af- 
fairs and  at  the  same  time  is  efiiciently  serving  as  supervisor.  He  was 
born  in  Scotland  on  the  28th  of  July.  1S42.  his  parents  being  Samuel 
and  Lillian  (Atkin)  Thomson.  The  father  was  a  native  of  Scotland. 
born  April  22.  1798,  and  in  his  young  life  served  as  surveyor.  Later 
he  devoted  his  attention  to  merchandising.     He  was  married  in  Scot- 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  451 

land  to  Miss  Lillian  Atkiu,  who  was  bora  in  tliat  country  in  1802,  and 
there  spent  her  girlhood  da}s.  Eight  children  were  born  of  this  union, 
of  whom  Samuel  C.  is  the  fifth  in  order  of  birtli.  In  1844  the  parents 
came  to  America,  making  their  way  direct  to  Berrien  county,  3ilichigan, 
where  the  father  purchased  eighty  acres  of  land  and  spent  his  remain- 
ing days  in  that  locality,  devoting  his  energies  to  agricultural  pursuits 
and  there  rearing  his  family.  He  died  in  Uerrien  county  at  the  age  of 
eighty-four  years,  while  his  wife  passed  away  at  the  very  advanced  age 
of  ninety-seven  years.     In  politics  he  was  a  Democrat. 

Samuel  C.  Thomson  was  only  two  years  old  when  brought  by  his 
parents  to  the  United  Stales.  He  worked  upon  the  home  farm  until 
1S81,  when  he  came  to  Cass  county  and  settled  at  his  present  place  of 
residence,  clearing  a  farm  of  two  hundred  and  sixty  acres  in  Howard 
township.  This  is  a  valuable  property,  splendidly  improved  and  giv- 
ing every  evidence  of  the  careful  supervision  of  the  owner,  who  is  prac- 
tical in  his  methods,  farsighted  in  his  judgment  and  enterprising  in  all 
his  labor. 

On  the  20th  of  November,  1S84,  Mr.  Thomson  was  united  in  mar- 
riage to  Miss  Caroline  Gcrberich,  a  native  of  Berrien  county,  Michigan, 
born  February  15,  1S4S,  and  a  daughter  of  David  P.  Gerberich,  who  be- 
came a  farmer  of  Cass  county,  where  Mrs.  Thomson  was  reared.  jNIr. 
and  Mrs.  Thomson  have  become  the  parents  of  a  son  and  daughter, 
Samuel  and  Josephine,  Ixith  born  upon  the  present  farm.  In  the  midst 
cf  an  active  and  useful  career  as  an  agriculturist  Mr.  Th.omson  has 
found  time  to  devote  to  the  general  welfare  and  has  co-operated  in  many 
measures  for  the  public  good.  His  fellow  townsmen  recognizing  his 
worth  and  ability  have  called  him  to  public  office  and  he  was  elected 
and  served  for  two  years  as  supervisor,  having  also  previously  served 
eight  years,  which  shows  his  efficiency,  being  chosen  upon  the  Demo- 
cratic ticket.  He  has  been  a  lifelong  supporter  of  that  party  and  is  still 
unfaltering  in  his  advocacy  of  its  principles.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Thomson 
are  both  devout  members  of  the  First  Presbyterian  church  at  Niles, 
Michigan,  and  he  served  for  thirty  years  as  elder  and  is  now  superin- 
tendent of  the  Sunday-school  in  the  society. 

FRED  McINTYRE. 

Fred  Mclntyre,  who  carries  on  farming  in  a  practical,  profitable 
and  progressive  manner  on  section  21,  Lagrange  township,  was  bom  in 
Harrison  county.  Iowa,  April  13,  1876.  His  paternal  grandfather, 
Philester  Mclntyre,  came  from  New  York  to  Cass  county,  Michigan, 
at  an  early  period  in  the  development  of  this  part  of  the  state.  His  son, 
Edward  E.  P.  Mclntyre.  father  of  our  subject,  was  bom  in  the  Empire 
state  and  accompanied  his  parents  on  their  removal  to  the  west.  He  was 
reared  amid  pioneer  conditions  in  Cass  county  and  in  1867  he  removed 
to  Harrison  county,  Iowa,  where  he  located  upon  a  farm.     He  is  now 


452  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

living-  in  Harrison  county  in  that  state.  His  wife,  who  in  her  niaidcii- 
hood  was  Miss  Sarah  Parkins,  was  a  native  of  Iowa  and  is  now  de- 
ceased. In  their  family  were  three  children,  namely :  Fred,  of  this 
review;  Aiay,  the  wife  of  James  Poor,  of  Harrison  county,  Iowa;  and 
Hugh,  deceased. 

FYed  Alclntyre  is  the  t>nly  represcntati\e  of  the  family  now  in  Cass 
county.  He  was  reared  in  the  state  of  his  nativity,  where  he  remained 
luitil  i8ijj,  when  he  came  to  Cass  county  and  here  four  years  later  he 
was  married,  m  1S96,  to  ?^liss  Sarah  E.  Ccirwin,  a  daughter  of  James 
and  Xancy  Corw  in.  She  was  1jorn  in  Cass  county,  Michigan,  and  has 
spent  her  entire  life  here.  From  1897  to  1899  Mr.  Mclntyre  was  in  the 
employ  of  Mr.  Dodge  in  Pcnn  township,  and  in  1900  he  purch.nsed  the 
farm  upon  whicli  he  nr)w  resides,  having  here  one  hundred  and  fifty- 
nine  acres  of  land,  which  is  well  cultivated.  Fie  carries  on  general  farm- 
ing with  gootl  results  and  tlic  well  tilled  fields  indicate  his  careful  super- 
vision hy  reason  of  the  neat  and  thrifty  appearance  which  characterizes 
the  entire  place. 

Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Mclntyre  have  hccn  lx)rn  three  children;  James 
E.,  Catiiarine  D.  aufl  Lcnn.  The  parents  are  highly  esteemed  and  oc- 
cupy an  enviahle  position  in  social  circles.  Mr.  Mclntyre  is  a  Democrat 
but  without  aspiration  for  ofiice.  He  is  regarded  as  a  well-to-do  young 
farmer  of  the  county,  having  achieved  notable  success  for  one  of  his 
years,  as  he  has  not  yet  attained  the  age  of  thirty.  He  has  wrought 
along  modern  business  lines,  brooking  no  obstacles  that  could  be  over- 
come by  persistent  and  earnest  purpose,  and  his  diligence  has  proved  the 
salient  feature  in  his  prosperity. 

DAVID  L.  KINGSBURY. 

David  L.  Kingsbury,  assistant  ca.shier  of  the  First  National  Bank 
of  Cassopolis,  was  born  in  LaGrange  township,  Cass  county,  Michigan, 
on  the  gtb  of  July,  1867,  and  is  the  youngest  son  of  Asa  and  Jane  (Mon- 
roe) Kingsbury,  who  are  mentioned  on  another  page  of  this  work.  No 
event  of  special  importance  occurred  to  vary  the  routine  of  farm  life 
for  David  L.  Kingsbury  in  his  youth.  He  was  reared  in  LaGrange 
township  until  sixteen  years  of  age  and  attended  the  district  schools  in 
his  early  boyhood  days.  He  afterward  continued  liis  studies,  however. 
in  the  high  school  of  Cassopolis,  from  which  he  was  graduated  in  the 
class  of  1 888.  Suljsequently  he  attended  the  agricultural  college  at 
Lansing  for  one  year  and  was  also  a  student  in  Kalamazoo  Business 
College  for  six  months,  being  thus  well  equipped  for  life's  practical  and 
responsible  duties.  Subsequently  be  engaged  in  the  dry  goods  business 
in  Cassopolis  in  partnership  with  his  brother,  under  the  firm  style  of  G. 
M.  &  D.  L.  Kingsbur}',  which  connection  was  maintained  for  five  years, 
at  tlie  end  of  which  time  Mr.  Kingsbury  became  assistant  cashier  of  the 
First  National  Bank  on  the  ist  of  April,  1S91.     He  has  since  occupied 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  453 

that  position  and  is  one  of  the  popnlar,  competent  and  trnstworthy  rep- 
resentatives of  this  strung  financial  institution. 

In  1893  occnrred  tlie  marriage  of  David  L.  Kingsbury  and  Miss 
Francos  Graham,  a  daughter  of  E.  R.  and  Sabrina  Graham.  They  have 
one  son,  Asa  Joseph.  Mr.  Kingsbury  has  been  connected  with,  the  vil- 
lage board  since  attaining  his  majority  either  as  its  treasurer  or  presi- 
dent, having  lieen  elected  president  for  live  consecutive  times.  In  the 
discharge  of  his  duties  he  has  been  prompt  and  efficient  and  his  labors 
have  lieen  \ery  beneficial  to  the  town.  He  is  a  Democrat  in  his  political 
views,  active  in  the  work  of  his  party,  and  his  devotion  t(j  the  general 
good  is  above  question.  Pmminent  in  Ma.sonic  circles,  he  belongs  to 
Kingsbury  Chapter,  R.  A.  ^I.,  and  Xiles  Commandery,  K.  T..  and  he 
also  holds  membership  relatinns  with  the  Knights  of  Pythias  of  Cassopo- 
lis.  For  a  number  of  years  he  has  been  classed  among  the  prominent 
and  progressive  citizens  of  this  ])lace  and  he  has  earned  for  himself  an 
enviable  reputation  as  a  careful  man  of  business,  who  in  his  dealings  is 
known  for  his  prompt  antl  honorable  methods,  which  have  won  him  the 
deserved  and  unbounded  confidence  of  his  fellow  men. 

WARNER  D.  JONES. 

Abraham  Lincoln  has  said,  "'^'ou  can  fool  some  of  the  people  all 
of  the  time,  all  of  the  people  some  of  the  time,  but  you  can't  fool  all  of 
the  people  all  of  the  time."  and  tiie  truth  of  this  assertion  is  abundantly 
verified  in  the  political  system  of  the  cnuntry,  where  iniblic  office  is  con- 
ferred by  public  vote  and  is  an  indication  nf  trust  reposed  in  the  indi- 
vidual and  a  recognition  of  his  merit.  It  is  true  that  corruption  exists 
to  some  e.Ktent,  especially  in  tiie  larger  cities,  but  in  smaller  commu- 
nities where  individual  character  and  personal  traits  of  the  candidate  are 
knov.n  it  is  usually  men  of  real  worth  and  ability  who  are  called  to 
.serve  in  positions  of  public  trust.  This  is  certainly  true  in  the  case 
of  Mr.  Jones,  who  is  filling  the  office  of  register  of  deeds.  He  was  born 
in  Penn  township.  Cass  county.  December  6,  1869,  and  as  his  entire  life 
has  been  passed  in  this  section  of  the  state  his  life  history  is  as  an  open 
lx)ok  to  the  majoritv  of  citizens  in  the  county.  He  is  the  third  .son  and 
fifth  child  of  Nathan  and  Lydia  (  Bonine)  Jones,  who  are  mentioned 
on  another  page  of  this  work.  He  was  reared  in  the  township  where 
his  birth  occurred  and  pursued  his  education  in  the  schools  of  Vandalia 
and  Cassopolis.  He  afterward  entered  college  at  Richmond.  Indiana, 
and  when  he  put  aside  his  text  Ivioks  he  concentrated  his  energies  upon 
farm  labor  and  was  connected  with  agricultural  interests  in  Cass  county 
until  he  was  elected  register  of  deeds  in  1904.  This  position  he  now 
fills,  having  been  chosen  to  the  oftrce  as  the  candidate  of  the  Republican 
party.  He  has  alwavs  taken  an  active  and  helpful  interest  in  the  work 
of  that  party  and  keep';  well  informed  on  the  questions  and  issues  of  the 
dav,  so  that  he  is  able  to  support  his  position  by  intelligent  argument. 


454  HISTORY  01-   CASS  COUNTY 

Ml.  Jones  was  married  in  1903  to  Miss  Viola  Struble,  who  was 
bora  in  this  county  in  1873  and  was  educated  in  the  common  schools. 
Thus  both  Mr.  and  }vlrs.  Jones  are  natives  of  Cass  county  and  are  wide- 
ly known,  their  circle  of  friends  being  constantly  extended  as  the  cir- 
cle of  their  acciuaintances  increases.  Mr.  Jones  has  always  been  recog- 
nized as  a  reliable  business  man,  possessing  laudable  ambition  and  en- 
terprise, and  in  office  he  is  found  loyal  to  the  trust  rei)osed  in  him, 
faithfully  performing  his  duties  to  the  best  of  his  ability.  In  a  fraternal 
sense  Mr.  Jones  is  a  member  of  the  K.  of  P.,  Castle  No.  129,  of  Pierian 
Lodge  of  Cassopolis. 

A.  N.  ARMSTRONG. 

~  A.  N.  Armstrong,  the  popular  and  efficient  jiostmaster  of  Cassopo- 
lis, was  born  in  Redford.  Wayne  county,  Michigan,  on  the  2d  of  No- 
vember, 1858.  His  father,  Nathaniel  A.  Armstrong,  was  a  native  of 
Massachusetts,  where  he  was  reared,  educated  and  married.  Remov- 
ing to  the  west  he  located  in  Red  ford,  Wayne  county,  Michigan,  in 
1S41.  He  was  a  farmer  by  occupation  and  improved  a  valuable  tract 
of  land,  carr)iug  on  general  farming  throughout  his  entire  life.  He 
held  membership  with  the  Methodist  Episcopal  church  and  gave  his  early 
political  allegiance  to  the  Democracy,  but  afterward  became  a  stanch 
Republican.  ?le  was  of  Scotch  and  Irish  descent  and  in  his  life  lie  dis- 
played many  strong  and  sterling  characteristics  which  won  for  him  the 
esteem  of  all  with  whom  he  was  associated.  He  died  at  the  age  of  sev- 
enty-t^vo  vears,  and  is  vet  sur\i\-ed  by  his  wife,  who  bore  the  maiden  name 
of  Harriet  ]\Iacomber  and  is  a  native  of  IMassachusetts.  A.  N.  .Arm- 
strong is  the  only  child  born  of  their  marriage.  Both  the  father  and 
mother  were  previously  married  and  the  former  had  eleven  children  by 
his  first  union,  while  the  mother  had  two  children  by  her  first  marriage. 
A.  N.  Amstrong  was  reared  in  Redford.  Michigan,  until  twelve 
years  of  age.  The  father  had  died  when  the  son  was  only  six  months 
old  and  about  1870  the  motlier  removed  to  Farmington,  Oakland  coun- 
ty, Michigan,  where  Mr.  Armstrong  of  this  re-view  remained  until  nine- 
teen years  of  age,  when  in  1874  he  came  to  Cassopolis.  He  was  educated 
in  the  public  schools  and  also  spent  two  years  in  the  Ypsilanti  State 
Normal  School  and  at  Green  Busines';  College.  He  was  likcwi'^c  a  stu- 
dent in  Br\-ant  &  Stratton's  Business  College  at  Detroit  in  1874.  En- 
tering upon  his  business  career,  he  secured  a  clerkship  in  a  hardware 
store  and  in  1S77  '^^  embarked  in  the  hardware  busines-  on  his  own 
account,  in  which  line  of  trade  be  continued  until  1892.  He  has  been 
very  active  and  prominent  in  political  circles  and  was  deputy  superin- 
tendent of  the  department  of  collections  at  the  World's  Fair  in  Chicago 
in  1893.  During  the  two  succeeding  years- he  was  clerk  of  the  senate 
committee  on  finance  and  appropriation  in  the  IMichigan  leigslature  and 
in  1896-7  was  sergeant-at-arms  in  the  general  assemblv.  On  the  ist 
of  September,  1897,  he  took  charge  of  the  postoffice  at  Cassopolis.  hav- 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  455 

ing  been  apimintcd  to  the  position  in  July  of  that  year  by  President  Mc- 
Kinley  and  reappointed  in  1901  by  President  Roosevelt.  He  has  been 
a  lifelong  Republican,  taking  an  active  and  helpful  interest  in  the  party 
both  in  iucal  and  state  politics,  and  has  been  called  to  various  local  of- 
fices, the  dutie^  of  which  he  has  discharged  with  prumptness  and  fidelity. 
On  March  i.  u;c6,  he  took  charge  .>f  the  IMichigan  State  Prison,  hav- 
ing been  ai'ix)inted  warden  of  the  institution  by  Governor  Warner,  who 
had  known  him  intimately  all  his  life.  This  is  the  oldest  and  largest 
penal  institution  in  the  state  and  is  considered  the  most  responsible  of 
all  appointive  positions  in  the  state  government. 

In  1S80  Mr.  Armstrong  was  united  in  marriage  to  Miss  May  S. 
Smith,  a  daughter  of  John  and  Adelia  (Tielsort)  Smith,  who  were 
natives  of  Cass  county. "  The  father  was  a  son  of  Major  Joseph  Smith, 
who  was  a  prominent'  Democrat  and  early  settler  of  Cass  county,  while 
the  maternal  ancestors  were  also  pioneer  people  in  this  section  of  the 
state,  contributing  in  substantial  measure  to  the  progress  and  develop- 
ment of  Cass  county.  Mrs.  Armstrong  was  bom  in  Cassopolis.  was  a 
student  in  the  imblic  schools  and  was  the  first  graduate  of  the  high 
school  of  this  citv.  One  child  has  been  bom  of  this  marriage.  Kath- 
arine, whose  birtli  occurred  in  1884.  Mr.  Armstrong  is  a  member  of 
the  ISIasonic  fraternity,  belonging  to  the  Blue  lodge,  the  chapter  and 
the  commanderv.  In 'the  field  of  political  life  and  commercial  activity 
he  has  won  distinction  and  is  to-day  numbered  among  the  leading,  influ- 
ential and  honored  residents  of  his' city.  His  worth  is  widely  acknowl- 
edged and  his  unfailing  courtesy,  deference  for  the  opinions  of  others 
and  commendable  characteristics  have  gained  for  him  the  respect  of 
those  with  whom  he  has  been  associated.  Honored  and  respected  in 
every  class  of  society,  he  has  for  many  years  been  a  leader  in  thought 
and  action  in  the  public  life  of  Cass  county. 

ANDREW^  F.  CAUL. 

Andrew  F.  Caul,  a  prominent  farmei  residing  on  section  35.  Mar- 
cellus' township,  has  from  an  earlv  period  in  the  development  of  Cass 
county  resided  within  its  borders.  He  was  born  in  Chilhsquaque  town- 
ship, Northumberland  countv.  Pennsvlvania.  September  28.  1834.  a  son 
of  Neal  and  Susannah  (Fetzer)  Caul,  both  also  natives  of  Northuinber- 
land  countv.  From  the  Kevstone  state  they  came  to  Micbigaii,  taking 
up  their  abode  in  :Marcellus  township,  Cass  county,  where  they  spent 
the  remainder  of  their  lives,  the  father  passing  away  at  the  age  of  fitty- 
seven  years,  while  the  mother  sun-ived  until  she  had  reached  the  seven- 
ty-third milestone  on  the  journev  of  life.  They  were  the  parents  of  four 
children  namelv :  Andrew  F..  whose  name  introduces  this  review:  hliz- 
abeth  who  became  the  wife  of  Norm-n  Hoisington.  and  died  m  Marcel- 
lus  township;  Daniel,  who  laid  down  his  life  on  the  altar  of  his  countr)- 
durincr  the  Civil  war,  in  which  he  served  in  a  carpenter  s  corps,  retum- 


456  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY 

ing  home  with  typl-.uid  iever.  from  tlie  effects  of  uiiich  lie  died;  and 
Emehne,  the  wife  of  Highhmd  Sweet,  of  Alarcellus  tcwn-hip. 

Until  eighteen  years  of  age  Andrew  F.  Caul  remained  in  Chillis- 
quaque  township,  Xorthumherland  county,  Pennsylvania,  the  place  of  his 
nativitv,  there  receiving  his  education,  and  when  not  employed  with  the 
duties  of  the  school  room,  worked  on  the  canal.  In  1S52  he  came  with 
his  parents  to  St.  Joseph  county,  rvlichigan,  where  for  tliree  years  he  was 
employed  on  his  father's  farm,  and  in  1856  the  family  took  up  their 
abode'within  the  horilcrs  (jf  Cas^  county,  tlie  lather  here  purchasing  one 
hundred  acres  of  wild  land.  Sn.ju  after  coming  to  his  new  heme,  how- 
ever, the  father  died,  and  Mr.  Caul  antl  his  brother  placed  the  farm  un- 
der cultivation,  and  the  former  erected  all  the  buiklings  which  now 
adom  the  place.  He  has  also  added  to  the  original  purchase  until 
he  now  owns  \.\\o  hundred  acres  of  fertile  and  well  improved  land  on 
section  thirtv-five.  Marcellus  township.  When  this  pioneer  family  first 
located  on  this  place  their  nearest  trading  point  and  postoftice  was  Three 
Rivers,  while  at  the  present  time  their  mail  is  delivered  to  them  at  tiieir 
door  from  Marcellus. 

In  1S59  Mr.  Caul  was  united  in  marriage  to  Lydia  Stannanl,  and 
after  her  death  he  married  Hilary  C.  Cook.  For  his  third  wife  he  chose 
Ida  Denio,  and  they  have  five  children,  namely:  Bessie,  wife  of  kit 
Jones,  of  Marcellus';  Harley,  who  conducts  the  home  farm;  Myrtle  L., 
the  wife  of  Charles  Brittoii,  of  Ohio;  Donald,  who  died  at  the  age  of 
nine  years ;  and  Lamont,  a  resident  of  the  state  of  Washington.  In  his 
political  affiliations  :\Ir.  Caul  is  a  lifelong  Democrat,  and  his  first  presi- 
dential vote  was  cast  for  James  Buchanan.  In  1873  he  was  elected  to 
tlie  office  of  supervisor  of  }*Iarcellus  township,  in  which  position  he 
served  for  ten  terms. 

KLECKXER   W.   HARTMAX. 

Kleckner  ^^'.  Hartman,  one  of  the  early  settlers  of  the  county  now 
located  on  section  34,  Porter  township,  where  he  owns  and  operates 
one  hundred  and  sixtv  acres  of  land,  dates  his  residence  in  this  town- 
ship back  to  183S.  Thus  sixty-eight  years  have  been  added  to  the  cycle 
of  the  centuries  since  he  took  up  his  abode  in  Cass  county.  He  is. 
however,  a  native  of  Michigan,  his  birth  having  occurred  in  St.  Joseph 
county,  February  22,  1836.  His  father.  Jonas  Hartman.  was  a  native 
of  Pennsylvania',  liorn  in  1796,  and  was  reared  in  the  Keystone  state. 
He  married  Eliza  M.  Kleckner.  who  was  born  in  Pennsylvania  in  1795, 
their  wedding  being  celebrated  in  that  state  in  1S17.  They  remained 
residents  of  the  east  until  1831.  when  they  came  westward  to  Mich- 
igan, settling  in  St.  Joseph  county,  where  ^Ir.  Hartman  Iniilt  and 
operated  a  brewery.  He  there  lived  until  183S,  when  he  disposed  of 
his  business  interests  in  that  county  and  came  to  Cass  county,  purchas- 
ing here  a  large  tract  of  land.     He  then  built  a  sawmill  in  Porter  town- 


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MRS.  ELIZA  HARTMAN. 


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HISTORY  OF  CASS  COL'XTY  457 

ship,  which  he  cuiukicted  for  many  years,  and  he  was  likewise  engaged 
in  tiie  operation  of  a  threshing  machine.  He  had  a  very  wide  acquaint- 
ance in  tlie  early  da}s,  heing  known  to  nearly  all  of  the  pioneer  settlers 
of  the  county  and  he  was  closely  identified  with  many  movements  and 
business  interests  that  have  contributed  to  its  development  and  upbuild- 
ing. He  conducted  a  hotel  on  the  Chicago  road  in  Porter  township 
and  was  a  man  uf  marked  entcrjH-ise  and  energy,  carrying  forward  to 
successful  completion  \vhate\er  he  undertook  and  readily  recognizing 
and  utilizing  business  opportunities.  He  died  when  about  forly-l'i\-e 
years  of  age.  His  wife,  long  surviving  liim,  passed  away  in  her 
eightieth  year.  She  kept  the  children  together  after  the  death  of  their 
father  and  maintained  a  heme  fnr  them  until  they  were  able  to  care 
for  tbem-elves.  In  the  family  were  twelve  children:  Jefferson.  John 
H.,  Hannah  and  Elias,  all  now  deceased:  David,  a  resident  of  Missouri; 
Emanuel  and  Edward,  wlm  huue  passed  away:  Kleckner  \V.,  of  this 
review;  Charles  and  Amelia,  also  deceased:  Margaret,  who  was  born 
in  1829  and  now  resides  with  her  brother  Kleckner;  and  Barbara, 
who  is  the  widow  of  Samuel  King  and  is  living  in  Porter  township. 
Kleckner  W.  Hartman  was  the  eleventh  in  order  of  birth  in  this 
family  and  was  only  two  }-cars  of  age  when  brought  by  his  parents  to 
Porter  township.  He  was  therefore  reared  on  the  old  homestead  farm 
here  and  at  the  usual  age  he  entered  the  district  schools,  wiierein  he 
mastered  the  branches  of  learning  usually  taught  in  such  institutions. 
When  sixteen  years  of  age  he  won  the  consent  of  his  mother  to  his 
leaving  home.  He  then  began  earning  his  own  livelihood  and  he  sent 
his  wages  largely  to  his  mother,  in  fact  giving  her  all  that  he  earned 
with  the  exception  of  enough  to  buy  his  clothing.  He  was  em])loyed 
in  this  wa}-  in  the  county  until  twenty-one  years  of  age.  when  he  re- 
turned to  the  old  homestead,  whereon  he  remained  for  a  year.  On  the 
expiration  of  that  period  he  went  to  the  Rocky  ^Mountains,  his  destina- 
tion being  Pike's  Peak,  where  gold  had  been  discovered.  He  worked 
in  the  mines  there  for  some  time  but  later  returned  home  and  after- 
ward made  his  way  to  the  territory  of  Idaho,  where  he  spent  about  a 
year  and  a  half.  He  then  again  came  to  Porter  townsbij)  and  in  con- 
nection with  his  younger  brother,  Charley  Hartman.  purchased  the 
interest  of  the  other  heirs  in  the  old  homestead.  Tliey  worked  tlie 
farm  together,  and  in  i860  built  the  house  which  is  still  standing  here. 
They  also  improved  the  farm  in  many  ways,  built  good  barns  and 
other  outbuildings  and  continued  in  business  together  until  the  brother 
died.  His  sister  ]\Iargaret  became  a  partner  with  him  in  business  and 
here  they  have  been  living  and  keeping  house  together  for  many  years. 
Mr.  Plartman  has  a  farm  of  one  hundrcfl  and  sixty  acres  and  also 
owned  another  tract  of  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  in  St.  Joseph  coun- 
ty, which  he  sold.  He  has  lived  in  Porter  township  for  si.xty-eight 
years,  and  bv  his  well  directed  business  affairs  and  agricultural  inter- 


458  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

ests  he  has  contributed  to  its  substantial  development  and  improvement. 
At  one  time  he  was  quite  successfully  engaged  in  the  stock  business, 
buying  and  selling  horses  and  shipping  hogs.  He  has  Ijeen  identified 
with  various  business  enterprises  and  is  a  stockholder  in  the  Commer- 
cial Bank  at  Constantine,  :\lichigan.  He  has  been  ver\-  successful, 
making  judicious  investments  and  capably  managing  his 'business  af- 
fairs, so  that  by  hard  work,  unfaltering  industry  and  close  application 
he  has  accumulated  a  handsome  competence  and  now  owns  valuable 
property  and  invested  interests. 

E.  S.  COX  KLIN. 

E.  S.  Conklin  is  the  resident  partner  and  manager  of  the  :\Iarcel- 
lus  Milling  Company,  in  which  connection  he  is  a  prominent  representa- 
tive of  industrial  interests  in  the  village  of  Marcellus.  The  qualities  of 
a  .successful  busines'^  man  are  his — close  application,  unfaltering  enter- 
prise and  indefatigable  diligence.  A  native  of  Wisconsin,  he  was  bom 
in  Waupaca  on  the  17th  of  :\Iay,  iSr,.^.  his  parents  being  Sidney  H. 
and  Mary  L.  (McQueen)  Conklin.  the  former  a  native  of  Geauga  coun- 
ty, Ohio,  born  near  Akron,  and  the  latter  a  native  of  Paisley,  Scotland. 
The  mother  came  to  the  United  States  when  thirteen  years  of  age  with 
her  parents,  who  landed  near  Waukegan,  Illinois,  and  in  Waupaca.  Wis- 
consin, she  gave  her  hand  in  marriage  to  Sidney  Conklin.  Both  died  at 
Neenah,  \\'isconsin.  :\Ir.  Conklin  at  the  age  of  sixty-six  years,  and 
his  wife  when  sixty-five  years  of  age.  He  was  a  miller  by' trade  and 
followed  that  pursuit  throughout  his  entire  business  life.  In  the  fam- 
ily were  two  children,  the  elder  being  Elmer,  who  died  at  the  age  of 
twenty-one  years. 

E.  S.  Conklin  spent  tlie  days  of  his  boyhood  and  youth  in  his  par- 
ents' honie  and  when  ten  or  twelve  years  of  age  accompanied  them 
on  their  removal  to  Xeeiiah.  Wisconsin.  When  Ins  education  was  com- 
pleted he  entered  the  milling  business  in  connection  with  his  father,  who 
followed  that  pursuit  for  thirty-five  years,  and  remained  as  his  assist- 
ant until  twenty  years  of  age.  when  he  removed  to  Green  Bay,  Wis- 
consin, where  he  was  employed  at  milling  by  other  parties.  He  took 
charge  of  the  mill,  which  he  managed  for  one  and  a  half  years,  and  on 
the  ex])iration  of  that  period  he  went  to  Ripon,  Wisconsin,  and  was  aft- 
erward in  Berlin  and  Royalton,  in  the  line  of  his  trade,  subsequent  to 
which  time  lie  returned  to  Neenah,  where  he  remained  for  five  rears. 
He  next  went  to  Antigo,  Wisconsin,  where  he  spent  eight  and  a  half 
years.  He  again  located  at  Green  Bay,  where  he  took  charge  of  the 
mills  with  which  he  had  previously  been  connected  when  in  that  place 
before.  Six  years  ago  he  purchased  a  half  interest  in  the  Marcellus 
Milling  Company,  the  plant  being  owned  jointly  by  the  Colby  Milling 
Company  of  Dowagiac,  ^lichigan.  and  Mr.  Conklin,  who  as  resident 
partner  and  manager  is  in  full  control.     He  has  the  entire  confidence  of 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  459 

the  comniLinily  in  whicli  the  mill  is  lucated,  and  to  his  careful  manage- 
ment and  entei  prise  the  satisfactory  business  enjoyed  by  the  companv  is 
due.  He  has  had  charge  of  thirteen  different  mill's  and'  has  thus  gained 
broad  practical  experience,  which  now  enables  him  to  give  capable  man- 
agement to  his  individual  interests.  The  equipment  of  the  mill  is  un- 
usually .good  for  an  establishment  of  this  extent.  The  mill  building,  a 
substantial  brick  structure  of  three  stories,  with  ten-foot  basement  and 
engine  and  boiler  room,  was  erected  in  1S91,  and  has  an  Allis  equipment 
throughout  for  a  daily  capacity  of  two  hundred  barrels  of  flour.  The 
main  building  is  forty  by  fifty  feet  in  size,  with  an  addition  thirty-six 
by  forty  feet  in  size,  for  oftke  and  storage  purposes.  The  mill  has  fire 
protection  from  a  .standjiipe  to  the  top  of  the  mill,  with  hose  on  ever}- 
floor,  and  connection  with  the  village  waterworks.  It  also  is  steam- 
heated  throughout.  The  company  enjoys  a  steady  flour  trade,  both  lo- 
cally and  wholesale.  Its  brands  are  "Alpine"  (full  patent)  and  "Roval" 
(straight),  while  "Colby  Patent"'  and  "Splendid"  for  the  larger  baker- 
ies are  as  well  known  as  any  flours  in  ^Michigan.  Besides  handling  all 
kinds  of  grain,  seeds,  etc.,  the  company  sells  annually  quite  an  amount 
of  hard  and  soft  coal,  with  storage  rooms  for  five  hundred  ton?  each, 
the  sidings  and  warehouses  occupying  an  advantageous  location  con- 
venient for  local  trade  and  shipments. 

The  manager,  Mr.  Conklin,  is  ver\-  proud  of  his  mill  from  every 
point  of  view.  He  particularly  insists  that  the  mill  should  be  kept  like 
a  home,  and  he  extends  a  welcome  to  callers  and  inspectors  at  anv  and 
all  times.  He  is  a  practical  miller  in  all  details,  and  came  into  charge 
of  this  plant  from  the  milling  section  of  central  and  northern  \\'iscon- 
sin. 

On  the  24th  of  August.  189R,  was  celebrated  the  marriage  of  E.  S. 
Conklin  and  IMiss  Katheryn  Cornish,  a  native  of  \\'isconsin.  They 
now  have  two  sons,  Roscoe  S.  and  Horace  F.  The  parents  are  widely 
known  in  Marcellus  and  the  hospitality  of  the  l)€st  homes  is  freely 
accorded  them.  ]\Tr.  Conklin  is  a  valued  member  of  the  T^Iasonic  fra- 
ternity, being  identified  with  Ixith  the  lodge  and  chapter,  and  in  his  life 
he  is  most  loyal  to  its  teachings  and  tenets.  He  has  made  a  creditable 
business  record  as  a  man  of  aliility  and  trustworthiness  and  is  thorough- 
ly conversant  with  his  trade,  and  added  to  a  complete  command  of  the 
technical  side  of  the  business  is  an  executive  ability  and  keen  insight  into 
trade  relations  and  possibilities. 

CLIXTOX  L.  KESTER. 

Clinton  L.  Kester.  the  present  postmaster  of  Marcellus.  whose  pub- 
lic-spirited citizenship  "Stands  as  an  unquestioned  fact  in  his  life,  was 
born  in  Parkville.  St.  Joseph  county,  Michigan,  December  14.  1861. 
He  is  a  son  of  Adam  H.  and  Emaline  CBodmer)  Kester.  the  former  a 
native  of  Pennsvlvania.  and  the  latter  of  Ohio.    In  earlv  life  thev  became 


40U  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

residents  n\  Mich'f^im  ami  were  married  in  this  state.  Tlic  father  de- 
voted much  of  Ills  tniie  and  eiier-ics  .airing  his  Inisiness  career  to  mer- 
cantile pursuits,  save  that  the  last  fifteen  vears  of  his  life  were  spent  up- 
on a  farm  in  Mis^nuri,  where  he  died  i'ehruarv  14.  1906,  at  the  age  of 
seventy-four  years.  He  had  Imig  survived  his  \vit"e.  who  pa.ssed  away 
on  the  14th  of  .\o\einlicr.  iSji'k  wlien  thirty-nine  vears  of  age.  In  his 
ixiliticai  \iews  Mr.  Kester  was  a  stalwart  Kepul>lic;;n.  In  his  familv  were 
six  children:  :\Iillie.  who  is  now  living  in  Missouri;  Clinton  L..  of 
this  review:  Herman:  Ada,  the  wife  of  O.  F.  Wilson,  als,,  of  Missouri; 
Frank,  whose  home  is  in  St.  J.i.senh.  Alis.souri:  and  Burton,  of  the  same 
state. 

Clinton  L.  Kester  was  a  youth  of  fourteen  vears  wdien  he  accom- 
panied his  parents  on  their  removal  to  Marcellus.  He  worked  in  his 
father's  store  for  about  ten  years,  thus  acquiring  his  earlv  Inisiness 
training  and  ex]jerience.  He  aftcrwar.l  went  to  Colorado.' wdiere  he 
engaged  in  clerking  for  a  time  aii.l  later  he  joined  his  father,  who  had 
removed  to  Missi^iri  and  was  there  engaged  in  farming.  After  an  ah.- 
sence  of  two  )  ears  spent  in  the  west.  Clinton  L.  Kester  returned  to 
Marcellus,  :\lichig,in,  and  again  entered  the  field  of  business  activity 
here  as  a  general  merchant  of  the  firm  of  Kester  &  Arnold.  This  rela'- 
tion  was  maintained  for  four  years,  when  Mr.  Kester  withdrew  and 
afterward  engaged  in  clerking  in  the  general  store  of  S.  Sterns  &  Com- 
pany, in  which  capacity  he  served  until  appointed  postmaster  eight  years 
ago.  He  has  recently  received  his  thirfl  appointment  in  the  office",  the 
duties  of  which  he  has  disch.arged  with  credit  to  himself  and  general  sat- 
isfaction tc  tlie  public.  He  owns  a  fifty-acre  vineyard,  one  mile  east 
of  the  village,  which  he  oversees  and  which  is  kept  in  e.xcellent  condi- 
tion, yielding  large  cn.ps.  His  ^lolitical  allegiance  has  always  been  giv- 
eii_  to  the  Republican  jiarty  and  he  is  thoroughly  in  sympa'thv  with  its 
principles  and  iiolicy.  Vor  four  years  he  served  as  treasurer  of  the  vil- 
lage and  was  a  faithful  custodian  of  its  funds,  while  at  all  times  he  is 
loyal  to  those  interests  which  tend  to  promote  public  progress  and  im- 
provement. His  social  relations  connect  him  with  the  Masons,  the 
Knigiits  of  I'ythias  and  the  Knights  of  the  Maccabees,  and  he  is  re- 
garded as  a  valued  representative  of  these  orgajiizations,  exem]ihfying 
in  his  life  the  beneficent  sjiirit  of  the  different  orders  which  are  based 
upon  the  idea  of  the  brotherhood  of  man. 

JOSEPH  O.  CURRY. 

Joseph  O.  Curry  is  one  of  the  native  sons  of  Michigan,  who  has 
found  in  this  state  ample  opportunity  for  the  e.xercise  of  his  native 
talents  and  has  become  fully  cognizant  of  the  fact  that  in  Michigan 
earnest  labor  brings  a  sure  and  just  reward,  for  through  his  close  appli- 
cation and  earnest  efforts  he  has  l>ecome  one  of  the  substantial  resi- 
dents, of  Cass  countv.     He  now  makes  his  home  in  Marcellus  and  was 


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n 


J^'^- 


:^;l 


n     :'M      ' 


\^v 


^-^. 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  401 

born  in  Decatur  township.  Van  Bnren  county,  October  6.  1834,  bving- 
retired  alter  many  years  of  active,  successful  and  honoraljie  connection 
with  agricultural  interests.  He  is  a  son  of  Da\-id  Curry,  who  was  born 
in  Pennsylvania  in  December,  1807.  Tbe  family  removed  to  the  vicin- 
ity of  Columbus,  Ohio,  on  lca\-ing'  Pennsylvania,  and  ab-out  iSjr>  Da\-id 
Curry  canie  to  Michigan  with  tbe  family,  who  were  journeying  to  this 
state.  He  afterward  reUirned  to  Ohio,  however,  and  with  his  brother 
John  again  made  the  trip  to  Michigan  in  1830.  He  worked  f(ir  one 
year  for  Josephus  Gard  and  was  then  married  and  entered  upm  an  in- 
dependent business  career.  It  was  in  the  year  1832  that  lie  entered  from 
the  government  his  farm  in  Decatttr  township.  Van  Buren  county.  The 
land  which  came  into  his  possession  was  entirely  wild  and  unimproved 
and  all  around  liim  stretclied  the  native  forest  and  uncultivated  tracts 
of  land.  For  fourteen  years  he  devoted  his  time  and  energies  to  the  sub- 
jugation of  the  wilderness  and  to  the  development  of  his  farm,  and  was 
then  killed  by  being  thrown  from  a  load  of  straw  in  the  year  1846,  leav- 
ing an  estate  of  two  hundred  and  forty  acres  of  land.  He  was  em- 
ployed in  \'alencia  township,  Cass  county,  when  he  first  came  to  Mich- 
igan, hut  the  first  and  only  home  he  ever  earned  was  on  section  34,  De- 
catur township.  Van  Buren  county.  He  had  the  finest  cabin  on  the 
prairie  at  that  time,  it  being  eighteen  by  twenty  feet,  and  it  was  the  only 
one  containing  a  sawed  wood  floor.  There  were  no  windows  nor  doors 
nor  floor,  however,  when  they  moved  into  it.  The  Indians  were  fre- 
quent visitors  and  Joseph  O.  Curry  remembers  well  the  calls  that  tlie 
red  men  paid  at  tliat  pioneer  home.  The  father  was  a  prominent  and 
honored  pioneer  resiflent  in  the  epochal  events  which  form  the  early 
history  of  bis  section  of  the  state.  He  served  in  the  Indian  wars  against 
the  members  of  the  Sac  tribe  and  in  recognition  of  the  military  aid 
which  he  rendered  received  a  land  grant.  He  married  ]Miss  Elizabeth 
Gard,  who  was  born  in  Union  township.  Union  county,  Indiana,  on 
Christmas  day  of  181 1.  She  long  sun'ived  her  husband  and  passed 
away  in  Van'  Buren  county.  Michigan,  in  1878.  She  was  a  daughter 
of  Josephus  and  Sarah  Gard.  The  former  entered  from  the  govern- 
ment a  farm  now  owned  by  Mr.  Curry,  and  he  bought  three  quarter-sec- 
tions of  land.  The  homestead  property  of  our  subject  comprises  a  quar- 
ter-section which  was  inherited  by  Mrs.  Elizabeth  Curry,  who  was  one 
of  the  esteemed  pioneer  women  of  this  section  of  the  state.  By  her 
marriage  she  became  the  mother  of  nine  children:  Jonathan,  who  was 
born  Mav  8.  1833.  ^nd  died  in  the  Indian  Territory  Januan.-  4,  1905; 
Joseph  O.,  of  this  review:  Juliet,  who  was  born  April  5,  1836.  and 
passed  away  in  1880:  ^Marshall,  who  was  born  October  24.  1837.  and 
has  departed  this  life:  David  O..  who  was  born  September  25.  1839.  and 
died  on  the  old  boir.e  farm  :\Iarch  28.  1906;  Elizabeth,  who  was  born 
March  27.  1P41.  and  is  acting  as  housekeeper  for  her  brother  Joseph: 
Mar>-  Jane,  who  was  born  February  20,  1843.  and  was  the  only  one  of 
the   fainilv  that   married,  becoming  the  wife  of  Jacob  High,   of  Park 


462  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

township,  St.  Joseph  county,  Alichigan;  Nancy  H.,  who  was  born  ^larch 
26,  1844,  and  died  at  the  age  of  three  years;  and  John  B.,  who  was  born 
November  6,  1845,  ^^^^^  passed  away  January  2,  1865.  Of  this  family 
David  served  as  a  soldier  of  the  Civil  war  from  1S61  until  1SG5,  as  a 
member  of  the  Fourth  ]\Iichigan  Cavalry.  He  was  one  of  three  hundred 
men  who  captured  Jefferson  Davis,  and  he  retained  as  a  souvenir  of 
that  e.xpedition  the  saddle  bags  taken  from  General  Regan,  who  was  a 
member  of  Davis'  cabinet.  These  saddle  bags  are  now  in  possession-of 
Joseph  O.  Curry. 

Joseph  O.  Curr}-,  wlio.^c  name  introduces  tliis  review,  remained 
upon  the  farm  up<jn  which  he  was  born  until  sixty-two  years  of  age  and 
assisted  in  its  development  and  cultivation  as  the  years  went  by.  He 
was  early  trained  to  th.e  work  of  the  fields  and  meadow  and  became  a 
man  of  energy  and  industry,  whose  success  is  attributable  to  his  own 
persistent  efforts  and  capable  business  management.  In  1S96  he  re- 
moved to  the  farm  which  he  now  owns,  and  has  made  it  his  home  for 
the  past  decade.  It  comprises  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  of  land  on 
section  21,  Marcellus  township,  and  was  entered  from  the  government 
by  his  grandfather,  Jcsephus  Card,  since  which  time  it  has  Iieen  con- 
tinuously in  possession  of  the  family.  The  land  had  been  cleared  and 
good  buildings  had  been  erected  by  'Mr.  Curry  and  his  brother  Jonathan. 
This  is  indeed  a  fine  farm,  being  perhaps  the  best  in  the  township,  and 
eighty  acres  of  the  land  lies  within  the  corporation  limits  of  IMarcellus, 
a  half  mile  from  tlie  center  of  the  village.  He  also  owns  two  hundred 
and  eighty  acres  of  land  in  Decatur  township  and  eighty  acres  in  Park 
township,  together  with  nfty-six  acres  near  Cassopolis.  Throughout  his 
entire  life  Mr.  Curry  has  devoted  his  energies  to  general  farming  and 
stock-raising  and  has  become  widely  known  as  a  breeder  of  trotting 
horses.  He  now  has  a  team  that  has  a  record  of  2:25,  both  animals  be- 
ing raised  on  the  home  farm.  This  is  the  fastest  team  in  the  township 
and  Mr.  Curry  may  well  be  proud  of  these  travelers.  He  is  a  representa- 
tive business  man,  ever  watchful  of  opportunities,  and  in  all  his  business  re- 
lations he  has  been  found  reliable  and  straightforward.  He  has  trav- 
eled quite  extensively  in  the  middle  west,  as  has  his  brother.  All  of 
the  family  are  advocates  of  the  Democracy  and  Jonathan  Curn,-  has  held 
a  number  of  township  offices,  the  duties  of  which  he  has  discharged 
with  promptness  and  fidelity.  Mr.  Curry  is  a  worthy  representative  of 
a  pioneer  family,  one  that  has  been  associated  with  Michigan's  history 
from  an  early  period  in  territorial  days.  He  lived  here  at  the  time  most 
of  the  homes  were  log  cabins  and  these  were  widely  scattered.  Com- 
paratively few  roads  had  been  made  through  the  forests,  the  land  being 
still  covered  with  the  native  timber.  The  streams  were  unbridged  and 
it  seemed  that  the  work  of  impro\-ement  had  scarcely  been  begun.  The 
Curry  family  have  always  borne  their  full  sharein  the  development  of 
the  agricultural  interests  of  this  section  of  Michigan  and  deserve  much 
credit  for  what  they  have  accomplished. 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 


HEXRY  L.  LOVERIDGE. 


Henry  L.  Loveridge,  living  ^n  section  8,  Marcellus  township,  is 
the  pupular  owner  of  Island  Park,  un  which  is  a  beautifnl  lake,  famous 
for  its  good  fishing.  Michigan,  with  its  excellent  climate,  its  fine  parks 
and  beautifnl  lake  regions,  furnishes  excellent  opportunity  for  the  de- 
velopment of  attractive  summer  resorts,  and  !\Ir.  Loveridge  in  connec- 
tion with  the  improvement  of  his  agricultural  interests  has  spent  con- 
siderable time  in  promoting  Island  Park,  wliich  is  now  a  most  popular 
resort.  He  was  Ixjrn  at  Paw  Paw,  in  Van  Buren  county,  Michigan, 
December  15,  1857,  his  parents  being  John  and  Kate  (Hinkley)  Lov- 
eridge, who  were  natives  of  New  York.  The  mother  came  to  Micliigan 
about  sevent}'  years  ago,  when  only  three  years  old,  and  Mr.  Loveridge 
arrived  in  this  state  when  about  twenty-five  years  of  age.  They  were 
married  in  Michigan  and  for  a  long  period  the  father  devoted  his  atten- 
tion to  contracting.  In  early  life  he  learned  the  carpenter's  trade  and 
for  a  considerable  period  was  closely  associated  with  building  opera- 
tions in  this  section  of  the  state.  At  the  time  of  the  Civil  war  he  put 
aside  all  business  and  personal  interests,  however,  and  espoused  the 
cause  of  the  Union,  serving  as  a  member  of  Company  A,  Thirteenth 
Michigan  Infantry,  during  the  last  of  the  war.  He  died  in  Cass  county 
January  15,  1901.  at  the  age  of  sixty-nine  years,  and  is  yet  survived  by 
his  widow,  who  now  resides  in  Marcellus.  She  is  one  of  the  esteemed 
pioneer  women  of  this  part  of  the  state,  having  made  her  home  in  !Mich- 
igan  for  the  allotted  Psalmist's  span  of  three  score  years  and  ten. 

Henry  L.  Loveridge,  their  only  child,  remained  in  his  nati\'e  coun- 
ty until  fifteen  years  of  age.  when  he  went  to  Kalamazoo.  Michigan. 
where  he  remained  until  twenty-two  years  of  age.  During  that  period 
he  spent  fi\e  years  as  an  employe  in  a  store,  and  for  two  years  was  in 
the  service  of  the  American  Express  Company.  He  then  returned  to 
Paw  Paw,  and  for  five  years  remained  upon  the  home  farm  following 
his  marriage.  In  1886  he  removed  to  Marcellus  and  opened  a  store, 
which  he  conducted  for  fifteen  years.  carn,-ing  on  a  prosperous  bakery 
and  grocery  business.  Pie  also  conducted  a  store  at  Schoolcraft  for  one 
"year,  and  four  years  ago  he  came  to  Fish  Lake  and  took  charge  of  the 
resort  which  his  father  had  established  three  years  previous.  He  has 
nine  acres  of  ground  situated  on  a  peninsula,  extending  from  the  east 
shore  into  I'ish  Lake.  He  has  sold  fourteen  lots,  and  ten  cottages  have 
been  built  since  he  arrived.  Mr.  Loveridge  has  also  erected  a  hotel  and 
has  a  boarding  house  which  his  father  built.  There  were  also  two  cot- 
tages erected  before  Mr.  Loveridge  came  to  this  place.  Island  Park  is 
a  natural  forest  of  beech,  oak.  ash.  maple,  basswood  and  ironwood. 
In  fact  there  are  nearly  all  kinds  of  timber  except  black  walnut.  The 
fine  fishing  is  one  of  the  most  attractive  features  of  the  district,  there 
being  a  chain  of  nine  lakes  all  accessible  with  a  row  boat.  Mr.  Loveridge 
has  done  much  to  develop  and  improve  the  resort,  which  is  now  indeed 


464  HISTORY  O!'   CASS  COUXTV 

very  popular,  being  annually  visited  by  a  large  number  of  people  wlio 
find  in  the  shady  forests  a  cool  retreat  from  the  heat  of  llie  cities  in 
summer,  while  the  fisherman  has  every  opportunitiy  to  enjoy  his  prowess 
with  the  finny  tribe. 

Mr.  L(jveridgc  was  mairicd  in  September.  i.*^79.  to  Miss  Rose 
Taylor,  a  native  of  this  t'jwnshi])  ami  a  daughter  nf  Jolm  Tayb^r.  They 
now  have  mie  sop,,  Rert.  who  is  ad\ance  agent  of  the  Forepaugh  &  Sells 
circus.  Well  known  in  this  part  of  the  state,  Henry  L.  Loveridge  has 
gainetl  a  wide  acquaintance  through  his  business  interests  as  merchant 
and  hotel  prnpiietur,  and  his  social,  genial  manner  and  consideration  for 
others  ha\  e  g.-'incd  liini  wide  and  lasting  popularity  with  those  with 
whom  he  has  been  associated. 

DANIEL  K.  BYRXES. 

Dariiel  K.  Byrnes,  a  farmer  and  representative  citizen  of  Pokagon 
township,  was  born  and  reared  upon  the  i)lace  which  is  yet  his  home,  his 
natal  day  being  June  28,  1847.  His  father,  John  Byrnes,  was  (jne  of 
the  pioneer  settlers  of  Cass  cf)unty,  where  he,  too,  carried  on  agricult- 
ural pursuits.  He  was  born  in  county  Cork,  Ireland,  in  181 5,  and  when 
about  sixteen  years  of  age  went  to  Syracuse.  New  York,  where  he 
learned  the  carpenter's  trade.  The  year  1S57  witnessed  his  arrival  in 
Michigan,  his  de.stination  being  Niles,  and  there  he  followed  carpen- 
tering until  about  twenty-six  years  of  age,  when  he  was  married.  Not 
long  afterward  he  took  up  his  ab(j(le  upon  what  has  since  been  known  as 
the  Byrnes  farm  on  section  28.  Pokagon  township.  He  began  there 
with  eighty  acres  of  timl)er  land  and  he  at  once  cleared  away  the  trees 
and  brush  and  grubbed  out  the  stumps,  after  which  he  plowed  the  fields 
and  culti\'ated  crops.  He  married  !Miss  Arsula  Clyburn,  who  was  l>:>rn 
in  Virginia  in  181 7.  The  Clyburns  were  among  the  oldest  settlers  of 
Cass  county  and  Mrs.  Byrnes  was  reared  and  educated  here.  Unto  the 
parents  of  our  subject  were  born  six  children,  three  sons  and  three 
daughters,  of  whom  Daniel  K.  was  the  second.  The  father  gave  his 
political  support  to  the  Whig  party  in  early  life,  but  afterward  became 
an  advocate  of  the  Democracy,  and  still  later  joined  the  ranks  of  the 
Prohibition  party  because  of  his  views  upon  the  temperance  question. 
He  was  also  a  local  minister  of  the  Methodist  church  in  pioneer  days. 
was  a  member  of  the  Masonic  fraternit}-,  belonging  to  Pokagon  lodge. 
No.  36.  A.  F.  &  .\.  M..  and  he  served  as  master  under  dispensation.  He 
took  an  active  part  in  the  organization  of  the  lodge  and  he  also  labored 
untiringly  for  the  advancement  of  church  and  temperance  work,  and  in 
fact  did  everything  in  his  power  to  promote  the  moral  progress  of  the 
community  and  uplift  his  fellow  men.  He  had  a  \tr\-  wide  acquaintance 
throughout  Cass  county  and  his  memory  is  yet  enshrined  in  the  hearts 
of  many  who  knew  him.  His  death  ocairred  ]\Iarch  12.  1902,  when  he 
had  reached  the  advanced  age  of  eighty-seven  years,  and  his  example  is 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  465 

one  -well  worthy  of  emulation,  while  his  influence  is  still  a  potent  fac- 
tor for  good  among-  those  who  came  under  his  teachings. 

Daniel  K.  Byrnes  was  reared  in  Pokagon  township  and  worked 
upon  the  home  farm  of  his  father  until  the  latter's  death.  On  the  ist 
of  April,  1874,  he  was  joined  in  wedlock  to  Miss  Mary  I'arker,  who 
was  born  in  Eerrien  county,  ^Michigan,  December  6,  1855,  and  is  a 
daughter  of  Henry  C.  and  Mary  Parker,  who  removed  from  Ohio  to 
Berrien  county  at  an  early  epoch  in  its  development.  Subsequently  they 
came  to  Cass  county  when  it  was  still  a  pioneer  district  and  Mrs.  Byrnes 
was  reared  upon  the  old  Parker  homestead  in  Pokagon  township.  Unto 
our  subject  and  his  wife  have  been  born  six  children:  Zulu,  now  de- 
ceased; Lewis  K. ;  Ella  May,  the  wife  of  John  INIcCoy ;  Robert  J. ;  Lena; 
and  Eliza  Bell.  All  were  born  and  reared  upon  the  present  Byrnes 
farm.  This  place  comprises  seventy-seven  acres  of  land  that  is  very  pro- 
ductive and  is  now  under  a  high  state  of  cultivation.  Mr.  Byrnes  has 
cleared  and  cultivated  the  greater  part  of  it  himself  and  it  is  the  visible 
evidence  of  his  life  of  thrift  and  enterprise.  He  has  worked  diligently 
and  his  labors  have  been  resultant  factors  in  winning  for  him  a  place 
among  the  substantial  residents  of  the  county.  He  belongs  to  Pokagon 
lodge.  No.  136,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  and  to  Crv'^tal  Springs  lodge.  No.  325, 
L  O.  O.  E.  In  politics  a  Democrat,  he  has  ser\-ed  for  thirty  years  as 
justice  of  the  peace,  and  no  higher  testimonial  of  capability  could  be 
given,  for  his  long  service  indicates  his  fair  and  impartial  decisions  and 
his  fidelity  to  duty  under  all  circumstances. 

FRANK  DUNN. 

Frank  Dunn,  who  is  now  filling  the  position  of  supervisor  in  New- 
berg  township  and  resides  on  section  22,  is  one  of  the  native  sons  of 
this  township,  his  birth  having  here  occurred  on  the  8th  of  February. 
1867.  He  is  a  representative  of  one  of  the  old  and  prominent  pioneer 
families  of  the  county.  His  paternal  grandfather,  Archibald  Dunn, 
came  to  Michigan  when  this  section  of  the  state  was  a  wild  and  unim- 
proved region  and  cast  in  his  lot  with  the  early  settlers  who  were  ex- 
tending the  frontier  and  planting  the  seeds  of  civilization  here.  His 
son,  Anson  L.  Dunn,  w^as  born  in  this  state  and  was  reared  amid  pio- 
neer environments  and  conditions.  He  pursued  his  education  in  the  pub- 
lic schools  and  after  arriving  at  years  of  maturity  led  a  very  busy,  use- 
ful and  active  life.  He  was  a  prominent  man.  who  held  many  offices  in 
his  township  and  proved  himself  at  all  times  worthy  of  the  trust  and 
confidence  reposed  in  him.  He  filled  the  position  of  county  treasurer 
for  four  years  and  was  a  super\'isor  for  several  terms.  He  made  a  close 
study  of  the  needs  and  possibilities  of  the  county  and  exercised  his  of- 
ficial prerogatives  to  advance  every  movement  that  he  deemed  would 
prove  of  public  benefit.  His  acquaintance  was  a  wide  one  and  all  who 
knew  him  entertained  for  him  genuine  respect  and  unqualified  regard. 


4C6  HISTORY  OV  CASS  COUXTY 

He  wedded  r^Iiss  ^^lary  Gil!,  who  is  now  a  resident  of  Jones,  but  ;Mr. 
Dunn  passed  away  in  iSSS.     In  the  family  were  three  children.    ' 

B'rank  Dunn,  the  youngest  of  the  children,  was  reared  in  his  native 
township  and  at  the  usual  age  entered  the  puljlic  schools,  wherein  he 
mastered  the  conmnjn  branches  of  learning.  In  the  summer  months 
he  assisted  in  the  farm  work  and  throughout  his  entire  life  he  has  oir- 
ried  on  general  agricultural  pursuits.  He  now  has  a  farm  of  two  hun- 
dred and  thirty-seven  acres,  which  he  rents,  while  he  is  interested  also 
in  the  ownership  of  the  store  in  connection  with  his  brother  at  Jones. 
He  possesses  good  business  qualifications,  keen  sagacity  and  enterprise, 
and  his  labors  have  been  a  source  of  gratifying  income.  Like  his  father 
before  him,  I\Ir.  Dunn  is  recognized  as  a  leading  and  valued  member  of 
the  Republican  party,  working  earnestly  and  effectively  for  its  welfare. 
He  has  held  many  offices,  serving  as  township  clerk  for  nine  years,  while 
in  1899  he  was  elected  supervisor,  which  position  he  has  filled  to  the 
present  time,  covering  a  period  of  seven  years.  He  is  a  worthy  and 
capable  ottkial,  ne\-er  faltering  in  the  performance  of  any  duty,  and  that 
he  enjoys  the  public  confidence  is  indicated  by  the  fact  that  he  has  long 
,  been  retained  in  the  office.  He  is  popular  in  political,  business  and  social 
circles  in  the  county  where  his  entire  life  has  been  passed. 

MAY  ARNOLD  OLDS. 

May  Arnold  Olds,  interested  in  general  farming  on  section  6, 
Mason  township,  was  here  born  on  the  4th  of  July,  1858,  and  thus 
the  home  place  is  endeared  to  him  through  the  associations  of  his  boy- 
hood as  well  as  through  the  connections  of  later  years  when  he  has 
found  in  the  old  farm  the  source  of  a  good  livelihood  gained  through 
his  untiring  eft'orts  to  ci.dti\ate  and  improve  'the  fields.  He  had  two 
uncles,  Harvey  and  Lester  Olds,  who  were  among  the  early  settlers  of 
the  county  and  occupied  the  first  store  in  Adamsville.  They  were  ex- 
tensive grain  dealers,  conducting  a  very  important  business  in  that  day. 
His  father.  Mdls  Olds,  was  a  native  of  Cayuga  county.  Xew  York, 
and  was  there  reared  and  married.  He  wedded  Miss  Mary  Brown 
Arnold,  wdiose  birth  occurred  in  Cayuga  county  in  the  year  1822.  Be- 
ing early  left  an  orphan,  she  was  reared  by  her  grandparents,  but  Joseph 
Arnold  was  her  guardian.  The  Olds  family  comes  of  English  and 
German  ancestry.  The  parents  of  our  subject  were  married  at  Sen- 
nett,  New  York,  on  the  24th  of  December.  1845,  and  began  their 
domestic  life  in  the  Empire  state,  whence  in  1849  they  removed  to 
Cass  county,  Michigan,  locating  on  section  6,  IMason  township,  where 
Mr.  Olds  paid  five  dollars  per  acre  for  a  tract  of  land  which  was  then 
unimproved.  He  built  a  log  house  and  in  true  pioneer  style  began 
life  in  this  district.  He  placed  his  fields  under  the  plow,  carried  on 
the  farm  work  until  he  had  made  excellent  improvements  upon  the 
farm  and  converted  it  into  a  productive  and  arable  tract  of  land.     There 


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HISTORY  OI'   CASS  COL-XTY 


4G 


he  continued  to  resi.le  until  Iiis  death,  wliicli  occurred  when  he  was  in 
the   sixty-eighth   year  of  liis   a-e.      His   poHtical  alle<?iancc   was   crjven 
to  the  Democracy,  and  tliou-h  lie  never  sou-ht  office  or  attempted  to 
figure  in  public  lite  in  that  way  he  was  numbered  among  the  pioneers 
of  the  county  who  were  closely  connected  with  its  upbuilding  and  pro"-- 
ress,   co-operating   m   the   labors   of  those  who  have   made^he  county 
what   It  IS  today.     His  wife  died   in   her  thirty-seventh   vear.      In   the 
family  were  two  sons,  but  the  elder.  Stephen  S'.  Olds,  is  now  deceased. 
May   Arnold   Olds,    whose  name   introduces   this   reconl,    was   hut 
SIX  months  old  at  the  time  of  his  mother's  death,  after  which  he  was 
reared  by  his  aunt,  Harriet  Olds.      His  education  was  acquired  in  the 
Adamsville   schools    and   after  putting  aside   his   textbooks  he   entered 
business  life  in  connection  with  the  conduct  of  a  meat  market  at  Xap- 
panee,    Elkhart   county,   Indiana.      There  he  remained    for   four   vears, 
but  with  this  exception  he  has  continuously  been  a  resident  of  Ma^ori 
township,  Cass  county,  from  his  birth  to  the  present  time.     As  a  com- 
panion and  helpmate  for  life's   journey  he  chose  :Miss  Allie  Thompson, 
whom   he   wedded   on    Christmas   day   of    1883.       Her  paternal    great- 
grandfather ser\ed  for  more  than  seven  years  in  the  Revolutionary  war, 
taking  part   in   manv   important   engagements.      He  lived  to  enjoy  the 
benefits   of  libert}'.   passing  away  at  the   very  advanced   age  of  ninety 
years,  at  which  time  he  was  making  his  Ikmiic  in  Kentucky.     Her  grand- 
father,  Samuel  Thompson,  was  a  soldier  of  the  war  of'  1812.     She  is 
a  daughter  of  Henry  and  Elizabeth   (Holmes)   Thompson.     Her  father 
^vas  born   near   Coventry   in   Orleans   county.   Vermont.    Decemlier   16. 
1818,  and  came  to  Cass  county.  ]\Iichigan,  in  June,   1837.  when  in  his 
eighteenth   year.      He   located  first   at   Adamsville.   wheVe"  he  was   em- 
ployed in  a  flouring  mill  and  he  afterward  became  a  partner  with  Mr. 
Redfield    in    the   milling   business,    conducting    that    enterprise    for    six 
years.       In   the   meantime  he   had   purchased   eighty  acres   of  land   nn 
section    16,   Mason   township,   and   he  turned  his  attention   to  farming 
after  retiring  from  the  milling  business.      He  yoted  with  the  Democ"^ 
racy,   and   held   a   number  of  local   (offices,   including  that  of  town.ship 
supervisor,  in  which  he  served  for  many  years,  his  long  continuance  in 
office   standing  in   incontrovertible   evidence  of  his  ability  and  fidelity. 
He  was  also  connected  with  the  national  Democratic  paper  at  Cassop- 
oiis  at  an  early  day.  and  his  interest  in  political  affairs  was  that  of  a 
public-spirited  citizen,  who  places  principle  before  mere  partisan  meas- 
ures and   desires   the  welfare  of  the   community   rather  than   personal 
aggrandizement.      He  was   married   in   February,    1848,   to   Z^Iiss   Eliz- 
abeth Holmes,  a  native  of  Rochester,  New  York,  and  thev  became  the 
parents  of  seven  children,  of  whom  two  died  in  infancy,  one  of  these 
being  killed  by  lightning.     Mr.  Thompson  was  twice  married,  his  sec- 
ond union  being  with  Maria  King  and  there  were  four  children  born 
to  them. 


468  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

Airs.  Olds  is  the  youngest  child  of  her  father's  iirst  marriage  and 
was  only  about  six  months  old  when  her  mother  passed  away  at  the 
age  of  thirty-six  years.  Mrs.  Olds  was  born  on  section  i6.  Mason 
township,  September  27,  1858,  and  pursued  her  education  in  the  schools 
of  Elkhart  and  in  the  Northern  Indiana  Normal  School  at  Valparaiso. 
She  became  a  successful  educator,  teaching  for  eight  and  a  half  years 
in  Jefferson,  Calvin  and  Mason  townships  and  also  in  the  city  of  Elk- 
hart, Indiana.  By  her  marriage  she  has  become  the  mother  of  two 
sons':  Henry  Tliompson,  who  was  born  August  31,  1886,  and  is  at 
home  assisting  in  the  improvement  of  the  farm;  and  Carlton,  who  was 
born  Scptemlx^r  14,    1S89,  and  is  now  a  student  in  Elkhart. 

Following  their  marriage  in  1883,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Olds  located  in 
Nappanee  and  in  1S87  returned  to  the  farm  upon  which  they  now  re- 
side, having  since  made  it  their  home,  and  the  pretty  country  seat  is 
known  as  "June  Alede."  Here  Mr.  Olds  has  one  hundred  thirty  and 
a  half  acres  of  well  improved  land  and  is  carrying  on  general  farm- 
ing, having  placed  his  fields  under  a  high  state  of  cultivation,  so  that 
he  annually  harvests  good  crops.  He  organized  what  is  known  as 
the  Pullman  Telephone  Company,  of  which  he  is  now  president,  its 
lines  covering  Mason  township  and  also  extending  into  Ontwa  town- 
ship. He  was  the  promoter  of  the  telephone  company  and  thus  insti- 
tuted a  business  which  has  been  not  only  a  convenience  but  a  source 
of  direct  benefit  to  citizens  in  this  part  of  the  county.  His  political 
support  is  given  to  the  Democracy,  and  he  has  held  the  office  of  jus- 
tice of  the  peace,  taking  an  active  part  in  the  administration  of  public 
afifairs  and  doing  all  in  his  power  to  promote  tlie  general  welfare.  He 
has  been  almost  a  life-long  resident  of  the  county,  and  in  all  relations 
has  been  known  as  a  man  of  worth  and  reliability,  enjoying  in  large 
mt^^sure  tlie  esteem  of  those  with  whom  he  has  been  brought  in  con- 
tact. Mr.  and  Mrs.  Olds  have  in  their  possession  some  of  the  old 
continental  scrip  money  to  the  value  of  seven  dollars,  a  part  of  the  money 
paid  Airs.  Olds"  great-grandfather  when  a  soldier  in  General  Washing- 
ton's armv. 

NELSON  A.  HUTCHINGS. 

Nelson  A.  Hutchings  is  probably  the  oldest  resident  of  Newberg 
township,  for  he  has  lived  continuously  within  its  borders  for  seventy' 
years,  and  he  now  makes  his  home  on  section  32.  As  one  travels  over 
the  countv  to-day  and  notes  its  thriving  towns  and  cities,  its  highly  cul- 
tivated farms,  it's  business  interests,  its  excellent  schools  and  other  pub- 
lic insitutions,  it  is  almost  impossible  to  realize  what  was  the  condition 
of  the  countv  during  Air.  Hutchings'  boyhood.  One  looks  to-day  over 
broad  but  ri'chlv  cultivated  fields,  but  at  that  time  there  was  an  almost 
unbroken  wilderness,  the  forest  trees  still  standing  in  their  primeval 
strength.     Few  roads  had  been  laid  out  and  only  here  and  there  was  a 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  409 

little  clearing  to  show  that  some  progressive  jjioneer  had  made  his  way 
into  the  forest  and  was  endeavoring  to  establish  a  home. 

Mr.  Hnichings  was  born  in  Portage  county,  Ohio,  February  i6, 
1833.  and  was  the  sixth  in  order  of  birth  in  a  family  (3f  nine  children, 
five  daughters  and  four  sons,  who  were  born  of  the  marriage  of  Samuel 
and  Pohv  M.  (Van  Curcn)  Hutchings.  The  paternal  grandfather  also 
bore  the  name  of  Samuel  Hutchings.  The  father  was  born  in  New  York 
September  i-l,  1796,  and  on  leaving  the  Empire  state  became  a  resident 
of  Portage  county,  Ohio,  where  he  remained  until  1835,  when  he  re- 
moved to  Cass  county,  Michigan,  being  one  of  its  first  settlers.  He  lo- 
cated in  Newberg  township  and  from  the  government  entered  a  tract 
of  land  on  section  31.  It  was  entirely  wild  and  undeveloped,  but  he  at 
once  began  to  clear  and  cultivate  it,  and  in  the  course  of  time  improved 
a  good  "farm,  upon  which  he  spent  his  remaining  days,  being  long  rec- 
ognized as  one  of  the  enterprising  and  successful  agriculturists  of  the 
community.  He  died  in  his  eighty-third  year,  respected  by  all  who 
knew  him'.  His  early  political  allegiance  was  given  to  the  Whig  party, 
and  upon  its  dissolution  he  joined  the  ranks  of  the  new  Republican  par- 
ty, with  which  he  continued  to  affiliate  until  his  death.  He  held  mem- 
bership ui  the  Baptist  church  and  was  well  known  throughout  the  coun- 
ty as  an  upright,  honorable  man  and  a  worthy  pioneer,  wlw  aided  in 
laying  broad  and  deep  the  foundation  for  the  present  development  of 
this  part  of  tliC  state.  His  wife,  also  a  native  of  New  York,  was  born 
on  Christmas  dav  of  1798  and  died  in  the  eighty -third  year  of  her  age. 
She  was  a  daughter  of' Jonathan  \'an  Curen,  who  was  of  German  de- 
scent. Of  the  nine  children  born  unto  Mr.  and  ^Vlrs.  Hutchings  one  died 
in  infancy,  while  the  others  all  reached  manhood  or  womanhood,  while 
two  sons  and  two  daughters  are  yet  living. 

Nelson  A.  Hutchings  was  only  three  years  of  age  when  brought 
by  his  parents  to  iSIichigan,  since  which  time  he  has  lived  in  Cass  coun- 
ty. He  was  reared  upon  the  old  homestead  farm  in  Newberg  township 
and  shared  in  the  usual  experiences  and  hardships  of  frontier  life.  Hi? 
educational  privileges  were  limited.  Fie  attended  one  of  the  log  school 
houses  of  the  countv.  wl-.ere  he  received  instruction  in  the  elementary 
branches  of  learning,  but  experience  and  observation  in  later  years  have 
greatly  broadened  his  knowledge,  making  him  a  well  informed  man. 
During  the  spring  and  summer  months  he  aided  in  the  labors  of  the 
fields,  taking  his  place  at  the  plow  almost  as  soon  as  old  enough  to  reach 
the  plow  liandlcs.  He  remained  at  home  until  the  time  of  his  marriage. 
On  the  17th  of  October,  1881.  he  was  joined  in  wedlock  to  Mrs.  Sarah 
Hartman,'  the  widow  of  Albert  Bogert.  She  was  bom  in  St.  Joseph 
county.  IMichigan,  where  .she  was  reared,  her  father  being  Reuben  Hart- 
man,  one  of  the  earlv  settlers  there.  In  1882  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hutchings 
removed  to  the  farm  upon  which  they  now  reside,  it  havmg  been  their 
home  continuou'^lv  since.  They  have  become  the  parents  of  one  son. 
Marvin   Carlton,   who  married   Jennie   Faxton   and   has  one   daughter. 


470  HISTORY  OU  CASS  COfXTY 

Wilda  C.     By  her  t'ornier  marriage  ]\Irs.  Hutchings  had  a  family  of  two 
children,  Katie  L.  and  Alhert  J.  Uugert. 

The  home  farm  of  Air.  Hutchings  comprises  one  hundred  and 
twenty  acres  of  good  land,  which  is  rich  and  productive,  and  he  car- 
ries on  general  farming  and  stock-raising,  having  good  grades  of  stock 
upon  his  place.  He  is  a  carpenter  hy  trade,  however,  and  in  earlier 
years  assisting  in  building  many  structures  in  Cass  county,  includir.g 
the  "Forest  Half  at  Diamond  Lake  and  other  well  known  buildings. 
He  has  aKvays  x-otcd  with  the  Re[>ublican  party,  casting  his  Ijallot  for 
each  prcsidenti:d  caudnlatc  I'l  that  organization  since  attaining  his  ma- 
jority. He  has  held  local  offices  in  the  township  and  is  deeply  inter- 
ested in  the  growth  and  success  of  his  party.  At  one  time  he  was  a 
member  of  the  ]\Iasonic  fraternity.  As  stated,  he  is  perhaps  the  oldest 
resident  in  the  township  in  years  of  continuous  connection  therewith, 
having  lived  here  for  seventy  years.  His  mind  forms  a  connecting  link 
between  the  primitive  past  and  the  present  with  all  of  its  progressive- 
ness.  He  can  remember  when  Indians  occasionally  visited  the  neigh- 
borhood, wlien  \\\\d  game  was  to  be  had  in  abundance  and  when  most 
of  the  settlers  lived  in  little  log  cabins.  There  was  a  spirit  of  gener- 
ous hospitality  and  helpfulness,  hnwever,  that  existed,  which  coniiien- 
sated  for  the  har(lshi])s  and  [irixations  of  pioneer  life.  He  has  always 
rejoiced  in  what  has  been  acci'inijlished  along  lines  of  improvement, 
but  \ct  ha.s  mail}-  pleasant  memnries  of  the  early  days. 

GEORGE  STAXDERLIXE. 

Nature  seems  to  have  intended  that  man  in  the  evening  of  life 
should  enjoy  a  i)eriod  of  rest.  In  his  youth  he  is  full  of  vigor  and  enter- 
prise, is  hopeful  and  ambitious.  In  his  more  mature  years  his  efforts 
are  tempered  b.}-  experience  and  soimd  judgment  resulting  in  successful 
accomplishment  if  he  but  uses  his  talents  and  jwwers  to  the  best  of  his 
ability.  If  he  does  this  he  wins  the  competence  that  enables  him  later 
to  put  aside  lousiness  cares  and  enjoy  a  well  earned  rest.  Such  has  been 
the  career  of  ;Mr.  Standerline,  who  after  many  years  of  active  and  hon- 
orable connection  with  agricultural  pursuits  is  now  living  retired  in 
Corey.  He  is  a  native  of  Lincolnshire.  England,  born  on  the  14th  of 
Octoljcr,  1S30,  and  is  a  son  of  Thomas  Standerline,  whose  l;irth  oc- 
curred in  the  same  locality.  He  was  a  farmer  by  occupation  and  thus 
provided  for  the  support  of  his  wife  and  children.  He  married  Eliza- 
beth Graham,  a  native  of  Lincolnshire,  who  spent  her  entire  life  in  Eng- 
land. In  their  familv  were  three  daughters,  George  Standerline  being 
the  only  son.  Tlie  days  of  his  childhood  and  youth  were  spent  in  his 
native  land  and  he  is  indebted  to  its  public  school  system  for  the  educa- 
tional privileges  he  enji.ved.  In  his  Irayliood  he  became  familiar  with 
farm  work  and  later  engaged  in  genera!  agricultural  pursuits  on  his 
own  account. 

Mr.  Standerline  was  married  in  his  native  country  in  1854  to  Miss 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  471 

Jane  Hollandlrick-,  wlio  was  born  in  Lincolnshire.  Enn-land.  October  23, 
1835,  a  dar.giiler  of  U'iliiain  and  .Maria  (Peck)  Hollandtrick,  wlio  were 
also  natives  of  tliat  country  and  spent  tlieir  entire  lives  in  England. 
Ten  days  alter  tlieir  n-.arriaoe  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Standeriine  started  for 
.\nierica,  for  tiity  believed  that  they  might  enjoy  better  ojiixirtunities 
in  the  new  wcrld.  of  which  they  had  heard  such  favorable  rejiorts. 
They  were  seven  weeks  on  shiplviard  crossing  the  Atlantic  from  Eng- 
land to  Quebec,  Canada,  and  thence  proceeded  up  the  St.  Lawrence  river 
to  tiie  lakes.  They  made  their  way  first  to  Toledo,  Ohio,  where  they 
spent  one  summer,  after  which  they  came  to  Michigan,  making  their 
way  to  W'hite  Pigeon,  St.  Joseph  county,  Michigan.  They  resided  on 
Pigeon  prairie  for  thirteen  years,  on  the  expiration  of  which  period  Mr. 
Standeriine  came  to  Newberg  township,  Cass  county,  and  purchased  a 
farm  on  section  25.  He  was  the  owner  of  tliat  property  until  190J, 
when  he  sold  the  farm.  He  had  lived.  Imwever.  in  Corey  for  twenty- 
two  consecutive  years,  having  retired  fmm  ;ictive  business  life  to  eniov 
in  his  comfortable  home  a  well  earned  rest  and  the  fruits  of  his  former 
toil. 

Unto  Mr.  and  ^Mrs.  Standeriine  have  been  lx)rn  seven  children, 
who  are  yet  living,  namely:  Richard,  at  home;  Thomas,  a  resident  of 
Newberg  town.ship:  William  and  Gc<irge.  who  are  living  in  Xewberg 
township;  James,  of  Mishawaka,  Indiana:  Alice,  the  wife  of  Marshall 
Hughes,  a  resident  of  South  Bend.  Indiana:  and  Annetta.  the  wife  of 
Frank  Rockwell,  of  Newberg  township. 

Mr.  Standeriine  is  one  01  the  leading  and  representative  citizens  of 
Cass  county  and  has  assisted  in  making  it  what  it  is  to-day.  He  has 
been  a  Rcpuljlicaii  since  the  organization  of  the  party,  never  faltering 
in  his  support  of  its  princijiles.  He  served  as  highway  commissioner 
and  school  director  and  at  tliis  writing  is  a  member  of  the  board  of  re- 
view. He  has  always  been  interested  in  public  affairs  and  has  labored 
earnestly  for  tiic  welfare  of  the  county.  He  belongs  to  the  Grange  and 
he  has  many  warm  friends  in  that  organization  and  throughout  the  com- 
munity in  which  be  has  so  long  lived.  He  displays  in  his  life  many 
sterling  traits  r)f  character  and  his  good  qualities  have  won  him  the 
genuine  and  unqualified  respect  of  his  fellow  men. 

\VILLIA:^I  STAXDERLIXE. 

William  Standeriine.  townshiji  clerk  and  a  prominent  farmer  of 
Newberg  township,  resides  on  section  28.  where  he  has  a  well  im- 
proved and  valualile  farm  of  sixty  acres.  He  is  one  of  Michigan's  na- 
tive sons  and  the  enterprise  and  progressive  spirit  which  have  been  the 
dominant  factors  in  the  u])building  of  the  west  find  exemplification  in  his 
active  busmess  career.  He  was  born  in  Florence  township.  St.  Josepli 
county,  ^Michigan,  October  2-i.  1858.  Ilis  father,  George  Standeriine, 
was  a  nati'.e  of  England,  in  which  country  he  spent  the  days  of  his  boy- 
hood and  voutbi  and  was  married,  the  ladv  of  his  choice  being  Miss  Jane 


472  HISTORY  OU  CASS  COUNTY 

Hollaiidtrick,  also  a  native  of  that  country.  They  bade  adieu  to  friends 
and  native  land  about  1854  and  sailed  for  America,  locating'first  in 
Toledo,  Ohio,  whence  they  afterward  removed  to  St.  Joseph  county, 
Michigan,  settling  there  ujxon  a  farm.  Tliey  remained  for  about  thir- 
teen years  in  that  county  and  in  iS()7  came  to  Cass  county,  locating  in 
Newberg  township,  where  Mr.  Standerline  purchased  a  tract  of  land. 
They  are  still  living  in  this  township  and  in  1905  they  celebrated  their 
fiftieth  wedding  anniversary,  having  traveled  life's  journey  together 
for  a  half  century,  .sharing  with  each  other  its  joys  and  sorrows,  its 
adversity  and  prosperity.  As  the  years  went  by  they  became  the  par- 
ents of  ten  children,  of  whom  seven  are  now  living. 

William  Standerline  is  the  third  child  and  third  son  in  this  familv 
and  was  but  nine  jears  of  age  when  brought  by  his  parents  to  Cass 
county.  He  spent  his  boyhood  (la\s  in  their  home,  was  educated  in  the 
district  schools  and  through  the  summer  months  aided  in  the  work  of 
the  fields,  giving  his  father  the  beiiciit  of  his  services  in  the  work  of  the 
home  farm  until  after  he  had  attained  his  majority,  when  he  started  out 
in  life  on  his  own  account. 

On  the  1st  of  April,  1S82.  Mr.  Standerline  was  married  to  Miss 
Stella  Arnold,  a  daughter  of  H.  D.  and  Mary  (Dunn)  Arnold.  Mrs. 
Standerline  was  born  in  Newberg  township,  where  her  parents  located 
at  an  early  period  in  the  development  of  this  county.  By  her  marriage 
she  has  become  the  mother  of  three  children,  who  are  yet  living:  Del- 
la,  the  wife  of  Guy  Harwood,  a  resident  of  Newl)erg  township:  Bert, 
who  is  attending  school  in  Vandalia,  Michigan:  and  Glenn,  wlio  is  at 
home. 

The  farm  ujjon  which  the  family  resides  comprises  sixty  acres  of 
good  land,  and  here  IMr.  Standerline  is  successfully  carrying  on  general 
agricultural  pursuits.  He  has  placed  his  fields  under  a  liigh  state  of 
cultivation  and  annually  harvests  good  crops.  Evers-tbing  about  his 
farm  is  kept  in  good  condition  and  in  his  methods  he  is  practical  and  en- 
terprising. He  has  been  quite  active  in  local  politics,  recognized  as  one 
of  the  strong  and  stalwart  advocates  of  the  Republican  party.  He  was 
treasurer  of  Newberg  township  for  two  years  and  has  been  clerk  for 
six  years,  holding  the  position  at  the  present  time.  Having  spent  the 
greater  part  of  his  life  in  this  county  he  is  widely  known  and  his  prom- 
inence in  jniblic  affairs  has  made  him  a  leader  in  his  community.  His 
long  continuance  in  office  is  indicative  of  his  faithful  and  capable  service. 
In  business  matters  he  is  found  to  be  straightforwarrl  and  reliable,  as 
well  as  energetic,  and  the  success  which  he  has  enjoyed  is  well  merited. 

GEORGE  W.  ROBBINS. 

G.  W.  Robbins,  who  carries  on  farming  interests  on  section  27. 
Porter  township,  and  is  numbered  among  the  prominent  early  settlers 
of  the  countv,  was  born  Deceml)cr  16.   1840,  on  the  place  where  he  yet 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  473 

resides.  The  famih'  name  lias  Imig  been  closely  and  honorably  asso- 
ciated with  the  history  i^f  the  county  in  the  work  of  development  and 
improvement,  tlis  father,  Mioses  K<jbl)ins,  was  a  native  of  Pittsburg, 
Pennsylvania,  where  he  was  reared  to  the  age  of  eighteen  years,  when, 
in  1S31,  he  came  to  ^Michigan,  settling  in  1833  upon  the  farm  which 
is  now  the  home  of  G.  \V.  Robbins  of  this  review.  He  was  one  of  the 
earliest  residents  oi  Porter  township  and  he  also  took  up  land  from  the 
governuient  in  Ahjtville  township.  St.  Joseph  county,  that  he  traded  for 
the  farm  upon  which  our  subject  now  resides.  On  the  latter  tract  he 
built  a  log  cabin  on  the  bank  nf  what  is  now  called  Robbins  Lake,  hav- 
ing been  so  named  in  his  lienor.  Subsequently  he  built  the  log  house  in 
which  G.  W.  Rolibins  first  opened  his  eyes  to  the  light  of  day  and  sub- 
sequently he  erected  a  brick  residence  that  yet  stands  on  the  farm  and 
is  one  of  the  old  and  prominent  landmarks  of  this  ixirtion  of  the  county. 
He  died  in  1849  at  the  ciimparatively  early  age  of  forty-two  years,  yet 
during  the  period  of  his  residence  in  the  county  he  took  an  active  and 
helpful  part  in  reclaiming  the  district  for  die  purposes  of  civilization  and 
in  laying  broad  and  deep  the  found:ition  for  the  present  progress  and 
prosperity.  His  wife  bore  tlie  maiden  name  of  Elizabeth  Davison  and 
was  a  native  of  Ohio.  She  lived  to  the  age  of  seventy-five  years.  _  In 
their  familv  were  live  children:  Lucinda  J-.  now  deceased;  William, 
who  is  living  in  F.lkhart.  Indiana:  George  W.,  of  this  review:  Mrs. 
Nancy  Ellen  Cundiff,  whose  home  is  in  .Vledo,  Illinois;  and  Mrs.  :\Iary 
L.  Speece,  of  Porter  townshi]). 

Mr.  Robbins  was  the  third  child  and  second  son  of  the  famdy  and 
upon  the  old  homestead  farm  he  spent  the  days  of  his  boyhood  and 
youth,  alternating  h.is  work  in  the  fields  through  the  summer  months 
with  attendance  at  the  district  schools  in  the  winter  seasons.  His  en- 
tire life  has  been  passed  upon  this  farm  and  thus  its  present  stateof 
improvement  and  development  is  largely  attributable  to  his  persevering 
and  diligent  effort.  As  a  companion  and  helpmate  for  life's  journey  he 
chose  INIiss  Sarah  T-  Rogers,  to  whom  he  was  married  on  the  6th  of 
Octo]>cr  1863.  She  is  a  daughter  of  Jesse  and  IMary  A.  (Bates)  Rog- 
ers and 'was  bcni  in  Yates  countv.  New  York,  on  the  17th  of  October. 
1844.  In  her  earlv  childhood,  when  only  about  two  years  old,  she  was 
brought  bv  her  parents  to  Cass  county,  the  family  home  l>eing  estab- 
lished in  Porter  township,  where  she  has  since  lived.  By  her  marriage 
she  has  l)ecome  the  mother  of  eight  children:  Lefy,  now  the  wife  of 
L  C.  Chadwick,  a  resident  of  Grangeville,  Idaho:  Linward  G.,  a  farmer 
who  owns  a  good  propertv  in  Constantine  township,  St.  Joseph  county, 
Michigan:  !\I.  L..  w^ho  is  engaged  in  the  grocery  business  at  Elkhart, 
Indiana:  Leslie  D..  a  civil  engineer,  residing  in  ^lexico:  Lvle  M.  C, 
now  of  Montana;  Lena  G..  who  is  attending  the  Hillsdale  fMichigan) 
College;  and  two  are  deceased. 

Mr.  Robbins  has  a  farm  of  one  hundred  and  sixty-three  acres, 
which  is  supplied  with  modern  equipments,  and  also  owns  another  val- 


*7i  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

uable  propeiiy  of  two  hundred  and  niiie  and  a  half  acres  on  section  35, 
Porter  township.  His  landed  possessions  in  all  embrace  ihree  luuKlred 
and  sixty-three  and  a  half  acres,  which  property  returns  to  hun  a  very  de- 
sirahle  niconie.  His  husmess  is  carefully  conducted  and  everythiii;^ 
alxiut  hl^  place  is  indicati\e  nf  a  progressive  spirit  and  practicalnicth- 
ods.  He  has  voted  with  the  Republican  party  since  age  gave  to  liini  the 
right  of  franchise  and  has  taken  an  active  interest  in  political  questions 
and  issues  of  the  day  and  the  success  of  the  party  organization.  He  has 
held  various  local  offices,  including  that  of  highway  commissioner  and 
town.diip  treasurer,  serving  in  the  latter  position  for  two  terms.  He 
has  Ijeen  a  lifelong  resident  of  the  county  and  his  mind  bears  the  impress 
of  its  early  historic  annals.  He  can  relate  many  interesting  incidents 
of  pioneer  life  and  cx])eriences  and  he  is  a  worthy  representative  of  that 
class  of  citizens  whose  labors,  while  promoting  individual  success,  have 
also  been  of  benefit  to  the  county  in  furthering  its  agricultural  devel- 
opment and  also  in  promoting  its  political  status. 

CHARLES  W.  rOE. 

Charles  W.  Toe  has  been  a  resident  of  Xewberg  township  for  filtv- 
three  years  and  therefore  justly  .leser\es  to  lie  classed  with  the  old 
settlers.  He  has  a  farm  of  one  hundred  and  forty-eight  acres,  which 
is  carefully  cullivate<l  and  iinpnned.  his  entire  life  having  been  devoted 
to  agricultural  jiursuits.  This  tract  of  land  lies  on  section  jt.  Xewberg 
township,  and  is  now  a  valur.ble  property,  owing  to  the  care  and  labor 
which  he  has  bestowed  upon  it.  Mr.  Poe  is  one  of  Michigan's  native 
sons,  for  his  birth  occurred  in  Fabius  township,  St.  Joseph  countv,  on 
the  5th  of  August.  1S53.  Flis  father.  Charles  R.  Poe,  was  a  native  of 
Crawford  cotmty,  Ohio,  and  was  the  son  of  George  Poe.  who  continued 
his  residence  in  Crawford  county  until  1835  ^"<'  then  sought  a  home  in 
Micliigan.  making  his  way  to  Cass  county,  which  was  then  a  wild  and 
unimproved  region.  Most  of  the  land  was  raw  and  uncultivated  and 
only  here  and  there  had  a  little  settlement  been  made  amidst  the  dense 
forest  to  show  that  the  work  of  civilization  and  improvement  had  been 
begun.  George  Poe  located  on  land  on  section  22,  Xewberg  township, 
entering  the  same  from  the  government  on  the  i6th  of  September.  T835. 
Not  a  furrow  had  been  turned,  not  an  improvement  made,  and  the  ar- 
duous task  of  developing  the  land  devolved  upon  Mr.  Poe  and  his  sons. 
He,  however,  possessed  the  spirit  of  the  pioneer  such  as  was  displayed 
by  his  ancestor,  Adam  Poe.  the  famous  Indian  fighter. 

Charles  R.  Poe,  the  father  of  our  subject,  was  reared  amid  the  wild 
scenes  of  frontier  life,  sharing  with  the  family  in  the  usual  hardships 
and  trials  incident  to  settling  in  the  far  west.  He  took  part  in  the  work 
of  cutting  the  timber,  clearing  the  land,  and  throughout  his  entire  life 
he  followed  the  occupation  of  farming.  He  was  twice  married,  the 
first  union  being  with  Miss  Cassie  X'ewcll.  who  died  leaving  three  chil- 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COL'XTY  475 

dren.  one  of  whom  yet  survives,  namclv  :  George  W.  Pue,  who  makes 
his  lioiue  near  Jones.  Alter  losing  liis  first  wife  Mr.  Poe  was  joined  in 
weditjck  tM  Mi.-,s  Julia  Schall,  a  native  of  Pennsylvania,  who  came  to 
A'Jichigan  wuli  her  parents,  the  family  home  being  estahlished  in  St. 
josepli  cnunty.  '1  iiere  were  two  sons  and  four  daughters  born  of  this 
marriage  and  with  one  exception  all  are  yet  living.  All  were  horn  in 
this  county  with  tiie  exception  of  Charles  \\'.  and  George  W.  Poe.  who 
were  young  when  their  parents  removed  to  Xewberg  township. 

He  was  reared  here  to  farm  life  and  pursued  bis  educatiijn  in  the 
district  sclionls,  wherein  he  mastered  the  Ijranches  of  English  learning 
usually  taught  in  such  institutions.  During  the  summer  months  he 
worked  in  the  fields  and  remained  at  home  until  twenty-two  years  of 
age.  assisting  in  the  task  of  clearing  the  farm  and  placing  it  under  the 
plow.  He  gained  practical  knowledge  of  the  best  methods  of  tilling  the 
fields,  learned  to  know  what  was  demanded  in  the  soil  for  the  various 
crops  and  the  most  favorable  time  of  jilanting.  so  that  he  was  well  qual- 
ified to  engage  in  farm  work  on  his  own  account  when  he  married  and 
established  a  home  of  bis  own. 

It  was  on  the  25di  of  AugT.ist.  1875.  that  Mr.  Poe  was  united  in 
marriage  to  Miss  Carrie  Thomas,  a  daughter  of  William  and  Delight 
(Galpin)  Thomas.  Her  father  was  a  native  of  New  York  and  on  re- 
moving to  ?\Iichigan  settled  in  Macomb  county.  In  his  family  were 
six  children,  two  sons  and  four  daughters,  of  whom  ^ilrs.  Poe  was  the 
second  child.  She  was  thirteen  years  of  age  when  brought  to  the  west 
and  has  since  lived  in  Cass  county.  .\t  the  time  of  their  marriage  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Poe  began  their  domestic  life  on  a  farm  on  section  22.  Xew- 
berg townshio,  and  there  in  the  midst  of  the  forest  he  cleared  a  tract 
of  land.  Th.eir  first  house  was  a  log  cabin  eighteen  by  twenty-four  feet, 
two  stcjrics  in  height.  ]Mr.  Poe  continued  the  work  of  cultivating  the 
place  for  fourteen  years,  when  he  removed  to  bis  present  farm  on  sec- 
tion 21,  X^'ewberg  townsliip.  Here  he  has  one  hundred  and  forty-eight 
acres  of  productive  land,  which  he  has  brought  under  a  high  state  of  cul- 
tivation. Pie  has  been  a  hard-working  man  and  has  lived  a  busy  and 
useful  life,  his  labors  resultirig  in  bringing  him  a  comfortable  compe- 
tence. 

Unto  Mr.  and  ]\Irs.  Vi'.e  have  been  born  four  daughters:  Lcjviso, 
the  wife  of  Delbert  Stephenson,  who  is  living  in  X'ewberg  township; 
Minnie,  the  wire  of  William  Kahler,  also  of  X^ewberg  township;  Mabel, 
the  wife  of  William  Meek,  of  Emmet  county.  ]Michigan;  and  Leon,  at 
home.  The  name  of  Poe  has  been  closely  associated  with  the  histor}-  of 
the  county  through  many  long  years,  the  grandfather  of  our  subject 
taking  a  vcr_\-  active  and  helpful  part  in  the  early  pioneer  development, 
and  Poe  cemetery  was  named  in  his  honor.  Tlie  work  of  progress  was 
carried  on  by  the  father  and  has  been  continued  by  our  subject,  who  is 
an  enterprising  citizen,  desirous  of  promoting  the  best  interests  of  the 
county.     In,  his  pi^litical  views  he  is  a  Democrat,  but  without  aspiration 


476  HISTORY  OK  CASS  COUXTY 

for  office,  prcferrinij:  to  qive  1iis  undivided  attention  to  his  business  af- 
fairs. Tic  is  well  Iviinwn  in  Cass  cainty,  where  lie  lias  so  long  resided, 
liaving  lived  continuously  on  sections  21  and  22  in  this  township  for 
fifty-three  }ears.  and  has  an  exten.'^ive  circle  of  friends.  Both  he  and  his 
wife  are  estimable  people  and  well  deserx'e  mention  in  this  volume 
among  the  representative  citizens  of  the  county. 

ALONZO  P.  BEEAIAX. 

Alonzo  r.  Beenian  is  a  worthy  and  successful  representative  of 
agricultural  interests,  who  has  long  been  identified  therewith  in  Cass 
county.  He  owns  here  a  valuable  property  and  in  its  control  and  man- 
agement displays  excellent  business  ability  and  keen  foresight.  More- 
over he  deserves  mention  in  this  volume  because  of  the  active  and  help- 
ful part  which  he  has  taken  in  matters  of  public  interest,  serving  on 
various  occasions  in  office,  the  duties  of  which  he  has  performed  with 
faithfulness,  ability  and  fidelity.  lie  now  resides  on  section  14,  Xew- 
berg  township.  His  birthplace  was  in  Crawford  county,  Pennsylvania, 
his  natal  day  being  February  C>.  1S41.  His  father,  Myram  Beeman,  was 
a  native  of  X^ew  York  and  was  a  son  of  Gideon  Beeman.  whose  birth 
occurred  in  Connecticut  and  who  was  of  English  descent,  the  family 
having  been  established  in  .Vmcrica  in  colonial  days.  In  the  stale  of 
his  nativity  IVIyram  Beeman  was  reared  and  educated,  anrl  thruugbout 
his  entire  life  followed  the  occupation  of  farming.  He  was  married  in 
X'ew  York  to  Miss  Lucena  Libhart.  also  a  native  of  X'^ew  Yurk.  and  of 
German  descent,  her  father  ha\'ing  been  born  in  Germany,  while  his 
death  occurred  during  the  infancy  of  his  daughter.  Myram  Beeman 
removed  from  the  Empire  state  to  Pennsylvania  about  iS,^^.  and  there 
resided  for  twenty-two  years,  when  in  J^S?  ^^  came  to  Michigan,  set- 
tling in  Cass  county.  Plere  he  also  carried  on  farming  and  his  death 
occurred  in  X^ewberg  township  when  he  was  seventy-nine  years  of  age. 
He  held  membership  in  the  United  Brethren  church  and  was  one  of  the 
ministers  of  that  denomination.  Efis  acquaintance  was  a  very  wide  and 
favorable  one  and  his  influence  was  ever  a  potent  element  for  good  in 
the  communities  where  he  lived.  He  stood  for  iustice.  truth  and  right 
under  all  circumstances,  and  bv  example  as  well  as  by  precept  taught 
the  nobler  principles  which  elevate  mankind.  His  wife  also  passed 
away  in  X^ewberg  townshi]-).  being  in  her  ninetieth  year  at  the  time  she 
was  called  to  her  final  rest.  In  their  familv  were  eight  sons  and  two 
•daughters,  and  of  that  number  eight  reached  }-ears  of  maturity,  while 
six  are  now  living,  being  residents  of  various  sections  of  the  country. 

Alonzo  P.  Beeman  is  the  onlv  one  now  residing  in  Cass  county.  He 
is  the  seventh  son  and  eighth  child  in  the  familv.  His  early  vouth  was 
spent  in  the  state  of  his  nativity,  and  he  is  indebted  to  the  public  school 
system  of  Xew  York  for  the  educational  privilesres  which  he  enioved 
and  which  prepared  him  for  life's  practical  and  responsible  duties.  \Micn 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY  477 

a  youtli  of  fifteen  years,  it  being  necessitous  that  he  provide  for  his 
own  support,  he  started  out  to  make  his  way  in  the  world,  and  chose 
the  west  as  liie  scene  of  his  lab<jrs.  Accordingly  in  1856  he  made  his 
way  to  Centervillc,  St.  Joseph  county,  ^ilichigan,  and  in  the  fall  of  the 
same  year  came  to  Newberg  township,  Cass  county.  Here  he  worked 
at  the  carpenter's  trade  and  assisted  in  building  many  houses  in  the 
township  at  an  early  day.  In  1S63,  in  response  to  the  country's  call 
for  troops,  he  enlisted  for  service  in  the  Union  army  as  a  private  of 
Company  G,  Nineteenth  Michigan  Volunteer  Infantry,  and  served 
throughout  tlie  remainder  of  the  war  with  patriotic  ardor  and  undimin- 
ished loyalty.  He  was  wounded  in  the  left  side  at  the  battle  of  Resaca, 
and  was  in  the  hospital  for  eight  months,  but  as  soon  as  possi!:)le  returned 
to  his  regiment  and  served  until  the  close  of  the  war.  He  participated 
in  many  prominent  battles  which  led  up  to  the  final  victory  that  crowned 
the  Union  arms,  and  was  always  faithful  to  his  duty  under  all  circum- 
stances. When  the  war  was  over  he  participated  in  the  grand  review 
at  Washington,  D.  C,  the  most  celebrated  military  pageant  ever  seen 
on  the  western  hemisphere,  Avhere  thousands  of  soldiers  of  the  Union 
army  marched  by  the  reviewing  stand  on  which  stood  the  president  and 
other  high  officials  of  the  land,  greeting  the  return  of  the  victorious 
troops. 

Mr.  Becman  received  an  honorable  discharge  at  Jackson,  ?^Iichigan, 
on  the  5th  of  August,  1865,  and  immediately  afterward  returned  to  his 
home  in  Cass  county.  He  soon  purchased  a  farm  in  Xewberg  township 
which  he  cultivated  for  about  two  years  and  then  sold.  In  1867  he 
removed  to  Kansas,  where  he  remained  for  a  short  time,  after  which  he 
returned  to  Newlierg  township,  Cass  county.  Here  he  purcliased  a 
farm  upon  which  he  has  since  resided,  his  residence  here  covering  more 
than  a  third  of  a  centur>-.  There  Avere  no  improvements  upon  the  place 
when  he  took  possession,  but  he  has  wrought  a  marked  change  in  its 
appearance  by  adding  good  buildings,  well  kept  fences,  by  tilling  the 
soil  and  otherwise  carrying  on  the  farm  work  along  modern,  progressive 
lines.  The  place  comprises  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  of  good  land, 
which  responds  readily  to  the  care  and  cultivation  which  he  bestows 
upon  it,  the  fields  yielding  golden  harvests  in  return  for  the  work  which 
he  puts  thereon. 

Before  leaving  for  the  front  at  the  time  of  the  Civil  war  Mr. 
Beeman  was  married  on  the  14th  of  October,  1862,  to  Miss  Nancy  V. 
Bogert,  a  daughter  of  Thomas  Bogert,  and  a  native  of  Adrian,  Michi- 
gan. She  was  brought  to  Cass  county  when  but  seven  years  of  age 
and  her  girlhood  days  were  passed  in  Newberg  township.  Unto  this 
marriage  have  been  born  five  children:  Annie,  the  wife  of  Wiley 
Russie;  Lewis,  who  married  Ida  O'Connor  and  is  now  living  in  New- 
berg township ;  Stella,  the  wife  of  Sherman  Poe,  a  resident  of  St.  Joseph 
countv,  ^Michigan :  .A.lonzo  Guy,  who  married  Lura  Waltz  and  is  living 
in  Newberg  township:  and  Ned,  at  home. 


47 S  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTV 

Mr.  Beemaii  is  a  stalwart  Republican,  liclieving  tirnily  in  the  prin- 
ciples of  his  party,  and  he  has  been  active  in  its  support,  doing  all  in 
his  power  to  secure  its  success.  His  fellow  townsmen  have  rewarded 
him  for  his  party  fealty  by  electing  him  to  various  positions  of  public 
honor  and  trust,  the  duties  of  which  he  has  faith  full}  performed.  He 
was  township  treasurer  for  two  years,  supervisor  for  fourteen  consec- 
utive years,  and  then  resigned  that  <-l"tice  by  reason  of  his  election  to  the 
position  of  county  treasurer  in  iSrjS.  He  ser\ed  for  two  terms  and  was 
then  re-elected  in  1900,  holding  the  oftice  to  the  time  limit,  for  no  one 
is  allowed  to  ser\e  for  more  than  two  terms  in  this  jKisition.  He  then 
retired  from  the  office  as  he  had  entered  it — with  the  confidence  and 
good  will  of  all  concerned.  He  has  been  school  director  for  eighteen 
years  and  the  cause  of  education  has  found  in  him  a  warm  friend.  He 
is  a  member  of  May  post,  \o.  65,  G.  A.  R.,  at  Jones,  in  which  he  lias 
filled  all  of  the  chairs,  including  that  of  commander.  In  public  ofllce 
as  well  as  in  the  field  of  battle  he  has  displayed  his  loyalty  to  his  country. 
and  in  an  active  life  has  portrayed  those  sterling  traits  of  character  which 
win  success  and  at  the  same  time  gain  the  respect  and  trust  of  one's 
fellow  men.  Starting  out  in  life  on  his  own  account  when  but  fifteen 
years  of  age  be  b.as  steadily  advanced  through  hi<  own  well  directed 
efforts  and  may  well  be  termed  a  self-made  man.  for  be  has  been  both 
the  architect  and  builder  of  his  fortunes. 

ORREX  \'.  HICKS.      . 

Orren  \'.  Hicks.  fol!o\\ing  the  occupation  of  farming  and  also 
serving  as  super\'i-;or  in  ^Idton  township,  was  horn  on  the  27th  of 
September,  1809,  in  the  township  which  is  still  his  home.  He  rep- 
resents one  of  the  honored  pioneer  families,  being  a  son  of  R.  V.  Hicks, 
who  was  a  farmer  by  occupation  and  came  to  Cass  county  at  an  early 
epoch  in  its  development.  A  nati\e  of  England,  he  resided  in  that 
country  until  1S37,  when  he  crossed  the  Atlantic  to  America  and  made 
his  way  at  once  to  Michigan.  He  was  alwut  eighteen  years  of  age  at 
the  time,  his  birth  having  occurred  in  Land's  End,  England,  on  the 
17th  of  November,  1819.  Having  heard  favorable  reports  concerning 
the  business  opportunities  of  tlie  new  world  he  made  the  ocean  voyage 
and  joined  his  brother  in  Ontwa  township,  where  he  remained  for  a 
short  time.  He  then  located  in  Xiles,  securing  a  position  in  a  distillery 
owned  and  operated  by  John  Dodge  &  Company,  with  whom  he  worked 
for  a  short  time,  becoming  foreman  of  that  place.  Further  mention 
of  Mr.  Hicks  is  made  on  another  page  of  this  work. 

Orren  V.  Hicks,  whose  name  introduces  this  review,  was  reared 
upon  the  homestead  farm  and  is  indebted  to  the  district  school  system 
of  Milton  township  for  the  educational  privileges  he  enjoyed.  He 
pursued  his  studies  through  the  winter  months  and  in  the  summer 
months  worked  at  the  labors  of  the  field.     Wishing  to  have  a  home  of 


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HISTORY  OF  CASS  COL'X'IA'  -t79 

his  uwn  lie  ccim])lL-U'(l  lii>  aiTaii^Lnicut^  therefiir  I'v  hi.-  iiianiatj;e  nii 
tlie  13th  of  January,  iSuj,  tn  MibS  Dertha  F.  Thiinipsnn,  a  native  of 
Ontwa  tuwnship,  bMin  Dcccinl.cr  3,  1871.  and  a  daughter  df  B.  F. 
Thtimpsun,  who  fnllc^wed  farming  in  Ontwa  township.  He  scttleil  in 
Cass  county  when  it  was  emerging  from  pioneer  conditions.  ha\-ing 
come  to  the  middle  west  from  Delaware.  Mrs.  Hicks  graduated  in 
the  High  School  of  Edwardsburg,  in  the  class  of  1888,  and  entered 'the 
state  normal  at  Ypsilanti,  ^Michigan,  taking  the  English  course,  spent 
one  years  there  and  meant  to  take  a  full  graduating  course,  hut  health 
forbade  her.  The  marriage  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hicks  has  been  blessed 
with  two  daughters;  Morcncc  D..  who  was  born  June  6.  i8y6,  and 
Vivian  Leona.  born  .\pril   13,  1903. 

At  the  time  of  his  marriage  Orren  V.  Hicks  removed  to  what 
was  known  as  the  Enos  farm,  comprising  sixty-seven  acres  of  land, 
and  he  has  become  the  owner  of  forty  acres  adjoining,  also  eighty 
acres  just  north  of  his  present  farm,  and  forty  acres  of  timber,  mak- 
ing a  total  of  two  hundred  and  twenty-seven  acres  in  Cass  county. 
The  eighty  acres  received  only  one  transfer,  and  ]Mr.  and  ]\Irs.  Hicks 
have  in  their  possession  the  old  parchment  deed  signed  by  President 
Andrew  Jackson.  It  iiears  the  date  of  execution  of  April  i,  183 1,  and 
this  is  the  fifth  deed  of  the  kind  found  in  Cass  county.  He  now  has 
a  well  improved  farm  here,  equipped  with  good  buildings  and  ?ul> 
stantial  impro\"ements.  \\iiile  well  tilled  fields  return  him  golden  har- 
vests for  the  care  and  labor  be  bestows  upon  them.  For  three  years  he 
filled  tlie  office  of  township  clerk,  having  been  ciiosen  to  that  position 
on  the  Democratic  ticket.  In  1901  he  was  elected  sui>ervisor  and 
served  in  that  office  for  five  years,  being  the  present  incumbent.  He 
has  thus  taken  an  acti\'e  jiart  in  local  political  affairs  and  he  keeps 
well  informed  on  the  questions  and  issues  of  the  day.  He  is  a  charter 
member  of  Edwardsiiurg  tent  Xo.  723,  K.  O.  T.  'M..  and  he  enjoys 
the  warm  regard  of  his  brethren  in  the  fraternity  as  well  as  of  the 
general  public.  His  wife  is  also  a  member  of  the  Edwardsburg  Hive 
No.  345,  L.  O.  T.  M.  He  is  witlely  known  in  the  county  where  his 
entire  life  has  been  passed  and  where  he  has  so  directed  his  labors 
as  to  win  a  gratifying  measure  of  prosperity,  and  at  the  same  time 
make  for  himself  an  honoralile  name. 

FRANKLIN  CHAPMAN. 

The  agricultural  interests  of  Newberg  township  find  a  worthy  rep- 
resentative in  Franklin  Chapman,  who  is  now  hving  on  section  17,  where 
he  owns  and  operates  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  of  land,  in  connec- 
tion with  which  he  is  successfully  engaged  in  stock-raising,  making  a 
specialty  of  St.  Lam!:iert  and  Jersey  cattle.  He  was  born  December 
18,  1S53.  on  the  farm  where  he  yet  resides,  in  a  little  log  cabin  which 
was  one  of  the  typical  pioneer  homes  of  the  county.     He  is  descended 


480  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

from  an  old  New  England  family,  his  paternal  grandfather  being  Levi 
Chapman,  who  was  a  native  of  Vermont  and  was  of  Scotch  lineage. 
The  father,  James  M.  Chapman,  was  born  in  Medina  county.  Ohio, 
Februar}'  3.  1818.  He  came  to  this  state,  however,  at  an  early  day, 
settling  in  Cass  county  in  1S44,  being  the  first  resident  in  this  part  of 
the  county,  his  nearest  neighbor  being  two  or  three  miles  away.  There 
in  the  midst  of  the  forest  he  cleared  and  developed  a  farm,  cutting  away 
the  trees  before  he  could  plow  and  cultivate  the  land.  As  the  years 
passed  he  wrought  a  marked  transformation  in  the  appearance  of  the 
place,  which  became  a  well  develojied  property,  and  he  resided  thereon 
until  his  death,  which  occurred  when  he  was  in  the  eighty-first  year  of 
his  age.  From  the  time  of  the  organization  of  the  Republican  party  he 
was  one  of  its  stanch  supporters  and  took  an  active  interest  in  its  growth 
and  success.  His  fellow'  townsmen  frequently  called  him  to  office  and 
he  served  as  supervisor  for  a  long  period,  perhaps  about  fourteen  years 
in  all.  He  was  lo},al  to  every  trust  reposed  in  him  and  his  life  was  in 
entire  harmony  with  his  professions  as  a  niember  of  the  Baptist  church. 
He  took  a  very  helpful  part  in  church  work,  contributed  generously  of 
his  means  to  its  support,  assisted  in  the  various  church  activities  and  was 
a  deacon  for  many  years.  He  wedded  Miss  Mary  Haggerty,  who  lived 
to  be  seventy-four  years  of  age.  In  their  family  were  two  sons,  the 
elder  being  Harvey  Chapman,  who  died  at  the  age  of  two  years. 

Franklin  Chapmnn,  the  younger  son  and  the  only  representative  of 
the  family  now  living,  was  reared  upon  the  old  farm 'homestead  in  Xew- 
berg  township,  where  he  yet  resides.  At  the  usual  age  he  began  attending 
the  district  schools  and  as  his  age  and  strengtii  permitted  he  assisted  more 
and  more  largely  in  the  work  of  the  fann  during  the  summer  months, 
aiding  in  the  plowing,  planting  and  han,-esting.  He  was  first  married 
on  the  1st  of  Alarch,  1873,  the  lady  of  his  choice  being  Miss  Lovina 
Cleveland,  who  died  leaving  two  children:  Mrs.  Lulu  Van  Stallen,  who 
is  now  a  widow;  and  Verna,  who  is  the  wife  of  Arthur  Pound,  of  New- 
berg  townslnp.  On  the  20th  of  March,  1882,  Mr.  Chapman  was  again 
married,  his  second  union  being  with  Miss  Minnie  Williams,  a  daughter 
of  A.  H.  and  Julia  A.  (Marshall)  Williams.  Mrs.  Chapman  was  burn 
in  Suscjuehanna  county,  Pennsylvania,  and  was  brought  to  Michigan 
when  about  five  years  of  age,  the  family  taking  up  their  abode  in  St. 
Joseph  county.  She  was  fourteen  years  of  age  when  they  came  to  Cass 
county.  She  pursued  her  education  in  Colon,  Michigan,  and  in  the  In- 
diana Normal  School  at  Valparaiso,  Indiana,  and  for  five  years  was  suc- 
cessfully engaged  in  teaching  in  Cass  county.  She  spent  two  years  as 
a  teacher  in  the  Vandalia  schools  and  was  an  able  educator,  imparting 
readily  and  impressively  to  others  the  knowledge  that  she  had  acquired. 
Unto  'Sir.  and  ^Irs.  Chapman  have  been  born  three  children:  Bion 
F.,  who  is  at  home;  Virginia,  who  is  a  graduate  of  the  Dowagiac  high 
school  and  of  the  Agricultural  College  and  is  now  engaged  in  teach- 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  4>,1 

ing;  and  Mildred  J.,  the  wife  of  Leonard  R.  Norton,  a  resident  farmer 
of  Newberg  townbhip. 

Mr.  Chapman  is  the  owner  of  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  of 
arable  land  on  section  17,  Newberg  township.  His  farm  is  divided 
into  fields  of  convenient  size  by  well  kept  fences  and  he  has  good  im- 
provements upon  the  place,  including  the  latest  improved  machinery 
to  facilitate  the  \\ork  of  the  fields.  In  his  farm  work  he  is  practical, 
is  systematic  in  his  methods  and  is  accomplishing  good  results  through 
his  unremitting  diligence.  He  is  now  making  a  specialty  of  raising 
fine  cattle  of  the  St.  Lambert  and  Jersey  breeds.  In  his  political  views 
Mr.  Chapman  has  always  been  a  stanch  and  earnest  Republican,  identi- 
fying himself  with  the  party  when  age  conferred  upon  him  tlie  right  of 
franchise.  He  has  served  as  township  treasurer  for  four  years,  proving 
a  capable  ofiicer,  but  prefers  to  give  his  time  and  energies  to  his  busi- 
ness afifairs,  in  which  he  is  meeting  with  signrd  success. 

GEORGE  W.  HARDY. 

George  W.  Plardy,  the  proprietor  of  the  Clover  Leaf  Dairy  Farm, 
situated -on  section   17,  Marccllus  township,  has  prospered  in  his  under- 
takings and   is   now   conducting  a   successful   business.      He   was  born 
near  Three  Rivers,  St.  Joseph  county,  ^Michigan,  on  the   17th  of  Scp- 
teniber,  1S46,  and  is  a  son  of  George  Hardy,  Sr.,  who  was  a  native  of 
Yorkshire,   England,   and  came  to  the  United  States  with  his  parents, 
who  were   among  the   early   settlers   of  St.   Joseph   county.    Michigan, 
locating  there   when  the  Indians  were   numerous   and   when  little  was 
done  to  subjugate  the  wilderness  and  convert  it  into  uses  for  the  white 
race.      There  the   fatlier  of  our  subject   spent  his   remaining  days,  his 
time  and   energies  being  given  to  the  development  of  a   farm   in   the 
midst  of  the  forest  and  its  further  improvement  as  the  years  went  by. 
He  lived  to  the  age  of  sixty  years.     He  married  Frances  Arney,  who 
was  born  in   Pennsylvania,   and   died   in   St.   Joseph  county,   Michigan, 
when  seventy  years  of  age.      She  was  a   daughter  of  John    Arney,   a 
native  of  England,  who  served  in  the  Revolutionary  war  on  the  Ameri- 
can side  and  lost  an  arm  on  board  ship  while  acting  as  a  member  of  the 
navy.     He  received  from  President  Jackson  a  leather  deed  to  land  wliich 
he  entered   from  the  government  in  St.  Joseph  county.   Michigan,  his 
farm  lying  in  Lockport  township.     This  was  given  him  in  recognition 
of  his  military  service,  and  upon  this  place  he  remained  until  called  to 
his  final  rest  when  he  was  eighty  years  of  age.      In  his   family  were 
four  children,  including  ]\Irs.  Frances  Hardv.  the  mother  of  our  subject. 
In  the  family   of  Mr.   and   Mrs.    George  Hardy,   Sr.,   were  nine 
children :     ]\Iarv,   deceased :  Joseph,   now  living  in   Kansas :  Ruth,   de- 
ceased:  Mrs.   Lydia  Dickinson,   of  St.   Joseph  county,   !^Iichigan:  Mrs. 
Jane  Fonda,   living  in   Denver.   Colorado:  John,   a  resident  farmer  of 
this  county;  George  W.,  whose  name  introduces  this  record:  Giarles, 


482  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY 

who  resides  in  Kalkaska  county,  this  state,  and  Carrie,  who  died  at  tlie 
age  of  twenty-six  years. 

George  \V.  Hardy  spent  the  period  of  his  minority  upon  ins 
father's  farm  and  was  trained  to  tlie  labors  of  the  fiekls,  early  becom- 
ing familiar  throuyh  actual  experience. with  all  the  duties  that  fall  to 
tlie  lot  of  the  agriculturist.  In  187S  he  was  married  to  :\Iiss  Lvdia  A. 
Northrop,  who  was  born  in  Fairfield,  St.  Joseph  county,  Michigan,  June 
23,  1858,  a  daughter  of  John  G.  and  :Maria  (Fonda)  Northrop,  who  were 
natives  of  New  York  and  in  their  childhood  became  residents  of  Mich- 
igan. 

Following  his  marriage  Mr.  Hardy  began  farming  on  his  own 
account,  and  after  a  short  time  he  and  his  wife  removed  to  the  old 
home  place  near  Three  Rivers,  where  they  resided  until  they  took  up 
their  abode  on  their  present  place  on  section  17,  Marcellus  townsliip, 
twenty -five  years  ago.  Here  ]Mr.  Hardy  has  one  hundred  and  twenty 
acres  of  land  which  was  partially  improved  when  it  came  into  his  pos- 
session. He  now  has  gfxjd  substantial  buildings  upon  the  place,  and 
the  land  has  been  brought  under  a  high  state  of  cultivation.  For  some 
years  he  carried  on  general  farming,  but  for  the  past  two  years  has 
made  a  specialty  of  dairyirjg,  and  his  place  is  known  as  the  Qover  Leaf 
Dairy.  He  keeps  fifteen  Jersey  cows  and  has  a  wagon  from  which  he 
retails  milk  in  Marcellus,  having  a  good  patronage  because  of  the  excel- 
lent quality  of  the  milk  which  he  furnishes  and  his  honorable  business 
methods.  He  has  long  been  recognized  as  an  acti^'e  and  enterprising 
business  man,  and  his  energy  and  capable  management  constitute  the 
basic  elements  of  his  success. 

Mr.  Hardy  has  five  children,  two  by  a  previous  marriage:  Orin. 
now  living  in  Chicago;  ^linnie,  the  wife  of  Milo  Vincent,  of  Porter, 
Michigan;  Charles,  at  home:  Elmer,  also  of  Porter;  and  Lester,  at  home. 
The  father  and  his  four  sons  are  all  stanch,  supporters  of  the  Republi- 
can party,  and  Mr,  Hardy  is  interested  in  general  progress  to  the  extent 
of  giving  hearty  endorsement  and  co-operation  to  those  mo\-ements 
•which  are  of  direct  benefit  to  the  crimmunity  at  large  and  further  the 
material,  intellectual  and  political  progress  of  the  community. 

ALBERT  J.  SHAXXOX. 

Albert  J.  Shannon  is  the  owner  of  one  of  the  finest  farms  in  !Mar- 
cellus  township,  situated  on  an  elevation  commanding  a  fine  view  of 
Fish  lake.  Moreover  he  is  regarded  as  a  progressive  and  popular  resi- 
dent of  this  portion  of  Cass  count}-,  and  is  well  known  as  a  successful 
agriculturist  and  breeder  of  fine  horses.  He  was  born  in  Huron  town- 
ship, about  two  miles  east  of  Alton,  in  Wayne  county.  New  York. 
January  22.  1S44.  and  is  a  son  of  Archibald  Shannon,  also  a  native 
of  Wayne  count}',  spending  his  entire  life  in  Huron  township,  where 
he  died'  when  about  seventv-?e-\-en  vears  of  age.     In  early  manhood  he 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  483 

wedded  Miss  M:.ry  H}ile,  who  was  born  in  Rose.  Wayne  county,  Xew 
York,  and  tlicre  died,  wlien  about  twenty-six  years  of  age,  a  few  days 
after  the  birtli  of  h.er  son  Albert,  who  was  her  only  child.  After  losing 
his  first  wife  the  father  married  her  sister,  Miss  jane  Hvde.  and  there 
was  one  child  to  this  marriage,  Lester,  who  is  now  living  in  Huron,  Xew 
York. 

Albert  J-  Shannon  was  reared  in  the  place  of  his  nativity  and 
acqtiired  his  education  in  the  public  schools.  He  continued  his  stuilies 
in  Wayne  county  until  the  fall  of  1870,  when  he  went  to  Iowa,  spend- 
ing some  time  in  Marshalltown  and  various  other  places.  .\  few 
months  passed  in  looking  over  a  favorable  location  there,  but  not  find- 
ing what  he  wanted  he  came  to  Cass  county,  Michigan,  in  the  spring 
of  187 1,  and  bought  one  hundred  and  twenty  acres  of  his  present 
farm,  of  which  thirty-five  acres  had  been  improved.  Mr.  Shannon 
cleared  the  remainder,  placed  it  under  the  plow,  and  in  course  of  time 
gatliered  golden  harvests.  He  also  erected  good  buildings,  and  he  bought 
eighty  acres  of  land  adjoining,  so  that  he  now  has  two  hundred  acres 
in  his  home  place,  which  is  situated  on  sections  5,  8  and  9,  Marcellus 
township.  He  also  bought  sixty  acres  on  section  4  of  the  same  town- 
ship, and  now  has  an  excellently  improved  property.  He  has  placed 
under  cultivation  altogether  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  acres  of  land, 
and  his  well  developed  farm  is  indicative  of  his  care  and  lalx:ir,  his  pro- 
gressive methods  and  the  determination  with  which  he  carries  forward 
to  successful  completion  whatever  he  undertakes. 

In  1862  occurred  the  marriage  of  Albert  J.  Shannon  and  Miss  Jane 
Gatchell,  who  was  born  in  Van  Buren  townsliip,  Wayne  county,  Xew 
York,  a  daughter  of  Elisha  and  Margaret  (Britton)  Gatchell.  They 
have  one  son,  Herbert,  who  is  now  living  in  Calhoun  county,  Michigan. 
They  have  also  reared  an  adopted  daughter,  Kate  Moon,  who  is  mar- 
ried and  resides  in  Chicago.  The  home  of  the  family  is  a  beautiful 
farm,  in  fact  harilly  equalled  in  Marcellus  township.  The  family  resi- 
dence is  situated  on  an  elevation  commanding  a  splendid  view  of  Fish 
lake,  the  landscape  presenting  altogether  a  beautiful  picture.  In  addi- 
tion to  the  cultivation  and  improvement  of  the  farm  he  is  well  known 
as  an  extensive  and  successful  breeder  of  fine  horses,  and  has  placed  upon 
the  market  some  splendid  specimens  of  the  noble  steed.  His  political 
allegiance  is  given  to  the  Republican  party,  and  he  was  its  candidate  for 
supervisor.  He  is  active  in  its  ranks,  and  for  two  years  he  served  as 
highway  commissioner.  For  thirty  years  he  has  been  a  Mason  and  has 
served  as  master  of  the  lodge  and  high  priest  of  the  chapter  at  Marcellus. 
He  is  a  charter  member  of  the  chapter,  having  joined  the  organization 
when  capitular  IMasonry  was  first  introduced  into  that  town.  ]\Ir. 
Shannon  is  both  popular  and  progressive,  a  business  man  of  enterprise 
and  in  his  social  relations  he  displays  those  qualities  which  win  warm 
friendships  and  high  regard. 


484  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTV 

EDGAR  J.  GARD. 

Edgar  J.  Gard  is  one  of  the  extensive  land  o\\  ners  of  Cass  county, 
having  in  one  tract  three  luuidrcd  and  seventy-three  acres,  but  half  be- 
longs to  his  sister,  Mrs.  Fulton,  upon  ^vhich'  he  has  lived  since  iSyS. 
This  constitutes  one  of  the  valuable  farms  of  the  county.  It  is  located 
.on  section  20,  Volinia  township,  and  is  improved  with  modern  equip- 
ments and  accessories,  many  of  which  have  been  placed  thereon  by  the 
present  owner.  Mr.  Gard  is  one  of  the  native  sons  of  the  township,  his 
birth  having  occurred  here  on  the  9th  of  February,  1856.  The  family 
"name  has  figured  long  and  prominently  in  connection  with  the  develop- 
"ment  an(l  improvement  of  this  portion  of  the  state.  His  paternal  grand- 
parents were  Jonathan  and  Elizabeth  Gard.  who  came  from  Ohio  to 
Cass  county  in  a  very  early  day,  locating  in  Volinia  township,  where 
Jonathan  Gard  entered  land  from  the  government.  He  was  a  typical 
'pioneer  citizen,  courageously  meeting  the  hardships  and  trials  of  frontier 
life  in  order  to  establish  a  home  for  his  family  and  his  labor  proved  a 
factor  in  the  substantial  development  and  improvement  which  has  fol- 
lowed the  united  and  concerted  labors  of  the  early  settlers. 

Isaac  N.  Gard.  father  of  our  subject,  was  born  in  Ohio,  and  with  his 
parents  came  to  Cass  county,  here  being  reared,  educated  and  married. 
In  fact  he  continued  a  resident  of  Volinia  township  up  to  the  time  of 
his  death,  which  occurred  when  he  was  about  seventy-six  years  of  age. 
His  wife,  who  bore  the  maiden  name  of  Nancy  Shaw,  still  resides  in 
Volinia  township.  By  her  marriage  she  became  the  mother  of  one  son 
and  two  daughters,  namely:  Julia,  now  the  wife  of  Henry  Hepworth, 
of  Kansas;  j\Irs.  Orlcy  Fulton,  and  Edgar  J.,  of  this  review. 

The  youngest  of  the  family,  Edgar  J.  Gard  was  reared  in  Volinia 
township  and  was  given  good  educational  privileges,  pursuing  his  studies 
in  the  village  school  of  Volinia,  also  in  Decatur  and  later  in  the  Indiana 
Normal  School  at  Valparaiso.  He  was  thus  well  equipped  for  life's 
practical  and  responsible  duties  by  thorough  mental  training,  which 
stimulated  his  latent  talents  and  prepared  him  to  meet  the  business 
duties  and  obligations  that  devolved  upon  him  as  he  started  out  in  life 
on  his  own  account.  He  lived  at  home  up  to  the  time  of  his  marriage, 
and  then  settled  upon  a  farm  on  section  21.  Volinia  township,  where  he 
resided  rmtil  1898,  when  he  bought  his  present  farm,  the  tract  compris- 
ing three  hundred  and  seventy-three  acres  of  rich  and  valuable  land 
all  in  one  bodv,  but  half  of  this  land  belongs  to  his  sister,  Mrs.  Fulton. 
He  has  since  given  his  attention  to  general  farming,  raising  the  various 
cereals  best  adapted  to  soil  and  climate.  He  also  has  good  grades  of 
stock  upon  his  farm  and  the  buildings  are  in  keeping  with  ideas  of 
modern  progress.  He  also  owns  a  sawmill  on  section  21.  Volinia  town- 
ship, which'he  operates  in  addition  to  his  agricultural  pursuit^. 

On  the  T4th  of  October,  1879.  Mr.  Gard  married  Miss  Flora  War- 
ner, a  daughter  of  James  H.  and  Rachel   (Richl   Warner.      She  was 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  485 

born  in  Cass  county,  !ier  parents  being  pioneers  of  this  part  of  the  state. 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Card  now  have  one  son.  Dana  \V.,  who  is  pursuing  his 
education  in  the  schools  of  Decatur.  Fraternally  Mr.  Card  is  connected 
with  the  Knights  of  the  Maccabees,  while  politically  he  is  a  Republican, 
having  never  faltered  in  his  allegiance  to  the  party  since  he  cast  his  first 
vote.  All  his  life  he  has  lived  in  this  county  and  he  is  a  typical  western 
man,  alert  and  enterprising.  Fie  [wssesses  an  indomitable  spirit  and 
strong  will  that  have  been  factors  in  winning  for  him  his  present  desira- 
ble success,  enabling  him  to  overcome  all  the  difficulties  and  obstacles 
which  checker  ever}-  business  career.  He  is  a  man  of  strong  convic- 
tions, cpiick  to  discern  the  best  course  to  pursue.  Difficulties  vanish 
before  him  as  mist  before  the  morning  sun  and  he  is  penetrative  and 
practical  in  all  that  he  docs. 

W.  R.  KIRBY. 

W.  R.  Kirby,  filling  the  office  of  super\'isor  in  Volinia  township, 
resides  on  section  21.  and  his  attention  is  given  to  the  development  and 
improvement  of  his  farm,  which  comprises  a  good  trart  of  arable  and 
productive  land.  Fie  was  born  in  Otsego  county.  New  York,  near 
Cooperstown,  Dccenilier  31,  1S43,  '^""^1  '^  of  English  lineage.  His 
parents  \veie  John  aiul  Mary  J.  (Rou.se)  Kirby,  the  former  a  native  of 
England  and  the  latter  of  New  York.  Mr.  Kirby  was  born  in  York- 
shire, England,  and  was  only  about  two  years  old  when  brought  by  his 
parents  to  Michigan,  the  family  home  being  established  in  the  Empire 
state,  where  he  was  reared.  On  leaving  the  east  he  came  to  I\Iichigan, 
settling  in  Flowerfield  township,  St.  Joseph  count}'.  His  wife  spent 
her  girlhood  days  in  the  Empire  state  and  by  her  marriage  she  became 
the  mother  of  eight  children,  three  sons  and  five  daughters,  of  whom 
seven  reached  years  of  maturit}-. 

W.  R.  Kirby,  the  second  child  and  eldest  son  in  the  family,  was 
only  about  three  years  old  when  l>rought  by  his  parents  to  ;Michigan. 
His  childhood  and  youth  were  therefore  passed  in  Flowerfield  town- 
ship, St.  Joseph  county,  where  he  was  reared  in  the  usual  manner  of 
farm  lads  of  that  period,  working  in  the  fields  through  the  summer 
months,  while  in  the  winter  seasons  he  acquired  a  fair  English  educa- 
ition  in  the  district  schools.  He  continued  a  resident  of  St.  Joseph 
county  until  1865,  when  he  came  to  Cass  county,  settling  in  Volinia 
township.  He  began  keeping  house  on  the  farm  where  he  now  resides. 
and  in  1877  he  was  married  to  Miss  Marv'  J.  Mack,  a  daughter  of 
William  and  Theressa  (Wykoff)  Mack.  He  brought  his  bride  to  the 
farm  upon  ^vhich  they  yet  reside  and  here  he  has  continuously^  carried 
on -general  agricultural  pursuits.  Year  by  year  he  has  tilled  his  fields. 
and  through  ~the  rotation  of  crops  and  the  careful  management  of  his 
business  affairs  he  has  been  able  to  secure  good  har^-ests  and  to  find  a 
ready  sale  for  his  products  upon  the  market. 


4S6  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

Mr.  and  Airs.  Kirby  have  no  children  nf  tlieir  own,  but  have  reared 
two  adopted  children,  Joseph  M.  and  Anna  B.  .Mr.  Kirbv  is  deeply  in- 
terested ir.  political  issues  and  questions  of  the  dav.  and  has  always'kcpt 
well  informed  on  subjects  of  vital  interest  to  the  communitv,  tlie  state 
and  the  nation.  He  has  voted  with  the  Republican  partv  since  attaining 
his  majority  and  has  heKl  varicnis  local  offices,  being  f^'rst  called  to  the 
position  of  path  master.  He  has  also  been  township  treasurer  for  two 
years,  was  town  clerk  fnr  twenty  years,  and  in  1905  was  elected  super- 
visor un  the  Republican  ticket.  His  official  record  has  been  credita'ble 
and  commendable,  and  no  public  trust  reposed  in  him  has  ever  been 
betrayed  m  the  sligiitest  degree.  He  belongs  to  Volinia  Lodge.  No. 
227,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  which  he  is  a  charter  member,  and  he  is  in 
hearty  symjiatliy  with  the  purposes  of  the  craft.  For  more  than  forty 
years  he  has  lived  in  the  county  and  he  has  been  found  to  be  trustworthy 
in  business  and  progressive  in  citizenship,  while  in  social  relations  he 
is  genial,  companionable  and  entertaining. 

JOHN  HUFF. 

John  Huff,  one  of  the  ijionccr  settlers  of  southern  Michigan,  is 
living  on  a  farm  of  two  hundred  and  sixty  acres  on  section  17.  Volinia 
township,  and  his  life  of  activity  and  well-directed  effort  is  indicated 
by  his  ownership  of  this  pnjperty,  for  he  started  out  in  life  emptv- 
handed  and  all  that  he  now  jmssesscs  and  enjoys  has  been  gained  through 
his  persistent  labor  and  capable  management.  His  natal  day  was  .August 
3,  1833,  and  the  place  of  his  birth  near  Springfield,  in  Clark  countv, 
Ohio.  His  fadier,  Amos  Huff,  was  born  in  New  Jersey,  and  in  his 
boyliood  days  accompanied  his  jiarents  to  Pennsylvania.  '  He  was  a 
son  of  James  Huff,  of  German  descent.  On  leaving  the  Kevstone  state 
he  removed  to  Clark  countv,  Ohio,  and  was  there  married  to'  Aliss  Mar- 
garet Case,  whose  birth  occurred  in  Nortlnimherland  countv,  Pennsyl- 
vania, but  who  was  reared  in  Ohio.  Her  father  was  John  Case,  one  of 
the  pioneer  settlers  of  Butler  county.  Ohio.  Amos  Huff  came  first  to 
Michigan  in  1833  but  did  not  take  up  his  permanent  abode  here  at  that 
time.^  In  1834.  however,  he  returned  with  his  family  to  Cass  countv 
and  identified  his  interests  with  those  of  the  pioneer  settlers.  He 
secured  land  from  the  government,  entering  a  claim  in  Volinia  town- 
ship, and  as  the  years  passed  his  attention  was  directed  to  farm  labor, 
his  fields  being  placed  under  a  high  state  of  cultivation.  Not  a  furrow 
had  been  turned  nor  an  impro^•ement  made  when  he  took  possession  of 
his  farm,  but  with  characteristic  energy  he  began  the  arduous  task  of 
ailtivation  and  development,  and  in  the  course  of  vears  had  a  valuable 
property.  His  life  was  honorable  and  upright  in  all  things  and  he  was 
regarded  as  an  exemplary  and  de\-oted  member  of  the  Alethodist  Epis- 
copal church,  in  which  he  '=erved  as  class  leader,  while  in  the  various 
departments  of  church  work  he  took  an  active  and  helpful  interest.     He 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  487 

died  in  his  eighty-fiftii  year,  while  his  wife  passed  awav  when  alxjut 
eighty  years  of  age.  Tliey  were  people  of  the  highest 'respectahilitv, 
and  in  their  death  the  county  lost  two  of  its  worthy  pioneer  representa- 
tives. They  had  a  family  of  nine  children,  six  sons  and  three  daughters, 
and  with  one  exception  all  reached  adult  age,  hut  only  three  are  now 
living,  the  hrothers  of  our  suhject  heing  James  Huff,  a  resident  of 
Ah>untain  \'iew,  California,  and  Gark,  who  is  living  in  \'olinia  town- 
sliip. 

John  Huff  was  only  a  year  old  when  brought  to  Cass  county  and 
was  reared  in  Volinia  township,  where  he  has  spent  his  entire  life. 
He  has  vivid  recollections  of  pioneer  conditions  when  the  homes  of  the 
settlers  were  largely  log  cahins.  There  would  be  an  immense  fire-place 
which  was  used  for  heating  purposes  and  also  served  to  cook  the  meals, 
which  were  prepared  in  huge  kettles  hung  from  the  crane  or  else  in 
covered  iron  skillets  which  were  placed  among  the  coals.  The  first 
school  house  in  Volinia  township  was  built  in  1S33  in  the  district  in 
which  Mr.  Huff  resided,  and  there  he  pursued  his  early  education, 
mastering  the  tasks  assigned  in  reading-,  writing,  arithmetic  and  other 
elementary  branches.  His  training  at  farm  labor  was  not  meager,  for 
his  aid  was  needed  in  the  development  and  care  of  the  fields,  so  that  he 
had  practical  experience  when  he  started  out  as  a  farmer  on  his  own 
account.  He  remained  at  home  up  to  the  time  of  his  marriage,  which 
occurred  in  1S72,  ]\liss  Eliza  J.  Wright  becoming  his  wife.  She  was 
a  daughter  of  James  and  Sarah  (Giffis)  Wriglit,  and  was  born  in  \^oIinia 
township.  Her  parents  were  pioneer  settlers  of  the  county  and  she  was 
early  trained  to  household  duties.  Air.  and  Mrs.  Huff  began  their 
domestic  life  in  a  log  house  upon  his  farm,  occupying  it  until  the  erec- 
tion of  tlie  present  substantial  and  commodious  frame  residence  in  1SS2. 
As  the  years  went  by  three  children  were  added  to  the  family :  Amy 
and  Otis  were  born  in  the  cabin  home,  and  are  still  living;  and  Ilarley, 
who  died  in  his  second  year. 

The  home  farm  of  Mr.  Huff  embraces  two  hundred  and  sixty  acres 
of  land,  which  thmugh  care  and  cidtivation  has  become  very  productive. 
He  has  placed  all  of  the  buildings  upon  his  property,  including  his 
modern  home,  his  liarns  and  sheds.  He  has  also  fenced  the  place  and  has 
plowed  and  harvested  crops  which  have  found  a  ready  sale  on  the  mar- 
ket, thus  bringing  to  him  an  enlarged  income  each  yea.r.  He  has  also 
been  active  in  public  affairs  and  for  four  years  sensed  as  township  treas- 
urer, while  for  eighteen  years  he  was  township  supervisor.  In  all  things 
pertaining  to  the  good  of  the  community  he  has  taken  an  active  and 
helpful  interest,  and  he  was  formerly  a  member  of  the  A^olinia  Anti- 
Horse  Thief  Society,  serving  as  its  secretary  for  thirty  years.  He  yet 
belongs  to  the  Masonic  lodge  of  Volinia  and  has  the  kindly  regard  of 
his  brethren  of  the  fraternity.  A  self  made  man.  as  the  architect  of  his 
own  fortunes  he  has  budded  wisely  and  well,  and  his  life  record  proves 


4S8  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY 

what  can  be  accomplished  when  one  possesses  laudable  ambition  and 
unfaltering  determination.  He  started  out  in  limited  financial  circum- 
stances but  is  now  one  of  the  prosperous  residents  of  his  township. 

GEORGE  LOXGSDUFF. 

While  "the  race  is  not  always  to  the  swift  nor  the  battle  to  the 
strong,"  the  invariable  law  of  destiny  accords  to  tireless  energy  and 
indefatigable  effort  a  measure  of  success  which  is  gratifying  and  desir- 
able. The  truth  of  this  assertion  is  verified  in  the  life  record  of  such 
men  as  George  Longsdult,  who  in  his  active  business  career  has  so 
directed  his  efforts  that  he  is  now  enabled  to  live  retired,  making  liis 
home  in  Yandalia.  He  was  born  in  Cumberland  county,  Pennsylvania, 
on  the  1 6th  of  [March,  1826,  and  has  therefore  long  passed  the  psalmist's 
span  of  three  score  years  and  ten.  His  paternal  grandfather,  .Martin 
Longsduff,  Sr.,  was  a  native  of  Germany,  and  in  that  country  was 
reared  and  married.  Crossing  the  Atlantic  to  the  new  world  he  b'ecarne 
one  of  the  early  residents  of  Fennsylvania.  In  his  family  were  ten 
children,  of  whom  2\Iartin  Longsduff,  Jr.,  was  the  eldest.  He  was  a 
native  of  the  same  state  and  was  there  reared  and  educated.  He  was 
married  twice  and  in  1834  he  removed  from  Pennsylvania  to  Ohio, 
taking  up  his  abudc  in  Union  township,  Logan  count}-,  where  he  secured 
a  tract  of  land  and  improved  a  farm.  He  lemained  a  resident  of  that 
state  for  almost  four  decades  and  came  to  Michigan  in  1S72.  Here  he 
spent  his  remaining  days,  passing  away  at  the  age  of  eighty-five  years. 
In  his  religious  views  he  was  a  Lutheran,  and  he.  exemplified  in  his 
life  his  belief  in  the  teachings  of  holy  writ.  The  mother  of  our  subject 
bore  the  maiden  name  of  Matilda  Ouigley,  and  was  a  native  of  Hagers- 
town,  New  Jerse\-,  where  her  girlhood  days  were  passed.  She  was  the 
second  wife  of  IMartin  Longsdufif,  his  fomier  union  having  been  with  a 
Miss  Searfoss,  by  whom  he  had  one  daughter,  Elizabeth.  By  the 
second  marriage  there  were  born  eleven  children,  one  of  whom  died 
in  early  youth,  while  ten  reached  adult  age  and  four  of  the  number, 
two  sons  and  two  daughters,  are  still  living  and  are  residents  of  Cass 
county. 

Mr.  Longsduff,  of  this  review,  is  the  fifth  child  and  third  son  in 
the  family.  He  spent  the  first  eight  years  of  his  life  in  the  state  of 
his  nativity  and  then  accompanied  his  parents  on  their  removal  to 
Logan  county,  Ohio,  where  he  remained  until  he  was  twentv-one  vears 
of  age.  His  educational  privileges  were  those  afforded  bv  tlie  com.mon 
schools,  and  when  not  busy  with  his  text-books  he  aided  his  father  in 
tilling  the  soil,  caring  for  the  crops  and  performing  such  labor  as  was 
necessary-  in  the  development  and  cultivation  of  the  home  farm.  The 
3'ear  1S47  witnessed  his  arrival  in  Cass  county,  and  he  then  started  out 
upon  an  independent  business  career.  He  located  first  in  Penn  town- 
ship, and  as  it  was  necessarj-  that  he  provide  for  his  own  support  he 


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HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  489 

began  working  In-  the  day,  making  rails.  He  also  engaged  in  ditching 
and  in  other  such  work  as  would  yield  him  an  honest  living  and  gain 
him  a  start  in  husiness  life.  At  the  time  of  his  marriage  he  located  on 
a  farm  on  section  14,  Penn  township,  his  home  l>eing  a  little  log  cabin 
to  which  he  had  to  cut  a  road  through  the  woods  for  two  miles.  Not 
a  furrow  had  been  turned  or  an  improvement  made  on  the  farm,  and 
in  the  midst  of  the  green  forest  lie  began  the  arduous  task  nf  clearing 
and  cultivating  fields.  In  the  course  of  time  he  had  cut  down  the 
trees,  grubbed  out  the  stumps  and  plowed  his  land.  The  seed  was 
then  planted  and  in  due  course  of  time  rich  harvests  were  gathered. 
He  also  built  a  good  barn  and  house,  and  remained  upon  his  farm 
until  October,  1872.  He  was  practical  in  his  methods,  systematic  in 
all  that  he  did,  and  accomplished  through  energy  and  determination 
and  assisted  by  his  estimalile  wife,  an  excellent  work  that  has  contribu- 
ted to  the  general  agricultural  progress  of  the  county  and  at  the  same 
time  brought  to  him  a  very  desirable  competence.  In  the  year  1S72 
he  left  his  farm  and  rcmo\ed  to  \''andalia.  where  he  has  since  resided. 
He  began  with  only  eighty  acres  of  land,  to  which  he  added  forty 
acres.  Subsequently  he  sold  that  projjerty  and  Iwugbt  one  hundred 
and  eightv  acres  on  sections  14.  24,  13  and  23,  all,  however,  being  com- 
prised within  one  tract.  .After  leaving  the  farm  and  locating  in  Yan- 
dalla  he  turned  his  attention  to  dealing  in  grain,  fruit  and  stock,  and 
conducted  quite  extensive  operations  in  those  lines  of  trade.  ?Ie  was 
e\-er  watchful  of  opportunities  jjointing  to  success  and  his  diligence, 
well  formulated  plans  and  unremitting  attention  to  his  business  won 
for  him  still  further  success.  \Vithin  the  last  two  or  three  years  he  has 
given  little  attention  to  farming,  simply  .supervising  his  landed  interests, 
for  he  has  rented  his  farm.  In  connection  with  his  other  interests  Mr. 
Longsduff  was  a  promoter  of  the  creamers-  at  Vandalia,  and  is  presi- 
dent of  the  company.  This  has  proved  an  important  productive  industry 
of  the  community,  furnishing  an  excellent  market  for  farmers  keeping  a 
large  numlier  of  cows,  and  at  the  same  time  it  has  been  a  source  of  grati- 
fying income  to  the  stockholders. 

On  the  9th  of  Februarv,  185 1.  was  celebrated  the  marriage  of  Mr. 
Longsduff  and  !\Iiss  Rachei  S.  Dodge,  a  daughter  of  Joseph  and  Ann 
(DePuv)  Dodge.  She  was  born  in  New  York,  near  Baldwinsville. 
and  was  about  eight  years  of  age  when  she  came  with  her  parents  to 
Michigan,  the  familv  home  being  estalilished  in  Cass  county.  She  has 
thus  spent  the  greater  part  of  her  life  here,  and  to  her  husband  .she  has 
been  a  faithful  companion  and  helpmate  on  life's  journey,  ably  assist- 
ing him  bv  lier  encouragement  and  also  by  her  careful  management  of 
the  houseliold  affairs.  Unto  them  was  born  a  son.  Charles  D.,  who  is 
now  deceased.  He  married  Jennie  Alulrine,  and  they  had  two  daugh- 
ters. Lucile  and  Georgiana.  both  of  whom  have  been  well  educated  in  a 
business  wav. 


400  HISTORY  01--  CASS  COUXTY 

Charles  D.  Longsduff,  born  January  27,  1861,  died  September  19, 
1892,  and  was  buried  in  Prospect  Hill  Cemetery,  Cassopolis,  Michigan. 
The  funeral  was  conducted  by  the  Masonic  order  and  was  one  of  the 
largest  ever  held  in  the  place,  which  was  an  evidence  of  the  high  esteem 
his  life  had  merited,  and  in  which  he  was  held  by  the  whole  community. 
He  was  kind  and  obliging  in  all  his  business  transactions  with  his 
neighbors,  a  kind  ar.d  indulgent  father  and  husband,  and  is  very  much 
missed  by  the  whole  conimunit}-.  At  his  death  he  left  a  wife,  two 
daughters  and  a  host  of  friends.      • 

The  daughter,  Lucile,  is  well  educated,  having  attended  the  Com- 
mercial College  of  South  Lend,  Indiana,  and  was  there  enii)lu}ed  by 
one  of  the  responsible  firms  of  the  city.  She  is  a  fine  pianist.  Georgiana, 
the  second  daughter,  graduated  in  the  Vandalia  High  School  in  the 
class  of  1906,  and  was  the  leader  of  the  class.  She  passed  her  teacher's 
examination  in  the  studies  before  she  was  eighteen  years  of  age.  It  is 
expected  by  her  grandparents  to  fit  her  for  the  teacher's  life.  The  grand- 
parents took  these  little  girls  and  ha\e  reared  and  educated  them  and 
cared  for  them  as  if  they  were  their  own  children.  Surely  they  liave 
fallen  into  good  hands,  when  Grandfatlicr  and  Grandmother  Longsduff 
have  assumed  the  care  and  educatitin  of  them. 

George  Longsduff  is  an  earnest  advocate  of  Democratic  princi[)Ics, 
having  supported  the  party  since  1840  and  taking  an  active  interest 
in  its  work  and  progress.  He  has  been  called  to  various  local  offices, 
serving  as  super\-isor  for  two  years,  also  as  a  member  of  the  school 
board  and  president  of  the  village  of  Vandalia  for  about  seven  terms, 
during  whicl-.  time  iie  has  given  to  the  village  a  public  spirited  anfl  prac- 
tical administration,  resulting  beneficially  along  many  lines.  He  has 
also  been  a  member  of  the  village  l>oard  for  many  years,  and  throughout 
his  official  service  his  course  has  been  prompted  by  untiring  devotion  to 
the  welfare  of  his  community.  He  has  long  been  an  active  member  of 
the  Masonic  fraternity,  with  which  he  became  identified  in  1S52.  He 
is  now  the  oldest  living  Mason  initiated  in  Cass  county,  being  the  fourth 
member  received  into  the  first  lodge  of  the  county.  He  acted  as  worship- 
ful master  of  Vandalia  lodge  for  thirteen  years,  and  has  been  very 
earnest  and  helpful  in  his  work  in  connection  with  the  craft.  He  be- 
came a  charter  member  of  the  lodge  at  Vandalia,  and  both  he  and  his 
wife  are  members  of  the  Order  of  the  Eastern  Star,  in  which  Mrs, 
Longsduff  is  now  serving  as  chaplain,  while  :\Ir.  Longsduff'  is  its  treas- 
urer. She  belongs  to  the  Christian  church,  in  which  she  is  a  very 
active  and  helpful  worker,  and  although  not  a  member  Mr.  Longsduff' 
has  contributed  liberally  to  the  support  of  the  church  and  has  been 
active  in  all  things  pertaining  to  the  good  of  the  county.  His  residence 
in  Penn  township  covers  fifty-seven  years,  and  he  has  lieen  identified 
with  the  making  of  the  county  from  an  early  epoch  in  its  pioneer  ex- 
istence down  to  the  present  era  of  progress  and  prosperity.     There  was 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  41)1 

only  one  public  road  in  the  township  when  he  located  here.  He  has 
ever  favored  good  roads,  good  sciiools  and  in  fact  all  interests  that  tend 
to  advance  the  material,  intellectual,  political,  social  and  moral  welfare 
of  the  community.  In  a  review  of  his  life  history  is  seen  that  he  has 
ever  been  busy  and  acti\e,  and  u[Hjn  the  suljstantial  qualities  of  persever- 
ance and  diligence  he  has  placed  his  dependence  with  good  results. 

JOHN  LEWIS  ROEUECK. 

The  farming  interests  find  a  worthy  representative  in  John  Lewis 
Roebeck,  who  is  living  on  section  6,  IMilton  township.  He  has  here 
one  hundred  and  twenty  acres  of  land  that  is  arable  and  productive, 
responding  readily  to  the  care  and  cultivation  which  he  bestows  upon  it, 
and  he  has  made  it  a  valuable  property.  Moreover  his  fidelity  to  the 
public  good  is  manifest  in  various  offices  which  he  has  ably  filled.  A 
native  of  Germany,-  he  was  bom  in  the  province  of  Posen  on  tiie  i  ith  of 
December,  iS-|0.  His  father,  John  Roebeck,  was  also  a  native  of  that 
country  and  came  to  America  alxnit  1873.  His  last  days  were  spent 
in  Niks,  Berrien  county.  Michigan,  where  he  departed  this  life  when 
about  sixty-five  years  of  age.  In  early  manhood  lie  had  married  .Anna 
Kruger,  who  was  also  born  in  Germany  and  died  in  that  country.  There 
were  three  children  in  the  family,  two  daughters  and  a  snn. 

John  Lewis  Roebeck,  of  this  review,  was  reared  in  his  native 
coimlry  and  attended  the  common  schools  until  fourteen  years  of  age 
in  accordance  with  the  laws  of  that  land.  His  youth  was  also  given  to 
farm  labor  and  when  about  twenty-five  years  of  age  he  entered  the  em- 
ploy of  the  government,  being  overseer  of  the  government  forest  re- 
serve until  i.Sji.  Thinking  that  he  would  have  better  advantages  in 
the  new  worUl  and  tliat  business  o])[)ortunities  migbt  more  readily  come 
to  him  here,  he  sailed  for  the  United  States  in  1871,  first  locating  in 
Michigan  City.  Indiana.  He  scorned  no  employment  that  would  yield 
him  an  honest  livirig  and  began  here  by  chopping  wood.  For  six  years 
he  remained  in  ^lichigan  City,  and  then  removed  to  Vandalia.  Cass 
county,  Michigan,  where  he  entered  the  employ  of  the  ^Michigan  Central 
Railroad  Companv  as  a  section  hand,  .being  thus  engaged  for  three 
years.  He  was  then  appointed  night  watchman  at  the  handle  factory- 
in  Vandalia.  occupving  that  position  for  two  and  a  half  years,  after 
which  he  purchased  a  farm  in  Penn  township,  comprising  eighty  acres 
of  land.  He  then  located  upon  this  farm,  which  he  sold  after  two  years, 
at  the  end  of  which  time  he  rented  a  farm  in  Calvin  township.  There 
he  continued  to. reside  for  about  three  years,  when  he  went  to  Jeft'erson 
township,  where  he  again  rented  land,  living  on  three  different  farms 
in  that  township  during  a  period  of  eight  years.  All  this  time  he  worked 
energetically  and  persistentlv.  and  as  the  result  of  his  earnest  labor 
and  his  industry  he  acquired  tlie  competence  that  enabled  him  to  purchase 
the  farm  upon  which  he  now  resides  on  section  6.  :Milton  township. 
Here  he  owns  one  hundred  and  twenty  acres  of  land  which  has  been 


492  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

made  arable  and  productive  by  reason  of  the  cultivation  which  is  be- 
stowed upjo  it.  Year  after  year  he  has  worked  hard  in  order  to  make 
his  farm  a  valuable  property,  and  is  now  enjoying  the  fruits  of  his  toil 
in  the  ownership  of  richly  cultivated  fields  which  annually  return  to  him 
good  harvests. 

Mr.  Roebeck  was  married  in  1862  to  Miss  Amelia  Hanke,  also  a 
native  of  the  province  of  Posen,  Germany.  Unto  this  union  have  been 
born  ten  children:  Charles,  at  home;  Anson,  a  farmer  of  Berrien 
county;  Frederick,  at  home;  Flermann,  of  whom  mention  is  later  made; 
Emma,  at  home;  Bertha,  the  wife  of  Y'ust  Reum,  of  Milton  township; 
Augusta,  the  wife  of  Wilhelm  Reum,  of  Milton  township;  Minnie,  the 
wife  of  Edward  Geidemann,  who  is  living  in  Xiles;  Hattie,  at  home; 
and  Catherine,  who  is  engaged  in  teaching.  The  family  circle  yet  re- 
mains unbroken  by  the  hand  of  death,  and  five  of  the  children  were  Itorn 
in  Cass  county.  Hermann  Roebeck,  who  was  lx>rn  in  Penn  township, 
January  6.  1S7S,  took  an  active  part  in  politics  and  was  elected  recorder 
of  deeds  in  1900.  He  held  the  office  for  four  years,  having  been  re- 
elected in  1902.  He  was  township  clerk  of  ^lilton  township  at  the  time 
he  was  chosen  to  the  county  office,  and  at  all  times  he  has  been  found 
faithful  and  loyal  to  the  trust  reposed  in  him.  For  one  term  he  was 
school  inspector.  In  the  spring  of  1906  he  was  elected  supervisor  of 
Milton  township  on  the  Democratic  ticket.  He  now  resides  in  Milton 
township,  although  he  was  engaged  in  the  real  estate  business  in  Xiles, 
Michigan.     Fraternally  he  is  connected  with  the  Elks  lodge  at  Dowagiac. 

John  L.  Roebeck  exercises  his  right  of  franchise  in  support  of  the 
men  and  measures  of  the  Democracy,  and  has  been  called  ujion  to  fill 
a  number  of  iniljHc  positions  by  those  of  his  fellow  townsmen  who 
recognize  in  him  a  trustworthy  and  progressive  citizen.  He  has  been 
justice  of  the  peace  for  two  terms  and  his  decisions  were  fair  and  im- 
partial. He  was  highway  commissinner  for  one  term  and  is  now  a  mem- 
ber of  the  board  of  review.  Mr.  Roebeck  has  a  wide  and  favorable  ac- 
quaintance in  this  countv  and  with  pleasure  we  present  the  histor\'  of 
his  life  to  the  readers  of  this  volume. 

JOHN  MARCKLE. 

John  ]\Iarckle,  one  of  the  leading  and  energetic  farmers  of  :\Iilton 
township,  wh.o  resides  on  section  20,  was  Iwrn  in  Stark  county.  Ohio. 
Decem.ber  2;.  1841'.  His  father,  Peter  iMarckle.  was  a  nativeof  Ger- 
many, where  he  was  reared  and  educated.  He  came  to  America  prior 
to  his  marriasre  and  in  Ohio  was  joined  in  wedlock  to  Miss  Catharme 
Klein,  who  died  during  tlie  early  bovhood  of  her  son  John.  There 
were  three  children  in  the  family,  of  whom  :\Ir.  Marckle.  of  this  review, 
is  the  second  child  and  eldest  son. 

He  was  only  six  vears  of  age  when  he  accompanied  his  father  on 
the  removal  from  Ohio  to  Indiana,  locating  in  St.  Joseph  county,  where 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  i'J3 

he  continued  until  al;uut  twenty  years  of  age.  Xo  event  of  special  im- 
portance occurred  to  vary  the  routine  of  farm  life  for  him  in  his  hoy- 
hood  days,  as  he  worked  in  held  and  meadow  during  the  greater  part 
of  the  year,  and  in  the  winter  seasons  attended  school.  He  then  came 
to  Cass  county,  r\lich.igan,  making  his  way  to  Milton  township,  where 
he  worked  Ly  the  month  as  a  farm  hand  until  after  the  inauguration 
of  the  Civil  war.  He  then  enlisted  for  service  in  the  Union  army  in 
1862  as  a  memher  of  Company  F,  Twelfth  Michigan  \'oluntccr  In- 
fantry. He  joined  the  army  as  a  private,  but  after  about  si.x  months 
was  prom.oted  to  second  sergeant  and  carried  the  colors  for  two  years. 
He  was  in  the  battles  of  Shiloh,  luka.  Hatch's  Run  and  many  others, 
including  the  engagements  at  Vicksburg,  Mechanicsburg  and  Little 
Rock,  Arkansas.  lie  reported  every  day  for  .duty  ajid  was  always 
faithful  to  the  call  made  upon  him  for  any  ser\-ice  that  contributed  to 
the  interests  of  the  army  and  thus  led  to  the  final  result  which  crowned 
ithe  Union  arms.  He  was  more  than  four  years  in  active  service, 
having  enlisted  on  the  22i\  of  February.  1862,  while  on  the  6th  of 
March,  1S66,  he  was  honoralily  di'^charged.  He  proved  a  brave  and 
loyal  soldier  on  many  a  southern  battlefield  and  participated  in  the 
grand  review  in  Washington,  D.  C,  where  the  victorious  Union  troops 
marched  through  the  streets  of  the  city  and  passed  the  reviewing  stand 
where  they  were  cheered  by  the  president  and  other  distingin'shcd  men 
of  the  nation  as  well  as  by  thousands  of  northern  people  who  rejoiced 
that  the  war  was  over  and  that  so  many  soldiers  had  been  spared. 

When  the  coiuitry  no  longer  needed  his  aid  !Mr.  Marckle  returned 
to  Cass  county  and  bought  the  farm  upon  which  he  now  resides.  He 
has  added  to  this  place  until  he  has  two  hundred  and  six  acres  of  land 
which  is  well  improved.  By  following  the  rotation  of  crops  and  care- 
fully cultivating  his  fields  he  has  made  his  farm  very  productive,  and 
the  rich  land  returns  to  him  a  gratifying  annual  income  from  the  sale 
of  his  harvests. 

Mr.  Marckle  was  married  in  1867  to  Miss  Elizabeth  Landgraf. 
a  native  of  Germany  and  a  daughter  of  Michael  Landgraf,  who  was 
also  born  in  that  country.  This  union  has  been  blessed  with  two 
children,  a  son  and  a  daughter,  Flora,  who  is  now  the  widow  of  Qiarles 
W.  Zeitter.  ]\Ir.  Marckle  has  always  taken  an  active  interest  in  public 
affairs  and  does  even-thing  in  his  power  to  promote  the  best  interests 
of  the  community,  displaying  the  same  loyalty  which  he  manifested  when 
he  followed  the  old  flag  on  southern  battlefields.  He  has  always  voted 
wn'th  the  Democracy  and  is  firm  in  support  of  his  honest  convictions. 
He  believes  that  the  principles  of  that  party  contain  the  best  elements 
of  good  government,  and  he  has  never  wavered  in  his  allegiance  thereto. 
He"  has  been  justice  of  the  peace  and  township  treasurer  and  has  held 
all  of  the  school  offices.  He  served  as  highway  commissioner  in  an  early 
day  and  is  interested  in  ever>'  movement  that  pertains  to  the  upbuilding 
of' the  schools,  the  improvement  of  the  roads  or  the  substantial  devel- 


^9i  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY 

opment  of  the  county  in  any  direction.  He  was  also  a  member  of  the 
grand  jury  in  1905.  In  a  review  of  his  Hfe  work  we  note  many  salient 
characteristics  which  are  most  commendable.  Without  extraordinary 
family  or  pecuniary-  advantages  at  the  outset  of  his  career  he  has  laljored 
energetically  and  persistently  year  after  vear.  He  started  out  when 
a  poor  boy,  having  no  capital  save  his  strong  determination  and  willing 
hands.  Hiese  qualities  have  constituted  the  basis  of  his  success,  and  as 
the  architect  of  his  own  fortunes  he  has  buildcd  wisely  and  well'. 

GEORGE  W.  S^HTH. 

In  a  history  devoted  to  the  early  settlers  and  the  men  who  in  later 
years  have  been  factors  in  the  sul)stantial  growth,  progress  and  upbuild- 
ing of  Cass  county,  mention  should  be  made  of  George  W.  Smith,  who 
at  an  early  day  in  the  development  of  this  part  of  the  state  took  up  his 
abode  in  Cass  county.  He  now  resides  on  section  16,  'MWtnn  township, 
where  he  has  good  farming  interests,  owning  and  operating  one  hun- 
dred and  sixty  acres  of  land,  which  constitutes  a  neat  and  well  kept 
farm.  He  was  born  in  Kent  county,  Delaware,  January  10,  183 1.  His 
father,  Manlove  Smith,  was  also  a  native  of  that  state,  and  was  there 
reared,  married,  lived  and  died,  passing  away  when  about  sixtv  vears 
of  age.  His  wife,  who  bore  the  maiden  nan'ie  of  Mary  M.  McKnett, 
was  a  native  of  Delaware,  and  died  when  about  fifty-eiglit  years  of  age. 
In  their  family  were  seven  children,  of  whom  two  passed  awav  ^'n 
infancy,  while  fi\-e  reached  manhood  or  womanhood.  Only  one  daughter 
is  now  living. 

Mr.  Smith  is  the  youngest  of  this  family  and  was  only  two  years 
old  when  his  father  died,  and  a  little  lad  of  but  six  summers' at  the'time 
of  his  mother's  death.  Thus  left  an  orphan  he  was  reared  by  his  eldest 
brother,  with  whom  he  remained  to  the  age  of  sixteen  vears'  on  the  old 
family  homestead  in  the  east.  He  then  started  out  in  life  for  himself 
and  whatever  success  he  has  achieved  is  attributable  entirely  to  his  own 
enterprise  and  labors.  He  worked  as  a  farm  hand  by  the  month  or  day 
and  to  some  extent  was  employed  in  a  store  owned  by  his  brother  at 
Greenville.  Delaware.  The  opportunities  of  the  new  and  growing  west, 
however,  attracted  him.  and  he  resolved  to  seek  his  fortune  in  ]\[ich- 
igan.  Accordingly  he  made  hi.s  way  to  this  state  in  1854.  settling 
in  Cass  county,  and  for  more  than  a  half  centurv  he  has  resided  here, 
being  actively  connected  with  its  farming  interests  to  the  benefit  of  the 
county  and  to  the  promotion  of  his  own  individual  resources. 

As  a  companion  and  helpmate  for  life's  journey  [Mr.  Smith  chose 
Miss  Josephine  B.  Powell,  to  whom  he  was  married  on  the  i6th  of 
December.  1856.  her  parents  being  Thomas  and  Mariam  (Bowman) 
Powell,  who  were  also  natives  of  Kent  county.  Delaware.  They  came 
to  Cass  county  in  1834.  locating  in  ^Milton  township,  when  there  were 
few  settlers  in  this  part  of  the  state.     All  around  them  was  wild  and 


HISTORY  UF  CASS  COUXTV  4;t5 

unimproved.  The  timljcr  was  uncut  and  the  land  uncultivated,  but 
they  cast  in  their  lot  with  the  early  settlers  and  aided  in  reclaiming  this 
district  for  the  uses  of  civilization.  Mrs.  Smith  was  less  than  a  year 
old  when  liniUL;iit  liy  her  parents  to  Milton  township,  and  has  alwavs 
resided  in  this  county. 

At  the  time  of  their  marriage  Mr.  and  :\Irs.  Smith  located  on  the 
old  family  homestead  in  Milton  township,  where  they  remained  for 
about  four  years,  when  they  took  up  their  abode  upon  the  farm  where 
Mr.  Smith  now  resides.  Here  he  has  lived  for  forty-six  years  and  the 
splendid  appearance  of  the  place  with  its  well  tilled  fields,  good  build- 
ings and  modern  accessories,  is  indicative  of  the  practical  and  enter- 
prising spirit  of  the  owner. 

As  the  years  went  by  six  children  were  born  unto  Mr.  and  ;\Irs. 
Smith:  Truman  ]\I.,  who  is  now  living  in  Houston,  Texas;  Thomas  F., 
at  home;  Redora  M.,  the  wife  of  .\rza  G.  Griffin,  who  resides  in  Aurora, 
Illinois;  William  C.,  who  married  Pearl  Clark  and  is  living  in  Granger, 
Indiana;  Robert  G.,  deceased,  and  Clarence  P.,  who  married  Miss  (icr- 
trude  Abbott  and  is  living  in  Milton  township.  All  were  born  in  Milton 
township,  Cass  county. 

Mr.  Smith  has  been  a  lifelong  farmer  and  is  now  the  owner  of 
one  hundred  and  sixty  acres,  constituting  a  well  improved  farm.  He 
started  out  in  life  on  his  own  account  empty-handed,  but  has  worked 
earnestly  and  persistently,  and  as  the  years  have  gone  b\'  has  achieved 
both  success  and  an  honored  name.  He  has  been  identified  with  the 
county  from  its  early  history,  and  while  carrying  on  his  individual  busi- 
ness pursuits  has  at  the  same  time  promoted  public  progress  along  lines 
of  substantial  advancement.  He  has  taken  an  active  and  helpful  interest 
in  matters  pertaining  to  the  general  welfare,  and  for  many  years  has 
supported  the  Republican  party.  For  about  sixty  years  he  and  his  wife 
have  been  members  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  church,  in  which  he  has 
held  all  of  the  offices,  taking  an  active  part  in  its  work  and  doing  all  in 
his  power  to  promote  its  influence  and  growth.  He  has  been  true  to 
its  teachings,  and  his  close  adherence  to  its  principles  has  made  his  life 
an  upright  and  honorable  one.  He  has  been  straightforward  in  his 
business  dealings,  considerate  of  the  rights  of  others  and  true  to  high 
and  manly  principles,  and  as  one  of  the  early  settlers  and  successful 
farmers  of  the  county  he  certainly  deser\-es  mention  in  this  volume. 

WILLIAM!  E.  PARSONS. 

William  E.  Parsons,  prominent  among  the  old  settlers  of  Cass 
countv.  his  home  being  on  section  23.  Milton  township,  has  for  more 
than  a  half  century  resided  in  tin's  part  of  the  state.  He  has  seen  the 
country  de\-e]op  from  a  wild  region  with  only  a  few  white  inhabitants 
to  a  rich  agricultural  district  containing  thousands  of  good  homes  and 
acres  of   growing  towns   inhabited   by   an   industrious,   prosperous,   en- 


496  HISTORY  01>   CASS  COUNTY 

lightened  and  progressiAc  people.  He,  too,  has  participated  in  and 
assisted  the  slow,  persistent  work  of  development  which  was  necessary 
to  produce  a  change  that  is  so  complete  that  the  county  of  todav  bears 
scarcely  any  resemblance  to  the  district  in  which  he  spent  liis  boyhood 
days. 

Mr.  Parsons  is,  however,  a  native  of  rvlilton  township,  born  Jan- 
uary i8,  1S51.  His  father,  Benjamin  Parsons,  was  a  native  of  Dela- 
ware and  came  to  Cass  county,  :\Iichigan,  about  1845,  settling  in  Milton 
township.^  He  died  when  fnrt>--(i\e  years  of  age  and  was  long  survived 
by  his  wife,  who  bore  the  maiden  name  of  Mary  Abbott  and  was  a  na- 
tive of  Delaware.  Her  death  occurred  in  Ali'lton  township  in  1892, 
when  she  had  reached  the  age  of  sixty-five  years.  They  were  the 
parents  of  seven  cliildren.  one  of  whom  died  in  infancy,  while  all  the 
others  reached  manhood  or  womanhood  and  are  still  living. 

William  E.  Parsons  is  the  second  child  of  the  family  and  was 
reared  in  the  usual  manner  of  farm  lads,  no  event  of  special'importance 
occurring  to  vary  the  routine  of  farm  lalior  and  school  work  in  his 
youth.  He  attended  the  cummon  di^trict  schools,  thus  acquiring  a  good 
practical  education,  and  he  has  always  followed  the  occupation  to  which 
he  was  reared,  engaging  in  general  farming.  He  has  also  carried  on 
threshing  for  about  twenty-five  years  in  this  county,  and  has  thus  be- 
come well  known  here. 

Mr.  Parsons  has  taken  an  active  and  helpful  interest  in-  public 
affairs,  his  progressive  citizenship  standing  as  an  unquestioned  fact  in 
his  career.  He  voles  with  the  FJemocracy  and  has  held  many  offices  in 
his  township.  He  was  treasurer  for  two  years  and  supervisor  for  six 
years,  being  elected  to  the  latter  office  for  several  terms.  His  entire 
life  has  been  passed"  in  this  count}'  and  he  is  closelv  indentified  with 
.its  farming  interests.  He  now  owns  ninety-two  acres  of  good  land 
on  section  23,  Milton  township,  and  has  brought  his  farm  under  a  high 
state  of  cultivation,  adding  to  it  modern  equipments  and  so  developing 
the  fields  that  he  now  annually  har\-ests  rich  crops. 

JOHN  H.  Y'OUNG. 

John  H.  Young,  residing  on  section  9.  ^Milton  township,  and  now 
filling  the  position  of  township  treasurer,  was  born  in  St.  Joseph  county, 
Indiana,  September  2,  186 1.  His  father,  Jacob  Young,  was  a  native  of 
Germany  and  was  brought  to  America  when  only  nine  years  of  age. 
the  family  home  being  established  in  Ohio.  There  he  was  reared  to 
the  age  of  sixteen  vears,  when  he  removed  to  Indiana  with  his  parents, 
George  and  Catharine  Y'oung,  who  located  in  St.  Joseph  county,  being 
among  the  early  families  of  that  part  of  the  state.  Having  arrived  at 
years  of  maturity  Jacob  Young  was  married  there  to  Miss  Catharine 
Cocher,  who  was  IxDrn  in  Pennsylvania  but  was  reared  in  St.  Joseph 
county,  Indiana,  where  her  people  located  upon  a  farm.     Mrs.  Young 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY  r.)l 

passed  away  in  Octul.er,  1903.  l,ut  Jacl,  Young  is  still  living.  There 
were_  three  children  in  the  family:  Millie,  now  the  wife  of  Frank 
Kieffer.  of  South  Lend,  Indiana;  John  H.,  of  this  review,  and  Kittie, 
who  is  the  wife  of  William  Reaves,  of  South  Bend,  Indiana. 

John  H.  "S'dung,  the  only  son  of  the  family,  was  reared  in  the 
county  fif  his  nativity,  and  pursued  his  education  in  the  Harrison 
Prairie  schools.  He  remained  at  home  until  twenty-eight  years  of  age, 
assisting  in  the  work  of  the  farm,  and  the  knowledge  thus  gained  of 
the  practical  methods  of  tilling  the  soil  and  cultivating  the  fields  enabled 
him  to  successfully  carry  on  general  farming  when  he  secured  a  home 
of  his  own. 

Mr.  Young  was  married  in  1RS9  to  ;Miss  Cora  Butts,  a  daughter 
of  Mrs.  Mary  J.  Butts,  of  Milton  township,  Cass  county,  in  which 
locality  Mrs.  Young  was  horn.  Mr.  Young  has  been  a  resident  of  ^vlil- 
ton  towmship  for  sixteen  years,  and  has  been  active  and  influential  in 
public  affairs.  He  is  a  stanch  supporter  of  the  Democracv.  holding 
office  for  a  number  of  years.  He  was  elected  township  treasurer  in  190^ 
and  has  acted  in  other  local  positions.  He  was  also  elected  highway 
commissioner  hut  refused  to  qualify.  N^o  public  trust  reposed  in  him 
has  ever  been  betrayed  in  the  slightest  degree,  for  he  is  ever  loyal  to 
the  general  good  and  puts  forth  bis  best  efforts  for  the  welfare  and  up- 
building of  the  community. 

Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Young  have  been  born  two  children.  Charlie 
and  Lloyd.  The  family  home  is  on  a  farm  of  one  Inmdred  and  seventy 
acres,  all  of  which  ^Ir.  Young  cultivates,  giving  his  attention  to  general 
agricultural  pursuits.  In  tilling  the  soil  he  has  followed  practical  meth- 
ods and  has  secured  excellent  results,  and  he  annually  gathers  golden 
harvests  as  a  reward  for  the  care  and  labor  which  he  bestows  upon  his 
place.  Socially  he  is  connected  with  the  Knights  of  the  'Macaibees  and 
with  the  jMasons.  He  is  also  a  member  of  the  Methodist  church,  anfl 
these  membership  relations  indicate  the  character  of  the  man  and  the 
principles  which  govern  his  conduct  and  are  manifest  in  his  daily  life — 
principles  wliich  in  every  land  and  clime  command  respect  and  awaken 
confidence. 

LEWIS  C.  VAN  ANTWERP. 

Lewis  C.  Van  Antwerp,  who  is  conducting  a  meat  market  in  Ed- 
wardsburg,  was  born  in  Ontwa  township.  IMav  10,  1S56,  Fli?  father. 
Simon  Van  Antwerp,  was  a  native  of  New  York  and  became  one  of 
the  pioneer  settlers  of  Cass  county,  ^Michigan,  his  youth,  however. 
being  passed  in  the  Empire  state,  further  mention  of  whom  is  made 
in  connection  with  the  sketch  of  G.  H.  Redfield  on  another  page  of  this 
work. 

Upon  the  old  home  farm  in  Ontwa  township  Lewis  C.  Van  .Ant- 
werp spent  the  first  four  vears  of  his  life.  His  father  then  remo-ved 
to  South  Bend,  Indiana,  where  his  death  occurred  when  the  son  Lewis 


^9S  HISTORY  o|.-  CASS  COUXTY 

was  but  eleven  years  oi  age.  Tlic  latter  afterward  returned  to  Ontwa 
township  and  has  snice  been  a  resident  of  Cass  countv.  He  devoted  his 
time  and  energies  to  agricultural  pursuits  between  the'age'^  of  eleven  and 
thirty-six  years,  and  also  engaged  in  operating  a  threshing  machine  in 
his  early  manhood.  About  the  time  he  attained  his  niajoritv  he  rented 
land  from  George  Redfield  and  was  engaged  in  farming  'for  'several 
years.  Later  he  removed  to  Mason  township,  where  he  rented  another 
farm  of  Mr.  Redfield.  When  his  financial  resources  made  other  purchase 
possible  he  added  five  acres  from  Mrs.  Joy,  and  then  twentv-six  acres 
of  land  to  the  other  tract,  buying  the  latter  of  George  Ketc'hnm.  All 
of  this  was  wild  and  unimproved,  but  he  cleared  and  cultivated  it, 
transforming  it  into  productive  fields.  As  the  years  went  by  his  labors 
brought  to  him  a  good  financial  return  and  Iiis  farm  work  resulted  in 
the  improvement  of  a  splendid  property.  He  resided  thereon  until  1892, 
when  he  removed  to  Cassopolis,  where  he  embarked  in  the  butcliering 
business,  continuing  in  the  trade  there  for  seven  vears.  In  1899  he 
came  to  Edwardsburg,  where  he  again  opened  a  meat  market,  and  has 
since  been  identified  with  the  business  interests  of  the  citv  in  this  way. 

Mr.  Van  Antwerp  was  married  in  1883  to  Miss  Bertha  L.  Schut't, 
a  daughter  of  A.  S.  and  Lydia  Schutt,  and  a  native  of  Noble  county. 
Indiana,  Ixirn  July  7,  1S58.  She  resided  there  with  her  parents  unt'il 
about  ten  years  of  age  when,  in  iS'lS,  the  familv  removed  to  Elkliart 
county,  Indiana,  where  :Mrs.  \'an  Antwerp  lived  until  she  reached 
womanhood.  She  has  become  the  mother  of  two  children :  BIcnn, 
who  was  born  in  Mason  township,  April  19,  1885.  and  Haminn.  born 
in  Cassopolis.  Decemlicr  9,  189.'^.  The  elder  was  graduated  from  the 
high  school  of  Edwardsburg. 

Mr.  Van  Antwerji  is  a  Republican  and  a  m.ember  of  the  W^oodmen 
camp  at  Edwardsburg.  He  has  little  desire  for  public  office,  preferring 
to  give  his  attention  to  his  business  affairs,  and  whatever  success  he  has 
attained  is  attributable  to  his  close  application,  earnest  purpose  and 
honorable  methods. 

E.  F.  LEWIS. 

E.  F.  Lewis,  who  for  many  years  was  engaged .  activelv  in  farm 
work,  but  who  now  rents  his  lanrl  and  makes  his  home  in  Yandalia. 
where  he  took  up  his  abode  ahxit  189S.  has  been  associated  with  e\-ents 
which  have  molded  the  pioneer  history  of  the  count}'  and  have  contrib- 
uted to  its  later  development.  He  is  one  of  the  older  nati^-e  sons  of 
Cass  county,  his  birth  having  occurred  in  Newberg  township  on  the 
8th  of  November.  1847.  His  father.  J.  W.  Lewis,  was  a  native  of  New 
York,  in  which  state  he  was  reared,  but  was  married  in  Ohio,  the 
wedding  taking  place  in  Medina  county,  where  he  won  the  hand  of  ]Miss 
Emily  Ferguson,  a  native  of  tliat  county.  In  the  year  1840  thev  came 
to  Cass  county.  ?\Iicliigan.  and  settled  in  Newberg  township,  where 
their  remaining  days  were  passed.     Both  had  died  at  a  comparativelv 


-^,   , 


~  ^ 


\.        ■ 


tytotd. 


Jo.-- 


^N-1/^ 


S^\ 


ere 
as  a 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  4!i'j 

early  age,  the  father  in  l.is  forty-fifth  year,  wliile  the  motlier  was  about 
thirty-six  years  of  age  at  the  time  of  lier  demise.  In  their  family  w 
five  sons:  Francis  S.,  ^vho,  enlisting  for  service  in  the  Civil  war  a. 
defender  of  the  Lnion  in  the  Fourth  ^lichigan  Cavalrv,  Company 
I  gave  his  life  for  his  country  at  the  battle  of  Stone  River  in  i86v 
James  H.,  who  also  died  at  tlic  battle  of  Stone  River  while  serving  as 
a  member  of  the  Fourth  Michigan  Cavalry,  to  which  his  brother  also 
belonged;  E.  F..  of  tliis  review;  ^lisacl  B.,  now  living  in  St.  Tosenh 
county  Michigan;  and  Charles  E.,  who  maintains  his  residence  in 
Pennsylvania. 

No  event  of  special  imiwrtance  occurred  to  vary  the  routine  of 
farm  life  for  E.  F.  Lewis  in  his  boyhood  days.  He  was  reared  in  his 
native  township  and  attended  the  common  schools,  his  time  bein<^  divided 
between  the  duties  of  the  schoolroom,  the  pleasures  of  the  play-crround 
and  the  work  of  the  home  farm.  However,  in  1S64.  he  respoirded  to 
his  country  s  call  for  aid.  His  two  elder  brothers  had  become  soldiers 
and  had  given  their  lives  in  defense  of  the  Union  in  the  previous  vear 
and_  E.  F.  Lewis,  although  only  sixteen  years  of  age,  thrilled  with  the 
spirit  of  patriotism,  offered  his  aid  to  his  count^^•,  being  enrolled  with 
the  boys  in  blue  of  Company  H,  Nineteenth  Michigan  Volunteer  In- 
fantr>-,  as  a  private.  He  served  until  the  close  of  the  war,  took  part  in 
the  battle  of  Savannah,  and  went  with  Sherman  on  the  celebrated  march 
to  the  sea,  and  through  the  Carolina  campaign.  Although  he  enlisted 
during  tlie  latter  part  of  the  struggle  he  tasted  fully  the  fortunes  and 
experiences  of  war,  and  all  of  the  hardships  meted  out  to  the  soldier 
Following  the  fall  of  Richmond  and  the  surrender  of  Lee  he  took  part 
m  the  grand  review  in  Wasiiington,  D.  C,  where  the  victorious  Union 
army  marched  past  the  stand  upon  which  the  president  viewed  the 
troops.  It  was  a  glad  day  for  the  soldiers,  knowing  that  this  meant  the 
cIose_ of  their  military-  service,  which  had  been  long  and  arduous,  and 
that  it  also  meant  that  victory  had  perched  ilix>n  the  Union  arms  and 
that  the  country  was  not  to  be  dismembered,  to  the  dissatisfaction  of  the 
south.  Mr.  Lewis  received  his  honorable  discharge  at  Detroit  Michi- 
gan, and  was  mustered  out  at  W'ashington. 

Not  long  after  he  was  again  at  his  work  in  the  fields  in  Newber^r 
township,  being  employed  for  some  time  as  a  farm  hand  by  the  month" 
He  also  engaged  in  grubbing  stumps  and  anv  other  work  neces<=arv  for 
clearing  and  improving  the  land.  In  1868  he  married  Miss  Narcissus 
r.  Pemberton  a  daughter  of  R.  S.  and  ^largaret  (^filler)  Pemberton 
Reason  S.  Pemberton  died  at  his  son's  residence  in  Marcellus 
April  27.  1896.  after  a  long  and  painful  sickness,  aged  seventv-four 
years  one  month  and  four  days.  He  was  born  in  Wavne  countv.'Ohio, 
iNlarch  23,  1822.  and  came  to  Cass  county,  Michigan,  in  1836.  with  his 
uncle,  Joseph  Pemberton.  with  whom  he  made  his  home,  having  been 
left   motherless   when   very  young.      Like  a   great   many  of  the   early 


5<-'0  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

pioneers,  liis  advantages  for  getting  an  education  ^vere  very  poor,  and 
young  Reason,  like  many  a  poor  boy  of  those  days,  began  to  use  the 
axe,  the  tool  that  has  felled  the  forests  of  Alichigan,  converting  the  land 
into  vast  fields  for  the  present  generation.  Notwithstanding  the  meager 
chanches  for  obtaining  an  education,  he  always  had  a  strong  desire  for 
learning.  Having  gained  a  copy  of  that  important  factor  in  pioneer  educa- 
tion, Webster's  elemeutarv  spelling  book,  he  soon  learned  to  read  and 
spell.  That,  with  the  Testament  and  a  few  books  he  borrowed,  constituted 
young  Reason's  libraiy,  which  he  read  and  studied  by  the  light  of  the 
fireplace.  Three  months  of  schooling  in  an  old  log  schoolhouse  in 
Indiana,  where  he  had  gone  from  Michigan,  completed  his  early  educa- 
tion, during  which  time  he  put  in  good  work  learning  to  "ciplier." 
After  having  taught  a  few  terms  of  school  he  was  married,  in  1840,  to 
Margaret  Miller,  a  German  girl  of  thrifty  parentage,  and  with  his  wife 
returned  to  ^Michigan,  where  they  made  their  home  and  lived  until 
the  death  of  Mrs.  Pemberton  in  1SS5,  ^t  the  age  of  sixty-four  years. 
The  hardships  and  trials  of  this  couple  were  like  those  of' all  pioneers. 
The  log  cabin,  with  its  fireplace,  the  small  piece  of  cleared  land,  sur- 
rounded by  the  deep  tangled  wildwood,  with  its  deer,  its  wolves  and  its 
Indians,  were  all  well  known  to  the  early  pioneers.  Twelve  children 
were  born  to  this  couple,  seven  of  whom  are  now  living,  and  all  were 
present  at  the  time  of  his  death  but  one,  Mrs.  J.  A.  Pmvell,  living  in 
Oklahoma.  Air.  Pemljerton  and  his  wife  united  with  tlie  Christian 
church  at  Vandalia  during  the  early  days  of  its  organization.  In  1S55 
he  became  a  charter  member  of  the  Vandalia  F.  &  A.  M.,  in  which 
organization  he  remained  an  active  and  faithful  member  til!  death.  He 
has  held,  during  his  career,  all  the  township  offices,  from  supervisor 
down  to  constable,  and  for  over  twenty  years  held  the  important  posi- 
tion of  justice  of  the  peace.  "Uncle  Reas,"  as  he  was  known,  had  a 
remarkable  memory  for  retaining  dates  and  events  and  reproducing 
them  with  clearness.  In  his  official  capacity  he  was  frequently  consulted 
in  matters  pertaining  to  law,  and  although  only  self-taught  on  the  sul> 
ject,  his  opinions  on  such  matters  have  been  a  guide  to  a  great  many 
people.  Being  a  life-long  Democrat,  he  subscribed  for  and  donated  to 
the  National  Democrat  during  its  early  struggles  for  existence,  and  the 
paper  was  always  a  welcome  weekly  visitor,  furnishing  the  literary 
matter  for  the  family. 

The  funeral  services  were  held  at  the  Christian  churcli  in  Vandalia. 
conducted  by  Rev.  George  Barrows,  and  attended  by  a  large  number  of 
relatives  and  friends.  The  F.  &  A.  M.  organizations  of  Marcellus  and 
Vandalia,  with  visiting  members  from  Cassopolis  and  Dowagiac,  at- 
tended in  a  body,  and  with  tlie  ceremonies  of  their  order  interred  the 
remains  in  the  \"andalia  cemetery,  there  to  await  the  resurrection  morn. 
In  his  death  was  lost  an  honored  and  respected  neighbor,  brother  and 
father. 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  501 

Wisdom  and  love  have  ordered  all  the  past, 
All  shall  be  blessedness  and  joy  at  last; 
Cast  oft  the  cares  that  have  so  long  oppressed, 
Rest,  sweetly  rest. 

Margaret  I'emberton,  wife  of  R.  S.  Pemberton,  Sr.,  died  at  her 
residence  in  Vandalia,  after  a  short  illness.  She  was  the  daughter  of 
Jacob  and  Barbara  Miller,  and  was  born  in  the  German  state  of  Hesse 
Darmstadt,  ^larch  lo,  i8ji.  In  1S32  she  came  with  her  parents  to 
America,  and  tlie  family  (_ father,  mother  and  six  children),  settled 
near  Fredericksburg,  ^^laryland,  where  they  lived  until  1S36,  when  they 
emigrated  to  near  Cadiz,  Henry  county,  Indiana,  where  her  parents 
commenced  the  laborious  task  of  making  a  farm  in  the  wilderness,  in 
the  work  of  which  she  bore  no  small  part.  In  1840  she  was  married  to 
R.  S.  Pemberton,  and  in  1842  she  came  with  her  husband  to  Penn  town- 
ship, Cass  county,  ^Michigan,  where  she  continued  to  live  until  her  death. 
After  their  arrival  in  Michigan  they  moved  from  place  to  place  for  a 
time,  but  in  1847,  they  bought  land  a  short  distance  northeast  of  this 
village  and  began  in  earnest  the  experience  of  the  trials  and  vexations, 
the  joys  and  freedom  of  pioneer  life.  They  continued  to  live  on  the 
farm  until  1877,  when  they  mcivcd  to  this  village,  where  they  after- 
ward resided.  She  was  the  type  of  a  class  of  pioneers  that  are  fast 
passing  away.  Slie  was  tlie  mother  of  twelve  children,  seven  of  whom 
are  now  living,  and  excc])ting  one  (Barbara),  were  with  her  in  her 
last  sickness.  Traits  of  character — a  cheerful  disposition  to  do  the  work 
which  fell  to  her  lot,  unceasing  care  for  her  family,  active  symiiathy  for 
those  in  affliction — these  she  possessed  to  a  high  degree.  The  funeral 
was  held  at  the  Disciple  church,  of  which  denomination  she  was  a  mem- 
ber for  forty  years,  having  obeyed  the  gospel  under  the  ministration  of 
Ruben  Wilson  in  1845.  '^"''^  burial  took  place  at  the  graveyard  near 
tlie  village,   Elder  Brown  officiating. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Lewis  began  tlieir  domestic  life  upon  a  farm  which 
he  had  purchased  in  Xewberg  township,  and  there  he  carried  on  general 
agricultural  ])ursuits  for  aljout  three  years,  after  which  he  engaged  in 
digging  wells,  giving  about  fifteen  years  of  his  time  to  that  business. 
He  then  began  following  the  more  advanced  methods  of  driving  wells, 
and  he  has  also  engaged  in  farming  in  Penn  township.  He  bought 
the  property  that  he  now  owns  about  1875,  ^"^  he  lived  upon  the  place 
until  1890.  He  now  enjoys  a  well  earned  rest  in  Vandalia.  where  in 
1898  he  erected  one  of  the  finest  residences  of  the  village.  He  rents 
his  farm  and  is  practically  retired  from  active  business,  although  he  is 
now  one  of  the  trustees  and  stockholders  of  the  Vandalia  creamery. 
He  also  loans  money  and  in  this  has  been  quite  successful. 

Unto  IMr.  and  Mrs.  Lewis  have  been  born  a  son  and  three  daugh- 
ters: Frank  B.,  born  August  12,  1870.  wlio  is  now  engaged  in  drilling 
wells  in  Cass  countv;  and  Fancheon  D.,  bnm  October  11,  188;,  is  the 


502  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

wife  of  William  D.  Kimniick.  who  is  living  upon  the  old  homestead. 
Two  daughters  are  deceased.  Birta  'SI.,  born  April  i8,  1S74,  and  died 
May  10,  1874:  and  Vadie  E.,  born  August  7,  1876,  and  died  June  28, 
1879.  The  parents  are  members  of  the  Christian  church,  taking  an  ac- 
tive part  in  its  work  and  contributing  generously  to  its  support.  Mr. 
Lewis  has  been  a  life-long  resident  of  Cass  county,  and  has  rejoiced  in 
the  fact  that  this  cnunty  has  won  a  place  among  the  leading  counties  of 
the  great  commonwealth.  The  result  is  due  to  the  aggregate  endeavor 
of  its  many  public  spirited,  energetic  and  enterprising  citizens,  in  which 
class  he  belongs.  In  politics  he  is  an  earnest  and  unfaltering  Republi- 
can, and  his  fellow  townsmen  have  called  him  to  various  offices.  He 
acted  as  supervisor  of  Penn  township  for  four  terms  and  he  is  now  pres- 
ident of  the  village  of  Vandalia.  sen'ing  for  the  second  term  in  that 
position,  giving  to  the  city  an  administration  that  is  characterized  by 
the  utmost  devotion  to  the  general  good  and  by  practical  and  progressive 
methods  for  the  benefit  of  the  town.  He  belongs  to  the  Grand  Army 
of  the  Republic  at  Jones,  ^Michigan,  W.  J.  Maple  Post,  and  thus  main- 
tains pleasant  relations  with  his  old  army  comrades.  Indolence  and 
idleness  have  ever  l)ecn  utterly  foreign  to  his  nature,  and  whatever 
work  he  has  undertaken,  whether  in  his  private  business  life  or  in  be- 
half of  the  community,  has  been  characterized  by  close  application  and 
an  unfaltering  purpose  that  has  enabled  him  to  carry  forward  to  suc- 
cessful completion  the  task  that  has  claimed  his  time  and  energies. 

ALLISON  D.  THOMPSON. 

Allison  D.  Thompson  is  numbered  among  the  old  settlers  of  Cass 
county  and  makes  his  home  on  section  16.  Milton  township,  where  for 
a  long  period  he  has  carried  on  general  agricultural  piu'suits.  He  has 
attained  the  age  of  seventy-three  years,  his  birth  having  occurred  in 
Delaware,  June  23,  1833.  ^^'S  father,  Shelley  Thompson,  was  also  a 
native  of  Delaware,  an(l  in  the  year  1836  sought  a  home  in  the  middle 
west,  settling  in  Milton  townsliip.  Cass  county,  Michigan,  where  he 
took  up  land  from  the  government,  for  at  that  time  much  of  this 
portion  of  the  state  was  still  unclaimed  by  settlers  or  speculators.  The 
virgin  forests  stood  in  their  primeval  strength,  the  streams  were  un- 
bridged  and  the  land  uncultivated.  Shelley  Thompson  became  one  of 
the  pioneers  of  Cass  countv  and  was  closely  identified  with  its  early 
history  as  it  was  reclaimed  for  the  uses  of  civilization.- and  its  wild  land 
was  transformed  into  productive  fields. 

Allison  D.  Thompson  was  but  three  years  of  age  at  the  time  of 
his  parents'  removal  to  the  middle  west,  and  was  reared  upon  the  old 
homestead  in  'Milton  township.  The  mode  of  life  at  that  day  wa=  very 
different,  for  pioneer  conditions  existed  on  all  hands,  and  invention  had 
not  brought  about  the  revolution  in  methods  of  farm  life  that  is  now 
familiar.      His   education   was  acquired   in   one  of  the  old   log   school 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  ju;j 

houses  cominou  lu  thai  clay,  and  he  sliared  with  the  family  in  the  hard- 
ships of  frontier  life,  assisting  in  the  strenuous  task  of  developing  a  new- 
farm,  rie  has  always  remained  a  resident  of  Cass  county,  and  the 
dianges  which  ha\e  occurred  antl  the  events  which  have  wrought  its 
history  ha\-e  left  their  impress  upon  his  memory,  so  that  he  is  well  in- 
formed concerning  the  county's  development  and  progress.  He  has 
been  married  twice,  his  first  uui(jn  heing  with  Miss  Julia  Adams,  by 
whom  he  had  two  children,  a  S(_in  and  daughter.  The  latter  is  Mrs. 
Belle  Parvis,  of  South  Bend,  Indiana,  and  the  son,  Jesse,  is  now  de- 
ceased. l"or  his  second  wife,  :Mr.  Thompson  chose  Mary  E.  Parvis, 
whom  lie  wedded  in  1870.  She  was  born  in  Delaware,  February  23, 
1849,  ^n^J  is  :i  daughter  of  Solomon  and  Ellen  (Fowler)  Parvis,  who 
came  to  Berrien  county,  ^lichigan,  in  i860. 

For  two  years  after  his  first  marriage  IMr.  Thompson  was  a  resi- 
dent of  Howard  township,  and  for  twelve  years  lived  in  Pokagon  town- 
ship, where  he  was  engaged  in  farming,  but  the  greater  part  of  his  life 
has  been  spent  in  ]\IiIton  t(jwnsliip  and  he  is  well  known  as  one  of  its 
leading  settlers  and  representative  agriculturists.  Unto  him  and  his 
wife  have  been  born  four  children:  Bertha,  who  is  now  the  wife  of 
Bert  Kizer,  of  Niles.  Michigan ;  Arthur,  who  was  Inirn  in  Berrien 
county,  Michigan,  where  the  parents  lived  for  almut  two  years,  his 
natal  day  being  December  3.  187.1..  ^^^  ■^^•'■'^  reared,  however,  in  Milton 
town.ship,  Cass  county,  and  was  educated  in  the  district  schools  of  that 
township  and  of  Pokagon  township.  He  was  married  on  the  i^tli  of 
May,  1895,  to  ]\Iiss  !Marv  E.  Reid.  a  daughter  of  Alexander  and  Emma 
(Dupert)  Reid.  There  is  one  child  of  this  marriage  who  is  yet  living, 
Helen  May.  Two  children  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  A.  D.  Thompson  are  de- 
ceased. Arthur  Thompson  is  now  looking  after  the  interests  of  the 
home  farm,  which  comjiriscs  one  hundred  and  fifty-nine  acres  of  rich 
land..  It  is  under  a  high  state  of  cultivation  and  is  improved  with  many 
modern  ecpiipments  and  accessories. 

Mr.  Thompson,  of  this  review,  is  a  member  of  the  Gleaners  and  his 
political  allegiance  is  given  to  the  Democracy.  He  has  a  vers-  wide 
and  favorable  acquaintance  in  Cass  county,  and  through  the  years  of 
his  residence  here  ha?  so  lived  as  to  win  and  merit  the  esteem  and 
good  will  of  all  with  whom  he  has  been  associated.  He  carried  on 
farming  actively  for  a  long  period  and  has  now  given  over  the  super- 
vision of  his  farm  to  his  son,  while  he  is  leading  a  more  quiet  life,  his 
rest  being  well  merited  because  of  his  activity  in  former  years. 

HENRY  ANDRUS. 

HenP)-  Andrus,  editor  of  the  Erlwardsburg  .\rgus  and  a  prominent 
temperance  worker  of  [Michigan,  was  born  in  \\'aterloo  township.  Lyon 
county,  Kansas,  near  the  town  nf  \\'i!min.gton,  on  the  26th  of  October. 
1S61.''  His   paternal    grandfather.    Hazzard    Andrus,   was   a   native   of 


504  -        HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

Kings  county.  Xew  York,  Ijorn  Octoljer  3,  1788,  and  in  1835  came  to 
Michigan  witli  his  lainily.  He  had  been  married  in  tlic  Empire  state 
in  1824  to  Miss  Fannie  Bishop,  and  they  were  the  parents  of  nine 
children,  five  of  whom  are  deceased.  The  hving  are:  James  H.,  of 
Edwardsliurg;  Mrs.  I'orter  Lyl)arker,  of  Mason  townsliip,  Cass  county; 
Nelson,  of  Dayton,  Washington;  and  Riley,  who  is  living  at  Dayton, 
Oregon.  The  grandparents  remained  residents  of  Edwardshm-g  until 
called  to  their  final  rest,  Hazzard  Andrus  passing  away  on  the  3fl  of 
March,  1S62,  while  his  wife,  long  surviving  him,  died  Januarv  29,  1894. 

James  H.  Andrus,  father  of  our  subject,  was  born  in  Ontwa  town- 
ship, at  the  U'lrtli  bank  of  Eagle  lake,  July  30,  1837.  and  remained  a 
resident  of  tins  tnwnshi])  until  iXdo,  when  he  went  to  Kansas,  where 
he  was  married  on  the  7th  of  October  of  that  year  to  Miss  Cylinda  M. 
Haring,  a  daughter  of  irienry  and  Nancy  Haring,  who  had  also  removed 
from  Cass  county  to  Kansas  in  that  year.  In  1S62  ^Mr.  Andrus  returned 
with  his  family  to  ^Michigan,  and  in  the  course  of  years  there  were  born 
unto  him  and  his  wife  four  ciiildrcn,  three  sons  and  a  daughter.  The 
latter,  Cora  ^I..  died  July  2.  1877.  Those  still  living  are:  Henry; 
William.  Riley,  of  ^Michigan  City,  Indiana;  and  George  S.,  of  LaCrosse. 
Wisconsin.  The  mother,  who  was  a  native  of  New  York,  bnrn  Decem- 
ber 9,  1840,  was  but  two  years  of  age  when  brought  liy  her  parents 
to  Michigan,  the  Haring  family  being  established  in  ^Mason  township. 
Her  death  occurred  October  4,  1903. 

James  H.  Andrus  enlisted  in  Company  L.  Second  Michigan  Cavalry 
Volunteers,  in  1864,  and  screed  till  the  close  of  hostilities,  when  he 
received  his  honorable  discharge  and  returned  to  don  the  civilian's  garb. 

Henry  i\ndrus  was  brought  by  his  parents  to  Cass  county  in  1862, 
the  family  home  being  established  in  Edwardsburg,  but  after  a  short 
time  a  removal  was  made  to  Mason  township,  and  later  to  Calvin  town- 
ship. In  the  year  i8(tc).  however,  the  family  returned  to  Edwardsburg. 
Henry  Andrus  attended  the  district  schools  of  Mason  and  Calvin  town- 
ships, and  following  the  remov?;!  to  Edwardsburg  continued  his  educa- 
tion in  the  high  school  of  this  city.  At  the  age  of  eighteen  years  he 
began  working  in  the  ofRce  of  the  Edwardsburg  Argiua.  then  published 
by  John  B.  Sweetland,  and  remained  in  the  employ  of  that  gentleman 
for  nearlv  twentv  vears.  or  until  the  death  of  Dr.  Sweetland  on  the  iQth 
of  Februarv,  1899.  He  then  purchased  the  printing  office  of  the  heirs 
and  has  continued  the  publication  of  the  paper  to  the  present  time.  He 
is  a  well  know  newspaper  man  and  his  journal  has  a  wide  circulation. 
which  makes  it  as  well  a  good  advertising  medium.  He  therefore  re- 
ceives a  good  patronage  in  that  direction,  and  the  Argus  has  proved  a 
profitable  investment. 

Mr.  Andrus  is  widely  known  as  a  leading  Prohibitionist  of  Mich- 
igan. Throughout  his  entire  life  he  has  been  a  strong  advocate  of  the 
temperance  cause,  and  since  attaining  his  majoritv  has  given  his  ballot 
for  the  support  of  the  party  that  embodies  his  views  on  this  question. 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY  506 

In  1896  he  received  the  Prohibition  nomination  for  Heutenant  governor, 
and  in  1S9S  was  lionored  hy  his  party  witli  the  nomination  for  auditor 
general,  \vliile  in  1902  he  was  a  candidate  for  representative  to  the  state 
legislature.  He  is  now  servin.c:  as  a  niemher  of  the  board  of  education 
of  Edwardsburg  and  for  twelve  years  has  held  the  position  of  director. 
Through  the  columns  of  his  paper,  and  individually  as  well,  he  has 
co-operated  in  many  movements  for  the  general  good,  and  is  the  cham- 
pion of  every  plan  formulated  and  measure  instituted  for  the  develop- 
ment of  his  city  along  tlie  lines  of  material.  in<lividual  and  moral 
progress. 

On  the  31st  of  December,  iS.'-^j,  Mr.  Andrns  was  united  in  marriage 
to  Miss  Ida  F..  Kitchen,  a  native  of  Columbia  county,  Pennsylvania,  and 
a  daughter  of  Xclson  and  Subrina  (Eves)  Kitchen,  who  removed  with 
their  family  to  Cass  county  in  the  spring  of  1872.  ^Ir.  and  Mrs.  .\ndrus 
have  become  the  parents  of  two  sons:  George  R.,  born  October  13, 
1883,  and  Charles  H..  born  June  14,  1894. 

GEORGE  ITAM:\fOXD  REDFIELD, 

George  Hammond  Rcdficid,  who  follows  fanning  and  also  oper- 
ates a  cream  separator  l)usincs^  at  Edwardsburg,  is  a  native  of  Ontwa 
township,  born  August  21.  1S55.  and  in  the  years  of  an  active  manhood 
has  made  a  creditable  business  record.  His  father.  George  Redficid. 
was  a  native  of  Connecticut.  l>orn  October  6,  1796.  and  in  1800  went 
with  his  parents  to  Ontario  county.  X'ew  York,  where  he  was  reared 
and  acquired  his  education.  ITis  youth  was  spent  upon  a  farm  about 
three  miles  from  Qiftoii  Springs.  X'ew  York,  the  famous  hospital  resort. 
In  1825  and  1826  he  engaged  in  teaching  school  in  Milledgeville, 
Georgia,  which  was  then  in  the  heart  of  the  slave  countr\'.  He  after- 
ward returned  to  his  father's  farm  and  aided  in  its  further  development 
and  improvement  up  to  the  time  of  his  marriage,  which  was  celebrated 
in  Ontario  county,  X^'ew  York,  on  the  9th  of  January,  1835,  the  lady  of 
his  choice  being  IMiss  Julia  Mason,  of  Palmyra.  New  York.  Tliey  be- 
came the  parents  of  three  children.  Ann  Maria,  Julia  and  Louis  H.,  de- 
ceased. Coming  to  the  west,  they  settled  in  Ontwa  township.  Cass  county, 
Michigan,  in  1835,  and  in  August.  1848.  George  Redfield  was  called 
upon  to  mourn  the  loss  of  his  wife.  In  September,  185 1,  he  was  again 
married,  his  second  union  being  with  Jane  E.  Hammond,  a  daughter  of 
Judge  Hammond,  of  Essex  county.  New  York.  She  was  reared  and 
educated  in  the  Empire  state  and  her  death  occurred  in  1865.  By  this 
marriage  there  was  one  son  and  three  daughters,  the  eldest  being  George 
Hammond,  of  this  review.  His  sisters  are:  Bertha,  now  the  wife  of 
H.  E.  Bucklcn.  of  Chicago:  Mvra  J.,  the  wife  of  W.  C.  Hewitt,  a  pro- 
fessor in  the  State  Normal  School  at  Oshkosh.  Wisconsin,  and  the 
author  of  a  work  on  political  science:  and  Ahby,  deceased  at  the  age  of 
twenty-six.  All  of  the  children  of  the  second  marriage  were  bom  in 
Cass  county. 


50C  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

On  coming  to  :\Iichig-an  George  Redfield,  Sr.,  took  up  his  abode 
upon  a  farm,  purchasing  eight  luuuh-cd  and  lour  acres  of  raw  land 
from  tlie  government.  He  cultivated  this  tract,  which  was  located  in 
the  southeastern  part  of  Ontwa  township,  and  in  the  development  of  this 
property  contributed  largely  toward  the  substantial  improvement  of  the 
county.  His  attention  was  given  to  agricultural  pursuits  until  his  death, 
which  occurred  October  31.  1887.  He  was  a  lifelong  Democrat,  and 
in  early  life  took  an  active  part  in  politics.  In  1S41  he  was  elected  rei> 
resentati\e  to  the  state  legislature,  and  in  1842  and  1S43  served  as 
state  senat(ir.  He  was  also  presidential  elector  in  1844  and  in  1845  he 
was  appointed  state  treasurer  by  Governor  Bany.  In  1850  he  was 
appointed  secretary  of  state,  and  he  was  a  member  of  the  convention 
that  framed  the  constitution  of  ^Michigan.  Thus  he  was  most  active  in 
public  life,  and  left  the  impress  of  his  individuality  for  good  upon  tJie 
measures  which  ha\e  formed  the  political  history  of  the  state.  He  had 
a  very  wide  and  favorable  acquaintance  among  the  distinguished  citi- 
zens of  jMichigan,  and  his  nan^e  is  engraved  high  on  the  roll  of  her 
honored  luen. 

George  Hamnuaul  Redfield  was  reared  upon  the  old  farm  home- 
stead, wlicre  he  remained  until  1873.  ^vhen  he  became  active  in  the  oper- 
ation of  his  father's  grist  mill  in  Jefferson  township,  there  residing  until 
1878.  He  then  removed  to  Alason  township,  locating  on  a  farm  which 
lie  recei\cd  from  his  father,  comprising  nne  hundred  and  si.xtv  acres, 
which  at  tliat  liiue  was  partially  impro\'ed. 

Mr.  Redfield  had  been  married  on  the  i8th  of  July,  1875,  to  Miss 
Julia  A.  Van  Antwerp,  a  native  of  Ontwa  township,  horn  December  iS, 
1851.  and  a  daughter  of  Simon  and  Louisa  (Hewitt)  Van  Antwerp. 
The  latter  was  a  daughter  of  Dethic  Hewitt,  one  of  the  honored  [)ioneer 
residents  of  Cass  county,  who  made  his  home  in  Edwardsbiirg  and  for 
forty  vears  filled  the  office  of  justice  of  the  peace.  Simon  \'an  .Ant- 
werp, father  of  ]\Irs.  Redfield,  was  a  native  of  the  Genesee  valley.  New 
Y'ork,  and  his  wife  was  born  in  Pennsylvania.  Tliey'  became  pioneer 
residents  of  Cass  county  and  tlie  present  home  of  Air.  and  Mrs.  Redfield 
is  the  house  in  which  they  ate  their  first  tneal  after  arriving  in  this 
county.  Mr.  Van  Antwerp  was  a  Republican  and  throughout  his  active 
business  career  carried  on  agricultural  pursuits,  but  at  the  age  of  fifty- 
four  years  retired  from  farming  and  removed  to  South  Bend.  Indiana, 
where  he  remained  until  his  death,  which  occurred  in  iS6ri.  ^vhen  he  was 
sixty-one  vears  of  age.  They  were  the  parents  of  six  children,  two  sons 
and' four  daughters,  of  whom  Mrs.  Redfield  was  the  third  in  order  of 
birth.  The  others  were:  Lynn:  Elber.  who  died  in  infancy:  Louis; 
Daniel :  and  Lucy.  All  were  born  in  Cass  county.  Mr.  Van  Antwerp 
was  twice  married,  his  first  union  being  with  Nancy  Halsted.  a  native 
of  New  York,  whom  he  wedded  in  Scotchville,  New  Y'ork.  They  were 
the  parents  of  three  children  :  Louisa  ;  Jonas,  deceased :  and  Llsie.  The 
wife  and  luother  died  in  Calhoun  county,  near  Alarshall,  Michigan,  and 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  507 

later  Mr.  Van  Antwerp  married  Louisa  Hewitt,  who  I'ccame  tlie  motlicr 
of  Mr?.  Redriel.l. 

Followin";  his  niarriaqe  Mr.  Re.ItleUl  settled  in  Jeffersun  town- 
ship, where  he  lived  for  three  years,  and  then  removed  to  Mason  town- 
ship, where  he  made  his  home  until  1904,  when  he  took  up  his  aljode  in 
Edwardsbur^.  He  has  led  a  most  husy  and  useful  life,  winning  suc- 
success  as  a  farmer  by  the  capable  manner  in  which  he  has  cultivated  his 
fields  and  cared  for  his  crops.  He  has  also  operated  a  creamery,  and 
both  branches  of  his  business  have  proved  profitable. 

Unto  ^Ir.  and  Mrs.  Redfield  have  been  born  two  sons,  but  I^^uis 
Harold,  b(jrn  August  18,  1877,  died  on  the  loth  of  December,  iSSi. 
The  surviving  son,  George  Russell,  was  born  January  8,  189 1.  on  the 
old  homestead  farm  in  Mason  township.  Mr.  Redfield  has  never  fal- 
tered in  his  allegiance  to  the  Democracy,  supporting  that  party  since  age 
gave  to  him  the  right  of  franchise.  He  was  justice  of  the  peace  in  Ma- 
son township  for  twenty-two  years,  was  township  clerk  for  six  years 
and  was  also  township  treasurer.  He  has  also  been  a  member  of  the 
township  board,  has  taken  a  most  active  interest  in  politics,  has  proved 
a  capable  ofiicer  and  has  done  everything  in  his  power  to  promote  the 
growth  and  insure  the  success  of  his  party.  He  belongs  to  the  Knights 
of  Pythias  lodge  at  Bristol,  Indiana,  and  to  the  Maccabees  tent  at  Un- 
ion, Michigan,  and  to  the  Michigan  State  Grange,  and  his  wife  also 
holds  meml^ership  relations  with  the  last  two.  Mr.  Redfield  is  a  worthy 
and  prominent  re])resentati\-e  of  an  honored  pioneer  famih'  and  has 
carried  forward  the  work  wdn'cb  was  instituted  by  his  father,  becoming 
through  the  careful  direction  of  his  business  interests  one  of  the  sul> 
stantial  citizens  of  this  part  of  the  state. 

ALFRED  SIIOCKLEY. 

In  a  review  of  the  history  of  the  county  back  to  pioneer  times  it 
will  be  found  that  Alfred  Shockley  was  a  resident  here  in  the  early  days 
and  he  now  makes  his  home  on  section  9.  iMilton  town.ship.  wliere  he  has 
a-  good  farming  property.  He  has  passed  the  seventy-seventh  milestone 
on  life's  journey,  his  birth  having  occurred  in  Sussex  county.  Dela- 
ware, on  the  17th  of  June,  1829.  His  father,  Littleton  Shockley.  was  a 
native  of  JMarvland.  where  he  was  reared.  By  ocaipation  he  was  a 
farmer,  thus  providing  for  his  family.  In  the  year  1833  'le  came  west- 
ward to  IMichigan,  settling  in  Milton  township.  Cass  county,  where  he 
took  up  land  froiri  the  government.  ^Michigan  was  still  under  territorial 
rule,  and  there  were  more  Indians  than  white  peonle  in  the  state.  The 
greater  part  of  the  land  was  still  unclaimed  and  the  work  of  irnprove- 
ment  and  development  had  scarcely  been  be.gun.  At  long  distances 
could  be  seen  a  pioueer  cabin  to  show  that  an  attempt  was  made  to  claim 
the  district  for  the  uses  of  civilization.  :\Ir.  Shockley  cast  in  his  lot  with 
the  earlv  settlers  and  shared  in  the  arduous  task  of  reclaiming  the  re- 


^«*  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

gion  and  developing  a  new  farm.  When  quite  young  he  was  left  an 
orphan  and  he  lust  ah  trace  of  his  people,  so  tha't  little  is  known  con- 
cerning the  ancestral  history  of  the  family.  His  death  occurred  in  the 
'Sos,  and  thus  passed  away  one  of  the  \vorth\-  pioneer  settlers  of  the 
community.  IJis  wife,  who  hore  the  maiden  name  of  Emily  Alessick, 
was  a  native  of  Delaware  and  was  there  reared.  She,  too,  reached  an 
advanced  age,  passing  away  in  her  eighty-second  year.  There  were 
eight  children  in  the  family,  four  of  whom  reached  adult  age. 

Alfred  Shockley  was  the  sixth  in  order  of  birth  and  was  a  little 
lad  of  five  summers  when  hrMught  to  Cass  county,  Michigan,  by  his 
parents.  He  was  reared  in  }.Iilion  township  and  early  became  familiar 
with  the  experiences  of  pioneer  life.  The  family  had  removed  from 
Delaware  to  Richmond,  Indiana,  when  he  v>as  only  a  year  old,  and  in 
1833  they  came  to  Cass  county,  since  which  time  the  family  name  has 
figured  in  the  records  of  this  part  of  the  state  and  has  been  a  synonym 
for  good  citizenship  and  for  progrcssiveness.  The  Indians  were  numer- 
ous in  this  section  of  the  state  diuing  his  boyhood  days  and  he  has  manv 
times  seen  wigwams  and  has  had  in  his  possession  various  things  made 
by  the  Indians.  He  came  to  know  much  of  tlieir  manners  and  customs 
of  living  and  in  course  of  time  saw  them  supplanted  by  the  white  race, 
while  they  sought  reservations  farther  west.  His  education  was  acquired 
in  one  of  the  old-time  log  school  houses,  in  which  the  methods  of  teach- 
ing were  primitive,  as  were  the  furnishings  of  the  little  building.  He 
assisted  on  the  laim  when  he  became  old  enough  and  remained  upon  the 
home  place  until  his  father  died.  On  the  i^th  of  September.  1861,  in 
response  to  the  country's  call  for  aid.  ^Ir.  Shockley  offered  his  services 
ancl  was  enrolled  as  a  member  of  Company  L.  Second  }ilichigan  Cav- 
alry. He  served  as  a  private  until  August,  1865.  having  re-enlisted  in 
the  same  company  in  1862.  continuing  with  the  command  until  after 
the  cessation  of  hostilities.  He  was  offered  a  promotion  but  would  not 
accept  it,  content  to  do  his  duty  in  the  ranks.  He  drove  a  team  most  of 
the  time  and  was  with  the  Arrnv  of  the  Cumberland. 

After  receiving  his  final  discharge  at  Jackson,  Michigan.  Mr. 
Shocklev  returned  to  his  old  home  in  Milton  township,  Cass  county,  and 
engaged  in  general  farming  on  the  place  where  he  now  resides.  He 
made  further  preparation  for  having  a  home  of  his  own  by  his  marriage 
on  the  5th  of  November,  1865,  to  IMiss  Victoria  Bower,  the  only  child  of 
John  and  Mary  (Gardner)  Bower  and  a  native  of  Goshen,  Indiana.  She 
was  reared,  however,  in  Niles.  Michigan.  Since  the  w-ar  Mr.  Shockley 
has  resided  continuously  in  the  home  which  he  now  occupies,  w^ith  the 
exception  of  one  year  spent  in  Niles.  His  farm  comprises  one  himdred 
and  thirteen  acres  of  land,  which  is  rich  and  productive  and  which  he 
now  rents,  thus  leaving  the  active  work  of  the  fields  to  others.  As  the 
years  went  bv  the  marriage  of  :^Ir.  and  :^Irs.  Shocklev  was  blessed  with 
eleven  children:  Addie.'now  the  wife  of  James  W.  Brown,  who  re- 
sides  in   Clav  township.   Elkhart   county.   Indiana:  Emily  J.,   who   has 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  M'J 

passed  away;  Elizabeth  E.,  the  wile  of  Jehu  Huff,  of  Xiles;  EHas  J.; 
Alfred  C.  a  member  of  the  police  of  Xiles;  Victoria  j\[av,  the  wife  of 
William  Needles,  of  ]\lilton  township;  George  B.,  who  is  living  in 
Milton  township;  Sylvester  W.,  of  Niles,  who  served  for  three  years 
with  the  regular  army  in  the  Philippines;  Charles  H.,  who  is  a  rural 
mail  carrier  on  route  No.  i  from  Niles;  Eva  E.,  the  wife  of  Julius 
Leech,  of  Alilton  township;  and  Cora  A.,  who  is  at  home.  All  of  the 
family  were  born  on  the  farm  where  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Shockley  now  reside. 
In  his  political  affiliations  Mr.  Shockley  is  a  Democrat  and  has 
served  as  constable  and  as  a  school  officer  in  an  early  day.  He  has  lieen 
a  resident  of  the  county  for  seventy-three  years  and  well  may  he  be  num- 
bered among  its  pioneers,  having  aided  in  making  the  county  what  it  is 
to-day.  He  has  been  active  in  its  upbuilding  and  development  and  has 
done  much  hard  work  in  clearing  land  and  promoting  its  agricultural 
interests,  especially  in  his  boyhood,  youth  and  earlier  manhood.  He  is 
now  the  oldest  settler  of  Milton  township  and  is  well  known  in  the 
county  as  a  man  of  genuine  worth,  whose  life  has  been  well  spent.  He 
has  always  been  busy  and  energetic  and  his  life  of  usefulness  has  won 
for  him  the  esteem  and  confidence  of  those  with  whom  he  has  been  asso- 
ciated. Almost  three-quarters  of  a  century  have  passed  since  Mr. 
Shockley  caine  to  this  county  to  cast  in  his  lot  with  its  pioneers.  Peo- 
ple of  the  present  time  can  scarcely  realize  the  struggles  and  dangers 
which  attended  the  early  settlers,  the  heroism  and  self-sacrifice  of  lives 
passed  upon  the  borders  of  civilization,  the  hardships  endured,  the  dif- 
ficulties overcome.  These  tales  of  the  early  days  read  almost  like  a 
romance  to  those  who  have  known  only  the  modern  prosperity  and  con- 
veniences. To  the  pioneer  of  the  early  times,  far  removed  from  the  priv- 
ileges and  conveniences  of  city  or  town,  the  struggle  for  existence  was 
a  stern  and  hard  one  and  these  men  and  women  must  have  possessed  in- 
domitable energy  and  sterling  worth  of  character,  as  well  as  marked 
phvsical  courage,  when  they  voluntarily  selected  such  a  life  and  suc- 
cessfully fought  its  battles  under  such  circumstances  as  prevailed  in  the 
ncrLhwest. 

M.  H.  CRISWELL,  M.  D. 

It  is  contended  by  manv  that  the  practice  of  medicine  is  the  most 
important  work  to  which  a  man  may  direct  his  energies,  and  all  accord 
the  profession  high  rank.  Not  only  must  the  successful  physician  pos- 
sess broad  and  accurate  knowledge  concerning  the  great  principles  which 
underlie  the  medical  and  surgical  science,  but  he  must  also  possess  a 
broad  humanitarian  spirit,  a  ready  SATnpathy  and  a  cheerful  nature 
which  inspires  hope  and  courage  and  proves  a  valued  supplement  to  his 
technical  knowledge.  In  these  qualities  Dr.  Criswell  of  Cassopolis  is 
well  equipped.  A  native  of  Knox  county,  Ohio,  he  was  bora  on  the 
lOth  of  August,  1S63,  his  parents  being  Benjamin  F.  and  Marv  E. 
(Walker)  Criswell  the  former  a  native  of  Stark  county.  Ohio,  and  the 


510  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

latter  of  Fredericktf.wn,  Kncx  county.  The  fatlier  was  a  merchant 
tailor  by  trade  and  devoted  his  life  to  that  occupation,  passing  away 
at  Akron,  Ohio,  when  seventy-one  years  of  age.  He  was  of  Scotcli 
lineage.  His  wife  died  when  only  forty-one  years  of  age.  In  their 
family  were  six  children,  of  whom  one  died  in  infancy. 

Dr.  Criswell  is  the  youngest  of  the  surviving  members  of  the  fam- 
ily and  his  youth  was  passed  in  Canton.  Ohio,  where  he  acquired  his 
literary  education  as  a  public  school  student.  He  began  the  study  of 
medicine  under  the  direction  of  Dr.  A.  V.  Smith  at  Canton  and  subse- 
quently spent  one  term  as  a  student  in  a  medical  college.  He  afterward 
devoted  three  years  to  the  business  of  a  traveling  salesman,  and  in  1S87 
he  resumed  his  medical  studies  and  was  graduated  from  the  Home- 
opathic College  in  Chicago  with  the  class  of  1891.  He  then  located  for 
practice  in  Edwardsburg.  Michigan,  where  he  remained  for  about  nine 
years,  when  he  removed  to  Cassoiwlis  in  1900.  Here  he  has  since 
been  located,  and  his  business  has  reached  gratifying  proportions,  as  he 
has  demonstrated  his  ability  to  cope  with  the  intricate  problems  which 
continually  confront  the  physician  in  his  efforts  to  check  the  ravages  of 
disease  and  restore  health.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Northern  Indiana 
and  Southern  Michigan  Medical  Associations  and  also  the  Amcriaui 
Medical  Association,  and  through  the  reports  of  those  bodies  he  keeps 
in  touch  with  what  is  being  done  in  the  line  of  medical  and  surgical  prac- 
tice. He  is  quiclc  to  adopt  any  new  method  or  idea  which  he  believes 
will  prose  of  practical  l>enefit  in  his  work  and  at  the  same  time  lie  is 
slow  to  discard  the  old  and  time-tried  methods  whose  value  has  been 
proven. 

In  iSgi  occurred  the  marriage  of  Dr.  Criswell  and  ]\Iiss  Kate 
Stophlet,  a  daughter  of  David  Stophlet.  In  social  circles  they  occupy  an 
enviable  position,  the  hospitality  of  the  best  homes  of  Cassopolis  and 
vicinity  being  extended  them.  Dr.  Criswell  is  a  member  of  the  Masonic 
fraternity,  the  Knights  of  the  Maccabees,  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of 
America,  and  he  gives  his  political  support  to  those  men  who  are  pledged 
to  support  the  principles  of  the  Republican  party.  For  fourteen  years 
he  has  practiced  in  Michigan  \vith  constantly  growing  success,  and  in 
Cass  county  is  accorded  a  position  tjf  prominence  among  the  representa- 
tives of  his  chosen  profession. 

LOT  BONIXE. 

Few  men  are  more  prominent  or  more  widely  known  in  Penn  ti  nvn- 
ship  than  Lot  Ronine,  who  has  been  an  important  factor  in  agricultural 
circles,  having  conducted  extensive  interests  as  a  stock  raiser,  especially 
in  the  line  of  the  sheep  industr}-.  In  him  are  embraced  the  character- 
istics of  an  unbending  integrity,  unabating  energy-  and  industry  that 
never  flags,  and  while  capably  conducting  his  business  affairs  he  is  at 
the  same  time  recognized  as  a  public  spirited  citizen,  thoroughly  inter- 


^^"'^^ 

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HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY  511 

csted  in  whatexcr  tends  tn  jirMni'iie  the  welfare  uf  liis  adopted  county. 
He  is  a  western  man  liy  liirtli  and  trainint^,  and  in  his  life  has  exemi)liried 
the  spirit  which  has  led  U>  the  rapid  and  suhstantial  upbuilding  nf  this 
sectiijn  of  the  countr}-.  He  lives  on  section  34,  Penn  township,  and  is 
numl>ered  amoni^  the  c'ld  settlers  of  the  county.  His  Iiirlh  recurred  in 
Richmond,  Wayne  county,  Indiana,  on  the  i8th  of  July.  1835.  Flis 
father.  Isaac  Bonine.  was  a  native  of  Tennessee,  Ix^rn  at  the  family 
home  on  the  Holstein  ri\er.  The  family  is  of  French  descent,  and  the 
paternal  grandfather  was  Daniel  Conine,  who  for  many  )ears  resided 
in  Tennessee.  There  Isaac  Bonine  was  reared  and  it  was  suhseciuent  to 
his  marriage  that  he  sought  a  home  in  Indiana,  casting  in  his  lot  with 
the  pioneer  settlers  of  Wayne  county.  Again  he  took  up  his  alwde 
upon  the  frontier,  when  in  1S40  he  came  to  Cass  county,  Michigan, 
locating  in  Penn  township.  He  then  purchased  a  tract  of  land,  a  part 
of  which  had  l>een  improved,  and  he  at  once  began  the  task  of  its  fur- 
ther development  and  cultivation.  In  his  work  he  prospered,  and  as 
his  financial  resources  permitted  he  purchased  more  land  from  time  to 
time,  becoming  the  holder  of  extensive  realty  possessions.  He  was 
born  and  reared  in  the  faith  of  the  Society  of  Friends  (Quakers) 
and  was  very  active  and  earnest  in  the  cnurch  work.  He  manifested 
the  kindly,  considerate  and  gentle  spirit  so  characteristic  of  the  follow- 
ers of  that  sect,  and  he  bore  an  unassailable  reputation  for  integrity, 
not  only  in  business,  but  in  all  life's  relations  as  well.  He  voted  with 
the  Whig  party  until  its  dissolution,  when  he  joined  the  ranks  of  the 
Republican  party,  continuing  one  of  its  stalwart  supporters  until  his 
demise.  He  was  called  to  the  ofiice  of  highway  commissioner,  but  wr'S 
never  an  aspirant  for  the  h(~nors  nor  emoluments  of  office,  content  to  do 
his  public  service  as  a  private  citizen.  He  married  I\Iiss  Sarah  Tolbert, 
also  a  native  of  Tennessee,  and,  like  her  husband,  a  birthright  Quaker. 
She  was  a  daughter  of  Jacob  Tolbert  and  was  of  Engli.sh  lineage,  so 
that  there  is  an  intermixture  of  French  and  English  blood  in  the  veins 
of  our  subject.  Isaac  Bonine  lived  to  be  about  eighty-three  years  of 
age,  while  his  wife  reached  the  age  of  eighty-two  years,  and  in  the 
passing  of  this  venerable  cou])le  Cass  county  lost  two  of  its  most  es- 
teemed pioneer  settlers.  In  their  family  were  eleven  children,  eight 
sons  and  three  daughters,  of  whom  two  died  in  childhood. 

Lot  Bonine  was  the  sixth  in  order  of  birth  and  is  the  only  one  now 
living.  He  was  fifteen  }-ears  of  age  when  he  came  to  Cass  county, 
Michigan,  with  his  parents  in  1840.  He  had  gained  his  education  in 
the  schools  of  Richmond.  Indiana,  and  after  coming  to  Michigan  he 
spent  the  winter  months  as  a  student  in  a  little  log  schoolhouse.  which 
was  a  typical  "temple  of  learning"'  of  a  frontier  district.  Throughout 
the  remainder  of  the  year  his  time  and  energies  were  given  to  farm 
Avork,  as  he  took  his  place  in  the  fields  when  the  work  of  early  spring 
planting  was  begun.     In  fact  he  assisted  in  the  work  of  clearing  and 


612  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

developing  the  home  farm,  upon  which  he  remained  until  tlie  time  of 
his  marriage,  wiiich  was  celebrated  in  1S45,  this  being  one  of  the  early 
weddings  of  the  couid)-.  The  lady  of  his  choice  was  Miss  Susan  Donnell, 
who  died  a  nuir.bcr  of  years  later.  There  had  been  six  children  born  of 
that  union,  of  whom  five  are  still  living,  namely:  Jonathan  D.,  John  N., 
Sarah  L.,  James  .M.  and  Rose  E.  The  deceased  daughter  was  Estella. 
After  losing  his  first  wife  I\Ir.  Boninc  was  again  married,  his  second 
union  being  with  Miss  Amanda  L  Price,  a  daughter  of  James  and  Rose 
A.  (Emery)  Price.  Her  father  was  born  in  Clark  county,  Ohio,  near 
Dayton,  and  came  to  Cass  county,  Michigan,  in  1S.29,  locating  in  what 
is  now  Penn  township,  as  one  of  its  pioneer  settlers.  Michigan  was 
still  under  territorial  rule  at  tliat  period.  It  required  men  of  considera- 
ble courage  and  determination  to  brave  the  dangers  and  hardships  of 
pioneer  life  in  a  coinitry  where  the  work  of  improvemeiit  had  as  \et  been 
scarcely  begun.  There  were  large  bands  of  Indians  still  in  the  state, 
the  forests  were  uncut,  the  streams  unl)ridged.  and  the  prairies  unculti- 
vated. Mr.  Price  beio-.-iged  to  that  class  of  honored  pioneer  residents 
to  whom  tlie  state  owes  a  debt  of  gratitude  for  what  they  accomplished 
in  the  early  de\elo[)ment  of  the  commonwealth.  He  gave  his  attention 
to  farming  and  was  recognized  as  one  of  the  leading  early  residents  of 
Cass  county.  His  father  was  John  Price,  a  carpenter  by  trade,  who 
was  born  in  Philadelphia.  Pennsylvania,  but  was  reared  in  New  Jersey, 
where  he  resided  until  his  removal  to  Ohio,  whence  he  came  to  Cass 
county  in  i8_'8.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Bonine  have  become  the  parents  of  two 
daughters,  but  one.  Effie  I.,  is  now  deceased.  The  other,  Arlie  I.  Bonine, 
is  living  in  Penn  township,  and  is  the  wife  of  James  O.  Graham.  She 
graduated  in  the  class  of  1901  in  the  \'andalia  High  School. 

At  the  time  of  his  marriage  Lot  Bonine  and  his  bride  began  house- 
keeping in  a  little  log  cabin  which  stood  upon  a  tract  of  land  in  Penn 
township.  There  he  lived  for  about  a  year,  devoting  his  time  to , the 
cultivation  of  the  farm  and  then  removing  to  his  father-in-law's  farm, 
upon  which  he  lived  for  two  years.  Following  the  discovery  of  gold  in 
California  he  was  attracted  to  that  state  by  its  mining  and  other  Dusi- 
ness  opportunities,  and  went  via  New  York  and  the  isthmus  in  1S51, 
but  after  a  vear  spent  in  California  he  returned  to  Cass  county  and 
once  more  settled  in  Penn  township,  locating  upon  the  farm  on  which 
he  now  lives  in  that  vear — 1853.  Again  his  home  was  a  log  cabin, 
but  though  it  was  of  small  dimensions  it  sheltered  brave  hearts  and  will- 
ing hands.  With  detennined  courage  to  make  the  most  of  his  oppor- 
tunities Mr.  Bonine  began  clearing  his  land,  which  he  had  owned  from 
the  time  that  he  was  eighteen  years  of  age.  He  now  has  a  valuable 
farm  propertv  of  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres,  which  he  has  trans- 
formed from  a  raw  state  into  one  of  rich  fertility  and  productiveness. 
He  has  added  many  modem  improvements,  including  good  buildings 
and   fences  and  the  latest   improved   machiner}'.     In   connection   with 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  r,\?. 

the  tilling  of  the  S(jil  he  has  been  iarsely  interested  in  the  raisint,'  of 
stock,  making;  a  speciahy  of  sheep,  iiaving  had  sheep  upon  his  farm  for 
over  sixty  years. 

Mr.  Bonine  votes  with  the  Republican  party,  to  which  he  has 
given  earnest  and  stalwart  support  since  its  organization,  while  pre- 
vious to  that  time  he  was  an  old-line  Whig.  He  has  held  a  numljer  of 
local  offices  including  that  of  highway  commissioner  and  lias  opened 
up  several  roads  in  his  township.  In  public  affairs  he  has  been  deeply 
interested  and  his  co-operation  could  always  be  counted  upon  as  a  help- 
ful measure.  He  has  ever  worked  for  the  good  of  the  county,  in  which 
he  has  now  lived  for  sixty-five  years,  and  he  has  paid  large  sums  in 
taxes,  whereby  the  work  of  pulilic  improvement  has  been  carried  on. 
He  assisted  in  l)uilding  the  school  house  at  Vandalia  and  the  cause  of 
education  finds  in  him  a  warm  friend.  He  is  also  a  member  of  the 
Friends  church  and  his  life  has  been  in  conformity  with  its  teachings 
and  faith.  There  have  been  many  interesting  chapters  in  his  record  be- 
cause of  the  connection  with  pioneer  experiences,  and  also  bv  reason 
of  his  sojourn  in  the  far  west  in  the  early  days  of  mining  excitement 
there.  Throughout  much  of  his  life,  however,  his  labors  have  been 
concentrated  entirely  upon  agricultural  and  stock  raising  interests  and 
he  has  found  ample  opportunity  for  the  exercise  of  his  talents  in  the 
every-day  duties  of  life.  Pie  has  won  success  through  earnest  and  per- 
sistent labor,  and  moreover  he  is  rich  in  the  more  desirable  qualities  of 
character — the  integrity  and  justice  and  consideration  which  work  for 
honorable  manhood  and  have  won  respect  and  esteen  in  every  land  and 
clime. 

GEORGE  W.  G.\RD. 

Cass  county  figures  as  one  of  the  most  attractive,  ]irogressive  and 
prosperous  divisions  of  the  state  of  ^Michigan,  justly  claiming  a  high 
order  of  citizenship  and  a  spirit  of  enterprise  which  is  certain  to  con- 
serve consecutive  development  and  maiked  advancement  in  the  material 
upbuilding  of  the  section.  The  county  has  been  and  is  signallv  favored 
in  the  class  of  men  who  have  controlled  its  aftairs  in  of^cial  capacity  and 
in  this  connection  the  subject  of  this  review  demands  repre^cntatinn  as 
one  who  has  served  the  county  faithfully  and  well  in  positions  of  distinct 
trust  and  responsibility.  He  is  now  filling  the  office  of  county  treasurer, 
to  which  he  has  been  elected  for  a  second  term.  His  birth  occurred  in 
Volinia  township  April  4,  1S48.  and  he  is  a  representative  of  one  of  the 
honored  pioneer  families  of  this  portion  of  the  state.  His  paternal 
grandfather.  Jonathan  Gard,  was  born  in  Ohio  and  became  a  pioneer 
resident  of  Cass  county.  He  had  lived  for  some  time  in  Indiana  and  on 
removing  to  Cass  county  settled  on  what  is  known  to  this  day  as  Card's 
Prairie.  There  he  entered  land  and  improved  a  farm,  remaining  there 
up  to  the  time  of  his  death,  which  occurred  when  he  was  fifty-five  years 
of  age.     His  son,  M.  ].  Gard,  was  born  in  Indiana  and  came  with  his 


514  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY 

father  to  Cass  county  in  iSmj.  Ijciii-  ahout  seven  rears  of  a"e  at  the 
time  of  the  removal.  He  was  therefore  reared  and  educaie<rhere  and 
almost  his  entn-e  hie  was  passed  in  Volinia  township,  where  he  died 
when  more  tlian  seventy-five  years  of  a-e.  He  was  a  prominent  citizen 
who  neld  ail  the  offices  in  the  townshij).  includinn-  that  of  supervisor' 
while  for  many  years  he  was  township  clerk.  His'studv  of  the  political 
issues  and  questions  of  the  day  led  him  to  give  a  stalwart  supiwrt  to 
die  Repuhhcan  jjarty  from  the  time  of  its  organization  until  his  death 
Prior  to  its  formation  he  had  voted  with  the  Whit^  partv.  In  his  fraternal 
relations  he  was  a  Mason.  His  wife  bore  the  maiden  name  of  Olive 
Green  and  her  death  occurred  when  her  son  Georg-e  was  hut  three  years 
of  age.  The  family  was  well  known  in  the  countv  and  the  name  of 
Card  has  been  closely  interwoven  with  the  historv  of  development  and 
progress  here  from  early  pioneer  times.  George  W.  Card  was  the  only 
child  born  unto  M.  J.  and  Olive  (Green)  Gard,  but  the  father  was  a 
second  time  married,  his  second  union  being  with  Susan  Fox,  bv  whom 
he  had  seven  children. 

In  taking  up  the  personal  history  of  George  W.  Gard  we  present  to 
our  readers  the  life  record  of  one  who  is  very  widely  and  favorably 
known  in  this  part  of  the  state.  He  was  reared  and^educated  in  his 
native  township  and  acquired  his  education  in  the  common  schools.  He 
afterward  engaged  in  teaching  school,  which  profession  he  followed  for 
one  hundred  aiul  twenty-two  montlis,  devoting  the  winter  seasons  to 
that  work,  while  in  the  summer  months  he  engaged  in  farming.  He  had 
charge  of  the  largest  district  school  in  the  county.  Tliere  was  an  as- 
sistant teacher  and  an  enrollment  of  ninety-seven  pupils.  His  fitness  for 
leadership  and  for  public  service  also  led  to  his  selection  for  various  of- 
fices. He  served  as  supervisor  for  nine  vears,  was  justice  of  the  peace 
for  fourteen  years  and  also  townslii]j  clerk.  In  1902  he  was  elected 
county  treasurer  and  discharged  his  duties  with  such  ability  and  fidclitv 
that  in  1904  he  was  re-elected  and  is  still  holding  the  office. 

Mr.  Gard  was  married  in  1S72  to  Miss  Rachel  Kirby,  a  daughter 
of  the  Rev.  John  and  iMary  (Rouse)  Kirby  and  a  native  of  St.  Joseph 
county.  ^Michigan.  There  is  but  one  li\ing  child  of  this  marriage,  01i\'e, 
who  is  now  acting  as  bookkeeper  for  Mr.  Smith  in  Cassopolis.  Tlie  son, 
Manley  B.,  died  at  the  age  of  thirteen  years. 

Mr.  Gard  in  connection  with  his  property  in  Cassopolis  owns  a 
farm  of  eighty  acres  and  the  income  therefrom,  together  with  his  salary, 
enables  him  to  provide  a  vers"  comfortable  living  for  his  family.  He  is 
a  stalwart  Republican,  unfaltering  in  his  devotion  to  the  principles  of  the 
party,  and  in  addition  to  the  other  offices  which  he  has  filled  he  has 
served  as  secretary  of  the  schools  of  the  county  in  188S-9.  He  is  also 
prominent  in  ^lasonic  circles,  belonging  to  the  Blue  Lodge  of  Volinia, 
No.  227,  also  Kingsbury  Chapter  at  Cassopolis,  Xo.  78.  and  he  was  a 
charter  member  of  the  Knights  of  the  :\Iaccabees  lodge  at  Volinia. 
While  acting  as  justice  of  the  peace  he  settled  more  cases  by  compromis- 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY  515 

ing  than  in  any  other  way,  ahvay?  advising-  sucli  a  plan  ratiier  than 
recourse  to  tlie  courts.  In  all  of  his  public  service  he  has  been  actuated 
by  an  earnest  desire  to  serve  his  constituents  faithfully  and  well  and  to 
promote  the  general  good  of  the  community  which  he  has  represented. 
Men  know  him  as  a  gentleman  of  unfaltering  honor  and  integrity,  and 
witli  pleasure  we  present  the  record  of  his  life  to  our  readers. 

e 

CHARLES  O.  HAR^IOX. 

Charles  O.  Harmon,  who  since  i8oS  has  been  numbered  among  tlie 
representative  citizens  of  Cassopolis,  where  he  is  now  engaged  in  the 
practice  of  law  and  also  in  the  abstract  business,  was  born  in  Porter 
township,  Cass  county,  on  the  6th  of  March,  1866.  His  father,  John 
B.  Harmon,  was  a  native  of  Wabash  county,  Indiana,  and  came  to  this 
county  with  his  parents  when  about  six  months  old.  He  was  reared  in 
Porter  township  and  became  a  teacher  by  profession,  following  that 
calling  for  a  long  period  and  contributing  in  substantial  measure  to  the 
intellectual  progress  of  his  community.  He  was  married  in  Porter  town- 
ship to  ^liss  Catherine  Khy,  a  native  of  Ohio  and  a  daughter  of  Gabriel 
and  Caroline  (W'agner)  Eby,  who  were  early  settlers  of  Porter  town- 
ship, coming  to  Cass  county  in  1848.  Her  father  still  resides  in  that 
township,  being  one  of  the  honored  pioneer  settlers  and  venerable  cit- 
izens of  his  community.  John  B.  Harmon,  the  father  of  our  sul)ject. 
was  deeply  interested  in  politics  and  for  about  eighteen  years  served  as 
supervisor  of  his  township.  In  1898  he  was  elected  county  clerk  and 
served  in  that  office  for  two  years  and  one  month,  when  his  official  serv- 
ice was  terminated  in  death  on  the  28th  of  June.  1901.  He  was  a  most 
earnest  and  zealotis  advocate  of  Republican  principles,  never  faltering 
in  his  allegiance  to  the  party.     In  the  family  were  four  children. 

Charles  O.  Harmon,  the  eldest,  was  reared  in  Porter  township. 
where  the  family  was  established  in  early  pioneer  days,  his  grandfather, 
William  Plarmo'n,  having  been  one  of  the  earliest  settlers  of  Cass  coun- 
ty, where  he  followed  the  occupation  of  farming  throughout  the  re- 
mainder of  his  life.  He  was  of  German  lineage.  Mr.  Harmon  of  this 
review  acquired  his  earl\-  education  in  the  public  schools  and  afterward 
attended  the  Northern  Indiana  Normal  School  at  Valparaiso.  Indiana. 
He  taught  school  to  a  considerable  extent  between  the  ages  of  sixteen 
and  twenty-two  vears.  being  thus  closely  associated  with  intellectual 
progress  in  Cass'countv.  His  fellow  townsmen,  recognizing  his  worth 
and'' ability,  called  him'  to  public  office  and  he  was  chosen  register  of 
deeds  in  1888.  He  entered  upon  the  duties  of  the  position  on  the  ist  of 
Januan.-.  1889.  when  onlv  twenty-three  years  of  age,  and  capably  ser\-ed 
until  tlie  ist  of  Tanuarv,'i893,  when  he  retired  from  office  as  he  had  en- 
tered it — with  the  confidence  and  good  will  of  all  concerned.  He  then 
went  to  the  department  of  state  at  Lansing  and  occupied  a  position  m 
the  compiling  room  until  Julv,  1S96.     During  that  time  he  devoted  his 


516  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

leisure  liouis  to  the  itudy  of  law  and  was  admitted  to  the  har  at  Lansing, 
after  which  he  resigned  his  position  there  and  removed  to  Dowagiac, 
Michigan,  where  he  opened  an  office  and  entered  upon  general  law 
practice.  In  December  of  the  same  year  he  removed  to  .Marceiius,  .Mich- 
igan, where  he  remained  until  November,  189S,  and  then  came  to 
Cassopolis,  where  he  entered  into  partnership  with  Judge  Harsen  D. 
Smith.  In  December  of  the  same  year  they  bought  the  abstract  books 
of  Cass  county.  This  partnership  was  continued  until  1901,  when  Mr. 
Harmon  purchased  Judge  Smith's  interest  in  the  abstract  business.  In 
April  of  that  year  he  was  elected  county  clerk  to  fill  the  vacancy  caused 
by  the  death  of  his  father  and  served  throughout  the  remainder  of  the 
term,  or  until  the  31st  of  December,  1902,  since  which  time  he  has 
devoted  his  attenliun  to  the  abstract  liusiness  and  the  practice  of  law. 
He  has  thorougldy  qualified  himself  for  the  legal  profession  and  his 
labors  have  been  attended  with  the  success  that  results  from  close  dil- 
igence, unrenutting  effort  and  marked  capability  in  handling  the  in- 
tricate problems  that  continually  confront  the  lawyer  and  judge. 

On  the  6th  of  ?i[arch,  1S89,  Mr.  Harmon  was  married  to  ;Miss 
Catherine  Greenawalt.  a  daughter  of  Daniel  S.  and  Rebecca  C  Planck) 
Greenawalt,  who  was  born  in  Newberg  township,  Cass  county.  Her 
parents  were  early  settlers  of  Cass  county,  Michigan.  By  her  marriage 
Mrs.  Harmon  has  become  the  mother  of  two  children,  but  one  died  in 
infancy,  while  Charles  jMaxwell  is  still  at  home. 

Fraternally  Mr.  Harmon  is  connected  with  the  r^Iasonic  lodge  and 
chapter  at  Cassopolis  and  also  the  Knights  of  Pythias,  Pierian  Lr^dge,  No. 
126,  and  in  politics  he  has  been  an  earnest  Republican  since  age  gave 
to  him  the  right  of  franchise.  He  is  likewise  a  prominent  member  of 
the  Baptist  church,  active  in  its  work  and  ser\'ing  as  superintendent  of 
the  Sunday-school.  Its  teachings  have  been  a  permeating  influence  in 
his  life  and  he  has  done  all  in  his  power  to  promote  the  chiuxh  work  and 
extend  its  influence.  His  business  integrity  is  above  question  and  in 
citizenship  and  in  social  life  he  has  displayed  those  sterling  traits  of 
character  which  in  every  land  and  clime  command  respect  and  confidence. 

ROBERT  DOOL. 

Among  the  enterprising  farmers  of  the  county  is  numbered  Robert 
Dool,  living  on  section  3.  Jefferson  township.  His  birth  occurred  in  the 
province  of  Ontario.  Canada,  near  the  St.  Lawrence  river,  on  the  21st 
of  June,  1838.  and  he  comes  of  Scotch  descent.  His  father,  William 
Dool,  was  a  native  of  Scotland  and  was  a  son  of  Tliomas  Dool.  whose 
birth  occurred  in  the  same  country.  He  was  a  freeholder  of  Scotland 
and  a  man  of  considerable  prominence  and  influence  in  his  community-. 
William  Dool  came  to  America.  He  married  Miss  Hester  Dobson,  and 
unto  tliem  were  born  ten  children,  nine  sons  and  one  daughter. 

Robert  Dool,  the  fifth  in  order  of  birth  in  this  family,  was  reared 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  517 

in  his  native  land  and  acquired  his  education  in  the  common  schools. 
At  the  age  of  twenty-two  years  he  went  upon  the  lakes  as  foreman  on 
an  .\mericcan  express  Ixsat  and  was  thus  employed  for  two  seasons.  In 
1863  he  came  to  Cass  county,  locating  in  Penn  township,  where  he  pur- 
chased a  farm,  upon  whicli  he  resided  continuously  for  about  thirteen 
years,  or  until  1876,  when  he  sold  tiiat  property  and  bought  land  on  sec- 
tion 14,  Jefferson  township.  His  time  and  energies  were  devoted  to  its 
further  impro\ement  and  development  until  about  1901,  when  he  lo- 
cated upon  the  farm  where  he  now  lives,  on  section  3,  Jefferson  town- 
ship. His  landed  holdings  are  now  extensive,  comprising  four  hundred 
and  seventy-two  acres,  ot  which  one  hundred  and  sixteen  acres  arc  in 
LaGrange  township.  He  carries  on  the  work  of  the  farm  himself  and 
it  is  a  splendid  properly,  the  land  being  very  productive  and  responding 
readily  to  tiie  cultivation  which  he  Ijestows  upon  it.  His  fields  are  well 
tilled  and  e\-crything  aI:out  tlie  place  is  kept  in  good  repair,  showing  the 
careful  supervision  and  painstaking  efforts  of  an  enterprising  owner. 

In  1S80  Mr.  Dool  was  united  in  marriage  to  Aliss  Georgiana 
Hafer,  a  daughter  of  Jacob  Hafer.  They  have  become  the  parents  of 
ten  children :  Bert,  Raymond,  Theo,  Fred,  Charles,  Ina  May,  Georgi- 
ana, Myrtle,  Reo,  and  Robert.  All  were  born  in  Jefferson  township 
and  were  here  reared.  Bert  is  now  a  resident  of  Seattle,  while  Theo 
is  married  and  resides  in  Vicksburg.  The  others,  however,  are  still 
under  the  parental  roof  and  most  of  them  are  attending  school. 

Since  age  gave  to  Mr.  Dool  the  right  of  franchise  he  has  been  a 
supporter  of  Democratic  principles  and  has  taken  an  active  and  lielpful 
part  in  the  work  of  the  party.  He  is,  however,  somewhat  liberal  in  his 
viev>s,  being  never  a  bitter  partisan.  He  was  elected  supervisor  of  Jef- 
ferson township  in  1889  and  filled  the  office  for  eleven  years,  his  re- 
election being  proof  of  the  trust  reposed  in  him  by  his  fellow  townsmen 
and  his  fidehty  thereto.  He  was  also  superintendent  of  the  poor  for 
three  years.  Forty-two  years  have  come  and  gone  since  he  arrived  in 
this  county,  during  which  period  he  has  directed  his  lalj<irs  along  well- 
defined  lines  of  business  activity.  He  has  been  energetic,  prompt  and 
notably  reliable  and  has  manifested  a  genius  for  devising  and  executing 
the  right  thing  at  the  right  time.  Moreover  he  has  an  excellent  fund 
of  that  quality  of  common  sense,  which  is  too  often  lacking,  and  which 
proves  the  reason  of  failure  in  many  a  life  record.  Added  to  this  he  has 
displayed  keen  perception  and  honesty  of  purpose,  and  thus  as  the  years 
have  gone  by  he  has  worked  his  way  upward  from  an  humble  financial 
position  to  one  of  aflluence. 

HENRY'  BLAKELY  HICKS. 

Henrv  Blakely  Hicks  is  well  known  as  a  representative  of  farming 
interests  in  Jefferson  township,  bis  home  being  on  section  31.  where  he 
owns  and  cultivates  two  hundred  and  fortv  acres  of  land.     This  consti- 


518  HISTORY  01-   CASS  COUXTY 

tutea  a  well  improved  and  valuable  farm,  which  in  its  thrifty  appearance 
indicates  his  careful  supervision  and  practiciil  progressive  methods.  He 
realizes  that  diligence  and  close  ai^plication  are  the  basis  of  all  desirable 
success  and  through  this  means  he  has  won  the  prosperity  which  he  is 
to-day  enjoying. 

A  native  son  of  the  county.  Mr.  Hicks  was  born  in  Milton  township 
on  die  I5di  of  October,  1845,  -^ri'l  's  a  son  of  Richard  V.  and  Catherine 
(Ullery)  Hicks.  The  father  was  a  native  of  England  and  spent  the 
first  seventeen  years  of  his  life  in  that  country,  acquiring  a  good  educa- 
tion there.  Hearing  favorable  reports  concerning  opportunities  and 
advantage-^  in  the  new  world,  he  resolved  to  try  his  fortune  here  and 
crossed  the  Atlantic  to  the  United  States  in  1837,  making  his  way  direct 
to  Cass  county.  Michigan,  where  he  first  located  in  (Dntwa  township. 
He  was  married,  hfiwever.  in  Shelby  county,  Ohio,  and  afterward  tor.k 
up  his  abode  in  Milton  township.  Cass  county.  ^Michigan,  wiiere  he  reared 
his  family.  He  has  iVir  many  years  been  a  resident  of  Milton  township, 
and  now  makes  his  home  on  sectirin  12.  He  has  been  closely  identified 
with  the  upbuilding  and  progre-<s  of  the  county,  wdiere  he  has  lived  for 
almost  seventy  years,  during  which  tinie  great  and  important  changes 
have  occurred  a-  tlii-  district  <A  Michigan  has  put  aside  all  the  evidences 
of  frontier  life  and  emerged  iiU'i  modern  civilization,  great  improve- 
ment being  shown  in  all  lines  of  business  development  as  well  as  in  the 
intellectual  ])rogress  of  the  county.  His  wife,  wdio  bore  the  maiden 
name  of  Catherine  Ullery  and  was  bom  in  Ohio,  lived  to  be  seventy 
years  of  age. 

Unto  this  worthy  couple  were  born  nine  children,  of  whom  Henry 
Blakely  Hicks  is  the  scconrl  in  order  of  birth.  He  was  reared  in  ]\Iilton 
township  and  at  the  usual  age  began  his  education,  attending  district 
school  No.  T  in  Milton  township.  There  he  mastered  the  elementary 
branches  of  learning,  which  well  qualified  him  to  meet  the  practical  and 
responsible  duties  of  his  busines'^  career.  Tlirough  the  summer  months 
he  aided  in  the  farm  work,  remaining  at  home  after  he  had  attained  his 
majority  and  carrying  on  the  work  of  further  development  and  progress 
here  for  seventeen  years.  He  then  purchased  his  present  farm  in  1880. 
and  in  iSgi  he  located  thereon  and  has  since  made  it  his  home. 

Februarv  10.  i8qi.  -\Ir.  Hicks  was  united  in  marriage  to  Miss 
Kate  L.  ]Miller.  a  daughter  of  Anton  and  Elizabeth  fHeralfn  Miller  and 
a  native  of  Milton  township.  Cass  county.  She  was  born  May  i.  t866. 
and  was  educated  in  the  common  schools,  also  a  student  at  the  Dowa- 
giac  high  school.  She  is  a  ladv  of  more  than  ordinary  education  and 
can  speak  fluently  the  English.  Ceiman  and  French  languages.  She  is 
a  lady  who  loves  good  books  anrl  is  by  nature  a  poet.  Her  latest  compan- 
ions are  the  best  of  literature.  Her  father.  Anton  L.  Miller,  was  born 
in  Ravensburg,  \Vurtemberg.  Ccrmany.  June  16.  1821,  and  died  June 
20.  1896.  He  was  reared  in  Germany  and  educated  in  the  national 
,  schools.     He  was  thirtv-five  years  of  age  when  he  came  to   .\merica. 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  ol9 

He  was  a  stonemason  by  trade.  Init  was  also  a  successful  agriculturist. 
He  was  a  kind  and  generous  man  and  a  Roman  Catholic  in  religion. 
Mother  Miller  was  born  September  26,  1833,  and  died  October  14,  18S5. 
She  was  born  in  Schifferstadt.  liavaria.  tlermany.  and  was  a  young 
woman  oi  twenty  when  she  came  to  America.  She  was  a  devout  Cath- 
olic. Mrs.  Hicks  is  a  member  uf  the  Royal  Neighbors.  Unto  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Hicks  have  been  born  a  daughter  and  son:  Hazel  A.,  who  is  at- 
tending school  in  the  eighth,  grade  and  who  takes  vocal  and  instrument- 
al music;  and  Henry  li..  who  was  seven  years  of  age  on  the  jud  of 
October,  1905. 

The  family  have  a  pleasant  and  attractive  home  on  scctiuu  31, 
Jefferson  townsl-.ip.  where  ]\lr.  Hicks  owns  two  hundred  and  forty  acres 
of  land  tiiat  is  rich  and  arable.  He  has  placed  excellent  improvements 
upon  the  property  and  e\-ery thing  about  the  farm  is  kept  in  good  re- 
pair, while  the  latest  improved  machinery  is  used  in  tilling  the  soil  and 
caring  for  the  crops.  A  glance  from  the  passerby  would  indicate  that 
the  owner  is  a  man  of  progressive  spirit,  practical  and  systematic  in  his 
work.  There  is  every  evidence  of  aireful  and  painstaking  supervision, 
and  in  his  business  ]\Ir.  Hicks  has  prospered,  being  now  one  of  the  ener- 
getic men  of  his  communit}-.  v  hose  lalxDrs  have  been  crowned  with  the 
acquirement  of  a  valuable  farm.  He  votes  with  tlie  Democracy,  keeps 
well  informed  on  questions  and  issues  of  the  day  and  has  taken  an  active 
interest  in  the  v.'ork  of  the  ])arty,  for  he  believes  that  its  principles  con- 
tain the  best  elements  of  good  government.  He  was  supervisor  of  [Mil- 
ton tov.nship  for  four  years  and  in  1902  was  elected  supervisor  of  Jef- 
ferson township,  to  which  office  he  was  again  elected  in  1905.  so  that 
he  is  the  present  incumbent,  while  in  Milton  township  he  was  also  a 
highway  commissioner.  He  has  been  a  resident  of  Cass  county  through- 
out his  entire  life,  covering  a  period  of  sixty  years,  and  his  labors  have 
been  a  resultant  factor  in  bringing  about  its  present  advancement.  The 
character  of  "Sir.  Hicks  is  indicated  bv  the  fact  that  he  is  a  Alason  in  good 
standing,  his  life  being  an  exemplification  of  the  teachings  and  tenets 
of  the  craft,  which  through  many  centuries  has  inculcated  principles  of 
mutual  helpfulness  and  brotherly  kindness  among  its  followers. 

WILUAM  SALISBURY. 

Upon  a  farm  on  section  5.  Jefferson  township,  resides  William 
Salisbury,  who  is  numbered  among  the  old  settlers  and  venerable  citizens 
of  Cass  count}-.  He  has  traveled  life's  journey  for  more  than  eighty- 
two  vears  and  has  been  a  resident  of  Cass  county  for  more  than  the  al- 
lotted psalmist's  span  of  three  score  years  and  ten.  having  come  to  this 
countv  se\-entv-two  year?  ago.  Respected  and  honored  by  all  who 
know  him  and  with  a  wide  acquaintance,  his  life  record  cannot  fail  to 
prove  of  interest  to  our  many  readers  and  with  pleasure  we  present  his 
historv  in  this  volume.     He  was  Ixim  in  Huron  county.  Ohio.  August 


5-20  HISTORY  OI-  CASS  COUNTY 

8,  18J3.  His  paternal  srandtatlier,  Emanuel  Salisbury,  removed  from 
the  east  to  Ohio,  where  his  last  days  were  passed.  His  father,  Robert 
Salisbury ,  w  as  a  native  of  New  York,  wliere  he  was  reared  and  married, 
and  in  pioneer  times  he  Ijecanie  a  resident  of  Ohio.  Removing  from  the 
Buckeye  state  to  Michii^an  he  settled  in  Howard  township,  Cass  county, 
where  he  took  up  land  from  the  government.  Much  of  the  county  was 
still  unclaimed  and  ho  cast  in  his  lot  with  those  who  have  Ixorne  the 
hardships  and  privations  of  a  frontier  existence  and  have  planted  the 
seeds  of  civilization  and  prosperity  now  enjoyed  by  the  representatives 
of  a  later  generation.  He  improved  a  farm  and  remained  upon  the  old 
homestead  u])  to  the  time  of  his  death,  which  occurred  about  1866. 
There  was  only  one  store  and  one  grocery  in  Niles  at  the  time  of  hi.s 
arrival  here.  It  was  a  long  distance  to  market  and  mill  and  the  settlers 
had  to  depend  largely  upon  what  they  could  produce,  not  only  for  food 
but  also  for  clothing.  Luxuries  were  few  and  oftentimes  comforts  were 
denied,  but  it  was  a  day  in  which  hospitality  reigned  supreme,  the  latch 
string  ever  hanging  out.  while  a  cordial  welcome  was  extended  to  friend, 
neighbor  or  stranger.  Robert  Salisbury  was  united  in  marriage  to  Miss 
Martha  Olmstead,  likewise  a  native  of  the  Empire  state.  Her  death 
occurred  in  Howard  tfiwnship,  Cass  county,  when  she  was  abr/ut  sixty- 
six  years  of  age.  In  the  family  of  this  worthy  couple  were  eleven  chil- 
dren, four  daughters  and  seven  sons,  all  of  whom  grew  to  manhood  or 
womanhood. 

William  Salisbury,  the  sixth  child  and  the  only  surviving  member 
of  the  family,  remained  a  resident  of  Ohio  during  the  first  ten  years  of 
his  life,  and  then  came  with  his  parents  to  Cass  county,  the  family  home 
being  established  m  Howard  township,  where  they  lived  in  a  pioneer 
cabin,  sharing  in  the  hardships,  privations  and  dangers  incident  to  the 
establishment  of  a  home  in  a  frontier  district.  Only  a  short  time  before 
had  the  Indians  been  led  to  lea\'e  their  hunting  grounds  in  this  part  of 
the  state  and  seek  new  fields  in  which  to  range  and  ply  their  custotnary 
pursuits  of  hunting  and  fishing.  In  fact  Mr.  Salisbury  has  seen  many 
specimens  of  the  red  men  in  this  part  of  the  state.  There  were  also 
various  kinds  of  wild  animals,  while  deer  and  other  kinds  of  wild  game 
were  to  be  had  in  abundance  by  the  settler  who  was  a  good  shot.  Few 
roads  had  been  laid  out,  and  at  certain  seasons  in  the  year  these  were 
almost  impassable,  especially  during  the  time  of  the  spring  rains.  It 
was  consideretl  a  big  undertaking  to  go  to  mill  and  market  in  those 
days  and  the  time  of  the  settlers  was  mostly  given  to  the  arduous  task 
of  clearing  away  trees  or  brush  and  improving  and  cultivating  the  fields. 
William  Salisbury  acquired  his  education  in  a  log  school  house  seated 
with  slab  benches  and  heated  by  a  fire-place.  Reading,  writing,  arith- 
metic and  sometimes  geography  and  grammar  were  taught  and  the  ses- 
sion of  the  school  was  held  for  only  a  few  months  during  the  winter 
season  wlien  the  children's  aid  was  not  needed  upon  the  home  farm,  for 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  521 

crops  had  been  harvested  and  tlie  work  of  the  farm  wns  nracticallv  over 
until  tlie  coming  of  another  ^princ::.  Mr.  Sahsbur}-  remained  at  home 
until  twenty-two  years  of  age.  doine:  his  share  in  the  work  of  the  fields, 
and  tb.cn  started  ont  in  life  nn  hi^  own  account.  He  was  employed  by 
the  month  as  a  farm  hand  for  a  time  and  then  with  the  monev  which 
he  had  sa\ed  from  iu's  earninc^s  he  bouq;ht  a  tract  of  land  in  Jefferson 
township,  which  was  entirely  raw  and  undeveloperl.  but  lie  at  once  l)e- 
gan  the  task  of  clearing',  plowing  and  planting,  and  in  due  cour-^e  of 
time  had  some  well  cultivated  fields.  He  resided  upon  that  pmpertv 
from  1845  until  Tf-Ctft,  when  he  purchased  the  farm  ujiou  which  he  now 
resides  and  vihich  has  l;een  his  home  through  forty  consecutive  years. 
A  great  change  has  been  wrought  in  its  appearance,  as  he  has  cleared 
the  laud  and  placed  it  under  cultivation,  adding  substantia!  buildings 
and  all  modern  equipments. 

On  the  2 1st  of  October,  1S45,  Mr.  Salisbury  was  married  to  ]^Iis3 
Caroline  J.  Tylillinian,  a  native  of  Ohio,  who  came  to  Cass  cnunty  in 
1842.  They  ha\-e  become  the  parents  of  four  children,  who  are  yet  liv- 
ing: Anne,  the  wife  nf  Henry  ^lessenger.  of  Cassopolis:  Eliza,  who 
is  the  wife  of  James  H.  I'anu'.m  and  also  lives  in  Cassopolis;  Arthena 
M.,  the  wife  of  Willet  Verry,  who  is  living  in  California;  and  Guy  L., 
of  Chicago.  After  losing  his  first  wife  Mr.  Salisbury  was  again  mar- 
ried, his  second  union  being  with  IMiss  Anna  Cissna,  a  daughter  of  Jo- 
seph Cissna,  who  was  born  in  Detroit,  Michigan,  is  of  French  de- 
scent and  is  now  living  at  the  \ery  advanced  age  of  ninety-seven  years. 

Mr.  Salisbury  has  been  a  resident  of  Cass  county  for  seventy-two 
years  and  has  aided  in  making  tlie  county  what  it  is  to-day,  one  of  the 
leading  sections  of  this  great  commonwealth.  Fie  has  always  ^■oted  for 
men  and  measures  rather  than  party  and  has  held  various  local  offices. 
He  served  on  the  school  board  for  twenty-two  \-ears  and  has  always 
taken  an  active  part  in  public  affairs,  doing  everj'thing  in  his  power  to 
promote  the  work  of  general  progress  and  improvement.  He  has  lived 
peaceably  with  his  fellow  men.  has  ever  been  straightforward  and  hon- 
orable in  all  his  dealings  and  would  sacrifice  his  own  interests  rather 
than  take  advantage  of  another.  Fie  has  never  had  a  lawsuit  in  all  his 
life  and  has  long  been  recognized  as  a  devoted,  faithful  and  exemplar}- 
member  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  church.  He  has  lived  during  what 
has  been  the  greatest  age  of  invention  in  all  the  history  of  the  world, 
has  seen  the  building  of  the  railroads,  the  introduction  of  the  telegraph 
and  telephone,  the  construction  of  the  interurban  lines,  while  a  revolu- 
tion has  also  been  wrought  in  modes  of  living,  both  upon  the  farm  and 
in  the  city,  because  of  improved  machinery  and  the  introduction  of 
steam  and  electric  power.  It  is  a  marvelous  age  and  Mr.  Salisbury  has 
been  an  interested  witness  of  what  has  been  accomplished  and  in  his 
special  department  of  life  has  kept  in  touch  with  uniform  progress. 


in   Sout 

li    r.cn.l    "U    liiL'    7th 

Austin. 

was  a  nati\e  of  Cal 

who  in 

her  ni.ii.Icnliun.l   wa; 

vania. 

'I'lic  fornKT  (lied  wli 

522  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 


JESSE  11.  AUSTIN. 

Jesse  J  I.  Auslin.  suiienntciv.leiU  ni  ilie  Cass  County  Infirniary.  is 
itive  nf  tiic  nciyliliorin.ii'  state  ui  lii. liana,  his  birth  havin;^  occurfed 
II  Nn\cn-,l;er.  1875.  His  father,  \V.  H. 
loua  CMumy.  Michigan,  wln'le  liis  nioiher, 
Mary  Hartscll,  was  a  native  of  I'ennsyl- 
n  fitly- four  years  of  age. 

Jesse  H.  Austin,  their  only  son.  was  reared  in  the  city  nf  liis  na- 
tivity until  about  thirteen  years  of  age.  wlien  he  came  with  bis  father 
to  Cass  county,  settling  in  LaCrange  township  upon  a  farm.  His  mctii- 
er  had  died  during  their  residence  in  South  Bend  and  the  father  after- 
ward married  Agnes  Townsend,  subsequently  removing  to  Grand  Rap- 
ids, ^Michigan,  where  his  last  days  were  passed.  Jesse  H.  Austin  re- 
mained v.ith  his  father  until  he  had  attained  his  majority  and  was  en- 
gaged in  farniiiig  through  the  period  of  bis  youth  when  not  busy  with 
the  duties  of  the  schoolroom,  wherein  he  acquired  a  good  English  edu- 
cation. He  was  appointed  to  bis  present  position  in  1904  and  has  since 
been  keeper  of  the  poor  farm,  in  which  position  he  has  displayed  gocxl 
business  ability  and  discernment.  Under  his  guidance  the  farm  is  made 
a  paying  p''operty,  the  fields  being  well  tilled,  wb.ile  good  stock  is  raised 
and  garden  products  arc  also  cultivated. 

In  190,5  Mr.  Austin  was  united  in  m.arriage  to  Aliss  Mau<le  Reams, 
a  daughter  of  George  Albert  and  .Adella  (Salisbury)  Reams.  In  his 
political  views  }ilr.  Austin  is  an  earnest  Republican,  supporting  the  party 
since  age  gave  him  the  right  of  franchise.  He  served  as  deputy  sheriff 
in  1901,  1902,  1903  and  a  part  of  1904.  and  during  that  time  was  a 
resident  of  Cassopolis.  He  belongs  to  the  Knights  of  Pythias  fraternity 
in  the  county  seat  and  has  recently  united  with  Backus  Lodge.  No.  55, 
F.  &  A.  M.,  and  has  taken  all  three  degrees,  making  bim  a  blaster 
Mason  and  a  member  of  the  Blue  Lodge.  He  has  a  wide  circle  of  friends 
in  this  county,  where  be  has  lived  from  the  age  of  thirteen  years.  Most 
of  his  life  has  been  devoted  to  the  public  service  and  be  is  regarded  l)oth 
as  a  capable  officer  and  a  popular  citizen,  having  social,  genial  qualities 
which  win  him  warm  and  enduring  friendships. 

AMOS  SMITH. 

Amos  Smith,  now  deceased,  was  born  in  Erie  county.  Pennsylva- 
nia, August  7.  1829.  and  died  in  Battle  Creek,  Michigan,  at  seven  o'clock 
in  the  evening  of  September  iS,  1900.  at  the  age  of  seventy-one  years, 
one  month  and  eleven  days.  He  was  a  son  of  Charles  F.  and  Emily 
(Leach)  Snn'th.  the  latter  a  daughter  of  James  Leach,  one  of  the  brave 
soldiers  of  the  war  of  181 2.  who  was  killed  at  the  battle  of  Niagara 
Falls  on  the  26th  of  July.  1814. 

Amos  Smith  acquired  an  academic  education  in  the  county  of  his 


'-^  "^'^^a/^:.   #^£^ 


'^■^^^- 


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vn-MV/fi^/, 


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'cu-^i^ 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COU.NTV  523 

nativity  and  in  tlie  year  1848  came  to  Michigan,  wliere  his  first  work 
was  teaching  in  the  Geneva  dibtnct  school  in  Jr'enn  township,  being 
then  about  nineteen  years  ol  age.  Tlie  following  winter  was  devoted 
to  teaching  in  Yazoo,  .Mississippi,  and  upon  his  return  to  his  native  state 
he  taugiit  writing  and  hookkeeping  lor  a  time  and  coniplelcd  his  own 
education  in  Clinton,  Xew  York.  He  iiad  received  instruction  in  writing 
from  1'.  R.  Spencer,  the  originator  of  the  famous  Spencerian  system. 
In  the  fall  of  iti^2  he  returned  to  Cass  county  and  was  once  more  en- 
gaged in  teaching.  He  likewise  extended  his  efforts  to  surveying,  for 
he  had  made  a  study  of  that  profession  in  the  meantime,  and  he  became 
assistant  to  the  county  surveyor.  LiUer  he  was  made  deputy  county 
surveyor,  and  111  1854  was  elected  to  the  office  of  county  surveyor, 
disdiarging  the  duties  incumbent  upon  him  in  a  very  satisfactory 
manner.  During  the  next  fL>urtecn  years  his  time  was  largely  given 
to  teaching  and  surveying,  and  so  well  did  he  discharge  the  duties  of  the 
different  oftices  entrusted  to  him,  and  so  greatly  were  his  services  ap- 
preciated by  the  pulilic  that  he  was  recognized  as  well  qualified  for 
furtlier  ^xjlitical  honors,  and  in  1S6S  was  chosen  by  popular  sutt'rage  to 
the  responsible  position  of  state  senator,  being  elected  by  the  Republi- 
can party,  to  the  principles  uf  which  he  was  devotedly  attached.  He 
was  also  supervisor  of  his  township  and  he  was  frequently  appointed 
guardian  and  administrator  of  estates,  performing  the  duties  of  those 
positions  in  connection  with  other  official  service.  Ever  alive  to  mat- 
ters of  public  importance,  he  was  one  of  the  most  influential  and  promi- 
nent men  of  his  county,  and  his  eft'orts  proved  of  far  reaching  value. 

On  the  22nd  of  November.  1855,  Mr.  Smith  was  united  in  mar- 
riage to  Miss  ;\lartha  Jane  East,  who  was  born  in  Wayne  couniv,  In- 
diana, and  dictl  at  their  home  m  Cass  county  in  18S2,  leaving  a  family 
of  three  sons:  C.  I'.,  i~rc<l  E.  and  George  D.  Smith.  On  the  4th  of 
October,  1883,  Air.  Smith  was  again  married,  his  second  unicjn  being 
with  Aliss  Sue  B(_igue,  who,  with  the  sons,  mourn  the  loss  of  a  devoted 
husband,  loving  father  and  wise  counselor.  In  the  year  of  his  first 
marriage  he  purchased  forty  acres  of  land,  which  he  continued  to  make 
his  home  up  to  the  time  of  his  death,  although  he  steadily  increased  the 
boundaries  of  his  farm  by  additional  purchase  until  he  owned  over  three 
hundred  acres  of  rich,  productive  and  valuable  land.  In  connection 
with  the  tilling  of  the  soil  and  the  production  of  the  cereals  best  adapted 
to  the  climate  he  made  a  specialty  of  fruit  raising,  and  some  of  the  best 
fruit  of  ^Michigan  was  produced  upon  his  place.  He  was  ever  a  lover  of 
the  beautiful,  especially  a?  manifest  in  flowers,  and  he  had  around  him 
many  superb  specimens  of  floriculture.  He  took  great  delight  and 
pleasure  in  working  with  his  flowers  and  b.is  study  of  conditions  and 
needs  of  plants  led  to  splendid  results. 

Mr.  Smith  was  a  .member  of  the  Masonic  fraternity  and  several 
times  served  as  worshipful  master.     At  the  time  of  his  demise  he  was 


524  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

also  a  member  of  the  Roj-nl  Arcli  cliapter  at  Cassopolis.  The  first 
master  of  his  lodge,  he  was  chosen  on  various  occasions  to  act  as  its  rep- 
resentative to  the  grand  lodge,  and  at  all  times  he  was  deeply  interested 
in  Masonry  and  in  the  work  of  the  order,  which  finds  the  exemplification 
of  its  principles  in  the  honorable  manhood  and  stalwart  devotion  of  its 
representatives.  A  man  of  much  public  spirit,  Mr.  Smith  ever  endeav- 
ored to  advance  the  best  local  interests  and  perhaps  labored  for  no 
other  cause  more  efficiently  than  for  the  public  schools  of  Vandalia, 
the  upbuilding  of  wliich  is  due  more  to  him  than  to  any  other  man.  His 
life  was  indeed  of  value  to  his  fellow  townsmen  because  of  his  reliability 
in  business,  his  faithfulness  in  office,  his  devotion  to  the  work  of  gen- 
eral progress  and  his  strict  regard  for  all  the  obligations  and  privileges, 
of  friendship.  He  was  highly  esteemed  wherever  known,  and  most  of 
all  where  best  known,  and  while  he  ever  displayed  commendable  char- 
acteristics, his  best  traits  were  reserved  for  his  family  and  his  imme- 
diate fireside. 

'  ALAMANDEL  J.  TALLADAY. 

Alamandel  J.  Talladay.  whose  name  is  enrolled  among  the  old  set- 
tlers of  the  county,  resides  on  a  farm  of  one  hundred  and  twenty  acres 
on  section  3,  Jcffcrsnn  township,  and  is  one  of  the  best  known  citizens 
of  the  community.  He  was  for  twentv-five  years  in  charge  of  the  coun- 
ty farm,  and  over  the  record  of  his  public  service  there  falls  no  shadow 
of  wrong  or  suspicion  of  evil,  for  he  was  ever  actuated  b_\-  fidelity  to  the 
general  good  and  hy  zeal  in  the  faithful  performance  of  the  work  en- 
trusted to  him.  He  has  always  lived  in  the  middle  west,  his  birth  hav- 
ing occurred  in  Osceola  township,  Elkhart  county,  Indiana,  on  the  31st 
of  October,  1S45.  -His  father,  Jesse  Talladay,  was  a  native  of  New 
York  and  became  one  of  the  early  settlers  of  Indiana,  whence  he  after- 
ward removed  to  Michigan,  settling  in  Cass  county  in  1845.  They  set- 
tled in  Mason  township.  Mr.  Talladay  was  engaged  in  farming  up  to 
the  time  of  his  death,  which  occurred  in  his  forty-ninth  year  in  Jeffer- 
son township.  He  married  Miss  Sophia  ]\Iechling,  a  native  of  Pennsyl- 
vania, who  went  to  Indiana  with  her  parents  and  there  gave  her  hand 
in  marriage  to  Jesse  Talladay.  She  lived  to  be  about  sixty-five  years  of 
age.  In  their  family  were  ten  children,  seven  of  whom  reached  years 
of  maturity. 

Alamandel  J.  Talladay.  the  third  child,  was  about  two  weeks  old 
when  brought  to  Mason  township.  Cass  county.  He  was  reared  upon 
the  old  familv  homestead  tliere  until  he  reached  the  age  of  twelve  years, 
when  he  became  a  resident  of  Jefferson  township.  His  education  was 
accpjired  in  a  district  school  near  the  family  home  and  through  the  va- 
cation periods  he  worked  in  the  fields  and  assisted  in  the  farm  labor  un- 
til after  he  had  attained  his  majority.  At  the  death  of  his  father  he  was 
appointed  administrator  of  the  estate  and  managed  the  business  in  ca- 
pable arid   energetic  fashion.      In    1874  he  took  charge  of  the  county 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY  525 

farm,  continuiiis-  in  the  position  fur  ei.^ht  years,  after  which  he  be- 
gan farming  on  liis  own  account  in  Jeft'erson  township,  where  he  car- 
ried on  the  work-  nf  tilling  the  soil  for  five  years.  He  then  once  more 
took  cliarge  of  the  county  farm  and  was  its  superintendent  for  seven- 
teen years,  so  that  his  service  in  that  position  all  together  cr.vercd  Iwentv- 
five  years.  His  long  incumbency  stands  in  incontrovertible  evidence  of 
his  capability  and  the  trust  reposed  in  Iiim  by  his  fellow  townsmen.  He 
brought  to  bear  in  the  discharge  of  his  duties  the  same  earnest  purpose 
and  indefatigable  energy  that  have  always  characterized  him  in  the  man- 
agement of  his  private  business  interests,  and  he  not  only  carefully 
looked  after  those  who  were  dependent  upon  the  county's  bountv  but  also 
by  his  capable  control  made  the  farm  a  paying  institution. 

On  the  iSth  of  September,  1877,  Mr.  Talladay  was  united  in  mar- 
riage to  Miss  Elizabeth  George,  a  native  of  Monroe  county,  New  York, 
born  on  the  14th  of  August,  1S57.  Her  parents  were  Luke  and  Maria 
(London)  George,  both  of  whom  were  natives  of  near  London.  Eng- 
land. Crossing  the  Atlantic,  they  became  residents  of  the  Empire  state. 
and  in  1S65  arrived  in  Cass  county,  Michigan,  taking  up  their  abode  in 
Cassopolis.  The  father  was  a  farmer  by  occupation,  following  that 
pursuit  in  order  to  provide  for  the  needs  and  wants  of  his  family.  Un- 
to him  and  bis  wife  were  born  nine  children.  Mrs.  Talladay  being  the 
eighth  in  order  of  birth.  She  was  only  eight  years  of  age  when  brought 
to  this  state,  so  that  the  greater  part  of  her  life  has  been  passed  in  Cass 
county.  The  marriage  of  our  subject  and  his  wife  has  been  blessed  with 
three  sons :  Gideon  W.,  a  successful  merchant  now  engaged  in  the 
hardware  and  furniture  business  at  Cassopolis,  was  educated  in  the  com- 
mon schools  and  graduated  in  the  Cassopolis  city  scliools  in  the  class 
of  1895.  He  is  also  a  graduate  of  the  Valparaiso  Normal  in  the  class 
in  the  winter  of  1896-97.  He  wedded  Tvliss  Jessie  Bachelor  and  they 
have  two  little  daughters.  Lnween  and  Myni.  He  is  one  of  the  suc- 
cessful merchants  of  Cassopolis.  Jesse  L.,  who  received  a  common 
school  education  and  also  graduated  in  the  Cassopolis  high  school,  has 
been  on  the  lakes  six  or  seven  years  as  a  sailor.  Ray  G..  who  grad- 
uated in  the  eighth  grade,  and  was  in  the  eleventh  grade  of  the  Cassop- 
olis high  school,  was  also  a  student  at  the  Valparaiso  Normal.  He 
is  at  home.  All  were  born  in  Jefferson  township.  Mrs.  Talladay  has 
an  old  oaken  chest  which  her  great-grandmother  brought  from  England, 
and  it  is  hand  carved  and  over  a  century  old.  They  also  have  an  old 
almanac  published  in  183S. 

Mr.  Talladay  is  the  owner  of  one  hundred  and  twenty  acres  of  land 
and  carries  on  the  farm  work  in  energetic  and  able  manner,  so  that  he 
annuallv  harvests  good  crops.  He  also  has  good  grades  of  stock  upon 
his  place  and  his  farm  is  divided  into  fields  of  convenient  size  by  well 
kept  fences.  In  his  work  he  is  svstematic  and  methodical  and  his 
sound  business  judgment  is  manifest  in  the  excellent  results  which  havo 
attended  his  labors.     In  politics  he  has  been  a  lifelong  Democrat  where 


520  HISTORY  01'   CASS  COUXTV 

state  and  national  questions  are  involved,  but  at  local  elections  votes 
independently,  considering  only  the  efficiency  of  the  candidate.  He  be- 
longs to  Backus  lodge,  No.  55,  F.  &  A.  AL,  of  Cassopolis,  also  Kings- 
bury Chapter,  R.  A.  AL,  and  his  wife  is  a  member  of  the  Baptist  church. 
They  are  highly  esteemed  in  the  communitiy  where  they  reside,  the 
hospitality  of  many  of  the  best  homes  being  cordially  extended  them. 
Mr.  Talladay  is  one  who  is  well  known  because  of  his  fidelity  to  public 
trust  and  his  many  good  qualities  have  gained  for  him  a  favorable 
position  in  the  regard  of  all  who  know  him. 

H.  C.  DAVIS. 

Among  the  thrifty  and  prosperous  farmers  of  Cass  county  is  num- 
bered 11.  C.  Davis,  residing  on  section  35,  Jefferson  township.  He  dates 
his  residence  in  the  county  from  1S40.  being  a  voung  lad  of  but  four 
years  of  age  at  the  time  of  his  arrival  here.  His  mind  bears  the  im- 
press of  many  of  the  early  historic  annals  of  the  state  as  well  as  of  later 
day  progress  and  de\elopment.  He  is  familiar  with  conditions  which 
existed  when  this  county  was  a  frontier  district,  when  most  of  its  res- 
idents lived  in  log  houses  and  when  the  homes  of  the  settlers  were  wide- 
ly scattered.  Only  here  and  tliere  was  a  mill  or  Imsiness  establishment 
which  could  furnish  the  settlers  with  needed  supplies  of  wearing  ap- 
parel or  food  products.  Journeys  were  taken  \'ery  infrequently  lie- 
cause  of  the  poor  condition  nf  the  roads  and  the  fact  that  the  later 
of  all  the  people  was  needed  upon  the  farms  in  the  reclamation  of  the 
wild  land  for  the  uses  of  civilization. 

Mr.  Da\-is  of  this  review,  wdio  for  long  years  has  successfully  car- 
ried on  farming,  was  liom  in  Clark  county.  Ohio,  on  the  13th  of  Novem- 
ber, 1836.  His  father,  Reuben  B.  Davis,  was  a  native  of  W^est  Virginia, 
in  which  state  he  remained  until  early  manhood.  When  alxn'.t  twenty- 
two  years  of  age,  however,  he  removed  westward  to  Clark  county.  Ohio, 
where  he  secured  a  tract  of  land  and  engaged  in  farming.  He  was  mar- 
ried in  that  state  to  Aliss  Susanna  Smith,  whose  birth  occurred  in  Clark 
county  on  the  ist  of  February.  18 13.  She  was  a  daughter  of  Henry 
Smith,  who  was  born  in  New  Jersey  and  became  one  of  the  pioneer  res- 
idents of  the  Buckeye  state.  His  marriage,  however,  was  celebrated 
in  Virginia.  He  was  of  German  descent,  while  tlie  Davis  family  is  of 
Welsh  lineage.  Reuben  B.  Davis  lived  to  the  advanced  age  of  eighty 
years,  while  his  wife  passed  away  at  the  extreme  old  age  of  ninety  years, 
her  death  occurring  in  Jefferson  township.  Thev  had  removed  from 
Ohio  to  Cass  countv  about  1840  and  became  identified  with  pioneer 
interests,  sharing  in  the  arduous  task  of  developing  the  land  and  estab- 
lishing a  home  in  the  midst  of  the  forest.  In  their  family  were  seven 
children,  of  whom  onh-  three  sons  reached  adult  age,  these  being:  H. 
C.  of  this  review:  Tames,  a  resident  farmer  of  Jefferson  township;  and 
Elijah  P..  who  is  living  in  Boulder  Citv'.  Colorado. 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COL'XTV  527 

H.  C.  Davis,  wlu)  was  the  clflest  son  and  second  child  of  the  fam- 
ily, was  only  fonr  years  of  age  when  brought  by  his  parents  to  Mich- 
igan. The  family  hnme  was  established  in  Cass  county  and  he  has  re- 
sided upon  bis  present  farm  for  sixty-five  years.  It  is  dear  to  him 
through  the  associati.'us  of  his  lx)yhood  and  youth  as  well  as  of  his 
later  manhood.  In  early  life  he  received  loving  care  and  attention  from 
his  parents,  and  in  their  declining  days  be  gave  to  them  filial  affection, 
thus  repaying  them  for  their  devotion  in  bis  youth.  At  the  usual  age 
he  entered  the  public  schools  and  acquired  a  knowledge  of  the  common 
branches  of  learning  that  equipped  him  for  life's  practical  duties.  His 
training  at  farm  labor  was  not  meager,  for  when  not  busy  with  his 
text-books  be  worked  in  the  fields,  assisting  in  plowing,  planting  and 
harvesting  as  crops  were  brought  to  their  fruition.  When  be  bad  at- 
tained man's  estate  be  chose  a  companion  and  helpmate  for  life's  iour- 
ney,  being  married  on  the  15th  of  June.  1S63,  to  Miss  Samantha  Ros- 
brough,  one  of  the  native  daugbter.s  of  Jefferson  township,  who  has 
spent  her  entire  life  in  this  part  of  the  county.  Her  parents  were  John 
and  Mary  (Richardson)  Rosbrough,  and  the  mother  came  of  Irish 
lineage,  while  the  father  was  of  German  descent.  The  home  of  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Davis  has  been  blessed  with  three  sons  and  two  daughters,  name- 
ly: Charles  E. :  Henrietta,  now  the  wife  of  H.  K.  May,  of  iVIinncsota; 
Fred  S.,  a  resident  farmer  of  Jefferson  township;  Carrie,  the  wife  of 
Dr.  J.  F.  Condon,  who  is  living  in  Breckenridge,  Colorado,  about  one 
hundred  and  ten  miles  from  Denver:  and  Pliny,  of  Dowagiac. 

Mr.  Davis  is  now  the  owner  of  one  hundred  and  sixty-nine  acres 
of  good  land  constituting  a  well  improved  farm.  His  entire  life  has 
been  given  to  the  occupation  to  which  he  was  reared  and  he  has  found 
in  this  work  a  good  source  of  income,  resulting  from  his  close  applica- 
tion, capable  management  and  straightforward  dealing.  His  first  home 
was  a  log  cabin  that  is  still  standing  upon  the  place.  It  was  erected  in 
1834  and  is  a  mute  reminder  of  tb.e  great  changes  that  have  occurred. 
It  was,  however,  a  hospitable  home,  in  which  friends,  neighbors  and 
strangers  were  always  made  welcome.  As  the  financial  resources  in- 
creased, however,  this  primitive  dwelling  was  replaced  by  one  of  more 
modern  architecture  and  also  more  commodious.  There  have  also  been 
great  changes  in  methods  of  farming.  In  his  youth  the  sickle  was  used 
in  the  harvest  field  and  the  sheaves  were  bound  by  hand,  while  the 
threshing  was  done  upon  the  barn  floor,  the  grain  being  tramped  out  by 
horses  or  oxen.  Invention,  however,  brought  improved  farm  machin- 
ery and  Mr.  Davis  has  kept  in  touch  with  the  universal  progress  along 
such  lines.  He  now  has  a  splendidly  improved  farm,  the  products  of 
which  find  a  ready  sale  upon  the  market,  and  thus  his  income  is  mate- 
rially increased  annually. 

In  his  political  views  ^fr.  Davis  is  an  earnest  Democrat,  active  in 
the  work  of  the  party  where  issues  are  involved,  though  at  local  elec- 
tions be   frequently  votes   independently,   considering  only  the  capabil- 


628  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTS' 

ily  of  the  canditlate.  In  18S5-6  he  was  township  treasurer,  and  from 
1900  until  1904.  inckisive  lie  was  supervisor  of  his  township.  He  was 
also  school  ofliccr  lor  t\venty-se\'cn  years  and  the  duties  tliat  have  de- 
volved upon  him  in  these  connections  have  been  promi)tly,  faithfully 
and  capably  performed.  lie  is  iie\'er  remiss  in  citizenship  nor  negli- 
gent in  business,  and  he  has  based  his  business  principles  and  actions 
upon  strict  adherence  to  tlie  rules  which  govern  industry  and  unswerv- 
ing integrity.  By  constant  exertion  associated  with  good  judgment 
he  has  raised  liimself  to  the  position  which  he  now  holds,  having  the 
friendship  of  the  juan}   and  the  respect  of  all  who  know  him. 

NFXSON  E.  TH.\TCHER. 

The  agricultural  interests  of  Penn  township  find  a  worthy  repre- 
sentative in  Nelson  E.  Thatcher,  who  is  living  on  section  20.  Here  he 
owns  eighty  acres  of  land  and  is  carrying  on  farming  along  modern 
lines  of  progressive  agriculture.  He  was  born  in  Ontario  county,  New 
York,  on  the  30th  of  January,  ii^5T,  and  comes  of  English  ancestry, 
the  family,  however,  ha\ing  been  founded  in  the  new  world  at  an  early 
period  in  its  colonization.  His  paternal  grandfather,  Israel  Thatcher, 
was  a  native  of  Greenfield,  Massachusetts,  and  removed  from  that  i^tate 
to  New  York,  where  occurred  the  birth  of  Lyman  Thatcher,  father  of 
our  subject.  He  was  reared  to  the  ocaipation  of  farming  in  the  Em- 
pire state,  where  he  resided  until  about  18S3,  when  he  came  to  Mich- 
igan, spending  his  remaining  days  within  its  borders.  His  death  oc- 
curred in  Lansing  in  1900.  His  wife,  who  bore  the  maiden  name  of 
Annie  E.  Tremblcy,  was  born  in  Ontario  county.  New  York,  and  there 
spent  her  girlhood  days,  her  father  being  John  Trembley.  who  was  of 
French  lineage  but  was  born  in  Paterson,  New  Jersey.  Mrs.  Thatcher 
passed  awav  in  the  same  year  in  which  her  husband's  death  occurred, 
being  called  to  her  final  rest  on  the  2nd  of  Februar}%  1900.  In  their 
family  were  eleven  children,  five  sons  and  six  daughters,  of  whom 
one  son  and  one  daughter  died  in  childhood,  while  the  others  grew  to 
manhood  or  womanhood. 

Nelson  E.  Thatcher,  who  was  the  sixth  in  order  of  birth  in  this 
family  of  eleven  children,  was  reared  in  his  native  countv  and  is  in- 
debted to  the  public  school  system  for  the  educational  privileges  he  en- 
joyed in  his  vouth.  During  the  summer  months  he  assisted  in  farm 
labor  and  ren'iained  at  home  until  twenty-one  years  of  age,  when  he 
started  out  upon  an  independent  business  career.  He  has  since  won  a 
fair  measure  of  success,  wl.ich  is  attributable  entirely  to  his  own  well- 
directed  labor  and  unfaltering  diligence.  He  was  married  in  1874  to 
Miss  Mary  E.  Fenton,  who  died  in  March.  1884,  leaving  four  sons,  the 
youngest  being  about  sixteen  months  old.  These  were  :  Sylvester  F..  who 
is  now  a  resident  of  Portland.  Oregon;  Nelson  E.,  decea<:ed :  Holester  W.. 
also  living  in  Portland ;  and  Ernest  M.,  who  was  a  soldier  in  the  United 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COrXTV  5i'9 

States  arniv  and  died  in  the  Philippine  Ishnnds.  After  losing  his  first 
wife  Mr.  'riiatclier  was  r.gain  married  in  1896,  his  second  union  being 
with  Lillian  S.  lii\<W.  the  widow  of  Frank  White  and  a  daughter  of 
Hugh  and  Annie  Bri-ily.  Her  parents  and  grandparents  were  pioneer 
residents  of  Cass  ciunty  an<l  she  was  horn  upon  the  farm  on  section  20, 
Penn  township,  where  she  has  spent  the  greater  part  of  her  life.  Mr. 
Thatcher  came  to  Cass  county  in  1895.  He  afterward  went  to  North 
Dakota,  locating  at  Sheldon,  where  he  accepted  a  clerkship  in  a  general 
store.  On  the  expiration  of  that  period  he  returned  to  Cass  countv  and 
located  on  the  farm  where  he  now  resides,  purchasing  the  interest  of  the 
old  Brody  homestead  from  the  other  heirs.  He  has  built  a  good  barn, 
has  improved  the  place  in  many  ways  and  has  now  an  excellent  prop- 
erty, attractive  in  its  ap'iearance  and  equiiipcd  with  all  modern  acces- 
sories. He  has  been  offered  a  good  price  for  his  farm,  showing  that 
it  is  one  of  the  valuable  properties  of  the  locality.  In  politics  he  is  a 
Democrat  and  he  belongs  to  the  Masonic  lodge  at  Vanclalia.  Although 
his  residence  in  Cass  county  covers  a  comparatively  brief  periorl  he  has 
become  widely  and  favorably  known  and  the  circle  of  his  friends  is 
constantly  growing. 

NATHAN  JONES. 

Nathan  Jones,  a  retired  farmer  and  one  of  the  rild  settlers  of  Cass 
county,  is  living  on  section  21.  Penn  townshi]i.  He  has  pas^cfl  the 
eighty-first  milestone  on  life's  journey,  his  birth  having  occurred  in 
Preble  county.  Ohio,  April  6,  1824.  His  father,  George  Jones,  was  a 
native  of  Georgia  and  was  a  son  of  George  Jones,  Sr.,  whose  birth  like- 
wise occurred  in  the  same  state,  whence  he  removed  to  Ohio  on  account 
of  slavery  in  the  south,  establishing  his  home  in  Preble  county.  He. was 
a  Friend  or  Quaker  in  his  religious  faith  and  he  lived  to  lie  about  sixty- 
six  years  of  age.  After  spending  some  years  in  Ohio  he  sought  a  home 
in  Michigan,  locating  in  F'enn  township.  Cass  county,  in  1829,  which 
was  se\eral  years  before  the  admission  of  the  state  into  the  Union.  He 
was  accompanied  liy  four  of  his  sons  and  Ihey  took  an  active  and  help- 
ful part  in  the  development  and  early  progress  of  the  county.  The  fam- 
ily is  of  Welsh  descent,  Imt  the  first  representatives  of  the  name  in 
America  came  from  England  to  the  new  world. 

George  Jones,  the  father  of  our  subject,  was  a  young  man  when  his 
parents  removed  to  Preble  coimty,  Ohio,  and  there  he  was  reared  to  the 
ocaipation  of  farming,  which  he  has  made  his  life  work.  He  came  to 
Cass  county,  Michigan,  at  the  same  time  his  father  and  brothers  sought 
a  home  in  this  state,  and  from  the  government  he  entered  a  tract  of  land 
in  Penn  township,  upon  which  not  a  furrow  had  been  turned  nor  an  im- 
provement made.  \Yiih  characteristic  energv-.  however,  he  began  till- 
ing the  soil  and  planting  crops  and  in  due  course  of  time  had  developed 
a  good  farm.  He  had  lived  for  six  years  in  the  county  before  he  could 
enter  his  land  and  he  took  a  helpful  part  in  the  work  of  early  improve- 


530  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

ment  and  progress.  He  died  when  a  comparatively  young  man,  pass- 
ing away  at  the  age  of  thirty-two  years.  His  wife  bore  the  maiden  name 
of  Mary  Bogue  and  was  born  in  North  Carolina,  where  her  girlhood 
days  were  passed.  She  removed  with  her  parents  to  Ohio.  Her  father 
was  Joseph  Bogue,  also  a  native  of  North  Carolina,  who  was  of  Quaker 
faith,  adhering  closely  to  that  religious  denomination  up  to  the  time  of 
his  demise.  Mrs.  Jones  reached  the  very  advanced  age  of  eighty-two 
years,  thus  long  surviving  her  husband.  In  their  family  were  si.K  cliil- 
dren. 

Nathan  Jones,  the  third  in  order  of  birth,  was  only  five  years  of 
age  when  brought  b)-  his  parents  from  Preble  county,  Ohio,  to  Cass 
county,  Michigan,  and  he  was  reared  in  Penn  township  amid  the  wild 
scenes 'of  pioneer  life,  sharing  with  the  family  in  all  the  hardships, 
privations  and  trials  incident  to  the  settlement  of  the  frontier.  When 
a  boy  he  pursued  his  education  in  a  log  school  house,  sitting  upon  a 
slab  bench.  In  one  end  of  the  room  was  a  large  fire-place  and  the 
desks  were  made  of  slabs  laid  upon  pins  driven  into  the  wall.  The 
methods  of  instruction  were  also  primitive  and  he  frequently  made 
his  w--ay  through  the  snow  for  three  miles  in  order  to  attend  school. 
The  family  were  left  in  somewhat  limited  financial  circumstances,  so 
that  his  privileges  were  comparatively  meager.  He  assisted  his  mother 
upon  tl'.e  old  home  farm  up  to  the  time  of  his  marriage,  which  occurred 
in  1847,  Miss  Lydia  Bonine  becoming  bis  wife.  She  was  a  daughter 
of  Isaac  and  Sarah  Bonine,  who  settled  in  Cass  county  in  1S42.  Mrs. 
Jones  was  born  in  Wavne  countv,  Indiana,  and  died  in  this  county  m 
1899  when  about  scvciity-one  years  of  age.  By  her  marriage  she  had 
become  the  mother  of  six  children,  namely:  j\Iary  E.,  Sarali  Inda, 
Isaac  B.,  George,  Warner  D.  and  one  who  died  in  infancy.  In.  1900, 
Mr  Jones  was  "again  married,  his  second  union  being  with  Louisa  Jones 
who  was  born  in  London.  England,  but  was  brought  to  the  United 
States  during  her  in  fane  v. 

Mr.  Tones  has  been  a  resident  of  Cass  county  for  seventy-six  years 
and  throughout  that  entire  time  has  been  connected  with  agncultura 
pursuits  He  owns  three  hundred  acres  of  land  in  Penn  township  and 
his  valuable  farm  with  its  excellent  improvements  and  richly  cultivated 
fields  indicates  a  life  of  thrift  and  enterprise.  He  is  a  stanch  Pro- 
hibitionist in  political  matters  and  formerly  was  a  Republican,  and 
for  many  years  has  served  as  township  supervisor  01  Penn  township. 
In  his  religious  faith  be  holds  to  the  churcli  of  his  ancestors  and  is  a 
Friend  or  Ouaker.  His  life  has  been  ever  honorable  and  upright  and 
he  has  never  been  known  to  take  advantage  of  the  necessities  of  his 
fellow  men  in  any  trade  transaction.  Few  of  the  citizens  of  the  county 
have  so  long  resided  within  its  borders  and  his  name  is  mde bbly  en- 
graved upon  the  pages  of  its  history.  His  memory  goes  back  to  the 
Le  when  there  were  few  roads  through  the  forests  and  the  traveler 
often  found  his  wav  by  means  of  a  blazed  trail.     There  were  no  rail- 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  531 

roads,  no  telegraphs  nor  telcpliones  and  only  here  and  there  would  be 
found  a  little  clearing  to  indicate  that  the  work  of  improvement  had 
been  begun.  The  few  homes  were  mostly  log  cabins  and  similar  struct- 
ures were  used  for  school  purposes  or  houses  of  worship.  The  farm 
machinery  was  very  crude  as  compared  to  that  in  use  at  the  present  day. 
The  mowing  was  done  with  a  scythe  or  sickle,  the  grain  bound  by 
hand  and  was  threshed  out  with  oxen  or  horses.  jMost  of  the  cooking 
was  done  over  a  big  hre-place  and  much  of  the  clothing  of  the  family 
was  woven  by  the  women  of  the  household.  Great  changes  have  oc- 
curred and  Air.  Jones  has  kept  in  touch  with  the  universal  progress, 
rejoicing  in  what  has  been  accomplished  as  Cass  county  has  won  a 
place  among  the  leading  counties  of  this  great  commonwealth. 

GILBERT  WHITE. 

Gilbert  White,  a  retired  farmer  living  in  Cassopolis,  was  born  in 
Allegany  county.  New  ^'ork,  on  the  iSth  of  Septemlx-r,  1835,  and  in 
both  the  paleinal  and  maternal  lines  comes  of  Irish  and  English  an- 
cestry. His  parents  were  Albert  and  Rhoda  (Castleman)  White.  The 
father  was  born  in  Seneca  county,  New  York,  and  in  the  year  1S43 
emigrated  westwartl  to  Cass  county,  Michigan,  reaching  his  destina- 
tion on  the  loth  of  September.  As  a  pioneer  settler  he  was  identified 
with  the  work  of  early  progress  and  improvement  and  his  aid  could 
always  be  counted  upon  to  further  any  measure  for  the  local  good. 
His  time  and  energies  were  devoted  to  farming  and  he  contributed  to 
the  agricultural  prosperity  of  the  community.  He  voted  with  the 
Whig  party  until  its  dissolution  and  then  became  a  stanch  Democrat. 
His  death  occurred  November  25,  1S76,  when  he  was  in  the  seventy- 
fourth  year  of  his  age.  His  wife,  also  a  native  of  the  Empire  state, 
died  in  Cass  county  when  about  fifty-five  years  of  age.  They  were 
the  parents  of  five  sons  and  one  daughter,  all  of  whom  reached  years 
of  maturity,  but  the  daughter  died  when  about  twenty-two  years  of 
age,  and  the  sons  Iiave  also  passed  away  with  the  exception  of  Gilbert 
White  and  his  brother.  Nathaniel  White,  who  is  now  living  in  Penn 
township. 

Gilbert  White  was  the  youngest  son  and  fifth  child  in  the  family 
and  was  but  eight  years  of  age  when  he  became  a  resident  of  Cass 
county.  His  youth  was  passed  upon  the  old  family  homestead,  where 
he  early  began  work  in  the  fields,  aiding  in  the  work  of  plowing,  plant- 
ing and  harvesting.  The  district  schools  afiforded  h'm  his  educational 
privileges  and  he  had  to  walk  two  and  a  half  miles  to  the  little  old 
school  house  in  Penn.  His  education  was  therefore  acquired  under 
.somewhat  unfavorable  circumstances.  His  training  at  farm  labor,  how- 
ever, was  not  meager  and  he  remained  at  home  assisting  in  the  work 
of  the  farm  until  twenty-one  years  of  age.  when  he  started  out  in 
life   on   his   own   account.      As   a   companion   and   helpmate   for   life's 


53i'  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

journey  he  chcisc  ^liss  Elizabeth  Broner,  whom  he  wedded  in  1S57. 
She  was  born  in  New  York  city  and  was  a  daughter  of  Jacob  and  Mary 
Broner.  She  came  to  Cass  comity  in  1857  and  the  same  year  gave 
her  hand  in  marriage  to  Mr.  White. 

Following  his  marriage  Gilbert  White  purchased  his  lrither"s  farm, 
took  up  his  abode  thereon  and  was  engaged  in  general  farm  work  until 
the  fall  of  18S0,  when  he  came  to  Cassopolis.  He  then  retired  from 
active  business  and  enjojcd  a  well  earned  rest  for  a  number  of  years, 
but  in  1890  once  more  entered  the  field  of  business  activity  and  has 
since  been  engaged  in  dealing  in  agricultural  implements  in  addition 
to  looking  after  his  farm  property  in  Penn  town.sliip,  comprising  one 
hundred  and  forty  acres  of  land.  He  carries  a  good  line  of  farm  ma- 
chinery of  the  be^t  makes  and  his  patronage  is  extensive  and  is  con- 
stantly growing. 

Unto  yiv.  and  Mrs.  White  have  been  born  three  children:  Frank 
A.,  now  deceased;  Evadell.  the  wife  of  Aaron  Reinhart.  who  resides 
upon  the  old  family  Iiumestcad;  and  Floyd  B.,  who  is  living  in  Cassoj)- 
olis.  Mr.  White  belongs  to  the  Ancient  Order  of  United  Workmen, 
with  which  he  has  been  cnnuected  for  twenty-three  years.  FIc  also 
holds  member.ship  relations  with  the  Benevolent  &  Protective  Order  of 
Elks  and  smce  attaining  his  majority  has  given  his  support  to  the 
Democracy.  He  has  held  the  office  of  justice  of  the  peace  and  other 
local  positions  and  for  about  twenty  years  has  been  a  iiienibcr  of  the 
school  board,  taking  an  active  interest  in  the  cause  of  public  education 
and  in  various  movements  and  plans  for  substantial  advancement  in 
the  countv.  He  has  lived  in  tlie  county  for  si.xty-thrcc  years  and  his 
position  in  pu.blic  regard  has  been  won  through  a  strict  adherence  to 
high  and  nianlv  principles.  In  his  business  dealings  he  has  never  been 
known  to  take'  advantage  of  the  necessities  of  his  fellow  men  in  any 
trade  transaction,  lint  in  the  legitimate  channels  of  trade  has  gained 
the  competence  which  he  now  enjoys.  He  has  traveled  life's  journey 
with  his  wife  for  almost  a  half  century  and  they  are  regarde<I  as  a  most 
estimable  couple  whose  names  should  be  engraved  high  upon  the  roll  of 
honored  pioneer  settlers  and  who  justly  deserve  prominent  mention  in 
the  history  of  this  part  of  the  state. 

THOMAS  J.  LILLEY. 

Thomas  T-  Lilley  is  numbered  among  the  early  settlers  of  Cass 
countv  who  for  many  years  has  been  an  interested  witness  of  the 
changes  that  have  occurred  here  and  the  transition  that  has  been  wrought 
as  time  and  man  have  brought  the  county  to  its  present  position  of 
advancement  and  development.  He  lives  on  section  iS.  LaGrange 
township,  and  is  the  owner  of  four  hundred  and  forty-six  acres  of  ridi 
and  valuable  land,  but  leaves  the  work  of  tilling  the  soil  to  others, 
while  he  is  now  living  retired  in  the  enjoyment  of  a  well  earned  rest. 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COL'XTY  533 

His  birth  occurred  in  LaGrange  township  on  tlie  13th  of  October,  1S44, 
and  he  is  therefore  among  the  older  of  the  native  sons  of  the  county. 
His  parents  were  David  and  Sarah  (Simpson)  Lilley,  in  whose  family 
were  four  children.  The  father  was  a  native  of  Ohio  and  emigrating- 
westward  cast  in  lu's  I'lt  with  the  pioneer  residents  of  Cass  county.  He 
entered  a  small  claim  from  the  government,  was  married  in  LaGrange 
township  and  reared  his  family  upon  his  home  farm  here.  He  was 
identified  with  the  making  of  Cass  county,  with  its  permanent  improve- 
ment and  stihslnntial  development,  and  his  fellow  townsmen  recognized 
in  him  a  citizen  of  wurtli  and  value.  His  ]X)litical  allegiance  was  given 
to  the  Democracy,  it  was  in  this  county  that  he  was  married  tt;)  Miss 
Sarah  Simpson,  a  native  of  \'irginia,  who  was  brought  to  Michigan  by 
her  parents  when  al>nut  four  years  of  age.  Her  father  was  Thomas 
Simpson,  one  of  the  earliest  settlers  of  this  part  of  the  state,  living  in 
LaGrange  t<nvnship.  where  he  aided  in  the  reclamation  of  the  wild 
land  for  the  ])urposes  of  civilixation.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  David  Lilley  long 
traveled  life's  journey  together,  tlie  former  passing  away  when  in  his 
eighty-first  year  and  the  latter  when  ^eventy-nine  years  of  age.  Of 
their  children  three  are  now  li\-ing,  Thomas  J.  lieing  the  eldest  and 
the  only  surviving  -^on.  His  two  sisters  arc:  Matilda,  the  wife  of 
Austin  Charles,  of  IX'catur.  ]\licliigan;  and  Catharine,  now  the  wife 
of  Orville  Wales,  of  Chicago. 

In  taking  up  the  personal  history  of  Thomas  J-  Lilley  we  present 
to  our  readers  tlie  life  record  of  one  who  has  a  wide  and  favorable  ac- 
quaintance in  Cass  county,  for  during  long  years  he  has  lived  within 
its  borders,  shajiing  his  life  in  accordance  with  rules  of  upright  conduct, 
of  honor  in  business,  loyalty  in  citizenship  and  devotion  to  all  that  is 
commendable  in  friendsliip  and  home  life.  In  the  period  of  his  youth 
he  assisted  bis  father  in  carrying  on  the  work  of  the  farm  and  in 
early  manhood  sought  a  companion  and  helpmate  for  life's  journey, 
being  married  in  i8(')7  to  "Miss  Xancy  Hurdle,  a  daughter  of  Jacob  and 
Catherine  (Brown)  Hurdle.  Her  father  was  born  on  the  ocean  while 
his  parents  were  crossing  from  Germany  and  the  mother  was  a  native 
of  Ohio.  They  became  residents  of  Cass  countv  in  1833.  settling  in 
Wayne  township,  where  they  ca«t  in  their  lot  with  the  pioneer  settlers. 
Mr.  Hurdle  did  his  full  share  in  improving  and  developing  this  region 
and  his  value  in  the  work  of  reclamation  was  acknowledged  by  all  who 
knew  of  his  career.  IMrs.  Lillev  was  born  on  the  family  homestead  in 
Wavne  township.  June  20,  1848.  and  has  lived  all  her  life  in  Cass 
county.  In  their  familv  were  three  daughters:  Lora,  the  wife  of 
John  Shepbard.  who  resides  upon  the  old  homestead  in  LaGrange  town- 
ship; Birdie,  at  home:  and  Sadie,  the  wife  of  Dr.  L.  C.  Simmons,  of 
Shelbyville.  Indiana.  All  were  born  in  LaGrange  township,  where  Mr, 
Lilley  has  spent  his  entire  life.  He  has  carried  on  farming  throughout 
his  entire  business  career,  but  leaves  the  more  active  work  of  the  fields 
to  others  at  the  present  time.     His  possessions  embrace  four  hundred 


534  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

and  forty-six  acres  of  rich  and  arable  land  under  a  high  state  of  culti- 
vation and  \vell  inipro\-ed  with  rnudern  equipments.  He  lias  prospered 
in  his  business  affairs  and  he  now  rents  his  farm,  resting  in  the  en- 
joyment of  the  fruits  of  his  former  toil  and  in  the  compctctice  which 
comes  to  him  from  the  rental  of  his  place.  He  has  erected  many  build- 
ings in  ;he  county  and  has  lived  a  life  of  untiring  industry  and  enter- 
prise resulting  in  success.  He  votes  with  the  Democracy  but  has  never 
sought  or  desired  oflice,  preferring  to  give  his  undivided  attention  to 
his  business  affairs.  He  started  out  on  his  own  account  at  an  early  age 
and  has  steadil_\-  worked  his  way  upward  undeterred  by  the  difficulties 
and  obstacles  that  (luc  always  meets  in  a  business  career.  These  on  the 
other  hand  seemed  to  serve  as  an  impetus  for  renewed  eff<  'rt  and  liis 
purposeful  action  and  sound  judgment  have  made  him  one  of  the  ' 
prosperous  residents  of  the  community. 

JOSEPH  H.  JOHN  SOX. 

Joseph  H.  Johnson,  living  on  section  8.  Penn  township,  is  a  native 
of  Alonroe  county.  New  York,  his  l)irth  having  occurred  about  six  miles 
east  of  Roche-^ter  on  the  _'rid  of  March,  1840.  His  father.  Job  John- 
son, was  a  native  of  England,  and  when  a  young  man  came  to  America, 
for  he  had  heard  favorable  reports  concerning  business  opportunities 
in  the  Um'tcd  States  and  hoped  to  better  his  financial  condition  by  emi-/ 
grating  to  the  new  world.  When  a  young  man  in  England  he  learned 
the  blacksmith's  trade  and  thus  had  a  good  foundation  upon  which  to 
build  the  sui)erstructure  of  success  after  crossing  the  Atlantic.  Being 
favorably  impressed  with  his  adopted  land,  he  afterward  returned  to 
England  for  his  bride  and  was  married  there  to  IMiss  Andulusia  Greg- 
of}',  a  native  of  England,  whom  he  then  brought  with  him  to  the  United 
States,  arriving  here  aliout  183S.  They  located  in  ?^Ionroc  county,  New 
York,  where  they  resided  continuously  until  the  spring  of  1852,  when 
they  came  to  Cass  countv,  Michigrui.  Mr.  John.son  secured  land  about 
a  mile  south  of  Wandalia.  where  he  was  engaged  in  farming.  There  he 
died  at  the  age  of  fiftv-three  years,  while  his  wife  passed  away  in  her 
fiftietli  year.  Bv  the  first  marriage  of  Mr.  Johnson  there  were  born 
five  children,  and  by  his  second  marriage — ^vliss  Fannie  Doyle  becoming 
his  wife — th.cre  were  born  three  children. 

Joseph  H.  Johnson  is  the  eldest  of  the  first  family,  and  in  ^^lonroe 
county.  New  York,  he  spent  the  first  twelve  years  of  his  life,  h.ecoming 
a  public  school  student  tliere.  Subsequently  lie  continued  his  studies  in 
Cass  countv  following  the  remo\al  of  his  parents  to  ^Michigan.  His 
mother  died,  however,  when  he  was  only  about  thirteen  years  of  age, 
and  he  then  started  out  in  life  on  iiis  own  account.  He  worked  by  the 
month  during  the  summer  sea=;ons  and  in  the  winter  attended  school. 
Desirous  of  gaining  a  good  education  and  realizing  its  value  as  a 
factor  in  a  successful  business  career,  he  attended  Hillsdale  College  in 


■.^ 


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HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  535 

1S64,  providing  for  the  exjienses  of  the  college  course  by  his  own  lahor. 
After  his  marriage  he  rented  the  P.onine  farm  for  six'years.  and  then 
with  the  capital  which  he  had  acquired  through  his  own  earnings  he 
bought  a  tract  of  land  fit  eighty  acres.  Later  he  spent  four  years  in  a 
jewelry  store  at  Columbus,  Indiana,  after  which  he  returned  to  Cass 
county  and  purchased  a  second  farm,  Ijecoming  owner  of  the  property 
which  he  now-  occujiic^.  Later  he  again  spent  two  years  in  Columbus  as 
a  bookkeeper  in  a  large  dnuring  mill,  hut  once  more  he  again  took  up 
his  abode  in  Cass  county,  making  his  home  with  his  brother. 

In  1867  Mr.  Johnson  married  Miss  Caroline  Davis,  a  daughter 
of  Allen  and  Hannah  Da\-is.  She  died  December  25,  1869,  leaving  one 
child  that  died  in  infancy. 

Mr.  Johnson  is  now  the  owner  of  one  hundred  and  thirty  acres  of 
land  in  Penn  township  and  also  forty  acres  in  LaGrange  township.  He 
is  likewise  one  of  the  directors  of  the  First  National  Bank  of  Cassopolis, 
in  which  he  has  been  a  stockholder  for  over  thirty  years.  In  fact  he  is 
one  of  the  oldest  stockholders  of  the  institution.  In  his  business  life 
he  has  been  thoroughly  reliable  and  all  that  he  possesses  is  attributable 
to  his  energy  and  careful  management.  Since  age  gave  to  him  the  right 
of  franchise  he  has  lieen  a  Republican,  actively  interested  in  the  work 
of  the  party  and  its  success  and  doing  all  in  his  power  for  the  extension 
of  its  local  influence.  He  has  served  as  township  supervisor  for  one 
term  and  was  also  township  treasurer  for  two  years,  and  he  is  now  a 
member  of  the  comity  central  committee,  with  which  he  has  been  thus 
allietl  for  a  number  of  years.  Llis  interest  in  behalf  of  public  progress 
and  impro\'ement  has  been  manifest  by  active  co-operation  in  many 
movements  for  the  general  good.  Starting  out  in  life  for  himself  at  the 
early  age  of  thirteen  years,  he  soon  became  acquainted  with  earnest  and 
unremitting  toil  and  gained  a  realization  of  the  fact  that  only  through 
close  and  persistent  effort  may  honorable  success  be  achieved.  He  has 
used  his  opportunities  to  the  best  jxDssible  advantage,  and  as  the  years 
have  gone  by  he  has  wisely  invested  in  property  that  is  now  classed  with 
the  fine  farms  of  Penn  township. 

BENJAMIN   F.   GARWOOD. 

Among  the  earh-  settlers  who  have  long  been  witnesses  of  the 
growth  and  de\elopment  nf  Cass  county  is  numbered  Benjamin  F. 
Garwood,  who  now  makes  his  home  on  section  3.  Penn  township,  where 
he  owns  a  well  improved  farm  of  ninety  acres.  He  still  gives  personal 
supervision  to  the  property  and  the  cultivation  of  the  fields  and  his  life 
record  in  this  respect  should  put  tr,  shame  many  a  man  of  much  younger 
years, who,  having  grown  weary  of  the  struggles  of  a  business  career, 
would  relegate  to  others  the  burdens  that  he  should  bear.  ^Tr.  Gar- 
wood  has    now   passed  the   seventy-ninth   milestone   on   life's    journey 


530  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTV 

but  is  yet  a  factor  in  a.c;ricukural  circles  here,  givinp:  sui-crvision  to  tiie 
care  of  his  farm. 

A  native  of  L«iqan  cnuiuy.  Ohio,  he  was  Iiorn  on  tiie  I9tli  of 
May,  1.S27,  and  was  third  in  order  of  liirth  in  a  family  of  eleven  chil- 
dren, fi\c  sons  and  si.K  daui^hters.  all  of  whnn  with  one  exception 
reached  adult  a-e.  Their  jiarents  were  William  and  Elizabeth  (Brown) 
Garw(JcHl,  the  father  horn  in  Virginia  and  the  mother  in  North  Caro- 
Hna.  The  father  was  reared,  however,  in  Logan  county.  Ohio,  and 
was  there  married  to  Miss  Brown.  They  resided  for  a  long  ]icriod  in 
Ohio,  whence  they  came  to  Cass  county.  Michigan,  ah(iUt  1845.  '"C^^t- 
ing  in  Jefferson  township,  hut  Mr.  Garwood  soon  afterward  pt'irchased 
one  hunrlred  and  twenty  acres  ,,\  land  in  I'enn  township,  to  which  farm 
he  removed  his  family,  hut  afterward  was  a  resident  of  Missouri  for 
some  time,  contintn'ng  there  about  two  years,  when  he  returned  to 
Penn  to\\nshi]i  to  reside  up  to  the  time  of  hi«  demise.  Ilis  widow  sur- 
vived him  and  died  in   ^ilissnuri. 

Benjamin  F.  Garwood  was  al)ont  eighteen  years  of  age  when 
he  came  with  his  jiarents  to  Michigan.  Fie  bad  attended  the  district 
schools  of  Logan  county  and  he  continued  his  studies  in  the  district 
schools  of  Jefferson  townsln"]).  Cass  county,  which  be  attended  thrrxigb 
the  winter  months,  while  during  the  remainder  of  the  year  be  worked 
at  farm  labor.  He  continued  to  as'^ist  in  the  cultivation  of  the  fields 
and  in  harvesting  the  crops  until  bis  marriage  on  the  27tb  of  October. 
1R53.  to  ^liss  Catharine  I^Tmb.  There  were  four  sons  and  four 
daughters  born  of  that  marriage:  F.Ivirn.  Mary  Ann,  William.  Charles, 
Lvdia.  \\'arren.  Fucelia  and  fobn  A.  The  mother  passed  awav  Octo- 
ber 8.  1881.  On  the  i-'th  of  April.  1883.  :Mr.  Garwood  was  again 
married,  bis  second  tmion  beinc;-  with  ^lalinda  T.  Bonine,  who  was 
born  in  Henry  count}-.  Indiana.  December  2.  18-^5.  and  was  a  daughter 
of  Simeon  and  Olive  fFlliott)  Thomas.  Her  first  husband  was  Jacob 
Bonine  and  to  them  were  born  tw(T  cb.ildrcn :  Lot  J.  and  Olive.  ^Irs. 
Garwood  came  to  ^Michigan  aliont  1854.  Both  ^Ir.  and  IMrs.  Garwood 
are  old  settlers  of  Cass  county  and  are  widely  and  favorably  known. 
His  first  presidential  vote  wns  cast  for  a  Republican  candidate.  He  is 
a  member  of  the  Friends'  Church  and  bis  life  has  been  in  svmpatby 
with  that  religious  sect,  whose  folloAvers  exctnplifv  a  spirit  of  Christian 
patience,  consideratirm  and  virtue  that  has  made  them  widelv  known 
and  has  awakened  a  universal  feeling  of  respect  for  the  denomination 
which  they  represent. 

ULYSSES  S.  EBY. 

T'''Ivsses  S.  Ebv.  engaged  in  the  practice  of  law  in  Ca'=«opnlis. 
where  his  tboroueb  understanding  of  iudicial  principles  and  careful 
preparation  of  cases  have  been  manifest  in  the  able  manner  in  which  he 
has  handled  in  the  courts  tbe  litigated  interests  entrusted  to  his  rare, 
was  born  in  Porter  town'^bip.  this  county,  on  tbe  7tb  of  August.  18^14. 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COL'X'JY  5:J7 

his  parents  being  Gabriel  and  CaroHr.c  (Wagner)  Eby.  The  father 
came  to  this  county  in  184J  and  has  remained  on  his  farm  ever  since. 
He  was  born  in  Ohio,  while  his  wife  is  a  native  of  Germany,  having 
been  born  near  the  Rhine. 

After  attending  the  common  schools  U.  S.  Eby  became  a  student 
in  Valparaiso  University  at  \'a!paraiso.  Indiana,  and  was  graduated  in 
law  in  June,  1900.  Prior  to  this  lime  he  had  successfully  engaged  in 
teaching  schocjl  in  Cass  county  and  following  his  admission  to  the  bar 
he  entered  at  once  upon  the  active  practice  of  his  profession,  in  which 
he  has  continued  since  with  a  large  and  distinctively  representative 
clientage.  The  true  measure  nf  success  is  determined  b^'  what  one  has 
accomplished  and,  as  taken  in  cnutradisiinciion  to  the  old  adage  that 
a  prophet  is  not  without  hi'\iiir  -a\e  in  his  own  country,  there  is  par- 
ticular interest  attaching  to  the  career  of  the  subject  of  this  review, 
since  he  is  a  nati\e  son  of  the  county  where  he  has  passed  his  active 
life  and  so  directed  his  ability  and  efforts  as  to  gain  recognition  as  one 
of  the  rei)rcsentative  citizens  and  able  Iaw}-ers  of  Cassopolis.  In  ^S^qO 
he  was  elected  county  clerk  and  held  the  position  for  two  years.  In 
1900  he  was  chosen  b_\-  pojuilar  suffrage  to  the  office  of  ]-)rosecuting  at- 
torney, in  whicli  ca];;u-i(\-  lie  also  served  for  two  years,  while  for  three 
years  he  has  been  a  mrmber  (U'  the  board  of  education. 

On  the  2r)th  of  Scptemlier.  1888,  Mr.  Eby  was  married  at  Union, 
Michigan,  to  Miss  Clara  .\.  Loupcc.  a  daughter  of  Oscar  Loupee,  of 
Vandalia,  ^Michigan,  and  they  have  one  son.  Ulysses  Guy  Eby.  born 
August  25.  7889.  Mr.  Eby  is  a  member  of  the  Knights  of  the  ^Modern 
Maccabees,  -which  he  joined  in  i8oj  as  a  charter  member  at  Jones, 
Michigan.  For  two  years  be  was  commander  of  the  tent.  In  politics 
he  is  a  stalwart  Democrat,  although  bis  seven  brothers  are  all  Re- 
publicans. In  1890  he  joined  the  Eree  Baptist  church  at  Union.  Mich- 
igan, and  is  still  identified  therewith.  He  is  a  respected  and  worthy 
citizen  of  Cassojiolis.  where  his  professional  labors,  his  political  service 
and  his  fidelitv  to  social  and  moral  obligations  have  made  him  a  man 
worthy  of  the  high  regard  and  esteem  which  is  uniformly  accorded 
him. 

PETER  EBY. 

Peter  Eliy,  who  for  fifty-ei,Qht  years  has  been  a  resident  of  Porter 
township,  may  well  be  termed  one  of  the  old  settlers  of  the  county  and 
has  demonstrated  his  right  in  many  ways  to  rank  with  its  represent- 
ative citizens,  for  he  belongs  to  that  class  of  men  who  in  the  faithful 
performance  of  each  dav's  duties  of  every  public  task  devolving  upon 
him,  manifests  his  loyalty  and  interest  in  the  general  good.  He  re- 
sides on  section  6,  south  Porter  township,  and  is  a  native  of  Elkhart 
county,  Indiana,  born  on  the  9th  of  .\ugust.  1848.  He  is  the  eldest 
son  of  Gabriel  and  Caroline  fWagner")  Ebv,  and  was  only  about  two 
months    old    when    the    parents    reinoved    from    Indiana    to    Michigan, 


53S  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

settling  in  Torter  township.  He  lias  therefore  been  a  lifelong  resident 
of  Cass  cour.ty  and  yet  resicks  in  the  township  where  his  Ijoyliood  and 
youth  were  spent.  lie  reni.-iined  at  home  until  twenty-one  vears  of 
age  and  assisted  in  clearing  u[>  and  improving  the  farm.  \\'hcn  he  was 
about  twenty-five  years  of  age  he  bought  the  land  upon  which  he  now 
resides.  In  the  winter  seasons  he  attended  the  early  schools  of  the 
township,  spending  about  three  months  each  year  in  school,  while 
the  remainder  of  the  time  was  gi\en  to  the  task  of  [ilowing,  planting 
and  harvesting.  He  continued  to  work  in  the  fields  for  the  benefit 
of  his  father  until  he  attained  his  majority. 

Mr.  Eby  won  a  companion  and  helpmate  for  life's  journey  when, 
in  1871,  he  was  united  in  marriage  to  Miss  ^lary  J.  Carman,  a  daughter 
of  Chauncey  and  Elsie  J.  (Adams)  Carman,  who  was  born  in  Win- 
nebago county,  Illinois,  and  was  there  reared  to  the  age  of  thirteen 
years,  at  which  time  she  came  to  Porter  township,  Cass  county,  witli 
her  parents.  Mr.  Eby  has  a  farm  of  eighty  acres,  upon  which  he  has 
made  all  of  the  improvements.  There  are  now  substantial  buildings 
upon  the  place,  good  machinery  and  well  tilled  fields.  He  raises  tlie 
cereals  best  adapted  to  soil  and  climate  and  also  has  some  good  stock 
upon  his  place,  but  his  attention  is  chicflv  given  to  the  cultivation  of  his 
fields. 

Unto  Mr.  and  I\Irs.  Eby  have  been  born  three  children :  Florence, 
the  wife  of  George  Wagner,  of  Mason  township;  Raymond,  who  is 
upon  the  home  farm  and  who  married  Lois  E.  Richardson,  a  daughter 
of  Jesse  and  Clara  Richardson,  well  known  residents  of  Porter  town- 
ship; and  Ralph  C,  who  is  attending  college  in  South  Bend,  Indiana. 
The  attractiveness  of  Cass  county  as  a  place  of  residence  is  indicated 
by  the  fact  that  many  of  her  native  sons  have  remained  within  her 
borders  and  ^^Ir.  Eby  may  be  classed  with  this  number,  as  he  was  but 
two  months  old  when  brought  to  ^Michigan.  He  early  became  familiar 
with  the  l)est  methods  o"f  cultivating  and  improving  land  and  on  at- 
taining his  majority  determined  to  devote  his  life  to  the  occupation  to 
which  he  was  reared.  Not  to  the  fact  of  any  fortunate  combination  of 
circumstances  has  he  prospered,  but  through  his  own  unfaltering  labor, 
perseverance  and  diligent  effort — qualities  which  may  be  cultivated  by 
all  and  which  ever  produce  the  best  results.  In  his  political  views  ?klr. 
Eby  is  a  Republican,  active  in  the  support  of  the  party,  with  which  he 
has  been  allied  since  attaining  his  majority.  He  has  never  been  away 
from  his  present  farm  for  more  tlian  four  weeks  at  a  time  and  with 
persistent  purpose  has  carried  on  his  work,  being  today  one  of  the 
representative  agriculturists  of  the  community. 

HIRAM  SMITH. 

Hiram  Smith,  who  is  engaged  in  farming  on  section  20,  Calvin 
township,  was  born  in  Genesee  county.  New  York,  Januar}-  5.  1S36. 
His  father.  Samuel  Smith,  was  a  native  of  the  Empire  state  and  came 


HISTORY  Oi-   CASS  COUXTY  539 

to  Cass  ojunty  in  1S35,  locating  his  land  in  Calvin  townsliip.  He 
found  here  a  pioneer  district,  but  was  pleased  with  its  prospects  and  in- 
dications for  future  development  and  resolved  to  make  his  home  here. 
He  then  returned  to  the  Empire  state  and  brought  his  family  to  :\Iich- 
igan,  taking  up  his  aliode  upon  the  farm  now  known  as  the  Tames 
Bullen  place.  He  lived  to  be  seventy-two  years  of  age  and  his  life  was 
devoted  ti->  agricultural  pursuits,  whereby  he  provided  a  comfortable 
living  for  his  family.  His  wife  bore  the  maiden  name  of  l^annie  Fore- 
man and  was  also  a  native  of  New  York.     She  died  in  1893. 

Hiram  Smith  of  this  review  was  the  eldest  of  a  fami'lv  of  thir- 
teen children,  eleven  of  whom  reached  adult  age  and  only'  one  was 
born  outside  of  Cass  county,  that  being  the  subject  of  this  review,  who 
was  but  six  months  old  when  he  was  brought  to  Michigan.  The  family 
home  being  established  in  Calvin  township,  he  was  reared  under  the 
parental  roof  and  pursued  his  education  in  the  public  schools,  the  little 
"temple  of  learning"  being  a  log  building  such  as  was  common  in  the 
early  days.  He  continued  to  make  his  home  with  his  parents  until 
twenty-one  years  of  age,  but  in  the  meantime  worked  as  a  farm  hand 
by  the  month  or  day.  his  earnings  going  to  his  father.  He  early 
learned  the  value  of  earnest,  unremitting  toil  and  upon  that  quality  has 
builded  his  success  in  later  life. 

Mr.  Smith  was  married  the  first  time  in  1859.  the  lady  of  his 
choice  being  Mrs.  Hannah  J.  H.idcn.  a  daughter  of  Samuel  Lincoln 
and  the  widow  of  Joseph  Haden.  She  died  leaving  three  children  who 
were  born  of  her  second  marriage,  while  by  her  first  marriage  she 
had  six  children.  These  were:  Esther  Ann.  Avho  died  when  about 
two  years  old :  George,  also  deceased ;  Addie.  the  wife  of  Jesse  Parker, 
of  Qilvin  township;  \Villiam  B.,  a  hardware  merchant  of  Cassopolis; 
James  G.,  a  prominent  and  distinguished  citizen  of  this  county,  who  is 
represented  elsewhere  in  this  work- :  and  Mattie,  the  wife  of  Jacob  Keen. 
The  children  born  unto  ^Ir.  and  Mrs.  Smith  were:  Charles,  a  resident 
of  Cassopolis:  Freddie,  a  farmer  of  Calvin  township:  and  Edward,  of 
Elkhart.  Indiana,  who  is  in  die  employ  of  the  railroad  company.  After 
losing  lu's  first  wife  "Mr.  Sniitli  wedded  ]\Iiss  Alfretta  Allen,  a  daughter 
of  Jerry  Allen,  and  unto  them  were  born  five  children:  Stephen:  Dell, 
deceased  :  Harmon  :  Clark :  and  Frank. 

Mr.  Smith  has  been  a  resident  of  Calvin  township  for  seventy 
years  and  is  its  oldest  citizen  who  was  not  horn  in  this  county.  He 
has  a  vers-  wide  and  favorable  acquaintance  and  has  always  taken  an 
active  and  helpful  part  in  measures  and  plans  for  the  public  good.  His 
political  allegiance  has  been  given  to  the  Republican  party  since  its 
organization  and  he  has  held  several  school  offices  in  the  township,  the 
cause  of  education  finding  in  him  a  warm  and  stalwart  friend.  He  be- 
longs to  Mathews  Artin  Post.  G.  A.  R..  at  Calvin  Center,  being  en- 
titled to  membership  therein  by  reason  of  the  fact  that  he  enlisted  in 
1864  as  a  member  of  the  Twelfth  Michigan  \'olunteer  Infantry  and 


540  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY 

served  until  the  close  of  the  war.  He  has  been  equally  loyal  to  his 
country  in  days  of  peace,  and  local  advancement  and  national  progress 
are  both  causes  dear  Lo  his  heart.  Tln'ough  his  business  career  he  has 
carried  on  farming  and  is  now  the  owner  of  ninety-two  acres  of  good 
land  under  a  high  state  of  cuhivation.  Everything  about  his  place  is 
neat  and  liuifty  in  appearance  and  his  labors  are  attended  with  a 
measure  of  success  that  uidicaies  his  capable  management  and  unremit- 
ting diligence. 

REV.   \V.\LTER  CLARK. 

Rev.  Walter  Clark  is  numbered  aniuug  the  capable  agriculturists  of 
Penn  township.  living  on  section  5  and  for  many  years  he  has  also  de- 
voted much  of  his  time  to  the  worlc  of  the  ministry  as  a  preacher  of 
the  Brethren  clunch.  His  life  record  is  indeed  worthy  of  emulation, 
commanding  fi  r  him  the  respect,  conlidence  and  good  will  of  all.  He 
was  born  in  Xew  \t)vk.  September  23.  1837.  His  grandfather.  Kli 
Clark,  was  a  native  of  the  Empire  state  and  died  in  OIiim.  His  father. 
William  L.  Clark,  was  a  native  of  Xew  York  and  remM\e.l  to  Cass 
coimty,  Michigan,  alxmt  iS-M.  -ettb'ng  on  section  4.  Tenn  township, 
where  lie  developed  a  tract  (if  lanc!  liitlicni>  wild  and  unimprnved.  He 
turned  the  I'lr^t  fnrniw>  up^n  vari<iu>  tk-Ids.  ])lantcd  his  seed  and  in 
due  course  of  time  gathered  good  crops.  After  residing  there  for  a 
numl)er  of  years  he  remo\ed  tio  Bertrand  townsln']>.  Berrien  cnunty, 
Michigan,  but  afterward  returned  to  Cass  county  and  settled  in  Silver 
Creek  township.  Tiiis  wa'^  about  183.2.  and  in  1856  he  remri\ed  to 
Penn  triwnsln'p.  where  lie  resided  until  1861.  Tn  that  year  he  became 
a  resident  of  Pipestone  tinvusliip.  Picrricn  county,  Micbiu;an,  where  his 
remaining  days  were  passed,  his  death  occurring  ^vhen  he  had  readied 
the  age  of  about  se\-enty-eiglit  vears.  The  wife  of  \\'illiam  L.  Clark- 
was  in  iier  maidenhood  Miss  Almira  West  and  she.  too,  was  born  in 
the  Empire  state,  while  her  death  occurred  in  September,  i860,  when 
she  was  fortv-six  years  of  age.  Tn  their  family  were  eight  children,  of 
whom  Walter  Clark  is  the  eldest  son  and  also  the  eldest  now  living. 

When  about  scxxn  years  of  age  Walter  Clark  of  this  review  re- 
moved witli  his  parents  to  Cass  county  and  here  he  has  since  lived  with 
the  exception  of  the  brief  intervals  spent  in  Berrien  county  when  a 
small  bov.  He  returned  to  Cass  county  in  1856  and  was  married  here 
in  1861  to  Miss  ilaria  Gould,  wdio  was  born  in  the  state  of  X^ew  York. 
They  began  their  domestic  life  upon  the  farm  where  they  yet  reside 
and  their  marriage  was  blessed  with  one  daughter,  .\lmira.  now  the 
deceased  wife  of  Samuel  Rice.  There  was  one  daughter  by  this  mar- 
riage. Verna  Rice. 

Rev.  Clark  has  a  farm  of  one  hundred  and  fourteen  acres  situated 
on  section  5.  Penn  t'-iwn«liip.  and  his  land  is  productive,  yielding  good 
harvests  annnallv.  He  has  al«o  added  many  modern  improvements  to 
his   place   and   he   uses    good   machinen,'   in    cultivatinfr   the   fields    and 


WaU.'Vx     Ucn^^ 


HISTORY  Ol-   CASS  COUXTY  541 

cai-inii:  i<jv  the  cr. .[js.  lie  also  lias  -ncd  grades  of  st(Kk  upon  his 
farm  and  llic  i>ri.i)erty  is  the  visilile  evidence  of  his  well-directed  labor 
and  life  d  ihi-ift.  He  cleared  the  land,  erected  a  residence  and  barns 
and  has  fenced  the  tract,  lirst  enclosin<i:  it  with  a  rail  fence  made  of 
rails  which  he  iiimself  split.  Industrv  has  Ijeen  the  dominant  factor  in 
his  life  and  his  Christian  faith  has  been  the  keynote  of  his  character. 
He  has  long  been  a  member  of  the  Brethren  church,  in  which  he  has 
served  as  elder  and  minister  and  in  the  work  of  which  he  has  taken  a 
very  active  and  helpful  part,  devoting-  about  forty  years  to  the  work 
of  the  ministry,  during  which  time  he  has  exerted  a  wide  and  beneficial 
influence  in  behalf  of  the  religious  development  of  the  community. 
He  has  also  been  instrumental  in  erecting  three  bouses  of  worship  in 
Cass  county.  In  politics  he  is  a  stalwart  Republican,  casting  bis  bal- 
lot for  Abraham  Lincoln  in  iS6o  and  again  in  1864  and  for  each  presi- 
dential candiiiate  of  the  party  since  that  time.  He  has  been  officially 
connected  with  the  schools,  and  while  serving  as  a  member  of  the  kiard 
of  education  has  flone  all  in  bis  power  to  promote  the  cause  of  ])ublic 
instruction  in  his  locality. 

S.AMUEL  P..  HADDEX. 

Samuel  E.  Hrulden,  who  is  engaged  in  general  agricultural  pur- 
suits in  Ontwa  township,  is  a  native  son  of  X'ew  '^'ork.  his  birth  hav- 
ing occurred  on  the  5th  of  October.  1S37.  His  father.  Charles  D. 
Hadden.  was  born  in  \\'estche=ter  county,  New  York,  in  181 1  and  be, 
too.  was  a  farmer  by  occupation,  devoting  the  greater  part  of  his  life 
to  the  work  of  tilling  the  soil.  In  early  manhood  he  ^^■as  married  in 
Tompkins  county.  Xew  York,  to  Miss  X^'ancy  Elythe.  a  native  of  Ire- 
land, who  came  to  this  criuntry  when  a  little  girl  and  was  reared  in 
New  York.  Mr.  and  r^lrs.  Hadden  became  the  parents  of  six  children. 
four  sons  and  two  daughters.  Mar}-.  George  M..  Charles  A.,  deceased. 
Elizabeth  and  Tames  G..  all  of  whom  are  natives  cif  the  Enipire  state. 
In  the  year  1867  the  father  left  New  York  and  came  with  his  family 
to  Cass  county.  ^Michigan,  settling  on  section  7.  Ontwa  township,  where 
he  secured  three  hundred  and  ninety-seven  acres  of  rich  land,  much 
of  which  had  been  improved.  With  characteristic  energy.-  he  took  up 
the  task  of  further  cultivating  and  developing  this  place  and  con- 
tinued to  make  it  his  home  until  his  death.  He  took  an  active  interest 
in  political  questions  and  in  the  work  of  the  party,  and  was  a  «tanch 
Republican.  While  residing  in  X^'ew  York  be  sen-ed  as  supervisor  of 
his  township  for  three  years  but  he  never  sought  office  after  coming 
to  the  west  as  bis  time  was  fully  occupied  bv  his  business  cares  in 
relation  to  the  farm.  He  died  January  29.  T87S.  and  was  sun,-ived  by 
his  wife  until  December.  1887.  when  she.  too.  was  called  to  her  final  rest. 

Samuel  B.  Hadden  was  reared  in  New  York  and  was  brought  up 
as  a  farmer,  assisting  his  father  in  the  cultivation  of  the  fields  uporr 


542  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY 

the  old  homestead  until  the  time  uf  his  marria,o:e,  which  occurred  Feb- 
ruary lo,  1870,  the  lady  of  his  choice  being  Miss  Matilda  Hadden,  a 
daughter  of  Gilbert  and  Harriet  (Adams)  Hadden,  who  came  from 
Westchester,  Putnam  county.  New  York,  to  Michigan.  She  was 
reared,  however,  upon  her  father's  farm  in  Putnam  county.  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Hadden  of  this  review  liegan  their  domestic  life  upon  the  old 
farm  homestead,  where  they  lived  for  a  year  and  then  removed  to 
JefYerson  township,  settling  on  a  farm  of  eighty  acres,  wiiere  they 
resided  for  four  years.  On  the  expiration  of  that  period  Mr.  Hadden 
sold  his  property  and  returned  to  Ontwa  township,  locating  on  his 
farm  here,  and  he  l)uilt  a  pretty  home  on  the  seven  acres  just  west  of 
Edwardsburg.  He  owns  all  together  one  hundred  and  seventy-seven 
acres  in  this  township,  the  greater  part  of  which  is  well  improved, 
constituting  a  productive  property,  from  which  he  annually  gathers 
rich  harvests,  that,  finding  a  ready  sale  on  the  market,  bring  him  a 
very  gratifying  income. 

Unto  Mr.  and  r^Irs.  Hadden  have  been  Ixirn  five  children :  Hen- 
rietta, who  was  born  June  14,  1S73.  is  the  wife  of  Frank  Stophlett,  a 
mail  clerk  of  Cass  county;  John  E.,  born  May  12,  1B75;  Carrie,  born 
August  7,  1877:  Fred.  November  7,  1880:  and  Martha,  Decemlwr  24, 
1882,  all  at  home,  and  all  were  born  upon  the  present  farm  in  Ontwa 
township  with  the'  exception  of  Henrietta,  whose  birth  occurred  in 
JefYerson   township. 

Mr.  Hadden  is  a  Republican,  activelv  interested  in  the  success  and 
growth  of  his  party,  and  he  belongs  to  the  Presbyterian  church  of  Ed- 
wardsburg. Cuming  to  Cass  county  at  an  early  period  in  its  develop- 
ment he  is  numbered  among  its  pioneer  settlers  and  has  been  a  wit- 
ness of  the  progress  that  lias  been  made  as  pioneer  conditions  have 
given  way  before  the  advancing  civilization.  He  has  done  his  full 
share  for  the  improvement  of  the  county  along  agricultural  lines  and 
in  the  careful  management  of  his  business  affairs  has  won  a  just  re- 
ward for  his  labor  in  a  comfortable  competence. 

DOX  A.  FLETCHER. 

Don  A.  Fletcher  is  numbered  among  the  old  settlers  of  the  county, 
having  for  fifty-five  vears  resided  within  its  borders,  so  that  he  has  been 
a  witness  of  manv  great  changes  here.  His  memory  goes  back  to  the 
time  when  much  of  the  land  was  still  in  its  primitive  condition,  when 
there  were  no  railroads  or  telegraph  lines  and  when  the  now  thriving 
towns  and  cities  were  but  little  villages  or  had  not  sprung  into  existence. 
Today  the  countrv  has  been  divided  up  into  many  farms  and  the  fields  of 
waving  grain  and  the  well  kept  stock  all  indicate  a  population  of  pros- 
perous and  contented  people,  while  churches,  schools  and  other  evidences 
of  culture  are  numerous. 

Mr.  Fletcher  is  a  native  of  \\'ayne  county,  X^ew  York,  born  on  the 


>>•,., 


/ 


ice! 


^J^A^     ^^  ^  t^^^-^Z. 


AND  DAUGHTER. 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  543 

jtli  of  April,  1837,  and  comes  uf  English,  ancestry,  the  family  having 
been  established  in  Xew  England  at  an  early  period  in  its  colonization. 
His  paternal  gran<lparents  were  Russell  and  Rachel  Fletciier,  who  re- 
sided for  a  number  of  years  in  Vermont  and  afterward  removed  to 
Wayne  county,  New  York.  In  the  year  1S46  Russell  Fletcher  made  his 
way  westward  to  Kalamazoo  county,  Michigan,  and  on  to  Cass  county, 
where  his  last  days  were  (lassed.  William  R.  Fletcher,  father  of  our 
subject,  was  born  in  the  Green  Mountain  state,  where  he  remained 
until  eighteen  years  of  age,  when  he  accompanied  his  parents  on  tlieir 
removal  to  Xew  York.  He  was  married  in  Wayne  county  to  Miss 
Sarah  A.  Stearns,  whose  liirth  occurred  in  that  county.  Following  his 
marriage  \\'illiam  R.  Fletcher  located  on  a  farm  in  Wayne  county,  Xew 
York,  and  in  1846  he  removed  to  Micliigan,  journeying  westward  in 
the  fall  of  that  year.  He  spent  the  winter  in  Cass  county,  and  in  the 
following  spring  removed  to  Kalamazoo  county,  where  he  remained  for 
three  years.  On  the  expiration  of  that  period  he  returned  to  Cass 
county,  settling  in  LaGrangc  township,  and  for  many  years  he  was 
numbered  among  the  agriculturists  of  this  part  of  the  state.  In  all  of 
his  work  he  was  practical  and  enterprising,  and  he  assisted  in  large  meas- 
ure in  the  development  and  upbuilding  of  this  part  of  Michigan.  He 
died  at  the  home  of  his  son,  D.  A.  Fletcher,  in  bis  eighty-fourth  year, 
respected  and  honored  by  all  who  knew  him.  He  had  been  supervisor 
and  commissioner  of  biglnva}-s,  and  whether  in  office  or  as  a  private  citi- 
zen he  was  aKvays  interested  in  tlie  welfare  of  his  community  and  could 
be  counted  tipon  as  a  co-operant  factor  in  measures  for  the  general 
good.  Fie  voted  with  the  Democracy.  His  wife  lived  to  be  ab<iut 
sevent3'-four  years  of  age.  She  came  of  an  old  Canadian  family  of 
French  ancestry.  I'nto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  William  Fletcher  were  born  five 
children,  three  daughters  and  two  sons,  all  of  whom  are  living  at  this 
writing. 

Don  A.  Fletcher,  the  eldest  of  the  family,  was  but  nine  years  of 
age  when  he  came  to  ^Michigan  with  bis  parents,  and  he  has  resided  con- 
tinuously in  Cass  county  from  the  age  of  thirteen  years.  In  his  boy- 
hood days  he  attended  the  common  schools  and  in  the  summer  months 
was  trained  in  the  work  of  the  fields.  He  remained  with  his  parents 
until  twenty-five  years  of  age,  when  in  1862  he  was  united  in  marriage 
to  Miss  Sarepta  D.  Shurte,  a  daughter  of  Isaac  and  Tvlary  (Wright) 
Shurte.  She  was  born  in  LaGrange  Prairie,  in  Cass  county,  October 
29,  1S38,  her  people  having  been  pioneer  settlers  of  this  section  of  the 
statC;  They  came  here  when  only  a  few  homes  had  been  established 
within  the  borders  of  Cass  county,  and  were  closely  identified  with  its 
early  development.  The  year  following  his  marriage  IMr.  Fletcher 
located  upon  the  farm  where  lie  now  lives  and  has  resided  here  contin- 
uously since,  although  he  spent  one  year  in  California.  In  1864  he  went 
across  the  plains  with  a  horse  train  by  way  of  Salt  Lake  City,  traveling 


644:  HISTORY  UI-   CASS  COUXTY 

across  tlie  long,  hot  stretches  of  snikl  and  tlirougli  tlie  mountain  passes. 
He  returned,  however,  by  way  of  tlic  water  route,  crossing  the  Isthmus 
of  Panama  and  thence  sailing  to  New  York  City,  after  which  lie  jour- 
neyed into  the  interior  of  the  country  and  ultimately  reached  his  home 
in  LaGrange  township.  He  is  today  the  owner  of  two  hundred  and 
sixty  acres  of  valuable  land  in  the  old  homestead  and  one  hundred  and 
twenty-six  acres  on  section  i6,  LaGrange  township.  He  has  on  his 
home  property  good  improvements,  ^\•hile  the  fields  yield  to  him  rich  har- 
vests in  return  for  the  care  and  labor  he  bestows  upon  his  lantl.  Every- 
thing about  his  place  is  neat  and  thrifty  in  appearance,  and  his  work 
has  been  characterized  by  the  most  practical  and  resourceful  methods. 

Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  l-dctcher  liave  been  born  three  sons  and  a 
daughter.  William  Isaac  is  now  a  resident  of  Oregon.  Mary  Lyle, 
the  wife  of  Byron  Poor,  of  Dowagiac,  [Michigan,  is  a  graduate  of  the 
Dowagiac  High  School  in  the  class  of  i8S6.  She  has  been  one  of 
Cass  county's  successful  teachers  for  over  twelve  terms,  having  taught 
six  terms  in  one  district.  She  received  her  diploma  from  the  South 
Bend  Comn'.ercial  College  in  the  class  of  1890.  Ross  A.  took  a  course 
in  tlie  Dowagiac  High  School  and  graduated  in  the  South  Bend  Bus- 
iness College  in  the  same  year  as  his  sister  Lyle.  C.  Clare  is  a  grad- 
uate of  the  CassnjKilis  High  Sch"nl  in  the  class  of  1895.  Both  are 
assisting  in  the  culti\ation  of  the  hume  farm.  ]\lr.  Fletcher  can  look 
back  into  a  remote  era  of  the  county's  development  and  progress,  having 
lor  fifty-five  years  resided  here,  and  he  has  taken  an  active  part  in  the 
work  of  making  the  county  what  it  is  today.  Pie  can  rememlier  the 
time  ^vhcn  few  of  the  roads  hatl  been  laid  out.  when  few  bridges  had 
been  built  and  when  unly  here  and  there  could  be  seen  a  settlement  to 
indicate  that  the  work  of  de\elopment  and  cultivation  had  been  begun. 
He  has  always  Aoted  with  the  Democracy,  and  has  served  as  road  com- 
missioner and  as  a  member  of  the  board  of  reviews.  Fraternally  he  is 
connected  with  the  Ancient  Order  of  United  Workmen.  He  is  well 
known  in  the  coun.ty  where  he  has  lived  so  long  and  where  he  has  so 
directed  his  efforts  that  signal  success  has  attended  his  labors. 

SAMUEL  J.   LIXXOLN. 

Samuel  T-  Lincoln,  wlio  is  filling  the  oMice  nf  township  supervisor 
in  Ptnn  tuwnship  and  friljdws  the  nccupation  of  farming  on  section  13, 
was  born  upon  the  old  homestead  farm  on  this  section  May  23.  1S50. 
His  father,  Bela  Lincoln,  was  a  native  of  New  York  and  became  a  resi- 
dent of  Cass  countv  before  ^Michigan  was  admitted  into  the  Union,  the 
year  of  his  arrival  being  1833.  Pie  came  in  company  with  his  parents, 
i\Ir.  and  ]\Irs.  Samuel  Lincoln,  who  located  near  Vandalia.  Samuel 
Lincoln  was  a  scvthe  maker  and  also  engaged  in  shoeing  oxen  in  the 
early  days.  .\n  industrious  man.  he  took  an  active  and  helpful  part  in 
the  earlv  de\-elopment  of  the  county,  performing  much  of  the  arduous 


HISTORY  01-   CASS  COUNTY  545 

task  incident  tu  llie  settlement  of  a  fruntier  district  and  its  conversion 
to  the  uses  of  civilization.  His  son,  Bela  Lincoln,  was  only  eleven 
years  of  age  at  the  time  of  the  arrival  of  the  family  in  Michigan  and 
was  therefore  reared  amid  the  environments  of  pioneer  life,  sharing  in 
the  hardships  and  trials  incident  to  establishing  a  home  in  a  frontier 
district.  Returning  to  Ohio,  he  was  there  married  to  Miss  Achsah 
DeCou,  who  was  born  in  Green  county,  Ohio.  After  their  marriage 
they  located  for  a  short  time  on  Young's  Prairie  in  Cass  county,  but 
soon  afterward  removed  to  section  13,  Penn  township,  Mr.  Lincoln 
trading  a  horse  for  forty  acres  of  land.  He  went  in  debt  for  the  horse, 
paying  for  it  at  the  rate  of  six  dollars  per  month.  For  four  years 
Mr.  Lincoln  was  in  the  employ  of  Charles  Jones  at  farm  labor.  He 
was  a  carpenter  by  trade  and  he  built  the  Irrst  union  schoolhouse  in 
Cassopolis.  He  also  laid  out  the  plan  from  draft  and  put  in  the  founda- 
tion for  the  Custard  House  in  Cassopolis  and  prior  to  that  he  built 
a  sawmill  in  Penn  township,  after  which  he  operated  it  for  a  number 
of  years  or  until  it  was  destroyed  by  fire.  He  thus  figured  promi- 
nently in  industrial  interests  in  the  county.  Rebuilding  his  mill  he  con- 
tinued in  the  manufacture  of  lumber  for  a  few  years,  when  he  sold 
out  and  again  resumed  work  at  the  carpenter's  trade  and  at  the  same 
time  followed  the  millwright's  trade.  In  his  business  life  he  was  very 
industrious  and  energetic,  was  reliable  and  trustworthy  and  his  good 
workmanship  and  known  honesty  secured  for  him  a  liberal  patronage. 
He  was  highway  commissioner  at  one  time  and  always  gave  his  political 
allegiance  to  the  Republican  party,  taking  an  active  interest  in  its 
work  and  doing  all  in  his  power  to  promote  its  growth  and  insure  its 
success.  Living  in  Cass  county  from  early  pioneer  days  he  was  one  of 
the  best  known  citizens  within  its  l>orders  and  at  his  death  in  1881  the 
community  lost  one  of  its  honored  and  representative  men.  In  the 
family  were  two  children  who  grew  to  adult  age,  the  sister  of  our  sub- 
ject being  Mrs.  Beulah  Green,  the  wife  of  Elam  E.  Green,  of  Penn 
township. 

Samuel  J.  Lincoln,  whose  name  introduces  this  review,  was  reared 
and  educated  in  Penn  township,  attending  the  district  schools,  wherein 
he  mastered  the  common  branches  of  learning  usually  taught  in  such 
institutions.  He  then  remained  at  home  until  twenty-four  years  of 
age,  assisting  his  father  in  carpenter  work  and  following  that  pur- 
suit for  about  thirty  years.  He  was  thus  an  important  factor  in  build- 
ing operations  in  the  countv  and  in  many  places  are  seen  evidences  of 
his  skill  and  ability  in  that  direction.  He  was  always  a  thornngh  and 
accurate  workman  and  won  an  excellent  reputation   in   that  direction. 

In  1875.  ^'T^-  Lincoln  was  united  in  marriage  to  ]Miss  Florence  A. 
Tompkins,  a  daughter  of  Jabez  Tompkins.  Mrs.  Lincoln  was  bom  in 
Ohio  and  when  about  five  years  of  age  was  brought  to  Cass  county 
bv  her  parents.  At  the  time  of  their  marriage  the  young  couple  located 
on  section  12,  Penn  township,  where  they  lived  for  about  four  years. 


54G  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

when  his  father  died  and  he  returned  to  the  old  homestead  to  care  for 
his  aged  mother,  who  is  still  li\ing,  having  reached  the  advanced  age 
of  seventy-nine  years,  her  hirth  having  occurred  in  i8jS.  Unto  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Lincoln  have  been  born  three  sons  and  a  daughter:  Neva  J.; 
Bela  J.,  who  is  married  and  now  studying  law  in  Detroit;  Clavton  D., 
a  stenographer  now  employed  by  the  Dodge  Pulley  Company  at  Misha- 
waka,  Indiana;  and  Raymond  A.,  who  is  attending  school.  There  is  also 
one  granddaughter,  Mildred  D.  Barney. 

Mr.  Lincoln  now  gives  his  attention  to  the  produce  shipping  busi- 
ness at  Penn  and  rents  his  farm,  which  returns  to  him  a  good  income. 
Moreover  he  is  actively  interested  in  public  affairs  and  his  worth  and 
ability  are  widely  recognized  by  his  fellow  townsmen,  wlio  have  there- 
fore called  him  to  public  office.  He  was  elected  supervisor  of  Penn 
township  in  1903,  and  was  re-elected  in  1904  and  again  in  1905,  so 
that  he  is  the  present  incumbent  in  the  position.  He  belongs  to  the 
Masonic  lodge  at  Vandalia.  and  his  life  is  in  harmony  with  the  teach- 
ings and  tenets  of  the  craft.  'He  has  always  been  an  earnest  Repub- 
lican and  his  public-spirited  interest  in  the  general  welfare  has  led  to 
hearty  co-operation  in  mrmy  plans  and  movements  for  the  welfare  of 
the  community.  I-"or  fifty-five  _\cars  he  has  resided  in  Penn  town- 
ship, either  upon  his  present  farm  or  within  a  quarter  of  a  mile  of  his 
present  home.  His  life  has  ])ccn  one  of  untiring  and  well-directed 
activity  resulting  in  gratif}-ing  success. 

LEVI  J.  REYNOLDS. 

Levi  J.  Reynolds,  residing  in  Vandalia.  is  well  known  because  of 
an  active  and  honorable  business  career  and  also  by  reason  of  capable 
and  faithful  service  in  public  office  in  this  county.  He  is  numbered 
among  the  worthy  citizens  that  Ohio  has  furnished  to  Michigan,  and 
he  has  now  passed  the  seventy-sixth  milestone  on  life's  journey.  His 
birth  occurred  in  Portage  county.  Ohio,  July  18,  1830.  His  father. 
Edward  Reynolds,  was  a  native  of  Ireland  and  his  parents  were  of 
the  Catholic  belief  and  liecause  Edward  Reynolds  Avould  not  accept  the 
faith  he  was  driven  awav  fr(im  home  and  came  to  America  when  a 
young  lad  of  about  fourteen  }ears.  He  made  his  way  to  New  York 
and  in  the  Empire  state  was  employed  at  farm  labor.  Eventually  he 
became  a  resident  of  Cass  county,  Michigan,  where  he  arrived  in 
1847.  He  located  on  a  farm  on  the  liorders  of  Calvin  and  Porter  town- 
ships and  throughout  his  remaining  days  devoted  his  attention  to  gen- 
eral agricultural  pursuits.  He  was  truly  a  self-made  man.  for  he 
started  out  in  life  amid  unfavoring  circumstances  and  with  no  influen- 
tial friends  or  inlieritance  to  assist  him.  He _  early  developed  a  self 
reliant  character,  however,  and  determined  spirit,  and  with  these  qual- 
ities to  aid  him  in  his  business  career  he  made  steady  advancement  and 
won  not  onlv  a  comfortable  competence  but  also  an  untarnished  name 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY  547 

by  reason"t)f  his  genuine  wortli  of  character.  He  married  Betsv  Miner, 
a  native  of  Massachusetts,  and  both  hved  to  be  sixty-two  years  of  age. 
Mrs.  Reynolds  was  twice  married  and  by  her  first  husband,  Mr.  lies, 
she  became  the  mother  of  six  ciiildren,  while  by  her  marriage  to  Mr. 
Reynolds  seven  children  were  horn.  Twelve  of  her  thirteen  children 
reached  adult  age.  Mr.  Reynolds  being  the  third  child  of  the  second 
marriage. 

He  was  reared  in  Knox  county,  Ohio,  until  nine  years  of  age,  when 
he  accompanied  his  parents  to  Steuben  county,  Indiana,  and  when  a 
young  man  of  seventeen  years  he  left  the  Hoosier  state  for  Cass  county, 
Michigan,  where  he  was  employed  at  farm  labor.  In  this  way  be  made 
a  start  in  life  and  when  he  had  saved  enough  from  his  earnings  to 
justify  his  purchase  of  a  farm  he  invested  in  land  in  Calvin  township. 
As  an  agriculturist  he  displayed  practical  methods,  was  systematic  in 
all  of  his  work,  and  in  the  tilling  of  the  soil  and  also  in  his  care  of 
his  stock,  he  showed  himself  to  be  an  energetic  farmer  with  good 
business  qualifications.  He  was  also  an  auctioneer  for  many  years, 
met  with  success  in  that  business  and  thus  became  one  of  the  best 
known  men  of  the  county. 

Mr.  Reynolds  has  liccn  married  three  times.  In  Cass  county  in 
185 1  he  wedded  ^liss  ^lartha  A.  East  and  they  became  the  parents  of 
two  sons:  Austin  AI.  and  Albert.  For  his  second  wife  Mr.  Reynolds 
chose  Sarah  A.  Story,  the  widow  of  Albert  Kennicott.  By  this  mar- 
riage there  were  two  daughters.  For  his  third  wife  Mr.  Reynolds 
chose  Marv  A.  Royer,  and  at  her  death  the  following  lines  were  written; 

"Mary  A.  Rover  was  lK)rn  }vlarch  20,  1S42,  in  Stark  county,  Ohio, 
and  died  March  17,  1905.  in  X'andalia,  Cass  county.  Michigan,  aged 
sixty-two  years,  eleven  months  and  twenty-seven  days.  In  early  child- 
hood she  moved  with  her  parents  to  Indiana,  where  she  resided  a 
number  of  years.  The  latter  part  of  her  life  was  spent  in  Vandalia, 
Michigan,  where  she  was  united  in  marriage  to  Levi  J.  Reynolds  in 
1886.  In  earlv  vouth  she  became  a  Christian  and  has  since  been  a 
consistent  and  faithful  follower  of  Christ,  having  been  identified  with 
the  Church  of  Christ  since  1885  in  Vandalia.  She  leaves  a  kind  and 
affectionate  husband  and  loving  brodiers  and  sisters  to  mourn  their 
loss.  Her  pastor  frequently  called  to  see  her  during  her  sickness  and 
ever  found  her  the  same  kind,  patient  and  Christian  sufferer,  submitting 
her  will  to  the  will  of  the  Divine.  The  night  before  the  Angel  of 
Death  came  to  bear  her  Christian  spirit  home  she  left  the  following 
beautiful  lines : 

"  'When   the   waiting   time   is    over. 

When  from  sin  and  sorrow  free. 
We  shall  meet  be}-nnd  the  river. 
There  to  dwell  eternally.' 


6i8  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

"In  the  death  of  2\Iary  A.  Reynolds,  Vandalia  Chapter  235,  O.  E. 
S.,  lost  an  honored  and  greatly  esteemed  charter  member." 

In  his  political  affiliation  Mr.  Reynolds  is  a  stanch  and  unfaltering 
Republican,  who  has  taken  an  active  interest  in  political  affairs  and 
keeps  well  informed  on  all  the  questions  and  issues  of  the  dav.  He 
served  as  sheriff  of  Cass  county  for  two  years  and  then  owing  to  the 
ill  health  of  hi?  wife  he  would  not  accept  a  second  nomination.  As 
justice  of  the  peace  he  rendered  decisions  which  were  strictly  fair  and 
impartial  and  during  many  jears'  service  as  supervisor  of  Calvin  town- 
ship he  worked  earnestly  for  the  general  good  of  the  community.  He 
belongs  to  the  .Masonic  fraternity,  holding  membership  in  the'  lodge 
and  chapter,  and  he  is  a  most  earnest  and  devoted  member  of  the 
Christian  church,  in  which  he  is  now  serving  as  elder,  while  in  its 
work  he  takes  an  active  and  helpful  part.  His  influence  is  ever  given 
on  the  side  of  right,  justice,  truth  and  progress  and  at  all  times  he 
has  been  found  worthy  of  the  confidence  and  trust  which  have  been 
uniformly  given  him. 

Calvin  K.  East,  who  married  th.e  sister  of  Levi  J.  Reynolds, 
was  born  in  Calvin  township,  Cass  county,  Michigan,  October  7,  1S34, 
and  died  at  his  home  in  Vandalia,  April  17,  1906,  aged  seventy-one 
years,  six  months  and  ten  days.  He  was  married  December  25,  1834, 
to  Mabel  P.  Reynolds.  To  this  union  were  born  seven  children,  five 
of  whom  are  still  living:  Oscar  J.,  of  Muskegon;  Rollie  M.,  of  Niles; 
Bertha  Wright  and  Maiy  Williams,  of  Traverse  City;  and  Harley 
M.,  of  Vandalia,  all  of  whom  were  present  to  comfort  their  mother,  up- 
on whom  the  affliction  falls  so  heavily.  He  was  a  member  of  the 
Friends'  church  and  a  faithful  attcnflant  until  disease  laid  its  heavy 
hand  on  him,  and  had  for  a  few  months  kept  him  confined  to  his  home. 
He  leaves  besides  a  wife  and  five  children,  ten  grandchildren  and  many 
other  relatives  and  friends  to  mourn  his  loss.  Rev.  Stephen  Scott  of 
Peun  conducted  the  funeral  services.     Interment  in  Birch  Lake  cemetery. 

JACOB  McIXTOSH. 

On  tlie  roll  of  pioneer  settlers  of  Cass  county  appears  the  name  of 
Jacob  McLitosh  and  his  personal  qualities  and  life  of  activity  entitle 
him  to  the  position  of  prominence  that  is  uniformly  accorded  him. 
He  resides  on  section  33,  Penn  township,  not  far  from  the  place  of 
his  birth,  which  was  on  section  32  of  the  same  township,  his  natal  day 
being  March  15,  1840.  His  paternal  grandfather  was  Daniel  ^fclntosh, 
a  native  of  Scotland.  He  was  a  wagon-maker  by  trade  and  in  early 
manhood  emigrated  with  his  family  to  the  new  world,  settling  at 
Baltimore.  Maryland,  where  he  carried  on  business  for  some  time.  He 
afterward  took  up  his  abode  in  Ohio  and  in  1832  came  to  Cass  county, 
Michigan,  locating  on  Young's  Prairie  in  Penn  township.  He  was  one 
of  the  pioneer  settlers  of  this  section  of  the  state  and  became  identified 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  oil) 

with  tlie  territorial  interests  ui  }vlichigan,  for  the  state  liad  not  at 
that  time  been  organized.  He  purchased  a  ckiini  of  one  hundred  and 
sixty  acres  of  land  and  at  once  began  its  improvement.  At  the  time 
of  the  purchase  there  was  a  double  log  house  upon  the  farm  and  this 
was  the  original  home  of  the  family  in  Cass  county.  As  the  years 
■passed  he  added  more  modern  improvements  and  continued  his  farm 
work  along  progressive  lines  of  agriculture.  On  one  occasion  he  met 
with  an  accident  while  on  his  way  to  Tecumseh.  He  had  a  herd  of  horses, 
some  of  which  got  away,  and  he  went  to  hunt  them,  becoming  lost  in 
the  woods.  For  seven  days  and  six  nights  he  wandered  around  unable 
to  find  his  way  to  a  settlement.  The  horse  which  he  rode  also  got  away 
from  him  and  he  was  in  a  severe  snow  storm  and  his  feet  were  frozen 
so  badly  that  they  had  to  be  amputated  and  for  many  years  thereafter 
he  walked  uix)n  his  knees,  but  he  possessed  an  indomitable  spirit  and 
unfaltering  energy  and  lie  did  a  man's  work  without  feet.  His  death 
occurred  when  he  had  reached  the  advanced  age  of  eighty-seven  years. 
William  ]\IcIntosh,  the  father  of  our  subject,  was  born  in  Inverness, 
Scotland,  and  was  only  three  years  of  age  at  the  time  of  the  emigration 
of  his  parents  to  America.  He  lived  with  them  in  Baltimore,  Mary- 
land, and  eventually  removed  to  Ohio,  whence  they  came  to  >ilicliigan 
about  the  time  of  the  removal  of  Daniel  Mcintosh  to  this  state. 
However,  he  afterward  returned  to  Ohio  and  was  there  engaged  in 
the  operation  of  a  sawmill  for  several  years.  Eventually,  however,  he 
returned  to  Cass  count)-  and  was  married  at  Three  Rivers.  St.  Joseph 
county,  to  Miss  Sarah  IMcIntafter.  who  was  a  native  of  the  Buckeye 
state  and  in  her  girlhood  days  was  brought  to  Michigan  by  her  father, 
Jacob  ^Iclntaffer,  who  was  of  German  descent.  He  settled  in  St. 
Joseph  county,  becoming  one  of  the  pioneers  of  that  part  of  the  state, 
and  in  connection  with  a  man  by  the  name  of  Buck  he  entered  nine 
hundred  acres  of  land,  upon  which  the  town  of  Three  Rivers  has  since 
been  built.  He  built  the  first  log  house  and  sawmill  upon  its  site 
and  took  a  verv  active  and  important  part  in  the  work  of  early  de- 
velopment and  improveinent  leading  to  the  present  prosperous  condi- 
tion of  that  section  of  the  state  today.  He  died  there  from  exposure 
and  was  buried  at  Three  Rivers.  His  daughter.  ]Mrs.  William  Mcin- 
tosh, died  when  ?e^■enty-five  years  of  age.  By  her  marriage  she  had 
become  the  mother  of  nine  children,  five  daughters  and  four  sons,  one 
of  whom  died  at  the  age  of  eight  years  and  another  when  abnut  six- 
teen years  of  age,  while  the  remaining  members  of  the  family  reached 
years  of  maturitv. 

Jacob  Mcintosh  is  the  eldest  son  and  fourth  child  and  was  reared 
in  Penn  township  in  the  usual  manner  of  lads  of  pioneer  times.  He 
now  resides  upon  a  portion  of  the  farm  upon  which  his  birth  occurred. 
In  his  youth  he  enjoved  the  educational  advantages  afforded  in  a.  log 
school  house.  But 'few  branches  of  learning  were  taught  and  it  has 
been  largelv  through  reading,  experience  and  observation  in  later  years 


550  PIISTORY  01-   CASS  COUNTY 

that  he  has  become  a  well  iiiiL.nned  man.  He  walked  to  school  two 
miles  in  tlie  winter  seasons  and  in  the  summer  months  aided  in  the 
work  of  the  farm,  assisting  liis  father  in  the  fields  nntil  twenty-one 
years  of  age.  In  1861,  liaxing  attained  his  majority,  lie  responded  to 
his  country's  call  for  troops  and  enlisted  as  a  member  of  Company  D, 
Sixth  Michigan  Volunteer  Infantry,  with  which  he  went  to  the  front 
but  was  afterward  transferred  to  the  lieavy  artillery.  He  served  for 
three  years  and  was  promoted  from  a  private  to  the  rank  of  corporal 
and  afterward  to  sergeant.  At  the  battle  of  Port  Hudson  on  the  27th 
of  May,  i8()3,  he  was  \voun<led  in  the  upper  part  of  the  right  leg 
by  a  minie  ball.  He  was  then  detailed  as  assistant  cook  so  that  he 
would  not  be  sent  to  the  h(«pital.  He  participated  in  the  entire  siege 
of  Port  Hudson  and  was  one  of  about  forty  who  chargeil  over  the 
works  on  the  30th  of  June,  1863,  a  military  movement  that  has  be- 
come famous  in  history  as  Dwight's  charge.  When  the  siege  was 
begun  the  troops  were  under  command  of  General  Butler,  but  at  the 
time  the  charge  was  made  o\-er  the  works  General  Banks  was  in  com- 
mand. 

Following  the  close  t)f  the  war  ]\lr.  IMcIntosh  received  an  h.jnor- 
able  discharge  at  Kalamazoo,  Michigan,  and  with  a  most  creditable 
■military  record  returned  to  his  old  home  in  Penn  township,  where  he 
resumed  farming.  Throughout  his  active  business  career  he  has  car- 
ried on  general  agricultural  pursuits  and  as  a  companion  and  heliimate 
for  life's  journey,  he  chose  Aliss  Emily  J.  Rivers,  to  whom  he  was  mar- 
ried on  the  28th  of  November.  i8r)5.  She  is  a  daughter  of  James  and 
Delilah  (Chase)  Rivers.  Her  I'irth  occurred  in  New  York,  in  which 
state  she  remained  until  twelve  years  of  age,  when  she  accompanied 
her  parents  on  their  removal  to  Mokena,  Illinois,  whence  they  came 
to  Cass  count}'.  Michigan,  in  1S64.  At  the  time  of  his  marriage  Mr. 
Mcintosh  located  on  the  farm  where  he  now  resides,  but  after  a  year 
removed  to  Cassopolis,  where  he  followed  the  trade  of  carpentering, 
becoming  a  well  known  contractor  and  builder  of  that  city.  He  was 
awarded  a  number  of  important  contracts  and  continued  his  identifica- 
tion with  building  .operations  until  about  1S70.  when  he  returned  to 
.the  farm.  He  has  cleared  his  land  here  and  erected  all  of  the  barns  and 
outbuildings  as  well  as  the  residence  and  in  connection  with  the  culti- 
vation of  his  fields  and  the  improvement  of  his  property  he  has  also  fol- 
lowed the  business  of  moving  and  raising  barns  and  other  buildings  for 
aboitt  eight  years.  He  is  also  the  patentee  of  a  ratchet  gate  and  is 
quite  extensively  engaged  in  its  manufacture,  it  being  now  in  general 
use  in  this  and  adjoining  counties  of  ^lichigan  and  also  in  Illinois. 
The  gate  is  one  of  the  most  complete  of  the  kind  ever  placed  upon  the 
market.  It  can  be  raised  over  a  drift  of  snow  and  until  'Mr.  Mcintosh's 
invention  was  perfected  this  was  one  of  the  great  problems  of  the 
farmer,  who  would  find  that  the  snow  would  drift  against  the  fences, 
making  it  almost  impossible  to  open  a  gate.     His  farm  comprises  eighty 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  551 

acres  of  land,  which  responds  readily  to  the  care  and  cultivation  placed 
upon  it,  for  the  land  is  arable  and  productive. 

Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Mcintosh  have  been  born  the  following  named : 
Minnie  D.,  now  the  wife  of  Dr.  Don  A.  Link,  of  Volinia,  Cass  county; 
and  J.  Moward,  of  Chicago,  who  for  three  years  -was  located  in  Ann 
Arbor,  Michigan,  but  is  new  engaged  in  the  abstract  business  in  the 
former  city. 

Mr.  ]\lcIntosh  was  reared  in  the  faith  of  the  Democratic  party, 
but  is  now  a  stanch  Repuldican  and  is  deeply  interested  in  the  pulitical 
issues  and  questions  of  the  day,  keeping  well  informed  upon  all  such, 
and  at  tiie  same  time  putting  forth  every  effort  in  his  jwwer  to  promote 
Republican  successes.  He  has  been  called  to  serve  in  several  local 
positions,  has  been  high\\ay  commissioner,  was  township  treasurer  and 
in  iS86  was  elected  sheriff  of  Cass  county,  in  which  [Kisition  he  dis- 
charged his  duties  with  such  promptness  and  fidelity  that  he  was  re- 
elected in  iS8S.  He  was  also  justice  of  the  peace  and  constable  for 
seventeen  years  and  his  officia!  service  has  ever  been  characterized  by 
promptness,  accuracy  and  thorL>ugh  reliability.  He  is  now  undersheriff. 
He  is  a  charter  member  of  Albert  Anderson  Post  No.  157,  G.  A.  R., 
in  which  lie  has  filled  several  positions  and  is  now  officer  of  the  guard. 
Through  his  association  therewith  he  maintains  pleasant  relations  with 
his  old  army  comrades  and  greatly  enjoys  the  reminiscences  of  the 
campfires.  He  likewise  belongs  to  the  Ancient  Order  of  United  Work- 
men and  to  the  Independent  Order  of  Odd  Fellows,  both  of  Cassopolis. 
and  he  holds  membership  in  the  Baptist  church  at  Brownsville  and 
erected  the  house  of  worship  there.  He  is  president  of  the  Anti- 
Horse  Thief  Association  of  Penn  township.  His  son.  J.  Howard  Mc- 
'  Intosh,  is  a  memljer  of  Backus  Lodge  No.  50,  A.  F.  &:  A.  M..  and 
has  attained  the  32nd  degree  of  the  ScoUish  rite  in  Chicago  Consistory, 
S.  P.  R.  S.  At  one  time  he  was  president  of  the  \\'olverine  Club  at 
the  University  of  Michigan  for  two  }-ears.  Sixty-six  years  have  been 
added  to  the  cycle  of  the  centuries  since  Jacob  IMcIntosh  began  his  life 
record  in  Penn  township,  where  he  has  lived  almost  continuously  since. 
He  has  never  made  his  home  lieyond  the  borders  of  Cass  county,  so  that 
he  is  widely  known  here.  His  best  friends  are  those  who  have  known 
him  longest,  a  fact  which  indicates  an  honorable  life  and  exemplar}' 
principles.  His  work  has  been  of  a  character  resulting  beneficially  to 
the  county  as  well  as  to  himself  and  he  belongs  to  that  class  of  rep- 
resentative American  men  who  while  promoting  individual  welfare  also 
contribute  in  substantial  measure  to  the  good  of  the  community  with 
which  they  are  connected. 

GEORGE  M.  KINGSBURY. 

G.  ]\I.  Kingsbury,  president  nf  the  Cassopoli?  Manufacturing 
Companv  and  a^vell' known  resident  of  Cassopolis.  was  for  many 
vears  a  leading  merchant  of  the  city  and  was  a  valued  and  prominent 


551'  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

factor  in  its  business  interests  because  of  his  connection  with  its  manu- 
facturing aft'airs  and  its  banking  business  as  a  director  of  the  First 
National  Lank.  He  was  born  in  LaGrange  township,  this  county,  on 
the  23rd  of  April,  1SG2,  and  represents  one  of  the  pioneer  families. 
His  father,  Asa  Khigsbury,  was  a  native  of  Massachusetts,  and  came 
to  Cass  county,  Michigan,  during  an  early  epoch  in  its  development 
and  progress.  Establishing  his  home  in  Cassopolis,  he  became  a  prom- 
inent merchant  and  banker  here,  and  was  closely  identified  with  the 
early  upbuilding  and  progress  of  the  village.  He  belonged  to  that 
class  of  representative  American  citizens  who  while  promoting  individual 
success  also  contribute  in  large  measure  to  the  general  prosperitv.  His 
fellow  townsmen,  recognizing  his  worth  and  ability  and  his  devotion 
to  the  general  good,  several  times  called  him  to  the  office  of  county 
.treasurer.  His  death  occurred  when  he  had  reached  the  age  of  seven- 
-ty-six  yars,  and  he  left  l>chind  him  the  record  of  an  honorable,  upright 
and  successful  life.  He  was  married  twice,  and  in  his  family  were 
fourteen  children,  G.  M.  Kingsbury  being  the  ninth  in  order  of  birth. 
Under  the  parentr-l  roof  in  Cissopolis  Mr.  Kingsbury  of  this  re- 
view spent  his  boyhudd  and  youth,  his  time  being  divided  between  the 
duties  of  the  schoolroom  and  the  pleasures  of  the  playground.  He 
aftenvard  attended  the  Jackson  High  School,  from  which  he  was 
graduated  in  the  class  of  iSSi.  and,  returning  to  Cassopolis,  he  here 
embarked  in  merchandising,  having  become  somewhat  familiar  with 
the  business  by  assisting  at  odd  times  in  his  father's  store.  For  eighteen 
years  he  was  a  representative  of  commercial  life  here,  conducting  a 
large  and  well  stocked  store  which  brought  to  him  a  good  patronage 
because  of  his  reliable  inisiness  methods  and  his  earnest  efforts  to  please 
his  customers.  In  the  spring  of  1900,  however,  he  sold  his  store  to 
G.  L.  Smith,  since  which  time  he  has  given  his  attention  to  manufactur- 
ing interests,  being  president  of  the  Cassopolis  Manufacturing  Com- 
pany, which  was  organized  in  the  fall  of  1899.  He  is  also  one  of  the 
directors  of  the  First  National  Bank  of  Cassopolis,  and  his  name  is  an 
honored  one  on  all  commercial  paper. 

October  18,  18S2,  ]Mr.  Kingsbury  was  united  in  marriage  to  Miss 
Stella  Powell,  a  daughter  of  Francis  I.  and  Man,-  (Huff)  Powell  and 
a  native  of  LaGrange  township.  Her  people  were  early  residents  of 
the  county,  the  name  of  Powell  figuring  in  connection  with  many  of 
the  early  events  which  constitute  the  pioneer  history  of  this  part  of 
the  state.  Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Kingsburv^  has  been  born  a  daughter, 
Cliarlotte,  who  is  now  nt  home. 

In  his  political  views  'Mr.  Kingsbury  is  a  stalwart  Democrat,  un- 
faltering in  his  devotion  to  the  party  and  active  in  its  work.  In  1892 
he  was  a  delegate  to  the  national  convention  at  Chicago.  He  has 
several  times  served  as  a  village  officer,  being  president  of  the  village 
board  for  four  years,  was  treasurer  for  a  number  of  years,  had  also 
been  trustee  and  is  a  member  of  the  board  of  trustees  of  the  cemeter}'. 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY  553 

Whatever  tends  to  promote  tlie  permanent  improvement  and  material 
progress  of  the  city  receives  his  strong  endorsement  and  hearty  co- 
operation. He  belongs  to  Backus  Lodge.  A.  F.  &  A.  ^M.,  of  Cassopolis, 
has  also  taken  the  degrees  of  capitular  and  chivalric  Masonr}-  and  is 
now  a  member  of  the  Mystic  Shrine.  Prominent  in  the  ranks  of  the 
craft,  he  is  acting  as  grand  scribe  of  the  grand  chapter.  He  is  a 
member  of  the  Benevolent  and  Protecti\-e  Order  of  Elks  and  is  widely 
recognized  as  one  of  Cassopolis'  leading  and  influential  citizens.  'He 
possesses  keen  business  discernment  and.  an  ability  which  enables  him 
to  readily  comprehend  a  business  situation  and  its  possibilities.  He 
has  therefore  wrought  along  lines  that  have  led  to  affluence  and  is  today 
one  of  the  substantial  residents  of  his  community. 

Since  the  above  was  compiled,  Mr.  Kingsbury  passed  away  and 
the  following  ^lasonic  obituary  is  appended : 

"Grand  Ch.m'ter  Rov.\l  Arch    M.vsoxs  of  Michigax. 
"Jackson,  ;\Iich.,  INIarch  2,   1906. 
"To  all  Royal  Arch  Masons  zdicresocvcr  dispersed: 

"For  the  second  time  within  the  year  are  we  called  upon  to  mourn 
the  loss  of  one  of  the  active  officers  of  our  Grand  Chapter  and  to  join 
the  funeral  cortege  to  pay  the  last  sad  homage  to  a  beloved  companion. 

"George  I\I.   Kingsbury, 
"r.  e.  grand  scribe. 

Died  at  his  home  in  Cassopolis.  ^Mich..  Tuesday  evening,  Febniary  27, 
1906.  Companion  Kingsbury's  failing  health  has  been  regarded  with 
much  anxiety  by  his  friends  for  several  years,  but  the  dread  scourge 
consumption  secured  too  firm  hold  on  his  system  and  the  inevitable 
has  resulted. 

"George  M.  Kingsbury  was  born  at  the  old  family  home  in  Cas- 
sopolis, April  23,  1862.'  At  the  age  of  14  he  went  to  Jackson  to 
finish  his  schooling,  afterwards  embarking  in  the  mercantile  business 
which  he  followed  until  1900.  At  the  organization  of  the  Cassopolis 
Manufacturing  Co.  in  1899,  he  was  made  its  president  and  general 
manager  and  continued  in  that  office  until  a  short  time  before  his  death. 

"Companion  Kingsbury  was  always  alive  to  the  business  interests 
of  his  home  village,  and  many  times  was  called  to  serve  it  in  official 
capacities.  He  was  president' for  four  years,  treasurer  for  six  years, 
member  of  the  school  board  six  years,  and  was  member  of  cemetery 
board  at  the  time  of  his  death.  In  every  position  he  gave  his  best 
"eflforts  and  his  administration  was  always  marked  by  a  move  in  the 
line  of  progress. 

"October  18.  1882,  he  was  united  in  marriage  to  Miss  Estelle 
Powell,  of  Dowagiac,  and  to  them  was  born  one  daughter.  Miss  Lottie, 
who  with  the  devoted  wife  are  left  to  mourn  their  irreparable  loss._ 

"The  Masonic  record  of  Companion  Kingsbury'  has  been  a  bright 


554  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTV 

one.  •  He  was  raised  to  tlie  degree  of  Master  Mason  in  Backus  Lodge 
No.  55,  F.  &  A.  AL,  Deceniljer  lo,  1S83.  He  was  exalted  to  tlie  sublime 
degree  of  Royal  Arch  Mason  in  Kingsbury  Qiapter  No.  78,  R.  A.  M., 
June  18,  1885,  and  first  appeared  in  Grand  Chapter  as  High  Priest 
in  1892,  serving  his  Chapter  in  that  position  for  twelve  years.  He 
was  elected  Grand  blaster  of  the  Second  Veil  January  17,  njoo.  and 
has  been  steadily  advanced  by  his  companions  until  at  his  death  he 
was  acceptably  filling  the  station  of  Grand  Scribe. 

"He  was  Knighted  in  Niles  Commandery  No.  12,  K.  T.,  Novem- 
ber 20,  1885,  and  received  the  degrees  of  Royal  and  Select  Master  in 
Niles  Council  N(j.  19,  R.  &  S.  M.,  April  16,  190^  Fie  was  made  a 
member  of  Saladin  Temple,  A.  A.  O.  N.  ^L  S..  Octolier  18,   1895. 

"The  funeral  of  Companion  Kingsbury  was  held  at  his  home 
March  2,  1906,  and  he  was  buried  in  Prospect  Hill  Cemetery  with 
Masonic  honors  under  the  auspices  of  Backus  Lodge  No  55.  Niles 
Commandery  No.  12.  headed  by  a  military  band  acting  as  escort.  The 
officers  of  the  Grand  Chapter  of  Michigan  were  in  attendance  to  honor 
the  memory  of  a  beloved  Companion. 

"As  a  token  of  respect  to  the  memory  of  this  distinguished  Com- 
panion and  of  our  affection  for  him  it  is  ordered  that  this  memorial 
be  read  at  the  first  regular  convocation  after  its  receipt,  and  that  it  be 
preserved  in  the  Memorial  Record  of  the  Cha])ter  prepared  for  that 
purpose.  It  is  furdier  ordered  that  the  Chapter  and  Altar  be  draped 
in  mourning  for  sixty  days  thereafter. 

"TlIO.M.\S    H.    WlLLI.\MS, 

Grand  Might  Priest. 
"Attest : 

"ClIARLICS   A.    COXOVER, 

Grand  Secretary. 

JUDGE  C.  E.  CONE. 

The  bench  and  bar  have  ever  been  a  civilizing  influence  in  the 
history  of  state  and  nation  and  Judge  Cone  is  actively  connected  with 
a  profession  which  has  important  bearing  upon  the  progress  and  stable 
prosperity  of  anv  section  or  community  and  one  which  has  long  been 
considered  as  conserving  the  public  welfare  by  furtliering  the  ends  of 
justice  and  maintaining  individual  rights.  The  present  probate  judge 
of  Cass  county  is  a  gentleman  whose  superior  educational  attainments 
and  understanding  of  the  law  have  given  him  prominence  in  connection 
with  his  chosen  profession  and  won  him  the  position  which  he  now 
fills  through  appointment  of  Governor  Warner,  who  recognized  his 
ability  and  merits.  In  his  social  and  official  relations  he  is  well  known 
in  Cassopolis  and  Cass  county.  C.  E.  Cone  has  much  to  do  with 
public  interests  in  Cassopolis.  He  is  director  of  the  school  lx>ard  and 
has  been  a  helpful   factor  in  many  movements  for  the   general   good. 


HISTORY  or  CASS  COUNTY  555 

His  business  interests  have  been  in  the  hne  of  law  practice  and  he  is 
recognized  as  one  of  the  most  able  attorneys  of  the  county,  possessing 
in  large  measure  the  quaHties  whicli  contribute  to  success  at  the  bar, 
including  perseverance  and  an  analytical  mind,  which  is  at  the  same 
time  readily  receptive  and  retcniivc  of  the  fundamental  principles  and 
intricacies  of  the  law. 

Mr.  Cone  is  a  native  of  the  Empire  state,  his  natal  place  being 
Oswego,  New  York,  his  natal  day  April  25,  1867.  His  father,  Chester 
Cone,  was  also  born  in  New  York  and  was  a  cooper  by  trade.  Emigrat- 
ing westward,  he  settled  in  \'an  Euren  county,  Michigan,  about  1868 
and  afterward  removed  to  Elkhart,  Indiana.  He  has  resided  in  south- 
ern ^lichigan  and  in  northern  Indiana  since  that  time,  making  his 
home  at  present,  in  1906,  in  Goshen,  Indiana.  His  wife,  who  bore 
the  maiden  name  of  Maggie  Rourk,  was  a  native  of  Canada,  where  her 
girlhood  days  were  passed.  She  died  when  her  son,  C.  E.  Cone,  was 
about  five  years  of  age,  leaving  three  children,  namely:  C.  E.  Cone; 
Mrs.  Millie  Keller,  who  died  in  Enid,  Oklahoma;  and  William  Cone, 
who  is  a  resident  of  Elkhart. 

C.  E.  Cone,  the  eldest  of  the  family,  was  only  about  a  year  old  at 
the  time  of  his  parents'  removal  from  the  Empire  state  to  Michigan. 
He  began  his  education  in  Elkhart  and  continued  his  studies  in  the 
schools  of  Goshen  and  of  Bristol.  Indiana.  He  engaged  in  teaching  in 
the  village  school  at  Bristol  and  for  seven  months  in  the  district  schools 
of  the  Hoosier  state.  Locating  at  Vandalia,  he  spent  alx)ut  fifteen 
months  in  a  general  store  owned  by  \V.  R.  Merritt,  after  which  he 
engaged  in  teaching  for  one  year  as  assistant  principal.  During  this 
year  he  studied  and  earned  a  first  grade  teacher's  certificate  and  was 
elected  principal  the  following  year,  which  position  he  filled  for  four 
years.  Under  his  guidance  the  schools  made  satisfactory  progress, 
for  he  maintained  a  high  standard  of  excellence  and  put  forth  prac- 
tical effort  to  improve  the  sciiools  and  worked  for  their  permanent 
good.  He  attended  the  Agricultural  College  at  Lansing,  Michigan, 
where  he  studied  chemistry,  physics,  geolog}-  and  astronomy.  Follow- 
ing this  work  he  took  the  state  teachers'  examination  and  won  a  life 
certificate  in  1S91.  He  was  elected  county  commissioner  of  sciiools  in 
1893  and  came  to  Cassnpnlis.  For  eight  years  he  occupied  that  posi- 
tion and  the  cause  of  education  has  ever  found  in  him  a  stalwart  friend, 
■whose  labors  in  its  behalf  have  been  efifective  and  far  reaching.  In 
1896  he  began  the  study  of  law  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  April. 
1899.  Following  the  expiration  of  his  term  of  office  he  entered  at 
once  upon  the  active  practice  of  the  law,  opening  an  office  in  the  Chap- 
man building  rn  the  8th  of  July.  1901.  In  his  practice  he  is  gifted 
with  a  spirit  of  devotion  to  wearisome  details  and  is  quick  to  com- 
prehend the  most  subtle  problems,  while  in  his  conclusions  he  is  en- 
tirely logical.  He  is  also  fearless  in  the  advocacy  of  any  cau^e  he 
may  espouse  and  few  men  have  been  more  richly  gifted  for  the  achieve- 


556  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY 

ment  of  success  in  the  arduous  and  difficult  profession  of  the  law. 
He  has  twice  been  elected  circuit  court  commissioner  and  is  filling 
that  position  at  the  present  time.  On  the  election  of  Probate  Judge 
L.  B.  Des  Voigncs  to  the  circuit  bench,  j\lr.  Cone  was  appointed  by 
Governor  Warner  to  fill  the  vacancy  and  entered  upon  the  duties  of 
the  probate  office  September  7,  1906.  He  is  also  a  member  of  the 
village  council  and  has  been  found  a  co-operant  factor  in  many  move- 
'ments  and  plans  for  the  promotion  of  the  best  interests  of  Ca'ssopolis. 
On  the  1st  of  December,  1886,  ;Mr.  Cone  was  united  in  marriage 
to  Miss  Grace  Forgus.  a  daughter  of  Wellington  and  Anna  (Evans) 
Forgus  and  a  native  of  New  Jersey.  Her  father  was  a  minister  of  the 
Episcopal  church.  Unto  Mr.  and  I\Irs.  Cone  have  been  bom  five  chil- 
dren, the  eldest,  J.  Gorton,  being  now  eighteen  years  of  age.  The 
others  are  Grace,  Muriel.  Wellington  and  Esther.  Mr.  Cone  is  a  prom- 
inent worker  in  Republican  ranks  and  has  been  secretary  of  the  Re- 
publican county  central  o  aumiltec.  He  is  secretary  of  Kingsbury 
Chai)ter  Xn.  78,  R.  .A.  ^I.,  and  Iielongs  to  a  number  of  other  frater- 
nities. 

HON.  JAMES  M  SHEPARD. 

Hon.  James  ^I.  Shcparn,  whose  marked  individuality  rmd  strength 
of  character  well  entitle  him  to  the  position  of  leadership  which  is 
accorded  him  in  Cass  county,  is  now  .\merican  consul  at  Hamilton,  On- 
tario, and  has  figured  prominently  in  political  and  business  circles  in 
Cass  county  for  many  years.  Fie  is  a  native  of  X'ortli  Erookfield, 
Massachusetts,  where  he  was  born  on  the  24th  of  November,  1840. 
The  paternal  grandfather.  Jared  Shepard.  was  a  descendant  of  Thomas 
•Shepard,  the  founder  of  Ilarvard  College.  The  family  is  of  English 
lineage  and  among  its  members  have  been  many  who  have  figured  prom- 
inently in  public  life  in  one  way  or  another.  Tliomas  Shepard  came 
to  America  in  1638.  To  this  family  belonged  General  Shepard.  who 
put  down  Shay's  rebellion.  The  father  of  our  subject,  Rev.  James 
Shepard,  was  a  native  of  Hampden  county,  Massachusetts,  born  in 
1802,  and  was  a  minister  of  the  ^Methodist  Episcopal  church.  He  was 
graduated  from  Westfield  .-\cademy  and  in  his  holy  calling  he  e.xerted 
a  wide  and  beneficial  influence,  contributing  in  substantial  measure  to  the 
growth  and  development  of  his  party  and  at  the  same  time  taking  a  pro- 
nounced stand  upon  the  slavery  que<;tion.  his  influence  being  far  reach- 
ing in  behalf  of  opposition  to  that  institution  of  the  south.  At  length 
on  account  of  ill  health  he  was  forced  to  leave  the  ministry  and  his 
last  davs  were  passed  on  Bunker  Hill,  Charlestown.  ^Massachusetts, 
where  lie  died  at  the  age  of  fifty-two  years.  His  wife  bore  the  maiden 
name  of  Lucv  Bush,  and  was  a  native  of  Westfield,  :\rassachusetts, 
born  in  1808.  She,  too.  was  of  English  lineage  and  lived  to  the  ad- 
vanced age  of  eightv  vears.  In  the  maternal  line  she  was  de.scended 
from  the'iiobilitv'of  England.     By  her  marriage  she  became  the  mother 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  557 

of  four  children,  one  of  whom  died  in  infancy.  Jared,  the  eldest,  was 
at  tlie  head  of  what  was  known  as  the  Foreign  Aloney  Department  of 
the  Suffolk  Bank  of  Bostun,  the  original  "Clearing  House,"  but  put 
aside  business  ambitions  at  the  outbreak  of  the  Civil  war  and  joined 
the  Union  army  as  a  lieutenant,  his  death  occurring  near  New  Orleans 
while  he  was  in  the  service.  Esther  is  the  wife  of  Rev.  Daniel  Richards, 
of  Sornerville,  ]Massac!nisetts,  her  husband  living  a  retired  life  there. 
Hon.  James  M.  Shepard,  the  youngest  of  the  family,  was  edu- 
cated in  Cambridge,  iMassachusetts,  attending  the  Latin  school,  after- 
ward the  Wilbraham  Academy  and  subsequently  tiie  Weslejan  Univer- 
sity. He  studied  medicine  and  dentistry  in  Boston  and  was  connected 
with  the  medical  department  of  the  navy  during  the  war  of  the  rebellion. 
He  went  out  first  with  the  Mansfield  guards,  a  regiment  of  Connecticut 
militia,  and  later  joined  the  medical  department  of  the  navy,  with 
which  he  continued  until  the  cessation  of  hostilities.  On  the  3rd  of 
September,  186S,  Dr.  Shepard  came  to  Cassopolis.  where  he  opened 
an  office  for  the  practice  of  dentistry,  which  he  followed  continuously 
until  1876,  when  he  purchased  the  Vigilant  and  has  been  sole  proprietor 
since  1S7S.  As  a  journalist  he  is  well  known  and  through  the  publica- 
tion of  his  paper  has  done  much  to  mold  public  thought  and  opinion. 
He  is  the  champion  of  every  progressive  movement  and  his  lah«rs 
have  been  eft'cctive  in  securing  the  adoption  of  many  measures  that 
have  contributed  largely  to  the  public  good. 

Mr.  Shcpjard  is  even  more  widely  known  because  ot  his  activity  in 
political  circles.  He  was  elected  to  represent  the  twelfth  district,  com- 
prising Cass  and  Van  Burcn  counties,  in  the  state  senate  in  187S,  re- 
ceiving five  thousand  two  hundred  and  fifty-seven  votes  against  twelve 
hundred  and  eight  cast  for  Josiah  R.  Hendryx,  the  Democratic  can- 
didate, and  four  thousand  two  hundred  and  thirty  for  Aaron  Dyckman, 
the  candidate  of  the  National  or  Greenback  party.  ^Vhile  a  member 
of  the  upper  house  of  the  general  assembly  Mr.  Shepard  was  made 
chairman  of  the  standing  committees  on  the  liquor  traffic  and  printing 
and  also  a  member  of  the  committees  on  education,  on  mechanical  in- 
terests and  on  engrossments.  He  proved  an  active  working  member  of 
the  senate  and  did  all  in  his  power  to  promote  the  welfare  of  the  com- 
monwealth. In  18S2  he  became  clerk  of  the  committee  on  territories  in 
the  house  of  representatives  of  the  forty-seventh  congress  and  he  was 
private  secretary  to  Senator  Palmer  during  the  sessions  of  the  forty- 
eighth,  fortv-ninth  and  fiftieth  congresses.  He  was  also  clerk  of  _  the 
senate  committee  on  agriculture  during  the  discussion  of  the  legisla- 
tive movements  leading  up  to  the  formation  of  a  department  of  agriciilt- 
ure  and  he  was  sccretan-  to  the  president  of  the  World's  Columbian 
Conimission  at  Chicago  fmm  June,  1890.  until  the  final  official  report 
was  rendered  in  i8q6.  He  served  as  one  of  the  commission  of  chan- 
ties and  corrections  for  the  state  of  ^lichigan  under  the  administrations 
of  governors  Rich  and  Pingree,  which  position  he  resigned  upon  accept- 


558  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

ing  the  appointment  as  American  consul  to  Hamilton,  Ontario,  on  the 
i6th  of  July,  1897. 

In  1S70,  James  M.  Shepard  \v;is  united  in  marriage  to  Miss  Alice 
Martin,  the  eldest  daughter  of  Hiram  and  Margaret  (Silver)  ^Martin. 
They  have  two  children.  Alelville  J.,  who  was  born  November  18, 
1872,  is  assistant  bookkeeper  in  the  Ueckwith  estate  at  Dowagic,  Mich- 
igan. He  married  Pearl  Lum,  of  Kalamazoo,  Michigan,  and  has  one 
son,  James  L.,  born  .March  20,  1902.  The  daughter,  Blanche,  born 
November  2,  1S78,  is  the  wife  of  Ernest  W.  Porter,  of  Newark,  New 
Jersey. 

Dr.  Shepartl  is  a  meniljer  of  Albert  Anderson  Post,  G.  A.  R.,  of 
which  he  is  a  past  commander.  He  is  also  past  chancellor  commander 
of  the  Knights  of  Pythias  fraternity,  a  member  of  the  Knights  of  the 
Maccabees,  and  is  a  32nd  degree  Mason.  He  has  a  very  wide  and 
favorable  acquaintance  among  the  prominent  men  of  the  state  and 
nation,  and  has  always  kept  in  touch  with  the  great  and  momentous 
questions  which  involve  the  welfare  of  the  country.  Moreover  in  local 
affairs  he  is  deeply  interested,  and  his  influence  and  aid  are  ever  given 
on  the  side  of  progress  and  improvement.  While  he  enjoys  the  respect 
of  many  with  whom  he  has  come  in  contact  in  connection  with  imi>ortant 
pubhc  service,  in  his  home  town  where  he  has  long  lived  lie  has  that 
warm  personal  regard  which  arises  from  true  nobility  of  character  and 
deference  for  the  opinions  of  others. 

JASPER  J.  ROSS. 

Jasper  J  Rcss,  filling  the  oftice  of  township  supervisor  in  2^Iason 
township  and  residing  u|inn  a  farm  on  section  14,  was  born  ,\pri!  2, 
1858,  upon  this  i)lace  which  is  yet  his  home.  He  therefore  belongs  to 
ore  of  the  old  families  of  the  county.  His  father,  Richard  C.  Ross,  was 
a  native  of  Stark  county.  Ohio,  and  at  the  age  of  fourteen  years  accom- 
panied his  parents,  Jacol)  and  Betsy  Ross,  to  Cass  county,  settling  first 
in  Edwardsburg,  in  Ontwa  township.  There  Jacob  Ross  took  up  forty 
acres  of  land,  which  was  wild  and  unimproved,  and  began  the  devel- 
opment of  a  farm.  Richard  C.  Ross  also  secured  a  claim  from  the 
government,  and  ]Mr.  and  }vlrs.  Ross  have  in  their  possession  one  of  the 
old  parchment  deeds  bearing  date  and  execution  of  September  10,  1838, 
and  bearing  the  signature  of  President  ^Martin  Van  Buren,  the  fourth 
deed  of  the  kind  found  in  Cass  county.  It  is  a  valuable  document  and 
heirloom  in  the  Ross  household.  This  was  in  December,  1832.  and 
they  were  among  the  (iriginal  settlers  of  the  county.  The  most  far- 
sighted  could  not  have  dreamed  of  the  development  and  progress  which 
were  soon  to  transform  the  district  into  a  region  of  rich  fertility  and 
productiveness,  and  yet  there  were  to  be  many  years  of  arduous  toil  on 
the  part  of  the  pioneers  and  subsequent  settlers  before  this  result  could 
be  accomplished.     The  grandfather  and  father  of  our  subject  were  both 


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HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  559 

active  in  reclaiming  the  wild  land  for  the  purposes  of  civilization,  and 
turned  the  first  furrow  uix)n  many  an  acre.  Having  arrived  at  years 
of  maturity,  Ricliard  C.  Ross  was  united  in  marriage  in  184S,  in  Mason 
township,  to  Miss  Mehitable  Eougart,  who  was  born  in  Geneseo,  Xew 
York,  April  i,  1S15,  and  was  a  daughter  of  John  O.  and  Ivlehitable 
Bougart,  who  came  from  the  east  to  Michigan' in  1829,  settling  in 
Edwardsburg.  Cass  county.  Mrs.  Ross  was  then  a  little  maiden  of 
eight  summers,  and  was  therefore  reared  in  Michigan  amid  pioneer  sur- 
roundings and  environments.  The  homes  of  the  settlers  were  largely 
log  cabins  and  the  furnishings  were  very  primitive  and  meager  as 
compared  to  the  homes  of  the  present  day.  Mrs.  Ross  proved  to  her 
husband  a  faithful  companion  and  helpmate  for  life's  journey  and  pos- 
sessed many  excellent  traits  of  character  of  heart  and  mind,  which  en- 
deared her  to  all  who  knew  her.  She  reached  the  advanced  age  of 
eighty-five  years  and  nine  months,  while  Richard  C.  Ross  departed 
this  life  on  the  22d  of  April.  1901,  at  the  very  venerable  age  of  eighty- 
seven  years.  His  early  political  allegiance  was  given  to  the  Whig  party, 
and  upon  the  organization  of  the  new  Republican  party,  formed  to  pre- 
vent the  further  extension  of  slavery,  he  joined  its  ranks  and  continued 
one  of  its  stalwart  advocates  until  his  demise.  He  took  a  very  active  and 
helpful  part  in  the  settlement  and  upbuilding  of  Cass  county,  and  his 
name  is  enrolled  among  those  to  whom  the  citizens  of  the  later  day 
owe  a  debt  of  gratitude  for  what  the  pioneers  accomplished  in  the  early 
period  of  development  here.  Unto  him  and  his  wife  were  born  two 
daughters  and  a  son,  the  sisters  of  our  subject  being  Airs.  Julia  Ort, 
who  is  living  in  Mason  township,  and  ]\Irs.  Samantha  Luse,  whose  home 
is  in  Elkhart,  Indiana. 

No  event  of  si3ecial  importance  occurred  to  vary  the  routine  of 
farm  life  for  Jasper  J.  Ross  in  his  boyhood  days.  He  was  reared  upon 
the  farm  where  he  now  resides,  and  at  an  early  age  he  took  his  place 
in  the  fields,  aiding  in  the  plowing,  planting  and  harvesting.  His  edu- 
cation was  obtained  in  the  old  brick  schoolhouse  in  district  No.  5.  He 
has  never  been  away  from  the  farm  for  an  entire  week  in  his  life,  but 
has  applied  himself  earnestly  and  faithfully  to  his  farm  labor,  and  is  the 
owner  of  one  hundred  acres  uf  rich  and  productive  land,  which  is  de- 
voted to  general  farming.  He  has  good  grades  of  stock  upon  his  place 
and  is  enterprising  in  his  work,  which  has  brought  him  the  success  which 
he  to-day  enjoys. 

On  Christmas  day  of  18S7  ]\[r.  Ross  was  united  in  marriage  to 
Miss  Nettie  Cormany,  a  daughter  of  Jonathan  and  Lydia  fdarl)  Cor- 
manv,  and  a  native  of  Elkhart  county,  Indiana,  although  her  girlhood 
days'  were  largely  passed  in  this  state.  Air.  Ross  cared  for  his  parents 
until  their  deaths.  By  his  marriage  there  have  been  born  two  daughters, 
Bessie  M.  and  Shirlev  M..  both  at  home.  The  family  are  held  in  high 
esteem  in  the  communitv.  having  many  warm  friends. 


560  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

Mr.  Ross  is  an  earnest  Demucrat  in  his  political  views,  active  in 
the  interests  of  the  party,  and  has  held  all  of  the  township  offices  to 
which  he  has  been  called  by  his  fellow  townsmen,  who  recognize  his 
ability  and  his  loyalty  to  the  public  good.  He  has  served  as  township 
treasurer  two  terms,  has  been  highway  commissioner  and  in  1905  was 
elected  township  supervisor,  being  the  present  inamibcnt  in  the  office. 
Mr.  Ross  is  a  member  of  the  United  Brethren  church,  in  which  he  has 
served  as  trustee,  and  the  cause  of  education  finds  in  him  a  warm  friend, 
who  has  done  effective  service  in  behalf  of  the  school  as  a  member  of 
the  school  board  during  nine  years  incumbency  in  that  office.  He  has 
been  a  life-long  resident  of  the  county,  living  for  forty-eight  years  upon 
the  same  farm  and  has  been  closely  identified  with  its  development,  its 
agricultural  interests  and  its  political  welfare. 

JOHN   H.   rniLLII'S. 

John  H.  Phillips,  an  enterprising  citizen  and  merchant  of  Pokagon 
township,  who  is  also  filling  the  office  of  township  supervisor  and  exerts 
strong  and  beneficial  influence  in  behalf  of  puljlic  affairs,  was  born  in 
the  western  part  of  Germany  on  the  12th  of  July,  1S41.  His  father, 
John  Phillips,  was  a  native  of  the  same  country  and  was  a  shoemaker 
by  trade.  He  married  ^liss  Helen  Hill,  likewise  a  native  of  Germany, 
and  they  became  the  parents  of  five  sons.  John  H.  being  the  fourth  in 
order  of  birth.  In  tlie  year  1S56  the  father  crossed  the  Atlantic  to 
America,  locating  first  in  New  Buffalo,  Berrien  county,  r^Iichigan. 
where  he  purchased  forty  acres  of  raw  land.  Tliis  was  covered  with 
timber,  which  he  cleared  away,  and  as  the  years  advanced  he  placed  his 
farm  under  a  very  high  state  of  cultivation  and  made  it  a  productive 
property.  There  he  remained  until  his  death,  which  occurred  in  1868. 
His  political  support  was  given  to  the  Democracy,  and  he  was  a  worthy 
and  public  spirited  citizen. 

John  H.  Phillips  spent  the  first  fifteen  years  of  his  life  in  the  land 
of  his  birth  and  then  accompanied  his  parents  on  their  emigration  to  the 
new  world.  Farm  work  early  became  familiar  to  him  and  he  gave  his 
attention  to  general  agricultural  pursuits  until  1864,  when,  at  the  age  of 
twenty-three"  years,  he  enlisted  as  a  member  of  Company  F.  Eighth 
Michigan  Cavalry,  in  defense  of  the  Union.  He  served  with  that  com- 
mand until  the  close  of  the  w-ar,  being  mostly  engaged  in  scouting,  and 
in  October,  1865.  he  was  mustered  out.  having  made  a  creditable  record 
by  his  faithful  performance  of  every  duty  that  was  assigned  him. 

When  the  country  no  longer  needed  his  aid  Mr.  Phillips  returned 
to  Berrien  countv  and  entered  upon  his  active  business  career  as  clerk 
in  the  freighting  office  of  the  Michigan  Central  Railroad  Company.  _  He 
was  there  emploved  until  1S72,  when  he  came  to  Cass  county,  Michi- 
gan, settling  in  the  village  of  Pokagon.  Here  he  was  also  in  the  employ 
of  the  ?kliciiigan  Central  Railroad  Company  until  1885.  when,  with  the 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNT Y  5t;i 

capital  he  had  saved  from  his  earnings,  he  estabhshed  a  general  store, 
which  he  has  since  conducted,  being  an  enterprising  merchant  and  meet- 
ing with  very  desirable  success.  His  earnest  efforts  to  please  his  patrons, 
his  reasonable  prices  and  his  straightforward  dealing  constitute  the 
basis  of  his  prosperity  since  he  became  a  factor  in  mercantile  circles  in 
Pokagon. 

Mr.  Phillips  had  been  married  in  Berrien  county  in  1865  to 
Miss  Mary  Raiza,  a  native  of  Germany,  who  was  brought  to  America 
when  four  years  of  age,  and  was  reared  in  Pennsylvania.  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Phillips  have  become  the  parents  of  thirteen  children,  seven  sons  and  six 
daughters.  In  his  religious  faith  ]\Ir.  Phillips  is  a  Catholic,  and  in  his 
political  affiliation  is  a  stanch  Democrat.  In  1897  he  was  elected  town- 
ship supervisor  and  has  since  held  the  office  by  re-election.  He  has 
also  been  township  clerk  for  a  number  of  years.  His  fraternal  relations 
are  with  the  Odd  Fellows  and  3.1asons,  and  he  is  true  to  the  teachings  of 
these  orders,  exemplifying  in  bis  life  the  beneficent  spirit  upon  which 
the  lodges  rest.  He  has  been  found  capable  in  public  oflice,  trust- 
worthy in  his  business  relations  and  faithful  in  his  friendships,  and  thus 
the  consensus  of  public  opinion  concerning  L.  H.  Phillips  is  most 
favorable. 

JAMES  M.  E:\IM0XS. 

James  M.  Emmons,  who  after  long  years  of  active  connection  with 
farming  interests  is  now  living  retired  in  the  enjoyment  of  a  well 
earned  rest,  is  one  of  the  old  settlers  of  Cass  county,  having  from  an 
early  period  been  a  witness  of  its  development  and  progress  as  modern 
conditions  have  replaced  those  of  pioneer  life.  He  was  born  in  Giles 
county,  Virginia,  on  the  6th  of  April.  1S27,  and  has  therefore  passed 
the  seventy-eighth  milestone  on  life's  journey.  His  father,  William 
Emmons,  was  also  a  native  of  the  Old  Donn'nion  and  was  there  reared, 
turning  his  attention  to  agricultural  pursuits  as  a  life  work  after  he 
attained  his  majority.  In  the  fall  of  1828  he  came  with  his  family  to 
^Michigan,  settling  in  Pjcrrien  county,  which  was  then  a  largely  unim- 
proved tract,  the  work  of  development  and  progress  having  scarcely 
been  begun  within  its  borders.  All  around  stretched  the  native  forests 
or  the  imbroken  prairie  land,  and  it  remained  for  the  pioneer  settlers  to 
convert  tlie  district  into  a  productive  region  wherein  agricultural  and 
commercial  interests  might  be  profitably  conducted.  ;Mr.  Emmons  was 
a  leading  representative  of  industrial  interests,  operating  a  sawmill  in 
Berrien  county  until  1834.  when  he  removed  to  Cass  county,  settling  in 
Pokagon  township.  ETere  he  took  up  fort}-  acres  of  land  from  the  gov- 
ernment, upon  which  not  a  furrow  had  been  turned  nor  an  improvement 
made,  and  he  also  bought  eighty  acres  from  Mr.  Ritter.  This  place 
he  improved,  carrying  on  the  work  of  the  fields  vear  after  year,  or  until 
called  to  his  final  rest.  He  was  married  in  Virginia  to  Miss  Elsie  Kirk. 
a  native  of  that  state,  and  unto  them  were  born  eight  children,  three 


562  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

sons  and  five  daughters,  of  whom  James  M.  Emmons  was  the  sixth 
child  and  second  son.  One  of  the  numher  died  in  infancy.  Tlie  fatlier 
voted  with  the  Democracy  and  kept  well  informed  on  the  questions  and 
issues  of  the  day,  but  had  little  desire  for  public  office. 

James  ]M.  Emmons  was  about  five  years  of  age  when  his  father 
came  to  Cass  county,  and  here  he  was  reared  amid  the  wild  scenes  of 
frontier  life.  He  acquired  his  education  in  one  of  the  little  old-time  log 
school-houses,  where  the  methods  of  instruction  were  almost  as  primi- 
tive as  die  building-  in  which  the  sessions  of  school  were  held.  His  train- 
ing at  farm  lalxir,  however,  was  not  meager,  for  he  early  began  work  in 
the  fields  and  remained  at  home  during  his  father's  life,  assisting  him  in 
the  arduous  work  of  the  farm.  I'here  he  remained  until  his  marriage, 
when  he  removed  to  his  present  place  of  residence,  comprising  two  hun- 
dred and  seventeen  acres  of  land  in  Pokagon  township.  He  has  since 
given  his  attention  to  the  further  development  of  this  propertv.  He 
built  first  a  log  cabin  in  which  he  lived  until  after  the  Civil  war,  when 
the  pioneer  home  was  replaced  by  a  frame  residence.  He  has  also  built 
barns  and  outbuildings  and  has  added  equipments  that  facilitate  the 
farm  work  and  make  his  labor  more  profitable. 

On  the  22d  of  February,  1852.  Mr.  Emmons  was  married  to  Miss 
Phebe  Hawkins,  who  came  from  Ohio  to  Michigan  with  her  parents, 
Daniel  and  .Mvira  Hawkins,  who  were  early  settlers  of  Cass  county, 
where  Mrs.  Enimnns  spent  the  days  of  her  girlhood.  She  has  had  no 
children  of  her  own,  but  out  of  the  kindness  of  their  hearts  ]\[r.  and 
Mrs.  Emmons  have  given  homes  to  four  orphan  children,  two  sons  and 
two  daughters:  Emma,  now  the  wife  Cif  Solon  Straub  and  acting  as 
housekeeper  on  Mr.  Emmons'  farm;  Richard  Parsons;  Alvira;  and 
Orson. 

Mr.  Emmons  has  always  been  actuated  by  high  and  honorable  prin- 
ciples, bv  a  conscientious  regard  for  his  obligations  to  his  fellow  men 
and  by  a  loyalty  to  duty  that  is  above  question.  For  twenty-one  years 
he  has  given  earnest  support  to  the  Prohibition  party  because  of  his  firm 
belief  in  temperance  princii)les  and  his  opposition  to  the  liquor  traffic. 
He  is  well  known  and  for  many  years  was  accounted  a  leading  farmer  of 
Pokagon  township,  but  at  the  present  writing  has  given  over  to  others 
the  caYe  and  improvement  of  his  farm,  while  he  is  enjoying  a  well  earned 
rest.  This  is  certainly  as  nature  intended,  and  he  is  not  only  a  retired 
citizen  of  Cass  county,  but  also  one  of  its  respected  and  honored  men, 
well  known  in  this  part  of  the  state  from  pioneer  times  down  to  the 
present. 

JOSEPH  FT.\RPER. 

In  all  those  affairs  which  touch  the  general  interests  of  society, 
which  work  for  civic  integrity  and  virtue  and  for  loyalty  in  citizenship 
as  well  as  for  material  pro.gress,  Joseph  Harper  was  deeply  interested. 
and  though  he  did  not  win  national  renown  and  was  perhaps  not  widely 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUxXTY  563 

known  in  the  state,  he  uas  in  iiis  iiome  community  a  man  of  prominence 
whose  mflucnce  was  ever  found  on  the  side  of  progress  and  improve- 
ment. A  native  of  Washington  county,  Pennsylvania,  he  was  born  on 
the  19th  of  December,  1805,  and  when  about  thirty  years  of  age  came 
to  Cassopohs,  ]\lichigan,  the  year  of  his  arrival  be'ing  183^.  Here  his 
remaining  days  were  passed,  and  on  the  28th  of  August,  1894,  wlien  in 
the  eighty-ninth  year  of  his  age.  he  was  called  to  his  final  rest.  By 
trade  he  was  a  carpenter  and  joiner,  and  fur  nearly  sixty  years  was  a 
prominent  figure  at  Cassopolis.  He  built  the  first  courthouse  and  was 
one  of  the  five  contractors  for  the  building  of  the  second  courthouse. 
Many  evidences  of  his  superior  handiwork  are  seen  in  substantial 
structures  in  the  county,  for  his  work  was  of  a  most  enduring  character, 
and  in  business  circles  he  sustained  an  unassailable  reputation  for  relia- 
bility. The  year  following  his  arrival  at  Cassopolis  Mr.  Harper  was 
married,  in  October,  1836,  to  Miss  Caroline  Guilford,  whose  birth 
occurred  in  Northampton,  Massachusetts,  September  4,  181 6.  They 
traveled  life's  journey  together  for  more  than  fifty-seven  years,  and 
Mrs.  Harper  survived  her  husband  until  the  29th  of  January,  1902. 
They  were  the  parents  of  four  daughters,  all  born  in  Cassopolis.  Emily 
S.,  born  March  31,  1838,  was  married  August  20,  1857,  to  Jeremiah 
B.  Chapman,  and  died  January  7,  1902.  Melissa  C,  born  March  3, 
1841,  was  married  ^larch  28,  i860,  to  Joseph  Graham,  who  was  Ixirn  in 
Erie  county,  Pennsylvania,  February  5,  1838.  and  died  May  23,  1905. 
Janette,  born  October  27,  1843.  became  the  wife  of  Charles  L.  Morton, 
Febniary  i,  1870,  and  died  Febniary  27,  18S0.  ]Mar\ette,  born  April 
12,  1846,  was  married  October  3,  1865.  to  Lowell  H.  Glover,  the  his- 
torian. All  of  the  deaths  in  tlie  family  occurred  in  CassopC)lis,  and  the 
marriages  were  here  celebrated. 

Mr.  Harper  continued  his  building  operations  in  the  county  seat 
and  surrounding  districts  until  the  early  days  of  the  gold  excitement 
in  California,  when  he  made  his  way  to  the  Pacific  coast  and  spent 
several  years  working  in  the  mines.  He  aftenvard  went  to  Pike's  Peak 
and  later  to  ^Nbaitana.  where  he  remained  for  alx)ut  three  years,  en- 
gaged in  mining  operations.  At  the  time  of  the  Civil  war  he  left 
home  to  serve  as  captain  of  Company  A,  Twelfth  ^Michigan  Volunteer 
Infantr)',  and  with  his  command  did  valiant  service  in  defense  of  the 
Union  cause. 

Mr.  Harper  gave  his  political  allegiance  to  the  AVhig  and  then  to 
the  Republican  party,  and  was  one  of  the  first  justices  of  the  peace 
elected  after  the  admission  of  the  state  into  the  Union.  At  different 
times  he  was  called  to  the  office  of  register  of  deeds,  treasurer  and 
sheriff  of  the  county,  and  following  the  election  of  General  Grant  to  the 
presidency  Mr.  Harper  was  appointed  postmaster  at  Cassopolis,  and 
served  for  nine  vears.  His  official  duties  were  ever  discharged  with 
promptness  and  fidelity.     He  and  his  wife  were  among  those  who  united 


504  HISTORY  01-   CASS  COUNTY 

with  the  Presbyterian  church  the  clay  foHowiiig  its  organization  in  1842. 
He  was  a  man  of  positive  opinions  and  of  incorruptible  integrity  and 
was  respected  by  all  with  whom  he  held  social  or  business  relations'. 

LEANDER  BRIDGE. 

Leaiider  Bridge  was  for  many  years  an  enterprising  and  prominent 
farmer  of  Cass  county,  where  he  took  up  his  abode  in  pioneer  days 
and  before  the  seeds  of  civilization  had  scarcely  been  planted  in  the 
western  wilderness.  He  bore  his  full  share  in  the  work  of  development 
and  progress  and  gained  and  retained  the  honor  and  respect  of  his  fellow 
men  as  the  years  went  by.  He  was  bom  in  Angelica,  Allegany  county, 
New  York,  December  26,  1S27,  a  son  of  Samuel  Bridge.  His  early 
boyhood  and  }Outh  were  spent  in  the  Empire  state,  but  when  nineteen 
years  of  age  he  came  to  Cass  county,  Michigan,  with  his  parents,  and 
spent  his  remaining  days  upon  what  became  known  as  the  old  Bridge 
homestead  farm,  the  then  site  of  the  village  of  Marcellus.  However, 
at  the  time  of  his  arrival  here  there  was  no  village,  and  the  entire  dis- 
trict was  covered  with  the  native  growth  of  timber.  At  twenty-four 
years  of  age  Leander  Bridge  was  married.  He  started  in  life  on  his 
own  account  with  forty  acres  of  land,  which  he  brought  under  a  high 
state  of  cultivation,  performing  the  arduous  task  of  developing  the  fields 
and  making  the  farm  productive.  .\s  his  financial  resources  increased 
he  added  to  his  property  from  time  to  time  until  within  the  boundaries 
of  his  place  were  comprised  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  of  good  land. 
Throughout  his  entire  life  he  carried  on  general  agricultural  pursuits, 
and  for  alsout  six  years  he  was  also  engaged  in  the  grain  business.  For 
several  years  he  devoted  his  energies  lo  the  conduct  of  a  grocery  store 
and  for  two  years  was  proprietor  of  a  meat  market.  He  was  likewise 
express  agent  for  a  time,  and  in  all  these  varied  interests  he  conducted 
his  business  affairs  with  capability  and  enterprise,  realizing  that  close 
application  and  unfaltering  diligence  constitute  a  sure  and  safe  basis 
upon  which  to  build  prosperity. 

It  was  in  1852  that  Leander  Bridge  was  united  in  marriage  to  Miss 
Harriet  A.  Bair,  who  was  born  in  Newberg,  Cass  county.  ^Micliigan.  on 
the  23d  of  January.  1835.  His  death  ocairred  August  11.  1S80,  while 
his  widow,  surv'iving  for  more  than  two  decades,  passed  away  on  the 
l6th  of  April,  1902.  They  were  people  of  the  highest  respectability, 
enjoying  in  highest  reganl  the  esteem  and  friendship  of  those  with 
whom  they  came  in  contact  through  Inisiness  or  social  relations.  Mr. 
Bridge  was  a  stalwart  champion  of  Republican  principles,  and  in  his 
fraternal  relations  was  a  Mason.  He  was  also  a  very  active  and  help- 
ful member  of  the  United  Brethren  church  and  assisted  in  building  the 
house  of  worship  at  ^Marcellus.  These  connections  indicate  much  of  the 
character  of  the  man  and  show  forth  the  motive  power  that  prompted 
his  actions,  making  him  a  man  whom  to  know  was  to  respect  and  honor. 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  505 

Unto  Mr.  and  Airs.  Bridge  were  born  two  children:  William, 
who  was  born  March  17,  1855,  died  in  infancy,  while  Alary  Alice,  born 
March  20,  1S56,  is  the  wife  of  Collins  J.  Joiner.  Her  husband  was  born 
in  the  western  reserve  of  Ohio,  on  the  23d  of  January,  1850,  and  was  a 
son  of  J.  C.  and  Alary  (Staitord)  Joiner,  in  whose  family  were  four 
daughters  and  three  sons.  He  came  to  Alichigan  with  his  parents  in 
his  boyhood  days,  and  after  acquiring  a  good  education  engaged  in 
teaching  school  in  early  life  for  a  number  of  terms.  He  was  also  for 
a  number  of  years  station  agent  and  telegraph  operator  on  the  Michigan 
Central  Railroad.  In  1883  lie  was  married  to  Aliss  Alary  Alice  Bridge 
and  removed  to  Jonesville.  where  he  engaged  in  merchandising  for  four 
years.  He  afterward  went  to  Ouincy,  Alichigan,  where  he  edited  and 
published  the  Ouincy  Herald  for  five  years,  later  conducting  the  dry 
goods  store  there  for  some  time.  On  the  first  of  April,  1S96,  he  entered 
into  partnership  with  F.  T.  Ward  and  purchased  the  Hillsdale  Standard 
of  F.  W.  Rolston,  continuing  in  charge  of  the  paper  until  the  time  of 
his  demise,  which  occurred  December  17,  1898.  He  always  published  a 
thoroughly  modern  and  up-to-date  paper,  devoted  to  general  interests 
and  the  dissemination  of  local  news,  and  he  ever  stood  for  public 
progress  and  improvement,  using  his  influence  as  a  journalist  for  the 
betterment  of  the  communities  with  which  he  was  connected.  While 
living  in  Hillsdale  he  also  conducted  a  lx)Ot  and  shoe  store  for  a  few 
months  prior  to  his  death. 

Mrs.  Joiner  has  devoted  her  life  to  art  for  the  past  fifteen  years, 
having  been  a  student  under  Professor  Knight,  of  Hillsdale,  and  Pro- 
fessor Harding,  of  Jonesville.  She  does  now  superior  work  in  oil  and 
water  colors  and  pastel,  and  has  produced  some  highly  artistic  work 
in  landscape  and  marine  views,  flowers  and  portraits.  She  was  also  a 
teacher  of  music  for  many  years,  but  now  gives  her  attention  to  paint- 
ing and  has  gained  much  more  than  local  reputation  in  her  art.  Airs. 
Joiner  is  well  known  in  this  part  of  the  count\^  both  by  reason  of  per- 
sonal worth  and  the  fact  that  she  is  connected  with  one  of  its  most  hon- 
ored pioneer  families,  and  she  deserves  prominent  mention  in  this 
volume. 

ARTHUR  E.  BAILEY. 

Arthur  E.  Bailev.  editor  and  proprietor  of  the  Alarcellus  Ncrvs, 
was  born  in  Liverpool,  Aledina  county,  Ohio,  in  1864,  his  parents  being 
James  E.  and  Hannah  Sophia  (Kirby)  Bailey,  both  of  whom  were 
natives  of  the  Buckeye  state.  The  father  was  of  English  lineage,  was  a 
wagon  maker  by  trade  and  died  three  years  after  the  hirth  of  our  sub- 
ject, passing  awav  in  the  faith  of  the  Alethodist  Episcopal  church,  oi 
which  he  was  a  consistent  member.  His  wife,  who  was  also  of  English 
lineage,  survived  her  husband  for  but  a  brief  period.  She  was  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Baptist  church.  In  their  family  were  a  daughter  and  a  son, 
the  former,  Alice,  being  a  resident  of  Alarcellus. 


566  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTV 

The  son,  .Vrlliur  E.  Bailey,  largely  acquired  liis  education  in  the 
schoo  s  oi  Cassupohs  for  his  n.othcr  removed  to  the  vicinky  ol  tlm 
city  alter  her  husband's  death,  and  the  children  were  reared  by  relative's 
He  mastered  the  branches  taught  in  the  high  school  of  that  place,  after 
which  he  learned  the  printer's  trade  in  the  office  of  the  fi^ilaiit  of 
Cassopohs,  under  the  direction  of  .Messrs.  Shepard  &  Alanslield  He 
entered  the  ollice  ni  the  capacity  of  "devil"  and  gradually  worked  his 
way  upward  untd  he  had  become  manager  of  the  paper.  He  was  ap- 
ponited  postmaster  at  Cassopohs  under  President  Harrison,  holding  the 
position  for  tour  and  a  half  years  as  a  successor  of  L.  H.  Glover  After 
retiring  from  that  i>osition  he  purchased  the  Marcellus  A'czcs  of  C  E 
Davis  and  is  now  its  editor  and  proprietor.  The  paper  was  founded  in 
1S77  and  at  present  is  a  six-column  quarto,  published  weekly.  It  has  a 
large  circulation,  has  a  good  ad\ertising  patronage,  is  a  non-partisan 
sheet  and  is  ably  edited. 

In  October,  1892,  .Mr.  Bailey  was  married  to  Miss  Fanchon  Stock- 
dale,  who  was  born  in  Jefferson  township,  Cass  county,  in  February, 
1S72  and  IS  a  daughter  of  Anthony  and  Jeanette  (Smith)  Stockdale'. 
Her  father  was  one  of  the  pioneer  settlers  of  Jefferson  township.  Mr 
and  Mrs..  Bailey  have  two  cliil<lrcn  :  Agnes,  who  was  born  in  August 
1893;  and  Harold,  born  in  July,  1S96.  The  parents  are  consistent  and 
faithful  members  of  the  Baptist  church,  in  the  work  of  which  Mr.  Bailey 
takes  a  very  active  part  and  is  now  serving  as  one  of  its  officers.  He 
belongs  to  the  Masonic  fraternity  and  in  politics  is  a  Republican.  He 
has  held  village  offices  in  Marcellus  and  is  now  serving  as  a  trustee.  Fie 
is  the  champion  of  everything  pertaining  to  the  welfare  and  upbuilding 
pf  this  part  of  the  state,  and  his  efforts  in  behalf  of  public  improvemeiit 
in  Marcellus  have  been  far-reaching  and  beneficial. 

HENRY  FI.   BOWEN. 

Henry  H.  Bowen,  one  of  the  old  settlers  of  the  county,  who  has 
assistcil  in  clearing  and  developing  four  farms,  and  thus  contributing 
in  large  measure  to  the  agricultural  improvement  of  this  section  of  the 
state,  is  now  the  owner  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  acres  of  good  and  well 
improved  land  on  section  16,  Porter  township.  He  is,  moreover,  one 
of  the  native  sons  of  Michigan,  his  birth  having  occurred  at  Plymouth 
Corners,  near  Detroit,  in  Washington  county,  on  the  20th  of  March, 
1839.  Fle  was  the  fourth  member  of  a  family  of  nine  children  bi^rn  of 
the  marriage  of  Joseph  and  Sallic  .\nn  (.\ustin)  Bowen.  both  of  whom 
were  nati\cs  of  Xew  Y'ork.  In  the  year  1840  Joseph  Bowen  came  with 
his  family  to  Cass  county,  settling  in  north  Porter  township,  and 
throughout  his  remaining  days  his  attention  was  devoted  to  general 
agricultural  pursuits,  which  indeed  he  made  his  life  work.  He  passed 
aw'ay  at  the  ad\anced  age  of  seventy-nine  years,  respected  and  honored 
by  all  who  knew  him,  and  his  wife,  who  was  a  most  worthy  and  esti- 


HISTORY  Ol-   CASS  COUNTY  5ti7 

mable  lady,  also  departed  this  life  in  Cass  county,  her  remains  being 
interred  in  Porter  township. 

H.  H.  Bowen,  of  this  review,  lacked  eight  days  of  being  a  year  old 
when  brought  by  liis  parents  to  Cass  county,  and  upon  the  old  home 
farm  in  Porter  township  lie  was  reared.  At\he  usual  age  he  began  his 
education,  the  little  '•temple  of  learning"'  being  a  log  building  such  as 
was  common  in  the  early  days.  Its  furnishings  were  primitive,  con- 
sisting of  rude  benches  and  a  table,  behind  which  the  teacher  sat  ruling 
over  the  little  kingdom.  The  room  was  heated  with  a  large  fireplace 
and  the  school  work  was  ungraded,  the  pupils  studying  the  branches 
that  they  wished.  The  larger  pupils  attended  only  through  the  winter 
months,  for  their  services  were  needed  upon  the  farms  during  the  spring, 
summer  and  fall  seasons.  Air.  Bowen  remained  continuously  on  the 
old  farm  until  the  age  of  eighteen.  He  has  assisted  in  clearing  four 
different  farms  in  the  county.  In  his  youth  he  aided  in  the  arduous 
task  of  developing  new  land,  turning  the  first  furrows  on  many  an  acre. 
His  early  boyhood  was  largely  a  period  of  strenuous  toil,  but  he  de- 
veloped thereby  the  practical  knowledge,  and  gained  the  experience  that 
enabled  him  to  carefully  and  successfully  carry  on  farming  interests 
when  he  started  out  upon  an  active  business  career.  He  remained 
at  home  through  his  minority  and  when  twenty-four  years  of  age  was 
united  in  marriage  on  the  6th  of  April,  1863,  to  Miss  Diana  Charles, 
a  daughter  of  Rufus  K.  and  Emeline  (Joy)  Charles,  the  former  a  native 
of  North  Carolina  and  the  latter  of  Xew  York.  Mrs.  Bowen,  who  was 
the  eldest  of  their  three  children,  was  born  in  Porter  township,  Cass 
county,  September  13.  1842.  her  parents  having  there  located  at  an 
early  day  in  the  pioneer  epoch  of  Michigan's  history.  The  family  home 
was  upon  the  farm  and  she  was  trained  to  the  duties  of  the  household. 
so  that  she  was  well  qualified  to  take  charge  of  a  home  of  her  own  at 
the  time  of  their  marriage.  The  young  couple  began  their  domestic 
life  upon  a  part  of  the  old  Bowen  homestead,  where  they  yet  reside,  and 
Mr.  Bo\ven  devoted  his  time  and  energies  to  the  tilling  of  the  soil  until 
the  early  part  of  1865.  when,  in  response  to  the  country's  call  for  further 
aid  in  the  suppression  of  the  rebellion  in  the  south,  he  offered  his  serv- 
ices and  was  assigned  to  duty  with  Company  A,  of  the  Twenty-fourth 
Michigan  Volunteers,  serving  with  that  regiment  until  the  close  of  the 
war.  He  is  now  a  memljer  of  William  J.  May  Post,  Xo.  64.  G.  A.  R., 
at  Jones,  and  thus  maintain?  pleasant  relations  with  his  old  army  com- 
rades. He  has  filled  various  offices  in  the  post,  including  that  of  com- 
mander. His  political  allegiance  has  always  been  given  to  the  Repub- 
lican partv.  of  which  he  "^is  a  stanch  advocate,  and  he  has  labored 
earnestlv  and  effectively  for  the  welfare  of  the  party  in  this  locality. 
His  first  presidential  ballot  was  cast  for  Abraham  Lincoln  in  1860.  and 
lie  again  voted  for  the  martyred  president  in  1864.  In  fact  he  has 
assisted  in  electing  every  Reiniblican  president  of  the  nation.  Called 
to  public  office,   he  has  served  as  constable  in  the  township,  was  also 


^*^«  HISTORY  UF  CASS  CUUXTY 

Ireasui-er  and  lillcd  the  ol'lice  uf  tuwnship  clerk  fur  about  seven  years, 
the  duties  of  the  dhterent  positions  being  disdiarged  in  a  capable] 
prompt  and  able  manner. 

Unto  Mr.  and  Airs.  JJowen  ha\e  been  born  three  sons,  two  of  whom 
are  yet  living,  namely ;  Barnard,  of  Constantine,  Alicliigan,  and  Frank 
Raymond,  who  is  living  in  Townsend,  Montana,  where  for  about  ten 
years  he  has  occupied  a  position  as  clerk  in  the  employ  of  one  firm, 
a  fact  which  indicates  his  fidelity  to  duty.  Rufus  K.  died  at  the  age 
of  nineteen  years.  The  home  farm  comprises  one  hundred  and  sixty 
acres  of  land  on  section  i6.  Porter  township,  and  he  has  a  well  im- 
proved property,  equipped  with  many  evidences  of  progress  along  agri- 
cultural lines.  With  the  exception  of  his  first  year  Mr.  Bowen  has 
resided  continuously  in  Porter  township  throughout  his  entire  life,  and 
the  farm  upon  which  he  yet  resides  is  endeared  to  him  through  the  asso- 
ciations of  his  boyhood  as  well  as  those  of  later  manhood.  He  has 
always  been  a  busy  man,  working  persistently  and  earnestly,  realizing 
that  there  is  no  excellence  without  labor.  It  has  been  said'  that  merit 
and  success  go  lirJ<ed  together,  and  the  truth  of  this  assertion  is  proven 
in  the  life  history  of  such  men  as  H.  H.  Bow^n,  who  has  prospered 
by  reason  of  his  diligence  and  sterling  worth,  and  he  well  deserves 
mention  in  diis  volume  as  one  of  the  representative  early  settlers. 

JAMES  J.  MINNICII. 

l"l:e  Germans  and  their  descendants  have  always  been  noted  for 
their  thrift  and  enterprise.  To  the  German  farmer  the  middle  west  is 
indebted  for  the  beautiful  and  well-improved  farms,  in  the  states  of 
Michigan,  Indiana,  Illinois  and  Iowa.  Mr.  Minnich  is  a  true  represen- 
tative of  this  class  of  citizens  in  Cass  county,  Michigan.  lie  comes 
from  Pennsylvania  German  ancestry  and  is  possessed  of  those  requisites 
which  go  to  make  the  successful  stockman  and  farmer.  He  is  a  native 
of  the  Keystone  state,  born  in  Snyder  county,  October  3.  1856,  and  the 
third  in  a  family  of  thirteen  children,  nine  sons  and  four  daughters, 
born  to  Elias  and  Sophia  (Garman)  Minnich.  There  are  eight  children 
living,  namely :  Peter,  a  resident  of  Three  Oaks,  Alichigan,  is  a  fanner 
and  fruit  grower  and  is  married.  Mr.  Minnich  is  ne.xt.  Andrew,  a 
resident  of  Mason  township,  Cass  county,  is  a  manufacturer  of  cider 
and  jellies,  and  is  prosperous.  He  is  married.  Carrie,  wife  of  Rev. 
\V.  C.  Swcnk,  a  resident  of  Ida,  Alichigan,  ami  is  pastor  of  the  Evan- 
gelical church.  Charles  G.,  a  resident  of  Kalamazoo,  Michigan.  He 
is  a  composer  and  teacher  of  music.  He  graduated  under  Prof.  A.  P. 
Barlow.  He  is  married.  Ellsworth,  a  resident  of  Berrien  Springs, 
Michigan,  is  a  manufacturer  of  cider  and  jellies,  the  firm  being  styled 
the  American  Cider  Company,  and  he  is  married.  Jane  is  the  wife 
of  William  Stover,  a  resident  of  Berrien  county.  John,  a  resident  of 
Los  Angeles,  California,  is  a  machinist  and  millwright,  being  foreman  in 


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If! 

HISTORY  OF  CASS  COL'XTY  509 

a  box  factory  known  as  the  California  l'"ruit  Association.  He  is  the 
youngest  living". 

Father  iMinnich  was  born  in  Schuylkill  county,  Pennsylvania,  in 
1834,  and  he  is  yet  living  at  the  age  of  seventy-two.  He  was  educated 
in  both  the  German  and  English  languages,  and  was  a  teacher  of  writing 
in  the  early  years  of  his  manhood.  He  had  great  musical  talent.  His 
chosen  vocation  was  that  of  a  farmer.  When  he  had  reached  man's 
estate,  the  age  of  twenty-one,  he  had  no  capital.  He  was  about  four- 
teen years  of  age  when  he  came  with  his  parents  to  Snyder  county, 
Pennsylvania,  and  was  reared  and  married  there,  May  20,  1S53,  io  Miss 
Sophia  Carman.  In  1866  he  emigrated  to  the  middle  west  and  located 
at  Bristol,  Indiana.  He  purchased  seventy-two  acres  of  land  in  Mason 
township,  Cass  county,  it  being  partially  improved,  and  then  traded  it  for 
one  hundred  and  eighty  acres  in  the  same  township.  He  there  resided 
for  fourteen  years.  an<l  then  -mIiI  and  invested  in  forty  acres  in  I'crrien 
county,  but  later  sold  thirty-three  acres  and  kept  seven  acres,  and  is  now 
living  retired  in  cotiifortable  circumstances.  Fie  is  a  Republican  in 
politics.  ,  Fie  and  his  wife  are  devout  members  of  the  German  Evan- 
gelical Association.  Mother  Minnich  was  horn  in  Snyder  county,  I'enn- 
sylvania,  May  20,  1835,  and  is  living.  She  is  a  kind  and  affectionate 
mother,  and  has  reared  her  children  to  lives  of  usefulness. 

Mr.  Minnich,  of  this  review  proper,  was  alxjut  nine  years  of  age 
when  he  became  a  resident  of  Bristol,  Indiana.  liis  parents  being  poor, 
he  was  called  early  in  life  to  aid  them  in  making  a  home.  He  remained 
with  his  parents  and  gave  them  his  care  and  wage  till  the  age  of 
twenty-two,  which  indicates  that  he  surely  did  a  son's  part  in  tiie  care  of 
his  aged  father  and  mother.  Fie  received  a  ven,'  meager  education, 
mostly  obtained  through  the  aid  of  his  estimable  wife.  At  the  age  of 
twenty-one  he  could  not  exhibit  ten  dollars  as  a  foundation  to  begin  life. 
He  chose  for  his  companion  in  life  ^liss  Eliza  Kissinger,  wlio  has  proven 
to  be  a  wife  who  has  aided  him  with  her  wise  counsel  and  advice  in  the 
years  past,  in  the  building  of  their  pretty  home.  They  were  married  July 
30,'  1876.  and  when  they  liegan  life  for  a  short  time  they  resided  with 
his  parents.  Then,  concluding  to  have  a  home  of  their  own,  they  took 
twenty  dollars  of  the  fifty  dollars  which  Mrs.  Minnich  had  saved  and 
purchased  a  little  cheap  outfit  of  furniture  and  set  up  a  little  home  of 
their  own,  but  after  a  short  time  they  returned  to  reside  with  ^Ir.  Min- 
nich's  parents.  They  began  ver\-  modestly  as  renters,  as  is  oftentimes 
said,  began  at  the  lowest  round  of  the  ladder  of  life,  but  they  made  a 
firm  resolution  to  make  a  success  of  their  lives.  Tlie  first  land  they 
purchased  was  thirteen  acres  near  the  village  of  Sailor,  jMichigan,  in 
1888,  and  they  went  m  debt  for  most  of  it.  There  was  not  a  sign  of  an 
improvement  on  the  little  place.  They  entered  into  the  work  with 
zealousness  and  erected  a  good  residence  and  excellent  outbuildings, 
and  resided  there  two  vears,  then  renting  it,  and  removed  to  Berrien 


670  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COl'XTV 

county,  and  there  they  lived  four  years,  and  then  returned  to  Mason 
township,  this  being  in  i8(;j.  and  here  resided  till  1904,  when  they  sold 
their  little  place.  They  then  moved  upon  the  farm  where  they  now  re- 
side, which  comprises  one  hundred  and  ten  acres  of  hue  land,  which  at 
that  time  was  terribly  run  down, — dilapidated  fences,  tumble-down 
buildings,  and  the  whole  place  presenting  a  very  discouraging  proposi- 
tion. 

Air.  and  Mrs.  Minnich  set  to  wurk  with  that  true  German  charac- 
teristic to  make  a  model  farm,  which  they  surelv  have  done.  They 
have  erected  a  pretty  country  residence,  fitted  up  in  city  style,  with 
large  and  comniudious  rooms,  nicely  and  cosily  furnished,  and  handy 
and  homelike  for  the  housewife,  an  excellent  cemented  cellar,  the  water 
piped  through  the  house,  and  the  grounds  nicely  laid  out,  which  indi- 
cates hard  and  unremitting  toil.  New  fences  have  been  built,  also  a 
new  windmill,  the  outbuildings  have  all  been  overliauled,  and  the  sur- 
roundings now  present  the  healthy,  clean  appearance  of  a  model  country- 
home,  as  the  accompanying  engraving  indicates.  Mrs.  Minnich  is  one 
of  the  most  careful  and  efficient  wives,  who  Icnows  how  to  manage  and 
superintend  her  home.  She  is  a  native  of  Elkhart  county,  Indiana,  born 
.  Septemlier  2,  1858,  and  she  is  the  eldest  in  a  family  of  si.x  chiklrcn.  two 
sons  and  four  daughters,  born  tu  William  and  Caroline  (Stoner)  Kis- 
singer. There  are  five  of  the  children  living,  viz. :  r^Irs.  Minnicli  is 
the  oldest;  Frances,  widow  of  Cullen  Green,  a  resident  of  Elkhart, 
Indiana;  Mary,  wife  of  William  Skeer,  a  resident  of  Elkhart,  Indiana, 
and  he  is  a  mechanic;  Charles  A.,  a  resident  of  Fllkhart,  Indiana,  and  a 
moulder  by  trade,  wedded  Miss  May  Finch;  John  E.,  a  resident  of 
Mishawaka,  Indiana,  who  owns  property  in  that  place  and  also  in  South 
Bend,  Indiana,  is  a  pit  moukler  and  is  a  receiver  of  high  wages.  He 
wedded  Miss  Jennie  Lintsenmcyer.     He  is  the  youngest. 

Feather  Kissinger  was  born  in  Lancaster  county.  Pennsylvania. 
June  10,  1830.  and  died  July  28.  1895.  He  was  an  agriculturist.  He 
came  to  Stark  county,  Ohio,  with  his  parents  when  but  a  Ix^y  and  was 
reared  and  educated  in  that  county.  He  received  a  good  education  in 
the  common  schools,  and  also  a  short  course  in  college.  He  was  mar- 
ried in  Stark  county.  He  was  a  soldier  in  the  Civil  war,  serving  his 
country  till  he  received  his  honorable  and  final  discharge,  and  was  an 
ardent  Republican  in  politics.  In  the  early  years  of  his  life  he  was  a 
member  of  the  Dunkard  church.  He  came  to  Elkhart  county  in  an  early 
day  and  there  died.  ]Mrs.  Kissinger  was  born  in  Stark  county,  Ohio, 
November  31,  1840,  and  died  October  11,  1S78.  in  Elkhart  county. 
She  was  reared  in  old  Stark  county.  She  was  always  known 
as  a  good  and  kind  woman,  good  and  charitable  to  the  poor 
and  needy.  Mrs.  Minnich  was  torn,  reared  and  educated  in 
Elkhart  county,  Indiana.  To  the  marriage  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Jacob 
Minnich  have  been  born  three  sons,  all  living,  viz.:     Charles  W.,  wlio 


PIISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTV  571 

v/as  educated  in  the  common  scliools.  He  is  a  practical  stockman  and 
farmer.  He  is  now  located  at  Gray's  Harbor,  Washington,  near  the  Pa- 
cific ocean.  He  controls  three  hundred  and  eighty  acres  of  land  near 
there  and  owns  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  in  Idaho.  He  is  a  very 
prosperous  young  man.  He  wedded  Miss  Ida  Traub,  and  they  have  one 
little  son,  Paul.  Edwin  J.  is  located  in  Aberdeen,  Washington,  and  has 
four  lots  in  the  town  and  two  hundred  acres  near  Elma,  Washington. 
He  wedded  ]\Iiss  Myrtle  Ullery.  He  was  a  soldier  in  the  Philippine  con- 
test, being  there  and  on  the  ocean  for  eighteen  months.  He  received 
his  honorable  discharge,  and  -was  always  true  to  the  "Stars  and  Stripes." 
Herbert  F.  is  the  youngest  and  is  also  located  at  .\berdeen,  Washin.gton. 
He  is  a  young  man  who  commands  many  friends  by  his  open  and  frank 
disposition.     Mr.  and  Mrs.  Minnich  may  well  be  proud  of  their  sons. 

Mr.  Minnicli  is  a  Republican,  true  and  loyal  to  the  principles  of 
this  grand  old  party,  and  cast  his  first  presidential  vote  for  Hayes,  hav- 
ing always  upheld  the  bvinner  of  Republicanism.  Officially  he  served  as 
highway  commissioner  for  two  terms.  F'or  his  honesty  of  character  the 
St.  Louis  &  S.  W.  Railroad  Company  in  the  years  1900  and  1901  se- 
lected him  as  immigration  agent  in  the  states  of  Arkansas,  Texas  and 
the  Southwest,  and  presented  him  quarterly  passes  over  all  their  lines. 
For  his  efficiency  they  offered  him  a  gonrl  salary  to  take  up  the  work, 
but  he  preferred  to  pursue  his  calling,  that  of  a  farmer.  Fraternally  he 
belongs  to  the  Grange.  Both  he  and  his  wife  are  members  of  the  United 
Brethren  church  at  Sailor,  Michigan,  and  have  always  been  active  in 
the  Sunday-school  work.  Pie  is  a  lover  of  good  stock  and  has  the 
Duroc  swine  and  good  standard  bred  horses  and  cattle. 

In  the  years  1900  and  1901  ^Ir.  and  ]Mrs.  ^linnich  took  an  ex- 
tended journey  to  the  Pacific  slope  to  visit  their  children  and  meet  their 
son  Edwin  on  hi?  return  frnm  the  Philippine  war.  Tliey  had  a  lovely 
trip,  crossing  the  straits  to  Vancouver  Island,  and  then  returning  to  the 
east  through  Canada,  via  the  Canadian  Pacific,  passing  through  some  of 
the  most  beautiful  scenery  in  the  great  northwest.  We  are  pleased  to 
present  this  review  of  this  worthy  omple  to  be  recorded  in  The  Twen- 
tieth Century  History  of  Cass  County,  ^Michigan. 

ERNEST  SHILLITO,  ^I.  D. 

Dr.  Ernest  Shillito,  whose  capability  in  the  practice  of  his  profes- 
sion is  indicated  by  the  liberal  patronage  accorded  him  and  by  the 
favorable  mention  made  of  him  throughout  the  comnnmity  in  which 
he  makes  bis  home,  was  horn  in  Espyville.  Pennsylvania,  in  1S64,  his 
parents  being  George  and  Amanda  (Slocum)  Shillito.  the  former  a 
native  of  Pennsvlvania  and  the  latter  of  Vermont.  The  father,  whose 
birth  occurred  in  Espyville.  was  of  Irish  descent,  his  father  having  emi- 
grated from  the  Emerald  Isle  to  the  I'nited  States  in  1800.  George 
Shillito  was  a  farmer  by  occupation  and  became  well-to-do  through  the 


572  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

careful  management  of  his  agricultural  and  stock  buying  interests.  He 
held  membership  in  the  Methodist  Episcopal  church  and  gave  his  politi- 
cal support  to  the  Republican  party.  He  died  in  1893,  at  the  age  of 
seventy  years,  and  is  still  survived  by  Mrs.  Sliillito,  who  is  living  in 
Grove  City,  Pennsylvania,  at  the  age  of  seventy-four  years.  She  is  of 
English  descent  and  members  of  the  family  served  in  the  Revolutionary 
war.  She  belongs  to  the  Methodist  Episcopal  church  and  has  been  a 
devoted  wife  and  mother  and  earnest  Christian  woman.  In  the  family 
were  the  following  children:  Arthur  M.,  attorney-at-law  of  Chicago'; 
Fred,  a  practicing  physician  at  Kalamazoo;  Amos  G.,  who  is  engaged 
in  the  practice  of  medicine  at  Independence.  Iowa;  Georgiana,  the  wife 
of  Edward  Eithian.  a  manufacturer  of  gas  engines  of  Grove  Citv, 
Pennsylvania :  Ernest,  of  this  review,  and  Hosaih,  deceased. 

Dr.  Shillito,  whose  name  introduces  this  record,  was  reared  upon 
his  father's  farm  and  after  attending  the  country  schools  became  a  high 
school  student  in  Linesville.  Pennsylvania,  while  subsequently  he  at- 
tended the  Stale  Normal  School  at  Edinboro,  Pennsylvania,  and  also 
Allegheny  College  in  that  state.  In  1886  he  entered  the  medical  depart- 
ment of  the  slate  university  of  ^Michigan  at  Ann  Arbor,  and  was  gradu- 
ated from  the  College  of  Physicians  and  Surgeons  of  Chicago  in  18SS. 
He  then  entered  upon  the  practice  of  his  profession  in  Marcellus  in 
July  of  that  year,  and  has  since  followed  his  chosen  calling  here  with 
•splendid  success. 

-  In  1897  Dr.  Shillito  was  married  to  Miss  Sadie  I\I.  Warsom.  who 

was  born  in  Sturgis,  Michigan,  in  1875.  Her  father  was  a  pioneer 
farmer  of  Indiana.  Dr.  Shillito  is  a  Republican  in  his  political  views 
but  has  never  sought  or  desired  office.  He  belongs  to  the  Masonic 
fraternity  and  to  the  State  ^ledical  Association,  and  through  his  con- 
nection with  the  latter  keeps  in  touch  with  the  advanced  thought  of  the 
medical  fraternity.  He  has  never  sought  activity  outside  of  the  regular 
routine  of  active  practice,  but  with  an  ability  that  enables  him  to  master 
the  diflkult  problems  of  medical  and  surgical  practice  he  has  gained  a 
gratifying  patronage. 

RAYMOND  S.  HALLIGAN,  M.  D. 

Although  one  of  the  vounger  members  of  the  medical  fraternity 
in  Cass  county.  Dr.  Halligan,  who  is  practicing  in  Marcellus,  seems  not 
to  be  limited  by  his  years  in  the  e.xtent  of  his  practice  or  in  the 
ability  w^ith  which  he  copes  with  the  difficult  probleins  that  continually 
confront  the  physician.  He  has  been  very  successful  in  his  work,  and 
is  now  accorded  a  gratifying  patronage.  He  was  born  in  .\lbion,  Ne- 
braska, in  1878.  and  is  a  son  of  John  and  Ellen  Halligan,  the  former  a 
native  of  Ireland  and  a  farmer  by  occupation. 

After  acquiring  his  literary  education  in  the  district  schools.  Dr. 
Halligan,   of   this    review,   having   determined   upon   the  profession   of 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY  573 

medicine  as  a  life  work,  spent  three  years  as  a  student  in  the  medical 
department  of  the  University  of  Miciiisjan,  and  was  afterward  a  student 
in  the  meihcal  department  of  the  Northwestern  University  at  Chicago, 
Illinois,  in  lyOJ.  He  then  entered  u[xjn  the  active  work  of  his  profes- 
sion in  Sault  Ste.  IMarie.  where  he  remained  for  eight  months,  and  was 
then  interne  at  a  hospital  at  Saginaw,  Michigan.  While  interne  he 
graduated  from  Saginaw  Medical  College  in  1903.  On  the  ist  of  June, 
1903,  he  came  to  Marcellus,  where  he  has  since  been  remarkably  suc- 
cessful in  his  chosen  field  of  endeavor.  In  1904  Dr.  Ilalligan  was 
united  in  marriage  to  Miss  Anna  Kalthoff,  a  daughter  of  Caspar  Kal- 
thoff,  of  Erie,  Pennsylvania.  She  died  September  12,  1904,  and  Dr. 
Halligan  wedded  ]\Iiss  Ethel  Apted,  of  Marcellus,  May  17,  1906.  They 
have  won  many  friends  among  the  residents  of  Marcellus,  the  hospi- 
tality of  the  best  homes  of  the  city  being  extended  to  them. 

Dr.  Halligan  belongs  to  the  Modern  Woodmen  camp  and  the  Mac- 
cabees tent,  and  he  is  medical  examiner  for  both  orders.  In  politics  he 
is  a  Republican,  but  witliout  political  aspiration,  preferring  to  give  his 
time  and  attention  to  his  professional  duties. 

FRANK  ENGLE. 

The  farming  interests  of  Pokagon  township  have  a  worthy  repre- 
sentative in  Frank  Engle,  who  is  living  on  section  14,  where  he  owns 
and  operates  a  good  farm  that  is  equipped  with  modern  conveniences 
and  improvements.  He  is  a  native  son  of  Michigan,  his  birth  having 
occurred  in  \^an  Buren  county  on  the  i6th  of  September,  ■  1855.  His 
father,  Benjamin  Franklin  Engle,  was  born  in  Allegany  county.  New 
Y^ork,  on  the  2nd  of  April,  1S33,  and  was  the  fifth  in  order  of  birth  in  a 
family  of  seven  children.  In  June,  1S44,  when  a  youth  of  eleven  years, 
he  became  a  resident  of  Van  Buren  county,  Michigan,  to  which  district 
he  removed  with  his  parents.  There  he  spent  about  twenty-one  years, 
and  in  1S65  he  came  to  Cass  county,  taking  up  his  abode  in  LaGrange 
township.  Upon  this  place  he  built  a  house  and  then  with  characteristic 
energy  began  the  improvement  of  his  eighty-acre  farm,  which  he  placed 
under  a  high  state  of  cultivation.  In  addition  to  the  tilling  of  the  soil 
and  the  raising  of  cereals  best  adapted  to  soil  and  climate,  he  also  devoted 
considerable  attention  to  fruit  culture.  He  was  married  on  the  23d  of 
December.  1854.  to  iliss  Lovina  Elliott,  a  daughter  of  Jonathan  Elliott. 
This  union  was  blessed  with  five  children.  Frank.  May,  Silas,  Hattie 
and  Laura,  but  the  last  named  is  now  deceased.  All  were  born  in  A^'an 
Buren  county,  but  were  reared  and  educated  in  Cass  county.  In  the 
course  of  an'  active  business  career  Mr.  Engle  was  always  respected  by 
reason  of  his  genuine  worth  and  fair  dealing,  never  being  known  to  take 
advantage  of  the  necessities  of  his  fellow  men  in  any  trade  transaction. 
In  politics  he  voted  with  the  Republican  party,  but  was  without  aspira- 
tion for  office  for  himself.     His  wife  passed  away  February  3,  1901. 


674  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

Frank  Engle  spent  the  first  ten  years  of  his  life  in  the  county  of  his 
nativity  and  then  with  his  parents  took  up  his  abode  on  what  is'  known 
as  the  old  farm  homestead  in  LaGrange  township.  He  assisted  in  the 
arduous  task  of  clearing  the  fields  and  planting  tiie  crops,  and  remained 
on  the  old  home  farm  until  1896,  when  he  removed  to  his  present  jjlnce 
of  residence — a  well  improved  farm  of  eighty  acres  in  Pokagon  town- 
ship. His  time  and  attention  have  since  been  given  to  the  further  de- 
velopment of  this  property  and  through  the  rotation  of  crops,  the  use  of 
modern  machinery  and  the  exercise  of  practical  common  sense  in  his 
work  he  has  won  a  comfortable  competence  and  made  for  himself  a 
place  among  the  substantial  agriculturists  of  his  community.  Fie  has 
set  out  a  good  orchard  oa  his  place  which  yields  its  fruits  in  season, 
and  he  has  also  made  other  impro\ements  in  keeping  with  the  modern 
spirit  of  agricultural  progress. 

On  the  28th  of  March.  1878,  Mr.  Engle  was  married  to  ■Miss  Lou 
M.  Tremmel,  a  daughter  of  Jacob  and  Martha  (Woods)  Tremmel. 
The  Woods  family  were  the  thirfl  white  family  to  settle  in  Berrien 
county,  Michigan,  and  they  came  to  Cass  county  in  1S54,  taking  up 
their  abode  in  Howard  township.  It  was  upon  that  place  that  Mrs. 
Engle  was  born  and  reared,  being  the  third  in  a  family  of  eight  children, 
of  whom  two  are  now  deceased.  Her  father  died  in  December,  1879, 
and  was  sun-ived  by  bis  wife  until  January,  1SS3,  when  she,  too, 
passed  away.  ^Ir.  and  Mrs.  Fugle  have  become  the  parents  of  three 
children,  of  whrjm  two  are  living:  Lena,  born  August  31,  1879;  and 
Mable,  born  April  25.  1886.  The  youngest,  Walter,  was  born  January 
21,  1889,  and  died  on  the  i^tb  of  June,  ic)04.  Mable  and  \\'altcr  were 
born  in  Morgan  county,  Indiana,  while  Lena's  birth  occurred  on  the 
old  home  farm  in  this  county. 

Mr.  Engle  is  a  stanch  advocate  of  temperance  principles,  as  is  indi- 
cated by  the  fact  that  lie  exercises  bis  right  of  franchise  in  support  of 
the  candidates  of  the  Prohibition  party.  He  belongs  to  the  Independent 
Order  of  Odd  Fellows  of  Pokagon,  and  holds  membership  in  the  Meth- 
odist Episcopal  church  at  Dowagiac.  In  all  life's  relations  he  is  found 
loyal  to  the  trust  reposed  in  him.  and  be  earnestly  espouses  and  sup- 
ports every  cause  in  which  be  l^elieves. 

SAMUEL  F.  SKINNER. 

Samuel  F.  Skinner,  who  is  successfully  carrying  on  general  farm- 
ing on  section  12,  Porter  township,  was  bom  October  t6,  1853,  in  this 
county,  his  parents  being  Nathan  and  Sophia  fDayhuff)  Skinner.  He 
is  the'  voungest  in  a  familv  of  four  children,  one  of  whom  died  in  in- 
fancy. '  His  voutb  was  passed  in  bis  native  township  and  his  education 
was  acquired  in  the  district  schools,  where  he  mastered  the  usual  branches 
of  English  learning.  He  was  trained  to  farm  work  and  early  learned 
the  best   methods   and  time  of  planting  and   cultivating  the  fields,   so 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  575 

tliat  when  he  began  farming  on  his  own  account  he  had  good  practical 
experience  to  aid  him.  As  a  companion  and  helpmate  for  htVs  journey 
he  chose  Miss  Rachel  .Maria  Roof,  a  daughter  of  Daniel  and  Catherine 
(Eberhard)  Roof,  the  parents  being  early  settlers  and  well  known  farm- 
ing people  of  Porter  township,  where  Mrs.  Skinner  was  born.  Her 
father  is  now  deceased  but  her  mother  is  still  living,  and  has  reached 
the  very  advanced  age  of  eighty-seven  years.  ;Mrs.  Skinner  is  the  only 
daughter  and  the  younger  of  two  children,  her  brother  being  David 
Roof.  One  daughter  has  been  born  of  this  union,  Mary  R.,  who 
graduated  in  the  high  school  at  \\andalia  in  the  class  of  1895,  and  she 
spent  almost  two  years  in  Albion  College  studying  music,  and  is  now 
a  teacher  of  instrumental  music.  It  was  Xovember  26,  1874,  that 
Raciiel  AI.  Roof  gave  her  hand  in  marriage  to  Mr.  Skinner,  and  they 
located  upon  the  old  homestead  farm,  where  they  lived  for  one  year. 
On  the  expiration  of  that  period  they  removed  to  section  2,  Porter 
township,  where  he  carried  on  general  fanning,  placing  his  fields  under 
a  high  state  of  ailtivation.  There  he  resided  until  he  again  located 
upon  the  old  homestead  farm,  where  he  remained  until  1890,  when  he 
removed  to  his  present  place  of  residence  on  section  12,  Porter  town- 
ship. Here  he  has  a  farm  of  one  hundred  and  twenty  acres,  and  the 
soil  is  rich  and  alku'ial,  responding  readily  to  the  cultivation  placed 
thereon,  so  that  he  annually  harvests  good  crops.  In  addition  to  the 
raising  of  the  cereals  best  ada])ted  to  soil  and  climate  he  is  also  engaged 
in  stock  raising,  making  a  six?cialty  of  high  grade  hogs.  In  both 
branches  of  his  business  he  has  met  with  very  gratifying  success  and  is 
now  one  of  the  prosperous  aiul  enterprising  agriculturists  of  Porter 
township. 

When  age  conferred  upon  Mr.  Skinner  the  right  of  franchise  he 
identified  his  interests  with  those  of  the  Republican  party,  which  he  has 
continuously  and  loyally  supported.  As  every  true  .American  citizen 
should  do,  iie  keeps  well  informed  on  the  questions  and  issues  of  the  day 
and  has  taken  an  active  and  helpful  part  in  the  support  of  the  party  in 
which  he  belie\es.  He  was  justice  of  the  peace  for  several  years,  ren- 
dering decisions  which  were  strictly  fair  and  impartial.  He  was  also 
constable,  and  in  1901  he  was  elected  township  supen-isor.  to  which 
position  he  has  since  been  re-elected,  so  that  he  has  held  the  office 
continuously  for  five  years,  being  the  incumbent  at  the  present  time. 
He  has  also  served  as  school  oft'icer  since  he  attained  the  age  of  twenty- 
one  years,  and  the  cause  of  education  finds  in  him  a  warm  and  helpful 
friend,  for  he  does  all  in  his  power  to  advance  the  success  of  the  schools 
through  the  employment  of  good  teachers  and  upholding  the  standard 
of  instruction.  He  belongs  to  Tent  No.  805.  Knisrhts  of  the  Maccabees, 
at  Jones,  and  Tvlrs.  Skinner  to  the  L.  O.  T.  M..  Hive  No.  353.  He  is  a 
member  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  church  in  that  village,  and  is  very 
active  and  helpful  in  church  work,  sen-ing  as  one  of  the  trustees  and 
co-operating  in  various  lines  of  church  activity.     During  fifty-two  years 


576  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

he  has  Hved  in  Porter  township,  and  that  his  hfe  has  been  honorable 
and  upright  is  indicated  by  the  fact  that  many  of  his  stanchcst  friends 
are  numliered  among  those  who  have  known  him  from  boyhood  to  the 
present  time. 

EDWARD  T.  AIOTLEY. 

Edward  T.  Motley  is  now  the  owner  of  a  well  improved  farm 
comprising  two  hundred  and  thirty-one  acres,  situated  on  section  lo, 
Porter  township,  and  his  careful  sujiervision  and  practical  labors  are 
indicated  in  the  neat  and  thrifty  appearance  of  the  place.  He  is  one  of 
the  native  sons  of  this  township,  his  birth  having  here  occurred  on  the 
7th  of  October,  1848.  In  the  paternal  line  he  comes  of  English  lineage. 
His  father,  James  Motley,  was  born  in  Lincolnshire,  England,  in 
August,  1805,  was  there  reared  and  educated,  and  in  that  country  was 
first  married.  He  had  one  daughter.  Elizabeth,  who  is  now  the  wife 
of  Samuel  H.  Gilbert,  one  of  the  early  settlers  and  worthy  citizens  of 
Porter  township.  It  was  in  the  year  ^STty  that  James  Motley  came  to 
Michigan,  settling  fir?t  in  Washtenaw  county,  where  he  remained  for 
three  years,  when,  in  1840,  he  took  up  his  abode  in  Porter  township, 
Cass  countv  He  was  married  a  second  time.  Miss  Bethesda  McNicl 
becoming  his  wife  in  New  York.  She  w^as  born  in  New  York  and  was 
a  daughter  of  John  McNiel,  who  w-as  of  Scotch  descent.  The  parents 
of  our  subject  took  up  their  abode  on  section  23,  Porter  township,  in 
1840,  and  there  they  spent  their  remaining  days,  both  attaining  an  ad- 
vanced age,  James  ]\Iotley  passing  away  at  the  age  of  eighty-five  years, 
while  his  wife  was  in  her  eighty-first  year  when  she  was  called  to  her 
final  rest.  Thev  were  the  parents  of  nine  children,  six  of  whom  reached 
maturity,  while  four  of  the  number  are  yet  living  at  this  writing,  in  1906. 

Edward  T.  Motley,  the  seventh  child  and  fourth  son  of  the  family, 
was  reared  in  the  usual  manner  of  farm  lads  in  a  pioneer  locality.  He 
had  few  advantages,  no  event  of  special  importance  occurring  to  vary 
the  routine  of  farm  life  for  him  in  his  boyhood  days.  He  lived  with 
his  parents  on  the  old  homestead  and  acquired  his  early  education  in 
the  district  schools,  while  later  he  enjoyed  the  benefit  of  a  course  in 
Kalamazoo  College.  He  was  engaged  in  teaching  in  the  winter  seasons 
for  about  ten  years  in  Cass  countv,  and  in  Washington,  near  Walla 
Walla,  while  in  the  summer  months  he  followed  farming  on  the  old 
homestead,  and  there  resided  continuously  until  about  iqoi. 

Mr.  Motley  was  first  married  in  1882.  the  lady  of  his  choice  being 
Miss  Florence  Sharp,  and  unto  them  was  bom  a  daughter.  Florence. 
The  wife  and  mother  passed  away  in  1885.  and  in  iSQfS  ^Mr.  :Motley 
was  again  married,  his  second  union  being  with  Mrs.  Sarah  A.  Driskel, 
a  daughter  of  Peter  Smith  and  the  widow  of  Oscar  P.  Driskel.  They 
resided  on  the  old  home  place  until  TQOi.  when  Mr.  Motley  purchased 
the  farm  whereoti  he  now  resides.  It  comprises  two  hundred  and 
thirty-one  acres  of  good  land,  and  upon  the  place  is  a  substantial  resi- 


HISTORY  Ol'   CASS  COUNTY  577 

dence,  also  barns  and  oulbuildinys  for  llie  shelter  of  grain  and  stock. 
The  larni^  is  well  fenced,  there  is  good  improved  machinery,  and  in 
fact  all  of  the  equipments  of  a  model  farm  are  found  uj^in  this  place 
and  indicate  the  progressive  spirit  of  the  owner.  He  is  practical  in  his 
methods  and  has  therefore  accomplished  excellent  results,  being  now 
one  of  the  substantial  agriculturists  of  his  community. 

In  his  political  views  Mr.  Motley  is  an  earnes't  and  unfaltering 
Republiam,  and  has  been  called  to  various  township  offices.  The  first 
position  which  he  ever  held  was  that  of  township  clerk,  serving  therein 
for  two  years.  He  was  also  township  supervisor  of  schools  and  high- 
way commissioner  for  seven  years,  and  for  sixteen  years  he  acted  as 
_,ustice  of  the  peace,  in  which  office  he  was  strictly  fair  and  impartial, 
rendering  decisions  which  were  seldom  reversed  by  the  higher  courts. 
He  was  also  school  inspector,  was  township  treasurer  for  one  year  and 
has  been  supervisor.  He  was  elected  to  the  last  named  office  in  1S79, 
and  was  re-elected  in  1S86  and  again  in  18S7.  Then  after  an  interval 
of  seven  years  he  was  chosen  for  the  same  office  in  1S98,  1S99  and  1900, 
making  his  incuml:iency  in  the  office  cover  a  period  of  eight  years.  No 
higher  testimonial  of  capability  could  be  given  than  the  fact  that  he  has 
heen  so  many  times  chosen  to  positions  of  political  preferment.  He  is 
a  member  of  the  Grange  and  at  one  time  was  connected  with  the  Knights 
of  the  Maccabees.  He  has  been  a  lifelong  resident  of  Cass  county  and 
is  a  worthy  representative  of  a  prominent  pioneer  family.  The  name 
of  Motley  has  ever  stood  for  advancement  and  improvement,  not  only 
in  agricultural  lines  hut  also  in  general  citizenship,  and  like  the  others 
of  the  family,  Edward  T.  T^Iotley  has  given  his  allegiance  and  support 
to  many  movements  which  have  had  direct  and  important  bearing  upon 
the  welfare  and  upbuilding  of  the  count}'. 

BYRON  FIERO. 

Byron  Fiero  is  a  prominent  farmer  residing  on  section  5,  La- 
Grange  township.  His  liirthplace  was  a  little  log  cabin  in  this  town- 
ship and  his  natal  day  September  8,  1853.  ^^'^  father  was  Abram 
Fiero,  and  the  famdy  histoiy  is  given  on  another  page  in  this  work  in 
connection  with  the  sketch  of  John  Fiero.  a  brother  of  the  subject  of 
this  review. 

Byron  Fiero  was  the  second  child  and  second  son  in  his  father's 
family  and  was  reaied  upon  the  old  homestead  farm,  while  in  the  dis- 
trict schools  of  LaGrange  township  he  began  his  education,  which  was 
afterward  completed  in  the  high  school  of  Dowagiac.  Later  he  en- 
gaged in  teaching  school  for  seven  terms,  spending  five  terms  of  that  time 
as  teacher  in  district  No.  6  and  the  remainder  of  the  time  in  the  Dewey 
and  [Maple  Grove  districts.  When  still  a  youth  he  became  familiar  with  all 
the  work  incident  to  the  development  and  cultivation  of  a  farm,  and 
during  the  greater  part  of  his  life  has  carried  on  general  agricultural 


578  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

pursuits.  Ke  ^va?.  however,  engaged  for  three  years  in  tlie  dairv  busi- 
ness, dehvering:  milk  to  Dowagiac.  He  has  one  hundred  and'eiglUy 
acres  of  land,  most  of  which  is  under  cultivation,  and  the  well'  tilled 
fields  return  to  him  golden  harvests  for  the  lalior  that  he  he-tuws  ui)on 
the  land. 

On  the  24th  of  December.  1874,  was  celebrated  the  marriage  of 
Mr.  Fiero  and  ]\Iiss  Emma  Webster,  a  daughter  of  Nelson  and  Mary 
Weljstcr.  She  died  leaving  one  child,  Winnie,  who  is  now  the  wife 
of  Harry  Larzalere,  of  LaGrange  township.  In  1888  Mr.  I-'iero  was 
again  married,  ]\Iiss  Iva  Wright,  a  daughter  of  Milton  and  FJizaheth 
Myers  Wright,  becoming  his  wife.  They  have  a  pleasant  home  in  the 
midst  of  a  good  farm,  and  its  hospitality  is  greatly  enjoyed  by  their  many 
friends.  Mr.  Fiero  was  reared  in  the  faith  of  the  Republican  party, 
but  for  some  time  has  given  his  political  allegiance  to  the  Democracy. 
He  became  candidate  of  his  party  for  probate  judge  in  1896,  but  lost  the 
election  by  twenty-one  votes.  He  has  filled  the  office  of  township  treas- 
urer in  LaGrange  township  for  two  terms,  and  in  the  discharge  of  all 
public  duties  has  been  prompt  and  faitliful,  and  is  deeply  interested  in 
everything  pertaining  to  general  progress  and  improvement.  He  be- 
longs to  the  Modern  Woodmen  Camp  at  Dowagiac,  and  is  well  known 
in  the  county  where  his  entire  life  has  been  passed.  He  has  largely  con- 
centrated his  efforts  upon  the  management  of  his  farm,  and  has  been 
found  reliable  ni  business,  at  the  same  time  ever  manifesting  those  traits 
of  character  which  have  made  him  best  liked  where  best  known. 

SIL.-\S  H.  THOMAS. 

The  connection  of  Silas  li.  Thomas  with  the  interests  of  Cass 
county  dates  back  to  an  early  period  in  its  development  and  settlement. 
He  is  now  a  resident  of  Wandalia,  wdiere  he  is  enjoying  in  well  earned 
ease  the  fruits  of  his  former  toil.  He  was  for  many  years  closely  asso- 
ciated with  agricultural  interests  in  the  county  and  kept  in  touch  with 
the  onward  march  of  progress  along  agricultural  lines.  His  birth  oc- 
curred in  Grant  county.  Indiana,  on  the  14th  of  ]\Iay.  1S32.  His  pa- 
ternal grandfather  was  Elijah  Thomas,  a  native  of  South  Carolina,  who 
removed  from  that  state  to  Indiana,  taking  with  him  his  family  and 
casting  in  his  lot  with  the  pioneer  settlers  of  Wayne  county.  He  was 
the  father  of  Samuel  Thomas,  who  was  also  born  in  South  Carolina  and 
was  a  young  lad  at  the  time  of  his  parents'  removal  to  the  west.  He 
was  therefore  reared  and  educated  in  the  Hoo=ier  state  and  after  arriv- 
in"-  at  vears  of  maturity  was  married  there  to  Miss  Sarah  Bogue,  a  na- 
tive ofNorlh  Carolina  and  a  daughter  of  Benjamin  Bogue.  whose  birth 
occurred  in  the  same  state.  In  religious  faith  they  were  Friends  or 
Ouakers.  Soon  after  his  marriage  Samuel  Thomas  located  in  Grant 
countv,  Indiana,  where  the  towTi  of  ]\Iarion  now  stands,  and  there  he 
was   engaged   in    farming   until   his   removal   to    Penn   township,    Cass 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  oia 

county,  in  1842.  Here  he  located  on  a  part  of  tlie  land  now  comprised 
within  the  corporation  limits  of  \'andaiia  in  the  eastern  part  of  the  town. 
He  readied  the  age  of  only  forty-nine  years  and  then  passed  away,  leav- 
ing behind  the  priceless  heritage  of  an  untarnished  name,  for  his  entire 
life  was  in  harmony  with  his  professions  as  a  member  of  the  Friends' 
church.  He  took  a  \ery  active  part  in  its  work  and  was  very  deeply 
interested  in  the  cause  of  moral  development  as  well  as  material  prog- 
ress in  his  community.  Flis  wife  long  survived  him  and  passed  away 
wlicn  about  se\-enty-three  years  of  age.  In  their  family  were  seven  chil- 
dren, si.N:  sons  and  a  daughter,  and  with  one  exception  all  reached  adult 
age,  while  four  are  still  living. 

Silas  FI.  Thomas  of  this  review  was  the  third  chikl  and  third  son 
of  the  family.  He  continued  a  resident  of  his  native  county  during- 
the  hrst  ten  years  of  his  life,  after  which  he  accompanied  liis  parents 
on  their  removal  to  Cass  county.  He  was  reared  in  Penn  township, 
sharing  in  the  hardships  and  privations  of  existence  on  the  frontier. 
When  he  was  about  seventeen  years  of  age  his  father  removed  to  St. 
Joseph  county,  ^Michigan,  and  there  Silas  H.  Thomas  remained  for  six 
years,  after  wliich  he  returned  to  Penn  township.  No  event  of  special 
importance  occurred  to  vary  the  routine  of  farm  life  for  him  in  his  lx)y- 
hoofl  days.  He  pursued  his  educatirju  in  the  public  schools  and  worked 
in  the  fields  during  the  summer  months,  performing  the  farm  lalxir  with 
such  primitive  agricultural  implements  as  then  existed.  The  work  of 
the  farm  was  at  that  time  nnich  more  arduous  than  at  the  present,  when 
the  agriculturist  can  ride  over  his  fields  upon  the  planter  or  mower  and 
when  impro\cd  machinery  of  various  kinds  takes  the  place  of  hand 
labor. 

On  the  7th  of  May,  1S56,  ^Ir.  Thomas  was  united  in  marriage  to 
Miss  l-llvina  Bogue,  a  member  of  one  of  tlie  well  known  and  prominent 
pioneer  families  of  southern  I\Iichigan,  her  parents  being  Stephen  and 
Hannah  (East)  Bogue.  She  was  born  in  Penn  township  January  ig. 
1836,  and  has  spejit  lier  entire  life  in  this  township.  Fler  parents  came 
to  Cass  county  in  183 1,  and  took  up  their  abode  on  Y'oung's  Prairie 
when  much  of  the  land  was  still  in  its  primitive  condition.  The  break- 
ing plow  had  not  yet  turned  the  furrciws  upon  many  a  tract  and  it  was 
only  here  and  there  in  the  edge  of  the  forest  that  clearings  had  been 
made.  The  Piogues  were  pioneer  settlers  and  the  name  is  closely  asso- 
ciated with  the  early  anrl  substantial  development  of  this  portion  of 
Michigan.  Mr.  Bogue  made  the  journey  on  horseback  from  Preble 
county,  Ohio,  and  afterward  returned  in  the  same  manner  to  his  old 
home,  where  he  then  made  arrangements  to  bring  his  family  to  the 
wilds  of  ]\Iichigan.  IMrs.  Thomas  was  the  third  in  a  family  of  six 
children.  Fler  father  was  married  twice  and  Mrs.  Thomas  was  born 
of  the  second  marriage. 

Mr.  and  ]\Irs.  Thomas  took  up  their  abode  upon  a  rented  farm,  on 


580  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY 

whicli  they  lived  lor  three  years,  after  which  they  removed  to  the  woods 
on  section  34,  Penn  township,  their  home  being  a  h'ttle  log  cabin  twenty 
by  twenty-four  feet.  In  that  house  they  resided  until  1S71,  when  the 
present  coninsodious  and  attractive  good  farm  residence  was  built.  As 
the  years  passed  ^h:  Thomas  continued  the  work  of  clearing  and  culti- 
vating the  land  and  he  added  to  his  original  purchase  until  he  now 
owns  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres.  He  placed  the  fields  under  a  high 
state  of  cultivation,  fenced  his  land  and  added  modern  equipments  and 
accessories.  His  time  and  energies  were  devoted  to  farm  work  until  he 
retired  from  active  business,  locating  in  Vandalia  in  1904.  In  the  mean- 
time, however,  he  had  lived  in  the  village  for  seven  years  and  had  then 
again  taken  up  his  abode  on  the  farm,  where  he  continued,  as  before 
stated,  until  he  came  to  occupy  his  present  home  in  1904. 

Unto  Mr.  and  Airs.  Thomas  have  been  born  six  children :  James 
Arthur,  now  deceased;  Edwin  F.,  who  has  also  passed  away;  May  E., 
the  wife  of  Rev.  R.  \V.  Gammon,  of  Pueblo,  Colorado,  a  minister  of 
the  Congregational  church  now  located  in  Decatur,  Illinois;  Blanche  A., 
the  wife  of  C.  Al.  Ratliff,  an  attorney  at  law  of  Marion,  Indiana,  and 
a  leading  worker  in  the  ranks  of  the  Republican  party,  now  serving  as 
chairman  of  the  county  central  committee  and  a  member  of  the  commit- 
tee for  the  congressional  district  comprising  Grant  and  Blackford  coun- 
ties, but  now  retired  from  the  practice  of  law  and  now  a  farmer;  Flor- 
ence A.,  the  wife  of  Re\'.  Frank  Fox,  a  minister  of  the  Congregational 
church  at  Sioux  Falls,  South  Dakota;  and  Cora  A.,  who  died  in  1890. 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Thomas  also  have  the  following  grandchildren,  namely: 
Grace  B.,  Carlton  R..  Claude  F.,  Genevra  and  Mark  H.  Ratliff,  and 
Florence  E.,  Harold  W'.,  Clement  S.,  Mary  A.  and  Rachel  Fox.  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Thomas  reared  their  family  in  Penn  town.sliip  and  the  liv- 
ing children  were  all  married  there  with  one  exception.  Mr.  Thomas  is 
a  stalwart  Republican.  His  father  and  also  his  wife's  father  were  iden- 
tified with  the  Abolition  party  and  their  homes  were  stations  on  the 
famous  "underground  railroad,"  whereby  they  assisted  many  a  fugitive 
negro  on  his  way  to  freedom  in  the  nortli,  being  strongly  opposed  to  the 
system  of  slavery.  Both  Air.  and  Mrs.  Thomas  are  members  of  tlic 
Society  of  Friends  or  Quakers  and  he  has  been  an  elder  in  the  church 
for  twenty-five  years  and  in  its  work  has  taken  a  very  acti\-e  and  help- 
ful part.  He  is  an  honest  man,  fearless  in  defense  of  what  he  believes 
to  be  right,  active  in  support  of  many  measures  and  movements  for  the 
general  good,  and  his  personal  worth  of  character  has  endeared  him  to 
a  large  circle  of  warm  friends. 

Since  the  above  was  written  Mr.  Thomas  lost  his  dear  companion 
in  life.  They  had  almost  passed  a  half  century  together  as  husband 
and  wife,  traveling  together  hand  in  hand,  and  had  shared  alike  the  joys 
and  sorrows  of  this  life  as  loving  husband  and  wife.  The  family  cir- 
cle is  now  broken,  and  the  vacant  chair  is  seen  in  the  home.    Tlie  place 


HISTORY  UF  CASS  COUNTY  5M 

of  mutht-r  and  wile  can  never  be  filled  again.  We  append  the  ohituarj 
of  Mrs.  Thomas,  which  appeared  in  The  Cassopolis  Vigilant  April  19, 
1906: 

■'  Elvira  Bogiie  was  born  in  Penn  township  January  19.  1836,  and 
married  Silas  H.  Thomas,  who  survives  her,  I\Iay  7,  1S56.  She  died  at 
her  home  in  Vandalia  April  12,  1906.  Six  children  were  bom  to  this 
union.  'Jdiree  preceded  the  mother  by  many  years  and  three,  ^Irs.  Gam- 
mon of  Decatur,  Illinois,  Mrs.  Ratliff  of  Fairmount,  Indiana,  and  Mrs. 
Fox  of  Sioux  F'alls,  South  Dakota,  were  with  her  the  last  few  days  of 
life  to  comfort  and  console  her  in  her  great  suffering.  There  were  also 
at  her  bedside  her  sister,  ]Mrs.  Amos  Smith,  and  brothers,  W.  E.  and  S. 
A.  Bogue.  Mrs.  James  E.  Bonine,  another  sister,  was  unable  to  be  pres- 
ent. While  her  lite  liad  many  shadows,  there  was  much  of  sunshine  and 
deep  love  for  family  and  friends.  A  few  more  weeks  would  liave 
brought  the  fiftieth  anniversary  of  her  married  life.  Instead  there  is  a 
grand  reunion  over  yonder.  A  life-long  member  of  the  F'ricnds'  church, 
and  a  faithful  officer  in  the  same,  slie  worked  and  prayed  and  overcame 
and  now  rests.  Funeral  services  were  conducted  Ijy  Rev.  Stephen  Scott 
at  the  Friends"  church,  Vandalia,  Saturday  at  ten  o'clock.  Interment 
at  Prairie  Grove  cemetery.  iMfteen  members  of  the  Valentine  Associa- 
tion attended  the  funeral  and  each  one  impressively  placed  a  floral  offer- 
ing on  the  casket  of  the  departed  member." 

DAN  M.  HARVEY. 

A  valuable  farm  of  two  luni<lrcd  ;ind  twenty  acres  on  section  3, 
Porter  township,  is  the  property  of  Dan  M.  Harvey,  who  is  accounted 
one  of  the  leading  and  represcntati\e  agriculturists  of  his  community, 
early  gaining  recognition  of  the  fact  that  success  is  the  outcome  of  in- 
dustry, determination  and  laudabile  ambition,  who  has  throughout  an 
active  life  so  directed  his  efforts  that  excellent  results  have  attended 
his  labors.  His  life  record  began  on  the  i8th  of  February,  1842,  in 
Constantine  township,  St.  Joseph  county,  !\Iichigan,  and  he  represents 
oue  of  the  old  and  prominent  pioneer  families  of  the  state.  His  paternal 
grandfather,  Ejihraim  Har\-ey,  was  a  native  of  \'"ermont,  and  was  a  son 
of  Philip  Harvey,  who  was  one  of  the  heroes  of  the  Revolutionary  war, 
who  came  to  America  from  the  north  of  England,  and  when  the  colonies 
attempted  to  threv.-  off  the  yoke  of  British  oppression  he  fought  for 
independence.  Norman  Harvey,  father  of  our  subject,  was  also  a  native 
of  Vermont.  In  early  manhood  he  heard  the  "call  of  the  west."  and 
imbued  with  the  hope  of  enjoying  better  business  privileges  in  this  sec- 
tion of  the  country,  he  made  his  way  to  Michigan,  settling  in  St.  Joseph 
county  in  1832.  '  The  entire  district  was  largely  wild  and  unimproved 
and  he  took  up  land  from  the  government,  after  which  he  located  upon 
his  claim,  where  he  \\\t<\  for  some  time.  He  was  not  onl}-  connected 
with  agricultural   interests,   however,   but   also  became   a   promoter  of 


582  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY 

industrial  interests  and  built  the  first  factory  and  was  a  partner  in  the 
first  carriage  foundry  and  woolen  mills  in  that  county,  fie  also  built 
and  operated  a  large  grist  mill  and  established  the  first  hardware  and 
tinware  store  in  Constantine,  Michigan.  His  activity  and  enterprise 
proved  strong  and  potent  elements  in  the  development  of  his  part  of  the 
state  and  he  was  recognized  as  one  of  the  leading  men  of  his  community, 
who  wielded  a  wide  influence  and  left  the  impress  of  his  individuality 
for  good  upon  the  work  of  upbuilding.  As  he  prospered  in  his  under- 
takings he  i)laccd  cimsiderable  money  in  the  safest  of  all  investments — 
real  estate — am!  at  one  time  owned  more  land  than  any  other  man  in  the 
county.  He  was  extreincly  successful  in  his  business  affairs  in  accumu- 
lating money  and  land,  and  his  prosperity  was  well  merited,  not  only 
by  reason  of  the  fact  that  he  possessed  keen  discernment  in  business 
affairs  and  unfaltering  diligence,  but  also  l>ecause  his  methods  were 
ever  straightforward  and  honorable,  and  would  bear  closest  investiga- 
tion and  scrutiny.  He  also  aided  many  others  in  buying  farms,  and  in 
this  way  contributed  to  the  settlement  of  the  county.  He  was  a  good 
man,  honest  and  honorable  at  all  times,  and  was  never  known  to  take 
advantage  of  the  necessities  of  another  in  any  business  transaction.  He 
had  a  very  wide  and  favorable  acquaintance  in  the  county,  and  his 
death  was  the  occasion  of  deep  regret,  when  at  the  age  of  sixty  years 
he  was  called  from  this  life.  He  laid  out  many  roads  in  the  county 
and  otherwise  contributed  to  its  material  improvement.  He  started  the 
first  bank  in  Constantine,  and  afterward  organized  the  First  National 
Bank.  His  business  interests  were  of  a  character  that  contributed  not 
only  to  individual  success  but  also  to  the  public  prosperity,  and  his 
name  is  inscparalily  interwoven  with  the  history  of  St.  Joseph  county, 
where  he  lived  and  labored  to  such  goodly  ends.  His  early  political  sup- 
port was  given  to  the  ^\'hig  party,  but  upon  the  organization  of  the  new 
Republican  party  he  joined  its  ranks  and  remained  one  of  its  stalwart 
advociites.  He  held  manv  township  offices  and  he  also  figured  in  mili- 
tary circles,  being  captain  in  the  .state  militia.  In  early  manhood  he 
married  Miss  Rhoda  Moore,  a  native  of  Rupert,  Vemiont,  and  a 
daughter  of  Seth  IMoore,  who  was  also  born  there  and  was  of  \\'elsh 
descent.  Mrs.  Harvey  passed  away  at  the  age  of  fifty-four  years,  and 
like  her  husband  was  held  in  warm  regard,  for  she  possessed  many 
estimable  qualities  of  heart  and  mind.  This  worthy  couple  became  the 
parents  of  thirteen  children,  most  of  whom  reached  adult  age. 

Dan  M.  Harvey,  the  eighth  child  of  the  family,  was  reared  in  Con- 
stantine township  in  St.  Joseph  county,  and  was  educated  in  the  Union 
schools  at  Constantine  and  in  Hillsdale  College.  He  also  pursued  a 
commercial  course  in  Bryant  &  Stratton's  College  at  Detroit.  Mich- 
igan, and  was  thus  well  qualified  for  life's  practical  and  responsible 
duties  when  he  entered  upon  his  business  career.  He  was  thus  con- 
nected with  the  hardware  trade  at  Constantine,  where  he  established  a 
store  and  conducted  business  for  some  time.     On  disposing  of  his  hard- 


HISTORY  or  CASS  COUNTY  583 

ware  stock  lie  engai:;fcl  in  the  lumlier  business  and  also  carried  on  farm- 
ing and  stock  raising.  He  remained  a  resident  of  St.  Josei>li  county 
until  1871,  when  he  removed  to  his  present  farm  on  section  3.  Porter 
township.  He  purcha.scd  four  hundred  and  fifty  acres  of  land,  hut  in 
recent  years,  wishing  to  retire  from  active  business  life,  has  sold  part 
of  the  place  and  now  owns  two  hundred  and  twenty  acres.  All  oi  this 
land  he  operates  himself. 

Oa  the  2;-,th  of  July,  1S67,  Mr.  Harvey  was  united  in  marriage  to 
Miss  Mary  E.,  daughter  of  Pliilo  Hovey,  and  they  have  four  children: 
Helen,  died  in  infancy;  Delia,  now  the  wife  of  Rev.  Charles  Eastman, 
a  Baptist  minister:  D.  Elliert.  living  in  Constantine:  and  Mary  Alice. 
the  wife  of  Rev.  O.  V.  Wheeler,  a  minister  of  the  Baptist  denomination, 
who  occupies  the  pulpit  of  a  prominent  church  in  Chicago,  and  his  wife 
is  also  a  worker  in  the  church.  The  chihlren  have  all  received  collegiate 
training.  D.  Elbert,  the  son.  is  foreman  in  tlie  Carbolite  Factory  in 
Constantine.  Michigan.  Mr.  and  ]\Ir.>.  Harvey  have  several  of  the  old 
parchment  deeds  executed  under  the  hand  and  seal  of  President  Andrew 
Jackson,  which  are  valuable  souvenirs  in  the  family. 

Mr.  Plarvey  has  always  voted  the  Republican  ticket.  He  is  a 
member  of  the  Masonic  fraternity  and  in  his  life  exemplifies  the  benefi- 
cent spirit  of  the  craft.  He  is  well  known  in  Cass  county,  where  he 
has  now  lived  for  many  years,  and  he  has  gained  a  large  number  of 
friends  by  reason  of  his  cordial  manner,  kindly  disposition  and  affability. 
In  business  life  he  has  displayed  excellent  qualifications  and  now  he  is 
living  retired,  enjoying  the  fruits  of  former  toil. 

BRUCE    BEEBE. 

Bruce  Bcebe  is  an  honored  veteran  of  the  Civil  war  and  a  citizen 
well  worthv  of  representation  in  the  history  of  [Marcellus  and  Cass 
county,  because  be  displays  many  sterling  traits  of  character  and  the 
qualifications  of  good  citizenship  as  \\ell.  He  was  birn  in  Huron 
county.  Ohio.  August  27.  1840,  and  has  been  a  resident  of  Marcellus 
since  the  spring  of  1848,  when  he  came  to  Michigan  with  his  parents. 
Roswell  R.  and  Man,-  (Young)  Beebe.  The  father  was  a  native  of 
Wilkesbarre.  Pennsylvania,  bom  on  the  3d  of  November,  1806.  He 
accompanied  his  parents  on  their  removal  to  Ohio.  Both  his  father  and 
mother  were  nati^■es  of  Connecticut,  were  of  English  descent  and  w^ere 
representatives  of  ancestry  that  was  connected  with  Xew  England  his- 
tory from  earlv  colonial  days.  When  a  young  lad  Roswell  R.  Beebe 
accompanied  his  parents  on  their  removal  to  Ohio,  where  he  was  reared 
and  married.  He  devoted  his  entire  life  to  agricultural  pursuits,  thus 
providing  for  -his  family.  His  political  allegiance  was  given  to  the 
Whig  partv  until  its  dissolution,  when  he  joined  the  ranks  of  the  new 
Republican  partv,  continuing  one  of  its  stanch  supiv^rters  until  his  death 
in  April,  1893.     He  had  for  more  than  a  half  century  survived  his  wife. 


5Si  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY 

who  passed  away  in  1840,  wlien  her  son  was  only  two  weeks  old.  The 
father  afterward  married  again.  He  had  three  children  by  his  first 
marriage  and  two  by  the  second,  and  the  family  record  is  as  follows: 
Gideon  T.,  now  living  in  Marcellns;  Sally  Lee,  deceased;  Bruce,  of  this 
review;  Byron  R.,  who  is  also  living  in  Alarcellus;  and  Mrs.  Wealthy 
Currier,  who  is  also  living  in  JNIarceJlus. 

As  previously  stated,  Bruce  Beebe  was  a  lad  of  eight  years  when  he 
came  with  his  father  to  ;Michigan.  There  was  no  village  on  the  present 
site  of  Alarcellus,  the  entire  tract  being  covered  with  the  natural  forest 
growth.  The  family  home  was  established  on  section  i.  Marcellus 
township,  on  a  farm  of  two  hundred  and  sixty  acres,  from  sixty  acres 
of  which  the  timh.er  had  been  cut.  Upon  that  farm  Bruce  Beebe  aided 
in  the  arduous  task  of  further  developing  the  land  and  bringing  it  under 
a  high  state  of  cultivation.  He  .>bared  in  all  the  work  of  tlie  fields  and 
after  he  had  attained  his  majority  continued  to  engage  in  general 
agricultural  pursuits.  He  resided  upin  the  old  home  place  until  Sep- 
tember. 1S97,  when  he  removed  to  the  village  of  Marcellus.  He  still 
owns,  however,  eighty  acres  of  the  farm  and  his  brother.  Byron  R.,  also 
owns  eigluy  acres  of  it.  Bruce  Beebe  likewise  has  two  acres  within  the 
corporation  limits  of  ]Marccllus,  and  has  a  good  residence  which  he 
erected.  His  entire  life  ihroughout  his  business  career  has  been 'devoted 
to  general  farming  pursuits  with  the  exception  of  three  years  which 
were  spent  in  the  arm}'. 

It  w^as  on  the  iith  of  August,  1862,  that  ]\Ir.  Beebe,  prompted  by 
a  spirit  of  patriotism  and  loyalty,  tendered  his_  services  to  the  govern- 
ment and  became  a  member  of  Company  D,  Twenty-fifth  Michigan 
Volunteer  Infantry,  under  command  of  Colonel  Orlando  H.  ]Moore. 
He  participated  in  various  important  engagements,  including  the  battles 
of  Mumfordsville.  Kingston.  Tennessee,  Mossy  Creek,  Tunnel  Hill, 
Rocky  Face,  Georgia,  Resaca.  Cassville,  Ottawa  River,  Altoona.  Pine 
Mountain,  Lost  ^Mountain,  Gulp  Farm,  Kenesaw.  Atlanta,  East 
Point,  Otter  Creek,  the  siege  of  Atlanta  and  the  battles  of  Jonesboro, 
Rome  and  Cedar  Bluff.  He  was  thus  in  many  hotly  contested  engage- 
ments and  was  often  in  the  thickest  of  the  fight,  never  faltering  in  the 
performance  of  any  military  duty  assigned  him,  whether  it  called  him  to 
the  firing  line  or  stationed  him  on  the  lonely  picket  line.  After  about 
three  years  war  service  he  became  ill  and  was  sent  to  the  hospital,  from 
which  he  was  discharged  on  the  31st  of  March,  1865.  He  then  rejoined 
his  regiment  and  was  honorably  discharged  from  the  army  after  the 
close  of  the  war,  on  the  2fith  of  June,  1865,  being  at  that  time  in  North 
Carolina.  He  returned  home  with  a  most  creditable  military  record, 
and  he  deserves  the  credit  and  praise  which  should  ever  be  bestowed 
upon  the  loyal  soldier  who  defended  the  L^nion. 

On  die  nth  of  October.  iSi'-^Q.  Mr.  Beehe  was  married  to  Miss 
Gertrude  Lutes,  who  was  born  in  Marcellus.  October  tt.  1851.  a 
daughter  of  William  H.  Lutes.     Her  father  married  Mrs.  Eugene  Sat- 


HISTORY  Ol-   CASS  CUUXTY  585 

terlie,  who  was  a  widow  and  bore  the  maiden  name  of  Schofield.  She 
was  a  nalive  of  New  York.  iir.  Lutes  arrived  m  JMichigaii  in  1844, 
and  they  were  married  in  this  state.  Both  died  in  Cass  county,  .Mr. 
Lutes  at  the  age  of  eighty-one  years,  while  his  wife  passed  away  when 
fifty-eight  years  of  age.  He  was  born  in  W'ayne  county,  Xew  York, 
October  30,  1S24,  and  died  in  Marcelkis,  JMarch  26,  1906.  Wiien 
twenty  years  of  age  he  removed  with  his  parents  to  Cass  county  and 
largely  made  his  iiome  in  the  vicinity  of  :\IarceUus  from  that  time'  until 
his  death.  When  twenty-four  years  of  age  he  married  Airs.  Eugene 
Satterlie,  who  died  September  7,  1S84,  and  on  the  i6th  of  October, 
1888,  he  wedded  Airs.  Emily  Sweet,  who  survives  him.  He  was  the 
father  of  two  children.  Loth  of  whom  are  living,  John  and  Airs.  Bcebe. 
He  also  had  an  adopted  daughter.  Airs.  Hattie  Aloore,  now  of  Chicago. 
An  earnest  Christian  man  he  joined  the  United  Bretlu-cn  church  in  early 
life,  and  some  years  afterward  he  united  with  the  Alethodist  Episcopal 
church,  of  which  lie  wa.s  c\cr  afterward  a  devoted  and  faithful  member. 
At  the  time  of  the  Civil  war,  his  sympathy  being  with  the  Union  cause, 
he  (iffered  his  services  Ui  the  go\-ernnient  but  was  rejected.  In  con- 
licction  with  Mr.  Kester  an^l  Jnsepli  Cromley  he  planted  the  three  trees 
in  fnait  of  the  Alelhodi.-i  Iipi^cupal  church,  which  add  so  much  to  its 
beauty. 

.  T.'nto  Air.  and  Airs.  Beebe  have  l^een  born  a  son  and  daughter: 
William  R.,  who  is  living  upon  his  father's  farm  and  is  married  and  has 
one  child,  Olin:  and  Grace  K..  the  wife  of  Edward  Bond,  a  resident  of 
Marcellus.  The  family  is  widely  and  favorably  known  in  this  part  of 
the  count}-.  Air.  Beebe  ha\-ing  long  lieen  a  worthy  and  prominent  repre- 
sentative of  agricultural  interests.  In  politics  he  is  a  Republican  since 
age  conferred  upon  him  the  right  of  franchise.  In  times  of  peace  he  has 
been  as  faithful  to  his  country  as  when  he  followed  the  old  flag  upon 
southern  battlefields,  and  in  military  service  and  in  private  life  has  made 
a  creditable  record. 

HENRY    J.    FRENCH. 

Henry  J.  Erench.  proprietor  of  the  Eagle  Lake  Resort,  is  a  native 
of  Ontwa  township.  Cass  county,  born  on  the  i6th  of  December.  i8('>3. 
The  father,  Caleb  French,  was  one  of  the  old  settlers  of  this  part  of  the 
state  and  contributed  in  substantial  measure  to  the  material  development 
and  progress  of  ihe  community.  He  was  a  native  of  Lancastershire, 
England,  born  on  the  i6th  of  Alay,  1828.  and  in  his  native  place  was 
reared.  After  arriving  at  manhood  he  was  married  in  England  to 
Miss  Alartha  lies,  also  a  native  of  that  country,  and-  two  children. 
Charles  and  Thirza.  were  born  unto  them  ere  they  crossed  the  Atlantic 
to  the  United  States.  When  they  came  to  the  new  world  thev  settled 
in  Baltimore.  Maryland,  where  they  lived  for  about  a  year,  and  in  1856 
arrived  in  Cass  county.  Alichigan.  settling  in  F.dwardsburg.  Tliere  the 
father  followed  the  mason's  trade,  which  he  had  learned  in  his  native 


580  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

country.  After  aljout  a  year  spent  in  Edwardsburg  he  removed  to  near 
Eagle  lake,  where  he  purchased  eighty  acres  of  land,  the  greater  part 
of  which  had  been  improved.  His  first  wife  died  during  the  early  period 
of  his  residence  upon  that  farm,  passing  away  in  iS6i,  and  in  March, 
1863,  'le  was  again  married,  his  second  union  Iteing  with  Hannah  Salm- 
onson,  a  native  of  Ohio,  born  March  8,  1S30.  Her  father  was  Richard 
Salmons(5n,  one  of  the  pioneer  settlers  of  this  part  of  the  state,  and  she 
was  reared  in  Ontwa  township  amid  the  conditions  and  environments 
of  pioneer  life.  Henrv  J.  P'rench  was  the  only  child  born  of  the  father's 
second  marriage.  In  his  prpliiical  views  Caleb  French  was  a  Democrat, 
but  never  sought  or  desired  public  otTice,  preferring  to  give  his  undivided 
attention  to  his  business  interests,  and  he  died  upon  the  old  home  farm 
in  Eebruary,  18S2.  He  was  well  known  and  well  respected  in  Cass 
count}-  ami  enjoyed  in  large  measure  the  trust  and  guod  will  of  his 
fellow  men. 

Henry  J.  F'rench  was  reared  upon  the  farm  which  is  now  his  home, 
and  worked  with  his  father  until  the  latter's  death.  He  then  rented  the 
farm  from  the  other  heirs  for  ten  years  and  in  1892  by  purchase  be- 
came ])ossessor  of  the  propert}'.  In  1S97  he  converted  the  tract  neaf 
the  lalce  into  a  summer  resort,  calling  it  the  Eagle  Lake  Resort,  and  has 
many  visitors  here  during  the  summer  months.  He  has  made  this  a 
very  prnductix'e  [)]afc,  supplied  with  many  of  the  accessories  which  add 
to  the  pleasure  and  comfort  of  the  summer  stijourner.  In  his  general 
agricultural  pursuits  he  has  also  met  with  a  creditable  measure  of  suc- 
cess, having  conducted  his  interests  so  carefull\'  and  practically  that  be 
has  gained  very  gratifying  prosperity. 

On  the  31st  of  October,  18S6,  ]\Ir.  FYench  was  united  in  marriage 
to  Miss  iMyrtIc  D.  Lowman,  a  nati\-e  of  Jefferson  township,  Cass  county, 
born  January  jg,  1866,  and  a  daughter  of  John  Lowman,  whose  birth 
occurred  in  Ohio  in  1844.  He  was  brought  to  Cass  county  when  ten 
years  of  age  and  was  reared  in  Jefferson  township.  After  arriving  at 
years  of  maturity  he  wedded  ]Miss  Nancy  Keene.  who  was  born  in 
Calvin  township,  Cass  county,  in  1844.  ]\Irs.  French  was  the  eldest  of 
four  children,  two  sons  and  two  daughters,  and  by  her  marriage  she 
has  become  the  moUicr  of  two  sons:  Ford,  who  was  born  September 
8,  1892;  and  Harry,  who  was  born  April  8,  1895,  l)Oth  on  the  old  home- 
stead. 

In  his  political  affiliation  ^Nlr.  I-'rench  is  an  earnest  Democrat  and 
keeps  well  informed  on  the  questions  and  issues  of  the  day,  but  is  with- 
out aspiration  for  public  office.  He  belongs  to  the  Woodmen  camp  at 
Edwardsburg  and  has  many  friends  among  his  brethren  of  the  fra- 
ternity. His  entire  life  liaving  been  passed  in  Cass  county  he  is  widely 
knowii,  and  he  has  made  an  excellent  reputation  as  a  thoroughly  relia- 
ble, energetic  and  progressive  business  man. 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  587 

GEORGE    M.    HADDEN. 

George  'M.  Haddcn,  a  practical  and  progressive  farmer  who  is 
profitably  conducting  his  business  interests  on  section  13,  Milton  town- 
ship, is  a  native  son  of  the  Empire  state,  his  birth  having  occurred  in 
Wayne  county  on  the  4th  of  Augxist,  1841.  His  father,  Charles  D. 
Hadden,  was  born  in  Westchester  county,  New  York,  in  181 1,  and  he, 
too,  was  a  farmer  by  occupation,  devoting  the  greater  part  of  his  life 
to  the  work  of  tilling  the  soil.  In  early  manhood  he  was  married  in 
Tompkins  county.  New  York,  tn  Miss  Xancy  Blythe,  a  native  of  Ire- 
land, who  came  to  this  country  when  a  little  girl,  and  was  reared  in 
New  '^'I'rk.  ]Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hadden  became  the  parents  of  the  following 
children  :  ]Mary,  George  M.,  Charles  A.,  deceased ;  Elizabeth  and  James 
G.,  all  of  whom  are  natives  of  the  Empire  state.  In  the  year  1867  the 
father  left  New  York  and  came  with  his  family  to  Cass  county,  Mich- 
igan, settling  on  section  7,  Ontwa  township,  where  he  seaired  three 
hundred  and  ninety-seven  acres  of  rich  land,  much  of  which  had  been 
improved.  \\'ith  characteristic  energy  he  took  up  the  task  of  further 
cultivating  and  developing  this  place,  and  continued  to  make  it  his 
home  until  his  death.  He  took  an  active  interest  in  political  questions 
and  in  the  work  of  the  party,  and  was  a  stanch -Republican.  While  re- 
siding in  \"ew  York  lie  served  as  supervisor  of  his  township  for  three 
years,  but  he  never  sought  othce  after  coming  to  the  west,  as  his  time 
was  fully  occupied  by  his  business  cares  in  relation  to  the  farm.  He 
died  January  J9,  1878,  and  was  survived  by  his  wife  until  December, 
1887,  when  she,  too,  was  called  to  her  final  rest. 

George  ■M.  Hadden  spent  the  days  of  his  boyhood  and  youth  in  the 
east,  acquired  a  good  practical  education  in  the  public  schools  and  when 
twenty-six  years  of  age  came  with  his  parents  to  Michigan,  the  family 
home  being  established  in  Cass  county.  He  settled  with  his  father  upon 
the  farm  in  Ontwa  township  and  helped  to  clear  and  cultivate  that  place. 
There  he  resided  continuously  until  1875,  when  he  removed  to  his  pres- 
ent farm  in  Milton  township.  Tlie  place  originally  comprised  one 
hundred  and  twenty  acres  of  land,  but  he  has  since  extended  it«  bound- 
aries by  additional  purchase  until  he  now  has  a  valuable  property  of 
two  hundred  acres.  Here  he  carries  on  general  farming  and  raises  such 
stock  as  is  needed  for  home  consumption  and  for  carrying  on  the  work 
of  the  farm.  In  all  his  methods  he  is  practical  and  diligent  and  his 
energy  and  per>e\erance  have  been  the  strong  and  salient  factors  in  a 
successful  career. 

On  the  27tli  of  December,  1871,  Mr.  Hadden  was  united  in  marriage 
to  ^Miss  T<'^uc  Foster,  a  daughter  of  Andrew  Foster,  who  entered  from  the 
government  the.  farm  which  adjoins  the  homestead  property  of  'Mr. 
Hadden.  Mr.  Foster  was  one  of  the  honored  pioneer  settlers  of  Cass 
county,  coming  to  this  state  from  Pennsylvania  in  183J.  Few  were 
the  residents  in  this  localitv  at  that  time.     Occasionally  in  the  midst  of 


5SS  HISTORY  Ol'-  CASS  COUXTY 

the  forest  tlie  smuke  might  be  seen  ascending  from  the  fire  in  some  little 
cabin  home,  but  there  were  long  distances  between  the  farms  and  the 
greater  part  of  the  country  was  covered  with  its  native  timber  growth. 
Mr.  Foster  took  an  active  and  liclpful  part  in  reclaiming  the  region  for 
the  purposes  of  civilization  and  in  the  improvement  of  his  business  inter- 
ests, dcNcloping  an  excellent  farm,  which  gave  him  a  good  income.  He 
built  the  house  and  barn  which  are  still  standing  upon  his  old  home 
place.  This  is  one  of  the  landmarks  of  the  county,  having  for  long 
years  been  a  mute  witness  of  the  changes  that  have  occurred  and  illus- 
trating by  contrast  the  rapid  progress  that  has  been  made.  In  his  polit- 
ical views  i\Ir.  l-'oster  was  an  earnest  and  stalwart  Democrat,  and  was 
one  of  the  stockholders  in  the  National  Democrat.  ]\Irs.  Hadden  was 
born  and  reared  on  the  ok!  farm  homestead  and  was  the  youngest  of 
eight  children,  six  of  whom  were  born  upon  this  farm.  Unto  our  sub- 
ject and  his  wife  were  born  four  sons  and  two  daughters,  namely: 
Charles  1!.,  ^lary,  Andrew  F.,  Robert  A.,  Margaret,  and  George  L.,  all 
natives  of  Cass  county,  fi\X'  having  been  born  on  tlie  old  homestead  farm 
in  Alillon  townsliip.  The  elder  daughter  is  now  the  wife  of  Victor 
D.  Hawkins. 

IMr.  Hadden  exercises  his  right  of  franchise  in  su])port  of  the  men 
and  measures  of  the  Republican  party  and  for  one  term  was  township 
treasurer,  but  has  had  little  aspiration  for  office,  although  in  citizenship 
he  is  always  loyal  and  progressive.  He  belongs  to  the  Woodmen  camp 
at  EdwarJsburg  and  is  an  acti\e  and  honored  member  of  the  Presby- 
terian church  there,  in  which  he  is  now  serving  as  elder. 

J.  FRED  E^IFRSON. 

J.  Fred  Emerson,  one  of  the  early  residents  of  Cass  county,  who  has 
long  witnessed  the  growth  and  development  that  ha\-e  wrought  many 
changes  here  and  brought  about  an  advanced  state  of  civilization,  was 
born  in  Ontwa  township,  wl:ere  he  still  lives,  owning  and  operating  one 
hundred  and  twenty  acres  of  rich  land.  His  father,  IMatthew  Emerson, 
was  a  pioneer  resident  of  Cass  county,  coming  to  Michigan  when  this 
portion  of  the  state  was  largely  a  wild  and  unimproved  district.  He 
was  born  m  Concord  county.  New  Hampshire,  on  the  nth  of  December, 
1808,  and  was  there  reared  upon  his  father's  farm,  where  he  remained 
until  twenty-one  years  of  age.^  The  paternal  grandfather,  Joseph  Emer- 
son, was  likewise  a  native  of  the  Old  Granite  state  and  became  a  farmer, 
devoting  his  entire  life  to  the  tilling  of  the  soil.  He  married  Miss  Su- 
sanna Harvey,  a  descendant  of  Dr.  Harvey,  the  celebrated  discoverer 
of  the  system  of  the  circulation  of  the  blood.  Their  son  ]\Iatthew  was 
tlie  second  in-order  of  birth  in  a  family  of  five  children  and  was  reared 
and  educated  in  Xew  Hampshire,  where  he  early  became  familiar  with 
farm  work,  also  giving  a  portion  of  his  time  to  milling  and  school  teach- 
in"-,   following  tile  latter  profession   for  two  or  three  terms.     He  was 


HISTORY  Ol"  CASS  COUXTY  581> 

also  einplnycd  in  a  hardwai'e  store  in  Alliany,  New  York,  and  in  1839, 
attracted  by  the  business  opportunities  of  a  new  but  rapidly  developing 
western  ct.untry,  he  came  to  Cass  county,  Michigan,  taking  up  his  abode 
near  Edwardsburg.  He  there  planted  a  crop  of  wheat  on  what  is  now 
the  Harris  farm.  In  1841  he  removed  to  the  old  farm  homestead  on 
section  13,  Ontwa  township,  at  first  purchasing  eighty  acres  of  par- 
tially impro\ed  land.  He  made  most  of  the  improvements  upon  the 
place,  however,  and  converted  it  into  a  splendid  property.  In  1S4S,  ow- 
ing to  ill  health,  he  was  compelled  to  rent  his  farm,  and  he  then  entered 
the  employ  of  M.  G.  &  M.  Sage,  of  Adamsville,  remaining  in  their  serv- 
ice for  five  years,  when,  his  health  being  greatly  improved,  he  returned 
to  the  farm  in  1853.  He  was  then  engaged  in  its  cultivation  and  further 
development  until  his  life's  laliors  were  ended  in  death  on  the  17th  of 
March,  1877.  He  had  prospered  in  his  undertakings  and  at  his  demise 
left  a  valuable  property  of  one  humlrctl  and  twenty  acres.  In  1841.  in 
Adamsville,  he  had  married  Miss  Alzina  Allen,  who  was  born  in  Ver- 
mont January  27,  1823,  and  was  twelve  years  of  age  when  slie  came 
to  Cass  county  with  her  parents.  She  was  a  daughter  of  Reuben  Allen, 
who  came  of  the  same  stock  as  Ethan  Allen,  the  noted  hero  of  Ticon- 
deroga  in  the  I\.e\-olutionary  war.  Mrs.  Emerson  was  the  eldest  of 
three  children,  the  brother  being  Joseph  Allen,  who  died  in  1889,  and 
the  sister  Antinette,  now  the  widow  of  ]\Iurry  Morse,  of  Jefferson  town- 
ship, Cass  county.  It  was  in  the  year  1835  that  the  .Allen  family  was 
established  in  Mason  township.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Emerson  became  the 
parents  of  three  sons,  of  whom  the  second  died  in  infancy.  J.  Fred  is 
the  eldest  and  Allen  at  present  lives  in  Eucbanan,  ^Michigan.  Pie  com- 
menced to  learn  the  trade  of  coach  and  carriage  making  at  seventeen 
years  of  age  in  the  city  of  Buffalo,  New  York.  In  September,  1879,  he 
went  to  Buchanan  and  worked  at  bis  trade  a  number  of  years,  while  at 
present  he  is  engaged  in  the  furniture  and  vmdertaking  business.  He 
married  Miss  Ida  Wea\cr,  a  member  of  an  old  and  very  highly  respected 
family  of  the  vicinitw  The  father  was  a  Democrat  in  bis  political  views 
and  served  for'  many  years  as  justice  of  the  peace,  his  decisions  being 
strictly  fair  and  impartial.  His  religious  faith  was  indicated  by  his 
membership  in  the  Baptist  church. 

J.  Fred  Emerson  was  reared  upon  the  old  farm  homestead,  work- 
ing in  the  fields  through  the  summer  months,  or  until  after  the  crops 
were  harvested  in  the  late  autumn.  The  public  schools  afforded  him  his 
educational  privileges.  •  He  was  married  October  23,  1878.  going  to 
Vermont  for  his  bride,  who  in  her  maidenhood  bore  the  name  of  Delia 
A.  Thomas.  She  was  born  January  27,  1847,  and  died  November  24, 
1900.  She  was  a  daughter  of  Horace  and  Anna  (\A''ainwright)  Thomas, 
farming  people  of  the  Green  ^.fountain  state.  With  his  young  wife  Mr. 
Emerson  returned  to  Cass  county,  and  the  marriage  has  been  blessed 
with  two  children:  Ralph  \V.,  who  was  born  November  8,  1879.  and 
is  now  a  bookkeeper  in  Elkhart,  Indiana ;  and  Fred  Ray,  who  was  born 


590  ^HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

February  14,  1885,  and  is  at  home,  assisting-  his  fatlier  in  the  operation 
of  the  farm. 

Tlirougliout  liis  entire  hfe  ]\lr.  F.merson  has  devoted  ln"s  attention 
and  energies  to  tlie  occupation  to  which  he  was  reared,  and  is  to-day  the 
owner  of  one  hundred  and  twenty  acres  of  land  in  Ontwa  townsliip,  all 
improved.  L'pon  the  place  aie  sulistantial  buildings,  good  farm  machin- 
er>'  and  other  modern  equipments  that  facilitate  the  work  of  the  farm. 
Mr.  Emerson  votes  with  the  Democracy  and  like  his  father  has  served 
for  a  number  of  years  as  justice  of  the  peace,  "winning  golden  opinions 
from  all  sorts  of  people"  by  his  "even-handed  justice."  His  life  has 
been  laigely  passed  in  a  quiet  manner,  and  yet  he  has  displayed  the 
sterling  characteristics  of  an  honoraljle  manhood  and  loyal  citizenship. 

CARLETON  \V.  RINEHART. 

Carleton  W.  Rinehart,  county  clerk  of  Cass  county  and  a  resident 
of  Casso[)olis,  was  hiirn  in  Porter  townshii>  on  the  22nd  of  Xovember, 
1869.  His  paternal  grandfather  was  a  native  of  Gennany  and  his  mater- 
nal grandfather  v.-as  born  in  Scotland.  The  former,  John  Rinehart,  be- 
came a  pioneer  resident  of  Cass  county  and  entered  from  the  govern- 
ment what  is  now  known  as  the  James  Bonine  farm  in  Penn  township, 
selling  it  some  years  later  to  the  gentleman  whose  name  it  bears.  He 
then  removed  to  Porter  township  and  improved  another  farm.  His 
son,  Abraham  Rinehart,  was  born  in  Virginia  and  when  thirteen  }ears 
of  age  remo\cd  w  ith  his  parents  ti>  the  vicinity  of  Dayton.  Ohio.  Alxmt 
1S29  the  fann'ly  came  to  Cass  county,  and  he  was  reared  amid  the  wild 
scenes  and  environments  of  pioneer  life.  He  was  first  married  to  I\Tiss 
Elizabeth  Owen,  of  Illinois,  who  died  about  a  year  later,  and  he  after- 
ward married  Hannah  F".  Denton,  who  was  born  in  the  state  of  New 
York  and  was  brought  to  Cass  county  in  her  girlhood  days.  ]\Ir.  and 
Mrs.  Rinehart  then  located  in  Porter  township  upon  a  farm,  where  he 
carried  on  general  agricultural  pursuits  for  many  "years,  his  last  days 
being  spent  upon  the  old  homestead  there.  He  died  Septemlier  3,  1895. 
at  the  age  of  seventy-eight  years,  respected  and  honored  by  all  who 
knew  him.  In  politics  he  was  a  stanch  Republican,  and  he  was  a  prom- 
inent representative  of  the  Baptist  church,  becoming  a  charter  member 
of  the  Baltimore  Prairie  church.  In  its  work  be  took  an  active  and  help- 
ful interest,  and  his  life  was  ever  characterized  by  honorable,  strong  and 
manly  principles.  In  his  family  were  eleven  children,  six  of  whom 
reached  adult  age. 

Carleton  W.  Rinehart,  the  youngest  of  the  family,  was  reared  in 
his  native  township,  early  becoming  familiar  with  farm  work  in  all  of 
its  departments,  and  when  he  was  nineteen  years  of  age  he  joined  his 
brother  Clarence  in  the  purchase  of  all  the  stock  and  farming  imple- 
ments of  the  old  homestead,  after  which  they  carried  on  general  farm- 
ing.    The  partnership  in  the  management  of  the  farm  was  maintained 


KISTORV  OF  CASS  COUXTY  ■,'.n 

for  luur  years,  at  ilie  end  nf  wliicli  time  Carleton  W".  Rinehart  bought 
his  brother's  interest  and  operated  tlie  farm  alone  for  a  year.  On  the 
expiralion  of  that  period  he  removed  to  IMason  township, 'wliere  lie  was 
engaged  in  farming  until  elected  county  clerk  in  1904.  In  addition  to 
the  tilling  of  the  soil  he  engaged  quite  extensively  in  raising,  buying  and 
shipping  fruit,  and  his  business  was  profitably  conducted.  "^ 

On  tiie  25th  of  November,  1S91,  :\Ir.  Rinehart  was  married  to  Miss 
Grace  iVlcKissick,  a  daughter  of  }v[oses  and  Clara  (Wilkinson)  McKis- 
sick.  Air.  Rinehart  has  been  a  lifelong  Republican,  active  in  the  inter- 
ests of  the  party,  and  his  efforts  have  been  efl'ective  and  far  reaching  in 
its  behalf.  As  a  public  ofiicer  he  is  most  loyal  to  his  duty,  and  over'^the 
record  of  his  public  career  and  his  private  life  there  falls  no  shadow  of 
wrong  or  suspicion  of  evil.  He  belongs  to  the  b>eewill  Baptist  church 
at  Union  and  is  temperate  in  his  habits.  It  will  thus  be  seen  that  his 
years  have  bei;n  characterized  by  upright  manhood  and  by  strict  fidel- 
ity to  a  high  standard  of  moral  conduct. 

JOHN  \V.  AIECHLING. 

John  W.  Mechling  is  now  living  retired  in  the  village  of  Union 
but  for  many  years  was  closely  identified  with  industrial  interests,  de- 
voting his  time  and  energies  to  many  business  duties,  with  the  result 
tliat  success  attended  his  work  and  now  enables  him  to  rest  without 
recourse  to  further  lalx)r.  He  was  born  in  Westmoreland  county, 
Pennsylvania  on  the  2Sth  of  July.  1S2S.  His  father.  Phillip  Mechling. 
was  a  native  of  Pennsylvania  and  spent  the  days  of  his  liovhood  and 
youtli  in  that  state.  Removing  to  the  west  he  took  up  his  abode  in 
Elkhart  county.  Indiana.  He  spent  the  first  winter,  however — that  of 
i^3S — in  South  Bend.  He  then  located  four  miles  east  of  Elkhart  and 
remained  a  resident  of  that  locality  until  called  to  his  final  home,  lack- 
ing but  one  month  of  being  ninety  years  of  age  at  the  time  of  hi?  demise. 
His  wife,  who  bore  the  maiden  name  of  Charlotte  Shoemaker,  died 
in  1844.  In  their  family  were  thirteen  children,  of  whom  John  W. 
was  the  youngest  of  a  family  of  seven  daughters  and  six  sons,  but  all 
are  now  deceased  with  the  exception  of  Mr.  Mechling  of  this  review 
and  his  sister.  Airs.  AIar\'  Jones,  who  is  now  eighty  years  of  age  and 
makes  her  home  in   Porter  township. 

John  W.  Alechling  spent  the  first  seven  years  of  his  life  in  the 
state  of  his  nativity  and  then  accompanied  his  parents  on  their  removal 
to  Indiana,  where  he  lived  for  a  decade.  About  1845.  ^^  came  to  Cass 
county,  settling  in  Union,  where  he  worked  at  any  business  that  he 
could  find  to  do.  He  was  afterward  engaged  in  the  operation  cf  a 
sawmill  and  also  gave  his  attention  to  buying  and  selling  produce.  Init 
in  1861  he  put  aside  all  business  cares  and  personal  considerations  and 
offered  his  aid  to  his  country,  then  engaged  in  the  Civil  war.  He  had 
watched  with  interest  the  progress  of  events  in  the  south,  had  noted 


5t»2  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY 

tlie  thrcaleniny  attitude  of  the  slave-lioldiiio^  community  and  determined 
that  if  an  attempt  was  made  to  overthrow  the  Union  he  would  strike 
a  blow  in  its  defense.  He  therefore  enlisted  as  a  member  of  Company 
A,  Chandler's  Horse  Guard,  servinij  lor  three  months.  He  afterward 
carried  the  mail  from  Bristol  to  L'nion  for  eight  years  and  subsequently 
was  engaged  for  a  numl;cr  of  \cars  in  blacksmiihing  at  Union. 

Mr.  Mechling  was  marrie.i  in  iS6i  to  Miss  Lovisa  V.  Dibble,  and 
unto  them  were  born  two  daughters  and  one  son,  but  Lydia  L.  and 
I^ttie  1^.  are  both  decea'^eil.  The  son,  Joiin  D.,  still  resides  with  his 
father.  'I  he  wife  md  mother  jias^eil  awa-(-  .\pril  ii,  1904.  .She  was 
an  estimai)!e  lai!\-,  liavnig  niaii_\-  good  traits  of  character  and  hei  loss 
was  regrcttccl  liy  m.uiy   fricmls. 

]Mr.  Mecidiiig  is  now  retired  fr(^m  active  l.msiness  after  a  busy 
and  useful  life.  He  receives  a  pension  of  seventeen  dollars  per  month 
because  of  ill  health  incurred  liy  his  service  in  the  war.  He  is  a  member 
of  the  ]\Iasonic  fraternity  and  has  taken  a  very  active  and  helpful  part 
in  public  affairs,  his  political  allegiance  being  given  to  the  Democracy,  of 
which,  he  is  a  stanch  advocate.  He  served  as  deputy  sheriff  for  si.x 
years,  has  been  school  director  and  also  treasurer  of  school  district  No. 
9  for  fourteen  }-ears.  He  v/as  likewise  road  overseer  for  manv  years. 
He  has  been  a  resident  of  Cass  county  for  six  decades,  and  is  well  known 
in  the  county  as  one  of  its  pioneer  settlers.  He  has  now  y)asscd  the 
seventy-seventh  milestone  on  life's  journey  and  is  a  \-encrable  and  re- 
spected man,  ha\ing  many  friends  in  l'nion  and  through(^ut  this  por- 
tion of  the  state. 

H.  SYLVESTER  CHAPMAN. 

H.  Sylvester  Chapman,  owner  of  one  hundred  and  thirty  acres  of 
as  fine  land  as  can  be  found  in  Cass  county,  resides  on  section  17,  Penn 
township.  He  was  torn  in  Medina  county,  Ohio,  December  5,  1839, 
and  represents  one  of  the  old  families  of  New  England,  his  ancestors 
having  been  represented  in  this  country-  through  various  generations. 
His  great-grandfather  was  Benjamin  Qiapman,  a  native  of  Vermont. 
His  grandfather,  Levi  Chapman,  who  was  also  bom  in  the  Green  jMcun- 
tain  state.  A\as  a  farmer  by  occtipation  and  removed  to  Ohio  with  his 
farr.ilv  at  an  earlv  date  in  the  liiston'  of  Medina  county,  where  he 
took  up  his  abode. 

Amorv  H.  Chapman,  his  son,  was  born  in  Enosburg,  Vermont,  and 
was  about  five  years  of  age  at  the  time  of  his  parents'  removal  to  the 
Buckeve  state.  He  v,-as  reared  and  educated  in  IMedina  county  and  was 
married  there  to  ;Miss  Lucinda  Hastings,  a  native  of  New  York  and  a 
daughter  of  Walter  Hastings,  who  was  likewise  born  in  the  Empire 
state.  He  was  a  lumber  merchant,  who  engaged  in  rafting  lumber  down 
the  Susquehanna  river  to  Baltimore.  Eor  three  years  after  their  mar- 
riage Mr.  and  Mrs.  Amory  H.  Chapman  liA-ed  in  Ohio,  and  then  came  to 


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HISTORY  OF  CASS  CorXTV  .V.t3 

Cass  couiuy,  .Michii,^a!i.  in  1S45.  settling  in  Xewljerg  townshi]).  Mr. 
Chapman  took  u])  t'lc  wuik  ut  farming,  tilling  the  soil  whicli  hithcno 
was  uncultivated  ami  unimproved.  For  many  years  he  was  an  active 
factor  in  agricultural  circles  and  his  death  occurred  in  Xewberg  town- 
ship when  he  had  attained  the  atlvanced  age  of  eighty  years.  He  was  a 
man  of  gr^od  principles,  who  fearlessly  espoused  any  cause  in  which  he 
believed  and  he  left  to  his  faiuilx-  an  untarnished  name.  When  age  gave 
to  him  the  light  of  franchise  he  voted  with  the  Whig  party,  which  he 
supported  until  the  (irganizati'm  oi  the  Republican  party.  He  was 
closely  identified  with  the  uphuilding  of  the  county,  settling  in  the 
midst  of  tlie  forest  upon  his  arrival  here,  making  a  clearing  and  in  tlue 
course  of  time  developing  a  good  farm.  He  i^crformed  all  the  arduiuis 
labor  incident  to  such  a  task,  shared  in  the  hardships  and  trials  of  fron- 
tier life  and  aided  in  laying  broad  and  deep  the  foundation  for  the  pres- 
ent development  and  pmgress  of  this  part  of  the  state.  In  his  faniilv 
were  but  two  sons,  the  brother  being  Herman  L.  Chapman,  of  ]Mar- 
cellus,  Michigan. 

H.  Sylvester  Cliapman,  the  elder  son,  was  but  five  years  old  when 
his  parents  left  Oliin  and  came  to  Cass  county.  In  his  early  y(juth  he 
attended  scliiol  in  V'andalia  and  afterward  pursued  his  studies  in 
Cassopolis.  1  hrough  the  jieriods  of  vacation  he  aided  in  the  farm  work 
and  be  remained  at  home  until  nineteen  years  of  age,  when  he  began 
contracting  and  building,  possessing  considerable  natural  mechanical 
ingenuity  that  well  cpialificd  him  for  this  work.  He  built  what  is  now 
known  as  the  Chapman  school  in  Xewl)crg  townshi])  and  also  other  build- 
ings of  the  locality,  and  was  thus  identified  with  that  line  (jf  business 
until  the  time  of  his  marriage. 

Mr.  Chapman  has  l>een  married  twice.  In  April,  iSrio.  he  wedded 
Miss  Mary  Carrier  and  unto  them  were  iKirn  two  children:  Irma,  now 
the  wife  of  Professor  Seth  C.  Wilson,  of  Spokane,  Washington,  who  is 
princii)al  of  the  schools  nf  that  ]jlace:  and  Clif  C.  who  is  living  upon 
the  home  farm.  The  daughter  was  a  student  in  the  Valparaiso  Col- 
lege in  northern  Indiana,  and  has  taken  a  course  in  the  business  depart- 
ment of  the  University.  She  is  also  educated  in  instrumental  music. 
Following  the  death  of  his  first  wife  Mr.  Chapman  was  married  to  ^Miss 
Olivia  E.  Rudd,  a  daughter  of  Stephen  and  Lydia  CGreen)  Rudd.  who 
were  early  settlers  of  Penn  township.  ]Mrs.  Chapman  was  b.-irn  in  tiiat 
township  December  29,  1S42.  and  was  married  first  to  John  H.  Under- 
wood, by  whom  she  had  one  son.  Hon.  Fred  Underwood,  who  is  now  a 
membei  of  the  state  legislature  at  Bismarck,  X^'orth  Dakota.  Hon.  Fred 
Underwood  received  his  erlucation  in  the  Cassopolis  high  school,  and 
was  a  student  in  the  \"alparaiso  College,  also  in  the  Kalamazoo  Bus- 
iness College.     Pie  has  been  located  in  Dakota  since  18S1. 

At  the  time  of  his  marriage  Mr.  Chapman  concentrated  his  ener- 
gies upon  agricultural  pursuits.     He  began  farming  in  X^'ewberg  town- 


694  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

ship,  where  he  remained  until  1S71,  when  he  went  to  California,  whence 
he  returned  by  way  of  the  water  route  and  the  Isthmus  of  I'anama.  On 
again  reaching  Cass  county  he  purchased  the  farm  upon  whicii  lie  now 
resides.  In  18S1  he  went  to  North  Dakota  and  improved  a  farm  in  Ran- 
som county,  si)ending  the  summer  months  there  during  four  years.  He 
still  owns  that  property,  comprising  three  hundred  and  twenty  acres  of 
land,  and  in  his  home  place  he  has  one  hundred  and  thirty  acres  of  very 
rich  and  productive  land,  no  finer  farm  property  being  found  in  the 
county.  In  the  World's  Columbian  Exposition  in  1S93  he  exhibited 
six  different  varieties  of  his  wheat  grown  on  his  farm,  and  was  awarded 
a  diploma  and  medal  for  the  superiority  of  the  cereal,  which  is  an  honor 
rare  for  old  Cass  county.  He  has  erected  a  very  attractive  residence, 
which  stands  in  the  midst  of  a  well  kept  lawn,  and  his  barns  and  out- 
buildings are  in  keeping  with  ideas  of  modern  agriculture.  His  fields, 
too,  are  well  tilled  and  he  is  making  a  specialty  of  raising  cattle,  having 
a  fine  herd  of  thirty  heiul  of  Jerseys,  all  being  registered  stock.  He  has 
never  been  a  follower  in  business  lines,  but  is  a  leader  in  the  progress 
which  results  in  successful  accomplishment.  He  votes  with  the  Dem- 
ocracv'  and  is  in  syriipathy  with  the  platform  promulgated  at  Kansas 
City.' 

Tlie  beautiful  home  of  ^[r.  and  !\lrs.  Chapman,  known  as  "Linden 
Lea,"  is  beautifv.l'y  finished  in  rare  woods,  and  the  entrance  to  the  pret- 
ty home  is  artistically  finished  in  sumach,  showing  the  beautiful  grains 
of  the  wood,  while  the  libran,-  is  finished  in  red  cedar,  and  the  work  was 
accomplished  by  Mr.  Chapman  himself.  In  fact,  the  residence  is  finished 
in  different  woods. 

EDWIN  N.  AUSTIN. 

Edwin  N.  Austin,  who  carries  on  general  agricultural  pursuits  in 
a  practical,  progressive  and  profitable  manner,  is  living  in  Pokagon 
township  and  is  to-day  the  owner  of  one  hundred  and  eighty  acres  of 
land,  the  greater  part  of  which  is  under  cultivation,  giving  proof  in  its 
excellent  appearance  of  the  careful  supervision  of  the  owner.  A  native 
of  St.  Lawrence  county.  New  York.  Mr.  Austin  was  born  on  the  8th  of 
August,  1S50.  His  father.  John  W.  Austin,  was  also  a  native  of  the 
Empire  state  and  was  a  farmer  by  occupation.  Coming  to  the  west  he 
settled  in  Allegan  county  in  1863,  taking  up  his  abode  upon  a  farm, 
which  he  cultivated  and  improved  until  he  had  acquired  a  handsome 
competence,  when  he  retired  from  active  business  life  and  removed  to 
the  city  of  Allegan,  where  he  spent  his  remaining  days  in  the  enjoyment 
of  a  well-earned  rest,  his  death  there  occurring  in  1893.  He  was  mar- 
ried in  the  Empire  state  to  Miss  Lucinda  Sage,  who  was  born  in  New 
York  and  was  there  reared.  This  union  was  blessed  with  a  family  of 
four  sons  and  two  daughters,  all  of  whom  were  natives  of  the  Em- 
pire state.     As  the  result  of  study  and  investigation  concerning  the  po- 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  595 

litical  questions  of  the  day  and  the  attitude  of  the  two  parties  Mr.  Aus- 
tin gave  his  support  to  the  Repubhcan  organization,  and  at  all  times  he 
commanded  the  respect  and  conlidence  of  his  fellow  men  by  reason  of 
an  honorable  and  upright  life. 

Edwin  N.  Austin  spent  the  first  twelve  years  of  his  life  in  the 
county  of  his  nativity  and  then  accompanied  his  parents  on  their  re- 
moval to  Allegan,  ^Michigan,  where  he  resided  until  twenty-two  years 
of  age,  during  which  time  he  actively  assisted  his  father  in  the  work 
of  the  home  farm.  He  then  left  home  and  came  to  Cass  county,  tak- 
ing up  his  abode  upon  a  farm  in  Pokagon  township.  Here  he  was 
married  to  Miss  Rebecca  Simpson,  a  daughter  of  Moses  and  Sarah 
Simpson,  pioneers  of  Cass  county,  having  settled  within  its  borders 
when  the  white  residents  here  were  comparatively  few.  Mrs.  Austin 
was  born  and  reared  in  Pokagon  township. 

Moses  W.  Simpson,  deceased,  one  of  the  pioneers  of  Pokagon, 
was  born  in  Pembroke,  New  Hampshire.  ]May  i6,  i8oS.  He  was  the 
eldest  in  the  family  of  Sanuiel  and  Relx^cca  (Dickerman)  Simpson, 
which  consisted  of  seven  children,  four  sons  and  three  daughters.  The 
elder  Simpson  was  a  faniicr  and  was  possessed  of  those  elements  of 
character  that  ha\e  always  distinguished  the  sons  of  the  Granite  state. 
Moses  was  reared  on  the  farm,  and  the  rugged  hills  and  sterile  soil 
aided  in  the  development  nf  a  robust  constitution  and  manj'  admirable 
traits  of  character.  He  early  evidenced  a  desire  for  books,  which 
was  fostered  by  his  parents,  and  he  received  a  liljcral  academical  edu- 
cation. He  remained  under  the  parental  roof  until  he  was  twenty-five 
years  of  age,  and  at  that  time  he  was  married  to  Miss  Sarah  H.  Rlais- 
dell,  of  Hopkinton,  New  Hampshire,  where  she  was  born  September 
8,  1811.  Her  parents,  Samuel  and  Dorothy  (Straw)  Blaisdell.  were 
of  English  parentage  and  New  England  birth.  In  1S36  ]\Ir.  Simpson 
and  wife  came  to  Pokagon  and  settled  on  the  farm  which  was  ever 
afterward  his  home.  He  took  an  active  interest  in  all  matters  pertain- 
ing to  the  advancement  of  the  township,  and  largely  identified  him- 
self with  its  growth,  and  prosperity:  his  ability  was  soon  recognized 
by  his  fellow  townsmen,  and  he  filled  many  positions  of  trust  and 
responsibility  with  credit  to  himself  and  to  the  satisfaction  of  all.  His 
death  occurred  on  June  16,  1849.  I"  the  accumulation  of  property 
Mr.  Simpson  was  successful.  His  social  qualities  were  of  a  high  order 
and  his  generosity  and  hos]ntality  were  proverbial.  He  left  two  daugh- 
ters, Rebecca,  now  ?^Irs.  Edwin  Austin,  and  Lydia  T.  After  the  death 
of  her  husband.  Mrs.  Simpson  assumed  the  management  of  the  estate, 
which  she  conducted  successfully  until  1850,  when  she  was  again  mar- 
ried, to  John  H.  Simpson,  brother  of  her  first  husliand.  He  was  a 
native  of"  New  Hampshire  and  a  man  universally  esteemed.  He  died 
August  19.  1879.  in  the  fifty-sixth  year  of  his  age. 

Mrs.  Simpson  resided  upon  the  old  homestead  imtil  her  death, 
January  4.  1889.  a  lady  veiy  highly  esteemed. 


596  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

For  two  years  after  his  marriage  Edwin  X.  Austin  lived  upon  his 
father-in-iav/s  farm  and  then  removed  to  liis  present  place,  first  pur- 
chasing sixty  acres  of  land,  to  which  he  has  since  added  part  of  the 
old  Simpson  farm,  so  that  his  landed  possessions  now  comprise  one 
hundred  and  eighty  acres,  the  greater  part  of  which  is  under  cultivation. 
He  has  built  good  buildings  here  and  has  improved  the  property  until 
it  is  now  one  of  the  valuable  and  productive  farms  of  the  township.  In 
its  improvement  :Mr.  Austin  has  displayed  good  business  ability,  execu- 
tive force  and  keen  discernment  and  in  his  business  relations  has  com- 
manded the  respect  of  those  with  w  liom  he  has  had  dealings. 

GEORGE  n.  TOLBERT. 

George  H.  Tolbert,  who  is  filling  the  position  of  township  treas- 
urer and  is  accounted  one  of  the  representati\e  and  enterprising  farm- 
ers of  Porter  township,  his  home  being  on  section  28.  was  born  in  this 
township  September  30.  1867.  His  father,  Seth  Tolbert.  was  a  native 
of  Xew  York,  where  his  childhood  and  youth  were  passed.  He  came 
to  Michigan  about  1845.  niaking  his  way  to  Cass  county,  and  here  he 
was  married  in  Porter  township  to  ]Miss  Sarah  Loupee,  a  sister  of  John 
IvOupee  and  a  representative  of  one  of  the  old  and  well  known  pioneer 
families  of  the  county,  mention  of  whom  is  made  on  another  page  of 
this  work,  in  connection  with  the  sketch  (jf  John  L(nii)ee.  Seth  Tolbert 
took  up  his  alxide  in  Porter  township,  where  he  continued  to  reside  until 
his  death,  which  occurred  when  he  was  in  his  seventy-eighth  year.  He 
was  a  lifelong  farn.er  and  was  (.ne  of  the  early  representatives  of  agri- 
cultural interests  in  hi^  ci>mmunit_\',  where  he  carried  on  the  work  of 
tilling  the  soil  and  raising  crops  until  he  put  aside  the  active  work  of 
the  fields  in  his  later  years.  He  was  a  memljer  of  the  Bajitist  churcii 
and  his  religious  faith  permeated  his  life  and  promoted  his  kindly  and 
considerate  relations  to  his  fellowmen  and  his  honorable  dealir.gs  in  all 
trade  transactions.  Flis  political  allegiance  was  given  to  the  Republi- 
can party  from  the  lime  of  its  organization  until  his  demise.  His  widow 
is  still  living  at  this  writing,  in  1906,  and  yet  resides  u]»n  the  old 
homestead  fann.  In  their  family  were  ten  children,  of  whom  George 
H.  was  tlie  seventh  in  order  of  birth. 

In  his  youth  George  H.  Tolbert  was  rearcfl  and  to  the  ]uiblic  school 
system  of  the  countv  lie  is  indebted  for  the  educational  privileges  which 
he  enjoyed.  His  attention  was  divided  between  the  work  of  the  school- 
room, the  pleasures  of  the  playground  and  the  labors  of  the  fields  upon 
the  home  farm,  and  after  he  finished  his  education  he  gave  his  entire 
attention  to  general  agricultural  pursuits  on  the  old  homestead  up  to 
the  time  of  his  marriage. 

It  was  on  Februarv  19,  1890.  that  he  was  joined  in  wedlixk  to  Miss 
Linda  Harmon,  a  sister  of  Charles  O.  Harmon,  wdio  is  mentioned  else- 
where in  this  volume.     ^Mrs.  Tolbert  was  the  third  child  and  only  daugh- 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY  o'.-T 

ter  in  a  family  uf  four  children,  and  was  born  in  Porter  township  March 
I,  187J,  where  her  girlhood  days  were  passed.  Their  home  is  now 
on  section  -'8,  Porter  township,  where  ^Ir.  Tolbert  owns  and  operates 
sevenly-bix  acres  of  land,  which  is  productive  and  valuable.  There  he 
carries  on  general  farming  and  stock-raising,  keeping  good  grades  of 
cattle,  horses  and  hogs  upon  his  place,  while  at  the  san":e  time  cultivating 
the  cereals  best  adapted  to  soil  and  climate  and  annually  harvesting 
good  crops.  He  votes  with  the  Republican  party,  ha\-ing"  been  reared 
in  that  faith,  while  his  niatuicd  judgment  sanctioned  its  principles,  so 
that  he  has  given  his  allegiance  tn  its  candidates  from  that  time.  He 
served  as  highway  c«lmmi^sl(incr  ..f  his  township,  and  in  1904  was  elected 
township  treasurer,  the  duties  of  which  office  he  discharged  so  capably 
that  he  was  re-elected  in  1905  and  is  now  filling  the  position.  He  and 
his  wife  belong  to  the  Grange  <jf  which  he  is  now  master,  and  he  also  be- 
longs to  the  Abidern  Woodmen  cam])  at  J<nies.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Tolbert  are 
both  devoted  members  of  the  First  Paptist  church  in  Porter  township, 
and  they  are  butli  intcre<tC(l  in  Sunday  xhuul  W(,rk.  Mrs.  Tolbert  was 
superintendent  of  the  Sunday  scb. Mil  far  five  years,  and  organist  of  the 
church  for  se\cra!  years,  and  she  was  a  successful  teacher  in  F'orter  town- 
ship for  two  years. 

JOHX  D.  ROCKWELL. 

Among  the  citip^ens  of  Cass  county  who  have  long  been  connected 
with  its  history,  their  residence  here  dating  back  to  an  early  period,  so 
that  they  are  entitled  to  rank  with  the  old  settlers,  is  John  D.  Rockwell. 
now  living  on  section  J5,  Porter  township,  where  he  owns  a  good  farm. 
He  was  born  in  FTuron  county,  Ohio,  Sei^tember  8.  1842.  Flis  paternal 
grandfather  was  Caleb  Rockwell,  of  English  descent.  His  father.  Sam- 
uel R.  Rockwell,  was  a  nati\-c  of  Connecticut  and  was  there  reared.  In 
early  life  he  learned  and  followed  the  carpenter's  trade  and  also  carried 
on  farming.  The  reports  wbicli  he  lieard  concerning  business  oppor- 
tunities in  the  west  iiuluced  him  to  seek  a  home  in  Michigan,  and  in 
the  fall  of  1844  he  came  to  this  state,  taking  up  his  abode  uixm  the  fann 
in  Porter  township,  Cass  county,  upon  which  his  son.  John  D.  Rock- 
well, now  resides.  He  had.  however,  been  a  resident  of  Huron  county 
for  a  brief  period  when  he  traded  a  farm  of  eighty  acres  in  that  county 
for  t>ne  hundred  and  sixty  acres  of  land  here  without  seeing  the  place. 
The  tract  was  an  unbmken  wilderness,  not  a  furrow  having  been  turned 
nor  an  impro\emcnt  made.  There  was  not  a  single  building  and  he 
built  a  small  frame  house  in  the  midst  of  the  forest  and  began  to  cut 
away  the  timber  and  clear  and  cultivate  the  land,  Li  the  course  of  years 
where  once  stood  the  dense  forest  were  seen  waving  fields  of  grain, 
promising  rich  harvests  and  as  time  passed  he  became  one  of  the  sub- 
stantial citizens  of  the  community  as  the  result  of  his  carefully  directed 
business  affairs.  He  died  December  16,  18S4.  in  his  eighty-first  year — 
one  of  the  venerable,  respected  and  honored  citizens  of  the  county.     He 


598    .  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

was  a  resident  of  Ccnstantine  for  al)out  twenty-two  years,  having  retired 
from  active  business  life,  the  even.nig  of  his  days  being  spent  in  the 
enjoyment  of  a  well  earned  rest.  He  was  also  justice  of  the  peace  in 
Porter  township  for  about  sixteen  years  and  for  a  similar  period  in 
Constantino  and  his  decisions  were  strictly  fair  and  unbiased,  neither 
fear  nor  fa\or  swerving  him  in  his  application  of  the  law  to  the  points 
at  issue.  His  political  allegiance  was  given  to  the  Democracy.  '  He 
was  an  honest  man,  whose  integrity  was  at  all  times  above  question  and 
by  reason  of  this  and  his  ability  he  was  called  upon  to  transact  many 
business  interests  fur  other  ])eciple.  He  was  closely  identitkd  with  the 
early  history  of  Cass  count}-  and  his  labors  contributed  to  its  substantial 
progress  and  impnjvement.  He  married  Mary  Ann  Bushman,  a  native 
of  New  York,  who  was  Iwrn  near  Rochester  and  was  a  daughter  of 
George  Bushman.  She  died  in  1S56  in  the  thirtj'-ninth  year  of  her 
age,  and  Samuel  R.  Rockwell  afterward  married  Celia  Butler.  There 
were  five  sons  of  the  first  union:  George  B.,  who  died  in  1904:  Fran- 
cis jM.,  who  is  living  in  Three  Rivers,  Michigan;  John  D..  of  this  re- 
view; Henry  O.,  who  passed  away  February  S,  1S60;  and  Edson  \V., 
who  is  living  in  Porter  township,  Cass  county.  The  children  nf  the  sec- 
ond marriage  are:  Ralph,  who  died  about  186S;  and  Lihby,  who  passed 
away  the  same  year. 

John  D.  Rockwell  was  only  two  years  of  age  when  brought  bv  his 
parents  to  Cass  county,  the  family  home  being  established  in  Porter 
township,  where  he  was  reared.  His  education  was  acquired  in  the 
public  schools,  pursuing  his  studies  in  the  little  school-house  which  his 
father  built.  Throughout  the  period  of  his  minority  he  remained  upon 
the  home  farm,  assisting  in  the  labors  of  field  and  meadow  and  In  the 
care  of  the  stock.  He  was  thus  occupied  until  he  attained  his  majority, 
after  which  he  operated  the  home  farm  for  one  year.  In  1864  he  went 
to  Virginia  City,  Montana,  where  he  remained  until  1S66.  being  engaged 
in  mining  in  that  locality.  He  then  returned  again  to  the  old  home- 
stead, where  he  has  since  resided,  his  attention  being  given  in  undivided 
manner  to  agricultural  interests. 

On  the  2 1st  of  February,  i8''>7.  was  celebrated  the  marriage  of 
John  D.  Rockwell  and  ]\Iiss  Adelia  ^Miller,  a  daughter  of  Charles  F.  and 
Rebecca  (Odell)  Miller,  the  former  a  native  of  Pennsylvania  and  the 
latter  of  Ohio.  They  became  residents  of  iMichigan  at  an  early  day. 
settling  in  St.  Joseph  counts-  in  1S36.  when  the  work  of  improvement 
and  development  had  scarcely  been  begun  there.  They  established  a 
home  on  the  frontier,  casting  in  their  lot  with  the  pioneer  settlers  and 
sharing  in  the  hardships  and  trials  incident  to  life  in  the  far  west — for 
Michigan  was  then  a  border  state.  ^Mrs.  Rockwell  was  bom  in  St. 
Joseph  comity,  March  25,  1S43.  and  was  there  reared  and  educated.  At 
"the  time  of  their  marriage  they  located  on  the  old  homestead  farm, 
which  has  since  been  their  place  of  residence.  As  the  years  went  by 
Mr.  Rockwell  gave  his  undivided  attention  and  energies  to  the  develop- 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  599 

ment  and  cultivation  of  his  land  and  to  the  improvement  of  his  farm, 
which  is  now  a  valuable  property,  supplied  with  all  of  the  equipments 
and  conveniences  found  upon  a  mo<lel  farm  of  the  twentieth  ccnturv.  In 
1S83  he  built  his  present  residence,  and  he  now  has  two  houses'  upon 
the  place,  also  commodious  and  substantial  kirns  and  outbuildings,  fur- 
nishing ample  shelter  for  grain  and  stock.  His  place  comprises  two 
hundred  and  twenty-seven  and  a  half  acres  of  good  land,  the  soil  being 
alluvial  and  responding  readily  to  the  care  and  labor  which  are  bestowed 
upon  the  fields  and  which  return  golden  harvests.  Mr.  Rockwell  per- 
sonally manages  and  operates  the  farm  and  is  a  wide-awake,  ijrogressive 
agriculturist,  meeting  with  very  gratifying  success  in  his  chosen  life 
work. 

Three  children  were  l)orn  unto  our  subject  and  his  wife,  namelv: 
Jennie  G.,  who  is  nuw  the  wife  of  L.  N.  Ruch.  of  Chicago;  Hattie  L., 
the  wife  of  Phar  Stenberg,  who  resides  upon  the  old  homestead  in 
Porter  township;  and  Cora  B..  who  was  born  December  22,  iiS-74,  and 
died  I'ebruary  16,  1S75. 

Mr.  Rockwell  votes  with  the  Democracy,  when  national  questions 
are  involved,  but  at  local  elections  casts  an  independent  ballot,  support- 
ing the  men  whom  he  regards  as  best  qualified  to  take  charge  of  the 
business  interests  of  town  or  county.  He  has  been  school  treasurer  of 
his  district  for  twenty  years  and  could  have  held  other  oftices  but  would 
not  accept,  preferring  to  concentrate  his  time  and  energies  upon  his 
business  affairs.  He  is  a  man  of  lilx^ral  spirit  and  has  contributed  to 
many  good  causes.  He  belongs  to  the  Grange  and  is  intensely  inter- 
ested ill  all  that  pertains  to  the  agricultural  development  of  the  county. 
He  has  been  a  resident  of  Porter  township  for  sixty-one  years  and  is 
one  of  its  pioneer  and  representative  citizens,  helping  to  make  the  county 
what  it  is  today.  His  name  is  closely  intenvoven  with  its  history  and 
his  successful  career  should  ser^'e  to  encourage  and  inspire  others,  for 
His  prosperity  is  largely  due  to  his  own  well  directed  labors,  capable 
business  management  and  keen  discernment. 

HENRY  C.  BENSON. 

Henry  C.  Benson  makes  his  home  on  section  3.  south  Porter  town- 
ship, and  was  born  December  11,  1S45,  on  the  farm  where  he  now  re- 
sides. His  father,  Joseph  Benson,  was  a  native  of  Livingston  county. 
New  York,  and  came  to  Alichigan  in  1S43,  making  his  way  at  once  to 
Cass  count}-  and  took  up  his  abode  upon  the  farm  which  is  now  owned 
and  occupied  by  Henry  C.  Benson.  He  was  married  in  Porter  town- 
ship in  1S44  to  Miss  Harriet  Weed,  a  daughter  of  Seth  and  Catherine 
Weed.  Her  father  was  for  many  years  a  justice  of  the  peace  and  held 
the  office  of  supen-isor  and  other  local  positions,  the  duties  of  which 
were  always  promptly,  faitlifully  and  capably  performed  by  him.  He 
was  a  prominent  man  and  teacher  in  the  county  and  exerted  a  strong 


C"^"  HISTORY  OI--  CASS  COUXTY 

ami  beiiehcial  intlucice  iV,r  the  intellectual  development  aiul  moral  prog- 
ress ot  his  locality,  also  upholding-  its  legal  and  political  status  J,,seph 
Benson,  tor  many  years  an  enterprising-  and  well  known  agriculturist 
of  the  county,  died  August  8.  1878,  when  sixtv-six  vcars  of  aoc  He 
was  at  one  time  a  member  of  the  .Masonic  fraternity  and  at  all  times 
exemphhed  m  Ins  lite  the  hencficenl  spirit  of  the  crai't.  His  wife  lon^^ 
survived  him,  rcachnig  t'nc  age  of  eightv-eight  vears.  In  their  familv 
were  two  sons,  Henry  C.  :ui(l  Joseph,  tlie  latter  still  a  resilient  <if  Portc'r 
townshij). 

Henry  C.  Bcnsnn  spent  the  davs  of  his  Ix-)vliof)d  and  v,)utli  under 
the  parental  rn,,t.  Ik  was  educated  in  the  common  schx.h  and  i,,r  a 
short  time  contmucd  his  studies  in  South  Bend.  Indiana,  becoming  an 
apt  student  and  readily  mastering  the  common  branches  of  learninc^ 
At  the  age  ot  seventeen  years  he  began  teaching,  which  profession  he 
followed  succes.stully  lor  five  years  in  Cass.  Berrien  and  St  Joseph 
counties.  He  was  at  the  same  time  engaged  in  farming  and  fruit-grow- 
ing, devoting  the  winter  .-reasons  to  educational  work,  while  the  summer 
months  were  given  t,.  agricultural  and  horticultural  pursuits. 

January  23.  1881.  Air.  P.ensnn  was  united  in  marriage  to  Miss 
Martha  V.  Roots,  a  ilaughter  of  Wind.sor  and  Marv  Ann'  (Bennett) 
Roots.  Mrs.  IJcnson  was  born  December  s.  1862,  in  DcKalb  countv 
Indiana,  but  was  reared  in  Porter  township.  Cass  countv.  and  is  tlie 
elder  of  two  daughters.  At  the  time  of  their  marriage  Mr.  and  Mrs 
Henry  C.  Benson  began  their  ,l..nicstic  life  upon  the  old  homestead 
farm,  living  with  his  father  and  m..tlier  until  thev  were  called  from  this 
life.  Two  children  grace  the  marriage  of  the  vounger  couple,  namely 
Ida  May.  now  the  wife  of  Lewis  Arnold,  of  Porter  township;  and 
Jennie  D..  who  is  at  home. 

Mr.  Benson  owns  a  farm  of  more  than  two  hundred  acres  which 
he  IS  carrying  on.  He  has  placed  his  land  under  a  high  .state  of  culti- 
vation aufl  annually  har\-ests  good  crops  as  a  reward  >or  the  care  and 
labor  he  bestows  upon  the  fields,  and  in  addition  to  raising  the  cereals 
best  adapted  to  soil  and  climate  he  also  raises  some  stock,  mostlv,  how- 
ever, for  his  own  use.  Pie  has  a  well  improved  place  and  a  glance  will 
serve  to  indicate  to  the  passerby  tht  progressive  and  practical  methods 
of  the  owner.  In  his  political  adherence  he  has  alwavs  been  a  stalwart 
Republican,  interested  in  the  partv  and  its  success  and  his  investigation 
into  the  questions  and  issues  of  the  day  has  led  him  to  believe  that  the 
Republican  platform  contains  the  best  elements  of  good  government. 
He  has  been  twice  elected  to  the  office  of  justice  of  the  peace,  his  second 
term  expiring  in  July,  1906.  He  has  filled  the  position  for  eight  years 
and  has  ever  been  fair  and  impartial  in  his  movements,  basing  his 'deci- 
sions upon  the  law  and  the  equity  of  the  case.  After  serving  as  justice 
of  the  peace  for  eight  years,  he  has  been  importuned  by  the  best  element 
to  again  assume  the  onerous  position,  and  without  a  dissenting  voice 
from  any  party,  which  speaks  volumes  for  his  integrity  and  manhood. 


HISTORY  Ol'   CASS  COUXTY  Bui 

He  has  Ijccu  nhicially  oii^nt'Ctcd  with  tlie  schonls  tlin>ui:;li  a  loni^-  periud, 
serving  on  the  seho'il  i).,ar(l  fnr  ahdiu  nine  years,  and  he  Ix'Innsi^s  t(_i  tlie 
Grange.  Hi.s  entire  life  lias  1;een  passed  uixin  the  farm  uiiich  lie  yet 
owns  and  occuiiies,  iia\'ing-  hverl  here  for  sixty  years.  The  place  is  en- 
deared to  him  througii  tlie  associations  of  his  boyliood  as  well  as  those 
of  later  years,  and  th.e  name  of  Benson  has  e\er  stood  for  progress  along 
agricnltnral  lines,  in  which  regard  llenr_\-  C.  Benson  fnlly  sustains  the 
reputation  of  the  family. 

SAMUEL  H.  CTLBEKT. 

On  the  list  of  pioneer  settlers  of  Cass  county  appears  the  name  of 
Samuel  H.  Gilbert,  wlio  is  now  living  on  section  23.  Porter  township. 
He  dates  his  residence  in  the  county  from  1835.  Few,  indeed,  have 
longer  lesided  in  this  pnrtion  of  the  state  or  ha\'e  for  a  greater  period 
witnessed  the  changes  that  ha\e  heen  wrought  here.  He  is  not  only 
familiar  with  the  history  of  the  county  from  hearsay  hut  has  been  an 
active  participant  in  the  work  that  has  led  to  its  jirescnt  dexelopment 
and  upliuilding.  The  story  cf  piiuieer  life  is  a  familiar  one  to  him.  for 
he  settled  here  in  the  da^'s  when  the  homes  were  pioneer  cabins,  when 
much  of  the  work  of  the  fields  was  done  by  hand,  when  the  sickle  and 
scythe  formed  a  part  of  the  farm  im]ilements.  when  the  houses  were 
lighted  by  candles  and  when  the  conking  was  largely  dune  over  the  np.cn 
fireplace. 

JNlr.  Gilbert  is  a  native  of  Onondaga  county.  Xew  York,  bis  Ijirtb 
having  occurred  in  Lysander  township,  on  the  i8th  of  .April.  18J4.  His 
father,  Stephen  Gilbert,  was  born  in  Alassachusetts  and  there  was  reared. 
When  a  young  man  he  left  Xew  England  and  went  to  X'ew  York,  wlience 
he  came  to  Michigan  in  1S35,  making  his  \vay  direct  to  Cass  county. 
He  located  in  Porter  townsliip,  and  at  once  became  engaged  in  the  ardu- 
ous task  of  (le\-eloping  a  new  farm,  making  his  home  thereon  until  bis 
death,  which  occurred  when  he  was  seventy-three  years  of  age.  His 
father,  Samuel  Gilbert,  was  a  native  of  Huntington  township.  Fairfield 
county,  Connecticut,  born  Alarcb  10,  lyCM.  and  was  a  .soldier  of  the 
Revolutionary  war.  espousing  the  cause  of  the  colonists  when  tbe_\"  could 
no  longer  endure  the  yoke  of  British  oppression.  He  saw  Major  Andre 
when  he  was  lumged  as  a  spy.'  ivlr.  Gilbert  was  under  the  command  of 
General  Washington  for  one  year  and  three  months  and  for  thirty  years 
of  his  life  received  a  pension  of  twelve  dollars  per  month  from  the  gov- 
ernment in  recognition  of  the  aid  which  he  bad  rendered  to  his  countrv 
in  her  struggle  for  independence.  Fie  was  supposed  to  have  been  of 
English  descent  and  he  died  September  10,  1849.  The  mother  of  our 
subject  bore  the  maiden  name  of  Almira  Colgrove,  was  a  native  of  Rut- 
land, Vermont,  and  a  daughter  of  Calvin  Colgrove.  of  English  parent- 
age. She  lived  to  a  very  advancerl  age.  passing  away  in  her  ninety-fifth 
year.     By  her  marriage  she  became  the  modier  of  five  sons  and  three 


602  HISTORY  Ol'   CASS  COUNTY 

daughters,    who   readied    adult   age  and   all    were   married   and    reared 
faniihes. 

Samuel  H.  GilLert  is  the  eldest  living  member  of  the  family  today. 
He  was  a  lad  of  eleven  years  when  his  parents  left  the  Empire  state  and 
came  west  to  Michigan,  locating  in  Porter  township,  where  he  pur- 
sued his  studies  in  a  log  school-house.  He  was  also  educated  in  a  sim- 
ilar schooldiouse  in  Xew  York.  The  methods  of  instniction  were  very 
primitive,  in  keeping  with  pioneer  times  and  conditions,  and  he  pursued 
his  studies  only  in  the  winter  months,  for  throughout  the  remainder  of 
the  year  he  worked  in  the  fields  and  assisted  in  clearing  and  cultivating 
the  farm.  He  was  an  expert  in  handling  a  mall  and  wedge  and  was  a 
very  strong  man  in  his  younger  days.  All  the  farm  work  became  famil- 
iar to  him  from  actual  experience  and  he  assisted  in  the  fields  from  the 
time  of  early  spring  planting  until  after  crops  were  harvested  in  the  late 
autumn. 

Mr.  Gilbert  was  married  on  the  31st  of  October,  1847,  to  Miss 
Elizabeth  Motley,  a  daughter  of  James  and  Fannie  (Elkington)  Motley, 
both  of  whom  were  of  English  lineage.  The  modier  died  in  Montreal, 
Canada.  }*Irs.  Gilbert  was  born  in  England,  July  5.  1S29.  and  was  only 
.six  mouths  old  when  her  parents  bade  adieu  to  friends  and  native  coun- 
try and  sailed  for  America.  Her  mother  died  when  the  daughter  was 
but  fourteen  months  old  and  the  father  afterward  married  Bcthe«da  Mc- 
Neil, by  wdiom  he  had  nine  children.  At  the  time  of  their  marriage  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Gilbert  located  on  the  farm  where  thev  now  reside,  it  having 
been  their  place  of  residence  for  fifty-nine  years  and  he  has  owned  it 
for  a  year  longer.  Full  of  hope  and  courage  they  began  the  task  of 
establishing  a  home  here  in  the  midst  of  the  wilderness,  Mrs.  Gilbert 
carefully  managing  the  household  affairs,  wdiile  Mr.  Gilbert  perfonned 
the  work  of  the  fields,  transforming  the  raw  and  undeveloped  land  into 
a  tract  of  rich  fertility,  from  which  he  annually  harvested  good  crops. 
In  all  of  his  work  he  has  been  practical  and  as  invention  has  given  to 
the  world  improved  farm  machinery  he  has  introduced  this  into  his  work 
and  thus  facilitated  his  labors.  There  is  little  similarity  in  the  methods 
of  farming  today,  and  those  which  were  followed  by  the  agriculturists 
a  half  century  ago.  Then  the  farmer  walked  back  and  forth  across  the 
fields,  guiding  his  handplow.  His  grain  was  cut  with  a  scythe  and 
bound  by  hand  into  sheaves.  Today  he  rides  over  the  fields  upon  the 
plow  and  the  cultivator  and  the  han,-esting  machine  and  thresher  are 
familiar  sights  in  all  farming  localities. 

Unto"]\Ir.  and  Mrs.  Gill>ert  have  been  born  eight  children,  of  whom 
four  are  now  living:  Ida,  the  wife  of  Frank  L.  Orr,  who  resides  in 
West  Pullman,  Illinois;  Orrin,  a  contractor  and  builder,  carrying  on 
business  in  Portland.  Oregon:  George,  a  farmer  of  Porter  township: 
Arthur,  a  twin  brother  of  George,  who  follows  farming  in  South  Da- 
kota:  and  Helen,  who  died  at  the  age  of  twenty-eight  years.  She  was  a 
student  in  Hillsdale  College,  Alichigan,  and  after^vard  engaged  success- 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  6(t3 

fully  ill  teaching  school.  ]\lr.  Gilhert  has  led  an  honorable,  useful  and 
active  life.  He  has  always  been  a  strong  temperance  man  and  is  a  Pro- 
hibitionist'in  his  political  views,  regarding  the  use  of  intoxicants  as  one 
of  the  most  important  questions  today  before  the  people.  He  has  never 
used  tobacco  in  his  life  and  none  of  his  sons  is  addicted  to  it.  He  and 
his  family  are  members  of  the  First  Baptist  church  in  Porter  township, 
in  which  l:e  has  served  as  trustee  for  many  years,  while  in  the  work 
of  the  church  he  has  taken  a  most  active  and  helpful  part.  He  is  today 
the  oldest  resident  in  Porter  township,  having  for  seventy-one  years 
made  his  home  within  its  borders  and  has  seen  the  country  develop  from 
a  wilderness  to  its  present  state  of  cultivation  and  improvement,  while 
cross-roads  villages  have  grown  into  thriving  towns  and  cities.  His 
life  has  been  actuated  by  many  noble  principles  and  toward  his  fellow- 
men  he  has  displayed  consideration  and  fairness  that  have  commanded 
uniform  confidence  and  esteem.  His  record  is  indeed  in  many  respects 
worthy  of  emulation,  showing  what  may  be  accomplished  through  earn- 
est and  persistent  efifort  in  the  business  world  and  at  the  same  time 
displaying  sterling  traits  of  character  which  work  for  development  along 
the  lines  of  truth,  righteousness  and  justice. 

JOFIN  LOUPEE. 

John  Loupce,  who  for  twenty-five  years  has  resided  upon  his  pres- 
ent farm  on  section  21,  Porter  township,  where  he  owns  one  hundred 
and  fifty-four  acres  of  land,  was  born  in  Wayne  count}',  Ohio,  August 
23,  1840.  His  father,  George  I^upee.  was  a  native  of  Germany  and 
the  days  of  his  boyhood  and  youth  were  spent  in  that  country,  where 
he  was  married  to  Miss  \\'ilhelmina  Steiner,  also  of  German  V;irth. 
Crossing  the  Atlantic  to  America  with  the  hope  of  having  improved 
business  opportunities  in  the  new  world  they  located  in  Wayne  county, 
Ohio,  where  tliey  resided  until  coming  to  Michigan  aboi:t  1841,  at  which 
time  they  took  up  their  abode  in  Porter  township,  George  Loupee  enter- 
ing land  from  the  government.  He  was  not  long  permitted  to  enjoy 
his  new  home,  however,  and  had  scarcely  begun  the  work  of  transform- 
ing the  raw  wild  land  into  a  cultivable  farm  when  death  claimed  him. 
His  wife  lived  to  be  about  sixty-two  years  of  age.  There  were  eight 
children  in  the  familv.  all  of  whom  reached  manhood  or  womanhood. 

John  Loupce.  the  seventh  in  order  of  birth,  was  only  about  a  year 
old  when  brought  by  his  parents  from  Ohio  to  Cass  county,  and  he  has 
been  a  lifelong  resident  of  Porter  township  and  is  indebted  to  the  public 
school  system  for  the  educational  privileges  which  he  enjoyed  and  which 
fitted  him  for  life's  practical  and  responsible  duties.  Owing  to  the  death 
of  his  father  he  was  early  thrown  upon  his  own  resources,  working  by 
the  month  as  a  farm  hand.  FTe  was  thus  emploved  throughout  the  pe- 
riod of  his  youth  and  until  his  labors  brought  him  capital  sufficient  to 
enable  him  to  engage  in   farming  on  his  own  account.     His    boyhood 


C04  HISTORY  Ol-   CASS  COL'XTY 

therefore  was  a  period  of  earnest  ami  unreniittin<;  toil  with  few  advan- 
tages, educational  or  otherwise. 

In  June,  ]S(>J,  .Mr.  Loupee  was  united  in  niarria.L;e  to  Miss  Eliza 
Ann  Taylor,  a  daughter  of  [)r.  Soniner  Taylor,  wlio  hecanic  a  resilient 
of  Cass  county  sixty  years,  ago  and  died  September  22,  1S76.  In  his 
family  were  four  children.  Mrs.  J^jupee  was  born  in  Huron  county,  New 
York,  March  23.  1S35,  and  came  to  Cass  county  with  her  parents  in 
1S45.  Her  father  was  one  of  the  pioneer  physicians  of  the  county,  who 
engaged  in  the  [iractice  of  medicine  here  in  the  early  days  when  it  neces- 
sitated long  rides  over  the  country  through  the  hot  summer  sun  or 
winter's  cold.  Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Loupee  have  been  born  three  daugh- 
ters: Zella,  now  the  wife  of  Charles  Stearns  living  in  Porter  township, 
Cass  county:  bTances  O.,  the  wife  of  James  Stage,  living  on  the  home 
farm;  and  Edith  I.,  the  wife  of  William  Doane,  a  resident  of  Howard 
townshij),  Cass  comity. 

At  the  lime  of  his  marriage  Mr.  Loupee  located  in  south  Porter 
township  and  for  twent_\--t"i\-e  \e:irs  has  resided  on  his  jiresent  farm, 
which  ci.:mprises  one  hundred  and  fifty-four  acres  of  land  that  is  rich 
and  arable.  He  now  rents  the  land,  leaving  the  active  work-  of  the  farm 
to  others,  while  lie  is  largely  living  a  retired  life.  Plis  political  views 
are  in  accord  with  the  princii)les  of  Democracv,  yet  lie  has  never  been 
an  aspnant  for  ot^ice.  preferring  to  leave  office  holding  to  others,  while 
he  gives  bis  time  and  energies  to  his  liusiness  affairs.  He  belongs 
to  Siloam  lodge.  Xo.  35,  V.  &  A.  M.,  of  Constantine.  He  has 
for  sixty-five  years  made  his  home  in  this  county  and  has  been 
closely  identified  with  its  ui)building,  es])ecially  along  agricultural  lines. 
He  is  a  self-made  man  anrl  deserves  much  credit  for  what  he  accom- 
plished, for  he  started  out  in  life  in  early  boyhood  empty-handed, 
having  no  assistance  from  inheritance  or  from  influential  friends,  but 
depended  entirely  u]jon  bis  own  labors,  realizing  that  hard  work  is  a 
sure  fouridation  upon  which  to  build  success.  His  life  has  been  <.)ne  of 
earnest  toil,  and  as  the  years  ba.ve  gone  b\-  he  has  gained  a  fair  measure 
of  prosperity,  due  to  his  close  application  and  diligence. 

JOHN  O'DELL. 

John  O'Dell.  one  of  the  iirominent  and  influential  farmers  and 
early  settlers  of  Porter  townshij).  living  on  section  ih.  was  l)om  Octo- 
ber 30,  1836,  in  this  t(jwnship  and  is  therefore  one  of  the  oldest  native 
sons  of  the  countv.  He  is  a  son  of  Xathan  and  Sarah  (  Drake)  O'Dell. 
His  paternal  grandifather,  X'atban  G.  O'Dell,  Sr.,  was  born  in  Virginia, 
November  4,  1772.  The  progenitors  of  this .  family  came  originally 
from  England,  and  although  for  many  generations  the  ancestors  of 
our  subject  lived  in  Virginia,  not  a  single  member  of  the  familv  ever 
ow-ned  slaves,  and  so  far  as  is  known  all  were  opposed  to  the  institution 
of  slavery.     Nathan  G.  O'Dell,  Sr.,  was  married  to  Miss  Rebecca  Kife, 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COL'XTV  605 

who  was  born  m  tlie  old  Doniiniun  in  July,  1780.  He  was  a  miller  by 
trade  and  owned  a  mill  in  X'irginia,  where  in  connection  witli  the  opera- 
tion of  the  plant  he  also  carried  on  tarniiny.  Karly  in  1800.  however, 
he  removed  with  his  family  to  Ohio,  settling  in  Wayne  countv,  where 
he  took  up  land  from  the  government.  It  was  entirely  raw  and  unim- 
proved, but  his  strenuous  lalwrs  soon  converted  it  into  a  productive 
farm.  He  likewise  owned  and  operated  a  grist  mill,  and  was  fcjr  twentv- 
eight  years  associated  with  business  interests  in  the  Buckeye  state.  In 
1828  he  came  to  Michigan,  taking  up  his  alxjde  in  the  eastern  part  of 
what  is  now  Porter  township,  Cass  county.  Here.  too.  he  was  a  ])inneer 
settler,  living  upon  the  frontier  and  sharing  with  others  in  the  hard- 
ships and  privations  incident  to  life  in  a  far  western  district.  He  con- 
tinued to  make  his  home  in  Porter  township  until  his  death,  which 
occurred  in  October,  18,^5,  and  his  wife  followed  him  to  the  grave  two 
months  later.  In  their  family  were  nine  chiklrcn:  Thomas,  the  eldest, 
born  June  22.  i79^>.  was  for  more  than  forty  years  a  minister  of  the 
Methodist  church.  He  went  to  Iowa,  where  he  devoted  his  life  to  his 
holy  calling  and  there  died  in  ]S(>i.  James,  born  Sci)teml)er  I3.  ij'jS. 
married  Nancy  Carr  and  in  early  life  came  to  Michigan,  his  death 
occurring  in  St.  Jose|)h  count}',  this  state.  Se])tember  24.  1835.  John, 
born  March  24,  iSoi,  died  in  Ohio.  August  19,  1826.  prior  to  the  re- 
moval of  the  f.unily  to  Michigan.  Xathan  G..  father  of  John  O'Dell 
of  this  review,  was  the  next  of  the  family.  Elizabeth,  born  Mav  2:, 
1806,  was  married  in  Ohio,  May  19,  1835,  becoming  Mrs.  Metcalf. 
Enos  P.,  Iwrn  .August  7,  t8o8,  went  to  Illinois,  where  he  followed 
farming  until  his  death  on  the  22(1  of  February,  1S52.  Lorenzo  Dow, 
born  October  9,  t8io,  was  a  member  of  congress  froin  Ohio  and  died  in 
that  state  about  1883.  Rebecca,  born  May  17,  1812,  married  Thomas 
Burns,  with  whom  .she  came  to  Michigan,  and  her  death  occurred  in  this 
state  in  September,  1846.  Silas  P.,  born  April  15,  1814,  died  at  the 
age  of  two  years,  on  the  29th  of  September,  1819. 

Nathan  G.  0"Dell.  Jr..  father  of  our  subject,  was  born  in  Ohio, 
October  i,  1803,  was  there  reared  and  was  married  in  that  state  in  1828 
to  Miss  Sarah  Drake,  whose  birth  occurred  April  10,  1810.  Imme- 
diately after  their  marriage  they  left  Ohio,  and  with  several  other 
families  came  to  Cass  county.  ^lichigan,  settling  in  Porter  township, 
w^here  Mr.  O'Dell  and  his  father  took  up  government  land.  He  there 
began  the  development  of  a  farm  and  in  the  course  of  years  brought 
this  land  under  a  high  state  of  cultivation.  Unto  him  and  his  wife  were 
born  five  children:  James  S..  was  tern  January  10,  1830.  He  married 
Jane  Travers,  who  died  about  a  year  afterward  leaving  a  child  a  few 
days  old,  who  died  when  about  nine  years  of  age.  On  the  27th  of  Feb- 
luary,  1S59,  James  O'Dell  wedded  Caroline  Loupee.  who  was  born  in 
Wayne  county.  Ohio.  November  8.  1837.  while  her  parents  were  natives 
of  Germany.  James  O'Dell  has  four  children:  ^Martha.  Iwrn  .\pril  23. 
i860:  Carrie  M.,  IMay   iS,   1865:  Ida,  December  ir,   1870;  and  Ross. 


606  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

February  24,  1S75.  Tliomas,  bnrn  June  30,  183 1,  married  Miss  Lavina 
Travers.  He  was  a  farmer  by  occupation  and  was  a  leadinq-  and  in- 
fluential factor  in  local  political  circles,  servincf  as  justice  of  the  peace 
and  as  supervisor  and  also  as  a  member  of  the  state  leijislature  of  Mich- 
igan. He  died  June  30,  1R92.  Icavinq-  a  fam.ily  of  six  children.  David, 
born  March  27.  1833.  went  to  Iowa  and  there  enlisted  for  service  in  the 
Civil  war.  After  beincf  honorably  discharged  he  returned  to  Iowa  and 
died  soon  aftenvard.  Margaret  M.,  born  Novemljer  9.  1834,  was  mar- 
ried to  Henry  Brown,  who  died  in  1884.  She  is  still  living  in  Porter 
township.  John  is  the  subject  of  this  review.  The  mother  of  these  chil- 
dren died  in  Octolier.  1836,  soon  after  the  birth  of  John  O'Dell,  and 
later  Nathan  G.  O'Dell,  Jr.,  was  married  to  Miss  Eliza  Shivel.  by  whom 
he  had  two  children.  Sarah  Wealthy,  the  eldest,  born  December  25, 
1842,  became  the  wife  of  John  Draper  and  died  while  her  husband  was 
serving  in  the  Union  army.  Nathan  Fben,  bom  December  27.  1843, 
went  into  the  army  \vhen  but  sixteen  years  of  age  and  remained  until 
the  close  of  the  war  in  1864.  He  married  Miss  Nettie  Motley,  and 
they  have  three  living  children  and  two  deceased. 

When  John  O'Dell  was  only  nine  years  of  age  he  was  bound  out 
to  Jacob  Lintz,  of  Constantine  township,  and  lived  with  him  for  nine 
years,  during  which  time  he  worked  at  farm  labor  in  its  various  depart- 
ments. He  afterward  returned  to  Porter  township.  Cass  county,  where 
he  has  resided  continuousU-  since.  The  only  educational  privileges  he 
enjoyed  were  those  afforded  by  the  district  schools  and  be  bad  little 
opportimity  for  that,  because  he  was  only  nine  years  old  when  his  father 
died,  and  he  Avas  thus  thrown  upon  his  own  resources  and  has  since 
had  to  provide  for  his  own  support.  He  was  married  in  Porter  town- 
ship, Cass  county,  to  Miss  Jane  .-X.  Smith,  a  daughter  of  Deacon  and 
Cornelia  fHart)  Smith.  She  was  born  in  Porter  township  May  30, 
1842,  and  there  spent  her  early  girlhood  days,  her  parents  being  old 
settlers  of  Cass  countv.  At  the  time  of  her  marriage  the  young  couple 
took  up  their  aliode  in  a  log  house  on  a  forty-acre  farm  on  section  16. 
Later  I\Tr.  O'Dell  sold  that  property  for  three  thousand  dollars  and 
bought  forty-three  acres  where  he  now  lives.  He  has  since  added 
seventy-eight  acres  to  this  place,  making  a  farm  of  one  hundred  and 
twenty-one  acres.  It  is  fine  property,  well  improved  with  modern  eqiu'p- 
ments.  There  are  good  buildings  upon  the  place  and  excellent  farm 
implements,  and  for  many  years  ^Ir.  O'Dell  carried  on  the  active  work 
of  the  fields,  but  is  now  renting  his  land,  leaving  the  practical  fann 
work  to  others,  although  he  still  gives  his  supervision  to  the  place. 

Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  O'Dell  have  been  born  three  children :  Lucy, 
the  wife  of  O.  K.  Har\-ey,  of  Constantine.  Michigan:  Lydia  Grace,  the 
wife  of  Charles  Barnard,  who  is  also  living  in  that  place;  and  Dr.  John 
H.  O'Dell.  who  is  a  practicing  physician  of  Three  Rivers.  'Mr.  O'Dell 
is  one  of  the  old  settlers  of  the  county,  and  has  been  identified  with  its 
upbuilding  and  progress  through  a  long  period.     He  has  always  voted 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY  ooT 

with  the  RepubHcan  party,  casting  his  ballot  for  Lincoln  in  i860  and 
again  in  1S64,  and  for  each  man  at  tlie  head  of  the  ticket  of  that  party. 
He  and  his  wife  belong  to  the  h'irst  Baptist  church  at  Porter,  and  he  has 
led  a  life  of  integrity  and  uprightness,  worthy  the  regard  which  is 
uniformly  given  him.  lie  has  now  reached  the  psalmist's  span  of  three 
score  years  and  ten,  and  his  entire  life  has  been  passed  in  this  county. 
He  can  remember  in  his  boyhood  days  of  the  forests  which  covered 
what  are  now  some  vi  the  best  farms  in  the  county.  There  were  few 
roads  laid  out  through  the  wilderness,  and  often  one  followed  old 
Indian  trails  in  making  their  way  amnng  the  trees  to  a  given  point.  The 
work  of  development  and  upbuilding  seemed  scarcely  begun  and  Mr. 
O'Dcll  shared  in  the  task  of  improving  the  county.  He  became  familiar 
with  the  arduous  work  of  developing  and  cultivating  new  land,  and  for 
many  years  was  closely  associated  with  agricultural  interests,  but  is 
now  living  retired,  having  a  good  property  which  returns  him  a  gratify- 
ing income,  thus  supplying  him  with  all  of  the  comforts  and  many  of  the 
hixurics  of  life.  He  can  tell  many  tales  of  pioneer  days  which  show 
the  onward  march  of  progress,  for  Cass  county  has  alwa3's  kept  pace 
with  the  work  of  improvement  elsewhere,  and  has  become  one  of  the 
leading  counties  of  this  great  commonwealth.  Although  it  was  once  a 
heavily  timbered  region  it  is  now  one  of  the  good  agricultural  districts  of 
the  state. 

E.  W.  BECKWTTII. 

E.  \V.  Beckwilli,  formerly  engaged  in  merchandising,  but  now  de- 
voting his  attention  to  farming  on  section  14,  Jefferson  township,  rep- 
resents one  of  the  pioneer  fann'Iies  of  this  part  of  the  .state,  the  name 
of  Beckwith  having  been  interwoven  with  the  historv  of  the  county 
from  1833  down  to  the  present  time.  It  has  always  stood  as  a  synonym 
for  business  integrity  and  for  loyalty  in  citizenship,  and  the  rec- 
ord of  our  subject  is  in  harmony  with  that  of  others  of  the  name. 
He  was  born  in  Cassojxilis,  ^Michigan,  October  12.  1847.  His  father, 
Walter  G.  Beckwith,  was  a  native  of  West  Bloomfield,  Xew  York,  and 
came  to  Cass  county,  Michigan,  about  1833.  Few  settlements  had 
been  made  in  this  portion  of  the  state  at  tlie  time,  and  as  far  as  the  c\e 
could  see  there  were  uncut  forests  and  uncultivated  tracts  of  prairie. 
Only  here  and  there  had  a  clearing  been  made  to  show  tliat  the  work  of 
agricultural  development  had  begun,  while  the  now  thriving  cities  were 
but  small  villages,  or  h.ad  not  vet  sprung  into  existence.  Mr.  Beckwith 
took  an  active  part  in  molding  the  early  public  policy  of  the  county.  He 
was  one  of  the  first  sheriffs  and  his  activity  touched  many  lines  that  have 
led  to  permanent  improvement  and  benefit  here.  He  was  president  of 
the  State  Agricultural  Society  for  about  fourteen  }'ears.  a  position  wliich 
was  indicative  of  the  place  which  he  held  as  a  representative  of  farm- 
ing interests  and  of  the  high  regard  reposed  in  him  by  his  fellow  agri- 
culturists throughout  Michigan.     Far  sighted,  he  extended  his  time  and 


60S  HISTORY  Ol'  CASS  CUL'XTV 

energies  net  only  ti_>  his  lusiness  affairs  but  to  public  interests  as  well, 
and  his  efforts  were  far  reachinsf  and  beneficial.  He  \-oted  with  the 
DenKjcrac}'.  and  he  kept  well  infLirnied.  ma  only  on  political  (juestiuns, 
but  upon  all  issues  and  events  relating  to  the  progress  and  welfare  of 
the  country  at  large,  in  early  manlmod  he  wedded  Miss  Eliza  Lee.  a 
native  of  West  Bloomfield.  Xew  York.  She  lived  to  be  about  sixtv-five 
_\ears  of  age,  while  Mr.  lieckwith  reached  the  advanced  age  of  seventy- 
six  years.  Tlu}-  were  the  parents  of  only  two  children,  who  reached 
adult  age,  and  E.  W.  I'.eckwith.  of  this  review,  is  now  the  only  sur- 
viving nicnibcr  ot  the  faniilw 

Upon  the  eld  houicste'id  farm  m  Jefferson  township  ]•:.  W.  P,eck- 
with  became  familiar  with  the  duties  and  lalx^rs  that  fall  to  the  lot  of 
the  agriculturist.  His  early  education  was  acquired  in  the  district 
schools  and  was  supplemented  In-  study  in  the  Kalamazoo  Baptist  Col- 
lege. In  iS68  he  established  a  shoe  store  at  Dowagiac,  in  which  he 
continued  for  ten  years.  (.>r  until  187S,  since  which  time  his  attention 
has  been  given  m  undixidetl  manner  to  hi<  farm  pursuits.  He  has  ever 
laliored  to  produce  maximum  residts  with  minimum  effort,  which  is 
the  basis  of  all  business  success. 

In  1870  Mr.  Beckwith  was  united  in  marriage  to  Miss  Clara  Sulli- 
van, who  died  leaving  two  sons :  Charles,  an  electrician  engaged  in 
business  in  Ck\eland,  Ohio;  anrl  Walter,  at  home. 

Mr.  Beckwith  \\as  reared  in  the  faith  of  the  Democracy,  and  his 
mature  judgment  has  led  him  to  the  Iselief  that  the  party  platform  con- 
tains the  best  elements  of  gnorl  go\-ernment.  He  has  labored  earnestly 
for  its  success  and  has  filled  a  number  of  local  offices,  acting  for  eighteen 
years  as  sujicrintendent  of  the  ])0'ir.  He  beli^ngs  to  the  Knights  of 
Pythias  fraternity,  and  in  that  order  and  throughout  the  county  as 
well  he  is  esteemed  as  a  valued  citizen,  wdiose  interest  in  public  affairs 
has  been  of  an  active  and  helpful  nature.  His  co-operation  can  always 
be  counted  upon  io  further  any  mr.vement  for  the  general  good  of  the 
comnuinit}'. 

C.  CARROLL  XELSOX. 

Among  the  leading  citizens  of  Cass  county  whose  life  record  forms 
an  integral  part  of  die  history  of  this  section  of  the  state  is  numbered 
C.  Carroll  Nelson,  who  is  now  living  a  retired  life  and  whose  position 
in  the  regard  of  other  pioneer  residents  of  the  state  is  indicated  by  the 
fact  that  he  is  now  serving  as  treasurer  of  the  Old  Settlers'  Association. 
His  career  lias  been  a  long,  busy  and  useful  one,  marked  by  the  utmost 
fidelity  to  the  duties  of  public  and  private  life  and  crowned  with  the 
respect  which  is  conferred  upon  him  in  recognition  of  his  genuine 
wortii.  His  name  is  inseparably  interwoven  with  the  annals  of  the  coun- 
ty, with  its  best  development  and  stable  prosperity.  He  is  one  of  Mich- 
igan's native  sons,  his  birth  having  occurred  in  Washtenaw  county  on 
the  31st  of  July,  1835.     His  father,  I.  S.  Nelson,  was  a  native  of  ^las- 


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HISTORV  Ol^  CASS  C()L'XT\'  tloO 

saclmsetts.  l;(irn  in  Deerficlil.  whence  he  came  to  Micliipan  in  1830,  lo- 
calintj  in  Waslitenaw  cnunty,  where  his  rcmainins^  days  were  passed, 
his  death  nccurriiiL;'  in  1837.  His  wife,  who  hore  the  maiden  name  of 
EHza  Arms,  was  Imrn  in  Cnnway,  ?i[assachu-^etts.  an<l  fnllowincr  tlie 
deatli  of  licr  hr>t  hu<baiul  she  gave  her  liand  in  niarriayc  to  Rnlef  D. 
Crego. 

C.  Can  oil  Nelson  was  brought  to  Cass  county  in  1842.  when  a 
youth  of  seven  summers,  the  family  home  being  estabhshcd  in  Xcwlerg 
lownsliip.  where  he  was  reared  and  educated.  After  attending  the  com- 
mon scliools  he  continued  his  studies  in  Hillsdale  College  for  two  vears 
and  afterward  engaged  in  teaching  in  the  public  schools  through  the 
winter  months,  while  in  the  summer  seasons  his  labors  were  devoted  to 
the  work  of  the  farm.  He  was  the  only  child  born  unto  his  parents  tliat 
grew  to  mature  years.  He  remained  at  home  with  his  mother  until 
twenty-one  }-cars  of  age  and  then  started  out  in  life  on  his  own  account. 
With  a  full  rcali.-^ation  of  the  fact  that  advancement  can  be  most  ciuicklv 
seaircd  through  close  application  and  unremitting  diligence,  he  worked 
peisistently  and  energetically  and  in  due  course  of  time  he  gained  a 
place  among  the  representative  agriculturists  of  his  adopted  countv.  He 
\vas  married  on  the  loth  of  August.  1861.  to  }iliss  Phebc  Pegg.  a  daugh- 
ter of  Reuben  and  Rebecca  (Hinshaw)  Pegg.  who  were  pioneer  settlers 
of  Cass  county.  ^Irs.  Xel.son  was  born  in  Penn  township  on  December 
12,  1840.  and  has  been  a  lifelong  resident  of  Cass  county.  Her  parents 
were  natives  of  Randolph  county.  North  Carolina,  and  came  to  Cass 
county  in  iSjS,  and  her  father  was  also  one  of  the  earliest  settlers  with- 
in the  borders  of  this  county.  They  were  married  at  what  was  then 
called  Whitman\ille.  liut  is  now  LaGrange.  and  they  located  in  Penn 
townshi]).  where  they  continued  to  reside  until  called  to  the  home  be- 
3-ond.  They  were  the  parents  of  five  children,  three  daughters  and  two 
sons,  of  whom  \\'illiam  and  Sarah  are  now  deceased.  The  others  are: 
Mary,  Abijah  and  ^^Irs.  Phel:e  Pegg  Nelson. 

The  young  couj/le  began  their  domestic  life  upon  a  farm  in  Penn 
township  and  in  1866  removed  to  Cassopolis.  vvhere  "Sir.  Nelson  estab- 
lished a  sash  and  door  factory  in  company  with  A.  H.  Pegg.  in  which 
business  he  continued  until  1S77.  theirs  being  one  of  the  leading  pro- 
ductive industries  of  the  county.  In  that  year  ]\Ir.  Nelson  met  with  an 
accident,  losing  his  left  arm  and  also  the  sight  of  one  eye.  In  the  same 
year  he  was  appointed  postmaster  and  entered  upon  the  duties  of  the 
office  in  1878,  filling  the  position  for  eight  years  and  eight  months  in  a 
most  capable  and  satisfactory  manner,  gnving  a  public-spirited  and 
progressive  administration.  He  then  handed  over  the  keys  to  L.  H. 
Glover,  who  is  erlilor  of  tbu's  volume,  and  in  Jnly.  1887,  he  embarked 
in  the  undertaking  and  furniture  business,  in  which  he  continued  until 
Januar}-.  1904.  With  the  capital  he  had  acquired  and  which  was  suf- 
ficient to  .supply  him  with  the  necessities  and  comforts  of  life  through 


610  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

his  remaining  days,  he  retired  from  active  business  and  is  now  enjoying 
a  well  earned  rest.  He  has  been  a  representative  of  agricultural,  indus- 
trial and  commercial  life  and  in  all  departments  of  labor  has  displayed 
perseverance  and  industry  combined  with  unfaltering  Inisiness  integ- 
rity. 

In  politics  JMr.  Nelson  is  a  standi  Republican  and  in  1863  he  served 
as  supervisor  of  Peiin  tov/nship.  He  was  also  superintendent  of  the 
poor  from  1873  until  1S76  and  was  village  assessor  of  Cassopolis  for 
about  fourteen  \ears.  Upon  the  organization  of  the  Cassopolis  Library 
Association  in  March,  1S71,  Mr.  and  JMrs.  Nelson  took  an  active  part  in 
its  work  and  have  since  done  all  in  their  power  for  the  interests  of  the 
library.  ]\Ir.  Nelson  acted  as  president  of  the  association  during  the 
first  eigiit  years  of  its  existence  and  Mrs.  Nelson  was  one  of  its  di- 
rectors, the  first  meeting  being  held  at  their  home.  In  fact  they  were 
instrumental  in  establishing  the  library,  and  this  institution,  which  is 
now  a  credit  to  the  village  and  a  matter  of  local  pride,  owes  its  existence 
and  success  in  large  measure  to  their  efforts.  For  nineteen  years  Mr. 
Nelson  has  been  treasurer  of  the  Pioneer  Society  and  active  in  its  work. 
He  is  also  connected  with  the  Ancient  Order  of  United  Workmen  and 
his  wife  holds  membership  in  the  Disciples  church.  Mr.  Nelson  has 
been  a  resident  of  Cass  county  for  sixty-three  years  and  his  wife 
throughout  hev  entire  life,  and  no  couple  are  more  deserving  of  esteem 
and  confidence  nr  are  more  justly  entitled  to  representation  in  this 
volume  than  C.  Canoll  Nelson  and  his  estimable  wife.  His  entire  free- 
dom from  ostentation  or  selk-laudation  has  made  him  one  of  the  most 
popular  citizens  of  Cass  county,  with  whose  history  he  has  now  been 
long  and  prominently  identified.  ]\lr.  and  Mrs.  Nelson  have  some  old 
and  rare  relics  of  "ye  olden  tyme."  They  have  a  linen  table  cloth  which 
is  over  a  century  old,  and  it  Vvas  woven  by  Mr.  Nelson's  grandmother 
Nelson.  They  also  have  one  of  the  most  extensive  libraries  in  the  coun- 
ty of  Cass.  Mrs.  Nelson  has  several  rare  bound  volumes  of  collected 
views  and  engravings,  which  as  a  rare  collection  could  not  be  found 
in  southern  Midiigan. 

ELBRIDGE   JE\\"ELL. 

Elbridge  Jewell,  one  of  the  thrifty,  prosperous  and  enterprising 
farmers  of  LaGrange  township,  living  on  section  2C>.  is  a  native  son  of 
Cass  county,  born  on  the  8th  of  January,  1838.  His  father.  Hiram 
Jewell,  was  a  native  of  New  Jersey,  and  was  a  son  of  John  Jewell.  Tlie 
family  was  established  in  the  east  at  an  early  period  in  the  colonization 
of  the  new  world.  John  Jewell,  removing  from  New  Jersey,  became  a 
resident  of  Ohio,  and  spent  his  last  days  in  Butler  county.  Hiram 
Jewell  came  to  Cass  county  in  1830,  settling  in  LaGrange  township, 
where  he  secured  government  land  that  was  raw  and  unimproved.  A 
part  of  Cassopolis  now  stands  upon  a  portion  of  his  farm.     He  improved 


HISTO]>^V  OF  CASS  COUNTY  Gil 

a  tract  of  land  on  section  27,  and  there  spent  the  greater  part  of  his  hfe. 
In  the  early  days  the  family  shared  in  the  hardships  and  trials  incident 
to  the  settlement  of  the  frontier,  but  afterward  enjoyed  the  comforts 
which  came  with  an  advancing  civilization.  In  his  work  he  was  ener- 
getic and  reliable,  making  for  himself  an  untarnished  name  and  enviable 
reputation  in  business  circles.  He  lived  to  be  eighty-two  years  of  age, 
while  his  v;ife  reached  the  age  of  sixty  years.  She  bore  the  maiden 
name  of  Martha  W'aldron,  and  is  supposed  to  have  been  a  native  of 
Ohio.  In  this  family  were  five  children,  two  sons  and  three  daughters, 
of  whom  two  died  in  early  life.  Those  still  surviving  are  Elliridge  and 
his  sister,  ]Mirani,  wh'i  is  the  widow  of  Henry  S.  Quick,  of  LaGrange 
township. 

Elbridge  Jewell,  the  third  child  and  second  son  in  the  father's 
family,  was  reared  u])on  the  old  family  homestead  on  section  27,  La- 
Grange  township,  and  when  a  boy  pursued  his  studies  in  a  log  school 
house,  to  which  he  walked  a  distance  of  a  mile  and  a  half  through  the 
woods.  The  school  session  was  of  comparatively  short  duration,  for 
throughout  the  remainder  of  the  year  the  services  of  the  boys  and  girls 
of  the  neighborhood  were  needed  at  home,  as  there  was  much  arduous 
labor  incident  to  the  development  of  a  new  farm.  Mr.  Jewell  continued 
to  assist  in  the  cultivation  of  the  fields  upon  his  father's  place  until  after 
his  marriage,  which  important  event  in  his  life  occurred  in  1S57,  the 
lady  of  his  choice  being  JNIiss  .Sarah  J.  Bonnel.  They  located  on  a  farm 
on  section  27,  LaGrange  township,  there  residing  until  i860,  when  they 
removed  to  another  place.  In  1861,  however,  they  returned  to  the  old 
homestead  and  in  1865  rcmovefl  to  Iowa,  settling  in  Warren  county, 
northwest  of  the  city  of  Dcs  r^Ioines.  After  a  brief  period,  however, 
they  again  took  up  their  abode  upon  the  old  home  farm  in  Cass  county, 
and  there  Mr.  Jewell  continued  to  engage  actively  in  agricultural  pur- 
suits until  1889,  when  he  went  to  Cassopolis,  where  lie  remained  for 
five  years,  being  engaged  in  the  agricultural  implement  business.  When 
he  sold  out  he  located  on  the  home  farm  and  then  traded  that  property 
for  the  farm  upon  which  he  now  resides  on  section  26,  LaGrange  town- 
ship. He  has  here  one  hundred  and  twenty-eight  acres  of  land  which 
is  rich  and  arable  and  which  he  rents,  so  that  he  is  relieved  of  the  more 
arduous  duties  of  farm  life.  He  operated  a  threshing  machine  from 
1870  until  1887,  covering  much  territory  throughout  the  county  and 
finding  in  the  business  a  profitable  source  of  income. 

In  1S80,  Mr.  Jewell  was  called  upon  to  mourn  the  loss  of  his  first 
wife,  who  died  on  the  12th  of  May  of  that  year.  On  the  14th  of  No- 
vember, iSSo,  he  was  married  to  Lucy  A.  Davis,  a  daughter  of  Charles 
F.  S.  and  Susan  (Batchelor)  Davis.  T\Irs.  Jewell  was  tern  in  Dowagiac 
on  the  farm  owned  by  Samuel  .\aron=,  January-  28.  1839.  Her 
parents  had  come  to  Cas?  county  about  1857.  from  the  state  of  Ohio. 
Mr.  and  'vTrs.  Jewell  have  become  the  parents  of  two  sons:  Hiram  E.. 
a  telegraph  operator  of  Vicksburg,  IMichigan;  and  Fred  C.  a  telegrapher 


612  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

living  at  home.  :\Ir.  Jewell  belongs  to  the  Ancient  Order  of  United 
Workmen  of  Cassopolis,  and  he  has  many  friends  Imth  in  and  out  of 
the  order.  Having  always  lived  in  Cass  cou.nty,  his  acquaintance  ha.s 
grown  as  the  years  have  gone  by.  and  the  circle  of  his  friends  has  1>cen 
extended  as  his  genuine  worth  has  won  regard   and  confidence. 

He  has  swung  the  old  "Turkey  \\'ing"  cradles  from  morn  to  night. 
Mr.  and  ]\lrs.  Jewell  have  one  of  the  "old  Lnngfellow  clocks."'  which 
stands  over  six  feet  in  height  and  it  is  over  a  centurv  old,  hut  keeps 
perfect  time.  It  is  a  rare  specimen,  and  not  such  another  relic  will  he 
found  in  the  whole  county  of  Cass.  His  father  had  the  large  frame 
made  himself.     They  have  a  Eihle  which  was  printed  in  1839. 

WILLIAM!    .AIcCxILL. 

William  ^McGill,  residing  in  Union,  is  a  native  of  Canada,  born  on 
the  22(1  of  August.  1830,  and  in  his  life  has  displayed  many  of  the 
sterling  characteristics  of  the  Scotch  race.  His  father.  Andrew  McGill, 
also  a  native  of  the  land  of  hills  and  heather,  was  a  farmer  bv  ocai- 
pation.  He  was  reared,  educated  and  married  in  his  native  land,  and 
in  1831,  accom]5anied  by  his  family,  he  crossed  the  Atlantic  to  the  new 
world,  taking  up  his  aborle  near  Troy,  New  York.  There  he  spcn.t  his 
remaining  days,  living  to  be  about  sixty-five  years  of  age.  His  wife, 
Mrs.  Magarct  McCill,  alsd  a  native  >>i  Scotland,  died  in  her  cightv- 
eighth  }-ear.  In  their  family  were  ten  children,  and  no  dc-atli  occurred 
in  the  family  circle  until  after  all  had  reached  mature  years.  There 
were  four  sons  and  six  daughters.  Imt  only  four  are  now  living. 

William  McGill,  of  this  review,  is  the  youngest  son  and  is  the  only 
representative  of  the  family  in  Cass  county.  He  was  about  six  months 
old  when  his  parents  left  Canada  and  came  to  the  United  States,  and  he 
was  reared  in  Rensselaer  county.  New  York,  pursuing  his  education  in 
the  schools  of  Stephentown.  His  youth  was  passed  upon  the  home  farm. 
and  he  assisted  in  its  cultivation  and  improvement  until  about  twenty- 
three  years  of  age.  He  came  to  Michigan  in  iSCyC).  locating  in  St. 
Joseph  county,  and  Ixiught  a  farm  in  Motville  township,  where  he 
remained  for  ten  years,  his  time  and  energies  being  given  to  its  devel- 
opment and  cultivation.  On  the  expiration  of  that  period  he  traded  the 
property  for  four  hundred  acres  of  land  on  the  state  line,  three  miles 
from  Union.  As  his  financial  resources  have  increased  he  has  extended 
his  posessions  by  additional  purchase  from  time  to  time,  until  he  is  one 
of  the  most  extensive  land  owners  of  this  part  of  the  state,  having  about 
two  thousand  acres  more,  which  lies  across  the  border  line  in  Indiana. 
but  the  greater  part  is  in  Cass  county.  He  has  also  engaged  in  loaning 
money  for  many  years  and  buys  and  sells  horses,  and  frequently  he 
rents  out  Ixith  horses  and  cows.  His  business  extends  into  St.  Joseph 
county,  'Michigan,  St.  Joseph  county,  Indiana,  to  Van  Buren.  Cass  and 
Berrien  counties,  and  he  is  one  of  the  most  prominent  and  influential 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  t;i3 

residents  of  this  part  of  the  state.  He  lias  been  xcvy  successful  in  his 
business,  possessing  keen  foresioiit  and  broad  capacity  and  carrying 
forward  to  successful  conijjktinn  whatexer  he  undertakes.  He  is  seldom 
at  error  in  matters  of  business  judi^inent,  and  his  enterprise,  discrimina- 
tion and  industry  have  been  strong  and  salient  features  in  his  prosperity. 
Mr.  McCiill  is  a  stalwart  Republican,  but  takes  no  active  part  in 
the  work  of  the  organizatiMU.  He  belongs  to  the  Presbyterian  church 
and  he  makes  his  home  in  Union.  He  is  today  tlie  largest  land  owner 
of  the  county.  His  life  record  shows  what  may  l)c  accomplished  through 
close  applicaticin  and  unremitting  (bh'gencc.  He  had  no  special  ad- 
vantages when  h.c  startcil  nut  in  life,  Init  he  was  not  afraid  to  work  and 
he  possessed  laudable  ambitii  n.  He  has  made  good  u.se  of  his  opportu- 
nities and  has  prospered  fnim  year  to  year,  conducting  all  business  mat- 
ters carefully  and  successfully,  and  in  all  his  acts  displays  an  aptitude  for 
successful  m.anagement. 

JOHX  R.  COTJJXS. 

Among  the  citizens  of  Mason  township  whose  worth  and  fidelity 
to  the  general  good  are  manifest  in  the  faithful  performance  of  public 
duties  is  numbered  John  R.  Ci'llins.  who  is  now  filling  the  office  of  town- 
ship clerk.  He  resides  on  section  i  r.  Mason  township,  and  is  one  of  the 
native  sons  of  this  locality,  born  on  the  15th  of  July,  iS-^t,.  His  father. 
William  Collins,  was  a  native  of  Ohio,  and  came  to  ^lichigan  with  his 
father,  John  Collins,  who  took  uii  their  abode  in  Cass  county  in  pioneer 
days,  settling  in  IMason  township  in  i'^3i.  He  found  the  district 
largely  wiUl  and  unim])ro\cd.  ^lucli  of  the  land  was  still  in  possession 
of  the  government,  and  he  took  up  a  claim  of  eighty  acres  on  section 
14.  With  characteristic  energy  he  began  the  cultivation  and  develop- 
ment of  a  farm,  and  after  clearing  the  land  placed  it  under  the  plow. 
William  Collins  was  a  youth  of  twelve  years  at  the  time  of  the  removal 
of  the  familv  from  Oliio  to  Alichigan,  and  was  reared  upon  the  old 
homestead  on  section  14.  ATason  township,  where  he  early  became  famil- 
iar with  the  arduous  task  of  developing  new  land.  There  were  many 
hardships  and  trials  to  be  borne  in  those  days,  for  few  roads  had  been 
laid  out  and  manv  of  the  now  thriving  towns  and  villages  had  not  yet 
sprung  into  existence,  so  that  the  settlers  had  to  go  long  distances  to 
market  and  mill.  Much  of  the  fann  work  was  done  bv  hand,  andthe 
machinery  then  in  use  was  verv  crude  and  primitive.  Having  arrived 
at  years  of  maturity  William  Collins  was  united  in  marriage  in  Wiscon- 
sin to  Miss  Marietta  Peck,  who  was  born  in  Connecticut,  and  was  there 
reared  to  the  age  of  fifteen  vears.  a  dausrhter  of  Reuben  Peck.  She 
then  came  to  the  west  and  at  the  time  of  their  marriage  Mr.  and  'M'rs. 
William  Collins  located  in  Mason  township,  where  thev  lived  most  of 
their  lives.  The  father  died  on  the  23rd  of  October,  iqo2.  which  was 
the  seventv-fifth  anniversary  of  his  birth,  and  the  mother  passed  awav 
in  1867.     Having  lost  his  first  wife,  William  Collins  was  again  married, 


CU  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

his  second  union  being  witli  Ellen  Dokey.  There  were  two  sons  of  the 
former  union:  John  R.,  of  this  review;  and  Fred  \V.,  who  is  living  in 
Minnesota.  By  tlie  second  marriage  there  was  a  son  and  daughter, 
William  and  Sylvin.  The  former  is  now  living  in  Minnesota  but  the 
latter  died  in  chikihood. 

John  R.  Collins  was  reared  in  INIason  township  and  pursued  his 
education  in  the  distiict  schools.  He  started  out  in  life  on  his  own 
account  when  fifteen  years  of  age,  working  by  the  month  as  a  farm  hand 
in  Mason  township,  being  employed  in  that  way  for  eight  rears.  He 
was  married  on  die  30th  of  July,  1S73.  to  Miss  Philonia  Curtis,  a 
daughter  of  Joseph  A.  and  Deborah  (Jordan)  Curtis,  a  native  of  Mason 
township,  where  she  has  spent  her  entire  life.  Unto  this  marriage  has 
been  born  one  son,  Nial  J.,  •\\ho  at  the  age  of  nineteen  years  is  living 
at  liome,  assisting  in  the  operation  of  the  farm. 

John  R.  Collins  is  a  carpenter  by  trade,  having  learned  the  business 
when  a  youth.  He  followed  that  pursuit  for  a  number  of  years,  but 
now  concentrates  his  energies  upon  his  farming  operations,  and  is  the 
owner  of  a  good  tract  of  land  of  fifty-five  acres,  which  he  has  brought 
under  a  high  state  of  cultivation,  so  that  he  annually  harvests  good 
cro])S.  In  his  political  views  he  is  a  Democrat,  and  has  for  many  years 
served  as  township  clerk,  elected  the  last  time  in  April,  1905.  He  has 
taken  an  active  interest  in  public  affairs  and  does  all  in  his  power  to 
promote  the  material,  intellectual  and  moral  progress  of  the  community. 
Fraternally  he  is  connected  with  the  Gleaners,  and  religiously  with  the 
United  Brethren  church,  in  which  he  is  one  of  the  trustees.  He  takes 
a  most  active  and  helpful  interest  in  its  work  and  is  an  advocate  of  all 
that  is  right  and  just  in  man's  relations  with  his  fellowmen.  In  his 
own  business  career  he  has  never  talcen  advantage  of  the  necessities  of 
others  in  any  transaction,  and  on  the  contrary  has  placed  his  dependence 
upon  the  safe  and  sure  qualities  of  enterprise  and  unfaltering  labor. 
Whatever  prosperity  he  has  enjoyed  is  due  to  his  own  persistent  purpose 
and  the  course  in  life  that  he  has  pursued  has  gained  for  him  the  uniform 
respect  and  good  will  of  his  fellowmen. 

WILLIAM  ARNOLD. 

William  Arnold,  a  prominent  old  settler  of  the  county,  whose  home 
is  on  section  T2,  iMason  township,  is  classed  with  the  worthy  citizens 
that  Ohio  has  furnished  to  Alichigan.  He  was  born  in  Cuyalioga  county, 
August  30,  1832,  and  is  descended  from  an  old  New  Fmgland  family. 
His  father,  Henry  Arnold,  wa=  a  native  of  Massachusetts,  born  July 
25,  1807,  and  his  vouth  was  passed  in  his  native  state,  where  he  was 
married  to  ]\Iiss  Maria  Hewitt,  who  was  also  horn  in  Massachusetts.  Re- 
moving to  the  west  they  took  up  their  abode  in  Cuvahoga  county.  Ohio, 
in  1828,  which  was  the  year  of  their  marriage.  There  they  resided  for 
about  eight  years,  when,  in  1835.  they  came  with  their  family  to  Cass 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  615 

county,  ^lichigan,  and  j\lr.  Arnold  entered  a  tract  of  land  from  tlie 
government  ni  what,  is  now  Alason  township.  Not  a  furrow  had  been 
turned  nor  an  impro\enieni  made  upon  the  place.  In  fact  he  had  to  cut 
his  way  through  the  woods  to  his  claim,  for  no  roads  had  been  laid  out. 
There  were  some  old  Indian  trails  through  the  forests,  but  tlie  trees 
stood  in  their  pruneval  strength  and  there  was  little  evidence  of  future 
development  or  impro\ement  to  be  seen.  Mr.  Arnold  built  a  little  log 
cabin  with  a  stick  chimney.  There  was  a  large  fireplace  which  occupied 
almost  one  entire  side  of  the  room,  and  this  not  only  furnished  heat  for 
the  little  cabin,  but  cooking  was  also  done  over  the  tire,  the  pots  and 
kettles  hanging  from  the  crane,  while  baking;  was  done  by  placing  the 
iron  pans  amid  the  coals.  The  Arnold  family  is  one  of  the  oldest  pioneer 
families  of  the  county.  Few  indeed  were  the  settlers  living  within  its 
borders  at  the  time  they  arrived,  and  there  were  many  diliiculties  to  be 
met,  owing  to  their  remoteness  from  towns  or  villages,  which  would 
afford  them  the  comforts  and  conveniences  of  life.  The  journey  west- 
ward had  been  made  with  teams,  for  it  was  long  prior  to  the  era  of 
railroad  building  in  this  part  of  the  state.  Mrs.  Arnold  was  not  long 
permitted  to  enjoy  tier  new  home,  but  during  the  period  of  her  resi- 
dence here  proved  a  worthy  pioneer  woman,  ably  assisting  her  husband 
in  his  elforts  to  establish  a  home  in  the  midst  of  the  wilderness.  She 
died  in  1844,  and  was  long  survived  by  Mr.  Arnold,  who  lived  to  tlie 
advanced  age  of  eighty-two  years.  By  that  marriage  there  were  born 
five  children,  three  of  w4iom  arc  natives  of  Ohio.  For  his  second  wife 
the  father  chose  Lovica  Dille,  and  they  had  six  children.  Flis  third 
wife  was  Mrs.  Jerusha  Lake. 

William  Arnold,  whose  name  introduces  this  record,  was  the  second 
child  of  his  father's  first  marriage,  and  was  only  three  years  old  when  he 
was  brought  to  Cass  county,  the  family  locating  in  Mason  township. 
He  was  reared  in  this  township,  where  he  has  now  lived  for  seventy-one 
years.  When  a  hoy  he  attended  the  district  school,  walking  two  miles 
to  a  little  log  school  house,  wherein  he  conned  his  lessons,  sitting  on 
a  slab  bench.  There  was  a  large  fireplace  in  one  end  of  the  room,  and 
the  few  pupils  were  arranged  around  the  teacher's  desk  to  receive  the 
instruction  in  reading,  writing,  arithmetic  and  perhaps  a  few  other 
branches  of  learningi  but  the  curriculum  was  quite  limited  at  that  day. 
Mr.  Arnold's  training  at  farm  labor,  howe\-er,  was  not  limited,  as 
from  an  earlv  age  he  was  set  to  the  tasks  incident  to  the  development  and 
cultivation  of  tiic  farm,  and  he  remained  at  home  until  he  had  attained 
his  majoritv.  On  the  day  that  he  became  twenty-one  years  of  age,  he 
started  out' in  life  on  his" own  account,  and  whatever  success  has  come 
to  him  in  later  vears.  is  owing  entirely  to  his  persistent  effort  and  honor- 
able labors.  H'e  first  secured  a  situation  as  a  farm  hand  at  ten  dollars 
per  nionth  for  five  months,  and  he  worked  in  that  way  until  he  was  able 
to  carrv  on  farming  on  his  own  account. 

An  important  day  in  his  life  record  was  that  of  .\pril  5,   1S57,  at 


610  HISTORY  Ol-   CASS  COUXTY 

wliicli  linic  lie  was  united  in  marriage  to  Miss  Ada  Hntcli.  a  dauglitcr  of 
Ezra  and  Sarah  (Ailenj  Hatch,  linth  uf  whom  were  natives  (it  the  state 
of  New  York,  and  in  tlieir  family  were  six  cliildren.  Mrs.  Arnold  heing 
the  second.  Her  birth  occurretl  in  Masun  township  in  1837,  and  the 
family  <lid  much  for  the  de'.elnpment  and  imprc>\  ement  of  the  cuntv. 

.\t  the  tunc  of  their  marriai^e  Mr.  and  IMrs.  Arnold  located  upon 
the  farm  where  they  mnv  resitle,  livin.i,'  at  first  in  a  little  \o<^  cabin  with 
its  fireplace  and  primitise  furni-^hins^s,  and 'over  that  open  fire  Mrs. 
Arnold  did  her  coukiny.  They  started  with  very  little,  and  made  all  that 
they  possessed  by  hard  work  and  ;>trict  attention  to  business.  The  im- 
provements upon  the  farm  are  the  visible  evidence  of  the  life  of  thrift 
and  industry  which  Mr.  Arnold  has  led,  all  having  been  made  bv  him. 
As.  the  years  have  passed  he  lias  pmspered  and  has  erected  here  a  com- 
fortable house,  g(.<i(l  barns  and  i.tlier  outbuildings  for  the  shelter  of 
grain  and  stuck.  lie  has  secured  the  latest  imjiroved  machinerv  to  facil- 
itate the  work  of  the  fields,  and  everything  about  his  farm  is  neat  and  at- 
tractive in  appearance.  He  began  with  only  fifty  acres  and  had  to 
incur  an  indebtedness  to  secure  that  amount,  but  lie  soon  discharged 
his  financial  obligation,  and  in  the  course  of  years  has  added  to  his 
property  from  time  to  time  until  his  farm  now  comijrises  three  hundred 
acres  of  excellent  land,  and  ho  gathers  from  the  fields  rich  cmps  an- 
nually. The  lionie  has  been  blessed  with  two  children:  Ruell  C, 
who  is  a  speculator;  and  Ailecn.  who  is  at  home.  Mr.  Arnold  is  the 
oldest  continuous  resident  of  I\Iason  tdwnship.  having  lived  here  for 
more  than  the  p.salmi.st's  allotted  span  of  three  score  years  and  ten. 
He  has  been  identified  with  the  growth  and  development  of  the  county 
and  is  familiar  with  its  history  from  pioneer  times  down  to  the  present. 
He  has  watched  each  progressive  movement  that  has  had  bearing  u]ion 
the  welfare  and  progress  of  this  ]iortion  of  the  state,  and  lias  dfine  his 
full  share  in  the  line  of  agricultural  development.  His  political  alle- 
giance has  been  given  to  the  Democracy.  His  life  has  indeed  been  a 
useful  one,  and  he  has  closely  adhered  to  the  golden  rule  as  his  life 
motto,  doing  unto  others  as  he  would  have  them  do  unto  him.  and  thus 
living  at  peace  with  all  men.  being  honest  in  his  business  dealings  and 
considerate  of  those  with  whom  he  has  come  in  contact.  Such  a  course 
in  life  is  well  worthy  of  emulation,  and  his  example  might  be  profitably 
followed,  for  his  life  history  proves  the  value  of  character  and  at  the 
same  time  shows  what  may  be  acomplished  through  earnest  labor,  for 
j\Ir,  Arnold  started  (3ut  in  life  empty-handed  and- has  worked  his  way 
upward  from  a  humble  financial  position  to  one  of  aftluence,  with  the 
aid  of  his  estimable  wife,  who  has  aided  him  in  counsel  and  advice  in 
the  rearing  of  their  cliildren  and  the  founding  of  their  happy  home. 
For  almost  a  half  century  have  ]\Ir.  and  Mrs.  Arnold  traveled  life's 
journey,  sharing  alike  the  joys  and  sorrows  of  this  life,  and  now  in 
the  golden  eve  of  their  lives  they  enjoy  that  peace  and  contentment 
which  comes  of  a  well  spent  life. 


HISTORY  OK  CASS  COLWiV  017 

AIARIOX   .McXEIL. 

Clarion  MtXcii,  uliu  is  now  Si.-rving  as  towiiblup  treasurer  and 
resides  oil  becti(_!i  14,  .Majun  Inwnship,  where  he  carries  on  genera!  agri- 
cultural pursuit^,  was  horn  on  thi^  farm,  his  natid  day  being  May  1, 
18O-!.  His  lather,  H.  L.  .McXeil,  was  a  native  of  Cayuga  county,  Xcw 
York,  born  August  i,  i8jj,  and  was  a  son  of  James  AicXeil,  who  was 
born  in  the  same  county.  H.  C.  McXeil  was  brought  to  Michigan  by 
his  parents  uhen  but  twelve  years  of  age,  the  family  home  being  estab- 
lished in  Cass  ciuiiUy,  up.  ,11  the  place  where  our  subject  now  resides. 
This  was  in  the  \  ear  i.'^35,  and  the  pruiierty  has  since  been  in  pos^ession 
of  the  family.  The  grandfather  took,  up  the  land  from  the  government, 
thus  coming  into  pobsession  ol  a  claim  which  was  entirely  wild  and 
uncultivated.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  McXeil  have  in  their  possessi(jn  one  of  the 
old  parchment  deeds,  wliicli  dates  September  10,  183S,  and  it  is  signed 
by  I'resident  Alartin  \'an  Bureii — the  third  deed  of  its  kind  found  so 
far  in  the  county.  Jn  the  way  of  old  relics  they  have  an  old  bull's  eve 
watch,  which  is  one  hundred  and  hfty  years  old'.  It  passed  down  from 
Air.  McXeil's  great-graiidfallicr,  and  it  was  gnen  him  by  a  soldier  m 
the  Irish  rebellion  nf  Ireland,  aluiut  the  seventeenth  century.  Air. 
AlcXeil  at  once  began  the  ile\el"pmeiU  and  inniroxx'ment  of  the  farm, 
but  was  not  long  iiermitled  to  enjoy  his  new  home,  for  his  death  oc- 
curred a  few  years  later,  as  he  passed  away  in   1S41. 

H.  C.  McXeil  was  reared  u|ion  the  home  farm  from  the  age  r\i 
twelve  years  and  shared  with  the  family  in  the  usual  exiierieiices  and 
hardships  of  life  on  the  frontier.  He  early  became  familiar  with  tlie 
arduous  task  of  developing  a  new  farm,  and  for  many  )ears  was  closely 
associated  with  general  agricultural  juirsnits.  On  tlie  ist  of  January, 
1849,  l^c  was  united  in  marriage  to  Aliss  Alartha  A.  Ives,  who  was  bom 
in  Lewis  county,  X"ew  York,  June  14,  1S29,  and  was  a  daughter  of 
Samuel  and  Roxann  (Hubliard)  Ives,  who  were  Ijorn  in  Xew  York 
state.  They  removed  to  Calh(iun  county,  Alichigan.  in  1835,  and  thus 
in  both  the  paternal  and  maternal  lines  Air.  AlcXeil  of  this  re\-iew  is 
descended  from  an  honored  pioneer  ancestry,  his  mother  having  been 
but  fourteen  years  of  age  when  she  came  with  her  parents  to  Cass 
county.  Air.  and  Airs.  H.  C.  AlcXeil  located  on  the  old  family  home- 
stead at  the  time  of  their  marriage,  purchasing  the  interests  of  the  other 
heirs  in  the  property.  By  trade  he  was  a  carpenter  and  joiner,  and  fol- 
lowed that  business  in  connection  with  farming,  erecting  many  buildings 
in  his  townsliip.  He  was  well  known  in  the  county  by  reason  of  his 
activity  in  business  life,  his  capable  service  in  public  office  and  his  de- 
votion to  high  and  honorable  princij^les  in  his  social  and  home  relations. 
His  political  allegiance  was  given  to  the  Democracy,  and  he  held  many 
local  offices,  the  duties  of  which  he  discliarged  with  absolute  loyalty  and 
fidelity.  He  was  township  clerk  for  fifteen  \ears  and  treasurer  for 
two  years,  while  for  a  long  period  he  acted  as  justice  of  the  peace,  ren- 


618  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

dering  dccisi<jiis  which  were  strictly  fair  and  unbiased  and  wliicli  "won 
him  golden  opinions  from  all  sorts  of  people."  He  was  a  member  of 
the  Masonic  fraternity  and  in  his  life  exemplified  the  beneficent  and 
helpful  spirit  of  tiie  craft.  He  died  October  4,  1S97,  and  thus  the 
conimunily  lost  one  of  its  honored  and  representative  pioneer  settlers 
who  for  almost  two-thirds  nf  a  century  had  lived  in  the  county.  There 
w-ere  seven  childreti  in  the  family :  Harriet  Emma.  Mary  Adelaide. 
Carrie  Ellen,  Lennra.  Annctta,  Marion  and  Sherman,  all  of  whom  are 
now  living-,  and  were  born  upon  the  farm  which  is  now  the  home  of  our 
subject. 

Marion  McXeil  is  the  eldest  son  and  sixth  child  in  bis  fatlier's 
family,  and  was  reared  upon  the  old  family  homestead  to  farm  work, 
devoting'  his  time  and  energies  to  the  laly^rs  of  field  and  meadow  through 
the  summer  months.  He  was  educated  in  district  school  No.  5,  in 
Mason  township,  and  has  always  continued  to  reside  upon  the  farm 
which  his  grandfather  entered  from  the  government  with  the  exccjition 
of  a  brief  period  of  one  year  spent  in  the  northern  peninsula  of  Michi- 
gan. He  was  married  on  the  i^'ith  of  T^Tarcb.  1892,  to  ]\Tiss  Mabel 
Bement,  a  daughter  of  George  and  ^Tary  (Walker)  Bement,  and  a 
native  of  Ontwa  town.ship,   Cass  county. 

Mr.  !McXeil  is  a  Democrat,  with  firm  faith  in  the  principles  of  the 
party,  and  has  taken  an  active  and  helpful  interest  in  its  work.  In 
1899  he  was  elected  township  treasurer  and  was  re-elected  in  1904, 
since  which  time  be  has  filled  the  office.  He  is  well  known  in  the 
cotmty  where  be  has  always  resided,  representing  a  pioneer  family,  the 
name  of  McNeil  being  inseparably  associated  with  the  history  of  devel- 
opment and  progress  since  1835.  The  work  which  was  instituted  by 
his  grandfather  and  carried  on  by  his  father,  has  been  continued  by 
bim.  and  be  is  now  a  leading  agriculturist  of  his  community  with  a  val- 
uable farming  property  which  be  keeps  imder  a  high  state  of  cultivation 
and  well  improved  with  modern  equi]iments. 

SIDNEY  J.   nR.\HAM. 

Sidnev  T-  Crabam,  a  prominent  farmer  living  on  section  2.  Mason 
township,  was  born  in  Medina  county,  Ohio,  !\Tarcb  iS.  1842.  His 
father,  Lv-man  Graham,  was  a  native  of  Vermont,  and  after  leaving 
New  England  took  up  his  abode  in  the  middle  west.  He  settled  in 
Cass  county,  Michigan,  in  183;.  and  as  much  of  the  land  was  still  in 
possession  of  the  government,  be  entered  a  claim  and  began  the  devel- 
opment of  the  farm  upon  which  his  son  Sidney  now  resides.  It  was 
in  the  year  18-I5  that  he  reinoved  bis  familv  to  this  place.  His  atten- 
tion w-as  given  to  its  cultivation  and  development,  and  as  the  years 
passed,  be  transformed  the  land  into  rich  and  productive  fields.  He 
was  of  Scotch  descent  and  displayed  in  bis  life  and  character  manv  of 
the  sterling  traits  of  the  Scotch '  people.     His  political  allegiance  was 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  '  619 

given  to  the  Dcinocracy,  and  he  (hcd  in  Union,  Michi<;an,  at  the  age 
of  sixty-seven  years.  Jn  early  manhood  he  had  married  Miss  Sarah 
Knapp,  a  native  of  Ohid. 

Sidney  J.  Graiiam  is  the  only  child  of  their  marriage,  and  was 
three  years  of  age  when  his  parents  took  up  their  abode  in  Mason  town- 
ship, Cass  count}-,  so  that  he  was  reared  upon  the  farm  where  he  now 
lives,  early  becoming  familiar  with  the  practical  methods  of  tilling  the 
soil  and  caring  for  the  crops.  He  was  only  nineteen  years  of  age  when 
in  response  to  the  country's  call  his  patriotic  spirit  was  aroused,  and 
he  offered  his  aid  to  the  government,  becoming  a  member  of  Company 
H,  Twenty-first  Ohio  Volunteer"  Infantr}-.  He  joined  the  service  as  a 
private  for  three  months,  and  on  the  expiration  of  that  period,  it  being 
seen  that  the  war  was  to  he  a  prolonged  and  bitter  contest,  he  re-enlistcd 
on  the  I2th  of  August,  1861,  fnr  three  years'  service,  or  during  the 
continuance  of  hostilities.  At  this  time  he  became  a  member  of  Com- 
pany E,  Torly-ninth  Ohio  Volunteer  Infantry,  and  served  as  a  private 
until  the  close  of  hostilities.  He  once  more  enlisted  in  1S64  as  a  mem- 
ber of  the  same  company  and  regiment,  and  continued  with  the  army 
until  the  9th  of  June,  1864,  when  he  was  wounded  at  the  battle  of 
Buzzard's  Roost  by  a  gun  shot  in  the  left  arm.  On  the  20th  of  June, 
because  of  his  injuries,  he  received  an  honorable  discharge  after  a 
faithful  and  valorous  service  of  over  four  years.  His  military  record  is 
one  of  which  he  has  c\'ery  reason  to  be  proud,  and  he  is  numbered 
among  the  brave  Iwys  in  blue  to  whom  tlie  countrv-  owes  a  debt  of 
gratitude  that  can  never  be  repaid  for  what  they  did  in  support  of  the 
Union  cause.  He  was  with  the  Army  of  the  CuiTiberland  and  partici- 
pated in  all  of  the  battles  of  that  militar}'  organization  until  he  was  in- 
jured. 

In  the  spring  of  1866.  Mr.  Craham  located  on  his  present  fann. 
which  is  the  old  family  homestead  that  was  taken  up  as  a  claim  by  his 
father.  He  made  further  arrangements  for  having  a  home  of  his  own 
bv  his  marriage  on  the  first  of  June,  1866.  to  Miss  Elizabeth  Eagley, 
a  daughter  of  Knapp  Eagley.  She  was  born  in  Ohio  and  has  been  to 
him  a" faithful  companion  and  helpmate  on  life's  journey.  They  have 
become  the  parents  of  two  daughters:  Lulu,  the  wife  of  George  Rus- 
sell, who  is  living  in  ^^lasnn  township:  and  Myrtle,  who  married  .-Mbert 
Keelev,  their  home  being  in  Calvin  township,  Cass  county. 

Mr.  Graham  owns  one  hundred  and  sixty-five  acres  of  well  im- 
proved land  and  now  rents  his  place,  thus  leaving  the  active  and  arduous 
work  of  the  fann  to  others,  while  he  is  enjoving  a  well-earned  rest. 
He  is  a  member  of  Carter  Post,  No.  q6,  G.  A.  R.,  at  Union,  and  is  also 
a  member  of  the  :Masonic  lodge  at  Edwardsburg.  His  political  alle- 
giance has  alwavs  been  eiven  to  the  Republican  party,  and  he  has  taken 
an  active  and  helpful  interest  in  its  work,  doing  all  in  his  power  to 
secure  its  success.  AVith  the  exception  of  a  period  of  about  four  years 
spent  in  Ohio,  he  has  resided  continuously  in  Cass  county  for  six  dec- 


C-'o  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

ailes,  ami  at  all  tinier  lia-?  liecii  lnyal  in  his  citizcnslii]x  di^^iilayin"^  the 
same  dexDtinn  in  the  ijuhlic  welfare  that  he  manifested  when  at  the  out- 
break of  the  Civil  war  he  domed  the  hlue  uniform  of  the  nation  and 
entered  his  country's  ser\ice.  His  farniin"'  interests  have  h.een  carcfulh' 
conducted  and  his  lahors  have  resulted  in  hrinj^iuL;  to  him  a  poddly  nicas- 
ure  of  success. 

GABRIKL  F.r.Y, 

No  history  of  Cass  county  would  he  complete  ^\■ithout  mention 
of  Gabriel  Flhy.  who  is  the  oldest  livings  resident  of  Porter  township, 
having-  passed  the  eighty-eighth  milestone  on  life's  journey.  His  resi- 
dence is  on  section  6.  South  Porter  township,  and  from  pioneer  times 
he  has  remained  upon  this  farm,  an  interested  witness  of  the  changes 
lliat  have  occurred  and  the  transformation  that  has  been  wrought  as  the 
county  has  been  developed  from  a  wild  and  unimproved  region  into  one 
of  rich  fertility,  becoming  a  center  of  agricultural  development  in  ^^lich- 
igan.  Mr.  Ebv  was  b<^rn  in  Stark  county.  Ohio.  fi\'e  miles  east  of  Can- 
ton, on  the  27th  of  July,  t8i8.  His  paternal  grandfather,  David  Eby, 
was  born  on  the  ocean  while  his  iiarents  were  en  route  from  Germany 
to  America  and  the  family  b.nmc  was  established  in  Virginia  in  early 
colonial  days.  His  father,  the  Rev.  ]c,hn  lihy.  was  a  native  of  A^irginia 
and  was  a  miiu'ster  of  the  United  Ihethrcn  church,  who  fIe\'oted  bis  en- 
tire life  to  the  cause  of  preaching  the  gospel.  He  exerted  a  wide  and 
beneficial  influence  in  behalf  of  moral  develojmient  and  where\'er  he  went 
labored  earnestly  for  tlie  welfare  of  the  people  among  whom  he  located. 
He  became  a  pioneer  settler  of  Stark  county,  Ohio,  and  there  he  died 
in  the  sixt\ -second  year  of  his  age.  leaving  behind  an  honored  name  and 
a  memory  that  has  been  cherished  by  all  who  knew  him.  His  wife  bore 
the  maiden  name  of  IMary  ^L  Dague  and  was  of  Pennsylvania  Dutch 
descent.  She  died  at  a  comparatively  earlv  age.  being  but  forty  years 
old  when  called  to  her  final  rest.  Rev.  Eby  afterward  married  again, 
his  second  union  being  with  Miss  ^Iar\-  Hamger,  and  by  the  two  mar- 
riages he  became  the  father  of  seventeen  children,  all  of  whom  reached 
adult  life.  By  the  first  marriage  there  were  nine  cliildren.  eight  sons  and 
a  daughter,  while  of  the  second  union  four  sons  and  four  daughters 
were  born. 

Gabriel  Eby  was  the  se\entb  child  and  sixth  son  of  the  first  mar- 
riage, and  was  reared  fn  Stark  county.  Ohio,  amid  the  wild  scenes  and 
environments  of  pioneer  life.  The  work  of  improvement  and  cultiva- 
tion had  scarcely  been  beg^m  in  that  section  of  the  state  in  his  early 
youth.  Only  here  and  there  was  a  little  cabin  to  show  that  some  ad- 
venturous settler  was  endeavoring  to  found  a  home  in  the  wilderness. 
He  was  sixteen  years  of  age  when  the  first  schoolhouse  was  built  in  his 
district  and  in  consequence  liis  educational  privileges  ^^■ere  limited,  but 
through  experience  and  observation  he  has  gained  a  good  practical  bus- 
iness knowledge.     He  was  nineteen  years  of  age  when  he  left  Ohio  and 


AND  LITTLE  GRANDSON. 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COL'XTY  021 

made  his  way  to  Elkliart  count}-.  Iinliana.  Init  later  lie  returned  tu  tlie 
county  of  his  nativity  and  was  there  married  in  1S46  to  Miss  Caroline 
Wagner.  With  his  bride  he  returned  to  Elkhart  county,  where  he  re- 
sided for  a  Ijrief  period,  when,  in  1848.  they  removed  to  Cass  county, 
Michigan,  settling  in  Porter  township.  They  took  up  their  abode  upon 
the  farm  where  Mr.  Ehy  yet  resides  and  their  first  home  was  a  little 
log  cabin  sixteen  by  eighteen  feet,  in  which  they  lived  for  fifteen  years. 
He  had  up  to  this  time  always  lived  on  the  frontier,  first  in  Ohio,  later 
in  Indiana  antl  now  in  Micliigan.  and  the  hardshi])S  and  privations  in- 
cident to  settlement  in  a  pioneer  country  were  familiar  to  him  and  were 
courageously  borne  in  his  attempt  to  establish  a  good  home  for  his  fam- 
ily. He  lived  in  his  first  house  for  fifteen  years,  during  which  period 
it  was  roofed  three  different  times.  Later  he  built  a  brick  house,  manu- 
facturing the  brick  on  his  own  farm.  His  life  has  been  one  of  earnest 
and  unremitting  toil,  and  it  has  only  been  in  recent  years  that  he  has 
left  the  work  of  the  farm  to  others.  He  secured  one  hundred  and  sixty 
acres  of  land  on  coming  to  the  county  and  resolutely  began  the  task  of 
clearing  and  cultivating  this,  placing  it  in  the  course  of  time  under  a 
high  stale  of  cultivation.  He  still  owns  eighty  acres  of  the  original 
tract,  having  sold  the  remaining  eighty  acres  to  his  son. 

L'nto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Eby  were  born  eight  sons  and  one  daughter, 
and  the  lann'ly  circle  remained  unbroken  until  after  all  had  attained  years 
of  maturity.  The  record  is  as  folliiws:  Catherine,  the  widow  of  John 
B.  Harmon  and  a  resident  of  Cassopolis;  Peter,  who  is  mentioned  on 
another  page  of  this  work;  Christian,  who  is  living  in  Antrim  county, 
Michigan;  William,  wlio  is  engaged  in  the  grocery  business  in  Union, 
Cass  county;  Samuel,  a  resident  of  Jones:  Daniel,  a  teacher  and  farmer 
living  in  Porter  town.ship;  Gabriel,  who  is  devoting  his  attention  to 
fruit-raising  in  the  same  townshi]);  Ulysses  S.,  who  is  engaged  in  the 
practice  of  law  in  Cassopolis;  and  David,  who  is  devoting  his  time  and 
energies  to  the  profe^^sion  of  teaching.  In  1S91  the  family  were  called 
upon  to  mourn  the  loss  of  the  wife  and  mother,  who  died  on  the  7th  of 
November  of  that  year.  In  1893  Mr.  Eby  was  again  married,  his  sec- 
ond union  being  with  ^lelissa  I\Iorse.  who  was  born  in  Xewark.  Wayne 
county,  Xew  York,  in  the  vear  1S44.  and  was  brought  to  ^Michigan  in 
1853  by  her  father,  E.  Z.  Morse. 

Mr.  Eby  cast  his  first  presidential  ballot  for  William  Henry  Harri- 
son in  1840.  and  contimied  to  support  the  AVhig  party  until  its  disso- 
lution, when  he  joined  the  ranks  of  the  new  Republican  party,  voting 
for  Lincoln  in  1S60  and  again  in  1864.  Since  that  time  he  has  not 
voted  a  straight  ticket,  but  has  voted  for  the  men  whom  he  has  tlionglit 
to  be  best  qualified  for  office,  lieing  fearless  in  support  of  his  honest 
convictions.  Eor  about  forty  years  he  has  been  a  member  of  the  Erec- 
will  Baptist  church  and  has  always  taken  an  interest  in  the  material 
progress,    educational    development,    moral    advancement    and    political 


622  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

standing  of  his  community.  In  fact  lie  gives  his  approval  and  in  many 
cases  his  co-operation  tt)  tlie  various  movements  which  have  been  of  di- 
rect and  serviceable  benefit  to  the  county,  where  for  fifty-eight  years  he 
has  lived,  watching  its  development  from  a  pioneer  district  to  its  pres- 
ent advanced  state  of  progress  and  prosperity.  He  is  now  th.e  oldest 
living  settler  in  Porter  township  and  is  remarkably  well  preserved  for 
one  of  his  yeais.  He  has  led  a  busy,  useful  and  active  life,  living  at 
peace  with  his  fclltiwmeu,  faithfully  i>erforniing  the  duties  tliat  have 
devolved  upon  him.  and  now  in  the  evening  of  his  days  he  can  louk  back 
over  the  past  witliout  regret.  He  has  won  the  regard  and  friendship 
of  all  who  know  him  and  is  indeed  worthy  of  representation  in  the  his- 
tory of  this  county. 

K  A.   PLAXCK,   M.   D. 

He  whose  name  introduces  this  review  has  gained  recognition  as  one 
of  the  able  and  succesful  phvsicians  of  Cass  county,  and  by  his  labors, 
his  high  professional  attainments  and  his  sterling  characteristics  has 
deserved  the  respect  and  confidence  in  which  he  is  held  by  the  medical 
fraternity  anrl  the  local  public.  He  resides  in  Union,  where  he  is  jirac- 
ticing  his  profession,  and  he  is  also  serving  as  county  coroner. 

Dr.  Planck  is  a  native  of  Indiana,  his  birth  having  occurred  in 
LaGrange  county  on  the  27th  of  September,  1S69.  flis  father,  C.  K. 
Planck,  was  a  native  of  Pcnn'-ylvania.  and  a  miller  liy  trade.  He  fol- 
lowed that  pursuit  in  Indiana  fi>r  a  num1>er  of  years,  and  in  1S77  crossed 
the  border  into  ^lichigan,  settling  in  Porter  township,  Cass  county, 
where  he  is  still  living,  devoting  his  attention  to  agricultural  pursuits. 
He  married  IMiss  Emma  Dueslcr,  a  native  of  Ohio,  born  in  Sanduslcy 
countv.  She.  too,  is  yet  living.  In  their  family  were  si.K  children,  three 
sons  and  three  daughters,  and  Dr.  Planck,  who  is  the  eldest  of  the  num- 
ber, was  a  vouth  of  thirteen  years  when  the  family  came  to  Michigan. 
He  attended  school  in  I'nion.  living  during  that  time  with  Dr.  Bulhand, 
and  at  the  age  of  sixteen  years  he  began  teaching,  which  prnfcssinn  he 
followed  successfully  and  capably  for  «even  years  in  the  district  schools 
of  the  countv.  He  afterward  continued  his  studies  in  the  Northern 
Indiana  Normal  College  at  Valparaiso,  and  in  the  University  of  Illinois, 
and  thus  gained  broad,  general  information,  which  ser\'ed  as  an  excel- 
lent basis  for  his  professional  knowledge.  Determining  upon  the  prac- 
tice of  medicine  as  a  life  work  he  matriculated  in  the  College  of  Physi- 
cians and  Surgeons  at  Chicaen,  and  completed  the  regular  course,  being 
graduated  there  in  the  class  of  1804.  Immediately  afterward  he  located 
in  Union,  where  he  has  since  been  successfully  engaged  in  practice, 
and  that  he  is  capable  and  skillful  is  indicated  by  the  liberal  patronage 
extended  to  him. 

Dr.  Planck  was  united  in  marriage  in  1892  to  Miss  Grace  E.  Hart- 
man,  a  daughter  of  Joseph  and  Eliza  TRinehart)  Hartman.  Three 
children  have  graced  "this  marriage,  Joseph  W..  George  E.  and  Lena, 


HISTORY  OF  CAS?  COl'XTY  0-23 

but  the  latter  died  at  the  aqc  of  fifteen  mcmth^.  Dr.  Planck  votes  with 
the  Republican  party  and  is  servinc^  for  the  third  term  as  county  coroner, 
having-  been  elected  in  i8oS.  ac-ain  in  1002  and  a  third  time  in  1904. 
He  has  held  various  local  offices  in  his  township  and  his  duties  have 
been  promptly  and  faithfully  performed.  He  belongs  to  the  Knii,'-hts  of 
the  Maccabees  and  to  the  Masonic  fraternity,  and  in  bis  life  work  finds 
ample  opportunity  to  exemplify  the  spirit  of  beneficence  and  helpfulness. 
which  is  the  basic  clement  in  the  craft.  Tn  addition  to  a  larg-e  private 
practice  he  is  examining  physician  for  many  insurance  comoanies  and 
he  belongs  to  Cass  County  >,Tcdical  Sncictv.  the  Michigan  State  Med- 
ical Society,  the  Mississippi  A^nllev  !\Icdical  .^ssociat^on  and  the  .Amer- 
ican Medical  Association.  He  thus  keeps  in  touch  with  the  advance 
thousjht  of  the  profession,  and  by  reading  and  research  is  continually 
broadenin.c:  his  knowledcjc  and  promotinq-  his  efficiency.  He  is  widely 
reco.s^ized  as  an  able  physician,  not  only  by  the  g^eneral  public,  but  also 
by  the  medical  fraternity. 

CHART.KS  OUDKRKTRK. 

Charles  Ouderkirk.  a  representative  asrriculturist,  thorouc^hly 
familiar  by  reason  of  practical  experience  with  the  best  methods  of 
carrA'incf  on  farm  work,  resides  on  section  4,  ATason  township,  where  he 
no^v  owns  and  operates  ninety-six  and  a  half  acres  of  land.  He  was 
bom  in  the  nci.c:bborinc:  state  of  Indiana,  his  birth  bavin.sf  occurred  on 
the  banks  of  the  St.  Jo^jcpb  river  on  the  site  of  the  present  city  of  Elk- 
hart, in  Elkhart  countv.  October  R.  tF^43.  His  .grandfather,  :\dam 
Chiderkirk.  was  b^irn  in  Scnfland.  where  he  spent  his  boyhood  and  youth, 
and  in  early  manhood,  seekinc:  better  bu=;iness  opportunities  and  advan- 
tac:e.s,  be  crossed  the  Atlantic,  locatincf  in  New  York  citv.  His  father. 
John  Ouderkirk.  is  a  native  of  Onondacra  countv.  New  York,  where  he 
was  reared  and  educated.  Remoyincr  westward,  be  settled  in  F.lkhart 
countv.  Indiana,  in  1S4.T,  upon  a  tract  of  land  upon  which  the  citv  has 
since  been  partially  built.  He  first  rented  land  and  afterward  removed 
to  a  farm  three  miles  northeast  of  Elkhart,  where  he  continued  to  make 
his  home  and  carry  on  general  a<rricu!tural  pursuits  up  to  the  time  of 
his  death,  which  occurred  when  he  was  in  bis  seventv-ninth  vear.  His 
life  was  a  busy  and  useful  one,  and  his  unfalterinc:  diliqence  constituted 
the  key  which  unlocked  for  him  the  portals  of  success.  In  hi?  political 
allegiance  he  was  a  Detnocrat,  and  ser\-ed  as  township  tmstee.  John 
Ouderkirk  was  united  in  marna<:re  to  Miss  Mar\-  Wilkes,  a  native  of 
New  York,  whose  father  was  a  native  of  En,G;land.  T^Irs.  Ouderkirk 
also  lived  to  a  ven-  advanced  aee,  passing  away  in  her  eiErhtieth^  year. 
She  .shared  with  her  husband  in  the  hardships  and  privations  of  pioneer 
life,  and  was  a  worthy  assi-t.ant  and  helpmate  to  him  on  life's  iournev. 
Tn  their  family  were  five  children,  three  dauchters  and  two  sons,  all  of 
whom  reached  mature  vears,  the  family  record  bein.e:  as  follows:    Elma 


624  HISTORY  OK  CASS  COUXTY 

Jane  and  Andrew  11.,  both  now  deceased;  Elizabeth,  the  wile  of  J.  ;M. 
McDonald,  of  South  P.end ;  Charles,  of  this  review;  and  Amelia,  who  is 
the  wife  of  Orlando  Babcock,  of  W'averly,  Iowa. 

Charles  Ouderkirk  was  the  fourth  in  order  of  bivth  in  this  family 
and  was  reared  in  the  county  of  his  nali\it_\-,  acquiring  a  common  school 
education,  after  which  he  assisted  in  the  work  of  the  home  farm  until 
he  had  passed  his  twenty-first  birthday.  In  1865  he  enlisted  in  respon.se 
to  his  country's  call  for  troops,  and  served  with  tlie  L'nion  army  as  a 
member  of  Company  .\,  One  Hundred  and  Fifty-second  Indiana  Vol- 
unteer Infantry,  until  the  close  of  the  war,  acting  as  duty  sergeant. 
When  hostilities  had  ceased  lie  returned  to  Elkhart  and  was  engaged 
in  fanning  on  tlie  old  Imniestead. 

On  the  22d  of  Jaiuiary.  iSjj.  .Mr.  Ouderkirk  was  united  in  mar- 
riage to  Miss  L..ui-a  Dickeiim.  ,f,  a  dau-liler  of  Samuel  and  Al>i,L;ail 
(Gearhart)  Dickerho'if.  the  former  a  native  of  Ohio  and  the  latter  of 
Pennsyh'ania.  .She  bail  a  twin  sister,  Lo\-ina,  and  they  were  burn  in 
Portai;e  county,  Ohio,  .\ugu>t  2.  1S47,  ''i-'ing  only  two  years  old  when 
taken  bv  tbtir  ]iare!:t.-n  to  Indiana,  tlieir  girllioijd  davs  being  passed  near 
Elkhart'. 

In  the  year  i8(;j  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Ouderkirk  removed  U<  Mason 
towtiship,  Cass  coiintw  locating  on  the  farm  where  he  now  resides. 
He  is  a  general  farmer  and  stuck  man.  who  has  placeil  his  fields  under 
a  high  state  of  cultisatiwn  and  raises  good  grades  of  stock  which  find 
a  ready  sale  on  the  market.  There  has  lieen  nothing  especially  e.xciting 
in  his  life  history,  which  has  been  characterized,  however,  by  faithfulness 
to  duty  in  all  life's  relations.  Unto  him  and  his  wife  have  been  born 
three  children,  but  all  have  passed  awav.  He  votes  with  die  Democnicy, 
and  has  served  as  a  member  of  the  lioanl  of  review.  He  is  a  memlier  of 
Elmer  Post,  G.  .A.  R.,  at  Elkliart,  In.liana,  and  in  fnitcrnal  and  social 
circles  is  esteemed  for  his  genuine  worth.  His  attention  is  gi\cn  to  his 
farm,  which,  comprising  ninety-six  and  a  half  acres  of  land,  has  been 
placed  under  a  high  state  of  cultivatiou  and  is  now  an  excellent  tract, 
returning  golden  harvests  for  the  care  and  labor  bestowed  upon  it. 

G.   H.  DENIKE.  ^I.  D. 

Dr.  G.  H.  Denike.  who  is  engaged  in  tb.e  practice  of  medicine  an<l 
surgery  in  Union,  was  born  in  Ottawa.  Canada,  on  the  15th  of  Decem- 
ber, 1S64,  and  is  a  son  of  .-Vndrew  J,  and  Delilah  f Snider")  Denike. 
who  were  also  natives  of  Canada.  The  paternal  grandfather  was  a  phy- 
sician in  England,  and  on  c(^ming  to  the  new  world  settled  in  Canada 
at  an  early  clav,  there  practicing  his  profession  up  to  the  time  of  his 
death,  which  occurred  when  he  was  in  his  sixty-seventh  year.  The 
mother  of  our  subicct  was  of  Irish  lineage,  and  her  father  came  to 
Canada  from  Ireland  also  at  an  early  period  in  the  development  of  the 
northern  country. 


HISTORY  01'  CASS  COL'XTY  625 

Dr.  Deilike  was  the  fifth  in  onler  nf  birth  in  a  family  ui  three 
sons  and  three  daughters.  He  was  reared  and  educated  in  his  nativ.e 
country,  attending  the  common  and  high  schools  and  also  Ale.Kander 
University,  from  which  institution  he  was  graduated  on  completing  a 
classical  course.  Determining  upon  the  practice  of  medicine  as  a  life 
work  he  took  up  study  in  Queen's  Medical  College  at  Kingston,  On- 
tario, with  broatl  general  learning  to  serve  as  a  found;ition  upon  which 
to  rear  the  superstructure  of  his  knowledge.  He  completed  his  col- 
legiate course  by  graduation  in  the  class  of  1882,  and  immediately  after- 
ward located  for  practice  at  Camplx^llsford,  Ontario.  He  was  afterward 
upon  the  road  for  alrout  four  years  as  examiner  for  insurance  companies, 
wiien,  in  1S98,  he  came  to  Union,  where  he  has  since  engaged  in  the 
practice  of  medicine  and  surgery.  In  order  to  still  further  perfect  him- 
self in  his  chosen  calling  he  pursued  a  course  in  1904-05  in  Hahnemann 
^Medical  College  and  Plospital  of  Chicago.  Afterward  he  resumed  his 
professional  labors  in  Union.  He  is  well  versed  in  the  principles  of 
practical  science,  and  that  he  possesses  skill  and  ability  is  indicated  by 
the  exccllenf  results  which  have  followed  his  efforts. 

Dr.  Denike  was  married  in  188S  to  ^liss  Ida  A.  Wilson,  a  daughter 
of  George  \\'ilsnn.  of  Sterling,  Ontario,  in  which  place  she  was  born 
and  reared.  This  uiiirm  has  been  graced  with  three  daughters.  Pearl, 
Nellie  May  and  Ollie.  The  family  occupies  an  enviable  position  in 
social  circles,  the  ho-^pitality  of  the  be.st  homes  of  Union  and  the  sur- 
rounding district  being  freely  accorded  them.  Dr.  Denike  is  a  mem- 
ber of  Elkhart  ^ledical  Association,  of  Elkliart.  Indiana.  He  is  well 
known  as  a  physician  and  citizen,  and  is  prominent  and  popular,  both 
socially  and  professionally.  He  has  given  undivided  attention  to  his 
professional  duties  since  entering  upon  the  active  practice  of  medicine, 
and  a  liberal  patronage  is  now  accorded  him. 

CFIARLES  A.  RITTER. 

Charles  A.  Ritter,  cashier  of  the  Eirst  National  Bank  of  Cassopolis, 
was  biirn  in  Cassopolis.  September  19,  1S58.  His  paternal  grandfather, 
John  Ritter,  was  a  native  of  Virginia,  and  came  to  Michigan  in  1828. 
first  locating  in  Berrien  county,  but  the  following  year  he  removed  to 
Cass  county,  and  located  on  the  prairie  in  LaGrange  townslu'p.  He 
had  but  recently  completed  his  cabin  when  one  morning,  while  standing 
in  the  door,  he  was  struck  by  lightning,  his  death  occurring  in  the  year 
of  his  arrival  in  this  county.  He  left  a  family  of  three  sons  and  one 
daughter,  including  Joseph  K.  Ritter.  the  father  of  our  subject.  He 
was  the  voungest  anrl  was  reared  upon  the  old  homestead  farm  in  La- 
Grange  township.  In  1S51  be  came  to  Cassopolis  and  engaged  in 
the  dry  goods  business.  In  1862  T\Ir.  Ritter  was  elected  county  treas- 
urer, and  ser\'ed  in  that  capacitv  four  years.  In  1865  he  again  went  into 
business,  and  continued  in  active  mercantile    life  until  1875.     He  was 


C2rt  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

one  of  the  original  stijckhnKlers  and  a  director  in  tlie  First  Xatii.mal 
Bank  of  Cassopolis,  and  was  made  president  in  18S4,  wliich  ]3osition  he 
held  at  the  time  of  his  death,  which  occnrred  July  30.  i.Scji.  Joseph 
K.  Ritter  was  married  to  Miss  Amanda  V.  Kingsbury,  a  native  of 
Needham,  Massachusetts,  and  a  daughter  of  Asa  Kingsliiu'y,  who  is  rep- 
resented on  another  page  of  this  work.  [Mr.  and  Mrs.  Ritter  became 
the  parents  of  four  children,  one  died  in  infancy  and  one  daughter  at 
the  age  of  thirteen  years,  the  other  daughter,  Mrs.  Dr.  I'unk,  is  living 
in  Cassopolis. 

Charles  .\.  Rilter  is  the  second  child  of  the  family  and  \v;is  reared 
in  Cassopolis.  On  the  1st  of  Jul}-,  if^JJ.  he  entered  the  b'irst  National 
Bank  of  Cassopolis  as  bookkee]ier.  Soon  afterward  he  was  made  assist- 
ant cashier,  continuing  in  that  capacity  until  1891,  when  he  was  cho'=en 
cashier,  which  position  he  is  now  filling.  Flis  connection  with  the  bank 
covers  a  period  of  more  than  twenty-eight  years,  and  the  success  of  the 
institution  is  attributable  in  no  small  degree  to  his  efforts. 

On  the  13th  of  December.  1881,  was  celebrated  the  marriage  of 
Mr.  Ritter  and  ^[iss  Mary  E.  Davis,  a  daughter  of  William  and  Eliza 
F,  (Saunders)  Davis.  Mrs.  Ritter  was  born  in  Trenton,  Michigan, 
but  was  reared  and  educated  at  South  Bend,  Indiana.  They  have  one 
son,  Joseph  K.,  who  is  yet  at  home  with  Iiis  parents. 

Mr.  Ritter  was  a  tnistee  of  the  village  of  Cassopolis  for  a  number 
of  years  and  abso  president  of  the  village  lioard  for  two  terms,  and  he 
exercised  his  official  prerogatives  in  support  of  all  movements  which 
he  deemed  of  puljlic  benefit. 

WILLIAM   H.   STRETCH. 

William  IT.  Stretch  is  one  oftlie  old  settlers  of  Cass  county,  and  as 
such  deserves  representation  in  this  volume,  for  through  many  years  he 
has  lived  within  its  borders,  his  mind  bearing  the  impress  of  the  early 
historic  anna's  of  this  part  of  the  state.  He  resides  on  section  27, 
LaGrange  township,  and  is  ntmibered  among  the  native  sous  of  Pokagon 
township,  his  birth  having  occurred  upon  the  old  Tayl.ir  homestead 
there  on  the  21st  of  April,  1846.  Flis  father,  John  Stretch,  was  a  native 
of  W'ayne  countv.  Indiana,  and  came  to  Cass  county  when  only  six 
years  of  age  with  his  parents,  Joseph  and  Sarah  Stretch,  who  were 
among  the 'first  settlers  of  the  county.  They  received  the  first  deed  to 
a  farm  in  their  locality.  The  grandfather  cultivated  and  improved  a 
tract  of  land,  spending  his  entire  life  upon  the  farm  which  he  entered 
from  the  go\ernment,  his  efforts  contributing  in  substantial  measure  to 
the  material  improvement   of  this  part  of  the  countv. 

John  Stretch  was  reared  in  Cass  county  amid  the  wild  sceties  and 
environments  of  pioneer  life.  The  primitive  home  of  the  family  was 
a  loo-  cabin,  and  the  members  of  the  household  shared  in  all  the  hard- 
ships and  trials  incident  to  life  on  the  frontier.     All  around  them  was 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  G27 

unbroken  prairie  ^r  stretches  of  tinilier  land,  and  the  work  of  cultivation 
seemed  scarcely  beg-un.  Only  here  and  there  would  be  seen  a  little 
cabin  to  indicate  that  the  seeds  of  civilization  had  been  planted  which 
were  in  due  time  to  briuij  forth  onod  fruit.  John  Stretch  assi-ted  in  the 
arduous  task  of  develnpins'  new  land  and  chose  as  his  life  wnrk  the 
occupation  to  which  he  was  reared,  always  giving  much  of  his  time  and 
attention  to  farming.  However,  he  was  likewise  a  preacher  of  the  Ger- 
man Baptist  chmxli,  and  in  this  connection  was  well  known  in  the 
county,  his  influence  and  efforts  being  of  no  restricted  order.  Both  by 
precept  and  example  he  led  many  into  the  better  way  of  life  and  his 
memory  is  still  cherished  by  a  large  number  of  those  who  were  his 
friends  and  neighbors  in  his  lifetime.  He  lived  to  be  about  sixtv-five 
years  of  age.  His  early  political  support  was  given  to  the  Whig  party, 
and  upon  its  dissolution  he  joined  the  ranks  of  the  new  Repuljlican 
party.  He  married  Miss  Emily  V.  McCoy,  a  native  of  Virginia,  who 
came  to  Cass  county  with  lier  parents  when  about  five  years  of  age, 
and  was  here  reared.  She  is  still  living  in  her  eighty-first  year,  one  of 
the  most  highly  esteemed  f>ld  ladies  of  the  county.  In  their  famil_\-  were 
five  sons,  all  of  whom  reached  mature  years,  and  they  also  reared  an 
adopted  daughter.  Mrs.  Anna  Scheline..  ^Ir.  Stretch,  of  this  review, 
is  the  eldest  of  the  five  children,  and  four  of  the  sons  are  now  living  in 
Cass  county,  while  George  is  a  resident  of  Berrien  c(junt\-,  Michigan. 
The  others  are:  Jo'^cph,  who  resides  in  Pokagon  township;  Isaac,  who 
is  foreman  in  the  drill  shop  at  Dowagiac;  and  Ira.  who  is  living  ui^n 
the  old  homestead. 

William  H.  Stretch  was  reared  in  Pokagon  townshi]-)  and  pursued 
his  education  in  the  cummon  schools.  He  assisted  in  clearing  the  farm 
in  his  lioyhood  days  and  in  performing  the  various  duties  incident  to 
the  work  of  the  old  homestead.  He  continued  under  the  parental  roof 
until  twenty-four  years  of  age.  when  he  was  married.  He  first  wedded 
Miss  Margaret  J.  Collins,  who  died  leaving  one  son.  Clyde  L.  After 
losing  his  first  wife,  IMr.  Stretch  was  married  to  Mrs.  Edith  ("Jewell) 
Goodrich,  who  was  killed  by  lightning.  His  present  wife  liore  the 
maiden  name  of  Emma  Grace  White,  and  at  the  time  of  their  marriage 
was  the  widow  of  W.  W.  \^an  Slyke.  ^Ir.  Stretch  made  his  home  in 
Pokagon  township  until  about  eight  years  ago.  when  he  sold  his  property 
there  and  removed  to  EaGrange  township,  settling  on  section  27,  where 
he  yet  resides.  He  has  been  a  life-long  resident  of  Cass  county,  having 
made  his  home  here  for  fifty-nine  years.  Any  movement  or  plan  for 
the  public  good  receives  his  earnest  attention  and  endorsement,  and  his 
aid  can  alwavs  be  counted  upon  to  further  any  movement  that  promises 
to  result  beneficially  to  the  county.  Pie  is  a  member  of  the  Tvlethodist 
Episcopal  church  of  Cassopolis.  and  his  life  has  ever  been  honorable 
and  upright,  in  harmony  with  his  professions.  He  has  had  a  full  realiza- 
tion of  his  duties  of  citizenship,  and  also  of  his  duties  to  his  fellow  men. 
and  has  never  been  known  to  take  advantage  of  the  necessities  of  others 


6.28  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

in  any  trade  Iransaclion.  In  fact  his  life  is  in  many  respects  worthy  of 
emulation  and  his  lellow  tuAvusnien  speak  of  him  in  terms  of  regard 
and  esteem. 

JOSEPH  HESS. 

Joseph  Hess,  inllucntial  and  enterprising,  has  found  in  his  intense 
and  well-directed  energy  the  key  that  has  unlocked  the  portals  of  suc- 
cess. Without  special  advantages  to  aid  him  at  the  outset  of  his  career 
he  has  nevertheless  persevered  in  his  work  and  has  today  valuahlc  land 
holdings  in  Cass  county.  He  resides  on  section  34,  Jefferson  town- 
ship, where  he  has  eigiity  acres  of  land  and  in  addition  to  this  he  owns 
eighty  acres  of  the  old  family  homestead,  ninety-three  acres  on  section 
21,  Jefferson  township,  and  ninety-two  acres  in  Ontwa  township,  so 
that  his  landed  possessions  now  comprise  two  hundred  and  sixty-five 
acres,  some  of  which  he  rents.  Ohio  has  furnished  a  number  of  repre- 
sentative and  valued  citizens  to  Cass  county,  including  INIr.  Hess,  who 
was  born  in  Huntington  township,  Ross  county,  of  the  Buckeye  state, 
on  the  1 6th  of  August.  1846.  His  parents  were  Joseph  and  Belinda 
(Staines)  Hess,  both  of  whom  have  now  passed  away.  The  father 
was  born  in  Huntingdon  county,  Pennsylvania,  where  he  spent  his  youlh, 
subsequent  to  which  time  he  removed  to  Ohio,  locating  in  Ross  county 
about  1838.  There  he  lived  for  more  than  a  decade,  when  with  his 
family  he  came  to  ]\Iichigan  in  1S49,  settling  in  Cass  county.  He  then 
located  in  Jefferson  townshiii,  where  he  purchased  a  farm,  his  land  lying 
in  both  Jefferson  and  Ontwa  townships.  It  was  largely  raw  and  unim- 
proved when  it  came  into  his  possession  but  his  labors  soon  wrought 
a  transformation  in  the  appearance  of  the  property  and  the  once  uncul- 
tivated tract  began  to  yield  him  good  harvests  as  a  reward  for  the  care 
and  labor  he  bestowed  upon  the  fields.  His  entire  life  was  devoted  to 
farming  and  he  kqit  in  touch  with  modern  progress  as  the  primitive 
machiner}'  was  replaced  by  improved  agricultural  implements  and  large 
and  comm<-i<lious  buildings  were  erected  to  supercede  the  small  log  cabins 
of  pioneer  days.  In  all  matters  of  public  progress  he  was  deeply  inter- 
ested, rejoicing  in  what  was  accomplished  in  the  county  and  giving  his 
active  co-operation  to  any  plan  or  measure  for  the  public  good.  His 
study  of  the  political  issues  and  questions  of  the  day  led  him  to  support  the 
Democracv  and  upon  that  ticket  he  was  elected  supervisor  and  also  to 
other  local  offices,  the  duties  of  which  he  discharged  with  promptness 
and  fidelitv.  As  a  member  of  the  school  board  he  proved  his  interest  in 
the  cause  of  education  by  his  advocacy-  of  measures  that  tended  to  raise 
the  standard  of  public  instruction.  He  was  a  member  of  the  old  school 
Baptist  church  and  his  life  was  characterized  by  integrity  that  was  un- 
assailable, while  his  business  reputation  would  bear  the  closest  investiga- 
tion and  scrutinv.  He  was  twice  married,  his  first  union  being  with  Miss 
Belinda  Staines',  who  was  a  native  of  Pennsylvania  and  was  of  Ger- 
man and  Swiss  descent.     She  died  at  the  age  of  sixty-two  years,  after 


HISTORY  01'   CASS  COUNTY  iJJ'J 

which  Air.  Hess  was  again  married,  his  second  union  heing  with  a  ]\Irs. 
Lewis.  There  were  eight  children  born  of  the  first  marriage  and  one 
son  by  the  second  marriage.  Of  tiiis  number  four  are  still  living: 
Sarah,  who  \\as  the  wife  of  Richard  Turner,  a  resident  of  Chillicothe, 
Ohio;  Anna,  who  was  born  in  Pennsylvania,  Alay  3,  1S38,  and  is  now 
keeping  house  with  her  brother  upon  the  old  homestead  farm;  Joseph, 
of  this  review;  and  John,  of  Chillicothe,  Ohio.  The  father  reached  the 
very  venerable  age  uf  eighty-live  years  and  in  his  death  the  county 
mourned  the  less  of  one  of  its  representative  pioneer  settlers. 

Joseph  Hes.s,  the  youngest  member  of  his  fatlier's  family,  was  a 
young  lad  when  he  came  with  his  parents  to  Ohio.  In  fact  he  had 
scarcely  attained  his  third  year.  His  sister  Anna,  too,  was  a  young 
child  and  both  were  reared  in  Jefferson  township  uix5n  the  farm  where 
they  have  been  keeping  house  for  many  years.  Mr.  Hess  was  educated 
in  the  district  schools  and  receiscd  :inii>]e  training  at  farm  labor  under 
the  direction  of  his  father,  \\(irking  at  the  plow  from  an  early  age  and 
performing  ah  such  farm  work  as  his  years  and  strength  permitted.  He 
afterward  jjurchased  the  interest  of  the  other  heirs  in  the  old  home  prop- 
erty. Botli  he  and  his  sister  Anna  own  eighty  acres  of  land  in  Jeffer- 
son township,  to  the  cultivation  arid  improvement  of  which  he  gives  his 
energies  and  his  close  application  and  strong  purpose  are  winning  for 
him  success  that  increases  year  by  year.  He  also  has  ninety-three  acres 
of  land  on  section  21,  and  ninety-two  acres  in  Ontwa  to\vnship.  so  that 
his  farm  property  covers  two  hundred  and  sixty-five  acres,  some  of 
which  he  rents.  He  is  likewise  one  of  the  stockholders  in  the  creamen,' 
at  Edwardsluirg,  a  productive  industry  which  is  of  value  to  the  com- 
munity, furnishing  a  market  to  tlie  farmers  who  keep  a  large  number 
of  cows  and  who  sell  their  milk  to  the  institution. 

■i\Ir.  Hess  has  been  a  lifelong  Democrat,  giving  inflcxiljle  support 
to  the  principles  of  his  party.  He  belongs  to  Edwardsburg  camp.  No. 
1492,  M.  \Y.  A.  If  one  could  sec  a  picture  of  the  county  as  it  appeared 
fifty-six  years  ago  when  Mr.  Hess  was  first  brought  here  there  would 
be  large  tracts  of  fore,=^t  in  which  not  a  tree  had  been  felled,  while  upon 
the  prairie  would  be  seen  the  native  grasses,  as  the  land  had  not  yet 
been  broken.  No  bridges  had  been  built  across  the  streams  and  few 
roads  had  been  laid  oiit  and  it  seemed  that  the  work  of  development 
and  improvement  lay  entirely  in  the  future.  The  Hess  family  tore  their 
full  share  in  the  work  of  upbuilding  and  the  name  has  ever  stood  ap  a 
synonym  for  progressive  citizenship  and  reliability  in  business  during 
tile  long  connection  of  the  family  with  Cass  county. 

GEORGE  M.  FIELDS. 

George  M.  Fields,  tlie  prosecuting  attorney  of  Cass  county,  is  pos- 
sessed of  legal  learning,  an  analytical  mind  and  a  readiness  Ingraspmg 
the  points  in  an  argument— qualities  which  combine  to  make  him  a  cap- 


630  HISTOKV  OF  CASS  COUXTY 

able  lawyer  of  the  Cass  county  bar.  While  his  professional  duties  call 
him  largely  to  Cassopolis  he  continues  to  make  his  home  in  Dowagiac 
His  natal  day  was  December  14,  iSCiS,  and  his  birtli  occurred  upon  a 
farm  in  Ottawa  o.unty.  Ohin.  [lis  father,  Edward  Fields,  was  also  a 
native  of  that  county  and  is  a  farmer. by  occupation.  He  still  resides 
upon  the  old  h.-niestead  where  his  entire  life  has  been  passed.  His 
parents  died  A\lieii  lie  was  only  ten  years  of  age,  and  he  then  started 
out  in  Hte  im  his  own  account,  since  which  time  he  has  been  de])endent 
entirely  upon  iiis  own  resources.  He  was  a  soldier  of  the  Civil  war, 
serving  for  ab..ut  fr.ur  years,  and  he  lust  his  left  arm  while  participating 
in  the  battle  of  Kcncsaw  Mountain.  He  married  Miss  Louisa  Hunt, 
a  native  of  Seneca  county.  Ohio,  who  is  also  living.  In  their  family 
wcic  two  s<,iis,  the  elder  being  llosea,  who  is  an  attorney  by  professi(jn 
but  a  farmer  by  occupation. 

George  ^I.  F'ields,  reared  upon  the  old  family  homestead,  began  his 
education  in  the  country  schools  and  afterward  continued  his  stmlies  in 
the  high  .-cl-,ool  at  Monroeville,  Huron  county,  Ohio,  where  he  com- 
pleted his  course  in  i8Sq.  He  then  engaged  in  teaching  school  for  one 
year  in  the  Buckeye  state,  after  which  he  entered  the  ilichigan  State 
University  at  .\nn  .\rl  nr  f, ir  the  study  of  law  and  was  graduated  from 
the  law  department  in  the  class  of  1893.  He  was  then  admitted  to 
practice  at  Columbus,  Ohio,"  and  opened  a  law  office  in  Toledo,  that 
state,  in  1894.  In  June,  1895,  he  came  to  Dowagiac,  where  he  enteral 
into  partnershi;-)  with  Charles  V..  Sweet,  which  connection  was  con- 
tinued for  one  year,  since  which  time  he  has  been  alone  in  business.  He 
was  elected  circuit  ci.uirt  cummissioner  in  1900  and  prosecuting  attor- 
ney in  1902.  since  which  time  he  has  been  re-elected,  so  that  he  is  now 
serving  frjr  the  second  term.  He  was  also  city  attorney  of  Dowagiac  in 
1900. 

In  1895  occurred  the  marriage  of  George  M.  Fields  and  Miss  Emily 
F.  Bond,  of  Dowagiac,  by  whom  he  has  one  son,  Harold  B.  In  polit- 
ical affairs  Mr.  Fields  is  deeply  interested,  keeping  well  informed  on 
the  questions  and  issues  of  the  day  and  giving  his  aid  to  every  legitimate 
■  measure  which  he  believes  will  promote  the  success  of  the  party  and 
thereby  advance  the  good  of  the  state  and  nation.  Fraternally  he  is 
connected  with  the  Elks  Lodge,  Xo.  8S9  at  Dowagiac,  and  he  has  per- 
sonal characteristics  which  make  him  popular  with  his  fellow  tn\yns- 
men,  gaining  for  him  wide  friendships  and  favorable  regard.  Since 
locating  in  Dowagiac  his  practice  has  been  quite  exten.sive  and  of  an 
important  character  and  he  prepares  his  cases  with  provident  care  and 
wide  research. 

WILLLA^I  F.  PUTEREAUGH. 

William  F.  Fnterbaugh,  supervisor  of  Calvin  township  and  living 
on  section  18,  is  a  native  of  the  neighboring  state  of  Indiana,  his  birth 
havine  occurred  in  Concord  township.  Elkhart  county,  on  the  25th  of 


i 

A    .^ 

'"^  ■/ 

J 

HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  631 

September,  1852.  He  is  a  son  of  Joseph  and  Sarah  (Patterson)  Puter- 
baugh.  His  paternal  grandfather,  George  Puterbaugh,  was  a  native  of 
Pennsyhania,  and  tlie  great-grandfather,  a  native  of  Gennany, 
was  the  only  repre>einati\e  ff  this  family  that  ever  came  to  Amer- 
ica as  far  as  the  knowledge  of  his  posterity  extends.  George 
Puterbaugh  was  reared  in  the  Keystone  state,  learned  the  millwright's 
trade  in  early  life  and  built  many  mills.  He  was  also  a  farmer  and  was 
quite  a  successful  business  man,  providing  lil)erally  for  his  family.  He 
was  also  a  minister  of  the  German  ilaptist  church  and  took  an  active 
part  in  the  moral  development  of  the  communities  in  which  he  \i\cd  and 
labored. 

Joseph  Puterbaugh,  father  of  our  subject,  was  born  in  Ohio  and 
in  the  year  1849  removed  to  Elkhart  county,  Indiana,  where  he  en- 
gaged in  farming.  For  many  years  he  followed  that  pursuit,  but  eventu- 
ally put  aside  business  cares  and  in  the  enjoyment  of  a  well  earned  rest 
made  his  home  in  the  city  of  Elkhart  during  the  last  ten  years  of  his 
life.  He  also  lillcd  the  ot'lice  of  justice  of  the  peace  and  was  assessor 
of  Concord  townshiii.  Local  progress  and  nati<:)nal  advancement  were 
both  causes  dear  to  his  heart  ami  his  active  co-operation  could  be  counted 
iijwn  for  the  beneht  of  any  plan  or  movement  intendeil  for  the  general 
good  of  his  county.  He  married  Mi.^s  Sarah  Patterson,  who  was  born 
in  central  Indiana  and  died  in  Elkhart  county  in  her  sixty-fifth  year. 
She  was  of  Scotch  lineage  and  was  a  daughter  of  William  Patterson, 
who  was  born  in  the  state  of  New  York.  He  left  home  when  a  small 
boy  under  peculiar  circumstances  and  therefore  little  is  known  con- 
cerning the  ancestral  history  of  the  family. 

William  F.  Puterbaugh,  \\ho?e  name  introduces  this  record,  is  the 
eldest  in  a  family  of  three  sons  and  two  daughters.  He  was  reared  in 
Concord  township,  Elkhart  county,  Indiana,  and  at  the  usual  age  en- 
tered the  district  schools,  wherein  he  mastered  various  branches  of 
learning  that  qualified  him  for  life's  practical  and  responsible  duties. 
He  afterward  remained  at  home  until  abdut  twenty-six  years  of  age 
and  assisted  in  the  work  of  the  farm  from  tlie  time  of  early  spring  plant- 
ing until  crops  were  harvested  in  the  late  autumn.  Thus  he  gaineil 
practical  knowledge  of  the  business  which  he  has  made  his  life  work  and 
which  now  claims  his  time  and  energies. 

March  17,  1S78,  occurred  the  marriage  of  ^ilr.  PuterViaugh  anil 
Miss  Ida  M.  Doilge.  a  daughter  of  Eliphalet  and  Sarah  J.  (Riggs) 
Dodge.  Mrs.  Puterbaugh  was  a  native  of  Elkhart  county,  where  her 
j)arents  located  at  an  early  da}-,  and  there  her  girlhood  days  were  passed. 
She,  too.  w^n^  a  student  in  the  pulilic  schnnls  and  in  her  faUicr's  home 
she  vv-as  trained  to  the  duties  of  the  hr.usehold,  so  that  she  was  well 
equipped  to  caic  lox  a  home  of  her  own  at  the  time  of  her  marriage. 
Supplementing  her  training  in  the  common  schools  she  took  a  full 
teacher's  course  at  the  Cii-:shen  Normal,  at  Goshen,  Indiana,  graduating 


032  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

in  the  class  of  1874,  and  was  a  successful  teacher  in  her  native  county 
of  Elkhart,  Indiana,  from  1872  to  1S78.  ^Ir.  and  Mrs.  Puterbaugh 
began  their  donie.-tic  life  in  Concord  township,  Elkhart  county,  where 
he  engaged  in  farming.  He  lived  in  three  different  townships  of  that 
count}',  remaining  f <  t  fi>ur  years  in  Concord  township,  two  years  in 
Osolo  township  and  nne  year  in  Caugo  township,  tie  then  removed  to 
California,  in  188 _|,  and  spent  one  year  on  the  Pacific  coast,  crossing 
the  continent  each  time  by  rail.  'When  he  again  came  to  the  middle 
west  he  established  his  home  in  Calvin  township,  Cass  county,  where  he 
purchased  the  farm  upon  which  he  has  since  resided.  Here  he  has  one 
hundred  and  seven  acres  of  good  land,  which  be  has  improved  in  many- 
ways.  He  has  brought  his  fields  under  a  high  state  of  cultivation  and 
annually  h.'ir\-e,n-  therefrom  good  cn^ps.  He  also  has  good  grades  of 
stock  upon  his  place  and  the  improvements  are  in  keeping  with  the  mod- 
ern farm  properties  of  the  twentieth  centur}-.  He  votes  with  the  Re- 
publican part}-,  and  in  T905  was  elected  to  the  office  of  township  super- 
visor, which  position  he  has  since  filled.  He  has  also  been  officially 
connected  witli  the  «cbnols  of  this  community,  and  he  is  a  valued  and 
exemplary  member  of  the  Masonic  Uulge  at  Cassopoli's  and  of  the  Odd 
Fellows  lodge  at  Rcdfield,  Cass  county.  His  residence  in  the  county 
covers  about  twent}--t\vo  years,  and  his  record  has  ever  been  such  as 
would  bear  close  in\estigation  and  scrutiny,  for  he  has  conducted  his 
business  affairs  honorably,  has  lived  at  peace  with  his  fellow  men  and 
has  wrought  along  lines  contributing  to  individual  success  and  to  the 
public  good  as  well. 

JOHN  LONGSDUFF. 

~''''  Long  a  resident  of  Cass  county.  John  Longsduff  has  therefore  wit- 
nessed much  of  its  growtli  and  de\-cIopment  as  the  vears  ha\-e  gone  by 
Jmd  changes  have  been  wrought  that  have  transfonned  it  from  a  frontier 
district  into  one  of  the  leading  cou.nties  of  this  great  commonwealth. 
He  lives  on  section  8.  Calvin  township,  where  he  has  a  good  farm  prop- 
erty comprising  one  hundred  and  twenty-eight  acres  of  rich  and  arable 
land.  Here  he  took  up  his  abode  in  1865  and  in  partnership  with  his 
wife  he  owns  this  property  and  gives  his  attention  to  its  further  develop- 
ment and  cultivation. 

His  life  record  began  in  Pennsylvania  on  the  20th  of  Augir^t.  1836. 
He  is  a  son  of  INIartin  Longsduff,  also  a  native  of  Pennsvlvania  and  a 
brother  of  George  Longsduff.  one  of  the  enterprising  citizens  of  this 
county.  His  paternal  grandfather,  Martin  LnngsdnfY,  Sr..  was  a  native 
of  Germany  and  in  that  countn.'  was  reared  and  married.  Crossing 
the  y\tlantic  to  the  new  world  be  became  one  of  tlie  earlv  residents  of 
Penns\dvania.  In  his  familv  were  ten  children,  of  whom  'Martin  Longs- 
duff, Jr..  was  the  eldest.  Fie  was  a  native  of  the  same  state  and  was 
there  reared  and  educated.  FTe  was  married  twice  and  in  1834  re- 
moved from  Pennsylvania  to  Ohio,  taking  up  his  abode  in  Union  town- 


HISTORY  Oi'   CASS  LUL'XTV  033 

ship,  Logan  count}-,  where  he  secured  a  tract  of  land  and  improved 
a  farm.  He  remained  a  resident  of  that  state  for  ahnost  four  decades 
and  came  to  ^Michigan  in  1872.  Here  lie  spent  his  remaining  da)s, 
passing  away  at  the  age  of  eighty-fi\-e  years.  In  his  religious  views  he 
was  a  Lutheran  and  he  exemplihed  in  his  life  his  Ijelief  in  the  teach- 
ings of  holy  writ.  The  mother  of  our  subject  bore  the  maiden  name 
of  Matilda  Oniglcy  and  was  a  native  of  Hagerstown,  New  Jersey, 
where  !ier  girlhood  days  were  passed.  She  was  ihe  second  wife  of  Mar- 
tin Longsduff,  his  former  union  having  been  with  a  Miss  Searfoss.  by 
whom  he  had  one  daughter,  Elizalieth.  By  the  second  marriage  there 
were  horn  eleven  children,  one  of  whom  died  in  early  youth,  while  ten 
reached  adult  age  and  fnur  of  the  number,  two  sons  and  two  daugh- 
ters, are  still  living  ar.d  .-ire  residents  of  Cass  county. 

John  Longsduft"  was  only  abnut  a  year  old  when  his  parents  removed 
to  Logan  county,  Ohio,  where  lliey  remained  \<'V  eleven  years,  and  he 
then  accompanied  them  on  their  renin'.al  t<>  Michigan.  The  family 
home  was  established  in  Cass  county  near  A'andalia  and  he  grew  to  man- 
hood upon  the  farm  from  the  age  of  twelve  years.  His  educational 
privileges  were  those  afforded  by  the  public  schools  of  the  different 
localities  in  \\hich  he  resided.  The  period  of  his  minority  was  spent 
upon  the  oM  family  hdmcslead  and  he  assisted  in  the  operation  of  the 
farm  and  in  the  support  of  hi';  mother,  .^fter  attaining  his  majority 
he  purchased  land  and  imprmed  a  farm  in  Penn  township.  On  the  9th 
of  February,  iSd^.  he  was  married  to  Miss  Martha  li.  Hull,  who  was 
born  on  the  farm  where  she  now  resides.  Her  parents  were  Isaac  and 
Maria  Hull,  who  came  from  Ohio  to  Cass  county  at  an  early  day.  In 
the  year  of  their  marriage  Mr.  and  Mrs.  I.x>ngsduff  located  where  they 
how  reside  and  his  labors  have  fmlher  improved  the  property  until  ft 
is  now  a  splendidly  cultivated  farm.  In  connection  with  the  tilling  of 
the  soil  he  engaged  in  buying  and  shiiijiing  hogs  for  a  number  of  years 
and  found  this  a  profitable  source  of  income. 

Mr.  Longsduff  exercises  his  right  of  franchise  in  support  of  the 
men  and  measures  of  the  Democracy  and  is  regarded  as  an  enterprising 
citizeri  of  the  county,  who  has  taken  an  active  interest  in  public  affairs, 
his  efforts  proving  far  reaching  and  beneficial.  He  is  connected  with 
one  of  the  prominent  old  families  of  this  part  of  the  state  and  is  justly 
entitled  to  mention  among  its  representative  citizens. 

BARAK  L.  RUDD. 

Barak  L.  Rudd,  proprietor  of  the  Forest  Hall  Hotel,  at  Diamond 
Lake,  near  Cassopolis,  was  born  in  Newburg  township,  October  21, 
1846,  and  belongs  to  that  class  of  citizens  who  find  in  the  faithful  per- 
formance of  each  day's  duties  opportunity  for  the  exercise  of  their  tal- 
ents and  energies  and  gain  through  their  industr>',  perseverance  and 
diligence  the  success  which  is  the  desired  goal  of  all  business  endeavor. 

Mr.  Rudd  is  descended  from  New  England  ancestrs'.     His  father. 


634  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

Barker  F.  Rudd,  was  a  native  of  Rutland,  \'ermont,  born  in  iSio,  and 
in  1834  he  came  to  Cass  county,  being-  then  a  young-  man  of  twenty- 
four  years.  Fie  found  iiere  a  district  largely  wild  and  miimproved,  and 
he  estabHshed  liis  home  in  what  is  now  Newberg  township,  being  one 
of  the  hrst  settlers  of  the  county,  and  aiding  in  its  primitive  development 
and  progress.  Fie  assisted  in  organizing  the  township,  in  formulating 
its  plan  of  government  and  he  was  afterward  called  to  the  offices  of 
•justice  of  the  pcice  and  sui/crvisor.  In  politics  he  was  originally  a 
Whig,  and  upon  the  organizalinn  of  the  new  Republican  party  joined 
its  ranks,  continuing  to  give  it  his  supi)ort  until  his  death,  which  oc- 
curred when  he  was  seventy  years  of  age.  In  early  manhood  he  mar- 
ried Lucinda  Brakeman.  a  daughter  of  Lewis  Brakeman,  who  was  cap- 
tain of  a  schooner  and  was  lost  on  Lake  St.  Clair.  The  Rudds  were  of 
Scotch  and  Irish  descent.  In  the  father's  family  there  were  four  daugh- 
ters and  four  smis. 

Barak  L.  Rudd.  the  second  son  and  fourth  child,  was  reared  upon 
the  old  family  homestead  and  in  his  youth  attended  the  common  schools, 
while  in  the  siuumer  months  his  attention  was  devoted  to  the  work  of 
plowing,  planting  and  harvesting.  He  was  a  young  man  of  but  seven- 
teen years  v.hen  in  response  to  his  country's  call  for  aid  he  enlisted  in 
1863  as  a  member  of  the  Fourteenth  Michigan  Battery  of  light  artillery. 
He  joined  that  command  as  a  private  and  served  for  two  years,  or  until 
the  close  of  the  war.  being  largely  engaged  in  duty  in  the  vicinity  of 
Washing-ton.  Following-  the  cessation  of  ho.stilities  he  returned  to  his 
nati\c  township,  where  he  was  engaged  in  farming.  He  continued  to 
til!  the  soil  until  1S80,  when  he  turned,  his  attention  to  commercial 
pursuits,  opening  a  store  in  Vandalia.  where  he  carried  on  business  for 
six  years,  or  luitil  1886.  The  same  year  he  was  elected  supervisor  of 
Penn  township,  and  was  also  chosen  to  the  office  of  county  clerk,  which 
position  he  held  for  four  years,  or  two  terms.  In  1891  he  purchased  the 
Forest  Hall  Hotel,  which  he  has  since  been  conducting.  It  is  a  well 
known  hostelry,  containing  about  forty  rooms,  and  is  pleasantly  situ- 
ated on  the  north  shore  of  Diamond  lake.  A  liberal  patronage  is  ac- 
corded, the  hotel  having  bccon-ie  a  favorite  summer  resort,  and  in  con- 
nection with  its  conduct  ^Ir.  Rudd  also  maintains  a  boat  livery.  He 
closely  studies  the  needs  and  wishes  of  his  patrons,  and  docs  everything 
in  his  power  for  the  comf'irt,  welfare  and  happiness  of  his  guests.  At 
the  same  time  he  manages  the  business  interests  of  the  house  with  capa- 
bility and  is  meeting  with  good  success. 

In  1880  ]\Ir.  Ivudd  was  united  in  marriage  to  'Miss  Alice  G.  Gep- 
hart,  a  daughter  of  Jacob  and  Margaret  Gqihart.  and  unto  them  has 
been  born  a  son.  Leo  B.  Rudd,  who  died  when  eleven  years  of  age. 
When  age  gave  to  Mr.  Rudd  the  right  of  franchise  he  acknowledged 
his  belief  in  the  principles  of  the  Republican  party,  and  has  since  been 
one  of  its  stalwart  advocates.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Albert  Anderson 
Post,  No.   157,  G.  A.  R.,  and  maintains  pleasant  relationships  with  his 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  035 

old  army  comrades  at  the  camp  fires  and  in  the  work  of  the  organiza- 
tion. His  devotion  to  his  country  is  manifest  in  the  same  loyal  spirit 
of  helpfulness  and  progress  which  he  displayed  when  upon  southern  hat- 
tlefiekls  lie  fearlessly  defended  the  old  Hng  and  the  cause  which  it  rep- 
resented. He  iias  always  lixecl  in  Cass  county  and  the  fact  that  many 
of  his  stanchest  friends  are  riumhered  among  those  who  have  known  him 
from  his  boyhood  days  down  to  the  present  is  an  indication  of  an  hon- 
orable and  upright  life. 

HENRY  CL.VY  WALKER. 

Henry  Clay  \\'alker  is  one  of  the  prominent  old  settlers  of  Cass 
county  and  a  \'ctcraii  of  th.e  Civil  war.  He  resides  on  section  5,  Cal- 
vin townsiiip,  being  owner  of  Brooksidc  farm,  which  is  a  well  improved 
property.  His  birth  occurred  in  LaGrange  township,  Elkhart  county, 
Indiana,  on  the  13th  of  September.  1S41,  and  he  is  descended  from  an 
old  New  England  family.  His  fatlier,  Lucius  Walker,  was  a  native  of 
Vermont,  in  whicli  state  he  sjjeiit  the  days  of  his  Iwyhood  and  youth. 
He  became  a  farmer  by  occupati(ni  and  has  devoted  his  entire  life  to 
that  atiling.  About  1846  he  removed  to  Indiana,  establishing  his  home 
in  Elkhart  county.  He  married  Miss  Lydia  S.  Sanborn,  who  was  also 
a  native  of  New  England,  born  either  in  \'erniont  or  New  Hampshire. 
They  became  the  parents  of  elc\cn  children,  nine  of  whom  reached  man- 
hood or  womanhood,  while  five  are  living  at  this  writing  in  1906. 

Henry  Clay  Walk'er.  the  ninth  in  order  of  birth  in  his  fat]ier"s 
family,  spent  his  youth  in  the  county  of  his  nativity.  In  1S58  Iiis  par- 
ents removed  from  the  farm  to  I'.ristol,  Elkhart  county,  and  he  remained 
at  home  ur.til  the  time  of  his  erJistment  for  service  in  the  Civil  war. 
His  patriotic  spirit  was  aroused  by  the  continued  attempt  of  the  south 
to  destroy  the  Union,  and  in  August.  1862,  he  enrolled  his  name  among 
the  boys  in  blue  of  Company  I.  Eighty-eighth  Indiana  Volunteer  In- 
fantry.' He  joined  the  army  as  a  private  and  served  until  the  follow- 
ing Januarv.  when  he  was  honorably  discharged  on  account  of  phy-ical 
disabilitv  occasioned  bv  illness. 

Following  his  return  to  Bristol.  Mr.  Walker  continued  his  educa- 
tion by  pursuing  a  course  of  study  in  the  Northern  Indiana  College  at 
South' Bend,  where  he  remained  "for  one  year.  He  afterward  entered 
business  life  as  a  merchant  at  \'andalia.  Michigan,  opening  a  general 
line  of  goods  there.  He  was  also  postn-.aster  of  the  town  for  nine  years 
and  discharged  the  duties  of  the  position  in  connection  with  the  man- 
agement of  the  store,  in  which  he  met  with  a  fair  measure  of  success. 
enjoying  a  growing  trade  by  reason  of  his  fair  dealing  and  his  earnest 
desire  to  please  his  patrons!  In  1S73.  however,  he  retired^  from  com- 
mercial life  and  took  up  his  abode  upon  the  farm  on  which  he  now 
resides  on  section  :;,  Calvin  township,  and  has  since  given  his  attention 
to  o-cneral  farmino-.     His  fields  are  well  tilled  and  the  place  is  equipped 


<i3t;  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY 

witli  many  iimdern  improvements,  including  tiie  best  machinery  for 
plowing,  piar.ting  and  harvesting.  In  his  work  he  is  practical  and  me- 
thodical and  his  labors  have  been  so  carefnlly  directed  that  a  gratifying 
measure  of  jirosperity  has  attended  him.  His  farm  comprises  two  Inm- 
dred  acres,  the  greater  part  of  which  is  tmder  a  high  state  of  cultivation 
and  it  is  appropriately  nan^ed  Bmok^ide  farm. 

In  187J  Mr.  \\'alkcr  was  united  in  marriage  to  Miss  Olive  M.  Hull, 
a  daughter  nf  Isaac  and  T^Iaria  Hull.  They  have  become  the  jjarcnts 
of  one  daugliter  and  one  sun,  but  the  former,  ?ilinnie,  died  when  only 
three  years  of  age.  The  son,  T.  ^McKinnon  Walker,  an  accoiuplished 
pianist,  is  at  home. 

Mr.  Walker  has  taken  an  active  interest  in  public  affairs  and  his 
fellow  townsmen,  recognizing  his  fitness  for  positions  of  public  trust, 
have  called  him  to  a  number  of  oft',ccs.  He  has  served  as  township 
clerk,  occupying  that  position  while  in  Vandalia  and  for  three  terms 
has  been  township  treasurer  in  Calvin  township.  The  cause  of  edtica- 
tion  finds  in  him  a  stalwart  friend  and  all  matters  for  the  general  good 
receive  his  endorsement  and  co-operation.  He  has  been  justice  of  the 
peace  for  about  sixteen  years,  rendering  decisions  wb.icii  are  strictly 
fair  and  impartial  and  he  always  votes  with  the  Republican  party.  Fra- 
ternally he  is  connected  with  Albert  .\ndcrson  Post.  No.  258,  G.  A.  R., 
at  Cassopolis,  and  has  filled  srime  of  the  offices  in  that  order.  Through- 
out his  entire  life  be  has  manifested  the  saiue  spirit  of  loyalty  which 
prompted  his  enlistment  for  service  in  the  Civil  war. 

WILLIAM  H.  COULTER. 

William  II.  Coulter,  a  grain  dealer  of  Cassopolis.  was  born  in 
Howard  township,  this  county,  on  the  loth  of  October,  1842.  He  is  a 
son  of  James  Coulter  and  a  grandson  of  John  Coulter,  the  latter  a  native 
of  Ireland,  who  served  as  a  soldier  in  the  Irish  rebellion.  He  came  to 
America  in  1798,  becoming  the  founder  of  the  f'miily  in  the  new  world, 
establishing  his  re.'^idence  in  Cincinnati,  where  he  was  married.  At  a 
later  date  he  removed  to  Clinton  county.  Ohio,  and  in  1834  he  came  to 
Cass  county.  INIichigan.  locating  over  seven  hundred  acres  of  land  in 
Howard  township.  The  journey  was  made  with  an  ox  team  and  Tohn 
Coulter  cast  in  his  lot  with  the  pioneer  residents  of  this  part  of  the 
state.  Few  iiriprovements  had  been  made  as  yet.  the  greater  part  of  the 
land  being  still  in  its  primitive  condition,  while  the  forests  were  uncut, 
the  streams  unbridged  and  the  sod  unturned  upon  the  prairies. 

James  Coulter,  father  of  our  subject,  was  born  in  Cincinnati,  Ohio, 
and  on  coming  to  Cass  county  in  1835  located  in  Howard  township. 
He  was  then  a  young  man  and  be  l-w^re  his  full  share  in  the  work  of 
early  improvement  and  progress  here.  After  two  vears  be  returned  to 
his  native  state  and  was  then  married,  after  which  be  brought  his  bride 
back  to   Howard  township,   where  he  spent  his  remaining  days,   there 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY  63T 

developing  and  improving-  a  goijd  farm.  He  was  an  active  supporter 
of  the  Republican  party  and  held  various  local  offices.  His  early  politi- 
cal allegiance,  however,  was  given  to  the  Democracy,  and  he  voted  for 
Franklin  Pierce,  but  in  1856  he  cast  his  ballot  for  John  C.  Fremont, 
the  first  presidential  candidate  oi  the  new  Republican  party.  In  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  church  he  was  a  very  earnest  and  active  worker 
and  in  Howard  township  he  erected  a  house  of  worship,  which  is  still 
standing.  He  died  in  his  sixty-sixth  year,  and  his  loss  was  deeply  re- 
gretted by  many  friends,  for  all  with  whom  he  had  come  in  contact 
knew  him  to  be  a  man  of  sterling  integrity,  of  steadfast  purpose  and  of 
unquestioned  lienor.  He  married  Miss  Ann  Wilson,  a  native  of  Clin- 
ton county.  Ohio,  and  a  daughter  of  Amos  Wilson,  also  of  the  same 
county.  Her  father  was  a  Baptist  minister  and  was  of  Welsh  descent. 
Mrs.  Coulter  lived  to  be  eighty-three  years  of  age.  In  the  family  were 
seven  children,  all  of  whom  were  born  in  Howard  township,  Cass  enmity. 
and  of  this  number  two  sons  and  two  daughters  are  yet  living,  namelv: 
Margaret,  the  wife  of  Ephraim  White,  who  is  living  upon  the  old  Coul- 
ter homestead  in  Howard  township:  John,  a  prominent  politician  and 
farmer,  w^lio  resides  in  the  same  township;  William  H..  of  this  review; 
and  Sarah  A.,  the  wife  of  James  Douglas,  of  Marion.  Indiana. 

Mr.  Coulter  is  the  sixth  child  and  youngest  son  in  the  family.  No 
event  of  special  importance  occurred  to  vary  the  routine  of  farm  life 
for  him  in  his  youtli.  He  was  reared  upon  the  old  family  homestead 
in  Howard  township  and  early  became  familiar  with  the  best  methods 
of  tilling  the  soil  and  caring  for  the  stock.  Fie  resided  upon  the  farm 
until  1892,  when  he  was  elected  sheriff  of  Cass  county  and  the  same 
year  took  up  his  abode  in  Cassopolis.  Following  the  expiration  of  his 
term  of  service  he  made  a  trip  to  California,  where  he  remained  from 
January  until  April,  enjoying  the  mild  climate  and  the  beauties  of  that 
sunny  land.  Fie  then  returned  to  his  farm  in  Howard  township,  where 
he  again  lived  for  two  vears.  ^^■hen  he  once  more  took  up  his  abode  in 
Cassopolis.  Flere  he  turned  liis  attention  to  the  grain  trade  in  company 
with  James  Johnson,  which  partnership  continued  for  a  year,  since  which 
time  Mr.  Coulter  has  had  different  ])artners.  He  is  now  associated  with 
John  Atkison  under  the  firm  style  of  Coulter  &  Atkison,  grain  ship- 
pers. Fie  has  done  quite  a  large  business  and  has  thereby  provided  an 
excellent  market  for  local  producers.  He  deals  in  grain,  produce  and 
coal  and  has  a  large  patronage,  so  th.at  he  makes  extensive  sales  an- 
nually. He  also  owns  a  farm  of  one  hundred  and  sixty-seven  acres  in 
Jefferson  township,  which  is  valuable  and  productive  land  and  returns 
to  hirn  a  good  income. 

Mr.  Coulter  was  united  in  marriage  on  the  4th  of  January,  1866, 
to  Miss  Abigail  Vary,  a  daughter  of  Benjamin  and  Mary  fRogersI 
Vary,  who  was  born  in  Oneida  count}-.  New  York,  near  Rome  and  came 
to  Cass  county  in  i86o  when  she  was  t^^•eIve  years  of  age.  She  died  in 
1893  during  her  husband's  incumbency  in  the  office  of  sheriff,  and  on  the 


63S  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

3r(l  of  January,  1895,  Mr.  Coulter  was  again  married,  his  second  unirm 
being  with  Addic  Smith,  a  daughter  of  D.  B.  and  Cliarlotte  Smith.  Tliey 
have  no  cliildrtn  of  tiieir  own,  but  have  adopted  a  daughter,  ;\hiria  W. 
Mr.  Coulter  ha.s  ever  manifested  the  interest  of  a  public  spirited  citizen 
in  all  matters  relating  to  the  general  welfare,  and  he  exercises  his  right 
of  franchise  in  support  of  the  men  and  measures  of  the  Republican 
party.  He  desires  general  advancement  and  improvement  along  lines 
of  permanent  good,  and  in  his  views  relating  to  the  public  welfare  he 
is  practical  as  well  as  progressive.  He  holds  membership  in  the  M^cth- 
odist  I'.piscnprd  church,  of  which  he  is  a  trustee  and  in  the  work  of 
which  he  takes  an  arti\'e  and  helpful  part. 

DAVID  CLAREXCE  THICKSTUN. 

David  Clarence  Thickstun,  a  well  known  dealer  in  lumber  and  coal 
in  Cassopolis,  was  born  in  Cassewago,  Crawford  county,  Pennsylvania, 
on  the  2r)th  of  May,  1850.  His  father,  David  Thickstun.  was  a  native 
of  the  same  locality  anrl  was  a  farmer  by  occu]iation.  His  death  oc- 
curred at  the  ])1ace  of  l-.js  nativity  when  he  was  about  sixty  years  of 
age.  His  wife,  who  Icire  the  maiden  name  of  Nancv  Erwin,  was  also 
a  native  of  Crawford  county,  where  .she  died  when  fifty-seven  years  of 
age.     In  their  family  were  six  children,  who  reached  adult  age. 

David  C.  Thickstun,  tlie  youngest,  was  reared  under  the  parental 
roof,  remaining  at  home  until  twenty-three  years  of  age,  when,  think- 
ing that  be  might  ha\'e  better  business  opportunities  hi  the  middle  west, 
he  made  bis  wav  to  I^apcer,  .\Iicbit.'an,  v.diere  he  secured  a  pisition  as 
bi^^kkee()er  in  the  emi^Iov  of  J.  T.  r.eringer  &  Company,  dealers  in  lum- 
ber. He  continued  with  that  house  until  his  removal  to  Cassopolis  to 
take  charge  of  a  branch  lumber  }-ard  here.  After  two  vears  lie  was 
admitted  to  a  partnership  in  the  business  in  Cassopolis  by  Mr.  P.eringer, 
this  relationship  being  maintained  for  about  two  years,  when  he  pur- 
chased his  partner's  interest,  being  alone  in  business  until  1905.  wdien 
he  admitted  his  son-in-law,  Frank  F,.  Arnold,  to  a  partnership  under  the 
firm  style  of  Thickstun  S:  .-\rnold.  ?^rr.  Thickstun  has  now  been  engaged 
in  the  lumber  business  in  Cassojxilis  for  twcnty-sc\-en  vears  and  is  one 
of  the  best  known  and  most  prominent  business  men  of  the  town,  hav- 
ing a  liberal  patronacre,  which  is  accorded  him  in  recognition  of  his 
straightforward  and  honorable  dealing,  his  reasonable  prices  and  bis 
earnest  efforts  to  please  his  customers. 

Mr.  Thickstun  married  Miss  Hattie  May  Rogers,  a  daughter  of 
Stilman  !\r.  Rogers,  who  was  born  in  Mexico,  New  York.  Her  mother 
liore  the  maiden  name  of  Sarah  Runkle  and  was  a  native  of  Paterson. 
New  Jersev. .  ^Tr.  Rogers  departed  this  life  at  the  acre  of  fiftv-seven 
\-ears  and  liis  wife  when  fifty-eight  years  of  age.  Tliev  were  the  par- 
ents of  ten  children,  five  sons  and  five  dauehters.  of  whom-^Irs.  Thick- 
stun is  the  youngest.     Unto  our  subject  and  his  wife  have  been  bom  two 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COL'XTV  030 

daughters ;  Elnora.  the  wife  <>f  I'Vaiik  K.  Arnold,  who  is  engaged  in 
business  witli  her  father;  and  ]rnia.  the  wife  of  \'ernon  Tourje.  wlio  is 
abstract  clerk  in  the  Grand  Trunk  ireight  ottice  at  Durand,  [Michigan. 

In  his  political  affiliation  .Mr.  Thickstun  is  a  Democrat,  while  fra- 
ternally he  is  a  prominent  Mason.  He  has  taken  the  degrees  of  the 
lodge,  cha))ter  and  commandcry.  is  also  a  member  of  the  ^Iv?tic  Shrine 
and  belongs  tn  tlio  Ik'iicvnlent  &  I'mtective  Order  of  Elks  and  also  to 
an  organization  of  hnnl  crmcn.  the  Hoc  Hoos.  He  has  been  a  rejiresen- 
tative  of  the  lumber  trade  in  .Michigan  for  over  thirty  years  and  is  thor- 
oughly informed  concerning  the  business  in  all  its  departments.  He 
has  fii.ni  the  beginning  of  his  residence  in  Cassopolis  enjoyed  a  con- 
stantly increasing  trade  and  his  excellent  business  qualihcations  and  en- 
terprise combined  with  strong  purjKise  and  unfaltering  diligence  have 
constituted  the  source  of  his  prosjierity.  He  found  in  the  middle  west 
the  business  oijporlunities  he  sought,  and  by  the  improvement  of  his 
advantages  made  steady  progress  until  he  is  now  classed  with  the  sub- 
stantial and  prosperous  residents  of  Cass  county. 

JON.VTHAX   H.   RENCH. 

Jonathan  IT.  Rench,  formerly  identified  with  agricultural  interests 
and  now  a  well  known  resident  of  Casso])olis.  was  Ixirn  in  Clark  county, 
Ohio,  January  lo,  1842.  His  father,  Daniel  Rench.  was  a  native  of 
the  Buckeye  state  and  came  to  Cass  county  in  i83(>.  Two  years  after- 
ward he  removed  to  Callimm  crmnty.  Michigan,  where  his  remaining 
days  were  passed.  He  was  a  farmer  and  miller,  devoting  his  entire  life 
to  the  milling  business,  while  in  Ohio  and  in  Michigan  he  gave  his  atten- 
tion to  the  tilling  of  the  soil.  His  father  w-as  of  a  Pennsylvania  Dutch 
family.  Daniel  b'ench  reached  the  advanced  age  of  seventy-seven  years 
ere  he  was  called  to  his  final  rest  in  Calhoun  comity.  His  wife  bore 
the  maiden  name  of  }klary  Williams,  was  a  native  of  Ohio  and  died  in 
Calhoun  county.  Michigan,  in  the  eighty-fifth  year  of  her  age.  In  their 
family  were  twelve  children,  of  whom  two  passed  away  in  childhood, 
wdiile  ten  reached  mature  years  and  seven  are  now  living. 

Jonathan  H.  Rench  is  the  ninth  child  in  his  father's  family  and 
was  sixteen  years  of  age  when  he  came  to  Cass  county.  Here  he  began 
working  by  the  month  as  a  farm  hand  and  he  has  since  been  dependent 
upon  bis  own  resources,  so  that  he  may  well  be  termed  a  self-made 
man,  who  as  the  architect  of  his  own  fortunes  has  builded  W'isely  and 
well.  It  was  about  the- time  of  his  arrival  in  Cass  county  that  he  cast 
his  first  presidential  vote  supporting  the  Democratic  nominee  for  presi- 
dent and  he  has  never  failed  to  vote  at  a  presidential  election  since  that 
time. 

In  1863  Mr.  Rench  was  united  in  marriage  to  ;Miss  Percilla  T- 
Thorp,  a  daughter  of  Lalien  and  Lydia  CReams)  Thorp,  who  came  to 
Cass  countv  at  an   earlv  epoch   in   its  development.     ]\frs.    Rench   was 


640  HISTORY  OF  CASS  LOU.XTY 

born  in  Jefferson  township,  Cass  county,  on  the  4th  of  January,  1S46, 
and  ha?  spent  her  entire  hfe  here.  At  the  time  of  their  marriage  Mr. 
and  Airs.  Rencli  located  on  a  farm  in  Jefferson  township,  their  home 
being  a  log  house  in  which  tliey  lived  in  pioneer  style.  He  continued 
farming  there  for  about  ten  years,  \\hen  he  removed  to  Cassopolis  and 
for  a  time  was  in  the  employ  of  the  Michigan  Central  Railroad  Com- 
pany. Later,  however,  he  turned  his  attention  to  the  butchering  busi- 
ness, which  he  followed  for  eleven  years,  at  the  end  of  which  time  he 
invested  his  capital  in  fifty-five  acres  of  land  about  a  mile  and  a  quarter 
south  of  Cassopolis.  There  he  carried  on  farming,  but  at  a  more  recent 
date  he  sold  the  property  and  now  lives  just  outside  the  corporation 
limits  of  Cassopolis.  His  life  lias  been  active,  his  years  characterized 
by  enterprise  and  diligence  and  he  is  now  in  possession  of  a  comfortable 
competence  which  has  come  to  him  through  bis  own  laliors. 

Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Rencli  Iia\-c  been  liorn  four  children:  Capitola. 
now  the  wife  of  H.  D.  Badgley.  of  Cassopolis;  Grant,  who  is  living  in 
Battle  Creek,  Michigan;  Verna,  tlie  wife  of  S.  S.  Albright,  of  Sacra- 
mento, California;  and  Dcljiba.  who  is  at  home.  Mr.  Rench  has  been  a 
lifelong  Democrat,  and  for  fourteen  years  he  has  filled  the  office  of 
supendsor  of  roads.  He  belongs  to  the  Knights  of  Alaccabccs  fratern- 
ity, and  has  a  wide  acquaintance  in  Cass  county,  where  for  forty-m'nc 
years  be  has  made  bis  home,  taking  an  active  and  helpful  interest  in  its 
public  affairs.  He  has  rejoiced  in  what  has  been  accomplished  as  the 
conditions  of  pioneer  life  have  been  done  away  with  thmugli  the  efforts 
of  the  enterprising  citizens  in  behalf  of  general  improvement  and  ad- 
vancement. He  has  never  sought  to  figure  prominently  in  official  cir- 
cles, but  has  been  content  to  perfonn  bis  daily  duty  and  found  in  labor 
the  reward  which  lias  made  him  one  of  the  substantial  citizens  of  his 
community,  now  enabling  him  to  live  a  retired  life. 

ZADOK  JARVLS. 

Few  residents  of  Cass  county  have  resided  longer  within  its  bor- 
ders than  has  Zadok  Jarvis.  who  for  almost  seventy-three  years  has  been 
a  citizen  here,  watching  with  interest  its  growth  and  development  as 
great  changes  have  occurred.  He  has  been  a  witness  of  its  various 
transition  stages  as  the  evidences  of  pioneer  life  were  replaced  by  the 
indications  of  a  more  ad\-anced  civilization  and  as  the  county  has  taken 
on  all  of  the  improvements  of  our  modern  day  prosperity  and  progress. 
His  mind  goes  back  to  the  time  when  Cassopolis  was  but  a  small  village 
and  other  cities  of  the  county  bad  not  yet  sprung  into  existence  or  were 
but  mere  hamlets.  He  remembers  where  there  were  great  stretches  of 
forest  where  now  are  seen  fields  of  waving  grain,  for  much  of  the  land 
at  that  time  was  still  in  possession  of  the  government  and  only  here 
and  there  was  a  little  cabin  to  indicate  that  the  work  of  clearing  and 
development  had  been  begun.     There  was  much  hard  labor  to  be  done 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  tUl 

in  tlio?e  early  days,  for  tlie  improved  farm  machinery  of  tlie  present 
time  was  unknown  and  mucii  nf  the  work  iiad  to  he  dime  liv  hand.  Few 
of  the  liou-^chold  CMmfi'rts  now  so  common  were  tlien  enjmed,  hut 
there  was  a  spirit  of  hos])itahty  ahroad  in  pioneer  districts  tliat  made 
those  early  liomes  n.  tahk-.  As  a  representative  pi<-)nccr  settler  Mr.  Jar- 
vis  certainly  desen-es  mention  in  this  volume. 

He  was  horn  four  miles  south  of  Richmond  in  Wayne  county.  In- 
diana, on  the  i-,ih  of  L^ecemher.  1S27,  a  son  of  Zadok  and  Lucv 
(Owens)  Jarvis.  JKith  of  whom  were  natives  of  North  Carolina,  horn  in 
Rowan  county.  After  livinc^  for  some  time  in  Indiana  the  father  came 
with  his  family  to  Cass  county  in  1833,  locating:  first  in  LaGrange  town- 
ship. He  was  a  lifelonn:  farmer,  always  following-  that  occupation  in 
order  to  provide  for  those  dependent  upon  him  for  support.  In  many 
ways  he  was  identified  with  the  im])rovement  and  upbuilding  of  the 
county  and  aided  in  laxing  broad  and  deep  the  foundation  ujjon  which 
has  been  builded  the  present  superstructure  of  progress  and  prosperity. 
He  voted  with  the  Democracy,  was  fearless  in  support  of  his  honest 
convictions  and  was  regru'ded  as  a  man  whom  to  know  was  to  respect 
and  honor.  His  death  occurred  in  his  sixty-eighth  year,  while  his  widow 
reached  the  very  advanced  age  of  ninety-seven  years,  being  |x?rhaps  the 
oldest  citizen  of  Cass  county  at  the  time  of  her  demise.  In  tlie  family  of 
this  worthy  cou]ile  were  seven  children,  four  sons  and  three  daughters, 
all  of  wliom  reached  mature  years,  married  and  reared  families  of  their 
own  with  the  exception  of  one  sister,  who  was  married  Ijut  had  no 
children. 

Mr.  Jarvis  of  this  review  was  the  sixth  child  and  youi-.gcst  son. 
and  was  a  little  lad  of  six  summers  when  he  came  with  his  parents  to 
Gass  county,  Michigan.  Fie  can  remember  many  incidents  of  those  early 
days — incidents  which  became  important  factors  in  the  history  of  the 
county.  11  is  education  \\'as  obtained  in  the  pioneer  schools  and  he  re- 
ceived ample  training  at  farm  labor,  taking  his  place  in  the  fields  as 
soon  as  old  enough  to  hiandle  the  plrjw.  He  remained  with  his  father 
until  the  latter's  death  and  in  fact  he  is  the  only  surviving  member  of 
the  family.  In  1S51  he  was  married  to  Miss  Rebecca  Simpson,  whose 
birth  occurred  in  Cass  county,  her  parents  being  Elias  and  Rachel 
Simpson,  who  were  pioneer  settlers  of  this  part  of  the  state. 

Immediately  after  his  marriage  Mr.  Jarvis  located  upon  the  farm 
upon  which  he  now  resides,  and  it  has  been  his  home  almost  continuously 
since,  save  that  he  spent  about  three  years  in  Dowagiac.  The  farm  was 
covered  with  timber  or  stunijis  at  the  time  it  came  into  his  possession 
and  he  entered  upon  the  difficult  task  of  preparing  the  fields  for  the 
plow.  He  has  cleared  most  of  the  farm  himself  and  for  fifty-four  years 
has  lived  in  I^Grange  township,  working  earnestly  and  persistently  year 
after  year  and  gaining  through  his  unfaltering  purpose  and  capable  man- 
agement the  reward  of  all  well-directed  labor.     He  now  owns  one  bun- 


642  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

dred  and  twenty  acres  nf  good  land  and  in  1905  he  gave  to  his  son 
John  eighty  acres  of  land. 

Unto  Mr.  Jarvis  by  his  first  marriage  were  born  fi\e  children, 
namely:  Henry,  Helen,  Francis,  Almanson  and  Almira,  the  last  two 
being  twins.  Flaving  lost  his  first  wile  3*Ir.  Jarvis  was  again  married, 
his  second  union  being  with  Margaret  Cudderback.  They  became  the 
parents  of  four  children:     Zed.  John  and  two  who  are  now  deceased. 

Mr.  Jarvis  voted  with  the  Republican  party  until  1872,  when  he 
became  a  JJemocrat.  Fie  has  served  as  a  member  of  the  township  board, 
was  at  one  time  a  member  of  the  ]\iasonic  fraternity  and  belongs  to  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  church  at  Dowagiac.  An  honorable  and  straight- 
forward life  characterized  by  recognition  of  the  rights  of  others  in  busi- 
ness has  made  Mr.  Jarvis  one  of  the  esteemed  and  prominent  old  settlers 
of  LaGrange  township.  He  can  rememlier  the  days  when  the  pioneers 
had  to  go  long  distances  to  market  or  mill  and  often  over  roads  that  in 
certaiir  seasons  of  the  year  were  alinnst  impassable.  There  were  no 
railroads  and  all  communication  witli  the  outside  world  was  made  by 
private  conveyance  or  by  stage.  The  most  far  sighted  would  not  have 
dreamed  that  there  would  one  day  be  a  rural  mail  route  and  thai  there 
would  be  telephonic  connections  between  the  towns  and  the  farm  homes. 
As  we  look  back  and  think  of  the  conditions  that  existed  in  those  early 
days  the  change  seems  man.'clous,  and  yet  it  has  resulted  from  the  care- 
ful, laborious  eft'ort  of  the  settlers  who  have  been  men  of  enterprising 
spirit  and  have  kept  pace  with  the  uniform  progress  and  improvement 
here.  Mr.  Jarvis  has  made  continual  advancement  in  his  business  ca- 
reer, keeping  in  touch  with  ideas  of  modem  farming  and  as  the  years 
have  gone  by  he  has  prospered  in  his  undertakings. 

WILLIAM  H.  C.  HALE. 

William  H.  C.  Flale,  county  commissioner  of  schools  and  a  resi- 
dent of  Cassopolis,  was  born  in  Wells  county.  Indiana,  on  the  6th  of 
July,  1853.  In  the  paternal  line  he  comes  of  Scotch  and  English  ances- 
try. His  grandfather.  Henry  Hale,  was  a  native  of  'Maryland,  born  in 
1787,  whence  he  removed  to  Jefferson  county,  Ohio,  there  devoting  his 
lime  and  energies  to  farming  until  his  later  years,  when  he  put  aside 
active  business  cares.  He  died  in  the  ninety-fourth  year  of  his  age. 
Stephen  Flale,  father  of  our  subject,  was  born  in  Jefferson  county.  Ohio, 
was  reared  to  the  occupation  of  farming  and  made  that  pursuit  his  life 
work.  Removing  westward,  he  became  one  of  the  early  residents  of 
Wells  countv  Indiana,  ■\^■here  he  settled  about  1840,  and  in  Januarv, 
1864,  he  removed  to  Cass  county.  ^Michigan,  taking  up  his  abode  in  Cal- 
vin township,  where  he  was  engaged  in  general  agricultural  pursuits  up 
to  the  time  c>i  his  death,  Avhich  occurred  when  he  was  sixty-six  years  of 
age.  Realizing  the  value  of  education,  he  was  deeply  interested  in  the 
cause  of  oublic  instruction,  and  for  some  years  served  as  a  school  di- 
rector.     In  politics  he  was   a   lifelong  Republican.     He  wedded    Miss 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  643 

Nancy  Reed,  a  native  of  Pennsylvania  and  a  daughter  of  Arthur  Reed, 
who  was  bom  in  Ireland.  Mrs.  Hale  passed  away  at  the  age  of  sixty- 
five  years.  By  her  marriage  she  had  become  the  mother  of  eleven  chil- 
dren' seven  daughters  and  four  sons,  of  which  number  seven  reached 
adult  age. 

Professor  William  H.  C.  Hale  of  this  review  was  the  third  son  and 
tenth  child.  lie  was  reared  in  his  native  county  until  ten  years  of  age, 
when  he  came  with  his  parents  to  Cass  county,  and  after  acquiring  his 
preliminary  education  in  the  district  schools  he  entered  the  State  Nor- 
mal College  at  Ypsilanti,  JNIichigan,  completing  the  common  school 
course  in  1S78.  He  then  engaged  in  teaching  school  for  several  years 
in  Cass  county,  after  which  he  returned  to  Ypsilanti  in  1S89  and  com- 
pleted the  regular  normal  course  by  graduation  in  1S91,  having  finished 
the  assigned  work  in  the  literary  and  scientific  departments.  lie  re- 
ceived a  teacher's  life  certificate  for  the  state  of  Michigan  and  for  three 
years  he  was  principal  of  the  Ouinnesec  school,  after  which  he  returned 
and  taught  in  Cass  county  for  about  four  years.  He  was  then  elected 
county  commissioner  of  schools  in  1901  and  was  re-elected  in  1903,  so 
that  he  is  still  holding  ihe  office.  He  has  made  a  close  and  earnest  study 
of  the  needs  and  possibilities  of  the  schools  and  his  efforts  in  this  direc- 
tion have  been  attended  v.iih  gratifying  success,  for  under  his  guidance 
the  standard  of  the  schools  has  been  raised  and  good  work  has  been 
done. 

Other  political  offices  and  honors  have  been  conferred  upon  Pro- 
lessor  Hale,  who  for  four  years  sen.-ed  as  justice  of  the  peace  in  Cal- 
vin tov.-nship.  His  decisions  were  strictly  fair  and  impartial  and  he 
proved  a  capable  officer.  He  was  also  school  inspector  in  the  same 
township  for  six  years  and  in  1900  he  took  the  United  States  census 
in  Calvin  township.  In  18S4  lie  was  the  Republican  candidate  for  coun- 
ty clerk,  but  that  year  witnessed  a  Democratic  landslide  and  he  failed 
of  election.  He  is  now  and  for  some  years  has  been  a  member  of  the 
Republican  county  central  committee  and  does  all  in  his  power  to  pro- 
mote the  growth  and  insure  the  success  of  his  party.  His  entire  life 
has  been  devoted  to  educational  work  and  official  duties,  and  over  the 
record  of  his  public  and  private  career  there  falls  no  shadow  of  wrong, 
for  his  labors  have  been  characterized  by  an  unquestioned  fidelity  to 
duty.  Earnest  efifort,  close  application  and  the  exercise  of  his  native 
talents  wen  him  prestige  as  an  educator,  while  his  personal  characteris- 
tics have  made  him  a  popular  citizen. 

ALLEN  M.  KINGSBURY. 

Allen  M.  Kingsbury,  resides  on  section  29,  LaGrange  township. 
where  he  owns  and  controls  valuable  farming  interests  and  in  addition 
to  carrying  on  agricultural  pursuits  he  is  also  acting  as  vice-president 
of  the  First  National  Bank  of  Cassopolis.      He  represents  one  of  the 


644  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

oldest  and  most  prominent  pioneer  families  of  Cass  county.  The  stu- 
dent of  history  cannot  carry  his  investijrations  far  into  llie  annals  of 
this  county  without  learning  of  the  close,  valual)le  and  hoiioralile  con- 
nection of  the  Kingsburys  with  the  events  which  have  molded  the  pol- 
icy and  shaped  the  development  of  this  part  of  tlic  '=late.  His  father 
was  Asa  Kingslnn-y,  a  native  of  ^Massachusetts,  who  came  to  Michigan 
when  much  of  this  district  was  wild  and  unimproved.  In  his  family 
were  thirteen  children,  seven  sons  and  si.K  daughters,  of  whom  Allen 
M.  Kingslmry  is  the  third  child  and  second  son.  He  was  liorn  upon  the 
old  homestead  farm  in  LaGrangc  township  and  was  there  reared  to 
manhood,  acquiring  his  education  in  the  schools  of  Oak  Grove,  Cass- 
opolis  and  Jackson  townships.  When  not  busy  with  his  tc.xt-liiwks  he 
aided  in  the  work  of  field  and  meadow  and  continued  to  assist  his  father 
in  the  operation  of  the  home  farm  until  twenty-one  years  of  age,  when 
he  started  out  in  life  on  his  own  account,  following  the  pursuit  to  which 
he  had  been  reared.  He  became  an  energetic  agriculturist  of  LaCrauge 
township  and  as  tiie  years  have  gone  by  has  carefully  conducted  his 
farming  interests.  After  his  marriage  he  located  upon  the  old  home- 
stead for  a  year  and  then  removed  to  the  farm  upon  which  he  now 
resides  and  which  has  since  been  bis  place  of  residence.  It  comprises 
two  hundred  acres  of  rich  and  arable  land,  which  responds  readily  to 
the  care  and  cultivation  that  is  bestowed  upon  it.  He  is  both  practical 
and  progressive  in  his  methods,  is  methodical  and  systematic  in  bis  work 
and  keeps  in  touch  with  the  most  advanced  ideas  of  modern  farming. 
He  is  also  numbered  among  the  stockholders  of  the  First  National  Eank 
of  Cassopolis  and  is  now  serving  as  its  vice-president. 

In  1S77  Mr.  Kingsbury  was  united  in  marriage  to  Miss  May  L. 
Haynes,  who  was  born  and  reared  in  Jackson  county,  ^licbigan,  and 
by  this  marriage  five  children  have  been  born:  Floy,  who  is  now  the 
wife  of  Fred  B.  Lamb,  a  resident  of  Perth  .-\mboy.  New  Jersey :  Jessie 
who  is  engaged  in  teaching  in  Lewistown,  Montana:  Alberta,  who  is  a 
teacher  in  New  Jersey-;  Allen  W..  who  is  assisting  his  father  in  the  work 
of  the  home  farm:  and  Catharine,  who  is  attending  school  in  Cassopolis. 
All  are  natives  of  Cass  county  and  were  reared  upon  the  old  family 
homestead. 

Mr.  Kingsbury  has  likewise  spent  his  entire  life  in  Cass  county 
and  is  a  worthv  representati\'e  of  one  of  its  most  honored  and  promi- 
nent pioneer  families,  and  bis  lines  of  life  have  been  cast  in  harmony 
therewith.  He  has  always  stood  for  good  citizenship  and  for  all  that 
is  straightforward  in  man's  relations  with  his  fellow  men,  and  he  re- 
ceives and  merits  the  confidence  and  good  will  of  those  with  whom  he 
has  been  associated.  Since  age  conferred  upon  him  the  right  of  fran- 
chise he  has  voted  for  the  men  who  are  pledged  to  support  the  princi- 
ples of  Democracv.  He  served  as  township  treasurer  of  LaGrange 
township  and  has  also  been  justice  of  the  peace,  rendering  decisions  in 
that  office  that  were  strictly   fair  and  impartial.     In  the  ^lasonic  fra- 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COL-.\TV  645 

temity  he  lias  attained  the  Kiii^lit  Templar  degree  and  he  is  e\'er  true 
to  the  teacliings  of  the  craft  whnsc  |irinci])les  make  fur  gu' id  citizenship 
and  for  iionorable  manhood. 

REV.  O.  r.  MILLER. 

Rev.  O.  P.  Miller  i5  active  in  Iwth  church  and  temperance  work 
and  his  influence  has  ever  lieen  fur  the  uplifting  and  hcuclit  of  his  fel- 
lowmen.  There  is  in  him  an  abiding  sympathy  and  charity  which  have 
won  for  him  the  deserved  contklence  and  good  will  of  his  fellow  towns- 
men and  liis  efforts  have  been  a  moving  force  in  the  moral  development 
of  the  community  in  which  he  lia>;  long  made  his  home.  He  was  born 
in  Jefferson  township,  Cass  county,  Michigan,  on  the  20th  of  Febru- 
ary, 1847,  his  parents  being  the  Rev.  John  P.  and  Mary  fShrum)  Mil- 
ler, prominent  and  honored  residents  of  this  part  of  tlie  state.  In  their 
family  were  tlie  following  named:  ]Mrs.  Sarah  Garvy;  Adam,  de- 
ceased ;  jVIartha,  the  widow  of  Jeremiah  Keneston  and  a  resident  of  Jef- 
ferson township,  Cass  county:  JMrs.  Lydia  \\'eaver,  who  died  in  1S9S; 
Rev.  B.  R.  Miller.  \vho  is  living  in  Goshen,  Indiana;  Susan,  wdio  died 
at  the  age  of  thirteen  years;  O.  P.,  of  this  review;  and  Leandcr,  de- 
ceased. 

As  die  above  record  indicates.  Rev.  O.  P.  Miller  is  next  to  the 
youngest  of  the  family.  His  l>oyhood  days  were  quietly  passed  in  the 
usual  manner  of  farm  lands.  He  was  reared  in  Jefferson  township  and 
his  education  was  accjuired  in  the  common  schools.  When  not  busy 
with  his  text-books  he  often  aided  in  tlie  work  of  the  fields,  and  he  re- 
mained with  his  father  up  to  the  time  of  his  marriage,  which  event  was 
celebrated  on  the  20th  of  N<)veml)er,  1S64,  Miss  Jane  Wade  becoming- 
his  wife.  She  was  born  in  Canada  but  was  reared  in  Illinois  and  Mich- 
igan, her  parents  being  William  B.  and  Anna  (Gilmore)  Wade,  who 
removed  from  Canada  to  Illinois  and  afterward  came  to  this  state.  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Miller  began  their  doijiestic  life  upon  a  farm  in  Jefferson 
township,  where  they  resided  until  1881.  in  wdiich  year  they  took  up 
their  abode  in  LaGrange  township,  two  miles  west  ofCassopoIis.  There 
Mr.  Miller  carried  on  farming  until  1891.  in  which  year  he  was  ordained 
to  the  ministry  of  the  Christian  church  and  he  has  since  devoted  his 
life  to  preaching  the  gospel.  Fle  is  now  located  in  Cassopolis.  He 
comes  of  a  family  of  ministers,  there  having  been  many  clergymen 
among  the  Miller  family.  In  the  father's  family  there  were  four  broth- 
ers who  became  preachers  of  the  word,  most  of  them  being  connected 
with  the  Church  of  the  Disciples  or  Christian  church. 

Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  !vliller  have  been  born  three  children:  Edwin, 
who  is  living  in  Cassopolis:  Anna  O.,  now  the  wife  of  Lewis  Cays, 
of  the  same  citv:  and  Alva,  who  is  at  home.  Thev  also  reared  two 
adopted  children,  Charles  ^^'ade  and  Addie  Miller,  both  of  whom  be- 
came members  of  the  household  in  infancy. 


64G  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

At  one  time  Mr.  Miller  was  a  stanch  advocate  of  Democratic  prin- 
ciples but  in  later  years  has  been  associated  with  the  Prohibition  party, 
whicii  embodies  his  views  on  the  temperance  question.  He  has  done 
all  in  his  power  to  promulgate  temperance  principles  and  has  been  very 
active  in  the  work  of  the  church.  He  is  an  earnest  and  conscientious 
minister  of  the  gospel,  laboring  untiringly  for  the  adoption  of  the  relig- 
ious principles  in  which  he  believes  and  liis  efforts  have  carried  consid- 
erable weight  and  inlluence  in  the  community.  All  who  know  him  re- 
spect him  for  his  fidelity  and  for  his  courageous  expression  of  the  views 
which  he  entertains  and  he  has  won  the  love  and  confidence  of  many 
by  his  sympathy  and  his  earnest  work  in  behalf  of  those  who  have 
needed  not  only  spiritual  but  material  aid  as  well. 

NELSON  J.  CROSBY. 

Nelson  J.  Crosby,  one  of  the  widely  known  citizens  of  Cass  county, 
who  has  figured  quite  prominently  in  political  affairs  and  is  now  engaged 
in  dealing  in  horses  in  Cassopolis  and  is  also  a  well  known  real  estate 
agent,  was  born  in  Lenawee  count}-,  IMichigan,  on  the  3rd  of  February, 
1847,  ''""^1  is  descended  frum  Irish  ancestry.  The  family,  however,  was 
founded  in  America  at  an  early  day,  the  grandfather,  William  Crosby, 
having  been  a  native  of  New  York.  The  father,  Asaph  Crosby,  was 
also  born  in  tliat  state  and  settled  in  Lenawee  county  in  1835,  becoming- 
one  of  its  pioneer  residents.  He  was  a  farmer  by  occupation,  devoting 
.his  entire  life  to  that  pursuit,  and  on  his  removal  to  Cass  county  in 
1856  he  located  upon  a  farm  in  Penn  township,  which  he  greatly  im- 
proved, bringing  it  imder  a  high  state  of  cultivation  and  transforming' 
it  into  a  valuable  tract.  He  lived  a  life  of  well-directed  energn,'  and 
unfaltering  enterprise.  In  early  manhood  he  wedded  Julia  Holmes,  who 
was  a  native  of  New  York  and  was  also  of  Irish  descent.  She  died  in 
1852  in  Lenawee  county  and  Mr.  Crosby  survived  for  twenty  years, 
passing  away  in  Cass  county  in  1S72  when  more  than  sixty-six  years 
of  age. 

Nelson  J.  Crosby  was  the  sixth  in  order  of  birth  in  a  family  of 
eight  children,  five  sons  and  three  daughters,  all  of  whom  reached  man- 
hood or  womanhood.  He  was  about  nine  years  of  age  at  the  time  of 
the  removal  of  his  father  to  Cass  county,  and  upon  the  old  family  home- 
stead in  Penn  township  he  spent  the  days  of  his  boyhood  and  youth, 
acquiring  his  education  in  the  schools  of  Vandalia.  He  has  largely  been 
dependent  upon  his  own  resources  from  the  age  of  seven  years.  He 
was  only  five  years  old  at  the  time  of  his  mother's  death,  and  about  two 
years  later  he  began  working,  since  which  time  he  has  provided  largely 
for  his  own  support,  doing  any  labor  for  which  his  age  and  strength 
permitted  him  upon  the  farms  of  the  neighborhood.  Thinking  that  he 
would  find  other  occupation  more  coneenial,  when  eighteen  years  of 
age  he  began  learning  the  cooper's  trade,  serving  an  apprenticeship  of 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  647 

one  year,  during  which  time  he  received  only  his  board  in  compensa- 
tion for  his  services.  He  afterward  worked  for  a  year  as  a  journey- 
man and  then  purchased  the  sliop  in  which  he  had  learned  the  trade, 
thus  becoming  a  factor  in  the  business  life  of  Vandalia.  He  carried  on 
the  business  liiere  for  aljout  t\\el\e  years,  meeting  witii  good  success, 
after  whicii  he  disposed  of  his  shop  and  resumed  farming  operations, 
becoming  an  agriculturist  of  Penn  township,  where  he  engaged  in  till- 
ing the  soil  for  seven  years.  On  the  expiration  of  that  period  he  re- 
moved to  Cassopolis  and  was  appointed  undersheriff  under  Sheriff  Mac- 
intosh, occupying  that  position  for  four  years,  at  tlie  end  of  which  time 
he  was  elected  village  mnrshal  and  served  for  two  years.  He  then 
again  became  tmdersheriff  under  Sheriff  W.  H.  Coulter  and  after  two 
years  was  elected  sheriff  in  1896,  filling  the  office  for  one  term.  His 
previous  experience  as  undersheriff  had  well  qualified  him  for  the  posi- 
tion, the  duties  of  which  he  discharged  with  promptness  and  fidelity. 
Since  his  retirement  from  office  he  has  been  engaged  in  dealing  in 
horses  and  has  also  engaged  in  real  estate  operations,  handling  consid- 
erable valuable  property. 

In  June,  1S72,  I\Ir.  Crosby  was  united  in  marriage  to  Miss  Mary 
Snyder,  a  daughter  of  Peter  Snyder.  He  has  been  a  stanch  Republican 
and  served  as  constable  in  Penn  township  for  a  number  of  years  in 
addition  to  the  offices  previously  mentioned.  His  fraternal  relations 
are  with  the  Odd  Fellows  and  the  Masons.  He  has  taken  the  degrees 
of  the  lodge,  chapter  and  commandery,  in  which  he  has  filled  some  of 
the  offices,  and  he  is  also  a  member  of  the  Mystic  Shrine,  having  crossed 
the  sands  of  the  desert  with  the  nobles  of  that  ancient  Arabic  order. 
Through  much  of  his  life  he  has  resided  in  Cass  county,  being  identi- 
fied with  its  interests  and  giving  h.elpful  co-operation  to  many  move- 
ments that  have  been  of  direct  and  permanent  good  to  the  community. 

WILLIAM  C.  ^IcCUTCHEON,  M.  D. 

By  the  consensus  of  public  opinion  Dr.  William  C.  McCutcheon 
is  accorded  a  creditable  position  as  a  representative  of  the  medical  fra- 
ternity of  Cass  county.  He  is  practicing  successfully  in  Cassopolis, 
where  he  is  accorded  a  liberal  patronage,  and  in  the  conscientious  per- 
formance of  his  duties  he  is  rendering  valuable  aid  to  his  fellowmen. 
while  his  fellow  members  of  the  medical  fraternity  recognize  his  de- 
votion to  a  high  standard  of  professional  ethics. 

Dr.  McCutcheon  \vas  born  on  Seeley's  Bay  in  the  province  of  Onta- 
rio. Canada.  December  29,  1870,  and  is  tine  eldest  in  a  family  of  three 
children,  whose  parents  were  James  and  Sarah  fCollinson)  McCutch- 
eon. the  former  a  native  of  Scotland  and  the  latter  of  .\merica.  Dr. 
McCutcheon  was  reared  in  the  place  of  his  nativity  and  continued  his 
education  in  the  Sydenham  High  School  and  at  the  Gananoque  Collegi- 
ate Institute,  from  which  he  was  graduated  in  the  class  of  1S8S.     The 


648  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

following  year  he  matriculated  in  Queens  University  for  the  prepara- 
tion for  the  medical  fraternity  and  after  completing  the  prescribed 
course  in  medicine  and  surL;ery  he  was  graduated  with  the  class  of 
1894.  He  then  came  to  Cassopnlis,  opening  an  office  here  on  the  i8th 
of  June  of  the  same  year,  and  has  continuously  practiced.  He  is  also 
a  licensed  physician  of  the  Royal  College  of  Physicians  and  Surgeons 
of  Kingston  and  he  helongs  to  the  Cass  County  Medical  Association, 
the  Michigan  State  ]Medic;d  Society  and  the  American  Medical  Asso- 
ciation, thus  keeping  in  touch  with  the  onward  march  of  the  profession. 
In  1897  Dr.  McCutcheon  was  united  in  marriage  to  ^.liss  Bertha 
Kingsbury,  a  representative  of  a  prominent  family  of  Cassopolis,  her 
father  being  the  late  C.  H.  Kingsbury,  who  was  one  of  the  pioneer 
settlers  of  this  county  and  a  son  of  A.sa  Kingsbury.  I\Irs.  McCutcheon 
was  born  in  this  countv  and  lias  many  warm  friends  among  those  who 
have  known  her  from  her  girlhood  days  as  well  as  among  the  acquaint- 
ances of  her  later  years.  Dr.  McCutcheon  is  a  valued  rejiresentative 
of  the  Masonic  fraternity,  in  which  he  has  attained  the  Knight  Tem- 
plar degree.  In  politics  he  is  a  Republican,  but  is  without  aspiration 
for  office,  preferring  to  concentrate  his  energies  tipon  Iris  professional 
duties.  He  is  now  local  surgeon  for  the  Grand  Trunk  Railroad,  and 
he  is  recognized  as  a  leading  member  of  his  profession  in  Cassopolis, 
W'hich  is  indicative  of  the  large  measure  of  confidence  reposed  in  him 
by  his  fellow  townsmen.  There  is  perhaps  no  profession  which  calls 
for  greater  care,  ]-ii-ecision  and  accuracy  than  does  th?  practice  of  med- 
icine, where  the  issues  of  life  and  death  are  in  the  hands  of  the  physi- 
cian. He  must  make  no  mistake  in  his  administration  of  remedial 
agencies  and  his  efforts  must  be  founded  upon  broad  and  comprehensive 
knowledge  of  the  scientific  principles  which  underlie  his  work.  Dr. 
McCutcheon,  with  a  keen  sense  of  conscientious  obligation,  follows  his 
chosen  calling,  rendering  valued  service  to  his  fellow  men  and  finding 
in  his  chosen  work  the  desen-cd  financial  reward  of  his  labor. 

HUGH  P.  GARRETT. 

The  people  of  the  vounger  generation  cannot  realize  the  conditions 
which  were  met  and  the  work  which  has  been  done  by  the  early  settlers 
of  the  county.  The  traveler  of  today  noting  the  enterprising  towns  and 
•villages  and  improved  farms,  the  substantial  homes  and  other  evidences 
of  prosperity  and  culture,  cannot  realize  that  scarcely  more  than  a  half 
century  has'  passed  since  the  greater  part  of  Cass  county  was  an  unde- 
veloped wilderness.  It  requires  stout  hearts  and  willing  hands  to  sub- 
due the  wilderness  and  plant  the  seeds  of  civilization  in  a  wild  district, 
and  early  settlers  certainly  desenx  the  praise  and  gratitude  of  those 
who  follow  later  and  enjoy  the  benefits  of  their  labors.  Mr.  Garrett 
is  numbered  among  the  early  and  honored  residents  of  Cass  county, 
and  at  his  pleasant  home  on  section  31,  LaGrange  township,  is  enjoying 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTV  G49 

the  fruits  of  ills  f„nncr  iMil.  His  mind  forms  a  connecting  link  be- 
tween il-.e  pnmiUve  past  and  the  progressive  nresent.  He  was  bom  in 
Montgomery  cunty,  Ohio.  l,is  natal  place  being  in  Miami  township 
and  the  date  .d  h,s  birth  October  26.  1S30.  His' father,  John  Garrett, 
was  born  near  Beltast,  Ireland,  and  when  twenty  rears  of  age  crossed 
the  Atlantic  to  America,  thinking  that  he  might  e'njov  lietter  business 
opi>ortnnities  and  privileges  in  the  new  world  'than  con'ld  be  secured  on 
the  green  Isle  of  Erin.  He  landed  at  I'hilaflelphia  and  made  the  jour- 
ney on  foot  across  the  Alleghany  mountains  to  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  whence 
he  afterwar.l  went  t..  Mont.gomerv  county,  that  state.  He  had  no 
money  and  he  ^unkcd  at  anything  that  he  could  get  to  do  that  would 
yield  hnn  an  honest  hvmg.  He  was  thus  employed  up  to  the  time  of 
his  marriage  to  ^Iiss  Rosa  Pctticrcw,  a  native  of  Montgomery  county, 
Ohio.  He  then  turned  his  attention  to  farming,  and  in  partnership 
^Vlth  an  uncle  cstaMislied  what  was  a  large  di-^tillerv  for  tlmsc  days  in 
Montgomery  c..uiU\-.  They  conducted  quite  an  extensive  business  not 
oidy  in  the  maiuifacture  of  whiskey,  but  also  engaged  largely  in  the 
raising  of  cattle  and  hogs,  which  they  fed  upon  the  refuse '~of' the  dis- 
tillery._  They  shipped  their  stock  by  canal  to  Cincinnati  and  for  a  num- 
ber of  years  conducted  a  prosperous  business.  At  length,  h.-wever, 
Mr.  Garrett  disposed  of  his  interests  in  Ohio  and  came  to  Michigan! 
arriving  in  Cass  county  on  the  2nd  of  April.  1S48.  He  afterward  re- 
moved to  Vannurcr.  cnunty,  this  state,  where  he  remained  until  called 
(o  his  final  home  in  the  sixty-third  year  of  his  age.  His  widow  contin- 
ued to  reside  upon  the  old  iiomestead  farm  there  until  her  death,  which 
occurred  in  1S78.  when  she  was  in  her  seventy-third  \ear.  This  worthy 
couple  were  the  parents  of  ten  chiMren.  three  sons  and  seven  daughters. 
all  of  whom  reached  adult  a.ge  before  there  was  a  death  in  the  flimilv! 
Five  of  the  number,  three  sons  and  two  daughters,  are  vet  living  at  th'is 
•writing,  in  1906. 

Hugh  P.  Garrett,  the  eldest.  s])ent  the  first  seventeen  vears  of  his 
life  in  his  native  state  and  during  that  period  worked  with  his  father 
and  attended  the  common  schools.  He  then  accompanied  his  parents 
to  Michigan,  locating  in  I^aGrange  township.  Cass  countv.  and  when 
about  twenty  years  of  age  lie  started  out  upon  an  independent  business 
career,  since  which  time  he  has  relied  entirely  upon  his  own  efforts  for 
a  living.  He  was  first  employed  as  a  farm  hand  by  the  month  and  he 
also  spent  two  years  in  a  commission  warehouse  at'Lockington.  Shelby 
county,*  Ohio.  Following  that  interval  he  returned  to  Cass  county  and 
here  he  sought  a  companion  and  helpmate  for  life's  journey,  being  mar- 
ried on  the  15th  of  November.  1854.  to  Miss  Elizabeth  Wiilte.  Losing 
his  first  wife,  he  was  married  October  22,  18.^7,  to  :\Iiss  Julia  A.  Dunn, 
and  unto  them  were  born  two  sons:  John  "S.,  who  is  now  a  resident 
farmer  of  Haniilton  township.  VanBuren  county.  ^Michigan :  and  David 
E.,  who  makes  his  home  in  Fillmore  countv.  Nebraska.  The  wife  and 
mother  died  October  9.  1874,  and  on  the  loth  of  April.  1876.  Mr.  Gar- 


650  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

relt  was  again  married,  Miss  Phoebe  Crawford  becoming  his  wife. 
She  died  leaving  three  children:  Charles  \V.,  who  was  bom  in  1877 
and  is  living  in  Howard  township;  Ralph  F.,  who  also  resides  in  How- 
ard township;  and  Rosa  A.,  who  was  born  ]\Iay  14,  1885,  and  died 
August  21,  1903.  Mr.  Garrett's  second  wife  had  a  son  and  daughter  by 
a  former  marriage:  \\'illiam  H.  Garrett,  who  is  living  in  Nebraska; 
and  Emma  J.,  now  the  wife  of  James  ^McCarty,  of  Owosso,  ^Michigan. 
His  third  wife  had  one  daugther  by  a  former  marriage,  Mrs.  Viola  F. 
Jones,  the  wife  of  Warner  D.  Jones,  of  Cassopolis. 

At  the  time  of  his  first  marriage  Mr.  Garrett  rented  land  in  Wayne 
township,  whereon  he  resided  for  a  year.  He  afterward  lived  at  vari- 
ous places  and  he  found  liis  second  wife  in  Franklin  county,  Indiana, 
where  he  resided  until  1865.  In  that  year  he  returned  to  ^Michigan  and 
bought  the  farm  where  he  now  resides.  In  1S80  he  sold  this  property 
and  removed  to  F""i!lmorc  county,  Nebraska,  settling  on  a  farm  of  one 
hundred  and  si.xty  acres.  In  the  fall  of  1883  he  sold  this  farm  and 
returned  to  Cass  county,  where  he  jiurchased  the  old  homestead  upon 
which  he  now  resides.  He  rents  his  land  at  the  present  time,  but 
gives  his  personal  supervision  to  the  property,  having  one  hundred 
and  five  acres  which  constitutes  a  valuable  farm  that  returns  him  a 
good  income.  He  has  been  a  Republican  since  the  organization  of 
the  party  "under  the  oaks"  in  Jackson.  ^lichigan.  in  1854.  Previous  to 
that  time  he  had  voted  with  the  Whig  party  and  he  cast  his  first  presi- 
dential ballot  for  General  Winfield  Scott.  He  voted  twice  for  Lincoln 
and  twice  for  Grant,  also  for  ]\IcKinley,  and  in  fact  has  supported 
each  presidential  nominee  of  the  Republican  party.  He  has  kejit  well 
informed  on  questions  and  i'^sues  of  the  day  and  has  never  faltered  in 
his  allegiance  to  the  principles  which  he  espouses,  but  he  has  never 
sought  or  desired  political  preferment  for  himself.  He  was  reared  in 
the  faith  of  the  Presbyterian  church.  His  life  has  been  straightfor- 
ward, characterized  bv  honesty  in  all  his  business  dealings,  and  he  is 
well  known  in  Cass  county  for  his  genuine  personal  worth. 

K  J.   RUSSEY. 

On  the  roster  of  county  officials  in  Cass  county  appears  the  name 
of  E.  J.  Russev%  who  is  serving  as  sheriff  and  who  makes  his  home  in 
Cassopolis.  His  birth  occurred  in  Howard  township  on  the  13th  of  Oc- 
tober, 1866.  His  father,  ^^'illiam  Russey.  was  a  native  of  Winchester. 
Tennessee,  born  in  iSii.  His  paternal  grandfather,  William  Rus«ey, 
was  of  French  lineage  and  the  name  was  originally  DeRussey.  .'\bout 
182 1  the  grandfather  removed  with  his  family  to  Muncie,  Indiana,  where 
William  Russey,  then  a  vouth  of  ten  years,  was  reared  and  educated. 
He  continued  a  resident  of  that  state  until  about  1856.  when  he  came 
to  Cass  county,  settling  at  Vandalia.  Here  he  was- engaged  in  the  hotel 
business  for  a  time,  but  later  removed  to  Howard  township,  locating 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  051 

on  a  farm,  where  he  resided  until  1S77,  when  he  removed  to  Newberg 
township.  Th.ere  he  cnricd  on  general  agricuhural  pursuits,  and  his 
death  occurred  there  on  the  iStii  of  March,  1892.  He  was  a  Repubhcan 
m  politics  and  was  justice  of  the  peace.  His  interest  in  community  af- 
fairs was  deep  and  sincere  and  arose  from  an  earnest  desire  for  public 
progress  and  improvement.  He  was  one  of  the  active  workers  of  the 
Republican  party  and  never  missed  an  election.  His  fraternal  relations 
were  with  the  Masons,  and  his  life  e.Kemplified  the  beneficent  spirit  of 
the  craft  in  its  teachings  concerning  mutual  helpfulness  and  brotherly 
kindness.  He  lived  to  be  eighty  years  of  age  and  since  his  death  his 
memory  lias  been  enshrined  in  the  hearts  of  many  who  knew  and  re- 
spected him.  His  wife  bore  the  maiden  name  of  Mary  Brakeman.  and 
she  was  a  native  of  St.  Clair  county,  IMichigan,  born  IMarch  25,  1S3C, 
and  in  1836  she  came  to  Cass  county  with  her  mother.  Her  father, 
Captain  Lewis  G.  Brakeman,  was  drowned  in  Lake  St.  Clair  while 
commanding  a  vessel.  The  mother,  Mrs.  Candace  Brakeman.  afterward 
removed  to  Cass  county,  settling  in  Newberg  township,  where  ]\Irs. 
Russey  was  reared,  the  family  being  among  the  early  pioneer  residents 
of  that  locality.  Mrs.  Russey  has  watched  almost  the  entire  growth 
and  development  of  this  part  of  the  state,  watching  its  transition  from 
a  wilderness  to  its  present  state  of  cultivation  and  improvement.  She 
is  now  seventy-five  }-ears  of  age  and  she  makes  her  home  with  her  son, 
E.  J.  Russey.  She  was  married  in  this  county  and  became  the  mother 
of  five  sons,  two  of  whom  are  now  deceased.  The  three  yet  living  are: 
William  B.,  a  resident  of  Owosso,  IMichigan;  Wiley,  who  is  a  twin 
brother  of  William  and  follows  farming  in  Newberg  township,  Cass 
county;  and  E.  J.  of  this  review. 

The  last  named  was  reared  on  the  old  homestead  farm  in  Newl:>erg 
township  and  acquired  a  common-school  education.  He  worked  at  farm 
labor  during  the  period  of  his  youth  and  remained  a  resident  of  his 
native  township  until  1900.  when  he  came  to  Cassopolis  to  accept  the 
position  of  uudcrsheriff.  which  he  filled  for  four  years.  In  1904  he_was 
elected  sheriff  by  the  Republican  party  of  Cass  county,  wdiich  position 
he  is  now  filling.  He  was  married  in  December,  1891,  to  ^^liss  Carrie 
Har\vood,  a  daughter  of  William  and  Clarissa  (Easton)  Harwood, 
who  was  born  in  Newberg  township  and  there  was  reared,  her  parents 
being  pioneer  settlers  of  the  countv.  I\Tr.  and  Mrs.  Russey  have  four 
children:  Lena,  born  June  3.  1894;  ^Tabel,  May  10,  1897;  :Mark  Han- 
na,  August  9,  1S99 ;  and  Hazel,  Januan.'  3,  1902. 

Mr.  Russey  is  a  member  of  the  Knights  of  the  Maccabees.  He 
has  been  a  lifelong  resident  of  Cass  county,  being  connected  with  agri- 
ailtural  pursuits  until  called  to  public  office,  wherein  he  has  discharged 
his  duties  with  promptness  and  fidelity.  Realizing  fully  the  responsi- 
bility that  devolves  upon  him.  he  has  displayed  neither  fear  nor  favor 
in  the  exercise  of  his  duties,  and  his  course  has  made  him  a  menace  to 


all 

represcntalh 

es 

of 

the 

crinii 

nal 

cla: 

Sflv 

es  amenable 

to 

law 

rey 

ai-cl  h 

ini 

as  a 

staj 

and 

1  justice. 

65-2  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

hile  those  who  hold   them- 
lart  defender  of  life,  liberty 

ISAAC  S.  POUND. 

Isaac  S.  I'ound  is  one  of  the  leading  oltl  settlers  of  Cass  county  and 
a  veteran  of  the  Civil  war.  Coming  to  southern  Michigan  at  an  early 
day  he  has  assisted  in  making  the  county  what  it  is,  the  labors  of  the 
early  settlers  winning  for  it  a  place  among  the  leading  counties  of  this 
great  commonwealth.  His  mind  bears  the  impress  of  the  early  historic 
annals  of  southern  ]\Iichigan  and  he  can  relate  many  interesting  inci- 
dents of  the  early  days  when  the  land  was  largely  unimproved  and  the 
work  of  development  had  licen  scarcely  begun.  He  was  born  in  Ontario 
county,  New  York,  September  22,  1837,  and  is  of  English  lineage.  His 
paternal  great-grandparents  came  from  England,  settling  in  New  Jer- 
sey. The  great-grandfather,  Thomas  Pound,  served  as  a  soldier  of 
the  Revolutionary  war,  becoming  aide-de-camp  on  the  staff  of  General 
Washii^gton  and  acting  for  a  part  of  the  time  as  staff  quartermaster. 
Pie  had  three  sons,  Thomas,  Isaac  and  John.  The  second  was  the  grand- 
father of  our  subject  and  he,  too,  manifested  his  loyalty  to  his  coun- 
try by  serving  in  the  war  of  1S12  as  a  private.  The  family  record  is 
notable  because  of  the  mduslry.  integrity  and  high,  principles  of  its 
representatives.  There  has  never  lieen  a  drunkard,  a  pauper  nor  a  crim- 
inal among  the  Pounds  and  such  a  record  is  one  of  \\hicli  any  man 
inight  well  be  proud. 

Tliomas  Pound,  father  of  our  subject,  was  a  native  of  Orange 
county,  New  York,  in  which  locality  he  was  reared  and  educated.  He 
was  married  in  that  county  to  I\[iss  Sallie  Smith,  also  a  native  of  that 
county  ancl  a  daughter  of  Isaac  Smith,  who  likewise  served  as  a  pri- 
vate in  the  war  of  18 12.  He  was  supjjosed  to  have  been  of  Irish  lineage. 
Following  their  marriage  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Thomas  Pound  removed  to 
Chemung  county.  New  York,  and  afterward  became  residents  of  Ontario 
county,  that  slate,  where  they  resided  until  1844.  Hoping  to  enjoy  1)et- 
ter  opportunities  in  the  west  they  then  started  for  Michigan  and,  as  this 
was  before  the  era  of  railroad  transportation,  they  traveled  by  wagon, 
inaking  their  way  direct  to  Newberg  township,  Cass  countv,  where  jMr. 
Pound  had  secured  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  of  land.  The  tract  was 
entirely  wild  and  uncultivated,  not  an  improvement  having  been  made 
on  the  place.  He  first  built  a  log  house  about  sixteen  bv  twentv-four 
feet  and  then  began  to  clear  the  land,  performing  the  arduous  task  of 
cutting  away  the  timber,  taking  out  the  stumps  and  preparing  the  fields 
for  the  plow.  In  due  course  of  time,  however,  his  land  w-as  placed  under 
cultivation  and  brought  forth  rich  harvests.  He  was  a  hard  working 
man,  energetic  and  enterprising,  and  was  regarded  as  one  of  the  lead- 
ing and  representative  early  citizens  of  his  community.  His  political 
allegiance  was  given  to  the  Whig  party  until  the  organization  of  the 


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HISTORY  OK  CASS  COUXTY  653 

Republican  parly,  wlicn  lie  joined  its  ranks  and  continued  one  of  its  sup- 
porters until  his  death,  lie  served  as  highway  commissioner  and  acted 
as  a  member  of  the  grand  jury  that  held  a  session  in  1856.  His  re- 
ligious faith  was  indicated  by  his  membership  and  loyalty  to  the  Protest- 
ant Methodist  church.  ll<:  died  upon  the  old  homestead  November  2G, 
1863,  and  was  lor  some  years  survived  by  his  wife,  who  reached  the 
advanced  age  of  eighty-three  }-ears.  In  their  family  were  eight  chil- 
dren, seven  sons  and  a  daughter,  of  which  number  five  reached  adult 
age,  while  four  are  still  living. 

Isaac  S.  Pound,  the  second  child  and  the  first  son  born  of  this  mar- 
riage, was  a  lad  of  seven  summers  when  ijrouglu  by  his  parents  to  Cass 
county.  His  education  was  acquired  in  one  of  the  old-time  log  school- 
houses  of  the  township,  with  its  slab  seats  and  other  primitive  furnish- 
ings. The  building  was  heated  by  a  large  fireplace,  occupying  almost 
one  entire  end  of  the  room.  His  educational  privileges,  however,  were 
very  limited,  for  his  services  were  needed  upon  the  farm  and  he  assisted 
in  the  development  of  the  fields  until  about  twenty-one  years  of  age. 
He  afterward  took  charge  of  the  old  homestead  property,  which  he 
farmed  for  three  )  cars,  when  he  purchased  the  place  upon  which  he  now 
resides.  For  a  year  thereafter  he  kept  ■"bachelor's  hall,"  but  in  March 
1862,  won  a  com])anion  and  helpmate  for  life's  journey,  being  married 
at  that  time  to  Miss  Elizabeth,  llinchnian,  a  daughter  of  J.  K.  and 
Panena  (Whitej  Hinchman.  ]Mrs.  Pound  was  born  in  Boone  county, 
West  Virginia,  and  was  se\en  years  of  age  when  she  came  to  Cass 
county  with  her  ])arents,  wlm  settled  in  Silver  Creek  township.  She 
was  the  yriun.L;(,-i  in  a  family  of  eleven  children.  At  the  time  of  his 
marriage  ]\Ir.  I'uund  brought  his  bride  to  the  farm  upon  which  he  now 
resides,  having  livcil  here  for  forty-five  consecuti\'e  years  with  the  ex- 
ception of  a  brief  period  of  four  years  spent  in  Van  Buren  county  and 
his  term  of  service  in  the  war  of  the  Rebellion.  In  August,  1864.  he 
responded  to  the  country's  urgent  need  for  troops,  enlisting  as  a  mem- 
ber of  the  iMjurteenth  }*iicliigan  Battery  of  Light  Artillery,  and  served 
until  July,  1865,  when,  the  war  having  closed,  he  was  nuistered  out  as 
a  private  and  returned  to  his  home.  The  marriage  of  ^Ir.  and  IMrs. 
Pound  has  been  blessed  with  six  children,  who  are  vet  living:  Ella, 
now  the  wife  of  Fred  W.  Timm.  a  resident  of  CassopoHs;  Fred  J.,  a 
mail  carrier  living  in  Marcellus,  Michigan;  Eva  E.,  the  wife  of  Andrew 
J.  Poe,  whose  home  is  m  Newberg  township;  Carrie,  the  wife  of  Thomas 
G.  Barks  of  Vandalia  ;  Arthur  \V.,  who  is  living  upon  the  old  home 
farm;  and  Jane,  the  wife  of  \\'.  Butler  of  Newberg  township. 

Throughout  his  entire  life  Mr.  Pound  has  followed  the  occupation 
of  farming,  and  is  now  the  owner  of  one  hundred  and  twentv  acres  of 
arable  land,  which  he  has  brr)ught  under  a  high  state  of  cultivation, 
and  it  is  kn^nvn  as  "  The  Maple  Grove  Farm."  There  are  good  build- 
ings upon  the  place  and  lie  has  divided  the  land  into  fields  of  convenient 


65i  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

size  by  well  kept  fences.  He  lias  secured  many  of  the  late  improved 
farm  implements  and  in  all  of  his  work  is  progressive  and  enterprising. 
He  votes  with  the  Repuljlican  party  and  is  unfaltering  in  his  advocacy 
of  its  principles.  He  has  attended  the  county  conventions  for  forty 
years  or  more,  usually  as  a  delegate,  and  his  opinions  have  carried 
weight  in  the  party  councils.  He  held  some  minor  offices,  and  at  all 
times  is  loyal  and  progressi\e  in  his  citizenship.  He  belongs  to  W.  J. 
May  post,  No.  65,  G.  A.  R.,  in  which  he  has  filled  all  of  the  chairs  save 
that  of  chaplain,  and  he  has  been  a  member  of  the  Grange  for  more  than 
thirty  vears.  Hi?  residence  in  the  county  covers  a  period  of  sixty-one 
years,  and  he  has  been  closely  and  helpfully  identified  with  its  develop- 
ment and  progress.  When  the  family  located  in  ;Michigan  there  were 
only  about  twenty-five  voters  in  Newberg  towmship,  and  now  there  are 
about  five  hundred.  There  were  a  number  of  wilcl  animals  and  consid- 
er.-^ble  wild  game,  including  bears,  wolves,  deer  and  turkeys  and  prairie 
chickens,  so  that  it  \\as  not  a  difficult  task  for  the  pioneer  settler  to 
secure  game  for  his  table.  This  was  largely  a  timber  region,  the  for- 
ests having  as  yet  been  micut,  but  to-day  there  are  seen  waving 
fields  of  grain  where  once  stood  the  native  trees.  The  little  pioneer 
cabins  have  long  since  given  place  to  commodious  and  substantial  farm 
residences,  while  here  and  there  towns  and  villages  have  sprung  up, 
containing  excellent  industrial  and  commercial  interests.  IVtr.  Pound 
rejoices  in  wdiat  has  been  accomplished,  and  at  all  times  he  is  regarded 
as  a  citizen  whose  aid  can  be  counted  upon  to  further  every  movement  or 
measure  for  the  public  good. 

C.  H.  FUNK,  D.  D.  S. 

Dr.  C.  H.  Funk  is  engaged  in  the  practice  of  dentistry  in  Cassop- 
olis,  wl'cre  he  has  a  well  equipped  office,  and  in  his  work  he  keeps  in 
touch  with  modem  scientific  research  and  with  the  most  advanced  ideas 
and  methods  of  the  profession.  He  was  born  in  Elkhart,  Indiana.  May 
I?'  1^55-  I^'^  father.  William  Funk,  was  a  native  of  Pennsylvania 
and  became  one  of  the  early  settlers  of  Elkhart  county,  Indiana,  where 
he  carried  on  farming  and  milling.  He  was  of  German  descent,  as 
was  his  Avife,  who  bore  the  maiden  name  of  Catherine  flyers.  In  their 
family  were  four  sons  and  five  daughters,  all  of  whom  reached  adult 
age  and  are  still  living  with  but  two  exceptions. 

Dr.  Funk  is  the  third  child  and  eldest  son.  He  was  reared  and 
educated  in  Elkhart  county,  pursuing  his  studies  in  Goshen.  Indiana, 
after  which  be  engaged  in  teaching  school  for  four  years  in  that  county. 
The  vear  1878  witnessed  his  arrival  in  Cassopolis.  He  had  previously 
studied  dentistry  under  the  direction  of  Dr.  Cumm.ins.  of  Elkhart,  and 
he  practiced  for  four  years  in  Cassopolis.  He  afterward  attended  the 
Indiana  Dental  College,  from  which  he  was  graduated  in  the  class  of 
1883,  when  he  once  more  resumed  practice  in  Cassopolis.  where  he  has 


HISTORY  Ol^-  CASS  COLWTY  G55 

remained  continuously  since.  By  reading,  investigation  and  study  he 
has  kept  in  touch  witii  the  progress  made  by  die  dental  fraternity  and 
he  has  the  mechanical  skill  and  ability  without  which  no  member  of  the 
profession  attains  the  highest  success.  His  work  has  given  a  uniform 
satisfaction  and  his  patronage  is  large  and  growing.  He  is  also  inter- 
ested in  real  estate,  has  negotiated  some  important  property  transfers 
and  has  contributed  to  the  improvement  of  the  city  through  the  build- 
ing of  the  Ritter  &  Funk  block  and  the  postofTice  block  in  Cassopolis. 
He  is  also  interested  in  farming  in  connection  with  Mr.  Ritter,  so  that 
the  extent  and  scope  of  his  activities  have  made  him  a  prominent  busi- 
ness man  of  Cassopolis. 

Dr.  Funk  was  married  in  1S90  to  Miss  Ellen  R.  Ritter,  a  daugh- 
ter of  Joseph  K.  and  Amanda  F.  (Kingsbury)  Ritter.  She  was  born 
and  reared  in  Cassopolis  and  has  become  the  mother  of  two  sons,  Le- 
land  R.  and  Cyrus  R. 

Dr.  Funk  is  a  well  known  Mason,  having  taken  the  lodge  and  chap- 
ter degrees  in  the  craft.  He  is  an  honorarv'  member  of  the  Indiana 
State  Dental  Society,  a  member  of  the  3.1ichigan  State  Dental  Society 
since  1885,  and  is  president  of  the  Southwest  Alichigan  Dental  Society. 
He  supports  the  Republican  party,  giving  his  ballot  to  those  men  who 
are  pledgefl  to  upliold  its  principles,  and  in  the  work  of  the  organization 
he  has  taken  an  active  and  helpful  part,  ser\'ing  as  secretary  of  the  Re- 
publican county  central  committee.  His  residence  in  Cassopolis  covers 
twent)^-eight  years,  during  which  time  he  has  sensed  for  five  years  on 
the  school  board  and  for  three  years  as  its  treasurer.  The  cause  of  edu- 
cation finds  in  him  a  warm  and  stalwart  friend  and  he  is  also  the  cham- 
pion of  every  progressive  movement  that  tends  to  prove  of  practical 
and  permanent  good  to  the  county.  He  is  wide-awake,  alert  and  enter- 
prising, and  is  a  typical  representative  of  the  citizenship  of  the  middle 
west  productive  of  the  rapid  and  substantial  advancement  of  this  sec- 
tion of  the  countr}-. 

JOHN  ATKINSON. 

The  growth  and  substantial  progress  of  a  community  do  not  de- 
pend upon  the  efforts  of  a  single  individual  but  are  the  result  of  the 
aggregate  endeavor  of  many  who  have  due  regard  for  opportunity  and 
exercise  tlieir  powers  for  the  general  improvement  and  progress.  To 
this  class  belongs  John  Atkinson,  a  dealer  in  carriages,  wagons,  farm 
implements,  hay  and  grain  in  Cassopolis.  He  possesses  the  enterprising 
spirit  which  has  been  the  dominant  factor  in  the  upbuilding  of  the 
west.  He  is  a  western  man  by  birth,  training  and  preference,  having 
first  oper.ed  his  eves  to  the  light  of  day  in  Mason  township,  Cass  county, 
on  the  8th  of  ^lav,  1858.  His  father.  Thomas  Atkinson,  was  a  native 
of  England,  and  in  an  early  day  crossed  the  Atlantic  to  the  new  world. 
settling  in  the  state  of  New  York,  whence  he  afterward  removed  to 
Elkhart,  Indiana.     On  leaving  that  locality  he  came  to  Cass  county. 


656  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

Michigan,  where  he  met  his  death,  being  killed  when  forty-five  years 
of  age.  His  wife,  who  here  the  maiden  name  of  Jane  Ann  Ingiedo. 
was  a  native  of  England  and  also  Lecame  a  resident  of  New  Castle, 
Indiana.  She  long  survived  her  husband  and  died  in  Cass  county  at 
the  ripe  old  age  of  sevenl\-eight  years.  In  their  family  were  thirteen 
children,  eight  of  whom  reached  adult  age,  while  seven  are  now  living. 

]Mr.  Atkinson  is  the  tenth  in  order  of  birth  in  the  family  of  thirteen 
children.  He  was  reared  in  his  native  township  and  remained  at  home, 
assisting  in  the  work  of  the  farm  in  his  early  youth  and  when  twelve 
years  of  age  beginning  work  as  a  farm  hand  in  the  neighborhood  by 
the  month.  The  first  pair  of  boots  which  he  ever  owned  were  paid  for 
by  a  month's  wages  at  farm  labor.  The  money  which  he  made  during 
his  minority  went  to  support  the  family.  He  was  only  about  five  years 
of  age  when  his  father  was  killed,  leaving  a  family  of  seven  children, 
one  of  whom  was  born  after  the  fatlier's  demise.  The  family  were  left 
in  limited  financial  circumstances,  so  that  the  boys  had  to  support  the 
mother  and  the  siiialler  children.  Mr.  Atkinson  early  came  to  a  real- 
ization of  the  value  of  earnest  and  persistent  endeavor  and  by  his  close 
application  and  stalwart  purpose  he  made  good  progress  in  the  business 
world.  After  working  by  the  month  for  eleven  years  Mr.  Atkinson 
went  to  Manistee  county,  Michigan,  and  engaged  in  lumbering  in  the 
midst  of  the  forests  of  that  district.  He  worked  for  a  part  of  the  time 
by  the  month,  spending  about  two  >-ears  in  the  lumber  trade.  Leaving 
the  lumber  woods  he  came  to  Cass  county,  Michigan,  where  he  engaged 
in  the  manufacture  of  ties  for  the  Michigan  Central  Railroad.  He  also 
devoted  a  portion  of  his  time  to  farm  labor,  spending  two  and  a  half 
years  in  this  way,  on  the  expiration  of  which  period  he  came  to  Cassop- 
olis  and  engaged  in  shipping  wood  and  in  baling  hay.  He  also  traded  in 
My  and  wood,  getting  in  exchange  wagons  and  buggies  from  the  Stude- 
baker  Company  of  South  Bend.  Indiana.  He  also  traded  for  the  brick 
which  was  used  in  the  coristruction  of  the  first  hotel  in  the  town.  He 
has  now  one  of  the  largest  business  enterprises  of  Cassop<jlis,  his  trade 
representing  one  hundred  thousand  dollars  per  year.  He  is  in  the  grain 
business  in  addition  to  the  agricultural  implement  business,  and  in  the 
various  departments  of  trade  with  \^hich  he  is  connected  he  has  secured 
a  Hberal  p.atronage.  He  shipped  one  hundred  and  sixty  car  loads  of 
hay,  straw  and  grain  in  1900.  He  has  likewise  extended  his  efforts  to 
the  field  of  real  estate  operations,  buying  and  selling  farms.  He  makes 
a  specialty  of  heavy  farm  machiner\-  and  has  sold  threshing  machines 
to  the  value  of  fifteen  thousand  dollars  since  the  ist  of  February,  1905. 
He  also  handles  sawmill  machinery,  boilers  and  engines  and  does  all  of 
the  trade  in  this  line  in  the  county.  In  the  year  1905  he  sold  sixty- 
seven  head  of  horses.  He  has  a  farm  comprising  about  two  hundred 
acres  of  land,  and  as  has  been  indicated  his  business  interests  are  of  a 
varied  and  important  nature,  bringing  to  him  gratifying  .success  by  rea- 
son of  his  careful  control,  capable  management  and  keen  insight. 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY  057 

On  the  151!]  of  June,  iSSS,  ^Ir.  Atkinson  was  united  in  marriage 
to  Miss  Ida  Belle  Hunt,  who  was  born  in  Ontwa  township,  Cass  county, 
and  was  reared  by  .Mr.  and  .Mrs.  Wesley  Hunt.  ]Mr.  and  Mrs.  Atkin- 
son have  become  the  parents  of  five  children,  but  lost  their  daughter, 
Zerl.     The  others  are:     .Maud,  Lucile,  Louis  and  Cyrus. 

Mr.  Atkinson  is  a  lifelong  Republican,  who  has  worked  earnestly  in 
behalf  of  the  party  but  has  never  sought  or  desired  ofhce,  nor  would  he 
accept  any  political  preferment.  He  is  a  member  of  the  ]^Iodern  Wood- 
men camp  and  is  well  known  in  the  county  as  a  liberal  man  who  has 
contributed  generously  to  the  support  of  many  measures  for  the  general 
good.  He  is  also  a  stalwart  advocate  of  the  temperance  cause,  working 
earnestly  in  behalf  of  the  party.  An  analyzation  of  his  life  record  shows 
that  energy  and  strict  attention  to  business  have  been  his  salient  char- 
acteristics and  have  constituted  the  secret  of  his  success.  He  has  sought 
to  live  honorably  and  peaceably  with  his  fellowmen,  practicing  the  golden 
rule  in  daily  affairs  and  at  all  times  he  has  enjoyed  in  full  measure  the 
confidence,  good  will  and  trust  of  those  with  whom  he  has  been  brought 
in  contact. 

HARSEN  D.  SMITH. 

Harscn  D.  Smith  is  a  prominent  attorney  of  Cassopolis  equally  well 
known  because  of  his  activity  in  political  circles.  He  has  chosen  as  a 
life  work  a  profession  in  which  success  results  only  from  individual 
merit,  from  comprehensive  knowledge  and  close  application,  and  his  high 
reputation  is  well  deserved  because  he  has  manifested  all  of  the  salient 
characteristics  demanded  of  the  successful  and  able  law^'er.  .'\  native 
of  Albion.  New  York,  he  was  born  on  the  17th  of  ilarch.  1845.  and  is 
a  son  of  E.  Darwin  and  Maria  (.Arnold)  Smith,  the  former  a  native  of 
Connecticut  and  the  latter  of  New  "^'ork.  The  paternal  grandfather, 
Moses  B.  Smith,  was  a  minister  of  the  Universalist  church  and  had  a 
very  wide  and  favorable  acquaintance  in  the  western  part  of  the  Empire 
state,  to  which  he  removed  from  New  England.  He  was  of  Scotch  line- 
age, his  father,  Moses  Smith,  Sr..  having  emigrated  from  the  land  of 
the  hills  and  heather  to  the  new  world.  E.  Darwin  Smith,  father  of  our 
subject,  was  a  manufacturer  of  agricultural  implements.  Following  his 
removal  to  New  York  he  devoted  his  attention  to  agricultural  pursuits. 
He  married  Miss  Maria  .\rnold.  a  native  of  the  Empire  state  and  a 
daughter  of  Benjamin  .Arnold,  who  was  of  English  descent.  They  be- 
came the  parents  of  three  children,  two  daughters  and  a  son. 

Harsen  D.  Smith,  who  was  the  second  in  order  of  birth,  acquired 
an  academic  education  at  Newark.  Wayne  county.  New  York,  where  he 
was  graduated.  He  afterward  engaged  in  teaching  school  in  that  state 
for  a  short  time,  and  in  1862  he  went  to  Iowa.  locating  at  Eldora,  where 
for  one  year  he  acted  as  principal  of  the  Eldora  Union  Schools.  He 
then  became  a  teacher  in  the  Iowa  Lutheran  College  at  .\lbion.  Iowa. 


658  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

bein.sf  professor  of  matlienmtics.  In  the  Tnenntimc  he  hnd  tnkcn  up  tlie 
study  of  law  and  for  a  period  was  a  student  in  tlie  oftire  of  C.-,vcrnor 
Eastman,  of  Iowa,  Suliscqncntly  lie  \vcnt  to  Roclicstcr.  Xew  York. 
where  he  entered  the  law  office  of  Jndqc  Ceorce  F.  Dan  forth,  a  mem- 
ber of  the  court  of  ap[icals  of  the  Fmpire  state.  For  ahout  t\\M  vear^  :\fr. 
Smith  remained  in  that  office  and  v.ms  then  admitted  to  the  Xcw  York 
bar,  after  which  he  removed  to  Coldwater.  Michigan,  and  spent  about 
six  months  in  the  office  of  F.  C.  Fuller.  He  afterward  removed  to 
Jackson.  Michican.  and  entered  the  office  of  Hon.  W.  K.  Gibson.  In 
Auq-ust.  1870.  he  removed  to  Cassopoli';,  where  he  formed  a  partner- 
ship with  Hon.  Charles  "W.  Clishee.  with  whom  he  continued  for  two 
years.  He  then  practiced  bv  himself  for  a  year,  after  which  he  formed 
a  partnership  with  Jtidcre  .^ndrcw  J-  Smith,  that  connection  beinq-  thus 
continued  until  Andrew  J.  Smith  was  elected  circuit  jud2:c.  since  which 
time  Harsen  D.  Smith  has  been  alone  in  practice.  He  has  for  thirty-five 
years  been  a  representative  of  the  Cassopolis  bar  and  is  therefore  num- 
bered amonpf  the  pioneer  attorneys  of  the  county.  He  has  crradually 
worked  h.is  way  upward,  dcmonstratinp:  his  ability  to  cope  with  intricate 
problems  of  jurisprudence  and  in  the  handlinc;-  of  his  cause  he  displays 
great  stren.trth.  while  his  devotion  to  his  clients'  interest  is  proverbial. 

In  October.  1873.  ]\Tr.  Smith  was  united  in  marriage  to  Miss  Sate 
R.  Read,  who  was  horn  in  this  county  in  18^3,  and  is  a  daughter  of  S. 
T.  and  Rhoda  R.   ainvdcn")   Read. 

In  his  political  views  'Mr.  Smith  is  a  stalwart  Republican,  thor- 
oughly in  sympathy  with  the  principles  of  the  party.  He  v.as  elected 
and  served  as  chairman  of  the  Repnl>lican  County  Central  Committee 
for  ten  years,  was  a  member  of  the  State  Central  Committee  for  six: 
years,  and  for  four  years  a  member  of  the  execiitive  committee.  He  is 
widely  recognized  as  one  of  the  foremost  Republicans  of  Michigan,  and 
his  effoits  in  beh.alf  of  the  organization  have  been  far  reaching  and  bene- 
ficial. In  1876  be  was  elected  prosecuting  attorney,  filling  the  office  for 
four  years,  and  in  i8q8  he  was  appointed  by  the  governor  to  tlie  posi- 
tion of  circuit  judt;e  to  preside  over  the  bench  of  a  new  circuit  until  an 
election  could  he  held.  He  served  in  that  capacity  for  one  year.  He 
was  a  member  of  the  state  pardon  board  for  about  seven  years,  but 
when  appointed  judge  resigned  that  position.  Following  his  retirement 
from  the  bench  he  was  reappointed  on  the  pardon  board.  lie  was  nom- 
inated for  state  senator  in  1884.  but  that  Avas  the  year  of  the  Demo- 
cratic landslide.  Fraternally  he  is  connected  with  the  lodge,  chapter 
and  commandcr\-  in  the  ^fasonic  fraternity  and  also  with  Saladin  Tem- 
ple of  the  iMystic  Shrine  at  Grand  Rapids.  He  has  been  very  success- 
ful in  his  practice,  beine  connected  with  the  greater  number  of  the  im- 
portant cases  tried  in  his  district  and  his  broad  intellectuality,  great 
strength  of  character  and  determined  purpose  have  made  him  a  valued 
factor,  not  only  as  a  legal  practitioner  but  also  in  .social,  fraternal  and 


HISTORY  01'   CASS  COUNTY  G59 

political  circles.  He  has  done  much  to  mold  public  thought  and  opinion 
in  his  community  and  is  justly  classed  with  the  prommenl  and  represen- 
tative citizens  of  Cass  county. 

JOHN  ¥.  SWISHER. 

John  F.  Swisher  devotes  his  time  and  energies  to  agricultural  pur- 
suits. More  than  a  century  ago  George  Washington  said  that  '"agri- 
culture is  the  most  honorable  as  well  as  the  most  useful  occupation  of 
man,"  and  the  truth  ot  tiiis  assertion  has  been  abundantly  verilicd  in  all 
the  ages.  Mr.  Swisher  has  given  his  entire  life  to  farm  work  and  now 
has  a  good  projierty  on  Section  8,  Silver  Creek  township,  which  is  the 
farm  upon  which  he  was  born,  his  natal  day  being  March  7,  1S5S.  His 
father,  John  T.  Swislier,  was  a  native  of  Virginia,  born  in  1812,  and 
with  his  parents  he  removed  to  Ohio  when  seventeen  years  of  age.  the 
family  home  being  established  in  I'reble  county.  There  he  grew  to  man- 
hood and  was  married  there  to  Aliss  Millicent  Elliott,  a  native  of  South 
Carolina,  'alio  was  brought  to  Treble  county,  Ohio,  during  her  infancy 
and  was  there  reared.  Her  parents  died  when  she  was  a  small  child. 
She  remained  in  Preble  county  until  after  she  gave  her  hand  in  marriage 
to  Mr.  Swisher.  About  1849  they  removed  to  Cass  county,  iMichigan, 
settling  in  Silver  Creek  township,  where  their  remaining  days  were 
passed.  Mr.  Swisher  departed  this  life  in  his  seventy-ninth  year  and 
left  behind  him  that  j)riceless  heritage  of  an  untarnished  name,  because 
he  had  always  been  loyal  in  citizenship,  straightforward  in  business  and 
honorable  in  private  life.  He  took  an  interest  in  political  questions  and 
situations  an<l  was  a  stanch  Republican  who  held  various  township  of- 
fices, the  duties  nf  which  were  capably  and  promptly  performed.  He 
was  a  devoted  member  of  the  Christian  church  and  was  a  leader  in  the 
work  of  building  the  house  of  worship,  while  in  the  various  church 
activities  he  took  a  helpful  part.  His  wife,  who  was  a  faithful  com- 
panion and  helpmate  to  him  'ui  life's  journey  and  who  displayed  many 
sterling  traits  r.f  heart  ami  mind,  also  passed  awav  in  Cass  cnunt\'.  In 
their  family  were  nine  children,  four  sons  and  fi\'e  daughters,  all  of  whom 
reached  adult  age. 

John  F.  Swisher,  the  youngest  of  this  family,  was  reared  upon  the 
old  homestead  farm,  where  he  now  lives.  His  early  educational  priv- 
ileges were  afforded  by  the  district  schools  of  Silver  Creek  township  and 
later  he  continued  his  studies  in  Battle  Creek  high  school.  During  the 
periods  of  vacation  he  worked  in  the  fields,  assisting  his  father  in  the 
task  of  developing  and  improving  his  land,  and  he  thus  gained  good 
practical  knowledge  of  the  best  methods  of  farm  work.  He  was  mar- 
ried in  1883  to  ]\Iiss  Alice  G.  Calvert,  and  unto  them  have  been  born 
two  cb.ildren,  Clarence  and  Erma,  but  the  latter  died  Januar\-  9.  1891. 
She  won  the  first  premium  as  the  prettiest  girl  among  tliirt_\'-tliree  con- 
testants at  the  Dowagiac  fair  in   1890.     Her  loss  was  deeply   felt  by 


660  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

her  parents  and  many  friends.  Her  mother  survived  her  for  only  a  few 
months,  passing  away  August  23,  1891,  at  the  comparatively  early  age 
of  thirty-three  years.  In  1S93  Mr.  Swisher  was  again  married,  his 
second  union  being  with  Emma  J.  Bcnner,  the  widow  cf  George  Nor- 
ton. There  is  one  child  of  tiiis  marriage,  Neal,  who  is  now  eight  years 
of  age. 

Air.  Swisher  has  been  a  general  stock  farmer  and  in  addition  to  till- 
ing the  soil  has  raised  high  grades  of  stock,  finding  both  branches  of 
his  business  prolltablc.  He  has  led  a  busy  and  useful  life,  characterized 
by  thorough  understanding  of  his  work,  by  diligence  m  all  that  he  does 
and  by  straightforward  dealing  at  all  tin;es.  His  political  allegiance  is 
given  to  the  Republican  party,  and  he  is  a  firm  advocate  of  its  prin- 
ciples and  does  all  in  his  power  to  promote  its  growth  and  extend  its 
influence.  In  1902  he  was  elected  to  the  office  of  supervisor,  and  his 
capable  service  during  his  hrst  term  of  service  led  to  his  re-election  in 
1903.  His  religious  faith  is  indicated  by  his  membership  in  the  Chris- 
tian church,  in  which  he  is  now  serving  as  deacon,  and  for  twelve  years, 
with  the  exception  of  a  brief  interval  of  two  years,  he  has  been  con- 
tinuously superintendent  of  the  Sunday-school.  His  efforts  in  behalf 
of  the  church  have  been  far-reaching  and  beneficial  and  he  is  most  earnest 
and  zealous  in  his  labors  to  promote  religious  instruction  among  the 
young,  realizing  the  beneficial  effects  upon  one's  after  life.  He  has 
always  lived  in  this  county  and  is  a  valued  representative  of  a  worthy 
pioneer  family.  The  circle  of  his  friends  is  extensive  because  he  has 
ever  displayed  those  sterling  traits  of  character  which  in  every  land  and 
clime  command  conlidence  and  regard. 

CHRIS  A.  HUX. 

Chris  A.  Hux,  well  kuwwn  in  financial  circles  in  Cass  county  as  the 
cashier  of  the  Lee  Brothers  &  Company  bank  at  Dowagiac,  is  a  native 
son  of  Michigan  and  seems  imbued  with  the  spirit  of  enterprise  and 
energy  which  have  been  the  dominant  factors  in  the  upbuilding  of  the 
middle  west.  His  birth  occurred  in  Grand  Haven  on  the  ist  of  June. 
1868.  His  father,  Christian  Hu.x,  was  a  native  of  Germany,  and  in 
that  land  spent  his  youth  and  acquired  his  education  in  the  schools  of 
Wurtemberg.  Crossing  the  Atlantic  to  America,  he  made  his  way  into 
the  interior  of  the  country,  locating  at  Lansing.  Michigan,  where  he 
followed  the  machinist's  trade,  which  he  had  mastered  in  his  native 
country.  He  later  was  engaged  in  similar  work  at  Grand  Rapids,  and 
subsequently  took  up  his  abode  in  Grand  Haven  in  1866.  There  he 
carried  on  business  as  a  machinist  until  his  removal  to  Owosso,  Alich- 
igan,  where  his  last  da}S  were  passed,  his  death  occurring  when  he  was 
in  the  fifty-ninth  year  of  his  age.  He  had  married  subsequent  to  his 
arrival  in  the  new  world  Aliss  Frederica  Lambert,  a  native  of  Wurtem- 
berg, Germany,  who  came  with  her  parents  to  the  Cnited  States,  the 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  661 

family  settling  in  Lansing,  Michigan,  about  1S64.  She  is  still  Hving 
and  now  makes  lier  home  in  Dowagiac.  The  members  of  the  family  are: 
Chris  A.,  of  this  review;  Lizzie,  the  wife  of  William  Elliott,  of  Owosso, 
Michigan;  Fred,  who  is  residing  in  Durand,  Michigan;  Emma;  and 
Charlie,  who  is  also  living  in  Owosso. 

Chris  A.  Hiix,  the  eldest  of  his  father's  family,  spent  the  greater 
part  of  his  youth  in  Owosso,  whither  his  parents  removed  in  his  early 
boyhood  days.  He  spent  five  years  as  a  student  in  the  Flint  school  and 
was  afterward  sent  to  the  Fenton  public  schools.  After  putting  aside 
his  text  books  he  secured  a  position  in  the  employ  of  the  Michigan 
Central  Railroad  Company  in  the  freight  department  at  Owosso.  Later 
he  was  transferred  to  Jackson,  '^ilichigan,  and  subsequently  sent  to 
Grand  Rajiids,  to  Augusta  and  to  Dowagiac,  whence  he  went  to  Chi- 
cago Heights,  Illinois,  on  the  13th  of  October,  1892.  In  1896,  however, 
he  returned  to  Dowagiac  and  became  cashier  in  the  private  bank  of  Lee 
Brothers  &  Company,  in  which  capacity  he  has  since  remained.  He  has 
thoroughly  acquainted  liimscll  with  the  banking  business  in  every  de- 
partment and  has  rendered  faithful  and  capable  service  to  the  house 
which  he  represents.  .At  the  same  time  he  has  become  popular  with  its 
patrons  by  reason  of  the  uniform  courtesy  which  he  extends  to  them 
and  the  promptness  and  ability  with  which  he  discharges  the  business 
which  he  transacts   for  them. 

Mr.  Hux  is  a  memlx'r  of  the  Tslasonic  fraternity,  in  which  he  has 
attained  high  rank.  He  is  nuw  a  past  eminent  commanrlcr  of  Niles 
Commandcry  Xn.  12.  K.  T.,  has  also  attained  the  thirty-second  degree 
of  the  Scottish  rite  and  is  a  member  of  the  Mystic  Shrine.  He  is  one 
of  the  youngest  Masons  in  ^lichigan  to  have  advanced  thus  far  in  the 
craft  and  is  a  worthy  exemplar  of  the  order,  being  in  hearty  sympathy 
with  its  principles  of  brotherly  kindness  and  mutual  helpfulness.  Al- 
though lie  usually  gives  his  political  support  to  the  Republican  party, 
he  does  not  consider  himself  bound  by  party  ties  and  often  casts  an  in- 
dependent ballot  in  support  of  the  candidates  whom  he  thinks  best  qual- 
ified for  office.  He  is  very  widely  and  favorably  known  in  his  part  of 
the  county,  having  been  a  resident  of  Dowagiac  for  thirteen  years, 
his  business  and  social  relations  bringing  him  into  contact  with  many 
people,  and  he  easily  wins  their  friendship  and  regard  by  reason  of  the 
possession  of  those  sterling  traits  of  character  which  everywhere  com- 
mand respect  and  confidence. 

ANDREW  BARNHART. 

Andrew  Barnhart  is  one  of  the  old  settlers  of  Cass  county  now  liv- 
ing on  Section  18,  Silver  Creek  township.  Many  are  the  changes  that 
have  occurred  since  he  took  up  his  abode  in  this  portion  of  the  state 
and  the  traveler  of  today  can  scarcely  realize  that  it  has  been  within 
only  a  few  decades  that  this  county  was  covered  with  a  dense  growth  of 


CG2  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

forest  trees  and  that  the  work  of  clearing  and  developing  had  scarcely 
been  begun.  Air.  Barnhart  is  nioreo\er  one  of  the  most  venerable  cit- 
izens of  the  county,  having  reached  the  eighty- fourth  milestone  on  life's 
journey.  He  was  born  iri  Preble  county,  Ohio,  about  1822  and  was  one 
of  a  family  of  ten  cliildren.  six  sons  and  four  daugiitcrs,  who  wcie  l>orn 
of  the  marriage  of  Davul  and  Sarah  (Shoemaker)  Barnhart,  b<Ah  of 
whom  were  natives  of  Indiana,  while  their  respective  parents  were  of 
German  birUi.  Botli  Mr.  and  Airs.  David  Barnhart  lived  to  a  good  old 
age  and  all  of  tiieir  ten  children  grew  to  years  of  maturity,  although  but 
one  sister  of  our  subject  is  now  living,  Airs.  Hulda  Young,  who  yet  re- 
sides in  Preble  county,  Ohio. 

Andrew  Barnhart  remained  at  home  during  his  boyhood  and  youth 
and  assisted  in  the  farm  work.  His  education  was  received  in  a  log 
schoolliouse  in  Preble  county  and  he  attended  school  for  only  a  brief 
period  during  the  winter  months,  while  during  the  remainder  of  the 
year  he  woiked  at  farm  labor,  taking  his  place  in  the  fields  at  the  time 
of  early  spring  planting  and  continuing  to  assist  in  their  cultivation  until 
the  crops  were  har\cstcd  in  the  late  autumn.  Farm  work  was  also  more 
difficult  than  at  the  present  time.  ff>r  the  machinen,-  was  crude  and  much 
of  the  labor  was  done  by  hand.  Air.  Barnhart  started  out  in  life  on 
his  own  account  at  the  age  of  twenty-one  years,  coming  to  Michigan  on 
foot.  He  made  his  way  direct  to  Cass  county  and  settled  in  Silver 
Creek  township,  where  he  purciiased  the  farm  upon  which  he  now  lives, 
paying  two  dollars  per  acre  for  a  tract  of  one  himdred  and  sixty  acres, 
which  was  all  covered  with  trees.  In  the  midst  of  the  green  trees  he 
began  clearing  the  land.  There  were  no  improvements  whatever  upon 
the  place  and  he  had  to  ait  dnwn  the  timber  and  grub  out  the  stumps 
before  he  could  plow  and  plant  the  tields.  His  first  home  was  a  little 
log  cabin  about  sixteen  by  sixteen  feet  and  containing  only  one  room. 
When  he  had  macle  arrangements  for  having  a  home  of  his  own  he  re- 
turned to  Ohio  and  was  married  in  Preble  county  to  Aliss  Alary  Ann 
Fraze,  who  was  b<irn  in  Preble  county,  Ohio.  He  returned  to  Cass 
county  with  a  team  and  wagon  bringing  his  bride.  He  also  drove  two 
cows.  In  true  pioneer  style  the  young  couple  began  their  domestic  life 
on  the  western  frontier,  and  for  many  years  they  traveled  life's  journey 
together,  sharing  with  each  other  its  joys  and  sorrows,  its  adversity 
and  prosperity,  but  in  1891  Air.  Barnhart  was  called  upon  to  mourn  the 
loss  of  his  wife,  who  died  on  the  28tii  of  Januarv-  of  that  vear.  They 
had  no  cbiildren  of  their  own  hvt  a<lnptcd  three:  AA^illiam  Aloit,  who 
died  at  the  age  of  thirteen  years:  Airs.  Sarah  E.  Strackangast,  also  de- 
ceased ;  and  Alary  E.  Fraze.  who  is  the  only  one  now  living.  She  was 
born  in  Winchester,  Indiana,  and  is  the  wife  of  C.  A.  Green.  Thev 
reside  upon  the  old  homestead  with  Air.  Barnhart. 

From  the  age  of  twenty-one  years  to  the  present  time  Air.  Barn- 
hart has  continuously  been  a  resident  of  Cass  county  and  is  therefore 
numbered  amLmg  its  pioneer  settlers.     He  is  now  the  owner  of  one  hun- 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  603 

dred  and  eighty  acres  of  goxl  land,  which  he  rents.  He  started  out  in 
life  practiadly  enipty-handed  biU  he  possessed  strong  delerniinalion  and 
unfaltering  enterprise  and  upon  this  as  a  foundation  has  builded  his 
success.  .  After  working  for  a  time  at  farm  labor  he  was  enabled  to 
make  purchase  of  his  land  at  the  very  low  price  at  which  property 
sold  in  those  days,  and  through  the  intervening  years  he  has  improved 
his  farm,  converting  it  into  a  valuable  place.  As  the  years  have  gone  by 
he  has  prospered  in  his  undertakings  and  is  now  in  comfortable  financial 
circumstances.  Such  a  life  record  should  serve  a.*  a  source  of  inspiration 
and  encouragement  to  others,  showing  what  may  be  accomplished  by 
unfaltering  energy,  diligence  and  perseverance.  For  long  years  he  gave 
his  political  allegiance  to  the  Republican  party,  but  because  of  his  pro- 
nounced views  on  the  temperance  question  and  his  belief  that  it  is  one 
of  the  dominant  issues  before  the  people,  he  joined  the  ranks  of  the 
Prohibition  parly,  and  has  since  done  all  in  his  power  to  promote  its 
growth  and  insine  its  success.  He  has  for  many  years  been  a  member 
of  the  Christian  church,  has  served  for  a  long  period  as  one  of 
its  elders,  and  has  lalxired  effectively  and  earnestly  for  the  inter- 
ests of  the  denc^mination.  His  life  has  indeed  been  honorable 
and  upright  characterized  by  devotion  to  those  principles  which  work 
for  righteousness,  justice  and  tiiith,  and  now  in  the  evening  of  his  days 
he  can  look  back  over  the  past  without  regret,  knowing  that  he  has  never 
taken  advantage  of  the  necessities  of  his  fellowmen  in  any  business  trans- 
action nor  favored  any  movement  or  measure  that  would  prove  det- 
rimental to  his  town  or  county.  He  has  on  the  contrary  supported  all 
plans  for  the  public  good  and  is  justly  classed  with  the.  representative, 
respected  and  honored  pioneer  citizens  of  Silver  Creek  township. 

MARK  JUDD. 

Mark  Judd,  a  pioneer  lumberman  and  sawmill  operator  of  Dowagiac, 
was  born  in  Fairfield  county,  Connecticut,  June  i8,  1833.  The  family 
is  of  English  lineage  in  the  paternal  line  and  William  Judd,  the  father 
of  our  subject,  was  also  a  native  of  Fairfield  county,  Connecticut,  where 
in  early  life  he  learned  and  followed  the  cooper's  trade.  Emigrating 
westward  in  1844,  he  took  up  his  abode  in  Silver  Creek  township,  Cass 
county,  Michigan,  where  he  located  upon  a  farm,  giving  his  attention 
to  its  cultivation  and  improvement  for  a  number  of  years.  His  last 
days,  however,  were  spent  in  Dowagiac.  where  he  died  at  the  age  of 
ninety-three  vears.  His  wife,  Abigail  Beardsley,  was  also  a  native  of 
Connecticut,  and  died  in  New  York  when  her  son  Mark  was  only  about 
four  years  of  age.  In  the  family  were  four  sons  and  four  daughters. 
After  losing  his  first  wife  the  father  was  again  married. 

]\Iark  Judd,  the  voungest  of  the  eight  children,  came  to  Cass  county, 
Michigan,  when  about  twelve  years  of  age.  and  when  a  young  man  of 
seventeen  years  started  out  in  life  on  his  own  account,  working  as  a 


664  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

farm  liaud  by  the  niontli.  He  was  thus  employed  for  three  years,  wlien, 
thinking  that  he  miyiit  find  other  occupations  more  congenial,  he  began 
learning  the  carpenter's  and  join-er's  trade,  which  he  followed  for  sev- 
eral years,  becoming  intimately  associated  with  building  operations  in 
Cass  county.  Watchful  of  opportunities  p<jinting  to  success,  he  was 
enabled,  in  1S59,  as  the  result  of  his  enterprise,  diligence  and  frugality 
in  former  years,  to  establish  a  planing  mill,  of  which  he  became  one- 
tliird  owner  and  which  was  conducted  under  the  firm  style  of  Ashley, 
Case  &  Company.  The  firm  had  an  existence  of  about  four  years  in  its 
original  form  and  then  became  Case  &  Judd,  business  being  carried  on 
in  that  way  for  some  time,  when  JNIr.  Judd  became  sole  owner.  This 
is  the  oldest  enterprise  of  the  kind  in  the  county,  or  in  fact  in  any  of 
the  adjoining  ci.nintics,  having  a  continuous  existence"  of  almost  a  half 
century.  The  planing  mill  was  the  first  built  in  this  part  of  the  state, 
there  being  none  nearer  than  Kal.amazoo.  The  mill  has  been  in  i;pcra- 
tion  throughout  all  these  years  an<l  its  manufactiu'ed  product  represents 
an  enormous  amount  of  lumber. 

Mr.  Judd  was  married  in  1S64  to  Aliss  Amanda  Stillwell,  a  native 
of  Michigan,  and  the_\'  now  have  three  sons:  William,  whu  is  living  in 
Porter  township;  Allic,  the  wife  of  Arthur  Jewel,  of  Ddwagiac;  and 
I^na,  the  wife  of  Dr.  George  W.  Green,  a  practicing  pliysician  of 
Dowagiac. 

In  his  political  affiliation  Mr.  Judd  has  been  a  life-long  Rei)ublican, 
joining  the  party  on  its  organization.  He  has  held  several  oftices,  act- 
ing as  alderman  for  two  years  and  in  other  connections  has  done  effec- 
tive service  for  the  welfare  and  progress  of  his  home  town.  He  is  a 
member  of  Dowagiac  L<Ddge,  No.  214,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  in  which  he  has 
attained  the  degree  of  Master  Mason,  and  he  is  also  connected  with  the 
Ancient  Order  of  United  Workmen.  A  pioneer  business  man  of  Dow- 
agiac, he  has  spent  the  greater  part  of  his  life  in  Cass  county  and  has 
been  identified  with  its  interests  Ixjth  in  behalf  of  public  progress  and 
^hrough  his  business  relations.  He  stands  today  as  one  whose  success 
is  the  fitting  crown  of  earnest  and  honorable  lal^or.  Realizing  that  work 
— earnest,  persistent  work — is  the  basis  of  all  desirable  prosperity,  he  has 
in  his  business  career  spared  not  that  laborious  attention- to  detail  which 
is  one  of  the  chief  elements  of  success  and  as  the  otttcomc  of  his  clear 
judgment,  his  enterprise  and  diligence  lie  is  today  classed  with  the  sub- 
stantial residents  of  his  adopted  county. 

HON.  JAMES  G.  HAYDEN. 

Hon.  James  G.  Harden,  elected  to  the  state  senate  of  Michigan  in 
1904,  is  one  of  the  distinguished  and  honored  citizens  of  Cassopolis  and 
in  public  life  has  won  attention  and  esteem  by  reason  of  his  devotion  to 
duty  and  his  masterful  grasp  of  every  problem  that  has  Ijeen  presented 
for  solution.    His  life  record  began  in  Calvin  township,  Cass  county,  on 


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.^^^^^^^ 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  6.;5 

the  loth  of  November.  1S54.  His  father,  Joseph  G.  Hayden,  was  a  na- 
tive of  New  York  and  a  pioneer  settler  of  tliis  part  of  the  state,  con- 
tributing- in  substantial  measure  to  the  early  progress  and  improvement 
of  Cass  county.  He  was  of  Irish  lineage  and  died  when  his  son  James 
was  only  three  years  of  age.  The  mother,  who  bore  the  maiden  name 
of  Hannah  Lincoln,  was  a  native  of  Ohio  and  was  brought  to  Cass 
county  during  lier  early  girlliood,  so  that  she  was  married  here.  She 
died  when  sixty-six  years  of  age,  and  of  her  six  children  one  died  in 
infancy. 

Plon.  James  G.  Hayden,  who  was  the  f(jurth  member  of  the  fam- 
ily and  the  third  son,  was  reared  by  an  uncle  in  Cassopolis  until  eight- 
een years  of  age,  when,  desirous  of  providing  lor  his  own  support,  he 
engaged  to  work  on  a  farm  by  the  month.  He  was  thus  employed  for 
two  years,  after  which  he  returned  to  Cassopolis  and  again  attended 
school  for  six  months.  He  then  entered  commercial  life  as  a  clerk  in 
a  general  store,  where  he  remained  for  three  years,  after  which  he  pur- 
sued a  course  of  study  in  Bryant  &  Stratton's  commercial  college  in 
Chicago,  spending  a  }ear  in  that  institution.  Following  his  return 
home  he  engaged  in  farming  in  LaGrange  township,  devoting  his  ener- 
gies to  general  agricultural  pursuits  for  seven  y«i.rs.  Whatever  he 
undertook  was  carried  forward  to  successful  completion  by  means  of 
his  unremitting  diligence  and  strong  purpose. 

Jn  1S79  Mr.  Hayden  was  united  in  marriage  to  ]\Iiss  Ruth  T. 
Kingsbury,  a  daughter  of  Asa  and  Mary  (Monroe)  Kingsbury.  r^Irs. 
Hayden  was  born  in  Cassopolis,  her  people  having  been  early  settlers 
of  the  county.  In  1886  Mr.  Hayden  returned  to  Cassoixilis  and  en- 
gaged in  the  grocery  business.  In  Noveral)er  of  the  same  year  he  was 
called  by  popular  suffrage  to  the  office  of  county  treasurer,  which  posi- 
tion he  filled  for  four  years  and  then  retired  in  18SS,  enjoying  the  same 
confidence  and  trust  which  w-as  given  to  him  when  he  entered  oflice.  In 
the  meantime  he  continued  in  the  grocery  trade,  which  he  successfully 
conducted  for  seven  years,  and  then  gave  his  attention  to  the  hard  wood 
lumber  business  for  two  years.  When  that  period  had  passed  he  re- 
turned to  the  home  farm,  whereon  he  continued  for  seven  years,  when 
in  1902  he  once  more  took  up  his  abode  in  Cassopolis,  this  time  giving 
his  attention  to  the  real  estate  and  insurance  business,  in  which  he  has 
since  continued,  having  now  a  good  clientage.  He  handles  a  large 
amount  of  valuable  realty  each  }ear  and  he  is  thoroughly  informed  con- 
cerning property  in  this  part  of  the  state.  All  through  the  period  of  an 
active  business  career  Mr.  Hayden  has  also  maintained  a  deep  interest 
in  political  questions,  and  has  done  much  effective  work  for  his  party. 
In  1904  he  was  elected  state  senator  and  is  now  in  1906  a  member  of 
the  upper  house  of  the  Michigan  legislature.  His  first  office  was  that  of 
township  treasurer,  and  although  the  township  had  a  normal  Demo- 
cratic majority  of  one  hundred  and  twenty  he  was  elected  on  the  Re- 


6<iC  HISTORY  01'   CASS  COUNTY 

publican  ticket.  Over  tiie  recnril  of  liis  ofticia]  career  there  falls  no 
shadow  of  wrong  or  suspicion  of  evil,  and  he  has  proved  himself  an 
active  working  member  of  the  liduse,  unfaltering  in  his  supixjrt  of  any 
measure  or  movement  which  he  deems  of  public  value  or  general  utility. 
He  has  also  been  president  of  the  Cass  County  Agricultural  Society  and 
of  the  Farmers"  institute,  occupying  the  latter  position  for  three  years. 
Dee])ly  interested  in  the  agricultural  development  of  the  county,  his  la- 
bors in  those  positions  proved  effective  and  far  reaching.  At  the  pres- 
ent writing  he  occupies  the  iiositimi  of  county  superintendent  of  the 
IXXH-,  and  he  assumed  the  duties  of  postmaster  at  CassMpolis  March  i. 
190(1. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hayden  have  become  the  parents  of  five  children. 
Asa,  who  was  born  in  1881,  is  a  graduate  of  the  high  school  of  Cassopo- 
Hs  and  of  the  law  department  of  the  state  university  at  Ann  Arbor  and 
is  now  engaged  in  the  practice  of  his  chosen  profession  in  the  count)' 
seat.  Vera  is  a  graduate  of  the  state  normal  school  at  Ypsilanti,  Mich- 
igan, and  is  now  engaged  in  teaching  in  Kalamazoo.  Jay  G.  is  now  a 
student  in  the  stale  university.  Hazel,  who  is  a  graduate  of  the  high 
school  at  Cassopolis  and  now  a  student  of  the  Western  State  Normal 
School,  is  now  at  home.  Robert  is  a  student  in  tiie  schools  of  Cassopo- 
lis. 

Mr.  Havden  lielongs  to  the  Masonic  fraternity,  in  which  he  has 
taken  the  Ro_\a]  Arch  degree.  He  is  likewise  connected  with  the 
Knights  of  Pythias  and  with  the  IModern  Woodmen  of  .America,  and 
his  activity  is  uianifcst  m  many  lines.  He  is  president  of  the  Creamery 
Association  and  connected  with  other  local  affairs,  and  his  efforts  in 
behalf  of  progress  along  agricultural  and  commercial  lines,  of  intel- 
lectual development  and  of  general  progress  have  been  effective  and 
beneficial.  He  lost  his  father  when  only  three  years  of  age  and  was 
left  with  no  inheritance.  He  educated  himself  and  he  had  some  hard 
knocks  when  a  boy,  but  he  developed  self-reliance  and  force  of  charac- 
ter atid  has  steadily  worked  his  way  upward,  gaining  a  prominent  po- 
sition in  public  regard  and  honor,  his  course  reflecting  credit  upon  those 
who  have  honored  him. 

JOHN  BILDERBACK. 

When  the  tocsin  of  \\ar  sounded  in  1861  men  from  all  walks  of 
life  flocked  to  the  standard  of  the  nation.  They  came  from  the  counting 
houses,  the  offices,  the  shops  and  the  farms  and  representatives  of  all 
classes  nn'ngled  and  met  together  with  the  one  common  purpose  of  de- 
fending the  Union.  There  has  been  on  the  pages  of  the  world's  history 
no  greater  record  of  loyalty  and  patriotism  than  was  displayed  by  the 
sons  of  the  nrirlh  when  the  supremacy  of  the  Federal  government  wa= 
threatened.  Mr.  Bilderback,  now  living  retired  in  Dowagiac.  was  among 
the  numiber  who  followed  the  stars  and  stripes,  making  a  creditable 
militarv  record  on  various  battlefields  of  the  south. 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  667 

A  native  of  Preble  county,  Ohio,  he  was  born  on  the  i8th  of  June, 
1843,  ^n<^  \^^s  of  German  hneage.  His  father,  Wihiam  Bilderback, 
^vas  a  native  of  New  Jersey,  and  when  a  young  man  went  to  Preble 
county,  Ohio.  Throughout  iiis  entire  Hfe  he  carried  on  farming,  and 
removed  frcni  Olho  to  Miciiigan  in  1846,  setthng  in  Berrien  county, 
where  he  remained  until  1850,  when  he  came  to  Cass  county.  Here 
he  located  in  Silver  Creek  township,  about  three  miles  from  Dowagiac, 
and  as  the  years  came  and  went  he  worked  in  the  fields,  bringing  his 
land  under  a  high  state  of  cultivation  and  annually  harvesting  good 
crops.  While  his  attention  was  chiefly  directed  to  his  business  interests 
he  yet  displayed  a  commendable  and  patriotic  citizenship  and  was  ever 
loyal  to  the  public  good,  giN'ing  his  co-operation  to  many  movements  for 
the  promotion  of  the  general  welfare.  He  served  as  highway  commis- 
sioner, and  as  justice  of  the  peace  rendered  decisions  which  were  strictly 
fair  and  impartial.  In  early  life  he  became  a  member  of  the  United 
Brethren  church  and  afterward  joined  the  Methodist  Episcopal  church. 
He  lived  as  a  worthy  Christian  gentleman  and  died  at  the  age  of  sixty- 
nine  years,  respected  and  honored  by  all  who  knew  him.  His  wife, 
who  bore  the  maiden  name  of  Sarah  Nye,  was  born  in  Preble  county, 
Ohio,  in  1818,  and  spent  her  last  days  in  Cass  county,  where  she  passed 
away  in  1S89,  at  the  age  of  seventy-one  years.  She  was  devoted  to  her 
family  and  was  ah\ays  faithful  to  the  ties  of  friendship,  and  her  death 
was  deeply  regretted  by  many  who  knew  her.  Unto  Mr.  and  'Mys.  Bilder- 
back were  born  three  sons  and  three  daughters.  Peter,  who  in  response 
to  the  country's  call  for  aid  became  a  private  in  the  Twelfth  Michigan 
Infantry,  died  at  Pittslnirg  I^anding  while  in  the  service  of  his  country, 
his  death  being  occasioned  by  arduous  militar}'  duty  and  the  exposures 
and  hardships  incident  to  war.  William  W.  was  but  sixteen  years  of 
age  when  he  enlisted  and  was  Ijut  a  boy  when  he  laid  down  his  life  upon 
the  altar  of  his  country.  Mary,  the  eldest  daughter,  is  now  the  wife  of 
D.  W.  Sammons,  a  resident  farmer  of  Silver  Creek  township.  Martha 
A.  is  the  wife  of  James  H.  Momany,  also  living  in  Silver  Creek  town- 
,  ship.  Sarah  R.  is  the  wife  of  Elias  Smith,  a  resident  farmer  of  Pokagon 
township. 

John  Bilderback,  who  was  the  second  son  and  second  child  in  the 
father's  family,  was  only  two  years  old  when  the  parents  left  Ohio  and 
came  to  Michigan,  making  the  journey  westward  with  teams  after  the 
primitive  manner  of  travel  in  those  days  before  the  advent  of  railroad 
transportation.  They  first  lived  in  Berrien  county  and  Mr.  Bilderback 
of  this  review  was  a  lad  of  six  summers  at  the  time  of  the  removal  of 
the  family  to  Cass  county.  He  was  then  reared  in  SiK-er  Creek  town- 
ship and  pursued  his  studies  in  a  log  schoolhouse  such  as  was  common 
on  the  frontier.  In  one  end  of  the  room  was  a  large  fireplace  and  the 
furnishings  were  primitive  and  the  methods  of  instruction  were  very 
crude  as  cnmparcfl  with  modern  idei?  oi  education.  The  family  lived, 
in  a  log  cabin  and  shared  in  the  usual  hardship?  and  privations  of  pioneer 


668  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

life,  li  was  not  until  185S  that  the  father  built  a  frame  house.  John 
Bilderback  remained  at  home  through  the  period  of  his  youth  and  as- 
sisted in  clearing  up  the  farm,  working  in  the  fields  through  the  summer 
months,  while  in  the  winter  seasons  he  pursued  his  study.  He  was  thus 
•engaged  until  August,  1S61,  when  at  the  early  age  of  eighteen  }cars 
he  responded  to  the  country's  call  for  aid,  enlisting  for  service  as  a 
private  of  the  Tirst  ^Michigan  Cavalry.  "He  was  with  that  command  for 
about  four  and  a  half  years  and  was  then  honorably  discharged  as  first 
-duty  sergeant,  at  which  time  he  was  attached  to  the  Army  of  the  Po- 
tomac. He  took  part  in  many  of  the  principal  battles  and  a  number  of 
the  lesser  ones  of  the  war.  He  was  never  wounded  nor  captured  and 
his  experience  in  the  hospital  covered  only  three  days.  With  the  ex- 
■ception  of  that  \eiy  brief  period  he  was  continuously  on  active  duty 
during  the  fuiir  and  a  half  }ears  of  his  connection  with  the  Union  army. 
His  last  ser\icc  was  in  the  west  at  Camp  Douglas,  Salt  Lake  City,  and 
he  participated  in  the  Grand  Review  in  Washington,  D.  C,  where  "wave 
after  wave  of  bayonet  crested  blue"  swept  by  the  reviewing  stand  on 
-v\-hich  stood  the  president  and  other  dignitaries  of  the  nation  cheering 
the  return  of  the  victorious  army,  whose  brilliant  efforts,  heroism  and 
patient  cmlurance  had  saved  the  Union.  Mr.  Bilderback  received  an 
honorable  discharge  at  Salt  Lake  City  and  returned  home  b}-  way  of 
San  Francisco,  the  Isthmus  of  Panama  and  Xew  York  City,  making  his 
way  to  Dowagiac. 

When  he  again  arrived  in  Cass  county  ^Nlr.  Bilderback  tocjk  up  his 
abode  in  Silver  Creek  township,  purchasing  a  tract  of  land  adjoining  his 
father's  farm.  As  a  companion  and  helpmate  for  life's  journey  he  chose 
Miss  Cynthia  A.  Becraft,  to  whom  he  was  married  on  Christmas  day 
■of  1S66.  She  is  a  daughter  of  Isaiah  and  Caroline  (Wallace)  Becraft, 
the  former  born  May  2,  181 1,  and  the  latter  on  the  4th  of  December. 
1817.  They  became  the  parents  of  four  children,  of  whom  Mrs.  Bilder- 
back was  tlie  youngest.  She  has  one  brother  living,  ^^^  F.  Becraft,  who 
resides  in  Augusta,  Kalamazoo  county,  ^Michigan.  After  losing  his  first 
wife  Mr.  Becraft  was  again  married.  Of  this  union  there  were  five 
-children,  of  whom  three  sons  are  living:  Julius  O.,  ]\I.  C.  and  I.  W. 
Becraft.  !Mrs.  Bilderback  was  born  near  Detroit,  but  in  Alacomb  count}-, 
Michigan,  on  the  ist  of  Noveinher,  1843,  and  came  to  Dowagiac  with 
her  father  in  June,  1S49,  since  which  time  she  has  been  a  resident  of  this 
county.  Her  father  was  prominent  in  public  affairs  in  an  early  day, 
serving  as  postmaster  of  Dowagiac.  also  as  deputy  sheriff  and  as  provost 
•marshal  during  the  period  of  the  Civil  war.  He  was  closely  identified 
with  the  early  history  of  Cass  county. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Bilderback  at  the  time  of  their  marriage  located  on 
a  farm  in  Silver  Creek  township,  where  he  engaged  in  general  agri- 
cultural pursuits  until  189Q,  when  he  retired  from  active  business  cares 
and  removed  to  the  city.  While  famiing  his  place  displayed  every  evi- 
dence of  careful  supervision  and  painstaking  effort.     The  land  was  trans- 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  66^ 

formed  into  productive  fields  and  lie  annually  harvested  good  crops,  and 
in  all  of  his  work  he  was  practical  and  energetic.  Unto  him  and  his 
wife  were  horn  two  sons  and  two  daughters:  Ella  Grace,  who  is  now 
the  wife  of  1).  J.  Stilwell;  Jesse  X.,  a  mail  carrier  of  Dowagiac;  Verna 
C,  who  is  the  wife  of  i.  C.  Scattcrgood,  who  is  living  in  Harrishurg, 
Pennsylvania;  and  William  R.,  who  is  a  molder  residing  in  Dowagiac. 

Mr.  Bilderback  has  a  farm  of  eighty  acres  which  is  well  improved 
and  this  yields  to  him  a  good  financial  return.  He  is  a  Republican,  hav- 
ing given  inflexible  support  to  the  party  since  age  conferred  upon  him 
the  right  of  franchise.  He  has  been  called  to  various  positions  of  public 
trust,  serving  as  justice  of  the  peace,  as  supervisor,  as  township  treas- 
urer of  Silver  Creek  township  and  treasurer  of  the  school  district  for 
thirty-two  years,  resigning  the  last  named  position  when  he  removed  to 
Dowagiac.  He  is  and  has  been  supervisor  of  the  second  ward  of 
Dowagiac.  Every  public  duty  has  been  faithfully  f>erformed  and  the 
trust  reposed  in  him  by  his  fellow  townsmen  has  been  well  merited.  That 
he  occupies  an  honored  position  in  Grand  Army  circles  is  indicated  by 
the  fact  that  he  has  been  commander  of  H.  C.  Gilbert  Post  No.  47, 
G.  A.  R.,  for  about  twelve  years.  He  has  been  a  meml^er  of  the  Baptist 
church  for  thirty  years,  and  ■Mrs.  Bilderback  also  belongs  to  this  church 
and  has  taken  a  most  active  and  helpful  part  in  its  work.  They  contribute 
generously  to  its  support  and  do  everything  in  their  power  to  promote 
its  activities  and  extend  its  influence  and  for  about  a  cjuarter  of  a  century 
Mr.  Bilderback  served  as  superintendent  of  the  Sunday-school.  He  has 
no  business  interests  now  save  the  administration  of  estates,  but  various 
trusts  of  this  nature  have  been  given  to  him.  He  has  been  a  resident 
of  Cass  county  for  fifty-six  years  and  in  looking  back  over  his  history  it 
will  be  seen  that  there  are  many  commendable  elements  in  him,  as  dis- 
played in  his  patriotic  service  in  defense  of  the  Union,  in  his  straight- 
forward and  honorable  business  life,  in  his  devotion  to  duty  in  civic 
office  and  his  fidelity  to  the  ties  of  friendship  and  of  the  home.  He  is 
one  of  the  best  known  citizens  Of  the  county  and  it  is  with  pleasure  that 
we  present  the  record  of  his  career  to  our  readers. 

EDD  W.  E ASTON. 

Edd  W.  Eastun  operates  and  occupies  a  fine  farm  of  two  hundred 
and  twenty  acres,  pleasantly  situated  on  section  21,  Silver  Creek  town- 
ship. It  w-as  upon  this  farm  that  his  birth  occurred  on  the  17th  of  Febru- 
ary, 186 1.  Throughout  his  entire  life  he  has  lived  in  Silver  Creek  town- 
ship and  has  become  widely  recognized  as  an  enterprising,  progressive 
agriculturist,  whose  business  interests  are  capably  conducted  and  who  in 
all  his  dealings  is  upright  and  reliable.  His  father,  Thomas  Easton,  was 
a  native  of  Kentucky  and  came  to  ^Michigan  with  his  parents  when  a  boy. 
locating  in  Berrien  county,  where  he  was  reared  amid  pioneer  surround- 
ings.    When  a  young  man  he  removed  to  Cass  county  and  was  married 


6'0  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

here  to  Miss  Emily  Hincliman,  a  native  of  Virginia,  who  came  with  her 
parents  to  this  state  iu  lier  early  girlhood  days.  Following  their  mar- 
riage JMr.  and  Airs.  Thomas  Easton  located  on  Section  21,  Silver  Creek 
township,  where  the  husband  devoted  his  time  and  energies  to  general 
agricultural  pui suits,  placing  his  land  under  a  high  state  of  cultivation 
and  developing  an  excellent  farm.  He  continued  in  active  farm  work 
until  his  lile's  labors  were  ended  in  death,  when  he  was  in  his  seventy- 
fifth  year.  He  is  still  survived  by  his  wife,  who  is  one  of  the  worthy 
pioneer  women  of  the  couiitv.  In  their  familv  were  four  children  three 
sons  and  a  daughter,  namely:  Dr.  W.  \\^'  Easton,  who  is  living  in 
Dowagiac;  Jennie,  the  widow  of  William  Allen,  also  a  resident  of 
Dowagiac;  Dr.  J.  AI.  Easton,  of  Decatur;  and  Edd  W.,  of  this  review. 

The  youngest  of  the  family,  Edd  W.  Easton,  was  reared  under  the 
parental  roof  upon  the  farm  Avhere  he  now  resides,  and  pursued  his  edu- 
cation m  the  common  schools  of  the  township.  When  not  busy  with  his 
text-books  or  engaged  with  the  pleasures  of  the  plavground  his  atten- 
tion was  given  to  the  work  of  the  farm,  and  in  early  life  he  lx;came 
familiar  with  the  best  methods  of  cultivating  the  soil  and  caring  for  the 
crops.  He  remained  at  home  until  his  marriage,  which  was  celebrated 
on  tlie  14th  of  October,  18S3,  the  ladv  of  his  choice  being  Aliss  Florence 
Mason,  a  daughter  of  A.  H.  and  Temi>erance  (Cross)  Mason,  the  former 
a  native  of  New  York  and  the  latter  of  Canada.  Tliev  amie  to  Cass 
county  111  an  early  day,  lieing  among  the  first  settlers  of  Dowagiac.  The 
father  is  a  carpenter  by  trade  but  has  conducted  a  hotel  and  jjianing  mill 
and  has  been  closely  associated  with  the  business  development  of  his 
adopted  cit\-.  Airs.  Easton  was  Iwrn  in  Dowagiac  August  7,  1862,  and 
is  the  seventh  in  order  of  birth  in  a  familv  of  nine  children.  She  re- 
mained with  her  parents  during  the  days  of 'her  girlhood  and  is  indel)ted 
to  the  public  school  sxstem  ..t  her  native  citv  for  the  educational  priv- 
ileges which  slie  enjoyed.  At  the  time  of  their  marriage  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Easton  located  upon  the  farm  where  he  has  since  resided  with  the  excep- 
tion of  a  brief  period  spent  in  Dowagiac.  He  has  here  two  hundred 
and  twenty  acres  of  land  belonging  to  his  mother.  He  has  placed  the 
farm  under  a  high  state  of  cultivation  and  it  richly  repavs  his  efforts 
in  splendid  crops  which  the  fields  annually  yield.  Evervth'ing  about  the 
place  is  kept  up  in  good  condition  and  its 'neat  and  thViftv  "appearance 
indicates  the  careful  supervision  of  a  practical  and  progressive  owner. 
Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Easton  have  been  born  two  daughters.  May. 
who  finished  the  eleventh  grade  in  the  Dowagiac  citv  school,  took  the 
normal  course  in  1906,  and  also  has  taken  instrumental  music.  She  will 
take  charge  of  District  Xo.  Six  in  Silver  Creek.  Alma,  the  vnungest, 
IS  in  the  fourth  grade.  The  family  is  well  known  in  the  comnumity 
and  have  many  warm  friends  here.  Mr.  Easton  is  an  earnest  Repub- 
hcan  in  his  pohtical  views,  and  in  1904  was  elected  to  the  office  of 
supervisor  of  his  township,  in  wliich  capacitv  he  served  for  a  year.  He 
has  been  a  school  director  for  a  number  of  years,  and  the  cause  of  edu- 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  071 

cation  finds  in  him  a  warm  friend.  In  fact  he  is  a  recognized  supporter 
of  all  proj;;rc5si\e  movements,  and  his  co-o])eration  has  heen  of  value  in 
measures  for  the  public  good.  He  belongs  to  the  Ivnights  of  the  Mac- 
cabees at  Dowagiac.  He  has  known  no  other  home  than  Cass  county 
nor  has  he  wished  to  change  his  place  of  .residence.  The  lives  of  such 
men  are  an  iiulication  of  the  attractiveness  of  the  county  as  a  place  of 
residence  and  of  the  opportunities  here  afforded  to  the  citizens,  for  were 
conditions  otherwise  enterprising  men  like  Mr.  Easton  would  seek  homes 
elsewhere.  On  the  contrary  the}-  recognize  that  they  ha\-e  good  ad- 
vantages here  and  they  are  always  laboring  to  promote  the  welfare  and 
progress  of  the  county,  while  at  the  same  time  carefully  conducting  pri- 
vate business  interests. 

HON.  HENRY  B.  WELLS. 

Hon.  Hemy  R.  Wel'.s.  wliose  position  in  public  regard  has  long  been 
a  creditable  and  enviable  one  and  who  has  been  entrusted  with  various 
duties  of  a  public  nature,  showing  the  confidence  reposed  in  him  by  his 
fellow  townsmen,  makes  bis  home  on  Section  28,  Wayne  township,  wiiere 
he  conducts  and  cultivates  a  farm  of  two  hundred  acres.  Its  excellent 
improvements  are  indicative  of  liis  progressive  spirit,  which  has  been 
manifest  in  all  the  associations  of  public  and  private  life. 

Mr.  Wells  is  a  native  of  the  state  of  New  York,  his  birth  having" 
occurred  in  Otsego  county  on  the  4th  of  February,  1S29.  His  father, 
Werden  Wells,  was  a  native  of  Rhode  Island  and  a  son  of  Joshua  Wells, 
who  was  a  son  of  one  of  seven  brothers  who  came  fror.i  England  and, 
settling  in  Rhode  Island,  established  the  town  of  Wellsville.  When  a 
young  lad  Werden  W^ells  accompanied  his  parents  on  their  removal  frorrf 
New  England  to  Otsego  county.  New  York,  where  he  acquired  his  edu- 
cation and  was  married.  In  early  life  he  learned  the  trade  of  a  harness- 
maker  and  continued  in  that  business  for  a  number  of  years.  He  wedded 
Miss  Julia  Baker,  a  daughter  of  Henry  Baker  and  a  native  of  Otsego 
county.  New  York,  wliere  they  began  their  domestic  life,  remaining  there 
for  a  number  of  years.  In  1835,  however,  the  father  brought  his  family 
to  Michigan,  making  his  way  to  Kalamazoo  county,  where  he  took  up 
government  land  in  Charleston  township.  It  was  wild  and  unimproved, 
but  he  at  once  began  its  cultivation  and  developed  therefrom  a  good  farm, 
which  he  made  his  place  of  residence  until  he  was  called  to  the  home  l)e- 
yond,  when  about  eighty-five  years  of  age.  His  first  w^ife  died  when 
forty-five  years  of  age  and  he  afterward  wedded  Mrs.  Elipha  Filkins.  a 
widow.  There  were  ten  children  born  of  the  father's  first  marriage  and 
two  of  the  second  marriage.    Of  the  first  family  only  three  are  now  living. 

Henry  B.  Wells,  tlie  second  child  and  second  son  horn  of  that 
union,  was  a  youth  of  seven  years  when  he  accompanied  his  parents  to 
Kalamazoo  county,  where  he  remained  until  nineteen  years  of  age.  He 
then  came  to  Cass  county  in  1848  to  enter  upon  an  independent  business 


672  HISTORY  01'   CASS  COUNTY 

career  here.  He  had  mastered  the  branches  of  learning  taught  in  the 
little  log  schoolhoiisfs  of  llie  early  days  and  feeling  the  necessity  of 
providing  for  his  own  support,  following  his  removal  to  this  county, 
he  at  once  began  working  for  the  Alichigan  Central  Railroad  Company 
at  or  near  Duvvagiac.  He  was  employed  as  station  hand  at  Dccalur,  and 
about  1 85 1  he  took  the  contract  for  loading  piles  for  the  railroad  com- 
pany, which  supplied  him  with  an  engine  and  train.  He  afterward  made 
arrangements  to  run  a  construction  train  for  tlic  company  and  continued 
in  that  department  of  the  railroad  service  until  1854,  when  he  was  called 
upon  to  take  charge  of  the  construction  of  the  St.  ^lary  ship  canal,  which 
was  to  be  completecr  by  the  following  ]May.  He  pushed  the  work  for- 
ward so  vigorously  that  he  had  fulfilled  the  terms  of  the  contract  by 
December  of  the  same  year.  In  1905,  fifty  years  after  the  work  was 
completed,  he  made  a  visit  to  the  canal.  Following  its  building  he  re- 
turned to  the  Michigan  Central  Railroad  Compan}-,  which  he  repre- 
sented as  wood  and  lumber  inspector  for  a  number  of  years.  He  was 
afterward  made  conductor  on  a  regular  train  of  that  line  running  from 
Marshall  to  Chicago,  in  which  capacity  he  served  for  about  fifteen  years. 
Each  step  in  his  career  has  been  a  forward  one.  He  has  eagerly  watched 
his  opjKirtunitics  for  advancement  and  his  capable  ser\'ice,  unflagging  in- 
dustry and  promptness  in  the  discbarge  of  his  duties  won  him  recog- 
nition and  gained  him  promotion.  Ambitious,  however,  to  engage  in 
business  on  his  own  account,  he  at  length  left  the  railroad  comjjany 
and  witii  the  money  which  he  had  saved  from  his  own  earnings  he  em- 
barked in  merchandising  at  Dowagiac,  opening  a  general  store  in  186G. 
He  continued  in  that  business  for  four  years  and  was  then  in  the  grain 
trade  for  about  six  years.  In  1876  he  located  upon  the  farm  which  he 
had  purchased  in  1849  ^'"''^  which  he  had  carried  on  in  connection  with 
the  management  of  his  other  business  interests  from  the  time  that  it  had 
come  into  his  possession.  During  a  part  of  that  period  he  had  also  made 
his  home  upon  the  farm.  He  is  now  giving  his  undivided  attention  to 
agricultural  pursuits  and  is  the  owner  of  two  hundred  acres  of  land  which 
is  rich  and  productive.  The  fields  annually  return  good  harvests  and 
there  are  modern  improvements  upon  the  place  which  indicate  a  pro- 
gressive spirit. 

In  December,  1S54.  Mr.  Wells  was  married  to  Miss  Pliebe  Carr, 
a  daughter  of  Cary  and  Eliza  (Hazlett)  Carr.  ]\Irs.  Wells  was  born 
in  the  Empire  state  but  was  brought  to  Cass  county  when  eleven  years 
of  age  and  has  resided  here  continuously  since.  They  now  have  two 
living  children,  a  son  and  daughter:  Alice,  the  wife  of  Judge  Harry 
B.  Tuthill,  of  ^Michigan  City,  Indiana, ;  and  Elbert  C.  who  is  in  the 
mail  service  on  the  railroad  and  makes  his  home  in  Grand  Rapids. 

Mr.  Wells  is  a  stanch  Republican,  having  supported  the  party  con- 
tinuously since  its  organization.  He  voted  for  Fillmore  in  1852.  for 
Fremont  in  1856  and  Lincoln  in  i860  and  he  has  since  supported  each 
presidential  nominee  of  the  party.     He  has  been  township  treasurer  and 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  673 

supervisor  fur  six.  years  and  held  other  local  ot'tices.  in  iHiAj  he  was 
elected  to  the  leyislalure  to  represent  the  northern  district  of  Cass 
county  and  in  ihat  position  as  ni  local  oflices  lie  was  found  worthy  the 
trust  reposed  in  him,  discharging  his  duties  with  credit  to  himself  and 
satisfaction  to  his  coubtitutcnts.  In  tlie  Congregational  church  at  Dow- 
agiac  in  which  he  holds  membership  he  has  tilled  most  of  the  offices, 
acting  as  treasurer,  trustee  and  in  other  positions  and  co-operating  in 
many  movements  for  the  extension  of  the  influence  of  the  churcli  and 
Its  power  as  a  moral  force  m  the  community.  He  has  been  a  continuous 
resident  of  Cass  county  for  hfty-seven  years,  active  ni  all  things  per- 
taining to  its  good,  and  now  in  the  evening  of  life,  for  he  has  passetl 
the  seventv-seveiith  milestone  on  life's  journey,  he  receives  the  venera- 
tion and  respect  whicli  should  ever  be  accorded  those  of  similar  j'ears 
whose  career  has  been  characterized  by  all  that  is  honorable  and  straight- 
forward. 

¥.  H.  ROSS. 

The  German  poet,  Goethe,  has  said,  "JMerit  and  success  go  linked 
together,"  and  this  statement  finds  verification  in  the  life  record  of  T.  H. 
Ross,  who  by  his  diligence  and  unabating  energy  acquired  the  compe- 
tence that  now  enables  him  to  live  retired  in  the  enjoyment  of  well- 
earnetl  ease  at  his  pleasant  home  in  Dowagiac.  He  was  born  in  Essex, 
New  York,  August  3,  1S34,  a  son  of  Henry  H.  Ross,  wlu)  was  also  a 
native  of  that  county.  The  paternal  grandfather,  Daniel  Ross,  was  born 
in  Rossiure,  Scotland,  and  following  his  emigration  to  the  new  world 
became  a  manufacturer  at  Essex,  New  York,  where  he  was  connected 
with  the  operation  of  iron  works  and  also  the  conduct  of  a  lumber  indus- 
try. Henry  H.  Ross  followed  the  acquirement  of  his  literary  educa- 
tion by  the  study  of  law  and  became  a  practicing  attorney  in  the  village 
of  Essex,  New  York,  where  his  last  days  were  passed.  He  was  one  of 
the  electors  on  the  presidential  ticket  when  Zachary  Taylor  was  chosen 
chief  executive  of  the  nation.  His  ability  in  the  trial  of  important  law 
cases  won  him  prominence  and  enabled  him  to  command  high  fees.  For 
a  single  case  he  received  ten  thousand  dollars.  His  mind  was  keenly 
analytical,  logical  and  inductive  and  he  had  comprehensive  knowledge 
of  the  principles  of  jurisprudence  and  displayed  great  accuracy  in  their 
application  to  the  points  at  issue.  He  filled  the  office  of  judge  of  the 
circuit  court  in  New  York  and  was  also  a  general  of  the  state  militia, 
serving  as  aid-de-camp  on  the  staff  of  General  McComb  at  the  battle  of 
Plattsburg.  Fie  lived  to  be  sevciit_\'-two  years  of  age  and  was  regarded 
as  one  of  the  most  prominent  and  honored  men  in  his  jxartion  of  the 
Empire  state.  His  wife  bore  the  maiden  name  of  Susanna  Blanchard. 
and  was  a  daughter  of  Judge  Blanchard  of  Salem.  New  York,  who  was 
of  French  Huguenot  descent  and  became  a  distinguished  attorney  of  the 
Empire  state.  Mrs.  Ross  was  also  a  representative  of  the  family  of  Dr. 
Proudfoot,  who  was  a  noted  Presbyterian  minister.     She  was  reared  and 


674  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

educated  in  Salem,  which  was  tlie  place  of  her  birth  and  she  lived  to  be 
seventy-two  years  of  age.  In  the  family  were  seven  children,  two  daugh- 
ters and  five  sons,  all  of  whom  reached  adult  age.  while  the  daughters 
and  two  of  the  sons  are  yet  living,  namely :  John,  who  resides  in  Platts- 
burg.  New  York,  where  he  is  connected  with  manufacturing  interests ; 
Frances  Ellen ;  and  one  daughter  who  is  living  in  New  York  City. 

¥.  H.  Ross  of  this  review  was  the  third  in  order  of  birth  of  the 
seven  children.  He  acquired  a  common  school  education  in  Essex  and 
was  graduated  at  Burlington  College.  He  studied  law  l^ut  on  account 
of  his  eyesight  was  compelled  to  relinquish  the  plan  of  following  the 
profession  and  came  west  to  Detroit,  where  he  entered  upon  his  business 
career  as  a  clerk  in  a  hardware  store.  In  i860  he  removed  to  Dowagiac 
and  established  a  hardware  business  on  his  own  account,  conducting  the 
.«ame  with  success  until  1886,  when  he  disposed  of  his  stock  and  turned 
his  attention  to  the  real  estate,  loan  and  insurance  business,  in  which  he 
soon  secured  a  good  clientage,  continuing  in  that  business  until  1901, 
when  he  retired  altogether  from  active  connection  with  commercial  or 
industrial  interests.  Fie  won  a  fair  amount  of  prosperity  in  his  under- 
takings and  in  fact  accumulated  capital  sufficient  to  now  enable  him 
to  rest  in  the  enjoyment  of  his  fruits  of  his  former  toil,  having  all  of 
the  necessities  and  comforts  and  some  of  the  luxuries  of  life. 

Mr.  Ross  was  married  in  1S59  to  Miss  Frances  Dixon,  daughter  of 
Captain  William  Dixon,  of  Burlington,  Vermont.  She  was  born  in  that 
city,  where  her  girlhood  days  were  passed  and  her  education  was  acquired. 
Two  children  have  blessed  this  union:  Frances  Minnie,  at  home;  and 
Susanna  D.,  who  became  the  wife  of  R.  W.  Sheldon  and  died,  leaving  a 
son,  Frederick  R.,  who  is  the  only  grandchild  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Ross. 
In  his  political  affiliation  IMr.  Ross  is  independent,  voting  for  the  candi- 
dates whom  he  regards  at  best  qualified  for  office.  He  has  served  as 
president  of  the  village  board,  but  has  never  been  an  office  seeker  and 
has  refused  to  become  a  candidate.  Fie  l>elongs  to  the  ^lasonic  frater- 
nity, in  which  he  has  attained  the  Royal  Arch  degree.  For  many  vears 
he  has  been  identified  witli  the  interests  of  Dowagiac,  his  residence  here 
covering  four  decades.  The  town  contained  only  about  seven  hundred 
inhabitants  when  he  arrived,  and  from  that  time  to  the  present  he  has 
been  closely  associated  with  its  business  interests  and  its  material,  in- 
tellectual, moral  and  social  progress.  His  life  has  been  actuated  bv  no 
mad  rush  for  wealth,  for  he  has  been  content  with  a  fair  share  of  the 
world's  goods  and  is  now  enjoying  life  in  well-earned  rest. 

CHARLES  T.  AMSDEN. 

Charles  T.  Amsden.  the  secretary-  of  the  Dowagiac  Cas  &  Fuel 
Company  and  also  partner  in  a  grocers-  enterprise  of  this  citv,  possesses 
excellent  business  and  executive  ability  that  have  gained  him  prominence 
and  won  his  success  in  his  business  operations.     He  was  bom  in   Red 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  675 

Wing,  iMinnesota,  on  tlie  31st  of  October,  1856.  The  ancestral  home 
of  the  family  in  this  country'  was  in  New  York  and  one  of  its  representa- 
tives ser\ed  as  a  soldier  in  the  war  of  1812.  The  Amsdens  came  of 
English  hncage.  George  W.  Amsden,  the  father  of  our  subject,  was  born 
in  New  York  and  came  to  ^Michigan  m  1857,  while  at  the  present  writ- 
ing, in  1905,  he  is  living  in  Baldwin.  Kansas.  Following  the  occupa- 
tion of  farming  throug-hout  his  entire  business  career,  he  located  on  a 
farm  in  Wayne  township  when  he  took  up  his  abode  in  Cass  county 
and  while  residing  here  served  as  supervisor  of  Wayne  township  for 
a  number  of  years.  He  was  at  one  time  an  active  and  valued  member 
of  the  ^lasonic  fraternity  and  his  political  support  has  long  been  given 
to  the  Republican  party.  He  now  makes  his  home  in  Baldwin,  Kansas, 
at  the  age  of  eighty  years.  His  wife,  who  bore  the  maiden  name  of 
Caroline  Turner,  is  a  native  of  Ohio.  She  belongs  to  the  Congregational 
church.  In  their  family  were  seven  children:  Israel,  deceased;  Charles 
T.,  of  this  review;  Israel,  the  second  of  the  name,  who  has  also  passed 
away;  Lois,  the  wife  of  Roland  E.  Alorse,  a  grocery  merchant  of 
Dowagiac:  Clr.ra,  the  wife  of  William  Stillwell,  a  farmer  of  Ocosto, 
Washington;  Ida,  the  wife  of  A.  C.  Vaughan.  who  is  also  a  farmer  of 
Ocosto;  and  Daniel  C,  who  is  engaged  in  the  hardware  business  at 
Dinuba,  California. 

Mr.  Amsden  of  this  review  was  reared  to  farm  life  and  e;u-ly  became 
familiar  with  the  duties  and  labors  that  fall  to  the  lot  of  the  agricult- 
urist. Fie  was  only  about  a  year  old  when  brought  by  his  parents 
to  Michigan  and  he  pursued  his  education  in  the  schools  of  Cassopolis, 
after  which  he  engaged  in  teaching  school  for  four  years.  He  then 
became  connected  with  mercantile  interests  as  a  clerk  in  the  employ 
of  Mosher  &  Palmer,  grocers  of  Dowagiac,  with  whom  he  remained 
for  four  years.  He  then  embarked  in  the  grocery  business  on  his  own 
account  in  association  with  James  P.  Bond,  and  that  partnership  was 
maintained  for  four  years.  In  18S8  Mr.  Amsden  and  Julius  Becraft 
purchased  the  Dowagiac  Republican  and  in  the  second  year  thereafter 
Mr.  Amsden  retired  and  embarked  in  the  grocery  business  in  connection 
with  Roland  E.  ^lorse.  with  whom  he  is  still  associated,  their  business 
being  a  profitable  enterprise  of  the  city.  In  1891  the  Dowagiac  Gas  & 
Fuel  Company  was  organized  and  the  following  year  the  plant  was 
installed.  Mr.  Amsden  has  been  secretary  and  manager  since  that  time 
and  devotes  the  greater  part  of  his  attention  to  the  duties  of  this  office 
in  connection  with  the  management  of  the  interests  of  the  gas  company, 
which  has  given  to  its  patrons  good  service  and  is  a  valued  industrious 
enterprise  of  the  city. 

In  18S2  Mr.  Amsden  was  united  in  marriage  to  Mrs.  Susan  E.  Jewel, 
a  native  of  Cass  county  and  a  daughter  of  John  N.  and  Mary  A. 
(Bonnell)  Jewel.  Her  father  was  a  farmer  by  occupation.  In  his 
fraternal  relations  ]Mr.  Amsden  is  a  IMason,  having  attained  high  rank 
in  the  craft,  for  he  is  now  a  Knight  Templar  and  a  Shriner.     He  also 


676  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

belongs  to  the  Elks  lodge,  the  Knights  of  the  Maccabees,  the  Legion  of 
Honor  and  the  Knights  of  Pythias.  In  politics  he  is  an  unfaltering 
Republican,  and  has  ber\-ed  for  two  terms  as  city  treasurer,  as  city  clerk 
for  one  term  and  as  alderman  for  the  second  ward  for  two  temis.  In 
the  discharge  of  his  official  duties  he  displays  the  same  fidelity  and  care 
which  arc  manifest  in  the  management  of  his  private  business  interests 
and  in  Dowagiac  he  has  a  wide  and  favorable  acquaintance  resulting 
from  a  genial  manner  and  an  upright  life. 

THEODORE    F.    WILBER. 

Theodore  F.  Wilber,  an  honored  veteran  of  the  Ci\il  war,  who 
enlisted  in  defense  of  the  Union  when  only  seventeen  years  of  age, 
is  now  living  in  Dowagiac.  He  was  born  in  Seneca  county,  New  York, 
at  the  family  home  on  the  west  bank  of  Cayuga  Lake,  June  12,  1846. 
His  father,  Gideon  S.  W'ilber,  was  also  a  native  of  Seneca  county, 
where  he  resided  until  185.1,  when  with  his  family  he  came  to  the 
middle  west,  settling  first  on  a  farm  in  Wayne  township,  Cass  county, 
where  he  lived  for  about  a  year.  In  the  spring  of  1S55  he  lx>ught  a 
farm  in  L-a  Grange  township,  removed  to  that  property  and  continued 
to  make  his  home  there  throughout  his  remaining-  days.  His  entire 
life  was  devoted  to  general  agricultural  pursuits  and  he  tilled  the  fields 
and  cultivated  the  crops  until  his  life's  labors  were  ended,  being  a  dili- 
gent, energetic  man.  He  was  also  a  public-spirited  citizen  and  his 
fellow  townsmen,  reci^gnizing  his  worth  and  loyalty,  frequently  called 
him  to  positions  of  trust  and  responsibility.  He  held  niany  offices 
during  the  years  of  his  residence  in  this  county.  He  was  superintend- 
ent of  the  poor  for  about  fifteen  years  and  was  deputy  sheriff  for  two 
years.  He  gave  his  political  allegiance  to  the  Republican  party  from 
the  time  of  its  organization,  watched  with  interest  the  progress  of 
events  in  the  south  prior  to  the  Civil  War  and  when  the  Republican 
party  was  formed  to  meet  existing  conditions,  he  joined  its  ranks  and 
was  one  of  its  most  loyal  advocates.  For  forty  years  he  was  a  reader 
of  the  semi-weekly  New  York  Trihiiiic  and  at  one  time  was  the  only 
subscriber  to  the  paper  in  this  part  of  the  countiy.  He  was  well  known 
in  the  county  as  a  man  of  public  spirit,  interested  in  everything  relating 
to  the  material,  intellectual  and  moral  as  well  as  political  progress  of 
the  comnnmity,  and  he  assisted  in  building  three  different  churches, 
although  he  did  not  ally  himself  with  any  denomination.  He  was,  how- 
ever, a  man  of  high  moral  principles  and  genuine  worth  who  was  re- 
liable in  business  afTairs  and  at  all  times  commanded  and  merited  the 
confidence  and  esteem  of  those  with  whom  he  came  in  contact.  He 
married  Miss  Louisa  M.  Hause,  also  a  native  of  Seneca  county,  New 
York,  and  a  daughter  of  John  Hause,  whose  birth  occurred  in  the  Em- 
pire state  and  who  died  in  Cass  county  at  the  age  of  eighty-three  years. 
The  death  of  Gideon  Wilber  occurred  when  he  had  reached  the  vener- 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  G7T 

able  age  of  eighty-five  years.  In  his  family  were  five  children,  one  daugh- 
ter and  four  sons,  all  of  whom  are  living  with  one  exception. 

Theodore  V.  Wilber,  the  second  child  and  eldest  son,  was  about 
eight  years  of  age  when  brought  by  his  parents  to  Alichigan  and  has  since 
remained  a  resident  of  Cass  county.  He  began  his  education  in  the 
public  schools  of  New  York  and  continued  his  studies  in  the  district 
schools  of  LaGrange  township.  Through  the  summer  months  he  aided 
in  the  work  of  the  fields  and  remained  at  home  until  seventeen  years  of 
age,  when,  ni  response  to  his  country's  need,  he  enlisted  as  a  private 
of  Company  yi.  First  ^Michigan  Cavalry,  in  1S63.  With  that  command 
he  served  until  the  close  of  the  war  and  was  then  sent  among  the  Indians 
on  tiie  frontier  to  aid  in  the  suppression  of  the  uprisings  among  the  red 
race,  lie  thus  did  duty  in  the  far  west  until  March,  1866,  after  serving 
for  nearl\-  three  years,  lie  was  ever  a  faithful  and  loyal  soldier,  never 
faltering  in  the  performance  of  any  duty  that  devolved  upon  him  whether 
it  led  him  to  the  firing  line,  stationed  him  on  the  lonely  picket  line  or 
called  him  to  the  frontier. 

When  the  war  ended  IMr.  Wilber  returned  to  his  old  home  in  La- 
Grange  townsliip  and  resumed  farming  on  his  father's  place.  Fie  gained 
intimate  knowledge  of  the  best  methods  of  tilling  the  soil  and  caring  for 
the  crops  and  v.-as  thus  well  qualified  to  carry  on  farm  work  on  his  own 
account  when  he  estal^lished  a  home  for  himself.  Fie  was  married  on  the 
24th  of  Decemlx^r,  1868,  to  JNIiss  Fannie  Jennings,  a  daughter  of  Milton 
and  Margaret  (  Burns)  Jennings.  Fler  father  was  born  in  Connecticut. 
Her  mother  died  when  Mrs.  Wilber  was  only  two  years  old.  There 
were  three  children  in  the  family,  the  eldest  being  Charles,  who  en- 
listed for  service  as  a  soldier  in  the  Civil  war  and  was  killed  in  battle. 
The  elder  daughter.  Martha,  is  now  deceased,  leaving  Mrs.  Wilber,  the 
youngest  member  of  the  family,  as  the  only  one  now  surviving  with  the 
exception  of  a  half  sister,  for  the  father  was  married  twice.  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Wilber  have  one  son,  Fred  J.,  who  is  a  civil  engineer,  who  was 
graduated  on  the  comjiletion  of  the  engineering  course  in  the  Michigan 
state  university  at  Ann  Arbor  in  1900  and  is  now  located  in  Buffalo, 
New  York. 

Mr.  Wilber  is  executor  for  the  father's  estate,  comprising  two  hun- 
dred and  si.xtv  acres  of  land,  and  in  the  management  of  this  property  dis- 
plays good  business  ability  and  executive  force.  He  belongs  to  H.  C. 
Gilbert  Post,  G.  A.  R.,  of  Dowagiac.  and  is  now  senior  vice  commander. 
He  has  always  taken  an  active  part  in  the  work  of  the  Grand  Army  of 
the  Republic  and  is  a  stalwart  advocate  of  the  principles  upon  which 
this  order  is  based.  Fle  enjoys  recounting-  incidents  of  army  life  around 
its  campfires  amid  tlie  genial  companionship  of  his  old  army  comrades. 
He  was  but  seventeen  years  of  age  when  he  enlisted  and  twenty  years 
of  age  wlien  honora1>ly  discharged  and  was  therefore  not  a  \-oter  until 
one  year  after  he  had  completed  his  term  of  military  sendee.  His  first 
presidential  liallot  wa"^  cast  for  General  Grant  and  he  has  always  been 


678  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

an  advocate  of  tlie  Republican  party.  He  has  resided  in  this  county  for 
a  hall  century  and  is  now  the  only  \\'ilher  here  representing-  his  father's 
descenclants.  He  is  well  known  and  his  strong  and  salient  character- 
istics have  been  such  a.^  have  won  for  him  favorable  regard  from  his 
lellowmen.  Great  changes  have  occurred  since  he  came  to  the  county 
as  the  work  of  improvement  has  been  carried  forward  and  i\Ir.  Wilber's 
mind  reverts  liack  to  the  time  when  much  of  the  land  was  still  unculti- 
vated, when  there  were  considerable  stretches  of  fort-^t  }et  uncut  and 
when  several  of  the  towns  which  are  now  the  centers  of  business  and  com- 
mercial enterprise  had  not  yet  been  founded.  He  has  ever  been  flcep'y 
interested  in  the  work  oi  development  and  has  borne  his  full  share  in 
this  ta.'ik,  mauifestir.g  at  all  times  the  same  loyalty  which  he  displayed 
when  upon  southern  battlefields  he  followed  the  stars  and  stripes. 

H.  A.  CREGO. 

H.  A.  Crego,  known  tlirougbout  Cass  county  as  Squire  Crego,  has 
for  thirty-six  years  been  justice  of  the  peace,  and  no  stronger  evidence 
could  be  given  <if  ca])able  service  and  impartial  decisiijus  than  the  fact 
that  he  has  so  long  been  retained  in  the  ofifice.  He  has  lived  in  Cass 
county  from  an  earl)-  day  and  imw  makes  his  home  on  section  29,  Vol- 
inia  township.  Aloreover  he  is  entitled  to  representation  in  this  volume 
as  a  native  son  of  Michigan,  his  birth  having  occurred  on  the  2nd  of 
August,  1S40,  in  Lenawee  county,  at  the  junction  of  the  Chicago  and 
Monroe  turnpikes.  His  parents  were  Rulef  D.  and  Eliza  (Arms) 
Crego.  The  father  was  iMirn  in  the  jMohawk  valley  of  New  York  and 
there  remained  until  about  thirty  years  of  age,  when,  believing  that  he 
might  enjov  better  business  opportunities  in  the  new  but  growing  west, 
he  made  his  way  to  Michigan,  settling  in  Lenawee  county.  He  had 
been  married  in  New  York.  His  first  wife  was  Mary  J.  Strannahan 
and  there  were  ten  children  born  of  that  marriage.  Following  the 
death  of  the  mother  the.  fatlier  married  again.  His  wife  was  a  native 
of  Conway,  Franklin  county.  Massachusetts,  and  was  there  reared.  She 
first  married  Ichabod  Nelson,  and  it  was  subsequent  to  his  death  that 
she  gave  her  hand  in  marriage  to  Rulef  D.  Crego.  By  this  marriage 
there  were  born  three  children,  nf  whom  Squire  Cregn  is  the  second. 
The  other  two,  however,  died  in  infancy,  so  that  the  subject  of  this 
review  is  the  only  surviving  member  of  the  entire  family. 

When  only  two  years  old  Squire  Crego  was  brought  to  Cass  coun- 
ty by  his  parents,  the  family  locating  in  Newberg  township,  where  he 
was  reared  in  the  usual  maimer  of  farm  lads  of  that  period  and  locality. 
He  was  educated  in  the  district  schools  and  shared  with  the  family  in 
the  pioneer  experiences  incident  to  the  establishment  of  a  home  on  the 
frontier.  The  father  died  when  the  son  was  eighteen  years  of  age  and  he 
and  his  mother  remained  in  Newberg  township  for  about  four  years 
thereafter,   when   Mrs.   Crego  also  passed  away.       Squire  Crego,  how- 


--  -—^^ 

x'   '"" 

\      1  r 

/'■' 

^ 

•    1/ 

HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  679 

ever,  continued  to  reside  in  the  same  township  for  some  time  there- 
after and  was  married  there  rm  the  14th  of  Februaiy,  1S63,  to  Miss  Mar}- 
Lyncli,  a  daughter  of  George  and  Rebecca  Lynch,  who  lived  in  Adams- 
ville,  New  York,  and  came  from  the  Empire  state  to  Michigan.  The 
birth  of  Mrs.  Crego  occurred  in  Adamsville,  and  at  her  death  she  left 
one  son,  Charles  C.  Crego,  who  is  now  a  salesman  in  a  department  store 
in  Washington.  In  1S69  Mr.  Crego  was  married  to  Miss  Phebe  Hin- 
shaw,  who  died  leaving  one  son,  Frank  R.,  now  a  resident  of  Volinia 
township.  In  1897  occurred  the  marriage  of  Squire  Crego  and  Mary 
Jane  Newton,  who  was  Ixirn  upon  the  farm  where  she  now  resides  Jan- 
uary I,  1853,  her  parents  being  George  and  Esther  (Green)  Newton, 
who  came  to  this  county  in  pioneer  days,  the  father  in  1831  and  the 
mother  in  1S34.  The  name  of  Xewton  has  since  been  associated  with 
the  history  of  progress  and  development  here  and  has  always  stood  as 
a  synonym  of  good  citizenship. 

Squire  Crego  has  been  a  life-long  farmer  and  is  now  following 
agricultural  pursuits  on  section  29,  Volinia  township.  He  has  voted 
witli  the  Republican  party  since  age  gave  to  him  the  right  of  franchise, 
and  has  been  honored  with  a  number  of  local  positions  of  public  tmst, 
having  served  as  constable  and  as  township  clerk  in  Newberg  township, 
as  highway  commissioner  of  Volinia  township  and  as  justice  of  the 
peace  for  about  thirty-six  years.  His  positions  were  strictly  fair  and 
impartial  and  have  "won  golden  opinions  from  all  sorts  of  people." 
He  belongs  to  the  Methodist  Protestant  church  and  is  a  meml)er  of  the 
Masonic  lodge  at  Volinia  and  also  the  Knights  of  the  Maccabees.  He 
has  been  a  resident  of  the  county  for  sixty-four  years  and  in  1905  was 
elected  president  of  the  Pioneers'  Association. 

C.  L.  SHERWOOD. 

C.  L.  Sherwood  is  the  pioneer  druggist  of  Dov.agiac  and  has  been 
connected  with  this  line  of  commercial  enterprise  in  Michigan  and  else- 
where for  fifty-two  years.  The  consensus  of  public  opinion  is  altogether 
favorable  regarding  his  business  qualifications,  reliabilitv  and  enterpri.^e 
and  no  history  of  the  commercial  development  of  Dowagiac  would  be 
complete  without  the  life  record  of  Mr.  Sherwood.  He  was  born  in 
Erie  county,  Pennsylvania,  on  the  4th  of  September,  1S3S.  and  is  of 
English  lineage,  the  family  having  been  founded  in  .Ajuerica  by  three 
brothers  of  the  name  who  came  from  England  to  the  new  world  at  an 
early  perif>fl  in  its  colonization.  One  .of  the  brothers  located  in  New 
York,  one  in  the  south  and  the  other  in  New  England.  The  grandfather 
of  our  suljject  was  John  Sherwood,  a  resident  of  the  Empire  state.  His 
son,  P.  W.  Sherwood,  was  born  in  Tompkins  county.  New  York,  and 
became  a  minister  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  church.  lie  was  reared 
and  educated  in  Pennsylvania  and.  determining  to  devote  his  life  to  the 
work  of  the  gospel,  he  prepared  for  the  ministry  and  for  forty-five  years 


680  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

labored  earnestly  in  advancing  the  cause  of  the  church  in  Pennsylvania. 
Xew  \'(irk  and  Ohio,  where  lie  tilled  various  pastorates.  His  intluence 
was  a  potent  element  t'^r  gond  in  every  community  in  which  he  lived 
and  his  iiicnuu'v  remains  as  a  blessed  benediction  to  many  who  knew 
him  and  came  uniler  his  teaching-.  His  last  days  were  spent  in  Ohio, 
where  he  jiassed  away  at  the  age  of  eighty-three  years.  In  early  man- 
hood he  wedded  Miss  Orilla  Frye,  a  native  of  Vermont,  who.  however, 
was  renretl  in  Eric  county,  Pennsylvania.  She  was  the  daughter  of 
John  l''rye,  who  was  of  English  descent.  Her  death  occurred  in  1S62 
when  she  was  almut  forty-five  }erir*.,of  age.  Four  children  had  been 
born  of  tliat  marriage,  twn  sons  and  !  a'  •  daughters,  of  whom  C.  L.  Sher- 
wood of  this  review  i«  the  eldest,  'iiic 'others  are:  Lucy,  the  wife  of 
Gibson  J.  Straniiahan,  >>{  Liir  \,  Ohio,  where  he  is  engaged  in  Inisiness 
as  an  enipl(.i}'ec  of  th.e  Standard  Oil  Company;  Mary,  the  wife  of  P.  T. 
Mowry,  an  insurance  alent  of  Chiaago,  Illinois;  and  Oscar  M.,  who 
died  when  about  thirty-sTx  y-Mi  s  "of  age,  was  a  resident  of  Dowagiac, 
and  was  a  druggist. 

C.  L.  Sherwood  spent  the  first  thirteen  years  of  his  life  in  the  state 
of  his  nativity  and  then  moved  to  Xew  York.  In  1859  he  returned  to 
Pennsylvania,  settling  at  Union  City,  and  in  1S6S  he  came  to  Dowagiac, 
Michigan,  where  he  has  since  made  his  home.  He  entered  the  drug 
business  at  Holley,  Xew  York,  and  continued  in  the  drug  trade  at 
Union  City,  Pennsylvania.  On  coming  to  Dowagiac  he  purchased  the 
drug  store  of  IToward  &  Halleck  and  he  also  purchased  the  stores  of 
M.  B.  Hollister  and  .Asa  Huntington.  He  has  since  continued  in  busi- 
ness and  is  today  the  oldest  druggist  of  the  city.  He  has  a  well  equipped 
establishment,  neat  and  attractive  in  its  arrangement  and  he  carries  a 
large  and  well  selected  line  of  drugs  and  sundry  goods.  His  trade  has 
constantly-  grown  with  the  dex'elopment  of  the  town  and  surrounding 
country  and  almost  from  the  beginning  the  business  has  proved  a  pro.fit- 
able  one,  so  that  as  the  years  have  passed  Mr.  Sherwood  has  become 
one  of  the  substantial  citizens  of  his  community. 

In  1862  Mr.  Sherwood  was  united  in  marriage  to  ^liss  Mary  W. 
Wood  and  unto  them  were  lx)rn  two  children,  but  both  died  in  child- 
hood. Mr.  Sherwood  is  identified  with  the  Benevolent  and  Protective 
Order  of  Elks,  the  Ancient  Order  of  United  Workmen,  and  the  Knights 
of  Honor.  He  is  also  a  very  prominent  Mason,  having  attained  the 
thirty-second  degree  of  the  Scottish  rite,  while  with  the  X'obles  of  the 
Mystic  Shrine  he  has  crossed  the  sands  of  the  desert.  Plis  political 
allegiance  has  long  been  given  to  the  Republican  party  and  he  ser\'ed 
as  postmaster  in  Pennsylvania  under  appointment  of  .\braham  Lincoln. 
He  has  also  been  postmaster  of  Dowagiac  for  eleven  years  under  the 
administrations  of  presidents  Grant  and  Hayes  and  he  was  mayor  of 
Union  City,  Pennsylvania.  X'o  public  trust  reposed  in  him  has  ever 
been  betrayed  in  the  slightest  degree,  hi?  official  service  being  character- 
ized by  unfaltering  devotion  to  duty.     He  has  been  in  business  in  Dow- 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  681 

agiac  for  tliirty-eight  years,  tlie  firm  being  now  Sherwood  &  Burlinganie, 
and  in  addition  to  liis  store  he  owns  valuable  property  interests  here, 
including'  two  business  blocks,  houses  and  lots.  All  that  he  possesses 
has  been  ac(juired  thmugh  hi>  own  enterprising  efforts  and  his  life  rec- 
ord slious  what  may  Ijc  accomplished  by  unremitting  diligence  and 
energy  that  never  llags.  He  has  not  made  the  accumulation  of  wealth, 
however,  his  sole  end  and  aim  in  life,  for  he  has  had  due  regard  to  the 
duties  of  citizenship,  of  home  life  and  of  social  relations  and  is  recog- 
nized as  a  man  of  genuine  personal  worth. 

GILEl' RT  .COXKLIN. 

Gilbert  Conklin.  a  prominent  farmi.»-  living  in  Silver  Creek  town- 
sliip  who-e  capable  management  "  Hs  business  interests  is  indicated  by 
the  success  that  follows  his  ei  ■  •  .  was.' born  in  Otsego  county.  New 
York,  March  17,  1830.  He  i;,  i.c  eldest  child'of  Abram  and  Belinda 
(Gilbert)  Conklin.  Tlie  family  is  descended  from  three  brothers,  who 
came  from  England  to  .Anierica  in  early  colonial  days.  The  paternal 
grantlfalher,  Simeon  Conkbii.  was  a  native  of  New  York,  born  in  Otsego 
county.  There  he  devoted  his  entire  life  to  agricultural  pursuits,  spend- 
ing his  last  days  upon  his  farm. 

Abram  Conklin,  father  of  our  subject,  was  l)orn  in  Otsego  county, 
and  in  1851  canie  to  Michigan,  locating  first  upon  a  farm  known  as  the 
Hess  property  in  LaGrange  township.  The  following  year,  however, 
he  removed  to  Silver  Creek  township  and  took  up  his  abode  on  tlie  east 
shore  of  Indian  lake,  where  he  developed  and  improved  a  farm,  giving 
his  attention  to  its  cultivation  for  many  years  thereafter.  In  fact  he 
resided  upon  that  property  until  his  death,  which  occurred  when  he  was 
in  his  seventy-sixth  year.  He  married  IMiss  Belinda  Gilbert,  a  native 
of  Herkimer  county.  New  York,  and  a  daughter  of  William  B.  Gilbert 
of  the  same  county.  He  was  of  French  descent.  ]Mrs.  Belinda  Conk- 
lin died  upon  the  home  farm  in  Silver  Creek  township  at  the  age  of 
fifty-two  vcars.  There  were  eight  childreii  in  the  family,  one  of  whrmi 
died  in  infancy.  The  others  are:  Gilbert,  of  this  review;  Simeon; 
Abram;  Jane;  George,  who  died  at  the  age  of  fourteen;  Charles:  and 
Lydia. 

Gilbert  Conklin  was  reared  in  the  county  of  his  nativity  and  ac- 
quired his  education  there  in  the  district  schools.  He  came  to  Cass 
county,  jMichigan,  with  his  pareiits  and  remained  with  them  until  his 
marriage,  in  the  meantime  assisting  in  the  work  of  the  fields  and  the 
development  of  a  new  farm.  On  the  T3th  of  February.  1862.  he  was 
joined  in  wedlock  to  Miss  IVTaria  Bedford,  a  daughter  of  George  and 
Ann  (Smith)  Bedford,  both  of  whom  were  born  in  Lincolnshire.  Eng- 
land. They  spent  their  childlmod  there  in  that  country,  were  married 
there  and  in  1835  crossed  the  .Atlantic  to  America,  locating  near  Syra- 
cuse, New  York,  v/here  thev  remained  for  about  six  years.     In    184  t 


682  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

Ihey  came  to  JNIichigan,  settling  in  Silver  Creek  township,  Cass  county, 
where  they  spent  their  remaining  days,  both  attaining  an  advanced  age, 
the  father  passing  away  wlien  he  IkuI  reached  the  age  vi  seventy-tive 
years,  while  the  mother's  death  (icciuTed  when  she  was  seventy-four 
years  of  age.  In  their  family  were  six  daughters  and  two  sons,  of 
whom  three  died  in  infanc}-.  Two  of  the  number  were  born  in  New 
York,  while  the  others  were  natives  of  Silver  Creek  township.  There 
are  four  daughters  and  a  son  living.  Mrs.  Conklin,  who  was  the  third 
child  and  second  daughter,  was  torn  in  Silver  Creek  township,  June  5, 
1842,  and  has  been  a  life-long  resident  of  this  part  of  the  county.  At 
the  usual  age  she  began  her  education  in  the  district  schools  and  after- 
ward she  engaged  in  teaching,  which  profession  she  followed  success- 
fully up  to  the  time  of  her  marriage.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Conklin  began 
their  domestic  life  upon  the  farm  where  they  now  reside,  living  first  in 
a  small  frame  house  which  was  practically  nothing  more  than  a  little 
shanty  twelve  by  twenty  feet.  .As  the  years  passed  by,  three  children 
were  added  to  the  family:  William  G.,  who  was  born  in  1863  and  died 
in  1893  at  the  age  of  thirty  years;  Linda,  who  is  an  artist  now  living 
in  Chicago,  Illinois;  and  Dr.  Alice  I.  Conklin,  a  practicing  physician 
residing  in  Chicago. 

Mr.  Conklin  has  extensive  and  valuable  landed  interests  in  this 
county,  his  farm  comprising  three  hundred  and  forty-eight  acres  of  rich 
land  which  responds  readily  to  the  care  and  cultivation  he  bestows  upon 
the  fields,  bringing  forth  rich  and  abundant  harvests.  He  has  long 
been  recognized  as  an  enterprising  agriculturist  of  his  community  and 
be  has  a  well  improved  farm,  using  good  machinery  to  facilitate  the 
work  of  the  fields,  lie  has  been  almost  a  life-long  resident  of  the 
county,  coming  here  in  his  boyhood  days  and  his  residence  here  now 
covers  more  than  a  half  century,  during  which  time  he  has  witnessed 
the  greater  part  of  the  development  and  improvement  of  this  portion 
of  the  state.  He  has  been  a  stanch  champion  of  the  cause  of  temper- 
'ance  and  is  an  earnest  prohibitionist,  working  eagerly  for  the  success 
of  his  party.  At  one  time  he  was  supervisor  of  his  township.  He  is 
a  member  of  the  ^Methodist  Episcopal  church  and  is  district  trustee. 
His  life  has  been  honorable,  his  actions  manly  and  sincere,  for  at  all 
times  his  conduct  has  been  actuated  by  Christian  principles  and  devo- 
tion to  truth,  justice  and  right. 

/    -      '  ALBON  C.  TAYLOR. 

Albon  C.  Taylor,  supervisor  of  the  first  ward  of  Dowagiac,  w^as 
born  in  Franklin  count}-.  New  York.  April  8,  1861.  His  father,  Mar- 
shall W.  Taylor,  was  also  a  native  of  that  .state  and  during  the  period 
of  the  Civil  war  espoused  the  L^nion  cause,  donned  his  country's  uniform 
and  went  forth  to  defend  the  stars  and  stripes.  He  died  while  serving 
as  a  soldier.     His  wife,  who  bore  the  maiden  name  of  Jane  Abbott,  was 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  683 

a  native  of  Toronto,  Canada,  and  was  taken  by  her  parents  to  the  state 
of  New  York  when  only  four  years  of  age.  By  her  marriage  she  be- 
came the  mother  of  three  sons:  Arthur  J.,  who  is  now  residing  in 
Malone,  Franklin  county,  New  York;  George  E.,  who  makes  liis  home 
in  Kalamazoo,  Michigan;  and  A.  C,  of  this  review. 

Mr.  Taylor,  the  youngest  of  the  family,  was  reared  in  the  place 
of  his  nativity  until  sixteen  years  of  age  and  during  that  period  acquired 
his  education  in  the  district  schools.  He  then  left  home  and  made  his 
way  westward  to  i\Iichigan.  settling  in  Allegan  county,  where  he  was 
employed  at  farm  labor  until  about  the  time  he  attained  his  majority. 
He  then  entered  upon  railroad  work'  in  the  employ  of  the  Michigan  Cen- 
tral Railroad  Company,  securing  a  position  in  the  freight  department 
at  Kalamazoo.  He  came  to  Dowagiac  about  1892  as  foreman  of  the 
freight  house  for  the  Michigan  Central  Company,  spending  six  years 
in  tliat  capacity,  after  whicli  he  iUMgncJ  his  position  and  became  con- 
nected with  the  Dowagiac  ^Manufacturing  Company  in  the  molding 
department.  He  has  since  been  with  the  Round  Oak  Stove  Company, 
with  which  he  occupies  a  good  position. 

Mr.  Taylor  was  married  in  February,  1891,  to  I\Iiss  Irma  Thomp- 
son, a  daugliter  of  Dr.  W.  C.  and  Kate  Thompson.  She  was  born  in 
St.  Joseph  county,  ^Michigan,  and  has  spent  her  entire  life  in  this  county. 
By  her  marriage  she  has  become  the  mother  of  two  sons,  Curtis  and 
Glenn. 

Mr,  Taylor  votes  with  the  Repu])lican  party  and  has  taken  an  active 
and  helpful  interest  in  its  work  and  in  promoting  its  success.  He  was 
also  supervisor  of  the  first  ward  in  1904  and  again  in  1905  and  is  now 
filling  the  position.  In  the  spring  of  1906  he  was  elected  as  city  treas- 
urer of  Dowagiac,  Michigan,  and  is  the  present  inannhent  of  this  office. 
He  is  vice-president  of  the  Round  Oak  Relief  .Association  and  was  one 
of  its  charter  members  and  organizers.  He  also  belongs  to  the  Modern 
Woodmen  camp.  Coming  to  Michigan  when  but  a  youth,  he  has  re- 
sided here  continuously  since,  alid  his  life  history  is  well  know  to  the 
citizens  of  Cass  county  among  whom  he  has  now  lived  for  many  years. 

JOHN  MATER. 

Among  those  to  \\hnm  fate  has  vouchsafed  an  honorable  retire- 
ment from  labor  in  recognition  of  former  toil  and  activity,  is  John 
Mater,  a  retired  farmer  li\-ing  in  Dowagiac.  He  was  born  in  Parke 
county,  In<liana,  June  7,  1S3S.  His  father,  George  ]\Iater,  was  a  native 
of  Pennsylvania,  wliere  he  spent  the  days  of  his  youth.  The  paternal 
grandfather  was  George  ]\rater.  Sr.,  who  for  seven  years  was  a  soldier 
in  the  Revolutionary  war  under  General  Washington  and  valiantly 
fought  for  the  independence  of  the  nati'.m.  On  leaving  the  Keystone 
state  George  ^Mater,  father  of  our  subject,  remc'ved  to  Ohio  and  after- 
ward  to   Indiana,   whence,   in    1844,   he  came  to  Michigan,  settling  in 


«8i  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

Pokag-on  townsliip.  Cass  cminty.  about  three  miles  south  of  Dowagiac. 
At  a  later  day  he  returned  to  Indiana  but  again  came  to  Alichigan,  and 
then  once  more  went  to  Indiana,  while  his  death  occurred  in  Illinois 
in  1S75,  when  he  was  seventy-four  years  of  age.  His  wife,  who  in 
her  maidenhood  was  Elizabeth  Crum,  was  a  daughter  of  Zachariah 
Crum,  who  was  also  a  Revcjlutinnan,-  soldier,  being  with  the  army  under 
command  of  General  Antliony  Wayne.  The  Mater  family  is  of  Ger- 
man lineage,  while  the  Crum  family  is  of  Holland  descent,  i^ii's.  Mater 
died  when  forty-five  years  of  age.  By  her  marriage  she  had  become 
the  mother  of  thirteen  children. 

John  Mater  of  this  review  was  the  seventh  child  and  third  son.  He 
remained  under  the  parental  roof  until  fourteen  years  of  age,  when  his 
mother  died.  It  was  not  long  after  this  that  he  started  out  in  life  on 
his  own  account,  working  at  farm  labor  or  at  anything  he  could  find 
to  do  which  would  yield  liim  an  h(jnest  living.  When  al)oul  fifteen 
years  of  age  he  returned  to  ^vlichigan.  where  he  has  since  made  his 
home.  He  was  \-arinusly  employed  liere  until  after  the  outbreak  of  the 
Civil  war.  when,  on  the  12th  of  August,  1861.  he  enlisted  as  a  member 
of  Com])any  B,  Xinth  Michigan  X'ulunteer  Infantry,  joining  the  army 
as  a  private.  He  served  until  October  7,  1862,  when  he  was  honoralily 
discharged  on  account  of  disability.  On  the  4th  of  Januar\',  however, 
he  re-enlisted  in  the  same  company  and  regiment  to  which  he  had  for- 
merly belonged  ami  served  until  the  close  of  the  war.  He  was  appointed 
coqioral  six  months  after  his  first  enlistment  and  was  made  sergeant  in 
the  fall  of  ^i^('^.  He  was  altogether  for  about  three  years  in  the  serv- 
ice and  pro\-ed  a  lirave  soldier,  being  a  worthy  reprcsentati\c  of  an 
ancestry  that  furnished  several  heroes  to  the  Revolutionary  war.  His 
regiment  was  talvcn  prisoner  at  Murfreeslx>ro,  Tennessee,  on  tlie  13th 
of  July,  i8r>2,  and  was  sent  to  Camp  Chase,  there  remaining  until  ex- 
changed in  the  fdllowing  Scptcmlier.  Mr.  Mater  became  ill  anfl  for 
this  reason  was  discharged.  The  regiment  was  under  command  of  Gen- 
eral Thomas,  acting  as  guard  at  headquarters,  and  remained  as  such 
from  the  battle  of  Strme  River  during  the  war.  Mr.  }\[atcr  recei\-ed 
his  second  discharge  at  Jackson,  ^Michigan,  and  was  mustered  out  at 
Nashville,  Tennessee,  after  wln'ch  he  returned  to  his  home. 

On  the  29th  of  October,  1865.  occurred  the  marriage  of  ]\Tr.  Mater 
and  Miss  AH^ina  Dewey,  a  daughter  of  Jonathan  and  Mary  (Griffin) 
Dewey,  both  of  whom  were  nati\-es  of  Indiana  and  became  pioneer  set- 
tlers of  Cass  county,  locating  in  Pokagon  township  April  21.  1839.  She 
is  a  granddaughter  of  PTenn,-  Dewey,  who  was  also  one  of  the  pioneer 
residents  of  this  cr>untv  and  took  up  land  from  the  government  in  Pok- 
agon  township,  where  be  de\-eloped  a  new  farm.  .\t  the  time  of  their 
marriage  j\lr.  and  Mrs.  Mater  located  on  a  farm  in  Pokagon  township, 
and  there  resided  until  about  1890,  when  he  put  aside  business  cares, 
then  removing  to  Dowagiac.  For  many  years  !\Ir.  Mater  successfully 
and  ablv  carried  on  the  work  of  the  fields,  producing  good  crops  and 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  Obi 

secm-mg  a  graiifjino-  tiaaiicial  income  as  he  placed  his  grain  on  the 
market.  He  was  practical  and  enterprising  in  all  his  farm  work  and 
tlie  neat  ami  thrifty  appearance  of  his  place  indicated  his  careful  super- 
vision. Unto  Air.  and  Mrs.  Alater  were  born  two  children :  Dr.  Elmer 
Lincoln  Mater,  who  is  a  graduate  of  the  Ciiicago  Medical  College  and 
is  now  a  practicing  physician  in  Dowagiac;  and  Mary  Grace,  a  teacher, 
who  is  living  in  South  Haven,  Alichigan. 

Air.  Alater  still  owns  a  farm  of  eighty-nine  acres  of  rich  and  pro- 
ductive land,  and  this  returns  him  a  good  income.  He  is  a  member 
of  H.  C  Gilbert  Tost,  No.  47,  G.  A.  R.,  in  which  he  has  filled  nearly 
all  of  the  offices,  including  that  of  commander.  He  is  also  a  Alason, 
belonging  to  the  Blue  lodge  and  the  chapter  at  Dowagiac.  His  religious 
faith  is  indicated  by  his  membership  in  the  Alethodist  Episcopal  church, 
in  which  he  has  also  held  office,  taking  an  active  and  helpful  part  in  its 
work.  He  has  been  a  life-long  Republican,  and  has  done  much  for  the 
party  in  tliis  community,  serving  as  a  delegate  to  all  of  the  countv  con- 
ventions since  his  return  frum  the  army  and  doing  everything  'in  his 
power  to  promote  the  growth  and  insure  the  success  of'  the  political 
principles  in  which  he  believes.  He  represents  an  old  pioneer  family 
of  the  county,  having  for  sixty-two  years  resided  within  its  borders  and 
at  all  limes  and  under  all  circumstances  he  has  been  as  loyal  to  his  coun- 
try and  her  welfare  as  when  he  followed  the  stars  and  st'ripes  on  south- 
ern battlefields.  Fidelity  to  duty  has  ever  been  one  of  his  strong  and 
salient  characteristics  and  his  integrity  in  business,  his  loyalty  in  citizen- 
ship and  his  honor  in  all  life's  relations  have  made  him  one  o'f  the  repre- 
sentative men  of  the  county. 

ALONZO  J.  HARDY. 

Alonzo  J.  Hardy,  who  after  many  years"  connection  with  farming 
interests  in  Alichigan  is  now  living  retired  in  Dowagiac.  certainly  de- 
serves the  rest  which  is  now  \-ouchsafed  to  him  and  his  life  record  brings 
to  mind  the  lines  of  the  poet: 

"How  blest  is  he  who  crowns  in  shades  like  these 
A  youth  of  labor  with  an  age  of  ease."' 

Air.  Hardy  was  born  in  Otsego  county.  New  York.  June  6.  1S43. 
His  paternal  grandfather,  William  Hardy,  was  of  English  lineage,  but 
the  family  was  established  in  America  in  colonial  days  and  William 
Hardy  was  born  in  New  Y'ork.  His  son.  Peter  Hardy,  was  a  native 
of  Otsego  county,  that  state,  was  reared  to  the  occupation  of  farming 
and  made  that  pursuit  his  life  work.  He  continued  to  reside  in  the 
east  until  1S62,  when,  thinking  tliat  he  might  enjoy  better  business  op- 
portunities in  the  middle  west,  he  came  to  Alichigan,  settling  in  La- 
Grange  township.  Cass  cnunty,  where  he  secured  a  tract  of  land  and 
engaged   in  farming  until    1S69.     He  then  removed   to  Dowagiac  and 


680  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

retired  from  active  business,  spending-  his  remaining  days  in  the  enjoy- 
ment of  a  well-earned  rest.  He  lived  to  he  seventy-two  years  of  age. 
In  the  Methodist  Episcopal  church  he  held  membership  and  in  its  work 
was  deeply  interested,  doing  all  in  his  power  to  promote  the  various 
church  activities.  His  life  was  ever  upright  and  honorable  and  com- 
mended him  to  the  good  will  and  trust  of  his  fellow  men.  Prior  to  the 
Civil  war  he  was  a  stanch  opponent  of  the  system  of  slavery  and  advo- 
cated the  cause  of  aliolition,  and  when  the  Republican  party  was  formed 
to  prevent  the  further  extension  of  sla\-ery  he  joined  its  ranks.  He  was 
well  known  in  the  county  as  a  man  of  the  highest  respectability  and 
worth.  He  married  Miss  Tydia  Huntington,  also  a  native  of  Otsego 
county,  New  York,  and  a  daughter  of  Benjamin  Huntington,  who  came 
of  New  England  ancestry,  removing  from  Vermont  to  the  Empire 
state.  Mrs.  Hardy  died  in  Cass  county  when  seventy-nine  years  of 
age.  In  the  family  were  but  two  sons,  A.  J.,  and  George  Hardy, 
who  live  together  in  Dnwagiac. 

■  Mr.  Hardy  of  this  review  spent  his  boyhood  days  in  the  place  of 
his  nativity.  At  the  usual  age  he  entered  the  common  schools  and 
therein  mastered  the  elementary  branches  of  English  learning.  He  was 
nineteen  years  of  age  when  in  TRr)2  he  responded  to  the  countr\-'s  call 
for  aid,  enlisting  as  a  member  of  Company  D.  One  Ihuulred  and  Fifty- 
second  regiment  of  New  York  volunteers  as  a  private.  He  served  for 
three  years  and  took  part  in  a  number  of  hotly  contested  engagements, 
including  the  battles  of  Cold  Flarlmr,  Reams  Station  and  Petersburg. 
He  was  with  the  army  as  it  followed  Lee  up  to  Appomattox,  where  the 
Confederate  forces  .surrendered.  I\Tr.  Hardy  then  went  with  his  com- 
mand to  Washington  and  participated  in  the  Grand  Review  in  that  city. 
which  was  the  most  celebrated  military  pageant  e\'er  seen  on  the  western 
hemisphere,  thousands  of  soldiers  passing  in  review  before  the  stand 
upon  which  stood  the  President  watching  the  return  of  the  victorious 
army,  whose  efforts  and  bravery  had  saved  the  Union.  Mr.  Hardy  was 
mustered  out  at  .Albany,  New  York,  having  made  an  excellent  military 
record. 

After  receiving  an  honorable  discharge  he  came  to  Michigan  in 
1865,  making  his  way  direct  to  Cass  county,  at  which  time  he  located 
upon  the  farm  in  LaGrange  township  that  he  still  owns.  For  many 
years  thereafter  he  was  engaged  in  general  agricultural  pursuits  and  as 
a  companion  and  helpmate  for  life's  journey  he  chose  ^liss  Eina  E. 
Elliott,  to  whom  he  was  married  in  this  countv  on  the  2d  of  September, 
1868.  She  is  a  daughter  of  the  Rev.  G.  C.  and  Calesta  (ElliotC)  Elliott. 
!x)th  of  whom  were  natives  of  the  Mohawk  valley  of  New  York,  whence 
they  came  westward  to  Michigan  in  186S.  settling  in  LaGrange  town- 
ship, Cass  county.  Mrs.  Plardy  was  born  in  Otsego  coimty.  New  York, 
May  15,  T845,  ^"cl  was  the  third  in  order  of  birth  in  a  family  of  five 
children,  two  daughters  and  three  sons.  Her  father  was  a  minister  of 
the  ]\Tethodist  Episcopal  church  and  she  was  reared  in  a  household  char- 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  6S7 

acterized  by  culture,  refinement  and  high  prmciples.  She  acquired  her 
literary  education  at  Cazenovia  Seminary.  Xew  "^'ork,  and,  like  the 
others  of  the  family,  enjoyed  excellent  educational  privileges. 

At  the  time  of  his  marriage  Mr.  Hardy  took  his  bride  to  his  farm 
and  there  lived  ci.intinuou.sly  until  1S85,  when  he  removed  to  Dowagiac. 
He  continued  to  engage  in  the  cultivation  of  his  farm,  however,  until 
about  1899,  when  he  retired  from  active  business  life.  He  has  a  valu- 
able tract  of  land  of  one  hundred  and  ninety  acres,  well  improved.  The 
entire  place  is  under  the  plow  save  but  about  fifteen  acres,  which  is 
covered  with  timber.  He  brought  his  fields  under  a  high  state  of  culti- 
vation, built  good  fences  and  added  modern  improvements  to  his  farm 
and  as  the  }ears  passed  he  harvested  g(jod  crops.  Thus  he  added  an- 
nually to  his  income  year  by  year  until  he  has  accumulated  a  gratifying 
competence  that  now  makes  it  possible  for  him  to  rest  from  further 
labor. 

Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hardy  have  been  born  two  children,  a  daughter 
and  son.  The  former,  Grace,  is  now  the  wife  of  Dr.  H.  T.  Cole,  a 
practicing  physician  located  in  the  Champlain  Building,  Chicago.  The 
son,  Dr.  F.  C.  Hardy,  is  a  jiracticing  physician  of  Kendalville,  Indiana. 
Mrs.  Cole  has  a  son,  Gordon  Hardy  Cole,  and  Dr.  Hardy  has  one  child, 
Flint  Weidla  Hard)'. 

In  his  political  views  A.  J.  Hardy  has  been  a  stanch  Repulilican 
from  the  time  age  conferred  upon  him  the  right  of  franchise  and  he  has 
done  all  in  his  power  to  promote  the  growth  and  insure  the  success  of 
his  party.  He  belongs  to  A.  C.  Gilbert  Post,  G.  A.  R.,  and  thus  main- 
tains pleasant  relations  with  his  old  army  comrades.  He  has  also  taken 
the  third  degree  of  the  Blue  lodge  in  ilasonry,  while  his  wife  is  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  church.  For  forty  years  Mr.  Flardy 
has  resided  in  this  county  and  his  wife  for  almost  a  similar  period. 
They  are  a  highly  esteemed  couple,  having  many  warm  friends,  while 
the  hospitality  of  their  own  home  is  greatly  enjoyed  by  those  who  know 
them.  Mr.  Hardy  has  led  a  busy  and  useful  life,  has  won  success 
through  earnest  effdrt  at  farming  and  is  now  living  at  ease  in  a  pleas- 
ant home  m  Dowagiac. 

DEXTER  GUSHING. 

Dexter  Gushing  was  numbered  among  the  old  settlers  of  Cass 
county  who  aided  in  making  it  what  it  is  today.  His  strenuous  labor 
and  progressive  spirit  contributed  to  die  result  that  has  been  accom- 
plished in  the  way  of  general  improvement  and  progress.  He  resided 
on  section  19,  Silver  Greek  township.  He  was  born  in  Oneida  county. 
New  York,  near  the  town  of  Deerfield,  April  17,  1828.  His  father, 
James  H.  Cushine,  was  a  native  of  Massachusetts,  in  which  state  he 
spent  his  boyhood  and  youtli.  His  father.  ^lathew  Gushing,  is  sup- 
posed to  have  been  a  native  of  England  and  at  all  events  it  is  known 


6SS  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

tliat  the  family  was  established  in  America  in  early  colonial  da}s.  The 
mother  oi  our  subject  bore  the  maiden  name  of  Amy  Dewey.  She  was 
born  in  ^Massachusetts  and  was  of  Scotch-English  lineage.  In  New 
York  she  gave  her  hand  in  marriage  to  James  H.  Cushing  and  they 
resided  for  some  time  in  Oneida  county  or  until  1S51,  when  they  came 
to  Michigan,  making  their  way  direct  to  Cass  county.  Tiiey  then  set- 
tled in  Sihxr  Creek  township,  where  Mr.  Cushing  jnirchased  a  farm 
upon  which  few  improvements  had  been  made.  He  began  the  further 
development  of  this  place  and  continued  to  carry  on  agricultural  pur- 
suits here  with  excellent  success,  transforming  his  property  into  a  well 
developed  farm,  upon  which  he  lived  until  called  to  his  final  rest  in  his 
seventy-fifth  year.  His  wife  was  in  her  eighty-ninth  year  \vhen  she 
passed  away.  Their  family  numlicred  ten  children,  five  sons  and  five 
daughters,  all  of  whom  reached  manliood  or  womanhood  with  one  ex- 
ception. Three  of  the  sons  are  yet  living  at  the  time  of  this  writing, 
nanicl)- :  George,  wlnj  makes'his  home  in  Dowagiac;  David,  who  is  liv- 
ing in  Silver  Creek  t(.\\nship;  and  Dexter. 

In  taking  up  the  i-.crsonal  history  df  Dexter  Cushing  we  present 
to  our  readers  the  life  record  of  one  who  was  widely  and  favorably 
known  in  this  community.  He  was  the  third  son  and  sixth  child  in  his 
father's  family  and  was  reared  in  Oneida  county.  New  York,  to  the  age 
of  nine  years,  when  his  parents  removed  to  Oswego  county,  that  state, 
there  residing  until  1S52,  when  they  came  to  Cass  county,  Michigan, 
and  ]\Ir.  Cushing  nf  this  review  t(j(ik  up  his  alwde  in  Silver  Creek  town- 
ship. He  was  then  about  twenty-four  years  of  age  and  he  remained 
with  his  father,  assisting  him  in  the  work  of  the  home  farm  until  he 
married  and  establisnecl  a  home  of  his  own. 

It  was  on  the  31st  of  January.  1856,  that  Mr.  Cushing  was  united 
in  marriage  to  Miss  Jane  Gilbert,  a  daughter  of  William  B.  and  Cynthia 
(Sammonds)  Gilbert,  who  came  to  Cass  county  in  1S38  and  were  there- 
fore among  the  early  settlers.  They  located  in  Silver  Creek  township, 
establishing  a  home  in  the  midst  of  the  wilderness  and  sharing  with 
other  frontier  settlers  in  the  various  hard.ships  and  trials  which  go  to 
make  up  the  life  of  the  pioneer.  Mrs.  Cushing  was  born  in  Otsego 
county.  New  York,  at  the  family  home  in  the  town  of  Springfield  on 
the  23d  of  September,  1835.  and  was  therefore  a  little  maiden  oi  three 
summers  when  she  was  brought  to  ^Michigan  ISy  her  parents.  She  was 
reared  under  the  parental  roof  with  a  family  that  numliered  three  sons 
and  three  daughters  and  she  was  trained  to  the  duties  of  the  household, 
so  that  she  was  well  qualified  to  take  charge  of  a  home  of  her  own  at 
the  time  of  her  marriage.  Her  education  was  obtained  in  the  district 
schools.  After  their  marriage  the  young  couple  located  on  a  farm  on 
section  20,  Silver  Creek  Jtownship,  their  first  home  being  a  little  frame 
house  eighteen  by  twenty-two  feet.  It  soon  won  a  wide  reputation  for 
its  generous,  cordial  and  warm  hearted  hospitality  and  there  were  always 
visitors  there.     Thev  lived  in  this  house  for  about  twelve  vears  and  dur- 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  689 

ing  that  time  Mr.  CushiiiQ  cleared  and  developed  one  hundred  and 
twenty  acres  of  land  which  \\as  all  covered  with  heavy  timher  when  he 
took  possession  oi  that  ];lace.  In  the  forest,  however,  he  developed  the 
fi.elds  and  the  sunlight  soon  shone  down  upon  the  iil.>wed  land  an.d 
ripened  the  harvests.  Later  Mr.  CnshinL;'  remi"i\cd  from  his  ori,2;inal 
place  to  the  present  hnme  not  far  from  the  old  homestead.  He  lived 
in  the  county  t( -r  about  fifty-five  years  altogether  and  always  gave 
his  time  and  energies  to  general  agricultural  pursuits.  Me  was  also 
engaged  in  the  stock  husincss.  huying,  selling  and  shipping  stock  for 
about  thirty  years  and  finding  this  a  profitable  .source  of  income.  At 
the  time  of  his  death  he  owned  two  hundred  acres  of  land  situated  on 
sections  19  and  20,  and  the  fanu  is  a  \-aluahle  and  profluctive  one,  in- 
dicating in  its  well  ini])ro\-ed  appearance  the  aarcful  supervision,  practi- 
cal methods  and  unfaltering  energy  of  the  owner. 

Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs,  Cushing  were  1)om  two  children:  William  C., 
who  is  a  merchant  at  Cushing  Corners  in  this  county ;  and  Jennie,  the 
wife  of  Wallace  Trowbridge,  a  resident  farmer  of  Silver  Creek  town- 
ship. ^Ir.  Cushing  always  voted  with  the  Democracy  after  the  organi- 
zation of  the  party  and  believed  that  its  principles  contained  the  best 
elements  of  good  government.  He  belonged  to  the  Methodist  Epis- 
copal church  of  Silver  Creek  township,  c<intributed  generously  to  its 
support,  took  an  active  part  in  its  work  and  did  all  in  his  power  to 
advance  the  various  church  activities.  He  passed  the  seventy-eighth 
milestone  on  life's  journey  and  his  was  a  useful  and  active  life  that  won 
for  him  the  unqualified  regard  and  confidence  of  his  neighlxjrs  and 
friends.  He  could  look  back  to  the  time  when  this  county  was  largely 
unimproved.  The  uncut  forests  showed  that  the  white  man  had  scarcely 
penetrated  into  llie  interior,  for  only  here  and  there  was  to  he 
seen  smoke  rising  from  a  little  cabin  to  show  that  a  home  had  been 
established  in  the  midst  of  the  wilderness.  IMany  ccjuditions  of  life 
were  very  crude  as  compared  with  those  of  the  present  day  and  much 
of  the  farm  work  was  done  by  hand.  The  people  depended  uprm  what 
they  raised  for  the  comforts  of  life  and  much  of  the  clothing  was  not 
only  made  at  home  l)ut  was  spun  and  woven  by  hand.  There  has  been 
a  great  transformation  in  the  methods  of  farming  and  as  the  years  passed 
by  Mr.  Cu.shing  kept  abreast  with  the  progress  along  agricultural  lines. 
On  the  occasion  of  his  death  the  following  lines  appeared  in  one  of  the 
local  papers : 

"Dexter  Cushing,  a  pioneer  of  Cass  county,  died  at  his  home  in 
Silver  Creek  la.st  Saturday,  September  8.  and  funeral  services  were  held 
Monday,  conducted  by  Peninsular  Lodge  F.  cS:  .'\.  M  of  Dowagiac,  of 
which  he  was  one  of  the  oldest  members. 

"Mr.  Cushing  was  the  son  of  James  Cushing.  and  was  seventy- 
eight  years  of  age.  He  was  both  a  county  and  township  pioneer,  hav- 
ing spent  almost  his  entire  life  as  a  tiller  of  the  soil  in  Silver  Creek. 

"He  is  survived  bv  a  wife  and  two  children.     The  latter  are  Will 


6;>0  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

Cushingf.  storekeeper  at  Cnshine^  Corner?,  and  Mrs.  Wallace  Trri\vl)rid2;e, 
of  Indian  Lake.  One  brother.  Gcorije,  of  Dnwac^iac.  also  'survives  him. 
Another  brother,  Dave,  died  last  spring;:. 

"Mr.  and  Mrs.  Cushinsj  early  this  year  celebrated  the  fiftieth  anni- 
versary of  their  wedding." 

PIIILO  n.  BF.CKWITII. 

At  the  time  of  his  death  in  iSSq  Philo  D.  Bcckwith  had  .c:iven 
Dowacfiac  its  two  most  important  industries — the  drill  works  and  the 
stove  works.  He  had  given  them  to  the  city  and  the  world  in  the  sense 
that  he  had  invented  them.  But  it  was  even  a  greater  accomplishment 
when  he  cstabli'^hcd  the  manufacture  of  the  perfected  machinery'  on  a 
permanent  business  basis.  It  is  the  privilege  of  few  small  cities  to 
possess  institutions  of  nati<Mial  fame.  To  say  that  "Dowagiac  is  the 
home  of  the  Round  Oak  sto\e"  would  establish  an  immediate  rclatinn- 
ship  between  many  thou.^ands  of  homes  and  this  little  city  in  the  valley 
of  Dowagiac  creek.  To  the  millions  who  dwell  beyond  the  range  of 
Dowagiac's  influence  as  a  city,  there  comes  an  increasing  association  of 
the  name  nf  city  with  the  name  of  Round  Oak  stoves  and  furnaces.  In 
so  far  as  l>-iw:igiac"s  dc\clr>pment  is  the  result  of  her  largest  iiulustn,' 
—and  citizens  never  fail  to  ascribe  first  i)lacc  to  the  stove  works  in  the 
factors  of  ujibuilding — the  late  Mr.  Bcckwith  was  a  founder  of  the 
city.  Thirty-five  years  of  unremitting  industry  and  business  judgment 
and  application  of  singular  inventi\-e  g-enius  built  a  business  that  is  a;^ 
inseparalilc  from  Do^^■an■iac's  prosperity  as  the  railroad  itself. 

The  history  of  the  origin  and  growth  of  the  Round  Oak  works 
and  Mr.  Eeckwith's  early  labors  and  struggles  in  establi.shing  In's  manu- 
facturing enterprises  here  is  recounted  in  the  general  history  of  manu- 
facturing" on  other  pages.  It  is  ho]ied  that  in  this  article  the  biographer 
may  weave  together  the  details  of  a  life  which  meant  so  much  for 
Dowagiac  and  the  world  and  satisfy  the  interest  which  is  everywhere 
felt  in  the  career  of  a  successful  man. 

When  Mr.  Bcckwith  came  to  Dowagiac  in  1854,  only  Iialf  a  dozen 
years  after  the  founding  of  the  village  and  when  the  nnnufacturing 
along  the  banks  of  the  creek  and  the  few  stores  on  Front  street  con- 
tained in  themselves  little  promise  of  the  future,  he  himself  had  hardly 
made  a  fair  start  on  his  career,  although  he  was  nearlv  thirtv  vears  of 
age  and  doubtless  had  stored  up  in  mind  and  body  the  possibilities  of 
the  future.  His  early  life  could  hardly  be  described  as  years  of  oppor- 
tunity. .Mthoudi  a  descendant  of  New  Fngland  ancestors  who<;e  names 
were  associated  with  events  '^ince  the  landing  on  Plymouth  Rr.ck,  he 
was  not  born  in  aflluence.  and  New  England  hardihood  and  rusrged 
honesty  and  thrift  were  a  full  total  of  his  inheritance.  Ple^.wa^— horn 
in  1825.  in  what  is  now  the  town  of  F.agle  in  \\''yoming  countv.  New 
York.     A  few  vears  later  his  father  died,  leaving  to  the  widowed  mother 


\/ 


2^2^^ 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  091 

the  care  and  brinsriiig  up  of  the  son  and  a  youn.q'er  sister.  It  was  hard 
labor  with  the  needle  by  which  she  endeavored  to  eke  out  her  slender 
mean?  and  provide  for  herself  and  children  till  they  should  be  self- 
supporting.  Under  such  circumstances,  and  the  opportunities  of  pub- 
lic school  education  not  yet  having-  been  supplied  in  that  part  of  New 
York,  the  son  Philo  lacked  the  training  which  we  now  consider  so 
essential  to  the  intrr:duction  of  hoys  into  serious  life. 

At  the  age  of  fourteen  he  began  work  in  a  woolen  mill  at  Eagle, 
owned  by  a  maternal  uncle.  ITc  learned  a  great  deal  about  the  busi- 
ness during  the  ne.xt  two  years,  but  received  little  pay.  He  then  went 
to  live  with  another  uncle,  near  the  city  of  Rochester,  and  here  had  the 
good  fortune  of  attending  a  district  school  several  months.  Many  suc- 
cessful men  have  made  such  a  brief  period  of  education  worth  as  much 
as  an  entire  college  course.  Thougli  his  school  days  ended  there,  the 
develo])ment  of  his  mental  culture  and  appreciation  of  the  world  and  the 
best  in  it  continued  all  his  years.  .As  iiis  keen  business  instinct  led  him 
step  by  step  to  material  success,  so  he  was  noted  for  his  thorough  valua- 
tion of  men  and  affairs,  and  his  culture  was  of  the  practical  kind  that 
is  entirely  foreign  to  the  superficial  veneer  laid  on  by  academic  training. 

IMr.  ljeck\\ith  was  eighteen  years  oUl  when  he  married  ^liss  Cath- 
erine Scott,  a  gii'l  ^vho  \\as  alsr.  born  anrl  brought  up  at  Eagle,  New 
York,  and  who  was  his  companion  and  helper  throughout  the  strug- 
gles of  his  early  career  and  the  .success  of  later  years.  In  1S44  Mr. 
Beckwith  and  wife  became  residents  of  ^lichigan.  He  became  a  jour- 
neyman in  a  woolen  mill  at  Eattle  Creek  and  later  became  a  workman 
in  a  machine  shop.  Practical  in  his  ideas,  thrifty  and  always  looking  to 
future  advancement,  he  managed,  from  wages  of  a  dollar  a  day,  to 
save  six  hundred  dollars  as  the  basis  for  subsequent  enterprises.  When 
he  came  to  Dowagiac  in  1854  he  had  this  amount  of  capital  and  the 
accumulated  skill  and  experience  of  the  previous  years.  It  is  a  A\ell 
known  story,  and  told  in  detail  on  other  pages,  how  Mr.  Beckwith  built 
his  first  small  foundry  on  Eront  street,  and  with  one  assistant  began 
making  plo\vs  and  doing  general  repair  work,  at  first  relying  on  horse 
power  to  run  his  machineiy :  how  he  next  de^•eloped  the  water  power 
on  the  creek  and  with  the  first  manufacture  of  a  primitive  form  of  the 
roller  grain  drill  entered  upon  the  first  series  of  the  larger  mainifactur- 
ing  with  wlu'ch  his  name  and  eiiforts  were  thereafter  associated:  how 
he  invented  and  after  many  discouragements  succeeded  in  making  a 
market  for  a  new  type  of  stove,  which,  in  all  its  later  improvements 
for  durability  and  general  excellence  has  not  been  surpassed ;  and  finally 
how  his  factory  was  remo\-ed  to  its  present  site  and  has  grown  and 
been  enlarged  to  a  mammoth  Imsiness  institution,  which,  under  the  title 
of  "P.  D.  P.eckwith  Estate."  is  a  worthy  monument  to  the  life  and 
Vv-ork  of  any  man.  But  that  the  city  might  not  lose  the  memoiy  of 
the  man  in  the  material  and  presen.t  business  of  which  he  was  the  founder. 


6ti2  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

his  grateful  family  erected  and  dedicated  to  his  memor)-,  in  January, 
1893,  the  lieautiful  Beckwilh  INIemorial  Theatre,  where  the  expression 
of  art  and  the  uplittins'  inthiences  of  life  may  always  he  encouraged, 
thus  heautifully  linking-  the  aspirations  for  the  artistic  and  nohle  with 
the  results  of  material  and  practical  accomplishment.  The  theatre,  as 
one  of  the  impr>rtant  institutions  of  Dowagiac,  has  been  described  on 
other  pages.  It  is  not  inapt  in  this  connection  to  quote  some  of  the 
sentences  with  which  Col.  R.  Q.  Jngersoll  dedicated  the  building-  to  its 
worthy  uses,  in  memory  of  one  "who  livetl  and  labored  here  and  left 
to  those  who  knew  hin-i  best  the  n-iemory  of  countless  loving  deed.s — the 
richest  leg^icy  that  man  can  leave  to  man.  We  are  met  to  dedicate 
this  monument  to  the  memory  of  I'liilo  1).  Beckwilh,  one  of  the  kings 
of  men.  This  monument,  this  perfect  theatre,  this  beautiful  home  of 
cheerfulness  and  joy,  this  home  and  child  of  all  the  arts,  this  theatre 
where  the  architect,  the  sculptor  and  the  i»inter  united  to  build  and 
decorate  the  stage  \\hereon  the  dran-ia,  with  a  thousand  tongues,  will 
tell  the  frailties  .and  the  virtues  of  *hc  human  race  and  where  music 
with  its  thrilling  voice  will  teach  the  source  of  happiness — this  is  a 
fitting  monument  to  a  m;ui  whose  memory  we  honor  and  one  who  had 
outgrown  the  cnicl  creeds  ;ui(l  heartless  dogmas  of  his  time,  01-ie  who 
had  passed  from  su])erslitir>n  to  science,  from  religion  to  reason,  from 
slavery  to  freedom,  from  the  shadow  of  fear  to  the  light  of  knowledge, 
and  to  one  whose  heart  and  hands  were  in  partnership,  constituting  the 
firm  of  intelligence  and  industry,  and  whose  heart  divided  the  profits 
with  his  fellowmen:  to  one  who  fought  the  battle  of  his  life  alone  and 
whose  heart  grew  i-iobler  and  gentler  with  success ;  to  one  who  tried  to 
make  a  heaven  here,  who  believed  in  the  blessed  gospel  of  cheerful- 
ness, of  happy  lives,  of  laughter  and  love." 

In  the  strong  light  thrown  by  his  business  career  and  his  jjcrsonal 
character  it  is  hardly  necessary  to  mention,  what  will  be  found  stated 
on  other  pages,  that  Mr.  Beckwith  was  closely  identified  with'  many 
matters  of  citizenship  and  community  interest— as  mayor  of  his  city 
in  which  he  took  deepest  interest,  as  a  school  official,  as  head  of  the 
library  association  and  donor  of  the  lot  on  which  the  public  library 
stands,  and  in  all  movements  during  his  lifetime  which  afYected  the 
progress  of  his  city.  He  wrought  not  for  the  present  }-ears  nor  for  his 
lifetime,  but  his  life  work  will  remain  the  cornerstone  of  Dowagiac 
when  much  that  now  seems  enduring  has  passed  entirely  away. 

JOHN  CLEXDEXEX. 

John  Clendenen.  who  is  engaged  in  fanning  in  Silver  Creek  town- 
ship, owns  and  operates  one  hundred  and  ninety-five  acres  of  land,  and 
in  connection  with  the  tilling  of  the  soil  carries  on  stock  raising.  He 
was  born  in  the  township  where  he  yet  resides,  his  natal  day  being  De- 
cember 22,   1860.     His  father,  Oscar  Clendenen.  was  a  native  of  Vir- 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  ^-93 

ginia.  born  Dcceiiilicr  jo.  iSjcj,  and  came  to  Miclii<;an  as  one  c.i  the  early 
settlers  of  Cass  cmuily,  arriving  in  184S.  He  settled  in  Silver  Creek- 
township,  v.here  he  carried  on  general  farming  and  there  his  death 
occurred  March  7.  jSjo.  when  he  was  about  forty  years  of  age.  He 
was  well  kniiwn  m  tlie  cnmnninity.  held  a  number  of  local  offices  and 
took  an  active  and  heli)ful  part  in  the  work  of  general  improvement  antl 
development.  In  early  manhuod  he  wedded  ]Miss  Harriet  Swisher,  who 
was  born  February  28,  1S39,  in  Ohio,  in  which  state  her  girlhood  days 
were  passed.  She  came  with  her  parents  to  Michigan  aui.l  is  still  living 
jn  this  state.  By  her  marriage  she  Iiecame  the  mother  of  three  children: 
John,  of  this  review  :  Frank  ;  and  I-'Iorence.  who  was  Ixini  October  7,  1870, 
and  died  No\-eml)er  3,  Ujoo. 

John  Clentlenen  was  reared  upiin  tiie  old  homestead  farm  and  was 
educated  in  the  district  .schools.  He  has  lived  all  of  his  life  in  Silver 
Creek  township  and  remained  at  home  up  to  the  time  of  his  marriage, 
which  important  event  in  hi^  life  was  celebrated  in  1883,  the  lady  of 
his  choice  being  Miss  lunma  Oyler,  a  d;iughter  of  Daniel  and  Catherine 
(Robinson)  Oyler.  The  father,  who  was  born  December  25,  1827, 
died  September  22,  1888.  and  the  mother.  Iwrn  October  14,  1826,  died 
March  3,  1S86.  Mrs.  Clendenen  was  born  in  Pokagon  township,  Cass 
county,  and  spent  her  girlhood  days  in  her  parents'  home.  Mr.  Clen- 
denen took  his  bride  to  the  old  farm  homestead,  where  his  entire  life 
has  been  passeil.  He  has  always  given  his  attention  to  general  agri- 
cultural pursuits  and  is  now  the  owner  of  one  hundred  and  ninety-five 
acres  of  rich  and  productive  land,  on  which  he  carries  on  general  farm- 
ing and  also  raises  stock.  Fverything  about  his  place  is  kept  in  good 
condition.  The  fields  arc  well  tilled,  the  buildings  are  in  good  repair 
and  he  uses  the  latest  improved  machinery  to  facilitate  the  work  of  the 
fields.  As  a  business  man  he  is  progressive  and  enterprising  and  his 
well  directed  labors  are  bringing  him  gratifying  success. 

Mr.  Clendenen  has  always  been  deeply  interested  in  matters  per- 
taining to  the  general  welfare  and  his  fellow  townsmen  recognizing 
his  loyalty  to  American  institutions  and  his  interest  in  local  welfare 
have  called  him  to  various  public  offices.  He  served  as  clerk  of  his 
township  for  two  years,  was  treasurer  for  two  years  and  highway  com- 
missioner two  )ears.  He  was  also  justice  of  the  peace  for  many  years 
and  his  decisions  were  strictly  fair  and  impartial,  so  that  he  "won  gold- 
en opinions  from  all  sorts  of  people."  In  1905  he  was  elected  suj^ter- 
visor  of  his  township,  which  position  he  is  now  filling  and  in  this  ofiice 
as  in  all  of  the  others  he  is  found  as  a  faithful  and  capable  ofhcial. 

Unto  Mr.  and  ^Irs.  Clendenen  have  been  Iwrn  five  children,  of 
whom  four  are  now  living,  Neil,  the  third  child,  being  deceased.  He 
was  born  November  i,  1890,  and  died  September  22.  1892.  The  others 
who  still  survive  are  Bessie.  Lulu.  Earl  and  Thelma.  In  his  political 
views  Mr.  Clendenen  is  a  Democrat,  deeply  interested  in  the  success 
and  welfare  of  his  party.     Fraternally  he  is  connected  with  the  Master 


694  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

Workers  and  his  religious  faith  is  indicated  by  his  membership  in  the 
Methodist  lipiscopal  church  in  Silver  Creek  township.  He  takes  an 
active  and  helpful  part  in  church  work  and  is  one  of  the  church  trustees. 
His  entire  life  has  been  pa^^sed  in  this  county  and  that  he  has  ever  mer- 
ited the  support  and  regard  of  his  fellowmen  is  indicated  by  the  fact 
that  many  of  his  stanchest  friends  are  numbered  among  those  who  have 
known  him  from  his  boyhood  days  down  to  the  present  time. 

GEORGE  D.  JONES. 

Among  the  representative  and  energetic  business  men  of  Dowagiac 
George  D.  Jones  is  numliered,  being  engaged  in  the  conduct  of  a  grocery 
store.  He  was  born  in  Preble  county,  Ohio,  August  2,  1827.  His 
father,  George  Jones,  was  a  native  of  Georgia  and  was  a  son  of  another 
George  Jones,  who  was  of  Welsh  birth  and  in  1S29  became  a  resident 
of  Cass  county,  Michigan,  locating  on  Young's  Prairie  in  Penn  town- 
ship, the  family  being  the  first  settlers  of  that  township.  George  Jones, 
Sr.,  grandfather  of  our  subject,  had  eleven  children,  all  of  whom  were 
married  when  they  came  to  Cass  county  and  took  up  their  abode  here. 
The  family  tn  which  George  D.  Jones  belonged  was  the  smallest  numeri- 
cally of  the  eleven  families,  there  being  but  six  children,  two  daughters 
and  four  sons.  In  early  manhood  George  Jones,  father  of  George  D. 
Jones,  had  removed  from  his  native  state  to  Ohio,  where  he  married 
Miss  Mary  Bogue,  who  was  born  in  North  Carolina.  They  located  in 
Preble  county,  Ohio,  where  he  engaged  in  milling  and  also  in  farming. 
In  the  year  1829  he  removed  to  Cass  county,  Michigan,  and  entered 
land  in  Penn  township,  on  what  is  now  known  as  Young's  Prairie.  He 
was  thus  one  of  the  first  settlers  in  this  part  of  the  state.  He  began  the 
improvement  and  develijimient  of  the  farm  there  but  died  after  a  four 
years'  residence  in  this  state,  passing  away  in  the  thirty-second  year  of 
his  age.  His  children  were  Annie.  Stephen,  Nathan,  Sarah,  George  D. 
and  Charles,  but  the  last  named  died  in  3'outh. 

George  D.  Jones  is  the  only  one  oi  his  father's  family  now  living 
and  was  but  two  years  of  age  when  brought  by  his  parents  to  Michigan. 
He  was  reared  upon  the  old  homestead  in  the  midst  of  the  green  woods 
and  attended  an  old  log  school  house  of  the  early  days.  He  assisted  in 
the  arduous  task  of  developing  and  improving  a  new  farm  and  remained 
with  his  mother  until  twenty-six  years  of  age,  when  he  was  married,  in 
1853,  to  Miss  Sarah  Pegg.  She  died  a  few  years  later  leaving  two 
children:  Flora  E.,  who  is  now  the  wife  of  William  Doling,  a  conductor 
on  the  Chicago,  Burlington  &  Ouincy  Railroad  now  living  in  Galesburg, 
Illinois;  and  George  Elbert,  deceased.  For  his  second  wife  ]Mr.  Jones 
chose  ]\Iiss  Ella  O.  Rice. 

Remaining  a  resident  of  Penn  township,  he  carried  on  general 
farming  uniil  iSr)4.  when  he  located  in  Dowagiac  and  the  following 
year  he  engaged  in  the  shipping  of  live  stock,  in  which  business  he  con- 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  6!t5 

tinued  successtiilly  for  a  numlier  of  years.  In  iSSo,  however,  he  estab- 
lished a  grocery  store  and  is  the  pioneer  grocers-man  of  tliis  place.  He 
was  also  the  tirst  stock  shipper  at  this  point.  ,He  has  for  seventy-seven 
years  been  a  resident  of  the  county  and  its  history  is  to  him  a  famihar 
story,  not  because  he  has  heard  related  the  events  of  the  early  days  but 
because  he  has  been  an  active  participant  in  the  work  of  improvement 
and  in  the  conditions  which  have  formed  its  pioneer  annals.  His  early 
political  support  was  given  to  the  Whig  party,  and  upon  its  dissolution 
he  joined  the  ranks  of  the  new  Republican  party,  of  which  he  has  since 
been  an  earnest  advocate,  voting  for  each  presidential  candidate  of  the 
party  from  1856  down  to  the  present  time.  He  has  filled  the  office  of 
township  cltrk  for  several  terms,  was  supervisor  of  Penn  township  and 
justice  of  the  peace.  He  has  likewise  been  a  member  of  the  village 
board  of  Dowagiac  and  a  member  of  the  school  board,  and  the  cause 
of  education  finds  in  him  a  warm  and  stalwart  friend,  while  each  move- 
ment that  has  for  its  basic  element  the  welfare  of  the  community  receives 
his  endorsement.  There  is  perhaps  in  Dowagiac  and  his  section  of  the 
county  no  man  more  widely  known  than  George  D.  Jones,  and  no  his- 
tory of  the  community  would  be  complete  without  the  record  of  his  life. 

ABNER  I\I.  MOON. 

Abner  M.  Moon,  editor  of  the  Dowagiac  Herald,  also  filling  the 
office  of  justice  of  the  peace,  was  born  near  Paw  Paw,  Michigan,  in 
1849.  His  father,  Ambrose  F.  Moon,  was  a  native  of  Canandaigiia 
county,  New  York,  and  came  of  Danish  ancestry.  According  to  tra- 
dition it  was  at  a  time  when  there  was  a  war  in  progress  between  the 
English  and  the  Danes  that  three  brothers  of  the  name  came  to  the 
United  States  and  settled  in  New  York.  This  was  about  the  time  of 
the  war  for  independence  in  this  country-.  In  the  '30s  Ambrose  F.  Moon 
left  the  Empire  state  and  removed  to  \^an  Buren  count}-,  Michigan. 
He  owned  a  farm  hut  was  particularly  well  known  as  a  bee  keeper 
and  traveled  all  o\er  the  country-  in  the  interest  of  a  patent  bee  hive. 
He  was  a  Democrat  in  politics,  was  a  man  of  modest  unassuming  man- 
ner, but  of  genuine  worth,  and  died  in  Rome.  Georgia,  to  which  place 
he  had  remrived.  and  there  started  a  Beekeeper's  Magazine,  in  1872. 
His  death  occurred  in  18S4,  when  he  was  seventy  years  of  age.  His 
wife,  who  bore  the  maiden  name  of  Emily  R.  ^Vlack,  was  born  in  Ohio 
and  is  now  living  in  Redlands.  California,  at  the  age  of  seventy-six 
years.  She  is  of  Scotch  descent  and  bv  her  marriage  she  became  the 
mother  of  two  children,  hut  the  daughter,  Eva.  is  now  deceased. 

Abner  M.  ]\Ioon,  the  only  son.  \\as  a  student  in  the  public  schools 
C'f  Paw  Paw.  and  was  reared  to  farm  life,  early  becoming  familiar 
with  die  labors  of  the  old  honiestead  faruT.  \\'hen  twenty-one  years 
of  age  he  purchased  th.e  I^wton  Tribune,  which  he  published  for  a 
year  and  then  went  to  New  York  city,  where  he  edited  the  National 


O'JG  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

Bcc  Keepers'  Joiiriuil.  After  a  lirief  period  lie  returneil  to  r*a\v  Paw 
and  a  \x'ar  later  went  to  Rrmie.  (ieorsia,  where  he  joined  his  father 
ajid  Ix'gan  the  pnhh'cruion  of  a  heekcepcr's  iournal.  called  the  Moon's 
Bee  ll'orliL  There  he  remained  for  four  years,  after  whicli  he  spent 
six  nionth>  in  Xew  \'ork  city,  and  returning  to  Michigan,  established 
the  Marcellu^  A'rt^-.s-.  which  he  published  for  four  years.  In  i88i  he 
came  to  i")o\vagiac  and  began  the  publication  of  the  Dowagiac  Times, 
which  he  practically  omducted  until  18.S5.  when  he  was  appointed 
jjostmaster  under  Cleveland  and  sold  the  pa])er.  He  conducted  the 
office  for  foin"  yern's  and  during  tlial  time,  in  18S7.  was  appointed 
justice  of  the  peace,  and  ere  the  expiration  of  his  term  in  that  office 
was  appointed  city  clerk.  In  1890  he  was  elected  county  clerk  and 
retained  the  ut'ficc  for  one  term,  after  which  he  returned  to  Dowagiac 
and  was  re-elected  justice  of  the  peace,  which  position  he  has  since 
filled, 'with  the  exception  of  twi_>  years.  lie  has  also  Iield  the  oftice 
of  city  clerk  two  term^.  and  in  all  these  different  ptisitions  has  been 
a  capable  ofticial,  carefullv.  systematically  and  efficiently  performed  the 
\-aried  duties  that  have  thus  devolved  ujion  him  in  connection  with  the 
business  of  the  office.  In  April.  1903,  he  purchased  the  Dowagiac 
Herald,  a  weekly  paper  of  large  circulation,  of  which  he  has  since  been 
editor  and  i>roi)riclor.  It  is  a  Democratic  organ,  of  wide  influence, 
recognized  as  vne  of  the  leading  jijurnals  of  this  part  of  the  state,  and 
Mr.  Moon  is  classed  with  the  leading  representatives  of  journalism,  with 
e.Kcellent  business  discernment,  combined  with  editorial  skill,  as  is  mani- 
fest in  the  illtere.■^ting  columns  of  the  Herald. 

In  1878  Mr.  .M.  1^)11  wa^  united  in  marriage  to  Miss  Dora  E.  Ellis, 
who  was  born  in  Ililbdale  county,  Michigan,  in  i860,  a  daughter  of 
Joseph  and  Emeline  Elli-.  n.atives  of  Ohio.  Mr.  [Moon  had  been  mar- 
ried previously  to  Miss  Marian  E.  Guild,  and  his  second  wife  was 
Rachel  Thompson,  by  whom  lie  had  three  children:  Kittie,  now  the 
widow  of  C.  A.  Caldwell  and  a  resident  of  Chicago;  Emmet,  who  is 
a  fruit  grower  of  Lawton.  [Michigan;  and  Hallie.  deceased.  The  cbil- 
dren  of  the  present  marriage  are  Ethel,  Don  and  lima,  the  .son  being  his 
father's  assistant  in  business.  By  reason  of  his  activity  in  Democratic 
circles  and  his  championship,  through  the  columns  of  his  paper  and 
as  a  private  citizen,  of  many  interests  for  the  public  good,  Mr.  Moon 
is  regarded  as  one  of  the  foremost  and  valuable  residents  of  Dowagiac. 

ISAAC  WELLS,  Sr. 

Isaac  Wells.  Sr..  is  one  of  the  old  settlers  and  representative  citi- 
zens of  Dowagiac  and  for  eighteen  years  has  been  connected  with  the 
Round  Oak  Ste've  Company  as  inspector  and  molder  (.)f  clay,  a  business 
record  which  is  certainly  creditable,  for  his  long  retention  in  one  posi- 
tion indicates  his  capability  and  fidelity. 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTV  697 

Mr.  Wells  is  a  nati\e  'A  (Ireen  county,  Ohio,  Ixirn  July  15,  1830. 
His  paternal  grandfather.  Felix  W'e'ls.  was  a  native  of  Wales,  in  which 
countn-  he  was  married,  anil  alj(nit  1778  or  1779 -he  crossed  the  Atlantic 
to  the  new  wurld.  Tiiere  were  three  hroihers  who  made  the  journey, 
one  of  whom  Iicated  in  \'ii,-inia.  .ino  in  Kentucky  and  one  in  the  east. 
It  was  the  hraiich  nf  the  family  fnon  which  Isaac  Wells  is  descended 
that  estahlished  its  hi»me  in  Kentucky  and  in  that  state  Charles  Wells, 
father  of  our  subject,  was  bom  F-ebrnary  23.  1790.  The  family  had 
been  located  there  in  early  ])ioneer  times  when  Kentucky  was  not  far 
removed  from  that  iierind  which,  because  (>f  the  always  constantly  waged 
Indian  warfare,  wdu  fur  it  the  title  of  "the  dark  and  bloody  groinid." 
On  leaving  his  native  st.-ite  Charles  Wells  became  an  early  settler  of 
Green  county,  Ohio,  and  from  that  place  made  his  way  direct  tf)  Cass 
county.  ATichigan,  xirrivin--  at  I'.dward.sburq-  on  the  28th  of  October, 
183 1.  He  was  a  black■'^mitIl  by  trade  and  was  the  first  representative 
of  that  rccupation  in  Cass  county.  He  made  all  of  the  irons  for  the 
first  sawmill  in  the  county  and  the  settlers  came  for  miles  around  to 
secure  his  service  in  the  line  of  his  chosen  trade.  In  1835  he  removed 
to  Berrien  county,  Michigan,  settling  on  what  is  called  the  Indian  re- 
serve. There  he  pre-empted  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  of  land,  which 
he  began  to  cultivate  and  imiirove,  devoting  his  attention  to  his  farm- 
ing interests  until  his  death,  which  occurred  in  1S38.  He  was  one  of 
the  early  settlers  t>f  Cass  coimty  and  also  of  Berrien  county  and  he 
aided  in  reclaiming  the  region  for  the  purposes  of  civilization.  His 
political  allegiance  was  gi\cn  to  the  Democracy.  Fie  had  been  married 
on  the  24th  of  ]\Iarch,  18 14,  to  Miss  Susan  Briggs,  who  was  born  on 
the  Potomac  river  in  Virginia,  January  7,  1795.  She  survi\-ed  her  hus- 
band until  April  16,  1866.  In  their  family  were  nine  children:  Livona, 
born  in  1S15;  Eliza,  born  in  1816;  Maiy,  in  181S;  Joseph  B.,  in  1820; 
Francis.  October  15,  1S23;  ^lary.  in  1825:  Lewis,  in  1827:  Isaac,  in 
1830;  and  llzra,  January  5,  1S34.  Of  this  family  only  one  is  living, 
Isaac.      Lewis,  a  resident  of  Iowa,  died  April  20,  1906. 

Lsaac  Wells,  Sr.,  was  the  eighth  in  order  of  birth  an<l  was  a  little 
more  than  a  year  old  when  brough.t  to  Cass  county  by  his  parents  in  1835. 
He  afterward  was  taken  by  them  to  Bertram  township,  Berrien  county. 
Michigan,  where  he  remained  until  1859.  when  he  returned  to  Cass  county 
and  here  engaged  in  farming  and  hlacksmithing.  He  located  on  ]\IcKin- 
ney's  Prairie  in  LaGrange  township,  where  he  engaged  in  general  agri- 
cultural pursuits  from  1859  until  18S0.  placing  his  fields  under  a  high 
state  of  cultivation  and  harvesting  therefrom  good  crops.  In  the  latter 
year  he  removed  to  Dowagiac  and  was  engaged  in  the  dairy  business 
for  two  years.  He  then  farmed  for  three  years  at  Silver  Creek  and 
Pokagon  townships  and  for  eighteen  years  has  been  connected  with  the 
Round  Oak  Stove  Works  as  inspector  and  molder  of  clay.  Fie  is  one 
of  the  oldest  settlers  of  Cass  county  and  this  part  of  ]Michigan,  having 


698  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

spent  his  entire  lite  in  tin's  section  of  the  state,  with  tlie  exception  of 
his  first  year. 

On  the  i6th  of  Deccnil.'cr.  1857,  Mr.  Wells  was  united  in  niarriaf^e 
to  Miss  Sarah  J.  Herkimer,  a  daucjhter  of  Jacob  and  Marv'  (Swobe) 
Herkimer  and  a  native  of  MontL,'-nmen-  county.  New  York,  born  Oc- 
tober 22.  1837.  Her  parents  removed  to  Berrien  county,  ^Michi^an.  in 
1851.  Ry  her  mnrriape  she  has  become  the  mother  of  three  children: 
Emma  Z.,  the  wife  of  Gienn  ]\Iead,  of  Dowag-iac;  William  R.,  who 
married  Man."  Stciner  and  is  livinpf  in  Dowa,G;iac;  and  Isaac  H.,  who 
married  Nellie  Melcher  and  is  livinp;'  in  the  same  city. 

Since  age  conferred  upon  him  the  right  of  franchise  Mr.  Wells 
has  been  a  stanch  advocate  of  the  Democracy,  its  principles  and  its  pol- 
icy. He  was  township  treasurer  of  LaGrange  township  for  four  years, 
was  also  highway  commissii':ner  for  six  years  and  has  held  other  local 
offices.  He  has  been  officially  connected  with  the  schools  and  is  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Masonic  fraternity  and  of  the  Alcthodist  Episcopal  church. 
Few  men  have  such  an  intimate  or  accurate  knowledge  of  the  history  of 
this  section  of  the  state  as  has  ^Ir.  Wells,  who,  as  before  stated,  has 
spent  almost  his  entire  life  in  this  part  of  Michigan.  When  the  family 
located  on  the  Indian  reserve  in  Bertram  township,  Berrien  county, 
there  were  i\ye  \vhite  families  and  four  hundred  and  eighty  Indians 
living  in  that  neighborhood.  When  he  was  in  his  eighth  year  he  acted 
as  interpreter  for  Topen  Bey  and  went  down  to  Tippecanoe  on  the 
Kankakee  river,  being  gone  ten  days  on  the  expedition.  He  could  speak 
the  Indian  tongue  as  readily  as  the  English  language,  ^^■hen  he  re- 
turned home  he  received  as  a  present  a  fawn  skin  filled  with  honey, 
and  also  a  pipe  given  him  by  Topen  Bey.  the  war  chief's  son.  This  pipe 
is  now  in  the  museum  at  Cassopolis.  Mr.  Wells  is  one  of  the  charter 
members  of  the  Pioneer  Association  of  Cass  county,  was  its  president 
for  one  term,  vice-president  for  one  term  and  a  member  of  the  Report 
Committee  for  the  last  ten  years.  His  life  history  if  written  in  detail 
would  present  many  interesting  pictures  of  pioneer  life.  To  the  traveler 
of  today,  viewing  the  fine  farms,  attractive  homes  and  enterprising 
towns  and  cities  of  southern  Michig-an,  it  is  impossible  to  realize  that 
it  is  within  the  memor\-  of  any  living  man  when  the  red  men  were 
more  numerous  here  than  the  representatives  of  the  white  race,  but 
such  is  the  case  with  Mr.  Wells.  He  can  remember  when  all  this 
region  was  covered  with  a  native  growth  of  timber,  when  the  stream? 
were  unbridged  and  the  land  uncultivated.  It  required  much  arduous 
toil  to  bring  atxiut  the  changes  that  have  brought  the  county  up  to  its 
present  high  state  of  cultivation,  development  and  improvement  and 
the  pioneers  bore  many  hardships,  trials  and  privations  while  perform- 
ing this  task.  ]Mr.  Wells  has  always  home  his  full  share  in  the  work 
of  development  and  as  an  honored  pioneer  settler  of  southern  Michigan 
well  deser\'es  mention  in  this  volume. 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 


OTIS  HUFF. 


Otis  Huff,  one  of  tlie  youngest  mcml)crs  of  the  bar  of  Cass  county 
engaged  in  active  practice  in  Marcellus.  was  liorn  in  \'()!inia  township 
on  the  1st  of  August,  1S75.  His  fatiier,  John  Huff,  was  a  native  of 
Clark  county,  Ohio,  being  born  in  1833  near  the  present  city  of  Spring- 
field. The  following  year  he  came  witli  his  parents,  Amo?  and  Marga- 
ret Huff,  to  \'olinia  township,  Michigan,  who  settled  on  a  tract  of  land 
en  the  edge  of  Card's  prairie,  whicli  the  father  (grandfather  of  the  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch)  had  entered  from  the  government  the  previous  year, 
and  then  went  back  to  Ohio  after  his  family.  The  ancestry  of  the 
Huffs  can  be  traced  back  to  the  early  days  of  Penns}-lvania.  Originally 
they  were  of  German  lineage.  The  grandfather  was  a  farmer  and 
mechanic  by  occupation. 

The  father,  Jojm  Huff,  is  a  self-made  man.  In  his  younger  days 
he  helped  to  clear  the  wilderness  and  hue  the  way  for  civilization  as 
well  as  taking  every  advantage  in  those  early  days  of  securing  an  edu- 
cation from  the  meagre  school  system.  As  a  reward  he  became  a  teacher 
in  the  district  schools,  an  occupation  which  he  pursued  successfully  for 
many  years  afterward.  Later  he  became  the  owner  of  a  farm  adjoining 
the  old  homestead,  which  he  still  retains  and  by  adding  to  the  same  he 
is  the  possessor  of  a  handsome  property  which  yields  to  him  a  gratify- 
ing income. 

Very  few  men  follow  the  ups  and  downs  of  life  and  live  for  over- 
seventy  years  continually  in  sight  of  the  place  where  their  childhood 
days  were  spent  and  yet  such  is  the  case  with  ]\Ir.  Huff.  Becoming 
prominent  in  political  life,  for  over  twenty  years  he  was  supervisor  of 
his  townsliip  and  was  several  times  elected  chairman  of  tlie  board  of 
supervisors.  At  one  time  he  was  also  nominated  by  his  party  for  state 
representative,  and  although  running  ahead  of  his  ticket  he  was  defeated 
by  a  small  majority.  On  May  12,  1873.  he  married  Eliza  Wright,  who 
was  born  in  Volinia  township  and  was  the  daughter  of  James  and  Sarah 
Wright,  pioneers  of  Cass  county.  To  this  union  were  born  three  chil- 
dren:  Amy,  Otis,  and  Harle}',  but  tlie  last  named  is  now  deceased. 

Otis  Huff,  being  born  on  the  farm,  early  became  familiar  with  the 
duties  that  fall  to  the  lot  of  die  agriculturist.  He  attended  the  district 
schools  and  later  tlie  A^alparaiso  Normal  School.  At  eighteen  he  became 
a  teacher  and  after  teaching  a  year,  in  the  fall  of  1895  he  entered  the 
law  department  of  the  University  of  Michigan  at  Ann  Arbor,  from 
which  he  graduated  in  the  class  of  1S9S.  While  in  college  he  became 
quite  prominent  as  an  orator.  On  January  9,  1899,  he  began  the  practice 
of  law  in  Marcellus,  where  he  has  since  met  with  good  success,  having 
been  connected  with  much  important  law  business,  wherein  he  has  dis- 
played his  ability  to  successfully  cope  with  the  complex  problems  of 
jurisprudence.     He  belongs  to  the  Modern  Woodmen  Camp  at  Marcel- 


TOO  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY 

his,  of  which  he  is  clerk  and  lie  is  also  a  memlier  of  the  Cass  County 
Bar  Association.     Politically  he  is  a  Republican. 

He  lias  ne\'er  licen  an  otTice  seeker  hut  has  preferred  to  de\T)te  his 
time  to  the  practice  of  his  profession.  His  law  office  is  a  model  of  neat- 
ness and  one  of  the  finest  in  the  c  ninty  and  is  hard  to  excel  even  in 
the  large  cities.  He  is  a  L;reat  reader  and  literary  student,  fond  of 
books  and  is  himself  an  ahle  writer,  as  well  as  an  athlete  and  fond  of 
outdoor  sports  and  contests.  Being  an  expert  with  a  rifle,  for  a  vaca- 
tion of  three  or  four  weeks  nothing  pleases  him  better  than  to  take  a 
trip  during  the  beautiful  autumn  days  of  November  into  the  north  woods 
in  quest  of  deer  and  hear  and  other  big  game. 

In  one  respect  at  least  he  is  like  President  Roosevelt.  He  enjoys 
strenuous  life,  travel  and  adventure  and  more  than  one  has  remarked 
that  if  he  goes  any  place  something  is  sure  to  happen.  On  April  last, 
going  on  a  business  tri])  to  California,  he  had  only  nicely  arrived  there 
and  was  only  a  few  miles  out  of  San  Francisco  at  the  time  of  the  great 
earthquake  and  fire  on  that  memnrable  nmrning  of  April  i8,  and  lieing 
in  the  city  when  the  contlagration  was  at  its  height  he  lent  his  assist- 
ance in  Iieli)ing  save  life  and  property. 

On  June  t,o.  1906.  the  amiiver'^ary  of  his  graduation  from  the  Uni- 
versity of  ]\Iichigan,  he  was  married  to  ^'liss  Irene  Cropsey,  the  only 
daughter  of  George  and  ICIsie  B.  Cropsey  of  Volinia,  who  are  among 
the  most  substantial  re^iilents  of  that  township.  Miss  Crojisey  acquired 
•  her  early  education  in  the  schools  of  that  township  and  is  a  graduate  of 
the  jMarccllus  high  school.  Later  she  became  one  of  the  successful 
teachers  of  the  count}'.  She  is  a  charming  and  accomplished  lady  and 
the  subject  of  our  sketch  was  fdrlunate  in  securing  such  an  able  and 
loving  comj)anion  to  assist  in  briglUeniiig  his  pathway  through  life. 

CFIARLES  STARRETT. 

On  the  roster  of  officials  in  Dowagiac  appears  the  name  of  Charles 
Starrett,  who  is  now  serving  as  city  treasurer.  He  was  born  in  Ovid, 
New  York,  February  i,  1834.  and  represents  an  old  family  of  the  east. 
In  the  paternal  line  he  is  of  Scotch  antl  Welsh  descent.  His  grand- 
father, Charles  Starrett.  was  a  native  of  Pennsylvania,  while  hi<;  wife, 
jVIrs.  Rachel  Starrett,  was  a  native  of  Connecticut.  Their  son,  James 
Starrett,  father  of  our  suliject,  was  born  in  New  York  and  was  a  farmer 
by  occupation.  He  spent  his  entire  life  in  his  native  state,  where  he 
died  at  the  age  of  sixty-five  years.  His  wife,  who  bore  the  maiden 
name  of  Amy  Stout,  was  reared  by  her  grandmother.  Mrs.  Amy  Blue, 
who  was  a  native  of  Xew  Jersev.  Her  grandfather  Blue  was  a  soldier 
of  the  Revolutionarv  war,  serving  in  immediate  command  of  General 
Wasliington.  while  by  him  he  was  mustered  out  at  the  close  of  hostili- 
ties. John  Cavwood.  a  great-grandfather  of  our  subject,  was  also  a  sol- 
dier of  the  Revolutionary  war,  so  that  the  military  history  of  his  ancestry 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  701 

is  one  of  whicli  lie  has  ever}-  reason  to  be  proud.  Tliere  were  seven  cliil- 
dren,  tour  daughters  and  tliree  sons,  born  unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  James 
Starrett,  of  wliom  the  youngest  daugliter  died  wlicn  thirteen  years  o£ 
age  and  the  eldest  son  when  liut  two  years  of  age.  Those  still  living  are: 
Airs.  Jane  Runyan,  who  is  li\ing  in  Clinton,  Michigan;  Charles,  of  this 
review;  JNIrs.  J.  S.  Ford,  of  Chicago;  Henry,  who  resides  in  Clinton, 
Michigan;  and  Mrs.  F.lizabeth  Vaudemark,  of  Clinton,  Michigan. 

Charles  Starrett  was  the  third  child  and  second  son  of  the  family 
and  was  reared  in  his  native  county  until  about  eighteen  years  of  age, 
the  public  schools  afl'ording  him  bis  educational  privileges.  He  came 
to  Michigan  in  October,  1S52,  settling  first  at  Clinton,  where  he  secured 
employment  in  a  grist  mill.  He  was  also  engaged  at  different  times  in 
farm  work  and  in  the  railroad  business,  while  for  a  time  he  was  connected 
with  railroadin.g  on  the  Jackson  branch.  He  spent  the  following  year 
in  the  service  of  the  Michigan  Southern  &  Xorthern  Indiana  Railroad, 
first  as  brakeman  and  later  as  conductor,  l-'or  eleven  years  he  continued 
in  railroading  and  during  the  last  two  and  a  half  years  of  that  time  he 
was  train  master  and  locomotive  dispatcher  at  Wiiite  Pigeon,  Michigan. 
He  came  to  Dowagiac  in  February,  1865,  and  engaged  in  the  hardware 
business  for  a  short  time.  He  then  built  a  planing  mill  and  sash  and 
blind  factory  in  company  with  Devcndorf  &  Mason.  After  about  five 
years  he  sold  his  interest  in  this  lousiness  and  about  1872  he  engaged 
with  the  Oliver  Chilled  Plow  Works  as  traveling  salesman,  representing 
the  comfiany  for  about  ten  years  on  the  road.  He  was  for  about  four 
years  with  the  Cale  Manufacturing  Compan\'  of  Albion,  ^lichigan,  and 
one  year  with  the  Snu.th  I  lend  Chilled  Plow  Company.  On  the  expira- 
tion of  that  period  he  became  a  salesman  for  the  Round  Oak  Stove  Com- 
pany of  Dowagiac,  with  which  he  continued  for  aliout  nine  years,  when, 
on  account  of  poor  health,  he  retired  from  business  in  1904.  He  had 
led  a  busy,  useful  and  active  life  and  his  rest  from  labor  is  well  merited. 

Mr.  Starrett  has  filled  a  number  of  public  offices,  the  duties  of 
which  he  has  discharged  with  promptness  and  fidelit)".  He  was  elected 
city  treasurer  of  Dowagiac,  has  licen  alderman  for  two  }ears  and  a 
member  of  the  board  of  education  for  nine  years.  He  has  ever  been 
found  reliable  and  trustworthy  in  public  office,  discharging  his  iluties 
with  promptness  as  well  as  ability. 

In  1857  Mr.  Starrett  was  married  to  ]\Iiss  Elizabeth  IMcCollester,  a 
daughter  of  TlKnnas  ?vIcCollestcr.  She  was  born  in  White  Pigeon,  [Mich- 
igan, and  was  reared  in  that  city.  Two  children  grace  this  marriage. 
Fannie  and  Lena.  In  his  political  views  ]\Ir.  Starrett  is  a  stalwart  Re- 
publican, having  given  his  support  to  the  party  throughout  his  entire  life. 
He  belongs  to  the  Masonic  fraternity  of  Dowagiac,  his  memberslfip  being 
in  Peninsula  lodge  No.  214,  F.  &  A.  'SI..  Keystone  chapter  Xo.  ,36, 
R.  A.  M.,  Niles  commandery  Xo.  12,  K.  T.,  and  Saladin  temple  of  the 
Mystic  Shrine  at  Grand  Rapids.  He  was  master  of  his  lodge  for  one 
year  and    for   three  years   was  higli   priest  of   the  chapter.     He   is   an 


702  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

exemplary  member  of  the  craft  and  is  in  hearty  sympathy  %vith  its  tenets 
and  teachings.  \\''el!  known  in  Dowa.cfiac  wlierc  he  is  now  filling  the 
office  of  city  treasurer,  he  is  respected  hv  all  with  whom  he  has  come 
in  contact,  for  he  has  displayed  in  Iiis  life  record  many  sterlinc:^  charac- 
teristics. 

AMOS  KNAPP. 

Retired  farmers  constitute  a  cnn?idcra1:)Ic  portion  of  the  population 
of  Dowasjiac.  men  who  in  active  business  life  have  capably  directed 
their  efforts  along'  well  defined  lines  of  labor,  managing  their  interests 
with  ability,  carefully  husbanding  their  resources  and  thus  securing  a 
competence  for  later  life.  To  this  class  belongs  Mr.  Knapp.  who  was 
born  in  Columbia  county.  Xc\\-  York.  August  24,  183 1.  In  the  paternal 
line  he  comes  of  Englisb-TIolland  Dutch  descent.  His  father.  William 
B.  Knajip,  was  a  native  of  Dutchess  county,  Xew  York,  and  after  re- 
maining in  the  ea^t  until  1843  sought  a  Imme  in  the  middle  west,  taking 
up  his  abode  in  \''olinia  township.  Cass  county.  ^Michigan.  He  there 
remained  for  about  five  years,  giving  bis  attention  to  the  task  of  devel- 
oping' and  improving  the  farm,  at  the  end  of  which  time  he  removed 
to  Silver  Creek  township,  where  his  death  ocairred.  when  be  was  about 
seventy-seven  vears  of  age.  Tlis  p.nlitical  allegiance  was  given  to  the 
Republican  party  for  a  number  of  -scars  but  prior  tr>  this  time  he  was  a 
Jacksonian  Democrat.  .At  the  outbreak  of  the  Civil  war.  however,  be 
espoused  the  cau^e  of  the  Republican  party,  which  proved  the  real  de- 
fense of  the  Union  in  the  Civil  war.  He  married  !\Tiss  Mary  Finch,  a 
native  of  CoUnnbia  county,  New  York,  and  she.  too,  died  upon  the  old 
home  farm  in  Silver  Creek  township  at  the  age  of  seventy-seven  years. 
In  the  family  of  this  worthy  cmple  were  five  children,  three  daughters 
and  two  sons,  all  of  whom  reached  adult  age. 

Amos  Knapp.  the  second  child  and  eldest  son  in  his  father's  fam- 
ily, spent  the  first  eleven  years  of  his  life  in  the  countv  of  his  uati\-ity 
and  then  came  with  his  parents  to  Cass  county.  jNIichigan.  The  first 
five  vears  of  his  resif'ence  here  were  spent  in  \''o1inia  township  and  be 
afterward  removed  to  Silver  Creek  township,  remaining  at  home  and 
assisting  in  the  development  of  his  father's  farm,  which  was  reclaimed 
for  the  purposes  of  cultivatiop  and  improvement.  He  was  married  there 
in  i8;8  to  TvTiss  Abbie  "M.  Farnam.  a  daughter  of  Joseph  and  .Abigail 
Famam.  She  was  born  near  Batavia.  New  York,  and  came  with  her 
parents  to  Michigan  about  184=;.  so  that  the  Farnam  family  were  also 
early  settlers  of  this  state.  Thev  took  up  their  abode  in  Van  Buren 
countv. 

.K[  the  time  nf  hi^  marriarc  Air.  Knapp  settled  in  Silver  Creek 
township,  where  be  devoted  his  attention  to  general  agricultural  pur- 
suits. He  cleared  up  a  farm  in  the  midst  of  the  wilderness,  cutting  out 
the  hea-\-A"  timber,  grubbing  v.r>  the  stumn'^.  clearing  away  the  brush  and 
thus  preparing  his  land  for  the  plow.     He  bought  his  land  at  four  dol- 


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HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  703 

lars  per  acre.  As  tlie  years  passed  liis  i)Iace  was  transformed  into  very 
rich  and  prodnctive  tields  and  he  annually  harvested  good  crops.  For 
inany  years  he  carried  on  oeneral  agricultural  pursuits,  in  which  he 
met  with  gratifying  success,  but  eventually  he  sold  his  farm  and  re- 
moved to  Dowagiac  in  1895.  He  also  has'  property  in  the  town.  He 
is  one  of  the  old  settlers  of  Cass  county,  having  resided  within  its  bor- 
ders for  si.xty-three  years  and  he  has  been  identified  with  the  making  of 
the  county  along  lines  of  substantial  improvement  and  progress.  He 
was  township  clerk  in  Silver  Creek  township  for  many  terms  and  no 
public  or  private  duty  reposed  in  him  has  ever  been  betrayed  in  the 
slightest  degree.  He  has  always  talcen  an  active  part  in  public  affairs, 
doing  ever}-lhing  in  his  power  to  make  the  county  on  a  par  with  the 
older  counties  of  this  great  commonwealth.  His  worth  is  widely 
acknovdedged  and  all  who  know  him  esteem  him  for  his  man}-  sterling 
traits  of  character. 

GEORGE  W.  HUNTER. 

Cass  county  with  its  rich  lands  offers  splendid  opportunities  to  the 
agriculturist  and  the  ?tnck-rai«cr  and  l\Ir.  Hunter  is  numbered  among 
those  who  are  successfully  devoting  their  energies  to  general  agricult- 
ural pursuits.  He  makes  his  home  on  section  34,  Wayne  township, 
where  he  owns  and  cultivates  a  good  tract  of  land.  He  was  born  in 
Cassopolis,  Michigan,  on  the  30th  of  September,  1843.  ^"^  is  a  son  of 
M.  V.  Hunter.  At  that  time  the  father  purchased  eighty  acres  of  land 
from  one  of  his  brothers  and  afterward  added  an  additional  tract  of 
eighty  acres.  He  partially  cleared  the  first  eighty  and  G.  \V.  Hunter 
of  this  review  has  cleared  seventy  acres  of  the  second  eighty,  having 
led  a  life  of  intense  and  well  directed  energy.  He  was  educated  in  what 
is  known  as  the  White  school  in  Wayne  township  and  therein  mastered 
the  common  branches  of  English  learning.  During  the  periods  of  vaca- 
tion he  worked  in  the  fields  and  after  permanently  putting  aside  his 
text-books  gave  his  undi\ided  attention  to  the  further  cultivation  and 
development  uf  this  projierty. 

On  the  7th  of  November.  186'').  Mr.  Hun.ter  was  united  in 
marriage  tn  Miss  Eveline  \'an  Hise.  who  was  l.;orn  in  Decatur 
township.  \'an  FUircn  cmmtv.  ^lichigan.  and  is  a  daughter  of 
William  O.  and  Eliza  ( Ikll)  A'an  Hise.  The  mother  came  to 
Cass  county  aliout  1831  and  here  lived  up  to  the  time  of  her  marriage. 
They  were  among  the  pioneer  settlers  of  the  county  and  Mrs.  Hunter 
was  ten  years  of  age  wlien  she  acc'U.ipanied  her  parents  on  their  removal 
to  Wayne  township.  Unto  our  subject  and  his  wife  have  been  born  se\-en 
children :  Ina,  now  the  wife  of  Fred  B.  Wells,  a  resident  farmer  of  La- 
Grange  townshi]-);  Lizzie,  the  wife  of  Isaac  Schurte;  Ada.  the  wife  of 
Darv.-in  Garrett,  of  Dowagiac.  Michigan:  ^ilinah  V.;  Plicle.  the  wife 
of  Arthur  Rudolph,  of  Dowagiac;  'Millard  wedded  Iva  Swisher,  a  resi- 
dent of  Dowagiac;  Clara,  at  home.     All  were  born  and  reared  upon  the 


704  .  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

farm   where   the  parents    still   reside   and    Phebe   engaged    in    teaching 
school  in  Dowagiac  and  Cass  county  for  about  six  years. 

Mr.  Hunter  has  l^een  a  life-lung  Democrat,  and  his  fellow  towns- 
men, recognizing  his  worth  and  aliility,  have  called  him  to  office.  He 
served  for  two  terms  as  townsliip  treasurer  and  was  justice  of  the  peace 
for  one  tern;  and  in  Iioth  offices  discharged  his  duties  with  promptness 
and  fidelity.  In  his  farm  work  he  has  been  equally  faithful  and  in  his 
business  life  has  never  I;cen  known  to  take  advantage  of  the  necessities 
of  liis  fcllowmen  in  any  trade  transaction.  Mr.  Hunter's  father  was  a 
man  who  was  highly  respected  by  all  in  his  time.  He  was  the  first 
slieriff  of  old  Cass  county  and  was  appointed  by  General  Cass  before 
Michigan  was  a  state. 

DAXII^L  S^IITH. 

There  is  much  said  at  the  ]jresent  time  about  corruption  in  pulilic 
office  and  abinU  the  infidelity  of  those  in  whom  public  trust  has  been 
reposed.  This  may  be  true  to  a  great  extent  in  the  larger  cities,  but  it  is 
certainly  not  true  in  smaller  cities  and  towns  where  the  residents  of  any 
community  have  oppi^rtunity  to  investigate  tiie  records  of  a  ])ublic  official 
and  where  his  life  historv  is  as  an  open  Ixjok  to  which  all  have  access. 
Daniel  Smith  is  among  the  office  holders  of  Dowagiac  and  his  devotion 
to  public  service  has  been  of  Ijenefit  to  the  community  which  has  en- 
trusted him  with  the  care  of  its  interests.  He  is  well  known  and  enjoys 
in  full  measure  the  regard  of  his  fellowmen. 

A  native  'if  I'cnnsylvania.  Mr.  Smith  was  born  in  Lancaster  county 
on  the  28t]i  nf  ^larcli.  iS_)o.  His  father,  John  Smith,  was  a  native 
of  Gcnnany  and  remained  in  that  country  during  the  period  of  his  boy- 
hood and  youth,  being  reared  to  the  occujjation  of  farming.  He  heard 
favorable  reports,  however,  concerning  America,  its  business  opp<:)rtuni- 
ties  and  advantages  along  r)ther  lines,  and  when  twenty-one  years  of 
age  he  resolved  to  try  his  fortune  in  the  new  world  and  crossed  the 
Atlantic.  He  located  in  Lancaster  county,  Pennsylvania,  where  he  re- 
sided for  a  number  of  years,  coming  tb.ence  to  Michigan  in  1S57,  at 
which  time  he  took  up  his  abode  in  Berrien  county,  where  he  resided  for 
six  months.  On  the  expiration  of  that  period  he  removed  to  Pokagon 
township,  Cass  county,  where  he  was  engaged  in  farming.  His  remain- 
ing days  were  given  to  the  work  of  tilling  the  soil  and  caring  for  the 
crops,  and  he  was  active  in  bis  farm  work  until  si.xty-nine  years  of  age, 
when  his  life's  labors  were  ended  in  death.  In  early  manhood  he  had 
wedded  Frances  Fulton,  a  native  of  Lancaster  county.  Pennsylvania, 
who  died  in  Cass  county  in  the  sixty-fifth  year  of  her  age.  Eleven  chil- 
dren were  added  t(T  the  household  as  the  years  ])assed  by.  six  sons  and 
five  daughters,  and  of  this  number  seven  reached  years  of  maturity. 

Daniel  Smith,  who  was  the  fourth  child  and  second  son.  was  seven- 
teen years  of  age  when  he  came  to  Cass  county.  He  had  previously 
begun  his  education  in  the  schools  of  Pennsylvania  and  after  coming  to 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  70o 

JNJicljigari  lie  wc-rked  uj)! ai  the  hnnic  farm  with  his  father  in  its  de- 
velopment and  impnivemciii  until  twenty-one  years  of  age,  when  he 
felt  that  his  lirst  duty  was  to  his  cuuntry,  which  at  this  time  was  en- 
gaged in  the  Civil  war.  His  patriotic  spirit  was  aroused  and  he  could 
DO  longer  content  hniiself  at  the  plow,  so  putting  aside  business  cares 
he  offered  his  services  to  the  g<ivernnient,  enlisting  on  the  21st  of  Au- 
gust, 1861,  as  a  private  of  Company  M,  First  Michigan  Cavalry,  tie 
remained  with  that  command  until  J'ebruary  8,  1S62,  when  he  was 
honorably  discharged  on  account  of  disability,  after  which  he  returned 
to  his  liome.  He  remained  in  .Michigan  until  September,  1S63.  when 
he  once  more  went  to  Pennsylvania  and  there  he  enlisted  in  the  Twenty- 
first  Pennsylvania  Ca\alry  on  the  Slh  of  February,  1S64.  He  partici- 
pated at  the  battle  oi  Wehlnn  Railroad  and  in  the  military  movement 
in  front  of  Petersburg  he  was  w<innded  in  the  left  leg,  whicli  necessi- 
tated the  amputation  of  that  member  Ijelow  the  knee.  When  he  had 
reco\-ered  his  health  he  was  lionoraijly  (hscharged  December  26.  1865. 
and  again  came  to  }ilichigau,  settling  upon  a  farm  in  Pokagon  township, 
Cass  county. 

On  the  ist  of  December,  iSr,-,  '^]^.  Snn'th  was  united  in  marriage 
to  Miss  Sarah  A.  }>lcLoy,  a  daughter  c.\  liichard  and  .Maria  AlcCoy,  who 
were  early  settlers  ..f  (.'a->  couni).  ami  their  daughter.  ]\Irs.  Smith,  was 
born  in  Pokagon  town-^bip,  wlieie  her  girlhood  days  were  passed  and  her 
education  \vas  obtained. 

.\t  the  time  of  his  marriage  ?\Ir.  Smith  located  in  Dowagiac  and 
was  employed  as  a  salesman  in  a  store  for  abmit  sixteen  years — a  fact 
which  indicates  his  entire  capability  and  trustworthiness.  He  has  been 
supervisor  of  the  third  ward  for  ten  years  and  this  fact  stands  in  incon- 
tHiverlible  e\-idcnce  of  bis  lo\ah\-  in  oi'tice.  At  one  time  he  was  alder- 
man of  the  city  from  the  third  ward  and  his  personal  popularity  is  indi- 
cated by  the  fact  that  he  was  elected  on  the  Democratic  ticket  in  a  ward 
which  usuall}'  gives  a  strong  Republican  majority.  !Mr.  and  Mrs.  Smith 
]ia\-e  no  chikh-en  of  their  own.  but  have  reared  an  adopted  daughter, 
Ruth,  who  is  now  the  wife  of  Xatlian  J.  White.  Almost  a  half  century 
has  Come  and  g'Mie  since  ]\lr.  Smith  came  to  Cass  county  and  be  is 
therefore  numbered  rip.ung  the  old  settlers.  He  is  familiar  with  its 
liistory  in  man}-  of  iis  plias.'s.  having  been  a  witness  of  (jr  participant 
in  the  events  which  ha\x  shaped  its  policy  and  promoted  its  development. 
In  all  matter?  '.'f  citizenshiji  he  has  been  the  embodiment  of  loyalty  and 
in  public  olTice  as  well  a=:  in  military  service  has  rendereil  va.lualile  aid 
to  the  count\'.  He  has  a  dee]i  and  sincere  attachment  for  the  stars  and 
strii)es  an<!  is  indeed  a  patriotic  .\merican  citizen. 

willta:\[  j.\rvis. 

I'he  farm  which  is  the  place  of  residence  of  \\'illiain  Jarvis  was  also 
liis  birthplace.  It  is  situated  on  Section  34.  Wavne  townshi]).  and  there 
Mr.  Jarvis  first  opened  his  eyes  to  the  light  of  day  on  the  5tli  of  De- 


706  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

cember,  1S44.  He  is  a  son  of  Norman  Jarvis,  who  was  one  of  the  early 
settlers  of  this  county,  following  the  occupation  of  farming  for  many 
years.  He  was  born  in  North  Carolina  in  1819,  and  was  a  son  of  Ecf- 
ward  Jarvis,  likewise  a  native  of  the  old  North  state.  The  grandfather 
was  a  farmer  and  about  1S23  settled  in  Cass  county,  Michigan,  being 
one  cf  the  first  residents  within  its  borders.  The  family  home  was  es- 
tablished in  LaGrange  township,  where  the  grandfather  purchased  some 
land,  becoming  owner  of  about  two  hundred  acres,  most  of  which  was 
raw  and  unimproved.  He  cleared  the  tract,  however,  and  reared  his 
family  upon  this  place. 

Norman  Jai"V'is  was  only  f<iur  years  of  age  when  brought  by  his 
parents  to  Michigan  and  amid  the  wild  scenes  of  frontier  life  he  was 
reared  upon  the  old  homestead,  the  family  living  in  a  log  cabin,  while  his; 
education  was  acquired  in  a  log  schoolhouse.  He  shared  with  the  other 
members  of  the  family  in  the  hardships  and  privations  incident  to  pioneer 
life  and  also  assisted  in  the  arduous  task  of  developing  new  land.  When 
about  twenty-one  years  of  age  he  bought  land  in  LaGrange  township, 
coming  into  possession  of  about  two  hundred  acres  that  was  partially 
improved.  He  had  been  married  a  short  time  previous  to  Miss  Margaret 
Simpson,  a  native  of  OIn'o,  born  in  the  year  1823.  She  was  rearcfl  in 
her  native  state  and  with  her  parents  came  to  Cass  county,  Michigan,  at 
an  early  day.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Jarvis  became  the  parents  of  ten  children, 
seven  daughters  and  three  sons,  all  of  whom  are  living.  In  his  polit- 
ical views  the  father  was  a  Democrat  and  kept  well  informed  on  the 
questions  and  issues  ol  the  day.  He  prospered  in  his  business  under- 
takings and  at  the  time  of  jiis  death  was  the  owner  of  two  hundred  and 
seventy  acres  of  rich  and  producti\'e  land,  the  greater  part  of  which 
had  been  impro\efl  by  him.  He  passed  away  in  1903  at  the  age  o? 
eighty-three  years,  respected  and  esteemed  by  all  who  knew  him. 

U]X5n  the  old  homestead  in  I^aGrange  township  William  Jarvis 
spent  the  days  of  his  lioyhood  and  youth,  there  remaining  until  his 
marriage,  which  occurred  on  the  22d  of  February,  i8f)S.  He  then  re- 
moved to  the  farm  adjoining  the  old  homestead — a  tract  of  land  of  one 
hundred  and  forty  acres,  a  part  of  which  he  improved  during  the  two 
years  which  he  sjient  there.  In  1S72  he  went  to  Dowagiac,  where  he 
turned  his  attention  to  the  butchering  business,  remaining  there  for  about 
seven  months.  On  the  expiration  of  that  period  he  bought  a  fami  of 
eighty  acres  east  of  Decatur,  in  Decatur  township,  and  cleared  ten  acres 
of  that  place,  living  thereon  for  seven  months.  In  the  fall  of  1S73  he 
came  to  his  present  farm  which  then  comprised  eighty  acres  of  land  to 
which  he  has  since  added  a  tract  of  forty  acres,  so  that  his  place  now 
comprises  one  hundred  and  twentv  acres,  which  is  rich  and  productive. 
Here  he  has  made  his  home  for  thirty-two  years  and  has  gained  a  good 
living  by  his  careful  management  of  his  liusiness  and  by  his  practical 
and  progressive  methods  in  cultivating  the  fields  and  caring  for  the  crops. 

Mr.  Jarvis  was  united  in  marriage  to  ~\Iiss  Arbesta  Park,  a  native 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  707 

of  •Medina  couiUy,  Ohio,  born  December  lo,  1849,  and  a  daughter  of 
John  and  Fannie  Park,  who  removed  to  Dowagiac  in  1865,  there  spend- 
ing their  remaining  days.  Air.  Park  was  a  stock  buyer  and  a  well  known 
business  man,  carrying  on  active  work  in  the  cultivation  and  develop- 
ment of  the  fields.  Mrs.  Jarvis  was  reared  in  Ohio,  being  aljout  seven- 
teen years  of  age  when  the  parents  came  to  Cass  county.  By  her  mar- 
riage she  has  become  the  mother  of  two  sons  and  a  daughter:  John 
P.,  who  was  born  at  Dowagiac  on  the  21st  of  jMay,  1S72;  William,  who 
was  born  upon  the  present  home  farm  April  17,  18S2;  and  Bessie,  who 
was  born  June  22,  188S.  .Ml  were  educated  in  the  schools  of  Wayne 
township.  The  wife  and  mother  was  called  to  her  final  rest  February  17, 
1903,  and  her  death  was  deeply  regretted  not  only  by  her  immediate 
family  but  also  by  many  friends.  Mr.  Jarvis  exercises  his  right  of 
franchise  in  support  of  the  Democratic  party.  Through  sixty-one  years 
he  has  lived  in  Cass  county  and  has  witnessed  many  changes  here  during 
that  period.  From  his  early  yuutli  he  has  followed  farming  save  for  a 
brief  interval  and  for  almost  a  third  of  a  century  has  lived  upon  his 
present  place  which  shows  in  its  excellent  improved  condition  the  care- 
ful supervision  of  a  careful  and  painstaking  owner. 

SOLOAION  CURTIS. 

Solomon  Curtis,  who  has  reached  the  age  of  four  score  years,  is 
one  of  the  pioneer  settlers  of  Cass  county.  Xo  writer  has  ever  given 
adequate  description  of  the  conditions  which  are  met  on  the  frontier. 
When  one  faces  the  elements  of  nature  in  their  rude  and  rougl:  out- 
lines they  are  removed  from  the  comforts  of  an  older  civilization.  This 
Mr.  Curtis  has  done  and  his  labors  have  been  a  valued  factor  in  reclaim- 
ing this  district  for  cultivation  and  improvement.  He  was  born  in 
the  town  of  Springfield,  Otsego  county,  New  York,  January  26,  1S26. 
His  father,  Stephen  Curtis,  was  a  native  of  the  Empire  state  and  died 
when  his  son  Solomon  was  but  thirteen  years  of  age.  The  mother, 
Mrs.  Edna  (Thorn)  Curtis,  was  also  a  native  of  New  York  and  died 
when  the  subject  of  this  review  was  only  two  weeks  old.  The  father  was 
three  times  married  and  had  a  family  of  twelve  children.  By  the  first 
union  there  were  nine  children,  by  the  second  two  and  Ijv  the  third  mar- 
riage one  child,  the  mother  of  our  subject  being  the  second  wife.  The 
daughter  of  that  marriage  died  in  early  childhood. 

Following  the  death  of  his  father  Solomon  Curtis  came  to  Mich- 
igan, making  his  way  to  Cass  county  in  1839  in  company  with  one  of 
his  half  brothers.  He  located  in  Pokagon  township,  living  with  his 
brother  until  about  eighteen  years  of  age,  when  he  continued  his  edu- 
cation in  the  schools  of  Niles  and  also  attended  the  semlnarv  at  Albion, 
Michigan.  He  worked  by  the  month  in  the  summer  seasons  and  care- 
fully saving  his  earnings  he  was  at  length  enabled  to  purchase  a  tract 
of  land  in  Rockford  township,  F^ton  county,  Michigan.     Fie  afterward 


7US  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

traded  that  prupcity  fur  suine  land  in  Berrien  tuwnship,  Berrien  connty, 
Michigan,  which  he  eventually  sold  hut  bought  another  farm  in  the  same 
township  on  the  Cass  county  line,  where  he  lived  for  twelve  years.  In 
his  farm  work  he  was  determined  and  energetic,  carrying  forward  to 
successful  completion  whatever  he  undertook.  He  was  practical  in 
his  mediods,  yet  progressive  in  all  that  he  did  and  as  the  years  passed 
by  he  converted  his  places  into  well  develope<l  ami  highly  improved 
farms. 

Mr.  Curtis  was  married  in  1S51  to  :\Iiss  Louisa  W.  Wilson,  a 
daughter  of  Samuel  Wilson.  n\  Oron.  ike  township,  r.errien  countv. 
Mrs.  Curtis  \\a~-  horn  ni  Xvw  V^^vk  hut  was  reared  in  Massacluisett^  and 
her  death  occurred  in  this  state.  November  2",  1900.  There  uere  three 
children  of  diat  marriage,  all  oi  whom  died  in  early  life. 

After  living  for  twelve  years  upon  his  second  farm  in  Berrien 
connty  'Mr.  Cmtis  sold  that  jiropcrty  and  houQht  a  farm  in  Silver  Creek 
township,  Cass  county,  whcrcon  he  lived  for  thrvc  year>.  Tie  then 
again  disposed  of  his  f.arm  and  at  that  time  bought  land  in  Pcnn  town- 
ship, Cass  county,  where  he  lived  for  nineteen  years.  After  disposing  of 
that  property  to  a  purchaser  he  remo\  cd  to  l)ow;igiac  in  TS85  and  for 
twenty-one  years  has  resided  in  this  cit\-.  He  is  one  of  the  oldest  set- 
tlers of  Cass  Count)  and  has  been  identihed  closely  v.ith  its  growth  and 
development.  He  has  seen  tlie  county  emerge  from  the  period  of  its  in- 
fancy to  that  of  latter  day  piM-rcss  and  civilization.  That  he  located 
here  at  an  early  day  is  indicated  Iv  the  fact  that  he  paid  only  five  dollars 
per  acre  for  n.incty  acres  of  land,  which  is  today  worth  at  least  fifty 
dollars  per  acre.  He  is  well  known  throughout  the  county,  having  taken 
an  active  interest  in  public  aff.airs  and  in  .all  that  ]iertains  to  the  welfare 
and  progress  of  his  community.  He  voted  for  General  John  C.  Fremont 
and  for  Abraham  Lincoln  l>oth  times,  also  for  Carfield,  and  was  a  stal- 
wart Republican  from  the  organi'/ation  of  the  party  until  1884.  His  first 
presidential  ballot,  however,  was  cast  for  Zachary  Taylor.  In  1884  ?iTr. 
Curtis  severed  his  allegiance  with  the  Republican  party,  and  jriincd  the 
ranks  of  the  Prohibition  party.  He  has  since  cast  his  b.allot  for  its  jires- 
idential  candidates,  while  at  local  elections  he  votes  independentlv.  He 
u-as  a  candidate  for  justice  of  the  peace  on  the  Prohibition  ticket.  He 
has  been  a  member  of  the  ?^Iethndi?t  Fpiscopal  church  for  sixtv  years 
and  lias  1;een  deeply  interested  in  chmxh  work  in  its  var!nu<=  departments. 
His  life  has  ever  been  honorable  and  upright,  characterized  bv  fidelitv  to 
all  that  tends  to  elevate  mankind  and  to  promote  bis  moral  nature.  He 
has  been  a  champion  of  temperance  and  of  Christianity  and  now  in  the 
evening  of  his  life  he  can  look  back  over  the  past  without  regret  and 
forward  to  the  future  without  fear.  He  is  respected  by  all  who  know 
him  because  of  his  fidelity  to  the  right  and  by  rca=on  of  his  honorable 
character  and  long  residence  in  this  county  we  take  pleasure  in  iire^ent- 
ing  the  record  of  his  career  to  our  readers. 


William  \i.   I'.'jj.'iK',  a  \>v- 

inline 

townshii),  resides  I'li  Secliun 

-'y.  V 

Lorn  on  the   KjIIi  vi  March, 

1S41 

nati\c   of    rerquimaus    cuiiiit 

y,    X. 

October,    1790,    ami   there    he 

■   rer.i 

He  was  twice  married,  the  1 

nothe 

HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  T09 

WTLLIA.M  E.  LOGUE. 

lit  and  represcntati\-e  farmer  uf  Pcnn 
diich  is  the  farm  upon  wliich  he  was 
His  father,  Stephen  Bogue,  was  a 
'ith  Carolina,  born  on  the  17th  of 
ained  until  twenty-one  years  of  age. 
r  of  our  subject  being  Mrs.  Hannah 
(East)  Bogue,  a  native  of  Grayson  county,  Virginia,  born  on  the  i6th 
cf  DeceniLcr,  1798.  It  was  in  181 1  that  Stephen  Bogue  left  the  south 
and  removed  to  Ohio,  taking  up  his  abode  in  Preble  county,  where  he 
was  married.  The  ye\-u-  1831  witnessed  his  arrival  in  Cas.s  county. 
Michigan  was  still  under  territurial  rule  at  that  time  and  the  work  of 
improvement  and  pin>gress  w.is  just  being  begun  in  various  sections.  In 
1829  he  had  entered  land  iruin  the  government,  having  made  a  trip 
across  the  country  on  li'ii^eback  tn  this  locality  and  when  he  brought  his 
family  to  ^Michigan  .->ettled  upon  the  land  and  began  the  improvement  of 
the  farm,  which  hitherto  was  entirely  wild  and  uncultivated.  For 
many  years  he  bucce-.sfully  carrietl  on  general  agricultural  pursuits  theic 
and  died  at  the  aiivanced  age  of  seventy-eight  years.  His  wife  lived 
lety-three  years  and  was  identified  with 
^ni  1831  until  her  demise.  ^Ir.  Bogue 
dalia.  laid  out  the  town  and  gave  to  it 
liiieiit  and  influential  man,  active  in  the 
li  he  anil  his  wife  were  numbered  among 
:  this  portion  of  the  state. 
y  can  be  traced  still  farther  back.  It 
representatives  of  the  name  in  America 
-  wurlfl  and  that  the  family  was  found 
ly  epoch  in  the  colonization  of  that  state. 
;.  was  horn  in  North  Carolina.  There 
the  family  of  Stephen  Bogue,  who  are  still  living, 
d  in  order  of  birth.  The  others  are: 
'homas,  a  resident  of  \'andalia.  r\Iichi- 
gan;  Sue  B.,  the  wi<low  of  Amos  Smith,  who  was  a  prominent  citizen  of 
the  county;  and  Stephen  A.,  living  in  \'andalia. 

William  E.  Bogue  is  the  eldest  son  and  was  reared  upon  the  home 
farm,  wdiere  he  has  spent  his  entire  life  with  the  exception  of  three  years 
passed  in  Chicago,  wlien  he  was  in  the  employ  of  the  International  Har- 
vester Company.  In  his  boyhood  days  he  attended  the  pub.lic  schools 
and  also  worked  in  the  fields  through  the  summer  months,  early  becom- 
ing familiar  with  all  the  duties  and  labors  that  fall  to  the  lot  of  the 
agriculturist.  As  a  companion  and  helpmate  for  life's  journey  be  cho^e 
Miss  Elenora  Sigerfoos,  whom  he  wedded  in  St.  Joseph  county.  ^^lichigan, 
in  1S63.  She  dierl  several  years  later,  leaving  three  children:  M\rt;i. 
now  the  wife  of  B.   II.   Fowler,   of  Chicago;  William  Carlton,   in  the 


to  the  very  ad 

\-anci 

.•d  age  of  nil! 

the  interests  0: 

f  Ca: 

-s  eounlv   fro 

built   the  fust   ; 

.^ri>t 

mill  at  '\';iu. 

its  name,      ile 

\\;l^ 

:\   \er\'   jironi 

work  of  pubdic 

jjrog 

ves.,  andbotl 

the  honored  ]){' 

I J  nee 1 

;  residents  of 

The  ances 

,try   ( 

i>\    the    f;niiil\ 

is  definitely  kir 

ijwn 

ihat  the  first 

came  from  Sc( 

.tlair 

d  to  the  new 

in  North  Carol 

ina  i! 

luring  an  earl; 

The  grand  fath 

n-.   J 

o>eph   Bogue, 

were  four  chili 

Ireii 

in  the  famih' 

of  whom  \\"\\\ 

i:ini 

v..  is  the  tbi' 

Elvira  B..  the 

wife 

of  Sihis  H.  ■ 

710  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

erAploy  of  the  International  Harvester  Company  of  Chicago;  and  Ralph 
F.,  a  druggist  of  the  same  city,  who  married  Bernice  ]M.  AIcKinney. 
The  elder  son,  William  C.  Llogue,  wedded  ^liss  Bertha  Arnold,  of  Porter 
township,  Cass  county.  After  losing  his  first  wife  JNIr.  Bogue  was  mar- 
ried to  Lena  Cladding,  the  widow  of  Joseph  ]McKinney  and  a  native 
of  Ohio,  where  her  girlhood  days  were  passed.  By  her  former  marriage 
she  had  two  children :  J.  Wayne  iMcKinney,  who  is  with  the  International 
Packing  Company  of  Chicago;  and  Bernice  AI.,  the  wife  of  Ralph  1*". 
Bogue,  son  of  our  subject.  Mr.  Bogue  has  four  grandchildren :  Cecil 
M.,  Max  A.  and  Gerald  U.  Bogue,  who  are  children  of  William  C. 
Bogue;  and  Kenneth  Carlisle,  the  son  of  Ralph  l<\  Bogue. 

Throughout  the  greater  part  of  his  life  William  E.  Bogue  has  car- 
ried on  general  agricultural  pursuits  and  is  the  owner  of  a  valuable  and 
productive  farm  of  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  located  about  tliree 
miles  east  of  the  courthouse  in  CassoiXDlis.  He  now  rents  the  lantl,  but 
still  gives  supervision  to  the  farm.  For  many  years  he  was  active  in  its 
cultivation  and  management  and  he  added  to  it  many  modern  equip- 
ments and  accessories,  while  his  labors  were  energetic  and  resourceful, 
so  that  he  won  thereliy  a  good  financial  return  for  his  work.  He  ex- 
ercises his  right  of  franchise  in  support  of  the  men  and  measures  of 
the  Republican  party,  and  for  one  year  he  was  clerk  of  the  township, 
for  two  years  township  treasurer  and  for  some  years  justice  of  the 
peace.  He  also  belongs  to  the  Masonic  fraternity  and  to  the  F'riends' 
church,  in  which  he  was  reared.  His  life  has  ever  been  actuated  by 
unfaltering  fidelity  to  the  princijiles  which  govern  strict  and  unswerving 
integrity,  and  in  public  ol'fice  his  course  was  characterized  by  prompt- 
ness and  capability  in  the  discharge  of  his  duties.  Having  lived  all  of 
his  life  in  this  county,  he  is  familiar  with  many  of  the  events  which 
have  shaped  its  history  and  formed  its  policy  and  he  is  classed  today 
with  the  leading  and  representative  pioneer  settlers. 

JOHN  P.  FIERO. 

John  P.  I'iero,  having  chosen  agricultural  pursuits  as  a  life  work, 
is  giving  his  time  and  energies  to  the  task  of  tilling  the  soil,  caring  for 
the  crops  and  raising  stock  on  section  26,  Wayne  township.  His  birth 
occurred  in  Sandusky  county,  Ohio,  on  the  ist  of  November,  1850,  and 
he  is  the  eldest  in  a  family  of  three  sons  and  three. daughters  whose 
parents  \\ere  Abram  and  Fannie  (Thorp)  Fiero.  The  paternal  grand- 
father, Peter  Fiero,  was  a  native  of  the  state  of  New  York,  was  of  Hol- 
land Dutch  descent,  and  spent  his  last  days  in  Branch  county,  ^Michigan. 
The  maternal  grandfather,  John  Thorp,  was  also  a  native  of  the  Empire 
state,  and  it  was  in  the  same  state  that  Abram  Fiero  and  Fannie  Thorp 
were  born.  After  residing  for  some  time  in  Ohio  they  came  to  Cass 
countv,  3>Iichigan,  in  the  spring  of  1853,  locating  in  LaGrange  township, 
where  the  father  engaged  in   farming.     His  entire  life  was  devoted  to 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  711 

*  agricultural  pursuits,  and  he  gave  to  the  work  of  the  fields  his  undividerl 
attention  until  his  life's  laljors  were  ended  in  death,  when  he  was  sixty- 
six  years  of  age.  At  the  time  of  the  Civil  war  he  was  a  stanch  ailvo- 
cate  of  the  Reimblican  part\-,  which  stood  as  the  defender  of  the  Uninn 
cause  during  that  dark  hour  in  our  country's  history;  hut  later  he  he- 
came  liberal  in  his  political  views.  .\.t  one  time  he  served  as  super- 
visor of  his  township  and  he  was  always  active  in  public  affairs,  giving 
hearty  support  and  co-operatitm  to  any  movement  which  tended  to  bene- 
fit his  comnumity.  In  his  family  were  three  sons  and  three  daughters, 
namely :  John  P. ;  I'yron :  William ;  Samantha,  who  died  at  the  age  of 
five  years;  and  Caroline  and  Lucy,  both  of  whom  are  deceased. 

John  P.  Fiero  was  in  his  third  year  when  he  was  brought  by  his  par- 
ents to  Alichigan,  and  upon  the  home  farm  in  LaGrange  township  he  was 
reared.  His  early  educational  privileges  afforded  by  the  district  schools 
were  supplemented  by  study  in  Dowagiac  and  in  Kalamazoo  Commer- 
cial .College,  which  he  attended  for  seven  months.  He  afterward  en- 
gaged in  clerking  for  a  time  in  Dowagiac  in  1873.  but  later  resumed 
farming  in  LaGrange  township,  where  he  remained  for  about  a  year. 
He  then  located  on  the  farm  where  he  now  resides  and  he  has  resided 
here  continuously  since.  The  improvement  of  the  property  is  due  to  his 
care  and  lalx)r  and  to  his  progressive  spirit.  As  his  financial  resources 
have  increased  he  has  extended  the  boundaries  of  his  property  and  his 
landed  possessions  now  aggregate  one  hundred  and  eighty  acres  in 
Wayne  township.  His  home  farm  comprises  one  hundred  and  eighty 
acres,  which  is  well  impro\-ed.  The  fields  have  been  brought  under  a 
high  state  of  cultivation  and  are  surrounded  by  well  kept  fences.  He 
uses  modern  machinery  in  the  care  of  his  crops,  and  everything  about  his 
place  is  neat  and  thrifty  in  appearance,  showing  the  owner  to  be  a  prac- 
tical man,  who  in  his  care  i^f  his  farm  is  painstaking  and  energetic.  He 
is  also  one  of  the  stockholders  of  the  Dowagiac  creamery. 

In  1S75  Air.  Fiero  was  imited  in  marriage  to  Miss  Samantha  Root, 
a  daughter  of  Eber  and  Eliza  (Wells)  Root,  who  were  early  settlers 
of  Cass  county.  The  mother  was  the  first  landlady  of  Cassopolis.  In 
pioneer  times  thev  took  up  their  abode  in  this  county  and  Mr.  Root  ser\-ed 
as  one  of  the  early  sheriffs,  and  his  name  was  associated  with  other  events 
relating  to  the  county's  history  and  its  development.  !Mrs.  Fiero  was 
born  in  Cassopolis  on  the  8th  of  October,  1847.  and  by  her  marriage  has 
become  the  mother  of  four  children:  Ray,  who  is  living  in  Louisiana; 
Cecil,  deceased;  Charles,  who  has  also  passed  away;  and  Eliza,  the  wife 
of  Frank  McMichael,  of  LaGrange  township. 

Mr.  Fiero  votes  with  the  Democratic  party  and  he  was  elected  to  the 
office  of  supervisor  of  Wayne  township  in  1890.  He  was  also  chosen 
town  clerk  and  filled  that  position  for  several  terms  in  Wayne  township. 
He  was  treasurer  of  the  Farmers'  JNIutual  Fire  Insurance  Company  for 
four  years  and  is  well  known  in  the  county,  where  in  his  varied  relations 
he  has  ever  been  found  worthy  the  trust  and  confidence  reposed  in  him. 


HISTORY  OJ'   CASS  C-QUXTY 


His'aclivit 

y   has  ever  let 

.Ml  lif  a 

He  sees  to 

the  center  df  t 

.hiiiU'-  a 

most  ciicr.i 

r.lereiice  ut   [>' 

.SMhlHf 

false  positi' 

111 :  has  mi  mi 

tried   ~t: 

tions  wliicli 

1  he  earnestK  : 

iiiainiaii 

[iraetlcal   nature  cnnvneil   witli   results. 
'1  he  sees  fniiii  the  center  to  the  outer- 
He  looks  ui)on  tlie  world   from  no 
idards  and  is  a  man  of  stronsr  convic- 


BURGETTE  L.  DEWEY. 

Burgette  L.  Dewey,  the  senior  representative  of  mercantile  inter- 
ests in  Dowagiac  and  the  comity  in  years  of  continuous  connection  with 
commercial  interests,  was  horii  in  Oneida  oounty,  New  York,  October 
T3,  1845.  tlis  paternal  grandfather,  Harry  Dewey,  was  a  native  of 
Vermont,  in  which  state  he  spent  his  boyhood  and  acquired  his  educa- 
tion. He  was  of  French  and  Irish  lineage  and  on  lea\-ing  Xew  I'^ng- 
land  became  a  resident  of  Xew  "S'ork.  His  father.  Lambert  B.  Dewey, 
was  a  native  of  Oneida  county,  born  en  the  jtli  of  May.  1816.  He  was 
reared  to  the  occujjatiiin  of  farming  and  followed  that  pursuit  in  Xew 
York  until  1859,  when  he  removed  to  Marcellus,  Cass  county,  Michi- 
gan, where  he  engaged  in  general  agricultural  pursuits.  Later  *he  made 
his  home  for  a  time  in  \'an  lUireii  county,  this  state,  and  subsequently 
came  to  Dowagiac,  where  liis  last  days  were  passed,  his  death  occurring 
July  15,  i8(j9,  when  be  was  in  his  eighty-fourth  year.  He  was  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Christian  church  and  lived  an  exemplary  life  in  harmony 
with  his  professions.  Lambert  B.  Dewey  was  married  in  the  Empire 
state  to  Miss  Delia  A.  Stoi-y.  a  native  x^f  Oneida  county,  Xew  York, 
who  is  now  living  in  her  eighty-third  year.  She  is  of  Irish  lineage. 
Her  grandfather.  Captain  Enoch  Story,  was  a  Revolutionary  soldier 
who  won  his  title  by  ser\ice  in  the  colonial  army  during  the  war  for 
independence.     It  is  suiipo-^ed  that  be  was  a  native  of  Ireland. 

Burgette  L.  Dewey,  an  only  child,  came  with  his  ]iarents  to  IMich- 
igan  in  1859  when  a  youth  of  fourteen  years.  He  had  begun  his  educa- 
tion in  the  district  schools  of  X'ew  York  and  later  he  attended  a  high 
school  in  Michigan,  while  in  1865  he  pursued  his  studies  in  Eastman's 
Business  College  at  Poughkecpsie,  Xew  York.  Being  graduated  on  the 
completion  of  a  Inisiness  course,  be  returned  to  Michigan  and  in  1865 
came  to  Dowagiac.  since  -which  time  he  has  been  connected  with  the 
commercial  interests  of  this  place.  He  began  here  as  a  clerk  and  in 
1873  he  embarked  in  business  on  his  own  account  as  a  dealer  in  dry 
goods  and  carpets.  He  has  since  continued  in  this  line  and  is  now  the 
oldest  dry  goods  merchant  in  the  town.  He  has  a  well  appointed  esta1> 
lishment,  carrying"  a  good  line  of  merchandise,  and  he  is  also  inter- 
ested in  other  business  enterprises  outside  of  the  city.  He  has  been 
verj'  successful  as  the  years  have  gene  by.  During  his  first  year  in 
Dowagiac  he  worked  for  nothing,  but  gradually  he  advanced  and  his 
capable  service  was  recognized  by  a  iiljeral  wage.  Saving  his  earnings, 
he  was  at  length  enabled  to  start  in  business  on  his  own  account  and 


"^^-^^^^^^^  ^.SWt^£^, 


HISTORY  Ol'   CASS  COUNTY  713 

is  today  a  iimspc-mus  incrc!i:int,  eiijovinpf  in  lari^-'e  measure  tlie  confi- 
<lence  and  support  of  the  public. 

On  the  I3tli  of  Octolier,  1867,  .\[r.  Dewey  \vas  united  in  marriage 
to  Miss  Sarah  E.  Green,  of  Battle  Creek,  Micliig-an,  a  daug-hter  of 
W'illiani  II.  (,recn.  She  was  bom  in  Poughkeepsie.  New  York.  Fel> 
luary  13.  1844.  and  has  bea^nie  the  mother  of  three  children:  Harry 
B.,  now  deceased:  Harriet,  the  wife  of  W.  C.  Porter,  of  Buchanan, 
_Michig-an;  and  I'red  L.,  wh,,  is  a  i>artner  with  his  father  in  the  conduct- 
ing of  the  business. 

Mr.  Dewey  lias  been  a  life-lon.i;-  Republican,  having-  firm  faith  in 
the  principles  anil  ultini;ite  iruinii>h  of  his  party.  He  was  the  second 
mayor  of  Downgiac,  and  whether  in  office  or  out  of  it  has  been  a  co- 
operant  factor  in  'lumy  measures  for  the  general  good.  He  is  a  promi- 
nent Mason  who  has  attained  the  thirty-second  degree  in  the  Scottish 
rite  and  he  likewise  belongs  to  the  Benevolent  and  Protective  Order  of 
Elks.  He  has  ln?en  engaged  in  business  in  Dowagiac  for  forty  years, 
is  proprietor  of  the  largest  store  here  and  has  a  very  wide  acquaintance 
throughout  the  city  and  surrounding  country.  His  gocxl  qualities  are 
many  and  his  genial  disposition  and  unfailing  courtesy  to  his  patrons 
as  well  as  his  honorable  dealing  have  been  factors  in  his  success. 

H.\MILTOX  SHELDON  McMASTER,  M.  D. 

Dr.  Hamilton  Sheldon  ?\IcMaster,  the  oldest  practicing  phvsician  of 
Dowagiac,  who  has  also  taken  an  active  and  helpful  part  in  the  advance- 
ment of  the  city's  welfare  and  inii)rovement,  was  born  in  \\'est  Sparta, 
Livingston  county.  New  York,  in  1K42.  His  father.  Robert  McMaster, 
also  a  native  of  West  Sparta,  was  of  Scotch-Irish  lineage.  The  paternal 
grandfather,  Ebenezer  McMaster,  was  born  in  Morristown,  New  Jersey, 
and  was  the  son  of  Edward  McMaster,  who  was  born  in  Dublin,  Ire- 
land, and  came  to  the  United  States  with  his  father,  Richard  McMaster, 
a  sea-faring  man,  before  the  Revolutionary  war.  Edward  McMaster. 
then  a  boy,  spent  his  youth  in  this  country  and  at  the  outbreak  of  hostil- 
ities with  the  mother  country  enlisted  in  the  continental  arniv.  serving 
throughout  Hie  war  \\liich  won  independence  for  the  nation.  He  was 
held  as  a  prisoner  on  c^ne  of  the  British  warships  for  a  time.  His  father, 
Richard  [Mc^Master.  sailed  in  a  privateer  during  the  conflict  and  died  at 
sea.  The  three  generations  l^efore  our  subject  were  farmers.  The 
grandfather,  Ebenezer  ]\Ic^Iaster,  lived  to  the  advanced  age  of  ninetv- 
five  years,  dying  at  ^\'est  Sparta,  New  York.  Robert  McMaster.  his 
son,  and  the  father  of  Dr.  I\IcMasier,  became  a  well-to-do  agriculturist 
and  prominent  citizen  in  his  home  locality.  His  political  allegiance  was 
given  to  the  old-line  \Vhig  party  until  its  dissolution,  when  he  advocated 
the  Republican  cause  and  supported  Lincoln.  His  business  affairs  were 
carefully  conducted  and  he  became  a  well-to-do  farmer.  His  death  oc- 
curred January  13,  1866,  when  he  was  fifty-five  years  of  age.     His  wife, 


7^^  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

who  bore  the  mai.lui  name  of  Liicv  L.  Hamilton,  was  born  near  Rut- 
land, \  ermont,  and  died  in  .Missouri,  November  22,  18S2,  at  the  a.^e  of 
sixty-six  years.  She  was  of  Scotch  lineage,  the  Hamiltons  coming  to 
this  country  soon  after  the  arrival  of  the  .Mayflower  in  Plvmouth  harijor. 
Rejjresentatives  of  the  name  settled  in  Vermont  and  the  familv  furnished 
soldiers  U,  the  Revolutionary  war,  Mrs.  McMaster's  "randfather  having 
been  one  of  the  heroes  wlu.  f,  ught  f(M-  libertv.  Tl'ie  parents  nf  Mrs. 
McMastcr  were  Stoddard  and  .Marv  (Sheldon)'  Hamilton,  who  livc<l  for 
a  time  in  Vermont,  hut  afterward  removed  to  New  York.  Mrs.  Ham- 
ilton died  at  the  advanced  age  of  ninety  years,  while  her  mother  passed 
away  in  Rochester,  New  York,  at  the  very  veneralde  age  of  one  hun- 
dred and  two  years.  Mrs.  McMaster  was' a  Baptist  in'religious  faith, 
holding  membership  in  the  church  at  Dowagiac.  P.v  her  marriage  she 
became  tlie  mother  of  eight  children,  namely :  Hamilton  S. ;  William 
Henry,  a  farmer  residing  in  Shelby ville,  Missouri;  Marion  E..  who 
follows  farming  near  Monroe,  Missouri,  and  is  an  inventor  of  note; 
Mary  E.,  the  wife  of  Myron  L.  Ward,  a  fruit  grower  of  Alvin,  Texas; 
Emerson  P.,  an  agriculturist  residing  at  Machias,  New  York;  Albert  C. 
and  Gilbert  C.  twins,  wlio  died  when  about  five  years  of  age;  and  Rolv 
ert  P.,  also  deceased. 

Dr.  McMastcr.  the  eldest  of  the  family,  was  reared  upon  the  old 
homestead  farm  and  attended  the  district  scliools  during  their  yearly 
sessions  until  ten  years  of  age.  Afterward  he  worked  through  the  sum- 
mer months  in  the  fields  and  continued  his  education  only  tiirough  the 
winter  seasons.  He  remained  in  the  district  schools  until  eighteen  years 
of  age,  after  which  he  attended  the  Dansville  and  Lima  seminaries,  Ixith 
in  New  York,  and  in  the  latter  institution  was  a  pupil  under  I'Yanccs 
E.  Willard,  the  famous  temperance  reformer.  He  also  attended  Albion 
(Michigan)  College  for  two  years,  having  come  to  this  state  in  1S67. 
His  preparation  tor  the  practice  of  medicine  was  begun  in  the  office  and 
under  the  direction  of  Dr.  H.  L.  Baker  at  Blissfield,  Atichigan,  and  he 
attended  medical  lectures  at  Eclectic  Medical  College  in  Cincinnati,  Ohio, 
previous  to  entering  Bennett  Medical  College  of  Chicago,  from  which 
he  was  graduated  in  the  spring  of  1S71. 

Dr.  McMaster  located  for  practice  at  Battle  Creek,  [Michigan,  but 
after  a  few  months  came  to  Dowagiac,  where  he  entered  into  partner- 
ship wither.  Cyrus  J.  Curtis  in  the  office  which  he  still  occupies.  This 
partnership  continued  for  two  years,  after  which  he  spent  eighteen 
months  at  Grand  Rapids,  when  he  returned  to  Dowagiac.  where  he  still 
remains.  He  is  the  oldest  physician  of  the  city  and  although  a  general 
practitioner,  makes  a  specialty  of  chronic  diseases,  in  whicli  he  has  been 
very  successful.  Well  qualified  by  thorough  preliminary  training  for 
his  chosen  life  work,  he  has  continually  promoted  his  efficiencv  throufih 
reading,  investigation  and  experiment  and  has  thus  kept  in  touch  with 
the  march  of  the  profession. 

At  the  time  of  the  Civil  war  Dr.  IMcMaster  responded  to  the  coun- 


HISTORY  01'   CASS  COUNTY  715 

try's  call  for  aid,  enlisting  on  the  6th  ol  August,  i86j,  when  but  twenty 
years  ot  age.  He  enrolled  his  name  at  West  Sparta,  New  York,  in 
company  with  his  brother,  William  H.  AIcAlaster,  and  they  were  assigned 
to  duty  with  Company  B,  One  Hundred  and  Thirtieth  New  York  Vol- 
unteer infantry,  with  which  both  served  until  the  cessation  of  hostilities. 
After  a  year's  service  the  regiment  was  changed  to  cavalry  in  18O3  and 
became  known  as  the  Nineteenth  New  York  Cavalry  and  also  as  the 
P'irst  New  York  Dragoons.  This  regiment  was  included  in  Fox's  "three 
hundred  lighting  regiments."  it  was  engaged  in  si.\ty-six  battles,  not 
including  various  skirmishes,  and  formed  a  part  of  General  Wesley  Mer- 
ritt's  brigade  of  Devon's  division  and  General  Phil  Sheridan's  corps. 
He  was  mustered  out  at  Clouds  Mills,  Virginia.  His  brother  was 
wounded  in  a  skirmish  in  the  Shenandoah  valley.  Of  five  farmer  boys 
who  enlisted  together  Dr.  Alc]\iaster  and  his  brother  were  the  only  ones 
to  return  to  their  homes.  The  doctor  lay  in  a  hospital  at  Washington 
witii  typhoid  fever  for  some  time  and  while  still  there  he  was  made 
nurse  and  ward  master.  While  thus  engaged  he  conceived  the  idea  of 
reading  medicine,  a  determination  which  he  carried  out  upon  returning 
home. 

In  1S72  Dr.  Mc^Iaster  was  married  to  I\Iiss  Mary  i'lorence  Steb- 
bins,  wiio  was  born  in  Worcester,  Massachusetts,  in  1S48  and  is  a 
daughter  of  Edward  Sawyer  and  Harriet  (Goddard)  Stebbins,"  the  for- 
mer a  native  of  Vermont  and  the  latter  of  Massachusetts.  Her  uncle, 
Delenor  Goddard,  was  editor  of  the  Boston  Adzxrtiscr  for  a  number  of 
years  and  the  Goddards  were  a  very  prominent  family  of  Massachusetts, 
w^hile  the  Stebbins  were  descended  from  Ivevolutionary  stock.  Unto  Dr. 
and  Airs.  ^Ic^NIaster  have  been  born  three  children:  Gertrude  Louise, 
now  the  wife  of  William  li.  Sweet,  a  plumber  of  Dowagiac;  Edward  S., 
who  is  head  bookkeeper  for  the  Dowagiac  Manufacturing  Company;  and 
Robert  P.,  who  was  a  bookkeeper  and  died  in  April,  1904,  at  the  age  of 
twenty-seven  years. 

ibr.  and  Mrs.  r\lc]\iasler  hold  membership  in  the  Methodist  Epis- 
copal church  and  are  people  of  the  highest  respectability,  who  have  long 
occupied  a  prominent  and  enviable  position  in  social  circles  in  the  city 
where  they  reside.  The  doctor  belongs  to  the  Ancient  Order  of  United 
"Workmen  and  to  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  while  in  the  line  of 
his  profession  he  is  connected  with  the  State  Eclectic  Medical  Associa- 
tion, of  which  he  was  chosen  the  first  secretary,  being  honored  with  the 
office  for  twenty  years.  I"Ie  has  also  been  a  member  and  vice-president 
of  the  National  Eclectic  ^Medical  Association.  He  was  a  Lincoln  Repub- 
lican and  afterward  became  a  Prohibitionist.  He  also  voted  twice  for 
William  Jennings  Piiyan  and  is  now  a  socialist.  In  community  affairs  he 
has  taken  considerable  interest  and  his  labors  have  not  been  without  bene- 
ficial effect.  Pie  has  been  a  member  of  the  school  board  of  Dowagiac 
and  was  the  first  health  officer  of  the  city.  At  one  time  he  was  the  owner 
of  a  farm  north  of  the  city,  one-half  of  which  lay  within  the  corporate 


Tlt5  HISTOliY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

liinits  and  this  has  Ijeen  sulxlividcd  and  platted  and  is  now  known  as  Dr. 
McMaster"s  first  and  scc*>nd  ;idditions  to  tlie  citv  of  Dowagiac.  In  con- 
nection with  his  practice  he  and  his  sons  cultivate  q-inseng  and  are  devel- 
oping a  lin-ine-^s  of  o msideraMe  importance  in  thi<;  line.  Or.  Mc.Master 
is  very  widely  known  in  Cass  county  and  has  had  a  notahlc  and  honor- 
able life  history.  A  man  of  push  and  progress,  difficulties  have  van- 
ished hefore  him  as  nn'st  before  the  morning  sun.  He  has  no  untried 
stantlards  and  he  is  a  man  of  strong  convictions,  quick  to  discern  the 
right  and  unfaltering  in  his  maintenance  thereof.  He  is  a  lover  of  soci- 
ety and  of  his  friends  and  association  with  him  means  pleasure,  expan- 
sion and  ele\ation. 

WILLIAM  M.  FROST. 

\\'illiam  M.  Fro?t.  who  has  jjassed  the  Psalmist's  span  of  threa 
score  years  and  ten,  l;eing  now  in  his  seventy-fourth  year,  makes  his 
home  in  Dowagiac,  but  for  many  years  was  an  active  factor  in  agricult- 
ural circles.  A  native  of  New  York,  he  was  born  in  Otsego  county  on 
the  13th  of  October,  1832.  and  was  the  eldest  in  a  family  of  five  children, 
two  daughters  and  lln'ce  sons,  all  of  whom  readied  adult  ;ige.  Their 
parents  were  Fiijah  and  l^udcnce  .Ann  (Cory)  Frost,  both  of  whom 
were  natives  of  New  York.  The  paternal  grandfatlier  was  Dru-id  I'Vost, 
^\ho  became  one  of  the  early  settlers  of  Otsego  county.  New  York.  He 
married  Jane  Gilbert  and  reared  a  family  of  twelve  rjiildrcn.  His  death 
occurred  ui>mi  the  old  homestead  in  the  east. 

Elijah  Frost,  father  of  our  subject,  was  b.orn  in  Otsego  county 
and  early  became  familiar  with  farm  lal>or  as  he  worked  in  the  fields 
for  his  father,  following  the  ])low  anrl  harvesting  the  crops.  Believ- 
ing that  the  west  furnished  good  business  oppcn-tunities  he  startetl  for 
Michigan  in  1844  and  made  his  way  direct  to  Cass  county,  locating  on 
Pokagon  prairie  in  Pokagon  townshi]).  He  purchased  a  farm  on  which 
he  lived  f(3r  about  tv.elve  years,  when  he  sold  that  pro])erty  and  crossed 
the  line  into  Berrien  county,  where  he  lived  two  years.  He  then  re- 
turned to  Cass  county,  settling  in  Silver  Creek  township,  where  he 
died  at  the  age  of  se\enty-se\cn  years.  Throughout  his  entire  life 
he  followed  agricultural  pursuits  in  order  to  provide  for  his  family 
and  the  success  which  he  enjoyed  was  due  entirely  to  his  enterprising 
efforts  and  capable  management.  In  early  life  he  was  an  old-line  Wliig, 
supporting  the  party  until  its  dissolution,  when  he  joined  the  ranks 
of  the  new  Republican  partv'  upon  its  organization.  Coming  to  Cass 
county  in  pioneer  days  he  found  here  what  was  practically  a  wilderness. 
The  few  homes  of  the  early  settlers  were  widely  scatteretl.  the  forests 
largely  stood  in  tlieir  primeval  strength  and  the  streams  were  un- 
bridged.  In  fact  the  work  of  development  had  been  scarcely  begun 
and  he  bad  am])le  opportunity  to  aid  in  the  work  of  early  improve- 
ment and  progress.  Fie  married  Prudence  Ann  Cory,  also  a  native  of 
New  York  and  a  daughter  of  Samuel  and  Rachel  Alallory)   Corv,  who 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  717 

located  in  the  Emjiire  slate  at  an  early  day,  coming  to  New  York  from 
Connecticut.  Mrs.  Imosi  was  a  granddaughter  of  a  Revolutionar_\- 
soldier.  She  stnvi\ed  iier  inisband  for  a  number  of  years  and  died  in 
the  ninetieth  year  of  iicr  age  in  Silver  Creelv  township,  Ijeing  one  of 
tlie  oldest  settlers  of  the  cnunty  in  age  and  also  in  years  of  residence 
here.  Of  her  family  nf  fi\-e  children  rnily  two  are  now  living,  the  other 
being  Kenyon  D.   Frcst.  a\!iii  resides  in  Cass  county. 

William  M.  I'mst  siicnt  the  tlr-~t  twcUe  years  of  his  life  in  the 
state  of  his  nati\ity  anrl  then  crune  with  his  parents  to  Michigan,  ar- 
riving here  im  the  first  of  Ortolier,  1844.  lie  ac([uired  his  education 
in  comnton  and  select  schools  nf  Xiles  and  when  not  busy  with  his 
textbooks  remained  at  liome.  assisting  in  the  work  of  the  farm.  The 
family  experienced  manv  of  the  \isual  hardships  and  trials  of  picneer 
life  and  with  the  others  nf  the  family  Mr.  Frost  worked  in  the  fields. 
converting  the  once  wild  and  raw  land  into  a  producti\e  tract.  At 
the  age  of  twentv  years  he  began  teaching  school,  holding  his  first 
schonl  in  a  little  log  cabin  in  Silver  Creek  township.  He  fnllnwed  the 
profession  for  about  nine  years,  having  the  a1)i]ity  to  ini])art  clearly 
and  readily  the  knowledge  to  others  that  he  had  acc|uired,  so  that  he 
was  recognized  as  one  of  the  capable  educators  of  this  part  of  the  state. 
He  was  in  the  schoolroom  during  the  winter  months,  while  in  the 
summer  seasons  be  follnwcil  the  plow. 

He  first  was  married  in  1856  to  3>ri?s  ^lary  Jane  Dalton.  a 
daughter  nf  John  and  Catherine  f Cooper)  Dalton.  She  was  l3orn 
in  the  city  of  Rochester,  New  York',  ]\Iay  2.  ii'^36,  and  came  with  her 
])arents  to  "Michigan,  locating  at  Three  Rivers,  whence  they  afterward 
removed  to  Cnss  county,  Mrs.  Fnist  lieing  about  fourteen  years  of  age 
at  that  time.  Upon  his  marriage  ^Ir.  Frost  rented  a  farm  which  he 
cultivated  for  about  three  \cnrs.  this  being  located  in  Niles  townsliiii. 
P.errien  connt\'.  He  li\ed  frugally  and  economically  during  that  period 
and  as  the  result  of  his  indu'^try  was  enabled  in  the  spring  of  i8f.o 
to  purchase  a  farm  in  Silver  Creek  township,  whereon  he  took  up  his 
abode.  The  farm  was  all  co\ered  with  timber  at  the  time  of  the  pur- 
chase, and  in  the  midst  of  the  forest  he  began  developing  the  field-;  and 
clearing  away  the  trees,  grubbing  nut  the  stumps  and  burning  un  the 
brush.  In  the  course  of  time  the  '^unshine  flooded  the  fields  and  ripened 
the  grain.  In  all  of  his  farm  work  he  kept  abreast  widi  the  progress 
incident  to  agricultural  life,  using  good  improved  machinen-  and  fol- 
lowing modern  methods  in  all  that  he  did.  Owing  to  his  careful 
direction  of  his  business  interests  and  liis  unfaltering  ener2:\-  he  ac- 
quired a  gratifying  cnnipetence  an.d  in  1889  removed  to  F)-  wagiac. 
where  he  has  since  reniained.  For  -nn'c  }'ears  he  continued  to  give 
personal  supervisirn  tc  his  farm  and  the  idice  is  now  carried  on  through 
the  work  of  a  man  whom  he  emplovs  bv  the  rear.     He  has  one  hun- 


71 S  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

dred  and  eighty  acres  of  well  improved  land  all  under  the  plow   save 
about  fifteen  acres  and  good  crops  are  annually  harvested. 

Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Frost  have  been  born  three  children :  Fmily 
C,  the  eldest,  who  died  at  age  of  ten  years;  Elizabeth,  now  the  wife 
of  E.  E.  Aliger,  of  Dowagiac;  and  Carrie  Lucilc,  at  home.  Air.  Frost 
in  early  manhood  proudly  cast  his  first  presidential  ballot  for  John  C. 
Fremont,  the  first  candidate  of  the  Republiain  party.  He  voted  also 
for  Abraham  Lincoln  and  has  supported  each  presidential  nominee  at 
the  head  of  the  ticket  from  that  time.  He  has  held  a  number  of  local 
ofifices,  to  which  lie  has  been  called  by  his  fellow  citizens,  who  recognize 
his  worth  and  his  fidelity  to  imblic  duty.  He  has  been  superintendent 
of  Silver  Creek  township  public  school,  which  position  he  held  for 
twelve  years  and  was  supervisor  of  Silver  Creek  township  for  seven 
years.  He  has  been  a  member  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  church  for 
a  half  century  and  has  taken  an  active  and  helpful  interest  in  its  work 
and  upbuilding,  filling  various  official  positions  in  connection  there- 
with. His  house  was  always  called  the  preacher's  home,  its  hospitality 
being  extended  to  all  ministers  visiting  the  neighborhood.  I^ooking 
back  into  the  past  it  will  be  found  that  Mr.  Frost  has  for  si.xty  years 
lived  in  this  county  and  he  is  therefore  largely  authi^rity  on  matters 
relating  to  its  history.  Creat  changes  have  occurred  and  a  wonderful 
transformation  has  been  wrought  since  those  early  days  when  the 
forests  were  uncut,  land  uncultivated  and  homes  unbuilt.  The  work 
of  progress  has  been  made  by  slow  but  stead}'  stages  and  those  who 
have  contributed  to  the  ui)i)uil(ling  and  development  r)f  the  county  de- 
serve much  credit,  es])ecially  those  who  have  shared  in  the  trials  and 
hardships  of  frontier  life  as  ]\Ir.   Frost  has  done. 

CLYDE  W.  KETCHAAL 

Clyde  W.  Ketcham,  one  of  the  younger  members  of  the  Cass  county 
bar  who  is  making  rapid  advancement,  resides  at  Dowagiac  and  is  a 
native  son  of  the  county,  his  birth  having  occurred  in  Volinia  township 
in  1876.  Fie  is  a  son  nf  Dr.  \\".  J.  Ketcham.  well  known  in  the  count}. 
and  was  a  student  in  the  public  schools  of  Dowagiac,  being  graduated 
from  the  high  school  with  the  class  of  1894.  When  it  came  to  the  time 
when  he  should  decide  upon  a  choice  of  work  as  a  life  occupation  he  de- 
termined ujion  the  practice  of  law  and  entered  the  law-  department  of  the 
Michigan  State  University  at  Ann  Arbor  in  1899.  Completing  the  regu- 
lar three  years'  course,  he  was  graduated  in  the  class  of  1902  and  entered 
upon  the  active  work  of  the  profession  in  Dowagiac  in  partnership  with 
Charles  E.  Sweet.  After  a  year  he  opened  an  independent  office,  pur- 
chasing the  practice  and  the  law  library  of  F.  J.  Atwell,  one  of  the  pio- 
neer attornevs  of  Cass  county.  He  has  been  eminently  successful  and 
bids  fair  to  become  a  leading  member  of  the  bar,  having  already  attained 
success  and  prominence  that  many  an  older  practitioner  might  well  envy. 


HISTORY  0[''  CASS  COUNTY  719 

Imjuirtant  litioated  interests  liaxc  l;een  entrusted  to  liis  care  and  his  care- 
ful handling  of  these  lia^  led  to  the  winning  of  decisions  favijrahle  to  his 
clients. 

On  the  6th  of  Scptcmher,  1S99,  Mr.  Ketcham  was  married  to  Miss 
Clarice  Bushnell.  a  natixe  of  Grand  Rapids  and  a  daughter  of  Asa  Bush- 
nell,  a  wood  car\er  and  worker  in  wocid  in  that  city.  Mr.  Ketcham  he- 
longs  to  the  ^lethodist  Episcopal  church  and  his  wife  to  the  Congre- 
gational church.  I'Vaternally  he  is  connected  \\illi  the  Masons  and  the 
^laccahces,  while  in  the  line  of  his  profession  he  holds  mcmhership  rela- 
tions with  the  Cass  Comity  Bar  Association.  In  his  political  views  he 
is  a  Rcpuhlican,  and  from  1897  until  1S99  served  as  justice  of  the  peace. 
His  energies  are  now  concentrated  tipon  his  professional  duties  and  he 
is  well  known  as  a  sincere  and  earnest  practitioner,  having  comprehen- 
sive knowledge  of  the  principles  of  both  civil  and  criminal  law. 

SIMEOX   COXKLIX. 

Dowagiac  has  among  its  inhabitants  many  men  who  in  success- 
ful business  careers  have  won  tlie  competence  that  now  enables  them  to 
live  retired.  To  this  clas.s  belongs  Simeon  Conklin,  who  at  one  time 
was  actively  and  successfully  engaged  in  general  fanning  in  Cass  county 
but  is  nOAV  living  in  a  pleasant  home  in  Dowagiac.  surrounded  by 
many  of  the  comforts  which  go  to  make  life  worth  living,  having  put 
aside  further  business  cares.  He  was  born  in  ;Otsego  county,  Nev/ 
York,  February  15.  1841.  His  father.  Abram  Conklin.  also  a  native  of 
that  county,  was  there  reared  and  married  and  in  an  early  day  came 
westward  to  Michigan,  wlicre  he  in\-ested  in  property,  purchasing  land 
in  Lagrange  township,  \\hcre  he  lived  for  a  short  time.  He  afterward 
removed  to  Silver  Creek  township,  where  he  died  when  seventy  years 
of  age.  His  wife,  who  bore  the  maiden  name  of  Malinda  Gilbert,  was 
also  born  in  Otsego  county,  New  York,  and  lived  to  be  about  fifty 
years  of  age.  In  the  family  were  eight  children,  three  daughters  and 
five  sons,  six  of  whom  grew  to  manhood  and  womanho<"jd.  There 
are  now  living  four  sons  and  a  daughter,  namely :  Gilbert,  who  is 
residing  in  Silver  Creek  township;  Simeon,  of  this  review;  Abram, 
who  makes  his  home  in  Dowagiac:  Jane,  also  a  resident  of  Silver  Creek 
township;  and  Charles,  living  in  Dowagiac. 

Simeon  Conklin  was  the  second  of  the  eight  children  and  was 
but  a  small  bov  when  brought  by  his  parents  to  IMichigan,  so  that  he 
was  reared  and  educated  in  Silver  Creek  township,  attending  the  Indian 
Lake  school  in  his  bovhood  days.  When  not  busy  with  his  textbooks 
he  remained  at  home,  assisting  in  the  work  of  the  farm  imtil  he  had 
passed  his  twentv-first  birthday.  He  was  married  in  1869  to  Mi.ss 
Charlotte  Swisher,  a  daughter  of  John  and  Melissa  Swisher.  Mrs. 
Conklin  was  bom  in  Preble  county.  Ohio,  and  was  but  a  small  girl 
when  brought  to  this  county  by  her  parents.     Upon  coming  to  this 


720  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

county  they  located  m  i'ukagon  township.  During  that  time  Mr.  Con- 
klin  gave  his  attention  and  energies  to  the  further  cultivation  of  the 
fields  which  he  brought  under  a  high  state  of  cultivation,  so  that  he 
annually  harvested  good  crops.  Pie  used  the  latest  improved  machinery 
and  conducted  his  work  along  modern  lines  of  agriculture  until  1895, 
when  he  put  aside  business  cares  and  took  up  his  abode  in  Dowagiac. 
He  still  owns,  however,  his  farm,  comprising  two  hundred  acres  of 
good  land,  which  he  rents. 

Unto  Mr.  and  Airs.  Conkliii  ha\-e  been  born  four  children  but 
Myrtle  and  Cora  arc  now  deceased,  while  the  odier  daughters,  Lillie 
and  Xora,  arc  at  home.  Mr.  Cnnklin  has  spent  nearly  his  entire  life 
in  Cass  county  and  has  always  voted  the  Republican  ticket  since  age 
gave  to  him  the  right  of  franchise.  lie  has  a  wide  and  favorable  ac- 
quaintance and  has  been  successful  in  a  financial  way.  His  friends 
are  many  and  tlie  number  is  constantly  increasing  as  the  circle  01  his 
acquaintance  widens. 

HEXRY   G.   ROSEWWRXE. 

Henry  G.  RMScwame,  acting  as  townsbii>  clerk,  his  hume  being 
in  seclicm  7,  MiliMU  t(iwn>liip,  was  burn,  upon  this  farm  Februarv  17, 
i8r,7.  T'ur  family  1-  ^f  b'.nglish  lineage,  and  the  grandfather  was 
Dr.  John  \'.  RoM.'\\;iriic.  wliri  became  one  of  the  jjioncers  of  Cass 
county,  reaching  ?\lihon  townshii)  in  1834,  anj  w.as  identified  will) 
many  events  which  <;hai'eii  the  early  ainials  of  this  part  of  the  state. 
He  was  born  in  the  piri-h  of  Ciwincar.  county  of  Cornwall.  England. 
in  the  year  1781;.  lie  was  .a  i)U])d  of  the  celebrated-  Sir  Astley  Cooper, 
and  from  him  received  the  early  teaching'  which  made  him  so  success- 
ful in  after  lilo  as  a  pliysician  and  surgeon.  In  tlie  countv  of  Corn- 
wall he  enjoyed  for  many  years  an  c.\tensi\e  and  lucrative  practice, 
living  in  the  township  of  '\\"adcbridge  until  he  rcmovetl  to  this  countrv. 
Jn  the  year  1829  he  emigrated  to  America  with  his  family  and  settled 
upon  the  shore  of  Canandaigua  Lake.  X'ew  York,  where  he  lived  in 
quiet  retirement  until  1832.  In  that  year,  cholera  ha\ing  made  its  first 
appearance  in  this  county,  lie  was  ref]ucstcd  by  the  citizens  of  Canan- 
daigua to  ^o  to  the  city  of  Xew  York  while  it  was  raging  there  to  in- 
vestigate the  causes  of  tb.it  new  ])lague  and  determine  the  prriper  treat- 
ment of  it  in  all  its  phases.  Among'  the  eminent  physicians  of  X"'ew 
York  he  achieved  a  liigli  reputation,  not  only  for  the  skillful  treatment 
of  that  disease,  but  also  for  eminence  in  his  profession  generallv.  Aft- 
er coming  to  this  country.  Dr.  Rnsewarne  did  not  practice  his  profes- 
sion iti  the  ordinary  acccjvtancc  of  that  term,  but  for  more  tlian  thirtv 
years  he  chcci'fully  and  gratuitously  g'ave  his  services  whenever  re- 
(|uested  with  like  assiduity  to  the  rich  and  the  poor,  and  there  were 
few'  families  in  the  o:immuriity  that  were  not  at  some  time  benefited 
by  his  professional  skill.     .V  lover  of  nature,  he  enjoyed  the  seclusion  of 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  7-_'l 

the  lake  shore  where  he  ?(■  long  chveh.  and  aUhough  not  seeking  gen- 
eral society,  he  was  cminenily  sociahle  and  hospitable.  His  coming 
was  always  welcome.  whellKr  to  assuage  the  pains  of  sickness  or  re- 
ceive the  lM^;)i^allty  ..f  liis  friends.  He  had  passed  so  much  ni  his  life 
in  that  locaHty.  devriiing  liis  talc-nts  and  acquirements  to  the  relief  of 
others,  and  h.ad  proved  himself  so  kind  and  true  and  so  generous  in  his 
friendship  that  his  loss  was  so  keenly  felt  by  the  community  as  to  se- 
cure among  them  an  enduring  and  affectionate  remembrance.  He  died 
at  Canandaigua,   New  York,  Aur;ust   19,    1863,  aged  seventy-six  years. 

Charles  F.  Rosewarnc,  father  of  our  subject,  was  a  native  of  Corn- 
wall, England,  and  was  only  nine  years  of  age  when  he  accompanied 
his  father,  Dr.  John  \'.  Rosewarne,  to  .America.  He  was  reared  in 
New  York,  and  with  the  family  came  to  Michigan  in  1834.  He  re- 
mained for  about  ten  years,  after  which  he  returned  to  New  York, 
where  he  engaged  in  business  as  railroad  contractor  through  the  suc- 
ceeding decade.  He  built  man}-  railroads  in  the  east,  and  was  thus 
closely  associated  with  the  substantial  improvement  and  develoymient 
of  that  section  of  the  cuuntry,  for  it  lias  been  said  that  railroad  build- 
ing is  the  most  important  agency  in  the  settlement  of  a  comnnmity, 
furnishing  the  means  whereby  the  natural  resources  of  th.e  county  that 
have  been  tran'^formed  into  marketable  commodities  can  be  placed  in 
trade  circles.  In  1S41")  Mr.  Ivosewarne  returned  to  Cass  county  and 
settled  upon  the  farm  where  his  son.  Hcnn-  G.,  nc-iv  resides.  His  f.ath- 
er  owned  a  sawmill  and  Charles  F.  Rosewarne  was  also  engaged  in  the 
manufacture  of  lumber.  He  continued  an  active  representati\'e  of  in- 
dustrial interests  in  this  county  for  a  number  of  years,  and  died  at  the 
advanced  age  of  eighty-one.  His  political  allegiance  was  given  to  the 
Democracy,  and  he  held  various  local  offices  in  the  township,  including 
that  of  township  treasurer.  He  was  well  known  in  the  community, 
and  was  a  recognized  leader  in  public  afl'airs,  leaving  the  impress  of 
his  individuality  and  activit\-  upon  many  measures  for  the  public  good. 
He  was  united  in  marriage  to  r\Iiss  Sarah  A.  Smith,  a  native  rif  Con- 
necticut and  a  daughter  of  Ilezekiah  Smith,  who  was  descended  from 
Alayflower  ancestiy,  the  family  having  been  established  in  [Nlassachu- 
setts  during  the  perind  of  early  colonization  in  New  England.  Mrs. 
Rosewarne  still  survives  her  husl)and  and  is  now  se\'enty-seven  years 
of  age.  In  the  family  were  eight  children,  five  sons  and  three  daugh- 
ters, and  with  the  exception  of  one  .son  all  are  yet  living. 

Heni-y  G.  Rosewarne  is  the  youngest  of  the  family  and  the  only 
one  who  now  resi<les  in  Cass  county.  He  was  reared  upon  the  old  fam- 
ily homestead  and  acquired  his  education  in  the  common  schools,  devo- 
ting his  time  to  the  laljors  of  the  field  when  not  occupied  with  his  text 
books.  In  1 888  he  went  to  Chicago,  and  for  four  years  was  engaged  in 
the  hardware  business  in  that  city.  In  i8q2  he  returned  to  the  old  home- 
stead in  Cass  county,  where  he  has  since  been  engaged  in  general  farm- 


(■-^2  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

ing.  Everything-  about  his  place  is  in  keeping  with  the  ideas  of  modern 
farming,  there  being  fair  buildings,  the  latest  improved  machinery, 
well  kept  fences  and  highly  cultivated  tields.  .Mr.  Rosewarne  realixes 
that  diligence  is  the  basis  of  all  success,  and  by  his  unremitting  effort 
has  won  a  creditable  place  among  the  substantial  agriculturists  of  the 
county.  The  farm  comprises  one  hundred  and  sixty-five  acres,  :nid 
Mr.  Rosewarne  is  engaged  in  general  agricultural  pursuits  and  dairy- 
ing, having  a  good  business  in  both  departments. 

On  the  jth  of  September,  i8<j8.  was  celebrated  tlie  marriage  of 
Henry  G.  Rosewarne  and  ]\liss  Eva  I.  Dinan,  a  daughter  of  John  'M. 
and  Ellen  (Smith)  Dinan,  who  became  pioneer  settlers  of  Cass  county, 
Michigan.  They  are  still  living,  and  yet  remain  residents  of  this  coun- 
ty. Their  daughter,  }vlrs.  Rosewarne,  was  born  in  Jefferson  townsliip, 
Cass  county,  was  educated  in  the  home  school  and  in  the  Ferris  Indus- 
trial School.  Prior  to  her  marriage  she  successfully  engaged  in  teach- 
ing for  three  years.  Mr.  Rosewarne  has  taken  an  active  jjart  in  poli- 
tics and  has  liekl  various  oHices,  to  which  he  has  been  called  by  his 
fellow  townsmen,  who  recognize  his  worth  and  ability.  He  was  treas- 
urer of  Milton  towii.ship  in  iS'j6-y,  has  been  justice  of  the  peace,  and  in 
1900  was  ajipoinleil  to  fill  the  vacancy  in  the  office  of  township  clerk. 
He  \\a>>  tlien  ek-cled  in  ux>i.  and  has  been  elected  each  succeeding  year, 
so  that  he  is  still  tlie  incumbent  in  this  position.  His  entire  life  has 
been  passed  in  Cass  county,  and  his  record  is  -as  an  open  book  which 
all  may  read.  He  has  never  attempted  to  take  advantage  of  the  neces- 
sities of  his  fellownien,  but  has  lived  so  as  win  their  respect  and  con- 
fidence, and  has  made  a  creditable  recxird  in  business  and  political  cir- 
cles. Mr.  and  Mrs.  Ro-ewarne  have  a  copy  of  the  parchment  deed 
which  was  execuied  June  J5.  iJ^^.U-  ^"^1  beans  the  signature  of  I'resi- 
dent  Jackson,  this  liL-ini;  one  di  the  valued  documents  of  the  county. 

^IALCO:\I  A.  CAMPBELL. 

Malcom  .A.  Camiibell  is  serving  as  alderman  from  the  third  ward 
in  Dowagiac  and  is  closely  associated  with  industrial  interests  here 
through  his  conduct  of  a  blacksmith  and  wagon  shop.  Pie  is  also  en- 
gaged in  the  sale  i>f  buggies  and  wagons  and  has  a  business  which  is 
proving  profitalile.  Morcuver  he  deserves  the  success  which  comes  to 
him  because  his  life  has  been  characterized  by  close  application  and  un- 
faltering;- diligence.  "Thr'aigh  struggles  to  success"  is  the  usual  rule 
of  the  business  world  and  this  axiom  finds  verification  in  the  life  of  iMr. 
Campbell,  who  has  worked  his  w-ay  upward,  winifing  a  fair  n-ieasure 
of  prosperit\-  and  at  the  same  time  making  a  record  for  business  in- 
tegrity that  any  man  might  be  proud  to  p<5ssess. 

A  native  of  Canada.  Mr.  Crunpbell  was  born  in  Lampton  countv, 
Ontariij,  on  the  16th  of  September,  1861.  His  father.  Duncan  Camp- 
bell,   is    supposed    to   ha\-e   been    a    native   of   SexJtlanil    and    settled    in 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  T-i3 

Canada  in  early  lite.  There  he  cleared  a  tract  of  land  and  followed 
farming  until  his  death,  which  occurred  when  he  was  ahout  fifty-seven 
years  of  age.  He  had  married  Sarah  McCalpine,  also  a  native  of 
Scotland,  who  still  resides  ujicn  tlic  old  homestead  in  Canada.  By 
her  marriage  she  hccanie  the  mother  of  eight  children,  five  daughters 
and  three  sons,  all  of  whom  reached  adult  age. 

Maicom  A.  Camiihell.  who  name  introduces  this  record,  was 
the  fourth  child  rmd  sccmikI  sim  in  that  family,  and  was  reared  upon 
the  old  homestead  farm  in  his  nati\-e  enunty.  At  the  usual  age  he  en- 
tered the  C'luntry  -ehiw.ls  ;i;i,l  therein  ;ici|uire(l  a  fair  English  educa- 
tion, and  when  not  liusy  with  lii^  text  Ixmks  he  aided  in  the  work  of 
tlie  fields,  hut,  thinking  that  he  wmihl  prefer  a  trade  rather  than  to 
follow  the  ])ln\v,  he  hcgan  le;irniiig  hlacksmithing  when  sixteen  years 
of  age  at  a  small  town  called  Aughrim.  He  served  an  apprenticeship  of 
three  years,  and  after  comi)leting  his  term  of  indenture  started  (jut  to 
work  as  a  journcymnn,  fi'llowing  hlacl<smitl'.ing  at  flifferent  jilaces  in 
Canada  and  the  United  States.  His  first  work  in  the  states  was  in  i8S6 
at  Saginaw,  ^lichigan.  lie  was  afterward  empkiyed  in  other  jxiints, 
and  sithsequently  he  returned  to  Canada,  where  he  remained  frir  ahout 
three  years,  on  the  expiratioii  of  whicli  period  he  went  to  Xehraska. 
locating  at  Plum  Creek,  where  he  resided  for  a  short  time.  lie  then 
again  went  to  Canada,  an<l  the  period  of  his  residence  at  this  time  cov- 
ered ahont  six  years.  .Again  crossing  the  hui-dcr  int(.)  the  United 
States,  he  settled  at  Detroit,  Alichigan,  and  afterward  removed  to  Ply- 
mouth, this  state,  whence  in  i8<)4  he  came  to  Dow.agiac.  where  he  lias 
since  made  his  liome.  Tie  was  em])lo}'ed  at  j(iurne_\nian  work  hy  the 
man  that  owned  the  shop  which  is  now  Mr.  Crnnjiheirs  projierty.  heing 
thus  engaged  for  two  years,  at  the  end  of  which  time  he  embarked  in 
business  on  his  own  accmmt  on  Peimsyl\-ania  a\'enuc.  where  he  re- 
mained for  one  year.  Tie  was  also  iu  Inisiness  on  Front  street  for  four 
years,  at  the  end  of  which  time  he  removed  to  his  present  location. 
having  purchased  the  ]iroperty  here  about  two  years  before.  This  is 
the  shop  in  which  he  first  worked  on  conn'ng  to  Dowagiac,  and  here  lie 
carries  on  black.^^mithing  and  tlie  manufacture  of  wagons,  doing  all 
kinds  of  repair  work  as  well,  and  at  the  same  time  he  engages  in  the 
sale  of  wagons  and  buggies.  Tie  likewise  has  the  agency  for  the  Ala- 
mo gas  and  gasoline  engines.  PTis  business  has  reached  considerable 
extent  at  the  present  time,  and  his  energ-\'  and  watchfulness  of  all  de- 
tails pointing  to  success  have  contributed  to  a  ver\-  gratifying  pros- 
perity. 

IMr.  Campbell  was  married  in  t8R6  to  ^liss  Julia  Brown,  a  iTnugh- 
ter  of  Dugald  and  Alary  rATcCullum)  Brown.  Airs.  Campbell  was 
also  born  in  Canada,  and  In-  tlii'^  marriage  there  are  three  children ; 
Gordon  Idovd.  Tohn  Harvey  and  Grace. 

Mr.    Campbell   has  been   interested   in   public  affairs   to  the  extent 


724  HISTORY  01-   CASS  COLW'i  V 

of  becoming'  a  co-opcrant  factor  in  many  plans  formulated  for  public 
progress  and  practical  improvement.  He  is  a  stanch  and  earnest  Re- 
publican, and  is  now  serving  as  a  member  of  the  city  council,  repre- 
senting the  third  ward,  in  which  connection  he  exercises  his  ofticial 
prerogatives  to  promote  mea-nrcs  of  reform  and  improvement.  He 
belongs  to  the  Independent  Order  of  Odd  Fellows,  the  Order  of  For- 
esters and  the  National  Protective  Legion.  There  have  been  no  excit- 
ing chapters  in  his  life  record,  but  he  possesses  those  sterling  traits 
which  work  for  good  citizenship,  for  activity  and  honor  in  business 
and  for  fidelity  in  private  life. 

WILLIS  M.  I'ARR. 

Willis  ~\1.  I'arr,  a  well  known  representative  of  industrial  inter- 
ests in  Cass  county  m^w  living  in  Dowagiac,  was  born  at  New  Haven 
in  Macomb  county,  3.1ichigan,  August  i,  1844.  His  father,  Henry  F. 
Farr,  was  a  native  of  New  York  and  in  his  boyhood  days  came  to 
Michigan  with  his  father,  Samuel  Farr,  who  was  a  pioneer  of  this 
state.  The  grandfather  traveled  westward  with  an  ox  team  and  located 
first  in  I\Iacomb  county,  where  in  the  midst  of  the  forest  he  built  a  log 
cabin  and  improved  a  farm,  giving  his  attention  to  the  cultivation  and 
develojjment  of  his  land  up  to  the  time  of  his  death.  Henry  F.  Farr 
was  but  a  small  lad  v.hcn  the  family  toi>k  up  their- abode  upnn  the  old 
homestead  pro])crly  in  Macomb  county  anc]  the  occupation  to  which 
he  was  reared  he  made  his  life  work,  carrying  on  farming  in  that 
county  until  he,  too,  was  called  to  his  final  rest.  He  married  Julia  Ann 
Clemens,  a  nati\-e  nf  Xew  ^'mk-.  in  which  state  she  rem.aincil  uiuil 
about  twenty  years  of  age.  when  she  came  to  Michigan  with  her  par- 
ents, who  settled  in  iMacomb  county.  There  her  remainirig  days  were 
passed.  iNIr.  and  ]\Irs.  ITenry  Farr  had  a  family  of  four  sons,  of  whom 
two  died  in  infancy.  The  brother  of  our  subject,  'M.  S.  Farr,  is  a 
stock  raiser  and  ranchman  of  A^cnango,  Nebraska.  He  there  owns  eleven 
square  miles  under  fence  in  Perkins  county  and  is  one  of  the  leading 
stock-men  of  his  part  of  the  country. 

W^illis  ]\I.  Farr,  the  eldest  of  the  four  children,  was  reared  in  the 
place  of  his  nativity  until  eighteen  years  of  age,  when  he  went  to  New 
York,  where  he  spent  the  succeeding  year  in  teaching  school.  He  then 
returned  to  !\[ichigan  and  attended  school  in  Mount  Clemens,  after 
which  he  resumed  teaching.  In  the  spring  of  1S64  he  went  to  Chicago 
and  after  tramping  the  streets  of  the  city  for  two  weeks  in  search  of 
employment  he  secured  the  position  of  bundle  boy  in  a  wholesale  and 
retail  store.  Lie  was  thus  engaged  for  about  six  months,  at  the  end  of 
which  time  he  responded  to  the  country's  call  for  aid,  enlisting  as  a 
member  of  Company  C.  Fifty-ninth  Illinois  Volunteer  Infantn-  as  a 
private.  He  served  for  thirteen  mrntlT^  and  participated  in  the  cam- 
paign under  General  Thomas  from  December,   1864,  until  June.    1865. 


V,-    - 


U    /TlM^    4^  c/'jv-iyL 


\   / 


OaJlMaI,  Pu  ^coi 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY  T25 

He  was  never  excused  irdni  duty  during  tlie  service  on  account  of  ill- 
ness or  frciu'  any  ntlicr  cause,  but  always  faithfully  remained  at  his  post 
anfl  at  the  close  of  the  war  received  an  honorable  discharge  at  San 
Anton  in,  Texas. 

\\'hen  the  cuuntrv  no  h'V.<:^c\-  needed  his  aid  Mr.  Farr  returned  to 
Chicago  and  soon  afterward  went  uimn  the  road  as  a  commercial  trav- 
eler, spending  two  and  a  In'f  years  in  that  way  in  Illinois,  Indiana  and 
Michigan.  Flis  next  venture  was  as  a  wholesale  merchant,  dealing  in 
notions,  and  at  one  time  he  utilized  three  wagons  in  the  trade.  He 
continued  in  that  business  for  about  ten  years,  meeting  with  very  grat- 
ifying success.  After  disiiosing  of  his  stock  of  notions  he  purchased 
a  fourth  interest  in  the  business  of  the  firm  of  Warner,  Tuttle,  Farr  & 
Company,  the  original  manufacturers  of  the  shoe  grain  drill  at  Dowagiac. 
He  remained  with  the  house  for  about  a  year  and 'then  sold  out  his  in- 
terest, after  which  he  f. -rmcd  a  partnership  with  ;Mr.  Stark  for  the 
manufacture  of  the  common  sense  sand  band.  Later  he  bought  out  Mr. 
Stark's  interest-  and  is  now  sole  proprietor  of  the  business,  which  is  rec- 
ognized as  one  of  the  productive  industries  of  diis  part  of  the  state. 

Mr.  Farr  was  married  June  26,  1873,  to  ]\Iiss  Sarah  Doolittle,  a 
daughter  of  Lorin  and  I'lvicbe  (AW.rth)  Doolittle.  She  was  born  at 
Hun^n,  Wayne  county.  Xc\v  ^'"rk.  and  was  there  reared.  ]Mr.  Farr 
is  a  member  of  H.  C.  Cilbert  Post.  Xo.  47,  G.  A.  R..  and  he  has  taken 
an  active  and  helpful  part  in  its  work,  "^n  iSSo  he  served  as  a  member 
of  the  city  council  of  Dowagiac.  He  is  well  known  in  the  county  and 
his  co-operation  has  been  given  to  many  movements  wdiich  have  had 
direct  and  important  bearing  upon  the  welfare  and  progress  of  the  county. 
He  has  been  greatly  interested  in  the  promotion  of  the  movement  for 
the  erection  of  a  srildicr's  nuMiument  and  but  for  him  this  movement 
wnidd  never  have  succeeded.  In  all  matters  of  citizenship  he  manifests 
the  same  loyal  and  patriotic  s^pirit  that  characterized  his  sen-ice  as  a 
soldier  upon  the  battlefields  of  the  south. 

ABRAM   COXKLIN. 

Abram  Conklin.  who  after  long  and  close  connection  with  farming 
interests  in  Cass  countv  is  now-  living  retired  in  Dowagiac.  is  one  of  the 
worthy  citizens  that  the  Fmpire  state  has  furnished  to  southern  Michi- 
gan. He  w-as  born  in  Otsego  county.  X'ew  York,  August  18,  1845, 
and  is  the  third  son  of  Abram  and  Belinda  (Tlilbert)  Conklin.  of  w-lmm 
mention  is  made  on  another  page  of  this  work  in  connection  with  the 
sketch  of  Simeon  Conklin.  The  'subject  of  this  review  was  but  a  small 
bov  ^vhen  he  came  to  Cnss  county  with  his  parents,  and  on  the  old 
homestead  farm,  in  Silver  Creek  tov.-nship  he  was  reared.  He  attended 
the  Indian  Lake  school,  thus  acquipng  a  fair  education,  as  he  mastered 
the  branches  of  learning  there  taught.  He  also  spent  one  season  as 
a  student  in  Dowagiac.     Through  the  summer  months  he  assisted   in 


7i.'t;  HISTORY  Ol'   CASS  COUNTY 

the  labors  of  the  field  ami  meadow  ami  became  familiar  with  the  best 
metiiods  of  tilling-  the  scjil  and  carini:^  for  stock.  He  continued  to  .give 
his  father  the  hcntit  ui  his  services  ur.til  the  time  of  his  marriage, 
which  important  e\cnt  ii;  his  life  occurred  m  iSjS.  the  lady  of  his 
choice  beiny;  Miss  Xellie  l-'lickinger,  a  daughter  of  Tcter  and  Mary 
(Smith)  Flickinger.  Mrs.  Conklin  was  born  in  [Medina  county,  Ohio, 
and  became  a  resident  oi  this  county  when  a  young  lady  of  about  nine- 
teen years,  her  parents  locating-  on  a  farm  in  Silver  Creek  township. 
At  the  time  of  her  marriage  Mr.  Conklin  took  her  as  a  bride  to  a  farm 
in  the  same  township,  an.l  he  was  there  afterward  engaged  in  farming 
until  1900.  when  he  put  aside  the  work  of  the  fields  anfl  tuok  up  his 
abode  in  Dowagiac,  liut  still  owns  a  good  farm  property,  comprising 
one  hundred  and  forty-eight  acres  of  land,  which  is  well  improved, 
being  supplied  with  gcmd  buildings  and  modem  equipments.  It  is  all 
under  the  plow  with  the  exception  of  eight  acres.  He  has  improved 
this  place  and  made  it  what  it  is  today — a  valuable  farm  pro])erty  — 
Mr.  Conklin  personally  clearing  all  of  it  with  the  excei>tion  of  twenty 
acres. 

Unto  our  subject  and  his  wife  has  been  born  a  son,  Lee  A.,  who 
is  attending  business  college  at  Battle  Creek,  Michigan,  and  who  for 
two  years  was  a  student  in  the  Consen-atory  of  Music  at  Oberlin, 
Ohio.  He  also  spent  two  years  in  the  Musical  Conservatory  of  Chica- 
go, and  has  thus  been  provided  with  cxcrllent  privileges  for  the  culti- 
vation of  his  talent  in  the  line  of  his  art.  Mr.  Conklin  has  been  a  resi- 
dent of  Cass  count v  for  a  half  century,  and  his  mind  bears  the  impress 
of  many  of  the  historic  events  which  have  occurred  here.  He  has  al- 
ways voted  the  Republican  ticket,  and  is  known  as  a  man  fearless  in  de- 
fense of  his  honest  convictions,  politically  or  otherwise.  The  family 
is  a  representative  pioneer  one  of  the  county,  and  ]Mr.  Conklin  wears 
worthily  the  honored  family  name. 

JOHN  A.  LIXDSLEY. 

The  luml)er  interests  of  :\licln'gan  have  always  been  an  important 
source  of  the  state's  revenue  and  have  formed  one  of  the  leading  ele- 
ments in  its  business  development  and  commercial  progress.  The  vast 
forests  have  furnislied  excellent  opiiortunities  for  the  lumlierman,  and 
in  every  community  in  the  state  men  of  enterprise  have  been  connected 
with  the  trade  in  its  various  branches  and  its  kindred  industries.  ]\Ir. 
Lindsley  is  a  well  known  lumberman  of  Dowagiac.  where  he  is  also 
operating  a  planing  mill.  He  was  born  in  .-\llegany  county,  Xew 
York.  Tanuarv'  15,  li^^S.  His  father,  Leman  Lindsley,  was  also  a  na- 
tive of  the  Empire  state  and  was  a  farmer  by  occupation.  He  came  to 
Michigan  in  1F63.  locating  in  Hartford,  Van  Buren  county,  where  he 
carried  on  general  agricultural  pursuits  up  to  the  time  of  his  death, 
which  occurred  when  he  was  forty-five  vears  of  age.     He  was  of  Scotch- 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  727 

Irish  descent  and  displayed  in  liis  life  many  of  the  sterling  characteris- 
tics of  his  ancestry.  He  wedded  Miss  Mary  Engle,  also  a  native  of 
New  York,  who  died  in  Michi;L;-aii  when  sixty-five  years  of  age.  In 
the  family  were  three  children,  of  wlmni  John  A.  is  the  eldest.  The 
sectind  .'^on,  Edwin  M.,  is  a  jjartner  (jf  our  subject  in  the  manufacture 
and  sale  of  lumber  in  Dowagiac,  while  Washington,  the  youngest  son, 
is  a  resident  of  Deaitur,  Indiana. 

John  A.  Lindsley  spent  the  first  hve  years  of  his  life  in  the  state 
of  his  nativity  and  then  came  to  Michigan  with  his  parents,  the  family 
settling  in  \'an  lUn-en  county,  where  he  was  reared  and  (jbtained  his 
education.  He  ]>ursued  his  education  in  the  schools  of  Hartford  and 
later  jnirsued  a  business  course  in  the  Northern  Indiana  Normal  School 
St  Valparaiso.  Returning  to  Michigan,  he  entered  ui>on  his  business 
career  in  1880  as  a  luml>er  merchant  at  Hartford,  where  he  continued 
until  1885,  when  he  sold  out  there  and  removed  to  Dowagiac.  Here 
he  established  a  lumber  yard  and  has  continued  in  business  for  more 
than  twenty  years.  He  also  owns  and  operates  a  planing  mill,  and  his 
trade  has  long  since  reached  extensive  proportions,  making  his  business 
one  of  the  profitable  enterprises  of  the  city.  This  is  due  to  individ- 
ual energy  and  careful  management,  ]Mr.  Lindsley  jiossessing  in  large 
measure  the  qualities  of  success,  which  are  earnestness,  diligence  and 
perseverance. 

In  1880  was  cclebrritcii  the  marriage  of  John  .\.  Lind^ley  and 
Miss  Mary  Spalding,  a  d.iughter  of  A.  N.  Spalding  of  Hartford.  They 
have  a  family  of  five  children:  Mrs.  Eula  Estell;  Jvjhn  X'ictor,  who  is. 
manager  of  the  mill  work  department  for  the  extensi\-e  hiiuse  of  Sears, 
Roebuck  &•  Company  of  Chicag(^:  Augustus  R.,  who  is  clerk  in  The 
Fair  at  Chicago:  Leman  O..  who  is  attending  a  business  college  at 
South  Bend.   Indiana :  and  William. 

Mr.  Lindsley  exercises  his  right  of  franchise  in  support  of  the 
men  and  measures  of  the  Republican  jiarty  and  is  deeply  interested  in 
its  success  and  growth,  doing  all  in  his  power  to  promote  its  influence 
and  secure  the  adnjition  of  its  principles.  He  served  as  supervisor  of 
the  first  ward  and  lias  lieen  alderman  several  times.  He  is  recognized 
as  one  of  the  leading  men  of  his  town  and  county.  He  has  garnered 
in  the  fullness  of  time  the  generous  harvest  which  is  the  just  recom- 
]iense  of  indomitable  energv",  spotless  integrity  and  unflagging  enter- 
prise. 

PETER   HANNAN. 

ig  retired  in  Dowagiac,  dates  his  residence 
lie  was  in  former  years  closely  associated 
u-;d  jiursuits.  and  is  still  the  owner  of  a 
I  Silver  Creek  township.  He  was  bom  in 
New  York.  (-)n  the  12th  of  ^\ny.  18-^9, 
ciur  suns  and  two  daughters,  whose  parents 


Pet. 

er  Hannan.  mnv 

in  Cass 

onint}-  fr(  m    18 

with   in< 

lustrial    and    agr 

valualile 

farming  proper 

Geneseo, 

Livingston   c  >i 

and  was 

one  of  a  famil}" 

rjs  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY 

were  Peter  and  ?ilarv  llannaii.  the  t(  inner  (if  Iri-h  lineage  and  the  lat- 
ter of  French  descent.  I'etcr  Hnnnan.  Sr..  was  a  native  <:if  Ireland, 
and  came  to  America  at  the  time  of  the  rehelhuii  in  his  own  country 
in  company  with  three  lirothers.  'Idiey  lucatcd  in  Livingston  county, 
New  York,  and  Peter  JIannan,  Sr.,  tliere  followed  the  occupation  of 
farming  for  a  number  of  years.  While  living  in  the  east  his  wife  died 
during  the  early  boyhood  of  their  son  Peter.  The  father  afterward 
disposed  of  his  interests  in  the  Pmpire  state  and  removed  to  Wiscon- 
sin, where  he  spent  bis  remaining  days,  reaching,  however,  the  ad- 
vanced age  of  seventy-nine  years.  .\11  of  the  children  grew  to  man- 
hood or  wnmanborid.  but  rnfy  two  i,f  the  family  are  now  living,  Will- 
iam Hannan  being  a  resident  of  Wisconsin. 

Peter  Hannan.  whose  name  introduces  this  record,  was  the  fourth 
metnber  of  his  father's  family  and  the  second  son.  He  was  reared  in 
the  state  of  his  nativity,  spending  tb.c  first  eighteen  years  of  his  life 
under  the  parental  roof,  when  be  left  home  and  has  since  been  depend- 
ent upon  his  own  resources  for  a  livelihood  and  for  the  success  that 
he  has  achieved.  He  had  acquired  a  fair  knowledge  of  the  common 
branches  of  English  learning  in  the  public  schools,  and  through  the 
summer  months  had  worked  in  the  fields  upon  bis  father's  farm.  WHien 
he  started  out  for  himself  be  was  employed  as  a  farm  band  by  the 
month,  and  in  this  wav  made  bis  start  in  life.  As  a  companion  and 
helpmate  for  life's  iourncv  be  cluise  >iTiss  'Mary  McStravich,  whom  be 
wedded  in  1S32.  Thev  located  on  a  farm  in  Livingston  county.  Xew 
York,  where  they  resided  for  about  t\ro  years,  wdien.  in  1854,  they 
came  direct  tr>  Cass  aiunty,  Michigan,  settling  in  Dowagi.ac.  PTere 
Mr.  Hannan  turned  his  attention  to  the  manufacture  of  baskets,  which 
he  followed  successfully  for  alj.  ut  seventeen  years,  developing  a  large 
and  imiHirtant  industry.  On  the  expiration  of  that  period  be  turned 
his  attention  to  farming  in  Silver  Creek  township,  Cass  county,  and 
continued  in  active  agricultural  work  for  a  number  of  years.  He  still 
owns  this  projierty,  which  is  a  well  developed  farm.  Although  his  at- 
tention was  given  to  the  work  of  tilling  the  soil  and  caring  for  the 
crops,  be  continued  to  reside  in  Dowagiac,  and  has  lived  in  the  same 
house  for  over  fortv  years.  It  is  situated  in  what  is  known  as  Ham- 
ilton's addition  t(->  the  city,  and  the  deed  which  be  holds  was  signed  by 
Patrick  Plamilton  and  bis  wife.  L'nto  :\Ir.  and  :\Irs.  Llannan  have 
been  born  three  sons,  who  are  \-et  living:  \\\  W.,  of  Detroit,  who  is  a 
prominent  real  estate  dealer  of  that  city;  Charles  R.,  of  Boston,  ]\[assa- 
chusetts,  who  is  representative  for  Swift  and  Armour  at  a  salary  of 
twentv-five  thousand  dollars  per  year:  and  Frank  L..  who  is  engaged 
in  the  real  estate  business  with  liis  bmther.  W.  W.  PLannan.  There 
were  two  children,  John  and  :\lary.  who  passed  away.  Mr.  and  IMrs. 
PTannan  celebrated  their  fiftieth  wedding  anniversary-  in  1002.  The 
occasion  was  a  most  delightful   one  and  will   long  be  remembered  by 


HISTORY  01'   CASS  COUNTY  T2U 

their  many  friemls  wliu  participated  therein.  To  their  children  they 
have  given  excellent  educational  advantag'es,  and  their  sons  are  o^llege 
graduates,  W.  W.  Hannan  having  cciniplcted  a  course  of  study  in  the 
Michigan  University  at  Ann  Arbor,  Charles  in  Yale  College,  at  New 
Haven,  Connecticut,  while  h'rank  completed  his  education  at  Orchard 
Lake,  Michigan.  The  two  older  sons  are  millionaires  and  their  jjrcsent 
enviable  juisitions  in  business  circles  are  attrilnitable  to  their  uwn  efforts 
and  capability. 

Mr.  Hamian  has  been  a  resident  of  Dowagiac  and  Cass  county 
for  more  than  a  half  century  and  has  been  closely  identified  with  its 
growth  and  development.  He  has  supported  both  the  Democratic  and 
Republican  parties.  In  early  manhood  he  was  a  Douglas  Democrat, 
but  ill  1S64,  when  the  country  was  involved  in  the  Civil  war,  he  be- 
lieved in  sustaining  the  policy  of  the  president  and  cast  his  ballot  for 
Abraham  Lincoln,  since  which  time  lie  has  supported  each  nominee  at 
the  head  of  the  ReiJuLIican  ticket,  while  his  sons  have  followed  in  his 
footsteps  in  this  resjject.  lie  is  a  member  of  Dowagiac  lodge,  No.  214, 
A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  and  is  well  kmnvn  in  the  county  as  a  man  of  'genuine 
personal  worth,  whose  life  has  lieen  gtu'ded  by  high  and  manly  princi- 
ples, characterized  by  consideration  for  the  rights  and  privileges  of 
others.  He  has  likewise  upheld  his  honest  convictions  unswervingly, 
and  now  at  the  age  of  seventy-seven  years  he  receives  the  respect,  ven- 
eration and  regard  of  all  with  whom  he  has  been  l)riaight  in  cf'iitact. 

FRANK   AT  WOOD. 

Frank  Atwood,  a  retired  farmer  who  has  held  \arious  offices  and 
in  the  faithful  performance  of  his'duty  has  manifested  his  devotion  to 
the  general  welfare,  was  born  in  ^Vayne  township,  Cass  county.  Aug- 
ust 12,  1852,  and  now  lives  in  Dowagiac.  His  paternal  grandfather 
was  Wells  H.  Atwood.  a  jiioneer  of  this  county,  who  anne  to  ^Michigan 
in  the  summer  of  1836.  Few  were  the  settlements  that  had  been  made 
in  this  portion  of  the  state.  The  forests  were  largely  uncut  and  the  land 
uncultivated,  and  it  remained  to  such  sturdy  and  brave  pioneer  residents 
as  Mr.  Atwood  to  reclaim  the  region  from  the  domain  of  the  red  man 
for  the  uses  of  civilization.  He  established  a  farm,  upon  which  he 
reared  his  family,  including  Lafayette  Atwood,  the  father  of  our  sub- 
ject. He  was  born  in  Cattaraugus  county.  New  York,  and  was  brought 
to  Cass  county  by  his  parents  in  1836.  being  reared  upon  the  home 
farm  in  \Vayne  township.  He  \vas  only  about  tweh-e  years  of  age  at 
the  time  of  the  arrival  here,  and  his  youth  was  passed  upon  his  father's 
farm,  where  he  assisted  in  the  arduous  task  of  developing  new  land  and 
cultivating  the  fields  as  his  age  and  strength  permitted.  In  Wayne 
township  he  was  married  to  Miss  Adaline  Allen,  a  nati\-e  of  New  "*i"ork, 
who  came  to  Cass  county  witli  her  parents  in  an  early  day.  the  family 
home  being  established  in  "Wayne  township.     Following  their  marriage. 


780  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

Mr.  ami  Mrs.  Lnfayctte  AtwuiKl  located  u]^<m  a  farm  in  Wayne  town- 
ship, where  ihey  h\'C(l  fur  many  '/cars.  He  was  a  rehal)le.  enertjetic 
and  enterprising  at;'riciiltr.ri-i  nf  the  cumnuinity  and  was  well  known 
as  a  leacHng-  rejiresentatixe  of  farming'  interests.  He  continued  to  give 
his  supervision  to  his  farm  until  iqoj,  when  he  removed  to  Downgiac 
and  made  his  home  with  his  S(in  Frank  until  his  death  March  18,  1906. 
He  was  one  of  the  honore<l  and  \'eneralile  pioneer  settlers  of  the  com- 
munity and  his  residence  in  the  cnnnty  covered  the  allotted  psalmist's 
span  of  three  score  years  and  ten.  His  memory  formed  a  connecting 
link  hetwecn  the  jM'inu'tive  [last  and  the  progressive  present,  for  few 
men  hail  mere  intimate  knowledge  of  the  liistory  of  the  county  from 
the  days  of  its  early  de\'elopment  to  the  periiid  of  later  day  progress 
and  prosperity  than  liad  Lafayette  .\twood.  Flis  wife  died  in  1862, 
and  of  their  children  two  died  in  infanc}'. 

Frank  .^twood  is  now  the  ouly  memhcr  of  the  family  living.  He 
was  reared  and  educated  in  Wayne  townshi]\  and  in  Dowagiac  also 
attended  school.  When  not  busy  with  his  text  l)ooks  he  worked  in  the 
fields  upon  the  old  homestead  and  assisted  his  father  in  the  develop- 
ment and  improvement  of  the  farm  for  many  years.  Tn  1874  he  was 
married  to  Miss  l"!elle  Ingling.  a  daughter  of  Samuel  and  Jane  Ingling 
and  a  native  of  Penn  townshi]),  Cass  county,  where  her  parents  had 
located  in  pioneer  times.  At  their  marriage  the  young  couple  took  up 
their  abode  on  the  old  homestead  farm  and  Mr.  Atwood  was  actively 
and  successfidly  engaged  in  general  agricultural  pursuits  until  T902, 
when  he  removed  to  Dowagiac,  where  he  is  now  living  retired.  His 
business  affairs  were  ca]xably  and  successfully  ci^nducted  foi-  many 
years,  and. thus  annually  he  was  rdile  to  add  to  his  capital,  which  is 
now  sufficient  to  su])p!y  him  with  all  of  the  necessities  and  comforts 
of  life  without  recourse  to  further  business. 

Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  .\twood  have  been  born  three  children:  Fred, 
wdio  is  now  li\-ing  in  Wayne  township;  Fay,  wdio  resides  upon  the  old 
liomestead;  and  Cora,  the  w^ife  of  Glenn  Chainberlain,  of  Dowagiac. 
The  old  homestead  projierty  comprises  two  hundred  and  sixty  acres 
of  valuable  land,  and  is  now  being  o]ierated  by  Mr.  Atwood's  second 
son.  In  affairs  relating  to  the  progress  and  improvement  of  the  com- 
munity Mr.  Atwood  has  always  taken  a  deep  interest  and  helpful  part. 
He  was  township  clerk  for  six  years,  school  inspector  for  two  years, 
and  supen-isor  for  nine  years.  In  his  political  affiliatinn  he  is  a  Dem- 
ocrat. He  has  been  treasurer  of  the  Farmers'  INIutual  Fire  Insurance 
Company  of  Dowagiac  since  1902,  and  is  now  secretary,  and  has  been 
administrator  of  several  estates.  He  is  well  known  in  the  county  as 
one  who  is  ever  true  to  a  tnist  reposed  in  him,  and  in  all  the  fifty-three 
years  of  his  residence  in  C.iss  county  he  has  maintained  a  high  stand- 
ard of  conduct,  both  for  public  and  private  life.     Fie  is  connected  with 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  731 

the  IModcrn  Woodmen  cam])  at  Dowagiac,  and  at  all  times  and  under 
all  circnmstances  has  been  found  worthy  of  the  regard  and  esteem  of 
his  fellinv  men. 

NORRIS   RICHARDSON. 

Norris  Richardson,  an  honored  veteran  of  the  Civil  war.  resides  in 
Cassopoiis.  He  has  fi2T.n'ed.  pr(iminentlv  in  ex'ents  relatinj^  to  the  wel- 
fare and  substantial  im])ro\-ement  of  the  county,  was  at  one  time  county 
treasurer,  and  is  numbered  among  the  old  settlers.  There  are  few  na- 
tive sons  of  the  county  who  have  resided  long-er  within  its  borders,  for 
his  birth  occurred  in  Calvin  township  on  the  25th  of  December,  1835. 
His  father,  Hiram  Richardson,  was  born  in  Hardin  county,  Ohio,  was 
there  reared  and  came  to  Michigan,  a  single  man,  in  1827.  Much  of 
the  land  was  still  in  possession  of  the  gx)vernment  at  that  time,  and  he 
entered  a  claim  in  Calvin  township,  upon  which  not  a  furrow  had  been 
turned  or  an  improvement  made.  In  fact,  there  were  few  settlers  in 
the  township  and  only  here  and  there  was  seen  a  clearing,  in  the  midst 
of  which  would  be  found  a  log  cabin,  to  indicate  that  the  seeds  of  civili- 
zation had  been  sown  which  were  in  due  time  to  bear  rich  fruit.  He 
was  married  in  Cahin  township  to  Miss  Catharine  Reed,  whose  birth 
occurred  in  either  Hardin  or  Logan  county,  Ohio.  Her  father  was 
John  Reed,  who  came  to  Cass  county  al)out  1S26  or  1S27  and  took  up 
his  abode  in  Peim  township  adjoining  Diamond  lake.  He,  too.  secured 
a  claim,  but  he  did  not  improve  it,  selling  it  soon  afterward  to  Mr. 
Macintosh.  ]\[rs.  Richardson  was  quite  yoimg  when  brought  to  this 
county  by  her  parents,  and  at  the  time  of  her  niarriage  she  located 
with  her  husband  in  Calvin  township  upon  the  farm  which  he  had  en- 
tered from  the  government  and  on  which  they  resided  until  about  1S53. 
They  then  removed  to  Allegan  county,  ^Michigan,  where  ^Ir.  Richard- 
son departed  this  life  at  the  age  of  sixty- four  years,  while  his  wife 
lived  to  be  about  fifty-four  years  of  age,  she  dying  on  the  homestead  in 
Calvin  township.  Following  her  death.  Hiram  Richardson  was  mar- 
ried to  Mrs.  Nancy  Eastman.  By  his  first  marriage  there  were  nine 
children,  five  of  whom  reached  adult  age,  while  of  the  second  marriage 
there  were  three  children,  of  whom  two  gained  years  of  maturity. 

Norris  Richardson  is  the  third  child  of  the  first  marriage.  He  was 
reared  in  Calvin  township  and  pursued  his  education  in  one  of  the  old- 
time  log  school  houses  such  as  were  common  in  pioneer  districts.  The 
furnishings  of  such  an  institution  were  very  primitive  and  the  methods 
of  instruction  were  almost  equally  crude.  His  mother  died  when  he 
was  only  thirteen  years  of  age  and  he  then  started  out  in  life  for  him- 
self, working  by  the  month  a=  a  farm  hand.  In  this  way  he  gained  a 
livelihood  until  after  the  outbreak  of  the  Civil  war,  when  his  patriotic 
spirit  was  aroused  by  the  attempt  of  the  south  to  overthrow  tlie  Union, 
and  he  joined  a  ^Tichigan  regiment.  Init  was  not  accepted.     The  com- 


732  HISTORY  01'  CASS  COUNTY 

iiaiiy.  however,  (li'-l);in(le(l  and  he  went  t"  Jnhet.  lUinnis.  wliere  he  en- 
listed a?  a  nieniljer  nf  Ciinii)an\  F,  Twentietli  JUinuis  Vvilunteer  Infan- 
try, and  witli  that  company  served  as  a  private  for  two  years,  after 
which  lie  was  honorahly  disch.arged  on  account  of  physical  disaljility, 
receiving:  his  dischar.i^c  from  General  Grant.  When  he  liad  soincv.-hat 
recovered  his  health,  however,  he  re-enlisted  in  1863  as  a  memher  of 
Company  L,  Ninth  Iowa  Cavalr_\-,  with  which  he  served  until  the  3rd 
of  February.  1S66,  when  he  was  oiice  more  honorably  dischars^ed.  He 
was  commissioned  as  an  officer,  holdinjj  the  rank  of  first  lieutenant  of 
Company  L,  and  was  also  adjutant  of  the  re,i:^inient.  His  military  serv- 
ice covered  more  than  four  years  and  was  frauc;lit  with  much  danger, 
while  -his  course  was  characterized  h.y  unfaltering  fidelity  to  duty.  He 
was  at  Frerlerickstown.  Missouri,  in  1S61,  and  the  same  year  the  regi- 
ment went  down  the  Mi  — i-^ipin'  river,  landing  at  Cajje  Girardeau.  He 
afterward  participated  in  the  -^iege  of  Columbus,  Kentucky,  and  under 
General  ( Irant  returned  up  the  Ohio  river,  participating  in  the  liattle 
of  Fort  Henry  in  1S62,  also  in  the  engagement  at  Fnrt  Donaldson  and 
the  battles  of  Shiloh  and  Corinth.  His  first  siege  was  at  the  last  named 
place,  and  after  the  cajiitulation  (jf  that  citv  he  went  with  his  regiment 
to  Jackson,  Tennessee,  where  he  mad.e  a  raid.  S-ion  afterward  he  was 
honorably  discharged,  and  during  tlie  second  term  of  his  enh'stmer.t 
he  participated  in  hut  few  battles,  operating  with  the  movements  of  the 
armv  in  Arl--an=as.  He  was  never  in  the  hns])ital.  hut  was  on  active 
dutv  all  ',(  the  time  with  v.-hich  he  was  connected  with  the  army.  Dur- 
ing both  terms  of  enlistment  he  h.-rd  charge  of  the  records  of  the  com- 
panies and  at  the  close  of  the  war  he  was  sent  on  an  official  mission 
to  St.  Louis  to  do  special  duty  by  order  of  the  general  commander  of 
the  department.  He  received  his  second  discharge  at  Little  Rock  and 
returned  home  with  a  most  creditable  military  record.  No  man  could 
ever  say  aught  against  his  bravery  or  his  loyalty,  and  he  deser\-es  the 
gratitude  which  the  nation  will  never  cease  to  feel  for  all  the  brave 
boys  in  blue  who  fought  for  the  defense  of  the  Union. 

When  the  war  was  r.ver  Mr.  Richardson  returned  to  Cass  county, 
Michigan,  and  v.a';  married  in  iSrif)  to  :Mi';s  Susan  Adamson,  a  daugh- 
ter of  Tohn  and  Sarah  (Erwin)  .\damson.  who  removed  from  Colum- 
biana ccuntv,  Ohio,  to  Ca=s  cnuntv  in  1853.  Tier  father  purchased  a 
farm  from  Hiram  Richardson  and  the  wife  of  our  subject,  who  was 
bom  in  Columbiana  county.  Ohio,  \\-as  reared  upon  the  old  family 
homestead  in  this  county.  Following  his  marriage  Norris  Richard- 
son removed  to  \\',-irren  county.  Towa.  wdiere  he  remained  for  three 
vears  and  th.en  returned  to  Cass  county,  locating  on  the  old  homestead. 
He  bought  land  in  Porter  township  and  afterward  sold  that  property 
and  bought  anotlier  farm.  He  continued  actively  in  fanning  until 
1895.  when  he  put  aside  the  more  arduous  duties  of  the  fields,  having 
been  elected  to  the  position  of  county  treasurer.      Fie  then   locateil   at 


HISTORY  Oi-  CASS  COUXTY  T33 

Cassopolis  and  filled  the  oliice  for  four  years,  having  been  re-elected  in 
1S97.  He  was  also  called  to  various  township  positions,  and  at  all 
times  discharged  his  duties  with  promptness  and  hdelity.  At  the  same 
time  he  has  cuniinuetl  the  ownership  of  his  farms  in  I'ortcr  and  Xew- 
berg  townships. 

Unto  Mr.  and  Airs.  Richardson  have  been  Lorn  a  son  and  daugh- 
ter: Carmi  Claud,  who  is  now  a  resident  farmer  of  Porter  township; 
and  Ethel  Frances,  who  died  in  October,   1S99. 

Mr.  Richardson  has  been  a  lifelong  Republican,  as  was  his  father 
before  him.  He  is  now  the  commander  of  AUiert  Anderson  Post,  No. 
157,  G.  A.  R.,  having  been  honored  with  this  position  for  about  ten 
years.  He  has  taken  a  ver\'  active  and  helpful  interest  in  the  work  of 
the  post  and  has  dune  an  able  and  valuable  service  in  looking  after  the 
interests  of  the  soldiers  in  this  county.  He  has  likewise  attained  the 
chapter  degree  in  Masonry,  and  in  his  life  exemplifies  the  benelicent 
spirit  of  the  craft.  His  acti\-ity  has  touched  upon  many  lines  of  general 
interest,  and  he  has  never  been  found  remiss  in  any  duty  of  citizen- 
ship. Moreover,  his  business  career  has  been  commendable,  for  at  tlie 
early  age  of  thirteen  years  he  started  out  in  life  on  his  own  account, 
and  he  may  therefore  be  truly  called  a  self-made  man.  Through  the 
exercise  of  his  native  talents  and  energies  and  the  careful  utilization 
of  his  opportunities  he  has  become  the  owner  of  valuable  property  in- 
terests which  now  enable  him  to  live  retired.  His  life  record  is  in 
many  respects  worthy  of  emulation,  for  he  has  displayed  splendid  qual- 
ifications in  milit.'u-}'  and  ])olitical  service:  and  in  the  business  interests 
which  have  brought  him  in  contact  with  iiis  fellow  citizens. 

LAURENCE  B.  PATTISON. 

Laurence  B.  Pattison,  a  farmer  and  representative  citizen  of  Poka- 
gon  township  living  on  section  25,  was  born  in  Ann  Arbor,  Michigan. 
March  5,  1838,  a  son  of  Daniel  H.  and  Alrina  (Davis)  Pattison,  both 
of  whom  were  natives  of  the  -state  of  New  York,  the  motlier  having 
been  born  in  Allegany  county.  The  father  was  a  shoemaker  by  trade, 
and  after  learning  and  following  that  business  for  some  time  became  a 
shoe  merchant.  Unto  him  and  his  wife  were  born  four  daughters  and 
four  sons,  of  whum  Laurence  was  the  second  son  and  second  child. 
The  family  record  is  as  follows:  Edwin,  deceased;  Laurence;  Rosella, 
who  has  also  passed  away ;  Harriet :  Daniel :  ]Mary ;  Eunice :  and  Will- 
iam, deceased.  All  reached  adult  age,  although  three  have  now  passed 
away.     The  death  of  the  father  occurred  in  1868. 

Laurence  B.  Pattison  was  reared  to  manhood  in  ]\Ianchester, 
Michigan,  acquired  a  public  school  education  and  there  became  famil- 
iar with  farm  work  in  all  Us  departments.  Thinking  that  he  might 
have  better  business  opportunities  in  the  west,  he  came  to  Cass  county 
on   the    loth    of    February,    i860,    and   entered   the   employ   of    Henr>- 


734  HISTORY  or  CASS  COUNTY 

Stretch,  for  wlioin  lie  worked  as  a  farm  hand  for  about  two  years. 
In  the  latter  part  of  iSOi  he  left  tliat  einpl(jy  and  went  to  Dowagiac, 
Michigan,  where  he  spent  a  part  of  the  winter,  and  in  the  spring  of 
1862  he  located  on  Liiile  Prairie,  being  eniphiycd  by  Jasi)er  \'aiicuren 
until  January,   1S64. 

On  the  19th  nt  that  niuiuli  .Mr.  Pattison  was  married  to  Miss 
Hannah  \'an  \'lear,  a  nati\e  of  Pokagon  township,  Cass  county,  born 
September  16.  1844.  Iler  parents  were  George  and  Kate  (Ferris) 
Van  Vlear,  pioneer  settlers  of  Cass  county,  who  took  up  their  abode 
here  in  1833,  coming  to  Alichigan  from  Ohio.  They  were  married  in 
Ohio,  and  on  leaving  that  state  settled  upon  a  farm  which  is  now  the 
home  of  Mr.  Patti.M.n.  In  their  family  were  five  clnklrcn,  three  of 
whom  were  Kirn  in  the  I'.uckeye  state,  while  two  were  born  in  Cass 
county.  John  and  Phebe,  twins,  are  deceased,  and  Lewis,  the  fourth 
child,  has  also  passed  away.  The  <jthers  are  Katherine  and  Hannah. 
Mrs.  Pattison  was  educated  in  Pokagon  township,  pursuing  her  studies 
in  an  old  log  school  hnusc.  At  the  time  of  Ins  marriage  Mr.  Pattison 
rented  one  hundred  and  ten  acres  of  land,  uiKin  which  he  lived  for 
twenty-two  years.  He  then,  in  18S6.  removed  to  the  farm  which  he 
recently  owned,  having  inirchascd  the  i)lace  some  years  before  from 
Mrs.  Pattison's  father.  It  comprised  one  hundred  and  twenty  acres 
of  land,  wliich  is  ricli  and  arable,  and  the  well  tilled  fields  annually  re- 
turned to  him  excellent  hnrvests.  while  his  crops  found  a  ready  sale 
on  the  market.  He  reccntl\-  sold  this  place,  however,  and  bought  a 
farm  in  Wayne  townsliip  c  insisting  oiVone  hundred  and  forty  acres, 
formerh'  knuwii  as  the  •.I'pl)'   larm. 

Unto  Mr.  and  Mrs.  I'af  is.m  have  been  born  two  sons  and  a  daug'h- 
ter:  Estelle.  born  December  4,  18(14:  Wilbur,  who  was  born  January 
16.  1866,  and  died  Janu'uy  to,  1883:  and  .\delbert.  born  December 
27.  1871.  All  are  natives  uf  Cass  county.  In  his  jjolitical  views  Mr. 
Pattison  is  a  Democrat  where  national  issues  are  involved,  but  at  local 
elections  votes  independently  and  has  taken  an  active  part  in  political 
interests  in  his  heme  localit}-.  He  belongs  to  Pokagon  lodge,  Xo.  36, 
A.  F.  &  A.  'SI.,  and  is  also  connected  with  the  United  Workmen  of 
Dowagiac.  Flis  residence  in  Cass  county  covers  a  period  of  fortv-five 
years,  during  which  time  he  has  worked  persistently  and  energetically 
and  all  the  success  that  he  has  achieved  is  attributable  ent'irelv  to  his 
own  efforts,  his  jiresent  farm  lieiiig  the  visible  evidence  of  his  life  of 
thrift  and  industry. 

L.  L.  LAWRENCE. 

L.  L.  Lawrence,  well  known  as  a  representative  of  agricultural 
circles  in  A'olinia  Iriwnship,  resides  on  section  11.  He  was  born  in  this 
township  Tvlav  i  ^.  1853.  and  was  the  eldest  of  the  three  sons  who=:e  par- 
ents were  Levi  B.  and  Esther  (Copley)  Lawrence.     The  father  arrived 


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L_ 


HISTORY  OI'-  CASS  COUNT  V  T35 

in  Cass  county  cilmul  iS.V-  when  the  wnrk  ut  impnneinent  and  prog- 
ress had  scarcely  licen  Ixi^uii  here.  He  took  up  kind  from  the  govern- 
ment, and  fur  a  long  peri.ul  earned  cm  general  agricultural  ])ursuits.  his 
life's  lali.rs  lioing  ended  in  dcaLii  when  he  was  about  scvent_\--six  _\-ears 
of  age. 

When  a  youth  of  al'uut  six  years  L.  L.  Lawrence  enlerc<l  the  pul)- 
lic  schools  and  attended  as  >  ipp.irtunity  offered  until  he  had  mastered 
the  branches  of  learning  taught  therein.  He  also  early  accpiainted  him- 
self with  farm  lalK^r,  taking  his  place  in  the  fields  almost  as  soun  as  old 
enough  to  handle  the  jjIuu.  He  continued  to  assist  in  the  work  of  cul- 
tivating crops  upon  the  old  homestead  up  to  the  time  of  his  marriage, 
whicli  occurred,  in  iSjg.  He  wedded  Miss  Rosa  Emmons,  and  the_\-  have 
three  children.  Jvala,  Esther  and  a  little  infant  son,  John  K. 

The  home  farm  coniprises  two  hundred  and  thirty-five  acres  of 
good  land  dc\otcd  to  general  agricultural  pursuits,  and  in  addition  to 
the  tilling  of  the  soil  and  the  care  of  his  crops  Mr,  Lawrence  followed 
carjientering  for  a  numl>er  of  years.  Lie  possesses  good  mechanical 
skill  anrl  ingemiity,  and  is  thus  enabled  to  keep  everything  about  his 
place  in  excellent  condition,  his  buildings,  fences  and  farm  implements 
all  being  in  good  repair.  He  is  somewhat  independent  in  his  political 
views,  but  perhaps  favors  more  largely  the  principles  of  the  Republican 
party.  He  bclnngs  to  the  ^lasonic  lodge  at  Marcellus  and  is  a  support- 
er of  all  measures  that  have  for  their  object  the  general  welfare.  In 
manner  he  is  geni.al  and  the  circle  of  his  friends  embraces  many  who 
have  known  him  from  his  boyhood  days  down  to  the  present  time,  which 
is  an  indication  that  his  life  has  ever  been  worthy  of  the  regard  of  those 
with  whom  he  has  been  associated. 

JOHN  J.  RITTER. 

John  J.  Ritter.  treasurer  of  the  Farmers'  IMutual  Fire  Insurance 
Company,  of  Dow-aq-iac.  was  bom  in  LaGrange.  Cass  county,  on  the 
ftth  of  July  1848.  His  father.  David  ^L  Ritter.  was  born  in  Indiana 
in  1828,  and  was  only  five  years  of  age  when  brought  to  ^Michigan  by 
his  father,  John  S.  Ritter.  who  made  his  way  to  Berrien  countv  and 
afterward  settled  in  Cass  county  when  David  jM.  Ritter  was  only  six 
years  of  age.  He  v,-as  therefore  reared  here  amid  the  wild  scenes  and 
environments  of  pioneer  life,  and  was  educated  in  the  old-time  schools. 
He  spent  his  youth  and  also  the  years  of  his  manhood  upon  the  same 
farm,  thus  living  for  many  vears  in  LaGrange  township.  His  entire 
life  was  devoted  to  agricultural  pursuits,  and  he  passed  away  in  .\ngust, 
186;,  respected  bv  all  wlm  knew  him.  His  wife,  who  Ijore  the  maiden 
name  of  Malinda  A.  Reneston.  was  a  native  of  Indiana  and  came  to 
Cass  countv  in  early  girlhood  with  her  father,  William  Renc'^ton.  who 
operated  the  first  carding  mill  in  the  county.  Mrs.  David  Ritter  died 
when  sixtv-two  vears  of  age.     In  the  family  were  three  sons:    Jrihn   J.. 


"'■i^'  HISTORV  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

of  this  review:  'Wil!i;;ni  R..  who  v.as  a  resident  of  Berrien  county. 
Michit^-an,  and  died  June  i8,  ior,6;  and  Josepli  A.,  who  (hed  at  the 
age  of  nine  years. 

John  J.  Rittcr  is  now  the  <  nly  representative  of  tlie  family  in  Cass 
county.  lie  was  rern-cd  in  LaGrang-e  townsliip  upon  the  farm  which 
he  now  owns  and  wln'ch  was  the  property  of  his  father  at  an  early  day. 
His  preliminary  education  was  acquired  in  tlie  district  schools  and  he 
also  attended  school  in  Dowagiac.  ITc  was  hut  sixteen  years  of  ap;e 
at  the  time  of  his  father's  death,  when  he  took  charge  of  the  h-mie 
farm  and  assumed  the  care  of  liis  mother.  The  management  of  the 
property  was  a  great  responsibility  for  a  youth  of  his  years,  but  he  ably 
performed  the  task  clevol\-ing  up.on  him  and  displayed  excellent  ability 
and  keen  discriminatii  n  in  the  management  of  his  affairs.  lie  was 
first  niarrieil  in  1870  to  ]\Iiss  Cynthia  A.  Bucklin,  a  daughter  of  Will- 
iam P.  and  Alary  A.  Bucklin.  She  died  May  5,  1S97,  leaving  one  son. 
Dr.  Jesse  \\'.  Ritter.  who  is  engaged  in  the  practice  of  dcntistiw  in 
Charleston.  Illinois.  For  his  second  wife  Wx.  Ritter  chose  Christiana 
Norton,  the  widow  u\  Abraham  .Ackcrman.  They  w^ere  married  in 
1898.  r.y  her  lirst  marriage  Mrs.  Ritter  had  two  children:  F,stella. 
the  wife  of  Charles  Schnu'tt,  a  hardware  mercha;it  of  Dowagiac.  car- 
rying on  husine='^  as  a  member  of  the  firm  of  Schmitt  Brothers:  and 
Abe.  who  died  when  twenty-one  years  of  age. 

Leaving  the  farm,  Mr.  Rittcr  located  in  Dowagiac  about  1887  and 
engaged  in  the  grocery  business,  which  he  carried  on  for  about  nine 
year^.  Abrmt  kjoo.  however,  he  disponed  of  his  store.  He  has  held 
various  official  positions,  including  that  of  road  commissioner,  in  which 
position  he  did  very  capable  service  in  the  improvement  of  the  roads 
in  the  county.  He  has  been  one  of  the  trustees  of  the  cemetery  about 
twelve  years,  and  president  of  the  association  about  three  years.  He 
was  elected  treasurer  of  the  Fanners'  Mutual  Fire  Insurance  Company 
in  Dowagiac  January  9.  1906.  and  is  now  filling  the  position  in  a  most 
capable  and  able  manner.  He  still  owns  a  valuable  farm  comprising 
two  hundred  and  forty  acres  of  well  improved  land  in  LaGrange  town- 
ship, which  he  rents.  Ilis  political  allegiance  is  given  to  the  Democ- 
racy where  national  issues  arc  involved,  but  at  local  elections  he  casts 
an  independent  ballot.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Alodern  \\'oodmen 
camp,  and  he  contributes  to  the  support  of  the  Alethodist  Episcopal 
church,  although  not  a  member  of  the  organization.  He  has  been  a 
hfelong  resident  of  Cass  county,  living  here  for  fifty-seven  years,  and 
has  taken  an  active  interest  in  its  progress  and  development.  He  is  in- 
deed a  rei)reseniative  of  one  of  its  oldest  families,  the  name  of  Ritter 
having  long  fig-ured  honorably  in  connection  with  agricultural  interest^, 
business  lite  and  public  affairs.  Wherever  known.  Mr.  Ritter  command- 
the  esteem  and  confidence  of  many  friends,  and  Dowagiac  numbers 
him  among  her  representative  citizens. 


HISTORY  01'   CASS  COUNTY  737 

I'XiAS  pardi-:e. 

Elias  I'anlee.  imw  luiiiy  retired  in  Dii\vai::iac  alter  a  life  (if  Inisiness 
activity  ami  u^-efuliiLS^  that  lia>  hnui^ht  liiin  well  merited  success,  was 
bom  in  Kimx  county.  Ohio,  October  7,  iSlG.  His  father,  Isaac  Pardee, 
was  a  native  of  Xew  York,  born  in  17S1.  The  paternal  grandfather 
of  our  suliject  was  a  native  of  I'rance  and  in  early  life  became  a  resident 
of  the  Kmpire  state,  beini;'  accompanied  by  two  brothers  on  his  emigra- 
tion to  the  new  world.  All  of  the  Pardees  in  this  country  are  repre- 
sentatives of  families  founded  b,}'  these  three  lirothers.  It  was  abjout 
the  closing  period  of  the  Revolutionary  war  that  Isaac  Pardee  was  born 
and  in  the  place  of  his  nativity  he  was  reared  and  educated.  In  early 
life  he  learned  and  followed  the  shoemaker's  trade  and  in  1S16  he  re- 
moved to  Knox  county.  Ohio,  locating  about  twelve  miles  west  of  Mount 
Vernon  in  Blo'jnifield  township.  There  he  engaged  in  general  farming 
until  his  remo\-aI  to  }ilichigan  in  1850.  at  wdiich  time  he  located  in  Ber- 
rien county,  where  he  died  on  the  31st  of  August,  1S50.  Plis  wife. 
Lucy  Dickerman,  was  a  native  of  New  Haven,  Connecticut,  and  died 
in  Berrien  count}',  ^Michigan,  Septemlier  5,  1850.  In  the  family  were 
two  sons  and  two  daughters,  who  reached  adult  age.  Of  this  number 
Smith  Pardee  lived  to  be  eighty-five  years  of  age  and  passed  away  in 
Clayton  county.  Iowa.  ?\Iary  is  the  widow  of  Andrew  Foster  and  is 
now  living  in  Brooking.  Iowa,  at  the  age  of  eighty-six  years.  Susan 
died  in  Middlcbiu'y.  Elkhart  county.  Indiana,  at  the  age  of  seventy- 
nine  years. 

Elias  Pardee,  the  youngest  of  the  family,  spent  the  days  of  his 
boyhood  and  youth  in  his  nati\-e  place,  remaining  on  the  home  farm 
until  eighteen  >ears  of  age  and  acquiring  his  education  in  one  of  the 
old-time  log  school  houses  of  that  day.  In  1844  he  started  out  in  life 
on  his  own  account,  making  his  way  to  Berrien  county.  Michigan. 
There  he  worked  as  a  lumberman,  chopping  cord  wood  and  grubbing 
white  oak  grubs.  lie  was  employed  by  the  day  and  his  life  was  a  strenu- 
ous one  fraught  with  unremitting  and  arduous  toil.  In  1850  be  came 
to  Dowagiac,  where  he  entered  the  employ  of  the  Michigan  Central 
Railroad  Company  as  a  laborer  at  the  freight  bouse.  Tie  was  thus  en- 
gaged until  1838.  when  he  was  promoted  to  the  position  of  freight  and 
express  agent,  in  which  capacitv  he  served  for  four  years.  Saving  his 
money,  he  at  length,  through  his  diligence  and  frugality,  had  acquired 
sufficient  capital  to  enable  him  to  invest  in  farm  lands  and  he  bought 
a  place  in  Pokagon  township,  Cass  county,  near  Dowagiac.  He  then 
rented  the  farm  but  retained  the  ownership  thereof  tmtil  1865,  when 
he  disposed  of  all  of  his  farming  interests.  In  1876  he  purchased  the 
Sister  Lakes  summer  resort,  paying  one  himdred  dollars  per  acre  for  the 
property.  He  at  once  began  its  improvement  and  converted  the  place 
into  a  resort  for  the  entertainment  of  summer  visitors,  building  cottages. 
a  hotel,  a  dance  hall  and  skating  rink.     In  fact,  he  made  all  of  the  im- 


738  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

provements  at  the  rest.irt.  wliich  he  conducted  successfuUy  until  January, 
1886,  when  he  disposed  of  this  interest.  Since  that  time  he  lias  hved 
retired  from  the  active  management  of  husiness  affairs  save  for  the 
supervision  of  his  in\-estments. 

Mr.  Pardee  was  married  in  1853  to  Miss  Lydia  Rice,  a  daugliter 
of  Moses  and  Annis  Rice,  and  a  native  of  New  Y'ork,  in  which  state 
her  girlhood  days  were  passed.  Her  death  occurred  /Vpril  4,  1901.  In 
his  political  views  I\Ir.  Pardee  was  a  Republican  until  the  Cleveland 
administration.  He  has  served  as  assessor  of  the  city  and  was  alderman 
in  1870.  He  has  a  wide  acquaintance  in  the  count}',  where  he  has  now 
resided  for  fifty-four  years  and  has  taken  an  active  and  helpful  interest 
in  its  growth  and  the  promotion  of  its  welfare.  He  occupies  a  fine  resi- 
dence, which  was  built  in  1861  and  is  one  of  the  best  homes  in  Dowagiac. 
During  the  forty  years  of  his  connection  with  Cass  county  he  has  trav- 
eled in  all  of  the  western  states,  making  fourteen  trips  to  the  Dakotas, 
Montana  and  the  northwest.  He  has  traveled  altogetlier  more  than  one 
hundred  thousand  miles  on  hunting  trips,  wdiich  was  the  occasion  of  his 
many  visits  to  the  northwest.  He  has  seen  the  Rocky  mountains  and 
the  bad  lands  of  Dakota,  has  crossed  the  plains  about  six  times  and 
hunted  buffaloes  on  the  western  prairies  until  they  were  extinct.  He 
began  making  these  western  trips  in  1872  and  continued  to  do  so  each 
year  until  1883.  His  experiences  have  been  of  a  varied  and  interesting 
nature  and  have  to  some  extent  been  fraught  with  the  hanlshijis,  rlangers 
and  privations  incident  to  western  frontier  life.  He  has  carefully  man- 
aged his  business  affairs,  however,  as  the  years  have  gone  by  and  his 
labors  are  now  crowned  with  success,  which  make?  it  possible  for  him 
to  enjoy  well-earned  ease  amidst  the  fruits  of  his  former  toil. 

EUGENE  B.    GILBERT. 

Eugene  B.  Gili;ert  is  numbered  among  die  early  settlers  of  Cass 
county.  The  storv  of  pioneer  life  has  never  l>een  adequately  written 
and  only  those  who  have  eone  through  such  experiences  can  really  know 
of  the  conditions  that  exist  upon  the  frontier,  which  has  little  or  no 
railroad  communication  with  older  points  and  must  therefore  be  deprived 
of  many  of  the  aflvantages  and  comforts  that  are  found  in  districts 
which  have  long  been  settled.  Mr.  Gilbert's  memory  forms  a  connecting 
link  between  the  progressive  present  and  the  primitive  past  when  the 
settlers  were  denied  many  of  the  comforts  and  conveniences  which  are 
now  enjoved  bv  the  citizens  of  Cass  county.  He  lives  on  section  29, 
Silver  Creek  township,  where  he  owns  a  good  farm.  His  birth,  how- 
ever, occurred  in  the  town  of  Springfield  in  Otsego  county.  New  York. 
September  21,  1833,  and  he  is  a  son  of  W.  B.  Gilbert,  better  known  as 
"Uncle  Tommy"  Gilbert.  His  paternal  grandfather  was  a  sea  captain 
and  the  owner  of  the  ship  on  which  he  sailed.  The  vessel,  however, 
was  confiscated  and  he  was  thrown  into  an  English  prison  at  the  time 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY  739 

of  the  Revolutionary  war.  He  lost  all  his  wealth  and  died  while  being 
held  as  a  prisoner  of  war.  Mis  wife  afterward  returned  to  England, 
where  her  last  days  were  spent.  ^\r.  Gilbert,  however,  was  of  French 
birth  but  had  become  a  citizen  under  the  English  government. 

W.  B.  Gilbert  was  born  in  New  York  state  and  was  reared  by  an 
uncle,  Jimniie  BeGau,  in  Otsego  county,  New  York.  When  a  young 
man  he  engaged  in  teaming  to  ^Michigan  from  Albany  and  Buffalo, 
New  York,  prior  to  the  era  of  the  building  of  the  canal.  He  also  en- 
gaged in  burning  lime,  furnishing  all  of  the  lime  for  George  Clark  on 
Lake  Otsego  and  for  many  buildings  of  that  period.  His  children  were 
all  born  in  Otsego  county.  He  served  in  the  war  of  1S12,  enlisting  as 
a  private,  but  became  an  officer,  and  later  he  was  granted  a  pension  and 
given  eighty-six  acres  of  land  in  ^Michigan  in  recognition  of  the  aid 
which  he  rendered  the  government  during  the  second  military  struggle 
with  England.  On  leaving  the  cast  he  came  to  Michigan  in  1S38  and 
in  1S39  removed  his  family  to  Cass  county,  settling  in  Silver  Creek 
township  when  there  was  not  t\A'elve  acres  of  land  cleared  in  the  entire 
township.  He  bought  five  eighty-acre  tracts,  all  wild  and  unimproved, 
and  at  once  began  converting  the  raw  land  into  productive  fields.  He 
had  to  clear  away  the  timber  and  upon  his  farm  he  built  a  log  house. 
Nearly  all  of  the  homes  in  the  county  were  thus  constructed  in  that 
early  day.  The  task  of  developing  and  improving  a  farm  was  a  very 
arduous  and  strenuous  one,  but  he  carried  on  his  labors  unfalteringly  and 
in  the  course  of  time  his  land  became  rich  and  productive.  The  trading 
was  done  at  Niles  and  at  St.  Joseph,  ^lichigan,  which  were  then  the 
nearest  commercial  centers.  ^Ir.  Gilbert  continued  a  resident  of  this 
county  up  to  the  time  of  his  death,  which  occurred  when  he  was  in  his 
seventy- fourth  year.  He  was  justice  of  the  peace  for  many  years  and 
his  decisions  Viere  characterizecl  by  the  utmost  fairness  and  impartiality 
— a  fact  which  is  indicated  by  his  long  continuance  in  office.  He  was 
one  of  the  prominent  and  influential  men  of  his  day,  and  his  efforts! 
for  the  community  and  its  development  were  far-reaching,  effective  and 
beneficial.  Fie  engaged  in  speculating  in  land  to  a  considerable  extent, 
buying  and  selling  property  and  making  his  money  in  that  way.  He 
became  very  familiar  with  land  values  and  was  seldom  at  error  in  mat- 
ters of  business  judgment.  In  politics  he  was  a  Whig  in  early  man- 
hood and  upon  the  dissolution  of  the  party  he  joined  the  ranks  of  the 
new  Republican  partv,  of  which  he  became  a  stanch  advocate.  He 
was,  moreover,  a  well-read  man  and  had  a  library  of  fifteen  hundred 
volumes  in  New  York.  He  was  interested  in  everything  pertaining  to 
his  country  and  her  welfare  and  his  reading  not  only  embraced  social, 
economic  and  political  problems  but  also  took  in  much  of  the  literature 
of  the  past  and  present.  He  married  Miss  Cynthia  Sammons,  a  native 
of  New  York,  who  was  born  on  the  banks  of  Sharon  Springs,  her  father 
clearing  a  place  there.  He  was  Casey  Sammons,  and  was  of  German 
birth,  while  her  mother  belonged  to  an  old  Prussian  family.     IVIrs.  Gil- 


740  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUXTY 

bert  was  in  her  seventy-third  year  at  the  time  of  her  death.  She  was  a 
worthy  pioneer  woman  who  bravely  shared  with  her  husband  in  tlie 
hardships  and  trials  incident  to  frontier  life  and  did  her  l)e^t  to  cart: 
for  her  family  and  provide  a  comfortable  home  for  them.  She  became 
the  mother  of  six  children,  three  sons  and  three  daughters,  all  of  whom 
reached  years  of  maturity,  but  only  two  of  the  number  are  now  livnig, 
namely:  Mrs.  Jane  Lushing,  who'is  mentioned  on  another  page  of  this 
work;  and  Eugene  U. 

In  taking  up  the  personal  history  of  Eugene  B.  Gilbert  we  present 
to  our  readers  the  life  record  of  one  who  is  widely  and  favorably  known 
in  this  countv.  He  was  the  fifth  child  in  his  father's  family  and  the 
third  son,  and  was  in  his  sixth  year  at  the  time  of  the  removal  from 
New  York  to  Ca^-s  county.  He  began  work  when  a  very  young  lad,  for 
his  services  were  needed  upon  the  home  farm  and  he  was  fourteen 
years  of  age  before  a  school  was  built  in  this  township.  To  a  limited 
extent  he  pursued  his  studies  in  a  log  schoolhouse,  but  his  educational 
privileges  were  meager  and  it  has  been  through  his  own  efforts,  his 
reading,  observation  and  experience  that  he  has  broadened  his  knowl- 
edge, becoming  a  well  informed  man.  He  assisted  in  clearing  the  land 
which  his  fatlier  secured  on  coming  to  the  county  and  has  resided  con- 
tinuously upon  the  okl  homestead  from  the  age  of  fi\e  years. 

On  the  ^oth  of  bcbruary,  1S64,  I\Ir.  Gilbert  was  united  in  marriage 
to  Aliss  Susan  Ticc,  a  daughter  of  Isaac  and  Sallie  Ann  (Lockwood) 
Tice,  both  of  whom  were  natives  of  the  state  of  New  Y^ork,  her  mother 
having  been  born  in  Xewberg.  They  came  to  Michigan  about  1850, 
settling  in  Niles,  and  afterward  removed  to  Silver  Creek  township..  Mrs. 
Gilbert  was  born  in  Albany,  Xew  York.  i\ugust  9,  1843,  ^ik^'  came  with 
her  parents  to  Cass  cunty  when  about  seven  years  of  age.  She  was 
here  reared  in  a  pioneer  home  in  the  midst  of  the  forest  and  thus  became 
acquainted  with  the  conditions  of  frontier  life.  Unto  :\Ir.  and  Mrs. 
Gilbert  have  been  born  a  tlaughter  and  son:  ]\Iary  L.,  who  is  now  the 
wife  of  Louis  Rudolph,  of  Dowagiac;  and  William  L,  who  resides  upon 
the  home  farm.  He  married  ]\Iiss  Lizzie  Bissett,  a  daughter  of  Alex- 
ander and  l<;abclle  (Barker)  Bissett.  Unto  Mr.  and  Airs.  William 
Gilbert  has  been  born  a  little  daughter.  lone. 

As  stated,  Eugene  B.  Gilbert  has  followed  farming  throughout  his 
entire  life  and  is  todav  the  owner  of  about  five  hundred  acres  of  valu- 
able land,  of  which  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  is  located  in  Berrien 
county  and  the  remainder  in  Cass  county.  His  house  is  on  the  east  bank 
of  Indian  Lake  and  is  known  as  Gilbert  Castle.  _  It  is  one  of  the  land- 
marks of  the  county.  l;eing  the  second  house  built  on  the  banks  of  the 
lake.  Few  men  have  more  intimate  knowledge  of  the  history  of  the 
countv  and  events  \vhich  have  formed  its  annals.  He  can  remember 
when'  the  Indians  were  verv  numerous  in  this  part  of  the  state  and 
remembers  seeing  the  chief  "Lo  Pole"  Pokagon.  Flis  father  assisted  in 
removin"-  the  Indians  to  Kansas  under  government  contract.     Air.  Gil- 


HISTORY  01-"  CASS  COUNTY  741 

bert  has  li\eil  in  tins  part  oi  the  state  for  sixty-seven  years,  lias  been 
closely  idcntitieiJ  with  its  interests  and  has  dune  niuch  for  its  substantial 
development  anil  iniiMuvenient.  In  politics  he  is  a  Republican,  but  he 
would  never  accept  ofiice,  although  he  could  untloubtedh'  ha\e  tilled 
public  positions  very  crc'litably  had  he  consented  to  became  a  candidate. 
He  is  a  man  of  indepcnder.t  spirit,  not  bound  b}  any  creed,  belief  or 
fraternal  ties.  He  forms  his  ov.n  opinions  and  is  honest  in  upholding 
them  and  his  life  has  been  characterized  liy  principles  of  integrity  and 
honor,  while  his  business  career  has  displayed  unfaltering  diligence  and 
perseverance. 

MYROX  'STARK. 

Myron  Stark,  living  retired  in  Dowagiac,  although  for  many  years 
he  was  a  leading  and  enterprising  merchant  here,  was  born  in  New 
\''ork,  May  30,  1836.  He  represented  an  old  family  of  the  Empire 
state,  as  it  is  dellnitely  known  that  his  great-grandparents  lived  in  New 
York,  for  it  was  there  that  his  grandfather,  John  Stark,  was  born,  reared 
and  made  his  home.  Erastus  Stark,  his  father,  also  a  native  of  New 
York,  came  to  Cass  county,  Michigan,  in  1838,  locating  at  Summer- 
ville,  and  in  1840  he  purchased  a  farm  in  Silver  Creek  township,  where 
he  cultivated  and  improvcil  his  land.  He  was  one  of  the  first  settlers 
of  that  township  and  aided  in  jubduing  the  wilderness  and  extending 
the  frontier.  As  the  years  passed  he  developed  a  good  property,  his 
fields  being  \ery  producti\'e,  and  be  remained  ui)on  that  place  until  his 
death,  which  occurred  when  he  was  fifty-four  years  of  age.  He  also 
built  a  sawmill  and  engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  lumber  in  connection 
with  farming  interests.  He  fillctl  the  office  of  justice  of  the  peace  for 
many  years  and  liis  decisions  were  strictly  fair  and  impartial.  He  held 
membership  in  the  [Methodist  Episcopal  church,  taking  an  active  part 
in  its  work,  and  he  was  also  an  exemplary  IMason.  He  married  Matilda 
Cook,  a  native  of  New  Y'ork,  who  died  in  1839,  when  about  twenty- 
seven  years  of  age.  There  were  three  sons  by  that  marriage.  Philander 
died  in  1850.  John  K.,  who  was  born  in  central  New  York  in  October, 
1833,  came  to  ^Michigan  with  his  parents  in  184S  and  assisted  in  clear- 
ing and  developing  die  home  farm,  now  known  as  the  Robert  Bielby 
property.  In  the  winter  seasons  he  cut  and  hauled  logs  and  in  the 
summer  months  engaged  in  the  active  work  of  tilling  the  fields  and 
caring  for  his  crops.  He  married  Eliza  J.  Cushing.  a  daughter  of  Otis 
and  Clarissa  Cushing,  in  the  year  1855,  and  in  1857  removed  to  Mis- 
souri, but  in  1S59  returned  to  ^Michigan.  In  June.  1S61.  he  enlisted 
for  service  in  the  Civil  war  as  a  member  of  the  Second  IMichigan  Cav- 
alry and  a  year  later  received  an  honorable  discharge  on  account  of 
disability.  In  1869  he  joined  the  Michigan  Conference  of  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  church  and  has  l^ecome  one  of  the  most  prominent  church 
builders  of  that  denomination.  His  first  charge  was  the  Paw  Paw 
church,  and  since  that  time  he  has  served  various  churches,  both  on  the 


742  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

countn-  circuit  and  in  large  cities,  becoming  one  of  tlie  strong  divines 
representing  Methodism  in  this  state.  His  wife  died  in  1884.  Six  chil- 
dren were  born  unto  them,  three  sons  and  three  tlaughters,  all  of  whom 
are  now  living  with  the  exception  of  the  youngest,  who  died  in  1902. 
Rev.  Stark  was  again  married  in  1895.  He  is  now  cliaplain  in  the 
Soldiers'  Home  at  Grand  Rapids,  Michigan. 

M_\ron  Stark,  whose  name  introduces  this  record,  was  the  youngest 
of  the  three  sons  nf  his  father's  family  and  was  only  two  years  old 
when  hrouglit  tn  Cass  county  by  his  parents.  He  remained  at  home 
imtil  nineteen  years  of  age,  assisting  in  the  sawmill  and  in  the  fann 
work.  He  tlicn  went  to  I.xindon,  Canada,  in  1S55,  remaining  for  a 
year  in  that  locality,  after  which  he  returned  to  Cass  county  and  en- 
gaged in  farming  in  Silver  Creek  township.  In  1S62  he  established  a 
wagon  and  blacksmithing  shop  at  Cu.shing  Corners,  where  he  remained 
until  1877.  In  1876  lie  patented  what  is  known  as  Stark's  Common 
Sense  Sand  Band,  and  reniovefl  to  Dowagiac  the  following  year,  after 
which  he  devotefl  five  years  tn  handling  this  patent,  which  he  sold  in 
every  state  in  the  Union,  and  also  in  Canada,  France  and  Germany. 
He  started  without  capital,  but  he  built  up  a  fine  business  and  in  1883 
sold  his  interest  and  retired  with  a  handsome  competence.  The  business, 
however,  is  still  Ijcing  carried  on.  In  that  year  Mr.  Stark  purchased 
the  grocery  store  of  Mart  Green  in  Dowagiac  and  was  identified  with 
commercial  interests  in  the  city  until  1888.  when  on  account  of  ill  health 
he  sold  his  store,  since  which  time  he  has  been  retired  from  active  busi- 
ness cares.  His  inventive  mind  is  continually  reaching  out  along  new 
lines  of  thought  and  progress,  and  in  1900  he  patented  a  tire  machine, 
which  is  being  manufactured  on  a  royalty  basis  at  Lansing,  Michigan. 
The  machine  is  for  taking  off  and  replacing  tires  on  heavy  wheels. 

On  Christmas  day  of  1857  was  celebrated  the  marriage  of  Myron 
Stark  and  Miss  Sarah  Harris,  a  daughter  of  Alvin  and  Peggv  (Sliull) 
Harris.  She  was  born  in  New  York  and  by  her  marriage  has  become 
the  mother  of  six  children:  Henry,  now  deceased;  Matilda,  the  wife  of 
Chester  Southwork,  of  Dowagiac;  Ida,  Almira  and  Amanda,  all  de- 
ceased; and  Jessie,  the  wife  of  Wiley  ^Messenger,  of  Dowagiac,  who  is  a 
traveling  man. 

Mr.  Stark  has  been  a  life-long  Republican  and  has  taken  an  active 
interest  in  the  party,  holding  various  official  positions  through  many 
years.  At  the  present  time  he  is  county  agent  for  the  state  board  of 
corrections  and  charities,  is  game  warden  for  Cass  county  and  the  ad- 
joinintr  counties  and  is  superintendent  of  the  poor  for  the  city  of  Dowag- 
iac. He  is  also  superintendent  of  the  humane  society  of  the  countv  and 
his  official  labor?  have  been  of  a  far  reaching  and  beneficial  nature. 
He  has  been  a  Mason  since  1860  and  for  several  years  served  as  master 
of  the  Dow-agiac  lodge.  His  residence  in  Cass  county  covers  a  period 
of  sixty-eight  years  and  no  man  has  been  more  closely  or  honorablv 
identified  with  its  interests  and  development.     He  has  made  a  creditable 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  743 

name  in  business  circles,  has  manifested  his  loyalty  and  patriotic  spirit 
in  oflice  antl  in  private  life  has  displayed  those  sterlnig  traits  of  char- 
acter which  everywhere  win  regard  and  command  confidence. 

JAiMES    H.  l<ii\NANE. 

James  li.  Kinnane,  successfully  practicing  law  in  Dowagiac,  was 
born  in  Kalamazuu  cuunty,  Michigan,  in  iii5y.  liis  lather,  I'atrick 
Kinnane,  is  a  native  of  Ireland,  and  in  1850  came  to  the  United  States, 
locating  upon  the  farm  in  Kalamazoo  township,  Kalamazoo  county, 
Michigan,  on  which  he  yet  resides  at  the  venerable  age  of  eighty-three 
years.  He  has  always  devoted  his  energies  to  agricultural  pursuits, 
has  prospered  in  his  undertakings  and  now  in  the  evening  of  life  is  en- 
joying the  fruits  of  his  former  toil  in  well  earned  ease.  His  political 
views  accord  with  the  principles  of  the  Democracy,  and  his  religious 
faith  is  that  of  the  Catholic  church.  He  wedded  JNliss  Hilary  Sullivan, 
a  native  of  Ireland,  who  is  now^  seventy-two  years  of  age.  She  crossed 
the  Atlantic  in  1855,  becoming  a  resident  of  Kalamazoo  county,  JNIichi- 
gan,  where  in  1858  she  gave  her  hand  in  marriage  to  Patrick  Ivinnane. 
She,  too,  is  a  communicant  of  the  Catholic  church. 

James  H.  Kinnane,  the  eldest  in  their  family  of  nine  children,  wa.s 
reared  uixjn  the  home  farm  and  attended  the  district  schools,  subse- 
quent to  which  time  he  entered  the  high  school  in  the  city  of  Kala- 
mazoo, from  which  he  was  graduated  with  the  class  of  18S1.  He  after- 
ward spent  a  year  at  the  Baptist  college  in  Kalamazoo  and  then  entered 
the  law  department  of  the  Alichigan  university  at  ^Ann  Arbor  in  the 
fall  of  1883.  He  was  graduated  with  the  class  of  1SS5,  after  which  he 
opened  an  office  in  Kalamazoo,  practicing  there  for  ten  years.  In  1896 
he  was  appointed  by  President  Cleveland  as  special  agent  for  the  allot- 
ment of  laud  in  severalty  to  the  Indians  under  a  general  act  of  congress. 
He  continued  in  the  position  for  two  years.  In  1898  he  came  to  Do- 
wagiac, where  he  has  been  in  practice  continuously  since,  with  more 
than  ordinary  success.  In  1892  he  was  appointed  by  Governor  W'inans 
as  one  of  the  three  commissioners  to  revise  the  highway  laws  of  the 
state  and  did  effective  service  on  the  committee. 

In  1887  James  Kinnane  was  married  to  Harriet  E.  Blaney,  whose 
birth  occurred  in  Kalamazoo  county  in  1864,  her  parents  being  John 
H.  and  Alary  (Robinson)  Blaney,  the  former  a  native  of  the  United 
States  and  in  business  a  well  known  real  estate  dealer  of  Kalamazoo. 
He  was  also  active  in  pul'lic  life  there  and  filled  the  offices  of  city  mar- 
shal and  city  treasurer.  Unto  Air.  and  Mrs.  Kinnane  have  been 
born  two  S(jns  and  a  daughter :  Charles,  Catherine  and  Robert.  The 
parents  are  members  of  the  Catholic  church,  and  Air.  Kinnane  belongs 
to  the  Benevolent  &  Protective  Order  of  Elks  and  the  Knights  of 
Columbus.  He  has  been  a  Republican  since  1896,  previous  to  which 
time    he    was    a    stalwart    advocate    of   Democratic   principles,    and    for 


744  HISTORY  OV  CASS  COUNTY 

&ix  years  liad  acted  as  chairman  cif  the  Democratic  county  central  com- 
mittee of  Kalanrazoo  county.  He  is  a  man  fearless  in  defense  of  his 
honest  convictions.  ho\ve\er,  and  when  he  hecame  convinced  in  his  own 
mind  that  Repulilican  principles  were  mure  conducive  to  good  govern- 
ment he  fearlessly  renounced  his  allegiance  to  the  Democracy.  While 
living  in  Kalamazoo  he  served  as  justice  of  the  peace  in  1S86-7  and  was 
city  attorney  from  1889  until  1891.  In  Dowagiac  he  has  served  as 
city  attorney  for  the  past  three  years  and  the  various  duties  of  a  public 
nature  which  have  devohcd  uix-n  him  have  been  faithfully,  promptly 
and  etTiciently  perfi)rmed.  He  is  president  of  the  Cass  County  Bar 
Association  and  also  a  member  of  the  [Michigan  Bar  Association  and 
one  of  its  board  of  directors,  and  his  official  connection  with  the  former 
is  an  indication  of  his  standing  with  the  profession  in  the  county  in 
which  he  makes  his  home.  ro[)ular  in  social  circles,  he  has  many 
friends  and  in  his  grasp  and  greeting  there  is  always  welcome.  He 
is  genial,  companiiiuahle  and  entertaining  and  is  recognized  as  a  popular 
citizen  as  well  as  a  [)roniincnt  lawyer  of  Dowagiac. 

FRANK  L.  HARTSF.LL. 

Frank  L.  Hartsell.  a  contractor  of  Dowagiac.  who  for  many  years 
has  been  connected  with  building  operations,  so  that  many  of  the  fine 
residences  and  leading  structures  of  the  city  stand  as  monuments  to 
his  ability,  skill  and  labor,  is  a  native  son  of  Cass  county,  his  birth 
having  occurred  in  Silver  Creek  township  on  the  lOthof  July,  185S. 
His  father,  John  Hartsell.  who  was  born  in  Ohio,  came  to  Cass  county 
about  1835  and  was  one  of  its  first  settlers.  The  days  of  chivalry  and 
knighthood  in  Europe  cannot  furnish  more  interesting  tales  than  our 
own  western  history,  and  yet  the  establishment  of  homes  upon  the  frontier 
meant  sacrifices,  hardships  and  sometimes  death ;  but  there  were  some 
men,  however,  brave  enough  to  meet  the  conditions  that  must  be  faced 
and  undertake  the  task  of  reclaiming  the  wild  west  for  the  purposes 
of  civilization.  Among  this  number  was  John  Hartsell,  who.  coming  to 
Cass  county,  entered  upon  the  work  of  clearing  and  developing  a  farm 
in  the  midst  of  the  wilderness.  As  the  years  pissed  he  placed  his  land 
under  cultivation  anil  his  fields  became  rich  and  productive.  In  politics 
he  was  a  Democrat,  but  without  aspiration  for  office.  He  married  INIiss 
Mary  Ann  Bach,  a  mtive  of  Ohio,  and  they  became  the  parents  of 
five  children,  all  of  whom  reached  adult  age.  The  father  passed  away  at 
the  age  of  seventy-seven  years,  but  the  mother  is  still  living  in  her 
seventy-fifth  year. 

Frank  L.  FTartseil  was  the  fourth  child  and  eldest  son  in  the  father's 
familv.  He  was  reared  in  his  native  township  to  the  pursuits  of  farm 
life  until  seventeen  years  of  age.  When  a  young  lad  of  six  he  entered 
the  pulilic  schools  and  therein  mastered  the  common  brandies  of  learn- 
ing-.    He  also  early  took  his  place  behind  the  plow;  and  continued  to  aid 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  745 

in  the  work  of  the  fields  until  h.e  had  attained  the  age  of  seventeen, 
when,  thinking  that  he  would  find  other  pursuits  more  congenial,  he  left 
home  and  took  up  his  ahode  in  Dowagiac  to  learn  the  carpenter's  trade. 
He  has  since  f'lllnwed  the  husincs-,  and  when  twenty-four  years  of  age 
he  began  contracting  on  his  own  account,  so  that  he  is  tuday  one  of  tlie 
oldest  contractors  in  years  of  connection  with  building  operations  in 
Dowagiac.  He  has  erected  many  buildings  in  Cass  county  and  at  De- 
catur, Niles  and  Buchanan,  and  other  places  in  adjoining  counties.  In 
fact,  he  is  one  of  the  best  known  contractors  and  builders  in  this  part 
of  the  state,  and  the  important  work  that  he  has  done  is  indicated  in 
many  fine  and  substantial  structures.  His  work  has  always  been  char- 
acterized by  thoroughness  and  he  has  kept  resolutely  to  the  terms  of 
a  contract,  being  thoroughly  reliable  in  all  his  business  undertakings. 

Mr.  Hartsell  was  married  in  181)3  to  Miss  Lettie  Schook,  and  unto 
this  union  have  been  born  three  children:  Lelia  M.,  Helen  P.  and 
Harold  H.  In  addition  to  his  home  Mr.  Hartsell  has  other  property  in 
Dowagiac,  including  three  houses  and  lots.  His  own  residence  is  a  fine 
dwelling  on  ]\Iain  and  Pokagon  streets,  and  is  the  center  of  a  gracious. 
charming  and  cordial  hospitality.  In  his  i-mlitica!  affiliation  ^[r.  Hart- 
sell is  a  stalwart  Democrat,  earnestly  working  for  his  party  and  its 
interests,  and  he  is  now  serving  as  a  member  of  the  board  of  aldermen. 
His  labors  in  Iiehalf  of  public  progress  have  been  far  reaching  and 
beneficial  and  he  has  intense  s}n":i>athy  with  every  movement  calculated 
for  the  general  welfare  and  substantial  development  of  the  county. 
Fraternall}-  he  is  connected  with  the  Independent  Order  of  Odd  Fel- 
lows and  the  Knights  of  the  Alaccabees.  His  entire  life  has  been  passed 
in  Cass  county,  and  he  has  tlierefore  witnessed  much  of  its  growth  and 
development,  his  memory  going  back  to  a  time  when  this  district  was 
sparsely  settled.  That  many  of  his  stanchest  friends  are  numbered 
among  those  who  have  known  him  from  his  Isoyhood  down  to  the  present 
time  is  an  indication  that  his  life  h:is  been  straightforward  and  u\>- 
right. 

J.  O.  BECRAFT. 

J.  O.  Becraft,  postmaster  of  Dowagiac  and  secretary  of  the  Round 
Oak  Stove  Company,  was  born  April  27,  1S50,  in  the  city  in  which  he 
yet  makes  his  home.  His  father,  Isaiah  S.  Becraft.  was  a  native  of 
New  York  and  came  to  Cass  county.  ^Michigan,  in  1848.  as  one 
of  the  first  settlers  of  Dowagiac.  He  was  connected  with  mer- 
cantile interests  here  for  many  years  and  contributed  in  substantial 
measure  to  the  material  progress  and  to  the  upbuilding  and  ad- 
vancement of  the  city.  He  held  many  offices  and  was  one  of  the 
prominent  and  influential  residents  of  Dowagiac.  At  the  time  of  his 
death,  which  occurred  in  1864,  he  was  serving  as  deputy  provost  mar- 
shal and  special  agent  for  United  States  secret  service.  In  politics  he 
was  a  stalwart  Republican  from  the  organization  of  the  party  and  fra- 


746  HISTORY  Oi<   CASS  COUNTY 

tenially  was  a  promiaciit  2\lason,  who  exemplified  in  his  hfe  the  benefi- 
cent spirit  of  tlie  ci-aft.  His  death  occurred  when  lie  was  fifty-two 
years  of  age.  His  wife,  who  ni  her  maidenhood  was  Caroline  Wallace, 
was  a  native  of  Pennsylvania  and  a  daughter  of  James  and  Betsy 
(Belknapj  Wallace.  Airs.  Eecrafl  lived  to  the  advanced  age  of  seventy- 
two  )ears.  In  their  family  were  seven  children,  six  of  whom  reached 
adult  age. 

J.  O.  Becraft  is  the  third  child  and  second  son  of  the  fannly.  He 
was  reared  in  Dowagiac  and  pursued  his  education  in  the  schools  of  this 
city.  He  started  out  upon  his  business  career  as  a  clerk  in  a  grocery 
store  and  spent  about  two  and  a  half  years  as  station  agent  at  Cassop- 
olis  and  a  similar  period  at  Dowagiac.  He  afterward  accepted  a  clerical 
position  in  the  postoffice  here  and  later  became  assistant  postmaster, 
which  position  he  capably  filled  for  many  years.  He  was  first  appointed 
postmaster  by  Benjamin  Harrison,  was  re-appointed  by  President  Alc- 
Kinley  and  is  now  serving  for  the  third  term  in  that  oiiice  by  appoint- 
ment of  President  Roosevelt.  The  consensus  of  public  opinion  is  alto- 
gether favorable  concerning  the  service  which  he  has  rendered  in  this 
connection,  for  he  has  given  a  businesslike  administration,  has  system- 
tized  tlie  ailairs  of  the  olfice  and  care  and  promptness  are  exercised  in 
the  performance  of  all  the  duties  connected  with  the  care  of  the  mails. 

Aside  from  his  ofiicial  service  Mr.  Becraft  has  been  identified  with 
business  interests  in  Dowagiac.  l'"or  about  fifteen  years  he  has  been  con- 
nected with  the  P.  D.  Beckwith  Stove  Company  and  is  now  acting  as 
secretary  of  the  company,  the  business  being  carried  on  under  the  style 
of  the  Round  Oak  Stove  Company.  He  is  also  a  stockholder  in  the 
P"armers  &;  Merchants  Bank  at  Benton  Harbor  and  the  Lee  Paper  Com- 
pany at  Vicksburg,  Michigan.  Plis  business  investments  have  been  well 
placed  and  are  the  source  of  a  gratifying  and  desirable  income. 

Mr.  Becraft  was  married  in  1870  to  Miss  Harriet  H.  Britton,  and 
they  have  one  son,  b>ed  E.,  who  is  now  assistant  postmaster.  j\Ir.  Be- 
craft belongs  to  the  Modern  Woodmen  camp,  to  the  Elks  lodge,  and  is 
a  Mason,  a  Knight  Templar  and  a  Shriner.  In  his  politiail  views  he 
has  always  been  a  stalwart  Republican,  and  in  addition  to  the  office  of 
postmaster  he  has  served  as  city  recorder  for  fifteen  years,  was  secretary 
of  the  school  board  for  sixteen  years  and  has  filled  other  offices,  to  which 
he  has  been  called  by  a  constituency  who  recognize  that  according  to 
the  merit  system  he  is  entitled  to  the  oftices  and  well  deserves  the  honor 
and  trust  thus  reposed  in  him.  He  is  today  the  oldest  native  citizen  of 
Dowagiac  and  one  of  its  most  prominent  residents. 

GEORGE  E.  BISHOP. 

The  commercial  interests  of  Dowagiac  find  a  worthy  representa- 
tive in  George  E.  Bishop,  who  is  now  eng-aged  in  dealing  in  hardware 
with  a  well  appointed  store  and  a  good  trade.     He  was  born  in  Genesee 


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HISTORY    OF    CASS    COUXTY  747 

"cbiinty,  Xew  York,  March  12,  1849.  His  father,  Horace  L.  Bishoi). 
was  also  a  native  of  that  coinity  and  a  son  of  Isaac  Bishop,  whose  birth 
occurred  in  ^Massachusetts  in  1758,  a  fact  which  indicates  that  the  family 
■was  established  in  Xew  England  in  early  colonial  days.  Isaac  Bishop 
was  a  soldier  of  the  Revolutionary  war  and  was  but  seventeen  years 
of  age  when  he  enlisted  in  the  American  army,  serving  for  six  years  in 
defense  of  the  cause  of  liberty.    The  Bishop  family  is  of  English  lineage. 

Horace  L.  Bishop  was  a  farmer  by  occupation  and  remained  a  resi- 
dent of  the  Empire  state  until  1855,  when  he  aime  westward  to  :\Iichi- 
gan,  settling  in  Hillsdale  county.  He  married  Emcline  Allison,  a  native 
of  X^'ew  York  and  a  daughter  of  Joseph  Allison,  wIkj  was  born  in 
Washington  county,  Pennsylvania,  and  was  of  Scotch-Irish  descent.  The 
death  of  Air.  Bishop  occurred  in  1893  when  he  was  in  his  seventy-third 
year,  but  his  wife  is  now  li\-ing  at  the  age  of  seventy-seven  years,  hav- 
ing been  born  in  1S28.  Her  father  was  a  soldier  of  the  war  of  1812, 
enlisting  from  \Vashington  county,  I'ennsylvania.  Unto  Air.  and  Airs. 
Horace  L.  Bishop  were  born  six  children,  two  daughters  and  four  sons, 
all  of  whom  reached  years  of  maturity  and  are  living  at  this  writing. 

George  E.  Bishop,  the  eldest  son  and  second  child  of  the  family,  is 
the  only  one  now  residing  in  Cass  county.  He  was  six  years  of  age 
when  he  removed  with  his  jiarents  to  Hillsdale  county,  Alichigan,  and 
there  his  youth  was  passed,  while  his  education  was  accpiired  in  the  com- 
mon schools  of  that  county.  He  remained  at  home  until  more  than 
twenty  years  of  age,  when  lie  started  out  upon  an  independent  business 
career,  securing  a  clerkship  in  a  country  store,  while  later  he  was  em- 
ployed in  the  tnwn  of  Allen  in  Hillsdale  county.  He  was  for  ten  vears 
a' salesman  in  the  employ  of  C.  H.  Winchester  in  .Mien,  the  time,  how- 
ever, being  divided  by  a  period  of  two  and  a  half  years  spent  in  Cold- 
water,  Alichigan.  He  came  to  Dowagiac  in  January.  18S1,  and  bought 
an  interest  in  a  hardware  business,  becoming  a  member  of  the  firm  of 
Bishop  &  Dickinson.  This  relation  was  maintained  until  January.  1883. 
when  the  junior  partner  sold  out  to  W.  AI.  \^rooman  and  the  firm  of 
Bishop  &  Vnjoman  was  then  formed,  having  a  continuous  e.xistence 
until  1890.  In  that  year  Air.  Bishop  purchased  Air.  Vrooman's  interest 
and  conducted  the  business  alone  until  Januar}-,  1904,  when  he  admitted 
Isaac  Armstrong  to  a  ])artner?hip  and  the  Bishop  Hardware  Company 
was  thus  organized.  Since  becoming  connected  with  this  enterprise 
Mr.  Bishop  has  labored  earnestly  and  effectively  to  enlarge  the  SD:>pe 
of  its  undertakings  and  has  developed  an  excellent  business,  which  has 
constantly  grown  in  extent  and  importance.  He  was  also  secretary  of 
the  Dowagiac  Alanufacturing  Company  during  the  early  period  of  its 
existence  and  has  done  all  in  his  power  to  further  commercial  and  in- 
dustrial activity  in  the  city  and  tluis  promote  its  prosperity  and  growth. 
for  the  welfare  of  ever\-  communit}-  depends  upon  its  business  interests. 
;,;.^  Aside  from  his  commercial  pursuits  Air.  Bishop  has  also  laboreil 


7-lS  HISTORY    OF    CASS    COUXTY 

for  the  ^velfare  of  liis  adopted  city,  giving-  active  co-operation  to  many 
plans  and  measm-es  that  have  had  direct  licnring  upon  g-eneral  progress. 
In  poHtics  he  is  an  earnest  and  unfaUering  Republican  with  firm  belief 
in  the  ultimate  triumph  of  the  principles  of  the  Reiniblican  party.  Upon 
tliat  tidxet  he  was  elected  mayMi-  in  iSSS  and  again  in  1897,  succeeding 
P.  D.  Eeckwith  as  chief  executive  in  the  former  year.  On  Ixith  occa- 
sions he  gave  a  public-si)irited  and  businesslike  administration,  exercis- 
ing his  official  prerogati\es  to  advance  reform  and  improveiuent,  using 
practical  methods  in  working  toward  ideals  in  citizenship.  He  has  also 
been  a  member  of  the  school  board  for  ab<iut  six  years  and  the  cause 
cf  education  has  found  in  him  a  stalwart  friend,  whose  lalwr  has  been 
effective  in  its  behalf. 

In  1877  Mr.  Bishop  was  imited  in  marriage  to  ?^Iiss  Jennie  D. 
Dickinson,  of  Coldwater,  Michigan,  a  daughter  of  Higby  and  Mary  W. 
(Swaine)  Dickinson.  The  Swaines  were  one  of  the  old  Alassachu- 
setts  families,  her  mnther's  father  was  a  native  of  Nantucket  Island, 
and  was  a  whaler  on  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  oceans,  having"  frequented 
riiany  of  the  South  American  ports,  especially  Santiago  and  Valparaiso. 
which  were  devastated  only  recently  by  the  terrible  earthquake,  sin.iilar 
to  the  famous  San  Francisco  disaster.  ]Mrs.  Bishop  was  born  on  a  farm 
in  Branch  county  and  r,btained  her  education  in  the  schools  of  this 
city.  I'^our  children  grace  this  marriage:  Edith,  who  is  now  the  wife 
of  John  Crawford,  of  Pokagoti  townshi]") :  Dickinson  H.,  who  is  assist- 
ing his  father  in  the  store;  ^lary  and  George  K.  who  are  at  home.  Tlie 
family  is  one  well  known  in  the  community  and  the  members  of  the 
household  occupy  an  enviable  position  in  social  circles.  Mr.  Bishop 
is  a  member  of  the  Benevolent  and  Protective  Order  of  Elks  and  pos- 
sesses a  social.  geui;d  nature  which  renders  him  popular  with  a  large 
circle  of  friends.  As  the  rears  have  passed  he  has  deiuonstrated  that  suc- 
cess comes  as  the  legitimate  result  of  perseverance,  energy-  and  diligence. 
Without  special  advantages  to  aid  him  he  has  worked  his  way  upward, 
winning  for  himself  a  creditable  place  in  business  circles.  He  is  to- 
day the  oldest  hardware  merchant  in  Dowagiac  and  has  long  main- 
tained a  ]>rominent  position  in  commercial  circles,  not  only  by  reason 
of  his  success,  but  also  owing  to  the  straightforward  and  honorable  busi- 
ness methods  he  has  ever  followed. 

WILLARD    WELLS. 

Willard  Wells,  who  has  been  closely  connected  with  building  opera- 
tions in  Dowagiac  as  a  C(^ntractor,  but  is  now  living  retired,  was  born 
in  Montgomerv  countv.  Xew  York,  on  the  16th  of  September.  1820. 
and  is  therefore  in  lu's  sevent}'-seventh  year.  He  was  the  second  in 
order  of  birth  in  a  family  of  ten  children  l>orn  unto  Ira  and  Maria 
(\\"ood worth)  \\'ells,  who  -were  also  natives  of  Montgomery  county. 
The  father  followed  the  occupation  of  farming  in  later  life  but  en,gaged 


HISTORY  OK  CASS  COUNTY  T4L> 

in  business  as  a  buot  ami  ^hue  incrchant  in  his  early  vears.  He  re- 
moved from  Montgonier}-  dainty  tn  Onniulaga  county,  Xuw  \'f'rk.  and 
became  a  resident  of  Orleans  cniiny  in  the  same  state  in  1855.  There 
he  was  engaged  in  merchandising  one  year,  but  later  he  resumed  farm- 
ing which  he  carried  on  until  abi)ut  twenty  years  prior  to  his  death, 
when  he  retired  from  acti\e  business  life  and  took  up  his  abode  in 
Medina,  New  Y'ork.  He  was  a  leading,  active  and  helpful  member  of 
the  iNIethodist  Episcopal  church  and  served  as  class  leader  for  forty 
years.  His  Christian  faith  permeated  his  entire  life,  established  his 
conduct  toward  his  fellownien  and  made  him  a  !nan  whom  to  know 
was  to  respect  and  honor.  While  living  in  Montgomery  county  he 
was  married  to  ^laria  \\'oo(lworth,  and  he  reached  the  advanced  age 
of  eighly-fixc  }ears,  while  his  wife  passed  away  at  the  ripe  old  age  of 
seventy-eight  years.  Of  their  ten  children  six  reached  years  of  maturity, 
while  four  are  now  living,  namely:  Charles  FI.,  who  is  living  in  San 
Diego,  California;  W'illard,  of  this  review:  Mary,  the  wife  of  John 
Wells,  who  is  living  in  Orleans  county.  New  Y'ork ;  and  Frances,  the 
wife  of  Judson  Hill,  of  Ouincy,  Branch  county,  ^Michigan. 

Wiilard  Wells  was  a  youth  of  six  years  when  his  parents  removed 
from  his  native  county  to  Onondaga  county.  New  Y"f>rk,  and  there  the 
days  of  his  youth  were  passed,  while  his  education  was  acquired  in  the 
public  schocils.  Thinking  that  he  might  enjoy  better  opportunities  in 
the  middle  west  he  came  to  ^Michigan  in  1855.  spending  the  winter  in 
Wayne  township,  Cass  county.  In  the  spring  of  1S56  he  took  up  his 
abode  in  Dowagiac,  and  for  a  long  period  was  identified  with  business 
affairs  here.  He  had  been  married  in  Onondaga  county.  New  ^'ork,  in 
1852  to  Miss  Harriet  Hendersrm,  a  native  of  that  county.  On  locating 
in  Dowagiac  ]\Ir.  Wells  began  working  at  the  carpenter's  trade,  his  first 
work  being  on  the  construction  of  the  home  of  Thomas  Gilbert  on  the 
east  bank  of  Indian  lake.  He  was  employed  as  a  carpenter  until  1861. 
when,  with  the  money  that  he  had  saved  from  his  earnings  he  bought 
a  farm  in  Wayne  township,  locating  thereon  and  devoting  his  time  and 
energies  to  general  agricultural  pursuits  through  the  succeeding  four 
years.  In  1S65  he  again  took  up  his  abode  in  Dowagiac.  where  he 
began  contracting  and  building  on  his  own  account,  continuing  in  that 
line  of  business  until  about  iSqo.  He  was  one  of  its  first  builders  and 
many  of  the  substantial  structures  of  the  city  stand  as  monuments  to  his 
skill  and  enterprise.  He  enjoyed  a  liberal  patronage  for  a  long  period 
and  then,  with  a  comfortable  competence,  retired  to  private  life. 

In  1904  !Mr.  Wells  was  called  upon  to  mourn  the  loss  of  his  wife, 
who  died  in  Dowagiac  on  the  30th  of  October  of  that  year.  She  was 
the  mother  of  four  children,  but  only  one  is  now  living,  Dora,  the  wife 
of  R.  \y.  Vzu  Antwert.  who  is  living  in  Dowagiac. 

?.Ir.  Wells  has  made  his  home  in  Cass  county  for  a  half  centurv, 
and  therefore  the  principal  events  of  its  history  are  known  to  him. 
while  upon  memory's  wall  hang  many  pictures  of  pioneer  experiences 


750  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

and  incidents.  He  lias  been  a  lifelonfj  Republican,  active  in  the  interest 
of  the  party,  for  he  believes  that  its  principles  contain  the  best  elements 
of  good  g-overnment.  ?Ie  was  elected  for  supervisor  for  six  years  of 
the  second  ward  of  Dowagiac,  was  elected  a  trustee  of  the  village  and 
was  chosen  to  the  i)0-itir,n  nf  alderman  for  three  terms,  after  Dowagiac 
became  a  city.  His  oftki.al  duties  were  very  promptly  and  faithfully 
performed  and  he  has  stood  strong  in  the  advance  of  progress,  reform 
and  improvement  for  the  city  and  county.  He  is  a  memjier  of  the 
Masonic  fraternity  and  in  his  life  has  exemplified  the  beneficent  prin- 
ciples of  the  craft,  wliich  is  based  upon  mutual  kindliness  and  brotherly 
helpfulness.  There  have  been  no  exciting  chapters  in  his  life  record 
and  yet  it  contains  many  elements  worthy  of  emulation,  showing  what 
can  be  accomplished  by  determined  purpose  and  faithful  effort,  for 
whatever  success  he  has  achieved  is  attributable  entirely  to  his  own  labors 
and  perseverance. 

HUGH  E.  AGNEW. 

Perhaps  no  one  agency  in  all  the  world  has  done  so  much  for 
public  progress  as  the  press,  and  an  enterprising,  well  edited  journal  is 
a  most  important  factor  in  promoting  the  welfare  and  prosperity  of  any 
communitv.  It  ailds  to  the  intelligence  of  the  people  through  its  trans- 
mission of  foreign  and  domestic  news  and  through  its  discussion  of  the 
leading  issues  and  que-tions  of  the  day,  and,  more  than  that,  it  makes 
the  town  or  citv  which  it  represents  known  outside  of  the  immediate 
locality,  as  it  is  sent  each  day  or  week  into  other  districts,  carrying  with 
it  an  account  of  the  events  transpiring  in  its  home  locality,  the  advance- 
ment and  progress  there  being  made,  and  the  advantages  which  it  offers 
to  its  residents  along  moral,  educational,  social  and  commercial  lines. 
During  much  of  his  life  ^Mr.  Agnew  has  been  connected  with  journalistic 
work,  helping  to  pay  his  way  in  school  by  that  means,  and  his  power  as 
a  writer  and  editor  is  acknowledged  among  contemporaneous  jour- 
nalists. 

One  of  i\Iichigan"s  native  sons.  Hugh  E.  Agnew  was  born  in  Hills- 
dale January  31,  1R75,  the  second  in  a  family  of  four  children,  two  sons 
and  two  daughters,  born  to  Allen  and  Rhoda  TMason)  Agnew,  namely: 
Ruev,  wife  cif  Gilbert  Keller,  a  general  merchant  of  Topcka,  Indiana; 
Hugh  E..  whose  name  introduces  this  review:  Claudia,  wife  of  Professor 
C.  D.  Albert,  one  of  the  facultv  of  Cornell  University,  of  which  insti- 
tution he  is  also  a  graduate,  and  he  is  nr>w  a  resident  of  Ithaca:  and 
Paul  G.,  a  resident  of  Washington.  D.  C.  and  a  member  of  the  Bureau 
of  Standards  for  the  Government.  Mr.  Allen  Agnew  is  a  native  of 
Livingston  cnuntv.  New  Ynrk.  born  in  TS44.  stI  is  now  a  resident  of 
Hillsdale,  Michigan,  livinc  retired  from  the  active  duties  of  a  business 
life.  In  the  early  part  of  his  industrial  career  he  was  an  agriculturist, 
but  later  became  a  merchant.  Durinsr  the  Civil  war  he  offered  his 
services  to  the  government,  becoming  a  member  of  Battery  T,  First  Mich- 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  751 

igaii  Light  .\rlillery,  his  first  scr\icc  !)cint;-  with  the  Army  of  the  Po- 
tomac, while  later  he  was  with  tiie  Army  of  Tennessee.  He  is  a  Repub- 
lican in  his  political  affiliatif.ns,  and  his  first  presidential  vote  was  cast 
for  Grant.  Both  he  and  his  wife  are  members  of  the  Presbyterian 
church.  Mrs.  Agnew,  who  was  born  in  l'"ulton  count}",  Ohio,  in  1S49, 
is  also  living. 

Air.  Hugh  E.  Agnew  was  reared  in  Hillsdale  county,  Michigan, 
except  five  years  that  liis  parents  lived  in  Kunkle,  Ohio,  receiving  his 
education  in  its  common  schools,  and  is  a  graduate  of  the  Hillsdale  High 
School  of  the  class  of  1895,  also  of  the  Hillsdale  Commercial  College 
of  the  class  of  1S92,  and  in  1S9S  graduated  from  the  Ypsilanti  Normal, 
from  which  he  holds  a  life  certificate.  After  completing  his  education 
he  assumed  the  supeiintendency  of  the  Portland  City  Schools,  there  re- 
maining for  three  years,  and  in  1901  he  entered  the  literary  department 
of  Michigan  University,  graduating  therefrom  in  the  class  of  1902. 
Immediately  following  that  event  iNIr.  Agnew  went  to  Howell,  ]\Iichi- 
gan,  as  superintendent  of  schools,  there  remaining  for  one  year,  and  in 
1903  came  to  Dowagiac  and  entered  ujxDn  his  journalistic  career  by 
purchasing  the  Dowagiac  Republican,  a  semi-weekly  eight  page  quarto. 
He  is  the  owner  of  the  finest  press  in  the  county,  a  two-revolution  Cot- 
trell,  and  he  also  has  two  job  presses.  His  paper  is  tb.e  leading  organ  of 
the  Republican  party  in  the  county,  with  a  circulation  of  about  fifteen 
hundred.  Its  editor  is  candid  in  the  expression  of  his  opinions,  and 
strives  to  gi\-e  the  true  status  of  the  news  generally.  He  does  a  general 
printing  business  and  has  arranged  to  add  a  -book-binding  department, 
which  will  make  it  the  most  complete  printery  in  Cass  county. 

On  the  26th  of  August,  1902,  Mv.  Agnew  married  Miss  Marie 
Le  Gault,  and  one  little  son  has  been  born  to  them,  Clifton  Allen.  Mrs. 
Agnew  is  a  native  of  Cheboygan,  Micliigan,  born  June  21.  187S,  and  is 
of  French,  descent.  She  received  her  education  in  the  Qieboygan  High 
School,  also  graduated  at  the  Ypsilanti  Normal  in  1S98,  and  then  en- 
'tered  the  iMichigan  University  at  Ann  Arbor.  After  completing  her  edu- 
cation she  was  engaged  in  teaching  at  Newl^erry,  Michigan.  Her  par- 
ents are  both  deceased.  In  his  political  affiliations  Mr.  Agnew  is  a  Re- 
publican, and  he  cast  his  first  presidential  vote  for  AIcKinley.  Fra- 
ternally he  is  a  member  of  the  B.  P.  O.  E.  No.  889,  of  Dowagiac. 

M.  O.  HADDEN. 

Few  residents  of  Cass  county  have  longer  resided  wathin  its  borders 
than  M.  O.  Hadden,  of  Dowagiac.  who  has  lived  in  this  part  of  the  state 
through  six  decades.  He  is  of  Scotch  descent  and  manifests  in  his  life 
many  of  the  sterling  characteristics  of  his  ancestry.  He  was  born  in 
Cayuga  county.  New  York,  October  22,  1S45.  His  ])aternal  grand- 
father, Charles  Hadden.  was  a  native  of  Scotland  and  after  leaving  the 
land  of  hills  and  heather  crossed  the  Atlantic  to  the  new  world.     He 


''52  IIISTOl^Y  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

settled  in  New  Yurk,  where  he  died  of  yellow  fever.  His  son,  Louis  \V. 
Hadden,  a  nati\e  of  Westchester  county,  Xew  York,  was  Lorn  in  1805, 
and  was  reared  in  the  place  of  his  nativity.  In  his  youth  he  learned  the 
blacksmith's  trade  and  in  early  manhood  lie  came  westward  to  Michigan, 
settling  here  before  the  country  became  involved  in  the  financial  panic, 
owing  to  the  issuance  oi  bank  notes  by  jirivate  banks,  the  currency  be- 
coming known  as  wildcat  money.  Mr.  Hadden  located  in  Pontiac,  Mich- 
igan, but  afterward  returned  to  Xew  York.  Again  in  i8.|.6.  hr)wever, 
be  came  to  3.1ichigan,  settling  in  Volinia  township.  Cass  county,  estab- 
lishing the  fir^t  lilacksmilli  simp  in  the  tcnvnship.  lie  afterward  removed 
to  Wayne  tnwnshii),  scttHng  en  Section  25,  where  he  also  ojicned  a 
blacksmith  shop,  following  the  business  for  a  long  period.  In  later  years 
he  also  enijaged  in  farming  in  the  same  locality  and  his  life  was  one  of 
untiring  industry  and  enterprise,  his  success  being  the  result  of  his  per- 
severance and  labor.  His  last  days  were  spent  in  Dowagiac,  where  he 
died  in  his  eiqhty- fourth  }ear.  He  was  a  life-long  Democrat,  never 
faltering  in  bis  allci^iauce  to  the  party  auil  be  held  membership  in  the 
Baptist  church,  living:;  an  upri.^bt,  lionorable  Christian  life.  He  mar- 
ried Joanna  Cumld,  wli..  was  bum  in  Cayuga  county,  Xew  York,  where 
her  girlhood  days  were  passed.  Her  mother  was  a  distant  relative  of 
President  Monroe.  Mr.  and  ;\Irs.  Hadden  were  married  in  Cavuga 
county,  Xew  York,  and  both  spent  their  last  days  in  Dnwagiac,  ^Irs. 
Hadden  passing  awa\-  wlien  eiglity  years  of  age.  In  their  faniih-  were 
seven  children,  of  whom  two  died  in  infancy,  while  five  reached  man- 
hood or  womanhood.  These  are:  Charles,  now  deceased;  Alary,  the 
wife  of  George  McCormack,  of  Jackson,  Michigan ;  Armantha,  the  wife 
of  Hiram  .\dams,  (jf  X'nlinia  township;  and  Cyrena  Jennetta,  the  wife 
of  Samuel  F.dwcuds,  of  Jack'son.  Michigan. 

]M.  O.  Hadden  is  the  sixth  child  in  a  family  of  seven  children  and 
the  only  son  now  living.  He  was  less  than  a  }-ear  oUl  wdien  brought  bv 
his  parents  to  Cass  county  and  was  reared  u]ion  the  homestead  farm  in 
Wayne  township.  When  a  boy  he  attended  the  common  schools  and  at 
the  age  of  about  fourteen  years  began  learning  the  blacksmith's  trade 
with  his  father,  with  whom  he  worked  until  about  seventeen  years  of 
age.  He  continued  upon  the  home  farm,  assisting  in  the  task  of  devel- 
oping and  cultivating  the  fields  and  during  that  time  he  also  bought  lanti 
for  himself,  and  eventually  became  the  owner  of  the  old  homestead. 
He  added  to  bis  property  from  time  to  time  until  his  landed  posses- 
sions were  quite  extensive.  He  has  since  sold  some  oi  the  property  but 
still  has  one  hundred  and  seventy  acres  of  good  land  in  \\'aync  and 
"Volinia  townsliips.  He  placed  bis  land  under  a  hieb  state  of  cultivation 
and  gathered  good  crops  each  year,  while  his  grain  found  a  ready  sale 
upon  the  market.  He  kept  everythinsr  about  his  place  in  good  cond;  ■ 
tion  and  in  all  of  his  farm  work  was  progressive  and  enterprising.  .\t 
length,  however,  he  retired   from  general  agricultural  pursuits,   and   in 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  753 

1903  remuved  to  Dowagiac,  where  he  is  now  residing  in  the  enjoyment 
of  the  fruits  of  his  lornier  toiL 

Mr.  Hadden  was  married  first  in  1S6S  to  Miss  Adaline  Ferguson, 
who  was  born  and  reared  in  Indiana  and  was  a  daughter  of  Richard 
Ferguson.  She  died  in  1902,  leaving  two  children:  Iva,  now  the 
wife  of  Jacob  Spade,  of  Kalamazoo;  and  Herbert  M.,  a  farmer  living 
in  Wayne  township.  ^Ir.  Hadden  married  his  present  wife  in  No- 
vember, 1903.  She  bore  the  maiden  name  of  Sarah  Swisher,  was  the 
widow  of  Jerry  Foltz  and  was  born  in  Preble  county,  Ohio,  April  13, 
1845,  her  parents  being  John  and  Millecent  (Elliott)  Swisher,  who 
came  to  Michigan  about  1S51,  settling  in  Silver  Creek  township.  Her 
father  died  when  eighty-two  years  of  age  and  her  mother  when  sev- 
enty-two years  of  age.  In  tlie  family  were  ten  children,  all  of  whom 
reached  years  of  maturity  with  one  exception,  Mrs.  Hadden  being 
the  fourth  in  order  of  birth.  She  was  first  married  to  George  Strackan- 
gart  and  they  had  one  daughter,  Ida,  who  is  now  the  wife  of  Dr. 
Elmer  Mater,  of  Dowagiac.  The  mother  afterward  married  Jerrv 
Foltz. 

Mr.  Hadden  has  been  a  lifelong  Republican,  but  has  never  sought 
or  desired  office,  although  he  is  interested  in  the  growth  of  his  party 
and  its  success.  He  is  a  prominent  and  valued  member  of  the  Masonic 
fraternity,  belonging  to  the  blue  lodge  of  Dowagiac.  Sixty  years  have 
been  added  to  the  cycle  of  the  centuries  since  he  came  to  Cass  county 
and  in  this  time  he  has  taken  an  active  interest  in  public  measures,  co- 
operating in  many  movements  for  the  general  good.  He  has  a  wide 
acquaintance  with  the  people  of  the  county,  has  been  found  to  be  a 
reliable  and  enterprising  business  man  and  at  all  times  has  stood  for 
improvement  along  material,  intellectual,  social,  political  and  moral  lines. 
In  his  business  affairs  he  has  prospered  as  the  result  of  his  keen  dis- 
crimination,  close  application  and  unfaltering  diligence.  He  is  today 
the  owner  of  a  large  farm,  to  which  he  makes  frequent  trips  in  his  auto- 
mobile, thus  giving  personal  supervision  to  the  development  of  the  prop- 
erty. 

CHARLES  ELLIOTT  SWEET. 

Charles  Elliott  Sweet,  who  has  exerted  a  strong  and  beneficial  in- 
fluence in  behalf  of  the  Republican  party  in  Cass  county,  ^Michigan,  and 
is  a  representative  member  of  the  bar  at  Dowagiac.  was  bom  in  Van 
Buren  county,  Michigan,  on  the  nth  of  March,  i860.  The  paternal 
grandfather  was  Ezra  Sw-eet.  wdio  removed  from  Vermont  to  New  York 
during  the  iMxhood  of  his  son,  Joseph  Elliott  Sweet,  who  was  born  in 
the  former  state.  Ezra  Sweet  was  commissioned  a  corporal  in  the  New 
York  militia  in  1S23.  He  wedded  Miss  ]\Iary  Smith,  a  daughter  of 
David  Smith,  the  great-grandfather  of  Charles  Elliott  Sweet,  and  a 
native  of  Vermont,  who  ser\-ed  in  the  Revolutionary  war  as  a  private 
in  l.!Oth  the  infantry  and  artiller\^  ranks,  and  Charles  Elliott  Sweet  now 


754  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

has  in  his  possession  his  pension  papers  whicli  entitles  him  to  eighty-one 
dollars  and  ninety-three  cents  pension  for  each  year  of  his  natural  life. 
He  had  served  with  the  Rhode  Island  regiment. 

Joseph  Elliott  Sweet,  the  father  of  our  subject,  was  born  in  Windom 
county,  Vermont,  and  after  a  residence  of  a  number  of  years  in  the  lun- 
pire  state  removed  to  Michigan  in  1840.  He  engaged  in  teaching  school 
in  Bellevue,  Battle  Creek  and  Paw  Paw  for  a  number  of  years,  and 
then  entered  upon  the  study  of  medicine  in  the  state  university  at  Ann 
Arbor.  He  was  licensed  to  practice  about  1S50  and  entered  uixjn  the 
active  work  of  the  profession  in  Mattawan,  Van  Buren  county,  whence 
he  removed  to  Keeler  about  1859.  He  continued  in  the  active  practice 
of  medicine  and  surgery  until  1874,  when  he  retired  from  the  profession 
and  removed  to  Hartford,  Van  Buren  county,  where  his  last  days  were 
spent,  his  death  there  occurring  in  1903,  when  he  had  reached  the  ven- 
erable age  of  eighty-three  }cars.  tie  enjoj'ed  more  than  a  local  reputa- 
tion for  his  skill  in  the  practice  of  medicine  and  surgery  and  was  consid- 
ered an  exceptionally  well  informed  man  in  his  profession,  so  that  he 
was  frequently  called  in  for  consultation  on  important  cases.  He  held 
membership  in  the  Congregational  church,  was  one  of  its  active  workers 
and  served  as  a  deacon.  Fraternally  he  was  connected  with  the  Masons 
and  the  Odd  Fellows,  while  his  poHtical  support  was  given  to  the  Re- 
publican party.  He  held  tow  nship  and  village  offices  and  for  many  years 
served  on  the  school  board  and  at  all  times  in  the  discharge  of  his  duties 
he  was  prompt  and  faithful,  looking  to  the  general  good  rather  than  to 
personal  gain  or  aggrandizement.  A  stanch  champion  of  the  Union 
cause,  he  was  eager  to  enlist  in  the  Union  army  but  was  rejected  by 
the  medical  examiner.  He  stood  as  the  defender  of  all  that  he  believed 
to  be  right  and  just  between  man  and  his  fellowmen  and  supported  even,' 
movement  that  he  belie\'ed  would  contribute  to  the  uplmililing  of  the 
race  or  of  his  community.  He  wedded  IMary  Adalyn  Adsett,  who  was 
born  in  the  state  of  New  York  and  died  in  i860,  at  the  age  of  thirty 
years.  Her  parents  came  to  Alichigan  at  an  early  day.  locating  near 
Paw  Paw.  Mrs.  Sweet  was  an  only  child  and  her  mother  died  when  she 
was  very  youn"'.  Mrs.  Sweet  l^ecame  a  music  teacher  and  was  a  lady 
of  more  dian  ordinary  ability,  of  superior  culture  and  of  fine  character. 
She,  too,  held  membership  in  the  Congregational  church.  By  her  mar- 
riage she  became  the  mother  of  three  children :  Elliott,  who  died  in 
childhood;  Mary  A.,  the  wife  of  Perley  E.  Wilson,  a  veteran  of  the 
Civil  war  at  IMobile.  Alabama ;  and  Charles  Elliott,  of  this  review.  After 
losing  his  first  wife  the  father  married  Rachel  E.  Pletcher,  a  native  ol 
New  York  and  unto  them  were  born  four  children;  Clara  B..  who  is  now 
the  widow  of  Mr.  Wellett  and  is  engaged  in  teaching  school  in  Van 
Buren  county;  Edward,  who  died  in  childhood;  William  E.,  a  salesman 
for  the  ^larshal  Furnace  Company,  and  a  resident  of  Dowagiac;  and 
Fred  E.,  who  is  living  in  Dowagiac. 

Charles  Elliott   Sweet  attended   school   in  his   native  town  and   in 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  755 

1S84  entered  the  law  office  of  Spafford  Tryon  of  Cassopolis,  under  whose 
direction  he  pursued  his  reading  for  two  years.  In  the  meantime  he 
taught  scliool  and  followed  that  profession  for  sixteen  years  altogether 
in  Van  Buren  and  Cass  counties.  On  the  4th  of  October,  1886,  at 
Cassopolis,  he  was  admitted  to  the  bar  and  in  the  same  year  was  elected 
justice  of  the  peace,  filling  the  office  until  18S9  and  practicing  his  pro- 
fession in  the  meantime.'  In  the  fall  of  1886  he  was  also  elected  circuit 
court  commissioner  for  Cass  count}-  anil  filled  the  position  for  two  terms. 
In  the  fall  of  1890  he  entered  the  law  department  of  the  University  of 
Michigan  at  Ann  Arbor  and.  completing  a  two  years'  course  in  one 
year,  was  graduated  in  1891.  He  had  been  practicing  at  Dowagiac  since 
his  admission  to  the  bar  and  returned  from  the  university  to  this  city, 
where  he  again  took  up  the  active  duties  of  the  profession.  He  de- 
clined a  renomination  for  office  of  justice,  as  his  practice  had  increased 
to  generous  projiortions  and  left  him  little  leisure  time  for  official  serv- 
ice. He  now  has  a  distincti\ely  representative  clientage  and  lias  been 
connected  with  much  of  the  important  litigation  tried  in  the  courts  of 
this  district.  Possessing  an  analytical  mind,  he  is  also  strong  in  his 
reasoning  and  logical  in  his  deductions  and  he  presents  his  cause  with 
a  clearness  and  conciseness  that  never  fails  to  impress  his  hearers  and 
seldom  fails  to  win  the  verdict  desired.  He  has  Iseen  attorney  for  the 
receivers  of  the  Citizens  National  Bank  and  the  First  National  Bank  of 
Niles,  is  attorney  for  Lee  Brothers  &  Company's  bank  of  Dowagiac,  is 
local  attorney  for  the  Dowagiac  Manufacturing  Company  and  is  a 
member  of  the  Cass  County  Bar  Association.  In  his  library  he  has  about 
one  thousand  volumes  which  is  probably  the  best  and  largest  law  library 
in  the  county. 

In  1887  Mr.  Sweet  was  married  to  !\Iiss  Grace  L.  Rouse,  a  daughter 
of  Lyman  V.  and  ^Iar\'  E.  Rouse,  the  former  a  physician,  who  has 
long  been  a  practitir.ner  of  Dowagiac.  ^^Irs.  Sweet  was  born  in  this  cit)-  in 
1867  and  became  the  mother  of  three  children :  Elizabeth  Adalyn ;  Don- 
ald E.,  deceased:  and  Lucian  Fred.  Mr.  Sweet  was  married  to  Miss 
Gertrude  M.  Toll  for  his  second  wife.  She  is  a  daughter  of  David  H. 
and  Martha  L.  Toll,  the  former  a  retired  miller  living  in  Niles. 

Prominent  in  ^Masonic  circles,  Mr.  Sweet  is  a  Knight  Templar  and 
also  a  thirty-second  degree  Mason.  Fle  is  a  past  master  of  Peninsular 
Lodge,  F.  &  .\.  AT.,  past  high  priest  of  Keystone  Chapter,  R. 
A.  AI.,  a  member  of  Niles  council,  R.  &  S.  M.,  past  eminent 
commander  of  Niles  commandery,  K.  T.,  and  past  second  lieutenant 
commander  of  Dewitt  Clinton  Consistory,  S.  P.  R.  S.,  and  past  illustrious 
potentate  of  Saladin  Temple,  A.  A.  O.  N.  M.  S.  He  likewise  belongs 
to  the  Grand  Lodge  in  Michigan,  in  which  he  is  deputy  grand  master. 
He  is  the  oldest  past  commander  of  the  Knights  of  the  Maccabees  in 
Dowagiac  and  is  a  past  chancellor  of  the  Knights  of  Pythias.  He  also 
belongs  to  the  lodges  of  the  Odd  Fellows.  Elks.  Owls.  Royal  Arcanum 
and  Foresters  and  is  a  member  of  the  Order  of  the  Eastern   Star  of 


756  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

Dowagiac.  In  his  political  views  Mr.  Sweet  is  a  stalwart  Republican.  He 
was  elected  justice  of  the  peace  in  the  spring  of  1886  and  in  the  fall 
of  the  same  year  was  chosen  circuit  court  commissioner  and  served  for 
two  terms.  In  1892  he  was  elected  prosecuting  attorney  and  by  re-elec- 
tion was  continued  in  ottice  for  four  years,  while  for  five  terms  he  has 
been  city  attorney  of  Dowagiac.  His  long  continuance  in  one  position 
indicates  the  confidence  reposed  in  him  by  his  fellow  townsmen  as  well 
as  his  personal  popularity.  In  1904  he  was  a  delegate  to  the  Repul> 
lican  National  Convention  at  Chicago  from  the  fourth  congressional  dis- 
trict of  Michigan  and  was  made  the  Michigan  member  of  the  com- 
mittee to  notify  President  Roosevelt  of  his  nomination  and  went  upon 
that  mission  to  Oyster  Bay  on  the  27th  of  July,  1904.  He  has  several 
times  been  a  member  of  the  Republican  County  Central  Committee,  iia? 
always  taken  an  active  part  in  party  politics  and  is  recognized  as  one 
of  the  Republican  leaders  of  this  part  of  the  state.  He  is  a  speaker  of 
ability  and  has  addres.scd  many  audiences  about  the  issues  of  the  cam- 
paigns. Mr.  Sweet  is  widely  recognized  as  a  man  of  influence  and  prom- 
inence not  alone  by  reason  of  his  activity  in  political  circles  but  also  owing 
to  the  high  position  which  he  has  attained  as  a  memlier  of  the  Cass 
county  bar  and  likewise  by  reason  of  his  personal  worth. 

JAMES  ATWOOD. 

James  Atwood,  a  retired  farmer  residing  in  Dowagiac,  is  tlie  owner 
of  six  hundred  acres  (jf  rich  and  productive  land  and  derives  therefrom 
an  excellent  income,  which  now  enables  him  to  rest  from  further  toil 
and  enjoy  the  fruits  of  his  former  labor.  During  the  greater  part  of 
his  life  he  carried  on  agricultural  pursuits  but  in  the  days  of  the  early 
discoveries  of  gold  in  California  he  went  to  the  Pacific  coast.  He  has 
now  passed  the  seventy-seventh  milestone  on  life's  journey,  having  been 
born  in  Cattaraugus  county.  New  York.  January  28,  1829.  He  was 
the  third  child  in  a  family  of  three  sons  and  two  daughters  Ixirn  unto 
Wells  H.  and  Sarah  (Kelley)  Atwood.  Tlie  father  was  a  native  of 
Vermont  and  in  earlv  life  removed  from  New  England  to  New  York, 
Avhere  he  followed  the  occupation  of  farming.  In  1836  he  came  to 
Michigan,  settling  in  Wayne  township,  Cass  county,  where  he  took  up 
land  from  the  government,  securing  three  tracts  of  eighty  acres  each. 
Here  he  improved  a  farm  and  was  closely  identified  with  the  early  de- 
velopment and  pioneer  history  of  the  county.  His  was  the  seventh 
family  to  locate  in  Wayne  township.  For  many  years  he  successfully 
carried  on  general  agricultural  pursuits  but  in  his  later  years  removed  to 
Dowagiac,  where  he  died  at  the  age  of  sixty-four  years.  He  was  a 
pioneer  merchant  of  the  city,  dealing  in  dv}-  goods  and  also  conducting 
a  general  store.  He  had  a  wide  and  favorable  acquaintance  throughout 
the  county  by  reason  of  his  close  connection  with  the  development  and 
improvement  of  this  part  of  the  state.     His  wife,  who  was  commonly 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUx\TY  757 

known  as  Aunt  Sallie,  was  a  native  of  Alassachusetts  and  died  in  1S49. 
One  of  their  sons,  Lafayette  Atwood,  was  a  resident  of  Dowagiac,  and 
is  now  deceased. 

James  Atwood  of  this  review  was  only  about  eight  years  of  age 
when  brought  by  his  parents  to  ^Michigan.  He  was  reared  upon  the 
old  home  farm  in  Wayne  township,  Cass  county,  and  began  his  educa- 
tion in  a  log  cooper  shop,  where  a  session  of  school  was  held.  He  like- 
wise pursued  his  studies  in  log  school  buildings,  attending  for  only  a 
few  months  during  the  winter  seasons,  while  throughout  the  remainder 
of  the  year  his  time  and  attention  was  given  to  the  active  work  of 
developing  and  cultivating  new  land.  He  remained  at  home  until  he 
was  of  age,  assisting  in  the  active  work  of  the  farm.  He  clerked  for 
a  time  in  Dowagiac  and  at  different  times  has  been  identified  with  agri- 
cultural and  mercantile  interests.  In  1852  he  went  to  California  by  way 
of  New  Orleans  and  the  Isthmus  of  Panama,  spending  two  years  on 
the  Pacific  coast  in  search  of  the  precious  metal.  He  returned  home  by 
way  of  New  York  and  brought  back  with  him  as  the  result  of  his  mining 
ventures  sufficient  immey  to  enable  him  to  purchase  a  farm.  Thus  he 
gained  his  first  real  start  in  life. 

Mr.  Atwood  was  married  in  1S56  to  Ann  Eliza  Allen,  a  daughter 
of  Gideon  Allen.  She  was  born  in  Yates  county.  New  York,  January 
31,  1837,  and  was  brought  to  Cass  county  by  her  parents  about  1S42, 
the  family  locating  in  Wayne  township.  Her  mother  bore  the  maiden 
name  of  Sarah  Ann  Larrowe  and  in  the  family  there  were  six  children, 
four  daughters  and  two  son-^,  Mrs.  Atwood  being  the  third  in  order  of 
birth.  She  has  one  brother,  Henry  Allen,  who  is  living  in  Wayne  town- 
ship, and  a  sister,  Clementine,  who  is  the  wife  of  PI.  R.  Taylor.  - 

At  the  time  of  their  marriage  Mr.  and  ISIrs.  Atwood  located  on  a 
farm  in  Wayne  township,  Cass  county,  where  he  carried  on  general  ag- 
ricultural pursuits  for  ten  years,  when  in  1866  he  removed  to  Dowagiac 
but  still  continued  to  conduct  his  farms  for  some  time  thereafter.  He 
also  engaged  in  the  stock  business,  buying  and  shipping  for  about  fifteen 
years,  finding  this  a  source  of  gratifying  profit.  He  was  also  engaged  in 
the  grocery  business  for  about  a  year.  He  now  owns  three  farms,  all  in 
Wayne  township,  comprising  over  six  hundred  acres  of  land,  which  he 
rents  and  which  brings  to  him  a  good  income.  He  also  loans  money 
and  with  the  exception  of  the  supervision  of  his  farms  and  his  loans  he 
is  living  retired,  enjoying  a  rest  which  he  has  truly  earned  and  richly 
deserves.  He  has  been  practical  in  his  methods,  thoroughly  reliable  at 
all  times  and  his  business  integrity  and  enterprise  have  been  the  source 
of  his  success. 

Mr.  Atwood  has  voted  for  the  candidates  of  both  Democratic  and 
Republican  ])arties.  ca'^ting  his  ballot  for  those  whom  he  thinks  best 
qualified  for  office.  He  is  one  of  the  pioneers  of  Cass  county,  having 
spent  seventy  years  here.  He  and  his  wife  have  traveled  life's  journey 
together   for  a   half  century,   celebrating  their   golden   wedding  on   the 


758  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

26th  of  January,  1906,  and  sliaring  with  each  other  in  the  joys  and  sor- 
rows, tlie  adversity  and  prosperity  which  checker  the  careers  of  all.  Mr. 
Atwood  h.is  intimate  knowletlge  of  the  history  of  this  county  as  it  has 
emerged  from  pioneer  conditions  to  take  on  all  the  evidences  of  an  ad- 
vanced civilization.  He  has  an  intimate  knowledge  of  the  history  of  the 
county  in  its  various  phases,  and  at  all  times  has  stood  as  an  advocate  of 
improvement  and  uplniilding,  giving  his  co-operation  to  many  progressive 
public  measures. 

GENERAL  A.  M.  FISH. 

General  A.  AI.  Fish,  who  won  the  rank  of  brigadier-general  by 
active  field  service  in  the  Civil  war  and  who  was  connected  witli  the 
military  interests  of  the  country  contiiuiously  from  1854  until  1870,  is 
now  living  retired  in  Dowagiac.  He  made  a  splendid  recrjrd  while  fol- 
lowing the  stars  and  stripes  and  he  deser\-es  the  gratitutle  which  the 
country  feels  for  the  "boys  in  blue"  who  stood  unfalteringly  in  defense 
of  the  Union  during  the  dark  days  of  civil  strife.  He  is  one  of  Mich- 
igan's native  sons,  his  birth  having  occurred  in  White  Pigeon  town- 
ship, St.  Joseph  county,  on  the  5th  of  S.eptember,  1S35.  His  father 
was  E.  T.  Fish,  a  native  of  Hartford,  Connecticut.  Tracing  the  ancestry 
of  the  family  back  through  several  generations  it  will  be  noted  that  they 
have  always  been  distinguished  for  valor  and  loyalty  and  that  the  fam- 
ily has  been  worthily  re])resented  in  the  various  wars  in  which  the  coun- 
try has  particijiatcd.  There  were  several  soldiers  in  the  Revolutionary 
war  and  also  in  the  war  of  181 2,  while  others  fought  for  American  in- 
terests in  the  Mexican  war  and  fifty  members  of  the  family  served  in  the 
war  of  the  rebellion.  The  family  comes  of  Prussian  ancestry.  The  pa- 
ternal grandfather  of  General  F'ish  was  a  major  with  the  colonial  troops 
in  the  war  for  independence,  serving  throughout  the  period  of  hostili- 
ties under  the  immediate  command  of  General  Washington,  acting  for 
a  part  of  the  time  as  one  of  W'ashington's  body  guards. 

E.  T.  F'ish,  father  nf  General  Fish,  was  a  drum  major  of  the  First 
Connecticut  Volunteer  Infantry  in  the  war  of  1812.  He  removed  to  St. 
Joseph  count}',  Michigan,  in  1834,  locating  on  White  Pigeon  prairie  in 
White  Pigeon  township,  where  lie  li\ed  for  about  eight  years,  when  in 
1842  he  came  to  Cass  county,  settling  in  Mason  township,  where  he  de- 
voted his  remaining  days  to  general  agricultural  pursuits,  his  death  occur- 
ring when  he  bad  reached  the  age  of  sixty-eight  years.  His  early  po- 
litical allegiance  was  gi\-en  to  the  Democracy,  which  he  supported  until 
about  1850,  when  he  became  a  know-nothing.  Wlien  the  Republican 
party  was  formed  to  prevent  the  further  extension  of  slavery  he  joined 
its  ranks  and  reiniined  one  of  its  stalwart  advocates  until  his  demise. 
His  wife  bore  the  maiden  name  of  Ruhr  Leumien  and  was  a  native  of 
Bristol,  Rhode  Island.  She  was  descended  from  French  ancestry,  her 
parents  having  been  born  in  France.  Eight  children,  four  sons  and  four 
daughters,  were  born  unto  E.  T.  and  Ruin-  Fish,  namely:    John  L.,  who 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  To'J 

was  a  soldier  of  the  Union  army  in  the  Civil  war;  Horace,  who  also  be- 
came a  soldier;  George,  who  died  before  the  war;  Laura,  who  reached 
her  eightv-second  year,  dying  :\lay  7,  1905,  was  the  widow  of  Collins 
Fraser;  Harriet,  deceasecl;  Maria,  who  died  in  Kansas  in  1905;  and 
Cynthia,  the  wife  of  Thomas  J.  Mealoy,  of  \'andalia,  Cass  county, 
Michigan,  who  was  a  soldier. 

General  A.  M.  Fish,  who  was  the  sixth  child  and  third  son  in  his 
father's  family,  was  brought  to  Cass  county  by  his  parents  when  but 
seven  years  of  age  and  through  the  succeetling  decade  remained  upon  the 
home  farm  assisting  in  the  falwrs  of  the  fields  when  not  busy  with  the 
duties  of  the  schoolroom  or  the  pleasures  of  the  playground.  Fie  re- 
ceived an  appointment  as  a  cadet  at  West  Point  and  was  graduated  from 
the  Government  J^Iilitary  Academy  in  the  class  of  1S53.  He  first  joined 
the  United  States  dragoons  and  was  sent  to  Fort  Kearney  in  Nebraska. 
Soon  afterward  he  was  made  brevet  second  lieutenant  and  was  commis- 
sioned a  full  second  lieutenant  in  1854,  thus  serving  until  1857,  when  he 
was  promoted  to  the  rank  of  first  lieutenant  and  in  1S59.  following  the 
resignation  of  various  southern  officers,  he  was  promoted  to  the  rank 
of  captain  and  placed  in  command  of  Company  C  of  the  Third  United 
States  Dragoons.  In  i860  he  was  still  further  promoted  to  the  rank  of 
major  and  at  the  outbreak  of  hostilities  Iietween  the  north  and  the  south 
he  was  made  a  colonel  of  the  volunteers,  while  subsequently  he  was 
promoted  to  the  rank  of  brigadier-general  and  assigned  to  command  of  a 
regiment  of  infantry,  which  he  commanded  at  the  battle  of  Shiloh.  He 
afterward  was  in  command  of  several  different  regiments,  being  shifted 
from  one  to  another  and  during  some  of  the  time  he  was  ser\'ing  on 
special  detached  duty  on  the  staff  of  different  generals.  He  was  for  a 
time  on  the  staff  of  General  Sherman  and  he  formed  the  acquaintance  of 
many  of  the  distinguished  and  gallant  leaders  of  the  war.  At  times  he 
commanded  infantry  troops  and  again  was  in  charge  of  caxalry  troops. 
He  particijiated  in  many  of  the  hotly  contested  engagements  which  led 
to  the  final  victory,  including  the  battles  of  Shiloh.  luka.  Corinth  and 
Moscow,  Tennessee,  the  siege  of  Vickslmrg  and  the  raid  after  General 
Price  through  Missouri.  He  was  also  in  the  engagement  at  Nashville. 
Tennessee,  and  the  sieges  of  Mobile  and  Spanish  Fort.  He  was  wounded 
five  times,  at  Corinth,  afterward  at  Texas,  New  Mexico,  ;Mississippi  and 
later  at  Spanish  Fort.  He  sustained  a  light  bayonet  wound  at  Nashville 
and  a  sword  wound  at  Spanish  Fort.  This  one,  however,  did  not  cause 
him  to  retire  from  active  duty.  He  was  in  the  United  States  service 
as  a  soldier  continuously  from  1854  until  1870.  for  when  the  Civil  war 
was  ended  he  was  sent  with  his  command  to  the  frontier  and  aided  in 
keeping  peace  on  the  western  border. 

A\  length  General  Fish  resigned  and  returned  to  Wisconsin,  where 
he  remained  until  1905,  when  he  came  again  to  Cass  county.  r^Iichigan. 
where  lie  has  since  made  his  home.  He  built  a  residence  in  Dowagiac. 
which  he  is  now  occupying.     General  Fish  was  married  to  Miss  Alceba 


760  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

Prosser,  a  daugliter  of  Dr.  Ahrain  and  Alelissa  (Chapin)  I'rosser,  who 
came  from  Oneida  county,  Xeu  York,  to  [Michigan  about  1S53.  Mrs. 
Fish  died  in  18G7,  about  ten  years  after  their  marriage.  There  were 
four  children  born  of  that  union,  namely :  Arthur,  now  deceased ;  Cyn- 
thia, the  wife  of  George  Adkinson,  of  Baraboo,  Wisconsin;  Howard, 
who  is  living  on  the  Florida  coast;  and  William  Elmo,  who  is  in  the 
F'ourteenth  United  States  Cavalry  as  first  major  and  is  now  on  the  island 
of  Luzon  in  the  Philippines. 

General  Fish  is  a  member  of  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic  and 
has  taken  a  very  active  interest  in  the  organization.  He  is  now  living 
retired  in  a  comfortable  home  in  Dowagiac.  Sixteen  years  of  his  life 
was  devoted  to  his  country  and  her  service  and  he  made  a  splendid  mil- 
itary record,  his  course  during  the  Civil  war  being  cliaracterized  by  un- 
fahering  devotion  to  the  Union  cause  and  the  faithful  performance  of 
every  duty  which  devolved  upon  him,  his  own  zeal  and  courage  often 
inspiring  the  men  who  served  under  him  to  deeds  of  valor.  When  in 
civil  life  he  has  largely  spent  his  time  in  the  middle  west  and  his  mem- 
ory goes  back  to  a  pioneer  epoch  in  the  history  of  this  county,  for  he  was 
brought  to  Cass  county  by  his  parents  at  an  early  day,  when  the  work  of 
improvement  and  progress  had  scarcely  begun  in  this  portion  of  the  state. 

KENYON  ELY. 

Kenyon  Bly,  whose  home  is  on  section  14,  Marcellus  township,  has 
had  a  successful  business  career,  in  which  unfaltering  enterprise,  close 
application  and  diligence  liave  lieen  the  dominant  qualities  leading  to- 
very  desirable  success.  Having  passed  the  eiglity-third  milestone  on  life's 
journey,  he  is  now  living  retired  upon  a  farm  which  is  valuable  and  pro- 
ductive, and  which  is  the  visible  evidence  of  his  life  of  industry.  Fie 
was  lK)rn  about  a  mile  and  a  half  from  Greene,  in  Qienango  county, 
New  York.  April  24.  18J3.  The  Blys  are  of  English  descent  and  the 
family  was  established  in  America  in  early  colonial  days.  Some  of  the 
representatives  of  the  family  served  as  soldiers  of  the  Revolutionary 
war,  while  otliers  defended  ^American  interests  in  the  war  of  1812. 
His  parents  were  Job  and  Freelove  (Watson)  Bly,  natives  of  Rhode 
Island  and  Connecticut  respectively.  Following  their  marriage,  which 
was  celebrated  in  New  England,  they  removed  to  New  York,  spending 
their  remaining  clays  upon  a  farm  in  Chenango  county.  The  father 
died  at  the  age  of  seventy-eight  years,  while  the  mother  reached  the  very 
advanced  age  of  ninety-seven  years.  They  were  both  representatives  of 
old  New  England  families  and  became  residents  of  New  York  in  pioneer 
times.  In  their  family  were  nine  children,  Init  only  Kenvon  Bly  is  now 
living.  His  brother.  Henry  W.  Bly,  was  born  in  Rhode  Island  and  be- 
came a  resident  of  Marcellus  township  in  1S52,  He  first  purchased 
eighty  acres  of  land  and  afterward  became  the  owner  of  three  hundred 
acres,  on  which  he  paid  fourteen  per  cent  interest.     It  was  all  wood- 


HISTORY  01-   CASS  COUNTY  761 

land,  whicli  he  cleared  and  cultivated,  placing  many  modern  improve- 
ments up<.in  the  farm  and  developing  it  until  it  became  a  splendid  prop- 
erty, lie  resided  upun  that  place  up  to  the  time  of  his  death,  and  his 
labors  found  a  good  reward  in  the  splendid  crops  which  he  harvested. 
He  was  practical  in  all  ihat  he  did.  and  accomplished  whatever  he  under- 
took. Aloreover  he  was  iirominent  and  intluential  in  public  affairs  and 
for  twenty-iu'ne  consecutne  years  served  as  justice  of  tiie  peace  in  his 
township.  He  was  also  supervisor  of  his  township  and  his  political  al- 
legiance was  gi\<-n  ii>  li'e  Lemncracy.  He  was  married  twice,  but  had  no 
children.  The  othci  mcml.cis  of  the  faiuily  were;  Joseph,  who  died 
in  New  York:  Stei)hen ;  (iardrer;  Mrs.  Klecta  Gibson;  Kenyon,  of  this 
review;  Mrs.  01i\c  !'.e:n(l-ley ;  Mrs.  Rebecca  Page;  and  Lewis. 

Kenyon  I'lw  spcn.lipL;  the  days  of  his  boyhood  and  youth  in  the 
count}-  of  InV  n;ituii\-.  resided  there  to  the  time  of  his  marriage.  In 
early  life  he  woikcd  fi  r  ten  dollars  |ier  month  in  sawmills,  his  labor  con- 
tinuing for  about  eighteen  hiiurs  out  of  the  twenty-four.  He  paid  for 
one  farm  by  working  b}-  the  month  and  he  owned  se\'eral  good  farms 
while  still  a  resident  of  the  ea>t.  He  has  always  been  a  man  of  great 
energy  and  determination,  accomplishing  whatever  lie  undertakes,  and 
his  life  record  should  serve  to  inspire  and  encourage  others  who  started 
out  as  he  did.  without  caiiital. 

In  185J  Mr.  I'lly  clmse  a  companitm  and  helpmate  for  life's  jour- 
ney when  he  was  married  to  Miss  Louesa  Copeland,  wdio  was  born  in 
Chenango  county,  New  York.  Following  their  marriage  they  resided  for 
two  years  near  Lockport,  New  York,  after  which  they  returned  t'l  Che- 
nango county  and  ])urclKised  a  farm,  lying  i)artly  in  that  and  partly 
across  the  border  in  Broome  county,  the  residence,  however,  stand- 
ing in  Chenango  county.  Upon  that  farm  Mr.  Bly  remained  for  twenty 
years.  The  place  comprised  one  hundred  acres,  for  wiiich  he  paid  the 
sum  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  per  acre.  This  farm  is  still  in 
his  possession.  In  December,  1S76,  however,  Mr.  Bly  removed  from 
New  York  to  Cass  county.  ^lichigan,  in  order  to  take  care  uf  a  brother. 
This  brotlier  died  in  January,  1S77,  and  the  valuable  farm  of  four  hun- 
dred and  ten  acres  wdiich  he  owned  was  inherited  by  Kenyon  Bly  of  this 
review,  who  removed  to  the  farm  in  ^March,  1877.  The  land  lies  at, 
what  is  known  as  Bl\"s  Corners,  which  settlement  is  older  than  the  vil- 
lage of  Marcellus.  In  addition  to  this  property  ]\Ir.  Bly  also  owns  the 
Centennial  block  in  ]Marcellus.  At  one  time  his  estate  was  valued  at 
forty  thousand  dollars.  He  has  since  disposed  of  a  large  part  of  his 
property  to  others,  but  retained  the  deeds  to  the  same.  The  property 
upon  which  he  resides  is  operated  as  a  grain  and  stock  farm  and  as 
high  as  twenty-six  hundred  bushels  of  wheat  have  been  raised  thereon 
in  a  single  season.  Fine  stock  is  also  raised  and  the  place  is  noted  for 
the  excellence  of  its  products  and  for  the  high  grade  of  stock  which  is 
here  producetl.     Mr.  Bly  was  a  very  busy  man  until  about  eight  years 


762  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

ago.  wlien  he  siiffercd  trcni  paralysis,  and  since  tliat  time  has  not  been 
active  in  business.  lie  has  valuable  pmpertv  interests,  however,  which 
supply  him  with  the  comforts  and  luxuries  of  life. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  P.Iy  lived  {•<  celebrate  their  fiftieth  weddinj,'  anniver- 
.sary,  and  two  more  years  of  married  life  were  vouchsafed  to  them  ere 
they  were  separated  by  the  death  of  Mrs.  Bly,  on  the  30th  of  June.  1904. 
when  she  was  seventy-three  years  of  ajje.  They  had  traveled  life's  jour- 
ney happily  together,  sharing  with  eacli  other  its  joys  and  sorrows,  its  ad- 
versity and  pnisperity.  They  never  had  any  cliildren  and  this  fact 
perhaps  drew  them  more  closely  tngetlier. 

Mr.  Bly  cast  his  first  jiresidential  ballot  for  ITenry  Clay,  and  has 
been  a  stalwart  Deiuncrat  since  i8C>i.  He  .and  his  wife  were  members  of 
the  Episcopal  church  at  Greene,  New  York,  for  many  years,  and  after 
removing  to  the  west  ^^rs.  Bly  uniterl  with  the  ]\Ietho(Hst  Episcopal 
church  at  Marcellu^.  Mr.  BIv  a-sisted  in  building  the  church  in  New 
York  and  has  always  been  the  champion  of  those  interests  and  move- 
ments which  tend  to  benefit  the  material,  intellectual,  social  and  moral 
welfare  of  a  community.  His  life  has  been  active  and  honorable  and  the 
traits  of  sterling  manhood  which  he  has  e\-er  manifested  have  gained 
for  him  a  pmminent  piKition  in  public  regard,  while  those  with  whom  be 
has  been  held  intimately  entertain  for  him  warm  friendship.  He  is  now 
one  of  the  venerable  citizens  of  Marcellus  township,  having  passed  the 
eighty-third  milestone  on  life's  journey,  and  his  record  may  well  serve 
as  a  source  of  encouragement  to  the  young  and  an  inspiration  to  the 
aged. 

ROL.-\ND  HTWTS. 

Roland  Lewis,  who  is  engaged  in  the  drug  business  in  Dowagiac, 
where  he  has  been  a  representative  of  mercantile  interests  since  i8qo, 
■was  born  in  Marion  county,  Ohio.  July  C).  1856.  His  father  was  Eben 
Ijevvis,  a  native  of  Albany,  New  York.  He  dates  his  ancestry  back  to 
Francis  Lewis,  who  was  born  in  Wales  and  came  to  America  in  colonial 
days.  He  was  prominent  in  public  life,  being  closely  connected  with 
many  events  shaping  the  history  of  the  nation,  and  was  one  of  the  sign- 
ers of  the  Declaration  of  Lidependence.  There  were  five  brothers  who 
came  to  America,  settling  in  different  states.  One  was  a  resident  of 
Connecticut,  another  of  Virginia,  one  of  South  Carolina,  a  fourth  of 
New  York  and  a  fifth  of  Pennsyh-nnia.  Francis  Lewis  was  the  father 
of  Ebenezer  Lewis,  the  great-grandfather  of  our  subject.  The  grand- 
father. Ebenezer  Lewis,  was  a  pioneer  farmer  of  Marion  conntv.  Ohio. 
to  which  place  he  removed  when  his  son.  Eben  Lewis,  was  but  three 
years  of  age.  There  the  Inst  named  was  reared  to  manhood  amid  nioneer 
conditions  and  surroundings.  He  married  IMiss  Hattie  McWilliams. 
and  throughout  his  entire  life  he  followed  the  occupation  of  milling, 
making  that  pursuit  the  one  which  provided  his  familv  with  a  comfort- 
able living.     He  died  when  about  sixty-three  years  of  age,  and  his  wife 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  763 

is  now  living  at  the  age  (jf  eighty-three  years,  making  her  home  in 
Marion  county,  Ohio.  In  their  family  were  live  sons  and  two  daugh- 
ters, all  of  whom  reached  adult  age.  while  three  sons  and  one  daughter 
are  living  at  this  writing. 

Roland  Lewis  is  the  fifth  child  and  fourth  son  in  his  father's  fam- 
ily. He  was  reared  in  the  county  of  his  nativity  and  pursued  his  educa- 
tion in  the  country  schools  and  also  in  a  high  sdiool  at  Columhus  Grove, 
Ohio.  He  afterward  spent  two  years  as  a  student  in  the  Northern 
Indiana  Normal  College  at  Valparaiso,  Indiana.  This  was  in  1879  and 
1880,  and  in  18S1  he  removed  to  Freeport,  Illinois,  where  he  was  en- 
gaged in  the  drug  Imsiness.  making  his  home  at  that  place  until  1885. 
He  then  removed  to  Nevada.  Iowa,  where  he  established  a  drug  store 
on  his  own  account,  continuing  at  that  point  for  four  years,  when  he 
sold  out  and  removed  to  Michigan,  arriving  in  Dowagiac  in  1890.  He 
then  purchased  an  interest  in  the  store  which  he  has  since  conducted. 
TTie  firm  of  Lewis  &  Simmers  was  established,  but  in  the  following 
Septemljer  Mr.  Lewis  purchased  his  partner's  interest  and  continued  alone 
in  business  under  his  own  name  until  1898,  when  the  firm  of  R.  Lewis 
&  Company  was  formed,  a  partner  being  admitted.  This  is  a  well 
equipped  establishment,  and  its  neat  and  tasteful  arrangement,  mod- 
erate prices  and  the  efforts  of  the  proprietor  to  please  his  patrons  have 
secured  a  large  and  growing  business. 

Mr.  Lewis  was  married  in  1885  to  Miss  Ella  Wood,  a  daughter  of 
Nathan  Wood,  of  Deep  River.  Inrliana.  and  they  now  have  one  child, 
Qaire.  who  is  at  home.  !Mr.  Lewis  is  an  earnest  Democrat  in  his  polit- 
ical views  and  has  taken  an  active  part  in  advancing  the  welfare  and 
promoting  the  growth  of  Democracy  in  this  locality.  Since  1897  he 
has  served  as  a  member  of  the  board  of  public  works  and  has  proven  a 
most  capable  official.  For  twenty-eight  years  he  has  been  a  member  of 
the  Masonic  fraternity  and  is  most  loyal  to  its  teachings,  being  in  hearty 
sympathy  with  the  principles  of  the  craft.  He  is  also  connected  with  the 
McKlern  Woodmen.  His  residence  in  the  county  now  covers  a  period  of 
sixteen  years,  and  the  fact  that  he  has  been  continuously  in  mercantile 
life  has  gained  him  a  wide  acquaintance,  while  his  business  methods  and 
personal  traits  of  character  have  won  for  him  an  enviable  place  in  the 
warm  regard  of  many  friends  as  well  as  of  those  who  have  known  him 
only  through  business  relations. 

ROBERT  H.  WILEY. 

Robert  H.  Wilev.  the  secretary-  of  the  Farmer's  Mutual  Fire  In- 
surance Comiwny  of  Dnwagiac.  is  numbered  among  the  native  sons  of 
Cass  county,  his  birth  having  occurred  in  ^^'ayne  township  on  the  7th 
of  December.  t8jc.  His  father  was  William  G.  Wilev.  a  native  of  New 
York  and  a  son  of  John  B.  Wilev.  who  was  bom  in  Ireland,  but  in  early 
life  crossed  the  ,A.tlantic  to  the  L'I'nited  States  and  settled  in  'N'e^v  York 


76i  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

city.  lie  became  a  resident  ><(  Cass  cuunty,  :Michioan,  abuut  1836, 
bei'iig  numbeved  amuni;  it~  .settlers  when  this  was  a  frontier  region,  giv- 
ing little  promise  of  rapid  development  of  improvement.  By  trade  he 
was  a  cooper.  Before  coming  to  Michigan,  however,  he  lived  at  differ- 
ent times  in  Xew  Jersey  and  Ohio  and  it  was  in  those  states  that  Will- 
iam G.  Wiley,  father  of  our  subject,  was  reared.  He,  too,  arrived  in 
Cass  county  in  1836,  at  wiiich  time  he  took  up  his  abode  in  Cassopolis, 
where  he  worked  at  the  cooper's  trade,  whiclt  he  had  learned  under  the 
direction  of  his  fatlier.  He  also  lived  for  a  number  of  years  in  Wayne 
township,  and  his  last  days  were  spent  in  LaGrange  township,  where  he 
died  in  his  fiftietii  year.  He  filled  the  office  of  supervisor  in  Ijotii  town- 
ships and  was  a  progressive  and  public-spirited  citizen,  wlio  labored 
earnestly  for  the  promotion  of  general  progress  and  improvement  in  tlie 
community  in  which  he  liad  cast  his  lot.  He  married  Miss  Harriet  Sifert, 
a  native  of  Ohio,  wlio  came  to  Cass  county  during  her  girlhood  days. 
She  was  a  daughter  of  Lemuel  Sifert,  who  was  born  in  this  country 
but  was  of  Dutch  descent.  In  tlie  family  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Wiley  were 
four  children,  two  daughters  and  two  sons,  all  of  whom  readied  mature 
years. 

Robert  H.  Wiley  is  the  eldest  of  his  father's  family  and  was  reared 
in  Wayne  township  to  the  age  of  fourteen  years.  He  accpiired  a  com- 
mon school  education  and  remained  under  the  jiarental  ro<jf  until  he 
had  reached  his  majority,  assisting  in  the  work  of  the  fields.  When 
twenty-three  \ears  of  age  he  left  his  home  and  in  1S64  crossed  the 
plains  to  Cahfornia  by  way  of  Salt  Lake  City,  remaining  for  about  a 
year  on  the  Pacific  coast.  He  made  the  return  trip  by  way  of  the 
Lsthinus  of  Panama  and  New  York  city  to  Cass  county  and  resumed 
farming  in  I..aGrange  township.  Following  his  marriage  he  located 
with  his  bride  on  a  farm  in  that  township,  and  he  still  owns  the  property, 
where  for  many  years  he  carried  on  general  agricultural  pursuits,  annu- 
ally liarvesting  good  crops  as  the  result  of  the  care  and  labor  which  he 
bestowed  upon  the  fields.  In  1897.  however,  he  retired  from  active 
agricultural  juirsuits  and  removed  to  Dowagiac.  The  same  year  he  was 
appointed  secretary  of  the  Farmers'  'Mutual  Insurance  Company  and 
has  been  four  times  re-elected  to  the  office,  which   he  now  holds. 

Mr.  Wiley  was  married  in  ]^C>j  to  Miss  Bina  C.  Hill,  a  daughter 
of  B.  \\\  and  Paulina  Hill.  Mrs.  Wiley  was  born  in  Michigan  and  unto 
this  marriage  there  has  been  born  a  daughter,  Harriet,  who  is  at  home 
with  her  parents.  Mr.  Wiley  has  served  in  a  number  of  official  posi- 
tions, acting  for  twelve  years  as  supervisor  of  LaGrange  township.  He 
was  elected  on  the  Democratic  ticket,  having  throughout  his  entire  life 
been  a  stanch  supp<^rter  of  the  party.  His  realty  holdings  embrace  three 
hundred  and  sixty  acres  of  good  land  in  LaGrange  township  and  this 
property  returns  to  him  a  gratifving  income.  During  sixty-five  years 
he  has  lived  in  the  county  and  has  watched  its  development  as  it  has 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  765 

emerged  from  the  forest  and  become  a  highly  improved  and  cultivated 
district  witii  thriving^  towns  and  cities  and  line  farms.  He  lias  dune  his 
full  share  in  reclaiming  the  wild  land  for  cultivation  and  at  all  times  has 
been  a  supporter  of  public  measures  that  have  resulted  beneficially  in 
upholding  the  legal  and  political  status  of  this  part  of  the  state. 

C.    C.    ALLISON. 

Mr.  C.  C.  Allison,  whose  position  as  dean  of  the  newspaper  frater- 
nity of  Cass  countv  is  fortified  by  fifty  years  of  experience  with  tiie  paper 
of  which  he  is  now  editor  and  publisher,  was  horn  at  Blackberry,  Illinois, 
in  September,  1840.  He  has  lived  in  Cassopolis  almost  continuously 
since  he  was  eight  )ears  old.  Shortly  after,  the  National  Democrat  be- 
gan its  career,  and  m  1855,  a  boy  of  fifteen,  he  formed  the  connection 
which  has  lasted  through  life.  .\  printer's  apprentice,  learning  to  stick 
type,  do  the  luechanical  work  and  the  many  other  details  of  a  print- 
ing office,  he  was  seven  years  in  preparing  himself  for  full  responsibil- 
ity of  publisher  and  editor,  during  which  time  he  worked  alwut  a  year 
in  Dowagiac  with  th.e  Cass  County  Tribune  and  then  the  Republican. 
In  1862  the  stock  company  who  controlled  the  A'ational  Democrat  gave 
him  the  charge  of  its  issue,  and  by  purchasing  the  jilant  two  years  later 
he  assumed  a  proprietorship  which  has  continued  to  this  day. 

Mr.  Allison  served  as  postmaster  of  Cassopolis  during  Cleveland's 
.  second  term.  Interested  in  the  cause  of  local  schools,  he  has  served 
some  fifteen  years  as  member  of  the  school  board  and  for  about  ten  years 
past  has  been  moderator.  Aside  from  this  service  to  the  public  and  a 
steady  activity  and  membership  with  the  local  lodge  of  the  Masonic 
fraternity  for  many  years,  he  has  kept  his  attention  anrl  energies  without 
variation  focused  on  his  nevvspaper,  and  the  success  he  has  gained  in  life 
he  prefers  to  be  identified  with  this  \'ocation  rather  than  with  any  minor 
honors  or  services. 

On  St.  Valentine's  day  of  1890  Mr.  Allison  married  Miss  Mav 
F.  Tompkins.  She  was  born  in  Lmsing.  a  daughter  of  John  Tompkins. 
Their  two  children  are  \^'■aldo  and  Kate. 

DANIEL  EBY. 

Daniel  Eby.  residing  on  section  21.  Porter  township,  was  bom  in 
this  township  .\pril  21.  1858.  He  is  the  sixth  chifd  and  fifth  son  in  a 
family  of  eight  sons  and  one  daughter,  whose  parents  were  Gabriel  and 
Caroline  f  Wagner)  Eby.  He  was  reared  upon  the  old  familv  home- 
stead in  Porter  township  and  began  his  education  in  the  district  school 
near  his  father's  farm.  His  earlv  educational  privileges,  however,  were 
supplemented  by  a  year  and  a  half's  studv  in  Valparaiso  Normal  School 
at  Valparaiso,  Indiana,  and  he  also  attended  the  Sturgis  school  in  Mich- 
igan.    When  eighteen  years  of  age  he  began  teaching,  being  first  em- 


76G  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

ployed  as  teacher  uf  district  school  No.  12,  in  Porter  township.  He  has 
also  taug-ht  in  Newberg,  Mason  and  Calvin  townships,  and  for  thirty 
years  has  devoted  a  part  of  his  time  and  attention  to  educational  work. 
He  has  also  been  engaged  in  farming  and  has  one  hundred  and  sixty- 
one  acres  of  good  lantl,  which  he  au-eiully  culti\aled  and  improved,  mak- 
ing it  a  productive  tract. 

On  the  19th  of  Alarch,  18S4,  Mr.  Eby  was  united  in  marriage  to 
Miss  Ida  Douglas,  a  daughter  of  Sylvester  Douglas  and  a  native  of  St. 
Joseph  county,  ^lichigan.     They  have  one  son,  Leo  S.,  now  at  home. 

Mr.  Eby  has  lieen  a  lifehjug  Republican,  active  and  earnest  in  the 
interests  oi  his  party  and  dunig  all  in  his  power  to  promote  its  success. 
He  was  elected  township  clerk  in  1884  and  has  been  re-elected  to  this 
oflice  each  }ear  until  his  incumbency  covers  a  period  of  twenty-two 
years— a  service  greater  than  that  of  any  other  clerk  in  the  county.  In 
the  spring  of  1906  he  was  elected  supervisor  of  Porter  township.  He 
has  held  different  local  school  offices  and  has  done  much  to  promote 
the  cause  of  public  instruction.  He  belongs  to  the  Knights  of  the  ^lac- 
cabees  and  to  the  Grange.  His  entire  life  has  been  passed  in  Porter 
township  and  the  Eljys  are  among  the  old  and  esteemed  families  of  the 
county.  His  father  cut  the  road  to  the  farm,  for  at  that  time  there  was 
no  public  highway  in  this  part  of  the  county.  Daniel  Eby  has  a  very  wide 
and  favorable  acc[uaintance  and  his  life  work  has  been  of  a  nature  which 
commands  for  him  the  respect  and  gooilwill  of  all  with  whom  he  has  been 
brought  in  contact. 

JERRY  OT-IOURKE. 

Jerry  O'Ruuike.  a  linmiiiicnt  and  inlluential  farmer  of  Silver  Creek 
townshi]),  living  on  section  ji,  was  born  in  this  township  December 
6,  1853.  His  father.  Tiiiiothx"  (!)'Kourke.  was  a  native  of  Ireland  and  in 
early  life  crossed  the  Atlantic  to  America.  He  became  a  resident  of 
Cass  county  about  1841,  settling  in  Silver  Creek  township.  He  mar- 
ried ^Margaret  Haggerty.  also  a  native  of  Ireland,  who  came  to  .\merica 
with  her  jiartnts  in  her  girlhood  days.  The  Haggerty  family  was  aUo 
established  in  Cass  couiit\  in  pimieer  limes.  Air.  O'Rourke  died  when 
only  forty-one  years  of  age  and  was  long  survived  Ijy  his  wife,  who 
passed  away  in  1893  at  the  age  of  seventy  years.  In  their  family  were 
three  children,  who  reached  adult  age. 

Jerry  O'Rourke,  the  second  child  and  only  son,  grew  to  maturity. 
was  reared  in  his  native  township  and  acquired  a  common-school  edu- 
cation. He  is  a  stanch  Democrat,  who  throughout  the  period  of  his  man- 
hood has  taken  a  deep  and  active  interest  in  public  affairs  and  does  all 
in  his  power  to  promote  the  growth  and  insure  the  success  of  his  partv. 
The  first  office  which  he  ever  held  was  that  of  supervisor,  being  elected 
to  the  jiosition  in  1887  and  serving  for  four  consecutive  years.  He  was 
again  choaen  in  1894.  and  at  that  time  by  re-election  continued  in  office 
for  .seven  years,  so  that  his  incumbency  as  sui)ervisor  covers  altogether 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  7t57 

a  period  ot  ele\t.-it  years.  He  has  also  served  as  a  member  of  the  Dem- 
ocratic county  commiilee,  and  has  taken  an  active  interest  in  campaign 
work.  He  was  the  lirst  Democrat  ever  elected  to  ofiice  in  his  town- 
ship, and  the  fact  that  he  has  so  long  been  continued  in  positions  of 
political  preferment  indicates  his  personal  popularity  and  the  confidence 
reposed  in  him. 

For  many  years  ^Ir.  O'Rourke  was  interested  in  dealing  in  stock. 
He  rents  his  farm,  howe\er,  a  part  of  the  time.  He  has  one  hundred 
acres  of  land  which  is  rich  and  productive,  and  he  also  buys  and  sells 
land,  speculating  to  a  considerable  extent,  in  which  undertaking  he  has 
made  some  mone\'.  He  has  always  resided  in  this  county  and  is  well 
known  here  because  of  his  business  activity,  his  official  service  and  his 
connection  with  various  fraternal  organizations.  He  belongs  to  the 
Benevolent  and  Protective  Order  of  Elks  and  the  Knights  of  the  Mac- 
cabees, and  has  a  very  wide  and  favorable  acquaintance  in  the  county. 

MILTOX  r.  WTilTE,  M.  D. 

The  medical  profession  is  one  of  the  leading  factors  in  all  civilized 
parts  of  the  globe,  also  one  of  the  most  arduous,  as  well  as  useful.  The 
mild,  cheerful  and  sunny  physician  in  the  sick  chamber  is  oftentimes  more 
penetrative  in  healing  than  the  remedies  he  may  prescribe.  ]3r.  White 
of  this  review,  who  has  been  a  physician  and  surgeon  in  Dowagiac  for 
almost  twenty  years,  is  so  well  known  in  the  northern  part  of  Cass  coun- 
ty that  he  needs  no  si'ecial  introduction  to  the  citizens  of  the  city  of 
Dowagiac.  He  is  a  nati\'e  of  Cass  county,  born  near  the  village  of 
Wakelee  December  19.  1852,  and  is  the  youngest  of  seven  children,  six 
sons  and  one  daughter,  liorn  to  John  and  Hannah  (Baker)  White.  There 
are  three  of  the  children  living,  the  eldest  Ijeing  Henry,  a  resident  of 
California,  who  went  to  the  Pacific  slope  in  search  of  gold  in  the  fifties, 
and  yet  remains  a  miner:  Jasper,  a  prosperous  farmer  in  Penn  township, 
receiving  his  education  in  the  common  schools;  Dr.  White  is  the  next 
in  order  of  birth. 

John  W'hite,  t^ie  father,  was  a  native  of  X'orth  Carolina,  and  was 
reared  in  his  nati\e  state  until  reacliing  manhood,  there  learning  the 
blacksmith's  trade.  He  first  located  in  Cass  county  when  the  county 
seat  was  officially  but  mit  actually  situated  on  the  banks  of  Diamond 
lake,_and  there  had  a  foundry  and  blacksmith  -^liop.  He  later  bought  a 
farm  in  Volinia  township.  Politically  he  was  a  Jackson  Democrat. 
His  death  occurred  when  Dr.  White  was  fourteen  years  of  age.  ^Mother 
White  was  a  native  of  the  Keystone  state  of  Pennsylvania,  descending 
from  old  German  ancestry,  and  she  was  reared  a  Quaker.  She  was  of 
a  sweet,  lovalile  and  affectionate  nature,  and  her  prayers  and  admoni- 
tions will  ever  remain  as  a  beacon  to  Iier  children.  She  died  a  true 
Christian  mother,  whose  whole  life  was  a  sweet  reflection  of  the  good 
deeds  done  to  others. 


768  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

Dr.  White  was  reared  in  Cass  county,  receiving  his  primary  edu- 
cation in  the  district  schools,  and  then  attended  a  select  school  at 
Buchanan  until  he  could  pass  his  teacher's  examination.  He  then  taught 
a  winter  term  near  Xiles,  the  following  year  depositing  the  tirst  one 
hundred  dollars  he  had  made  in  the  hank,  and  then  entered  the  North- 
ern Indiana  Normal  School  at  Valparaiso  to  better  prepare  himself  for 
a  teacher.  .Vnd  here  let  us  say  Dr.  \Vhite  made  his  own  way  by  working 
at  any  employment  that  was  honorable  whicli  would  aid  him  in  securing 
an  education.  Besides  teaching  the  country  school  he  also  taught  one 
year  in  Galien,  Berrien  county,  and  during  all  this  time  he  was  spending 
his  money  in  acquiring  a  higher  education  to  fit  him  for  the  study  of 
medicine.  He  took  the  business  and  literary  course  at  the  Northern  In- 
diana Normal  and  during  the  summer  and  fall  of  1S76  he  was  in  the  of- 
fice of  Dr.  Beer,  of  Valparaiso,  to  read  medicine.  He  next  entered  the 
medical  department  of  the  Northwestern  University  at  Chicago,  in  1877, 
where  he  continued  until  his  graduation  in  1880.  He  then  returned  tu 
his  home  in  W'akelee.  and  after  some  ]>ersuasion  on  the  part  of  his  dear 
old  mother  he  began  the  practice  of  his  profession  at  Wakelee.  His 
practice  steadily  grew,  and  he  remained  there  six  and  a  half  years,  nn 
the  expiration  of  which  jieriod,  in  the  fall  of  1886,  he  located  in  the 
pretty  city  of  Dowagiac,  where  his  practice  has  steadily  grown,  and 
today  he  is  one  of  the  leading  physicians  in  the  city.  His  home  is  located 
at  the  corner  of  Telegraph  and  Center  streets,  and  it  is  ever  of^en  to 
his  and  his  wife's  many  friends. 

Dr.  White  wedded  Miss  Rosella  Carman  September  14.  1882,  and 
to  this  union  ha\e  been  born  three  children,  one  son  and  two  daugh- 
ters, all  living,  namely :  Baker  T.,  a  student  in  the  now  Northern  In- 
diana University  at  Valparaiso;  Ruth,  in  the  senior  year  in  the  city  high 
school  of  Dowagiac:  and  Cora  M.,  in  the  fifth  grade  of  the  city  schools. 
Dr.  and  Mrs.  White  are  endeavoring  to  educate  their  children  well. 
Mrs.  White's  father  died  at  the  age  of  eighty-two  years,  and  Iier  mother 
is  yet  living  on  the  old  homestead  near  Schoolcraft,  Michigan,  aged 
eighty-four  years.  ]\Irs.  \Mnte  was  born  in  Kalamazoo  countv,  Mich- 
igan, January  24,'  1856.  was  reared  in  her  native  countv,  and  received 
her  higher  education  in  the  Northern  Indiana  Normal  School.  Polit- 
ically Dr.  White  is  a  Republican,  having  cast  his  first  presidential  vote 
for  Hayes.  He  has  stnjug  temperance  principles.  Officiallv  he  was 
mayor  of  Dowagiac  in  1901  and  1902.  and  fraternally  he  is  a  mem- 
ber of  the  blue  lodge  of  ;Masnns  and  the  council.  He  is  an  honored 
member  of  the  Cass  County  Medical  Association,  being  twice  president 
of  the  society,  a  member  of  the  Michigan  State  Medical  Societv,  the 
American  Medical  Association,  also  Kalamazoo  Academy  of  Medicine. 
He  is  examining  physician  for  the  Penn  Mutual,  the  Mutual  Life  of 
New  York,  the  Nortliwestern  of  ^Milwaukee,  and  is  one  of  the  United 
States  pension  examiners,  which  office  he  has  held  for  nine  rears.    Mrs. 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  7Cy 

White  is  a  member  of  the  Xineteenth  Century  Literary  Club,  whicli  is 
composed  of  the  leading  ladie?  of  Dowagiac.  Besides  his  city  property 
Dr.  White  has  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  of  good  land  in  i*okagon 
township  and  se\eral  houses  for  rent  in  Dowagiac.  He  is  surely  to  be 
commentled  for  the  success  he  has  achieved  from  the  fact  that  he  began 
his  professional  career  without  capital,  but  now  in  the  prime  of  his  man- 
hood he  has  a  competency  which  enables  him  to  live  in  comfort.  We  are 
pleased  to  present  this  brief  review  of  Dr.  and  Mrs.  M.  P.  White  to  be 
preserved  in  the  Twentieth  Century  History  of  Cass  County. 

L.  BURGET  DRS  VOIGNES. 

The  profession  of  the  law,  when  clothed  with  its  true  dignity  and 
purity  and  stiength,  must  rank  first  among  tlie  callings  of  men,  for  law 
rules  the  universe.  A  prominent  representative  of  the  bar  of  south- 
ern Michigan  is  L.  Burget  Des  Voignes.  now  judge  of  the  thirty-sixth 
judicial  circuit  of  ^Michigan.  Born  at  Alt.  Eaton,  Wayne  county,  Ohio, 
October  14,  1857,  he  is  a  son  of  Louis  A.  Des  Voignes  and  a  grand- 
son of  Peter  Des  Voignes.  The  last  named  was  a  native  of  Berne, 
Switzerland,  where  he  was  engaged  in  the  dry  goods  buiiness.  and  was 
well  known  in  his  native  city  as  a  man  of  excellent  jiulgment  and  no- 
bleness of  character.  With  his  wife  and  three  sons,  Augustus,  Jules  and 
Louis,  he  came  to  America  in  i<'>44.  the  family  home  being  established 
at  Mt.  Eaton.  Ohio,  and  there  the  father  engaged  in  the  shoe  business. 
He  allied  his  interests  with  the  Whig  party,  and  when  the  Republican 
party  was  formed  he  joined  its  ranks,  remaining  a  stalwart  supporter  of 
its  principles.  He  was  a  member  of  the  Lutheran  church,  and  in  that 
faith  he  passed  away  in  1861. 

Louis  A.  Des  Voignes.  the  father  of  him  whose  name  intniduces 
this  review,  was  eleven  yeai's  of  age  when  the  family  hrmie  was  estab- 
lished in  .America.  In  1853  he  was  united  in  marriage  to  Sa\illa  .A...  a 
daughter  of  John  Messner.  of  Mount  Eaton,  Ohio.  The  y(-iung  couple 
took  up  tlieir  abode  in  that  city,  which  continued  as  their  home  until 
about  1863,  when  Mr.  Des  Voignes  was  burned  out  by  the  rebels.  He 
then  entered  the  service  and  removed  to  Mendon,  Michigan,  where  for 
five  years  he  was  emjiloyed  as  clerk  in  a  store,  aild  for  seven  vears  was 
engaged  in  tlie  drug  business.  The  wife  and  mother  died  on  the  20th 
of 'July,  1887. 

L.  Burget  Des  Voignes  received  his  early  educational  training  in 
the  Mendon  schools,  graduating  fro-m  the  high  school  of  that  citv  in 
1876,  and  then  entered  upon  the  study  of  law.  In  1S77  he  was  admitted 
to  the  bar  of  St.  Joseph  county,  but  in  the  same  vear  entered  the  law 
department  of  the  IMichigan  University  at  Ann  Arlwr,  in  which  he  was 
graduated  the  following  year,  187S.  He  then  removed  to  Marcellus. 
Michigan,  and  entered  upon  the  practice  of  his  profession.  He  has 
largely  mastered  the  science  of  jurisprudence,  and  his  deep  research  and 


770  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

thorough  preparation  of  e\ery  case  committed  to  his  care  enable  him  to 
meet  at  once  any  contingency  that  may  arise.  He  is  an  active  member 
of  the  RepubHca'n  party,  and'  his  abihty  has  led  to  his  selection  for  pub- 
lic honors.  From  iSSS  to  1891  he  held  tlie  office  of  circuit  court  com- 
missioner, under  apiwintment  from  Go\-ernor  Luce,  while  from  1891 
until  1893  he  was  prosecuting  attorney  of  Cass  county,  declining  a  re- 
nomination  at  the  end  of  his  term.  For  live  years  he  was  a  member  of 
the  board  of  education  in  Marcellus^  a  member  of  the  village  council  fur 
three  years,  and  for  thirteen  years  held  the  office  of  town  attorney. 
He  stumped  the  county  fur  the  Republican  state  committee  in  1880, 
being  an  orator  of  much  ability,  and  during  the  years  18X4,  i8tf8,  1892 
he  was  a  delegate  of  the  state  committee  and  was  also  a  member  of  the 
County  Republican  Committee. 

In  1896  Governor  Rich  apjKjinted  him  judge  of  probate  to  fill  the 
vacancy  occasioned  by  the  death  of  Judge  Bennett  and  at  that  time  he 
removed  to  the  village  of  Cassopolis  with  his  family,  where  he  now  re- 
sides. He  was  nominated  and  elected  for  three  successive  terms  for 
that  office,  serving  a  period  of  over  ten  years,  and  during  this  time 
was  also  a  memljcr  of  the  Cassopolis  board  of  education  six  years.  In 
1905  he  was  elected  judge  of  the  thirty-sixth  judicial  circuit,  and  is 
now  occujtying  the  l>ench  in  that  circuit. 

In  1880  Mr.  Des  \'oignes  was  united  in  marriage  to  Allie  M.  Clapp, 
a  native  of  St.  Joseph  county,  Michigan  and  a  daughter  of  Dr.  Clapp, 
of  Mendon.  that  county.  One  child  has  been  born  of  that  union,  Jules 
Verne,  now  a  student  in  university,  who  has  written  a  nunilier  of  arti- 
cles for  Miiusry's,  Argosy  and  other  magazines,  and  is  a  promising 
young  man.  In  his  fraternal  relations  Mr.  Des  Voignes  is  a  meml^er 
of  the  Ma'=onic  order,  being  a  Knight  Templar,  and  of  the  Knights  of 
Pythias.  He  ranks  high  at  the  bar  and  in  political  circles,  and  Cass 
county  numbers  him  among  her  leading  and  influential  citizens. 

DONALD  A.  LINK,  M.  D. 

Dr.  Donald  A.  Link,  whose  death  by  drowning  August  15,  1906, 
deprived  the  Cass  county  medical  fraternity  of  one  of  its  valued  mem- 
bers, he  having  been  engaged  in  the  practice  of  medicine  and  surgery  in 
Volinia  and  the  surrounding  country,  was  born  in  Canada  on  the  J2nd 
of  October,  1865.  His  father,  Alexander  Link,  was  also  a  native  of  that 
country  and  by  occupation  was  a  lumberman.  Crossing  the  border  into 
the  United  States,  he  located  at  Superior,  Wisconsin,  but  his  last  days 
were  passed  in  Canada,  where  he  died  in  1904.  He  was  of  Pennsyl- 
vania Dutch  descent.  In  early  manhood  he  had  married  Ann  Cameron, 
also  a  native  of  Canada,  while  her  parents  were  born  in  Scotland.  She 
still  survi\es  her  husband  and  is  about  seventy-three  years  of  age.  .In 
their  family  were  six  sons  and  two  daughters,  all  but  one  of  whom  are 
yet  living,  namely :     J.  A.,  who  resides  in  Superior,  Wisconsin ;  Adam 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  771 

J.,  who  is  li\ing  in  Albcrla,  Canada,  where  he  is  government  inspector 
of  claims  in  the  government  oftice;  Cathernie,  the  wife  of  Rev.  Malcohii 
McLellan,  D.  D.,  of  EdmLurgh,  Scotland;  Donald  A.,  of  this  review; 
William  K.,  also  living  in  Superior,  Wisconsin,  assistant  manager  of  the 
Superior  Coal  Company;  Robert  J.,  \\ho  is  likewise  living  in  Superior, 
Wisconsin;  Ronald  F.,  a  marine  engineer  of  Canada;  and  Alargaret  E., 
of  Gravenhurst,  Canada.     The  last  named  is  the  only  one  unmarried. 

Dr.  Link  acquired  a  common  school  education  at  Lindsey,  Ontario, 
and  aftei-ward  pursued  a  three  jears'  course  in  medicine  in  AicCill  Uni- 
versity at  Montreal,  Canada,  while  later  he  was  graduated  from  the  De- 
troit College  of  Aledicine  with  the  class  of  1895.  The  same  year  he 
located  for  practice  in  Cas.sopolis,  Michigan,  where  he  remained  for 
about  three  years  and  then  removed  to  Dawson  City  in  the  Yukon  ter- 
ritory in  Alaska.  He  continued  there  for  about  two  and  a  half  years 
and  in  1900  returned  to  Cass  county,  locating  at  V'olinia.  He  had  a 
good  practice  here  and  was  popular  with  all  classes.  He  had  gone  to 
Gravenhurst,  Ontario,  in  August  to  visit  his  mother,  and  while  on  a 
conoe  trip  up  Moon  river,  m  the  district  of  Muskuka,  met  the  sad 
death  which  has  been  mentioned. 

In  December,  1895,  occurred  the  marriage  of  Dr.  Link  and  Miss 
M.  Blanch  Mcintosh,  the  only  daughter  of  Jacob  and  Emily  Mcintosh, 
who  are  mentioned  on  another  jxige  of  this  work.  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Link 
had  a  daughter,  Margaret  E. 

Dr.  Link  maintained  fraternal  relations  with  tlie  Knights  of  the 
Maccabees,  the  Benevolent  Order  of  Elks  and  the  oMasons  and  had 
taken  the  Royal  Arch  degree  in  the  last  named  organization.  In  the 
line  of  his  profession  he  was  connected  with  the  Cass  County  Medical 
Society  and  the  Micliigan  State  Medical  Society.  He  was  conscientious 
and  zealous  in  his  jjractice,  linding  in  the  faithful  performance  of  each 
day's  duty  strength  and  inspiration  for  the  labors  of  the  succeeding  day. 

JAMES  M.  TRUITT. 

The  Truitt  family  is  one  of  the  oldest  in  Cass  county,  and  the 
name  is  inrlissolubly  connected  with  its  annals  from  an  early  epoch  in  its 
history.  I'eter  Truitt.  the  father  of  him  whose  name  introduces  this 
review,  was  born  in  Slatterneck.  Sussex  county,  Delaware.  February 
7,  1801.  a  son  of  Langford  and  Esther  A.  (Schockley)  Truitt.  On  the 
25th  of  February,  1819,  Peter  Truitt  married  ]\Iary  Simpler,  whose 
father  was  a  soldier  in  both  the  Revolutionarv  and  war  of  1812.  and 
their  children  were  John  ~SL,  Elizabeth  C,  Henn.^  P..  David  T.  and 
Langford.  By  his  marriage  to  Isabel  ^IcKnitt.  Peter  Truitt  became  the 
father  of  ]\Iary  J.  and  Esther  A.  His  third  wife  was  Deborah  McKnitt, 
and  their  only  child  was  James  'M..  and  his  fourth  wife  was  Sarah  ("Mc- 
Knitt) Lane.  In  his  political  affiliations  Mr.  Tnn'tt  was  first  a  WTiig. 
and  later  joined  the  ranks  of  the  Republican  party,  and  for  a  number  of 


772  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

years  he  held  tlie  office  of  justice  of  the  peace.  At  the  early  age  of 
fourteen  years  he  united  with  the  .Methodist  Episcopal  church,  there- 
after living  a  consistent  Christian,  ever  exemplifying  in  his  life  the 
noblest  elements  of  manhood. 

James  AI.  Truilt,  a  representative  farmer  and  stock-raiser  of  Cass 
county,  was  born  in  Milton  township,  this  county,  April  28,  1837.  This 
township  has  practically  been  his  home  througliout  his  entire  life,  and 
everything  tending  to  advance  the  best  interests  of  this  region  has  re- 
ceived his  earnest  support  and  attention.  During  his  boyhood  days  he 
attended  school  in  a  little  log  schoolhouse  near  his  home,  and  for  a 
number  of  years  thereafter  he  operated  a  threshing  machine  with  his 
brother  Henry.  In  1856  he  assumed  the  management  of  the  old  home- 
"stead,  there  remaining  until  i860,  when  he  took  up  his  abode  on  another 
farm,  and  in  1S78  he  moved  to  Edwardsburg  and  engaged  in  the  agri- 
cultural implement  business,  there  also  becoming  director  of  the  Ber- 
rien County  Mutual  Fire  Insurance  Company.  Returning  again  to  his 
home  in  ]\Iilton  township,  he  has  since  devoted  his  attention  to  agri- 
cultural pursuits.  Having  been  reared  in  this  vocation,  he  is  eminently 
successful,  and  has  long  been  numbered  among  the  progressi\-e  and  suc- 
cessful farmers  of  the  township. 

On  the  22nd  of  April,  i8<)0,  Mr.  Truitt  was  united  in  marriage  to 
Margaret  Hicks,  who  was  born  in  Nile?,  Michigan,  in  1839.  Her  par- 
ents were  John  and  Ix:ttie  Hicks,  natives  of  England,  but  their  mar- 
riage was  celebrated  in  Niles,  and  Margaret  was  their  only  child.  Dur- 
ing her  infancy  she  was  left  an  orphan  and  was  reared  by  her  uncle. 
Perry  Hicks.  Mr.  Truitt  is  an  earnest-  supporter  of  Democratic  prin- 
ciples and  he  received  the  appointment  of  deputy  revenue  collector  of 
the  second  division  of  the  fourth  district,  including  eight  counties,  and 
this  important  position  he  occupied  for  four  years.  He  held  the  office 
of  cotmty  drain  commissioner  of  Cass  county  from  1896  to  1899,  was 
justice  of  the  peace  in  Milton  township  for  twelve  years  and  deputv 
sheriff  two  years.  In  his  fraternal  relations  he  is  an  Odd  Fellow,  and  in 
Masonry  has  reached  the  Knight  Templar  degree.  He  is  a  charter 
member  of  the  Grange,  and  has  served  as  president  of  the  Patrons  of 
Industry  of  Milton  township,  from  which  he  was  transferred  to  the  Al- 
liance order  and  again  elected  president.  Mr.  Truitt  does  not  regard 
lightly  his  duties  of  citizenship  and  his  obligations  to  his  fellow  men. 
He  is  honorable  in  his  dealings,  straightforward  in  all  life's  relations 
and  commands  uniform  respect  throughout  Cass  countv. 

CHARLES  G.  BANKS. 

In  the  death  of  Charles  G.  Banks  Cass  county  lost  one  of  her  most 
prominent  and  useful  citizens.  He  was  numbered  among  the  early 
settlers  of  Cassopolis.  and  was  a  citizen  whom  to  k-now  was  to  respect 
and  honor  because  of  his  worth  and  ability.     He  was  bom  in  Chenango 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  773 

county,  New  York,  on  the  I3tli  of  January,  1S25,  a  son  of  Walter  O. 
and  Polly  (Dunbar)  Banks.  The  father's  birth  occurred  on  the  Hud- 
son river  at  New  Baltimore,  New  York,  in  1792,  and  his  father,  Adam 
Banks,  was  a  nati\e  of  Germany.  Both  Adam  and  Walter  O.  Banks 
were  ship  builders.  Tlie  latter  was  marrifd  to  Miss  Polly  Dunbar,  who 
was  born  in  Saratoga,  New  York,  in  1794,  and  was  a  daughter  of  Nehe- 
miah  Dunbar.  At  the  time  of  their  marriage  the  young  couple  settled 
near  McDonough  in  Chenango  county,  New  York,  in  18 13,  and  Mr. 
Banks  there  built  a  log  house,  in  which  his  family  of  ten  children  were 
born,  including  Walter  O.  Banks,  who  was  the  fifth  son.  The  rafters  of 
the  log  house  were  round  poles  from  the  wood.  There  was  not  a  sawmill 
within  a  distance  of  forty  miles.  When  removing  from  the  old  house 
Walter  O.  Banks  blocked  out  and  made  a  cane  from  a  rafter,  which  he 
gave  to  his  son.  Giarles  G.  This  was  in  i860,  and  the  cane  is  still 
in  the  possession  of  the  family.  Many  interesting  incidents  of  pioneer 
times  were  related,  and  ]\Ir.  Banks  often  told  a  humorous  stor\-  con- 
ceining  Ben  Wilson,  who  he  said  used  to  drive  across  the  country  from 
the  Otselic  to  the  Chenango  river,  a  distance  of  forty  miles,  making 
the  journey  with  a  heavy  wagon,  following  a  road  that  was  made  by 
blazing  trees.  The  wolves  and  bears  would  sometimes  follow  him, 
and  Mr.  Banks  related  that  one  time  when  alone,  in  his  dilemma  to 
keep  the  wolves  out  of  his  wagon,  he  began  singing  a  song,  which  was 
all  that  was  necessary  to  make  the  animals  leave. 

Charles  G.  Banks  was  reared  in  the  place  of  his  nativity  and  was 
educated  in  the  common  and  select  schools,  studying  for  a  time  under 
Mrs.  Warren  at  ^lacedonia,  New  York.  On  leaving  that  institution  he 
became  a  student  in  Oxford  .\cademv,  from  which  he  was  graduated 
in  the  class  of  1841.  He  worked  in  order  to  pay  his  tuition  and  roomed 
with  a  yoimg  man,  the  two  ixvarding  themselves.  Thus  he  pursued  his 
college  education,  and  on  the  completion  of  the  course  he  made  his  way 
westward  to  Cassopolis,  where  he  engaged  in  teaching  school  for  several 
years.  It  was  his  intention  to  build  an  academy,  but  on  account  of  ill 
health  he  had  to  abandon  his  work  as  an  educator.  He  taught  in  the 
district,  select  and  high  schools  for  eight  years,  and  proved  a  capable 
teacher,  whose  ability  was  widely  recognized  by  all  who  came  under  his 
instruction  or  knew  of  iiis  methods.  In  184S  he  began  surveying,  and 
was  elected  county  surveyor  about  that  time.  The  first  survey  he  made 
was' for  his  father-in-law,  Pleasant  Norton,  in  Jefferson  township  in  the 
vicinity  of  Mud  lake.  The  plat  had  fort)'-three  angles.  He  sur\-eyed 
the  greater  part  of  Cass  county,  and  in  this  connection  accomplished  an 
important  work.  He  was  elected  many  times  as  county  surveyor,  and 
followed  the  profession  ior  a  lialf  century.  No  man  was  more  familiar 
with  the  county  than  he,  and  it  was  said  of  him  that  he  knew  every 
crook  and  corner  in  Cass  county.  In  1854  he  began  keeping  b->oks  for 
S.  T.  &  L.  R.  Read,  prominent  merchants  of  Cassopolis.  with  whom 


774  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

he  remained  for  six  years,  durin;,'  wliich  time  he  frequently  went  with 
them  to  buy  goods.  He  afterward  went  into  business  witli  Jolin  Tiet- 
sort,  under' tlie  firm  name  of  Banks  &  Tietsort,  which  connection  was 
continued  from  iS'13  to  1S73.  At  a  former  date  he  had  been  ass.jciated 
in  business  with  \\\  W.  Peck  for  about  three  years,  and  after  his  re- 
tirement from  commercial  life  in  1873  he  gave  his  attention  largely  to 
surveying.  He  was  without  doubt  the  best  informed  man  on  section 
corners  and  old  survey  lines  in  Cass  county.  He  wrote  a  tine  record  and 
possessed  a  memon-  that  enabled  him  to  recall  and  repeat  with  accuracy 
early  events,  and  with  all  he  was  an  honest,  upright  man.  In  all  of  his 
business  transactions  he  was  successful,  and  as  the  years  passed  accum- 
ulated a  comfortable  CMmpctcnce. 

On  the  I4tli  ..f  Xovember,  1S50.  Mr.  Banks  was  united  in  mar- 
riage to  Miss  Amanda  Norton,  the  second  daughter  of  Pleasant  Nor- 
ton. She  was  born  December  22,  183 1,  in  Champaign  county.  Ohio, 
and  was  brought  to  :\Iichigan  by  her  aunt,  Mattie  Norton,  when  she 
was  six  months  old.  the  journey  being  made  on  a  pony  ta  Jefferson 
township.  Cass  county.  Mrs.  Banks  remained  a  lifelong  resident  of 
this  county,  and  passed  away  Seplemlier  4.  1893.  She  had  become  the 
mother  of  three  children  :  James  K.,  who  is  now  cashier  of  the  First 
National  Bank  of  Sheldon,  North  Dakota ;  Emma  J.,  the  wife  of  M.  L. 
Howell,  a  prominent  attorney  of  Cassopolis.  wdiom  she  married  Octfjber 
II,  1870:  and  Cora  L.,  who  on  the  4th  of  Sqiteml^er,  1886,  became  the 
wife  of  Alfred  T.  Osmer. 

^Ir.  Banks  was  in  former  years  identified  with  the  Democratic 
party,  but  afterward  usually  voted  for  temperance  men.  lie  served  as 
township  superintendent  of  schools,  township  clerk  and  always  took 
an  active  and  helpful  interest  in  public  affairs.  His  death  occurred  at 
the  home  of  his  daughter,  Mrs.  Cora  L.  Osmer,  in  Dowagiac,  where  he 
had  been  living  about  a  year,  June  11,  1906,  after  an  illness  of  long 
standing.  The  body  was  brought  to  Cassojxjlis  and  placed  by  the 
side  of  his  wife  in  Pn^pcct  Hill  cemetery.  He  had  a  very  wide 
acquaintance  in  the  county,  where  he  had  resided  almost  continuously 
since  the  fall  of  1844.  covering  a  period  of  about  sixty-two  years.  He 
was  therefore  a  witness  of  almost  its  entire  development,  and  assisted 
in  the  work  of  transition  as  pioneer  conditions  were  replaced  by  the  ev- 
idences of  an  advanced  civilization  and  modern  prosperity. 

COY  W.  HENDRYX. 

For  a  number  of  years  Coy  W.  Hendryx  has  practiced  at  the  Kar 
of  Cass  county,  and  during  that  time  his  rise  has  been  gradual,  but  he 
todav  occupies  a  leading  r>^i'^ition  among  the  representatives  of  the  legal 
profession  in  Dowaeiac.  His  renutation  has  been  won  through  earnest, 
honest  labor,  and  his  hieh  standing  is  a  merited  tribute  to  bis  ability. 
He  was  born   in   Cuba.    .Mlegany   county.    New   York.    Julv   20,    1861. 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  T75 

and  is  a  son  of  James  and  Eunice  (TryonJ  Hendryx.  His  grandfather, 
Nathan  H.  Heiuhvx,  was  a  native  of  New  York,  aiid  in  Madison  coun- 
ty, that  state,  his  suu,  lames  H.,  was  born.  In  the  family  of  James  and 
Eunice  Hendryx  were  seven  children.  The  father  \vas  a  stanch  advoaite 
of  Democratic  principles,  and  his  death  occurred  in  1873. 

Coy  W.  Hendrvx  was  reared  to  manhood  in  the  county  '>i  his  na- 
tivity, Alleganv,  and  his  earlv  educational  training  was  received  in  the 
graded  schools"  of  Cuba.  He  next  entered  Cook  Academy  at  Havana, 
New  York,  and  fur  a  time  thereafter  cunducted  his  studies  m  the  col- 
lege at  Newton,  near  Philadelphia,  graduating  in  that  institution  in 
187K.  During  the  lull.nving  two  years  he  was  engaged  in  teaching 
school,  and  then  became  principal  of  the  schools  at  Qarksville,  New 
York.  In  1879  Air.  Hendryx  came  to  Dowagiac,  Michigan,  and  be- 
gan the  preparation  for  his  chosen  profession  by  entering  a  law  office, 
and  three  vears  later,  in  October,  1S82,  was  admitted  to  the  bar.  In 
December,  '1886,  he  was  admitted  to  practice  in  the  United  States  courts. 
His  practice  has  since  graduallv  increased,  as  he  has  demonstrated  his 
abilitv  to  successfully  handle  the  intricate  problems  of  jurisprudence, 
and  today  he  has  a  large  clientage,  which  connects  him  with  the  leading 
litigated  interests  of  the  circuit.  A  Democrat  in  his  political  affiliations, 
he  has  held  the  office  of  circuit  court  commissioner,  and  in  1886  was  ap- 
pointed United  States  commissioner  for  the  western  district  of  Michi- 
gan, an  office  he  held  twcKe  years. 

In  1885  :Mi-.  Hendrvx  was  united  in  marriage  with  Harrictte,  a 
daughter  of'Charles  G.  Guilf..rd,  a  prominent  farmer  of  Cuba,  Allegany 
county,  New  York.  She  was  Ijom  and  reared  in  that  city,  completing 
her  education  in  Alfred  University.  Three  children  have  been  born  of 
this  union,  Ruth.  Irene  and  Olive.'  Mr.  Hendryx  is  a  Mason  and  is  also 
identified  with  the  Legion  of  Honor.  He  is  a  broad-minded,  progres- 
sive man  and  public-spirited  citizen,  and  in  all  life's  relations  is  found 
true  to  all  the  duties  of  professional  and  social  life. 

FRANK  P.  JARVIS. 

Frank  P.  Jarvis,  who  follows  the  occujiation  of  farming,  was  born 
August  18,  1852,  in  LaGrange  township,  where  he  still  makes  his  home. 
His  father,  Norman  Jarvis.  was  one  of  the  early  settlers  of  this  coun- 
ty, where  for  many  years  he  followed  the  ocaipation  of  farming.  He 
was  born  in  North  Carolina  in  181 9  and  was  a  son  of  Zaddock  Jarvis, 
likewise  a  native  of  the  old  North  state.  The  grandfather  was  a  farmer 
and  about  i8,-?4  settled  in  Cass  county.  Michigan,  being  one  of  the  first 
residents  within  its  l-mrders.  The  family  home  was  established  in  La- 
Grange  township,  where  the  grandfather  purchased  some  land,  becom- 
ing owner  of  about  two  hundred  acres,  most  of  which  was  raw  and  un- 
improved. He  cleared  the  tract,  however,  and  reared  bis  family  upon 
this  place. 


776  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

Norman  Jar\is  was  cmly  four  years  of  age  wlien  brought  by  bis 
parents  to  Alicliiiran  and  amid  tbe  wild  scenes  of  frontier  Hfe  he  was 
reared  upon  the  old  iKniicstead,  tbe  family  living  in  a  log  cabin  while  his 
education  was  acquired  in  a  log  scboolbouse.  He  shared  with  tbe 
other  members  of  the  family  in  tbe  hardships  and  privations  incident 
to  pioneer  life  and  also  assisted  in  the  arduous  task  of  developing  new 
land.  When  about  twenty-one  years  of  age  he  bought  land  in  LaGrange 
township,  coming  int(j  possession  of  about  two  hundred  acres  that  was 
partially  inipro\ed.  He  had  been  married  a  short  time  previous  to 
Miss  Margaret  Simpscm,  a  native  of  Ohio,  bom  in  the  year  1823.  She 
was  reared  in  her  nati\e  state  and  with  her  parents  came  to  Cass  county 
at  an  early  day.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Jarvis  became  the  parents  of  ten  chil- 
dren, seven  daughters  and  three  sons,  all  of  whom  are  living,  Frank  P. 
being  tbe  fifth  chikl  and  second  son.  In  his  politiail  views  the  fatlier 
was  a  Democrat  and  kc])!  well  informed  on  the  questions  and  issues  of 
the  day.  He  prosiiered  in  liis  business  undertakings  and  at  the  time  of 
his  death  was  the  owner  of  two  hundred  and  seventy  acres  of  ricli  and 
productive  land,  tbe  greater  part  of  which  had  been  improved  by  him. 
He  passed  away  in  1903  at  tlie  age  of  eighty-three  years,  resjiected  and 
esteemed  Iiy  all  who  knew  him. 

Frank  P.  Jarvis  was  reared  upon  the  old  homestead  farm  and  as- 
sisted his  fatlicr  in  its  cultivation  and  improvement  until  twenty-four 
years  of  age,  when  be  made  arrangements  for  having  a  home  of  his  own 
by  his  marriage,  on  the  i  jtb  of  beliruary,  T876,  to  Miss  Clara  Cooper, 
a  daughter  of  Cicero  and  Ilannali  (Reams)  Cooper.  Tbe  father  was  a 
native  of  Jefferson  township,  Cass  county,  born  in  February,  1840,  and 
was  there  reared  and  educated.  After  putting  aside  his  te.xt-tooks  he 
learned  and  lollowed  the  carpenter's  trade.  He  voted  with  the  Dem- 
ocracy up  to  the  time  of  his  demise,  which  occurred  in  1869.  Mrs. 
Cooper  was  born  in  Jefferson  township,  Cass  county,  on  tbe  29tb  of 
October,  1839,  and  was  there  reared,  both  she  and  her  husband  1  icing 
pioneer  people  of  this  part  of  the  state.  They  became  the  parents  of 
two  sons  and  three  daugliters,  of  whom  one  died  in  infancy.  ]Mrs.  Jar- 
vis,  who  was  tbe  second  daughter  and  third  child  of  the  family,  was 
reared  upon  tbe  old  home  farm  in  Cass  county. 

At  tbe  time  of  their  marriage  ^Ir.  and  ]\Trs.  Jan'is  located  on  a 
farm  of  one  hundred  and  thirty  acres  in  LaGrange  township,  the  greater 
part  of  which  had  been  cutivatcd,  and  there  they  resided  for  fourteen 
years.  In  189 1,  bo\ve\-er,  ]\lr.  Jarvis  sold  that  property  and  removed 
to  Pokagon  township,  settling  on  section  25,  where  he  purchased  one 
hundred  and  fifty-nine  acres  of  improved  land.  To  the  further  cultiva- 
tion and  development  of  this  place  he  has  since  devoted  his  energies  and 
now  has  an  excellent  farm,  from  which  he  annually  har\-ests  good  crops. 
To  him  and  his  wife  have  been  l->orn  two  children,  but  Burton,  who  was 
born  January  3,   1878,  died  in  infancy.     Norman,  born  September  28, 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  777 

1880,  in  LaCrange  township,  is  still  at  home.  IMr.  Jarvis  is  a  Democrat 
where  national  issues  arc  involved,  but  at  local  elections  regards  only 
the  capability  of  the  candidate  and  often  casts  his  ballot  without  regard 
for  party  ties.  He  has  contributed  in  substantial  measure  to  the  agri- 
cultural development  of  the  county  and  at  the  same  time  has  promoted 
his  individual  success  until  he  is  now  classed  among  the  men  of  affluence 
in  Pokagon  township. 

VIRGIL  TURNER. 

Virgil  Turner,  a  representative  of  fanning  interests  in  Ontwa  town- 
ship, was  born  in  Sullivan  county.  New  York,  December  18,  1837,  a 
son  of  Henry  and  Lydia  .\.  (Johnson)  Turner,  who  were  also  natives 
of  the  Empire  state,  where  they  were  reared  and  married.  The  father 
learned  the  carpenter's  trade  in  early  life  and  became  a  contractor  and 
builder.  Both  he  and  his  wife  continued  residents  of  New  York  until 
called  to  their  final  rest.  In  their  family  were  five  sons  and  two  daugh- 
ters, of  whom  Virgil  Turner  is  the  third  child  and  third  son.  Two  of  the 
sons  died  while  ser\-ing  their  country  in  the  Union  army,  these  being  John 
and  Andrew.  The  others  are  Virgil,  Nelson,  Nathaniel,  Susan  and 
Alice,  all  of  whom  were  born  and  reared  in  New  York. 

Virgil  Turner  remained  under  the  parental  roof  and  worked  for 
his  father  until  eighteen  }ears  of  age,  when  he  started  out  in  life  on  his 
own  account.  Thinking  that  he  would  have  better  business  opiwrtuni- 
ties  in  the  west,  he  came  to  Adamsville,  Cass  county,  and  began  working 
for  M.  G.  &  N.  Sage  of  Ontwa  township,  with  whom  he  continued  for 
about  a  quarter  cf  a  century.  He  learned  the  miller's  trade  in  their 
employ  and  became  an  expert  workman.  That  he  was  ever  faithful  and 
loyal  to  his  employers  is  indicated  by  the  fact  that  he  was  retained  in 
their  service  for  so  extended  a  period. 

Mr.  Turner  has  been  twice  married.  In  1856  he  wedded  Miss  Ann 
Caldwell,  a  daughter  of  William  Caldwell,  who  was  born  in  Ireland, 
which  was  also  the  native  country  of  Mrs.  Turner.  She  there  spent 
her  girlhood  days  and  when  a  young  lady  came  to  the  United  States, 
making  her  home  with  relatives  in  Cass  county.  Her  death  occurred 
in  1883,  and  she  was  survived  by  her  three  children :  Alice,  who  is  now 
engaged  in  teaching  school;  and  Milton  E.  and  Etta  E,,  twins,  who  were 
born  and  reared  in  this  counts-.  For  his  second  wife  Mr.  Turner  chose 
Mrs.  Digama  Adams,  the  widow  of  M.  S.  Adams,  of  an  old  pioneer 
family  of  Cass  county  and  a  farmer  by  occupation. 

In  1876  I\Ir.  Turner  located  on  land  known  as  the  Snow  lot,  com- 
prising eighty  acres,  and  there  he  made  some  good  improvements.  He 
resided  there  until  the  time  of  his  second  marriage,  when  he  removed 
to  his  present  farm,  which  beloneed  to  his  wife.  The  place  comprises 
one  hundred  and  sixty-five  acres  of  land,  the  greater  part  of  which  is 
under  a  high  state  of  cultivation.     He  is  energetic  and  enterprising  in 


778  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

his  farm  work  and  Lis  labors  have  been  attended  witli  a  gratifying 
measure  of  success.  In  his  puhtical  views  he  is  a  Democrat,  has  served 
as  a  member  of  the  scliool  board  for  eighteen  years  and  has  been  a  mem- 
ber of  the  board  of  review  for  ten  years.  He  belongs  to  St.  i'eler's 
Lodge  No.  lOO,  A.  F.  &  A.  2\I.,  at  Edwardsburg,  and  has  been  identi- 
fied therewith  fur  thirty-five  years,  during  wliicli  time  he  has  been  most 
loyal  to  its  teacliings  and  tenets,  exemplifying  in  his  life  the  beneficent 
spirit  of  the  craft,  which  is  based  upon  mutual  helpfulness  and  brutherly 
kindness. 

HENRY  KLMMERLE. 

Henry  Kimmerlc.  born  in  Butler  county,  Ohio,  in  1S30,  was  of 
German  parentage.  His  father  and  mother,  Jacob  and  Catherine  (^Hassj 
Kimmerle,  came  from  the  fatherland  in  early  life  and  settled  first  in  Phil- 
adelphia and  afterward  moved  to  Ohio,  where  the  father  died.  Soon 
after  his  death  Henry,  at  the  age  of  four  years,  with  his  mother  and 
other  relatives  came  to  Cass  county,  where,  with  the  exception  of  six 
years,  his  entire  life  was  spent. 

At  the  time  of  jiis  coming  to  Cass  county  die  country  was  new  and 
undeveloitcd.  schools  were  of  the  primitive  type  and  were  few  and  far 
between.  These  conditions,  together  with  the  fact  that  the  family  was 
in  meager  circumstances,  gave  Henry  very  limited  opix^rtunities  for  an 
early  education,  and  what  he  did  receive  was  almost  entirely  the  re- 
sult of  bis  own  efforts. 

In  every  respect  he  was  a  self-made  man,  and  l>eing  of  an  observ- 
ing and  inquiring  turn  of  mind,  he  gained  knowledge  in  the  school  of 
experience,  liis  education  continuing  throughout  his  whole  life.  He  gave 
careful  thought  and  attention  to  any  subject  in  which  he  became  inter- 
ested, searching  for  the  truth.  He  was  not  easily  influenced  or  biased 
by  the  opinions  of  others. 

His  dominant  characteristics  were  originality  and  concentration  of 
thought  and  purpose;  faithfulness  to  his  affairs  in  life  and  an  indomit- 
able will  to  succeed  in  whate\'er  he  undertook.  The  possession  of  these 
qualities,  coupled  with  the  fact  that  he  was  early  thrown  upon  his  own 
resources,  won  for  him  a  degree  of  success  in  the  financial  world  en- 
joyed by  few  of  his  contemporaries. 

In  1849,  when  less  than  eighteen  years  of  age,  and  with  but  a  few 
dollars  in  his  pocket,  he  joined  a  party  of  prospectors  and  started  for 
the  gold  fields  of  California,  little  realizing  the  trials  and  hardships  he 
would  be  called  upon  to  endure.  The  party's  provisions  were  drawn 
by  oxen,  and  in  relating  the  experiences  of  those  early  days  Mr.  Kim- 
merle has  often  been  heard  to  say,  that  he  walked  the  entire  distance 
to  California.  This  is  no  doubt  true,  as  it  was  only  by  favoring  the 
oxen  in  every  possible  way  that  the  party  was  able  to  get  any  of  them 
through  alive.  .\s  it  was  many  died  from  overwork,  starvation  and 
thirst,  necessitating  the  leaving  of  some  of  the  wagons  along  the  way 


HISTORY  Oi-   CASS  COUNTY  7*9 

while  the  burdens  uf  the  others  had  to  be  reduced  to  smaller  propor- 
tions. After  six  months  of  travel  and  hardships  the  party  reached  the 
promised  land,  where  six  years  were  spent  by  Mr.  Kimmerle  amidst  tlie 
exciting  scenes  of  the  great  Eldorado.  He  engaged  in  minmg  for  a 
short  tmie  only,  and  then  spent  several  years  in  freighting  goods  by 
mule  pack  trains  up  the  mountains  to  the  miners.  ]Money  was  plentiful 
but  food  scarce.  He  often  sold  hour  at  one  dollar  a  pound  and  eggs  at 
fifty  cents  apiece. 

In  1855  he  returned  to  Cass  count)-  by  the  way  of  the  Isthmus  of 
Panama  and  New  York,  bringing  with  him  enough  gold  to  lay  the 
foundation  of  his  future  prosperity.  The  following  year  he  married 
Mary  J.  Hain,  only  daughter  of  David  Hain  of  LaGrange  township, 
and  lived  in  the  Hain  household  four  years,  wheii  he  bought  an  ad- 
joining farm  and  built  a  house.  On  this  spot,  four  miles  west  of  Casso- 
polis,  he  spent  the  remainder  of  his  days — forty-five  years.  ]Most  of 
the  land  was  co\ered  with  a  heavy  growth  of  timber,  requiring  much 
time  and  laljor  to  clear  off  and  convert  into  a  farm,  which  now,  with 
the  buildings,  is  one  of  the  best  in  the  county. 

Mr.  Kimmerle  was  far-sighted  and  conservative  in  business  and 
active  both  in  mind  and  body  to  the  close  of  his  life.  While  conserva- 
tive and  careful  iji  business  he  was  benevolent  and  kind,  and  free  from 
avarice.  He  symi)atliized  with  those  less  fortunate  financially  than 
himself,  and  his  dealings  were  always  just  and  honorable  with  never  a 
suspicion  of  dishonesty  nor  a  desire  to  take  advantage  over  those  with 
whom  he  dealt.  Through  his  easy  business  methods  with  the  needy  and 
deserving  jieople  of  his  community  many  were  enabled  to  get  a  start, 
and  rightfully  looked  upin  him  as  a  friend.  In  politics  Mr.  Kimmerle 
was  a  life-long  Democrat,  and  while  never  seeking  an  office,  he  was  al- 
ways interested  in  both  national  and  local  politics. 

He  died  in  March,  1905,  and  is  survived  by  his  widow  and  three 
children — Charles  Henry,  ]\Irs.  Josephine  Hoy,  iMrs.  Mary  King.  Two 
sons,  Schu}ler  and  William,  died  in  early  childhood,  and  one  daughter, 
Lois,  died  at  the  age  of  twenty-one  }ears. 

JOHN    H.    WATSON. 

John  H.  W^atson.  who  after  many  years  of  active  connection  with 
farming  interests  is  now  living  retired  in  Dowagiac,  was  a  native  of 
Ohio,  his  birth  having  occurred  in  ^^'arren  county  on  the  ist  of  ^lay, 
1833.  He  is  a  son  of  Robert  Watson,  a  native  of  Virginia,  who  settled 
in  Ohio  at  an  early  period  in  the  colonization  of  the  latter  state  and 
aided  in  its  pioneer  development.  Later  he  again  made  his  way  to  the 
frontier,  when  he  came  to  [Michigan,  taking  up  his  alwde  in  Niles  about 
1838.  This  section  of  the  state  was  then  largely  wild  and  unimproved 
and  he  aided  in  planting  the  seeds  of  civilization  and  of  development 
which  in  later  vears  have  borne  rich  fruits.     He  was  a  miller  bv  occu- 


780  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

Ijation  and  worked  in  siuiic  uf  the  tirst  mills  in  Xiles.  Later  he  removed 
to  Silver  Cieek  township,  Cass  county,  where  he  invested  his  earnings 
in  land  and  engaged  in  farming  until  he  came  to  Dowagiac  in  18O5. 
He  had  led  a  busy  and  useful  life  and  on  locating  in  this  city  he  retired 
from  active  business  cares,  spending  his  remaining  days  in  the  enjoy- 
ment of  a  well  earned  rest.  He  lived  to  the  ripe  old  age  of  seventy-nine 
years.  I'rom  the  organization  of  the  Republican  party  he  was  one  of 
its  strong  and  stalwart  advocates,  and  he  held  a  number  of  township 
offices,  the  duties  of  which  were  faithfully  performed,  for  he  believed 
it  the  privilege  as  well  as  the  duty  of  every  American  citizen  to  uphold 
his  political  views  and  to  do  what  work  he  could  in  behalf  of  his  county, 
state  or  nation.  His  life  was  ever  upright  and  honorable.  He  held 
membership  in  the  ]\Iethodist  Episcopal  church  and  was  a  licensed  min- 
ister of  that  denomination.  His  influence  was  ever  on  the  side  of  right 
and  truth  and  his  influence  was  a  potent  element  for  good  in  e\ery 
community  where  he  was  known.  In  early  manhood  he  married  Miss 
Sarah  Hannan,  a  native  of  Ohio,  in  which  state  her  girlhood  days  were 
passed.  During  her  last  days,  however,  she  was  a  resident  of  Wayne 
townshi]),  Cass  county,  where  she  died  at  the  very  advanced  age  of 
eighty-four  years.  In  the  family  were  nine  children,  one  of  whom 
died  in  infancy,  while  five  of  the  number  are  yet  living,  namely: 
Wealthy  Ann,  the  wife  ui  John  Robinson:  Mary  Ellen,  the  wife  of 
Lewis  Emmons,  of  Pokagon  township;  ]\Iatilda,  the  wife  of  John  Hart- 
sell,  who  is  residing  in  North  Wayne,  Cass  county;  Archibald;  and 
John. 

John  H.  Watson  was  the  fifth  child  and  third  son  in  the  family  and 
was  only  fi\e  years  of  age  when  brought  by  his  parents  to  ^Michigan. 
The  first  few  years  were  spent  at  Niles  and  he  was  about  nine  years 
old  when  he  came  to  Cass  county  with  his  parents.  He  remained  upon 
the  old  home  farm  until  twenty-one  years  of  age.  assisting  in  the  arduous 
task  of  cultivating  and  developing  new  land  and  transforming  it  into 
productive  fields.  In  early  manhood  he  chose  a  companion  and  help- 
mate for  life's  journey,  being  married  in  1854  to  Miss  Ceretta  Powers, 
a  daughter  of  N.  H.  Powers,  who  was  born  in  Ohio  and  died  in  May. 
1903.  In  1853.  the  year  following  his  marriage,  j\Ir.  Watson  removed 
to  Carroll  county.  Iowa,  and  located  a  farm  of  one  hundred  and  twenty 
acres,  upon  which  he  lived  tor  three  years,  but  preferring  Michigan  to 
Iowa,  he  return  to  Cass  county  and  took  up  his  abode  in  Pokagon  town- 
ship, where  he  purchased  land,  and  thereon  devoted  his  time  and  ener- 
gies to  general  farming  until  1899.  In  that  year  he  retired  from  active 
business  life  and  removed  to  Dowagiac.  where  he  has  since  made  his 
home,  enjoying  the  fruits  of  his  former  toil. 

To  Mr.  and  ]Mrs.  \\'atson  were  born  four  children :  Emma,  who 
died  at  the  age  nf  two  years:  Charles  H.,  who  was  born  in  Greene 
county,   Iowa.   August   31,    1858,   and  is  now  a  resident  of  Woodford 


HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY  Tbl 

county,  Arkansas,  where  he  is  engaged  in  the  lumber  business;  Ahna  L., 
the  wife  of  Leshe  Byers,  of  Dowagiac;  and  Eugene  L.,  who  died  at  the 
age  of  thirty-thi-ee  years. 

Mr.  Watson  has  sold  his  farm,  which  was  in  Pokagon  and  La 
Grange  townships,  and  is  now  living  a  retired  life  in  Dowagiac.  He 
has  been  a  resident  of  Cass  county  throughout  his  entire  life  with  the 
exception  of  a  very  brief  period.  He  has  also  given  his  political  alle- 
giance to  the  Democracy,  but  he  has  been  without  aspiration  for  office, 
preferring  to  devote  his  time  and  energies  to  his  business  affairs  until 
later  years,  when  he  is  now  enjoying  a  well-earned  rest. 


The  Tublishers,  in  acknowledging  their  indebtedness  to  the  Editor, 
Mr.  L.  H.  Glover,  whose  true  historical  instinct,  keen  memory  for  dates 
and  facts  and  unabating  interest  in  every  department  of  the  undertaking 
insure  to  the  public  the  faithfulness  of  the  endeavor  and  the  value  of 
the  volume  as  a  history  of  the  county,  take  this  opportunity  in  the 
closing  pages  of  the  volume  to  give  a  brief  sketch  of  the  life  of  the 
Editor. 

Having-  considered  on  previous  pages  the  sources  of  emigration  of 
the  early  settlers,  it  is  not  surprising  to  find  that  Mr.  Glover,  like  so 
many  of  his  fellow  citizens,  is  a  native  of  New'  York  state.  Born  in 
Orleans  county,  I'"cl>ruary  25,  1839,  he  is  none  the  less  practically  a 
native  son  of  ■Michigan,  since  his  parents  moved  west  to  White  Pigeon 
prairie,  in  St.  Joseph  county,  in  the  same  year.  His  father,  Orville  B. 
Glover,  who  was  born  at  Upton,  Mass.,  x\pril  11,  1804,'  died  at  Edwards- 
burg  in  1852;  and  his  mother,  Julia  Ann  (Carr)  Glover,  who  was 
born  at  Albion,  N.  Y.,  June  28,  1818,  died  at  Buchanan,  Mich.,  in  1893. 

The  family  came  to  Edwardsburg  in  1840.  and  when  the  boy, 
Lowell,  first  came  to  a  knowledge  of  circumstances  and  events  beyond 
the  walls  of  his  own  home  he  looked  about  upon  the  people  and  the  en- 
vironments which  characterized  the  Edwardsburg  of  sixty  years  ago. 
Edwardsburg  in  those  days  was  the  metropolis  of  the  county,  and  by 
its  situation  on  the  Chicago  road  had  a  thriving,  bustling  air  such  as 
stimulated  more  than  one  boy  to  rise  above  the  commonplace  in  life. 

Mr.  Glover's  early  experiences  were  marked  by  a  brief  period  in 
the  village  school  and  by  a  period  spent  as  a  clerk  in  one  of  the  early 
mercantile  enterprises  of  Edwardsburg.  An  accident  by  which  he  lost 
his  right  hand  when  about  sixteen  years  old  limited  his  choice  of  pur- 
suits, and  it  was  about  this  time  that  his  dedsion  to  become  a  lawyer 
became  a  definite  aim  to  be  striven  for  without  ceasing. 

After  a  residence  at  Edwardsburg  until  April.  1861.  he  moved 
to  Cassopolis  that  he  miglit  have  the  association  and  opportunities  of 
study  offered  in  a  lawyer's  office.  His  preceptor  was  the  late  Judge 
Daniel  Blackman,  to  the  value  of  whose  example  and  the  strength  of 
whose  character  IMr.  Glover  never  cease?  to  give  credit.     In  October, 


782  HISTORY  OF  CASS  COUNTY 

1862,  he  was  admitted  to  the  bar  after  an  examination  in  open  court, 
and  as  elsewhere  mentioned,  is  at  this  date  the  oldest  lawyer  in  length 
of  active  practice  in  the  county.  Mr.  Glover  has  been  a  life-long  Demo- 
crat and  confesses  to  having  often  offered  himself  upon  the  altar  of 
sacrifice  as  that  parly's  nominee  to  various  o'Tices.  In  April,  1862,  he 
began  official  service  through  his  election  as  a  justice  of  the  peace  of 
LaGrange  township,  and  with  the  exception  of  one  year  has  held  that 
office  to  the  present  time.  Under  Cleveland's  first  administration  he 
held  the  office  of  postmaster,  serving  from  September,  1885,  to  Novem- 
ber, 1889.  The  only  l>reak  in  his  long  residence  and  professional  activity 
in  Cassop<-ilis  was  dCcasiLmed  by  his  service  as  deputy  commissioner  of 
the  state  land  office  at  Lansing  in  1891-92. 

Mr.  Glover  is  himself  a  true  pioneer  of  the  county  and  took  for 
his  wife  the  daughter  i.if  one  of  the  prominent  pioneers  of  Cassopolis 
and  the  coimty.  October  3,  1865,  he  married  Miss  Maryette,  youngest 
daughter  of  Joseph  and  Caroline  Harper.  The  one  daughter  of  their 
marriage,  Fanny  luigem'a,  is  the  wife  of  John  F.  Ryan,  of  Marquette, 
Mich. 

Since  the  death  of  C.  W.  Clisbcc,  in  18S9,  I\Ir.  Glover  has  been 
historian  of  the  Pioneer  Society.  Before,  as  well  as  since  that  time, 
he  has  been  enthusiastic  in  his  interest  in  Cass  county  historv-.  His 
painstaking  care  in  the  preservation  of  historical  material  and  his  recog- 
nized cyclopedic  knowledge  of  Cass  county,  led  to  Iiis  selection  as  the 
editor  of  this  history,  and  it  is  a  simple  statement  of  fact  that  the  worthy 
fulfillment  of  the  publishers"  purposes  is  due  to  the  conscientious  thor- 
oughness of  the  Editor. 


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