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I








A


ROBERT B. ROSS.




LANDMARKS OF DETROIT
A
HISTORY OF THE CITY


BY
ROBERT B. ROSS
AND
GEORGE B. CATLIN


REVISED BY
CLARENCE W. BURTON
PUBLISHED UNDER THE AUSPICES OF
THE EVENING NEWS ASSOCIATION
DETROIT
i898




I
0i




PREFACE.
While the history of most American cities is rather commonplace,
there are a few which furnish a story of facts more fascinating than
any romance. In the development of a new country the civilization,
which in time leavens the great mass of barbarism, works from a few
central points. In North America Boston became the nucleus of the
New England colony, although it was not the first settlement. Jamestown was the first settlement of the Virginia colony, but the town
never attained great importance. New York and Philadelphia became
important towns, but for the first century of their existence their
influence extended over but a small area. Detroit, from the date of its
founding, nearly 200 years ago, became the metropolis of the region
of the great lakes and the guardian of the straits. For a period of 125
years Detroit was both the rallying point and the emporium of the
West. Three nations struggled and shed their blood for its possession.
Before the advent of the railroad it was almost the only gateway of the
vast territory between the great lakes and the Pacific Ocean.
The French outstripped the British in pushing their colonies westward and founded Detroit as their stronghold for the defense of the
great lakes in 1701. After fifty-nine years the British crowded them
off the soil of Canada and the West, leaving them only Louisiana. Then
came the war of the Revolution and Detroit was the headquarters of
British operations in the West. From this military stronghold they
maintained an Indian warfare upon the outlying American settlements,
while the male colonists were fighting in the East. In 1783 the Ameri

iii




can Revolution ended, and the treaty of Paris acknowledged the independence of the United States and their possession of all the territory
east of the Mississippi and south of the Great Lakes. But Great Britain
saw the important position of Detroit as a headquarters for renewing
the war to recover the lost colonies and refused to fulfill the terms of
the treaty. During the next thirteen years the British commandants
at Detroit were constantly employed in setting the Indians upon the
American settlers in the Ohio valley, and stated pr-ices were paid for
the scalps of hundreds of white men, women and children at the fort in
this city. After Gen. Anthony Wayne defeated the British and Indians
on the Maumee River the Jay treaty was accomplished, which gave
Detroit to the United States, but the British continued to incite the
Indians against the Americans and afflict them in various ways until
the war of 18 12 became a necessity. Again Detroit was the center of
military operations, and one of the first acts of the British government
was to secure its possession by treachery. Perry's victory on Lake
Erie compelled them to evacuate Detroit in 1813, and since that time
the city has been an undisputed possession of the American government.
From first to last Detroit has been a city of thrilling events. The
wars with the Indians were all centered about this city, and it was here
that the conspiracy of Pontiac, the greatest leader of his race, was
foiled, although it succeeded in every other post attacked. These
are but a few of the dramatic events which make up the history.
The development of the city as a commercial power is no less interesting than its early struggle for existence. The compilers have expended much conscientious labor upon the work, and have spared no pains'
to secure exact information from the most reliable sources. By the aid
of manuscripts and correspondence, which have come to light during
the last decade, many standard myths and fanciful traditions have
been dispelled and disproved. It has been the aim to prepare a correct
history of Detroit in the narrative style, giving the natural chronological order of events. This makes a work adapted for general reading


iv




as well as a book of reference, a book which it is believed will be enjoyed by readers of all ages.
To avoid diverting the attention of the reader by the use of foot
notes, all explanatory matter and references have been incorporated in
the regular text of the book. Each prominent man is introduced with
a succinct biography which describes his personal appearance and his
most striking characteristics, without glossing over his faults, without detracting from his merits. The co-relation and significance of
the principal events is also shown understandingly. Landmarks of
Detroit is a narrative of extraordinary interest for which the compilers
claim no particular credit. They have only taken the natural course
of events and combined them in consecutive order.
We desire to express grateful acknowledgments to Mr. C. M. Burton,
of Detroit, who has taken a personal interest in this work from the
first. Mr. Burton is known everywhere as the possessor of the most
complete historical library in the West. He has about 10,000 volumes,
and at least 25,000 manuscripts, which relate either directly or indirectly to Detroit. He has complete files of most of the old newspapers
of the city and the official and commercial correspondence of the early
settlers. The correspondence of Cadillac and the other French commandants, the correspondence of the British commandants and later
documents, showing the development of the western territory into
States, is also to be found in his library. All this priceless material
Mr. Burton placed at the disposal of the compilers, and he took so profound an interest in the work that he revised all the manuscripts and
the proofs. The fact that this matter has passed through Mr. Burton's
hands and has met his approval, is the best recommendation of the
work we can offer. The matter has been culled from original sources
in order to avoid, as much as possible, the errors which have crept into
standard histories.
Acknowledgment is also due to Mr. Richard R. Elliott, who furnished valuable matter regarding the history of the early Jesuit mis

v




sion, the affairs of old Ste. Anne's and the conspiracy of Pontiac. That
the book contains many errors cannot bed oubted. It is not given to
man to produce perfect work. Landmarks of Detroit is submitted with
a confidence which is supported by the hard and conscientious work
which has been expended upon it.
The compilers,
ROBERT B. Ross,
GEORGE B. CATLIN.


Vi




CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I.
The Coming of Cadillac —He is Accompanied by Fifty Soldiers, Fifty Civilians
and One Hundred Algonquin Indians-Selects Detroit as the Most Commanding Position on the Straits -----------------------------------  - 1-5
CHAPTER II.
Early Discoveries in North America-Great Britain and Spain Held the CoastFrance Aimed to Secure Canada, the Lake Region, the Mississippi River
and the Unknown West.-1492-1701.. --- —---------------------------—.6-12
CHAPTER III.
The Great Explorers-Robert Cavalier de La Salle-The Cruise of Le GriffonFather Hennepin Visits the Upper Mississippi-Daniel Grisolon Duluth
Builds a Fort at the Foot of Lake Huron-1669-1700 --- —----— 12-21
CHAPTER IV.
Cadillac the Founder of Detroit-A Clever Gascon Who Has Been Much Maligned-He was a Privateer Preying upon the New England Coast-Then
Commandant at Mackinaw-1668-1701. --- —----------------. -----      21-31
CHAPTER V.
Cadillac Foolishly Quarrels with the Jesuits and Lays the Foundation of all His
Misfortunes-He Wanted to Sell Brandy to the ilndlans in Defiance of the
Law-1685-1700 ---------------- ----------------------—. --- —-------- 32-39
CHAPTER VI.
Indians and Coureurs de Bois-Characteristics of the Indians and of the HalfWild Voyageurs, Who Were the First Commercial Travelers in America1660-1700 ------------------------------------— 39-47
vii




CHAPTER VII.


What the Pioneers Found at Detroit-Events Contemporaneous with the Founding of the City-Description of the Fauna and Flora of the Region as Described in Ancient Reports-1701-1703-   -. -   --------------— 47-58
CHAPTER VIII.
Plots and Counterplots between Cadillac and His Enemies-The Merchants of
Montreal Oppose the Development of Detroit for Fear of Its Future Rivalry
-Detroit was a Great Beaver Region ---. --- —------------------- 58-67
CHAPTER IX.
Cadillac Quells a Conspiracy-Agents of the Company of the Colony Detected
in Stealing-Their Friends Support Them-Cadillac Summoned to Montreal
for Trial  ---—. --- — ------------- ----- --- -- - --   ----  --   67-76
CHAPTER X.
Father Del Halle, the First Pastor of St. Anne's Church, Murdered by the Indians-Cadillac is Sent from Montreal to Punish the Murderer-His Enemies
Seek to Compromise Him with the Indians and with His Superiors-1706 -1708  ------------------------------------------------. -—. ----... 77-85
CHAPTER XI.
Early Official Reports on Detroit-Cadillac's Enemies Plot to Have the Post
Abandoned-They Willfully Misrepresent Affairs to the Government-1701 -1710 --- —-  --- -  - --  ------------ ---- ---—.       -------    85-89
CHAPTER XII.
First Families of Detroit-The First Directory and Tax List as Compiled by C.
M. Burton-Inventory of the Property Owned by Cadillac-1701-1710 -- 90-116
CHAPTER XIII.
How the Confusion Arose Among the Names of the Pioneers-Father Christian
Denissen's Discoveries Regarding the Changing of Family Names --   116-119
CHAPTER XIV.
Cadillac is Made Governor of Louisiana-His Apparent Promotion is a Scheme
of His Enemies-They Confiscate His Property and He Returns to France
Ruined and Heartbroken-1710-1720 ----—. --- ——. ----             119-124


viii




CHAPTER XV.


Pierre Francois de Charlevoix Visits Detroit in 1711-Detroit is Declared a Most
Desirable and Important Post-Founding of the Huron Mission at Sandwich
in   1728.. —. --- ——. -------------------------   --------—. --- —-----— 2. 4-130
CHAPTER XVI.
Detroit is Beseiged by the Sacs and Foxes, Indians from, Green Bay-The
Church of St. Anne's Burned-Hard Fought Battle at Windmill Point in
Which the Hostile Indians are Defeated-1712 - ---------------------— 130-137
CHAPTER XVII.
A Feud Commenced Between the Huron and Ottawa Tribes-The Hurons Compelled to Flee to Sandusky-They Return to Settle at Bois Blanc Island and
Later at Sandwich-1735-1746 -—. --- —----------------------------- 137-143
CHAPTER XVIII.
Recreations and Occupations of the Early Settlers-Races Between the Fleet
French Ponies on the Ice-Attempt to Extend the French Domain in Ohio
and Pennsylvania-1750-1760 ---------------------------------— 143-148
CHAPTER XIX.
Feeble Attempts to Strengthen the French Outposts-The Determination of
Great Britain to Seize the French Strongholds Becomes Apparant-1755 -1760. ---- ----.1 ----  ------------------—. --- —-----------—. 148-152
CHAPTER XX.
Rise of William Pitt in England-His Aggressive Territorial Policy Culminates
in a Border War-The French are Beaten at Every Point-Quebec, Montreal. Detroit and Du Quesne Surrendered to the British-1755-1760  -152-162
CHAPTER XXI.
The British Take Possession of Detroit-Pontiac Demands Recognition of Them
-The Indians Prefer Frenchmen Who Treat Them as Equals-They Show
an Inclination to Attack the Newcomers-1760  ------------ -... --- 162-169
CHAPTER XXII.
Pontiac, the Napoleon of the Western Indians-He Conspires with the Chiefs of
Sixty Tribes to Drive the British Out of the Country-His Plans are Betrayed to Commandant Gladwin-1761-1763 ---------------------— __. 169-178


ix




CHAPTER XXIII.
Detroit is Besieged by 2,000 Indians-Murder of Captain Donald Campbell and
a Number of Settlers-Massacres at Mackinaw, St. Joseph, Miami, Sandusky
and  Other Posts-1763. —......... — ------ ----------—.. ---—. --- —.   178-190
CHAPTER XXIV.
Detroit was Saved by Pretty Angelique Cuillerier Beaubien-The Belle of the
French Settlement Learns of Pontiac's Treachery-She Tells Her Lover,
James Sterling, and Sterling Informs Gladwin-1763 ----------------—.190-193
CHAPTER XXV.
The British Home Government Neglects the Colonies and Detroit Languishes as
a Settlement-The Selfish Policy of the British Tradesmen Was the Cause
of Most of the Colonial Troubles-1763-1773 --------—. --- —---------- 194-200
CHAPTER XXVI.
Obstructive Legislation and Excessive Taxation Breed Discontent-New England Settlers Rise in Rebellion-Detroit Under Lieut.-Gov. Henry Hamilton Becomes a Fire in the Rear-The " Great Hairbuyer" and His Corrupt
Rule-1773-1775 -------------—., --- —----   -------.      ----—...-201-203
CHAPTER XXVII.
Hamilton Arms the Indians and Sets Them on the Ohio Settlers-Human Scalps
Bring ~1 Each in the Detroit Commandant's Office-Philip Dejean, Hamilton's Unscrupulous "Chief Justice"-1776-1777..... —   - —. --- —204-212
CHAPTER XXVIII.
Gen. George Rogers Clark Captures Vlncennes aud Other British Posts-Hamilton Goes to Recover Them and is Captured-He Narrowly Escapes Hanging at the Hands of the Colonists-1778-1779 --- —-. -----------------— 212-219
CHAPTER XXIX.
How the Fort and Settlement Looked During the Revolutionary War-Character of Houses-Costumes of the Various People-Drunken Indians and Returning Raiders with Reeking Scalps and Live Prisoners to Torture on the
Common -..- -  -  -----. ---. ---. --- —---. —.. — -  ---—. --- —-- ------   220-226
CHAPTER XXX.
Shocking Butchery of Ohio Settlers by the British Indians-A Bill of Lading for
a Shipment of 954 Human Scalps, Which Tell a Gruesome Story-Reprisals
by the Settlers-Shameless Butchery of the Moravian Indians --------— 227-23


x




CHAPTER XXXI.


Martyrdom   of Colonel Crawford-He is Burned at the Stake by the IndiansSimon Girty, the Renegade, Scoffs at His Agonies-Dr. Knight's Story of
the  Tortures --------------.... --- -- ------, --- —-------------------   233-238
CHAPTER XXXII.
Great Britain's Motives for Ignoring the Treaty of Peace-Determined to Hold
the Border Posts from Which to Renew the War on the Colonists-Why
They Held Detroit Unjustly for Thirteen Years ----------—. --- —----- 238-244
CHAPTER XXXIII.
Indian Wars Following the Revolution-British Influence Causes Constant Violations of Treaties-Disastrous Campaigns of Gen. Josiah Harmar and Gen.
Arthur St. Clair-Mad Anthony Wayne Wins a Signal Victory-1784-1792. --- —----—.. ----. --- —---------------------------—.            244-251
CHAPTER XXXIV.
The British Evacuate Detroit, July 11, 1796-The Victory of General Wayne is
Followed by the Jay Treaty-Death of General Wayne-The Northwest
Territory Created before Possession was Secured by the Americans-Winthrop Sargent Gives the Name of Wayne County to a Great Territory — 251-255
CHAPTER XXXV.
Isaac Weld's Description of Detroit in 1796-Two-thirds of the Residents are
French-Twelve Trading Vessels Carry its Commerce-Jacob Burnett, Solomon Sibley and other Notables Arrive.- ----------------------------- 255-260
CHAPTER XXXVI.
Early Ordinances of the New American Town-First Charter Issued in 1802 -Extraordinary Precautions against Fire —The First Fire Department and
its Divisions of Work-A Public Market Established on the River Front-A
One-Man Police Force. --- ——. ----... ----  —. —. --- —-------------- 260-268
CHAPTER XXXVII.
Rule of the Governor and Judges —Schemes of the Rapacious Land-GrabbersJohn Askin and Others Attempt to Get Possession of 20,000,000 Acres by
Bribing Congressman-Their Schemes Exposed —Governor Hull and Judge
W oodward ----—. — - --    -. --- —. — --— _- -- _. --- —-------------- —.  269-276


xi




CHAPTER XXXVIII.


Great Fire of 1805-The Entire Town Destroyed on June 11-Three Hundred
Families Left Homeless-Relief Measures and Grant of the 10,000 AcresJudge Woodward Lays out a New City on the Scale of Paris —The Territorial
Militia --- —----------------------------------------- -- 2-..    276-284
CHAPTER XXXIX.
The Bank of Detroit-A     Well Planned Swindle which Gave the Promoters
Riches and the People of Michigan a Bad Reputation-A Large Amount
of Worthless Bills Circulated but Never Redeemed —Early Grand Juries1806-1808 --- ——, -------------- ------ -.. --- —------—. --- —. ---.-.-  284-293
CHAPTER XL.
Tecumseh and the Prophet Plan to Drive the Americans out of the West-They
Rouse the Indians to Hostility, Intending to Unite with the British-General Harrison Defeats Them at the Battle of Tippacanoe, November 7,
1811 -------    ----—. —. ----. —.. --- —---—.. --- —---          -  293-300
CHAPTER XLI.
Causes Leading Up to the War of 1812-Great Britain Persists in Impressing
American Sailors-Attempts to Cripple the American Navy —Every Nation
Against the United States-Affair of the Chesapeake and the Leopard —The
Embargo Act ---------------------------------------—....-.- - -- _ ----  301-305
CHAPTER XLII.
War Declared July 19, 1812 —Condition of the Northern Border-The British
Enlist the Indians-Michigan Militia Called Out-Detroit Volunteers Invade Canada to Capture Maiden, but are Recalled by General Hull —Detroit Surrendered with a Superior Force of Men and a Large Quantity of
Stores --- —--------—. --- —------. —. --- —.. --- —   -------------—..- 306-323
CHAPTER XLIII.
Settlers and Garrison of Fort Dearborn (Chicago) Massacred by Indians —General Harrison Rescues the Garrison at Fort Wayne-General Hull Con.
victed of Cowardice and Incompetence and Sentenced to be Shot-Sentence
Suspended --—. --- — --—. --- —-. ----. --- —---, --- —----— _...._. — - -  323-329
CHAPTER XLIV.
Massacre of Winchesters's Troops at the River Raisin-Victims of an Incompetent Commander and a Treacherous Enemy-Humane Residents of Maiden
Ransom Prisoners from the Indians ------------—.. --- —--—..-.. ---- 329-333


xii




CHAPTER XLV.


The Campaign in Northern Ohio-Gallant Defenses Made by Gen. William H.
Harrison and Maj. George Croghan-Oliver Hazard Perry Plans to Control
Lake Erie-Builds a Fleet of Ships at Erie ------------------------— 8 33-337
CHAPTER XLVI.
The Battle of Lake Erie-Fortune Favored the Heaviest Artillery-The Surrender of the British Fleet Leaves the Lakes in Possession of the AmericansHarrison Prepares to Invade Canada ---. ---- ---------------------- 338-343
CHAPTER XLVII.
Proctor Runs Away from Malden-Tecumseh Taunts Him with CowardiceThe British Evacuate Detroit, Carrying Away the Cannon and Military
Stores-Battle of the Thames-Death of Tecumseh-Flight of Proctor- _344-349
CHAPTER XLVIII.
Detroit Occupied by the American Army-They Build a Cantonment of Log
Huts West of Fort Lernoult-Indians Murder Several Residents-General
Cass Drives the Indians Away from Detroit. --- —----- -----...3349-355
CHAPTER XLIX.
Detroit Begins to Develop under the Peace of 1815-Road Building Begun-The
First Steamboat Arrives, August 27, 1818-Sedate Men Lay Aside Their
Dignity and Indulge in a Frolic-Founding of Pontiac of 1819 --- —---— 355-360
CHAPTER L.
Michigan's First Delegate to Congress-Politics were Polities Even in the Olden
Time-Father Gabriel Richard Locked up in Jail to Prevent His Candidacy
-The French Residents Give Him a Plurality over his Unscrupulous Competitors _-.. —... --- —---.. — -... —  _ --- —------—. --- —360-365
CHAPTER LI.
Detroit under a new Regime-The Territorial Ordinance of 1823 Puts an End to
the Autocratic Sway of the Governor and Judges-The Ferry Established
by Capt. John Burtis-The Erie Canal Opened in 1825 —Stephen G. Simmons Hanged at Detroit for Murder ----— _ —   -----  — 366-372
CHAPTER LII.
Michigan's Early Supreme Judges-David Irvin, George Morell and Ross Wilkins
-William  Woodbridge and His Father-in-law, Jonathan Trumbull-Dr.
Douglass Houghton and Henry R. Schoolcraft Explore the Upper Peninsula and the Sources of the Mississippi ------—, --- — ---------------- 373-379


xiii
Xlll




CHAPTER LIII.


Cholera Epidemics of Early Days-The Steamer Henry Clay Brought the Infection in 1832-In 1834 it Returned to Claim Over 700 Victims-Heroic
Labors of Father Gabriel Richard and Martin Kundig-1832-1834 --— 380-386
CHAPTER LIV.
Story of the Toledo War-A Serio-Comic Dispute Which Promised to End in a
War between Ohio and Michigan-Michigan Prepares for StatehoodLucius Lyon and John Norvell the First Senators Elected by the Legislature --- —------  --  ---------- --------------------------- -----— 387-397
CHAPTER LV.
Dr. Douglass Houghton Begins the First Geological Survey of the State-He
Reveals Some of the Vast Resources-The Canadian Rebellion-Causes
Which Led to the Uprising of an Oppressed People-Exciting Times at
Detroit, Windsor and Sandwich --- —-------------------------- -----— 397-404
CHAPTER LVI.
The Campaign of 1840-How a Word of Ridicule against General Harrison, the
Pioneer Soldier, Set the Country on Fire with Political Zeal-The Creation
of the Republican Party-Conceived in the Office of the Detroit Tribune, It
Was Born "Under the Oaks at Jackson" --- —--------------.       404-409
CHAPTER LVII.
Constitution of 1850-It Is an Example of the Folly of Attempting to Legislate
too far in Advance of the Times-It Contains a Few Excellent Provisions in
Advance of the Constitution of 1835 and a Lot of Detrimental Restrictions --- —------------------------------------------- -------------— 409-413
CHAPTER LVIII.
The Famous Railroad Conspiracy-First Encounter of Michiganders with a
"Soulless Corporation "-High-handed Measures Provoke the People to
Anarchy-They Burn the Michigan Central Railroad Depot at Detroit,
September 19, 1850-Thirty eight Farmers Arrested for the Crime and a
Number are Severely Punished --- —----------------------------—. -414-418
CHAPTER LIX.
Detroit During the War of the Rebellion-How the People of the North Allowed
Themselves to be Disarmed-Detroit Becomes the Rendezvous for Michigan
Patriots and a Rallying Point for Advocates of Dishonor and TreasonWild Scenes on the Campus Martius-   -    -------   -----------— 418-430


xiv




CHAPTER LX.


Money, Banks and Finances-Governor Mason's Zeal Leads Him into Disastrous
Financiering-Michigan Mulcted for Millions in Early Railroad BuildingHow Fraudulent Banks Kept Afloat in Spite of the Inspectors-The Country
Flooded with Wildcat Money ------  --   -------------- ------    431-442
CHAPTER LXI.
The Detroit Metropolitan Police Department-Constables, Deputy-Sheriffs and
Marshals Preserved the Peace of the Community for 165 Years-The Police
Department Has Developed Since 1865-Detroit House of Correction __443-446
CHAPTER LXII.
History of the Detroit Waterworks-The River Always the Chief Source of Supply-Delivery to the Consumer First Accomplished in Buckets; then in
Pony Carts; then in Hollow Tamarack Logs, and Finally in Huge Iron Mains
-Migration of the Pumping Stations. ------------------- 446-450
CHAPTER       LXIII.
Development of the Gas Industry and the Municipal Lighting Plant-From Pine
Knots and Tallow Dips to Welsbach and Edison Burners-Bitter Competition between Rival Companies in Gas and Electric Lighting ------— __.450-455
CHAPTER LXIV.
Cemeteries of Two Centuries in Detroit —The Heart of the City Built on the
Bones of a Forgotten Population-History of the Most Notable Graveyards
— Thousands Lie in Unmarked Graves Beneath Public Streets and Buildings. --- —-----—. --- —----------------------- 455-459
CHAPTER LXV.
Parks, Boulevards and Breathing Places Maintained for the People-History
of Belle Isle and its Various Owners-Palmer, Grand Circus, Clark and
Other Valuable Lands Devoted to Public Use —The Older Parks Were Once
Swamp Holes and Dumping Grounds. ---.. ----------— 459-463
CHAPTER LXVI.
The City and County Poor Department-Detroit was Slow in Providing for the
Poor —The Cholera Epidemic Filled the Town with Helpless Orphans —
Father Kundig's Herculean Labors-Purchase of the Black Horse Tavern
Site —Horrors of the old Crazy House --- —-- — _.. --- —-. --- —------- 463-467


xv




CHAPTER LXVII.


History of the Detroit Fire Department-Fierce Rivalry of the Early Volunteer
Companies-The Men of the Hand Engines Surrender to the Steam Engines
-Notable Fires of the Past Century -------------------------    - 468-479
CHAPTER LXVIII.
The Public Library and the Art Museum-The County Officials Withhold the
Library Funds for Several Years and Convert Them to Other Uses —Public
Spirited Citizens Contribute Liberally to Establish an Art Museum in Detroit-Present Status of the Two Institutions ------------— 479-484
CHAPTER LXIX.
Public Sewers and Pavements-Developed from Open Ditches and Corduroy
Roads-There are Now 512 Miles of Paved Streets and Nearly as Many
Miles of Sewers. --- —--------------—, --- —----—.. -----------—.-,- 485-489
CHAPTER LXX.
Freemasonry and Other Secret Benevolent Societies-Military Lodges in the
Early Days of British Rule-The Morgan Excitement —Odd Fellowship in
Detroit ---------—. --- ——. --- —--- 489-492
CHAPTER LXXI.
Medical Colleges and Hospitals —Detroit College of Medicine and Harper Hospial Developed Together-Michigan College of Medicine and Emergency
Hospital-Charitable Gifts of Walter Harper and Ann, "Nancy," MartinGrace Hospital Founded and Endowed by John S. Newberry and James
McMillan ----------------------------------------— 493-498
CHAPTER LXXII.
The Era of Railroad Building in Michigan-How Detroit Obtained Communication with the Other Centers of Population-The Campus Martius was
Once the Railway Terminal-Advent of Canadian and Ohio Lines Opening
the Way to the Atlantic Seaboard —James F. Joy a Leading Spirit _ - 499-506
CHAPTER LXXIII.
The Y. M. C. A. and its Early Struggles for Existence-Founding of the Board
of Trade-The Chamber of Commerce and its Troublous Career.. --- -506-509


xvi




CHAPTER LXXIV.
The University of Michigan —The Pedantry of Judge Woodward —How its Rich
Endowment was Wasted-The Early Schools of Detroit-The Board of Education ---—.........................509-517
CHAPTER LXXV.
Churches and Religious Societies in Detroit-Ste. Anne's Was the Only Church
During the First Century of the City's History —The Moravians in 1781-82 -Protestant Missionaries Visit Detroit in 1800-Founding of the Early
Churches-Edifices of the Various Churches ----—. --- —. —. ----...___ 517-535
CHAPTER LXXVI.
The Modern Newspapers of Detroit —The Tribune and the Detroit Free Press
Rival Claimants for the Honors of Seniority-Beginnings of the Four Dailies
Now in Existence-The Gazette and Other Journals of the Past —List of
the Papers and Periodicals now Published in the City..._... 536-542
CHAPTER LXXVII.
History of Detroit's Street Railways-First Franchise Granted in 1862 —Short
Lines Prove Losing Ventures —Gradual Combination of Lines and Extensions of Service —The Citizens' Company's Claims of Monopolistic RightsThe Contest between Mayor Hazen S. Pingree and the Street Railway Companies ----------------—. --- —-. ---.....-......-......   542-555
CHAPTER LXXVIII.
Telegraph and Telephone Communication-How the Numerous Short Telegraph
Lines were Combined into Two Great Systems, Affording Communication
with All Parts of the World —Telephone Lines Developed into General Communication ------------------------------------—..-.-.... --— _____.-555-559
CHAPTER LXXIX.
Detroit's Marine Interests on the Great Lakes —How the Great Fleet of Lake
Carriers Succeeded the Birch Bark Canoes of the Voyageurs and Fur Traders
— It Was the Three Small Vessels, Beaver, Gladwin and Bear, Which Saved
Detroiters from Starvation During the Siege of 1763 --------— 560-566
CHAPTER LXXX.
Detroit's Public Buildings, Commercial Houses and Private Residences-The
City Hall —The New County Building —The Federal Building and Other
Costly Structures. --- —----------------—.-.-.....-..-.............. 566-573


xvii




CHAPTER LXXXI.
History of the Small-Pox Epidemics Which Have Visited the City-Struggle of
the Vaccination Against Popular Prejudice-Ravages of the Disease at Various Times Among the Poor in Densely Populated Portions of the City-573-577
CHAPTER LXXXII.
Hotels and Taverns of the Past and Present —The Old Mansion House-Ben.
Woodworth's Steamboat Hotel-The Michigan Exchange, and Many Others
— Personality.of the Old-Time Proprietors --- —----------------------- 577-587
CHAPTER LXXXIII.
Detroit Militia Organizations, Past and Present-Sheriffs of Wayne County
Since 1796 --- —---------------------------------------------------- 587-591
CHAPTER LXXXIV.
Amusements, Recreations and Sports-Music and Drama —Detroit Theatres
Since 1798-Horse Racing, Rowing, Cricket, Athletics, Yachting, Baseball,
Bicycling and Social Organizations ---------------------------------- 591-617
CHAPTER LXXXV.
Mayors and Common Council of the City ef Detroit ------------------ ----- 617-621
CHAPTER LXXXVI.
Detroit as a Modern Commercial City --- —---------------------------          622-629
BIOGRAPHICAL --- —------------------------------------ ----------— 631-872
PERSONAL REFERENCES --- —--------------- --------------- 1-276, Part II
INDEX.
GENERAL --- —-------------------------------------------------------— 277-304
BIOGRAPHICAL -----------------------. --- —-------------------------—. 305-306
PERSONAL REFERENCES --- —------------- -------------------— 307-311


xviii




ILLUSTRATIONS.


Alger, Russell A.,. ---— facing  40
Anderson, William K., ---—.facing 376
Andrews, Myron H., M. D., -facing 628
Apel, Franz A., -- --------- facing 636
Armstrong, Oscar S., M. D., -.facing 638
Barbour, Edwin S., — f --- —-facing 200
Barbour, George H., ------— facing 288
Baumgartner, F. T., Rev., -  facing 400
Baxter, William H., -------- facing 643
Beal, Francis R.,   _ --- —------ facing 644
Bennett, William C., ------— facing 460
Berry, Thomas, -----------— facing 240
Bielman, Charles F., — f --- —facing 648
Bishop, Jerome H., ------—. facing 650
Blackburn, Joel S., M. D., -— facing 508
Bradley, Herbert, ---.. --- —- facing 652
Brodhead, Thornton F., Col., facing 216
Brooks, David W., --- —----- facing 464
Buncher, Charles, ----------— facing 272
Burroughs, Samuel Whiteside, facing 657
Campbell, Henry M., -----— facing 352
Campbell, James V., — - - -- facing  76
Carstens, J. Henry, M. D., —.facing 663
Case, George F.,.. ---..facing 665
Casgrain, Charles W., ----— facing 666
Catlin, George B.__, --- —-- facing 872
Chandler, Zachariah,. --- —- facing  88
Cheever, Henry M., --- ---— facing 668
Chittenden, William J., ---— facing 579
Clark, Joseph H., ------— _ facing 592
Clippert, Frederick J., M. D., facing 672
Conely, Edwin F., Col., ---— facing 144
Connor, Leartus, M. D., --— facing 224
Cook, James P., ----------— facing 677
Crawford, Samuel, ---------— facing 600
Currie, Cameron, ---------- facing 368
Currie, George E., --------— facing 679
Davies, Thomas F., Rt. Rev., facing 527
Davis, Edgar A., -. --- —-—. facing 683
Dempsey, Morgan J. P., Rev., facing 684
Detroit in 1708, --- —-------— facing  56
Dick, John A., ----—.. --- — facing 544
Dickinson, Don M., ----. — facing 168
Dickinson, Julius C., M. D., _facing 408
Dingwall, George, --- —----- facing 456


Doherty, James G., Rev.,.-. -facing 689
Doman, Robert F. M., Rev., facing 691
Ducharme, Charles, —. --- — facing  64
Du Charme, Charles A., ---— facing 312
Duffield, Samuel P., M. D., __facing 493
Du Pont, Antoine B.,. - - -facing 696
Dwyer, Jeremiah, --- —------ facing 256
Farrand, Jacob S., ------ -- facing 100
Flowers, Charles, --------- f-facing 700
Foley, John S., Rt. Rev.,  facing 517
Fox, William D., --- —-----— facing 702
Fraser, Elisha A., --------— facing 604
Gott, Edward A.,....-. facing 706
Graham, James, ---------— facing 548
Greusel, John, ------------— facing 708
Griffith, Armond H., ------— facing 484
Gue, Arthur E.. M. D., ---. facing 711
Guelich, Otto E. C., ----—. facing 608
Haass, Charles F. W., Rev., -facing 713
Hahn, Jacob H.,. --- —------  facing 594
Haigh, Henry A.,-..      facing 716
Hamblen, Joseph G.,. —._ --- facing 416
Hamlen, William I., M. D., facing 552
Hanna, Valentine C., Lieut.Col. --- —-----—. —. ---. facing 856
Harsha, Walter S., -------— facing 719
Hayes, Clarence M., ------— facing 720
Hendrie, George, -----—.. —facing 721
Henry, Albert M., ---— __ — facing 344
Hinsdale, Nehemiah C.,- _-..facing 725
Hodges, Henry C., - - -----— facing 152
Holmes, William L., -.......facing 612
Humphrey, Ira G., ---—.__ — facing 731
Hunt, Wellington Q.,. ----.-facing 732
Hutchins, Jere C ---------- facing 556
Ives, Percy, ---------------— facing 734
Janes, Oscar A., Col.,..-_-...   facing 424
Johnson, S. Olin, -- -----  facing 736
Joslyn, Charles D., -------— facing 738
Joy, James F., -_ --- ——.- __.facing  52
Jupp, William C.,. -     facing 74,
Keep, William J., _ —_-    -facing 616
Kelly, Ronald, ------—. ----. facing 744
Kessler, William H., -__-_facing 746
Knight, Stephen H.,.    -facing 560


xix




Lang, Otto, M. D.,. -------- facing 472
Lathrop, Joseph, sr., D.D.S.,_facing 749
Lawrence, George C., -.. —, facing 432
Ledbeter, Thomas,. --- —--— facing 751
Leggett, John W., ----      - facing 752
Lennane, John, ------------— facing 753
LeSeure, Oscar, M. D.,. --- facing 564
Lewis, Alexander, -_.......facing 136
Livingstone, William, jr., -.. facing 539
Lodge, Frank T., ---------— facing 756
Look, William,. --- —..... ---facing 759,
Lothrop, George V. N., ---— facing  28
Lothrop, Henry B., Gen.,. - facing 392
McGregor, John, --------—. facing 572
McLeod, Alexander I., ----— facing 763
McMillan, James, ---------— facing 124
McMillan, William C., -----— facing 296
McVittie, Alexander, ------— facing 566
Marschner, Ferdinand W., _-facing 769
Martindale, Wales C.,. - -—.facing 515
Marxhausen, August, —,    --— facing 540
Maybury, William C., --- —-— facing 620
Mayhew, David P., -------— facing 773
Mehan, John D., --- —-- --—. facing 776
Meigs, Alfred E., ---------— facing 777
Mills, Merrill B., --- ——. ---. facing 248
Mills, Merrill I.,          facing 112
Moore, George William,..facing 328
Mulheron, John J., M.D.,...facing 782
Newcomb, Cyrenius A.,.. -.facing 320
Ninde, William X., Rev.,. —facing 523
Owen, Orville W., M. D.,..-facing 786
Paine, George H.,.- -— facing 448
Palmer, Thomas W., --- —--- facing   16
Parker, Aaron A.,           facing 264
Parker, Dayton, M. D.,. -.  facing 468
Parker, Ralzemond A.,-. -facing 796
Patterson, John E., - --.-facing 624
Pingree, Hazen S., ----, --- —facing  4
Price, Orrin J., ---- ---   facing 804
Quinby, William E., -----—.facing 537
Radford, George W., ---- --— facing 384
Raymond, Alexander B.,_ --- -facing 807


Rich, John T.,. --- —------— facing 160
Rogers, Fordyce H., -.-....facing 360
Ross, Robert B., -----—.- Frontispiece
Safford, Robert C.,. -. --- —-facing 811
Savage, James, Rev., -----— facing 813
Schmid, John A., ----— facing 814
Scripps, James E., __. --- —__facing 538
Shaw, John T., ---—.-......facing 336
Slocum, Elliott T., -       facing 176
Smedley, John H., --------— facing 818
Smith, Hamilton E., M. D., -facing 576
Snfow, Edward S., M. D., - — facing 820
Snow, Herbert M., ___- __ -   - facing 822
Snow, Frank E., -—. ---.. ---facing 488
Sprague, William C.,.-..facing 480
Springer, Oscar M., -._. facing 584
Stacey, William, —._. ----. —facing 825
Standish, James D., -------— facing 184
Starkweather, George A, --— facing 829
Stevenson, Elliott G.,. --- —..facing 280
Stewart, G. Duffield, M. D.,.-facing 832
Stoepel, Frederick C.,...-facing 208
Tarsney, Timothy E.,. -  -.facing 835
Taylor, Elisha, ------------— facing 232
Taylor, Joseph, ---—. --- —-- facing 839
Tefft, William H., f --- —---— facing 192
Thurber, Henry T.,-.- _. -.-facing 304
Tuttle, Jonathan B., ------— facing 843
Van Alstyne, John S., ------- facing 844
Van Dyke, Ernest, Rev., ---— acing 847
Wadsworth, Thomas A., ---— acing 588
Wagstaff, Denman S., Col., -facing 848
Warner, Carlos E., --------— facing 504
Weadock, Thomas A. E., -.a-facing 452
Wilkins, Charles T., -----— facing 853
Wilkinson, Albert H., —. —. facing 512
Williams, Nathan G., -----— facing 855
Wilson, William H., Capt., - facing 859
Wormer, C. C., ----        160, Part II
Wurzer, Carl, --- —---.. —___facing 860
Yawkey, William C., ---—. -facing 445
Yearick, Cincero R., ------— facing 860




LANDMARKS OF DETROIT.
CHAPTER I.
The Coming of Cadillac-He is Accompanied by Fifty Soldiers, Fifty Civilians
and One Hundred Algonquin Indians-Selects Detroit as the Most Commanding
Position on the Straits.
On the 23d day of July, 1701, late in the afternoon, when the Detroit
River gleamed like molten gold under the hot summer sun, a fleet of
birch bark canoes suddenly appeared off the head of Belle Isle, and,
propelled swiftly by the sturdy arms of the rowers, bore rapidly down
with the current in the direction of the high banks and the wooded
slopes along the western shore. Neither friend nor foe came forth to
greet the intrepid travelers, who thus arrived unheralded, and who
were soon to bring to a welcome termination one of those remarkable
journeys, at once the necessity and the extremity of pioneer days in
this great northwestern country, of which Detroit was the center and
most important post during a period of one hundred and fifty years.
The route of these weary travelers had led by baffling stages for several hundred leagues through tortuous streams and primeval forests,
whose wild grandeur was intensified by vast solitude and whose dangers
in the way of marauding bands of murderous red skins, untried rapids
in unknown rivers, and the fierce assaults of wild animals, might well
appall the stoutest hearts. Thence the course lay along the waters of
the mighty inland seas, whose limits, whose storms and whose reefs
and shoals were to these hardy invaders of the wilderness alike unknown. Encamped under the stars by night and guided by friendly
voyageurs by day, the little band had come at last almost to their long
journey's end; and never was time more auspicious to bid a welcome.
History records that the newcomers entered Detroit River upon a day


1




splendid and golden, like their hopes of future fortune, and that
never did the green groves edging the shores present a more superb
appearance, being as they were absolutely guiltless of the desecrating
contact of the hand of civilized man, his rude destroying axe, or his
leveling plow, and being furthermore in the very height of summer's
gayest livery of vivid green.
The sight the travelers gained of their future home was inspiring,
and yet the groves edging the shores where lisped the peaceful blue
river were merely the border of a mighty wilderness. Birds of rare
plumage caroled forth a welcome, and the breezes whispered of peace
and rest. Afar, rising here and there to the bright blue skies, soft as
those of sunny southern France, curled an occasional thin column of
smoke, marking the camp fire of some roving band of Indians; but no
human sound awoke the echoes of the slumbering shores of the wide
strait, nor disturbed the intense serenity of the peaceful groves. Had
there been any Indians at this point on either side of the silent stream,
whose currents ever ran toward the mighty ocean, a thousand miles
away, they could have seen a fleet of bark canoes, whose occupants
were clad with unconventional informality, for full clothing was not desirable on that warm July day. There were twenty-five large canoes,
occupied by one hundred white men, and they were led by an escort of
smaller craft propelled by one hundred Algonquin Indians. History
and tradition aver that no human being saw from the shore the approaching flotilla at this point. The canoes were capacious crafts,
each being about twenty-five feet in length and having a beam of six
feet; their capacity was about two tons each.
The uniforms of the fifty soldiers (for such indeed was the official
station of half the travelers) were those of the period, common to the
army of France; dark blue coats with white facings, the garments being
fastened at the neck and cut away tapering toward the bottom, with
white narrow slashes of about three inches in length, which defined
and covered the unused button hole; diagonally across from shoulder
to hip were baldrics of white; and knee breeches and leggings of the
same color completed the decorations of their uniforms. Some of the
troopers, with a touch of that precision in dress that has ever been a
characteristic of the French nation, even retained the white powder on
their wigs, despite the fatiguing voyage on which negligence of toilet
would be entirely excusable. All the soldiers wore the famous threecornered chapeau of felt or cloth, surmounted with three feathers.
2




The three officers wore substantially the same uniform, the only difference being in the texture of the cloth, and an occasional ornament in
the shape of embroidery on the hat and coat. However, it is not to be
supposed that a canoe voyage of forty eight days, with exposure to dun
and rain and with camping in primeval forests at night, bad not made
sad havoc with military toilets. Nor could it be expected, therefore,
that these half hundred soldiers could have passed a dress parade inspection at the hands of some military martinet. Be that as it may,
neither privations nor dangers had dimmed the lustre of the proud flag
of France, which was flaunted to the breezes' caress at the stern of the
canoe of the expedition's leader-a field of white with three golden
feurs de lis on a blue shield. From several of the canoes arose the inspiring strains of martial music, the drum and ear-piercing fife. Besides the soldiers there was an equal number of emigrants, so that the
expedition numbered one hundred in all. These emigrants were agriculturists and artisans.
In the first canoe sat the Chevalier Cadillac, leader of the expedition,
holding a small telescope in his hand with which he frequently surveyed the landscape. He was a man forty three years of age, of distinguished mien, with the dark complexion of the south of France, for
he was a Gascon; his eyes were bright and piercing and his expression
denoted courage, persistency and buoyant spirits. His face bore traces
of the battle of life, of conflict with opposing forces and of exposure to
the elements. As sailor, soldier, explorer and statesman, he had already made many pages of French history. Such was Antoine Laurmet
de La Mothe Cadillac, Lord of Dcnaquec and Mt. Desert, Knight of
the Royal and Military order of St. Louis, and for five years commandant of the post of Michilimackinac. He surveyed with restless eyes
the thickly wooded shores, seeking a convenient spot for disembarking.
Every available spot for the site of a military post was carefully observed. Cadillac wanted the most commanding situation on the river;
a place where the cannon of the future post could dcefend the stream and
keep the gateway of the lakes against all the enemies of France. The
fleet passed down the stream to the mouth of the river. When passing
Grosse Isle the commander thought of founding his post on that island,
because Paris was originally founded on the Isle de Paris, but realized
that such a location would make it difficult to transport heavy merchandise, wood and the other necessaries of life from the main land, and
that at times the running ice would make it impossible to use the frail
3




bark canoes for outside communication. They camped on Grosse Isle
that night, and next morning the voyagers proceeded up the stream
again, keeping time to their boat song with the strong sweep of their
paddles. In the blazing heat of the afternoon they came again to the
high terraces on the north side of the river, about two and one half
miles below what is now Belle Isle. Cadillac's canoe was pointed toward
the beach and all the rest of the flotilla turned likewise, the men setting
up a rousing cheer.
The long voyage was over. It had started forty nine days before, on
June 5, from La Chine, on the St. Lawrence, a short distance above
Montreal. Entering the Ottawa River the travelers had threaded the
windings of that stream for more than three hundred leagues, making
upward of thirty portages  Finally the party reached the nearest
point to Lake Nippissing, where the last and most fatiguing portage
was effected to that body of water. The remainder of the route was
down French River to Lake Huron; down the lake to the head of
the straits, where Duluth in 1687 had built a fort which was burned
down two years later; through the St. Clair River and Lake and
thence on to the Detroit River, a land and water journey of over a
thousand miles.
The canoes were drawn up on the beach and the provisions, tools and
stores taken out; the latter included a small brass cannon. Camp fires
were lighted and tents pitched, and the evening meal discussed. The
two priests led in a vesper service of song; soon the shades of night
fell on the unwonted scene, and the travelers laid down to well earned
repose. Next day, after morning mass in the woodland, Cadillac made
proclamation that the land and the waters were the property of his
majesty, Louis XIV. The building of log cabins for the settlers commenced and on the following day the work of erecting a church was
begun, the edifice being dedicated to Ste. Anne, for it was the day on
which that holy woman died. The commander also laid out a quadrangle for a fort, which inclosed about two hundred feet on each side,
situated between Griswold street, Jefferson avenue, Shelby street and
the river. The work was prosecuted with diligence in order that the
fort should furnish immediate command of the strait and the opposite
shore, and also because Cadillac knew that the winters were severe and
good shelter was an absolute necessity. The new settlement was close
to the hunting and trapping grounds of the blood-thirsty Iroquois, who
were very changeable in their likes and dislikes, and so numerous that


4










4








the wiping out of an inadequately protected outpost was for them an
easy undertaking. In a few days the whole space of one arpent square
was inclosed by a substantial stockade, consisting of oak pickets fifteen
feet in length sunk in the ground to a depth of three feet. There was
a gentle slope of about forty paces to the river which formed a very
desirable glacis. The best authority has it that Cadillac's fortified village had its southeast corner on the south side of Jefferson avenue, about
where the Palms block now stands. Its northern wall reached westward
to a point about thirty feet west of Shelby street. It was bounded on
the west by a line running south from the last named point to the
river bank, which was then a bluff nearly forty feet high. The south
wall ran along this bluff and the maps show that the stockade was
laid out on the cardinal points of the compass. Inside the stockade
there was a clear space of twelve feet, so that its defenders could
quickly assemble at any threatened point of danger. The picket wall
was pierced for musketry and there were bastions on each corner.
And thus Cadillac founded Detroit!
While the founder of the city was threading the tortuous windings
of the Ottawa, on his way to Detroit, the Iroquois held a council with
the British authorities of New York, and as a result they conveyed to
King William III, of England, all their claims to lands in the west including the Straits of Detroit, which they called Tjeuchsaghronde
(Teuscha Gronde). This was done to exhibit their resentment against
the claim of Frontenac, the French governor, who answered their protest against erecting a post and fort on the Detroit or straits, by saying that the land belonged to his master the king of France. The conveyance was made on June 19, 1701, five days before Cadillac landed
at Detroit.
Robert Livingstone, an English trader at Orange (Albany), wanted
his government to establish a post on Detroit River in 1699, and he
made a careful report of the advantages he had noted when making a
trip to the upper lakes during the previous year.


6




CHAPTER II.


Early Discoveries in North America-Great Britain and Spain Held the CoastFrance Aimed to Secure Canada, the Lake Region, the Mississippi River and the
Unknown West.-1492-1701.
In order to appreciate the significance of Cadillac's expedition and his
selection of Detroit as a landing place, it is well to briefly outline the
trend of colonization in America. Columbus landed at San Salvador
in 1492, and took possession of the Bahama Islands in the name of
Spain. In the course of his later voyages he slightly enlarged his
range of discovery and the consequent claims of the Spanish crown.
Within a few years other explorations added Mexico, Florida, Louisiana, Peru, Chili, and other South American territory to Spain by claim
of discovery. Don Pedro Cabral, a Portuguese, laid claim to Brazil.
The British founded a settlement at Jamestown, Va., in 1607, which
was the pioneer colony in North America. The French, under Champlain, founded Quebec in 1608; and the third colony, Manhattan Island
(New York), was settled by the Dutch in 1610, having been discovered
by Hendrick Hudson the previous year. English Puritans founded the
Massachusetts colony in 1620, while the British government laid claim
to the entire coast north of the Florida line to the St. Lawrence, by
virtue of the discoveries of John and Sebastian Cabot, who made landings at various places between Greenland and the South Atlantic coast.
The fever of adventure and exploration possessed France, Spain, Portugal, England and Holland. While the Cabots were discovering Labrador and Newfoundland, Vasco De Gama, a Portuguese navigator,
skirted the coast of Africa, rounded the Cape of Good Hope and reached
the East Indies, then the goal of all sea explorations at that time.
Gasper Cortereal followed the Cabots to Labrador and Newfoundland.
Italy, which did less exploring than any of the other nations, sent out
Amerigo Vespucci to America in 1499; he discovered nothing which had
not been discovered before his arrival, but by a strange irony of fate
this most inferior navigator who had yet crossed the Atlantic gave his
name to a continent four times larger than Europe and the new world
6




was thereafter known as America. While these explorations were progressing in the north, Ferdinand de Soto, the Spanish explorer, was
making a brilliant page in the history of America. In 1519 he accompanied Davila to Darien, where the latter was governor. De Soto explored the coast of South America; joined Pizarro in his conquest of
Peru; wrested Florida from the Indians in 1540; located a line of forts
reaching from Florida to the Mississippi, which he discovered at a
point not far from the borders of Tennessee. He died of swamp fever
on its banks in April, 1541, and was buried in a weighted canoe in the
middle of the great river in order that the savages might not mutilate
his body.
In spite of the sweeping claims of the English, and their evident intention to crowd out all other claimants, the French were determined
to have a liberal slice of the territory of the new world. In 1506
Denis de Honfleur, a French navigator, entered the Gulf of St. Lawrence, and twelve years later Baron De Lery established a convict
colony on the barren sands of Sable Island, off the coast of Nova Scotia.
This was presently abandoned on account of the severity of the climate,
and then John Verrazano made a superficial examination of the coast
south of the St. Lawrence, and claimed the whole territory for Francis
I of France.  So far the French explorations were unfruitful, because the discoverers found that they had been preceded by navigators
of other nations. Jacques Cartier visited the coast of Newfoundland
in 1534, and on his second voyage he sailed up the St. Lawrence to the
St. Charles River, near where Quebec was subsequently founded. He
traded with the Indians and explored the region about the river, but
finding no spices or precious metals he went back to France with discouraging reports of the new country.
Although the ardor of the French was dampened, Cartier returned
in 1540 and visited what were to be the future sites of the cities of
Quebec and Montreal, the latter being at that time the Indian village
of Hochelaga. He built a small fort on the St. Charles, and then
French enterprise slumbered for half a century. In 1598 the Marquis de la Roche added another failure to the long list of explorations made by his countrymen, but a more competent explorer was
ready to carry the flag of France across the Atlantic, and plant it where
it should wave for more than half a century. Henry IV had a rather
poor opinion of the new world, but he granted the request of M. de
Chastes, governor of Dieppe, to found settlements in the St. Law7




rence region. De Chastes sent an able substitute in Samuel Champlain, of Saintonge, who sailed from Honfleur, March 1i, 1603, accompanied by M. Pont-Grave, a sailor of St. Malo. After three voyages
and nearly five years of exploration, Champlain in 1608 founded Quebec at the narrows of the St. Lawrence, because the place offered
unusual advantages for military defense. He organized a settlement
and took sides with the Algonquins against the Iroquois; discovered
Lake Champlain, the majestic sheet of water which bears his name,
and explored the valley of the Ottawa, which was the first highway of
his countrymen to the great lakes. He reached Lake Huron, embarked on its waters and after reaching the foot of the lake, made his
way back to the St. Lawrence. As to Champlain's route on his return
from Lake Huron to the St Lawrence, there is no reliable account.
Having made his journey to the foot of Lake Huron over the route
traversed by Cadillac ninety years later, it would appear that he would
very naturally have entered the St. Clair River, traversed Lake St.
Clair, and passing down Detroit River would have made his return to
the east by Lake Erie. Then by a portage around Niagara Falls he
could have reached Lake Ontario and eventually arrived at the future
site of Fort Frontenac, which was established on the site of Kingston,
Ont. It is a plausible theory, because he was a man who appreciated
the value of water communication, which was the only means of transportation except the backs of the cozureurs de bois. The light birch
canoes could be propelled swiftly along with a considerable load of
furs or merchandise  In the trackless wilderness no pedestrian, except
a trained Indian runner, could equal them as a means of communication, and they were beyond competition as carriers for the early com.
merce of New France  In spite of this reasonable conclusion and the
subsequent claims of Governor Denonville in support of it, there is no
evidence to prove the discovery. Champlain was spying out the new
country for the purpose of making France the mistress of the northwestern region, which as yet was open to the undisputed claim of the
French crown. Having such a purpose in view he would naturally
have made a careful report of the most desirable route for reaching
the upper lake region. He could hardly have failed to appreciate the
beauty of the straits and their importance to future commerce, and
among his papers describing his discoveries some reference should
have been found in regard to the two rivers, Lake St. Clair, and of his
voyage on Lake Erie. Thus theory and reason would apparently have
8




led the explorer to follow the outlet of Lake Huron as far as possible,
upon the supposition that he had reached the head waters of the St.
Lawrence River; but had he done so he would naturally have made an
enthusiastic report of his discoveries.
The establishment of the colony of New France was due principally
to the efforts of Champlain. In 1620 the new world was made up of
New France (of which Acadia, afterward Nova Scotia, was a portion),
Newfoundland, New England, New Spain, New Brunswick and Nieu
Nederlands. Champlain was governor of New France from 1612 to
1629, and again from 1633 to 1635, and died in the latter year at Quebec. In 1628 France and England were at war. Charles I of England
gave Sir David Kirke, a French refugee, a commission for an expedition against Canada. He appeared before Quebec that summer with a
small fleet and demanded a surrender. Champlain made a show of
great strength by cunning deception, and Kirke abandoned the siege.
In 1629 he came again, and Champlain being in desperate straits from
lack of provisions, clothing and ammunition, was compelled to surrender all Canada to England. Champlain went to England a prisoner,
but was released. The treaty of St Germain en Laye restored Canada
to the French in 1632, and Champlain set out the next spring with three
ships and once more took command at Quebec. He began his explorations when he was thirty-three years of age and was one of the
most energetic as well as the most pious of explorers. He regarded
the Indians with due respect, and he believed the first duty of the state
was to convert them to Christianity. He was so strict in his integrity
that he never engaged in the fur trade, which offered great profit. It
was his ambition to make New France a thriving agricultural country,
instead of a trading territory for amassing riches, and as far as he was
able he filled the settlements with farmers and artisans, to whom seeds
and tools were provided. But he was greatly hampered by the commercial companies who sought to make fortunes quickly. The De
Caens, uncle and nephew, who were granted a monopoly of the trade
of the colony, were turbulent and headstrong in their opposition to Champlain's plans, and acted as though the savages were the legitimate prey
of the traders. Champlain saw their conduct was unbearable, and to
get rid of them he went back to France. As he expected, the settlement became too hot for the De Caens during his absence, and they
had to leave. At Lake Champlain, in the combined attacks of the Algonquins and Hurons upon the Iroquois, Champlain fired his ancient
9
2




arquebus with deadly effect, and the sound of this firearm struck terror to the Iroquois, as they believed the weapon to be endowed with
supernatural qualities.
Contemporaneous with the explorations by agents of the government
were the labors of the Jesuit missionaries. Their heroic work of evangelization among the savage tribes, penetrating to the remotest parts
of the wilderness, and carrying the cross wherever human beings could
be found, makes a story as fascinating as the most thrilling of romances. In September, 1641, Raymbault came to the Falls of St.
Mary, or Sault Ste. Marie, being the first Jesuit missionary who visited
that field, and the first among the Indian tribes of Michigan. Next
came Fathers Jacques and Bressani, Jean de Breboeuf, Chaumonot,
Claude Dablon, Mesnard, and others. In 1660 Mesnard, an aged priest,
reached a bay on the south shore of Lake Superior, where he established a mission and called it St. Theresa; the year following he advanced to the bay of Che-goi-me-gon. He was lost in the forest and
never seen again, but among the amulets of the Sioux were discovered
his breviary and cassock. Another French Jesuit was Father Claude
Allouez, who founded the Holy Spirit Mission at the bay of Che-goime-gon, on the south shore of Lake Superior in 1665; also one at Green
Bay; and also explored portions of Wisconsin and Illinois. M. Louis
Joliet was the first explorer who passed up Detroit River and left a
clear record of the trip. He made a trip from La Chine, above Montreal, to Niagara in July, 1669, and after visiting several Indian villages
of the Senecas in that vicinty, he set out with three canoes and a company of seven men for a voyage of discovery. In his party were
Fathers Galinee and Dollier, two priests of St. Sulpice; they made the
trip in safety and passed up the Detroit River to Lake St. Clair early
in 1670. Reports of their discoveries are but meager, but in the preserved correspondence of Father Gallinee there is an account of their
discovery of an idol on the banks of the Detroit River, about six
leagues from Lake Erie, at or near the site of the city of Detroit. It
was a carved stone image, which the Indians undertook to propitiate
by offerings, as it was supposed to exercise some influence over Lake
Erie. The pious fathers fell upon it with great zeal and destroyed it
at the expense of their hatchets, subsequently scattering the fragments
in the river. Their pious zeal destroyed what would have proved a
most interesting relic for the Detroit museum. A stone idol in this
part of the country would appear to be a relic of a race much older than


10




the Indians who occupied the territory when the French arrived-a race
whose relics are rare and highly esteemed by archaeologists. They
prepared the following certificate of discovery while on this trip and it
was filed in the archives of state at Quebec.
"We the undersigned, certify that we have seen the arms of the king of France
set up on the lands of the lake called Erie, at the foot of a cross with this inscription:
' The year of salvation 1669, Clement IX being seated in the chair of St Peter, Louis
XIV reigning in France, Monsieur de Courcelles being governor of New France, and
Monsieur Talon being intendant for the king, two missionaries from the seminary
of Montreal having arrived at this place, accompanied by seven other Frenchmen,
who, the first of all the European nations, have witnessed on this lake, of which they
have taken possession in the name of their king as an unoccupied land, by setting up
his arms which they have affixed at the foot of this cross. In witness whereof we
have signed the present certificate:
"Francois Dollier, priest for the diocese of Nantes in Britanny;
"De Galinee, deacon of the diocese in Rennes in Britanny.'"
Father Marquette, another Jesuit missionary and explorer, was born
of an illustrious French family in 1637, came to Quebec in 1666, and
there became an Indian missionary. He learned and spoke the language
of the three great confederacies-Algonquins, Hurons and Iroquois,
and was esteemed the greatest of the Indian missionaries. In 1668 he
established a mission at St. Ignace and preached the gospel to 2,000
Indians. In 1673, at the request of Governor Frontenac, he and Joliet
began their wonderful exploration of the Mississippi, going within ten
days' journey of its mouth, and ascertaining that this stream flowed
into the Gulf of Mexico. Marquette also did much missionary work at
Green Bay and visited the Chicago River as early as 1674. On May
27, 1765, he died while traveling toward Green Bay, from the country
of the Miamis, and was buried in a sand dune near the present site of
Ludington, Mlich., but subsequently his body was removed by faithful
Indians to the mission at St. Ignace, where it was buried under the
altar.
Records of early days in New France, and particularly those relating
to voyages of discovery, are but fragmentary, and in many cases there
is nothing but correspondence of officials, who had no active part in the
discoveries, to inform the later generations regarding the first visits of
the white man to portions of the Northwest. One reason for this is
that the explorers had to traverse dangerous waters where they frequently were fortunate in escaping with their lives, and many papers
and journals were thus lost to the world. There are vague reports


11




concerning a trip of unknown voyageurs from the St. Lawrence River
to Lake Huron and Mackinac, by way of Lake Erie, as early as 1659,
but the names of the travelers are unknown and the report is not authentic. It is generally supposed that previous to the time of Joliet's
voyage coureurs de bois had visited Detroit, but they were usually illiterate fellows who were unable to leave a written record of their doings.
CHAPTER III.
The Great Explorers-Robert Cavalier de La Salle-The Cruise of Le GriffonFather Hennepin Visits the Upper Mississippi-Daniel Grisolon Duluth Builds a
Fort at the Foot of Lake Huron-1669-1700.
Robert Cavalier de La Salle, a native of Normandie, and a fur trader,
was ever ambitious to extend the commercial supremacy of France.
After various explorations and a visit to France, he built the " Griffon,"
a ship of sixty tons, hewn out of green logs, on the shore of the Niagara River, at the mouth of Cayuga Creek, above the great cataract.
La Salle was an ideal explorer. He had the genius for discovery, and
went to his destination by what he believed to be the most direct route,
regardless of obstacles. For years the early explorers had made their
way to the great lakes by the Ottawa River route, because the Indians
of Canada and those south of the St. Lawrence and the lakes, were almost constantly at war. The north shore of Lake Erie was avoided
by the early voyageurs because it was frequently overrun by Indian
scalp hunters from the Ohio region. Detroit was undoubtedly an important Indian rendezvous, being a beaver region, but there is no authentic record of any attempt to establish a trading post south of the
foot of Lake Huron in the seventeenth century. La Salle with his
small company of followers started out from Fort Frontenac resolved
to solve the riddle of the great lakes. He no doubt believed that nQt
only were they all connected together, but that they also communicated
with the Pacific Ocean, and his first chosen task was to explore the unknown waters of Lake Erie in spite of the dangers which lay before
him. He began felling timber on the banks of Cayuga Creek, where
it empties into Niagara River. The Seneca Indians in that vicinity


12




showed some hostility against these operations, and to avoid a collision
La Salle sent Sieur de La Motte, Father Hennepin, an interpreter named
Brassart, and three voyageurs, to Tagarondies, the capital of the Seneca nation, which is located near the present town of Victor, Ontario
county, N.Y. The distance, nearly a hundred miles, was traversed on
snow shoes. The Indians said they would oppose a French settlement
at Cayuga Creek, but would not prevent the building of the vessel,
provided it went away and did not return. The work of building a
vessel of sixty tons capacity was steadily prosecuted, and it was
launched in April, 1679. The Griffon, or Le Griffon, named after the
heraldic figure of La Salle's coat of arms, then set sail for the upper
lakes, with La Salle, Henry Tonty, an Italian soldier of fortune,
Louis Hennepin, the fearless Franciscan friar, and Fathers Zenobe
and Riboirdier on board.  They left on August 7, leaving Father
Melethon in charge of stores at Niagara, and after coasting along the
north shore of the lake turned up the Detroit River. The Griffon
reached Lake St. Clair August 12, which according to the church calendar is Ste. Claire's day, and in honor of that pious maiden the explorer named the lake. Some writers and geographers, including
Judge A. B. Woodward, have stated that the river which bears this
name derived its title from Capt. Patrick Sinclair, an English officer
who built a fort where Pine River flows into it, at the site of the present city of St. Clair. Some of the geographers have also made the
mistake of naming the river Sinclair in their maps. They were thirteen days reaching Lake Huron; they called at Mackinac Island; and at
the end of twenty-six days they landed on the shores of Green Bay.
Thus it happened that the Griffon with her crew of thirty-four men,
was the first vessel to sail the western lakes, and was the forerunner of
the splendid fleet which now carries the commerce of an empire every
year. There was, previously, at least one vessel on Lake Ontario, but
the Griffon was the first that showed the way of commerce through the
chain of the great lakes; and it also furnished the first marine tragedy.
La Salle's long absence from Montreal and the dangerous reputation of
the country into which he had plunged, convinced his friends and his
creditors that he had been lost in the wilderness. While they had begun to divide up his personal property among themselves, La Salle was
loading the Griffon with furs and peltry at Green Bay. The vessel
sailed away with her cargo in charge of a crew of six men, intending to land at the launching place on Niagara River and forward the
13




cargo to Montreal. The bold explorer and his companions stood on
the beach of Lake Michigan and watched her tiny sail melt away in
the distance. From that hour no tidings were obtained of the missing
bark, its crew or its valuable freight. She is supposed to have foundered in a September gale while crossing Lake Michigan, as she never
reached Mackinac Island.
As soon as the Griffon had departed with her cargo, which represented
all the fortune of the explorer, his restless spirit urged him forward to
new discoveries. He set out southward in canoes and followed the shore
of Lake Michigan to the mouth of the Chicago River; at length he
reached the mouth of the St. Joseph River, where Father Allouez had
founded a small mission among the Miamis. There he built Fort
Miami and waited in vain for the return of his ship. Again his spirit
rebelled at inaction and he pressed on with his little company, following the river into the Kankakee marshes, and finally by portage reaching the Illinois River. Down this stream they came upon a deserted
Indian village, and found stores of corn buried under the wigwams.
Loading some of this food supply into their canoes they proceeded to
Lake Peoria, an enlargement of the Illinois River. There they came
upon a friendly party of Illinois Indians and erected another fort. It
was evident that the ship Griffon had met with some mishap. Winter
was at hand and the handful of explorers were in a far wilderness without supplies. In token of his discouraging position La Salle named
the fort Creve Coeur, or " Broken Heart." Even the desperate straits
which befell this expedition did not crush La Salle. Making his followers as comfortable as possible at Creve Coeur he set out with three
companions to make the way back to Fort Frontenac on foot. It was
early in March; snow covered the ground; hungry wolves lurked in
the trackless forests; there were rivers to cross and vast swamps to
tread-but the three men with no other food than the chase afforded
them made the journey of 1,200 miles in safety. Arrived at Fort
Frontenac, La Salle learned that his friends and agents, supposing him
to be dead, had administered his estate by dividing among themselves
what his creditors had not seized. He set out again for Creve Coeur
with abundant stores, but on arriving there found that the Iroquois
had made a raid against the place, and after Tonty and his followers
had abandoned it to avoid a battle, burned it to the ground. It took
some time to collect his scattered followers from the wilderness. That
fall and winter of 1681 was spent in preparing for an expedition down


14




the Mississippi. Making an early start be arrived at the mouth of the
river in April, where he set up a wooden cross with an inscription
claiming the country for Louis XIV.
While La Salle was on his way to Frontenac, Father Hennepin, accompanied by Anthony Auguells and Michael Ako, boatmen, started
to explore the head waters of the Mississippi, but were soon captured
by a war party of Indians. They were taken up the river as far as St.
Anthony's Falls, which were named by Father Hennepin. Leaving
their canoes at the future site of Minneapolis, the Indians took their
captives up the St. Francis River far into the northern wilderness near
the head of Lake Superior. While they were captives in this territory
Duluth, accompanied by five French voyageurs, arrived at the village
and Father Hennepin and his two companions returned with them to
Montreal, making a journey of about 2,500 miles. They were six
months in the hands of their captors.
La Salle returned to France with glowing reports of his discoveries,
for like most other enthusiasts he had a vivid imagination with which
to embellish his facts. Louis XIV commissioned him with the duty of
building outposts along the Mississippi reaching northward so as to
hold the connection of the great valley with the lake region. La Salle
set out, filled with renewed enthusiasm. Three vessels and a force of
280 men departed from Rochefort to be guided by La Salle to the
mouth of the Mississippi, but from the very beginning of the enterprise there was trouble between the explorer and the senior captain of
the expedition, M. Beaujeu. Beaujeu was jealous of the leader and
either through treachery, or misfortune, the little squadron failed to
find the mouth of the great river. A norther came on and Beaujeu
refused to obey La Salle's instruction to work back along the northern
coast of the gulf. He proceeded to the Bay of Matagorda, on the coast
of Texas, and put the explorer ashore with 230 followers. In the
heavy sea that was running most of the supplies of the colonists were
lost in landing, and the ships sailed away, leaving them in an unknown
and desolate country almost without resources. La Salle attempted to
lead his followers by land to find the mouth of the Mississippi, but the
vast swamps and the intricate network of bayous proved most confusing. Swamp fever rapidly thinned their ranks. Then an attempt was
made to find the river by the use of canoes. This too failed, and after
traversing innumerable bayous, each of which promised to be the
river, the expedition turned westward across the plains of Texas hoping
15




to find gold  In a short time the 230 men were reduced to thirtyseven. Failing to enforce discipline by gentleness and entreaty, La
Salle began to use harsh measures, and the company was soon in a
state of mutiny. Finally he set out from the valley of the Colorado
River, accompanied by his nephew, Moranget, and fifteen men, with
the purpose of reaching Canada. Two of the men, L'Archeveque and
Duhaut, quarreled with Moranget. While the latter lay asleep Litot,
the surgeon of the party, cleft his skull with an axe, after which several
of his followers were also killed as they slept. For fear of being called
to account for their crime, one of them shot La Salle dead. Such was
the end of the greatest explorer sent out by France to search out the
new world. His intelligent reasoning, his boldness of movement, his
ingenuity and invincible courage in surmounting difficulties in the face
of stupendous obstacles, stamp him as one of the greatest figures in
American history. It was to La Salle and Champlain that France
owed her possessions in America. Robert Cavalier de La Salle was a
Norman with all the characteristics of that people. He was large of
frame, restless in disposition and tormented by strong passions. Admitted to the Jesuit novitiate at the age of fifteen, he spent two years
under the discipline of Father Mouret, but after his novitiate and during
his probationary period his restless disposition proved unconquerable.
He went from place to place carrying on his studies and teaching. His
passions frequently led him into unseemly conduct. He pined for the
career of an adventurer, and on being refused permission to go to
Portugal he asked to be released from his vows. After eight years of
life in the order he was dismissed at his own request. His character
has been carefully portrayed by Father Camille Rochementiex, who
pictures him as a man of superb gifts of mind and body; a profound
scholar, skilled in the arts and sciences, but restless, taciturn and morose under restraint.  When he came into a commanding position,
such as his talents merited, his uncurbed passions, and despotic disposition cost him the friendship of his followers, and were indirectly the
cause of his untimely end at the age of forty-three years.
Of the Jesuits, who sometimes conducted expeditions themselves, and
who almost invariably accompanied the expeditions of the French, it
may be said that they were loyal soldiers of the cross whose holy ardor
neither heat nor cold could diminish, hunger or torture daunt, or fear
of death divert from their sacred purpose. Their vows of chastity,
poverty and obedience, were rigorously observed and their self sacrific16




THOMAS W. PALMER.




(I




ing devotion to God and the cause of religion made them the greatest
heroes of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.
It will be seen that the explorers of various nations had practically
closed up the Atlantic coast with their claims. England, Holland and
Spain held the ocean front, and the latter country had rounded into the
Gulf of Mexico, and started up the Mississippi, besides penetrating to
Sante Fe, New Mexico, and over to the Pacific coast. France had entered a
wedge of territory at the mouth of the St. Lawrence and the scheme of
the government was to claim the region of Canada, the great lakes, the
Mississippi and Ohio valleys, and all territory which might be discovered to the westward. Quebec and Montreal were the strongholds at
the head of river navigation and from that point the claim of France
was to be supported by a chain of forts; Fort Frontenac commanded
the foot of Lake Ontario, the fort at Michilimackinac was their station
for the upper lakes. Duluth built a fort, in 1687, at the foot of Lake
Huron, on the west side, where the upper portion of the city of Port
Huron, Mich., is now situated. It was first called Fort Detroit, but
was more generally styled Fort St. Joseph. The English and Iroquois
were about to move against it in great force in 1689, when Hontan
burned it rather than have it fall into their hands. It then became
apparent to the French that their chain of forts must be extended not
only through the Mississippi valley to the Gulf of Mexico, but that the
wonderful straits described by La Sallemust be fortified to protect their
fur trade from the aggressions of the English and the Iroquois. All
the traffic of the lakes and their tributaries must come through these
straits, the rivers Detroit and St. Clair, and a strong fort, planted in a
commanding position, would keep the great seas of sweet water for
France. Cadillac, the shrewd and doughty Gascon, who was one of
the originators of this scheme, was chosen for that service, and the
forging of the most important link in the chain of colonization was entrusted to his hands. The upbuilding of this splendid scheme of conquest and colonization was ably planned and faithfully executed, so
that finally the interior of the country from Quebec to the headwaters
of the Mississippi, and from thence to the Gulf of Mexico, belonged to
France.
Through the neglect of the home government to provide for the
maintenance of the colonies, the settlements languished as mere trading posts until the English soldiers and American colonists closed the
door upon the French by capturing their stronghold on the St. Lawrence in 1759.
17
3




Among the heroic figures of French colonial days was Daniel Gris
olon (or Duluth, as he is known), who deserves more than passing
mention. His name appears in the old manuscripts as Du Lhu or Du
Lhut, and the records show that he was one of the chief instruments in
opening up the great west to the fur trade. He was born near Lyons,
France, about 1645, and like other Frenchmen who came to the new
world his family name was almost forgotten, and he was known by the
place of his nativity. Duluth was the friend and companion of La
Salle and the elder Tonty, and after making one trip with them he
turned to the far north for individual exploration. His headquarters
were established at Mackinaw, in the earliest days of that settlement,
and he was the agent among the Indians of the Northwest, inducing
them to be friendly with the Frenchmen and to bring their furs to
Mackinaw for trade. He was next to Commandant Durantaye in authority and his associates were M. de la Forest, De Lusigny and Grisolon de la Tourette, his brother. Frontenac trusted his judgment in
important matters, and the friendship between them aroused the jealousy of the Intendant Duchesnau, who feared Duluth's influence. The
intendant declared Duluth to be a dangerous man to the crown, as he
had more than 500 men in the upper country who acknowledged him
as their commander and would follow wherever he might lead. He
was certainly the leader of the coureurs de bois in the Northwest. At
Thunder Bay, on the north shore of Lake Superior, he built a fort
near the site of the present Fort William, in 1677. In 1678 he went to
the headwaters of the Mississippi. In 1679 he visited the Sioux Indians and the Assinniboine Indians, who inhabited the region now
known as Manitoba. In 1680 he went once more to the headwaters of
the Mississippi River, where he found Father Hennepin a prisoner
among the Indians, he having been adopted as the son of a chief. He
brought the priest down the river and crossed the country from the
mouth of the Illinois River to Montreal. Duluth was a man of superb
qualities; his courage was marvelous and his tact admirable. In 1684
two of his followers were waylaid and murdered by Indians on the
north shore of Lake Superior. He realized that if the crime went unpunished, the Indians would hold him in contempt, and his followers
would lack confidence in his ability. He walked boldly into the camp
of a large band of Indians and asked for the warriors who had taken
white scalps. Then he demanded their heads of the chief, but was refused; he seized the two offenders and shot them dead, regardless of


18




the yells and threats of the savages who surrounded them, and thus
gained their respect. In 1687, as already stated, he built Fort St.
Joseph, at the foot of Lake Huron. His courage and tact were again
displayed when the Iroquois descended upon Montreal in 1689. They
came in such force that the settlers were seized with panic. Duluth
took twenty-seven Canadians with him in a large canoe and went out
to meet a party of twenty-two Iroquois, who were paddling on the
river. The Indians opened fire and kept it up, but Duluth made his
men stand to their paddles until they closed with the savages. Then
eighteen were killed, three were taken prisoners and one was allowed
to escape to tell the story of the white man's valor to the Six Nations.
Duluth suffered from articular rheumatism from his youth, and in
many of his long journeys every step gave him a pang. He died in
1709 at the head of Lake Superior, and the thriving city of Duluth is a
monument to his name.
As soon as La Salle had described the importance of Detroit River
to Denonville at Quebec, and had shown the danger of its being seized
by the English, the governor resolved to be first on the ground. The
following extract is from a letter from Governor Denonville to Duluth,
dated Ville de Marie (the ancient name for Montreal), June 6, 1686:
"I hereby send you word to join M. Durantaye who is to be at Michilimaquina
[Mackinaw] to carry out the orders I am sending him for the safety of our allies [the
Huron Indians] and friends. You will see from the letter I am writing M. de la
Durantaye, that my intention is that you should occupy a post in an advantageous
spot so as to secure this passage to us, to protect our savages who go hunting there,
and to serve them as a refuge against their enemies and ours [the Iroquois]. You
will do nothing and say nothing to the Iroquois, unless they venture on an attempt
against you and against our allies. It is my intention that you shall go to this post
as soon as ever you can with about twenty men only, whom you will station there
under command of whichever of your lieutenants you may choose as being the fittest
for the command. After you have given all the orders you may think necessary for
the safety of this post and have strictly enjoined your lieutenant to be on his guard,
you will repair to Michilimaquina to wait for the Rev. Father Anjabram there, and
receive instructions and information as to all I have communicated to him. You will
then return to this post with thirty more men whom you will receive from M. de la
Durantaye. I have no doubt some trade in furs may be done, so your men will do
well to take some goods there. I cannot recommend you too strongly to keep a good
understanding with M. de la Durantaye, without which all our plans will come to
nothing and the service of the king will suffer greatly."
In obeying this order Duluth made an error of judgment, for he
selected for the site of his fort the spot now occupied by Fort Gratiot
19




and named the post Fort St. Joseph. His mistake soon became apparent. On June 7, 1687, there was a gathering of the French colonial
celebrities on Detroit River, and a deed of possession was formally prepared in the name of the king of France by Olivier Morel, esquire, Sieur
de la Durantaye, commandant for the king in the land of the Outaouan
(Ottawas), Miamis, Poutouamies (Potawatamies), Cioux (Sioux) and
other tribes, under the orders of the Marquis Denoiville, governorgeneral of New France. It reads in part as follows:
" This seventh day of June, 1687, in the presence of Father Anjabram, M. de la
Forest, M. de Lisle, our lieutenant, and M. Beauvais, of the Fort of St. Joseph at
the strait between Lakes Huron and Erie, WE DECLARE to all whom it may concern
that we came to the margin of St. Deny's River [supposed to be identical with the
River Rouge] situated three leagues from Lake Errier [Erie], on the strait between said
lakes Huron and Errier, to the south of said strait and lower down toward the entrance to Lake Errier on the north. On behalf of the king and in his name to repeat
the taking possession of the said posts which was done by M. de la Salle to facilitate
the journeys he made and had made by barge from Niagara to Michilimaquinac in
the years [left vacant in MSS.], at which said stations we should have had a post set
up again, with the arms of the king, in order to mark the said retaking possession,
and directed several small dwellings to be built for the establishment of the French
and savages, the Chaouannous [Shawnees] and Miamis, for a long time owners of
the said lands of the straits and of Lake Errier, from which they withdrew for some
time for their greater convenience."
This instrument indicates that the French based their claims upon
the discovery of La Salle and upon the posts or camping grounds
where his party encamped during the historic voyage of the Griffon.
They took pains to forestall any claims the British may have set up by
later discovery, and also any claim the Iroquois, who were friendly to
the British, might have set up on driving the Miamis and Shawnees
from the trapping grounds along the Detroit River, which region the
Iroquois claimed under the name of Teuscha Gronde.
As soon as Fort St. Joseph was built at the foot of Lake Huron, the
Iroquois, who had been urged on by the British, went to Fort Frontenac
to protest, as they claimed the whole region. That protest was disregarded, and the British set to work to prevent the French from gaining
possession and from securing the highway to the fur country of the
north. The Iroquois delegation went from Frontenac to Orange (Albany) and, as appears in the first chapter of this work, surrendered all
their claims to the British. Governor Dongan, of New York, protested
for the British against the French claim and took steps toward establishing British posts in the territory. It proved to be a close race and
20




the French only won because they came in superior force. As Commandant Durantaye came down with his canoe fleet from Mackinaw,
he came upon a party of English and Dutch traders from Orange or
Albany, under command of a Dutch captain named Roseboom, which
had passed Fort St. Joseph unobserved by the garrison and had reached
a point twenty miles above in Lake Huron. This party numbered but
thirty men, and, as Durantaye had about one hundred and fifty French
and Indians with him, he took them prisoners and they were unwilling
witnesses of the act of claim by the French. When the formalities had
been observed, the party which now numbered nearly three hundred,
set out for Niagara. Half down Lake Erie they came upon a party of
thirty under command of Major McGregor, who were on their way to
Detroit River. There were sixteen Englishmen and thirteen Iroquois
in the party, and they too were made prisoners and carried back to
Niagara. Next year Fort St. Joseph, being badly situated, was abandoned, and to prevent it from falling into the hands of the British, it
was burned to the ground by Baron La Hontan while on his way to
Mackinaw in 1689.
Duluth's party, which took formal possession of the Detroit River,
may not have known it, but there was a much earlier claim on file for
the French in the archives at Quebec, set up by Fathers Dollier and
Galinee, in 1669, eight years before, which has already been alluded to.
CHAPTER IV.
Cadillac the Founder of Detroit-A Clever Gascon Who Has Been Much Maligned
-He was a Privateer Preying upon the New England Coast-Then Commandant at
Mackinaw-1668-1701.
A majority of historians say that Cadillac was born in the fertile and
picturesque country bordering on the Garonne, at the village of Saint
Nicholas-de-la-Grave, included in the modern department of Tarn-etGaronne, on March 5, 1658. This statement is adopted by Silas Farmer
in his history of Detroit and Michigan, and is apparently buttressed by
records and parish registers. Margry, the eminent French archivist,
who is an authority on French colonization in America, said he could


21




not ascertain the date of his death. C. M. Burton, of Detroit, caused
the parish records of Saint Nicholas-de-la-Grave to be examined and
found that there was born there on December 4, 1663, Antoine de la
Laumet, son of Jean Laumet and Jeanne Pechequt, and does not believe that Antoine de la Laumet and Antoine de la Motte are the same
person. Cadillac's marriage record at Quebec, shows that his father
was Jean de La Mothe, Seigneur de Cadillac, conseiller of the parliament of Toulouse, and that his mother was Jeanne de Malefant. But
the question is really of minor interest, as Cadillac's later history on all
that is important is well known and belongs to the history of France
and America. The founder of Detroit was descended from a family
which had furnished many advocates, judges and army officers to the
province and the nation, and his father, Jean, was an advocate at the
court. Antoine probably received the name of La Mothe Cadillac from
some estate of his parents, who were well endowed with this world's
goods. This change of name, or rather adoption of another name, was
quite common at the time. In like manner Marie Arouet received the
name of Voltaire, and became one of the world's most famous men
under that cognomen. In after life Cadillac wrote his name in several
ways, but in this bad and misleading practice he simply imitated
many others. It even exists to this day among many French Canadians. Cadillac received a fine education, and it is said that his father
wished him to become a judge. But the routine life of a provincial
magistrate did not present any attraction for the sprightly and ambitious young man, and he soon afterward entered the French army,
and was a lieutenant in the regiment of Dampierre-Lorraine, and a
lieutenant in the regiment of Claurembault in 1677. He was a very
good Latin scholar and a student of biblical history and theology; in
after years when he encountered the Jesuits in America, he showed
that he was an adept in polemics. A tradition, founded on an old
French manuscript, is to the effect that he committed an offense
common to hot youth, and that to avoid the consequences he came to
America.
Cadillac was a Gascon by birth and descent. The fact that his father
was possessed of considerable estate in the province is evidence that
they were not parvenues. The people of Gascony, like those of Britanny, possess marked characteristics which distinguish them from
other Frenchmen. Gascons are not pure French. In the northern
part of the Iberian Peninsula, which occupies both slopes of the Pyre

22




nees, live the remains of a very ancient people who were called Vascones in ancient times.  They were mountaineers, herdsmen and
shepherds, and although they were assailed by Cathaginians, Romans,
Saracens, Goths, French and Spaniards, they have preserved their race
identity to the present day, together with the most remarkable language in Europe, and customs which differ from those of all neighboring people. They are commonly known as Basques, but those who
lived on the northern slope of the Pyrenees absorbed a portion of the
great Gothic invasion, and the Vascones became known as Gascons
within the border of France. They are to France what the Highlanders are to Scotland-bold, impetuous and untamable by oppression, but
good citizens and splendid soldiers when allowed their own ways.
Their physical characteristics are a medium build, somewhat spare but
extremely robust and possessed of great activity. They are the darkest skinned people of France, and have large gray eyes and black hair.
They have been, and still are, blustering fellows with the strutting
ways of the game cock, and with the same appetite for battle. Gasconade is a synonym for brag, bluff, or a blustering manner. They
are extremely democratic in their ideas, and the few titled people
among them obtained their honors for participating in the wars with
the Moors. It is doubtful if a better exposition of the Gascon character could be written than Dumas's great character, D'Artagnan, in the
"Three Musketeers," and one may picture the Sieur Cadillac as another D'Artagnan, somewhat subdued by education, years and association with court officials, but still retaining the physical and mental
characteristics of his ancestors. It is regrettable that more authentic
details of his early life have not yet been discovered, and that the only
account of his youthful career that has been written, is so apparently
untruthful as to excite anger and disgust in the mind of the student of
history. The alleged biography is from the pen of Gayerre, the historian of Louisiana, of which Cadillac was governor for several years
after he left Detroit. Gayerre for some cause seems to have imbibed
a hatred of the founder of Detroit, and he maliciously, and in most
cases falsely, abuses him from every standpoint.  He ridicules his
physical appearance, depreciates his mental makeup and denounces his
political and personal career.
"Cadillac's family," says Gayerre, "was ancient, but for several
centuries it had, by some fatality or other, been rapidly sliding down
from the elevated position it once occupied. When Cadillac was ushered


23




intolife, the domains of his ancestors had for many past genrerations
been reduced to a few acres of land. The small estate was dignified
however with an old dilapidated edifice which bore the name of castle,
although at a distance, to an unprejudiced eye, it presented some unlucky resemblance to a barn; a solitary tower as it were in a gown of
moss and ivy raised its gray head to a height which might have been
called respectable, and which appeared to offer special attraction to
crows, swallows and bats. The young boys of the neighborhood called
it Cadillac's rookery, and it was currently known under this ungenteel
appellation. Cadillac had received a provincial and domestic education,
and had up to his twenty fifth year moved in a very contracted sphere.
Nay, it may be said that he almost lived in solitude, for he had lost
both his parents when hardly eighteen summers had passed over his
head, and he had since kept company with none but the old tutor to
whom he was indebted for such classical attainments as he had acquired.
His mind being as much curtailed in its proportions as his patrimonial
acres, his intellectual vision could not extend very far, and if Cadillac
was not literally a dunce, it was well known that Cadillac's wits would
never run away with him. Whether it was owing to this accidental
organization of his brain or not, certain it is that one thing afforded the
most intense delight to Cadillac-it was that no blood so refined as his
own ran in the veins of any other human being, and that his person
was the very incarnation of ability. With such a conviction rooted in
his heart, it is not astonishing that his tall, thin and emaciated body
should have stiffened itself into the most accurate observation of the
perpendicular. Indeed it was exceedingly pleasant and exhilarating to
the lungs to see Cadillac on a Sunday morning strutting along in full
dress, on his way to church, through the meager village attached to his
hereditary domain. His bow to the mayor and the curate was something rare-an infinite burlesque of infinitive majesty, thawing into
infinite affability. His ponderous wig, the curls of which spread like
a peacock's tail, seemed to be alive with a conscious pride at the good
luck it had of covering a head of so much importance to the human
race. His eyes, in whose favor nature had been pleased to deviate
from the oval to the round shape, were possessed with a stare of astonishment, as if they meant to convey the impression that the spirit
within was in a trance of stupefaction, at the astonishing fact that the
being it animated did not produce a more startling effect upon the
world. The physiognomy which I am endeavoring to depict was ren

24




dered more remarkable by a stout, cocked up, snub nose, which looked
as if it had been hurried back in a fright from the tip to squat in rather
too close proximity to the eyes, which, with its dilated nostrils, seemed
always on the point of sneezing at something thrusting itself between
the wind and its nobility. His lips wore a mocking smile, as if sneering at the strange circumstance that a Cadillac should be reduced to be
an obscure, penniless individual. But if Cadillac bad his weak points,
it must also be told that he was not without strong ones. Thus he bad
a great deal of energy, bordering, it is true, upon obstinacy; he was a
rigidly moral and pious man, and he was too proud not to be valiant."
Gayerre goes on in the same vein to say that " Cadillac deemed it a
paramount duty to himself and his Maker not to allow his race to become extinct, and he went a courting among the gentility of the neighborhood, where he was universally voted a quiz. So he had to content himself with a poor spinster who, like himself, was of unsullied
lescent and hereditary poverty. The lady was a distant relative to the
duke of Lauzon, and she wrote him in behalf of her new husband.
Lauzon showed the quaint letter to Louis XIV, who smiled at its contents and gave Cadillac a captaincy in an infantry regiment which had
been ordered to Canada."
It is quite evident that Gayerre drew this picture of the founder of
Detroit from pure imagination. To give his description some coloring
of truth, he has caricatured the typical Gascon outrageously and has
made a very poor attempt to follow Dumas, who introduces his Gascon
hero, D'Artagnan, as a " Don Quixote of eighteen years," and subsequently develops him into the flower of the army. Note the description of D'Artagnan as he steps upon the first page of the novel. "A
Don Quixote clothed in a woolen doublet, the blue color of which has
faded to a nameless shade between the lees of wine and a heavenly
azure. Face long and brown; high cheek bones-a sign of austerity;
the maxillary muscles enormously developed-an infallible sign by
which a Gascon may always be detected, even without his barret cap
set off with a feather; the eye open and intelligent; the nose hooked,
but finely chiseled-too big for a youth, too small for a man. Our
young man had a steed, which was observed of all observers; it was a
Bearm pony, twelve or fourteen years old, yellow in his hide, without a
hair in his tail, but not without windgalls on his legs, which, through
going with his head lower than his knees, rendered a martingale quite
unnecessary; he contrived nevertheless to perform his eight leagues a
day. "
25
4




This is but a fragment, but it is sufficient to show the source of
Gayerre's inspiration. It is evident that this Frenchman, who undertook to describe Cadillac to the world, did not recognize the distinction
between history and romance; between fact and fiction. This picture
of Cadillac and his antecedents, even at first blush, and without examining authorities, would be seriously questioned by students of history,
but when the record of history is consulted it can be shown to be unwarranted by facts or even probability. And yet there are those who
think and say even at this late day, that Gayerre's work has " thrown a
flood of light on the personality and character of Cadillac." In the
first place, Cadillac did not marry any poor, well-born maiden in
France; he was married to Marie Theresa Guyon, at Quebec, and this
was his first and only wife. So that the fanciful story of his owing his
advancement to his wife's powerful relatives in France is pure fiction.
Had he been a bigamist, the Jesuits, who were his enemies and who
had the ear of Louis XIV, through his confessor, Pare la Chaise, a
member of their order, would undoubtedly have published it to the
world As for the description of Cadillac's person by the same author,
it may be'said to be inspired by a literary prejudice which is really unscrupulous in its malice. But any further discussion of Gayerre's depiction of Cadillac is totally unnecessary, as that author in a letter to
Silas Farmer, the author of the " History of Detroit and Michigan,"
practically acknowledged that his allusions to the founder of Detroit
were imaginary, and that he knew nothing of his antecedents previous
to his coming to Louisiana as its governor in 1713. Gayerre writes as
follows: " I know nothing historical about his looks, but squibs and
pasquinades floated down the stream of time about his oddities, through
the channels of tradition. I somewhat fancifully sketched his personal appearance so as to make it agree with his character as it presented itself to me, historically and professionally."
Toward the close of the 17th century the explorations and coloniza.
tion of France in America were subjects of intense interest among all
classes in the mother country. They enlisted the attention of the
mercantile classes, ever anxious to extend their trading interests; the
young, who were fascinated by the romance of adventure in a distant
clime; and the religious, to whom the aborigines seemed to afford a
grand opportunity for conversion to Christianity.  Young Cadillac
was ambitious and romantic when he left old France and came to New
France in 1683; he was then about twenty-three years of age. His


26




first movements in the new country are not known. Being a French
officer, it would appear probable that he would seek service in one of
the French commands at Quebec, or at some of its dependencies, but
this he did not do. Perhaps he realized that the station and pay of a
lieutenant in a wild and thinly settled colony promised neither glory or
wealth. Whatever his reason, he turned his back on Quebec and went
to Port Royal, on the east coast of Acadia (Nova Scotia), then a French
colony, where he became a subordinate to Francois Guyon, a master
mariner. Guyon was at that time engaged in the hazardous and often
profitable business of privateering.  Margry, the French archivist,
calls him a "corsair," which is equivalent to the term pirate, but he
was not a sea marauder who sailed under the black flag. France under
Louis XIV was at war with Spain in 1683, and had invaded the Spanish
Netherlands, but hostilities ended the next year by the treaty of Ratisbon. But the reign of the Grand Monarch was one of almost incessant
war, and in 1688 France was at war with Germany, Spain and England
allied. The fighting lasted ten years and was ended by the treaty of
Ryswyck in 1697. During these years there was a fine field of operation for French privateers in America, and it may well be supposed
that Gayon and Cadillac made good and profitable captures of English
ships and Spanish galleons laden with the treasures of the new world.
This part of Cadillac's life has not yet been investigated by historians,
but there is scarcely any doubt that the records of the French ministry
of marine of that day will yet afford ample information of their joint
doings. This period was probably the turning point in Cadillac's life.
The maritime excursions from Port Royal doubtless ranged along the
entire Atlantic coast, and he, Cadillac, thereby acquired an accurate
and extensive knowledge of the coasts of New England and Virginia,
at that time studded with British colonies. During the constant wars
between European nations at this period there was always more or less
privateering, and the spoils were so tempting that the men who engaged in such enterprises were loath to give up their calling when
peace was declared. When they could not secure letters of marque
legalizing their system of robbery, they hoisted the black flag, like
Captain Kidd, and committed horrible crimes against inoffensive persons for the purpose of making rich gains. Instead of taking a captured vessel to a home or a neutral port, and selling it as a prize in
conformity with the law of nations, these buccaneers took the most
valuable portion of the cargo, usually limiting their seizure to specie,
27




gold and silver bullion, jewels and rum, and then, to conceal their
crime, murdered the passengers and crew and destroyed the captured
vessel. Guyon and Cadillac were apparently men of honor who would
not stoop to such crimes.
It was during this period of his life that Cadillac paid a visit to Quebec, where he got into trouble. In this visit he was probably bent on
pleasure rather than business. It appears that Governor Denonville
summoned the officers at Quebec and a number of witnesses to a court
martial held in the house of the widow of Pierre Pellerin, in St. Pierre
street, Quebec, on the evening of May 4, 1686. Cadillac was then in
Quebec on a visit and he was the culprit at this trial. The witnesses
deposed that a number of them, soldiers of the fort, had been gathered
at the wine shop of the widow St. Armand in lower town on the previous evening. Lieutenant Jacques Charles Sabrevois, of Captain Desquerac's company, was the leader of the party. M. de La Mothe (Cadillac) entered the room alone, apparently in bad temper. Sabrevois
asked him if he would join him and some of the others and go to the
upper town, but Cadillac scornfully declined and remarked if he was
in the place of Captain Desquerac he would confine Sabrevois to the
quarters. When Sabrevois asked why, Cadillac ironically said he would
not have such a gallant coxcomb strutting about at large among the
ladies, for he would consider him a dangerous rival.
"Well you might," replied Sabrevois, "for if you had a mistress I
should certainly be your rival."
"That he would," said De la Parelle, one of the party, "and you
would never have the wit to discover it."
" Wit, wit, what do you mean by such talk," asked Cadillac angrily;
then he turned to Sabrevois who was a great gallant among the ladies
and much petted by the authorities.
"Go, my little friend," said he, curling his lips in scorn, " although
I am not supported by the Marquis as you are, I can give you a good
thrashing, which you appear to need."
"What! a thrashing! and from you?" cried Sabrevois clapping his
hand to his sword hilt.
Cadillac snatched his blade half way from the scabbard, and then mutual
friends rushed between the two belligerents. Cadillac replaced his
sword because it was impossible to use it, but a candle was burning in
a massive copper candlestick which stood on the table. He snatched
this candlestick and hurled it at Sabrevois's head, felling him to the
28




",.,O —'r  N




I




floor. The room was left in darkness and Sabrevois cried out: " I'm
killed! I'm a dead man."
Sabrevois was not killed, however, although he carried the scar of a
bad scalp wound to his grave. He lived to became a prominent resident
of Detroit for many years. He was commandant at Detroit from 1714
to 1717; again from 1734 to 1738 and once more from 1746 to 1750, at
which time he must have been above eighty years of age. Cadillac had
been in his grave nearly twenty years at that time.
Soon after this quarrel with Sabrevois, Cadillac fell in love. He had
paid several visits to the home of his superior, Francois Guyon, at Beauport, a settlement on the St. Lawrence, near Quebec. Here he first
met Marie Therese, daughter of Denis Guyon, a brother of Francois,
who had come there from Quebec on a visit to her uncle's family. The
acquaintance ripened into mutual love, and they were married at the
house of the bride's father in Quebec, on June 25, 1687. He received
a substantial dowry, as was the custom of the time, and the newly
married couple went to Port Royal to settle down in life. He applied
to Governor Denonville for a grant of land called Donaquec, in what is
now the State of Maine. This land was on the coast and was six miles
square, and he also asked for the Island of Mt. Desert, lying in front
of the tract. This was granted by Governor Denonville and Intendant
Champigny in 1688, and was confirmed by Louis XIV on May 24, 1689.
Besides the grant of this domain, he was commissioned a magistrate,
with rights of high, middle and low justice, which made him virtually
the ruler in his district. It is evident that these favors were bestowed
upon him for his skill and intrepidity as a mariner, and that he served
'what the French government considered the highest interests of that
nation by crippling or destroying the merchant ships of the British in
American waters.
But France had need of Cadillac and he was not allowed to sink into
semi-obscurity as a seigneur and rural potentate.  Chevalier Louis
Hector de Callieres, then commandant of Mount Royal (Montreal),
went to Paris and in January, 1689, presented a plan for a joint land
and naval expedition for the capture of New York. The plan was
approved by Louis XIV, and two vessels, the L'Embuscade and Le Fourgon, were fitted out for the expedition and placed under the command
of Rear Admiral Sieur de la Caffiniere. Frontenac, who had been a
second time appointed governor of New France, accompanied the expedition. The expedition reached the mouth of the St. Lawrence,
29




where Frontenac shipped on another vessel for Quebec, where he was
to gather a land force and march on New York. The two war vessels
went on their way to the Bay of New York, then called the Bay of
Menathe. Caffiniere captured seven English vessels on the way, but
had to put in at Port Royal on account of contrary winds. Here he
became impressed with the necessity of securing a pilot who knew the
coast, and engaged Cadillac, but when they reached the Bay of New
York there was no land force there to co-operate with the fleet. The
season being late, he returned to France, taking Cadillac with him.
CADILLAC AS A COURTIER.
The young Gascon spent seven months at the Court of France, where
he sedulously sought preferment, and lived as best he might, principally by borrowing money. His manner, which was ingratiating and
cordial, stood him in good stead and he soon impressed those in power
with his knowledge and capacity. His opinions were sought by military and naval officers, and his future prospects seemed brighter than
ever. While thus employed concocting measures for the capture of
New York and Boston, the British were busy at his home at Port
Royal.  On May 10, 1690, a fleet under Sir William Phips entered
Port Royal and plundered the town, burned Cadillac's house and several other dwellings, and made his wife and family prisoners of war,
but they were soon released. A few months afterward Sir William
Phips with a fleet of thirty-four vessels, large and small, advanced to
Beauport and, sending a flag of truce, demanded the surrender of
Quebec. But Frontenac made a spirited defense and four days afterward Phips's force retired, his land troops abandoning their cannon
and ammunition.
The Marquis de Denonville, who was governor of New France from
1685 to 1689, retained considerable interest in its affairs after he had resigned his office. In 1690 he submitted to the government a plan for
attack on the English settlements at New York, Boston and elsewhere.
There were, he said, three persons in New France who were well
acquainted with the New England coast, namely, M. Perrot, Sieur de
Villebon, and La Mothe Cadillac. Meanwhile Cadillac had become acquainted with the colonial minister, Count Pontchartrain, who admired
him for his ability and address, and when he left France for America,
November, 1690, he bore with him the following letter of recommendation, signed by Pontchartrain:


30




" Sieur de Lamothe Cadillac, a gentleman of Acadia, having been ordered to embark for the service of the king, on the Embuscade, which vessel had brought him
to France, his majesty being informed that during his absence his habitation was
ruined, hopes that Frontenac, the new governor of Canada, will find it convenient
to give him such employment as he may find proper for his services and that he will
assist him if he can."
Cadillac presented this letter to Governor Frontenac when he arrived
in Quebec, and in obedience to the wishes of the king he was appointed
lieutenant of the troop of the colony in place of Sieur de Longueil,
made captain. Strictly speaking, the colonial troop were not soldiers
but marines, as the French minister of marine had charge of all colonial
affairs. In June, 1691, Cadillac again experienced a stroke of bad fortune. His wife and children and remaining property shipped on board
a barque at Port Royal (now named Annapolis Royal) for Quebec, but
at the mouth of the St. Lawrence the boat was captured by an English
privateer from Boston. It is not known whether his wife and family
were taken to Boston, but if so they were not detained long. The
parish records at Quebec show that Mme. Cadillac there gave birth to
a son, Antoine, who was baptized April 26, 1692; this was the oldest
son. A daughter named Magdaline was born to them before that time.
In the same month Cadillac received a letter from Louis XIV, requesting him to come to France and give information regarding the proposed attack on the English settlements. Again he left his family,
and in Paris submitted an elaborate plan of operation, in which he displayed his wonderful knowledge of the topography of the entire coast,
its villages, populations, character of the inhabitants, fortifications,
military strength and the soundings of bays and rivers. This report
is still in the French archives, and its perusal, with other knowledge of
the man, enabled Margry, the archivist, to say that "Cadillac had the
best of instruction; he had ideas concerning politics, military affairs,
colonization, the royal power and its relation with the church, the Indians, etc., and these ideas he maintained with a certain braggadocia
spirit. He went to the bottom of these questions and his letters, like
his memoirs, were characteristic and sharp." James Rundot, the
French intendant of New France, also says that "he had a winning
manner." His interest at the court of France was materially strengthened by his masterly report and to this was added the strong friendship
of Count Pontchartrain.


31




CHAPTER V.


Cadillac Foolishly Quarrels with the Jesuits and Lays the Foundation of all His
Misfortunes-He Wanted to Sell Brandy to the Indians in Defiance of the Law1685-1700.
Cadillac spent the winter of 1693 at Quebec in close communion with
Governor Frontenac, as a member of his military household.  The
tedium of a cold winter was enlivened with accustomed Gallic gayety
by parties, balls and private theatricals.  Two plays, "Nicomede"
and " Mithridate," were presented by the officers, citizens and ladies
who had dramatic tastes. In these plays the clerical characters were
shown to be only human beings, and afflicted with propensities common to the rest of mankind. In plays of this character Moliere, the
great French dramatist, had incurred the hostility of the priesthood
thirty years before. His "Tartuffe" had been presented at the Palais
Royal with signal success, but its second representation had been forbidden by the archbishop, who threatened excommunication to both
the actors and the audience who attended it. The plays presented at
Quebec were of a milder sort, but the Jesuits resented their production. Governor Frontenac, who was an enemy of the order, like De
Soto and La Salle, took the other side and a bitter quarrel ensued between the Church and State, in which the people ranged themselves
on either side. It is needless to say that Cadillac was on the side of
the governor.
In 1694 he received the appointment of commandant at Michillimackinac (Mackinac). His shattered fortunes were greatly in need of
such a position, but he was not elated thereby, as the climate in that
region was severe and he shrewdly foresaw that his authority would be
greatly curtailed by the influence of the Jesuits, who had founded the
post and virtually ruled its affairs. This region was not unknown to
the early French explorers; Father Allouez, who had come to Quebec
with Champlain in 1615, had visited it in 1665, and had pushed westward past Mackinaw to Green Bay, in what is now the State of Wisconsin, where he taught the gospel to the Miamis, Mascoutins and


32




Kickapoos.  Here, too, Father Marquette in 1668 had founded a
mission where the St. Mary's River enters Lake Huron, and here he
was buried under the earthen floor of the chapel at St. Ignace in 1675.
Four years later came to Mackinac the good ship Griffon, the first vessel on Lakes Erie and Huron, with Robert de La Salle and Henry Tonty
on board. Cadillac accepted the position and commenced by borrowing 3,750 livres, or about $750 from Francis Hazeur, of Montreal, for
the purpose of investing in furs. The document acknowledging this
debt is now (1897) in the possession of Joseph Belanger, the French
consul of Detroit. Gathering a number of emigrants at Quebec, he
started for Michillimackinac, but the reports of the disadvantage of the
place so wrought on them that a majority stopped at Montreal and
would go no further, but he took the remainder and pushed on to his
destination, where he succeeded the Sieur de Louvigny.
In 1694, when Cadillac took charge, Michillimackinac had a fort
garrisoned by some 200 French troops, and a white civil population of
about two hundred, composed of traders, coureurs de bois and artisans,
who occupied some sixty houses within the palisade. Around the fort
were the villages of the Hurons, Ottawas and other tribes of the Algonquin confederacy, who were gathered there under the influence of
the Jesuit missionaries. In summer the savages were mostly engaged
in hunting, and in the winter made the neighborhood of the fort their
home. In the latter season there were about six thousand Indians
around this place. It was not long before there was trouble between
the commandant and the priests. The Jesuits there had heard of the
dramatic villification of the clergy at Quebec, and, it is said, incited
some of the officers of the post against the commandant. But Cadillac
quickly stopped the trouble by placing the officers under arrest. This
was probably the beginning of the long continued opposition of the
Jesuits to Cadillac and his plans, an opposition which he encountered
at nearly every step in his career, and which lasted until he left America for old France. The post of Mackinac was a part of the French
scheme for the establishment of armed forts along the lakes and rivers
and down the Mississippi to its mouth, for the joint purpose of affording protection to the fur trade of France and the friendly Indians, as
against the rival interests of England and the warlike Iroquois. A
commercial disadvantage, which was also recognized by the French,
was that the English sold or rather bartered their goods for the furs of
the Indians at much better bargains than were allowed by the French,


33




and were sedulous in impressing the fact on the Indians at Mackinac
and elsewhere, by means of spies. Although the Hurons and Ottawas
were as nations generally opposed to the Iroquois and the British, they
were nevertheless keenly alive to their own interests, and a barrel of
rum, a keg of powder or a package of blankets would make friends of
ancient enemies. The same was true of the Iroquois and probably of
all the aborigines of the period. The cunning British traders could
thus prevail on a band of Hurons to take some Iroquois to the fort and
to their homes, ostensibly as prisoners, but really as spies to give information about the low-priced British goods.
Cadillac with his native acumen soon became aware of this scheme
and prepared to defeat it. One evening a Huron party brought in
seven Iroquois, of whom one was a chief, as prisoners, but two of them
were stabbed when they landed on the beach. The Hurons protected
the others, but finally gave the Iroquois chief into the hands of the
French, who thereupon sent an invitation to the Ottawas to drink the
broth of an Iroquois. The victim was tied to a stake, tortured by
burning his flesh with a red hot gun barrel, and afterward cut to pieces
and eaten. At another time four Iroquois prisoners, taken in war by
parties sent out by Cadillac, were burned, in order to renew and perpetuate the strife between the Algonquins and Hurons on the one side,
and the Iroquois on the other. Cadillac at this time said, "If they
bring any prisoners to me, I can assure you their fate will be no sweeter
than that of the others."
In 1696 Frontenac overran part of New York, ravaging the English
settlements and in battle so reduced the Iroquois strength that they
lost 1,500 out of 2,800 warriors. This event and the treaty of Ryswick
in 1697, whereby peace was made between France and the allied powers, Germany, England, Spain and Holland, restored quiet for a time
in the lake region.
The greatest trouble between the Jesuit fathers and the commandant was the liquor question. Competition with the British, who furnished rum and other goods in trade for peltries, made it absolutely
necessary for the French to deal out ardent liquors also. To stop this
branch of the traffic was simply to turn the trade into the hands of their
rivals. The Jesuits were determined to stop the traffic and Cadillac
was determined to continue it. The Jesuits spoke of the demoralization of the Indians and the loss of souls through the influence of strong
drink, and Cadillac retorted by saying that the inclement winters at
34




the post and the absence of proper food at all seasons made it necessary
that a small quantity of liquor should be taken by every one every day.
"How will you be able," he wrote to the priest, " to endure the daily
exposure of these neophytes, for whom you feel so much affection, to
the excessive use of English rum and the imbibing of heresy?" He
also charged the Jesuits with trading in beaver skins and also issuing
rum to the Indians, contrary to the king's order and their own duties,
which included poverty as well as chastity and obedience. The latter
charges, however, were not true; it was afterward proved that it was
the coureurs de bois or boatmen, hired by the Jesuits to carry their supplies in canoes, who were the transgressors; and these boatmen carried
goods and liquor surreptitiously on their own account without the knowledge and consent of their employers. The Jesuits had a powerful
friend at the court of Louis XIV, in the person of Pere La Chaise, after
whom the great Parisian cemetery is named, and who was the confessor of that monarch and a member of their order. In 1694 the king
referred to the Council of the Sorbonne for decision the liquor question
at Mackinac. The Sorbonne was the principal school of theology in
the ancient University of Paris, and had great influence and power,
and was appealed to in the disputes between the civil powers and the
papacy, and in the great theological controversies and schisms that
divided the church. The council decided that French brandy should
not be shipped to Mackinac, and this, the first Michigan prohibitory law,
was vigorously criticised by Cadillac, who saw that it was a fatal blow
to the advancement of the post, as well as his own personal interests.
"A drink of brandy," he wrote, "after a repast seems necessary to
cook the bilious meats and the crudities which they leave on the stomach." He saw that unless he could exchange brandy for furs that the
Indians would go to the English at Albany, and it was this that eventually led him to resign
While he was commandant at Mackinac an incident occurred which,
although not historically important, reveals some peculiar features of
the fur trading, and the regulations thereof by the French authorities,
and also the high favor with which Governor-General Frontenac
regarded Cadillac. The account of the affair was written by De Champigny, the intendant, or second in command of the colony. De Champigny was an active enemy of Cadillac, and the document was addressed to Count Pontchartrain. In this, as in other official communications, Champigny is extremely egotistic, incredibly verbose and
35




undisguisedly malicious in his description of Cadillac's conduct and
motives. No answer of Cadillac to this attack is extant, and De
Champigny only credits him with a short and inadequate defense of a
few lines. It appears that Mme. La Mothe remained with her children
at Quebec while her husband was at Mackinac. Cadillac instructed her
to send goods to Mackinac and she came to Montreal in 1696, and there
hired two voyageurs, named Moreau and Durand, to carry a boat load
of merchandise to her husband. Their compensation was to be two
hundred livres each, and permission to take goods to the value of one
hundred livres each for their own profit. But Cadillac's wife, says
Champigny, induced the two traders to fill two boats with goods, and
on these they also loaded four or five hundred livres' worth of goods on
their own account. The goods were on their way to Mackinac, but
they were stopped near the mouth of the Ottawa River by Sieur de la
Touche, the government commissary. He seized the extra boat, sold
its contents by auction, and realized 675 livres, which was applied, as
in like cases, to the hospital at Montreal.  On the same boat were
forty pots of brandy, but Moreau claimed that they were for the use of
himself and Durand, and the liquor was allowed to go with the other
goods. The boatmen claimed that three other boats evaded the vigilance of the commissary and went up for Cadillac to Mackinac. When
Moreau and Durand arrived there they purchased goods to the value of
seven thousand livres from Cadillac, and commenced to trade with the
Indians  A month afterward Durand wounded a dog belonging to an
Indian; he would not pay for the injury, and Cadillac confined him in
a log jail. Durand was indignant and sent word that he would not pay
for the goods. Moreau, his partner, would not pay it alone and was
jailed. While they were prisoners Cadillac searched their store and
took out the goods he had sold them; also those which belonged to
them, and also all their other property, on the ground that they had
brought more than the one hundred livres worth. Released a few
days afterward, the two men borrowed money and returned to Montreal, and there waited for reparation. In September, 1797, Cadillac
visited Montreal and the two traders then commenced an action against
him. Their case was already in the hands of De Champigny, and
Cadillac entered his defense, which, however, is very inadequately
stated. The parties agreed to arbitrate their difference before two merchants of Quebec. New disputes arose and De Champigny was asked
by Moreau for an inquiry into the value of the goods, which he referred


36




to Dupuy, the "local lieutenant of the provostship of Quebec." But
Cadillac opposed the submitting of the value to an inquiry, because he
suspected that it was for the purpose of valuing the goods he had
taken at the same rate at which they had been disposed of to the Sioux
Indians.
" I was ordered to prevent trade with the Sioux by Count Frontenac,"
he said, "and such trade was illegal."
Moreau retorted by saying that Cadillac himself had sent goods to
the Sioux country. Dupuy was about making up his decision in favor
of Moreau when he was summoned before Frontenac, who said in
effect that he was about to contravene his authority by the dictation of
Champigny, and sent him to prison, where he remained two days. The
two arbitrators discreetly resigned from the case a few days afterward.
Moreau then sent in another petition, which De Champigny sent to the
Supreme Council, which was composed of the governor, intendant and
bishop. But Cadillac followed with two other petitions, one that In
tendant Champigny should not consider the matter, and the other that
it should be referred to the provost at Quebec. Champigny here interpolates that the provost of Quebec was the god-father of Cadillac's
wife. It was then demanded that the case should be tried before the
Supreme Council, whereupon Cadillac said he would appeal to the king
Frontenac, however, came to the council, and objected to any course
which would deprive Cadillac of his appeal to the king, and after more
talk it was resolved to dismiss the whole case. De Champigny then
announced that he would try the case again, but Frontenac said he had
exceeded his authority. The intendant took up the case again and
sentenced Cadillac to pay three sums aggregating 2,565 livres to
Moreau, but next day Governor Frontenac annulled the decree and
Cadillac, according to the sporting phrase, "won out."
In connection with the above it may be stated that the French measures of capacity in those times were as follows: Two chopines made
one pint; one pint equaled one and two-thirds pints (English measure);
two pints made one pot, or French quart; thirty-two pots made one
barrel. A roquille was a small measure corresponding to an English
gill and was one fourth of a chopine, or one-eighth of a pint. The
money of the time was as follows: A sol or sou was about equal in
value to a cent of United States currency; the livre (afterward franc)
contained twenty sols; a crown contained six livres; a pistole, which
was a Spanish coin, was equivalent to about twenty livres, or about $4.


37




During his residence at Mackinac, the English and Iroquois were
continuously invading his territory, and Cadillac became convinced that
France's interest, as well as his own, would be subserved by a fort and
trading station, at a point where the French could better compete with
the English and the Iroquois, and that the straits between. Lake Erie
and Huron was the proper place. After formulating his plans he requested Governor Frontenac to recall him, which request was granted.
At Quebec a memorial was drawn up and sent to King Louis XIV, and
it is said that Cadillac went there in person to urge its adoption. Meanwhile his friend, Governor Frontenac, died on June 13, 1698, and De
Callieres was appointed governor. On May 27, 1699, the king sent
Cadillac's memorial to the new governor to report on the expediency
of the plan. De Callieres answered that Cadillac's plan was not practical; that the re establishment and repairing of old forts then in existence was much better; that the proposed fort was too near the forces
of the Iroquois and the English in Northern New York; therefore, that
a settlement there might be short lived. But Cadillac argued in turn
that a fort at Detroit would be far better than the one at Mackinac, for
it would prevent the British and Iroquois from entering the region of
the straits, which was the gateway of the upper country; and that the
right way of surmounting opposition was to meet it boldly and not retire before it. The king and his ministers admired Cadillac's boldness
and audacity, and he was given a commission to prepare for the expedition, a grant of twenty-five square arpents or acres, for the site of
the fort he might select, together with other privileges as a commandant, and 15,000 livres for the construction of the fort. Cadillac returned
to Quebec and at once began his preparations. There was good reason
for haste; the Iroquois had heard of the projected settlement and sent
envoys to De Callieres to protest against what they considered an invasion of their rights and territory. A conference between the governor and the head men of the confederacy was held at Quebec, on May
5, 1701. Callieres's arguments were mainly that he did not intend by
this expedition to deprive the Iroquois of their lands or other rights.
"The English " he said, "are moving on de Troit or the straits, with
the object of monopolizing the fur trade, and we must do something to
prevent it." In reply to further discussion in which the chief claimed
that the lands were the hunting ground of the Iroquois, he said, " It
does not belong to the Iroquois; it belongs to my master, the great
father in France. We intend to do with it as he pleases." Other re

38




quests they made regarding trade were acceded to and the conference
ended.
De Callieres knew, however, that the Iroquois might possibly try to
penetrate their plans and, after consultation, Cadillac was directed to
take the Ottawa River route. This was chosen in preference to the
route by the St. Lawrence and Lakes Ontario and Erie, by which La
Salle reached the straits and the upper country, because the expedition
might then be seen and attacked by the Iroquois.
The progress of the expedition and the founding of Detroit have been
related in the first chapter of this book.
CHAPTER VI.
Indians and Coureurs de Bois-Characteristics of the Indians and of the HalfWild Voyageurs, Who Were the First Commercial Travelers in America-1660-1760.
The Indians were such an important factor in the great problem of
European colonization, as well as in the early history of Detroit, that a
brief resume of their history, attitude and characteristics is necessary
to give a thorough understanding of the situation. In the northern
part of this continent, principally in the region of the great chain of
lakes and their tributary rivers, from the Atlantic to the extremity of
Lake Michigan, the red men generally belonged to three confederacies
-the Algonquins, the Hurons or Wyandots, and the Iroquois or Five
Nations.
The Algonquins were numerous and powerful, and their hunting
grounds were mostly in Canada, from the mouth of the St. Lawrence
and the shores of Lake Ontario to the Niagara River. They were
tillers of the soil as well as hunters, and were the same kindred stock
as the Hurons. The Algonquin confederacy included 104 distinct
organized nations or tribes, and the seat of its power was on the southeastern shore of Lake Superior. Its leading nations on the west were
the Chippewas, Creeks, Ottawas, Potawatamies and Miamis; in the
east the Abinakis, the Micmacs, the Mohegans and the New England
and Virginia tribes; and also several nations in the South. Some of
the southern nations of the confederacy were ultimately wiped out or


39




subdued by the Iroquois, but those who had not been conquered were
deadly enemies of the latter.
The Hurons, who were also kinsmen of the Iroquois, inhabited the
country bordering on the Ottawa River, from the Algonquin frontier to
the shores of Lake Huron. They were deadly foes of the Iroquois and
were finally driven from their hunting grounds and destroyed as a confederacy. The Hurons were so named by the French, because of the
manner in which they wore their hair, which was rough and stood up
like the bristles of the "hure"-wild boar. Cheveux releves-" with
hair standing up "-was another name bestowed on them by Champlain. Among themselves, or with other Indians, the Hurons were
styled Ouendato, anglicized into Wyandots.
The Iroquois or Five Nations, the most numerous and warlike of the
three, lived principally on the southern side of the St. Lawrence, in
what is now the State of New York, north and west of the Kaalzbergs
and south of the Adirondacks. Some of their villages were on the
shores of Lake Champlain, but no accurate boundary line of their territory or that of the Algonquins or Hurons can be given, as they varied from time to time according to the fortunes of war. The Five
Nations were the Mohawks, Oneidas, Onondagas, Cayugas and Senecas. In 1714 they were joined by the remnants of the Tuscaroras, and
were afterward known as the Six Nations. At that time their total
number was estimated at 11,650, including 2,150 warriors. Tradition
says that the Iroquois were formed into a league by Hiawatha, the Indian incarnation of wisdom, about the beginning of the fifteenth century. They were divided into about forty tribes, each ruled by a
sachem. The latter had an equal voice in the councils of the confederacy, which were held at the capital of the Onondagas, a few miles
south of what is now Syracuse, N. Y. The central authority was a
president, and the women were allowed a voice in their legislative
councils. Champlain, the governor of New France, found them at war
with the Canada Indians, and other nations from Lake Huron to the
Gulf of Mexico, in which they were generally successful. With the
Algonquins and Hurons on his side, he fought them on Lake Champlain in 1609, and from that time the Iroquois generally fought the
French and their Indian allies in Canada for about sixty years. The
Iroquois had made several treaties with the English before that year,
but the results were generally unsatisfactory. By the influence of Sir
William Johnson, the English Indian commissioner, they fought against


40




I


GEN. RUSSELL A, ALGER,








the French in 1755, four years before the power of the latter country
was extinguished in the North and Northwest by the capture of Quebec. In 1763 some of them joined their ancient Indian foes in Pontiac's conspiracy, and aided the great Ottawa in besieging the English
post of Detroit. In the war of the Revolution all the Iroquois except
the Oneidas and Tuscaroras embraced the side of the English, and led
by Joseph Brant, the great Mohawk chief, they desolated the Mohawk,
Cherry and Wyoming valleys in New York and Pennsylvania and massacred the settlers. After the close of the war a majority of the Iroquois removed to Canada, as they apprehended that the Americans
would take vengeance upon them for aiding the English, but the Oneidas
and Tuscaroras remained. Their descendants now number about
3,000, half of whom are in the State of New York, and; the remainder
in other States and Canada.
All the Indians in North America had nearly the same characteristics;
they were proud, haughty and taciturn, despised volubility, and were
sententious in conversation and debate, except in set rhetorical efforts,
in which their best speakers often rose to poetic heights and displayed
a wealth of imagination and great dignity and beauty of expression.
They were sagacious in penetrating motives, persevering in all their
undertakings, superstitious in the last degree, revengeful and cruel in
war, stoical under pain and hardship and indolent except in war and
the chase. A young Indian's future prospects depended upon his success in killing his personal enemies and the enemies of his tribe. He
was not considered as having arrived at the condition of manhood until
he had carved out a reputation for personal prowess with his tomahawk
and scalping knife. The maidens would repel his advances if he had
taken no scalps.
The wampum belt was invariably used by the Indians in their negotiations, either with their own race or with the white men. At first it
consisted of shells of different kinds, piered with holes, and strung together with thongs of deerskin. It consisted of several strings, each
being called a fathom, and several fathoms made a belt. Later, a porcelain imitation of the shells was introduced, which served the same
purpose. When one tribe sent a messenger to another tribe, a belt of
wampum was always carried as an evidence of good faith as well as
courtesy. When treaties were made, a belt was handed over as each
article was agreed to, and this was considered as a solemn ratification.
The belts were in such constant use that in New England they passed
41
6




as money, and a fathom varied in price from $1.25 to $2, according to
the value of the shells.
In dealing with the aborigines the traders frequently defrauded them,
and it was in the very nature of the savages to settle the account at the
first favorable opportunity. When Major Waldo, of Maine, who had
sold goods to the Indians, fell into their power, they reminded him of
his habit of thrusting one hand into the scales for a pound weight, and
then proceeded to cut off his fingers. "Waldo," he was asked after
the cruel act was done, " does your hand weigh a pound now?" Traders were often the earliest victims of Indian wars, and some were killed
in the lake country after Cadillac's arrival at Detroit. Women, except
perhaps among the Iroquois, occupied a degraded state, being compelled to do the work of cultivating the Indian corn, boiling the maple
sap, cooking, etc., and were mere slaves to their lordly mates.
For ages before the white man came to this continent the aborigines
fought and slaughtered each other, and later, when the representatives
of a European power came among them and sought to acquire land or
advantages in trade, the obvious course for the white man to pursue
was to espouse the quarrels of one Indian nation against another. In
all wars between white principals, French and Spanish, French and
English, or English and American, there was always an Indian contingent on each side. When the Spaniards discovered and slaughtered
the French Huguenots in Florida, they each had Indian allies.  The
French governors of New France could gain the alliance of both the
Hurons and Algonquins, because these confederacies were generally in
peaceful relations with each other, but that precluded any friendship
with the Iroquois, and so the French had to fight with the two former
against their implacable foes on the south side of the St. Lawrence.
For the same reasons the Iroquois generally espoused the cause of the
English against the French. The red man, however, irrespective of
kinship or confederacy, generally looked out for his own advantage;
he was crafty and discriminating, and seldom allowed sentiment to interfere with his interests. In this region it was always a three-sided
game for gain, the French and English each trying to influence the
aborigines by cajolery, threats and presents, in order to gain control of
the fur trade, while the Indian coolly weighed the respective propositions, accepted those deemed most desirable, and meanwhile endeavored to hold the balance of power. No money passed in trade; it
was all barter. The red man had his peltries gained by long and


42




fatiguing excursions in the forest, and the French and English had
guns, powder, ball, scalping knives, axes, kettles, beads, blankets, provisions and rum or brandy, but in the exchange the Indian had always
the worst of the trade. The aborigines joined either side and fought,
scalped, tortured or burned white and red human beings of all ages and
sexes, with perfect impartiality, if rewarded with sufficient supplies of
these articles of merchandise. Wherever the fur trade extended in
New France or New England, rum and brandy followed, and the
strong drink ever brought misery and ruin to the aboriginal population.
The labors of the Jesuits, or the Protestant divines that came later,
could do no more than alleviate these evils. The terrible scourge
of the small-pox, which broke out in the country northwest of Lake
Superior in 1782, was scarcely more fatal to the natives, though more
rapid and striking in its effects, than the power of ardent spirits. Furs
were gleaned with an iron hand and rum was given out with an iron
heart.  Beavers were sought with a thirst of gain as great as that
which carried Cortez to Mexico and Pizarro to Peru, and no mines of
the precious metals which the world has ever produced were more productive of wealth than the fur yielding region of America.  About
1701, however, the beaver lost its supremacy in the European markets
for a time, but the demand for other choice furs continued unabated.
Had the Indians on this continent made joint resistance to the white
invader, it is very probable that European colonization would have been
delayed for centuries, but the Indian intellect was too narrow and the
Indian temperament too passionate. The red man could not submerge
his hates and prejudices, and thereby rise to the grander heights of
race association for a common cause. But two instances of Indian association as a race against the whites can be cited, and these were both
failures. King Philip, son of Massassoit, who ruled in Massachusetts,
Connecticut and adjoining colonies, formed a combination with the Narragansetts in 1675 to drive out the English. The war raged for about
two years and ended with the killing of Philip and the destruction of
the allied tribes. The other was the well known conspiracy of Pontiac
in 1763, which failed as much by the splendid resistance of the white
man, as by the want of coherence among the savages.
Cannibalism was sometime practiced by nearly all the Indians, as
late as the eighteenth century, and there is a tradition of a case of maneating in Detroit as late as 1763. But there is no record of human
flesh being used by the aborigines as regular diet-it was only the


43




bodies of enemies that were devoured. When Governor-General Denonville vanquished the Seneca tribe of the Iroquois confederacy in
1687, he was horrified to see his Ottawa allies cut up and boil the bodies of twenty-five Senecas and eat them with relish. The case of maneating in Detroit was vouched for by the late James W. Knaggs, who
related it to the writer in this city in 1893, as follows: " Whitmore
Knaggs, my father, was born in Detroit in 1763, the same year in which
Pontiac tried to carly out his famous plan of driving the English out of
Detroit and the other forts on the western frontier. July 31, 1763, a party
of the Detroit garrison, under Captain Dalzell, made a sortie at Bloody
Run, about two miles above the fort, and were defeated by Pontiac
with great loss. After his triumph, Pontiac invited the leading French
residents, including Peter Descompte Labadie, who was the father of
my mother, to a grand feast in honor of the victory. There was
plenty of fish, flesh and fowl, but no liquors. After the feast was over
Pontiac said to Labadie, 'How did you like the meat?' ' It was very
good young beef, was it not?' answerd my grandfather. 'Come here
and I will show you what you have eaten,' said Pontiac. He opened a
sack that was lying on the ground behind him and took out the bloody
head of an English soldier, holding it up by the hair. 'There's the
young beef,' he added with a grin. Labadie took one look, his stomach turned and he immediately ejected everything he had eaten. The
dusky warriors jeered at him and said he was nothing but an old
squaw. This story I often heard Grandfather Labadie tell to strangers
and friends. He described the young beef as very tender and appetizing until Pontiac's revelation."
The coureurs de bois, bushlopers or rangers of the woods, were also a
notable factor in the scheme of European colonization. At first there
was a great deal of private trading with the Indians. To check irregularities the French governors granted licenses to private traders, for
which a fine was paid; these traders at first were superannuated French
army officers, who were given the privilege in return for past services.
In 1688 the number was only twenty-five, but the permits to trade became negotiable paper and a great many social outcasts acquired them.
Those who were not half-breeds were generally of French birth, but
by living with the Indians had virtually become uncivilized. Sometimes they were agents of the great companies who acted under grants
from the French crown, but oftener they were their own masters. At
first they were named as above: coureurs de bois, but afterward they
44




were called merchant voyagers and a few of them, notably Duluth, attained some prominence.
The savages loved ardent spirits and when under its spell would be
more liberal in trading, and so the stock of the coureurs de bois always
included a liberal supply of that demoralizing drink. They transported
it with other goods in canoes, through the lakes and rivers of the North
and West, and over difficult portages, to their destination in the Indian
country. When they reached their trading places they were a law unto
themselves, and, far removed from ecclesiastical and judicial authority,
they were legislators and judges in the wilderness. It is needless to
say that their influence was altogether for evil. The better side of their
character was their dexterity in hunting and trapping, their knowledge
of the languages and customs of the Indian tribes, and their affability
and gayety, which made them popular with the red men. These qualities rendered their services extremely valuable as agents of the French
merchants. They were a hardy race, strong, muscular and well formed,
and dead shots with the rifle. They were neither pagans nor Christians, and knew enough of the Indian and French religions to be regardless of either. Their ordinary dress was a moleton or blanket
coat, a red cap, a belt of cloth passed over the middle of their bodies
and a loose shirt. Sometimes on their voyages through the lakes and
rivers they wore a brown coat or cloak, with a cape that could be drawn
over their heads like a hood. At other times they wore elkskin trousers, the seams of which were ornamented with fringes, a surtout of
coarse blue cloth reaching to the calf of the leg, a worsted sash of
scarlet fastened around the waist, in which was stuck a broad knife
which was used to dissect the animals taken in hunting, and moccasins
made of buckskin.
It is doubtful if the small companies of explorers and traders who
led the way into the American wilderness, among the bloodthirsty
savages, would have had the courage or the ability to make the venture had it not been for their reliance upon firearms. Although the
savages were presently supplied with guns and ammunition by the
traders, the greater part of their guns were very crude weapons, made
especially for such patrons. White men were always the superior
marksmen, but the accuracy and range of the old time musket was
fearfully exaggerated in the romances of pioneer days. In the famous
" Leatherstocking Tales " the shooting described by the imaginative
Mr. Cooper is far beyond the fondest dreams of modern riflemen, who


45




are provided with weapons of fivefold range and threefold accuracy, to
say nothing of the wonderful improvements in ammunition and in the
sighting of guns. Military rifles now have a range of about 3,000
yards; they are bored and rifled with mathematical precision by costly
machinery, and are fired instantaneously by percussion primers as soon
as the hammer is released. In Cadillac's time the common arm was
the smooth-bore musket or arquebus. The barrels were of plain iron
and made very heavy as a precaution against bursting, and were very
long, as it was believed that extreme length of barrel tended to greater
accuracy and range. The powder was poor stuff compared with modern powders, and the bullets were cast by hand in moulds. If there
was considerable difference between the diameter of the bore and the
diameter of the bullet, a fit was secured by using a patch of leather
of the required thickness. Calibers were not rated by millimeters or
hundredths of an inch, but by the number of balls required to weigh
one pound. To operate one of the guns the hunter or soldier poured
out a charge of powder from his powder horn into the palm of his
hand, and emptied it into the muzzle of the gun. Selecting a bullet
from his pouch, he applied a greased patch of cloth or buckskin over
the muzzle of the gun, and placing the bullet on top, drove it home
with his long ramrod. At the breech a hollow plug was let into the
barrel, and attached to this was a powder pan covered with a hinged
plate of steel; the hammer of the gun had jaws for holding a piece of
flint. After the gun had been loaded the hunter poured a little powder into the priming pan, cocked his piece and took aim. At the
descent of the hammer there would be a shower of sparks from the
flint, a dazzling flash from the powder in the pan, and the gun would
go off with a great racket. The range at which any degree of accuracy
could be obtained was about two hundred yards; this was later increased to five hundred yards when the long Kentucky rifle came into
general use. In these days of better weapons, a wise man would hesitate before he would risk his life in the wilderness with no better protection than such guns as Cadillac's followers possessed. Yet the skill
acquired by the early pioneers in the use of their arms was little short
of marvelous. Such guns and an occasional rifle (for the rifle had not
yet come into general use) were the offensive and defensive arms of
the pioneers. They also provided his table with its supply of meat.
When the savages attacked in such force that the home of the settler
could no longer be defended by the small arms of the household, the
46




entire population of the settlement took refuge in the fort with its log
stockade, its blockhouses and its projecting bastions armed with small
cannon. Heavy artillery, whether loaded with three, four, or six
pound shot, or with bolts and scrap iron, always commanded the
respect of the savages. The thundering report was nearly as effective
as the flying missiles in awing them.
It will be seen that the evolution of artillery had not proceeded far,
for the beginning of the firearms was a small cannon supported on a
hand staff and exploded by applying a piece of burning tow or a match.
Then came the matchlock, which on pulling the trigger applied a piece
of burning wick to the powder at the vent. Following this came the
Dutch invention called the wheel lock or fire lock, which ignited the
powder by rotating a toothed wheel of steel against a piece of soft iron,
and the next step was the flint lock, which held supremacy for generations, and which was used exclusively at the battle of Waterloo in 1815.
CHAPTER VII.
What the Pioneers Found at Detroit-Events Contemporaneous with the Founding of the City-Description of the Fauna and Flora of the Region as Described in
Ancient Reports-1701-1703.
At the beginning of the eighteenth century, while Detroit was being
founded, a fever of speculation, adventure and war possessed Eastern
Europe. Spain, after losing her great Armada, steadily declined in
power. Under the Duke of Alva she had seized and drenched in blood
the Netherlands, but most of the provinces had now thrown off her
yoke and had established the Dutch Republic. The small portion of
the Netherlands remaining to her was about to be lost in the war of
the Spanish Succession. Charles II, the last of the Spanish Hapsburgs, had died childless, and to secure the support of France, Philip
of Anjou, grandson of Louis XIV, had been called to the throne. England and the Netherlands opposed this union of interests, and Austria
wanted another Hapsburg prince crowned in Spain. The three made
war upon Spain in 1701, and this conflict, which was called the war of
the Spanish Succession, lasted eight years, during which the Spanish
47




population was reduced from 9,000,000 to less than 6,000, 000. Charles
XII of Sweden had just humbled Denmark and had given the Russians
under Peter the Great an inglorious defeat, although outnumbered five
to one. He was advancing upon Poland and Saxony in 1701. Frederic, the Prussian elector, gave considerable money and loaned 10,000
troops to Austria to fight in the war with Spain, and his reward was
the crown of Prussia, which was erected into a kingdom through the influence of Austria and England. The Duke of Marlborough and Prince
Eugene of Savoy were starting out on the series of splendid campaigns against Spain and France, in which they achieved immortal
glory. Under such pressing demands for troops and money in Europe,
the countries having colonies were compelled for the most part to let
them shift for themselves.
In 1701 William Kidd, the famous pirate chief, closed his career on
the gallows in the city of London. He was a Scotch navigator who in
his earlier days did splendid service for Great Britain, and the colony
of New York had given him a present of /150 in token of its appreciation. But love of adventure lured him to ruin, and from preying on
Spanish commerce he soon developed into a scourge of the seas. New
England witchcraft was beginning to die out; after torturing fifty-five
persons to make them confess that they were witches, and hanging
twenty poor old women for having an alleged intimacy with Satan, the
people of Salem, Mass., were just awakening from their trance of
superstition. Such were the conditions in Europe and the new world,
when Cadillac pitched his camp on the bank of Detroit River.
The founding of the new settlement in the western wilderness required all the more hardihood since it was evident that the government of France could give it but little aid. The officers who came
with Captain Cadillac were Capt. Alphonse de Tonty, a younger
brother of Henry de Tonty, the companion of La Salle, who was next
in command; two lieutenants, Chacornacle and Dugue; a sergeant
named Jacob l'Onimesprou de Mersac; and Antoine, eldest son and
namesake of Cadillac, then nine years of age, who was appointed ensign in 1707, when he was sixteen years of age. Jacob Mersac, like
several of the other soldiers, received a grant of land near the fort,
which was afterward known as the Mersac farm, and tradition tells that
in after years when engaged in plowing lie always wore his sword by his
side. Jean and Francois Fafard, were the Indian interpreters. Two
priests, Nicholas Constantine del Halle, a Recollect of the Franciscan
48




order, and Francis Vaillant de Gueslis, a Jesuit, also came with the expedition to afford the consolation of religion to the little colony, the
former as chaplain and the latter as Indian missionary. Cadillac did
not wish to have Jesuits around him, but the influence of the superior
of the order at Quebec was too strong to be overcome. In a letter to
De Callieres, written twelve days after his landing, he described the
scenery and other advantages of the new settlement in a comprehensive and even poetic vein.
"The Detroit," he says, "is only a canal or river of moderate
breadth and twenty-five leagues in length, through which-the sparkling
and pellucid waters of Lakes Superior, Michigan and Huron (which are
so many seas of sweet water), flow and glide away gently and with a
moderate current into Lake Erie, in the Ontario or Frontenac, and go
at last to mingle in the River St. Lawrence with those of the ocean.
The banks are so many vast meadows where the freshness of those
beautiful streams keeps the grass always green; these same meadows
are fringed with long and broad avenues of fruit trees, which have
never felt the careful hand of the watchful gardener; and the fruit
trees, young and old, droop under the weight and multitude of their
delicious burden, and bend their branches toward the fertile soil which
has produced them. In this soil so fertile, the ambitious vine, which
has not yet wept under the knife of the industrious vine-dresser, forms
a thick roof with its broad leaves and its heavy clusters over the head
of whatever it twines around, which it often stifles by embracing too
closely. Under these vast avenues you may see assembling in hundreds the shy stag and the timid hind, with the bounding roebuck,
which pick up largely the apples and plums with which the ground is
paved. It is there that the careful turkey-hen calls back her numerous
brood and leads them to gather the grapes; it is there that their big
cocks come and fill their broad and gluttonous crops; the golden
pheasant, the quail, the partridge, the woodcock, the teeming turtledove, swarm in the woods and cover the open country, which is intersected and broken by groves of full grown forest trees, which form a
charming prospect and in itself might sweeten the melancholy hours of
solitude. There the hand of the pitiless mower has never shorn the
juicy grass, on which bisons of enormous height and size fatten. The
woods are of six kinds-walnut trees, white oak, red, bastard ash, ivy,
whitewood trees and cotton trees, but these same trees are straight as
arrows, without curves and almost without branches except near the


49




top, and of enormous size and height. It is from thence that the fearless eagle looks steadily at the sun, seeing beneath him wherewith to
satisfy his proudly-armed foot. The fish there are fed and laved in
sparkling and pellucid waters, and are none the less delicious for
the bountiful supply [of them]. There are such large numbers of
swans that the rushes among which they are massed might be taken
for lilies. The gabbling goose, the duck, the teal and the bustard, are
so common here that, in order to satisfy you of it, I will only make use
of the expression of one of the savages. Before I came here I asked
one if there was much game here. He answered, 'There is so much
that they only move aside [long enough] to allow the boat to pass.'
In a word the climate is temperate, the air very pure. During the day
there is a gentle wind, and at night the sky, which is always placid,
diffuses cool and sweet influences which cause us to enjoy the benignity of tranquil sleep. If its position is pleasing it is no less important, for it opens or closes the approach to the most distant tribes
which surround these sweet water seas. It is only the opponents of
the truth who are the enemies of this settlement, so essential to the increase of the glory of the king, to the spread of religion and to the destruction of the throne of Baal."
In another letter dated September 25, 1702, he gives more information regarding this region, repeating to some extent what he said before
in regard to the fruit bearing trees. "This river or strait of the seas
is covered, both on the mainland and the islands, with large clusters of
trees, surrounded by charming meadows. I have observed there are
nearly twenty different kinds of plums; there are three or four kinds
of which are very good; the others are very large and pleasant to look
at, but they have rather tough skins and mealy flesh. The apples are
of medium size; too acid. There is also a number of cherry trees, but
their fruit is not very good. In places there are mulberry trees, which
bear big black berries; the fruit is excellent and refreshing. There is
also a very large quantity of hazel nuts and filberts; there are six kinds
of walnuts. The timber of these trees is good for furniture and gunstocks. There are also stretches of chestnuts, chiefly towards Lake
Erie. All the fruit trees in general are loaded with their fruit; and
there is reason to believe that if these trees were grafted, pruned and
well cultivated, their fruit would be much better and might be made
good fruit. There is one tree which is unknown to me, and to all who
have seen it; its leaves are a vivid green and remain so until the month


50




of January. It has been observed that it flowers in the spring and
toward the end of November, the flowers are white; this tree is a big
one. There is another tree which is well defended, the prickles of
which are one-half a foot long and pierce the wood like a nail. It bears
a fruit like kidney beans; the leaf is like the capillary plant; neither
animal or man could climb it. That would be good for making fences.
Its grain is very hard; when it has arrived at maturity the wood is very
difficult to drive a nail in it [the thornapple]. There are also citron
trees which are the same in form and color as the citron of Portugal, but
they are sweeter and smaller [the paw paw]. There is a large number
of them; they are well preserved. The root of this tree is a very subtle
and deadly poison and it is also a sovereign remedy against snake bites.
It is only necessary to pound it and to apply it to the wound and you
are instantly cured. There are but few snakes in Detroit; they are
very common in the country of the Iroquois. I have seen an herb
pointed out to me by the Iroquois which renders the venom of snakes
innocuous; perhaps it may have some other use. Fifteen leagues from
Detroit, at the entrance to Lake Erie, inclining to the south southwest,
are boundless prairies which stretch away for about one hundred leagues.
It is there that these mighty oxen [buffalos], which are covered with
wool, find food in abundance. I sent this spring to the Chevalier de
Callieres some hides and wool of these animals, and he sent both to the
directors of the company of the colony to make trial of them, and it has
been found that the discovery will prove a valuable one; that the hides
may be very usefully employed and the wool used for stockings and
cloth making. There is a number of stags and hinds; they are seen in
hundreds, with roebucks, black bears, otters and other smaller furbearing animals. The skins of these'animals sell well. There are also
a number of beavers on this mainland and in the neighborhood. Game
is very common-wild turkey, swans, wild ducks, quails, woodcocks,
pheasants and rabbits. There are so many turkeys that twenty or
thirty could be killed at one shot every time they are met with. There
are also partridges, hazel-hens and a stupendous number of turtle-doves.
As the place is well supplied with animals, the wolves, of which there
are numbers, find abundant food, but it often costs them their skins,
because they sell well also, and this aids in destroying them, because
the savages hunt them. There are wood rats [opossums] which are as
large as rabbits, most of them gray, but there are some seen which are
as white as snow. The female has a pouch under her belly which opens
51




and shuts as she requires, so that sometimes when her little ones are
playing, if the mother finds herself pressed, quickly shuts them up in
her pouch and carries them all away with her at once and gains her retreat. I have seen a number of different kinds of birds of rare beauty.
Some have a plumage of a beautiful red fire color, the most vivid it
were possible to see; they have a few shots of black in the tail and at
the tips of their wings, but that is only noticed when they are flying.
I have seen others all yellow, with tails bigger than their bodies, and
they spread out their tails as peacocks do. I have seen others of a sky
blue color, with red breasts; there are some curiously marked like
great butterflies. I have observed that a pleasant warbling proceeds
from all these birds,.especially from the red ones with large beaks.
There are many cranes, gray and white, and they stand higher than a
man. The savages value these latter greatly on account of their plumage, with which they adorn themselves. In the river of Detroit there
are neither stones or rocks, but on Lake Huron there are fine quarries,
and it is a country wooded like Canada, that is to say, with endless
forests. Houses could be provided and buildings erected of bricks, for
there is earth which is very suitable for this, and fortunately, only five
leagues from the fort there is an island which is very large and is entirely composed of limestone [Stony Island]. We have fish in great
abundance, and it could not be otherwise, for the river is inclosed and
situated between the lake, or rather between as many seas. A thing
which is most convenient for navigation is, that it does not wind at all;
its two prevailing winds are the northeast and southwest. This country is so temperate, so fertile and so beautiful, that it may justly be
called the earthly paradise of North America, deserves all the care of
the king to keep it up and to attract inhabitants to it, so that a solid
settlement may be formed there which shall not be liable to the usual
vicissitudes of the other posts, in which only a mere garrison is placed.'"
In regard to the buffalos which he calls oxen, he says that "he could
not send any of them to France until barges could be built, as they
were too large to be transported in canoes."
Cadillac named the inclosure Fort Pontchartrain, after his friend and
patron, but the settlement itself was always named Detroit, or the
Straits.
A company of one hundred men directed by an energetic and capable leader can accomplish wonders. Cadillac kept his men at work early
and late, and by the first day of September the green knoll, which had


52




WWI


JAMES F. JOY.








probably never felt the imprint of a white man's foot six weeks before,
had been converted into a walled city of extremely rustic pattern, and
shelter had been provided for the settlers and their stores. A walled
city may seem an extravagant term unless comparison is made with the
foundings of older cities. Tradition has it that Romulus, the founder
of Rome, slew his twin brother, Remus, because the latter leaped the
first wall of Rome and scoffed at its weak protection. When Caesar
discovered Paris it was a city of some years standing, yet the walls
inclosed but thirty-seven acres, and as late as the beginning of the
thirteenth century its walls surrounded less than a square mile. The
roots of the first settlement struck deep into the soil and although the
last traces of the stockade have been missing for seventy years, the soil
still reveals the story of the past each time it is disturbed for the erection of great buildings. In the summer of 1894, 193 years after the
founding of the city, excavations at the corner of Wayne and Larned
streets turned up many relics. Fragments of old muskets, rusty sword
and knife hilts, a mass of rotten high boots, such as were worn by the
French soldiers of the seventeenth century, and a number of three and
four pound cannon balls, were found on the spot, some of them ten
feet or more beneath the surface. They indicate that the military
stores must have been housed in this part of the works, while the powder magazine is supposed to have been located in a pit near the corner
of Griswold and Larned. Fort Pontchartrain had its northern barrier
near the north side of Larned street reaching from Wayne to a point
near Griswold street. It ran down quite close to the river bank, and
one of the large fortified gates must have been near the crossing of
Shelby and 'Woodbridge streets, the other being on the north side in
the middle of the Larned street front.
Settlers soon came and crowded the little cabins, until they could
erect habitations of their own. Indians arrived in small bands, some
of them being Iroquois, and erected their cabins of bark, back on the
river bank, and following them came the French merchants and the
coureurs de bois. Before the next summer, according to C. M. Burton,
the little colony, situated beyond the verge of civilization, "had a
population of 6,000 souls, mostly Indians, and was the metropolis of
America." No white woman came during the first year, but in the
succeeding years wives and families from Quebec, Montreal and elsewhere, rejoined their husbands in Detroit. The buildings were log
huts, generally one story in height with an attic in the roof. The lots
63




on which they stood were quite small, seldom exceeding 25 by 25 feet;
the shops and stores being a trifle larger, and all the space inside the
palisades was probably covered by buildings.  The soldiers were
lodged inside the fort, and Cadillac, in order to foster industry, gave
them the use of half arpent spaces outside the inclosure, for gardening
purposes. These spaces fronted on the east side of what is now Randolph street, between the river and Fort street east. The soldiers'
houses were owned by the commandant, while the houses of the permanent merchants, artisans and other citizens, were generally owned
by themselves. No transfers of lands were given until 1704, and the
occupants of real estate probably erected buildings under an agreement to have their titles confirmed in the future.
When Madame Cadillac heard that the fort was ready to give her
shelter, she resolved to leave Quebec and go to her husband, in spite
of the difficulties and dangers which beset the way. It was a journey
of one thousand miles. At Detroit she would be cut off from all
society such as she enjoyed in Quebec. The latter station was considered safe against any attempt the savages might make upon it, while
the new outpost was not only beset with dangers, but also cut off from
the rest of the world. Her friends tried to persuade her to remain in
Quebec, but she was firm, and Madame Tonty, whose-husband was also
at Fort Pontchartrain, declared her intention to accompany her.
Madame Cadillac answered her advisers saying: "A woman who loves
her husband as she should, has no stronger attraction than his company, wherever he may be; everything else should be indifferent to
her." Cadillac has been censured for being often involved in troubles
caused by his rashness and his prejudices, but whatever his faults he
must have possessed noble traits of character to have inspired the
strong devotion of such a woman. Madame Cadillac brought her son,
James, aged seven years, leaving her two young daughters in the
Ursuline Convent. The two brave women set out from Quebec on
September 10, 1701, in birch bark canoes, with an escort of rude
voyageurs, for a journey of several weeks through the wilderness.
They were paddled up the St. Lawrence, tramping along with their
escort at the several portages, and finally arriving at Frontenac, where
they passed the winter.
Here they found Father Valliant, who was able to tell the ladies
more satisfactory information of their husbands. Early in the spring
they proceeded along the northern shore of Lake Ontario. Another


54




long portage was passed between the mouth of the Niagara River and
Lake Erie, and then the canoes were paddled along the shore to the
mouth of Detroit River. At night the travelers slept in the forest
with the canoes overturned above them for shelter against the rain,
and they were constantly in danger of attack, because the fierce Iroquois opposed the founding of Detroit as an encroachment upon their
territory. The glad reception this party received at the fort can well
be imagined. The cannon thundered out a welcome as the canoes
rounded the bend in the river, and the advent of the two ladies caused
a genuine sensation among the aborigines. "The Iroquois," Cadillac
says, "kissed their hands and wept for joy, saying that French women
had never before come willingly to their country." They were received at Detroit by all the Indians under arms with many discharges
of musketry, the aborigines being then convinced that the French
wished to make Detroit a post to live in and a flourishing settlement.
Mesdames Cadillac and Tonty were the first white ladies in Detroit and
their list of calling acquaintances must have been quite limited during
the first year or two.
Cadillac at once surveyed the lands, laying out lots and describing
their borders in exact measurement. In some cases these grants became the sources of fortune to modern days, but in every grant
Cadillac reserved to himself certain rights which curiously illustrate
his attempt to establish a sort of feudal system. For instance, all the
grain produced was to be ground at his mill and he exacted an annual
tribute as grand seigneur. From the first, after the pressing needs of
defense and shelter were accomplished, Cadillac directed his efforts to
secure a permanent supply of food. The first wheat was planted on
October 7, 1701, and was reaped in July, 1702, but the crop did not
fulfill expectations. Another crop, sown in the spring of 1702, was almost a failure, but in the summer of 1702 eight arpents, or French
acres, were sown in wheat, and twelve in Indian corn, and these were
good crops. The fifty soldiers also tilled their half-acre lots; the
artisans and traders in the fort cultivated sizable fields outside, and the
the Indians raised abundance of corn. Grape culture was also commenced; the woods were full of wild game; and the river teemed
with choice fish. By the end of 1702 the food supply was no longer a
problem. All the industry was accomplished by manual labor, with
the aid of spades and hoes, there being no horses or oxen in the settlement. Cadillac brought three horses and ten head of cattle to De

55




troit in 1704; two of the horses died, but the survivor, named Colin,
lived for many years. He must have been a strong heavy animal, as
he was used for plowing and hauling loads, and was also rented to the
settlers for these purposes. Other horses and different oxen came
later.
A part of Cadillac's projects, in connection with the plan of building
up a colony, was to induce his soldiers to marry the Indian maidens
and thus form a strong bond of kinship and mutual interest between
the aborigines and the French. To this end and for the purpose of
getting even with the Jesuits at Mackinac, he endeavored from the
first to bring the Hurons from that place to Detroit. In conferring
with Father Valliant on the subject he met a decided refusal to cooperate, as the priest would not look with favor on any scheme that
would disrupt or injure the Jesuit mission at that place. As a result of
this disagreement Father Valliant left Detroit about two months after
his arrival and went to Fort Frontenac, which was on the present site
of Kingston, Ontario. Father Superior Bouvard at Quebec, Father
Etienne de Carheil at Mackinac, and all the other Jesuits also opposed
Cadillac in this plan, and the project of founding a Jesuit mission at
Detroit failed for a time. In 1728, however, after Cadillac had returned to France, the " Huron Mission of Detroit " was founded by the
Jesuits, and it was located on the other side of the river at Sandwich,
opposite Detroit.
The principal thoroughfare of old Detroit was St. Anne street, which
ran east and west and was about thirty feet wide. Its northern line
was nearly on the northern side of Jefferson avenue, extending from
Griswold street to a point about thirty feet west of Shelby street. Near
its easterly end on the north side, was the church, a little west of where
Ives & Son's bank is now situated, at the northwest corner of Jefferson
avenue and Griswold street. South of St. Anne street was a parallel
thoroughfare named St. Louis street, on which both the northerly and
southerly tiers of lots were all on what is now Jefferson avenue. Another
parallel street north of St. Anne, was named St. Joachim street, which
lay between Jefferson avenue and the alley on the north. This street
extended like the others from Griswold to Shelby streets; these streets
were about twenty feet wide. Two other streets ran north and south,
and extended from St. Louis to St. Joachim street, across St. Anne
street, and there was another short thoroughfare midway between the
two, named Recontre street. Realizing these spaces and measurements


56




8r~ JOAODIM  3r. —.
612143   44    $'      i    460  Rc
2J  R~JoJr


DETROIT IN 1708.


COLORED PLATE
INDICATES PRESENT PLAN OP CITY.








and the contrast between them and the wide streets of modern Detroit,
it might be thought that the land was extremely valuable, but the
contrary was the fact. The inhabitants were huddled together for protection within the small stockade, and when land was sold or rented
the prices paid were principally for safety from the savages or the
British, and also for the privilege of conducting trade or other vocations.
The population of the first year, owing to causes hereinafter related,
was not maintained and was not equaled until one hundred and fifty
years later, but as more room was desirable, the inclosure was enlarged
from time to time under French, British and American rule, until 1812,
when it was surrendered by Hull. It then comprised all the space on
the river front between Brush and Wayne streets and back to Lamed
street. From these eastern and western points the line of palisades
inclined inward to the earthworks of the fort, the center of which was
at the present intersection of Fort and Shelby streets, with angles
reaching out half a square in four directions.
In order to hamper the development of Detroit, the Jesuits of Mackinaw, in 1701, planned the establishment of a post at Fort St. Joseph,
on the St. Joseph River on Lake Michigan, where special inducements
would be made to settlers and Indians for the purpose of drawing away
those who had already settled at Detroit. Many had been persuaded
by Cadillac to leave Mackinaw and come to his post. Tonty, who was
associated with Cadillac and pretended to be his friend, united with
Fathers Marmet and Davenant, of Mackinaw, for the promotion of this
scheme. When it failed Tonty begged Cadillac's pardon and it was
granted, but he was soon in another scheme which had for its purpose
the removal of Cadillac and the substitution of himself as commandant.
During this period, the first two years of the settlement, each party
to the controversy made bitter accusations against the other. The Jesuits said that they would display a more Christian spirit than the
vengeful Cadillac, by laying all their resentment at the foot of the
crucifix. Cadillac retorted sarcastically that the deposit was a mere
convenience, as the vocation of the Jesuit priests called them constantly to the foot of the crucifix, and they could therefore take up
their resentments again at any time. In one of his lengthy attacks on
the Jesuits, he says they ' wished him to go down under the waters of
vengeance and persecution, but as long as I have for my protection
Justice and Merit, I shall float and swim over the waves like the nest
57
8




of the ingenious king-fisher. I shall try to conduct myself better and
better, and to walk by the brightness and the light of these two illustrious patronesses. Without them I should long ago have been unable
to bear up against the torrent. It is true that sometimes raising my
eyes to heaven, I cry in the weakness of my faith, ' Sancta Frontenac,
ora pro me' (Pray for me, Holy Frontenac)."
In 1701 beaver skins had depreciated in price and were a drug in the
market, and Intendant Champigny cautioned Cadillac to deal as little
in that kind of fur as possible and to trade for other skins that would
bring good prices. The skins of stags and hinds were then worth fourteen livres; roebucks up to six livres; bears up to ten livres; others five
livres and wildcats thirty-two sols or one livre and seven sols.
CHAPTER VIII.
Plots and Counterplots between Cadillac and His Enemies-The Merchants of
Montreal Oppose the Development of Detroit for Fear of Its Future Rivalry-Detroit
was a Great Beaver Region.
Cadillac's report to Pontchartrain of the results of his first year's
work was as follows:
" All that I have the honor to state to you has been done in one year, without its
having cost the king a sol, and without costing the company more than it ought,
and in twelve months we have put ourselves in a position to do without provisions
from Canada forever, and all this undertaking was carried out with three months'
provisions, which I took when I set out from Montreal, and which were consumed
in the course of the journey. This proves whether Detroit is a desirable or undesirable country. Besides this nearly six thousand savages of different tribes wintered there, as every one knows. This is the paradise of North America."
While Cadillac was busily engaged in furthering the interests of the
colony, he received on July 19, 1702, a notification that the post had
been ceded to the "Company of the Colony of Canada."   This was unwelcome and disagreeable news to a man whose fortunes had been
shattered by war, and who was then bending every energy to repair
them by building up the new colony. In one of his letters, written
subsequently, he stated that if he had known that the company was to
have the trade of Detroit, he would not have undertaken its establish

58




ment. He had doubtless supposed that the trade of the new settlement would go to him, just as the trade of the Illinois country had
been granted to La Salle. The De Caens had also been given the
monopoly of trade in New France when Frontenac was governor, and
they were succeeded by the West Indian Company in 1664. Both lost
money in these enterprises and their charters were revoked. In 1699
the principal citizens of Quebec, one of whom was Cadillac, sent a deputation to Versailles to solicit from Louis XIV the monoply of the
beaver trade, and this company was granted that privilege after Cadillac founded Detroit. By the terms of the agreement the Company of
the Colony was to have the exclusive control of the fur trade of Forts
Pontchartrain and Frontenac, and were required to finish the forts and
buildings belonging thereto, and keep them in good repair, and to support the commandant and one other officer. The necessary garrison
was to be maintained at the king's expense. This was the system on
which French colonial enterprises were conducted at that time. Colonizing was always an expensive undertaking, and neither the government of New France, with its sparse population, nor the mother
country, impoverished by European wars, could afford to support such
undertakings alone. The method used was simply to grant trade
privileges to companies and provide that the latter should pay a considerable portion of the expenses.
Three days after receiving the notice Cadillac left Detroit on July 21,
1702, for Quebec, where he made arrangements with the company. A
contract was drawn up by which the company agreed to pay him 2,000
livres ($400) and De Tonty 1,333 livres ($266) per year, and the necessary supplies for their families. He was pledged not to traffic with the
savages and to prevent, as far as possible, all other traders, including
the English, from trading at the post. He was also given charge of the
books of the company and was treasurer of its surplus funds, and given
power to prevent frauds by the employees. He undertook to carry out
the purposes of his office, and this finally brought him into collision
with the company. In consideration of the monopoly of the trade of
the post of Detroit, the company bound itself to reimburse Cadillac for
the expenses he incurred there, consisting not only of the goods which
had been sent there for trading, but also of the provisions, stores and
tools, boats bought for the journey, the construction of the fort, and
the wages of those who were serving at that post, but on condition of
his making a reduction of 15,000 livres, which his majesty had granted




for the construction of the fort. Also to provide food for the officers
in command there, so that they might have their pay clear; to have the
provisions and clothes of the soldiers conveyed there at fifteen per
cent. profit, which otherwise would have cost as much again; and also
to distribute to poor families of rank the sum of 6,000 livres instead of
the licensed traders. The company was also obliged by the orders of
Governor de Callieres, and his intendant, De Beauharnois, to restrict
their trade to the forts at Frontenac and Detroit, because the savages
could easily come to these two places. "If it were permitted to this
company to take goods to them [the savages] it would entirely ruin the
trade of the settlers and the merchants of Montreal, who only get a
bare subsistence on the little trade done there at present."
In November, 1702, intrigues were already at work at the new settlement. The Hurons at Detroit, together with some Indians from
the Sault, went to Orange (Albany) in response to an invitation from
the English to come and trade with them, and then the chiefs at Detroit went to Tonty and said if they could not get goods cheaper at
Detroit that their young men would go and trade with the English at
Orange or at some meeting place. In communicating this unwelcome
news to Pontchartrain, Governor de Callieres said that he greatly feared
that these intrigues might have disastrous consequences to the colony.
At the end of 1702 the Hurons had cleared up about two hundred acres
of land, and their village and fort was on the west of Fort Pontchartrain. The Appenagos or Loups, generally called Wolves, had a village and fort on the east side of the French fort, the land, however,
being granted by Cadillac with the condition that they would remove
when requested, as he expected to use the space in the future as a
common. He characterized them as peaceable and caressing, and that
they even tried to learn the French language. About a mile and a
half above the fort was a settlement and fort inhabited by four tribes
of Ottawas. So that in 1702 within the space of one league there
were four forts and four hundred men bearing arms, with their families, beside the garrison.
In the spring of 1703 a fire broke out in the fort which did considerable damage. The mystery surrounding its origin led Cadillac to believe that it was the work of the Jesuits, and he wrote the following
account to Count Pontchartrain:
"The fort was set on fire, the blaze having been started in a barn, which was
flanked by two bastions and was full of corn and other crops. The flames by a
60




strong wind burned down the church, the house of the Recollet, that of de Tonty
and mine, which cost me a loss of 400 pistoles [$800], which I could have saved
if I had been willing to let the company's warehouse burn and the king's ammunition. I even had one hand burnt, and lost for the most part all my papers in the
fire. We have never been able to ascertain who it was set fire to the barn, though
we may be able to obtain something about it hereafter. All the tribes settled at
Detroit assert that it was a strange savage who did the deed, or rather they say some
Frenchman who has been paid for doing this wicked act. God only knows."
In this conflagration the church records were destroyed; they were
not very extensive to be sure, but they doubtless contained the record
of the birth and death of one of Cadillac's children, as well as the
birth and death of a child of Tonty. Years afterward a settler named
Campau told Governor Vaudreuil that one of Tonty's factotums, a
soldier named De Ville, had started the fire.
C. M. Burton fixes the probable site of Cadillac's home on what is
now the north side of Jefferson avenue, between Griswold and Shelby
streets, about where the old Masonic hall is situated, on the ground
now covered by the buildings Nos. 133, 135 and 137 Jefferson avenue.
The resident Indians realized that Cadillac was a friend in need and
helped stay the progress of the flames. After the fire was over they
presented him with one hundred bushels of corn, and also furnished
him with all the grain necessary for the support of the troops at the
usual price.
Still later in 1703 a party of fifteen Illinois braves appeared at the
settlement with the object of destroying it. They were discovered before they did any harm, and were at once captured and whipped at the
post. Cadillac then sent four of them back to their tribe, and through
them concluded a treaty of peace. An outbreak in which Cadillac exhibited diplomacy of a high order occurred shortly afterward. A band
of Miamis from Auyatonan attacked the Detroit Indians and killed an
Ottawa, two Hurons and a Potawatomie. This raised the resentment
of the local Indians, and they immediately organized for the war path,
but Cadillac realized that an Indian war would cripple or ruin the settlement, and he persuaded them to wait for a few days. He then
went to the camp of the Miamis at Auyatonan, and told them that if
they did not satisfy the friends of the murdered braves, that the
French would deal with them severely. The latter sent several chiefs
to Detroit and after a parley peace was declared for the time being.
In the little settlement under French rule the street scenes were
unique, showing a strange mingling of civilization and barbarism.


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Along the banks of the river could be seen the Indian birch bark
canoes turned bottom up and sheltering the red man and his children,
now on a trading visit. Beside the canoes were often tents or tepees
made of the same material, to afford additional shelter. On the narrow streets were the French soldiers of the garrison, clad in gay blue
uniforms with white facings and three-cornered chapeaux; the Recollect
fathers, clad in black cassocks, with the crucifix hanging from the
waist; the coureur de bois, with his blue blanket coat and red cape; the
stolid Indian awaiting the disposal of his peitries, which he had
brought from his hunting grounds hundreds of miles away; the sober
merchant of sober garb and gait, as he passed on his way to the beach
where the peltries lay; and the gay young women, wives and daughters of the merchants and army officers, who were the aristocracy of
the post, radiant in silks and satins of fashions which were in vogue in
Paris two years before, and had been imported to Quebec the previous
year.
La Hontan, a French officer who was commandant of a fort on Lake
Ontario during the seventeenth century, gives an interesting account
of the way the Indians traded with the French while the latter were
rulers of the Northwest. His "Journal" was first published in 1703,
and there were several editions in later years. "When the Indians
accumulated a sufficient supply of peltries, they loaded them in bark
canoes and set forth for the market. Arrived at their destination they
encamped some four or five hundred yards from the town, unloaded
their canoes and camped beside them. Next day they generally waited
on the commandant or highest person in authority, and had an audience
in a public place. The French ruler would sit in a chair and the Indians
on the ground with pipes in their mouths. Presently one of the orators
would stand up and make a speech, saying that his party had come to
renew their friendship with the French; that they wished to promote
the interests of the latter; that they knew their goods were valuable,
and that the French goods given in exchange were not so costly or desirable; that they wanted to exchange their furs for powder and ball
and guns and blankets and other articles. With the arms and ammunition they proposed to hunt great quantities of beavers, or to fight the
Iroquois, if the latter disturbed the French settlement. Then they
gave a belt of wampum, which was several strings of shells or an imitation of the same in crockery, to the person in authority, together
with some skins, and claimed his protection in case any of their goods




were stolen, or for any abuse that might be committed upon them in
the place. The ruler would answer in a very civil speech, in which he
assured them of his protection and made some presents in return. Then
the conference was over and the savages returned to their temporary
camp. Next morning, with their slaves, if they had any, they would
carry the skins to the stores of the merchants, and bargain with them
for clothes, blankets, axes, powder, ball, etc. The inhabitants (except
in the early days of New France when the big companieshad a monopoly of the trade) were permitted to traffic with the Indians and exchange
goods with them, but spirituous liquors were barred, as the Indians
when drunk were liable to quarrel, rob and kill. After the trading was
finished the savages retired to their villages." "The whole of New
France was a vast ranging ground for the Indian tribes, who roamed
over it in all the listless indolence of their savage independence; for
the Jesuit missionaries, garbed in black cassocks, who strove to gain
the influence of the red men for both the church and the French government; for a theater of important military operations; and for a grand
mart where the valuable furs of the region were collected for shipment
to France, under a commercial system originally projected by Cardinal
Richelieu."
DETROIT THE HOME OF THE BEAVER.
According to that shrewd observer and able writer, the late Bela
Hubbard, that timid animal, the beaver, led to the colonization of Canada and the Northwest. In honor of the animal's memory, the arms of
Canada bear its image, and the early arms of Quebec and Montreal did
it like honor. Bryant's history says: '"The beaver was a better friend
to the early colonists of Massachusetts than the cod, although the codfish still hangs in the State House in Boston as the emblem of commercial prosperity, while the beaver lingers only in tradition, where
the remains of an embankment across some secluded meadow marks
the site of an ancient beaver dam." In Hubbard's " Memorials of Half
a Century," the writer says:
"The region between Lake Erie and the Saginaw valley was one of the great
beaver trapping grounds. The Huron, the Chippewa, the Ottawa and even the fierce
Iroquois from beyond Lake Ontario, by turns sought this region in large numbers
from the earliest historic times. It is a region peculiarly adapted to the wants of
the beaver. To a great extent level, it is intersected by small water courses which
have but a moderate flow. At the head waters and small inlets of these streams,
the beaver established his colonies; here he dammed the stream, setting back the
63




water over the flat lands, and creating ponds which were his habitation. Not one or
two, but a series of such dams were constructed along each stream so that very extensive surfaces became covered with the flood. The trees were killed and the land
was converted into a chain of ponds and marshes. In time-by nature's recuperative
process-the annual growth and decay of aquatic plants-these filled up with muck
or peat, with occasional deposits of bog lime, and the ponds and swales became dry
again. Illustrations of this beaver-made country are numerous in our immediate
vicinity. In a semi-circle of twelve miles about Detroit, having the river as a base
and embracing about 100,000 acres, fully one-fifth part consists of marshy tracts and
prairies which had their origin in the work of the beaver. A little further west
nearly one whole township of Wayne county is of this character."
One reason why the Iroquois opposed the settlement at Detroit was because the French were encroaching upon their beaver-trapping grounds,
and this encroachment was put in its worst possible light by the British traders who plotted to keep the French out. France received from
Canada between the years 1675-85, 895,581 pounds of beaver skins,
averaging 89,588 pounds a year, and this rich trade excited the envy
of the British trader. A good skin weighed about one pound, and
under the name of a castor became the unit of value. It was so named
because castor Canadensis is the zoological term for the North American or Canadian beaver. A good beaver skin or castor, was worth
about a dollar, and all other fur skins were related to it in value. The
old Hudson Bay company issued a money counter called a castor in the
form of a piece of wood, appropriately stamped or carved, and would
pay the Indians for their beaver or other furs with them, and the savages could buy what they wished in the company's storehouse with this
wooden money. A castor, or its equivalent, was thus often exchanged
for a good hunting knife in the early days, and a greater quantity would
be given for a cheap gun and ammunition.     It would seem   at first
glance that the white man had all the best of it, which is true from the
financial standpoint, but while the traders were piling uip fortunes from
the sale of furs, the Indians were engaged in self-preservation, The
Iroquois of the East were being supplied with weapons by the British,
and it was absolutely necessary that the Algonquin and other northern
Indians should secure the same kind of arms, and throw away their
bows and arrows. Their necessities were exactly the same as those of
the United States government to-day.     An iron clad battleship is a
piece of mechanism which costs $2,500,000, and the chances are that it
will never be used, but in order to preserve peace and the national
honor the money must be spent simply because other nations are arm

64








CHARLES DUCHARME.








ing themselves in the same fashion. In 1765 under English rule beaver
skins brought two shillings and sixpence a pound; otter skins were six
shillings each, and martens one shilling and sixpence. Ten beaver
skins were given in exchange for a stroud blanket, eight for a white
blanket, two for a pound of powder, one for a pound of shot, one for a
knife, twenty for a gun, two for an axe of one pound weight. On rare
occasions a little Quebec currency was seen at Detroit and the other
western posts, but money did not come into use until the New York
currency was brought into the West.
The French settlers were ever anxious to make Detroit an important
trading post and to secure the good will of the natives, but the minds
of the savages were made suspicious by the scheming traders, who
whispered in their ears: " Beware of these men who come among you
to build forts; they will tell you that they are your brothers who come
to trade and make you happy; they are deceiving you; they build
forts because they intend to make war upon you; they place cannon so
they can kill you when they wish to do so. They will trade with you
if you will let them, but their guns and their knives and blankets are
not good, and they will cheat you in trading; they want not your furs,
but your country, and they will drive you away as you drive the fat
buffalo in the fall. We trade with you fairly and we build no forts
against you."
After two years of negotiating a band of Hurons arrived in Detroit
from Mackinac, and Cadillac could not conceal his exultation. "Thirty
Hurons of Michillimackinos arrived here on the 28th of June, 1703;
there remained only about twenty-five at Michillimackinos. Father
Carheil, who is missionary there, remains always firm.  I hope this
fall to pluck the last feather out of his wing and I am persuaded that
this obstinate old priest will die in his parish without a single parishioner to bury him."
It was a pathetic picture which is thus suggested by the worldly and
masterful commandant. The old priest, true to his obligations to God
and morality, remaining steadfast while his flock were deserting him
to obtain b:andy and become wicked and demoralized at the new fort.
And yet the Indian trade, which was the sole basis of the trade of the
European colonies and was necessary to their existence, followed
wherever strong drink could be obtained. It was either French brandy
or English rum, there was no alternative, and between them the
aborigines were ground as between the upper and nether millstone to
65
9




fragments. In 1703 the Sauteurs and Mississaguez came to Detroit,
and incorporating with each other, by the advice of Cadillac, formed
another village near the fort on the river; also several households and
families of the Miamis and some Nepissirineens, the former incorporating themselves with the Hurons and the latter with the Appenagos
or Loups (Wolves). Also, as before mentioned, thirty Hurons left the
Mackinac mission and settled at Detroit. In the same year the Ottawas and Kiskakowas also promised to come from Mackinac. In one of
his letters about the opposition of the Jesuits, dated Fort Pontchartrain, August 31, 1703, Cadillac says: " Can it be believed that I should
have been willing without powerful reasons to thwart any Jesuits or
that I should have taken it into my head to attack that formidable society? I have not lived so long without knowing full well how dangerous it is to cross their path.... I am doing my utmost to make
them my friends, truly wishing to be theirs, but if I dare say so, all
impiety apart, it would be better to sin against God than against them,
for on the one hand pardon is received for it; while on the other, even
a pretended offense is never forgiven in this world, and never perhaps
in the other, if their influence were as great as it is in this country."
The Company of the Colony proved to be a rapacious corporation.
They commenced by cutting down by one-half the prices paid in goods
to the Indians for their peltries, and treated the aborigines badly in
other respects. Cadillac wrote in the latter part of 1702 to Pontchar.
train that the company was disgusted with the colony, as they were
losing trade and money, and said if its rights and privileges were
turned over to him that he would make Detroit flourish. The company had told him that they had lost 12,297 livres 17 sols, but that it
had really made 20,000 livres profit. In criticising the methods of the
company he showed that their goods brought 200 per cent. profit. Of
the powder in stock at a certain date-2,015 pounds costing 21 sols per
pound-each pound was exchanged for the skin of a beaver, roebuck,
otter, stag or bear; one and a half pounds of lead, costing six sols per
pound, was exchanged for a beaver skin; tobacco, costing 27 sols per
pound, was exchanged at the rate of three-quarters of a pound for a
beaver skin. It was then shown that the profit on powder was 200 per
cent.; on lead 700 per cent.; and on tobacco 300 to 700 per cent.
About this time (1703) Cadillac was much disquieted by the desertions
of his soldiers. After two years only twenty-five remained of the original force of fifty, and these were afterward reduced still more in num

66




ber. In his report to Pontchartrain he represented that some of the
deserters wished to come back, giving as their reasons for leaving that
Governor Callieres had promised that their term of enlistment was for
three years; that they were overwhelmed with work, and saw all the
profits go to a company that treated them badly; also that they had
been promised lands and had not received them.
The settlers were generally healthy, but sometimes the dreaded
small pox made its appearance. In 1703 it came to Mackinaw and carried off a great many of the aborigines. Its ravages filled the Indians
with terror, and Cadillac with characteristic shrewdness turned their
panic to good account. " You die of small-pox because you remain at
Mackinaw instead of coming to Detroit," he said to some Chippewas
from the north. " If you persist in remaining there against my wishes
I will send something more deadly than small-pox among you." In
1732 and in the winter of 1733-34 there were also numerous cases of
small-pox in Detroit, and many were fatal.
CHAPTER IX.
Cadillac Quells a Conspiracy-Agents of the Company of the Colony Detected in
Stealing-Their Friends Support Them-Cadillac Summoned to Montreal for Trial.
In 1703 Cadillac discovered that the company's agents and Tonty,
his second in command, were guilty of gross mismanagement and robbery. The Company of the Colony was managed by a board of directors, who appointed a number of their relatives to lucrative clerkships.
Director Lotbiniere appointed Arnaud, his wife's son-in-law, and Monseignot, a brother-in-law of Arnaud; other clerks were Chateleraut, De
Meute, Nolan and Desnoyer, who were relatives of other directors. It
is evident that Cadillac was desirous of getting back the control of the
trade of the settlement and he naturally watched the affairs of the company, both as a matter of,duty and for future advantage. He found
that Arnaud and Nolan were charging exorbitant prices for powder,
ball and tobacco; had screwed down the price of peltries very low, and
that Tonty was in league with them. Cadillac denounced the robbers
both to the company and to Governor Vaudreuil, and among his


67




specific allegations were that they had nineteen packages of furs concealed in a hut in the Huron village and 118 other packages hidden in
the company's warehouse, which had not been accounted for, and
which were valued at 14,000 crowns, or about $15,400. When Vaudreuil received the communication he consulted with Lotbiniere, who
was his uncle, and also with Intendent Beauharnois. Lotbiniere wrote
a letter to Cadillac asking him to hush the matter up, and promising
to arrange the matter amicably without scandal, but Cadillac would
not be silenced, and finally an investigating committee was sent to Detroit. It consisted of Vencelot, a relative of a director; Lovigny, a
brother-in-law of Nolan; and Chateleraut, a relative of Lovigny-all
friends of the accused. Of course such a commission could only bring
in a report favorable to the accused and against Cadillac, but it did
not stop at that. The report charged that the commandant and a
clerk named Radisson had been guilty of selling the company's property in trade for furs on their own account; that the commandant had
used violence toward Chief Clerk Desnoyer by locking him up for three
hours, and that he had incited the Indians to demand the dismissal of
Desnoyer and to object to the removal of furs from the fort until the
warehouse was filled with goods, and until all the residents had a right
to trade with them.
Cadillac was then summoned by Vaudreuil to come to Quebec, and
left for that place on September 29, 1704. On the same day Lieutenant Bourgmont left Quebec for Detroit to take his place. No sooner
was Cadillac gone than the thrifty Tonty sold nearly all the powder
and ball to the Indians, and thus left the fort in great danger. When
Cadillac arrived in Quebec he was arrested on the instance of Lotbiniere, and remained in durance for two days, when he was released,
presumably on bail. The trial took place in the Chateau St. Louis,
before the intendant, ten months afterward, in June, 1705. Cadillac's
defense was irresistible, and he was triumphantly acquitted, but his
defense was not invulnerable. He claimed that the directors were perfectly satisfied with him until the close of 1703; but Count Pontchartrain, writing under date of July 14, 1704, says that he received at the
same time with Cadillac's letter of August 30, 1703, a series of complaints from the directors of the company; and again, answering the
charges of inducing the Indians to demand the dismissal of Desnoyer,
Cadillac says: "It is an absurd subterfuge to say that the savages demanded the dismissal so soon [three days] after the arrival of Desnoyer."
68




Yet in the same letter he says that Desnoyer, having arrived on the fifth,
on the eighth the savages demanded his removal, presenting a belt.
His trouble with Desnoyer is thus explained by himself. A soldier
of the garrison, who had deserted, was killed by an Onondaga Indian
while on his way through the wilderness to Fort Frontenac. The
friendly Indians, to the number of about one hundred, organized to
avenge the soldier's death, and asked Cadillac that seven or eight
Frenchmen might be allowed to go with them. He acceded to their
request and ordered Tonty to command eight good men of the employees of the company, and to have provisions and ammunition served
to them. Desnoyer, the head clerk, said that this could not be done
without his permission, maintaining that Cadillac had no power to detach the company's employees on the king's service. Tonty, who
thought that Cadillac's term of office would be short and that he would
succeed him, said that he did not believe that he (Cadillac) had the
power to order such matters. This naturally enraged Cadillac, and he
had Desnoyer put in prison-the sergeant's quarters-for three hours.
All this time Cadillac was corresponding with his friend, Count Pontchartrain; his letters had two main strains; one was bitter denunciation
of his enemies; and the other was laudation of himself, together with
application for a nmarquisate and for supreme control of the trade of
Detroit and Mackinac.
When he was acquitted at Quebec by Beauharnois he haughtily refused to accept the verdict, claiming that the intendant had no jurisdiction over the case  In a letter from Pontchartrain to Cadillac, dated
at Paris, September, 1705, he was directed to remain at Quebec until
further orders. During the time Tonty was commandant at Detroit,
in 1704, the Ottawa chiefs were persuaded to come to Albany, where
the British gave them brandy and many presents, at the same time
assuring them that the French were established at Detroit for the purpose of cheating them out of all their possessions. The chiefs returned
and told their people, who believed the story. An attempt was made
to fire the fort, but the vigilance of the French defeated it. Later a
war party made a successful raid in the territory of the Iroquois and
returned with a number of prisoners; their success made them bold
and they assumed a hostile attitude in front of the fort. To keep them
from becoming dangerous Tonty sent Sieur de Vincennes, his lieutenant, against them with a company of soldiers, and rescued the prisoners, after which they drove the Ottawas to a respectful distance.


69




Although Cadillac recommended the marriage of French soldiers to
Indian maidens, and was hopeful of good consequences to result therefrom, the soldiers themselves did not see fit to contract such matrimonial alliances. The only case on record of a marriage of this sort
was that of Peter Roy. Father Denissen, commenting on the above,
says: "These vigorous pioneers did not shape their love affairs on the
utilitarian plan. The young men grow lonesome in the wilderness and
their thoughts would wander back to the girls they left behind them.
Permission was readily granted to any one who wanted to return to
Lower Canada to secure a bride. According as these treasures were
imported to Detroit, the place grew more civilized and the inhabitants
felt more at home and contented. The French of Detroit never intermarried with the Indians to any extent; there have been a few exceptional cases, but such marriages were rare, and because so rare, they
were all the more noticed. No bride suits the French heart as well as
the frank, modest, polite, charming French maiden, who has the desirable faculty to grace her home as a queen and bring happiness to
her surroundings."
This statement of Father Denissen, who is perhaps the most accomplished genealogist of the day, is all the more valuable, as one or
more prominent writers have asserted that several leading Detroiters
and their families were descended from French soldiers and their In.
dian wives.
After Cadillac was arrested he prepared himself for the trial with all
the resources at his command, one of which was the writing of an imaginary conversation between himself and Count Pontchartrain, the
French colonial minister, in which the points of the controversy between himself and the company, or at least as many as served his purpose, were brought forward, and in which, of course, he cleared himself triumphantly. These documents, among other papers of Cadillac,
were preserved, and a large collection of them was made by General
Cass, while United States minister to France. In after years Mrs. E.
M. Sheldon embodied these papers in "The Early History of Michigan," which was published in 1856, and this work and episode for
many years was quoted as authority by writers of Michigan, including
such an able and discriminating writer as Judge J. V. Campbell. In
her work Mrs. Sheldon assumes that Count Pontchartrain had come to
Quebec and there held the conversations with Cadillac at the Chateau
of St. Louis in that city. It was only in 1890 that this curious mistake


70




was discovered by R. R. Elliott, of Detroit, when he submitted his
manuscript on the Catholic history of Detroit to the late Dr. Gilmary
Shea, the historian. Shea answered that Pontchartrain was never in
America, and that Cadillac's papers should always be corroborated
with contemporary documents before being accepted. The matter was
also referred to the late Pierre Margry, the French archivist and historian, who agreed with Dr. Shea. Margry said that such conversations were not uncommon in literature. "Fontenelle published dialogues of the dead," he said. " Cadillac imagined a dialogue of people
very much alive, but living far away from each other. It was original
in management and piquant."
In one of his answers to one of those imaginary questions Cadillac
says: " I confess that the offers of the British traders at Orange are a
great attraction to the Indians, but experience shows us that the savages who are round about Quebec, Three Rivers and Montreal, know
perfectly well that their furs sell better with the English, and that they
give them goods cheaper, yet they do all their trade with us. Several
reasons engage them to this: The first is that each savage, taking one
with another, kills only fifty or sixty beavers a year, and as he is near
the Frenchman he borrows from him, and is obliged to pay in proportion on his return from hunting. Out of the little which remains to
him he is compelled to make some purchase for his family, and he finds
himself unable to go to the English because his remaining furs are not
worth the trouble of the longer journey. A second reason is that they
receive many flattering attentions from the F ench, who make them
eat and drink with them, and in fact they contrive matters so well that
they never let their furs escape. The desire to go to the English always exists in them, but they are skillfully reduced so that they are
unable to put it into execution. It is for this reason, if Detroit is not
settled, you will see, my Lord, all the savages of that district go to the
English, or invite them to come and settle among them."
Question-Have you not also some other reason? [for recommending
a settlement at Detroit].
Answer-Excuse me, it cannot be disputed that our savages used to
carry on their hunting only to the north of Lake St. Clair; but through
this post they now carry it on as far as 200 leagues south of Lake Erie,
inclining toward the sea. These furs which used to form part of the
English trade are now carried into the colony by the savages.
Question-What skins are obtained in those places?


71




Answer-The skins of deer, roe, elk, roebuck, black bears, bisons,
wolves, wildcats, otters, beaver and other small skins. [In 1701 the
reports show that beaver skins were not much used, and they had little
commercial value.-Ed.] These skins are now in request. Skins of
the deer and roe bring sixteen livres each; those of the elk up to
twenty livres; black bears ten, roebuck five livres, and other skins in
proportion.
Question-Can not some means be found of employing the savages
in hunting for them instead of the beaver, which has lost its reputation
as merchandise and is burdensome to France because there is no de
mand for it?
Answer-It will be easy to so employ the savages provided they are
supplied with goods to the value of the skins. This will be an infallible way to create a demand for beaver in the kingdoms, since instead of 130,000, which are received every year at the office in Quebec,
only about 70,000 will be received each year. I am not speaking of
the beaver of the Bay of Canada.
Question-Apparently Father Valliant contributed greatly by his exhortations to advancing the work at Detroit.
Answer-He exerted himself for this so well that, if the soldiers and
Canadians had believed him, thev would have set out after two days
to return to Montreal on the promise that this father made them, that
he would get their wages paid to them by the intendant for the whole
year, although they bad been employed but six weeks.
In another of these imaginary conversations he discusses the Company
of the Colony as follows:
Question [by Count Pontchartrain]-I could not dispense with granting the trade of Detroit to the Company of the Colony, which promised
me to do everything in its power to make the settlement a success.
Answer-If you had known its power you would have hoped for
nothing from it; it is the most beggarly and chimerical company that
ever existed. I had as lief see Harlequin emperor of the moon. It
was this company that entirely upset my scheme by consistently opposing your intentions in an underhand manner, the whole being cunningly managed by the Jesuits of that country.
In one instance Cadillac himself confesses the nature of these imaginary
conversations-a fact which has been generally overlooked. He makes
complaint that his letters have been opened, and then puts these words
in the mouth of Count Pontchartrain:


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Question-What is this you tell me? Is it really true that there was
any one audacious enough to open the letters you addressed to me? Do
they not know it is a sacred matter, and that such curiosity is a crime
and an atrocious insult to a minister of state, and that no one is permitted to open the letters which a commanding officer writes to me?
Answer-This is quite certain, and no one ought to be ignorant of it;
but it is absolutely beyond doubt that my letters have been opened and
that copies of them have been made. In do not even know whether the
originals have been sent to you, and it is really the purport of my letters and of this little catechism which has stirred up against me all the
difficulties which I now have on my hands, from which I hope you will
have the goodness to release me by punishing the hatred or rather the
fury of those who are plotting my ruin-founded upon this, that I have
maintained with so much vigor the preserving of Fort Pontchartrain,
the success of which they have been unable to interrupt.
His allusion to "this little catechism" can hardly be mistaken, for
it is nothing less than a confession that it is a conversation of the
writer's fancy. The catechism, which is an entirety, is divided into
three parts, and the scenes are laid at intervals of a year or more apart.
No one carefully reading the whole matter would be led to suppose that
this conversation actually took place. In explanation of the charges
upon which he was tried in Quebec, in 1705, Cadillac produces an elaborate conversation, of which the following questions and answers are a
part:
Question-Give me an exact account and tell me without disguising
anything, whether you are guilty of all you are accused of, and as to
the complaints which the directors of the company have made against
you, and whether it is true that you have transacted trade and been
guilty of malversations at Detroit. If you are innocent justify yourself and prove your integrity and your innocence, and be assured that
when once I know it you shall have my pretection.
Answer-It is only the force of the truth which I maintain, which
gives me the strength to appear before you.with so much perseverance and firmness. This, then, is the origin of my dispute. I convicted M. de Tonty and two clerks of the company of having traded at
Detroit, although they were bound by a valid contract not to do so.
Question-Has this trading been proved?
Answer-It is indisputable, they have been caught in the act without
the possibility of gainsaying it.
73
10




Question-No doubt you seized the skins which these clerks wished
to smuggle?
Answer-That was so done, but what seems to me to be the most heinous offense is that the skins are taken from the company's own warehouse, or at least it appears that they came from merchandise belonging to the company which they have sold to the savages converting the
payment [in peltryj to their own use.
Question-Did you question these clerks, and did they agree that
these nineteen packages belonged to them, and were the proceeds of
their trading?
Answer-That is so; they did not deny the fact, and both signed
their deposition and their own condemnation.
Question-Is that all you seized?
Answer-There also are four other packages of beaver or other skins
which I seized even in the warehouse of the company, marked with the
name of Arnaud.
Question-How did you discover the theft of these four packages?
Answer-This was discovered through two beaver skins marked with
the mark of the company's warehouse, and with the number 229, which
served as a wrapper for forty roebuck skins. The two beaver skins were
not yet spoilt, though they had been thrown into a cellar full of water
under an empty house. This made me conclude that the warehouse
had been plundered. I paid it a visit and that was the cause of my
finding these four packages which Arnaud had concealed there.
Question-Are you not aware that these clerks have been guilty of
great malversations, though, however, those are quite enough to hang
them?
Answer-Pardon me, I know they have smuggled or stolen about
118 packages, worth, according to my reckoning, 1,400 crowns. It is
true that I am suffering unheard of persecution for having done my
duty. If you do not have compassion on me I do not see how to extricate myself from it.
Question-What are you accused of? Who are those that complain?
Answer-I have done no wrong in this matter; it is the directors who
make complaint against me; it is their clerks who are my accusers.
Question-Did they accuse you before you denounced them to the
governor?
Answer-Not at all; it was ten months after I had forwarded the depositions signed by themselves. This is their first accusation, that I


74




compelled them to sell goods to the Indians at a low price and at a loss;
that it was an act of violence. The late Governor M. de Callieres gave
orders that goods were to be sold to the savages of Fort Frontenac at
twenty five per cent., and to those of Detroit at fifty per cent. profit.
The sole means of retaining them in our interest was to give them
goods at a reasonable price. In a letter from M. de Vaudreuil of
April 14, 1704, he writes me in these terms:  "Although I tell
you, Monsieur, to allow M. Desnoyer to carry out the orders which
he has from the board of directors, it is supposing always that the
interests of the king's service are not concerned. I tell you also that in
some cases it will not be amiss to trade on the old tariff. Try, however, to be careful of the company's interests." You should, indeed,
rather blame the governor and intendant for permitting the directors
to cavil at me, when I had forgotten their orders and acted in the interest of the company in such a difficult juncture, for the English had
sent a necklace to Fort Pontchartrain and a list of prices of their goods,
which they promised to sell two-thirds cheaper than the company.
Question-Let us pass now to other matters, and tell me whether
they complain of violence on your part.
Answer-Yes, they impute to me as a capital offense having used
abusive language to their clerks, under the pretext, they say, that
they did not pay me the respect which I claimed to be due to me.
The third count of their complaint is that when they sent Desnoyer to
replace the principal clerk, Arnaud, they say, that on his arrival I detained him more than two hours in my room under the pretense of
reading and inveighing against the letters that had been written to me,
in order that Radisson, another clerk, might have time to remove certain papers which he and I wished to conceal; and this is given as the
reason why the board of directors have not been able to obtain the information they need to convict me. Desnoyer brought me many letters, and I invited him to take breakfast in my house while I read
them, which he did. It occupied half an hour, after which I dismissed
this new clerk to go and carry out his orders. I cautioned him to do
his work with as little commotion as possible, as the Indians were not
accustomed to see seals put on chests, cupboards or cash boxes, nor on
the doors of the warehouse, which things are contrary to the freedom
which is very precious to the tribes.
Question-It is not true then that Radisson removed any papers?
Answer-I had no knowledge of it. Radisson says it is a falsehood
and a fabrication of Desnoyer.
75




Question-What gave rise to the charge that you had influenced the
Indians to oppose the removal of furs until the stock of merchandise had
been brought to the warehouse?
Answer-It is because Desnoyer, and the other clerks who came with
him, maliciously gave out that they came for the purpose of sending
down the skins only, and that they would not bring them goods for
exchange; in order to compel them to abandon the post, no doubt according to private instructions they had. This is what offended the
Indians. The first time I imprisoned Desnoyer he was confined in the
sergeant's room for three hours, because he opposed my orders when I
would have sent some of the company's employees to assist in punishing some Indians who had murdered a soldier.  I imprisoned him
again when I found that, contrary to the regulations of the post, he
had loaded a boat with furs, manned it with eight men, and was setting out for Montreal without having given notice.
Count Pontchartrain, when he received the proceedings of the trial,
read between the lines of the complaints and the evidence submitted,
and plainly saw that it was a conspiracy to cast down his protege. He
practically took the case out of Governor Vaudreuil's hands and ordered that the defendant be exonerated. He wrote the governor that
he entirely approved of Cadillac's course at Detroit, and that he upheld
him in maintaining the supremacy of his majesty's interests over and
above the interests of the Company of the Colony. Governor Vaudreuil
was reprimanded for being a party to the conspiracy, which had evidently
been fomented against Cadillac, and was told that a repetition of such
conduct would cause his dismissal from office. Intendant Beauharnois
was also warned that intrigues detrimental to the interests of the
colonies would not be tolerated. Cadillac was ordered reinstated at
Detroit in full control, both civil and military. The Company of the
Colony was deprived of its legislative and administrative functions, and
the trading privileges of the post were vested in Cadillac according to
the original understanding.  The commandant was thus completely
vindicated and restored to full power.




"4;  "I , " 'm "
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I               A, I ',I," "I


I
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JAMES V. CAMPBELL.








CHAPTER X.


Father Del IHalle, the First Pastor of St. Anne's Church, Murdered by the Indians —Cadillac is Sent from Montreal to Punish the Murderer-His Enemies Seek
to Compromise Him with the Indians and with his Superiors —1706-1708.
As before stated, Cadillac left the post under the care of Captain
Tonty, but Lieut. Louis Bourgmont was sent from Quebec to act as
commandant shortly afterward, arriving in Detroit on January 29,
1705. The reason for this does not appear. Bourgmont was a big,
blustering fellow of great strength and violent temper. He had the
effrontery to bring his mistress, a notorious woman known as La
Chenette, to Detroit, and the pair created no little scandal at the post.
Friendly Indians were allowed many liberties about the post after they
had deposited their arms with the guards at the gate, and they never
tired of peering into the houses to admire the finery of the white man's
home. One June day a young Ottawa named Tichinet was peering
about Bourgmont's house, when the commandant's dog bit him in the
leg. He gave the brute a lusty kick which sent it howling to its master. Bourgmont rushed out of the house and fell upon the Indian in a
fury of passion. The Ottawa was left senseless on the ground, and
lie soon died of his injuries. This naturally made a stir in the Ottawa
village, for Bourgmont's brutal ways had already given offense. He
had shown special favors to the Miamis, and as a party of these people were on their way to the fort, the Ottawas attacked them and killed
five. As they pursued the survivors to the gate of the fort, Bourgmont
ordered his soldiers to fire upon them, and several fell. As they passed
the garden of Father Del Halle, which was just east of the fort, about
where Woodward and Jefferson avenues now intersect, they saw the
priest attending to his flowers. Several young braves, hot headed and
bloodthirsty, rushed in, seized him, and he was stabbed three times.
They resolved to take him to their village, but a chief met them on the
way and ordered them to release their captive, who had always been
friendly to the Indians, and had shown them much kindness. Father
Del Halle, weak from the loss of blood, staggered slowly toward the


77




fort. As he arrived at the gate a big Ottawa chief named Le Pesant,
who was waiting under cover for a shot at one of the soldiers, sent a
bullet through the priest, and several other shots stretched him dead at
the gate of the fort. A soldier named La Riviere, who had been working outside the post, was killed later in the day. Firing continued
from five o'clock in the evening until midnight and for forty days
after, and then the Ottawas retired to Mackinac.
Father Nicholas Constantine Del Halle was the first priest of St.
Anne's. He accompanied Cadillac and his party and was present at
the founding of Fort Pontchartrain. Father Francois Valliant, a Jesuit
who had also accompanied the party of the founding had gone to Fort
Frontenac, and this left the Franciscan friar Del Halle as chaplain of
the post and pastor of St. Annc's. The first record of the church was
written by Father Del Halle January 27, 1704, but there may have
been other records which were destroyed when the church was burned
in 1703. The priest was killed on June 6, 1706, and was interred in
the post cemetery, which was situated a short distance north of the garden where he was seized. It was quite natural that this affair should
create great excitement both among the whites and among the Indians.
Justice demanded the punishment of the murderer, and to avoid retribution a number of the Ottawas, including Le Pesant, returned to
Mackinaw. The Miamis looked to the soldiers to avenge them for the
killing of their people, and the Ottawas were angry with the whites for
firing upon them. Reports of the trouble came to Quebec and Governor Vaudreuil ordered the Ottawas to send a delegation to him, with
the person of Le Pesant, the slayer of the priest, in custody. Twelve
chiefs headed by Jean Le Blanc, whose tribal name was Ontonagon,
arrived before the governor June 16, 1707, and Vaudreuil demanded
the head of Le Pesant, otherwise known as the Great Bear, on account
of his huge bulk and surly disposition. " Le Pesant is a chief of great
influence among our people," answered Le Blanc, who was the sole
spokesman.  "He is seventy years of age and has been a great warrior, as he is now mighty in council. He has many descendants among
many tribes. Like the great oak his roots and branches extend everywhere, and if we give him up, his death would cause a general war.
Iere are two Pawnee slaves we have brought in place of the good
gray robe, whose life we cannot restore."
Vaudreuil insisted that the gift of the two slaves could not atone for
the death of a holy man of the church, and insisted that Le Pesant be
brought to justice,




" My father demands justice for the death of the gray robe, but his
justice would cost dear," answered Le Blanc. "If Le Pesant is given
up, the Ottawas, Potawatomies, Chippewas and several other tribes
will war against the Miamis and the Frenchmen. Many scalps wvould
be taken and the wigwams would be filled with mourning. I am a
chief as well as Le Pesant, and I am not afraid to die. If my father
must slay, that his wrath may be appeased, here is my tomahawk. It
is better that my wigwams should be desolate than that many of ily
people should be destroyed in war. Strike! my father, and let my life
atone for that of the priest."
Vaudreuil was nonplused at this turn of affairs, so he told the chiefs
to depart for Detroit by way of Lake Erie, and there make such atonement as Cadillac would demand. Cadillac had been instructed by letter that the murderer must be brought to justice, and Vaudreuil was
probably glad to get rid of the responsibility of so grave a complication,
as if trouble followed it would recoil upon the head of the commandant
whom he hated.
Meanwhile Cadillac had returned to Detroit and assumed the reins
of power. He had heard of the tragedy on the way, two days after he
left Montreal. He brought with him several artisans and farmers who
settled at the post. On his return the Company of the Colony sold out
its interest at the post to him, and then renewed its activity toward
making Mackinaw the favored post of the French. Unharmed and
undismayed by all the shafts of hate, envy and malice that had been
leveled against him, Caidllac grew livelier and stronger after every attack, and his vivacity and combativeness seemed inexhaustible. He
was a peculiar man and his character is hard to describe, his virtues
and faults revealing themselves at every step in his career. He had
the physical and moral courage of a great leader; he was too proud to
be dishonest, although he was intensely self-seeking; and he was farseeing and perspicacious in colonization matters beyond any of his contemporaries in New France, but his mentality was more active than
profound, and his convictions were changeable. Ever bubbling over
with ideas, like champagne in a full goblet, he had plans for a copper
mine on Lake Huron; for silk culture among the mulberry trees near
Lake Erie; for grants of land to his soldiers and himself; to be ennobled as a marquis and be the chief ruler of the Northwest; for a
uniformed Indian militia; for a seminary to teach the French language
to the savages around the post; and for marrying the Indian maidens
79




to his soldiers. The last named plan was, however, a failure. Concerning the Indian character he had committed himself as follows:
"The savage himself asks why they do not leave him his beggary, his
liberty and his idleness; he was born in it and he wished to die in it.
It is a life to which he has been accustomed since Adam. Do they wish
to build palaces and ornament them with beautiful furniture? He
would not exchange his wigwam and the mat on which he camps like
a monkey, for the Louvre. An attempt to overthrow the present state
of affairs in this country would only result in the ruin of commerce and
the destruction of the colony." But in 1703, in the environment of
Detroit, flushed with well earned success as a colonizer and in more
intimate relations with the Indians than ever before, he enthusiastically
exclaims: "It seems that God had raised me as another Moses to go
and deliver this people from captivity, or rather as Caleb, to bring
them back to the land of their fathers... Meanwhile Montreal
[the Jesuits] plays the part of Pharoah; he cannot see this emigration
without trembling."
In his copious letters to Count Pontchartrain, his information on the
condition of the colony was always interlarded with denunciation of his
enemies. A conspiracy to ruin him was ever in progress among the
company while it was in existence, its officials, the Jesuits, the coureurs
de bois and his own subordinate officers. There was a good deal of
truth in these statements, of course, but he was too aggressive and too
bitter in his sarcasms, and much given to egotistic boasting, and these
qualities were not calculated to gain many friends for their possessor.
At one time it was proposed, probably by Cadillac himself, that the
settlement should be removed to Grosse Isle, below Detroit, which fronts
on the water on each side for a distance of eight miles, but Cadillac
saw that it would be inconvenient for its inhabitants to bring food,
firewood and all necessary supplies from the mainland. For this reason,
and not because Grosse Isle was too small for the future growth of his
capital, he rejected the proposition to go there.
Although Cadillac purchased the goods of the company left at the
post, he did not succeed to all their privileges, which included the sole
right to trade and was very profitable. Close limits were placed on
Cadillac's trading privileges so that his profits would be quite moderate.
One of his most valuable perquisites was that he might have three
hundred pounds of freight brought in each canoe arriving at the settlement, free of charge.
80




Shortly before Cadillac's return Lieutenant Bourgmont, whose brutal
conduct led to such grave troubles, left the post, accompanied by La
Chenette, and later correspondence says that they built a wigwam in
the wilderness and lived together as savages during the rest of their
days. This was not an uncommon circumstance for Frenchmen with
vagrant tastes, who had settled in New France, but it was very infrequent with white women who had once known civilizedways.
Cadillac's most difficult duty was to restore peace and order among
the turbulent Indians in his midst and within his jurisdiction. When
he received the letter from Vaudreuil ordering justice done in regard
to the murdered priest, but not specifying the manner in which it
should be accomplished, he recognized the hand of his enemy. He
was an abler man than Vaudreuil, and he must have smiled and simply
said that he would surmount the difficulty without compromising himself with either the Indians or the government. So he commenced by
calling a council with the twelve Ottawa chiefs, and telling them that
he had no discretion in the matter; that Governor Vaudreuil had commanded that Le Pesant's head must atone for the murder of the
priest and that of the soldier La Riviere. They must go to Mackinaw,
he said, take Le Pesant into custody at all hazards, and bring him to
to Detroit. At the same time he informed the Indians secretly,
through an agent, that Le Pesant would come to no harm, but he must
make a show of obedience and trust his life in the hands of the Detroit
commandant. While this information was secretly given he also advised Meyaville, Sakima and Kataoulibois, three chiefs of other tribes, to
kill Le Pesant if he refused to come. Le Pesant was made to understand
the case and he came to Detroit by canoe, in charge of the three chiefs
already named, and accompanied by ten relatives to see that no harm
came to him on the journey. Le Pesant was delivered up and locked
in a warehouse over night to be arraigned next morning. Cadillac saw
that his execution would be followed by serious consequences, and is
charged with conniving at his escape. At any rate Le Pesant, who
was very fat and over seventy years, waddled out of his prison and
scrambled over the palisades about four o'clock next morning, and
none of the soldiers saw his escape.
Immediately the Miamis were furious at the commandant, and to
appease them the chiefs were ordered to return Le Pesant. They complied and Le Pesant was given up. In a letter of complaint from Governor Vaudreuil to Count Pontchartrain, the delivery is described.
81
11




Ontanagon stepped forward with his hand on the shoulder of the
murderer, saying: "Here is Le Pesant, who came into our camp.
You have the power to put him to death. He is your slave. You can
make him eat under your table like the dog that picks up the bones."
Cadillac regarded the prisoner sternly and thus addressed him: " There
you are, Le Pesant, before your father and your master. Is this that
great chief that was so well related and so highly esteemed? Was it
you that ate white bread every day at my table and drank of my brandy
and my wine? It was you that had an incurable disease of which I had
you cured by my physicians. Was it not you that I helped in your
need and took care of your family? And because of all these benefits
you have killed my people! You, who hide yourself and droop your
eyes, was it not you who went every day to the gray robe, who used to
caress you, and made you eat with him and taught you? Yet it was
you who killed him. There are reproaches, Pesant, which slay you.
There is no longer life in your heart; your eyes are half dead; you
close them; they dare not look at the sun. Go, my slave."
Le Pesant had been overcome with terror, but the last sentence gave
him courage. The other Indians, many of whom were from Mackinaw,
were pleased at the way affairs were going, and Cadillac was resolved
to win them to Detroit. One of the Ottawa chiefs addressed him,
saying:
"Our father is kind to his children who have angered him. We
want to come back to his protection. Give us back our fields which we
have deserted and we will come to live in peace. The corn at Mackinaw grows but a finger long, while here it is a cubit long. M. de St.
Pierre told us we should be slaves if we came to Detroit. He took us
apart to tell us. That made us think he was a liar. He wanted us to
go to Quebec and ask Onontio [Governor Maudreuil] to make him commandant at Mackinaw. The black robes [the Jesuits] dissuade us
from coming to Detroit."
Cadillac arose and presented a beautiful belt of wampum, saying:
"Your submission has gained my heart. Your obedience has made
the axe fall from my hand. It has saved your lives and the lives of
your families. And you, Le Pesant, why have you fled from me in
fear? You deserve to die, but I give you your life, because of your
submission and obedience. You are as one dead, because you have
been given up to justice, but I stay my hand and let you go to your
family."


82




This took place on September 24, 1707. There was great rejoicing
among the Ottawas, who immediately settled upon the lands they had
deserted in Detroit when they fled to Mackinaw after the trouble in
June of the previous year. Le Pesant was one of the settlers, and as
he had been the leader of the party which killed the five Miamis, his
presence was hateful to the friends of the dead. The Miamis were not
to be appeased by Cadillac's blandishments and presents, but waited
for revenge.
Four weeks later an army of Iroquois came back from a war with
the Tetes Plattes (Flathead) Indians, of the far west, and one band of
twenty four braves stopped at Detroit. They were entertained by the
Miamis, and the two tribes plotted for the destruction of the fort and
the murder of Cadillac. They waited for the rest of the Iroquois to
arrive from the west, and while they were waiting the plot was revealed. When the garrison was put on its guard the attempt was
abandoned, but the Miamis killed three Frenchmen who were at some
distance from the fort and destroyed several cattle. Cadillac demanded the surrender of the murderers and payment for the cattle. Fifteen
bundles of furs were given in compensation for the loss of the cattle,
but the surrender of the murderers was deferred for twenty days.
They were not surrendered on time, and the commandant started on
an expedition against the Miami fort, near the site of Toledo. His
expedition is treated very scornfully in one of Governor Vaudretiil's
letters of complaint to Count Pontchartrain. He says: " Had M. de
la Mothe been less obstinate and had he obeyed my instructions, all
this trouble would have been averted. He assumes the airs of a governor and gives himself equal authority with me when he is dealing
with the savages. ' I and Onontio will protect you,' he tells them.
He led his troops against the Miamis after he had given them unnecessary irritation, thinking no doubt they would not be found at their fort.
He found sixty of them in a fort, which was a mere square of logs
without flanking bastions, and when his men opened fire M. de la
Mothe concealed himself behind a tree at least eighteen feet in circumference and stirred not from that post. He ought to have carried the
place at the sword's point. The fort finally surrendered and the Miamis gave three hostages to pledge the surrender of the murderers.
They gave M. de la Mothe furs worth 1,000 crowns for the cattle they
had killed, and he has kept them for himself. Affairs are going badly
at Detroit owing to the selfish management of M. de la Mothe. His


83




hostility to the Jesuit fathers is most unseemly, as he constantly misrepresents them and places them in a bad light before the Indians and
the French, and what can they accomplish for religion in such a case?
Father Davenau, who has been with the Indians for nineteen years, and
knows how to control them, he ordered away from his post among the
Miamis, and replaced the Jesuit with a Recollect father who does not
understand Indians."
It is plain to see that Governor Vaudreuil was a supporter of the Jesuits and the traders, and consequently the enemy of Cadillac. His
censure of Cadillac for taking refuge behind a tree was decidedly far
fetched, because that was the custom in Indian fighting, and those who
fought them in the open invariably paid dearly for their temerity. His
keeping of the furs for the destruction of cattle he had brought from
Montreal was but natural. The cattle had been purchased with his
money, and his ownership is acknowledged in other correspondence.
There is no question that Cadillac did the Jesuits all the harm he
could, and willfully misrepresented them because they opposed his
plans of settlement. The original cause of his enmity is not known,
but it was probably something more than their opposing interests, as
before related, or liis attachment to the order of the Franciscans.
In this connection it may be well to understand why there was hostility between the Jesuits and the Franciscans. The latter order was
divided into many sects. The original members of the order of St.
Francis de Assisi took the vows of chastity and poverty, and their rules
were so rigorous that they were modified in some localities in order to
attract members to the order. The Recollects were adherents of the
more rigorous discipline, and lived in France, England and Holland.
The Franciscans of Spain and Italy did not put away all comforts. They
were the first order of priesthood to arrive in America, as several accompanied Columbus on his first voyage, and they soon had missions
planted in the West Indies and South America. One of them, Mark
of Nice, crossed Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and traveled along the
coast of California to the Golden Gate more than sixty years before
Champlain founded Quebec, and it was he who gave the name of his
patron saint, St. Francisco, to the metropolis of the Pacific slope. The
Franciscans had possession of all the south, or the Spanish colonies.
When Champlain returned to Quebec in 1614, after a visit to France,
he brought four Recollects, who were the first priests in Canada. In
1621 Duke Ventador sent three Jesuits and two lay brothers to Tadou

84




sac near Quebec. This was the first entrance of the Jesuits into Canada, but they became active explorers of the West and claimed the
territory of New France as their exclusive field. This the Recollects
would not concede, and hence the hostility.
CHAPTER XI.
Early Official Reports on Detroit-Cadillac's Enemies Plot to Have the Post
Abandoned-They Willfully Misrepresent Affairs to the Government-1701-1710.
Cadillac was masterful and combative, but sometimes he could bend
before the storm, and the triumph of the Jesuits at Mackinac in restricting the sale of liquor at that place taught him a lesson.
Aigremont's report after visiting Detroit in 1703, says that "he
[Cadillac] compels each one, French or Indian, to go to the public
storehouse for brandy where they can buy only one-twenty-fourth of a
quart at a time. [This was at the rate of twenty-five livres per quart,
so that one eighth of a pint or two ounces cost about fifteen cents per
drink.] The savages cannot become intoxicated on this quantity, but
as they have to await their turns, some are obliged to return home
without their beverage, and seem ready to kill themselves in their disappointment." Their sad bereavement seemed to touch the heart of
the inspector, but it was more hatred of Cadillac than pity for the disappointed Indians that dictated his report.
A picture of the Detroit settlement is occasionally presented in the
annual reports of the governor and intendant to Count Pontchartrain,
but these reports usually contain more or less matter detrimental to
Cadillac, and are colored so as to discourage a continuation of the post.
Their chief interest is to show how persistent and united was the effort
to ruin Cadillac and abandon Detroit to the Indians. One of these official reports was dated April 11, 1707, soon after Cadillac resumed control of the post. It bears the signature of Riverin, and its contents are
of such a nature that it could not have passed the eye of Vaudreuil and
the other officials at Quebec. It speaks of M. de la Forest as second
in command to Cadillac, but says that the former is growing old and
breaking down. La Forest, it says, " has been thirty-two years in the
85




wilderness, and was with La Salle and the elder Tonty on their early
explorations. The census at Detroit shows 270 whites, many pigs and
considerable poultry; sheep are about to be introduced. Detroit has
opened up trade with the Mississippi valley and Frenchmen go to and
fro bringing back piastres for their goods [indicating that they are selling supplies to the Spaniards]. Sieur de Tonty is at Frontenac. Sieur
Jonquaire, Indian agent, is among the Sonnontouans [Senecas], and the
younger Reynard is agent at Mackinaw. All these agents are stated to
be a great hindrance at Detroit. They are taking the cream of the public
and private trade under false pretenses. To prevent settlers from
going to Detroit, these agents say that the post will soon be abandoned.
The best way to undeceive the people would be to raise the post to a
permanent governorship, but still without any pay."
On November 14, 1708, Procureur-General de la Touche, Governor
Vaudreuil and Intendant Randot made a combined report which may
be briefly summarized as follows: Beaver skins were low and goods to
be given in exchange were very dear. At Orange, subsequently
Albany, New York, the Englisht were paying far better prices for furs
and giving goods much cheaper in trade. Commerce in the French
colonies was paralyzed by the conditions. The English were giving
better bargains and plenty of brandy, and Indians, even from Lake
Superior, were resorting to Orange. French traders had given commercial paper for goods and much of it had become worthless. Mr.
Aubert was about the only trader whose bills of exchange were redeemable, and plenty of wild cat money was in circulation. In order
to avoid an open rupture with the Indians, permission had to be
granted for them to go to Orange. Permission was asked to renew the
bills of M. Champigny, as the originals were worn out with handling.
The officials agreed not to issue beyond the funds of the king's money
on hand, and advised an issue of bills of thirty two livres. They
would in no way pledge his majesty, but would secure payment from a
fund in the hands of the treasurer-general of the navy. Cadillac's report that there were 120 houses at Detroit was denounced as a lie;
there were but sixty-three houses, and instead of 1,200 Indian huts
there were but 150. There were only sixty-three whites in the settlement, of whom twenty-nine were married soldiers who could not
be claimed as residents, because they were there on compulsion and
could not get away. The other residents of Detroit were voyageurs of
the Company of the Colony whose true homes were in Montreal, and


86




who only got to Detroit for a short season each year. Cadillac has 157
arpents of land for himself and the rest of the settlers have but fortysix. Cadillac's account of the live stock is also denounced as a lie.
According to the report, there are but three cows, six bulls, a calf and
one horse. The commandant sells milk at twenty sols the pot (about
two quarts), and more cows would lower the price. He lets his horse
at ten livres a day, and would not have another horse for fear of
lowering his revenue. The officials are surprised to learn that Cadillac
wants a jurisdiction of high, low and middle justice set up at Detroit,
as the post is declining and he is not sure of twenty settlers. Then the
report branches off to relate about a foray of French and Indians up
Lake Champlain to an English settlement called Heureil, which place
was burned with its fort and one hundred English killed. In this expedition the French came upon a party of sixty English while on their
return to Montreal,'and the latter were destroyed. The French lost five
whites and three Indians killed and eighteen wounded. Again the report, which is of interminable length, returns to the subject of Detroit.
Officers at Detroit have sent out favorable reports in the past, but now
they have changed their minds; they are in desperate straits to live.
Sieur de la Forest cannot live there on his pay. When the Company of
the Colony had the post it used to provide food for the junior officers,
and it gave Sieur de Tonty 1,300 livres a year. Since M. de La Mothe
has the rights of the company, he should be compelled to do likewise;
he should be compelled at least to share his profits with Tonty.
In spite of the opposition of Vaudreuil, D'Aigremont and others, to
the post at Detroit, Cadillac had at least one strong friend at court besides the Count Pontchartrain. In the archives of France is found a
recommendation from M. Daureuil, procureur-general of the king, to
the superior council at Quebec, written April 15, 1707. This recommendation is addressed to Count Pontchartrain and the substance of it
is as follows: That all boats sent from the lower stations up to Mackinaw, even those of the Jesuit fathers, be obliged to go by the lakes and
past Detroit, where they shall be inspected, and shall show passports
with a list of their cargoes. These passages are to be recorded by the
commandant at Detroit, and reports shall be made by him to the
crown. Prohibited goods, such as brandy, going up, or fresh beaver
skins going down, during the five years which will be required to complete the trading contract with Sieur Aubert & Co., and any others
that the court may authorize, are to be seized, confiscated for the bene

87




fit of the church at Detroit, and a fine of five hundred livres assessed
against the offenders. Parties sending boats to Mackinaw to trade
with the Ottawas or other tribes of the great river (the Mississippi)
without authority, shall be punished by a fine of 1,500 livres for each
offense; the money to go to the hospitals at Quebec, Three Rivers and
Montreal. This inspection is recommended because, since the Jesuit
fathers have been deprived of royal favor, they have either contributed
to or consented to illegal loading of canoes to the injury of the king
and his colonies.
Sieur d'Aigremont's second report of his findings at Detroit on November 14, 1708, was colored to give the post at Detroit the worst possible reputation with the government, and the commandant was given
a worse character than the post. In brief, the report stated that Cadillac was intensely hated by every person about the post, both Indian
and white, with the exception of three or four Frenchmen, who acted
as his confederates in schemes for personal gain. He was charged with
all manner of extortions practiced against the settlers and with dishonesty. Blacksmith Parent, according to report, was compelled to
pay a license fee of six hundred livres for the privilege of plying his
trade. In addition to this he was compelled to donate two barrels of
beer to the commandant, and to shoe the commandant's horse free of
charge. According to the report there was but a handful of whites in
the settlement at this time and they tilled but forty six arpents of land,
so there could be but little demand for blacksmithing, as there was but
one horse to shoe in the settlement, and about the only tools in use
were a few hoes and mattocks. Parent evidently had some connection
with the brewery of the post, or he would not have been required to
furnish the commandant's table with beer. He was subsequently persecuted by Tonty because he was faithful to Cadillac. Armorer Pinet,
according to D'Aigremont, was obliged to pay three hundred livres a
year for his license, and in addition he was required to repair, free of
charge, twelve guns each mionth for the post. D'Aigremont estimates
these services worth ten livres per gun, or 1,440 livres a year, making
his total license fee 1,740 livres  The fort, he said, was a miserable
affair; several times during his stay he had narrowly escaped serious
injury from the falling of the rotten palisades, which were hardly able
to stand alone, and serious breaches existed where large sections of them
had crumbled away. The soil about Detroit, D'Aigremont said, was
nothing but barren sand along the river front, and farther back the
88




ZACHARIAH CHANDLER.








country was nothing but a succession of morasses. The settlers by
great diligence were able to raise a little wheat during favorable seasons; also some Indian corn; but the soil would soon be exhausted.
Numberless millions of starlings came in from the swamps to the grain
fields, and it was only by the utmost diligence that the settlers could
keep them away. Locusts and caterpillars usually destroyed the crops
before they could come to maturity, and it would be cruel of the government to keep settlers in such a place. The only products of the
place worth consideration were the beaver skins, and they were so inferior to the skins of the north as to be almost worthless. The post
ought, however, to be a source of much peltry, but the small shipments
from Detroit led D'Aigremont to believe that Cadillac was trading
secretly with the English.
A more prejudiced report could hardly have been concocted and
there was just enough truth in each item of complaint to give the report plausibility. Not a single product of Detroit was spared. D'Aigremont reported that there were plenty of grapes, apples and plums at
the post, but that they tasted detestably. He tasted some cider made
there, and it was as bitter as gall. The fruits named must have been
wild scuppernong grapes, wild crab apples and wild plums. The report
closes with a laudation of Mackinaw, which he says lacked all the disadvantages found at Detroit. It was healthful, had a productive soil,
and its geographical position made it the most important post in the
West. Great profit was sure to follow an encouragement of this post,
but if Detroit was kept up much longer the expense would ruin Canada.
In 1708 there were cultivated 350 acres, of which Cadillac had 157
acres, and the French settlers forty-six acres; sixty-three of the
dwellers in the fort owned their lots, and twenty-nine owned farms
outside of the inclosure.
89
12




CHAPTER XII.


First Families of Detroit —The First Directory and Tax List as Compiled by C.
M. Burton-Inventory of the Property Owned by Cadillac —1701-1710.
EARLIEST DIRECTORY.
C. M. Burton, in speaking of the first two houses erected in Detroit,
says that the modern idea of a log house consisting of horizontal timber, mortised at the ends, was totally unknown to the early settlers.
"I think that their houses, even those of the better classes, consisted
of stakes driven into or buried in the ground as closely as possible,
with the interstices filled with mortar or mud. These upright pickets
were cut off even at the top and a pitch-roof of split rails put on. Sawing lumber by hand was too difficult a job for much lumber of that
kind to be used, and that kind was for interior work, doors, shutters,
etc. Glass was very expensive, and there are no records of any glass
windows, except that in the church there was a window with a shutter
and sash panes between of twenty squares each." The squares may refer to the small diamonds of glass which were common in church windows until even a few years ago.
The following is a description of Cadillac's buildings in Detroit,
which was drawn up after he left Detroit in 1711, to become the governor of Louisiana; it is somewhat abbreviated from the original:
1-A warehouse 371 by 22 feet and eight feet high, boarded with
thick planks of oak, with shutters and doors and a staircase, a press for
pressing furs, a counter and three shelves for books.
2-A house of stakes in earth, 331 by 19 feet and eight feet high,
with doors and shutters.
3-A small cellar adjoining said house, boarded below with split
stakes, also a porch and door.
4-A house 18 by 121 feet and eight feet high, with a cabinet, a
postern outside and a cellar.
5-A cattle shed 16 by 12, of stakes in earth.
6-A barn 50 by 27 feet and eleven feet high, surrounded by stakes
in earth joined together.


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7 —A house 33 by 21 feet and nine feet high, surrounded by stakes
in earth.
8-A dove cote raised on four wooden posts, six feet high and ten
feet square.
9-An ice house, fifteen feet square and six feet above the ground
and fifteen feet below the ground with split beams.
10-The church, 35 by 24' feet and ten feet high with oak joists on a
grood ridge, and below of beams with square joints, with doors, windows and shutters, and sash frames between of twenty squares each,
also a heavy bell.
In these structures, except the cattle shed, barn, one house, the dove
cote and ice house, mention is made that the doors " closed with a key,"
which was perhaps a necessary precaution.
New France, like the mother country, in those days was under feudal
tenure. It was ruled over by a committee of three appointed by the
king and known as the sovereign council, consisting of the governorgeneral, the bishop and the intendant. The lands nominally belonged
to the king and were held by seigneurs who paid rent in military service. The authority of the seigneurs in their respective domains was
like that of a noble in France. He could try any offender for any
crime short of treason and murder. Every tenant owed him military
service, and each one had his grain ground at the seigneur's mill. If a
seigneur sold any portion of his grant he had to pay the crown onefifth of the purchase money. If a tenant sold his land or lease the
seigneur was paid one-twelfth of the consideration. The law required
these landholders to divide their property equally among their children, and as a consequence came the long, ribbon farms on the St.
Lawrence, the Detroit, the St. Ann and other rivers where French
rule was established, each owner having a water front, for water was
the principal, and sometimes the only, means of communication and
transportation. The houses were generally on the bank, with the
roadway on the edge of the water. The houses were sometimes so
close that an alarm or important news could be conveyed by each
habitan calling to his neighbor, and would thus be conveyed to the remotest house in a short time.
Taxation commenced with the founding of Detroit, and, of course,
continues to the present day. Cadillac conveyed all the land, whether
in village lots or farms, and the metes and bounds of these parcels
can now be traced as if made to-day. The farmer cultivated his


91




ground in the daytime, and at night retired to his home in the fort;
and where he had to pay rent for the two places, he was charged less
in proportion than the village dweller.  Lots within the fort were
granted to settlers at an annual rental of two sols, or cents, per foot
front, and when sold or exchanged, an alienation fine of one-twelfth
was imposed. Lands outside this fort were let at the rate of one sol
quit rent and forty sols rent for each arpent of frontage. One-quarter
of a bushel of wheat was also paid for each arpent, and, as the usual
grant was of four arpents frontage, the annual dues amounted to eight
livres and four sols and a bushel of wheat a year. Alienation fines
were charged in all manner of exchanges, even when the lands were
inherited.
The following is a list of the original colonists of Detroit who paid
yearly taxes for rent from 1707 to 1710, payable in March; and also
taxes, reduced to United States currency, for other rights, generally
for practicing their vocations as trader, carpenter, blacksmith, armorer,
farmer, shoemaker, etc. In addition each and every one paid ten
livres, or $2, for the latter privileges. They also paid sums for rent
according to the location and desirability of the lot. All these sums
were payable in furs or in such coined money as might have been current, and ranged in amount from   twenty cents to $2.40 -in United
States money:
1  Pierre  Chesne --- —- -.. ---. ---.-. --- —-.-. --- —----—.-  $0,60
2 Andre Chouet, dit Cameraud --- —-- --—. --- —------—. —_-.60
3 Pierre Taveran, dit la Grandeur -........-.-......... —. ---.38
4  Joseph  Despre --------—... --- —----------—. —. ---. --- —-...40
5 Solomon Joseph  Du Vestin... —.. — - --- ---—.. —... ---- -__-.40
6  Pierre  Leger, dit Parisian._ —. --- —-  --------—.-... --- —--.40
7 Bonaventure Compien, dit L'Esperance -------.. —, —. ----.-.24
8 Jacob De Marsac, dit Des Rocher ----------------... --- —--.62
9 M. D'Argenteuil......... — -....50
10 Jean Richard ------------—.....-...-....................._.40
11 Jean  Labatier, dit Champaign --..-.. - -- —..-.... --- —-_-.40
12 Etienne Bouton -... —.... —...-......-.-.........-..60
13 Pierre Hemard -------—..............-.-............-.. -.,.50
14 Antoine  Dupuis, dit Beauregard --------—.. ---. ---. —.. ----.60
15  Jacques  Langlois. --- —--—. ---.-....-.......__  1.30
16 Guillaume Boult, dit Deliard -..-.........._.....-..._...-  TO.50
17 Michel Masse -.........-....... —....-..........68......,- 1.68
18  Michel Campo -..-...-........ —  --------—... --- —...... 1.06
19 Louis Normand ---—...-. —.-                   -..50
20  Francois  Tesse ------- ------. --- —-.... — -- - - - - --.40


92




21 Pierre Cbantelon ----—. --- —------------—. --- —----------—.56
22 Francois Bienvenue, dit De Lisle --—.-__-_ ---,_ --- —--------.60
23  Pierre  Esteve ---------------------.. --- —--. --- ------------.50
24 Blaise Surgere -----—..-...-.........___.. --- —--—. --- —---.60
25 Pierre Porrier --- —---...- -----    ---.. --- —-------   -.50
26 Antoine Ferron.. --- ——. ---. --- —-_ —. --- —---------—. —.40
27 Pierre Tocet. --- —--—. --- ——. --- —----- ---------------—..50
28 Francois Fafard, dit De Lorme ----------------------------—.90
29 Michel Disier --- --—. — — _ --- —. —.-. —. —. --- —-         -----—..50
30 Jacob De Marsac.. — -----------—. -_ --- —--—.. ----. --- —--.40
31 A man named Rancontre. --- —---------------—. --- —--—..50
32 A man named Des Lauriers._ --- —-------           - _ --- —---------— _.50
33 A man named Xaintonge -... _ ---._- _,__ — —.. --- -.50
34 Jacques Du Moulin _..-__       -_ —.- _ — _._ —___ —  __.__-___..60
35 Guillaume Aquet, dit Laporte -----—._     --—. --- —---. --- —--.50
36 Louis Gustineau. —......-.................___.....50
37 Joseph Parent._. — -—. ----. ----—... --- —----—... --- -.60
38 Martin Sirier --- —---—. ---.      ----. ---. ----.. ----     - _.-.__.60
39 Quilenchive... --- —---------------   -. --- —-----------—..50
40 M. Derance ---------      ----------------------------—. --- —-.30
41 Du Figuer ------------------------------------------------..54
42 La Montagne, dit Pierre Mouet -----— ___ ---      _ ----__ --- —__  —.90
43 Pierre Mallet ------------------—. --- —--------------- --—.       1.60
44 Antoine Dufresne — _ --- —-.-_ --- —----—. --- ——.-       —.-. —_ -1.00
45 Jean Baptiste Chornic ---------—. ----_   ---. --- —-—. --- —._.32
46 Jean Casse, dit St. Aubin --- —---------      ----------—... ---  -__.50
47 Paul Langlois —. --- —----------------- --------------------.50
48 Jerome Marliard --—. --- —-           ------------   - -__ -____.-__-__.40
49 Andre Bombardier. ----.. --- --------—..-_ --- —__-_-_ —_.50
50 Pierre Duroy.- ---------------------------------------—..-60
51 Pierre Roy --- —----------------- --------—. -----— _ --- —-_.78
52 Francois Marque ---------- _   --------------- --------— _ ----- 26
53 Antoine Magnant --------------—. --- —.. —.. --- —                 - 1.00
54 Francois Bonne --- —--------------------- -----—. --- —. —.- 1.00
55 Touissaint Dardennes -----------------------------—.. —_-__.30
56 Pierre Bassinet --—. --- —----------------—. --- —. --- —-__..20
57 Francois Brunet --------------------------—..__.__.__      40
58 Antoine Beauregard --- —---- -       --                           ---  2.40
59 Marie Le Page. ---- -------- -------------—.. --- —--— ___.72
60 Jacques Campo ----------------------------—.-.. --- —-— ____.40
61 Jean Serond ---------------------------—. --- —--- -__-__-.50
62 Pierre Robert ---------------------------—. --- —-—. ---__. 1.20
63 Larramee --- —---       -   —. --- —-----------------------.-.50
64 Rene Le Moine ------------------------------        -...40
65 Jacques Le Moine-. --- —--—.-     ------- --—. --- —-—. ---..40
66 Paul Guillet --- —---------------------- ---------                   1.20
67 Joseph Rivard ---------—. --- —---------— _-       -...__.30
93




68 Antoine Tuffe, dit Du Fresne. --- —-.

-.40


$ 40.62
68 tenants at $2 each ----— 1.... --- ----------- ---- --- 136.00
Total -..................... —. --- —---. --- —-. --- —., $176.62
Money, of course, in those days, had three times the purchasing
power of the present time, but, all things considered, the tax roll of
Detroit in the first decade of the eighteenth century could not have
been called high or extortionate.
The settlers also took all their grain to the commandant's mill, and
paid a toll of one-eighth of the grain, and baked in the public ovens,
of which Cadillac had the profits. By the order of the governor-general
he was directed to charge only one-fourteenth for grinding grain, but
he disregarded the mandate, and did not give any reason for his disobedience. His income, therefore, was about 500 crowns, or $550 per
year.
Each settler, including Cadillac himself, had to pay taxes for the
maintenance of the church and its priest. The church and all the vestments and paraphernalia belonged to Cadillac  Even the traders who
only visited Detroit, and did not reside here, had to pay small sums for
the benefit of the church. On June 7, 1710, Cadillac, who had formerly
borne the expense of maintaining a priest, called the residents of Detroit together and submitted plans for maintaining the church and priest
by public dues. The priest was to be paid five hundred livres annually,
of which the commandant was to pay two hundred livres, while the inhabitants were to supply him with food. Each resident, in addition,
was to pay for the support of the church a tithe consisting of one-tenth
of his annual income.
Of Cadillac's profits as a fur dealer, only an estimate can be made,
which is partially founded on his own statements in 1703 as to the profits of the Company of the Colony in Detroit. These, he said, amounted
to 20,000 livres, or $4,000. He acted as notary, and received as his fee
one-twelfth of the consideration of every piece of real estate sold. Up
to 1709 the government defrayed the expense of the garrison, but in
that year he was told that he would have to pay his soldiers himself.
It was only for a year, however, and he was relieved in 1710, and appointed governor of Louisiana. It is fair to presume that he cleared
between $3,000 and $5,000 a year, and if he had kept the money realized he would have been in a good financial standing. But he rein

94




vested nearly all his money in buildings, mills, public ovens, a vessel
of ten tons, etc., and when he left Detroit he could not obtain any
compensation for them.
In 1896 C. M. Burton, of Detroit, gave a list of the adult white residents of Detroit from 1701 to 1710, compiled from old notarial and
official records, a work involving immense expense and an enormous
amount of labor. It was printed as a brochure entitled " Detroit under
Cadillac," and with other new information, formed a valuable addition
to the history of the city.  It is herewith given entire:
Abatis, Jean (or Labbatu; see Labatier).
Aguenet (or Aguet), called Laporte, Guillaume. (Possibly the name should be
Haguenet.)
Arnauld, Bertrand, merchant, came to Detroit July 18, 1702.
Badeillac, Louis, called Laplante, made an agreement to come to Detroit May 29,
1701, the first convoy.
Bannois, Jeanne. She was the first wife of Guillaume Bouche, and died in 1703.
The name is given by Tanguay as Beauvais.
Bariteau, Julien, called La Marche, came May 30, 1705.
Baron, Denys, voyageur, came June 21, 1706.
Barthe, Jean (called Belleville), soldier, came October 10, 1706.
Barthe (called Belleville), Marie Charlotte, daughter of Jean Barthe, above. Born
October 27, 1709.
Bassinet, Joseph, Sieur Tourblanche, came April 2, 1707.
Bassinet, Pierre, brother of above, came same date.
Baudreau, Gabriel. Gabriel Baudreau and his wife, Catherine Fortier, were voyageurs passing through Detroit on their way to Mobile, November 24, 1708.
Baudreau, Marie Louise, daughter of Gabriel Baudreau, baptized November 24,
1708.
Baugret, Francois, called Dufort, came September 10, 1710.
Beauchamp, Jacques, came as a bargemau, May 30, 1705.
Beauchamp, Pierre, brother of above, came same time.
Beaugis (or Baugis), Michael, voyageur.
Beauregard, see Dupuis.
Belille (or Belisle), Henry, first surgeon of the fort.
Besnard, Rene, came June 21, 1706. Soldier of Carignan regiment.
Bienvenue, Alexis, son of Francois, below. He married Josette Bouron, January
17, 1740.
Bienvenue, called Delisle, Francois, came August 2, 1707. His first wife was
Genevieve Laferiere, and his second wife was Marianne Lemoine. He was buried
September 29, 1751, aged eighty-eight years. The transformation of French names
is well illustrated by this person. His descendants are nearly universally known
here by the name of Delisle or De Lisle, and the surname of two centuries ago is not
uncommonly used to day as a Christian name, and we frequently find Bienvenue (or
Welcome), Delisles in our real estate records.




Bienvenue, Joseph, son of Francois Bienvenue, above. Baptized March 5, 1704,
and buried December 3, 1711.
Bienvenue, Marie, daughter of Francois Bienvenue, above. Baptized December 8,
1705. She married Jacques Roussel, April 7, 1725. She is named Marianne in the
marriage record.
Bienvenue, Marie Joseph, daughter of Francois Bienvenue, born August 25, 1709.
Bienvenue, Rafael. Buried April 24, 1706, aged two years. Unless this is the
same person as Joseph Bienvenue, above, it is scarcely possible that Rafael was a
son of Francois Bienvenue. This is the first recorded death in Detroit, though there
is other evidence that a child of Alphonse de Tonty died before the first church was
burned, in 1703, and that Madam Bouche died in 1703.
Bizaillon (or Bisaillon), Michel, son of Benoit Bisaillon and of Louise Blaye, of
Clairmont, in Auvergne. He married Marguerite Fafard (dit De Lorme), June 30,
1710.
Bluteau, Agathe (in some places this name is spelled Bulteau), wife of Francois
Judith Contant, dit Rancontre.
Bollard, Jeanne, wife of Pierre Leger, dit Parisien.
Bombardier (called la Bombarde), Andre, a soldier and farmer.
Bombardier (called la Bombarde), Bernard Phillipe, son of Andre Bombardier,
above, born October 12, 1709.
Bombardier, Jean, son of Andre Bombardier, above, born July 18, 1707.
Bone, Marie Anne. The name probably should be spelled Beaune. She was the
widow of Francois Lorry and daughter of Jean Bone and Mary Magdelaine Bourigier. She married Martin Cirier June 12, 1710. She came to Detroit April 18,1707,
under an agreement to serve Cadillac for three years at eighty livres per year.
Bonne, Francois.
Bonnet, Guillaume (surnamed Deliard), armorer. A native of the parish of Charlesburg, near Quebec. He died January 13, 1709.
Bosne, Francois. Came April 13, 1709.
Bosseron, Francois. (Tanguay spells the name Beauceron.) Farmer. He was
the husband of Marie Le Page (which name see).
Botquin, Pierre (called St. Andre). A soldier, came October 19, 1706. An inventory of goods that he carried to Detroit in 1710 includes 50 pounds of powder at 40 sols
per pound, 100 pounds of bullets at 10 sols per pound, and 32 pots (of two quarts each)
of brandy at 45 sols per pot.
Boucher, Guillaume. His first wife was named Jeanne Beauvais, and after her
death, in 1703, he married Angelique Tholme, widow of Pierre Robert, August 16,
1716.
Boucher, Pierre, Esquire, sieur de Boucherville.
Bourdon, Pierre, voyageur, came June 15, 1706. Married, in 1711, Marie Anne
Gouyon.
Bougery, Denis, came as bargeman, May 30, 1705.
Bougery, Jean Louis. Brother of Denis, came September 14, 1710.
Bourg, Jean (called Lapierre). Voyageur, came June 15, 1706.
Bourgoin (called St. Paul), Didier. Soldier of Montigny. H-e signs Bourguin.
Boutron (called Major), Estienne. Farmer. The name Estienne shows one of the
common transformations of the French words.  This is now commonly written
93(




Etienne (Stephen), and the second letter s has been dropped, as it has in Destroit,
Chesne, despot, and many other words.
Boutron (called Major), Marguerite. Daughter of Etienne Boutron, above, born
September 15, 1709.
Boutron (called Major) Marie Angelique, daughter of Etienne Boutron, baptized
July 5, 1707.
Boyer, Zacharie. Voyageur, came May 20, 1708.
Boyer, Jean. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705.
Brabant, Michel. Voyageur, came August 2, 1707.
Breunel, Anne (probably intended for Anne Bruneau, which see). Wife of Louis
Normand.
Brisset, Bernard. Came May 18, 1708.
Bruneau, Anne. Wife of Louis Normand, dit Labrierre.
Brunet, Francois, dit Bourbonnais. Came May 30, 1705.
Buet, Rene. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705.
Butard,, wife of-. She died December 10, 1724, aged thirty to thirtytwo years.
Cabazier, Charles. Voyageur, came June 13, 1707.
Cadieu, Pierre. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705.
Cadillac. See De La Mothe.
Caillomeau, Louis. Came September 6, 1710. This name probably should be
Galannaux.
Camerand. See Chouet.
Campau, Jacques (the name is also spelled Campo, Campos, Campeau and Campot).
Blacksmith, came September 3, 1708. His wife was Cecile Catin. He was buried
May 14, 1751, aged seventy-eight years.
Campau, Jean. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705.
Campau. Jeanne. Daughter of Michel Campau.
Campau, Louis, son of Jacques Campau. He married Marie Louise Robert, widow of Francois Pelletier, and daughter of Pierre Robert and Angelique Tholme,
January 7, 1724.
Campau, Marguerite, daughter of Michel Campau, baptized March 2, 1708.
Campau, Marie Angelique. Daughter of Jacques Campau, born December 6,1708.
Campau, Michel. Farmer, came August 3, 1707. His wife was Jeanne Masse.
He died before 1740.
Campau, Paul Alexander. Son of Michel Campau, born September 14, 1709. He
married Charlotte Sioneau, daughter of Mathurin Sioneau and Marie Charlotte Dubeau, February 15, 1740.
Cardinal, Jacques. Voyageur, came October 13, 1707. Died May 17, 1724, aged
eighty-four years.
Cardinal, Jacques. Son of the preceding, came October 13, 1707. His wife was
Jeanne Dugue, and third son Pierre, was baptized August 30, 1729. They already
had a daughter Jeanne, who acted as god-mother to the infant Pierre. Jeanne married Laurent Parent.
Cardinal, Marie. Wife of Jacques Hubert, dit la Croix, with her husband and one
child, she set out from Montreal for Detroit, May 22, 1709.
Cardinal Pierre. Came September 6, 1708.
97
13




Caron, Vital. Came April 2, 1707.
Carriere, Antoine (he signs the church record Hantoine Carrier, in 1710). His
parents, Andre Carriere and Cecile Jannot, lived on St. Paul street, Montreal. He
first came to Detroit, April 11, 1707, as a voyageur.
Casse (called St. Aubin), Jean. This is a good illustration of the change of French
names. The family name of Casse has been so completely lost through years of use
of the nickname, that this man's descendants are universally known as St. Aubin,
and there are many of them in Detroit to-day. I have grouped them all under this
name. Jean Casse's wife was Marie Louise Gautier. He died February 27, 1759,
aged more than one hundred years.
Casse (called St. Aubin), Jean Baptiste. Died of small-pox February 25, 1733, aged
twenty-seven or twenty-eight years. A great many people died in the winter of
1733-34, of small-pox. Jean Baptiste St. Aubin married Magdeleine Pruneau, daughter of Jean Pruneau and Suzanne Bellanger, of Quebec, July 31, 1731.
Casse (called St. Aubin), Jacques, son of Jean Casse and Marie Louise Gautier.
He married Catherine Vien, daughter of Ignace Vien and Angelique Du Sable, December 27, 1745.
Casse (called St. Aubin), Marie Anne, daughter of Jean (or Jean Baptiste) Casse
and Marie Louise Gautier. Born October 5, 1710. She married Charles Chauvin
(blacksmith), October 27, 1726. There was another daughter, Agathe Cass, who
married Nicholas Campau, dit Niagara.
Casse (called St. Aubin), Pierre, son of Jean Casse. Baptized May 2, 1709.
Catin, Cecile, wife of Jacques Campau. She died before 1732. Her daughter,
Marianne Campau, married Joseph Bondy, July 28, 1732, and her son, Claude, married Catherine Casse (dit St. Aubin), daughter of Jean Casse, January 22, 1742.
Catinet, Joseph, of Pointe aux Trembles, near Montreal, was in Detroit July 26,
1707.
Chabot, Joseph.
Channet (called Camirand), Andre, sergeant of the troops in this country. His
wife was Anne Pastorel.
Channet (called Camirand), Andre, son of above. Born May 13, 1708.
Channet (called Camirand), Pierre, son of Andre, senior. Born about April, 1710.
Chanteloup, Pierre, farmer. Acted as godfather to Jean Bombardier, July 18,
1707. His wife came to Detroit April 11, 1707.
Charbonneau, Joseph. Came April 25, 1707.
Charbonneau, Michel. Came April 17, 1707. Brother of above.
Charnic. See du Charnic.
Charlet, Francois. His wife was Marthe Forstier.
Charlet, Pierre, son of above. Born May 3, 1709.
Charon, Charles.
Charpentier, Jean. Came April 2, 1707.
Chauvillon, Charlotte, wife of Jean Barthe, dit Belleville.
Chauvin, Gilles, voyageur. Came June 7, 1706. He and Louis Normand were in
partnership.
Chauvin, Jean Baptiste, voyageur. Came June 14, 1706.
Chauvin, Louis, voyageur. Came June 14, 1706. Brother of above.
Cheauonvouzon, Louis Antoine, surnamed Quarante Sols, chief of the Huron na98




tion. He was a very prominent and influential Indian and frequent reference is
made to him, both by Cadillac and by the Jesuit fathers at Mackinac. He was baptized April 27, 1707, having as a godfather Cadillac himself. He died the same day,
aged forty-eight years.
Chesne, Charles, son of Pierre Chesne and Louise Batty. He married Catherine
Sauvage, daughter of Jacques Sauvage and Marie Catherine Rieul, January 18, 1722.
Chesne, Francois, voyageur. Came September 25, 1707.
Chesne, Marie, daughter of Pierre Chesne and Jeanne Bailli. She married (first)
Jacques Montboef, dit Godfroy, and after his death she married Jacques Boutin,
September 16, 1733. There is a record that Marie Chesne died February 13, 1738.
From Marie Chesne have descended all the Godfreys of French extraction in and
about Detroit.
Chesne, Pierre. Came June 13, 1707. His wife was Jeanne Bailli, she died in
1710, she is sometimes referred to as Louise Batty. The name has been slightly
changed in spelling, though not in sound, by his descendants. He was the Detroit
ancestor of the present Chene family.
Chesne, Pierre. Son of above Pierre Chesne. He had two wives; first on May 25,
1728, he married Marie Magdelene Roy, a daughter of Pierre Roy; this marriage
took place at Fort St. Phillipe, village of the Miamis. She died of small-pox Octo20, 1732, and in 1736 he married his second wife, Louise Barrois, daughter of Francois Lothenane, dit Barrois, and Marianne Sauvage. Pierre Chesne was an interpreter and sometimes called La Butte. He was born about 1697.
Chevalier, Jean. Came May 30, 1705. There is a record that Angelique Chevalier,
daughter of the late Jean Baptiste Chevalier and the late Francoise Alavoine of this
parish married Antoine Nicolas Lauzon, February 27, 1769.
Chevalier, Michel. Came October 10, 1710.
Chevalier, Paul. Came July 12, 1702. His wife was Agathe Campau. They
lived on St. Paul street. Montreal. Paul, Jean and Robert were brothers.
Chevalier, Pierre.
Chevalier, Robert. Came June 15, 1706.
Chornic, Jean Baptiste.
Chouet (called Camerand) Andre.
Chouet, Louis, called Lagiroflee. Soldier in company of Cabana, captain. He
was a son of Jean Chouet and Marie Magdeleine Magdile. Before setting out for
Detroit, May 25, 1701, he gave his property, in event of his death, to Mary Magdeleine Delisle.
Cirier, Martin. Son of Nicolas Cirier and Catherine Prevoost of the parish of St.
Denis d'Argenteuil of Paris. He was a soldier of the company of de la Champagne
and married Ann Bone, June 12, 1710. I find the name spelled Sirier sometimes,
but Martin could write and he spelled it Cirier.
Clairambaut, Francois, esquire, sieur D'Aigremont. Commissary of the marine in
Canada, sub-delegate of the Intendant and deputy appointed to visit the most advanced posts. He visited Detroit, Fort Pontchartrain, July 29, 1708.
Cobtron, see Marsac.
Colin, Michel, called Laliberte. Came in 1706.
Collet, Pierre, voyageur. Came June 15, 1706.


99




Compein (called L'Esperance) Bonaventure. Soldier and farmer. His wife was
Catherine Laplante.
Compein (called L'Esperance), Marie Catherine, daughter of Bonaventure, above.
She was baptized November 14, 1707.
Compien (called L'Esperance) Pierre. Son of Bonaventure, above. Was born
January 12, 1710.
Comic, Pierre.
Corton, Pierre, called St. Jean. Came May 30, 1705, as bargeman.
Cosset, Francois. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705.
Couk, Marguerite, wife of Francois Masse. Marguerite Couque is referred to as
the wife of the late Jean Fafare, and Marguerite Kouque, as the wife of sieur Masse.
These may be the same party.
Coup, Isabelle. Came to Detroit as early as April 27, 1704.
Coutant (called Rancontre) Francois Judile, a soldier. His wife was Marie Agathe
Bluteau, above.
Coutant, Jean. A soldier of the company of Lorimier. He was buried September
17, 1732, aged sixty-five years.
Coutant (called Rancontre) Louis. Son of Francois, above, baptized February 13,
1708.
Couturier, Joseph, voyageur. Came September 6, 1710.
Cusson, Ange. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705.
Cusson, Charles, voyageur. Came April 20, 1709.
Cusson, Jean Baptiste. Came April 11, 1707.
Cusson, Joseph. Came October 7, 1706.
Cusson, Nicolas, voyageur. Came October 7, 1706.
Dandonneau, Marie Francoise, wife of the second marriage of Henry Belisle, surgeon. Died May 8, 1711, aged about fifty years.
Dardennes, Toussainte. Came May 12, 1707.
D'Argenteuil (probably Pierre), gardener.
David, Therese. Wife of Jacob de Marsac de Cobtron, dit Desrochers. She was
buried September 24, 1727, aged sixty-six years.
Daze, Charles. Came July 16, 1702.
De Broyeux, Francois. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705.
De Couague, Charles, jr. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705.
De Gaigne, Jacques, jr., eighteen years old. Agreed to work for Jerome Merilat,
dit Sansquartier, for two years.
De La Forest, Francois, captain of the troops of the marine in this country. Like
many other French words the letter s is frequently dropped in writing this name, so;
that we find it De La Foret.
De La March, Dominique. Recollect priest, lecturer in theology, pastor of Ste.
Anne's.
De La Marque, Marianne. Wife of Alphonse de Tonty. She was the widow of
Jean Baptiste Nolan, and had a daughter, Louise Suzanne Nolan, who married
Charles Francois de Mezieres, esquire, sieur de Leperueinche, December 17, 1725.
De La Mothe Cadillac, Antoine. The founder of Detroit. He was born in 1661,
the son of Jean de La Mothe and Jeanne de Malenfant. Married Marie Therese
Guyon, daughter of Denis Guyon at Quebec, June 27, 1687.
100




tI.,


I',- - -




I




De La Mothe Cadillac, Antoine. Ensign in the troops, son of Cadillac.
De La Mothe Cadillac, Antoine (or Jean Antoine), son of Cadillac. Buried in the
church, April 9, 1709, aged two years, two and a half months. I think this is the
same as Jean Antoine, who was baptized January 19, 1707.
De La Mothe Cadillac, Francois. Son of Cadillac. Born March 29, 1709.
De La Mothe Cadillac, Jacques. Son of Cadillac. Cadet in the troops of the detachment of marines.
De La Mothe Cadillac, Marie Agatha. Daughter of Cadillac. Born December
28, 1707.
De La Mothe Cadillac, Rene Louis. Son of Cadillac. Born March 17, 1710.
De Launay, Joseph. Came September 27, 1710.
De l'Halle, Constantin, Recollect priest, killed June 6, 1706. His body was exhumed, transported and reburied within the church of Ste. Anne.
De Liard, see Bouet.
De Lisle, see Bienvenue.
De Lorme, see Fafard.
Delpeche, Francois. Came May 17, 1710.
Demers, Maximilien. Came May 30, 1705.
Deniau Cherubin. Recollect priest, pastor of Ste. Anne's.
Deniau, Rene. Died July, 1730, aged eighty years.
De Paris, Denis.
Depre (or Despre), Joseph.
De Ranee, see Le Gautier.
Derruon, Pierre, esquire, sieur de Budemond.
Dervisseau, Julien. Lieutenant in the troops.
Desautels, Gilbert, dit Lapointe. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705.
Des Jardins, Suzanne. Wife of Pierre La Fleur.
Desloriers, Jean Baptiste. Jean Baptiste du Fournel, dit Desloriers, aged fifty
years, was buried October 31, 1731.
Desmoulins, Charlotce, dit Philis, daughter of Jacques Desmoulins and Charlotte
Sanarias, was born November 22, 1709, and died January 8, 1710.
Desmoulins, Jacques, dit Philis. His wife was Charlotte Sanarias.
Desmoulins, Jacques. Son of the above Jacques Desmoulins; was baptized March
30, 1708, and died April 14, 1728.
Desmoulins, Marie. Wife of Blaise Sontieureuse.
Desnoyers, Joseph. Married Magdeleine Robert, daughter of Pierre Robert and
Angelique Tholme.
Desrocher, or Derocher, see Marsac.
Desrosiers, Jean Morean. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705.
Desrosiers, Joseph, called Dutremble. Came September 27, 1710.
Devinon, Pierre, esquire, sieur de Budemond. Lieutenant in the troops.
Dizier, Michel, called Sans Quartier. Farmer.
Dounay, Anthoine. Came in the summer of 1704.
Dubor, Dominique. Came as voyageur, June 12, 1706.
Du Chornic, Louis.
Ducharme, Joseph. Came September 10, 1710.
Ducharme, Louis. Voyageur, brother of Joseph. Came May 22, 1709.
101




Duclos, Jacques. A soldier.
Dumouchel, Francoise. Daughter of Bernard Dumouchel, dit Laroche. On the
6th day of July, 1703, she agreed to go to Detroit to serve M. and Madam de la
Mothe (Cadillac), for two years at 180 livres per year.
Dumouchel, Paul. Came May 15, 1708.
Duffant, Marie Renie.
Du Figuier, (see Fournier).
Dufresne, Antoine.
Dufresne, Marie Magdelaine. Wife of Pierre Mallet.
Dumay, Jacques. Jacques Pierre Danau, esquire. sieur de Muy, Chevalier of the
Royal and Military order of St. Louis, died May 20, 1758.
Dumay, Marguerite. Wife of Andre Bombardier.
Dumouche, Francoise.
Dupuis, Antoine (called Beauregard). Farmer. His wife was Marie Anne
Marandeau.
Dupuis, Antoine. Son of above, was born June 21, 1707.
Dupuis, Joseph. Son of of Antoine, sr., above, was born January 31, 1709.
Dupuis, Marie Anne. Daughter of Antoine above, was born March 13, 1710.
Duroy, Pierre, dit Deslauriers. Soldier in the company of De La Mothe Cadillac.
He came April 11, 1707. He is also mentioned as a soldier in the company of Dulhud (Duluth).
Du Vestin, Salomon Joseph.
Durand (or Durant) Jean. Farmer.
Dussault, Marie. Wife of Jacques Langlois.
Du Sault, Marie, fille mineure. The parents' names are not given.
Dutan, Jacques. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705.
Dutremble, Jean Baptiste. Came in 1706.
Dutremble, Joseph. Came September 28, 1706.
Du Vant, called La Franchise, Pierre. Soldier de la Compagnie de la Corne.
Esteve, Pierre. Called La Jeunesse. Farmer, see Stebre.
Estienne, Estienne. Brother of Dominique Estienne. Came April 26, 1707.
Estienne, Jacques. Came April 13, 1707, with a canoe load of merchandise for
Sieur de Bourmont, ensign in the troops.
Fafard, Charles, dit Delorme. He came April 25, 1707. His father was Francois Fafard, dit Delorme. The descendants from this pioneer are universally called Delorme.
Fafard, Etienne, dit Delorme. Son of Francois Fafard, born September 24, 1708.
Fafard, Francois, dit Delorme. Farmer and interpreter for the king. He died
January 28, 1734, aged about eighty years. His first wife was Magdeleine Marguerite Jobin and his second wife was Barbe Loisel.
Fafard, Joseph. Son of Francois, above. He was born September 24, 1708. He
and Etienne were twins.
Fafard, Magdeleine. Daughter of Francois Fafard, above. She married Prudent
Robert, January 7, 1711.
Fafard, Marie Joseph, dit Delorme, daughter of Francois, above, married Pierre
Auclair, of Charlesburg.
Fafard, Marie Marguerite, daughter of Francois, above. Married Michel Bissilon
June 30, 1710.
102




Fafard, Marguerite, daughter of Jean Fafard and Marguerite Couck. Married
Jean Baptiste Turpin, May 5, 1710.
Fanereau, Charles. voyageur. Lived in Detroit October 6, 1708.
Farland, Jean.
Faverau, Pierre. Called Le Grandeur.
Fayolet, Pierre, called St. Pierre. A soldier of the company of St. Ours. He was
in Detroit May 2, 1709, and acted as godfather to Pierre Casse.
Ferron, Antoine, farmer.
Filiatreau, Jacques, voyageur. Came May 30, 1705. He lived at Lachine and
never resided at Detroit, though he came here several times.
Filie, Michel, esquire, sieur de Therigo, sergeant of troops. Commissioned to
bear letters from France to Cadillac. He came October 16, 1706.
Fortier, Catherine, wife of Gabriel Baudreau. They were married at Montreal,
August 15, 1701.
Fortier, Marthe (or Marie Marthe), wife of Francois Chalut, dit Chanteloup. They
were married in Montreal June 10, 1706. She was a sister of Catherine, above.
Fournier, Louis Rene, sieur du Figuier, ensign in the troops of this country, per
forming the functions of major of the troops in Fort Pontchartrain. He was born
at Montreal May 14, 1673. His mother's name was Helene Du Figuier.
Frapier, Marie Magdeleine, wife of Pierre Stebre, dit la Jeunesse. They were
married at Quebec April 12, 1706, and she died at Detroit, December 22, 1759, aged
eighty years.
Frigon, Francois. He was born in Normandy and came to Detroit May 30, 1705.
Frotant, Angelique. Probably Proteau, which see.
Gagnier, Jacques. Came May 17, 1710.
Galarneau, Louise, wife of Francois Marquet. She was born February 2, 1690,
and married April 26, 1706.
Gallien, Marie Anne. Her first husband was Jerome (Hieronymus) Marillac, dit
Sansquartier, and her second husband was Bernard Phillipe.
Gareau (or Garro or Garraud), Dominique. Came October 3, 1708. He was born
at Boucherville, January 13, 1684.
Gareau, Jean, came September 25, 1707. He was born at Boucherville, November
3, 1679.
Gareau, Pierre. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. He was born at Boucherville
May 1, 1673. He lived in St. Paul street, Montreal. He was sometimes called St.
Onge, Saintonge, or Xaintonge. The three Gareaus were brothers. Dominique
and Jean never resided in Detroit, but came here together in 1708 and at various
other times. Pierre owned a house and lot in the village, conveyed to him by the
name of Xaintonge.
Gatineau, Louis, sieur Duplessis, came to Detroit June 21, 1706. He was married
January 22, 1710, to Jeanne Lemoyne, at Batiscan. He is described as a merchant
of Quebec.
Gaultier, Marie Louise, wife of Jean Casse, called St. Aubin.
Gaultier (or Gautier), Pierre, dit Saguinoira. Came May 22, 1709. He was born
March 25, 1669, and died July 25, 1754.
Gazaille, Jean, dit St. Germain. Came September 10, 1710.
Germain, Alexis, son of Robert Germain, a native of the parish of Pointe aux
103




Trembles, near Quebec, and came to Detroit May 19, 1708. He was killed May 19,
1712, by a gunshot given by the Ytaganish Indians, with whom he was fighting at
Detroit.
Germain, Robert. Came May 18, 1708. He was a brother of Alexis. Born at
Quebec, September 8, 1680.
Gervais, Etienne de Bourguion. July 10, 1703, he agreed to go to Detroit as a
hunter.
Giard, Anthoine. Came May 30, 1705. He was born at Montreal August 31, 1661.
Giard, Gabriel. He was born at Montreal April 15, 1675, and came to Detroit as
a bargeman May 30, 1705. He was married three times.
Giguiere, Jean Baptiste, being about to set out for Detroit June 28, 1701, he made
a present of his property in event of his death to Louise Maignan. He returned to
Montreal and married this lady January 22, 1704. He died April 18, 1750.
Giguiere, Robert, brother of Jean Baptiste. He was born January 28, 1663, and
died at Montreal December 10, 1711.
Giradin, Joseph. Came August 26, 1708.
Gode (or Gaude), Jacques. Came as voyageur November 6, 1707. He was married August 15, 1743, to Marie Louise St. Martin, of Detroit.
Godefroy (or Godfroy), Jacques, dit Mauboeuf. Paul Chevalier and Jacques Godefroy, dit Mauboeuf, voyageurs, and Joseph Senecal, toolmaker and voyageur, formed
a partnership September 10, 1710, to carry on the business of trading at Detroit. To
this business Chevalier contributed 255 livres, Senecal 165 livres and Godefroy 43
livres and two guns. The partnership was to continue for two years, and if any of
the partners died in that time another man would be taken in to fill the place. Gains
and losses to be shared equally. Godfroy married Marie Anne Chesne at Detroit,
November 20, 1730.
Gognet, Francois, called Sansoucy, a soldier.
Gouin. Joseph, came May 19, 1708, bringing to Dufiguier, major of Fort Pontchartrain, two barrels of brandy (eau de vie), one barrel of salt, two barrels of powder, a
small parcel of goods and two bags of bullets, in all, 400 pounds.
Gouin, Louis. Came May 18, 1708.
Gourion (or Gorion), Antoine, son of Jean Baptiste Gourion. Born April 26, 1708.
Gourion, Jean Baptiste, sergeant in the troops at I)etroit (1708), and farmer. His
wife was Louise Chaudillon, though it is given as Louise Rhodillon in Ste. Anne's
church.
Gros, Jean Baptiste. Born at Montreal December 22, 1673.
Guillemot, Marie Chretienne. Came to Detroit in the employ of Cadillac August
30, 1710. She was a daughter of Jacques Francois Guillemot and Madeleine Dupont.
Was born at Montreal September 29, 1695. Returned there and married Jean Jacquiers, November 24, 1715, and died November 23, 1734.
Guillet, Paul, merchant. Born 1690, Died in Montreal June 7, 1753. His full
name seems to have been Paul Alexander Guillet. IHe acted as godfather to Paul
Alexander Campau September 14, 1709, and the infant appears to have been named
after him. He came to Detroit May 19, 1708.
Gustineau, Louis.
Guyon, Jean, dit Lachapelle. Came September 6, 1710.


104




Guyon, Marie Therese, wife of Antoine de La Mothe Cadillac. Born at Quebec
April 9, 1671. Married June 25, 1687. (The first white woman in Detroit).
Hamelin, Rene, voyageur. Came May 18, 1710.
Hemart (or Haimart), Marie Louise. Born December 1, 1709. Daughter of Pierre
Haimart.
Hemart (or Haimart), Pierre, farmer and soldier in the company of M. Lorimier.
Married Marie Laland June 12, 1706.
The records of Ste. Anne contain a certificate of baptism, October 20, 1707, of Francois Delainart, son of Pierre Delainart and Marie Filiastreau. Father Tanguay
concludes that Hemart and Delainart are the same.
Henaux, Pierre, sr., came to Detroit September 27, 1708.  Perhaps the name
should be Hunalt.
Henaux, Pierre, jr. Came September 27, 1708.
Hubert, Ignace, called Lacroix. Came April 20, 1709. He was a son of Ignace
Hubert, of Boucherville.
Hubert, Jacques, dit Lacroix, sr. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705.
Hubert, Jacques, dit Lacroix. Came in 1706. He was born May 12, 1684, and
married September 5, 1705, to Marie Cardinal. He was a son of Jacques Hubert, of
Montreal.
Hubert, Louis, voyageur, came November 6,1707. He wasabrother of Ignace, above.
Hubert, Pierre, son of Jacques Hubert, dit la Croix, and Marie Cardinal. Was
born at Detroit December 11, 1709, and died October 11, 1724. The family is generally known by the name of Lacroix.
Hubert. Pierre, voyageur. Came August 11, 1710. He was a brother of Jacques
Hubert, above, and married Francoise Cardinal.
Huet, Pierre, called Duluth, came April 2, 1707. He was a son of Joseph Huet,
born November 12, 1682.
Janot, Pierre. Came May 22, 1709, nephew of Robert Janot.
Janot, Robert (called La Chapelle). Came April 2, 1707. He was uncle to Joseph
Bazinet, dit Tourblanche.
Jardis, Francois, called Rencontre. Farmer and lot owner in the village.
Jean, Raymond, dit Godon. Contracted October 12, 1703, to go to Detroit as a
farmer.
Jobin, Marie Magdelene, wife of Francois Fafard, dit Delorme, interpreter. She
died at Detroit, January 29, 1711, aged about forty years.
Joly, Jean, surnamed Jolycoeur, sergeant in the troops. He was a native of the
parish of Bury, diocese Xaintes. Died at Detroit, Mich., March 20, 1707, and buried
in the cemetery at Fort Pontchartrain.
Juillet, Jean, called Laplante. Came to Detroit as a bargeman May 30, 1705.
Labatier (or Abatis), Jean. Owned a lot in the village. Jean Labattu, Cochant,
dit Champagne, a soldier. Died in Detroit, February 15, 1712. I think this is the
same person.
Laberge, Guillaume, entered into an agreement October 12, 1703, to come to Detroit as a farmer.
Labrierre, see Normand.
La Ferriere, Genevieve, wife of Francois Bienvenue, dit Delisle. Born December
8, 1679. She died before 1709. Her family name was Charon.
105
14




Lafleur, see Poirier.
Laferte, see Levoir.
La Forest, Marguerite, wife of Antoine Levroir. She was born in 1689 and married Antoine Terou Laferte (Levroir) June 10, 1706.
La Grandeur, see Faverau.
La Jeunesse, see Stebre.
La Jeunesse, Etienne, came in 1706.
Lalande, Marie, wife of Pierre Hemart.
Laloire, -, farmer. There is nothing from which the first name can be determined. Tanguay gives the name Allaire as the same surname as this.
Lamareux, Francois, sieur de St. Germain. Came April 2, 1707. Francois Lamoureux, dit Germain, a merchant, was born 1675 and died December 30,1740.
La Marque, Pierre, called Sans Soucy. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. He
lived at Laprairie, and his wife was Magdeleine Delisle.
La Montagne, called Pierre Mouet.
La Mothe, Magdalaine, Cadillac's daughter.
La Mothe, Marie Therese, daughter of Cadillac, baptized February 2, 1704.
Lamy, Joseph. Set out from Montreal September 6, 1708, to conduct Madame
Ranez to Detroit. Lamy drifted farther west to Kaskaskia, where he became one of
the trustees of the church in 1717, and was killed by the Indians in 1725.
Lanarias, Charlotte, probably Sanarias, which see.
Langlois, Antoine, son of Jacques Langlois. Born November 13, 1709, buried
July 26, 1710, at Detroit, aged about eight and a half months.
Langlois, Jacques, farmer and blacksmith. Born in 1676; he married Marie Dussault. He resided for a time in Detroit, but returned to Montreal, and died there
January 30, 1733.
Langlois, Paul, farmer. Came April 11, 1707.
Laplante, Catherine. Wife of Bonaventure Compien, dit L'Esperance. Her
name, according to the record of baptisms in Sorel, where she was born, was Marie
Catherine Badaillac, dit Laplante, and she was married at Montreal June 10, 1716.
Laporte, see Aguenet.
Laprairie, Julien. Came August 19, 1710.
Larivee, Jean. Came May 19, 1708. He was born August 12, 1667, and died September 9, 1729.
L'Arramee-Tanguay mentions a man by this name, his first name being unknown, who died in Montreal September 23, 1736.
La Salle, Jean. A soldier of the company of Duluth, native of Peyrourade in
Beam, (lied January 24, 1707. His body was buried in the church of the Fort Pontchartrain du Detroit.
Laude, Joseph, dit Mata. Agreed to go to Detroit as farmer, October 12, 1703.
La Vallee, Jean Baptiste. Soldier of the company of the Cassagne, native of
Q(uintin, bishopric of St. Brieux, in Brittany. Died November 19, 1711, aged about
thirty years.
Lavois, Jacques, (lit St. Amour. Came as bargeman, May 30, 1705. He was a
soldier of the company of La Come, and married Marie Barbe Cesar, at Montreal,
November 28, 1711.
Leboeuf, Pierre. Came as bargeman, May 30, 1705. His wife was Marie Fran106




coise Auzon. He never came here to reside permanently, but some of his children
did.
Le Coutant, dit Rencontre, Magdelaine, daughter of Francois Judit Le Coutant,
dit Rencontre, born February 5, 1710.
L'Ecuyer, Pierre.
Leduc, Jean Baptiste, son of Jean Ieduc, of Montreal. Came October 11, 1710.
He was born in 1684, and married Marie Catherine Descary.
Lefebvre, Louis. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. His father was Jean Baptist Lefebvre, of Montreal.
Lefebvre, Nicholas. Came May 22, 1709, voyageur. (His father, Jean Baptiste
Lefebvre, lived on St. Peter's River.)
Legautier, Francois, sieur de la Vallee Ranee (see Deranee). Lieutenant in the
detachment of marines in Canada. Came October 2, 1709; died November 12, 1710.
Leger, Bourgery. Came April 2, 1707.
Leger, called Parisien, Marie Jeanne, daughter of Pierre Leger, baptized December 15, 1707.
Leger (dit Parisien), Marie Jeanne, daughter of Pierre Leger, dit Parisien. Born
August 9, 1709. These two children of the same parents bear the same name. There
is no record of the death of either.
Leger (called Parisien), Pierre, farmer. His wife was Jeanne Boilard, to whom
he was married at Quebec, May 15, 1706.
Legros, Jean, called Laviolette, born December 22, 1673. He married Marie Buet,
November 24, 1700. He came to Detroit September 6, 1708.
Legros, Nicolas. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. He was an elder brother of
Jean Legros, and married Marie Charlotte Turpin.
Le Maire, Charles, dit St. Germain, voyageur. Came October 17, 1707, with a
canoe of merchandise for the Recollect fathers. He was a captain of militia in Lachine. Born 1676, died 1751.
Le May, Michel. Agreed, April 25, 1704, to come to Detroit as a brigadier (foreman of a boat's crew).
Le Mire, Jean, de Marsolet. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. His mother'sname
was Louise Marsolet.
Le Moyne, Alexis, sieur de Moniere. Came before October 2, 1709.
Le Moine, Jacques, merchant. Came June 21, 1706.
Le Moine, Rene, merchant.
Le Moyne, Marie, wife of Francois Bienvenue, dit Delisle, married in 1708. He
had another (first) wife, Genevieve Laferiere. Marie Le Moyne, aged about seventy
years, was buried September 6, 1764.
Le Moyne, Rene (or Rene Alexander). Came October 12, 1706. Born in 1668, he
married Marie Renee Le Boulanger, February 2, 1712.
Le Page, Marie. Born in Montreal, 1684, she married June 12, 1706, at Montreal,
Francois Beauceron. The date of his death is not given, but it was before 1709, for
she is mentioned at that time as a widow. She is the only woman to whom any land
was conveyed by Cadillac, within the palisades. Her husband was living at this
time (1707), but she was probably separated from him, as he is not mentioned. She
must have subsequently married Joseph Vaudry, for they are called legal husband
and wife in 1720, and had a child, Mary Magdeleine. It is with the name of Marie
107




Lepage that the first great social scandal of Detroit is connected. The pages of Ste.
Anne's record with glaring plainness the false step of this unfortunate woman. It
is now impossible to tell, the penance that she performed in atonement for her wrongdoing. The church record, possibly, operated to deter others from following in her
path. Whether the man lost prestige or not is unknown, but we do know that he
left Detroit about the time this affair became public, and returned to Montreal,
where he was appointed the trusted agent and attorney for Cadillac, and retained
that position as long as Cadillac remained at Detroit.
Le Page, Marie Therese, daughter of Marie Le Page, widow of the late Bausseron
and of sieur Grandmenil, commis du Magazin. Born July 24, 1709. This is the first
record of an illegitimate child. It is not profitable to trace the descent of this unfortunate.
Lescuyer, Anthoine, came May 28, 1708. He was born in Montreal May 28, 1688.
Lescuyer, Jean and Paul, brothers. Came May 29, 1706. They, with Jacques
Minuille, brought ten cattle and three horses from Fort Frontenac to Detroit, for
Cadillac. They were sons of Pierre Lescuyer, born in Montreal June 16, 1681, and
February 15, 1676, respectively.
Lescuyer, Pierre. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. He was a brother of the
three preceding persons. Born in Montreal February 9, 1674.
Lesieur, Jean Baptiste, dit Callot.' Came as bargeman May 30, 1705.
L'Esperance, see Compien.
L'Espine, Marie Magdelaine, wife of Joseph Parent. She was the daughter of
Jacques Marette, dit L'Espine.
L'Esquier, Pierre, voyageur.
Le Tendre, Adele Genevieve, probably came to Detroit with Mme. La Mothe,
Cadillac's wife, as she was god-mother to his daughter, Marie Therese, in 1704.
Leveille, Laurent, came June 15, 1706. He was a Pani Indian.
Levroir, called Leferte, Antoine. The name should be Antoine Theroux. He
was born in 1677 and died February 22, 1759.
Levroir, Pierre, son of Antoine Levroir, above, baptized February 22, 1707. He
married Rose Poitevin in 1733.
L'Isle, see Bienvenue.
Livernois, Francis. Francois Benoit, dit Livernois, came to Detroit April 2, 1707.
He married Angelique Chagnon in 1710. The name Livernois is quite common in
Detroit now.
Loisel, Barbe, wife of Francois Legautier, Esq., sieur de Lavallee Ranee, lieutenant. Set out to go to her husband at Detroit,. September 6, 1708. She was
married three times. First to Pierre Roussel, then to Legautier, and, in 1713, to
Francois Fafard, dit De Lorme.
Loranger, Joseph, dit Rivard, dit La Jauge, see Rivard.
Loranger, Nicholas, dit Rivard, voyageur, see Rivard.
Lubert Jacques.
Magdeleyne, Jean Baptiste, dit Ladouceur, came in 1706. He was born in Montreal in 1681 and married Elizabeth Millet.
Magnant, Antoine, dit L'Esperance. He lived within the palisades and owned a
lot there, but he is described in Ste. Anne's records as a citizen of Montreal (1708), a
voyageur at present at Fort Pontchartrain. He was born September 24, 1682, at Laprairie.
108




Magnan, Gaspard, dit Champagne, came as bargeman, May 30, 1705. He married Magdeleine Marsille, February 9, 1699.
Maionee, Marguerite.
Maisme, Marie.
Major, see Boutran.
Malet, Antoine, son of Pierre Malet. Baptized August 16, 1706. He married
Therese Mailhot, August 11, 1730.
Mallet, Francois, son of Pierre Mallet, born July 28, 1708.
Mallet, Pierre, farmer, voyageur, citizen of Detroit. His wife was Magdeleine
Dufresne, widow of Francois Pelletier.
Mallet, Rene, voyageur, came November 6, 1707. Apparently he was the father
of Pierre Mallet, and died at Montreal, October 24, 1716.
Marces, Francois, a soldier.
Marcil, Andre, came May 17, 1710.
Marendeau, Marianne (or Maranda) wife of Antoine Dupuis, dit Beauregard.
They were married at Montreal, June 9, 1706, and she returned and died there January 8, 1730.
Marquet, Francois. His wife was Louise Galerneau, and they were married April
26, 1706, at Quebec. They left Detroit some time before Cadillac did, and their third
child, Pierre, was born in Montreal in 1710.
Marquet, Joseph, son of Francois Marquet, born May 22, 1707.
Marquet, Marguerite, daughter of Francois Marquet, born March 20, 1709.
De Marsac de Cobtron, Francois, son of Jacob de Marsac. Baptized October 22,
1706. He married Therese Cecile Campan in 1734, and one of their daughters, Marie
Louise, became the wife of Robert Navarre in 1762.
De Marsac de Cobtron, Jacques, son of Jacob de Marsac. Born November 7,
1707; died December 24, 1745, aged about forty years. The priest guessed at his
age, but the record shows that he was thirty eight years of age.
De Marsac de Cobtron, Jacob, sieur Desrochers, sergeant in a company in the detachment of marines. His wife was Therese David. He was buried April 27, 1747,
aged eighty years. Their son Jacques married Marie Anne Chapoton, daughter of
Jean Chapoton, surgeon, January 25, 1745.
Marsac, Jerome.
Marsille, Andre.
Martiac, Jerome, dit Sansquartier (or Sanscartier), son of Maurice Martiac and
Jeanne Damiot, of the parish of Chaubouline, bishopric of Brines in Limozin. Died
June 10, 1709. He was a soldier of Detroit. I-is wife was Marie Anne Gallien. His
name is sometimes spelled Marillac.
Martiac, Magdeleine, daughter of Hierosmes Martiac (called Sansquartier). Baptized January 22, 1707.
Martiac (called Sans Quartier). Pierre Jerome, son of Jerome Martiac, dit Sans
Quartier. Baptized March 28, 1709.
Martin, Claude, came June 15, 1706.
Masse, Francois, farmer. His wife was Marguerite Couk, called Lafleur. They
were married in 1702. She had been the wvidow of Jean Fafard.
Masse, Jeanne, became the wife of Michel Campau in 1696. She had a daughter
Marie Anne Campau, who became the wife of Pierre Belleperche.
109




Masse, Michel. He lived in Montreal, but visited Detroit.
Maurisseau, Jacques, voyageur. Came June 15, 1706.
Maurivan, Jacques, came 1706.
Maurivan, Louis, came 1706.
Melain. Marie, wife of Blaise Fondurose, a soldier. She was born in 1689, married June 9, 1706, lived in Detroit several years, but returned to Montreal and died
there April 26, 1713.
Merssan, Jean, dit Lapierre. Came as bargeman, May 30, 1705. He is mentioned as a marguillier, or church trustee, probably of Quebec, by Tanguay. He
was born in 1685 and died April 16, 1718.
Michel, Jean, agreed to go to Detroit as farmer, October 12, 1703. He probably
lived at St. Francois du Lac.
Mikitchia, Joseph. Slave belonging to Michel Bezaillin; Tete Platte (flat head).
Baptized March 10, 1710, sixteen years old.
Milhet (or Millet), Nicolas, came March 3, 1709. January 4, 1712, he married
Louise Cardinal.
Minville (or Miville), Jacques. Came May 29, 1706. He, with Paul and Jean
Lescuyer, brought ten cattle and three horses from Fort Frontenac to Detroit, for
Cadillac. His wife was Catherine Lescuyer, of Montreal.
Moitie, Marie, wife of Pierre Chesne, according to Tanguay, married, October 9,
1700, at Montreal. She was the widow of Jean Magnan, and died December 31,
1727.
Monet, Pierre, see La Montagne.
Monjeau, Gabriel, voyageur. Came April 23, 1710. He was born in 1690 and
died April 27, 1718. He did not stop long in Detroit.
Monteil, Rene, dit Sansremission. Came as bargeman, May 30, 1705. He did not
remain long in Detroit. He died at St. Ours, March 4, 1724.
Montfort, -—, soldier of the company of Desgly; found dead in the woods at
the foot of a tree, buried December 21, 1709. I cannot find the first name of this
soldier.
Morand Pierre. Came as a bargeman, May 30, 1705. He died at Batiscan, June
11, 1729.
Moreau, Joseph. Came as a bargeman, May 30, 1705. His home was at Batiscan.
Morin, Moise, dit Chesnevert. Came as bargeman, May 30, 1705. He was a sergeant in the company of Beaucour. Born in Poitiers, Poitou. He married Magdeleine Monin, November 26, 1707, and made his home at Quebec.
Morisseau Louis, came June 15, 1706.
Morisseau, Pierre, came as bargeman, May 30, 1705.
Normand, Angelique, daughter of Louis Normand, dit Labriere. Born June 20,
1707. She was married three times; to Jean De Launay, to Jacques Beda, and to
Jacques Hermier.
Normaud, Louis, dit Labriere, tool maker. Came June 7, 1706, to work at his
trade. He was born at Quebec, October 13, 1680. Married Anne Bruneau, May 29,
1701, and died July 15, 1729.
Normand (called La Briere), Marie Therese, daughter of Louis Normand, dit
La Briere, born at Detroit, September 1, 1705.
Ouabankikow, Marguerite, an Indian of the Miami tribe, the wife of Pierre Roy.
110




There is no record of her marriage, though the priest called her a legal wife. She
died of small-pox October 31, 1732. She had six children, baptized in the church at
Detroit.
Pachot, Jean Marie Daniel. He was born July 30, 1694, and was the son of Francois Vienay Pachot and Charlotte Francoise Juchereau. After his father's death,
his mother married Francois de la Forest, a lieutenant under Cadillac, and afterwards commandant at Detroit.
Paquet, Jean. He was born in 1682, and February 20, 1708, married Marie Charland.
Parent, Joseph, farmer, master toolmaker and brewer. His wife was Magdeleine
Marette, whom he married at Beauport, January 31, 1690. On the 9th of March,
1706, he agreed with Cadillac to go to Detroit to work at his trade for three years.
Parent, Marie, daughter of Joseph Parent and Magdeleine Marette, dit Lespine,
baptized January 21, 1709.
Parent, Marie Madelaine, daughter of Joseph, above, born at Beauport, December
15, 1692, and came with her parents to Detroit between the years 1706 and 1709.
Parent, Marguerite, daughter of Joseph, above, born at Montreal, July 7, 1698.
Parlsien (see Leger).
Pastorelle, Anne, wife of Andre Channet, dit Camiraud.  He was her second
husband. Her first husband was Jean Moriceau.
Patenostre, Jean, of St. Lambert, came September 6, 1710.
Pepin, Jean, came as bargeman May 30, 1705.
Perrin, Mathieu, dit Garaho (or Garaut), came October 2, 1709. He was taken
prisoner by the Iroquois while taking goods to Fort Frontenac in 1688. The next
year Jeanne Pilet was also taken prisoner by the Iroquois. They met as prisoners,
and forming an attachment for each other, were married by Fr. Miller, Jesuit, who
was also a captive of the Iroquois at that time.
Petit, Marie, wife of Pierre Poirier, dit Lafleur. Tanguay gives the name as Marie
Clemence Maupetit.
Philippes, dit Belhumeur, Bernard, sergeant in the troops of the department of
marines. He married Anne Gallien, widow of Jerome Marillac. They had both
lived in Detroit, but were married in Montreal, March 18, 1712.
Picard, Alexis, came as bargeman. May 30, 1705. Brother of Francois, mentioned
below. He was born in 1681, and died at Montreal, April 22, 1745.
Picard, Francois, came as voyageur, May 30, 1705. His wife was Anne Farreau.
He died at Detroit, October 7, 1728.
Pichet, Pierre. He was born in 1674, married Marie Ann Sylvester at Pointe aux
Trembles in 1697 and died August 12, 1712, at Cape Sante.
Pineau, Thomas, dit Bundemour, sergeant in troops of the marine. He was stationed in Detroit in 1709.
Pinet, Yves, gunsmith, came to Detroit, March 9, 1706, to work at his trade for
three years.
Plante, Zacharie.
Poirier (called La Fleur), Angelique, daughter of Pierre Poirier, dit Lafleur, born
March 10, 1709.
Poirier, Pierre Rene, dit Lafleur, farmer and soldier. He married Marie Clemence
Maupetit, June 12, 1707. Her name is given in Ste. Anne's records as Marie Petit.
111




Pothier, Toussaint, dit La Verdure, voyageur, came September 22, 1707. He
lived in Montreal, was born in 1675 and married Marguerite Thunay.
Primo, Jean, dit La --, came as bargeman, May 30, 1705. The record from
which this name is taken has been partly destroyed by time and a portion of the
name obliterated.
Proteau, Angelique, wife of Etienne Boutron, dit Major. After the death of Boutron she married Pierre Germain and died in 1754.
Quarante, Sols, or Quarant Sous, see Cheanouvouzon.
Quesnel, Jacques and Jean, brothers, voyageurs, came May 18, 1710. They were
sons of Oliver Quesnel. Jean was born at Montreal and Jacques at Lachine. They
lived at Lachine,
Quilenchive. I cannot make out this name. I think it to be an Indian name
though I may be as sadly mistaken as I was with the name of Xaintonge.
Rabillard, Nicolas, came September 27, 1706.
Reaume, Charles, voyageur, came September 28, 1710. The only person I can
find bearing this name was a son of Rene Reaume, born April 17, 1688, at Charlesbourg.
Renaud, Charles, esquire, sieur Dubuisson, lieutenant of a company and commandant at Fort Pontchartrain at Detroit, in the absence of M. de Laforest. When Cadillac left Detroit, Laforest agreed to take his place here at once, but was taken sick
and Dubuisson was sent here temporarily to hold it until Laforest's recovery.
Renaud, Louis, dit Duval, came June 16, 1706. Antoine Renaud married Francoise
Duval. The records do not contain the name of Louis as one of their children, but
because he was called Duval, I conclude he was a child of this marriage.
Rencontre, or Rancontre, see Jardis.
Reneau, Larent, voyageur, came May 23, 1710. He married Anne Guyon at St.
Augustin in 1695, and after 1698 he lived at Montreal.
Rhodillon, Louise, wife of Jean Baptiste Gouriou. This name should be Chaudillon. She was born January 11. 1682, at Sorel, and married GouriouJune 22, 1701.
Richard, Claude, came April 2, 1707. The only Claude Richard I find was a son of
Guillaume Richard, born January 30, 1684. I find no record of his marriage or death
Richard, Jean, farmer and interpreter for the king. His wife was Marie Anne
Ladecouverte (or Yon). Being dangerously wounded July 7, 1708, he states that he
left with his sister, Mme. Duplessis, 720 livres, for which he holds her note, now in
the hands of his cousin, Jacques Langlois, and he wishes the sum paid to Pierre Roy.
He did not die, however, until several years later.
Rivard, Claude, sieur de Lorange. Agreed with the Company of the Colony of
Canada, represented by Francois Dumontier, of Montreal, and Etienne Volland de
Radisson, of Detroit, to go to Detroit, July 10, 1703, as an interpreter.
Rivard, Francois, dit Montendre, came May 19, 1708.
Rivard, Robert, came as bargeman May 30, 1705.
Rivard, Joseph, dit Montendre, came May 18, 1708.
Rivard, Mathurin, came May 18. 1708.
Rivard, Nicolas, born in 1686. He married Marie Joseph Raux in 1724, and died
in 1729,
Rivard, Pierre, dit Lanouette, voyageur, came September 6, 1710. He was born
in 1686 and married Marie Anne Caillia, June 9, 1721.
112




I    A




MERRILL 1. MILLS.








Rivard, Robert, came May 18, 1708. Robert, Joseph, Mathurin, Claude and
Francois were sons of Robert Rivard, of Batiscan.
Robert, Francois, came in 1706. He was born in 1678, married Marie Lanctot in
1712 and died in 1756.
Robert, Joseph, born in 1674, married in 1701, and died in 1748. He and Francois
and Pierre were brothers. He came to Detroit May 12, 1707.
Robert, Pierre, dit Lafontaine. IHe moved to Detroit May 19, 1708, with his wife
and children. He had been there before, having come June 15, 1706, in charge of a
canoe of merchandise. His wife was Angelique Ptolomee (or Tholme). After he
died his widow married Guillaume Bouche, August 16, 1716. At the marriage of his
son Antoine in 1743, this Pierre Robert is referred to as "the late Antoine Robert."
The son married Marie Louise Becmond.
Robert, Prudent, came August 12, 1710  He was another brother of Pierre Robert, all being sons of Louis Robert. His wife, whom he married at Detroit, January
7, 1711, was Magdeleine Fafard, dit Delorme.
Rose, Nicolas, soldier. He was born in 1674 and died in 1746. His wife was
Marie Anne Prudhomme.
Roy, Edmond, dit Chatellereau. Agreed to come to Detroit July 28, 1704, as
brigadier (foreman of a boat's crew). He was to receive 300 livres for the trip.
While he never resided in Detroit, his son Joseph did, and was married here in 1736
to Magdeleine Perthuis.
Roy, Louis, came as bargeman, May 30, 1705. He was born in 1659 and died before 1713.
Roy, Marguerite, daughter of Pierre Roy. Baptized April 27, 1704.
Roy, Marie Louise, daughter of Pierre Roy. She was baptized May 19, 1708, married Alexis de Ruisseau, and died in childbirth, December 3, 1735, aged about
thirty-one years.
Roy, Marie Magdeleine, daughter of Pierre Roy, born May 25, 1710. She married
Pierre Chesne, dit La Butte, and died October 20, 1732, aged twenty-two years.
Roy, Pierre. It has been stated that this was the first man at Detroit and that he
lived with the Indians in this neighborhood before Cadillac came. His wife was
Marguerite Ouabankikoue, a Miami Indian.
Roy, Pierre, son of Pierre Roy. Baptized April 21, 1706.
Roze, Francois and Nicholas, brothers. Came April 13, 1709. They were sons of
Noel Roze and born at Quebec. The name should be Rose.
Ruiet, Jean, came as bargeman, May 30, 1705.
Ruiet, Rene, came as bargeman. May 30, 1705.
St. Aubin, Jean, corporal in the garrison. Came to Detroit with Pierre Duroy,
April 11, 1707. See Casse.
St. Marie, Francois Marie, came as bargeman, May 30, 1705.
St. Yves, Joseph, came August 11, 1710 (engage). He was born in 1692 and consequently only eighteen years of age. The family name was St. Ange, dit Hogue
St. Yves, Pierre, voyageur. Came April 18, 1710. Elder brother of the preceding.
He was born in 1682.
Solomon. I think this name is a mistake, though it occurs in one of Cadillac's
conveyances. I think he intended Salomon Joseph Du Vestin.
113
15




Sanaria, Charlotte, wife of Jacques Desmoulins, dit Philis. She was born in 1679
and died May 5, 1744, at Detroit.
Sansquartier, see Martiac.
Sarrazin, Joseph, came as bargeman May 30, 1705. Son of Nicholas Sarrazin, born
February 24, 1681.
Sarrazin, Nicholas, brother of above, born January 12, 1686.
Sarrazin, Pierre, came as bargeman, May 30, 1705. Another brother of above, born
February 26, 1684.
Senecal, Adrien, came as bargeman, May 30, 1705.
Senecal, Joseph, came September 10, 1710. He was born in 1674 and died February 28, 1736. His wife was Louise Bareau, or Barros.
Serond (called L'Eveille), Jean.
Simon, Gilbert, or Simon Sanspeur, dit Gilbert, sergeant in the troops. His wife
was Marguerite Le Page. She died July 20, 1730, at Detroit.
Simon (probably Pierre), came May 18, 1708. The first name of this party has
been destroyed in the notarial record, but his residence is given as Pointe aux Trembles, and the only Simon living at that place at this time was Pierre.
Sirier, Martin, see Cirier.
Slave (Panis), Jacques. A little slave of Pierre Roy, aged seven or eight years.
Slave The first mention of negroes is two of Louis Campau's in 1736.
Slave (Panisse), Marie Jeanne, belonging to Jean Richard, voyageur, aged about
fifteen years.
Slave (Panis, Indian), belonging to M. Moynier, aged twelve to fourteen years,
died November 16, 1710.
Slave (Panis, Indian), Joseph, called Escabia. Belonging to Joseph Parent, aged
twenty-one or twenty-two years. He died January 21, 1710.
Sontieureuse, Blaise; lately employed as a soldier in the company of De la Mothe
(1707). Tanguay says his name should have been Fondurose.
Sontieureuse, Marie, daughter of Blaise Sontieureuse. Born May 14, 1707.
Stebre, dit La Jeunesse, Agathe, daughter of Pierre Stebre, dit La Jeunesse.
Born February 14, 1710, died February 21, 1710.
Stebre, dit La Jeunesse, ----, daughter of Joseph Nicolas Stebre. Born January 12, 1711. The priest has omitted to give the first name of the infant. On January 19, 1733, they buried Angelique Esteve, wife of Pierre Belleperche, aged about
twenty-one years. She died of small-pox. This may be the one born January 12,
1711.
Stebre, called La Jeunesse, Pierre, late a soldier. Died July 16, 1736. His wife
was Marie Magdeleine Frappier. She died December 22, 1759, aged eighty years.
He was at Montreal August 27, 1767. He had a daughter Marguerite, who married
Jean Chapoton, surgeon of the fort, July 16, 1720. She died July 7, 1753, aged fortyfive years. The name is sometimes given us as Esteve, and Steve, but the descendants are now usually called La Jeunesse.
Stebre, dit La Jeunesse, Pierre, son of Pierre Stebre. Born May 1, 1708. Married
(as Steve) Marie Desforges, widow of Francois Picard, October 24, 1729. Died
March 24, 1731.
Surgere, Blaise, farmer. I find frequent mention of this name, but cannot identify
its possessor, unless it is the same as Sontieureuse, above.
114




Susart, called Delorme, Francois (probably an error on the part of the priest in
writing the name of Fafard), dit Delorme.
Tabaux, Jacques. Came as bargeman, May 30, 1705,
Tabaux, Jean, jr. Came May 15, 1708. He married Angelique Brunet in 1710
and died at Montreal in 1728.
Tacet, Pierre.
Tesee, Francois.
Tessier, Paul. He was a resident of Montreal. Came to Detroit in 1708, and was
here again in 1710, when he witnessed the marriage of Martin Cirier and Marie
Anne Bone.
Tessier, Antoine, farmer.
Tetreau, Jean Baptiste, Joseph, and Laurent, brothers. Came April 21, 1707.
Tholme, Angelique, wife of Pierre Robert. This name is given as Angelique Dalonne, and in some places as Ptolme, by Tanguay. She was buried in 1744, aged
about sixty-five years. She married Guillaume Bouche, after the death of Robert.
Tichenet, Pierre.
Tonty, Alphonse, captain of a company, aged sixty-eight years. Buried November 10, 1727. His first wife was Anne Picote. She and Cadillac's wife were the
first women in Detroit. She died in 1714, and in 1717 he married Marianne Delamarque, a widow of Jean Baptiste Nolan. Tonty was an Italian, and frequent
references are made to the Italian schemer.
Tousignan, Michel, dit Le Pointe. Came September 6, 1710. He was the son of
Pierre Tousignan, and married Marie Catherine Lemay.
Trottier, Alexis. Came May 18, 1708. Son of Antoine Trottier and brother of
Paul, below. He married Marie Louise Roy at Detroit, January 6, 1735, and after
her death married Catherine Godfroy.
Trottier, Gabriel, dit St. Jean. Came as bargeman, May 30, 1705.
Trottier, Joseph, dit Desruisseaux. Came on October 17, 1708. He was a brother
of Michel, and born in 1668. His wife was Francoise Cuillerier.
Trottier, Michel, sieur de Beaubien. Came May 18, 1708. He was born in 1675
and married Agnes Godfroy in 1700.
Trottier, Paul (brother of Joseph). Came October 17, 1708.
Truteau, Jean Baptiste, married Magdeleine Parant September 1, 1715, and died
in 1754.
Truteau, Joseph, carpenter, brother of Jean Baptiste. They came together April
2, 1707. Joseph died at Montreal in 1745.
Tuffe, called du Fresne, Antoine. The only person I can find bearing this name
was born in Montreal August 21, 1677.
Tune, Magdeleine, wife of Pierre Malet. This name should be Du Fresne. She
was born in 1669 and married Francois Pelletier. After his death she married Pierre
Malet, or Maillet.
Turpin, Jean Baptiste, son of Alexander Turpin and Charlotte Beauvais, of Montreal. Married Marguerite Fafard, daughter of the late Jean Fafard and Marguerite Conique, of this parish and new colony, May 5, 1710.
Turpin, Jean Baptiste, voyageur. Came October 2, 1709.
Turpin, Jean Baptiste, son of Jean Baptiste Turpin. Born December 14, 1710.
Vaudry, Etienne, voyageur. Came August 2, 1707. Born at Three Rivers, October 27, 1685.
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Vaudry, Jacques. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. Born in 1670, and died in
1743.
Vaudry, Joseph. Came August 19, 1710. He was born in 1687, and married Marguerite Lepage, widow of Simon Gilbert. Etienne, Jacques, and Joseph were brothers and sons of Jacques Vaudry and Jeanne Renault.
Veron, Etienne, de Grandmenil, appointed attorney in fact for Cadillac, July 26,
1709. His name has been mentioned above. He was born in 1649, married Marie
Moral, dit Montendre, and died at Three Rivers May 18, 1721  He lived several
years at Detroit, and was a man of considerable importance, having charge of the
public storehouse and acting as amanuensis for Cadillac.
Vien, Ignace, Came as voyageur, June 12, 1706. Died 1751, aged eighty years.
Villain, Pierre, soldier in company of De La Mothe.
Volant, Jean Francois, sieur de Fosseneuve. Agreed to go to Detroit to serve as
a hunter, July 10, 1703. He was born in 1670, and married Marguerite Godfroy June
6, 1701.
Xaintonge, -. When I first encountered this name it stood alone without
any connecting names. I concluded it was an Indian name and so stated. Further
investigation has led me to conclude that I was greatly mistaken, and that the individual was named Pierre Gareau, dit St. Onge, and that the name St. Onge has
been gradually changed to Saintonge and from that to Xaintonge.
Zerbain, Pierre, dit St. Pierre, a soldier.
CHAPTER XIII
How the Confusion Arose Among the Names of the Pioneers —Father Christian
Denissen's Discoveries Regarding the Changing of Family Names.
In compiling these records Mr. Burton was somewhat embarrassed
by the confusion which existed among the early names, and said:
"I confess that I do not understand how the old French names were made up.
It seems that each member of a family... took to himself such a name as
he saw fit —possibly taking the name of some tract of land —some seigniory that
he possessed and named. Thus we have, in many instances, a family of brothers
each bearing a different name. The use of the given name was little known.
Even as late as 1700 the use of the surname was not fully understood, and it is no
unfrequent circumstance to find the name of a descendant entirely unlike that of his
ancestor.'
The same difficulty has been experienced by all students of French
colonial history and genealogy, and Mr. Burton's frank statement fortunately elicited the following explanation from Rev. Christian Denis.
sen, Pastor of St. Charles's church, Detroit:


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"The early colonists of Lower Canada obtained from the French government
grants of extensive tracts of land. These grants were executed in the medieval
phraseology used under the feudal system of holding real estate. The settlers,
assuming a resemblance between their holdings and the domains of the French
barons and 'seigneurs,' called their large, wild farms by certain titles, and affixed
the same to their own family names, in imitation of the European nobility. In
some cases these titles were confirmed by the government. The owners of these
estates considered themselves seigneurs of this new country, and were proud of the
affixes to their names. In business transactions these additions to their signatures
were used with all their flourishes. At baptisms the titles had to be entered in
the parish registers; at marriages the affix to the old family name sounded high,
both for bride and groom, in the verbose marriage contract; respectability was increased by the presence of many witnesses with titled names.
" In this manner the owners of large estates in Lower Canada, at a certain period
of the seventeenth century, looked upon themselves and upon each other as a quasinobility. Their children naturally assumed these titles, and often thought more of
the affixes than of their own family names. Feudalism was about dead, and fast
dying in Europe in those days, and therefore could not gain foothold in America.
In the eighteenth century we do not find new titles originating; still the old ones remained. The grandchildren and great-grandchildren of these pioneers often discarded the old family names, and were known only by the new title. Hence the new
names the genealogists has to contend with.
"As an illustration, take the Trotier family. The Trotiers of America all descended from Julius Trotter, born in 1590, in the parish of St. Martin, in the town of
Ige, in the province of Perch, France. He, seemingly a common citizen, came with
the family to Canada about the year 1645. His children married in Canada, and, in
the course of time, had large families. They obtained extensive estates, and were
very lavish in originating titles for the same. In a few years we find Trotier Sieur
des Ruisseaux, Trotier Seigneur de l'Isle Perrot, Trotier Sieur de Beaubien, Trotier Seigneur de la Riviere du Loup, Trotier Seigneur de l'Isle aux Herons, Trotier
Sieur des Aulniers, Trotier de la Bissoniere, Trotier dit Desrivieres, Trotter de
Bellecour, Trotier de Valcour, etc. Many of these Trotiers gradually dropped the
family name and signed only the assumed name. Hence we have the families of
Beaubien, Desruisseaux, Bellecour, Labissonniere, Desrivieres, Devalcour, etc. All
these trace to a common ancestor, Julius Trotier.
"Another cause of the change of French names was the custom, so prevalent in
former times, of nicknaming themselves and others. This was done sometimes to
discern one family from another of the same name; as one of the Baron families was
nicknamed Lupien-Baron dit Lupien-to distinguish it from other Baron families,
Lupien being the christian name of the ancestor of that family in this country. At
other occasions the nickname originated through family pride. When a member of
a family became distinguished, that branch of a family would annex the christian
name of the hero, or, if a woman, the family name of the revered heroine. In this
manner some Cuilleriers lost their own name through the marriage of John Cuillerier
with Mary Catherine Trotier de Beaubien. This lady was distinguished through
her family title of Beaubien, and after John Cuillerier's death, by becoming the wife
of Francis Picote de Belestre, the last French commandant of Fort Pontchartrain.
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On this account her children from the first marriage signed themselves Cuillerier dit
Beaubien, and in later generations Cuillerier was dropped and nothing left but
Beaubien. These are the Beaubiens of our vicinity.
' Another instance of the same kind we find in the family of Leonard. Leonard
Simon, born at Montreal, September 3, 1656, was considered by his descendants to
have been a great man, consequently the family name became became Simon dit
Leonard; in time the old name, Simon, was dropped and Leonard became the family name. These Leonards we find in Monroe and vicinity in great abundance.
" Again, families glorifying the section of country their forefathers came from,
added to their names the province, city or town of their ancestor. In this manner
the Sedilot family, who came from the city of Montreuil, in Picardy, France, became
Sedilot dit Montreuil. So it was with Casse, who emigrated from the town of St.
Aubin; they became Casse dit St. Aubin, and now are only St. Aubin. The same
we find in Bourgeat, who came from the province of Provence; they adopted Bourgeat dit Provencal, and now are Provencal. We meet with the same case in the
family of Lootman, who are of Holland origin, and moved from the Netherlands to
the province of Berry, France; they became in Canada Lootman dit Barrios; later
on in Detroit we find them as Barrois. The same is true of Toulouse, Champagne,
Gascon, Langoumois, and many others. There were nicknames that originated from
the birthplace, like Nicolas Campau dit Niagara, who was born at the portage of
Niagara, when his parents were traveling from Detroit to Montreal. It happened
also that nicknames were given by Indians, as Labadie dit Badichon, Peltier dit
Antaya. Nicknames have also been given frivolously, and would stick in future
generations, as in the family of Poissant, sounding like Poisson (fish); by adding
Lasaline (salt), Poissant dit Lasaline (salt fish). Another way of nicknaming was by
adopting a peculiar christian name by which a certain person was known in the
community. So we find in the family of Le Tourneux a Jean Baptiste Tourneux,
who settled in Sandwich, opposite the present Michigan Central depot of Detroit,
about 1786  He was known by every one as Jeannette, the diminutive of Jean; by
incorrect spelling he became Janet and Janette, hence Le Tourneux dit Janette.
His numerous descendants are called Janette. From him we have Janette street in
Windsor, Ont., and farther west, Janette's Creek and Janette railroad station.
"The most curious way of changing names we find in the family of Ellair or
Elaire. The common ancestor is Hilaire Sureau, who came from France and married at Quebec, June 18, 1691. His son's name was Peter Sureau dit Blondin, who
married at Montreal in 1723; and his children signed themselves Blondin dit Hilaire.
Their descendants were named Hilaire, and in Detroit the name has been corrupted
into Ellair.
" Other modes might be mentioned. It is singular that scarcely a name has been
adopted from the trade, occupation or profession that a person followed. These
nicknames are attached to the names by the word ' (it,' which might be rendered in
our language by 'called,' 'named,' 'namely,' 'to wit,' 'known as;' but 'dit' is so
idiomatically French that it can hardly be translated into English. The suppression
of 's' in some names, as from Chesne to Chene, Estienne to Etienne is accounted
for by the evolution of the French language from the old form to the modern way
of spelling."


Ius




During the fifty-nine years of French rule in Detroit the Cototume de
Paris, or custom of Paris, was the law of the land. At first the local
customs of France were in many cases peculiar to each province of
that country, but after the lapse of time they were gradually assimilated and were embodied in the general law. The Coutfume de Paris
was the common law of New France and of all the French colonists in
America. It was continued in Louisiana, and in the States formed out
of it, after the purchase from the French by the United States, unless
expressly abrogated by State or United States statutes.
The coutume was a printed book and contained the legal forms for
conveying real estate or personal property by deed or will, for marriage and other contracts, and for other instruments, and these were
drawn up by notaries, who were appointed by the governor-general.
In each of the settlements of New France there was a Notaire-Royal,
who drew up all legal papers, and was a person of legal and social consequence.
CHAPTER XIV.
Cadillac is Made Governor of Louisiana —His Apparent Promotion is a Scheme of
His Enemies —They Confiscate His Property and He Returns to France Ruined and
Heartbroken-1710-1720.
In 1710 the king appointed Cadillac governor of Louisiana, which at
that time comprised all the territory in the present States of Louisiana,
Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, and parts of Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee and Iowa. He was directed not to go to
Quebec, but to proceed to Mobile overland. La Forest, who had been
with La Salle, and later one of Cadillac's subordinates, was appointed
his successor, but as he was old and in feeble health, he could not come
for a time. Lieut. Joseph Guyon Dubuisson was dispatched to Detroit,
bearing Cadillac's commission as governor of Louisiana, and armed
with authority which made him temporary commandant until La Forest was able to come. Cadillac remained in Detroit for nearly a year
afterward, during which time he attempted to secure a settlement to
compensate him for his investment. He had an estate at Detroit
which he valued at 125,000 livres, and which he was anxious to realize


119




upon, so that the proceeds might be applied in advancing his new interests in Louisiana; but there was no one in the settlement able to buy,
and M. de La Forest had neither money or credit, he said. There was
an area of 400 arpents of cleared land, several houses which the commandant had built to rent, a brewery, a grist mill, a warehouse, an ice
house, and all the rents and seignorial dues appertaining to his office.
He had invested nearly all his capital and could find no purchaser. He
appealed to the the government to take the material off his hands, but
in vain. He was forbidden to sell the cattle he had brought from
Montreal, together with the increase. Even his horse Colin could not
be sold. The regulations prevented him from disposing of a large
store of ammunition and arms which he had purchased. It was kept
in the name of the king on the pretext that the succeeding commandant could not buy them, and yet the post could not be maintained
without the use and benefit of Cadillac's private property. The matter
was finally settled by a written agreement in which La Forest was to
allow Cadillac two officers to have charge of his property until some
ships arrived from France at Quebec, next year, at which time he
promised to make a purchase of the property. In the mean time Cadillac was to enjoy the revenue of the post as in the past, and was to
allow La Forest two hundred crowns a year. While he remained in
Detroit he collected rents for his buildings, and also the revenue from
the flouring mill. In the spring of 1711 he quarreled with Dubuisson
over the question of authority, and they both appealed to Vaudreuil
with the result that three commissioners, Pierre Roy, Pierre Chesne
and Father Constantine de Niau, were appointed to take an inventory
of Cadillac's property. They made an inventory, and Cadillac left
Pierre Roy in charge. Cadillac's tenants were ordered to pay their
rents thereafter to Dubuisson. As soon as Cadillac departed in 1711,
Dubuisson compelled Pierre Roy to surrender all of Cadillac's property,
which was done. A large quantity of powder, ball and arms, which
had been purchased by Cadillac and stored in the arsenal, was thus
seized by Dubuisson in the name of the king, and he sent a bill therefor to Intendant Begon and received payment, which showed that he
was nothing but a thief.
Father De Niau wrote Cadillac about the seizure; Cadillac appealed
to Count Pontchartrain; and in revenge for Cadillac's complaint Dubuisson had the western half of the stockade torn down. The material
was used to strengthen the eastern half, and a new row of palisades


120




was erected so as to inclose but one-half of the buildings. The house
in which Madame Cadillac and her children still lived, the houses of
Roy, Parent, De Lorme, Campau, Mallette and Robert, all settlers who
had been Cadillac's adherents, the house of the priest, the church and
the home of Dr. Jaubblivois, surgeon of the post, were left outside exposed to the tender mercies of the Indians.
Soon afterward La Forest applied for all the perquisites of the post
in a letter to Governor Vaudreuil. Cadillac protested, but La Forest
said that his own presence was necessary at Detroit because the Indians
were killing each other and everything was in an uproar. In the end,
the retiring commandant got nothing for his investments.
Cadillac left Detroit for France and stayed there for a time, but
probably proceeded to Acadia before going to Louisiana, as the vessel
that brought him to his new charge contained a consignment of
twenty-five young women from Cape Breton in Acadia. He arrived at
Dauphine (formerly called Massacre) Island in Louisiana, on May 13,
1713, in a French frigate.  Bienville, who had been governor, was
relegated to second place, and was much disquieted thereby and
showed his jealousy plainly. Cadillac soon found enemies; they sprung
up at every turn and nearly all the French officials conspired against
him. As the De Caens, the Company of the Colony, Aubert, and
other traders of the North, were granted special privileges by the
crown, so Antoine Crozat was granted all the profits of commerce
in Louisiana for a period of fifteen years. The country was remote
from the fur trade, and the adventurers who sought fortunes in the
new world were too impatient to wait for the development of agriculture. Crozat expected to find mines which would enrich him with gold
or silver. His grant was issued in 1712, just a year after Cadillac became governor, and he urged the new chief of the colony to search
diligently for precious metals, promising him a share of the profits.
He also ordered Cadillac to establish trading posts on the Wabash and
Illinois Rivers. Cadillac felt that he was being treated as an agent of
Crozat rather than as the governor of a great area of territory; that as
he was on the ground, and with a general knowledge of the country,
he should be left to formulate plans for the development of the country, instead of being ordered about by a man who knew nothing about
its natural resources. He wrote to the ministry to express his views:
"I have seen Crozat's instructions to his agents. I thought they were issued from
a lunatic asylum and there appeared to me to be no more sense in them than in the
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16




Apocalypse. What! is it to be expected that, for any commercial or profitable purpose, boats will ever be able to run up the Mississippi into the Wabash, the Missouri
or the Red Rivers? One might as well try to bite a slice off the moon. Not only
are those rivers as rapid as the Rhine, but in their crooked course they emulate to
perfection a snake's undulations. Hence, for instance, on every turn of the Mississippi it would be necessary to wait for a change of wind, if wind could be had, because this river is lined up with thick woods so that very little wind passes along its
bed."
Cadillac, however, obeyed Crozat's orders in regard to prospecting
for metal; and sent out a number of exploring parties, composed mostly of Canadians. No gold or silver was discovered but lead mines were
found near what is now Dubuque. Gayerre, in continuation of his illogical and absurd deprecation of Cadillac, says that his daughter fell
in love with Bienville, who, however, did not seem conscious of his good
fortune and kept himself wrapped in respectful blindness. Cadillac did
not think Bienville was a fit mate for his child, but realizing the inevitable, invited his subordinate to an interview and gave him a knowledge of the situation. Bienville, however, declared he would never
marry and the interview ended. The French historian says that Cadillac was transported with rage, and to get even sent Bienville on an
expedition against the Natchez Indians, who had murdered four Canadians in Illinois. The force allowed him was thirty-four all told, and he
had to face 800 warriors. Bienville remonstrated, but Cadillac insisted,
and the former departed. His mission, however, was successful; he
forced the Natchez to deliver the heads of the three murderers and returned home in triumph. About this time Cadillac went to France,
probably to consult the government in reference to the affairs in the
colony, which were in an unsatisfactory condition. In his letters he
spoke of " subaltern officers who are swayed entirely by their own interests and care little for the prosperity of the colony... There are
as many governors here as there are officers... What can I do
with a force of forty soldiers.. badly fed, badly paid, badly clothed
and without discipline?" It was a repetition of his experiences at Detroit.
He returned to Louisiana, but in a short time came to an open rupture with Crozat, the great French merchant, who told him bluntly
that all the evils he complained of originated from his own bad administration. Then came a letter of dismissal. At the foot of the letter
the new minister of marine had written these words: "The Governor
La Mothe Cadillac, and the commissary Duclos, whose disposition and
122




humor are incompatible; and whose intellects are not equal to the functions with which his majesty has entrusted them, are dismissed from
office." Cadillac was succeeded by D'Epinay, who came to Louisiana
in March, 1717, with three French frigates, and Cadillac went back to
France in one of them, and left the new world behind him forever.
Crozat did not prosper under the new regime and threw up his monopoly later in the same year.
But little is known of Cadillac's life after he returned to France, but
it would appear that his enemies were not content to let him alone. A
year afterward he spent the winter of 1718 in the Bastile; the cause of
his imprisonment is not known. After being released from the Bastile
he spent much time in efforts to recover the value of his Detroit property.  He wrote the following letter in 1722 or 1723, to " His most
serene highness, the Count of Toulouse, admiral of France:"
"La Mothe Cadillac has the honor to represent to His Most Serene Highness, that
the answer of MM. de Vaudreuil and Begon is founded only on the report that M. de
Tonty made to them; consequently it deserves no attention. The petitioner has the
honor to ask His Serene Highness for a formal grant of all Detroit as a Seigniory
[carrying with it], higher, middle and lower jurisdiction, with rights of hunting,
fishing and trading, and on the terms and conditions laid down in the contracts he
has already granted, with the right of patronage of the churches of said seigniory.
M. de La Mothe very humbly begs his majesty to attach to said seigniory the title of
marquis or count. The petitioner's warehouses have been pulled down, and also the
timber of the church and other houses with which the fort has been repaired and redoubts built; his cattle have been killed and eaten; the rents and proceeds of his lands
and his mill have also been taken. His majesty should accord a favor to the petitioner
by granting him a pension of a thousand livres from the funds of the order of St.
Louis, and a pension of like amount to his family on the navy or elsewhere by preferment, or in default of the two, an abbey or a benefice for M. Joseph La Mothe,
son of petitioner, who was born at Detroit, aged twenty-one years, and an ecclesiastic. The petitioner asks this as a recompense for his losses and for forty years' service he has given the king."
At this time Cadillac was negotiating with the government for his
appointment to the governorship of Castel-Sarrasin, if it had not already been bestowed upon him. His appointment came in December,
1722, and cost him 16,500 livres. He was authorized to collect rents
and fees of the inhabitants, and of this amount he was to pay 300
livres annually to the royal treasurer. In 1721 the king, in order to
reward certain of his subjects, deprived certain cities of the right to
elect their municipal executives, and made the offices appointive by the
crown. Three years later the rights were restored to the people, and
123




it is possible that Cadillac was deposed when the election took place.
He died on October 15, 1730, and his remains were interred in the old
Carmelite church of Castel-Sarassin. His wife died in 1746. They
had thirteen children, of whom Magdalene was born at Port Royal or
Mt. Desert, and another daughter whose name is not known. Those
born at Quebec were Antoine, who came to Detroit with his father;
James who came to Detroit with his mother; Peter, Dennis and Mary
Ann, who died young. Those born in Detroit were a child whose baptismal record was probably destroyed by the fire of 1703; Mary
Theresa, who afterward married De Gregoire in France; John Anthony,
died young; Mary Agatha, Francis, Louis, Joseph and another daughter. His children tried to get possession of his Detroit property, but
their efforts were fruitless. In after years his granddaughter, wife of
Bartholomey De Gregoire, petitioned the State of Massachusetts for
the lands of two townships of extent, on the coast, with the islands in
front, granted to Cadillac by the French crown. Their petition was
successful, and in 1787 they became the owners of the lands, which
comprised 184,272 acres. The Gregoires lived on the island of Mt.
Desert for several years, but sold the property in 1792; they died on
that island and were buried there. The lands are now in the State of
Maine, which was admitted to the Union in 1820.
CHAPTER XV.
Pierre Francois de Charlevoix Visits Detroit in 1721-Detroit is Declared a Most
Desirable and Important Post —Founding of the Huron Mission at Sandwich in 1728.
The first distinguished visitor of the new colony of Detroit was Pierre
Francois de Charlevoix, a Jesuit, and a learned man, who came from
France to Quebec in 1705, and for four years was a teacher in the college of the order at that place. He then returned to France, but came
to Canada again in 1720 to write a history of that province. He made
a tour of the lake country and arrived at Detroit in 1721. At Ietroit
he wrote letters, one of which recommended that the infant colony
should be strengthened by emigrants from Montreal. He attended a
council of the principal nations who had then villages near Detroit,
124




IN


JAVES McMILLAN.








where the liquor question and the practice of selling French brandy to
the Indians was discussed.   In alluding to Detroit he wrote:
"It is pretended that this is the finest part of all Canada, and really if we can
judge by appearances, nature seems to have denied it nothing which can contribute
to make a country delightful; hills, meadows, fields, lofty forests, rivulets, fountains,
rivers, and all of them so excellent of their kind and so happily blended as to equal
the most romantic wishes. The lands, however, are not equally proper for every
kind of grain, but most are of a wonderful fertility, and I have known some to produce good wheat for eighteen years running without any manure, and besides all of
them are proper for some particular use. The Islands seem placed on purpose for
the pleasure of the prospect, the river and lake abound in fish, the air is pure and
the climate temperate and extremely wholesome'"
The following is his description of the council of the chiefs of the
three Indian villages near Detroit:
" On the 7th of June, which was the day of my arrival at the fort [Detroit], Mons.
de Tonty, who commands here, assembled the chiefs of the three villages I have
just mentioned, in order to communicate to them the orders he had received from
the Marquis Vaudreuil (the governor-general). They heard him calmly and without
interruption. When he had done speaking the orator of the Hurons told him in a
few words that they were going to consult about what he had proposed to them,
and would give their answer in a short time. It is the custom of the Indians not to
give an immediate answer on an affair of any importance. Two days afterward
they assembled at the commandant's, who was desirous I should be present at the
council, together with the officers of the garrison. Sasteratsi, whom the French call
king of the Hurons, and who is in fact hereditary chief of the Tinnontatez, who are
the true Hurons, was also present on this occasion, but as he is still a minor, he
came only for form's sake; his uncle, who governs in his name, and who is called
regent, spoke in quality of orator of the nation. Now, the honor of speaking in the
name of the whole is generally given to some Huron, when any of them happen to
be of the council. Imagine to yourself, Madame, half a score of savages, almost
stark naked, with their hair disposed in as many different manners as there are persons in the assembly, and all of them equally ridiculous; some with laced hats, all
with pipes in their mouths, and with the most unthinking faces. It is besides a rare
thing to hear one utter as much as a single word in a quarter of an hour, or to hear
any answer made even in monosyllable; not the least mark of distinction, nor any
respect paid to any person whatsoever. We should, however, be apt to change our
opinions of them on hearing the result of their deliberations."
The above gives a fair picture of an Indian council under French rule
in those parts. The aborigines, being the original owners of the lands
and the source of all the trade, were necessarily consulted on every
measure affecting the polity of the settlement, so that they could cooperate with the French in carrying it into effect.
125




THE HURON MISSION OF DETROIT.


Father Charlevoix was naturally solicitous for the interests of his order, as well as deeply interested in the spiritual welfare of the Huron
Indians, and accordingly wrote to Quebec soliciting the father superior
to send a missionary to the Hurons at this point. The Hurons were
the first Indian nation that were converted to Christianity. After a
series of bloody wars with the Iroquois they had been practically wiped
out as a confederacy in 1649. Some of the tribes were forced to join
the nations of the Iroquois and the rest were scattered. Those who
settled in Detroit prospered under French rule, and a report made to
the French government in 1718, showed that their fort and village
was near Fort Pontchartrain; it was situated about the mouth of the
Savoyard River, which flowed into the Detroit, at the foot of Fourth
street, where the Michigan Central depot grounds are now situated. The
report stated that they were very industrious and raised a large amount
of corn, peas, beans and wheat.  "Their fields are free from weeds and
their bark cabins are strong and comfortable, divided into rooms and
very clean. Their fort is strongly inclosed with pickets and redoubled
bastions and strong gates. The magazine in their fort contains at all
times a large supply of grain; their tribal organization is similar to that
of the Iroquois; they are expert hunters and steadfast friends of the
French. They are talented and most industrious of all the Indian nations in this vicinity; they were well clad and some wore overcoats in
winter. The men hunt summer and winter and the women are always
at work."
The same report describes the Ottawas on the opposite side of the
strait, their fortification being in the limits of the present town of Walkerville, Ont., opposite the eastern part of Detroit.  " Their fort is a strong
one; their cabins similar to those of the Hurons; their people industrious and well clad, and the finest formed and most athletic appearing
of the Indians in the vicinity."
In 1728, seven years after Father Charlevoix's recommendation, the
father superior of the Jesuits at Quebec sent Father Armand de la
Richardie to Detroit. Since the founding of the settlement, the Recollects, of the Franciscan order, had the spiritual care of the garrison and
the colonists on both sides of the Detroit River, and to avoid a conflict
of jurisdiction, Father Richardie obtained authority to found a mission
on the opposite side of the stream, just above the present town of


126




Sandwich, Ont. The shores on both sides of the river at that time
were generally bordered by bluffs from fifteen to twenty feet in height,
but at this point they formed a beautiful semi-circular bay, and sloped
down to the water's edge. The mission was dedicated to the Assumption and the present Church and College of the Assumption stand on a
part of the extensive grounds. The mission house, used at first as the
priest's residence and presbytery, was built of hewn or sawed pine
timber, 30 by 45 feet, and two stories and a half in height, with dormer
windows in the attic. The largest portion of this structure is still
standing and is the oldest building in these parts. The church, built
in the same manner, was 45 by 90 feet. Besides the church and
priest's residence, there was also a large storehouse for furs, another for goods and provisions, and a forge or blacksmith shop, with
suitable outbuildings. This religious and mercantile establishment was
erected primarily and directly for the use of the Hurons living in Detroit, and they could there barter their furs without fear of being
cheated, and it was also a place where the trade in French brandy or
cau de vie could be controlled and its evils lessened. But other Indians
could also trade there, and so also could, and did, many of the citizens
and soldiers of Detroit. In 1738, however, the Hurons became embroiled with the Ottawas, and afterward removed to Sandusky, and
about 1742 again removed to Bois Blanc Island at the mouth of the
river, eighteen miles below Detroit. Here Father Richardie sent
Father Peter Potier to be their spiritual guide, and the land was cultivated.
In 1747, as will be related further on, the Hurons, invited by the
Iroquois, engaged in a conspiracy against the French in the fort, but
the plot was discovered and no blood was spilled. The sub-mission at
Bois Blanc Island was broken up and Father Potier returned to Sandwich, and the Hurons followed him and settled around the mission
house.
Father Potier was born in France in 1709, entered the Society of
Jesus and was ordained to the priesthood in 1742. In 1743 he came to
Quebec and was soon after sent to, Detroit to assist father Richardie,
who placed him in charge of the farm and mission at Bois Blanc
Island.  Here, in addition to his pastoral duties, he commenced
to study the Huron language and was the author of three grammars of
that tongue before he died. The Huron language is similar to that of
the Mohawks, both being of Iroquois stock. In 1765 Father Richardie
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gave up the charge of the mission and went to Quebec and was
succeeded by Father Potier. The latter continued the good work of
converting the Indians and ministering to their physical and spiritual
needs until 1781. He became very feeble, being over seventy two
years of age. On July 16, of that year, while in his study he was attacked by vertigo, and falling backward, his head struck one of the
andirons of the hearth, causing a fracture of the skull which proved
fatal. His obsequies were performed two days afterward by VicarGeneral Hubert of St. Anne's, Detroit, and his body was buried
beneath the altar of the old church.
When the present Church of the Assumption was dedicated in 1851,
the remains were reinterred beneath the altar of that church. There
were two other priests who were also disinterred and reburied at the
same time, but Father Potier's remains were easily identified by his tall
stature and the hole in his skull.
THE OLD JESUIT REGIME.
During the long spiritual rule of the Jesuits in America, their courage and zeal in the interest of religion and morality excited numerous
and bitter enmities. In the old world the same qualities and conduct
led them to attack profligacy in high places, and for this and other
causes they were successively expelled from almost every country in
Europe. In 1773, thirteen years after New France had become a
British colony, Pope Clement XIV, at the dictation of three leading
European nations, issued a papal edict, suppressing the Society of
Jesus throughout the world. Sir Guy Carleton, governor of Canada,
heard of the order, and in 1774, when it came to Bishop Brand at
Quebec, he forbade the latter to promulgate it. Carleton, afterward
Lord Dorchester, was a Protestant, and as such had no sympathy with
the order, but he was a statesman. He knew that the Jesuits were the
only persons in Canada who could control the Indians and that Great
Britain would sustain great losses if the order were disintegrated.
Thus commanded, Bishop Brand obeyed, and thereby braved the terrible penalty of excommunication. He explained his course to Rome,
but before action was taken Pope Clement died in 1774, and was succeeded by Pius VI, who was a friend of the Jesuits. The edict
was obeyed in all parts of the world except Canada and White Russia,
and the missions and other establishments in these countries were held
intact by the order. But Sir Jeffrey Amherst, who had been appoint128




ed governor general of the British possessions in America in 1760, and
was governor of Virginia in 1763, coveted the rich lands of the Jesuits
in Canada, and petitioned parliament for them as a recompense for his
services. The question was referred to the judiciary of the House of
Lords, who were quite willing to accommodate a distinguished soldier,
but the fact that the lands had been granted to the Jesuits for
educational purposes, forbade them to make a report favoring General Amherst's interests. They did report, in effect, that any lands
granted to the Jesuits, and not used for educational purposes, might
be escheated to the crown. Amherst paid the expenses of two committees of investigation, and after his death, in 1797, the matter
was pressed by his son, but their efforts were fruitless. Finally it
was ordered that the Jesuits in Canada should not increase their number, and that after the death of all the existing members of the order
the property should revert to the crown. At the time there were thirteen Jesuits in the whole of Canada, whose names, locations and ages
were as follows:
Augustine de Glapion, superior, Quebec, fifty-five years.
Peter Du Jaunay, chaplain of the Ursuline Convent, Quebec, seventy
years.
John Joseph Casot, Quebec, forty-six years.
Alexis Morquette, Quebec, sixty-four years.
Peter Rene Floquet, Montreal, fifty-eight years.
Bernard Wall, Montreal, fifty years.
Stephen Girault de Villeneuve, with the Hurons at Loretto, near
Quebec, fifty years.
Peter Potier, Huron mission of Detroit, sixty-six years.
Antoine Gordan, Iroquois mission at St. Regis, forty-nine years.
Jean Baptiste de la Prosse, missionary with Abinaquis at Tadousac,
at the mouth of the St. Lawrence, fifty years.
Joseph Huguet, missionary with the Iroquois at Laprairie, forty-nine
years.
Louis M. La Franc, missionary with the Ottawas, fifty-eight years.
Sebastian L. Meaurin, Kaskaskia, Ill., sixty-seven years.
The commandants of the various places in which the Jesuits were
stationed were specially instructed in regard to filing reports of the
dates of their deaths, and Col. Arent Schuyler De Peyster, commandant of Detroit from 1779 to 1784, was notified to seize Father Potier's
papers immediately after his demise and forward them to the governor129
17




general. De Peyster did so, but the old priest had removed them, and
the notes in his diary for 1761-63 were gone. The reason for the latter
will be related further on in the chapter which treats of Gladwin's defense of Detroit against Pontiac. Father Potier had also taken good
care that the British should not profit at the expense of the order. He
had sold all the lands belonging to the Jesuit mission at Sandwich and
Detroit, the deeds having been signed by the superior of the order at
Quebec, and when he died there remained only the church, the priest's
residence and the graveyard, neither of which could be confiscated.
The other lands of the order in Canada, however, were all seized and
the revenues applied to educational purposes, a majority of which were
non-Catholic. About ten years ago, a movement asking for a restoration of these lands to the order was commenced, andafter several years
discussion in parliament it was decided that $400,000 should be considered as an equivalent of the $4,000,000 worth of property taken from
the Jesuits. It was left to the Pope and his counselors to determine
how it should be bestowed, and they decided that the Catholic archbishop of the Province of Quebec should have the largest half, and the
Jesuit order of that province the smallest half. For legal reasons some
$63,000 were also given for educational purposes to the Protestant denomination in Lower Canada. When all this was done, the matter
was disposed of for all time.
CHAPTER XVI.
Detroit is Besieged by the Sacs and Foxes, Indians from Green Bay-The Church
of St. Anne's Burned-Hard Fought Battle at Windmill Point in Which the Hostile
Indians are Defeated-1712.
Even with Cadillac out of the way there was still a demand for an
able commandant at Detroit. Dubuisson found himself confronted
with an Indian war in 1712, soon after Cadillac had gone to France to
prepare for his new office. On the peninsula which incloses Green Bay,
and in the adjoining territory, dwelt a tribe of Indians known as the
Foxes; they were Ishmaelites among the western tribes and had a sort
of alliance with the Iroquois of the east. An army of this tribe came
down to erase Detroit from the map in the spring of 1712. Dubuisson,
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who had a singular gift for romancing, describes them as an innumerable throng who came with streaming banners and accompanied by
many allies, each bearing the ensign of the tribe. This was an unusual
practice and was probably a fanciful description. At the time of their
arrival the friendly Hurons and Ottawas were on a hunting trip, but
runners were sent out to notify them, and they returned and rallied to
the defense of the post and were admitted through the gates of the fort.
The Foxes were associated with the Outagamies and Mascoutins when
they commenced the siege. The church of St. Anne was close to the
stockade, and for fear that it might be set on fire by the blazing arrows
and endanger the other buildings, the rattled commandant pro term.
burned it himself. The hostiles built a long breastwork within two
hundred feet of the fort, and fired hundreds of blazing arrows of pitch
pine into the roofs of the buildings, many of which were thatched with
grass, and the place was in danger of destruction. But the peltries in
the warehouse were brought out, and the roofs were covered with
wetted skins so that the danger from fire was greatly reduced. After
making an unsuccessful attempt to capture the fort, and failing also to
fire it, the hostiles withdrew to the banks of Lake St. Clair, and the
commandant forthwith dispatched M. de Vincennes with a dompany of
Frenchmen and an army of Indians to drive them away. The attacking party found the enemy entrenched behind fallen trees near the
present Windmill Point. Instead of charging this breastwork and sacrificing many lives in the assault, the French and their allies erected
high stagings along the front of the works, and taking positions on
these, they compelled the Foxes to keep under cover. The latter were
not permitted to resort to the lake shore for water and were finally compelled by the torments of thirst to break cover and fly. Dubuisson in
his official report said that 1,000 of the invaders were killed, while his
loss was trivial, but his figures should be taken with due allowance for
an imaginative temperament. It is certain that the survivors of this
foray were a formidable body. They returned to Green Bay, where
they erected a large stockade on a commanding site at "Buttes des
Morts" (" Hills of the Dead ") and they caused that region to be avoided for years after by the traders of the fur-companies.
This trouble compelled the aged De la Forest to come and take
charge of the post in person in 1712, and the friendly Indians who had
been so loyal were rewarded with many presents. One of La Forest's
first acts was to rebuild the church of St. Anne. The first had been


131




destroyed in the mysterious fire of 1703; the second in 1712, to prevent
the attacking forces from using it as a shelter; and that erected by De
la Forest was the third.
Detroit was but a feeble military station at this time. Of the fifty
soldiers who had come with Cadillac, all but twenty had deserted.
Settlers had not increased because of the discouragements which had
been thrown in their way by the enemies of the post. M. de la Forest
saw the natural advantages of Detroit, and at first urged its development into an important settlement, but soon yielded to the subtle influence of the Mackinaw traders and priests, and did not attempt to
attract settlers. He was old in years and his vital energies were about
spent. Before two years had passed he was relieved by the appointment of that once gay lieutenant, Charles Jacques Sabrevois, with
whom Cadillac had a serious quarrel in Quebec twenty-nine years before. Sabrevois was no longer a frivolous lady-killer, but a man of
conservative ideas and he and Cadillac were on friendly terms when
the latter left the colony. He remained in command from 1714 until
1717, when Henry Tonty, brother of Captain Alphonse and son of Bras
de Fer (Hand of Iron), the old companion of La Salle, was made commandant, although the Sieur de Louvigny was acting commandant until
he arrived.
In 1717 the Foxes had become such a detriment to travel in the
northwest that M. Louvigny was sent to Green Bay with an expedition
of French and Indians. For five years the Foxes had so commanded
the territory of Wisconsin that no traders could cross from Green Bay
to the Mississippi, without paying them tribute, and Louvigny laid
siege to their fort with the determination of driving them out. Just as
he was about to order a general assault upon their works the Foxes
surrendered, and after that time the tribe became amalgamated with
the Sac tribe. In 1718 Commandant Henry Tonty received orders to
rebuild the fort, and the work was done so thoroughly that Fort Pontchartrain was the best wooden fortification on the continent. He was
relieved of the command in 1720. It was customary to relieve commandants at least once in three years by sending orders by one of the
officers stationed at Quebec, and the official messenger took charge
until the succeeding commandant arrived. The messenger and temporary commandant in this case was Lieut. Joseph Noyelle.
Alphonse Tonty, the new commandant, who was a brother of Henry,
soon arrived from Fort Frontenac, and he remained in command at
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Detroit for seven years, although his management was characterized
by crooked dealings with the Indians and with his government. He
was consistently dishonest and treacherous to friend and foe during
his term of office. He petitioned for discretionary powers in dispensing brandy to the Indians, and when it was refused he dealt it out surreptitiously. He installed four unscrupulous intimates at the post to
conduct the trading, and abolished the free trading of the settlers.
One of the four was Nolan; who had been in the conspiracy with Arnaud, Desnoyer and the other clerks of the Company of the Colony.
The other three were named Chiery, La Marque and Gatineau. The
new traders plied the Indians with liquor, cheated them in trade, and
made the most of their opportunities. Under such conditions the Indians began to grow unfriendly, and the older chiefs wanted to go to
Albany to trade, but brandy served as a magnet to hold them to Detroit, while the commandant and his confederates feathered their nests.
The residents at the post protested against the abuses in a petition to
the governor, but Tonty managed to hold his position for a time.
Other commandants who had succeeded Cadillac had held the property
of the first commandant in the name of the king, and transferred it in
turn to their successors, but Tonty seized everything he could find,
claiming it as his personal property. The grains and garden seeds
introduced by Cadillac had led the settlers and Indians to practice
agriculture, and at the close of several productive seasons considerable
quantities of wheat were shipped out of Detroit to supply the other
posts. Much of this grain was produced by the Indians, who made
great progress, while the w'hites appeared to be at a standstill.
Meanwhile the complaints against Commandant Alphonse Tonty
were being investigated, and the evidence showed that he was dishonest. He was relieved of his command on October 25, 1727, and he
died at Detroit in the following November.
Governor Beauharnois sent M. C. Le Pernouche to Detroit to succeed
Tonty; and in the following year Jean Baptiste Deschallions de St.
Ours, an able soldier, was installed as commandant. At this time,
through Alphonse Tonty's greed and rapacity, the post was in a bad condition. The settlers 'had been reduced to twenty-eight or thirty and
wheat was twenty-two livres per minot. Agriculture had been discouraged and the settlers did not care to cultivate the land, preferring
to go into trade with its greater profits.
St. Ours was followed in a few months by Charles Joseph de Noyelle,
133




who, in the fall of 1728, was succeeded by De Boishebert, who was
commandant at Detroit from 1728 until the summer of 1734-a period
six years.
In 1730 the affairs of the settlement had become burdensome to the
commandant and it became necessary to have a civil officer who would
collect the crown dues and attend to the legal duties of the post. Robert
Navarre, a native of Villeroy, Britanny, camne out from France that
year and was made intendant of Detroit. He was a young man who
had just attained his majority, and was one of the very few sprigs of
nobility who settled in the West. Most of those who assumed noble
titles could not claim a noble lineage, but Robert Navarre was only removed by eight generations from the throne of France. His royal ances~or was Henry of Navarre, afterward Henry IV of France, who had
a natural son known as Jean Navarre. The latter was an older halfbrother of Louis XIII, who succeeded to the throne. Robert Navarre
left a record in Detroit which was worthy of his ancestry. He married
Mary Lootman dit Barrois, in 1734, and reared a large family. He remained in his position of trust during the thirty years of French rule
which followed, and when the English took possession, M. Navarre
was retained in the capacity of justice, magistrate and notary for some
time. In the official reports of the English commandants he is praised
as being a most honorable and capable man, worthy of the highest confidence. The Navarres became numerous in the course of time, and when
the war of 1812 came, it is a matter of record that thirty-six Navarres
served with Winchester under command of Col. Francois Navarre.
Their descendants in Detroit and Michigan are still numerous. Some are
to be found in the most. aristocratic circles and others among the lowly.
Sieur de Boishebert was an active official. He was sent by Governor
de Callieres to Mackinac to confer with the savages. In 1705 he helped
to capture, off Boston, three British ships laden with powder. From
1707 to 1710 he was detached as commissary at Acadia, and was afterward assistant engineer on the fortification of Quebec. In 1713 he officially explored the coast of Labrador, and was eighteen years adjutant
at Quebec. He was quite popular while commandant of Detroit, and
after his death in 1736 his widow petitioned for a pension to support
her three daughters and one son. But she did not get it. The thrifty
authorities in France found that she had a fair income from an estate in that country, which had been inherited by her children, and so
she had to do without a pension.


134




Governor Beauharnois, who ruled New France from 172I6 to 1757, tried
to have two vessels placed on Lake Erie in order to establish a better
communication between the French posts on the lakes, but he was unsuccessful. At his suggestion, maps.of the lake system were forwarded
to Count Maurepas, then minister of marine in France, but the funds
of the empire were not bestowed and the vessels were not built. Beauharnois also advised the encouragement of settlers at Detroit. It would
seem that the public mill which was installed by Cadillac must have
gone wrong, for under Boishebert a grant was issued to Charles Campau, permitting him to erect a water mill on a stream which flowed
into the Detroit River from the west along the little ravine now occupied by the Michigan Central depot tracks about Tenth street, and
which was called Cabacier's Creek in later years. This mill was authorized about the year 1734.
Judging from the records it would appear that the commandants were
soon deprived of the revenue which Cadillac and some of his successors
derived from ground rents and trading licenses, and the proceeds were
turned over to the crown. Possibly the grasping methods of Alphonse
Tonty caused the change. When Count Maurepas became minister of
marine, he endeavored with the co operation of Beauharnois, and his
successors, La Jonquiere and De la Gallissoniere, to build up the French
settlements and encourage farming.
Then the greatest rascal of the French regime was appointed commandant on June 10, 1734. Hughes Pean de Livandiere was a bold
but clumsy rogue. He acted in conjunction with Intendant Begon,
who was his friend, and this connection no doubt made him reckless.
In the archives of France is a report of a trial in which Pean and Begon
were defendants; they were charged with malfeasance in office, and
Pean was fined 120,000 livres. The actions of Pean during the five
months of his term must have been extremely flagrant and rapacious
to cause the infliction of such heavy punishment. When Pean had been
ejected from office in November, 1734, Sabrevois was sent back to Detroit and this time he remained in command four years.
In 1735, while Sabrevois was serving his second term, the Fox Indians, who had united with the Sakis or Sacs, as they were called by
the English, began to make trouble again. They had retired from
Wisconsin and established their villages on the west bank of the Mississippi, in the region now known as the State of Iowa. Their presence made it dangerous for the French traders who did business in the
135




Illinois country, and they frequently fell upon parties of Indians from
Detroit as they were going to make war upon the Flatheads. Lieutenants de Noyelle and St. Ours, both ex-commandants, organized an expedition against these tribes, and they set out in March, 1735, with a
company of twenty Frenchmen and several hundred Ottawas and
Hurons. Ice was running in the Mississippi and the party had much
difficulty in crossing. They found that the enemy had taken a strong
position on the further bank of a swift tributary stream. The Ottawas
were eager to plunge into the river and swim it in spite of the cold, but
De Noyelle and St. Ours saw that such a course would be fatal, as
their arms and ammunition would become wet and useless and they
would then be at the mercy of the Foxes. The Indians derisively
said that the Frenchmen were no better than squaws, because of their
hesitation, and to satisfy the savages an attack was made by a party
which was sent farther up the stream. This party did not succeed in
surprising the enemy, and came near being exterminated as soon as
they had crossed, as a superior force attacked them and drove them to
the bank of the stream. The French came to their assistance, and
after two days of hard fighting the Foxes retired and sent a messenger
to ask for peace. A treaty was finally accomplished with mutual satisfaction and the expedition returned to Detroit after suffering many
hardships.
In 1735 the demand for beaver furs had revived to such magnitude
that 178,000 pounds of them had been received at Quebec for shipment
to France. Just what caused the lack of demand in 1701 is not known,
but it was probably some change in the fashion of head wear in France
at that time that dispensed with beaver as the leading material.
In 1735 Governor Beauharnois and Intendant Hocquart were most
emphatic in asking Count Maurepas, who had succeeded Pontchartrain
as minister of marine, that a considerable force of troops be sent to
Detroit. They declared that the system of requiring the commandant
to keep up the post at his own expense, and reimbursing him by allowing him a monopoly of the trading licenses, to be a sorry failure.
Commandants were anxious to make all possible profit out of the office,
and, as every soldier was a drain upon their pocketbooks, they kept
the number down to an inadequate force. They showed that it was
the soldiers who came to Detroit with Cadillac that had insured the
first success of the post as a permanent settlement, and insisted that
Detroit was a station which should be strongly defended. They urged


136




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ALEXANDER LEWIS.




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that it be made a central station, from which troops could be supplied to the other posts of the West whenever it should become necessary.
Again in 1737 they pleaded for the strengthening of Detroit. They
argued that the farming out of the revenues of the post tended to
make the commandant extortionate and that this discouraged the settlers. Sieur de Noyelle, the commandant at that writing, maintained
but seventeen soldiers at Detroit. In place of the established system,
Beauharnois and the intendant advised that the office of commandant
be made permanent, and recommended that instead of allowing that
officer the control of the trading, that he be placed on a salary. The
expense to the king was estimated at $1,200. The proceeds of the
trading permits averged $1,330 a year, which included $100 paid by
the two armorers and $30 paid by private persons living within the inclosure of the fort.
CHAPTER XVII.
A Feud Commenced Between the Huron and Ottawa Tribes-The Hurons
Compelled to Flee to Sandusky —They Return to Settle at Bois Blanc Island and
Later at Sandwich —1735-1746.
A quarrel between the Hurons and the Ottawas took place at Detroit
in the spring of 1738, which gave the commandant and the governor
much trouble for five years thereafter. A council was being held in
the house of Commandant de Noyelle. The Hurons and Ottawas
were present, as were also the Potawatomies and the Sauteurs, the latter being a tribe from the Au Sable River, north of Saginaw Bay.
During this council the head chief of the Hurons arose and presented a
belt to the head chief of the Ottawas, thus acknowledging his seniority.
"The Hurons have made peace with the Flatheads of the west,"
said he. " We are now brothers, and we invite you to regard them in
the same way. We would be glad to have peace in the land. However, if you continue to send war parties against the Flatheads, some
of our young men may go to warn them of their danger."
The chief of the Ottawas replied in dudgeon: "Who art thou, Huron,
to lay down the law to me? What is thy design? I think thou de137
18




sirest to do evil and then to take refuge with the Flatheads. It was in
thy power to make peace with them, but as for me, I do not accept
thy belt; I hand it over to our father who represents the person of
Onontio here. If Onontio tells us that it is his will, then we shall
hearken to his word. Thou shouldst know that when peace was made
that our father gave this tribe to all the others to devour. Our blood
has been shed along their path; our bones are in their huts, and our
scalps hang above them. The frames on which they burned us and
the stakes still stand. If the Flatheads desired peace, they should
have spoken to us about it."
The Potawatomies and the Sauteurs sided with the Ottawas. The
latter made up a party of seventeen young warriors and sent them on a
foray against the Flatheads. The Ottawas met two parties of Hurons
while on the way. The Ottawas crept up unobserved upon a Flathead
village and killed and scalped a woman. As they were drawing nearer
with intent to surprise the camp the cry of a raven was heard and instantly the Flatheads were on the alert. The raven cry had two meanings among the Hurons. It meant: " We are hungry for meat," and
it also served as a warning against impending danger. It was not used
by the Flatheads, although they appeared to understand it in this case.
A moment later the attacking Ottawas found themselves between the
Flatheads on one side and the Hurons on the other, and both were
firing upon them. Nine of the Ottawas were shot and scalped, and
five more were taken prisoners The remaining three broke through the
line of the Hurons and killed one of the party, whom they recognized.
When the three survivors came within hail of their village at Detroit
they gave the cry of mourning instead of the scalp yell which would
have announced a victory. They came into the village to tell how the
Hurons had treacherously betrayed them, and the whole tribe was in a
furious rage against the Hurons. The Hurons then at Detroit denied
that any of their warriors had betrayed the Ottawas or had killed any
of them in the fight. "We do not shed the blood of our brothers,"
they said.
" You are dogs," shouted the infuriated Ottawas, "You are capable
of shedding the blood of your father as well as your brothers."
"We have been to war with the Flatheads many a time but we never
heard the raven cry before," said one of the survivors. "I killed one
of your men, Orontega. When your warriors come home we shall see
if he is missing. Then you will see that I am speaking the truth."
138




This show of hostility alarmed the Hurons, who retired to their fort,
and their women and children dared not go out to cultivate their crop
of corn. The Ottawas taunted them with being cowards, and told them
they need not be afraid, as the Ottawas did not kill their friends by
stealth, and would not harm them until notice had been given of a war.
The French commandant, De Noyelle, who had been recalled in the
fall of 1738, sent a herald through the settlement, who beat a pan and
warned all inhabitants not to sell powder and ball to the Indians while
they were in their present excitement. It was a very awkward complication, as the Hurons were allied to but five tribes in Canada and Ohio,
while the Ottawas were related to all the Indians in the upper country.
The Ottawas asked the Potawatomies and Sauteurs to take up the
hatchet with them against the Hurons. De Noyelle attempted to appease them. The Hurons asked Governor Beauharnois to make a new
home for them at Montreal, or in some other place where they would
be safe from attacks by the Ottawas and their allies. That winter the
Hurons dared not winter in their village at Detroit, but took to the
woods at some place in the interior of the State, leaving part of their
corn crop unharvested. The English and the Iroquois invited them to
come to New York and receive their protection, and Beauharnois, the
French governor, sent his nephew, Chevalier Beauharnois, to invite
them to Montreal.
A secret influence, however, was at work which defeated both propositions. Father Richardie, Jesuit missionary to the Hurons at Sandwich, across the river from Detroit, wrote to the governor in January,
1739, that the Hurons were not reassured, and never would feel safe
again while they were in proximity to the Ottawas. He feared that at
the first alarm they would either fly to a refuge among the Sonontouans
(Senecas), or to the valley of the Ohio in Kentucky. It was impossible
for the Hurons to live in constant terror of their enemies, as their
women could not plant corn and do their usual work in the fields about
Detroit. A majority of the Detroit tribe then went to Sandusky, in the
territory of the Wyandottes, who were their kindred. While there
Governor Beauharnois offered them an asylum at Montreal, promising
them a grant of land either at Lorette, the Falls of Montmorency, both
near Quebec, or at the Lake of Two Mountains, near and north of
Montreal; but the Hurons did not go, because Father Richardie wanted to keep them with him. The latter wrote several times that the Indians did not want to go to Lower Canada, but would prefer to remain
139




in some place of security near the Detroit mission. He advised that
they be placed on Grosse lie. This Beauharnois said would never do,
as their isolation from the whites would make them too independent,
and they would be subject to attacks from their enemies just as if they
remained at Detroit. The preservation of peace, he said, demanded
that they be sent to Montreal, for so long as there was insecurity for
them at Detroit, there was danger of their going to the Flatheads.
Beauharnois sent his nephew to Detroit as a special envoy to the
Hurons in June, 1741, with the following address:
" Listen to the words of Onontio, Hurons. They are borne to you by one of my
blood to show how much I have your welfare at heart. You say you will always
live in fear at Detroit. Sastaratsy, your king, sent word to his brother at Lorette,
the falls, and at the Lake of Two Mountains, that you would be forced to come to
them in the autumn. He said you would always be accused of taking part in every
attack of the Flatheads upon the tribes at the post, and that you wished to come
to Montreal. He sent word through M. Noyelle asking for a grant of lands, and for
an escort to conduct you safely. I immediately sent you a message to take you
away from your fire, and to build another for you in this place, where you will be
safe. Come; I stretch out my arms to you to place you under my wing. I send a
delegation of your brothers from the falls of St. Louis and the Lake of Two Mountains to escort you in safety."'
Young Beauharnois was instructed to be patient, and if the Hurons
hesitated to leave their harvest, he was to winter with them, and
Agent Du Buroy would persuade the Iroquois not to leave them unprotected. As soon as Beauharnois arrived at Detroit every Huron who
had remained in the vicinity disappeared.    Beauharnois, when the
Hurons would not come to him, went to the Hurons at Sandusky, but
the best he could do after a long labor with the tribe was to induce
three old men to accompany him back to Montreal, ostensibly for the
purpose of arranging with the governor for the transfer, although arrangements were already made, and a new mission house and huts
were being built for their accommodation at Lorette. The reluctance
of the Hurons to accompany him was better understood when a letter from Father Richardie to Father Jaunay, who was at a mission on
the Owashtanong or Grand River, was intercepted by Beauharnois.
The letter was written in December, 1741, and the following is an
extract:
" Chevalier Beauharnois, after a stay of one month at Detroit, decided to go to
Sandusky, as he had not been able to get the Hurons to come here to listen to him,
or to the message from his uncle. I could not omit making the journey with him,
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although I had reason to be sure that I was not pleasing him in doing so. The success of his mission will be limited to three old men, who were persuaded with great
difficulty to accompany him, and who will not say one word. It is easy to see that
the Chevalier wanted to take their mission away from us that it might fall to his
friend, M. Piquet, who has already begun to have clearings made and huts built at the
Lake of Two Mountains to receive them. But happen what may, the Hurons would
never have any missionaries but us. The reverened father superior has sent me
word, acting in connection with the general, to settle them at the great island
[Grosse Ile] where they could have been better off than anywhere. I do not know
from what this change arises. I shall patiently await the word he may send me on
this matter."
Judging fiom the correspondence that passed between Father Richardie and St. Pe, the father superior, the order preferred to keep the
Hurons at Detroit or in that immediate vicinity, and used all means to
prevent their transfer to a new pastor in the person of Father Piquet at
Quebec.   It is probable that the latter was a Recollect priest, and this
would account for their opposition.  Beauharnois decided, so long as
he could not persuade the Hurons to come to Montreal, that the next
best thing to do would be to send them to make war against the Flatheads, in the hope of winning again the friendship of their near neighbors, the Ottawas. With this purpose in view a party of forty warriors
was made up, but just as they were about to set out to the Mississippi
valley Father Richardie sent them a belt secretly and told them to remain at peace with the Flatheads, upon which the party scattered.
In 1741, while the trouble was yet unsettled, Commandant Noyelle
was succeeded by Pierre Poyan de Noyan, and one of the first acts of
the latter was to take formal possession of Grosse Ile in the name of
the French. Governor Beauharnois would not permit the Hurons to
be settled on Grosse Ile, so Bois Blanc Island, at the mouth of the
river was proposed, but the governor insisted that they be kept on the
mainland.   Father Richardie wrote coinciding with his views when
they were peremptorily expressed. He said:
" I have secured consent of my people, the Hurons to settle on the mainland, and
it is not advisable that they should settle on the Great Island, which would be a place
of refuge where they would have been able to lay down the law."
Young Beauharnois sent his uncle some of the priest's letters which
he had intercepted, and spoke very bitterly of the duplicity which had
defeated his purpose in coming to Detroit. " The Hurons " said he,
"wanted to settle on Bois Blanc Island, failing to get Grosse Ile.
Father Richardie makes them play all these tricks: you can divine the
reason.


141




Pierre de Celeron de Blainville succeeded Noyan, and retired in 1743,
having failed to effect a settlement of the Indian troubles. He was
followed by Joseph Lemoyne de Longueuil.
The Ottawa-Huron trouble was finally ended by the removal of the
Hurons, or the largest part of them, to Bois Blanc Island, and they remained there until 1747. After the troubles of that year, as related
elsewhere, they came to Sandwich and lived around the mission house,
opposite their old fort across the river. At this time there was still
a small village of Hurons near what is now Trenton, and another
small village at Sandusky.
During the war between France and England the Hurons fought on
the side of the French. When the war was decided by the final capitulation of Montreal, they ceased hostilities pending the treaty of
peace in 1763. Although Sir William Johnson was well received by
the Hurons at Sandwich, when he visited Detroit in 1761, he did not
secure their adhesion. It was only after the Anglo French treaty of
1763 that they concluded a peace with the English at Niagara, on July
18, 1764.
After the death of Father Potier at the Jesuit mission at Sandwich,
in 1781, the Hurons still lived around the mission. In 1791 they ceded
all their lands in Western Canada to the British government, with the
exception of two reservations, one being immediately west of and adjoining the Huron mission church line, of about one hundred acres;
and the other being what is now the whole township of Anderdon, on
the Detroit River, just above Amherstburg, fronting seven miles on
the river and running back the same distance.
The Hurons served on the British side in the war of 1812, and in
1819 consisted of about ninety persons, old and young. In this year
the principal property owners of Amherstburg, including Richard Pollard, Sheriff William Hands, Matthew Elliott, J. B. Baby, John Gentle,
George Benson Hall, F. Baby, Angus McIntosh, John B. Askin, and
others, petitioned Sir Peregrine Maitland, lieutenant - governor of
Upper Canada, that the Hurons be removed, on the ground that their
occupation was inimical to the improvement of the town and the safety
of His Majesty's fort (Malden). The petitioners, however, desired
that the Hurons be liberally dealt with in land and annuities. The
petition was not granted.
In 1836 the Hurons on the Canada side of the Detroit River were all
living on their reservation at Anderdon, and in that year they surrendered


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two-thirds of the land to the British government, to be sold for their
benefit. They retained the central third, lying on the Detroit River,
which they reserved for their own use. In 1876 they apportioned the land
among themselves, giving to each male one hundred acres and to each
female fifty acres, and sold the residue. This apportionment ended their
tribal relation with the government, and they ceased to be Indians in
a legal sense. In Anderdon at the time of the disbandment there was
but one king or head chief, whose Indian name was Mondoron, and whose
English name was Joseph White. He stayed in Anderdon and lived
on his lands, and died in Windsor in 1886. He left six children-four
sons and two daughters —who are all living. His sons are Solomon
White, ex-M. P. P. for Essex county; Thomas B. White, merchant,
Anderdon; Alex. White and Joseph White, capitalists, Windsor. The
daughters are Mrs. Christine Raymon and Mrs. Eva M. Scully, of
Windsor. These children inherited his patrimonial acres and money.
Up to 1843 the few Hurons who had lived near Trenton, in Wayne
county, on the American side of the Detroit River, and those near Sandusky, 0., still kept up their tribal relations. In that year both bands
agreed to terminate their tribal relations, and they sold their reservations and went to Wyandotte, Kansas, where they bought a large tract
of land. Here, however, they found it necessary to resume the tribal
ties and customs, but in 1866 they sold the lands, divided the money,
and ceased to be classed as Indians.
CHAPTER XVIII.
Recreations and Occupations of the Early Settlers- Races between the Fleet
French Ponies on the Ice-Attempt to Extend the French Domain in Ohio and
Pennsylvania-1750-1760.
"The recreations of the French colonists," says Lanman, " consisted
in attending the rude chapels on the borders of the wilderness, and in
adorning their altars with wild flowers; in dancing to the sound of the
violin at each other's houses, in hunting the deer and other game through
the oakland openings and in paddling their light canoes across the clear
and silent streams." To this list might be added horse racing, after
the speedy and hardy French pony was introduced into the settlement


143




about 1740. In winter the equine contests were continued on the ice,
and in Detroit the race course for this diversion for the past 150 years
was that part of the Rouge River between the river road and the Detroit
River, some three miles from the present city hall  The Indians were
expert players at foot ball and lacrosse, and in many of these games
the whites participated. Both under French and English rule, many
citizens indulged in bowling with cannon balls in the narrow streets
within the stockade, but this amusement ceased with the great fire of
1805.
The women, outside of ordinary domestic avocations, occupied themselves in making coarse cotton cloths for the Indian trade, and in later
years in braiding straw for male and female headwear. Their comfortable log houses, covered with clapboards, fronted on the roadway
that ran close to the banks of the Detroit and St. Clair Rivers, and were
generally one and a half stories in height, the upper story being chiefly
within the roof. Dormer windows on the front and sides gave light
and air to this story. As a rule the house was whitewashed or colored
white, and the front door was painted green and divided horizontally
in the center; the upper part was kept open in fair weather, and the
lower part closed to keep the children from straying out on the road
and prevent vagrant animals from entering the house. Inside, the
puncheon floors were uncarpeted, but kept very clean, and the walls
were hung with rude pictures of the saints, the Madonna and her child,
and the crucifix of lead.
In front of the house, across the roadway, was a tiny wharf, consisting of one or more planks supported by sticks driven into the river
bed, and on this the inmates walked out to fill their pails with water.
Tied to the wharf was the canoe, which was almost the only method of
communication through the western wilds during the French r6gime,
and was indispensable in fishing and trapping.
The farms were long and narrow, and stretched back into the forest
two and three miles, but were rarely cultivated for more than half a
mile. The farm houses being all located on the banks of the stream, on
a common roadway, the settlers were not at all isolated from each other,
and intelligence of interesting or important events could be communicated for a distance of many miles, by calling aloud from house to
house, each recipient of the news repeating it to his neighbor. Food
was easily acquired, and abundance of game strayed in the woods and
sometimes into the very backyards, and the waters were alive with fish.


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ED)WIN F. CONELY.








Agriculture was never skillfully conducted by the French settlers or
their Indian neighbors, and their implements were rude and cumbrous.
The plow was of wood, except the iron share, and with its long beam
and handles, was ten or twelve feet long. The mouldboard was also
of wood. In front were two wooden wheels of different sizes, the
smaller one to run on the unplowed side and the larger one in the furrow. The simple harness was of ropes or withes of twisted rawhide.
When oxen were used, the ropes were passed around the oxen's horns
and they pulled with their heads, and the plow followed and broke the
ground. This description of the homes and agricultural operations is
taken mostly from Bela Hubbard's "Memorials of Half a Century,"
published in 1888, which is a valuable contribution to the history of
Detroit and Michigan. In this work an error occurs relative to the disposition of manure by the old French settlers. Hubbard says: "The
fields were never manured, and the farmers, when their manure heaps
had accumulated to an inconvenient degree about their barns, adopted
the most ready means of relief by cartingthe incumbrance on to the
ice in winter. The offensive material was thus washed away without
further trouble when the ice broke up in the spring."
This statement was first made by Lewis Cass, who may have repeated the statement of some writer, or may have inferred that the manure
was thus sought to be gotten rid of by seeing quantities of it on the
ice in front of the farm houses. But it is impossible to believe that
French farmers, whether born in old France or in the American colonies, should be so grossly ignorant of the virtue and benefits of manure. The true reason was because the horses, cattle, etc., were
watered in the winter through holes in the ice, and the manure was
spread on the ice, from the shore to the hole, to keep them from slipping and falling down.
In 1746 Mackinac (Turtle), a powerful Chippewa chief, aided by several northern tribes, including the Ottawas of that region, made a descent on Detroit. The French showed a firm front and were aided by
Pontiac, then a young chief of the Detroit Ottawas, who thus fought
against his own nation and kindred. The Turtle and his forces were
driven away.
In 1747 a formidable conspiracy was formed by the Indians at Detroit against the French. The Iroquois sent belts to the tribes here,
and a plot was made to murder the garrison. It is said that the attack was really incited by the English, which was probably true, as
145
19




many other schemes of a like purpose were directly traceable to them.
The massacre was to take place on the night of a church holiday,
when the Indians would have admittance to the fort, and as many as
possible were to sleep inside the palisades. Rising at a certain time
in the night, each savage was expected to kill everybody in the house
where he was staying. In this plot the Hurons were to be the chief
actors. A day or two before the time of action an Indian woman had
occasion to go to an upper floor in one of the buildings, and hearing
voices below, stopped and listened.  She heard the whole plan arranged, and, as soon as she could leave safely, went to the house of
Father Richardie, where she informed a lay brother of the plot. The
news soon reached De Longueuil, the commandant, who immediately
called the Huron and other chiefs together, upbraided them bitterly
for their intended treachery, denounced them as ingrates, and threatened punishment. As the commandant could withhold their winter
supplies, the chiefs expressed great contrition and abandoned the plot.
While the conspiracy was maturing little or no attention was paid to
agriculture, and, when it was exposed, the provisions of the past year
were about exhausted. Almost a famine ensued in 1747, and Commandant Longueuil sent to Montreal for supplies. A convoy of boats
laden with provisions was sent to Detroit, and 150 persons, soldiers,
merchants and servants, accompanied the expedition.  The Hurons
abandoned Bois Blanc Island and removed to Sandwich, and built them
bark cabins in close proximity to the old mission house.
From an old report, without signature or date, but which was evidently
made several years before 1747, the numbers of the Indian tribes located at or near Detroit, and connected with the French government
of Canada, are given as follows;
" There were no tribes settled on the coast of Lake Erie. At Detroit
(the Straits), between Lakes Erie and Huron, the Pottawatomies have
a village with 180 warriors. The Hurons are stated to be reduced to
one village near the fort of Detroit, with the exception of the village
at Quebec, and have 180 warriors. The Ottawa village on the south
side of the straits, contains 200 warriors. The Mississaquas, with 60
warriors, occupied a small village at the entrance of Take Huron [just
above the present site of Port Huron, Mich.]. At the end of Lake
Huron, at the village of Saguinan, near Mackinac, was another village
of Ottawas with 80 warriors."
Under the rule of De Longueuil the importance of the outlying posts
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was recognized more and more by the French government, and Governor Beauharnois was authorized to be more liberal in strengthening
them. In 1748 the fort at Detroit was enlarged and improved, as were
the other posts in the North, Northwest and South. Between 1748 and
1760, when the French gave way to the British, Fort Pontchartrain was
enlarged and strengthened five times. This was owing partly to the
increase of population, and partly to additions of military force, but
mainly to the well-founded belief that Detroit was the most important
strategic position in the West, and should be held at all hazards.
De Longueuil gave satisfaction as commandant at Detroit during the
governorship of Beauharnois. When the latter was superseded by the
Marquis de Gallissoniere, Longueuil was retained for two years afterward. In 1749 the aged Sabrevois was sent to Detroit for a third
term.
During this period the French and English were bent on acquiring
all territory in North America within their reach, and the whole time
was spent in land grabs of greater or less magnitude. Both coveted
the fertile lands of Ohio and Pennsylvania, and each made efforts to
secure them. The French started a small settlement at French Creek,
south of Lake Erie. The British offset this by an organization called
the Ohio Company, which was granted 500,000 acres of the disputed
territory. The conditions of the grant were that the company should
build a fort and settle one hundred families on the tract. This was in
1748.
At this time everything tended to show that the French power in
America was declining, but the Marquis de Gallissoniere would not
acknowledge it, even to himself, although he was a man of ability. In
1749 he organized in Detroit and Montreal an expedition to renew the
claims of France to a large portion of Pennsylvania and Ohio, and
placed in charge of it Celeron de Bienville, a chevalier of the order of
St. Louis. The detachment consisted of eight subaltern officers, six
cadets, an armorer, twenty soldiers, 180 Canadians, twenty Abinakis,
and thirty Iroquois. A priest, named Father Bonnecamp, who was a
scientist, mathematician and map-maker, accompanied the expedition.
The party left, Montreal in bateaux and traineaux and passed through
Lake Ontario; thence across Lake Erie.  By another portage they
reached Chautauqua Lake and thence by Conewango Creek, they
reached the Alleghany River and proceeded to the headwaters of the
Ohio. About a dozen lead plates were buried and affixed to trees at


147




different points, each bearing an inscription showing that the lands
were owned by the king of France, by virtue of arms and treaties.
But the whole expedition was a characteristic piece of Gallic vainglory. Not a foot of the land was either guarded or defended, and it
all fell into the hands of the British in good time. In after years
some of the plates were found and hung up in farm houses as monuments of French folly. One was melted and cast into bullets by a
party of boys. After the plates were buried the members of the expedition returned to Detroit and Montreal.
CHAPTER XIX.
Feeble Attempts to Strengthen the French Outposts-The Determination of Great
Britain to Seize the French Strongholds Becomes Apparent-1755-1760.
In 1749 several hundred immigrants were sent to Detroit by the
French government. They were mostly composed of farmers and
were provided with the necessary supplies of pioneers in an interior
settlement. These included canvass for tents, hoes, axes, sickels, guns,
powder, and meat, with stipulations that these supplies should be paid
for when a certain area of land had been cleared.
Sabrevois was too old and feeeble to be effective as commandant,
and in 1751 Pierre de Celeron was given another term, lasting until the
summer of 1754.
These years had been troubled by almost constant war between the
French and the British along the eastern border, but Detroit had not
been threatened with any serious invasion. During the term of Jacques
d'Anon, Sieur de Muy, which began in 1754 and closed in 1758, Detroit
was greatly strengthened as a military post and supplies of provisions,
arms and ammunition were laid in. Detroit was the emporium for
supplying the posts of Presque Isle, Niagara, Le Bocuf, Venango and
Du Quesne, which were on a line from the foot of Lake Erie to the
headwaters of the Ohio, and when any of these posts were threatened
with an attack, Detroit sent soldiers and Indians to reinforce them
with all possible speed. In 1758 Francis Marie Picote de Bellestre,
the last commandant of the French regime, came to Detroit, and upon


148




him was cast the unpleasant task of surrendering the last important
French post to the victorious English. The entire aggregation of governors from first to last, was made up of a class of men who were more
anxious for their personal advancement than for the development of
the country or the upbuilding of a French empire in the new world.
Cadillac was perhaps the most promising man of the lot, for with all
his faults he had an unbounded energy which would have built up a
city about his fort in spite of the opposition of his enemies, had he not
been removed by a disastrous promotion.
During the seven years' strife between England and France for the
possession of the northern part of the country, the settlers were
ground as between two millstones. In the Massachusetts colony and in
New York the troubles were termed the French and Indian wars, because the Algonquin tribes and the New England tribes were instigated to attack the English colonists, and were supplied with arms and
ammunition by the French. In Michigan the French settlers were the
sufferers, as the British authorities furnished the Iroquois nation with
arms and ammunition, and offered them inducements to attack the
French. The first of these savage wars occurred in 1689 and was
known as " King William's " war, because it occurred under the reign
of William and Mary. The second occurred in 1702, and was known
as "Queen Anne's" war. The third, in 1744, was named "King
George's" war, and the last and worst was the "Old French and Indian" war, which lasted from 1755 to 1763. In the intervals between
these open wars there was always more or less trouble, each party
making bloody forays when the mood took them. The bulk of the
fighting took place east of Lake Erie, but the influence of these hostilities reached as far westward as the white man had penetrated.
During these dreadful years the settler carried his musket wherever he
went, and was in constant expectation of an attack. Fields could not
be cultivated except in close proximity to the blockhouses, as the
farmers were in danger of being shot down and scalped. On Sunday
when the congregation gathered for worship, the men sat at the entrance to the church aisles with loaded muskets quite as convenient to
their hands as bibles or prayer books, and they ready to rush out and
battle for their lives at any moment. Hertel de Rouville of Montreal
descended upon Deerfield, Mass., in February, 1704, killed part of the
settlers in a night attack and marched one hundred prisoners away
toward Canada. It was bitter weather, and when captives succumbed


149




to the cold they were killed and scalped. The remnant were sold as
slaves to the French farmers in Canada. Matters grew worse instead
of better, and it became necessary for the nations to engage more
seriously and fight it out to a finish.
The Massachusetts colonists planned to capture the French strongholds on the Atlantic coast and cut off their communication with
France. On the Island of Cape Breton, just north of Nova Scotia, was
a fortress of great strength, commanding the entrance to the Gulf of
St. Lawrence. It was called Louisburg, in honor of the king, and was
the Gibraltar of the new world.  An expedition of four hundred
fishermen and farmers was made up in New England, leaving the
women to plant and harvest the crops. Setting out from Marblehead,
Mass., in the spring of 1745, under command of Gen. William Pepperell, they laid siege to Louisburg. By the treaty of Utrecht, made in
1713, Nova Scotia had been ceded to the British, and Cape Breton was
the nearest French possession. To give an idea of the fortress it may
be said that the town, two and one half miles in circumference, was
surrounded by a wall thirty to thirty six feet high and by a deep moat
eighty feet wide. It lay at the back of a landlocked bay and was defended by sixty-five siege guns and sixteen mortars. The harbor entrance was but half a mile wide and this was defended by a battery of
thirty cannon on each side.  The attacking party was made up of
farmers and fishermen, who had embarked in one hundred small
smacks, and were supported by a squadron of British ships under Commodore Warren in order to prevent their wholesale capture by some
French warship. These undisciplined farmers charged the harbor
batteries and captured them, and in fifty-five days compelled the surrender of the place. The attempt of the French to relieve the beleaguered city failed, and a ship load of food and munitions of war was
captured by the British squadron.  Duchambon, the French commandant, then struck his flag. After this brilliant achievement the
fort was restored to France three years later by the treaty of Aix la
Chapelle. In 1757 it was again captured by General Amherst and
General Wolfe, when the place was utterly destroyed and the inhabitants were transported to France in British ships.
In the hope of securing some abatement of the French claims to territory in the west, the governor of New York and the governor of Virginia counseled together and finally selected a young surveyor to
present a remonstrance to the French commandant at Fort Du Quesne


150




(Pittsburg). This was a rude settlement at the junction of the Alleghany and Monongahela Rivers, forming the headwaters of the Ohio.
Virginia settlers had obtained some land patents extending into the
valley of the Ohio, but the French and Indians refused to allow them
even a survey. The young surveyor who went to lay the case before
Commandant Legardeur de St. Pierre de Repentigny was George Washington. He found Repentigny at Fort Le Boeuf farther up the Alleghany River, and was courteously treated, but was not allowed to survey. An attempt to erect a stockade on the Monongahela was made
by the British in February, 1754, six months after Washington's visit,
but Captain Contrecoeur attacked them with a superior force and drove
them out of the region. Fort Du Quesne was then made a place of
considerable strength, and when it was finished the French had sixty
strongholds, mostly blockhouses, between Quebec and the Gulf of
Mexico.
The next step in the wars was the forcible removal by the English
of the Acadians who had settled in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick in
1754. Those who refused to swear allegiance to the English crown,
7,000 in number, were scattered all over the country, and their farms
were laid waste.  This event gave the foundation for Longfellow's
poem, Evangeline. In the following year General Braddock set out
from Virginia with the greatest army of British troops which ever
crossed the Alleghanies, to capture Fort Du Quesne. The story of his
disastrous defeat on July 9, 1755, and the rescue of the remnant of his
force by Washington, who was then but twenty three years of age, is
familiar to all the world. Three years later Washington accompanied
an expedition under General Forbes, to Fort Du Quesne and compelled
the French to abandon it.
At this period, 1756, a new commander appeared at Montreal who
was so active and successful that he threatened to drive the British out
of New York. Louis Joseph de St. Verain Montcalm, then forty-four
years old, had won the rank of colonel in the battle of Piacenza, in the
war for the Austrian succession. He was regarded as an able commander, so able that his government expected him to win with undisciplined Canadian farmers, aided by the Indians. He arrived at Quebec
in May, 1756, and captured Fort Ontario at Oswego, August 14. Next
year he captured Fort William Henry at the head of Lake George,
which was held by a garrison of 2,500 men and defended by forty-two
cannon. The half-famished Frenchmen and Indians, who had lived by


151




the chase during the siege, were very glad to get the provisions in the
stores. Montcalm then fortified Fort Carillon, or Ticonderoga, in the
passage between Lake Champlain and Lake George. Next year General Abercrombie marched against him with an army of 15,000 men,
and tried to take the fort by assault. Montcalm had but 3,600 men,
but after four hours of fierce fighting, the British fled in disorder. Instead of supplying this brilliant commander with a reasonable force of
men, and enabling him to go on with his campaign, the French government treated him with neglect. But a handful of men could be left
to defend the forts already taken, while Montcalm retired to make
ready at Quebec for a siege which was preparing against it.
Then the kaleidoscope of national politics took another turn which
completely altered the conditions between France and England. France
was hampered in her colonial advancement by Nicholas Fouquet, her
minister of finance. Instead of employing the national funds where
they were imperatively demanded, he applied them to the furtherance
of his own schemes, in the mean time spending 18,000,000 livres on his
private residence.
CHAPTER XX.
Rise of William Pitt in England —His Aggressive Territorial Policy Culminates
in a Border War-The French are Beaten at Every Point —Quebec, Montreal, Detroit and Du Quesne Surrendered to the British —1755-1760.
In England one of the greatest and most brilliant statesmen of her
history was waiting for recognition. William Pitt had successfully opposed the policy of Walpole, and gained so much popularity with the
people that George II hated him beyond endurance, and in order to get
him out of parliament made him joint vice-treasurer for Ireland and
paymaster in the army. Lord Pelham, the prime minister, wanted him
for secretary of state, but the king would not allow it. Subsequently
the cabinet appointed him to that office, but the king dismissed him.
Affairs in America and other quarters were going to the dogs and the
people compelled the king to accept Pitt as secretary of state in 1757.
In a short time his talents made him virtually prime minister. From
that moment the fortunes of England changed. Pitt outlined a vigor

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HENRY CLAY HODGES.








ous policy for the prosecution of the war in America, resolving to save
the colonies at all hazards and to drive the French out of the North.
He planned to send General Amherst to the capture of Ticonderoga
and Crown Point, and then Amherst was to proceed down Lake Champlain to join General Wolfe at Quebec and lay siege to that stronghold.
General Prideaux wvas sent against the fort at Niagara, and after capturing it he too was to join the Quebec expedition. Pitt knew that the
French garrisons were weak in numbers and poorly provisioned, but
he did not appreciate the difficulties involved in long marches through
the wilderness.
In July, 1759, General Prideaux arrived at Niagara, where he found
that the French garrison was about to be reinforced from the fort at
Presque Isle, now Erie; from Fort Venango, on Oil Creek, Pa., and
from Detroit. At the first attempt against the fort General Prideaux
was instantly killed by the bursting of a gun. Sir William Johnson,
who was to be a figure of some importance in the history of Detroit in
after years, succeeded to the command. The reinforcements were
routed before they could join the garrison, and Fort Niagara surrendered with six hundred men, the prisoners being sent to New York.
Sir William remained at the fort and did not attempt to join Wolfe.
General Amherst captured the two forts on Lake Champlain and then
went into winter quarters at Crown Point.
Gen. James Wolfe was a young man of thirty-two years, son of
Colonel Wolfe, who had fought under Marlborough. He had seen
service at Dettingen, Fontenoy and La Feldt, and his soldierly gifts
won Pitt's favor. Though inexperienced as a commander, he was
selected to head an expedition of 8,000 trained regulars, which sailed
from England February 17, 1759, and Generals Monckton, Townshend
and Murray were his brigade commanders. H.e arrived before Quebec
June 26, 1759, and while waiting for Amherst and Prideaux to join
him, made a careful reconnoissance of the citadel. He found it a place
of considerable strength, built at the extremity of a tongue of high land
which formed one bank of the river. The fort was a promontory,
rising 335 feet above the river. Its cannon commanded the lowlands
forming the natural approach, and the only apparent approach for
attack on the level was from far up the river. On the opposite shore
of the stream is a commanding position called Point Levis, and there
Wolfe planted batteries to cover assaults on the height. The space adjoining the fort was a plain of about fifty acres called the Heights of
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20




Abraham. Monckton was placed in charge of the batteries at Point
Levis and a bombardment was begun, but the limited range and small
calibre of his cannon made the attempt useless. Discouraged with
waiting for reinforcements, Wolfe ordered an assault up the slope from
Lower Town by his grenadiers, but they were repulsed with considerable loss, and an attack from the lower level was found to be impracticable with the force at his command.
Wolfe was a nervous man, of delicate constitution, and the failure
threw him into a fever, but he would not abandon his duty. Counseling with his generals, he resolved to try a night attack by sending his
best regiment, Fraser's IIighlanders, to scale the precipice of more
than three hundred feet in order to secure a footing on the level with
the French. Several bateaux loaded with men were sent up the river,
and Montcalm, suspecting the design of his enemy, sent Colonel de
Bougainville with 1,500 men to Point Rouge, nine miles up the river,
to repel an attack at what was supposed to be the nearest vulnerable
point. On the night of September 12 boats from the British fleet
brought a force of men under the precipice.
"Qui vive?" cried a sentinel from the heights above.
"France," answered a Scottish officer who could speak French.
" Quel regiment?"
" De la Reine," replied the officer.
The sentinel was satisfied and did not ask for the countersign, as a
French convoy of provisions was expected from above. In a few minutes the boats landed, and Wolfe and Fraser's Highlanders climbed up
the dark heights, clinging to the bushes and to crevices in the rocks.
The greatest precautions were observed to avoid giving an alarm, and the
guns and accoutrements were hauled up by cords after a number of
men had gained the summit. At daybreak the sentinels of the citadel
were astonished to find a strong force of British soldiers on the plateau
ready for battle. They were dirty and ragged from their long scramble up the sides of the cliff, but they were grim and determined. All
was confusion in a moment. Fearing an immediate attack, and suspecting that the whole British army was upon him, Montcalm hurried
out a skirmishing party to hold the enemy in check until his main body
could form for a charge. The skirmish line straggled toward the line
of Highlanders and began a scattered firing, which produced little effect. Then Montcalm mustered his scanty and ill-fed force for an assault to repel the invaders. Where was de Bougainville now? The
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clever fighter with his 1,500 musketeers would be worth an empire. A
dust cloud five miles away showed where they were hurriedly tramping
back to the citadel, having found that the movement of the British up
the river had been but a ruse. The column of French soldiers filed out
of the citadel and formed in line of battle, then marched toward the
line of red coats. In front on horseback came the bronzed figure,
Montcalm, the hero of many fights. He was taken at a disadvantage,
but his eagle eye sparkled with the light of battle, and his fierce moustache bristled with impetuous rage. Opposed to him was a thin, red
line of men whose valor was unquestioned. They must hold their ground
or die in the attempt. Pale, slender and beardless stood the gallant
Wolfe, the ghastly pallor of his face relieved by the flush of the fever
which still racked his bones. He knew that he had been selected for
this important task by Pitt against the advice of other statesmen; and
he was there to defend the honor of England and the judgment of his
friend and patron.
" Hold your fire, my boys, until I give the word. Don't waste a
single shot. Stand firm for Old England and the victory is ours."
The voice of the young commander went down the line, and at his
inspiring words every man nerved himself for the death struggle.
Montcalm realized that the first onset would decide the fortune of the
day, and his men were also directed to hold their fire. On came the
French at a jog trot, while the Highlanders stood silent and grim.
There was a nervous fingering of firelocks as the French came within
one hundred yards, and every eye was on the young general, eager for
the word. On came the French without faltering, and all the time the
muskets of the skirmishers were popping. A few of the red coats
went down and others stood in line with widening blotches of blood
staining their uniforms.  Fifty yards separated the two lines and
a few more strides would bring them into collision. The sword of
Wolfe was raised high above his head as the word " Ready " came like
a trumpet note from his lips. Down flashed the gleaming sword; the
command " Fire" rang out; a double roll of musketry with its flashes
of fire and singing of bullets ran along both lines. The commands
had been obeyed by both bodies of troops and both were swept by
deadly volleys at the same instant.
Wolfe received three musket balls in his body, and sank with a mortal wound that threw his weight upon the nearest Highlander's shoulder.


155




" Hold me up," he whispered, "don't let my brave boys see me fall
Forward! charge them, boys."
" They run! See how they run," cried a voice.
"Who run?" asked Wolfe.
"The enemy, sir, give way everywhere"
"Go one of you to Colonel Burton," directed the dying man; "tell
him to march Webb's regiment down to Charles River to cut off their
retreat by the bridge."
Then turning on his side he murmured: "Now God be praised, I
will die in peace;" and in a few minutes he drew his last breath.
Montcalm on horseback was driven by the rush of fugitives into the
town. As he approached the walls he was shot through the body.
When he was told that he would die he said: " So much the better; I
shall not live to see the surrender of Quebec."
The great stronghold of the St. Lawrence had fallen and thus Canada and the Northwest virtually passed into the hands of the British on
September 13, 1759, although the capitulation of Montreal and the
formal surrender of all Canada did not take place until the following
year, when Montreal surrendered September 8, 1760.
This blow must have paralyzed the remnant of the French government, for information was not forwarded to Detroit. Commandant
Bellestre was holding himself in readiness to obey commands or to
repel invaders when Major Robert Rogers appeared at the mouth of
Detroit River with a portion of the Royal American Regiment, made up
of British colonists and a portion of the Eightieth Regiment. Bellestre
was an able commander, and in consequence of the activity of the
British, who were pressing the French posts in the east, had succeeded
in massing a strong force at Fort Pontchartrain, and had accumulated a
quantity of military stores to be available for strengthening the stations farther east whenever they were menaced. The fall of Louisburg, Fort Frontenac, Niagara, Du Quesne and Quebec must have
been the occasion of much discussion at Detroit in those last days, but
still the commandant appeared to think his government was secure.
Major Rogers came from Niagara, part of his force coming in bateaux,
which also carried supplies for the fort, while the remainder marched
along the south shore of Lake Erie, driving a small herd of cattle with
them. They camped one night near the Cuyahoga River, when a
number of Indian chiefs entered their camp. The leader of the delegation was Pontiac, the head of the Ottawa tribe. He was stern and
bold in demeanor.
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" How is it you have come into my territory without invitation or
permission? Is your business peace or war?" he asked.
"I have come in the name of the great king of England to take
possession of Detroit," replied Rogers.
"This is my country; it does not belong to the great king; my people control all the country of the lakes," replied Pontiac.
"We do not want your lands or your hunting grounds," said
Rogers, "We want to trade with you as we trade with the Iroquois
in the East. We give better trade for furs than the French. We have
conquered the French and I have the submission of their governor at
Quebec. When we have taken possession at Detroit, you will be glad
and all your people will come to trade with the English, who do not
cheat them as the French have done."
Pontiac stood eyeing the major keenly for a time. Then he said:
" I will stand in your path until morning and will protect you from
harm; at daylight you may proceed safely on your way."
The proud savage gathered his blanket about his shoulders and
stalked into the gloom of the November night. He made no servile
surrender, but had placed the invading force under his protection, as if
he had been commander of a superior army.
When the British soldiers were approaching Detroit, the Indian runners brought in word that the French were to be turned away. Bellestre drew a rude picture of a crow eating from the top of a man's
head, hung it at the gate of the fort, and told the Indians that he was
the crow and that he would presently pick out the brains of the English soldiers. The Indians doubted it and waited. Rogers sent to the
French commandant a report of the surrender, and made a formal
demand for the possession of the fort. At first Bellestre thought a
trick was being attempted, and he asked time to consider. It was
granted and indubitable evidence was furnished in the correspondence
that followed to show that French rule was at an end in the North, and
so the truth came at last to Picot6 de Bellestre, a brave soldier of excellent family, who had been made a knight of St. Louis for military
prowess.  He called his garrison to an assembly and gave public
notice that New France had been turned over to the British crown.
With rolling drum and proper military salute, the standard of France
was hauled down from the staff where it had waved for fifty-nine
years, and the garrison marched out the gates of the fort. The
British marched in with flying colors and beating drums, and the roval




standard of Great Britain was flung to the breeze with rousing cheers.
The placard was thrown down and the Indians transferred their allegiance from the vanquished to the victors, and greeted the discomfited
commandant with yells of derision. A new regime was installed which
was believed to be perpetual, but thirty-six years later the British were
destined to march out as the French had done, leaving all the country
south and west of the great lakes to the possession of a nation which
was to rise from the soil of the new world.
The French waited until the war of the Revolution for their revenge.
At the time of the surrender of Detroit Count de Vergennes made a
prophecy which commanded little attention at the time. "This triumph
will be fatal to England " said he; " the colonies are now able to protect themselves without aid from the home government; their ability
to take care of themselves will make them headstrong; they will presently refuse to contribute toward the expenses of the home government,
and when England attempts to coerce them they will surely strike for
their independence." Sixteen years later his prophecy came to pass,
and when the war was wavering in the balance, and the case of the colonists appeared hopeless, France sent La Fayette, De Grasse and other
leaders, with ships and troops to help the colonists win their independence.
By these brilliant and substantial victories over the French Great
Britain won the whole of Canada and the Northwest and the cession
was formally made by the treaty of Paris in 1763.
Commenting on this momentous event John Fiske says: " It may be
said of the treaty of Paris that no other treaty ever transferred such an
immense portion of the earth's surface from one nation to another.
But such a statement, after all, gives no adequate idea of the enormous
results which the genesis of English liberty had for ages been preparing,
and which had now found definite expression in the policy of the English
prime minister, William Pitt. The 10th of February, 1763, might not
unfitly be celebrated as the proudest day in the history of England; for
on that day it was made clear-had any one eyes to discern the future
and read between the lines of this portentous treaty-that she was
destined to become the revered mother of many free and enlightened
nations, all speaking the matchless language which the English Bible
has forever consecrated, and earnest in carrying out the sacred ideas for
which Latimer suffered and Hampden fought. It was proclaimed on
that day that the institutions of the Roman empire, however useful in


158




their time, were at last outgrown and superseded, and that the guidance
of the world was henceforth to be, not in the hands of imperial bureaus
or papal conclaves, but in the hands of honest labor and the preachers
of righteousness, unhampered by ritual or dogma. The independence
of the United States was the first great lesson which was drawn from
this solemn proclamation. Our own history to-day is the first extended
commentary which is gradually unfolding to men's minds the latest
significance of the compact by which the vanquished old regime of
France renounced its pretensions to guide the world."
But Detroit and Michigan had to pass through many trials and
bloody experiences before she reached the goal of human freedom. An
isolated trading post on the borders of civilization, her importance was
either forgotten or ignored amid the pressing concerns of other and
more important centers of civilization, and it was not until thirteen
years after the Revolution had been fought and won that she was
allowed to become an integral portion of the great American republic.
THE FRENCH COMMANDANTS.
During the fifty-nine years of the French regime in Detroit the post
at Fort Pontchartrain was presided over by eighteen different commandants and the rule was divided into twenty-four terms. Cadillac
expected to be the permanent commandant when the post was established, and he hoped to enjoy all the benefits of trading, rents and seignorial dues while he built up a populous colony about him. His hopes
were dashed, and then the office of commandant became a rotating political preferment with which the governors general could reward their
friends and favorites.
From 1701 to 1704 Antoine de La Mothe Cadillac ruled. While he
was absent and on trial for alleged malfeasance in office, his companion
and second in command, Alphonse de Tonty, was in charge from September until February, while Lieut. August de Bourgmont was making
his way from Montreal.
Bourgmont remained until Cadillac was sent back to settle the Indian trouble in 1706, and from that time the original commandant remained at the post until 1711, although he was relieved of command in
the fall of 1710 by Joseph Guyon Dubuisson, who brought his appointment as governor of Louisiana.
Dubuisson remained in charge from the fall of 1710 until the fall of
1712, when the regularly appointed successor of Cadillac, Francis


159




Dauphine de la Forest had recovered from an illness and was able to
take command in person.
Two years later La Forest was deposed, because of his infirmities,
and in 1714, Jacques Charles Sabrevois came to act as commandant.
At this time it was decided that the term of a commandant should be
three years or during good behavior.
Sabrevois's term appears to have been uneventful and he was relieved
in 1717 by Henry Tonty, son of old "Bras de Fer" (Iron Hand).
Tonty, it would appear, was but a commandant pro tein. until the
appointee, Sieur Francois de Louvigny, should arrive two months later.
Louvigny remained for three years and in 1720 was relieved by the
appointment of Charles Joseph de Noyelle.
Novelle's term was limited to a few months and then the audacious
and unscrupulous trickster, Alphonse de Tonty, whose fingers had long
been itching for a chance at the revenues of the post, was appointed
commandant. So well did Tonty pull his political wires that in spite of
flagrant abuses against the government and in spite of the protests of
the residents at the post, he remained in power for seven years through
his influence with Governors Vaudreuil, Longueuil and de Beauharnois
successively. He died at Detroit in 1727.
M. Joseph Le Pernouche was made temporary commandant and served
nearly a year.
In 1728 Jean Baptiste Deschaillions de St. Ours, a captain in the
French army at Quebec, was sent to Detroit. St. Ours was probably
better fitted for the duties of a soldier than for those of a civil ruler,
for he was relieved after eight months by M. de Boishebert.
Boishebert was a very able man and remained in office for two full
terms. Hughes Jacques Pean de Livandiere came next in 1734, but
he inaugurated a policy of plunder and was soon deposed.
Lieutenant Sabrevois had been promoted to a captaincy, and he came
again in 1734 and served nearly four years.
Chailes Joseph de Noyelle was given a second term in 1738
Pierre Poyen de Noyan followed in 1741, and was relieved in 1742 by
Pierre de Celeron de Bienville.
Celeron retired in 1743, and Joseph Le Moyne, Sieur de Longueuil,
came for two successive terms which terminated in 1749.
The now aged Charles Jacques Sabrevois relieved Longueuil of his
command in 1749, but he retired in 1751, when Pierre de Celeron was
sent again to the post.
1(;0






JOHN T. RICH.








Celeron remained a full term and was relieved by the appointment
of Jacques d'Anon, Sieur de Muy. This commandant remained until
1758 and saw the closing in of the great struggle which deprived the
French of Canada and the Northwest.
Francois Marie Picote de Bellestre, a man of unusual military ability
and great energy, was the last commandant of the French at Detroit.
He came in 1758 and directed the provisioning and reinforcing of the
posts south of Lake Erie during the war with the British, but he was
compelled to surrender Detroit to the British in 1760.
In the foregoing relation of the French efforts to extend the sovereignty of that country in America, it will be seen that they were not
good colonizers, and in this respect were very much inferior to their
British rivals. The French sought to perpetuate in the western wilds
the same feudal systems that obtained in Normandy and Languedoc,
the vital defect of which was that tracts of land and trade monopolies
were bestowed upon the few, thus compelling the many to labor and
pay tribute, and remain is hopeless semi servitude. The vast domain
of New France, which might have blossomed as a rose under liberal
disposition of the lands to farmers and settlers, practically remained a
wilderness at the expiration of 148 years of French rule. As late as
1734 the entire population of New France was only 34,516. In 1760,
when it passed into the hands of the British, it was probably not more
than 40,000.
Between the years 1612 and 1760 twenty five French governors ruled
over New France from Quebec. They were:
1612-1635-Samuel de Champlain.
1635-1636-Marc Antoine de Chateaufort.
1636-1648-Charles Huoult de Montmagny.
1648-1651-Louis d'Aillebout de Coulonges.
1651-1656-Jean de Lauson.
1656 —Charles de Lauson-Charnay.
1657-Louis d'Aillebout de Coulonges (second term).
1658-1661-Pierre de Voyer, Viscount d'Argenson.
1661-1663-Pierre du Bois, Baron d'Avangour.
1663-Chevalier Augustin de Saffrey-Mesy.
1663-1665 —Alexandre de Prouville, Marquis de Tracey.
1665-1672-Chevalier Daniel Remey de Courcelles.
1672-1682-Louis de Buade, Count de Pelluanet de Frontenac.
1682-1685-Antoine Joseph le Febre de la Barre.
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21




1685-1689-Jacques Rene de Brissy, Marquis Denonville.
1689-1699-Count Frontenac (second term).
1699-1703-Chevalier Louis Hector de Callieres.
1703-1725-Philip Rigaud, Marquis de Vaudreuil.
1725-1726-Charles de le Moyne, Baron de Longueuil.
1726-1747-Charles, Marquis de Beauharnois.
1747-1749-Roland Michel Barriu, Count de Gallissoniere.
1749-1752-Jacques Pierre de Taffanel, Marquis de la Jonquiere.
1752-Charles de le Moyne, Baron de Longueuil (second term).
1752-1755 —Marquis Duquesne de Menneville.
1755-1760-Pierre Francois, Marquis de Vaudreuil-Casagnal.
CHAPTER XXI.
The British Take Possession of Detroit-Pontiac Demands Recognition of Them
-The Indians Prefer Frenchmen Who Treat Them as Equals-They Show an Inclination to Attack the Newcomers-1760.
There was naturally great rejoicing among the New York and New
England settlers over the great triumph of the British, for the trouble
with the French was at an end and it was believed that the Indian
wars would also cease. The war with the French was at an end on the
continent, although it continued until 1763 on the sea, and the settlers
were still in the midst of perils at the hands of the Indians. As has
been shown in the foregoing pages, the American Indians had been
generally divided into two opposing factions, one fighting the battles of
the French, the other the battles of the British. Now that strife was
apparently at an end. The French no longer fought their conquerors,
but they were smarting under defeat, and in revenge they worked upon
the prejudices of the savages. The British were not as congenial with
the Indians as the French had been, because they treated them as inferiors, and it soon became apparant that the contest between two nations for territory had given place to a contest between the British and
the Indians. This tended to unite the heretofore unreconcilable Iroquois and Algonquins against what was now their common enemy
By the terms of settlement those of the ]French colonists who chose
could remain in the colony and retain most of their former rights

16;.




those who chose to leave could do so by disposing of their property
under the approval of the British commandant. Several who had aided
the Indians in the siege of Detroit were severely punished, but most of
those who had been in open hostility escaped to St. Louis, on Peoria
Lake, in what is now Illinois, then part of Louisiana. Ten years before the surrender the Chevalier Repentigny had obtained a grant of
seigniory over lands near Sault Ste. Marie, and had erected a fort and
several houses inside his stockade, but upon the surrender he abandoned his land and returned to France. Lieutenant Jamette was sent
to take possession of Sault Ste. Marie, but for some time after the British had become masters of the country the island of Mackinac was
abandoned to the Chippewas, who had a village there. When Commandant Bellestre had been escorted by British soldiers away toward
the sea, there remained of the settlement at Detroit about 300 dwellings and perhaps 2,000 inhabitants. This was the estimate of Major
Rogers, who received the surrender, and it is probably very nearly correct. The French had fallen into the customs of the Indians, and
many families held as slaves Indian captives, whom they had purchased
from victorious warriors. These and a few Africans were recognized
as property by the British, and the owners retained possession. These
Indian slaves were captives who had been brought from the South and
Southwest by victorious war parties, and so many of them were Pawnees that the name Pawnee or Pani was applied to all. They were later
given their freedom, but some lived about the settlement to the day of
their deaths, and Judge Burnett, in his " Notes on the Northwest States,"
says that the last of the lot was in the employ of Judge Woodbridge.
The French settlers at Detroit were well treated and professed to be
grateful for the change. They had endured great privations during
the preceding seven years, as all the government appropriations had
gone to strengthen the two cities on the St. Lawrence, and even those
had been but meagerly maintained.
In a letter written November 2, 1760, by Captain Donald Campbell,
the first British commandant, to his superior, Colonel Boquet, who was
stationed at Presque Isle (Erie), he says: "We experienced some bad
weather on the lake during our voyage to this place and lost one man
overboard. Our ammunition was considerably damaged, so that we
are in immediate need of more. Mr. Navarre, the civil officer of the
post, will continue in his old capacity until he can teach his successor
the duties of his office. We find the fort badly off for all supplies and


163




the inhabitants in sore distress. The stockade is one of the best I have
ever seen; but we must have food and ammunition, and I fear it will
be a hard matter to bring them by water at this time of the year." In
another letter written December 11, 1760, he says: "I am greatly
obliged for the flour you sent. It was twenty three days on the way
and somewhat damaged. The ammunition came safely. Captain Waite
brought with him thirty-three barrels of pork (all Major Walters could
spare him) and it will be a great relief. We have also eleven bullocks.
M. Navarre, a most excellent man, has undertaken to furnish us with
20,000 pounds of flour, 100 bushels of peas and 100 bushels of corn
We pay the same rate as the French king allowed for flour, fifty shillings
per hundred weight. Indians are furnishing venison at a moderate
price. Major Rogers has about stripped us in supplying the adjoining
posts [at Maumee and Sandusky]. Owing to the scarcity of food the
commander at Mackinaw has been obliged to take his men to winter
among the Indians. Lieutenant Butler and his rangers are living among
the Ottawas at the Miami [Maumee] post. At the point where he is
stationed he is but nine miles from the Wabash River. I hope you will
encourage trade with Pittsburg, for I cannot persuade the men to go
there with their horses; they are so accustomed to canoes."
A new era seemed about to dawn. The British, who have always
been the most successful colonists, resolved to explore the interior of
the country and open up the lands for settlement. Their predecessors
had looked for nothing but furs and gold mines, without stopping to
consider that the agricultural products of the soil are always more valuable than all other, taking everything in the aggregate. During the
three years in which the treaty of peace was pending, little was done.
The old regulations governing the settlements of New France continued
in operation, but the land-lookers were abroad searching out the rich
prairie lands, the oak openings and the timbered areas.
This territory was under the control of Sir William Johnson and
Gen. Thomas Gage, who were lieutenants of Sir Jeffrey Amherst, governor-general of the British colony.  Although Major Rogers and
Colonel Croghan, who led the British troops to Detroit, were his
superior officers, Capt. Donald Campbell, of the Royal American
Regiment, was made commandant pending the settlement of peace.
The reason for this choice does not appear. Croghan and Rogers undertook to reconcile the Indians to the change of government. Unscrupulous British traders flocked into the region from which they had


164




so long been barred, and their methods were such as to rouse the
latent hostility of the Indians, and drew upon them the condemnation
of those settlers who loved law and order. If the British ever had an
opportunity for winning the favor of the Indians, these cheating, lawless fellows would have made it impossible. Sir William Johnson, in
his reports made years after, admitted that the savages had been driven
to hostility.
It needed but one man of will and intellect, who enjoyed the confidence of the Indians, to unite all the savages of the country in a common cause against the white invaders. That man was at hand, and,
although an untutored savage, he was still a genius  For many years
the Ottawas had made what is now Walkerville, Ont., their Detroit
headquarters. Their head chief was Pontiac, whose reputation as a
warrior was known to all the Indians far and near. The British did
not suspect that they were opposed by a very Cambyses in military
daring, a man whose personal influence could unite all his fellows into
a harmonious body, in spite of their ancient feuds, and plan a series of
swift campaigns which were calculated to drive the invaders from every
frontier fort. Other Indian chiefs had led bands of several allied
tribes on campaigns, but they were always inspired by a single purpose,
and when that failed or was accomplished the Indians scattered in the
forest and presently stued for peace. Pontiac planned to exterminate
the British at Mackinac, at Detroit, at the outposts near Toledo and
Sandusky, and all along the frontier, and he sought to execute his
purpose by a series of masterly stratagems, which nothing but fortuitous discovery prevented from being successful. It is common
practice for writers of romance to make their Indian heroes a compound of Hercules and Apollo; but Pontiac, instead of being gigantic
and beautiful, was a man of medium size, with a thick Roman nose,
broad and high cheek bones and a heavy jaw. His eyes were large
and bold, and his mental and physical activity were somewhat disguised by the stoical temperament of his race. His favorite summer
residence was on Peche Island, about three miles from the Ottawa
fort at Walkerville. Within a short time after the British had taken
possession General Gage learned that Pontiac was very active among
the Indians of the North, and also that he was in constant communication with some French people who had not accepted the issue of war
with good grace. Alexander Henry, a trader from the east, was at
first refused a permit to travel to Mackinac for fear of trouble, but he


15




finally went, leaving Detroit disguised as a coureur de bois. Henry
knew that he was taking his life in his hands, but traders of that day
were so accustomed to peril that it was only the most imminent dangers that kept them in the settlements.  Captain Campbell was a
pleasure loving man of unsuspicious temperament. The fact that the
British had conquered both the French and their Indian allies caused
him to hold the Indians alone in contempt.
During their residence at Detroit the various French commandants
had enlarged and strengthened the fort, and it now inclosed a space
372 feet north and south by 600 feet east and west. At each corner on
the river front strong bastions commanded the approach to the central
gate, and the north gate was similarly protected. A bastion also projected from the east side of the fort, but the battery of the place was a
weak affair made up of five small guns, three mortars and two threepounders. The narrow streets which Cadillac had laid out were still
there and were extended outside the stockade. The greater part of the
houses were outside the inclosure. Soon after the surrender the seat
of government for the newly acquired territory was removed from Quebec to New York, and Gen. Jeffrey Amherst, who had been so active
in the late war, was placed in general control. Presently disquieting
rumors began to reach his ears. The French and Indians were reported
to be working together with suspicious intimacy, while each showed a
lack of cordiality toward the British, and it was believed that a conspiracy was on foot to drive the British away from Detroit and reestablish either the French or Indian domination. General Amherst
sent Sir William Johnson, the ablest Indian commissioner the English
possessed in the colonies, to Detroit to investigate the truth of the rumors, and ascertain the real status of affairs. Sir William arrived at
his destination September 3, 1761, having coasted in bateaux along the
north shore of Lake Erie, and he brought Capt. Henry Gladwin and a
detachment of 300 troops, with stores, ammunition, etc., for the post.
Sir William remained at the post fifteen days, holding councils with the
Indians in the daytime and devoting his evenings to social pleasures
with the citizens. He made treaties with the Ottawas, Potawatomies
and Miamis, who resided in the vicinity of the fort, and also with the
Chippewas of the North and the Delawares, Shawnees and Senecas of
the Ohio region. These nations had been invited to meet him in council and the commissioner was liberal in bestowing presents. He also
sent troops and supplies to the lake posts above and below, and form

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ulated new trade regulations. Sir William was an Irishman of cordial
and winning disposition and an official of large experience and great
capacity. Among the French gentlemen he met at Detroit were Colonel Du Quesne and Major La Mothe, two officers who had surrendered
their swords to him at Niagara. There was a round of festivities, Sir
William entertaining his guests in the quarters of M. Bellestre, the last
French commandant, and he made many visits to the homes of the
leading citizens, including a visit to the Huron mission across the river,
where he was entertained by Father Potier, the missionary priest.
During his visit, Major Henry Gladwin, the new commandant, was
confined to his bed by an attack of fever and ague, and Captain Donald
Campbell had charge of the post. In Sir William's diary occurs the
following passages:
"September 6,-a very fine morning. This evening I am to dine with Captain
Campbell, who is also to give the ladies a ball that I may meet them. They assembled at 8 P. M. to the number of twenty. I opened the ball with Mademoiselle Cuillerier, a fine girl; we danced till five o'clock in the morning.
"Monday, September 14,-I had for dinner this evening the French gentlemen of
Detroit; also the vicar-general Bocquet of the French church, and the Jesuit Father
Potier of the Huron Mission, on the opposite side of the river. There was plenty
of good wine and my guests got very merry. I invited them all to a ball that I am to
give to-morrow night.
The entry for September 15, says that the ball lasted the whole night
until seven o'clock in the morning.
"I promised to write Mlle. Cuillerier as soon as possible, my sentiments," Sir William concludes.
On the 17th Sir William crossed the river and visited the Huron village, where the warriors were drawn up in line; they presented arms
and fired a salute. He addressed their council, and afterward took
supper with Father Potier. Next day he embarked for his return
homeward.    The beauty and attractions of Mile. Cuillerier made a
great impression upon the gallant Irish superintendent of Indian affairs,
and he corresponded with her for several years, and even after her
marriage to James Sterling, a Scotch merchant and British official at
Detroit.
Sir William Johnson was a man of varied talents and a figure of
much importance in the early English colonies. He was born in Ireland in 1715. His uncle, Sir Peter Warren, married Miss Delancy, a
New York heiress, who had large estates, and William Johnson came
over in 1738 to take the management of them. He settled at Warrens

167




burg, near Schenectady, where the Mohawks made him one of their
sachems. Governor Clinton made him colonel of the Iroquois in 1744.
In 1746 he was Indian commissioner of the colony, and two years later
he was given command of the New York colonial troops which repelled
an attack from the French and Indians of the north. In 1750 the king
made him a member of the governor's council. He settled a serious
difference between the settlers of the Mohawk valley and the Indians
in 1753, and General Braddock made him superintendent of the Iroquois
and their allies. As commander-in-chief of the Crown Point expedition, he defeated Baron Dieskiau, and for this was given $25,000 and
made a baronet. He succeeded General Prideaux at the siege of Niagara, when the latter was killed by the explosion of a gun, and captured
the fort. He was also present at the capture of Montreal. After his
return from Detroit, in 1761, he was given as a reward 100,000 acres of
land north of the Mohawk River, for preventing all the Iroquois, except
the Senecas, from joining in Pontiac's conspiracy. In 1764 he built a
home at Johnstown. In 1736 he married Catherine Wisenburg, who
died leaving a son and two daughters. Thereafter he had many mistresses, both white and Indian. His favorite was Molly Brant, a sister
of Joseph Brant, the Mohawk chief, whom he educated, and eight children resulted from this alliance. He provided for them in his will.
When he died in 1774, it was said that he left one hundred children,
but three of whom were legitimate.
Meanwhile Spain had been playing an important but secondary role
in North America. Her wars with other European powers were generally followed by losses or acquisitions of territory on this continent.
Louisiana was settled by the French in 1699, two years before the
founding of Detroit, and Iberville founded the first colony at Biloxi,
which is now in the State of Mississippi. The French remained in
possession of Louisiana until 1762, when they ceded it to Spain, being
glad to avoid a possible contest with England for it. Spain found the
holding of this vast territory too. onerous and it was retroceded to
France in 1800. Napoleon saw that it could not be held as against
Great Britain, so in 1803 he shrewdly sold it to the United States, the
only power that had successfully resisted British domination on the
continent. The price paid was $15,000,000. Louisiana at that time
included all the country west of the Mississippi not occupied by Spain,
extending as far north as the British territory and comprising the
whole or part of the present States of Arkansas, Kansas, Indian Ter

168




A~*


DON M. DICKINSON.








ritory, Missouri, Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota, Louisiana, Mississippi,
Alabama, the Dakotas, Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Oregon and Washington. In 1762 there was trouble between England and Spain, and
Pontiac was made to believe that Spain would help the French to
recover New France.
CHAPTER XXII.
Pontiac, the Napoleon of the Western Indians-He Conspires with the Chiefs of
Sixty Tribes to Drive the British Out of the Country-His Plans are Betrayed to
Commandant Gladwin-1761-1763.
When Gladwin assumed command he made Captain Campbell his
deputy. Campbell had made himself very popular with the old residents of Detroit, and the Indians regarded him with more favor than
was usually bestowed by them upon an Englishman. His influence
tended to keep the savages in good humor at Detroit, even while
trouble was brewing. Gladwin was a brusque and business-like commandant, with a manner in striking contrast to that of Captain Campbell, and the Indians did not like him.  Some of the French who
were in suspicious intimacy with the savages also disliked the new
commandant, but Gladwin scarcely gave the threatening troubles a
serious thought, although strict regulations were observed in furnishing the savages with rum and gunpowder. While he was resting in
fancied security at the fort, Peche Island, the summer home of Pontiac
on Lake St. Clair, about a mile east of the present eastern limits of
Detroit, was a center of great activity. Indian runners came and
went, some in canoes and others on foot. They carried the war belts
and the plans and instructions of the great Ottawa chieftain to distant
tribes, and brought reports of the defenses and garrisons at each
frontier fort, so that the chief would know when and in what manner
to strike his intended blow. Between the fort and Pontiac's headquarters stood Belle Isle, then known as Ile au Cochon (Hog Island),
and its dense growth of forest shut off the view of Pontiac's headquarters from the fort.
Early in April Pontiac called a grand council of nations at the River
aux Ecorces, which empties into the Detroit River a few miles below
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22




Detroit, and there the Ottawas held conference with the Chippewas,
Potawatomies, Miamis, Shawnees, Ottagamies, Winnebagoes, Massasagas and several other tribes, including the Senecas of the Iroquois
confederacy. He submitted his scheme for a simultaneous attack upon
Forts Pitt, Venango, Presque Isle, Le Boeuf, Sandusky, Detroit, St.
Joseph, Mackinac and Green Bay. This included all the posts from
Pittsburg to the north, and these controlled the headwaters of the
Ohio, the south shore of Lake Erie, the Detroit River, the Straits of
Mackinac and Lake Michigan. The attacks were to be made so that
each post would be too busy in its own defense to render assistance to
any other, and, as far as possible, the attacks were to be made while
the defenders were thrown off their guard by their apparent security.
After submitting his plan Pontiac delivered an impassioned speech
which roused the fighting blood of the assembled chiefs to fever heat.
In the speech he alluded to the fact that in 1746 he had aided the
French in defending Detroit against Turtle, chief of the Chippewas,
and also at Fort Du Quesne (Pittsburg) in 1755 against the British
under Braddock, and was successful in both cases.
About the first of May the various tribes engaged in the plan commenced gathering about the various forts which were marked for destruction during that month. The Ottawas, who were the leaders in
this war, were the most civilized of all the Michigan tribes, and their
wars and forays were far less atrocious than those of the treacherous
Chippewas, who reveled in indiscriminate slaughter. More than once
in the history of the colony did the Ottawas save white men from death
and torture at the hands of other tribes, and this gave them the reputation of being friendly. Bands of Ottawas, Chippewas and Potawatomies were dispatched to Mackinac and St. Joseph, the latter at the
mouth of the St. Joseph River, on Lake Michigan, to capture these
forts, while Pontiac took personal charge of the operations against the
more formidable fort of Detroit. Other bands were sent against the
other forts named. Pontiac's warriors began to congregate about the
fort of Detroit on May 1, 1763, and in order to allay suspicion and at
the same time examine the surroundings, a band of forty braves danced
the calumet dance before the commandant's house. At this time Major
Gladwin had no suspicion of an immediate attack. The main body of
Pontiac's tribe was then encamped on the Michigan shore, a little more
than a mile east of the fort, on the farther side of Parent's Creek, which
was later known as Bloody Run. The French residents, as usual, went


170




back and forth between the settlement and the camp to trade. Most
of them were anxious to see the territory restored to France, which
was perfectly natural. The better class of them, however, were not
willing to have it done at the expense of a general massacre, although
the British in former years had done little to merit consideration. Three
days later Madame Guoin, wife of a settler, visited the Ottawa camp,
and on returning told her husband that the Ottawas were up to some
mischief, as she had seen a number of them filing off their gun barrels
to half length with a show of secrecy. Guoin informed some of the
soldiers at the fort, and two days later, on the evening of May 7, the
plan of Pontiac to capture the fort was revealed to Major Gladwin.
This information was given under the seal of secrecy, because the informer would have met death at the hands of the Indians had his or her
name been discovered, and, as will presently appear, there may have
been other powerful reasons for keeping the secret for all time to come.
Gladwin was a man of honor and so scrupulously did he keep his
word that no mention is made of the informant in all his papers, which
have been carefully examined and collated by Charles Moore, and
which were recently published in the records of the Michigan Historical Society. Mr. Moore has spent much time and research on the subject of Michigan's early history, and some of the details of this account
of the Pontiac conspiracy were obtained from his published brochure
entitled, "The Gladwin Papers." One of the theories of the revelation to Gladwin is based upon an ancient French manuscript which was
found tucked away amid the rafters of an old Canadian homestead as it
was being demolished to make room for a more modern structure. It
is not signed, but the author is supposed to have been a priest of old
St. Anne's. Translations of it appear in at least four of the histories
of Michigan. This manuscript is authority for the statement that Mohiacan, an Ottawa warrior, who was opposed to Pontiac's scheme, revealed the conspiracy. He is said to have come to the gate of the fort
late Friday evening, and told Captain Campbell that on the next day
Pontiac with sixty of his picked warriors would enter the fort to talk
about a treaty, and at a given signal they would draw their concealed
weapons, kill the English officers and give the residents over to slaughter. He was so afraid of betrayal that he would not trust his revelation to the French interpreter, La Butte, but gave it as best he could
in broken English. Another tradition has it that a daughter of La
Butte told Gladwin of the conspiracy, and still another has it that a


171




Pawnee slave saved the British. The most popular theory is that of
Parkman. It was about an Indian girl of the Ojibway or Chippewa tribe,
named Catherine, who had frequented the fort, and become enamored
of the commandant. She had done various tasks in his employ in the
making of articles, which he had sent as presents to his friends in England. On the evening of May 7 she came to the commandant's quarters with a pair of elkskin moccasins, which she had embroidered with
stained porcupine quills. With the moccasins she returned the remainder of the skin which he had given her, and which had not been
used. Gladwin had intended the slippers for a friend, but they pleased
him so much that he told the young woman to take back the rest of
the skin and make another pair of moccasins for his personal use. The
girl refused to take the skin and stood apart looking out of the window,
apparently undergoing some sort of a struggle with herself. When
pressed as to her reason for not taking the task she replied that if she
made the moccasins she would not be able to deliver them to him in
the spirit land. Her strange words led to further inquiry and on being
pressed with questions she revealed, under promise of strict secrecy,
the details of Pontiac's diabolical scheme. A writer remarks: "If
this were all that is told of her she ought to be enshrined in history
with Nancy Ward, the prophetess of the Cherokees. But tradition has
added that after the siege she took to strong drink, and while in a
maudlin condition she fell into a vat of boiling maple syrup and so
perished ingloriously. Alas! that so much fidelity, human compassion and loveliness should come to an end in a kettle of boiling molasses. "
When Parkman wrote the "Conspiracy of Pontiac" his informants
in regard to the betrayal of Pontiac's plans were a few old men who
were children when the drama was enacted, and whose stories were
simply a repetition of tales told them while they were very young, and
whose memories were naturally unreliable. Mr. Parkman also carefully searched the archives in the British Museum which related to Detroit, but could find no corroborative documents in support of the
romantic episode he relates in his famous work.
Another theory respecting the person who gave the timely information to Major (Gladwin has been broached by Richard R. Elliott, of this
city, whose knowvledge of the early history of Detroit is extensive and
profound, and to whom the compilers of this work are indebted for the
interesting sketch of the Huron mission of Detroit. There is probably


1,2




no positive or direct proof existing of the identity of Gladwin's informant, but Mr. Elliott's theory is more circumstantial than any that has
yet appeared. It may be premised that Fathers Richardie and Potier,
of the Huron mission, were on terms of intimacy with the old French
families on both sides of the river, and notable with Pierre Meloche, a
prominent habitan, whose workshop was on the south side of the river,
just east of the Ottawa fort. Meloche's home was on the north side of
the Detroit River, just opposite his workshop, and his near neighbor
was Charles Parent. Both of these men were great friends of Pontiac,
as were most of the French families in the region. Pontiac also did a
good deal of business with the Huron mission storehouse, which was
on the river, about three miles below the Ottawa fort, as he naturally
preferred to deal with the French rather than the English. One of the
details of Pontiac's plan was the cutting off of a portion of the rifle
barrels of his chiefs in order to conceal them from the eyes of the garrison. These must have been cut off by means of fine-tempered steel
files. Where were these files obtained? They were not kept in stock
by the French, English or Scotch traders in Detroit, but they could be
procured at the Huron mission, which had a forge where arms and agricultural implements could be repaired or remodeled. One of the entries in the account book of the mission during the French regime,
dated February 20, 1751, is as follows: "'Jean Bart, armorer of Fort
Pontchartrain, 15 pounds steel springs; 18 pounds steel bars; 28 steel
files." Exclusive purchases of files were previously entered. It is more
than probable that these files were procured at the mission, for they
could not have been purchased elsewhere in this region. Such an unusual transaction coming to the notice of Father Potier doubtless led
him to investigate its cause, and that Gladwin was warned by him is
more than probable. Of course Father Potier would effect his object in
such a manner as not to compromise his friends, and also to make it
impossible for Pontiac to ascertain who was the informant, whose days
would be numbered if his identity were discovered.
After Father Potier's death in 1781 the following papers were found
among his effects: The Huron Grammar; a diary of events which
occurred at the mission; an account book in which the prices of merchandise and the names of customers are set forth; a rssum6 of the
important events that happened in the old world; a directory of resident Frenchmen on both sides of the straits and their status at the
post of Detroit and vicinity; a census of the Huron Indians at San173




dusky, Bois Blanc and Detroit; a census of the Ottawas whose cantonment was on the present site of Walkerville, Ont.; and his private
correspondence, which consisted of copies of letters written by himself
and the originals of letters received  But his diary did not contain
anything relating to events transpiring in 1761-63, during which the
conspiracy of Pontiac and the siege of Detroit took place. The leaves
containing these records had been removed by him, a fact which
strengthened the belief that he informed Gladwin of the murderous
object. Summing it all up, Mr. Elliott's theory is that Father Potier
warned the commandant through Mile Cuillerier, the sparkling and
attractive daughter of Antoine Cuillerier, the French trader. Mr.
Elliott adds that if the Canadian records were carefully searched,
it is probable that some document may be found that will throw a light
upon these services and thus prove or disprove his theory. Whoever
informed Gladwin did so under the seal of secrecy, and this was
honorably observed by the commandant. None of his papers throw
any light on the subject, and he evidently wished it to be kept secret
for all time.
Gladwin, although but twenty-three years of age, was no novice in
Indian warfare. He had accompanied the disastrous Braddock expedition against Fort Du Quesne, and was aware that Pontiac had been
one of the leaders in the fight at Little Meadows eight years before.
So it may be imagined that he lost no time in planning to meet the
treachery of Pontiac with a show of force that would check the conspiracy at the very outset. He had no idea that the Indians would
muster in sufficient force to attempt the capture of Detroit by siege.
The night of May 7, 1763, was a busy one inside the palisades; sentinets patrolled the inner wall of the fort, casting anxious glances out
into the darkness where the gleam of distant camp fires showed through
the forest.  Canoes crossed and recrossed the river, bringing more
warriors from the Canadian shore and landing them a short distance
below Belle Isle. Captain Campbell and the officers of the fort walked
the narrow streets, giving warning to the inhabitants that they must
keep inside the fortifications on the following day, as the Indians were
known to be in a dangerous mood. Arms were carefully loaded and
put in order for immediate use; ammunition was dealt out, every man
saw that the flint of his gun was in condition for immediate use, and all
possible precautions were taken to defeat the project of the enemy.
All night the stars shone upon a scene of woodland beauty; on the
174




river gently rippling past the fort, and on the Indian camp where the
warriors were dreaming of the scene of massacre and the scalp harvest
which they expected on the morrow. Sixty chiefs were to enter the
assembly hall in the fort, each man clad in his blanket and gripping
through its folds a shortened musket with its death-dealing load.
Pontiac was to address the commandant as if preparing for a treaty of
peace and every warrior was to be on the alert. If the occasion proved
favorable for an onslaught, Pontiac was to present Major Gladwin with
a belt of wampum held in reversed position; if unfavorable he was to
present it in the usual fashion. In the mean time the other warriors
were to collect close to the gate, and if the signal for the massacre was
given, they would be admitted immediately and would participate in
the slaughter.
At ten o'clock next morning Pontiac led his sixty warriors to the
gate and they were admitted within the stockade. He saw that the
sentinels at the gate were armed with sword, pistol and musket, and
that the narrow streets were filled with soldiers, every one of whom
was fully armed. It may be imagined that the chief and his warriors
exchanged meaning glances at this display of force, but they had gone
too far to recede. They entered the assembly hall and met MajorGladwin surrounded with a goodly company of men all fully armed. The
Indian chief sat on the floor as usual.  "Why does my English brother
keep his young men armed and on parade as if for battle?" inquired
Pontiac coldly. " Does my brother expect the soldiers of the French?"
" I keep my soldiers armed that they may be perfect in their exercise of arms, so that they may be ready to fight well if a war should
come," replied Gladwin pointedly.
During this trying moment the sixty chiefs sat grim and silent, their
dark eyes turning from Pontiac to Giadwin and casting furtive glances
at the soldiers in the room who appeared to be peculiarly alert. Their
stoical training, which enabled them to undergo torture without complaint, stood them in good stead, for not an eye quailed, and not
a tremor of a muscle betrayed the deadly purpose on which they were
bent. They were ready to slay or be slain, and the manner in which
their chief presented the wampum belt would decide a matter of life or
death for perhaps six hundred souls. Pontiac arose at one end of the
row and began an address to Gladwin, assuring him of his regard for
the Englishmen. They had driven the French warriors from Detroit,
he said, because they were mighty men in battle, and the Ottawas and


175




all other tribes of the region desired to,express their good will and
eternal friendship for the white chief. In token of that friendship he
had brought a belt of wampum which he would give in honor of the
occasion. They would light the calumet in token of peace which
should be observed between them.  As Pontiac began unfastening
the wampum belt from his girdle the British soldiers in the council hall
at a signal from Gladwin half drew their swords from their scabbards;
the sentinel who stood in the open door signaled to a long row of
soldiers ranged in front of the entrance; the drums rolled the assembly and the soldiers outside made a noisy clatter of arms. Death
hovered in the air about that assembly, and Pontiac felt its presence.
His hand did not tremble; the belt was calmly unfastened and after an
instant of hesitation he handed it over to Gladwin in the usual fashion
-and death passed them by. It was Gladwin's turn to reply. He
took the belt and turned upon Pontiac and his followers with bitter
words of reproach. He taunted them with being traitors who had
planned to butcher the men and women for whom they had professed
friendship but a moment before.
"Look! false chief, you have thought to deceive me with lies and to
slay me by treachery, but I know the treachery and hate that your
lying tongue would hide. You are armed, every man of you with
a shortened gun like this chief by my side."
He stepped to the nearest Indian and pulling aside the folds of his
blanket revealed the shortened musket.
"My brother does me wrong; he does not believe? Then we will
go," replied Pontiac.
His dark eyes sparkled with baffled rage, but with perfect dignity he
rose, gathered the folds of his blanket about his broad shoulders and
walked with measured tread down the hall and out between the double
file of armed soldiers. He might have been passing in review, but for
the look of scorn and hate which distorted his countenance. His
picked warriors followed sullenly and silently, and they passed through
the gate into the village beyond.
Less fortunate were the other posts in Michigan. At the mouth of
the St. Joseph River, where Father Allouez had founded a mission
among the Miamis and La Salle had built a rude fort, was a garrison of
fourteen men under command of Ensign Schlosser. They had no
warning of the great conspiracy, and on the morning of May 25, 1763,
a band of Potawatomies suddenly attacked the fort.  Eleven of the
176




~|
>=N 3
'K,/ ~







soldiers were killed and scalped before they could attempt defense.
Ensign Schlosser and three others were taken to Detroit and ransomed.
At Fort Sandusky, on May 17, Ensign Paully was called upon by a
party of Indians who had been perfectly friendly up to that moment.
He admitted seven of them and gave them tobacco. At a signal from
the chief of the party he was seized and bound and carried out of the
fort. He passed his sentry lying dead across the entry. His twentyseven soldiers were all dead and lying scalpless in the yard, the merchants of the post had been killed in their places of business and their
stores were being plundered. Paully was carried to Detroit, where he
was given as a husband to an unattractive old squaw, from whom he
made his escape to the fort June 14.
Ensign Holmes, in charge of the fort on the Miami of the Lakes, or
Maumee River, was preparing for defense against a possible attack
when he was called out to bleed a sick Indian in a wigwam near the
fort. He was shot down while on his way, and the garrison surrendered to a party of Frenchmen who were on their way to St. Louis
(Peoria), Illinois, to secure a French commandant for Detroit.
At Mackinac, on June 2, the slaughter was far worse, as the place
was defended by a garrison of thirty six men under Captain Etherington. The commandant was a man of easy disposition who held the
savages in contempt and disregarded warnings to prepare for treachery.
The Indians were numerous about the fort every day, but so long as
they were not allowed to enter while bearing arms they were considered harmless. On the morning of June 2 an unusual number
collected to witness a game of lacrosse, into which the two sides
entered with great zeal, and the ball was flung wildly about. The
squaws stood near the entrance to the fort looking on and presently a
wild throw, apparently by accident, sent the ball over the palisades.
In great excitement the Indians rushed through the gate apparently in
quest of the ball, but each man as he ran was handed weapons by the
squaws, who had concealed them in their garments. The character of
the scene changed in an instant. Captain Etherington and his soldiers
had been looking on with interest and several bets had been made on
the result of the game, Iwhen suddenly they were surrounded by a
hundred yelling savages who attacked the defenseless garrison with
tomahawk and scalping knife. The captain, Lieutenant Leslie and
fourteen privates were all the soldiers that were spared. Alexander
177
23




Henry, the trader, was sought for, but a Pawnee slave woman hid him
away in the garret of Mr. Langlade, a French resident, where he was
subsequently discovered. But Wawatam, an Indian whom he had
befriended, interceded for him and the trader's life was spared. While
Henry was hidden in the Langlade garret he could hear the blows of
the tomahawks, and amid the frenzied yells of the Indians he could
distinguish the moans of the dying. When the awful orgie of blood
was ended the bodies of Lieutenant Jomet, twenty soldiers, and a trader
named Tracy, were cut up and boiled in huge kettles for a general
feast. The Indians in this massacre were mostly Chippewas. Henry
was concealed for a few days on Mackinac Island in Scull Cave, and
when the excitement had died out he made his way to Detroit. Captain Etherington and his few surviving captives were taken to the
mission at L'Arbe Croche, on the northern shore of the lower peninsula, and were well treated until they were exchanged. It is said that
they owed their lives to the intercession of the few Ottawas who were
present at the massacre. In all these massacres the French were not
molested.
CHAPTER XXIII.
Detroit is Besieged by 2,000 Indians-Murder of Captain Donald Campbell and a
Number of Settlers-Massacres at Mackinaw, St. Joseph, Miami, Sandusky and
Other Posts-1763.
Major Gladwin no doubt believed that the crisis was over, for the
idea of a well organized siege of the fort probably did not occur to him.
He had but 123 soldiers and eight officers, together with about fifty fur
traders who were stopping in the fort, and his artillery was limited to
two six-pounders and five smaller guns. The garrison, however, was
well protected within its strong log walls, and outside the barrier was
a glacis protected by three rows of sharp pickets. There was no lack
of water, for the savages could not turn aside the river which flowed
close to the south gate; and two small vessels, the sloop Beaver and the
schooner Gladwin, were available for bringing supplies to the garrison
and the besieged settlers. No doubt Gladwin underestimated the force
which was opposed to him. It was characteristic of Indian warfare
178




that the greater part of the fighting men kept out of sight as much as
possible, so that it would be impossible to determine their numbers,
but the army which Pontiac gathered at Detroit was between 1,500 and
2,000 warriors. There were no immediate signs of hostility after the
baffled chiefs had left the fort. The afternoon passed quietly, but at
sundown six warriors appeared before the gate leading an old squaw,
whose appetite for liquor often led her into indiscretions. They were
admitted and Gladwin was asked if she was the informant who had told
lies about the Indians. Gladwin assured them that she was not the
person, and when they demanded the name of the informer, he replied
that it was one of themselves, and that he had sworn never to reveal
the name. They dragged their captive back to the camp, and Pontiac
vented his spite upon her by beating her over the head with a stick
until she fell half stunned to the ground. His followers clamored for
her life, but he waived them back because it was possible that she was
innocent. Nearly twenty hours passed before the Indians appeared
again about the fort. Sunday morning was quietly spent, but late in
the afternoon several canoes paddled down from the Indian camp and
landed at the fort. Pontiac was the leader of the party. He sent word
to Gladwin, asking him to come out on the common, as he wanted to
smoke the pipe of peace. The young commandant saw in this another
treacherous ruse to get possession of his person, and he refused to have
anything to do with the chief.
Captain Campbell had never considered the Indians seriously, but
believed with kind treatment and a little finesse they could be perfectly
controlled. No doubt he was somewhat conceited because of the general good will which he enjoyed above the rest of the garrison, for both
the French and the Indians were very friendly toward him. He obtained permission to go out and smoke the pipe of peace with the delegation of chiefs, thinking that a little courtesy would pacify them.
He brought back information that next day Pontiac would call a grand
council of all the tribes, and that he would them disperse them in peace.
Next morning canoes were seen massing below Belle Isle, and soon
after a fleet of fifty-six came down the stream to land about 500 Indians at the fort. The gates were closed and an interpreter was sent
out to parley with Pontiac. He asked admission for all his followers
for the purpose of holding a grand council, but was informed that he
and sixty of his followers would be admitted and no more. The answer
made Pontiac furious.


179




"Tell the chief of the Red Coats that my warriors are all equal,
said he; "unless every man of them is admitted not one will enter.
Tell the white chief that he may stay in his fort if he will, but I will
keep the country."
He leaped into his canoe and was paddled swiftly toward the Ottawa
village up the river. There was no occasion for dissimulation now,
and the Indians looked about for victims. The French settlers were
on friendly terms with the Indians and showed no alarm, and the few
British settlers outside of the fort believed they would be secure. The
widow Armstrong and her two sons lived but a short distance from the
fort. They were attacked by the Indians and butchered within sight
of the fort. On Ile au Cochon (Belle Isle) lived an English settler
named James Fisher, who had been a sergeant in the army. He had
a wife and four children and he employed a man servant. Three soldiers from the fort were stopping at his house at the time. A band of
Indians landed on the island and butchered all the adults. The four
little children (children of Fisher) were either drowned in the river or
carried away into captivity. The Indians also killed twenty-four head
of cattle on the island. Unfortunately a boating expedition was absent
from the fort, employed in searching out the most available passage for
large boats from Lake St. Clair into the St. Clair River. With this
party was Sir Robert Davers, who had spent the winter at the fort and
was a boon companion with Captain Campbell. Sir Robert was accompanied by Captain Robertson and a crew of six men. The Indians met
them and the entire party were murdered on their way back to the fort.
The Indians then sent word to the fort by a Frenchman that all the
English people outside the fort had been killed, and that those inside
would meet the same fate unless they took to the two vessels and left
the fort with all its supplies to the Indians. Pontiac's mission to the
Ottawa village was to order all supplies carried to the new camp ground
east of the ravine of Parent's Creek, now known as Bloody Run, and
the squaws were to come over from the village, which was located on.the site of Walkerville, to prepare food for the fighting men. Returning to the camp Pontiac put on the war paint of his tribe, after which
he danced the grand war dance; chanted about the prowess of his warriors, and recounted the wrongs they had to revenge upon the English.
His example was imitated by the others; the circle of the dance widened,
and the chanting was interrupted by wild yells as the Indians worked
themselves into a frenzy of passion. In a short time the whole camp
180




was inflamed with a thirst for blood, and the echoing yells were wafted
down to the fort, giving notice that a war had begun. When morning
broke upon the settlement the sentinels discovered that the Indians had
moved up close to the fort where they could find shelter from the soldiers'
muskets behind the outer row of houses. War was declared, but strategy was not at an end.  A party of Wyandottes stopped at the fort on
their way to join Pontiac, and after being cheered with rum they went
away promising to do what they could to secure peace. A delegation
of chiefs from each tribe in the camp soon appeared before the fort,
accompanied by Frenchmen in order to assure the garrison that they
were on a peaceful mission. They were admitted to the commandant
and they told him that all the chiefs were assembled at the house of
trader Cuillerier, father of the black eyed belle of the settlement, and
that they desired to hold council with a delegation from the fort. They
asked that Captain Campbell and another officer be allowed to come to
the council, and assured Gladwin that a peace could probably be arranged. By this time the commandant had lost all faith in Indian integrity and he refused, but Campbell pleaded for the opportunity and
asked that Lieutenant McDougall might be his companion. Gladwin
gave reluctant permission.
Night was falling as the party left the fort. As they were passing
through the village they saw M. Guoin, who had reported the shortening of the gun barrels, which was the first intimation of trouble. He
begged the two officers to go back and abandon their hazardous undertaking, and told them that even if the chiefs were acting in good
faith it would be doubtful if they could control the frenzy of their followers. Campbell laughed at his fears and passed on toward the house
of Cuillerier. A hundred yards further on the peril of the situation
dawned upon them, for a number of warriors landed from their canoes
and ran upon them. The warning shouts of Pontiac and his swift rush
to their rescue, saved them from destruction. Arriving at the house
they found M. Cuillerier seated upon a table in the middle of the largest
room. Antoine Cuillerier had some peculiar traits of character; he
was noted as a vain, conceited man who believed that his mental
and physical gifts were of the finest quality. He habitually wore loud
and showy clothes and a profusion of trinkets and gold lace; his moccasins being of fantastic pattern and his sash elaborately decorated with
beads. He had a restless ambition to be considered a leader in the
affairs of the community, and posed as the friend of the Indian and a


181




hater of the English. The latter trait, however, was not publicly displayed for very good reasons. It is believed that he was but little
more than a tool of Pontiac in the machinations of that wily warrior.
His house was on the bank of Parent's Creek.
After Campbell and McDougall arrived, Pontiac announced that he
recognized Cuillerier as the father of the settlement, in place of M. Bellestre, until the latter should return. The Indians, he said, would not
tolerate the presence of the British in that territory, and the only way
in which to secure peace was for the garrison to agree to abandon the
fort, and without arms or baggage leave the country under escort.
This announcement appeared to please Cuillerier, who thereupon
shook hands with the British officers, saying: "This is my work; I
have made the best terms I could for you; I thought that Pontiac
would not be so easy."
The good faith of the French trader in this matter will naturally be
questioned. It is known that he had been a prominent man in the
French settlement and that he naturally longed for a return of the
French to power at Detroit. Ordinary patriotism would inspire such
sentiments. On the other hand he had been on excellent terms with
the British, and the theory set forth in the Elliott manuscript indicates
that his daughter was probably the person who revealed the conspiracy
to Gladwin. He must have known that the Indians were on the war
path, at which time honor and integrity are laid aside by them and
pledges of safe conduct to surrendered prisoners are not regarded. To
accept the terms offered to the garrison, and for the latter to leave Detroit unarmed, would have invited a wholesale massacre.
Captain Campbell addressed the council, recalling the good will which
he had always shown toward the Indians. He counseled peace and
friendly relations as conducing to trade and the mutual benefit of the
Indians and the British. But he told them he was not the chief and
therefore Major Gladwin must answer. He would bear the message
of Pontiac to the fort and bring back the answer.
No sign of approval followed his remarks and Captain Campbell and
his companion arose to return to the fort. Pontiac stopped them with
the remark: "My father will sleep to-night in the lodges of his red
children."  The two British officers then realized that they were
prisoners. They were conducted to the house of M. Meloche, another
French settler, and placed under guard. It is suggested that Gladwin
at this time was holding several Potawatomies in custody, and the


182




Indians spared the lives of the two envoys because they feared retaliation at the fort.
Pontiac's dictum was conveyed to Gladwin next day by a delegation
of Frenchmen, who urged him to accept, but the young commandant
was not to be intimidated, and he told the envoys that he would hold
the fort at all hazards. He wrote a message to General Amherst, informing him of the situation and asking that the necessary supplies be
forwarded in order that the siege might be sustained. This was borne
down the river by the schooner Gladwin. Five canoes filled with
armed Indians put off to board the schooner, and Captain Campbell
was placed in the bow of the foremost canoe to screen the savages, but
he bravely shouted to those on board: "Pay no attention to me; do
your duty." A shot from one of the crew killed a Potawatomie in the
foremost canoe and they then turned back. When they reached the
shore Cuillerier, it is said, jeered at them for their faint-hearted retreat. From that time the fort was fully besieged.
Reports of the capture of the forts at Sandusky and St. Joseph and
at the Miami settlement on the Maumee River came to Detroit and naturally tended to dishearten the garrison. On the morning of May 29
ten bateaux were seen coming up the river, and the soldiers rejoiced at
the arrival of supplies and reinforcements.  When the boats came
nearer the fort, however, the besieged British saw that their hopes were
vain, for the bateaux were in the hands of the Indians. Lieutenant
Cuyler, who had set out from Niagara in charge of the relief expedition, had been surprised by a night attack as they were encamped near
Pelee Island in Lake Erie. They had landed on the previous night
about ten o'clock, the men having been kept at the paddles until long
after dark in order that the Indians might not discover their landing
place for the night. Two of the men began to collect dead limbs for a
fire, while the others prepared a place for hanging their camp kettle.
The men in the woods roused a party of Indians, who were following
the canoe expedition on shore, and one of the foragers was killed and
scalped. The other ran into camp and in the midst of the confusion
that followed several were shot down. Lieutenant Cuyler rallied thirty
men about him and held the savages off; some of the others ran to the
bateaux, but there were but two or three men to a boat, and they were
captured before they could get into deep water. Cuyler and his followers escaped in the darkness, but the- men who fled to the boats were
forced to assist in paddling them to Detroit. As the bateaux arrived


183




just below the fort two soldiers, who were rowing the foremost boat,
resolved to make their escape or die in the attempt. They made a
movement as if to change places in the boat, and each seized his Indian
guard. One of them threw his man into the river; the other rolled into the water in a death grapple with the Indian. The boats were close
to the shore and in shoal water. As the soldier and the Indian struggled to their feet the more active Indian drove his tomahawk into his
adversary's brain, but the other soldier brought down his paddle with
all his might upon the surviving Indian's head, fracturing his skull,
and although lie was able to stagger to the shore, he died half an hour
later. The two soldiers in the second boat attacked their guards with
their paddles and drove them into the river. The three desperate men
landed the two boats under the fire of more than sixty Indians, and thus
saved several barrels of pork and other provisions for the hungry garrison. The other eight bateaux were landed at the Indian camp above,
and the captors all got drunk on the rum they found in the stores.
They killed and scalped the soldiers who had not escaped, and sent
their dead bodies, tied to logs, floating past the fort to intimidate the
garrison. Ten days later came Father La Jaunay from Mackinac Island to tell of the slaughter of that garrison.
Six weeks rolled by and the provisions of the savages were about exhausted, so Pontiac set about obtaining a new supply. The contents
of eight bateaux, and twenty-four cattle killed on Ile an Cochon,
indicated great consuming powers on the part of the Indians. The
French residents across the river from the fort had fertile farms and a
few cattle, so Pontiac attended mass on the morning of June 26, in the
French chapel of the Huron mission. There were no carriages in the
settlement, but some of the wealthy farmers had rigged easy chairs
with side bars, and seated in these were carried to church in state on
the shoulders of their Pawnee slaves. Pontiac and two of his associate chiefs seized three of these rude sedan chairs, which were standing at the church door, and they were carried about the settlement to
purchase cattle and corn. In imitation of the commandants at the
fort, he gave his note to signify his indebtedness. These promissory
notes were pieces of bi ch bark on which was cut or scratched the
outline of a coon, the chosen totem of Pontiac representing his signature. He afterward redeemed these pledges in honorable fashion.
With fresh provisions his warriors were encouraged to continue the
siege, and hoping to hasten the capitulation of the fort, Pontiac sent
184




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^U!,  w z








word to Gladwin that a force of nine hundred warriors was on its way
from Mackinac. When they arrived, he said, he feared he would no
longer be able to control his forces, and he would not be answerable
for the consequences.
In the mean time the houses and barns nearest to the fort had been
fired by red hot shot, and by sallying parties sent out for the purpose,
so that the Indians no longer had shelter for a near approach. The
success of the campaign depended on supplies being delivered to the
garrison. Gladwvin answered that he could make no terms with Pontiac
until Captain Campbell and Lieutenant McDougall had been returned
in safety, according to his pledge. Incensed at the determined attitude of the commandant, Pontiac replied that the kettles were heating
to boil the inmates of the fort, and if the two hostages were returned
they would only share the fate reserved for the others. Four days
later, when the hope of the British had almost departed, the schooner
Gladwin sailed up the river with a load of provisions and a force of
fifty soldiers to protect her. The ammunition, which had been almost
exhausted in keeping the savages at a respectful distance, and which
alone prevented the latter from firing the buildings within the fort,
was now replenished. As the Indians returned victorious from the
other captured forts Pontiac was deeply mortified to find that he, the
leader of the great campaign, was the only one who had failed to accomplish his purpose. He had one more plan in his busy brain, and
that was to force the neutral French to take up arms and unite with
thy savages. He argued that the war was for the purpose of restoring the French to power, and in the expectation of success a secret
messenger had been dispatched to the Mississippi valley to bring on a
French commandant named Neyons, from St. Louis, Illinois, to take
charge of the fort at Detroit after it should be taken. The pressure
was strong on the French at Detroit and they knew not which way to
turn, when a copy of the definitive treaty between France and England
arrived at the settlement. This announced that the French king had
abandoned the settlements in the North, and that he acknowledged the
sovereignty of the British crown over the territory. When Gladwin
assembled the French on July 4, 1763, and read the treaty, James Stirling, who afterward married the pretty daughter of Cuillerier, tookl
service under the commandant, and forty others (mostly French) followed his example. Once more the spirits of the garrison arose and a
bold sortie was made to the house of M. Baby, where a quantity of am185
24




munition had been concealed to keep it out of the hands of the Indians.
It was a bold dash, but it was rendered less heroic by an act of barbarism. As the soldiers charged for the house a number of Indians fired
upon them without effect, but in the return volley a young Chippewa
warrior, son of a chief, was killed. Lieutenant Hays then scalped him
at the door of the house, and shook the gory trophy toward the Indian
camp. That barbarous act cost the life of Captain Campbell, who
might otherwise have survived the siege. Lieutenant McDougall and
a trader from Albany named Van Epps, who had been captured on the
river, made their escape, and got safely into the fort. Captain Campbell refused to accompany them, because he was an elderly man and
not fleet of foot, and in waiting for him the other two might sacrifice
their lives. When the Chippewa chief heard of the scalping of his son
he was crazed with passion, and rushing into the lodge where Captain
Campbell was kept, he dragged him out, struck him down with his
tomahawk, and scalped him. Then he cut his heart out and ate it
and afterward cut off his head. The body was finally cut in small
pieces and was boiled and eaten like those of the first victims of the
siege.
This is the report commonly accepted by historians, but according to
the reports submitted by Gladwin to Sir Jeffrey Amherst the captain
was killed under different circumstances, as follows: The Indians had
erected a rude breastwork of small logs near the fort on the night of
July 3, from which they could harass the sentries and the British sharpshooters. Soon after it was discovered a sortie was made from The
fort by a company of soldiers and the breastwork was destroyed. A
party of twenty Indians attempted to defend the work, one of whom
was shot dead and two were wounded, "which our people scalped and
cut to pieces," Major Gladwin states in his report. Half an hour
afterward the dead were brought into the house where Captain Campbell was confined. Then the savages stripped the captain and killed
him with shocking barbarity.
The Gladwin and the sloop Beaver were lying in front of the fort on
the night of July 10, threatening with their cannon any war party
which might attempt to reach the fort. To get rid of them the Indians, under Pontiac's direction, made huge rafts of logs and piled
upon them masses of bark and brush saturated with pitch. When
these had been lighted they were floated down to the two boats and
threatened their destruction. But the fire rafts were met by boats and


186




pushed to one side, and a shifting of cables allowed the vessels to
sheer out of harm's way.
It would seem that all the warnings of the past would have led the
soldiery to continue their policy of waiting until the Indians would
become discouraged and abandon the siege. So long as the garrison
could be provisioned and supplied with ammunition it was evident that
the fort was safe. But the desire to make a record for heroism often
leads to sacrifice of life, and the siege of Pontiac was not to pass
without its slaughter. Captain Dalzell arrived from Niagara with a
force of 260 men, on July 29, and General Amherst had given him
orders to put an end to the siege. The boats of the flotilla made a fine
show on the river as they came on that sunny morning with their
regularly dipping oars, and those who were not rowing awoke the
echoes with volleys of musketry. Dalzell was anxious to go out and
give the Indians battle, but Gladwin advised him to give up that idea,
as the Indians were very numerous, and the chances were that an
attacking party would be flanked and ambushed with disastrous results. Dalzell, however, was hot headed and impatient, and said that
if he was not allowed to go out and accomplish something, after bringing his regiment two hundred miles, he might as well return at once.
Gladwin gave reluctant consent, but warned Dalzell to proceed with
great caution, and have his skirmish line well advanced to discover any
attempt at an ambush. It is supposed that some of the French warned
Pontiac of the intended sortie, for that able warrior prepared to
destroy the attacking party.
Just before daybreak on July 31, Dalzell marched quietly out of the
fort at the head of 250 men; they took their way along the ridge about
on a line with Jefferson avenue. The morning birds were beginning
their songs as they came to the small ravine of Parent's Creek, about a
mile and a half east of the fort. This stream, which had its source
three miles to the northward, had in the lapse of ages furrowed out a
little gorge, the last remnant of which is still preserved within the limits
of Elmwood Cemetery. All the rest has been filled up and obliterated
by the march of public improvements. A rude bridge crossed the creek
near where the Michigan Stove Works now stands on Jefferson avenue.
Day had not yet broken when the skirmishers, numbering twenty-five
men, walked across the bridge. Not a sound broke the silence of the
forest except the measured tread of the soldiers and the clank of their
accoutrements. Suddenly the side of the ravine was a blaze of fire and


187




a storm of bullets swept the bridge. Half the skirmishers fell where
they stood, and most of the others were wounded. Dalzell was brave
and he charged across the bridge with the main body of his men in
close order, offering a fine target for his unseen foes. The bridge was
left covered with dead bodies. Wherever he saw flashes of fire and
heard the sound of musketry Dalzell charged with the idea of driving
out the Indians and cutting them down, but he never came to close
quarters, and presently as day broke, he found himself surrounded by
a multitude of savages  His only hope of escape was to cut his way
back to the bridge and this he did, his soldiers falling all around him.
He retreated toward the fort, but every woodpile, farmhouse and outbuilding was an ambush. As they ran past an excavation for a cellar
it belched fire, and a number of men fell to be butchered and-scalped
by the pursuing host. When the soldiers grew panic stricken Dalzell
brought them to their senses by beating them with the flat of his sword.
Major Rogers, who had received the surrender of Detroit, saw a house
on the way to the fort belching fire and showering bullets from every
window. At the head of his bold rangers he burst the doors and the
Indians leaped out of the windows taking to the trees aud continuing
their fire. Captain Gray fell riddled with bullets.  Dalzell, fatally
wounded, tried to help a wounded sergeant toward the fort, but both
went down under the ceaseless fire. A painted savage ran up to the
bleeding body of Captain Gray and cut his heart out. But for the coolness of Major Rogers, who succeeded to the command, not a man
would have lived to reach the fort. When escape was cut off he took
refuge with the remnant of his followers in the Jacques Campau house,
which was of unusual strength, and managed to keep the enemy at a
distance until word could be sent to the fort. The boats, armed with
swivel guns, put off from the fort, and under protection of their fire,
Rogers made his way back with ninety men. This was all that was
left of the 250 who went out under Dalzell. It is said that less than a
score of Indians were killed during the fight.
The river and ravine were then christened Bloody Run, and until the
summer of 1893 a scarred and bullet pierced tree was preserved on the
ground by an iron railing, the last silent witness of the slaughter.
That summer it was cut down, and now no living thing remains which
existed at the time of that battle.
Pontiac was quick to see that his only hope of subduing the fort was
to cut off communication with the outside world, and this he deter188




mined to accomplish. The schooner Gladwin was becalmed off Fighting
Island on the evening of September 4, as she was on her way up the
river. She was compelled to anchor, and the crew of twelve men had
to risk their lives in an exposed position where the savages might
attack in force under cover of darkness.. In the dead of the night a
fleet of canoes was discovered almost upon the vessel, and there was
but time for one exchange of shots before a large force of savages
boarded the vessel. Commander Horst had fallen at the first fire.
Nothing but death by torture confronted the seven survivors, and this
they immediately realized. " Fire the magazine! " shouted Mate Jacobs. His order was understood by the Indians, and they precipitated
themselves into the river. The rest of the night was passed without
molestation, and the Gladwin made her way to the fort next morning.
This failure dampened the ardor of the Indians, but the last act which
would bring about peace was about to take place. General Amherst
was of the opinion that the French had a sinister influence upon the
Indians, and that they were at the bottom of the Pontiac trouble. He
wrote a vigorous letter to M. Neyons, commandant of the French in
the Illinois region, and to prevent serious complications with the English government, Neyons wrote to Detroit warning the settlers and Indians that peace had been declared between the English and the French,
and that the two kings desired no further warfare. The shedding of
blood and all evil counsels must stop, he said, because under the peace
regulations the Indians could not attack one nationality without offending the other. This was read to the French citizens of Detroit, who
promptly acknowledged the right of the English to possession.
Pontiac abandoned hope October 12, and sued for peace, but Major
Gladwin merely agreed to a truce until orders could be received from
General Amherst. There was no profit to be gained by the British in
prosecuting the war. The Indians were hard to strike owing to their
superior knowledge of the country, and their destruction would ruin
the peltry trade and stop the consumption of large quantities of goods
that were sold to the outposts. Gladwin was bitter against the French,
who in his judgment were far from blameless. In regard to the In
dians he wrote his superior: "They have lost between eighty and
ninety of their warriors, but if your'excellency still intends to punish
them for their barbarities it may be easier done, without any expense
to the crown, by permitting a free sale of rum, which will destroy more
effectually than fire and sword. But, on the contrary, if you intend to


189




accommodate matters in the spring, which I hope you will for the
above reasons, it may be necessary to send up Sir William   Johnson."
The letter is a tribute to the wisdom of Sir William as being the man
best adapted for handling the Indians. After more than five months
of confinement and constant danger, after weeks of short rations, with
starvation apparently near at hand, the beleaguered garrison marched
out upon the green sward of the outer village with glad hearts. The
siege had lasted 153 days.
CHAPTER XXIV.
Detroit was Saved by Pretty Angelique Cuillerier Beaubien '-The Belle of the
French Settlement Learns of Pontiac's Treachery-She Tells Her Lover, James
Sterling, and Sterling Informs Gladwin-1763.
Historians who have written the story of Pontiac's conspiracy have
accepted as a plausible theory a time-honored tradition which has no
foundation in fact. The Ojibway maiden Catherine is unquestionably
a myth. Recent discoveries show beyond doubt that the information
came from Angelique Cuillerier, and that her lover, James Sterling,
who later became her husband, was the actual informant.
In the Canadian archives, Series B, Vol. 70, page 214, is a letter
from Major Henry Bassett, British commandant at Detroit in 1773, to
Sir Frederick Haldimand, governor-general of Canada. After reporting to his chief various matters concerning the several tribes of Indians
who lived about Detroit, Major Bassett says:
"I have received an account from the Wabash Indians, that near the Ohio some
Indians fell in with four English traders who had fifteen horses loaded with goods,
and that they have scalped the traders and taken the horses and goods. This is not
confirmed, although the Hurons have mentioned it to me, and they are seldom out.
I don't think the Indians are at present much to be trusted. They seem very restless, as you will perceive by the inclosed report, which I received from the Indians
in council ready wrote in French, and translated by Mr. James Sterling for me. I
believe some French traders amongst them help to stir them up.
" For want of a civil officer here the commanding officer is very much employed
with the disputes which must naturally happen between the inhabitants. I am so
uncomfortable as not to speak French, or understand it sufficiently without an interpreter. Hitherto I have been under obligations to Mr. Sterling, merchant, who has
been ready on all occasions to attend, and has wrote and answered all my French


190




letters without any gratuity. A French interpreter where the inhabitants amount to
near 1,300 souls, I should conceive, with submission to your excellency, government
would not object to; more particularly as I am informed one is paid at the Illinois
settlements. Should your excellency allow me one here, I beg leave to recommend
Mr. James Sterling, who is the first merchant at this place, and a gentleman of good
character during the late Indian war. Through a lady whom he then courted,
from whom he had the best information, he was in ipart a means to save this garrison. This gentleman is now married to that lady and is connected with the best
part of this settlement; has more to say with them than any one else here. The Indians can't well begin hostilities without his having information of their designs. If
your excellency disproves of adding third interpreter, mine for the Hurons is a
drunken, idle fellow scarcely worth the keeping except out of charity. If your excellency will appoint Mr. Sterling both French and Huron interpreter, he'll oblige
himself to find a proper person for that nation.
" Mr. Sterling tells me he has the honor to be known to your excellency as commissary of provisions in the year 1759 at Oswego, and at Fort Augustus in 1760.
At his earnest request I have taken the liberty to inclose to your excellency a
memorial from him. I have the honor to be with very great respect,
"Your Excellency's very obedient and humble servant,
"H. BASSETT, Major of the 10th Reg't."
In this and foregoing correspondence is a picture of a very zealous,
and also a very nervous officer. He is in command of a limited force
of men in a region which is several hundred miles from military sup
port. The nearest relief, in case of an unexpected attack, is Niagara,
two hundred miles away, where there is but a mere handful of soldiers.
About him are several tribes of Indians, who can muster 1,500 warriors, and they are constantly reminding him that they prefer the
French to the English rule. They come to Detroit and hold excited
councils with the French, at which the British are denounced as intruders and interlopers. The only means of keeping in touch with
them and watching their movements is by the courtesy of the versatile
Scotch merchant, James Sterling, who takes notes of their utterances
and those of the French traders, and translates them to the commanddant in the privacy of his quarters. Sterling saved the garrison by revealing Pontiac's plot in May, 1763, and he got his information through
Mlle. Cuillerier, his sweetheart.  The missing link in the chain of evidence is the manner in which Mlle. Angelique Cuillerier obtained the
information. In the foregoing pages it has been shown that Antoine
Cuillerier, her father, was in more than suspicious intimacy with Pontiac, At the conference in the Cuillerier cabin old Antoine was the
central figure. Seated in a chair which had been placed on the family
table, and wearing a tall hat rigged out fantastically in gold braid and


191




gay ribbons, he was recognized by Pontiac as the head of the white
colony. When Pontiac told the English officers that all the English
mnust depart from Detroit, Cuillerier urged the acceptance of Pontiac's
pledge of safe conduct, saying it was the best terms he had been able
to obtain for the British. The inference is that Cuillerier had previously been plotting with the Indians for the removal of the British,
peaceably if possible, but to get rid of them and restore French rule in
Detroit at any cost. It is easily possible that the fair daughter, Angelique, would be prompted by a woman's curiosity during these secret
meetings, and, while Pontiac and her father were plotting in the great
living room down stairs, she was probably listening with attentive ear
at the opening in the loft, where the younger members of the household usually slept. The plots were of such a nature that she would
naturally be touched with a woman's tender sympathy for the doomed.
Further than this, Sterling, her lover, was a Briton born. His sympathies would naturally be with his countrymen rather than with the
French and Indians, a condition which would undoubtedly influence his
sweetheart.
Nine years after Pontiac's failure, Jacques Campau, whose house
gave shelter to the soldiers retreating from Bloody Run, sent a memorial to the king of England asking for a grant of land of twelve arpents
frontage on the river, nearly opposite the foot of Belle Isle. He stated
that 250 soldiers had found refuge in his house during the day of Dalzell's disastrous battle, but instead of being grateful for the shelter afforded them for several hours, and refreshments given by the owner,
they robbed his house of $300 worth of its furnishings. For this they
had been court martialed by Gladwin, but the loser was not reimbursed.
Campau accepted a captain's commission under Gladwin and went to
Mackinaw with 120 men. He succeeded in pacifying two tribes of
hostile Indians, and spent ten weeks there cutting wood and preparing
the post for the winter, but he never received a cent of pay and all his
appeals to the commandant were unsuccessful.
Pontiac abandoned all hope of driving the British out of the West,
but he was regarded as a dangerous character by the settlers in case of
trouble between England and France. In such a case he no doubt
would have renewed hostilities in behalf of the French. So distasteful
was the presence of the English to him that he first retired to the Maumnee valley, and later made his way west to the French settlements of
the Mississippi valley. He did not die in battle as his martial spirit


1 9132




WILLIAM H. TEFFT.








would have chosen. He went to visit a French friend at St. Louis, Mo.,
then in the possession of the French, where he adopted the dress of a
French military officer. One day an English trader named Wilkinson,
who had a grudge against the chief, offered an Illinois Indian a barrel
of rum if he would waylay and kill Pontiac. The mercenary followed
his victim into the woods and shot him dead, and thus earned his reward, but the vengeance of Pontiac's followers afterward resulted in
the destruction of the tribe of the Illinois. Pontiac was buried somewhere within the present limits of St. Louis with military honors, but
no stone marks the spot and it will probably never be discovered.
Not a man in the garrison at Detroit cared to remain longer amid the
scenes of their past sufferings, and the report that Major Wilkins was
on his way from Niagara with a flotilla of canoes, containing a large
force of men, was received with joy. They did not arrive as expected,
and fears were entertained fortheir safety. These fears were confirmed
about November 12, when two friendly Indians arrived, bearing a dispatch from Major Wilkins, stating that his fleet had met disaster in a
sudden storm on Lake Erie and that seventy of his men had been lost.
Their stores and ammunition had been sacrificed to keep the boats
afloat, and the party had been compelled to put back to Niagara. It
was not until August, 1764, that Colonel Bradstreet came from the east
with a body of soldiers, and relieved Gladwin of the post which he had
grown to dislike. Major Gladwin, although not lacking in bravery,
wanted no more of life in the wilderness. He went to England, after
resigning his commission, and spent the rest of his days with his wife
and children.
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25




CHAPTER XXV.


The British Home Government Neglects the Colonies and Detroit Languishes as
Settlement-The Selfish Policy of the British Tradesmen Was the Cause of Most of
the Colonial Troubles-1763-1773.
Detroit, notwithstanding the restriction on trade, grew rapidly in
population and prosperity during the ten years that succeeded the Pontiac war. Under British rule it became an emporium of a vast trade
in furs, and the wealth that gave leisure for cultivation soon brought
its best society to a condition of refinement which rivaled that of the
seaboard cities. The rough Indian trader was there, scarcely more refined than the untutored savage, but mingling with him was the cultured British officer and the aristocratic French resident, who had become rich by trade and the growth in value of his landed possessions.
The extent of the trade in furs, considering that the peltries were carried over the lakes eastward altogether in birch bark canoes, was a
thing that strikes with astonishment. When the English took possession in 1760, they found in storage furs to the value of half a million
dollars. Soon the trade increased so that as many as two hundred
thousand beaver skins were shipped in a single year. Crowds of Indians in their brightly painted bark canoes were constantly coming and
going upon the river, bringing the peltries of the deer, the otter and
the beaver, and carrying away the numerous articles of civilized production which they received in exchange, for most of the Indian trade
was still barter. Often these gaudy crafts completely lined the river
bank, and the vicinity of the fort became the mart of a thriving commerce. The canoes were both shop and dwelling house for the aborigines. In them, turned bottom up, and slightly canted to one side
to allow of an easy entrance, whole families lived by day and lodged
by night. These consisted of the copper-colored brave and his dusky
mate, with the small papoose strapped to a board at her back, and an
indefinite number of " little Injun " boys and girls, rolling on the sand,
with only a raiment of bear's grease to protect them from the swarm of
insects that infested the quarters.  Here the head of the house dis

194




played his wares-peltries, baskets, brooms, mococks of sugar and
moccasins-and exhibited a keenness in bargaining fully equal to that
of his more civilized white brother. Lovers of the picturesque no
doubt enjoyed the traffic, if not over fastidious in the matter of dirt.
John Bradstreet, the new commandant, was a man of little principle,
and he made a practice of beguiling the Indians into treaties which
they did not well understand, and into giving grants of land which
were fraudulently obtained. These were the cause of much trouble in
later years.
As soon as the treaty of Paris was ratified, steps were taken to establish some form of local government in the territory acquired by the
treaty. This was done at the urgent appeal of the settlers, who were
tired of military rule. A portion of the country, later known as Lower
Canada, was placed under the jurisdiction of a governor and council, to
whom was delegated power to establish courts in conformity with the
the English law, and appeals were to be made to the privy council.
Western Canada, including the present province of Ontario, had not
been ceded by the Indians, and purchases of land from the Indians were
forbidden except by treaty through the government.  Detroit was
therefore left without courts of law, and for twelve years after the date
of the treaty it was like the French regime, and had no system of government other than the military rule of the commandant and his
appointees. Detroit was annexed to the province of Quebec in April,
1775. One of the first acts under the administration of Bradstreet was
a deal with the Indians by which they ceded to the white settlers a
strip of land beginning a short distance west of the fort and continuing
along the river as far as Lake St. Clair. Then followed a long
conflict of schemes for private interest which retarded the growth of
the colony. Commandants, officers and traders seem to have been
ruled by mercenary motives, and the merchants and manufacturers in
England were as selfish as the others. Fur traders bitterly opposed
the settling of the country, because the establishing of farmers
throughout the territory would lead to an extermination of the furbearing animals, and their very profitable calling would be affected.
Their opposition was backed by the tradesmen of England, who argued
that the development of the country would eventually lead to local
manufactures and their market would thus be in danger of destruction.
All the arguments of the more intelligent leaders could not convince
the tradesmen that the development of the western world would en

195




large instead of restrict their trade. This war of selfish interests continued all over the British colonies until the American Revolution
broke out, and was, in fact, the great cause of precipitating it. The
tradesmen appeared to control, for the power to grant lands for farming purposes was taken away from the local commandant and vested in
the governor at Montreal, and private purchases from Indians were
made illegal. The most the commandant could do was to recommend
certain grants.
In 1765, soon after the British were well established at Detroit, the
the first money began to circulate, and it was known as New York currency. With the advent of money, the payment of taxes in peltries
and other local produce was gradually discontinued. For two years
after the treaty had been completed the British practically abandoned
Mackinaw, and the place was occupied by a village of Chippewas.
Major Robert Rogers was sent to the command of Mackinac in 1765,
and he immediately began to scheme for his own advancement. He
was soon detected in dealing with the Indians for private grants of
lands, by making lavish presents and promising many things which he
did not perform. The true purport of his scheme was never fully ascertained. He may have learned that there were rich deposits of copper in the region of the upper peninsula, and have planned to secure a
title to them in defiance of the crown. He was suspected of acting as
an agent of either the French or the Spanish government, for the purpose of obtaining possession of the Northwest, but the latter suspicion does not appear to be well founded. Both these governments
must have known that such a scheme would stir the British to war
against them, and each had been exhausted with wars in Europe. The
most probable case is that Rogers was planning to establish himself as
a feudal lord among the Indians of the North. He was arrested and
taken to Montreal, where he was tried by court-martial on a charge of
treason, but the charge could not be sustained and Rogers was discharged. The chief evidence against him was an intercepted letter
written by Colonel Hopkins, a British officer, who had taken service
with the French, which urged Rogers to get the good-will of the Indians, and to use his influence toward securing the independence of the
colonies.  Hopkins was in the French service because of real or
fancied wrongs he had sustained at the hands of his own government,
and this early propagator of revolution was no doubt seeking a personal revenge against the government under which he had been born.


196




France had ceded her possessions on the upper Mississippi and all of
Louisiana to Spain, and it was merely surmised that Rogers might be
acting for one of these powers.
As the commandants at Detroit had many duties and responsibilities,
and as there was much litigation in petty civil cases among the settlers,
it became necessary to deputize some person with authority to hear and
adjust such cases. Capt. George Turnbull, commandant, in 1767, issued a warrant to a merchant named Philip Dejean, who had been a
bankrupt in Montreal, authorizing him to take evidence under oath and
to hold tribunals of arbitration for the settlement of disputes. Dejean
was also authorized to draw all legal instruments and to conduct public sales. The office combined the duties of a justice of the peace, notary and sheriff, and Dejean was known as the chief justice of Detroit.
This authority was issued April 24, 1767, and it was renewed by Major
Robert Bayard when he succeeded to the command on July 28, of the
same year. Persons locked up for 'either debt or misdemeanor were
required to pay one dollar on being liberated. A tariff regulation was
instituted about the same time. Non-residents who brought boatloads
of merchandise to Detroit were assessed an entrance fee of two dollars
for each boat. The mild rule of the French regime had given way to
a system of petty despotism, and this continued until the banner of
England was replaced at Detroit by the stars and stripes The governorgeneral of Canada was supposed to be in control, but most of the authority was deputized to the resident commandants, and the rule of the
latter was almost absolute. In the summer of 1771 Michael Due, a
resident of Detroit, murdered a voyageur named Tobias Isenhart, presumably for his money. Due was examined before Justice Dejean,
sent to Quebec for trial, and was subseqently hanged at Montreal.
The presence of copper in northern Michigan and in the islands of
Lake Superior was known to the French at a very early day, but several circumstances caused these mineral deposits to be neglected. The
Jesuit fathers were more interested in saving souls than in making
fortunes for adventurers, and the fur traders could carry on their business with a small capital and make rich profits, while a heavy investment of capital was needed to develop a mine and erect the necessary smelting works. There was one trader, however, of a different
opinion, the same Alexander Henry who so narrowly escaped destruction at the time of the massacre at Mackinaw. He made an extended
exploration along the eastern shore of Lake Superior in 1770; even
197




putting off from the main land to Michipicoten and the more remote
Caribou Island. Private Norburg of the Royal American Regiment,
and several other adventurous spirits accompanied him, and Norburg
made the first discovery of silver ore. While on this trip he picked up
a small boulder, rich in silver, weighing about eight pounds, which was
sent to England for assay. On his return Henry told of a mass of
rock copper which he had discovered on the surface of the earth and
from which he had chopped a mass weighing about one hundred
pounds. In 1773 he induced Sir William Johnson, the Indian agent,
to unite with him for the development of a mine near Ontonagon
River, but from the difficulty of raising the ore without expensive
machinery, and the lack of a smelting plant, the enterprise was soon
abandoned. The duke of Gloucester, Sir Samuel Tutchet, and several
other capitalists were interested, but after experiments they found that
profits could not be realized. At this time, 1770, the Hudson Bay
Company, which had received its charter from Charles II in 1669, after
conducting a profitable and almost exclusive fur trade for more than a
century, found a rival in the field known as the Northwest Company.
Individual traders also engaged in the fur trade, and for a long time
there was much lawlessness among the coureurs of the rival companies.
These coureurs stopped at no device to induce the Indian to trade with
their respective employers, or to injure that of their competitors.
Serious troubles were threatened, but they were averted by Lord Selkirk, who, by a clever bit of financiering, united the interests of the
two companies, and thereafter the consolidated Hudson Bay Company,
being in complete control, managed to keep settlers out of the fur
country for many years.
In the winter of 1773 a trader named McDowell, from Pittsburg,
who was stopping in a house near the fort, refused to sell rum to an
Indian. The Indian went outside of the house, and, poking his gun
through the window, shot McDowell dead as he sat before the fire.
This caused Major Bassett to write to Governor William Tryon, protesting against the introduction of rum from Albany and Canada.
" Trading will never be safe while it continues, " said he; " the leading
chiefs complain that the English are killing all their young men with
spirits. They purchase poison instead of blankets and the necessaries
of life. They say they lose more young men by rum than they lose by
war. It is not in the power of the commandant at this post to prevent,
for the traders land it down the river, and have a thousand tricks to


198




deceive the commandant and cheat the poor savages. The traders are
generally the outcasts of all nations and the refuse of mankind. The
commandant at Detroit has no power to punish them, but they should
be made subject to him while at this post. They trade on the river
bank, within three miles of the post, and cheat the Indians outrageously. They lodge in French houses while so doing, and conceal their
peltry there until they can slip it into the fort unobserved. This practice cannot be prevented until the commandant has authority to lock
these fellows up and send them back to New York or to Canada."
Even Major Bassett had his enemies among the settlers. In 1773 a
strip of land, known as the King's Domain, covered twelve acres in
front of the fort and thirty acres back. The king's garden was located
in this tract on the east side of the fort. Major Bassett built a fence
around a small piece of ground back of the king's garden, making a
pasture for his horse, and the residents immediately made loud complaints that he was taking a part of the common. He wrote to Quebec
for authority to inclose all of the king's domain of forty-two acres,
which was then used as a cow and sheep pasture by the residents, saying that it would be valuable ground in a few years; but the residents
immediately trumped up charges that he was trying to secure the land
for his private use. It would seem that there was a lack of skilled artisans even at this period, for the letter states that there are but three
" joyners " among the soldiers, and " they are the worst the commandant
ever saw; a carpenter cannot be had for a dollar a day and his keep."
In 1774 John Logan, the celebrated Cayuga chief, came to Detroit.
Early in that year several members of his family had been killed by
traders at his home on the Muskingum, in the southeast portion of Ohio.
He had previously been friendly to the settlers, but after this terrible
bereavement he took the warpath and killed many of the whites. This
gave rise to what is known as Lord Dunmore's war, which began and
terminated in 1774. At the decisive battle of Point Pleasant the Indians were defeated and they all sued for peace except Logan, who
came to Detroit. He was requested to come to Chillicothe, where a
treaty was to be made, but he refused, and then, it is said, delivered
the speech which ever school boy knows. To drown his trouble he
took to drink and in a short time became a drunkard. One day, in
1.780, while drunk, he felled his wife, and, supposing he had killed her,
fled from Detroit and was making his way to Sandusky, when he was
overtaken near the shore of Lake Erie by a party of friendly Indians.


199




Supposing that they were avengers on his trail he shot at them, and
was killed by his relative, Tod-hah-dohs, in self defense.
In 1774 a law known as the Quebec act was passed by the English
parliament for the government of all the British colonies west of New
York, north of the Ohio River and east of the Mississippi. It was an
act which established a r6gime something between a feudal system and
a despotism. It was evidently the intention to deprive the settlers of
the benefits of the English law, so that life in the West would be distasteful to colonists and prevent them from filling up the country. In
substance, the act placed the settlers under the old French law of the
province, so far as civil matters were concerned, and under the English law in criminal cases. No man in parliament nor in the colonies
knew what the French colonial law had been, because no special code
had ever been enacted for the colonies; and the commandants and governors had been the law and the supreme court. This law was one of
the British offenses against the American colonists which led to the
Revolution. Allusion is made to it in the Declaration of Independence, which declares that the crown had abolished "the free system of
English laws in a neighboring province, establishing therein an arbitrary government so as to render it an example and a fit instrument for
introducing the same absolute rule into these colonies." In spite of the
efforts of Chatham and Camden, who were ever the friends of liberty
and justice, the English parliament passed this obnoxious act. Some
of the leaders admitted its true purpose, holding that the colonists had
few rights which the government was bound to respect, and that the
French settlers had none. All of the oppression of the crown did not
suffice to keep settlers out of the West, and three years after the
Pontiac war there was a string of settlers' cabins, nearly all French,
extending for twenty miles along Detroit River and Lake St. Clair, and
the sites of these early settlements may be located at the present day
by the groups of ancient French pear trees which are to be found at
various points between Grosse Isle and Mt. Clemens. The log cabins
have disappeared, but some of the pear trees which once grew about
their doors still bear fruit for the benefit of the present generation.


200






EDWIN S. BARBOUR.








CHAPTER XXVI.


Obstructive Legislation and Excessive Taxation Breed Discontent-New England Settlers Rise in Rebellion-Detroit Under Lieut.-Gov. Henry Hamilton Becomes a Fire in the Rear-The "Great Hairbuyer" and His Corrupt Rule-1773 -1775.
In anticipation of trouble with the colonists of the East, the fort at
Detroit was strengthened in 1775 and afterward kept in good repair.
Even before the war of the Revolution the borders of Ohio and
Pennsylvania were filled with an admixture of adventurous pioneers
and bold desperadoes. The former attempted to found settlements and
till the soil; the latter preyed upon the Indians, hunting them like
wild beasts and robbing their villages. They were as cruel as the savages and usually scalped their victims. Then the Indians would retaliate by murdering the settlers and the latter were in constant peril.
It frequently became necessary for the settlers to organize small war
parties, sally forth and drive the Indians back in order to secure peace
while they planted and harvested their crops. Forays were constantly
made across the Ohio River into Kentucky, where the Virginians were
extending their settlements, while the Pennsylvanians extended their
colonies westward from Fort Pitt or Pittsburg. Matters became so bad
that Lord Dunmore, governor of Virginia, raised a small army and
placed it in charge of General Lewis at Fort Pitt, from which point he
made campaigns against the Indians of the Ohio valley. As soon as
the Revolution was on in the East, the British began to stir up the Indians against the American settlers on the border. They told the savages that the Americans were lawless marauders who delighted in
murder, and who were plotting against the life of their father, the
great king. If they were permitted to invade the West they would
seize Detroit and the Ohio country, and murder all the residents. At
first the French were prejudiced as well as the Indians. It required
but a little rum and a few presents to instigate the Indians to massacre
the American settlers wherever they were to be found on the border.
No sooner had it become evident that the American colonists intended
201
26




to make a stand for their rights than Great Britain began to prepare for
the collision.
At the very outset the British planned to strengthen their hold in the
West, so that they would be able to attack the colonists from their
western frontier as well as from the seaboard. Three lieutenant-governors were appointed in pursuance of this scheme. Capt. Henry
Hamilton was appointed to the office at Detroit, Capt. Patrick Sinclair
to Mackinaw, and Capt. Edward Abbott to Fort Sackville at Vincennes.
Earl Dartmouth, the colonial secretary, made these appointments, but
he did not clearly define the functions of the lieutenant-governors and
the commandants at the posts, so that a series of quarrels occurred at
each place over questions of authority. Each of the appointees had
more liking for the perquisites and salary of the respective posts than for
the duties, and each laid claim to the revenues dating from May 1,
1775, although they did not go to their commands until six months
later. Hamilton, in fact, took all the revenues of the post and inaugurated a system of plunder with the notorious "Chief Justice" Philip
Dejean as his accomplice. As local magistrate the lieutenant-governor
had jurisdiction over petty civil cases only. All criminal cases were
under jurisdiction of the court at Quebec. Hamilton, through his ally
Dejean, abused his authority, oppressed the debtors, foreclosed mortgages in summary fashion and bled the people to the limit by means
of fines. Jonas Schindler, a traveling jeweler from  Montreal, was
charged with selling alloyed silver for pure metal, but a jury acquitted
him. In spite of this acquittal Hamilton ordered Schindler to be
dressed in fantastic fashion and drummed out of town, and he was
marched through all the public streets, preceded by a drum corps.
Captain Lord, the commandant, was indignant at this breach of justice
When the drum corps and the abused Schindler came to the gate of
the inner fort, Lord barred the way and said that he was in command
of the fort and would permit no such outrage to be perpetrated on
ground where he held command. A man named Joseph Hecker murdered Moran, his brother-in-law, and according to law he should have
been examined and then sent to Quebec for trial, but Dejean, with
Hamilton's sanction, tried and convicted the culprit and hanged him at
Detroit. Jean Constanciau, a French resident, and a negress named
Ann Wiley, were convicted of robbing a store of furs and other goods.
Dejean tried them and sentenced them to be hanged, but not a man in
Detroit could be found to execute the sentence. In this emergency
202




Hamilton offered the negress her freedom and full pardon if she would
hang the Frenchman, and she consented. The job was done in bungling fashion and the unfortunate thief was slowly strangled.  The
records of these proceedings were suppressed by Dejean, and it was four
years later when the reports of their doings came to the governorgeneral at Quebec  Dejean appears to have been a man without
scruples. Through some mysterious influence which has never been
understood he appeared to enjoy the protection of the commandants,
who made him the legal factotum of the post, with supreme power in
civil cases. The colonists were bitterly opposed to him, and they drew
up a long petition asking for his removal on the ground that he was extortionate in his charges for legal services, merciless in his fines, and
dishonest generally, showing favors to his friends and visiting his
judicial wrath upon his opponents. The petition, which was forwarded to the governor-general, was signed by nearly every white resident
at Detroit. But Dejean was not removed and he remained in power
eleven years. It is probable that his remarkable influence was due
to a tacit partnership with each succeeding commandant, and that he
divided with them the spoils of his office. Among the Canadian
archives pertaining to Detroit is a record of a grand jury investigation
held in the Court of King's Bench at Montreal, September 7, 1778.
The investigation resulted in an indictment against Philip Dejean, who
at various times during the years 1775 and 1776 was charged with committing "divers unjust and illegal tyrannical and felonious acts contrary to good government." Lieutenant-Governor Henry Hamilton,
having knowledge of these transactions at the time, was also indicted.
When the officers came to Detroit to arrest them both men were at
Vincennes, and when they returned to British soil in 1780, after their
captivity, the case was not pressed.


203




CHAPTER XXVII.


Hamilton Arms the Indians and Sets Them on the Ohio Settlers-Human Scalps
Bring ~1 Each in the Detroit Commandant's Office-Philip Dejean, Hamilton's
Unscrupulous "Chief Justice"-1776-1777.
When the Revolution had begun in earnest Detroit became a center
of activity, and although the rough edges of battle never reached the
settlement, the post played a most important part in the war on the
borders. Hamilton wanted to employ the Indians as a fire-in-the-rear
with which to gall the colonists of the East, but Sir Guy Carleton,
governor-general, opposed the proposition, because he knew that the
savages could not be controlled, and that they would inflict awful bar
barities upon the helpless and inoffensive as well as upon prisoners of
war. He was over-ruled by Lord George Germain, who wrote to him
saying that " Divine Providence had placed the Indians in the hands
of Great Britain as fitting instruments for punishing the rebels."
Nothing could be done with the Indians without rum, presents and
feasting, so rum came into Detroit in great quantities for free distribution among the savages. Barbecues were held at which their gluttonous appetites were sated, and rifles, scalping knives with crimson
handles, powder, ball and hatchets were distributed with a lavish hand.
Public mass meetings were held, at which the Indians were told that
the Americans were a dangerous and wicked people, who conspired
against their great father the king, and who would drive the Indians
out of the country and seize all their lands, unless the Indians would
aid the British in exterminating those along the border. Weapons
were presented with a show of formality, which helped to captivate the
Indians. Hamilton would clasp hands with a savage chief and grasp.
ing the scalping knife or hatchet, would say: " We are friends in peace
and in war; your enemies are our enemies, and we will work together
for their destruction. The great Manitou will aid you when you go
forth with your father's weapons." At a barbecue when several hundred Indians would be seated in a great circle about a roasted ox, the
head of the ox would be set on a pole and a hatchet would be driven
204




into the skull. Then bearers would march around the circle with this
trophy representing the head of an American, and Hamilton would follow it chanting a war song in Indian fashion. Captain Lord, the commandant, was constantly quarreling with Hamilton over the propriety
of such proceedings, and he was finally sent away to Niagara. Capt.
Richard Beranger Lernoult was transferred from Niagara to Detroit,
and was made a major in the summer of 1779. Indians would gather
at Detroit by the thousands but it was impossible to get them to make
raids against the American settlers unless they were accompanied by
British leaders. They preferred to idle about the post, drinking rum
and eating roast ox, rather than undergo the privations of campaigning. They were soon consuming forty barrels of rum a month at Detroit, and the quantity was later increased to sixty barrels. Prisoners
were troublesome, as they involved much expense for their keeping, as
they had to be sent to Montreal or Quebec for confinement. Hamilton
instructed the Indians that scalps would be less troublesome than prisoners, and they were quick to take the hint. From the beginning of
the war Detroit was a great rendezvous, and the formal councils of the
tribes with the military authorities were of almost daily occurrence.
Then would follow the distribution of presents consisting of guns,
powder, lead, provisions, cloth for the squaws and children, and rum.
When a large body of savages had been worked up to a fighting frenzy,
they would set out for the Ohio, Pennsylvania or Virginia wilderness,
led either by the three Girty brothers, Simon, James and George,
Capt. Henry Bird, John Butler, and William Caldwell, of the regulars,
or Captains Alexander McKee, Mathew Elliott, Chene, Dequindre, or
La Motte, of the Indian and French militia. Arrived at the American
settlements, these bands always indulged in a general massacre. Then
they would return to Detroit, the braves carrying long poles on which
gory scalps were strung. Their appearance was greeted with cheers
and they were received as conquering heroes. After receiving liberal
rewards for their scalps, and rum enough for a wild debauch, fresh
supplies of ammunition would be dealt out and they would go out for
another raid.
As Detroit was the key to the West, great caution was observed in
keeping it well prepared for attack, and at times the military force
numbered five hundred men. Cordial relations never existed between
the majority of the French and the British, and many of the former
sympathized with the Americans and hoped for their success; still


205




there were a few who fought as officers and common soldiers in the
British war. Some were indiscreet enough to air their American leanings, and several were imprisoned for so doing. Others were dismissed
from the settlement and went away to the Illinois country, while a few
were sent away as prisoners to Niagara and Montreal. When the British
and their Indian allies were preparing for a raid upon some American
settlement, the French sometimes succeeded in warning the Americans
of their intentions and thus prevented a surprise. Orders wete received from Quebec to treat such persons as spies and hang them.
James Sterling, the merchant who married Mlle. Cuillerier, was pro.
scribed for his known sympathies with the rebels and had to leave the
settlement. Sometimes the Indians would come back with prisoners
and proceed to torture them, and frightful barbarities were performed
within sight of the fort, and with the knowledge of the lieutenantgovernor. One day a prisoner had been terribly beaten with clubs in
running the gauntlet, and had suffered numerous wounds, when the
savages tied him to a stake and began to burn him alive. A humane
citizen rushed in and cut his bonds in spite of the threats of the savages. He supported the unhappy wretch to his own home and afterward concealed him from  the Indians in a vacant building. The
savages made a great outcry against this interference with their timehonored customs, and complained to Hamilton and Dejean. Next
morning Dejean arrested the rescuer, and searched out the victim who
had been doomed to the torture in order to deliver him over to the Indians, but the poor fellow died of his injuries before the torture could
be resumed. Hamilton called the humane citizen before him and
threatened him with imprisonment if he ever dared to interfere with
the practices of the savages again.
In the year 1777 steps were taken toward the establishment of a
navy on Lakes Erie, Huron and Michigan, and Governor-General Guy
Carleton issued an order, dated at Quebec, October 20, providing that
the navy should be officered. The pay of the commander-in-chief was
fixed at fifteen shillings a day; masters, ten shillings; lieutenants of
various grades, six shillings, four shillings and six pence, and three
shillings and six pence.
In 1777, a commission was issued to Normand McLeod, creating him
"town major," by authority of Henry Hamilton, lieutenant-governor
and superintendent of Detroit and dependencies. The commission
bore the signatures of Henry Hamilton and Philip Dejean.
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Hamilton's chief instruments of destruction against the Americans
were Alexander McKee, Matthew Elliott and Simon Girty, three men
who deserted from the American garrison of General Lewis at Fort
Pitt. McKee was the leader in this desertion. He was an Indian agent
in the pay of the British government, and it was learned that he was
holding out various inducements to persuade the American soldiers
to desert. He was arrested and placed on parole, but on the night of
March 28, 1778, McKee, Elliott and Girty, accompanied by a man
named Higgins, and two negroes, escaped into the wilderness and made
their way to Detroit. In Detroit plans were laid for organizing the
Indians of the territory now covered by Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and
Michigan into a confederacy for a war against the American settlers.
Girty had been brought up among the Seneca or Mingo Indians, in the
Hocking Valley, and was accustomed to barbarous surroundings. He
spoke several Indian dialects and was very influential with the savages.
He made his home among the Wyandottes at Upper Sandusky, near
the present site of Fremont, Ohio, and acted under immediate direction
of McKee and Elliott. Girty had two brothers, James and George, who
were also made Indian agents. Tradition has it that Girty, who was
always a tory a heart, had been rebuked at Fort Pitt by General Lewis,
who called him a traitor, and that Girty retorted that if any one was a
traitor it was General Lewis. The general, who was a passionate man,
struck Girty over the head with his cane, drawing a stream of blood.
Girty rushed to the door of the general's quarters and turning said:
"Your quarters shall yet swim in blood for this." An instant later he
had plunged into the forest.
Historians in speaking of Girty have usually called him a renegade,
but he called himself a tory. It is certain that he was a scourge to the
Ohio and Pennsylvania settlers for years after, and he organized and
led some of the bloodiest Indian raids in the history of the country.
In the fall of 1778 Simon Kenton, a pioneer of great renown, had set
out from the Kentucky shore with a few daring hunters to attack the
Indians on the north side of the Ohio; he was captured and condemned
to death at the stake. Girty and he had been boys together and three
times within a few days did Girty save him from death by torture. He
was finally brought to Detroit, but escaped and went back to his home
where he had been given up as dead. That same summer Daniel
Boone, the great Kentucky pioneer, was captured while in company
with several other settlers who were boiling salt at Blue Lick Springs.
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He was brought to Detroit with the Indians when they returned northward with their customary spoils. Captain Lernoult, the commandant,
offered to buy him from his captors, but the Indians refused to give up
so noted a captive and took Boone back to Chillicothe, whence he
made his escape to Kentucky.
In 1778 John Butler, a tory who had formerly lived in Wyoming
valley, Pa., went from Detroit, accompanied by Captain Bird and a
company of rangers, to make an attack upon his old neighbors. Most
of the able bodied men in the valley were away in the American army,
but the residents fled to the fort. When Butler appeared with a horde
of yelling savages at his heels they feared to surrender. Only a part
of the attacking force showed itself and it soon retired to entice the offenders outside. A party of two hundred men set out in pursuit, and
suddenly found themselves surrounded by Indians. In a short time
the Indians returned to the fort with 196 scalps, and again demanded
a surrender. The fort was set on fire, and some of the inmates perished
in the flames rather than risk a death by torture. Another raid was
made into the adjoining Cherry Valley and more scalps were taken.
For this and other services Butler was given the rank of a colonel, an
annual pension of $2,500 and a tract of 5,000 acres of land. Captain
Bird, who took part in this and many other bloody raids against the
American settlers, is described as a man of repulsive appearance, with
a very red face, prominent teeth and a hair lip. He was unfortunate
in love, and his fellow officers twitted him with it, and this it is said
led him to ask and obtain command of military sevices that would divert his mind from his disappointments.
An attack upon Detroit was planned at Fort Pitt in 1778. In the
same year Generals Gibson and McIntosh, under directions from Gen.
George Washington, erected a fort at Beaver Creek and another on the
Tuscarawas River, both in southern Ohio. The first was named Fort
McIntosh and the latter Fort Laurens. General Gibson remained
through the winter at Fort Laurens.  He intended to set out for
Detroit in the spring, but by spies or treason, his intentions became
known to the British, and Simon Girty with a force of 800 Indians
started from Detroit with the intention of capturing Fort Laurens. IHe
and Gibson hated each other cordially, and each longed for the scalp of
the other. Meanwhile intelligence of Girty's approach had come to
David Zeisberger, the Moravian missionary at Gnadenhutten, which
was situated not far from the fort. His informant was a Delaware


0)S




,1:0 -v






FREDERICK C. STOEPEL.




0




Indian. Zeisberger, who sympathized with the Americans, wrote a
letter to Gibson cautioning him to keep close to the fort, as he would
soon be attacked. The warning, however, was disregarded, and Gibson sent a detachment to Fort McIntosh for provisions. They were
attacked on their return when within sight of the fort, the supplies
captured and two were killed, four wounded, and one taken prisoner.
Letters to General Gibson were also captured which gave full details
of the projected attack on Detroit. Girty's Indians besieged the fort,
but in a few days went away. Meanwhile Captain Bird and 120 savages arrived on February 22, and lay in ambush near the fort.  A
wagoner and eighteen men, who had been sent out to get wood, were
attacked and all killed and scalped, except two. Bird conducted the
siege for four weeks, but was unsuccessful. Had he persevered a few
days more he would have captured the fort, as the garrison was nearly
starved when he left.
In the summer of 1779 the garrison of Detroit was reinforced by 200
troops from Niagara  In time Girty advanced toward Fort Pitt, but
Heckewelder, the Moravian missionary at Salem, warned General
Brodhead, the American commandant. This was discovered by Girty
and he ordered a young brave to kill Heckewelder, but Captain Pipe,
a Delaware chief, told the brave to let the missionary alone and the
latter was saved. In April, 1779, Girty and Bird made another raid
from Detroit on Fort Henry (Wheeling, W. Va.), but they failed and
raised the siege. At that time there was an emigration of settlers from
Pennsylvania and Virginia to " Kentuck," as Kentucky was then called,
and 300 canoe loads of emigrants and their effects landed at Louisville
during that year. Girty's men would lie concealed on the banks of the
river, and as the boats were passing they would cry out for help. Three
boats containing twenty-four people were thus lured by the cries to the
shore, when they were set upon and most of the party slaughtered.
Peter Malott escaped by swimming to the other shore, but his wife,
his daughter Catherine and two small children, were taken prisoners.
The two small children were killed, but Mrs. Malott and Catherine
were captives in the Wyandotte village at Upper Sandusky for some
time.  Subsequently Catherine became Mrs. Simon Girty, and the
marriage took place at Detroit.
The British forts or outposts, from which expeditions were sent
against the rebel colonists in the Ohio valley and Kentucky, were Kaskaskia, Ill., Vincennes, Ind., and Detroit. Kaskaskia was founded by
209
27




La Salle in 1682 and consisted of a log fort and the houses of a few
traders and farmers. The first French residents there became assimilated with the Indian tribes, but the later British settlers had withstood
the influence of barbarism. Vincennes was the seat of a French Jesuit
mission as early as 1702, and it had become a post of some importance.
As soon as the British colonies demonstrated their strength, a tacit
agreement came into. existence between England and Spain that the
colonists must not extend their borders beyond the Alleghany Mountains, and the British undertook the task of keeping them back. Expeditions were fitted out at Detroit, Vincennes and Kaskaskia to drive
them out of the Ohio Valley. A hundred or more British soldiers would
set out for the valley, gathering Indians as they went, and each expedition was a campaign of blood and murder, with all the atrocities of
savage warfare.
Quite a number of vessels plied the lakes in the early years of the
English rule. During the Pontiac war the schooner Gladwin and the
sloops Beaver and Bear, helped to keep communication between Detroit and Niagara. In 1777 a small fleet could assemble at Detroit in
support of the fort, including His Majesty's ship Gage, armed with sixteen carriage guns, six swivels and forty-eight men; H. M. S. Dunmore, twelve guns, four swivels and thirty-six men; the schooner
Ottawa, twelve guns, and six swivel blunderbusses and thirty-six men;
the schooner Wyandotte, four guns, six swivels and fourteen men; the
schooner Hope, six guns and eighteen men; and the sloops Angelica,
Faith, Welcome, Adventure, Archangel and Galley. In the spring of
1780 the Wyandotte went ashore on the east side of Lake Huron, but
the Welcome went to her assistance and she was hauled off safely with
her cargo. The Angelica got aground at the mouth of the river and
she had to be lightered by bateaux. The Dunmore, Wyandotte, Gage,
Felicity and the Ottawa, made trips between Detroit and Mackinaw,
but most of the other crafts were too small to be trusted in such stormy
waters. They coasted along Lake Erie carrying goods and military
supplies between Detroit, the Miami fort on the Maumee, Sandusky,
Erie and Niagara.
Late in the fall of 1778 General Brodhead, of the Continental army,
advanced into Ohio with a large force of men, estimated at between
2,000 and 3,000. It was feared that he was on his way to attack Detroit
and there was considerable consternation among the British. Captain
Lernoult, who had been promoted to major, when he arrived at Detroit,
210




realized that Fort Detroit, while a fairly safe refuge from hostile Indians,
could not be held against an enemy supplied with artillery, as the hill
on the north side of the Savoyard Creek was somewhat higher than the
fort. He saw that an enemy could throw up earthworks there and
mount a battery, which would soon make kindling wood of the older
fortification. After consulting with his officers Major Lernoult decided
that no time must be lost, although Lieut. Henry Du Vernet, the only
competent engineer of the post, was absent at Vincennes. In his absence Capt. Henry Bird went that evening to the hill and traced a square
outline on the ground for a new fort, where the new government building now stands. Later he added four half bastions, so as to afford
flanking protection against attacks on the gates. This redoubt was
built with clay walls ten feet thick, and the clay was bound by layers
of brush and cedar posts every three feet and the earth was well rammed.
The glacis was beset with sharpened stakes, and the foot of it was protected by abatis of felled trees with the limbs trimmed and sharpened.
To prevent the slopes from being washed away by the rains, they were
sodded, but during that winter and during all the following spring the
embankments washed and slid into the ditch in exasperating fashion.
When Lieutenant DL Vernet returned the new fort was too far advanced to be altered, although it was faulty in many respects. On the
south side of the fort a subterranean magazine of stone was built; it
lay at the foot of the glacis and a short distance from it so that in case
of an explosion those in the fort would not suffer. It was arched with
stone over the top and an underground passage led from the fort to its
interior. The magazine was situated not far from the south side of
Fort street, and at a point perhaps 150 feet west of Shelby street. In
consequence of the slope of the ground at the time when the fort was
built the top of the magazine was below the ground level of the interior of the fort. The work on the fort was constant from the middle of
November until February, but the alarm proved to be groundless, as
Brodhead did not come nearer Detroit than ninety miles down the
Maumee Valley. When George Rogers Clark heard that Fort Lernoult
had been added to the other fortifications at Detroit, he sent a letter by
a prisoner whom he had taken in southern Ohio, thanking Lernoult for
the new work. He said that the new fort would save the Americans
the trouble of building much needed improvements at Detroit when it
would presently come into their hands.
The British expedition which left Detroit in 1778-79, and ravaged


211




the entire Ohio valley, is familiar history, and the bloody tragedies at
Boonesboro and Harrodsburg, Ky., are among the most horrible events
of the period. It was this series of raids which instigated Clark, then
a colonel and afterward a general, in the Continental army, to undertake the capture of the seat of trouble in the North. He was opposed
by the border settlers because they thought that he would only bring
more troubles upon them, and he had a host of personal enemies who
interfered with his plans, but he organized a company of 500 rangers
and struck out into the wilderness. His first campaign was on the
northern Ohio shore, where he laid waste several Indian villages in
the Muskingum valley. Those Indians were quiet for a long time
after. Next he invaded the Miami and Scioto valleys, with 1,000
mounted riflemen, and destroyed several Indian towns, striking terror
into the heart of the savage.
CHAPTER XXVIII.
Gen. George Rogers Clark Captures Vincennes and Other British Posts-Hamilton
Goes to Recover Them and is Captured-He Narrowly Escapes Hanging at the
Hands of the Colonists-1778-1779.
In the fall of 1778 Gen. George Rogers Clark set out with about 500
men to make a secret raid into the Illinois country, for the purpose of
capturing Kaskaskia, Kahokia, and Vincennes before they could be reinforced from Detroit. He expected that his success would give him
a prestige with Congress that would result in a more pretentious expedition against Detroit, the center of disturbance. He believed that
that stronghold, if in the hands of the Americans, would prevent the
British from stirring up the Indians against the settlers. The perilous
nature of Clark's project was well understood by his men, who were mere
rangers and woodsmen without much military training, and they deserted in large numbers. Col. Archibald Lochry, who attempted to
follow him in canoes with a force of 100 volunteers from Westmoreland, Pa., was attacked on the Ohio River by an army of Miamis and
Shawnees, which had been sent out from Detroit under Joseph Brant and
George Girty. The American party was utterly destroyed, none of the
troops returning to tell the tale.


212




It would require a vast amount of research to make an exact enumeration of all the raids sent out from Detroit, and the counter raids organized in Pittsburg, Louisville and Virginia against Detroit during
the Revolutionary war.  None of the latter were formidable until
attempts were made by Harmar, St. Clair and Wayne, but Gen. George
Rogers Clark was for more than five years a cause of great anxiety to
Hamilton and De Peyster. British spies brought the information that
the capture of Detroit was the pet scheme of this dashing commander,
who never had a disciplined body of men, but was apparently invincible when he set out for a raid. The French residents of Detroit, who
sympathized with the American cause, would taunt the British soldiers
and Indian agents when they came back from their raids with the
bloody trophies of war, saying: "Wait until old Clark brings his
rangers to Detroit and you will see some scalping of another sort.
Clark will one day nail all your scalps against the wall of the fort."
There was good reason for the hesitation of the Americans in attacking Detroit, for such an enterprise meant a march through a wilderness
of 300 or 400 miles, through which there were no roads available for
wagon trains or for the hauling of artillery. This was the least of the
difficulties. This region was occupied by perhaps 3,000 hostile Indians.
Most of them were pledged to the British cause; and those who were
not would resent an invasion of Americans. The long march thus
promised to be a series of ambuscades to the invading force. The
British, on the other hand, could proceed through the country of their
allies secure from attack, and their forces, instead of being constantly
lessened by fighting, would be constantly augmented by additions of
Indian warriors. This in part explains why Detroit was so long undisturbed by an invasion from the south and east  The British had
absolute control of the lakes so that an expedition by water was out of
the question. With a constantly diminishing force of men Clark marched
through the wilderness of Illinois, coming upon Kaskaskia, in Illinois,
with a complete surprise. The settlers and soldiers in the Illinois settlements were terror stricken in consequence of the tales of ferocity
they had heard regarding the "Long Knives," as the Kentuckians
were called.  Most of them hid in their cellars, and a delegation of
Frenchmen came to Clark offering themselves as slaves if the " Long
Knives" would spare their lives and those of their families. They
were told that they should come to no harm if they submitted peaceably. General Clark compelled them to keep within doors until the


213




fort and all the arms of the place were turned over to his troops. Then
he sent word to the settlers that they might go about their regular
business in perfect security.  The announcement was received with
cheers of delight. The French denounced the English as liars and
swore allegiance to the Americans. When they learned that Kahokia,
further up the Kaskaskia River, and Vincennes were also to be taken,
they wanted to send messengers who would inform the people at those
posts of the true character of the "Long Knives." But Clark was
still suspicious and he kept the French in his rear until he had surprised Kahokia. This capture was as easy as that of Kaskaskia. Clark
then allowed a delegation of French to go to-Vincennes to notify the
people of his approach and of his good-will toward them. Vincennes
surrendered without striking a blow, and so loyal did the French
appear that Fort Sackville, as the fortification was called, was left in
charge of Captain Leonard Helm and a private named Moses Henry,
in the belief that the French would help defend it in case the English
should attack and attempt a recapture. But the French preferred to
remain neutral for a time while England fought it out with her colonies.
Some refugees from Vincennes arrived at Detroit and LieutenantGovernor Hamilton organized an expedition to recapture the posts.
Clark and his men had returned to Kaskaskia to await reinforcements
which never came, and they were royally entertained there by the French
settlers. Hamilton set out with thirty regulars of the Eighth Regiment,
eighty-eight French volunteers and 150 Indians, under command of
Guillaume La Mothe and Lieut. Jehu Hay. The route was by the river
and lake to the mouth of the Maumee, thence to the Miami fort, and
from there by portage to the Wabash. When he arrived before Vincennes in January, 1779, he found the gate of the fort wide open but a
loaded cannon pointed outward from the opening. Beside it stood
Captain Helm holding ablazing match of tarred rope in his hand, while
private Henry trained the gun on the approaching enemy.
"Halt!" shouted the dauntless Helm as the British soldiers approached within a hundred yards.
Commandant Hamilton sent Lieut. Jehu Hay forward with a demand
for a surrender of the fort.
"Tell Hamilton that I know his ways," replied Helm; "no man
shall enter here until 1 know the terms of surrender."
The message came back that the garrison would be allowed to march
out with the honors of war and be fully protected.


214




"Your terms are accepted," answered Helm, dashing his match to
the ground. "Attention company! Shoulder arms! March!"
Hamilton, who had supposed that a considerable force of men, at
least half of Clark's army, were concealed within the stockade, was
amazed to see the hardy Kentuckian march out in great dignity, sword
in hand, followed by a single private with shouldered musket. But the
honors of war were observed.
This is one account of the capture which has come down as a tradition, and it has been accepted as history by Bryant, but Hamilton left
another record. According to his report, he sent Hay forward with a
company of men to notify the residents of Vincennes that the British
lieutenant-governor from Detroit was approaching with a large body of
troops. The people of Vincennes were warned to lay down their arms
and to abandon the cause of the rebels, or they would be killed without
mercy. Hamilton's barbarous methods had made his name a terror,
although he was a coward at heart, and the French laid down their
arms. Hay took possession of the arms, and Captain Helm's force,
which consisted of seventy men, abandoned him. There was no one
left to defend the post, and Helm delivered it over to Hamilton upon
his arrival.
One report appears as improbable as the other, but it is certain that
the fort was surrendered to Hamilton without striking a blow. As
may be seen, the situation of Clark and his men was indeed desperate,
being in the enemy's country hundreds of miles from reinforcements
and supplies. The French were friendly and would help them to food,
but they would not help them fight their common enemy the British
Hamilton was known to be a man of barbarous methods who would be
likely to accept a surrender and then turn the savages loose upon disarmed prisoners. To retreat was practically impossible, for the enemy
was well supplied with boats for pursuit, and marching was almost impossible, because a snow fall of great depth had melted so suddenly
that most of the country was under water. Clark resolved to strike
boldly at his enemy and take him by surprise, regardless of the fact
that he was outnumbered by the British and that they were protected
by a fort. The few canoes which were available were manned by
forty six men and loaded with supplies for a long journey. The time
was at hand for the desperate effort.
Owing to the bad weather Hamilton had neglected to attack the two
forts at Kaskaskia and Kahokia still held by Clark, thinking that there


215




would be plenty of time after the high water had subsided. He had
dispatched a force of thirty men to waylay Clark if possible and capture him, realizing that his followers would scatter immediately if the
master spirit was not at hand to inspire them. The kidnaping party
returned unsuccessful.
Clark led his little army of 130 men by a circuitous route toward
Vincennes, evading any outposts which might have been stationed to
watch the trail. For four days they marched amid the greatest hardships. They were seldom on dry land, the water on the bottom lands
of the Wabash valley averaging between three and four feet deep, and
it was icy cold. Guns were held high and knapsacks were carried on the
heads of the soldiers. Some were drowned in deep holes while crossing branches, but at last the Kentuckians came out on dry ground near
Vincennes. Some of the residents of the locality were captured, and to
prevent the British from learning how small the attacking force really
was, Clark prevented these men from going about in his camp, while
he gave them the idea that he had a force of more than a thousand
riflemen.  When he arrived before Vincennes, after sixteen days'
march, he sent word to the residents that those who chose to fight for
their oppressors should go into the fort, and those who would fight for
political freedom would be welcomed in his ranks. The neutrals were
warned to betake themselves to places of safety. Many of the residents
went into the fort, where they merely helped to exhaust the provisions.
Hamilton had much the superior force, but he could make no estimate
of Clark's army, and being a cowardly as well as a cruel man, he kept
to the fort. His enemy fought in backwoods fashion, just as the Indians had compelled the early pioneers to fight, and every man was
armed with the long Kentucky rifle, which was much superior in range
and accuracy to the muskets of the soldiers. They took possession of
every sheltered position about the town and every time an inmate of
the fort showed his head it would be the target for the deadly rifles. A
ruse of the commander was most successful in intimidating Hamilton.
On the last day of the siege two log cannons were made and painted
black, and when ostentatiously placed in front of the fort, they were
mistaken for genuine artillery. As the defenders of the fort were now
out of provisions, Hamilton sent out for terms of surrender, Clark
sent word that the surrender must be unconditional, and that the British must evacuate the territory, leaving all their supplies. Hamilton
refused to accept and the siege went on. Later Hamilton secured a


216




COL. THORNTON F. BRODHEAD.








personal interview with Clark, who took care to make a great show of
strength, and was firm in his demands. Justice Dejean had been sent
back to Detroit for reinforcements and supplies, and an expedition led
by Dejean was on its way to relieve the fort in canoes and bateaux,
carrying $50,000 worth of supplies. Clark learned of this, and without showing any weakness in front of the fort, sent half his men to intercept the flotilla of canoes as they were coming down the Wabash.
The attack was successful, and the soldiers and their supplies were captured by the Kentuckians. Some of the Indians who had participated
in the massacre of Col. Archibald Lochry and his 100 volunteers
from Westmoreland, Pa., were captured near the fort, and by Clark's
orders they were tomahawked and scalped in front of the gate. He
allowed several white prisoners to escape and make their way into the
fort that Hamilton might learn that the relieving expedition had been
captured. Hamilton lost heart and surrendered the fort the next day.
On March 5, 1779, Hamilton, Dejean, Capt. Guillaume La Mothe,
Lieut. Jehu Hay, Lieutenant Scheiffelin, and twenty others were sent
as prisoners of war to Fort Pitt, and later to Williamsburg, Va.
Clark in his official report alluded to Hamilton as the "great hairbuyer," referring to his practice of paying bounties for scalps. Charges
of barbarism were preferred against the prisoners, the recital of which
made the Americans furious with rage. They were tried, and Hamilton was sentenced to be hanged, but Washington and Thomas Jefferson, then governor of Virginia, interceded for their lives. They were
paroled in October, 1780, and exchanged during the following yearall except Lieutenant Scheiffelin, who ran away to Detroit at the first
opportunity.
The peril which hung over these prisoners is shown in a letter
written by an American soldier, John Dodge, who had been captured
during the colonists' attack on Quebec in 1775. Under date of July
13, 1779, he wrote from Pittsburg to Philip Boyle, merchant at St.
Duski (Sandusky), as follows: " It is with pleasure that I inform you
that I have escaped from Quebec. I have now the honor of wearing a
captain's uniform and commission and am managing Indian affairs
here. There has been a battle in Carolina and the English were defeated. I am going to Williamsburg, Va., in a few days to prosecute
Hamilton, that rascal Dejean, Lamotte, likewise Haminey and Hay.
They will all be hanged without redemption and the Lord have mercy
on their souls."
217
28




In addition to his barbarism Henry Hamilton had other aults. Not
only did he usurp the supreme authority of the law and enforce the
extreme penalties, but he was dishonest. During his term of service
at Detroit he pocketed all the crown revenues and made no returns.
In spite of his faults his government rewarded him for his zeal in persecuting American settlers. Not only were his past sins forgiven, but he
was made lieutenant governor of Canada, and the city of Hamilton, in
the Bermuda Islands, was named in his honor. He was afterward made
governor of the Bahama Islands. He died in 1796.
Thomas Williams whose son, John R. Williams, was the first American mayor elected by the people of Detroit, under the charter of 1824,
was afterward appointed a justice by Major Lernoult to succeed Dejean.
When Hamilton and his crew had been taken to Virginia as prisoners
of war, Governor-General Sir Frederick Haldimand ordered Col. Arent
Schuyler De Peyster to leave his command at Mackinaw and proceed
to Detroit.
De Peyster had long been complaining because Hamilton, a mere
captain, had been given the most important post on the frontier,
while he had been thrust away as commandant of an insignificant post,
where there was no chance to achieve either wealth or glory. De Peyster was not appointed lieutenant-governor, but was made commandant
in place of Major Lernoult, who was presently transferred to Niagara.
De Peyster was a more humane man than Hamilton, but he soon degenerated into a human butcher. At first he instructed the Indians to
take prisoners rather than scalps and to abstain from torturing their
captives, but the Indians would not harass the Americans unless they
could also kill and torture them, and De Peyster finally consented to,
and upheld, their barbarities.
George Rogers Clark was tendered a resolution of thanks by the
Legislature of Virginia, and was made a general as a reward for his
heroic accomplishments. He had undertaken the capture of the British
posts on his own authority, and had not even informed Washington of
his purpose. He sent to Virginia for reinforcements, saying that the
one fort which now menaced the settlers of the west was at Detroit (he
spelled it Detroyet), and he could not feel satisfied until he had taken
that British stronghold. His request was ignored, and Clark, who was
a man of boundless energy, courage and ambition, was compelled to
desert the scenes of his brilliant victories, and lead his sadly weakened
army back to Kentucky. Clark corresponded with Washington and
218




with the Virginia authorities, begging for a company of men and sufficient supplies to make an attack upon Detroit, so as to stop the Indian
depredations. All his ambition was centered in this one accomplishment, but Washington, while recognizing his courage and ability, was
aware of his defects-for Clark was a man of violent temper and of intern
perate habits. Gen. Daniel Brodhead was given the mission for which
Clark had pleaded, but he appears to have been unsuccessful, for
while the British were repeatedly alarmed by rumors of his approach
with an army of several thousand men, he never came nearer than a
point about twenty miles south of the present site of Toledo. Clark
led several successful raids into Ohio in 1780 and 1782, destroying the
Shawnee villages along the Scioto River and the Miami villages around
the present site of Piqua. He was appointed Indian commissioner,
and the savages had great respect for this fearless fighter. His disappointment grew upon him as he saw Detroit, the key of the west, remain in the hands of the British, and he retired to his log cabin at the
falls of the Ohio. Like that flower of Spanish chivalry, Bernado del
Carpio"His heart was broke; his later days
Untold in martial strain,
His banner led the spears no more
Amid the hills of Spain."
Clark sank into a profound melancholy, became more intemperate
than ever, and died in poverty and neglect in Louisville, Ky.


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CHAPTER XXIX.


How the Fort and Settlement Looked During the Revolutionary War-Character
of the Houses-Costumes of the Various People-Drunken Indians and Returning
Raiders with Reeking Scalps and Live Prisoners to Torture on the Common.
Detroit was a bustling center of activity in the year 1780. The new
fort, on the rising ground, had been much enlarged and strengthened,
and the stockade now enclosed several acres.  Many houses were
located outside the fortifications, but these were almost forts in themselves, with their strong log walls and their palisades of stout pickets
inclosing the grounds. North of the fort, reaching to a marshy tract
of land where Grand Circus Park is now located, stretched the commons,
where the cattle, ponies and pigs of the settlers roamed for pasturage.
The houses for the most part lay along the river, and each night the
boys of the settlement could be seen driving the cattle homeward by
winding paths. Beyond the common stretched an interminable wilderness, from which the whoo-whoo of the owls and the weird howl of
the wolf could be heard after nightfall. The houses of the wealthier
settlers were quite pretentious in their dimensions. They were all
built of logs, and the huge beams which supported the upper floors
were hung with seed corn, dried pumpkin, hanks of yarn, smoked
hams, jerked venison, and the vegetable seeds saved during the previous season. The decorations were almost exclusively of Indian
manufacture. Great elk skins, tanned a pale buff color and decorated
with dyed porcupine quills, served as curtains and window shades.
Huge grass mats, plaited by the hands of the busy squaws, covered the
floors; and the spinning wheel, the flax wheel and the old fashioned
hand loom were among the ornaments of the living rooms. Indian
pipes, richly decorated moccasins and other bric-a-brac were to be
found everywhere. On the antlers of giant elk, nailed to the walls,
hung the long, flintlock rifles, powder horns which had once been the
defense of huge buffalo, and bullet pouches of squirrel skin. Nearly
every wealthy settler had one or more slaves, who were either Pawnee
Indians or Africans, and who attended to the duties of the household


220




and tilled the gardens. Each house had a cellar with its store of vegetables and salt meat, a barrel of cider, some jugs and bottles of wine
made from the scuppernong grape, which was a luxuriant vine in the
local forest, or perhaps a cask of ale or strong beer from the local
brewery, which was first installed by Cadillac and his brewer, Joseph
Parent. On the narrow streets the young ladies wore short skirts of
gay colors, with neatly fitting bodices, and white kerchiefs about their
necks and shoulders. Their bonnets were usually homemade, but
much beautified by the art of the seamstress. The family table never
lacked for meat, for the woods abounded in wild turkeys, deer, elk and
pheasants. The river was alive with wild geese, ducks, brant and wild
swans. Whitefish were to be had for the casting of a net, and there
was a great variety of other fish.
Though a far inland town, Detroit had even then the manners of the
seaboard, and its fashions were those of the London and Paris of the
period-somewhat later, however, owing to the ninety days' sail from
Europe and a two months' paddle up the Hudson, Mohawk and Oswego
Rivers and then throughout Lakes Erie and Ontario. Matrons wore
dresses with long skirts and short waists and very short sleeves, and quite
often veiled their faces; while the gentlemen went in shovel hats and
powdered perukes, with silk hose and knee breeches with silver buckles. On festive occasions, which were numerous even during the
Revolutionary war, there was no.end to the display of silk and satin
gowns, and gold bespangled shoes, and costly jewels glittered as the
slow and stately figures of the minuet moved through the richly furnished drawing rooms with the solemn precision of a funeral. This was
of course among the upper classes. Less pretentious but equally
picturesque was the dress of the settlers of small means and the fur
traders and their agents. Their coats were usually made of heavy
blanket cloth, black or blue in color, belted at the waist and with a capote or hood for covering the head in severe weather. Many of them
had a sort of barbaric taste for gay colors, and these would wear even
scarlet, red or crimson coats, while the cuffs, pocket flaps and collars
were bound with fur according to the taste or extravagance of the
wearer. Their trousers were of the knickerbocker pattern, usually of
coarse and heavy cloth and often of elk skin. Their legs were encased in thick leggins, oreen being a favorite color, and moccasins of
elk skin, ornamented by the hands of some industrious squaw, took the
place of the silver buckled shoes affected by the rich. Their hands


221




were protected by very heavy mittens, and their heads by fur caps
made of the skins of small animals, beautifully dressed. It was common practice to make the cap of the skin of the muskrat, woodchuck,
fox or marten, with the head at the front, in place of a visor, and the
tail hanging down over the shoulders, the sport of every passing breeze.
Out in the streets of old Detroit a visitor from the heart of civilization could witness a panorama of never ending interest. Voyageurs,
boatmen and fur traders strolled about in fantastic dress, their faces
bronzed by exposure until they rivaled the hue of the Indians. Each
one bore with him the peculiar scent of peltries, combining the odors
of the beaver and muskrat and the odor of the smoke of the camp fires,
about which they usually slept on their journeys through the wilderness. Those half wild men joked with the shy Indian girls and looked
with undisguised admiration at the pretty French girls who walked and
danced with the grace of Diana, but who could make the best of the
men bend their strong backs in a race on the river in birch bark canoes.
These daughters of the wilderness were fair and exceedingly vivacious.
They lacked the adornments to be found in the great cities of Europe,
but they made themselves attractive with the natural art that appears
to be born in the French woman.
Indians were to be found everywhere. They were picturesque when
sober, but repulsive in appearance when drunk, and the average savage of that time, two hours after arriving in the town, was in one of the
many stages of intoxication and not at all pleasant to meet. As they
were away much of the time on marauds against the American settlers,
their squaws hung about the settlement making baskets, birch boxes,
maple syrup, bead work, moccasins and tanning hides, working industriously, while their brown-skinned little ones tumbled about on the
river bank or swam in the clear waters with as much ease as the frogs.
Their papooses, bound to boards, were hung on the low boughs,
where the breezes could rock them. The male Indian despised work
and made his wife a slave. When he came to Detroit to trade, if his
march was overland, he tramped along with head erect, his dress ornamented with a profusion of trinkets and feathers, and narrow strips of
the scalps he had taken made a fringe for his deerskin breeches. His
gun, scalping knife, hatchet, powder horn and bullet pouch, were all
the burdens he essayed to carry. Behind came his squaw, prematurely
aged by hard work, loaded to a bending posture with a pack of peltries
and camp utensils. The children followed in single file, the boys being
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armed with bows and arrows and the girls carrying burdens suspended
upon their backs by a band across their foreheads. In Detroit the Indian husband and father disposed of his wares and his wife sold hers,
both trading for goods at the stores. The Indian's first purchase was
rum, and then he bought powder and ball; but the wife bought cloth
and other necessities for her little ones, occasionally indulging in a
cheap ornament for her own person. Sometimes gray-coated missionaries, Moravians from the Clinton River, came. to the king's common
and preached to the Indians; but they could make but little headway
against the influence of free rum and the inducements to barbarity
offered by the government officials at the post.
The fort loomed up a formidable looking work for that time. Its
strong bastions, armed with six-pound cannon, frowned on each corner. Massive blockhouses with overhanging second stories flanked
every gate; and on the ramparts the scarlet coated soldiers strode to
and fro, keeping watch over the settlement in the name of the king.
Soldiers off duty flirted with the French maidens and strutted about
the narrow streets fully conscious of their own importance. In front
of the fort along the river bank were the first rude wharves of Detroit.
One near the upper end of the stockade reached out into the river
more than 150 feet, and at the lower end of the fort was a shorter
wharf. Between the two was the harbor pool or anchorage for ships,
and usually two or three schooners, sloops or brigs lay in this anchorage,
swaying at their anchors with the strong current. Midway between
the two wharves and close to the water was a large and very massive
blockhouse, armed with two swivel guns to protect the landing of
friendly troops in case of war. The experience of the Pontiac war had
taught the British how necessary it was to have certain access to the
river at all times. Just east of the long or upper wharf was one of the
Detroit ship yards, where there was constant activity during the Revolutionary war, for it was a standing order that Great Britain must
maintain control of the great lakes and that no other power should be
permitted to launch a craft in their waters. More than twenty vessels
were launched from the yard on the Rouge River near the present
Woodmere Cemetery during the last ten years of British possession1770 to 1780-and there was always one or more on the stocks. Overhead, on the tall flagstaff of the fort, floated the banner of Great
Britain, emblem of the most powerful government of the time. Notices
of public events were usually given out from Ste. Anne's church each


223




Sunday morning, but notices were frequently published by the town
crier, who went through each street beating a drum and calling out
the advertisement he had been given to publish. From the forest
paths leading southward, parties of Indians were constantly arriving.
They bore scalps of murdered settlers, and drove before them half
starved captives, torn by briars and bleeding from the stripes and stabs
which had been inflicted upon them when their sore and swollen feet
faltered on the way. Girty, the malignant renegade, sometimes swaggered about the streets boasting of his deeds of blood, or wild with
rum, filled the air with imprecations against the Americans who had
sworn vengeance against him. Captains McKee and Elliott, James
Girty and George Girty, and Dequindre, Chesne and Beaubien and
other French residents who had taken service under the British, were
also familiar figures and always in close association with the Indian
allies whom  they controlled.  The cost of the peculiar warfare
which was waged from Detroit was greater than the British government had anticipated, and there was much complaint against the expense, but the Indians would do nothing without rum and presents,
and their demands became every day more exorbitant. In 1781 the
cost of keeping them in arms against the Americans was over /124,000,
or $320,000, according to the drafts drawn by De Peyster, and much
more was sent to them from Montreal. Inside the fort was the storehouse of supplies for the Indians. In an adjoining apartment was the
dreadful charnel house of the post. Hanging from the beams and
upon the walls of this large room were painted poles strung with
human scalps. Bales of scalps were piled in the corners of the room,
each being the ghastly relic of a wholesale murder. There, hanging
side by side, were the silver locks of the grandsire, who had been
murdered at his fireside, the scalp of the farmer and soldier, the long
braided locks of the matron, the flowing tresses of the girl in her 'teens
and the flaxen haired scalp of the tender babe. Each was carefully
stretched into a flat disk by drying on a hoop, and the flesh side was
painted a bright red. On the red ground were the private marks of the
slayer in blue and black, showing the manner in which the victims had
been killed.
Coureurs de bois no longer carried their stock in trade from the interior upon their backs. Each of these commercial travelers of the
wilderness had now one or more ponies, rough coated, broad backed
and very hardy. They traveled with a pacing or ambling gait, and


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a                                                                              NI








when the lakes and streams were frozen over in winter they could pull
rough sledges at surprising speed. Winter races between these valuable beasts of burden formed one of the pleasures of the settlement,
and the whole populace turned out to cheer the rival racers. The descendants of these ponies are common in Canada and about Detroit,
and pony races are still a winter recreation on the frozen bosom of
the River Rouge, between Fort Street and the mouth of the Detroit
River.
After General Clark had captured the Illinois posts, the French settlers at Kahokia and Kaskaskia, Ohio, which were then in Spanish territory, picked up courage and did some fighting on their own account
against the British.  In 1780 Lieutenant Scheiffelin, who had been
taken prisoner and sent to Williamsburg in company with Hamilton and
Dejean, made his escape. He said that the prisoners were treated
brutally and compelled to work like menials about the jail. Hamilton
was in great need of money while in prison and drew upon Governor
Haldimand for.f700. Strenuous efforts were made to secure his exchange, but up to that date they had failed. The protests of the
American Congress, the stories of wholesale massacres and the great
number of scalps of settlers brought to Detroit, excited the sympathy
of Lord Shelburne, the British colonial secretary, and he wrote to Governor Haldimand ordering him to call off the savages. Haldimand
wrote to De Peyster conveying the order, but the latter replied that the
Indians were so enraged that it was impossible to restrain or to call
them away from the frontier. In the fall of 1780 Col. Augustin Mottin
de la Balme left Kahokia and made a first movement toward the Ohio
River. This was to disguise his purpose. He had planned to make a
sudden descent upon Detroit after he had united with the French at Vincennes. He waited twelve days at Miami town, on the Maumee River,
for the arrival of the Vincennes men, and then partially destroyed the
village during the absence of the warriors, who were fighting the settlers
on the border. As he was on his way toward Vincennes a party of Miamis
surprised him and killed the commander and forty of his men, and the
remainder retreated. He had a force of about 130 men. Colonel
De la Balme cuts little figure in the published histories, but he was a
brave man who did much for the American colonies. He was a friend
of Count D'Estaing, who commanded the French allies in the Revolution, and upon his arrival in the United States with letters from Dr.
Franklin, he was made inspector-general of the Continental cavalry.
225
29




When D'Estaing, in the fall of 1778, issued a proclamation to the
French people of the Northwest, calling upon them in the king's name
to take up arms in behalf of the Americans and assist them in winning
their independence, De la Balme was the bearer of the message to the
French of Illinois. His military training showed him that he could
strike a telling blow by capturing Detroit, and but for the failure of his
compatriots to join him at the expected time he might have accomplished this valuable service.
An expedition set out from Detroit in 1780 under Lieutenant-Governor Patrick Sinclair, of Mackinac, with the intention of capturing
the Spanish settlements of Pen Coeur and Kahokia in the Illinois
country, the latter being one of the places captured in 1778 by General
Clark of Virginia. Pen Coeur (Hanging Heart) was captured and sixtyeight of the garrison was killed. This was probably a wholesale
slaughter, for it is doubtful if the population exceeded that number.
The report of Commandant De Peyster mentions no prisoners taken at
this place. At Kahokia some traders had warned the settlement of the
approach of the British. De Peyster reported twenty-three prisoners
taken and 50,000 tons of lead ore was " stopped."
The winter of 1780 was the most severe ever experienced at Detroit
up to that time. It was not until May 16, 1781, that the ice was sufficiently cleared from the river to permit the first vessel to depart for
Erie. A census of Detroit taken in 1780 reads as follows: Heads of
families, 394; married and young women, 374; married and young
men, 322; men absent in Indian territory, 100; boys ten to fifteen
years of age, 455; girls, 385; male slaves, 79; female slaves, 96;
horses, 772; oxen, 474; cows, 793; steers, 361; sheep, 279; hogs, 1,016;
bushels of wheat, 13,316; corn, 5,380; peas, 488; oats, 6,253; flour,
358,000 pounds; bushels of wheat sown, 2,028; potatoes, 2,885; barrels of cider, 828; acres under cultivation, 12,083. The males in the
above list probably include soldiers, and the total population was 2,205.


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CHAPTER XXX.


Shocking Butchery of Ohio Settlers by the British Indians-A Bill of Lading for a
Shipment of 954 Human Scalps, Which tell a Gruesome Story-Reprisals by the Settlers-Shameless Butchery of the Moravian Indians.
Perhaps the best idea of the attitude of the British at Detroit, during
the years of the Revolution, may be gained from papers submitted in
evidence by Dr. Benjamin Franklin, when he went to France to appeal
for assistance against British barbarities toward non-combatants.
One of these papers was a letter from a British officer, which was intercepted on its way to Lieutenant-Governor Hamilton at Detroit:
"May it please your excellency: At the request of a Seneca chief I hereby send
to your Excellency under care of James Hoyd, eight packages of scalps, cured, dried,
hooped and painted with all the triumphal marks, and of which consignment this is
an invoice and explanation. Package number 1, forty three scalps of Congress soldiers, inside painted red with a small black dot to show they were killed by bullets;
those painted brown and marked with a hoe denote that the soldiers were killed
while at their farms; those marked with a black ring denote that the persons were
surprised by night; those marked with a black hatchet denote that the persons were
killed with the tommahawk. Package number 2, ninety eight farmers' scalps; a
white circle denotes that they were surprised in the daytime; those with a red foot
denote that the men stood their ground and fought in the defense of their wives and
families. Number 3, ninety-seven farmers' scalps; the green hoops denote that they
were killed in the fields. Number 4, 102 farmers' scalps; eighteen are marked with
a yellow flame to show that they died by torture; the one with a black band attached
belonged to a clergyman. Number 5, eighty-eight scalps of women; those with the
braided hair were mothers. Number 6, 193 boys' scalps. Number 7, 211 girls'
scalps. Number 8, 122 scalps of all sorts; among them are twenty-nine infant
scalps, and those marked with small white hoops denote that the child was unborn
at the time the mother was killed. The chief of the Senecas sends this message:
'Father, we send you here these many scalps that you may see that we are not idle
friends. We wish you to send these scalps to the Great King that he may regard
them and be refreshed; and that he may see our faithfulness in destroying his enemies and be convinced that his presents are appreciated.' "
A fine present, this set of trophies, evidence of 954 murders which
spared neither age nor infirmity, man, woman or child or even babe
227




unborn-to forward to a monarch by the grace of God and defender of
the faith!
Settlers continued to be murdered right and left by prowling bands of
Indians, and many of them after being captured were submitted to the
most horrible tortures. The first torture would be to run the gauntlet
between double files of savages, armed with any weapon they chose to
use. Those condemned to death were stripped naked and painted
black. Sometimes their flesh would be filled with large pine splinters
and these would be set on fire. Some would be impaled on red hot
irons, or pinned fast to the ground and roasted under a fire of brush.
Others would be fired at with blank charges of powder at such close
range that the burning powder would penetrate far into their flesh.
The most common method was to tie prisoners to a stake and build a
wall of fire about them at a distance of about twenty feet so that they
would linger for hours in dreadful torture. Girty was frequently present at such scenes and often scoffed at the victims; but it is also known
that he rescued many from such a death.
In March, 1780, Simon Girty was at Detroit to conduct Captain Bird
to an attack upon Louisville, where the Virginians had a fort of some
strength under command of Gen. George Rogers Clark. They started
with a considerable force of Canadians, most of them mounted, and
carried two light pieces of cannon. On the route Girty called out the
Indians at different villages in the Miami valley, until the force
amounted to 600 men. They could not reach Louisville during the
high water of the freshet season, so they attacked two snmall settlements-Ruddle's Station, known as Fort Liberty, and Martin's Station,
both on the Licking River, immediately south of where Cincinnati
now stands. It was impossible for the settlers to make resistance
against such a force, so they surrendered upon promise of protection.
Captain Bird was unable to control the savages, however, and a number of settlers were slaughtered and scalped. Girty succeeded in lpleventing a general massacre. The settlers who survived, numbering
about 400, were loaded with their own household goods and hurried to
Detroit on foot as prisoners of war. A number escaped, but 350 of the
settlers arrived at Detroit on August 4, 1780. TPhe horrors of such a
march, where the men, women and children were loaded with burdens,
needs no description.
In the summer of 1780 Joseph Brant, chief of the Mohawk nation,
with a force of warriors, marched from Detroit to Niagara apd. from


228




there to Oswego. He went to punish the Oneidas, who had refused
to join with the British, and sympathized with the Americans. Marching inland he attacked and burned several villages of the Oneida
nation, and the latter took refuge in the forts at Stanwix and Schenectady, in New York. This is the only noticeable case where two
nations of the Iroquois confederacy took different sides during the
Revolution.
Moravian missionaries had several times warned the American commandants at Fort Pitt (Pittsburg) and other frontier posts of the approach of Girty and his Indians, and of Col. John Butler and his rangers,
who always aimed to surprise the Americans. In the fall of 1780 a
grand council of the Iroquois was called by Alexander McKee, the
British Indian agent, and was held at Detroit. At the council he asked
the Six Nations to break up the Moravian settlements at Gnadenhutten,
Salem and Schoenbrun, all three in southern Ohio. It was a class of
dirty work which the Iroquois did not care to undertake, so they sent
word to the Chippewas, accompanied by a wampum belt, that they
might " make soup," if they wished, of the Christian Indians who were
being taught by the Moravian missionaries.  But even these fierce
northern savages did not care to kill their own race without cause. The
Moravians were a peculiar religious sect who termed themselves" United
Brethren in Christ." They developed from the missions which carried
Christianity into Bohemia in the ninth century, and began to assume
their present form as a religious society in the fourteenth century.
They came to America in 1735 to evangelize the Indians, first settling
in Georgia, but afterward removing to Pennsylvania where they founded
the towns of Bethlehem, Nazareth and Lititz. From there they sent
missionaries over into Ohio and also into Michigan. Gnadenhutten, on
the Tuscarawas River, was their chief settlement in Ohio, the name
signifying " tents of grace." The Moravian church was a sort of religious communism.  It held all real estate as church property and
would not sell to persons outside the society. Personal property belonged to the individual, but the church exercised a temporal as well
spiritual authority over its adherents until'1844. The Moravians were
lovers of peace, and would not offer resistance to their oppressors.
They taught their followers humility and industry; when one died in
the faith it was a matter of rejoicing rather than mourning, and their
funeral processions were accompanied with the blowing of trumpets
and trombones. Each member was pledged to do what he could toward
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evangelizing the Indians, and their communities were the abodes of
peace and general happiness except when invaded by their oppressors.
In the spring of 1781 Col. Matthew Elliott, who had deserted the
American army with Girty, went to the Moravian villages, resolved to
get rid of the non-combatants at any cost. They made no resistance
and were placed in charge of a Frenchman named Le Villiers, who
took them, several hundred in number, to Detroit. Girty hated the
Moravian missionaries, and tried to get the young Miamis to murder
them, but the Delawares would not permit it. He ordered Le Villiers
to rush them to Detroit under the lash, allowing the women no time to
rest or to prepare food, but Le Villiers was a humane man and
showed them as much kindness as he could, and shielded them when
he could from the brutality of the savages. David Zeisberger, over
sixty years of age, John Heckewelder, Gottlieb Senseman, John Jacob
Schemick, John Bull and William Edwards, were the missionaries in
this party. Their villages were depopulated and the corn crop was
left unharvested in the fields. The prisoners were ill clad, many being
barefoot, and they were torn with briars and almost perishing from
hunger and fatigue when they arrived at their destination. As they
came near Detroit the squaws and young Indians set upon them and
beat them cruelly. James May, of Detroit, went out to witness their
arrival, when two girls, thirteen and fourteen years of age respectively,
broke away from their tormentors and fled to him for protection. The
Indians pursued, and, as the girls were clinging to May, that citizen,
who was a very large man, weighing about 300 pounds, defended them
with his fists and knocked two of the Indians down. He then took the
girls to the council house for shelter. The Indians complained to Captain McKee, and the latter went to De Peyster in a passion, saying
that his Indians must be allowed to do as they pleased with their victims, or they would desert the British cause. De Peyster summoned
May before him and said that he would send him to a dungeon at
Montreal if he ever dared to interfere between the Indians and their
captives again. When the Moravian missionaries had been brought
before Commandant De Peyster and the council house was filled with
Indian chiefs, who had been called to consider the missionary matter,
Girty told the assemblage that the Moravians were friends of the Revolutionists, and had given valuable information to the American commanders by apprising them of the movements of the British scalping
parties. Captain Pipe, the Delaware chief, a magnificent savage, arose


230




and addressed De Peyster, saying: "You Englishmen may fight the
Americans, your brothers, if you choose; the quarrel is yours, not ours.
The Indians have no cause or reason for taking sides and shedding their
blood in this war, but you have set them upon the Americans as the
hunter sets his dog upon the game." At this moment he took from an
Indian at his side a pole strung with white settlers' scalps. " Look,
father! here is what has been done with the hatchet you gave me. I
have made use of it as you ordered me to do, and I found it sharp."
Like most of the Delawares he had no particular grudge against the
Americans, but instead of remaining on their own lands in southern
New York, where their neutrality would be in doubt, most of the tribe
came to Ohio to assure the Senecas that they were to be trusted. The
British had hired some of them to take part in some raids, but Captain
Pipe was disgusted with the style of warfare. He was averse to warring upon the settlers and bitterly opposed to attacking the unoffending
Moravians.
The Moravians were kept at Detroit for several weeks, during which
the commandant and the Indian agents tried to induce them to take up
the cause of the British, but they refused to fight on either side. In
order to get rid of the expense of keeping them they were acquitted in
November and sent to Upper Sandusky, there to be kept under guard
by Half-King, head chief of the Wyandottes. Provisions soon ran low
at Sandusky and something had to be done, so a party of ninety-six
Moravian Indians, mostly Delawares, was allowed to go back to their
villages to gather the unharvested corn. They were accompanied by
a delegation of Wyandottes, ostensibly to insure their return to the
Half King's village, but perhaps for a more sinister purpose. Under
the lead of the Wyandottes they divided into small parties and went by
different routes. One party, led by Wyandottes, surprised Mrs. Robert
Wallace in her cabin during the absence of her husband, and, with
awful barbarity, killed her and three of her children. The bodies of
the dead were stripped and the bloody clothing was carried to the Moravian village of Gnadenhutten, and there left in the cabins. Another
party murdered John Fink, an American settler, and carried his bloody
clothing to the village. A third party carried John Carpenter of Buffalo Creek into captivity. The Wyandottes then went away, leaving
the Moravians unguarded. News of these raids caused James Marshel
to order out the militia of Washington county, Pa., of which he had
command, and Col. David Williamson, at the head of this body of men,


231




went across the border to punish the marauders. They arrived at the
Moravian villages and took the Indians into custody to march them
away to Fort Pitt, but after they had shut their captives in two of the
houses, a party of the white men found the bloody clothing of the murdered settlers hidden about the houses. They concluded that the Moravians were dangerous hypocrites, who had been responsible for many
of the murders. Wild with passion they rushed to where the unarmed
Indians were awaiting transportation to Fort Pitt. Entering the houses,
they said to the Indians, " You are murderers and you must die." The
Indians sank to their knees and began to pray, when one of the rangers
seized a mallet and struck several of them dead. Handing the mallet
to another the slaughter was resumed, guilty and innocent falling
alike, until ninety-four of the ninety six Indians lay dead. Two Indian
boys alone escaped to tell the dreadful story. This murderous act
aroused every Indian in the country, and those who had entered into
the marauds of the British in a half-hearted way before, were now fired
with vengeance. Their wrath was visited principally upon the settlers,
but before many months they had their revenge upon the soldiers as
well.
In the summer of 1781 the Spanish commandant at St. Louis, on
the Mississippi, organized a raid against the British post at St. Joseph
on Lake Michigan. With about 300 men he marched 600 miles across
Illinois, and when he arrived before the log fort at the mouth of the St.
Joseph River, the small British garrison took to the woods and ran
away to Detroit. The report of this attack created some alarm at
Detroit, but the Spaniards contented themselves with destroying the
fort and burning the palisades and the houses. The invaders took all
the stores of provisions and then marched back to St. Louis. It was
the last attempt made by the Spaniards against the British.


232




ELISHA TAYLOR.








CHAPTER XXXI.


Martyrdom of Colonel Crawford-He is Burned at the Stake by the IndiansSimon Girty, the Renegade, Scoffs at His Agonies-Dr. Knight's Story of the
Tortures.
In the spring of 1782 Col William Crawford, an American officer of
Westmoreland, Pa., started from Pittsburg with 480 mounted volunteers to make a raid against the Indians of the Upper Sandusky villages. General Irvine, commandant at Fort Pitt, supplied him with
ammunition and sent Dr. John Knight and John Rose, one of his aides,
to accompany the expedition. The soldiers met a large party of
Indians and British near Upper Sandusky on June 5 and had an engagement at a place known as Battle Island, situated in what is now
Crane township, Wyandot county. Captain Elliott and Lieutenant
Clinch, of the British force, conducted themselves with great gallantry,
as did John Rose and John Gunsalus of the Americans. Simon Girty
was also very active in the fight. Darkness parted the contestants,
and both sides slept on their arms, each building large fires and then
retiring some distance to avoid a surprise. Instead of resuming the
fight at daybreak Colonel Crawford made a fatal mistake by waiting
for his men to recuperate. A reinforcement of Shawnees arrived at the
British camp during the day. The Americans learned of it, and at a
council of war it was decided to retire at night and make the best possible retreat from the dangerous position. During the march through
the forest that night, Colonel Crawford, Major McClelland, Captain
Briggs, Dr. Knight, John Slover and about twenty others, who were
riding in the rear, became separated from the command, which was led
by Colonel Williamson and John Rose. The main army crossed the
Ohio on June 13, losing but three killed and eight wounded while
en route. Colonel Crawford and his men strayed eastward and they
were captured at noon on June 7, at a place which is now the site of
Leesville, Crawford county, Ohio. A party of Delawares and Shawnees took them toward Sandusky, but the prisoners were confident
that Girty and the British officers would procure their exchange.
233
30




Captain Pipe, the Delaware chief, told them they would come to no
harm. But he painted black the faces of Crawford and ten other prisoners, which was equivalent to a death warrant among the savages.
Colonel Crawford and Dr. Knight were marched in the rear and were
guarded by Captain Pipe and Wingemund, another Delaware chief,
while the other prisoners went on ahead. Soon after setting out
Crawford and Knight came upon the bodies of four of the other prisoners lying mutilated beside the road. Crawford asked Captain Pipe.about the fate of his son William, and his son-in-law, William Harrison,
who had been captured during the battle, and was told that they had
been sent to Detroit  They had, however, been burnt at the stake
during the previous night. At Tymoochtee Creek a party of squaws
and boys attacked the helpless prisoners who were just ahead of Crawford and Knight, and butchered them. Then they slapped the faces
of the colonel and the surgeon with the bloody scalps. That night
Colonel Crawford was stripped naked, beaten with switches, and tied
to a post about fifteen feet high with enough rope to enable him to
walk several times about the post. Dr. Knight was tied at a short distance away where he could see the torturing of his commander.
"Do they intend to burn me, Girty," asked the Colonel.
"Yes, you are a doomed man," replied Girty.
Crawford offered $1,000 in money for his release and, it is said,
offered to give valuable information, but the Indians were determined
to avenge the murder of the Moravians upon him and Dr. Knight.
He had known Girty nearly all his life, and when it became apparent
that he must endure the torture he composed himself like a brave man
and said to the renegade: " I shall try to bear it patiently." Captain
Pipe arose and delivered an impassioned address to the warriors, reciting the story of the Moravian massacre. At the conclusion of his
speech a large fire of hickory poles was built at a distance of twenty
feet from the post where Crawford was tied, and the savages with yells
of frenzy began their awful work. They loaded their guns with powder only, and fired seventy charges into the naked flesh of their victim
at such close range that the burning powder was driven through
Colonel Crawford's skin. Then they cut off his ears, and the young
boys took the burning poles from the fire and jabbed them into his
flesh. The squaws scooped up the coals with pieces of bark and threw
them upon him as he ran about the post to escape his tormentors.
Soon the ground was a mass of burning coals beneath his feet.
234




" Girty! Girty! " called the colonel in tones of agony, "shoot me to
the heart and end this torture."
Girty laughed in a heartless manner and said: " How would I shoot
you? Don't you see I have no gun? "
Then he turned to joke with an Indian who stood beside him, ridiculing the sorry figure the colonel was making. Crawford walked
about the stake for a long time, praying for death. The odor of his
burning flesh filled the air, and his feet were broiling upon the coals,
but he showed no signs of weakness. A young Indian rushed in,
knocked him down and kneeling on his prostrate body tore his scalp
off. The tortured man lay as if dead on the ground. A squaw ran up
and threw a quantity of hot coals upon his bared skull and he arose
and shook them off, and then resumed his agonizing march about the
stake. His scalp was slapped against Dr. Knight's face, and the doctor was told that he would be treated in the same fashion at the Shawnee town next evening. For three hours Colonel Crawford walked in
his fiery trialand then he fell. No further tortures could bring him
to his feet, so the coals of the great fire were heaped above his body and
it was totally consumed. Dr. Knight escaped that evening and brought
the story to Pittsburg.
In the spring of 1782 Col. William Caldwell, of Detroit, established
his headquarters among the Miamis and Delawares where Piqua, Ohio,
now stands. His lieutenants were McKee, Elliot, and Simon Girty.
They had a force of 1,1 00 Indians at hand, and 300 more within a day's
march. Captain Joseph Brant, of Detroit, was also with this army.
In July they made a raid into Kentucky and attacked Bryan's Station,
but could not capture it. Col. John Todd, a Kentuckian, started, with
150 Kentuckians, to relieve the garrison, but the siege had already
been raised. Todd and his men came upon the enemy at Blue Lick
Springs on August 19, and fell into an ambush. Seventy men were
killed on the spot and seven were taken prisoners, while the British
and Indians lost but eleven men. That fall General Clark made a raid
into the Shawnee towns and destroyed the villages at Piqua and Lorimer's trading post at the mouth of the Miami. His 150 rangers lost
but one man killed, and they killed ten Indians and took seven prisoners. For some time thereafter the Indians could not be induced to
attack American settlers.
Girty's suspicions of the Moravians were not allayed; he had a
horror of capture by the Americans, knowing that he would be exe235




cuted as a traitor. In March, 1782, he led another company to the
Moravian settlements and hurried the missionaries to the mouth of
the Sandusky River and from there they were taken to Detroit in
ships. This time they were treated kindly, but De Peyster said they
must not remain longer in their settlements on the Ohio border; that
they could either settle in the Michigan region north of Detroit, or
they could go back to their towns in Central Pennsylvania. Their
Indian followers, by direction of the Indian agents, had been scattered
as much as possible, but a few came to Detroit to join the missionaries.
The latter were David Zeisberger, Jacob Jungman, Gottlieb Senseman,
John Heckewelder, John Bull, William Edwards, Michael Jung and
others. They discussed the proposition made by De Peyster, and decided to settle in and about Detroit. As the Moravian Indians preferred to remain in Detroit, Heckewelder and Senseman remained
with them at first, while the others went up to Lake St. Clair and
made a new settlement on the south side of the Clinton River near the
present site of Mt. Clemens. They named the settlement New Gnadenhutten, in memory of their abandoned settlement in the Ohio valley.
Here they remained until 1786, preaching the gospel to both whites
and Indians. Meanwhile the Chippewa Indians resented their settling
on these lands, which they claimed to belong to that tribe. The Chippewas were willing that the Moravians should settle there during the
war, but now that peace was restored they must depart. Major
Ancram, the British commandant at Detroit from 1784 to 1786, sustained the claim of the Chippewas and told the missionaries not to
clear any more land. When they were leaving, Heckewelder asked
several leading Detroiters, among whom was John Askin, to intercede
with Major Ancram to have their property protected, as their settlement of nearly sixty families, exclusive of the missionaries, owned
twenty-four log houses, and a number of persons were waiting there
intending to occupy them after their departure. The missionary asked
for compensation for the houses and other improvements.  Major
Ancram and John Askin, in a joint letter, said they would advance
/,200 on the prospective sale of the houses, and that persons would be
detached to take charge of the property until it was sold. They were
also guarantied protection and safe conduct to their destination when
they left the settlement. The Moravians left New Gnadenhutten in
twenty-two canoes on April 20, 1786, and came to Detroit; they left
Detroit on April 28, on the sloops Beaver and Mackinaw, and after four


236




weeks' tossing about in Lake Erie storms, reached the mouth of Cuyahoga River, at the present site of the city of Cleveland. Here they
built several bark canoes, and traversing the Cuyahoga and Tuscarawas Rivers, they finally reached old Gnadenhutten, in what is now
Tuscarawas county, near New Philadelphia, Ohio. Congress bestowed
upon them three tracts of 4,000 acres and at that place. They lived
there until about 1807 when the influx of white settlers and traders,
and their whisky, demoralized their Indian converts. The settlement
was then removed to River Raisin, in Ohio. Its after history may be
learned in works devoted to the subject. At the present day the denomination has over 100,000 communicants and its theologicalheadquarters are at Bethlehem, Pa., and at Salem, N. C.
Father Potier, the Jesuit in charge of the Huron mission of Detroit
at Sandwich, was very feeble in the spring of 1781. On July 16, while
in his study, he was attacked by vertigo and fell down. His head
struck an andiron in the fireplace, his skull was fractured and he died
without regaining consciousness. Commandant De Peyster, following
his instructions in regard to the Jesuit property, immediately seized
everything at the mission, including the priest's papers, hoping to
acquire valuable information in regard to the French element and their
relations with the Indians, but he was unsuccessful. It was found that
Father Potier, anticipating such action, had sold all the lands of the
mission, which had been granted by the Indians, including the church,
mission house and burying ground, to Francois Pratt, one of his parishioners, taking a mortgage running to the Company of Jesus. This
mortgage in the course of time was paid to Francis Xavier Hubert,
vicar-general of Detroit, and afterward bishop of Quebec. The church
and cemetery were both deeded to the church several years afterward.
The papers seized did not contain the information sought by the British
commandant. It was found that Father Potier had removed the leaves
of his private diary, which referred to events in 1761-63, and thus the
curiosity of the commandant was balked. The death of the pious and
able priest ended the Huron mission of Detroit. The later history of
the Hurons has been already related in this book.
When peace was declared in 1783, Girty was ordered to call all the
chiefs of eleven Indian nations to Detroit. De Peyster told them that the
war was over and that they should now bury the hatchet. Presents
were sent to all the tribes, and while McKee and Elliott became Indian
agents, Girty became an interpreter at the post of Detroit. In 1784


237




lie married Catherine Malott, whose parents and brother and sister, as
before related, had been butchered on the Ohio during the wars.
They settled upon a piece of land about a mile and a half below Fort
Malden (Amherstburg), near the mouth of the Detroit River.
It is a characteristic of the British that they never yield territorial
possessions with good grace. The terms of the treaty of Versailles surrendered Detroit and Michigan to the Americans, and it gave to the
Americans the sole privilege of purchasing lands from the western
Indians within certain limits. When the British had reviewed the
treaty they considered that they had surrendered too much. The vast
extent of the western territory was not realized by the commissioners
who signed the treaty, but was better known in this country. Although
no protest against the terms of the treaty already signed could be made
by the British with any show of propriety, there were pretexts at hand
which gave them an excuse for holding fast to Detroit, Mackinaw,
Niagara, Oswego and Fort Miami on the Maumee, while they endeavored to push their claims for other territory which they had already
surrendered.
CHAPTER XXXII.
Great Britain's Motives for Ignoring the Treaty of Peace-Determined to Hold the
Border Posts from Which to Renew the War on the Colonists-Why They Held
Detroit Unjustly for Thirteen Years.
The generally accepted theory among American authorities is that
the excuses made by the British for not carrying out their treaty agreements were merely pretexts to cover their determined purpose to retain possession of Detroit and the Northwest. The reasons were
apparent. By holding this territory they controlled the lucrative fur
trade, which was a virtual monopoly in the hands of the Hudson Bay
Company and the merchants of Montreal. The representatives of
their interests in London were in close touch with the British government, which is always solicitous for the advancement of trade-a nation's chief strength. The retention of the Northwest would also give
a vantage ground from which to renew the war against the colonies.
The English never give up a project until after they are defeated, and
238




sometimes not then, and there was a strong sentiment at home that
this territory should be reclaimed by the mother country. Above all
things it would enable the British to retain the support of the Indians,
who could be depended on to fight England's battles in the event of war.
That this object was not only entertained, but that it succeeded, is evidenced by the fact that the Indians of the West, within the American
territory, were the allies of the British in the war of 1812. In this
struggle England's savage contingent committed some of the most
devilish atrocities in the annals of so-called civilized warfare. There is
also damning evidence that the English incited the Indians against the
American white settlers, and were responsible for the most horrible
crimes against men, women and children. It is shown by official
records that as far back as 1778 the redskins were being urged to violence by the infamous Simon Girty and other agents, and that under
Girty's orders they assisted in bringing guns to Detroit for the purpose of strengthening the British position. In 1793, prompted by the
same power behind the throne, the general council of Indians declared
that they would not believe that the United States intended to do
them justice unless it was agreed that Ohio should be the boundary line
between them and the Indian territory of the Northwest. This was in
accordance with the British policy of having a " buffer state " next to
their own dominions in America, which could be controlled in the
British interests. The American government would not acquiesce in
this proposition to alienate the Northwest, because it knew that it was
inspired by Great Britain.
Why this section was not evacuated by the British in compliance with
the treaty of 1783, has ever since been a subject of controversy and has
not yet been determined. It was among the stipulations of that treaty
that Great Britain should be allowed a reasonable time within which to
withdraw her forces from this country, but even the most radical defenders of the British policy do not attempt to claim that her action
was justified under this provision. It took eight years to drive British
soldiers from the United States, and that Great Britain should take
thirteen years to completely withdraw from the victorious country,
seemed to be an arrogant breach of faith. The contention made by
the British and their defenders ever since has been that the United
States had failed to comply with the requirements of the treaty, A
special count in this charge was that British merchants were creditors
of merchants in this country; that the new government had agreed in
239




the treaty to guarantee the payment of these debts; that several States
had refused to comply with this agreement because they had no constitutional right to do so; and because of all this the British government
rightly refused to surrender the sovereignty of the northwest territory
until the British merchants were paid or secured. The excuse of the
American merchants and others for not paying their British debts was
that slaves which had been taken from some of the settlers by the British, were to be restored, but the return had not been made. Baron
Steuben, who was a close friend of Washington, was dispatched on
diplomatic service to Quebec, to secure an adjustment of the existing
disputes. Baron Steuben asked for the fulfillment of the treaty by the
surrendering of the forts in the lake country, Detroit, Niagara and
Oswego, but he was coolly informed that Great Britain had concluded
to hold them because when the treaty was signed the commissioners had not understood that so much valuable territory was being surrendered. Steuben had intended to proceed up the lakes and take
formal possession, but Sir Frederick Haldimand, governor at Quebec,
refused to grant him passports. The purpose of the British was then
unmasked, and the old practices were resorted to of setting the Indians
upon the Americaf settlers. This engendered a bitterness which not
only led to a sharp diplomatic correspondence, but in 1794 made a
second war imminent.
In 1782, when the fortune of war had turned in favor of the American cause, the Iroquois, who had fought for the British, were greatly
disheartened. Their employers had promised to drive the Americans
away from the Indian territory they had seized, and to place the original owners again in possession. When the inability of the British to
do this became apparent the Indians reproached Governor Haldimand
and his agents, saying that the Americans were about to win their independence and become rulers of the country.  In that case the
IrQquois would forever lose their lands and the Americans would certainly wreak vengeance upon them for the part they had taken. The
Oneidas, on the other hand, they said, had done no fighting, but they
had been given a safe refuge at Fort Stanwix and Schenectady, when
they were attacked by Joseph Brant and the rest of the Indians of the
Six Nations in 1780. Brant had destroyed their villages, but they
would be restored to their lands and could soon rebuild, while the
other five nations would be outcasts. In 1783, when the American settlers had begun to flock into the Ohio valley, the Indians were in

240




W1%, I :, - I "I "",  %,
i     11                                        j        ,     I


THOMAS BERRY.








formed at a council, by the British agents, that the Americans were
preparing to invade their country to kill off the game and to drive the
aborigines, who were rightful owners, out of their possessions. The
agents said the Americans were plotting to deprive the Indians of the
protection of their great father, the king of England. The character
given the "Yankees" by the British agents was far from flattering,
and when the council broke up its members went home to inflame the
prejudice and hatred of their people. The British agents promised
them arms and ammunition, to be delivered at Detroit, and rewards
were to be paid for the scalps of American settlers who were found
north of the Ohio or west of New York. Spain was brought into the
quarrel as a sort of ally to Great Britain. The Americans were forbidden the right to navigate the Mississippi River, and when the right
was insisted upon, Spanish agents were sent into the Indian country
to aid in perfecting an Indian confederacy, which, it was believed,
would prevent all attempts to extend the colonies westward. Alexander McKee, the British Indian agent, was entrusted with the task of
uniting the northern tribes in a confederacy. He painted himself like
an Indian and donned the Indian garb to impress upon the Indians
that he was their friend and brother. Each tribe he visited was informed that all the other tribes were in arms ready for a descent upon
the settlements of Virginia, Ohio and Kentucky. All the horrors of
Revolutionary days were to be repeated and the savage dogs of war
were to be set upon the settlers once more.
Again Detroit became the emporium for hatchets and guns, powder
and ball, red-handled scalping knives and rumn and these were dealt
out to the Indians with a lavish hand. Hunters were sent out against
the noblest of game and were promised rewards for human scalps.
During the days of the Revolution there was a secret understanding
between the various commandants at Detroit and the merchant-justice,
Dejean, and in consequence there was no report of the revenues of the
post. In 1784 Henry Hamilton, the ex-commandant, was ordered to
prepare a statement of all the revenues of that period, and his report
to Governor General Haldimand says: " I have the honor to enclose to
your excellency the best statement I have been able to procure of the
territorial and casual revenues collected at Detroit between April, 1775,
and April, 1782, amounting to ~,2,729 2s. 6d., New York currency, or.~1,535 2s. 8d. sterling; as required in the words of Major Matthews's
letter of October, 1782."
241
31




De Peyster was very well satisfied with his command at Detroit,
where he also succeeded in holding all the revenues, and he wanted to
remain permanently at the post. But Lieutenant Jehu Hay, who was
stationed at Niagara, had family influence, which, in 1782, had secured
his appointment as lieutenant-governor of Detroit, making him the
superior of De Peyster. The latter was a man of considerable ability
and far above Hay in rank. The contemplated change provided that
De Peyster was to be continued in the position of commandant, but he
rallied his friends to his support and they remonstrated with Governor
Haldimand, saying that it would be ridiculous to put a half-pay lieutenant and a man of no apparent ability in authority over a colonel of
the British army, who had done long service for the king. De Peyster
by various machinations managed to hold to his position for more than
a year after his successor was appointed. In the fall of 1783 he was
transferred to Niagara and Hay was ordered to Detroit, as it was evident that the two officers never could be at peace. Hay started for
Detroit, but was taken sick with malarial fever and went to Montreal
instead, where he remained until the following summer. He came to
his command in 1784 and proceeded to file charges against his predecessor. Commandant De Peyster was charged with official neglect of
duty, incompetence and crookedness. The charges stated that De Peyster had permitted certain residents to inclose lands adjoining their property upon payment of a fee; that he had neglected the fortifications so
that the whole river front of the palisades had fallen outward and floated
off down the river, compelling the erection of a new front to the fort at
considerable expense. He was also charged with permitting large quan
tities of wood to be piled close to the walls of the fort, thereby endangering its security. De Peyster, in a letter written to Governor Haldimand
from Niagara, on October 27, 1784, replied in detail. The lands inclosed
were fenced by his order, he said. They were situated on a hill near
the fort, immediately back of a row of houses, and had long been a
dumping ground for rubbish and a resort for drunken Indians. He
had ordered them inclosed to get rid of a nuisance and had received no
fee from adjoining property owners. This he asserted " on the honor
of a gentleman."  High water in the river he said had washed away
the palisades before the damage of the freshet could be prevented, and
he had allowed settlers to pile their wood on the high ground about the
fort in order to prevent it from being washed away in the flood. But
it is a notable fact that Detroit River is not subject to floods, and


242




either the season alluded to was an unusual one, or De Peyster's veracity may justly be questioned. Hay did not succeed in ruining De Peyster, but the crown demanded and reserved the revenues of the post so
that his office was less profitable than he had anticipated. His disappointment so preyed upon him that in the fall of 1785 he had another
attack of malarial fever and died just thirteen months after his arrival.
Col. Arent Schuyler De Peyster was a great-grandson of Johannes
De Peyster, a Huguenot refugee who settled on Manhattan Island under Dutch rule in a very early day and died there in 1685. Colonel
De Peyster was born in New York in 1736. Although of French ancestry and American birth, he was always attached to the British cause.
He was a soldier in the British army during the last days of the seven
years war, which resulted in the downfall of the French. His siding
with the British against the people of his own blood was probably due
in part to the religious feeling, for the descendants of the Huguenots
seldom forgot the persecutions of their ancestors at the hands of the
Catholic French, and they no doubt found the society of the Protestant
English more congenial. His American birth and French ancestry in
part explain why De Peyster was not made lieutenant-governor at Detroit, and why the office was given to Jehu Hay, an inferior soldier of
British connections. De Peyster was a man of education and considerable refinement; he had a taste for literature and his accomplished
lady was the social leader in Detroit during the years of their residence
at this place. Soon after the close of the war of the Revolution he left
Niagara and went to Dumfries, Scotland. At the close of the French
Revolution, which was followed by the rise of Napoleon, the British
people were constantly expecting a French invasion and every town
had its body of militia. De Peyster became an officer and a drill master of the Dumfries soldiers in 1796, when he made the acquaintance
of a tall, swarthy, black-eyed recruit named Robert Burns. The poet
and the soldier became fast friends in spite of their difference in social
rank.
When Burns was stricken with his last illness and was confined to his
bed De Peyster sent daily to inquire after his welfare, and this attention pleased the poet so much he wrote his last verses; "A Poem on
Life," directed to his commander. The first stanza reads:
"My honored Colonel, deep 1 feel
Your interest in the poet's weal.
Ah! sma' heart ha'e I now to speel


243




The steep Parnassus
Surrounded thus by bolus, pill
And potion glasses."
De Peyster was himself a poet of some pretensions, having published
a small volume of verses. He also conducted a political controversy
with Burns in the Dumfries Journal. De Peyster died at Dumfries in
1832.
In the year 1784 a Mr. Brass came from the east and erected a saw
mill and grist mill at Detroit. The expense was borne by government and Governor Haldimand paid /485 New York currency, or
about $1,200, for the two jobs.
CHAPTER XXXIII.
Indian Wars Following the Revolution-British Influence Causes Constant Violations of Treaties-Disastrous Campaigns of Gen. Josiah Harmar and Gen. Arthur
St. Clair-Mad Anthony Wayne Wins a Signal Victory-1784-1792.
In 1784 murders were common in all the region about Pittsburg,
and Indian raids from Detroit were frequent. Col. Josiah Harmar, of
the Continental army, was ordered to mass a strong force of Pennsylvania rangers at Fort Pitt in 1784, and to call a council with the Indians
of the West for the purpose of restoring peace on the border. The
troops were to serve as a guard for Arthur Lee, Richard Butler and
George Rogers Clark, the treaty commissioners appointed by Congress.
Messages were sent to all the tribes asking their chiefs to come to the
council, but McKee and Elliott warned the British at Detroit that peace
would be followed by an encroachment of American settlers, and these
agents were sent in company with Simon Girty to dissuade the Indians
from making a treaty. A treaty was finally made with the Wyandottes, Delawares, Chippewas and Ottawas, and signed at Fort McIntosh on the Ohio, in January, 1785. The British agents kept the
Shawnees, Cherokees, Senecas or Mingoes, and the Miamis from joining, and stirred them up to renew hostilities against the Americans.
The Cherokees made a raid down the Scioto, Hocking, Muskingum and
Tuscarawas valleys in September, 1785. In November another coun244




cil was called by Congress at the mouth of the Miami River, but Simon
Girty and Colonel Caldwell, of Detroit, worked against it among the
Indians. The Americans built a fort called Fort Finney at the mouth
of the Miami River, and on February 1 another treaty was signed.
By the terms of this treaty the Shawnees were allotted all the territory
lying between the Miami and the Wabash Rivers and south of the territory of the Miamis and Wyandottes. It was agreed that no settlers
were to encroach in this region. No sooner had the treaty been
signed than McKee, Elliott and Girty went into the Wabash valley to
persuade the Indians that they had been robbed by the terms of the
treaty, and in the spring of 1786, two months after the signing of the
treaty, the Shawnees were on the war path in pursuit of settlers in the
Scioto and Hocking valleys. This kind of see-sawing made too much
work for the British Indian agents. They saw that the Indians were
inclined to make peace with the settlers, so in June they gathered forty
chiefs of the various nations and went with them to Niagara to confer
with Sir John Johnson, son of the late Sir William. Sir John told the
Indians if they continued living independently and making war as independent tribes, they would soon be exterminated. Their only hope
for preservation against the encroachments of the Americans was to
organi e ns one nation. In that case, he said, they would be great in
peacc cr war. His language was vague and diplomatic, but the Indians understood it as advising them to make a general war upon
the American settlers in order to preserve themselves from destruction.
Then Joseph Brant, the great Mohawk chief, also known as Thayandanega, made a tour of Canada and gathered up another lot of chiefs
at Niagara to listen to Sir John Johnson's words of wisdom. Brant
was a well educated Indian, having received his schooling at the expense of Sir William Johnson, at Willoughby, Conn. He held a commission as captain in the British army and was a man of ability. At
the conclusion of this conference the forty chiefs were loaded with
presents and supplied liberally with rum, while Girty, Elliott, McKee
and Colonel Caldwell were granted tracts of land at the mouth of the
Detroit River near the present site of Amherstburg. A third council
was afterward held in the British interest, at the Huron village on Detroit River (Sandwich). Representatives of the Iroquois or Six Nations, and the Wyandottes, Ottawas, Miamis, Shawnees, Cherokees,
Chippewas, Potawatomies and Wabashes were present at this assembly,
which took place December 18, 1786. There a memorial was pre245




pared by the British representatives to be presented to the American
Congress. It pledged the several tribes to peace forever, providing
there should be no further influx of settlers into the western territory.
Even the chiefs had some misgivings as to the good faith of this document, so each man signed the totem of his tribe instead of signing his
individual mark. The memorial came to naught, as its purpose was
plainly apparent
During the summer of 1786 Benjamin Logan, a Kentucky pioneer,
led a raid through the villages of the Shawnees, who had so soon
broken their treaty, and captured eighty prisoners besides killing
twenty of their warriors.
In 1787 the American government held out various inducements to
soldiers of the late war if they would settle in the Ohio valley and the
tributary country, which was at that time ceded to the government by
Virginia and Connecticut. There was no cessation of murder or massacre, however. Between the years 1783 and 1790 over 1,500 men,
women and children were slaughtered by savages and their scalps were
brought to Detroit. Congress saw that a heavy blow must be struck
at the allied Indians and British, or the war of extermination would go
on indefinitely. It became necessary for the settlers and the British
to come together once more in a death grapple in order to secure
peace.
Gen. Josiah Harmar, a distinguished Pennsylvania officer, was
authorized to collect an army and make a raid against the hostiles in
1789. He was better adapted for civilized warfare than Indian fighting, but when he had mustered a motley crew of 1,400 men he thought
he was marching to a certain victory. General Knox, secretary of war,
foolishly sent word to the British at Detroit that a war was to be waged
against Indians only; the British immediately notified the Indians and
equipped them for the conflict. Harmar's force was badly clothed, ill
fed and poorly armed, and there was little discipline among his troops.
When the Indians retired beyond the Wabash, Harmar began to fear
they would not make a stand against him. He finally encountered the
Indians in large numbers where the city of Fort Waync, Ind., now
stands. They surprised his camp, routed the undisciplined soldiers,
and many were left dead on the field. Harmar retired in disgrace to
Fort Washington-the present site of Cincinnati. Success made the Indians all the fiercer and the settlers of the West were panic stricken at
their plight.


246




General St. Clair was called to Washington's home and the president
gave him careful advice in regard to fighting Indians. He furnished
him with a force of 2,300 regulars, who had fought in the Revolution,
and told him to fortify himself in every possible way against disaster
by building a line of forts across the west side of the Ohio territory,
extending from the mouth of the Big Miami to the mouth of the Miami
of the Lakes, or the Maumee. Above all things he was instructed to
keep his pickets well extended, so as to guard against surprise. St. Clair
was a victim of the gout and was hardly fit for the trust. On November 3, 1791, he arrived at the junction of the St. Joseph and St. Mary's
Rivers in Indiana, near the Ohio border. Next day his army was
beset on every side with Indians led by Little Turtle, chief of the
Miamis, and a force of British from Detroit. The American officers
formed their men in line of battle at close range in the open field, and
they were mowed down rapidly by their foes, who were concealed in
high grass and behind fallen trees. The American officers were picked
off first and the soldiers were soon left without commanders. A great
panic ensued. The militia, which had been in the rear acting as a reserve, were flanked and driven in upon the front. Many soldiers threw
away their guns and fled, only to be shot down and scalped. Out of a
force of 1,400 men, 593 were killed or missing, and 38 officers and 242
privates were wounded. Nothing but the bravery of Colonels Butler
and Darke and Major Clark saved the entire army from extermination. Each of these officers plunged into the thick of the fight and
rallied the scattering soldiers. Butler was shot through the arm and
leg, but fought until another bullet pierced his abdomen when he fell
mortally wounded. Simon Girty and the Indians came upon him as
he lay in agony on the field, and he begged Girty to kill him and put
him out of his misery. Girty called a savage to his side, who readily
drove his tomahawk into the dying man's brain. The Indians gathered
about the corpse of the brave man Butler, who had won their admiration
by his conduct in that awful hour, and they divided his heart into
pieces, giving one piece to each tribe present. Not a horse was left
alive and the artillery was abandoned. A poet soldier who accompanied the expedition wrote an epic on the subject of this battle, of
which one verse is enough:
"'Twas November the Fourth in the year 1791
We had a sore engagement near to Fort Jefferson;
St. Clair was our commander, which may remembered be,
For there we left 900 men in the western territory."
247




Washington was much incensed when he heard of the carelessness
which had caused such an appalling disaster. Next year Gen. Anthony Wayne, commander-in chief of the American army, was sent
against the Indians. The best officers of the army had been killed in
the two previous engagements, and the volunteers regarded another
war as inviting certain disaster. While General Wayne was at Pittsburg enlisting men and drilling them for the contest, Secretary of War
Knox suggested that he invite the Indians to a treaty council. He did
so, but the Indians were flushed with victory and would not listen.
Secretary Knox became panic stricken, and fearing that Wayne would
also be defeated, begged of him not to invite a conflict. In May, 1793,
General Wayne led his half drilled soldiers to Fort Washington (Cincinnati), where he enlisted some Kentucky rangers. Peace negotiations having failed, he advanced his army to Fort Jefferson, seventy
miles up the Miami, October 6, and a week later he was established at
Greenville, six miles further on. There he passed the winter'amid
great hardships, as his provision trains were sometimes captured by
the Indians and the escorts slaughtered. In order to educate his men
to the serious business at hand and train them in Indian warfare, General Wayne sent out a party to bury the dead who fell on St. Clair's
battlefield. Then he built a fort on the site and called it Fort Recovery. Every moment his men were on the alert against a surprise,
and the Indians began to fear the new commander, whom they called
" The Blacksnake," because of his swiftness and cunning. They
talked of peace to the British, but the latter scoffed them out of the
notion, and braced up their courage with rum and tales of their former
prowess. Wayne was now near the Miami fort, which xvas held by a
British garrison. Washingtorn authorized him, if it should become
necessary, to attack the fort and dislodge the garrison, although the
two nations were ostensibly at peace. On June 30 a small body of
Indians, led by British soldiers disguised as Indians, attacked a party
of dragoons or mounted riflemen. They were repulsed and next day a
messenger came to General Wayne and said the Indians would like to
make peace. Wayne demanded a surrender of all their prisoners as
an evidence of good faith, and the negotiations ceased. On July 10
General Scott arrived with more Kentucky rangers, and Wayne advanced close to Fort Miami, the British post, where he built a work
and named it Fort Defiance. It was situated at a point where the Maumee receives the waters of the Au Glaize River.


248




MERRILL B. MILLS.








August 20, 1792, found everything in readiness for a decisive battle.
The enemy were believed to be entrenched in strong force not far
away, and at eight o'clock that morning General Price's corps formed
a skirmish line, and deploying in front of the army, advanced down
the west bank of the Maumee River. For five miles they picked their
way with care amid a perfect silence. Suddenly puffs of smoke came
from the tall grass along the enemy's front and several of the skirmishers fell. The enemy were drawn out in battle array three lines
deep. Their left rested on the river bank and their right stretched
away for a distance of two miles into the forest. Some time before, a
tornado had swept over the forest and the trees had been thrown down
in great confusion, forming the best possible covert for Indian warfare. It was impossible to send the mounted men against them in this
position, but General Wayne mapped out his plan of battle while the
skirmishers were falling back to the support of the main body. The
Indians tried to turn his left flank but were balked. General Scott
was sent around to the enemy's right with his mounted rangers, making a long detour to get clear of the fallen timber and intending to fall
upon the Indian flank or rear. Capt. Robert Campbell was sent along
the river bank to turn the enemy's left. As soon as these were dispatched Wayne ordered his men in front to advance at double quick
with trailed arms and to drive the enemy from the grass and trees
with the bayonet. When they were dislodged the soldiers were to fire
at close range. So well and so swiftly was the last order executed that
the Indians were flying in a panic before the flanking parties were prepared to strike. The British and Canadians were driven out of their
concealment and joined in the flight. A force of 2,000 were flying
from an attacking party of only 900. Then General Scott came upon
the retreat, and his rangers made havoc with sword and bayonet.
Wayne advanced to within pistol shot of Fort Miami, while the enemy
was scattering panic stricken in all directions. In his report of the
fight the commander makes honorable mention of Col. John Francis
Hamtramck, who took command of Campbell's division when the latter
was shot down, General Wilkinson, Captains De Butts and Lewis,
Lieutenant Harrison and Adjutant Mills. The woods for a distance
of more than a mile were filled with the dead Indians and Canadians.
British guns and bayonets were scattered along the line of flight.
General Wayne stayed three days on the field and destroyed the houses
and crops about the British post. Among the property destroyed was
249
32




the house and stores of Captain McKee, the British Indian agent. It
was reported that reinforcements for the Indians were expected from
Niagara, and Wayne waited, hoping the enemy would make another
stand and give him another battle. During the fight General Wayne
was suffering from a severe attack of gout and his swollen legs were
swathed in flannels as they lifted him to his saddle. He soon forgot
his pain and was dashing about everywhere, stirring the soldiers on
the pursuit. Several days afterward Capt. Joseph Brant tried to reinforce the British Indians and lead them into another battle, but they
had a surfeit of fighting. Mad Anthony Wayne had inspired them
with terror, and they willingly signed a treaty at Greenville in 1795,
making very humble submission to the American government. The
blow had been struck which settled the fate of Detroit, as the British
could no longer urge the Indians against the Americans. In the following winter John Jay, minister to Great Britain, secured from the
British government an agreement by which the disputed forts, Detroit,
Niagara, Mackinaw, Oswego, and Fort Miami on the Maumee, were to
be surrendered to the Americans and all claims upon the territory
were to be given up.
Although the British government had refused to carry out the terms
of the treaty, which surrendered the right of purchase and settlement
in the region west of Pennsylvania and north of the Ohio, the American Congress went ahead with legislation, assuming that this territory
must eventually be surrendered. Previous to 1780 Virginia, Connecticut, New York and Massachusetts had each laid claim to the disputed
lands; but each of these States being unable to take possession through
their own powers, ceded their claims to the Federal government before
1787. As soon as this was done Congress began to prepare for possession, and in 1787 a code of special laws was passed to govern the vast
region, which was called the Northwest Territory. These laws were
prepared by Nathan Dane, an eminent legal authority of Massachusetts
and founder of the Dane Law School at Harvard, and Rev. Manasseh
Cutler. Dr. Cutler was negotiating at that time for the purchase of a
tract of 1,500,000 acres of land in the Ohio region, and he was anxious
that law and order should be enforced, and that slavery should be excluded from the western country. On October 16, 1787, as soon as legislation was provided for the Northwest Territory, President Washington
appointed Gen. Arthur St. Clair as governor, Winthrop Sargent as
secretary, and Samuel Holden Parsons, James Mitchell Varnum, and


250




John Armstrong as judges. Armstrong resigned February 19, 1788,
and the vacancy was filled by John C. Symmes. The governor and
judges were authorized to prepare such laws as became necessary for
the government of the Northwest Territory, but in strict conformity with
the National Constitution. At first the new territory comprised the
present States of Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin and part
of Minnesota.
CHAPTER XXXIV.
The British Evacuate Detroit, July 11, 1796-The Victory of General Wayne is
Followed by the Jay Treaty-Death of General Wayne-The Northwest Territory
Created before Possession was Secured by the Americans-Winthrop Sargent Gives
the Name of Wayne County to a Great Territory.
It was Monday, July 11, 1796, and the scene was the British military
post of Detroit. The sun rose brightly over the little town, Fort Lernoult, and the broad expanse of the beautiful river. At the first notes
of the bugle that sounded forth the reveille the banner of St. Georgethe meteor flag of England-was given to the breeze, the main gate or
entrance to the fort was opened, and red-coated sentinels were seen on
guard. The few privates left in the fort fell into ranks and answered
to their names, and then dispersed to get theirbreakfasts and help pack
up. There was to be no guard-mounting that day. All around could
be seen wagons loaded with household goods and military supplies, for
the "flitting" had commenced several days before, and the work of
building Fort Malden, at Amherstburg, had been going on for several
weeks. On the ramparts several officers conversed in groups, apparently
on a subject of engrossing interest, and the massive form of Col. Richard England appeared on the scene. Telescopes were brought out and
the river below was scanned with interest. Everybody in Detroit knew
that, by the terms of the Jay treaty, the fort and its dependencies were
surrendered by England to the United States, and that possession was
to be given on July 1. But from several causes the United States troops
had not come to claim their own. In the intervening days some evildisposed soldiers or others had destroyed several of the windmills that
lay on the river bank, and did some other mischievous acts, but these
251




were not probably sanctioned by the commandant, who was a gentleman and an old and experienced soldier.
It was about ten o'clock when the telescope discovered two vessels
coming around the bend of the river below the town. The flags were
not at first distinguishable, but in a short time they became plainer to
the lookers and the word went round: " The Yankees are coming!"
Nearer and nearer came the two vessels, which were small schooners,
each flying the Stars and Stripes. At this time a number of officers
and men went down to the king's wharf, which then projected about
150 feet into the river at the foot of Shelby street. At the wharf were
several loaded vessels, all ready to clear. The American vessels tacked
in and were fastened to the wharf, around which were gathered a
motley group of Indians, soldiers and white settlers. There is no
record of how the small American advance force was received  It was
strictly on a peace footing, for it numbered only sixty-five men. The
two vessels also contained several cannon, ammunition and provisions,
the whole being under the command of Capt. Moses Porter. Being
officers and gentlemen, it is more than probable that Colonel England and
his subordinates received them at the wharf with courtesy and good
feeling. That the latter feeling predominated is certainly true, for the
records show that the British commissary at Chatham loaned fifty pounds
of pork to the United States commissary for the use of the troops.
Meanwhile the only one to show emotion was the renegade, Simon
Girty, the miscreant who had laughed when Crawford, the American
officer, was being burned at the stake by the Indians near Sandusky.
Heseemed anxious to leave what was now American territory, and too
impatient to wait for the ferry boat, he spurred his horse into the river
and swam it over to Canada. On the bank on the opposite side he
stopped and furiously cursed the American government and its soldiers.
Like Marmion, when he had got outside of the Douglas castle,
"His shout of loud defiance pours,
And shook his gauntlet at the towers."
Then came the ceremony of taking possession.  The sixty-five
United States troops formed and marched up the hill to the fort.
They were probably received by the few British troops that were left,
with military honors. The British flag came down at noon, and then
the starry banner of the free was hoisted and Detroit and the Northwest became United States territory. A letter written by Colonel


252




England a few days later, on Bois Blanc Island, at the mouth of the
Detroit River, shows that he was in Detroit at the time of the evacuation. There was certainly no reason why he should not be present at
that time. The two nations were at peace and the evacuation was the
result of an amicable treaty, and it would have been boorish and discourteous for him to be absent. On the 13th came Col. John Francis
Hamtramck, who was in command of this post until the arrival of his
superior officer, "Mad Anthony" Wayne, who came in September.
It was fitting that General Wayne should be authorized to make official
visits to all the posts, and after he had received the thanks of Congress
he began his tour in the month of June, 1796, in the capacity of civil
commissioner as well as commander-in-chief. The Indians loved a
brave man and they received him at Detroit with great enthusiasm
when he arrived in September. The brave warrior's work was done.
He remained at Detroit two months and then set sail for Erie, November 17, but while on the way was attacked by the gout again. He was
carried ashore and died at Erie, December 15, 1796. At his request
he was buried at the foot of the flagstaff on the parade ground. Years
afterwards his remains were removed to St. David's church, in Radnor,
Pa., and when the parade ground was graded at Erie about forty years
ago, the last trace of his burial place was destroyed. General Wayne
was born in 1745 and was but forty-six years old at the time of his
death, but he had seen almost twenty years of fighting.
Little Turtle, who was in command of the Miamis in the battles
against Harmar, St. Clair, and Wayne, and was here at the time of the
evacuation, must have been a picturesque savage as well as a military
genius. His name was given not on account of his stature, for he was
said to be upward of six feet in height and powerfully built. He wore
a kilt or short skirt of bright blue flannel reaching nearly to the knee
and a coat and vest of European pattern. His Indian cap was a baggy
sort of turban which hung far down his back, and it was ornamented
with two hundred brooches of silver. He wore two rings in each ear
and from them depended strings of coins and medals twelve inches in
length, one string hanging in front of each shoulder and the others
behind. He also wore a nose jewel of large proportions. After the
battle with Wayne he became an enthusiastic admirer of his conqueror.
He died at Fort Wayne in 1812, aged sixty-five years.
In 1782 a number of British sympathizers residing in the revolted
colonies removed to Canada, the emigrants forseeing that the war was
253




going against their country, and that the lake region would probably
be the ground of a dispute, at the end of the Revolution. These emigrants, as a class, were of superior birth, means and education, and
they settled along the Canadian banks of the Thames, Detroit, St.
Clair and St. Lawrence Rivers, where they were styled United Empire
Loyalists. This movement, however, was not general in Detroit, for
many continued to believe that Great Britain would hold fast to the
northern territory. But this illusion was dispelled when Col. Hamtramck took possession of Detroit, in the name of the United States, in
1796. The population of Detroit numbered 2,190 in 1782, which included 178 slaves, but it soon fell off to about 500. This was afterward
increased by the arrival of some French immigrants, but immigration
from New York and New England did not begin until 1805, when the
population reached 2,200.
In 1792 Lieutenant-Governor Simcoe of Upper Canada organized all
the present State of Michigan and a strip of land running north as far
as Hudson Bay into the county of Kent. In August, 1796, less than a
month after the surrender of Detroit to the Americans, Secretary Winthrop Sargent, who accompanied Gen. Anthony Wayne on his trip to
Detroit, after consulting with several prominent residents, made a
public proclamation organizing the upper and lower peninsulas of
Michigan, and a strip of Wisconsin and Illinois, completely inclosing
Lake Michigan, into the county of Wayne. General Wayne was very
grateful for this compliment and he expressed his best wishes for the
future of the new county. General St. Clair, governor of the Northwest Territory, was absent at Pittsburg when the proclamation was
made, but when he heard of it he was very much provoked at his secretary for his presumption. The people of Detroit supported Sargent,
however, and the name stood.
The British governors who ruled over Canada and Detroit between
1760 and 1796 were eleven in number:
Sir Jeffrey Amherst ruled from 1760 to 1765 as commander-in-chief.
Sir James Murray from 1765 to 1766.
Paulus Emilius Irving in 1766.
Brigadier-General Guy Carleton from 1766 to 1770.
Hector Theophilus Cramahe, 1770 to 1774.
Sir Guy Carleton (second term), 1774 to 1778.
Sir Frederick Haldimand, 1778 to 1784.
Henry Hamilton, lieutenant-governor in 1784,


254




Henry Hope, lieutenant governor in 1785.
Lord Dorchester, formerly Sir Guy Carleton (third term), 1786.
John Graves Simcoe, lieutenant-governor, 1792-96.
CHAPTER XXXV.
Isaac Weld's Description of Detroit in 1796-Two thirds of the Residents are French
-Twelve Trading Vessels Carry its Commerce-Jacob Burnett, Solomon Sibley and
other Notables Arrive.
Isaac Weld made a tour of the States and Canada in 1795-96 and in
1799 published a book. He visited Detroit in October, 1796, three
months after the evacuation of the town by the British, and his description is very interesting:
"s Detroit contains about 300 houses," he wrote, " and is the largest town in the
western country. It stands contiguous to the river, on the top of the banks, which
are here about twenty feet high. At the bottom of them there are very extensive
wharfs for the accommodation of the shipping, built of wood, similar to those in the
Atlantic seaports. The town consists of severalstreets that run parallel to the river,
which are intersected by others at right angles. They are all very narrow, and not
being paved, dirty in the extreme whenever it happens to rain; for the accommodation of passengers, however, there are footways in most of them, formed of square
logs, laid transversely close to each other. The town is surrounded by a strong stockade, through which there are four gates, two of them open to the wharfs, and the
two others to the north and south side of the town respectively. The gates are defended by strong block-houses, and on the west side of the town is a small fort in the
form of a square, with bastions at the angles. At each of the corners of this fort is
planted a small field piece, and these constitute the whole of the ordnance at present
in the place. The British kept a considerable train of artillery here, but the place
was never capable of holding out for any length of time against a regular force; the
fortifications, indeed, were constructed chiefly as a defense against the Indians.
"Detroit is at present the headquarters of the western army of the States; the
garrison consists of 300 men, who are quartered in barracks. Very little attention
is paid by the officers to the minutiae of discipline, so that however well the men may
have acquitted themselves in the field, they make but a poor appearance on parade.
The belles of the town are quite au desestozr at the late departure of the British
troops, though the American officers tell them they have no reason to be so, as they
will find them much more sensible and agreeable men than the British officers when
they know them, a style of conversation, which strange as it may appear to us, is yet
not at all uncommon amongst them. Three months, however, have not altered the
first opinion of the ladies. I cannot better give you an idea of the unpolished, coarse,
255




discordant manners of the generality of the officers of the western army of the States
than by telling you that they cannot agree sufficiently amongst themselves to form a
regimental mess. Repeated attempts have been made since their arrival at Detroit
to establish one, but their frequent quarrels would never suffer it to remain permanent. A duelist and an officer of the western army were nearly synonymous terms
at one time, in the United States, owing to the very great number of duels that took
place amongst them when cantoned at Greenville.
- About two-thirds of the inhabitants of Detroit are of French extraction, and the
greater part of the inhabitants of the settlements on the river, both above and below the town, are of the same description. The former are mostly engaged in trade
and they all appear to by much on an equality. Detroit is a place of very considerable trade; there are no less than twelve trading vessels, belonging to it, brigs,
sloops and schooners, of from fifty to one hundred tons burden each. The inland
navigation in this quarter is indeed very extensive, Lake Erie, three hundred miles
in length, being open to vessels belonging to the port, on the one side, and Lakes
Michigan and Huron, the first upwards of two hundred miles in length and fifty in
breadth, and the second no less than one thousand miles in circumference on the
opposite side; not to speak of Lake St. Clair and Detroit River, which connect these
former lakes together, or of the many large rivers which fall into them  The stores
and shops of the town are well furnished and you may buy fine cloth, linen, etc., and
every article of wearing apparel, as good in their kind, and nearly on as reasonable
terms, as you can purchase them at New York or Philadelphia.
"The inhabitants are well supplied with provisions of every description; the fish in
particular, caught in the river and neighboring lakes, are of a very superior quality.
The fish held in most estimation is a sort of large trout, called the Michilimackinac
whitefish, from its being caught mostly In the straits of that name. The inhabitants
of Detroit and the neighboring country, however, though they have provisions in
plenty, are frequently much distressed for one very necessary concomitant, namely,
salt. Until within a short time past they had no salt but what was brought from
Europe, but salt spings have been discovered in various parts of the country, from
which they are now beginning to manufacture that article for themselves. The best
and most profitable springs are retained in the hands of the government, and the
profits arising from the sale of the salt are to be paid into the treasury of the province. Throughout the western country they procure their salt from springs, some
of which throw up sufficient water to yield several hundred bushels in the course of
one week.
" There is a large Roman Catholic church in the town of Detroit, and another on
the opposite side called the Huron church, from its having been devoted to the use
of the Huron Indians. The streets of Detroit are generally crowded with Indians
of one tribe or another, and amongst them you see numberless old squaws leading
about the daughters, ever ready to dispose of them, pro temfiore, to the highest bidder. At night all the Indians, except such as get admittance into private houses,
and remain there quietly, are turned out of town, and the gates shut upon them.
The American officers here have endeavored to their utmost to impress upon the
minds of the Indians an idea of their own superiority over the British; but as they
are very tardy in giving these people any presents, they do not pay much attention
to their words. General Wayne, from continually promising them presents, but at




JEREMIAH DWYER.








the same time always postponing the delivery when they come to ask for them, has
significantly been nicknamed by them General Wabang-that is, General To-morrow.
The country round Detroit is uncommonly flat, and in none of the rivers is there a
fall sufficient to turn even a grist mill. The current of the Detroit River itself is
stronger than that of any of them, and a floating mill was once invented by a
Frenchman, which was chained in the middle of the river, where it was thought the
stieam would be sufficiently swift to turn the waterwheel. The building of it was
attended by considerable expense to the inhabitants, but after it was finished it by
no means answered their expectations. They grind their corn at present by windmills, which I do not remember to have seen in any other part of North America."
Jacob Burnett, a lawyer and pioneer of Cincinnati, who was for some
time a partner of Solomon Sibley in that city, also came here in 1796
in company with Arthur St. Clair, the first and only governor of the
Northwest Territory.  He witnessed the taking possession of the posts,
Detroit, Mackinac and Fort Miami, and in his "Notes on the Northwestern Territory," published in 1847, gave a graphic description of
the physical and social features of the region. Concerning Detroit he
said "that it had been for many years the principal depot of the fur
trade of the Northwest, and the residence of a large number of English
and Scotch merchants, who were engaged in it; and it was of course a
place of great business. The greater part of the merchants engaged
in the fur trade, both Scotch and English, had their domiciles in Detroit, and the nature of the trade was such as to require large amounts
of capital to be profitable; because of the great distance and the immense amount of country over which their furs and peltry were collected, rendered it impossible to turn the capital employed more than
once a year and sometimes once in two years. The business was extremely laborious and precarious. In some seasons their profits were
enormously large; in others they were small, and occasionally they
were subjected to heavy losses. During a large portion of the year
they had to endure the fatigue and privation of the wilderness, and as
often as they returned from those laborious excursions to their families
and comfortable homes, they indulged most freely in the delicacies and
luxuries of high living. Scarcely a day passed without a dinner given
by some of them, at which the best of wine and other liquors, and the
richest viands furnished by the country and by commerce, were served
up in great profusion and in fine taste. Genteel strangers who visited
the place were generally invited to their houses and their sumptuous
tables; and although at this day, such would be considered a breach of
moral duty, as well as of good breeding, they competed with each other
257
33




for the honor of drinking the most, as well as the best wine, without
being intoxicated themselves, and of having at their parties the greatest
number of intoxicated guests. This revel was kept up in a greater or
less degree during the season they remained at home, as an offset to
to the privations and sufferings of their excursions into the wilderness.
At one of these sumptuous dinners given by Angus McIntosh, the bottom of every wine glass on the table had been broken off to prevent
what were called heel-taps; and during the evening many toasts were
given, which the company were required to drink in bumpers. The
writer of this narrative was one of the guests bn that occasion, but,
being in very delicate and precarious health, was not required to comply with the rules prescribed for others."
On the third Monday of December, 1798, Solomon Sibley, Jacobus
Visger and Silas Wishwell, a "1 Yankee lawyer," were elected at Detroit
as delegates from Wayne county to the first session of the General Assembly of the Northwest Territory, which was held in Cincinnati on
February 4, 1799. When the result was declared Visger said that if
Wishwell was to be a delegate he (Visger) would refuse to serve. Visger must have been quite influential among the French electors, for
another election was held at which Chabert de Joncaire was elected in
place of Wishwell. The courts of the Northwest Territory were held
in Cincinnati in March, at Marietta in October, and at Detroit by special appointment whenever circumstances required. Solomon Sibley,
Jacob Burnett and the other attorneys of those early days, had a wide,
if not a large and profitable, practice. They went from one jurisdiction
to another on horseback, carrying their legal papers and firearms.
There were few bridges and few bridle paths in the wilderness, but they
struck out boldly with a pocket compass for a guide; crossed vast swamps,
swam their horses across the rivers, and when they were unable to find
a lone settler's cabin at nightfall, they made a bed of hemlock boughs
beneath the protecting arms of some grand old forest tree. The howl
of the wolf, the scream of the wildcat and panther, the weird call of the
whip poor will, and the hooting of the great horned owls were their
lullaby. A fire of dead wood cooked the traveler's supper, which consisted of a broiled partridge or some other small game, and this, with
some home cakes which had been stored away in the saddlebags at the
last stopping place, gave him excellent cheer. The horse, which in
that day lived in close companionship with his master, was tethered
close at hand where the grass was abundant. When the great fire had
258




sunk to a heap of glowing embers, master and steed slept peacefully
under the light of the stars, but with ears quickened by necessity, and
each would bound to his feet at the approach of danger.
In 1800 the General Court of the territories was in session at Detroit
on June 4, which was the birthday of King George III. The officers
of the garrison, the bench and bar, and many of the principal citizens
of Detroit, went to Amherstburg by invitation, and partook of the festivities of the occasion. Many of the officers of the two regiments at
Detroit accepted the invitation, but Colonel Strong, who was in command, did not attend. The judges, lawyers and principal citizens,
about one hundred in all, attended and had a good time. The entertainment was splendid, the tables being richly and abundantly supplied
with the best  The judges and lawyers present were invited to come
again, and when the court was over they went down to Amherstburg
again on the John Adams, a United States brig-of-war, and had a fine
supper, good wine and general jollity, and stayed there over night.
Next day they proceeded on the brig to Maumee Bay, and werelanded
at the foot of the rapids, thereby avoiding the misery of traveling
through the muddy bridle paths of the Black Swamp, between Detroit
and Toledo, which was not made passable until the '30's.
In 1800 the Northwest Territory was divided. Most of the present
State of Ohio and the eastern half of the lower peninsula of Michigan
were set off and given the name of Ohio. This necessitated a change
in the boundaries of Wayne county, for it could not be extended over
two territories, so the eastern portion -of the lower peninsula, which
had been set off as a part of the Territory of Ohio, was added to nearly
one-quarter of the State of Ohio, the eastern limit being the Cuyahoga
River, and the southern boundary being placed about one hundred
miles south of Lake Erie. While this suited the people of Detroit and
Wayne county, it did not please the people of Ohio, so in the fall of
1800 a section of the lower strip was chopped off from Wayne county
and added to Ohio proper, so that the eastern boundary was near Sandusky. Next year nearly all the territory which is now included in the
State of Ohio was cut off from Wayne county, and only a narrow strip,
including the present site of Toledo, was left. The residents of the
Ohio region organized a general assembly and began to move for a
constitutional convention, for the purpose of organizing their section
into a State and leaving Wayne county out. The Wayne county
people and some of the others objected. In the fall of 1802 a conven259




tion was held at Chillicothe by the people of Ohio, and a constitution
was adopted. In order to make up the requisite number of residents
for statehood, the people of Wayne county were counted in, and in
March, 1803, the State of Ohio was admitted to the Union.
Wayne county was then cut off from Ohio and attached to the present boundaries of Indiana, and the two were organized into the Territory of Indiana. Gen. William Henry Harrison was appointed governor and Col. John Gibson secretary, and Vincennes was made the
capital of the new territory.
CHAPTER XXXVI.
Early Ordinances of the New American Town-First Charter Issued in 1802-Extraordinary Precautions against Fire-The First Fire Department and its Divisions
of Work-A Public Market Established on the River Front-A One Man Police Force.
In 1800 Detroit was a town of about 300 houses. The entire own
was inclosed in a low stockade, which had two gates opening upon the
river front and one at the east and one at the west ends. A blockhouse
defended each gate and the fort on the hill, north of the stockade, was
defended by four six pound cannon mounted in the corner bastions.
One of the striking features of the landscape was the number of windmills with their lazily revolving sails. These were all much alike in
appearance. The foundation was pyramida and built of stone, while
the upper part was a wooden tower with a conical roof. They were of
small capacity, and so a number of them were scattered along the
water front on both sides of the river, from Windmill Point on Lake
St. Clair to a point near Twenty-fourth street.  The houses of
the town were solid structures of squared logs; the better class being a
story and a half in height. The gables were high, and dormer windows projecting from the room lighted the upper stories. The doors
were made in upper and lower halves, after the fashion of colonial days,
so that the upper portion might be opened for air and light, while the
lower half prevente i the children from wandering out in the mud and
also prevented wandering pigs from entering unbidden. A huge chimney stood in the center of every house, with flues opening to the kitchen
and also to the living rooms, where broad fireplaces gave out their
260(




ruddy glow in the cold months of the year. Even in so small a town
there were plenty of idlers, and bowling was a popular amusement in
the narrow streets. For lack of lighter balls the bowlers used six and
twelve-pound cannon balls, and pedestrians had to look lively when
they came to intersections of the streets to save their limbs from breaks
and bruises. An ordinance finally put a stop to the practice. French
pacing ponies were still the ( nly horses in the settlement and they
were driven singly to rather primitive carts. Whenever two drivers of
these animals came together on the streets there was a race to decide
which had the better pony, and when two such rigs driven by greatly
excited Frenchmen came tearing down the streets side by side, pedestrians had to fly to the doorways and cross streets for their lives. This
did not disturb the drivers, who were completely absorbed in their contests, and filled the air with loud shouts of encouragement to their
struggling beasts. Tradition says that the French Canadian ponies
had their origin from the war steed of General Braddock, a beautiful,
thoroughbred, snow white mare, which was brought to Detroit after
her owner had been killed in 1755 in his unsuccessful attempt against
the French in western Pennsylvania. The male progenitor of this
hardy equine race is said to have been an Indian pony, which descended
from the horses brought into Mexico by Cortez. Wells were few and
far between and the water was not as good as that of the river, so most
of the people carried their water from the river, two buckets at a time,
suspended from a yoke across the shoulders. The river and lake front
was occupied by French farm houses for a distance of nearly twenty
miles in each direction. These houses stood a little back from the
river road, and were surrounded by pickets and shaded by large pear
trees. In front of each a tiny wharf projected into the river from which
they dipped their water, and moored to the wharf was the canoe belonging to the house. A majority of the French residents sympathized
with the American cause, but some leading men adhered to the British.
The latter were mostly engaged in the fur trade and general business,
which they continued after the evacuation. They were generally men
of standing and influence, and took a more r less active part in the
affairs of the town where thei interests were located. During the
four years that elapsed before 1800, there grew up a feeling of political
aversion against this element, and this finally culminated n a popular
demand that they should take the oath of allegiance to the United States
or leave the country. A number of them did take the oath, but others did


261




not. Some thirty French residents signed a paper declaring themselves
as British subjects and stating that they intended to leave the country.
In January, 1802, on petition of the inhabitants of Detroit, Solo
mon Sibley introduced a bill for the incorporation of the town of
Detroit at the session of the Assembly of the Northwest Territory
held at Chillicothe in that month.  The bill was passed on January 18, and this, the first charter of Detroit, was signed by Ed
ward Tiffin, speaker of the House of Representatives of the territory, and Robert Oliver, president of the territorial court, and
approved by Governor St. Clair February 18, 1802. In this act the
following five trustees were appointed: John Askin, John Dodemead, James Henry, Charles Francis Girardin and Joseph Campau, who were to hold office until their successors were chosen at
elections to be held on the first Monday of May following. The act
defined the boundaries of the town as follows: The river front on the
south; the east line was the line between the property of John Askin
(the Brush farm) and the farm of Antoine Beaubien; the west line was
the line between the William Macomb (Cass) farm and that of Pierre
Chesne (the Jones). This rectangle extended back from the river a
distance of two miles. Freeholders and householders paying $40 a
year rent, and others having the freedom of the town, were entitled to
vote at the annual election or town meeting to be held on the first
Monday in May. The trustees were authorized to formulate such ordinances as seemed advisable, but an ordinance could be repealed by a
majority of the voters. John Askin and the other trustees, except Girardin, took the oath of office and were seated on February 9, 1802,
thus anticipating the governor's signature of the act by nine days.
They appointed the following officers: Secretary, Peter Audrain;
assessor, Robert Abbott; collector, Jacob Clemens; marshal, Elias
Wallen; messenger, Louis Pelletier. Girardin qualified as trustee at the
next meeting. The first official session was held at the house of Trustee James Henry, where an ordinance for better fire protection was
passed. By its terms all defective chimneys were ordered repaired at
once, and were required to be swept once in two weeks, between the
months of October and May, and once a month during the summer season. Each householder was obliged to keep a barrel filled with water
in some convenient place about his premises; the barrel was to be provided with ears or hooks so that two men would be able to carry it suspended on poles. Each householder was compelled to have a short
262




ladder to reach the roof, and another for reaching the top of the chimney. Shopkeepers were compelled to keep in readiness a large bag
holding at least three bushels, and every person was to keep at least
two buckets each of three gallons capacity, in readiness. At the first
signal of fire every able bodied man was under obligation to turn out
with buckets, and the shopkeepers to bring both their buckets for
water and their bags, to be used for wetting and covering the roofs of
buildings which were in danger of ignition. Neglect of any of these
duties subjected the delinquent to a fine of five dollars, and when a citizen's chimney burned out he was assessed ten dollars for endangering
the property of his neighbors. Detroit's first fire department was instituted February 23, 1802. Jacques Girardin and Augustin La Foy
were the chiefs in command of the engine, an old fashioned brake
pump purchased by the British several years before the surrender, and
they were associated with twelve soldiers who were appointed by Col.
J. F. Hamtramck as a fire brigade. In addition to these a corps of
axemen was appointed, consisting of Francois Frero, Presque Cote,
Sieur Theophile Mette, Baptiste Pelletier, Charles Poupard dit la Fleur
and Presque Cote, jr. Householders were limited to the amount of gunpowder they might keep on their premises, but the allowance was most
liberal, the legal quantity being one keg or half a barrel, sufficient to
scatter any house all over the corporation. In the earliest times fires
were extinguished by the bucket brigade, who passed water, hand to
hand, from the river to the fire, and the water was dashed against the
burning buildings. When the roofs caught fire they were extinguished
by means of swabs or bundles of rags secured to the end of long
poles. These were dipped into buckets of water and applied to the
burning patches in the roofs with good effect. When the fire became
serious, additional protection was secured by covering the roofs with
the skins of fur bearing animals. At the beginning of the nineteenth
century furs had become too valuable to be thus exposed to damage,
so the large bags were provided, and the bagmen spread them where
the danger was most imminent, and kept them saturated with water.
When the building became a mass of roaring flames in spite of the
efforts of the engine men and the bucket passers, the battering squad
took a hand at the fire. Taking up a green log as heavy as they could
carry, they charged at the burning building at a brisk trot and dashing
it against the wall with all their might sent the burning timbers down
into the interior. Following along each wall and repeating the heavy
263




blows, they could soon reduce an ordinary building to the height of a
bonfire, although their work would send the sparks in a shower which
made the bagmen hustle on the adjoining roofs.
The fire department grew with the town, and the citizens were allotted to various duties according to their talents. There was a crew of
axe and ladder men, twelve in number, and Benjamin Woodworth was
their captain. Fourteen men of long limbs and broad backs manned
the hand fire engine under the direction of David C. McKinstry. The
bagmen were selected from the professional class, because their muscles were not trained to heavy work. Among the fourteen men of this
department were Henry J. Hunt, captain; Conrad Ten Eyck, Solomon
Sibley, James Abbott, Abraham Wendell, Peter J. Desnoyers, Philip
L'Ecuyer, Antoine Dequindre; each of these men left his mark upon
the community. A hook and ladder and battering ram company of
twenty-one men, under management of Robert Irwin, completed the
roster of the Detroit Fire Company in 1815.
Robert Gouise and Charles Curry were appointed house-to house inspectors in 1802 to enforce the fire ordinance, and their first report of
delinquents contained the name of nearly every village official. At
every council meeting during several succeeding years there were more
or less complaints, and the town officials were as often subject to fines
as the other citizens. Those who were able paid the full amount and
those who were poor paid commutation fines, according to their means.
On March 20, 1802, the trustees provided for the establishment of a
public market. The site was " on the river front between the old bake
house and the east line of pickets."  Tuesdays and Fridays were set
apart as market days, and the hours were from daylight until noon.
Fines were imposed for offering meats or produce for sale at any other
place about the town, and also for offering unwholesome meats. James
May, a very prominent citizen, was found guilty of offering diseased
beef for sale, and after five witnesses had testified against him he was
fined $15. On the same day his colored boy was caught throwing rubbish on the public common, contrary to the ordinance, and the master
had to pay an additional fine of twenty-five cents.
On March 24, 1802, seventeen delinquents were fined for violations
of the fire ordinance. Among them were four trustees, John Askin,
James Henry, Robert Abbott and John Dodemead; Wayne county was
also fined, the law having been violated at the jail.  Dr. Herman
Eberts, who was high sheriff of Wayne county under American rule,
264




AARON A. PARKER.








and had been since 1796, was another of the delinquents. He was an
Austrian count and a surgeon by profession and came to America during the Revolution with a Hessian regiment. He resigned shortly after
arriving and settled in Quebec, but afterward came to Detroit, where
he engaged in mercantile business and also practiced his profession.
At the first election on Mlay 3, 1802, John Askin was dropped, and
George Meldrum was elected in his place on the board of trustees.
The officers elected were Charles F. Girardin, James Henry, John
Dodemead, George Meldrum and Joseph Campau. Peter Audrain continued as secretary, Robert Abbott as assessor, William Smith was
made collector and Elias Wallen, marshal. Smith soon resigned and
Conrad Seek was appointed collector in his place. At this meeting the
polls were open from 11: 30 to 1: 30, and after canvassing the vote the
retiring board voted the freedom of the town to-Solomon Sibley, who
came to Detroit in 1797, in acknowledgment of his services in framing
the act of incorporation and other services at the Legislature of Chillicothe in the interest of Detroit.
An ordinance to prevent racing and fast driving on the streets was
passed April 1, 1802. The treasurer of the town had for his compensation three per cent. of the moneys turned over to him, and the collector
had the same proportion of his collections. The secretary was allowed
one dollar per meeting, and one cent for each dozen words of translation
when he had to prepare public notices in both French and English.
These notices were posted in a public place in the daytime and taken
*n at night. The marshal and the official messenger were allowed one
dollar per day during the time they were engaged. On April 17 a tax
levy of $150 was assessed upon the town for public improvements. A
poll tax of twenty-five cents was assessed against every male twentyone years of age or over, and the balance was assessed against the
owners of property.
The price of bread and the size of loaves were also regulated by the
trustees. Loaves were first established at three pounds weight and at
sixpence a loaf, but changes in the price of flour caused the scale to be
raised to eight cents in July. Bread had to be baked in large ovens,
so that no baking was done by the ordinary householders and the public bake houses were much patronized. Later the price rose until a
loaf of bread cost twelve and a half cents, and when this became too
close a margin for the baker the weight of the loaves was reduced.
At the election of May, 1803, James May became chairman of the
265
34




town board of trustees. His associates were Robert Abbott, Charles
Curry, Dr. William Scott and Elijah Brush. The freedom of the corporation was extended to Jonathan Scheiffelin, a member of the Territorial Legislature. Detroit was a turbulent town in those days.
Taverns were numerous and most of them were low groggeries.
Some licenses were revoked because the proprietors kept disorderly
houses, and an ordinance was passed forbidding the sale of strong
drink on the Sabbath, except to travelers; also forbidding the sale to
minors, servants, or to colored slaves, unless with the consent of parents or masters. The records of the board are loaded with complaints
against persons for " riotous and disorderly conduct" while drunk, and
the culprits were of all colors and both sexes. Liquor cases and fire
ordinance violations were about the only misdemeanors mentioned.
Solomon Sibley was elected chairman of the board of trustees in
1804. His associates were James Abbott, Henry Berthelet, Joseph
Wilkinson and Frederick Bates. Peter Audrain was secretary, John
Watson assessor, Peter Desnoyers collector, and Thomas McCrae messenger. McCrae was appointed the first member of the Detroit police
force and also clerk of the market. It was his duty to examine all
yards and alleys and public streets every two weeks and report their
condition. He was the first house-to-house sanitary inspector, health
officer and fire warden; and although his functions were important,
his pay was fixed at only seventy-five cents a day. The services he
then rendered now cost Detroit over $600,000 a year.
Solomon Sibley, who was an able attorney, was one of the first American settlers to arrive at Detroit for permanent residence. He was born
in New England and came west with a colony which settled at Marietta, the first capital of the Ohio territory. Impressed with the importance of Detroit's geographical location, he came to Detroit and
settled there early in 1797. He soon became prominent in the affairs
of the town and each year saw a wider recognition of his ability, honesty and his sagacity in public affairs, as before mentioned. He became a trustee of Detroit and was chosen chairman of the board, and
was a representative at the Territorial Council and at the General
Assembly at Chillicothe. In 1802 he went to Marietta, where he married the daughter of Col. Ebenezer Sproat. The happy pair in returning stopped at the house of Major Jonathan Cass, at Zanesville.
When their horses had been sent to shelter for the night, Mr. Sibley
noticed a square built young man of twenty years of age, of grave


266




countenance and dignified manners, engaged in pounding Indian corn
into "samp," as the coarsely broken grain was called by the Indians.
A large oak stump which stood beside the house had been hollowed
out by the woodman's axe and a small fire of charcoal, until it would
hold perhaps half a bushel of corn. Over the stump projected the
limb of another tree to which a heavy wooden pestle, perhaps six feet
long, had been secured by a strong withe. The young man, with the
assistance of the limb of the tree, was swinging the heavy pestle
rapidly up and down, and at every descent the corn was shattered, the
coarser and heavier portions seeking the bottom of the hollow, while
the light hulls gathered at the top to be blown away by the industrious
workman. This young man, who certainly "knew enough to pound
samp," was Lewis Cass, who had just returned home from his law
studies at Marietta. The future governor of Michigan, secretary of
war and minister to France, stood face to face with the future representative and future judge of the Supreme Court.
In July, 1804, the first dock ordinance was prepared by Solomon
Sibley and Frederick Bates. The merchants' wharf was falling into
ruin, and in order to provide for its future maintenance a fee of $1.50
was charged every vessel of ten tons or more mooring to it. Bateaux
were charged twenty-five cents, and pirogues and canoes twelve and a
half cents. The wharf was free on market days to those who brought
produce to the town. Many of the citizens dipped their water used for
domestic purposes from this wharf, and a charge of one dollar a year
was assessed for this privilege, but there was an outcry against it and
that portion of the ordinance was repealed.
By August 3, 1804, the Indians had become so hostile under British
influence at Maiden, that a night patrol was established in Detroit. It
was maintained by voluntary service for the protection of the town
against fire and massacre. Curfew regulations were established, and
persons who were found abroad after eleven o'clock had to give a
good account of themselves or go to the watch house. Lights were
ordered out at eleven o'clock, unless sickness compelled them to be
kept burning. On Monday, October 1, the first memorial to Congress
was prepared asking for better military protection. An ordinance prohibiting bowling with cannon balls in the streets was passed March 15,
1805.
Col. John Francis Hamtramck became commandant of Detroit for
the second time in 1802, succeeding Col. Thomas Hunt. His first
267




service was the temporary command from the time of the British surrender, July 11, 1796, until the arrival of General Wayne, commanderin-chief, two months later. When he came to the command the second
time his busy life was drawing to its close, although he was still a comparatively young man, and he died within a year.  Colonel Hamtramck was a Revolutionary soldier of fame, the first American commandant of Detroit and its dependencies, and a volunteer alien
defender of our liberty and independence, who is entitled to rank
with Kosciusko, La Fayette, Pulaski, De Kalb and Steuben, for
Hamtramck was one of the Canadian refugees who espoused the cause
of the feeble colonists in 1776  He was born in Quebec on August 16,
1756, and his father was Charles David Hamtramck dit L'Allemand, a
barber, and a son of David Hamtramck and Adele Garnik of Luxembourg, diocese of Treves, Germany. Charles David Hamtramck mar
ried Marie Ann Bertin at Quebec in November, 1753, and three years
afterward their illustrious son was born. John Francis Hamtramck
was in New York when he joined the army, a boy of less than twenty
years. He fought gallantly until the close of the Revolution and was
afterward under St. Clair and Wayne in the Indian wars. He was
made major in 1789; lieutenant-colonel in 1793; commanded the left
wing of "Mad" Anthony's army at the battle of Maumee in 1794;
subsequently promoted colonel of the First Regiment of the United
States Infantry; and entered Detroit the next day after the British
evacuation on July 11, 1796. He purchased a farm from Jacques
Campau, fronting on the river, and next east of the Cook farm, and in
1802 built a hewn log house, which is still standing, but in a ruinous
condition. It is on the river bank in rear of the Hagar brothers' residence on Jefferson avenue. But the hardships of war had undermined
his constitution and he died on April 11, 1803, aged forty-five years
seven months and twenty-eight days. His estate, which went to his
widow, Rebecca Hamtramck, footed up only $2,138.47. The household effects were stored in the citadel and were consumed in the great
fire of 1805. His two daughters subsequently inherited and sold the
farm. His remains, which were first interred in the burial ground of
St. Anne's church on Larned street, were subsequently removed to
Mt. Elliott cemetery and reinterred in the Elliott lot, where they now
rest under the massive stone erected by his fellow officers at the time
of his death.




CHAPTER XXXVII.


Rule of the Governor and Judges-Schemes of the Rapacious Land-GrabbersJohn Askin and Others Attempt to Get Possession of 20,000,000 Acres by Bribing
Congressmen-Their Schemes Exposed-Governor Hull and Judge Woodward.
A local assembly was called in Detroit in December, 1804, at which
James May and Robert Abbott prepared two petitions to Congress, asking that the territory lying north of an east and west line, running east
from the head of Lake Michigan, which had been designated as Wayne
county since 1796, be organized into a separate territory to be known as
Michigan. The vast territory obtained under the Louisiana purchase
was placed under the jurisdiction of the Indiana territory in 1804.
When Congress convened in 1805 the prayer of the Detroit and Wayne
county residents was heard, and an act was passed granting their request.
Amid all this juggling of boundaries and other changes the landgrabbers were not idle. Previous to 1796, while territories, states and
nations were laying claim to territory in the West, private individuals
undertook to advance their fortunes by various land-grabbing schemes.
When it became evident that the United States would ultimately win
the cause for which they were struggling, several British subjects undertook to get hold of vast areas by securing private grants from the
Indians. The most notable attempt of this kind was in 1795, when
John Askin enlisted his friends and relatives in a scheme which was to
give them a principality of 20,000,000 acres, lying between Lakes Erie
and Michigan in the richest section of Michigan, Ohio and Indiana.
Askin was associated with John Askin, jr., his son; Richard Pattinson,
his son-in-law; Robert Innes, William Robertson and Jonathan Scheiffelin. Their scheme consisted in forming a stock company and issuing
forty-one equal and undivided shares of stock. Five of these shares
were to be bestowed upon certain Detroiters who were in terms of intimacy with the Indians, for which they were to use their influence in
inducing the Indians to sign the deed. Other attempts of private individuals to secure private grants from the Indians had failed, because
Congress had refused to recognize or confirm such grants. To sur

269




mount this obstacle, twenty-four shares of the stock were set aside to
be used in purchasing the votes of enough members of Congress in
order to insure a confirmation of the Indian deed. It was expected
that many votes would be secured upon the mere representation that
the company intended to develop the resources of the acquired territory, and make it a public as well as a private benefit. The promoters
were to be satisfied with twelve shares, each share representing about
50,000 acres of land. Their scheme made a promising beginning, as
the Indians were cajoled into signing their totems to the grant asked
for, and it remained for the promoters to secure a confirmation of the
deed. Two of the ablest lobbyists in the country were employed to
work the scheme through Congress, and they were prepared to bribe
the members who could not be won by persuasion. The lobbyists,
Dr. Robert Randall of Philadelphia, and Charles Whitney of Vermont,
began their labors in the legislative hall at Philadelphia on December.
16, 1795. Lobbying had not yet arisen to its present standard among
the fine arts, or the congressmen of that session were more honest than
those of the Credit-Mobilier days, for on December 28, 1795, Congressman William Smith, of South Carolina, arose before the House and exposed the whole scheme. Randall and Whitney were brought before
the bar of the House for examination. Dr. Randall was discharged
for lack of evidence, but his colleague, who had probably worked with
less finesse, was reprimanded by the speaker and was fined the amount
of the costs.
Askin's purpose was defeated, but he was not yet discouraged. Nextyear he went to work to obtain an individual grant. Since it was evident that he could not get a deed of absolute title through Congress, he
tried his luck at obtaining a lease for 999 years. After visiting the
councils of twenty-nine chiefs who claimed titles on the lands south of
Lake Erie, he obtained a lease of a tract of land extending from the
mouth of the Cuyahoga River westward as far as Sandusky Bay, a distance of fifty-nine miles, extending southward an equal distance, making a total of 2,227,840 acres. The deed or lease was executed by the
Indians on January 18, 1796, and the consideration named was a gratuity of five shillings a year to each of the grantors and other considerations, probably the furnishing of arms, blankets, ammunition, scalping
knives, etc. To strengthen his claim the younger Askin moved to the
mouth of the Cuyahoga River in 1797, expecting to secure the rights
of a squatter in addition to the lease, but Congress refused to confirm it.
270




In commenting on the first described "frustrated land-grab," Judge
Campbell, in his " Political History of Michigan," says: "Was this
really an attempt of the British government to retain ownership of
Michigan lands, knowing that it could not retain sovereignty?"
The Territory of Michigan, which was carved out of Indiana Territory, came into being by act of Congress on June 30, 1805, and five
officers were commissioned to rule it, as follows: Governor, William
Hull; secretary, Stanley Griswold; treasurer, Frederick Bates; justices
of Supreme Court, A. B Woodward, Frederick Bates and John Griffin.
Detroit was made the seat of government, and the ordinances of 1787
and 1789 were made the fundamental law of the new Territory. Michigan Territory in 1805 comprised the territory represented by the present lower peninsula, a narrow strip across Indiana and Ohio which lay
north of the line drawn due east from the southern extremity of Lake
Michigan, and the eastern half of the upper peninsula. The western
border was on a line drawn through the center of Lake Michigan, and
the east line, according to the Jay treaty, was in the center of the main
channel of navigation in the Detroit and St. Clair Rivers and Lake St.
St. Clair, and through the center of Lake Huron to Sault Ste. Marie.
The three judges necessarily formed the highest judiciary, but they
had other important powers. With the governor they formed the legislature, so that the judicial, legislative and executive powers in the new
Territory were all centered in four persons. In this first step of Michigan toward distinct political entity the personality and character of her
first rulers will be found of interest.
William Hull was a native of Derby, Conn., and was born on June
24, 1753, of English ancestry. His father was a member of the Connecticut Legislature for many years. Young Hull worked on a farm
and attended school, entered Yale College and graduated after a four
years' course, when he was nineteen. He taught school and afterward
studied law at Litchfield, and was admitted to the bar in 1775. Returning home amid the excitement of the war then declared against
Great Britain, he was elected captain of a Derby company, and while
making preparations to go to the front his father died. He delayed
not, however, but marched with his company and joined a regiment
which proceeded to Cambridge, then Washington's headquarters. Here
an incident occurred which showed his predilection for etiquette and
display, which was more fully developed at Detroit in his efforts to
force expensive uniforms on the poverty-stricken militia of the Territory.


271




There was little regard for military style in the camp, and when his
regiment turned out to meet an expected attack, he was the only officer
in uniform. The other officers said he was making himself too conspicuous; that he would draw the enemy's fire. So he went to his tent,
took off the uniform and donned a dress like the other officers-a frock
coat and handkerchief tied around his head. He was placed in charge
of a redoubt, and when Washington was inspecting the regiment he
asked the name of the officer commanding the company. " With feelings of inexpressible mortification," says Hull, " I came forward in my
savage costume and reported that Captain Hull had the honor of commanding the redoubt." Washington passed on and the mortified young
officer forthwith sent for his uniform and donned it once more. In
1777 he was made major of the Eighth Massachusetts Regiment, and
in 1779 he was promoted to lieutenant-colonel. It is said that he was
a brave soldier, but the only separate command with which he was intrusted was a force of 400 men in an expedition against Morrisania, on
the East River, near Hell Gate, New York. But in this affair he did
not distinguish himself. In 1784 he was sent by the government to
Quebec in order to ascertain from Governor Haldimand why Detroit,
Niagara and Mackinac had not been surrendered by the British, in accordance with the treaty of Ghent of the previous year. He obtained
no satisfaction, as Great Britain was not yet willing to release her hold
on this region of the Northwest. At the conclusion of the war of the
Revolution he settled at Newton, Mass., and practiced law. In 1786
occurred the so-called Shay's rebellion. The treaty with Great Britain
had gaarantied that citizens of the United States who were indebted to
British merchants before the war, should pay their just debts. This
made great trouble, as the country was almost bankrupt and everybody
was poor. The courts were about to issue attachments and executions,
and the rebellion consisted in bodies of citizens forcibly preventing the
judges from holding court. Hull aided in the suppressing of this insurrection, in which several persons were killed and wounded and over
a hundred taken prisoners. In 1793 he was appointed a commissioner
to make arrangements with the British government for a treaty with
the western Indians, then at war with the United States, but nothing
came of it. In the same year he was appointed judge of the Court of
Common Pleas, and was also elected senator in the Massachusetts Legislature. He was a popular man and was re-elected senator every year
until he was appointed governor of Michigan Territory by President


272




CHARLES BUNCHER.








Jefferson on March 22, 1805. In the latter position he was appointed
for three years and was reappointed for two successive terms. When he
arrived in Detroit on July 1, 1805, he was a little over fifty two years
of age.
Augustus B. Woodward, the chief justice or presiding judge, by virtue of his commission being the earliest, was a native of Alexandria,
Va. He held the position from 1805, when the Territory was created,
until 1823, when he was virtually legislated out of office, a period of
eighteen years. He came of an old Virginia family whose holdings
were near Alexandria, and he was doubtless educated in Virginia or
Maryland. Little of his early life or family is known. He commenced
to practice law in Washington about 1795, after he had attained legal
manhood. The capital was then a mere expanse of forest and swamp,
with a scattered group of houses and a small population, and its site
and its isolation from the busy cities of commerce gave rise to much
ridicule on both sides of the Atlantic. He was present, in 1792, at the
ceremony of laying the corner stone of the District of Columbia at
Jones Point, near Alexandria, and his card as an attorney at law appeared in the National Intelligencer of Washington in 1803. At that
time one wing of the present Capitol had been built and this, with the
White House, were then the only large buildings in that city. Washington was laid out by a French engineer named L'Enfant, who fol
lowed the plan of Versailles, which was that of the spider web, with
its diagonal main avenues and concentric streets converging at the palace of Louis XIV. Woodward was an intimate friend of the French
engineer, who, like himself, was educated and eccentric, and he took
great interest in the plans of the future great capital. He was also a
friend of his fellow Virginian, President Thomas Jefferson, who admired his literary and legal ability, and the latter commissioned him as
presiding judge of the Territory of Michigan early in 1805. When he
came here shortly after the great fire on July 11, 1805, he saw the possibilities of improvement, and when he returned to Washington in
August, procured a copy of the plans of that city from L'Enfant. He
either assumed or was given the principal direction of the plans for
laying out the new town, and the result is the present plan of Detroit
which is named the Governor and Judges' plan. His plan was partly
superseded by the plan of Abijah Hull, a surveyor and relative of the
governor, but the distinctive spider web idea was retained and carried
into effect. Personally and judicially the judge was a unique and in273
35




teresting character, and his name and fame are indissolubly connected
with the history of the city. In Farmer's History of Detroit his personal appearance is described as follows: "The judge was very tall,
with a sallow complexion, and usually appeared in court with a long,
loose overcoat, or a swallow-tailed coat with brass buttons, a red
cravat, and a buff vest, which was always open and from which protruded an immense mass of ruffles. These last, together with the
broad ruffles at his wrists, were invariably soiled. His pantaloons hung
in folds to his feet, meeting a pair of boots which were always well
greased. His hair received his special attention and on court days
gave evidence of the best efforts of the one tonsorial artist of the town.
He was never known to be fully under the influence of liquor, but
always kept a glass of brandy on the bench before him. In the evening he would go to Mack & Conant's store (which was on the north
side of Jefferson avenue, between Woodward avenue and Griswold
street) and sit and talk and smoke his pipe and sip half a pint of
whisky until it was all gone."
Mack & Conant's partnership extended from 1817 to 1820 and during
this time their clerk and bookkeeper was the late David Cooper, father
of Rev. David M. Cooper. David was a careful and conscientious clerk
and kept note of everything affecting his employers' interest. In due
time he submitted a bill for the liquor. The judge protested, saying
that it was ridiculous to charge for a little whisky. " But it is not a
little," said Cooper, "it is a good deal; I kept count and I find you
have drank three gallons and a half." Woodward paid the bill, but
with a bad grace. Perhaps the best thing that Woodward did for Detroit was his work in having the city laid out with broad avenues, on
the plan above described. The angles caused by this plan entailed
small triangular parks at the intersections and these he suggested
should be planted with trees. There is no doubt that his influence and
work in this respect has made modern Detroit one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Woodward had a legal mind of no common
order, great literary ability and fine executive and administrative powers, but his merits as a jurist and legislator were obscured by his colossal
vanity. He was an able and learned man, but was afflicted with a
pedantry which was often absurd and ridiculous; and his arrogance,
which was ever usurping the rights or privileges of the people. No
ruler of Detroit was ever so detested by the more intelligent citizens,
but he nevertheless had many friends. He was brainy and masterful




and bristled with ideas on every subject, and his initiative in law, politics and municipal affairs was generally adopted. Complaint after
complaint with reference to his official conduct went to Congress,
signed by the most influential citizens, but his influence in Washington
was strong enough to enable him to maintain his position until 1823,
when an act was passed in Congress providing that the people of the
Territory should elect their own legislature in 1824 and thereafter. His
experience in trying to be elected delegate to Congress, in which he
was defeated twice, showed him that his career in Michigan was over.
He resigned shortly after the act was passed, went to Washington,
where he was appointed judge of the Territory of Florida, and died at
Tallahassee on July 12, 1827. He was never married. Woodward
owned, laid out and named Ypsilanti.
Frederick Bates was born at Belmont, Goochland county, Ohio, on
June 23, 1777, of Quaker parents. He received a good education but
did not attend a college, and in early life was employed in the office of
the clerk of a Circuit Court in his native State. In 1797 he came to Detroit when he was twenty years of age and engaged in mercantile business, improving his mind during leisure hours by studying law and
history. He was postmaster of Detroit from 1803 to 1806. Official
honors then came thick upon him. In 1804 he was appointed receiver
of the Detroit land office; trustee in 1804-05; United States territorial
judge in 1805-06; and territorial treasurer during the same year. In
1806 he removed to the Territory of Missouri, where he held several
exalted offices and in 1821 was elected governor of that State. He died
on August 4, 1825, on his farm at Bonhomme, Mo., on the bank of the
Missouri River.
John Griffin, who was territorial judge from 1805 to 1823, was exactly cotemporarary with Woodward in that office and resigned at the
same time. He was a'native of Virginia, born about 1799, and probably studied law in that State. He made the great tour in Europe and
when he returned landed at Philadelphia, and was appointed by Jefferson as above. Judge B. F. Witherell alludes to Griffin as a man who
"was constitutionally inert, wanted firmness and decision of character,
and disliked responsibility, but was considered an upright judge and
honest man." It was probably Judge Witherell's kindly disposition
that dictated the last paragraph, as it is difficult to understand honesty
and uprightness when coupled with the other characteristics. He was
subservient to Woodward and invariably voted with him on the bench.


275




Every week after the Gazette was started, in 1817, it contained one or
mo e squibs and editorials directed against Woodward and Griffin,
many of them written nearly as well as the Junius letters. One of
these articles was as follows: "A singular question has arisen under
the law of this Territory exempting property taken on execution.
This law exempts the tools necessary for the trade or profession of the
party. Suppose now an execution was issued against the goods and
chattels of his honor, Judge Woodward, would or would not, his other
honor, Judge Griffin, be exempt from execution?" The Gazette added
that a "learned counselor had given it.as his professional opinion that
Judge Griffin must be taken, because the law will not exempt tools
used for the purpose of fraud." In 1823, when Judge Woodward resigned, Griffin followed his example and it is said went to Philadelphia
and died there between 1842 and 1845. Judge Witherell said that
when he died he was the next in descent to a Scottish peerage.
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
Great Fire of 1805-The Entire Town Destroyed on June 11-Three Hundred
Families Left Homeless-Relief Measures and Grant. of the 10,000 Acres-Judge
Woodward Lays out a New City on the Scale of Paris-The Territorial Militia.
A great disaster befell the city on June 11, 1805. Detroit was a
crowded collection of wooden buildings built in narrow streets. Many
of the buildings had thatched roofs, and the aged timbers in many of
them were as dry as tinder after the seasoning of more than a century.
The people had been fully alive to their danger from fire; had purchased a hand fire engine during the last days of the British r6gime,
and had enacted stringent fire regulations, but the old town was
doomed. On the morning of June 11, John Harvey, a baker, was in
his barn hitching up a pony when he carelessly knocked out the ashes
from his pipe. The embers set some hay on fire, and before Harvey
could realize the situation the whole interior was in flames. He shouted
an alarm, and the whole population soon came scurrying to the scene,
attracted by the outcry and the rolling volumes of smoke. The old fire
engine was put in service, but it soon became disabled through failure
276




of the valves, and the people formed a line to the river and passed
buckets as of old. Owing to the close proximity of the buildings and
the narrow streets the fire could not be controlled. All the population
worked hard saving what they could of the household goods, and the
contents of the doomed houses were scattered along the river bank and
cast about in the adjoining common. All the others were mere heaps of
glowing embers and the stone chimneys stood above the ruins like
monuments to a lost civilization. In the back of an old account book
which belonged to George Meldrum, a trader who lived in Detroit at
the time of the fire, it is recorded that the fire began at 8: 30 in the
morning and that it lasted about four hours. At 12:30 all the buildings except one house had been completely consumed. The stockade
and houses had disappeared and were now blackened ruins, from which
came here and there slender columns of smoke. The narrow streets,
the old quaint houses of logs with their steep roofs which contained
the second story; the foot-wide timber walks; the rude furniture with
its wealth of home associations, had all perished in those few hours;
while on the river bank were tents and hastily erected shelters of bark
or poles in which the grief-stricken residents took refuge. Around
them were the scanty remnants of their household effects which had
been snatched from the flames. Suffering was everywhere. The farm
houses along the river were crowded with destitute people, to whom
the kindly hospitality of the French owners was a godsend. Those
who could not find shelter camped on the common under tents and extemporized cabins. The more wealthy sufferers moved across the river
to Sandwich and Amherstberg, while some returned to the homes of
their ancestors in Lower Canada or to the English settlements in New
York. In the course of time contributions from outside came to the
sufferers, mostly from Montreal and Mackinac, the total amount being
about $2,000. The loss exceeded $200,000.
Within the narrow limits of the stockade for 104 years people had
been born, had married and had died. Thousands had died untimely
deaths by war, murder or massacre; fortunes had been lost and won;
the lilies of France, the cross of St. George, and the stars and stripes
had waved over its fortresses; but now all was gone and "like the
baseless fabric of a vision, left not a wreck behind." It was a holocaust
of vanished memories. Detroit seemed an extinct city, which lived
only in the history of the past; never again to be the home of a busy
population or a mart of trade.
277




There was great distress in Detroit after the great fire and those who
could not get away endured considerable hardships; but the summer
weather greatly mitigated the trouble of the inhabitants. The money
received from Montreal, Mackinac and other places for the use of the
sufferers was not all spent for the purposes for which it was sent, and
there was great dissatisfaction.  Twelve years afterward Solomon
Sibley turned over $625 of it to the university fund. The population,
which had been greatly reduced in 1796 by the exodus of several hundred to Amherstburg and other places across the river, was not more
than 600 at the time of the fire. Perhaps one-third of these left the
city and sought shelter elsewhere. Some of those remaining started
to build new log houses, but they were restrained by Governor Hull
and the judges and other officers, who told them that a new plan of the
city would be prepared, in which the old lot lines, both inside and outside of the stockade, would not be regarded. These orders were obeyed
and there were no permanent houses built during the remainder of the
year. The lands which had been within the enclosure and also a con
siderable part of the common were surveyed and laid into city lots and
outlots. Every person who owned a lot before the fire was allowed to
have one free lot. An auction was held to ascertain values, and the
average price realized from the sale of fourteen lots was made a basis
in selling other lots. This was from $250 to $300, according to location. The opportunity for a big land deal was extremely favorable at
this time and persons able to carry it out were not wanting. Late in
1805 Governor Hull and Judge Woodward went to Washington, and by
liberal expenditures for wine and other refreshments, carried through
a bill authorizing the rulers of the Territory to lay out in lots the new
town and 10,000 acres of land on the north. Also, to give a lot containing not less than 5,000 square feet to every inhabitant over seventeen years of age. The land remaining wvas to be sold, and the money
used for building a court house and jail. This bill was passed on April
21, 1806. There was a good deal of red tape connected with the parceling out of the lots, and the delay caused great vexation. The inhabitants who remained were actually obliged to live the whole of I 806
in bark shanties, tents, or other shelter, and next year there were only
nineteen deeds issued and less than half as many houses built.
In the fall of 1806 the land board, consisting of the governor and
judges, decided that three classes of persons were entitled to lots,
namely, those who lived in Detroit prior to the fire and who owned
278




neither houses or land: those who owned lots at the time; and those
who owned or occupied houses. If the new lots were larger than those
formerly owned the person was required to pay two or three cents per
square foot for the overplus. The question was raised as to whether
persons who had come to Detroit under American rule, and had not
taken the oath of allegiance, should receive lots. The governor and
judges sitting as a land board decided that such persons had no rights.
This class comprised a large majority of the inhabitants, and the decision raised popular excitement to white heat, but the board bent before
the storm and rescinded their decision. Finally everybody got a lot,
and then ensued a great deal of trading so that very few ever kept the
original parcel given them. In July, 1805, Governor Hull divided the
territory into districts and designated justices of the peace therefor as
follows: Mackinac-Samuel Abbott, David Duncan, Josiah Dunham,
Francois Le Baron, H. Erie, John Anderson, Francois Navarre, Isaac
Ruland, Francois Lasselle, Herbert La Croix and Jean Baptiste Beaugrand. Detroit-Robert Abbott, James Abbott, James Henry, Elisha
Avery, James May, William McDowell Scott, Matthew Ernest, John
Dodemead, Stanley Griswold and Antoine Dequindre. Huron-Jean
Marie Beaubien, George Cotterell, Christian Clemens, Louis Campeau.
In September, 1805, Governor Hull, as commander-in chief, directed
that two regiments of infantry and a legionary corps be organized, the
latter body comprising all sums of the service, and appointed the
following officers:  Aides de-camp-Francois Chabert de Joncaire,
George McDougall, Solomon Sibley. Quartermaster-general and colonel-Matthew Ernest. Adjutant general and colonel-James May.
First Regiment-Colonel, Augustus B. Woodward; lieutenantcolonel, Antoine Beaubien; major, Gabriel Godfroy; adjutant, Christopher Tuttle; quartermaster, Charles Stewart; captains, Jacob Visger, David Duncan, George Cotterell, Louis Campeau, James Henry,
Louis St. Bernard, Joseph Cerre dit St. Jean, Joseph Campeau,
Jean Cisne; lieutenants, Samuel Abbott, John Meldrum, Whitmore
Knaggs, Jean Marie Beaubien, Christian Clemens, James Campeau,
Thomas Tremble, Francois Chovin, Joseph Wilkinson; ensigns, Allen
C. Wilmot, George Cotterell, jr., Jean Baptiste Cicott, James Connor, John Dix, Francois Rivard, Francois Tremble, John Ruland,
John Burnett; chaplain, Rev. Gabriel Richard; surgeon, William McCroskey.
Second Regiment-Colonel, John Anderson; lieutenant colonel, Fran

279




cois Navarre; major, Lewis Bond; adjutant, Giles Barnes; quartermaster, Alex. Ewings; surgeon, Ethan Baldwin; surgeon's mate,
Bernard Parker; captains, Joseph Jobin, Jean Baptiste Beaugrand,
Francois Lasselle, Hubert La Croix, Jean Baptiste Jeraume, Joseph
Menard, William Griffith, Prosper Thebeau; lieutenants, Hyacinth La
Joy, Francois De Forgue, Jean Baptiste La Salle, Jacques Martin,
Jean Baptiste Couteur, Jacques W. Navarre, Thomas Knaggs, Andrew
Jourdon. Cornet of cavalry, Samuel Moore; ensigns, Joseph Cavalier,
James Knaggs, Alexis Loranger, Joseph Bourdeaux, Isidore Navarre,
Joseph Huntingdon, Dominique Drouillard.
Legionary Corps-Lieutenant-colonel, Elijah Brush; major, James
Abbott; adjutant, Abraham Fuller Hull; quartermaster, Charles Curry;
surgeon, John Brown. Captain of cavalry, James Lasalle; captain of
artillery, John Williams; captain of light infantry, George Hoffman;
captain of riflemen, William McDowell Scott; lieutenant of cavalry,
Richard Smythe; first lieutenant of artillery, James Dodemead; second
lieutenant of artillery, Henry J. Hunt; lieutenant of light infantry,
Benjamin Crittenden; lieutenant of riflemen, Barnabas Campeau; cornet of cavalry, Gabriel Godefroy or Godfroy, jr.; ensign of light infantry, George Meldrum; ensign of riflemen, Pierre Navarre.
Governor Hull prescribed most elaborate uniforms for his territorial
troops. According to his orders the privates were ordered to clothe
themselves in long coats of dark blue cloth, the skirts reaching to the
knee and they were to be ornamented with large white buttons.
Their pantaloons were to be of the same material for winter wear and
of white duck for summer. The vests were to be of white cloth all the
year. Half boots, or high gaiters were to be their foot gear, and
round black hats, ornamented with a black feather, tipped with red
were required for head covering. Officers of the First Regiment were
to wear similar clothing, to which was added a red cape for the coat,
silver straps and epaulettes to designate their rank, and a cocked hat
with a white plume. The coats were to be faced with buff. Artillerymen were to have coats turned up with red and a red cord running
down the leg of their trousers, and red plumes. Riflemen were to
have green uniforms with short coats, and the plumes on their hats
were to be green. 'Taken altogether the uniforms required were better
adapted for the clothing of a royal body guard than for the dressing of
a backwoods militia corps. They were entirely beyond the means of
the men who were ordered to purchase them. The order was issued in


280




ELLIOTT G. STEVENSON.








the fall of 1805, and the men were directed to appear on duty in full
uniform after June 1, 1806. There was method in the governor's madness.
Before issuing the order Governor Hull had taken the precaution to
stock his store with cassimeres, ducks, hats, plumes, silver braid, buttons and epaulettes, and his uniforms were planned so as to create a
sale for this stock and give him a big profit. The officers, puffed up
with personal vanity, and for the purpose of setting an example to their
men, procured their uniforms in spite of the hardship it imposed upon
them, but the privates rebelled and said they) would not be forced into
patronage of the governor's store. They realized that they were but a
small body of country militia, and said that all this starch, lace and
buckram which the martinet of a governor sought to impose upon them
was ridiculous, considering their scanty means. When June 1 passed
and the privates still remained ununiformed, their colonels sought to
enforce the order by placing some of the leaders in the opposition under arrest. The soldiers cheerfully submitted and the officers asked
their governor for advice. Governor Hull told them to be patient but
firm, and the men would comply in due time. Complaints were so
emphatic that the grand jury protested against the enforcement of the
order and the soldiers refused to appear for drill. A corporal's guard
had to be sent around to drag them to duty, and some of them were
punished with lashes. They had one strong sympathizer in Stanley
Griswold, secretary of the territory, and Governor Hull ordered his
arrest on the charge of counseling the militia to disobey. He was tried
before Justices James May, George McDougall and Richard Smythe.
The two former were both officers of the militia and they held Griswold
to his personal recognizance in the sum of $1,000, while Justice Smythe
dissented. The strained relations between governor and militia had
dragged along for two years, then Griswold's term expired April
1, 1808, and he left the town. Reuben Attwater, who had an extraordinary respect for the governor, was appointed to succeed him. The
time was fast approaching when proficiency in arms would become of
more importance to the militia than their appearance on dress parade.
The Indians were menacing Detroit and all of the white settlements in
Michigan, and British outrages on land and sea were leading the Americans on to a declaration of war. In October, 1805, the militia of the
River Sinclair (St. Clair) were detached from the First Regiment and
formed a battalion of four companies. Captain George Cotterell was
281
36




made lieutenant-colonel and Captain Louis Campeau, major of this
battalion.
A humorous sketch of a drill of a company of Michigan militia, composed of French habitans, appears in Mrs. Hamlin's " Legends of Detroit " The commander, Captain Jean Cecire, who was very conceited
and pretentious, forms his company in line, orders his sergeant to call
the roll, with the following results:
Sergeant-"Attention, Companie Francais Canadians! Answer your
name when I call it, if you please. Tock, Tock, Livernois?" No answer: at last a voice says: "Not here, gone catch his lambreuer [fast
pacer] in the bush."
Captain-" Sergeant, put peen hole in dat man. Go 'head."
Sergeant-" Laurant Bondy?"
"Here, sah."
'"Claude Campau?"
"Here, monsieur."
"Antoine Salliotte?" Some one answers-" Little baby came last
night at his house; must stay at home."
Captain-" Sergeant, put one preek on dat man's name."
Sergeant-" L'Enfant Riopelle?"
"Here, sah."
Sergeant-" Piton Laforest?"
"Here, sah."
Sergeant-" Simon Meloche?"
" Not here, gone to spear muskrat for argent blanc [silver money |."
Captain-" Sergeant, take your peen and scratch dat man."
After the roll was called and the absentees pricked, the captain proceeded to drill his company.
Captain-" Marchee, mes camarades, deux par deux [two and two]
like oxen, and when you come to dat stump, stop."
They all made for the place and got there in a heap, looking, with
their colored dresses, like a rainbow on a spree. Disgusted at their
awkwardness the captain gave them a few minutes' relaxation. Instead
of resting " au militaire," they rushed off, one to smoke his beloved
pipe, another to polish his carbine, whilst others amused themselves
sitting on the grass telling about the races. The captain called them
to try again. This time he said:
"'Marchee as far as dat soulier de bueuf [old shoe in de road, den
turn! right, gauche, left about! Shoulder mus-keetc! Avance done
back. Dreel feneesh! '




Governor Hull and Judge Woodward did not scruple to usurp all the
powers of the people. They passed an act in 1806, which annulled the
act of 1802, incorporating Detroit under the law of the Northwest Territory. They gave themselves the sole authority to lay out streets,
survey lots and to dispose of the town lands by sale. This made them
autocrats of the town, as well as legislature and supreme court of the
Territory. The people did not realize the full purport of the act of 1806
at first. Governor Hull appointed Solomon Sibley mayor of the town,
and Mr. Sibley called a mass meeting for the election of a first and
second council, each to consist of three members. At the mass meeting the people elected Stanley Griswold, John Harvey, the baker who
had caused the fire of the previous year, and Peter Desnoyers, for the
first council or town senate; and Isaac Jones, John Gentle and James
Dodemead as the second council or co-ordinate body. The city government being entirely under the control of the governor and judges,
proved to be a mere farce, and Sibley resigned. Elijah Brush was
then appointed mayor, but he also resigned shortly afterward.
Judge Woodward began laying out the town according to his magnificent ideas, as if another Paris was to spring up suddenly in the
wilderness of Michigan. Governor Hull built a pretentious brick residence, fifty feet square, on what is now Jefferson avenue, but it looked
down a narrow and rather unattractive street. Judge Woodward remedied this effect by ordering the front of the lots vacated and the houses
moved back, to widen the street. One street he closed at one end,
and another street, upon which a number of houses faced, he cut up
into lots, leaving the unfortunate householder without a frontage on
any thoroughfare. Of course there was a big row over this class of
proceedings, but when the two councils convened and held a noisy indignation meeting, they found that they were powerless! The law
framed by Woodward and Hull had been issued with authority, and it
gave the framers supreme power over the people of Detroit. If the
councils passed any kind of an ordinance it was subject to the approval
of the mayor, who was the appointee of the governor, and there was
no way of passing over his vote. The people were so disgusted with
this usurpation of their rights, and the knowledge that they were
powerless to remove the will of their rulers, that they refused to vote
for councilmen after the first election in 1806.
A great source of dissatisfaction was the taking of the commons from
the people. From Cadillac's time it had always been used as public


283




property and a pasture ground. But the governor and judges saw that
in the plan for the new city the adjacent land was indispensable and
that the commons must come under the contemplated improvement.
The same indignation was exhibited against laying out the ten-thousand acre tract on both sides of Woodward avenue, and also the park
lots on either side of that thoroughfare. A good deal of this opposition
was characterized by ignorance and prejudice, but in all matters of this
kind, whether right or wrong, the royal four turned a deaf ear to all
remonstrances and worked their own sweet will without regard to popular disfavor. The authority of the governor and judges, except during
the war of 1812, was absolute, and it was not until 181.5 that a measure
of local government was adopted under the governorship of Lewis Cass.
CHAPTER XXXIX.
The Bank of Ietroit ---A Well-Planned Swindle which Gave the Promoters Riches
and the People of Michigan a Bad Reputation-A Large Amount of Worthless Bills
Circulated but Never Redeemed —Early Grand Juries —1806-1808.
In 1806 much of the fur business transacted at Detroit was carried
on by Boston capitalists, and the scarcity of actual money and the entire absence of banking facilities at the Detroit end of the business,
caused no end of inconvenience. In the spring of 180()6 Russel Sturges,
a wealthy fur dealer, and several other Boston capitalists, sent a petition
to Governor Hull asking the governor and judges to charter a bank,
which the proponents promised the capitalize to the amount of $400,000.
Without waiting for a charter the banking firm sent on Parker and
Broadstreet, their agents, who prepared to erect a bank building.
They also elected officers before the authority was granted. The charter was issued to the Bank of Detroit in September, 1806. Judge
Woodward was already president and William Flanagan, of Boston,
cashier. The bank building, which was erected that fall at the northwest corner of Jefferson avenue and Randolph street, was a small
structure of one story, but was strong and massive. The chalrter lir a
ited the capital of the bank to $1,(000,0(0 and its term was to he 101
years. This was most liberal, as the actual investment did not exceed


284




$20,000.  Governor Hull was authorized to subscribe for the stock
without limitation, and took ten shares in the name of the Territory of
Michigan. This was prolably for the purpose of impressing upon the
minds of the public that the institution had the backing of the Territory of Michigan. Shares were offered at $25 in the open subscription, but when a sufficient quantity had been subscribed to please the
promoters, the balance of 10,000 shares were taken privately by the
Boston parties at $2 a share. Leaving Judge Woodward and Cashier
Flanagan in charge, the Boston representatives, Parker and Broadstreet, went east, carrying with them Detroit Bank bills to the amount
of $100,0(0 to $150,000. Congress disapproved of the act of the Michigan governor and judges in granting this charter, and the bank was
compelled to discontinue business next year for lack of authority.
In reviewing the circumstances connected with the founding of this,
the first monetary institution of Detroit, it is impossible to resist the
conclusion that both President Woodward and Governor Hull were not
men of integrity. Both were active promoters of the fraudulent concern. The latter confessed in an official letter to President Madison,
in 1807, that $80,000 to $100,000 of the bank's bills were sent to agents
at Boston. There they went into circulation, scattering all over New
England, but they were never redeemed at Detroit with the exception
of $500, which were redeemed under threat of publicity. Who received the value of these bills?  Hull and Woodward denied receiving
any part of the proceeds, but it is contrary to probability that they told
the truth. It is not at all likely that a private bank would go to the
expense and trouble of issuing $100,000 worth of paper currency, the
president and cashier affixing their signatures to every bill, for the purpose of sending them for free distribution in a distant mart of trade.
When Woodward came to Detroit he was a poor man, and although he
maintained a bachelor's household and entertained a little, his small salary of $1,200 per annum would not account for his subsequent wealth.
He certainly acquired money while in Detroit and became a very extensive land owner. He was a rich man when he left the city, yet he
never engaged in trade nor in any visible business save the purchase
and sale of land, and his sales did not aggregate a tithe of his wealth.
If there was any money or property acquired in exchange for the bills
issued by the Bank of Detroit, which is the most probable conclusion,
Woodward and Hull must have received a large share of it. In 1825
Judge Woodward, after he had resigned his position as judge, or rather,
285




after he had been legislated out of office, and just before he left for
Washington to obtain a new appointment as federal judge in Florida,
offered all his property in Michigan Territory for sale. It consisted of
220 feet on Jefferson avenue, with a storehouse of sixteen rooms;
about 750 acres, comprising the site of Ypsilanti and its mill privilege;
320 acres on Woodward avenue, about six miles north of Detroit, on
which he had projected a village to be called Woodwardville; and
eighteen farms of fifty-three and a third acres each, adjacent to the
out lots of the city of Detroit; these are all now within the city limits.
For this property, divided and valued in detail, he set an aggregate price
of about $100,000. Of course they were purchased for a much smaller
sum, but the wonder arises how he could have paid the money for even
$25,000 worth of land.
The conduct of the governor and judges, both as jurists and legislators,
was so wanton in its disregard for justice, that the people were in a continual state of exasperation. In some cases the judges seemed inclined
to make a bid for popularity in their decisions, but occasionally overshot the mark and retraced their steps. One instance occurred in 1806,
when the court fined some of the officers of the garrison for surrendering some deserters from Fort Malden to British officers. It appeared
that British officers at Fort Malden and the American officers at Detroit, being on good terms, had agreed to surrender to each other any
deserter who might come in their lines.  A British soldier deserted
from Fort Maiden and came to Detroit. Two British officers followed,
and at night with the aid of three American officers, arrested the deserter, but the populace learned of it and the deserter was set at liberty.
The three American officers were tried by the judges, found guilty and
fined, and also sentenced to imprisonment. This was punishment with
a vengeance, and the inhabitants were shocked and indignant at the
severity of the sentences. But in a day or two, when the judges realized the popular feeling, the fines were reduced to a few cents in each
case and the imprisonments canceled.
In 180  a code of laws was prepared by the two judges. It was known
as the Woodward code, and subsequently proved to be a very faulty
compilation. The territory was divided into three districts, the Erie,
the Huron and the Mackinaw, and courts were provided for eaclh, at
which one of the supreme justices was to sit. The court had exclusive
jurisdiction in critinal cases and also in civil cases involving more than
$2)0. Minor cases were tried by justices of the peace. Records of the


286




old court proceedings show that they were often irregular and that the
laws were ludicrously crude. Although the inhabitants were dissatisfied with the rule of governor and judges, it is not probable that they
would have preferred the old way, by which the military commandant
was the sole arbiter of justice in the colony. Nevertheless they found
abundant cause for grumbling in the new order of things, and their
complaints were vented as effectively as possible by the action of grand
juries. The address of the grand jury to the judges in 1807 criticised
the manner in which the public moneys were expended and asked that
a list be made of citizens in all parts of the Territory who were eligible to
be drawn for jury duty.
James Witherell, who succeeded Frederick Bates, took his seat with
Governer Hull and his fellow judges, Woodward and Griffin, on April
3, 1808. He was born in Mansfield, Mass., on June 16, 1759, was a
Revolutionary soldier at seventeen, and was present at the battles of
White Plains, Long Island, Stillwater, Bemis Heights, Monmouth and
at the surrender of Burgoyne. He was also with Washington at Valley
Forge, and saw the execution of Major Andre at Tappan. When the
war was over he went to Connecticut, where he studied medicine and
became a physician. In Rutland county he was elected chief justice
of the County Court and was congressman in 1807. While a member
of the House Jefferson appointed him to be one of the judges in Michigan Territory. When he came to Detroit he was forty-nine years of
age and was about six feet in height, with a stalwart, upright frame,
blue eyes, brown hair, ruddy complexion, large nose and resolute
mouth. He was a public spirited citizen, an honest man and good
jurist, with a firm, decided mind. He was not a profound lawyer, but
he had clear common sense and an inflexible will. On the bench he
nearly always opposed Woodward in his vagaries and perversity of law
and justice. In the records of the Territorial Legislature and Land
Board from 1807 to 1815, in which latter year Cass became governor,
the vote was nearly always Witherell and Hull against Woodward and
Griffin. But Witherell was a stronger man than Hull, and it was generally his purposes, rather than those of the governor, which were the
rule of action. Upon the bench Witherell was in the minority, for
Woodward and Griffin always voted together, but his stern outspoken
protest: " I do not see the force of that decision: there appears to be
no sense in it," was frequently heard on the bench. When Hull surrendered Detroit he broke his sword, and refused to surrender his corps,
287




and they went to their homes. He was sent with his son and son-inlaw to Kingston, Upper Canada, where they were paroled. He went
back to Vermont but returned when the British surrendered Detroit in
1813. Resuming the duties of his office, he served as judge until 1828,
when he resigned and was appointed secretary of the Territory, and
after acted as governor during Cass's frequent absences. He died at
his home on the site of the present Detroit opera house, on January
9, 1838, aged seventy-nine years. He was the maternal grandfather of
ex-Senator Thomas W. Palmer.
The United States grand jury presentment in 1809, of which George
Hoffman was foreman, was thoroughly characteristic of jurors' action
at that period.  Hoffman was a prominent citizen; was first register
of the United States Land Office in 1804-05, and postmaster in 180(i
In this presentment Governor Hull was indicted for an alleged abuse of
executive clemency in the case of John Whipplc. The latter was a
former captain in the United States army and was a friend of HIull,
who had alppointed him Indian interpreter. Whipple had been interested in a case in the Supreme Court which was decided contrary to his
interests, and he took the first opportunity to charge Judge Woodwar(l
with favoritism and denounced him to his face as a d-d rascal. Whipple
was arrested, and at first Woodward proposed to try him before himself
and the other supreme judges, but was persuaded to have two justices
of the peace, one of whom was Robert Abbott, to sit with him on the
case. Whipple was tried, convicted and fined $50  Governor Hull
promptly remitted the fine. The relations of the governor and Woodward had been strained for some time, lbut this almost severed them in
a personal sense.  Everybody, including' the grand jurors, believed
that the fine was remitted b)y tlle governor for the purpose of spiting
the judgle, and their indignlation at the latter was expressed in the
presentment as follows:
" listory, the record of facts, shows that under every form of,governIment, man1, when invested with authority, from the weakness land
ilmbecility of his nature, lias a strongl propensity to assume powers with
whvich he is not legally clothed. Fully )cersuladed (of this truth froml
reflection and observation, we, tlle glrand jury for tle body of the Territory of Michigan, after having heard witnesses and a free and disl)assiolnate discussion and consideration of tleir testimlony, on our oath
present, that William I tull, governor- of this territory, dlid on tlle 2?tl
day of February, 180!3, illegall-y and witvhout any color of atltlhority,


288








GEORGE H. BARBOUR.








sign an instrument in writing as said governor of the Territory,
remitting the fine of $50 imposed on Whipple by the Supreme Court,
and we the said grand jurors have a confident hope that the
Supreme Court will carry into effect their own judgment."
It was at this period, and probably the result of the quarrels between
the governor and the judges, that the first attempt was made to obtain
for Michigan the second form of government, wherein the legislative
department was severed from the judiciary and became elective.
In 1809 the first printing press was brought to the Territory, as will
be detailed hereafter, and almost the first use to which it was devoted
was printing the proceedings of the grand jury in their presentment of
Governor Hull in remitting Whipple's fine. This presentment is dated
September 26, 1809. A meeting of citizens was at once called to consider the matter of a change in the form of government, and, after
forming themselves into a permanent organization, they appointed a
committee, consisting of Augustus B. Woodward, George Hoffman,
James Henry, Solomon Sibley and James May, to inquire into the different forms of territorial government of the United States, and then
adjourned till the 16th of October to meet at the house of Richard
Smythe.   At this adjourned meeting Augustus B. Woodward presided
and George Hoffman acted as secretary. The proceedings were printed
in French and English and posted up in conspicuous places in the village, and copies were sent to the more prominent citizens in other
settlements of the Territory. The resolutions adopted took the following form:
" That it is expedient to alter the present form of government of this Territory,
and to adopt a form of government by which two bodies, elected annually by the
people, should make the laws, instead of the executive and the three judicial magistrates, appointed by the general government, atoptzing them; the first to consist of
five representatives, and the second of three councilors, the executive to have a
qualified veto, under such modifications as Congress in their wisdom may think
proper to provide.
" That the Congress of the United States be respectfully solicited to appropriate
the sum of six hundred dollars annually towards defraying the expenses of the territorial legislature, constituted on the foregoing principles.
" That it is expedient that the people of this Territory should be represented in
the Congress of the United States by a delegate to be elected by the people."
These resolutions, which were submitted to Congress, anticipated by
some years the actual change of government that the citizens then desired, for the first delegate was sent to Congress in 1819, and the first
elective legislative body was chosen in 1824.
289
37




The meetings that had been called, and the discussions that had attended them, had partly persuaded the people that the laws which had
been adopted, conformable to the ordinance of 1787, were illegal and
not properly applicable to our Territory. It was partly for the purpose
of remedying this evil that the change in government was sought to be
obtained. Governor Hull was so greatly excited by the popular clamor
that, three days later (October 19, 1809), he issued a proclamation,
under the territorial seal, calling upon all good citizens to enforce the
laws as they found them, and advising them that Congress alone had
the power to declare them null and void.
Peter B. Porter presented the petition of the citizens in Congress on
the 21st day of February, 1810. More important matters occupied the
attention of Congress at this time, for it was then discussing the questions that resulted in the war of 1812, and in the excitement the Michigan petition was lost sight of, and nothing further was done in the
direction of self-government for the Territory until long after the war
was closed.
The grand jurors of those days, like death, loved a shining mark,
and like the Irishman at Donnybrook fair, hit any head that showed
itself. After upholding the judiciary against the executive, the same
grand jury turned around and denounced the same man in their legislative capacity. The legislature, namely, the governor and judges, had
passed an act laying out and opening a road from the foot of the rapids
of the Miami River to Detroit, and in the early part of 1809 had passed
an appropriation act which provided for the payment of James Witherell, one of the judges, William McD. Scott and John Whipple, as
commissioners, for seventeen days' service at $4 per day. for exploring
and surveying the road. For this Judge Witherell was censured by the
jury " for conduct unbecoming the character of a faithful and impartial
judge, for introducing and voting in a legislative assembly for the
above appropriation, especially when he knew the expense was to be
defrayed by the proceeds of a lottery authorized by the terms of the
act."
The four rulers were again presented in 1810 for alleged illegal and
arbitrary actions, the foreman, George McDougall, voicing their sentiments in the following prelude: " It is peculiarly plainful and unpleasant to be under the necessity of presenting any of the members of the
local government, especially those who are placed in the highest seats
of justice." George McDougall was a lawyer, a bon vivant, and a very
290




irascible man. He was born in Detroit under British rule, and was the
son of Colonel George McDougall, who was the first owner of Belle
Isle. Young George was sheriff of the county in 1800, chief justice of
the Territorial District Court in 1807, and probate judge in 1809-18.
In the war of 1812 he was adjutant-general of the Territory, and was a
brave and active soldier. He became poor in old age, was a lighthouse
keeper at Fort Gratiot and died in St. Clair about 1840, in extreme
poverty. The proceedings of the grand jury of 1811 were the most
unique and interesting of any in the annals of that body. First came
the address of Judge Woodward, in which he made some general
observations on the important duties before them, and eulogized the
" sacred principles of liberty and the absolute sovereignty of law in the
preservation of order."  His concluding remarks were as follows:
" Permit me, gentlemen, before closing my remarks, to be the medium
of acquainting you that the governor and judges of this Territory have
unanimously recommended to all public officers to be clothed in American manufactures when engaged in the exercise of their official functions, after the 4th day of July, 1813. In obedience to, or rather in
anticipation of, their recommendation, I have the honor to appear now
before you clothed completely in the manufacture of our country,
trusting that even an humble example may not be without some weight
or utility. Perhaps among the many splendid plans which intelligent
and patriotic characters may have contemplated for the encouragement
of domestic manufacture, none may prove more efficacious than the
simple rule of every citizen in his own person, restricting his consumption tp them."
After alluding in a hopeful vein to the proposed system of canals
projected in New York, he closed by making the following prophecy,
already abundantly realized:
" The face of this fine region of our continent will soon be fairly expanded by the rays of American enterprise, and the day is not distant
when we shall behold the energy of its operation. Perhaps our own
era may witness the extension of our settlements to the Pacific, and
the standard of our republic reflected from the shores of another ocean."
If Woodward supposed that he would gain ground with the jurors
by disquisitions on the encouragement of home industry, or by prophecies of material progress, he was woefully mistaken. The presentment made a few days later was a scorcher, and showed that the jurors
were thoroughly independent men, and no respecters of persons. It
291




started off by denouncing the authorities, the governor and judges, for
their delay in building a jail, and called attention to the act of Congress directing its erection and providing for its cost by the sale of ten
thousand acres of land. Another count was a virtual indictment of
Judge Woodward. It recited that he had refused to sit on the trial of
a person accused of the murder of an Indian, under the plea that be
was not possessed of a freehold estate of 500 acres; as required by the
territorial ordinance, and that he had previously sat on the trial of an
Indian for a similar offense. The jurf characterized this inconsistent
action as " either an unwarrantable assumption of power, or an egre
gious dereliction of duty." Another count hauled him over the coals
for having Whitmore Knaggs-scout, interpreter and spy, under Generals St. Clair and Wayne, and Indian interpreter under Hull-arrest.
ed and brought before him on a charge of assault and battery on
himself, when there were two other judges of the Supreme Court who
might have been called to try the case; also that he had called up the
case in court without giving notice to Knaggs, and adjudged that he
should give $1, 500 bonds to keep the peace. For these and other reasons
the jury conceived that the conduct of Judge Woodward was " unprecedented, unwarrantable, arbitrary and tyrannical, and tending to prostrate the sacred barriers which the wisdom of our laws have erected
against encroachment on the liberties of the citizen." Copies of the
presentment were ordered sent to Judge Woodward and the other
Supreme Court judges, the president of the United States, president of
the Senate and speaker of the House of Representatives.
Judge Woodward's reply to this attack was respectful and quite ingenious. He commenced by stating that " the laws of a free country,
gentlemen, touch the motives of mankind with a gentle hand, and
cautious ought those to be to whom it is entrusted, that neither public
passions or private malignity interpose or influence." He admitted
that the statement of his action in the case of Whitmore Knaggs, an
appointee of the governor, was correct, and added with sarcasm, that
in a previous case, " where another of the particular friends of the
governor [meaning John Whipple] made an assault on one of the
judges [himself] for matters connected with his public functions, an
adjudication of the Supreme Court was rendered [he might have added
that the dictum of the court was negatived by the governor's action,
but every juror knew what he meant]." In that case the court entertained a full conviction that it had the power, and that it was his duty
292




to himself to institute proceedings against the offender. A judge, he
argued, is a conservator of the public peace, and is always in the execution of his office, and the law arms him with power for the protection of others and also himself. Even words of threatening and
abuse toward him in relation to his public duties are regarded in a
similar light. He contended that the subsequent proceedings were
public, but that the parties did not wish to be present, and it was not
deemed proper to coerce them.  "An act of benevolence," he added,
"is not to be converted into an act of oppression."
The judge concluded by saying that he would transmit the presentment with other documents to the speaker of the House of Representatives, " but it would not be considered respectful or proper to trouble
the other public functionaries with the subject." The names of the
jurors who returned the above presentment were James Henry, foreman, George Cottava, James Connor, George McDougall, J. Farwell,
Jacob Visger, John Anderson, J. B. Beaugrand, David Beard, T. Eastman, Henry Berthelet, Chabert de Joncaire, John Dodemead, Samuel
T. Dyson, M. Leinger and Josiah Brady.
CHAPTER XL.
Tecumseh and the Prophet Plan to Drive the Americans out of the West-They
Rouse the Indians to Hostility, Intending to Unite with the British-General Harrison Defeats Them at the Battle of Tippecanoe, November 7, 1811.
When Hull was made governor of the Territory he was also made Indian agent, an office which was then connected with that of the executive. The last named office was very important, as there were then
only 4,860 white persons in the Territory, of whom about four-fifths
were French, and the remainder Americans, with a few British. The
Indian settlements comprised those of the Potawatomies, Miamis,
Wyandottes, Chippewas, Winnebagoes, Ottawas and others. These
were the tribes which afterward united with Tecumseh and the
Prophet, and were allies of England against the United States in
the war of 1812, as they had formerly been united under Pontiac
against the English as allies of France. The Indians felt that the
people of the United States were their natural enemies, because they


293




were perpetually being encroached upon by them. In 1806, in an
official communication to Secretary of War Dearborn, Hull stated that
his main objects were to extinguish gradually the Indian title, and to
instruct the red men in agriculture and the mechanic arts.
In 1806 the Indians became restless under the teachings of Tecumseh, chief of the Shawnees, and his brother, the Prophet. The tide of
American immigration was beginning to flow westward, and the Indians resented the settling of the white men on what they considered
their hunting grounds. The Americans were farmers and proposed to
permanently occupy the land, but the British who came west were
either traders or hunters like themselves. These causes had already
begun to produce the Indian confederation of which Tecumseh and his
brother were the principal heads. The two went everywhere and held
innumerable councils, and belts of wampum rapidly circulated between
all the tribes. In this movement the hand of Great Britain was sometimes discernible. At this time the Indian title had only been extinguished in Michigan at the post of Detroit and the district adjacent,
bounded north by Lake St. Clair and south by the River Raisin; also
at Mackinac Island, at the adjacent island of Bois Blanc and six miles
of the adjacent mainland. Except these small strips of land, all of
Michigan was, legally, still in the possession of the Indians. In pursuance with this plan, Hull executed treaties at Detroit in 1807 with
the Ottawa, Potawatomie and Wyandotte tribes, by which they ceded
to the United States the territory in southeast Michigan bounded south
by the river and bay of Miami; west by a line running north and south
through the middle of the territory as far north as Saginaw Bay, and
north by a line running from this point to White Rock on Lake Huron.
In recompense for this land annuities were paid. Much confusion
arose in regard to land titles, owing to the numerous grants made by
the Indians during the French and English regimes, and to the conflicting terms of the treaties of Fort McIntosh, Fort Harmar and
Greenville. The Indians were cajoled by the British officials and
Indian agents at Malden (Amherstburg) into the belief that they had
been frightened into signing a disastrous treaty while they were
in a panic resulting from a defeat. They were perslladed that they
should resist the encroachments of settlers and keep the Americans out
of the West. This caused the Indians to complain to Governor Hull.
They had cause for complaint, as the greedy settlers seized upon lands
right and left, regardless of the claims of the Indians, desecrating the
204




graves of their dead, and, in more than one instance, ordering the
original owners to vacate.
After the evacuation of Detroit in 1796 the British had attempted to
fortify Bois Blanc Island, which commands the navigable mouth of the
river, but upon the vehement protests of the Americans they abandoned
the island for a time.  They, however, built Fort Malden, on the
mainland, which was their right according to the Jay treaty. The
Indians then began coming to Fort Malden, as they had come to Detroit during the dark days of the past. They were supplied with presents, rum, guns and ammunition, and urged to protect themselves
against the settlers by force of arms. If they did not do so they were
told that they would all soon be driven west of the Mississippi. This
was perfectly true, as the settlers would eventually drive them back;
but stirring them up to resistance could only hasten the day of their
removal. Tecumseh and the Prophet lived on Mad River, not far from
the present site of Springfield, Ohio. Tecumseh was a brave warrior
and a man of uncommon intelligence and ability. There are various
traditions in regard to his birth, one being that he was a son of Governor Bienville of Louisiana and a Cherokee squaw, another that he,
the Prophet, and Kamshaka, another brother, were triplets, sons of a
Creek squaw named Methoataske. Tecumseh saw that the whites had
no regard for the claims of the Indians, but he did not realize the odds
of superior intelligence and numbers which were against his people.
His plan was similar in all respects to that which Pontiac had formulated half a century before. He planned to attack Detroit; Fort Dearborn (Chicago), which had been established by an expedition from
Detroit in 1804; Fort Wayne, which General Wayne had built on the field
of General St. Clair's defeat in 1794, and which he first named Fort
Recovery; Vincennes and St. Louis, Mo., the latter having become an
American post by the Louisiana purchase. In order to accomplish
this undertaking he schemed to unite all the Indians east of the Mississippi against the Americans, and no doubt he expected some help
from the British. His influence was not so potent as that of Pontiac,
for the Indians were now much demoralized by rum and by the crushing defeat administered by Wayne, just as they had thought themselves
invincible. Tecumseh's name among his tribe was Tecumtha, which
in the Shawnese tongue signifies, "springing panther." He was a
well built man, about five feet ten inches in height, with a face indicative of courage, dignity and energy. Elkswatawa (the loud voice),


295




the Prophet, was an ill-favored man, who had lost his right eye, and
was therefore somewhat handicapped for the chase and for war, but he
was as cunning as a fox, although much addicted to drunkenness.
One day, after a long debauch, he fell in a fit and was supposed to be
dead, but just as he was to be prepared for the grave he awoke from
his cataleptic state and told his tribesmen that he had been in the Land
of the Blessed, and had come back at the command of the Great Spirit
to warn his people against drunkenness, stealing, lying and witchcraft.
He went about preaching in his stentorian voice against these vices,
and also against association with the white settlers, until he had a large
following. In 1806 Tecumseh's Indian runners were traversing the
country with wampum belts, calling in the chiefs of distant tribes for a
grand council. When a number of them had gathered at Mad River
or at Malden, the Prophet would address them, saying that the Great
Spirit had appointed him his agent on earth to save the Indians from
destruction at the hands of the Americans. He claimed to have a
message from the first man created, who had spoken to him in a vision
as follows: "I am the father of the English, the Indians, and the
French, and the Spanish, but the Americans are not my people; they
are the children of the evil one. They grew from the scum of the
great waters. You must crush and destroy them, for they are not my
kin or your kin. All the Indians of the north, south and east must
unite against them. The villages which do not listen to my voice will
be cut off; they will perish from the earth." Thus he would proceed
in a long harangue, artfully appealing to the prejudice and superstition
of the savages, and the chiefs would go back to their respective villages
to talk the matter over with their warriors. Residents of Detroit began to feel uneasy, for they knew that the Indians were hatching some
sort of conspiracy, and that they were being incited thereto by the
British.
In addition to the greed for territorial possessions there was a commercial interest which made the British hostile to the Americans. John
Jacob Astor, a Dutch merchant of New York, had built up a vast fur
trade, which at the beginning of the century had become a formidable
rival of the Hudson Bay and Northwest Companies. Astor had a line
of ships on the sea, which carried furs to all parts of the world, and
brought back the produce of foreign countries. In 1808 he had vessels
on the Pacific coast, and two years later he founded the city of Astoria,
at the mouth of the Columbia River. His agents and partners gath296




WILLIAM C. MCMILLAN.








ered the furs from the headwaters of the Missouri and Mississippi and
from the region of the Great Lakes, and he established trading posts
at Mackinaw Island and other places through the Northwest. In 1808
he obtained a charter from Congress for the establishment of the American Fur Company, with a capital of $1,000,000, and with the privilege
of increasing it to double that amount. He bought out the Mackinaw
Company of Canada, and merged it into another concern known as the
Southwest Fur Company. Astor then tried to effect a combination
with the Hudson Bay or Northwest Company, for the purpose of establishing a line of communication and transportation from the Atlantic to the Pacific, a scheme which was urged by Sir Alexander McKenzie, who made a journey across the continent in 1792-93. The
British company, already very jealous of the success of Astor, declined
to associate with him for any purpose whatever, and so the establishing of transcontinental posts was deferred for several years. In 1810,
when it became evident that Astor was capable of establishing such an
enterprise alone, some members of the Hudson Bay Company joined
in partnership with him at Astoria, on the Columbia, and formed the
Pacific Fur Company. Each year expeditions were sent from New
York to Astoria, by way of Cape Horn, and a land expedition was sent
across the continent, taking in Montreal, Mackinaw and St. Louis on
the way. Astor bore most of the expense, and Ramsay Crooks, a young
Scotchman, who afterward became Astor's partner, usually conducted
the land expeditions.  The Canadian partners at Astoria behaved
treacherously, and were doubtless connected with the Hudson Bay
Company for the purpose of ruining Astor's growing business on the
Pacific and the Northwest. They were apparently waiting for an opportunity, for when the war of 1812 began between the United States
and Great Britain, the principal Canadian partner sold out the entire
business at Astoria for a mere trifle to the British Company of the
Northwest. His pretext was that he was compelled to sell it to prevent
a seizure by the British cruisers. On October 16, 1813, Astoria was
put under the British flag. This rivalry of the American Fur Company was one of the causes which caused the British at Malden to set
the Indians against the Americans, while other causes along the border
and particularly on the seaboard were slowly working to bring on a
war. Residents of Detroit appealed again to Congress for better military protection, and they built a stockade about the new town. A
grand council of the Hurons and Wyandottes was held at Brownstown,
297
38




near the mouth of Detroit River, in September, 1809, at which they
decided to protest against the encroachments of American settlers.
Their head chief, Walk-in-the-Water, went to General Hull and asked
him to compel the settlers to vacate certain lands upon which they had
squatted and to compel them to keep out of the Indian country.
Among other tracts claimed by the Hurons and Wyandottes was the
territory at the mouth of Detroit River on the American side. This
was claimed by the United States under the cession of the treaty of
Greenville, and a string of villages had sprung into existence along
the river.  Within the limits of Michigan in 1809 were nine settlements. There was a settlement near the mouth of the Maumee River,
another on the Raisin River and still another on the Huron River which
emptied into Lake Erie. North of these were the settlements at Ecorces,
the Rouge River, on the Huron or Clinton River of Lake St. Clair,
and on the St. Clair River; also Detroit and Mackinaw. The Lake
Erie settlements mentioned had a combined population of 1,300 people;
Detroit, Rouge River, Ecorces, the Huron and St. Clair settlements
numbered 2,200 and Mackinaw had about 1,000. Detroit had a garrison of ninety-four soldiers and there were seventy-nine at Mackinaw.
Of the 4,800 people living in Michigan at the time four-fifths were
French Canadians and the remainder were American, English and
Scotch settlers.
Every month the Indians became bolder as their confederation became more powerful. They began to force their way into the houses
of the Indiana and Ohio settlers and helped themselves to whatever
took their fancy, and several settlers who offered resistance were killed.
A petition was sent from Detroit, December 27, 1811, showing how
imminent was the danger of an Indian war in the new territory and
asking Congress for help, but political rivalries occupied so much attention at Washington that the needs of the frontier were ignored. That
spring a delegation of 800 warriors came down from the Lake Superior
region to hold a council at Tecumseh's town. The Ottawas, Chippewas, Mississauguas, Potawatomies, Winnebagoes, Wyandottes and
Shawneeswere all in the alliance now, and the braves began goin,
about in war paint as if the war had already begun. Governor Harrison,
of Indiana, had done what he could to stave off the impending conflict
between the settlers and the Indians by securing clear titles to various
disputed tracts. As early as 1805 he had thus extinguished the Indian
titles to 46,000 acres of land, and later he acquired much larger tracts,


298




but the settlers were foolishly aggressive and invited a war. They
considered that the Indians, being a migratory people, had no more
right of possession than the buffaloes and other beasts that roamed the
wilds, and the land speculators were quite regardless of the storm they
were raising. An aged chief spoke scornfully to Governor Harrison
when the latter complained of the attitude of the Indians.
"You call us your children," said he, "but why do you not make us
happy as our fathers the French did? They never took away our lands;
the land was common between us. They planted corn and cut wood
where they pleased and so did we. But now if a poor Indian attempts
to take a little bark from a tree to cover him from rain, some white
man threatens to shoot him, claiming the tree as his own."
General Harrison promised to do all in his power to repress the landgrabbers. He scoffed at the superstitious fears of the Indians and denounced the Prophet as an imposter.
"This excitement must stop," said he. "I will not permit it in my
territory. You have called men from all parts of the country to listen
to the mouthings of a drunken fool. He tells you he is directed by the
Great Spirit, but I tell you he is directed by the Evil Spirit and by the
British agents at Maiden. The white settlers are much disturbed by
your actions, and they desire that you send these gathering tribes away
from here. If they wish to have the imposter, let them take him away.
Let him go to the lakes where he can hear the British more distinctly.'
This made the leaders of the conspiracy fearful of the American militia, and Tecumseh removed from western Ohio to the banks of the
Wabash at the mouth of the Tippecanoe River. The Prophet admitted
to Harrison that he had been urged by the British agents to stir up the
Indians to war, but claimed that he had refused. In September, 1809,
Governor Harrison made a treaty with the Miamis, Delawares, Kicka.
poos and Potawatomies, and obtained about 3,000,000 acres more of
Indian land for the white settlers, paying in cash and in annuities.
Tecumseh's people, the Shawnees, had no claim to the lands in this
purchase, but they declared the treaty void and threatened to kill every
chief who signed it. " American dogs " was the name Tecumseh and
the Prophet applied to the settlers and their officials. Tecumseh was
summoned to Vincennes for a council with Governor Harrison August
12, 1810, but instead of bringing thirty warriors as instructed, he
brought 400 fully armed, and the residents were greatly alarmed.
When Governor Harrison asked Tecumseh to " take a seat beside his




father," the chief drew himself proudly up, saying: "The sun is my
father; the earth is my mother; on her bosom will I repose; " and he
sat down on the ground. He demanded that the government should
surrender all the lands in the West which the United States had acquired by treaty or by purchase, and when he was told that it would
not be done, his attitude made it appear that war was inevitable.
Governor Harrison began to gather militia and to drill them in preparation for an Indian war. He sent word to Tecumseh that Indian depredations must stop at once, or he should attack the Shawnees and their
allies. The Fourth Regiment of regular infantry was sent from Pittsburg to Vincennes, and a number of Kentucky riflemen came to have
a hand in the prospective fight. September 26, 1811, General Harrison
marched up the Wabash River with 900 men and built a fort on a bluff
where Terre Haute now stands. It was called Fort Harrison. That
month there was to be an eclipse of the sun, which was much talked
about among the whites. The Prophet got hold of the news and told
his followers the day and hour when the Great Spirit would show his
displeasure at the Americans by darkening the sun. His reputation as
a seer was established when the eclipse took place on time. From Fort
Harrison the army of Indians lproceeded up the valley until it came
within a mile of the Prophet's town, on the banks of the Tippecanoe.
Tecumseh was absent in the South trying to get the Cherokees and
Creeks to join his federation, and the Prophet sent messengers asking
the whites to camp for the night and observe a truce until miorning
when they would be ready to hold a council. Just before daylight the
Indians crept up to attack the camp, expecting to surprise the soldiers,
but they found them very wide awake. The soldiers held their ground
until daylight, when they charged and soon had the Indians flying in
all directions. The Prophet's town was burned and the Indians took
to the marshes to avoid pursuit. The Prophet was denounced by his
own people as an imposter, because he had told them that the bullets
of the white men could not harm them. This conflict is known in his
tory as the battle of Tippecanoe, and was fought November 7, 1811.


300




CHAPTER XLI.


Causes Leading Up to the War of 1812-Great Britain Persists in Impressing
American Sailors-Attempts to Cripple the American Navy-Every Nation Against
the United States-Affair of the Chesapeake and the Leopard-The Embargo Act.
While the United States and Great Britain were ostensibly at peace
there was little friendship between the two nations. Congress began
to build a navy and this act was offensive to Great Britain. In 1797
three frigates were launched, the United States, the Constitution and
the Constellation, and they were put in commission. The first two
carried forty-four guns each and the latter thirty-eight guns. At the
close of 1798 the new nation had a navy of twenty-three vessels, with
an aggregate of 446 guns. A scheme was formed across the ocean to
cripple the American navy, and the first intimation of it came to the
United States on November 16, when Captain Phillips, of the American cruiser Baltimore, sailed out of Havana to escort a number of
merchant vessels to Charleston and protect them from French privateers. Just outside the harbor he met a British squadron and bore up
to the Carnatick, the flagship of the squadron, to speak with the comnmander as an act of courtesy. Without warning the British war
vessels bore down upon the merchant vessels and seized three of them.
Phillips went on board the Carnatick to protest, when he was informed
that every man on the. Baltimore, who could not prove that he was
American born, would be transferred to the British ships. Phillips
said that he would prefer to make a formal surrender, but this was
refused and on going back to his own vessel he found a British officer
mustering his men. Fifty-five of the picked men were transferred to
the Carnatick, but later, when Phillips struck his flag, all but five of
them were returned. Five men and three merchant vessels with valuable cargoes were taken away. As Great Britain was mistress of the
seas at that time, there was nothing to do but to protest against this
outrage, but the protest received no attention, and the British navy
continued to prey upon American shipping, impressing the best of the
men during the next fourteen years. Great Britain claimed the right


301




to search the vessels of any neutral nation for British subjects, in order
to recruit her navy for the war with France, and thousands of Americans were impressed into the service upon that pretext. All overtures
and offers of the United States for securing a better understanding
were curtly rejected. It was excused on the ground that a Briton
could not expatriate himself. A born Briton was held to be liable for
service for the king at any time, and if a sailor spoke the language it
was generally construed as sufficient proof of his nationality. Napoleon, who sought to force the United States to become his ally against
Great Britain, issued a decree from Milan, December 17, 1807, which
declared all vessels which submitted to the right of search and impressment by Great Britain, to be denationalized and forfeit, if captured in going to or coming from a British port, or on the high seas.
Holland and Spain issued similar decrees, because they were anxious
to please Napoleon. It can be seen that the commerce of the United
States was in desperate straits, and to make matters worse the British
maintained a naval force along the coast of the United States to prey
upon all shipping. This country had a merchant tonnage of 1,200,000
tons afloat on the seas, but with utterly inadequate protection, and
consequently American ships were an easy prey for any European
power.
Early in 1807 the United States frigate Chesapeake, while preparing
for her first cruise, shipped three men who had deserted the British
ship Leopard of fifty guns. At 3 o'clock in the afternoon the Leopard
hailed the Chesapeake, informing Commodore Barron that she had a
dispatch for him. The Chesapeake hove to and so did the Leopard,
but the latter had her ports triced up as if prepared for battle. A boat
was sent to the Chesapeake, and a British lieutenant was cordially received by Commodore Barron, but the latter stated that he was looking
for deserters and demanded the surrender of any who might be found
on board. His demand was accompanied by a note from Captain
Humphrey of the Leopard. Barron was naturally irritated by the deception and the general lack of courtesy, and he replied that he had
instructed his recruiting officers to hire no British deserters and that he
knew of none on board. In accordance with the instructions of his
government he refused to allow a foreign officer to muster his men.
The Chesapeake had left port without preparation for war, but while
the lieutenant was waiting for his answer the officers did what they
could in a quiet way to clear for action. After the lieutenant had left


302




the work went on more vigorously, but as the frigate was not prepared
for service, it was impossible to make ready with a new crew and a
newly equipped vessel in so short a time. A hail from the Leopard
that the men must be given up and then a shot whistled across the
bow of the Chesapeake. Another.shot was sent over her and then a
whole broadside of twenty-five cannon was poured into the helpless
frigate. The Americans finally got one broadside loaded, and then
could find no priming powder, matches or locks, so that the guns could
not be fired in return. While the search for fighting material was
going on in the Chesapeake, the Leopard poured in several broadsides,
killing and wounding twenty men. Commodore Barron, although unable to fight the Leopard, wanted to fire one gun before the Chesapeake struck her flag to avoid complete destruction. Lieutenant Allen
finally fired it by securing a live coal from the galley, and applying it
to the vent of one of the guns. As soon as the colors were hauled down
the Chesapeake was boarded by officers from the Leopard, and Commodore Barron tendered his vessel as a prize, but Captain Humphrey
refused to accept her, knowing that such an action would give the
Americans a valid claim against his government. The crew was then
mustered. Three Americans who had once been impressed in the
British service were put in irons, and John Wilson, a British seaman,
who had deserted, was taken with them on board the Leopard. At
Halifax the four were sentenced to be hung, but the three Americans
were reprieved on condition that they would re-enter the British
service. Wilson was executed. Commodore Barron was found guilty
of neglect of duty and was suspended from service for five years. This
outrage naturally aroused the Americans to great indignation and excitement against England. Canning, British minister of foreign affairs,
disclaimed the act on the part of the government, and recalled Humphrey from service at sea. Two of the American sailors taken from
the Chesapeake were held in slavery on British ships for five years,
but the other died in the service. The bitter feeling against England
united the two great political parties of the United States by arousing
their patriotism. So fierce had been the strife between the Federalists
and the Democrats that the nation at times appeared to be on the
verge of civil war. While the internal strife was at its hottest Great
Britain attempted to fan the fires of discontent by establishing a propaganda of anti-democracy. An Irishman named John Henry, who was
a naturalized citizen of the United States, lived in Vermont in the


303




early part of the century. He wrote some clever letters for the press,
denouncing the government officials for their incompetency and declaring that the country was incapable of self-government. His articles
attracted the attention of Sir James Craig, governor of Canada, who in
1806 invited Henry to come to Montreal. There an arrangement was
entered into by which Henry was to give his whole time to the propagation of popular discontent, and if he succeeded in raising a civil
war in the United States, he was to receive /30,000.  He was authorized to offer the Federalists the support of British influence if
such a promise was needed to give them courage. Henry failed to
accomplish his purpose after five years of steady work, and when he
was refused compensation for his effort he turned against his employers and revealed the plot to President Madison. The British ministers
denied all knowledge of the plot, but when it was proposed to submit
all the correspondence in I-enry's possession to a court of inquiry, the
House of Lords voted the proposition down by seventy-three to
twenty-seven ballots. All these stirring events occurred far from
Detroit, but they were the most notable of many abuses which precipitated the war of 1812-15, in which Detroit had a very prominent
part, and which caused this region to fall again under British rule
for over a year.
Had the United States desired a pretext for war it had been afforded
a hundred times since the treaty of 1783, but war was to be avoided at
any cost except the loss of national honor. The country was bankrupt
financially, and struggling to recover from the drain of the Revolution.
Its government and its finances were in very crude shape, and its public works were almost entirely wanting. The Americans had been in
almost constant war. first with the Indians, then with the French and
Indians on behalf of the British, and then against the British and the
Indians.  Able bodied men had been kept in the wars, and so the
country was but little improved.  England was the most powerful
nation on the sea and the United States had hardly made a start toward
building a navy.  In 1807 the Senate of the United States, after considering the situation, passed an embargo bill, which prohibited all
ships then in United States ports from sailing for any foreign port.
Foreign vessels were permitted to leave with ballast, but they could
not take away cargoes. Coasting vessels were compelled to give heavy
bonds to insure that they would deliver their cargoes at the port indicated. It was a declaration to the world that the United States would


304




HENRY T. THURBER.








voluntarily sever all connection with the outside world until the obnoxious practices of England, France, Spain and Holland should be
stopped, and until American ships could sail the seas unmolested, as
the vessels of a neutral power were entitled to do. This act completely
crushed the rapidly waning commerce of this country, and the business
men of the Atlantic ports were very bitter against it, charging President
Jefferson with being in league with Bonaparte for the purpose of forcing the country into a European war as an ally of France. England
passed an act permitting American vessels to carry cargoes to foreign
countries if they would first land at a British port, pay port dues, and
take out a trading license, but this was of course rejected with the
scorn which it deserved. Then the British ministry issued orders to
all naval commanders to encourage violations of the embargo, and to
assist vessels to run the blockade from American ports to the West
Indies. In March, 1809, the embargo act was repealed under pressure
from the commercial men of the country, and a non intercourse act
was passed, which merely forbade trade with Great Britain and France.
This was as obnoxious as the embargo, and it, too, was repealed fourteen months later. Outrage and insult had passed the limit of endurance. American patriots saw that they must resist the arrogant claims
of Great Britain or acknowledge to the world that they were mere vassals of the greater power without the courage or manhood to maintain
their honor. James Madison succeeded Thomas Jefferson as president,
and in April, 1812, he recommended another embargo for sixty days.
This was understood as preparatory for a declaration of war. The
embargo was a damage of more than $6,000 a month to American
commerce, but it was passed to keep as many of the merchant vessels
as possible in port, save them from capture by British privateers and
have them available in case of war.
305
39 N




CHAPTER XLII.


War Declared July 19, 1812-Condition of the Northern Border-The British
Enlist the Indians-Michigan Militia Called Out-Detroit Volunteers Invade Canada to Capture Malden, but are Recalled by General Hull-Detroit Surrendered
with a Superior Force of Men and a Large Quantity of Stores.
War was declared June 19, 1812. At that time the British had 254
ships of the line each carrying 74 guns or more; 247 frigates and 506
smaller war vessels. On Lake Ontario they had the Royal George, 22
guns; Earl of Moira, 16 guns; Prince Regent, 14, and the Duke of
Gloucester, 8 guns; their fleet on the upper lakes was almost as formidable. In Upper Canada they had a regular force of 1,500 men and
6,000 in the St. Lawrence valley. There was a British population of
400,000 in Canada and a militia of 40,000 to draw from. Opposed to
Fort Holmes at Mackinaw they had a small fort and garrison on the
island of St. Joseph, at the mouth of the St. Mary's River. They had
a fort and garrison at Maiden near the mouth of the Detroit River;
Fort Erie opposite Buffalo; Fort Chippewa near the falls of Niagara;
and Fort George at the mouth of the Niagara River. There were also
forts at Kingston and York (Toronto) harbors. These were the British
fortifications along the inland frontier, while at sea the British were in
overwhelming strength. The Americans had only the forts at Detroit,
Mackinaw, Fort Niagara and Oswego on the lakes to defend a border
of 1,700 miles. As soon as decisive action was taken by Congress,
France revoked the hostile decrees against American ships, but the
Americans were still handicapped at every point. Three thousand five
hundred American sailors were at that time in a condition of slavery
on board British war ships, where they must fight against their own
country.
Gov. William Hull, of the Territory of Michigan, went to Washington
to urge the establishment of a navy on Lake Erie, saying that the government that controlled Lake Erie would control all the West. He
showed how the Indians were being united to the British cause to the
imminent danger of Detroit and the other frontier towns, and as a re306




suit he was commissioned brigadier-general to command in the West,
and Commander Stewart was authorized to build several small vessels
on Lake Erie. A requisition for 1,200 troops was made upon Gov.
Return J. Meigs of Ohio. These troops rendezvoused on the Miami
River, two miles above where Dayton now stands, and General Hull
took command May 25, 1812. Lewis Cass, of Marietta, was made colonel of the Third Regiment, with Robert Morrison and J. R. Munson
as majors; Duncan McArthur was made colonel of the First Regiment;
James Findlay was colonel of the Second Regiment, and James Miller
was the colonel in command of the Fourth Regiment of United States
troops, then stationed at Vincennes. Gen. Elijah Wadsworth, of Ohio,
raised three more companies of men, and the volunteers joined the
above force on the march.
In order to fully understand the military operations about Detroit in
1812 and 1813 it may be well to survey the ground, locating the places
of long ago by their relative location or vicinity to the places of to-day.
Detroit River is about twenty-three miles in length from its upper extremity at Windmill Point to its junction with Lake Erie below Amherstburg. Its course is a long curve from the east to the south.
On the Canada side, beginning at Lake Erie, the British post of
Maiden was opposite Bois Blanc Island. The fort was built there for
the purpose of commanding the ship channel of the river. A mile east
of the town a marshy creek ran parallel with the river, which reached
from the swamp of the River Canards, four miles north of the fort, to
Lake Erie. Much of the land below Malden was marshy, so that it
afforded some protection against an attacking party by making it difficult to transport artillery. The River Canards is a deep but sluggish
stream, having its origin in a cranberry swamp, and empties into Detroit River opposite the middle of Grosse Ile. Seven miles above the
Canards was Turkey Creek or Ruisseau aux Dindes, which derived a
portion of its waters from the same swamp. It flowed into Detroit
River near the head of Fighting Island, which was called Turkey Island
in those days. Between the Canards and Turkey Creek was a rise of
ground called Petit Cote. Three miles still farther north was a small
inlet from the river called the River Ajarvais, and a little farther up
was the village of Sandwich. This was a cluster of houses strung
along the rivet front on each side of the old Huron Mission and Assumption church, and the settlement continued to a point opposite Detroit, or as far as the ferry landing at Windsor. North and east of this
307




point were French and British farms, extending along Lake St. Clair,
the Thames and other tributaries. Lord Selkirk had a large estate
called Beldoon on the Canadian coast east of Walpole Island.
On the American side the French farms reached from Lake Huron to
Detroit, fronting on the lakes and rivers which were the main highways
of travel and commerce. Half a mile below Belle Isle, or Hog Island,
as it was called in those days, the creek called Bloody Run emptied
into the river. The lands in the rear of the town of Detroit were
swampy and much of it was heavily timbered, although a stretch of
prairie opened toward the northwest. Near the site of the present
Fort Wayne, about three miles from Fort Detroit, stood three small
sandhills and a cluster of Indian tumuli, where several deep springs of
excellent water existed. This place was called Springwells. The
River Rouge, with its marshy mouth, emptied into the river a short
distance below, and a small ship yard had been set up on its banks.
Near the site of the present village of Trenton was the Indian village
of Monguagon, named in honor of a famous Wyandotte chief of anteRevolutionary days. Four miles further south is the mouth of the
Detroit River, and a little further down the Huron River pours its
waters into Lake Erie. A short distance from the mouth of the Huron
stood a small settlement known as Brownstown, named in honor of an
English trader who had established a post there nearly half a century
before the war of 1812. This was nearly opposite Bois Blanc Island
and Fort Malden. Fifteen miles below the Huron was the River
Raisin, at the mouth of which was Frenchtown (now Monroe), where
Gabriel Godfroy and Jean Baptiste Jerome and other French traders
maintained a post. A few miles below the Raisin the Great Black
Swamp began, which extended far into the interior of Ohio and was
almost impassable in the rainy season. Fort Detroit was the sole defensive work on the Detroit River.
Fort Nonsense was a military earthwork, situated near what is now
the intersection of Park and Duffield streets. It was a circular fort,
seventy-five feet in diameter  The parapet was seven or eight feet in
height, and the ditch or dry moat around it was about six feet deep
and some ten feet in width. It was a great resort of the boys of the
town in summer time, who would sometimes divide into two parties,
one defending and the other attacking the fort. The authorities differ
as to the time of construction. Robert E. Roberts, in his " Sketches
of Detroit," says that it was hastily thrown lup in 1796 by Captain
308




Moses Porter's detachment, on the night before the day that the British
evacuated Detroit. Captain Porter's troops were the advance guard
of Colonel Hamtramck's command, and arrived one day before. Roberts also says that when the Indians became troublesome in the war of
1812, by driving away cattle from the settlement, the citizens placed a
cannon and squad of soldiers in it. Farmer's " History of Detroit," a
much better authority, says it was erected in 1807 to prevent hostile
raids of cattle-stealing Indians. Rev. George Duffield, who came to
Detroit in 1838, and was pastor of the First Presbyterian church until
his death in 1858, purchased from Solomon Sibley a ten-acre lot, comprising all of the old fort. When Park and Duffield streets were opened
through the property in the '50's, the old fort disappeared. It was
called Fort Nonsense because it was useless and afforded no protection
to the inhabitants.
All the American troops were eager to attack the Indians who had
long harassed them. General Hull and his associates, with their four
regiments, started the little army toward Detroit on June 1, 1812, plunging into an unbroken wilderness of more than 200 miles. They floundered through the Black Swamp and suffered great hardships on the way.
On the 19th they were met by Gen. Robert Lucas and William Penny,
who had been sent ahead to Detroit with dispatches to Secretary Attwater, who was acting governor. They reported that while many of
the Indians were disposed to keep the peace, Walk in the-Water, the
head of the Wyandotte tribe, was decidedly hostile, and was taking all
the Wyandottes to the British garrison at Malden. Tecumseh was also
marshaling the Indians against the Americans, and the outlook was
very serious. News of the declaration of war reached Detroit incidentally. The forwarned commandant at Malden, Colonel St. George,
began active preparation for service on the border, and several Detroit
and Frenchtown settlers who had crossed the river were arrested, and
informed that they were prisoners of war. Citizens of Detroit went
to Secretary Reuben Attwater, who was acting governor in the absence
of General Hull, and asked him to call out all the Michigan militia,
put every available man under arms, and to prepare the fort for active
service. Attwater, a timid man, was afraid to usurp the authority,
and the fort might easily have been surprised had the British realized
its condition. If Attwater was timid there were others who were not.
A committee of the solid citizens of the town went to the officers of the
Michigan Legion, a body of the territorial militia, and told them to


309




call all their men to arms at Detroit. Among these citizens were Solomon Sibley, George McDougall, John R. Williams and Elijah Brush.
This call gathered about 600 fighting men and their officers at Detroit.
Judge Witherell, who was the only Revolutionary officer in the
territory, was placed in command and he commenced to drill them. Sentinels were posted along the river bank for several miles, with orders
that if any of them should discover the enemy approaching to give the
customary alarm signal by firing his gun three times in quick succession. In like manner the militia of the town and the residents were to
be warned by cannon shots from the fort. On June 24 dispatches
arrived from Washington, telling General Hull to hurry to Detroit
with all possible speed, as the situation there demanded his immediate
presence. At that time war was already declared, but General Hull
received no notification, while the British at Maiden were aware of the
situation, having learned it from the fur traders. In ignorance of this
fact, General Hull dispatched the schooner Cuyahoga from the Rapids
of the Maumee with much of the baggage of the army, the hospital
stores, tools and his private chest containing his commission, the muster rolls of the army, and his instructions from the War Department.
Lieutenants Dent and Goodwin, the wives of three officers, and thirty
soldiers went with the schooner as a guard. A smaller schooner was
sent on with the sick and disabled.
As the army arrived at Frenchtown (now Monroe, Mich.), a message
arrived from the thoughtful postmaster at Cleveland. It warned General Hull that war had been declared, and that he must take unusual
precautions in approaching Detroit. General Hull hurried an officer
and a company of men to the mouth of the River Raisin, to stop the
schooner Cuyahoga and her consort, to prevent their capture by the
British, but they arrived too late. The Cuyahoga had already been
stopped at Malden by a gun from the fort, and the British brig Hunter
had taken all the passengers and crew ashore as prisoners of war.
The little craft containing the invalids was of lighter draft, and had
escaped by passing up the west channel of the river at some distance
from Malden. Hull stopped at Frenchtown, while Colonel Cass went
to Malden with a flag of truce to demand a return of the prisoners and
baggage taken from the Cuyahoga. The demand was refused. Hull's
army spent July 4, 1812, in building a bridge across the Huron River
at Brownstown about a mile and a half from Lake Erie. rThey passed
a large village of Wyandottes, who were under command of Chiefs


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Walk-in-the-Water, Lame Hand and Splitlog, but were not attacked.
From the shore of the lake below Grosse Ile, they could see a large
body of troops in motion around Fort Malden, who appeared to be embarking on the brig Hunter, which was moored at the wharf. Expecting the British to descend upon them at any time, they passed an
uneasy night. General Hull prevented an attack from the British by
resorting to a ruse. He sent a spy, who, professedly in the British interest, informed Colonel St. George that Hull was expecting reinforce_
ments from Detroit, who would bring down some cannon from the fort,
and as soon as they arrived he proposed to attack Fort Malden. This
message caused the British commander to concentrate and hold his
troops in readiness for an attack, but early next morning Hull was
hurrying on to Detroit. His troops crossed the Rivers aux Ecorces
and Rouge, where they were met by the Michigan militia under Col.
Elijah Brush. They camped that night at Springwells, in the shelter
of three small sand hills, which were Indian tumuli, immediately opposite Point Royal, which juts out from Sandwich into the river. A company of the enemy was encamped at Sandwich. They fired a few shots
from their small field pieces at Hull's encampment, but these merely
frightened some of the residents of Detroit, who had come down to
meet the army. The American volunteers rested from their hard
march and washed their clothing, which had been plastered with the
mud of the swamp. Next day they encamped at Detroit immediately
north of the fort. The Ohio men were eager for the fray and wanted
to cross the river and give the enemy battle. Hull discouraged their
zeal, but called a council of war, to which he stated that he had no
authority for invading Canada.
"But the enemy is throwing up fortifications at Sandwich and opposite Detroit," the Ohio officers expostulated.  "Are we going to
remain idle in plain sight of them and with a superior force, while
they prepare to bombard Detroit?"
" While I have command I shall obey the orders of my government,"
said Hull angrily. "I shall not cross the river until I have authority
from Washington."
This filled the officers and men with indignation, but they did not
care to create a mutiny, and the army waited while the British threw
up earthworks on the high banks opposite Detroit and prepared to.place their cannon for attack. A letter finally arrived from the secretary of war directing Hull to commence operations at once, and if the
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relative strength of the two armies would warrant it, he was directed
to proceed to the capture of Fort Maiden and extend his conquests as
circumstances might justify. The volunteers were elated at the news.
They were confident that they could capture Maiden and then sweep
across Ontario carrying everything before them, They had been compelled to witness the progress of the enemy's works without opposition,
although they had a force of 2,200 men and 43 cannon, most of which
were 24-pounders. With that force they could have driven the British
away from the river front, and prevented them from constructing
earthworks within the range of their smaller field pieces.  Detroit at
that time contained 160 houses, all new since 1805, and about 800
people. The stockade extended from the high bank of the river on the
west line of the Brush farm to Congress street, and thence westward
to the line of the Cass farm, thence to the river front and eastward to
the line of Randolph street. The stockade was fourteen feet high and
was pierced with loopholes for the use of small arms. Fort Detroit
(formerly Fort Lernoult) was a strong fortification when General Hull
took command   The embankments and bastions stretched out about
400 feet on a side, quadrangular in form, with projections at the corners to afford a flanking fire against assailants who would attempt to
scale its outer slope. The embankments were about twenty feet thick
and were surrounded by a dry ditch eight feet deep and of like breadth.
In the middle of the ditch was a strong stockade of pickets, which had
to be scaled by assailants, and on the inner slope was another row of
sharp stakes projecting outward at an angle of forty-five degrees, making a series of very troublesome obstacles. While an enemy would be
breaking through these, the batteries in the bastions loaded with grape
shot could mow them down like grass. In addition to the force brought
from Ohio, General Hull had the Detroit garrison of ninety-four men,
and the Michigan militia under Col. Elijah Brush, which met him at
the River Ecorces as he approached. This made about 2,200 men for
the defense of Detroit. General Hull could no longer delay attacking
the enemy and he prepared to cross the river.
In the afternoon of July 11 he collected all the boats he could gather
along the shore and sent them down to Springwells. He ordered Colonel McArthur to march his regiment by land to the same point, as if
he intended crossing the river there.  Under cover of darkness the
boats were brought back and Hull assembled his men on the river
bank, at the mouth of Bloody Run, and they were taken across the
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S


v                       0








stream, four hundred at a time. The Americans crossed in all sorts of
craft, numbering about fifty boats. Most of them were canoes and
pirogues, but there were several bateaux and a small schooner of about
ten tons, which was loaded with troops and cannon and towed across
by men in skiffs and canoes. Four trips were made before all were
landed in Canada. As the first boat touched the shore just above the
site of Walkerville, the men scrambled ashore and formed for defense
on the highest part of the bank. As they did so they saw two horsemen standing on the river bank, a short distance below them, who
turned and rode away at a swift gallop. They were Colonel St. George,
the gray-haired commandant of Fort Malden, and one of his captains,
who, seeing that the Americans were not crossing from Springwells,
suspected another ruse was being worked upon him like that at Brownstown. The ruse was discovered too late to prevent its success. General Hull and his army camped on the farm of Francois' Baby, in what
is now Windsor, on Sunday morning, July 12, 1812. The American
flag was hoisted amid rousing cheers, which were answered by the
watching crowd across the river. They were welcomed by the French
Canadians, who had usually been sympathizers with the American
cause. Col. Lewis Cass then issued a proclamation to the residents,
telling them the causes which had led to the declaration of war. He
stated that the Americans had invaded the country, not to make war
upon the peaceable residents, but to free them from tyranny and assure
their personal liberty. All were requested to remain peaceably at their
homes, as the American force was sufficient for any contingency and it
was but the vanguard of a much greater army. "You are not to engage as allies of the merciless Indians on any account," said Colonel
Cass; "the first stroke of the tomahawk, the first attempt with the
scalping knife, will be the signal for an indiscriminate scene of desolation. No white man found fighting beside an Indian will be taken
prisoner; instant destruction will be his lot."
Once more the soldiers begged for permission to march against Maiden. "Let us go to that nest of vultures and carrion crows where
Girty, McKee, Elliott and the other Indian leaders are, and clean it out
completely," they pleaded. Hull, whose bump of caution must have
been abnormally developed, hesitated and then sent a reconnoitering
party down the river by land. They returned toward night, saying
that they had found a large band of Indians, perhaps 200 in number,
on Turkey Creek, opposite Fighting Island. Tecumseh was there
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40




with about 200 warriors, and the woods beyond appeared to be full of
Indians. General Hull immediately threw up earthworks, as he feared
a general attack would soon be made upon him, and that a fleet of war
vessels would co-operate with the land forces. Another band of
skirmishers was sent out to discover what the Indians were doing, and
found that they had gone around Sandwich and were making good
time up the shore of Lake St. Clair. Colonel McArthur was sent in
pursuit of them with 100 men. The Indians scattered into the woods
as he came upon their rear, and he followed in pursuit to the banks of
the Thames, where some small Moravian villages were located at that
time. Some British soldiers were captured in the house of Isaac Hull,
a nephew of the general, who lived at the mouth of the Thames, and
these were disarmed and paroled. Boats were seized and loaded with
what provender the Americans could find, and the expedition returned
with 200 barrels of flour, 400 blankets and a quantity of military stores.
At Beldoon, on the Canadian shore, opposite Walpole Island, which
was a Highland Scotch settlement founded by the Earl of Selkirk,
some 800 sheep were taken and also brought to Detroit. The flour,
blankets and military stores were British government property, but
Hull gave receipts for these as well as everything else that was taken.
General Hull's conduct in this campaign is inexplicable. He must
have known that he was possessed of a force superior to that of the
enemy. A commander like George Rogers Clark would have descended upon Malden like a thunderbolt before the enemy could prepare for the shock of battle, but Hull dared not leave the neighborhood of the fort at Detroit. He adopted the best possible tactics for
giving the enemy confidence by sending out small detachments toward
the British fort without any definite purpose. He sent Colonel Cass
and Lieutenant-Colonel Miller down the east shore of the river with
280 men, and they proceeded as far as the Tarontee or Duck River
(River aux Canards), which empties into the Detroit River about four
miles above the present town of Amherstburg. A British picket was
found there, just above the bridge; it consisting of a part of the 41st
Canadian Regiment, and Tecumseh and his Indians.    Leaving a
part of his men in concealment before the enemy's position, Colonel
Cass made a long detour with the remainder of his men, waded the
Canards and another deep inlet several miles above and came down
with a rush upon the British and their allies. The impetuosity of the
attack sent them flying in disorder and the Americans pursued them
314




for half a mile. It was useless to attack Fort Maiden with so small a
force, so Cass and Miller went back to the bridge of the Canards and
sent for reinforcements, holding the bridge in the mean time. Hull
refused reinforcements, and ordered the protectors of the bridge to fall
back. He said he could not attack Malden until he had obtained his
heavy cannon from Detroit. Cass took two prisoners. Some deserters joined his force, bringing the information that several of the enemy
were badly wounded, two of them mortally. The Americans did not
lose a man.
It needed but a successful dash to take all the fighting out of the Indians, and without their support the garrison at Malden was then puny
in strength compared with Hull's command. There were there only 200
men of the 41st Canadian Regiment, about 120 of the Royal Fencibles
of Newfoundland, and an independent artillery company. On July 17,
1812, another small detachment under Colonel McArthur was sent
down the shore to the River Canards. They found that the bridge had
been torn up, and the planks used to form a breastwork on the farther
side of the stream. The brig Queen Charlotte, armed with eighteen
cannon, and a small gunboat lay at the mouth of the inlet to support
the defenders. The River Canards' mouth was defended by a battery
supported by 250 British and about fifty Indians. After two hot skirmishes with some Indians who had crossed the river, ammunition began
to run low, and a messenger was dispatched to Sandwich for more,
while the Americans took a position at Petit Cote. Colonel Cass then
came to the rescue with 150 men and a six-pound cannon, joining
McArthur's force at Turkey Creek. They returned to Petit Cote, but
it was useless to attempt hostilities against such overwhelming odds.
The opportunity for a decisive action had been lost through General
Hull's reluctance to support Cass and Miller. The bridge was now
held by the enemy's troops and two armed vessels, so it was no longer
available, and it was now impossible to carry artillery beyond the Canards because the country for several miles above the bridge was a
swamp of black mud. This being the case, General Hull abandoned
his command July 21 and crossed over to Detroit, leaving the troops
in the hands of Colonel McArthur.  Indians began to menace the
American front, and Major Denny was sent out on the 24th to drive
them back across the Canards River, but after several skirmishes his
flank was turned and he was compelled to retreat with a loss of six men
killed and two wounded. By this time the soldiers suspected that Gen



eral Hull was a traitor who was deliberately playing into the hands of
the enemy, and the army was on the verge of mutiny.
While these events were transpiring at Detroit the fortune of war
had gone against the Americans at Mackinaw. Fort Holmes, as it was
called, was defended by Lieutenant Porter Hancks and fifty seven men.
The armament consisted of two long nine pounders, two howitzers and
a brass three pounder. The Indians on the island had been acting
suspiciously, and they all left suddenly without giving any reason for
their departure. Lieutenant Hancks feared they were on some hostile
mission, and in total ignorance that war had been declared, sent Captain Daurman, of the militia, to the new British fort on St. Joseph Island, at the mouth of St. Mary's River, to ask the commandant why
the Indians had migrated. Daurman met an expedition, consisting of
British troops and Indians, on their way to attack Fort Mackinac, and
was made a prisoner of war. Lieutenant Hancks was surprised, and
his force being inadequate, he was obliged to surrender. The fort and
its stores, and 700 packages of valuable furs, fell into the hands of the
enemy through the neglect of the War Department to notify the outposts that war had been declared.
Major-General Brock, who commanded the troops in Canada, was in
every way the opposite of Hull. His action was swift; his energy tireless. He raised a large force of volunteers in a few days and had them
ready for service, while Joseph Brant, the educated Mohawk chief,
1 rounded up the Canadian Indians. Brock was preparing to attack Fort
Niagara, on the American side, when he heard that Canada had been
invaded from Detroit and that Fort Malden was in peril. He promptly
dispatched Col. Henry Proctor, of the 41st Militia, with all the men he
could spare, to reinforce Maiden.
In spite of Hull's inaction the Canadians near the Detroit River
flocked to the American standard until he had 500 militia added to his
force. While the British reinforcements were on their way west, Capt.
Henry Brush, of Chillicothe, Ohio, arrived at the banks of the River
Raisin with 230 more volunteers for the defense of Detroit, together
with 100 head of fat cattle and other provisions. There he found his
progress barred by Tecumseh and a band of Indians and British, who
were encamped at Brownstown. Brush sent to General IHull for reinforcements. Hull at first refused to send an escort for the volunteers
and supplies, regardless of the urging of the Ohio soldiery, but he was
finally bluffed into compliance. Maj. Thomas B. Van  omrne, of Colo

310




nel Findlay's regiment, was then dispatched to the scene of trouble
with 200 men. The escort crossed the Detroit River on August 4, and
camped that night at Ecorces. Capt. William McCullough was sent
ahead of the company with four scouts to beat the bush for the enemy.
When near Monguagon, not far from the site of the village of Trenton,
they were ambushed in a cornfield. McCullough was shot and scalped
before assistance could arrive. A Frenchman, at whose house the
Americans stopped for water, told them that a large party of British
and Indians were lying in wait for them near Brownstown, but the men
were so disgusted with the timid policy of Hull that they paid little
heed to the warning. They were ambushed in the brush at the outskirts of Brownstown, and a deadly fire was poured into their ranks,
throwing the troops into confusion. They were compelled to fall back
as far as Ecorces, with a loss of seventeen killed and several wounded;
some of the latter became prisoners and were probably scalped. Dispatches which were carried for transmission to Washington, and letters
to friends of the soldiers in Ohio, were captured by the enemy, revealing the disaffection in the army. These letters showed up the character of Hull, and if the British needed more encouragement than had
already been given, it was thus afforded. Major Van Horne sent to
Detroit for 500 men to assist them in bringing Brush and his men to
the fort. General Hull said he could only spare 100, but such a force
would have been worse than useless and Van Horne returned. In
order to quell the rising mutiny in his ranks General Hull, on August
7, promised to advance against Malden immediately with all his forces.
All soldiers were instructed to join their commands, prepared for active
service, at once, and the men were once more filled with enthusiasm.
That night, instead of advancing toward Malden, Hull ordered the
army to return across the river to Detroit, thus abandoning the reinforcements from the Canadian militia to the tender mercy of the British
and Indians.
In answer to vehement protests against complete evacuation General
Hull modified the order so that Major Denny was left on Canadian soil
with 150 invalids and convalescents, and a small corps of artillerists,
who were all practically without support. They took up their quarters
in the Gowris homestead at Sandwich. News of Proctor's approach
had reached Detroit. General Hull sent Lieut. Dixon Stansbury and
Ensign Robert McCabe with a force of Ohio volunteers; Capt. Antoine
Dequindre with sixty Frenchmen of his command; Lieut. John L.
317




Eastman with a six-pound cannon and a gun crew; Lieut. James Daliba
with a howitzer and crew; and detachments of Smith's and Sloan's
cavalry to escort Captain Brush to Detroit. Lieutenant-Colonel Miller
was given command of this company of 600 men, and Captains Brevoort
and Abram F. Hull, son of the general, were his aides. The men were
eager to wipe out the disgrace of Van Home's defeat. Maj. Thompson
Maxwell went ahead with the scouts, while Capt. Josiah Snelling, of
the regular army, followed with a support of forty men. Behind came
the troops in three columns, the cavalry occupying the center, while
the horses dragged the cannon over the marshy ground. They saw
the first Indians near Monguagon. At this place a farmer, who had
joined the expedition on horseback, strayed too far away from the main
body, and was shot and scalped by some savages who were hidden near
Walk-in the-Water's house. A few minutes later an ambush of 100
British regulars, 100 Canadian militia and about 300 Indians, under
Major Muir, opened fire upon the Americans. The vanguard under
Captain Snelling sustained this fire and answered it pluckily while the
main body hurried up. Miller ordered a charge; and a volley of grape
shot was turned against the enemy as soon as the cannon could be
trained upon the hiding places. Captain Dequindre charged along the
river bank, where part of the savages were posted, and drove them
back. The British, thinking the Indians to be allies of the Americans,
poured a volley into the demoralized savages and completed their rout.
The savages, in a panic, fought friend and foe alike until they had
broken away from the front. The resulting confusion scared the British and Canadians, who were expecting a flank attack, and they fled
after the savages. Tecumseh and his lieutenants, Lame Hand and
Splitlog, were left to bear the brunt of the shock. They held their
warriors in line and fought with splendid valor, while the British, in
spite of the efforts of Major Muir and the other officers to rally them,
broke for their boats and rowed away toward Malden. The Indians
finally broke cover and were pursued by Snelling and the cavalry for two
miles into the oak forest. The Americans lost eighteen men killed and
fifty-seven wounded, the worst damage having been inflicted by the
first volley. The British had twenty-four regulars wounded and one
killed, but the Indians and Canadian militia lost over sixty killed, and
many were wounded. In this skirmish both Major Muir and Tecumseh
were slightly wounded.
Miller sent a messenger to Detroit to tell of his victory and ask for


318




supplies. Colonel McArthur was dispatched down the river with 100
men and 600 rations, which they carried in small boats. In the darkness they escaped detection by the Queen Charlotte and the Hunter,
which were guarding the river, and delivered their rations to Miller
opposite Grosse Ile. Then the wounded were carried to the boats to
be taken back to Detroit, but it was impossible to make the journey
by daylight, on account of the two armed brigs which were waiting at
the bend of the river about four miles above. An attempt to slip
through failed, and the boats were pulled to the shore, where the
wounded were landed and taken to Detroit in wagons. The British
sailors seized the empty boats before Colonel Cass could come to the
rescue. Lieutenant-Colonel Miller had been thrown from his horse
and severely hurt during the battle, so he was unable to proceed to the
River Raisin. Colonel Cass arrived at Monguagon and sent a dispatch
to Detroit, which said: "Miller is sick; may I relieve him?" No
answer came from Hull and Cass started back to get permission to
continue the march, when a messenger met him with order to bring
the entire expedition back to Detroit.
All this time Capt. Henry Brush was left at the Raisin, exposed
to attack from overwhelming numbers. The soldiers of the Detroit
force said they would make Miller commander, but he refused to countenance a mutiny. Cass wrote to Gov. Return J. Meigs, of Ohio, asking him to come to the relief of Detroit. Cass, Findlay, Elijah Brush,
McArthur and Taylor signed the letter, and every officer at Detroit
would also have signed it had he been asked. Hull was half the time
shut up in his private room, holding converse with no one except his
dissipated son, Capt. Abram F. Hull. His men could not decide
whether he had become an imbecile or a traitor.
General Brock raised money by contributions and soldiers by enlistment, and arrived at Malden to join Proctor August 13, bringing a
boat expedition of thirty regulars and 300 militia from Long Point on
Lake Erie. A force of Mohawk warriors made the journey by land.
When he arrived at Malden the news was carried quickly to the Indian
camp on Bois Blanc Island, and the savages fired a noisy feu de joie
in his honor.
"What troops are those? " asked Brock.
"Those are Tecumseh's warriors," he was informed.
"Ah! I must see Tecumseh very soon." Colonel Elliott put off in
a boat and brought the great chief over to the mainland, where he was


319




introduced to the new commander. Next morning Brock and Tecumseh held a "big talk" in the presence of about 1,000 Indians. The
general announced his intention of moving immediately upon Detroit,
and prophesied its speedy capture. Tecumseh was fired with enthusiasm and made a speech which set his warriors in a frenzy. Then he
talked with General Brock aside. When the meeting was over Brock
said to those about him: " A more sagacious or a more gallant warrior
does not, I believe, exist." General Brock proceeded immediately to
Sandwich, which had been abandoned by Major Denny and his invalids
three days before. A battery was erected opposite Detroit. The
Americans begged for the privilege of firing upon the enemy, but Hull
would not permit it, and so the works which might have been prevented
with comparative ease, went on to completion. Hull sent another expedition of 350 men to escort Captain Brush up the river, but when the
men were half way on their journey they were called back to Detroit.
When the British batteries had been planted and a row of eighteen
pounders was trained upon the American fort, General Brock sent
Lieutenant-Colonel McDonnell and Major Glegg from the Canadian
side of the river, with a written demand for the surrender of Detroit.
Brock added a covert threat to the demand, saying: " You must be
aware, sir, of the number of Indians who have attached themselves to
my command, and knowing their characteristics in warfare you must
appreciate how impossible it will be to control their passions should
they once become seriously engaged." After two hours consultation
with the messengers Hull replied: " I am compelled to inform you that
I am ready to meet any force which may be at your disposal, and any
consequences which may result from its exectition in any way you may
think proper to use it." He added some apologies for the depredations
of the American troops on Canadian soil.
Major Jesup asked Hull for a small battery to take down to Springwells to drive the Queen Charlotte away, but was refused. He then
offered to take 100 men and steal across to the poorly manned British
batteries opposite Detroit and spike their guns, but Hull would not
listen to the proposition. The commander shut himself in his rooom to
avoid the importunities of his officers. In the afternoon of the same
day the British battery opened on the fort, and the Ohio troops who had
been encamped a short distance north on the common, were ordered
inside. Then the Indians swarmed over the river from Canada, landing
below Springwells, and came up toward Detroit. The fort answered
320




r4      c     &,








the fire from across the river with spirit, and disabled two of the
enemy's guns.
Next morning, August 16, the British crossed the river and landed
at Springwells. Hull refused to allow a battery to be sent to oppose
the landing. Tecumseh, with Colonels Elliott and McKee, had already
crossed with 600 Indians. After eating their breakfast leisurely the
British marched toward Detroit, but with no cannon. Brock rode
about 300 yards ahead of his troops, as if he were on his way to dress
parade. Two twenty-four-pounders had been placed in the fort where
they could easily sweep away the approaching column. Beside them
stood 400 rounds of shot, shell and grape, while 100,000 rounds of
other ammunition were ready for the defense. The guns had been
loaded with grape shot, and Lieutenant Anderson had been placed in
charge of the battery with orders from Hull to hold his fire until
ordered to open on the enemy. An impetuous soldier who saw an
opportunity for enfilading the enemy, sprang forward with a match to
fire a cannon, but Anderson rushed at him with drawn sword and
threatened to cut him down if he dared to fire a gun without orders.
This was about 10 o'clock A. M., two hours before the surrender.
Shots from the battery over the river began tearing through the
wooden palings of the fort; one ball killed Lieutenant Hancks, late of
Mackinaw, Lieutenant Sibley and Dr. Reynolds. Dr. Blood was
dangerously wounded. Blood spattered all around and the frightened
women, who had been huddled into a bomb proof, shrieked with terror.
Another shot tore through the south gate, killing two soldiers. An
officer of the Michigan militia rushed into General Hull's quarters, and
asked if the enemy was to be allowed to take possession without an
attempt at defense. Hull made no reply, but continued penning a
note which he delivered to his son, Capt. Abram Hull. He told Captain Hull to display a white flag from the southern ramparts of the
fort where it might be seen by Captain Dixon, who commanded the
battery across the river. Captain Hull went out of the fort bearing a
flag of truce and a letter of capitulation to General Brock, before his
intention was suspected by the other officers and soldiers. Without an
attempt at defense, without consultation with his subordinates, General Hull surrendered Detroit to an inferior force. The soldiers broke
into loud curses against their commander, calling him a traitor and a
coward. Some of them broke their guns and dashed them to the ground
in impotent rage. At that time the soldiers believed that General
321
41




Hull had secretly made complete arrangements with Colonel McDonnell, the British officer who demanded the surrender of the fort, to
turn the place with all its stores over to the enemy, and that the subsequent cannonade was merely a ruse to cover the perfidy of their commander.   In no other way could they reconcile the undisturbed
approach of the enemy and the perfect confidence of their commander
in exposing himself and his column of infantry to destruction. Another suspicious circumstance was that Colonels Cass and McArthur
were surrendered while they were absent down the river, and also
Captain Brush and all his supplies at the River Raisin. When a messenger from General Hull informed Colonels Cass and McArthur that
they and their troops were prisoners of war, they flew into a passion of
rage. They sent word to Brush notifying him of the surrender. Captain Elliott, son of the British Indian agent, went to the Raisin with a
squad of men, presented a copy of the capitulation, and demanded the
surrender of Brush's men and supplies. With Brush was a company
of Ohio volunteers from New Lisbon, O., under Capt. Thomas Rowland, also on their way to Detroit. When the latter was informed of
the situation he shouted " Treason! " and forthwith made Elliott a prisoner. The whole party started back to Ohio carrying Elliott along,
but the latter was released the next day. He rode rapidly back to Detroit, and with a party of Indians tried to overtake the retreating volunteers, but the latter reached their homes in safety. Rowland was
afterward present at the battle of the Thames and after the war was a
resident of Detroit until he died.
Detroit was formally delivered over to the British commander at
noon, August 16, 1812, with its stores and arms, which were much
needed by the enemy at the time. Gen. Sir Isaac Brock and his staff
appeared in full uniform on the esplanade when the American flag was
hauled down, and the blood red banner of Great Britain was raised
above Detroit for the second time. A salute was fired from a brass
cannon in the fort which bore the following inscription: "Taken at
Saratoga on the 17th of October, 1777." The victorious British soldiers
were overjoyed at the recovery of this interesting relic thirty-five years
after they had lost it in fair field. They declared that it should be further
inscribed: " Retaken at Detroit, August 16, 1812," but they were destined to lose it again. There was a thundering of cannon far greater
and louder than that which had preceded the surrender, for the battery across the river replied to the guns of the fort, and the brig Queen


322




Charlotte sailed up the river discharging her guns as fast as her crew
could load and fire. In the presence of all the assemblage General
Btock took off his crimson sash of silk and threw it about Tecumseh,
to signify his acknowledgment of the warrior's services. Tecumseh
received it with becoming dignity, but did not wear it afterward, as he
was too modest to delight in vain show.
CHAPTER XLIII.
Settlers and Garrison of Fort Dearborn (Chicago) Massacred by Indians-General
Harrison Rescues the Garrison of Fort Wayne-General Hull Convicted of Cowardice
and Incompetence and Sentenced to be Shot-Sentence Suspended.
General Hull and his regulars were held as prisoners of war and taken
to Montreal, where they were afterward exchanged. The Ohio volunteers were taken to the mouth of the Cuyahoga River and released to
go to their homes, while the local militia were permitted to disperse and
resume their civil occupations.  A brig called the Adams had been
launched and was nearly rigged for service in the Detroit ship yard.
This was taken by the British, renamed the Detroit, and taken to Fort
Erie, on the Niagara River, a few weeks later. A company of Americans crossed from Buffalo to Fort Erie on the Niagara, and cut the
ship's moorings, with the intent to tow her across the river.  They
were attacked, however, and their attempt was frustrated. The brig
was then set on fire, and, running aground, became a total loss.
As soon as Detroit had fallen into the hands of the British, Simon
Girty, who still hated the Americans with all the virulence of his nature,
came once more to the fort to boast of his deeds in the past and to
taunt the captives with their defeat.
"You Yankees are a miserable lot," said Girty. "It only takes a
good handful of British regulars to whip you; you've gone the length
of your tether now and Great Britain is going to get the whole country
back again."
" Say, Girty," retorted a Michigan volunteer, " you seemed to be in
a hurry when you went away from Detroit last time. Did you begin
to feel your hair loosening when you jumped your black mare off the
high bank and made her swim the river with you?"




" Guess you'd a jumped if you'd seen old Wayne and his devilish
cut-throats coming after you, and no other way of getting out of their
reach."
"What ever became of the black mare that saved your neck?"
"Oh Lord, she died years ago; good mare that. I didn't let the
crows pick her bones, but buried her with military honors."
Simon Girty was born in 1741. His father, who bore the same name,
was a dissipated Irishman who settled in an early day on the banks of
the Susquehanna River, where he reared a family of four sons. During one of his numerous debauches he was killed by an Indian named
"The Fish." John Turner, a neighbor of the Girtys, avenged his
death by killing " The Fish " and then he took compensation by marrying the widow. During the Indian troubles of 1756 in Pennsylvania,
one year after Braddock's defeat, Turner and his family were captured
by some French Indians who took him with his wife, his little son and
and the four Girty boys, his stepsons, to Kittanning, Pa. There they
stripped Turner, tied him to the stake, and tortured him to death by
thrusting red hot gun barrels through his body. Mrs. Turner and her
boys were compelled to sit close by and witness the awful proceedings.
The mother and the boys were then divided among the Indian tribes,
Simon going to the Senecas, with whom he lived for several years.
James was brought up by the Shawnees, and George by the Delawares.
After making his escape from the Indians Simon became a soldier at
Fort Pitt, and served as an Indian agent for the Americans. His desertion, and his services rendered the British afterward, have already
been related. This is why he was called the renegade, and not because
he associated with the Indians. When the war of 1812 broke out he
was a white haired old man, broken down by intemperance; he was
also crippled by rheumatism and almost blind. His home was on a
farm near Amherstburg, given by the British government. Owing to
his intemperance and his dangerous temper when drunk, his wife was
compelled to leave him and he went east for three years, making his
home among the Mohawks at Burlington Heights, Canada, near Lake
Ontario. He returned to Malden or Amherstburg in 1816, blind and
almost helpless, making his home at the hotel of his son-in-law, Peter
Govereau. Whenever he could obtain liquor he still drank, but he was
no longer dangerous, and his wife came back to comfort his last days.
On February 15, 1818, he was attacked with a severe illness and he
died three days later, aged seventy-seven years. He was buried on his


324




own land on what is now known as the Mickle farm, two miles below
Amherstburg, on the bank of Lake Erie, and a squad of British soldiers
fired a salute over his grave. In his prime he was of stout build, five
feet nine inches in height and of very swarthy complexion. He had
piercing black eyes set quite close together, and his face was disfigured
by a long scar across the forehead, which it was said was the result of
the assault made upon him by George Lewis.
Through the incompetence of General Hull the Americans suffered
more than the loss of Detroit. Fort Dearborn had been erected on the
Chicago River, and it was garrisoned by Capt. Nathan Heald, Lieut.
L. T. Helm, Ensign George Ronan and a garrison of fifty-four men.
Several families of settlers lived within a mile of the fort, most of them
being gathered closely about it. Tecumseh's confederacy had drawn
in the Potawatomies and Winnebagoes, the neighboring tribes of
Indians, and early in the summer of 1812 they began to act in a suspicious manner. As the fort was provisioned for a siege of six months
and had plenty of powder and ammunition, the garrison paid little attention to the hostility, and merely kept close watch to guard against
the admission of Indians to the fort. In April a family, named Lee,
was massacred not far from the fort bv the Indians, and this made the
soldiers and settlers more wary. Winnemeg (the Catfish), a friendly
Potawatomie chief, brought a message from General Hull on the evening of August 7, which advised Captain Heald to abandon the fort if it
was possible and get away, and to take refuge at Fort Wayne, in Indiana. The soldiers and settlers counseled against it, as they were sure
to be attacked by the Indians at the first opportunity. They had also
received a number of warnings from friendly chiefs. Heald, however,
was a slave to duty, and he resolved to obey at any cost. He held a
council with the Indians and told them of his intention. To insure
their friendship he promised to turn over all the stores of the fort to
them. That night he emptied all the powder into the river and turned
all the liquors in the fort into a well. The Indians learned of this and
were furious. A band of 500 Potawatomies offered to act as escort,
and just as they were about to start, Captain Wells, who had been
brought up among the Miamis as the adopted son of Little Turtle, appeared with a small band of Miamis. He came to assist the garrison
in defending itself against the hostile tribes, but when he learned that
the ammunition had been destroyed, and the other stores given to the
Indians, he declared: "We are all as good as murdered. Not a man
325




of us will escape alive, for the Potawatomies have planned to destroy
every white person in the region." He resigned himself to his fate,
blackening his face with wet gunpowder in the Indian fashion, in order
to show that he was doomed. The garrison started out, but before
they had gone two miles the Potawatomies turned upon them and began killing them right and left. A young brave jumped into a wagon
containing two women and twelve children, and tomahawked every one
of them. The soldiers made the best defense they could, and the
women fought with swords and muskets as well as the men. Twentysix soldiers, Captain Wells, Surgeon Van Voorhis and Ensign Ronan
were massacred. Kenzie, a Detroit trader, was the only male settler
who was spared. The fort was burned and Chicago was left desolate
for four years. Fort Wayne and Fort Harrison, both in Indiana, were
afterward besieged, and nothing but the timely approach of General
Harrison saved them from destruction. Colonel Proctor, at Maiden,
offered a reward for every American scalp the Indians would bring him,
and the eagerness of the savages for rum made them diligent murderers.
William Hull's name has gone down in history with disgrace and dishonor. Col. Lewis Cass went to Washington during the winter of
1812, and laid charges against him before the War Department, alleging incompetence, cowardice and treason. Hull, who had returned to
his farm after being released at Montreal, appeared for trial in 1813,
but President Madison for some unknown reason dismissed the court.
Another court martial was held at the beginning of 1814, which lasted
eighty days. The charge of treason was beyond the jurisdiction of the
court and it could not be sustained by the evidence, but Hull was
found guilty of cowardice and incompetence, and was sentenced to be
shot. His name was struck from the roll of the army. President
Madison pardoned him and he retired to his farm to spend the rest of
his days in obscurity. He protested to the last that he had done
nothing at Detroit which was not fully warranted by the circumstances,
and said that he preferred to be considered a coward and a traitor
rather than subject his soldiers and the families of the Detroit settlers
to an Indian massacre. Hull was probably cautious to the verge of
cowardice, a characteristic which made him overestimate the perils in
his pathway. The least that can be said of him is that he was utterly
unfit for a military command, however effective he may have been
under authority. He died at Newton, Mass., in November, 1825, aged
seventy-three years.
326




Congress began to prepare for the recovery of Detroit. Governor
Harrison, of Indiana, was authorized to raise volunteers in Kentucky
for the Army of the Northwest, and he was assisted in the duty by
Richard M. Johnson, who, in company with John Logan and William
S. Hunter, were appointed aides to the general. They called for 500
mounted men from Kentucky, while Gen. Robert Crooks asked for
2,000 from Pennsylvania, and Gen. Joel Leftwich undertook to muster
1,500 from Western Virginia. A portion of these forces joined near
Dayton, Ohio, and a messenger arrived bearing Governor Harrison's
commission as brigadier-general. He was ordered to take command
of all the forces in the territories of Indiana and Illinois, and to cooperate with Governor Howard of Missouri. This order was confusing,
for Gen. James Winchester had already been appointed to the position
of commander-in-chief of the Army of the Northwest. It was not a
time for delay, however, and Harrison pushed forward with all possible
speed to rescue the beleagured garrison at Fort Wayne. He arrived
there September 12, but the Indians had been aware of his approach
and fled toward Detroit. Then he resolved to strike a telling blow at
the Indians, and his troops were sent from village to village of the
Potawatomies to burn their winter homes and to destroy their crops,
so that they would be reduced to starvation during the coming winter.
On September 18, 1812, General Winchester arrived at Fort Defiance,
Ohio, to take general command. He was a veteran of the Revolution,
and had been living on a large estate in Tennessee for nearly thirty
years  It was a long time since he had had experience in military
affairs, and the soldiers distrusted him as much as they trusted "Old
Tippecanoe" (Harrison), who had led them to victory. Winchester
was a man of wealth, and his pompous bearing irritated the raw volunteers gathered from the farms and settlements of the frontier. General
Harrison, who was at Fort Defiance, addressed the soldiers and told
them to do their duty no matter who commanded. He went back into
Ohio to recruit more men and to meet Richard M. Johnson, who was
coming up with more mounted Kentuckians. General Winchester set
out down the Maumee River on September 19. Two days later orders
camne to General Harrison, granting him chief command, with full discretion as to his movements against the enemy. Winchester was waiting at Fort Defiance on the Maumee for Harrison to join him, when,
on September 27, he found a force of 200 British regulars under Major
Muir, and a band of 1,000 Indians under Colonel Elliott, in front of his


327




position. The enemy had four pieces of artillery, and were working
their way up the Maumee to capture Fort Wayne. Muir captured an
American sergeant named McCoy, who gave him an exaggerated
account of the American force, and told him that a still larger force
was approaching. Muir resolved to give battle before reinforcements
arrived and arranged his boats for escape in case of a defeat. To his
intense disgust, his Indian allies, after hearing McCoy's big stories,
scampered for the woods, and the expedition was compelled to retreat
down the river and return to Maiden. General Winchester remained
at Fort Defiance with the advance guard of the army, while General
Harrison was busy recruiting more men from Ohio and the surrounding
territories. That fall an army of 3,000 men, enough to recapture Detroit, was ready for the field, but the campaign was deferred because
the troops lacked supplies and munitions of war for maintaining the
post through the winter. Should they capture Detroit and then be
compelled to abandon it, the peaceful residents would be massacred by
the Indians. The fall expeditions were limited to destroying Indian
villages, and throwing the Indian allies upon the British garrison for
support. In the mean time the settlers along the Detroit River and all
about Detroit were plundered by the savages, and many of them were
driven from their homes in spite of the promise of protection given by
General Brock, who had returned to Niagara.
Colonel Elliott had established his headquarters at Frenchtown, with
400 Indians, under Chiefs Walk-in-the Water and Roundhead, and 200
Canadian militia under Major Reynolds. They also had a howitzer,
and were protected by a stockade. Thirty families of settlers who lived
at Frenchtown, on the Raisin, had been plundered of nearly all they had,
and the Indians began to threaten their, lives. The Indians who had
been driven out of the Indiana region began to gather there, to take
vengeance upon the settlers in retaliation for the depredations of the
soldiers. Frightened messengers came to General Winchester at Fort
Defiance asking for protection. It was a perilous undertaking, because
every advance down the Maumee had been opposed by Indians, but
Cclonel Lewis was dispatched with 550 men, and Colonel Allen with
110, to attempt the protection of the settlers. The troops made the
journey in January, crossing the Maumee and several wide morasses
on the ice. They found the enemy on the alert, drawn up behind their
pickets on the north bank of the Raisin, but they charged across on the
ice regardless of the booming howitzer, scaled the pickets and drove


328






GEORGE WILLIAM MOORE.








the Canadians and Indians to the woods. The Americans lost twelve
killed and fifty-five wounded. The enemy left fifteen dead on the
open field, but their wounded were helped into the woods. General
Winchester then came on to Frenchtown, with 300 men and Col. Samuel Wells. No more could be spared from the Maumee.
CHAPTER XLIV.
Massacre of Winchester's Troops at the River Raisin-Victims of an Incompetent
Commander and a Treacherous Enemy-Humane Residents of Maiden Ransom
Prisoners from the Indians.
General Winchester established his headquarters at the house of Col.
Francis Navarre, which was over a mile away from the town and on
the opposite side of the river. Peter Navarre and his four brothers
were sent to reconnoiter at the mouth of Detroit River, where they
learned, on January 21, that a large force was coming from Maiden to
recapture Frenchtown, and was expected to cross on the ice that night.
The pompous old general laughed scornfully at the intelligence and
took no precautions, thinking his way was now clear to Detroit.
Jacques Lasalle, a French resident, whose daughter by an Indian
squaw had married an English officer named Colwell, and who sympathized with the British, insisted that it could not be true. Winchester
believed him. General Lewis heard next day that the enemy had
crossed the Detroit River, and arrived at Stony Creek, with several
pieces of artillery. He doubled his pickets, while Colonel Wells hurried back to the Maumee for reinforcements. Owing to the severity
of the weather no outposts were maintained on the roads and the camp
passed the night in fancied security. At 5 o'clock next morning the
British and Indians under Colonel Proctor, who had unperceived
planted batteries within 300 yards of the American troops, opened fire
upon the camp, discharging shells and grape shot. When the sleepy
soldiers were hurrying about in the wildest confusion, a body of British
regulars charged among them, and the Indians and Canadian militia
attacked on both flanks. General Winchester came up and tried to restore order, but the soldiers scattered across the Raisin and the fleet

42




footed Indians cut them down as they fled, tearing the scalps from
their heads for the promised ransom. The British numbered 500, and
had four pieces of artillery, and there were 600 Indians. General
Winchester and Colonel Lewis were captured and stripped of their
coats and vests. Majors Graves and Madison, who were stationed on
the left wing, had been fortunate in holding their men steady, and they
had repelled every assault against them from behind a picketed garden.
Their riflemen picked off the British artilleymen so fast that they were
compelled to retire beyond range. A flag of truce came forward in
charge of Major Overton, an American soldier of Winchester's staff.
The two unbeaten majors were informed that they must lay down their
arms, as General Winchester had surrendered the whole command.
Proctor had forced General Winchester to issue this order to the brave
men who had held the left wing, telling him that unless it was done
the whole force would be given over to massacre by the Indians. The
old general, sickened by the butchery of the wounded he had been
compelled to witness, issued the order.
"It is customary for the Indians to massacre all prisoners taken in
your wars" said Major Madison. "I prefer to sell my life as dearly
as possible, and shall refuse to surrender unless the protection of all
the prisoners shall be stipulated."
Colonel Proctor flew into a passion. "Sir! do you pretend to dictate to me? " said he.
"I mean to dictate for myself," said Madison. "Rather than submit to a massacre in cold blood I prefer to fight to the last."
Proctor then promised that the prisoners should be fully protected,
and Madison and Graves surrendered. It was promised that sleds
should be brought from Maiden next day to remove the wounded.
Captain Hart, a brother-in-law of Henry Clay, was among the captive
Kentuckians, and asked permission to accompany the troops when they
left for Maiden, but Colonel Elliott told him to stay at Frenchtown
where he would be perfectly safe. He was murdered next day. The
villagers opened their houses to the wounded, but the sufferings of
the American volunteers were not ended. Arrived at Stony Creek on
his way back to Maiden, Proctor, according to promise, rewarded the
Indians with all the rum they wanted, and they then returned to
Frenchtown for a carnival of slaughter. Two hundred savages, crazed
with rum and painted like demons, came whooping into the village
next morning, January 23, and began to slaughter the wounded. The
330




trading houses of Jean B. Jerome and Gabriel Godfroy were filled with
wounded volunteers. The savages closed the doors of the two buildings and set both on fire. As the flames crackled afid enveloped the
buildings they danced with glee. Some of the wounded crawled out
through the flames, only to be scalped and thrown back, and some who
were sheltered in other houses were brought out, scalped alive, and
then thrown into the burning buildings  More than sixty wounded
prisoners were roasted to death in the burning houses, and the village
street was strewn with mangled bodies. A defense, or rather an excuse, for this terrible massacre, is sometimes told by the Caldwells of
Amherstburg. William Caldwell, the progenitor of the family in that
town, has already been alluded to. He was a brave soldier in the
Revolutionary war in the South, and shortly after the war ended came
to Amherstburg. His four sons, William, Thomas, Francis and Billy,
were all British officers in the war of 1812. Billy was his natural
son by an Indian woman, but was reared and educated with his other
sons. Billy, however, joined his mother's people, and was made chief
of the Potawatomies, and by the family influence he and his warriors
joined the British army. It is asserted that Billy unintentionally caused
the massacre of the Raisin. When the Kentucky soldiers were surrounded, Captain Billy sprang forward and advised them to surrender.
Unfortunately in his excitement he spoke in the Potawatomie tongue,
and his motive being misinterpreted, a Kentucky soldier drove his hunting knife through his neck. In revenge the Indians slaughtered over
one hundred Kentuckians. But this account, even if a fact, does not
palliate the barbarity and murder. The massacre did not take place
during the fight, but the next day, when the Kentucky soldiers were
wounded prisoners and unarmed.
In the engagement at Frenchtown, 397 Americans lost their lives,
the number killed in battle and those subsequently massacred in cold
blood, being nearly equal. During the fight the marksmanship of the
Kentuckians told against the enemy, as 182 of the whites were either
killed or wounded. On the dreary march to Malden the prisoners suffered severely. They were surrounded by yelling Indians who offered
them every possible indignity, and when one of the captives became
too weak to keep in line with the others a tomahawk crashed into his
brain and his scalp was torn off as a trophy. Other mutilations too
shocking to mention were inflicted, and the bodies were left along the
road to be eaten by the hogs of the settlers. Captains Hart, Mc331




Cracken and Woolfolk and Ensign Wells were thus butchered on the
road, and some French residents who discovered the bodies, gave them
decent burial, regardless of the orders of the Indians to leave them to
rot above ground.
A number of prisoners who escaped from the hands of the Indians
owed their lives to Cols. Francis Baby and Elliott, Captains Aikens,
Curtish and Barrow; Rev. Richard Pollard, the Episcopal clergyman
of Maiden, and Major Muir, who was a brave man and a true soldier.
Judge Augustus B. Woodward, Col. Elijah Brush, Henry J. Hunt,
Richard Jones, James May, Maj. Stephen Mack, Col. Gabriel Godfroy,
Robert Smart, Dr. William Brown, Oliver W. Miller, Antoine Dequindre, Peter J. Desnoyers, John McDonnell, Peter Audrain, Duncan
Reid, Alexander Macomb, and a number of ladies, all of Detroit,
were active in ransoming prisoners. In order to stimulate the bidding
of those who were ransoming prisoners, the Indians wantonly slaughtered four prisoners in the presence of the spectators immediately
after bringing a band of thirty into Maiden. Major Graves, one of the
men who made the heroic stand beside Madison, and who had surrendered under promise of protection, was butchered while running the
gauntlet in the Indian camp. For such feats of arms Colonel Proctor
was made a brigadier-general, but his name will be forever infamous.
A thaw followed, and owing to the terrible condition of the roads
between Fort Defiance and the River Raisin, it was impossible for
General Harrison-to come to the rescue. Of course, had General Winchester been vigilant he would not have been surprised. He might
have made a successful stand in spite of the advantage of artillery possessed by the enemy, for the main body of nearly 1,000 men might
have accomplished as much as the heroic left wing under Madison and
Graves. As in the case of Generals Harmar, St. Clair and Hull, his
official neglect of duty and incompetence caused a heavy loss to the nation. General Harrison started to go to the rescue of Winchester as
soon as he learned he was in danger of attack, but before he was well
on his way the news came that the whole force had been destroyed.
Very few of the younger generation of Michigan realize how much
their ancestors owe to the gallant sons of Kentucky. These men were
the best riflemen and the ablest scouts in the country, and they were
among the best pioneer soldiers. Never a call on Kentucky for defenders of the country that the response did not exceed the demand.
The Kentuckians followed George Rogers Clark into the Illinois country
332




and captured it. They crossed the Ohio many times to rescue ihe border settlers from Indian and British raiders. They left their bones on
the soil of Ohio and Indiana when Generals Harmar and St. Clair led
them to defeat, and they were valiant fighters under General Wayne
when he won Detroit and the West. General Harrison had their services at Tippecanoe and at the River Raisin, but next year they rallied
3,500 strong to win the battle of the Thames.
The bones of the Kentuckians who were slaughtered at the Raisin
lay in the soil where they fell for six years. In 1818 Governor Cass
had the remains brought to Detroit, where they were buried with military honors. It was an easy matter to identify them, for each one had
the tell-tale cleft of the Indian tomahawk in the skull. The remains
of these brave men reposed in two Detroit cemeteries until 1849, when,
by the instrumentality of Edward Brooks, a prominent Detroiter and
collector of customs from 1841 to 1845, they were removed to the soil
from whence they sprang. Peace to their ashes; immortality to their
fame!
CHAPTER XLV.
The Campaign in Northern Ohio-Gallant Defenses Made by Gen. William H.
Harrison and Maj. George Croghan-Oliver Hazard Perry Plans to Control Lake
Erie-Builds a Fleet of Ships at Erie.
Harrison prepared to pass the winter at Fort Meigs, which had been
constructed at the Rapids of the Maumee, and Proctor at Malden was
preparing to make a descent upon that place as soon as the ice in the
river would permit. A small expedition was sent out from Fort Meigs,
with the intention of crossing to Malden on the ice, to burn the British
brigs and gunboats which were frozen up at the mouth of the Detroit
River, but the weather became mild and the ice broke up in the lake,
making it impossible.
Proctor promised Tecumseh and the Prophet another brilliant victory and all the spoils of Fort Meigs, as soon as spring would open the
way for an attack, and the chiefs collected more than 2,000 warriors at
Maiden in readiness. The British forces were collected early in April,
1813, and embarking in brigs and gunboats, sailed up Maumee Bay,
333




landing near old Fort Miami. They were provided with artillery and
a force much superior to Harrison's, so the latter sent Peter Navarre to
Gen. Green Clay, at Fort Defiance, for reinforcements. The British
attacked Fort Meigs on May 1. Harrison protected his men by strong
embankments inside the stockade, and having very little ammunition,
returned but few shots in answer to the continuous cannonade from the
batteries of the enemy across the river.  After a terrible suspense,
during four days of incessant cannonade, the messenger returned with
the news that the reinforcements were approaching and would probably
arrrive on the following morning. Proctor grew discouraged and was
ready to abandon the siege, when Tecumseh offered a suggestion: "My
white brother, I think it can be easily done; let me take my young men
and cross below the fort, and then go around in the rear of the Americans where we will make a great sham fight."  "What would that
accomplish?" asked Proctor.  "Why," answered Tecumseh, "the
Americans would think that the Long Knives, who are expected to reinforce them, were being attacked, and they would run out of the fort
to help them. We would get in between them and the fort and cut off
their retreat to shelter." Proctor was pleased with the plan and the
Indians made their long detour to get in the rear of Fort Meigs. Leaving a part of their force concealed in a ravine ready to cut off the
Americans if the latter left the fort, another party went farther away
and began a tremendous uproar, shooting as rapidly as they could load
and fire, and yelling like fiends. The soldiers in the fort wanted to go
out to the rescue of their supposed comrades, and would have fallen
easily into the trap, but the wary Harrison realized that it was impossible for the reinforcements to have arrived so early and he forbade the
sortie. A few rounds of solid shot were fired into the woods and the
Indians stopped the sham battle. Tecumseh and Proctor were greatly
chagrined at the failure of the plan. The Kentuckians arrived, and with
the troops in the garrison made some fierce sorties. In one of these,
which was headed by Colonel Dudley, they met with disaster. Dudley
made a brilliant flank attack on a British battery, spiked the guns and
pursued the supporting troops. But he was reckless and went too far,
and was surrounded by the Indians under Tecumseh. Dudley was killed
and scalped and out of his 800 men only 170 returned to Fort Meigs.
But Harrison made other sorties and his defense became so formidable
that the Indians became disheartened and a number of them deserted.
The siege was raised and Proctor retreated with his prisoners in great
334




haste, for he had learned of the American successes of Commodore
Chauncey, who had captured Fort George at the mouth of the Niagara
River on Lake Ontario, and which had caused the British to abandon
Fort Erie opposite Buffalo.
The prisoners taken in the American sortie were driven toward
Fort Maiden, but many were murdered and scalped on the route.
When the remainder arrived at Fort Maiden they were turned over by
Proctor to the savages, but after twenty-four had been killed, Tecumseh
stopped the butchery. The prisoners were confined in a stockade and
the noble chief, pipe-tomahawk in hand, walked around the inclosure
all night to prevent his bloodthirsty warriors from climbing over and
butchering the unfortunates.
Drake, in his life of Tecumseh, describes the scene when the prisoners had been landed and stripped of most their clothing. The Indians
formed a double rank and made the prisoners run the gauntlet, while
they lunged at them with scalping knives and cut them down with
tomahawks. Tecumseh saw from a distance what was going on and
rushed forward with a shout and stopped the savage sport. "Where
is Proctor? " he roared in a passion. Proctor stepped forward. " Why
don't you stop this butchery? " he demanded.  " Your warriors cannot
be controlled," replied Proctor. "Bah!" shouted Tecumseh, "you're
not fit to command men; go and put on petticoats."
Proctor was denounced for this cruelty by Gen. Sir George Prevost
and by all fair-minded and humane communities. The British government, however, rewarded success without inquiring too particularly as
to methods, and Proctor was honored with promotion. No greater contrast could be drawn than that between Proctor and Gen. Sir Isaac
Brock. The latter, after fighting with the courage of a lion at Queenston Heights, where, rallying his panic stricken regiments to turn from
their flight and win a victory, he fell mortally wounded on October
13, 1812, but a few weeks after he left Detroit. When his remains were
borne to the grave the American army across the river, harboring no
personal resentment against the conqueror of Detroit and the victor at
Queenston, fired minute guns from their batteries along the Niagara
shore to do him honor.
In the spring of 1813 Proctor and his agents raised a troop of 5,000
men, composed of 2,500 Indians, 400 regulars and the remainder Canadian militia. They crossed to the mouth of the Maumee to attack Fort
Meigs again, but turned aside to reduce Fort Stevenson on the San

335




dusky River. Maj. George Croghan was in command of 160 men at
the fort. He was cut off from retreat and refused to risk his men to an
Indian massacre by surrendering. So well did he defend the place
against fearful odds, that the British were compelled to retreat, leaving
120 men dead on the field. The Indians would not fight in the open,
so the British regulars were compelled to make the assaults unaided,
and they were the ones who suffered.
At last the tide of war began to turn in the West as the Americans
gathered strength and experience. An heroic figure was looming up
in the East whose gallantry was destined to shed eternal lustre upon
the arms of his nation. Oliver Hazard Perry was then a young naval
officer, and was stationed at Newport, R. I. The American navy on
the ocean was scanty in ships, but there was an abundance of able commanders. Perry saw that there was little chance for a twenty-sevenyears old captain to win distinction on the sea, so he applied for a
command on the great lakes, where the Americans were just obtaining
a footing. Lake Ontario had fallen into the hands of the Americans
through the efforts of Commodore Chauncey. It was this distinguished
officer who appointed Perry to the command of Lake Erie. With 150
picked men from Newport, Perry went to Presqu' Ile, the present site
of Erie, Pa. The French name of the place is significant, meaning
"t almost an island." A low peninsula of land juts out into the lake a
distance of five miles at this point. Between this peninsula and the
mainland is the harbor, the entrance to which at that time was very
narrow and tortuous, offering unusual advantages for defense. Perry
arrived there March 27, 1813, and found the shore of the harbor strewn
with felled trees and hewn timbers, which a company of ship carpenters were fashioning into rude vessels. Two twenty-gun brigs, a clipper schooner, and three small gunboats were in process of construction. While a sharp lookout was kept for British cruisers, the work
went on as fast as axe and chisel could fashion the timbers. This fleet
was intended to accomplish the control of the upper lakes, to recover
Detroit and protect the Ohio region from British invasions. Perry
went to the mouth of the Niagara in the latter part of May and assisted
Commodore Chauncey in the capture of Fort George. Fort Erie was
then abandoned and burned, and the British retired from the Niagara
district. Perry returned from this expedition with five small vessels
which had been tied up in Niagara River, behind Grand Island, to prevent their falling into the hands of the enemy. It took the united
336




JOHN T. SHAW.




s




labor of his crews and of 200 soldiers to warp the vessels up to the
lake against the strong current of Niagara. His fleet was ready for
action July 11, but it was yet to be manned. The 200 soldiers had
been ordered back, leaving only the 150 sailors and Capt. Henry B.
Brevoort, who was well acquainted with the navigation of the lake.
Perry was taken ill with bilious fever and the outlook became desperate, for several British vessels were cruising about, waiting for a chance
to destroy his vessels. His government little realized the importance
of securing control of the lake, and the secretary of war was calling on
him to go and co-operate with General Harrison in the Ohio country.
Harrison, too, sent word that Perry could not hope for success in a
naval battle on Lake Erie, as the overpowering force of the enemy
already on the lake was about to be increased by the addition of the
Detroit, a ship of much greater strength than any heretofore launched.
The British squadron was in command of Capt. Robert H. Barclay,
a one-armed Scotch hero who had fought with Nelson at Trafalgar,
and was a man of superior skill and unquestioned bravery. Perry
wrote to Commodore Chauncey: " Give me men, sir, and I will acquire
for you and myself honor and glory on this lake or perish in the attempt." One hundred and fifty men were sent, but they were an inferior lot and were described by Perry as "a motley lot of blacks,
soldiers and boys." Commodore Chauncey was incensed at this complaint, and Harrison and the secretary of war ordered Perry to lead a
land expedition toward the Cuyahoga River to unite with Harrison.
Commodore Barclay established a strong force at Long Point, Canada,
opposite Erie, and the little American fleet was in danger of capture
before it could leave the harbor. As there was no promise of improvement, Perry resolved to risk all in an attempt to vindicate his purpose.
He lightered his ships over the bar and sailed from port in the Lawrence,
his flag ship, a brig of twenty guns, on August 1. The Niagara, of
twenty guns, was put in charge of Capt. Jesse D. Elliott, who had just
arrived with 100 good men to reinforce the 300 sailors and nondescripts.
In addition to the two brigs already named, Perry had seven small gunboats carrying from one to three guns each. As the British fleet had
retired to Malden to await the completion of the Detroit, Perry resolved
to attack them in their stronghold, but a return of fever compelled him
to retire to Put-in Bay, where he kept up communication with General
Harrison, who had moved up to Sandusky.


43




CHAPTER XLVI.


The Battle of Lake Erie-Fortune Favored the Heaviest Artillery-The Surrender
of the British Fleet Leaves the Lakes in Possession of the Americans-Harrison
Prepares to invade Canada.
On the morning of September 10, 1813, Commodore Barclay sailed
down from Maiden to Put-in Bay with six vessels, with an armament
of sixty-three carriage guns, a pivot bow-chaser, two swivels and four
howitzers. Perry's nine vessels carried fifty four carriage guns and
two swivels. Barclay had about 500 men, including 150 seamen of the
royal navy, 80 Canadian sailors, 240 soldiers and a few Indians. Perry
had 116 sick men on board his fleet. These had been working for
weeks in the Presqu' Ile ship yard, where an epidemic of malarial
fever had disabled them. Dr. Parsons, the chief surgeon, the chaplain
and the commodore's brother, a lad but thirteen years old, were among
the sick. For several days the fleet lay at Put-in Bay because the commander did not feel able to fight. At 10 o'clock on the morning of
September 10, when the six British appeared in the northwest, bearing
down toward the islands, Perry ordered all hands to make sail.  Run
to leeward of the islands," said he to Taylor, his sailing master. "But
you will have to engage the enemy to leeward," remonstrated Taylor.
"I don't care; we are going to fight it out to-day and settle the control
of this lake before sundown," answered Perry. He saw that in the.
variable wind that was blowing he would lose valuable time if he
maneuvered to get the weather gage of his opponents, and he resolved
to close as quickly as possible and have it out with them. The wind,
which came in catspaws, suddenly shifted from the west to the southwest. Com. Robert Heriot Barclay was watching the American fleet,
and seeing that he would not have to go and bait his enemy, he hove
to off West Sister Island and waited for Perry's approach. Nearest
to the island he placed the little sloop Chippewa which was armed with
a long 18-pounder and two small swivels. Next to the right was his
flagship, the Detroit, of nineteen guns. The third was the Hunter, a
brig of 10 guns, while the Queen Charlotte of 17 guns, the Lady Pre338




vost of 13 guns, and the schooner Little Belt of 3 guns, made up his line
of battle.
Commodore Perry drew up his fleet as the wild goose marshals his
flock for long flights. He led the van with his flagship, the Lawrence,
armed with twenty 12-pounders. On his left was the gunboat Scorpion,
carrying a long 32 and a long 12, and the schooner Ariel carrying four
short 12-pounders. On his right came the brig Caledonia with three
long 24's, the Niagara under Captain Elliott with 20 guns, the Somers
with two long 32's, the Porcupine with one long 32, the Tigress with
one long 24, and the Trippe with a long 32.
Under such conditions it is easy to estimate the relative strength of
the two fleets. Perry had 490 men aboard, but 116 of them were sick
and not fit for duty. Barclay had about 500 men, some of them incompetent. Perry had two strongly armed vessels, overmatching anything
in the enemy's fleet, although their guns were somewhat inferior in
range, and seven small boats carrying one, two and three guns each.
In number of men the forces were about equal. Perry had an advantage in the number of vessels; Barclay had an advantage in the number
of guns; but the advantage clearly lay with Perry because he had the
greater number of heavy guns.
Commodore Perry ran his battle flag up to the main peak. It was a
square field of blue bearing in white letters the dying words of Captain
Lawrence, after whom he had named his flagship: "Don't give up the
ship." The stars and stripes were hoisted on the mizzen. As his men
were wetting down the docks, sprinkling them with sand to give them
a sure footing in the coming fight, and getting the guns ready for
action, they could hear the bugle call from the Detroit two miles away.
Then they heard the stirring music of fife and drum playing " Rule
Britannia; Britannia rules the Wave." They were about to engage an
enemy which had the name of being invincible on the sea. The Lawrence was a better sailor in the light winds than the rest of the squadron,
and she was some distance ahead of the others at noon. The Detroit
fired her long pivot gun, and the shot skipped over the water toward
the Lawrence, but fell short. A few minutes later she fired again.
A twenty-four pound shot crashed through the bulwarks of the Lawrence throwing the splinters in all directions and passed humming away
to plunge into the lake. The greater part of the men were unused to
sea fighting and some of them began to look nervous. " Steady, boys;
steady!" called Perry, " we're too far away to waste a shot yet. We'll


339




answer them smartly very soon." Lieutenant Champlain was eager to
bring the Scorpion ahead of the Lawrence so as to get an opening for
his long thirty-two, but while he was doing so two more shots struck
the Lawrence. Champlain, who was but twenty-four years of age at
the time of the battle, opened the ball for the Americans, hulling the
Detroit with a lucky shot. As the Queen Charlotte and Lady Prevost
as well as the Detroit, had begun to play upon the Lawrence, Perry
gave his gunners the word. They sent a broadside at the enemy, but
the shots all fell short and the Lawrence continued to bear down so as to
get within range. The Niagara and the five other boats appeared to
hesitate about closing in, although Perry signaled them to hurry up.
Captain Elliott continued to hold the Niagara at a distance, where only
her bow gun was effective. In a few minutes the terrific cannonade of
thirty five guns trained upon the Lawrence, and the twenty-six of
Perry's flagship and her little consorts, made such a dense cloud of
smoke that it almost hid the two fleets from sight. For two hours the
fighting went on until the Lawrence. floated a shattered wreck, distant
not more than a musket shot from her enemy. Every broadside tore
her timbers into huge splinters and her decks were running blood.
Out of 103 able men who had gone into action under her flag, 22 lay
dead on her deck and 61 were below disabled by wounds. Her spars
were all shot away except the stump of her mizzen mast, her decks
were covered with tangled rigging, and most of her guns were disabled.
Commodore Perry signaled again for the Niagara to come up.
Placing the Lawrence in command of Lieut. John J. Yarnall, he took
his battle flag in hand and descended into a yawl to be rowed away to
the Niagara. The guns of the enemy were turned upon the little boat,
while the commodore stood erect in the stern, holding aloft his battle
flag to signify that he was still fighting. Shots fell all around them
but did no harm except to carry away one oar.
As Perry stepped aboard the Niagara all begrimed with powder
smoke he shouted to Captain Elliott: " Why are those gunboats so far
away?"  "I'll go and bring them myself," answered Elliott.  "Do
so," said Perry who was a man of few words. Just then the Lawrence
struck her flag to avoid useless carnage, and the British crews cheered
lustily, but the battle was not finished. The Niagara was as yet comparatively unharmed, and when Perry saw that the Detroit and Lady
Prevost had drifted a little apart, leaving an opening for attack, he bore
down upon the gap. A strong puff of wind filled his sails at the oppor

340




tune moment. Passing between them his crew poured a broadside
into each. Champlain followed through the gap with the Scorpion.
In maneuvering so as to avoid becoming raked the Detroit and the
Queen Charlotte became fouled, and before they could extricate themselves Perry sent two raking broadsides into them tearing up their
decks, dismounting several guns and killing and wounding many of
the crew. The Scorpion raked them again, and the rest of the American vessels were preparing to rake when both the entangled vessels
struck their flags. A few quick exchanges followed with the other
vessels, and then the remainder of the British fleet surrendered.
All was still in a moment. The thundering of cannon, which had
lasted from noon until 3:15, was hushed; the thick cloud of sulphurous
smoke drifted slowly away to leeward, and as the sun broke through it
a thrilling scene was disclosed. The decks of the Lawrence, the Niagara, the Scorpion and the Ariel, on the American side, were red with
blood, and from the scuppers of the Detroit, the Lady Prevost and the
Queen Charlotte, thin red streams ran into the lake. The rigging of
the fleet was torn and disordered, and the Lawrence was a mere hulk.
From each of the British vessels boats put off bearing the several commanders, or their representatives, and they were received on board the
Niagara. The officers tendered their swords, but Perry with true
chivalry waved them back.
" No, gentlemen," said he, " put up your swords. You have fought
like brave men and it would ill become me to add humiliation to the
defeat which Providence has enabled me to give the enemies of my
country. How is Commodore Barclay and his men? Our poor fellows
are terribly cut up as you may see."
Thus it is when heroes meet. The surrender having been made, Perry
wrote the historic dispatch on an old letter wrapper, and it was sent to
General Harrison at Sandusky: "We have met the enemy, and they
are ours; two ships, two brigs, one schooner and one sloop. Yours
with great respect and esteem, 0. H. Perry." His message to the secretary of war was almost as laconic. He merely prefaced his announcement by saying: " Sir, it has pleased the Almighty to give to the arms
of the United States a signal victory over their enemies on this lake."
In the three hours of carnage sixty-eight lives were lost, and 190
were wounded, some of them mortally. In the beginning of the fight
the Americans lost the service of 123 men, 27 of whom were killed, but
that last bold dash and the tearing broadsides which raked the decks
341




of the enemy had laid low 135 men, forty-one of whom were killed.
In this contest the enemy were not at a great advantage as m any
Americans suppose. While Commodore Barclay had more guns and
a few of longer range than Perry's, the latter had nine vessels to
Barclay's six. Barclay had perhaps the larger crew, but most of his
guns were light. Theodore Roosevelt, in his work, " The Naval War
of 1812," shows that Perry could throw 936 pounds of shot at a broadside, while Barclay could reply with 459 pounds, and with this potent
advantage the Americans must either win or be disgraced.
Proctor and Tecumseh were waiting at Malden for the report of the
fight. If the victory was theirs they intended to devastate the Ohio
settlements. A force of 2,000 Indians was ready for the work. On
the Ohio shore, from the Cuyahoga River to the Maumee, the settlers
were awaiting in dreadful suspense the news of the battle. If Perry
had lost they must flee for their lives. As soon as the British and
Indians, who were waiting on the shore below Malden, had divined, by
some mysterious intuition, that Perry had won the battle on the lake,
Tecumseh rallied his men and declared that the Americans should
never land on Canadian soil. When he conferred with Proctor he
found that worthy in what the British call a "blue funk."
"We must retreat at once," said Proctor; " We have no alternative;
the enemy is about to attack us. They have a force three times greater
than ours and it is impossible to stay and defend this place."
Tecumseh was disgusted, but he pleaded with him to remain and at
least make a stand against the threatened invasion. A council of war
was held, at which Proctor showed irrefragible reasons why Malden
should be evacuated. Tecumseh arose and addressed the council in his
broken English, but his words were full of biting sarcasm. "We Indians have fought your battles in the West for more than twenty
years," said he. " We have poured out our blood like water and have
not complained. You," said he, pointing scornfully at Proctor, "have
seldom bared your breast to the flying bullets. It suits you better to
set the scalp-hunters upon helpless prisoners. You have got the guns
and the powder and the ball that our father sent for his red children.
If you want to go away, give them to us. You may go and welcome.
Our lives are in the hand of the Great Spirit. We are determined to
defend our lands, and if it is his will we will leave our bones upon
them. "
The late Jean Baptiste Bertrand, who was born at Petit Cote, just
342




above Maiden, in 1802, and who lived to the age of ninety-three years,
was a small boy at the time of Perry's victory. General Proctor and
his staff and Tecumseh rode on horseback to the lake shore to hear
what they could of the battle, and a large number of people followed,
Bertrand among the others. " As I remember," related Mr. Bertrand
a short time before his death, "Proctor was a very stout built man, so
stout that he did not like horseback riding and went in a wagon when
he could. He had a full face, very red in color, and wore a big brown
beard. He did not have a soldierly appearance like some of the other
officers, but was more like a big butcher. During the cannonade the
people looked out on the lake with spy-glasses, but could see nothing
but a cloud of smoke. When they decided that the British had lost,
Tecumseh and Proctor rode back to Malden, quarreling all the way.
As we came to the town a crowd of frightened citizens came down the
road to ask how the battle had gone. Tecumseh got off his horse and
beckoning to me, for I had often earned two bits by holding his horse,
said: ' Come here little boy, and hold my horse.' I took the bridle
rein and Tecumseh mounted a big boulder beside the road, which lies
there yet. He held his tomahawk-pipe in his right hand, and his left
hand rested upon the stock of his pistol. Pointing to Proctor with a
look of scorn on his face he began: 'You cow! [he meant to say coward] you say you 'fraid they come and kill your sodgers. It not your
sodgers you 'fraid of; it yourself.' He evidently meant to insult Proctor before all the town. Proctor turned redder than usual and rode
away without a word."
Mr. Bertrand says that Tecumseh was a slight built man about five
feet eight inches tall, and very light colored for an Indian. He did
not appear to be a full blooded savage. He sometimes said he had
been born in Florida and that his father was a French general. He
was a great favorite wherever he went, and talked pleasantly with the
people of Malden on the streets. His general air was that of a morose
or sorrowful man, but on speaking his face grew animated, his brilliant
eyes sparkled, and his manner was both gracious and polite. He
always carried a tomahawk pipe, which he smoked a great deal.


343




CHAPTER XLVII.


Proctor Runs Away from Malden-Tecumseh Taunts Him with Cowardice-The
British Evacuate Detroit, Carrying Away the Cannon and Military Stores-Battle
of the Thames-Death of Tecumseh-Flight of Proctor.
Proctor, who was a coward at heart, set fire to Maiden and its military
and naval stores which could not be removed, and fled northward toward
the River Thames. Opposite Detroit Proctor halted long enough to
bring over the Bfitish garrison and the lighter pieces of cannon, with
as much of the other military stores as could be conveniently carried.
This second evacuation was conducted more hurriedly than the first,
and the British did not destroy property as they did in 1796. While
they were moving out they kept watch down the river fearing the arrival
of Governor Shelby's and Johnson's blue-shirted rangers, known to the
Indians as the "Long Knives," but when the Kentuckians reached
Sandwich the British were far up the east shore of Lake St. Clair.
Immediately after the victory General Harrison prepared to invade
Canada. Governor Shelby of Kentucky sent 3,500 men and marched
them to the shore of Lake Erie, Col. Richard M. Johnson accompanying him. The army rendezvoused at Put in Bay and mustered nearly
5,000 men. The general order issued just before embarking for the
invasion contained these words: " Kentuckians! remember the River
Raisin! but remember it only while the victory is suspended. The revenge of a soldier cannot be gratified upon a fallen foe." The American army landed on Hartley's Point, a few miles below Amherstburg,
on the afternoon of September 27. The Americans were accompanied
by a few friendly Indians of the Wyandotte, Shawnee and Seneca tribes,
who saw that the British were beaten. The invaders were met by the
women of the settlement, who asked their protection and were sent
back to their homes with the assurance that they would not be molested.
Col. Richard M. Johnson was sent up the river with 3,500 men to Sandwich, where he was joined by Harrison. From there the army marched
toward Chatham, where Proctor was supposed to be encamped.
At the same time six vessels of Perry's fleet sailed up the Detroit


344






ALBERT M. HENRY.








River. A number of British Indians were watching its progress from
in front of the house of Pierre Descompte Labadie, at what is now the
foot of Twenty-fourth street, in this city.  Noticing something on
board one of the vessels, Labadie called out to his family to go behind
the house, and lie down on their stomachs. They had barely done so,
when a cannon was discharged and several grape shot were buried in
the timbers of the house. The Indians scattered, but rejoined the
enemy on the other side, and were with Tecumseh at the battle of the
Thames.
The six vessels sailed up the Detroit River and crossed Lake St.
Clair in pursuit of the small vessels which had left Malden. The British boats, however, had already landed their stores and escaped up the
Thames. McArthur's brigade was left to hold possession of Detroit,
which had been evacuated by the British garrison. Colonels Cass and
Ball were left to hold possession of Sandwich. Leaving his vessels in
charge of a guard, Commodore Perry went ashore and joined Harrison's
forces in pursuit of Proctor, who had encamped at Dolsen's farm, fifteen
miles from the mouth of the Thames. Tecumseh tried to persuade his
superior to risk a battle there, but Proctor retreated to Chatham, where
McGregor's Creek offered additional defense to his troop. At Chatham
the American army overtook Proctor. Here Tecumseh labored with
Proctor to make a stand. The latter made a show of courage and said
to his Indian ally: " Here we will defeat Harrison or lay our bones."
But again his courage failed him and he retreated in such haste that he
left his luggage to be captured by the Americans. Tecumseh and his
warriors held the position under a heavy cannonade until a bridge
was built and then suddenly retreated.  When Tecumseh overtook
Proctor he again bitterly reproached him with cowardice. Proctor
answered haughtily and the Shawnee became almost insanely enraged.
In a burst of passion he leveled his rifle and would have killed him,
but for the interference of Colonel Caldwell, who struck up the muzzle
of the gun.  Military discipline would have dictated the summary
execution of Tecumseh, but such an act would have precipitated a revolt of the Indian allies, and between their vengeance and the onslaught
of the approaching army, the entire British command might have been
exterminated. At Moraviantown Proctor finally made his stand, but
on the way there old Walk-in-the-Water, chief of the Wyandottes, who
lived at Monguagon, below Detroit, withdrew his warriors and offered
his services to Harrison. The offer was declined and the tribe returned
345
44




to Sandwich to await the issue of the coming battle. The ground
chosen by Proctor was a place where the Thames lay on his left; a
swamp two miles broad guarded his right; while his front was protected
to some extent by a small strip of swamp running parallel with the
river.
On the night of October 4, 1813, both sides were in camp within a
short distance of each other, and Tecumseh was sitting before a fire
with Capt. William Caldwell and Ensign Francis Caldwell, his son, and
Captain McKee, of Sandwich. Suddenly the chief gave a smothered
exclamation, and placing his hand to his breast, called out in a strange
voice, "I'm shot!" "No, no, impossible!" said Colonel Caldwell,
"nobody has fired about here." Tecumseh seemed to be gasping for
berath, but soon was able to say: " Well, I'm going to be shot." Next
day he fell, fighting like a true son of the forest.
Next morning Harrison formed his men and sent forty friendly Indians to fire on Proctor's rear, in order to make him believe that Walkin-the-Water had turned against him. Col. R. M. Johnson and his
brother James led the charge of the Kentucky mounted men toward
the left, but turning suddenly dashed down on the British regulars on
the right. The latter broke and ran. Then the horsemen wheeled and
fired on the flanks of Proctor's two lines, which had been confused by
the flight of the regulars. This movement was so unexpected and so
effectual that the regulars threw down their arms in a panic, and surrendered before the main body of Harrison's men could engage in the
contest. Proctor scampered from the field, jumped into a wagon and
fled as fast as the horses could carry him.
Tecumseh kept his head in this moment of panic, and as another detachment of Johnson's corps charged down the neck of hard ground his
warriors held their fire until the Americans were almost upon them.
Then a volley set the horses plunging wildly and several riders fell from
their saddles mortally wounded. Colonel Johnson was wounded in the
thigh and in the hip, but he still held command, and, when the brush
became too thick for the horses to penetrate, he ordered his men to dismount. There was a furious hand to hand struggle for several min.
utes, the war cry of the Indians and the slogan of the Kentuckians,
" Remember the River Raisin! " mingled in wild uproar, while both
sides fought like demons. Governor Shelby ordered forward the reserves, and they went into the fray with a loud hurrah. The Indians
recoiled, scattered and fled, but kept up a straggling fire as they dis346




appeared in the heart of the swamp. The brass cannon with the historic inscription, which had been taken at Detroit, was recovered, with
five other brass pieces. Colonel Payne and his rangers pursued Proctor so closely that he abandoned his carriage and took to the woods on
foot. Tecumseh, the brave warrior, was killed. Tradition says that
he had shot Col. Richard M. Johnson through the hand and arm, and
was springing forward to dispatch him, when Johnson drew his horse
pistol from the holster and shot the great chief dead. This, however,
was denied. The British loss was eighteen killed, twenty-six wounded
and 600 taken prisoners. Thirty-three Indians lay dead on the ground
about Tecumseh, but many of the wounded escaped and afterward
died.
Proctor received the condemnation of his superiors in the army and of
his king. He was also publicly reprimanded for cowardice and incompetence and suspended from rank and pay for six months. Too late
his government discovered that it had honored a man who was lacking
in ordinary courage and military skill, and whose only talents were in
the art of massacre and savage warfare against inferior forces.
The battle of the Thames, fought October 5, 1813, settled forever all
British claims upon Detroit and the western territory.
During the British occupation of Detroit it became necessary that
some form of jurisprudence should be established and maintained.
The three judges, Woodward, Griffin and Witherell, remained after the
surrender, but Witherell incurred Proctor's displeasure for criticising
his actions and was sent out of town. Prominent citizens who remained
urged that Woodward be kept in his position, and to this request Proctor consented and appointed him. The manner in which the prisoners
of war were treated by the Indians and under Proctor's sanction was so
barbarous that the best citizens of Detroit did not attempt to repress
their indignation. A troop of half drunken Indians would come to the
city, driving before them a dozen poor wretches, barefoot, half naked
and nearly starved. They would beat them with switches and prod
them with knives to increase their sufferings, in the hope that the
humane Americans and French and British non-combatants would bid
high for their ransom. The Abbotts, Thomas Palmer, Friend Palmer,
James May, Dr. William M. Scott, Elijah Brush, Conrad Ten Eyck,
Peter Desnoyers, Henry J. Brevoort, James Chittenden, David Henderson, Shubael Conant, William Macomb, James Burnet, Conrad Seekin fact all the men of influence in the town, denounced Proctor's con347




duct and some of them upbraided him to his face. Proctor then resolved to make an example of these bold spirits and stifle criticism.
He issued individual notices to about thirty of the leading citizens,
ordering them to leave Detroit within twenty-four hours. They dared
not disobey for fear of their lives, and scattered wherever they could
find temporary homes until the war was over. H. J. Brevoort, although
he had been released on parole, joined Commodore Perry at Presqu'
Ile, and took part in the battle of Lake Erie. He told Perry that a
man would fight all the better for having a halter about his neck.
Woodward did very well in his new role as a British subject. Proctor
wished to keep the leading citizens in subjection as rebels, but Woodward, who opposed every proposition that did not emanate from himself, interposed legal technical obstacles in such a manner as to defeat
the malice and spleen of the British commander. The Indians committed many outrages on the inhabitants and plundered stores and
dwellings at their own sweet will.  Proctor had issued orders that
private property should be respected, but he seldom or never punished
the depredators.
Capt. Antoine Dequindre, who had distinguished himself at Monguagon, resumed the management of his store after the surrender, and
although he was a target of savage resentment, no overt act was committed against him until one day two Indians entered the store. They
demanded whisky, which he refused to give them. They then asked
for some articles of merchandise. He said they could have it if they
paid the price. One of them seized a bolt of cloth and held it in his
hand and neither left the store. Dequindre's Gallic ire rose to boiling
point. He jumped over the counter, wrested the cloth away from the
Indian, and then kicked them both out of his store. On the street they
raised the warwhoop and the neighborhood soon became alive with
Indians. Dequindre realized his danger, ran up stairs, and jumped
out of a back window. He ran to the fort, where he made complaint
to Proctor. The latter sent a message to Col. Alexander McKee, agent
of the Indian department, and Dequindre proceeded to his headquarters
in the brick house on Jefferson avenue that Hull had built in 1807 for
his residence, where the Biddle House now stands. McKee, who was
an old friend of Dequindre, immediately proceeded to the store, which
was then being plundered. " Listen!" shouted McKee in the Indian
tongue. " Every brave Indian come out here, and you cowards stay
where you are." No Indian wants to be classed as a coward, so the


348




whole crowd came out in the street. After a brief parley he marched
them up Woodward avenue to a small mound where the Russell House
now stands, and sent for a keg of whisky. When it arrived it was stood
on end, the head pounded in and the contents dealt out. The supply
was supplemented by two more kegs, and the Indians soon became so
deeply intoxicated as to be harmless.
Antoine Dequindre was subsequently tendered a commission as major
in the regular army. This he declined, but was subsequently called
"major" until he died. In the list of countersigns of the United
States army will be found in its place, to be used in its turn, the
name, "Major Antoine Dequindre."
A few days after the battle of the Thames word came to Detroit that
the British had evacuated Mackinaw, and an expedition then being
organized to capture that post was abandoned. Gen. Lewis Cass was
placed in command at Detroit as military and civil governor on October
29, 1813, and he was furnished a force of 1,000 men to keep what the
army of the pioneers had Won until the boundaries could be settled by
treaty. Information came to Detroit a little later that the British still
held Mackinaw, and that they were building two vessels on Georgian
Bay, with which to make further contest for the upper lakes.
CHAPTER XLVIII.
Detroit Occupied by the American Army-They Build a Cantonment of Log Huts
West of Fort Lernoult-Indians Murder Several Residents-General Cass Drives
the Indians Away from Detroit.
In June, 1814, an expedition set out from Detroit in charge of Commodore Sinclair and Lieutenant-Colonel Croghan, to destroy the vessels
in Georgian Bay, and to capture Mackinaw. The fleet consisted of the
Niagara, Lawrence, Detroit, Scorpion, Tigress and Caledonia, and these
vessels carried a force of 750 men. They dared not penetrate Georgian
Bay, because the navigation was known to be hazardous, and they had no
pilot acquainted with those waters. They proceeded toward Mackinaw,
and while on the way a council of war was held to decide whether
Mackinaw should first be attacked, or St. Joseph Island. Sinclair in349




sisted that the latter place should be attacked first, and thus made a
fatal error of judgment. St. Joseph Island was found to be deserted,
but while the fleet was reconnoitering there and while an expedition
was sent on above the Sault Ste. Marie to capture the schooner Perseverance, belonging to the Northwest Fur Company, Colonel McDougall
prepared Mackinaw for defense, and made the place fairly impregnable
against so small an attacking force. After cruising about several days,
trying in vain to effect a landing on the island, the fleet withdrew for
a time. Colonel McDougall, the British commandant, was a thorough
soldier, and made the most of his scant opportunities and the bad
judgment of his adversary. On August 4 the fleet made a sudden
descent upon the island, and a body of men was sent ashore in small
boats at a point some distance from the fort, while the fleet covered
their landing with a brisk cannonade. The soldiers charged the enemy's
breast works and compelled the British to fall back, but the thick woods
gave cover to the Indians, and the Americans could find no available
spot for temporary fortification. Major Holmes exposed himself, and
five balls passed through his body before he fell. His death, and that
of Captain Van Horn and Lieutenant Jackson, left the men on the
right without a leader, and they fell into disastrous confusion. Colonel
Croghan led them back to the fleet, leaving fifteen dead in the woods
and two prisoners, besides twenty-five badly wounded survivors. The
fleet retired, leaving the Tigress and the Scorpion to maintain a blockade and starve the British out. These vessels captured the British brig
Nancy with six months' provisions on board, and the boat was destroyed.
Colonel McDougall then organized a night attack, and surrounding the
Tigress with hundreds of Indian canoes under cover of darkness, compelled her surrender.  The Scorpion afterward fell into his hands
through the use of the signal code found on the Tigress. Thus ended
a most disastrous expedition. Mackinaw did not pass into the hands of
the Americans until peace was declared in the spring of 1815.
Looking back upon the war of 1812 the most superficial observer
can appreciate that it was in no particular a test of strength between
this country and Great Britain. On land and sea the British were incomparably stronger. The United States conquered because her giant
adversary was so beset with stronger enemies, that but a small force
could be spared for campaigning in the wilderness. Napoleon Bonaparte, the greatest military genius of modern times, was threatening
England with invasion, and Great Britain's fleets were engaged in
350




clipping his wings and keeping them trimmed. Her armies were engaged in assisting Spain and Portugal to shake off the grip of this modern Caesar, who seemingly aspired to rule the world.  It was the
selfish policy of the British government which alienated the loyalty of
the American colonies. They were denied rights which should have
been theirs without the asking, but the people at home regarded them
as self-exiled and expatriated persons who should be hampered as
much as possible in their efforts to help themselves, and taxed to the
limit of endurance for the support of a government in which they had
no voice. Napoleon once cynically remarked, " Providence favors the
army with the better artillery," but Providence sometimes entangles
the oppressor in his own toils, and while he is extricating himself the
oppressed obtain their liberty.
When Detroit began to rise again from its ashes, the Indians of the
vicinity sought to discourage the settlers from rebuilding in the hope
of ultimately driving them away. They stole cattle and ponies from
the common, and sometimes killed the domestic animals belonging to
the settlers. They also made threats of hostility, and their attitude
became so truculent that the small garrison had to be strengthened by
calling out volunteers to assist in guarding the town. At night the
ramparts inside the stockade were patrolled by sentinels, and guards
were maintained during the day at the massive gates, so that they
might be closed at the first show of an attack. One body of troops
was quartered in the Indian council house near the west end of the
town, and another was posted on the east in a new blockhouse, which
stood near the present intersection of Jefferson avenue and Brush
street. All the residents were in a state of nervous excitement, and
when a sentinel happened to fire at a suspicious looking object in the
darkness, the alarm drum would sound and the volunteers would hurry
to the spot for defense.
As soon as General Cass was appointed governor of Michigan, on
October 29, 1813, he resigned his commission in the army, but retained
the powers of commander-in-chief in his territory. The Indians were still
hostile and frequently murdered settlers who penetrated too far into the
wilderness of the interior. In order to inspire them with a proper respect for the government the governor was compelled to call upon the
militia now and then and administer punishment to marauders. At
length the hostile Indians retired to the Saginaw valley, but some who
were friendly remained about Detroit. Governor Cass advised concilia

351




tory methods with the Indians, and sought to obtain their good-will by
fair treatment and government protection against land-grabbers. He
proposed to obtain land from them by purchase and treaty, and to allot
them reservations which should be respected by all settlers and withheld from other occupants, In July, 1814, in company with General
Harrison, Governor Cass effected a treaty with all the neighboring
tribes, and peace was then practically restored. Later, in 1814, however, General Cass sent all the able bodied men of his regular garrison
down to Niagara to assist General Brown against the British. Again
the Indians became bold and began to make trouble.
On September 15, 1814, Ananias McMillan, who had just returned
from an expedition to Rondeau Bay, Kent county, Ontario, started out
on the common with his musket. He was accompanied by his boy Archibald, aged eleven years. The family cow had not come home on its usual
time, and they went in search of her. Father and son passed out at the
west gate of the town, and a few rods away, on the Macomb farm, as it
was then called, they came upon William McVey and Daniel and William
Burbank. After a few words explaining his purpose Mr. McMillan
proceeded northward over the common. " Better not go too far from
the town gates alone as you are," called McVey; "there are some ugly
looking savages about in the woods." These three men were seated
on a log near the present corner of Lafayette avenue and Wayne street,
when this warning was given. On the ground now occupied by Capitol Square and the Chamber of Commerce building was a thick copse
which obscured the view of the common beyond. As McMillan and
his boy were about to pass this clump of bushes four shots were fired
by unseen Indians. McMillan returned the fire and fled with his boy.
Four Chippewa Indians leaped out and McMillan was shot and scalped.
A fifth dashed around the end of the copse riding a pony. The latter
pursued the boy, who ran screaming toward the fort, holding an ox
gad in his hand. As the pony came close behind him he dodged like a
frightened hare and swung his gad in the face of the pony, causing it
to sheer off. Again he fled toward the gate, and again the savage pursued, cutting him off, but the boy used his gad again, thus escaping the
clutch of the Indian. This maneuver was repeated several times until
the Indian jumped off his pony and caught the boy on foot. He carried
him off to the woods, the boy waking the echoes with his despairing
cries. A few days later Michael Murphy, a young Irishman who
worked for Abraham Cook, went into a field on Judge Moran's farm to




HENRY M. CAMPBELL.








get a load of potatoes. He had a pony and cart, but while he was at
work he was shot dead from an ambush, and scalped and mutilated in
horrible manner. The time had come for aggressive action. Governor
Cass called for volunteers to go out and punish the Indians, and the
young men of the town responded promptly. They armed themselves
in Indian fashion, carrying knives, clubs and tomahawks in addition to
their rifles, as they expected to do some hand-to-hand fighting in the
woods.
The older men of the party were General Cass, Shubael Conant,
Capt. Francis Cicotte and Col. H. J. Hunt. They were accompanied
by George and Edward Cicotte, William, John and James Meldrum,
Lambert Beaubien, John B. Beaubien, Joseph Andre, Louis Moran,
Louis Dequindre, Lambert La Foy, Joseph Riopelle, Joseph Visger,
Jack Smith, Ben Lucas, John Ruland and Peter, James and John Riley.
The three Rileys were the half-breed sons of Judge Riley of Schenectady, N. Y., who had once been a trader in the Saginaw Valley. They
were the most expert woodsmen in Detroit, and had learned to trail an
enemy through the forest.  They knew all the Indian craft, spoke
several of the Indian languages, and had been in the white schools of
the settlement. The Rileys led the party, some of whom were mounted
on ponies, to the Indian camp, which was then on the Witherell farm,
but the Indians had just vacated it, leaving the hat of the boy Archibald McMillan on the ground. The Rileys trailed the savages westward until the party overtook them just back of the Cass farm. Peter
was the first to sight the enemy. He dropped quickly from his pony
and leveling his rifle across its back he brought a tall savage to the
ground. Springing foiward with a yell he tore off the scalp. While
this was taking place the other white men were cracking away at the
flying Indians who took to the thick brush where the pursuers could
not follow. One of the Meldrums and Louis Moran each got a scalp.
The whites were satisfied that several of the Indians had been badly
hurt. Ben Lucas had a hand-to-hand fight with an Indian, close beside Governor Cass, and came off victor.  The party then marched
westward as far as the River Rouge, driving the Indians before them.
On their way home they gave the scalp yell in Indian fashion. This
so frightened the women of the town, who feared they had been massacred, that several of them took their children into boats and paddled
across the river. Next day a squaw came to the town with a white
flag to say that if the Detroiters would not pursue the Indians any
353
45




more, they would agree not only to keep the peace, but to go away to
Saginaw. She told the people of the town that several of the Indians
who had escaped had died of their wounds, and that Chief Kishkawkee
had to be carried about in a blanket.
Late that fall Capt. James Knaggs seized three Indians who had come
to Detroit, and held them as hostages until their tribe should surrender
little Archie McMillan, Meanwhile Archie was carried to Saginaw
and beyond by his captors. One time he endeavored to escape and
climbed into a tree, but the Indians soon found that he had not left the
neighborhood, and literally " treed" him. He refused to come down
when an arrow was shot into the tree and the boy then surrendere.
John Riley went to the Saginaw valley to negotiate the exchange,
and Archie, after four months' captivity, was brought on January 12,
1815, to Amherstburg, then in the possession of the Americans, and
restored to his frantic mother. Mrs. McMillan at that time lived at
the southwest corner of Lamed and Bates streets, where she afterward
kept a boarding house for many years. She has numerous descendants in this city and State. Archie died at Jackson, Mich., in 1860.
General Cass soon found that most of the laws which had been enacted since 1774 were still in force, having never been repealed. He
also found that the people of Detroit had been deprived of their right
to self-government by the act of the governor and judges of 1806. One
of his earliest official acts was to bring about a repeal of all the laws of
the old regime, which had become inoperative and to reinstate the
town government by a board of trustees. On October 24, 1815, the
new governor and Judges Witherell and Griffin (Woodward being
probably absent) passed an act repealing all the laws of Great Britain,
the law of 1806 and the laws of the Northwest Territory, so far as
Michigan was concerned. Beginning with that date Governor Cass
and his associates prepared a new code for the territorial government,
and in place of the old village ordinances of 1802-6, a new set were
formulated and adopted, placing the town government in the hands of
the trustees. The office of mayor, which was somewhat ridiculous
when the population of the town is considered, was not reinstated.
The government of the town was vested in the board of trustees and
the presiding officer of the board was the chairman, who was elected
by the board. The new regulations went into effect in December, and
the trustees of the town met and adopted sixteen standing rules, which
bear date of December 4, 1815, and the signature of Solomon Sibley,
354




chairman, and Thomas Rowland, secretary. When the treaty of peace
between Great Britain and the United States was ratified in the winter
of 1815, Michigan's population did not exceed 6,000, and these settlers
all lived on the banks of Lake Erie and the river frontage.
CHAPTER XLIX.
Detroit Begins to Develop under the Peace of 1815-Road Building Begun-The
First Steamboat Arrives, August 27, 1818-Sedate Men Lay Aside Their Dignity
and Indulge in a Frolic-Founding of Pontiac in 1819.
Constant war had hindered the development of the Territory and
cheap whisky had been a demoralizing influence upon the people.
The finances of the community were also no better than its morals.
Wildcat money, issued by Ohio banking firms, was the chief circulating medium, and, as this was of doubtful and fluctuating value,
business was hampered. There was not a public highway in the territory, the nearest approach to one being the roads cut through the
swamps and woods by which the soldiers of Ohio and Kentucky had
made their way to Detroit. To open the way for public roads General
Cass effected a most important treaty with the Indians in 1818, by
which they surrendered claim to all lands in Ohio and Indiana and
about the River Raisin and Monguagon, and accepted reservations in
Michigan, sufficiently removed from Detroit to avoid any disputes for
a long time to come. Then a road was built through the great Black
Swamp of northwestern Ohio, connecting Detroit with Vistula (Toledo)
and Sandusky. When Congress appropriated a tract of 2,000,000 acres
of land, in 1812, to be set apart for the soldiers of the war, and given
to them in parcels of 160 acres, the report of the surveyor-general was
so discouraging that the government substituted 1,500,000 acres in
Illinois and 500,000 in Missouri. In 1818 some of the lands in the
southern part of Michigan were surveyed and sold to settlers and immigration soon began in earnest. Territorial boundary changes did
not cease. In 1816 a narrow strip of southern Michigan was cut off
and added to Indiana, to the great dissatisfaction of the Michiganders.
This left the southern boundary irregular, as the territory about To355




ledo was still attached to Michigan. Two years later Wisconsin and
the greater part of Minnesota, including the Lake Superior region,
were attached to northern Michigan. It was proposed that the territory should that year advance to the second grade of government by
establishing a general assembly, but the proposition was lost at the
polls for some unexplained reason. In 1818 the town burying ground,
which lay open to the visitation of wandering swine and cattle, was in
so deplorable a condition that a notice was inserted in the Gazette, calling a meeting for the purpose of taking action toward inclosing the
grounds with a fence, and repairing the ravages of the four footed
visitors.
On August 27, 1818, the era of transportation dawned at Detroit.
The Walk-in-the-Water, a small steamboat bearing the name of the
old Wyandotte chief, came from Buffalo. As she forged up the Detroit River with a great splashing of paddle wheels, the whole countryside turned out to see her, gazing in wonder at her pennon of sparks
and smoke. She made the round trip from Buffalo to Mackinaw and
return in twelve days, carrying a number of passengers and $200,000
worth of merchandise.
In 1818 the Bank of Michigan was incorporated. It was the second
bank organized in Detroit and for a number of years was a potent aid
in developing the resources of the Territory and State. A more extended notice of the bank will be found in a chapter devoted to financial legislation and the banks of Michigan.
The government land surveys were about finished at the beginning
of 1818, and sales were ordered in the fall of that year. Col. Stephen
Mack, then in partnership in mercantile business with Shubael Conant,
organized an extensive land company. It was known as the " Pontiac
Company," and consisted of Stephen Mack, William Woodbridge, Solomon Sibley, John L. Whiting, Austin E. Wing, David C. McKinstry,
Benjamin Stead, Henry Jackson hIunt, Abraham Edwards, Shubael
Conant, Alexander Macomb, Archibald Darrow, and Andrew CG. Whitney, of Detroit, and William Thompson, Daniel Le Roy and James
Fulton, of Macomb county. Mr. Mack was appointed agent of the
company and purchased the greater part of the present site of the city
of Pontiac, which was subsequently designated by (lovernor Cass as the
county seat of Oakland county. Here a saw mill, flouring mill and
mercantile establishment were built, and subsequently a road was
opened between the new settlement and I)etroit, which was called the




Pontiac Road, and is now known as Woodward avenue. When the
new enterprise was established in 1819 the occasion was celebrated in
an elaborate manner and in a style which exhibited the utter unconventionality of the day. All of the above named persons were present
together, with nearly every male Detroiter of business or professional
rank, or social consideration, including Governor Cass, John Roberts,
Dr. Chamberlain and George A. O'Keefe.
A fine dinner was provided, toasts were drank, and various sports
ensued. At that time the question of electing a delegate to Congress
was to come before the people in the fall, for which no nomination had
yet been made. In the happy frame of mind which follows a good
dinner and an abundance of liquid refreshments, the company present
resolved itself into a committee of the whole on the condition of the
Territory of Michigan, and proceeded to nominate a candidate for that
distinguished and honorable position.  There were three persons
present who by education and position were deemed to be qualified for
delegate, namely: David Le Roy, A. B. Woodward and Solomon
Sibley. Thereupon Judge Woodward, entering into the spirit of the
occasion, proposed that each candidate should be put through the mill,
secun(dlii artem, each one getting into the hopper of the mill alternately, and the one whose manipulation and skill in the hopper should
produce the best meal should be declared the candidate. The proposition was unanimously approved, and Colonel Mack and the miller
were appointed as umpires. Judge Le Roy mounted the hopper and
it was unanimously agreed that he went through the performance admirably. Next Judge Woodward tried his chances and won great applause. The mill was beginning to work well, but Judge Sibley carried
off the palm. The miller took up handful after handful of the meal
and praised it enthusiastically. Mr. Sibley was then pronounced the
favorite candidate of Oakland county. Then Governor Cass tried his
hand and was pronounced superfine. Others earned the titles of bran,
shorts, middlings, etc. Then there were arrests for ludicrous offenses,
and the parties were tried before a judge and jury, who invariably
rendered a verdict of guilty and prescribed fitting punishments.
O'Keefe, who prided himself on being a "four-bottle man," found the
pace too fast to follow, so he slipped away and hid himself in a haymow.
He was missed, searched for, and taken into custody. A committee
was appointed to try him, and Colonel Mack, dressed as an Indian
chief, was the presiding judge. In spite of the culprit's learned and


357




eloquent-defense he was found guilty and Colonel Mack sentenced him
to pick with his teeth an ounce of the pitch which exuded from the
neighbor ng pine trees. After the penalty had been paid, other guests
were tried in order, and all sorts of laughable penalties were imposed.
On the way back to Detroit the party whooped it up all the way, making the woods echo with their yells. At Royal Oak they stopped at the
shanty of a Frenchman who had also been indulging in drink. They
urged him to drink more, but he stubbornly refused. Court was immediately organized, and the Frenchman for his contumacy was sentenced to be hanged by the neck until he was " dead! dead! dead! and
may the Lord have mercy on your s ul," finished the judge solemnly.
A rope was tied about his neck and attached to the shafts of a cart. A
number of the revelers then climbed into the rear of the cart so that
the Frenchman was swung clear from the ground. He was actually
suspended for several seconds and when he was let down he sank limp
and insensible upon the ground.  Dr. Chamberlain, to keep up the
ghastly joke, pronounced the man dead. This awful announcement
sobered the party in a moment and all hands tu ning to the task, they
soon resuscitated the Frenchman. Dr. Chamberlain assured them that
had he not been a surgeon of surpassing skill the man would have died
and all who had assisted in maltreating him would have been hanged
for murder.
Governor Cass secured permission from Congress to make an exploration of the northern peninsula and on May 24, 1820, set out from Detroit with Robert A. Forsyth, his private secretary, Henry R. Schoolcraft, mineralogist; Capt. D. B. Douglass, topographer; Dr. Alexander
Wolcott, James Duane Doty, Charles C. Trowbridge, Lieut. Evans
Mackay, and an escort of ten soldiers of the United States army.
They took with them ten Canadian boatmen and ten Indians to act as
hunters, paddlers and interpreters. At Mackinaw they were joined by
other explorers and the company numbered sixty-four men. An attempt was made to effect a treaty with the Chippewas at Sault Ste.
Marie, but the Indians were completely under British influence, and
the council broke up without having effected its purpose, which was to
take possession of lands formerly ceded by the treaty of Greenville.
These lands had been ceded to the Americans, but the latter had never
taken possession. Some of the chiefs wore British medals, and one of
them, Sassaba, wore the uniform of a British brigadier. He made a
violent speech against the Americans, drove his lance into the ground,


358




and led his followers from the council. Retiring to his own camp he
raised the British flag. In that critical situation General Cass showed
what manner of man he was. The Indians were strong in numbers,
and greatly enraged at being reminded of their former cession of lands.
Governor Cass saw that they must not be permitted to insult his government with impunity, and ordering his followers under arms he
walked alone to Sassaba's lodge, where he tore down the British flag
and trampled it in the dust. Then he told the astonished chief that he
was standing on United States soil, and that the hoisting of a British
flag was an insult which would not be tolerated. The Indians were
awed by the bravery of the governor, who walked away unmolested
with the foreign flag folded under his arm. Instead of attacking the
little band of explorers, they renewed the negotiations and before night
they had ceded a tract four miles square, for military purposes, at
Sault Ste. Marie village, reserving the perpetual right to fish in the St.
Mary's River. Sassaba was the only chief who did not sign. The
party proceeded up Lake Superior as far as Keewenaw Point, which
they crossed, and later explored the head waters of the Mississippi and
returned home by Lake Michigan. A system of surveys was adopted
in 1820 by which two straight lines were drawn through the center of
the territory, one north and south, the other east and west. The
former was called the principal meridian, and the latter the base line.
From these lines the State was laid out into townships six miles square,
and into sections of a mile square, the sections numbering each way
from the meridian and base lines.
Governor Cass and Judge Solomon Sibley went to the Indians south
of Grand River, in 1821, and secured a cession of nearly all the lands
of the Ottawas and Potawatomies in southern Michigan to the United
States. In 1822 the counties of Washtenaw, Lenawee, Lapeer, Sanilac,
Saginaw and Shiawassee were laid out for the better accommodation
of the growing settlements, and a line of stages communicating with
Mt. Clemens, was put on the Fort Gratiot road.
Soon after his return from his tour of the northwest Governor Cass
was appealed to for executive clemency in behalf of two condemned
murderers. A Chippewa warrior named Ketawka had murdered Dr.
Madison, a surgeon of the United States army at Mackinaw; an l
Kewabishkim, another warrior of the same tribe, had murdered a
trader at Green Bay at about the same time. The Indians were
brought to Detroit in 1821, and after a fair trial were condemned to


359




death. The appeal was not made because of extenuating circumstances, but because the Indians hoped to profit by certain political
exigencies. General Cass had recently effected a treaty with the Indians of the north at Sault Ste. Marie, and it was of course desirable
to maintain friendly relations with them. The British, on the other
hand, were using their utmost efforts to alienate the Indians from the
Americans. It would therefore have been an act of political policy to
pardon the murderers. To have done this, however, would have shown
a disregard for justice, and it would have encouraged other murders.
Pardon was refused in both cases, and the Indians prepared for death
after the manner of their race. They were confined in the new jail,
which had been built in 1819, on the site of the presen public library
building. On December 24, 1821, while workmen were building the
scaffold on which they were to die on Christmas day, the Indians
watched the progress of the work with interest, and sketched on the
walls of their cell a rude picture of an Indian hanging from a gibbet.
They made a sort of tom tom by stretching a piece of raw hide over
their water bucket, and took turns, one beating the drum while the
other danced and chanted his death song. That finished, they painted
their faces black, and when they were led out for execution they were
apparently the most indifferent parties within sight of the scaffold.
They met their doom on the spot now occupied by the Public Library
lawn.
CHAPTER L.
Michigan's First Delegate to Congress-Politics were Politics Even in the Olden
Time-Father Gabriel Richard Locked up in Jail to Prevent His Candidacy-The
French Residents Give Him a Plurality over His Unscrupulous Competitors.
13y the original ordinance of 1787 the election of a delegate to Congress was to follow the legislative organization and not to precede it.
IBut inasmuch as the population was large enough to warrant it, being
8,896, Congress, in the spring of 1819, enacted a law by which the citizens of Michigan might elect a delegate by a plurality of the free white
male citizens, over the age of twenty-one, who had resided in the Territory one year and paid a county or territorial tax. The first delegate


360




31


FORDYCE H. ROGERS.








chosen was William Woodbridge, then secretary of the territory and
United States customs collector, who received 339 votes.  His competitors received the following votes: John R Williams, 196; Henry Jackson Hunt, 97; James McCloskey, 55; Judge A. B. Woodward, 28. In
1820 the citizens of Detroit exclaimed against Woodbridge's pluralism
in holding two federal offices, and, bending before the storm, he resigned and Solomon Sibley was elected for the unexpired term. Sibley
held the office until 1823, when he was succeeded by Rev. Gabriel
Richard, pastor of St. Anne's church. In 1825 Austin E. Wing, of
Monroe, was elected, and was re elected in 1827. The succession of
subsequent delegates was John Biddle, 1829-31; Austin E. Wing,
1831-33; Lucius Lyon, 1833-31; George W. Jones, 1835-36           Mr.
Jones was a resident of what is now Wisconsin, which was then in
Michigan Territory. His office terminated when Wisconsin was erected
into a separate Territory in 1836.
The story of Father Richard's election to Congress in 1823 was one
of the most interesting events of that eventful year in Michigan. C.
M. Burton has thus related it:
" There was no civil service in those days, and no caviling about officials mingling
in politics. Sheriff Austin E. Wing and John Biddle, receiver of the land office,
were prominent candidates for delegates to Congress. Major Biddle placed the
management of his campaign in the hands of Attorney William A. Fletcher, and
Wing entrusted his cause in the hands of John Hunt, afterward supreme justice.
Just as the canvass was well under way the candidates were informed that Father
Richard was being boomed as a third candidate by the French residents. At first
the idea that a Roman Catholic priest in charge of a parish, a man whose English
was but limited, and who was not a citizen of the United States, should become a
candidate for so important an office, seemed preposterous, but the popular priest
gained ground in an alarming fashion. On June 9, 1823, Father Richard applied
for citizenship papers, but Mr. Fletcher, who had just been appointed chief justice
of Wayne county by Governor Cass, raised the point that the County Court was not
the proper tribunal for granting such papers. His colleagues, Judges Witherell and
Lecuyer, however, issued the papers on June 28, and the presiding judge found his
political candidate face to face with a dangerous competitor. The first candidates
in the field had already subsidized the press, and the Gazette utterly ignored the
pretensions of Father Richard. The campaign caused great excitement and produced some remarkable ruptures. John R. Williams, a merchant of the town, son
of Thomas Williams, a former British official, and Celia Campau, sister of the
wealthy Joseph Campau, had been reared in the Catholic faith and was a warden of
Ste. Anne's. He had been elected a delegate to the convention, and he undertook to
head off Father Richard's campaign and compel him to withdraw from the race.
He issued a circular in the French language setting forth the trials and perils of'a
36
46




church deserted by its pastor, and calling upon the straying shepherd to return to his
flock. Father Richard said he had a perfect right to become a candidate, and upon
his refusal to withdraw, John R. Williams and his uncle, Joseph Campau, left the
church, never to return. They became Free Masons and died full of years, honored
and wealthy, but they were apostates and were buried in unconsecrated soil. Then
the rival candidates looked about for some means to compel the withdrawal of the
priest, and at first they were apparently successful. Three years before this time
Francis Labadie had been accused of deserting his wife, Apoline Girardin, in the
parish of St. Berthier, Canada. He came to Detroit, became a member of Ste. Anne,
and married Marie Anne Griffard, widow of Louis Dehetre, the ceremony being performed on February 17, 1817.
Father Richard, in the discharge of his duty, tried to make Labadie abandon his
new wife, and return to his lawful mate, but Labadie refused to obey. Then Father
Richard gave three public warnings to Labadie for his contumacy, but without
effect, whereupon he formally excommunicated him on July 16, 1817. Labadie took
his revenge by bringing suit for defamation of character and employing Lawyer
George A. O'Keefe to prosecute the case. Father Richard employed William Woodbridge to defend him. In the winter of 1821 the Supreme Court rendered a verdict
for Labadie in the sum of $1,116, but Father Richard refused to pay. As a judgment was still hanging over him, and Wing, one of the candidates for congressional
delegate was sheriff, the priest was taken on a writ of execution and locked in jail.
This merely served to increase his popularity, for his parishioners now considered
him a persecuted man, and the French population rallied to his support. As a final
resort the Wing and Biddle factions tried to unite against Father Richard. Both
managers were scheming for their personal advantage. Hunt thought that if Biddle
would resign the land office to Wing, the latter would be content to retire from the
field. Fletcher, it is said, wanted Biddle to promise that if he was elected to Congress he would favor the appointment of himself (Fletcher) to the Supreme Court,
then about to be reorganized. Fletcher denied that he had tried to make such a
bargain, and in the wrangling that ensued between the managers, Hunt and
Fletcher came near meeting I on the field of honor.' The election occurred on the
first Tuesday of September, and the early returns showed that Father Richard was
probably elected. The returns were slow in coming in. John P. Sheldon, editor of
the Gazette, delayed issuing his paper for three days in the hope that full returns
would show a different result, but with the counties of Macomb and St. Clair unreported, the paper came out with the following result: Richard 372; Wing, 286; Biddle, 235; Whitney, 143; McCloskey, 134; and Williams 41. Subsequent returns did
not alter the result, and the notice of election was handed to Father Richard in jail,
and he was thereupon released. The defeated factions were very glum over the
election, but the French were jubilant. A member of Congress cannot be held in
jail on a civil process during his term of office, so Sheriff Austin E Wing unlocked
the doors that shut Father Richard from his liberty, and the triumphant priest
walked forth to be greeted by his ardent supporters. Major Biddle contested the
seat, but the committee on elections allowed his petition to slumber in a pigeon hole
and never investigated or reported on the subject."
Fathers Richard's personality excited much interest in Washington,
362




as no Catholic priest had ever before been a member of Congress. His
gaunt, sepulchral figure and face, his attire, which was black throughout, with small clothes, silk stockings, silver buckles on his shoes,
broken English, quaint ways and copious use of snuff, attracted much
attention. A number of his fellow congressmen talked with him one
day, and in answer to questions he said that he came there to do his
people some good. " But," he modestly added, " I do n t see how I
can do it; I don't understand legislation; I want to give them good
roads if I can." His hearers then and there said they would aid him,
and the result was the law of 1825, making an appropriation for a road
from Detroit to Chicago. The ends of the road are on Michigan avenue,
in both' Detroit and Chicago. He died in Detroit of exhaustion, occasioned by overwork in ministering to the victims of the Asiatic plague,
on September 13, 1832, aged sixty-five years.
Michigan's government advanced another step in 1823. By this time
the rule of the governor and judges had proved inadequate and unsatisfactory, and on March 3, 1823, Congress abrogated the former
regulations for Michigan's government and instituted a legislative
council of nine members. The people were entitled to elect eighteen
candidates for this body, and from these the president selected the
lawful number. The governor and council were invested with all the
powers that were once delegated to the legislature of the Northwest
Territory. The act was to go into effect in 1824. Judges Woodward
and Griffin resigned at once, and were succeeded by Solomon Sibley
and John Hunt. Judge Witherell was then made the presiding judge.
John Hunt, the new supreme justice, was born in either Massachu.
setts or Berkshire, Pa., the last locality being the statement of John
Winder. He came here in 1818 or 1819, a full fledged lawyer, and
entered into partnership with Gen. Charles Lamed, the attorney-general, to whose sister, Martha B. Lamed, he was united in marriage.
He was an honest man, an excellent lawyer and an able jurist. His
first office was trustee of the town in 1820; in the fall of 1823 he was
the campaign manager of Austin E. Wing's candidacy for territorial
delegate to Congress. In 1823, when Woodward and Griffin resigned
as justices of the Supreme Court, John Hunt and Solomon Sibley were
appointed and became colleagues of James Witherell, who did not resign. He then dissolved partnership with General Lamed and entered
on the duties of his office. In 1825 he again supported Austin E. Wing
for Congress against the same two opponents, and his candidate won,


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During the campaign John P. Sheldon, editor of the Gazette, printed
some strong charges against General Lamed and Mr. Hunt. They
were to the effect that they had combined to make money in a scan
dalous manner, the attorney-general managing it so that Hunt should
be attorney for the defendant in government cases, and thus all the
fees were enjoyed by the firm. General Larned then commenced the
first libel suit in Michigan, but the case was never tried, and Ebenezer
Reed, the editorial successor of Sheldon, afterward made a full retraction in 1828. At the time of those charges Judge Hunt had met
with reverses in fortune, and was in poor health.  These troubles
caused his mind to give way, and he became a victim of mental delusions.
One of these was that his legs were made of straw and that he could
not walk. Dr. Delevan tried to reason him out of this delusion, but
could not. Finally the doctor took a whip and struck him on the bare
legs. The judge howled with pain and was rushing out of the room
until stopped. He died insane at Hartford, near Utica, N. Y., in June,
1827.
Solomon Sibley, who was a justice of the Supreme Court from 1823
to 1837, was short in stature and very stout, with a large head, long
gray beard, large projecting eyebrows and heavy jaws; was an excellent, painstaking judge, and commanded respect from all classes of the
community. He was always courteous and dignified, deliberate in his
motions, and had the disadvantage of being very deaf. He was born
at Sutton, Mass., on October 7, 1769, and studied law in Boston, under
William Hastings, a distinguished lawyer. In 1796 he removed to
Marietta, 0., and next year removed to Cincinnati, where he became a
law partner of Judge Burnett. He visited Detroit in 1796, and afterward settled there. He was elected to the General Assembly of the
Northwest Territory, then held in Chillicothe, 0. In Detroit he held
the following offices: Justice of peace, 1802-06; mayor in 1806; auditor
of territory, 1814-17; United States attorney in 1815-23; delegate to
Congress in 1821; and lastly justice of the Territorial Supreme Court.
He died in Detroit on April 4, 1846, aged seventy seven years.
James Duane Doty, was also appointed one of the territorial judges
in 1823, but his jurisdiction was in the northern part of the Territory.
He was a well known and prominent citizen of Detroit in early days,
but spent most of his after life in Wisconsin. He was born at Salem,
Washington county, N. Y., in 1799. He came to Detroit well recommended in 1818, when he was nineteen years of age, and improved his


364




knowledge of law by studying. Next year he was admitted to the bar
and went into partnership with George McDougall, an eccentric citizen,
who was the son of Lieutenant-Colonel McDougall, the first owner of
Belle Isle. He was a room mate of the late C. C. Trowbridge, and
was a favorite in the leading circles of society, having a fine commanding figure, pleasing countenance, and most winning address. In 1819
he was appointed to take the place of Peter Audrain, then superannuated as secretary of the Territorial Supreme Court. In 1820, with
his friend Trowbridge, H. R. Schoolcraft and others, he went to the
upper country with the expedition organized by Lewis Cass. In 1823
he was appointed judge of the Northern District of Michigan Territory,
comprising the counties of Mackinac, Brown and Crawford, the two
last named counties being now in Wisconsin, and held his first court at
Green Bay. In 1838 he was elected to the Legislative Council and
served two years. When the great rush for western lands commenced
in 1835-36, he became an extensive operator at the public land office at
Green Bay, and hundreds of thousands of dollars were placed in his
hands for investment. The confidence in his honesty and judgment
was not misplaced, although he suffered serious financial reverses in
his own interests by land speculation. When Wisconsin was set off
from Michigan and erected into a separate Territory in 1836, he managed to have the capital located at Madison. He served as delegate to
Congress in 1838 to 1841, and was appointed governor of Wisconsin
Territory in 1841. In 1846 he was a member of the first constitutional
convention and served as congressman of the new State from 1849 to
1853. Lincoln appointed him superintendent of Indian affairs in 1861,
and subsequently governor of Utah. He died while holding that office
on June 13, 1865, and was buried in the cemetery of Camp Douglass
near Salt Lake City.


365




CHAPTER LI.


Detroit under a New Regime-The Territorial Ordinance of 1823 Puts an End to
the Autocratic Sway of the Governor and Judges-The Ferry Established by Capt.
John Burtis-The Erie Canal Opened in 1825-Stephen G. Simmons Hanged at Detroit for Murder.
The first session of the newly created Territorial Council, which was
to assume the legislative functions heretofore exercised by the governor
and judges, met at Detroit, in the council house, on June 7, 1824.
This instituted a form of territorial government which continued until
the election of State officers in 1836. The members elected Abraham
Edwards as president of the council, and John P. Sheldon, editor of
the Gazette, as clerk. With the spirit of thrift which actuated most of
the early officials they next proceeded to pass an act fixing their compensation for public service, and also an act fixing punishment for
offenses against their dignity. General Cass read an elaborate message, setting forth the progress of the Territory under his rule. He
counseled the encouragement of public schools throughout the Territory, the development of the mineral resources of the northern peninsula, and to this end advised that treaties be effected with the Indians
which would permit exploring and mining on their lands. The council
did not pass a mining act until the next session, but they passed a number of acts of minor importance. They modified punishment at the
whipping post, which had long been the custom, by requiring the concurrence of two justices upon such sentences. The punishment was
extended, however, to a greater number of offenses. Up to this time
there had been a River Huron of Lake Erie, and a River Huron of
Lake St. Clair. To avoid confusion, the latter river was renamed the
Clinton.
In 1825 the rapid development of the Territory caused Congress to
increase the number of councilors from nine to thirteen, the people
electing twenty-six for the president to choose from. The allotment
of these candidates for appointment was as follows: First district,
Wayne county, eight persons; Monroe county, six persons; Oakland


366




county, four persons; Macomb county, four persons; St. Clair county,
two persons; sixth district, Mackinaw, Brown and Crawford counties, two persons. The election was held on the last Tuesday in
May. John Trumbull, of Hartford, Conn., a man of considerable note
in the country, came to Detroit in the fall of 1824 to spend the rest of
his days with his daughter, Mrs. William Woodbridge. Mr. Trumbull
was about seventy-six years of age at that time, and during the next
six years he was a notable figure on the streets whenever he stirred
abroad. He clung to the fashions of his youthful days to the very last,
and always wore knee breeches and a curly wig. A counterpart of this
last figure of the old regime is described in the little poem of Dr. Oliver
Wendell Holmes, "The Last Leaf," which accurately pictures the men
of his type. Mr. Trumbull was a man of great learning and was one
of the early poets of the United States. In company with Timothy
Dwight he employed his leisure in the early days of the Revolution in
writing articles after the style of Addison and Sterne. Both were
tutors in Yale College from 1771 to the breaking out of the war, and
Mr. Trumbull also studied law, being licensed to practice in 1773.
" McFingall," the chief literary work associated with his name, was a
satirical poem after the style of Butler's Hudibras, in which he pictures
the customs of his own times. It was finished in 1793, and is still a
very readable poem, although somewhat pedantic. Mr. Trumbull died
in May, 1831, and his memory is honored in the name of Trumbull
avenue.
On February 25, 1825, Congress passed an act to further popularize
the government of Michigan. The governor and council were authorized to divide the territory into townships; to incorporate them and to
provide for local elections. The offices of circuit judge, probate judge,
sheriff, county clerk and justice of the peace were not yet made elective,
because their functions belonged to the administration of justice, which
was of public rather than of local concern. General Cass, however,
made the offices practically elective by agreeing to appoint such persons
as the people would elect.
In 1825 Captain John Burtis established the first ferry system for
plying between Detroit and the Canadian shore. He began with a
small craft which was propelled by horse power, and it was liberally
patronized by the public. A few years later his business became so
profitable that he constructed a remarkable steam craft, which was a
compromise between a huge war canoe and a house boat. Its engine
367




power was small, and the progress of the boat was slow, but people of
those days were not in such a desperate hurry to get through the world
as their posterity, and the Argo, which was named after the mythical
craft which sailed in search of the Golden Fleece, gave perfect satisfaction for many years. It had several successors of the same name.
Congress gave to the city a portion of the military reserve in 1824
and in 1826 gave the remainder. The land thus acquired by the city
now includes a portion of the present business district, and is bounded
on the south by the alley next north of Jefferson avenue, on the west
by the Cass farm line, on the east by Griswold street, and on the
north by Michigan avenue, thus inclosing all of the grounds of Fort
Shelby, the center of which was situated about the intersection of
Fort and Shelby streets. Some streets were opened through this tract
in 1826, and the military burying ground, on a part of which the Moffat
block now stands, was opened. In this graveyard were the remains
of many soldiers who died at the fort in 1814, and in consequence there
was much sickness and several citizens died, including Henry Jackson
Hunt, then mayor of the city. The arsenal, which stood at the northwest corner of Jefferson avenue and Wayne streets, had been built in
1816, and was a very substantial stone structure. It was reserved by
the government, and being available for other purposes, remained
standing for forty years after the old fort had disappeared.
In the summer of 1825 another important link in the system of transportation between the East and the West was completed when the Erie
Canal provided a waterway from Lake Erie to the Hudson River, and
also connected the great lakes with the ocean by navigable water. I
worked a surprising change upon Detroit and the West. The Falls of
Niagara had been considered a fatal impediment to through transit by
water, but this difficulty removed, the tide of immigration began to
flow westward in great volume. The exodus for a short time threatened the prosperity of the seaboard States. Western New York filled
up rapidly, and thousands of emigrants pressed on and took up lands in
Ohio, Michigan, Indiana and Illinois, and also spread north and south.
The second permanent paper started in Michigan was the Michigan
Herald, founded by Chipman and Seymour in 1825. In 1826 the greater
part of the Chippewa tribe came to Detroit, making the trip from Fond
du Lac by canoes in twenty two days, an average of more than fifty miles
a day. They came to draw certain annuities which had been awarded
them by a treaty which Governor Cass and Colonel McKenney had


368






CAMERON CURRIE.




I




effected with them near the present site of Duluth in 1825. The territorial government agreed to grant the tribe these annuities for their
support and education, on condition that the white men should be permitted to engage in mining on the upper peninsula, but their titles
were limited to the underground portion of the territory, and they
were to acquire no claims to possession of the surface.
Another Indian homicide caused a little temporary excitement in
1826. Kishkauken, a chief of the Saginaw Indians, and another Indian named Big Beaver, murdered Chief Wawasson at Detroit. Kishkauken was captured, tried and condemned to be hanged. His wives
gathered about him with extravagant demonstrations of grief, and it is
supposed that one of them gave him a dose of poison, for Kishkauken
was found dead in his cell one morning and the gallows was cheated of
its prey.
In this year the development of the Michigan fisheries began, and
considerable quantities of white fish and Mackinaw trout were shipped
to the East. Seven steamers were running between Detroit and Buffalo, and oysters were regularly sold for the first time in the city, although an old account shows that some were brought here by John
Askin in 1796.
Henry Chipman succeeded John Hunt as supreme justice in 1827.
He was born at Tinmouth, Rutland county, Vt., July 25, 1784. His
father, Nathaniel Chipman, was a Revolutionary soldier, a United
States senator for Vermont, and chief justice of the Supreme Court of
that State. After studying law young Chipman went south and commenced to practice at Waterborough, S. C., forty miles from Charleston, and was adjutant of a South Carolina regiment stationed at Beaufort during the war of 1812. In 1824 he removed to Detroit where he
won distinction as a lawyer and editor of the Herald, and next year
was appointed chief justice of the County Court. In 1827 he succeeded
John Hunt as supreme judge. In 1832 President Jackson removed
him and also Woodbridge and Doty, because they were Whigs, and appointed George Morell, David Irvin and Ross Wilkins in their places,
retaining Solomon Sibley. Mr. Chipman was afterward secretary of
the Land Board, city recorder, school inspector and judge of the District Criminal Court. In person he greatly resembled his son, the late
John Logan Chipman, being of medium height and solidly built, with
a high broad forehead, clear bright blue eyes, large nose and wide
mouth, his face giving a general expression of sagacity, benevolence
369
47




and determination. He was very absent-minded and at home always
pocketed the handkerchiefs and napkins that came within his reach.
One time while on a visit to Niagara Falls and after taking dinner at
a hotel, he put one of the napkins in his pocket. The landlord saw
the act and charged him with taking it, and only the presence and explanation of his friend, ex-United States Senator Augustus S. Porter,
who had left Michigan and returned to his birthplace at the Falls, relieved him from the embarrassing position. He died in Detroit in
1867, aged eighty-three years.
In 1827 the Mansion House, on the northwest corner of Jefferson
avenue and Wayne street, after serving a variety of purposes, was
opened as a hotel. This building was a historic structure in more
senses than one, for not only did it have a history peculiarly its own,
but the material of which it was built was the bones of old Detroit. It
was constructed out of the stones of the chimneys which were left after
the great fire of 1805, and was built by James May.
In 1827 public schools were placed under township control instead of
under direction of the University Board as theretofore. In the following year the commerce of Detroit had increased materially and flour
and tobacco became important exports.
The capitol building, commenced in 1823, was first occupied in 1828.
Following the custom of the day it was constructed with a Greek portice, with six lofty Doric columns across the front. The building was
quite plain, its chief distinctive feature being a lofty tower of four
stages, which reared its pepperbox top 140 feet in the air. This tower
commanded the best available view of the city at that time and was
much frequented by visitors. When the capital was removed to Lansing in 1847 the Detroit building was remodeled, and it subsequently
became the Detroit High School building. In the winter of 1893 it
burned to the ground and the brick walls were razed. The site is now
permanently converted into a public park known as Capitol Square.
In 1830 a public execution took place in Detroit, which was all the
more notable because Stephen G. Simmons, who paid the penalty for
murder, was the only white man who was hanged in Wayne county
under American rule. Simmons was a man of herculean strength and
build, peaceable when sober, but a dangerous ruffian when drunk.
While on a spree he insisted that his wife should drink with him, and
after she had repeatedly done so to gratify him, she refused to drink
more. Thereupon he struck her a terrible blow in the abdomen burst370




ing a blood vessel and she died in a few minutes. Simmons's two
daughters were witnesses of the crime. He was tried before Judges
Solomon Sibley, Henry Chipman and William Woodbridge, B. F. H.
Witherell acting as prosecuting attorney. George A. O'Keefe conducted
the defense. The evidence was conclusive and in spite of O'Keefe's
eloquent plea for mercy the jury found Simmons guilty. On the morning appointed for the execution Sheriff Thomas A. Knapp, being unable to find a substitute hangman, tendered his resignation to Governor
Cass. Ben. Woodworth, who kept the Steamboat Hotel, was not so
squeamish about serving as Jack Ketch, however, and he volunteered
his services. Simmons was truly repentant and his address from the
scaffold was a warning against strong drink. HIe concluded his oration
by singing the old hymn:
"Show pity, Lord! 0 Lord, forgive!
Let a repenting rebel live!
Are not thy mercies large and free?
May not a sinner trust in Thee?"
The execution took place in front of the jail, which was on the site
of the Public Library. After Woodworth had swung his victim off Governor Cass appointed him sheriff in place of Knapp, and he served to
the end of the term. In 1831 De Tocqueville, the celebrated French
author and publicist, was commissioned by King Louis Phillippe of
France, to visit the prisons of America and he came to Detroit. The
only prison in Detroit was on the site of the present Public Library and
bad been built in 1819. It was empty most of the time and could not
have afforded De Tocqueville any food for comment, as he did not
mention it in his published report.
In 1831 Governor Cass was appointed secretary of war by President
Jackson and removed to Washington. He was succeeded by George
B. Porter, a prominent Pennsylvanian, whose home was at Lancaster.
Mr. Porter belonged to a distinguished family, and was the head of the
" Lancaster regency," a Democratic quadrumvirate of which the other
three members were James Buchanan, Benjamin Champneys and Rhea
Frazer, all of Lancaster. This junta in Democratic administrations
controlled the federal patronage of Pennsylvania, and Porter was the
political Warwick of his day, and made presidents and governors at will.
He was an elegant and lavish entertainer, and the reason why he accepted the governorship of a Territory like Michigan was probably
because of the fact that his hospitality had depleted his means, and
371




that he came to a new section of the country to recuperate financially.
The only notable event of his administration was the brief excitement in
1832 known as the Black Hawk war. This Indian uprising did not affect
the territory embraced within the present boundaries of Michigan, but
it was the cause of much uneasiness in Wisconsin, which was then a
part of Michigan. The Indians concerned in this war were the Winnebagoes and the Sacs and Foxes, who had always been subject to British influence, and had been educated to hate the Americans every time
they came to Malden to secure their annual presents. The country
was then at peace, and the West had so filled up with settlers that it
was abundantly able to take care of its own Indian troubles. Chief
Black Hawk was a Sac, sixty-five years of age, and a man of great influence. He headed a revolt of the tribes mentioned, to avenge some
real and fancied encroachments and injuries on the part of the settlers.
Michigan sent a body of militia from Detroit to co-operate with militia
from Indiana, Missouri and Illinois, but before they reached the scene
of war the Indians had been brought into subjection and Black Hawk
was captured. He was imprisoned in Fortress Monroe for a time, and
after his release was given a tour embracing the larger cities in the
East, in order to impress his mind with the futility of Indian attempts
to cope with civilized forces. He arrived in Detroit during the next
year on his way home, and was quartered at the Mansion House.
Meanwhile the government sent forward regular troops, and Gen.
Winfield Scott passed through Detroit on his way to the troubled district. The result of the " war" was the ceding by the offending tribes
of a wide area of territory in Wisconsin, Illinois and Iowa to the United
States. While it was in progress during the spring and summer of
1832, Governor Porter was detained at his home in Pennsylvania by
sickness, and the military affairs of Michigan were directed by Stevens
T. Mason, secretary of the Territory and acting governor, and John R.
Williams as military commandant.


372




CHAPTER LII.


Michigan's Early Supreme Judges-David Irvin, George Morell and Ross Wilkins
-William Woodbridge and His Father-in-Law, Jonathan Trumbull-Dr. Douglass
Houghton and Henry R. Schoolcraft Explore the Upper Peninsula and the Sources
of the Mississippi.
In 1832 the terms of Supreme Judges Woodbridge, Chipman, Doty
and Sibley expired. They were all Whigs, and President Jackson intended to fill their places with Democrats, but H~as induced to allow
Sibley to continue in office. Woodbridge, Doty and Chipman retired,
and David Irvin, George Morell and Ross Wilkins were appointed.
Sketches of these gentlemen latter named and William Woodbridge are
as follows:
David Irvin was born in Virginia and first saw the light in the Shenandoah valley in 1799. He early studied law, and by family interest
was appointed judge of the Michigan Territorial Supreme Court in
1832. He succeeded James Duane Doty in the Northern District, and
held court at Mackinac, Green Bay and Mineral Point. When Wisconsin was carved out of Michigan and became a separate Territory, on
July 4, 1836, he was appointed associate judge of the Wisconsin Terri
torial Supreme Court. When Wisconsin was admitted to the Union in
1848 his official career terminated and he removed to Texas. He lived
and died a bachelor, full of whims and oddities, and was dignified
and courteous. Personally he was about six feet in height, very
erect and well proportioned, with auburn hair, blue eyes and rather
thin narrow features. He was a gentleman of the old school in everything except his parsimonious habits, which he carried to the extent of
darning his stockings, mending his clothes, and sewing on his buttons.
He fell in love with a rich lady at St. Louis, Mo., and they were engaged, but when she learned of his economical habits the match was
broken off. He loved his horse Pedro, and his dog York, with an
affection surpassing the love of woman. In Texas he bought a large
tract of land near Galveston, which he peopled mostly with his own
relatives. When the war of the Rebellion reached that State the mem

373




bers of a Wisconsin regiment made a prolonged effort to capture him,
but he removed beyond their reach. He died about June 1, 1S72, aged
seventy-three years.
Judge George Morell was associate justice of the Michigan Territorial Court from 1832 to 1836, and after Michigan became a State was
appointed associate justice of the State Supreme Court. The judge
was a superior man of commanding presence. He was over six feet in
height, well proportioned, with an erect and dignified carriage; a large
Websterian head, prominent nose, blond complexion, grayish blue eyes,
firm, well shaped mouth, and thick, curly iron gray hair. On the
bench he generally wore a blue coat with brass buttons, a buff vest, a
high shirt collar, and a black satin stock on his neck, below which was
the ruffled bosom of his snow-white shirt. He was a gentleman of the
old school, punctilious but not formal, and was kind and considerate to
everybody. He was a Massachusetts man and a graduate of Williams
College, and was afterward a successful lawyer in the New York courts,
his home being in Cooperstown. He was appointed territorial judge,
as above stated, in 1832, and was appointed one of the Supreme Court
of the State in 1836. In 1844 he retired from the bench and died in
Detroit on March 1, 1845, aged fifty nine years.
Judge Ross Wilkins was one of the most striking and unique figures
of the Territorial Supreme Bench. His personality, in 1833, was described as follows by George A. Bates, in 1878, in his lecture on the
"By-gones of Detroit": " In 1833 he was in his thirty-fourth year,
and in the very strength and beauty of manhood. His whole make up
attracted attention to him as a remarkable man. He was about five
feet ten inches in height; well proportioned, lithe and graceful, with
fine features, long hair, expressive eyes, magnificent teeth and a facial
resemblance to Lord Byron. He was one of the handsomest men of his
day. His motions and his intellect were both quick, and his reasoning
was clear and lucid. While reading and studying the papers and evidence before him he was always moving restlessly in his chair, and
when he had finished he would rise and going to the back part of the
court room, fill and light his long pipe and smoke as he walked around,
always paying the strictest attention to the proceedings. When a case
was finished he always had his decision ready. Some of his charges to
grand juries will compare favorably with the best efforts by eminent
judges of both American and British courts." He was born at Pittsburg, Pa., on February 18, 1799, and came of good Revolutionary
374




stock. In 1816 he graduated from Dickinson College, being then in
his seventeenth year. He practiced in Pittsburg and was elected prosecuting attorney before he was age. He was an active Democrat and
was appointed territorial judge of Michigan in 1832 by Andrew Jackson,
and served until 1837, when Michigan was admitted to the Union. He
was then appointed United States district judge, which position he held
until 1870, when he retired. He died in Detroit, May 17, 1872, aged
seventy-four years.
William Woodbridge, who was one of the territorial judges from
1828 to 1832, when he was displaced by Jackson, was one of the most
remarkable citizens of Michigan, and his name and personality figures
largely in its history. He was born at Norwich, Conn., August 20,
1780, and finished his education in that State. Removing to Marietta,
O., where his father lived, he commenced the study of law, and his
most intimate friend was Lewis Cass. The two were afterward the
most p ominent figures in Michigan, and in Detroit. Their residences
were only a short distance apart, on the bank of the Detroit River.
Young Woodbridge was married to Julianna Trumbull, daughter of
John Trumbull, the author of " McFingall," and other poems. He
was afterward representative in the Senate of the Ohio Legislature,
supported the war measures of President Madison in 1812, and the latter appointed him secretary of the Territory of Michigan and collector
of the Detroit Custom House District in 1814. The land titles in the
Territory were the subject of great solicitude, and many people were
liable to be dispossessed of property which their ancestors had occupied for more than a hundred years. Woodbridge was appointed by
the citizens to attend to these claims, and in 1819 he was elected without opposition as the first delegate to Congress for Michigan Territory.
He was afterward appointed to many positions of honor and emolument, had a large and lucrative practice, was elected State senator in
1835, and governor of the State in 1839.
In 1840 the Whigs carried the State and the nation for Harrison, and
a Whig United States senator was to be elected. Lieut.-Gov. J.
Wright Gordon, a young man of ability, received the caucus nomination, and treated his friends to a grand supper. Next morning the
voting at the Capitol commenced. The first name called was that of a
noted Democrat, and he called out loudly "William Woodbridge."
The Whigs were astounded; as the roll was called it was soon seen that
Woodbridge was elected, and he was elected amid great excitement.
375




Woodbridge sat in the Senate for six years, retiring from public life in
1847, when he was sixty-seven years of age. He died in Detroit, October 20, 1861.
In 1832 a vote was taken to ascertain the opinion of the people on
the question of organizing as a State for admissicn to the Union. A
petition was forwarded to Congress, but the proceedings were irregular,
and Congress concluded that the time was not ripe for the change.
During the Porter administration the price of public lands was reduced from $2 per acre to $1.25. This was not because the lands were
found to be inferior, but as a measure to stop' obstructive speculation.
When $2 was charged the purchaser could get possession on payment
of one-fourth of the amount, and the remainder in three annual installments. This induced many speculators to buy up large tracts of the
most desirable lands and hold them for a rise in value, thus delaying
settlement. The reduction was made to get rid of the speculators and
the terms were made spot cash.
In 1832 an exploring party set out from Detroit under instructions
from General Cass, then secretary of war, to explore the northern
peninsula, and, if possible, to discover the head waters of the Mississippi.
An army officer and ten soldiers were detailed to accompany the expedition, which was to be under direction of Henry R. Schoolcraft.
Dr. Douglas Houghton, of Detroit, went in the capacity of surgeon and
geological surveyor, and, with an interpreter and a missionary to the
northwestern Indians, who accompanied the party, there was a total of
thirty men. They left Sault Ste. Marie June 7, and after suffering
many privations and hardships, they arrived at Cass Lake, one of the
group of lakes about the source of the Mississippi, on July 10. This
lake was visited and named by General Cass while on the exploration
of 1821. At this point all but sixteen of the party turned back, but
the others went on through the wilderness under guidance of Oza Windib, a Chippewa Indian, who was familiar with the desolate region, and
at length arrived at Lake Itasca. This they concluded was the source
of the great river, and it was so recognized by geographers for a period of about forty years. Then it shifted to other quarters and the
last exploration of the region was made by Willard O. Glazier about
twenty years ago.
The explorers returned by way of St. Croix and Brule Rivers to the
head of Lake Superior, and again traversed the wilderness of the
northern peninsula. They discovered abundant evidences of the pres



rSULh AC Iv







ence of copper and iron, which proved to their satisfaction that this uninviting region was really a mine of wealth.  During the trip Dr.
Houghton vaccinated 2,070 Indians, which doubtless materially mitigated the ravages of small-pox during the succeeding year among the
Chippewas.
In the decision of a case before the Supreme Court, in 1829, John P.
Sheldon criticised in the Gazette a ruling of the judges in such a way
that he was arrested for contempt of court. A man named John Reed
had been tried and convicted in the Circuit Court for stealing a watch.
During the trial a juror had been asked if he had formed or expressed
an opinion in the case. The juror said he had formed and expressed
an opinion, but that it was formed from rumor only, and that he could
form an impartial opinion from the evidence to be submitted. The
prisoner then challenged the juror, but Judge Solomon Sibley, as circuit judge, overruled it. The prisoner, who was entitled to two peremptory challenges, then challenged the juror, and the latter was then
set aside. No other juror was objected to. The prisoner, after the
panel had been completed, had the right to peremptorily challenge another juror if he wished to do so, but did not. After the conviction
Reed appealed to the Supreme Court, composed of William Woodbridge, Henry Chipman and Solomon Sibley, who were all circuit
judges, but when sitting together formed the Supreme Court. The
first two judges decided that the appeal, based on the claim that the
prisoner was illegally dispossessed of one of his two " fixed rights " to
challenge, was correct and ordered a new trial. Judge Sibley, of
course, defended his decision as a circuit judge. The trial was just, he
said, the verdict was satisfactory, and he could learn of no injury to the
prisoner by the decision.
Sheldon printed an editorial in the Gazette in which he denounced
the decision of the majority of the court, and among other things said;
"We think.. that many a poor plodding attorney in the States,
when he shall read the above decision of the Supreme Court of Michigan, will kick his Blackstone out of his office, and acknowledge himself a nincom." For this Sheldon was arrested, tried, convicted and
fined $100, on March 5. He refused to pay and was committed to jail.
Sheldon was a fierce Democrat, but the action of the Supreme Court
was regarded as outrageous, and nearly all the prominent citizens denounced it. A public meeting was held, at which the decision was
condemned, and a subscription started to pay the fine, no person to
377
48




give more than twelve and a half cents, which was all raised in nine
days. A dinner was also given in his honor in the jail, where all the
speeches scored the two judges severely. Songs were also sung, and
the health of the prisoner drank in bumpers. During his nine days'
imprisonment Sheldon wrote the editorials for the Gazette, and when
he was released he was again banqueted at the Mansion House. The
two judges must have been considerably exercised over the way
their fellow citizens acted, for they issued a printed pamphlet of forty
pages, in which they gave the full opinions of Judges Woodbridge and
Chipman in justification of their course.
The office of the paper in 1824 and afterward, was on the east side of
Griswold street, between Jefferson avenue and Woodbridge street,
where the alley is now situated. In that year Sheldon editorially criticised the political actions of Thomas Rowland, a Whig and county
clerk. Rowland hied him to the office in great wrath, and fiercely
berated Sheldon. The latter was a small man, with keen black eyes
and a haggard face, and had the appearance of a consumptive; but he
was gritty and determined. The two finally came to blows, and Rowland, who was a strong man, was getting the better of Sheldon. But
Sheldon McKnight, a young boy, nephew of the editor, saw the situation, and made a strategical diversion in the rear by tearing out the
bottom of Rowland's trousers. This stopped the fight instantly, and
Rowland left in disorder, clutching his nether garments in his hand.
The office was totally consumed by fire in 1830. The fire engine was
present, but the fire officers complained that the crowd could not be
persuaded or compelled to man the engine and put out the fire. It is
therefore probable that the persons present wished the office to be
consumed. Sheldon was afterward the first editor of the Detroit Free
Press, and he was succeeded by his nephew, Sheldon McKnight.
The first paper published in Detroit, or Michigan, which, however,
is supposed to have had only one issue, was the Michigan Essay, or
Impartial Observer. It was issued on August 31, 1809, under the
auspices of Father Richard, who brought the press and type to Detroit.
The second paper was the Gazette, which existed from 1817 to 1830.
The third was the Michigan Herald, was started in Detroit in 1825
by Henry Chipman, one of the judges of the Territorial Supreme
Court, and Joseph Seymour. It was announced as an independent
paper, but had a strong Whig bias. It existed about three years,
during which its political and social contests with the Gazette were
378




highly interesting to the citizens of the Territory. Unfortunately the
last known file of the paper in existence, owned by the late John Logan
Chipman, was loaned to the late Frederic Morley, and when the latter
died some twelve years ago it could not be found.
A number of newspaper ventures were launched in the '20's, '30's and
'40's, but they were nearly all shortlived, being either discontinued or
amalgamated with other sheets within three or four years. The most
noted were the Northwestern Journal, 1829; the Detroit Journal and
Michigan Advertiser, 1830; the Detroit Journal, George Corselius, editor, 1833; Detroit Journal, 1835; Detroit Courier, 1830-35; Journal and
Courier, 1835-36; Detroit Daily Advertiser, 1836; Daily Express, 1845;
Free Democrat, 1852; Daily Enquirer, 1854; Democrat and Enquirer,
1855; Detroit Daily Tribune, 1849-62; Advertiser and Tribune, 1862;
Detroit Free Union, 1863; Detroit Daily Post, 1866; Post and Tribune,
1877. These papers were mostly predecessors of the present Detroit
Tribune.
The Detroit Free Press was started on May 5, 1831, mainly by
prominent Democrats, who wished an organ to succeed the Gazette.
Its list of editors includes John P. Sheldon, Charles Cleland, L. L.
Morse, John S. Bagg, J. H. Harmon, C. B. Flood, T. F. Brodhead, S.
M. Johnson, Wilbur F. Story, Henry N. Walker, William E. Quinby
and others. Many of its editors have also been proprietors in whole or
in part.
At the present date (1898) Detroit has seven dailies, including the
Detroit Legal News, a sheet devoted to law, real estate, finance, building and general business.


379




CHAPTER LIII.


Cholera Epidemics of Early Days-The Steamer Henry Clay Brought the In
fection in 1832 —In 1834 it Returned to Claim Over 700 Victims-Heroic Labors of
Fathers Gabriel Richard and Martin Kundig-1832-1834.
In 1832 there was a cholera epidemic in Detroit, and hundreds of
citizens were victims. On July 4 the steamer Henry Clay arrived
with 370 United States soldiers en route for the seat of the Black
Hawk war in Illinois. Next day a soldier on board died of cholera,
and the vessel was then ordered to Hog Island, now Belle Isle. She
then proceeded on her way up the river, but the disease attacked so
many soldiers on board that she was compelled to stop at Fort Gratiot.
Here the sick were taken ashore to an extemporized hospital, and the
others were directed to make their way back to Detroit. During the
the next three or four days about 150 soldiers arrived at Detroit.
Some were taken sick and died on the road, and others were devoured
by wild beasts. The inhabitants made every exertion to take care of
them, and many were taken in by Col. Andrew Mack, who was landlord of the Mansion House, and also United States collector of the
port. In this visitation about two hundred citizens were attacked and
nearly one hundred died of the Asiatic scourge. During the epidemic
Father Gabriel Richard, the pastor of St. Anne's church, devoted himself to the work of aiding the sick and burying the dead, and in the
midst of his humane and self sacrificing labors, he was stricken down
and died September 13, 1832.
Father Richard's memory will be revered as long as Detroit is a city.
He was a priest of the order of St. Sulpice, born in France on October
17, 1767, and came to Detroit from Baltimore, Md., in 1798. He immediately became pastor of Ste. Anne's church. During the few months
preceding his arrival the parish had been without a regular priest, and
the marriages had been performed by the civil magistrates. These
marriages were now performed with the rites of the church. The early
chronicles describe Father Richard as a very godly man, but a person
of singular appearance. He had been a laborious student of literature,
380




religion and the arts and sciences, and his constant application and the
rigorous practices of his order had told upon his constitution. He was
very tall and gaunt. His hands were big and bony, and his face was of a
ghastly pallor, the skin resembling pale yellow parchment drawn tightly
over a skull. He was also a very awkard man, who moved about with
a peculiar gait, and while he was a master of French, he spoke but
broken English. In spite of the forbidding appearance of his person,
Father Richard was soon the best beloved man in all the settlement;
both Protestants and Catholics esteemed him alike. He was a man of
constant activity and worked without ceasing for the moral, intellectual
and religious advancement of the people. He encouraged the establishment of schools and did what he could at teaching. He urged good
reading upon the residents, and in 1809 he brought the first printing
press to Detroit and started the first printing office, employing James
M. Miller, a practical printer, to do the work. After getting out several religious pamphlets he started a newspaper which he named The
Michigan Essay, or the Impartial Observer, which was soon discontinued. The press being a small hand power affair, the size of the
paper was limited. It was a four-page publication, quarto size, each
page being about the size of a sheet of foolscap paper and divided into
four columns. Father Richard became an officer of the State University in the course of time and served as a teacher. When he opened the
Legislature with prayer he prayed that the members might be directed
to make laws for the people and not for themselves-a timely invocation. His services as a member of Congress have been already alluded to.
In 1834 the cholera again visited Detroit, this time with more deadly
effect. It lasted during August and September, in all about eight
weeks. During its progress the streets became grass-grown and apparently deserted, and it was a silent, plague-stricken city. The port was
quarantined and no vessels were allowed to arrive or depart. Barrels
of pitch and tar were blazing night and day on the docks, at and near
the foot of Woodward avenue, and at the corners of the principal
streets. Guards prevented all persons from entering or leaving the
city without a permit. The tolling of the church bells was so frequent
that it was suspended, because, as Zachariah Chandler, remarked:
" The living must have some sleep." The only signs of activity were
the funerals and the passing ambulance as it brought cholera patients
from their homes to the cholera hospital, which was the old Presby

381




terian church. The edifice had been purchased by Bishop Res6 and
removed from Woodward avenue to the northwest corner of Cadillac
square and Bates street for the parish of Holy Trinity. It was fitted
up for the care of the sick.
Foremost in the work of humanity was Father Martin Kundig, then
the new priest of Holy Trinity church. Six feet in height, with a well
proportioned frame, indicative of strength and activity, with dark eyes
and hair, and a face expressive of power, benevolence and enthusiasm,
he would anywhere be recognized as a leader of men. For twenty
hours out of the twenty four he was busy in this work. He would
carry the sick out of their homes to the ambulance and then drive them
to the hospital. Frequently the ambulance was the homely funeral car
which conveyed the dead to the burying ground, as the hearses were
too busy to carry all the departed. The dying left their property and
children in his care, and these charges were observed as a sacred trust.
Thirty orphans, whose parents had died of cholera, were taken under
his care. When the scourge passed away he was a bankrupt, and although the Legislature subsequently voted him $3,000 for his services
it did not pay his expenses. He was the parish priest and the founder
of St. Mary's church, but in 1842 removed to Milwaukee, where he
was made vicar general, and died in 1879.
During the visitation nearly all the United States and city officials
left town with their families, but Mayor C. C. Trowbridge fearlessly
held his post, and personally superintended all official measures of
needed relief. A devoted band of young men volunteered as nurses
and gave invaluable aid in attending the sick. A census taken just before the epidemic showed a population of 4,968; three months later,
after the scourge was over, it was ascertained that nearly one seventh
of the population, or 700 persons had died or removed. Among its
victims was Governor Porter.
In September, 1834, an act was passed calling for a census of the
Territory. It showed that there were 87,273 people within the borders
of Michigan. A population of 60,000 entitled the Territory to admission as a State, but there were causes which delayed the accomplishment of this end, and the year of 1835 was filled with excitement which
threatened to culminate in a border war between Michigan and Ohio.
Cholera again visited Detroit in the summer of 1849, and about 1,200
inhabitants died between July and Septeniber. In 1854 the Asiatic
scorge again made its appearance, and the number of deaths from that


382




cause was over 200. The latter was the last serious visitation, although
there were several isolated cases in succeeding years. In 1892 cholera
prevailed in several parts of Europe, and Detroit made haste to take
sanitary precautions. A quarantine was enforced against emigrants
coming to the city by railroad or boat, and the old steamer, Milton D.
Ward, was chartered in September as a hospital boat. Happily the
cholera did not come, although there was one authenticated case of an
emigrant who came from Scotland, contracted the disease on the way,,and died in Detroit.
The Young Men's Society, a literary association, was organized in
1833, and went out of existence in 1882. During its distinguished career of forty-nine years it had a membership comprising the most talented and intellectual residents. To be its president was considered
by influential citizens as one of the greatest honors of their lives, and
for this, as well as the other offices, there was an exciting annual competition. The list of presidents embraces the following prominent
persons: Douglas Houghton, Jacob M. Howard, George C. Bates,
James A. Van Dyke, S. T. Douglass, James V. Campbell, E. C. Walker, D. Bethune Duffield, H. H. Emmons, G. V. N. Lothrop, C. I.
Walker, Levi Bishop, H. P. Baldwin, Luther S. Trowbridge, S. Dow
Elwood, R. R. Elliott, C. J. Reilly and others.
In 1835 a syndicate of ten leading citizens engaged in an important
land deal, which resulted in altering the conformation of a part of the
river front of the city. The members of the syndicate were De Garmo
Jones, Shubael Conant, Charles C. Trowbridge, Elon Farnsworth,
Henry S. Cole, Oliver Newberry, Eurotas P. Hastings, Henry Whiting,
Augustus S. Porter and Edmund A. Brush, and they purchased the Cass
farm front for $100,000, in ten equal and divided shares of $10,000 each.
The contract for clearing the land was left to Abraham Smolk, a contractor, who was paid $1 per cord for the work. Some 30,000 cords
were removed from the higher ground at the line of Lamed street,
which was the northern limit of the purchase, to the river, resulting in
greatly increasing the extent of the city's land. What is now the depot
grounds of the Michigan Central Railroad, as far west as Fourth street,
was a part of the river before the work was begun. In 1836, when the
panic commenced, the members of the syndicate desired to have the
land divided into ten equal shares, and E. A. Brush went to Paris,
where General Cass was United States minister, and the change was
made. About $100,000 was spent in the grading, but the whole project


383




was a source of loss to the investors, who could not sell their land.
When Cass came back to Detroit in 1848, the several parcels were all
covered by mortgages, and then came the settlement. Nine of the
shares reverted to the original owner, but Oliver Newberry, though he
could not settle for several years, finally paid up and retained his portion. The late James F. Joy remembered the last interview between
Cass and ex-United States Senator A. S. Porter, in which the latter
gave up all his other properly in settling up. Cass said: " Is this all
your property?" "It is, sir," said Porter, "every foot." The Cass
farm front is now worth $2,000,000 to $3,000,000.
An interesting figure in the early thirties was Stevens Thompson
Mason, who was afterward the first governor of the State. In person
he was about five feet ten inches in height, with a slender, flexible,
elegant figure, weighing about 145 pounds, and with small, aristocratic
hands and feet. His face was full, his forehead was not high but
rather broad, and his brown waving hair fell in rich clusters around
his head. His blue eyes beamed brightly and were radiant with sympathy and geniality, but when roused and animated showed that their
owner was possessed of will, courage and decision. His nose was
prominent and with his well shaped chin and jaw, betokened force and
determination.  The features and their expression were somewhat
negatived, however, by the mouth and lips, the latter being quite full
and red. Like all of his family he was very ambitious of political distinction. His ideas were of commendable breadth, and his actions
were characterized by honor and inflexible integrity.  He was an
ardent admirer of the fair sex, and his morals were not unimpeachable,
and he was not adverse to participating in jolly symposiums where
wine and song and good fellowship reigned supreme. The latter were
the faults of his day and generation, but his habits and propensities
did not lead to physical or mental deterioration. His family were distinguished in the history of the republic. The progenitor of the family
in this country was Col. George Mason, an Englishmnan, a member of
parliament, and an officer in the army of Charles II. After the disastrous defeat at Worcester, in 1651, he escaped to Virginia. Young
Mason's grandfather, Stevens Thompson Mason, was a colonel in the
Revolutionary army and United States senator for Virginia.  H is
uncle, United States Senator Armstead Thompson Mason, was killed by
Colonel McCarthy in a duel in 1819. His cousin, Richard B. Mason,
was the first governor of California. Another cousin, James Murray
384




GEORGE W. RADFORD.








Mason, was a United States senator for fourteen years, but was expelled before the war of the Rebellion for his secession sentiments.
With his colleague, John Slidell, he was captured on board the Trent
by Captain Wilkes, U. S. N., but was released and acted in Paris as
minister to France for the Confederate States until the close of the war
of the Rebellion. Still another cousin, John Y. Mason, was secretary
of the navy under Tyler, and held the same position under Polk.
Stevens Thompson Mason was born in Loudon county, Va., in 1812,
and emigrated with his parents to Kentucky, where he received his education, which included a little knowledge of law. His father, John T.
Mason, was appointed secretary of Michigan Territory on May 20, 1830,
and came here with his wife (who was the sister of Wm. T. Barry, the
postmaster-general), his son Stevens T., and his four daughters, Emily,
Catherine, Laura and Theodosia. Their home for several years was
on the north side of Jefferson avenue, four or five doors east of Beaubien street. The elder Mason served as secretary of the territory, an
office equivalent to secretary of state, and second in importance to the
governorship, until 1831. In that year Cass accepted the offer of Jackson to become secretary of war, and the elder Mason embraced the
opportunity of elevating his son. He resigned also and preferred a request for the appointment of his son as his successor.
President Jackson appointed George B. Porter of Pennsylvania as
governor and young Stevens T. Mason as secretary. When the news
of the appointments reached Michigan, the selection of young Mason
created much indignation. Prominent men as well as the people exclaimed against it, because the young stripling was only nineteen years
of age, and in his position he would be acting governor during the absence, illness, death or resignation of Porter. Meetings were held all
over the Territory, and delegates appointed to a central body, with the
intention of demanding his resignation or removal. In Detroit an
indignation meeting appointed Oliver Newberry, Andrew Mack and
John E. Schwartz as a committee to report whether Stevens T. Mason
was twenty-one years of age. They reported July 25, 1831, that he was
not of age, and that President Jackson knew it. Another meeting was
held on July 29, at which the feeling seemed unabated.
When the indignation was at fever heat Governor Cass invited his
fellow citizens to a parting feast at his house before he left for Washington.  All the officials and the notabilities of the Territory were
present, and after appropriate addresses by Cass and Mayor John
385
49




Biddle, toasts became the order of the evening. Austin E. Wing arose
and said: "Gentlemen, fill your glasses."  After the glasses were
charged he held his own up and said: " The health of the ex-secretary
of state." It was ticklish toast, as both John T. Mason and his son
were being fulminated against by everybody. But the elder Mason,
quick to take advantage of an opportunity, saw that here was a chance
to recover lost ground. He thanked the assemblage for the compliment,
and said he had always tried to do his duty. Then he talked about his
son and successor: " My boy is smart, gentlemen," he said. "He
understands the duties of the office. I hope you will not condemn him
unheard." He placed his right hand upon his heart and continued in
broken tones: " Try the boy, gentlemen, try the boy. President Jackson is not to blame. If any blame can be attached, it is in the affection
of the father for the son." It was an effective plea and was entirely
successful. Tears sprang to the eyes of almost all his auditors, and
the indignation at the appointment of a lad who had not attained legal
manhood passed away like a summer cloud.
During the administration of Governor Porter, young Mason was
active and efficient as an official and citizen. The Black Hawk war of
1832, and the cholera epidemics of 1832 and 1834 taxed his energies to
the utmost, and his competency was everywhere recognized. In April,
1834, he was elected alderman-at-large and made a good city officer.
The number of saloons had greatly increased, and drunkenness was
disgracefully common. By his exertions an ordinance was passed prohibiting the sale of liquor in quantities less than one gallon, and the
license fee was fixed at $50. He was also an active member of the
Detroit Young Men's Temperance Society. When Governor Porter
died of cholera on July 6, 1834, Mason became acting governor. A
movement was made by his friends to have him appointed governor,
but Jackson would not listen to it, and, on November 6, appointed
Henry D. Gilpin as governor of the Territory. The Mason interest
was exerted at Washington, and enough senators were secured to negative the confirmation of Gilpin, who was unpopular with them because
he sided with Jackson in his assault on the United States Bank.


386




CHAPTER LIV.


Story of the Toledo War-A Serio-Comic Dispute Which Promised to End in a
War between Ohio and Michigan-Michigan Prepares for Statehood-Lucius Lyon
and John Norvell the First Senators Elected by the Legislature-1835.
Two popular movements attained full headway in 1835. One was
the desire of the people of the Territory to become a State, and the
other was a popular determination to resist the claim of Ohio to a portion of territory on the southern border of Michigan. The first movement was advanced by the constitutional convention which met at Detroit
in May, 1835, and framed a constitution which, with the offices of governor, lieutenant-governor, members of the State Legislature, and a
representative to Congress, were to be voted for at the next election on
the first Monday in October, 1835. A peculiar feature of the constitution was that it gave the right of franchise to all voters who were residents of Michigan at the time the constitution was adopted, whether
they were citizens of the United States or not. This liberality raised
some doubts in Congress as to the validity of the constitution. Slavery
and involuntary servitude were forbidden except on conviction of crime.
This provision was intended to do away with slave-holding, which had
existed in the Territory from the earliest times, and, what was still
more objectionable, the selling of poor debtors into slavery, which had
been a common practice.
The second movement resulted from the following conditions: When
Michigan was organized as a separate Territory in 1805, the southern
boundary specified by Congress was a line running due east from the
southern extremity of Lake Michigan. In conflict with this boundary
was a very cunning proviso, which was inserted in the Ohio constitution of 1802, which stipulated that if it should be found, after accurate
survey, that the line running due east from the southern extremity of
Lake Michigan should intersect Lake Erie at a point east of the mouth
of the Maumee River, then the boundary line should be made on a line
running from the southern extremity of Lake Michigan to the point of
the most northerly cape on Maumee Bay. The purpose of this proviso
387




was to keep this very important bay and lake port for the State of
Ohio, which, the legislators foresaw, must one day become an important commercial center. The line claimed by Michigan was known as
the Fulton line, while the line or boundary claimed by Ohio was known
as the Harris line, according to the names of the surveyors who had
run them from Lake Michigan. The strip which had been taken from
Michigan and added to Indiana had never been disputed, but the governments of Michigan and Ohio were each determinied to fight for possession of the Toledo strip, if it could not be obtained peaceably.
Trouble was precipitated in the spring of 1835, when the Legislature
of Ohio, at the suggestion of Governor Lucas, asserted jurisdiction
over Maumee Bay and the territory south of it. Michigan's Territorial
Council immediately made it a penal offense for any person to accept
or exercise any public office in any part of the Territory of Michigan,
except by permission of the territorial government or by a commission
from Congress. Governor Lucas directed the county officers to exercise their functions in the disputed territory, the adjacent counties
having been extended so as to include the disputed lands within their
borders. He also directed a commission, which he had appointed for
surveying the boundary according to the Ohio idea, to meet him at
Perrysburg and begin the survey on April 1. Michigan appealed to
President Jackson, Congress having adjourned.  Governor Mason
ordered Gen. Joseph Brown, of the Michigan militia, to hold his troops
in readiness to resist any encroachment, and the council appropriated
money for the defense.
Benjamin F. Butler, attorney-general of the United States, declared
that Michigan was in the right, and the president agreed with him. As
fast as Ohio surveyors would trespass, the Michigan authorities would
arrest them. Two commissioners, Rush and Howard, were sent from
Washington to effect a settlement, but without success, and the people
of Ohio appropriated $300,000 for enforcing their claim.
The two movements proceeded simultaneously and both apparently
ended in failure at the end of the year. In the spring the Ohio Legislature passed a law creating the county of Lucas, in which Toledo is
situated, and providing that a session of the Court of Common Pleas be
held at the latter place on September 7, 1835. As this was situated on
the strip of land that had always been supposed to belong to the Territory of Michigan, the wrath of the Wolverines rose to the boiling point.
The Ohio commissioners proceeded to survey the new State line, but


388




when they reached the new county of Lucas, about twelve miles south
of Adrian, they were fired at and some of the party taken prisoners.
Governor Lucas, of Ohio, then summoned about 200 militia, who made
their rendezvous at Fort Miami, on the Maumee River, a few miles
above Toledo. Finding that Mason did not advance his troops, he disbanded his force.
Then came the striking and dramatic feature of the "Ohio war."
On September 6, 1835, Governor Mason, at the head of *about one
thousand Michigan troops, appeared in Toledo to prevent the holding
of the court on the 7th. Meanwhile Governor Lucas had learned of
the movement, and had ordered Colonel Van Vliet and his regiment of
Ohio militia to proceed to Toledo and protect the court. Van Vliet
had only about 100 men under arms at Maumee, some twenty miles
away, when he received information that Mason, with a force greatly
outnumbering his own, was in possession of Toledo.  His officers
thought any military movement would only result in disaster, and Van
Vliet agreed with them, but he determined, if he could not play the
lion, to play the fox. The three judges were with his detachment, and
to them he unfolded a plan of outwitting Mason, to which they gave
their assent. He selected twenty men, and with the judges and clerk
of the court, all mounted, he left about midnight and quietly entered
Toledo about three o'clock on the morning of the 7th. The party went
to a school house on Erie street, procured lights and opened the court
in due form. The clerk, Horatio Conant, took notes on loose sheets of
paper, and in a few minutes the presiding judge declared the court
adjourned.
Just then a wag who belonged to the party said, " The Michigan men
are coming." The party ran out of the school house, unhitched their
horses in frantic haste, and scurried back by the road they calne at full
speed. On the way back it was discovered that Clerk Conant had lost
the papers. He had been riding like the others in hot haste, and a
branch of a tree had knocked off his bell-crowned hat which contained
the important documents. The party was filled with vexation and
consternation.  All their fine strategy, they thought, had gone for
naught. But Van Vliet was a man of resource. He directed two
troopers to ride back and observe where low branches crossed the road.
They did so, and in half an hour returned with the hat and papers intact. Thus Ohio won a judicial and bloodless victory.
But it is very probable that Ohio, with her seven or eight members
389




of Congress against one delegate from Michigan, would have been victors in any event. It is said that Mason was not informed of the meeting of the court until he returned to Michigan. On the next day he
reviewed the troops in Toledo, and was riding along the line with his
staff, when a courier rode up and handed him a letter. He opened it
and found he had been superseded by John S. Horner as secretary and
acting governor. The parade was dismissed and the troops came home.
In August, before this fiasco, President Jackson had appointed
Charles Shaler of Pennsylvaina to be secretary of the territory. Shaler,
however, declined. When a young man at Cleveland he had volunteered to carry the news of the declaration of war to Governor Hull
while the latter was on his way to Detroit. This he accomplished
with rapidity and enterprise. The president then appointed John S.
Horner, a Virginian by birth, who practiced law in Philadelphia. The
new acting governor was commissioned on September 8, 1835, and
commenced his duties soon after. He was a tall, handsome man, a
southerner by birth and his wife was a very attractive lady. The gossip
of the time was that President Jackson was one of her admirers, and
when she was single he had asked her why she did not get married.
She returned the stereotyped answer that no one would have her,
whereupon "Old Hickory" remarked: "You get married and I'll
make your husband a governor."
When Horner arrived in Detroit he immediately realized that he had
succeeded a popular idol, and that he was the representative of a president who had thwarted the wishes of the people.
During the twenty five days of governorship he went through several disagreeable experiences. He engaged Henry Huntingdon Brown,
who at that time was a broker, as his secretary. Governor Horner, as
well as Mr. Brown and his wife, lived at the boarding house of Mrs.
Abigail Snelling, the widow of Col. Josiah Snelling, on the north side
of Congress street, second door west of Shelby street. Other boarders
were Colonel John M. Berrien, an army officer who had resigned to
become engineer of the Detroit and St Joseph (Michigan Central) Railroap; Alvah Bradish, the artist, and several others.  Horner, who
seems to have been a free talker, made several disparaging remarks
about the lady boarders, which was resented by Brown. A heated discussion followed and blows were exchanged. Horner wore spectacles.
and Brown, not wishing to injure his eyes, said: "Take off your
glasses, sir! " They were separated and the contest ceased. Horner
390




was apprehensive that the affair might damage his political prospects
and he drew up a statement of the affair to be sent to Washington. He
wished Bradish to sign it, but the latter refused.
Horner addressed a meeting at the City Hall September 12, 1835, in
which he announced his views and intentions, in regard to his official
course, in a style that greatly displeased his auditors.  After he had
concluded, the meeting organized and Jacob M. Howard, afterward
United States senator, who had been a lieutenant of Michigan troops at
Toledo, wrote the following resolution which was adopted:
"Resolved, That if our present secretary of the territory should find it beyond his
control, either from the nature of his instructions, his feelings of tenderness toward
those who had for a long period of time set at defiance as well the laws of the Territory as those of the United States. or any feeling of delicacy toward the executive of
a neighboring State, who has in vain endeavored to take forcible possession of a part
of our territory, to enable him to properly carry into effect the exacting laws of
this Territory, it is to be hoped he will relinquish the duties of his office and return
to the land of his nativity."
But the crowning incivility was perpetrated at Ypsilanti a few days
later. While Horner was paying a visit to that place a disorderly
crowd threw stones through the window of the tavern at which he was
stopping. He had to sleep on the floor as the safest place, and his
landlord charged him for the damage. After the State officers assumed
their functions President Jackson directed him not to recognize them.
He was subsequently appointed secretary of the Territory of Wisconsin,
where he did excellent work in preventing an Indian war. This was
highly approved by Jackson, and Congress voted him $1,000 as a reward for his services. He was subsequently register of the Green Bay
land office for thirteen years, and probate judge of Green Lake and
Marquette counties, Wisconsin, for four years. Although born in Virginia he was opposed to slavery, and at an early day was an advocate
of emancipation. His sincerity was evidenced by manumitting all the
slaves inherited by him from his father's estate.
At the election in October, 1835, Stevens T. Mason was elected governor; Edward Munday, lieutenant governor, and Isaac E. Crary representative in Congress.  The Legislature met on the second Monday
of November, and on the 10th Lucius Lyon was elected United
States senator unanimously by the senators and representatives.  For
the same office Maj. John Biddle received a majority of four in the
Senate and John Norvell a majority of seven in the Honse; the latter
was then elected on joint ballot. George W. Jones, residing in Wis

391




consin, was elected territorial delegate, as the Territory extended beyond the proposed new State and therefore continued. A constitution
was adopted which provided for the continuance of territorial officers
until superseded. The organization of State courts was postponed until July, 1836, as the territorial judges were entirely satisfactory. The
Legislature adopted a constitution and adjourned until January, everybody hoping that the State would be admitted. But Michigan did not
become a State just then.
Both the southern and northern men in Congress were watching
jealously the admission of new States, and both had determined that
there should be as many slave States as there were free States, one to
counterpoise the other. So, after long debates on the admission of
Arkansas and Michigan, both were admitted on June 15, 1836. The
first was admitted unreservedly, but in the case of the latter there was
a condition that she should give up her claim to the Toledo strip and
accept in compensation the upper peninsula east of Montreal River,
and the American part of Lake Superior from that point to the northwestern national boundary line. Until Michigan formally agreed to
this by a convention of delegates elected for that purpose, she was not
to be admitted at all. The popular feeling against these conditions
was quite bitter at first. The Legislature met on July 11, 1836, and
directed an election for a convention to be held at Ann Arbor on the
fourth Monday of September. The convention met and refused to
consent to the terms of Congress. Then a reaction took place. It was
intimated from Washington that Michigan's share as a new State in the
dividends of surplus revenue, and the five per cent. on the proceeds of
public lands, would amount to $450,000, all of which, President Jack
son stated, would be lost to Michigan if she was not admitted at that
time. Schoolcraft and Houghton also told of the mineral wealth of the
upper peninsula, far exceeding in value the paltry strip on the southern
border.
Thereupon a Democratic convention of Wayne county, and another
of Washtenaw, adopted resolutions for the holding of another conven.
tion. The Detroit papers advised the people that it was useless to call
another convention, because the matter had been voted upon once and
rejected. Another vote could not be legally taken so soon after the
people had spoken so decisively. This advice aided the cause of those
who were working for admission, because their opponents refused to
vote at all at the second election of delegates. Those who had voted


392




COL. HENRY B. LOTHROP.








before in favor of accepting the terms offered by Congress, were
elected to the second convention without opponents.  Governor
Mason endorsed the movement, and a convention was held at Ann
Arbor on December 14, 1836. The convention was made up entirely
of persons who favored admission, and as a result the terms of Congress were agreed to, and after some debate in Congress Michigan
was admitted as the twenty sixth State of the Union, on January
26, 1837. The State was recognized, when admitted, as having existed
as such since November, 1835, when the senators, representatives,
governor and legislators came into office, and such has been the uniform ruling of all departments. The State organized a Supreme Court
in 1836, with William A. Fletcher as chief justice. Elon Farnsworth
was made chancellor of the Court of Chancery. Then the State University was established at Ann Arbor, with the governor, lieutenantgovernor, chancellor, and the justices of the Supreme Court as exofficio members of the Board of Regents, which was made tip of twelve
appointees by the governor and the Senate. Branches were established
at Detroit, Pontiac, Niles, Tecumseh, Kalamazoo, Monroe and White
Pigeon. The University opened in 11841 and the first class was graduated in 1845.
Mr. Fletcher served as chief justice from 1836 to 1843. He was a
man who would have achieved distinction in any walk of life. He
rose to the highest position in the judiciary in spite of his intemperate
habits and his unfortunate marriages which deprived him of much
that is desirable in social life. Personally he was about five feet seven
inches in height, and weighed about 175 pounds. His carriage was
erect and his appearance dignified. His head was large and well
shaped and being slightly bald in front, his forehead appeared of great
height. He was born in New Hampshire in 1788. In 1813 he was a
merchant at Salem, Mass, Later he emigrated to Esperance, Schoharie county, N. Y., where he married Gertrude Lawzer in 1820. This
was a singular alliance for a man of such promise to make. Miss Lawzer was a woman of Dutch descent, tall, gaunt and angular. Her face
was coarse featured and masculine, and there was a taint of hereditary
insanity in her blood. For a number of years she had kept the village
tavern, and had made some money at it. She had been the mistress
of Judge Isaac H. Tiffany, and had borne him two sons before Fletcher
made her acquaintance. It is supposed that Fletcher entered into a
contract with her by which she was to furnish money to purchase a law
393
50




library for him, and he was to accept her as his common law wife. In
1821, less than a year after they began living together, Fletcher came
to Detroit and it was supposed that he had deserted " Aunt Gitty," as
she was commonly called.
Mr. Fletcher was thirty-three years of age when he arrived in Detroit. He found established in the town such lawyers as Charles Lamed,
George McDougall, B. F. H. Witherell, William Wcodbridge, William
W. Petit, Solomon Sibley, James L. and Harry S. Cole, W. G.
Whitney and Alexander D. Frazer, the latter awaiting admission to the
bar. At that time Mr. Fletcher was well versed in the law. He was
an effective pleader and a convincing speaker. In 1823 Governor Cass
and the territorial judges appointed him chief justice of Wayne county,
succeeding John L. Leib, and B. F. H. Witherell and Phillip Lecuyer
were his associate justices. In politics he was a Democrat. When the
congressional campaign of 1823, which is elsewhere described, was
finished, Judge Fletcher made the address of the day at the laying of
the corner stone of the capitol building, September 23. When his term
of office expired Judge Fletcher resumed his practice and in 1830 became a member of the Territorial Council. In 1833 when all the State
courts except that of Wayne county were abolished, and the circuit
courts were established, acting Governor Mason appointed Fletcher as
circuit judge. He continued in that capacity, holding two terms of
court each year at each county seat in his district, until 1836. His
manner on the bench was serene, polite and dignified, and his office demanded the exercise of legal ability, for in the new State he was constantly confronted with novel propositions, and having no precedents
to guide him he had to blaze his own way. He sent for " Aunt Gitty"
in 1834, and as he saw that she would not be received in Detroit society,
in which he had heretofore been a prominent figure, he removed to the
village of Ann Arbor. In their separation of thirteen years the eccentricities of his wife had multiplied, and her personal ugliness was
much enhanced by her oddities of dress. From the bench of the Circuit
Court Judge Fletcher was appointed chief justice of the Supreme Court
of Michigan on July 18, 1836. His associates were George Morell and
Epaphroditus Ransom, and his salary was $1,600. Each of the judges
also performed the duties of a circuit judge. The opinions of this
learned judge were not preserved, strange to say, with the exception of
a few which were so notable that they found their way into the newspapers of the day, and are the admiration of later generations of his


394




profession. In 1836, just before his appointment to the supreme bench,
Judge Fletcher began the task of codifying the laws, but he turned the
task over to Gen. Edward Clark, an Ann Arbor justice of the peace,
and the Legislature afterward gave it to Ebenezer Harrington and
Elijah J. Roberts, who finished the work.
The Fletchers lived on a small farm just east of the present university campus. In 1840 Mrs. Fletcher became insane and was removed
to an asylum at Brattleboro, Vt., where she died in December, 1855.
Judge Fletcher did not wait for her demise before taking another wife.
In 1843 he applied for a divorce, which was granted by Supreme Justice Alpheus Felch, whereupon the judge chose for his second wife
Adeline D. Doyle, widow of an Irish laborer, who supported herself by
washing. The judge was fifty-eight years of age, while she was a,
sturdy woman of thirty-two years and of prepossessing appearance.
They lived happily enough and the new wife took excellent care of the
judge in his declining years. Judge Fletcher's mind began to give way
before the inroads of intemperance, and from being chief justice of
Michigan he became a justice of the peace at Ann Arbor. He died
there in 1853, leaving no children to mourn his loss. Alvah Bradish
painted a portrait of Judge Fletcher when he was in his prime. It was
searched for, to be hung with those of the other supreme justices in
the court room at Lansing, but the picture had been loaned in Detroit
to decorate a banquet hall, at a meeting of the bar of the State, and
and thereafter it could never be found.
The men who ruled over Michigan in the days immediately after the
British surrender and up to its admission to the Union were as follows:
General Arthur St. Clair, governor of the Northwest Territory, which
included Detroit and Michigan, from 1787 to 1800.
Gen. William Henry Harrison, as governor of Indiana Territory,
1800 to 1805.
Gen. William Hull, appointed governor of Michigan Territory March
1, 1805, and reappointed for his third term January 12, 1811. Hull
surrendered Detroit August 16, 1812, and it continued under control of
General Proctor, until General Harrison invaded Canada and compelled
the British to abandon the town.
Lewis Cass was appointed governor and military commander October
29, 1813, and continued in office until called to Jackson's cabinet in 1831
as secretary of war.


395


I




George B. Porter was governor of Michigan Territory from August
6, 1831, until he died of cholera July 6, 1834.
Stevens Thompson   Mason, secretary of the territory, succeeded
Governor Porter and became the first governor of the State of Michigan after its admission to the Union.
The secretaries of the territory which included Michigan and Detroit, frequently acted as governor during the absence of the governor.
The names and terms of the secretaries were as follows:
Winthrop Sargent, 1787 to 1800.
John Gibson, 1800 to 1805.
Stanley Griswold, March 1, 1805, to March 18, 1808.
Reuben Attwater, March 18, 1808, to October 15, 1814.
William Woodbridge, from October 15, 1814, to January 15, 1828.
James Witherell, from January 15, 1828, to May 20, 1830.
John T. Mason, from May 20, 1830, to July 12, 1831.
Stevens T. Mason, from July 12, 1831, to September 30, 1835. He
was acting governor from July 6, 1834, to September 8, 1835, and became governor of the Territory on November 3, 1835, and governor of
the State in 1837.
John S. Horner, from September 8, 1835, to November 3, 1835.
The names and time of service of the territorial judges were as follows: A. B. Woodward, 1805-1823; Frederick Bates, 1805-1808;
John Griffin, 1805-1823; James Witherell, 1808-1827; Solomon Sibley,
1823-1837; John Hunt, 1823-1827; James D. Doty, 1823-1832; Henry
Chipman, 1827-1832; William Woodbridge, 1827-1832; George Morell,
1833-1837; Ross Wilkins, 1832-1837, and David Irwin, 1832-1837.


396




CHAPTER LV.


Dr. Douglass Houghton Begins the First Geological Survey of the State-He
Reveals Some of the Vast Resources-The Canadian Rebellion-Causes Which
Led to the Uprising of an Oppressed People-Exciting Times at Detroit, Windsor
and Sandwich.
After considerable opposition among the former members of the
Legislature, an act for a State Geological Survey was passed and approved by Governor Mason on February 23, 1837. It provided for a
State geologist and it appropriated annual sums, increasing from
$3,000 for the first year to $12,000 for the fourth year. Dr. Douglass
Houghton was appointed State geologist, and he made a brief preliminary survey of the State, particularly in the northern portion, and
made his first annual report to the governor on January 25, 1838. The
second survey was made in 1838 by the following staff: Douglass
Houghton, geologist; Abram Sager, in charge of the zoological department; Sylvester Higgins, topographer and draughtsman; John Wright,
in charge of the botanical department; Columbus C. Douglass, assistant
to geologist; Bela Hubbard, assistant to geologist; William P. Smith,
in charge of mechanical zoology. The second annual report was submitted February 4, 1838, and showed the result of a general examination of some of the central and southern counties; the character of that
portion west and north of Saginaw Bay; the connection of Michigan's
geology with neighboring States; special remark on the clays, marls and
gypsum; and the changes of the levels of the waters of the great lakes.
The heads of the departments also made reports of their special work.
The third annual report was on the general topography and geology of
the south slope, the lower peninsula, embracing limestones and sandstones, now included in the Paleozoic age. Soon other annual reports
were made, which brought the account of the physical resources of the
new State up to February 15, 1844, which was the date of Dr. Houghton's
annual report. Discoveries thus made have been of incalculable benefit to the State, and the development of iron and copper in the upper
peninsula, and of salt in the lower peninsula, have added hundreds of
397




millions of dollars to the wealth of Michigan. The lumber interests in
both peninsulas have probably been of even more value. Dr. Houghton was drowned near Eagle River on Lake Superior, on October 12,
1845. The State geological surveys were suspended until 1859, when
Prof. Alexander Winchell was appointed State geologist.
At the first State election in November, 1837, Stevens T. Mason, the
Democratic candidate, received 11,268 votes, against 11,031 votes for
C. C. Trowbridge, his Whig opponent, a majority of 237. At that
time there were a number of public works in progress, and the labor
demand had drawn to the new State a large number of Irishmen who
were nearly all Democrats, and it was to this vote that Mason owed his
success. For lieutenant-governor, Edward Munday received 11,226
votes, and defeated his opponent, Daniel S. Bacon, by a majority
of 102.
While Michigan was qualifying for statehood trouble was brewing
across the river, which ultimately ripened into open rebellion. Canada
was dominated up to that time by an oligarchy which had grown up
imperceptibly. The people at large were then groaning under the rule
of irresponsible, self seeking officials who loaded their sycophantic adherents with favors and oppressed the remainder. They legislated to
further their own ends and not for the common weal. The people
were represented by the lower house of the Legislature, but the upper
house ignored their wishes. As the latter was the instrument of the
executive and had the ear of the crown, the people could do nothing
but complain. The general scheme of each man connected with the
government was to establish himself in possession of a lordly manor,
with a vast estate of the best lands of the province. It was the practice
to grant 5,000 acres to each member of the Executive Council, and
1,200 acres to each of their children. Those members of the Legislative
Council who were under the control of the executive, and men of
means who could buy the favor of the ruling influence, were granted
lands in the same lavish fashion. In furtherance of the scheme, grants
of 200 acres were made to servants and poor relations, with the under.
standing that these would afterward be deeded over to the master and
magnate. Settlers who were anxious to acquire homesteads were compelled to wait until their superiors had taken what they wanted. Soon
these land grabbers were in possession of whole townships, and wherever a little settlement of pioneers would establish itself the schemers
would appropriate as much as possible of the adjacent lands, which
398




would soon be rapidly enhanced in value by the presence of the pioneers. The home office finally interfered with this wholesale system
of granting lands to political favorites and tools, but the United Empire Loyalists, the Executive Council and their children, and the soldiers retained the special privileges.
A United Empire Loyalist could, upon paying from two pounds to
five pounds, secure a grant of 200 acres, and a like amount for each of
his children. Millions of acres of the best lands were thus bestowed.
Robert Hamilton, one of the favored residents, became possessor of
200,000 acres, and there were plenty of other estates which really
amounted to principalities. Another land scheme was the act of 1791,
which reserved for the support of the Protestant clergy what was
known as the Clergy Reserve. When a grant of land was made to any
person or syndicate, a grant of one-seventh of the amount was made to
the Clergy Reserve, and the future rents and emoluments were to go
for the support of a clergyman in every township. This proportion of
grants was greatly exceeded, in violation of the law, and when Michigan became a State the Clergy Reserve in Canada amounted to 300,000
acres. The Episcopal or Established church at first laid claim to all
this land, but as the Scotch and Irish Presbyterians were in a majority,
a division had to be made. One partition of lands made in 1833 shows
the manner of distribution. The Established church was granted 22,345 acres, the Kirk of Scotland, 1,160 acres, and the Catholic church,
400 acres. Methodists and other denominations were not only ignored,
but their ministers were forbidden under penalty of imprisonment or
banishment to perform marriage ceremonies. Canada was a dumping
ground for the poor relations of the aristocracy across the sea. These
were given grants of lands and passage money to get rid of their importunities at home, and the younger sons and a host of adventurers
rushed to the country where fortunes were falling to the favored ones.
These sprigs of gentility were quick to see their advantages. Most of
the pioneer or actual settlers, who built homes and cleared farms, were
poor people of limited education. They constituted a majority of the
citizens of Canada, so the poor relations and landless aristocrats united
with the United Empire Loyalists and the men of wealth and education, and formed a political party which was to misrule the country for
more than thirty-five years. By thus combining they wormed their
way into all the important offices and became the power behind the
local government.
399




This aggregation was known as the Family Compact. Those who
did not belong to it were regarded as outsiders and only received what
consideration the new-made aristocracy saw fit to bestow. The members of the Family Compact became the "gentlemen" of the colony.
They toiled not, but they grew rich out of allotted lands, while actual
settlers wore themselves out in redeeming the country from a wilderness. Aristocrats who came out to Canada little better than paupers,
were presently riding about in grand coaches, blazoned with heraldic
bearings. They had their flunkies in livery and held their heads very
high indeed. They imitated the old country style in building manor
houses and grew rich by selling lands they had perhaps never seen, but
which actual settlers had made valuable by cultivating farms and building towns in their vicinity. The aristocrats controlled the courts and
every department of the local government; and the justice, which is
dear to the heart of every Briton, and which he will ultimately have at
any cost, was denied to the common people. It did not take the people
long to see that they must show resistance to this oligrachy in order to
secure reforms, and the more energetic and intelligent citizens outside
of the Family Compact began plotting for the downfall of the local
government, intending to establish themselves with an independent
government like that of the United States, since they could gain nothing by appeal to the crown.
In 1837 the discontent in both Upper and Lower Canada ripened into
rebellion. A leading figure in the lower province was Louis Joseph
Papineau, who was the speaker in the lower Canadian parliament from
1818 to 1837. Repression and imprisonment failed to subdue the French
inhabitants and their first collision with British troops took place at
St. Denis on October 22, 1837, when the British had to retire. Three
days afterward the British defeated a force of insurgents at St. Charles.
At St. Eustache, twenty miles from Montreal, British troops under Sir
John Colborne defeated a force of insurgents under Dr. Jean Oliver
Chenier. At this fight Captain Fred Marryat, the English novelist,
was present as a spectator. In Upper Canada the leader of the discontented was William Lyon Mackenzie, a Scotch member of parliament, and editor of a paper at Toronto. A rising took place on December 7, 1837, at Montgomery's tavern near Toronto, which was easily
dispersed by the government troops. Mackenzie fled across the border
and made speeches for the cause at Buffalo. Several hundred men
joined his standard, and Navy Island, which belonged to Canada, and


400




I.? 1 i:,,....:l.  ii;
>   ** >,,,


VERY REV. FREDOLIN J. BAUMGARTNER.




I




is situated a few miles above the falls of Niagara, was fortified. Rensselaer Van Rensselaer of Albany, was appointed commander. Col.
Allen N. McNabb soon had a force on the Canadian side of the stream.
Asa C. Dickinson, one of the patriot colonels, was wounded in the
shoulder by a Canadian bullet; he was the father of ex- Postmaster-General Don M. Dickinson. An American steamer, named the Caroline,
was used in transporting men and supplies from Schlosser, on the
American mainland, to the island. On the night of December 28, 1837,
a party sent by McNabb cut out the Caroline as she lay at Schlosser,
set her on fire and she went blazing down the stream. She sunk, however, before reaching the falls, and only some charred pieces of her
wood work went over the cataract. Navy Island was evacuated on
January 13, 1838, and most of the patriots proceeded to the Detroit
River.
In January, 1838, Manager McKinney, of the theatre that stood on
the southeast corner of Gratiot avenue and Farrar street, devoted the
net proceeds of his place of amusement for the patriotic cause.  A
public meeting was held at the theatre on New Year's day, 1838, at
which money and arms were subscribed. Four days later the jail was
forced by stratagem and 400 muskets stored there for safe keeping,
were stolen by the patriots. On January 8, 1838, the schooner Ann
was seized at Detroit, and with the stolen arms on board was taken
down the river. Dr. E. A. Thellar, of Detroit, an Irishman who had
lived in Canada, commanded her and he bombarded Amherstburg on
the 9th. The Canadian militia returned the fire, and the bullets cut the
halyards and the mainsail came down.  The Ann drifted ashore
at Elliott's Point, and Colonel Radcliff, who commanded the militia,
sent a party to seize her, and she was captured with all on board.
Governor Mason with a force of militia went down the river twice at
this time, but did nothing in the shape of enforcing neutrality except
to come back again. A great resort of the patriots in Detroit was the
Eagle Hotel, kept by Horace Heath, on the south side of Woodbridge
street, second door west of Griswold street.
There were plenty of men, but a scarcity of arms, and a scheme was
concocted to rob the United States arsenal at Dearborn, ten miles from
Detroit. One dark night in the early part of February, 1838, a force
of about twenty patriots, with several wagons, went to Dearborn, broke
in the arsenal and carried away about 500 muskets and accoutrements.
The arms were brought to Detroit and hidden in a hayloft in the rear
401
51




of the Eagle Hotel. The daring robbery caused great excitement, and
Gen. Hugh Brady, U. S. A., in command of the troops on the frontier,
instituted a search for the arms. They were recovered a few days
afterward. In February, 1838, a number of patriots assembled in Detroit and were addressed at the Eagle Tavern on Woodbridge street,
near Shelby street, by Gen. Thomas J. Sutherland. The force marched,
on February 24, down the river until opposite Fighting Island, where
they crossed on the ice and camped all night on the island. On the
morning of the 25th they were driven off the island by a British force
of infantry and artillery. The next engagement was on March 3, at
Pelee Island on Lake Erie, north of Sandusky, where a British force
defeated a badly armed body of patriots. On May 23 the steamer Sir
Robert Peel was boarded and burned near Kingston, on Lake Ontario,
by a party of patriots. In June Captain Marryat came to Detroit and
was the guest of E. A. Brush. His anti-patriot sentiments were known,
and a number of his books were gathered by patriot sympathizers and
burned in front of the house. He took the hint and left town. Afterward there were several skirmishes in the country back of the Niagara
River, in which some of the patriots were captured and hung and
others transported; risings at Napierville and Lacole, in Lower Canada,
which were dispersed; and a naval engagement on the St. Lawrence
River between Ogdensburg, N. Y,, and Prescott, Ont. Here the
rebels fought on land and water for two days and surrendered on November 14, 1838. Meanwhile Detroit was continuously excited by the
conflict. The wealthy residents and professional men frowned on the
patriot cause, but seven-eighths of the people sympathized with it.
President Van Buren issued a proclamation ordering the strict enforcement of the neutrality laws, and Gen. Hugh Brady, who was in
command of the military district, was kept busy all along the frontier
in obeying his instructions. After many defeats the patriots resolved
to invade Canada from Detroit, and on December 4, 1838, at 2 A. NM.,
135 armed men, led by Gen. Lucius Verus Bierce, of Akron, O.,
boarded the steamer Champlain, at the foot of Rivard street, and
crossed to the Canadian side at a point about three miles above Windsor. They marched down the river road, and at Windsor burned a barracks, guard house and the steamer Thames. A strong body of Canadian troops lay at Sandwich, about two miles below. Meanwhile
Surgeon John J. Hume, who had come up from Sandwich to see what
was the matter, was shot and killed. The militia came up from Sand402




wich to Windsor about 7 A. M. and promptly engaged the patriots in
Francois Baby's orchard. One volley settled the fight, the patriots
retreating in disorder. They were pursued and several killed and
captured. The casualties on the patriot side were twenty-one killed.
Four others were captured, and were shot by order of Col. John Prince,
who had remained at Sandwich during the fighting. On the Canadian
side there was no one killed during the short engagement, but four
persons were killed just before and after the fight, and several soldiers
were burned to death in the barracks. After the engagement a detachment of the 34th British Regiment from Amherstburg, with one sixpound cannon, arrived at Windsor and passed up the road in order to
harass the fugutives, some of whom were crossing the river in canoes.
About the place where the patriots landed in the morning, the gun
was unlimbered and several shots fired at a canoe filled with
patriots. A ball struck Capt. James B. Armstrong, of Port Huron,
and nearly cut off his arm. At the same time that the cannon was
firing, the steamer Erie moved up the river and the Brady Guards, a
Detroit military company, fired on the fugitives. All these incidents
were watched by thousands of Detroit citizens from the American side
of the the river. This was the last battle of the patriot war. The
efforts of the oppressed colonists, though thwarted for the time, were
ultimately successful. The Family Compact, a semi-political organization, withered and died, and better laws were enacted, which gave the
Canadian people more justice and equal rights.
During 1840 the friends of Stevens T. Mason noticed that his popularity was sadly on the wane. The State was suffering from business
depression, and the results of the banking law had spread ruin far and
wide. When any misfortune affects the body politic there are always
some who seek to locate the blame on the rulers, and young Mason was
the victim in the case. " Did he not sign the wildcat banking law? '
his enemies would ask. This was not a fair question, because the sentiment of the business men in the Territory at that time was almost
unanimous in advising that action and also in endorsing it. In the fall
of 1840, there being no unanimous desire that Mason should be renominated, he retired from the office and the State and removed with his
wife, parents and sisters to New York city, where, it is said, he completed his legal studies and was admitted to the bar. His wife, whom
he had married in New York in 1839, was Julia Phelps, daughter of a
wealthy merchant of that city. The family were stopping at the Astor


403




House, where he fell sick about Christmas, 1842. His ailment, scarlet
fever, did not create any uneasiness at first, but he gradually grew
worse and on January 4, 1843, he died, aged thirty one years. The
cause of his death was stated to be " suppressed scarlet fever."  During his brief married life three children were born, but two boys died
very young. His surviving child is the wife of Col. E. H. Wright of
Newark, N. J. Governor Mason's widow afterward married Henry
McVickar, of New York, and died about 1864.
CHAPTER LVI.
The Campaign of 1840-How a Word of Ridicule against General Harrison, the
Pioneer Soldier, Set the Country on Fire with Political Zeal-The Creation of the
Republican Party-Conceived in the Office of the Detroit Tribune, It Was Born
"Under the Oaks at Jackson."
Like every city, village and hamlet in the country, Detroit had its
full share of enthusiasm in the Harrison-Van Buren presidential campaign of 1840. It could scarcely be called a campaign of ideas, or a
struggle for reforms, it was simply a grand national frolic in which the
people showed their surface likes and dislikes in jubilant and uproarious
style. Jackson's course in regard to the Bank of the United States, as
well as other measures, had been approved by the agricultural States,
but it had diminished his strength in the large commercial centers of
the seaboard. Many supporters of the Democrat party now turned
against it, and the opposition, consisting of the old Federals, AntiMasonic, National-Republican and other elements, now combined in
one party under the name of " Whig. " This name was first suggested
in 1834 by James Watson Webb, editor of the New York Courier and
Enquirer, who had been an army officer, and was stationed at Detroit
in 1819. In 1836 a good many Democrats were opposed to the nomination of Van Buren for the presidency, but he was Jackson's political
child, and the will of Old Hickory was obeyed. The Whigs again
opposed him with Harrison, preferring him to Henry Clay, because he
had no record and was not a slaveholder. The distinguishing name of
the campaign was suggested by a sneering allusion to Harrison in the
Baltimore Republican, a Democratic paper, as follows: "Give him a
404




barrel of hard cider and settle a pension of $2,000 a year on him, and
our word for it, he will sit the remainder of his days in a log cabin."
The Whigs were incensed by the imputation, and henceforth the log
cabin and hard cider, and other symbols of pioneer poverty were
accepted by them as favorite properties in the great election drama
of 1840.
William Henry Harrison, although poor, had made a most distinguished record in the war of 1812, and the singing of " Tippecanoe and
Tyler too," would set Whig assemblies in a state of frenzy. There
were enormous mass meetings which have seldom been duplicated in
after years. Fifty thousand people, two thousand of whom were from
Detroit and Michigan, gathered in the summer at the Tippecanoe battle
ground on the Maumee. A majority went there on horseback and in
wagons, carrying with them tents, food and bedding. But some went
there on foot from points 200 miles distant. In Detroit the Whigs
erected a log cabin 40 by 50 feet in dimensions, on the southeast corner
of Jefferson avenue and Randolph street. It was fitted up with all the
pioneer furniture and accessories, and with strings of dried apples and
flitches of bacon depending from the rafters. Hard cider was dispensed
gratis to all. The cabin was dedicated April 21, and after addresses,
a crowd of about 1,000 persons sat down to a meal of pork and beans,
hominy, johnnycake, pumpkin pie, etc., and drank hard cider to the
toasts. Another big Whig meeting in Detroit drew 15,000 people from
the interior of the State. There were not enough beds in the town to
accommodate them, and thousands slept on floors and out of doors on
the streets. The procession was about four miles long and one of the
attractions was the ship "Constitution," which was drawn by six
horses and had a full crew on board. There were flags and banners
and all sorts of emblems, and one party rolled along a big leather covered ball about fifteen feet in diameter. The Democrats were almost
stunned by the Whig demonstration, and generally did not care to compete. A Democratic barbecue, however, was held on September 28,
1840, on the Cass farm, and Richard M. Johnson, vice-president of the
United States, and a candidate for re election, was present. He came
to Detroit by steamboat and there happened to be a number of Whigs
on the boat. At that time the Democrats insisted that Harrison had
skulked at the battle of the Thames, and that Johnson was the true
hero of that battle, and the man who killed Tecumseh. The Whigs
on the boat, who entertained a sincererespect for Johnson, paid their
405




respects to him. In conversation he said that before engaging the enemy he asked permission of General Harrison to charge with his regiment in column. Harrison then asked him if he had drilled his men
for such a desperate movement, and he replied that he had. Harrison
then gave him permission, and he soon engaged the enemy. "I did
not see the general until after the battle," said Johnson, " but I have
no doubt that he was in his proper place as commander-in-chief."
The Democratic barbecue was attended by a large crowd, but enthusiasm was lacking and there was neither humor or music. In the
electorial college Harrison received 234 votes against 60 cast for Van
Buren, and in the popular votes he received 146,315 plurality, which
was five times more than Van Buren had received over Harrison in
1836. James G. Birney, of New York, the candidate of the Liberty,
or Anti Slavery party, received 7,059 votes. Meanwhile mighty forces
were at work and the anti-slavery sentiment was gathering strength
every hour. The murder of Rev. Elijah P. Lovejoy at Alton, Ill., on
November 7, 1837, added fuel to the flame. In 1844 Lewis Cass was a
candidate against James K. Polk for the Democrat nomination for
the presidency, but the latter triumphed. The Whigs nominated
Henry Clay, who was a slaveholder. There were many Whigs who
were opponents of slavery, and they seceded and cast their votes for
James G. Birney, who received 15,812 votes in New York State. This
diversion of Whig votes carried New York and the presidency for Polk.
In 1848 the Whigs elected Zachary Taylor over Lewis Cass. Martin
Van Buren had meanwhile recanted his errors and become a FreeSoiler, and was the candidate of that party for the presidency. By
drawing off enough votes from the Democrats he allowed the Whigs
to win by a plurality of nearly 140,000 votes. In 1852 the Whigs
nominated Winfield Scott, who was defeated by Franklin Pierce,
Democrat, by an electoral vote of 254 to 43. Then the Whig party,
having failed to meet the isssue of the hour, went out of existence.
There was one pro-slavery party in the country and there was no need
for two.
The Republican party originated in Michigan in 1854, and its inception was in the Detroit Tribune office with a number of prominent
Detroiters. There were then three parties in Michigan-the Democrats, Whigs and Free-Soilers. On February 22, 1854, the Michigan
Free-Soilers nominated Kinsley S. Bingham for governor. Joseph
Warren, editor of the Detroit Tribune, a Whig paper, urged the Whigs


406




to endorse the Free Soil ticket. The Free Soil Democrats would not
vote for the ticket, and it was quite uncertain what the Whigs would
do. It became evident that the proper move was to form a new
party, which anti slavery men of all parties could endorse, but no one
had yet made that proposition. On May 30 or 31 Hiram Benedict, a
Detroit dentist, met W. D. Cockran, a private school teacher, and in
conversation asked the latter whether the formation of a new party
would accomplish that end. Mr. Cockran would not say, and they
both consulted Rev. S. A. Baker, editor of the Daily Detroit Democrat, a Free-Soil sheet. At their interview with Baker, S. P. Mead
and Samuel Zug were present. Nothing definite was elicited, and
Benedict then proposed that they should gather friends and see Joseph
Warren at his office. This conference resulted in another meeting at
the Tribune office, at which some twenty were present, including
Zachariab Chandler, T. M. Edmonds, R. P. Toms, Joseph Warren, S.
M. Holmes, S. A. Baker, Samuel Zug, S. P. Mead, D. Powers, W. D.
Cockran, Jacob M. Howard, Hiram Benedict and others. Mr. Howard
was made chairman and Mr. Warren secretary. After an exchange of
opinions a meeting at the city hall was determined upon, and Warren
was requested to draw up a call for a mass convention. The meeting
at the city hall was well attended, and a mass convention called for
July 6 at Jackson. A Free Soil mass meeting was held on June 21,
and that party withdrew its ticket. Isaac P. Christiancy was requested
by them to draw up a platform to be presented at the Jackson convention. Jacob M. Howard also drew up a platform for the same purpose.
When the two bodies met at Jackson on July 6, 1854, the parties met first
in a hall, but there not being room enough they adjourned to the open
air. The Free Soilers, with Christiancy at their head, assembled under
an oak tree, and the Detroit committee, with Jacob M. Howard, met
under another a few roads distance. The two bodies agreed to the respective platforms, then met and compared the two. They accepted
the Howard platform with the alteration of a few lines suggested by
Christiancy, and it was adopted. Mr. Howard left the name of the
proposed party blank, and Warren suggested that the naming of the
party be left to Horace Greeley. It was telegraphed, and the latter
replied, suggesting " Democratic-Republican."  On motion of Mr.
Howard the word Democratic was struck out, and the latter, who was
afterward United States senator from Michigan, was thus the godfather of the Republican party. In Congress he was also the author of


407




the Thirteenth amendment to the constitution of the United States,
which abolished slavery by law, Lincoln's proclamation having abolished
it as a war measure.
Later in the year Kinsley S. Bingham was nominated by the Michigan Republicans for governor and he was elected. In 1856 the new
Republican party, with John C. Fremont as their standard bearer, was
defeated by the Democratic candidate, James Buchanan, of Lancaster,
Pa. The issue was partially obscured by the Know-Nothing party,
whose aim was to exclude foreigners from office, and that party nominated Millard Fillmore. Buchanan received 1,838,169 votes; Fremont,
1,341,264; and Fillmore, 874,538. Then the southern leaders began to
feel that slavery was doomed and began to plot secession. In 1856
Kinsley S. Bingham was again elected governor of Michigan, and the
new party maintained its ascendency in the State for twenty-eight
years. Josiah W. Begole, Democrat, was governor in 1883-85, and
Edwin B. Winans, Democrat, in 1891-92; these have been the only
two exceptions to Republican rule in Michigan since January, 1855.
The constitution of 1835 provided that the State should decide in 1847
where the capital should be permanently located. When the Legislature
of 1847 assembled at Detroit at the State House on Griswold street, the
capital question was uppermost in the minds of all the members. Each
group from the several sections of the State wished the capital removed
to their own locality, with the exception of the Detroit and Wayne
county members. George B. Throop, a Detroit lawyer, was appointed
chairman of the committee on location, his associates being Harvey
Chubb of Washtenaw, Alexander M. Arzeno of Monroe, Patrick Marantelle of St. Joseph, Enos Goodrich of Genesee and Alex. T. Bell of
Ionia. They could not agree and made three separate reports. Throop's
report favored the retention of the seat of government at Detroit, his
principal argument being that the State could not afford the expense of
removal. The others, with the exception of Goodrich, favored Marshall,
and argued against Detroit, their objection being that, being located on
the border, it was liable to be seized by a foreign power in time of war.
Goodrich stood alone in favoring some place in the northern woods of
the State, but did not designate the locality. The usual " log rolling"
took place, and in the strategic combinations it was soon discovered
that the members who favored removal were in a large majority. The
Detroit men endeavored to pit one section against the other in the hope
of dividing and conquering. In the Senate Andrew T. McReynolds of
408




J. C. DICKINSON, M. D.








Detroit, the member for Wayne county, made a stout fight for the city.
But James Seymour, then of Genesee county, made the winning proposition. He had pushed out to Ingham county and built mills in the
wilderness on the site of what is now North Lansing, and he recited the
advantages of his location to willing ears. He urged that it was completely isolated from political mobs or popular influences, which was
the grand desideratum for a capital, and added that he would donate
the capital site and grounds. There were long and spirited debates in
both houses, and the Lansing site triumphed in the Lower House by a
vote of 48 to 17 and in the Senate by a vote of 12 to 8.
Of course Detroit was vexed and angry, and it was charged that its
legislative warriors had allowed themselves to be tricked and defeated.
But the vote clearly showed that no strategy would have availed against
such an adverse majority, and that the criticisms were founded on the
bad temper engendered by defeat. During the years 1848-50, letters
written from the capital by legislators were postmarked Michigan,
Michigan. Letters written to members of either house and to the
governor were thus addressed. The temporary capitol was a wooden
building built in a wilderness from which the forest had just been
cleared. A town sprung into existence about the capitol, which was
incorporated in 1859. At that time it contained 3,000 people. The
name Lansing was given to the town some time before its incorporation.
CHAPTER LVII.
Constitution of 1850-It Is an Example of the Folly of Attempting to Legislate too
far in Advance of the Times-It Contains a Few Excellent Provisions in Advance
of the Constitution of 1835 and a Lot of Detrimental Restrictions.
The constitution of 1835 was wisely framed. It did not attempt to
provide for all future exigencies but was simple in construction, leaving
the broadest discretion to the Legislature. The experience of some of
the older States, which attempted too much legislation in advance of
their time, had warned the Michigan lawgivers to leave something for
future generations to do. Fifteen years later another constitutional
convention was held and what is known as the constitution of 1850 was
409
52




formulated. The convention met at Lansing, June 3, 1850, and adjourned to August 15. Thirty-one counties were represented by one
hundred delegates. Wayne was represented by Daniel Goodwin, B. F.
H. Witherell, John Gibson, Ammon Brown, Henry J. Alvord, Henry Fralick, Peter Desnoyers, Henry T. Backus, Joseph H. Bagg and Ebenezer
C. Eaton.
Daniel Goodwin of Wayne was president of the convention, and the
secretaries were John Swegles, jr., Horace F. Roberts and Charles
Hascall. The new constitution, which was merely an elaboration of
the old, was submitted to the vote of the people on November 5, 1850,
and was adopted by a majority of 26,736 votes. This constitution is
the one under which the State is doing business at the present time,
although a few amendments have been added. Constitutional lawyers
agree that barring a few restrictions concerning finances and internal
improvements, which were added to the original constitution, the bulk
of the legislation contained in the new constitution has been a hindrance
rather than an advantage. Judge James V. Campbell criticised the
document as follows:
" In a republican government it must be assumed that the popular representatives
in the Legislature will act with honest motives and reasonable prudence; and while
some things should not be allowed under any circumstances, and others require
checks, yet all which is subject to be changed by time and changing events, ought
in general to be within legislative jurisdiction."
The leading provisions of the constitution which were amendatory to
the constitution of 1835 were as follows:
The number of circuit judges was increased to eight and provision
was made for a further increase as the case might require. The terms
of the judges were fixed at six years and they were given law and
equity powers. The Chancery Court had been abolished in 1846, and
equity cases had already come into the jurisdiction of the Circuit Court.
A separate State Supreme Court was provided for after six years. The
old judiciary system was continued in the sparsely settled upper peninsula, which was left under jurisdiction of a District Court. Provision
was made for the dispensing in a large measure with the grand jury
system, and preliminary examinations were left to the lower courts.
Imprisonment for debt was forbidden, except in cases of fraud, breach
of trust and official misconduct. In place of annual sessions of the
Legislature, regular sessions were limited to once in two years. The
constitution forbade the passing of special acts of incorporation except
410




for municipal purposes. It provided for an enumeration of the residents of the State in 1854 and every ten years thereafter. The pay of
legislators was limited to $3 a day and ten cents a mile for traveling
expenses. The salary of the governor was fixed at $1,000 (it is now
$4,000); the lieutenant-governor's salary was fixed at $800, and the
commissioner of the land office at the same compensation. All the
other offices were limited to ridiculously small compensation.
The constitution provided that ordinary revenues should be raised by
annual tax. Specific taxes received from corporations were to be applied for the extinguishment of the State debt, and then to the primary
school fund. The State was forbidden to contract a public debt exceeding $50,000, except for purposes of war. It was also forbidden to
take stock or interest in corporations or lend its credit to corporations.
All State and judicial offices were made elective. The elective franchise was extended to all white male inhabitants who had declared their
intention to become citizens six months before election, and who had
resided two years and six months in the State. In 1870 the word
"white" was stricken from the constitution and the colored race was
admitted to the ballot. Regents of the University were made elective.
Property of married women was secured to their sole use, etc.
A vote was taken in 1868 for the holding of a third constitutional
convention. Those favoring the proposition cast 71,733 votes, while
those who opposed it cast 110,582. Another attempt to secure a new
constitution was made in 1874 and it was defeated by a still greater
majority. A total of sixty-two amendments have been proposed and
thirty-three have been adopted. Eleven of them was for the increase
of the salaries of State officials.
Detroit's mayor in 1851 was Zachariah Chandler, who, in after years,
particularly during the war of the Rebellion, became one of the most
striking personalities in the United States. A native of Bedford, N.
H., where he was born December 10, 1813, he came to Detroit in September, 1833, with his brother-in-law, Franklin Moore, and the two
went into partnership in a store on the west side of the old Hull house
on Jefferson avenue, where the Biddle House now stands. The partnership lasted about a year, and Chandler was afterward in business
on his own account. During the cholera epidemic of 1834 he was one
of a corps of male nurses, with John Farmer, W. N. Carpenter and
others, who cared for the sick and buried the dead.
In a few years he abandoned the retail general trade and became a


411




wholesaler. He was a keen, shrewd business man, and soon took the
lead in mercantile affairs. A Whig in politics, and a regular contributor to the party exchequer, he also worked at the polls on election
days, and when opposing Democrats became hostile, was not slow to
take off his coat and exchange blows when needed. When Lieut.
Ulysses S. Grant was stationed at the Detroit barracks in Detroit, between 1839 and 1851, there were several collisions between these two
positive natures. They did not take the form of fisticuffs, however, but
were legal contests in which each was plaintiff in turn. The reason of
the enmity has never been explained, but in later years, when Grant
was at the head of the United States army, Senator Chandler was his
warmest friend and supporter.
In 1848 Chandler made his first political speech in favor of Zachary
Taylor, and in opposition to Lewis Cass, for president. He was always
a Free Soiler, and as the slavery question became larger he became
more radical in his hatred of human bondage When the Underground
railroad was started he contributed freely to the fund for its operating
expenses. In 1850 he was a delegate to the Whig convention at Jackson, but took no active part in the campaign.
In 1851 he was nominated and elected by the Detroit Whigs for
mayor against John R. Williams, who had served in that office seven
terms. Chandler carried every ward in the city. In 1852 he was a
candidate for governor against Robert McClelland, and was defeated
by more than 8,000 votes, but ran ahead of his party vote. In 1854 the
Republican party was organized, " under the oaks " at Jackson, and he
was one of the foremost members. At this time he worked unceasingly
for the anti-slavery cause. In 1856 he was a delegate to the first Republican national convention, and supported Abraham Lincoln, but
Fremont was nominated and defeated. The Republicans carried Michigan, however, and when the successor of Cass was chosen, Zachariah
Chandler was elected to the United States Senate in his place, and he
was sworn in on March 4, 1857, at the same time as was Jefferson Davis
for Mississippi.
Chandler's career in the Senate, in which he served three terms, or
eighteen years, is a part of the history of the United States. In antebellum days, in discussions on the Lecompton constitution, the Dred
Scott decision, the John Brown raid, and the assault upon Sumner by
"Bully" Brooks of South Carolina, his speeches were fiery, aggressive
and intrepid. Personal violence being threatened by Southern memn

412




bers, a compact was entered into in writing by Senators Chandler,
Cameron and Ben Wade, that in case of further violence or outrage,
one of the three should take up the quarrel and fight, if need be to the
death. This became known to the Southern members, and they became chary of offending in the future. Then came the election of Lincoln and the war of the Rebellion. In that great crisis, when Buchanan's
cabinet resigned and Southern congressman taunted the loyal members
and left their seats, Chandler looked treason in the face and denounced
it. In February, 1861, he wrote the "blood letting " letter to Governor
Blair, of Michigan, in which occurred the following words: "
Some of the manufacturing States think a fight would be awful. Without a little blood-letting the Union would not, in my opinion, be worth
a rush." This letter he was often called upon afterward to meet in
public life, but he never failed to stand by it vigorously. When the
punishment of Jeff Davis by hanging was mooted he declared in favor
of it. In the troublous times of reconstruction he was as firm and unyielding as during the war.
In 1875 he sought a fourth re-election. His positive qualities and
aggressive methods had naturally created strong enmities, and a
coalition formed by six Republicans and the Democratic members of
the Legislature elected Isaac P. Christiancy. But the party had need
of Chandler, and President Grant appointed him secretary of the interior. The department was at that time reeking with jobbery and
corruption, but he cleansed and purified it. In 1879 Senator Christiancy
resigned, and Senator Chandler was elected to the vacant seat by sixtynine out of eighty-eight votes. In the campaign of 1879 he was active
and untiring. After making a speech at Chicago, on the evening of
October 31, 1879, he returned to his room in the Grand Pacific Hotel.
Next morning he was found dead in his bed. The body was brought
to Detroit, and lay in state in the City Hall, and many thousand citizens
filed past'the coffin to get one more glimpse of that strong and fearless
face. His estate, which was inventoried at about $2,000,000, was divided
between his widow and his daughter, Mrs. Senator Eugene Hale, of
Maine.


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CHAPTER LVIII.


The Famous Railroad Conspiracy-First Encounter of the Michiganders with a
" Soulless Corporation "-High-handed Measures Provoke the People to AnarchyThey Burn the Michigan Central Depot at Detroit, November 19, 1850-Thirty-eight
Farmers Arrested for the Crime and a Number are Severely Punished.
For several years after the eastern parties had acquired the ownership of the Michigan Central Railroad, the affairs of the corporation
were conducted in a manner highly unsatisfactory to the people along
the line. In many cases the trains would not stop at designated
stations for passengers, and as the road was not fenced for the greater
part of its length, many animals were killed by the engines. When
redress was sought, the manners and conduct of the officials was such
as to greatly exasperate the sufferers. The road finally adopted the
policy of paying half the value of the horses, cows and other animals
killed, on the plea that the owners had planned to have the animals
killed in order to collect damages. This was exceedingly unwise and
unjust, as it virtually classed every man who had his cattle killed as a
swindler. The complaints of the residents being thus unredressed, a
number who resided at Michigan Center, Leoni and vicinity, made reprisals by placing obstructions on the track, derailing trains, burning
the company's property and committing other outrages. The last of
these offenses was the burning of the Michigan Central freight depot in
Detroit, on November 19, 1850, involving a loss of from $140,000 to
$150,000.
The company ferreted out the guilty parties, and on April 19, 1851,
Sheriff Lyman Baldwin, with a posse, went out to Michigan Center and
Leoni, and arrested a number of the parties, who were well to-do
farmers, tavern-keepers and laborers. They were confined in the
Wayne county jail. The thirty-eight defendants tried were as follows:
John Ackeson, Mills Barbour, Ephraim A. Barrett, Eri Beebe, Benjamin T. Burnett, James Champlin, Erastus Champlin, Lyman Champlin,
Willard Champlin, William Corwin, Ebenezer Farnham, Ammi Tilley,
Grandison Tilley, Abel F. Fitch, Andrew J. Freeland, Benjamin T


414




Gleason, Abner Grant, William Gunn, Hiram Hay, Welcome Hill, John
Ladue, William H. Lang, Miner T. Laycock, Napoleon B. Lemm,
Arba N. Moulton, Aaron Mount, Daniel Myers, John Palmer, Lester
Penfield, Eben Price, Richard Price, Henry Showers, Erastus Price,
Russell Stone, Jacob Tyrrel, William S. Warner, John W. Welch and
Orlando D. Williams. David Stuart, prosecuting attorney, J. Van
Arman, James A. Van Dyke, Jacob M. Howard, Alex D. Fraser,
Daniel Goodwin and William Gray appeared for the people, and William H. Seward, then United States senator from New York, William A. Howard, Wells & Cook, L. W. Hewitt, and N. H. Joy defended
the accused. The following jurors were chosen: Silas A. Bagg, Amos
Chaffee, Levi Cook, Stephen Fowler, Ichabod Goodrich, Horace Hallock, Alexander McFarlane, Alexander C. McGraw, Ralph Phelps,
John Roberts, Rollin C. Smith, and Buckminster Wight. The trial
commenced on May 29, 1851, and was continued to September 26, a
period of eighty-nine days, and was pertinaciously contested at every
step by the able lawyers on each side. During its progress Abel F.
Fitch, the leader of the conspiracy, died, and Mr. Seward impressively
said he had been called to a higher tribunal. On the latter date twelve
of the conspirators were convicted and sentenced as follows: Ammi
Tilley and Orlando Williams, ten years imprisonment; Richard Price,
Eben Price, William Corwin, Ebenezer Farnham, Andrew J. Freeland
and Aaron Mount, eight years; Lyman Champlin, Willard Champlin,
Erastus Champlin, and Erastus Smith, five years.
But the result of the trial did not deter the parties aggrieved from
further criminal acts. About four months after the convicted conspirators were in State prison, the Detroit car shops of the company were
burned, and in 1851 the passenger depot was consumed by an incendiary fire. In 1862 the round house and nine locomotives were destroyed by fire, and in 1865 the freight depot was laid in ashes. The
total loss from these fires was about $250,000, and although there was
no direct proof it was generally believed that they were destroyed in
revenge for the actions of the company.
January 17, 1854, was a gala day in Detroit. On that day, after
three years of effort, and $300,000 in subscriptions raised, the extension
of the Great Western Railroad of Canada to Windsor, opposite Detroit,
had been completed. Detroit was then for the first time in direct railroad communication with the seaboard. The first train from London,
with the principal officers of the Great Western on board, arrived at
415




Windsor about 5 P. M. They were brought across the ferry amid the
tooting of steamboat and locomotive whistles and the thunder of cannon.  A procession was formed consisting of the Great Western
officials, the military and civic societies of Detroit and the mayors of
Detroit and Windsor, which marched through the principal streets to
the freight house at the foot of Third street, where over 2,000 persons
dined sumptuously.
Slavery existed in Detroit from the earliest times. It was the custom of the northern savages to make slaves of their prisoners of war,
and the early French settlers bought slaves from them. Many of the
slaves were Pawnees, a tribe which was almost exterminated by the
fierce northern Indians, and the common name for a slave was Pawnee
or Pani. Negro slavery was soon introduced, and for nearly a century
no effort was made to check slavery. Canada passed a law in 1792
which forbade the importation of slaves, and declared as free all children born in the country after the date of the act. Through the efforts
of Rev. Manasseh Cutler, the ordinance for the government of the
Northwest Territory, prepared in 1787, prohibited slavery, but Detroit
did not come under the influence of this ordinance until the American
occupation in 1796. The slaves continued in bondage even after this,
but importation being cut off the number gradually decreased by death.
In 1818 they were made taxable property. In 1827 an act was passed
by which no colored man was permitted to enter Michigan unless he
bore a certificate of his freedom, which was registered by the county
clerk. One of the last slaves in Detroit was an aged Pawnee servant
belonging to Judge Woodward, who enjoyed full liberty for several
years before his death. In 1836 less than twenty slaves were left in
the State of Michigan, and a strong anti-slavery sentiment had taken
root among the people. Runaway slaves from the South occasionally
made their way to Detroit several years before Michigan became a
State, and the stories of their hardships, and the visible marks of illusage many of them bore, created general sympathy. As a result
quite a colony of negroes was living in Detroit in 1830, and there were
still more on the Canadian shore. When slave hunters pursued these
refugees the Detroiters did what they could to help the blacks to escape their clutches.
Thornton Blackburn and his wife escaped from a Kentucky plantation in 1831, and made their way into Canada safely. Time passed,
and not being pursued, they came over to Detroit to live. After living
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JOSEPH G. HAMBLEN.




9




undisturbed for two years two slave hunters came to the city, laid claim
to the fugitives before a justice of the peace, and man and wife were
locked up in jail to await the pleasure of the claimants. The colored
population, no doubt instigated by the anti-slavery whites, gathered in
full force, armed with such rude weapons as they could lay hands on,
in order to prevent the Blackburns from being carried back to Kentucky. Part of them watched the steamboat landing to prevent their
being taken to the boats, and the greater part assembled around the
jail. Two days passed in which friends were admitted to the jail, and
one woman changed clothing with Mrs. Blackburn and enabled her to
escape to Canada. This enraged the slave hunters, and they demanded
that Blackburn should be immediately taken to the wharf by the sheriff, and delivered to them on a steamer which was waiting. Sheriff
John M. Wilson undertook to make the delivery, but the colored people
gathered about the wagon like a swarm of hornets. Stones flew and
clubs were flourished. Before he had passed the Campus Martius
Blackburn had been torn from  the wagon and spirited away, and
Wilson lay senseless and dangerously injured. An order came from
Washington calling a company of troops to support the law, but after
Thornton landed in Canada there was no more trouble.
In 1837 an anti-slavery society was organized in Detroit, and an institution known as the Underground Railway was instituted for assisting slaves to obtain 'their liberty. This society, which extended all
over the North, had several newspaper organs, one of which, " The
Voice of Freedom, was published at Windsor. Agents were stationed
at many points between Canada and the slave States, and refugees
could there find shelter and assistance. The station masters, as they
were called, passed them on to the next station, generally under cover
of night, until they finally reached a terminus on the border, like
Detroit, where they crossed the line into Canada. The Fugitive Slave
Law, passed in 1850, provided for special officers to assist in the capture of runaway slaves, and gave the hunters the right to search in
private houses. At this time about twenty slaves were arriving at Detroit every week, and the society redoubled its efforts. Many of the
refugees were settled on lands back of Windsor and Sandwich, and the
descendants of these people are numerous in Canada to-day. In 1855
the Michigan Legislature did what it could to counteract the Federal
statute, by authorizing all prosecuting attorneys to defend slaves who
denied the right of ownership, and prohibiting the use of public jails
for confining escaped slaves.
417
53




In the spring of 1859 John Brown, the famous abolitionist, came to
Detroit, with two of his sons and two other Kansas Abolitionists, together with a convoy of fourteen slaves from southwestern Missouri.
Brown had been driven out of Kansas by the partisans of slavery, but
not until two of his sons had been killed by a mob. While in Detroit
he met Fred. Douglass, who was making a lecturing tour through the
West. Several meetings of the Abolitionists were held at 185 Congress
street east, where the plan was laid for the famous John Brown raid.
It was a foolhardy and useless attempt to establish a military refuge
for escaped slaves at Harper's Ferry, from which place they were to be
sent on to Canada. Brown was defeated, seventeen of his followers
were killed, and he and several of his associates were hanged. This
affair widened the breach between the free Northern States and the
slave States, and already plots were hatching for the secession of the
latter from the Union and the formation of a new confederacy which
would secure the institution of slavery from molestation.
CHAPTER LIX.
Detroit During the War of the Rebellion-How the People of the North Allowed
Themselves to be Disarmed-Detroit Becomes the Rendezvous for Michigan Patriots
and a Rallying Point for Advocates of Dishonor and Treason-Wild Scenes on the
Campus Martius.
The war of the Rebellion came upon the people of the North in 1861
like a thunderclap. Viewing the war, and the causes leading up to it,
after a lapse of nearly forty years, it is hard to understand the careless
apathy of the people of the North, while the slave States were actively
preparing for a conflict. The slave States controlled President Buchanan's cabinet, and the latter built up the military armament of the
South. The Southern leaders openly boasted that they would not be
coerced by the majority of the Federal States, and their intention to
secede and form a new confederation had been a standing threat for a
generation during the contest between the Abolitionists and the slave
owners. The North would not believe that the South was so thoroughly in earnest until the States actually seceded. Without attempting to disguise their purpose the Southerners of South Carolina erected


418




powerful batteries all about Fort Sumter, and when they had gathered
a sufficient force of men and arms demanded the evacuation of the fort
by the Federal troops. Upon refusal they proceeded to bombard the
the fortress and compel its surrender. It required this vicious blow to
convince the supporters of the Union that the conflict was irrepressible.
When they looked about for means of defense, however, they found
themselves badly handicapped. The national treasury was depleted
and the national defenses were crippled. Before the North took alarm
the conspirators had destroyed many of the defenses of the North.
John B. Floyd, secretary of war, had scattered the troops of the regular
army to remote parts of the country, where they could not be readily
conveyed to the Atlantic coast. He had transferred 150,000 muskets
from northern to southern arsenals, and was a partner to the robbery
of $870,000 in government securities from the interior department.
One of his orders was to destroy the old batteries of Fort Wayne, at
Detroit, and the gun carriages were burned, leaving the cannon disabled. At Dearborn, eight miles west of Detroit, was an arsenal, and
by order of Secretary Floyd the muskets were sold at auction in the
summer of 1860. Such guns were useless to the average citizen, but a
few farmer boys bought guns at a dollar apiece, and the rest were bid
in by a mysterious stranger and shipped to the South. Every available
war vessel was dispatched to distant seas. Floyd was arrested on the
charge of robbing the treasury, but his tracks had been so well covered
that the committee was compelled to exonerate him. Shortly afterward he went south and was appointed a brigadier-general in the Confederate service.
When Sumter was fired upon, the North was instantly aflame with
patriotism. Loyal citizens flung the Stars and Stripes to the breeze
from their homes, and the public buildings were also decorated with
flags. In the general distrust public officials were doubted, and many
of them were required to take the oath of allegiance. According to
the census of 1861 Michigan had a population of 751,110, and 110,000
of her sons were able to bear arms. Detroit had a population of 46, 000.
The news of the fall of Sumter came on April 12, and next day a
great mass meeting was held on the Campus Martins, at which the
citizens pledged their support to the Union. Two days later came the
call of President Lincoln for 75,000 troops to put down the rebellion.
This showed that even the executive department did not realize the
magnitude of the operations in the South or the strength of the rebel

419




lion. Governor Blair arrived in Detroit, April 16, to confer with the
leading citizens in regard to raising the quota of troops required of
Michigan. The Federal government asked Michigan to send one regiment of infantry fully armed and equipped, and it was confidently
believed that their services would be required but ninety days. If
some one had suggested that Michigan was destined to send over 90,000
men to the front during the next four years, and that nearly 15,000 of
these would leave their bones on southern soil, the prophecy would
have been received with jeers of derision. It was found that the State
was heavily in debt and that $100,000 would be required to equip the
first Michigan regiment. John Owen, State treasurer, pledged $50,000
for the city of Detroit if the rest of the State would raise a like amount,
and a subscription paper circulated through a great gathering at the
Michigan Exchange Hotel that day raised $23,000 on the spot. Governer Blair issued a proclamation calling for ten companies of volunteers,
and on April 23, he called a special session of the Legislature to meet,
on May 7. On April 24 Adjutant-General John Robertson organized
the First Michigan Infantry and appointed its field officers, and the
soldiers were directed to rendezvous at Fort Wayne, Detroit. The First
Regiment was mustered in on May 11, and Col. O. B. Wilcox was
placed in command. It left Detroit May 13, and in three days was at
Washington, although but poorly drilled for serious military duty.
This regiment, which left Detroit 780 strong, was in the thick of the
fray at the battle of Bull Run, fought July 21, 1861. In this battle,
for a time, the Union forces appeared to be winning all along the line.
The First Michigan behaved like veterans, and charged three times
upon a strongly posted battery, leaving many of their number on the
field. Colonel Wilcox was disabled by a wound.
On June 28, 1861, it having become apparent that the Rebellion
would not be put down in the ninety days for which the first call for troops
was made, the First Regiment was reorganized with headquarters at
Ann Arbor, and left for the field on September 16, 960 strong. The
reorganized regiment was commanded by Col. J. C. Robinson, a captain in the regular army, who afterwards became a brigadier, and finally
a brevet-major-general in the regular army.
A second regiment was gathered before the first had left for the
front, and it left for the war 1,020 strong, on June 5, with Col. I. B.
Richardson in command. The active military preparations in Detroit
required that better accommodations be provided for the soldiers who


420




rendezvoused here.  The old State Fair Grounds, which was also
known as the Detroit Riding Park, was utilized for a military headquarters and the buildings were fitted up for barracks. In honor of
Henry Barns, editor of the Advertiser and Tribune, it was called
Camp Barns. This fair ground was on the west side of Woodward
avenue, extending westward as far as Cass avenue. Alexandrine avenue was its southern boundary and the northern boundary lay in what
is now the Detroit Athletic Club grounds. Another and larger military
station was established on a ten acre plat on Clinton avenue, between
Elmwood and Joseph Campau avenues. The State Military Board
which had charge of the raising and equipping of troops was composed
of Gen. A. S. Williams and Col. H. M. Whittlesey of Detroit; Col. A.
W. Williams of Lansing, and Col. C. W. Leffingwell of Grand Rapids;
Adjutant-General John Robertson, Quartermaster-General J. H. Fountain and Friend Palmer, his assistants. Col. James E. Pittman of Detroit was State paymaster and he was afterward made inspector-general. On August 20, 1861, the Sixth Michigan Infantry was mustered
in at Kalamazoo; the Seventh at Monroe two days later, and the Fifth
on August 28, at Detroit. A camp of instruction had been established
at Fort Wayne below Detroit, under Col. I. B. Richardson, and his
regiment, the Second, and the Fifth, under Col. Henry D. Terry, had
been well drilled and fitted for active duty in the field. Other States
imitated the example of Michigan in preparing her troops for service. In addition to these regiments, Companies B and C of Berdan's Sharpshooters were mustered in at Detroit.  The former company was raised at Lansing, and the latter, commanded by Captain
Duester, at Detroit. Two companies of cavalry were recruited at Battle
Creek and sent to join a Missouri regiment. Capt. John McDermott
raised in Detroit the Jackson Guards, a company of Irishmen, and they
were attached to an Illinois regiment, commanded by Colonel Mulligan.
In addition to the regiments already named Michigan sent out the
following during 1861: Third Infantry frcm Grand Rapids, 1,042
strong, Col. Daniel McConnell; Fourth Infantry from Adrian, 1,024
strong, Col. D. A. Woodbury; Eighth Infantry, from Detroit, 900
strong, Col. W. M. Fenton; Ninth Infantry, from Detroit, 943 men,
Col. W. W. Duffield; Sixteenth Infantry, Detroit, 960 men, Col. T. W.
B. Stockton; Eleventh Infantry, White Pigeon, 1,000 men, Col. W. J.
May; First Cavalry, Detroit, 1,150 men, Col. T. F. Brodhead; Second
Cavalry, Grand Rapids, 1,170 men, Col. W. C. Davis; Third Cavalry,
421




Grand Rapids, 1,180 men, Lieut.-Col. R. H. G. Minty; First Battery,
Detroit, 123 men, Capt. C. 0. Loomis; Second Battery, Grand Rapids,
110 men, Capt. W. S. Bliss; Third Battery, Grand Rapids, 80 men,
Capt. A. W. Dees; Fourth Battery, White Pigeon, 126 men, Capt. A.
F. Bidwell; Fifth Battery, Marshall, 76 men, Capt. J. H. Dennis. Ten
of these regiments were clothed and subsisted by the State until they
were mustered into service. In the early part of 1862 the Sixth, Seventh and Eighth Batteries, and the Tenth, Twelfth, Thirteenth, Fourteenth and Fifteenth Infantry Regiments were sent to the front from
various parts of the State, and they were all away before April 23.
Col. Arthur Rankin came over from Windsor, Ont., and offered to
raise a regiment of Lancers for the State of Michigan. This was
gratefully accepted, and the men were being equipped for service, when
an order came from the War Department disbanding the regiment.
The government preferred to fight out its quarrel with the insurgents
without aid from other countries, and this fine body of men went back
to their homes to the great disappointment of the Michigan officials.
Capt. Kin S. Dygert raised a company of sharpshooters in Detroit,
which was attached to the Sixteenth Infantry, and afterwards placed in
Berdan's command. A company known as the Stanton Guards, was
raised by Capt. Grover S. Wormer in Detroit, to act as a guard for
rebel prisoners at Mackinac Island.
In 1862 President Lincoln called for 300,000 more men to reinforce the
army of the North after its heavy losses in the peninsular campaign,
and 11,686 was the quota for Michigan. The Seventeenth Michigan
Infantry went from Detroit 982 strong under Col. William H. Withington; the Twenty-fourth Infantry was made up in Detroit, 1,027 strong,
under Col. H. A. Morrow, who resigned his office as city recorder to
go to the front. The Twenty-fourth was an admirable body of men
and it became a part of the " Iron Brigade." Among the other regiments were the Fourth Cavalry, Detroit, 1,223 men, Col. R H. G.
Minty; the Ninth Battery, Detroit, 168 men, Capt. J. J. I)aniels; the
Fifth Cavalry, Detroit, 1,305 men, Col. T. J. Copeland.
It must be admitted with a sense of shame that the enemies of the
country were not all in the South. An element more to be feared was
scattered along the border in the North, composed of southern sympathizers and cowardly persons who dare not fight, but were continually
showing their teeth and threatening to raise an army in the North
which would be a fire in the rear, of the Union army. To foment this
422




threatened trouble, emissaries of the Confederate government were
sent north to stir up the malcontents and to create a sentiment in favor
of the South. Many of these persons made their headquarters on the
Canadian border, and they were constantly haranguing to show the
hopelessness of the war, and alarming the people by reporting that a
draft was about to be made for an enormous number of troops. When
the loyal citizens held mass meetings to stir up the patriotism of the
people and encourage enlistments, the malcontents and rebel agents
gathered with the others, and by combining in organized mobs, made
much disturbance.  The most common meeting-place was on the
Campus Martius, around an elevated stand, which stood on the site of
the present Bagley Fountain. On July 15, 1862, a huge meeting was
held there preparatory to the raising of the Twenty-fourth Michigan Infantry, and a special stand had been erected on the site of the present soldier's monument. Mayor William C. Duncan, Gen. Lewis Cass, Judge
Witherell, Capt. Eber Ward, C. C. Trowbridge, John Owen and Duncan
Stewart were the presiding officers, and E. N. Wilcox and William A.
Moore were the secretaries. Speeches were made by William A. Howard and Theodore Romeyn, amid the occasional hoots and cat-calls
from rowdies. T. M. McEntee tried to speak, but could not make
himself heard above the din. When it was suggested that resolutions be
drafted, the rebel sympathizers raised the cry: " Do you hear that; we
told you there was to be a draft. " Capt Eber Ward and Duncan Stewart, who had been most active in raising troops and furnishing money,
were singled out for vengeance, and they would have been badly hurt had
not Sheriff Mark Flannagan, a strapping son of Anak, covered their
retreat to the shelter of the Russell House. General Cass, at that
time a venerable man and in feeble health, was attacked in his carriage, and the mob surrounded the Russell House, threatening to hang
the objects of their hatred. The stand where the speeches had been
made was torn to pieces by the mob. This exhibition of disloyalty
caused intense indignation among the Union citizens of Detroit, and
the next day a number of them got together and called a meeting for
the 22d, at the same place. A new platform was built, to take the
place of the one torn down. At the meeting E. C. Walker was temporary chairman, and he nominated for president, Wm. C. Duncan, then
mayor of the city. The following vice-presidents were chosen: Lewis
Cass, Ross Wilkins, B. F. H. Witherell, Bishop Samuel A. McCoskry,
Bishop P. P. Lefevere, Shubael Conant, Wm. Barkley, Charles C.


423




Trowbridge, Col. J. V. Reuhle, Dnncan Stewart, Joseph Godfrey,
J. W. Purcell, James Shearer, Cyrus W. Jackson, Adam  Elder,
Gordon Campbell, Edward Kanter, Charles Kellogg, Fred Behr,
Alex. Chapoton, Charles Busch, Hugh Moffat, Fred Buhl and Neil
Flattery. Secretaries, Stanley G. Wight and C. Wood Davis. The
committee on resolutions, consisting of Thomas N. McEntee, D.
Bethune Duffield, Wm. A. Moore, De Witt C. Holbrook, Wm. P.
Yerkes, Chancey Hurlbut, and Henry Morrow, which had been appointed at the previous meeting, reported a series of resolutions,
couched in the most patriotic terms, and breathing a spirit of devoted
loyalty. They were adopted unanimously. Eloquent speeches were
made by Henry A. Morrow, Lewis Cass, Mark Flanigan, Duncan
Stewart, C. I. Walker, H. H. Emmons and James F. Joy. Morrow in
his speech announced that Governor Blair had authorized him to raise
a regiment, and a number of persons in the audience said they would
join it. The regiment was afterward known as the Twenty-fourth
Michigan.
In 1863 the effects of the war began to tell upon the country. The
demand for men was greater than the supply and drafts became
necessary, but Michigan kept up her quota until near the close of
the war. When the draft began some of the rebel sympathizers and
the " peace-at any-price " men were drawn with the rest, and they were
bitter in their denunciation of what they termed " the nigger war."
This feeling culminated in bloody riots in New York and other cities
during the dark days of 1863, and Detroit had its riot with the others,
only a little earlier than most of the cities. A mulatto named William
Faulkner, who lived in Detroit, was charged with making felonious
assaults upon two little girls: Mary Brown, white, and Ellen Hoover,
colored. He was tried on the charge March 5, 1863, before Judge
Witherell. J. Logan Chipman and A. W. Hessler conducted the de
fense, and James Knox Govin was prosecuting attorney. When the
time came for the noon recess a great mob of hoodlums awaited the
appearance of Faulkner at the door of the court house, which was at
the corner of Congress and Griswold streets. They intended to lynch
him while he was being conducted to jail. The prisoner was kept in
the court room during the noon hour to avoid the fury of the mob. In
the afternoon Faulkner was convicted and sentenced to Jackson prison.
At that time the provost marshal had a strong guard to keep the drafted
men in custody, and seventy-five of the guards was called to the court
424




:21KK<. K
K                       K
Li K


COL. OSCAR A. JANES.




LI




room to guard the prisoner on his way to jail. The sheriff then started
with Faulkner. The mob gathered in great force and the provost
guards were saluted by a volley of paving stones while crossing the
Campus Martius. The guards, after warning the mob back, fired upon
the crowd, wounding several persons, and one inoffensive citizen named
Christopher Lang, was killed by a stray bullet. Faulkner was landed
safely in jail and then the cry was raised: " Drive the niggers out;
they're the cause of all our troubles." It was just after nightfall, and
the mob divided into two sections to attack the negro residents.
Wherever a colored person was seen on the street the hoodlums attacked him, and neither age nor sex was spared. Ephraim Clark, the
aged sexton of the colored Episcopal church, was knocked down and
kicked into insensibility. Louis Pierce, who kept a little clothing store
at 69 Lafayette (now Champlain street), was seen standing in front of
his door; the crowd pursued him inside his shop, where he was brutally
pounded with clubs. Then his shop was fired and utterly destroyed,
while the owner and his family, who lived upstairs, narrowly escaped
with their lives. A young colored woman, who carried an infant in
her arms, was knocked down on the street and the baby was thrown
from hand to hand in the crowd until it was nearly dead.
In the vicinity of East Fort, Brush and East Congress streets was a
large colony of colored people, extending from Randolph to Beaubien
streets. In that district the mob burned thirty-two buildings, twentysix of which were tenements, and left 200 people shelterless, besides
destroying all their household effects and pounding the victims with
clubs. Solomon Huston and his brother kept a cooper shop near the
corner of East Fort and Beaubien streets. They were regarded by the
people as champions of their race, and the panic-stricken Africans fled
from their blazing tenements to take shelter in the cooper shop. The
mob followed and set the building on fire in a dozen places, and as fast
as the inmates attempted to escape they were knocked down and thrown
back until their lives were in imminent danger. Edward Crosby, a
Michigan Central fireman, was shot by some person in the crowd during the scene at the cooper shop, and thirty-three shots were picked out
of his back and neck. The mob tried to burn the colored Episcopal
church, but Constable Sullivan, of the Seventh ward, took his stand on
the steps, pistol in hand, and threatened to kill the first man in the
crowd who showed a light, and the mob gave way before him. He
was afterward presented with a gold watch by several public spirited
425
54




residents. Fire engine No. 2 was working at the fire when the mob
made a rush and tried to disable it, but several brave citizens came to
the rescue of the firemen, and the streams of water were turned upon the
hoodlums with good effect. Even the women of the city did what they
could in sheltering the victims of the mob. Mrs. Isaac W. Ingersoll
saw a Windsor negro running along the alley in rear of her house pursued by a blood-thirsty mob. She ran out and cried: " Stop, you shall
not touch him, you devils." She took him into the yard of her husband's sash factory on Fort street and at night lodged him in her house
in safety. The city was in a wild state of excitement. In response to
the call for military force to restore order, the following companies
turned out: The Light Guard, under Captain Matthews; the Lyon
Guard, under Captain Stanton; the Nineteenth U. S. Infantry from
Fort Wayne, and five companies of the Twenty Seventh Infantry from
Ypsilanti. The mob scattered before the military arrived, and next
day sixteen of the ring leaders were arrested. The active portion of
the mob was composed of excitable boys and young men, some being
the sons of prominent citizens. While they were setting fire to the
shanties and rookeries and making bonfires of the household goods in
the middle of the street, older persons stood by encouraging their acts
of lawlessness, and a disturbance which might have been quelled in a
few moments by two or three determined men assumed the proportions
of a riot, and many citizens passed the night in fear of a general conflagration that might destroy the town. In the course of time it became evident that Faulkner had been wrongfully convicted and after
serving six years he was pardoned. To make some amends for the injustice done him some charitable citizens set him up in business in a
stall of the Central Market, where he was for many years a well known
character.
In 1863 a plot was organized under the sanction of the Confederate
government for the purpose of liberating the rebel prisoners in the
North. There were 8,000 at Camp Douglass, near Chicago; 4,000 at
Camp Morton, near Indianapolis; 8,000 at Camp Chase, near Columbus,
and 3,200 at Johnson's Island, near Sandusky. The prisoners at the
last named place were all officers. The plan was to attack all these
places simultaneously on Monday, September 19, 1864. Leaders and
subordinates were stationed at each of these places. The leader in
charge of the Johnson's Island's part of the plan was Major C. H. Cole,
and two of his trusted subordinates were Bennett G. Burley, a Scotch

426




man and acting master in the Confederate navy, and John Yates Beall,
a wealthy West Virginian, who had organized a company of infantry
which was afterward a part of the "Stonewall Brigade." Cole masqueraded at Sandusky as a speculator in oil of Titusville, Pa., was a
lavish entertainer and made friends with the officers of the U. S. steamer
Michigan, then stationed near Sandusky to protect the Johnson's Island garrison. He had been entertained on the Michigan before and
had secured an invitation to dinner on the day that the affair was to
take place. On September 19, 1864, Cole, Burley, Beall and another
boarded the steamer Philo Parsons at Detroit.  The clerk of the
steamer was Walter Ashley, who was also part owner, and she plied
between Detroit and Sandusky. At Sandwich and Amherstburg some
twenty five men came on board, and at the latter place a heavy trunk.
The boat reached Kelly's Island about 4 P. M., and then proceeded on
her way. About fifteen minutes afterward the boat was seized and the
trunk opened. It contained revolvers and axes, which were distributed
among the raiders. At Middle Bass Island they found the steamer
Island Queen, which had been seized by another party, and those on
board, including some twenty-five Union soldiers, were compelled to
go on board the Philo Parsons. The Island Queen was afterward set
adrift. The Philo Parsons proceeded to a point about a quarter of a
mfle from the steamer Michigan, and Cole went to her on a small boat
to fill his engagement. There were Confederate accomplices on board
the Michigan, and he had arranged to have the wine drugged, the officers stupefied and the boat seized, and then to give a signal to the
Philo Parsons, when both boats would appear before Johnson's Island
and liberate the prisoners. But after dinner, while drinking a glass of
wine, an officer from Johnson's Island came on board and went to the
cabin. Touching Cole on the shoulder he said: " Major, I arrest you
for being a Confederate spy." Cole laughed lightly, although his heart
sank. He coolly admitted his guilt, and immediately proceeded to tell
that several innocent men were his accomplices. These, of course,
were arrested, and in the trial that followed he was sentenced to death,
but he escaped and was subsequently pardoned. Meanwhile Burley
and Beall, the leaders on board the Philo Parsons, waited for the signal
from the Michigan, but none came. They turned back, landed the soldiers and other prisoners on Fighting Island, and then landed the
steamer at Sandwich, where she was plundered, and holes were bored
in her bottom in order to scuttle her. Beall was hung as a spy on Gov

427




ernor's Island, New York, on February 24, 1865. Burley was arrested
at Toronto at the instance of U. S. District Attorney Alfred Russell of
Detroit, then in Canada on business connected with the St. Alban's raid.
Burley was charged with robbery and after trial was extradited. He
was brought to Detroit and confined in the House of Correction for
several months, and was tried at Port Clinton, the county seat of Ottawa county, 0., in which county the offense was committed. Alfred
Russell appeared for the United States, and ex-Judge Rufus P. Ranney,
of Toledo, and Sylvester Lamed, of Detroit, defended Burley. The
jury disagreed, and another trial was ordered, but while in confinement
the friends of Burley helped him to escape  In Montreal he wrote an
account of the affair, which was published by Lovell & Co. In his adventurous after-life he returned to Scotland; then went to Africa and
was with Burnaby's famous march; and at last accounts was a war
correspondent for a London newspaper. The cause of the failure was
treachery. Colonel Johnson, a southern man, who claimed to have been
badly treated by Judah P. Benjamin, the rebel acting secretary of war,
had disclosed the whole plot. Johnson afterward committed suicide.
Stirring times were those when the army of the North was gathering
for the fray. Soldiers paraded the streets of Detroit in new uniforms,
the admiration of their wives, mothers and sweethearts. They drilled
zealously, and had their mad pranks when off duty. War songs were
sung and whistled about the streets at all hours of the day and night.
"John Brown's Body " was kept marching on; " Tenting To-night on
the Old Camp Ground;" "All Quiet along the Potomac To-night;"
"When this Cruel War is Over;" "Lora Vale;" "When Johnnie
Comes Marching Home," and a hundred other songs were familiar to
every citizen. Later came the lyrics of battles and of prison life" Just before the Battle, Mother; " "Tramp, Tramp, Tramp, the Boys
are Marching;" " Marching through Georgia," and many others-which
the lapse of forty years has not erased from memory. When the boys
were recruiting, or when a number of them were home on a furlough,
street fights were frequent, for the soldier is loaded with patriotism
and very touchy about national honor. If a southern sympathizer
made invidious remarks about " Lincoln's hirelings, or mudsills," or
" nigger equality," or delivered himself of any disparaging phrases, he
would be instantly attacked by a soldier boy, and usually got the worst
of the encounter.
It was during the war that the American people contracted the news

428




paper habit, from which they have never recovered. Papers were
bought and read in furious haste when it was known that a great
battle was about to take place. The telegraph offices were watched
with eager impatience. News of victory filled the city with tremendous enthusiasm. Bells clanged, fireworks blazed and cannon roared
at the news from Fort Henry, Fort Donelson, Vicksburg, Gettysburg
and Missionary Ridge. Deep gloom fell upon the city at the news
from Fredericksburg, Cold Harbor, the two battles of Bull Run, and
other great fights in which the North was beaten. The country was
filled with an intoxication of joy at the fall of Richmond and the peace
of Appomattox.
It is a long story, the history of the Michigan troops in the war, and
volumes have been written concerning their brave deeds. They covered themselves with glory at Fredericksburg, at Chancellorsville, in
the deadly strife at Chickamauga, at Chattanooga, at Antietam, and at
Gettysburg. The latter was the greatest battle of modern times, and
it would have been the Waterloo of the Rebellion had not the victorious army been too badly crippled to follow up its victory. The monuments of Michigan regiments on many a bloody field bear witness of
their valor. The remnant of the Michigan corps came home in 1865,
leaving about 14,000 behind never to return.  The Twenty-fourth
Michigan, a part of the " Iron Brigade," lost 318 by death in the service, and the others lost a goodly proportion of their number. Banquets were given to the returning heroes as they arrived, and the
enthusiasm displayed when they went away to the war was repeated
with increased fervor. The Michigan boys brought back 123 flags
which had been captured from the enemy, and on July 4, 1866, the
decimated regiments paraded the streets, showing the rents which shot
and shell had made in their ranks. The captured flags were presented
to the State in the name of the Michigan soldiers by Gen. 0. B. Willcox, who went out with the First Regiment.
During the war the loyal people who stayed at home were not idle.
In order to induce soldiers to enlist, Wayne county and Detroit raised
bounty money by public appropriations and private contributions,
amounting to $660, 554. Many of the soldiers went to the front leaving
positions of honor and profit. Others left employment which meant
daily bread to their families, and to support these families the people
of Wayne county paid out $547,000 through their county treasury and
a large amount by private contribution. The ladies organized relief
429




societies and soldiers' aid societies, which scraped lint, made linen bandages and provided delicacies for the wounded and sick, and every
month great boxes containing comfort for the boys in camp went out
from Detroit. Michigan sent 90,747 men to the war and offered many
thousands more. Detroit sent 6,000 out of the 9,213 furnished by
Wayne county. The death list of Michigan soldiers numbered 14,343,
of whom 358 were officers.
In the exultation over the surrender of General Lee, the greater
part of the North was ready to shake hands with the rebels and forgive the past, but the joy and gladness was turned into deep sorrow
and violent indignation by the news of the murder of President Lincoln. On April 16 an immense meeting was held on the Campus
Martius, at which the speakers expressed the grief, horror and rage of
the populace. Special services were held in all the churches, and on the
25th an immense funeral procession, with a catafalque, passed through
the principal streets, in which nearly all the houses were draped with
enblems of mourning.
No sooner had the soldiers returned from the war than a number of
patriotic citizens organized a Soldier's and Sailor's Monument Fund,
and Rev. George D. Taylor was appointed to solicit funds. A design
submitted by Randolph Rogers, the sculptor, was accepted, and the
corner stone of the monument was laid in the east Grand Circus Park
on July 4, 1867. Later the association decided to place the monument
on the Campus Martius, in the most conspicuous place in the city.
The granite work was completed, and the chief figure, a symbolic representation of Michigan in bronze, was placed upon the summit of the
central shaft in the spring of 1872. It was unveiled April 9, with imposing ceremonies. The lesser figures were not added until nine years
later. The total cost of the monument, which is sixty feet in height,
was $70,000. While the figure of Michigan is superb, the rest of the
monument is not all that could be desired, the other bronzes being
too much like lay figures.


430




CHAPTER LX.


Money, Banks and Finances-Governor Mason's Zeal Leads Him into Disastrous
Financiering-Michigan Mulcted for Millions in Early Railroad Building-How
Fraudulent Banks Kept Afloat in Spite of the Inspectors-The Country Flooded with
Wildcat Money.
In the early days of Detroit there was but little money, and all trade
was conducted by barter. Merchandise and provisions were exchanged
for furs, and all values were generally reckoned from the unit of a
pound weight of prime beaver skin, and accounts were kept in that
currency. There was a small amount of French and Spanish coins in
circulation during the French occupation, which was supplemented
afterwards by British gold and silver, until the close of the Revolutionary war and the Americans' occupation of Detroit in 1796. From
that time the large merchan-ts of Detroit were the bankers of the settlement, and were allowed to issue individual due-bills, being restricted
according to their means.
No sooner had General Hull received his appointment as governor
of Michigan than he determined to establish a bank at Detroit. He
conferred with Russell Sturgis, Messrs. Parker and Broadstreet and
three other Boston capitalists. Judging from what followed it must
have been arranged that the Boston men were to furnish enough capital to put the proposed bank in operation, while the governor and
judges were to participate in its affairs in consideration of their passing
an act which would authorize the bank to do business, and by issuing
a charter. General Hull broached the subject as soon as he arrived at
Detroit, arguing that the Territory was one of the richest in the world,
and that a bank was so essential to its commercial interests that the
profits would be enormous. The governor and judges, being the legislative power, could prevent any other bank from coming in competition. In the winter of 1805 Governor Hull and Judge Woodward went
east and completed the final arrangements with the Boston capitalists
431




and'promoters. Early next spring William Flannigan came on from
Boston bringing alarge quantity of iron bars, bolts and locks to be used
in the construction of a bank building, and he was accompanied by Mrs.
Hull and the rest of the governor's family. About the same time a
petition came from the Boston promoters asking the governor and
judges to grant a charter for the Detroit bank. A substantial looking
bank building, with massive walls of brick, iron grated door, and a
vault of masonry inclosing a crib of strong iron bars, was erected at
the northwest corner of Jefferson avenue and Randolph streets. The
building was but one story high, but its strength impressed the citizens
that the Detroit bank was both physically and financially an impregnable institution.
A few weeks later came Parker and Broadstreet with $19,000 in
specie, the ostensible purpose being to stock the bank. The banking
law was passed and the charter was granted in September. Judge
Woodward was made president and William Flannigan cashier. The
charter limited the period of the bank to 101 years, and the capital to
$1,000,000. The bank act authorized the governor to subscribe for stock
in the name of the Territory, and when the stock was opened for subscription Governor Hull purchased ten shares for Michigan, paying for
them out of the territorial fund. The purpose of this can be readily
seen, as the act passed by the governor and judges declared the issue
of the bank legal tender for all debts in the Territory, and the subscription for stock in the name of the Territory would give the impression
that the wealth of the Territory was the backing of the bank. When the
sale of shares to Detroit residents at $25 a share began to decline, the
promoters, Parker and Bradstreet, and a few others who were on the
inside of the deal, bought heavily at the rate of $2 a share. When the
organization was effected, and the sale of stock stopped, the president
and cashier began signing great bundles of engraved bank bills of different denominations, which had been brought from the East. Parker
and Bradstreet, having accomplished what they came to do, returned
east, carrying with them a strong box containing $165,000 in brand
new bills. These they passed into circulation in New England upon
the representation that the bank was backed by the Territory of Michigan, and that the bills were legal tender, according to the law of the
Territory.
Much more of this currency was afterward sent to the Eastern States,
and peddled out at a discount when it could no longer be passed at par.
432




GEORGE C. LAWRENCE.




I




The day of reckoning was sure to come, and to avoid the consequences
of this practically unlimited issue of promises to pay, the original promoters sold out to Mr. Dexter, another Boston speculator. In 1807
one of the $5 bills of the bank was presented at Detroit for payment in
specie and payment was refused. Later Conrad Ten Eyck, an old resident of Detroit, came from the East with $500 in bills, which he had
procured at Albany at a big discount. Payment was at first refused,
but afterward the notes were honored. The payment was a scheme to
restore confidence. Judge Woodward was succeeded by a Mr. Henry,
who was brought to Detroit by Mr. Dexter. Dexter's ruse to restore
confidence was so successful that it is said he circulated about $12,000
of the bank bills in Michigan, and he went back East with a trunk full
of them to be peddled out as before. Nobody knows what the total
issue of the bank amounted to, but it is estimated by some authorities
to have been $500,000, by others at $1,500,000. No more bills were
honored, and the circulation of them at heavily discounted values attracted the attention of Congress. Judge Witherell was appointed to
investigate the affairs of the bank, and he disclosed the true nature of
the gigantic swindle. Governor Hull and Judge Woodward cried out
with all the others, that the people of the country had been swindled,
and indignantly denied that they had been parties to the wholesale
fraud  Their integrity in this matter may well be questioned. They
had acted in collusion with the eastern promoters from the very first,
and it is not likely that they were actuated entirely by philanthropic
motives. It is certain that with their knowledge and consent a vast
amount of the bills were authorized, signed and sent out from this city.
The question arises: What was received in exchange for those bills?
They were not bestowed as charity, but were exchanged at par as long
as the credit of the bank could be sustained. When the money market
began to be glutted with Detroit currency, they were passed at a dis
count. The $19,000 in specie brought from Boston, and all the money
realized from the sale of stock in Detroit, had vanished when Judge
Witherell made his official investigation, and the bank was ordered
closed in 1808 by authority of Congress. Judge Woodward came to
Detroit a poor man. His salary as a judge was $1,200 a year, and although he lived modestly he could not have accumulated a fortune out
of his savings. Judge Woodward left Detroit a rich man and a very
large land owner, having pinned his faith upon land values rather than
upon printed promises to pay. If his course was entirely blameless in
433
55




connection with the bank, the records of the past are inexplicable, for
they certainly cast something more than a suspicion upon his conduct
as well as upon that of Governor Hull.
The second bank was the Bank of Michigan which was established in
1818. Its first stockholders were John R. Williams, Gen. Alexander
Macomb, Augustus B. Woodward, Otis Fisher, Andrew G. Whitney,
James Abbott, William Woodbridge, Stephen Mack, James May, Solomon Sibley, Peter J. Desnoyers, Benjamin Stead, Ebenezer S. Sibley,
Charles James Lanman, John Anderson, De Garmo Jones, John H.
Platt, Henry Jackson Hunt, Barnabus Campau, Joseph Campau, John
J. Deming, Henry B. Brevoort, William Brown, Catherine Navarre,
Abraham Edwards, Philip Lecuyer, and Mary Devereaux. Its first
president was John R. Williams, and its first cashier James McCloskey.
In 1824 the Dwights, who were large capitalists in Boston, Springfield, Mass., and Geneva, N. Y., acquired the control of the bank, and
it was thereafter often called "The Bank of the Dwights " In this institution they invested over $500,000. The bank's first quarters were
in the brick building of the old Detroit Bank, at the northwest corner
of Jefferson avenue and Randolph street. The bank's affairs not being
in a satisfactory condition, the Dwights, in 1825, sent Eurotas P. Hastings, who had been a teller in the Bank of Geneva, to Detroit to examine the books of the Bank of Michigan. At first McCloskey refused
to allow his books to be examined, but two days later he surrendered
them. Hastings found that $10,300 had disappeared, but McCloskey
said it was all right; that his books were not fully posted. He produced his cash book, which Hastings also examined and found it was
carelessly kept and showed evidence of fraud.  McCloskey was so
emphatic in asseverating that his accounts were correct that it was decided to examine all the books from the time of the organization of the
bank. Hastings performed this work in three months and then reported again that McCloskey was $10,300 behind. During this time
Peter J. Desnoyers, who had succeeded John R. Williams, resigned the
presidency and Hastings was elected in his place. When Hastings
made his final report the directors appointed a committee of three, consisting of Hastings, De Garmo Jones, and a clerk named James Whipple,
to count the money and take possession of the key of the vault. The
money was counted, and to their surprise they found that the funds
agreed with the cash account.
434




Meanwhile, however, a special deposit of some $40,000 had been received by McCloskey from Charles J. Lanman, receiver of the United
States land office at Monroe. McCloskey had given a receipt for this
to Lanman, but the latter also wanted the signature of Hastings as
president, and sent it to the latter. Hastings declined to affix his receipt, and so notified Lanman. As the money was in the vault the
committee proceeded to count it. McCloskey interposed, saying that the
committee had no right to examine the money. They persisted, however, and found the box containing it nailed up. "This box was formerly open, " remarked Hastings. "No, sir, " said McCloskey, with a
great show of indignation, "it was always nailed up. " The four persons passed out of the vault and Mr. Hastings turned the key in the
door. "I want that key," said McCloskey, "I am responsible for the
money here." "You are not responsible," said Hastings, "I am
president of the bank." The key was of brass, some nine inches in
length, and Mr. Hastings carried it out of the vault. As they were
passing out behind the counter, McCloskey made a spring and tried to
wrench it out of Hastings's hand. The president, however, held on to
the key, and the struggle for its possession continued for several
minutes, first in the bank, then on the steps, and finally on the sidewalk. McCloskey grasped the handle and Hastings the end that entered the lock. Hastings was resolute, McCloskey was desperate, and
neither would give up. Finally, De Garmo Jones, who had a temper
of his own, became considerably excited and mixed in. He clinched
McCloskey and shook him violently, and Hastings thereby secured
possession of the key. That night the directors secured the attendance
of McCloskey's bondsmen, the sheriff, a justice of the peace, a constable, and two young men, and in their presence the box containing
the money was opened and the money counted. It was found to contain $10.300 less than the receipt called for. One of the party discovered on the wall, nearest the vault, the figures $10, 300 written in pencil.
It was now proved that McCloskey had tried to square his accounts by
another robbery. A search warrant was made out, but the officers
could find in his house neither money nor property to seize. The
bondsmen finally made a proposition that the bank should sue McCloskey, and if a judgment was rendered against him, that they should
pay half of it. This was accepted. Next day Jonathan Kearsley, receiver of the United States land office at Detroit, came into the bank
greatly excited. He said he ought to have been apprised of the defalca

435




tion, as McCloskey had applied to him for a loan of $10,300. " I was just
about to count out the money to him," said Kearsley; "if I had I
would have lost it all."  "Not at all," said Hastings; "if McCloskey
had got the money from you as cashier of the bank, it would have been
restored to you." Of course McCloskey was discharged, and after
being charged with embezzlement, the bank compromised with his
bondsman by taking one-half the money stolen.
In the same autumn C. C. Trowbridge succeeded McCloskey as cashier. Mr. Hastings continued as president of the bank until 1839, a
period of fourteen years, during which time it had al eventful history.
In 1832 the Bank of Michigan was selected by the government as one
of the depositories for the safe keeping and disbursement of public
money, derived mostly from the sale of government lands. The government charged these banks two per cent. interest oIL the funds deposited. This was the beginning of a very prosperous era in Michigan
and the West. The only other bank similarly favored in Detroit was
the Farmers' and Mechanics' Bank, which had been started in 1830
The bank then became a gigantic institution, with a large capital and
deposits amounting to nearly $3,000,000, and had intimate connection
with all of the prominent banks of the country. Its bills circulated as
freely in Texas, Louisiana or Maine, as in Michigan or Ohio, and nearly
every prominent man in the West and Northwest had more or less
business with it. Money was loaned freely on notes and on wild lands,
and under the stimulus of approachingoadmission to the Union, a vast
tide of emigration set in from the eastern States, accompanied by the
wildest speculation in lands. In 1834 the Bank of Michigan established a
branch at Bronson, now Kalamazoo, which for a time did a profitable
business, and proved to be a great convenience to the people of that section
in promoting exchanges and furnishing a sound local currency. Most
of the securities furnished to the bank during that period were based
upon improved real estate and wild lands. There was little cash capital
in the State save that furnished by the two banks. The charter of the
Bank of Michigan was exceedingly liberal, permitting the cii culation of
three times the amount of its capital, and also as much as the specie on
hand.  Everything seemed to promise continued prosperity, when
President Jackson's specie circular of July 11, 1836, was issued, and instantly came disaster. Everything was then placed on a coin basis,
and the banks having to pay back the moneys deposited by the government, were much embarrassed. Land schemes collapsed like so many


436




bubbles, and the New York banks suspended payment and the Detroit
banks followed next.
The result of the contest between President Jackson and the United
States Bank affected every bank in the country. The United States
Bank was organized in 1816, and in 1830 it had become a power in the
land. In that year Jackson questioned the constitutionality of its
charter, and in 1832 vetoed the bill for its renewal.  Next year he
ordered a withdrawal of the public funds in its care. The secretary of
the treasury refused compliance; he was removed, and his successor
enforced the order. The money, which mostly came from the sale of
government lands, was then deposited in the banks of the several
States. The Bank of Michigan and the Farmers' and Mechanics' Bank,
both located in Detroit, were made depositories of $1,500,000 of government funds, for which they had to pay two per cent. interest. This
necessitated the loaning of the money in their hands, and a period of
great prosperity followed. The demand for public lands in the West
brought thousands of settlers and speculators to Detroit, which was
then the gateway of the West, and the place where the principal land
office was situated. During this time the government accepted the
bills of the banks of Ohio and other States, but the currency proving
objectionable, President Jackson, on July 11, 1836, issued a circular
ordering all receipts for public lands to be in coin. This caused great
excitement, and every Detroit bank suspended specie payments. Stagnation in business followed, all manufactories stopped, and large numbers of men were thrown out of employment.
In 1837, during the first part of these threatening troubles, Michigan
became exceedingly ambitious and authorized a loan of $5,000,000 to
aid the construction of public internal improvements, including four railroads, three canals and the improvement of the St. Joseph, Kalamazoo,
and Grand Rivers. The railroads were to be named the Southern, extending from Monroe to New Buffalo; the Northern, from Port Huron
to Grand Rapids; and the Central, from Detroit to St. Joseph. There
was also a small railroad from Havre to the Ohio State line provided
for. The whole scheme was certainly twenty-five years in advance of
a remunerative demand. Nevertheless, the Morris Canal & Banking
Company of New Jersey, the owners of which had been largely interested in the United States Bank, agreed to be agents or purchasers of
the bonds at two and a half per cent. interest. Governor Mason went


437




to New Jersey to get the money, and he was accompanied by a
Detroit friend.  The sum of $200,000 was given in advance payment; the bills were placed in a trunk; and the two came back to
Detroit. When the money was counted some $20,000 of the bills were
missing. Mason saw his companion at once and said: "Look here;
the money is gone. Either yotu or I stole it, and by God it was not I."
Of course his companion protested it was not he, and no direct proof
of his guilt could be found. But the New Jersey bankers had affixed a
private mark on each bill, and when this was made known in Detroit,
the bills came back. They came by mail to Mason two weeks afterward from Cleveland, without any accompanying explanation or remark.  Of the $5,000,000 bonds issued only about $2,500,000 were
realized, the remainder being absorbed by the interest and commission,
and some $2,000,000 were lost by the bankruptcy of the contracting
parties. But Michigan did not repudiate this debt, and public works
were pushed forward with energy and courage. Three railroads had
been previously projected and, at the time that the appropriation passed,
about thirty miles of the Southern, now the Lake Shore and Michigan
Southern Railroad, was in operation. Aid was extended to the Detroit
and Pontiac road, now the Detroit, Grand Haven and Milwaukee Railroad, and in the summer of 1838 twelve miles were in operation. In
the spring of 1838 the Central, now the Michigan Central, was opened
as far as Ypsilanti. The latter road was owned by the State and was
sold in 1846 to Boston capitalists for $2,000,000. The money was paid
principally in the bonds issued for the $5,000,000 loan which had been
realized upon, and also a part of those for which partial or no value had
been realized; the latter at a stipulated price. Thus a large outlay for
an accumulation of interest was saved, and a vexatious and troublesome
question settled.
Besides these enterprises a number of other railroads and canals
were projected by private companies, one of which was a canal to extend from Gibralter to Flat Rock in Wayne county. None of the
canals was finished and only three of the railroads commenced. To
cap the climax of financial hallucination, the Michigan Legislature, in
the same month as the $5,000,000 loan, enacted a general banking law
which provided for an unlimited number of " safety fund" banks. The
stockholders of a bank under this law gave first mortgages upon real
estate to secure the notes. This was the " Wild Cat " banking law, so


438




called, and under it there sprang up, as if by magic, a host of banks
largely engineered by unscrupulous and needy adventurers, who persuaded the farmers to mortgage their farms in order to buy bank stock
and thus become suddenly rich. The country was soon flooded with
wildcat bank notes got up in the best style of the engraver's art. The
law provided that a certain amount of specie was to be kept on hand
for the redempton of the notes, and the banks were permitted to issue
to the amount of two and one-half times the capital stock. But this
was easily evaded. The balloon was inflated in a few weeks; everybody
became excited; money was plentiful; and every man who had real
estate, generally purchased on a small margin down, expected to become a millionaire. Everything rose in price; land produce and manufactured articles. The notes were generally sent to distant States to
circulate, in the hope of never coming back to Michigan. Bank Commissioner Marshall J. Bacon, a Detroit attorney, made his rounds all
over the State to see that the new banks had the proper amount of coin.
He was watched and his movements dogged.  It was curious how
many people stopped him on the streets of Detroit to inquire where he
was going at that time or in the near future.
Many Detroiters were interested in those village banks in the interior. When Bacon arrived at a bank situated sometimes in a small
hamlet, in a building that did not cost more than a few hundred dollars, he would be shown a keg or box of silver and gold. Very often
the package and the money suspiciously resembled what he had examined a few days before. A story is extant that one keg of gold and
silver traveled all over the State in a sleigh. Sometimes the money
passed Bacon on the road; sometimes the precaution was taken to
transport it only by night; and occasionally it arrived too late. Then
the strategy of the bank managers would be developed. Every attention would be bestowed on the commissioner, refreshments were forced
on him and every pretext for delay invented until the specie arrived,
when it would be rolled in the back door. The directors of a bank at
Sandstone, in Jackson county, in woeful ignorance of the duties of a
bank commissioner, supposed that the bare sight of a box of specie was
enough to satisfy the official of their financial standing. They accordingly opened it before him, and showed him the rouleaux of gold coins
at the top. To their unspeakable consternation he pulled out some of
the coins and proceeded to pile them up on a table, and there, at the


439




bottom of the box was a valuable collection of tenpenny nails and
broken glass. But the other banks had the genuine metal to show.
The facile cashier would then come forward and make the necessary
affidavits, the money would be counted, and the commissioner departed,
and then the money would be placed in the original package and taken
away to, be inspected, perhaps the next day, at another bank. It was
curious that a lawyer like Bacon could be deceived in that way. Perhaps he was not, but if he was a complaisant or corrupt official he did
not get rich. On the contrary he was as poor as the proverbial church
mouse, and found it cheaper to move than pay rent. Within the space
of ten months forty-nine banks were organized and forty went into
operation.  The bubble soon hurst, and in 1839, only seven banks
were in existence. But the notes, like chickens, came home to roost.
The banks couldn't redeem them. The cashiers all said: " You must
wait." Men had pockets full of money, but couldn't buy a barrel of
flour. The farmers were at their wits' end, for their mortgaged farms
were their only assets; the speculators had nothing at stake. But they
did not lose their farms, because the banking law was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court, and the mortgages went for nothing.
In the early part of 1837 the prices of produce reached the highest
notch. Flour ranged from $11 to $16 per barrel corn meal was $1.50
per cwt., and potatoes $2 per bushel, and other provisions in like
proportion. But the panic which prostrated everything later in the
year, brought provisions down and flour fell to $8 per barrel. The
great staple fell lower and lower during the panic until in 1842 it was
sold for $2.25 per barrel.
The evil effects of this ignorant financial legislation were felt in
Michigan for many years beyond the panic. Its discredited bank bills
gave the East a bad impression of the honesty of the new State, and
hundreds of thousands of emigrants disregarded its many advantages
and fertile soil, and passed on to settle in Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin
and other States and Territories further west. In this wildcat era,
all the wildcat banks failed, but the Bank of Michigan and the Farmers' and Mechanics' Bank, being sound institutions, soon resumed
specie payments. In the early part of 1839 the Dwights demanded a
change and Mr. Hastings was succeeded by C. C. Trowbridge, who managed it until the bank closed in October of that year. The panic of
1837 had ruined it.


440




WILLIAM C. YAWKEY.








Mr. Trowbridge was a leading citizen and a man of spotless integrity.
His manner was exceptionally urbane and cordial, and it was said by a
business man that when seeking pecuniary accommodations he would
sooner be refused by Mr. Trowbridge than have it granted by any other
bank officer. When the bank suspended business, the United States
had a judgment against it and its bondsmen for $28,000. In this serious dilemma the bank employed James T. Joy to go to Washington and
endeavor to induce the government to take the bank building in lieu of
the debt. The United States court rooms and offices at that time were
in rather inferior quarters in the third and fourth stories of the John R.
Williams building, at the southwest corner of Jefferson avenue and
Bates street, and it was thought probable that the new and handsome
stone building, which had been erected by the bank in 1836, might be
used for that purpose. Mr. Joy went to Washington and waited upon
the secretary of the treasury. He related the condition of things in
Detroit, the difficulty in raising money, the fact that all the real estate
controlled by the bank or owned by the sureties would not, if sold on
execution, realize the indebtedness, and pointed out the desirability of
the building as a United States court house. After consultation the
secretary agreed to the bargain, the bank building became the property
of the government, and the sureties were released. The building cost
$44,000, besides the cost of the site. The affairs of the bank were
placed in the hands of Shubael Conant as receiver, and were finally
settled up in 1844.
The Farmers' and Mechanics' Bank commenced business in June,
1830, with a capital of $100,000, which four years later was increased to
$400,000.  In 1834 it established a branch at St. Joseph, Berrien
county. John Biddle, a brother of Nicholas Biddle, president of the
Bank of the United States, was its first president, and Henry H. Sizer
was its first cashier. Later John A. Wells was its cashier and manager. It came to an end in 1839, and was renewed in 1845. But in
1869, after paying all its debts, it went out of business.
The Michigan Insurance Company of Detroit, was started on March
7, 1834. It was authorized to transact insurance business only, but on
March 9, 1843, was authorized to do a banking business. It suspended
specie payment in 1857 and 1861, but only for a short time. Its presidents during its existence were James Abbott, Douglass Houghton and
John Owen, and its cashiers, H. H. Brown, H. K. Sanger and Walter
Ingersoll. In 1869 its business and real estate and personal property
441
56




were transferred to the First National Bank and it ceased to exist
Everything was paid and a surplus of about eighty per cent. divided.
The Detroit City Bank, the only Detroit institution organized under
the so called " wildcat" banking law, started in business in 1837. Henry
M. Campbell was president, and T. H. Harris cashier. Like all the
rest of its breed, it closed its doors in 1839.
The Michigan State Bank began to do business in 1835, with a capital of $200,000. Frederic H. Stevens was its first president, and John
Norton, jr., was the first cashier. Mr. Norton was appointed fiscal agent
of the State and handled all of the $5,000,000 loan currency that
reached the State. It was fairly successful for a time, but was forced
to suspend in 1839 and went into the hands of an assignee. It was
revived during the same year, but succumbed in 1844, after paying its
debts and declaring a dividend of $5,000.
The Bank of St. Clair commenced business in 1836, at Palmer, now
St. Clair, but removed to Detroit in 1842. It went under in 1845, and
all its depositors and note-holders lost their money.
The Detroit Savings Bank was incorporated as the Detroit Savings
Fund Institute in 1849. The name was changed to Detroit Savings
Bank in 1871. It is a prosperous and reliable institution.
The Peninsular Bank commenced business in 1849, when Charles
Howard was elected president and H. H. Brown cashier. The bank did
a fine business for several years, but was badly crippled by the panic of
1857. It recuperated, however, but in 1861 had lost so much by bad
debts that it reduced its stock to about $100,000. The bank closed up
in 1870, but was out of debt.
The State Bank of Michigan came into being in 1857, with L. E.
Clark as president, and T. P. Hall cashier. The latter was succeeded
in 1861 by Emory Wendell. In December, 1864, the officers purchased
the First National Bank, on the southwest corner of Jefferson avenue
and Griswold street, and both institutions were merged under the name
of the First National Bank.


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CHAPTER LXI.


The Detroit Metropolitan Police Department-Constables, Deputy-Sheriffs and
Marshals Preserved the Peace of the Community for 165 Years-The Police Department Has Developed Since 1865-Detroit House of Correction.
Peace and order were preserved in Detroit by town marshals and
constables in the good old days under English and American rule. In
troublous times day constables and night watchmen were added to the
marshal's staff, and too often the old maxim, " Set a rogue to catch a
rogue," was observed in making these appointments. When Detroit
was incorporated in 1802 the office of town marshal was created and
this official acted as a policeman, fire marshal and constable, besides
making himself useful in other ways. As the town grew, constables
and watchmen were added, and whenever war threatened the safety of
Detroit, details of militia or regular troops, under a provost marshal,
assumed the functions of a police department. Such was the condition
during the war of the Rebellion. When the war was near its close and
the military men were about to return to peaceful avocations, a strife
arose among the citizens. One faction wanted to establish a regular
police force and maintain a police patrol system; the other wished to
return to the old fashioned regime of town marshal, constable and
deputy sheriff, and have these officials exercise their functions in the
old desultory and spasmodic fashion. When the soldiers came back
from the front, suddenly released from the restraint of military discipline and removed from the excitement under which they had been living, it was perfectly natural that some of them should be too exuberant
in their spirits and create disturbance in a quiet town. Something had
to be done. Many of the citizens opposed the establishing of a police
department, because it would add to their taxes, and the men who had
formerly done police duty opposed it because it would force them out
of office. Advanced ideas prevailed.
The act creating the Metropolitan Police Commission passed the Legislature n February, 1865, and Jacob S. Farrand, John J. Bagley, L.
M. Mason and Alexander Lewis were appointed commissioners. They
443




immediately began the organization of the department, selecting men
and officers from an army of applicants for the positions. Their first
task was completed and the first detail of the Metropolitan Police Department was dispatched to the public streets for patrol duty on May
15, 1865. The police department was organized April 1, 1865, with
Theodore A. Drake as superintendent, at an annual salary of $2,000.
Fifty one officers and patrolmen were sufficient to protect the city from
lawlessness during the first year. Superintendent Drake resigned September 30, after six months of service, and M. VT. Borgman, who had
started as a sergeant and had been promoted to the rank of captain,
was made acting superintendent until August 1, 1866, when he was
made superintendent. He retired December 1, 1873, and was succeeded
by Stephen K. Stanton. Mr. Stanton was succeeded by Andrew J.
Rogers on March 25, 1876. Mr. Rogers resigned on January 31,
1882, and the commissioners offered the office of superintendent to
Edwin F. Conely. Mr. Conely said he would accept if the salary was
made $4,000 a year instead of $2,000, which had been paid to former
superintendents. This offer was accepted, and Mr. Conely became
superintendent April 24, 1882, remaining in that office f.,r four years.
During that time he organized the department in admirable fashion.
He planned the various books and schedules of records as they are kept
at the present time. Upon his resignation on April 30, 1885, James
E. Pittman was appointed superintendent, and at his request, M. V.
Borgman was appointed deputy superintendent.  Deputy Borgmnan
was succeeded by Captain C. C. Starkweather, April 4, 1891, and on
August 8, 1892, Mr. Starkweather was appointed superintendent of
police. On January 2, 1897, Mr. Starkweather resigned, accepting a
pension of $2,000 a year, and he was succeeded by Capt. John Martin,
the present chief of the department. There was but one police station
in the city for several years after 1865, and that was in the Hawley
block on Woodbridge street, adjoining the present Woodbridge street
station. By 1876 the department had increased to a force of 121 patrolmen and thirty officers. A headquarters had been established in the
City Hall, and in addition to a new central station built on Woodbridge
street, stations had been established on Trumbull and Gratiot avenues.
In 1886 the force had increased to 230 men, 174 being patrolmen.
Stations had been established at Elmwood and Canfield avenues and
on Twentieth street.
At the present time there are 512 men on the police force and twelve


444




police stations. All are connected by a department telephone system.
The latest improved signal boxes give communication between patrolmen on duty and their respective stations. During the year ending
July 1, 1897, 6,529 arrests were made, and the total amount of fines
was $22,287. A large proportion of the arrests were for drunkenness
and disorderly conduct, the total number being 2,891. The total
number of arrests in the year 1896-97 is less than the total for each of
the eight preceding years, the number having reached 11,762 in 1894.
In connection with the police department is the office of sealer of
weights and measures, the harbor master's office, the keeper of the
dog pound and the sanitary squad. The expense of maintaining the
department for the year ending July 1, 1897, was $552,767, of which
$464,139 was paid in salaries.
The House of Correction came into being through an imperfect condition of affairs in the city government. In 1860 Detroit had no police
except a constable for each ward and the city marshal, and these were
not efficiently organized. The county jail was always overcrowded;
the number made it impossible to enforce discipline or cleanliness;
and it was so weak in construction that prisoners frequently escaped.
So malodorous had it become that some five grand juries indicted it as
a public nuisance. Another prison being absolutely necessary, an appropriation was made for its erection, and the sum actually expended
amounted to $150,000. At first the board consisted of three citizens
and the mayor, and the first superintendent was Z. R. Brockway. The
institution occupies nearly the whole of the square bounded by Russell,
Riopelle, Alfred and Watson streets, and the superintendent's residence
and officers' dining room is situated on the adjoining square, bounded
by Alfred, Division, Russell and Riopelle streets. The two parcels of
land are about eight acres in extent. The institution was opened on
August 1, 1861, and between that date and January 1, 1898, 66,929
prisoners have been received. The superintendents have been Z. R.
Brockway, August 1, 1861, to December 21, 1872; Anthony Lederle,
January 1, 1873, to November 15, 1873; Martin V. Borgman, December 1, 1873, to February, 1879; Joseph Nicholson, February, 1879.
An act passed by the Legislature on June 2, 1881, added one inspector, making the board consist of four persons, who were given the
authority to appoint the superintendent, officers, guards, etc. From
the first the institution engaged in the manufacture of chairs, and this
is still the principal industry. At present it also manufactures pearl
buttons and brushes.
445




The House of Correction is the only institution in Detroit that pays
an annual income into the city treasury. In the report for 1887 Superintendent Borgman showed that from the inception of the prison up to
that date the city had expended on its account $189,841.36. During the
incumbency of Superintendent Nicholson, it has paid over to the city
the handsome sum of $514,728.36, and has also expended out of its
profits, for the erection of new buildings and repairs and improvements
of buildings and grounds, the sum of $121,396.81. The classes of prisoners received at the house are as follows: (1) Disorderly characters
convicted in the Detroit Police Court and the Justice's Courts in the
counties in Michigan which have contracts with the institution for the
board of prisoners. (2) First offenders convicted of criminal offenses
punishable by incarceration in State prison. (3) Prisoners convicted in
the United States Court in this and other States and the Territories.
The Detroit House of Correction is the only penal institution in Michgan that receives female prisoners.
CHAPTER LXII.
History of the Detroit Waterworks-The River Always the Chief Source of Supply-Delivery to the Consumer First Accomplished in Buckets; then in Pony Carts;
then in Hollow Tamarack Logs, and Finally in Huge Iron Mains-Migrations of the
Pumping Stations.
Although the residents of Detroit had a broad river of pure water rolling past their doors, the early settlers were prejudiced against using river
water, and the well-to-do residents generally dug wells on their prem
ises. It was natural that the wells should become contaminated and
dangerous to health as the population became more dense. Some public wells were tried, but as it was the business of no particular person
to look after them, their curbs became rotten and dangerous; domestic
animals occasionally tumbled into them, and their pumps were half the
time out of repair. So these wells, which were located on the commons
and open places, were at length filled up and the people once more
resorted to the river.  Water was carried through the streets in
carts.  As early as 1820 the people began to discuss the establishing of a system of waterworks.  Several private individuals offered
446




to supply the town with water if they could have the exclusive
right of furnishing it, but none of them had the backing to go ahead
and do it. In 1824, upon the recommendation of Henry J. Hunt, who
was supposed to know something about hydraulics and had been asked
to suggest a plan for supplying the city, Peter Berthelet was authorized
to build a wharf out into the river from the foot of Randolph street,
where there would be no likelihood of contamination, and to construct
a big pump for public use. This system proved unsatisfactory. In
the following year Bethuel Farrand, father of the late Jacob S. Farrand,
of New York, heard through an acquaintance in Detroit that there was
an opportunity for some enterprising man to get a valuable hydraulic
privilege in this city. He laid a proposition before the Common Council and secured an exclusive franchise. In partnership with Rufus
Wells, he took a gang of men into a tamarack swamp in Macomb county
and rafted a large number of logs to Detroit, by way of Clinton River
and Lake St. Clair. On the wharf at the foot of Randolph street these
logs were bored by means of horse power and jointed together at the ends.
Then they were laid in shallow trenches along the principal streets,
and small service pipes were carried to each lot, opening into a rude
wooden penstock, which was usually stopped with a wooden plug.
Then a pump house twenty feet square was constructed on the river
bank, at the foot of Randolph street. Logs of large bore were weighted
and sunk in the river, their landward ends opening into a small basin
made of tamarack plank, and the water flowed into this receptacle from
the river. A crude double action wooden pump was built above the
receiving basin, and this was operated by horse power to pump the
water into a large wooden tank, which stood on a derrick frame above
the roof, giving the effect of a stand pipe of nearly fifty feet elevation
above the river, or about twenty feet above the main street of the town.
Pipes ran from this reservoir to the ground and then up the hill to Jefferson avenue, where, on the south side of the street, a stout reservoir,
with a capacity of about 1,000 gallons, had been built on a level with
the tank above the pump house. This was the distributing reservoir,
from which the pipes of the system radiated. Patrons paid $10 a year
for the water privilege, but while the quality of the supply was good
the service was usually defective. Mr. Farrand sold out to his partner
and Wells kept looking about for some means to cheapen the cost of
elevating the water.
In 1829 Mr. Wells organized the Detroit Hydraulic Company, Lucius
447




Lyon, Phineas Davis, jr., and A. H. Hathon becoming his partners.
The company procured a new ordinance from the Common Council on
June 3, which gave the company an exclusive franchise until 1850.
There had never been a time when the people did not complain that
the quality of the river water was bad, and the council appointed
Mayor Jonathan Kearsley and Alderman Thomas Palmer to look for a
spring some distance no th of Detroit which could supply water enough
for the town of 1,800 inhabitants. The Hydraulic Company was also
anxious to secure an artesian supply, and were willing to spend considerable money in search for a flowing well which would save the expense of pumping. When Fort Shelby was demolished two years
before, the leveling of the slopes brought to view the old spring hole,
which had tormented the military commandants in former years by
causing the south slope of the embankment to slough away every
spring. Here the council committee decided was an unfailing supply
of excellent water, and the Hydraulic Company proceeded to drill a
four-inch well on the south side of Fort street, between Shelby and
Wayne streets. It was an easy matter to drill for the soil was a mass
of quicksand, but it was almost impossible to place tubing securely,
because of the unstable nature of the soil. The well was abandoned at
a depth of 260 feet, and the company appealed to the council for encouragement. On June 29, 1830, a third franchise was granted, extending the term of the exclusive right to thirty-five years and granting
the privilege of a larger water rate. A new pump house was built on
Woodbridge street, between Wayne and Cass streets, and a new reservoir was erected on the site of the drilled well. This had a capacity of
about 22,000 gallons, and the distribution was through three-inch wooden pipes laid on both sides of each street. The horse power wooden
pumps were discarded, and a ten-horse power steam engine was used to
drive a rotary pump. Next year a new reservoir was built with a
capacity of 120,000 gallons, and a twenty-horse power engine was put
in. Complaints about the service and the quality of the water never
ceased, and the aldermen who constituted the water committee, and the
members of the company, were constantly harassed.
In 1836 the company was nearly bankrupt, having lost money ever
since they began business, and the growth of the city was such that
the plant, which had already been twice reconstructed, was now totally
inadequate. The people wanted spring water piped to the town from
the northeastern part of the county, but could not afford the cost of the


448




GEORGE H. PAINE.








undertaking. In this dilemma the council formally forfeited the franchise and purchased the company's works for $20,500. A new reservoir was built on a site at the foot of Orleans street, which the city
purchased of Antoine Dequindre. This was an expensive work, as the
elevation was secured for a large iron tank by building a brick tower
fifty feet high. When this was completed in 1838, the mayorappointed
Alderman Peter E. De Mill and Henry B. Lothrop a committee on
waterworks. In 1840 two committees became necessary, as two sets
of waterworks were in operation, and Henry H. Le Roy and Chauncey
Hurlbut were the committee for the Orleans street plant, and W. F.
Chittenden and Alva Ewers for the old works on Woodbridge, between Cass and Wayne streets. In 1840 a new engine house was built
and a new forty-five horse power engine purchased; nine miles of
tamerack log pipes and four and a half miles of iron pipes were laid.
Two years later the Fort street reservoir was abandoned. In 1849 an
engine of 150 horse power was purchased, and at the close of the year
1851 the aggregate deficit during the city's ownership amounted to
$85,125.  The people were discouraged and wanted to unload the
aqueous elephant upon some private corporation, but investors were
wary. The Detroit Water Board was created in 1852, and the first
trustees were Shubael Conant, Henry Ledyard, Edmund A. Brush,
James A. Van Dyke and William R. Noyes, and they were created a
Board of Water Commissioners by an act of the Legislature on February 14, 1853. The works were pumping a million gallons a day in
1854. In 1856 the city purchased a pump of a daily capacity of 3,000,000 gallons for $50,000, and in 1861 another of 7,000,000 gallons
capacity was acquired.
In 1854 the city purchased a tract of ten acres of the Dequindre farm,
the highest grounds inside the city limits, from Antoine Dequindre,
and on this site built what was afterward known as the Watson street
reservoir. Massive embankments were thrown up, inclosing a basin
530 by 320 feet, and this was divided by a partition embankment so
that the work was practically two reservoirs.  This gave additional
strength to the embankments and in case either section broke the other
would be left to do duty while repairs were made to the break. The
work was completed in 1854 and it gave an elevation of about seventy
feet above the river level, which was far more satisfactory than any of
the preceding reservoirs. Twenty years later the city had outgrown
the capacity of this basin, and in 1873 a loan of $1,000,000 was author449
57




ized by the Legislature for beginning a new system of waterworks.
The city purchased from Robert P. Toms thirty-five acres, lying between
the Grosse Pointe road and the river, and there began the erection of
the present plant. Three huge beam pumping engines with a capacity
of a million gallons an hour each, were put in the pump house, one
after another, and a triple expansion engine of the Allis type was added
in 1894. The present plant represents a valuation of $1,018,305 inside
the waterworks grounds, and the city has expended for water works
since 1836 a total of $6,752,285. The old wooden pipes have nearly all
passed out of use, and 525 miles of iron pipes, ranging from three
inches to forty-two inches in diameter, have been laid at a cost of
$3,604,201. The daily pumping capacity is 100,000,000 gallons, and the
daily consumption is between 50,000,000 and 60,000,000 gallons. In
1885 Chauncey Hurlbut, for many years a water commissioner of the
city,bequeathed the income of about $200,000 to the city to be used in
beautifying the grounds at the waterworks park, and maintaining a
library. The commissioners have made it one of the most attractive
places about Detroit.
CHAPTER LXIII.
Development of the Gas Industry and the Municipal Lighting Plant-From Pine
Knots and Tallow Dips to Welsbach and Edison Burners-Bitter Competition
between Rival Companies in Gas and Electric Lighting.
In the earliest days of Detroit's history the residents did not trouble
themselves about public lighting. Their homes were usually illumin
ated by the ruddy blaze from the broad fireplace, and when this was
insufficient a torch of fat pine made a smoky substitute for a lamp.
Later they used shallow dishes half filled with the fat of the wild game
killed about the setttlement, and a bit of rag served as a wick. Candles
were introduced very soon and they held supremacy for many a day.
The sperm oil lamp was used for a time, but was so smoky that it never
became popular. In the '50's camphene burning fluid, which was a
compound of alcohol, turpentine and camphor gum, was much used,
although it was very dangerous, and explosions, fires and accidents
450




were quite frequent. In the early '60's the petroleum industries were
developed, and the first shallow wells of northwestern Pennsylvania
were soon furnishing the light of the country. It was a dark yellow,
rank-smelling and very smoky oil when first put on the market. The
process of refining was but little advanced and the lamps of the day
gave but an imperfect combustion.
Detroit has been lighted by coal gas since 1851. The Detroit Gas
Light Company was organized in 1849, the prime movers in the enterprise being the Brown Brothers, a Philadelphia banking firm; G. V. N.
Lothrop, Jacob S. Farrand, Theodore H. Eaton, Alexander Dey,
Lemuel H. Davis and others. They erected a small plant on Woodbridge street, between Fifth and Sixth streets, and commenced operation in 1851. The company charged $3.50 per thousand feet of gas, and
allowed a discount of five per cent. for payment within five days after
bills were due. At this rate none but the wealthy citizens could afford
the luxury, and the small consumption made the profits quite modest.
This scale of prices continued for about fifteen years, and then a
gradual reduction began. In 1872 the rate was $2.50 per thousand,
and the discount was more liberal than before. In this year the
Mutual Gas Company came into the field as a competitor, and for seven
years there was a bitter war between the old and new companies, the
latter reducing its general rates. The old company had long before
outgrown its small central plant, and in 1867 had established a west
side gas works at the foot of Twenty-first street, and east side works at
the foot of Chene street. The Mutual Company built its first works on
the river front, at the foot of Meldrum avenue, which was then some
distance outside the city limits, in the township of Hamtramck. The
promoters of the Mutual were Thomas Dean, William H. Fitch, E. W.
Meddaugh and Frederick E. Driggs. No sooner had the Mutual Company offered to supply patrons at a reduced rate, than the old company
went still lower, and prices went downward until private consumers
were using gas at fifty cents a thousand feet, and the city and a few
favored citizens paid but ten cents a thousand feet. People complained
of fast meters and high rates just as much as when they were paying
the gilt-edged figures, but gas came into general use because everybody could afford it. If people neglected to pay their bills, the companies did not press them for fear they would transfer their patronage
to the rival company. The more the business grew the heavier were
the losses of the rivals, for gas production had not been brought to a
451




high state of perfection. At last, when ruin was staring the companies
in the face, they came to their senses and agreed upon a compromise.
The companies divided the territory, the Mutual Company taking the
east side of Woodward avenue, and the old company the west side. Rates
then went up again and the people again clamored against the restoration of high prices. Matters went on thus for nearly fifteen years. In
the mean time the Ohio oil and gas fields were developed and a coterie
of enterprising Detroiters organized the Detroit Natural Gas Company
on April 30, 1886. Among the incorporators were O. W. Shipman, F.
G. Chidsey, Frank E. Snow, William A. Jackson, John B. Corliss, J.
D. Hawks, F. W. Hayes, Frank J. Hecker, Ashley Pond, W. C. McMillan, George Jerome and Henry B. Ledyard. This company obtained
a franchise from the city, bought a right of way from Toledo to Detroit
for laying their supply main, and for a number of years natural gas
from that source was largely used. In 1893 it began to fail, and the
pumping machinery employed to accelerate the flow was found insufficient.
In 1892 Mayor Pingree began a crusade against the two coal gas
companies, which were charging $1.50 in spite of the complaints of
their patrons. The mayor cited the ordinances which stipulated that
the companies were not to charge more than the average of the rates
paid in Toledo, Sandusky, Cleveland, Chicago and Buffalo, and showed
that Cleveland was paying but eighty cents a thousand for gas, while
the companies in that city were paying a percentage of their gross
earnings, amounting to about $20,000, into the city treasury. Mr. Pingree held that the companies stood convicted of violation of the ordinances. At the same time it was desirable that the companies should
secure extensions of franchises so that the bonds could be floated for
contemplated extensions and improvements. The struggle lasted three
years, and then all the companies were consolidated and a new company bought up the property of both the coal gas and the natural gas
companies. A franchise, granted in 1893, stipulated that the rate was
to be $1.15 a thousand for lighting, with a discount of fifteen cents a
thousand, and ninety cents for fuel with a discount of ten cents a thousand. Provision is made for further reductions as the consumption of
gas increases.
Some new gas wells which had been developed at Kingsville, Ont.,
were connected by pipe line in November, 1894, with Windsor, and
during the same month two pipe lines were laid across Detroit River,


452




THOMAS A. E. WEADOCK.








at the foot of Orleans street, thus affording connection with the natural
gas mains at Detroit. This gave a continuance of this service just as
it appeared to have failed for lack of supply. The laying of the two
pipes across the river was accomplished without employing divers, and
the ingenuity with which it was carried out attracted a great deal of
attention. On each side of the stream a long sloping trench was dug,
running down into the river. A section of the wrought iron main, 200
feet in length, was made up in this trench, the joints being strengthened
by heavy jackets of cast iron. This reinforcement was to prevent a
short bend at the joints, which would be certain to break the couplings.
When a section was ready to be hauled into the river a steel cable was
attached to the end, and the other end of the cable was carried across
the river, where it was passed through an enormous snatch block constructed for the purpose. Two locomotives were hitched to the Canadian end of the cable and they were operated by signal flags on the
American shore. When the section of the main had nearly all been
hauled into the river, the locomotives were signaled to stop pulling,
and another section was added to the first. The hauling was then resumed, and this process went on until one end of the main was hauled
out on the Canadian shore. So heavy was the mass of iron that seven
locomotives were required to make the final hauling. The two mains
were laid side by side and a light ship was anchored above them on the
" middle ground " in the river, to warn vessels from anchoring in the
vicinity of the pipes.
Detroit was one of the first cities of the United States to adopt the
electric arc lamp for street lighting. In 1879 the electric arc lamp was
advertised as a special attraction by traveling circuses, and Cleveland
soon introduced some arc lamps to encourage local enterprise. The
Brush Electric Light Company filed articles of association at Lansing
on June 22, 1880, and the incorporators were Wells W. Leggett, 1,990
shares; George N. Chase, 1,990 shares and William  M. Porter, 20
shares. They started in a very modest way to place their business before the Detroit public. A small Brush dynamo was installed in the
basement of the Free Press building, and a circuit of fifteen lights was
distributed among a few subscribers about the lower end of Woodward
avenue. In December, 1881, the company was reorganized on a larger
scale with a capital of $100,000. Isaac L. Lyon was the president and
Clarence A. Black, Joseph Black, Frank D. Black, James L. Edson,
Wells W. Leggett, Allan Bourn and E. M. Lyon were the stockholders.


453




In January, 1883, the business of the company had so increased that
the capital stock was increased to $300,000.
The Detroit Electric Light and Power Company was organized in
1889 and obtained a franchise October 10. The incorporators were
William B. Morgan, George H. Hammond, jr., Joseph B. Moore, Andrew Hair, G. E. Fisher, W. H. Fitzgerald, George M. Vail and
several others, including representatives of the Fort Wayne Electrical
Company.    Besides these companies, which were bitter rivals in
bidding for the city contract, charters were issued to the Edison
Electric Light Company, February 28, 1881; to the Excelsior Electric
Light Company May 10, 1884; to the Dorset Underground Service
Company September 22, 1885, and to the Edison Illuminating Company
July 13, 1886.
The Brush Electric Light Company was granted a franchise for
street lighting in 1882, but its offer to light the city for fifty cents per
lamp per night was rejected by the Common Council, because the gas
companies preferred to continue lighting the city and the large force
of lamp lighters employed by the city under the supervision of a gas
inspector would be thrown out of their jobs. Next year the offer was
renewed, but it was rejected by a vote of 17 to 7 by the Board of
Aldermen, but the City Council voted to have Woodward avenue
lighted by electricity from Adams avenue to the river, and Jefferson
avenue from Third to Brush streets. During that year twenty-four
lights were installed, displacing 116 gas lamps, and the service was so
satisfactory that the Brush Electric Light Company got the contract
for lighting the entire city in 1884, the price being $95,000. The company erected 133 towers, ranging from 104 to 150 feet in height, and
300 lights were furnished.
The Detroit Electric Light and Power Company was organized in
1889, and in the following year it underbid the Brush Company and
furnished 1,031 lamps for $133,716, whereas the Brush Company had
received $137,937 for furnishing 719 lamps during the previous year.
Mayor Pingree had urged the Common Council since 1890 to take
the necessary steps for establishing a municipal electric light plant, and
the question was submitted to popular vote in April, 1893. The people
voted 15,282 for it, and only 1,245 against it. The necessary legislation was secured, and the city issued bonds to the amount of $600,000
to defray the cost of erecting the plant. A site was obtained on the
river front, between Bates and Randolph streets, at a cost of $63,135,


454




and on this site the necessary buildings were erected at a cost of $72,248. The machinery selected was of the best available type at the time,
and when the plant was complete it had a capacity of 2,000 arc and
3,000 incandescent lamps. The total investment then amounted to
$739,222. In 1896 the city was operating but 1,600 arc lamps, the remainder of the plant being held in reserve for emergencies and extensions. The total cost for operating and maintaining the plant for the
year ending June 30, 1897, was $110,141. Of this amount about sixtyeight per cent. was for wages to employees and the balance for the
necessary supplies. According to this showing, the cost of operating
all night arc lamps 365 nights in a year, was $64.19 per lamp as against
$128, the lowest price paid the Detroit Electric Light and Power Company, and $183, the lowest price paid the Brush Company.
CHAPTER LXIV.
Cemeteries of Two Centuries in Detroit-The Heart of the City Built on the Bones
of a Forgotten Population-History of the Most Notable Graveyards-Thousands
Lie in Unmarked Graves Beneath Public Streets and Buildings.
Those who frequent the heart of the city of Detroit tread upon the
dust of a forgotten population. Three hundred yards back from the
river, between St. Antoine street on the east and Cass street on the
west, lie the bones of hundreds of former residents. The old cemetery
of St. Anne's church adjoined the edifice, and the spot where Griswold
street and Jefferson avenue intersect was in the very center of it.
Nearly all the Detroiters who died during the first century of the city's
history are buried there. A few of the graves were marked with
stones, but the majority were not. In 1817 the governor and judges
granted the parish of St. Anne a new plot, bounded by Cadillac square,
Lamed, Bates and Randolph streets, on condition that the original
site of the church and cemetery be dedicated to the town. Some of the
dead were removed to the new cemetery, but many were left to be exhumed by the workmen who afterward laid the foundations for buildings in the old ground. It is even asserted that some of the tombstones were broken up and used in the foundations of buildings now
standing on Jefferson avenue. During the British regime in Detroit
455




the space on the east side of Woodward avenue, bounded by Congress,
Bates and Lamed streets, was used as a burial place for the English
and other Protestant residents. Some of these remains were removed
when the English cemetery was granted by the governor and judges to
the First Protestant Society for church purposes, and the others were
removed from their resting place by the builders of the churches, which
were erected on that block between 1820 and 1830.
To provide more room for the dead, as they were crowded out by the
living, the city purchased a plat of two and one half acres from Antoine
Beaubien in 1827. This Beaubien purchase lay between Beaubien and
Hastings streets. Its southern boundary was about on the present line
of Clinton street, and its northern boundary was perhaps 100 feet south
of Gratiot avenue. The ground is now occupied by the Municipal
Court building, St. Mary's Hospital, the Detroit College of Medicine,
the Health office and Clinton park.  Antoine street was extended
through the plat. This cemetery was divided into two equal parts,
which were separated by a fence.  One-half was used by the Protestant residents and the other by the Catholics.  This burial place
was kept in a respectable condition for the first time in the history of
city cemeteries. In 1859 this cemetery was found to be too close to
the center of the town, and another purchase was made on Russell
street, a short distance north of Gratiot avenue. This was supposed to
be sufficiently remote for all time, but the Eastern Market and the
Detroit House of Correction now occupy the ground. The bodies were
removed to Elmwood and Mt. Elliott Cemeteries on the bank of Bloody
Run, and Woodmere Cemetery on the bank of the River Rouge. In
addition to the cemeteries already mentioned there was another hastily
improvised cemetery on the west side of Woodward avenue. After
the battle of the Thames, as already stated, a force of 1,100 men were
gathered at Detroit to prevent any attempt at recapture on the part of
the British. Of course the accommodations were inadequate for such
an army, and a little village of cabins was erected for the soldiers. It was
located on the north and west sides of Fort Shelby. That winter a
deadly epidemic attacked the camp and before it subsided several hundred soldiers died. As there was not room for them in the English
burying ground on Woodward avenue, between Lamed and Congress
streets, the dead were buried in the ground to the west of the military
cantonment. Some of the dead were removed in 1826, but it was too
soon after the epidemic, and the soil being saturated with the germs of


456




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GEORGE DINGWALL.




I




disease, another epidemic broke out among the citizens, and the work
was stopped. One of the victims was Henry J. Hunt, then mayor of
the city. The greater part of these dead bodies are still lying beneath
the basements of the buildings between Michigan avenue and Fort,
Cass and Griswold streets.
Mt. Elliott Cemetery was established in the eastern part of the city
and opened in the fall of 1841. The dead were transferred there from
St. Anne's churchyard and the Catholic plot in the city cemetery during the war of the Rebellion. Mt. Elliott contains fifty-three acres,
lying between Waterloo and Macomb streets, Mt. Elliott avenue and
Elmwood Cemetery, and in it are the remains of 38,000 persons.
The Catholic parishes have begun improving a new burial ground of
225 acres, situated at North Detroit, which is known as Mt. Olivet
Cemetery.
When the Russell street cemetery was discontinued a number of citizens banded together and purchased forty-one acres of land, which now
fronts on Elmwood avenue, lying along the banks of Bloody Run. It
was opened in 1846. A few of the bodies in the old city cemetery were
removed to Elmwood, as the new cemetery was named, but the city
removed 17,000 bodies to a tract of cheaper land on the banks of the
Rouge River near the old shipyard of Revolutionary days. The ground
was afterward called Woodmere Cemetery. Later purchases increased
the Elmwood Cemetery tract to eighty acres, extending from Waterloo
street within 150 feet of Champlain street. In this cemetery 33,000
bodies have been interred up to date (1898).
In the early days religious distinctions were rigidly observed. If a
Protestant married a Catholic wife, the wife would be buried in the
consecrated ground of Mt. Elliott and the husband in Elmwood, but
the old prejudices are dying out, although neither Catholic or Protestant have lost any of their grace. Occasionally a good Catholic is laid
beside husband or wife in Elmwood, and the officiating priest consecrates the grave. Since the two have dwelt together during life under
different creeds in peace and happiness, the church, which has grown
kinder, gentler and holier than of old, does not like to part husband
and wife in the grave. In connection with the removal of the bodies
from the cemetery on Antoine street, the persons in charge met a singular obstruction. In ground which is now occupied by St. Antoine
street, immediately in front of St. Mary's hospital, stood a rude slab of
slate, weather stained, mossgrown and sadly out of plumb. It marked


58




a sunken grave which was surfaced with cobblestones. The inscription, borrowed from that on Shakespeare's tomb, but somewhat altered,
read:
"In memory of Nathaniel Hickok, who died of cholera October 6, 1832.
"Good Friend, for Jesus' sake forbear
To dig the dust interred here;
Blest be the man who spares these stones,
And curst be he that moves my bones."
The grave diggers engaged in the work would sidle up to the grave,
spell out the inscription and then move away to some other lowly
mound to dig. In a short time every workman on the job had read the
inscription and had accepted it as a personal injunction. In vain the
bosses ordered them to the task of opening the grave; the men refused
to disturb either stones or bones, and for weeks that lone grave stood
in the way of public improvements. According to the traditions of the
Elmwood grave-diggers, a gentleman of the spade and mattock, who
was fond of stimulants, was induced to undertake the task by the
promise of extra rewards, but it is probable that the removal was obtained by keeping the workman in ignorance of the inscription. Na
thaniel Hickok's bones lay for thirty years in the city cemetery, and
they have rested peacefully in Elmwood for thirty-five.
In 1869 Woodmere Cemetery, on the banks of the Rouge River, was
opened for interments, and, as already stated, it started with the transfer of 17,000 bodies from the city cemetery. The tract covers 202
acres, and is divided in halves by a bayou of the sluggish river. Since
18693 the original interments have numbered 30,000, making a total of
47,000.
Forest Lawn Cemetery is a new burial plat of 130 acres opened at
North Detroit.
Most recent of all is the Woodward Lawn Cemetery of 130 acres,
located on the west side of Woodward avenue, beyond the Seven Mile
road. It is the intention of the promoters to make this cemetery one
of the most beautiful spots about Detroit.
The Lutheran Cemetery, situated on a tract of ten acres on Mt.
Elliott avenue, between Palmer and Farnsworth avenues, was dedicated on Pentecost day, Sunday, 1868. It was owned by Trinity German Lutheran church, and governed by a cemetery board. Provision
has been made for the perpetual maintenance of the cemetery after
all the lots are filled.


458




The Jewish (orthodox) Cemetery is located on the north side of
Smith avenue, west of Chene street. The Sha'are Zedek congregation
purchased the property, consisting of one and one-half acres, on June
22, 1862, for $450. In 1881 a tract of,0 by 132 feet, facing on Smith
avenue, was sold to the Casher Shell Barzel Society for $200, and the
latter society sold it to the Congregation Beth Jacob in 1884 for the
same price. On May 29, 1891, the Sha'are Zedek congregation purchased 53 by 413 feet of adjoining land, facing the south side of Harrah
avenue, for $1,000.
The Beth El (reform) congregation commenced a cemetery on land
adjoining Elmwood in 1850. In 1873 the congregation acquired a section of Woodmere Cemetery, and its deceased members have since been
buried there. The Free Sons of Israel have also a plot in the same
cemetery.
The Detroit Crematorium, for the incineration of the dead, was completed in 1887. It is located on the south side of Lafayette avenue,
between Govin street and Springwells avenue. It was erected by the
Michigan Cremation Association, a society established through the
efforts of Dr. Hugo Erichson, seconded by Moses W. Field, Dr. James
F. Noyes, Frank Foote, Dr. Justin E. Emerson and others. The land,
building and equipments cost nearly $7,500, and since its inception
about 300 bodies have been cremated. The society is prosperous, having over $1,000 in the treasury.
CHAPTER LXV.
Parks, Boulevards and Breathing Places Maintained for the People-History of
Belle Isle and its Various Owners-Palmer, Grand Circus, Clark and.Other Valuable
Lands Devoted to Public Use-The Older Parks Were Once Swamp Holes and
Dumping Grounds.
Belle Isle, the chief park of Detroit, and the favorite resort of its
citizens, has had a checkered history. For many years after the settlement was established the island was used as a public common. The
cattle and hogs of early days were placed on the island because they
were not likely to be lost by straying, and the Indians could not drive
them  away into the wilderness.  Many residents looked upon the
459




island with covetous eyes, but for half a century none of them had the
hardihood to attempt acquisition to the exclusion of all public rights.
Hogs multiply more rapidly than cattle, and the number which roamed
the island caused the French residents to substitute the name Ile au
Cochon (Hog Island), for the former Indian name, Man-nan-be-zee
(White Swan). In 1752 Douville Dequindre slyly obtained a grant of
the island from Governor Longeuil at Quebec, but when he attempted
to take possession the people rose unanimously against the grant, and
the land continued as a public domain. A portion of the island was
cultivated, under direction of the various commandants, for the benefit
of the garrison, and the practice was continued after the English had
taken possession of the country. No claim of ownership was made
even by the commandants, because the people always regarded the
island as theirs by right.
Lieut. James McDonald was the first British resident in charge of
the island, and in 1762 Lieut. George McDougall succeeded him. He
built a house on the island, lived in it with his family and cleared some
of the timber land. When the Pontiac war commenced McDougall had
given up his residence and returned to the fort, while James Fisher
lived with his wife and four children in the house on the island. There
is reason to believe that several of the soldiers of the fort were occasionally employed in tilling the open spaces. During Fisher's absence the
Indians murdered Mrs. Fisher and two of the older children, and carried
away the two younger ones. They laid in wait for the return of
Fisher, who had accompanied Sir Robert Devers, Captain Robinson
and others, to the St. Clair flats to search out the best channel for navigation. The entire party was massacred on their return. Twentyfour head of cattle were also butchered on the island. Lieut. George
McDougall, who had been captured through treachery on the part of
the Indians during the early days of the siege, made his escape and
soon after the end of the war he married Mary Navarre, daughter of
Robert Navarre, the honored notary of the French colony. McDougall
was popular with the military men and his marriage gave him the
friendship of the French. He applied for a grant of the island, and
after a long correspondence and a good deal of wire pulling, the king,
George III, granted him temporary occupation, subject to the good
will of the Indians. The Indians ceded all claims in consideration of
eight barrels of rum, three pounds of vermilion and a few trinkets, a
total value of $950, and McDougall took possession in 1763. The


460




,IOW- F
Moore             -14








people again protested, but this time they had to deal with the king
instead of the governor, and McDougall refused to either surrender his
title or to arbitrate.
After the war of the Revolution, when Great Britain saw that the
island must eventually become an American possession, the title was
fully confirmed by the crown. John Robert McDougall and George
McDougall, jr., succeeded to the possession obtained by their father.
They sold their title to William Macomb for about $7,500 in 1794, and
Macomb's three sons, John, William and David, inherited it. Their
title was recognized by the United States when the latter came into
possession. By the partition of his father's estate David B. Macomb
became the owner.   In 1817 he sold it to Barnabas Campau for
$5,000.  During all these years of private possession the people
assumed certain rights on Hog Island. They wandered through the
woods at will, held their picnics on the island, and quarrelsome
gentlemen settled their disputes there according to the dueling
code. When the steamer Henry Clay arrived at Detroit with a regiment
of soldiers en route for the Black Hawk war in July, 1832, one of
the soldiers was attacked with cholera, and the steamer was sent to Hog
Island for quarantine. Some of the passengers died and were buried
on the island while the boat was waiting for supplies. Lieut. Arthur
Rankin, of Windsor, and Henry Richardson, fought there in November,
1836, and the latter was severely wounded. On July 4, 1845, a party was
organized to go to Hog Island and formally rechristen the popular resort.
Morgan Bates, a'printer in the Tribune office, was one of the party.
They landed at the foot of the island and held their meeting on the lawn.
After some preliminary addresses Jacob Wilkie Moore made a motion
that the name be changed to Belle Isle. It was promptly seconded; the
question was put by Mr. Bates, and the name was adopted unanimously.
Mr. Bates then raised aloft a pitcher of water and pouring it out on the
ground declared that henceforth the island should be known as Belle Isle.
The assembly then joined in singing " America." The survivors of that
steamboat party are Senator Thomas Palmer, who was a boy of fifteen
years of age at that time, and John Sabine. The consent of Barnabas
Campau, the owner, was not asked. From Barnabas Campau possession
descended to his children, Mrs. Angelique Piqfiett, Emilie Campau,
John Barnabas Campau and Alexander Macomb Campau. They sold
to the city in 1879 for $200,000, and it is now restored to the people for
all time. The name was officially changed to Belle Isle Park in 1881.


461




It contains about 720 acres and its area is slowly increasing by deposits
of the river on the north-east and west sides. In addition to the purchase price of Belle Isle the park and boulevard commission has spent
$742,782 for improvements and $513,726 for maintenance, making a
total expenditure up to 1897 of $1,456,508.
Next in size and importance to Belle Isle is Palmer Park, consisting
of 120 acres, part timbered and part cleared land. The former is to
be known as Witherell Woods, in honor of Judge Witherell, and the
latter as Merrill Plaisance in honor of Charles Merrill. The park was
donated to the city by Hon. Thomas W. Palmer, and the sections are
named after the ancestors of Mr. and Mrs. Palmer. This park is
located six miles from the city hall, on Woodward avenue. In the
course of time it will become the chief resort of the people of the
northern part of the city.
Clark Park, a tract of twenty-four and three quarters acres of heavily
timbered land, lying between Clark and Scotten avenues in the southwestern part of the city, was half donated by John P. Clark and half
purchased by the city. It is already a very popular resort. The other
parks of the city are Medbury Park, of eight and one-fourth acres;
Grand Circus Park, five and one-half acres; Cass Park, five acres; John
Owen Park, four acres; Joseph Perrien Park, four and one-half acres;
Adelaide Campau Park, one and one-fifth acres; Clinton, Macomb,
West, Stanton, Elton, Crawford, Capitol Square and Recreation Parks.
Each of the last-named parks covers one acre or less of ground. Some
of them were old swales or slough holes, and were used at first as
dumping grounds, and in time, as they became filled up, they were donated to the city by their owners. General Cass donated Cass Park,
but the Capitol Square, Library Park, Grand Circus Park and the
Campus Martius were contemplated in Governor Woodward's plan of
the city. The Campus Martius was originally quite a little hill, descending on the south to the sluggish creek called the Ruisseau de
Rurtus by the French, and the Savoyard River by the English, who
came later. As the population grew dense about this stream, it became
a foul smelling open sewer. After the first sewer was laid along its
course, between 1828 and 1836, enough earth was taken from the summit of the campus to make an easy grade from Fort street to Lamed
across the bed of the stream. Previous to 1846 Grand Circus Park
was a forbidding looking place. It was a large spring hole, where
wild fowls sometimes gathered to feed. In 1846 the ground was drained


462




and then filled with several feet of earth. Later, trees were planted
and walks were laid out. The west side was first improved. From
the beginning of the war until 1875 the park was surrounded by a high
board fence to preserve it from molestation.
The Grand Boulevard, which encircles the greater part of the city,
was projected about twenty years ago, and the first legislation was secured in 1879. Commissioners were appointed from the townships of
Hamtramck, Greenfield and Springwells to act in conjunction with the
mayor and the Board of Public Works. The boulevard was surveyed
in 1882, and dedicated the same year. It encircles the city, is 200 feet
wide, and is over eleven miles in length.
CHAPTER LXVI.
The City and County Poor Department-Detroit Was Slow in Providing for the
Poor-The Cholera Epidemics Filled the Town with Helpless Orphans-Father
Kundig's Herculean Labors-Purchase of the Black Horse Tavern Site-Horrors of
the Old Crazy House.
According to the sacred Scriptures, the poor are always with us, yet
Detroit existed for 127 years before the people at large took steps toward establishing a county poorhouse. Immigrants who came west at
an early day were able bodied persons and self-supporting. In the
spring of 1828 the people of Wayne county voted on the question of
establishing a building for the care of the invalid poor, but the " noes "
predominated. Again in 1830 the question came to a popular vote and
it carried. On March 3, 1831, the Legislature authorized the supervisors to take steps toward the purchase of a site and the erection of a
suitable building. Supervisors H. M. Campbell, Shubael Conant and
D. French were appointed a committee to choose a site, and they
selected a plot on the Lieb farm, fronting on the south side of Gratiot
avenue. This was purchased at a cost of $200, and Supervisor French
took the contract for erecting a building at $950. A long one-story
building was erected on Gratiot avenue, and the cheapest material obtainable was used. J. P. Cooley was appointed keeper, and the institution was opened in January, 1833. The cholera epidemic of 1832 had
just subsided, leaving many debilitated persons and many orphans.


463




Some of these found temporary homes on the poor farm. In 1834 the
plague returned to Detroit with redoubled violence and its ravages were
frightful. Fifteen children and a number of adults were given shelter
in the county house because there was no other home for them. Bishop
Rese saw that there was a lack of proper care for these charges, and at
his request the Sisters of Charity were placed in charge of the instistitution.
Rev. Martin Kundig, who had just been promoted from the office of
assistant in St. Anne's church to the pastorate of Holy Trinity, turned
his church into a hospital and his duties carried him so frequently to
the poor farm that he was made superintendent of the poor in 1834 and
served until 1838. Never was a more disastrous honor conferred upon
a worthy man. The county allowed him sixteen cents a day for the
care and food of each inmate, but provisions were high and it cost him
nearer twenty-five cents a day to keep them in comfort. As there
were over one hundred charges and sixty of them confirmed invalids,
the good father's funds were soon exhausted and he began to pile up a
personal debt. In 1837 the county raised the per diem allowance
to twenty-two cents a day, as the inmates had increased to about 300
persons, but the increase in the allowence made no difference, as none
of it was paid. Father Kundig assumed the personal responsibility of
the institution, and the crash came in 1838. Creditors seized all his
personal property, invading the poorhouse and carrying off everything
portable. It was a calamity that tested the faith of the priest in that
providence which is said to protect the widow and the fatherless. The
State allowed Father Kundig $3,000, but this was but a fraction of his
indebtedness. In later years he paid all his debts from his salary.
The poor farm, which consisted of about twenty-five acres, was located on the Lieb farm, on the north side of Gratiot avenue, just west
of Mt. Elliott avenue, and extending northerly from Gratiot avenue to
what is now Ferry avenue. On the west side of the farm, running
north and south was a roadway, which was called Kundig's railroad.
On it was a line of wooden rails, extending beyond the poor farm to a
wood lot, which was leased by Father Kundig, the poormaster. Trucks
run on these rails transported saw logs to Gratiot avenue, and from
thence were taken to a saw mill, where they were converted into boards,
and sold for the benefit of the institution.
In 1839 the supervisors decided to sell the Lieb farm property, and
they purchased in that year 160 acres on the Chicago road, sixteen
464




DAVID W. BROOKS.








miles out Michigan avenue, near the present village of Wayne. It was
known as the Samuel Torbet farm, and the owner had established what
was known as the Black Horse Tavern on the road. Torbet was a victim of wildcat banking speculation, and he was forced to sell his land
for $800. Another farm of 120 acres adjoined the first purchase, and
this was bought for $800. The old log tavern consisted of two separate buildings joined under one roof, and it was the first stopping place
for the stages traveling westward from Detroit. Whisky was sold for
a penny a glass, and the convivial consumers often indulged in wild
orgies and free fights. This old tavern was fitted up for a poorhouse
and on April 11, 1839, the poor charges were moved into it. After six
years the accommodations were found inadequate, and the superintendents built a new house at a cost of $4,515. This money provided a
three-story structure, 118 by 37 feet. The bricks were made on the
land and the county supplied most of the material. The walls were
but two bricks thick and it was never a safe structure, but it remained
standing until 1895, when the commissioners had it pulled down to
make room for the present four story structure. For many years the
buildings were heated by stoves and lighted by lamps. Considering
the number of careless and irresponsible inmates who constantly occupied the building, it is a wonder that the poorhouse was not destroyed
by fire and half the inmates burned. The old Gratiot avenue property
was sold in 1846 for $1,124. An east wing for the new county house
was built by Stephen Martin 1856, and a northwest wing was added
three years latter. Most of the buildings were very unsafe in their
construction, the expenditures being in all cases screwed down to the
limit, and in 1887 the superintendent condemned the buildings and
recommended that better ones be built as soon as possible. The suggestion was acted upon, and the erection of the substantial buildings
which now occupy the grounds was commenced very soon.
The County Insane Asylum, which is now the most conspicuous
building on the county farm, developed from a small frame building
erected in 1841, which was known as the " crazy house." Within this
building the demented and incurable insane were penned, and had it
been visited by one of the fin de siecle horror-hunters, he would have
found plenty of material for several hair-raising sketches. Harmless
idiots and dangerous lunatics were confined together, and the number
of attendants was not sufficient to keep the place clean or to properly
care for the unfortunates. They slept on straw, were fed through
465
59




grated windows like wild beasts, and their cages were seldom cleansed.
To add to theunpleasantness of their situation the building was raised
sufficiently off the ground to afford lodgings for the swine of the farm,
and the place smelled to heaven. In vain did the superintendents appeal to the mercy of the people. The taxpayers would not provide
better accommodations until the physicians of Detroit went out in a
body to view the poor farm in 1868. Their report was so graphic that
during the next year the taxpayers opened their purses and erected a
two story brick building, which, with its wings, made a frontage of 114
feet. It cost $24,000, and the insane patients were transferred to it in
August, 1869. Still there was a lack of attendance, and in 1873 a committee of aldermen made an inspection. Philo Parsons wrote a scathing report of their findings, and two years later the Board of Supe -
visors remedied the existing evils. Inmates are now classified, and
they all receive humane care. The buildings are supplied with pure
water, which is elevated by steam pumps. Bathrooms are provided
on every floor, and a system of water mains and hydrants connects with
the pumps and affords excellent fire protection.
The county farm now consists of 440 acres, which, without the buildings, is worth about $37,000. The large insane asylum building is
appraised at $103,000; the county house buildings are valued at $120,000; and the other buildings are worth about $30,000. At the present
time the insane department has 350 inmates, 161 of whom are males.
A few of them are private patients, whose board is paid by friends.
There are 408 inmates in the county house, and 334 of these are males.
The employees and attendants number about 100, making about 850
persons living on the county farm. According to the terms of the State
law the county pays for the keeping of insane patients during the first
two years of their sojourn at the asylum, and thereafter they become
State charges. The county receives nearly $30,000 from the State each
year under the provisions of this law. The average cost of supporting
the city poor who are not inmates of the county house, is between $55,000 and $60,000. This includes temporary assistance to families whose
bread winners are out of employment, widows and decrepit persons
who are unable to entirely support themselves, and families which are
temporarily in distress through sickness. The amount of this expenditure is in proportion to the lack of employment in the city. In the
winter of 1893, when there was little work, and the intense cold made
unusual demands upon the poor commission for food and fuel, the ex

46G




pense was $157,000. In 1894 there was more work and the expense
dropped to $115,000. During the dark days of 1893 the charitable people of Detroit came to the rescue of the poor commission when that department was swamped by the flood of applications. Depots of temporary relief were established in several parts of the city. Clothing, food,
fuel and other necessaries of life were called for and the response was
so generous that stores were rented and special relief committees employed to take charge of the distribution. The admirable system of
inspection and the carefully kept records of the poor commission proved
of inestimable value in helping on this good work. Fraudulent claimants were numerous but were invariably detected. Special inspectors
made personal investigation in all cases and the charity of the people
was well bestowed.
The act creating the Poor Commission was passed in 1879, and on
May the first board of commissioners was appointed. The first commissioners were Thomas Berry, A. W. Copeland, Henry Heames and
Joseph B. Moore. The present commissioners are John Naylon, Thomas
Barium, Louis H. Beck, and A. C. Varney; P. H. Dwyer is secretary
and John F. Martin superintendent, each having served the city faithfully during a long term of office. A free dispensary and city physicians' office is connected with the office in the Municipal building on
Clinton street, and the affairs of the department are conducted as
economically as is consistent with humanity.
Before 1885 the county insane asylum and poorhouse was under the
control of three county superintendents of the poor, who are appointed
by the county auditors. As Detroit furnishes ninety per cent. of the
inmates, it was naturally considered proper that the Detroit Poor Commission should have a voice in its affairs. A bill was passed by the
Legislature of 1885 making the commissioners members of the Board
of County Superintendents of the Poor, and this was declared constitutional by the Supreme Court. The four poor commissioners now
have a majority on the County Board and serve without compensation
in both capacities. The three county superintendents of the poor each
receive $50 per month, and they have no jurisdiction in city poor
affairs.


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CHAPTER LXVII.


History of the Detroit Fire Department-Fierce Rivalry of the Early Volunteer
Companies-The Men of the Hand Engines Surrender to the Steam Engines-Notable Fires of the Past Century.
Cities of the present day have little to fear from foes without. It is
the foes within which they are unable to shake off. Fire, riot, and
pestilent maladies which arise from unsanitary conditions, are the
enemies most to be dreaded. American cities, which are so largely
made up of wooden structures, are in constant danger from fire and
millions of dollars are annually expended for protection against the destroying element.
Detroit was completely swept away by the fire of 1805, as has already
been related, and when the city was rebuilt extraordinary precautions
were used to guard against a repetition of the catastrophe. To maintain a regular paid fire department in the early days was out of the
question, and a compulsory fire department became a necessity. All
able bodied men in the city, without respect to wealth or station, were
required to act in some capacity as fire fighters. Under English and
American rule a detail of the soldiers of the garrison had charge of the
ancient fire engine, which consisted of rude tank mounted on wheels,
containing a double force pump operated by brakes. The water was
projected from a curious "goose-neck," terminating in a metallic nozzle, which could be turned in any direction and raised or lowered to
any desired angle. The suction of the pumps was insufficient, and to
make up this deficiency lines of bucket men passed water and poured
it into the tank of the engine. The first engines were rickety affairs at
best, and were constantly out of repair. It was a failure of the engine
which gave the fire of 1805 full sweep. Firemen were divided into several departments. Axemen were selected from the best choppers in
the settlement, and most of these were Frenchmen. Bagmen were selected from the men of lesser thews and sinews, and they were usually
the merchants and professional men of mature years. Adventurous
young fellows of the dare-devil sort were made laddermen, and they


468




DAYTOIN PARKER, MA. D.








scaled the two story roofs to dash water on blazing thatch or down the
roaring chimneys. Firehook men were those who tore down blazing
ruins, and the battering ram men dashed the old log houses to
pieces when there was no longer hope of saving them. When the old
hydraulic works were completed wooden hydrants were placed at convenient places along the streets, to which leather hose could be attached for supplying the fire engine. A huge steel triangle was set up
on a post for sounding alarms. Rewards were bestowed on men who
first reached the triangle to announce that a fire was in progress, and
the entire town turned out to work with furious zeal until the blaze
was extinguished.
The names of the men composing the first fire company have been
given in earlier pages of this work, but in 1827 a second company was
added. It consisted of Robert A. Forsyth, Edmund A. Brush, Ralph
Wadhams, Darius Lamson, Felix Hinchman, Charles C. Trowbridge,
Henry S. Cole, Walter L. Newberry, S. E. Mason, John L. Whiting,
David Cooper, Joseph W. Torrey, O. Penniman, Marshall Chapin, William S. Abbott, Charles C. P. Hunt, Simon Poupard, Eurotas P. Hastings, Theodore Williams, James W. Hinchman, Jeremiah Van Rensselaer Ten Eyck, Josiah R. Dorr, John Kinzie, Melvin Dorr, John Smyth,
John J. Deming, Shubael Conant, Alanson M. Hurd, George F. Porter,
Thomas Rowland and John W. Seymour. This contains a number of
historic names. In fact it was quite the proper thing for young men
who had social or political ambitions to connect themselves with the
fire department, for the firemen of seventy years age was as much idolized
by the fair sex as is the shaggy and uncouth hero of the football field
in this fin de siecle period. In 1830 there were more ambitious young
men yearning to be idolized, and a third company was formed. There
was soon occasion for all the firemen the town could muster. On April
26, Ulysses G. Smyth, an intemperate printer, employed in the Gazette
office, revenged himself upon his employers, who had discharged him
for cause, by setting the Gazette building on fire. It was totally destroyed, and in addition to that structure the stores of Major Brooks
and Mr. Griswold, the offices of John Smith, Thomas Palmer and Dr.
T. B. Clark, and the homes of John Smith and Judge McDonnell were
also consumed. Smith was convicted of arson and served five years in
prison. In this fire the water supply was deficient, and the Common
Council afterward established a number of small cisterns at the street
corners. Then the first hook and ladder company was formed.
469




Firemen-were generally candidates for public honors, and as the companies which proved most active and effective carried off the lion's.
share, a bitter rivalry sprang up between the companies. All sorts of
tricks were played to forward individual interests and to hamper the
movements of rivals. If a fireman saw a fire start he would pass the
quarters of his rivals and avoid giving a general alarm until he had
notified his associates, so that they might be able to get to the blaze
ahead of the other companies. They would slip out as quietly as possicle and run at top speed, dragging their engine after them. As the
streets were not paved the roadway was often rough or muddy, and
although it was strictly forbidden, the fire laddies would take to the
sidewalk, two men running on ahead of the " masheen" to warn pedestrians out of the way. The first company to get a stream on a fire was
greeted with cheers by the bystanders. Ladies rushed to the vicinity
of the fire, and in adjacent buildings made hot coffee, which was passed
about among the workers, who were the heroes of the hour. This
rivalry became so bitter that in 1833 Company No 2 refused to work
at a fire because they had been outstripped by the other companies.
For this cause the Common Council disbanded the company and new
men took the places of the malcontents. In 1844 the fire department
consisted of four engine companies, two independent hose companies
and one hook and ladder company, numbering in all about 150 men,
all volunteers. In January, 1849, two more companies were organized,
Union No. 7, and Mechanics No. 8.
The first steam fire engine seen at Detroit was one which stopped on
its way to Chicago in 1859, and next year the Common Council of Detroit purchased a steamer from the Amoskeag Company of New Hampshire at a cost of $3,150. For a time there was another rivalry between
the hand engines and the steamer, the men of the old regime fighting
with might and main to outdo the power of steam; but in 1865 the last
hand engine went out of use, and brawn and zeal surrendered. No
civic holiday or public parade was complete in the early days without
a display of the fire department, and the companies strove to outdo one
another in neatness of dress, decoration of machines, and general appearance. They assisted in the parade which honored President James
Monroe when he visited Detroit in August, 1817, and were always in
evidence on July 4, and other summer holidays. At first some convenient barn served as an engine house. When the Eagle Engine Company was organized in 1819 the members met at the house of Capt. H.
470




Sanderson, who had charge of the engine, and spent one hour every
Monday morning in practicing with the machine. A little later an engine house was built at the northwest corner of Larned and Bates
streets. In 1850 James A. Van Dyke, who was a veteran of the department, raised $8,000 for a fireman's hall fund, and in the following
year a hall was built at the southwest corner of Jefferson avenue and
Randolph street, on the site of the old council house. When a paid
fire department was established in 1867 the old volunteers maintained
their organization and continued it until 1886. At that time the property at the corner of Jefferson and Randolph was sold to the Water
Board for $26,000. A portion of the money was used to endow beds
for injured firemen in Harper, St. Mary's and St. Luke's Hospitals, and
another part was divided among the surviving members, but the greater
part, about $20,000, was distributed among the widows and orphans of
deceased members.
Detroit has had its share of disastrous fires. The first notable fire,
later than 1805, was the brewery owned by General Cass and operated
by Abbott & Converse, which burned on October 4, 1825. All the firemen could do was to preserve the other buildings in the neighborhood.
It was immediately rebuilt but was burned again in September, 1827.
The Gazette office, as previously stated, was burned in 1830.
On April 27, 1837, a fire broke out in a bakery on Woodbridge street,
near Woodward avenue, and before it could be controlled most of the
old wooden buildings between Woodbridge and Atwater, Woodward
avenue and Randolph streets, including the Free Press Building, were
destroyed. The loss was about $200,000.
On New Year's day, 1842, the block bounded by Woodward avenue,
Woodbridge, Griswold and Atwater streets was destroyed. The fire
broke out in an old tavern which stood on the site of the Mariner's
church, and it destroyed the office of the Pree Press for the second
time in its history. The total damage was $200,000.
On May 9, 1848, a fire began on the river front near Bates street,
and it destroyed nearly every building between Bates and Beaubien
streets south of Jefferson avenue. The damage was about $200,000.
A number of historic buildings were destroyed, including the old council house, Woodworth's Steamboat Hotel, Berthelet's Market and the
old mansion built by Governor Hull, the first brick building erected in
Detroit. At that time it was used as a hotel and managed by Austin
Wales.


471




November 20, 1850, saw the destruction of the Michigan Central depot
building, 100 by 800 feet in size, and with it ten cars and a considerable quantity of freight. The loss was $150,000.
Two years later, January 10, 1854, a fire broke out in a boot and
store at the southeast corner of Woodward avenue and Lamed street.
The wind carried the flames across Lamed to the old Presbyterian
church, and while the firemen were on the roof trying to save the
structure the flames shot up the inside of the tall columns of the porch.
This gave such a draft that the spire was soon wrapped in flames and
the church was doomed. This loss was about $50,000.
Fire destroyed several buildings at the northeast corner of Woodw.ird and Jefferson avenues on the site of the present Merrill building,
February 5, 1853, inflicting $100,000 damage.
On April 2, 1862, when the transportation of troops to the war in the
South was making excessive demands upon the railroads, the Michigan
Central round house was destroyed by fire, and with it nine passenger
locomotives, valued at $90,000.
Four months later Wight's mammoth saw mill on the river front
was destroyed, involving a loss of $75,000.
The Michigan Central was again the victim of fire in October, 1865.
The fire caught in the western end of the great train shed, and was
swept eastward by a strong breeze. James R. Elliott, the present
chief, was then pipeman, and he was stationed on the north side of the
fire to protect a huge warehouse which stood on Third street. The
street was a mass of flame and the embers fell in such a heavy shower
that the boards used to save the hose from burning were constantly
blazing. Citizens warned Elliott and his four assistants to leave the
spot, as they and the engine were in great danger. Even Mayor K. C.
Barker ordered them away, but they refused to go without orders from
Chief Battle, and the heroic efforts of the five prevented the fire from
spreading. At this fire an explosion of benzine nearly cost Elliott his
life. Engine No. 5 was on the river bank at the foot of Third street,
and Engineers Francis Beaufort and Reilly and Fireman John Kendall,
now assistant chief, remained at their post until their coats were burned
from their backs  In making a dash to escape destruction each of them
received many burns and lost hair, whiskers and eyebrows.
One of the most appalling fires in the history of the city was that of
April 26, 1866, which destroyed the Detroit & Milwaukee depot and
much adjoining property. At ten o'clock that evening the dock and
472




OTTO LANG, M. D.








the freight house was a scene of bustling activity. The ferry boat
Windsor was unloading a cargo of merchandise on the wharf, and a
gang of warehousemen was loading a freight car with twenty-five barrels of naphtha. Alongside of the freight train which was being loaded
stood a passenger train full of people which was to pull out in a few
minutes. One of the men engaged in handling the naphtha called out:
" One of these barrels is leaking pretty bad." The boss of the freight
handlers ran up with his lantern to examine the barrel. There was a
blinding flash which seemed to fill the air all around. The men staggered back with singed eyebrows and beards, and before they could
realize their danger the barrel exploded, throwing its burning contents
over them, setting both the car and all the other barrels on fire. Explosions followed thick and fast as barrel after barrel blew up. The
men, the freight train, the passenger train, the ferryboat and the adjoining buildings were all swathed in fire. Some of the men plunged
into the river and made their escape; others, thirty-four in number,
fled on board the ferry boat. The flames rolled over the side of the
boat so fiercely that they could not cast off the head line, and by the
time it had burned off the boat was in a blaze. The Windsor drifted
helplessly down the river, and the panic stricken passengers begged
the people on shore to save them from destruction. The wind blew the
burning vessel with its living freight toward the docks at the foot of
Woodward avenue, and but for the prompt action of tugs several vessels would have been destroyed. Brady's warehouse was also in danger. The ferry boat Detroit, in charge of Captain Innes, fastened a line
to the Windsor and dragged her away from the dock, while the crew of
the U. S. revenue cutter John Sherman put off in boats to rescue the
people, who were jumping into the river to escape death by fire. Several other persons put off in row boats to assist in the rescue. The
Windsor was towed near the marine "boneyard," below Sandwich
Point, on the Canadian side  The tow line burned off and the Detroit
pushed her ashore with her bow. Captain Clinton, of the burned boat,
was left on the wharf, being unable to reach his boat, and it was left
in command of mate William Firby. The fire, however, advanced so
fast that the boat was helpless from the first, and those who were down
in the hold were unable to escape to the deck. Seventeen persons were
lost on the Windsor. The passenger train in the Detroit & Michigan
depot was blocked by some freight cars ahead and could not escape.
Many of the passengers were already in their sleeping berths, and al473
60




though the colored porter tore them out of their beds and told them to
fly for their lives, several were badly burned. D. M. Gardner, of Cascade, Kent county, Mich., was suffocated and burned in one of the cars.
In this great catastrophe eighty cars were destroyed and also the depot
and warehouses, and all the buildings along the river front, between
Brush and Hastings streets. The loss amounted to $1,000,000.
The Frederick Stearns laboratory, on the west side of Woodward
avenue, near Lamed street, was twice damaged by fire in 1871. April
13, 1873, saw the destruction of the Tribune Building, on the north
side of Lamed street, between Shelby and Griswold. Besides the
complete loss of the Tribune plant, the Calvert Lithographing works,
the offices of the Michigan Farmer and Commercial Advertiser, and
the book and job printing house of James E. & William A. Scripps was
destroyed. The loss was $112,000. The Weber Furniture factory, at
the corner of High and John R. streets, was burned to the ground on
April 29, 1875. The main building was 75 by 285 feet, and seven
stories high, with a wing 100 feet long. The fire raged with great
fury and the department could only restrain it from spreading to the
adjoining buildings.  The loss was $225,000.  A picturesque fire
occurred March 25, 1876, when the Fort street Presbyterian Church
burned. Its spire was the tallest in the city, and after burning like a
giant torch until the supports gave way, it fell diagonally across Third
street without damaging other buildings. Once more the Free Press
was visited by fire in 1878. On the morning of April 29, the same
month in which its two former fires had occurred, the building took
fire just as the paper was going to press. A gas meter exploded, and
the pressman hurried the forms out of the building so that they could
be printed on the Tribune presses. While one fireman was at work in
the upper story, and eight more on top, the roof collapsed and the men
were supposed to be lost. Fortunately the upper floor stood the shock,
and they were rescued. A Backus & Sons' planing mill burned October 24, 1882, with a loss of $168,000. The efficient work of the firemen
saved 15,000,000 feet of lumber in the adjoining yard.
One of the most appalling fires in the history of the city was that of
January, 1886, when D. M. Ferry & Company's great seed house
burned. It was a huge building filling the half square between Brush
and Champlain streets, Monroe avenue and the alley east of Randolph
street. As the building was filled with light, combustible material, it
was a solid mass of fire in a few minutes. The water mains in that
474




locality were so small that sufficient water could not be obtained, and
the fire department had a hard task in restraining the fire at all. In a
few minutes the flames had crossed the alley and the row of buildings
fronting on Randolph street, including White's Opera House, were
burning as fiercely as the rest. Capt. Richard Filban stood on a ladder
in front of the opera house directing his company, when the cornice
against which the ladder was leaning gave way and falling outward
dragged a part of the wall with it. Captain Filban was thrown to the
pavement sixty feet below and was instantly killed. The loss by this
fire was $1, 000, 000.
The High School, which stood on the site of the old capitol building,
was destroyed by fire January 27, 1893. On November 23, 1893,
occurred the calamitous fire which destroyed the wholesale dry goods
house of Edson, Moore & Co. During the noon hour the store was
nearly empty, part of the employees being absent at lunch. A number
of the clerks and the janitor and elevator boy were on the fifth floor,
where a large quantity of cotton batting and light goods were stored.
It is supposed that one of them, in violation of the strict rule, was
smoking a cigarette, and that a spark fell among the cotton. Suddenly
the inmates of the room were startled to see fire running like a powder
train all over the floor. They shouted an alarm to the janitor, who was
in an adjoining room, and flew about frantically trying to put out the
blaze. The elevator boy, Eddie Leach, shouted for them to go down
with him, but they were too excited to heed his calls and he let the elevator drop. E. W. Paycheck, another boy, opened a window fronting
on Jefferson avenue and throwing out a rope, of which several had been
placed to serve as fire escapes, slid to the stone sidewalk below. The
janitor rushed through a door leading to an iron fire escape in the rear
of the building, but so swiftly did the flames follow that his hat was
burned off and his hair singed. This left seven young men in the
room. They were crazed with excitement from groping about in the
fire, and when they thought of escape, but two of them, Bradley Dun.
ning and James McKay, were able to reach the window. The fire rolling out of the windows forced them to hang by their hands to the hot
window sills, with a drop of seventy feet below them. Both became
exhausted and dropped to the ground before ladders could be raised.
Thev were both fatally injured and died within an hour. The five
others, Edward Genther. Henry Ryder, Patrick Markey, Ed. N. Viot
and Daniel Baker, were suffocated and fell with the floors to the base475




ment, where their charred bodies were found two days later. The
financial loss was $500,000.
On the morning of October 5, 1894, some shavings in the basement
of Keenan & Jahn's furniture store, on Woodward avenue, took fire,
and the draft of the elevator shaft quickly drew the flames to the top
of the building. The entire store was on fire by the time the department reached the spot. With characteristic hardihood the firemen invaded every floor, fighting the flames from front and rear. In an hour
the fierceness of the fire was much subdued, although the floors and
joists were badly charred and the walls were giving out the heat of a
furnace. A number of firemen were stationed in the alley at the rear
of the building, and those in front were ordered into the windows on
the second floor to assist in drowning the fire. At this moment, without an instant's warning, the elevator tank on the roof, which had been
placed there long after the building was built, and had never been
given perfect support, crashed downward through the five floors of
the building. The shock caused the walls in front and rear to buckle
outward, and they descended in an avalanche of red hot bricks and
mortar. Sixteen men were caught in the ruins, and six of them were
instantly killed. Those who lost their lives were Lieut. Michael Donaghue, John W. Pagel, Joseph R. Dely, Martin Ball, Julius G. Cummings and Fred J. Bussy. The latter was not a member of the department, but was assisting in the work. Ten others, who were more or
less injured, recovered in the city hospitals, but several were scarred and
crippled for life.
About midnight, July 10, 1895, the Case livery barn on Congress
street, near Shelby, took fire in the haymow. A number of the stable
men were sleeping on the same floor. It was supposed that one of
them had been smoking a cigarette. Part of them fled to the roof, and
others were rescued from the windows. All of the horses in the basement were saved except two. When the ruins were searched after the
fire had been extinguished, the charred bodies of James R. Shaw, John
Shaw, John Bowman, John H. Webb, Charles Davis and Edward
Hughes were found in the upper part of the building, where they had
been smothered and partially burned.
What is known as the Journal Building disaster occurred about 9
o'clock on the morning of November 6, 1895. The Detroit Journal
occupied a building belonging to the John S. Newberry estate, at the
southeast corner of Shelby and Lamed streets, and a portion of the
476




building adjoining it on the east. Two large steam boilers, which
furnished power for several manufacturing concerns, were in the basement of the adjoining building. The engineer was on the ground
floor of the building talking to the mailing clerk of the Journal, when
it was noticed that the steam was blowing off very hard from one of
the boilers below. He started to descend and see what the trouble
could be, when there was a report like a heavy clap of thunder, and the
two five story buildings, 45 and 47 Lamed, were blown to pieces. The
front walls were thrown violently across Lamed street, dangerously
injuring several men on the opposite side of the street. The rear walls
were thrown into the alley, and the inmates of the building, forty-five
in number, were blown in every direction and buried in the ruins.
An immense crowd collected and the work of rescue began. Annie
O'Donoghue, Arthur D. Lynch, Thomas M. Thompson (the engineer),
Cornelius George, Arthur Weber, Joseph Vinter, Alex. Campbell and
Charles Hergert, were rescued alive out of the ruins. All these were
more or less injured. Thirty seven persons lost their lives. Cries could
be heard from various parts of the ruins and several persons were seen
alive where they were pinned down among the debris, but fire suddenly
broke out in several places and the unfortunates who were not already
dead were slowly suffocated. The dead were the proprietor and employees of Hiller's bookbindery, the employees of the Journal stereotyping room and employees of John Davis's spice mill. It took several
days of hard work to recover the bodies from the ruins. The financial
loss was about $75,000.
On the night of October 7, 1897, about an hour after a performance
of " A Lady of Quality " had closed at the Detroit Opera House, a fire,
which had evidently been smouldering for some time on the stage, caused
the explosion of some calcium light gas tanks. The roof above the
"gridiron" was blown off and a column of flame shot 100 feet in the
air. The opera house was beyond saving when the first alarm was
given, and the narrow alleys at the rear were soon a rolling mass of
fire, which communicated to the adjoining buildings. The H. R.
Leonard ten story building in the rear crumbled before the flames and
was completely gutted. The Parisian laundry and two or three other
small buildings on Gratiot avenue were either burned or crushed by the
falling walls of the Leonard building. Weber's big crockery store, Mitchell's grocery store and three other business houses on Monroe avenue
were also destroyed. The firemen by heroic efforts saved the jewelry
477




store of Wright, Kay & Co. and the other building fronting on Woodward avenue, but not without damage. They also saved the row of
buildings fronting on Farmer street, between Gratiot and Monroe avenues. The only loss of life was caused by a fall of the ruins next day,
which crushed a small boy to death. The loss was about $650,000.
An accidental fire, accompanied by loss of life, burned the Tilden
School, on the northwest corner of Kirby avenue and Seventh street,
on December 19, 1889, about 5 P. M. A number of the pupils were
attending the dress rehearsal of a Christmas cantata, and were gathered
about a piano. They were dressed in fancy costumes, composed mostly
of mosquito netting trimmed with cotton batting. A lighted candle
stood on the piano. One of the girls ventured too near and in an instant she was enveloped in flames. The others tried to extinguish it,
and in a few seconds ten or twelve were running about with their
clothing on fire. Two expired that evening, and within a few weeks
six more died.
On June 27, 1875, a cyclone visited Detroit-the only one recorded in
its history. At 6: 10 P. M. the whirlwind commenced on Nineteenth
street, between Ash and Myrtle streets, and it cut a swath of about 200
feet in width for a mile and and a half, traveling in an eastern direction,
and leveling nearly all the wooden buildings in its track. Some thirty
houses, mostly residences of persons of limited means, were leveled or
damaged, and about $10,000 damage was done. An infant was killed,
and another person died afterward from injuries, while about twenty
persons were slightly hurt.
An act of the Legislature passed March 26, 1867, created the Detroit
Fire Commission and on April 1, of the same year, William Duncan,
T. H. Hinchman, L. H. Cobb and J. W. Sutton were appointed commissioners. The present commissioners are Edwin 0. Krentler, Edward H. Parker, Charles Flowers and John Lennane. These commissioners have custody of public property valued at $1,528,477. The
annual pay roll for the year 1896-97 aggregated $420,000 and the total
expenditure for 1897 was $550,000. A force of 420 men is employed
and about 200 horses are used. There are twenty-two steam fire engine
companies; nine ladder companies; four chemical engine companies and
a water tower company, besides the force employed in the telegraph
alarm service and in the hydrant and water inspection. Engine Company
No. 16 has charge of the fireboat Detroit, which is kept ready for instant
service on the river front. Special service mains have been laid on the
478




principal streets which terminate on the river front for connection with
the fire-boat pumps. The pumps have a capacity of 5,000 gallons of
water a minute, which is ten times the capacity of the ordinary steam
fire engine. The boat has proved a most valuable aid to the department.
During the past twenty years ending June 30, 1897, there have been
9,370 fires and alarms in the city, and the total loss of property has
been $8,226,191.
CHAPTER LXVIII.
The Public Library and the Art Museum-The County Officials Withhold the
Library Funds for Several Years and Convert Them to Other Uses-Public Spirited
Citizens Contribute Liberally to Establish an Art Museum in Detroit-Present
Status of the Two Institutions.
Detroit has a public library which her citizens regard with pardonable pride. In 1842 an act was passed by the Legislature for the government of the Detroit Board of Education. It authorized the board
to establish a library, and to receive the primary school money and the
fines and proceeds of bonds forfeited in the police court, as the means
of establishing and maintaining it. Unfortunately the city treasurer
would not construe the act as it was intended, and the funds, which
should have come to the library fund, were diverted to the payment of
salaries of police justices, clerks and other incidental expenses of the
police department. In those days it would appear that the Board of
Education was a patient and long-suffering body, for it was not until
1859 that it took steps to enforce its rights. A commitee, consisting
of Edmund Hall, D. B. Duffield and H. E. Baker, reported that between the years 1854 and 1859 about $15,000 of library funds had been
diverted from their proper channel. The board obtained a mandamus
from the Supreme Court ordering the city treasurer to turn over the
money to the Board of Education. When the war of the Rebellion broke
out the library was forgotten or neglected, but the committee returned
to the charge again in January, 1863, and after a prolonged dispute a
compromise was effected with the city treasurer, and the back dues
were settled at $10,000. A large room on the ground floor of the old
capitol building, then used as a high school, was fitted up, and a number


479




of scientific and practical books were purchased. In three years the
library had acquired 10,000 volumes, and had an annual circulation of
15,000 books. That year Henry B. Ledyard donated to the library a
collection of public documents and books of historical value from the
library of the late General Cass, amounting to 1,081 volumes. Already
the library suffered for lack of room, and an addition was built upon
the rear of the old capitol, in which rooms were set apart for the
library. In 1873 the institution contained 25,879 volumes, and it had
115,000 circulation. It became evident that the city must build a public library which would afford ample room.
Center Park, which lay between Farmer and Farrar streets and
Gratiot avenue, was selected as a suitable site, and an act of the Legislature authorized the raising of $150,000 for the building of a public
library and equipping it with the necessary fixtures. The library committee of the Board of Education went to several cities to examine
library buildings and obtain ideas for a plan. The Board of Estimates
was asked to provide $125,000, to be paid in three annual installments.
This the board refused to do, but in 1874 the appropriation was granted,
and the foundation for the library building was laid. On May 29, 1875,
the corner stone was laid, and the building, which had a capacity for
about 200,000 volumes, was completed in 1876. Then came the removal from the capitol building, and 33,604 volumes were transferred
and rearranged. The new fire-proof library was formally opened January 22, 1877. Up to that time the library committee had spent $216,820. In 1886 it became necessary to build an annex on the north side
of the building, at an expense of $40,000, and in 1896 another extension
was made to the annex at a cost of $40,000. The main building contains the library proper. In the annex is a large reading room; a reference library, which is admirably arranged and managed; the office of
the librarian and his assistants; a large storage room for cataloguing
and classifying books; a juvenile library and reading room; a file room,
containing complete files of several Detroit newspapers, and other departments. At the present time the institution contains about 150,000
volumes and its yearly circulation is about 891,000.
What might be termed the greatest impetus to art in Detroit was the
art loan exhibition of 1883. From that enterprise the idea of establishing an art museum was developed. This exhibition was the happy
conception of W. H. Brearley, and he worked up public sentiment
through a series of articles in the columns of the Evening News. The


480




WILLIAM C. SPRAGUE.








first meeting was held at the residence of James F. Joy on December
6, 1882, and at the third meeting on March 7, 1883, the projectors succeeded in financing the enterprise by means of a joint bond, which was
signed by fifty-eight of the solid citizens of Detroit. A lot adjoining
St. Anne's church, on Lamrned street, was leased from the Bagley estate,
and in seventy-six days a building 135 by 157 feet was erected. The
exhibition opened September 1, and closed November 12. Works of
art to the value of $822,477 were loaned by 528 persons, and the entire
attendance was 134,924 persons. The receipts were $44,260, and the
expenditures were $41,817, leaving a satisfactory margin.  Hon.
Thomas W. Palmer offered donations from several individuals, amounting to $10,000, to help establish a permanent art gallery, provided
$40,000 could be raised from other sources. By January 26, 1884, Mr.
Brearley had secured the signatures of the following persons who
pledged contributions of $1,000 each: R. A. Alger, H. P. Baldwin,
Joseph Black, W. H. Brearley, C. H. Buhl, James L. Edson, Charles
Endicott, Fred E. Farnsworth, D. M. Ferry, George H. Hammond,
4 John L. Harper, I Mrs. E G. Holden, Bela Hubbard, Collins B. Hubbard, * L. T. Ives, Geo. V. N. Lothrop, C. R. Mabley, James McMillan, George F. Moore, Wm. A. Moore, Samuel R. Mumford, C. A.
Newcomb, * Thomas W. Palmer, Francis Palms, James E. Scripps,
George H. Scripps, Allan Sheldon, *Mrs. E. C. Skinner, FMrs. H. H.
H. Crapo Smith, M. S. Smith, Frederick Stearns, IMrs. J. T. Sterling,
* Mrs. Morse Stewart, Mrs. Robert P. Toms, E. W. Voigt, Hiram
Walker, E. Chandler Walker, Willis E. Walker, -"John L. Warren,
* Mrs. R. Storrs Willis. (Those mnarked * were named by Hon. Thomas
W. Palmer under his $10,000 contribution).
The above named public spirited citizens became the original incorporators of the Detroit Museum of Art. William A. Moore, Charles
Endicott, W. H. Brearley, George V. N. Lothrop and L. T. Ives were
appointed an executive committee at a meeting held February 27.
George V. N. Lothrop, James E. Scripps and William A. Moore were
appointed a judiciary committee to draft a suitable law and procure its
passage at the next session of the Legislature. This law was drafted
and passed, and it became operative February 16, 1885. Articles of
incorporation were filed under this law March 25, 1885. W. H. Brearley, George V. N. Lothrop, William A. Moore, L. T. Ives, Thomas W.
Palmer and James E. Scripps were elected the first Board of Trustees.
On July 21 the trustees authorized Mr. Brearley to increase by sub481
G61




scriptions the original fund of $40,000 to $100,000, and he accomplished
the task by March 20, 1886. There were 1,939 subscriptions, ranging
from one cent to $10,000. On July 11, 1885, the Art Loan Association
disbanded, and turned over all its property and money, valued at $5,021,
to the present Detroit Museum of Art. An art exhibition was held in
Merrill Hall, which opened May 29, 1886, and continued for twentythree days. It netted $853.  On October 13, after considering the
purchase of several eligible sites, the trustees received a proposition
from a committee of citizens, offering as a free gift what was known as
the General Brady property, at the southwest corner of Jefferson
avenue and Hastings street, a plat of 20,000 square feet, valued at $25,000. The gift was accepted at the hands of the following donors: Detroit City Railway Co., James McMillan, George Hendrie, William B.
Moran, S. D. Miller, Francis Palms, C. C. Blodgett, D. M. Cooper,
T. Ferguson, Alex. Lewis, John P. Fleitz, C. H. Wetmore, E. Wendell,
Morse Stewart, T. A. Parker, George McMillan, O. Goldsmith, F. H.
Canfield, M. W. Field, Henry Russell, A. M. Campau, T. S. Anderson,
A. C. McGraw, J. E. Owen, W. B. Wesson, Mrs. R. McClelland, Berry
Bros., H. M. Duffield, McKinstry estate, D. F. Dwight, Thomas F.
Griffin, G. B. Hill, John Pettie, L. S. Trowbridge, S. B. Grummond,
Francis E. Sibley, H. B. Brown, J. A. Wier, T. Schmidt, W. K. Muir,
George S. Davis, J. E. Pitman, William Wreford, Sarah A. Sibley, J.
Dwyer.
In the competition for designs for the museum building fifty-two
sketches were submitted, and the award went to James Balfour, of
Hamilton, Ont. A contract was made with Dawson & Anderson, of
Toledo, to erect the building for $43,870. It was completed in July,
1888, and was formally opened September 1, with a loan exhibition,
containing among other attractions a collection of paintings owned by
George L. Seney of New York, valued at $250,000, and the best pictures, statuary, etc., in the city. This exhibition was a financial failure, the loss being $1,842.14. Miss Clara A. Avery, one of the board
of trustees, offered $1,500 toward the salary of a director for the art
school, and upon her nomination John Ward I)unsmore was appointed
at a salary of $1,800. Another loan exhibition was held in January,
1889, and an exhibition of water colors in March of the same year, at
which time the collection of casts of antique statuary, which had been
purchased at a cost of $2,078, and the first installment of the Frederick
Stearns collection of Corean and Japanese curios, were exhibited. An




art school was opened in a barn adjoining the building on March 18,
the same year, and sixty-eight pupils were in attendance. Pupils of
the "life " class were charged $25 per term of three months for day
instruction, and $15 for night instruction. Those who studied antique
designing and modeling were charged $15 for day, and $10 for night
instruction. Children's classes were opened at a fee of $10. The receipts of the first term were $1,038. In October, 1889, James E. Scripps
donated a collection of eighty works of the old masters, which he had
spent four years in collecting, and for which he had paid $70,950.84,
not counting the cost of collecting and transporting. Most notable
among this collection is a large work by Rubens, which cost $23,520,
and "The Immaculate Conception," by Murillo, valued at $20,000.
A valuable collection of works of art were loaned and donated by generous citizens. Bela Hubbard donated a picture, "Evangeline," by
Samuel Richards, valued at $6,000. " The Marriage of St. Catherine "
was presented by his Holiness Pope Leo XIII; and a large number of
other pictures and pieces of statuary donated bear witness to the public
spirit of the wealthy and cultured people of Detroit. One of the most
notable collections is that donated by Frederick Stearns. It contains
a large number of works of art and interesting curios collected in China,
Japan, Corea, the Indies and the remote islands of the Pacific. The
heroic group, representing a wrestling match between a Japanese champion and a black giant, is a remarkable piece of artistic sculpture. In
January, 1891, Armond Hardd Griffith was appointed secretary, and
he was subsequently made director.
In 1893 the trustees applied to the Common Council for an annual
appropriation for the support of the institution. The council granted
the request, and in 1896 the appropriation was increased to $8,000 a
year. In January, 1894, James McMillan, T. W. Palmer, D. M. Ferry,
Charles L. Freer, Bela Hubbard, C. H. Buhl, James E. Scripps, George
S. Davis, John N. Bagley and George W. Hopkins subscribed $23,065
toward building a much needed extension of the building, and a contract was let to Chandler & Goddard for $29,340. This addition consisted of an east wing of stone, eighty five feet long, fronting on Hastings street, and a west wing of brick, each four stories high. Between
the two wings is a large glass covered hall of statuary. The first floors
are used for school rooms. The total cost of this addition was $32,587,
and it was opened to the public on November 9, 1894. In 1895 the
valuable collection of natural history belonging to the Detroit Scientific
483




Association was given a permanent home in the Museum of Art. The
association was given the use of the upper and lower corridors of the
west wing, on condition that it would cause them to be finished after
the style of the east wing. This was done, and the collection now
forms one of the attractions of the institution. On Sunday, November
18, 1895, a regular series of Sunday lectures on history and art was
begun in the building, and were made so entertaining and instructive
by Director A. H. Griffith, that the attendance averaged between 1,000
and 1,500. In 1896 the library of the late Gen. O. M. Poe was given
as a permanent loan to the Art Museum, and Gen. R. A. Alger and
George N. Brady fitted up an apartment, which is known as the 0. M.
Poe library room. In the same year James E. Scripps completed and
furnished, at his own expense, the gallery of the west wing of the
building. In this gallery was placed the collection of the old masters
which he had donated. Theodore D. Buhl bore the expense of finishing and fitting up the second floor corridor of the west wing, and this
has been named the C. H. Buhl room. Medals, designed by Lewis T.
Ives, were presented to James E. Scripps and Frederick Stearns on
June 25, 1896, Gen. R. A. Alger making the presentation in the presence of the members of the corporation. Each year a large addition is
made to the collection in the museum. Membership is limited to forty,
and vacancies caused by death or removal from the city are filled by
the membership at the annual meetings, on the first Monday in July.
The officers at the present time (1897) are: President, Don M. Dickinson; vice-president, Charles Buncher; secretary, Fred E. Farnsworth;
treasurer, Collins B. Hubbard; director, A. H. Griffith; assistant director, W. K. Bradish.
The Detroit Cyclorama building was erected on the north side of
Lamed street, just east of Bates street, its site occupying a part of old
St. Anne's church, and opened on Saturday, February 26, 1887. The
attraction was a mammoth circular picture, representing the Battle of
Atlanta, modeled on Paul Phillippoteaux's famous picture, "The
Siege of Paris." This was afterward changed for another picture,
"Custer's Last Battle." During a portion of its existence Gilbert R.
Osmun was the manager. The cyclorama closed on September 1, 1891,
and was shortly afterward torn down, and the site used for business
purposes.


484




ARMOND) H. GRIFFITH.








CHAPTER LXIX.


Public Sewers and Pavements-Developed from Open Ditches and Corduroy
Roads-There are Now 512 Miles of Paved Streets and Nearly as Many Miles of
Sewers.
The first sewer was built in 1836. Before that time, and for many
years, the River Savoyard, or Ruisseau de Rurtus, was used as an open
drain and into it was thrown so much filth that it became a menace to
public health. A stone circular sewer, four feet in diameter, was built in
that year, generally along the course of the stream from the corner of
Fort and Beaubien streets, along Fort to Randolph, along Randolph to
Cadillac square, across Cadillac square diagonally to Bates street, down
Bates to Congress Street, west on Congress, north side, to Woodward
avenue crosses Woodward avenue to Congress street, thence westerly
along Congress street to Griswold street, thence diagonally across Griswold street, going through the southeasterly corner of the present Buhl
block, to the alley, thence westerly down the alley, north of the old
Federal building, the Free Press job office, and the Evening News office
to First street and down First street to the river. This was called the
grand sewer, and was considered a work of great magnitude in its day.
In 1859 it was extended at its upper end along Bates street to Farmer
street and north on Farmer to the alley between Monroe and Gratiot
avenues. In 1883 a change was made in its lower part. The portion
between Cass and Shelby streets was rebuilt, and, as other sewers
drained the territory, the new part was two feet eight inches in height
and two feet wide, and was built of brick, egg shaped. It was then extended down Cass street to the river. The portion beyond Cass street
was untouched, and remains an independent sewer. The care and construction of sewers was in charge of a committee of the Common Council until 1857, when a Sewer Commission was appointed, the first members being Chauncey Hurlbut, Alex. Chapoton and James Shearer.
The commission went out of existence when the Board of Public
Works was established in 1874. Up to January 1, 1898, there were 160
miles of main or public brick sewers in the streets, and 297 miles of
485




lateral sewers in the alleys. Of the latter, 147 miles are of brick, and
150 miles are of vitrified crock pipes. The public sewers are paid for by
the city and are generally placed in streets running north and south
and terminating at the river; while the lateral sewers are constructed
at the expense of the abutting property owners, and generally run
through alleys. There are about 9,000 receiving basins, with 300 miles
of pipe connecting them with the public sewers. The public sewers
are of brick and in size from three to nine feet in diameter for cylinders; from fifteen by twenty inches to six by eight feet in diameter for
old form ovals; and from two by three feet to four feet eight inches by
seven feet for the present oval or egg shaped. Lateral sewers were
first made of brick, but of late years vitrified glazed pipe has been substituted, which is a great improvement from a sanitary point of view.
Brick sewers are always porous and are permeated by the filth of their
contents; while vitrified pipe retain no offensive matter or odor.
Owing to the gradual incline of the land from north to south, in the
direction of the river, Detroit has unusually favorable facilities for
drainage, and its sewer system is not excelled by that of any other city
on the American continent. But in the future, when the city is enlarged toward the north, new problems in drainage will confront the
engineer, as the land slopes downward from its present northerly city
limits, and lower outlets must be found on the east or west, probably
both.
There was no street paving in old Detroit under French and English
rule, and the few sidewalks in those days were logs generally only one
foot wide, and of the same depth in order to afford a foundation in
the mud. Even under American rule the streets were bare of any covering for many years, and were impassable in the spring and the fall, and
after every heavy shower of rain. The only work done on the thoroughfares up to 1825 consisted in leveling the broken surface and
rounding it up in the center. On and after 1825 a number of merchants and others paved the roadway in front of their property with
cobblestones. The first two city squares paved was in 1835, when the
roadway on Atwater street between Woodward avenue and Randolph
street was covered with cobblestones. Between 1835 and 1839 about
seventeen city squares were paved with cobblestones in the b)usiness
district, and in 1845 Julius Eldred paved the front of his store on the
north side of Jefferson avenue, between Woodward avenue and Griswold street, with hexagonal blocks of wood. After 1850) the p)avitng
486




done consisted altogether of cobblestones. After the war of the Rebellion the popular preference was for wood, and a large number of patented pavements of that material were laid. After trying all kinds of
wood pavement Detroit has generally adopted cedar blocks, which was
considered the best and most economical material. This preference
has lasted until the present time, and at present about four-fifths of
Detroit's pavements consist of cedar blocks.
In 1874 the various boards that performed the public work of the city
were superseded by the Board of Public Works, the first members being, Alex. Chapoton, Harvey King and Nicol Mitchell. No perceptible
change in the manner or material of paving was caused by the creation
of the board, but better work and material dated from that year. One
of the first recommendations of the new board was the placing of stone
foundations under the cedar blocks. But the laying of blocks in sand
was generally preferred at first. A considerable number of streets
were paved with cobblestones, but in 1876 that material was almost entirely discarded except for paving alleys. In a few years, however,
cobblestones were again extensively used for paving on the outside of
the cedar blocks, both being laid on sand. On January 1, 1898, there
were about 512 miles of streets, including the boulevard, within the
city limits, of which 258.77 miles are paved with the following material:
Cedar on concrete, 62.68; cedar on sand, plank, boards, etc., including
cedar blocks with cobble sides or gutters, 138.50; brick on concrete,
19.39; asphalt on concrete, 20.14; granite on concrete, 1.73; selected
cobble on concrete, 1.31; Medina blocks on concrete, 1.10; stone on
sand, 2.95; silica barytic (artificial stone), 0.20; macadam (boulevard),
10.78. The width of Detroit's pavements range from twenty-six to
eighty feet; the total number of square yards of pavement is about
4,500,000, There are about 350 miles of alleys in the city, seventeen
of which are paved, mostly with cobblestones.
Of late years there have been many attacks on cedar blocks as unfit
for paving material, and physicians have denounced this covering as
disease breeding. Concerning this matter John McVicar, member of
the Detroit Board of Public Works, remarks that such statements do
not seem to be based on reliable grounds, and that the death rate in
wood paved cities is lower than that of stone covered cities. In New
York, Buffalo and Boston, cedar blocks have never been used, but the
death rate per 1,000 is 21.54, 17.37 and 22.53 respectively, an average of
of 20.48. The per centage of mileage of cedar blocks in Chicago is 63;
487




of Milwaukee 81, and Detroit 68, but the percentage of deaths are respectively 14.36, 15.00 and 15.08, an average of 14.81. There are
about 800 miles of sidewalks, by far the largest portion being of wood,
although the business district, and the streets within half a mile of the
City Hall, are generally paved with stone and artifical stone, while the
principal streets, Woodward and Jefferson avenues, are paved for
miles with asphalt.
Whenever a city attains a population of about 100,000 the garbage
problem presents itself for solution. Previous to 1887 the gathering of
animal and vegetable refuse in Detroit was performed in a very inadequate and unsanitary manner, but in that year a commendable effort was
made to remedy the growing evil. Alex. L. Patrick, a local sanitary
engineer, and head of the Detroit Odorless Excavating Company, was
about to visit Europe, and the Board of Health commissioned him to
examine and report on the methods of garbage disposition in the prin.
cipal cities of Great Britain and the Continent. Mr. Patrick visited
several cities, and became satisfied that the Glasgow system of cremating the refuse was the best. He reported to that effect, and was
given a contract to gather and dispose of all garbage, dead animals and
other rubbish within the city limits. He erected a furnace on the
small pox hospital grounds on Crawford street, and it commenced operation in July, 1888. The plant was burned down in the spring of
1890.
On September 4, 1889, the city gave a three year contract for the
collection and disposal of garbage to the Detroit Sanitary Works, which
operated under the Merz system. The process of this system, briefly
described, consisted of treating the garbage by heat and chemicals, and
thereby utilizing the solids and converting them into grease and fertilizing materials. The contract price was $35,000 per year, and it was
stipulated that collections should be made six times per week within
the two mile circle, and three times a week outside of that limit, and
that the company should pay a rebate of eighty cents per ton on all
garbage gathered over 7,500 tons. A plant was erected at the foot of
Twenty-fourth street and its operations were satisfactory for a time.
But the amount of garbage collected soon exceeded all expectations
and the plant was so overburdened that the process of deodorizing the
gases and noxious odors became inadequate.
The complaints finally resulted in an action, and the Circuit Court
enjoined the works in 1892. The company immediately removed its




FRANK E. SNOW.








works to French Landing, on the Wabash Railroad, twenty-two miles
west of Detroit, and recommenced operations in November, 1892.
The second contract for three years, at $52,500 a year, was awarded
the company on June 21, 1892. It contained the same stipulations and
gave a rebate of eighty cents per ton on all garbage collected in excess
of lo,000 tons. The third contract for three years was awarded in 1895
at $50,000 per year, with a rebate of eighty cents per ton on all garbage collected in excess of the total number of tons collected in the
fiscal year of 1894-95. The company collects from 22,000 to 25,000
tons of garbage per year, in wagons with steel bodies and closed covers,
and delivers it to the Wabash Railroad, at the Sanitary Company's
depot at the foot of Twenty fourth street. The bodies of the wagons
are lifted from the wheels and placed on flat cars and taken to French
Landing. In 18.95 the company adopted the process of the Detroit
Liquid Separating Company, which separates the solids in a more
economical manner, and now manufactures a superior quality of fertilizers. The rebates paid to the city up to the close of 1897 aggregate
$16,632.05. The complaints for non- collection of garbage average only
eight daily, and the company claims that its collection system is practically perfect, extending as it does over twenty-nine square miles of
territory.
CHAPTER LXX.
Freemasonry and Other Secret Benevolent Societies-Military Lodges in the
Early Days of British Rule-The Morgan Excitement-Odd Fellowship in Detroit.
The order of Free and Accepted Masons was introduced in Detroit
as early as 1764, or within thirty one years after it had been transplanted
from England to the colonies of America. When General Bradstreet
came to relieve Major Gladwin as commandant of the fort at Detroit
he brought with him the 60th, or Royal American Regiment. The
soldiers of that time were generally of British birth, but the Royal
American Regiment was recruited along the banks of the Hudson, between Albany and New York. The order of Masonry had been instituted in New York June 9, 1753, by the appointment of George Harrison as provincial grand master, and he had authorized lodges in Con489
62




necticut and New York, the latter at Poughkeepsie and Albany. Quite
a number of soldiers of the 60th were members of the order, and when
they were settled in Detroit they petitioned Grand Master Harrison for
authority to form a lodge and confer degrees. A dispensation was
granted them April 27, 1764, and Lieut. John Christie was chosen as
the master of the lodge. Sampson Fleming was senior warden and
Josias Harper was junior warden. This lodge continued work for about
thirty years, but much of it was probably irregular, as it left no records.
In 1794 a new charter was obtained from the Grand Lodge of Canada
at Quebec, at which time James Donaldson was master, Edward Bryan
senior warden and Findly Campbell junior warden. The lodge met at
Donaldson's house, where a room was fitted up for it on the upper floor.
This lodge was known as Zion No. 10. The first records show that
Israel Ruland received the first degree on the night of December 19,
1794, and that Joseph Douglass and John Monroe applied for membership. All these were members of the Royal Artillery Company, then
stationed at Detroit.
In 1803, seven years after the Americans came into possession of
Detroit, the Detroit Masons applied for a charter from the Grand
Lodge of New York, which had authority over all Masons in the
United States. In 1804 John Dodemead became master, and the
lodge was transferred to his house on Jefferson avenue between Shelby
and Griswold streets. The members of this lodge were the most
prominent citizens of the town. James May, Dr. Herman Eberts,
Oliver and John R. Williams, Robert Abbott, William McDowell Scott,
Robert Abbott, Charles Jouet, Philip Lecuyer, Richard Smythe,
Solomon Sibley, Gen. Wm. Hull, George McDougall (who was secretary for several years), Jean Baptiste Comparet, John Conner. Jonathan
Scheiffelin, and many other historic names are found on the records.
When the lodge was in session the master wore a prodigious cocked
hat and conducted himself with becoming dignity. Members who ab
sented themselves from lodge were fined heavily, and if any brother
conducted himself in an unseemly manner or defrauded his brethren, he
was dealt with in summary fashion. Isaac Moses was tried for crooked
dealing and suspended shortly before the great fire of 1805. A warrant
arrived from New York in July, 1807, and the Canadian charter was
surrendered. Zion Lodge No. 1 was first opened for business in the
house of John Palmer, and after the exercises were over Governor
Hull, who was in attendance, invited the members to his home, where


490




a banquet had been spread for their refreshment. After the surrender
of 1812, the Masons ceased work for four years, and allowed their
charter to lapse. Zion lodge was chartered again March 14, 1816, and
General Cass, Solomon Sibley, Oliver Williams and Mr. Gratiot were
among those present at the first meeting. In 1817 the lodge was too
large to find accommodations in a private house, and it was removed
to Brother Ben. Woodworth's hotel on Woodbridge street. In 1821
there were Masons enough in Detroit for two lodges, and as another
lodge would afford an opportunity for honoring those who wanted
office, Detroit lodge No. 21 was chartered from New York that year.
A number of Chapter Masons lived in Detroit in 1818, and upon petition of John Anderson, Harry Conant, Charles Noble and others, a
charter was granted in that year for the conferring of capitular degrees.
The chapter was named Monroe. In June, 1826, the Masons obtained
permission to build a wooden story upon the stone walls of the old
council house, and the three Masonic bodies used it as a lodge room. A
Grand Lodge was also instituted that year with Gen. Lewis Cass as
grand master.
In 1826 came the Morgan abduction in western New York, which
threw the whole country into a state of excitement. William Morgan,
a printer, of Batavia, N. Y., in violation of his Masonic obligation,
printed and published the ritual of the order and a general exposure
of its mysteries, which greatly incensed some foolish and hot-headed
Free Masons. He was arrested for debt and locked in jail at Canandaigua, N. Y. One night he was taken from the jail by a number of
persons, some of whom were Masons, and driven away in a carriage.
It is known that he was confined for several days in an old fort at the
mouth of the Niagara River, but from that time nothing was heard or
seen of him. Several of his kidnapers were arrested and tried for
murder, but nothing more than kidnaping could be proved. The leaders were punished by imprisonment. At that time the Masons had
become a power in politics and were generally influential, and the
Morgan excitement was agitated by the Anti-Masons for political purposes. Such eminent men as Thurlow Weed and John Quincy Adams
took part in the crusade against the order. Masonic work was suspended everywhere in the United States for a number of years. It
was resumed in 1841 in Michigan, when a second Grand Lodge was
organized in this State, and the progress of the order has been uninterrupted since that time. A Grand Chapter was organized March 9,
491




18481 and a Grand Commandery February 12, 1857. The various Con
sistory bodies of the Scottish rite were organized between 1856 and 1869.
In 1831 the Masons built a hall on the north side of Jefferson avenue,
between Griswold and Shelby streets. They removed to more commodious quarters in the Wayne County Bank building in 1876, and in
1893 they built a Masonic temple on Lafayette avenue, at the corner of
First street. This is one of the most substantial buildings in the city
It is seven stories high, and is used for Masonic purposes exclusively.
It cost about $250,000.
At the present time there are about 35,000 Masons in the State of
Michigan and about 400 lodges engaged in conferring degrees. The
Detroit lodges at the present time are Zion No. 1; Detroit No. 2;
Union No. 3; Ashler No. 91; Oriental No. 240; Corinthian No. 241;
Schiller No. 263; Kilwinning No. 297; Palestine No. 357; and Friendship No. 417. There are three Royal Arch Chapters, Monroe No. 1;
Peninsular No. 16, and King Cyrus No. 133. Detroit and Damascus
Commanderies of Knights Templar have a large membership, and the
former has won many prizes in competitive drills at the Triennial conclaves. Five chapters of the Eastern Star are working in Detroit:
Hayward No. 37; Keystone No, 52; Palestine No. 80; Detroit No. 116
and Wayne No. 136.
The colored citizens of Detroit have Eureka Commandery of Knights
Templar, Detroit Chapter, and Hiram, Mt. Payan and Pythagoras
Lodges, all working under dispensations from the grand Masonic bodies
of Ontario.
Next to the Masons the Odd Fellows are the strongest secret benevolent society in Michigan. There are in Detroit fifteen lodges of the
Independent Order of Odd Fellows; four Encampments of Patriarchs
Militant, and four lodges of the Daughters of Rebekah.


492










SAMUEL P. DUFFIELD, M. D.




CHAPTER LXXI.


Medical Colleges and Hospitals-Detroit College of Medicine and Harper Hospital
Developed Together-Michigan College of Medicine and Emergency HospitalCharitable Gifts of Walter Harper and Ann, "Nancy," Martin-Grace Hospital
Founded and Endowed by John S. Newberry and James McMillan.
During the last years of the war there was a dearth of clinical material at Ann Arbor, although the medical classes were very large
Wounded soldiers were being sent from the seat of war to Harper Hospital, where the government had erected buildings for their treatment,
and Drs. Edward Jenks, T. A. McGraw, D. O. Farrand, George P. Andrews and S. P. Duffield organized a preparatory medical school. They
began their school in Harper Hospital in the summer of 1864, and H.
O. Walker was the first student enrolled. This school was so successful that in 1869 the founders decided to develop it into a regular medical
college. A stock company was formed and the incorporators who
founded the Detroit College of Medicine were: President, James F.
Joy; vice-president, A. C. McGraw; secretary, Philo Parsons; treasurer, William A. Butler; directors, Buckminster Wight, Allan Sheldon, C. H. Buhl, M. I. Mills, Caleb Van Husan, John Owen, George S.
Frost, Hiram Walker, H. P. Baldwin, William B. Wesson, Edward
Jenks, Theo. A. McGraw, George P. Andrews, S. P. Duffield and
Frederick Stearns. The College Board bought the Y. M. C. A. building on Farmer street, between Gratiot and Monroe avenues. This
building had originally been the barn of the old Railroad Hotel and
later had been fitted up for manufacturing purposes.
An institution known as the Michigan College of Medicine was organized in 1879, and it occupied a building on St. Antoine street,
between Gratiot avenue and St. Mary's Hospital. A rivalry sprang up
between the two institutions, which boded disaster to both, and in 1882
they amalgamated under the name of the Detroit College of Medicine.
The building on Farmer street was then sold; the college building on
Antoine street was enlarged, and in 1883 the new institution took
possession. Since that time the building has been several times en493




larged. In 1893 departments of dental surgery and pharmacy were
added, and, still later, a veterinary department. The average attendance is about 400 students, and the standard of the school is very high.
Dr. Theo. A. McGraw is president of the faculty and Dr. H. O. Walker
is the secretary.
The Michigan College of Medicine and Surgery was founded in 1888
by Dr. Hal C. Wyman, L. E. Maire, Dayton Parker, Willard Chaney,
W. J. Hammond and a number of others  The association purchased
a site on Porter street, near Michigan avenue, and fitted up buildings
for the college class rooms, and also established the Emergency Hospital in the same building. The hospital affords clinical material for the
benefit of the college, and special attention is devoted to emergency work.
An ambulance answers calls, and brings accident cases to the hospital
for immediate treatment. The institution has prospered in every way,
is entirely free of debt, and has an average of 115 students in attendance. This property is valued at $60,000. Dr. Wyman is the dean of
the college and Dr. L. E. Maire is the secretary. The faculty includes
many of the leading practitioners of the city.
Harper Hospital is the largest institution of its kind in Detroit, and
it is the only hospital which receives patients with contagious diseases.
It was named in honor of Walter Harper, and aged and somewhat obscure citizen, who in 1859 deeded to the city a tract of 1,000 acres of
western lands and some realty in Detroit and Philadelphia, his former
home, the proceeds to be used for building and maintaining a hospital.
At about the same time Ann Martin, better known as Nancy Martin, a
vegetable dealer in the City Market, and an intimate friend of Mr. Harper, deeded to the city fifteen acres of land in the suburbs, and eight acres
within the city limits, to be applied to the same use. At this time the
two bequests were worth nearly $50,000. A hospital association was
organized, and another strip of land was purchased, which gave the original Martin grant a frontage on Woodward avenue. During the war
wounded soldiers and those on sick leave began to come back from the
front. The hospital authorities offered the government the use of the
site for a Federal hospital if the government would erect the necessary
buildings. The offer was accepted, and one large wooden building and
ten cottages were erected along the Woodward avenue front. At the
close of the war the government turned over the hospital buildings to the
city on condition that the wounded soldiers would thereafter be treated
at the city's expense. The hospital association thus acquired several


494




thousand dollars' worth of buildings at a nominal cost. The first buildings were far from ornamental. Woodward avenue property had become very valuable, and the hospital association had more land than it
could ever hope to use. The Woodward avenue frontage was sold, a
street was cut through to John R. street, and named Martin Place, in
honor of Ann Martin, and the buildings were disposed of. In 1884 the
main building of the present hospital was erected on John R. street at
a ccst of $115,000, and the patients were removed from the old buildings. Additions since made, principally through the benevolence of
wealthy citizens, has brought up the value of the buildings to nearly
$300,000. The Farrand Training School for nurses in this institution is
named in honor of Dr. D. O. Farrand, a physician of blessed memory.
Mrs. Eleanor J. Swain endowed a free bed in the hospital and bequeathed $20,000 to build a home for the nurses of the training school.
The Duffield family built a home for the nurses of the contagious hospital, affording them all the comforts of life, and at the same time complete isolation. During 1896 Capt. Gilbert Hart erected a power plant
for the building at a cost of $10,000, and the equipment was furnished
by the management at a cost of $25,000. In the power building is a
steam disinfecting apparatus similar to that used on the quarantine
ship at New York. The institution has received many other endowments, the total income from which amounts to about $8,000 a year.
During 1896, 1,560 persons were treated at the hospital, and about
10,000 prescriptions were given at the free dispensary.
Grace Hospital (Homeopathic) was founded in 1886. James McMillan and John S. Newberry had at that time decided to erect and equip
the hospital, and Amos Chaffee, learning of their intention, donated a
site at the corner of Willis avenue and John R. street. This gift represents a value of about $30,000. Upon this location the founders
erected a six story building at a cost of $191,860 and added a gift of
$200,000 as an endowment fund. Still later Mr. McMillan and the
heirs of Mr. Newberry made other donations, which, with the contributions of ten other citizens, brought the endowment up to $300,000.
The hospital is splendidly equipped with all modern conveniences. A
free dispensary is maintained in connection with the institution, and
the worthy poor are treated free or at reduced rates, according to circumstances. In connection with the hospital is a training school for
nurses and an ambulance is ready to answer calls at any hour, day or
night.


495




The Children's Free Hospital is located at the corner of Farnsworth
and St. Antoine streets. It was established for the benefit of the children of the poor by an organization of charitable ladies in 1886. In
1895 Hiram Walker donated a site for a hospital and erected the present
building at a cost of about $150,000. In memory of a beloved daughter
it was named the Jennie Walker Children's Free Hospital. This building is one of the best equipped institutions of its kind in the country,
and it is still maintained without expense to the public. Forty beds
have been endowed at a cost of $156 each, and the hospital can care
for about 100 children. Everything is absolutely free, although donations are received from those who can afford to pay for treatment. The
income of the institution permits the lady manager to care for about
sixty children at the present time, but there is already a demand for
nearly the full capacity. A training school for nursery maids is maintained in connection with the other work. All the attending physicians
donate their services.
St. Mary's Hospital is the oldest institution of the kind in the city.
For the first five years of its existence it was located in a building at
the corner of Randolph and Larned streets, and was known as St. Vincent's Hospital. In 1850 a building was erected at the corner of
Antoine and Clinton streets, one block north of St. Mary's church, and
the name was changed to St. Mary's. The present building was
erected in 1879. The hospital is managed by the Sisters of Charity,
and Sister Frances is the superior. A free eye and ear hospital is
maintained in connection.
St. Joseph's Retreat is located at Dearborn, eight miles from Detroit, and is owned and controlled by the Sisters of Charity. It was
established at first as a home for convalescent patients from St. Mary's
Hospital. In 1870, ten years after the founding, a building was erected
on Michigan avenue, west of Twenty-fourth street. In 1883 the institution was incorporated and a site was purchased at Dearborn, where the
present building was erected.
Among the other charitable institutions of Detroit are: Christ
Church Home at 242 Woodbridge street; Detroit Deaconess' Home at
53 Elizabeth street west, maintained by the Methodist Episcopal
churches.
St. Luke's Hospital, at the corner of West Fort street and Campbell
avenue, which was founded in 1861 by members of St. Paul's parish.
The Protestant Orphan Asylum, first established in 1836 by the ladies


496




of the city, was reorganized in 1852. In 1892 a fine building was
erected at 999 Jefferson avenue, and the institution now gives a home
to more than 100 children.
St. Vincent's Female Orphan Asylum was founded by Rev. Martin
Kundig, of blessed memory. This priest during the great cholera
epidemic undertook the duties of county poormaster, and paid a good
part of the expense of caring for the poor out of his own pocket.
Cholera patients who died left many orphans, and to give food and
shelter to these Father Kundig bought a piece of land adjoining the
poorhouse property on Gratiot road, where a cheap building was erected
and a school was established for the education of the orphans. The
drain upon his limited resources ruined him financially, but he never
complained, and eventually paid up the last dollar of indebtedness.
The Sisters of Charity subsequently lost the Gratiot avenue property,
when the rapacious creditors of the founder came on and seized it, together with everything in the place which could be converted into
money. The home was re established on Lamed street east, in the
old Episcopal residence. In 1876 the present asylum on McDougall
avenue was started, and was completed at a cost of about $90,000.
The McGregor Helping Hand Mission is a home which gives temporary shelter and employment for the unfortunate and unemployed. It
was organized April 3, 1891, and is supported by donations from the
citizens, and by the sale of the articles manufactured by the inmates.
The Thompson Home for Old Ladies was founded by Mrs. Mary
Thompson, who lived for many years at the southeast corner of Fort
and Shelby streets. It is located at the corner of Cass and Hancock
avenues and was endowed by the founder at her death.
The United States Marine Hospital, at the southeast corner of Jefferson and Mr. Elliott avenues, affords free treatment for sick and disabled
seaman. It was opened by the government in November, 1857.
The St. Mary's Home for young women is located at the corner of
Cass avenue and Henry street and is supported by the Catholic churches
of the city.
The Young Woman's Home Association has an excellent home for
young working women; it was established by charitable ladies. Room
and board are to be had at remarkably cheap rates and the institution
is well managed. The home is at the corner of Clifford street and
Adams avenue.
The Woman's Hospital and Foundling's Home, at the corner of Beau.
497
63




bien street and Forest avenue, was incorporated in 1869. The property
is worth about $75,000, and the institution is maintained by an association of charitable ladies. A free dispensary for women and children
is maintained at the corner of Forest avenue and Beaubien street in
connection with the Woman's Hospital and Foundling's Home.
The Industrial School for poor children is located on the northwest
corner of Grand River avenue and Washington boulevard. It was
founded by the ladies of the First Congregational church in 1857.
The present building represents a value of about $18,000, and the site
is valuable.
The Detroit Sanitarium at 250 Fort street west was established in
1884 and has a capital of $50,000.
The Florence Crittenden Rescue Home for Women is located at 124
and 126 Miami avenue.
The Detroit Seaman's Home is located at the corner of Griswold and
Atwater streets.
The German Protestant Home for Orphans is located at 248-256
Harvey avenue.
The Hollister Y's maintain an institution for the help of the children
of the poor at 28 Warren avenue.
The Little Sisters of the Poor support 220 old people of both sexes
in their home at the corner of Scott and Dequindre streets.
The Home of Industry, at 259 Willis avenue, is a temporary home for
discharged prisoners, where they may live while they seek for an honest livelihood. It was founded by Mrs. A. L. d'Archambal.
The Home of the Friendless, on Warren avenue west, gives shelter,
food and instruction to a large number of poor children and orphans.
The House of the Good Shepherd, at 792 Fort street west, is a rescue home for unfortunate girls. It was founded in 1884 and it has 345
inmates under control of thirty-two Sisters of Charity.
The House of Providence, at the corner of St. Antoine and Elizabeth streets, is a lying-in hospital and an infant asylum. It was organized in 1868 and is maintained by Sisters of Charity.
The Lutherans of the city maintain an asylum for the education of
deaf mutes at North Detroit.


498




CHAPTER LXXII.


The Era of Railroad Building in Michigan-How Detroit Obtained Communication with the Other Centers of Population —The Campus Martius was Once the
Railway Terminal-Advent of Canadian and Ohio Lines Opening the Way to the
Atlantic Seaboard-James F. Joy a Leading Spirit.
Michigan was unable to keep pace with her neighboring Territories
in attracting settlers, but the people who did establish themselves
within her borders were not lacking in enterprise. One of their first
steps toward commercial prosperity was to encourage the building of
railroads. Water power was then considered the best power and waterways were considered the ideal means of transportation. The idea that
steam railways would one day be organized and combined into great
systems reaching across the continent, did not occur to the average
American in 1830. The first railroad chartered in the United States
was the Mohawk and Hudson River Company, which was intended to
connect the transportation facilities afforded by these two streams.
The Baltimore and Ohio was intended to connect the headwaters of the
Ohio River with the seaboard. Ideas developed to a greater magnitude, and the scheme to connect the Mohawk and Hudson River by
rail expanded to the connection of the Hudson with Lake Erie. From
this beginning grew the New York Central, the greatest railroad system
in America.
When the railroad building spirit took hold of Michigan people, their
idea was to build parallel lines across the State from Detroit to St.
Joseph on Lake Michigan; from Port Huron, or some other point north
of Detroit to the mouth of the Grand River, and from Monroe to New
Buffalo or the southernmost part of Michigan on Lake Michigan. It
merely meant the connecting of waterways, and when men of farther
sight disturbed this purpose, and centered all of the early railroad lines
at Chicago, the people of Michigan were indignant, deeming it an unjust robbery that the millions they had spent in fostering the railroads
should become a benefit to the great port of Illinois. While several of
the Michigan railroads were planned at about the same time, the first


499




attempt at building was made between Detroit and Pontiac. This road
received its charter in 1830, and was called the Pontiac and Detroit
railroad.
As has been shown in the earlier pages of this work, some of the
wealthy citizens of Detroit started the village of Pontiac in 1819. It
was what would be termed at the present time a "boom town." Between Detroit and Pontiac the greater part of the way was swamp,
covered with an almost impenetrable growth of brush. During the
rainy season the wagon road was almost impassable, because the corduroys of logs and brush which had been used to make a foundation for
a driveway would sink out of sight in the bog holes  Through the influence of the promoters of the railroad a State loan of $100,000 was
obtained. The task of making a solid roadbed was most discouraging.
Birmingham was not reached until 1839, and Pontiac was reached four
years later.
The Michigan Central, which had been chartered nearly two years
later than the Pontiac and Detroit road, had by this time reached within five miles of Albion. The Detroit end of the Pontiac line came down
Dequindre street as at the present time. The first depot was located
at the corner of Jefferson avenue and Dequindre street, but this was
considered a long way out, and later the railroad was turned into the
Gratiot road and followed that thoroughfare down to a terminus on the
Campus Martius, just east of the present site of Detroit Opera House.
After protesting against the use of the street by the railroad, because
of the constant danger to dwellings and business houses from the sparks
which flew in showers from the locomotive smokestacks, the people began a campaign of harassment to compel the company to abandon the
Gratiot route. A posse of citizens would meet at night and tear up
several lengths of track, but the company's men would lay it next day.
The company employed watchmen and detected the midnight marauders, and some of them were arrested for tampering with the company's
property. In 1852 the company gave it up, bought a new terminal site
at the foot of Brush street, and built their tracks down Dequindre
street to the river front. While this war of interests was going on the
Oakland and Ottawa road was building between Pontiac and Grand
Haven. The two lines united in 1855 as the Detroit and Milwaukee
Railroad, and the road was completed across the State three years later.
By this time the consolidated roads were buried under a mountain of
debt. The profits of the line would not pay the interest on the mort

500




gages, which amounted to nearly $6,000,000, so the Great Western road
of Canada, which was the largest single creditor, foreclosed. When
the sale of the road took place September 4, 1878, the mortgagee bought
it for $1,800,000. Two months later the road underwent a reorganization, and the Detroit and Milwaukee road was renamed the Detroit,
Grand Haven and Milwaukee. It operates a line of steamers between
Grand Haven and Milwaukee. In the course of time the railroads of
Canada, like those of the United States, underwent a process of consolidation and organization into large systems, and when the Great
Western was absorbed by the Grand Trunk in this process, the D., G.
H. & M. went with it. It is now a part of the Grand Trunk system in
the United States.
The Michigan Central Railroad developed from the Detroit and St.
Joseph Railroad, which was chartered June 29, 1832. Detroit citizens
contributed liberally toward the building of the line, and so did the
people of the counties through which it passes. Contributions were
made by municipal bodies and by private individuals who were zealous
in building up the State and developing its resources. As it was intended to run parallel lines both north and south of this road, the name
was changed to the Michigan Central in 1837. In February, 1838, the
first train between Detroit and Ypsilanti was run over the road. Governor Mason, most of the State officials, and many of the prominent
men of the State, were on the train and attended a celebration of the
event at Ypsilanti. Step by step the road was pushed westward by the
State until it reached Kalamazoo in 1816. The financing of the road
through the Morris Canal and Banking Company, which has been described in another place in this history, had proved a disastrous affair.
The zeal of the new State had been great, but reckless financiering had
injured its credit and its bonds had declined to eighteen cents on a dollar. Although the road showed a steady increase of business and already promised to be profitable, the people decided to sell it to a corporation made up of eastern capitalists, and the sale was effected for
$2,000,000 in the fall of 1846. The new company proceeded with the
construction and the line was completed to New Buffalo in the spring
of 1849. It was the first railroad to cross the State. Then, in spite of
the protests of the people, the company extended the line around the
head of Lake Michigan and reached Chicago May 21, 1852.
So anxious were the people of Detroit to encourage railroad building
that they gave up their main thoroughfares as right of way, and the
501




Detroit end of the Michigan Central came down the old Chicago road,
or Michigan avenue, to the Campus Martius, where its depot was located. To facilitate the transfer of freight from steamboats to the
cars, the road was shunted into Woodward avenue, near Congress
street, and continued down the river front. This was done in 1838,
but the use of Woodward avenue for sidetrack purposes was discontinued in 1844. For a short time the railroad center of Detroit was on
the Campus Martius, the Michigan Central depot being located at the
southwest corner of Michigan and Woodward avenues, and the Detroit
and Milwaukee depot being located on the Campus Martius, in the rear
of the Detroit Opera House; but the people awoke to the impropriety
of this condition, and after considerable trouble between citizens and
companies, the latter removed their terminals to the river front. The
Michigan Central purchased a depot site at the corner of Third and
River street in 1847, and the route down Michigan avenue was abandoned for the valley of May's Creek, which had been known in earlier
days as Cabacier's Creek, an old watercourse long since drained by the
sewers in the western part of the city. Purchases of lands for yards
and transfer purposes were made as the demand for more room arose,
and at the present time the company owns a large territory along the
river front, and also at West Detroit. The Michigan Central has
the largest railway system in the State, embracing the Detroit and
Bay City line to Alpena, the line to Mackinaw, the Grand River Valley
branch to Grand Rapids and several others.
What is now known as the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railroad had its beginning with the Erie and Kalamazoo Railroad, which
obtained a charter April 22, 1833. Three years and a half later a line
was completed from Toledo to Adrian, which was operated for the first
four months of its existence by horses, which hauled the cars over a
strap-rail tramway until the first locomotive arrived. Of course such a
road was far short of what the people of Michigan wanted. A law
was passed establishing the Michigan Southern Railroad, which was
intended to be fostered by the State, and a perpetual lease of the Toledo
and Adrian line was obtained. Another line was built from Monroe to
Adrian with the idea of making the road a connecting link between the
two most southerly Michigan l)orts, Monroe on Lake Erie, and New
Buffalo on Lake Michigan. After spending about $1,000,000 on the
construction of the line the State debt became burdensome, and the
credit of the Commonwealth being at a very low ebb, the road was sold in




1846 to a corporation for $500,000. The purchasing company concluded
to make the western terminus at Chicago, instead of at New Buffalo, or
some other Michigan port. The people of the State held mass meetings
to express their indignation at this action, for they had aimed to make
the road a benefit to Michigan alone, and did not relish the idea of booming Chicago with Michigan money. Fortunately wisdom prevailed, and
the Michigan Southern and Michigan Central companies began a breakneck race to reach Chicago. The Southern reached White Pigeon in
1851, and built from there to South Bend and Anderson. To get from
Anderson to Chicago they leased a right of way over the Northern
Indiana Railroad. But in spite of its extraordinary efforts, the Michigan Southern arrived in Chicago one day later than the Michigan
Central, the latter reaching there on May 21, 1852. Four years later
the Detroit and Toledo branch was finished, giving Detroit a convenient
connection with the Lake Shore road, which was completed between
Toledo and Buffalo in 1855. A third branch running from Detroit to
Hillsdale was purchased later, and the consolidated Lake Shore and
Michigan Southern system has now numerous branches in the State.
Its Detroit terminus has always been at the foot of Brush street,
which it reaches by crossing the northern part of the city until it
reaches the Detroit, Grand Haven and Milwaukee'tracks.
While Michigan was projecting railroads on paper and building a
few of them, a line was planned to cross the province of Ontario from
Niagara Falls to Detroit. The first project contemplated a route from
Hamilton to Detroit, to afford a connecting link between Lake Ontario
and the Detroit River. A charter was issued for this line in 1834, but
eleven years later a new charter was obtained, which extended the line
from Hamilton to Niagara Falls. By the time the Great Western was
started the panic of 1837 came on and it was impossible to get the
necessary capital to carry on the work. Finally, on January 17, 1844,
the first Great Western train from Niagara rolled into Windsor amid
general rejoicing on both sides of the river. Everybody turned out to
march in a great procession, a banquet was served and both towns were
alive with enthusiasm. Six weeks later the car ferry service was instituted for transferring trains across the river. When the Roebling suspension bridge was completed, in 1855, the Great Western road furnished
the shortest line to the seaboard. The old supension bridge, at which
the engineers of Europe shook their heads, continued in constant service until 1896 when it was removed and a giant steel arch viaduct sub

503




stituted. A branch road was built from London to Port Huron and it
was in operation at the beginning of 1860, Cars were ferried between
Port Huron and Sarnia until 1889, when the tunnel under the river
was completed. The direct service of the Grand Trunk system between
Portland, Me., Quebec, Montreal and Chicago now uses the Port Huron
route.
The Detroit, Grand Rapids & Western road was begun in 1870,
and when first completed the line ran by way of Howell, Lansing, and
Greenville to Howard City, where it made connection with the Grand
Rapids and Indiana road. A line was subsequently built to Grand
Rapids and Muskegon, affording connection with its lake shore line,
the Chicago and West Michigan, which extends from New Buffalo to
the straits of Mackinaw. The road has never done a profitable business because much of its route lies in sparsely settled territory. When
the abandoned pineries of the west shore have developed into profitable
farms and fruit orchards the road will no doubt reap the reward of enterprise.
The Flint and Pere Marquette road runs diagonally across the lower
peninsula between Detroit and Ludington, and has its midway station
at Saginaw. This line was projected in 1863. At first it was a mere
spur of the Detroit and Milwaukee road, running from Flint to Holly.
In the fall of 1871 the line was extended southward, by way of Northville, to Wayne, and soon after a track lease and depot privileges were
secured from the Michigan Central, and the D. & M. route was then
abandoned. In 1893 the contract with the Michigan Central terminated, and since that time the F. & P. M. trains enter the city on the
Wabash tracks and the terminal is the Fort Street Union Depot.
The Detroit and Lima Northern made its entry into Detroit in January, 1897. The main line extends from Wellston, Ohio, via Springfield,
Adrian, Napoleon to Grand Haven.
Among all the citizens of Detroit who aided in the development and
natural prosperity of the city and State, James F. Joy stands pre-eminent. He was born at Durham, N. H., December 20, 1810, of respectable, God-fearing parents.  He was graduated at Dartmouth
College in 1835 and was afterward Latin instructor in his alma mater.
In September, 1836; he came to Detroit, where he entered the law
office of Augustus S. Porter, and in 1837 he was admitted to practice at
the Detroit bar. His striking ability as a lawyer soon gained him a
large practice and he was early identified with the railroad interests of


504




CARLOS E. WARNER.








the new State. He was mainly instrumental in furthering the sale of
the Michigan Central Railroad to Boston capitalists and became counsel
for the road. His next work was the organization and building of the
Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad. In 1857 he was the leading
spirit in constructing the Sault Ste. Marie Canal, for which the government had granted 750,000 acres of Michigan land, and in 1859 the
work was completed. In 1865 he became president of the Michigan
Central Railroad and ably administered its affairs until the spring of
1877, when it became a part of the Vanderbilt system. During his
presidency he was the main factor in acquiring and building the Jackson, Lansing and Saginaw road, the Grand River Valley road from
Jackson to Grand Rapids, the Detroit and Bay City, and the Detroit,
Lansing and Saginaw, all of which roads were of immense advantage
to Detroit and to the interests of the State. After he relinquished the
management of the Michigan Central he bent his energies toward
securing a new road connecting with the Wabash system. He was entirely successful. A bonus of $200,000 was raised by the city of
Detroit and the line between Detroit and Butler, Ind., was completed
in the summer of 1881. In the spring of 1897 the Wabash secured
track privileges from the Grand Trunk and since that time the road
has been running through trains from Kansas City and St. Louis to
Buffalo, by way of Detroit.
In 1889 James F. Joy, with admirable foresight, planned to secure
better terminal facilities for some of the railroads which had come to
Detroit after it had become a large city. Previous to this time the
Wabash and Canadian Pacific roads had a station near the river front
at the foot of Twelfth street, but its location was unsatisfactory. The
Detroit, Lansing and Northern and the Flint and Pere Marquette came
in over leased tracks to the Michigan Central depot. Mr. Joy's plan was
to provide these roads with a centrally located terminus for passenger
and freight traffic, and a company, known as the Fort Street Union Depot
Company, was formed. This organization was effected in secret for
obvious reasons, but before the promoters could effect half their purpose, the secret leaked out and the exposure cost the company more
than $400,000. Options had been obtained on about half the land required for a right of way at prevailing prices, but as soon as it was
known that the new railway was coming in on the west side, property
holders who had not already given options doubled the prices on their
real estate. One piece which had been considered at $40,000 went up
505




to $85,000 in the mind of the owner. Lawyers fattened on the fees
which grew out of the necessary litigation. Those whose clients had
no lands in the line of the railway, demanded heavy damages for injury to abutting property. The Michigan Central Railroad also opposed the plan because it would take away good tenants from its
station. The Fort Street Union Depot Company's plans included the
elevation of their tracks on trestles. This required the closing of
Fourth and Fifth streets and the occupation of a part of River street,
and of course the company had to settle with the Common Council.
Property owners in the vicinity of the closed streets demanded heavy
damages, and the right of way cost the company about $1,000,000. A
fine new depot building was erected at the corner of Fort and Third
streets. The first train ran into this station January 21, 1893, and the
station was formally opened by all the officials of the four roads and
the officers of the Depot Company. The building is an ornament to
the city and a great accommodation to the public. This station is used
at the present time by the Detroit, Grand Rapids and Western (reorganized from the Detroit, Lansing and Northern), the Wabash, the
Canadian Pacific, the Flint and Pere Marquette, and the Detroit and
Lima Northern Railroads.
CHAPTER LXXIII.
The Y. M. C. A. and its Early Struggles for Existence-Founding of the Board ot
Trade-The Chamber of Commerce and its Troublous Career.
In 1864 the present Young Men's Christian Association was organized, but that organization was not the first attempt to found a branch
in Detroit. In the fall of 1852 members of the leading Protestant
churches of the city conferred together and aroused sufficient interest
to found an association. Rooms were rented in the second story of a
block on Jefferson avenue, between Woodward avenue and Griswold
street, but the revenue was insufficient, and the association died after
two years of sickly existence. In 1858 another organization was effected,
but the breaking out of the war made such demands upon all the spare
cash in the city that the Y. M. C. A. ceased to exist in 1861. In 1864


506




a number of citizens resolved to effect a permanent organization, and
the prime movers were Silas Farmer, F. D. Taylor and H. K. Clarke.
They secured contributions to the enterprise and rented some rooms in
the Merrill building, at the corner of Woodward and Jefferson avenues.
In 1867 the society was incorporated, and seven years later there was
a demand for larger quarters. A vacant building on Farmer street, between Monroe and Gratiot avenues, was purchased for about $15,000.
Such rooms as were needed for the accommodation of the association
were fitted up, a more attractive front was put on the building, and the
stores were rented to other tenants. This property was finally sold,
and the association rented rooms over 250 Woodward avenne. From
there it moved to the Casino, an old skating rink, which afterward became
the Griswold Street Theatre, and later the Capitol Square Theatre.
The association removed to several other places, and in 1887 moved
into its permanent home at the northeast corner of Grand River avenue
and Griswold street. The building, as it now stands, represents an
investment of $125,000.
An eastern branch was established in 1892, and it now occupies the
old quarters of the Michigan Athletic Association at the corner of Congress street and Elmwood avenue. A railroad branch was established
in 1875, and this branch has a home at West Detroit. The total mem.bership is about 2,400. A board of twenty-five business men serve as
directors of the institution. D)uring the five years preceding 1887,
while the building enterprise was in progress, Sullivan M. Cutcheon
was president and L. F. Newman secretary. The success of the building scheme is largely due to their individual efforts. The institution
has a fine gymnasium and a boating and bathing headquarters on the
river just above Belle Isle bridge. Courses of lectures and profitable
entertainments are given during the winter season. George R. Angell
retired in May, 1897, after a service of six years as president, and
George T. Moody was his successor. A. L. Parker, the present secretary, has occupied the position for the past nine years.
In September, 1891, W. H. Brearley, then proprietor of the Detroit
Journal, began advocating the formation of a Detroit Chamber of Commerce. He circulated a subscription paper and procured many signatures to the enterprise. On January 5, 1892, the first meeting was held
in Philharmonic Hall. Thomas W. Palmer presided, and a constitution, prepared by Don M. Dickinson and Alfred Russell, was adopted.
The officers elected were: President, George H. Barbour; first vice

507




president, Rufus W. Gillett; second vice-president, Hazen S. Pingree;
secretary, Alexander A. Boutell; treasurer, M. W. O'Brien. A board
of directors, a committee on arbitration, a committee on appeals, a
committee on manufactures and three trustees were appointed. The
trustees were Russell A. Alger, Simon J. Murphy and David Whitney,
jr. During the first years of its existence the Chamber of Commerce
occupied the basement of the Campau building on Griswold street, but
a project was immediately formed for the erection of a fine commercial
building. The Finney property, having a frontage of eighty-eight feet
on Griswold and one hundred feet on State street, was purchased for
$100,000, and the property owners in the vicinity, whose interests would
be advanced by the erection of the building, contributed $33,000 toward
the fund. A splendid thirteen-story office building was constructed,
and it included a fine hall for the Board of Trade. The cost of building and site was $500,000. It was formally opened on May 3, 1895,
and many distinguished visitors were present. Unfortunately a large
proportion of the members of the institution became apathetic regarding its prosperity. The building was heavily mortgaged, and after a
heroic struggle on the part of a few of the most interested members,
the mortgage was foreclosed and the building was sold in November,
1897.  The present officers are: President, William S. Crane; first
vice-president, J. R. McLaughlin; second vice-president, Charles E.
Warner; treasurer, A. E. F. White; secretary, John A. Russell.
The Detroit Board of Trade was organized July 15, 1856, incorporated June 23, 1863, and reincorporated in August, 1882. It is, therefore, the oldest commercial organization in Michigan. On July 10, 1856,
a meeting was held in the office of E. G. Merrick & Co. to prepare for
organization, which was effected five days later. Henry P. Bridge was
elected president; Duncan Stewart, vice president; M. W. Hamilton,
secretary; H. K. Sanger, treasurer; Joseph Aspinwall, J. P. Mansfield, W. H. Craig, J. W. Strong, George W. Bissell, A. E. Bissell,
James E. Pittman, Robert McChesney and J. B. Palmer, directors. In
the summer of 1865 a general commercial convention was held in Detroit, at which representatives from over fifty boards of trade were
present. When the city was raising a bonus of $200,000 to encourage
the building of the Wabash line to Butler, Ind., the Board of Trade
contributed $13,000, and individual members contributed also toward
the fund. It has also encouraged the building of other lines, and in
securing a better transportation facilities generally.  For fourteen
508




JOEL S. BLACKBURN, M. D.








years the board occupied a building on the southeast corner of Woodbridge and Shelby streets. A new building was erected at the southeast corner of Jefferson avenue and Griswold street, and was occupied
on February 22, 1865. When the new Chamber of Commerce building
was completed, at the northeast corner of State and Griswold streets,
the board took possession of the elegant quarters which had been prepared for it, on May 4, 1895.
CHAPTER LXXIV.
The University of Michigan-The Pedantry of Judge Woodward-How its Rich
Endowment was Wasted-The Early Schools of Detroit-The Board of Education.
On August 26, 1817, an act was passed to incorporate a university. Of
course Judge Woodward was the sole framer of the act, and he dubbed the
proposed institution the "Catholepistemiad or University of Michigania."
This institution, which is identical in law with the present university, contained thirteen professorships, which were thus defined: (1) Catholepisteemia, or universal science, the incumbent of this chair being president; (2) Anthropoglossica,or language, embracing all sciences relating
thereto; (3) mathematics; (4) physiognostica, or natural philosophy;
(5) physiosophica. or natural philosophy; (6) astronomy; (7) chemistry;
(8) iatrica or medical sciences; (9) oeconomia, or economical sciences;
(10) ethics; (11)polemitactzca, or military sciences; (12) diegetica, or
historical sciences; (13) ennolica or intellectual sciences, embracing all
the epistemum or sciences relative to the minds of animals, to the human mind, to spiritual existence, to the Deity, and to religion-the
didactor, or professor of this being vice-president. The didactors or
professors were to be appointed and commissioned by the governor;
each might hold more than one chair, and their salaries were payable
out of the public treasury, the taxes being increased fifteen per cent.
for that purpose. The united faculty formed the corporation with
power not only to regulate its own concerns, but to establish colleges,
academies, schools, libraries, museums, atheneums, botanic gardens,
laboratories and other useful literary and scientific institutions in the
territory, and to appoint teachers. Four lotteries were authorized to


509




raise funds, and there were many other provisions in the act respecting
fees and salaries.
Rev. John Monteith, the Presbyterian clergyman, and Rev. Gabriel
Richard, the priest of St. Anne's, were appointed to the thirteen professorships, one being given six and the other seven. They established
primary schools at Detroit, Monroe and Mackinaw, and classical academies and colleges in Detroit. The absurd and stilted pedantry of the
act was ridiculed considerably but Woodward could see nothing wrong
in his nomenclature. It was, however, intended to promote a great
cause, and it was enacted and carried out. The territorial statutes were
revised in 1820-21, and the act was replaced by a more sensibly worded
measure. The new institution received an endowment from the Indians
on September 29, 1817. At that date a treaty was signed by the Chippewas, Ottawas and Potawatomies, at Fort Meigs, giving to St. Anne's
church, Detroit, and to the college at Detroit, each an undivided half
of the six sections reserved to these nations by Hull's treaty of 1807 -three of the sections being on the Macon reserve on the River Raisin,
and the remainder to be selected thereafter.
At this time (1817) the entire Territory of Michigan contained less
than 7,000 people. In 1826 Congress granted two townships of land to
the Territory for establishing and endowing the university. These
lands were located near and partly within the present limits of the city
of Toledo. This grant was for the most part frittered away in trading
between the University Board and the real estate speculators. One
tract of 401-4. acres, which now lies in the heart of Toledo, was sold to
Major William Oliver and others for $5,000. The entire land grant,
which was soon destined to be worth millions, was disposed of for
$17,000. Thus Michigan University, which would have been one of
the richest endowed institutions of learning in the world, became a
State charge, and every two years the Legislature and the Board of
Regents are compelled to haggle over the necessary appropriations.
On September 9, 1817, Rev. John Monteith was tendered the presidency of the university, and lhe accepted it. A few days later James
McCloskey was appointed superintendent of buildings. Mr. McCloskey
prepared a plan for a plain building, two stories in height, and he laid
out the lower floor for a preparatory English school. On the second
floor was a room for a classical school and one for the university library
-the first library established in Detroit. A site was selected by the
university corporation on the west side of Bates street, between Con

510




gress and Lamed streets. While this very plain and unpretentious
building was being constructed three primary schools were established
in the town under supervision of the University Board, and several acts
of the governors and judges were passed relative to the establishing of
primary schools. As the sounding title of the institution appeared
rather ridiculous, cons dering its very modest dimensions, an act
was passed April 30, 1821, to establish in Detroit "The University
of Michigan," which was signed by Governor Cass, Judge John Griffin
and James Witherell, secretary of the territory. Whether Judge
Woodward did not sign because he was offended at the changing of the
name, or for some other reason, does not appear.
Educational work went forward in Detroit, and in connection with
the university a Lancasterian school was established. On recommendation of Hon. Isaac E. Crary, first congressman from Michigan, Rev.
John D. Pierce, of Marshall, was appointed superintendent of public
instruction, July 26, 1836. By an act of March 21, 1837, the superintendent was authorized to dispose of enough of the State seminary
lands, which consisted of section 16 of every township, at $20 an acre
or more, in order to raise a fund of $500,000. This money was to be
loaned to counties in sums not exceeding $15,000 to each county, nor
for more than ten years. That year $150,447 was realized from such
sales and the average price of the public lands was $22.85 and acre. A
State law for the organization of the University was passed March 18,
1837, and two days later the university was located upon a forty-acre
tract in Ann Arbor, then a village of 2,800 inhabitants. Gov. Stevens
T. Mason appointed Isaac E. Crary, Zina Pitcher, Lucius Lyon, Thomas
Fitzgerald, John J. Adam, Robert McClelland, Samuel Denton, Seba
Murphy, John Norvell, Henry R. Schoolcraft, Ross Wilkins, Michael
Hoffman and Gideon 0. Whittemore as members of the Board of Regents. Mr. Fitzgerald resigned, and John F. Porter was appointed to
fill the vacancy. Governor Mason, Lieut.-Gov. Edward Mundy, and
the justices of the Supreme Court, William A. Fletcher, George Morell,
Epaphroditus Ransom and Charles W. Whipple, and Chancellor Elon
Farnsworth were ex-oficio members of the board. In the summer of
1841 the first university buildings, consisting of four dwelling houses
and one dormitory, 110 by 40 feet, were completed. That fall the university opened its doors to students, and the first young man who
matriculated was Lyman D. Norris, who afterward went to Yale College and returned with his diploma of graduation to attend the first
511




graduating exercises at Ann Arbor. The first steps toward establishing
medical and law departments were taken in 1847, and the medical
school was opened in the fall of 1850. In those days it was customary
to choose college presidents from the ministry, and Edward Thompson,
of Ohio, a Methodist minister, was the first choice of the Regents, but
he declined the honor. Andrew Ten Brook, pastor of the First Baptist
church of Detroit, was chosen. In April, 1851, President Ten Brook
resigned and Professor Boise, of Brown University, was elected. Dr.
Henry P. Tappan was elected president August 12, 1852, and Professor
Boise was made professor of Latin and Greek. The law school was instituted in 1859, and James V. Campbell, Charles I. Walker and
Thomas M. Cooley were appointed professors of that department. In
June, 1863, after a long disagreement with his associates, Dr. Tappan
was removed from his office by the Regents, and Rev. Erastus O.
Haven, D.D., was elected president and professor of mental and moral
philosophy.
In 1871 the Legislature made an appropriation of $75,000 for the
erection of the central university building, which was dedicated in 1873.
The building has a frontage of 347 feet. Upon the retirement of President Haven in 1871, Dr. James B. Angell was elected to the presidency, and his administration has been one of marvelous prosperity
and development. In the year 1896-97, 2,878 students attended the
various departments of the university, and 1,747 of these were from
the State. There are 200 professors, lecturers and instructors in the
faculty of the institution. The library contains 105,047 volumes. A
four years' course at the university costs the average Michigan student
$290, and the student from outside the State, $345.  The university comprises the department of literature, science and the arts
(including the graduate school and the summer school), the department
of engineering, the department of medicine and surgery, the department of law, the school of pharmacy, the homeopathic medical college,
and the college of dental surgery. Each department is provided with
a special faculty. In the department of literature, science and the arts,
the various lines of study entitle graduates to the degrees of Bachelor
of Arts, Bachelor of Philosophy, Bachelor of Science, Bachelor of Letters, the corresponding masters' degrees, and the degrees of Doctor of
Philosophy and Doctor of Science. In the professional schools the following degrees are conferred: Department of Engineering-Bachelor
of Science, Master of Science, Civil Engineer, Mechanical Engineer
512




::issf ^   *p:ia:iiiiisiir:: L::iiii:i::: ' i j|^i n i   H i:i:
f


ALBERT H. WILKINSON.








and Electrical Engineer; Department of Medicine and Surgery-Doctor
of Medicine; Department of Law-Bachelor of Laws and Master of
Laws; School of Pharmacy-Pharmaceutical Chemist and Bachelor of
Science; Homeopathic Medical College-Doctor of Medicine; College
of Dental Surgery-Doctor of Dental Surgery and Doctor of Dental
Science.
Michigan University was one of the very first to open its doors for
the coeducation of women. It is the university which offers the widest
range of study for a very small tuition fee to young men who are struggling to make their way in the world. President James Burrell Angell
was born in Scituate, R. I., on January 7, 1829, and he graduated from
Brown University at Providence. He became a professor of modern
languages in his alma mater in 1853. In 1859 he resigned and became
editor of the Providence Journal. In 1866 he was appointed president
of the University of Vermont at Burlington, and served in that position
until he became president of the University of Michigan, on June
24, 1871. His career as a scholar and an-educator has been exceptionally successful. He has also distinguished himself as a publicist and a
man of affairs. In 1880-82 he was minister to China. F, ur years later
he was United States commissioner with Secretary of State Bayard and
Judge Putnam to negotiate and settle the fishery question on the northwestern border with the British commissioners. Later he served as a
member of the International Deep Waterway Commission. His appointment as minister to Turkey came from President McKinley in the
spring of 1897. He is now serving in that capacity, with leave of
absence from the Regents, and Prof. Harry B. Hutchins, of the law department, is serving as president pro tern.
Detroit's early schools were not organized into a system like those of
the present day. When the university was founded in 1817 a number
of primary or preparatory schools were started in connection with it.
but the best schools of the town were the private seminaries. A number of the leading citizens banded together in 1830 and incorporated as
the Board of the Detroit Female Seminary. Among them were General Cass, Major Kearsley, E. A. Brush, De Garmo Jones, Eurotas P.
Hastings, Charles Lamed, C. C. Trowbridge and James Abbott. The
governor being on the board, there was no difficulty about getting a
desirable site, and the seminary building was erected upon the ground
now occupied by the City Hall, and fronting on Griswold street. It
was a three-story building of cream colored brick with the conventional
513
65




green window blinds of the period. William Kirkland and his wife had
charge of this hall of learning for a number of years, and they left
pleasant memories behind them when they went away from Detroit.
The seminary had other instructors in the succeeding years, and finally,
in 1874, it passed into the hands of Prof. J. M. B. Sill, who became the
proprietor and principal. The building was torn down to make room
for the City Hall, and the seminary was removed to new quarters on
Fort street west.
The old council house, which stood at the corner of Jefferson avenue
and Randolph street, was occupied in 1834 by a classical school.
One of the best known of the early educators of early days was Washington A. Bacon. He first had a school at the northeast corner of Jefferson
avenue and St. Antoine street, and later he removed to a building on
the southeast corner of Russell and Lamed streets. Mr. Bacon was a
a pedagogue of the old school. His discipline was strict, and disorderly boys were given the choice of two instruments of punishment,
called respectively "old hickory" and "old rattle-t-bang."
Detroit's Board of Education was created by an act of the Legislature, passed February 18, 1842. It provided that the board should
consist of twelve inspectors, two for each ward. At first the school
system was divided into two departments, the primary and intermediate, each having a four years' course. There were six schools in
each department, and twelve teachers instructed an average attendance of about 1,000 pupils. When the High School was created another four years' course was added to the school curriculum, making a
total of twelve years free schooling.
In 1873 the three classifications were designated as Primary Schools,
Grammar Schools and the High School. Since the Board of Education was created the schools have multiplied in proportion to the development of the city, and at the present time there are sixty-eight
school buildings. Their value and that of the real estate amounts to
$2,700,000, and the school census shows 78,700 persons of school age in
Detroit. Of these, 34,756 are enrolled in the public schools. During
the year 1896-97 the teachers' salaries amounted to $449,026, and the
total cost of maintaining the schools was $559,408. The number of
teachers has increased even more rapidly than the pupils, and at the
present time the number is 745. The Board of Education now consists
of one inspector for each of the seventeen wards. The officers of the
schools arc: President, Thomas G. Craig; president pro tem., Ed. F.
514








WALES C. MARTINDALE.




Marschner; secretary, Lewis H. Chamberlain; treasurer, George R.
Angell; superintendent of schools, Wales C. Martindale; supervisor of
property, Horatio Barr.
The office of superintendent of schools was created in 1855. J. F.
Nichols was the first superintendent, but the salary of $900 a year was
not tempting, and he resigned at the end of the year. It was not until
the board had doubled the salary that another regular superintendent
was appointed. J. M. B. Sill served from 1863 to 1865. Duane Doty
succeeded him, and remained in office until the summer of 1871. In
the mean time the salary had been raised to $2,000. Prof. J. M. B.
Sill was reappointed in 1871 at a salary of $2,500, which was subsequently increased to $3,500. Prof. Sill resigned 1886, when he was
succeeded by William E. Robinson. The salary was raised to $4,000,
and Mr. Robinson remained in office until the summer of 1897. Wales
C. Martindale was then elected to the office of superintendent, and he is
the present incumbent.
In addition to the public schools maintained by the public, there are
fifty-three private, select and parochial schools. These are attended
by 14,371 pupils, and they employ 290 teachers, of whom seventy-seven
are males.
Detroit's first High School was founded by the newly created Board of
Education in 1844 and opened on May 13; but the board really had
little to do with the management. The Regents of the University
granted the use of the old academy, or first university building, on
Bates street, near Larned, appointed the teachers and selected the text
books for use in the High School. The number of pupils was limited
to twenty-five, and only boys above eleven years of age were entitled
to admission. The school s9on died out for lack of patrons, and the
pupils who received more than a primary education resorted to the
private schools.
In 1855 the popular opinion demanded a public high school for free
education, and an act of the Legislature was passed in that year, authorizing the raising of funds for building and maintaining such an institution. On February 20, 1856, a committee was appointed by the Board
of Education to prepare the way for a high school, and on April 30,
1858, the first session was held in the old primary school building on
Miami avenue, which occupied the site of the present Board of Education offices. High school opened on the upper floor of the building and
twenty-three pupils were in attendance the first day. During the fol515




lowing year a building of very modest pretensions was erected in the
rear of the primary school at a cost of $2,000, and the number of pupils
increased to eighty-five.  Next year, 1860, a resolution was passed
admitting girls to the High School and the increase of pupils
crowded out the primary school. When the war of the Rebellion broke
out in April, 1861, the pupils of the High School were as enthusiastic
as the most rabid patriots, and they raised a flagstaff on the gable of
the school and hoisted a flag which the girls had made. JaredW. Finney,
the first graduate of the Detroit High School, was one of those who
took part in the flag raising. In two years the school became overcrowded, and in September, 1863, it was removed to the old capitol
building on Capitol square. During that year a fund of $1,000 was
subscribed by citizens for the purchase of apparatus for the chemical
and physical laboratory, and in 1866 French and German were added
to the course. In 1875 the old capitol building was enlarged and remodeled. The tower was removed and the old portico as well, making
room for an extension of the front toward State street. Four grades
were then taught under the one roof. A year or two later another addition was built upon the rear to make room for the public library,
which was crowded out of a room on the main corridor. In 1871 a
diploma from the High School was a license to teach, and in 1878 the
Regents admitted graduates to the university without examination. In
1874 military drill was established for the boys, and instructors and
arms were provided from Fort Wayne at the expense of the government.
This practice was followed but two years and then dropped.  The
students organized a military company of their own in 1882.  This
building, which was used for high school purposes for more than thirty
years, was destroyed by fire on the morning of January 27, 1893. The
first principal of the High School was Prof. Henry Chaney, who continued at the head of the school until 1871. Prof. I. M. Wellington
was the principal during the next ten years, and he was succeeded by
Prof. L. C. Hull. Prof. Hull resigned in 1886 and was succeeded by
Frederick Bliss.
On July 9, 1858, ex-Gov. William Woodbridge deeded to the Board
of Education a portion of his farm for educational purposes. It was a
parcel of land fronting 200 feet on the south side of Church street, between Trumbull avenue and Dudley street, with a depth of 130 feet to
the alley. The conditions were that the board should erect on the land,
within six years from January 1, 1858, a building, three stories in


516








rpwI                        I                            I,oll
jl ,..*,"Joan


RT. REV. JOHN S. FOLEY.




height, for an academy, union or high school, with seating accommodations for 600 scholars.  At that time Levi Bishop was president of the board, and its members comprised a majority of educated
men, but the proffer was not accepted, and the land reverted to Woodbridge's heirs.
CHAPTER LXXV.
Churches and Religious Societies in Detroit-Ste. Anne's Was the Only Church
During the First Century of the City's History-The Moravians in 1781-82-Protestant Missionaries Visit Detroit in 1800-Founding of the Early Churches-Edifices
of the Various Churches.
CATHOLIC.
In the earlier pages of this history is the story of Ste. Anne's church
in the fall of 1701; its destruction by fire at the hands of the Indians in
1703 and its immediate reconstruction; its destruction in 1712 by Ccmmandant Dubuisson for fear it would give shelter to the hostile Fox
Indians, who were besieging the town; its re-erection on the site now
occupied by Ives & Sons' Bank, at the northwest corner of Jefferson
avenue and Griswold street. In the graveyard on three sides of the
church were buried those who died in the early years of the settlement; and beneath the floor inside, the remains of Father l'Halle,
the children of the several commandants, and other people of consequence in the community, were interred, according to the custom of
the day. The church was again destroyed by the great fire of 1805,
and services were held, for a time, in McDougall's storehouse, on the
river front, just east of the foot of Woodward avenue, and in a building
belonging to Lasalle, near the present Eighteenth street. It was determined to erect another church on the site of the burned building,
and a foundation was laid, but the project was never carried out. The
site had become valuable for business purposes in 1817, and the governor
and judges induced the parish to give it up. The fourth church erected
by the parish of Ste. Anne was a limestone building much more pretentious than its predecessors. It was built upon a site bounded by
Bates, Lamed, Randolph and Congress streets, which had been granted




in lieu of the old site on Jefferson avenue west of Griswold street. It
was begun in 1818, but it was ten years before it was completed. This
church had two quaint spires at the front corners, two small turrets at
the rear corners and a fancifully ornamented dome in the middle of
the roof. This structure stood until 1886, when the parish sold out
the property for $230,000, and erected a chapel upon a new purchase
at the corner of Howard and Nineteenth streets. Beneath the porch
of the old church was a crypt in which lay the remains of Father
Gabriel Richard, the beloved priest, who died in 1832 while ministering to the cholera patients. It is said that when the vault was opened
and the coffin lid removed, some of the old residents claimed to recognize in the frail shell of human anatomy some resemblance to the
man who had died half a century before. It is also said that some of
Father Richard's bones were seized as relics by morbid curio hunters.
The property of the parish was divided among those who continued to
adhere to the church and those who lived on the east side, the latter
forming the parish of St. Joachim. Within a year after the destruction
of the old church the fine new church on the corner of Nineteenth and
Howard streets, which perpetuates the name, was ready for occupation.
It is surrounded by other buildings, among which are the parochial
school and the rector's residence.
Ste. Anne's became the cathedral church when Bishop Frederick
Rese came to Detroit in 1833. He was the first bishop of the Detroit
diocese and was consecrated in Cincinnati on October 6, 1833. Soon
afterward he attended a council of bishops in Baltimore, and arrived in
Detroit before the end of the year. He succeeded Father Badin, who
had charge of the church in Detroit as vicar general. Bishop Rse6 remained as bishop here until he attended a provincial council of the
church at Cincinnati in 1837. While there he resigned his office, the
letter submitted being dated April 15, 1837. The council accepted his
resignation, and Father Odin was nominated to succeed him. The proceedings of the council were then forwarded to Rome for approval, but
the College of the Propaganda refused to ratify the proceedings, and
Bishop Rese was requested to come to Rome and make an explanation.
He did so and remained in the Eternal City for eleven years, still holding the title of bishop of Detroit, and enjoying a revenue from his diocese. During the revolution of 1848 he was forced to retire to Hanover, his native country, but died in Hildershein, Prussia, on December
27, 1871.  The causes impelling his resignation have never been




authentically known to the laity of his diocese. The bishops of the
council probably knew, but so carefully did they keep the secret that it
descended to the tomb with them. Bishop John B. Purcell, the late
archbishop of Cincinnati, was the last survivor of that council. Bishop
Rese was a brilliant scholar, a great linguist, an eloquent pulpit orator
and a most accomplished gentleman.
Father Francois Vincent Badin and Father Johannes De Bruyn were
appointed joint administrators of the diocese, and they occupied the
episcopal residence on Ste. Anne's church grounds, on the Randolph
street side. De Bruyn died in 1838, and Father Badin was sole administrator for about three years. The next bishop was Peter Paul Lefevre,
who was consecrated Bishop of Zeln, in partibus infidelium, on November, 22, 1811. He arrived in Detroit during the same month, and administered the affairs of the diocese until his death on March 4, 1869.
During his incumbency he built the cathedral of SS. Peter and Paul at
the northeast corner of Jefferson avenue and St. Antoine street, which
was consecrated on June 29, 1848. He was succeeded by Caspar H.
Borgess, who had been consecrated as Bishop of Amazonia, in partibus
infidelium, on April 24, 1870. During Bishop Burgess's administration
he abandoned the cathedral and the episcopal residence adjoining, and
transferred the former to St. Aloysius church on Washington avenue,
which was consecrated August 24, 1873. The bishop also built his
episcopal residence directly opposite. When Bishop Rese died in 1871
he succeeded to the title of Bishop of Detroit. He resigned on April
16, 1887, and died May 3, 1890.
John S. Foley, the present incumbent, was consecrated November 4,
1888, and came here from Baltimore during the same month. Rev.
Charles 0. Reilly, pastor of St. Patrick's church, on Adelaide street,
was given leave of absence on account of bad health, and Bishop Foley
assumed charge of the latter church. In 1890 he changed its name to
SS. Peter and Paul, and made it his cathedral church. The former
cathedral on Jefferson avenue, however, still bears the same name.
Grounds for a site for a fine cathedral have been secured on the north
side of Parsons street, near Woodward avenue, but as yet the diocese
has only erected an excellent cathedral school on the property.
St. Aloysius became again a parish church. Its present pastor is
Rev. Ernest Van Dyke, and its congregation numbers about 300 families.
Holy Trinity was the second Catholic church organized in Detroit,


519




and the first edifice used by this parish was the old Presbyterian church,
which was moved from the rear of the church on the corner of Woodward avenue and Larned street, to the northwest corner of Cadillac
square and Bates street. The site is now occupied by the Central meat
market. This was accomplished just as the terrible cholera epidemic
of 1834 visited Detroit. Nearly 1,000 people died during that awful
year, and Father Martin Kundig, pastor of Holy Trinity, toiled night
and day among the sick and dying. He had been a curate of Ste. Anne's
previous to his appointment to Holy Trinity by Bishop Rdse, and he
emulated the example of Father Richard. He converted his church
into a cholera hospital; obtained a horse and wagon for an ambulance,
and went about gathering up the sick for treatment, and carting the
dead to the cemetery for burial, even burying them himself when it
became necessary. In the course of his labors he became the guardian
of many orphans, who were committed to his care by the dying parents.
When the epidemic subsided he was bankrupt in purse, apparently be.
yond recovery, but he never repudiated his debts. In 1840 he organized
the parish of St. Mary for German residents, and the next year the corner
stone of the first church of that name was laid at the corner of St.
Antoine street and Monroe avenue.  Later Father Kundig became
vicar-general of Wisconsin, at Milwaukee, a position which enabled
him to discharge all his former obligations. Holy Trinity church was
moved to the corner of Sixth and Porter streets in 1849, and in 1856
the old church was demolished to make way for the present brick
church of that name.
The church of SS. Peter and Paul, at the northeast corner of Jefferson avenue and St. Antoine streets, was consecrated in 1848 by Bishop
Kendrick, of St. Louis, and Archbishop Eccleston, of Baltimore. It
was the cathedral church until 1873, and afterward became the church
of the Jesuits.
Father Martin Kundig was the founder of St. Mary's church, which
stands at the southeast corner of Monroe avenue and St. Antoine
street. He was a German by birth and a number of his countrymen
arrived in Detroit during the '30's, so he decided to establish a church
for them. He raised the money for a site and the corner stone of the
church was laid in 1841. This church was built at a cost of $15,000
and it served the congregation until 1884. During that year the old
St. Mary's was torn down and a new church was erected at a cost of
$65,000. In 1895 the interior was improved at a cost of $10,000. A


520




large parish school owned by the church stands on the opposite corner
of Monroe avenue and St. Antoine street.
St. Joseph's, at Orleans and Jay streets, was organized in 1856, and
has 1,200 families in its membership.
St. Anthony's, at Gratiot and Field avenues, was organized in 1857,
and has 260 families.
St. Vincent de Paul, on Fourteenth, near Dalzelle, was founded in
1864, and has 1,000 families.
St. Boniface, at Thirteenth and high streets, was founded in 1869,
and has 400 families.
SS Peter and Paul, at Adelaide and John R. streets, was organized
in 1862 as St. Patrick's, but was made the cathedral church in 1890;
the parish has 800 families.
St. Albertus (Polish), at Canfield and St. Aubin avenues, was organized in 1872, and has 2,500 families.
Sacred Heart, at Rivard street and Mt. Elliott avenue, was founded
in 1875, and has 500 families.
St. Joachim's, at Fort and Dubois streets, was founded in 1875; it
has 500 families.
St. Wenceslaus (Bohemian) was organized in 1876; it is located near
the corner of Leland and Beaubien streets, and has 120 families.
St. Casimir's (Polish), at Twenty-third and Myrtle, has 800 families
and was founded in 1882. Holy Redeemer, Junction and Dix avenues,
was founded in 1880, and has 450 families.
St. Leo's, at Grand River avenue and Fifteenth street, was organized in 1889.
Sacred Heart of Mary, at Canfield avenue and Russell street, was
was founded in 1889, and its congregation of 4,250 familes erected the
finest Catholic church in the city.
In addition to the Roman Catholic churches already named are the
following: Our Lady of Help, Congress and Elmwood avenues; Our
Lady of Sorrows, Catherine street, near Gratiot avenue; Our Lady
of Lourdes, Dearborn road and Division street; Our Lady of the
Rosary, Harper avenue near Woodward; St. Francis, Buchanan
street and Campbell avenue; St. Charles, Townsend avenue; St. Elizabeth's, McDougall and Canfield avenues; St. John the Evangelist,
Boulevard and Sargent; St. Joseph's (Polish), Canfield and St. Antoine;
St. Michael's (Italian), St. Joseph street, and Bonaventure's Capuchin
Monastery at Mt. Elliott and St. Paul avenues,
i21
66




For more than a century the only permanent church in Detroit was
the Roman Catholic church of Ste. Anne.
EARLY PROTESTANT MISSIONARIES.
As related in a previous chapter, the Moravian missionaries came to
Detroit in 1781 and 1782, and occasionally preached in these and succeeding years, during their residence at Mt. Clemens, to the French
and British citizens, but they never built a church, and from various
causes their ministrations were productive of little spiritual benefit.
Religious services in Detroit during the British occupation were mainly
performcd by the Catholic priests at St. Anne's, and the regimental
chaplains at the garrison chapel, the latter being clergymen of the
Church of England. In 1818 the Presbyterians planted the first
Protestant society in the town.  Previous to that date Methodist
circuit riders paid occasional visits and held services. Traveling ministers of other denominations also made evangelical visits.  Dr.
William  McDowell Scott had occasionally officiated as a lay reader
of the Episcopal church, and about 1800 the Rev. Richard Pollard, of
Sandwich, began to perform occasional clerical duties in Detroit. It
was during the decade, 1820 to 1830, that most of the older Protestant
religious societies were planted in this city. Previous to that time the
Catholic residents had never been without spiritual guidance, but the
Protestants, who struggled into the town year after year, grew up with
an utter indifference to religion, and it took years of patient toil on the
part of the missionaries to awaken them to an interest in their spiritual
welfare. In 1800 the Congregational Society of Hartford, Conn., having
heard of the situation in Detroit, sent Rev. David Bacon to establish a
mission for both whites and Indians in Michigan. Mr. Bacon tramped
to Buffalo, with his earthly possessions tied in a small bundle and suspended from a stick over his shoulder. He slept when he could in the
cabins of hospitable pioneers, but often in the lonely forest. From Buffalo he came to Detroit by boat, arriving early in September. It was
late in the season, and he was anxious to reach Mackinaw and establish
a mission before navigation closed, but a heavy gale was blowing on
Lake Iluron, and he remained at Detroit. Here he preached to the
whites and Indians, the former showing little respect for his words,
while the latter gave him grave attention. In November he went back
home and returned next summer with a bride. In the fall of 1801 Rev.
Thomas Badger came from Hartford to assist Mr. Bacon in missionary
522




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~
'if it


I Atoo




work. Their task bore little fruit, for after the first curiosity of the
adults was satisfied, they came no more to the Sunday meetings in the
old council house, and only children attended services. In the winter
of 1802 a son was born to the Bacons, who afterward became the noted
divine, Dr. Leonard Bacon, of Hartford, Conn.
METHODIST EPISCOPAL.
It did not take the Methodist circuit riders long to penetrate the
western wilds. A number of them who traveled the wilderness held
occasional services in Detroit before the great fire of 1805. Representatives of other denominations made occasional visits. They appeared to
be unable to awaken the people. In 1817 the Rev. Gideon Lanning, a
zealous young Methodist from Western New York, came to Detroit and
organized the first Methodist society.  He was a man of magnetic
presence, and his powerful, high-pitched voice commanded attention.
When he preached in the council house people gathered to see what
manner of man it was who could make such an uproar, and they remained to listen, filling the street outside. Even he failed to accomplish much in Detroit, although he built a log church on the banks of
the River Rouge, and formed an embryo church. When he went away
his people scattered. The church was used for a school house, and
later it became an evil resort. But Mr. Lanning's labors were not lost.
Within thirty days after his arrival at Detroit the more enlightened
Protestants of the town organized what was known as the First Protestant Society of Detroit, and the organization, which was formed on September 15, 1817, took steps to maintain regular religious services.
Some of the citizens corresponded with the American Board of Foreign Missions in the East, and Rev. John Monteith was sent to Detroit.
Governor Cass, Henry J. Hunt, James Abbott and a few of the leading
citizens of the town pledged themselves to raise $800 for the support of
a pastor. Mr. Monteith remained in the town, preaching three Sundays of the month in the council house, and one at an outside mission,
while on the fourth Sunday of each month services were held at the old
council house by Methodist circuit riders. There was a sort of rivalry
between the Methodists and the Presbyterians to see which should
establish the first denominational church in Detroit. In 1823 the
Methodists asked the governor and judges for a grant of land for a
church site, and they were given a site at what is now the southeast
corner of Gratiot avenue and Farrar street. They were pledged to


523




build a'church on the site within three years, and they barely accomplished the task. The church was a rude affair with bare walls and
plank benches. It was so far from the center of population, and there
was so much bad road to be traversed in reaching it, that the church
did not thrive as it would have done in a better location.
In 1834 when the Methodists became satisfied of the unwisdom of
their first location, they sold out and obtained a site on the northeast
corner of Congress street and Woodward avenue. The Methodists
erected a church at this place, but sold it after occupying it fifteen
years, and built a third church on the southwest corner of Woodward
avenue and State street. This was a very comfortable but unpretentious brick church, which was occupied until 1867, when the society
moved into the Central Methodist church, just completed, at the northeast corner of Adams and Woodward avenues. For years the Metho(lists had a hard struggle to build up a strong church in Detroit.
The First Methodist Episcopal church had no associate until 1840,
when the Bethel African M. E. church was established. This congregation now has a church at Napoleon and Hastings streets, where the
membership is 260.
The First German Methodist church was established in 1847. It is
now located at Joseph Campau avenue and Heidelberg street.
Tabernacle M. E. church, at Howard and Fourth streets, was established in 1849 and has a membership of 410.
The Second German Methodist church was organized in 1858; it is
located on Sixteenth street near Michigan avenue, and has 240 members.
Simpson M. E. church, at the corner of Grand River and Sixth
streets, was established in 1869, and its membership exceeds 900.
Haven M. E. church, at Sixteenth and Bagg streets, was organized
in 1871, and has 28() members.
Delray M. E. church, which has over 100) members, was established
in 1882.
Thirty-second Street church was established in 1882.
Cass Avenue church, at the corner of Selden and Cass avenues, was
organized in 1883, and has a membership of 41i2.
The Mary W. Palmer Memorial church, at McDougall and Chainplain streets, was established in 1884 and has 438 nmembers.
Lincoln Avenue church, at the corner of Lincoln avenue and Putnam
street, was established in 1885.




Ninde church was organized in 1886; it is located at Visger and
Twenty-sixth streets, and has ninety members.
Preston church, at the corner of Twenty-third street and Lambie
place, was established in 1886, and has 330 members.
Woodward Avenue church was established in 1886. If is at the corner of Harper and Woodward avenues and has 302 members.
Asbury M. E. church, at Ferry and Dubois streets, was established
in 1883; it has 100 members.
Arnold church, at Seventeenth and Buchanan streets, wasestablished
in 1887 and has 160 members.
Ebenezer church, on Erskine street, near Beaubien, has a membership of 225.
Gratiot Avenue church, corner of Gratiot and Beaufait avenues, has a
membership of seventy-eight.
Brown's African M. E. church, at Thirtieth and Jackson streets, was
organized in 1891.
Campbell Avenue church, at the corner of Campbell avenue and McMillan street, was organized in 1892 and has 125 members.
Baldwin Avenue church, at the corner of Baldwin avenue and Champlain street, has eighty members.
Hudson Avenue church has 165 members.
In addition to those already named are Kenwood church; at Kenwood
Station; Leesville church, at Leesville, and Zion church, at 217 Rowena
street, making a total of twenty-seven Methodist Episcopal churches in
Detroit.
PRESBYTERIAN.
The First Protestant Society was merged into the First Presbyterian
Society in the winter of 1824. In the following spring the Presbyterians, who must have had great influence with the governor and judges,
were given a large site on very valuable ground. It was the block on
the east side of Woodward avenue, between Congress and Larned
streets. The grant was really made to the First Protestant Society,
which gave other Protestant denominations a claim to the ground.
Denominations were crowding each other so that the council house and
the old university building were not sufficient for the Sunday services.
The ground granted for church purposes had been known as the English burying ground; and the dead were disturbed to make room for
the temples of the quick. A small church of plain exterior, ornamented


525




with a modest spire, was erected in the middle of the grant. In 1834
the Presbyterians of Detroit decided that the church they had first
erected was too small, and its architecture was hardly worthy of so
wealthy a congregation. They sold the old building to the Catholic
parish of Holy Trinity, and it was removed to the northwest corner of
Cadillac square and Bates street. A handsome new church was erected
on the vacated site. It had a Grecian portico with a row of six Doric
columns, twenty-four feet high, and a heaven-soaring spire which looked
down on the other denominations with an air of condescension. It was
built by Alanson Sheley, and was dedicated in 1835. In 1838 Rev.
George Duffield became the pastor of this church, and he remained in
charge until he was stricken down while addressing an assembly from
his own pulpit thirty years later. The influence of this highly cultivated
and godly man was powerful for good and his descendants are people
of consequence in this community.
A great fire devastated a section of Woodward avenue, near the corner of Lamed street, on January 10, 1854, and the First Presbyterian
church was totally destroyed. The society sold the old site and purchased a new one at the northwest corner of Gratiot avenue and Farmer
street. This church was built on the site now occupied by the Hudson
store, and it was first occupied in 1855. For thirty five years its tall
spire was the most conspicuous object in the center of the city. As in
the case of some of the other churches, the First Presbyterian was soon
surrounded by business houses, and its membership gradually removed
farther up town as the commercial center expanded. In 1890 a new
site was purchased at the northeast corner of Woodward avenue and
Edmund place, and during the following year a splendid new church was
erected, the total cost being about $200,000  This church has a membership of nearly 1,000. There are fifteen Presbyterian churches in Detroit.
The Scotch or Central Presbyterian church was organized November
10, 1842, and within a year the people were worshiping in a wooden
edifice at the corner of Farmer and Bates street. At first the society
associated with the Church of Scotland. A brick church was built in
1871, and eight years later the congregation united with the American
Presbyterian church. This church has 510 members.
Fort Street Presbyterian church was crganized February 21, 1849,
and a brick church built at the corner of Wayne street and Lafayette
avenue. The society sold this property and erected a fine Gothic
church at the corner of Fort and Third streets in 1855.


526




I




RT. REV. THOMAS F. DAVIES.




Jefferson Avenue Presbyterian, founded in 1854, is located at the
corner of Jefferson avenue and Rivard street, and has 285 members.
Westminster church, at the corner of Woodward avenue and Parsons
street, was founded in 1857, and has 800 members.
Calvary church, on Michigan avenue, opposite Maybury avenue, was
founded in 1872, and has 337 members.
Convent church, at Russell and Napoleon streets, was founded in
1874, and has 210 members.
Memorial church, erected by David M. Cooper, at the corner of Clinton and Joseph avenues, was founded in 1881.
Trumbull Avenue church, at the corner of Trumbull avenue and
Brainard street, was founded in 1881, and has 1,115 members.
Second Avenue Presbyterian church was organized in 1853, and its
first home was at the corner of Wayne street and Lafayette avenue. It
was then known as the United Presbyterian church. In 1887 the government purchased a site for a new government building, which included the site of the church, and it was removed to a new edifice at the
corner of Second avenue and Gillman street. The congregation numbers about 400.
Bethany church, at Champlain and Seyburn streets, was founded in
1883, and has 285 members.
Forest Avenue church, at the corner of Forest avenue and Second
street, was founded in 1886 and has 428 members.
Immanuel church, at Porter street and the Boulevard, was founded
in 1888, and has 250 members.
The United Presbyterian church, at 744 Grand River avenue, with a
membership of about 300, and the Grand River Avenue mission complete the list.
PROTESTANT EPISCOPAL.
When the Episcopalians saw the erection of the First Presbyterian
church they were stirred with zeal. They had been holding occasional
services in the council house since 1824, and had formed a society in
the following year, incorporating as the parish of St. Paul. In 1826 they
claimed the right to build on a part of the site granted to the First
Protestant Society, and the Presbyterians acquiesced, upon condition
that the Episcopalians should pay the expense of moving their church
to the corner of Lamed street. The Episcopalians then built a brick
church in the center of the plot. It was finished in 1828. Rev. Samuel


527




A. McCoskry came from Philadelphia in 1828 to become rector of St.
Paul's. He was a tall, slender, scholarly man, and a gentleman of
elegant bearing. In 1836 he was elected a bishop. At times during
his residence in Detroit the tongue of scandal wagged concerning him,
but in 1878 certain irregularities unbecoming a clergyman caused him
to retire from Detroit in disgrace. He died a few years later in New
York city. The parish of St. Paul sold its Woodward avenue property
in 1852, and erected a church at the corner of Shelby and Congress
streets, which still stands, although the parish has planned to erect an
uptown church on Hancock avenue, near Woodward. The church now
has 730 communicants.
At the present time there are twenty four Episcopal churches and
chapels in Detroit. The second society formed was Christ's church,
organized in 1845; the present church is located on Jefferson avenue
between Hastings and Rivard streets, and the communicants number 740.
The Mariners' church was founded in 1848. This venerable looking
church edifice stands at the corner of Woodward avenue and Woodbridge street, and it has seventy five communicants.
St. John's church, the largest Episcopal society in Detroit, was organized in 1858. The church is located at the corner of Woodward
avenue and High street and has 1,400 communicants.
St. Peters' was organized in 1858. It is located at the corner of
Trumbull avenue and Church street and has about 400 communicants.
In 1865 a branch of St. Paul's church was established in Greenfield
township and the chapel has fourteen communicants.
Grace church, which stands at the corner of Fort and Second streets,
was organized in 1867; it has 410 communicants.
St. James church, at the corner of Bagg and Seventh streets, was
established 1868; it has about 400 communicants.
St. Stephen's, corner of Mullett street and St. Aubin avenue, was organized in 1869; it has 225 communicants.
All Saint's chapel, on Livernois avenue, near Michigan avenue, was
organized in 1875.
The Church of Our Saviour at Leesville was organized in 1875, and
has forty-two communicants.
Emanuel church, on Alexandrine avenue, near Woodward avenue,
was established in 1875; it has 340 communicants. This property was
sold to the First Church of Christ (scientists) on January 25, 1898.
528




St. George's church, at Howard and Fourteenth street, was organized
in 1876, and has 285 communicants.
St. Mary's mission, at St. Antoine and Benton streets, was organized
in 1874, and has 187 communicants.
The Church of the Good Shepherd was organized in 1879; is located
on Vinewood avenue, near Michigan, and has sixty communicants.
The Church of the Messiah, at Mt. Elliott avenue and Fort street,
was organized in 1880 and has 300 communicants.
St. Matthew's (colored) was established in 880; it is located at the
corner of St. Antoine and Elizabeth streets, and has a membership
of 156.
St. Thomas church, at the corner of Boulevard and Shady lane, was
established in 1883, and it has 265 members.
St. Barnabas mission, on Fourteenth street, near Grand River, was
established in 1883, and has fifty nine communicants.
St. Andrew's, at the corner of Fourth and Putnam avenues, was
established in 1885, and has 275 communicants.
St. Joseph's Memorial church, at the corner of Woodward and Medbury avenues, was organized in 1884, and has 250 communicants.
In addition to those already named are St. Philip's Mission, on McDougall avenue near Gratiot, and St. Luke's chapel, connected with
St. Luke's Hospital.
BAPTIST.
The Baptists organized a society in Detroit in 1827, and two years
later they built a temporary chapel at the northwest corner of Fort and
Griswold streets. This was sold in 1833, and a small brick church was
erected on the site. It was replaced in 1849 by a larger building,
which still stands on the ground, but the society sold the property in
1870 and built on the northwest corner of Cass avenue and Bagg street.
At the present time there are sixteen Baptist churches and missions
in Detroit. They are the following:
First Baptist, organized October 20, 1827; membership 644; located
at the corner of Cass avenue and Bagg street.
Second Baptist, organized in 1839; membership 400; located on Monroe avenue, between Brush and Beaubien streets.
French Baptist, organized in 1857; membership 163; located on
Sherman street near Rivard.
German-American Baptist, organized in 1864; membership 432; location corner of Joseph Campau and Arndt streets,
529
67




First German Baptist, located at the corner of Grandy and Trombley
avenues.
Woodward Avenue Baptist, organized in 1860; membership 1,007;
location corner of Woodward avenue and Winder street.
Grand River Avenue Baptist, organized 1879; membership 340; located corner Thirteenth street.
Clinton Avenue Baptist, organized 1880; membership 312; located
corner of Joseph Campau avenue and Clinton avenue.
Eighteenth Street Baptist, organized 1880; located between Baker
and Porter streets.
Second German Baptist, organized 1884; membership 131; located
corner of Linden and Eighteenth streets.
Shiloh Baptist (colored), organized 1881; located at 302 Columbia
street east.
Warren Avenue Baptist, organized 1887; membership 260; located
at Warren and Third streets.
North Baptist, organized 1890; membership 159; located on Woodward avenue and the Boulevard.
Immanuel Baptist, organized 1891; located at the corner of Fort
street and Dragoon avenue.
Scotten Avenue Baptist, organized 1892; located at Scotten and Visger avenues.
River Rouge Mission, a branch of Woodward Avenue church, corner
of James and Brownlee streets.
CONGREG ATIONA L.
The society of the First Congregational church, of Detroit, was organized in 1844, and purchased a lot at the corner of Jefferson avenue
and Beaubien street. For two years the society held services in the
council house, in the State Capitol, and in the Circuit Court room, but
the church was completed in 1846 at a total cost of $7,700, and was immediately occupied. In seven years the congregation had outgrown
the church, and the society paid $10,000 for a lot at the corner of West
Fort and Wayne streets, on which a church was erected at a cost of
$46,000. When the new edifice was dedicated in 1854 the sermon was
preached by Dr. Leonard Bacon, of New Haven, Conn. He was born
in Detroit in 1802, and was the son of Rev. David Bacon, the first
Protestant missionary to Detroit. The members of the church mostly
removed to the northern part of the city, and a new church site was


530




purchased at the corner of Woodward and Forest avenues for $20,675.
On this a new building of Portage Entry stone was erected at a cost of
$144,245. The church has about 800 members.
The Woodward Avenue Congregational church was organized in
1866. Its present location is at the corner of Woodward avenue and
Sibley street and the membership is 800.
Plymouth Tabernacle was organized in 1881, and a large church was
erected at the corner of Trumbull avenue and Baker street. Under
the leadership of Rev. Morgan Wood a very large congregation was
attracted to the services, and people of many creeds united to support
the church. Mr. Wood was a man of remarkable energy and originality, who cared little for the criticisms of his associate pastors of his denomination. He did his best to advertise and draw people to it. He
founded an institutional church, to combine secular education and social
culture with his religious teachings. Night schools were held, and lectures were given by learned citizens of the town, but the church was
unable to keep up the expense. The pastor toiled diligently in the
lecture field to raise money for carrying on his chosen enterprise. The
church was not large enough to accommodate his congregation, so he
held summer services at the Detroit Opera House, and later at the
Auditorium, but the collections were not sufficient to defray the expenses, and the ambitious young pastor was compelled to drop back
into the old groove. He was called to Toronto in 1897, to receive a
much larger salary than he ever received in Detroit. The membership
of Plymouth Tabernacle was 650, but the congregation divided in 1895,
and the Peoples' church, undenominational, was formed. The more
conservative members went to other churches and those of more liberal
ideas remained.
The Fort Street Congregational church was founded in 1881, and a
building was erected at the corner of Fort street and Summit avenue.
The present membership is 201.
Mt. Hope chapel was organized in 1889, and a church was built on
Twenty-fifth street near Michigan avenue.
The Brewster Congregational church was organized in 1894. The
church stands at the corner of Warren and Trumbull avenues; the membership is 160.
In 1891 the First Congregational church established a branch at the
corner of Canfield avenue and Hastings street, and the little church has
forty. six members at the present time.
531




The German Evangelical church, at the corner of Antoine and Penton
streets, is associated with the Congregational societies.
JEWISH.
The Jews of Detroit have four synagogues of divine worship. Temple Bethel (Reform), at the corner of Washington Boulevard and Clifford street, was founded in 1850.
Scha'are Zedek temple, at Congress and Antoine streets, was founded
in 1863.
The B'nai Israel congregation, at 55 Mullett street, was established
in 1871.
Beth Jacob, at Montcalm and Hastings streets, was organized in 1884.
REFORM.
There are five reformed churches of various creeds.
The Church of the Redeemer at Holden avenue and Fifth street, is
Reformed Episcopal, and was founded in 1888.
Bethany Evangelical Reformed church, at St. Paul and Shipherd
avenues, was founded in 1893, and has a membership of 117.
The First Holland Reformed church, at 312 Catherine street, was
founded in 1872, and has 240 members.
The First German Reformed Church of Zion, at Chene and Jay
streets, was founded in 1842, and has 350 members.
Grace Reformed church, on Leuschner avenue, was founded in 1895.
GERMAN LUTHERAN.
The German Protestants of Detroit, as early as 1833, established St.
John's Evangelical church, which now has an edifice at Antietam and
Chestnut streets.
Christ's church at Twenty-sixth and Myrtle, estal)lished in 1887, has
seventy-one families.
Immanuel chapel is located on Livernois avenue near Michigan.
The second St. John's, at Delray, was established in 1885  St.
Marcus, at Dix and Military avenues, has 250 families in its congregation.
St. Matthew's church is located at the corner of Concord and Stewart
avenues, and St. Paul's, organized in 1872, has a membership of 840
families. It is located at Seventeeth and Rose streets.
The German Lutherans have twenty-one churches in Detroit and
I


532




three synods are represented in their control. Under the control of the
Missouri synod are Bethania church, organized in 1889, located at Meldrum and Pulford avenues, has ninety-six families in its membership.
Trinity, at Gratiot and Rivard street, was organized in 1851 has 210
families.
Immanuel, at Seventeenth and Pine streets, was organized in 1865
and has a membership of 1,286.
Bethel, at Dubois street and Medbury avenue, has fifty-three families.
Bethlehem, on McKinstry avenue between Fort street and Dix avenue, was organized in 1887 and has 607 members.
Emmaus, at Twelfth and Lysander streets, was organized in 1889 and
has 174 families. Gethsemane, at Twenty-eighth street, near Buchanan,
has 648 members. St. Peter's, at Pierce and Chene streets, was organized in 1878 and has 600 families. St. John's, at Maybury avenue and Poplar street, was organized in 1879; has 500 families.
Stephanus, on Chamberlain street, between Lawndale and Englewood
avenues, was organized in 1890 and has 180 families.
Zion church, located at 555 Welch avenue, has 1,378 families.
Six of the Lutheran churches are under control of the Ohio synod.
Christ's, at Scotten and Wolff avenues, was founded in 1887. It has
175 families who subscribe to the original Augsburg Confession.
Good Hope, in Springwells, was organized in 1889 and has twentyeight families.
St. James, at Poplar and Humboldt streets, was founded in 1890 and
has 250 families.
St. Paul's, at Joseph Campau and Jay streets, was organized in 1874
and has 800 members.
Salem, at Chene street and Mack avenue, has 1,500 members.
St. Luke's is a small church at Field and Kercheval avenues.
St. Matthew's Lutheran, established in 1845, located at the corner
of Congress and Rivard streets, is under control of the Buffalo synod.
Holy Cross church, at Joseph Campau avenue and Illinois street, has
a membership of 350 families, and is under control of the Iowa synod.
The Church of Jehovah, at Thompson street and Forest avenue, was
established in 1894, and is an independent church.
St. Peter's church, on Catherine street near St. Aubin, was founded
in 1880. Its congregation is composed of Norwegians.  It is independent.
The First Unitarian church was founded in 1850 and the congrega533




tion owns a fine church at the corner of Woodward avenue and Edmund
place.
The Church of Our Father (Universalist), at the corner of Park
street and Bagley avenue, was founded in 1882, and there are 350
members.
The Catholic Apostolic church, at 201 Columbia street east, was
founded in 1892, and has sixty members.
The church of the Christian Missionary Alliance, founded in 1889,
has seventy members, who worship at the Central Christian church
Sunday afternoon.
The Church of Christ (Christian Science), founded in 1893, held
Sunday services in Schwankovsky's Hall until February, 1898, when
the society purchased the edifice of Emmanual church on Alexandrine
avenue, near Woodward. There are 240 members.
Mizpah church (Undenominational), on Calumet avenue, has seventy
members. It was organized in 1882.
New Jerusalem church (Swedenborgian), at Cass avenue and High
street, was founded in 1872.
The Seventh Day Adventist Mission, at 426 Trumbull avenue, was
founded in 1890, and has 200 members.
The Salvation Army (Michigan division) and a branch of the southern Michigan division, is established in Detroit.
The reorganized church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Monagamous (Mormons), hold services in Chene Hall. They organized in
Detroit in 1891, and have 100 members.
Detroit Bethel Mission is established at Seaman's Home.
There are two Christian churches in Detroit; the Central, located at
the corner of Second avenue and Ledyard street, was organized in 1842.
It has a membership of 300. The Church of the Disciples of Christ,
located at Fourth avenue and Plum streets, has a membership of 500.
The Evangelical Association has two churches in Detroit. The First
Evangelical, established in 1890, is at the corner of Catherine and Dubois streets, and has a membership of 160; and Salem church, on
Waterman avenue near Fort, has fifty members. The latter was established in 1894.
The Flying Roll, or the Latter Day House of Israel, is a religious
society which was founded about a quarter of a century ago in the
south of England. A British soldier named James J. White, who had
served several years in India and had associated with several orders of
534




native priests, announced himself as a messenger of wisdom inspired
by the ruler of all things. He took the name of James J. Jezreel, and,
in common with a number of eccentric persons, promulgated a call td
the lost people of Israel. Taking such passages of scripture as suited
their purpose, they combined them with the ancient mosaic law and
adopted some of the rules of the Nazarites and other Hebrew sects for
those who might follow them. They announced that the end of the
world was near and that when the day of destruction came, in accordance with Revelations, 144,000 of the elect would. be caught up to
heaven, while all other creatures on the earth would perish by fire.
White claimed that those who responded to his call would be children
of the lost tribes of Israel. A missionary visited the United States in
1884 and made a number of converts. Colonies were established at
Detroit and at Grand Rapids. The Detroit colony was most prosperous because it had for its head a man of peculiar qualities, Michael J.
Mills. Mills called himself a prince of the house of Israel, and was
known as Prince Michael. His wife saw practices which she could not
tolerate, and she abandoned the colony, and a woman named Eliza
Courts became princess and queen. In 1891 rumors of immoral practices became common and after an investigation Prince Michael was
arrested and tried for crimes committed upon little girls in the colony.
He was examined in the police court and held for trial. His attorneys
procured a change of venue to Ann Arbor, where he was tried and convicted.  He was sentenced to imprisonment in the State prison at
Jackson for five years on June 17, 1892. Princess Eliza kept the colony
together during his incarceration and taught his followers to consider
him as a martyr. At the expiration of his sentence the prince and
princess were married, Mrs. Mills having obtained a divorce. Up to
this time the colony had its headquarters on Hamlin avenue, although
many of the members lived in distant parts of the city. The men wear
their hair long and beards in unrestrained freedom, after the rule of the
Nazarites, and the women allowed their hair to hang down their backs.
They do no labor except such as is necessary to supply their daily
needs, believing that the world is near an end, and lived on the means
which new converts brought into the community. The order has fallen
into disrepute and most of the members have removed from Hamlin
avenue to Windsor, Ont., across the Detroit River. In the early part
of 1897 Princess Eliza gathered the women of the colony into an auxiliary congregation, which was called " The New Eve of the House of
Israel. "
535




CHAPTER LXXVI.


The Modern Newspapers of Detroit-The Tribune and the Detroit Free Press
Rival Claimants for the Honors of Seniority-Beginnings of the Four Dailies Now in
Existence-The Gazette and Other Journals of the Past-List of the Papers and
Periodicals now Published in the City.
The Detroit Tribune is the lineal successor of a great many newspapers, the earlier ones being generally of Whig proclivities. The first
was the Northwestern Journal, first issued in 1829. The name was
afterward changed to Detroit Journal and Michigan Advertiser, and
subsequently to Detroit Journal and Courier, and its first daily edition,
under the title of Detroit Daily Advertiser, was published on June 11,
1836. It was afterward consolidated with the Democrat and Enquirer
in 1855; and with the Detroit Daily Tribune in 1862, and was then rechristened the Advertiser and Tribune. Henry Barnes, of the Tribune,
was the editor, and James E. Scripps of the Advertiser, was the business manager. The Detroit Daily Post, was commenced as a daily
Republican paper, on March 27, 1866, by a stock company, in which
Zachariah Chandler was interested. It was started as an opposition
paper to the Tribune, which has been recognized as the leading Republican paper of Michigan. It was consolidated with the Advertiser and
Tribune in 1877, and on October 14, appeared as the Post and Tribune.
On August 1, 1884, J. L. Stickney assumed control of the paper, which
he named the Daily Post. It was purchased by Charles and Walter A.
Nimock of Minneapolis, on November 1, 1885. They organized the
Detroit Tribune Printing Company, and named the paper Detroit
Tribune. On October 1, 1886, James A. Stone, James W. Hines,
James S. Barstow and others purchased the stock, and published the
paper until January 1, 1891, when James E. Scripps, George H.
Scripps, George G. Booth and M. J. Dee became proprietors. It is
now published by the Evening News Association.
After the burning of the Gazette in 1830, a new Democrat paper,
under the auspices of influential citizens of that faith, was started on
May 5, 1831. John P. Sheldon was the editor, who resigned shortly


536




i
I




WILLIAM E. QUINBY.




afterward. The new paper was styled the Democratic Free Press and
Michigan Intelligencer, and Sheldon McKnight was the editor and
manager from 1833 to 1836, when he sold the paper and material to
John S. Bagg and S. L. Morse. The office was burned in 1837, and
after.the fire, John S. Bagg, S. A. Bagg and Henry Barnes, acquired
the paper, which was published as a semi-weekly. On June 5, 1837,
a daily edition was published as Vol. I, No. 1. On January 1, 1842,
the office was again burned. Shortly afterward the paper passed into
the hands of A. S. Bagg and John Harmon. In 1847 John S. Bagg
became the editor once more, and shortly afterward A. S. Bagg retired,
and the principal partners were John S. Bagg and John Harmon. Several changes of ownership took place between this time and 1853, when
Wilbur T. Storey, who had been editing a paper in Jackson, became
sole proprietor. He sold it to Henry N. Walker, who admitted F. L.
Seitz to partnership in 1861. In the same year C. H. Taylor, Jacob
Barnes and Wm. E. Quinby became partners. In 1875 the last named
became the principal proprietor. In 1878 the office was again burned
out, but the paper was published without interruption. In 1880, the
London Free Press, a weekly literary paper, was published in London,
England, and is continued to the present time. It is made up in Detroit, stereotyped, and the papier mache matrices sent to London, where
it is again stereotyped, and published. The Free Press has always been
recognized as the leading Democratic daily in Michigan.
A dispute as to the oldest daily paper published in Detroit or Michigan has been contested ever since the '50's, the rival claimants being
the Free Press and Tribune. The points of the controversy are as follows: The Free Press claims to be the oldest, because the first daily
edition was issued on September 27, 1835. The Tribune admits that a
daily paper was published under that name at the time given, but says
that after the Free Press was burned, January 11, 1837, anew company
was organized, which did not commence to publish a daily paper until
June 5, 1837, seven months afterward. Also, that the first daily edition
of the Detroit Daily Advertiser, of which the Tribune is the lineal successor, was published on June 11, 1836, and has been published continuously ever since. The Free Press counters by stating that it was not
a new firm that reissued the publication of its daily after an interregnum
of seven months; that John S. Bagg, who was one of the owners before
the fire in 1837, was one of the owners after the fire, and that the firm
was substantially the same, and therefore continuous. The Tribune




rejoins that even if such was the case, it does not prove that the Daily
Free Press had a continuous existence, because the second Daily Free
Press was numbered, Vol. 1, No. 1, showing that the proprietors regarded it as a new venture.
The Detroit Daily Union was started by journeyman printers after a
strike in 1865. Its original owners were John Drew, Wm. F. Moore,
James B. Spinning, M. H. Marsh, Robert Bichan and Beecher Skinner.
It was sold in June, 1872, to John Atkinson, Thomas D. Hawley, Richard Hawley, Alex. D. Fowler and others. It was discontinued in 1874,
and its circulation was absorbed by the Evening News.
The Evening News, an afternoon daily, was founded by James E.
Scripps on August 23, 1873. A few months later he took into partnership his brother, George H. Scripps, and on the day the paper was
four years old, admitted also to participation, Edward W. Scripps, a
younger brother, and John S. Sweeney. In November, 1878, a branch
paper called the Press was established in Cleveland; in 1880 one in St.
Louis called the Chronicle; and in 1881 a fourth in Cincinnati named
the Post. This quartette of publishers was later increased to a sextette by the addition of Milton A. McRae and George G. Booth. Since
then the members have severally or collectively in various proportions
acquired the following list of successful newspapers, and are now, probably, the largest newspaper publishing interest in the United States:
The Evening News; The Detroit Tribune; The Cleveland Press; The
St. Louis Chronicle; The Cincinnati Post; The Chicago Journal; The
Covington (Ky.) Post; The Grand Rapids Press; The Kansas City
World; The Indianapolis Sun; The Baltimore World; The Los Angeles Record; The San Diego Sun.
Of the thirteen papers James E. Scripps is interested in seven, George
H. Scripps in seven, E. WV. Scripps in eight, J. S. Sweeney in three,
G. G. Booth in three, and M. A. McRae in three. The Evening News
started a Sunday edition, under the title of the Sunday News, on
November 30, 1884. It was amalgamated with the Sunday Tribune on
October 15, 1893, and the paper was styled the Sunday News-Tribune.
The Detroit Evening Journal was started on September 1, 1883, by
J. Lloyd Brezee and C. C. Packard. A stock company was afterward
formed, with John B. Corliss, J. Lloyd Brezee, Jesse H. Farwell and
others as stockholders. In October, 1884, S. J. Tomlinson succeeded
Brezee as manager. In 1887 the Journal was purchased by W. H.
Brearley. The concern was not successful, and it passed into the posses538




h 17j/Clr31rZy




I








WILLIAM LIVINGSTONE, JR.




sion of Thomas W. Palmer and William Livingstone, and was sold
under sheriff's sale on February 20, 1892, to perfect the title. Since
that time it has been managed by William Livingstone. It is Repub
lican in politics.
The Detroit Times, a morning paper, commenced publication on
December 4, 1883, the owners being Frank E. Robinson, Charles M.
Parker, D. J. McDonald and Charles Moore. It was sold to J. Lloyd
Brezee on November 22, 1884, who transformed it into an evening
paper. It was suspended about nine months afterward.
The Detroit Times was started as a one cent afternoon paper in
August, 1890, by the Times Publishing Company, of which the directors were Gilbert R. Osmun, Wm. E. Brownlee and C. S. McDonald.
It was an experiment to determine whether a paper published at that
price could achieve success. After running about two years it suspended publication, and its circulation was absorbed by the Evening
News.
The Sunday Sun was founded by David Pryse Mackay in May, 1883.
In 1889 an evening daily edition, called the Evening Sun, was commenced, and was continued for three years. In 1892 it was changed to
a morning edition, called the Morning Sun. At the end of six months
it was discontinued. The Sunday Sun has been issued regularly.
Edward B. Winter is manager.
The German newspapers of Detroit date from 1844. The first paper
in that language was the Allgemeine-Zeitung, a Democratic weekly,
started by Dr. Anton Kaminsky on September 21, 1844.    Subsequently the name of the paper was changed to Michigan Staats-Zeitung. After the death of Dr. Kaminsky, in 1850, the paper came into
the possession of Butz & Schimmel, who christened it the Michigan
Tribune.
The Michigan Democrat was started in 1853, and the Michigan Tribune was consolidated with it during the following year. The paper
was owned by a stock company and was sold in May, 1856, to Dr.
Peter Klein, who soon afterward sold it to Domedian & Kramer.
Meanwhile, on May 1, 1853, the Michigan Volksblatt had been established by F. & W. Schimmel, its first editor being Rudolf Diepenbeck. In 1856 it was sold to Domedian & Kramer, who consolidated
it with the Democrat, and the paper was rechristened as Michigan
Democrat and Volksblatt.  In 1858 Domedian sold it to Philipp
Kramer, and from that time until 1891 the proprietors of the paper


539




were the brothers, Mathias and Philipp Kramer. In 1860 they issued a
daily edition, which was named Michigan Volksblatt. In 1862 the
Michigan Staats-Zeitung, established in 1858 by Chas. D. Haas, was
consolidated with the Volksblatt.  In December, 1891, the paper
passed into the hands of the stock company which owns it at the present time. It is Democrat in politics.
The Michigan Journal, the first German daily paper published in
Detroit or Michigan, was first issued on April 15, 1853, by August and
Conrad Marxhausen. In 1866 August retired to found the FamilienBlaetter a German weekly, and Conrad remained as sole proprietor
until 1872, when it was transferred to four printers named Fred Cornehl, F. Pope. Jacob Pope and George Goettman, who published it
until April 26, 1875, when it died a natural death.
The Familien-Blaetter, a German Republican weekly, was first published by August Marxhausen on July 1, 1866. On September 5, 1868,
Mr. Marxhausen commenced the publication of the Detroit AbendPost, an evening daily.  The Familien-Blaetter was thereafter continued as its weekly edition. Mr. Marxhausen is still the active
superintendant of both papers, which have always been Republican in
politics.
The Michigan Volks-Zeitung, a weekly, was first issued by Conrad
Marxhausen in 1876. It passed through several hands, was renamed
the Michigan Volks-Zeitung, and died in 1884.
Der Arme Teufel (The Poor Devil), a weekly German paper, was
started by Robert Reitzel on December 1, 1881.
The Sonntags-Herold, a German Sunday newspaper, was started by
Adolph Kauffman on September 14, 1884. On October 5, 1885, a daily
evening edition, named the Herold, was commenced, and continued
until June 2, 1886. The Sonntags-Herold was purchased in 1891 by
Charles Vollbracht, who continued it until May 1, 1893, when it was
sold to Raymond Dopp and Henry Mueller, who sold it to the present
proprietor, Frederick A. Draeger, on May 19, 1893.
A German evening daily, named the Arbeiter-Zeitung, was started
in May, 1888, by the German Publishing Association. The paper,
which advocated labor interests and was independent in politics, was
published until July 14, 1889. It was then converted into a weekly, by
the same management, under the name of the Michigan Arbeiter-Zeitung and continued until April 12, 1890. A daily, called the Detroit
Tageblatt was then started, and the weekly Michigan Arbeiter was con

540




AUGUST MARXHAUSEN.




0




tinued for about a year, and was then discontinued.  The Detroit
Tageblatt then commenced publishing a paper seven days a week, which
continued until February, 1892, when it suspended publication.
I)er Kicker is published weekly by Eugene Newald.
Die Stimme der Wahrheit, a Catholic weekly, is published weekly by
E. Andries.
Other existing newspapers and periodicals published in Detroit are
as follows:


American Tyler (Masonic), semimonthly, established in 1887.
Angelus (Catholic), weekly. Illustrated.
Angelus Bell (Sunday School), illustrated weekly.
Bookkeeper, monthly.
Budget.
Bulletin of Pharmacy, monthly.
Business World, tri-monthly.
Catholic Witness, weekly.
Christian Herald (Baptist), established
1876, weekly.
Collector and Commercial Lawyer,
monthly.
Concert-Goer, successor to the Song
Journal, established 1885.
Crown Monthly, devoted to the interests of the Royal Arcanum.
Delray and Springwells Times, weekly, Delray.
Detroit Advertiser, weekly.
Detroit Churchman (Episcopal) monthly.
Detroit Courier (formerly Wayne
County Courier), weekly.
Detroit Daily Market Report, successor to the Board of Trade Market Report.
Detroit Herald of Commerce, published by Evening News Association,
weekly.
Detroit Legal News, daily and weekly.
Detroit National Independent (Republican), weekly.
Detroit Press, weekly.
Detroit Republican.


Foundry, devoted to foundry interests
monthly.
Fraternal  Index  (secret  society),
weekly.
Gwiazda Polska (Polish Star), weekly.
Harper Hospital Bulletin, devoted to
hospital work.
Illustrated Sun (independent), weekly.
Indicator (insurance), semi-monthly.
Israel's Free Press of the New Eve,
monthly.
Justice (single tax), weekly.
Lampa, monthly.
Law Students' Helper.
Legal News, daily and weekly.
Leonard's Illustrated Medical Journal,
established 1879, quarterly.
Medical Age, monthly,
Michigan Catholic, established 1872,
weekly.
Michigan Christian Advocate (Methodist Episcopal), established 1874, weekly.
Michigan Farmer and State Journal of
Agriculture, established 1843, weekly.
Michigan Law Journal, monthly.
Michigan Presbyterian, weekly.
Niedziela (Polish), weekly.
North Side Gazette (independent),
weekly.
Patriotic  American  (independent),
weekly.
People (Populist), weekly.
Physician and Surgeon (medicine and
surgery), founded 1879.
Plymouth, weekly (Congregational).


541




Public Leader (devoted to the interests  Therapeutic Gazette, established 1877,
of the liquor trade) weekly.       monthly.
Red Cross Gazette, monthly.        Truth (independent), weekly.
School Record, monthly.            Visitors' Gazette, established 1885,
Retail Druggist, monthly.        weekly.
Sporting Record, weekly.           Western Newspaper Union, weekly.
Swoboda (Polish), weekly.
CHAPTER LXXVII.
History of Detroit's Street Railways-First Franchise Granted in 1862-Short
Lines Prove Losing Ventures-Gradual Combination of Lines and Extensions of
Service-The Citizens Company's Claims of Monopolistic Rights-The Contest between Mayor Hazen S. Pingree and the Street Railway Companies.
Detroit's first street railway was projected in 1862, during the war of
the Rebellion. Eben N. Willcox was the father of the scheme and his
associates were H. K. Sanger and R. N. Rice. This trio associated
themselves with a number of other citizens and asked the Common
Council for an ordinance authorizing them to construct and operate a
street railway. The ordinance was granted May 24, 1862, but the
company of grantees was in such an embryotic state that the ordinance
was worded: "To permit certain persons to establish and operate
street railways in Detroit."  Even at that early day the council had its
eye teeth cut. To prevent any speculative franchise grabbing, and to
insure good faith on the part of the grantees, a deposit of $5,000 with
the city controller was required. This proviso took all the zeal out of
the promoters, for they entertained divers misgivings as to the financial
success of the enterprise.  They refused to accept the ordinance with
that condition, and on August 2G, 1862, the first franchise was forfeited.
Then the council authorized the city controller to advertise for bids
and proposals for building a street railway in Detroit. The original
ordinance was the basis upon which the bidders were to figure, but nobody cared to take the risk. In November Controller D. C. Whitwood
reported that Mr. Willcox and C. S. Bushnell had suggested certain alterations in the original ordinance which might open the way to a
proposition.  The council heard Mr. Willcox, and passed a new ordinance on November 24, 1862.
542




Among other changes from the ordinance of May 24, 1862, was one
giving the grantees the exclusive privilege of constructing street railways on certain named streets, and the first right or option on all other
streets. The prior ordinance gave the first right or option, but did not
use the "exclusively," as it is found in the ordinance of November
24, 1862.
This ordinance granted to C. S. Bushnell, John A. Griswold, Nehemiah D. Sperry and Eben N. Willcox, their associates, successors and
assigns, the privilege of building and operating a street railway system.
The ordinance was granted under the act to provide for the construction
of train railways, passed in 1855. Construction and operation were
authorized on Jefferson, Michigan and Woodward avenues and on Witherell, Grand River and Gratiot streets. It also provided for the building of a line reaching from the western city limits on Fort street as far
east as Third street, down Third to Woodbridge street and through
Woodbridge as far as Woodward avenue. The lines on Michigan avenue and Grand River and Gratiot streets were to operate cars on Woodward avenue from the point of their several intersections with Woodward to Jefferson avenue. The Jefferson avenue line was to extend
to the eastern limits of the city; the Gratiot street was to be completed
as far east as the line of B. Chapoton's farm; the Michigan avenue line
as far west as Thompson (now Twelfth) street, and the Grand River
line as far as the easterly line of the Woodbridge farm, by March 30,
1863. Cars were to be drawn by animals only, and at a speed not exceeding six miles an hour. They were to run as often as public convenience
might require, but in no case oftener than once in twenty minutes. Fares
were fixed at five cents and the company was to pay the city a revenue
of $15 a year for each car operated.
Mr. Willcox went to Syracuse, N. Y., and secured the assistance of
several capitalists, who became a part of the company and furnished
most of the money for building the first lines. They were Thomas T.
Davis, Austin Myers, James J. Belden, Nathan Randall, L. Harris
Hiscock and Frank Hiscock. A deposit of $5,000 was made with the
city controller on January 10, 1863, and the grantees filed articles of
association as the Detroit City Railway Company. At first the capital
stock was fixed at $100,000 and bonds to that amount were floated in
Syracuse.
The Detroit City Company constructed a single track railway on Jefferson avenue, extending from the bridge over the Detroit, Grand


543




Haven and Milwaukee tracks, to the Michigan Central depot at the
foot of Third street. It was about a mile and a half in length and it
was used almost exclusively for transferring railroad passengers from
between the two depots. Travel was light and trains were not frequent. Cars run over the route once in half an hour, and after the
citizens had patronized the street cars for a short time, because of the
novelty, the cars often ran very light, if not empty. Under such circumstances the road could not pay operating expenses, much less pay
interest and profit on the investment. The business of the company
had either to be increased or the road abandoned. In 1864 George V.
N. Lothrop was made president and D. Bethune Duffield secretary.
The capital stock was increased $21,000 and the money was used to
build a line up Woodward avenue to a point a short distance above
Grand Circus Park. All the construction was of the cheapest class,
light strap rails being laid on wooden stringers and the cars were cheap
one horse affairs. George Hendrie, who held a contract for the trucking and transfer business between the Detroit, Grand Haven and Milwaukee and the Michigan Central depots was induced to undertake the
operation of the street railway. He always kept plenty of surplus
teams; his business was principally between the two depots, and he
could operate the cars of the street railway more economically than any
other man in the city. Four years of experiment showed that the Detroit Street Railway was a financial failure unless a larger patronage
could be obtained. The city contained 50,000 people, but the street
cars were not available for communication between the residence portion and the business center, and so few people rode.
In 1867 the capital stock was increased to $500,000, new stockholders
were taken into the company, and preparations were made to extend
the existing lines and build others which would afford a convenient
means of travel for the greater proportion of the citizens. Among
those who came into the company at this period were Sidney D. Miller,
E. W. Meddaugh and F. E. Driggs. Each one of them took five $100
shares, and James McMillan and George Hendrie came in as trustees
for 1,123 shares. Thus reinforced the company was able to go ahead
with extensions. Woodward Avenue line was extended far up town and
car barns were established on Erskine street. Jefferson Aveuue line
was also extended eastward. The Fort Street line had been forfeited
because the company had failed to build it within the specified time,
and on January 31, 1865, a new company obtained an ordinance
544




JOHN A. DICK.








through Fort street from the western limits of the city to Elmwood
avenue. It was known as the Fort Street and Elmwood Company.
As the Grand River Street franchise had been forfeited through the
failure of the Detroit City Railway Company to build the road within
the specified time, a number of citizens who had considerable real
estate in that territory asked for a franchise. It was granted on May
1, 1868, to Nathaniel Prouty, Moses F. Dickinson, William B. Wesson,
Harvey King and James P. Mansfield, who incorporated as the Grand
River Street Railway Company. They operated the line for three
years, but did not make it pay, so in the spring of 1871 a controlling
interest was sold to Charles M. Dailey, James W. Dailey and J. Dailey.
Street railway accommodations developed the northwestern part of the
city and the line began to pay. In 1888 it became a valuable property
and the tracks were exended northward from the railroad crossing to
the city limits. The cars ran down Woodward avenue to Jefferson
avenue, and the Detroit City Railway planned to secure possession of
it. Sidney D. Miller, acting as agent for Hugh McMillan and other
parties, purchased the Grand River line in the summer of 1888. The
price paid was $275,000, and soon after it was combined with the
system of the Detroit City Railway.
On June 13, 1873, the Detroit and Grand Trunk Junction Railway
Company obtained a franchise on Larned street, from Woodward
avenue to Mt. Elliott avenue, crossing over Congress street on Joseph
Campau avenue and through Congress westward as far as Seventh
street, up Seventh street to Baker street and through Baker street,
Twenty-fourth street and the Dix road to the western limits of the city.
This road was soon ready for operation on the west side of Woodward
avenue, and the original grantees sold out to a new company known as
the Congress and Baker Street Railway Company. In 1882 the Detroit
City Railway Company purchased it and added it to their system. On
June 16, 1875, an ordinance was granted to the Central Market, Cass
Avenue and Third Street Railway Company to construct a line from
Jefferson avenue through Bates, Farmer, Gratiot, State, Cass, Ledyard
and Third streets to the Holden road. Competition now threatened
the interests of the Detroit City Railway Company, and Sidney D. Miller, who was president of the old company, sent a communication to
the Common Council, November 11, 1875, calling attention to the terms
of the ordinance which gave the original company the first right to
build street railways in Detroit. He added that his company was pre


69




pared to go ahead with any needed extensions, or to build such lines as
might be considered a public necessity. After some deliberation the
council decided that should the Detroit City Railway insist upon creating a monopoly in the streets of the city, the question would be submitted to the courts for a settlement. The company obtained a
franchise on Third street from Grand River to Lamed, and through
Lamed street to Griswold street. The old company was disposed to
resist this construction.- The promoters were apprehensive that the
City Railway managers would secure an injunction to delay or defeat
their enterprise, so on Saturday night, October 28, 1876, several hundred laborers from the Polish settlement were brought together in the
vicinity on Lamed street. As soon as the city clocks had sounded the
midnight hour all danger of an injunction was over until Monday morning, and the gang of laborers fell to work with a will. They laid the
six blocks of Lamed street between Griswold and Third streets, while
a crowd of spectators cheered them on. This Third and Lamed Street
line never paid expenses, and it was sold under foreclosure to the Cass
Avenue Company. In 1879 the Cass Avenue sold out to the Detroit
City Railway Company.
On November 14, 1879, a new ordinance was passed, embracing all the
lines then owned by the Detroit City Railroad Company, and extended
the franchises to the year 1909. At the same time a tax of one per
cent. was laid on the gross earnings of the road, and the company was
required to pave between its tracks after that date. All the railway
lines in the city, except the Fort Street and Elmwood line, were at this
time under the control of the old company. An ordinance for a double
track on Griswold street, between State and Lamed streets, was passed
July 8, 1882. On March 29, 1884, an ordinance was granted for the
doubling of the single track on Woodbridge street to the Michigan Central depot. A third track across the Campus Martius was authorized
in July of the same year. On January 5, 1885, what is known as the
Brush street line, running through Monroe avenue, Gratiot avenue,
Brush, Ohio, St. Antoine, Farnsworth, Russell streets and Ferry avenue to the Detroit and Milwaukee Junction, was authorized by the
Common Council. The Trumbull Avenue line was built between
Michigan and Warren avenues in 1885. The Myrtle Street line was
built during the same year. The Cass Avenue line was extended up
Third street to the railroad tracks in 1887, and the Trumbull Avenue
lint was built as far as the railroad in 1888.


546




In 1887 a new tax system was substituted for the old regulation. It
provided that the gross earnings of the street railways should be reported to the Common Council semi-annually, and bear a tax of one
and a half per cent. until January 1, 1897, after which date the ordinance provided for a two per cent. rate. The real estate of the companies was also made subject to tax. Michigan avenue was built to
the western city limits in 1889, and that year the Chene Street, Mack
Avenue and East Fort Street lines were built. In 1885 the charter of
the Grand River line was extended to January 1, 1916.
The Detroit street railway controversy, which has become famous
all over the American continent, was initiated and sustained by Mayor
Hazen S. Pingree, backed by the Common Council, and at this date
(1897), is not ended. No complete history of this exciting episode in
Detroit's history can be written at the present time, but, an impartial
resume of the leading incidents and the attitude of the respective contestants will be here attempted. Mr. Pingree took his seat as mayor in
1890. Before he had been in office three weeks he declared in favor of
municipal ownership of street railways. At this time the employees of
the Detroit City Railway claimed that they were required to work too
many hours daily, and for insufficient wages. This feeling culminated
in a strike on April 21, 1891, and a riot ensued. Mayor Pingree would
not comply with the requests of prominent citizens to call out the
State troops, and on April 24 he addressed the rioters on Woodward
avenue and advocated arbitration with their employers. He also sent
a note to the managers of the company, suggesting terms of arbitration, which were accepted, and this method of adjusting differences between the street railroad managers and their employees is still practiced.
The company presentel to the council a new ordinance, which gave
it a new franchise for thirty years, with fares fixed at six tickets for
twenty-five cents. The council passed it, but the mayor refused to sign
the ordinance, and called for a meeting of citizens at the Auditorium to
get an expression of the popular opinion. This meeting, which was
held July 7, 1891, was attended by 4,000 citizens, who almost unanimously endorsed the mayor's position. On July 9 the council sustained the mayor's veto. Two weeks later, July 23, the Detroit City
Railway Company sold out to a new company known as the Detroit
Citizens' Railway Company, composed of leading citizens and men influential in business and politics.  The new owners announced that
electricity would soon be installed as the motive power of the roads.


547




Mayor Pingree was re elected in November, 1891, receiving a larger
vote than his two opponents, William G. Thompson and John Miner,
combined. Suit was commenced to forfeit the new franchise of the
Citizens' Company, which had been granted in 1879 for a term of thirty
years. The franchise granted in 1863 would expire in 1893, and it was
asserted that to extend the franchise before the expiration of its legal
term was illegal and against public policy. This suit was tried in the
United States Circuit Court. Judge Taft decided in favor of the city,
while Judge Swan, the district judge, dissented. It was appealed by
the Citizens' Company to the United States Court of Appeals, which in
January, 1895, decided that the franchise in dispute was valid until 1909.
During 1892 there were two large public meetings, which endorsed
the course of the mayor in contesting the franchise, and the latter
continued to advocate municipal ownership of street railways. He was
antagonized by numerous prominent citizens. The Preston National
Bank, of which he was a director, did not re elect him at its annual
meeting in 1893. On January 16 of that year the Citizens' Company
announced that it would no longer sell six tickets for twenty five cents,
but would demand a straight five cent fare. On January 23 the mayor
announced that he had been offered $100,000 and the governorship of
the State, if he would abandon the street railway fight. Claiming the
right to purchase six tickets for twenty-five cents and being refused,
he rode free February 16. The company made a proposition to grant
universal transfers if the city would grant a new ordinance authorizing
the collection of five cent fares for thirty years, but the proposition was
denounced by the mayor and was refused by the council. In October,
1893, the mayor went to New York to make arrangements with a street
railway syndicate that would grant three cent fares. On January 10,
1894, he proposed to grant a new franchise for thirty years to the Citizens' Company conditioned upon a three cent fare and universal transfers. An ordinance to that effect was passed by the council, but the
company refused to accept it.
In September, 1894, the Citizens' Company sold its property and
franchise to R. T. Wilson & Company of New York, at a rate stated to be
seventy-five cents on the dollar, and Tom L. Johnson became general manager. On November 21, 1894, the mayor announced that he
had perfected arrangements for the advent of a new company, to be
known as the Detroit Railway Company, which would give three cent
fares and universal transfers. On December 5, 1894, the Detroit rail

548




JAMES GRAHAM.








way ordinance was passed and was signed by the mayor. The grantees
were Albert Pack, Greene Pack, H. A. Everett and others. Mayor
Pingree and the Common Council were unable to secure what the former had long been fighting for-a straight three cent fare and universal
transfers-but a compromise was effected which was regarded as a
signal triumph for the mayor. The new company was granted the
right to construct and operate street railway lines in certain streets on
a condition of selling eight tickets for twenty-five cents between the
hours of 5:45 in the morning and 8 in the evening, and six tickets for
25 cents between eight o'clock in the evening and 5:45 in the morning.
Single fares were to be five cents and universal transfers were to be
given. The city agreed to concrete and pave between the tracks of the
Detroit Railway on all unpaved streets, while the company was to repair all pavements disturbed in the laying of its lines.
On August 25, 1895, the mayor decided to appeal the city's case
for forfeiture of franchise to the Supreme Court of the United States,
but on November 12 the Supreme Court refused to review the case,
claiming that the Court of Appeals had ultimate jurisdiction in such
cases. Upon this the Citizens' Company abandoned the selling of six
tickets for twenty-five cents, charged a straight five cent fare and gave
no transfers. This action aroused popular feeling still more, and the
natural patrons of the Citizens' system preferred to walk several squares
out of their way in order to board a Detroit Railway car, thus saving
nearly two cents on their fare and showing their resentment against
the Citizens' Company. The mayor issued a proclamation, declaring
that he would agree to no compromise except on a basis of eight tickets
for twenty-five cents and universal transfers. On December 14, 1895,
the mayor, riding on the Citizens' Company car, demanded six tickets
for twenty-five cents and refused to pay five cent fare, whereupon he
was ejected from the car. He then commenced a suit to compel the
company to sell six tickets for twenty-five cents, but the Railway Company resumed the sale of tickets at that rate and the suit was dropped.
On December 30 the Citizens' Company offered to compromise by selling eight tickets for twenty-five cents and to allow transfer privileges
on payment of five cent fares. An ordinance was framed and passed
by the council granting the above terms, on January 7, 1896, but it was
vetoed by the mayor. The veto was sustained by a vote of 25 to 6.
Next day numerous citizens called at the city hall to congratulate the
the mayor upon his action.
549




Another experiment was tried for sixty days, in which the Citizens'
Company granted the same rates as the Detroit Railway, and in this
way the effects of the boycott were in part overcome.  The Fort
Wayne and Belle Isle Company, which had always been on good terms
with the mayor and the people, also tried the cheap fare rate in 1896,
preparatory to a petition for a new ordinance giving a thirty years' extension of its franchise. Although the line extended from the River
Rouge to Belle Isle and also nearly to the eastern limits of the city, the
cheap fare proved unsatisfactory to the company.
As the State law forbade the consolidation of street railway lines for
the purpose of destroying competition, and as the Detroit Railway was
so constructed as to give communication between the center of the city
and all the thickly populated portions of the town, it appeared for a
time that the competition would force the Detroit Citizens' Company
to reduce its fares.
On December 14, 1894, the mayor turned the first spadeful of earth
for the excavation for the Detroit Railway tracks.
On June 5, 1895, another franchise was passed for the Citizens' Company by the Common Council, but as it did not provide for three cent
fares and universal transfers, the mayor vetoed it and his veto was
sustained. On July 7, a portion of the Detroit Railway system was
ready for operation and Mayor Pingree acted as motorman on the first
car over the route. On July 1, 1896, a new ordinance was passed for
the Fort Wayne and Belle Isle Company on the basis of three cent
fares and universal transfers, but the company refused to accept it.
Mavor Pingree was nominated for governor by the Republican State
Convention at Grand Rapids, August 6, 1896.
The Detroit Railway franchise was granted on December 4, 1894,
and on the 13th of the same month the Citizen's Company filed a bill
in chancery against the City of Detroit and the Detroit Railway, and
prayed for an injunction restraining the construction of the road, upon
the ground that the original ordinance of 1862 gave it the exclusive
right to operate street railways upon all the streets of the city. The
Circuit Court for the county of Wayne refused to grant a preliminary
injunction, and the new road was built while the suit was pending. On
March 2, 1896, the Circuit Court, upon the final hearing, entered a decree against the Citizens' Company, holding the exclusive provision in
the ordinance of 1 862 invalid. That company appealed the case to the
Supreme Court of Michigan, and on july 28, 1896, the decree of the




Circuit Court was affirmed. The case was then appealed to the Supreme Court of the United States, where it is now pending.
While this cause was pending in the Supreme Court of the State,
the owners of the Detroit Railway, fearing an adverse decision, entered into a contract with the Citizens' Company, which was in effect
an agreement of consolidation, by which both roads are now operated
under one management. It was claimed by Mayor Pingree that such
an agreement was in violation of the constitution of the State and
against public policy, for the reason that the operation of the Detroit
Railway by the managers of the Citizens' Company would necessarily
be in the interest of the higher priced road; and in his last annual message, of January, 1897, he urged the Common Council to authorize the
commencement of legal proceeding to test such consolidation. Such
proceedings were authorized, and are now pending in the Chancery
Court.
To further protect the interests of the people, the Common Council
in February, 1897, adopted an ordinance fixing a schedule for the
running of the cars of the Detroit Railway  This ordinance has been
ignored by the company, and a suit was brought to test its validity,
which was decided in favor of the city.
On January 1, 1897, the Fort Wayne and Belle Isle Company perfected a traffic arrangement with the Citizens' Company to the following effect: The receipts of the Fort Wayne and Belle Isle line are
returned to the company, which still retains its organization and is
managed by a board of directors. The operating expenses are paid
from a fund common to both companies, which is determined by the
car mileage of each. The Fort Wayne and Belle Isle Company then
pays its proportion of operating expenses and the balance remains in
its treasury.
On January 1, 1897, Mr. Pingree took his seat at Lansing as Governor of Michigan.
Such is the history of the street railway business in Detroit. The
controversy between the rival companies to determine whether the
Detroit Citizens' Company has the sole rights in the streets, or what
amounts to an exclusive franchise, is yet to be decided by the courts.
The question as to whether the present system of operation amounts
to a consolidation and is therefore a violation of the State law, is also
referred to the courts. While these questions are awaiting judgment, comment from the compilers of this work would be improper


551




and impertinent, but the respective attitudes of the contesting parties
will prove of interest. The attitude of the city of Detroit is thus set
forth by one in authority:
" This history of the street railways of Detroit shows how persistent the railway
managers have been to secure a monopoly, and how earnest have been the city
authorities to curb and control a growing power. The results have been of a character greatly beneficial to the people, and it is notable that with a single exception
the courts have decided in their favor.
" The net results of the great controversy are the following: Forty per cent. of the
inhabitants can ride for three and one-eighth cents during the greater part of the day,
and patrons of all lines receive free transfers. The arrogant claim of exclusive right
has been denied by the Supreme Court of the State, and if the power of municipal
control now being urged is confirmed by law, the city of Detroit can by ordinances
neutralize all evil effects of combinations and consolidations.
i" For the purpose of securing an expression of the people, the Common Council,
upon the recommendation of Mayor Pingree, at the fall election of 1894, submitted
to the voters the question of municipal ownership of railway tracks. The vote in
favor of the proposition was three to one. The contention of the mayor and his
supporters has been that such ownership will give the city power to lease to the lowest bidder, and thus secure a rate as low as ten tickets for twenty-five cents. If
such authority could be granted the city, a street railway could be operated upon a
cash basis. There would be no over-stocking or over-bonding, and thus one of the
great obstacles to genuine municipal reforms in reference to public franchises would
be removed."
The attitude of the street railway company in this dispute is as follows:
There are some aspects of the war inaugurated by Mayor Pingree against the Detroit City Railway and its successors that are very favorable to that company. At
the time the war commenced in 1891, it was universally conceded that the city of Detroit had one of the best horse car systems in the whole country. It is doubtful
whether a superior system or a better equipment existed in any city in the Union.
It had been built up and improved under the careful management of George
Hendrie and Sidney D. Miller, until it rendered as adequate service to the public as
was possible with cars drawn by horses. Messrs. Hendrie, Miller and their associates had refused to absorb the earnings of the company in high salaries and dividends, and had used the earnings of the roads for the improvement of them. In
the latter part of 1890 and the fore part of 1891 the public became desirous of having
electricity or a cable system established in place of the horse car system, but as the
existing grants held by the company would expire in 1909 the company thought,
very naturally, that if it made the expenditure necessary to put in electricity, that
there should be an extension of the grant sufficient to justify the employment of the
large amount of capital which would be necessary for that purpose. An ordinance
was passed by the Common Council providing for electricity and making the desired extension, but Mayor Pingree called a citizens' meeting and after securing the
the approval of that meeting, he vetoed the ordinance and commenced a crusade
552




WILLIAM I. HAMLEN, M. D.








against the company. Prof. Charles A. Kent, a prominent member of the bar,
attended the meeting and expressed the opinion that the existing grants under which
the Detroit City Railway occupied the streets of the city of Detroit expired in May,
1893, instead of 1909, and he was subsequently employed by the city to maintain
this position in the courts, and Mr. Benton Hanchett, a prominent member of the
Saginaw bar, was associated with him. In the litigation which followed, the company succeeded in establishing its right to the streets until 1909. The city of Detroit insists that at that time the Street Railroad Company will be at the mercy of
the city, and that if the city insists upon it the company will have to remove all its
tracks from the streets and overhead superstructure and dismantle its power houses
and other equipment, or sell the same to the city or some other company favored by
the city, upon such terms as the city may see fit to dictate. Upon the facts disclosed by this controversy it is doubtful whether there is any public utility in what
are called short term franchises, if such grants are construed to mean that at their
termination the entire plant and property of the company is liable to be rendered
valueless. It would be financially impossible for any ordinary street car line within
the period of thirty years to earn interest upon the investment, and also to earn
enough to create a sinking fund to protect the company against loss in case the
value of its property should be annihilated by the refusal of the city to extend the
grant upon reasonable terms. It is plain that the city in making any such grant, and
the company in accepting it, did not contemplate anythingof the kind; that the company expects an extension upon reasonable terms, and the city expects to grant it. It
is a very serious question whether, upon the termination of one of these short time franchises, the courts would not protect the company in the right to continue the operation
of its lines upon reasonable terms and conditions, and it is said that R. T. Wilson and
Tom L. Johnson, the principal owners of the Detroit Citizens' Railroad, have been
so advised by their counsel. This much is certain, that the public does not contemplate that the street car lines shall cease to exist and be destroyed at the expiration
of each grant, and it would seem to be quite clear that extensions should be granted
upon reasonable terms and conditions, and that the lines themselves should be treated
as perpetuities. It is difficult to believe that the public could profit by the destruction of the stocks and securities that is necessarily involved in the contrary view. If
street railway property is of such a precarious nature that it can be destroyed by
public and political movements in the municipalities, it is certainly entitled to higher
rewards for the risk so run, than is accorded to investments of a more substantial
and permanent character. It is very doubtful whether there has been anything in
the attitude of the Detroit City Railway and its successors, that has not been entirely just and reasonable under all the facts and circumstances. When the final
results are summed up, and an unbiased review of the whole controversy can be
had, the verdict will probably be that Mayor Pingree's warfare against the street
car company was as unjustifiable as it has been fruitless.
At the present time Detroit has nearly 200 miles of double-track
electric street railway lines within the city limits. The Citizens' Company has 101 miles of double track; the Detroit has 65 miles of double
track, and the Fort Wayne and Belle Isle Company has about 15 miles.
553
70




In connection with the various city lines are several thriving suburban
electric lines. The Wyandotte and Detroit River Road was granted
the right of way in 1892, and it has since that time operated between
the Rouge River and Trenton. The Detroit and Pontiac road extends
as far as Pontiac, where it connects with the local road, and it is also
intended to communicate with projected lines to Orchard Lake and a
number of lakeside resorts in Oakland county. The line was begun in
1895, and was completed to Pontiac during 1897.
The Rapid Railway on Gratiot avenue does a good paying business
between Detroit and the city of Mt. Clemens.
Another line is nearing completion which will connect Detroit with
Mt. Clemens and the towns along the shore of Lake St. Clair and the
St. Clair River.
A line out Jefferson avenue to the village of Grosse Pointe was built
in 1892 and it is a part of the general system.
A line out Michigan avenue to Dearborn, Wayne, Ypsilanti and Ann
Arbor, has been finished as far as Wayne, eighteen miles from Detroit.
Another line running out Grand River avenue is projected by Detroit
capitalists, which is intended to reach as far as Howell or possibly
Lansing, and it is to be provided with branches which will bring it patronage from a broad belt of territory.
Another company of promoters promises to have a line of electric
cars running between Detroit and Toledo by July 1, 1898, and this will
pass through the towns of Ecorse, Wyandotte, Trenton, Gibraltar,
North Rockwood, South Rockwood, Berlin, Brest, Monroe, La Salle,
State Line, Manchester, West Toledo and Toledo. It remains to be
seen whether the suburban and rural electric railways are to be competitors or allies of the steam railroads. It is quite certain that the
dawn of the twentieth century will see each large city of the country
connected with all the smaller towns lying within a radius of twentyfive or thirty miles from its limits, and that these lines will not only
afford passenger service but will bring in much of the farm produce to
the markets of the city. Steam railways are pretty sure to hold their
own against all kinds of competition in long distance traffic, because of
certain difficulties which beset the way of the electric railways. Where
an electric line is operated over a route more than twenty-five or thirty
miles long, there is a serious loss of power resulting from leakage of the
current to the ground and by the unavoidable resistance of the line.
The losses are so heavy on a long circuit that the cars may be operated
554




much cheaper by steam locomotives. The only way in which long
routes can be operated by electricity is by installing independent power
plants every twenty five or thirty miles, and the expense would probably be much greater than operation by locomotives driven by steam
power direct.
On March 1, 1898, the Fort Wayne and Belle Isle Railway underwent
another transfer. In the transfer of January 4, 1897, a controlling in
terest was sold to Albert Pack and Tom L. Johnson. They purchased
4,000 shares at $175 a share, or a little less than $700,000 for the property. They paid $80,000 down in the bonds of the Detroit Railway
and the Citizens' Railway, reckoned at seventy-five cents on the dollar.
The balance of the price was due March 1, 1898, and on that date
Albert Pack, Charles L. Pack, Henry A. Everett, representing the Detroit Railway interest, and J. C. Hutchins representing the Citizens'
Railway interest, met the former stockholders of the Fort Wayne and
Belle Isle road and completed the purchase. The road was incorporated as the Detroit, Fort Wayne and Belle Isle Railway. The capital.
stock was increased from $400,000 to $1,200,000 and the following officers were elected: A. B. Du Pont, president; Henry B. Catlin, treasurer;
Wm. C. Hopper, secretary, and the above with George L. Maltz,
Thomas T. Leete, jr., F. W. Brooke and Michael Brennan, directors.
CHAPTER LXXVIII.
Telegraph and Telephone Communication-How the Numerous Short Telegraph
Lines were Combined into Two Great Systems, Affording Communication with All
Parts of the World-Telephone Lines Developed into General Communication.
Samuel F. B. Morse constructed his first telegraph sending instrument and relay in 1835, but it took nine years of hard work on his part,
and all his capital, to convince the world that his system was of the
slightest practical value. On May 24, 1844, the first telegraph line in
America was completed between Baltimore and the first message,
"What God hath wrought," was sent from the Baltimore office and
was recorded on a slip of paper in the Supreme Court room of the
United States. Still the world was unconvinced of its utility, and
555 I




when Mr. Morse offered to transfer all his patent rights to the government for $100,000, he was laughed at by the politicians. A number of
experimenters traveled about the country giving exhibitions in public
halls, and crowds of people paid entrance money to see the operator
click out a message at one end of the hall, and see the message written
in dots and dashes by the receiving instrument at the other end. When
told that a message could be sent across a continent or across the ocean
by this agency, they listened in doubt.
When the utility of the telegraph began to strike the popular mind,
a lot of sharpers and unprincipled fellows tried to deprive Mr. Morse
of all benefits of his discovery, and they would have succeeded had not
Ezra Cornell, a wealthy New Yorker, come to his assistance and fought
the tricksters off. A company was formed in 1846, of which Mr. Cornell and John J. Speed, jr., the father ex-Judge John J. Speed, of Detroit, to construct a telegraph line between Buffalo and Milwaukee.
It was called the Speed line. The route chosen included the cities of
Erie, Cleveland, Detroit, Ypsilanti, Ann Arbor, and across the State
to Chicago, and thence to the terminus at Milwaukee. At first it was
but a single wire, strung on poles along the side of the railroad tracks.
Mr. Speed was actively engaged in superintending the work of the
superintendents of the several divisions. There was considerable
rivalry between the superintendents of the Monroe and Detroit, and
the Detroit and Ypsilanti divisions, but the latter was the first to complete his portion of the line. The Detroit Free Press of November 30,
1847, tells of the first telegraphic message sent out of Detroit, which
was on the previous forenoon. A member of the staff of that paper
and the telegraph operator at Ypsilanti held a colloquy over the wire,
in which the conversation ranged over the price of wheat and putty,
the Mexican war, military reputations and other topics. It concluded
as follows; Detroit-" What time is it?" Ypsilanti-"Ten minutes
to twelve." Detroit-" Let us goto dinner." Ypsilanti-"Aye, aye."
Another company, of which Henry O'Reilly was president, and styled
the O'Reilly line, came to Detroit four months later, and this was the
first time that a telegraphic message was received in Detroit from the
seaboard. A number of operators were brought from the East, and
among them was Edwin ). Benedict, of Buffalo, who afterward became manager of the Detroit office, and still later manager of the first
office opened in Grand Rapids. Mr. Benedict died in Grand Rapids in
1891.




JERE C. HUTCHINS.




I




John Bailey and John Burt, the latter being the inventor of the solar
compass, were in Detroit in 1847. They were both engaged in manufacturing Burt's invention and other surveying instruments. When
Mr. Speed came here in 1847 he engaged Bailey to make telegraphic
instruments, and the latter also invented and made a machine for insulating telegraphic magnet wire with silk or cotton.
The Speed line was completed to Chicago in 1848. No sooner had
the value of telegraphic communication become manifest than the country was filled with rival companies, each operating short lines. The
competition become so sharp that they generally lost money, and a
period of amalgamation set in. The most important lines changed
hands, and the Western Union Telegraph Company was organized in
1856. It finally absorbed the Speed line, the American Union, the
Baltimore and Ohio, the Atlantic and Pacific, the Montreal Union, the
American Rapid Telegraph Company and other lines. Among the
principal stockholders of the Western Union in 1856 were Isaac R.
Elwood, uncle of S. Dow Elwood, of Detroit, Hiram T. Sibley and
Samuel Sheldon, all of Rochester, N. Y.
In 1858 the first cable was laid across the Atlantic ocean, but it was
unsuccessful, the cable parting some 300 miles from shore. This enterprise, however, was made permantly successful after several failures,
on July 27, 1866.
At the present time the Western Union has about 22,000 offices, and
during the year 1897 it sent over 58,000,000 messages. Its assets
amount to $128,410,498 making it by far the richest telegraphic corporation in the world. Concerning the telegraphic business in general,
it may be said that there are now 5,000,000 miles of telegraphic wire
in operation in the world, and 2,600,000 of this is in America. Europe
has 1,750,000, Asia has 310,000, Africa has 100,000 and Australia 220,000. The Detroit office has 60 branch offices in Detroit, employs 150
persons, and handles about 15,000 messa es daily. M. S. Corbett is
the local manager.
The Postal Telegraph-Cable company was organized in New York
in 1886, with a capital of $5,000,000, which has been increased from
time to time until the capital stock at the present time is $30,000,000.
An office was opened in Detroit in 1887, with half a dozen employees,
and quarters were secured in the rear of Ives & Sons' bank on Griswold street. In 1892 the office was removed to the basement of the
McGraw building, at the corner of Griswold and Lafayette streets.




At present there are seventeen branch offices in Detroit, and the company employs about fifty persons. All its lines within the mile circle
are laid in underground conduits. In place of the iron wire commonly used, the Postal lines are of hard drawn copper, and instead of
using the old-fashioned gravity batteries, the electricity is supplied by
fifteen dynamos of graduated voltage, so that the currents are applicable for circuits of any desired length. This method is doubly convenient, because a generator, which occupies about one cubic foot of
space, will do the work that requires from fifty to one hundred gallon
cells of battery. The output of the generators is uniform and there
is no trouble about cleaning batteries. The Postal Company's lines
reach every State in the Union and all the principal cities in the United
States and Canada. It has three cables to Europe, one to the Bermudas and another to the West Indies. The Detroit office is in charge
of H. J. Kinnucan, and it handles about 3,500 messages a day.
In the winter of 1875-76 the American District Telegraph was organized in Detroit, and in the following spring the company strung
wire and put in many signal boxes. Its business grew rapidly for four
years, and then reached its climax of prosperity. When the telephone
began to be put into practical use few believed that the business would
develop to its present proportions, or that the instrument would be an
indispensable adjunct of every business house. In the summer of 1877
Manager J. U. McKenzie, of the District Telegraph Company, put a
line in operation between his office and his residence. Some public exhibitions of the capabilities of the telephone were given later, and when
the public became acquainted with the instrument there sprang up a
limited demand for telephone service. A few luxurious citizens were
supplied with telephones in the summer of 1878, and their friends, seeing that the service was a great convenience, asked that it be extended.
In a comparatively short time the business became so large that a large
central exchange and switchboard were placed in the upper story of the
Newberry building. The original station was in the basement with
the District Telegraph office. The telephone companies underwent
the same process of combination and amalgamation as the telegraph
companies had done a short time before, and presently all the offices
in Michigan were controlled by the Michigan Bell Telephone Company.
In 1893 the company completed a new building at the corner of Clifford
street and Washington boulevard, and the exchange was removed there
from the Newberry building. State service was inaugurated in No

558




vember, 1881, and Detroit is now in direct communication with 467
towns. In January, 1893, the long distance service was inaugurated
in Detroit, putting the city in communication with Chicago and all the
great cities of the East.
Mayor Pingree began a crusade against high telephone rates charged
by the Michigan Bell Telephone Company, and threatened to bring a
competing company to Detroit which would offer service at half the
prevailing rates of the Bell Company. After considerable agitation,
in which the original company refused to be coerced into a reduction of
rates, steps were taken for the formation of a new company. The
Detroit Telephone Company was organized in February, 1896, and
the prime movers in the enterprise were William L. Holmes, Edward
H. Parker, Charles Flowers, Charles P. Collins, Frank A. Vernor, Julius
Stroh and Alex. I. McLeod. The new company obtained a franchise
and began laying conduit work April 20, 1896. A few telephones were
installed in the month of May, 1897, and on July 1, 1897, regular service was instituted, beginning with 2,200 subscribers. By Decernber
1 the subscribers had increased to 4,000 and the company had seventyfive miles of underground conduits in service. The conduits laid have
a capacity for 10,000 telephones, and the switchboard has a capacity
for 6,000. Rates to business houses are $40 a year and for residences
$25, anywhere inside the city limits. The managers say that had
they seen fit to close up business on New Year's day, 1897, they would
have paid all the expenses of installation and still declared a satisfactory
dividend.


559




CHAPTER LXXIX.


Detroit's Marine Interests on the Great Lakes-How the Great Fleet of Lake Carriers Succeeded the Birch Bark Canoes of the Voyageurs and Fur Traders-It Was
the Three Small Vessels, Beaver, Gladwin and Bear, Which Saved Detroiters from
Starvation During the Siege of 1763.
Navigation on the upper lakes was inaugurated when La Salle
launched the Griffon at the mouth of Cayuga Creek, Niagara River,
and sailed to Green Bay. That fated bark of sixty tons was the first to
find the passage through the straits. She was lost at the foot of Lake
Michigan in September, 1679, and almost a quarter of a century lapsed
before a second vessel was built on these waters. Lake Ontario had
vessels plying between Fort Frontenac (Kingston) and the mouth of
Niagara River long before the launching of the Griffon, and navigation
was never interrupted. Cadillac built a sloop of ten tons to ply between Detroit and Niagara, and it is probable that his journey to Quebec in the fall of 1705 and his return after his trial in the following
year was made in this vessel.
Birch bark canoes, however, were the vehicles for most of the commerce of the French rdgime, but the British colonists soon built vessels.
In 1763, three years after they had superseded the French, there was a
small schooner named the Gladwin, in honor of Henry Gladwin, the
commandant of Detroit, and the sloops Beaver and Bear, all belonging
at Detroit. But for these vessels the siege of Pontiac would have been
successful and the British residents would have been massacred to a
man. This experience showed the necessity of lake vessels to the
British government. Supremacy on the upper lakes and the holding
of Detroit depended upon the building of more vessels and arming
them. Detroit commandants were instructed by the governor-general
at Quebec to permit no other nation to build craft on the lakes. When
the war of the Revolution broke out one or two vessels were hurriedly
built in front of the fort, and a shipyard, which had been established
on the River Rouge, near the crossing of Fort street, was particularly
active.


560




STEPHEN H. KNIGHT, M. D.








During the Revolution a fleet of a dozen vessels had headquarters at
Detroit and it was their office to keep Detroit supplied with munitions
of war, to act as common carriers between Detroit and Niagara, Presqu'
Ile (Erie), the mouth of the Cuyahoga aud the ports of Sandusky and
the Maumee. The larger vessels plied between Detroit and Mackinac.
In the earlier pages of this work is a list of these vessels. The General
Gage, the Angelica, the Faith, Hope, Charity, Felicity, Welcome, Adventure and the Lord Dunmore were among them.
These small vessels appear to have been short lived, and the reason
may be found in the fact that they were all built of green timbers
which were felled, hewed and bent on the frames within a few days.
There is no record of these vessels after 1796, when Detroit became
American territory, and when Governor Hull surrendered Detroit in
1812 all the vessels of this fleet had disappeared. The British had a
shipyard at Amherstburg and the Detroiters had then a large vessel
nearly ready for launching. This craft was completed by the British,
taken to Amherstburg and renamed the Detroit. It became the flagship of the British squadron which confronted Oliver Hazard Perry at
Put-in Bay. Two vessels were built on Lake Superior previous to 1812.
One of them, the Fur Trader, was ruined in an attempt to run the
Sault rapids; the other, a vessel of 150 tons named the Recovery, made
the passage of the rapids in safety, and after carrying lumber for a
number of years laid her bones on the bank of Niagara River. The
Mink and the William Brewster afterward ran the same rapids in safety,
the former in 1817, the latter in 1842.
At the close the war of 1812-15 the lake fleet had increased to thirty
vessels, the largest of which was the schooner Michigan of 132 tons,
the average of them being under fifty tons. A new era dawned in 1818
when the keel of the Walk-in-the-Water was laid at Black Rock on the
Niagara River. This was the first steam vessel launched on the lakes,
and she was named after a famous chief of the Wyandotte tribe, who
lived near Trenton. The Walk-in-the Water steamed up the river to
Detroit, arriving August 23, 1818, and all the people of the vicinity
were out to see the new wonder. She was a queer looking craft when
compared with modern standards, her model being like that of the
ancient brigs, with a high bow and stern and a low waist. She measured
342S tons displacement, and her engine could drive her about six miles an
hour in slack water. On the second trip up the lakes she carried the
Earl of Selkirk and his suite, who were on a tour of exploration toward
561
71




the northwest. Her first captain was Job Fish, and he was succeeded
by Jedediah Rogers. She foundered near Buffalo on the night of November 1, 1821, but her passengers and crew were saved.
The Superior was the second steamer on the lakes. She was built at
Buffalo in 1822 by the former owners of the Walk-in-the-Water. She
was of 346 tons burden, had an engine of sixty horse power, and on her
first trip up the lakes she carried ninety passengers, arriving at Detroit
April 24, 1822. She was sailed by Captain Rogers, survivor of the
wreck of the first steamer. The Superior was outclassed as a steamer
in 1842, and was converted into a full rigged ship. She was lost the
following year.
The Chippewa, a steamer of 100 tons, was launched in 1824, but she
was unfit for regular service and became a sort of ferry boat between
Sandusky and Toledo.
The steamer Caroline made her appearance on the upper lakes in
1824, and her history is peculiar. She was built at Charleston, S. C.
At first she navigated on the St. Lawrence, and then she was transferred to the Hudson River. As she was only forty-six tons displacement, she was towed through the Erie Canal, and for nearly fourteen
years she plied between Buffalo and the Welland Canal. In 1837 she
was used by the Canadian rebels in carrying passengers and supplies
from Schlosser to Navy Island, in Niagara River. She was captured by
the British, set on fire and sent over Niagara Falls in December, 1837.
The completion of the Erie Canal in 1825 gave a great impetus to
western immigration, and steamers were built very rapidly to handle
the growing traffic. Each was made more expensive than its predecessors, until they became truly elegant crafts. In the early '30's the
steamers sometimes landed a thousand passengers a day at the port of
Detroit. Among the early craft was the Henry Clay, launched in
1826. It was this vessel which started for Chicago with a detachment
of troops for the Black Hawk war, but was detained by the breaking
out of the cholera on board. She was turned away from the dock at Detroit and sent to Belle Isle to wait for supplies, but the epidemic
fastened upon the city, and about 100 people died in and about Detroit. The William Penn, of 200 tons, was launched at Erie in 1826,
and was soon making money for her owners.
Oliver Newberry, a furniture dealer of Detroit, saw the opportunities
for profit in lake navigation and he became a vessel owner and agent
in 1827. For a number of years he was the leading steamboat owner
562




at Detroit and was called the "Commodore of the Lakes." Among
the vessels which were most active during the early days of steam
navigation were the Niagara, the Enterprise and the William Peaccck.
The latter vessel furnished the first boiler explosion on the lakes, killing fifteen people. The accident occurred near Buffalo in September,
1830. Other vessels were the Ohio, Pennsylvania, Sheldon Thompson,
Pioneer, Adelaide, and the North American, the Michigan, Daniel
Webster, Oliver Newberry, Governor Marcy, Uncle Sam, New York,
and the Victory. The Michigan of 472 tons, was the largest of all up
to 1836.
With the increase of the number of vessels the tonnage was gradually increased. The Hendrik Hudson, built in 1846, was a record
breaker as to size, with a displacement of 750 tons. In November,
1847, the steamer Phoenix was burned off Sheboygan, Wisconsin, and
190 passengers were lost, most of them being Holland immigrants. In
1849 there were 914 vessels sailing the upper lakes, including 95 sidewheel steamers, with a total of 38,492 tons; 45 propellers, aggregating
14,435 tons; 15 barques, 1,645 tons; 93 brigs, 21,330 tons; 548 schooners, 71,618 tons; 128 sloops and scows, 5,484 tons; total valuation
$7,868,000. In 1854 the tonnage had materially increased to an aggregate of 237,830, and the total value of the shipping was $10,185,000.
In April, 1855, the boiler of the propeller Oregon exploded as the
vessel was passing Belle Isle. Nine men were instantly killed and
Captain Stewart was blown so high in the air that one of his legs drove
the deck as he descended. In 1856 the tonnage had increased to 339 -736 and the valuation of shipping to $12,944,350. In 1858 it was 1,442
vessels of 387,740 total tonnage and $15,211,000 valuation. The war
of the Rebellion gave a temporary check to the increase of lake commerce but since the war it has steadily increased. The building of the
government locks at Sault Ste. Marie and their recent enlargement has
opened the way for vessels of great size. The development of the iron
mines and the grain fields of the Northwest supply an enormous
amount of freight for the lake carriers, while the coal of the Ohio and
Pennsylvania mines affords much freight for return trips. During the
season of navigation the shipping of the lakes carries a large amount
of package freight, and the projected deep waterway from the lakes to
the seaboard promises an increase of business for the lake navigators.
Detroit is a midway station on the great lakes. As a strategic location it is the most important of all because it commands the straits.
563




As a commercial port it is secondary to the terminal cities, Chicago and
Buffalo, and even to Duluth, the gateway of the Northwest  Cleveland
surpasses it in commercial importance because the railway lines make
that city the natural outlet of the Ohio and Pennsylvania coal fields.
Much of the iron ore from the upper peninsula is delivered at Cleveland
and other Ohio ports, because the proximity of the coal fields makes
this region the most convenient point of reduction. At the present
time the iron goes to the coal. In 1850 the smelting of copper ore was
begun at Detroit and it continued for more than thirty years, but now
the coal goes to the copper and the smelting is done near the mines
in Lake Superior. Whether the iron manufactures will be transferred
to the upper peninsula at some future time it is impossible to foretell.
The iron and steel manufacturers of Ohio and Pennsylvania are perfecting their systems of transportation to such a degree that it will be
a difficult matter to disturb the present course of production. In
addition to unsurpassed transportation facilities the producers have
acquired the ownership or control of the greater part of the mines.
Detroit enjoyed exceptional advantages for the manufacture of mild
steel, and the Eureka Iron and Steel works at Wyandotte promised to
be a permanent industry which would grow with the increasing demand.
For some reason the transition from the production of iron to Bessemer
steel was delayed until hard times and a depressed iron market confronted the company. Other plants under less conservative management made the change and got the trade. They weathered the period
of financial depression and when the big demand for structural steel
began in the summer of 1895 they were in a position to meet the demand,
and they had effected a combination which gave them control of the
American market. It was too late for the Eureka company to get in
line for a complete reconstruction of their plant, as a cost of about
$300,000 was necessary, so the works were allowed to fall into ruins.
Detroit has its share of the lake carrying trade. The finest line of
passenger steamers on the lakes has its headquarters in this city and
247 lake carriers are owned here. There are 111 sailing vessels having
an aggregate gross tonnage of 42,507 tons, 170 steam vessels with an
aggregate of 131,331 gross tons, and five barges. The total gross tonnage is 174,630 tons and the total number of vessels registered at the
government custom office in Detroit is 286.
At the present time there are 3,297 vessels on the great lakes, and
the total tonnage has increased from 720,000 in 1883 to 1,410,000 in 1897.


564




OSCAR LE SEURE, M. D.








At the present time the shipyards of the great lakes are busier than
they have been for four years, and the size and class of the vessels under construction exceed those of the past. The enlargement of the
Sault Ste. Marie canal from seventeen to twenty-one feet in depth in
1896 was immediately felt. The tonnage of 1897 passing through the
locks exceeded 18,000,000 tons, which is more than double the volume
of freights passing through the Suez Canal. The bulk of this freight
consisted of iron ore, wheat and coal, but while the volume is greater,
the value of freights passing through the Suez Canal, being package
freight, amounts to $360,000,000, while that of Sault Ste. Marie was
valued at about $200,000,000. The tonnage passing through Detroit
River now exceeds 30,000,000 annually. In 1883 the lake tonnage was
but one-sixth of the American merchant marine; at the close of 1897
it was two-sevenths of the total.
It would be a difficult matter to compute the aggregate first cost of
all the shipping owned in Detroit. Much of it, and particularly the
more valuable portion of recent construction, has a high insurance rating,
showing that the original value is but little impaired. The old, wooden
craft, which have sailed the lakes for years, undergo constant impairment because their timbers deteriorate much more rapidly in fresh
water than they would in salt waters. Their owners counteract this
trouble to some extent by "salting" them liberally each season, or
pouring tons of refuse salt into their holds. In spite of this caution
many vessels, whose original cost may have been $20,000 or $30,000,
are presently rated at one-fourth or even a smaller fraction of that
amount. An insurance rating of a vessel is therefore a very conservative estimate of its present valuation, regardless of original cost, and
according to the rating of the Inland Lloyd's the aggregate valuation
of the shipping owned in Detroit is $7,605,005. The original cost of
the shipping may be fairly estimated at about $10,000,000.
The shipbuilding and dry dock industry in Detroit was established
before the war, the principal business being carried on by Jacob Wolverton, then by Campbell & Owen, and after January 1, 1867, by
Campbell, Owen & Co, the firm consisting of Capt. Gordon Campbell,
Hon. John Owen, Elbridge G. Merick, John N. Fowler and Henry
Esselstyn. In 1870 Captain Campbell sold one half his interest to
Capt. Stephen R. Kirby. In 1872 the partnership was ended by the
organization of the Detroit Dry Dock Co., the members of the firm of
Campbell, Owen & Co., with Alex. McVittie, constituting the list of




stockholders. John Owen was the first president; E. Gillenck, vicepresident; Alex. McVittie, secretary, treasurer and manager. Previous
to 1867 there had been but a very few vessels built, the largest one
being the bark Sunnyside, capacity about 35,000 bushels of wheat.
From 1867 to the present time 125 vessels, of all descriptions, have been
built, twenty-two by the firm of Campbell, Owen & Co., and the remainder by their successors, the Detroit Dry Dock Co. The value of
the twenty two vessels was a trifle under$1,000,000. The value of the
103 built by the Detroit Dry Dock Co., together with the three additional
vessels now under construction, is over $14,000,000. It is noteworthy
that the average cost of ships built since 1872 is $135,000, while the
previous five years the average cost was only one-third that amount.
It was more difficult thirty years ago to secure an order for a canal
schooner costing $25,000, ready for sea, than it is now to find buyers
for a steamship costing ten times that amount, notwithstanding such
schooners have been known to earn their entire cost in two seasons.
A marine disaster, which caused great mourning in Detroit, was the
collision of the steam yacht Mamie with the ferry steamer Garland, on
the Detroit River, on the evening of July 22), 1880. The Garland was
going down stream with an excursion party, members and acolytes of
Trinity Catholic church, who had been enjoying their annual excursion
with Rev. Father Bleyenburgh. The collision occurred near Fighting
Island. The Mamie was sunk, and seventeen persons on board were
drowned, thirteen of whom were acolytes.
CHAPTER LXXX.
Detroit's Public Buildings, Commercial Houses and Private Residences-The
City Hall-The New County Building-The Federal Building and Other Costly
Structures.
The first building erected for public purposes was by Cadillac. He
erected a large log house for the Indians where the foot of Fourth street
is now situated. The next was a building on an alley which ran from
what is now Larned street to the south side of Jefferson avenue, a
little west of Woodward avenue. During the British occupation a


566




ALEXANDER MCVITTIE.








stone council house was erected at the southwest corner of Jefferson
avenue and Randolph street, which was also used for offices by the Indian department. After Detroit became an American city it was also
used by the Indian department, with Henry R. Schoolcraft as the government agent. The third council house was originally within the inclosure of Fort Shelby and was removed in 1827 to the rear.of the lot
of the First Protestant Society, and stood on the northeast corner of
Larned and Bates streets.  It was afterward removed to Congress
street, north side, about eighty feet east of Woodward avenue, where
it was used for meetings.of the Common Council.
Judge Woodward planned to have the capitol building erected in
Grand Circus Park, but as the site was half a mile from the nearest
house and nothing more than a swamphole, the building was located
on what is now known as Capitol square, a triangular piece of land
bounded by State, Griswold and Rowland streets. The capitol building was planned by Obed Wait and built by Thomas Palmer, De Garmo
Jones and Col. David C. McKinstry. It cost the Territory $24, 500, which
was just double the estimated cost. It was paid for by the 10,000 acre
tract, on the northern limit of Detroit, and a number of the city lots.
On September 22, 1823, the corner stone was laid with the ancient Masonic ritual. Members of Zion, Detroit and Oakland Lodges participated. William A. Fletcher made the address of the day, and Contractor McKinstry gave a banquet to the officials of the Territory, and the
Masonic brethren who were present. Money was a scarce article in
those days, and to enable the contractors to buy the necessary material
and pay for the labor, the governor and judges issued scrip to the
amount of $22,000. This passed current in the Territory, because the
bills were secured by the land of the 10,000 acre tract, and the Territorial Council guaranteed any deficiency which might arise. The
building had a Greek portico across the entire front, six Doric pillars
supported the plain pediment, and a spire of the pepperbox pattern,
which rose to the height of 140 feet. This spire or tower was an object
of general admiration and residents and visitors often climbed to its
upper staging to enjoy the fine prospect of woodland, town and river
which lay out around it. For many years it was the loftiest point of
view in the town. In 1847 the State capital was removed to Lansing,
and in the course of time the capitol was utilized as the high school and
library building. It was destroyed by fire on January 27, 1893, and
the city converted the site into a very pretty park.
567




The first building used exclusively for county offices and courts was
erected on the southeast corner of Griswold and Congress streets, and
was first occupied in 1845. After the new City Hall was occupied, in
1871, it was sold, and was afterward demolished.
As the city developed under the rapid immigration of the early '30's,
the council decided to erect a city hall. It was erected in the middle
of Cadillac square, just east of Woodward avenue, and completed in
1835 at a cost of $15,000. Lots in the military reserve, which had been
donated to the city several years before, were sold to raise the money.
For about twenty years the lower part of the building was used by the
owners of market stalls, but the market was driven out to make room
for city offices, courts and other city departments. The site of the
present City Hall was secured piecemeal from various owners. The
female seminary pioperty was purchased for $18,000 in 1854, and the
old depot site was secured by another purchase. In 1859 an appropriation of $250,000 was made for the building of a city hall, but the
breaking out of the war stopped all municipal enterprises and the city
hall project lay dormant until 1866. In that year N. Osborne & Son,
of Rochester, N. Y., secured the contract for building a city hall at an
expense of $380,000. The ground was graded, old buildings were removed and the corner stone was laid in 1868. The formal opening took
place July 4, 1871. The cost was $508,000. The superstructure is of
Amherst, 0., sandstone, and the foundation and basement are of Amherstburg, Ont., limestone. The building is fireproof, three stories in
height, with a basement and attic, and was built by N. Osborne & Co.,
of Rochester, N. Y. It is a beautiful structure of the Roman style of
architecture, with a mansard roof, and a tower in the center. The
architect was James Anderson. The building fronts on the campus
204 feet, with a depth of 90 feet. The apex of the tower is 170 feet
above the pavement. On each of the four sides of the tower are four
stone statues, each 13 feet in height, representing Art, Commerce,
Justice and Industry. In 3884 Bela Hubbard donated four statues representing Cadillac, La Salle, Richard and Marquette, which were placed
on niches on the Griswold and Campus Martius fronts. At the time
the City Hall was built it was intended that the city would be erected
into a county by itself, but this project did not materialize, and the
larger portion of the building was rented to the county for offices. This
arrangement is still in force, and will be continued until the new county
building, now being erected, is completed.
568




In 1892 it became apparent that the building would either have to
be enlarged or that the county would be compelled to erect a building
of its own. The proposition to raise the City Hall three stories did not
meet with public approval, so the county purchased a site at the east
end of Cadillac square. On this spot a splendid building is now being
erected and when completed and furnished it will probably cost $2,000,000. This building will fill the square bounded by Congress, Randolph,
East Fort and Brush streets. Its main tower will reach an altitude of
246 feet.
The new County Building is now (January, 1898) in course of construction. The ground is 296 feet on Brush, 270 feet on Congress, 250
feet on Fort street, and 299.6 feet on Randolph. At first about one half
of this site was purchased and subsequently the remainder, the total cost
being $550,000. After a public competition the plans of John Scott &
Co., of Detroit, were accepted by the Board of Supervisors on March 17,
1896, and John Scott was appointed superintendent of the work. The
contract price for the exterior of the building was 8636,569, and Robert Robertson & Co. were awarded the contract. The work was commenced on May 8, 1897, and the corner stone was laid with appropriate
ceremonies on October 20, 1897.
The building is designed in the Roman classic style of architecture,
and is a stately apd imposing stone structure, five stories in height.
The main entrance faces Randolph street, and fronts 255 feet on that
thoroughfare, by 176 feet in depth.  The basement is devoted to
machinery, heating and lighting plants. The ground floor is arranged
for the offices and court rooms of justices of the peace, circuit court
commissioners and coroners. On the first floor are located the offices
of the county auditor, county treasurer, county clerk and register of
deeds. The Probate Court, prosecuting attorney, sheriff and Circuit
Court offices are on the second floor. The Circuit Court's and Board of
Supervisors' rooms are located on the third floor. The upper floor is
left for the future needs of the county. The original specifications
provided for North Jay, Me., granite for the first two stories, and Berea
stone for the three upper floors. The cost of the inside work and
furnishings will be about $600,000.
The old Federal building, at the northwest corner of Lamed and
Griswold streets, was finished and opened on January 30, 1860. It
was occupied by the post-office, custom house, Federal cburts and other
offices until November 27, 1897, when the post-office was removed to
569
72




the new building hereafter described. The other courts and offices followed in the first part of 1898.
The accommodations becoming insufficient, a movement for a new
Federal building was commenced about 1880, and resulted in Congress
passing an act on August 7, 1882, appropriating $250,000 to purchase
additional land and for an addition to the building. Adjoining land
was purchased, and an excavation for the basement made, at a total expense of $100,364.29. Considerable dissatisfaction was expressed over
erecting the structure on the old site, which led to the appointment of
a commission, consisting of William A. Moore, Alexander C. McGraw,
William C. Colburn, Rufus W. Gillett, James L. Edson and Samuel
Hannaford, to choose another location. In April, 1885, the commission selected the south half of the square bounded by Lafayette
avenue, Shelby, Fort, and Wayne streets, which is substantially the
site of Fort Lernoult, which was constructed in 1778-79, and afterward named Fort Shelby. Afterward the whole square was acquired.
The land is 280 feet on Wayne and Shelby streets, and 288 feet on Fort
street and Lafayette avenue. Excavation for the basement was commenced on June 29, 1890, and the first floor was occupied by the postoffice department on November 27, 1897.  The Federal courts and
other government departments moved into the new building in the first
part of 1898. The total appropriation for the building, including the
$100,364.29 expended on the old site, was $1,500,000. The old site
will be sold and the proceeds returned to the United States treasury,
unless other dispositions are made. The amount expended for acquiring the new site was $401,258.38, which included the price of the land
and incidental expenses. Up to September 30, 1897, the total expenses
for site and building were $1,303,290.63. It is probable that the whole
appropriation will be expended.
The exterior of the building is in the so-called American style of
architecture; the interior is finished in the Romanesque style. The
extreme length is 200 feet, and the extreme depth 152 feet. It is four
stories in height, with a basement and loft. The basement will be
occupied by the custom house appraisers, heating apparatus, etc. The
first floor is occupied exclusively by the post-office department; the
second floor by the custom house; the third floor by the United States
courts, district attorney, marshal, etc.; and the fourth by the Lighthouse Board, Civil Service Commission, Marine Hospital service, grand
jury rooms, railway mail clerks' offices and dormitory. The loft will
570




be used for storing the files and records of the various departments
occupying the building.
The basement is of granite and the superstructure of Bedford limestone. The tower soars 243 feet above the pavement. The roof is
covered with Spanish tile and copper. The floors of all the corridors
are laid in marble squares, and the wainscoting is of American, Italian
and French marbles. The arches and columns of the staircases, and
vestibule of the main entrance on Fort street are of fine imported marbles, and the latter has a dome ceiling of marble mosaic. The Circuit
Court room is finished in elaborately carved marbles, and the District
Court in East India mahogany.
The Municipal building, which is situated at the northeast corner of
Clinton avenue and Raynor street, was first occupied by the Police
Court in September, 1890; a few weeks afterward by the Poor Commission, and by the Recorder's Court on October 18, 1890. It was erected
at a cost of $54,000, the site belonging to the city. In it are the Recorder's and Police Justices' Courts, the Poor Commission, the offices of
the city physician and dispensary, and the boiler inspector.
The Health Department building, which adjoins the Municipal building, was erected at a cost of $8,787, and was first occupied in May, 1894.
A new county jail and sheriff's residence was ordered on the same
site, by the Board of Supervisors, and the contracts were awarded in
March, 1896. The contract price for the stone work was $74,271 and
the material in the old building, and the cell work $75,000. A temporary jail was fitted up in a building at the southeast corner of Fort
and Randolph streets, and the prisoners removed into it on May 1,
1896. The jail and residence cost $179,072 and the old material. The
prisoners were removed to the new jail on June 12, 1897, and the
sheriff, Harry A. Chipman, moved into his official residence on October
1, 1897.
Detroit has a large amount of capital invested in municipal property, It is distributed as follows: Public building, exclusive of the
county building, $2,202,330; County building (in construction) $1,800,000; House of Correction, $245,000; Public Library and contents,
$531,000; Belle Isle Park and bridge, $3,375,000; Grand Circus, Palmer, Clark, Cass and other parks, $3,255,000; Bcard of Education
property, $2,618,000; Police Department property, $296,250; Fire Department property, $1,528,500; lighting plant, $729,250; Water Commission property, $5,228,250, other property, $130,000. Total, $19,936, 830
571




During the eight years commencing January 1, 1890, the followingbuildings, each costing $50,000 and more, have been erected:
First Congregational church ----------—. --- —-—.. —...... $ 105,000
A. L. Stephens's residence. --------------—. --- —-----—. — 51,000
David Whitney's residence. --------------------  --—..  100,000
Cadillac Hotel (addition) -------.. --- —_ --- —-. —..... — -  200,000
J. L. Hudson & Co.'s store -------- -        -...-... ---    200,000
Sacred Heart of Mary church --------—.. --- —---—..... --  125,000
Daniel Scotten & Co.'s factory --------—..... — -..- -  80,000
Daniel Scotten & Co.'s factory. --- —..-.. — - -.._........  60,000
Fort Street Union Depot --------—. ----.-....-........     200,000
D. M. Ferry & Co.'s storehouse...-.   -----—... —... ---- -  70,000
Women's Hospital and Foundling's Home. -------— _ --- —-      50,000
Michigan Telepone Co.. --- —----—. --- ——.-.. -—.... --- -  100,000
Ste. Claire  Hotel --- ——... --- —   --   --—. —_. --- —-... —._-   125,000
Jefferson Avenue Presbyterian church —. ----. —.-.6 --- -6__   0,000
Detroit Club.. --- —-—... -----.... ---. ---... —     70,000
Pingree & Smith's shoe factory ------------— __ --- —_._ —_   85,000
Block of buildings, Bagley estate ------.....             100,000
SS. Peter and Paul Academy -...- —. ---. ---. ---.....-..      50,000
Oren Scotten's residence --------------------—...-.... --- -  60,000
United Depot freight house.. --- —. --- —-—.-......-...  50,000
Building on Congress street, Bagley estate. --- ——.. ---_.-  80,000
Home Bank building --------— _-___-125,000
Public Lighting Commission building. —.._..._..-....-_. 67,000
Chamber of Commerce -------—, --- —. ---,  --—. —...-._-   450,000
Edson Moore & Co.'s building, Palms estate. ----. --- —-.-_   80,000
R. H. Elliott's  store. --- —. —. --- —-.. --- —-. —..... --- — -  60,000
United States Barracks at Fort Wayne ---------—. ----..-_-   80,000
Apartment building, H. W. Holcomb. --- —---    - -- -—.....-  55,000
Masonic Temple. ---------------------—. --- —--—.. —..- 210,000
Apartment building, C. H. Colwell --------------—.          55,000
High School. --- —----. --- ——. —. ---. ----. --- —... —. —  350,000
Valpey building ------------------- —...........__ 77,000
Apartment building, R. J. Wilson --------------—. ---_.      78,000
Union Trust Company.- ---------------—. --- —-... —    -   450,000
Children's Free Hospital.- ------—. --- —--------—.....- -  125,000
Majestic building ---- — _ -------— _ --- —--- --— _.....-__750,000
Goebel & Co., brewery-.. —.. --- —_. --- --—. ----. —.._ —  50,000
Ferguson building.-. --- —. ----. —. ----. --- —, ----......- -  70,000
County Jail and Sheriff's residence --- —----------—..-.. ---  150,000
Church on Junction avenue..- ------------—. --- ——..._    50,000
County Building-... --- —.. ---. --- —-... --—..-..1....- 1,250,000
Armory, Light Guard. --- —------------------—..             50,000
Richmond-Backus building ----—. --- —. — --—. ----..-....   50,000


572




JOHN McGREGOR.








This makes an aggregate of $6,558,000 expended on first class buildings during the eight years.
The following list shows the cost of buildings, repairs and additions
during the years named:
1890. ---. --- ——. --------------------------------------- $   5,374,480
1891  -----—. --- —--------. --- —--------. --- -----------—.-   5,667,225
1892 -..- ---—. —        ------------------------ ------ 5,727,300
1893  ------------—. -----------------------------    4,392,925
1894  -----—.- --------------------------------------------  4,361.055
1895. ---- -------------—.... --- ------—.- ----------------  5,338,570
1896. ---- ---------. --- —--. ----. ----. --- —---—. -------  3,166,500
1897 -.. --- —--------------------—. --- —-----—. --- —.- 4,356,885
$43,384,940
It will thus be seen that, notwithstanding the disastrous panic of
1893 and subsequent years, the confidence in the future of Detroit real
estate has been but little impaired, and that a substantial advance towards
the average of investments has already begun.
Detroit's death rate, calculated on a basis of population of 275,000,
is 14.32.
The city of Detroit comprises 28.54 square miles of surface, or about
18,560 acres. It extends seven and one-third miles along the Detroit
River, and is five miles wide at its greatest breadth.
CHAPTER LXXXI.
History of the Small-Pox Epidemics Which Have Visited the City-Struggle of
the Vaccination Against Popular Prejudice-Ravages of the Disease at Various
Times Among the Poor in Densely Populated Portions of the City.
Small-pox made its appearance in Detroit as early as 1703, and before that time it had ravaged the settlement at Mackinac and decimated
the Indians of that region. There are no records of the extent of the
disease in Detroit at that date, but a letter sent by Cadillac to Mackinac
shows that he knew the disease was prevalent at the latter place. He
whimsically adds that if the Indians there delayed coming to Detroit
much longer, he would send a worse plague among them. This was


573




probably intended as a joke, as it carried the assumption that lie caused
the disease at Mackinac.
In all the white settlements of America, and also among the Indian
tribes, small-pox was a recurring scourge, and hundreds of thousands
are known to have died of the disease during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Vaccination, the great preventive and ameliorative,
was not discovered until 1796, by Dr. Edward Jenner, and several years
elapsed before it was introduced into the western hemisphere. Under
early American rule small-pox was prevalent in Detroit, its spread
being greatly aided by the popular prejudice against inoculation with
diseased matter from a cow's udder. It was not until the early '30's
that vaccination was freely practiced, and in 1836, when the prospect
of the Territory being admitted to the Union attracted educated emigrants and physicians from the older States, the new treatment became
general. Dr. George B. Russel, wno came to Detroit in 1836, and is
still living, was very successful in treating the loathsome affliction. He
never used the bovine virus, but treated the disease exclusively by human
virus obtained from pustules of infants. In October, 1837, he learned
that a tribe of Indians from the Saginaw country, who had come to
Detroit to receive their annual presents, had camped on Connor's
Creek, on the Connor farm, near Gratiot avenue, a few miles from Detroit, and that small-pox had broken out among them. He provided
himself with a quantity of vaccine matter and went there. About a
dozen of the Indians, in five tents, were in the early stage of the disease. He at once commenced operation, working continuously through
the night and the forenoon of the following day, and vaccinated the
whole tribe, about 750 persons. None of the patients died.
Five years afterward Henry R. Schoolcraft, the famous Indian ethnologist and historian, learned of this episode from his daughter at
Albany,, and at once took steps to reward it. Making the proper representations to the Indian Bureau, he procured an appropriation, and
in 1842 Dr. Russel received $700 for his humane services. Later in
the same year Dr. Russel caused to be built a small-pox hospital, which
was probably the first of its kind in Detroit or the West. It was a
cheap one story shed, about by 20 by 50 feet, with doors and windows,
and was located where the House of Correction now stands, in rear of
the old city cemetery on Russell street. This hospital was intended
for homeless and destitute patients, principally colored people and white
emigi-ants. It was used fronm 18:37 to 1839, a period of over two years,
574




and about 200 cases were treated during that time. The patients were
generally exposed for some time before being admitted to the hospital,
and about one-half of them died. Dr. Russel says that the confidence
in the curative powers of vaccination was so general at that time, that
many families of limited means were glad to receive small-pox patients
in their homes, in order to secure the money for boarding and nursing
them. Dr. Zina Pitcher had a small pox patient, and not finding suitable accommodations for him at the National Hotel (now Russell House)
took him to his own home. Dr. Peter Klien, who was county physician
in 1848-1851 and in 1854-55, says that a small house on the Antoine
Beaubien farm, on what is now Elizabeth street, between Antoine and
Beaubien streets, was used as a small-pox hospital during part of the
time of his first incumbency of that office. It consisted of two log
cabins close together, and was used by the city for patients.
St. Mary's Hospital, which, under the name of St. Vincent's, was
first opened in 1845 and removed to its present site in 1850, received
small pox patients up to 1861. The hospital was in charge of the order
of the Sisters of Charity. The patients were lodged in a frame house
on Clinton street, on the east side of the present hospital building. In
1861, after the war of the Rebellion commenced, a small-pox hospital,
intended principally for soldiers, went into commission on the east side
of St. Aubin avenue, on the commons, about one hundred feet south of
Kirby avenue. The land was owned by the Sisters of Charity, and that
corporation erected a building, which was a two-story frame house with
an L. Sister Mary Clair, who has been in charge of the small-pox
cases as nurse since 1858, assumed the task in the new hospital. At
the close of the war the disease abated, but indigent patients continued
to be treated there. In 1870 the city purchased an old frame building,
removed it to the lot and joined it to the existing structure. It then
became a city hospital under the control of Poor Director Willard.
The prevalence of small-pox during the early '70's caused a demand
for a hospital outside of the city. On October 18, 1872, the city purchased from Frederick Reuhle a parcel of land in Grosse Pointe township, north of the mouth of Connor's Creek. It was intended as a site
for a permanent small-pox hospital, but owing to the opposition of residents in that township, no building was erected,'and the land has since
been leased by the city for farming purposes.
In November, 1876, small-pox was prevalent throughout the city.
Dr. J. P. Corcoran, then one of the city physicians, and later one of the


575




Board of Health, was given charge of these cases. Sisters Jene Rose
and Agnes, of St. Mary's Hospital, were the nurses. Up to July, 1877,
there was an average of twenty cases per week at this hospital. During the same time there were about 1,000 cases on Hale street, between
Riopelle and Dubois streets, and adjacent thoroughfares, principally
among Polish families. In the same month the Board of Health enforced a general vaccination in Albertus's Church school. This practically stamped out the disease, and there were very few cases during
the following winter. In the spring of 1878 the hospital was burned
by order of the city.
In 1880 small-pox again broke out in the northeastern part of the
city, and Controller H. P. Bridge went out on St. Aubin avenue to see
about re-establishing another hospital in that locality. His errand being
discovered, he was nearly mobbed by the Polish residents, and he then
consulted with the authorities in regard to the exigency. As a result
another hospital was fitted up on Twelfth street, north of the city limits,
in the township of Greenfield, which was in use some three months
during that year, with Sisters Pacifica and Justa as nurses. Dr. Morse
Stewart was the physician in charge.
Owing to these recurring outbreaks of the disease, it was deemed desirable to place the health department of the city on a better footing,
the Board of Health not having the necessary authority to enforce
sanitary measures. The requisite authority being procured by a legislative enactment, Dr. 0. W. Wight was appointed health officer in
1881, with enlarged powers. A small pox hospital was established on
the north side of Farnsworth street, east of Russell street, in the fall
of 1883. It was used for about two years, and was then burned down.
Meanwhile Dr. Wight designed the plans for an octagon-shaped hospital on the west side of Crawford street, just north of Gilbert avenue.
This was first occupied in the fall of 1885, and the nurses were Sister
Superior Frances and Sisters Mary Claire and Magdalene of St. Mary's
Hospital. It was burned down in 1892, presumably by an incendiary.
A case of small-pox was found in a two story frame building on the
corner of Marion and Hastings streets, used as a saloon and dwelling,
on May 28, 1894. The four rooms in the house were then used as a
hospital, and fifteen cases were treated successfully. It was discontinued on July 1, 1894.
At the time the last named hospital was discontinued preparations
were being made to erect a new building on Crawford street, on the
576




HAMILTON E. SMITH, M. D.




I




site of the burned hospital. A temporary hospital, consisting of canvas tents, was erected, and some twenty-five patients taken there in
July, 1894. During the first night a storm prostrated all the tents, the
patients were drenched by the rain, and several died from exposure.
This caused great excitement throughout the city, and the Board of
Health was directed to build a permanent structure on the same
grounds forthwith. The new building was completed a month later,
and was immediately occupied by about fifty patients. During the
small-pox epidemic of that year, Health Officer Duncan McLeod was
removed on July 20, and Dr. Joseph Schulte appointed as acting
health officer. Dr. Schulte served until November 5, and was succeeded by Dr. N. W. Webber. On January 8, 1895, Dr. Duncan
McLeod was reappointed. Mayor Pingree called a public meeting to
protest against the passage of a bill pending in the Legislature, giving
the appointment of the Health Board to the governor and Senate. The
meeting, which was held on January 27, 1895, was stormy and indeterminate in results. The bill passed the Legislature, and the new board
appointed Dr. S. P. Duffield, and Dr. McLeod stepped down and out
on March 4, 1895.
In all the small-pox hospitals from 1876 to the erection of the present
building on Crawford street in 1894, except the one on Twelfth street,
Dr. J. P. Corcoran was the physician in charge, and was extremely
successful in his management and treatment.
CHAPTER LXXXII.
Hotels and Taverns of the Past and Present-The Old Mansion House —Ben.
Woodworth's Steamboat Hotel-The Michigan Exchange, and Many Others-Personality of the Old-Time Proprietors.
The first tavern in Detroit, of which there is any information, was
kept by William Forsyth, a Scotchman, who was in the British army,
and who was discharged in Detroit about 1770. He married the Widow
Kinzie, and had several children.
There must necessarily have been places of public entertainment in
Detroit during all its history, but early records of the town during
577
73




French and English rule do not show it. One of the earliest taverns
under American rule was the Dodemead House, at the southeast corner
of Jefferson avenue and Shelby street, the lot extending to Woodbridge
street, which was kept by Jane Dodemead. One of her daughters
married Jacob Varnum, the United States factor at Chicago; another
married Major John T. Dyson, and subsequently Charles Jackson;
and another married Charles Jouet, Indian agent at Chicago.
Richard Smythe kept a tavern called the Sagina Hotel, on the west
side of Woodward avenue, between Jefferson avenue and Woodbridge
street, during the first thirty years of the present century.
Woodworth's Hotel, built in 1812, was a famous old hostelry. It
was managed by Benjamin Woodworth from 1812 until 1844. It was
burned in the fire of 1848. After the advent of the Walk-in the-Water,
in 1818, it was named the Steamboat Hotel.
The Mansion House was built by James May, out of the stone chimneys of the houses burned in the great fire of 1805. It stood on the
northeast corner of Jefferson avenue and Cass street. It was used as a
hotel by John Whipple, a retired army officer, Andrew Mack and
others. The late Mrs. John Chester, daughter of Supreme Judge
George Morell, was boarding there when the Michigan Exchange was
opened in 1835, and then removed to the latter hotel. It was discontinued shortly afterward.
In 1827 John J. Garrison built a hotel on the east side of Bates street,
between Jefferson avenue and Lamrned street, south of the alley. It
was continued under different names for several years.
The Eagle Hotel, on the south side of Woodbridge street, just west
of Griswold street; the United States Hotel, on the same side of Woodbridge street, five or six doors further west; the New York and Ohio
House, on the west side of Woodward avenue, between Jefferson avenue and Woodbridge street; Andrews's Railroad Hotel, on the Campus Martits, on the site of the present Detroit Opera House, were all
built in the '30's, and were continued for fifteen to forty years.
The second Mansion House, on the northwest corner of Griswold
and Atwater streets, was built by J. Hanmer in 1831. After the first
Mansion House went out of commission it took that name. It is now
being operated as a Sailors' Bethel.
The American Hotel, situated on the southeast corner of Jefferson
avenue and Randolph street, was started in 1835. Its name was subsequently changed to Wales Hotel by Austin E. Wales, and was burned
578








WILLIAM J. CHITTENDEN.




in the fire of 1848. This hotel occupied the site of the old mansion of
Governor Hull, and was rebuilt as the Biddle house.
The Michigan Exchange, on the southwest corner of Jefferson avenue and Shelby street, was built by Shubael Conant, and Austin Wales
was its first landlord. It was opened on June 27, 1835. In 1837
Orville B. Dibble became the landlord, and he was succeeded in 1847
by Edward Lyon. The latter retained the lease of the building, and
was in partnership with nearly all the succeeding landlords until his
death in 1884. The Michigan Exchange was discontinued as a hotel in
the summer of 1890. A portion of the building was torn down, and
the present shoe factory of Pingree & Smith erected, which was finished
and occupied in 1893.
The Russell House site at the southeast corner of Woodward and
Cadillac avenues, on the Campus Martius, has been hotel property
since 1836. In that year the National Hotel was opened by S. H.
Haring. Two years later Austin Wales was the landlord, and was succeeded by Edward Lyon, who was manager from 1840 to 1847. In the
latter year H. D. Garrison was landlord, followed by Henry A. Barstow.
From 1852-1857 Fellers & Benjamin were in charge. The property
was purchased by William Hale, who made extensive improvements,
and in September, 1857, the house was reopened with W. H. Russell
as landlord, and named the Russell House. Two months afterward
Mr. Russell retired and Mr. Hale became landlord. In 1861 he was
succeeded by L. H. Miner. In 1863 H. P. Stevens succeeded for a
short time. In 1864 W. J. Chittenden and C. S. Witbeck became proprietors, and in 1876 L. A. McCreary was admitted to partnership.
Mr. Witbeck died in 1881, and Chittenden and McCreary continued until July, 1895, when the latter retired, and Mr. Chittenden has since
been sole proprietor. He commenced as clerk in April, 1858, and has
therefore been connected with the house for forty years. During all
its history it has been a leading hotel, and the Prince of Wales, the
Grand Duke Alexis, and many other distinguished persons have been
its guests.
In 1836 Nathaniel Champ built a house on the northeast corner of
Washington and Michigan avenues, and lived there until 1851. On
this property he built the first temperance hotel in Detroit, and was its
landlord for several years. Several managers of the hotel succeeded,
and in 1843 his son, William Champ, became landlord and managed
until 1851. The property was then sold to John Blindbury. In 1852
579




Mr. Blindbury built a hotel on the same site and named it the Blindbury Hotel. J F. and W. W. Antisdel were afterwards landlords, and
in 1870 W. W. Antisdel was in charge. W. A. Scripps afterward became a partner. The house was demolished in 1890.
Andrews's Railroad Hotel was opened as a hotel in 1838. It occupied the present site of the Detroit Opera House, on the Campus
Martius. The property was sold to Dr. Eliphalet Clark in 1867, who
had it torn down. The Detroit Opera House was then erected, and was
opened in 1869.
The Grand River House, on the northwest corner of Grand River
avenue and Griswold street, was started about 1846 by M. Salter. In
1861 Alfred Goodman purchased the property, and succeeded as landlord. In 1868 he built on the same site a hotel which he named the
Goodman House. In 1890 he took his son, Fred 0. Goodman, into
partnership. On June 1, 1895, Fred Postal succeeded as landlord, and
in 1897 he took A. G. Morey into partnership.
The Perkins Hotel was established at the northeast corner of Grand
River avenue and Middle street, by William Perkins, jr., in 1847. The
building previously had been a hotel and was called the Western
Cottage. Mr. Perkins was landlord until his death in 1867. An addition to the hotel on the east side, with stores underneath, was built in
1875. The next landlord was William B. Perkins. The old hotel at
the corner was torn down, and an addition erected in 1891. In 1896
W. W. Antisdel became landlord, and in 1897 M. E. Fletcher.
The present Wayne Hotel, at the southeast corner of River and
Third streets, stands on the site of the Johnson House, which was
erected in 1848. The latter hotel was opened in that year by H. R.
Johnson, who continued as landlord for four years. In 1852-53 Czar
Jones was landlord, and was succeeded by his predecessor, Mr. Johnson. In 1861 McDonald, Russel & Co. took charge, and the name was
changed to Bagg's Hotel. In 1863 Sheldon & Graves became land
lords, and changed the name to Cass House. Succeeding landlords
were Sheldon & Tyrrel, the Tyrrell Bros., Johnson & Ferguson and
Eralsey Ferguson. On May 1, 1880, the hotel was leased to the lastnamed for five years. On May 1, 1885, the building was vacated and
work on a new hotel commenced. It was finished on May 1, 1887,
named the Wayne, and opened on December 25, 1887, with W. P. F.
Meserve as lessee, and James R. Hayes as landlord. On December 25,
1889, Mr. Hayes became the lessee, and has managed the house to the
present time.
580




In 1842 Joseph Northrup purchased a lot, 60 by 100 feet, on the
south side of Michigan Grand (now Cadillac) avenue, between Woodward avenue and Bates street, and built thereon a two-story frame
dwelling house. In 1845 he fitted it up as a hotel, and the first landlord was named Shaw   In the same year Charles J. Beardslee succeeded as landlord, and named it the Railroad Exchange.
John V. Nehling purchased the property the same year, and converted the lower story into three stores. Mr. Beardslee retired in
1868 and was succeeded by his son-in-law, Joseph B. Lobdell, who carried on the hotel in the upper story until 1872, when the building was
torn down   Mr. Nehling then erected three brick stores, renting the
eastern one to James B. Lander, and using the other two himself as
a wholesale grocery store.








The Western Hotel, on the northwest corner of River and Third
streets, was opened by A. Leadbeater in 1848. Successive landlords
were H. W. Graves, Hackett & Ross and Michael McCall, and in 1874
the building was converted into stores.
The Biddle House property, so called, is the square bounded by Jefferson avenue, Randolph, Woodbridge and Brush streets. The hotel
was commenced in 1849, and opened on June 7, 1861, by Orville B. and
Charles Dibble, who were landlords for ten years. Succeeding landlords were J. & A. Tabor. J. T. Antisdel, H. P. Stevens, John Stevens,
J. M. Maxwell, Howell & Schoaff, Gay & Van Norman, N. H. Williams, Milo M. Potter and J. S. Brubaker. The term of the last named
was about six weeks in the summer of 1891. The greater portion of
the land was owned by John Biddle, and on July 1, 1871, Luther
Beecher secured a one hundred years' lease of this part, and on November 12, 1872, obtained a lease of the remainder from E. A. Brush.
The hotel was enlarged and improved under Mr. Beecher's ownership,
but never proved profitable, and its lack of success affected the value
of surrounding property. It ceased to be used as a hotel when J. S.
Brubaker withdrew, but in 1893, after the High School was burned, it
became the temporary home of that institution until the new High
School building was opened in 1896. After Mr. Beecher's death his
heirs contested the validity of the Brush lease, and their contention
was sustained by the Supreme Court, on the ground that the term of
the lease created a perpetuity, and was therefore contrary to public
policy. The Beecher heirs also wished to purchase the property and
thereby terminate the lease, and the probate judge allowed the Biddle
heirs to sell for $250,000. The decison was confirmed by the Supreme
Court on July 13, 1897. At present an informality in the title is being
investigated, and when this cloud is removed the Beecher estate will
acquire the Biddle House at the price named.
In 1850-52 William Shaw was owner and landlord of the Bull's Head
Hotel, on the southeast corner of Woodward and Grand River avenues. It was then converted into stores.
The Commercial Hotel, on the southwest corner of River and Second
streets, was in existence during the early '50's, during which Benjamin
S. Farnsworth was the landlord. It was burned down in 1856.
The Hotel Adams, at the northeast corner of Jefferson avenue and
Randolph street, dates back to 1852. In that year it was built by
Henry Wineman, and opened as a hotel by William T. Purdy & Co.


581




At first the ground floor was occupied as a confectionery store by the
owner, and the hotel was in the upper stories. In 1856 it was named
the Tremont House. In 1862 David S. Headley was landlord, and he
was succeeded in 1865 by D. C. Goodale. In 1870 E. S. Blakeslee was
manager, and in 1871 Giles Tucker. In 1873 Landlord William Gray
changed the name to Revere House. From 1874 to 1878 Capt. OrvilleW.
Penny was in charge, and was succeeded in 1879 by Michael Cunningham and John Barnard. In 1880 W. H. Leland was manager, and
changed the name to Leland House. In 1881 George H. Martin &
Co. were managers, and changed the name to Madison House In the
same year Martin & Borgman became landlords, followed in 1882 by
George Scheller. Murray Dalzell was landlord in 1888, and from 1889
to 1893 John D. Rice was manager, the name being changed to Rice's
Hotel. Derrick Adams succeeded in May, 1895, and named it the Hotel
Adams. The next landlords were Kenrick & Co., who took charge
April 1, 1896, and named it the Kenrick House.
The Merchants' Exchange, on the southeast corner of Griswold and
Woodbridge streets, was built by James Abbott in 1852  It was opened
as a hotel by John Moore in September of the same year. He was
landlord until January 2, 1866. The building was afterward remodeled
into two stores.
The Howard House, on the northeast corner of Congress and Griswold streets, was opened in 1853. In 1880 Van Est & Graves became
landlords, and the house was renamed the Griswold House. It was
torn down in 1894, and the Union Trust building, which occupies the
same site, was opened for business on May 1, 1896.
The present Cotter House, at the northeast corner of Front and Second streets, was erected in 1853 by George Weber, who is still living
and owns the property. The first landlord was George Barber, who
named it the Eastern Hotel. In 1857 Patrick Murrin named it the
Murrin House. TIe was succeeded in 1860 by Martin Tray, who sold
the furniture and good will to G. Sisserman in 1863. In 1867 Oscar
Treesise became landlord, and changed the name to Miner's Arms. In
1872 Leo Guffley took charge chchanged the name to Central Hotel, and
occuplied it until 1875. Orville W. Penny then bought out Gufitey and
managedl the house until 1880  Lester Lee succeeded, and in I882
Hiram Brown became landlord and changed the name to Tremont
IHouse. In 1897 the present landlord, Philip W. Cotter, took charge
and named it the Cotter House.


582




The Lamed House, on the northeast corner of River and Third
streets, was opened in 1853. Successive landlords were O. Whitney,
M. W. Warnick, George Niles and several others. It had an unsavory
reputation, and was afterward used for business purposes for several
years. In 1870 the property was purchased by William B. Wesson,
who tore it down in 1884, and erected on the site a five-story hotel,
which was named the Griffin House, and opened by John C. Griffin in
August, 1885. The next landlord was Michael Griffin, in November,
1891. The house was closed on January 15, 1898, and the furniture
sold.
The Franklin House was opened in 1854 by J. C. Warner as landlord and proprietor. Succeeding landlords were John S. Tibbetts,
Winn & Emery, A. H. Emery, A. Montgomery, Hugh Phelps, Warner
& James, C. Friedman and Henry James. Henry James & Son have
been landlords since January 1, 1897.
The Finney House, at the southeast corner of Woodward and Gratiot
avenues, was first opened for business in 1854 by Seymour Finney,
landlord and owner.  Its name was subsequently changed several
times, and it was demolished in April, 1897, and a business block
was erected on its site.
The Eisenlord House, at the southeast corner of Cass and Lewis
streets, was built and opened by William Eisenlord in 1861, when
Wilson was his successor. The latter named it the Windsor Hotel.
Emerson C. Harvey & Son were the next managers, who were in charge
from April 1, 1886, to May 1, 1888, when they were succeeded by E.
W. Fairbrother. In 1890 Harrison & Decker were landlords, and were
succeeded by'Fred Soop, who retired on September 13, 1895, since
which time the hotel has been vacant.
The Brighton House, on the southeast corner of Grand River avenue
and Gillman street, was built in 186!, and additions were made on the
two following years.  Adjoining the house was a space of ground
known as King's stock yards. The first landlord was S. B. King, who
was engaged for one year. Thereafter Harvey King was in charge,
and as proprietor managed the hotel and cattle yards until 1876, when
George B. Nye was landlord of the hotel until 1884. In that year the
business was transferred to the new stock yards at the corner of
Twelfth street and the Grand Trunk Railroad track, and the hotel was
closed. The property was sold in 1890 to certain parties, and the
buildings were torn down in 1893.


583




The Hotel Erichsen was established by Claus D. Erichsen, at the
northwest corner of Fort and Randolph streets in 1865, and was conducted by him until 1875. It was then removed to the south side of
Farmer street, between Randolph and Bates streets. In 1886 Siegfried
Lieders succeeded as landlord. Otto and Edward Hohf were the next
managers in 1892, and ran it for about six months. The Harmonie
Society leased the hotel and occupied it during 1893. It was vacant
for about two years, and was afterward converted into business property.
The Collins House, on the east side of Third street, between River
and Lamed streets, was occupied by James Collins as landlord in 1865.
John Burke was manager from 1866 to 1868. Succeeding landlords
were Daniel Griffin, who named it the Western Hotel; John C. Griffin
and P. W. Cotter. In 1891 the hotel and the adjoining building on the
north were torn down and a new hotel, named the New Western, was
erected. P. W. Cotter continued to be in charge until 1896, when he
was succeeded by John J. Hannifan, who named it Hotel Richmond.
Union Hotel, on the north side of River street, adjoining the Griffin
House, was first occupied by Michael McCall, as owner and proprietor,
in 1868. In 1885 he built a five story hotel on the same site. In 1890
it was leased to the Griffin House and formed a part of that hotel, and
was vacated on January 15, 1898.
The Hotel Henry, at the northeast corner of Monroe avenue and
Randolph street, was opened in 1870 by John Henry, who was landlord for twelve years. It afterward had several landlords, and was demolished in February, 1891.
The Hotel Renaud, at the northeast corner of Grand River and
Adams avenues, was established in January, 1873, by George F.
Renaud. Mr. Renaud was landlord of the hotel until he retired in
May, 1896, when he was succeeded by his son and son-in-law, E. J.
Renaud and E. E. Wilson.
The Miller House, at the northwest corner of River and Second
streets, was built in 1873 by Conrad W. Miller, who was its landlord
until 1884. In that year the hotel was leased by Kling & Co., brewers,
who had several managers, including Michael Kelleher and Michael
Kehoe. Mr. Miller was again landlord in 1885-86, and was succeeded
by J. W. Walton in 1886; in 1890 by Henry Rice; in 1891 by Herman
Eckner, and by Valentine Goldsmith in 1894. The present landlord,
C. H. Collins, succeeded in 1897, and named it Collins's Hotel.


584




OSCAR M. SPRINGER.








The Hotel Goffinet, on the southeast corner of Randolph and Lamed
streets, was opened by James Goffinet in 1875. He was succeeded in
1878 by Martin V. Borgmaii, who named it the Bernard House. There
were several succeeding landlords and it was named the Metropolitan
Hotel. The house had been closed for more than a year when the
property was purchased in 1886 by S. B. Grummond, who remodeled
and refurnished it, and opened it as the Hotel Benedict on May 1, 1887.
Mr. Grummond conducted the hotel by several managers until 1892,
when Seigfried Lieders leased it, named it the Hotel Lieders and was
its landlord until he died. Mr. Scott succeeded him and named it
Hotel Victoria. Richard Pool was landlord for two years after May
1, 1894, and changed the name back to Hotel Benedict. Latimer &
Lynch were landlords in 1896, and were succeeded by J. B. Miller, who
was landlord until January 7, 1898. Thompson & Rowe, the present
proprietors, changed the name back to Hotel Victoria. They were
succeeded by Thompson & Rowe, who opened the hotel on April 13,
1898, and named it the Tifft.
In 1879 the Standish House and Rice's Hotel were established on the
north side of Congress street, east of Woodward avenue. The Standish
House was afterward named the Colburn House. The block was afterward rebuilt and enlarged, and on April 22, 1890, was opened as the
Normandie Hotel by Carr & Reeve.
The Hotel Cadillac dates from 1887. The east half of the square on
the north side of Michigan avenue, between Washington avenue and
Rowland street, was purchased in 1885 by Daniel Scotten, who erected
thereon a business building. This was converted into a hotel in 1887,
named the Hotel Cadillac, and opened by Van Est & Graves in 1888.
The west half of the square, on which stood the Antisdel House, was
afterward purchased by Mr. Scotten, and an addition to the Hotel
Cadillac erected. The whole square fronting on Michigan avenue was
occupied by that hotel in 1891.
The Hotel Ste. Clair, which was erected by the E. A. Brush estate
on the site of the Henry House, was opened by W. P. Beyer, the present landlord, on June 8, 1893.
The following were the existing hotels in Detroit in the first part of
1898. Some of these have been described above:
Anchorville House, River Rouge.  Boulevard Hotel, 1135 Michigan aveBaltimore Hotel, 32 Jefferson avenue.  nue.
Beaufait House, 1182 Jefferson avenue,  Canada Hotel, 13-17 Brush.
585
74




Chiera's Hotel (sleeping rooms for men
only), 60-64 Farrar.
Cotter Hotel, northeast corner Second
and Frank.
Detroit Hotel, 14-18 Elizabeth west.
Distel House, north side Fort west,
near Woodmere avenue.
Dobson's European Hotel, 299 Woodward avenue.
Dunnebacke House, 214 Beaubien.
Eastern Hotel, 1152 Jefferson avenue.
Fayette Hotel, 304 Livernois avenue.
Five Mile House, southeast corner Livernois and Grand River avenues.
Frank Albert, northwest corner River
and West End avenue, Delray.
Franklin House, corner Bates and
Iarned.
Gies's European Hotel, 10-14 Monroe
avenue.
Grand Central Hotel, 37-43 Cadillac
square.
Griffin Hotel, northeast corner River
and Third.
Griswold House, northwest corner
Griswold and Grand River avenue.
Harmer House, 1587 Russell.
Harrison Hotel, West side Harbaigh,
near Wabash Railroad.
Highland Park Hotel, Highland Park.
H-illman House, River Rouge.
Hotel Adams, 233 Jefferson avenue.
Hotel Ann Arbor, 198 River.
Hotel Barclay, 20-30 Barclay place.
Hotel Cadillac, Michigan avenue, Rowland and Washington avenue.
Hotel Congress, 12-16 Congress east.
Iotel Doston, 25 Macomb (Afro-American).
Hotel Franklin, corner Bates and
Larned.
Hotel Lafayette, 79-83 Lafayette avenue.
Hotel Miller, 188 River.
Hotel Normandie, 11-23 Congress east.
Hotel Perkins, corner Grand River
avenue and Middle.


Hotel Renalid, 128, 130 Grand River
avenue.
Hotel Richelieu, 420 Second avenue.
Hotel Richmond, 42-46 Third avenue.
Hotel Richter, 11-15 State.
Hotel Ste. Clair, northwest corner
Monroe avenue and Randolph.
Hotel Victoria, southeast corner of
Randolph and Lamed.
Hotel Young, 86 Fort street.
Irving Hotel, 36 Clifford.
Jefferson Hotel, 206 Jefferson avenue.
Jefferson Hotel, 261 Jefferson avenue.
Junction House, 537 Ferry avenue
east.
Kraft Honse, northwest corner Joseph
Campau avenue and M. C. Railroad.
Kurth's Hotel, 1154, 1156 Fort west.
Library Park Hotel, 46-52 Farrar.
Mariner's Hotel, 175 Franklin.
Metropolitan, The, 36 Gratiot avenue.
Michigan Central Stock Yards Hotel,
West Detroit.
Michigan Exchange Hotel, 86 Randolph.
Miner's House, 24 Front.
Moffat, William B., southwest corner
Grand River avenue and Plymouth road.
New Globe, 257 Jefferson avenue.
New Pacific,The, 259 Jefferson avenue.
North End Hotel, 1400 Woodward avenue.
Old Homestead, The, north side Jefferson avenue, near Connor's Creek.
Park Hotel, 39 West Park place.
Park View House, 201 Cass.
Randolph Hotel and Restaurant, 178
Randolph.
Rasch, Mrs. Robert, 85 Atwater east.
River Front Hotel, 379 Atwater east.
River Rouge Hotel, River Rouge.
Rusch House, north side Jefferson avenue, near Connor's Creek.
Russell House, corner Woodward avenue and Cadillac square.
St. Charles Hotel, 91, 93 Atwater east.
St. Lawrence Hotel, 32-36 Randolph.


586




Scanlon, Charles, northeast corner Jef-  Wabash Hotel, northwest corner Aterson and O'Flynn avenues.         water east and Brush.
Seaman's Home, 19 Griswold.        Warner House, 401, 403 Franklin.
Smith's New Cass Hotel, 208 River.  Waverly Hotel, 227 Jefferson avenue.
Snug Harbor, southwest corner Jeffer-  Wayne Hotel, southwest corner River
son avenue and Connor's Creek.     and Third.
Spaulding House, 287 Jefferson avenue.  Welke's Hotel, 148, 150 Randolph.
Stock Yards Exchange Hotel, south-  West Side Hotel, 108 Adams avenue
west corner Waterman and Dix avenues.  east.
Union House, 65, 67 Atwater east.  Zeeb's Hotel, 368 Twentieth.
CHAPTER      LXXXIII.
Detroit Militia Organizations, Past and Present —Sheriffs of Wayne County
Since 1796.
Michigan has five regiments of infantry, but no artillery or cavalry.
A standard regiment is composed of eight companies, each comprising
eighty-three enlisted men and three commissioned officers, and each is
entitled to $400 a year, which is supposed to pay the rent of an armory
and incidental expenses. In Detroit and Grand Rapids, where land is
high priced, this sum is utterly inadequate, and the companies in these
cities are obliged to make up the deficiency out of their own purses, by
donations from retired or honorary members, or by renting their quarters for entertainments, and often all three.  Besides the amount allowed
for armory purposes the State allows each private on duty at the annual
encampment of seven days, $1.25 per day and seventy-five cents for subsistence, a total of $2 per'day. The same rate of compensation is paid
when the company is called out for active service. The State also furnishes
to each of its soldiers the following articles besides the arms: Fatigue
coat, pair of trousers, campaign hats, forage caps, leggings, belt, canteen, haversack, single blanket and knapsack. Each company keeps
2,000 rounds of ball cartridge in its armory. A majority of the companies do target shooting every summer, and some own or rent their
ranges. There are also practice galleries in each armory.
In Detroit are seven companies of the Fourth Regiment, the eighth
company belonging to Monroe. The latter is Company G, otherwise
the Monroe Light Guard.
The Light Guard is composed of three companies, A, B, and F, re587




spectively. Their armory was for many years in the old Firemen's
Hall, at the southwest corner of Jefferson avenue and Randolph street.
Its splendid new armory, at the northwest corner of Lamed and Brush
streets, was completed and occupied during the present year (1898).
The original Company A was organized in 1855, and is the oldest
militia company in continuous service in Michigan. It has the exclusive privilege of holding the governor's levee, a biennial military function, which honors every new executive of the State on the 16th of
November, just after election, with a grand reception and ball. The
second company (F) was originally the Detroit City Grays and was
amalgamated in 1889. The third company (B) was formerly the Detroit
National Guard, which was organized on October 25, 1869, its first captain being Patrick Nolan. It was amalgamated with the Detroit Light
Guard in September, 1897.
The Scott Guard, Company C, was organized in 1841, the first captain being J. V. Ruehle. N. Greusel, jr., was his successor, serving
until 1852, when Paul Gies was made captain. In 1861 a large number
of members joined the Union army and went to the front. Their
places were soon filled, and in 1862 the Guard was made into two companies, one of artillery under P. Guenther, and the other of infantry
under F. Kremer. After the war the companies disbanded. In 1879
the Scott Guard reorganized with Max Hochgraef as captain. August
Goebel, P. Herzog and Gus Pfeffer were successive captains. Ed. Rode,
the present captain, was elected in 1855. Its present armory is in
Arbeiter Hall, at the northwest corner of Russell and Catherine streets.
The Montgomery Rifles was organized on May 27, 1877, and was
admitted to the State service on June 13, 1884. Its headquarters is at
Clawson's Hall, on the east side of Miami avenue, between John R.
and Witherell streets.
The Light Infantry was organized on June 19, 1877, after a factional
difficulty which split the Light Guard in twain. It moved into its
present armory on the south side of Congress street, between Bates
and Randolph streets, in 1883. The building was burned in 1888, and
was rebuilt and refurnished the same year. The armory is one of the
best in the country, having been built expressly for the purpose by the
Bagley estate. The organization is composed of two compenies, D and
H. The latter was the High School cadets, organized in September,
1881; reorganized as the Detroit Cadets in October, 1882, and amalgamated with the Light Infantry in December, 1891.
588




THOMAS A. WADSWORTH.








Each company has a social organization with the usual officers, and
the armories are fitted up for amusements, such as billiards, cards,
chess, checkers and other games. Each company also gives annual
balls, picnics and excursions, and the civic soldiers always have enjoyable times.
Under the State act of 1893, which authorized the addition to the
national guard of a force of naval militia, not to exceed eight divisions,
each equivalent to a company of infantry, the first division of the State
Naval Brigade was mustered into service on February 28, 1894. This
division was composed of residents of Detroit. On December 6 the
second division was mustered in at Saginaw, and the third at Detroit
on December 22. Immediately after the muster of the third division
the three divisions were organized into the first battalion. The total
strength of the battalion, officers and men, is about 200. In the summer of 1897 the United States ship Yantic, fourth rate cruiser, was
loaned by the Navy Department to the State for the use of the battalion. While the ship was being fitted at the Boston navy yard, the
question arose as to whether she could pass through the Canadian
canals of the St. Lawrence River, and the Navy Department ordered
an officer of the construction department to investigate. He reported
that it would be impossible to get the Yantic through, and the secretary of the navy then informed the governor that the loan would be
recalled on that account. But the matter had been previously exam.
ined by the officers of the battalion, and they told the secretary that
the Yantic could be passed through the canals. The vessel was then
delivered to the battalion at Montreal. Under the superintendence of
F. W. Wheeler, the large shipbuilder of Bay City, the Yantic was
brought through, and she arrived in Detroit on December 8, 1897.
The battalion is commanded by Lieutenant-Commander Gilbert Wilkes,
with headquarters at Detroit.
Before the county of Wayne was created there were two county organizations embracing the territory about Detroit. Virginia and Connecticut each laid claim to portions of the territory embracing the present States of Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois and Wisconsin. Neither
of these States appears to have had anything more than a claim, and
neither appears to have had any distinct boundary to its claim, because
there had been no survey of the territory. It was all British property
up to 1783, and the British even disputed the claim of Virginia to the
region south of the Ohio known as " Kentuck."  Disregarding the first
589




provision of the famous recipe for hare pie, " First catch your hare,"
the colony of Virginia verbally annexed all the northwest region in
1778, and named that portion north of the Ohio River "the county of
Illinois." This was the first county organization, but it had no legal
standing. Fourteen years later, in 1792, Lieutenant-Governor Simcoe,
who had jurisdiction over Upper Canada, organized what is now the
States of Michigan and Wisconsin, and portions of the States of Ohio,
Indiana and Illinois, the region now known as the counties of Essex
and Kent in the province of Ontario, and a vast area lying north of
Lake Superior and east of Lake Huron, into the county of Kent. In
1787 the States of Virginia and Connecticut, realizing that they were
powerless in the western country, ceded all claims to the Federal government, and the Northwest Territory was created with Gov. Arthur
St. Clair as governor and Winthrop Sargent as secretary. In 1796,
when Gen. Anthony Wayne visited Detroit, accompanied by Winthrop
Sargent, secretary of the Northwest Territory, the people gave the
general a hearty reception, and during the height of the popular enthusiasm Secretary Sargent made a speech declaring that the area between
the lakes should hereafter be known as the county of Wayne.
The first sheriff having jurisdiction over Detroit was Gregor McGregor, who was appointed by Lieutenant-Governor Simcoe for the
county of Kent. Richard Pollard succeeded McGregor in 1795 as the
British sheriff, and after the evacuation of Detroit, in 1796, he continued to hold the same office in Sandwich. Pollard's temperament
was not suited for the office he held, and he studied for the ministry,
was ordained, resigned his office as sheriff, and turned his attention to
saving souls.
The first sheriff of Wayne county proper was George McDougall.
McDougall for some reason concluded he would not act as sheriff and
proceeded to assign his office to Herman Eberts. Eberts gave McDougall a bond for his faithful performance of the duties that would
devolve upon McDougall as sheriff (or high sheriff, as it was called).
The bond is on record in the register's office in book 1, on page 12 and
is dated December 23, 1796. In the bond McDougall is several times
referred to as sheriff. Eberts did not become sheriff until a later
period, for in a bond made by him March 1, 1797, he styles himself as
"acting high sheriff," which he would not have done had he received
the appointment.
C. M. Burton has searched the official proceedings of Governor St.


590




Clair and Winthrop Sargent to find their official appointments without
success, examining the archives at Columbus, Ohio, Indianapolis, Ind.,
and a portion of those at Washington. So far no list of appointees
made by these officials has come to light.
The following sheriffs, nearly all citizens of Detroit, have served in
Wayne county, after the retirement of Herman Eberts:


1798-99...... ---...... ---Lewis Bond.
1800    ------ -—. --—. B. Huntingson.
1800    -. —. --- — George McDougall.
1801    --------- ------— Elias Wallen.
1803. —. Thomas McCrea.
1804    — _ —_ -----—.Richard Smythe.
1815. —_.-.- _ - — James H. Audrain.
1816-25. --- —-... --- —Austin E. Wing.
1825    -----------— Abraham Edwards.
1825 -.-.....    William  Meldrum.
1826-29 --- ------— Thomas C. Sheldon.
1829   -.__ ____ —   __ Thomas S. Knapp.
1830    ----- -— Benjamin Woodworth.
1831-37 -------------— John M. Wilson.
1837-41 --------------- Lemuel Goodell.
1841-45 _ ---.  ------- Daniel Thompson.
1845-47 ------- ------— H. R. Andrews.
1847-51. --- —- ---------— E. V. Cicott.
1851-53 ---- -----—. ---Lyman Baldwin.


1853-54 —.-...... —...Horace Gray.
1855-56 ----------— _.. -Joshua Howard.
1857-60 ------------—.. --- E. V. Cicott.
1860    ---------- ----- -Peter Fralick.
1861-62. --- —-...- --— Mark Flanigan.
1863-64 ---.......... —.Peter Fralick.
1865-66 --------—. --- —--— F. X. Cicott.
1867-69 -----—.. --- —...-E. V. Cicott.
1869-70 -----—. -.... ----John Patton.
1871-74.......George C. Codd.
1875-76.-.. Jared A. Sexton.
1877-80 —. --- —----- Walter H. Coots.
1881-84..-.   Conrad Clippert.
1885-86 ---.. —.. George C. Steilwagen.
1887-90 ------------ Louis C. Littlefield.
1891-92.-......James Hanley.
1893-96 ------------- Charles P. Collins.
1897    -. --- —---- Harry F. Chipman.


CHAPTER       LXXXIV.
Amusements, Recreations and Sports-Music and Drama-Detroit Theatres Since
1798-Horse Racing, Rowing, Cricket, Athletics, Yachting, Baseball, Bicycling and
Social Organizations.
Music now forms a sufficient part of everyday life in Detroit, so that
any history which purports to faithfully reflect the city's activities, must
speak of her devotion to this charming branch of art. All artistic development must needs be slow at first. Not until human beings are
comfortably housed, fed and clothed do they look away from the material pursuits and seek diversion in esthetic culture, and not until a
leisure class is developed do the Muses find votaries or patrons. Music,
591




however, comes nearer to being a natural art than the others, and it
usually claims some attention as soon as the first anxieties are appeased.
And so we find that while Detroit was yet a primitive settlement her
inhabitants began in a modest way to foster public musical entertainments. There are only few and vague records of the first steps at
organization, but it is known that when the news of the treaty of peace
between France and England reached the fort of Detroit, on June 3,
1763, it was celebrated by a public concert. At that time Pontiac was
besieging the fort and its English garrison.
On June 21, 18312, one Blisse, a Tyrolese minstrel, then in great
vogue, gave a concert here, and between that time and the present
nearly every great artist in the world who has visited the United
States has appeared in Detroit in concert or opera.
Part singing is invariably one of the first forms of vocal culture. It
is the next step beyond the family " catch " and " glee " after the day's
work, or the hymn on a Sunday afternoon. The oldest existing musical organization in Detroit is the Harmonie, which was formed in 1848.
It was followed by the Concordia Society in 1865. The Harmonie
built its own club house in 1875, and after its destruction by fire some
four years ago built a handsome edifice at the northeast corner of Center and Wilcox streets. In 1876 Prof. S. S. Jackson started a musical
institute, in which young men and women were taught to read vocal
music and sing in chorus.
The organization of numerous choral societies followed, most of them
flourishing for a time, and then passing out of existence from several
causes. The Detroit Musical Society played an important role from
1870 to 1882, and many fine concerts were given under its auspices.
It was reorganized in 1890 with Albert A. Stanley, of Ann Arbor, as
director, and for two seasons was conducted on a grander scale than
ever before. At the end of that time, however, the society was badly
in debt, and it was disbanded. Another active and popular society,
which existed from 1873 to 1880, was the Orpheus, a male chorus of
twenty-four voices. It was devoted to the performance of madrigals,
glees, serenades, etc. After six years of successful work the rules
were revised and ladies were admitted, and, unpleasant to relate, the
society went to pieces within a twelvemonth.
The existing choral societies in Detroit are the Harmonie, Concordia,
Frohsinn, Teutonia and Silver Link, all German; the St. Cecelia Society, a mixed chorus of about seventy voices, under the direction of N.
592




JOSEPH H. CLARK.




I




J. Corey; the Madrigal Club, a ladies' chorus of sixteen voices: and
the Apollo Club, a male chorus of forty voices. The Boylston Club
was founded in 1879 by several ex-members of college glee clubs, and
since that time has given annual invitation concerts to its friends.
The three last named societies are under the leadership of Charles B.
Stevens.
It is in the line of musical organization that Detroit is notably backward. at the present day. She may claim an unusually large coterie of
excellent musicians, representing all branches of the art, as well as
several successful schools and a student population larger than almost
any city of equal size in the country; but, withal, there is a sad lack of
organization. Necessary patrons have not been forthcoming to foster
either a large chorus, which might regularly perform the great oratorio
works, or an orchestra capable of adequately presenting the standard
symphonies. There are many wealthy residents, but no one of them
has been moved to open his purse for the furtherance of music in our
midst.
The institution which, above all other agencies, has served to give
Detroit a respected name as a musical city, is the Detroit Philharmonic
Club, a string quartet organized a dozen years ago by the late Louis F.
Schultz. By the efforts of Mr. Schultz, as business manager, and the
highly artistic leadership of Mr. William Yunck, first violinist and
musical director, the quartet soon came to be recognized as one of the
best exponents of chamber music in the land, and their annual visits to
scores of cities in the central and western States did much to carry the
fame of Detroit abroad. The club is still in existence, with Mr. Yunck
as first violin, Hermann Brueckner, second, Frank J. Reszke, viola,
and Hermann Heberlein, 'cellist.
The Detroit Symphony Orchestra has given a series of home concerts
each season for several years past, and is now doing the best work in
its history under the musical directorship of Mr. G. Arthur Depew.
The Tuesday Musicale is a most prosperous social-musical women's
club, which has been instrumental in bringing many great artists to
Detroit. Monthly members' concerts are also given during the season,
in which a large number of local performers appear.
Alfred Hofmann gives an annual series of concerts at Harmonie
Hall, procuring the services of well known artists to assist, and nearly
all of the great pianists, violinists and concert singers en tour in
America come to Detroit. Occasional brief seasons of grand opera
593
75




have not proven profitable to the managers in recent years, and the
future in this field is very doubtful.
Several schools and a host of private teachers are giving musical instruction to thousands of music students, many of whom come for
their studies from surrounding territory, and each season there are developed some uncommonly talented soloists, both vocal and instrumental.  The Detroit Conservatory of Music, Detroit Institute of
Music, Mehan School of Vocal Art, Vet Musical Academy, Burrowes's
Piano School, Lamed School for the Singing Voice, and Detroit School
of Music are among the institutions devoted exclusively to training in
various branches of music.
Perhaps no one man has done pioneer work for musical culture equal
to Prof. J. H. Hahn, for more than twenty-five years past director of
the Detroit Conservatory of Music.
Nearly all the churches maintain paid choirs, and in some instances
the salary of soloists reaches the figure of $1,000 per annum.
Among the resident musicians are several who have manifested
marked creative ability, and their compositions are accepted by stand.
ard publishers. Perhaps the most noted writer of music who has ever
been a resident of Detroit is Anton Strelezki. This talented man was
a teacher and soloist here for several years, and some of his most
widely known songs were written during that period. Other successfull Detroit composers were Adam Couse, E. S. Mattoon, James E.
Stewart, J. L. Truax, J. C. Macy, P. Centemeri, J. H. Whittmore,
S. Mazurette, M. H. McChesney, C. F. Berdan and others.
THE )RAMNiA.
It is known that Cadillac attended plays in Quebec, which were produced under the auspices of Governor Frontenac, and that they were
bitterly opposed by the Jesuits, but there is no record in after years of
plays being produced during his governorship of Mackinaw or Detroit.
Neither is there any account extant of any dramatic performance in
Detroit during any of his successors under French or English rule. In
1798, however, two years after the American possession, entertainments, including dramatic performances, were given in Military Hall,
within the cantonment. In 1829 theatrical entertainments were given
in the government storehouse at the foot of Wayne street, east side,
and Major John Biddle and Lieut. James Watson Wetbb, afterward a
famouis New York jollrnalist, were among the actors. Mr. Wcbb, it is
594




-j


JACOB H. HAHN.








said, played female parts, being slim, graceful and good looking. He
was the maternal uncle of the late Mrs. John Chester of this city.
In 1830 there was a theatre fitted up in the rear of the Steamboat Hotel.
on the northeast corner of Woodbridge and Randolph streets. The
manager was one Parsons, who, it is said, afterward became a preacher.
In 1834 there was a theatre on the second floor of the Smart Block,
at the northeast corner of Jefferson and Woodward avenues, which was
soon discontinued.
In the early '30's Major D. C. McKinstry was the amusement caterer
of the town and was proprietor of a theatre, a circus, the Detroit
Museum, and the Michigan Garden. The theatre was a building on
the southeast corner of Gratiot avenue and Farrar street, and the lessees were McKinney and afterward Dean & McKinney. In January.
1838, performances were given at this theatre for the benefit of the
Patriot cause, which were largely attended by those who condemned
the methods of the Canadian " Family Compact." At this theatre Edwin Forrest, the great tragedian, played six nights in succession.
When Garry A. Hough came to Detroit in 1845 he found the theatre
had been converted into a chair factory. 'There was the stage," he
said, "and the auditorium, with its dress circle and pit clearly defined,
but it was full of men making chairs.' It is now occupied by Poli's
Italian restaurant.
Directly opposite, on the northeast corner of Gratiot avenue and
Farmer street, was the circus, a large wooden building, with a saw dust
ring with a pole in the center in imitation of the peripatetic canvas
arenas. It was burned on March 7, 1858.
The Michigan Garden comprised the square bounded by Monroe
avenue, Brush, Randolph and Fort streets. It contained walks, fruit
trees, summer houses, a commodious bath house, a "choice menagerie,"
and a "grand cosmorama." There were no lions, tigers or elephants
in the menagerie, and the principal attractions were bears, raccoons
and other indigenous wild animals. The garden was "illuminated
with candles every evening," and a brass band "heightened the enjoyment of the visitors." The Directory of 1837, which gives the above
information, describes its location as being " situated at the northern
extremity of the town." It is said that Julia Dean, the famous actress,
who was the daughter of Manager Dean, was born in a house in the
garden. This is given on the authority of William Adair, afterward
the manager, but it has been contradicted.


595




The Detroit Museum was located on the upper floors of a brick building on the southeast corner of Jefferson avenue and Griswold street.
The late William Adair was the manager for several years previous to
1839. Its attractions were a vaudeville hall, a collection of curiosities
in nature and art, wax figures, and "phantasmal views and illusions."
In 1838 the museum was so attractive and attracted such large audiences, that the theatre fell into second place, and Dean & McKinney
were nearly stranded. Their principal female actress, her mother, and
their best actors forsook them and came to the museum, where they
played to crowded houses. In 1839 Manager Adair went to Scotland
on business and when he returned in 1840 he was given charge of the
Michigan Garden. The museum was then discontinued and with its
curiosities, etc., was removed to the garden. The latter place of
amusement was discontinued about 1846, and A. E. Brush used its site
for his family mansion and grounds.
In 1837 there was a "Hall of Amusement" at No. 6 Woodward
avenue, conducted by Samuel Fletcher.
The Detroit Garden was also in full blast in 1837 at 16 Bates street,
behind where Gray, Toynton & Fox's store is now situated, and was
managed by Dean & Campbell, the first-named being probably the
actor, who subsequently went into partnership with McKinney. It
was a building fronting on the north side of Atwater street, with a few
trees in the rear.
In the fall of 1837 the young lads of the town organized the Thespian
Society, and gave several theatrical performances. According to Richard R. Elliott, in his entertaining reminiscences, the society was in existence for three or four winters afterward. The theatre was in a hall
on the upper floor of the University building in Bates street. There
was no charge for admission, tickets of invitation being issued. The
performers were thirteen in number, as follows: Friend Palmer, John
Hyatt Smith, Eben N. Willcox, John E. King, Charles E. Keeny,
Elisha Eldred, William L. Woodbridge. William B. Wesson, Edwin A.
Wales, Charles R. McKinstry, his brother, Elisha McKinstry, Everest
Franchier and Young St. Clair. The female characters were generally
personated by Friend Palmer, John Hyatt Smith, Edwin A. Wales and
Elisha McKinstry. The first performance was the standard English
farce, "Raising the Wind." Other performances were Haine's tragedy
of " Douglass," with John Hyatt Smith as " Norvel"; "  Slasher and
Crasher," "The Two Bonnycastles," and other plays.
596




In 1845, when Garry A. Hough came with a traveling company to
Detroit, there was no theatre in Detroit, and itinerant shows were held
in the old City Hall, which was on Cadillac square, fronting on the
Campus Martius. This was during the great temperance wave that
swept through the country, and the theatres naturally catered to the
popular taste by presenting temperance plays. Hough presented "The
Drunkard," "The Drunkard's Wife," "The Broken Merchant," and
other plays which showed the evil effects of intemperance, and was so
successful that he played three weeks. One of his actors was W. G
Noah, who afterward married the celebrated actress, Mrs. McClure.
From 1841 to 1848 Detroit was without a regular theatre, but in the
latter year Parker & Ellis came from Syracuse to Detroit and built the
National Theatre, on Jefferson avenue, opposite the Biddle House. In
In 1851 James Sherlock got possession of the building, and was succeeded as manager by his son, Edward T. Sherlock. Shortly afterward the building was named the Metropolitan Theatre. Amasa McFarland, a noted actor and manager, leased the theatre for long
engagements nearly every year in the '50's. Among the stars who
appeared on the boards of the Metropolitan were John Wilkes Booth,
Edwin Booth, Lawrence Barrett, Jenny Lind, Olive Logan, Celia Logan, Eliza Logan, W. S. Forrest, J. P. Adams, J. W. Wallack, Charlotte Cushman, Barney Williams and wife, and Julia Dean. It is said
that Kitty Blanchard (Mrs. McKee Rankin) made her first appearance there. Lawrence Barrett was property man in this theatre and
afterward graduated into a star.  His first appearance was in this
theatre in the beginning of the season of 1853-54, when he played the
humble part of " Murad " in the "French Spy."  During an engagement of Peter Richings and his famous daughter, Caroline, the play of
"Old Heads and Young Hearts" was presented. The actor who was
to impersonate " Littleton Coke" was suddenly called away, and Manager
Sherlock was at his wits' end. At this juncture young Barrett spoke
up, "I can do it; I know every line."  From this time he played more
or less in minor parts in tragedy and comedy, until finally about twelve
months afterward he played " Romeo " to Julia Dean's " Juliet."
Sherlock left the theatrical business early in 1861 and went to the
front as lieutenant-colonel of the Fifth Michigan Infantry, and was
killed at the battle of Chancellorsville. McFarland continued as manager until later in the year, when he was succeeded by John A. Ellsler,
of Pittsburg and Cleveland. McFarland was again manager for a short


597




time, and was followed by Yankee Robinson and Mrs. H. A. Perry.
In 1862 the lease was purchased from the elder Sherlock by Charles
MI. Welch, who converted it into a vaudeville theatre. It was subsequently named by him "The Varieties," and finally, in 1869, the
Theatre Comique.   Peter Rush, afterward city controller, was for
fourteen years a member of the Theatre Comique. Nicol Norton, the
well known actor, was its stage manager for several years, and Warren
Boardwell was its manager for some time. It was burned on July 22,
1877, but was rebuilt and continued until 1883, when it was torn down
and converted into a livery stable.  Its site is now occupied by a
carriage repository.
The Detroit Thespian Society was organized in the early '50's, and
as an amateur club was quite successful. Among the members were
Robert McWade, who at that time worked in a varnish factory and who
afterward gained a reputation only second to Jefferson in "Rip Van
Winkle"; Mark H. Gascoigne, afterward superintendent of the Detroit
Fire Department telegraph alarm; 0. S. Ottley, the well known designer and engraver on wood; Eleanor Meredith, afterward Mrs. E. A.
Smith, superintendent of art instruction in the Newark (N. J.) public
schools; the Aitken brothers, who worked on the Free Press; Wainwright, a newspaper man, and others. The Thespians gave twelve
performances at the Metropolitan when the theatre was not running in
the summer of 1854.
The most popular variety or vaudeville hall from 1857 to 1863 was
Jacob Beller's Detroit Concert Hall, at 112 and 114 Randolph street.
It was on the east side of Randolph street, between Congress and Fort
streets, next building north of Peter Henkel's grocery store, and like
all the buildings on the square, was torn down when the erection of the
new County Building was begun last year. He commenced as a wholesale liquor dealer there in 1854, and in 1857 started a concert hall,
occupying two stores. One of the first attractions was the Hofer family, Tyrolean singers and piano players. With this family was Justin
Juch, a fine pianist, who married in this city a daughter of a German
citizen named Hahn, and afterward became the father of the noted
cantatrice, Emma Juch. The hall was a primitive affair. The partition between the two stores was taken away, and there was a row of
pillars extending down the center. One of these was quite close to the
stage and it ever and anon shut the performers out of view as they
moved from side to side. Kitty Blanchard, now Mrs. McKee Rankin,


598




appeared as a danseuse on this stage, and so did Hughy Dougherty,
the noted minstrel man, and George R. Edeson, the celebrated pantominist and clown. The pianist for several years was Peter Cueney,
who was also an organist in a local church. It was a gay old place,
and all classes frequented it, from R. N. Rice, the president of the
Michigan Central Railroad, to the Central Market bum. Sometimes
clergymen would visit the place, to notice the depravity and ungodliness, but they saw little to shock their sensibilities. In fact,
the smoke from cigars and pipes would dim the keenest vision, and
although liquid refreshments could be served to everybody who
ordered them, there was no drunkenness; Jacob always preserved strict
order. Mr. Beller lived over the store, and his professional talent slept
on the floors above and they all ate at a common table. After the war
commenced a number of other concert halls was established. Beller
led them all, but competition reduced his profits. In 1863 there were
eight concert halls of the same type, the principal one being Welch's
Varieties, formerly the Metropolitan Theatre; two on Griswold street,
two on Jefferson avenue, two on Cadillac square, and one on Bates
street. The stores of which Beller's place was composed were owned
by two persons, and he could not get them to agree to erect a new hall
on the same site, so he sold his lease in 1863 to Charles M. Welch, who
was interested in the Varieties, formerly the Metropolitan Theatre.
Beller went to Chicago and was manager of a concert hall there. In
1864 he kept a saloon under the Russell House; in 1871 was proprietor
of a saloon on State street; and in 1877 removed to Hamtramck where
he built the hotel and bath-house on Jefferson avenue which bears his
name.
Merrill Hall, in the Merrill block, at the corner of Woodward and
Jefferson avenues, was built in 1859, and opened in November of that
year. It was rented for balls, concerts and theatrical performances,
until it was leased to Sackett & Wiggins, December, 13, 1886. It was
opened on Christmas Day, 1887, and named Wonderland Musee
Theatre. Sackett & Wiggins were the first managers. They were succeeded by M. S. Robinson, and J. H. Moore, the present manager, became the lessee on May 1, 1891.
Young Men's Hall, in the Biddle House block, was opened as a
theatre November 21, 1861. It was the leading theatre of Detroit until
1869, and all the high-priced dramatic and operatic companies played
there. One of the first managers was J. W. Lanergan, and he was suc599




ceeded by Barney Macauley. Among the stellar attractions which appeared at this theatre was the celebrated Campbell & Castle Opera
Company, in September, 1865, in which Kittie Fox, a Detroit girl, and
sister-in law of Broccolini, the basso, sang the principal roles; Edwin
Booth, Ristori and Joe Jefferson. After the opening of the Detroit
Opera House in 1869 it was principally used for lectures and concerts.
In the later '70's the name was changed to Beecher Hall, and for some
time the proprietor, Luther Beecher, gave a series of free entertainments, at which volunteer talent entertained large audiences. For
several years past it has not been used for any purpose.
The Atheneum, at the northeast corner of Congress and Randolph
streets, was built by Dr. C. P. Palmer, and opened on April 18, 1861,
with Garry A. Hough as manager.   The first piece presented was
"The Hunchback." The Atheneum was a small theatre, and when
Palmer and Hough engaged important attractions they took the company to Young Men's Hall in the Biddle block. Under their management Ristori, the celebrated actress, played at the latter place on January 11 and 12, 1867, personating the principal character in " Marie
Stewart" and "Elizabeth." They gave $5,000 for the two performances, but the net loss was about $300. They also engaged Charles
Keene, the English star, and James H. Hackett, the great "Falstaff,"
who played at Young Men's Hall. The Atheneum was burned on the
night of January 23, 1869, by the bursting of a gas pipe in the basement.
The Detroit Opera House, on the Campus Martius, was built in 1869
by a stock company, of which the late Dr. Eliphalet M. Clark was the
principal stockholder, and opened on March 29 of that year. The first
manager was Garry A. Hough, who received a one month's lease from
Dr. Clark, and the opening performance was "London Assurance,"
with Kate Reignolds as " Lady Gay Spanker." William H. Hough,
brother of Garry, was the treasurer, and was afterwards a local theatrical manager. In the following year J. W. Lanergan became manager
and formed a stock company. Thomas W. Davey, father of Minnie
Maddern Fiske, succeeded him in 1876. Mr. Davey died in December,
1879, and the next manager was Joseph Brooks. Succeeding managers
were John H. Havlin and Charles Shaw. In 1884 C. J. Whitney became lessee, and in 1885 James M. Lothrop was appointed manager.
In 1887 the stage and auditorium were lowered to the ground floor, and
the house reopened on Monday, September 5, with the Carleton Opera
Company. In November, 1895, Bertram C. Whitney became manager,
600




-


SAMUEL CRAWFORD.








and was in charge when the theatre was burned on the night of October 7, 1897. The Clark estate, which owned the building, has commenced the work of building another opera house, to be finished and
occupied September 1, 1898.
Gies's Orchestrion Hall, on the southeast corner of Monroe avenue
and Farmer street, formerly the St. John's German Evangelical Lutheran church, was opened on Monday, July 6, 1872, by George H.
Gies. It was first a concert hall, but was afterward converted into a
vaudeville theatre, with Fred McEvoy as manager and Ned West as
stage manager. Charles B. and William E. Newberry succeeded as
managers. The building was torn down in February, 1877, and is now
a part of the Hilsendegen block.
Hough's Detroit Theatre was opened in the old Baptist church, on
the northwest corner of Fort and Griswold streets, on May 18, 1874.
The lessees were Garry A. Hough and his brother, William H. Hough.
The first performance was the "Bohemian Girl " and " Litschen and
Fritschen," by the Holman Opera Company. Garry A. Hough withdrew after a few weeks, and his brother changed it into a vaudeville
hall, named it the Detroit Variety Theatre, and afterward the New
Adelphi on November 21, 1874. At the expiration of eight months the
house was leased to Charles M. Welch, lessee of the Theatre Comique,
who gave performances on Saturday nights with his company, the performers of his own house being conveyed in carriages to the Variety
Theatre, thus doing a double turn on those evenings. He also rented
it to traveling troupes on other nights. Early in 1876 Harry A. Foster
and r. I. Bowles rented the Adelphi from Welch, and established
therein a fine billiard hail, with twenty-two tables, and were quite successful. In the fall of 1877 Welch transfered the lease to Foster, and
the latter fitted up a theatre, named it the Coliseum, and opened it on
April 23, 1877. Fred McEvoy was the first stage manager, and was
soon succeeded by Charles O. White, who came from Toledo. The
last advertised performance was on March 9, 1878, after which the
building was converted into business property.
The C. J. Whitney Grand Opera House, on the northeast corner of
Fort and Shelby streets, was built by C. J. Whitney and opened on
September 13, 1875. The opening performance was " London Assurance," with George A. Boniface as "Sir Harcourt Courtly," and Miss
Georgie Langley as "Lady Gay Spanker." The building and site
were sold to the United States on December 5, 1885, and forms part of
601
76




the space on which the Federal building now stands. Mr. Whitney
then leased it from the government for an indeterminate period, and
rented to low-priced attractions, under the management of Charles
Blanchett. The last dramatic company to play there was J. Z. Little's
"World." The last show was that of D'Alvine, the magician, who
appeared in the week ending July 3, 1886, after which the building was
torn down.
The Harmonie Society built a hall on the southwest corner of Champlain and Beaubien streets, and it was formally opened November
11, 1875, with a grand concert under the direction of Prof. Abel. It
was burned October 14, 1893, and the society afterward occupied temporary quarters in the vacated Erichsen Hotel and in a building on
Farrar street, north of Gratiot avenue. A new building was erected on
the northwest corner of Center and Wilcox streets in 1895, which was
opened by a grand concert on December 26. In its two permanent
homes above mentioned, the society has given many fine dramatic
performances.
A vaudeville theatre was erected on Michigan avenue, opposite the
northern side of the City Hall, where the rear of the present Majestic
building now stands. It was built by James F. O'Neil, whose saloon
and restaurant adjoined it on the east, and was opened on Monday,
September 9, 1878, with Charles O. White as manager. It was first
named the New Coliseum, then the Coliseum Novelty, and afterward the
Coliseum. There was a door leading into the saloon from the theatre,
and the audience was served with liquor and cigars in their seats.
Mayor W. G. Thompson objected to several plays presented at the
theatre and the council passed an ordinance prohibiting liquor from
being served in concert halls and theatres. O'Neil then rebuilt and enlarged the theatre, named it the Park Theatre, and it was opened on
August 29, 1881. He died March 21, 1884. The theatre was open
about a month afterward, and was then converted into business
property.
On the site of the present Lyceum Theatre, on the east side of Randolph street, between Champlain street and Monroe avenue, the Music
Hall was built by a company, and first opened on August 31, 1880. In
1883 it was converted into a theatre, with Charles O. White as manager. It was burned on January 1, 1886. The Brush estate then
erected a first-class theatre on the site, which was opened on September
13, 1886, with Charles O. White as manager. The initial performance


602




was " Don Caesar," by the McCaull Opera Company. J. Logan Chipman delivered the inaugural address, and ex-Mayor W. G. Thompson
also addressed the audience. It was first named White's Grand Opera
House. Mr. White died on January 3, 1889, and was succeeded for a
short time by Mrs. White. Henry C. Miner succeeded as manager in
1889, and namned it Miner's Theatre  Shaw & Delano succeeded in
1890, and named it Lyceum Theatre, and in 1892 Charles Shaw became
sole lessee and manager. In June, 1895, E. D. Stair succeeded as lessee
and manager, and in September, 1896, George H. Nicolai became manager.
Dime Museum was opened by Phil Mulligan at No. 9 Cadillac square
in 1883. In 1886 it was named the New People's Theatre, and conducted by Walter Robinson, lessee and manager, but was soon discontinued.
Princess Rink building, on the northwest corner of Second avenue
and High street, was opened as a roller skating rink on November 6,
1884. The enterprise was started by a stock company, of which J. E.
Wyman was the leading spirit, and John M. Cook was manager. In
the summer of 1885 it was named the Princess Theatre, with Charles
A. Shaw as manager, and Orrin T. Skiff's opera company played there.
In November, 1885, it was reopened as a rink, and continued until
January, 1886, when it was again used for theatrical and other entertainments. On February 22, 1886(, the Michigan Club held its first
banquet in the building. On March 30 the " Battle of Gettysburg," a
large circular picture, was commenced, and this was continued until
the fall. It was then opened as the Princess Market, but it was a failure.
It was afterward used occasionally for dramatic performances, concerts
and social occasions, until it was leased by the Detroit Riding Club in
the summer of 1892, and formally opened on February 7, 1893, with a
reception and ball. Since that time it has been used for a riding school
and for semi-annual horse shows.
The Auditorium building on the north side of Lamrned street, between Bates and Randolph streets, was built in 1884, and was used for
some time as a roller skating rink, with Nat McQuade as manager. It
was fitted up for public meetings, concerts, lectures, etc., named the
Auditorium, and first used in September, 1888.
In 1886 Henry N. Williams became the proprietor of the Casino
Skating Rink, on the east side of Griswold street, between State street
and Grand River avenue. In 1887 he converted it into a theatre, which
603




he named the Casino Theatre. In 1890 it was leased by J. W. Moore
and opened as a vaudeville and burlesque theatre on August 3, 1891,
and continued as such to April 3, 1892. It was then leased to the Salvation Army, who occupied it for some two years. In September,
1895, Dr. Martin Campbell leased it and named it the Capitol Square
Theatre.
Whitney's Grand Opera House, on the east side of Griswold street,
was erected by C. J. Whitney and opened on October 31, 1887, the first
performance being "A Chip of the Old Block," with Robert L. Scott
as the " Commodore," Harry Mills as "Josh Lightwood," and Margaret
Fish as " Dixey." Charles Blanchett was the first manager in 1887-89;
Charles H. Garwood from 1889 to 1893; Gordon Johnston for a few
weeks; E. D. Stair 1893 to 1895; C. A. Shaw in 1895-96; A. E. Gregg
1896-97; M. D. Costello, 1897-98.
The Empire Theatre, on the south side of Lafayette avenue, between
Griswold and Shelby streets, was built by Dr. M. Campbell and opened
on Christmas day, 1893. "The Kentucky Girl," with Sadie Harrison
in the principal role, was the first performance. When the Detroit
Opera House burned on October 7, 1897, it was leased by Brady &
Stair, and the high priced companies who formerly played at the Detroit Opera House were transferred there until the latter house was
rebuilt.
The Jefferson Theatre situated on the Detroit River near the waterworks, was opened as a summer theatre by A. C. Welchers, Bert
Lacey and Charles Rowe, and the first performance was given on June
8, 1896, with Lew Dockstetter in black-face comedy, Nettie Black in
serio comic parts, and other performers. It was leased for the summer of 1897 by Rudolph & Shipman.
GERMAN THEATRES.
The first German theatre in Detroit was Lucker's Hall, on the northwest corner of Macomb and Riopelle streets, which was opened as a
public hall in 1850 by Henry Lucker. During its earlier years there
was a small stage at the end of the bar room, but as patronage increased the hall was extended back into the lot, with the stage on the
alley in rear. Several traveling companies played German drama
there, and the music was furnished by Mr. Lucker and his sons, who
formed one of the first professional brass bands, outside of regimental
bands, in Detroit. After the starting of the Thalia Theatre and the or

604




ELISHA A. ERASER.








ganization of the Deutscher Theatre-Verein at Waltz's Hall, Lucker's
Hall was generally used for balls and social occasions. During the early
part of the war of the Rebellion it was used as a drill room, and from
1865 to 1871 it was Colored School No. 2, of which Fanny M. Richards
was the teacher. Since that time it has been used as dwelling houses.
The next was the Thalia Theatre, on the southwest corner of Rivard
and Macomb streets, and was opened in 1852. The land was owned
by John Deville and the building was erected by the Thalia Society,
who also subscribed for its maintenance. Deville retained the refreshment privilege, which was an important item.  A veteran German
actor named Schlehuber was manager, and was succeeded by H. F.
Bonnet and Constantine Beierle. These three were professional actors
and generally played the leading characters, the support being local
amateurs. The theatre was burned down on May 13, 1856.
Waltz's Hall, a wooden building at the southeast corner of Russell
and Mullett streets, with a large garden in rear, was first used as a
theatre as early as 1853. In 1857 the lessee was Fred Behr, who named
it Behr's Hall. Peter Deginder was the next manager, who directed
its affairs from May 14, 1861, to 1865. It was badly damaged by fire
on January 31, 1865, the loss being $7,151. The property was sold by
the Waltz estate to Carl Weber on July 11, 1867. The theatre was
then rebuilt with brick and was named Weber's Temple of Music. It
was rented for balls and vaudeville entertainments, the latter being
chiefly in the English language. During the next three years Charles
Gilday and the Crimmins brothers graduated at this place as dance and
sketch artists of note. It was afterward named Germania Hall, and is
now generally used for balls and sometimes for dramatic entertainments.
A theatre was built and opened in the early part of 1856 on the south
side of Fort street (now Nos. 226 and 228), between Russell and Rivard
streets, by Messrs. Mauch, Ludwig Conrad and John Schaffer, the
last named being an architect. It was first rented to Herr Mehl, and
was named the German National Theatre. Next year John Deville
became the lessee and converted it into a vaudeville theatre and dance
hall. It was burned down on the morning of June 15, 1863.
Funke's Hall, still standing on the south side of Macomb street, between St. Antonie and Beaubien streets, was built in 1848, and was
first used as a hotel. In 1859 in was converted into a theatre by the
Deutsche Theatre-Verein, who managed it for several years. The


605




first play presented was "The Marriage Proposal in Heligoland. " The
hall was principally used by the Verein for dramatic performances,
but was frequently rented for concerts, balls, etc., to the Harmonie
and other German societies, Mr. Funke retaining the refreshment privilege. It was discontinued as a theatre about 1866, and was then leased
by the Congregation of B'nai Israel for four years as a synagogue, and
afterward was a tenement house. It has been vacant for four years.
Kieler's Hall, on the north side of Champlain street, two lots west of
Orleans street, was built in 1860 by Henry Kieler. It was circular in
shape, and had a seating capacity of about 500 persons. During its existence several troops played standard German dramas on its boards,
and it was a popular resort in the later '60's and early '70's. It was
burned down on March 5, 1874.
The Urania Theatre, on the east side of St. Antoine street, two or three
lots north of Gratiot avenue, was built by Frederick Spiegel in the
spring of 1861. The opening piece was the " Cattle Drover of Austria," with Louis Jacobson in the leading role. It had seating accommodations for about 350 persons, and was liberally patronized after the
war of the Rebellion commenced in that year. It was sold in 1862 to
Dr. Sweeney, of Dearborn, who rented it to Constantine Beierle. The
latter produced the best dramas by professional actors, and managyed
its affairs until it burned in 1865. During its existence Louis Jacobson, a Hebrew, and a good actor, was the stage manager, and George
Oldekopp was the treasurer. An incendiary set it on fire early in the
morning of May 20, 1865, and it was entirely consumed.
The Stadt Theatre, still standing on the west side of Rivard street,
between Champlain street and Monroe avenue, was formerly the
French M. E. church, and was erected in 1853. In 1861 it became the
property of the Reformed Jewish church. It was sold to George A.
Bartenbach in 1867, who converted it into a theatre and opened it in
October of the same year with a Gernman dramatic colmpany, under the
direction of Edward Fuerst, an old Vienna actor.  The company
played three times a week with good success. In 186;8 Fred Roeppcnak was manager with a new company. lHe left shortly afterwatrd, )but
the company remained and Illayed duringt tile remainder of the season.
In 1869 Carl Szwirschina was manager, and was succeeded by Hlerr
Amberg. II. F. Bonnet was manager in 1874-76. Among the performers was Emmina Wenzel-Neumann, a successful actress in soubrette
parts. Joseph Perrien then became the ownerl of the bliildiln, and it
606




was rented to John Wagner, who did not give theatrical performances.
It was afterward leased to the Concordia Society, who gave numerous
concerts, balls and dramatic pieces. In 1883 it was converted into a
livery stable.
A summer theatre went into commission in 1864 on the south side of
Jefferson avenue, near Elmwood avenue, of which the principal proprietor was A. Haischer. It went out of existence at the close of the
season.
Tinnette's Hall, at the southeast corner of Rivard and Catherine
streets, was opened New Year's day, 1866. It has generally been
used for balls and concerts, and occasionally for dramatic entertainments.
The Arbeiter Verein, one of the first German organizations of Detroit and Michigan, was organized in 1849. At first it was purely a
social organization, but two years later, on September 22, 1851, the
members decided to provide amusements and aid in sickness and death.
The new organization was named the Arbeiter Unterstuetzungs Verein
and is still in existence, and has extended all over the State. In the
city the organization owns the Arbeiter Hall, at the northwest corner
of Russell and Catherine streets, a structure of large proportions,
which was opened on September 14, 1868. In 1885 it was destroyed by
fire, but was immediately rebuilt. In 1895 it was remodeled and renovated, and the entire interior modernized. For nearly a quarter of a
century German music, drama, comedy and opera have been presented
on its stage, and in the near future, when the business depression has
passed away, it will undoubtedly continue to be the center of German
social life and dramatic art.
The Social Turner Society, though organized in the summer of
1853, gave no dramatic performances until 1894. Among its founders were Dr. H. Kiefer, Robert Roehm, Joseph Burger and John
Benoit.  Its first gymnasium  was on the west side of Beaubien
street, between Adams avenue and Beacon street, where the Washington School is now situated. It removed successively to Ruebelman's brewery on Monroe avenue, to Behr's garden on the corner of Russell and Mullett streets, and in 1858 to the south side of
Sherman street, between Russell and Riopelle streets, which is the
present location of the society's hall. A new hall was built and occupied in 1862, which was burned down in 1865. In 1866 the hall was
rebuilt, and was torn down in 1893 to make room for the present struc607




ture, which was opened on December 6, 1894, with a fair lasting two
weeks. There were no theatrical entertainments until the present hall
was finished, but in the winter immediately following the opening a
dramatic company played on Sundays during the season, presenting
high class German and Shakespearian dramas. The hall has been
rented several times since to theatrical and concert companies.
The Deutsche Theatre-Verein was organized in Detroit on January
252, 1853, the male members being mostly exiles from Germany after
the revolution of 1848. Among the principal members and founders
were Caspar Butz, who was a poet of reputation; George Maurer, a
German merchant who was employed in Howard Wehrle's hardware
store; Christian Esselen, journalist; August Marxhausen, now proprietor of the Detroit Abend-Post; Julius Melchers, the sculptor, and
others. Esselen was a noted literary man. He founded in Detroit a
literary monthly magazine, named the Atlantis, which was removed to
Boston during the '60's and later to Buffalo. The society played German dramas and comedies during the winter of 1853 at Waltz's Hall,
and continued in that building and its successor on the same site until
1859, when it removed to Funke's Hall, in which a stage and auditorium
had been fitted up. During the occupancy of Waltz's Hall and its successor, Behr's Hall, Julius Melchers, August Marxhausen, George
Maurer and Fred Mehl were stage managers at intervals, and Mr.
Melchers was the stage manager when the society removed to Funke's
Hall in 1859. The Verein continued its dramatic performances until
the society finally suspended in 1880. During these seventeen years
the plays were generally performed by the amateur members of the
society, but sometimes German professional talent was secured for
short engagements. The latter consisted of companies on their way
from the east to Chicago or Milwaukee, or returning from these cities
to the larger cities on the seaboard. Henry F. Bonnet and Fred Mehl
came with one of the companies and afterward made Detroit their
home. Among the best amateurs of the society were Richard Bradel
and Louis Bloquelle. Dr. Hermann Kiefer was one of the early presidents of the Verein and took an active interest in its affairs, although
he never appeared on the stage as an actor. During 1860 there was a
disagreement between the members, which resulted in a secession, and
Eintracht Theater-Verein was established, which played at Kieler's
Hall on Champlain street near Orleans street, and also at the Stadt
Theatre on Rivard street for a time. Eventually the two bodies again
608




OTTO E. C. GUELICH.








became united, and continued, as above stated, in Funke's Hall until
the Deutsche Theatre-Verein dissolved about 1880.
THE TURF.
The first track for horse racing in Detroit was constructed on Jefferson avenue, in the adjoining township of Hamtramck, in 1836 or 1837.
It was without grading, buildino- or other necessary concomitants of a
race track and was only a half mile circuit. In 1850 a regularly organized association was formed, the grounds inclosed, a mile track constructed, buildings erected and an inaugural meeting held. The track
since that time became famous all over the country where the American trotter found favor. Among the promoters of the enterprise were
K. C. Barker, William C. Duncan, Sylvester Larned, Dr. James H.
Farnsworth, S. P. Brady, H N. Strong, Henry C. Kibbee and other
prominent citizens. In 1868 the track was remodeled and improved
and a new organization perfected, which was styled the Detroit National Horse Association. Its officers were: President, George Jerome;
vicc-presidents, H. N. Strong and Henry C. Kibbee; treasurer, E. S.
Leadbeater; secretary W. H. Williams. The first meeting of the new
organization was held on August 25-28, 1868.  Among the noted
running horses that made the HIamtramck race course famous at that
time and in later days were Storm, Mary Dee, Bob Harlan, Billy Boston, Twilight Waxlight, Virginius, Col. Grayson, Kennett and Eagle.
Among the trotters were Crow Driver, Gen. Taylor, Rhode Island,
Fanny Gorharm, Brady Colt, O'Blenis, Chautauqua Chief, Frank
Hayes, Cozette, Primus, Gray Eagle, Warrior (Victor Hugo), Idol,
Lamplighter, Molly Newton, Vulcan, Milton, Dan Voorhees, Dallas,
Faro (Western Boy), Billy Barr, Dexter, Goldsmith Maid, Rarus,
Judge Fullerton, St. Julien, Red Cloud, American Girl, Lucy, Gen.
Butler, Bodine, Driver, Domestic and others.
The second organization was succeeded in 1879 by the Detroit
Jockey Club, but its career did not extend much over two years.
In the spring of 1884 the Detroit Driving Club was formed, with
Rufus W. Gillett as president and Daniel J. Campau as vice president. The first meeting was held in June, 1884, and the career of the
association has since been a brilliant success. In 1886 Mr. Campau
succeeded as president, and has held the position to the present time.
The last meeting on the old Hamtramck was in 1893, when it was vacated, and the next year's meeting of the Detroit Driving Club was
609
77




held on its new track on Jefferson avenue, in Grosse Pointe township,
five miles east of the City Hall. The grounds of the new track compose ninety acres, and are fitted up with a fine grand stand, judges'
and timer's stands, paddock, outbuildings, and twenty large barns,
with a stabling capacity for 400 horses.
The Highland Park race course, half a mnile in circuit, was constructed in 1894 by the Gentlemen's Driving Club, and the first regular
race meeting was held June 18-21, 1895. The course is on the east
side of Woodward avenue, six miles from the City Hall, in the village
of Highland Park. There were four trotting meetings and one devoted to runners. Capt. James W. Miller was the first and only president. The property of the club was sold to Edward Fee and others in
November, 1896, and the purchasers organized the Highland Park
Club on February 13, 1897, with the following officers: President,
M. B. Mills; secretary, W. 0. Parmer; treasurer, George M. Hendrie.
On April 1 following the club acquired additional land, and then constructed a modern mile track, on which a running meeting was held
fromn June 8 to July 5, 1897.
ROWING.
Rowing has ever been a favorite recreation in Detroit. The Detroit
Boat Club, the oldest rowing organization in the United States, was organized on February 18, 1839; reorganized August 23, 1856, and incorporated April 18, 1884. Its first boat-house was erected near the foot
of Brush street, and was destroyed by the fire of May 9, 1848. In
1858 anew boat-house was erected at the foot of Hastings street, which
was enlarged in 1859, 1863 and 1867. In 1873 a new boat-house was
erected at the foot of Joseph Campau avenue, which was removed
to a point between Joseph Campau and McDougall avenues in 1876,
where it remained until 1889. The city then donated a site on the
north side of Belle Isle Park, and the present boat-house built there was
formally opened on June 20, 1891. It was burned on October 15, 1893,
and a new house was built and opened on June 28, 1894.
During the later 60's and up to about 1877-78 there was a large
and increasing interest in rowing, both in Detroit and other places
on the Detroit River, and during that time the Excelsior, Zephyr,
Centennial, Frontenac, Chattanooga, Restless and other local clubs
were organized in this city. During that period it was the favorite
outdoor amusement, the club-houses on the river were social resorts


(610




in the summer time, and the numerous regattas were always largely
attended.
The greatest aquatic event in Detroit took place in the five days commencing August 14, 1877. On the first day occurred the regatta of the
Detroit River Navy; on the two days following, the regatta of the National Association of Amateur Oarsmen, and the last two days by the
regatta of the Northwestern Rowing Association. The triple event
drew many thousand visitors from abroad, and the races were witnessed
by fully 50,000 people on both sides of the river.
Regattas of the National Association of Amateur Oarsmen were held
in Detroit in August, 1877, in August, 1883, and in 1893; one regatta of
the Mississippi Valley Amateur Rowing Association; and about onethird of the regattas of the Northwestern Amateur Rowing Association, which was organized in Milwaukee in 1869. This latter association was dominated, during most of its existence, by the Detroit River
Clubs. The Detroit Boat Club, during the larger part of the life of
the National Association of Amateur Oarsmen, had one of its members
as one of the executive committee.
In the early '80's the taste for rowing subsided, and indoor gymnastics, baseball, and field sports took its place. The Detroit Athletic Club, which was organized in 1880, was the leader in the new
direction. The Detroit Y. M. C. A and the Mutual Boat Clubs are
now the only rowing clubs in Detroit. Walkerville, Ont., opposite Detroit, and Wyandotte and Ecorse, below Detroit, in Wayne county,
have also clubs, and these six are the only organized rowing clubs on
the Detroit River, where twenty years ago there were about fifteen.
YACHTING.
Detroit has always been more or less prominent among her sister
cities on the great lakes in the yachting line. As far back as 1858
there was an organized yacht club here-the Peninsular, and there are
now in existence three-the Detroit, the Citizens' and the West End
Yacht Clubs. The Detroit is the oldest, strongest and most prominent.
It has a membership of nearly 400, has a fine club house on Belle Isle
Park, owns a number of cat boats for summers and ice boats for winter
sailing for use of its members, and has enrolled on its list of yachts belonging to members the largest and best yachts in the fleet. The Citizens' Yachting Association has a good membership, owns a club house
at the foot of McDougall avenue, and numbers among members some
611




of the best yachtsmen in the city. The West End is the youngest of
the clubs and has its summer and winter home on the river front at the
foot of Swain avenue. There are a number of fine steam yachts in Detroit, but their owners are not organized as a club, preferring to "go it
alone."
ATHIIETICS AND SPORTINCG.
The Peninsular Cricket Club was organized at the Michigan Exchange Hotel on April 5, 1858, and elected the following officers:
President, George E. Hand; vice-president, A. H. Jordan; treasurer,
Marcus Stevens; secretary, August Tregent; board of managers, D. T.
Barrett, J. W. Waterman and William McKenna. Among other early
members were James F. Joy, F. A. Blades, Bishop Samuel A. McCoskry, Friend Palmer, R. W. King, W. N. Carpenter, G. AV. Bissell,
Theo. H. Hinchman and James E. Pittman. The first grounds were at
the corner of Garfield avenue and John R. streets. About 187L3 the
clubs leased the grounds on the west side of Woodward avenue, now
occupied by the Detroit Athletic Club. A few years later the club
played in a portion of Recreation Park. During its existence the club
contested numerous clubs in Canadian cities, and was generally successful. In 1878 it defeated the Germantown Club of Philadelphia and
the St. George's Club at New York, and the winners were banqueted
on their return home. Later in the same year it played against the
Australian Club and was defeated. It met the same fate in 1879 with
the All England Eleven and the Irish Gentlemen's Club. These three,
however, were professional clubs. In 1887 their grounds were needed
for building purposes, and the club disbanded.  A majority of the
members then joined the Detroit Athletic Club and play cricket on its
grounds, but under the name and auspices of the latter club.
The Detroit Bicycle Club was organized in the spring of 1S79. There
were only a few persons in Detroit who rode bicycles at that time, the
membership did not exceed twenty, and there was no club house. In
the summer of 1886 there was a State bicycle meet in Detroit, under
the auspices of the local club. The membershil) increasing, the club
rented a club house on Miami avenue near Wilcox street, and from
thence to another near Bagley. In 1890 the memnbers of the Star
Bicycle Club, which had been organized a few years before, became
members of the Detroit Bicycle Club; the name was chanoged to Detroit
WVheelmnen; the club was incorporated; the cliub house was removed to


612')




WILLIAM L. HOLMES.








No. 6r4 Washington avenue; and about 125 members rode through
Canada on their bicycles to Niagara Falls, a distance of some 300 miles,
where the League of American Wheelmen held their national convention. In 1891 the national body held its annual meeting in Detroit, at
which time one of the bicycle shows held in the United States was held
in the Auditorium, and an exhibition of first class bicycle racing was
(given on the old Hamtramck course, on Jefferson avenue. In 1892 a
twenty-five mile road race was contested on Belle Isle Park, and W. C.
Rands, of Detroit, made the distance in one hour and fifteen minutesthe fastest on record. In 1893 the club house was removed to No. 298
Randolph street. A road race was held on Belle Isle, and the world's
amateur record was broken by W. B. Hurlburt in one hour eleven
minutes and fifty nine seconds. In 1894 another road race was held on
Belle Isle, and W. W. Grant won in record time of 1:09: 26.  In 1895
the club promoted another road race on Belle Isle. This time A. Callahan, of Buffalo, won in 1:07 484. This was the last road race promoted by the club, but it has always been foremost in putting on track
race meets in which the best talent participated, and they have generally been successful from a financial standpoint. Several fast riders
liave been developed in the club, the most notable being Tom Cooper.
rThe next clul house was built by the club at an expense of about
$40,000. It is at Nos. 53 and 55 Adams avenue east, is built of stone
and brick, three stories in height with a basement, a fine auditorium,
bowling alley, billiard and whist tables, baths, library, kitchen, dining
room, etc. The membership is about 450, and the present officers are:
I'resident, Charles W. Lloyd; first vice-president, Pearce M. Bland;
second vice president, J H. Hungerford; secretary, Fred C, Winckler;
financial treasurer, Frank L. Chidsey; treasurer, George C. Sharer;
captain, Frank J. Kremer; directors, L. Vineburg, IH. E. Perry, Frank
Byrne, W. H. Speaker, W. HT. Willebrand, James Cranshaw, jr., W. E.
Sewell, Louis Schneider.
Detroit has always taken a lively interest in baseball, but prior to
1881 it had no baseball club that was affiliated with any organization
or circuit. In the '70's and '80's several amateur clubs, including the
Cass and AEtna of Detroit, the Tecumseh of London, Ont., the Maple
Leaf of Guelph, Ont., and the Mutual of Jackson, played in Detroit at
intervals during the ball season, and from these organizations some of
the professional clubs of those days recruited much of their material.
In 1878 and 1880 W. M. Hollinger directed and managed a professional


613




ball team in Detroit, and played with such clubs as dates could be
made with, but this club was never well patronized, and the amateur
clubs were the local favorites: The Detroit Baseball Club of the National League was organized in 1881, and took the place of Cincinnati
in that organization. Its first president was W. G. Thompson. After
a rather precarious life of four years, during which it did not attain an
exalted position in the league, it was about to give up the ghost, when
other citizens, who were interested in the game, subscribed additional
stock and put it on its feet again. This was in 1884. Joseph A.
Marsh was elected president in 1885. The new directors infused life
into the club by buying the Indianapolis team early in the season. At
the close of the season the management purchased the Buffalo club, including the famous "big four "-Richardson, Brouthers, White and
Rowe. In 1_886 Frederick K. Stearns became president, Mr. Marsh retiring, but remaining on the board of directors. In this year the club
stood second on the list, and in 1887 it won the National League championship, as well as the world's championship, by defeating the St.
Louis Browns, then champions of the American Association. The
players who constituted the Detroit champion team were: Catchers,
Bennett and Ganzell; first base, Brouthers; second base, Dunlap; third
base, White; short stop, Rowe; left field, Richardson; center field,
Hanlon; right field, Thompson; pitchers, Baldwin, Getzein and Conway. After the championship was won Mr. Stearns retired, and in 1888
C. -I. Smith was president. That year the club finished fifth. It was
then decided to sell the franchise and team, which proved too costly.
Mr. Stearns made the sale, in which he was very successful, disposing
of the players at high prices to the other league teams, and transferring
the franchise to Cleveland. The year after the league team was disbanded R. HI. Leadley obtained a franchise for a club in the International League, and in 1889 he managed the team that won the chlampionship. The following year Detroit was again in the International
League, and was in first place when the league disbanded in July.
From that time until 1894 I)etroit had no professional ball team,
although there were many amateur and semi professional clubs in the
city. In 1894 George A. VTan c)erbeck obtained a franchise for D)ctroit in the Western League, and since that time the inembership in
this league has been maintainedl under his management.
Thle I)etroit Athletic Club was organized early in 1887, and was inco]rpolrated on April.i of that year. It was formed principally of the
(;14




members of the Peninsula Cricket Club and the Toboggan Club, and
among its incorporators were Frank W. Eddy, George J. Bradbeer, N.
G. Williams, jr., F. G. Wernecker, J. V. Gearing and G. J. McMecham.
The present grounds, at the corner of Woodward and Garfield avenues,
were arranged during the following year and have been used for athletic purposes ever since. The first championship matches of the
National Amateur Athletic Union were held in Detroit in September,
1888. In 1889 the services of M. C. Murphy, the Yale trainer, were
secured, and the club sent a team to the national championship games
at New York, where John Owen, jr., won the 100 and 220 yards dashes,
and R. A. Ward won the 880 yards run. In 1890 the baseball team
won the amateur championship of the United States, to which the
work of George P. Codd, the pitcher, largely contributed. Owen again
won the 100 yards dash in 93 seconds, and F. A. Ducharme the 120
and 220 yards hurdle races, the former in 16 seconds. In 1891 the
club was not so successful, the only national championship won being
pole vaulting, which was achieved by Theo. Luce, jr., who cleared 10
feet. Several western and Canadian championships, however, were
won by the club. In 1892 Luce repeated his national triumph by
vaulting 10 feet 9 inches; the 100 and 220 yards races were won by
Harry Jewett; and the baseball team again won the national championship. Since 1893 the club has done little in outdoor athletics, and there
has been a lull in such sports all over the country. On the spacious
grounds are a quarter mile running and bicycle track, cricket, baseball
and football fields, and a tennis court. In the club house are a fine
gymnasium, billiard tables, bowling alley, whist tables, and other
games and recreations.
The Michigan Athletic Association was organized on February
25, 1889, chiefly by residents of the eastern part of the city, and W. C.
McMillan was its first president. The association purchased a site for
a club house and grounds, 260 by 474 feet, on the southeast corner of
Congress street and Elmwood avenue. The club house was opened on
January 29, 1890, with one of the finest gymnasiums in the West. For
four years the club prospered, but the panic of 1893 crippled its usefulness and it went out of existence on June 29, 1897. The club house
was leased to the Young Men's Christian Association, on October 13,
1897, for five years, and is now used by the eastern branch of that society for meetings and gymnasium work, and the grounds were divided
into building lots.


615




The Wanikan Golf Club was organized on September 2, 1896.        Its
membership is 100, being restricted to that number.  Its spacious links,
on the corner of Jefferson avenue and the Marshland road, about six
miles east of the City Hall, consists of nine holes in a course about
2,500 yards long.  The club is managed by a committee consisting of
Benjamin S. Warren, chairman; Charles A. Rathbone, secretary; Alexander Hamilton Sibley, treasurer; W. Howie Muir and George M.
Hendrie. Since its organization the club has played matches with the
golf clubs of Cleveland, Grand Rapids, London, Ont., and other neighboring cities.
The Country Club, a social organization of 300 members, and its
spacious club house and grounds, comprising 100 acres, are situated in
tlhe village of Grosse Pointe Farms.  The club house is situated on the
banks of Lake St. Clair, and the members have all the facilities for
driving, riding, tennis, golf, bicycling, steeple-chasing, polo, curling,
skating, boating, yachting, and all kinds of outdoor recreations and
sports.  The club is managed by a board of fifteen governors, with the
following officers: Chairman, Henry Russel; vice chairman, Truman
H. Newberry; secretary, Benjamin S. Warren; treasurer, Charles F.
Hammond.
The Young Men's Christian Association, which is described in another
chapter, has an excellent gymnasium, a swimming pool, and all the
equipment necessary to physical education.   It also has acquired the
club house and gymnasium of the Michigan Athletic Association, at the
southeast corner of Elmwood avenue and Congress street.
The other sporting' and athletic associations of Detroit are as follows:
Citizens' Boat Club, headquarters 50 Moffat building.
)etroit Bowling Club, incorporated June 19), 1889; club house 512 'rumbull avenue.
Detroit Chess and Checker Club, organized in 1897; rooms in 1talmer block, northwest corner of Congress and Shelby streets.
Detroit Fishing and Hunting Association, George B. Hutchings secretary, 53)
Larned street east.
Detroit Skating and Curling Club, incorporated (ctober 16, 1888; grounds on
Forest avenue, between Sixth and Seventh streets.
Detroit Social Turner Society, 136 and 140 Sherman street.
Detroit Wheelmen, 53 and 55 Adams avenue.
l)etroit Yaclt Club; club house and anchorage at Belle Isle Park.
Highland Park Club, Highland Park; Merrill B. Mills, liresildent
Lake St. Clair Fishing Club, organized 1872; club house St. Clair Flats.
Metropolitan Athletic Club, hall at 216 Russell street.
Michigan Fishing and Shooting Club, incorporated October 24, 1888; club) house
"Mervue," St. Clair Flats.
616




I


WILLIAM J. KEEP.








North Channel Shooting Club, organized March 6, 1875.
Old Reliable Rod and Gun Club, organized 1885.
Star Athletic Club, organized October, 1894; rooms northeast corner of Twentysecond and Fort streets west.
Turtle Lake Shooting and Fishing Club, incorporated 1884; E. H. Gillman,
president.
CHAPTER LXXXV.
Mayors and Common Council of the City of Detroit.
The chairman of the successive Boards of Trustees created in 1802,
1806 and 1815 were supposed to be the highest civic dignitaries in the city,
but none bore the title of mayor, except those of 1806. Solomon Sib'ley and Elijah Brush were successively appointed mayor in that year,
but their power was so curtailed that the title seemed a burlesque, and
they both resigned after a brief term of office. The act was repealed
in 1809.
In 1815 Governor Cass, who believed in local self-government, procured the passage of an act creating a board of five trustees, who were
given the control of the town and its affairs. Solomon Sibley was the
first chairman. There were annual elections, and the best citizens
were elected, until 1823, when Congress enacted a new law which legislated the Board of Trustees out of existence.
The existing city government began on September 21, 1824, just
after the ending of the reign of the governor and judges. On that day
a mayor and four aldermen, who had been elected on September 6,
qualified and took their seats. They were as follows: Mayor, John R.
Williams; aldermen, Shubael Conant, Melville Dorr, Orville Cook and
David C. McKinstry. There being a vacancy in the number of aldermen required by the act, Peter J. Desnoyers was elected alderman by
the council. The council then appointed the following officers: Recorder, Andrew G. Whitney; treasurer, Henry S. Cole; clerk, Voltaire
Spalding; marshal, Adna Merritt; assessor, Jeremiah Moors; collector,
Abram C. Caniff; supervisor, David French; market clerk, Thomas
Knowlton. In November Shubael Conant resigned as alderman and
Thomas Rowland was appointed in his place by the council. The date
617
78




on which the charter election was to be held was the first Monday in
April.
In 1829 it was provided that the governing city officials should consist of a mayor, recorder and seven aldermen, and that the charter
election should be held on the first Monday in April. Later in the
same year the township of Detroit was formed, to consist of the city of
Detroit.
In 1839 the city was divided into six wards, with two aldermen from
each ward, instead of at large, as in former years, and the time of
holding the charter election was fixed on the first Monday in March.
From 1824 to 1857 the mayor or recorder presided over the meeting
of the Common Council, but in the latter year the council elected its
own president, and this has continued to the present day.
The charter of 1834 provided for a Mayor's Court. The mayor presided, and two aldermen sat with him. In 1841 one alderman and the
mayor constituted the court. This tribunal, which tried violations of
the city ordinances, continued until 1857, when the Recorder's Court
was established, to perform its functions.
In 1851 it was provided that the alderman having the shortest term
to serve shall act as supervisor on the Board of Supervisors.
In 1853 the time of holding the charter election was changed to the
first Tuesday in February.
In 1857 the two aldermen for each ward were authorized to attend
the meetings of the Board of Supervisors, and the first Monday of
November was appointed as the time for holding the charter election.
During these and subsequent years the city was gradually enlarged,
until at present it extends over about seven miles square, and has
seventeen wards, with thirty-four aldermen. The charter elections are
now held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November.
The persons who served as mayor from 1824 to 1897 are given herewith. The records of the vote for mayor are not complete. The first
person named after the date was the mayor for that term. Before
1857 the mayors were elected for one year terms. In that year the
terms were changed to two years, and John Patton was elected and
served in 1858-59.
1824-JoHN R. WILLAMS.
1825-JOHN R. WILLIAMS, 102 votes; Henry J. Hunt, 6; Peter Desnoyers, 1; James
Abbott, 1; Moses Day, 2; Abner J. Wells, 1.
1826-HENRY J. HUNT, 105; William Woodbridge, 92; David C. McKinstry, 1.


618




1826-JONATIIAN KEARSLEY, elected by Council to fill unexpired term of Henry J.
Hunt, deceased.
1827-JoHN BIDDLE, 137; Jonathan Kearsley, 40; John R. Williams, 26.
1828-JOHN BIDDLE, 199. One vote each was received by De Garmo Jones, Jonas
than Kearsley, John Scott, E. P. Hastings and John R. Williams.
1829-JONATHAN KEARSLEV', 123; Shubael Conant, 89; John R. Williams, 45.
1830 —JOIhN R. WILLIAMS.
1831-MARSHIALL CHAPIN.
1832-LEvi COOK, 148.
1833-MARSHALL CHAPIN, 169.
1834-CIIAR{LES C. TROW\DRII)GR,, 170; Henry Howard, 152; Julius Eldred, 114;
Thomas S. Knapp, 91; Tunis S. Wendell, 88; Enoch Jones, 82; job F. H-owland, 74;
Stevens T. Mason, 64.
1834-ANDREW MACK-Mayor Trowbridge resigned in September and a special
election was held on September 24, at which Andrew Mack received 91 votes;
Charles Moran, 73; Henry V. Disbrow, 46.
1835-LE~VI Cooic-234; Andrew Mack, 188.
1836-LEVI COOK~, 249; John Biddle, 153; John W. Strong and Marshall Chapin, 1
each.
1837-HENRY HOWARD. No figures.
1838-AUGUSTUS S. PORTER, 839; Henry Howard, 508; Andrew Mack 3; Gideon
Paull, 1.
1838-AsHIER B. B3ATES, acting mayor.
1839-DE GARMO JONES, 886; Jonathan Kearsley, 373; scattering and irregular, 15.
1840 —ZINA PITCHER, 654; Reynolds Gillett, 644; scattering, 2.
1841-ZINA PITChER.
1842-DOUGLASS HOUGHTON.
1843 —ZINA PITCHIER.
1844-JOH-N R. WILLIAMS.
1845-JOHN R. WILLIAMS.
1846-JOH-N R. WIuLIAMS.
1847 —JAMES A. VAN DYKER.
1848 —FREDERICK BUHIL.
1849 —CHARLES HOWARD.
1850-JOH-N LADUE.
1851 —ZACIIARIAII CHANDLER.
1852-JOHN H. HARMON.
1853-JOIIN H. HARMON.
1854-OLIVER M. HYDE.
1855-HENRY LEDYARD.
1856-OLIVER M. HYDE.
1857-OLIVE-R M. HYDE.
1858-9-JOHN PATTON, 3,512; Abner M. Hyde, 2,714; scattering, 7.
1860-1-CIhRISTIAN H. BuiIL.
1862-3-WILLIAM C. DUNCAN, 3,329; Henry P. Baldwin, 2,650; scattering, 12.
1864-5-K. C. BARKER, 3,215; Gurdon 0. Williams, 2,844.


619




1866-7-MERRILL 1. MILLs, 3,851; Henry P. Bridge, 2,958.
1868-9-W. W. WHEATON, 4,271; George C. Codd, 3,909.
1870-1-W. W. WHEATON, 4,813; John D. Standish, 4,102; Joseph B. Bloss, 54;
scattering, 1.
1872-3-HUGH MOFFAT, 5,522; William Foxen, 4,695.
1874-5-Hu(;i MOFFAT, 5,650; Charles M. Garrison, 4,178.
1876 —7-ALEXAND)E LEWIS, 7,367; William G. Thompson, 5,691.
1878-9-GEORGE C. LANGDON, 6,905; John Greusel, 5,480; Carleton H. Mills, 500;
Edward W. Simpson, 774; Leander L. Farnsworth, 75.
1880-1-WILLIAM G. THOMPSON, 8,587; George C. Langdon, 6,480; Joseph A.
Labadie, 115.
1882-3-WILLIAM G. THOMPSON, 8,060; William Brodie, 6,649; scattering, 2.
1884-5-STEPHEN B. GRUMMON), 9,770; Marvin H. Chamberlain, 9,304.
1886-7-MARVIN H. CIIAMBERLAIN, 11,992; Stephen B. Grummond, 10,104; Carleton
H. Mills, 129.
1888-9-JOIN PRIDGEON, jr., 12,300; Charles C. Yemans, 7,363; Henry A. Robinson, 1,653; Waterman, 1,176.
1890-1-HAZEN S. PINGREP1;, 13,954; John Pridgeon, 11,616;    Conley, 69;
Randall, 2.
1892-3-HAZEN S. PINGREE, 15,335; William G. Thompson, 9,015; John Miner,
5,263; Fred C. Deinzer, 441.
1894-5-HAZEN S. PINGREE, 24,924; Marshall H. Godfrey, 19,124; Rufus N. Crosman, 133.
1896-HAZEN S. PINGRIiE, 21,024; Samuel Goldwater, 10,432; W. Krieghoff, 208.
1897-WILLIAM C. MAYlUR1VY, 17,978; Albert E. Stewart, 17,491; Meiko Meyer, 385.
1897-WILLIAM C. MAYBURY, 20,611; Clarence A. Black, 18,490; Charles Erb, 541.
By an act passed in 1881 a Board of Councilmen was formed, consisting of twelve citizens elected at large, who were designed to be a
municipal upper house, and to have the same relations to the city government as the Senate and House of Representatives in the State Legislature. The city council organized on January 10, 1882, by electing
A. C. Raynor as president. The succeeding presidents were: 1883,
A. C. Raynor; 1884, Henry D. Barnard, Theodore Rentz; 1885, Marvin H. Chamberlain; 1886, Ralph Phelps, jr.; 1887, John Pridgeon, jr.
The experiment of an upper house was not satisfactory, and it was
abolished by the Legislature of 1887, and its last meeting was held on
September 26, 1887.
The heart of Detroit throbbed fervently during the war, and its
passion was displayed at each noticeable event. Victory and defeat
were each greeted with patriotic feeling. The fall of Richmond and
the Confederate surrender at Appomattox were received with tumultuous enthusiasm, and the assassination of Lincoln provoked fiery
wrath and pathetic sorrow.    All the churches held formal services on


620




WILLIAM C. MAYBURY.








April 19, 1865, four days after the murder, and on the 25th there was a
large funeral procession. When the Michigan soldiers returned in June
they were all given meals in the Michigan Central depot. Of the 91,000
soldiers sent by Michigan to defend the Union, about 7,000 were men
from Detroit. The soldiers' monument in the Campus Martius, designed by Randolph Rogers, was unveiled on April 9, 1872.
In the summer of 1894 Mayor Pingree suggested the plan of utilizing
idle land on the outskirts of the city for cultivation by the poor, who
could thus raise food for themselves. The idea met with favor, a committee was appointed by the mayor, the use of about 430 acres was donated by owners of vacant land, and 945 families went to work. The
apportionment of land was in lots of one-quarter to one-half acre for
each family. The committee purchased plows, harrows, seed potatoes,
beans and other seeds; the land was plowed, harrowed and staked off
at an entire expense of $3,600, the cost per lot, deducting the price of
plows, was $3.45. Although the time of planting-the middle of June
-was very late, cultivators raised crops, principally potatoes, valued at
about $13,000, at a total expense of $3,600.
The plan was entirely successful and was repeated in 1895, 1896 and
1897, with greater results. In 1895 an exhibit of the crops was made
at the State Fair and was awarded a diploma. The crops raised, consisting of potatoes, beans, turnips, beets, corn, cabbage, squash and
pumpkins, etc., were valued at $27,792, which were raised at an expense
of $5,000, donated by the city.
In 1896 the use of about 400 acres was donated, 1,701 families cultivating them. The expense was $1,749.97, and $30,998.10 worth of vegetables was raised.
The reports for 1897 have not yet been published. That the plan
is successful is shown by the fact that nineteen cities in the United
States have adopted it, with generally gratifying results. Washington,
D. C., is almost the only one in which it was a failure, the land in that
city being almost worthless for agricultural purposes. It has the treble
result of relieving the worthy poor, preserving them from the demoralizing taint of pauperism, and saving money to the city which would
otherwise be expended by the Poor Commission.


621




CHAPTER LXXXVI.


DETROIT AS A MODERN COMMERCIAL CITY.
BY JOHN A. RUSSELL, SECRETARY OF TlHE I)ETROIT CIAMBER OF COMMERCE.
The history of the commerce of Detroit runs back into the period of
the development of the continent, and is closely interwoven with the
earlier efforts for the reduction of the territory from a state of savagery
to one of civilization. It is intermingled with stories of martyrdom
and of conquest. Its threads run through the warp of romance and in
themselves make the woof of many a pretty bit of religious endeavor
or soldierly strategy. New France was a hunting ground, and the soldiers of fortune who came from the older France to possess the new
land in the name of the king were accompanied almost invariably by
the soldiers of commerce-a crude commerce it may have been, but
one whose bales of skins and peltries formed a very important item in
the imports of the older country. The earlier commerce of Detroit
was very largely confined to the fur trade, with some shipments of Indian curiosities, and the barbaric trinkets which excited the interest of
the people at home. This was the first stage of commercial development in the territory of which Detroit is now the metropolis A second
stage followed as the country became settled, and the necessity for the
protection of the civilized residents became the greater with their number. In this stage the fur station evolved into a depot of military supplies, and of the coarser implements of civilization. Following hard
upon this came the navigation of the waterways, the trade with Montreal and the traffic between missions and military posts, which made
of Detroit the beginning of a port.
None of these earlier stages of the commerce of Detroit are important
now, save for their developments. The city of to-day, as a commercial
metropolis, is a thing of later growth, yet the selection which has been
shown in its advancement is, to some extent, traceable to its earlier
stages. A writer upon this subject of Detroit's commercial importance
has characterized the selection of its location as being influenced to


622




some extent by much the same causes which led to the foundation of
the castra on the Roman roads. The day's journey marked the location of the camp by enforcing its necessity, and so in the development
of the northwestern territory, the day's journey measured off the space
from halting post to halting post, so long as the journey was made by
pack train. When the methods of travel improved, more and more of
these halting points were eliminated, and their locations are marked by
the ruined hamlets, the destruction of which is popularly accredited to
the railroad. Every advance in the methods of transportation seemns
to have accrued to the benefit of Detroit. The business of the trail
was transferred to the water carrier, and that of the carrier, in time,
to the railroad. Fine ships were built to ply between Detroit and Buffalo, but railroad communication between these cities was established
at a date later than the primitive iron straps were laid from Detroit
westward. The steamboat filled the gap from Detroit to Buffalo, and
the junction point of lake and rail thrived and prospered. To this era
can be related back, the beginnings of commerce in the sense of mnanufactures and jobbing interests in the city of Detroit, and the selection
shown by the preference of certain industries for this location can be
better understood by so relating them.
Taking the whole commerce of the city, by and large, it can be
arranged by its growth into four distinct classifications of interests.
To the first class belong those institutions now existing which are the
developments of earlier conditions. To this class belongs the remnant
of the fur trade that still remains; so much of the tanning industry as
has survived the destruction of the oak and hemlock forests, and the
western movement of hide production, and those other industries which
were based upon conditions which made Detroit a source of supply for
the lumber cutting business of the State, and a favorable point for its
output. To this classification belongs also the development of ship
building, originally started to supply the smaller wooden ships propelled by sails, and which grew into the business of making wooden
steamboats, which, in its turn, has grown into the steel ship building
trade by the improvements in navigation; the consolidation of earlier
works, and the addition of large bodies of local capital. To the growth
of the ship building trade may be related a line of collateral industries
which, while now not so directly dependent upon it, had their beginnings in the necessities of the ship builder. The forge, the engine
works, the metal and heating industry, and its development, the manu —


623




facture of steam and hot water radiators, the making of paints, the
business of ship chandlery, are all direct developments in the line of
evolution from the original business of building wooden ships. This is
more clearly shown in the personnel of these occupations than in any
other way, for the story of three generations from the original ship
builders will include the names of their descendants engaged in these
collateral lines.
The second classification of the commercial interests of Detroit may
relate to those industries founded originally for local supply, which
have grown until the local phase of their business is the least. In this
classification may be included the business of car building, originally
founded, in a modest way, for the purpose of supplying the demands of
roads in the adjacent territory, but which has grown until its market is
the continent, and until it, too, has developed its line of collateral industries closely related to it. The car building trade was the progenitor of the trade in car forgings, in car wheels and foundry work, and
of the saw mills for the making of special dimension timber. It was
the raison d'tre of the car roofing trade, of the malleable iron business,
of the manufacture of railway supplies and appliances, all of wh'ch cut
a very important figure in the modern commerce of Detroit.
To a third division of this arbitrary classification may be related the
presence of industries for which it would seem that Detroit had originally no special advantages, the foundations of energetic and ambitious
spirits who had faith in themselves and in their knowledge of their
specialties rather than any special conditions of location. There is no
apparent reason, even at this day, why Detroit should be preferred as
a point for the manufacture of pharmaceutical preparations or the collection, selection and distribution of seeds, nor is it at all likely that
this city would have obtained its eminence in this direction were it not
for the adventure and enterprise of the people who were the earliest to
embark in this trade. To an ambitious young chemist, who linked his
fortune with a capitalist, may be credited the foundation of the largest
establishment in the world for the manufacture of pharmaceutical
preparations. To the example, which the success of this first institution afforded an energetic and scholarly pharmacist, is creditable the
beginnings and the growths of a similar institution almost rivaling the
first in size. To the opportunities afforded by both of these to energetic juniors, may be charged the founding of minor institutions in the
same trade, no single one of them, perhaps, being as noteworthy as the
624




JOHN E. PATTERSON.








earlier ones which were their suggestion, but all of them combining to
make Detroit one of the greatest drug centers in the world. Its raw
materials come hither from every land and clime and go out again in
their finished state over quite as wide a territory as their original constituents came from. There is, perhaps, no trade by which Detroit is
so well advertised as its drug trade. The labels of its manufacturers
carry its name to every portion of the habitable world. Their explorers and their scientists are collecting and their salesmen and
brokers distributing in every country under the sun, and carrying the
name of Detroit whithersoever they go.
To this same class of industries, which are the product of enterprise
rather than of natural selection, belongs another important phase of
the city's industrial activity-the manufacture of tobacco. This was
begun, in a small way, as far back as sixty years ago. There was an
element of local advantage in those days; an excedingly high grade of
leaf tobacco was produced in Canada, which found its way to this city
for manufacture. This source of supply has now practically disappeared, and the present supremacy of the city in tobacco manufacture
is distinctly relatable to the enterprise of men who founded their industries and made their own conditions. The tobacco trade of Detroit
now covers the entire range of the manufacture of that staple, and the
details of production at this point will be given later on.
To quite a different classification may be reduced certain industries
founded in Detroit, largely by commercial people from eastern cities,
engaging at the outset no great amount of capital, but growing by simple force of management to proportions which are enormous, and which
have led to the investment of great bodies of capital and the employment of large numbers of hands. The seed industry of the city is a
fair example of this classification. Founded in an humble way, it has
been developed by people who made their homes in Detroit, and found
their occupation profitable even beyond expectation. The manufacture
of agricultural implements comes in the same class. The piano and
organ trade, the manufacture of metal novelties, the making of emery
wheels, the construction of electrical apparatus, are all proper examples
of this classification of industry. In a class by themselves, as studied
in connection with their growth and their reason for existence, belongs
to a great body of industries such as is to be found in every great city.
The needs of an enormous population develop institutions for satisfying them. The food supply, the supply of apparel, and the other creature
625
79




comforts that are demanded by a population of great size, naturally
bring into existence enterprises of this character. To this classification
belongs the great baking establishments, the meat-packing houses, the
breweries, the clothing factories, the factories for the manufacturing of
lumber for construction and finish, the shoe shops, the printing houses,
the soap factories, the malt houses, the flouring mills, and the various
establishments for the manufacture of metals for the supply of the domestic demand. In all of these Detroit is exceedingly rich, for the
reason that in addition to supplying the domestic demand, her factors
have sought to gain additional profits by the extension of their business
into fields beyond those lying immediately at their doors. The same is
true of the other industries which follow population equally with those
intended to provide food and raiment. The great fertilizer works, the
rendering establishments, the rag and paper stock industry, living as
they do from the waste of populations, have grown up in Detroit as she
has grown, and extended their operations to such an extent that they
are now great industries, rather than minor ones, disposing of the waste
of a single city.
The four great industries of Detroit are the manufacture of stoves,
of tobacco, of railway freight cars, and of the pharmaceutical preparations. To these a fifth has been added during the past decade-the
manufacture of salt and of the alkaline chemicals having salt as their
basis, which promises from the rapidity of its growth during the first
few years of its history, to become a strong competitor with the others
for supremacy. In the manufacture of stoves, which was commenced
with a single foundry thirty-five years ago, and which has grown to include four great factories, 3,100 men are constantly employed, receiving
a monthly wage of $150,000, and turning out annually 165,000 stoves,
of an aggregate value of nearly $4,000,000. In the manufacture of
railway freight cars, 6,000 men are employed, with a monthly pay-roll
of $200,000, an annual output of $14,700,000 in value, and of seventy
to eighty cars per day in number.
The manufacture of tobacco, from the small proportions of the early
days, has grown to a point where 15,000,000 pounds of manufactured
tobacco and 55,000,000 of cigars were produced in 1896, and 19,00(),000
pounds of finished tobaccos, and over 6(,000,000 of cigars were produced in 1897. The following table shows the production in the Revenue District of Detroit during the two years named:


f;26




1896      1897
Plug tobacco, pounds,._. -------- ---.. --- —---- ---—.3,551,319  6,923,023
Fine cut"         _-. --- —------. ---- -. --- —---— 3,865,336  4,040,273
Smoking           ----------  ---------------------— _ 7,664,116  8,080,546
Snuff,            ----- -------------  -       29,352    53,416
15,110,123  19,097,258
United States taxes paid at 6 cts. per pound, ------------— 906,268  $1,145,835
Cigars, --- — ------------------------— 54,737,060     60,620,040
United States taxes paid at $3 per 1000.,. --- —-.... --- —-- $164,211  $181,860
In the manufacture of pharmaceutical preparations, the output is
valued at $6,000,000 per year, and one of the establishments producing
this class (of goods is probably the most extensive of its kind in the
world. The factories engaged in the production of drugs, chemicals,
perfumes and medicines employ 1,700 people, pay annually nearly
$900,000 in wages, represent an output of $5,300,000, and an investment of $2,000,000. This, it must be remembered, is entirely apart
from the allied industry of capsule making, which employs 500 people,
and has an annual output of 500,000,000 capsules per year. It is also
apart from the chemical developments of the great Carbon Fertilizer
Works, which, employing 300 men and producing 20,000 tons of fertilizer per year, also produced 8,000 tons of bone black, in addition to
glues, sulphuric and muriatic acid, and a superior quality of edible
gelatine. The collateral line of paint and color making represents a
production of $450,000 per year in paint colors manufactured, and
white lead, ground and mixed, while the additional line of perfumes
manufactured outside the ordinary pharmaceutical establishments, represents an output of $300,000 per year. Naturally so great an amount
of production of drugs and chemicals has developed a strong business
in the jobbing of drugs. The wholesale drug business of Detroit supplies
a wide territory, including Michigan, Indiana and Ohio. The wholesaling of drugs commenced as early as 1815, under Rice & Bingham,
and about the same time under Dr. Marshall Chapin. At present the
business amounts to about $2,500,000 per year.
The new industry, the manufacture of salt, and the chemicals having
salt as a base, dates back about ten years. Detroit is peculiarly located
for the development of this trade. Underlying the city at all points is
a bed of the purest fossil rock salt, varying in thickness from 250 to
400 feet, and lying at the accessible depth of less than a thousand feet,
thereby rendering water mining and the pumping of brine containing
627




this salt in its solution, an exceedingly economical process. Though
salt was discovered earlier, the commercial importance of the discovery
was not appreciated until in 1891 people connected with the alkali industry were attracted to the neighborhood of Detroit, with a view to
using the salt obtainable in this section as the basis of alkali production.
Since that time the development of the district has gone ahead with
great rapidity. Some $7,000,000 of capital have become engaged in
the manufacture of salt and salt products, none of it being invested
actually within the city, but all in its immediate vicinity. These works
now employ in the neighborhood of 2,000 hands, the product being soda
ash or mono-carbonate of soda, bicarbonate of soda, caustic soda,
bleaching powders, etc. This industry is not yet fully developed, there
being engagements made at the time of this publication for locations
for two great plants, which are intended to employ an aggregate of
2,500 persons.
The manufacture of commercial salt, which was commenced in Wayne
county for the first time in 1896, has grown until at this time the
monthly production of salt in Wayne county equals, and frequently exceeds, that of those counties which have been famous for salt production since the first efforts in that direction were made by Dr. Garrigues,
in 1869. There are three plants actively operating for the manufacture
of salt, employing 200 hands, with a daily output of 2,000 barrels, and
an additional plant, in process of construction at the time of this publication, which promises a daily production of 3,000 barrels and employment for 200 persons.
The Detroit International Fair and Exposition Association was incorporated in June, 1889, with a capital stock of $500,000, of which
$250,000 was paid in. The stock was subscribed by 101 prominent
business men of Detroit. The association purchased from James McMillan, for $139,920, about seventy acres of land on the Detroit River,
just north of the mouth of the River Rouge, and constructed the following buildings: Main exposition building, art gallery, four horse
and cattle barns, four swine and sheep sheds, a restaurant, superintendent's house, hospital, fire engine house, dock, race track, grand
stand, electric light and water plants, and railroad depot. The total
investment when the exposition was opened on September 2, 1889, was
$395,000. The fair lasted ten days, and netted about eight per cent. on
the stock paid in. The exposition was also opened in 1890, 1891 and
1892 in the autumn of each year. The officers in the several years
628






MYRON H. ANDREWS, M. D.








were as follows: 1889, president, James McMillan; secretary, E. W.
Cottrell; general manager, C. W. Robinson. 1890, president, D. M.
Ferry; secretary, George M. Savage; general manager, E. W. Cottrell. 1891, president, D. M. Ferry; secretary and general manager,
George M. Savage. 1892, president, D. M. Ferry; secretary, James E.
Davis; general manager, Charles Thurman. As an exposition it was
an unqualified success, but in 1891 and 1892 extensive and costly improvements were made, which did not warrant the expenditure. The
last exposition was held in 1892.
During the holding of the exposition there were two fatal balloon
accidents. John Hogan made an ascension on August 28, 1891, and
when the balloon left the ground he grasped the trapeze bar with only
one hand. He was unable to reach it with the other, and when at an
altitude of about 2,000 feet, his hold gave way, and he fell to the
ground and was instantly killed. On August 25, 1892, a similar fate
befell Gertrude Carmo. In rising the balloon struck the tower of the
main building, and the aeronaut was partially stunned by the shock.
She clung to the bar until the balloon had reached an altitude of 400
feet when she fainted and came whirling to the ground. She struck
less than 300 feet from her starting point and was of course instantly
killed. In 1894 the Michigan State Fair was held in the exposition
grounds and buildings, and it was the most successful in its history.
The plant was sold on March 1, 1895, to the Solvay Process Company,
of Syracuse, N. Y., for $235,000.  The Solvay firm erected large
buildings for the manufacture of soda ash and by products and now
employs about 1,500 hands.


629








BIOGRAPHICAL.








BIOGRAPHICAL.
GEN. RUSSELL A. ALGER.
GEN. RUSSELL A. ALGER, secretary of war in the cabinet of President McKinley, was born in Lafayette, Medina county, Ohio, February 27, 1836, and is a direct descendant of "William the Conqueror."
His parents died when he was but eleven years of age, leaving dependent upon him a younger brother and sister. By hard work and the
most rigid self-denial, he not only supported them until they were old
enough to take care of themselves, but he also obtained a good English
education, and at the age of eighteen taught school for several sessions,
during the winter months, spending his summers working on the farm.
In 1857 he removed to Akron, Ohio, and read law in the offices of
Woolcott & Upson, and was admitted to the bar of the Supreme Court
in 1859. He then removed to Cleveland, Ohio, where for one year he
studied with Otis & Coffinbury.
On the last day of 1859 he turned his face westward to Grand Rapids,
Mich., and with borrowed capital entered the lumber business. In 1861
he enlisted in the 2d Mich. Cavalry, as captain of Co. C, and was promoted to the rank of major in July, 1862, for gallant service at the
front. October 16, 1862, he was made lieutenant-colonel of the 6th
Mich. Cavalry, and on February 28, 1863, he was made colonel of the
5th Mich. Cavalry. He was mustered out of the service, on account
of his many wounds received in action, on September 20, 1864, and after
the close of the war, in 1865, he was brevetted major-general of volunteers for gallant services rendered. In 1866 he settled in Detroit,
Mich., and re-entered the lumber business, and is to-day one of the
largest dealers in the world.
In 1881 the present firm of Alger, Smith & Co. was formed, General
633
80




Alger being its president and principal stockholder. He is also president of the Manistique Lumber Co., which is an offshoot of the parent
house. The annual output of lumber of both houses is about one
hundred and forty million feet, and they employ upward of a thousand
men. General Alger is a director in the Detroit National Bank, the State
Savings Bank, the United States Express Company, and is the principal owner of the Volunteer Iron Mine, which operates the valuable
Palmer Iron Mine in Marquette county. He is also the owner of extensive tracts of timber lands in Canada, Northern Michigan and on
the Pacific slope.
General Alger's charities are many and varied, and by his philanthropy he has endeared himself to the citizens of Michigan. He has
always been a staunch Republican, and in 1884 was elected governor
of Michigan by an overwhelming majority. Upon the expiration of
his term of office he declined renomination. In 1889 he was elected as
commander-in-chief of the G.A.R., and served one year in that position
as only the friend of the old soldier can. Upon the selection of a cabinet by President McKinley, General Alger was tendered and accepted
the portfolio of war, and his direction of affairs at the present writing
(April, 1898) has received the unqualified approval of the country at
large. His great executive ability, eminent business qualifications,
and devotion to his country, have enabled him in the short time he has
filled his present office, to claim the proud title of being one of the
most able secretaries of war the United States has ever had. He is a
member of the Union League Club of New York city, the Loyal Legion
of the United States, and the Ohio Society. He is a prominent member of the Masonic fraternity and of all the principal political and social
clubs of Detroit.
April 2, 1861, he married Annette H., daughter of W. G. Henry of
Grand Rapids, and they have had nine children, five of whom survive:
Caroline, Fay, Frances and Russell, jr., all married, and Frederick M.
WILLIAM K. ANDERSON.
WILLIAM KYLE ANDERSON was born near Owensboro, in Kentucky,
March 24, 1847. His paternal ancestors were Scoch-Irish and came to
the United States shortly after the Revolutionary war and settled in
Kentucky.  His maternal ancestors were English and Scotch, and


634




were pioneer settlers of the colony of Virginia, a hundred years previous to the Revolution. His great great grandfather, George Taylor,
was colonel of a Virginia regiment in the Indian wars, and his greatgrandfather, Richard Taylor, was commodore of the Virginia navy and
commanded a flotilla in the Chesapeake during the Revolution.
He received his early education in the schools of Kentucky, and was
graduated from the University of Michigan with the degree of A.B. in
June, 1868. He afterward received the degree of A.M. from the same
institution. For seven years he was cashier of the Owensboro Savings
Bank, then removed to Detroit in January, 1877; was employed first as
manager of the Detroit Seed Company, in the interest of the late Hon.
John S. Newberry and Hon. James McMillan. When it was merged
into the corporation of D. M. Ferry & Co. he was made assistantgeneral manager; held that position a few mouths only, and was then
invited by Messrs. Newberry & McMillan to come into their office and
assume charge of their personal financial affairs, and become the
treasurer of the Michigan Car Company and all the corporations of
which they were the officers and chief stockholders. For many years
and until 1892 he continued to manage the finances of all the McMillan
& Newberry corporations, in which he also became a stockholder and
director.
In September, 1892, when the Michigan and Peninsular Car Comn
panies were united, he became treasurer of the Michigan-Peninsular
Company, but resigned after serving one year. He continued his connection with Senator McMillan and all the other corporations until the
summer of 1894, when he resigned, and with his family went abroad,
spending a year and a half in European travel. Since his return he
has not engaged actively in business, other than the management of
his own personal affairs.
He is a director of the Detroit Savings Bank; a charter member of
the Detroit Club; a member of the Michigan Club, the Lake St. Clair
Fishing and Shooting Club, and of the Fontinalis Club; is also a trustee
of the Jefferson Avenue Presbyterian church. In July, 1897, President
McKinley appointed him U. S. Consul at the city of Hanover, Germany, a position which he now fills.
Mr. Anderson was married at Detroit, January 26, 1877, to Miss
Cornelia M. Cook, daughter of the late Joseph Cook of Detroit, for
many years U. S. supervising inspector of steam vessels. They have
one child, a daughter, Catherine Clarke Anderson, born June 23, 1884.


635




MYRON H. ANDREWS, M. D.


MYRON H. ANDREWS, M. D., son of Abraham and Harriet (Carter)
Andrews, was born in Greenville, Greene county, N. Y., October
3, 1816. Dr. Andrews received the principal portion of his education
in the district schools of his native place and for about two years enjoyed the privilege of a private tutor in mathematics and the languages.
His boyhood and early manhood was spent in assisting his father in the
management of his farm, but he still found time to read medicine, in
pursuance of a desire to make that profession his life work. Later he
studied under Dr. Loami Whitcome of Walworth, Wayne county, N. Y.,
where he frequently assisted in surgical operations; he also took a short
course in the medical department of the Geneva (N. Y.) University.
Desiring to enter a broader field than that afforded at Walworth, he
removed, in 1841, to Detroit, Mich., where he became a student in the
office of Dr. Pickering. In 1846 he received the degree of M. D. from
the Buffalo (N. Y.) University, and began the practice of his profession
at Belleview, Eaton county, Mich., where he remained two years.
The following eleven years were spent in successful practice in the
cities of Hillsdale, Jonesville and Niles, Mich. In 1865 Dr. Andrews
removed to Detroit, where he has since attained to a prominent place
among the members of his profession.
For many years he was surgeon to the Michigan Central Railway,
and from 1888 to 1891 inclusive he served as city physician of Detroit.
He is a member of the Mississippi Valley Medical Society, and of the
Quarter Century Club. Dr. Andrews is a scholarly gentleman, Tnow in
his eighty-first year; still in the enjoyment of good health and is daily
in his office, although practically retired from active work.
He was married in 1846 to Miss Angeline Ross of Cleveland, Ohio,
and their union has been blessed with a son, Corydon L. Andrews, secretary of the Detroit Fire and Marine Insurance Company.
FRANZ A. APEL.
FRANZ A. APE.L, son of Ignlaz and Emily (Loeffler) Apel, is a native
of Thuringia, Prussia, where he was born May 23, 1845. His educa,
tion was begun in the public schools of his native place, where he received a careful preliminary training. From there he went to the cel636




FRANZ A. APEL.




I




ebrated gymnasium at Heiligenstadt, Prussia, where he remained until
he reached the age of seventeen years. After leaving the gymnasium
he entered the Normal Training School, from which he was graduated
in 1865. Early in life Mr. Apel evinced a strong inclination toward
and devout love for music. Therefore at an early age he began the
study of the art, in which he exhibited great talent from the beginning.
After leaving the Normal School he resumed the study of music in
Berlin, where he remained until 1866. In that year he came to America and in the fall located at Dayton, Ky., where he engaged in teaching. In 1869 he removed to Richmond, Ind., where he remained until
1871. In that year he accepted the position of organist in St. Joseph's
church in Detroit, but three years later he resigned that place to engage
in teaching music.
The celebrated Detroit School of Music, which now occupies a place
in the front rank of schools of music, was established by Prof. Apel in
1883, in connection with the Leggett School, at that time located on
Miami avenue, and he has been its director from the beginning. He
was the first instructor in Detroit to introduce "pupil's recitals" in
connection with class work in his school, and these recitals unquestionably have been potent factors, not only in popularizing his school and
methods of instruction, but also in bringing to Prof. Apel the great
measure of success which has been the just reward of his conscientious
and well directed efforts. In 1883 he added harmony and composition
to the curriculum, so that to-day every possible advantage sought by a
student of music may be gained in the Detroit School of Music.
January 31, 1894, Prof. Apel organized the Detroit Society of Professional Musicians, of which he was elected first president. This
organization has for its aim the encouragement of a fraternal feeling in
the musical profession. One of its aims is also set forth in the constitution as follows: "To discuss and endeavor to adjust all questions
arising from time to time, that may appertain to the mutual welfare of
the members of the society and promote the cause of music in the city
and State."
Prof. Apel's services to the world of music in America have been of
incalculable value. His aim has not been the amassing of wealth, but
he has labored with great zeal for the elevation of the popular musical
taste and the inculcation into the minds of his pupils of a genuine love
for the lofty sentiments which can result from high class music alone.
To him belongs lasting credit for a noble work in art done with a mas

637




ter hand, and his labors and his school have taken a place as landmarks
of Detroit which it can never lose.
Prof. Apel was married on January 11, 1870, to Ellen O'Connell of
Richmond, Ind. They have a family of five children: Lillian M.,
August P., Edna, Aileen and Isabel.
OSCAR S. ARMSTRONG, M. D.
OSCAR S. ARMSTRONG, M. D., son of James and Anna (Hunter) Armstrong, was born in Toronto, Canada, August 30, 1853. Dr. Armstrong
is of English descent, his grandfather, Col. James Armstrong, being an
officer in the English army. The latter was given a grant of land by
the English government in what is now the northern part of the city
of Toronto, and with his family removed there about 1815. His wife,
Miss Willoughby, was a descendant of Wellington, Duke of Marlborough. Dr. Armstrong received his early education in the public
schools of Toronto, and later became a student in Rockwood Academy,
at Rockwood, Ontario, from which he was graduated in 1869. Subsequently he was appointed principal of the schools at Drayton, Ontario,
continuing in that position until 1874, when he resigned to enter the
medical department of the University of Michigan, from which he was
graduated in 1877, with the degree of M. D. On completion of his
education, he removed to Detroit and engaged in the practice of his
profession, later removing to Morenci, Mich., then to Oxford, Mich.,
where he practiced until 1887, when he returned to Detroit where he
has since resided. Since locating in Detroit he has built up a large
and lucrative practice, and has taken a prominent place among the
practitioners of the city.
In 1887 he was appointed professor of anatomy in the Michigan College of Medicine, and in 1889 to the chair of obstetrics and gynecology
in the same institution, which he resigned in 1895. He is a member of
the American Association of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the
American Medical Association, the Michigan State Medical Society,
and of the Wayne County Medical Society, which Jhe served as president in 1892-93. He is also a member of the Michigan Surgical and
Pathological Society, Conestoga Lodge F. & A. M., of Drayton, Ontario; I. O. O. F., and the Knights of Pythias.
Dr. Armstrong was married in 1879 to Clara M. Allen of Morenci,


638




O. S. ARMSTRONG, M. D.




I




Mich. They are the parents of two children: Mae Allen and Harold
Hunter.
EDWIN S. BARBOUR.
EDWIN S. BARBOUR, late president of the Detroit Stove Works, was
born in Canton, Conn., November 19, 1832, and was the second son of
Samuel Thompson and Phoebe (Beckwith) Barbour. Shortly after the
birth of Edwin his parents removed to Collinsville, Conn., where his
father engaged in general merchandising, and for many years was
prominently identified with the growth and development of that section
of the State. After acquiring such an education as the schools of
Collinsville afforded, Edwin began his business career in the employ of
his father, with whom he remained until the age of nineteen. In 1851
he accepted a situation with the wholesale dry goods firm of Reuben &
James Rice of New Haven, continuing in their employ until 1855,
when he visited the then western State of Illinois, remaining some few
months in Chicago.
Coming to Detroit, Mich., in 1856, he entered the employ of Edward
Orr & Co., a situation he resigned in 1861 to become a member of the
dry goods firm of Root, Johnson & Barbour. On the retirement of Mr.
Johnson in 1865 the style of the firm became Root & Barbour. In 1870,
at the solicitation of his father-in-law, William H. Tefft, he accepted
the secretaryship of the Detroit Stove Works, and until the time of his
death, on April 3, 1897, was closely identified with the growth and
development of that industry. In 1884 he was elected vice-president,
and upon the death of Mr. Tefft in 1885, succeeded him as president.
Largely through his sagacity and enterprise, the Detroit Stove Works
became one of the great industries of the country, and at the time of
his death ranked first among the stove foundries of the world.
Aside from his interests as a stove founder, he was a large stockholder in various industrial enterprises, a director in the First National
Bank, the Detroit Fire and Marine Insurance Company, and the
Transit Railway Company. He was also a member of the Detroit
Club, the Pointe Mouillee Shooting Club and the Lake St. Clair Fishing and Shooting Club. As a man, he was unassuming, democratic,
and thoroughly imbued with the spirit of American institutions. He


639




was broad-minded and liberal, and his charities were always conducted in a most unostentatious manner.
On July 1, 1863, Mr. Barbour married Ella H., daughter of William
H. Tefft, founder of the Detroit Stove Works. His wife and two
children survive him: Florine, wife of William G. Henry of Chicago,
Ill., and William Tefft Barbour, who succeeded his father as president
of the Detroit Stove Works.
WILLIAM H. TEFFT.
WILLIAM H. TEFFT, late president and founder of the Detroit Stove
Works, was born in Little Valley, Cattaraugus county, N. Y., July 11,
1819, and was the only son of Royal and Celinda (Robertson) Tefft. Mr.
Tefft received his education in the public schools of his native place
and at an early age was apprenticed to the printer's trade. Upon the
expiration of that apprenticeship he was employed on the Cattaraugus
Whig. In 1835 he accepted a situation as clerk in the general store of
Walter Chester, at Gerry, Chautauqua county, N. Y., where he laid
the foundation of the habits of industry, energy and economy so characteristic of him in his after life, and which brought him such success.
HIe remained with Mr. Chester until 1841, when he removed to Buffalo,
where he entered the employ of Sidney Shepherd & Co., at that time
the largest dealers in stoves in Western New York, and who had an
extensive business in hardware and tinware specialties. Subsequently,
the firm appreciating the value of his services, took him into partnership. In 1854 he formed the firm of Tefft & Moore, operating a foundry for the manufacture of car wheels and railroad castings, this firm
being succeeded by Tefft, Moore & Purdie.  Among the contracts
taken by this firm was one for the original castings for the Buffalo and
Brantford Railway, the origin and nucleus of what later became the
Great Western Railway of Canada, and which recently has become a
part of the Wabash system.
In June, 1855, Mr. Tefft disposed of his Buffalo interests and removed to Detroit, Mich., where he purchased the wholesale and retail
hardware business of Edward Shepherd. During the late Civil war
Mr. Tefft was largely engaged in furnishing the government with tin
cups, camp stools and canteens. About this time Jeremiah Dwyer began the manufacture of stoves in Detroit, having a small foundry on
640




Mr. Elliott avenue, and Mr. Tefft contracted for his entire product.
In 1863 he purchased the interest of T. W. Mizner (of the firm of J.
Dwyer & Co.), and in 1864, with Jeremiah Dwyer. M. I. Mills and
James Dwyer, he organized the business into a joint stock company,
which was incorporated under the title of the Detroit Stove Works.
Its first officers were William H. Tefft, president; M. I. Mills, treasurer; Jeremiah Dwyer, superintendent.  From  this beginning has
grown the present business of the establishment, now the largest in the
world and one of the leading industrial enterprises of Detroit, giving
employment to about fourteen hundred men and melting sixty tons of
iron daily. The success of this corporation is in a great measure due
to the strict integrity, untiring energy and conservative business methods of its founder, who from the time of its incorporation until the time
of his death in 1885, remained at its head. Mr. Tefft was also one of
the founders of the Banner Tobacco Company, as well as its first president; a director of the First National Bank and the Detroit Fire and
Marine Insurance Company.
In 1843 he married Alartha L. Holbrook, the daughter of William
Holbrook of Forestville, N. Y. One child survives him, a daughter: Ella H. Tefft, widow of the late Edwin S. Barbour, who succeeded
him as president of the Detroit Stove Works.
GEORGE H. BARBOUR.
GEORGE HARRISON BARBOUR, vice-president and general manager of
of The Michigan Stove Company, was born in Collinsville, Conn., June
26, 1843, and is a son of the late Samuel Thompson and Phoebe
(Beckwith) Barbour. Mr. Barbour's mercantile education began when
he was four years old. His father was a merchant of considerable local
prominence, but met with reverses and lost some the accumulations of
his life. George, the youngest son, was required to spend all the time
not devoted to school in the store assisting his father. This apprenticeship lasted for some four years, and the business, run at small expense,
was well established and profitable. His salary during that time was
$50 per year and board. Later on his father retired from active business, but subsequently resumed it, and after an additional two years
turned it over to George H. and a young man about to become his
brother-in-law, who continued it under the style of Barbour & Good641
81




man. The venture was successful. A few years later Mr. Barbour
purchased Mr. Goodman's interest and continued the business alone
until 1872. He was then twenty-eight years old, and began to desire
larger opportunities than merchandising in a country village afforded.
Through relatives in Detroit he learned of the organization of the
Michigan Stove Company, and an investment as well as an official position was tendered him, which he accepted, and selling out his retail
business, removed to Detroit in July, 1872. This opened to him a
career of exceptional business success, for which he was particularly
fitted. Since coming here Mr. Barbour has attained a high position
among the business men of the city, and has been prominently identified with the growth and development of the city's industrial enter.
prises. At present he is the vice-president and general manager of the
Michigan Stove Compay, vice-president of the Electric Gas Stove
Company, a director in the People's Savings Bank, the Dimne Savings
Bank, the Union Trust Company, the Michigan Fire and Marine Insurance Company, the Ireland & Matthews Manufacturing Company, all
of Detroit, the Buck Stove and Range Company of St. Louis, Mo., and
is president of the Detroit Manufacturers' Club. He was the first president of the Detroit Chamber of Commerce, and is a member of the Detroit Art Loan Commission, and also a member of the Detroit Club,
and ex-president of the latter. He was appointed by Governor Rich as
commissioner to the Tennessee Centennial Exposition.  He is now
vice-president for the State of Michigan for the National Association
of Manufacturers of the United States. He was a national commissioner to the World's Fair in 1893, as well as a member of the committee on ceremonies, and was proud of the fact of being appointed by a
Republican governor.
Mr. Barbour is an active Democrat with liberal tendencies, and is a
confirmed believer in protection to American industries, and favors
nothing but a sound money basis for our currency. He was for two
years a member of the Board of Aldermen, and it president in 1888.
He refused to become a candidate for mayor tendered him three (different times. He is a genial and agreeable man in all business and
social relations; a  ihard worker, polpular with the trade, and held in
high esteem by his associates and subordinates. He was president of
the National Association of Stove Manufacturers for two years from
1888, and was active in all its interests.
On June 23, 186I, Mr. Barbour married Katheren, datughlter of W.
G432








WILLIAM H. BAXTER.




H. and Susan (Robertson) Hawley, of Collinsville, Conn., and they
have four children: Edwin S., Grace L., Estelle, and George H., jr.
REV. F. J. BAUMGARTNER.
VERY REV FREDOLIN J. BAUMGARTNER, chancellor of Detroit Diocese,
son of Wendelin J. and Frances (Anselm) Baumgartner, was born in
Connor's Creek, Wayne county, Mich., July 28, 1850. His early education was acquired in the public schools of his native place, which he
attended until the age of fourteen, when he entered Prof. Old's academy
at Lansing, Mich., where he received a two years' course. He then
began his ecclesiastical study in the seminary of Our Lady of Angels at
Niagara Falls, N. Y. After one year's study he went to Milwaukee and
entered St. Francis's Seminary where he remained eight years. Returning to his home in Detroit, he was ordained to the priesthood at
St. Clair, Mich., by Right Rev. C. H. Borgess, bishop of Detroit
Diocese, on June 9, 1876, and was then given charge of Our Lady of
Help parish, Detroit, where he remained until November 26, 1876.
Failing health caused Fr. Baumgartner to ask to be transferred to a
country parish and he was accordingly given the pastorate of St. Vincent de Paul church at Pontiac, Mich. The following eighteen years
were spent by him in this parish, where his labors were highly successful. In recognition of his possession of great executive ability as well
as untiring devotion to his priestly mission, on March 4, 1894, he was
appointed by Bishop Foley chancellor of Detroit Diocese.
WILLIAM H. BAXTER.
WILLIAM H. BAXTER, fire marshal of the city of Detroit, was born in
Hull, England, and is a son of Richard and Sarah (Duffield) Baxter.
He was born February 9, 1836, and while still an infant his parents
emigrated to America and after a stay of some few weeks at Chester,
Pa., they located in Chatham, province of Ontario, Canada. In the
latter city William attended the public schools, but being of a roving
disposition, he left home at the age of nine years and followed the sea,
in a ship commanded by an uncle. Upon his return to Chatham he was
apprenticed to the printer's trade, serving for five years in that capac

643




ity. In 1855 he removed to Detroit, Mich., and shortly after his arrival
secured a situation with the Daily Tribune. In the course of time he
was promoted to the position of foreman of the news rooms of that
journal and remained in that capacity until 1862, when he enlisted in
the United States navy as an ordinary seaman.
Upon his being mustered out of the service in 1864, Mr. Baxter returned to Detroit and to the service of his old employers, being given
a position on the editorial staff of the Tribune, by the owner and editorin-chief, Mr. James E. Scripps. Shortly afterward he was promoted
to the position of city editor, and remained in that situation until 1876.
While serving in that capacity he was elected as alderman from the
Tenth ward, in 1870, for a term of two years, and was again elected in
1874, and in 1875 was made president of the Common Council of Detroit. Upon his retirement from the service of the Tribune, he was
appointed a sergeant of police, and in company with several leading
physicians organized the first health board of Detroit. From 1876 until
1880 he acted as health officer of the city, and in the latter year was
appointed to his present office of fire marshal; being succeeded as heatlh
officer by Dr. Wight of Milwaukee, Wis.
Mr. Baxter is a prominent member of the Masonic fraternity, holding every grade in the city, and has been honored with the thirty-third
degree. He is a member of the Ancient Order of United Workmen,
and has served two terms as supreme master of that order. He is the
only member of that body who has ever been elected to serve two consecutive terms. He is also a member of Detroit Post, (. A. R., and
has served as junior vice-commander and senior vice-commader of that
post.
Mr. Baxter was married in 1854. He is the father of two children:
David R., of Detroit, and Ida B., wife of William A. Mitchie of Chicago, Ill.
FRANCIS R. BEAL.
FRANCIS R. BEAL, president and general manager of the Globe Fur
niture Company, was born in Northville, Mich., Aulgust 24, 1836, and
is a son of James and Rachael (Light) Beal. His father was a native
of Lyme, N. H., who came to Michigan in 1830 and located at Northville. He was a cabinet maker by trade, and Francis R., after serving


644




FRANCIS R. BEAL.








an apprenticeship, followed that trade until 1863 as a journeyman. He
then engaged in the hardware business, a line he continued in for ten
years, when, in 1873, with a capital of $20,000, he organized the Michigan School Furniture Company for the manufacture of school and
church furniture.
In 1887, after fourteen years of successful operation, he, knowing the
capabilities of the community and the excellence of its workmen, whose
output had stood the test of competition of more extensive plants, decided to enlarge the plant. A reorganization followed; the business of
the Michigan School Furniture Company being succeeded by the Globe
Furniture Company, with a capital stock of $75,000, and of which Mr.
Beal was made president and general manager. Continued success
followed him in the direction of the affairs of this enterprise; the business has had a most satisfactory growth until to day it is among the
most important of its kind in Michigan, a State whose reputation as a
furniture manufacturing center is world wide. Since its establishment
in 1887 a large portion of the earnings of the company have been carried into a surplus account, virtually increasing the capital to about
$200,000, while 250 to 300 hands are employed in the manufacture of
its products.
His management of this industry has been broad minded and liberal,
his treatment of his employees so kind and just, that in all the years in
which he has stood in the position of employer no labor troubles have
arisen. In the business, social and religious life of the village he has
always taken a most prominent part; he has in several instances given
his assistance toward the establishment of manufacturing enterprises,
and his financial and moral support is ever ready to assist in any project
which promises to benefit the community. His successful direction of
many of Northville's most prominent industries but show his versatility, as well as the possession of business abilities of a high order, indomitable energy and strong common sense. He is a courteous and
kindly gentleman, who enjoys the confidence and esteem of his fellow
citizens, and among his warmest friends are found his workmen, some
of whom entered his. employ upwards of twenty-five years ago. The
present prosperity of Northville is due in a great measure to his untiring efforts in its behalf.
While eminently fitted by talent and education to fill any position of
honor in the State, he has ever refused the solicitation of his friends to
accept nomination for office, preferring to remain in charge of his many
645




and varied private interests. He is a prominent member of the Masonic fraternity, and politically a staunch Republican.
On September 21, 1856, he married Sarah M., daughter of Peter
Ayres of Penn Yan, N. Y., and to them have been born three children:
Louis A., manager of Columbia Refrigerator Co. of Northville; M.
Louise, wife of C. C. Chadwick of Northville; and Jennie, who died in
early childhood. Mr. Beal and his wife are members of the Methodist
Episcopal church.
WILLIAM C. BENNETT.
WILLIAM C. BENNETT, son of Maurice and Harriet (Hathaway) Bennett,
was born in Wayne, Steuben county, N. Y., May 12, 1833. He resided
on a farm the first nine years of his life, attending the country school
two winters. In 1842 he removed with his parents to Brighton, Livingston county, Mich., and after one year's residence in Brighton the
family removed to Howell, Mich. Mr. Bennett assisted his father in
the management of his farm during the summer months and in winter
attended the High School, from which he was graduated in 1856, and
in January, 1857, he came to Detroit and took a business course in
Cochran's Business College.
During April, 1857, he returned to Howell and married Patience A.
Brayton, and with his bride removed to Ovid, Mich., where he embarked in business on his own account, dealing in general merchandise
and lumber. At the time of his locating at Ovid, the line of the Detroit and Milwaukee Railroad was under construction, and he erected
the first store and purchased the first supplies for that section of Clinton
county. In the spring of 1861 he was elected supervisor of Ovid township, the election taking place three days before the commencement of
the Civil war. Owing to his domestic and business relations Mr. Bennett was unable to enlist in the army, but he served as supervisor and
worked unceasingly to organize troops to send to the front. He assisted in raising a little army of three hundred men from his own and
adjoining townships. In his locality not one bounty was paid or a soldier drafted into service, and at the close of the war the records gave
seven credited over and above the quota. Mr. Bennett was given a
contract by the government to provide 1,600 horses and succeeded in
fulfilling his agreement.


646




He resided in Ovid until 1882, when he removed to Detroit and engaged in the manufacture of iron and steel, the firm being known as
W. C. Bennett & Co. This firm constructed the steel vaults in many
of Detroit's largest buildings. He disposed of his iron and steel industry about 1887 and for the past ten years has devoted almost his entire
time to his large lumber interests and sale of pine lands. Among his
lumber possessions is a saw mill in Macosta county, Mich., surrounded
by 1,200 acres of timber land. Mr. Bennett can well be proud of the
fact that with the exception of the few years spent on the farm with
his father, he has never been in the employ of any man or firm, but
has always conducted a business of his own.
He has three children: Minnie Estelle, wife of Fred P. Tillson of
Ishpeming, Mich.; Ira B. and Jay S., known as Bennett Bros., lumber
merchants of Sandusky, Ohio. In 1886 these young men established
their present business at Muskegon, Mich., where they remained until
removing to their present location in 1895. By their enterprise and
business ability, they have from a small beginning of but twelve years
ago, succeeded in building up a large and profitable enterprise; their
transactions covering a half million dollars annually and representing
a handling of some forty million feet of lumber. The success which
has attended their management of this enterprise is sufficient proof of
their marked business ability.
THOMAS BERRY.
THOMAS BERRY, son of John and Catharina (Hooper) Berry, was born
in Hersham, England, February 7, 1829. His father, John Berry, was
engaged in the tanning business, and with his family removed to
America in 1835, locating at Elizabeth, N. J., where he resumed his
former occupation. Thomas, the subject of this sketch, received his
education in a private school at Elizabeth, and at an early age entered
his father's employ. Upon gaining a thorough knowledge of the business, he was placed in charge of a branch of his father's business in the
State of Virginia, where he remained four years. In 1856 he removed
to Detroit, Mich., where his parents had preceded him, and after a
short time spent in search of a location, with his brother Joseph he
formed the firm of Berry Brothers, and established a factory for the
manufacture of varnish. The original location of their plant was in


647




Springwells, but after a few months their business was removed to its
present quarters at the foot of Leib street.
Owing to the untiring energy, sterling integrity and correct business
methods of this firm, the name of Berry Brothers has become the most
widely known of any varnish manufacturing concern in the world.
Their business, ranking first of its kind, requires eight branch establishments, scattered throughout the principal cities of the United
States, and affords constant employment to about three hundred
persons. Politically Mr. Berry is a Republican, and, although taking
an active part in the councils of his party, he has been adverse to holding public office, other than that of a local nature. He was appointed
president of the Board of Poor Commissioners by Mayor Thompson,
being the first to serve in that capacity; in 1876 was elected a member
of the Board of Estimates, serving one term; in 1881 elected a member
of the Council for a term of three years, and was re-elected in 1884,
serving until legislated out of office by an act of the Legislature; and
subsequently elected a member of the School Board, serving four
years.
Mr. Berry has been prominently identified with the growth and
development of the manufacturing interests of Detroit, and aside from
his interest in the firm of Berry Brothers he is a large stockholder in
the Detroit Linseed Oil Co., a joint partner with his brother, Joseph H.
Berry, in the Combination Gas Machine Co., is a director in the Citizens' Savings Bank and a trustee of the Michigan College of Medicine.
He is prominent in Masonic circles, being a member of Detroit Commandery No. 1, Knights Templar; Monroe Chapter, R. A M.; and
Zion Lodge, F. & A. M. He is also a member of the Jefferson Avenue
Presbyterian church, of which his family are regular attendants. Mr.
Berry was married on December 21, 1860, to Miss Janet Lowe,
daughter of John Lowe of Niagara, Ontario, Canada, who died in
August, 1893, leaving four daughters.
CHARLES F. BIELMAN.
CI1ARii.LE F. BIEl.IAN, son of Frederick and Ellen C. (Daley) Bielman,
was born in Detroit, Mich., April 20, 1859. At the age of four he removed with his parents to Casco, St. Clair county, Mich., and there he


648




CHARLES F. BIELMAN.




I




received, in the public schools, his education. At the age of fourteen
he removed to Marine City, Mich., where he secured employment in
the post-office, also acting as agent for the Star Line of steamers and as
telegraph operator. In 1880 Mr. Bielman removed to Detroit, where
he entered the employ of the Detroit and Cleveland Steam Navigation
Company as clerk of their steamer Evening Star. In 1881 he was transferred to the steamer City of Mackinac, on which he served six years.
On completion of the steamer Darius Cole, it was placed on the DetroitPort Huron route in opposition to the Star Line steamer, and after one
season of active competition between these lines their differences were
amicably adjusted by David Carter, general manager of the D. & C. S.
N. Co., and he recommended Mr. Bielman to them for the position of
agent and manager, and he was appointed to that position.
On July 18, 1888, the controlling interest in the Star Line was purchased by Capt. Darius Cole and Mr. Bielman, the latter becoming
secretary and treasurer of the line. On December 23, 1893, he, with
J. W. Millen, A. A. Parker and John Pridgeon, jr., purchased the controlling interest in the Red Star Line, and Mr. Bielman was made secretary. The incorporation of the White Star Line took place in 1896,
and shortly afterward these different lines were placed under practically one management, and since then Mr. Bielman has acted in the
capacity of treasurer and traffic manager of the combined lines.
He is stockholder and director in the Star, Red Star and White Star
lines, is secretary and treasurer of the Stewart Transportation Compady, secretary of the White Star Line, secretary of the Tashmoo Park
Co. Ltd., and the owner and manager of the steamer Florence B.,
which for the past four seasons has been engaged by the United States
postal authorities for delivering and collecting mail matter from the
passing vessels en route from lake to lake. This system of delivery
and collection of mail has been of great value to the shipping interests
of the great lakes, and Detroit is the only point in the United States
where this method is in use. Mr. Bielman has always been a Republican and actively identified with his party's success. He is a member
of the Grande Pointe Club and the Fellowcraft Club of Detroit.
On January 22, 1890, he married Katherine, daughter of Thomas
Barium of Detroit, and they have two children: Florence C. and
Charles F., jr.
649
83




JEROME H. BISHOP.


JEROME H. BISHOP, of the J. H. Bishop Co., manufacturers of skin
rugs, sleigh robes and fur coats, was born in Jefferson county, N. Y.,
September 3, 1846. His father, William Bishop, was of the old New
England family which came over with the Salem Company. His
mother, before-her marriage, was Betsey Jerome Sterns, niece of Judge
Hiram Jerome of Palmyra, N. Y., and own cousin to Leonard and
Lawrence Jerome of New York, Mr. Bishop being second cousin to
Lady Randolph Churchill, who was Miss Jerome before her marriage
with Lord ChurchilL
Mr. Bishop came to Michigan in January, 1869, as superintendent of
the Decatur (Mich.) public schools. From 1871 to 1875 he was superintendent of the public schools of Wyandotte, from which he resigned
in 1875 and established, with a limited capital, the business now known
as The J. H. Bishop Company. Mr. Bishop is the fortunate possessor
of indomitable energy, great executive ability and business qualifications of a high order; and the growth of the industry, of which he was
the father, is due entirely to his admirable direction of its affairs. Year
by year new territory has been opened, until to-day its sales reach
every part of the United States, its products are recognized as of the
highest quality, and its manufacturing plant is the largest of the kind
in the world. It is one of the leading industries in Wyandotte, giving
employment to 250 hands. Its raw material is imported largely from
China, England, Turkey and Canada.
Although his business interests have claimed a great part of his time,
Mr. Bishop has not neglected his public or social duties. He has been
one of the most active and influential members of the Business Men's
Committee, has served two terms as mayor, has attended conventions
of the Republican party repeatedly; is a member of the State Board of
Control of the Penitentiary and a member of the board of trustees of
Olivet College. He is a 32d degree Mason and Knight Templar, a
member of the Detroit Club and the Old Club at St. Clair Flats and of
several shooting clubs, Mr. Bishop being a lover of dog, gun and rod.
His magnificent residence, richly and artistically furnished, is amnong
the most imposing in the county, and there he and his wife, n6e Ella
Clark, delight in extending hospitality to their friends. Mr. Bishop
has been twice married; first in 1867 to Jennie, daughter of Richard
Gray of Redwood, N. Y., who died in 1873, leaving one daughter,


650




Ii
-0  o/








Maud, now the wife of W. J. Burns. His second marriage occurred in
1876. To this union have been born four children: Jerome H., now a
student in Yale College; Della, a student in Vassar College; Mabel,
who is at present attending the Liggett School at Detroit, and Wallace
Clark. Mr. Bishop is a member of the Congregational church and
superintendent of its Sunday school.
A man of honor, a public spirited citizen of irreproachable character,
a Christian gentleman modestly given to a wide charity, a man of
broad culture and a fluent speaker, Mr. Bishop's greatest joy and
happiness is found in the companionship of his family and his many
friends.
JOEL S. BLACKBURN, M. D.
JOEL S. BLACKBURN, M. D., son of Louke P. and Sarah (Mason)
Blackburn, was born in Cass county, Georgia, August 2, 1848. Owing
to the absence of public schools in the South during his childhood, he
received his early education from his parents, subsequently attended a
subscription school, and completed his education in the Batesville
University. At the commencement of the Civil war he became a
refugee from the South, and afterward enlisted in Co. I, Tenth Missouri Cavalry, serving until he was honorably discharged in 1865.
At the close of the war he determined to become a physician, and attended lectures in Bellevue Hospital College, New York city; Evansville Medical College, Evansville, Ind.; Ohio Medical University, and
the Indiana School of Medicine. He was graduated from the Evansville Medical College in 1877, and from the Ohio Medical University in
1889, subsequently removing to Leadville, Col., where he began the
practice of his profession. In 1889 he removed to Salt Lake City, Utah,
and from there to St. Paul, Minn., and in 1894 located in Detroit,
Mich., where he has since resided.  During his residence in Detroit
he has established a large practice and is recognized as a prominent
member of the medical profession.
Dr. Blackburn is president of the Michigan State Association of
Physicians and Surgeons; examining surgeon for the Independent
Order of the Red Cross, and of the Order of the Star of Bethlehem; a
fellow of the American Association of Physicians and Surgeons; a
member of the American Association for Scientific Research, and he is


651




also a graduate of the American Society of Liberal Arts and Sciences.
He is a member of the Masonic fraternity and the Independent Order
of Odd Fellows.
Dr. Blackburn was married to his present wife, Mary A. Adamson,
in 1886, and they have two children: May Catharine and Joseph.
HERBERT BRADLEY.
HERBERT BRADLEY, son of Joel and Arcelia M. (Tidd) Bradley, was
born in Rochester, N. Y., July 9, 1862. He removed with his parents
to Pontiac, Mich., in 1867, and in the latter city attended the public
schools, graduating from the High School in 1882, and during the four
years' attendance in that institution taught school between the sessions
in the district schools of Oakland county, Mich. Following his gradua
tion, he was for one year superintendent of the Orion (Mich.) public
schools, and during the ensuing four years was superintendent of the
schools at Edmore, Mich. From 1887 to 1890 he traveled through the
United States and Canada as salesman for the National Cash Register
Co., and for Brown Brothers (cigar manufacturers) of Detroit. In 1890
he located in the latter city and entered the real estate business, which he
has followed ever since with marked and well merited success. In June,
1897, he formed a partnership with Mr. Frederick P. Obenauer of Chicago, with the style of Herbert Bradley & Co., which firm still exists.
Mr. Bradley is a member of Empire lodge No. 360, F. & A. M., of
Edmore, Mich., of the Independent Order of Forestersand of the Congr;egational church at Edmore. He has always been a Republican, and
although never seeking office, he has been influential in the councils of
his party.
Mr. Bradley was married in 1883 to Myraett E. Grace of Farmington,
Mich., and they have one daughter, Arcelia M. Bradley.
COL. THORNTON F. BRODHEAD.
COLONEL AND BREVET-BRIGADIER GENERAL THORNTON F. BIRODIEAD)
was born in South New Market, N. H., September 22, 1822. He was
the fifth son of the Rev. John Brodhead, formerly a member of congress from that State. Colonel Brodhead was graduated from the law
652




HERBERT BRADLEY.




I




school of Harvard College in 1845, and subsequently removed to
Pontiac, Mich., where he was soon afterward appointed prosecuting attorney and deputy secretary of state, and at the age of twenty-seven
was elected to the State Senate. On the breaking out of the Mexican
war, in 1846, he was appointed adjutant of the Fifteenth U. S. Infantry, and was in nearly every engagement of the campaign. He was
twice brevetted for gallantry on the field of battle, was one of the
party at the storming of Chapultepec, and was the first man to spring
from the parapet into the fortress.
At the end of the Mexican war Colonel Brodhead returned to Detroit,
married a daughter of General Macomb, and resumed the practice of
law. He also for a time edited the Detroit Free Press, and served
again in the State Senate. He was an active politician, was several
times a delegate to the Democratic National Conventions, took a
prominent part in 1852 at the Baltimore Convention in favor of the
nomination of Gen. Franklin Pierce for the presidency, and was elected
a member of the National Committee. President Pierce appointed him
postmaster at Detroit, an office which he held for four years.
At the breaking out of the Civil war he was commissioned to raise a
regiment of cavalry, and in less than a fortnight had enlisted twelve
hundred men, Judge Copeland, of the Supreme Court of Michigan, resigning to serve under him as lieutenant-colonel. His regiment was
assigned to the army under the command of General Banks, and he obtained a great reputation as a brilliant an intrepid officer. Colonel
Brodhead was in a multitude of raids, skirmishes and battles, and had
two horses shot under him, but he never received a wound until the
fatal battle of Centerville, or second Bull Run. His command was ordered to charge a greatly superior force, and his regiment was almost
annihilated, although every man fought like a hero.  The enemy
wished to save Colonel Brodhead, for he was well known and had been
noted for his kindness to women and children in the valley of Virginia.
An officer of the Fifteenth Virginia Infantry, who knew him, called
out to him to surrender, for escape was impossible. He made no response, but contined fighting. The officer called out again, "Surrender,
Colonel, or we shall be compelled to shoot you." Fighting until the
last, he was dragged from his horse, and they were marching him to
the rear when he suddenly fell, and it was discovered he was wounded.
He died on September 2, 1862. The remains were brought to Detroit and laid in state in Firemen's Hall. The municipal authorities




passed resolutions eulogizing the dead soldier and providing for a public funeral. On the day of the ceremony all business was suspended in
the city. The body was escorted by the Third United States Cavalry
and Fourth Michigan Infantry, officers of the army and navy, the municipal government, the United States judges and members of the bar,
to Elmwood Cemetery.
Colonel Brodhead left an only son, Lieut. John T. Brodhead, a sketch
of whose life appears elsewhere, and five daughters. He was brevetted
brigadier-general, but his commission was not received before his death,
and was transmitted to his family.
DAVID W. BROOKS.
DAVID W. BROOKS, son of Lonson and Mary (Smith) Brooks, was
born in Madison, Ohio, December 29, 1826. His early education was
obtained in the public schools of Madison, and preparatory to entering
college he took a course of instruction in the Norwalk (Ohio) Seminary.
He was graduated from the literary department of Yale University in
1853, and during the following fall and winter pursued the study of
law in New York city. In the spring of 1854 he entered the law offices
of Prentiss, Prentiss & Newton at Cleveland, Ohio, and continued
there untill 1855, when he was admitted to the bar at Canton. In the
same year he formed a partnership with Lewis W. Ford, and located at
Cleveland, under the style of Brooks & Ford; this partnership continued until October, 1861, when Mr. Brooks removed to Detroit,
Mich., where he has since practiced his profession continuously.
In 1862 he became associated in a copartnership with George O.
Robinson, as Robinson & Brooks, and during the ensuing ten years this
firm gained for itself a wide reputation in the manipulation of military
claims, doing one of the largest businesses in the United States. Since
1872 Mr. Brooks has practiced entirely alone, continuing in the prosecution of war claims against the government. In 1892 he practically retired from active business on account of his advanced age, though he
still maintains his law office and occasionally transacts some business.
He has made a close study of pension laws, and in that branch of his
profession particularly has been eminently successful.
He owns extensive properties in and about the city of Detroit, from
the rental of which he realizes a princely income. For eight years Mr.


654




Brooks served the city of Detroit as a member of the School Board, his
popularity being attested on both the Republican and Democratic
tickets, resulting in a unanimous election in the last year of his service
in that body. He is a member of the Alpha Delta Phi and Phi Beta
Kappa fraternities of Yale College, and meets with them regularly at
their annual reunions.
Mr. Brooks comes of good old New England stock, his ancestors being
noted for generations as along-lived race. His paternal grandmother
died in 1850 at the age of one hundred years, and both of his parents
lived to reach the ripe age of eighty. In all his life Mr. Brooks has
hardly been sick a day, and now in his seventy-second year is daily in
his office in good health. In his professional career his position at the
bar has been an honorable one, and he has always enjoyed the unqualified respect and esteem of the entire community. He has never
been a politician in the sense of being an office seeker, and has devoted
his entire energies to the business in which he has found his chief
pleasure, when not occupied with the enjoyments of his family and
social life.
Mr. Brooks is a member of the Phi Beta Kappa fraternity of Yale
College, and among his classmates were Shiras, of the Supreme Court
of the United States; Bishop Davies, of the Episcopal church; Andrew
D. White, ambassador to Germany; Billings, of the United States
Court of Louisiana; Senator Johnson of Louisiana; Theodore Bacon of
Rochester, N. Y.; E. P. Bradstreet of Cincinnati; George W. Smalley,
New York correspondent of the London Times; Henry Robinson of
Hartford, Conn.; Ex-Postmaster-General Wayne McVeigh of Philadelphia, and others equally eminent.
November 13, 1860, iMr. Brooks married Emma D., daughter of
Hon. Alanson Sheley of Detroit, who, as a wedding gift, built for them
a hadsome dwelling which occupied the site of their present imposing
residence in the heart of the most fashionable part of Detroit. They
have had five children, three of whom survive: Alanson S., a member
of the wholesale drug house of Williams, Davis, Brooks& Co.; Stanley,
secretary of the Victor Cash Register Company; and Walter, of the
firm of Jewett, Bigelow & Brooks.  Politically he has been a lifelong
Republican, and has been prominently identified in the councils of his
party. He is a member of the First Presbyterian church of Detroit, of
which his family are regular attendants.


655




CHARLES BUNCHER.


CHARLES BUNCHER, son of James and Maria (Leach) Buncher, was
born in Lowell, Mass., March 2, 1839. Mr. Buncher acquired his education in the public schools of Lowell, which he attended until the age
of seventeen, when he entered the wholesale dry goods house of Sweetser, Gookin & Co. of Boston. Mr. Buncher remained with this firm
until their retirement from business in 1861, when, with Mr. S. H.
Gookin and Mr. Uriah Welch as his associates, he formed the firm of
S. H. Gookin & Co., continuing in the dry goods trade. On the retirement of Mr. Gookin, two years later, the style of the firm was changed
to Welch, Gookin & Buncher, a copartnership which continued until
1867, when Mr. Buncher became associated with the firm of Anderson,
Heath & Co., one of the leading dry goods firms of Boston. During
his connection with these firms Mr. Buncher had represented them in
the western country, having his headquarters in Detroit, Mich., and in
1871 he connected himself with the wholesale dry goods house of Edson, Moore & Co. of that city as financial partner. On the destruction
by fire, in 1873, of the house of Anderson, Heath & Co., he disposed
of his eastern interests and has since given his entire attention to the
business of the Detroit firm.
Among the wholesale establishments of the State, the firm of Edson,
Moore & Co. is recognized as the leader in its line, and the untiring
efforts and thorough knowledge of the business possessed by Mr.
Buncher, have been devoted to give to and maintain that firm's high
standing in the business world. He is prominent in art, literature and
church circles in Detroit, and has gained distinction as an author and
lecturer on scientific subjects. His library of some five thousand volumes is a constant source of diversion and pleasture to him when not
occupied with the enjoyments of his family and social life. IIe is
vice-president of the Detroit Museum of Art, and is also chairman of
the executive committee of that institution. lHe is first vice-president
of the Detroit Society of the Archaeological Institute of America,
honorary secretary of the Egyptian Explloration Flnd, and is a member and chairman of the board of trustees of the Fort Street Presbyterian church of Detroit. He is a member of the St. Clair Flats
Fishing and Gun Club, and of the Michigan Club of I)etroit.
Mr. Buncher hlas been twice married, first to Josephine M. I)illaway
of Boston, Mass., who died in 1871, leaving a lauglhter, Mabel, now
656








1'' ''^
Ii
ii
I I
"I
~~S 1j
I   I


SAMUEL WHITESIDE BURROUGHS.




the wife of H. C. Penny, jr., of Detroit. In 1873 he married as his
second wife, Mrs. Julia A. Howland of Troy, N. Y., who died in 1889,
leaving two daughters: Jessie, now the wife of Charles N. Hammon of
Evanston, III., and Myra, wife of George F. Hope, sheriff of Kingston
county, Ontario, Canada, whose residence is at Belleville in that county.
SAMUEL W. BURROUGHS.
SAMUEL WHITESIDE BURROUGHS, son of George H. and Rebecca Jane
(Bell) Burroughs, was born at Belleville, Wayne county, Michigan,
August 11, 1847. In the spring of 1863 he entered the army as a member of the Seventh Michigan Cavalry, which regiment afterwards became a member of Custer's famous fighting brigade. Mr. Burroughs
served with this regiment for about six months. The Seventh being
temporarily disorganized through loss of numbers, young Burroughs
was discharged because of youth, and as he was a born fighter, he determined to join another regiment. He re-enlisted and forthwith became a member of Co. I of the Fifteenth Michigan Infantry and served
with that regiment under General Sherman in all his campaigns, including the Atlanta campaign and the famous March to the Sea. Mr.
Burroughs was mustered out of the service at Little Rock, Ark., August 13, 1865, and returning at once to his home in Belleville, Mich., he
resumed his schooling for an education, and afterwards commenced the
study of law.
He was admitted to the bar in December, 1879, upon petition, after
a rigid examination in open court before Judge Chambers. The Detroit Post and Tribune of December 3, 1879, in speaking of his admission said:
" Samuel W. Burroughs of Belleville was admitted to the bar upon examination in
the Wayne Circuit Court yesterday. The committee reported that he passed his examination in a highly creditable manner. Later in the day he was admitted on
motion to practice in the United States Court."
He at once opened an office in his native village where he practiced
for a few years. He has been an active practitioner of his profession
at Detroit ever since and has met with almost phenomenal success.
During the years of 1891 and 1892 he was prosecuting attorney for
Wayne county, Mich. Before his election to this office his colonel, in
the Detroit Free Press of October 20, 1890, had this to say:
657
83




"To the Editor of the Detroit Free Press: I see that Samuel W. Burroughs has
been nominated and is a candidate on the Democratic ticket for the office of prosecuting attorney for Wayne county. It was my fortune to be a member of the 15th
Michigan Infantry during its term of service in the late war, about two years of
which I had the honor of commanding it. Mr. Burroughs was a member of the
regiment and was one of if not the youngest member of his company. The record of
Mr. Burroughs as a soldier is exceptionally good. He was never absent from duty
without authority; never under arrest, or subject to complaint or reprimand during
his service. He was present with his command and did his full duty in every battle
in which he was engaged; was, in short, a meritorous, brave and faithful soldier in
every respect. I earnestly hope his old comrades who live in Wayne county will not
only vote for Sergeant Sam, but will do their best to secure his election. Fred G.
Hutchinson, late colonel 15th Michigan Infantry."
Major John B. Bell of Toledo, Ohio, published a letter in the same
issue, speaking equally praiseworthy of Mr. Burroughs as a soldier.
During his term of office and after he handled many notable cases,
among them the famous Prince Michael (Michael K. Mills) case in
1893, which he won against great odds, not only in the Circuit Court
before Judge Kinne for the county of Washtenaw upon a change of
venue, but also as ex-prosecuting attorney in the Supreme Court afterwards. Mr. Burroughs is very thorough in the preparation of his
cases, and before carrying a cause into court he is sure of his ground
and ready to meet any emergency.
The Free Press of date of August 11, 1891, in speaking editorially
of Mr. Burroughs as a prosecuting attorney and of the record and
showing he had made as such official closed: " Mr. Burroughs and the
people are to be congratulated on this excellent showing."
This same paper of date February 18, 1893, in speaking of the Mills
case, said:
" The case was brought to the Supreme Court by the defendant's attorney, John
Atkinson, who set up 107 assignments of error. These were ably responded to by
the brief of ex-Prosccuting Attorney Burroughs, who argued the matter before the
court for the people a week ago last Monday."
The conviction was affirmed.
The Evening News of date of March 13, 1894, in reviewing editorially the record of Mr. Burroughs as prosecuting attorney said:
" Mr. Burroughs's record as prosecuting attorney is now known to all who care to
study it. It is one he may well be proud of. According to official reports it appears
that the business done was unprecedented."
He is now a practicing attorney with a good and successful practice


658




in the courts of Michigan. He is a member of the State Bar Association, Detroit Post No. 384, G. A. R., and I. 0. 0. F.
In 1876 he married Jane Steffy of Belleville, Mich., and they have
had four children, of whom three survive: Lottie B., George H. and
Don M. He is a man of industrious habits and thinks no place is like
his home and no society like his family.
JAMES V. CAMPBELL.
A DISTI NG UISHED j udicial career, while not as dazzling to the popular ap -
prehension as that of the military hero, or even that of the multimillionaire, is far more useful to society.
The law is not an exact science. It is the practical application of the
principles of reason and justice, that is, of the rules of right and wrong,
to the particular case. What these principles and rules are in that
case must be settled in that case itself. The decisions of great judges
from the earliest period of the common law show what virile qualities
are demanded to fill the magistracy for the good of the public: sterling
character, good natural endowments, severe training, a tender and instructed conscience, a profound experience of the ways and habits of
men, and a thorough acquaintance with what are termed the authoritiesthat is, the reports of adjudged cases in the courts of England and
America, familiarity with which now has become the work of many
years.
The subject of this sketch is a marked illustration of these general
observations. Elected for six terms of six years each to the Supreme
Bench of the State of Michigan, he exhibited to the profession and the
community the foregoing qualities in the concrete, adorned, moreover,
by the graces of literature and the radiance of a Christian life. He
was a unique instance of the power of a marked personality on the
general mind, and the length and usefulness of his service on the bench
is as strong an argument in favor of an elective judiciary as the terms
of Marshall and Shaw in respect to the system of appointment.
It would seem as if the ancestry, education and early professional
habits of Campbell were all preparatory to the station in life which he
filled. On each side, those from whom he sprang were noticeable for
their mental, moral and religious characteristics. From his mother he
received the strain of the Bushnell blood of Connecticut, tinctured with


659




the iron of Calvinism and the philosophy of the schoolmen; from his
father's people he inherited the conservatism of the English Church,
and from all his progenitors that steadiness, power of application,
roundabout common sense, and symmetry of mind so necessary in the
ideal judge. Wendell Holmes wrote that to make a gentleman you
must begin a hundred years before he is born. So with a distinguished
judge.
His life was without stirring incident. All our lives, eventful or
otherwise, are marked by the three epochs of birth, marriage and deaththe same with prince and peasant. Campbell was born February 25,
1823, at Buffalo, N. Y.; was married November 8, 1849, to Cornelia
Hotchkiss, of Oneida, N. Y.; and died March 26, 1890, at Detroit,
where he had lived since the age of three. His literary education was
at St. Paul's College, Flushing, Long Island, N. Y., but his real education was in the bosom of the cultivated and Christian family of
which he was a member. It is now too much the habit of parents to
delegate the rearing of their childron to the public school, and perhaps
the Sunday school; but the home is the place where good citizenship
is builded, and the main object of civilization is to establish the wellordered home. Campbell's professional training was with the eminent
firm of Douglass & Walker, of which le later became a member.
Douglass was afterwards of the Circuit and Supreme Bench, and Walker
attorney-general, and each published volumes of our reports. Walker's
Chancery Reports were, to a considerable extent, the work of young
Campbell, whose acquaintance with equity jurisprudence became extensive and profound, and this branch of legal learning was a favorite
with him. See the case of Brown vs. Kalamazoo, Circuit Judge, 75
Mich., 274.
While at the bar, the practice of Campbell was extensive and varied
in almost every department-in jury trials, equity, as mentioned above,
in the Federal courts, in chamber consultations, and as counsel to corporations. His reading was particularly extensive in the reports of
Westminster Hall and of the Supreme Court of the United States, and
his opinions show a greater familiarity than those of any of his associates with these reports. See The American Transportation Colmpany
vs. Moore, 5 Mich., 368.
Thus, when, in 1858, a new Supreme Court was established in Michigan, with jurisdliction almost wholly appellate and whose members
were to do no circuit duty, the name of young CampI)bell presented


66()




itself at once to the minds of men, and of the Republican leaders, as a
fit candidate, and he received election to that bench which he ornamented
for the next half of his life, thirty-three years. He was then thirtyfour years old. Story went on the Federal Supreme Bench at thirtyone, Marshall at forty-six, Woodbury on that of New Hampshire at
twenty-seven. Campbell was then in the full maturity of his powers,
and showed no decline at sixty-seven-the age which he attained.
The reports of his court, during the time of his incumbency, reached
a sale, outside this State, third in demand by the legal profession of the
whole country; coming next after New York and Massachusetts. This
sketch furnishes no space or opportunity for an analysis of his judicial
labors, or of his characteristics as a judge. His opinions, in general,
are lucid in statement, clear in arrangement and strong in structure,
and his diction simple and flowing-marked by common sense and with
no parade of learning, although wholly adequate in that respect. He
wrote with great ease, and his manuscripts, in a beautiful chirography,
show hardly any corrections. The judges then wrote and filed their
opinions in their own handwriting. The salary was only fifteen hundred dollars; the same as that of Shaw in Massachusetts. It was indeed fortunate for the State that, in the formative period of its jurisprudence, the foundations were laid by Campbell and his associates,
familiarly known to the bar as " The Big Four."
Judge Campbell all his life was in demand as a platform speaker, his
high character, clearness of address, and attractive manner rendering
him particularly pleasing to a popular audience, although he never indulged in what are called flowers of speech. Had he devoted himself
to authorship, he would have made a great name. Dr. Johnson defines
a genius as a mind of large general powers accidentally devoted in a
particular direction. If this be so, Campbell was a genius directed to
the law. His published pamphlets and occasional addresses and his
"Political History of Michigan " show what rank he might have attained in literature. Many of his poems, written for his children,
should be gathered in a volume.
Judge Campbell's relations to the university were extraordinary.
About 1858 he served as secretary to the Board of Regents, and was
one of the founders of the Law School, to whose fame he greatly contributed for a quarter of a century as a professor.
In the civic and religious life of Detroit Judge Campbell was a prominent figure. He served as a member and president of the Young Men's


661




Society-then the leading organization of the city.  He was also a
member and president of the Public Library Commission. He was a
member of the standing committee of the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan, and vestryman of St. Panl's, the mother church of the Diocese.
Judge Campbell was particularly intimate with the old French population of Detroit. He admired their beautiful language, which he read
and spoke. The Catholic clergy were his strong supporters.
The judge was particularly unostentatious in his manner of living.
The immoderate luxury of the age, since the war, had no charms for
him, any more than for the poet Horace, who declared against such
luxury in one of his odes. But his simple hospitality was boundless,
and no stranger of distinction ever visited Detroit without coming under his roof and enjoying the attractiveness of his presence and conversation. That charm was elusive and indefinable, but felt and recognized. St. George Tucker, of Philadelphia, wrote Judge Ben Curtis
congratulating him on leaving the Federal Supreme Bench, and descending to the practice of law again, " because " said Tucker, " a judge
is a chilly thing." Campbell was the exact reverse. No man was ever
admitted to his friendship-and the whole community were his friendswho was not warmed by his love for all human kind, while at the same
time instructed by his wisdom, and fascinated by his winning smile and
unpretending manners. He was then the friend, neighbor, the man,
and not the distinguished jurist and powerful magistrate.
" Though dead, he speaks in reason's ear,
And in example lives."
HENRY M. CAMPBELL.
Henry M. Campbell, son of the late Chief Justice James V. Campbell, of the Supreme Court of Michigan, and Cornelia (Hotchkiss)
Campbell, was born in Detroit, Mich., April 18, 1854  He was graduated from the Detroit High School in 1872; received the degree of Ph.
B. from the literary department of the University of Michigan in 1876;
and the degree of LL. B. from the law department of that institution
in 1878, having read law in the offices of Hon. Alfred Russell at Detroit, during his college vacation months. He was admitted to the bar
in 1877, and immediately following his graduation, in 1878, he located
in Detroit.


662








J. HENRY CARSTENS, M. L.




In 1879 the firm of Russel & Campbell, composed of Henry Russel
and Henry M. Campbell was organized. Later Charles H. Campbell
became a member of the firm, the name of the firm remaining unchanged.
Mr. Campbell makes a specialty of corporation and railroad law, and is
retained as counsel by the Michigan Central Railroad, the Flint and
Pere Marquette Railroad, the Pontiac, Oxford and Northern Railroad,
the Union Trust Co., Parke, Davis & Co., Michigan Carbon Works,
and other large concerns in Detroit. He is a member of the American, Michigan State and Detroit Bar Associations, and is a member
of the executive committee of the latter organization. For a number
of years he has been a master in chancery of the United States courts;
is a director of the State Savings Bank of Detroit; of the Michigan
Carbon Works; director and treasurer of the River Rouge Improvement Co.; director and treasurer of the Cass Farm Co., and is Qotherwise
prominently identified with the business interests of the city and State.
He is serving his second term as president of the Detroit Club, is
president of the Detroit Naval Reserve, a member of the Detroit Boat
Club, the Prismatic Club, the County Club, and Delta Kappa Epsilon
college fraternity. Politically he is a Republican.
In 1881 Mr. Campbell married Caroline B., daughter of James
Burtenshaw, of Detroit, and they have two children: Henry M., jr.,
and Douglas.
J. HENRY CARSTENS, M. D.
J. HENRY CARSTENS, M. D., was born June 9, 1848, in Kiel, province
of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. His father, John Henry Carstens, a
merchant tailor, was an ardent Revolutionist, and had been captured
and was in prison when his son was born. Later on he was released,
and almost immediately emigrated, with his family, to America, settling in Detroit, Mich., where he has since remained.
J. Henry Carstens was educated in the public schools of Detroit and
in the German-American Seminary, where he spent six years. His
parents lived on a farm four and a half miles from Detroit, and he was
compelled to walk that distance twice a day while attending school.
He early evinced an eager desire for intellectual work, excelling in his
studies and taking high rank, especially in things pertaining to natural
sciences and mathematics. Before reaching the age of fifteen he was


663




compelled to leave school and enter business. He was engaged for a
while in the drug store of William Thum, and later served in Duffield's
drug store. He became proficient in all the details of the drug business, and for one year was prescription clerk in Stearns's drug store.
He then began the study of medicine, his name being the first on the
matriculation book of the Detroit College of Medicine. Even before
graduation he had charge of the college dispensary, and after graduation (in 1870), he took entire charge of the college dispensary, remaining there for several years, and then, for some years, held a like position in St. Mary's Hospital Infirmary.
He was appointed lecturer on minor surgery in the Detroit Medical
College in 1871, and afterward as lecturer on diseases of the skin, and
clinical medicine. He has lectured on nearly every branch of medical
science, but his taste and practice gradually tended to the diseases of
women, and after holding the professorship of materia medica and
therapeutics in the Detroit College of Medicine for some years, in 1881
he accepted the professorship of obstetrics and clinical gynaecology,
and has held that position ever since.
In 1876 he entered politics, being elected chairman of the Republican
City Committee, and was at the same time a member of the County
Committee, and held those positions for three years. He was elected
to the Board of Education in 1875, and re-elected in 1879. In 1877 he
was appointed president of the Board of Health, and has held numerous
other minor offices.
Dr. Carstens holds the position of gynecologist to Harper Hospital,
being chief of the medical staff. He is attending physician to the
Woman's hospital, and is obstetrician to the House of Providence.
He is a member of the American and Michigan State Medical Associations, and was vice-president of the Detroit Medical and Library Society, is a member of the I)etroit Academy of Medicine, and of the
British Gynecological Society. He is an honorary member of the
Owosso and Kalamazoo Academy of Medicine, the Northeastern District Medical Society, and was president of the American Association
of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists in 18!95, and is ex-president of the
Detroit Gynaccological Society. IHe is also prominent in many other
societies, and has gained almost world-wide renown through the papers
and books he has written on the different modern discoveries and treatments in medical science. He has long since given up "general practice," and devotes himself exclusively to abdominal surgery and diseases
of women.
664








II
II


GEORGE F. CASE.




Dr. Carstens was married on October 18, 1870, to Miss Hattie Rohnert, of Detroit.
GEORGE F. CASE.
GEORGE F. CASE, son of Elijah and Beulah A. (Harris) Case, was
born near Savannah, Ga., July 4, 1833. When ten years of age he was
placed in the family of his uncle, Samuel Harris, a manufacturer of
woolens, in Leeds, N. Y. Mr. Case received his education in the public schools of Leeds, and at the age of fifteen he began his business
career as freight clerk on a Mississippi River steamboat. After several
years spent on the river, in which he served in various capacities, and
later in speculation at Memphis, Tenn., he eventually located at Nashville, Tenn., and engaged in general merchandising. He subsequently
purchased the St. Cloud Hotel at Nashville, which he conducted until
February 22, 1867.
In 1861 he enlisted in the Fourteenth Ohio Battery of Artillery, as
sergeant under Captain Burrows, a brother of Hon. J. C. Burrows,
United States Senator from Michigan. He was detailed to serve in
various capacities, and was in charge of the transportation of forage
and provisions for the Third Brigade, Army of the Tennessee. Upon
conclusion of the war he was appointed by President Grant assessor of
the Ninth Division of the Third District of Tennessee, under Thomas
Carlisle, and served in that capacity until 1869. Subsequent to his
service as assessor he removed to New Orleans, La., where he engaged
in cotton speculation until 1871. The following year he engaged in
buying and selling horses in Canada. In 1872 he removed to Detroit,
Mich., where he engaged in the livery business at the corner of State
and Griswold streets, later removing to West Congress street, where
he eventually succeeded in building up the largest business of its kind
in the city. In 1896 his establishment was completely destroyed by
fire, and on its site, in March, 1897, he erected the Case Power building, an important addition to the city's business buildings. Mr. Case
is prominent in Masonic circles, being a member of Michigan Sovereign Consistory; Moslem Temple, Nobles of the Mystic Shrine; and
Oriental Lodge, F. & A. M.
He has been twice married; first, in 1858, to Miss Nellie A. Watrus
of Ashtabula, Ohio. One son was born of this union, John W. Case,
665
84




an architect of Detroit, who received on competitive examination the
Roach commission, entitling him to a two years' trip abroad. On September 18, 1897, he married as his second wife Miss Hattie Campbell
of Detroit.
CHARLES W. CASGRAIN.
CHARLES W. CASGRAIN was born in Sandwich, Ontario, Canada, May
24, 1859, and is a son of Dr. Charles E. and Charlotte Marie (Chase)
Casgrain, his father being a senator of the Dominion of Canada.
Charles W. was educated in the Assumption College at Sandwich,
Ontario, and after graduating from that institution he took up the
study of law. In 1879 he removed to Detroit, Mich., and entered the
office of Hon. Don M. Dickinson, being admitted to the bar in 1883.
For six years he remained with Mr. Dickinson, and in 1885 he opened
an office and has ever since been an active practitioner of his profession.
He was elected as city attorney in 1889, and served in that capacity
until 1892. From 1888 to 1892 he was chairman of the Congressional
Democratic Committee for the first Congressional district; in 1892 he
was a delegate from his district to the Democratic National Convention
at Chicago.
As a lawyer, he has been successful in general practice. He is
strong and logical before court and jury, and presents his case in an
easy and eloquent manner. While city attorney he made a very
enviable record for himself, being honest and faithful to his public
duties. Mr. Casgrain has been quite a traveler, both at home and
abroad, having made two extended tours to Europe.
In February, 1886, Mr. Casgrain married Annie Hammond, daughter of the late George H. Hammond of Detroit. They have four
children: Charlotte Marie Chase, Adelaide IH., IHammlond, and Wilfred V.
ZACHARIAH CHANI)LER.
I-ON. ZACHARIAH CHANDLER was born in Bedford. N. 11., D)ecember
10, 1813. After receiving such an education as was afforded by the
public schools of his time, followed by an apprenticeship as clerk in a
666




(I:ilil


CHARLES W. CASGRA1N.








store, he removed to Detroit, Mich., in 1833, where he engaged in the
dry goods business. His first store was on the site of the Biddle House,
and from there he removed to Woodward avenue, between Woodbridge
and Atwater streets. The business which he established afterward became the leading wholesale dry goods firm of Michigan, under the style
of Allan Shelden & Company, and Mr. Chandler was known as the
merchant prince of his State.
In 1848 he served as treasurer of the Young Men's Benevolent Association; in 1851 was elected mayor of the city of Detroit; and in 1857
was elected to succeed Gen. Lewis Cass as United States senator, for
the full term of six years, and was re-elected in 1863 and again in 1869.
In December of 1861, on his motion, a joint committee of the Senate
and House of Representatives on the conduct of the war was appointed;
this celebrated committee was continued until the close of the war,
many changes taking place, but Senator Chandler remained and always
was the controlling spirit, and his abilities and methods were effective
in securing the unity of the Republican party in its war measures. Upon
the control of the Senate passing into the hands of the Republican party,
he was made chairman of the committee on commerce, holding that position until the expiration of his term of office in 1875. He was always an
earnest and efficient supporter of President Lincoln and of President
Grant, and possessed their full confidence and esteem.
Senator Chandler's most notable speech was on the conduct of the
war, and in which he severely criticised General McClellan's military
course as commander in-chief of the Army of the Potomac. To this
effort was undoubtedly due the transfer of General Grant to that command. Mr. Chandler no sooner entered political life than he showed
that he possessed great ability as a politician, and when his advice was
followed, party success was generally assured. He served as chairman
of the Union Congressional Committee for four years, and was a mem r
ber of the Republican National Committee in 1876. October 9, 1875, he
was appointed by General Grant secretary of the interior and served
in that capacity until the close of the administration. His death
occurred on November 1, 1879, at Chicago, Ill. His widow and one
daughter, the wife of Eugene Hale, of Maine, survive him.


667




HENRY M. CHEEVER.


HENRY MARTYN CHEEVER, lawyer, was born in Stillwater, Saratoga
county, N. Y., June 20, 1832, the son of Rev. Ebenezer Cheever, D.D.
(1791-1866), a leading Presbyterian divine in the Eastern States for
many years.  The paternal line of ancestry goes back to Edward
Cheever, Baron of Bannow, and Viscount Mount Leister, who was
impeached for loyalty to King James (Stuart) by the Long Parliament
about the year 1642. On the maternal side he is descended from the
family of which Governor Wolcott, of Colonial and Revolutionary
fame, was a member, Mr. Cheever's great-grandmother being Governor
Wolcott's sister, and from this family Donald G. Mitchell (Ik Marvel),
the author, came.
He received his education in classical and private schools in New
Jersey, and at the University of Michigan, where he was graduated in
1853 with the highest honors, taking the full college course, and receiving the degree of A. B., and three years later that of A. M. He
then studied law, and was admitted to the bar in his twenty-first year,
and from that time forward devoted himself almost exclusively to his
profession. Among the important legal cases conducted by him, or in
which he has participated as counsel, are: Workman vs. the Board of
Education, in the Supreme Court of Michigan, where the issue involved was the admission of colored pupils in the public schools; the
Board of Park Commissioners vs. the City of Detroit, the issue being a
resisting of the demand of the Board of Park Commissioners for the issuing of $300,000 in bonds for the purchase of a park; and the labor debt
cases, 500 in number, against Luther Beecher and the Marquette
Rolling-mill company, the question being the liability of a stockholder,
and the amount involved being $1,000,000. He was counsel for the
plaintiff in the libel suit of Atkinson vs. the "Free Press," one of the
most noted suits of the time; counsel for the defendant in the libel
suit of Wheaton vs. Beecher; counsel for the Boston stockholders of
the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad Company, which case, involving the liability of bonds to the amount of $10,000,000, was argued
by Mr. Cheever in the Supreme Court of Kansas in 1886. He was one
of the leading counsel in the celebrated Reeder Ejectment suit, involving land worth $500,000 in Detroit, which was before the court for
nine years, and involved among other important questions, the construction of the Jay treaty of 1794, the rights and status of aliens and


668




k                                         AM








British subjects residing in Detroit when the city was evacuated by the
English, and the doctrine of escheat.
In criminal practice Mr. Cheever has acted for the defense in some
of the most noted cases of the past forty years. He was counsel for
the defense in two murder cases which had a national reputation, and
were justly classed as among the causes ccl'bres of this country. In
the Vanderpool murder case, in 1872, the prisoner was a prominent
banker at Manistee, Mich., and was charged with the murder of his
partner, Herbert Field. On the trial, which lasted six weeks, the
prisoner was acquitted. The case was a remarkable one of circumstantial evidence. Public opinion was strong against the prisoner. Mr.
Cheever's closing argument, which occupied one day, was a keen analysis
of circumstantial evidence, and has been regarded as one of the best efforts
of his professional life. in the Underwood murder case, at Detroit in
1878, the defendant was charged with the murder of Lottie Pridgeon,
by stabbing her. The killing was admitted; it seemed to be without
possible provocation or excuse, and so strong was public sentiment and
the press against the prisoner that the judge before whom the case was
tried expressed surprise that any defense should be attempted. The
defense was emotional insanity, and the prisoner was acquitted. The
arguments of these two cases, published in Donovan's work, entitled,
" Celebrated Jury Trials," "are regarded as fine specimens of forensic
eloquence."
In 1896 he was one of the counsel for the defense in the Pope
murder case which was one of the most celebrated criminal cases of the
country.
Notwithstanding Mr. Cheever's devotion to the profession he has not
neglected general literature and the classics, and is familiar with the
leading works of fiction, history and poetry. As a general lawyer he
has no superior. His cross examinations excel; and while he is gentlemanly, he rarely fails to obtain the truth and expose falsehood. His
arguments are uniformly good and his wit brilliant, but always kind.
He enjoys a large and lucrative practice, and is much esteemed by all,
especially the younger members of the bar, for his kind and considerate
treatment when applied to for counsel or advice. He is a member of
the American, State, and Detroit Bar Associations, serving as vicepresident of the latter for ten years.
During his entire career Mr. Cheever has avoided politics. He was
a member of the Board of Education of Detroit from 1857 to 1861, and


669




of the State Board of Visitors to the University of Michigan in 1857 and
1858. He is a staunch Presbyterian, a man of deep religious convictions, though liberal in his sentiments, and on the occasion of the
banquet given by the Presbyterian Alliance in Detroit in 1886, was
selected to deliver an address on the subject of " Presbyterianism and
Catholicity."  He was one of the organizers of the Westminster
church in Detroit, has been a member of its board of trustees for many
years, and was four years its president. Politically he is a Republican.
At the outset of his professional life Mr. Cheever married Sara
Buckbee, eldest daughter of Hon. Walter A. Buckbee, a prominent
lawyer in the State. Mrs. Cheever died in 1890. One child, a daughter, was the fruit of the union. The daughter, now Mrs. James S.
Meredith of New York, has been engaged for some years in literary
pursuits, and is prominent as a writer under the noni de plume of
"Johanna Staats." Several volumes of her stories have been published,
her contributions also appearing in many of the magazines.
WILLIAM J. CHITTENDEN.
WILLIAM J. CHITTENDEN, proprietor of the Russell House of Detroit, is
a native of the Empire State, having been born in the town of Adams,
Jefferson county, N. Y., April 28, 1835. He is a son of Thomas C. and
Nancy (Benton) Chittenden. Mr. Chittenden acquired his education
in the Jefferson County Institute at Watertown, N. Y., where he removed with his parents when eight years of age. In 1853 he made a
visit to Detroit and was so favorably impressed that he concluded to
remain for a while. For three years, or until 1856, he was in the employ of Holmes & Co., dry goods merchants, and later spent two years
in the money order department of the State post-office. He returned
to Watertown, N. Y., in 1856, and during the following year filled
the position of assistant bookkeeper and teller in the Black River Bank
of[that place.
In 1857 the old National Hotel at Detroit, owned by William Hale, a
brother-in-law of Mr. Chittenden, was enlarged and remodeled and
named the Russell House. It September of that year it was opened
under the management of William H. Russell. In 1858 Mr. Russell
retired, Mr. Hale assumed the management of the hotel, and Mr. Chittenden removed to Detroit to assume the duties of bookkeeper and


670




confidential secretary to the proprietor. In 1861 Mr. Hale withdrew
from the hotel business and Mr. L. T. M'iner undertook the management of the house, Mr. Chittenden remaining in the office. In 1864
Mr. Chittenden, in company with C. S. Witbeck, under the style of
Whitbeck & Chittenden, assumed the management of the hotel, a copartnership which existed until the death of Mr. Witbeck in 1882,
when Mr. Chittenden became sole proprietor. From 1890 to 1896 Mr.
Chittenden had associated with him Mr. L. A. McCreary, under the
style of Chittenden & McCreary, but since the latter year has conducted
the business alone. Under his capable management the Russell House
has become famous as one of the leading hotels of the United States,
and under its hospitable roof have been entertained some of the most
prominent men in the United States and Canada, as well as many foreign personages of distinction.
Aside from his hotel, Mr. Chittenden is prominently identified with
several of the leading business enterprises of the city of Detroit. He
is a stockholder in and director of the First National Bank of Detroit;
is vice-president of the Hargreaves Manufacturing Co., and vice-president of the Michigan Wire and Iron Works. He is equally prominent
and influential in clubs and social circles and enjoys the highest esteem
of all with whom he comes in contact. He is a prominent Mason, being
a member of Michigan Sovereign Consistory, Detroit Commandery No.
1, K. T., Moslem Temple, Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, and Union
Lodge No. 3, F. & A. M. He is also a member of the Detroit Club, the
Fellowcraft Club, the Michigan Republican Club, the Audubon Whist
Club and the Old Club at St. Clair Flats. Mayor Grummond appointed
him a commissioner of the Detroit House of Correction, and he served
in that capacity for ten years, that being the only public office he ever
consented to fill.
On January 18, 1866, Mr. Chittenden married Irene Williams,
daughter of the late Gen. Alpheus S. Williams, and they have five
children: Frederick L., Alpheus S., May F., William J., jr., and Marguerite. Mr. Chittenden is one of the truly representative men of
Detroit. Few residents of the city have a wider acquaintance among
distinguished men than he, for his noted hotel has at times been the
temporary home of many of the most noteworthy Americans. His
name is ineffably associated with the history of Detroit and his splendid hotel is one of the most conspicuous landmarks of the beautiful
city.


671




JOSEPH H. CLARK.


JOSEPH H. CLARK, son of Nelson Clark, a prosperous farmer, now a
resident of Detroit, was born on a farm near Sandusky, Ohio, December 20, 1860. Mr. Clark received his early education in the district
schools and later spent two years in the graded school at Castalia, Ohio.
Subsequently he entered the State Normal School at Valparaiso, Ind.,
and after completing the literary course was graduated therefrom with
honors in 1878. He taught school between sessions during his attendance in the Normal School, and following his graduation taught for six
years in the public schools of Ohio and Michigan. While teaching he
took up the study of law, and in 1885, after passing a satisfactory examination, was admitted to the bar; he then spent one year as a clerk
in the office of Winsor & Snover at Port Austin, Mich., and during the
following nine years practiced his profession successfully at Manistique,
Mich., where he served as prosecuting attorney for two years, and at
Muskegon, Mich., where for five years he was a member of the law
firm of Jones & Clark. In 1895 Mr. Clark located in Detroit, and on
January 1, 1897, formed a partnership with Levi T. Griffith. Mr.
Clark has won for himself an enviable reputation as a lawyer, and enjoys the high est.eem of his fellow practitioners and the public. He is
a member of the Detroit Bar Association, Detroit Bowling Club, and
of Damon Lodge, Knights of Pythias.
In 1885 he married Minnie McMuldroch of White Rock, Mich., and
they have three children: Grace, Nelson, and Clifford Le Roy.
FREDERICK J. CLIPPERT, M. D.
FRi:)EER4CK J. ClIri',ErT, M. D., son of Conrad and Christina (Pfeiflc)
Clippert, was born in Detroit, Mich., August 20, 1866. Dr. Clippert
received his education in the public schools of Detroit and in Goldsmith's Business College, from which he graduated in 1882. Upon
completion of his education he entered the employ of his father, a
prominent brick manufacturer, with whom he remained until 1886;
when he was offered and accepted a situation in the Asylum for the Insane at Jamestown, Dakota Territory. While serving in that institution he began the study of medicine and pharmacy under Dr. O. W.
Archibald, and in 1887 entered the University of Minnesota at Minne

672




F. J. CLIPPERT, M. D.








apolis, where he remained two years. Subsequently he entered the
Chicago Medical College and was graduated therefrom in April, 1890.
Upon receiving his diploma, he secured through competitive examination the appointment of house physician at Alexian Brothers' Hospital, Chicago, remaining in that capacity until 1891. In the spring of
that year he removed to Delray, Mich., and established his present
practice. In 1893 he was appointed health officer of Delray and is at
present serving in that capacity. In the November election succeeding
the incorporation of Delray (which occurred in October, 1897), Dr.
Clippert was elected first president of the village. He is prominent in
Masonic circles, being a member of Zion Lodge, F & A. M.; of Michigan Sovereign Consistory, and Moslem Temple, Nobles of the Mystic
Shrine. He is also a member of the Ancient Order of United Workmen, and is secretary of the Board of Pension Examining Surgeons for
Wayne county, and a member of Wayne County Medical Society.
COL. EDWIN F. CONELY.
Coi.. EDWIN F. CONELY, son of William S. Conely and Eliza (O'Connor) Conely, was born in the city of New York, September 7, 1847.
In 1853 he removed with his parents to Brighton, Mich. His education was obtained in the public schools of New York city, Brighton,
Mich., Jackson, Mich., and by private study.  He studied law in
the offices of Sardis F. Hubbell of Howell, Mich., of Olney Hawkins of Ann Arbor, Mich., and of D. B. & H. M. Duffield of Detroit; he also attended the law school of the University of Michigan.
In 1870 he was admitted to the bar and has ever since been in the uninterrupted and successful practice of his profession in Detroit. During
the years 1891, 1892 and 1893 he was professor of law in the University
of Michigan, but resigned on account of the demands of an increasing
practice.
Mr. Conely represented the city of Detroit in the Legislature in 1887,
and received the Democratic nomination for speaker of the House of
Representatives. He was a delegate to the National Democratic Conventions of 1880 and 1892, and was a member of the Board of Water
Commissioners of Detroit in 1885. Colonel Conely is a staunch Iemocrat and in 1896 allied himself with the Sound Money men of that
party. He was a delegate from the State of Michigan to the Sound
673
85




Money Democratic Convention of 1896 at Indianapolis, which nominated Palmer and Buckner, and was a member of the committee on
platform. His advice has always heen highly esteemed in the councils
of his party. During the years of 1893, 1894 and 1895 he was a member of the commission to revise the municipal charters of the State,
and from 1890 to 1896 he was a member of the Board of Library Commissioners.
He was connected with the State troops for thirteen years, having
been captain of the Detroit Light Infantry, major of the Fourth Infantry and as colonel and A. D. C., was president of the State Military
Board. He is a life member of the American Historical Society, a
member of Michigan Political Science Association, and of the American and Michigan Bar Associations. Colonel Conely is a member of
St. Paul's Episcopal church of Detroit, and for several years has been
a vestryman in that church. He is also a member of Oriental Lodge
No. 240, F. & A. M.; Peninsular Chapter No. 16, R. A. M.; Monroe
Council, R. & S. M.; Michigan Sovereign Consistory; Moslem Temple,
Nobles of the Mystic Shrine; and Damascus Commandery, Knights
Templar.
He was married December 9, 1873, to Achsah, daughter of Abel F.
Butterfield of Green Oak, Mich., who died Janualy 22, 1878. On
May 9, 1882, he married as his second wife, Fanny, daughter of Charles
Butterfield of Goshen, Ind., a cousin of his first wife.
LEARTUS CONNOR, M. D.
LEARTUS CONNOR, M. D., son of Hezekiah and Caroline (Corwin)
Connor, was born in Coldenham, Orange county, N. Y., January 29,
1843, and is a grandson of William Connor and great-grandson of John
Connor, who emigrated from Castle Pollard, County of Westmeath,
Ireland, settling in Scotchtown, N. Y., in 1767, and fought in the war
of the Revolution. William Connor was a soldier in the war of 1812.
Dr. Connor's mother was a daughter of Phineas Corwin, a soldier in
the war of 1812; a cousin of Thomas Corwin of Ohio, congressman
three terms, United States senator, and secretary of the treasury under
President Fillmore; and seventh in descent from Mathias Corwin, who
emigrated from England and settled at Ipswich, Mass., in 1633, and in
1640 at Southold, Long Island, N. Y.
674




Dr. Connor prepared for college at Wallkill Academy, Middletown,
N. Y., and was graduated with the degree of A. B. from Williams College in June, 1865, receiving the degree of A. M. from the same instition in 1868. He was assistant principal of Mexico Academy, Mexico,
N. Y., from 1865 until 1867, and commenced the study of medicine in
1865, under Dr. George L. Dayton of Mexico, N. Y.; atttended one
course of lectures and did laboratory work in the department of medicine and surgery of the University of Michigan, and two courses at the
College of Physicians and Surgeons in the city of New York, graduating from t-he latter in 1870. For about seven months following he
practiced medicine in Searsville, N. Y., and then removed to Detroit,
Mich., where he has, since 1878, devoted himself exclusively to ophthalmology and otology.
Dr. Connor was lecturer on chemistry, including practical laboratory
work, in Detroit Medical College during the years 1871-72, and professor of physiology and clinical medicine in the same institution from
1872 until 1879, professor of didactic and clinical ophthalmology and
otology, from 1878 to 1881, attending physician to St. Mary's Hospital,
Detroit, from 1872 until 1878, was ophthalmic and aural surgeon to
Harper Hospital, Detroit, from 1881 until 1894, and consulting ophthalmologist since 1894:; ophthalmic and aural surgeon to the Detroit Children's Hospital since 1887; consulting ophthalmologist to the Woman's
Hospital since 1886. From 1871 to 1895 Dr. Connor edited a medical
journal, known successively as the Detroit Review of Medicine and
Pharmacy, the Detroit Medical Journal, the Detroit Lancet, and the
American Lancet.
He was secretary of the American Medical College Association from
1876 to 1883: secretary of the Detroit Medical College from 1875 until
1881; president of the Detroit Academy of Medicine during the years
1877-78 and 1888-89, and its secretary, 1871-72; president of the
American Academy of Medicine, 1888-89; chairman of the opthalmological section of the American Medical Association, 1891, vice-president
of that association in 1882-83, and trustee of its journal, 1883-89, 1892 -94; president of the American Medical Editors' Association, 1894. Dr.
Connor is an active member of the Detroit Academy of Medicine; the
Detroit Medical and Library Association; the Wayne County Medical
Society; the Detroit Quarter of Century Medical Club; the Michigan
State Medical Society; the American Academy of Medicine; the American Medical Editors' Association; the Michigan Academy of Science;


675




and the Detroit branch of the American Archaeological Institute.
From 1892 to 1894 he was a member of the committee appointed by
the American Medical Association to revise its code of ethics and its
constitution and by-laws. He was a member of the council of the
ophthalmic section of the Ninth International Medical Congress; and
was a member of the Pan-American Medical Congress.
Among his contributions to medical literature are: " Glaucoma Produced by Mental Disturbances;" "Syphilitic Diseases of the Eye;"
"Reproduction of the Membrana Tympani;" "The Value of Hot
Water in the Management of Eye Diseases; "  Tobacco Amblyopia;"
" Primary Inflammation of the Mastoid Cells; " and "Eye Complications in a case of Cerebral Tumor;" " Drifting-Who, How, Whither?",
a medical sociological study; "The True Principles on which the Medical Profession should be Associated, and the Character of the Resultant Organization;" " The Development of the Sections of the American
Medical Association;" "The American Medical Journal of the Future,
as Indicated by the American Medical Journals of the Past;" "The
First Twenty Years of the Detroit Academy of Medicine;" "The
American Academy of Medicine-Its Objects, Field of Work, and Suggestions for Increase in its Efficiency; "  Memorial Remarks on James
Fanning Noyes;" "Needs for and Value of Public Health Work;" and
"Diseases of the Lachrymal Passages-Their Causes and Management."
He is also the author of "Notes on the Treatment of Trachoma by
Jequirity;" "Strabismus as a Symptom, its Causes and its Practical
Management; " " The Technique of Tenotomy of the Ocular Muscles; "
"Amblyopia from Suppression, Congenital Imperfections or Diseases:
Which or All?"; "Remarks on the Management of Glaucoma;"
"Mumps as a cause of Sudden Deafness, " and " How we can Obtain
and Preserve the Eyesight and Hearing."
Dr. Connor is actively identified with the social, political, religious
and business interests of the city of his residence, being a member of
the Detroit Club, the Michigan (Republican) Club, the Fellowcraft
Club, and the Bankers' Club of Detroit; is an elder in the Fort Street
Presbyterian church, and a director in the Home Savings Bank, etc.
August 10, 1870, he married Anna A., eldest daughter of the late
Rev. Charles and Nancy P. (Page) Dame of Exeter, N. H. Mrs. Dr.
Connor is a graduate of Mt. Holyoke College, class of 1866; is a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution, of the Society of
Colonial Dames, and is president of the Michigan Mt. Holyoke Alumnae;67








1
I


- L;! I j -~


JAMES P. COOK.




Association. She is also a collateral descendant from Sir Francis Drake.
Their children, Guy Leartus and Ray, aged twenty-two and twenty
respectively, were graduated together in the class of 1897 from Williams College, each with the degree of A. B., and in the autumn of
1897 began the study of medicine, by their own choice, in Johns Hopkins University at Baltimore, Md.
JAMES P. COOK.
JAMES P. COOK, son of Alexander and Maria Decatur (Wilson) Cook,
was born in Buffalo, N. Y., March 4, 1845. His grandfather, Calvin
Cook, was born in 1777, and for many years was prominently identified
with the growth and development of Saratoga county, N. Y., where
he was born and died. Alexander Cook, the father of James P., was a
soldier in the army of the United States and was killed during the battle of Chapultepec, Mexico. Margaret Chamberlin, the grandmother of
Mr. Cook, was a cousin of Commodore Decatur of the United States
navy.
James P. Cook received his education in the public schools of his
native place, and at the age of eighteen removed to Detroit, Mich.,
where an elder brother had preceded him. Soon after his arrival he
entered the employ of Smith, Cook & Co., of which his brother was a
partner. His connection with this house lasted several years, on the
expiration of which he formed the firm of Bachelder & Cook, stone
dealers, and remained in that line until 1878. He was eminently successful in his business career and retired with a comfortable competence.
In April, 1882, he made important changes in his property interests,
and went to Rockford, Ill., with a view to an early settlement in that
or another western city. Soon after his arrival in that city he was taken
ill, and though attended with the best of medical skill, the progress of
the disease was rapid, resulting in his death on October 2, 1882. The
last few weeks of his illness were softened by the ministrations of his
wife, who had joined him immediately on learning of his sickness.
The remains were brought to Detroit, and the funeral services were
held from the residence of his father-in law, Mr. Thomas Ledbeter,
759 Fort street west, the interment being in Woodmere Cemetery. He


677




was a member of the Masonic fraternity. Mr. Cook married Hattie.
daughter of Thomas Ledbeter of Detroit. To them was born a daugh
ter, who died in early childhood. His widow survives him.
SAMUEL CRAWFORD.
SAMUEL CRAWFORD, son of Francis and Cynthia W. (Carpenter) Crawford, was born in Newburgh, Orange county, N. Y., December 17,
1842. On the paternal side he is descended from James Crawford, who
emigrated from Ireland to America in 1718, settling in Little Britain.
Francis Crawford, his great grandfather, was a large landed proprietor
of Newburgh previous to the war of the Revolution. His great-grandfather on the maternal side was Richard Goldsmith, of Bloomingrove,
Orange county, N. Y., who died in 1820.  Francis Crawford, the
father of Samuel, came to Michigan in 1850, located at Detroit and engaged in the real estate business, with the late William B. Wesson as
his broker, and for many years was one of the most prominet dealers
in realty in Michigan. He gave to the city of Detroit those parcels of
land now known as Crawford Park and Elton Park.
Samuel Crawford received his early education in the private school
of Prof. Nutting at Lodi Plains, Mich., and later attended the State
Normal School at Ypsilanti, subsequently taking a course in Goldsmith's Business College at Detroit. Upon completion of his studies
he entered the employ of his father, where he remained some three
years, when he engaged in the commission business, dealing in such
commodities as the markets of the city afforded. In 1866 he entered
the real estate field, where he has since become well and favorably
known, having established a large and successful business.  Many
valuable subdivisions to the city have been laid out by him and placed
upon the market.
He has been a lifelong Republican, and although deeply interested
in the welfare of his party, his many interests have precluded his acceptance of public office. As a man he is highly esteemed by his fellow citizens, and possesses a reputation for integrity and conservative
business methods. He is a member of Union Lodge, F. & A. M., and
the Ancient Order of United Workmen.
On November 21, 1871, he married Miss Mary A. Reid, of London,
Canada, and they have a family of three children: Samuel, jr., Grace


678




I




GEORGE E. CURRIE.




C., and Harry. He and his family are members of Grace Episcopal
church.
CAMERON CURRIE.
CAMERON CURRIE, one of the thoroughly representative young business men of Detroit, is a native of Canada, having been born in London,
Ontario, May 4, 1860. His father, Donald Currie, was a well known
and widely respected resident of that city. Mr. Currie attended the
public and high schools of his native town until 1879, at which time he
removed to Detroit. Here he at once entered the employ of the Detroit City Railway Company, rising in the course of time to the office
of secretary of that company. In 1891 the Detroit City Railway Company sold out its business, and Mr. Currie entered the banking and
brokerage business.
In 1892 he organized a stock company, of which he became president,
doing business under the name of Cameron Currie & Co., bankers and
brokers. The company has finely equipped offices in the Chamber of
Commerce building, with private wires connecting with all the leading
stock exchanges in the country. Mr. Currie is a member of the Detroit
and New York Stock Exchanges, being the only member of the latter
body in the State of Michigan, and is also a director in the Detroit River
Savings Bank. He is a member of the Detroit Club, the Yondotega
Club, the Country Club, the Bankers' Club and the Fellowcraft Club
of Detroit, the Reform Club of New York city, and of Corinthian Lodge
No. 2, F. & A. M., of Detroit.
In 1887 he married Harriette I. Lewis, daughter of Alexander Lewis
of Detroit. They are the parents of two children: John Donald and
Gwendolyn.
GEORGE E. CURRIE.
GEORGE E. CURRIE, son of Thomas and Nancy (Weekes) Currie, was
born in Seaforth, Ontario, Canada, August 5, 1863. Mr. Currie was
educated in the public schools of Detroit, Mich., where he removed
with his parents in 1872. In 1880 he went to Kansas where he was employed on a large cattle ranch and farm. After one year spent in this


679




occupation he returned to Detroit and secured a situation as bookkeeper
with the coal and wood firm of Thomas Currie & Son, serving in that
capacity for a short time, when he removed to the lumber regions of
Georgian Bay. During the succeeding six years he was engaged in
various lumbering enterprises, cutting timber during the winter months
and shipping the same in the summer. He also served as captain of
the tug Blanche Shelby a portion of this time. Subsequently he became a farmer in Northern Michigan and also assisted in the construction of the Toledo and Ann Arbor Railroad.
In March, 1889, he located permanently in Detroit, and established
his present business of general contractor. Since engaging in this line
Mr. Currie has been awarded several important public contracts, which
he has successfully completed. In 1893 he dug the Northeast Lake,
at Belle Isle Park, in 1895 was superintendent of construction for the
Detroit Railway Co., and in the same year built the road bed for the
Rapid Railway Co., from Detroit to Mt. Clemens. In 1896 he constructed
the electric road from Dayton to Miamisburg, Ohio, a distance of thirteen miles. In February, 1898, with John McVickar as his associate
he formed the firm of George E. Currie & Co., continuing his former
line of business.
He is a prominent Mason, being a member of Michigan Sovereign
Consistory; Monroe Chapter, Royal Arch Masons; Moslem Temple,
Nobles of the Mystic Shrine; and Palestine Lodge, F. & A. M. Politically he is a Democrat, and while taking an active interest in the welfare of his party, has never sought public office. He is greatly esteemed
by all with whom he comes in contact, and is known as a man of strict
integrity and untiring energy. He is a member of Memorial Presbyterian church.
He was married November 28, 1888, to Margaret E. Spence of Southampton, Ontario, Canada. They are the parents of three children:
Jean O., Edna M-, and Eleanor S. Currie.
SULLIVAN W. CUTCHEON.
HON. SULLIIVAN S. CUTCHEON, son of Rev. James and Hannah M.
(Tripp) Cutcheon, was born in Pembroke, N. H., October 4, 1833. He
was a student in the Gymnasium and Blanchard Academies in 1847,
1848 and 1849; was graduated from Dartmouth College in 1856, with
680




the degree of B. A, and in 1859 received the degree of M. A. After
graduation he was principal of the High School at Ypsilanti, Mich.,
and was superintendent of the public schools of Springfield, Ill., from
the fall of 1858 to the summer of 1860. He was admitted to the bar in
Springfield, and in July, 1860, returned to Ypsilanti, where he entered
upon and continued the practice of his profession until September 1,
1875, when he removed his law office to Detroit, in partnership with
with Judge Hiranm J. Beakes. Soon after the death of Mr. Beakes the
law firm of Cutcheon, Crane & Stellwagen was formed, which contined until 1888, when Mr. Crane retired and the firm of Cutcheon,
Stellwagen & Fleming was organized and continued until January 1,
1898.
Mr. Cutcheon is a Republican, and in the fall of 1860 was elected a
member of the House of Representatives of the State of Michigan, for
a term of two years, and was re elected for a like term in 1862. On
the first Wednesday of January, 1863, he was chosen speaker of the
House of Representatives and served as such during that session and
the two special sessions during 1863 and 1864. He was chairman of
the Michigan delegation to the National Republican Convention at
Chicago in 1868. He was appointed National Bank examiner for Michigan in 1865, and held that position for seven years. In 1868 he was
appointed by Governor Baldwin on the State Military Board and served
as a member thereof four years; in 1873 he was appointed by Governor
Bagley as one of the eighteen commissioners to revise the constitution
of Michigan and was chosen president of the commission. He was
appointed United States attorney for the Eastern district of Michigan
in March, 1877, and continued in that office until May, 1885, when he
resigned. In 1892 he was appointed by Governor Winans one of the
commissioners for Michigan for the promotion of uniformity of State
laws; was subsequently chosen president of that commission and still
holds that position. He has attended the meetings of the commissioners from the several States, at Saratoga Springs, New York, Milwaukee
and Detroit; and at Detroit was made president of the National Conference.
In 1882 he was elected a trustee of Olivet College, Michigan, and remained upon the board for several years until he resigned. In 1884
he was elected a trustee of Harper Hospital of Detroit, and has been
president of the board several years; he has raised toward its endowment about two hundred thousand dollars. In May, 1884, the Dime
6S1
86




Savings Bank of Detroit was organized and he was chosen president
of the same, which position he still holds. In 1892 he was chosen and still
continues president of the Ypsilanti Savings Bank; he was president
of the Michigan Banking Association in 1894-95; from January, 1884,
to January, 1890, he was president of the Young Men's Christian Association of Detroit and was largely instrumental in securing one of the
finest buildings then owned by any association in the country, costing
about one hundred and twenty thousand dollars. He is a member and
for many years has been an elder of the Presbyterian church at Ypsilanti and Detroit; he was commissioner to the General Assembly which
met at Brooklyn in 1876; was a member of the Pan-Presbyterian
Council which met at Toronto in 1892; and a commissioner to the
General Assembly which met at Washington in May, 1893. He was
president of the Alumni Association of Dartmouth College for 1896,
and has been president of his class since 1886. He was president of
the New England Society of Detroit for 1897.
December 8, 1859, he married Josephine Louise Moore of Ypsilanti,
Mich., and their children are Adeline L., wife of Edwin E. Armstrong
of Detroit, and Sullivan M., who died in 1877 at the age of five years.
RT. REV. THOMAS F. DAVIES.
RT. REV. THOMAS FREDERICK DAVIES, bishop of Michigan, son of
Thomas F. and Julia (Sanford) Davies, was born in Fairfield, Conn.,
August 31, 1831. He received his primary education in the Hopkins
Grammar School at New Haven, which he attended until 1849, when
he entered Yale College and was graduated therefrom in 1853, receiving the Berkley scholarship. In 1855 he entered Berkley Divinity
School, remaining until 1856, and received deacon's orders in Christ
church at Middletown, Conn., May 18, 1856. In the fall of that year
he was appointed professor of Hebrew at Berkley School, retaining that
chair until 1862. He was ordained to the priesthood on May 27, 1857.
IIis first rectorship was that of St. John's church at Portsmouth, N. H.,
to which he was appointed in 1862 and where he remained until 1868.
Subsequently he was transferred to St. Peter's church at Philadelphia,
Pa., of which he remained in charge until he was consecrated bishop
of Michigan on October 18, 1889. Bishop Davies received the degree
of D. D. from the University of Pennsylvania in 1871, LL.D. from


682








I
l`I R L,


1; i
i 001;


EDGAR A. DAVIS.




Hobart College in 1889, and that of D. D. from Yale College in 1893.
On the 29th of April, 1862, he married Mary L., daughter of William
G. Hackstaff of Middletown, Conn. They have three children.
EDGAR A. DAVIS.
EDGAR A. DAVIS, president of the Davis Fish Company of Detroit,
was born in Detroit, Mich., September 25, 1864, and is a son of Samuel
H. and Gussie J. (Wheeler) Davis. He is of Welsh ancestry, being
descended from William Davis, who was engaged in fisheries in that
country, and who emigrated to America about 1820 and located in
Ohio, removing to Detroit in 1854. He and his son Samuel, the father
of Edgar A., established themselves in the fishing business shortly after
their arrival in Detroit, and from that beginning has grown the present
large industry known as the Davis Fish Company, having its stations
on all of the great lakes and with headquarters at Detroit, The company gives employment directly and indirectly to over five hundred
fishermen, maintains a large fishing fleet as well as several steam tugs,
and at the present writing is recognized as one of the largest producers
and dealers in fresh water foods in the United States.
Edgar A. Davis was educated in the public schools of his native city,
from which he was graduated in 1878, and shortly afterward was
placed by his father at one of his fishing stations. Here he learned
each and every detail of the business in which in after years he was to
become the directcr.  On attaining his majority he was placed in
command of one of the company's propellers and for several years retained that position. In 1886 he returned to Detroit and organized the
Davis Boat and Oar Company, for the construction of steam vessels as
well as all kind of smaller craft. Under his able direction the business
assumed large proportions and soon became a leading firm among its
kind. After eight years of success in this line, he resigned to become
president of the Davis Fish Company and has since been retained in
that capacity. Aside from this interest he is a stockholder in various
other enterprises in Detroit, and is recognized as prominent among the
younger business men of the city. On the organization of the Citizens'
Yacht Club, his ability as a sailor made him the choice of his fellow
members for the office of commodore, and on expiration of his term of
office, he was re-elected for a second.  His able administration of


683




its affairs while acting in that capacity, was rewarded by the club becoming one of the most prominent on the lakes. It has also been his
good fortune to rescue, during his sailing career, several persons from
drowning. He has been a member of the Detroit Board of Trade
since 1890.
Politically, Mr. Davis is a Republican, but prefers to spend his
leisure time in the society of his family at his beautiful home, No. 1283
Woodward avenue, to the fatigue incidental to an active participation
in political matters.
In 1884 he married Belle B., daughter of Hon. George A. Butterfield of Alpena, Mich., who was for many years a prominent lumberman of that city.
REV. MORGAN J. P. DEMPSEY.
FATHER MIORGAN J. P. DEMPSEY, son of Dennis and Mary (Dempsey)
Dempsey, was born in Madison, Wis., March 1, 1853. He is descended
from a long line of honored Irish ancestry. Both his parents were
natives of County Wexford, Ireland, where they were married. They
emigrated to America in 1849 and settled at Madison, Wis., where for
many years Dennis Dempsey has been prominently identified with the
growth and development of that section of the State. Fathey Dempsey acquired his early education in the public schools at Madison, which
he attended until the age of fifteen. He then entered St. Francis Seminary, Milwaukee, where he remained until 1871, when failing health
compelled him to retire to the country. In 1872 he entered the Uuiversity of Wisconsin, pursuing his studies until 1875, when he returned
to St. Francis Seminary, resuming his theological course, and was
graduated therefrom in 1878.
He was ordained priest by Bishop Borgess in Detroit, June 29, 1878,
and appointed assistant pastor of SS. Peter and Paul's church at Ionia,
Mich. In 1880 he was transferred to the pastorate of St. Simon's
church at Ludington, Mich., where he labored for three years. After
a short assignment as pastor in the towns of St. Clair and Battle Creek,
Mich., Father Dempsey was appointed, in 1884, by Bishop Borgess,
chancellor of the Diocese of I)etroit, a position he filled with marked
ability, but was compelled to resign in 1894, owing to failing health.
Following his retirement from the chancellorship, he was assigned to


684




REV. MORGAN J. P. DEMPSEY.








SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral, and retains that pastorate at present.
Father Dempsey is an elequent and graceful speaker, beloved by his
parishioners, and an untiring worker in the Lord's vineyard.
JOHN A. DICK.
JOHN A. DICK, son of John and Gertrude (Marks) Dick, was born in
Utica, New York, July 1, 1853. Mr. Dick was educated in the public
schools of Oswego, N. Y., and later at Detroit, Mich., where he removed with his parents in 1865. At the age of fourteen he entered the
employ the Detroit Chair Works, of which his father was the superintendent, remaining in their employ until 1871, when he was offered
and accepted a situation as collector with the Howe Sewing Machine
Co. at Auburn, N. Y. After serving three years in this capacity he re
moved to Detroit and secured a position with the tea house of W. A.
King, a connection which lasted until 1878, when, with his father, he
formed the firm of John Dick & Son, undertakers, their place of business
being at 658 Michigan avenue. In 1890 this partnership was dissolved,
and with George C. Lawrence (now auditor of Wayne county) as his
associate, he continued his former business at 81 Grand River avenue,
the style of the firm being John A. Dick & Co. In 1892 Mr. Lawrence
was appointed auditor of Wayne county, and disposing of his interest to
Mr. Dick, retired from the firm. The business has since been conducted by Mr. Dick, who in 1897 removed to his present quarters at 20
Adams avenue west, where he has established the leading house of its
kind in the State. He occupies the entire building, which he has
furnished in a rich and elaborate manner, and his great success is but
a well merited return for years of earnest effort in his profession.
Mr. Dick is prominent in Masonic circles, being a member of Detroit
Commandery No. 1, Knights Templar; Moslem Temple, Nobles of the
Mystic Shrine; and Oriential Lodge, No. 240, F. & A. M. He is also
a member of the Knights of Pythias, the Independent Order of Odd
Fellows, the Michigan Club, the Fellowcraft Club and the Rushmere
Club. He has been a member of the Light Guard for the past thirteen
years, and for two years served as president of that noted organization,
succeeding the Hon. Thomas W. Palmer in that office, and he, in turn,
being succeeded by the late Judge Boynton. Mr. Dick has been a
prominently active member of the State and National organizations of




funeral directors, and has filled the highest offices in the gift of the
Michigan Funeral Directors' Association. For many years he has been
actively interested in endeavors to obtain legislation for the protection
of the public against men who pretend to have a knowledge of embalming, but who know nothing of the art.
Mr. Dick was married, September 20, 1881, to Catharine Downs of
Windsor, Ont., who died January 5, 1885. On September 12, 1888, he
married his second wife, Emma L. Cuddy of Detroit.
DON M. DICKINSON.
HON. DON M. DICKINSON, eminent as a lawyer and statesman, was
born at Port Ontario, N. Y., January 17, 1846. His father, Col. Asa
C. Dickinson, a native of Great Barrington, Mass., was a man of
sterling character and great intellectual capacity. His mother, a woman
of refinement, richly endowed with the Christian graces, was a daughter of the Rev. Jeseniah Holmes, of Connecticut. In 1848 Colonel
Dickinson and his family settled in St. Clair county, Michigan, where
they remained four years. Then they removed to Detroit, since which
time Don M. Dickinson has been a resident of that city.
As a boy Mr. Dickinson attended the public schools of Detroit, and
later prepared for college under private tutors. He entered the law
department of the University of Michigan at the age of nineteen, and
was graduated with the class of 1867, being admitted to the bar the
same year, and at once entered upon the practice of his profession,
which has been continuous with ever increasing success. He is an all
round lawyer, in bringing to bear in the preparation of those cases in
which he appears as counsel or attorney, the weight of a legal mind
richly endowed with thorough preparation and culture in law-thoughtful, tactful and erudite. Whether before court or jury, he presents his
case with a skill, adroitness and eloquence which invariably win success. He is terse, logical and forceful as an orator; he has won a place
among the most distinguished in the nation. He has participated in
many of the causes celebre before the highest courts of the State and the
Supreme Court at Washington, which have shed lustre upon the jurisprudence of the country.
Mr. Dickinson has ever been a staunch Democrat and prominent with
his party from the first. His capacity, efficiency and tact were recog686




nized in 1876, by his appointment to the chairmanship of the Democratic
State Central Committee. In 1884 he was chosen a member of the
Democratic National Committee, and in 1892 was elected chairman of
the National Campaign Committee, managing with consummate skill
the campaign that elected Mr. Cleveland to a second term of office.
Mr. Dickinson has consented to accept only one public office, and that
through a sense of duty. In 1887 he was appointed postmaster general
of the United States by President Cleveland, which position he ably
filled for fifteen months.  During his occupancy of that important
office he was instrumental in inaugurating reforms in the postal service, which vastly increased the efficiency of that department of government. On account of his eminent and recognized ability as a constitutional lawyer and his familiarity with international law, he was selected
during President Cleveland's second term to represent the United
States as counsel before the Arbitration Commission, which was called
upon to settle the troubles relative tc the Bering Sea seal fisheries,
which had arisen between the United States and Great Britain.
Personally Mr. Dickinson is a man possessed of marked individuality.
He is courtly, dignified and pleasing in manner, and for these and other
admirable traits in his character he has won the respect and esteem of
the most conspicuous of his contemporaries in political and social life.
June 15, 1869, he married Frances, daughter of Dr. Alonzo Platt, of
Grand Rapids, Mich., and their family consists of two children: Frances
and Don M., jr.
GEORGE DINGWALL.
A GOOD type of American manhood, combining the sturdy traits of
foreign ancestry and the active qualities of more modern western civilization, is George Dingwall.
George Dingwall, a second son of Alexander and Jeanette (Jack) Dingwall, was born in Fayetteville, State of New York, on July 22, 1843.
He is a descendant from a Highland Scotch family, and can trace his
family ancestry as far back as the year 783, on their arrival in Scotland
-they having come from Norway, and locating in Ross Shire, County
of Ross, Scotland. From this settlement sprang the city of Dingwall,
now a thriving city of several thousand people, the same being named
in honor of one of the Dingwalls. Dingwall was enacted a Royal Burgh


687




by Alexander the Second, and its charter was renewed by James the
Fourth.
The parents of George Dingwall, having emigrated to America, settled at Fayetteville, N. Y., about 1839, where the subject of this sketch
was horn. Leaving Fayetteville with his parents, they arrived in Detroit, Mich., in February, 1849. From and after that date, young
Dingwall was obliged to paddle his own canoe. On August 13, 1862,
young Dingwall, with his older brother John entered the Civil war,
enlisting as privates in the 24th Michigan Volunteer Infantry, Company
"A." John was killed at Gettysburg, July 1, 1863, and George continued his service with his regiment, in the " Iron Brigade" of the
Army of the Potomac in Virginia, being promoted successively to corporal, sergeant and lieutenant. At the battle of the Wilderness, May 5,
1864, he was badly wounded and taken prisoner, and thereafter, for
over seven months, languished in the Andersonville, Georgia, and
Florence, S. C., prisons. He was finally exchanged at Annapolis, Md.,
on December 20, 1864, and returning to Detroit, after partially recovering from the effects of his prison life, returned to his regiment at Springfield, Ill., and was mustered out of service in June, 1865, with his regiment at Detroit Mich.
At the close of the war he became a member of the Detroit Police
force, then was appointed a letter carrier, and after a brief experience
in the grocery business for himself, was made United States gauger at
Detroit under Gen. L. S. Trowbridge, then collector of internal
revenue.
Nearly fourteen years ago the attention of Collins B. Hubbard, the
well known capitalist, was attracted by the industry and capacity of
Mr. Dingwall. He became his associate, which resulted in his present
partnership with Mr. Hubbard, and under the style of Hubbard &
Dingwall, real estate dealers-the firm now being one of the most prominent in the city-they have from a small beginning, extended their
operations until to-day its members are recognized as among Detroit's
leading business men. They have made a specialty of purchasing and
subdividing large tracts of land in and around Detroit, and the improvement and sale of such property. They, some years since, purchased several thousand acres of land on the line of the Flint and Pere
Marquette Railroad, and subdivided and improved that property, thus
giving birth to the present town of Hubbard, Mich.
Mr. Dingwall is a director of the City Savings Bank of Detroit, vice

688




I




REV. JAMES G. DOHERTY.




president and treasurer of the Columbian Cash Register Company, a
member of the Detroit and Michigan Clubs, Michigan Commandery,
Loyal Legion of the U. S., and Detroit Post 384, G. A. R. December
13, 1897, he was elected president of the 24th Michigan Regiment
Association.
Mr. Dingwall has always been a Republican and has twice been
elected as alderman for the city of Detroit-first in 1889-90, as the
representative of the First ward. He served as chairman of the Committee of Ways and Means and Street Openings; was also a member of
several other committees. In 1897 he was again elected for a term of
two years, 1898-99, from the Second ward. He is a member of the
Committee on Taxes, chairman of the Committee on Charter and City
Legislation, and chairman of the Committee on Rules.
He is also identified with the Detroit Y. M. C. A., representing the
Episcopal denomination. For many years he has been senior warden
and treasurer of St. Joseph's Memorial church, of which Rev. Louis A.
Arthur is rector.
In 1865 Mr. Dingwall married Phebe Renz, and they have had three
children, two of whom survive: Edward A., and Harrie R. Their
first child, John G., died in 1892.
The personality of Mr. Dingwall is striking. He stands over six feet
and is straight as an arrow. His manners are frank, cordial and unaffected. His "no" is a "no" without mistake. His terrible experience as a soldier does not seem to have affected his health and sturdiness, and he is, without doubt, one of the most active and energetic
business men in the city of Detroit.
REV. JAMES G. DOHERTY.
FATHER JAMES G. DOHERTY, son of William and Rossanna (Gallagher)
Doherty, was born in Donamana, County Tyrone, Ireland, February
13, 1850. Educated in the National School of his native town until he
graduated, he entered the Agricultural School at Loughash where he
spent three years. After graduating from the Agricultural School, he
took the civil service examination, and passed with an unusually high
average. At this time he was desirous to secure a good government
position, and he did get what was considered a first rate appointment
in the government service as civil engineer at Trinidad; but his parents
689
87




were opposed to his leaving Ireland, and in consequence he refused it.
After this, his thoughts turned to the priesthood, and as a preparatory
course, took up the study of Latin and Greek under the noted scholar,
Professor Kane, of Cumberclaudy, where he finished the Latin and
Greek course. He afterward went to All-Hallow's College, Dublin,
where he studied theology for five years, and was ordained for the Diocese of Detroit, June 26, 1876.
He said the first mass at home, and remained with his family until
he had to start for the field of his future labor, where he found thousands
of as honest and true children of the Gael as ever trod on Irish soil, and
their children, and grandchildren, sons and daughters, as true and as
Catholic as their forefathers, whose faith and morals earned for the
grand old motherland the proud title of the Island of Saints. Father
Doherty reached Detroit, September 10, 1876, and was at once assigned
in the old Cathedral parish, where he remained nine months. From
the Cathedral he was appointed pastor of St. Patrick's church at Brighton, which included all of Livingston and part of Wayne counties. He
remained in charge for nine years and a half, during which time his
ministry was blessed with prosperity; he built a church at Howell, and
made many improvements in the parish. He was transferred to St.
Vincent's, Detroit, and took charge of it July 4, 1886. At that time
the parish was sadly demoralized. There was no school to speak of,
the church was hardly large enough for the congregation; everything
around the place was in a dilapidated condition. The outlook was not
by any means bright when he took charge, but he went to work with
a will, and soon brought order out of disorder. In the twelve years he
has been pastor of St. Vincent's he has transformed it into the best
organized parish in the State of Michigan. He has doubled the seating
capacity of the church, built magnificent schools-in a word, improved
and beautified everything in and around the parish. There is no secret
of success in his methods whatever; he is simply an earnest, tireless
worker, who is gifted with superior business ability, and sincere devotion to his priestly mission. His people are proud of him, and he enjoys their hearty good will and earnest co-operation.


690








REV. ROBERT F. M. DOMAN.




REV. ROBERT F. M. DOMAN.


REV. ROBERT F. M. DOMAN, son of John and Ann (Shaw) Doman, was
born near Belleville, province of Ontario, Canada, November 15, 1849.
At an early age he removed with his parents to Bay City, Mich., and
there in the public schools he received his early education. In 1865 he
entered Montreal College, at Montreal, Canada, where he remained
until 1872. Returning to Bay City he entered the law offices of Archibald McDonald, where he began the study of law, and was admitted to
the bar in May, 1875. In the fall of that year he decided to prepare
for the priesthood, and entered St. Mary's Seminary at Baltimore, Md.,
where he remained until graduated in 1879. He was ordained by
Bishop Borgess at Detroit, Mich., in June of that year, and subsequently appointed rector of St. Bernard's church at Alpena, Mich.
Following the division of the Diocese in 1881, he was recalled to Detroit by Bishop Borgess, and placed in charge of the church at St.
Clair, Mich., which was at that time under interdict. In the fall of this
year he was appointed to the pastorate of St. Augustine parish at
Kalamazoo, Mich., serving in that pastorate until his appointment to
Holy Trinity parish, Detroit, in 1882.  During his incumbency as
rector of Holy Trinity he built the present rectory, one of the finest
parochial residences in the Diocese; was elected one of the judiccs
causarum and also acted as theologian to Bishop Borgess in the Third
Plenary Council at Baltimore, Md. In 1886 he was compelled, on
account of ill health, to abandon his priestly duties, and the following
year he spent in travel.
Upon his return to health he was appointed rector of St. Paul's
parish at Owosso, Mich., over which he presided until November, 1897,
when he was called upon t3 organize the parish of All Saints at Delray,
Mich. During his ministry Father Doman has built the church and
rectory at Alpena, the Sisters' residence at Kalamazoo, and the church
and rectory of his present parish at Delray. He is an indefatigable
worker and brings to bear a large amount of executive ability in connection with his duties in the church. He is a graceful, forceful and
eloquent speaker, broad minded and affable, and is beloved by his
parishioners. He is what may be termed an Irish-American by descent
and nationality.


691




CHARLES DUCHARME.


CHARLES DUCHARME, a pioneer wholesale hardware merchant of the
city, was born in Bertier En-Haut, near Montreal. Canada, May 5, 1818.
Mr. Ducharme's ancestors were French, and were identified with the
early history and settlement of Canada, having come from France prior
to 1665. His father was a farmer, and Mr. Ducharme lived at home
until fifteen years of age, when he went to Montreal, and engaged as a
clerk in a hardware store. He remained there about four years, and
in 1837 he emigrated to Michigan, locating first at Jonesville, where he
secured a situation as a clerk. The climate of Michigan was productive of fever and ague, and Mr. Ducharme had a liberal allowance of
that disease during his stay in Jonesville. He became disgusted with
the town and removed to Detroit. Here he engaged as a clerk with
A. H. Newbould, who was then and for several years thereafter the
leading hardware merchant of the city. Mr. Ducharme remained a
clerk in the employ of Mr. Newbould until 1849, when he engaged in
business with A. M. Bartholomew, who was then a prominent hardware
merchant. The firm of Ducharme & Bartholomew continued in business until 1855, when Christian H. Buhl joined with Mr. Ducharme in
buying out both the interest of Mr. Bartholomew and the establishment
of Mr. Newbould. The firm of Buhl & Ducharme, then established on
Woodward avenue, carried on the hardware business at the same place
seventeen years, removing to Woodbridge street in 1872.
Mr. Ducharme came here at the age of eighteen, without any capital
except good health, good sense, and a determination to make his way
in the world. Ile devoted his attention to the hardware trade until
he thoroughly mastered it. Few, if any, in the country were better
posted than he on all that pertained to that important branch of business. He was eminently successful, and amassed a large fortune, a
portion of which he devoted to the erection of a handsome home for
himself and family, surrounding it with all the comforts and luxuries
that art could devise. Though devoting his attention mainly to the
hardware business, he was always ready to encourage every branch of
business, and to lend a helping hand to every worthy enterprise. He
was the first president of the Michigan Stove Company, a director in
the First National Bank, the People's Savings Bank, and the Detroit
Fire and Marine Insurance Company, and was interested in the tobacco
house of K. C. Barker & Co., and many other enterprises.


692




He was an honorable gentleman, chivalric in his friendships, cherishing no enemies, and generous almost to a fault. His purse was open
to every appeal for assistance. His gifts were never ostentatious, but
made in the true spirit of charity. He was especially kind to young
men embarking in business for themselves, and helped many to start
thus on their own account. Not a tenth part of his deeds of generosity
and practical kindness can ever be known, for they were purposely so
rendered as to avoid publicity. TIe possessed excellent social qualities.
and had a host of warm personal friends. Naturally of a genial and
affable temperament, he enjoyed a happy home, and the friendship and
good will of all his acquaintances and neighbors. Mr. Ducharme's
death occurred in Detroit on January 9, 1873.
On August 10, 1853, he married Elsie Elizabeth, daughter of A. M.
Bartholomew of Detroit, Mich. She was born in Montgomery, N. Y.,
May 1, 1830, and died in Detroit January 14, 1892. Her ancestors were
English, and settled in Massachusetts in 1634. They were identified
with Colonial and Revolutionary history, and served in the Colonial
and Revolutionary wars. Mr. Ducharme left four sons: Charles A.,
George A., Frederick D. and William H.
CHARLES A. Du CHARME
CHARLES A. Du CHARME, secretary of The Michigan Stove Company,
was born in Detroit, Mich., September 22. 1858, and is a son of Charles
and Elsie (Bartholomew) Du Charme. His father was for many years
a prominent and successful business man, being identified with the
growth and development of the city. He was descended from a long
line of honored French ancestry, who early made their impress on the
social, religious and business character of Detroit. Elsie Elizabeth
Bartholomew, mother of the subject, was descended from Lieut. William
Bartholomew, an officer of the Colonial army, who fought throughout
the war of Independence. His residence was at Ipswich, Mass., and he
and his descendants were prominently identified with the growth and
development of New England.
C. A. Du Charme received his early education in the public schools
of Detroit, which he attended until the age of twelve. In 1870 he
became a student in Patterson's private school, where he remained
seven years, and in 1877 entered the Michigan Military Academy at
Orchard Lake. On completion of his education he spent one year in
693




foreign travel, visiting the principal cities in Europe, and returned to
Detroit in 1879. Subsequently he entered the employ of the Michigan
Stove Company in a subordinate position. After three years' service,
during which time he showed marked business ability, he was, in 1882,
elected purchasing agent of the company. Mr. Du Charme was retained in this position until January 7, 1887, when he was elected
secretary of the company, and has been re-elected each succeeding
year. As a business man he is regarded as able, energetic and broad
in his methods.
He is a member of the Detroit Club, Yondotega Club, Country Club,
and the Michigan Society of the Sons of the American Revolution.
He is also a director in the Union Trust Company, the People's Savings
Bank, the Detroit Fire and Marine Insurance Company and is secretary
of the Society of Colonial Wars in the State of Michigan. Politically
he is a Republican.
Mr. Du Charme was married in 1881 to Caroline B., daughter of Elbridge G. Philbrick of Detroit. They have two children: Charles B.
and Harold.
SAMUEL P. DUFFIELD, M. D.
SAMUEL P. DUFFIELD, A. M., Ph. D., M. D., son of George and Isabella (Graham) Duffield, was born in Carlisle, Pa., December 24,
1833. He prepared for college at Lodi Plains under Prof. Nutting,
and in 1851 entered the literary department of the University of Michigan, and from which he was graduated in 1854, with the degree of B. A.,
and remained another year to perfect himself in chemistry and
anatomy. He then entered the medical department of the University
of Pennsylvania, but in 1856, owing to failing eyesight, he visited
Berlin, Germany, to consult Dr. Albrecht Von Graefe, who effected a
cure. While in Berlin he took a three months' course in chemistry
under Mitcherlich, and also attended the lectures of Profs. Magnus and
Jolly. Later he studied physics and chemistry in Maximillian's University under Baron Von Liebig, and in accordance with Von Liebig's
recommendation he passed examination at Ludwig III. University at
Giessen, Hesse Darmstadt, from which he was graduated with the
degree of Ph. D., having studied under Liebig in Munich, but graduating from Liebig's former school, Giessen.
In 1858 Dr. Duffield returned to America and to Detroit, and entered
694




upon the practice of his profession, still continuing his chemical investigations and devoting especial attention to toxicology and medical
jurisprudence. While still in Europe the University of Michigan had
conferred the degree of A. M. upon him. Early in the sixties he established a drug store, which he conducted successfully until 1868,
when, upon the opening of the Detroit Medical College in that year, he
arranged and took charge of the chemical laboratory and delivered the
address of dedication. Dr. Duffield then completed his own medical
studies in that institution and received the degree of M. D. therefrom
in 1872. From then until 1886 he practiced his profession continuously
at D)earborn, just outside of Detroit.
He also established the chemical laboratory, which is the present
property of Parke, Davis & Co, of world-wide fame. His reputation
as an analyst was already established, and he was frequently called to
testify in the courts as an expert. The winter of 1885-86 he spent in
Russia, studying the analysis of poisons and their separation from
poisoned animals, under Prof. George Dragendorff, in the laboratory of
the Imperial University at Dorpat. In May, 1887, upon his return to
Detroit, Dr. Duffield was called to the position of health officer of the
city, and acted as such until 1892, when he voluntarily retired. He
was recalled to the same position in March, 1895, serving until February, 1898, when he resigned.
He is a member of the American, Michigan State and Detroit Medical and Library Associations; Detroit Academy of Medicine (honorary);
Northwestern Medical Association; American Chemical Society; American Public Health Association, and the Wayne County Medical Society. While in charge of the chemical laboratory of the Detroit Medical College, Dr. Duffield also filled the chairs of professor of chemistry
and of medical jurisprudence and toxicology. He has written and
read before many of the great gatherings of the physicians of the
world, papers on subjects of vital importance. Among them: " Ventilation of Sewers;" " Contamination of Drinking Water; "The Relation of Typhoid Fever to Water Currents in Sandy Soil;" "Fractures
of the Base of the Skull; " " Quarantine in Great Cities;" ' Antitoxin
vs. Diphtheria," etc., etc. Personally Dr. Duffield is one of the most
companionable of men; pleasant and courteous in manner, yet bold,
manly and energetic. He enjoys the entire confidence and unqualified
esteem of his professional brethren and the public.
He has been married twice; first, in 1858, to Adeline Lucretia Dob

695




ney, who died in 1873, leaving two children: Daniel W., and John B.
Duffield. In 1882 he married as his second wife, Miss Margaret Corbett, of the province of Ontario, Canada.
ANTOINE B. DU PONT.
ANTOINE B. DU PONT, son of Biderman and Ellen (Coleman) du
Pont, was born at Louisville, Ky., April 26, 1865. Mr. du Pont received his education in the public schools of Louisville, in the preparatory department of Urbana University, at Urbana, Ohio, and in 1879
he became a student at the Chauncy Hall School at Boston, remaining
until 1882, when he entered the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute at
Troy, N. Y. His course of study at this establishment covered three
years, and on conclusion he accepted a position with the Mainjellico
Coal Co. at Kensee, Ky., as engineer and assistant superintendent, and
resigned in 1886 to accept a similar position with the Brooklyn Cable
Company of Brooklyn, N. Y. Mr. du Pont returned to Louisville in
1887 and entered the employ of the Central Passenger Railway Co.,
assuming charge of the mechanical department, serving in this capacity
until 1892, when the Louisville City Railway Co. consolidated with the
former, under the name of the Louisville Railway Co., and Mr. du Pont
was placed in charge of the power house, shops and track. In 1895 he
accepted the position of general manager with the Citizens' Railway
Co. of Detroit, Mich., taking charge March 1. On January 2, 1897, in
addition to the above, he was appointed general manager of the Detroit
Electric and Fort Wayne & Elmwood Railways, in which positions he
is still retained. Mr. du Pont is a member of the Detroit Club, the
Fellowcraft Club and the Country Club.
He was married, in 1892, to Ethel Clark of Louisville, Ky. They
are the parents of two children: Aileen M. and Ethel B. du Pont.
JEREMIAH DWYER.
JEREMIAH DWYER, president of the Michigan Stove Company, was
born in Brooklyn, N. Y., August 22, 1837. His father, Michael Dwyer,
was a native of the south of Ireland, where he was born in 1800. When
he was eighteen years of age he came to America and settled on a farm
near Hartford, Conn., whence he removed two years later to Brooklyn,


696




ANTOINE B. DU FONT.




I




N. Y., where he held the position of contractor's superintendent for a
number of years. Later he married Miss Mary O'Donell, a young lady
from near his old home. To them were born two sons and one daughter, Jeremiah Dwyer being the oldest. His brother, James Dwyer, is
now a director in, and manager of the Peninsular Stove Company of
Detroit, and his sister is the wife of Mr. M. Nichols of Utica, Mich.
In the fall of 1837 Michael Dwyer came with his family to Detroit and
located on a farm in Springwells, about four miles from the city.
Jeremiah, the subject of this sketch, received such an education as
the public schools of that time afforded. In 1848 his father was accidentally killed, being thrown from his wagon by a spirited team of
horses. The following two years were spent by Jeremiah in assisting
his mother in the management of the farm. Subsequently Mrs. Dwyer
disposed of her property in Springwells and removed to the city, in
order to give her children the superior advantages of the Detroit schools.
After attaining a thorough common school education Jeremiah entered
the employ of the Hydraulic Iron Works, of which the late Capt. R. S.
Dillon was the superintendent. Here he learned the trade of moulding,
and on the conclusion of his apprenticeship his employers rewarded
him with a letter of recommendation, which is still one of Mr. Dwyer's
valued possessions. Becoming master of his trade, Mr. Dwyer spent
some little time in various eastern stove foundries, where he acquired
a greater efficiency in all the details of the business.
Returning to Detroit, ill health, the result of too close application,
necessitated a change, and for about one year he filled a position with
the Detroit, Grand Haven and Milwaukee Railroad Company, on conclusion of which he accepted a situation with the Geary & Russell
foundry as foreman. About this time the firm of Ganson & Mizner,
proprietors of a reaper works and a small stove foundry, failing, Mr. T.
W. Mizner became owner of the plant and business, and, in partnership
with Mr. Dwyer and his brother James, organized the firm of J. Dwyer
& Co., in 1861, for the purpose of engaging in the manufacture of stoves
exclusively. The site occupied by the stove foundry was on the corner of Mt. Elliott avenue and Wight street. Two years later Mr. Mizner's interest was purchased by Mr. W. H. Tefft, the firm continuing
the same until 1864, when Messrs. Jeremiah Dwyer, W. H. Tefft, M.
I. Mills and James Dwyer organized the business into a joint stock
company, which was incorporated under the title of The Detroit Stove
Works, Mr. Jeremiah Dwyer taking the management. As the business


697




increased it was found necessary to enlarge their manufacturing facilities.
In 1869 and 1870 Mr. Dwyer, while superintending the construction
of the new and extensive works at Hamtramck, contracted a severe
pulmonary illness, which necessitated a change of climate. Disposing
of his interest in the business to his brother and Mr. E. S. Barbour, he
made a visit to the Southern States, remaining until 1871. In the summer of that year, finding his health restored, he returned to Detroit
and resumed active business. In company with Charles Ducharme and
Richard H. Long, property was purchased with the intention of erecting a stove works. Owing to the severity of the winter the work was
delayed until the following spring. In the interim the property of M.
I. Mills, adjoining, was purchased, in exchange for which Mr. Mills
was given an interest in the firm. Shortly afterwards Mr. George H.
Barbour became interested and the Michigan Stove Company was organized, with Charles Ducharme, president; M. I. Mills, treasurer;
George H. Barbour, secretary; R. H. Long, superintendent; and Jeremiah Dwyer, vice-president and general manager. The company was
incorporated and since then has attained a place second to none in extent and in quality of goods manufactured-not alone in the United
States but throughout the civilized world. Mr. Dwyer was elected to
the presidency in 1886, succeeding the late Francis Palms.
As well as the above large interest in which he is concerned, he is a
director in the People's Savings Bank of Detroit, of which he was one
of the organizers, a director in the Buck Stove and Range Company of
St. Louis, Mo, and of other important manufacturing and mercantile
establishments. In earlier years he was a member of the old volunteer
fire department, and subsequently was one of the trustees of the Department Society. Although a staunch Democrat, Mr. Dwyer's commercial enterprises have forbidden his taking part in politics, for which
he has neither taste or inclination, and though frequently solicited to
hold important political positions, he has never consented to do so, with
the exception of the office of a member of the Board of Estimate for
two terms, and the inspectorship of the House of Correction, which
position he now holds. In religious faith, Mr. Iwyer is a member of
the Catholic church. He is thoroughly American on all religious and
political questions.
On November 22, 1859, he married Mary daughter of John and
Elizabeth (Baisley) Long. They had a family of eight children, seven


698




sons and one daughter. Those living are James W. Dwyer, of Perth,
West Australia; John M. Dwyer, secretary of the Peninsular Stove
Company of Detroit; Elizabeth Baisley, wife of James A. Smith, of the
firm of L. P. & J. A. Smith, vessel owners and contractors of Cleveland, 0.; William A. Dwyer, director in, and purchasing agent of the
Michigan Stove Company of Detroit; Frank T. Dwyer, secretary of
The Ideal Manufacturing Company of Detroit; Emmet J. Dwyer and
Grattan L. P. Dwyer, who are now students in Detroit College. Vincent R. Dwyer, attorney at law, and fifth son, died July 13, 1896.
JACOB S. FARRAND.
JACOB SHAW FARRAND, son of Bethuel and Marila M. (Shaw) Farrand, was born in Mentz, Cayuga county, N. Y., May 7, 1815. In
1825 he removed with his parents to Michigan, locating near Ann
Arbor, where his father purchased a farm. When thirteen years of age
he carried the mail between Detroit and Ann Arbor on horseback. Mr.
Farrand received such an education as the public schools at that time
afforded, and on reaching his fifteenth year removed to Detroit, where
he secured a situation with the drug firm of Rice & Bingham, serving
as clerk. On the dissolution of this partnership in 1835, Mr. Farrand
became the junior partner, the style of the firm being Edward Bingham
& Co. In 1842 this establishment was completely destroyed by fire, but
restored by Mr. Farrand, who continued as sole proprietor until 1855,
when he took into partnership Mr. W. W. Wheaton, the firm being
Farrand & Wheaton. In 1858 the style was again changed to Farrand
& Sheley, and subsequently to Farrand, Williams & Co., under which
name the business was conducted until the formation of the present
firm of Farrand, Williams & Clark in 1890.
Owing to the untiring energy, splendid executive ability and sterling
integrity of Mr. Farrand, he was able to build from the small beginning of fifty years ago, a business which, at the time of his death in 1891,
ranked first in its line in Michigan. Politically he was a Republican
and exercised a potential influence in the councils of his party in the
State. He served as president of the Board of Water Commissioners,
as a member of the Board of Police Commissioners and as a trustee of the
Eastern Michigan Asylum for the Insane. Mr. Farrand was for years
president of First National Bank, a director in the Wayne County Sav

699




ings Bank, the Detroit Fire and Marine Insurance Company, a trustee
of Harper Hospital, and was also president of the Michigan Mutual Life
Insurance Company.
The character and career of Mr. Farrand presents a useful example
to others. In 1836 he became a member of the First Presbyterian
church of Detroit, was a regular attendant at all gatherings of that
body, and from 1856 until his decease (on April 3, 1891), was a ruling
elder therein.  In 1863 he was commissioner to the General Assembly
of the Presbyterian church, held at Dayton, Ohio, also at the meetings
at New York in 1869 and Detroit in 1873. In 1877 he was a delegate
to the Presbyterian Alliance held at Edinburgh, Scotland. Mr. Farrand was prominently identified with many religious, charitable and
business institutions of Detroit, and was especially active as a member
of the Young Men's State Temperance Society, and secretary of the
Detroit City Temperance Society. His piety was firm and unassuming,
and gained for him the esteem, confidence and love of his fellow
citizens. His time, service and means were always ready to minister
to the sick, comfort the afflicted, relieve the needy and advance the
cause of religion and morals. Such men as he are an honor to any
community.
His body was borne to the grave by his contemporaries, James F.
Joy, H. P. Baldwin, Alexander Lewis, C. F. Buhl, A. C. McGraw,
James E. Pittman, Sidney D. Miller and an escort of eight patrolmen,
who had been sworn into service by Mr. Farrand while he was president of the Metropolitan Police Board, and who had requested the
privilege of rendering this service as a token of their respect for his
memory.
Mr. Farrand was married, August 12, 1841, to Olive M., daughter of
Rev. Harvey Coe of Hudson, Ohio. His widow and three children
survive him: William Raynolds, Jacob Shaw, jr., and Olive Curtis,
wife of Richard P. Williams of Farrand, Williams & Clark.
CHARLES FLOWERS.
CHARLES FLOWERS, corporation counsel for Detroit city, was born in
Bucks county, Pa., December 14, 1845, and is a son of Joseph and
Sarah (Pickering) Flowers, both deceased. Charles Flowers remained
on his father's farm (in Bucks county) until eighteen years of age,
700




CHARLES FLOWERS.








helping with the farm work in the summers and attending the public
schools in the winter months. In 1864 he entered the offices of the
Grand Trunk Railway Company at New York city as stenographer.
Later he attended the Fort Edward (N. Y.) Collegiate Institute, and
after two years of study was employed by the United States government to report military commissions in Raleigh, N. C. Returning to
New York city, he took up the study of law with Bangs, Sedgwick &
North, where he remained for one year, then removing to Detroit,
Mich., where he secured the position of reporter in the Wayne Circuit
and IUnited States Courts, which he held for thirteen years. He also
continued the study of law under the preceptorship of Judge Henry B.
Brown, of the United States District Court of Detroit, now a justice of
the Supreme Court of the United States.
He was admitted to the bar in 1878, but continued his reportorial
work until 1880, when he was elected as circuit court commissioner,
serving a term of four years  He then began the practice of his profession, and has since been eminently successful.  He has a clear,
analytical, legal mind, readily brushes aside technical cob-webs and invariably reaches a correct conclusion. He is a master in applying the
law to the question at issue. As an orator it is conceded that he takes
front rank in the State, and his forensic and other efforts are of the
purest, most forceful and eloquent English. He not only charms, but
convinces his hearers by his masterful eloquence and logic. Many of
his efforts have been esteemed by his admirers as classics within themselves.
Mr. Flowers is a member of the Detroit Fire Commission, having been
appointed in 1895. In 1896 he was appointed to his present position as
corporation counsel by Mayor (now Governor) Pingree. Mr. Flowers
has always been a Republican, and is recognized as influential in the
ranks of his party in his State.
He was married in 1868 to Mary E. De Normandie, of Pennsylvania,
and they have three children, of whom Norman, a graduate of the law
department of the University of Michigan, is associated in practice
with his father.
RT. REV. JOHN     S. FOLEY.
JOHN S. FOLEY, Right Reverend Bishop of Detroit Diocese, son of
Matthew and Elizabeth (Murphy) Foley, was born in Baltimore, Md.,
701




November 5, 1833. In pursuance of early education Bishop Foley
attended St. Mary's College, Baltimore, from which he was graduated
in 1851. Following this he studied in the seminary at Baltimore three
years, at the end of which time he sailed for Rome. After three years'
diligent study for the priesthood he was ordained by Cardinal Patrizzi,
December 20, 1856. In 1857 he returned to his native city, fully prepared to meet the requirements of his church as priest, and was stationed as pastor of St. Martin's church and principal of the House of
the Good Shepherd up to November 4, 1888.  Thirty-two years of
service was meritoriously recognized in 1888 when he was made bishop
of Detroit Diocese. Since his election to that office in the church he
has been instrumental in effecting many improvements in the Diocese,
especially in the city of Detroit. Four new parishes have been organized, a site for a new cathedral has been acquired, and adjacent to it he
has erected a handsome parochial school building, which is among one
of the finest buildings devoted to educational purposes in the city. He
is an eloquent, polished and convincing speaker, and is especially noted
for his kindness and consideration of all with whom he comes in contact, and is beloved by his clergy and laity. He is a scholar of rare
ability and was a contemporary of His Eminence James Cardinal Gibbons, and a lifelong friend, and while assigned to duty in Baltimore was
one of his chief advisers.
WILLIAM    D. FOX.
WILLIAM D. Fox, son of Martin and Matilda (Van de Sande) Fox,
was born in Grand Rapids, Mich. (during a temporary residence of his
parents in that city), May 23, 1860. Mr. Fox was educated in St.
Mary's Parochial School at Detroit, which he attended until the age of
twelve. At that age he detrmined to strike out for himself and secured
a situation with the grocery and provision house of B. Youngblood &
Brother, of Detroit, Mich., remaining four years, when he was offered
and accepted a position as traveling salesman with the wholesale grocery firm of Beatty, Fitzsimons & Co. In 1880 he engaged in the
wholesale crockery business, continuing until 1882, when he was appointed deputy county treasurer under his former employer, Bernard
Youngblood, then county treasurer of Wayne county. On conclusion
of Mr. Youngblood's teim of office Mr. Fox accepted a position as


702




WILLIAM D. FOX.








mortgage clerk in the American Savings Bank of Detroit, serving in
that capacity until 1888, when he engaged in the real estate and loan
business. Since entering this field Mr. Fox has been eminently successful and has established a reputation for integrity and business
ability of a high order. He is also the agent for several large estates
of deceased Germans and Americans, and his retention in this capacity
by the heirs is a recognition of his honesty in connection with his business transactions. During his business career he has found the time to
study law, was admitted to the bar in 1893, and is retained as counsel
by numerous business and manufacturing concerns of Detroit.
Mr. Fox has been married twice; first, in 1886, to Emma Renchard
of Detroit, Mich., who died October 16, 1888, leaving one son, Dudley
A. Fox. February 9, 1897, he married as his second wife, Susan
Howe of Chelsea, Mich. They are the parents of a daughter, Helen
Virginia.
ELISHA A. FRASER.
ELISHA A. FRASER, son of Rev. Niram A. and Elizabeth (Fletcher)
Fraser, was born in Bowmanville, Ontario, Canada, March 13, 1837.
He attended the schools of his native town and was prepared for college at Oberlin, Ohio; he then entered the University of Michigan and
was graduated therefrom in 1863. In 1866 he had conferred upon him
the degree of A. M. by that university. Following his graduation Mr.
Fraser was made principal of the public schools at Jonesville, Mich.,
where he remained one year, then becoming superintendent of the
Kalamazoo (Mich.) public schools. He retained that position for nine
years, in the mean time making a close study of the law, and in 1873
resigned the superintendency and was admitted to the bar. In the following year he removed to Battle Creek, where for two years he practiced as a member of the firm of May, Buck & Fraser, his partners being
Hon. Charles S. May and Hon. George Buck, with their main offices at
Kalamazoo and the Battle Creek office in charge of Mr. Fraser. During
the year 1875-76 Mr. Fraser was city attorney of Battle Creek.
In June, 1876, he located in Detroit, where he was joined by Hon.
Charles S. May, and the firm of May, Fraser & Gates was formed.
Within a year Mr. May retired and the firm of Fraser & Gates remained
unchanged until January 1, 1897. Since the establishment of the De703




troit College of Law Mr. Fraser has been a member of the faculty, lecturing on contracts and international law, and takes a deep interest in
the affairs of that institution. For the past eighteen years he has been
one of the elders of the Fort Street Presbyterian church of Detroit, and
in 1889 was appointed a commissioner, and was a member of the judicial committee of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian church,
which met in New York city. In politics Mr. Fraser has always been
a staunch Republican. He was married, in 1863, to Maud J., daughter
of William Lynburner of Ancaster, Canada.
ROBERT E. FRAZER.
HON. ROBERT EMMET FRAZER, circuit judge, county of Wayne, was
born in Adrian, Mich., October 2, 1840, the eldest son of Thomas and
Sarah (Wells) Frazer. Judge Frazer is of Scotch-Irish ancestry, being
descended from Andrew Frazer, who removed from Scotland to Ireland
about 1730 and settled in County Down. Thomas Frazer was born in
County Down in 1814; he was a civil engineer by profession, and served
seven years with the Royal Engineers in the survey of Ireland. January 16, 1835, he was married by Rev. Elias Thackeray, cousin of
William M. Thackeray, the novelist, to Sarah Wells, and in 1837 came to
America and located in Monroe, Mich., subsequently moving to Adrian,
then to Galesburg and finally to Detroit, where he still resides. He
was the first general ticket agent of the Michigan Central Railway in Detroit, having been appointed in 1854, and placed on sale the first coupon
ticket numbered " 1 " by that road. These tickets were good for transportation from Chicago to Boston, and had his signature. He was connected with this system for many years, resigning in 1866; his service
with the Michigan Central road dated from 1843, when he took charge
of the engineering and construction of the tenth division of that road.
Robert E. Frazer was educated in the boarding school of Rev. Moses
H. Hunter, where he was placed shortly after the death of his mother
in 1840, and in Gregory's Select School at Detroit, where he remained
until he entered the University of Michigan in 1855. He was graduated from the literary department of that institution at the age of
eighteen. In the fall of 1859 he entered the law department of the
university, and was graduated with the degree of B. A. in March, 1861,
his case presenting the unusual feature of one not yet having attained


704




his majority holding two degrees from a recognized university. Subsequent to the completion of his education he began the practice of his
profession at Ann Arbor, where he remained until he removed to Jackson, Mich., in August, 1882. While in Ann Arbor he was associated
with Daniel S. Twitchell, the firm being Twitchell & Frazer; then with
Judge Edwin Lawrence, as Lawrence & Frazer; then with Judge
Harriman and A. W. Hamilton, as the firm of Frazer, Harriman &
Hamilton. On his removal to Jackson he formed with Mr. A. E.
Hewett the firm of Frazer & Hewett, a copartnership which existed until
his removal to Detroit in May, 1885. Shortly after his arrival in Detroit he became associated with Levi L. Barbour and Dwight Rexford,
they forming the firm of Frazer, Barbour & Rexford, for many years
among the most prominent law firms of the city.
January 5, 1893, he was appointed by Governor Rich judge of the
Circuit Court of Wayne county, in conformity with an act of the Legislature passed the preceding winter giving a fifth judge to the county of
Wayne. In April, 1893, he was nominated for the same position, but
was defeated by twenty-four votes; in 1894 he was again nominated and
elected by a plurality of 10,091, the highest number of votes received
by any candidate at that election. At the time of his appointment by
Governor Rich Judge Frazer found that the business of the court,
owing to lack of a proper system of assignment among the different
judges, was accumulating beyond their power of disposition; the system now in use was originated by Judge Frazer. It has been so thoroughly successful as to cause its permanent adoption, and it has been
highly commended by members of the bar throughout the country.
Possibly the most important case in which Judge Frazer has been retained as counsel was in the defense of Daniel Holcomb at Jackson.
Mich., in 1884; this case was known throughout the country as the
Crouch murder trial, in which he secured the acquittal of the prisoner.
Up to the time of the nomination of General Garfield for the presidency Judge Frazer was a Democrat; since that date he has affiliated
with the Republican party. In 1864 he was appointed city attorney of
Ann Arbor for a term of one year, and was twice reappointed. In
1865 he was elected circuit court commissioner of Washtenaw county
for a term of two years; in 1867 he became prosecuting attorney of
that county, being re-elected for the terms beginning in 1869 and 1874.
In 1888 he was elected a delegate to the National Republican Convention, and in a masterly and eloquent manner presented the qualities of
705
89




his friend and placed in nomination for the presidency Gen. Russel A.
Alger, of Michigan. During his entire career Judge Frazer has refrained from becoming connected with any club or other social organization.
August 3, 1863, ne married Abbie M. Saunders, daughter of Thorndyke P. Saunders, of Ann Arbor, Mich., and they had three children:
Carrie W., wife of Walter W. Ruan, of Chicago; Francis A., and William Robert.
EDWARD A. GOTT.
EDWARD A. GOTT, attorney, was born in Ann Arbor, Mich., March
25, 1852, and is a son of James B. Gott, a prominent attorney of that
city and a native of the State of New York. In 1836 James B. Gott
migrated from Buffalo, N. Y., with his parents, who, after a short stay
in Detroit, Mich., located at Ann Arbor, Mich., where they purchased
and cleared a farm. In 1850 he married Caroline M. Burger, and they
have three children, two daughters and the subject.
Edward A. attended the public schools and High School of his native
place, and was graduated from the literary department of the University of Michigan in 1876 with the degree of Ph. B., and from the law department of that institution in 1877 with the degree of LL. B. He was
admitted to the bar the same year and in 1878 located in Detroit where
he began the practice of his profession. From 1879 to 1880 he had as
a partner Frank D. Andrus, but has formed no other partnership since
that time. Since coming to Detroit he has been eminently successful
in the practice of law and has attained a prominent place among the
members of his profession. He makes a specialty of railroad law and
is attorney for the Wabash Railway Company at Detroit, and is also
counsel for the Union Station and Union Terminal Associations of that
city. He is a member of the Detroit Club and the Detroit Boat Club,
and served as president of the latter organization for two years.
Mr. Gott married, in 1886, Miss Stephanie K. Ortmann, a native of
Vienna, Austria, and they have one son, Edgar J.




~i
~:~;~. *~;::it


i~!


EDWARD A. GOTT.








JAMES GRAHAM.


JAMES GRAHAM, son of John and Jessie (Cruickshank) Graham, was
born in Girvin, Ayrshire, Scotland, June 23, 1849. Mr. Graham received his education in the schools of his native town and at the age of
sixteen entered a banking and law office, where he remained until 1868.
He then entered the employ of his father, who was a manufacturer of
and manufacturer's agent for woolens, cottons, etc., at Girvin. In 1869
he emigrated to America, settling in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, where
he accepted a situation with the wholesale hardware firm of Adam Hope
& Co., and in 1871 removed to Detroit, Mich., where he entered the
employ of the Detroit, Grand Haven & Milwaukee Railroad Company,
serving in the capacity of clerk. Later he was offered and accepted
the position of weighmaster in the elevators of the Michigan Central
Railroad at Detroit, remaining in that position until 1878, when he resigned to accept the position of bookkeeper with the wholesale grocery
firm of John Stephenson's Sons. In 1880 he entered the employ of the
Ohio and Pennsylvania Coal Company, as bookkeeper in their Detroit
office, and five years later was appointed agent at Detroit for that company. In 1890 he became a partner, and the Detroit representative of
Anderson & Cope (large coal operators) of Cleveland, Ohio, but severed
his connection with that firm in 1893 to engage on his own account in
the same line in Detroit.
During his leisure hours Mr. Graham again took up his law studies
begun in Scotland, and was admitted to the bar in 1892. Since August,
1897, he has had as a law partner, Mr. John Galloway, continuing at
the same time to operate in the coal business. He is prominent in
Masonic circles, being a member of Ashlar Lodge No. 91, F. & A. M.;
Monroe Chapter R. A. M.; Michigan Sovereign Consistory; Detroit
Commandery No. 1, Knights Templar; and Moslem Temple, Nobles
of the Mystic Shrine. He is also a member of the Royal Arcanum.
Mr. Graham is a staunch Republican and actively interested in the wel
fare of his party, and is a member of the Michigan Republican Club.
In 1872 he married May, daughter of Charles Clark of Aberdeen,
Scotland. Mrs. Graham died in 1895, leaving two children: James G.,
and Clara M.


707




JOHN GREUSEL.


JOHN GREUSEL, alderman and brick manufacturer of Detroit, is a
native of New York State, having been born in Glasgow, Ulster county,
January 6, 1839. John Greusel, sr., was one of the most widely known
men in Michigan for many years, having been closely identified with
the public history of the State in many and varied capacities. He represented the First district of Detroit for four terms in the lower house
of the Legislature and three times as senator, serving his constituents
as senator at the time of his demise at the age of seventy-eight, on the
13th of October, 1886. He was a native of Bavaria, Germany, coming
when but a lad of seventeen to New York, where he married Susan
Sarvis of Newburgh, Orange county. They migrated to Michigan in
1848, and he at once engaged in the manufacture of brick, a business
that has been continuously conducted by the family to the present day.
He had been accustomed to the use of machinery in the New York yards
and was the first to introduce modern methods in that industry in Detroit. In 1853 he located on Michigan avenue, where the homestead
and residence of the son now stands. The firm of John Greusel & Sons
was one of the best known of all the brick manufacturers; the business
of to-day being under the firm style of Greusel Brothers, with yards at
the corner of Griffin and Michigan avenues. The entire 16th ward of
the present city stands on land formerly occupied by either his works
or of that other pioneer brickmaker, R. H. Hall. Mr. Greusel was a
progressive mechanic and operator; his judgment was sought by
makers of brick machinery far and near and when it met with his
approval it was pronounced worthy of manufacture and would be
sought by brick men everywhere. His suggestions have been incorporated into much of the most approved machinery now in use in making brick. Mr. Greusel was ever wide awake to the community's best
interests and with wide personal influence and popularity was enabled
to do much that has largely benefited his constituents. He was a
member of the Board of Estimates for many years and a candidate for
mayor, being defeated by George A. Langdon, though by a small majority, even when the nomination had been forced upon him at a late
hour in the campaign. He was found in the party councils and
attended at least one national convention. Being well read on all vital
questions and a fluent speaker with persuasive manner, his wide business education enabled him to adduce most forcible arguments on


708




JOHN GREUSEL.




I




occasion, as for instance when his support and advocacy did much to
place Thomas W. Palmer, his old friend, in the United States Senate.
The firm of Greusel Brothers, consists of John, Isaac L. and Edwin
R. When twenty-three years old, John Greusel went to Illinois, where
a relative, Col. Nicholas Greusel, was roadmaster of the Burlington
Railroad, located at Burling-ton, Iowa, and entered the employ of that
road first as fireman and later as engineer, remaining there for some
years, and since then has been connected with his father and brother
in the present line of industry. Mr. G eusel, after serving the town of
Springwells in various official capacities, was elected alderman from
the Sixteenth ward in 1897. He is serving on the committee of public
lighting and is chairman of the committee on hospitals. For many
years he has kept fully alive to public needs, has often attended as
delegate his party's conventions, and being a wide awake, thoroughly
honest and reliable citizen, with a pleasing personality and address,
there is reason to look for such results from his present official life as
will emphasize the high standing he now holds in the community.
Mr. Greusel was married, January 7, 1870, to Mary Alida Mills of
Battle Creek, Mich., and they have three children: John George, Mary
Edith, wife of Charles Gottman, M. D., and Charlotte.
ARMOND H. GRIFFITH.
ARM()ND- H. GRIFFITH, director of the Detroit Museum of Art, was
born in Knightstown, Ind., June 11, 1856, and is a son of Collins W.
and Katherine (Conway) Griffith. Mr. Griffith is of Welsh ancestry,
being descended from Lieut. Thomas Conway, who came to America
with the Marquis de La Fayette and served as an officer on his staff
throughout the war of Independence; he later settled near Hagerstown, Md. On the paternal side he is descended from Levi Griffith,
who emigrated to America from England with the colony of William
Penn and settled near Philadelphia. His great-grandmother, Emeline
Burgoyne, was a sister of the English General Burgoyne, who surrendered his forces to the Americans at the battle of Saratoga. Collins W.
Griffith, the father of the subject, was a lawyer of prominence, and for
many years a resident of Athens, Ohio.
Armond H. received his early education in the public schools of Cincinnati and Dayton, Ohio, and later was a student at Wesleyan College,
709




subsequently entering Wittenburg College at Springfield, Ohio. On
account of the death of his father he was obliged to leave college
and make his own way in the world. Believing in his possession
of artistic talent, some friends sent him to Dusseldorf, Germany, to
study art. After many wanderings throughout Europe, and realizingY that his future as an artist was not of the brightest, on the breaking
out of the Franco-Prussian war he returned to America, and subsequently entered the employ of a stationer and bookseller of Cincinnati.
Owing to a most severe attack of hay fever he was obliged to give up
his position and paid a visit to Kelley's Island, Lake Erie, in search of
relief. While on a trip to Detroit he was offered a small salary to act
as secretary to the Board of Directors of the Detroit Museum of Art,
but instead of accepting at once, went "down east" where he wrote
pot-boilers for newspapers; returning he entered upon his duties.
He has seen the museum grow from two to eleven floors and has
been instrumental in raising money for many of the changes. His lectures on art have proven very popular. He is now in his fifth season,
has spoken about two hundred times, and is now in demand in various
parts of the country. The lecture course, as was the case with almost
everything else in his life, began in an accidental way, one Sunday,
when a number of visitors asked for a little special instruction about
some vases. They returned the following Sunday, and with them a
few friends; gradually the interest grew, and Director Griffith was
obliged to lecture in one of the halls. The present lecture room holds
seven hundred visitors and is jammed to the doors each Sunday, while
fully two thousand persons wander through the various departments.
From Detroit the Sunday lecture movement has spread to various parts
of the country; the good work of Director Griffith has thus become
widely known and recognized as adding a new stimulus to art work in
America. His style of discourse is pleasing. He blends romance and
poetry with his facts; in this way he gains and holds the popular attention. As the servant of the people, his work requires business sense,
tact and diplomacy. That he has made himself one of the most popular
men in Detroit showvs how well fitted he is for the responsibility he
now holds. Director Griffith is a bachelor and makes his home with
his mother.


710








-3 M:
11^


ARTHUR E. GUE, M. D.




ARTHUR E. GUE, M. D.


ARTHUR E. GUE, M. D., son of George W. and Anna (Roberts) Gue,
was born in Neponset, Ill., April 29, 1861. At an early age he was
placed in the juvenile department of the State Normal School at
Normal, Ill., where he remained until 1871, when he entered Onarga
Seminary at Onarga, Ill. After six years spent at this institution he
removed in 1877 to Peoria, and during the two succeeding years was a
student of the High School in that city. In 1879 he entered the employ of the banking house of C. E. & C. M. Anthony, but was compelled
(through ill health) to resign in 1882. After one year spent in regaining his health he accepted a situation with the Lancaster Mining Company of Peoria, Ill., as bookkeeper and paymaster, serving in that capacity until 1885, when he removed to Rock Island and entered the
employ of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railway as station agent.
In 1888 he removed to Chicago and entered the Homeopathic College,
from which he was graduated in 1891, with the degree of M. D. Immediately after graduation he was selected as one of the house physicians of Cook County Hospital at Chicago and remained in that capacity
until December, 1891, when he was offered and accepted the appointment of house surgeon in Grace Hospital, at Detroit, Mich. In 1893
Dr. Gue resigned from the hospital staff and established his present
practice, in which he has met with well-merited success. In 1895 he
was appointed city physician of Detroit, a position he has filled with
marked ability. He is also a member of the hospital staff of Grace
Hospital.
Dr. Gue was married, October 4, 1893, to Jennie E., daughter of William 0. and Jane (Penny) Strong of Detroit. They have one daughter,
Grace S.
OTTO E. C. GUELICH.
OTTO E. C. GUELICH, son of Carl L. and Henrietta Eleanora
(Ravenclow) Guelich, was born on his father's estates near Holsterbro, Denmark, October 18, 1834, and is descended from one of the
prominent families of Germany. Mr. Guelich was educated by his
father, who acted as his tutor until Otto had reached the age of
fourteen. At that time he was called upon to assist in the management


711




of the estate, owing to the political confinement of the older Mr.
Guelich because of his sympathy with the rebellion of 1848-1852. His
uncle, Guido Guelich, held the office of president of the Republic of
Schleswig-Holstein during this period. With the close of the war the
family were exiled and came to America, settling at Utica, N. Y.
For several years after his arrival in America Mr. Guelich engaged in
farming near Utica, and in 1861 embarked in the retail meat business
at that place. During the oil excitement in Pennsylvania Mr. Guelich
removed to Titusville in that State, and for one year was active as a
speculator in that line. In 1866 he returned to Utica and resumed his
former business, to which he added in 1876 a line of agricultural
implements. In 1884 he was offered and accepted the agency for the
dressed beef firm of George H. Hammond & Co., remaining as their
representative at Utica until 1887, when he disposed of his interests
there and removed to Detroit, Mich, where he formed the Northwestern Stone and Marble Co, receiving the position of general
manager. In 1892 he formed the Detroit & Bermudez Asphalt Co., of
which he was elected first president and general manager. This
company was succeeded by the Western Bermudez Co. of which Mr.
(Guelich was made vice-president and general manager. Mr. Guelich
has the distinction of being the first person to lay Bermudez ashpalt in
competition with the trust.  Owing to the absorption of the Western
Bermudez Co. by the Barber Asphalt Co. in December, 1894, Mr.
Guelich became associated with the Alcatraz Co., of which he is the
present western manager.
H-e is a member of Yah Num-Dah-Sis Lodge, Valley of Utica, Free
and Accepted Masons. Mr. Guelich has been married twice, first to
Lydia A. Cooley of Utica, N. Y., who died in 1865, leaving a son,
Charles E. Guelich. In 1867 he married as his second wife Elizabeth
I). Cooley, of Utica, N. Y. They are the )parents of two children
Lillah H. and Amelia.
Upon the occasion of the unveiling and dedication of the battle
monument at Oriskany, N. Y., which occurred August 5, 1884, the
dedication oration was delivered in English by the lion. William
)Dorsheimer, and in German by Mr. Guelich. The latter spoke as the
representative of the (German societies of Utica and vicinity which had
been active in promoting the erection of the lmonumenlt. The newspapers of that time complimented Mr. Guelich very highly on his
eloqlent effort, and llis oration is preserved in the archives of Oncida
coulnty, N. Y.
712








REV. CHARLES F. W. HAASS.




REV. CHARLES F. W. HAASS.


REV. CHARLES F. W. HAASS, son of Charles and Minnie (Rieggert)
Haass, was born in Niedereggenen (Grand Duchy of Baden), Germany,
January 10, 1825. Rev. Haass was educated in the public schools of
his native place, which he attended until the age of ten, and later in
the'Gymnasium at Freiburg, Baden. In 1844 he entered the University of Halle, in Prussia, where he remained until 1845, when he entered the University of Heidelberg, from which he was graduated in
1848. He was ordained a minister of the gospel in August of that year
at Carlsruhe, and shortly afterward came to America, where he was assigned to the pastorate of Trinity church at Rochester, N. Y. In 1852
he removed to Detroit, Mich., where he was appointed pastor of the old
St. John church, at the corner of Monroe avenue and Farrar street, and
remained in the pulpit of that edifice until 1855. In the latter part of
that year he was assigned to missionary work at Michigan City, Ind.,
at that time a mere settlement, where he gathered a congregation and
built a house of worship. In 1859 he removed to Addison, Ill., and
engaged in work of a similar character as in Michigan City. In 1862
he was recalled to his old congregation of St. John church of Detroit,
and in 1873 from the old formed a new, with a house of worship at the
corner of Seventeenth and Rose streets. In 1874 he erected the church
over which he now presides, on Russell street between Antietam and
Chestnut, and from this congregation have been formed those of St.
Matthew and St. Luke.
Rev. Haass has been twice married; first, in 1851, to Ellen Lux of
Rochester, N. Y., who died in 1864; and in 1866 he married as his second wife Marie Clippert of Detroit. Rev. Haass is the father of thirteen children, all of whom are living. One son, the Rev. Otto Haass.
resides in Detroit.
JACOB H. HAHN.
JACOB H. HAHN was born in Philadelphia, Pa., December 1, 1847,
whither his maternal ancestors came in 1815, from Germany, through
the Napoleonic devastation. His father was a physician, and a graduate of Tibingen University. He is descended from an ancestry of
poets, divines and writers. His parents were ardent lovers of music,
713
90




and our subject manifested a remarkable musical talent in earliest
childhood, appearing as a pianist, in public, when but seven years of
age.
He removed to Chicago when fourteen years of age, and there his
musical studies were continued with the best local teachers, and where,
later, he was brought into contact with L. M. Gottschalk and James M.
Wehli, profiting greatly by the encouragement and criticism of these
two most prominent pianists of that period. Subsequently he obtained
his first insight into the realm of classical music through Dr. F. Ziegfeld of that city. During his residence in Chicago his services were
much in demand as a pianist, and he also acted as musical director,
accompanist and soloist in various concert organizations. His progress
in the art was rapid and at the age of eighteen he assumed charge of
the musical department of the Ladies' Seminary at Coldwater, Mich.,
remaining there three years. His administration of the affairs of this
institution met with notable success and his reputation as a teacher became well known throughout the State. In 1869 he resigned his position to take further instruction abroad, going to Leipsic, Germany,
where he studied under Louis Plaidy and E. F. Richter.
In 1872, at the request of Prof. J. M. B. Sill, he assumed charge of
the musical department of the Detroit Female Seminary, meeting with
instant and most flattering recognition. Later on he organized the
Detroit Conservatory of Music, and has continuously remained in charge
of its affairs up to the present time. Mr. Hahn since his residence in
Detroit has attained a national reputation as a teacher and has been
foremost among the leaders in the musical circles of Michigan. In
1885, under the authority of the Music Teachers' National Association,
he organized the Michigan Music Teachers' Association, of which he
afterwards became president, and this organization has unquestionably
elevated the standard of instruction very materially in both vocal and
instrumental music in the Peninsular Commonwealth.
The Detroit Conservatory of Music, of which Mr. Hahn is the head,
the heart and the soul, maintains an undisputed place in the front rank
of American institutions devoted to musical instruction, a position due
to the fact that its director is not only a musician of high repute
throughout the nation, but an indefatigable worker; a worker, too,
who is equipped with superior business qualifications. Surrounded by
a faculty of thirty-two instructors of broad experience and recognized
ability, and employing none but the most advanced and progressive
714




methods in each department, through his personal supervision students
are thoroughly prepared for high class teaching, for concert playing on
all instruments, and for church, oratorio, concert and operatic singing.
He has had students from every State in the Union, besides many
graduates from foreign conservatories, and enjoys the reputation of
having aided, instructed, and placed in lucrative positions more deserving people than any single teacher in America. There is scarcely
a town in Michigan where his good work has not left its impression,
and it is a well-known fact that the success of nearly every prominent
pianist and teacher in the State, and particularly in Detroit, can be
traced to Mr. Hahn's judgment, ability, and, in many instance, unselfish generosity.
He became a member of the Music Teachers' National Association
at Cleveland in 1884, was elected vice-president for Michigan at New
York in 1885, re elected at Boston in 1886, and at Indianapolis in 1887;
elected a member of the Program Committee with Calixa Lavallee and
W. W. Gilchrist at Chicago in 1888, chairman of the executive committee at Philadelphia in 1889, and president of the association at Detroit
in 1890. Besides contributing freely and liberally to every worthy enterprise calculated to advance the cause of good music in Detroit during the past quarter of a century, he has served as president of the
Michigan Music Teachers' Association and of the Detroit Philharmonic
Club, a member of the National Editorial Association, as chairman of
the committee on music for the National Encampment of the G. A. R.,
as member of the committee on music for the World's Fair, as a director
of the Detroit Musical Society and as a member of the Detroit Symphony Association.
As a citizen Mr. Hahn has been broad minded, public spirited and
progressive, as a man he is the essence of integrity, generosity and
right living. Prof. E. A. MacDowell, beyond question the prime minister of American composers, demonstrated the esteem in which Mr.
Hahn is held by the musical fraternity, when, in a personal letter, he
wrote:
" I am delighted with what I heard in your conservatory. Coming entirely unexpected, I heard some of your pupils, who happened to be in the building, playsurely a most severe test. In conservatories I have often heard Bach, Beethoven,
Weber, Hummel, Dussek and Herz acceptably played; sometimes Mendelssohn,
Chopin and Shumann. When it came to more modern writers, however, they were
generally 'terra incognita.' Your pupils played for me in fine style, and from memory, works by Chopin, Bach, Liszt, Mendelssohn, Nicode, Raff, etc., and it was a
715




pleasure to me to offer you my sincere congratulations. I must say that with all my
experience at home and abroad, I know of no conservatory that would not be proud
of such a fine showing."
Such a tribute as the above, self-evident as to its spontaneity and
sincerity, coupled with similar estimates from such masters as Theodore
Thomas, Arthur Foote, Constantin Sternberg, and Emil Liebling, are
most potent proofs as to the genuine character of Mr. Hahn's lifework
as a musician, while his record as a man of affairs who appreciates and
aids the general welfare, may be ascertained by any prominent citizen
in the community where he has so long resided.
He is a member of the Detroit Club, Fellowcraft Club, the Detroit
Athletic Club and of Corinthian Lodge, F. & A. M.
HENRY A. HAIGH.
HENRY A. HAIGH, son of Richard and Lucy B. (Allyn) Haigh, was
born at Dearborn, Mich., March 13, 1854. Richard Haigh was a native
of Yorkshire, England, and immigrated to America in 1820, settling in
New York State, where he engaged in the wool business. In 1853 he
decided to remove to Chicago, Ill., and while on the way from New
York stopped at Detroit to visit a brother. The result of this visit
was that he did not locate in Chicago, but subsequently purchased a
large farm at Dearborn, now on the western outskirts of Detroit, where
he still resides. On this farm Henry A. was born and reared. He attended the district school at Dearborn and later at Waterloo, N. Y.
In 1871 he entered the Michigan Agricultural College, and was graduated therefrom in 1874, with the degree of B. S. Following his graduation he taught school for one session, then received an appointment
as clerk in the State Health Department at Lansing, which position he
occupied for one year.
He had determined upon a professional career and in consequence,
in 1876, entered the law department of the University of Michigan,
from which he was graduated in 1878 with the degree of LL.B. During the ensuing year Mr. Haigh sought a location in the Western States
and took an extended tour through that section. He returned to Michigan in 1879 and associated himself with present Judge W. L. Carpenter (who had been a classmate in the University of Michigan) at Detroit.
He carried on a general law practice and was successful, in time win

716




HENRY A. HAIGH.








ning for himself an honorable position at the bar, which he has since
maintained.
lie early became active in politics, being a staunch and uncompromising Republican. His first important step was the organization in
1884 of the Michigan Republican Club, of which he became and was
for six years the secretary, and is still a member and director. From
1889 to 1891 Mr. Haigh was a member of the law firm of Atkinson,
Carpenter, Brooke & Haigh, and from the latter year until January 1,
1897, member of the firm of Atkinson & Haigh, Mr. Brooke having
retired and Mr. Carpenter having ascended the bench of the Circuit
Court in 1891. Since January 1, 1897, Mr. Haigh has practiced alone,
and has also become quite largely interested in several important and
successful business enterprises. He is still active in politics, and has
gained some prominence as a campaign orator. He has also a reputation as an after dinner speaker.
He is a member of the Michigan Club, and the Michigan State Republican League, of which organization he was the first secretary. In
1887 he was prominently identified with the organization of the National
Republican League, of which he was a member of the executive committee for four years. He is also a member of the Detroit Club, the
Alger Club, the Lincoln League and the Grande Pointe Club, and is
president of the McKinley Club. In 1892 he was a presidential elector
for Michigan, and was chosen by his colleagues of the Electoral College as the messenger to carry the vote of Michigan to Washington.
Mr. Haigh is a member of the order of the Free and Accepted Masons,
and was a member of the staff of Governor Rich from 1892 to 1894,
with the rank of captain and aide de-camp. He was alternate delegateat-large from Michigan to the National Republican Convention of 1896,
at St. Louis.
In 1884 he published a book entitled "Haigh's Manual of Law,"
being a compilation of the laws applicable to farm life and rural districts, which met with large sale, and is now in general use by justices
of the peace in many sections of the country. He is also the author of
"Labor Laws of America," published in 1888. He has been an occasional contributor to newspapers and magazines, and has an attractive
and forceful literary style.
Mr. Haigh was married in 1895 to Caroline, daughter of Andrew W.
Comstock, of Detroit, and they have two sons: Andrew C., and Richard Allyn Haigh.


717




JOSEPH G. HAMBLEN.


JOSEPH G. HAMBLEN, son of Cornelius and Sarah (Towle) Hamblen,
was born in Newmarket, N. H., August 5, 1844. He was graduated
from Dickinson College, Carlisle, Pa., in 1866, and during the ensuing
two years acted as general manager for his father, of Hamblen, Baker
& Co.'s packing establishment at Fishing Island, Md. In 1868 a branch
of their business was established at Detroit, Mich., and Mr. Hamblen
immediately assumed charge and carried on the business until 1880,
when he branched out for himself, establishing his present stand as
wholesale dealer in fruits, canned goods and oysters. He is also a
stockholder in the Citizens' Savings Bank of Detroit. He is a member
of the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity of Dickinson College, and an honorary
member of the Detroit Boat Club.
Mr. HIamblen has been married twice, first, in 1865, to Sarah Reifsnider of Newville, Pa., who died in 1870, and second, in 1871, to
Helena Richards, daughter of Professor Richards of the University of
Michigan. They have four children: Joseph G., jr., Cornelius 2d,
Ralph and Louis.
WILLIAM    I. HAMLEN, M. D.
DR. WITLIAM I. HAAMLEN, son of John and Elizabeth (White) Hamlen,
was born May 14, 1858, near Dungannon, province of Ontario, Canada;
he attended the common schools in his native country until fourteen
years of age, when he removed to Goderich, Ont.,. where he entered
the Collegiate Institute, remaining until 1876. He was successful in
passing the teacher's examination for the province, and was steadily
engaged in teaching until 1879, when he returned to the Collegiate
Institute and took up a preparatory course for Toronto University. In
1880 he removed to Detroit and entered the Michigan College of
Medicine, receiving the degree of Doctor of Medicine in 1883. Upon
graduation Dr. Hamlen was appointed house physician at the hospital
connected with the college, filling that position until October of that
year, when he resigned to enter private practice. His first office was at
28 Miami, avenue, )etroit.  In April, 1885, he entered Bellevue
Hlospital, New York city, where he received a partial post-graduate
course. Returning to Detroit he resumed his former practice.
718




I




,f/'




Dr. Hamlen was one of the first members of the faculty of the
Michigan College of Medicine and Surgery; he was secretary of this
institution from 1891 to 1896, and now occupies the position of professor
of chemistry and physics. He is a member of several beneficial
societies and insurance companies. He is a member of several recognized medical societies.
He was married, October 20, 1886, to Emily Pitcher, granddaughter
of the late Dr. Zina Pitcher, of Detroit. They have one child,
Kathleen E. Hamlen. Their present home is at 204 Lafayette avenue.
WALTER S. HARSHA.
WAITER S. HARSHA, son of William and Mary Ann (Cook) Harsha,
was born in Detroit, Mich., June 15, 1849. He received all his early
education in the Detroit public schools and was graduated A. B. from
the literary department of the University of Michigan in 1871, and in
1875 had conferred upon him the degree of A. M. While a student at
the University of Michigan he also read law in the office of C. I. Walker
at Detroit, and following his graduation was made deputy clerk of the
Recorder's Court at Detroit, retaining that position for about two years.
Upon the establishment of the Superior Court of Detroit, on June 3,
1873, the county clerk being ex officio clerk of said court, Mr. Harsha
was appointed deputy clerk and vested with the full power of organiza,
tion of the court. While clerk of this court he was admitted to the
practice of law January 5, 1878. On January 1, 1879, he was appointed
as deputy in charge of the Wayne county clerk's office, which position
he held until June 6, 1882, when he was appointed to his present position as clerk of the Circuit Court of the United States for the Eastern
district of Michigan.
Early in 1891 Mr. Harsha elaborated a scheme of practice, and rules
for the new United States Circuit Courts of Appeals just established,
which were submitted to and approved by the United States Supreme
Court and, upon their recommendation, duly adopted by all of said
Courts of Appeals throughout the country, and a uniform system of
practice thus established, which up to this time remains substantially
unchanged. In recognition of these valuable services, while still clerk
of the United States Circuit Court of Detroit, he was appointed, June
16, 1891, clerk of the United States Circuit Court of Appeals for the


719




Sixth Circuit with clerk's office at Cincinnati, Ohio, and continued to
hold both offices until he resigned from the Court of Appeals, October
2, 1894, retaining the Detroit office.
During his service in the Recorder's Court Mr. Harsha reorganized
the office and was instrumental in the adoption of the system now in
vogue in that court. He also reorganized the Wayne Circuit Court and
inaugurated the present system with several judges.
For a number of years he gave a large portion of his time to the
drafting and revision of the legal forms used in Michigan, the permanent value of which is inestimable; and to the annotating of some volumes of Michigan Supreme Court Reports, which work was subsequently completed by others.
Mr. Harsha is a member of Delta Kappa Epsilon College fraternity;
order of Free and Accepted Masons; Detroit Club; Country Club; Detroit Boat Club, etc. IIe is also a member of the Society of the Sons
of the American Revolution.
January 18, 1881, Mr. Harsha married Isabella Mott of Detroit.
CLARENCE M. HAYES.
CLARENCE M. HAYES, son of Enos A. and Emma (Griffith) Hayes,
was born in Chardon, Geauga county, Ohio, March 31, 1862.  Mr.
Hayes was educated in the public schools of his native place, which he
attended until the age of seventeen. In 1879 he entered the employ of
H-i. W. Tibbals, a prominent photographer of Painsville, 0., with whom
lie served an applrenticeship of five years, on conclusion of which he
removed to Detroit, Mich, where he engaged in business for himself.
After a residence of six years in Detroit, he removed to St. Paul, Minn.,
where he remained one year; then returned to Detroit and organized
and incorporated the firm of C. M. Hayes & Company, photographers,
of which he is president and manager. Since the establishment of this
firm in 1891, they have built up a large business and have attained to a
prrominent place among the leading photographers of the United
States.
In 1895 Mr. IHayes was elected secretary of the National Photographers' Association; in 1896 to the office of treasurer, and in 1897 was
elected president of that organization. He was also elected to the
presidency of the Michigan State Association in the latter year. In
720)




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CLARENCE M. HAYES.








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( F,()R( i HENDRIkIl.




1896 the exhibit of C. M. Hayes & Co. at the German National Convention of Photographers, held at Trier, Germany, was awarded the
first medal, with a diploma for a foreign exhibit. In 1897 at the Ohio
State Convention of Photographers, in which one special class was open
to the photographers of the United States, and in which thirty-seven
of the leading firms competed, the exhibit of C. M. Hayes & Co. received the first prize, a gold medal. They were also awarded a medal
of honor by the National Convention of the Photographers of the United
States in 1896. On March 15, 1898, the trustees of the Detroit Museum
of Art passed a resolution asking Mr. Hayes to furnish that institution
with a set of photographs of some four hundred well known and prominent men in business, professional, military and social life of Detroit;
this collection to be placed on exhibition for all time at the Detroit
Museum of Art.
Mr. Hayes is prominent in Masonic circles, being a member of every
grade of the order in the city. He is also a member of Sicily Lodge,
Knights of Pythias, the Fellowcraft Club and the Detroit Boat Club.
On October 13, 1885, he married Emma L., daughter of H. W. Tibbals of Painesville, Ohio. They have one child, Alberta Ellen.
A large number of the portraits of prominent men in this work
were made from photographs taken by Mr. Hayes, and are examples
of his skill as a cameratic artist.
GEORGE HENDRIE.
GEORG(E HENDRIE, the son of John Hendrie and Elizabeth Strathearn,
was born in Glasgow, Scotland, February 9, 1834. His parents came
from Ayrshire, he being one of a family of nine children, three sons
and six daughters. His education was received in the Glasgow High
School. At the age of fifteen he entered the employ of the Glasgow &
Southwestern Railway, and one year later that of the Edinburgh &
Glasgow Railway. Subsequently he was employed by Messrs. George
and James Burns of the Glasgow and Liverpool Steamship line.
In 1858 he came to America and located in Hamilton, Canada, where
his brother William had preceded him. Shortly after his arrival he
entered the employ of the cartage firm of Hendrie & Shedden, this
firm handling all freight for the then Great Western Railway of Canada at Hamilton, London and Toronto. In this undertaking, as with
721
91




most of those throughout his business career, Mr. Hendrie has been associated with his brother, Mr. William Hendrie, of Hamilton, Ont., with
whom he also retains interests in Canada in the cartage business of the
Grand Trunk Railway, and the conduct of the Royal Mail service.
On April 1 of the following year Mr. Hendrie removed to Detroit,
where, after many difficulties, he established a cartage business on the
same lines as that in which his brother was interested in Canada. This
venture (the pioneer of its kind) under his able direction was soon in
successful operation, and has since become universally adopted in all
of the large cities of the United States. This was the parent institution of the many enterprises with which he has since become connected.
On May 1, 1866, he was instrumental in securing a seven years' lease
of the lines of the old Detroit Street Railway Company, at that time
extending on Jefferson avenue from the foot of Third street to Elmwood avenue; on Gratiot from Woodward to Dequinder street; on
Michigan avenue from Woodward avenue to Woodbridge Grove (now
Trumbull avenue); and on Woodward avenue from Jefferson to Brady
street. The many extensions on these lines which were made possible
by the rapid growth of the city, were all promoted under the direction
of Mr. Hendrie, and in 1876 he and his associates purchased the system,
acquring in 1890, in addition, the Grand River Street Railway Company system, retaining control until 1891, when the business of the
company was purchased by the present owners, the Citizens' Street
Railway Company. He has also been the chief organizer and principal owner of the Hamtramck & Grosse Pointe Railway (organized
May 29, 1888); the Wyandotte & Detroit River Railway (organized in
the spring of 1892), and of the Detroit & Pontiac Railway Company
(organized in'1895).
In 1878 he, with Senator James McMillan, W. B. Moran, Hon. J.
S. Newberry and Francis Palms, organized what is now the Duluth,
South Shore & Atlantic Railway Company, originally running from
St. Ignace to Marquette, Mich, and incorporated as the Detroit, Mackinaw & Marquette Railway Company, and became interested in the
numerous collateral enterprises growing out of this work, Vulcan Furnace Company, Peninsular Land Company, etc., all tending to develop
the resources of the Upper Peninsula.
Some years ago with the late William B. Moran, Mr. Hendrie acquired the title to a large tract of marsh (known the Grand Marais),
lying along the river between the city water works and Grosse Pointe.
722




After securing a permit from the government this was dyked and some
2,500 acres reclaimed. This is now under a high state of cultivation,
and is possibly the most productive land in the State. On this tract
the grounds of the Detroit Driving Club and the Wanakin Golf Links
now lie.
After some opposition from those who preferred a site on the main
land, Mr. Hendrie, with several others, was instrumental in having the
money appropriated for the purchase of Belle Isle as a public park.
The beautifying and enriching of the property by the planting of shade
trees has been one of his hobbies. At present Mr. Hendrie is interested in opening a boulevard on the main land, to begin at the water
works and follow the river and lake by the water's edge for several
miles, something on the plan of the avenues in Chicago and the Riverside Drive in New York.
Mr. Hendrie has been actively identified with the gr6wth and developments of the business resources of Detroit and prominent in its
social and religious circles.
The many enterprises in which he is interested as a stockholder or in
an official capacity, have under his able and sagacious direction been
almost universally successful, a fitting tribute to his sound business
judgment. He is a kind and affable gentleman, who is held in high
esteem by all with whom he comes in contact, and in him the business
interests of Detroit have a staunch and powerful supporter.
He is president of the Detroit & Pontiac Railway Company; the De
troit Omnibus Line Company; the Michigan Avenue Land Company;
the Eureka Iron and Steel Works, and Hendrie & Company, Limited.
He is also treasurer of the Detroit Land Company, and is a director of
the Detroit Savings Bank, the Commercial National Bank, the Detroit
and Cleveland Steam Navigation Company, and the Wyandotte Savings
Bank of Wyandotte, Mich. He is a member of the Detroit Club, Fellowcraft Club, Yondotega Club, the Detroit Driving Club and the
Country Club. He is also a member of the Detroit Commandery, No.
1, Knights Templar, and was for some time president of the St. Andrew's Society. He has been for many years a member of Christ church.
On October 31, 1865, he married Sarah Sibley, daughter of the late
Hon. Charles C. Trowbridge (for many years a prominent citizen and
in 1834 the mayor of Detroit). To them have been born seven children: Strathearn, Katherine Sibley, Jessie Strathearn, George Trowbridge, Sarah Whipple, Margaret and William.


723




ALBERT M. HENRY.


ALBERT M. HENRY, son of William G. and Huldana (Squier) Henry,
was born in Grand Rapids, Mich., September 20, 1845. Mr. Henry,
received a thorough preparatory education in the public schools of
Grand Rapids and later entered the literary department of the University of Michigan, from which he was graduated in 1867. Subsequently
he began the study of law in the office of Walker & Kent at Detroit
and later with Hon. George Gray at Grand Rapids. In the fall of 1868
he entered the law department of the University of Michigan, and remained until the following spring, when he removed to Omaha, Neb.
He was admitted to the bar in Omaha in the summer of 1869, and
practiced before the courts of Nebraska for six years, winning for himself and maintaining the reputation of being a good lawyer, conscientious, painstaking and unflinchingly honest in all his dealings. In 1875
he located permanently in Detroit, Mich., where he was soon afterward
elected a member of the first City Council.
Since becoming a resident of Detroit Mr. Henry has been sought after
to fill various positions of responsibility and trust, but has preferred to
decline the same.  He was appointed, in 1890 assignee, and subsequently receiver, by the United States Court, of the estate of R. G.
Peters, and was also administrator of the estates of Hon. James Burns
and his wife, Aurilla A. Burns, Mr. Henry was a member of the State
Board of Pardons during the administration of Gen. Russell A. Alger
as governor of Michigan.
He is a prominent Mason, having been honored with the thirty-second
degree; is a member of Ashlar Lodge, F. & A. M,, Michigan Sovereign Consistory, and Moslem Temple, Nobles of the Mystic Shrine;
of the Psi Upsilon fraternity of the University of Michigan; the Society
of the Sons of the American Revolution; the Michigan Republican
Club; the Detroit Club; the Detroit Riding Club, and the Country Club
of Detroit. He was one of the organizers of the Michigan and Detroit
Clubs. He was also one of the organizers and first vice president of
the Dime Savings Bank of Detroit, and for a number of years served
as its attorney. Politically he is a Republican.


724








NEHEMIAH C. HINSLDALE.




Mr. Henry was married on January 23, 1875, to Frances M., daughter of Hon. James Burns of Detroit, Mich. Mrs. Henry died February
1, 1879, leaving two children: Burns, now a student at Yale College,
and Edith F., a graduate of Miss Porter's School at Farmington, Conn.
NEHEMIAH C. HINSDALE.
NEHEMIAH C. HINSIDALE, son of John and Deborah (Bogardus) Hinsdale, was born in Syracuse, N. Y., February 28, 1834. He was left
an orphan at the age of seven, and was compelled at the age of eight
to seek a means of livlihood. For four years he did small chores on a
farm, and in 1846 he was apprenticed to the trade of stone cutting.
After four years' apprenticeship he worked as a journeymen for two
years, when he was employed in an official capacity, and among the
many structures that he helped to build were the Suspension Bridge at
Niagara Falls, N. Y., for the use of the Great Western (now the Grand
Trunk) Railroad, and the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad Bridge spanning the Schuylkill River at Schuylkill Falls, Pa.
His first contract was with the State of New York, at Syracuse, for the
sum of $30, 000 (late in the fifties). In 1861 he enlisted in the army as a
private of the 129th N. Y. Vol. Infantry, and later served with the 185th
Regiment from the same State. He was mustered out of the service
in May, 1865, and at once returned to Syracuse, where he again plied
his trade for three years. Mr. Hinsdale's war record shows him to
have been a brave and fearless soldier, and the many wounds he
bears are proof of the faithfulness with which he obeyed orders.
In 1867 he removed from Syracuse to Chicago, Ill., and established
himself in business as a general contractor and builder, remaining there
until the great fire of 1872 caused him to leave that city; he returned,
however, in 1875 and helped rebuild Chicago, one of the most important structures being the present City Hall. From 1880 to 1884 he
was in New Orleans, La., where he built the Cotton and Produce Exchanges and several other large buildings.  In 1884 he returned to
Chicago, remaining until 1892, and while there he erected the Auditorium building and many other imposing edifices, which stand as monuments of his skill. During the erection of the Auditorium Mr. Hinsdale was precipitated to the ground from the elevation of forty-two
725




feet, breaking his neck, causing internal injuries from which he has
never fully recovered. From 1892 to 1894 he resided at Indianapolis,
Ind., and in the latter year removed to Detroit, which he has made his
permanent home.    Since coming here Mr. Hinsdale has made a
speciality of the building of mausoleums, two notable examples of this
class of architecture constructed by him being those of Col. F. J.
Hecker in Woodward Cemetery and the Buhl family in Elmwood Cemetery. He has at present under construction one for Governor Bushnell, of Ohio, to cost $50,000. Mr. Hinsdale's reputation as a builder
needs no mention here, for it is well known throughout the United
States, and he is conceded to rank among the leading men in his profession. Personally he is genial and kindly, a thorough American and
esteemed by all with whom he comes in contact.
HENRY C. HODGES.
HENRY CLAY HODGES, president of the Detroit Lubricator Company,
general agent of the Connecticnt Mutual Life Insurance Company of
Hartford, Conn., the senior member of the firm of Hodges Brothers,
and also prominently identified with other important interests of the
city of Detroit, was born in South Hero, Grand Isle county, Vt, March
2, 1828. His father was Nathaniel Hodges, a native of New York State,
who was born in Washington county in 1787, and was a soldier in the
war of 1812. His grandfather on his father's side, Ezekicl Hodges,
was a soldier of the Revolution and served under Gen Stephen Van
Rensselear, who was a direct descendant of Killiaen Van Rensselaer,
the first patroon of the manor of Rensselaerwyck in the colony of New
Netherlands, now the major portion of Rensselaer county, N. Y.
Ezekiel Hodges migrated from the vicinity of Boston, Mass., to Washington county, N. Y., a few years prior to the Revolutionary war.
Clarissa Phelps, mother of Henry Clay Hodges, was born in South
Hero, Vrt., in 1793, and was a descendant of the early Phelpses of Connecticut, a branch of which family migrated from the vicinity of Hartford, Conn., to northern Vermont in 1783, settling on Grand Isle.
Nathaniel Hodges and Clarissa Phelps were married in 1813 at South
Hero, Vt., and reared a family of eleven children, Henry Clay being
the second son and eighth child. He attended the public schools of


726




Vermont until sixteen years of age. In those days it was the custom
in New England to give each boy a specialty as a pursuit in life. Thus
Alexander P. Hodges, the eldest son, became a lawyer; Henry C.
Hodges, the subject of the sketch, was put to learning the trade of
carriage making; C. C. Hodges, the brother next younger, was placed
in a store with a view to becoming a merchant; the brother next
younger, Homer P. Hodges, became an artist, and died of yellow
fever in Havana, Cuba, in 1862; and W. R. Hodges, the youngest son,
went into the granite and marble business. The latter also served in
the Union army in the war of the Rebellion as captain of a Wisconsin
regiment, marching with Sherman to the sea; and he is now commander of Missouri Commandery of the Loyal Legion of Missouri.
Mr. Hodges left his father's home November 27, 1850, for the West,
arriving in Detroit December 1, following. From that city he went
to Marshall, Mich., as clerk and cashier of the railroad eating house
there, at that time the most celebrated between New York and Chicago.
In the summer of 1852 he went to Huntington, Ind., where he read
law with Judge James R. Slack, in the winter months teaching school
in connection with his studies. In the fall of 1853 he returned to
Michigan, locating at Niles, where he became connected with the firm
of J. F. Cross & Co., who controlled extensive marble quarries in Vermont. Mr. Hodges became a member in the firm and went to Fon du
Lac, Wis., where he remained until 1862.
In April, 1863, he formed a partnership with his brother, C. C.
Hodges, and another, under the name of Barker, Hodges & Bro., as
general agents for the Connecticut Mutual Life Insurance Company of
Hartford, Conn., for Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa and Minnesota. In
1868 the Hodges Brothers sold their interest in the States of Iowa and
Minnesota to the company, but still retained control of the States of
Michigan and Wisconsin, and in 1869 added to their territory the province of Ontario, Canada. They have also dealt largely in real estate,
but handling their own property only.
To Henry Clay Hodges are largely due the many improvements in
building in the city of Detroit, he having originated the idea of building restrictions, compelling those who purchased lots of him to build
of brick, at suitable distances apart and equally distant from the street.
The Hodges Brothers purchased the present Hodges building, for
many years known as "The Brunswick," one of the most famous
hotels in Detroit, while it was still in course of construction in 1871.


727




In 1889 and 1890 they reconstructed it, adding two stories and converting it into a substantial and handsome modern office building. In 1879
they purchased the plant of John R. Grout, manufacturer of lubricating
devices for stationary and locomotive engines and other machinery,
and incorporated the Detroit Lubricator Company, of which Henry C.
Hodges is president; C. C. Hodges is secretary and treasurer; and
Clarence B. Hodges, son of Henry C., manager. They have enlarged
and improved the pjant to such an extent that it is to day the largest of
its kind in the United States, if not in the world. Theirs was the first
concern in the world to successfully place a sight-feed lubricator upon
a locomotive, and their appliances are now in use on nearly every railroad in the world. They also manufacture globe, angle and other
valves and many other steam appliances.
In 1873 Mr. Hodges became vice-president and one of the managing directors of the Wyandotte Rolling Mills, serving in that dual
capacity for several years. He was also one of the organizers of the
Arizona Copper Mining Company, of which E. B. Ward was president
and which is still extensively worked. In 1882 the Hodges Brothers
organized the Detroit Steam Radiator Company and commenced the
manufacture of the Detroit radiator (for purposes of steam heating).
This type of radiator was then unknown, but since that time it has become the standard type of radiator wherever steam heating is known.
This company sold its business to a concern subsequently organized,
called the Detroit Radiator Company, which was afterward merged
into the American Radiator Company, composed of the Detroit Radiator Company, the Michigan Radiator Company, and the Pierce Radiator Company of Buffalo, N. Y. Of this company Henry C. Hodges's
son, Charles H., is treasurer, and another son, Frederick W., is
mechanical engineer. This concern is now the largest manufacturer
of steam radiators and hot water boilers in the world, and one of the
largest employers of labor in the United States. It has two extensive
plants in Detroit, employing many hundreds of men, and a large plant
in Buffalo, N. Y., which employs half a thousand or more men.
Mr. Hodges always had great faith in the future of Detroit, even at
a time when many of his friends in business were strongly inclined
toward conservatism in building and other improvements. In 1868
the Hodges Brothers bought a sixty foot front lot on Woodward avenue,
just north of the Grand River avenue, paying $200 a foot therefor and
erecting a five-story building, which they sold in 1879. Their friends
728


I




thought they were taking great chances in purchasing so far from
the business portion of the city, but the rapid development of Detroit since that time shows their great foresight. In 1872 Hodges
Brothers bought a large tract of land in the northern suburbs of the
city and laid out Lincoln avenue. Trumbull avenue then was but
sixty feet wide, but through Mr. Hodges's efforts it was made eighty.
There he paved streets, built many fine brick residences, set out shade
trees, laid water pipes and instituted many other improvements, largely
at his own expense, before the city could be induced to do so. The
project of a boulevard in Detroit was the joint conception of Mr.
Hodges and the late D. M. Richardson, and though a different location
was then contemplated, the interest excited by the idea finally culminated in the present magnificent driveway around the city.
He was one of the principal actors in securing the removal of the site
of the post-office building to its present location when it was decided
by the government to erect a new structure.
The subject of this sketch has been a Republican since the organization of the party. He voted for John C. Fremont for president in
1856; and so fully was he imbued with the principles of the Republican
party that when it was found that James Buchanan had been elected in
the fall of 1856, he wrote on a column in front of his office that that
election probably meant the dissolution of the Union. In September,
1855, he attended a Republican convention which met at Kalamazoo,
Mich. Among the prominent speakers present was Henry Wilson,
who subsequently became vice-president of the United States. Mr.
Wilson's address occupied two hours or over. The day was hot and
dusty. At the conclusion of Mr. Wilson's speech the chairman of the
convention arose and announced that there was present an ex-congressman from Illinois, a man of the people, who had floated flat boats down
the Mississippi River and split rails, and that he took pleasure in introducing Abraham Lincoln of Illinois. At that time Lincoln was so
little known outside of the State of Illinois that Mr. Hodges turned to
a friend and said: " Let us leave the ground; we have no time to hear
a rail splitter talk.' Thus he lost the opportunity of seeing Abraham
Lincoln and hearing him speak.
Mr. Hodges participated in the convention which nominated Abraham
Lincoln in May, 1860. He was then an ardent Seward man, and when
the ballots were counted and it was found that Mr. Lincoln was nominated, he felt, in common with many others, that a great mistake had


92




been made. He has long since realized, however, that these men
builded wiser than they knew, and believes that Abraham Lincoln was
the only man who could have conducted the war of the Rebellion
through to a successful issue.
Mr. Hodges was married on October 10, 1854, to Julia, daughter of
Judge Bidwell of Hastings, Mich., and they have five children:
Clarence B., Clara D., Charles H., Frederick W. and Cora V. Mr.
Hodges is a staunch adherent of the Unitarian faith. He is a broadminded, liberal man, and affable and companionable at all times. He
is a man of fine presence and nobility of character, and there is that in
his entire personality which instantly commands respect and admiration.. His record is one that will cause his name to live forever as
one of the grand old men of Detroit.
WILLIAM L. HOLMES.
WILLIAM L. HOLMES, president of the Detroit Telephone Company,
was born in Huron county, province of Ontario, Canada, July 13, 1859,
and is a son of Matthew and Martha (Lane) Holmes. When six years
of age he removed with his parents to Birmingham, Mich., and in the
public schools of that place received his education. In 1875 he entered
the employ of J. M. Arnold, bookseller and stationer of Detroit, where
he served in the capacity of clerk. In the fall of that year he accepted
a similar position with C. R. Mabley, but after a short time returned
to his former employer, taking the position of bookkeeper. In 1878 he
accepted a situation with Allan Shelden & Co., acting as bookkeeper
for that firm until 1881, when he accepted a similar position with the
saddlery hardware house of Peter Hayden & Co. In 1883 he was
urgently solicited by the publishing house of D. Appleton & Co., of
New York city, to take the management of their business in the State
of Michigan. Resigning his position with Allan Shelden. & Co. he accepted the offer of Appleton & Co., and continued in charge of their
business in Michigan until 1890, when, having accumulated sufficient
funds, he engaged in the real estate business. His efforts in this line
have met with substantial success. He has established a large and
profitable business, is an expert on realty values and is prominently
identified with the real estate interests of the city.
In 1896 he with others organized the Detroit Telephone Company, and


730








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i
I,
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IRA G. HUMPHREY,




of which company he was made secretary and treasurer, and in 1897 elected president. In 1897 he was instrumental in the organization of the New
State Telephone Company and became its first president, and is still retained in that capacity. The organization of the former corporation and
its subsequent opposition to the Michigan (Bell) Telephone Company, resulted in the enjoyment of greatly improved service by the people of Detroit and vicinity, and needs no mention here. The establishment and
direction of the business of these two most popular corporations has been
borne to a great extent by Mr. Holmes, who has proved by his able
management, his possession of rare executive ability, indomitable energy and business enterprise of a high order. He is president of the
Detroit Switchboard and Telephone Construction Co., a trustee of
Albion College, a member of the Lincoln Avenue M. E. church, and
served for three years as president of the M. E. Sunday School Alliance of Detroit. Politically he is a Republican.
He was married on April 27, 1881, to Emma L., daughter of Aaron
Wheeler of St. Louis, Mich. To them have been born four children:
Harold Wheeler, Florence Julia, Helen and Ruth.
IRA G. HUMPHREY.
COL. IRA GROSVENOR HUMPHREY, son of Charles M. and Triphena
(Gibson) Humphrey, was born in Monroe county, Mich., February 22,
1860. Colonel Humphrey received his education in the public schools
of Monroe and Ann Arbor, Mich., and in Rockford, Ill., where he resided with his brother in-law, Gen. Russell Hastings. Following his
return to Michigan, in 1874, he took a special course under private
tutors, and later taught school for three sessions in Monroe county.
While teaching his leisure time was devoted to the study of law, and
he afterward spent two years in the law office of Col. Ira R. Grosvenor,
for whom he was named. In 1880 he was admitted to the bar at Monroe, Mich., and in the same year was elected as circuit court commissioner, holding that office for two terms, as he was re-elected in I P82
He was also last to hold office as injunction master of Monroe county,
that office being abolished in 1884.
Mr. Humphrey practiced his profession at Monroe until 1894, and in
April of that year removed to Detroit, where he has ever since been
associated with ex-Circuit Judge William Look, under the style of Look
731




& Humphrey, in general practice. Prior to locating permanently in
Detroit Mr. Humphrey had been frequently called to that city in the
prosecution of his cases and had built up a substantial practice, and
while yet a member of the Monroe bar he was for a number of years
associated with Judge Gouverneur Morris.  From 1890 to 1892 he
served as aid-de-camp with the rank of colonel on the staff of Governor
Winans of Michigan. Mr. Humphrey is a prominent Mason, being
honored with the thirty-second degree, is past master of Monroe Lodge
No. 27, F. & A. M., and is a member of Moslem Temple, Nobles of the
Mystic Shrine. He is also a member of the American, Michigan State
and Local Bar Associations, and is held in high esteem by the entire
community of Detroit.
In 1887 he married Sarah, daughter of Judge Gouverneur Morris of
Monroe, Mich.
WELLINGTON Q. HUNT.
WELLINGTON Q. HUNT, son of George Wellington and Louise Quelos
Hunt, was born in Detroit, Mich., August 31, 1860. He is of English
ancestry, being descended from Col. Sir William Hunt, who was chief
of artillery in the Royal army at the battle of Marston Moor, and who
afterwards made his escape from the Cromwell forces and emigrated to
America, settling in Weymouth, Mass. His descendant, Capt. Thomas
Hunt, was an officer under Gen. Anthony Wayne, and removed with
his family to Detroit in 1796, being afterwards elevated to the rank of
colonel and was for a time commandant of the post at Detroit. His
son, William B. Hunt, held various positions of an official nature in the
city and was prominent in the early development of its resources.
George Wellington, the father of our subject, was, during his early
life, engaged in the hardware business, later studied law and in 1879
was admitted to the bar, subsequently engaging in the real estate business. His death occurred in 1881.
Wellington Q. Hunt was educated in the public schools of his native
city, and upon the: death of his father in 1881, with practically no
business training, he took upon himself the management of his father's
affairs, and for the six succeeding years carried on the business with
marked success. In 1886 he, with John W. Leggett, formed the real
estate firm of Hunt & Leggett. Since their establishment in this line


732




WELLINGTON Q. HUNT.




io




they have met with continued success, handling with ability some of
most important transfers in realty in this section of the country. Mr.
Hunt is possessed with indomitable energy, great aggressiveness, and
is withal conservative, and his keen business foresight and calm judgment has done much to place his firm in the front rank among its
neighbors. He is a member of the Detroit Club, and the Detroit Boat
Club, and is popular alike in business and social circles.
On November 21, 1888, he married Mabel T., daughter of Maj. John
S. Loud, 3d Cavalry, U. S. A. To them have been born three children: Harriet M., Wellington L. and John L.
JERE C. HUTCHINS.
JERE C. HUTCHINS, vice-president and treasurer of the Detroit
Citizens' Street Railway, was born in Carroll Parish, La., October 13,
1853, and is a son of Anthony W. and Mary B. (Chamberlain) Hutchins.
Mr. Hutchins was educated in the public schools of Lexington, Mo.,
where he removed with his parents while yet an infant. On completion of his education he studied civil engineering with the corps of
Milton Morris, C. E., of Missouri, gaining his first practical experience
in that profession during the construction of the Missouri division of
the Gulf and Lexington Railway. He was afterward connected successively with the Kansas Pacific; Missouri, Kansas and Texas; and
Texas Pacific Railway Companies, as construction engineer. In 1876
he removed to Waco, Texas, where he accepted a reportorial position
on the Waco Examiner and subsequently became editor of that paper.
During his residence in Waco he acted as political correspondent in
Texas for the New York city and New Orleans papers. In 1881 Mr.
Hutchins returned to the world of railroading, serving successively
during the ensuing thirteen years with the New Orleans and Pacific;
Missouri, Kansas and Texas; Louisville, New Orleans and Texas; and
Illinois Central Railway Companies.
In 1894 he was elected to his present office of vice-president and
treasurer of the Detroit Citizens' Street Railway, in which company he
is a heavy stochkolder. He is also president of the Detroit, Fort
Wayne and Belle Isle Railway, and vice-president of the Detroit
Electric Railway. He is prominent as a Mason, being a member of
Michigan Sovereign Consistory; Detroit Commandery, Knights


733




Templar; and Waco (Texas) Lodge, F. & A. M. He is a member of
the Knights of Pythias, the American Society of Civil Engineers, the
Felloweraft Club of Detroit, the Detroit Club, the Country Club,
and is a director of the Detroit Chamber of Commerce.
Mr. Hutchins was married in April, 1881, to Anna M. Brooks of
Waco, Texas, and they have one child, Martha.
PERCY IVES.
PERCY IVES, artist, son of Lewis T. and Margaret (Leggett) Ives, was
born in Detroit, Mich., June 5, 1864. Mr. Ives was educated in the
public schools of Detroit, which he attended until the age of sixteen,
when he became a student in the Art Academy of Philadelphia, Pa.
After a four year course of study in this institution he returned to De
troit, crowned with honoars, and accompanied by his father, made an
extended tour of Europe; later remaining six months in Rome, where
they profited by study in the famous schools of that city. Subsequently Mr. Ives went to Paris and entered Academy Julien, where
he was a student of the famous artists, Bouguereau, Lefebvre and
Boulanger. Earnest application to study soon brought the reward of
merit, and several of his works were placed on exhibition in the Salon, a
noted museum of art. With the exception of a short visit to Detroit in
1888 and another in 1890 (when he marrid Elise Caron, of Windsor7
Ontario, on June 16), Mr. Ives remained in Paris, and in 1892 passed
the examination of Beaux Arts. Subsequently he returned to Detroit,
which he has since made his home, and where he has successfully followed his profession of art, and attained a prominent place among the
portrait painters of America. In 1896 Mr. Ives was appointed dean of
the Detroit Museum of Art. Mr. and Mrs. Ives have one son, Lewis T.
COL. OSCAR A. JANES.
Col,. OSCAR A. JANES, United States pension agent, Detroit Agency,
was born in Johnstown, Rock county, Wis., July 6, 1843, and is a sOn
of John E. and Esther (Bagley) Janes. Col. Janes is of English ancestry, being descended from William Janes, who emigrated from England to America in 1637. He was a member of the colony of Rev.
734




PERCY IVES.








John Davenport. The voyage was made in the ship "Hector," and
after a short stay in Boston, they jourueyed south and founded the
present city of New Haven, Conn. William Janes was for many years
prominent in the affairs of the colony and a leading teacher. Later he
removed to, and founded Holyoke, Mass.  Elijah Janes, the great.
great grandfather of the subject, was one of the minute men of the
Colonial war and served throughout the war for Independence, being
promoted to the rank of lieutenant of dragoons. John E. Janes, the
father of the subject, was born in Wayne county, N. Y., removed with
his parents to Wisconsin in 1838 (at that time an unsettled section), and
for many years was prominently identified with the growth and development of that section of the State.
Colonel Janes received his early education in the district schools of
Johnstown, and later attended the Milton (Wis.) Academy. In 1863
he entered Hillsdale College at Hillsdale, Mich., where he remained
but a short time when he enlisted in the Fourth Michigan Infantry as
a private. He served until wounded, at the siege of Petersburg, Va.,
which resulted in the loss of his left arm, and was mustered out of the
service in 1864. Subsequently he resumed his studies at Hillsdale
College and was graduated therefrom in 1868. On completion of his
education he entered the law offices of Gen. C. J. Dickerson at Hillsdale, where he began the study of his future profession. He was admitted to the bar in 1871, and associating himself with L. N. Keating,
formed the law firm of Keating & Janes, a partnership which endured
until the removal of Mr. Keating to Muskegon, Mich., in 1875.
During his residence in Hillsdale, Colonel Janes served the city and
county in an official capacity for several years, filling the following offices: city clerk from 1871 to 1876, city attorney from 1872 to 1876,
circuit court commissioner from 1872 to 1876, alderman from the Second
ward, from 1876 to 1878, judge of the Probate Court (two terms) from
1876 to 1884. In 1884 he was elected secretary and treasurer of Hillsdale College and served in that capacity until 1888. Subsequently he
resumed the practice of law, and in 1890, with H. G. Bailey, he formed
the firm of Bailey & Janes, with which he continued until 1897. In
1885 he was appointed, by Governor Alger, paymaster-general of the
Michigan National Guard, and served in that capacity until 1887. In
1895 he was elected from the Sixth district of Michigan (comprised of
the counties of Hillsdale, Branch and St. Joseph) to the State Senate
for a term of two years. On conclusion of his term of service he was


735




renominated, but failed of re-election, owing to the strong free silver
sentiment in a portion of his district.
While a member of the State Senate he was a member of the Committees on Constitution, Judiciary, Soldier's Home, Mining, Schools,
and Roads and Bridges. He was the father of the bill compelling the
display of the national flag from all school buildings in the State, and of
that appropriating $10,000 for a statue of the late Gov. Austin Blair to
be placed on the Capitol grounds at Lansing. Since 1881 he has served
as a trustee of Hillsdale College and as auditor of that institution since
1894.
On March 8, 1897, he was appointed by President McKinley to his
present office of pension agent at Detroit. This appointment was the
first made by the president after the selection of his cabinet, and the
nomination of Colonel Janes was confirmed by Congress in the short
time of five minutes. H-e is a member of the Knights of Pythias, I. O.
O. F., Knights of the Maccabees, Detroit Post No. 384, G. A. R., and
U. S. Grant command of Detroit, Union Veterans' Union. He has
served as commander of the Department of Michigan, G. A. R.; as
inspector-general of the United States of the same order; as department commander of the Union Veterans' Union; as grand trustee of
the Grand Lodge of Michigan, K. P.; as grand master of the Michigan
Grand Lodge, I. O. O. F.; and as grand representative in the Sovereign Grand Lodge of the United States. Colonel Janes was elected
chairman of the Republican State Convention of 1896, which elected
delegates to the Republican National Convention at St. Louis, Mo.
Colonel Janes has been twice married; first, in 1873, to Miss Vinnie
E. Hill of Hillsdale, Mich., who died in 1875. In 1878 he married as
his second wife, Miss Julia M. Mead of Hillsdale, and they have three
children: Marie E., Henry M. and John E.
S. OLIN JOHNSON.
STEPHEN OLIN JOHNS)N, son of Philo and Eliza (English) Johns n,
was born in Westfield, Mass., June 15, 1847. The grandmother on the
paternal side, Pamnelia I)udley, was a descendant of the Hon. Thomas
Dudley, who came to Massachusetts Bay as first deputy governor in
1830, and was secondl governor in 1634-35, also governor in 1640-46
and 1650-51. The genealogy of the Dudley family, as compiled by


736




I, )S8et  |.'.  i>  ~  R,  *, /  ';
^ ~" '"' *''^:" ' " _       -~
*0fi B:l.;'^:?;j E' *.  1 -rsP  bet
C: e#
COP tff irS~v's
* U *   < e   |  _


S. OLIN JOHNSON.








Dean Dudley of Boston, Mass., in 1848, traces the ancestry of the Hon.
Thomas Dudley to the family whose most illustrious members were
Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, and Lord Guildford Dudley, who married Lady Jane Gray in 1553. The subject's great-grandfather, Samuel
Johnson, was a member of the Colonial army and served until the close
of hostilities in 1783. His grandfather, William Johnson, was born in
the city of New York, August 4, 1779.
Stephen Olin Johnson was educated in the public schools of New
York city and at the age of eighteen entered the employ of William P.
Kittredge & Co., New York city, manufacturers of tobacco. As an instance of the remarkable esteem in which he was held by his employers
is the fact that after the first year he received no stipulated salary, but
was allowed to place an estimate on his own services. In 1871 Mr. E.
I. Horsman, one of the largest manufacturers of toys and novelties in
the United States, made Mr. Johnson a most flattering offer, which he
accepted, resigning his former position. After the second year he was
given a fifth interest in the business and continued his connection with
this house until 1877, when, owing to ill health, he was obliged to resign and seek the milder climate of Colorado. After nearly two years
of rest, resulting in a return to good health, he resumed his former line
of business in the city of Denver, where he remained until 1884, when
he was asked to accept the position of manager of the Detroit Knitting
and Corset Works of Detroit, Mich.
On taking charge of this industry in April, he found that it had been
a losing venture during the six years of its existence, the losses having
aggregated between $55,000 and $60,000. He immediately turned the
tide of affairs, and was able to show at the end of the first year a net
profit of $9,000. Three years later he was instrumental in effecting its
sale to the Schilling Corset Company of this city, at a large bonus.
In 1886, subsequent to his connection with this establishment, he,
with others, who took no active part in the business, organized the
Penberthy Injector Co., of which he was elected treasurer and general
manager. He served in this capacity for six years, and in 1892 was
elected to his present office of president of the company. Mr. Johnson,
seeing the possibilities in the new enterprise, began the same in a room
twenty feet by thirty feet, with one man and one lathe. From these
small quarters of twelve years ago the establishment has grown to its
present proportions, namely, a four-story building one hundred feet by
one hundred and thirty feet, and a factory in Windsor, Canada. About
737
9:3




one hundred men are employed, and the output of injectors is the largest in the world. The trade extends to nearly all foreign countries and
the products are the standard in point of merit. The success of this
industry is due solely to the judicious management of Mr. Johnson, who
has proven by his successful direction of this and other enterprises, his
title to a prominent place among the leading business men of Detroit.
Aside from his interest in the above company, Mr. Johnson is president of the Pastime Lawn Mower Co. and the International Specialty
Co. He is prominent in Masonic circles, being a member of Michigan
Sovereign Consistory; Moslem Temple, Nobles of the Mystic Shrine;
Mistletoe Lodge, F. & A. M. of Brooklyn, N. Y., and the Rushmere
Club.
On June 5, 1873, he was married to Lilla Louise, daughter of George
and Sarah Sturtevant of New York city. They have four children:
Homer Sturtevant, Alice Gertrude, Claire Olin, and Charles Bissell.
CHARLES D. JOSLYN.
CHARLES D. JOSLYN, assistant corporation counsel of the city of Detroit, was born in Waitsfield, Vt., June 20, 1846, and is a son of the late
Ezra 0. and Eliza (Durant) Joslyn. Mr. Joslyn received his early education in the public schools of his native place, subsequently attending
the State Normal School at Barre, and later entered Dartmouth College
where he remained for a time. In 1870 he was appointed assistant
superintendent of the State Reform School (Vermont), and served in
that capacity two years. The ensuing two years were spent at home,
where he was engaged in the study of law, and later he entered the law
offices of Governor Dillingham, and was admitted to the bar in 1874.
Removing to Detroit, Mich., he began the practice of his profession
and in 1878, with Charles H. Freeman as his associate, he formed the
firm of Joslyn & Freeman, which was dissolved at the end of two years.
During the years 1885 to 1887 inclusive Mr. Joslyn occupied the position of clerk of the Superior Court of Detroit, and from 1890 to 1893
was United States consul at Windsor, Ontario, Canada. In July, 1894,
he was appointed to his present position of assistant corporation counsel, which he has since filled with marked ability.
Mr. Joslyn has always been a Republican, has borne an active part
in the campaigns of the past twenty years, and has exercised a potential
738




CHARLES D. JOSLYN.








influence in the ranks of the party in Michigan. He is an assiduous
student, a strong and able man before both courts and jury, and is
a recognized authority on municipal law. Mr. Joslyn is a member of
the Detroit Bar Association, the Fellowcraft Club, the I)etroit Yacht
Club and the B. P. 0. E.
Mr. Joslyn has been married twice; first, in 1873, to Julia, daughter
of Alpha Atherton of Waterbury, Vt., who died in 1883, leaving him
three children: Max A., Alice E and Louise D. Hie married as his
second wife, Mrs. Fannie Cooper, daughter of Richard Hart.
JAMES F. JOY.
HON. JAMES F. JOY, late of Detroit, son of James and Sarah (Pickering) Joy, was born at Durham, N. H., December 2, 1810. James Joy
was a manufacturer of farming implements. He was a direct descendant from Samuel Joy, one of the founders of Durham, in the
parish of Dover, county of Stratford, province of New Hampshire, in
1732, where the members of the Jcy family lived for more than a
century. Sarah Pickering Joy, was descended from the historic Pickering family of New Hampshire.
James F. Joy attended the district schools of his native village until
fourteen years of age, then took a two years' course of instruction
preparatory to entering college, and in 1828 entered Dartmouth College
and was graduated with honors in 1833. During his attendance at
Dartmouth he determined to become a lawyer, and in pursuance of
that purpose, immediately after his graduation entered the Harvard
Law School at Cambridge, Mass., which was then in charge of the
famous professors, Judge Story and Mr. Greenleaf. After one year's
attendance in the law school he was compelled by circumstances to
relinquish his studies for the time being, and accept the position as
principal of the academy at Pittsfield, N. H., whither his parents had
removed. He remained in that position but a few months, later becoming tutor in Latin in Dartmouth College, filling that chair for one year,
when he returned to the Harvard Law School and remained for another
year. He was then admitted to practice in the courts of Boston, Mass.,
but in September, 1836, turned his face toward Detroit, Mich., which
was ever afterward his home. He entered the offices of Hon. Augustus
S. Porter, who was soon afterwards elected to the United States


739




Senate and there remained until May, 1837, when he was admitted to
the bar of Detroit, and at once opened an office and became an active
practitioner of the law. Later, in the same year, he formed a partnership with Mr. George F. Porter, under the style of Joy & Porter.
Mr. Joy's character gave him standing in the community and his
industry and careful attention to business soon won him clients. No
cause was ever carried into court by him before he had given it the
most careful study, and the law applicable to it thorough investigation.
He had come to Michigan without capital, without powerful connections and without established pecuniary credit; he had, however, the
powers and qualities, formed by habit and education, which made him
independent of either capital, connections, or credit-a clear head,
sound j udgment, quick perceptions, and a mind the most comprehensive
and masterly in grasping legal and business propositions. To these
high intellectual powers were joined a great moral force of character, a
resolute will, self-reliant and firm, combined with strict integrity,
inspiring confidence and patient perseverance, insuring success. The
practice of economy, self-denial and industry, a proper pride in his
professional business obligations and punctuality in all engagements,
laid the foundation and guarantied that prosperity and usefulness which
his subsequent life developed. To these characteristics must we look
for the elements which conceived and successfully consummated those
great enterprises which have secured for Michigan and the States west
of it that material prosperity which they to-day enjoy.
Not to any accident of birth or fortune, or any external circumstances
or conditions, can we trace the extraordinary results achieved through
the influence of James F. Joy. In addition to the qualities named, the
only advantages of that kind which he inherited and which he retained
to the day of his death, were his fine personal appearance and commanding and impressive address. It was always a practice with Mr.
Joy to carefully consider and digest, pro and con, all plans conceived
by him, hence when his decisions were reached he was firm in seeing
them executed. From the very beginning the firm of Joy & Porter
enjoyed an extended and lucrative practice; they became attorneys, in
1837, for the old Bank of Michigan, and for ten years Mr. Joy, as the
legal head of the firm, was the confidential counsel for the Messrs.
Dwight, owners of that bank, and numerous others in different States.
In the complications which followed upon the Bank of Michigan
becoming insolvent, Mr, Joy had occasion to meet in the courts and
740




elsewhere the most gifted and distinguished minds in the nation. As a
practitioner before the Federal and State Courts, he was considered as
the peer of any.
From 1836 to 1846 the State of Michigan had undertaken the construction of railroads and a canal across the State, but had failed disastrously and become utterly bankrupt. Its condition had become
hopeless so far as any further prosecution of its public works was concerned. Among others Mr. Joy discussed, through the press and other
mediums, the questions connected with them and advised the sale of
its railroads to companies who would complete them. This was the
important question of that day, and to it may be attributed the reason
of Mr. Joy's being drawn wholly out of the law and into the construction and management of railroads. When the Legislature of 1845-46
came together, Mr. Joy, in connection with Mr. John W. Brooks,
afterward chief engineer and president of the Michigan Central Railroad Co., prepared the charter of that company, which also provided
for the sale of the road to that company, and submitted it to the
Legislature. After a whole winter's discussion it finally passed the
Legislature in the way in which it now stands upon the statute books.
Through the efforts of Messrs. Brooks, Joy and Porter, a company was
formed who took the property, paying the price agreed upon (two
million dollars), and the Michigan Central Railroad Co. came into
existence, Joy & Porter being retained as counsel and attorneys for the
company.
The progress of the road west, which occupied several years, was
attended with much litigation in Indiana and Illinois, especially at
Chicago, where its interests were united with those of the Illinois
Central Railroad Co., and through all this Mr. Joy figured prominently
as counsel for both roads. In securing the entrance of the Michigan
Central Railroad into Chicago, the litigation was both extensive and
important and largely controlled Mr. Joy's time, taking him away from
his practice in Michigan. Finally it absorbed all of his time and attention and commanded all his ability for a number of years. From that
period until the time of his sudden death (on September 24, 1896, from
heart disease, at his home in Detroit), he was identified with the railway interests of Michigan, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska and
Canada. He was the projector of the C., B. & Q. system, which, crossing the States of Illinois and spanning the Mississippi River at Quincy
and the Missouri River at Kansas City, made its connection with the


741




Hannibal & St. Joseph Railroad, thence extending a branch to Fort
Kearney (Neb.), and Fort Scott (Indian Ter.), establishing a continuous line from Detroit to the point named. Mr. Joy extended the
Hannibal & St. Joseph Railroad to Kansas City, Mo., building the first
iron bridge at that place; he also built the Kansas City, Fort Scott and
Gulf Railroad from Kansas City to the Indian Territory, and the
Kansas City, St. Joseph & Council Bluffs Railroad from Kansas City to
Council Bluffs. In Michigan he built the Detroit, Lansing & Northern
Railroad, the Detroit & Bay City Railroad, the Air Line, the Jackson,
Lansing & Saginaw Railroad, the Chicago & West Michigan Railroad,
the Kalamazoo & South Haven Railroad, and the Wabash. Up to the
time of his death Mr. Joy was president'of the Detroit Union Depot
Co, and himself planned the new Union Depot Building, which cost
over two million dollars. From 1846 Mr. Joy was the chief factor in
the construction in Michigan of over 2,210 miles of railway, and in
other States was chief promoter in over 6,000 miles of railway, directly
connected with, and entering the city of Detroit.
He possessed the happy faculty of throwing off the cares of business
when he left his office and his well stocked library was the diversion
and the pleasure of all his leisure time, when not occupied with the enjoyments of his family and social life. He was not an office seeker,
neither would he accept the nomination for any political position; once
only did he vary from this course. In 1860, when it became evident
that the difficulties growing out of slavery would result in a Civil war,
he allowed himself to be elected to the Legislature to help prepare the
State for the exigencies of the coming war. He was always a Republican and was a delegate-at-large to the Republican National Convention in 1880, being chosen to present James G. Blaine's name as a
candidate for the presidency.
Mr. Joy was twice married; his first wife was Martha, daughter of
Hon. John Reid, for many years a member of congress from Massachusetts. His second wife was Mary Bourne of Hartford, Conn.
WILLIAM C. JUPP.
WILLIAM C. JUPP, one of the most esteemed of Detroit's younger
business men, was born in Detroit July 23, 1859.  After attending the
public schools he entered the employ of Stephen F. Smith & Co.,


742




WILLIAM C, JUPP.








wholesale dealers in boots and shoes, as salesman. In 1883 he visited
Dakota, where he purchased a farm of 160 acres, which he still owns.
A year later he returned to Detroit and became associated as bookkeeper with the firm of John B. Price & Co., dealers in paper and
printer's supplies. Showing great proficiency in the business he was
admitted to partnership January 1, 1890. In the same year he married
Fannie B. Bartlett of Detroit, daughter of James W. Bartlett of Concord, Mass., a direct descendant of Governor Bradford. Mr. Price
retired from business in 1894, when Mr. Jupp purchased the entire
business. The location at No. 123 Jefferson avenue becoming inadequate to the demands of his increasing business, he moved to the
new and commodious premises at No. 48 and 50 Lamed street west.
On December 27, 1897, his establishment was completely destroyed by
fire, necessitating a removal to his pre ent quarters in the Case Power
building at No. 45 Congress street west, where he has secured one of
the most modern as well as commodious sales and stock rooms in
Michigan. Under his careful management the business has grown to
large proportions, and he carries everything in the wholesale paper
line, especially in flat and book papers.
Mr. Jupp is an ardent lover of all amateur manly sports, and as such
has a national reputation.  For five years he has been president of the
Detroit Boat Club. He is also president of the National Association
of Amateur Oarsman and vice commodore of the Mississippi Valley
Amateur Rowing Association, and has been for seven years continuously secretary and treasurer of the Northwestern Amateur Rowing
Association. He is also one of the charter members of the Detroit
Athletic Club. Mr. Jupp is popular in both social and business circles,
ranking as one of the most prominent among the younger generation
of Detroit's business men. His family consists of his wife and three
children: Fannie B., William B. and Stanley D.
WILLIAM J. KEEP.
WILLIAM JOHN KEEP, son of Rev. Theodore John and Mary A.
(Thompson) Keep, was born in Oberlin, Ohio, June 3, 1842. He acquired his education in the public schools of Oberlin, at Oberlin College and in Union College at Schenectady, N. Y., graduating from the
latter institution in 1865, after completing the course in civil engineering.
743




Immediately following his graduation Mr. Keep was made superintendent of the stove manufacturing plant of Fuller, Warren & Company at Troy, N. Y., and acted in that capacity until 1876, when he engaged in the same line of business on his own account. Since 1884 he
has been superintendent of the large stove works of The Michigan
Stove Company at Detroit.
He is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of
Science; a member of the American Institute of Mining Engineers;
American Society of Mechanical Engineers; the Iron and Steel Institute
(England); International Association for Testing Materials; American
Foundrymen's Association; Franklin Institute, and Detroit Engineering
Society. He is honorary member of the Rensselaer Society of Engineers, and of the Philadelphia Foundrymen's Association. He is an
elder in the Jefferson Avenue Presbyterian church. Politically he is a
Republican. Mr. Keep is the author of a large number of scientific
papers, which may be found in the transactions of the above societies.
For the past ten years he has devoted his leisure time to original investigation of the properties of cast iron. He discovered a mechanical
analysis for cast iron, which has been called "Keep's Test," which is
largely used in the United States and other countries in place of chemical analysis. Mr. Keep also manufactures a variety of testing machines
for cast iron.
In 1866 he married Frances S., daughter of Dr. William G. and Hannah I. (Stewart) Henderson, of Middlesex, Pa. They have had four
children, two of whom survive, Helen E. and Henry.
RONALD KELLY.
RONALD KELIY, son of Rev. John and Isabella (Scott) Kelly, was
born in the city of Glasgow, Scotland, January 1, 1843. His paternal
ancestors were Scotch Highlanders, and inhabited the island of Isla,
one of the Scottish Isles.
His great-grandfather, John Kelly (or Kellie, as he signed his name),
was gardener to the Lord of the Isles, and eventually removed to the
main land, so called. He was called Ian More, being a large man,
meaning "Big John."   His wife was born in Kintyre, Argyleshire.
They spoke little or no English, Gaelic being their native and only
speech, English being in little use in the Highlands at that period.


744




RONALD KELLY.








They had three sons, named respectively, Dugald, Colin and Ronald;
the last named was the grandfather of the subject of this sketch, and
for whom he was named.
His grandfather, Ronald Kelly, was a physician and scientist in Glasgow, and was a pioneer in electrical experiments, succeeding in lighting
his work room with the subtle fluid in 1824. He married Christina
Brown, whose family dwelt at Strathlachlan, Loch Fyne Side, near
Inverary, they also speaking Gaelic. They had two sons, Lachlan and
John; the latter being the father of Mr. Kelly.
His father, the Rev. John Kelly, now a resident of Detroit, was
closely identified with the Chartist movement in Great Britain, which
had for its object the enforcement of political reforms in the British
government, that have since been granted as a result of that movement.
Although a young man at that time he was in the fore front of the
struggle, and strenuously preached the motto displayed upon the banner of the Chartists, " Peaceably if we can, forcibly if we must." After
the treason of Peter Bussey, one of the Committee of Three for the
United Kingdom, who disclosed their plans to the government, and
through whose treason the rising in Wales was prematurely begun, and
many lives were sacrificed; and after the sentence of John Frost, Zephiniah Williams and William Jones, the leaders of the rising in Wales,
was commuted from capital punishment to simple banishment, he left
Scotland, and came to the United States. While in Glasgow he was a
great admirer of Gen. Lewis Cass, being familiar with his career as
soldier and statesman. Mr. Kelly's father located in Sanilac county on
first coming to America, and engaged in the practice of law, but eventually entered the ministry of the Methodist Episcopal church, and was
so engaged for thirty years. He is now a hale, hearty man, full of
reminiscences of a busy life.
Mr. Kelly's maternal ancestors inhabited the Lowlands of Scotland,
and were land owners, or what are known there as lairds. His maternal grandfather, Robert Scott, lived in Falkirk upon his estate,
where Isabella Scott, the mother of the subject of this sketch was born,
and who, according to the habit and custom of her class, was carefully
educated by private tutors at her father's home. Through the dishonesty of a supposed friend and partner, which involved him in a large
debt, Robert Scott voluntarily disposed of his estates, paid in full his
liabilities, and subsequently removed with his family to Glasgow.
Ronald Kelly was educated in the public schools of Glasgow, and in
745
94




the summer season lived with his Highland relatives in Gourock, Rothsay (on the isle of Bute), and Dunoon. He then came to Michigan,
where his father had preceded him. At the age of sixteen he began
teaching school, following that occupation in several towns on the
shores of Lake Huron, and eventually entered the Michigan State Normal School at Ypsilanti, from which he was graduated in the classical
course, intending at that time to remain in the teacher's profession.
As the result of overwork as a student, Mr. Kelly was compelled by
advice of his physician to abandon for a time professional work, and
represented, as attorney and manager for the State of Michigan, the
Charter Oak Life Insurance Company of Hartford, Conn., for a period
of seven years, during which time the receipts of the company for Michigan increased from $5,000 to nearly $100,000 annually. On regaining
his health, he resumed the study of law at the University of Michigan,
from which he was graduated in 1876, receiving the degree of LL. B.,
and entered upon the active practice of his profession in Detroit.
He is a member of the Detroit, Michigan State, and American Bar
Associations and his practice is in the State and Federal Courts. He
is much attached to his profession, and enjoys the mental activity of
the lawyer, entering into the contest of a case with all the proverbial
Scotch tenacity, which seems fully developed in him, and he knows no
time to quit, and as a result of industry and well directed effort in his
profession, he is reported to have achieved a well deserved independence. He has ever been a Republican in politics, aud is a member of
the Michigan Republican Club, and of Detroit Lodge of F. & A. M.
lie was married, December 26, 1866, to Miss Lucy A. Jenness,
daughter of Hon. John S. and Lucy M. Jenness of Detroit. Mr. and
Mrs. Kelly have a daughter, Brownie, wife of C. A. Newcomb, jr., of
the firm of Newcomb, Endicott & Co. of Detroit.
Mr. Kelly has one brother, John Kelly, jr., who was graduated from
the University of Michigan, receiving the degrees A. B. and M. D.,
now engaged in the practice of medicine at San Francisco, Cal.
WILLIAM H. KESSLER.
WILLIAM H. KESSLER, dentist, son of Abram P. and Mary L. (Wirt)
Kessler, was born in Elkhart county, Ind., November 19, 1849. Dr. Kessler received his education in the district schools of his native place,
746




910'








and during the years of 1866-67 was a student in the Goshen (Ind.)
Collegiate Institute.  Subsequently he began the study of dentistry
with Dr. W. G. Cunmmins at Sturgis, Mich., with whom he remained
until 1873. In 1875 Dr. Kessler located in Detroit, where he has since
become one of the most prominent men in his profession, and has established a large and lucrative practice. The disastrous fire of October
6, 1897, which destroyed the Detroit Opera House building, in which
Dr. Kessler had his offices, caused him severe loss and a removal to
his present quarters at 141-143 Woodward avenue. His dental parlors
are among the finest in the country and are models of elegance and
taste.
Dr. Kessler is a prominent member of the Masonic fraternity; a
member of Detroit Commandery No. 1, Knights Templar, of which he
is at present junior warden; of Moslem Temple, Nobles of the Mystic
Shrine; Peninsular Chapter, Royal Arch Masons, of which he is principal sojourner; and Union Lodge No. 3, F. & A. M. He is a member
of the Michigan State Dental Association, of the Detroit Dental Society,
the Felloweraft Club, the Detroit Athletic Club and the Grande Pointe
Club.
Dr. Kessler was married in November, 1870, to Mary E. Huylar of
Three Rivers, Mich. They are the parents of three children: Allen
D., D. D. S., a graduate of the University of Michigan (class of 18904),
now associated with his father in his practice; William I-H., jr., at pr-esent in the employ of Wright, Kay & Co., jewelers of Detroit, and J.
Horton, a student in Detroit High School.
STEPHEN H. KNIGHT.
STEPHEN HERRICK KNIGHT, M. D., son of Edward Hale and Mary
Meek (Russell) Knight, was born in Salem, Mass., October 31, 1862.
Dr. Knight received his early education in the public schools at Salem,
and later entered Harvard University, from which he was graduated in
1883. Deciding upon a course of medicine, he removed to New York
city, where he entered the New York Homeopathic College and Free
Hospital, and was graduated therefrom in 1886. In addition to this he
studied for six months in the Hahnemann Hospital at New York, and
then assumed charge of the private surgical hospital of Dr. William
Tod Helmuth. Upon the establishment of Grace Hospital at Detroit,
747




Mich., in 1889, Dr. Knight was offered and accepted the position of
house surgeon in that institution, remaining in that capacity until 1890.
Subsequently he established a personal practice, although remaining a
member of the visiting staff of surgeons of Grace Hospital. In 1896
the Detroit College conferred upon him the degree of A. M.
Since coming to Detroit Dr. Knight has built up a large and lucrative practice, and is recognized as among the prominent members of
the medical profession. He is prominent in Masonic circles and is a
member of Detroit Commandery, No. 1, Knights Templar, and is a
member of the Michigan Society, Sons of the American Revolution,
and of the Society of Colonial Wars. He is president of the Detroit
Homeopathic Society and editor of the Medical Counselor.
In 1890 Dr. Knight married Sarah Elizabeth, daughter of Rufus B.
Gifford, of Salem, Mass., and they have two children:  Hale and
Rufus.
Dr. Knight is of English ancestry, being descended from John Knight,
who emigrated from England to America in 1635, settling in Newbury,
Mass. Through this relationship he holds his membership to the Sons
of the American Revolution.
OTTO LANG, M. D.
OTTO LANG, M. D., son of George and Margaret (Zobel) Lang, was
born in Buffalo, N. Y., December 4, 1849. In 1851 he removed with
his parents to Detroit, Mich., and his early education was received in
the public schools of that city, which he attended until the age of
twelve. After serving an apprenticeship of three years at the printer's trade and five years at the machinist's trade, he commenced the
study of medicine under the preceptorship of Dr. F. X. Spranger of
Detroit, with whom he remained five years. Subsequently he spent
one year in Bellevue Hospital Medical College at New York city, and
in 1880 received his degree of M. D. from the Pulte Medical College at
Cincinnati, Ohio. Immediately following his graduation Dr. Lang returned to Detroit, where he has since practiced his profession continuously and with gratifying success. He is consulting physician to Grace
Hospital of Detroit, and a member of the College of Physicians and
Surgeons.
In 1875 Dr. Lang married Ida, eldest daughter of Dr. F. X. Spranger,
and they have two children: Olive M., and Otto, jr.


748








s        A
f i)


JOSEPH LATHROP, SR.




JOSEPH LATHROP, SR., D. D. S.


JOSEPH LATHROP, SR., D. D. S., was born in West Springfield,
Mass., June 10, 1834-, and is the youngest son of Solomon and Sophia
(Pomeroy) Lathrop. Dr. Lathrop is descended on both sides of the
family from a long line of professional men. His grandfather, Rev.
Joseph Lathrop, was pastor of the Congregational church at West
Springfield, Mass., for more than sixty years. His father, Solomon,
was a graduate of Yale College and a lawyer of recognized ability, who
practiced his profession in Massachusetts until 1836, when he removed
with his family to Michigan, settling in Macomb county, where he engaged in farming.
Dr. Lathrop was educated in the public schools of Macomb county
and later entered the academy at Romeo, Mich., then a branch of the
University of Michigan, from which he was graduated in 1849. On
completion of his education he removed with his parents to New
England, and shortly after entered the employ of his uncle, Calvin
Townsley, a general merchant of Brattleboro, Vt., and later removed
to Clinton, Mass., where he was employed in the same capacity. In
1856 he began the study of dentistry in the office of Dr. C. F. Horn at
Clinton, remaining one year. Subsequently he returned to Michigan
and located at East Saginaw where he engaged in the jewelry business
with his brother Solomon.
On February 1, 1859, he removed to Detroit and again took up his
dental studies in the offices of the old established firm of Whiting &
Benedict. The following year he began the practice of his profession
and has since been continuously in Detroit, where he has established a
large and lucrative practice. lie is a close and untiring student, a
careful and thorough workman, and is recognized as one of the leading
members of the dental profession in the United States. His present
quarters at 271 Woodward avenue (overlooking Grand Circus Park) arc
modern in their appointments and furnished in a tasteful and elegant
manner.
Dr. Lathrop is president of the Detroit Numismatic Society; secretary of the old North Channel Fishing and Shooting Club, and has
served in that capacity for twenty years; the Michigan State Dental
Society, of which he has been president; the Detroit Dental Society;
and the American D'ental Association. He is a member of Morning
Star Lodge, F. & A. M., of Worcester, Mass. He is also a member of


749




the Delta Sigma Delta Fraternity (dental) of the University of
Michigan, having been elected as one of the original honorary members
of the Alpha Chapter in 1886, and is also president of the Detroit
Auxiliary Delta Sigma Delta. Politically he is a Republican, and has
always been actively interested in the welfare of his party. Dr.
Lathrop has for many years taken a keen interest in the gathering of
curios and antiques and his collection in this line is of great value and
the wonder and admiration of all who see it.
In 1863 Dr. Lathrop married Ada M., daughter of Henry P. Pulling
of Detroit, Mich. They are the parents of three children: Joseph, jr.,
a graduate of the dental department of the University of Michigan;
Clara, wife of Walter Cook of Detroit, and Ada M.
GEORGE C. LAWRENCE.
GEORGE C. LAWRENCE, auditor of Wayne county, Mich., was born in
Franklin, Oakland county, Mich., April 20, 1851, and is the only son
of William C. and Catharine (Dawe) Lawrence. Mr. Lawrence received his primary education in the public schools of Redford, and
later became a student in the Cass School at Detroit, which he left in
1867 to enter the State Normal School at Ypsilanti, where he remained
two years.  During the next ten years his summers were spent in
assisting his father in the management of his farm, and the winter
months in teaching school. In December, 1888, he was appointed superintendent of the poor for Wayne county, and served in that capacity
until August, 1889, when he was appointed by Governor Luce to fill
the unexpired term of County Auditor W. C. Mahoney. The Republican party, holding that Mr. Lawrence's appointment by the governor
entitled him to the full term of office, did not place a candidate in noinination in the election of 1890. Mr. David Trombly was placed in
nomination (for the office held by Mr. Lawrence) on the Democratic
ticket and elected, owing to the absence of a Republican candidate.
On conclusion of his term of service as auditor Mr. Lawrence associated himself with John A. Dick, under the style of John A. Dick &
Co., and engaged in the undertaking business, maintaining this connection until the fall of 1892. In that year he was placed in nomination on the Repuublin ticket for auditor, and elected for a term of three
years, and in 1895 was appointed by the Board of Supervisors for a like








THOMAS LEDBETER.




term. Mr. Lawrence began his political career ere he had attained his
majority, being placed in nomination for member of his township
school board at the age of twenty, and was defeated on a tie vote in a
township having a Democratic majority of one hundred and eighty
votes.
Mr. Lawrence is a man of sterling character, of unimpeachable integrity and marked executive ability, and his appointment by the Board
of Supervisors is a public recognition of his value as a public official.
He is prominent in Masonic circles, being a member of Michigan
Sovereign Consistory; Detroit Commandery, Knights Templar; Moslem
Temple, Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, and Ashlar Lodge, No. 91, F. &
A. M. He is also a member of the Knights of Pythias, Ancient Order
of United Workmen, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, Knights of
the Maccabees, and of the Detroit Bowling Club.
He was married, October 23, 1879, to Ella C., daughter of Elijah B.
Spencer, of Redford, Mich. They are the parents of three children:
William C., Bessie C., and George C., jr.
THOMAS LEDBETER.
THOMAS LEDBETER, son of Thomas and Christian Ledbeter, was born
in Campden, Gloucestershire, England, June 10, 1812. Mr. Ledbeter
was apprenticed at an early age to the stone mason's trade, and for many
years followed that calling. Previous to his coning to America, in
1850, he was for eight years superintendent of the stone work in the
construction of the Parliament Houses, in London, England. On his
arrival with his family at New York, he removed to Detroit, Mich.,
coming by the way of the Erie Canal and one of the early
packet steamers then running between Buffalo and Detroit. Subsequent to his arrival in Detroit he entered the stone trade and soon
became engaged in sewer contracting, and under his direction many of
the largest of those in the city's early system were constructed. Early
in the '70's he branched out into the paving business, in partnership
with Andrew Stewart, and his son, John Stewart.
In 1885 Mr. Ledbeter retired from active business, and, until his
death on September 4, 1897, was engaged in the management of his
various private affairs.  Mr. Ledbeter was a lifelong Republican, and
though active in the councils of his party, was adverse to holding office.
751




He was a member of the "Old Guard" of Detroit Commandery,
Knights Templar; Monroe Council, R. & S. M.; Peninsular Chapter,
R. A. M.; and Ashlar Lodge, F. & A. M., having acted as treasurer of
the last named organization for fourteen years. He was a member of
the Baptist church, having joined that body some sixty-nine years ago,
and was active in general benevolent work.
His immediate family included nine children, thirty-three grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren. His surviving children are
Mary, widow of the late Capt. William H. Wilson (whose sketch
appears elsewhere); Christian Elizabeth, widow of John Palmer; Harriet, widow of James P. Cook; and Jane, wife of John Downie of
Detroit. Mr. Ledbeter's funeral occurred from his late residence, 759
Fort street west, September 7, 1897, the body being interred in Elmwood Cemetery.
JOHN W. LEGGETT.
JOHN W. LEGGETT was born in Waterford, Mich., in 1864, and is the
son of William H. and Annie B. (Beardslee) Leggett. Mr. Leggett received his early education in the public schools of Waterford and later
became a student at the Hagerstown, (Maryland) Academy, which he
attended until the age of fourteen.  Subsequently he returned to
Michigan and entered the employ of E. B. Smith & Co., booksellers
and stationers of Detroit, and later accepted a situation with Morris
& Davenport, insurance agents.  In 1880 he entered the service of
the Detroit Telephone Company, and was the first to operate the telephone of that company in the city.  After a connection lasting six
years with this company, he, with Wellington Q. Hunt, formed the
firm of Hunt & Leggett and engaged in the real estate business, and
by aggressive, untiring and conservative methods they built up a large
and lucrative business, ranking among the most prominent firms of
Detroit in their line. Aside from their real estate interests, they represent some of the most widely-known insurance companies of the
world. Mr. Leggett is a director of the Detroit Chamber of Commerce,
of the Freeman, Delemater Co. (dealers in hardware), and is a member
of the Detroit Club.
In 1892 he married Grace E. Frue, daughter of the late William B.
Frue of Detroit, and they are the parents of one child, Wilhelmina.


752




JOHN WHEELER LEGGETT.








I








JOHN LENNANE.




JOHN LENNANE.


JOHN LENNANE, son of Patrick and Ann (Flynn) Lennane, was born
in Detroit, Mich., October 15, 1854. Mr. Lennane was educated in
the public schools of Detroit and at the age of fifteen entered upon his
business career. After a year at the printer's trade and a short service
as weighmaster in the grain elevator of the Michigan Central Railway
Company at Detroit, he was offered and accepted the position of bookkeeper for the Detroit Central Flouring Co., and retained that situation
until 1877. During the ensuing year he was engaged in the flour and
feed business on his own account and in 1881 was appointed rodsman
of the corps of the city engineer of Detroit, later becoming assistant
city engineer. In 1890, in company with his brother, W. E. Lennane,
he established his present business under the firm name of Lennane
Brothers, and engaged in dealing in railroad ties and fence posts and
as general contractors for railway and street paving work.
Mr. Lennane has been a lifelong Democrat, and has been actively
interested in the welfare of his party. In April, 1897, he was appointed
a member of the board of Fire Commissioners for the city of Detroit
for a term of four years. Mr. Lennane joined the Montgomery Rifles
in 1878, and in 1881 he was elected second lieutenant of Company E of
that organization, serving until 1884, when he was elected first lieutenant and served two years. During the absence of the captain of the
company in 1886 he acted in that officer's place. He resigned in 1888.
Mr. Lennane is a member of Wayne Lodge No. 104, Knights of Pythias; Branch 1, Ancient Order of Hibernians; and is a director in the
Builders' and Traders' Exchange.
He was married in 1882, to Mary White of Detroit, and they are the
parents of six children: Lauretta M., John R., Elizabeth, Florence,
Harold A. and Ellen.
OSCAR LE SEURE, M. D.
OSCAR LE SEURE, NM. D., son of Prosper Le Seure, and Elizabeth
(Wilhoit) Le Seure, was born in Danville, Ill., January 27, 1851. His
early education was received in the public schools of his native town
and he afterward attended the University of Michigan. In 1873 he
was graduated from the medical and surgical department of that Uni

753




versity. He then served six months as house surgeon in the United
States Marine Hospital at Detroit. In March, 1874, he took a degree
from the Bellevue Hospital Medical College at New York, and returned
in the same year to Danville, Ill., where he practiced until 1886.
Being ambitious to become a more thorough surgeon, and desirous to
work in a broader field than that afforded him in Danville, he made a
trip to Europe and spent one year in the study of surgery, being for six
months of that time a member of the staff of Paul Reclus in the Hotel
Dieu at Paris, France, where he obtained much valuable knowledge
relating to his profession.
He returned to the United States in 1887, locating in Detroit, where
he gave special attention to surgery and gynaecology. He was appointed surgeon and gynaecologist to Grace Hospital upon the opening
of that institution in 1889, and now ranks as its senior surgeon. In
1892 he again went abroad, attending hospitals in Edinburgh and London. In February, 1895, he was appointed by Governor Rich as a
member of the Detroit Board of Health, and in June of the same year,
was appointed professor of surgery in the homoeopathic department of
the University of Michigan. He was elected president of the Homoeopathic Society of the State of Michigan in May, 1894, and a member of
the Prismatic Club of Detroit the same year. In 1897 he was elected
to the presidency of the Detroit Board of Health and also a member of
the Fellowcraft Club. Dr. Le Seure is a member of the American
Institute of Homoeopathy and a number of medical societies.
ALEXANDER LEWIS.
IHON. AI.EXAN1)ER LEWIS, ex-mayor of Detroit, is a native of Sandwich, Ontario, Canada, where he was born on October 24, 1822. He is
a son of Thomas and Jeannette (Velaire) Lewis. Mr. Lewis was educated in a private school at Sandwich, which he attended until arriving at the age of fifteen, when he entered the employ of E. W. Cole
& Co. of Detroit, as clerk, remaining in this position two years. He
then accepted a situation with the drug firm of G. & J. G. Hill, at that
time leading merchants in their line in Ietroit, continuing with them
until 1841, when he removed to Pontiac. After a residence of two
years in the latter place he returned to Detroit, and entered the employ
of Gray & Lewis, the firm consisting of his brother, Samuel Lewis, and
Horace Gray.
754




In 1845, when in his twenty-third year, Mr. Lewis branched out into
business for himself, forming a partnership with H. P. Bridge, under
the firm name of Bridge & Lewis, and engaged in the forwarding and
commission business, their place of business being located at the foot
of Bates street. This partnership continued for seventeen years. In
1862 Mr. Lewis embarked in the flour and grain business at 44 to 48
Woodbridge street west, where he remained until 1884. In that year
he retired from active participation in that line of business and devoted
his attention to the care of various property interests.
Mr. Lewis served as president of the Board of Trade in 1862, as police
commissioner from 1865 to 1875, and as one of the commissioners of the
Detroit Public Library from 1881 to 1887. In 1876 he was elected
mayor of Detroit on the Democratic ticket, serving one term. He is a
director in the Detroit Fire and Marine Insurance Company and the
Detroit National Bank, and is president of the Detroit Gas Light Company.
Mr. Lewis was married, June 10, 1850, to Elizabeth J. Ingersoll,
daughter of Justus Ingersoll. They are the parents of eight children:
Ida Frances, wife of W. P. Healey of Marquette, Mich.; Edgar L. of Boston; Josephine, wife of Clarence Carpenter; Harriet, wife of Cameron
Currie; Harry B.; Julia Velaire, wife of James M. McMillan; Marion,
wife of H. K. Muir; and Alexander Ingersoll Lewis, now a student at
Yale College.
For many years Mr. Lewis has been recognized as one of the most
influential factors in the commercial circles of Detroit. His judgment
in business matters is sound, and is based on a long service of successful ventures. His administration of the mayoralty office was characterized by the same discretion aud sagacity which he invariably brought
to bear upon his private business transactions, and to this fact is due
the honorable success which attended such administration. Mr. Lewis
is a thoroughly representative man, and justly occupies a high position among the landmarks of Detroit.
WILLIAM    LIVINGSTONE, JR.
HON. WILLIAM LIVINGSTONE, JR., was born in Dundas, Ontario, January 21, 1844, and came with his parents to Detroit, of which city he
has since been a continuous resident. He received an academical edu

755




cation and learned the trade of a machinist. In 1861 he became connected with the shipping interest, and from year to year increased his
business, and also made large investments in real estate, in lumber,
street railroads, and other manufacturing enterprises and industries,
thereby contributing greatly to the material growth of the city and
State. As a public man Mr. Livingstone has been prominent for a
number of years. In 1875 he was elected to represent Detroit in the
State Legislature, and has been from time to time chairman of the Republican State Committee. He was appointed by President Arthur
collector of customs at Detroit, which he held until the election of
President Cleveland.
Mr. Livingstone is at present general manager of the Percheron
Steam Navigation Company and the Michigan Navigation Company,
which own the large steamers T. W. Palmer and Livingstone. Among
vessel men Mr. Livingstone is held in high estimation for his earnest
and effective advocacy of all measures, means and influences tending to
advance and protect their interests, and has been president of the Lake
Carriers' Association. He was the president of the Park and Boulevard
Commissions of the city, president of the St. Andrews' Society several
years, and is also connected with other educational and charitable
institutions and benevolent organizations, devoting much time and
money in aiding the successful accomplishment of their respective aims
and objects. At present he is the manager and publisher of the Detroit
Journal.
FRANK T. LODGE.
FRANK T. LODGE, son of John J. Lodge, a retired merchant of
Madison, Ind., now a resident of Detroit, was born in Madison, Ind.
Mr. Lodge received his early education in the public schools of
Indianapolis, Ind., and later attended the High School, being graduated
therefrom in 1876. Shortly after he began the study of law in the
offices of Porter, Harrison & Fishback, and in 1873, when Mr. Porter
was appointed as comptroller of the United States Treasury, he became
Mr. Porter's confidential clerk and remained as such until the following
year, when he was made a Treasury expert. Mr. Lodge retained that
position until the election of Mr. Porter, in 1886, as governor of
Indiana, when he was offered the position of private secretary to




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 ",Bx;..b~"b 'I."" "*'i P.!.,, ~$( :,I*~:.~ I,!(' I:~JiRr,)*,:arla:; ~i
i".
~U,
 ~ ~


FRANK T. LODGE,








Governor Porter, but declined. He subsequently accepted the position
of law clerk to Judge William Lawrence, who succeeded Mr. Porter as
first comptroller of the Treasury, and until 1881 he represented the
first comptroller's office before the different committees of Congress and
the executive departments. In 1881 he was sent to Kansas as the agent
of Judge William Lawrence and Jeremiah S. Black to straighten out
the troubles with the railroad companies in the "Osage (Indian)
Ceded Lands" case. He resigned that position in 1882 and returned to
Indiana, and in the autumn of the same year entered the Indiana
Asbury University, as a member of the class of 1884, graduating with
the degree of B. A., and taking first honors in modern languages.
While in his senior year he was called to the chair of professor of
modern languages during the absence in Europe of the professor of that
department of study, and in 1887 had conferred upon him the degree of
M. A.
Mr. Lodge was admitted to the Michigan bar in 1884, and in the following year located in Detroit, where he has since established a large
and lucrative practice. He is prominent in social circles in Detroit, and
is a member of the Michigan (Republican) Club, the Wayne Club, the
Fellowcraft Club and the Detroit Boat Club. He is also a prominent
Mason, being now (1898) deputy grand master of the Grand Lodge, F. &
A. M., of the State of Michigan. As a lawyer he brings to the
thorough preparation of his cases a strong legal mind; he is a strong,
forceful and logical speaker before court and jury. He has also done a
large practice in several prominent corporations, having also handled
several extensive street railway deals, and a large number of railway
and industrial corporations having been organized through him. In
1893-95, as attorney for the receiver, he operated the Owosso and
Corunna Street Railway Company.  He was uniformly successful in a
large amount of hotly contested litigation, finally reorganizing and reequipping the road. For the past five years he has been professor of
medical jurisprudence in the Michigan College of Medicine and Surgery.
He makes a specialty of medico legal, corporation and insurance litigation, and is general counsel for the Preferred Masonic Mutual Accident
Association and local counsel for a large number of foreign insurance
companies. Mr. Lodge excels as a campaign orator; he has won an
enviable reputation, having " taken the stump" during every political
campaign since his coming of age.


757




CHARLES D. LONG.


HON. CHARLES D. LONG, chief justice of the Supreme Court of Michigan, was born at Grand Blanc, Mich., June 14, 1841, a son of Peter
Long. He attended the public schools of his native town and at Flint,
Mich., and in the latter town received a course of instruction preparatory to his entering the University of Michigan. In 1861, at the age of
twenty, he enlisted in the ranks of Co. A, of the 8th Mich. Infantry,
but remained in the service only eight months, having received at the
battle of Wilmington Island, Ga., two severe wounds, one necessitating the amputation of his left arm, and the other a rifle ball which penetrated his body through the hip, lodging in the groin, where it still
remains. This latter wound has never healed and requires careful
dressing every day.
Upon returning home Mr. Long at once began the study of law at
Flint, and in 1864 was elected to the office of county clerk, and was
afterwards thrice re elected, holding that office four terms. He spent
much time in careful study, and was admitted to the bar before the expiration of his term as county clerk. In 1874 he was elected as prosecuting attorney of Genesee county and twice re-elected thereafter, holding that office three successive terms, aggregating six years.
In 1880 he was appointed as one of the supervisors of the U. S. Census for the State of Michigan, and in 1887 was elected as associate
justice of the Supreme Court for a term of ten years, and entered upon
his judicial service on January 1, 1888. He was appointed as judge
advocate by Governor Jerome, with the rank of colonel, as a member
of the governor's staff. While Gen. R. A. Alger was governor, Judge
Long was a member of the Military Board of the State, and held the
rank of colonel on the governor's staff. He has held the office of president of the Detroit College of Law since its organization, and few men
are better known and none more widely popular. In the spring of
1897 he was re-elected justice of the Supreme Court of the State, and
at that election received a majority vote of about 72,000.
Judge Long was married in December, 1863, to Alma A. Franklin
and they have three children.


758








WILLIAM LOOK.




WILLIAM LOOK.


HON. WILLIAM LOOK, lawyer and ex circuit judge of Wayne county,
was born in Detroit, Mich., March 16, 1857. He is a son of Arnold
Nickolas Look, a native of Cleve (Rheinish Prussia), in the district
of Dusseldorf, Germany, which, previous to the congress of Vienna in
1815, belonged to Holland, and a grandson of Jean Look, a veteran of
Napoleon's wars, who followed the great military leader in his peninsular campaign, taking part in many of the memorable battles that convulsed continental Europe in the early part of the present century. He
also served under Marshal Davoust, Prince of Eckmiehl, Massena and
Sault, taking part in all the engagements of the campaign that terminated with the first abdication of Napoleon. He came to America in
1850, and settled upon a farm near Detroit, Mich., and upon the anniversary at Detroit, in 1869, of the birth of Napoleon, Jean, the oldest
living veteran of Napoleon, was chosen president of the day. He died
in October, 1876, at the age of ninety years, respected and honored by
all. His mother, Catherine (Canto) Look, was a daughter of Biasius
Canto, a native of Belfort, in the province of Lorraine, France, who
immigrated to the United States in 1823, and died on his farm on the
border of Wayne county, Mich., at the age of eighty-nine years.
William Look, the subject, was the eldest of a family of eight children, and at the age of twelve years the responsibility of maintaining
the family devolved in a great measure upon his shoulders. He first
entered the large banking and real estate offices of his uncle, Judge
Joseph Kuhn, at Detroit, serving as office boy, and two years later,
having evinced such marked aptitude in mastering the details of an extensive and intricate business, his uncle made a tour of Europe, leaving
William in sole charge, and he so ably acquitted himself in every particular as to call forth the warmest praises from all under whose observation he came. In these trying days he had the helpful advice of the
Hon. William B. Wesson, a man of large affairs, yet who was never so
busy that he could not find time to lend assistance to the conscientious,
prudent lad. Judge Look's education was gained by diligent night
study and reading during leisure moments in his uncle's office. He
also took up the study of law alone, and frequently sought the advice
of such men as Hon. Don M. Dickinson, Col. Edwin F. Conely, Otto
Kirchner, William C. Maybury and James A. Randall, who helped him
to straighten out many knotty problems. He was admitted to the bar




in 1880, and practiced independently until 1885, when he was elected
to the Board of Councilmen (a body now defunct) to fill an unexpired
term, and became at once such an earnest opponent of the loose relations between the corporation contractors and the city government,
that, in 1885, he was re elected for the full term of four years by an
overwhelming majority.
It was also due to the stand that Judge Look took while a member
of the Board of Councilmen (regarding the act of 1885 governing the
appointment of boards of registration and election) that the act was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court at the October term in
1885. In 1887 the Legislature passed a bill abolishing the Board of
Councilmen, and Judge Look was then nominated and elected by a
handsome majority as one of the judges of the Wayne County Circuit
Court. He took his place on the bench, one of the youngest men who
had ever filled that important position, and so rapidly, yet so thoroughly did he dispose of the cases assigned to him, as to excite the surprise and gratification of both the bar and public. Since retiring from
the bench Judge Look has built up for himself one of the largest law
practices in Detroit, many of his clients being of German nationality.
In April, 1894, he associated with him Col. Ira G. Humphrey, under
the style of Look & Humphrey, attorneys at law in general practice.
His ability as a lawyer and his integrity of character have secured for
Judge Look the respect and esteem of the bar and his fellow citizens.
He is a member of several fraternal organizations, including several
German societies, in which he holds a prominent place.
Judge Look was married on July 22, 1879, to Christina, daughter of
Martin Andretsch, the founder of the first pottery in Michigan. They are
the parents of five children: Cordelia Look, Florence M. Look, Viola
B. Look, Edwin Eugene Look, and Virginia S. Look.
GEORGE V. N. LOTHROP.
HON. GEORGE V. N. LOTHROP, son of Howard Lothrop, was born in
North Easton, Mass, August 8, 1817. His early education was gotten
in the public schools, and later, after a thorough preparatory course,
he entered Brown University, and was graduated with high honors, at
the age of twenty-one. During the same year he entered the law department of Harvard University, where he enjoyed the advantage of
760




instruction under Joseph Storey and Simon Greenleaf, who held professorships in the college at that time. Ill health compelled him to
abandon his studies for a time and he removed to Michigan, stopping
for a while with his brother on his farm in Kalamazoo county. In 1843,
his health being restored, he located in Detroit and entered the law
offices of Joy & Porter, where he resumed his study of law.
It is significant that he argued his first case prior to his admission to
the bar. It was the celebrated case of the Michigan State Bank vs.
Hastings and others, and young Lothrop appeared before the Supreme
Court of the State, special permission having been granted. It was an
incident long to be remembered, a young man, not yet a lawyer, arguing before the most august court of Michigan. His brilliant talents
asserted themselves; he arose to the occasion and made a masterly presentation of the case. In fact, so well was his task performed that the
members of the court indulged in open commendation, and saw in the
effort a bright promise for the future, a promise which was more than
realized, for the young student who achieved such success before being
admitted to the bar rapidly went to the front, until he won for himself
a position in the foremost rank of attorneys and was regarded with the
highest respect and admiration for remarkable oratorical powers.
In 1844 he formed a partnership with D. Bethune Duffield, which
existed for twelve years. In the same year (1844), he was appointed
master in chancery for Wayne county, and in 1848 became attorneygeneral for the State of Michigan and held that office until 1851. In
1860 he was made a delegate to the Democratic National Convention at
Charleston, S. C. In 1863 he was appointed as one of the inspectors
of the Detroit House of Correction, serving for nine years, and in 1880
was made commissioner of the Public Library for a term of six years.
In 1885 Mr. Lothrop was appointed as envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary to the Court of Russia, which position he most
ably filled for three and one-half years. At the end of that time he
tendered his resignation and returned home, where he remained in
private life until his death on July 12, 1897.
For many years he was counselor for the Michigan Central and other
leading railroads of the country and other large corporations. From
1879 to 1896 Mr. Lothrop was the president of the Detroit Bar Association and in the latter year peremptorily declined renomination.
He was married at Detroit, May 13, 1847, to Almira, daughter of
Gen. Oliver Strong of Rochester, N.Y., and they had seven children, four
761
96




of whom survive: Henry B.,Cyrus E., Annie, the wife of Baron Barthold
Hoyningen Huene, of the Chevalier Guard of Her Majesty, the Empress
of all the Russias; and Helen, wife of Rev. William Prall, D. D., rector of St. John's Episcopal church, Detroit. Mrs. Lothrop died April
18, 1894.
GEN. HENRY B. LOTHROP.
GEN. HENRY B. LOTHROP, son of George Van Ness Lothrop and Almira (Strong) Lothrop, was born in Detroit, Mich., July 8, 1855. Mr.
Lothrop received a thorough preparatory education in the public schools
of Detroit, and in 1873 entered the University of Michigan, from which
he was graduated in 1877. On completion of his education he entered
the employ of the Michigan Central Railroad Company in a minor capacity, and later accepted a position with the wholesale hardware house
of Buhl, Du Charme & Co., where he remained three years. In 1881
he was offered and accepted a situation with the Griffin Car Wheel Co.,
remaining with that corporation until the following year, when he became a stockholder in the Michigan Carbon Works, as well as taking a
position in the office of that company.
On the appointment of his father, G. V. N. Lothrop, to be minister
to Russia, he resigned his position with that concern to take charge of
his various business interests. Since the death of his father he has
been the manager of his estate. Mr. Lothrop has been an enthusiastic
member of the State Militia, having been actively connected with various organizations for the past twenty years. He joined the Detroit
Light Guard in 1875, and the Detroit Light Infantry in 1877. In the
latter year he was elected second lieutenent of Company 1), and in 1888
first lieutenant, and the same year elected captain. He was appointed
inspector-general by Governor Winans in 1891 withl the rank of brigadier-general. On conclusion of his term of office he re-enlisted in Company D, Light Infantry, and was elected during that year captain of
Company H.
He is a director in the First National Bank, the Hargreaves Manufacturing Company, and a trustee of Elmwood Cemetery. He is also
a member of the Detroit Club, Detroit Yacht Club, the Country Club,
the H-armonie Society, the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks,
76t2








AIEXANI)ER I. McLEOD.




and the National Guard Association of Michigan. Politically he is a
Democrat. Mr. Lothrop is unmarried.
JOHN McGREGOR.
JOHN MCGREGOR, son of John and Jane (Buchanan) McGregor, was
born in Detroit, Mich., September 27, 1849. Mr. McGregor acquired
his education in the public schools of Detroit, which he attended until
the age of fifteen, and at Goldsmith's Business College, which he left
in 1867 to enter his father's employ. In 1870 the firm of John McGregor & Sons was formed, John and his brother Thomas being taken
into partnership with their father, this firm continuing until the death
of Mr. McGregor, sr., in 1897. Since his death the business has been
conducted under the old name, the subject of this sketch being the
senior member.
Mr. McGregor has been a lifelong Republican and has always been
actively engaged in furthering his party's interests. In August, 1893,
he was appointed to the office of boiler inspector by Mayor Pingree, a
position he has since filled with marked success, his administration
having been so thoroughly satisfactory as to cause much public conment favorable to himself. He has also been prominent in aquatic circles, having beem a member of several of the leading boat clubs of
Detroit and the winner of several medals. He is a member of Palestine Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons.
Mr. McGregor was married to Elizabeth Foulds of Sarnia, Ontario,
Canada, April 1, 1883. They are the parents of three children: Grace
C., Jean B. and John F.
ALEXANDER I. McLEOD.
HON. ALEXANDER I. McLEoD, treasurer of Wayne county, Mich.,
was born in Providence, R. I., August 2, 1852, and is a son of Alexander and Janet (Reid) McLeod. His father was a native of the Highlands of Scotland, and at the age of sixteen worked his passage to
America on a sailing ship, settling in Nova Scotia. He learned the
trade of ship carpenter and marine draftsman, which he followed all


763




his life, on land and sea, making numberless voyages to all parts of
the world. When the financial crash of 1857 came he was a prosperous
shipbuilder of Providence, R. I., and in common with others, lost the
bulk of his hard earned accumulations. In 1858 he removed with his
family to Michigan, settling in Mt. Clemens, Wayne county, where he
plied his trade of ship builder, later removing to Detroit, where he was
for many years superintendent of the ship yard of Campbell & Owen,
afterwards the Detroit Dry Dock Co.
Alexander, the subject of this sketch, received his education in the
public schools of Detroit, which he attended until the age of eighteen.
Inheriting from his father a love of the sea, he shipped before the mast
on a lake schooner. Later he returned to Detroit and entered the employ of the Advertiser and Tribune as "printer's devil" for a short
time, subsequently serving on the reportorial and editorial staff of the
paper.
In 1873 he was appointed, by Judge George S. Swift, clerk of the
Recorder's Court, and retained that position until 1877, when he became one of the incorporators of a stock company for the manufacture
of wood chemicals, of which H. M. Pierce (the inventor) was made
president, and upon the completion of their plant, he was made assistant superintendent, serving in that capacity one year. During the
following three years he was associated with Capt. A. C. Donnelly of
Cincinnati in the running of a line of steamers on the Ohio River, but
returned to Detroit in 1882 and entered the employ of the Evening
News Co., where he remained until 1889, being city editor of that
paper the latter four years of his service. From  1890 to 1895 he
served as private secretary to Mayor Pingree of Detroit.
In 1894 Mr. McLeod was elected treasurer of Wayne county on the
Republican ticket and re elected to that office in 1896. He has inaugurated a system in the treasurer's office which is pronounced by experts
to be one of the very best methods in use anywhere in the country.
Mr. McLeod is prominently identified with the shipping and telephone
interests of Detroit, being vice-president of the Progress Transportation Company, a director in the Detroit Telephone Company and vicepresident of the New State Telephone Company.
He is an enthusiastic yachtsman, a member of the Detroit, West End
and Citizens' Yacht Clubs, and is the possessor of many beautiful trophies which attest his prowess in this sport. He is now commodore of
the Inter-Lake Yachting Association, which is composed of the yacht
764




clubs of Lakes Erie and St. Clair and the Detroit River. He is prominent in Masonic circles; a member of Moslem Temple, Nobles of the
Mystic Shrine; Damascus Commandery, Knights Templar; King Cyrus
Chapter, R. A. M., and Oriental Lodge, F. & A. M. He is also a
member of Michigan Lodge, I. 0. 0. F., Myrtle Lodge, K. of P., and
the Harmonie and Concordia Singing Societies, the Fellowcraft Club
of Detroit, the Detroit Wheelmen, and various other social and political
organizations. During his service as treasurer Mr. McLeod has shown
himself a faithful, honest, upright and painstaking official, and he is
deservedly popular in both business and social circles.
In 1876 he married Frances A., daughter of John Millington of New
York city.
JAMES McMILLAN.
IN 1834 William and Grace McMillan camne to America from Scotland, with the intention of settling in Illinois. With some of their
friends, however, they decided to locate at Hamilton, Ontario. There
Mr. McMillan interested himself in railroads and other enterprises;
and he became one of the influential citizens of that thriving city. He
continued to reside in Hamilton until his death in 1874. The original
plan of the parents to come to the United States was carried out by
their sons. The second son, James, who was born May 12, 1838, came
to Detroit when he was seventeen years old. He had a thorough
grammar-school education and two years' experience in a hardware
business; and he soon found employment with the wholesale hardware
firm of Buhl & Ducharme. Then, through the influence of his father,
he was appointed purchasing agent of the Detroit & Milwaukee Railroad at Detroit. Upon the extension of that line to Grand Haven,
Mich, he, then less than twenty years of age, was engaged by the
contractor as his confidential man, his duties being to look after his employer's financial interests, purchase supplies and take charge of the
men employed in the construction of the new portion of the road. Upon
completion of the work he was offered and declined a similar situation
on a road then building in Spain, preferring to return to his former
position of purchasing agent of the Detroit & Milwaukee Railway.
In 1864 he, with others, organized the Michigan Car Company. Sub765




sequently he purchased the car works at St. Louis, Mo., and later established companies at Cambridge, Ind., and London, Ont. His brother
William took charge of the St. Louis works and later purchased them,
becoming one of the leading manufacturers of that city. Several years
ago the Michigan Car Company and the Peninsular Car Company were
consolidated, and now form the largest car works in the world, with a
daily capacity of 100 freight cars. Mr. McMillan also became interested
in lake transportation, both freight and passenger; and in shipbuilding.
Largely through his endeavors, the Duluth, South Shore and Atlantic
Railroad was built to connect the upper and lower peninsulas of Michigan.
Increase in worldly goods brought increased gifts to charitable and
educational objects. In connection with his business partner, Hon.
John S. Newberry, he established Grace Hospital in Detroit. To the
University of Michigan he gave one of the most complete Shaksperian
libraries in the United States, and also McMillan Hall. To the Agricultural College of Michigan he gave the Teper collection of insects;
to the Mary Allen Seminary of Crockett, Texas, a school for the education of colored girls, he gave the $16,000 needed to complete the
endowment. To Albion College he gave the McMillan Chemical Laboratory.
At the death of Zachariah Chandler, Mr. McMillan became chairman
of the Republican State Central Committe, and since that day he has
been one of the recognized political leaders in Michigan. In 1889 he
was elected to the United States Senate to succeed Hon. Thomas W.
Palmer, having received the unanimous caucus nomination. Six years
later he was re elected by the unanimous vote of the Legislature. In
the Senate he is chairman of the Committee on the District of Columbia, the chairman of the Joint Select Committee on the Charities of the
District of Columbia, and the chairman of the Republican caucus committee on the Committee of the Senate. He is also a member of the
Committee on Commerce and on Naval Affairs.
In 1860 he married Miss Wetmore, of Detroit; they have four sons
and one daughter. The sons all graduated at Yale; two are actively
engaged in business in Detroit; one is a lawyer in Detroit and was recently appointed a captain in the volunteer army; and the other is a
member of the New York bar.




WILLIAM C. McMILLAN.


WILLIAM C. McMILLAN, son of James and Mary L. (Wetmore) McMillan
was born in Detroit, Mich., March 1, 1861. After a thorough preparatory
education received in the public schools of Detroit, he entered (in
1880) Yale University, from which he was graduated in 1884 with the
degree of B. A.  Upon the completion of his education he returned to
Detroit, where he entered the employ of the Michigan Car Company in
a subordinate position. On conclusion of three years' service, in which
he showed marked executive ability, he was appointed general manager
of the company. His executive and managerial ability while in this
responsible position came to be keenly appreciated and he exhibited
business qualifications which won admiring recognition. In 1892 he
was instrumental in effecting the consolidation of the Michigan and
Peninsular Car Companies and was elected one of the two managing
directors of the new company.
Previous to his attaining the age of thirty, he was offered a directorship in one of the largest trust companies of New York; a compliment
very few young men in America have ever been given. The same
year he was offered the presidency of one of Detroit's national banks,
the directors attempting for several days to persuade him to reconsider
his refusal. A partial list of the various offices he holds in connection
with the financial and manufacturing interests of Detroit is an index of
his versatility, as well as of the business burdens he carries. He is first
vicepresident of the Union Trust Co., a director in the First National
Bank, the State Savings Bank, the Detroit Dry Dock Co., the Detroit
Gas Co., is treasurer of the Detroit and Cleveland Steam Navigation
Co., and a director in other corporations chiefly engaged in manufacturing, and in which he and his father hold large interests.
Mr. McMillan is a member of the Union Club, the University Club,
the New York Yacht Club, and the Down Town Club, all of New York
city; of the Algonquin Club of Boston, Mass.; of the Detroit Club and
the Yondotega Club of Detroit.


767




He was married, July 15, 1884, to Miss Louise Thayer, daughter of
Frank N. Thayer of Boston, Mass. They have two children: Thayer
McMillan and Doris McMillan.
ALEXANDER McVITTIE.
ALEXANDER MCVIT'TIE, vice-president and manager of the Detroit
Dry Dock Company, was born in Duntocher, Scotland, May 16, 1842,
and is a son of Walter and Mary (Taylor) McVittie. During his infancy
he removed with his parents to Glasgow, and in the public schools of
that city he received his early education. In 1852 the family emigrated
to America, settling at London, Ontario, Canada. At the age of sixteen Mr. McVittie began his business career as a clerk in a general
merchandising store, serving in that capacity several years. He then
took up the trade of mechanic, and in 1867 removed to Detroit, Mich.,
where he entered the employ of Campbell, Owen & Co., ship builders,
as bookkeeper. He remained in that position until the organization of
the Detroit Dry Dock Company in 1872, this company succeeding to
the business of the former firm, and he was made secretary and manager. In 1890 he was elected vice-president of the company, and is at
present acting in that capacity as well as manager.
Aside from his interest in the above corporation, he is vice-president
and manager of the Dry Dock Engine Works, and is also an officer of
several transportation companies.  He is also a member of Peninsular
Chapter, R. A. M., and Ashlar Lodge, F. & A. M.
Mr. McVittie has been married twice; first, in 1864, to Irene C.,
daughter of Thomas Collier, of Bolivar, Ohio, who died in Bothwelll
Ont., in 1867. In 1872 he married as his second wife, Elizabeth,
daughter of Alexander MecLeod of Detroit. Mr. McVittie has eight
children: Nellie, wife of Kenneth Anderson of Detroit; Jessie, Agnes,
Walter S., Isabel, Archibald J., Ruth and Alice.
His long service as manager of one of Detroit's largest industrial
establishments, the success of which is in a great measure due to his
untiring energy and pronounced executive ability, has prominently
identified him with the growth and development of the shipping interests of the city, and his personality is such that he is esteemed by


768




0
I




I


FERDINAND W. MARSCHNER.




all with whom he comes in contact. Mr. MIcVittie is a member of the
Cass Avenue M. E. church, of which his family are regular attendants.
Politically he is a Prohibitionist.
FERDINAND W. MARSCHNER.
FERDINAND) W. MARSCHNER, registrar of deeds of Wayne county, and
a son of Ferdinand and Amelia (Keitzmann) Marschner, was born in
Brandenburg. Germany, June 18, 1857. At the age of nine years he
emigrated with his parents to America, settling in Detroit, Mich.,
which has since been his place of residence. Mr. Marschner received
his education in the public schools of Detroit, arid upon completion of
which he learned the trade of wood carver, a calling he followed until
his appointment, in 1886, as weighmaster for the Eastern district of
Detroit. In 1889 he was appointed a deputy sheriff of Wayne county,
serving in that capacity until 1891, when he was appointed deputy collector of customs, port of Detroit, retaining that position until 1894,
being in charge of the outside force during the latter two years of his
service.
Mr. Marschner has been a lifelong Republican, taking an active part
in the campaigns and is prominent in the councils of his party in the
city. In 1895 he was nominated and elected to the office of registrar of
deeds of Wayne county for a term of two years, and re-elected for a
like term in 1897. The administration of affairs by Mr. Marschner
since he became an incumbent of this office has been stamped with
public approval, and his re-election is a well deserved tribute to his
value as an official. He is prominent in Masonic circles, being a member of Michigan Sovereign Consistory; Moslem Temple, Nobles of the
Mystic Shrine, and Schiller Lodge No. 263, F. & A. M. He is an
enthusiastic Turner, a member of the Harmonie and Concordia Singing
Societies, and is president of the latter; a member of Olive Branch,
I. 0. 0. F.; Detroit Lodge No. 6, A. 0. U. W.; and Olympia Lodge,
Knights of Pythias of Detroit.
In 1882 he married Miss Charlotte Barrs, daughter of the late Dr.
Barrs, and they have three children: Ferdinand W., jr., George L.
and Charlotte.
769
97




WALES C. MARTINDALE.


WALES C. MARTINDALE, son of George G. and Clarissa (Howard)
Martindale, was born in Detroit, Mich., July 15, 1862. Mr. Martindale acquired his education in the public schools of Detroit and was
graduated from the High School in 1882. Subsequent to his graduation he was appointed superintendent of schools at Delray, where he
remained until 1885, when he removed to Detroit and was made principal of the Clinton School. Mr. Martindale served as principal of the
Clinton, Williams and Eastern High Schools, covering a period of some
twelve years.  In July, 1897, in recognition of his great executive
ability and sterling worth as an instructor, he was appointed to his
present office, that of superintendent of public schools. Mr. Martindale was chairman of the committee appointed, in 1896, to report
changes in the course of study, and was instrumental in readjusting
the work relative to special studies.
Superintendent Martindale, though probably the youngest man in
the United States holding a like position in any city rating with Detroit
in point of population, holds a place in the front ranks of the great
army of practical educators of America. To his efforts many of the
most meritorious reforms in the educational system in use in Detroit
are due. In the deliberations of school superintendents and principals
his counsel is a potent factor.  He is a member of Detroit Commandery No. 1, Knights Templar, and of Moslem Temple, Nobles of
the Mystic Shrine.
Superintendent Martindale was married, in 1887, to Clara Henderson
of Greenfield, Mich. They are the parents of four children: Frederick
C., Wales G, Clarissa L. and Edwina.
AUGUST MARXHAUSEN.
IT is not very often a man lives to spend fifty years at the printing
and newspaper business. Mr. August Marxhausen, publisher of the
Abend Post, had this rare pleasure on May 5, 1897. It was fifty years
on that day since Mr. Marxhausen was apprentied to the printing business  He was born April 2, 1833, in Cassel, Germany. His father
died early, leaving a widow with a large family of children. At the
age of fourteen he was confirmed, and being able to present such certificates and diplomas he had no trouble in getting a position with the
Allgemeine Casseler Zeitung. In those days trades and professions
770(




were organized after the medieval fashion, and Mr. Marxhausen was
obliged to go through elaborate ceremonies and pass a severe examination, after which he was solemly declared " knight of the black art."
His first work was proofreading, his mother being obliged to pay $225
annually as a premium. He remained with the paper four years, obtaining a practical training in all branches.
In 1851 he followed his elder brother to New York, where they established the New York Handels Zeitung, a still prosperous weekly.
A year later they were induced to come to Detroit, at the solicitation
of a prominent physician, who advertised for practical newspaper men
to establish a German paper in that city, the Michigan Democrat being
started. The two brothers did not like the policy of the paper, which
was in favor of slavery, and when the Abolition party was founded they
established the Michigan Journal, the first German daily in the State.
It was strictly Republican and anti-slavery.
In 1866 the two brothers separated and August Marxhausen established the Abend Post. Detroit had a population of 15,000 Germans at
that time, and the struggles of this journalistic newcomer form an interesting part in his history. In speaking of this the gentleman said:
" I have worked hard and toiled early and late to make the paper a
success; I have traveled all over the State, walking from one town to
another in search of subscribers and business." To-day the Abend
Post is the leading German daily in the State. The paper owns a
handsome building, has all modern improvements, including typesetting machines and an electric light plant of its own.
Personally Mr. Marxhausen is modest and retiring, devoting all his
time to business. He has kept aloof from politics, excepting that of
serving as a member the Park Commission. He attends strictly to
business, but has taken a most active part in all the happenings of German life in this city, and is at present president of the most prominent
German society of this city.
The employees and friends of Mr. Marxhausen did not let this anniversary pass by without a proper celebration. On this day, after the
paper was sent out a little earlier, the gentleman gathered all his employees about him and gave them a luncheon, at which also representatives of all the papers were present. Not a happier man was found
on this day when he was mingling with those who had toiled with him
the past half century to make the paper a success, and many were the
reminiscences he related of the days gone by, when there was not the
power press of to-day, nor typesetting machines, and when it was a
771




harder task to issue a paper than at present. Mr. Marxhausen is known
as a kind and considerate employer, and he has with him employees
who have with him become old men. It has often been remarked in
this city that were there more such kind-hearted employers there would
never be any occasion for trouble between employer and employee.
The esteem the gentleman is held in as a citizen was also manifested
when a complimentary reception was tendered him by several hundred
of our citizens.
WILLIAM C. MAYBURY.
HON. WILLIAM C. MAYBURY, mayor of the city of Detroit, was born
in Detroit, Mich., in 1850, and is a son of Thomas and Margaret (Cotter) Maybury. His early education was received in the public schools
and later in the High School of Detroit, from which he was graduated
in 1866. Subsequently he entered the literary department of the University of Michigan, and upon graduation he entered the law department
of the same institution, from which he was graduated with high honors in
1871. In 1880 the degree of A. M. was conferred upon him by the University of Michigan, and in 1871 he received the degree of LL. B. from the
same source. Following his graduation, he returned to Detroit and at
once entered the law offices of the Hon. G. V. N. Lothrop, "Detroit's
Grand Old Man." After being admitted to the bar, Mr. Maybury
formed a partnership with Col. E. F. Conely, this association being dis.
solved in 1882. Later he, with John D. Conely and Alfred Lucking,
formed the firm of Conely, Maybury & Lucking. Upon the retirement of Mr. Conely in 1892, the style of the firm became Maybury &
Lucking.
He served as city attorney from 1875 to 1880; and represented the
First Congressional district in the Forty-eighth and Forty-ninth Congresses. While serving as a member of that body, he was appointed
to the Judiciary Committee and the Committee on Ways and Means.
The site for the new Post Office building was purchased and work on tlhe
same begun while he was serving in this capacity, and the passage of
the bill by Congress allowing the building of the Belle Isle Bridge
(which was drawn by Mr. Maybury) was in a great measure due to his
earnest efforts in its behalf.
Upon the expiration of his term of office he returned to T)etroit and
resulmed the practice of law. Upon the election of ITazen S. Pingrec
to the office of governor, Mr. Maybtury was elected on April 10, 189S7,


I,




i




DAVID PORTER MAYHEW.




to fill his unexpired term as mayor of Detroit, and re-elected on November 5, 1897, for the full term of two years. Mr. Maybury is a most
prominent member of the Masonic fraternity, being a member of every
grade in the order, and has been honored with the thirty-third degree,
and is at present commander-in chief of the Scottish Rite Bodies of the
jurisdiction of Michigan. He is also an active church worker, and is
senior warden of St. Peter's Episcopal church and a director in St
Andrew's Brotherhood. Mr. Maybury has never married.
DAVID P. MAYHEW.
DAVID PORTER MAYHEW (deceased), late of Detroit, was born March
7, 1817, at Spencertown, Columbia county, N. Y., and died May 28,
1887, after a well-spent life, and one whose influence no man can estimate. About 1G30 Thomas Mayhew emigrated from England to America, and in 1641, bearing a king's patent to the islands on the coast, settled on Martha's Vineyard. His ideas were liberal, and he decided to
live amicably with the Indians, whom he hoped to christianize. His
son was returned to the mother country for education, and while en
route home was lost at sea, and as he was expected to preach to the Indians, his father took up the work himself, and until his ninetieth year
was found preaching to them with a force and enthusiasm rarely found
in those of younger years.
Preachers and teachers have been abundant in the Mayhew family
ever since, not the least illustrious being he whose career we are treating. He was prepared for college by him for whom he was named,
the venerable David Porter, D. D., LL. D., and in 1837 was graduated
from Union College. The academy was then the leading educational
institution of New York, and the one at Lowville had a reputation
second to none. He remained nearly fifteen years as its principal,
meantime reading law, thinking that it would be his chosen profession.
Removing to Ohio, he was one year in the Cleveland school and one
year was superintendent of the city schools at Columbus.
Apropos of his inclination to the law, he visited, at the invitation of
a legal friend, a court where a case was to be conducted by this friend.
It was found that the defendant had no counsel, so his friend asked the
judge to request young Mayhew to conduct the defense. He entered
into the case and succeeded in securing a verdict for his client, though
he felt that he was guilty. Realizing that the lawyer could not always
773




in justice to his client plead on the side of right, and with strong determination never to plead the cause of. what he knew was wrong, he
left the profession forever and devoted himself to teaching, for here he
was not hampered by narrow lines, but the truth was ever open.
In 1856 he came to Ypsilanti in charge of the Model School. His
work for the ensuing fifteen years was in the Normal School as professor and principal, his engagement there ending in January, 1871.
From that time his home was in Detroit.  Here he was a tireless
worker. He delighted to spend his time experimenting in the laboratory. He always came before his classes fully prepared. His knowledge of the subject, his enthusiasm, and his affectionate regard for his
pupils, always secured the closest attention. But in the memories of
those who were his pupils and associates, nothing remains brighter
than his cheerful and hopeful disposition. He was always the same.
He could make no one his enemy; he made every one his friend. New
students, appearing lonely or discouraged, became the objects of his
thoughtful care. He loved children, and understood and sympathized
with child nature. The children of the practice school always greeted
his entrance with demonstrations of pleasure, for they knew that with
him came mirth and jollity. In society he was a leading spirit. Gifted
with fluent speech, and always ready with entertaining thoughts, he
talked and others listened. He spoke without self-assertion, because,
in that respect at least, his was the master mind. Sitting in company,
with his head thrown back, eyes turned upward, the fingers of his right
hand habitually twirling his hair, he delighted the company with his
discourse.
At about the time when he left the Normal be began an educational work which, considering its novelty and originality, was perhaps
the most important, certainly the most interesting, of his life. When
vigorous effort began for the education of criminals confined in the Reformatory at Detroit, he conceived the idea of teaching them the principles of psychology as the best educating agency. He held that, in
general, this study should be introduced into primary classes, and not
left until near the completion of an educational course. His success
in elevating morally the heterogeneous class of criminals that is gathered into the Detroit House of Correction, is best told in the words of
Superintendent Brockway, now of the New York State Reformatory,
formerly of the Detroit institution:
"The remarkable success of Prof. Mayhew's efforts was apparent in the records
and also in the remarkable interest the whole crowd of prisoners had in the lectures


774




themselves. The opening lecture of that course of twenty-four or more is now, after
these many years, vivid in memory. I was somewhat solicitous about the experiment, so unique, of teaching persons of all ages, without culture or very much education, the high topic Prof. Mayhew was to take up; but all anxiety was gone the
moment Prof. Mayhew, in his characteristic way, stepped forward to the front of
the platform and after a moment of meditation, with closed eyes said: ' What do I
do when I think?' The interest of the audience was aroused, and in his conduct of
the inquiry for the hour and a quarter, the interest was sustained and increased to
the finish. One stormy night when the train from Ypsilanti had been delayed so
that we had given up the idea of having a lecture at all, and the men had most of
them retired, through the driving snow the professor.drove up at 9 o'clock. So much
confidence had I in the interest of the prisoners in the lectures that we aroused them
all, and after 9 o'clock assembled them in the lecture hall or chapel. When Prof.
Mayhew, in company with myself, went upon the platform he was received with a
round of applause, the heartiness of which showed that the prisoners were glad to
be aroused and gathered to hear him, even at that unusual hour. Years after this
Detroit experiment, when I came to Elmira, I summoned Prof. Mayhew, who, with
the same interest and good success, delivered two courses of lectures on the same
general topic to the inmates of this reformatory. Prof. Mayhew was genuine; his
love for the low down was inspired from above; he was a scientific and skillful
teacher, a born teacher, a trained teacher. He had a conscious existence in a higher
and better environment than surrounds ordinary men in this common life. His
genuineness, his skill, his resources of spiritual powers constitute him, in my judgment, the most remarkable teacher I ever met, and my acquaintance with him has
inspired a fervent affection ever to be treasured in my memory."
In character he was gentle, yet strong. He was honest in the truest
sense of the word. He was unassuming and seldom spoke of himself.
He was a teacher who loved his work, and in that love found inspiration. His attachment to his pupils remained undiminished to the end,
and in accordance with his dying request, his pall bearers were selected
from them. The esteem of his most intimate friends may be expressed
in the words of one who writes: " His character makes me think of the
beatitude, Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God." Few
men can be like him; all may emulate him.
He was a delightful after dinner speaker, always extempore, but so
widely read that he was never at a loss for something entertaining to
his auditors. His was a personality seldom met; he had faith in
human nature and lived to bring out the better things he knew men
were capable of. His was a world-wide philosophy, full of that optimism that could see a world growing better. He taught not only that
there is light but how to reach it.
Mr. Mayhew    was married twice; first, in 1846, to Sarah Collins of
Watertown, N. Y., who died the same year. In 1863 he married as
his second wife, Florence, daughter of Melchiah Brindel of West


775




Springfield, Pa., and niece of Eber B. and "Aunt" Emily Ward of
Detroit. His widow and two children survive him: David Porter
Mayhew, M. D., a graduate of the University of Michigan, both in
the literary and medical departments, which conferred upon him the
degree of Ph. M. and M. D., at present a practicing physician of Detroit; and Emily Ward, wife of Frederick C. Sutter of Pittsburg, Pa.
JOHN D. MEHAN.
JOHN D. MEHAN, was born in the township of Conway, Livingston
county, Mich., on the 1st day of March, 1847, where he received his
elementary education, in the district schools. Naturally of an ambitious temperament he soon outgrew the limitations of a country
home and at the age of twenty he came to Detroit and entered the employ of J. H. Whittemore who conducted an extensive music business
at 179 Jefferson avenue  In 1869 he removed to Chicago and engaged
in the sale of musical instruments, embracing at the same time every
possible opportunity to cultivate his voice. In the fall of 1873 he left
Chicago and went to London, Eng., where he studied under C. I-i.
Deacon of the Royal Academy and Robert Mason of the Queen's
Chapel, remaining there a few years, devoting himself to voice culture
and laying the foundation of his peculiarly special knowledge of the
principles that underlie the culture and development of the voice. He
afterwards returned to America and settled in Philadelphia where he
was engaged in church and concert singing and teaching. After another trip to Europe in 1884 he returned to Detroit and became connected with the Detroit School of Music. In 1887 he established the
Mehan School of vocal art of which he is a director. Mr. Mehan has
been eminently successful in his profession and maintains a place
among the leading vocal instructors in the United States. Among his
students are and for years have been many persons who have studied
in Europe with some of the most celebrated teachers. These singers
unite in the broad statement that Mr. Mehan's methods of instruction
embrace about all that is good in the methods of the others. Through
constant persistence in following out his special theory of voice culture,
the result of many years of practical and scientific observation, Mr.
Mehan has placed himself in the front rank of vocal instructors in the
United States, combining as he does in his method the best essentials
of the theories of the various masters under whom he has studied, with


776




JOHN D. MEHAN.








I




ALFRED E. MEUGS.




the practical application of the same in such a way that the essential
spirit or soul tone of the voice is brought forth and cultivated to an extent not dreamed of under other conditions. It is impossible to describe in detail the theory under which Mr. Mehan so successfully
brings out all the latent possibilities of his pupils, as his strong personality so predominates each lesson that it becomes in part an interesting
psychological experiment-his bringing out the various emotional
tone colors and so causing the pupil to develop his natural voice instead
of an acquired voice, that is too often brought out and cultivated under
other conditions to the great detriment of the singer. This result is
largely attained through an original system that has its foundation in
the modification of vowel sounds, by which Mr. Mehan is able to control all desirable muscular action in proportion to the acceptability of
the pupil to discriminate in the matter of tone color. W. S. B.
Mathews, the famous musical critic, in an article entitled " An American Master of Singing," says of Mr. Mehan: " With Mr. Mehan the
first essential of a singer is tone; a tone musical, soft, penetrating,
capable of being thrown out with the ringing timbre which great
artists use in moments of greatest climax, yet essentially an easy tone
for the singer to produce. Moreover every singer has a natural quality
of voice which, if secured, will be more easy for the singer and more
effective for the hearer." Mr. Mehan, although a member of several
clubs, rarely spends an evening outside of his own home. He is fond
of entertaining friends whether professional or plain law abiding citizens, but much dislikes the extreme formalities. Being a very busy
man he has little time for recreation, but such time as he does find for
pleasure is given to driving. He is a great lover of horses and dogs
and his horses are among the best to be found in the city.
ALFRED E. MEIGS.
ALFRED E. MEIGS, son of Ebenezer and Elizabeth (Bowler) Meigs,
was born in South China, Maine, April 21, 1847. At an early age Mr.
Meigs was placed in Fairfield's Select School at Dirigo, Me., an institution with a limited attendance and no special classes and the only one
of its kind ever established. In 1861 he entered a Quaker seminary at
Vassalboro, Me., remaining there until 1866, when he entered the
classical department of Colby University at Waterville, Me., and was
777
98




graduated with honor and the degrees of A. B., and A. M. in 1870.
On completion of his education he removed to the West, and for the
two succeeding years was engaged in herding cattle on the plains of
Missouri and Indian Territory, becoming a typical cow boy.
In 1872 he returned to the East and accepted a reportorial position on
the Daily Whig and Courier of Bangor, Me. In 1880 Mr. Meigs removed to New Haven, Conn., and was managing editor of the Palladium three years. In 1883 he removed to Omaha, Neb., and for one
year was managing editor of the Omaha Bee. In 1884 the Western
Newspaper Union, recognizing Mr. Meigs's newspaper ability, secured
his services. He established the Lincoln, Neb. branch for the union
prior to his removal to Detroit in November, 1884, where he has since
remained in the employ of the Western Newspaper Union as branch
manager. Mr. Meigs is a prominent member of the Masonic fraternity
and was honored with the thirty-third degree. He is first lieutenant
commander of Michigan Sovereign Consistory; a Knight Templar; a
member of the Red Cross of Constantine, and of the Royal Order of
Scotland.
Mr. Meigs was married, June 6, 1880, to Ellen R. Moore of Lisbon,
Me. They are the parents of two children: Hilda and Moore.
MERRILL I. MILLS.
HON. MERRILL ISAAC MILLS, son of Isaac and Asenath (Merrill)
Mills, was born in Canton, Hartford county, Conn., November 4, 1819.
Isaac Mills and his wife were natives of Canton, where he was for many
years prominently identified with the growth and development of that
section of his State, and was a leading business man of his town. His
death occurred on the 9th of December, 1861, and that of his wife on
the 22d of June, 1871. The parents of Isaac Mills were also natives of
Canton.
Merrill I. Mills received his early education in the common schools,
and later attended, for a time, the Connecticut Literary Institute, at
Suffield, where he prepared to enter Yale College. Deciding that his
tastes were more in accord with a business career, he, at the age of
fifteen, engaged with his father in the manufacture of gunpowder.
After five years spent in this line he was sent as the representative of
his father, and assumed charge of a mercantile house in southern
778




Alabama, in which his father was interested. Two years later, owing
to the failing health of his father, he returned to Canton, where, until
1845, he was engaged in the management of his father's various interests. Desiring to engage in a more expansive field, late in the fall of
1845 he removed to Fort Wayne, Ind., at that time enjoying a prosperous growth, owing to the recent opening of the Wabash Canal.
Previous to starting for the West, he had forwarded a stock of
merchandise; the early closing of navigation that fall caused his goods
to be detained at Detroit, necessitating his going to that point. His
keen business instinct caused him to see the great natural advantages
possessed by that city as a coming distributing center, and he decided
to locate there, where he opened a store, dealing in general merchandise. His operations soon extended over a large territory, and in
certain sections he found it of great a6vantage to exchange merchandise
for furs. Eventually his business in this line assumed large proportions, and he became a shipper of furs to European markets. In 1861
he organized the firm of Nelvin & Mills, for the manufacture of
tobacco. Some eleven years previous he had commenced the manufacture of cigars, and had succeeded in building up an extensive trade
throughout the West. Upon the death of Mr. Nelvin in 1878, an interest in the business was purchased by Mr. W. H. Tefft, and the business
was reorganized and incorporated under the name of the Banner
Tobacco Company, of which Mr. Mills was made president and
manager. His establishing of the cigar and tobacco manufacturing
industry in Detroit, his factory being one of the first, undoubtedly led
others to invest in the same line, and to-day Detroit ranks among the
leading cities of the United States in the manufacture of both cigars
and tobacco.
In 1864 he, with William H. Tefft and Jeremiah Dwyer, organized
the Detroit Stove Company, and in 1872, with the late Charles
Ducharme and Jeremiah Dwyer, organized and incorporated the
Michigan Stove Company, which is to-day the most extensive manu
facturer of stoves in the world. Mr. Mills served as vice-president of
the former company and as treasurer of the latter, as vice president of
the Frankfort Furnace Company, the Detroit Fire and Marine Insurance Company. and of the Board of Commissioners for Belle Isle Park.
He was also instrumental in the organization of the Transit Railway
Company of Detroit and held the office of president in that company.
He was president of the Eldredge Sewing Machine Company of
779




Chicago, Ill., and a director in the First National Bank of Detroit. He
was elected mayor of the city in 1866, serving two years, was a candidate
on the Democratic ticket for member of congress in 1868, and one of
the commissioners to the Centennial Exposition from Michigan.
During the Civil war he was actively engaged in the recruiting of
troops and gave material assistance to the Union cause. In 1876 he
was a delegate-at-large to the Democratic National Convention at St.
Louis, Mo., which nominated Samuel J. Tilden for president. During
his lifetime he was prominently identified with the business, social and
religious life of the city, ever ready to extend his assistance toward the
successful accomplishment of any project, which promised advantage to
the interests of Detroit and its citizens. He enjoyed to the fullest extent
the confidence and esteem of his associates and the public, and his
charities were numerous and varied, but always given in an unostentatious manner.
Owing to the advice of his physician, he paid a visit to Manitou
Springs, Col., in 1881, but returned in a few months in feeble health.
Previous to the journey he retired from active business, and his large
interests were given in charge of his only son, Merrill B. Mills.
Gradually failing health terminated in his decease on September 14,
1882. His death deprived Detroit of one of her most progressive business men, who, during his thirty-seven years' residence in the city was
constantly engaged in the development and success of many of her
leading industries, and to such men as he is due the reputation Detroit
now possesses as a manufacturing center.
Mr. Mills was married to Cynthia A, daughter of Samuel P. Barbour
of Canton, Conn. To them were born two children: Merrill B., and
Ella B., who married G. H. Burt of Auburn, N. Y. Mrs. Burt died in
Detroit in September, 1897. His widow and only son, Merrill B. Mills
(whose sketch appeare elsewhere in this work), survive him.
MERRILL B. MILLS.
MERRILL B. MILLS, president of the Banner Tobacco Company, and
a well known business man of Detroit, is the only son of Merrill I. and
Cynthia A. (Barbour) Mills, and was born in Detroit, Mich., October
12, 1854. His early education was acquired in the private school of
the late Philo Patterson, and later he attended that of Prof. H. S. Jones.
780




In 1870 he entered the Cheshire Military Academy at Cheshire, Conn.,
where he prepared for Yale College. Deciding that his tastes were
altogether of a business tendency, he abandoned his idea of entering
Yale, returned to Detroit, and took a course in Matthew's Business
College.
Upon completion of the works of the Michigan Stove Company, in
which his father was a large stockholder, he accepted the position of
shipping clerk and timekeeper. He served successively in the capacity
of shipping clerk, traveling salesman and purchasing agent, and upon
the death of his father, in 1882, succeeded him as treasurer of the company and continues in that position at the present time. He also succeeded his father in the office of president of the Banner Tobacco Company, one of the largest institutions of its character in the country, as
well as other corporations of less importance. In 1888 he organized
the Banner Cigar Company, which has since become one of the leading
manufacturers of high-grade domestic cigars in the West. Of this
company he was the first and has been the only president.
Mr. Mills is naturally capacitated for the management of business
affairs, possessing executive abilities of a high order, and the numerous
large enterprises of which he is the manager and director attest to his
prudent and conservative business methods. He has recently been
instrumental in the organization and incorporation of the Detroit, Lake
Shore and Mt. Clemens Railway Company, and is the president of that
corporation. Aside from the above-mentioned interests he is vicepresident of the Detroit Transit Railway, the Mt. Clemens Traction
Company, and the Mesaba Iron Company, Duluth, Minn.; is president of the Highland Park Club, the Sylvan Lake Improvement
Company, the Sylvan Lake Inn Company, the Star Cigar Manufacturing Company, the E. R. Calk Company, a director of the Detroit
Fire and Marine Insurance Company and the Michigan Fire and
Marine Insurance Company.    He is prominent socially and is a
member of the Detroit Club, the Detroit Athletic Club, the Detroit
Boat Club, the Detroit and Lake St. Clair Fishing and Shooting Club,
and is an honorary member of the Detroit Light Infantry. He is also
prominently identified with aquatic affairs, was commodore of the
Michigan Yacht Club in 1893, and his superb steam yacht "Cynthia"
(built in 1895) is one of the largest and most speedy on inland waters.
Politically he is a Democrat. He is a gentleman in whom are united
many excellent and conspicuous characteristics, being genial, sociable,
modest and unassuming.
781




GEORGE WILLIAM MOORE.


HON. GEORGE WILLIAM MOORE was born in Wayne county, Mich.,
September 9, 1847, and is a son of George Washington Moore, retired
and a resident of the village of Romulus, Wayne county. George William was educated in the schools of Ypsilanti, Mich., and later in the
law department of the University of Michigan, from which he graduated in 1872. His studies in the law were completed under Judge
Chauncey Joslin of Ypsilanti, and he was admitted to the bar in 1872,
at which tine he formed his present partnership with George Whitney
Moore of Detroit, to which latter city he had removed in that year.
The law firm of Moore & Moore is too well known throughout many
States to need further mention.
In politics Mr. Moore is a Democrat, and has exercised a potential
influence iu the ranks of the party in Detroit and the State. He is an
eloquent, logical and forceful speaker before the court and jury, or at
the hustings in the political campaigns in which he has borne a part.
The practice of the firm of which he is a member is confined to the
civil courts and is varied and general, and includes constitutional, corporate and commercial law.
In 1885 Mr. Moore was married to Katherine De Mill, daughter of
Peter E. De Mill of Detroit, Mich. They have one child, Katherine.
JOHN J. MULHERON, M. D.
JOHN J. MULHERON, M. D., son of Thomas and Margery (Hicks) Mulheron, was born in London, Ontario, Canada, May 31, 1846. Thomas
Mulheron was a native of Glasgow, Scotland, and emigrated to America in 1842, settling in the province of Ontario, Canada, and Margery
Hicks Mulheron was a native of Cornwall, England. John J. was the
second child and eldest son of a family of twelve children. He received his early education in the public schools of Waterloo, Ontario,
and later became a student in the Rockwood (Ont.) Academy. In 1867
he entered the medical department of the University of Michigan, from
which he was graduated in 1869 with the degree of M. D. Returning
to Canada, he passed the required examination and took his degree
from the Toronto School of Medicine. For one year he practiced his
profession at Mitchell, Ontario, and located permanently in Detroit,


782




J. J. MULHERON, M. D.








Mich., in 1870. He has built up a large general practice, and has devoted himself since 1892 to the diseases of women, to which branch of
medicine his practice is now chiefly confined, and for which he has especially fitted himself through European (particularly Vienna) study.
Dr. Mulheron is a member of the American Medical Association;
Michigan State Medical Society; Detroit Medical and Library Association; and is president of the Detroit Gynaecological Society. He is consulting physician to Harper Hospital at Detroit; and clinical professor
of medicine in the Detroit College of Medicine. From 1874 to 1877 he
served as city physician of Detroit and as county physician of Wayne
county from 1887 to 1889. In 1891 he was appointed United States
sanitary inspector at Detroit, serving until 1893. In 1886 he was elected as alderman from the First ward, being president of the Common
Council in 1887, and chairman of the Board of Supervisors of Detroit
in the same year.
He is prominent in Masonic circles, having been honored with the
thirty-second degree, is past grand chancellor of the Knights of Pythias
and past commander of Acomcetaz Council of the Royal Arcanum. He
is also member of the Fellowcraft Club of Detroit.
He was married, in 1870, to Miss Annie Morton of Windsor, Ontario,
Canada, from which union there were nine children, five of whom survive: Hugh, a graduate of the medical department of the University
of Michigan, class of 1897, and now associated with his father in his
practice; Annie MI.,Thomas S., Mary 0. and Margery N. Mrs. Mulheron
died in January, 1897, and in the spring of 1898 the doctor wedded Mrs.
Beartha C. Hansen of Detroit.
CYRENIUS A. NEWCOMB.
CYRENIUS A. NEWCOMB, son of Col. Hezekiah Newcomb, was born in
Cortland, N. Y., November 10, 1837.  His grandfather, Hezekiah
Newcomb, was a well known and influential citizen of Northwestern
Massachusetts, and represented Bernardstown and Leyden in the
State Legislature, or General Court, of Massachusetts for more than
twenty years. His father, Col. Hezekiah Newcomb, also served in
the same capacity. He was a widely-respected teacher and later was
commissioned as colonel of one of the regiments of the New York
militia. His mother's maiden name was Rounds. The ancestry of the


783




Newcomb family is easily traced for hundreds of years. The Harlein
manuscripts in the British Museum give the names of the Newcombs
of Devonshire from the year 1189.
The early history of the Newcombs in this country is connected with
various portions of New England and Eastern Canada. In the family
connection is the name of Abigail Mather, daughter of the noted Rev.
Increase Mather. Her mother was the daughter of the celebrated Rev.
John Cotton. The earliest known American member of the family,
Capt. Andrew Newcomb, lived in Boston, Mass., in 1663, and probably
emigrated there from Wales or Devonshire. The family at an early
day were large landowners at Martha's Vineyard and in other parts of
New England and even in Acadia, being drawn there by the King's
Proclamation of 1761. They occupied some of the lands from which
the French were so remorselessly driven. The old town records of the
far East disclose the fact that different members of the family, at various periods, held all the offices within the gift of the people. The
Newcombs were originally loyal church members of the old Puritan
stock, but in later years some of them became prominent members of
the Methodist and Presbyterian churches. Several were college graduates at an early day, and the ministerial, editorial and educational
professions, as well as the guild of authors, are all represented in the
connection, and some of the family have made large gifts to schools and
colleges. Travelers and scientists of note are also in the genealogical
list. During the Revolutionary war some members of the family served
in the patriot ranks, and others under the British colors. Among the
soldiers of the war of 1812, and also in the war of the Rebellion, they
are also represented.
After receiving the usual education afforded by the schools of New
England, the subject of this sketch began his business career in Hannibal, N. Y., but when twenty years of age he went to Taunton, Mass.,
where for about nine years he served as clerk in the dry goods stores of
N. I. Skinner & Co., and, becoming a partner, continued two years
longer. In 1868 he removed to Detroit and with Mr. Charles Endicott
purchased the dry goods establishment of James W. Farrell; and under
the firm name of Newcomb, Endicott & Co. the business remained in
the Merrill block, at the stand occupied by their predecessors, for one
year. To the surprise of the citizens generally, the following year the
firm led the march of business up Woodward avenue, by moving to and
occupying the ground floor of the then new Detroit Opera House build

784




ing, facing the Campus Martius. Remaining here ten years, in 1879
they again led the van in the march northward, and moved to the large
building erected for their occupancy by Mr. D. MA. Ferry, on the east
side of Woodward avenue, just below State street.
Mr. Newcomb was one of the organizers of the Universalist church,
and contributed largely toward the erection of the fine edifice now occupied by that society. He may be depended upon as interested in whatever concerns the moral welfare of his fellow citizens, and, in a practical way, to futher every institution that promises to be an advantage
to the city. He is pronounced in his temperance sentiments. In the
campaign of 1887, in favor of an amendment to the constitution prohibiting the manufacture or sale of liquor, he was an active and influential
factor. As a business man he is modest, sensible and successful, conscientiously endeavoring to fulfill the duties belonging to good citizenship.
In 1867 Mr. Newcomb married Mary E. Haskell, daughter of William Reynolds Haskell of Hartford, Conn. Their children are named
William Wilmon, Cyrenius Adelbert, Mary Queen and Howard Rounds.
Mrs. Newcomb's death occurred November 17, 1887.
REV. WILLIAM X. NINDE.
REV. WILLIAM XAVIER NINDE, D. D., LL. D., resident bishop of the
Methodist Episcopal church, was born in Cortland, N. Y., June 21, 1832.
He is a son of Rev. William W. and Mary (Moore) Ninde, and is of
English descent.  His grandfather, Rev. William Ninde, emigrated
from England to America in early manhood, and at one time was rector
of St. Ann's Episcopal church at Annapolis, Md. His father was a
minister in the Methodist Episcopal church and spent his entire ministerial life in the State of New York. Bishop Ninde was educated in
Lowville (N. Y.) and Rome (N. Y.) Academies, and in the Wesleyan
University at Middletown, Conn., which he entered in 1853. He was
graduated therefrom in 1855 with the degree of A. B.
In 1856 he entered the ministry, and two years later was ordained at
Weedsport, N. Y. Prior to his ordination he was assigned as pastor of
a church at Fulton, Oswego county, N. Y., in 1856. After laboring as
pastor in several places in the State of New York, he was transferred
to Cincinnati, Ohio, becoming pastor of Trinity church. He remained
785
99




in Cincinnati until 1870, when he removed, assuming the pastorate of
the Central M. E. church of Detroit. In 1873 he was elected to the
chair of practical theology in Garrett Bibical Institute at Evanston, Ill.,
remaining there until 1876, when he returned to the pastorate of his
former church in Detroit. In 1879 he was elected president of Garrett
Institute and returned to Evanston, where he remained until May, 1884,
at which time he was elected to the bishopric at the General Conference
held in Philadelphia. From 1884 to 1892 he resided in Topeka, Kas.
In the latter year Detroit was made an Episcopal residence and he then
removed to this city. In 1874 Bishop Ninde received the degree of
D. D. from Wesleyan University. In 1892 the Northwestern University, at Evanston, Ill., conferred upon him the degree of LL. D.
Bishop Ninde was married to Miss Elizabeth S. Falley, daughter of
the Hon. Frederick Falley of Fulton, N. Y. They have a family of
four children: Mary Louise, Edward S., George F., and Frederick W.
Ninde. Bishop Ninde has been an extensive traveler in foreign lands.
In May, 1894, he left for a tour (on official duty) of the East, traveling
through China, Japan and Korea. While on his visit to that quarter
of the globe war broke out between China and Japan, and during the
entire period of its existence he traveled through those countries. He
was accompanied by his wife and two of his sons, George F. and Fred
erick W., and they passed through many thrilling experiences during
their temporary residence in the Orient.
ORVILLE W. OWEN, M. D.
ORVILLE W. OWEN, M. D., son of Benjamin F. Owen, a native of
New York State, who launched the first steamer into Lake Superior, and
Abba (Ward) Owen, a sister of the late Capt. Eber B. Ward, of I)e.
troit, and a daughter of Eber Ward, who settled in Michigan in 1817,
was born in Bell River Mills, Mich. (now Marine City), at one o'clock
in the morning of Sunday, January 1, 1854. Shortly after his birth his
mother died, and he was placed in the family of his aunt, Emily Ward,
whose name has been for years a password in literary and social circles
throughout the State of Michigan.
After a preparatory education received in Detroit he entered the
State Normal School at Ypsilanti, from which he graduated in 1873,
subsequently entering the employ of the Burlington and Southwestern
786




ORVILLE W. OWEN, M. D.








Railway (now the C., B. and Q. route), as assistant superintendent.
After a service of three years with this company, he returned to Detroit and for a time was closely identified with his uncle, Capt. Eber
Ward, a widely-known business man of this city. Later he entered the
Detroit Medical College, and was graduated in 1881 with the degree of
M. D. Subsequent to his graduation he began the practice of the profession in Detroit, in which he makes a specialty of gynecology and
has attained to a prominent place among the members of his profession,
as well as the establishing of a large and lucrative practice.
Dr. Owen early developed a desire for scientific studies. The recent
works of his pen have brought him into international notice, especially
so in the case of his discovery, deciphering and publishing of the
"Cipher Story" of Sir Francis Bacon, and other writings of that
famous author and playright. Twelve days subsequent to his graduation from the Detroit Medical College he was tendered and accepted
the position of lecturer on physiology in that institution, and in the following year became professor of physiology, and retained the chair for
five years. During the years 1882-87 inclusive he was the corresponding secretary for the European Microscopic Club, and for two years
assistant editor of the Detroit Clinic, a journal of medicine. He has
been a member of all the various medical associations and societies,
but owing to pressure of his literary and medical work, retains a membership in but one-the Detroit Medical and Library Association. He is
a prominent Mason, being a member of Union Lodge No. 3, F. & A. M.,
and Peninsular Chapter, R. A. M., and for many years has been an
honorary member of the Players' Club of New York city.
Dr. Owen was married in February, 1893, to Mabel Van Camp, of
Adrian, Mich., and they are the parents of two children: Gladys Ward
Owen and Gwendolyn Van Camp Owen.
GEORGE H. PAINE.
GEORGE H. PAINE, son of Asa H. and Jane (Hutchinson) Paine, was
born in Saginaw, Mich., January 18, 1858. He attended the public
schools until sixteen years of age, then entered the law offices of Wisner & Draper at Saginaw as clerk and student. After three and a
half years of service with that firm Mr. Paine was appointed deputy
clerk of Saginaw county and acted as court clerk. In 1879 he was


787




admitted to the bar, and a year later was appointed assistant prosecuting
attorney of Saginaw county. In 1882 he removed to Detroit where he
resumed the practice of his profession.
Early in his law practice in Detroit Mr. Paine had as a partner Frank
T. Lodge, and under the style of Paine & Lodge in a very brief time
they won for themselves an enviable position at the bar. Upon the
organization, in 1889, of the National Loan and Investment Company
of Detroit, Mr. Paine retired from his law practice and became secretary of the corporation. From a very small beginning the National
Loan and Investment Company, through the keen foresight and admirable business methods of its executive officers, has grown to be one
of Detroit's leading financial institutions. Aside from his interest in
the above enterprise, Mr. Paine is president of the Firestone Rubber
Tire Co. of Chicago, Ill., vice president of the Benton Harbor and St.
Joseph Gas Co. of Benton Harbor, Mich., and a stockholder in other
industrial corporations.
He is a member of the Detroit Athletic Club, the Country Club,
the Fellowcraft Club, the Lake St. Clair Fishing and Shooting Club,
and the Huron Mountain Club. He is also a member of the Detroit
Driving Club and the Detroit Riding Club, and is a well known connoisseur of fine saddle and harness horses. At his Cherry Tree farm,
near the city, he breeds annually a few trotters of the bluest blood and
prides himself on the quality of his Jersey cows. As a business man he
is recognized as possessing rare executive ability and sound business
sense, to which he brings indomitable energy and push. He is highly
esteemed by his business associates and the public and has attained to
a prominent place among Detroit's business men.
THOMAS W. PALMER.
HON. THOMAS W. PALMER, son of Thomas and Mary A. (Witherell)
Palmer, was born in Detroit, Mich., on January 25, 1830. He was educated in a private school in the village of Palmer, Mich. (now the city
of St.Clair), and was well advanced in a literary course at the University of Michigan, when ill health compelled him to leave school. He
then decided upon a visit to the Old World, and a pedestrian trip through
Spain afforded him the opportunity of recuperation, and a chance to
observe the characteristics of the people of that country, which proved


788




invaluable to him in later years. After touring Spain he spent some
months in travel in South America, and returned to the United States
and to Detroit in 1853. Following his return he engaged in the lumber
business, and afterward became a partner of the late Charles Merrill,
owner of extensive pine lands in Northern Michigan. Under the style
Of C. Merrill & Co. they carried on one of the largest lumber businesses
in the world. They associated with them Mr. J. A. Whittier, and upon
the death of Mr. Merrill, some years later, Mr. J. B. Whittier was admitted to partnership, tl'e firm, however, retaining its original name;
Mrs. Palmer (formerly Lizzie P. Merrill), having inherited her father's
interest in the business. Their headquarters have always been at East
Saginaw, in the heart of the lumber district of Michigan.
Aside fi om the lumber business Mr. Palmer is identified with many
of the leading business institutions of Detroit and elsewhere, among
them being the American Exchange National Bank, the Wayne County
Savings Bank, the Security and Safe Deposit Co., the Gale SulkyHarrow Co., the Detroit Steam Navigation Co., the Michigan Lake
Navigation Co., the Frontier Iron Works, the Michigan Mutual Life
Insurance Co., and the Leadville (Col.) Iron-Silver Mine Co.  Mr
Palmer is the the proud possessor of three beautiful homes-a palatial
mansion at Washington, D. C., a magnificent residence in Detroit, and
his "'Log Cabin " at Greenfield, Mich., upon which, and the farm of a
mile square surrounding it, he has expended thousands of dollars.
Upon the farm, which he keeps well stocked, are to be found some
valuable specimens of the French Percheron horse, the Guernsey, A1 -derney, and other cattle, and all the branches of the barnyard family.
The " Log Cabin," surrounded as it is by beautiful green fields, shady
woods, and well-kept walks, is the pride of and a favorite resort with
Detroiters, thousands of people visiting it annually during the pleasant
months of the year.
Mr. Palmer did not enter public life voluntarily, being urged, or
pushed into it, by degrees. His first office was as a member of the
first Board of Estimates of Detroit, to which he was elected in 1873.
In 1878 he was elected to the State Senate, from the city of Detroit,
and while a member of that body, in company with the Hon. E. W.
Cottrell, he had the bill passed, providing for the present boulevard
which encircles Detroit.
In 1883 he was elected to the United States Senate, to succeed Hon.
Thomas W. Ferry, and during his term gained distinction as one of the
789




best speakers and most influential members of that body. In his addresses and arguments his language was always clear, choice, forcible
and elegant; and especially noticeable for the numerous classical allusions, and ready historical references. His thoughts and words have
always been full of brightness and beauty, and abundant in sentiment
and sagacity. He is, by turn, humorous, grave, and pathetic. He has
always been "the friend of the soldier," and was the first to suggest
the erection of a Soldiers' Monument at Detroit. For many years he
has been president of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to
Animals.
In social matters Mr. Palmer is an excellent conversationalist, and
entertains generously. He is patriotic in the full sense of the term and
broadly philanthropic, and has vast numbers of friends and followers.
In 1889 Mr. Palmer was appointed, by President Harrison, minister to
Spain, but resigned that position after two years, and returned to the
United States and to private life. In 1893 he was elected as president
of the World's Fair Commission at Chicago, and ably administered the
duties of that office.
Mr. Palmer is a champion of "Woman's Suffrage," and during his
term as United States senator he delivered one of the most powerful
and stirring speeches that has ever been made on that subject in this
country.
In October, 1855, Mr. Palmer married Miss Lizzie P. Merrill, at
East Saginaw, but no children have been born to this union.
HERVEY C. PARKE.
HERVEV COKE PARKE, president of the Parke, Davis & Co., inc., was
born at Bloomfield, Oakland county, Mich., December 13, 1827, a son
of Ezra Smith Parke, M. D., and Rhoda (Sperry) Parke.
Robert Parke, the progenitor of the New England branch of the
family, was born in Preston, Eng., near Liverpool, in 1585, and came
first to America in 1630, returning to England in the same year. The
exact date of his final settlement in America is not known, but he (lied
at l'equot (New London), Conn., in 1665, b)eing eighty years old. The
line of descent from Robert Parke to Hervey Coke Parke, is clearly
traced as follows: Thomas, third son of Robert; Nathaniel, third son
of Thom1as; Joseph, third son of Nathaniel; Joseph, second of the name


790




and eldest son of Joseph, sr.; John, youngest son of Joseph, second of
the name; Ezra Smith, second and youngest son of John; Hervey
Coke, second son and third child of Ezra Smith.
Ezra Smith Parke, M. D., was born at Middle Haddam, Conn., April
4, 1793, removed to the Territory of Michigan in 1823, settled in Bloomfield, Oakland county, and continued in the practice of his profession
as a physician until his death on January 18, 1846. He married Rhoda
Sperry, and their children were Cornelia, Francis Asbury, Hervey
Coke, Ira Sperry, Sarah Abigail and Lyman Curtiss.
Hervey Coke Parke had as preceptors in a private academy at Bloomfield, Mich., the late J. D. Standish of Detroit, and present Judge A.
C. Baldwin of Pontiac, Mich. During the winter of 1843-44, he attended the High School at Buffalo, N. Y., and in the spring of the latter year entered the employ of Garrett V. Mooney, one of the leading
upholstering dealers of that city, with whom he remained until the
autumn of 1845. During the ensuing year he taught in a private school
in Oakland county and the public schools of West Bloomfield, Mich.
From 1846 to 1848 he was a clerk in the hardware store of George L.
Bidwell at Adrian, Mich.; from 1848 to 1850 clerk in the general store
of W. M. McConnell at Pontiac, Mich.; from 1850 to 1852 in the employ of the North American Mining Co. at Eagle River, Lake Superior,
Mich.; from 1852 to 1861 cashier and bookkeeper for the Pittsburg and
Boston Mining Co. at the Cliff mines in the northern peninsula of
Michigan; from 1861 to 1865 senior member of the firm of Parke &
Rainey, retail hardware, at Hancock, Mich.; and in 1865 he removed
to Detroit, Mich., which city has ever since been his home and the
headquarters of his business operations.
In removing to Detroit in August, 1865, Mr. Parke took passage with
his family on the ill-fated steamer Pewabic, which was sunk in Thunder
Bay in collision with the'steamer Meteor. The latter vessel was little
damaged and succeeded in rescuing all hands from the Pewabic and
transferring them to the steamer Mohawk bound from Chicago to Detroit.
In 1866 he purchased the interest of the junior partner of the firm of
Duffield & Conant (of which Dr. Samuel P. Duffield, the former health
officer of Detroit, was senior member), in the manufacture of pharmaceuticals, etc., the firm name being then changed to Duffield, Parke &
Co. In 1870 a company was organized by Mr. Parke with George S.
Davis and others, and Mr. Duffield's interest in the business having


791




been purchased, the firm of Parke, Davis & Company came into existence; in 1875 Parke, Davis & Co. was incorporated as a stock company
with a fully paid up capital of $100,000, subsequently increased to $1,200,000, Mr. Parke being chosen as its president; George S. Davis,
vice-president and general manager; and H. A. Wetzel, secretary and
treasurer. The present officers of the company are H. C. Parke, president; D. C. Whitney, vice-president; H. A. Wetzel, secretary; J. H.
Smedley, treasurer; and William M. Warren, general manager.
This enterprise has done more toward making the name of Detroit
familiar in the marts of the world and likewise to establish the city
itself as a commercial center, than any other institution. Their connections are the most important and their scope the widest of any concern of its kind in the world. Besides their laboratories at Detroit, they
have establishments at Walkerville, Ontario, New York city, Kansas
City, Mo., and London, Eng., and distributing agencies in every section of the civilized world. The home factory and laboratory at Detroit
is equipped in the most complete manner with the latest and best
appliances for manufacturing pharmaceutical products. They employ
about 1,500 people, including one hundred traveling salesman in North
America. Parke, Davis & Co. have also done much toward exploring
the flora of the world and through their efforts and investigations
numerous valuable new drugs have been added to the materi medica.
Mr. Park has been identified since 1865 with St. John's Episcopal
church of Detroit, for many years one of its vestrymen and since the
death of Governor Baldwin in 1891 has been senior warden of that
church. He is also a member of the Detroit Club.
Mr. Parke has been married twice; first, in 1860, to Frances A. Hunt,
daughter of the late Hon. James B. Hunt, M. C.; she died in 1867,
leaving him five children, three of whom survive: Sarah C., Mary E.,
wife of Mr. Le-Vert Clark of Mobile, Ala., and James Hunt Parke of
California. In 1872 Mr. Parke married Mary M. Mead of Detroit,
daughter of James E. Mead, and they have four children, three sons
and one daughter: Hervey Coke, jr., Lyman M., Ira Sperry and Marie
Louise. Personally, MAr. Parke is a dignified, polite and courteous
gentleman, of strictest integrity of character and held in high esteem
by all.


792




AARON A. PARKER.


AARON A. PARKER, president of the Detroit River Savings Bank of
Detroit, Mich., is a native of the Empire State, having been born on a
farm in Erie county, near Buffalo, March 1, 1844, and is a son of
Horace and Virginia (Whitaker) Parker. He worked on the home
farm until seventeen years of age, attending district schools during the
winter months. In 1861, in company with several of his neighbors, all
of them older than he, he removed to the locality of Oil Creek, Venango
county, Pa., where they secured the option of a lease and prepared to
drill for oil. Aaron had no ready capital, in lieu of which his father
purchased for him, to secure him his right as a member of the company,
a small drilling engine. Work was begun at once, and very soon afterward oil was struck, but the decrease in the price of the crude material
so disheartened his companions that they withdrew and returned home,
leaving him with a single helper, with whom he formed a partnership.
He had gone in to win, and win he did. The price of oil crept steadily
upward, and by the advice of a traveling prospector Mr. Parker and
his partner, known then as the Hamburg Oil Co., erected a refinery,
and soon after found a ready market for their products.
In 1862 he purchased his partner's interest and continued to operate,
with hired help, the oil wells which were upon the site of the Storry
farm, Venango county. Later he bought the right to other wells and
worked them all successfully, finding himself in 1864 the possessor of a
fortune of sixty thousand dollars, before reaching the age of twentyone. In September, 1864, he sold his interest in one well to the Flowing Well Co. of Rochester, N. Y., for twenty thousand dollars cash,
and in 1866 closed out his entire interest in both wells and refinery.
During the winter of 1866-67 he paid a visit to his uncle, Byron
Whitaker, at Detroit, Mich., and was so pleased with the city that in
the following year he located there permanently. Until 1871 he was a
partner of his uncle in the shipping business and operation of a large
saw mill, the partnership being dissolved in 1871, Mr. Parker assuming
ownership of the saw mill in the final settlement. In 1875 he sold the
mill and engaged in the business of shipping coke, coal and sand, which
has ever since been a factor in his income, handling annually over fifty
thousand tons of these materials.
In 1878 he formed a partnership with his brother, Byron W. Parker,
under the style of A. A. Parker & Brother, since which time the busi793
100




ness has been under the management of the junior member. Mr.
Parker first became known as a vessel owner through his purchase, in
1878, of the schooner Eagle Wing, and later of the schooner Columbia
both of which he afterward sold, when newer ships were built for him.
His purchase in 1879 of the steamer Annie Smith, for $40,000, brought
him into prominence in shipping circles, and he has each year added to
his fleet, until to-day he is one of the prominent vessel owners and best
known agents in the United States.
He is secretary and manager of the Pridgeon Transit Co., steamer
A. A. Parker and schooner B. W. Parker; president and manager of
the Parker Transportation Co, schooners Red Wing and San Diego;
president and manager of the Peninsular Transit Co., steamer John
Oades; treasurer and manager of the Buffalo and Duluth Transportation Co., steamer B. W. Blanchard; secretary and manager of the State
Transit Co., steamer John Pridgeon, jr.; secretary and manager of the
Swain Wrecking Co., tug Saginaw; president of the Red Star Line,
passenger steamer City of Toledo; treasurer of the Tashmoo Park Co.
Ltd.; managing owner of the schooner Saveland of Detroit, and president of the Detroit River Savings Bank. He is also a member of the
firm of Parker & Millen, fire and marine insurance agents, representing
at Detroit twenty-five of the leading companies of the world. Politically
he is a staunch Republican, and has been a prominent and active member of that party in the city. He is a member of the Royal Arcanum,
the National Union, and the Fellowcraft Club of Detroit.
October 23, 1868, Mr. Parker married Mrs. Mary L. Dennis (mother
of Harry E. Dennis, proprietor of the Ilmperial Cap Co. of Detroit),
and they have one child, born June 15, 1878.
DAYTON PARKER, M. 1).
DAYTON PARKER, M. D., son of Morgan and Rosetta (Breningstall)
Parker, was born in Dundee, Mich., January 17, 1846. His early
education was acquired in the public schools of Dundee, and later at
Petersburg, Mich., where he removed with his parents in 1855. From
the latter place, in 1863, he enlisted as a private in the Sixth Michigan
Heavy Artillery, serving with that regiment until the close of the war
in 1865. Upon his being mustered out of the service, he returned to
Michigan and during the ensuing six years was engaged in the study of


7!)




medicine with Dr. J. J. Littlefield at Petersburg. In the winters of
1872-73 he attended lectures in the medical department of the University of Michigan, following which he removed to Ogden and engaged in
the practice of his profession. Subsequently he entered the Detroit
Medical College, from which he was graduated in 1876, with the degree
of M. D.
Following his graduation Dr. Parker settled in Blissfield, Mich.,
where for several years he was associated with Dr. Hal C. Wyman,
now of Detroit, in the practice of medicine. In 1880, with the assistance of Dr. Charles Rynd, he was instrumental in the organization of
the first Board of Pension Examiners for Lenawee county, and served
successively as chairman and president of that body until 1885. He
was also for several years president of the Board of Education of the
village of Blissfield.
In 1887 Dr. Parker located permanently in Detroit, and since becoming a resident of that city has held numerous positions of responsibility.
For a number of years he was professor of the practice of medicine in
the Michigan College of Physicians and Surgeons, 'and since 1895 has
filled the chair of professor of gynaecology in the same institution; being
also a member of the board of trustees  He is consulting physician to
and a trustee of the Detroit Emergency Hospital; a member of the
American Medical Association; the Michigan State Medical Society;
the Tri State Medical Society; Wayne County Medical Society; and
Michigan Surgical and Pathological Society.
Dr. Parker is prominent in Masonic circles, being a member of Mt.
Vernon Chapter, R. A. M., of Dundee, Mich.; of Blissfield Lodge No.
214, F. & A. M., of Blissfield, Mich. He was also one of the organizers and first commander of Scott Post No. 243, G. A. R., of Blissfield,
Mich., and is a member of the Fellowcraft Club of Detroit.
Dr. Parker has been married twice; first, in 1875, to Ida E. Cogswell, of Deerfield, Mich., who died in Bay View, leaving five children:
Bertha, wife of Carson M. Jacobs, a prosperous ranch owner of
Chinook, Mont. (they have one child, a son, named for its maternal
grandparents, Parker Jacobs); Burton D., a graduated physician and
associated in practice with his father; Brace Morgan, Alma E., and
Beatrice. His second wife was Mrs. Belle (Gould) Bissell of Eaton
Rapids, Mich., whom he married December 28, 1890.


795




RALZEMOND A. PARKER.


RALZEMOND A. PARKER was born in Genesee county, Mich., February 17, 1843, and is a son of Asher B. and Harriet N. (Castle) Parker.
The ancestry is wholly from New England and antedates the Revolution. On his father's side he is descended from William Parker, one of
Hooker's congregation which settled Hartford, Conn., and progenitor
of the Hartford and New England branches of the family. In the immediate line many of his ancestors on both his father's and mother's
sides, served in the wars of Independence and 1812. In 1844 his parents removed to Royal Oak, Oakland county, Mich., where they have
since resided.
The subject received his education in the public schools, the Birmingham (Mich.) Academy and the Michigan State Normal School. In
1866 he began his law studies in the office of Oscar Wisner at Pontiac,
and later entered the law department of the University of Michigan,
and was graduated therefrom in 1872. Prior to the beginning and
during his studies of law Mr. Parker was prominent in State politics
and filled the following offices: From 1866 to 1868, deputy county
clerk of Oakland county; justice of the peace of the township of Royal
Oak from 1868 to 1872; and inspector of schools in that township for
two terms.
Subsequent to his graduation he removed to Detroit, and entered
upon the practice of his profession, by becoming attorney of the then
Detroit and Milwaukee Railway Company. During the last ten years.of his practice he has made a specialty of patent law and has prosecuted
many noted cases of that nature before the United States Circuit and
Supreme Courts, and has been unusually successful in this practice, in
in which he has become widely known. He is a member of the Michigan State and Detroit Bar Associations. In 1862 he enlisted in Company E, Seventeenth Michigan Infantry, of the Ninth Army Corps, and
served until mustered out of the service in 1863. For several years he
was president of the Detroit Microscopical Association, and has been a
trustee of the associated charities of Detroit for about fifteen years and
is now president of that body.  He was a charter member of the
Michigan (Republican) Club and is still a memlber of that organization.
He is a member of Fairbanks Post, Department of Michigan, G.A.R.,
and was one of the State Council of Administration for three years,
judge advocate for one year, delegate-at-large from  MIichigan to the
7 96




L'~q




RALZEMOND A. PARKER.




I




National Encampment at Boston in 1892, and is at present chief mustering officer.  He is also professor of "Patent Trade-mark" and
"Copyright law " in the Detroit College of Law.
In the spring of 1897 Mr. Parker was a popular candidate for the
position of commissioner of patents at Washington, but retired from
the candidacy for that office because of the personal feeling of the
president toward the late commissioner, Hon. Benjamin Butterworth
of Ohio, deceased. Mr. Parker is now senior member of the firm of
Parker & Burton, attorneys, I)etroit, Mich., Charles F. Burton being
his associate.
Mr. Parker was married in 1869 to Sarah E. Drake, daughter of Dr.
Flemon Drake of Royal Oak, Mich., and a niece of Judge Thomas
Drake of Pontiac, Mich. They are the parents of four children:
Marion S., who was graduated from the engineering department of the
University of Michigan in 1895 (being the first of her sex to pass the
rigid examination in that branch of study), and is now employed in the
New York office of Purdy & Henderson, civil engineers of Chicago and
New York; Mina L., Grace E. and Ralzemond D.
JOHN E. PATTERSON.
JOHIN E. PA'TTRRSON, son of James and Margaret E. (McDonald)
Patterson, was born in Shelby, Ohio, March 12, 1854. Mr. Patterson
received his education in the public schools of Columbus, Ohio, where
he removed with his parents when an infant; subsequently attending
St. John's College at Fordham, N. Y. Upon attaining his majority he
assumed a half ownership in the Patterson Coal Company of Columbus,
of which his father was president. During the first three years of his
connection with this industry he served in the capacity of superintendent of their mines at Straitsville, Ohio, and from 1878 until 1882
he was in charge of their city trade at Columbus. From 1882 to 1883
he was engaged in the wholesale and retail coal business at Cleveland,
Ohio, and in the latter year he removed to Detroit, Mich., which city
he has since made his home, and the headquarters of his business
operations.
He at once established himself in the real estate business, in which
he was successfully engaged until 1889, when, after a short service in
the First National Bank, at the solicitation of Mr. Alfred E. Brush, he


797




accepted the management of his business with power of attorney in all
transactions, and also acts as agent of the Brush estate. Mr. Patterson
is a stockholder in the Michigan-Peninsular Car Co., a member of the
Detroit Boat Club, the Old Club at St. Clair Flats and the Country
Club of Detroit. He is a business man of great ability and commands
the respect and esteem of his contemporaries. Although much sought
after, he has avoided all connection with politics, never allowing his
name to be used as a candidate for public office.
Mr. Patterson was married in 1878 to Annie E., daughter of John G.
Neil of Columbus, Ohio. Two children survive this union: Louisa B.
and John Neil. Mr. Patterson is a member of St. Paul's Episcopal
church, of which his family are regular attendants.
HAZEN S. PINGREE.
As THE nineteenth century draws to a close a review of the noted men
of the age discloses how few there are who gain lasting fame in time
of peace. Great events bring forth great men, is a truism, when we
trace the sources which brought forth Washington, Lincoln, Grant and
others. The absorbing questions of to-day are questions of economics
and social science. As we look over the field one man's personality
strikes us forcibly-partisanship is to quite an extent obliterated, patriotism shines forth and brings to the toiling masses promises of a
joyous awakening, and a breaking of the fetters of slavery, permitting
them to once more breath the pure air of social freedom and to enjoy
the rights and privileges accorded their forefathers under the glorious
constitution of the United States.
The Lincoln who is to deliver the oppressed from their bondage is
recognized by all such as being none other than the present governor
of the State of Michigan, Hazen S. Pingree.
A farm boy, cotton mill hand, factory operative, soldier, prisoner of
war, shoemaker, manufacturer, bank director until his zeal for the toiling masses became detrimental to corporate greed, when he was removed, head of a large manufacturing industry, mayor of Detroit four
terms, governor of Michigan, champion of the common people, and
more than a possibility for presidential honors, such is an epitome of
the career of one who is now pointed out as The Man of Destiny.
Hazen S. Pingree was born at Denmark, Maine, August 30, 1840,
798




being the fourth son of Jasper and Adaline (Bryant) Pingree. His ancestors emigrated from England to this country, the first known American forefather being Moses Pingree, who arrived here and settled at
Ipswich, Massachusetts, in 1640. Many of his descendants have become distinguished in colonial and national affairs, among whom may
be mentioned Samuel Everett Pingree, who was governor of Vermont,
1884-1886.
Hazen lived with his parents and attended school until he was fourteen years of age, when he went to Saco, Maine, and began life on his
own account as an employee in a cotton mill. In 1860 he began the
trade of cutter in a shoe factory at Hopkinton, Mass., remaining there
until August 1, 1862, when he enlisted in Company F., 1st Massachusetts Heavy Artilley, for the unexpired three years' term, and afterwards re-enlisted on the battlefield for three years or during the remainder of the war. He participated in the second battle of Bull Run
and in the battles of Fredericksburg road, Harris farm, Cold Harbor,
Spottsylvania Court House, North Anna and South Anna.   While
guarding a wagon train he was captured by General Mosby, the noted
guerrilla, in 1864, and was sent a prisoner of war to Lynchburg, Va.,
being transferred to Salisbury, N. C., and from there to Andersonville,
where he was confined four months. Next he was sent to Savannah,
Ga., and in turn was transferred to Milan, Ga.; he was finally exchanged
at West Pulaski and rejoined his regiment. During all this time he
was never under shelter of any kind. He was engaged in the expedition to the Weldon Railroad and also participated in the battles of Boydton road, Petersburg, Sailor's Creek, Farmnville, and Appomattox Court
House, being finally mustered out in August, 1865.
Pingree's first vote was cast for Abraham Lincoln for president while
a prisoner of war at Andersonville. The confederates in charge, wanting to ascertain the sentiments of the prisoners upon the election of
Lincoln or McClellan, ordered an election among them, giving them
black and white beans to represent Lincoln and McClellan respectively.
Pingree's vote was a black bean, and the total showed a majority for
Lincoln of 3,500. Since that first vote with a black bean to represent
the true republican doctrine as propounded by Lincoln, his every act
has been in the way of something to perpetuate those principles of
"Equal rights to all and special privileges to none."
After his discharge from the army he went to Detroit and secured
employment in the shoe manufactory of H. P. Baldwin & Co., remain

799




ing with them about one year. He was ambitious to engage in business on his own account, however, and in December, 1866, with Charles
H. Smith, he established the shoe firm of Pingree & Smith. The original capital invested was $1,360, while the number of employees was
eight. To day more than seven hundred employees are on the pay-roll,
while the annual sales aggregate more than one million dollars.
For years the affairs of the city of Detroit had been in the hands of
the Democratic party, they carrying every election by a large majority.
Ring rule prevailed in every branch of the municipal government,
offices were farmed out to the highest bidder, contracts for street paving, public lighting, public building and supplies of every description,
were the source of spoil and corruption among the municipal officials.
Dishonesty was so prevalent that to obtain a franchise it was merely a
question of consideration with the members of the Common Council,
and the question of improvements for the city was not even thought of.
The city pavements were in a deplorable condition and the charges for
municipal lighting were outrageous. The Fire Department was sadly
deficient, and the Police Department corrupt. The motto of municipal
officials was, " How much is there in it for me?" Such was the condition of affairs previous to the campaign of 1889.
It was believed that the city needed a business administration, and on
that platform Mr. Pingree was nominated for mayor, and after one of
the greatest campaigns known in Detroit, was elected. His administra.
tion was productive of so much good as to result in his re-election three
times consecutively, by the following majorities: 1889, 2,338; 1891,
6,318; 1893, 5,800; 1895, 10,952; holding his office until, upon his
accession to the gubernatorial chair, his office was declared vacant by
the Supreme Court. His administration of the office of mayor was
such as to bring him into national prominence, and the many reforms
he advocated and carried out have been followed by every city of
prominence in the country. During his four terms as mayor the city of
Detroit was transformed from its old fogyism into the live metropolitan
city of to-day, known far and wide as the Convention City of America.
Victory is nearly always tinged with bitterness, however, and in the
case of Mr. Pingree this was no exception. Nominated by the
prominent business men of the city to give a clean and honest administration to the people of Detroit who voted for him, he early found
himself assailed by the same men who had nominated him.
By compelling the Gas Company to reduce the price of gas from $1.50


600




to $1.00 per thousand for illuminating purposes, and to 80 cents for
fuel purposes, he trod upon the toes of some of his friends and was immediately called a scoundrel.
By advocating three cent fares for street cars he again touched some
of his friends in a tender spot, and, although he won his fight, he was
berated and belittled by the money class, they going so far as to even
attempt to block him in his private business enterprise.
He saved the city of Detroit $80,000 per annum by establishing a
municipal lighting plant, and more of his friends who were interested
in supplying the city with light, forsook him.
To supply food for the poor he originated the famous Pingree Potato
patch. which plan has been adopted throughout the civilized world.
The criminal courts were resorted to by him in order to wipe out the
corruption existing in the School Board.
The banks holding city funds were compelled to return a large
amount of interest money they had illegally withheld.
For these and other reforms he was removed from the directory of
one of the largest national banks in Detroit, which he helped to organize.
His firm's account was refused at others, assaults upon his personal and
business credit were attempted; he was even embarrassed in his freedom
of divine worship; he was hampered, threatened, and all conceivable
methods were resorted to in attempts to ruin him and his business. All
this because he had simply done his duty. And when all this failed to
force Mayor Hazen S. Pingree to swerve from the path of duty, bribery
was attempted. Large sums-one hundred thom-isand dollars-were
held up to him as a bait; promises of political preferment, backed by
the party machine, were inducements held out to him, but all to no
purpose.
By this time Mayor Pingree had become known to followers of good
government throughout the State. At the State Republican convention
in August, 1896, his friends and admirers, believing that a man should
be at the head of their ticket who could inspire courage and activity in
the faint hearted, and whose presence and record would carry them on
to victory, nominated him for governor of Michigan. That their
opinion was justified, the result shows. In a State in which the conditions were so peculiar, he was elected by the magnificent plurality of
83,000 votes and a majority of 60,000 over all, running ahead of the
presidential ticket by more than U6,000 votes. He continued to hold
the office of mayor of Detroit after his inauguration as governor of
801
101




Michigan, until the Supreme Court decided that the two offices were
iucompatible and declared the office of mayor vacant.
It is noteworthy that at the special election for mayor to fill the
vacancy, as well as at the next regular election, a Democrat was elected,
being the first to occupy the office of mayor since Mr. Pingree's election
in 1889.
A resume of the administration by Mayor Pingree will show that in
addition to the reforms already mentioned, taxes were increased on
vacant lots until all the lands in the city were assessed according to
their equitable value; secret sessions of boards and commissions made
public; conduit systems for all wires inaugurated; street car strikes
arbitrated and compromised; toll gates ousted from the city; all departments compelled to advertise for supplies; paving combine broken;
public credit of Detroit raised; mayor granted veto power over school
board proceedings; formation of independent telephone company in
opposition to the Bell company, prices being thus reduced from $72 and
$150 to $25 and $40, respectively, per annum; street car company compelled to sell workingmen's tickets at a low rate; price of water reduced
one-half; and a number of other reforms.
The condition of affairs confronting Governer Pingree in the State is
the same as he had to meet when he was elected mayor of Detroit.
Being still opposed and fought on every hand by the party machine,
as governor he has as yet been unable to mete out and inaugurate the
reforms near to his heart. With a persistency and honesty of purpose
to be found in the character and make-up of Governor Pingree, we yet
holpe that his guardianship of the State of Michigan will be as lrolductive of as much good to the State at large as his administration of mayor was to the city of Detroit. He hopes to be able to place upon the
tax rolls the railroads and other property, comprising more than onethird of all the taxable property in the State, which has heretofore
evadced payment of any tax. As he has reduced the street car fare in
the city of Detroit from five to three cents, he hopes to reduce the railroad fare in the State from three to two cents per mile.
To even mention the addresses made by Governor Pingree would require too much space, for during the years he has been in public life he
has spoken before many of the most distinguished audiences il the
country. In his address of welcome to the American Bankers' Association in 1897, his remarks were very pertinent and suggestive.  'At
the present time," he said, " forty-five per. cent of the gold mined in
802




this country is used in the fine arts. It is only a question of time when
there will be an insufficient amount of gold coined as the quantity used
yearly in the arts is steadily increasing. Should such a contingency
arise, an increased stringency in the gold market would occur. The
principle of remonetizing silver is to increase the available supply of
redemption money. A tax levied upon manufactured gold in the shape
of jewelry, gold leaf, etc., might prevent the increasing use of gold in
the fine arts." Governor Pingree also advocated the establishment of
an assay office at the Klondike where the gold dust could be delivered
and il exchange certificates issued by the government. His speech
before the Nineteenth Century Club in New York city was favorably
commented on by the leading men of the country. The truths contained therein are brought directly to the minds of his hearers and cannot fail to impress them, and will set the intelligent citizen to thinking.
Governor Pingree is not a polished orator; he is too intensely practical
to devote his time to such attainments, but he is so clear, forcible and
convincing that, his thorough knowledge of the subject, as well as his
sincerity and honesty, cannot but impress his listeners with a truth
contained in his statements.
His fearlessness in attacking what is wrong, no matter where found,
has endeared him to all classes of people who believe that truth is
mighty and will prevail. And "Ping," as he is affectionately styled,
can always depend upon the God-fearing citizens for support in anything he may desire to undertake. How few others there are who can
do the same!
In home life Governor Pingree finds his greatest enjoyment. Surrounded by his wife and children in his residence on Woodward avenue,
he enjoys rest and relaxation from the cares and worry of public life.
Patriotic and public spirited, he is ever foremost in responding to the
call of duty, and is ready and eager to devote his time and money for
the improvement of the people of his city and country, as he was when
he responded to the call of his country in the Civil war.
With the motto, "Equal rights to all, special privileges to none," at
all times his guide, he may truly be said to be one of the Republicans
who believe in the principles and doctrine of the party as laid down by
the immortal Lincoln.


803




ORRIN J. PRICE.


ORRIN J. PRICE, son of Jefferds and Aimira (Morehouse) Price, was
born in Lapeer county, Mich., November 30, 1847. He attended the
Lapeer county district schools until ten years of age, and during the
ensuing ten years served as clerk in the general store owned and conducted by his father, who was a prosperous merchant, at the same time
attending school at Oakwood, Oakland county. From 1867 to 1877 he
was engaged in the drug and jewelry business in Oakland county, and
during that time he occupied his leisure moments in reading medicine
with Dr. Egbert Burdick at Oxford, Mich. In 1877 Mr. Price removed
to Detroit, where he established his headquarters as general agent of
Michigan, Ohio and Indiana, for J. W. Tufts, soda fountain and silver
plated ware manufacturer of Boston, Mass. In the autumn of 1877 he
entered the Detroit Medical College, taking a course of three years.
In 1889 the business of J. W. Tufts passed under the control of a
stock company know as the American Soda Fountain Co., Mr. Price
being one of the stockholders. He is also proprietor of the Royal Oak
(Mich.) Mineral Water Springs, from which he distributes (wholesale)
millons of gallons of water annually. Mr. Price is an extensive owner
of and carries on a general real estate business in addition to his other
enterprises. During his twenty years' connection with J. W. Tufts and
the American Soda Fountain Co., he has closely watched and studied
the workings of each new fountain when placed on the market, and the
outcome being his present invention of the Eskimo Soda Water Apparatus, with Radical Syrup Can, which experts pronounce the perfection
of soda fountains. Mr. Price is a prominent member of the Masonic
fraternity, having been honored with the thirty-second degree, and is
also a member of Moslem Temple, Nobles of the Mystic Shrine.
He was married in 1872 to Ella Z., daughter of James L. T)ove of
Oxford, Mich., and they have two sons, Arthur J., a graduate of the
Detroit High School (class of '97), now a student of theology in the
Albion (Mich.) College, and Ray Dove. Mrs. Price is a lineal descendent of Thomas Josselyne, husbandman, who came from London, England, to New England, in the ship Increase, April 17, 1635. He was a
proprietor and inhabitant of Hingham and Lancaster, Mass., and is
conceded to have been the founder of the Josselyn (also Joslin, Josslyn,
Joslen and Joseline) family in the old Plymouth colony. Ier mother,
Fanny M. Cole, was the daughter of Newell Cole, and married James
804




ORRIN J. PRICE.




"I




Hinderman Dove July 8, 1853, at Chesterfield, Mich. James L. Dove
died at Oxford, Mich., December 8, 1879.
WILLIAM E. QUINBY.
HON. WILLIAM EMORY QUINIYv, son of Daniel F. and Arazina (Reed)
Quinby, was born in Brewer, Me., December 14, 1835. A year after
his birth his parents removed to Lisbon, Me., and Mr. Quinby's early
education was acquired in the public schools of that place. In 1850 he
removed with his parents to Detroit, and here attended the old Capitol
High School, and later the private college conducted by John M. Gregory, where he was prepared for college. He entered the University of
Michigan at Ann Arbor in 1854, being graduated therefrom in 1858,
with the degree of A. B. Three years later the degree of A. M. was
conferred upon him. Upon the completion of his collegiate course Mr.
Quinby entered the law office of Walkers & Russell, of Detroit, as a
student and in the fall of 1859, after examination before the full bench
of the Supreme Court of Michigan, was admitted to the bar. In addition to his private practice of the law during the two years following
his admission to the bar, he reported the court proceedings for the Detroit Free Press, establishing what was known as the " Court Column."
In 1861 he was engaged as acting city editor and subsequently, immediately following the sale of Wilbur Story's interest in the Free
Press, he became city editor. In 1863 he became managing editor and
purchased a small interest in the paper, and at every subsequent opportunity he acquired various interests in the Free Press; in 1872 he became its editor-in chief and in that year acquired enough additional
stock to hold a controlling interest.
When the Free Press building at the corner of Griswold and Woodbridge streets was burned, Mr. Quinby immediately ordered its reconstruction. The plant was maintained in that location until 1881, when
it was removed to the commodious building at the corner of Shelby and
Lamed streets. In 1894 the present home of the Free Press on Lafayette avenue was purchased.
For many years Mr. Quinby, as editor.in-chief, shaped the policy of
the Free Press, and his efforts were crowned with recognition of that
paper as one of the great dailies of the United States. In 1881 the
London, Eng., Free Press (weekly) was established and it has received


805




a liberal patronage among the English speaking people on the eastern
hemisphere. For years it has been esteemed by the public as a newspaper of the highest class. Mr. Quinby was the first to introduce the
the web perfecting press in Michigan and the first in America to successfully operate the typesetting machines.
Once, only, since 1872 has he released his active control and guidance
of the Free Press, and that was on May 24, 1893, when President Cleveland appointed him to the post of minister plenipotentiary and envoy
extraordinary to the Netherlands. In 1896 he returned from Holland
to attend the reorganization of the Free Press. During his visit the
honorary title of LL.D. was conferred upon him by the University of
Michigan. He returned with his family from his post in the Netherlands on August 21, 1897, and again assumed control of the paper.
During his career in the newspaper field he was always alive to the
value of a writer. Among the famous contributors engaged by him
were Charles B. Lewis (M. Quad), Robert Barr (Luke Sharp), Charles
Follen Adams and George P. Goodale, the dramatic critic. All these
gentlemen did their first work on the Free Press.
April 4, 1860, Mr. Quinby married Adeline Frazier of Detroit, and
they have six children: Theodore E., managing editor of the Free
Press; HarryW., business manager; Herbert M., exchange editor;
Winifred, Florence and Evelyn.
GEORGE W. RADFORD.
GEORGE W. RADFORD, son of James and Lydia (Zimmerman) Radford, was born in Baldwinsville, Onondaga county, N. Y., April 27,
1853. On the paternal side he is descended from General Radford, an
English officer who became famous during the Polish wars and for
whom the town of Radford, in Nottingham, England, was named. HIis
grandfather, John Radford, helped to build Fulton's "Clermont," the
first ship propelled by steam. On the maternal side he is a descendant,
in the fourth generation, from Peter Snell, the only survivor of the
eight Snell brothers who fought together at the battle of Oriskany Falls
during the Revolution. Peter Snell married Anna Kiltz, the girl who
furnished the red petticoat, from which were made the stripes of that
color for the first American flag which floated over Fort Willett, Mont -
gomery county, N. Y., during the Revolution. Conrad Zimmerman


8(06




I




ALEXANDER B. RAYMOND, C. E.




the subject's maternal grandfather, was a corporal of infantry in the
war of 1812, and was mustered out of the service in 1814 at Sackett's
Harbor.
George W. Radford attended the district schools and after a thorough
preparatory course entered Olivet College, from which he was graduated in 1874 with the degrees of B. S. and B. A., and in 1877 had conferred upon him by that institution the degree of M. A. He attended
the law school of the University of Michigan during the winter of
1874-75, and completed his legal studies in the offices of Walker & Kent
at Detroit. He was admitted to the bar by the Supreme Court of Michigan in 1876, and immediately began the practice of his profession at
Detroit, in which city he has since remained.
Mr. Radford is a member of the American, Michigan State and Local
Bar Associations, and has won for himself an enviable legal standing.
His clientage represents large moneyed interests and his practice has
taken him into many circuits outside of Detroit, as well as in eighteen
other States, besides which he has appeared before three of the United
States Circuit Courts of Appeal. For nine years Mr. Radford was attorney for the Home Savings Bank of Detroit, and is now counsel for
and a director in that institution. He is now (1898) serving his third
term as a trustee of his alma mater, Olivet College. He is a prominent
member of the Masonic fraternity, holding every grade in that order in
the city, is a member of Detroit Lodge No. 6, A. O. U. W., and is the
only lawyer in the city belonging to Constantine Conclave No. 8, Knights
of the Red Cross of Constantine; and is also a prominent officer in the
Imperial Council of that order. Mr. Radford is prominent socially,
and is a member of the Bankers', Detroit and Rushmere Clubs of Detroit. He is also a member of the First Congregational church of Detroit, and has been for many years a regular attendant at the services
of that church.
In October, 1880, Mr. Radford married Laura F., daughter of George
E. Doolittle of Detroit, and they have five children; George S., Hal
M., Evert A., Fritz L., and Marjorie.
ALEXANDER B. RAYMOND.
ALEXANDER B. RAYMOND, C. E., son of William A. and Minerva E.
(Nash) Raymond, was born in Detroit, Mich., January 13, 1850. Upon


807




the death of his father in 1854 Alexander removed with his mother to
the home of her parents at Norwalk, Conn., and in that city he attended the public schools until twelve years of age. They returned to
Detroit in 1862, and completing his public school education in the latter city, Mr. Raymond entered the scientific department of the University of Michigan, being graduated C. E. in 1871. During the following two years he was employed by the Michigan Central Railroad Company as civil engineer, laying out for them a double track road bed between Detroit and Ypsilanti, and from New Buffalo to Porter's Station,
Mich. From 1873 to 1875 he was engaged in laying out part of the
work for the four track road of the New York Central Railroad Company, having his headquarters at Palmyra, N. Y., and superintending
the construction for six miles on either side of that city.
In 1875 he returned to Detroit, and after two years' service in the
city engineer's office he resigned his position and entered the grocery
business, in which he continued for nearly twenty years. In June,
1897, Mr. Raymond was appointed to his present position as sanitary
engineer to the Detroit Board of Health, and in which he has served
with marked ability. He is a member of the Detroit Association of
Civil Engineers, and of the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity of the University of Michigan. He is also a member and an active worker in the
Westminster Presbyterian church of Detroit, having served as elder
since 1884, now being the oldest incumbent of that office in term of
service.
In June, 1877, Mr. Raymond married Mary, daughter of Col. Henry
Whiting, of St. Clair, Mich., and they have four children: Williametta
Orton, Henry Whiting, Anna Belle, and William Whiting.
JOHN T. RICH.
HON. JOHN T. RICH, son of John W. and Jerusha (Treadway) Rich,
was born in Conneautville, Pa., April 23, 1841. In 1846 he removed
with his parents to Shoreham, Vt., where a year later his mother
passed away. In 1848 John went west to reside with his uncle, on his
farm in the town of Elba, Mich. He attended the district schools and
later took a term in the Clarkston Academy, and afterward attended
the public schools at Lapeer, Mich., returning from school to farm
work in 1861. The farm was a large one and well stocked and young
808




Rich found plenty to do. For five years he served as treasurer of the
Northeastern Agricultural Society and one year as president of the
State Agricultural Society. In 1869 he was elected as supervisor of his
township and was re-elected for three succeeding terms. During the
last two years of his service in that capacity he was chairman of the
Board of Supervisors of the county.
In the autumn of 1872 he was elected to the Legislature and reelected for three successive terms. While a member of that body Mr.
Rich was the last speaker in the old Capitol and the first one in the
new. In 1881 he was elected to the State Senate, taking his seat on
January 1, 1882; in the following March he resigned his office to
accept the nomination as representative to the United States Congress,
to which body he was elected by a large majority. He was renominated the following year but defeated at the polls. In 1886 he was appointed, by Governor Luce, commissioner of railroads for the State of
Michigan and reappointed to that position in 1888.
In the fall of 1892 he was nominated by the Republican party and
elected governor of the State of Michigan by a majority of about sixteen thousand and re-elected in 1894 by a majority of 106,392, being
the largest ever given a governor of Michigan. This is the only instance in which a governor of the State of Michigan has been re-elected
by a larger majority than that received in the first election.
In 1898 he was appointed by President McKinley as collector of customs for the port of Detroit and took office March 1, of that year. In
1881 Mr. Rich became identified with the Delta Lumber Company of
Detroit (one of the the largest concerns of its kind in the Northwest)
as a stockholder and director; he later became treasurer of the company and still retains that position. He was president of the Lapeer
County Farmers' Mutual Fire Insurance Company for a number of
years and has always been more or less prominently identified with the
business interests of the city and State.
Although not a graduated attorney, during his service as railroad
commissioner Mr. Rich appeared in the Supreme Court and ably prosecuted cases in which the interests of the State were involved. Following upon the death of his uncle, Mr. Rich purchased the farm at Elba,
Mich., which he still maintains as his residence. He takes especial
pride in the standard bred live stock with which he keeps his farm supplied; he has, always been particularly fond of sheep and has in his
flock some of the direct descendants of the early Spanish Merino sheep,
809
102




brought to Vermont in 1812. Mr. Rich is a connoisseur of wool and at
one time served in company with Edward A. Green of Philadelphia,
Nicholas Mauger of New York, and John Houston of Connecticut, on
the National Commission which selects the samples of wool for the custom house authorities from all sections of the civilized world. Personally Mr. Rich is one of the most companionable of men; genial, modest
and unpretentious in his social intercourse, he gains the friendship and
holds the esteem of all with whom he comes in contact.
He was married in 1863 to Lucretia M., daughter of Samuel Winship
of Atlas, Genesee county, Mich.
FORDYCE H. ROGERS.
FORDYCE H. ROGERS, son of George W. and Jane (Emmons) Rogers,
was born in Detroit, Mich., October 12, 1840. He is of English ancestry, being descended from Russell Rogers, who emigrated from
England to America about 1750, settling in Vermont. He, as well as
other members of the family, were ardent patriots, taking an active
part in the war of the Revolution. Mr. Rogers comes from Revolutionary stock on the paternal and maternal sides. George W. Rogers,
the father of the subject, was a manufacturer of stoves at Vergennes,
Vt., but removed to Michigan in 1840, locating shortly after at Pontiac,
where he established and conducted for many years a general merchandising business. His wife, Jane C. Emmons, was a daughter of
Adonijah Emmons, and a sister of Judge H. H. Emmons, a distinguished member of the Detroit bar, and one of the circuit judges of the
United States Court.
Fordyce H. Rogers, the subject, was educated in the public schools
of Pontiac, and at the age of sixteen entered the employ of T. H. & J.
A. Hinchman, wholesale druggists of Detroit. A year later he entered
the employ of Eagle & Elliott, clothiers, remaining until 1858. In the
spring of that year he removed to San Francisco, Cal., where an elder
brother, George E. Rogers, had preceded him, and during the following year he was engaged in mining. He returned to Michigan in 1861
and was the first man to join Col. Thornton F. Brodhead in the organization of the First Michigan Cavalry, was commissioned second lieutenant, and shortly afterward became first lieutenant and.battalion
adjutant. He rendered valuable service to his country, serving in all
810




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ROBERT C. SAFFORD.


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of the engagements in which his regiment took part, and was mustered
out of service September 11, 1862. Subsequently he declined the offer
of a commission as major in both a New York and Michigan regiment.
In the fall of 1862 Mr. Rogers returned to San Francisco, where he
engaged in various enterprises. In 1865 he was offered and accepted
the position of bookkeeper in the Pacific Bank at San Francisco, and
shortly after was promoted to the position of paying teller. In 1867 he
was made cashier, serving in that capacity until 1872. From 1872
until 1879 he was engaged in mining and stock brokerage, and at one
time was secretary and treasurer of thirty mining corporations. In
1879 he returned to the East, and was a member of the American
Mining Board in New York city until 1880. In that year he purchased
the business of the Detroit White Lead Works, an industry which was
established in 1865, and associating Ford D. C. Hinchman and Horace
M. Dean in the enterprise, the business was incorporated, retaining the
original title, and Mr. Rogers was elected treasurer and manager.
For several years previous to the purchase of the business by Mr.
Rogers, the industry had been unprofitable, but owing to the liberal
policy and business methods of the new management, in a remarkably
short time the reputation of the corporation was established on a firm
basis, which has resulted in the building up of a large and prosperous
business, the establishment ranking among the largest of its kind in
country, and owning the finest plant in the world. Mr. Rogers is a
member of the Loyal Legion, Grand Army of the Republic, and is a
prominent Mason.
He has been twice married; first, in 1868, to Eva Adams, daughter
of Dr. Samuel Adams, of San Francisco, Cal., apioneer drug merchant
of that city, and a niece of Rev. Nehemiah Adams, D. D., for fortyfour years pastor of the old Essex Street church, Boston, Mass. She
died in January, 1892. In May, 1895, he married as his second wife,
Miss Grace J. Haynes, lady principal of Olivet College.
ROBERT C. SAFFORD.
ROBERT CRAWFORD SAFFORD, president of the First National Exchange Bank of Plymouth, Mich., was born in the town of Canton on
the farm that he still owns, the 21st of March, 1833. His parents were
Rufus and Elethear (Crawford) Safford; he in 1830 came from Canter

811




bury, Windom county, Conn., bought land and two years later made
his permanent home in Canton. He was born June 1, 1800, and passed
away on his homestead June 11, 1884. His wife, who was b rn in Saratoga county, N. Y., October 30i 1803, came to Michigan in company
with her brother in 1832; she died in 1890 at the age of eighty-six.
They were a remarkable couple and widely noted for their many excellent traits of character. Preserving his faculties to the last Rufus
Crawford kept his farming operations in his own hands, and not being
distracted by ambitions for public honor, was content to live the unobtrusive life of a successful agriculturist, taking commendable pride in
the excellent farm he had conquered from the wilderness. After experiencing the vicissitudes so inseparable with pioneer life in the early
days of a new State, but which he did his share in developing into one
of the most productive, he lived to see it equal to any of the older ones
in all the elements and advantages of an advanced civilization.
Robert's early years were passed on the farm, attending the Plymouth
schools and one year at Ypsilanti Normal School. In 1864 he came to
his present home in Plymouth, one mile distant from the parental home,
and has devoted himself almost exclusively to farming pursuits. His
is one of the most carefully tilled farms in the town, being kept in a
high state of cultivation, thoroughly fertilized, drained and fenced, and
supplied with well-equipped barns and outbuildings, to maintain the
best results in whatever line of agriculture its owner cares to direct it.
To the traveler whose keen eye observes the varying condition of landscape and notes the improvement of man or the few remaining groves
left in natural condition, this farm presents a most pleasing and agreeable spectacle. One can but be impressed with the handsome and
commodious residence, the shrubbery and various objects that add to
the attractiveness of the place to make it an ideal rural home. He operates the homestead, which makes him the owner of over a half section of the best land in Wayne county.
Mr. Safford was chosen president of the First National Exchange
Bank five years ago, and in this position the wisdom of the board went
not amiss. While not caring for official life Mr. Safford has identified
himself actively with the Prohibition party, and of the principles of
which he is an earnest advocate. Himself and wife are Universalists
in their religious faith.
January 29, 1863, he married Elizabeth Murray, daughter of Archibald Y. and Abigail (Horton) Murray, who came from near Goshen,
812








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REV. JAMES SAVAGE.




Orange county, N. Y., in 1826, they being another of the pioneer families of Wayne county.       Mr. Safford has two children: Homer E. Safford, M. D., of Detroit, and Ada MI., a student in           the class of 1900,
University of Michigan.
REV. JAMES SAVAGE.
REV. JAMES SAVAGE, son of James and Mary (Meade) Savage, was
born in Sylvan      township, Washtenaw county, Mich., January 8, 1846.
Rev. Savage acquired his early education in the district schools of
Sylvan township, which he attended until thirteen years of age, when
he began taking lessons from       a private tutor at Dexter, Mich., remaining under his instruction until 1863.        In the fall of that year he entered
St. Mary's Seminary at Niagara Falls, N. Y., where he remained one
year, then     entered   Milwaukee     Seminary at Milwaukee, Wis., from
which he was graduated in 1869, and ordained by Archbishop Purcell
on July 2, of that year.
Subsequent to his graduation he was assigned as assistant pastor of
Holy Trinity     church, Detroit, officiating      in that capacity until 1878,
when he was appointed          pastor of St. Patrick's church, at Grattan
Mich.    In 1881 he was appointed by Bishop Borgess as pastor of Our
Lady of Help church, and continued in charge of that parish until 1887.
His next assignment was to his present parish                of  Holy    Trinity,1
1 Most Holy Trinity church, the first church erected for the English speaking Catholics of
Detroit, was built in 1835, on the corner of Bates street and Cadillac square, its pastor being Rev.
Bernard O'Cavanaugh. Its congregation embraced the entire city of English speaking Catholics.
Father O'Cavanaugh's successor was the Rev. Martin Kendig, the hero of the cholera plague.
Its other pastors were Revs. Lawrence Kilroy, Ed. Dillon, John Farnam and M. E. Shawe,
successively.
When SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral (present Jesuit church) was erected "Trinity " was
temporarily closed. In 1849, having obtained permission to retain the name of "Most Holy
Trinity," and to remove the church edifice, the people of the then western part of Detroit planted
Trinity church on the corner of Sixth and Porter, with Rev. Father L'Eterneau as pastor. This
temporary structure served as a place of worship until 1855, when the corner stone of the present
brick edifice was laid. During its sixty-odd years of existence this congregation has been
wonderfully prosperous, and has always taken a leading part in all Catholic enterprises.
Scarcely had Trinity people located their church on its present site, when the first foundation
for the now flourishing parochial school was laid. From its humble beginning in the basement
of the old church in 1850, when Mr. John O'Connell had charge of the boys, the girls being instructed by a Miss Fay, Trinity school advanced and grew until to-day it ranks amlong the foremost educational institutions of Detroit. Since 1874 the school has been in charge of the Sisters
of the Immaculate Heart of Mary of Monroe, Mich.
The pastors of Most Holy Trinity, in regular succession, since 1850, have been Rev. Patrick
Donohue, who succeeded Father L'Eterneau; Rev. Francis Peters, whose gentle life was sacri813




Detroit, in which he has labored eleven years with commedable success.
His genial and affable manners endear him not only to his parishioners,
but to all with whom he comes in contact. He is an indefatigable
worker, and has always been a close student. The study of archaeology
has claimed some of his attention, and he has one of the finest
archaeological collections in the city. Father Savage is of Irish
ancestry and his friends are proud of his sterling Americanism and
patriotism. In 1896 he was appointed by Bishop Foley, dean of the
Western District of Detroit.
JOHN A. SCHMID.
JOHN A. SCHMID, clerk of the city of Detroit, was born in Monroe,
Mich., March 10, 1856, and is a son of John N. Schmid. Heis of German descent, his father emigrating from Germany to America in 1850
and settling in Monroe, Mich., where he engaged in contracting and
stone-mason work. Mr. Schmid received his education in the public
schools of Monroe, but at the age of twelve was forced to leave school
and support himself, owing to the death of his father from an illness
contracted while defending his adopted country in the late Civil war.
Removing to Detroit in 1876, Mr. Schmid soon secured employment,
and later entered the mercantile business, which he followed with success until his appointment to the office of deputy city clerk in 1892.
Three years later he was nominated and elected by the Republican
party to the office of city clerk, receiving the largest majority of any
previous official in that office. On the expiration of his term of office
he was renominated and elected for a second term and is still serving
in that capacity. During his incumbency his administration of affairs
has been such as to cause much public comment favorable to himself,
and his election to a second term is a well merited reward for his faithful performance of his duties, as well as a public recognition of his
value as a public official.
Mr. Schmid was one of the organizers of the Detroit Scott Guards
and at the time of his retirement was first lieutenant of that organization, having been a member for ten years.  He is prominent in Masonic
ficed to the pest; Rev. Aloysius Blegenberg, to whose zeal and ability much of the successful
development of the parochial school is due; Rev. R. I)oman, and its present pastor, Very
Rev. James Savage, first dean of the Western Deanery'of Detroit, who is irremovable.


814




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JOHN A. SCHMID.




I




circles, being a member of Michigan Sovereign Consistory; Moslem
Temple, Nobles of the Mystic Shrine; and Zion Lodge No. 1, F. & A. M.
He is also a member of No. 6, Ancient Order of United Workmen;
Riverside Lodge No. 304, Independent Order of Odd Fellows; Detroit
Lodge No. 34, and Bennett Tent No. 887, K. O. T. M.; B. P. 0. E.;
Knights of the Golden Eagle; Concordia Singing Society; the Alger
Republican Club and the Marshland Club of Detroit and Detroit Yacht
Club.
Mr. Schmid was married in 1882 to Rosa, daughter of Philip Erlenbach of Detroit, Mich. They are the parents of one child, Gertrude.
JOHN T. SHAW.
JOHN T. SHAW, cashier of the First National Bank of Detroit, was
born in Plymouth, Mich., July 30, 1854, and is a son of John and Mary
(Maiden) Shaw. He is of English ancestry, being descended from
Thomas Shaw who emigrated from England to America in 1836 and
settled at Plymouth, Mich., where he engaged in farming. His son
John (the father of the subject of this sketch) still lives on the old
homestead at that place, and has been prominently identified with the
growth and development of that section of Wayne county.
John T. Shaw, the subject of this sketch, received his education in
the public schools of Plymouth and Northville (Mich.), which he attended until the age of nineteen. In 1876 he removed to Detroit and
entered the employ of the First National Bank in the capacity of messenger. His services with that institution has been continuous since,
through promotion rising from grade to grade until in 1892 he became
cashier, and is still an incumbent of that position. He is a stockholder
in the First National Bank of Detroit; a member of the Bankers' Club,
Detroit Club, Country Club, " Old Club " at St. Clair Flats, Mich., and
St. John Episcopal church of Detroit. Politically he is a Republican.
October 4, 1894, Mr. Shaw married Adelle, daughter of Charles Burton and Sopha (Webber) Pomeroy of Troy, Pa.
ELLIOTT T. SLOCUM.
ELLIOTT TRUAX SLOCUM, financier, Detroit, Mich., was born in Trenton, Wayne county, Mich., May 15, 1839, and is the only son of Giles
815




Bryan Slocum, formerly a resident of New York State, but later a useful
and widely known citizen of Michigan. On the paternal side Mr. Slocum
can trace his line back ten generations to Anthony Slocum, one of the
forty-six "first and ancient" purchasers of the territory of Cohannet,
now Massachusetts. Next came Giles Slocum, the common ancestor
of all the Slocums whose American lineage has been found to date from
the seventeenth century, who was born in Somersetshire, England, and
settled in Portsmouth township, R. I, in 1638, dying there in 1682.
Then followed respectively Samuel, Giles, Joseph, Jonathan, Giles,
Jeremiah and Giles B. Slocum. Frances Slocum, "The Lost Sister of
of Wyoming," whose life, wanderings and death are so interestingly
set forth in a work on her life by John F. Meginness, was a sister of
Giles Slocum, the great-grandfather of the subject of this sketch.
Sophia Maria Brigham Truax, mother of Elliott Truax Slocum, is a
native of Michigan and a daughter of Col. Abraham Caleb Truax, who
came to this State in 1800 from Schenectady, N. Y., and served as a
volunteer in the United States army at the time of Hull's surrender;
he became a prominent merchant in Detroit in 1808. He was a cousin
of Stephen Van Rensselaer, the Patroon of Albany, and a descendant
of Aernondt (Arnold) Du Truex, the first white child (of which there
is any record) baptized in New Netherlands (New York).
The subject of this sketch prepared for his higher education with the
Rev. Moses Hunter of Grosse Isle, Mich., and graduated from Union
College in 1862. The Rev. Dr. Eliphalet Nott, then president, signed
Mr. Slocum's diploma as Bachelor of Arts, this being one of the last to
which that celebrated divine affixed his autograph. In 1869 Mr. Sl)cumi received the degree of Master of Arts from the University of
Michigan, where his studies included a course in civil engineering and
surveying. He immediately engaged with his father in the management of extensive land, lumber and farming interests, including the
largest sheep farm in Michigan. Meanwhile, as a born American, Mr.
Slocum became more or less interested in politics and familiarized himself especially with questions relating to economics. His investigations
proved of value to him in reaching intelligent views, by which to regulate his own actions and those of others in public affairs.
In 1869 the Republicans of the Third district, which had been
strongly Democratic, elected Mr. Slocum to the Legislature, and
although the youngest senator in the State, he took a prominent position in the State capital and served with honor to himself and the satis

816




faction of his constituency. Mr. Slocum has taken an active part in
many other important senatorial contests. In 1886 he was appointed a
park commissioner of Detroit and was in turn commissioner, vicepresident and president of the board for several years.
During several trips to Europe Mr. Slocum was naturally attracted
by the wonderful dykes of Holland, which have enabled the Dutch to
reclaim vast tracts of low lands from the sea, and he spent some time
studying the methods and results of the Dutch engineers. The knowledge came into useful play in the smaller field of Belle Isle Park.
He succeeded his father as trustee of the Saratoga Monument Association of New York, and with George William Curtis, Samuel S. Cox,
John H. Starin and others, took an active interest in the erection of
one of the finest monuments in the world on the battlefield of Burgoyne's
surrender at Schuylerville, N. Y., near the home of his father's family.
Mr. Slocum was one of the first directors of the Chicago & Canada
Southern Railroad and did much to secure the right of way. It is now
a part of the Michigan Central system.
In the management of his extensive business interests and in the
creation and development of new projects, Mr. Slocum has displayed
courage, activity and good judgment and has been uniformly successful.
He has made frequent trips to different parts of the State, examined
many pieces of property and promoted mercantile, banking and manufacturing enterprises. He is now largely interested in lands in Wayne,
Muskegon, Oceana, Newaygo and Kent counties, Mich., and is the
owner of large tracts in upper Michigan and Wisconsin, richly supplied
with timber and mineral deposits, which through the development of
railroads have become valuable. The village of Slocum's Grove, in a
large tract of his timber in Muskegon county, owes its creation to his
energy. He is one of the founders and the vice-president of the First
National Bank of Whitehall, a stockholder in several of the leading
banks and corporations throughout the State, and is a director in the
Union Trust Company of Detroit. He is also the owner of several
business blocks and dwelling houses in Detroit. He is a member of
all the prominent clubs and societies, and by virtue of his lineage a
a member of the Society of the Sons of the American Revolution, and
also a member of the American Historical Association.
He was married, July 30, 1872, to Charlotte Gross, daughter of the
late Ransom E. Wood, an old resident and wealthy capitalist of Grand
Rapids, Mich. Mrs. Slocum died at Dresden, Germany, June 6, 1891.
817
103




Mr. Slocum has two homes, one in Detroit and the other on Slocum's
Island near Trenton, in Wayne county. Those who know Mr. Slocum
appreciate him for his independence, his high sense of honor, and the
courteous frankness with which he presents his views without demanding that others shall endorse or adopt them. Public life and private
enterprise have given him a wide personal acquaintance and secured
for him the esteem of all.
JOHN H. SMEDLEY.
JOHN H. SMEDLEY, treasurer of Parke, Davis & Company, was born
in Sandiacre, Derbyshire, England, January 26, 1857, and is a son of
Abraham and Mary Ann (Barker) Smedley. Mr. Smedley attended
the Risley Grammar School at Sandiacre until attaining the age of sixteen years, receiving a substantial education. In 1873 he emigrated
with his parents to America, they locating at Detroit, Mich. In 1878
he entered the employ of the Detroit Dry Dock Company, afterwards
accepting a position with the firm of Burrell & Whitman. In this
latter position he remained until 1885, when he resigned to become
cashier of the home office of Parke, Davis & Company, manufacturing
chemists, and after ten years' service he was promoted to his present
office as treasurer of the company. Mr. Smedley possesses executive
ability of a high order, energy and enterprise, and is recognized as
prominent among the younger business men of the city.  He is a
member of the Masonic fraternity and prominent in the order; he is a
member of the Detroit Club and other social organizations.  Politically he is a Democrat.
On November 7, 1880, he married Carrie M., daughter of the late
Richard Shute of Detroit. To them have been born five children,
three of whom survive: George Edwin, Hazel Mary and Raymond
Barker. Mr. and Mrs. Smedley are active members of Mary Palmer
Memorial M. E. church.


818




,e


JOHN H. SMEDLEY.








HAMILTON E. SMITH, M. D.


HAMILTON E. SMITH, M. D., son of Alexander and Mary (Stevenson)
Smith, was born in Buffalo, N. Y., January 22, 1840. At an early age
he removed with his parents to the province of Ontario, Canada, where
he attended the public schools and later entered Victoria College at
Toronto. During the winter of 1857-58 he studied medicine with the
late Dr. Jamin Strong, the celebrated neurologist and physician of
Cleveland, Ohio, who was a member of the " Guiteau trial board," and
superintendent of the Northern Ohio Asylum for the Insane. In 1861
Dr. Smith received his degree of M. D. from the University of Buffalo,
N. Y., and for a short time following he practiced medicine at Lexington, Mich.
In 1862 he entered the army as assistant surgeon of the 27th Michigan Infantry, and was promoted in November, 1863, to the rank of
surgeon, and served in that capacity on the staffs of Generals Hartranft
and Wilcox, and from early in 1865 until the close of the war was medical inspector of the army at Taneytown, Md. He was mustered out
of the service at Detroit, Mich., in August, 1865, having been the first
officer mustered in and the last mustered out in his regiment, and was
also the youngest surgeon in point of years who served in the war of
the Rebellion.
Since 1865 Dr. Smith has practiced his profession continuously in
Detroit, and has attained to a most prominent place among the leading
men of his calling in Michigan. During the years 1872-73 he was medical pension examiner at Detroit, and after a year spent in California
was made president of the Detroit Board of Health, in which position
he served for one term. He is a member of the American Medical
Association, the Michigan State and the old Wayne County Medical
Societies, and was president of the latter society for one term. He is
also a member of the Detroit Medical and Library Association, of which
he was one of the organizers.
Dr. Smith makes a specialty of surgery and the diseases of women
and children, although he has a large general practice. He is a member of the Masonic fraternity, of the Knights of Pythias and of the
Fellowcraft Club of Detroit; of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion
of the United States, affiliating with Michigan Commandery, his membership number being 3,735; and of Fairbanks Post, G. A. R. For a
number of years he was director in the Eureka Iron Company, and is
819




at present prominently identified with numerous business enterprises.
Dr. Smith has been married twice; first, in 1869, to Adelia Ward,
who died in 1876. In 1887 he married as his second wife, Frances
Jewett, daughter of the late Samuel P. Jewett of Ann Arbor, Mich.
They are the parents of two children: Hamilton j. and Lawrence D.
During the late war Dr. Smith was highly recommended to headquarters in the reports of the battle of Petersburg, Va., for havingsaved the life of Assistant Surgeon Vickery of the 2d Mich. Infantry,
who was thought to be mortally wounded by a minnie bullet which
penetrated the thigh, severing the femoral artery. Dr. Smith stayed
the hemorrhage and Dr. Vickery recovered and has since become one
of the first surgeons of America. Dr. Smith has enjoyed the advantage
of medical study abroad, having spent the years 1886-87 in scientific
studies in the great medical centers of Europe, Edinburgh, London,
Vienna, Berlin, Paris and Rome. He has also traveled extensively for
recreation in Europe and America. He is a gentleman of culture and
refinement, and long has been recognized as one of the most successful physicians and surgeons of Michigan.
EDWARD S. SNOW, M. D.
THEF loss of no other man has been so keenly felt in the community
as that of the whole-souled, big-hearted, genial gentleman, Edward
Sparrow Snow, M. D. No one had wider or warmer acquaintances;
no one was a more welcome visitor and no one brought more sunshine
and hope into homes sometimes darkened with the dreaded shadows.
His life was one long benediction, and fortunate were the people of
I)earborn to have so broad-minded and liberal a man as their medical
adviser. Dr. Snow was born in Austinburg, Ashtabula county, Ohio,
July 5, 1820, his parents being Sparrow and Clara (Kneeland) Snow,
both natives of Massachusetts. They were married September 10, 1811,
and settled in Ohio in 1817.
Edward S. remained at home till eighteen years old, when he attended Grand River Institute and was graduated in the class of 1842.
He taught school for two years at Palmyra and Jefferson, Ohio, and
then read medicine with his old friend, i)r. 0. K. Hawlcy, at Austinburg, and in 1847 graduated from the medical department of the West820




IV
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EDWARD SPARROW SNOW, M. D.








ern Reserve College at Cleveland. That same year he came to Dearborn and was acting assistant surgeon for one year to the Detroit Arsenal, then actively used by the government. After some interval he
was reinstated in the same position in 1852, by Jefferson Davis, then
secretary of war, and so served until the arsenal was dismantled. He
early became interested in military affairs and was a member of the
First Rifle Regiment, Second Brigade, Ohio Division, and served as
its adjutant for two years.
He was one of the best known physicians; and was one of the wellremembered members of the Wayne County Medical Association. He
attended several sessions, notably those at Cincinnati in 1871, New
York, Buffalo and Louisville, of the North America Medical Association, and always took active and creditable part in the discussions. In
1876 he was elected a member of the medical alumni of the State University. Always alive to the adavncement of literary and educational
tastes he, in 1874, was elected president of the Dearborn Literary Society, and always took a live interest in making it productive of good
in the community.  Ever a Republican, he was not conspicuous in
political life, preferring the more quiet and independent career of a
successful practitioner, in which he had no superiors and few equals.
Dr. Snow passed away July 18, 1892, after a protracted illness, in
which the amiable and Christian spirit shone forth as never before.
At that time but one other physician in the State had been in practice
so long. Space precludes entering into the encomiums of praise that
the life of this gentleman so well merits.
Dr. Snow was married, October 22, 1851, to Elizabeth Austin of
Austinburg, Ohio, whose ancestors were the founders of that town,
Judge Eliphalet Austin having been one of Ohio's foremost citizens in
the early part of the century. Mrs. Snow still retains her delightful
rural residence at Dearborn, and is passing the evening of life surrounded by many friends in whose companionship she finds the solace
that is so necessary after the bereavement incident to the loss of husband and two respected sons, Herbert Montgomery Snow and Edward
Auchmuty Snow; the latter, having just entered upon the preparation
for his father's profession, was stricken down at the early age of twentyone on the 8th of September, 1884.


821




HERBERT M. SNOW.


HERBERT MONTGOMERY SNOW was born July 26, 1858, graduated in
the class of 1882 of the State University Law department, and entered
upon the practice of law in Detroit, but soon devoted himself more fully
to a business life in connection with the real estate interests of his
father in Detroit. Snow's subdivision on Forest avenue demanded
his attention; and he was the owner of the Corronado Flats. The details of his death are fresh in the memory of his friends, having
occurred October 27, 1897. He had realized for some years that a
heart affection existed and physicians had cautioned him touching it.
He was full of life and ambition and found pleasure in athletic sports,
especially becoming an enthusiast on the use of the wheel. Over exertion had given him some apprehension, but not so as to cause him to
abandon his favorite amusement. He, with some friends, was making
a run to Ypsilanti, Ann Arbor and other points, and on the return trip
while near Ypsilanti he got off his wheel on account of dizziness, and
when reached by his companions life was extinct. He was a member
of the Phi Delta Phi society of the University of Michigan and of the
Masonic fraternity. He was a young man whose life held many pleasing features and to whom the outlook was only of the brightest.
He was married, September 12, 1883, to Mary L., daughter of
Thomas and Mary (Dark) Martyn of Ann Arbor, Mich. He and his
wife were members of the Episcopal church at Dearborn.
FRANK E. SNOW.
FRANK E. SNOW, son of Edward and Sophia (Simpson) Snow, was
born in Bangor, Maine, June 2, 1847. Mr. Snow was educated in the
schools of Detroit, Mich., where he removed with his parents in 1854.
Upon conclusion of his common school education he took a course at
Patterson's private school at Detroit. In 1862 he entered the employ of
the Michigan Central Railroad Co., serving in the capacity of clerk in
the local freight office. In 1866 he was promoted to a clerkship in the
office of the superintendent, where he remained until 1868, when he
was appointed general agent for the Michigan Central and Great Western Railroad Companies, with headquarters at Detroit. After a service
of six years at Detroit, he was appointed as general western agent at
822




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HERBERT MONTGOMERY SNOW.








Chicago of the same roads. In 1875 he was made general passenger
and ticket agent of the Canada Southern Railroad at Detroit, and remained in their employ until the completion of the Wabash Railway in
1881, when he resigned to accept the position of general agent of the
latter company at Detroit.
In 1884 he resigned that office to engage in the real estate business
and in which he has since continued with flattering success. In 1885
he built the Highland Park Electric Railway at Detroit, and in 1887
the East Detroit and Grosse Pointe Electric Railway, both of which he
sold to the Citizens' Street Railroad Company in 1893 and 1894 respectively. He is at present president of the Kokomo City Street Railway Co. and of the Citizens' Light and Power Co. of Kokomo, Ind.
Mr. Snow is the owner of considerable valuable real estate in Detroit.
Politically he is a Republican.
He was married in 1875 to Miss Frances Burtenshaw, daughter of
James Burtenshaw, of Detroit. They are the parents of five children:
Muir B., Neil W., Frank E., jr., Margaret, and Barrett H.
WILLIAM C. SPRAGUE.
WILLIAM C. SPRAGUE, president of the Sprague Correspondence
School of Law, at Detroit, is a native of Ohio, and was born in Malta,
February 25, 1860. His early education was obtained in the public
schools and High Schools of McConnellsville, Ohio, and at Washington, D. C. He is a son of Hon. William P. Sprague, long and favorably known in public life in Ohio, and an ex member of congress from
that State. William C. Sprague was a page in the National Capitol
while his father was a member of congress, and while yet a mere boy
he determined upon adopting a professional career. In pursuance of
this decision he entered the Denison University at Granville, Ohio,
and was graduated therefrom with the degree of A. B. in 1881, and
two years later took the degree of LL. B. from the Cincinnati Law
School. He was admitted to the bar at once and removed to St. Paul,
Minn., where he formed a copartnership with Hon. William Foulke,
under the style of Foulke & Sprague, and practiced for two years.
In 1885 he located permanently in Detroit, resumed practice, and in
1887, with Charles H. Cary, he formed the law firm of Sprague &
Cary.  In 1889 Mr. Cary removed to Portland, Ore., Mr. Sprague


823




continuing the practice. He was the founder and is president of the
Sprague Correspondence School of Law, and also conducts the publication of two popular (monthly) law journals, "The Collector and
Commercial Lawyer " and the "Law Student's Helper." The growth
of Mr. Sprague's school has been such as to claim his entire attention,
necessitating his retirment from the practice of law. His system is for
the benefit of young men who cannot attend college and is based upon
the correspondence system of instruction as first generally used by the
Chautauqua Institute and by Dr. Harper of Chicago University, and
more recently by the Cosmopolitan University.
Mr. Spraguc is the author of several works of a legal and semi-legal
character, among them an Abridgement of Blackstone, numerous law
"quiz books," " Eloquence and Repartee in the American Congress,"
"Flashes of Wit from  Bench and Bar," and the "After-Dinner
Speaker." He was influential in the organization of the Commercial
Law League of America, which includes among its members a great
number of the leading country lawyers, and of which he was chosen
first president, and is now (1898) chairman of the executive committee.
Mr. Sprague is a prominent Mason, is a past master of Corinthian
Lodge, F. & A. M., of Detroit, is a member of the Beta Theta Phi fraternity, and was for years an editor of the National Magazine of that
fraternity. He is also active in Christian work, and for the past seven
years has been leader of the second largest class of young men and
women in the world. Their regular Sunday afternoon meetings are
philanthropic in their purpose, and much good has been wrought
through them.
In 1885 Mr. Sprague married Caroline Ellis of Urbana, Ohio, and
they have had four children, two of whom survive: William G. and
Marion.
OSCAR M. SIRINGER.
()SCAR MI. SPIING(;ER1, s() of Edward R. iand Nancy N. (Shaw) Springer
(Nancy Shaw Springer was a lineal descendant of I)aniel De Foe, distinguished as the author of Robinson Cruso), was born in Lynn, St.
Clair county, Mich., Novenmber 7, 185!). ()On the paternal side lie is
descended fr0om Carl Springer, who settled in Wilmington, I)el, in
1(;70, and who) traces his descent fr)om Louis TI, Count of ']Thuringia.


824)








WILLIAM STACEY.




In 1865 his parents removed to Oil Springs, Ontario, Canada, and there
he received his early education. In 1871 he removed to Petrolia, Ont.,
where he attended the public schools until 1875, subsequently attending
the Grammar School of Forrest, Ont., where he remained until 1880.
In the fall of that year he removed to Detroit and entered the law office
of Edmund Hall, where he began the study of his future profession.
He was admitted to the bar in 1881, but remained with Mr. Hall until 1884, when he accepted the position of law clerk in the office of Fred.
A. Baker. After a two years' service in this capacity, in 1886 he formed
a partnership with Edmund Haug, which continued until the election
of Mr. Haug to the office of police justice, when the firm was dissolved,
Mr. Springer continuing private practice. In 1890 he was appointed
assistant prosecuting attorney of Wayne county, and served in that
capacity two years. Subsequently he resumed the practice of law and
has achieved an eminent position among the members of the bar, as
well as established a large and lucrative practice. Politically he is a
Democrat and is an active and indefatigable worker in the ranks of his
party. He is a member of Monroe Chapter, R A. M.; Union Lodge,
F. & A. M.; the Knights of the Maccabees and the Detroit Yacht Club.
He was married, October 28, 1886, to Emma A., daughter of William
Wreford of Detroit, and they are the parents of one child, Elizabeth W.
WILLIAM STACEY.
WILLIAM STACEY, son of William Stacey, was born in Perth county,
Ontario, Canada, October 7, 1859, and comes of good Irish stock, a fact
of which he is justly proud. His education was received in the public
schools and High School at St. Mary's, Ont, and in 1878 he was
graduated with honors from the Normal School at Toronto. He began
teaching, almost immediately after his graduation, in the Essex county
public schools, but at the end of one year removed to Nashville, Tenn.,
where he was engaged in newspaper work another year. From 1880 to
1885 he taught school in Marquette and Mackinaw counties, Mich., and
later became a member of the Mackinaw County Board of School Examiners.
While teaching he made a close and careful study of the law and was
admitted to the bar in 1886. Afterward he practiced his profession for
a number of months in Luce county, and finally settled in Detroit, in
825
104




1888, whel e he has practiced continuously since, with splendid success.
Mr. Stacey is a Mason, a member of the I. 0. 0. F., and of the
Foresters and the Knights of Maccabees. Mr. Stacey has always been
a staunch Democrat and takes an active part in politics, though he has
never been a candidate for public office.
In October, 1882, he married Mary L. Wigle of Leamington, Ont.,
who is of German descent, and they have three children: Edwin
Stanley, Edith Mildred and William Jefferson.
JOHN D. STANDISH.
JOHN DANA STANDISH, son of Samuel Standish, was born in North
Granville, N. Y., October 1, 1817. Mr. Standish was a lineal descendant of Capt. Miles Standish, that most striking figure of the times
of the Pilgrims. Of the six children of the sturdy Puritan soldier,
Josiah, the third son, after passing the greater part of his active and
influential life in Eastern Massachusetts, finally removed with his
family to Preston, Conn. His s-n Samuel and his grandson Samuel
remained in that State, but his great-grandson, also, Samuel, removed
to Stockbridge, Mass. He served in the Colonial army, engaging in
considerable border fighting, and was once captured by the British, and
while detained by them as a prisoner was a witness of the murder of
Jane McCrea, by the Indians, at Fort Edward. At the conclusion of
the war he removed to Vermont, and later to North Granville, N. Y.
There was born his only child, the fourth Samuel, who became a leadingc resident of Northern New York, holding, during his long life, many
positions of local importance, including the office of surrogate of Washington county. The youngest of his children and seventh in descent
from Capt. Miles Standish, was John Dana Standish, the subject of this
sketch.
Mr. Standish enjoyed the advantage of a wise home training and
later entered the academy of Dr. Samuel Town, a classical institution
of high standing in its day. At the age of nineteenl he concluded to
take advantage of the opportunities offered in a growing State and removed to Michigan. While in Detroit he made the acquaintance of
S. V. R. Trowbridge, and at his suggestion established a select school
at Birminghamn, Oakland county. Here he remained three years, and


826




among his pupils were many who have since attained to positions of
influence and honor.
In 1841 Mr. Standish began his business career as a merchant at
Pontiac, which he continued in Ionia and Romeo with varying success.
In 1856 his entire property was destroyed by fire, and shortly after he
removed to Detroit, where he later became one of its most prominent
and successful business men. For a short time after his arrival in Detroit he was employed as a clerk, but the opportunity presenting itself,
he entered the commission business, dealing in pork, provisions and
wool. This venture proved exceedingly successful and he rapidly
extended his operations in a variety of directions.
He became interested in the manufacture of paints and lumber, invested heavily in pine lands, and in city real estate, and held stock in
many industrial and financial corporations. He laid out and founded
the town of Standish in Arenac county, and built and operated the first
saw mill in Otsego county. In 1872 he transferred his provision business
to his eldest son James, and practically retired from active life, and
until his death in November, 1884, was engaged in the management of
his large private interests.
At the time of his death he was president of the Market Bank, and a
director in the Detroit Fire and Marine Insurance Company. Mr.
Standish was originally a Democrat, but radically anti-slavery in his
opinions, and during the political upheaval attending the KansasNebraska struggle, he became a Republican. In 1869 he received that
party's nomination for mayor, and although defeated, ran largely ahead
of the ticket. Subsequently he was chosen a member of the Board of
Estimates and in 1880 was appointed city assessor. In 1883 he was
made a member of the new Board of Assessors for the long term and
was the first president of that body.
Mr. Standish became a member of the Baptist church in early life, and
during his residence in Romeo was a leading member of the church at
that place and later, on his removal to Detroit, joined the Lafayette
(now Woodward) Avenue Baptist church. Of the last named society,
he was president of the board of deacons, and was also president of the
Baptist Social Union of Detroit  His death ended an industrious,
honorable and prosperous life, crowned with an enviable memory.
Mr. Standish was married in 1841 to Emma L. Darrow of Lyme,
Mass., who died in July, 1884. Four children survive this union:
Mary, wife of William C. Colburn; Eva, wife.of Charles K. Backus;
827




James D. Standish (whose sketch appears elsewhere), and Fred D.
Standish.
JAMES D. STANDISH.
JAMES DARROW STANDISH, son of John Dana and Emma D. (Darrow)
Standish, was born in Pontiac, Mich, November 12, 1819. Mr. Standish is a lineal descendant of Capt. Miles Standish, famed as the commander of the forces of the Puritans in the settlement of their colony
at Plymouth, Mass. In 1858 Mr. Standish removed with his parents
to Detroit, where he became a student in the public schools, and later
entered Kalamazoo College at Kalamazoo, Mich. In 1867 he entered
the employ of Standish & Ives, dealers in provisions and wool, and of
which his father was the senior member. During the two years in
which he remained as an employee of this firm he served respectively
as clerk, collector, bookkeeper, salesman and traveling representative.
In 1869, in recognition of his marked ability and thorough knowledge
of the business, and although yet a minor, he was given a working interest in the firm, which became Standish & Co.
In 1872 Mr. John D. Standish retired from the firm, and James D.
Standish, with George H. Hammond and Sidney B. Dixon, formed the
firm of Hammond, Standish & Co. At this time the greater part of
Mr. Hammond's attention was given to the development of the refrigerator car, Mr. Dixon to the retail department, and Mr. Standish to the
enlargement of the wholesale and shipping trade. In 1880 the firm
was incorporated under the old style, Mr. George H. Hammond being
made president, Mr. Dixon vice-president, and Mr. Standish secretary
and treasurer, which position he still retains.
In 1881, in order to more satisfactorily manage the immense business
which had been built up by this firm, Mr. George H. Hammond formed
the stock company of George H. Hammond & Company, and Mr. Standish was made its secretary and treasurer. In 1886 Mr. Hammond died
and in 1890 an English syndicate purchased the interest of the American stockholders, and for several years the chief responsibility of the
financial management has rested in the hands of Mr. Standish. How
great this responsibility is may be gathered from the facts, that its capital stock is $4,000,000, that it employs eighteen hundred men, requiring for its slaughltering two huge establishments in Omaha, Neb., and


828








GEORGE A. STARKWEATHER.




in Hammond, Ind.; that it owns over one thousand refrigerator cars
and operates in its yards over five miles of track; that it maintains over
eighty distributing houses, scattered over the United States and England; and that its yearly transactions amount to thirty million of dollars.
Aside from his interest in the above mentioned business, Mr. Standish
is a large stockholder in various industrial enterprises. He is president
of the Cattle Feeders' Loan Company of South Omaha, Neb., secretary
and treasurer of Hammond, Standish & Co., and of the Hammond Packing Company of Omaha, Neb., a director in the Preston National Bank,
the Union Trust Company and the Michigan Savings Rank of Detroit,
and of the Commercial Bank of Hammond, Ind. He is a member of
the Detroit Club, the Country Club, and the Lake St. Clair Fishing and
Shooting Club, and also of St. John's Episcopal church.
Mr. Standish was married, May 22, 1873, to Jane Chittenden Hart,
only daughter of the late Henry Hart of Adrian, Mich. They are the
parents of two children: Jane Hart and James Darrow, jr.
GEORGE A. STARKWEATHER.
AMONG the oldest citizens of this section of the State is George A.
Staikweather, who was born February 20, 1826, in the township of
Plymouth. He was the second white child born in Plymouth and his
mother was the first white woman to reside in the township, which then
included what is now Canton. She and William Starkweather were
married at New London, Conn., and at once came to the Great West,
securing from the government the land on which the greater part of the
village is now built. He died in Plymouth at the age of forty-eight;
his wife survived him but two years. Of the four sons and one daughter born to them, John F. lives in Stockton, Cal., having been a farmer
and public official in Plymouth until recent years; Albert Oscar and
Dwight both died at an early age; and Helen M., wife of Mark A.
Moser, resides in Milwaukee, Wis.
George was about eighteen years old when the death of both his
father and elder brother in the same year threw the burden of the family's support upon him and he devoted his attention to farming, his
father having secured the land upon which George now resides. When but
twenty-three he was chosen as justice of the peace and filled that office


829




for sixteen years. His tastes being in the direction of logical thought,
he read law and soon began to attend to the legal demands of his friends
who early learned the wisdom of his advice and counsel. Most of the
legal drafting of wills, deeds and other documents came to him, and he
soon became the legal adviser of his townsfolk, and for upwards of
thirty years has continued in that relation. He has invariably counseled peaceable adjustment of disputes rather than resort to legal contest; much of his practice has been before the Probate Court in the administration of estates, although his legal attainments and ability are
recognized in all other branches of the law, and he is welcomed in
other courts by both judges and fellow practitioners.
His actions are not circumscribed by the circle of any one profession,
but lie is also well known in mercantile circles, having been a merchant
in Plymouth for about thirty years, his retirement from that line of
business having occurred but four years ago. A large portion of the
original homestead has been subdivided into village lots, on which have
been erected solid and permanent business and residence property.
In 1854 he was elected to the State Legislature on the Republican
ticket, serving one term, and subsequently filled the office of supervisor for four terms. In March, 1898, he was elected president of the
village of Plymouth and a week later to his former office of supervisor.
His connection with the banking interests of Plymouth has covered
many years and his able direction of those interests have won for him
recognition and esteem among the financiers of his State. He served
as president of the old First National Bank seven years, and of its successor7 the First National Exchange Bank, for four years. While many
years of his life have been spent in professional and mercantile pursuits, farming has ever been his means of recreation, from which he
has drawn rest from his other labors.  Of strong individuality and
marked character, he is a man of warm. friendships and impulses. He
is a charter member of Tonquish Lodge No. 32, I. 0. 0. F., in which
he was active for many years.
On August 19, 1861, he married Amelia, daughter of Jehiel Davis of
Plymouth, Mich. Two daughters have been born to them: Mary K.,
wife of Lewis W. H. Kilmer of Plymouth, and Blanche, who resides
with her parents.


830




ELLIOTT G. STEVENSON.


ELLIOTT G. STEVENSON, son of William and Mary (McMurray) Stevenson, was born in Middlesex county, Ontario, Canada, May 18, 1856.
He is of Irish descent, his father being born near Belfast, Ireland, his
mother's home being also near that place.  He removed with his
parents to Port Huron when a child, and there he received the best instruction offered by the public schools of that place. Later he attended
the academy at London, Ontario, returning to Port Huron in 1872.
Subsequently he began the study of law with O'Brien J. Atkinson, remaining under his instruction three years, when he was admitted to
the bar and into partnership with Mr. Atkinson, under the firm name
of Atkinson & Stevenson. This relation lasted for eight years, during
which time Mr. Stevenson became well known to the profession and
established a large and lucrative practice.
In 1885 he formed a partnership with P. H. Phillips, under the style
of Stevenson & Phillips, and continued in this relation until his removal to Detroit in 1887, where he succeeded Judge George S. Hosmer
in the firm of which Don M. Dickinson was the head, the style being
Dickinson, Thurber & Stevenson. In 1878 he was elected prosecuting
attorney of St. Clair county, being the first Democratic official returned
since the late war. He was re elected in 1880. He was urged by
his party to accept the nomination for Congress in 1882 and again in
1886, but declined to accept, although he was assured of election. In
1885 he was elected mayor of Port Huron and served one term. He
also served as chairman of the Democratic State Central Committee in
1894-95. In 1896 he was elected first delegate at large to represent
Michigan in the National Democratic Convention at Chicago. He was
chosen because of his sound money views and made a strong fight in
the committee on credentials, for the cause he espoused and for the
right of himself and colleagues to sit in the convention, a majority of
the convention holding adverse views and the contest being relentless,
while he held his seat, a sufficient number of his associates were ousted
to seat contesting advocates of the free and unlimited coinage of silver,
to give the entire vote of Michigan, under the unit rule, to the opposition. After due deliberation he decided to support the nominees of
that convention, and thereupon a dissolution of partnership between
Mr. Dickinson, Mr. Thurber and himself followed.
Mr. Stevenson has always been a general practitioner, equally quali

831




fled for the defense or prosecution of a person indicted for crime, and
the management of a civil action, involving the rights of property or
any other questions of law and fact. Since his arrival in Detroit he
has been the regular representative of the Evening News and Tribune,
and at times of the Free Press and Journal. His solid and practical
attainments in the law are probably not excelled by those of any
lawyer of his age in the State.
Mr. Stevenson was married in 1879 to Emma A Mitts of Port Huron,
Mich., and they have a family of three children: George E., Helen
and Kenneth. Mr. Stevenson is a member of the Fellowcraft Club
and the Detroit Club.
G. DUFFIELD STEWART, M. D.
G. DUFFIELD STEWAlRT, MI. D., son of Dr. Morse Stewart and Isabella
G. (Duffield) Stewart, was born in Detroit, Mich., March 21, 1855.
Dr. Stewart received his early education in the public schools and later
was a student in the Detroit High School. Equipped with a thorouigh
preparatory education he entered the Detroit Medical College in 1874,
and was graduated therefrom with the degree of M. D. in 1878. During the winter of 1881-82 he took a post-graduate course in the Chicago
Medical College at Chicago, Ill., which was followed by one year spent
in Europe, where he further perfected himself for the duties of his profession.
On conclusion of his medical education he returned to Detroit, where
he has since built up for himself a large and lucrative practice, and attained a most prominent place among the leading men in his profession. Dr. Stewart has served as a member of the Board of Education,
holding that position from 1887 to 1881), as city physician from 1883
until 1885, and as county physician from 1887 until 1888. He is a
member of the Wayne County Medical Society, the Michigan State
Medical Society, and various other medical associations. He is still a
bachelor and prominent socially, and is held in high esteem by all with
whom he comes in contact.


832




/


G. DUFFIELD STEWART, M. D.








FREDERICK C. STOEPEL.


FREDERICK C. STOEPEL, son of William and Katherine (Koehler) Stoepel, was born in the town of Heldrungen, Saxony, Germany, June 3,
1846. At an early age he emigrated with his parents to America, settling
at Milwaukee, Wis., where they remained one year. In 1852 they removed to Detroit, Mich., where they located permanently.  He attended the public schools until thirteen years of age, and in 1859 he
became a parcel boy for the large dry goods establishment of Campbell,
Linn & Company, at Detroit. In the course of years he was promoted
to the position of salesman, and after eleven years of faithful service
he severed his connection with that concern and identified himself as a
clerk with the wholesale house of Allan, Shelden & Company, in the
same line of business, from 1872 to 1875.
In the latter year, with J. K. Burnham and A. H. Munger, he organized the firm of J. K. Burnham & Company, wholesale dry goods merchants of Detroit. In 1887 the stock and good will of the large wholesale dry goods house of Tootle, Hanna & Company, at Kansas City,
Mo., was purchased, and the firm of Burnham, Hanna, Munger & Company came into existence in that city. Messrs J. K. Burnham and A.
H. Munger removed to Kansas City to assume control of that business,
in which Mr. Stoepel is also a general partner; in the same year the
style of the Detroit firm was changed to Burnham, Stoepel & Company,
and J. J. Crowley and James Wilson were admitted to partnership in
the Detroit firm. These two establishments are among the largest of
their kind in the country, their trade extending throughout the interior
and Western States in this country and Dominion of Canada.
Mr. Stoepel is a director of the Detroit National Bank and is otherwise identified with the business interests of the city. For more than
twenty years he has been a member of the First Congregational church
at Detroit, and for a number of years past has been a member of its
board of trustrees.
July 13, 1881, Mr. Stoepel married Anna R., daughter of N. M. Sutton of Tecumseh, Mich., and they have two children, Frederick S. and
Ralph N. Mr. Stoepel's father died in Detroit, January 17, 1894, at
the age of seventy-seven years; his mother still resides in this city at
the advanced age of seventy-six.
833
105




HENRY H. SWAN.


HON. HENRY H. SWAN, judge of the United States District Court at
Detroit, was born in Detroit, Mich., October 2, 1840, a son of Joseph
G. Swan, who settled in Detroit about 1835. Henry H. was educated
in the public schools and later attended the private school conducted
by S. L. Campbell and the late Dr. C. F. Soldan; in the latter school
he was prepared for college and in 1858 entered the University of
Michigan. In the private schools referred to he had as classmates Mr.
H. MI. Duffield, the late Dr. D. 0. Farrand, Henry B. Ledyard and
other men who since have attained high positions in the commercial
and professional world. Just prior to his graduation examinations he
left the university and went to California, where he spent five years
engaged in steamboating on the San Joaquin and Sacramento Rivers.
His spare time he devoted to the study of law and was admitted to the
bar in California in 1867.
In the same year he returned to Detroit and entered the law office of
D. B. & H. M. Duffield, and in October, 1869, was admitted to the bar
of the Supreme Court of Michigan. April 15, 1870, he was appointed
assistant United States district attorney at Detroit and held that position for seven years, when he formed a partnership with the late A. B.
Maynard, who was at that time United States attorney for the judicial
district. This partnership existed until January 13, 1891, when Mr.
Swan was appointed judge of the United States District Court.
Judge Swan enjoys in an unusual degree the esteem and affection of
the bar and the public. He has long been recognized as among the
ablest representatives of the bar of Michigan, a State which has produced some of the most noted jurists of the land. In his private practice, in presenting a cause before court or jury he brought to bear a
thorough understanding of the philosophy of the law and its application
to the case at issue. He possesses a keen, analytical mind, which is
rendered stronger by erudition in the law. He is also a pleasing, eloquent and forcible speaker. Since ascending to the Federal bench he
has repeatedly demonstrated his eminent fitness for the high position
to which he was called.
April 30, 1873, he married Jennie E., daughter of Rev. W. C. Clark,
a retired Presbyterian clergyman, and they have two children: William
M. and Mary C.


834








T. E. TARSNEY.




TIMOTHY E. TARSNEY.


HON. TIMOTHY E. TARSNEY, attorney and prominent member of the
Detroit bar, was born on a farm in Hillsdale county, Mich., February
4, 1849, and is a son of Timothy and Mary A. (Murray) Tarsney. His
father was born in County Sligo and his mother in County Westmeath,
Ireland. In 1831 they emigrated to America and located in Rochester,
N. Y., where Mr. Tarsney engaged in farming and blacksmithing.
In 1844 they removed to Ransom, Hillsdale county, Mich., where they
established a permanent residence.
Timothy spent his early days at Hudson, where he was apprenticed
to the machinist's trade. At the call for troops in 1861 four of his
brothers enlisted, and he soon afterward went to the front, where he
was employed as locomotive fireman of a train engaged in the transportation of ammunition to the army. At Franklin, Tenn, the engine
was lost, and Timothy, purchasing a mule for one dollar, rode back to
Nashville. He remained with the Union army, serving in various
capacities until the close of the war, when he returned to Michigan. Of
his four brothers, James was killed at the battle of the Wilderness;
John C. was imprisoned for seventeen months in Andersonville, Belle
Isle and Milan; Thomas carried the colors of his regiment at the battle
of Gettysburg, and later was appointed adjutant-general of Colorado.
John was elected to Congress from the Kansas City district of Missouri,
and subsequently appointed to his present office of United States district judge of Oklahoma.
On his return to Hudson, at the close of the war, Timothy secured
employment in a mill, and later removed to Saginaw, where he had
charge of a steam mill for some time. Subsequently he became an engineer of a steamboat, a calling he followed for seven years. During
the time he was engaged in steamboating his leisure moments were
spent in the study of law, and in 1870 he entered the law department
of the University of Michigan, from which he was graduated in 1872.
On completion of his law course he returned to his former occupation
as engineer, which he followed until the summer of 1873, when he began the practice of his profession at East Saginaw.
Mr. Tarsney has been a lifelong Democrat, and is among the most
prominent members of that party in the State. In 1874 he was elected
justice of the peace, the only one on his party's ticket securing an
election. In 1875 he was elected city attorney of East Saginaw and


835




served until 1878. In 1879 he became a member of the law firm of
Tarsney & Weadock, a copartnership which lasted for twelve years.
In 1880 he was the nominee of the Democratic party for member of
congress from the Saginaw district, and although defeated by Roswell
G. Hoar, he ran two thousand votes ahead of the electoral ticket. In
1884 he again became the nominee of his party and defeated his former
opponent, Mr. Hoar. In 1886 he was opposed for a third time by Mr.
Hoar, and succeeded in defeating him for the second time. In 1884 he
was a member of the Democratic National Convention, and served as a
member of the committee on resolutions.
Mr. Tarsney removed to Detroit in 1893, and since establishing his
practice in the city has gradually withdrawn from active politics, though
still taking a prominent place in the deliberations of his party. Since
his arrival in Detroit he has been eminently successful in the practice
of law, and his large practice is indicative of the high esteem in which
he is held by the public at large. Mr. Tarsney has a large admiralty
practice in the United States courts at Detroit, Buffalo and Duluth.
As a public speaker, he has filled a most important field, and during
the campaign of 1896, his silvery tongue drew many under his party's
banner. His intuitions are strong, his prespicacity remarkable, sensibilities impressionable, sympathies easily touched, imagination lively,
and his mental pictures are instantaneous as well as brilliant. Ready
with Irish wit, quick in repartee, infectious in style, yet refraining from
giving offense to his adversaries, he makes an appeal or assault with
acdentia verba.
ELISHA TAYLOR.
HON. ELISHA TAYLOR, of Detroit, Mich., was born at Charlton,
Saratoga county, N. Y., May 14, 1817. His ancestor was the Norman
Baron Taillefer, who accompanied William the Conqueror, and was
honored with a place close to his person, in his invasion of England and
was slain in the presence of his chief in the van of his army at the
battle of Hastings, on October 14, 1066. The family received from the
Conqueror large landed estates in the County of Kent, England.
Hanger Taillefer, his descendant, held lands in the tenure of Ospringe, County of Kent, England, A. D., 1256, and from him, about
one hundred years later, we have John Taylor in the homestall in
836




Schodoschurst, Kent county, and from him the possession is perfectly
traced through William, John William, John (1), John (2), John (3),
Mathew, to Edward Taylor of Briggs House, York county, England,
residing in London, who came with his family to America in 1692 and
settled at Middletown, Monmouth county, N. J., and became a large
landholder. John Taylor, of the fifth generation, from and including
the emigrant Edward, removed from Freehold, N. J., to the new
country in the State of New York in 1774 and settled at Charlton, Saratoga county. He was a judge of the County Court from 1808 to 1818,
and died April 26, 1829, at the home of his son, Hon. John W. Taylor,
who was a member of congress from Saratoga county, N. Y., for
twenty consecutive years (1813 to 1833), and twice speaker of the
House of Representatives in the Congress of the United States.'
Elisha Taylor, son of William and Lucy (Harger) Taylor, and a
grandson of Judge John Taylor, prepared for college in the Hamilton
Academy, Madison county, N. Y., and entered Union College at
Schenectady, N. Y., in September, 1833. Upon his graduation from
that institution in 1837, he was elected as a member of the Phi Beta
Kappa society (the highest honor). He was at once appointed as
principal of a select school at Athens, Greene county, N. Y., and continued there until May 1838, when he removed to Detroit, Mich., via
Niagara Falls, by railroad, canal boat, stage and steamboat. He had
no acquaintances in Detroit, and although provided with strong letters
of recommendation from President Eliphalet Nott, D. D., LL. D.;
Alonzo Potter, D. D.; his uncle, Hon. John W. Taylor, and others of
New York, he positively refused to use them, determined to begin at
the bottom round of the ladder and work his way up.
He purchased a pony and for two months rode over the settled portion of the lower peninsular of Michigan in search of proper employment, and being unsuccessful, returned to Detroit. He entered the
office of P. Morey, esq., the attorney-general of Michigan, as clerk and
student, in August, 1838, and as he earned money he made payments
on a farm at Grand Blanc, Genesee co.nty, Mich., one-tenth of which
he had inherited, and worked at farming a part of each year for twenty
years, doing a large portion of the work with his own hands. In the
office at Detroit he had plenty of hard work to do, which was always
finished satisfactorily.
1 See genealogy of Judge John Taylor, and his descendants in possession of Elisha Taylor.


' 837




In May, 1839, Mr. Taylor was admitted to the bar as a practicing attorney and became a partner of the attorney-general in the same year.
From then on honors came to him, and he has filled many positions of
responsibility and trust. He was city attorney of Detroit in 1843;
member of the Detroit Board of Education 1843 to 1845; master in
chancery 1842 to 1846; register of United States Land Office at Detroit
1843 to 1847; clerk of the Supreme Court of Michigan 1848 to 1850;
circuit court commissioner, injunction master (an office now abolished),
and judge at chambers 1846 to 1850; receiver of the United States
Land Office at Detroit 1853 to 1857; United States agent for payment
of pensions at Detroit 1854 to 1855; United States depository of public
moneys collected in Michigan, northern Ohio and Indiana 1853 to 1857;
an elder in the Jefferson Avenue Presbyterian church at Detroit 1856 to
the present time; a commissioner from the Presbytery of Detroit to the
General Assembly of the Presbyterian church in the United States at
Harrisburg, in 1868, at Saratoga Springs in 1884 and at Detroit in
1891; president of the Presbyterian Alliance of Detroit 1879 to 1885;
and president of the Detroit City Mission Board 1866 to 1867, an
organization by the churches and charitable societies for the moral and
physical improvement of the poor and afflicted in Detroit.
With the exception of a few months of illness in 1851, which for a
time compelled him to abandon his professional duties, Mr. Taylor has
hardly known a sick day until he had reached the age of seventy-five
years. Of dignified and fine personal appearance, a man of the
strictest integrity of character, exacting full faith and performance
from others, he is as well fair-minded and fully entitled to the high
position he occupies in the community and the unqualified respect and
esteem (which he has always enjoyed) of all with whom he has come in
contact. He is independent in politics, but prior to the Civil war was
a Democrat.
September 3, 1844, Mr. Taylor married Aurelia H., daughter of
Thomas and Aurelia H. Penfield of Schoharie, N. Y., and they had
three children, only one survives: Dewit H. (whose life sketch appears
elsewhere in this work). Mrs. Taylor was born at Schoharie, N. Y.,
October 1, 1821, and died at Detroit, Mich., November 22, 1888. She
was an excellent wife and mother and her married life was a very
happy one through its forty-four years of duration.


838








I   I,         II,      I" I   '   '",,          I


JOSEIPH TAYILOI.




JOSEPH TAYLOR.


JoSEPH TAYLOR, vice-president of the Home Savings Bank of Detroit,
Mich., was born in England, August 8, 1839, and is a son of George
and Dinah (L'Abram) Taylor. He received a thorough education in
the English schools and colleges, upon the completion of which he was
placed by his father with the London and Northwestern Railway, to
learn the science of railway work. He was a faithful, earnest worker
and student, and from the boiler shop he rose rapidly through all
grades and branches of the business, mastering each as he reached it,
to the office of the manager of the road in London. In 1863, at the
age of twenty-four years, he was called to America, and after a year
spent in studying the country, became identified with the Great Western Railway (now a part of the Grand Trunk system) of Canada, as
chief assistant to the general manager, and ably discharged the duties
of that office during the ensuing ten years.
He later filled a similar position with the Detroit and Milwaukee
Railroad Company at Detroit, to which city he had moved his residence in 1865, becoming a naturalized citizen of the United States in
that year. He resigned his position with the Detroit and Milwaukee
Railroad Company to accept the position of secretary of the Michigan Car Company, and upon its consolidation with Peninsular Car
Company, under the style of the Michigan-Peninsular Car Company,
became secretary of the reorganized concern.  His wide-spread acquaintance in the railroad world and knowledge of railroad affairs,
tended to enlarge the business of the company. He is now devoting
himself to his large private interests, and is actively engaged in the organization of a new car company (exclusively freight) to be located in
Detroit.
He is vice-president of the Home Savings Bank of Detroit, a director
in the Pungs Anderson Manufacturing Company of Detroit, president
of the Canadian Typograph Company, manufacturers of the E. & D.
bicycles, and a director in the Canada Malt Company of Detroit, and
of numerous other enterprises. He is a member of the Detroit, Fellowcraft and Bankers' Clubs of Detroit, and is secretary and treasurer
of the latter. He is an author of unquestioned ability; his " Fast Life
on the Modern Highway," published by Harper Brothers, has had an
immense sale, and his "Tales of the Imagination," upon which he is
at present engaged, bids fair to rival, if not excel, his former work.


839




He is a brilliant speaker and a raconteur par excellence. He was a
judge in chancery four years, trying the celebrated Bancroft case, in
which the railroads running from Port Huron to Chicago (now forming
the Chicago and Grand Trunk Railroad) were interested.
He has two beautiful homes: a residence in Detroit, remarkable for
its "music room," which was built especially for his two eldest daughters; and a summer residence, a charming villa, located on Taylor's
Point, on the Canadian shore two miles below Detroit. He has been
married three times; first, in 1867, to Lilla White of Detroit, who died
in 1874, leaving him three children, two of whom survive: Florence, a
remarkable pianist, who has had a thorough musical education, having
spent some considerable time in Berlin, where she was a pupil of Barth,
and Moritz Moszkowski; and Lilla, the fortunate possessor of an extraordinary contralto voice, and who occasionally takes part in church
and concert singing. In 1876 he married Emma White (a sister of his
first wife), who died in 1884, leaving two children: Paul and George.
His present wife was Marion B. Kirkland of Windsor, Ontario, to whom
he was married in 1886, and they have two children: Jofine and Kirkland. He and his family are members of St. John's Episcopal church.
His wife is devotedly attached to her family and is actively interested
in the various charities of which St. John's church is the center. Politically Joseph Taylor is a Republican, and though never having held
public office, is and has been active in the councils of his party.
HENRY T. THURBER.
HON. HENRY T. THUIRBER, son of Judge Jefferson G. Thurber
(formerly State senator and speaker of the State House of Representatives) and Mary Bartlett (Gerrish), both natives of New Hampshire,
was born in Monroe, Mich., April 28, 1853. Mr. Thurber acquired his
education in the public schools of Monroe and was graduated from the
High School of that place (as valedictorian of his class) in 1870. He
then entered the University of Michigan, and was graduated in 1874,
with the degree of B. A. In the following year he entered the law
office of Moore & Griffin, of Detroit, carefully preparing himself for
general practice, and completed his law education in the offices of
Griffin & Dickinson.
Subsequent to his admission to the bar he became a member of the


840




firm of Griffin, Dickinson, Thurber & Hosmer, which existed without
change until 1885. In that year Mr. Griffin retired, and in 1887 Mr.
Hosmer ascended the bench. From that time until 1896 the style was
Dickinson, Thurber & Stevenson. In the autumn of 1896 Mr. Stevenson retired, and the firm is known as Dickinson & Thurber, Hon. Don
M. Dickinson being the senior member.
On March 4, 1893, Mr. Thurber took the oath of office as private
secretary to Grover Cleveland, president of the United States, and the
efficiency with which he filled the arduous duties of that position was
attested by Mr. Cleveland's expression of approbation at the conclusion
of his term of office. Mr. Thurber is a man of broad education and
experience, having traveled extensively abroad, of strict integrity of
character, and has won for himself the unqualified esteem of his fellow
practitioners and the public. In the practice of his profession he has
been eminently and deservedly successful. Politically he has always
been a Democrat, and his prominence-in his party is the highest test of
his eminent ability.
Aside from his professional interests, he is a large stockholder in
several industrial enterprises, a director in the Detroit, Ypsilanti and
A. Railroad, and vice-president of the Ward Lumber Co. He is a member of the American and Local Bar Associations, and of the Country
Club, St. Clair Fishing and Shooting Club, Detroit Club, Detroit Boat
Club, and Detroit Athletic Club. In 1880 Mr. Thurber married Elizabeth B., daughter of William H. Croul of Detroit.  They are the
parents of five children: Donald Dickinson, Marion B., Henry T., jr.,
Elizabeth and Cleveland, the latter being named by the ex-president.
GEN. LUTHER S. TROWBRIDGE.
GEN. LUTHER S. TROWBRIDGE, is a native of Michigan, and was born
at Troy, Oakland county, July 23, 1836. For generations back his ancestors have been soldiers, lawyers and statesmen; his paternal grandfather was Maj. Luther Trowbridge of Revolutionary fame, and his
son, father of the subject, who died in 1859, was a veteran of the war
of 1812, and one of the pioneers of Michigan, having settled in Oakland
county in 1821, residing there until his death.
After a thorough preparation in the schools of Michigan Luther S.
entered Yale College in the class of 1857, but was compelled in the lat841
106




ter part of his junior year, through the partial loss of his eyesight, to
abandon his studies for the time being and return to his home. He
was subsequently granted a diploma from Yale in 1867, with the degree of A. M. In the autumn of 1856, however, he began the study of
law in the office of Hon. Sidney D. Miller at Detroit, and was admitted
to the bar in 1858; in the following year he formed a partnership with
Hon. A. W. Buel, which existed until 1862, at which time he entered
the army as major of the 5th Mich. Cavalry. On August 25, 1863,
while convalescing from a violent fever with which he had been stricken
directly following the battle of Gettysburg, Major Trowbridge was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel of the 10th Mich. Cavalry, and
in July of the following year, after a brilliant service in eastern Tennessee and Virginia, he was promoted to a colonelcy.
January 20, 1865, he was appointed as provost marshal general of East
Tennessee to relieve Gen. S. P. Garter. He asked to be relieved from
that position to enable him to take command of his regiment to join
the famous cavalry expedition under the command of General Stoneman, through Virginia and the Carolinas, taking an active part in the
pursuit of Jefferson Davis. During the Stoneman raid hundreds of
miles of railroad were destroyed, tons of supplies and ammunition,
field artillery and arms for the rebel army were captured and confiscated, and thousands of prisoners taken, the greater number of whom
were paroled. Upon returning to Tennessee, Colonel Trowbridge was
assigned to the command of the cavalry brigade of East Tennessee and
remained in that position until the close of the war and the expiration
of his term of service. September 1, 1865, he was brevetted brigadiergeneral and major-general to date from June 15, 1865, for faithful and
meritorious services.
General Trowbridge resided in Knoxville, Tenn., from the close of
the war until 1868, when he returned to Detroit and has since made
that city his home. In 1873 he was appointed by Governor Bagley inspector-general of the Michigan State troops, a position which he held
for four years, and in 1875, without his previous knowledge, he was
appointed collector of internal revenue for the First Michigan district,
holding that position until the spring of 1883. Under his able administration of its affairs the latter office assumed a degree of perfection
which placed it in the first rank of revenue offices of the United States,
and it was a matter of public regret and the cause of considerable disturbance in the Republican party of Michigan and other States, when


842








JONATHAN B. TUTTLE.




General Trowbridge was asked, for no cause assigned, to step down and
out in 1883.
Always a staunch Republican, true to his party's principles, faithful
to the public trust, a brave soldier and a man of the strictest integrity
of character, General Trowbridge has won the confidence and unqualified esteem of his fellow citizens of Detroit and the American public.
In July, 1883, he was appointed as controller of the city of Detroit,
resigning that office on January 1, 1885, to accept the vice-presidency
of the Wayne County Savings Bank of Detroit. After a service of four
years and a half in that position he became private secretary to Hon.
Luther Beecher, one of Michigan's railroad kings, and upon the death
of Mr. Beecher General Trowbridge was made one of the administrators
of his estate, the duties of which position still occupy the most of his time.
He is treasurer of the Detroit College of Medicine and is prominently
identified with the general business interests of the city. He is a member of the Michigan and Fellowcraft Clubs of Detroit, and of the Loyal
Legion and G. A. R.; he is also active in church circles. From the
time he became a resident of Detroit until 1883 he was a Congregationalist and Presbyterian, becoming in the latter year a member of
Christ Episcopal church.
In April, 1862, he married Julia M., daughter of Hon. Alexander W.
Buel of Detroit, and they had seven children, six of whom survive:
Clara B., wife of Charles M. Swift; Mary E.; Alexander B.; Margaret
R.; Luther S., jr., and Julia A.
JONATHAN B. TUTTLE.
JUDGE JONATHAN B. TUTTLE, a well known lawyer and jurist of Michigan, was born in Lodi, Medina county, Ohio, August 15, 1841. His
parents were Leonard and Hannah Dow (Brown) Tuttle. Leonard
Tuttle was a native of Mount Carmel, Conn., and of Scotch and English lineage. In 1834 he moved to Lodi, Ohio, and for many years was
an enterprising business man and accumulated considerable property.
He was a man of sterling integrity and the highest purity of character,
and these are among the richest legacies he has left to his descendants.
His death occurred at the age of sixty-five. In 1836 he married Hannah Dow Brown, then of Portage county, Ohio, though a native of
Vermont. She was descended from a long line of Scotch-Irish ancestry,


843




and a woman of pleasing and graceful manners, high education and
possessing strong intellectual attainments. The death of Mrs. Tuttle
occurred in 1878, when in her sixty-fifth year. Two children were
born of this union: Helen Mary, wife of J. W. Naftzker of Monroe
county, Mich, and the subject of this sketch.
Judge Tuttle received his early education in select schools and subsequently attended Oberlin College, the Ohio State and Union Law
College, graduating from the latter with high honors in 1862. The
Civil war being in progress, he barely settled down to professional life,
when, in August, 1862, at Cleveland, he enlisted as a private in the
Hoffman Battalion, Ohio Vol. Infantry. He served until honorably
discharged, at Hilton Head, South Carolina, in 1864, with the rank of
captain.
Subsequently he located at Alpena, Mich., where he engaged in the
practice of his profession, established a large and lucrative practice and
attained a prominent place among the members of the bar. He was
elected and ably filled the following offices: Judge of the Probate
Court, prosecuting attorney, city attorney, was appointed United States
commissioner, and elected judge of the Circuit Court, serving in the
latter office two terms. As a jurist, he was recognized as careful,
painstaking and learned in the law. The writer was informed by a
distinguished lawyer who practiced before him, that among Judge
Tuttle's strong points was his possession of a great amount of practical
common sense, and his ability to readily grasp the salient points of a
case; and that his decisions were marked by promptness and accuracy.
Politically he is a Republican. In 1890 Judge Tuttle removed to
Detroit, where he has successfully practiced law and identified himself
with the interests of the city. He is a member of Detroit Post, G. A.
R. and of the Loyal Legion.
In 1867 he married Sarah Ross of Alpena, Mich. She is of ScotchIrish ancestry. They are the parents of one child: Helen, wife of Prof.
L. H. Gardner of Pasadena, Cal.
JOHN S. VAN ALSTYNE.
JOHIN SCHERMERHORN VAN ALSTYNE, president of the Wyandotte
Savings Bank, and agent of the Eureka Iron and Steel Works, was
born in Greenbush, Rensselaer county, N. Y., ()ctober 25, 1834. His


844




1,
I Y.


K,'A~
JOHN SCHERMERHORN VAN ALSTYNE.








father was Dr. John S. Van Alstyne, who died in Albany when John
was but a boy. He was descended from a long line of Dutch ancestry;
his ancestors having settled on the banks of the Hudson, first at
Albany, in the year 1633; subsequently branches of the family went to
Kinderhook in Columbia county and some to Rensselaer and Albany
counties, N. Y. When ten years of age the subject removed with his
mother to Schodack Landing, and there in the academy he laid the
foundation of his education. In 1850, his mother having died, he removed to Detroit, Mich., and became a student in the law offices of
Barstow & Lockwood; he was admitted to the bar in 1855.
At this time the Eureka Iron Company was being organized at
Wyandotte, and the management desiring the services of some vigorous young man with some legal attainments to attend more particularly to legal points touching their real estate, offered the position to
young Van Alstyne, who at once entered upon the discharge of his
duties, beginning a career that has been identified with every interest
in Wyandotte for over forty years. His first service was to handle the
company's real estate, dispose of the lots of the village and such other
details incidental to that feature of the company's interests. In less
than one year he had proven his possession of such marked business
ability, that he was placed in charge of the company's interests, with
full supervision. Even in those days the company did an extensive
business in the manufacture of pig iron, employing from 150 to 200
men. The enterprise prospered and he continued his responsible relations with it for five and a half years.
In 1861 he formed a partnership with Alexander Stewart, under the
style of Stewart & Van Alstyne, and engaged in the lumber business.
They established and built a large manufacturing plant at Wyandotte,
which, through the enterprise of Mr. Van Alstyne, became an extensive and successful undertaking and with which he was connected some
ten years.
From March. 1862, until June, 1893, he served in the paymaster's
department of the army of the United States, being assigned to duty in
Washington, New York city, South Carolina and at the front on the
Potomac. It so happened that at this time the gentleman who had
succeeded him as agent of the Eureka Iron Company died, and at the
earnest solicitation of its president, Capt. Eber B. Ward, he returned
to his former position with that corporation.
In the mean time, he, with others, had organized the Wyandotte
845




Savings Bank, he being its first and only president.  In 1878 the
Eureka Iron Company was reorganized under the name of the Eureka
Iron and Steel Works, Mr. Van Alstyne remaining in charge. Some
five or six years ago it was deemed advisable to discontinue the business and its affairs have been practically settled.
Some years since it was found necessary to secure cheaper fuel and
an attempt was made to secure natural gas by boring. After an expenditure of many thousands of dollars, in which expert gas locaters
made elaborate tests of the entire section, covering a period of nearly
two years, the attempt was given up as fruitless; but although unproductive as far as gas was concerned, the borings demonstrated the existance of immense salt beds throughout the entire section, which have
since been the means of causing extensive manufactories to locate
in Wyandotte, upon which the life of the town now depends. These
industries not only produce. commercial salt, but also soda-ash, the
alkalies and products so extensively used in the arts based upon the use
of saline materials. The original investigation was done at the instance of Mr. Van Alstyne, under whose supervision the work was conducted, and by whom the contract was drawn under which two years'
difficult and uncertain boring was done, with a clear understanding at
all times between the interested parties. He kept samples of every
foot of borings, samples that have been of great value to the geologists
in more clearly marking the formation of the State.
Mr. Van Van Alstyne was instrumental in securing first incorporation of the town in 1867, and was elected its first mayor. He has been
foremost among her citizens in the active work of developing her
varied resources, and his successful direction of many of her most important industrial enterprises entitles him to a place as one of the
prominent " Landmarks " of Wayne county.
He is a prominent member of the Masonic fraternity, is a charter
member of Wyandotte Lodge No. 170, F. & A. M., and served as its
worshipful master for sixteen years  He is a Royal Arch Mason and
is now high priest of Wyandotte Chapter No. 135. He is also a member of Michigan Sovereign Consistory, having received the thirtysecond degree.  Politically Mr. Van Alstyne has been a lifelong
Republican, and has always been an active and energetic worker in his
party's ranks.
Ile was married, October 15, 1863, to Ellen, daughter of Andrew J.
Folger, a former well known resident of Detroit. They are the parents


846








REV. ERNEST VAN DYKE.




of three children: Anna Folger, wife of R. B. Burrell of Wyandotte;
John Schermerhorn, vice president of the Peninsular Engraving Compauy of Detroit, and Frederick Easton, cashier of the Wyandotte Savings Bank.
REV. ERNEST VAN DYKE.
FATHER ERNEST VAN DYKE, son of James A. and Elizabeth (Desnoyers) Van Dyke, was born in Detroit, Mich., January 29, 1845. Father
Van Dyke acquired a substantial education in the parochial schools of
Detroit, and in 1859 entered St. John (Jesuit) College at Fordham, N.
Y., taking a classical course. In June, 1864, he was graduated with
the highest honors of the college, and was awarded the medal of the
year. In the fall of 1864 Father Van Dyke entered the American Seminary at Rome, Italy, where he took up the study of theology, and was
graduated therefrom in 1868, and ordained to the priesthood on March
25 of that year.
Upon his return to America he was assigned as rector of St. Mary's
church at Adrian, Mich., where he was instrumental in the erection of
a new church; in 1872 he was appointed to take charge of the cathedral church at Detroit, the edifice now known as the Jesuit church of
SS. Peter and Paul. In 1873 Bishop Borgess, of the Diocese of Detroit,
purchased the present St. Aloysius church, then known as the Westminster Presbyterian Church, and made it his pro-cathedral. Father
Van Dyke was at once appointed its pastor, and has been ever since in
charge its affairs. He is a forceful and eloquent speaker, an indefatigable worker, and is gifted with sincere devotion to his priestly mission.
Personally he is kindly and charitable, and is held in high esteem by
all with whom he comes in contact. His church has a membership of
two hundred and fifty families.
THOMAS A. WADSWORTH.
THOMAS A. WADSWORTH, son of Thomas and Mary (Lee) Wadsworth,
was born in Redford, Mich., June 26, 1844. He removed with his
parents to Detroit in 1846, where he received his education in public
and private schools, which he attended until the age of sixteen. In
847




1860 he entered the employ of H. J. Robinson, a manufacturer of cigar
boxes, and later was employed by P. N. Kneeland, tinsmith, where he
remained until the beginning of the late war, when he enlisted in the
24th Michigan Infantry. He was wounded in the battle of Fitzhugh's
Crossing and confined to the hospital for some little time. On his
convalescing he was appointed to a clerkship in the medical director's
office, where he served until discharged in June, 1865. On his return
to Detroit Mr. Wadsworth again turned to the making of cigar boxes
and was engaged by his former employer, Mr. Robinson.
In 1867 he engaged in business for himself and one year later took
into partnership Mr. John Ballard. This association remained unchanged until 1869, when Mr. Ballard's interest was purchased by Leland Cook, and a frame building on the site of the present factory was
built. Mr. Cook retired in 1871, since which time the business has
been solely in the hands of Mr. Wadsworth. He has been continuously
successful, and from the small beginning of thirty years ago he has
built up his present business, being the recognized leader in his line of
manufacturing in Michigan. The present factory at 383-385 Monroe
avenue is well equipped and over one hundred hands are employed in
the various departments of manufacturing. Mr. Wadsworth is a director in the Union National Bank, the Michigan Mutual Life Insurance
Company; a member of the Detroit Riding Club, Detroit Yacht Club,
and Detroit Post, G. A. R., of which he served as commander in 1894.
He was married to his present wife, Jennie Roehl, of Detroit, November 14, 1891, and they have one child, Harold Lee Wadsworth.
COL. DENMAN S. WAGSTAFF.
Coi. I)ENAMAN S. WA(STAFF was born on July 15, 1854, at Rochester,
N. Y., and is a son of James Wagstaff, retired, and still a resident of
Rochester.  Denman S. was educated in the German and French
schools of the Lutheran and Liberal churches in Rochester, and later
in De Graff's Military Academy and Wilson's Collegiate Institute. He
spent one year in the study of law, and in 1870 turned his face westward to Colorado, where for two years he worked in the mines and carried the U. S. mails by pony express, from Georgetown to Hot Springs,
a distance of sixty miles, making the trip, with change of horses, in
one day, and returning the next. This was but an example of his won

848




/%lI






I




derful horsemanship, as he afterward became champion "bronco"
rider of Montana, and held that title for years. He herded cattle for
the famous Wilson Bros., on the borders of Colorado and New Mexico,
and was stationed at one time for about six months at the Red Cloud
Indian Agency.  He there acquired a knowledge of the Sioux language, which proved invaluable to him and to the United States government in the scouting days that followed.
In the spring of 1876 he went to Wyoming to act as scout on the
Shoshone Indian Reservation, and later, with one hundred Shoshone
scouts, moved to Fort Reno and joined Crook's command, and just
previous to the famous Custer campaign he was made chief of Crook's
scouts. He was with the first party (2d Battalion, 2d Cavalry, under
Major Brisbin), to arrive on the battlefield after the Custer massacre,
helping to bury the dead and transfer the body of General Custer to
Miles City. He was severely wounded three times during the battle of
Twin Buttes, early in 1876, and also participated in the battle of the
Big Hole and the capture of the Nez Perces, with Chief Joseph, in the
Bear Paw Mountains, under General Miles. In the autumn of that year
he became foreman of the Montana Cattle and Horse Company's big
ranches at Sun River, and remained there until 1879, when he was
made assistant superintendent of construction for the Utah Northern
Railroad Company, and held that position for two years.
In 1881 he returned east to his old home in Rochester, N. Y., and
almost at once entered the service of the New York Central Railroad
Company; later he was connected with the West Shore Railroad as city
passenger agent at Rochester, and in 1885 accepted the position as
traveling passenger agent for the Grand Trunk Railroad Company in
Canada, and six years later was made its district passenger agent at
Detroit, Mich., where he has since resided. In 1896 he became general northern agent of the C., H. and D. R. R., and still retains that
position.
During his scouting service Colonel Wagstaff was special corespondent for the New York World, and while in Rochester, N. Y., corresponded regularly with the Sunday Herald. Colonel Wagstaff is
prominent in Masonic orders and is an enthusiastic Shriner. He was
appointed colonel and A. D. C. on the staff of Gov. John T. Rich, of
Michigan, serving as such for two years.
In 1882 he married Charlotte Shelber, of Rochester, N. Y., and they
have one child, Maud. Colonel Wagstaff's mother was Annie Sully, a
849
107




lineal descendant of the Duke de Sully, of France, and on his father's
side is the fourth lineal descendant of Maj. Sir William Wagstaff, who
was killed in India while leading the Queen's troops.
CARLOS E. WARNER.
CARLOS E. WARNER was born in Orleans, N. Y., October 5, 1847,
and is a son of Ulysses and Eliza A. (Jones) Warner. His paternal
ancestry is as follows: John Warner, yoeman, of Hatfield, England;
Andrew Warner, yoeman, of Hatfield, England, born about 1595, emigrated to Boston, Mass., about 1630; Daniel Warner lived at Hatfield,
Mass., and died there April 30, 1692; Samuel Warner, born April
13, 1680; Jesse, born May 6, 1718; Jesse, jr., born February 1, 1747 or
1748; John, born at Conway, Mass., January 2, 1781, died February 9,
1872; Ulysses, born May 7, 1812, died in February, 1896; and Carlos
E., the subject of this sketch.
Carlos E. Warner was educated in the Canandaigua Academy, and
afterward spent a year in teaching. He began the study of law in 1867
in the office of the Hon. J. P. Faurot at Canandaigua, N. Y., and two
years later was admitted to the bar, passing a very creditable examination before the Supreme Court of the State of New York, then in session in Rochester. Returning to Canandaigua he entered into partnership with his preceptor, Mr. Faurot. This partnership existed until
1872, when Mr. Warner removed to Detroit, which has ever since been
his home.
Upon his removal to Detroit Mr. Warner entered the law offices of
Moore & Griffin, and later became a member of that firm. Three years
later the firm was dissolved by the withdrawal of Mr. Griffin, and was
reorganized as Moore, Canfield & Warner. In 1883 Mr. Warner withdrew and associated himself with his former partner, the Hon. Levi T.
Griffin, under the style of Griffin & Warner. Five years later, or in
January, 1888, the firm became Griffin, Warner, Hunt & Berry. In
1890 Mr. Berry retired, and soon afterward Mr. Hunt was elected as
assistant prosecuting attorney for the city of Detroit; whereupon the
firm resumed its original name, Griffin & Warner. January 1, 1896,
this firm was dissolved, and the present firm of Warner, Codd & Warner was organized, with the subject of this sketch as the senior member. For many years Mr. Warner's private practice has been very ex850




tensive. He is attorney for the Detroit Chamber of Commerce, and
was one of the incorporators of the Sandwich, Windsor and Walkerville Street Railway Company at Windsor, Ont. In January, 1880, he
was elected a member of the Board of Education of Detroit on the
Democratic ticket, under the ward system; was re-elected in April,
1880, under the new system, from the city at large, serving four years
in all, and was president of the board during two years of the latter
term. He was chairman of the Democratic Congressional Committee
for the First Michigan district during the years 1894 and 1895, and
served during the year 1896 as a member of the Democratic State Central Committee. He was also the nominee of the Democratic party for
city attorney of Detroit, but was defeated by a small majority. Mr.
Warner is a member of the Woodward Avenue Baptist church and of
several benevolent societies. He is also a member of the Detroit Club
and the Detroit Athletic Club.
As a lawyer Mr. Warner is recognized as standing among the able
men of the bar of Michigan-a State which has produced some of the
ablest jurists of the land. He is an all round lawyer, and in presenting
a cause before court or jury brings to bear a thorough understanding
of the philosophy of the law and its application to the cause at issue.
He possesses a keen, analytical mind, strengthened by erudition in the
law. He is also a pleasing, graceful and forceful speaker.
On June 5, 1873, he married Alice Burr, daughter of Mrs. Caleb
Van Husan, of Detroit, and they had four children: Kathleen Elsie,
wife of George P. Codd; Emily Corwin, Carlos E., jr., and John Sill,
deceased.
THOMAS A. E. WEADOCK.
HON. THOMAS A. E. WEADOCK was born in Ballygarret, County Wexford, Ireland, January 1, 1850, and is the third son of Lewis and Mary
(Cullen) Weadock, who with their family emigrated to America in 1850,
and settled on a farm near the town of St. Mary's, Ohio, where the
subject spent his boyhood days. He attended the district schools and
also the Union School at St. Mary's. Upon his father's death in December, 1863, young Weadock was obliged to leave school and assume
the management of the farm, as he was the eldest son at home. However, he kept up his studies at home, and upon the return of his eldest


851




brother in 1865 from the Civil war, he went to Cincinnati in search of
employment, securing a situation as apprentice at the printer's trade,
but not liking it he returned to St. Mary's and taught school in the
surrounding counties for the ensuing five years.
He began the study of law while teaching, and by using his leisure,
studying during the evening hours, fitted himself for the law class at
the university. Having saved his earnings, in 1871 he entered the law
department of the University of Michigan, and graduated therefrom
in March, 1883, with the degree of B. L., and in the same year was admitted to the bar of the Supreme Court at Detroit, and the bar of the
Supreme Court of Ohio. In September, 1873, he located at Bay City,
Mich., where he was continually engaged in the practice of law, until
his removal to Detroit in 1895.
In 1883 he was elected mayor of Bay City and served in that capacity
until 1885, and at the expiration of his term declined renomination. In
1882 he associated with him his youngest brother John C., and the
partnership still exists. Mr. Weadock was assistant prosecuting attorney for Bay county for over two years, and upon the death of the prosecuting officer, Mr. G. M. Wilson, in 1877, Mr. Weadock succeeded to
that position, by appointment of Hon. S. M. Green, which he retained
until December, 1878. His administration of the office was vigorous
and successful.
Politically he has always been a Democrat and has been actively interested in party work, having taken the stump in every campaign from
1874 to 1894 inclusive. He was chairman of the Democratic State
Convention in 1885, which was held at Bay City and nominated Hon.
Allen B. Morse for justice of the Supreme Court, and chairman of the
same body at Grand Rapids in 1894.
In 1890 he was nominated, and elected by a large majority, a member of the Fifty-second Congress of the United States from the Bay
City district, and re-elected in 1892; he declined renomination on the
expiration of his second term of office. While a member of the House
of Representatives he served on the Committees of Rivers and Harbors
and on Pacific Railroads, and was chairman of the Committee on Mines
and Mining.
In 1893 he made an extended tour of Europe, visiting Italy, Austria,
Germany, France, Belgium, Ireland, Scotland, England and Wales. In
1895 Mr. Weadock removed from Bay City to Detroit, where he has
since established for himself a large practice and is recognized as one
852








CHARLES TROWBRIDGE WILKINS.




of the prominent leaders of the bar of Michigan. He is a member
of the executive committee of the Detroit Bar Association, and a member of the Detroit Club. In 1896 he was chosen as a delegate-at-large
to the National Democratic Convention; he was on the committee on
resolutions, signed the minority report and took no part in the campaign of that year.
Mr. Weadock has been twice married; first, in 1874, to Mary E., sister of Hon. T. E. Tarsney of Saginaw, and John C. Tarsney, now on
the Supreme Bench of Oklahoma; she died March 11, 1889, leaving
him six children: Thomas J., a senior law student at the Michigan University; Lewis J., Mary Isabel, Frances Clare, Winifred Monica and
Paul. He married, in 1895, as his second wife. Nannie E. Curtiss of
Bay City, daughter of Col. D. S. Curtiss of Washington, D. C., and they
have one son, George.
CHARLES T. WILKINS.
CHARLES TROWRRIDGE WILKINS, son of Col. William D. and Elizabeth
Cass (Trowbridge) Wilkins, was born in Detroit, Mich., November 22,
1861. His father Colonel Wilkins, was an ex-officer of the Mexican and
Civil wars, and for many years was prominently identified with the
public and business interests of Detroit, having been twenty-eight
years a member of the Board of Education, and founder, and for a
number of years a member of the Public Library Commission.
Charles T., the subject of this sketch, received a thorough preparatory education in the public schools of Detroit, and later entered the
literary department of the University of Michigan, from which he was
graduated with the degree of Ph. B. in 1883. Subsequently he took a
course in the Harvard College Law School, being graduated in 1885
with the degree of LL. B., and at the same time received the degree
M. A. He was admitted to the bar in 1885 and located in Detroit,
where he has since been continuously engaged in the practice of his
profession.
In 1887 he was appointed assistant United States attorney at Detroit,
and held that position until 1890, when he retired from office, owing to
a change in the administration.  In 1894 he accepted a reappointment
to that position, but resigned in 1896. Mr. Wilkins has been twice
nominated for the office of judge of the Recorder's Court by the Demo

853




cratic party, and each time has received a flattering vote. He has been
successful in his law practice, and has won for himself an enviable position at the bar.
He is a member of the Michigan State and Local Bar Associations,
is a prominent Mason, being a member of Peninsular Chapter, R. A. M.,
and Union Lodge, F. & A. M. He is also a member of the Fellowcraft
Club, the Yondotega Club, the Detroit Yacht Club, and the Michigan
Athletic Association, and of the latter he was one of the founders and
first secretary. He also served as secretary of the American Athletic
Union for three years.
ALBERT H. WILKINSON.
HON. ALBERT H. WILKINSON, ex-judge of the Probate Court of Wayne
county, was born in Novi, Mich., November 19, 1834, and is a son of
James and Elizabeth (Yerkes) Wilkinson. His early life was spent on
his father's farm, assisting during the summer months in its management and in the winters attending the public schools. Later he attended the Cochrane Academy at Northville, and subsequently the
State Normal School at Ypsilanti, at the time of its opening in the
spring of 1853. In the fall of the succeeding year he left the Normal
to accept the position of principal of the Union Graded School at Centerville, and later entered the private academy of Rufus Nutting at
Lodi Plains, where he prepared for college; in 1855 he began his course
in the literary department of the University of Michigan, and was graduated therefrom in 1859. Afterward he spent one year in the law department of the university and then read law under the instruction of
Judge M. E. Crofoot at Pontiac: he was admitted to the bar in June,
1860, and in the fall of that year formed a partnership with Henry M.
Look, and later with O. F. Wisner at Pontiac.
In 1861 he located in Detroit and formed a partnership with W. P.
Yerkes, which existed for five years. Following this he became associated with Hoyt Post, under the firm name of Wilkinson & Post, this
partnership lasting seven years. Judge Wilkinson later associated with
him his brother, C. M. Wilkinson, under the style of A. H. & C. M.
Wilkinson, a connection lasting for three years, when, in 1877, Mr.
Post again became a member of the firm tinder the name of Wilkinson,


851








*"3
}


NATHAN G. WILLIAMS.




Post & Wilkinson. Upon the retirement of Mr. C. M. Wilkinson in
1884, the firm again became Wilkinson & Post, its present style.
In 1872 Mr. Wilkinson was elected as judge of the Probate Court of
Wayne county and served in that capacity until 1877. He also served
as a member of the Board of Education. He was one of the organizers
of the Michigan Mutual Life Insurance Company, the Michigan Fire &
Marine Insurance Company, and the Michigan Savings Bank, and has
been a director in the two former corporations. Judge Wilkinson has
long been recognized as among the leading members of the Detroit
bar, is an affable and kindly gentleman, and is highly esteemed by all
with whom he comes in contact.
On July 4, 1859, he married Elvira M., daughter of Henry Allen of
Bloomfield, Mich. They are the parents of one son, Ralph B., an attorney of this city.
NATHAN G. WILLIAMS.
NArTAN G. WILLIAMS, son of Warren and Elizabeth (Stanton) Williams, was born in Salem, Conn., June 28, 1833. The ancestors of Mr.
Williams were among the early settlers of Connecticut; Thomas Stanton, his ancestor on the maternal side, served as the interpreter of
Governor Winthrop in his dealings with the Indians, and Phineas
Stanton, his brother, served in the campaigns of Crown Point and
Cape Breton, and was later appointed deputy of the colony of Connecticut, continuing in that office from 1758 to 1771.
Mr. Williams received his early education in a private school at
Salem and later entered an academy where he was a student until 1849.
In that year he removed to Michigan, and after a short time spent at
Pontiac, located in Detroit, which place he made his permanent home.
He first engaged in the shipping and commission business and continued
in that line until 1864, when he purchased the business of William C.
Duncan and engaged in the manufacture of malt. In this venture he
was eminently successful, building up a large business which he continued until his retirement in 1890. Aside from this interest he was a
large stockholder in several industrial enterprises of Detroit.
In 1890 he retired from active business and opened an office in the
Moffat block (which he subsequently moved to his residence) where he
managed his various private interests until the time of his death, which


855




occurred on August 7, 1896. Mr. Williams was a director in the Merchants' and Manufacturers' Bank, the Michigan Savings and Loan
Association, a member of the Board of Trade, the Detroit Club and
Lake St. Clair Fishing and Shooting Club. He was a lifelong Republican, and though never seeking office, took an active part in the interests of his party.
He was married, December 14, 1870, to Julia, daughter of Lieut.Col. V. C. Hanna of Detroit. Five children and his widow survive
him: Nathan G., jr., Helen D., wife of D. O. Haynes of New York,
Julia H., Edith, and Mary Eloise.
LIEUT.-COL. VALENTINE C. HANNA.
LIEUT.-COL. VALENTINE C. HANNA, son of Gen. Robert H. and
Sarah (Mowrey) Hanna, was born in Crawfordsville, Ind., November 8,
1833. Colonel Hanna was descended from Robert Hanna, who was appointed surveyor-general of South Carolina by King George III, and
during his incumbency surveyed the boundaries of that State. On the
signing of the Declaration of Independence he cast his lot with the
colonies and served throughout the struggle. Gen. Robert Hanna, the
father of the subject of this sketch, was one of the early settlers of
Indiana, was commandant of the State troops during the Black Hawk
war, and later a member of the United States Senate from that State.
Colonel V. C. Hanna was educated in the public schools of Indianalolis, where he had removed with his parents when a child. O)n
completion of his education he entered the employ of his father, at that
time receiver of the General Land office. In 1835, with Ap Lloyd B.
Smith as his associate, he formed the firm of Ap Lloyd B. Smith & Co.
and engaged in the general merchandising business. Colonel Hanna
was a warm personal friend of President Lincoln, and at the commencement of the Civil war was appointed by him to the position of paymaster in the army. He served until the close of hostilities in 1865, and
was brevetted lieutenant-colonel for meritorious service, and shortly
afterward was given a commission in the regular army.  He was
later stationed at Detroit, Mich., where he remained until transferred to
Chicago in 1870. After a service of one year on the staff of Gen.
Philip IH. Sheridan at Chicago he was assigned for duty at Santa Fe,
N. M., but was forced through ill health to return east, and was placed
856








LIEUT.- COL. VALENTINE C. HANNA.








on the retired list in 1876. Subsequent to his retirement from the
army he returned to Detroit and made that city his permanent home.
He died on November 10, 1884.
Politically he was a staunch Republican, and although incapacitated
by his profession from holding office, he was an active worker in the
ranks of his party.
Colonel Hanna was married, November 5, 1840, to Frances M.,
daughter of Justin Smith of Cincinnati, Ohio. The marriage ceremony
was performed by the late Henry Ward Beecher. Colonel Hanna and
wife were among the first members of the Episcopal church at Indianapolis and later of Christ church in Detroit. Mrs. Hanna died at Detroit, August 7, 1877. Three daughters survive them: Maria L., wife
of William J. Wilson of Washington, D. C.; Julia H., widow of N. G.
Williams; and Mrs. Sadie H. Seymour of Detroit, Mich.
RICHARD STORRS WILLIS.
RICHARD STORRS WILLIS, son of Nathaniel and Hannah (Parker) Willis, and youngest brother of N. P. Willis, the poet, and Sara Payson
Willis, the authoress, the latter more widely known as " Fanny Fern,"
was born in Boston, Mass., February 10, 1819. Mr. Willis descends
directly from George Willis, a Puritan of eminence who landed in America from England in 1626, took the oath of a freeman in Cambridge,
Mass., and was elected deputy to the General Court in 1638. Through
the years dating back one century and a half the ancestors of Richard
Storrs Willis form an unbroken chain of journalists and authors of distinction. Quite remarkable is it that from 1776 to 1800, his grandfather,
Nathaniel Willis, edited the independent Chronicle, the Potomac Guardian and the Sciota Gazette; from 1803 to 1860 his father, Nathaniel
Willis, founded and edited the Eastern Argus, Portland, the Boston
Recorder and Youths' Companion; and from 1851 to 1863 Richard
Storrs Willis edited the Musical Times, the Musical World and Once a
Month, each of the three serving in a similar capacity on three distinct
publications. To this may be added, that the singular tendency to
triad journalism in the family asserted itself also in the poet-brother,
N. P. Willis, who edited the New York Mirror, the Corsair, and the
Home Journal.
During his youth in Boston, Mr. Willis was a student at Chauncey
857
108




Hall, later at the Boston Latin School, and in 1837 entered Yale College. He was chosen president of the Beethoven Society, which comprised the musical talent of the college, and during his sophomore
year Mr. Willis devoted considerable time to composing for the college
orchestra and choir and arranged and harmonized many German songs,
the words for which were translated by Percival, the poet. He composed during this period the "Glen Mary Waltzes," which were published by Oliver Ditson & Co. for twenty-five years. Mr. Willis was
graduated from Yale College in 1841 and immediately sailed for Germany to devote his entire time to the study of the science of music at
Frankfort-on-the-Main. Under the direction of Schnyder Von Wartensee he completed a thorough course in harmony, and on counterpoint
and instrumentation with Hauptmann, professor of the conservatory, and
Cantor of the "Thomas Schule" in Leipzig. During an outing in the
Taunus Mountains Mr. Willis very fortunately had the pleasure of the
company of Mendelssohn, Freiligrath, the poet, Gutzkow, the dramatic
author, and Hoffman Von Fallersleben, professor and poet. Mendelssohn
reviewed part of the work accomplished by Mr. Willis under Schnyder
and revised several of his compositions. All these manuscripts bear
Mendelssohn's pencil marks and together with a "Canon," which the
eminent composer wrote in Mr. Willis's album on parting company,
comprise a souvenir of great value. Mr. Willis's familiarity with German enabled him while passing the winter months in Homburg to perform literary work for Gustav, then reigning landgrave of Hesse-Homburg. Gustav conferred on Mr. Willis the title of professor in addition
to a diploma.
After six years' absence Mr. Willis returned to America and visited
Yale College, giving his attention to a class of tutors and professors
who wished to practise colloquial German. Subsequently he went to
New York, where he associated himself with the press, writing for the
Albion, Musical Times, Tribune and Catholic World, afterward purchasing the Musical Times, which was later consolidated with the Musical World, and edited the combined publications. In later years he
established a magazine, "Once a Month," which was devoted to fine
arts. About this time he wrote the work " Our Church Music," which
was highly commended by the London Anthenaeum: next he brought
out Church Chorals, many students' songs and miscellaneous lyrics.
During the war he entered competition for the prize offered for the
best national song; and the committee selected his "Anthem of Iib

858




I




CAPT. WILLIAMX H. WILSON.




erty," which was warmly praised by Richard Grant White in his collection of songs. Mr. Willis then wrote "Why, Northmen, Why," and
other songs of a patriotic strain, which were sung universally in schools
and public gatherings.
In 1851 he married Jessie Cairns of Roslyn, L. I., who died in 1858.
In her husband's memorial, her amiable, pure nature was delicately
commented on and the pages embraced lines from William Cullen
Bryant, Fanny Fern and other prominent authors. In 1861 Mr. Willis
married Mrs. Alexandrine Macomb Campau of Detroit.
During a four years' residence in Nice, Europe, where he removed to
provide his children with the best educational advantages, Mr. Willis
collected his National songs and miscellaneous lyrics into one volume
entitled "Waifs of Song," which was published by Galignani, Paris.
The first volumes of the book were sold during the Nice carnival of
1876, for the benefit of the poor, by Mrs. Willis, who presided over
the American kiosque in the public square. While in Europe Mr.
Willis's three daughters married officers of the United States flag
ship " Franklin," commanded by Admiral Worden, which lay at anchor
near Nice. Annie married Lieutenant Ward; Blanche married Lieutenant Emory, who has since gained renown as commander of the
"Bear " in the Greeley relief expedition, and Jessie married Lieutenant
Brodhead, son of Colonel Brodhead of the Michigan cavalry of the Civil
war. For several years past Mr. Willis has claimed Detroit as his place
of residence, and here he has devoted his entire attention to his profession, and has published among many other works the volume entitled " Pen and Lute." He is an esteemed citizen and is honored with
the presidency of the public library; he is also vice-president of the
Michigan Society of the Sons of the American Revolution; a member
of the New England Society; a member of the Grace Hospital Training School, representing the city; also a member of the Pioneer Society.
In politics he is a Republican. He has a suite of rooms in the Moffat
building, where he carries on his literary pursuits.
CAPT. WILLIAM H. WILSON.
CAPT. WILLIAM H. WILSON, son of William H. and Mary (Utting)
Wilson, was born in Hull, England, May 21, 1837. Captain Wilson as
a child received his education from his mother, who died when he was


859




but twelve years old, subsequent to which he went to sea with his
father, and remained with him until 1851. In that year he came to
America, locating in Detroit, Mich., and the following four years were
spent by Captain Wilson in sailing on the lakes. In 1855 he engaged
as ship's carpenter with a ship building firm in Detroit, remaining in
their employ some little time. Subsequently he resumed sailing and
eventually became master of the schooner Evening Star.
In 1865 he with Thomas Ledbeter (his father-in-law) built the
schooner Mary Hattie, which he sailed for many years. Later he was
made captain of the barge San Diego, and from that steamer was appointed to the command of the Iron City of the Parker & Millen fleet.
In 1890 he resigned from the employ of Parker & Millen to accept the
position of captain of the steamer William Livingstone, and served in
that capacity until his death on February 14, 1898.
Captain Wilson was one of the most widely known men of his calling
on the great lakes, a faithful and efficient officer, and was highly
esteemed by all with whom he came in contact. He was a member of
Ashlar Lodge, F. & A. M., and the Ancient Order of United Workmen.
Politically he was a Republican. He was also a member of Immanuel
Presbyterian church, of which his family are also regular attendants.
Captain Wilson's funeral occurred from that church on February 17, the
body being interred in Elmwood Cemetery.
On December 26, 1859, he married Mary, daughter of Thomas Ledbeter of Detroit, Mich.  His widow and four children survive him:
Edward, Thomas L., Annie L., and Grace C.
CARL WURZER.
CARL WURZER, son of the late Judge Edward Wurzer of the Supreme
Court of Keer Hessen, Germany, was born in Marburg, province of
Hessen Nassau, August 12, 1854. Mr. Wurzer received his education
in the public schools of his native place and in the Universities at Marburg (where he matriculated in 1870) and at Fulda (where he matriculated in 1871).  On completion of his education he emigrated to
America, locating in Detroit, Mich., where he has since resided.
Shortly after his arrival in Detroit he secured a situation with Anthony Schulte, grocer, where he remained until 1873, when he entered
the employ of the dry goods house of James Lowery & Sons. Mr.


860




:
*'l:ii:" ~~-:~:I' i i~:"'": P
-~r~,i.
I'


LIM& I1


I
i
I
i
I,   J
I


CARL WURZER.




a




Wurzer continued with the latter firm for fifteen years and in 1888 engaged in the same line of business on his own account, and during the
four succeeding years met with well merited success.
In 1892 he disposed of his dry goods interests and established himself
in his present line, as a real estate and general insurance agent. Aside
from this, Mr. Wurzer has the American collecting agency for numerous German estates, is secretary of the Brilliant City Brewing Co. of
Findlay, Ohio, and secretary and manager of the Landlords' Protective
Association of Detroit. He is the organizer and national secretary of
the Hessen National Association, numbering one hundred and two
local societies in the United States and Canada; was the organizer of
the German Salesmen's Society of Detroit, and is a member of the Concordia Singing Society and of Wolverine Lodge, Ancient Order of
United Workmen, of that city.
Mr. Wurzer was married in 1874 to Theresa Kuhn, a native of Germany, and they are the parents of three children. Louis C., F. Henry
and Edward C.
WILLIAM C. YAWKEY.
WILLIAM C. YAWKEY, second son of John H. and Lydia (Clyman)
Yawkey, was born at Massillon, Ohio, August 26, 1834, and was
afforded all the advantages of a private school education, supplemented
by earnest study at night up to, and subsequent to attaining the age of
fourteen years, when he entered a hardware store in his native place as
a clerk at $6 per month, and afterwards became a clerk in his father's
office, where he soon mastered the details of the lumber business. He
remained with his father until 1851, when he moved to Flint, Mich.
(his father afterwards moving his family to Michigan in 1852), and was
taken into partnership in the saw mill near Flint, having charge of the
mill and manufacture of lumber for the ensuing three years. In 1855
he went to Saginaw Valley and located at Lower Saginaw (as Bay City
was at that time known) in connection with his brother, Samuel, who
had located at East Saginaw some time before and who had charge and
looked after the business at this point and that part pertaining to the
Upper Saginaw River, while he (William C.) had charge and looked
after the business at Lower Saginaw and in the vicinity thereto.
In 1856, after the firm of S. W. Yawkey & Co. had been formed by his
861




brother and others, he became a clerk for this firm and was one of their
principal inspectors and shippers of lumber and continued with this
firm during its existence. In 1857 he became one of the firm of C.
Moulthrop & Co., and continued in said firm, having charge of their
main office at East Saginaw, Mich., until 1859, when he started an independent business, taking the agency of a leading Chicago firm in the
purchase of logs and lumber, while retaining the custom of many of
the customers of the former partnership, and at the same time, with
that great energy and skill which has been one of the chief characteristics throughout his business career, formed one of the most noted and
popular commission and inspection houses in the Saginaw Valley, its
clientage including the leading lumber firms of Albany and the East,
as well as of Chicago and other western markets. For several years
Mr. Yawkey operated this business most successfully, under his individual name, until it became the largest business of its kind in the
valley.
About the year 1863 he formed the firm of W. C. Yawkey & Co., with
his father and brother, Edwin, as partners, his business having increased and become so large owing to having purchased pine lands and
becoming engaged in the cutting of logs and manufacturing same into
lumber, as to need the assistance of others in the operation of his commission business, and about the year 1865, his brother, Samuel, was
admitted to the firm. Having worked his way from the beginning to
a well merited success, through energy and close application to the
business in which he was accounted an adept, his operations were from
time to time extended to include not only logs, lumber, shingles and
lath, but also pine lands, not only for others, but for himself as well,
and he held the enviable reputation in each department of being one
of the best inspectors and judges of lumber and standing timber in the
State, The operations of this combination included from 25,000,000
feet to as high as 75,000,000 feet per season, exceeding in its volume
the combined business of any other firm in the valley in the same line
of business.
With rare foresight, Mr. Yawkey, as his means increased, invested in
pine lands and soon accumulated a vast tract, including some of the
best lands upon the streams tributary to the Saginaw River, including
the Cass, Bad, Rifle and other rivers noted for the excellent quality of
their timber resources. From 1864 his operations in cutting and dealing in logs and in the manufacture of lumber were largely extended,
862




while he at the same time was an extensive purchaser of the cut of
other manufacturers.  Subsequent to 1868 he was associated with
others in some of the largest pine land purchases which were consummated in the State. Up to about 1880 his operations were largely confined to the Saginaw Valley region, but subsequent to that time his
dealings have extended to a much larger territory.
In 1878 he removed his residence from Bay City to Detroit, from
which point he has since managed his rapidly extending business, which
has included several hundred thousand acres of timber lands in the
States of Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Alabama, Florida and other
Southern States, owning at this time no less than 150,000 acres in his
individual right, together with no less than 400,000,000 feet of standing
timber in Minnesota and the South, much of which was patented from
the government. In 1888 Mr. Yawkey formed the Yawkey & Lee
Lumber Co., Limited, with headquarters at Hazelhurst, Wis., where
the company had saw mills with capacity for the manufacture of 20,000,000 feet of lumber per season; of this company Mr. Yawkey was
the president.
In 1893 the firm of Yawkey & Lee Lumber Co., Limited, was dissolved
and the firm of Yawkey Lumber Company, composed of W. C. Yawkey,
president, Cyrus C. Yawkey, treasurer and manager, and William H.
Yawkey secretary, was incorporated, they having purchased the effects
of the Yawkey & Lee Lumber Co., Limited, and at the same time purchased of W. C. Yawkey about three hundred million feet of standing
timber, which he had in Wisconsin, and are now manufacturing the
same at Hazelhurst. Their mill is equipped with the latest improvements and appliances, including a band saw, and has a planing mill including a box factory for the more speedy preparation of the stock for
market, and is located upon the line of the Chicago and Milwaukee
Railroad, while a short line built by, and belonging to the company,
and known as the Hazelhurst & Southeastern Railroad, connects with
the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad at Hazelhurst Junction, extending into the timber lands, affording ample facilities for logging operations at all seasons of the year and also gives great facilities for the
shipment of the manufactured product as fast as sold. About twothirds of the mill product passes through the planing mill and box factory and is shipped in car loads to all sections of the country.
Among some of the more valuable holdings of Mr. Yawkey in Minnesota, are mineral lands on the Mesabe Range, the iron from which has
863




a deservedly high reputation and includes the celebrated Bessemer
Commodore and Alpena mines, which are worked on a royalty. Besides these mines he is interested in others in Minnesota and on the
Pacific Coast. Like many other of our successful lumbermen, Mr.
Yawkey does not now confine himself exclusively to lumber and timber
operations. In 1891 he established at Detroit the Western Knitting
Mills, which employs 300 operators in the manufacture of socks, mittens
and other knit goods, with a yarn mill located at Rochester, Mich., and
of this company Mr. Yawkey retains the presidency.
He was married in 1869 to Emma Noyes of Guilford, Vt., who died
December 2, 1892, leaving a daughter, Augusta L., wife of Thomas J.
Austin of Detroit, and a son, William Hoover Yawkey, now associated
with his father in business. Mr. Yawkey is a member of the Masonic
fraternity, and in politics is a Republican. He is interested in the
People's Savings Bank of Detroit, the First National Bank of Bay City,
and Flour City National Bank of Minneapolis. Minn., as well as the
Michigan Fire and Marine and Standard Life and Accident Insurance
Companies of Detroit. Few men have been more active or more successful in a business career extending over nearly half a century, and
none has better st od the test by which an honored name and reputation
are secured. From the age of fourteen years he has depended upon
his own native tact, talent and resources, and his success in the accumulation of an ample fortune is by all who know him recognized as the
result of indomitable energy and unswerving integrity.
The ancestors on Mr. Yawkey's side were quite numerous, having
settled in Pennsylvania at an early day and participated and took part
in the Revolutionary war and the war of 1812. Lydia Clyman's ancestors came from England at an early day and settled in Westmoreland
county, Va. They afterwards resided near Winchester, Va., and from
there they moved to Ohio. Many of them also participated and took
part in the Revolutionary war and war of 1812, and several of the
brothers were pioneers in the West. James and John Clyman were
prominently identified with the first settlement in Wisconsin, and were
prominent men in the Black Hawk war and several of the wars that
originated out of the settlement of the Northwest. They went with
one of the earliest expeditions to the Pacific Coast sent by the United
States Government.


864








C. R. YEARICK, D. D. S.




CINCERO R. YEARICK.


CINCERO R. YEARICK, D. D. S., son of Henry and Katherine (Leinbaugh) Yearick, was born in Marion, Center county, Pa., September 7,
1853. Dr. Yearick is of German descent, his ancestors emigrating to.
Amnerica and settling in Pennsylvania during the early days of that
colony. His grandfather, John Yearick, was born in Union county and
later removed to Madisonburg, Center county. Henry, his son, the
father of Dr. Yearick, resided in the old homestead until he attained his
majority, when he removed to Marion, Center county, where he still
resides, and has been prominent in the growth and development of that
section of his State.
Dr. Yearick received his education in the district schools of Center
county and in the Bellefonte (Pa.) Academy, from which he was
graduated in 1873. In 1874 he entered the Philadelphia Dental College,
and later pursued a course at the Baltimore Dental College, from which
he received the degree of D. D. S. in 1881. Subsequently he removed
to Bellevue, Ohio, where he successfully practiced his profession. In
1887 he removed to Detroit, Mich., where he has since established a
large and lucrative practice. Dr. Yearick is an assiduous student, a
careful and thorough workman, and has attained a most prominent
place among the members of his profession in the city. As a man he is
greatly esteemed in both business and social circles. He is a member
of the Michigan State Dental Association, Mecca Temple, Knights of
Khorassan; Damon Lodge No. 3, Knights of Pythias, National Union,
and St. John's Episcopal church of Detroit.
Dr. Yearick was married in 1883 to Mary V., daughter of Alexander
Henry of Dunkirk, N. Y.
JULIUS C. DICKINSON, M. D.
JULIUS C. DICKINSON, M. D., son of William and Lois (Sturtevant)
Dickinson, was born in Hamburg, Erie county, N. Y., in 1843. In
youth Dr. Dickinson came with his parents to Jonesville, Mich., and
later to Jackson, Mich., where he attended school with a view of studying medicine at the university, which he entered in 1862, and was graduated in 1866. His college life was interrupted by the Civil war, when
he was appointed a member of the hospital staff of Camp Blair at
865
109




Jackson, Mich., in 1864, and was honorably discharged at the close
of the war in 1865. After graduation from college Dr. Dickinson began practice in Detroit, but soon established his office in Holley, Mich.,
where he married Jessie Hadley on September 2, 1874. Soon after
this event he removed to Detroit, where he has since resided. Dr. and
Mrs. Dickinson have five children: Julia, Lucia I., Mattie L., Hazel
A., and Thomas Hadley.
JAMES E. SCRIPPS.
ABOUT the middle of the eighteenth century, a Scripps rebuilt the
famous dome and lantern of the Ely Cathedral. One of his sons emigrated to America in 1791 and settled at Cape Girardeau, Mo. A son
of the latter who remained in England published the London Daily
Sun and the Literary Gazette, the latter the pioneer publication of its
class in England. A son of his was a bookbinder in London, and was
the father of James Edmund Scripps, the subject of this sketch.
The bookbinder came to America with his family in 1844, landing in
Boston after six weeks on the sea in a sailing vessel. After a long and
laborious journey by the Erie Canal, the great lakes, by wagon and by
river, the family finally reached their destination in southern Illinois
in midsummer, and settled on a farm near Rushville, in Schuyler
county.
The hard conditions of pioneer life afforded young Scripps but little
opportunity to add to the infant school education he had received in
England. The first year in Illinois, the tenth of his life, was spent entirely in hard labor. After that until he was fifteen he shared the
meagre advantages of a winter school, while continuing the work during the summer. In spite of the wretchedness of these opportunities,
he was studious enough to have prepared himself for college, which,
however, the limited means of his father did not permit him to attend.
At fifteen he was compelled to take up a man's work on his father's
farm, and to finish his own education by solitary study in the brief intervals of leisure which the hard circumstances of western life at that
time afforded him. That he made some progress was evidenced by the
fact that he was chosen to teach a local school before he was a man in
years. This occupied two winters, while he continued his labor on the
farm in the summer.


866




Early in 1857, at the age of twenty-two years, he made his way to
Chicago, took a course in a business college, kept books for a lumbering firm for a few months and then secured employment as a collector,
proof-reader and general utility man on the Chicago Tribune, thus
making his advent in the profession in which he has since attained so
extraordinary a success. His industry and capacity soon secured for
him promotion to the post of commercial reporter and marine editor,
but the hard times of the panic of that period, compelled a reduction
of the staff, and he came to Detroit the following year and became commercial editor of the Daily Advertiser, to the duties of which position
he soon added those of news editor. At the breaking out of the war
of the Rebellion in 1861 he resigned to enlist in the army, but a tempting offer of a partnership in the business induced him to return to the
Advertiser. In the following year, 1862, he brought about the consolidation of the two Republican papers of Detroit, the Advertiser, which
was a morning paper, and the Tribune, which was published in the
afternoon; became business manager of the united enterprise and shortly afterwards, managing editor. From that time forward the business,
which had previously languished, became highly successful and continued through the war to pay substantial dividends.
The establishment of a rival, paper, the Daily Post, in 1866, by Senator Chandler and other Republican leaders who were dissatisfied with
the political tone of the Tribune and Advertiser, but slightly affected
the success of the latter, but the rivalry in course of time brought
about internal differences in the management of the older paper, and
Mr. Scripps, in February, 1873, severed his connection, sold a part of
his stock and prepared for the establishment of a newspaper on a new
line, without partners to interfere with the management and without
party ties to embarrass its political conduct. On August 23 of that
year the first issue of the Evening News was emitted from the presses
of the Free Press on the corner of Woodbridge and Griswold streets.
Such thorough prepartation had been made that over 10,000 copies
were printed for actual subscribers, but the limited press facilities at
command, although the best in Detroit at the time, required the whole
afternoon to print the edition and scarcely more than half the subscribers got their paper. From sheer mechanical inability to supply
the demand the circulation fell off during the first few months to less
than half the original number, while the most energetic preparations
were being made to install more modern machinery in a building which


867




was bought on Shelby street, opposite the office of the Daily Post.
With installation of the new plant by the following spring, the circulation quickly advanced again to the original figure, which at the time
was quite double the total circulation of all the other daily papers of
Detroit. Within six months of the issue of the first number the business of the Evening News was on a paying basis and in one year it was
the leading daily paper of Detroit in profit and influence as well as in
circulation. In 1880 its bona fide daily paid circulation of 30,000, was,
according to the Federal census of the year, a full half of the total daily
circulation of all the daily papers in the State of Michigan, a position
of supremacy in its own province never before or since relatively
equaled by any of the great papers on the planet.
From the day Mr. Scripps severed his connection with the Advertiser and Tribune the business of that concern began to languish and
before long was in as bad a condition as that of its rival, the Post. The
two were ultimately consolidated, passed through various ownerships,
each more disastrous than its predecessors, until finally in 1891 the
whole property was sold to the Evening News Association, and has
since then been conducted in business and political harmony with the
Evening News with satisfactory success.
The extraordinary success of the Evening News encouraged similar
enterprise elsewhere. In 1878 a paper called the Press was established
on the same model in Cleveland; 1880 saw another started in St. Louis
called the Chronicle; 1881 witnessed the purchase and reorganization
of the Post in Cincinnati, which had been struggling in incompetent
hands, and in later years the Scripps family of daily papers received
additions in Covington and Chicago. All these were manned in chief
by persons trained on the staff of the Detroit Evening News under Mr.
Mr. Scripps's direction, and are now all flourishing and influential
journals in their respective fields, with a combined circulation that runs
into the hundreds of thousands, and readers who number at least two
millions.
In politics Mr. Scripps was an original Republican, having cast his
first vote for Fremont in 1856, and adhered loyally to that party until
he was compelled to part from it on the question of the coinage in 189;.
He has, however, never permitted his personal party allegiance to
sway the political conduct of the many daily journals he has owned
and controlled since he severed his connection with party journalism in
1873. He has regarded each as a separate and distinct legitimate busiS868




ness enterprise to be conducted and controlled according to the circumstances of its own environment, and to be bound by no allegiance except that it owed the best interests of the community it served, the
general public interested as indicated by the broadest patriotism and
the most fearless truth-telling. It is to these principles, adhered to
through good and evil report that his newspapers owe the great public
confidence they enjoy, and to that confidence, combined with the most
careful business management, that he owes his extraordinary success.
Failing health, in 1886, which happily has since been entirely recovered by rest and recreation, compelled Mr. Scripps to retire from
active work. He had made two trips to Europe, respectively in 1864
and 1881, and has combined his observations in an interesting volume
entitled "Five Months Abroad." He now crossed the ocean again to
renew the impressions and studies of those earlier voyages and remained on the other side, visiting all points of interest on the Continent
and in the British Islands, during 1887, 1888 and 1889. During this
period and since his return, however, he never entirely relaxed his literary activity. Besides preparing and publishing a volume of family
records, called " Scripps Memorials," he has been a constant voluntary,
almost weekly, contributor to the Evening News or Tribune, and has
also written and published several pamphlets, mostly on economic subjects.
But his activities have not been confined to journalism, the arduous
business management of it, and to literary labor aside from it. Conceiving the project of an art museum for this city in 1883, he was the
first substantial contributor of cash to its foundation, became one bf the
original forty incorporators, served actively on the board of trustees for
twelve years, and occupied the office of president of the institution for
two years. Besides his cash contributions he collected and donated to
the museum about seventy pictures, examples of the old masters, which
formed the nucleus for the fine collection which is now one of the
noblest educational influences in Detroit. He has been an indefatigable collector of paintings of a high order, of rare prints and books, and
especially of works and plates illustrative of architecture, of the Gothic
school of which he is passionately fond and with which he has acquired
a considerable expert familiarity. It was this fondness for the Gothic
which impelled him when he had resolved to build a church for the
congregation with whom he worshiped, that of Trinity Episcopal
parish, to devote nearly three years, 1890-1893, to a personal supervi

869




sion of the construction. The result, at a personal cost to himself of
about $70,000, is, although somewhat of a miniature, one of the purest
examples of Gothic styles in the United States. He also served for
some years on the board of directors of the Dime Savings Bank, which
was one of his few business investments outside of the newspaper business and real estate, and he was also for three years a park commissioner of this city. These activities filled a large portion of the period
after his retirement. An ordinary man would hardly call it a period
of rest.
Nurtured in the Church of England as a child he found himself associated with his family in the Presbyterian communion in Illinois, where
no Episcopal society existed, but drifted naturally back to the faith of
his childhood in later years, when Bishop Cheney of Chicago founded
the Reform Episcopal Church.  He assisted in the organization of
Trinity church near his house, later built the present Gothic church
for the congregation and followed the congregation when it subsequently
transferred its allegiance to the regular Protestant Episcopal church.
Mr. Scripps's domectic life has been a singularly happy one. Married in 1862 to Miss Harriet J. Messinger of Detroit, the union has
been blessed with six children, of whom four survive.  Restored to
health and vigor, but having little taste for the amusements which occupy and interest most men, he now spends his well-earned leisure in
the domestic circle, in the delights of his well chosen and expensive
library, or in adding to his splendid collection of pictures, rare old books
and pIrints, while still manifesting his interest in the grasp of current
events by an occasional article or pamphlet on leading topics of public
concern. Such a life needs no commentary. It supplies its own.
JOHN S. NEWBERRY.
HON. JOHN S. N EWIERRY (deceased), was born in Waterville, Oneida
county, N. Y., November 18, 1826. He was the eldest son of Elihu
and Rhoda (Phelps) Newberry. The American branch of the family
was founded by Thomas Newberry, who emigrated from England and
settled in Dorchester, Mass., in 1625. Mr. Newberry removed to Michigan when he was five years old and after a short stay in l)etroit the
family settled in Romeo, where he participated in such educational advantages as were to ble obtained in the public schools of that day. Later
870




he attended a private school in Detroit and in 1841 entered the University of Michigan, graduating as valedictorian of his class in 1845. In
the mean time he had acquired a knowledge of civil engineering and
surveying, and subsequent to his graduation he entered the employ of
the Michigan Central Railway in the construction department, where
he remained two years. The following year he spent in traveling
through the western Territories, and on his return to Detroit he entered the office of Van Dyke & Emmons, where he studied law and was
admitted to the bar in 1853; subsequently he formed the firm of Towle,
Hunt & Newberry; and later withdrawing, associated himself with
Ashley Pond, under the firm name of Pond & Newberry; this firm took
in Henry B. Brown (now judge of the United States Supreme Court),
and upon the withdrawal of Mr. Pond continued the business under the
name of Newberry & Brown.
In 1863 Mr. Newberry abandoned the practice of law. In 1864 the
Michigan Car Company was organized, Mr. Newberry becoming the
largest stockholder and its president. From this industry have sprung
some of Detroit's most important industries, notably the Baugh Steam
Forge Co.; Detroit Car Wheel Co.; Detroit Steel and Spring Co.; Fulton Iron and Engine Works and many kindred establishments, in which
Mr. Newberry was a large stockholder and held official positions. The
several industries transacted an average volume of business ranging
from three to five millions of dollars annually and giving employment
to nearly three thousand hands.
At the time of his death on January 2, 1887, he was a director in the
Detroit, Mackinac & Marquette Railway; Detroit & Cleveland Steam
Navigation Co.; Vulcan Furnace Co. of Newberry, Mich.; Detroit National Bank; Detroit, Bay City and Alpena Railway; D. M. Ferry &
Co.; Detroit Railway Elevator Co. and many other prominent corporations of Detroit and Michigan. On reaching his majority Mr. Newberry joined the Whig party, with which he was associated until the
birth of the Republican party when he changed to that candidate for
public favor. He was appointed provost marshal by President Lincoln,
serving in 1862 and 1863 with the rank of captain. In 1879 he was
elected to Congress from the First district of Michigan and served one
term, during which time he rendered good service to the commercial
interests of the country as a member of the committee on commerce.
Realizing that his personal interests were suffering, he refused a second
nomination and devoted his energies to his various business enterprises.


871




During the last of his life, in connection with his business associate,
James McMillan, he founded Grace Hospital, to the establishment of
which he contributed $100,000.
In 1855 he married Harriet N. Robinson of Buffalo, N. Y., who died
in 1856, leaving one son, Harrie R. In 1859 Mr. Newberry married
Helen P. Handy of Cleveland, 0., and they had three children: Truman H., John S. and Helen H.


872




GEORGE B. CATLIN.




I




PART 1I.
PERSONAL REFERENCES.








PERSONAL REFERENCES.
Abel, Frederick, son of Philip J. and Susannah (Ulmann) Abel, was born in Landau, Bavaria, Germany, December 22, 1824. His father, Philip J. Abel, was a
music teacher of note and the director of the Liederkranz Society of Landau.
Frederick began the study of music at an early age, receiving his instruction from
his father, remaining under his charge until the age of nineteen. In 1843 he removed to Frankfort on the Main, where he received further instruction under
various masters, among whom was Professor Guhr. He returned in 1846 to his
childhood's home where he remained until 1849. On the breaking out of the revolution of that year he emigrated to America and located in Cleveland, Ohio, and engaged in teaching music. In 1850 he was instrumental in organizing the Cleveland
Gesang-Verein, and of which he was made director. In 1860 he removed to Milwaukee, Wis., accepting the directorship of the Milwaukee Music-Verein, and was also
engaged as organist of the First Presbyterian church. In 1871 he removed to Chicago, accepting a position as organist at the North Side Synagogue, and also had
charge of the music of the Unity church, of which the Rev. Robert Collier was the
pastor. Shortly after his arrival the great fire destroyed the city, and Mr. Abel returned to Milwaukee, where he remained only a short time, when, at the urgent
request of the late Charles Wetmore, he came to Detroit, and in February of 1872
organized the D1)etroit Musical Society, with which he was connected in the capacity
of director until 1882. In 1873 he was appointed director of the Harmonic Society
of Detroit, and was retained in that position for thirteen years. In 1887 he took
charge of the Concordia Society, and is at present its director. Mr. Abel was married in 1850 to Miss Nancy D. Clary of Monroeville, Ohio. They have a family of
two children living; a daughter, Mary, wife of R L. Brown of Chicago, and Frederick L. Abel, at present connected with the Detroit Conservatory of Music in the
capacity of teacher of piano, 'cello and singing.
Aikman, William, jr., son of Rev. Dr. William and Anna M. (Burns) Aikman,
was born at Newark, N. J., September 3, 1850, of Scotch and French Huguenot ancestry. He went to school at Wilmington, Del., and in 1869 entered the New York
University, graduating from the literary department of that institution with second
honors in June, 1872. He came to Detroit during the fall of 1872 and studied law in
the offices of Henry M. Cheever and Sylvester Lamrned, being admitted to the bar in


3




1874. Shortly after this he became a partner of Willis E. Walker, under the firm
name of Aikman & Walker, which was dissolved upon the death of Mr. Walker, and
since then Mr. Aikman has practiced alone. The greater part of his work consists
in the management of estates and as commercial counsel. Mr. Aikman is active in
musical, art, and literary circles, and was a director of the Detroit Philharmonic
Club, and for years a vestryman of St. Paul's Episcopal church. Mr. Aikman still
remains a bachelor.
Alexander, Charles T.. son of George W. and Martha (Arnold) Alexander, was
born in Detroit, Mich., October 5, 1866. On the paternal side of the family Mr.
Alexander is descended from the Alexanders of the Highlands of Scotland; his
grandfather, Archibald Alexander, emigrated from Scotland to America early in the
present century and after a short stop at New York finally settled, in 1833, at Grosse
Ile, Mich., establishing there the present homestead. Although dwelling in a log
house and surrounded principally by native redskins, he entertained roya'ly and was
a beloved character in that vicinity for many years; he died at Grosse lie in 1875, at
the age of eighty years. Mr. Alexander's mother, Martha (Arnold) Alexander, is of
Welsh extraction and highly connected. Charles T. was graduated from the Detroit
High School in 1886 and in the autumn of the same year entered the literary department of the University of Michigan, from which he was graduated as Bachelor of
Letters in the spring of 1890. He afterward spent one year in the law department
of the University and completed his studies in the law office of Miller, Bissell & Sibley at Detroit, being admitted to the bar in the summer of 1892, after a rigid examination before the Supreme Court of Michigan. In August, 1894, he was admitted to
practice in the Circuit Courts of the United States  Since 1892 Mr. Alexander has
been an active practitioner of his profession at Detroit, and has met with marked
success, especially in his specialty of corporation law. He is a member of the Detroit Bar Association, Detroit Athletic, Fellowcraft and Comedy Clubs, and Michigan Naval Reserves. He is still a bachelor.
Anderson, Robert Henry, son of Wells and Dorothy (Beckwith) Anderson, was born
in Palmyra, N. Y., February 22, 1827. Mr. Anderson is descended on the maternal
side from Matthew Beckwith, who, with John Winthrop and others, founded the
Saybrooke colony in 1635. On the paternal side he is descended from Dr. Robert
Anderson, who served as surgeon in the Continental army. Dr. Anderson emigrated
to America early in the seventeenth century, settling at East Haddam, Conn. Robert, the subject of this sketch, was educated in the public schools of Palmyra and
Canandaigua, and on the completion of his studies entered the employ of his father,
who owned a shoe store at Palmyra. In 1848 Mr. Anderson visited California, making
the trip by way of the Isthmus, and for a time was employed as bookkeeper by Judge
Brown, of Sacremento, at that time in the commission business. Later he purchased
the business and conducted it with success. In 1855 he returned to the East, and in the
fall of that year settled permanently in Detroit. His first employment in Detroit was
as bookkeeper for the John Chester estate, with whom he remained two years. In 1857
he formed a partnership with Jacob Hendrickson, under the firm name of Anderson &
Hendrickson, and engaged in the commission business, dealing in flour and grain.
In 1859 Mr. Hendrickson retired from the firm, and Mr. Anderson took in D. H.
Denton, forming the firm of Anderson & Denton. This firm was among the charter




members of the Detroit Board of Trade. Mr. Denton retired in 1866, and the business was continued by Mr. Anderson until he was appointed by President Cleveland,
in 1893, to be superintendent of the registry department of the Detroit post-office, a
position he retained until his death on January 26, 1898. Mr. Anderson was for a
long time a member of the Detroit Light Guard, joining in 1860. He was one of the
organizers of the Detroit Baseball Club. and its president for nine years. He was
married February 28, 1856, to Miss Maria North, of Palmyra, N. Y. His widow and
two children-Wells N. Anderson and Julia Denton Anderson-survive him.
Andrews, Frank C., son of Pliny P. and Lizzie (Dennis) Andrews, was born in
Shelby township, Macomb county, Mich., March 20, 1871, on the homestead farm
where his parents still reside. Until he reached the age of nineteen years he worked
on the farm, attending school during the winter months. In October, 1889, he took
charge of a grain and produce elevator at Washington, Mich., and remained in that
position until June 1, 1890, when he removed to Detroit. Shortly after his arrival in
that city he became bookkeeper, clerk and general salesmen for Homer Warren,
real estate dealer, and served in that capacity until October 1, 1892, when the present
firm of Homer Warren & Co., real estate and loans, were organized, of which he became a member. Mr. Andrews is a director of the Romeo (Mich.) Savings Bank; a
member of the Bankers' Club of Detroit; Detroit Athletic Club, and a Knight Templar. On October 3, 1891, he married Edith J., daughter of John J. Baker, a thrifty
farmer of Washington county, Mich., and they have one child, Homer Warren Andrews, born March 20, 1893.
Andrus, Frank D., was born in Washington, Macomb county, Mich., August 21,
1850, a son of Loren Andrus, a retired farmer, now a resident of Detroit. In the
latter city Frank D. attended the public schools, and later entered Ann Arbor University, from which he graduated in the class of 1872. In 1875 he had conferred
upon him by the university 'the degree of M. A., and in 1879 was graduated from
there in law. Following his graduation in law he practiced the profession for several
years alone, and in 1882 formed a partnership with J. B. Corliss; in 1886 they associated with them Thomas T. Leeter, jr. Mr. Andrus is a member of both State and
local bar associations; is a prominent Mason, and has been for six years a member of
the Board of Estimates of Detroit, being its president in 1894-95. In 1880 he married Julia J. Goodson, of Saginaw City, Mich., and they have one daughter, Helen G.
Andrus, Ward L., son or Loren and Lucina (Davis) Andrus, was born at Washington, Mich., on July 13, 1852. He received his education in the public schools of
his native town, and later took a course in the Bryant & Stratton Business College
(at Detroit), from which he was graduated in 1870. He then entered the employ of
D. D. Mallory & Co., wholesale grocers and importers, as bookkeeper, and served in
that capacity until 1880, when he was made chief clerk. In that position he remained until 1885, when, in company with Mr. G. W. Lee, he bought out the interest
D. D. Mallory & Co., and carried on the business successfully until 1890, retaining
the original firm name. In 1890 he sold out his interest and established his present
business, as Ward L. Andrus & Co., importers and jobbers of foreign and domestic
fruits, canned goods and fancy groceries. He has built up a large and paying business through the State, and ranks among the first in his line in the city of Detroit,




Mr. Andrus is a director of and stockholder in the City Savings Bank, and is otherwise identified with the business interests of the city. The "silent" partner of the
firm of Ward L. Andrus & Co. is Mr. Samuel C. Tewksbury. In 1879 Mr. Andrus
was married to Mrs. Ella McWhorter (nee Swartz), of Buffalo, N. Y.
Armstrong, Thomas, was born in Dublin, Ireland, June 2, 1805, son of Launcelot
Armstrong, planter, of Duxley Hall, Jamaica, who died in 1810, and Ann Chamberlain, who died in Detroit in 1883. Accordimg to the official record in Dublin Castle,
he was the only remaining Irish born representative of the family known as the
Armstrongs of Longfield and Carrickmakeegan, County Leitrim, for many generations prominent in civil and military life. The family was founded by William
Armstrong of Gilnockie, Scotland, an officer in the army of Charles I, who settled in
Ireland about 1620, who was great-grandson of John Armstrong, Laird of Gilnockie,
who died in 1530, a noted border chief whose name is mentioned in many old Scottish ballads and whose stronghold is still standing near Langholm. His earliest
recollections of a historical nature, were of the time of Napoleon and Wellington.
The celebrations in Dublin over the fall of Napoleon at Waterloo made a vivid impression on his mind. He was present at the opening of the first passenger railway
in the world, between Liverpool and Manchester, in 1829. Traveling by stage coach
through England, he spent some time in London at this period. In 1832, with his
mother, he came to America, remaining in New York city for five years. He returned to Ireland in 1834, coming back the same year. His first investment in
America was in Maine in 1835, where he bought-a tract of land. He found on investigation that while this was probably good land, it was a poor investment, as it
was located at the bottom of a beautiful lake. In 1837 he resolved to move to Michigan, coming by the most available route, the Erie Canal. At Buffalo he embarked
on the steamer North America. Three days from Buffalo they reached Malden, now
Amherstburg, where they stopped for the night, the navigation of the river being
considered too difficult to be attempted in the darkness. Finally landing at the foot
of Randolph street in Detroit, they were appalled to find that they would be compelled to wade knee deep in mud to reach the firm ground up the bank of the river.
Thoroughly discouraged by the forbidding aspect of the village, they had nearly resolved to return on the steamer and go back to New York, but finally decided to remain
and see more of the country. He made some investments in real estate and engaged
in mercantile business, keeping a general store for several years. He retired from
business in 1858. He was very modest and unassuming, mingling but little in the
activities of society and politics, having a very strong religious nature of the Puritan
type. A member of the Church of Ireland in his youth, he joined the Methodist
Episcopal church in early manhood. He was of a very charitable disposition, believing that charity should be given in the scriptural sense, without the knowledge
of others; extending relief to many needy families for long periods of time. He was
married in 1845 to Miss Catherine Itopson, who died in 1855. He was married again
in 1863 to Miss Rebecca Gourley. lHe had eight children, of whom seven are living:
William, Albert and IIerbert, who are bachelors; Henry, who married Miss Sarah
Aikman, daughter of Rev. William Aikman, D. D.; Edwin, who married Miss
Louise M. Cutcheon, daughter of Hon. S. M. Cutcheon; James Gourley, who married Miss Pauline Meddaugh, daughter of Iron. E. W. Meddaugh; and Miss Mary
Armstrong.
6




Atkinson, James J., Ph.D., son of James and Elizabeth Atkinson, was born at
Warwick, Ontario, Canada, February 6, 1848 At the age of six years he removed
with his parents to Port Huron, Mich., where he attended public school until 1864,
when he enlisted in the army as a private in the 3d Mich. Infantry and was at once
sent with his regiment to the front. He saw his first active service during General
Hood's advance through Tennessee, which culminated in the battle of Nashville.
During 1865 and 1866 he was with Sheridan and Custer in Texas, and was mustered
out of the service in May, 1866, as first lieutenant and adjutant of his regiment, having held four commissions: as sergeant, second lieutenant, first lieutenant and adjutant, before reaching the age of nineteen. Mr. Atkinson later served for two years
as captain of Co. B, 4th Infantry, Mich. National Guard, and later held the rank of
major on the staff of Governor Begole of Michigan. Following his discharge from
the army in 1866, he returned to Port Huron and again attended the public schools,
being graduated from the High School in 1869, the first pupil ever graduated from
that institution. In the autumn of 1869 he went abroad and in 1871 was graduated
A. B. from the University of Huy, Belgium. He then entered the University of
Innsbrueck at Tyrol, Austria, receiving the degree of Ph.D. from that institution in
1872. During the winter of 1872-73 he was a student in the law department of the
University of Leipsic, Germany, and in the spring of 1873 he returned to America,
locating in Detroit, Mich., where he completed his law studies in the office of Atkinson & Hawley, being admitted to the bar in 1874. Since that time Mr. Atkinson has
been an active and successful practitioner of his profession at Detroit, making a
specialty of admiralty cases and real estate law.
Atwater, Almon B., son of John T. and Matilda E. (Hill) Atwater, was born in
Sheffield, Ashtabula county, Ohio, November 19, 1845. He is of English ancestry,
being descended from Samuel Atwater, who came to America early in the seventeenth
century and who settled at New Haven, Conn. Mr. Atwater was educated in the
academy at Kingsville, Ohio, and at the Austinburg Institute in Ashtabula county.
At the age of eighteen he entered the employ of the Cleveland & Erie Railway as
telegraph operator and was later appointed station agent at Stoneboro, Pa., where
he remained until 1867. In the fall of that year he was transferred to the engineer
department of the same road and later became connected with the Erie & Pittsburg
Railway. At the commencement of the survey for the Canada Southern road Mr.
Atwater was appointed assistant engineer of the work, remaining until its completion in 1872, when he was given a similar position with the Port Dover & Lake Huron
Railway; later he was appointed chief engineer of the Georgian Bay & Lake Erie
Railway, and in 1880 was appointed to the general superintendency of that system.
Mr. Atwater served in this capacity until 1882, when he entered the employ of the
Chicago & Grand Trunk Railway as chief engineer, with headquarters at Battle
Creek, Mich., retaining that position until July, 1885, at which time he was appointed
to his present position of superintendent of the Grand Trunk lines west of the Detroit
and St. Clair Rivers. He is a director in the Detroit, Grand Haven & Milwaukee
Railway; Cincinnati, Saginaw & Mackinaw Railway; Toledo, Saginaw & Mackinaw
Railway; and Forest Lawn Cemetery. He is a member of the Masonic fraternity,
and of the Fellowcraft Club of Detroit. July 3, 1872, he married Jane Thompson of
Fort Erie, Ontario, Can.


7




Babcock, Samuel S., son of Abelino and Emeline (Short) Babcock, was born in
Genesee county, Mich., February 5, 1842. He attended the district schools until
twelve years of age, then one term in the Flint, Genesee county, Academy, and one
term in Cooperstown (N. Y.) Academy. He had just completed the preparatory
course at Oberlin, Ohio, when the Civil war commenced. He enlisted in May, 1861,
and served until June, 1863, in the 3d Regiment, N. Y. Vol. Inft. Upon being mustered out of the service he entered the Michigan State Normal School, from which
he was graduated in 1865. During the following seven years he taught in the Michigan public schools, and in 1872 was called to the chair of mathematics in the Kansas
State Normal School. He remained in that position for one year and then resumed
his teaching in the public schools of Michigan, at which he continued for three years
more. During that period he devoted all of his leisure hours to the study of law,
and in 1876, after a satisfactory examination, was admitted to the bar, and has since
practiced continuously in Detroit. In 1886 Mr. Babcock was elected as a member
of the State Board of Education, and at the expiration of his term of six years dedined renomination, although great pressure was brought to bear to retain him as a
member of that body. For two years he was a member of the Board of Geological
Survey of Michigan, in which position he rendered his State excellent service. He
has been a member and director of the Michigan Club since its organization in 1884,
was its vice-president during 1895 and president during the following year. He is
a member of the American Historical Association, and of the Michigan State Bar
Association, and is at present managing a number of large estates. Mr. Babcock
has been and is a deep student, and long before concluding to make the law his life
profession he had read and become familiar with Blackstone and other distinguished
authorities. He has built up for himself a large and lucrative practice and enjoys
the unqualified esteem of his fellow practitioners and the public.
Babst, Earl D., is a native of Ohio, and was born in the town of Crestline, July
8, 1870. His early education was obtained in the public schools of his native town;
he fitted himself for college in the Kenyon Military Academy at Gambier, Ohio, and
after two years in Kenyon College entered the literary department of the University of Michigan, from which he was graduated in 1893 with the degree of Ph. B.
He then completed the law course in the same institution, being graduated with the
degree of LL. B. in 1894; he was admitted to the bar in the same year and has since
practiced continuously at Detroit with marked success. While in college Mr. Babst
took an active interest in all literary and political work. He was one of the organizers of the National Republican College League; editor of the Western Department
of the University Magazine of New York, and a member of the Republican executive
committee during his entire college course. He is at present secretary of the Michigan Council of the National Business League; permanent secretary and historian of
the class of 1893, University of Michigan; secretary of the University of Michigan
Association of Detroit, and a member of the Psi Upsilon fraternity. He is a member of the Michigan Club, Detroit Boat Club, the Country Club, and Michigan Naval
Reserve. Mr. Babst took a prominent part in the presidential campaign of 1896 as
secretary of the Michigan branch of the American Ilonest Money League, 250 clubs
being organized throughout Michigan, and the most effective business men's campaign in the history of the State being conducted from headquarters in Detroit.


8




Bacon, Eldridge F., son of Henry and Caroline (Farrand) Bacon, was born in the
township of Superior, Washtenaw county, Mich., May 3, 1850. He attended the
model school, then a part of the State Normal at Ypsilanti, three miles distant from
his home, and was graduated from the Normal School in the class of 1872. Soon
after his graduation he became principal of the Petersburg school, but remained only
until the following year. During the ensuing year he was engaged in civil engineering in Wisconsin, and in 1874 returned to Michigan and began reading law with
Richard Winsor at Port Austin. He was elected county surveyor of Huron county
in 1874, and re-elected in 1876, but still continued with added zeal the study of law.
In 1876 he was admitted to the Huron county bar and began practice at Port Austin,
where he formed a partnership with George S. Engle, which existed for one year.
During the year 1878 he engaged with Colonel Atkinson of Detroit, and in 1879 removed to Sand Beach where he practiced for ten years; he then located in Detroit
and has ever since been a resident of that city. He has built up a lucrative practice
and is looked upon to-day in Detroit as one of the best authorities on tax titles. Mr.
Bacon is a member of the West Side Social Club; Michigan Club; Grande Pointe Club,
and has been an active K. T. for twelve years. He has been an ardent Republican
all his life, but has never aspired to public office. In 1881 he married Clarena W.
Bailey of St. Clair, Mich., and they have three children.
Bailey, William M., M. D., son of the late Benjamin F. and Marcia M. (Huntington) Bailey, was born in Eaton Rapids, Mich., May 28, 1845. He was educated in
the public schools of Eaton Rapids, and in the literary department of the Albion
(Mich.) Methodist College. He began the study of medicine in 1863 with his brother,
Dr, Benjamin F. Bailey, then a practicing physician at Lansing, Mich., with whom
he remained until 1868. During the winters of 1866-67-68, he was a student in the
University of Medicine and Surgery at Cleveland, Ohio, from which institution he
took his degree of M. D. in 1868. Following his graduation Dr. Bailey practiced for
two years at Mason, Mich., going to California in 1870 on account of ill health, where
for three years he practiced in northern California and western Nevada, returning
to Michigan in 1873. During the ensuing four years he was a practitioner of his profession at Lansing, and in 1877 located in Detroit, where he has since practiced without interruption and with marked success. Although a general practitioner Dr.
Bailey makes a specialty of gynaecology. He is a member of the American Institute
of Homeopathy, a member and ex-president of the Michigan State Homeopathic
Society, and ex-president of the Detroit College of Physicians and Surgeons, now
extinct. He is a member of the gyncecological staff of Grace Hospital; is president
of the Wayne Club; past high priest of Peninsular Chapter, R. A. M., and past
thrice illustrious master of Monroe Council, R. & S. M. of Detroit, being a thirtysecond degree Mason. For eleven years past Dr. Bailey has been recorder of Moslem
Temple of Detroit, A. A. O. N. M. S. He was married in 1869 to Lucy Stead of
Cleveland, Ohio, and they had four children, two of whom survive: Benjamin F., a
member of the literary class of 1898, University of Michigan; and Edwin H., a member of the class of 1900, Detroit High School.
Barnes, Edward A., son of Orlando M. Barnes, was born at Mason, Mich, November 8, 1862. He attended the public schools at Mason and Lansing, having removed
with his parents to the latter city in 1875. After a thorough preparatory course in
b




the Michigan Military Academy at Orchard Lake he entered the literary department
of the University of Michigan, and was graduated therefrom in 1883, when he took a
two years' course in the Harvard Law School. Returning to Michigan he came to
Detroit in 1885, and entered the office of Moore & Canfield, where he completed his
preparation for the practice of law, and was admitted to the bar in the following
year. Since that time he has practiced his profession continuously at Detroit, with
the exception of one year spent in a tour of the continent of Europe and one year in the
western United States. In 1895 Mr. Barnes formed his first partnership (which still
exists) with Mr. U. Grant Race, under the style of Barnes & Race. Mr. Barnes is a
member of the Detroit Bar Association and of several fraternal and social organizations. As a lawyer he has excelled and has been eminently successful in his practice.
In 1886 he married Julia, daughter of Judge John Morris, of Fort Wayne, Ind., who
was formerly a justice of the Supreme Court of that State. Mr. and Mrs. Barnes
have one son, Richard Morris. Mr. Barnes has always affiliated with the Democratic
party, and while deeply interested in politics and active in campaign times, has never
held or been a candidate for public office. His political views are those set forth by
the platform of the Indianapolis convention of 1896.
Barton, James G., son of David H. and Mary A. (Goetchus) Barton, was born in
Brooklyn, N. Y., January 13, 1852. He moved with his parents to New York city in
1862, previous to which he attended the public schools of his native city for about
three years. Soon after removing to New York he entered the public schools, leaving in 1867 to accept a position in the banking house of Robinson & Drew, and remained with that firm until 1876, forging ahead from messenger to confidential clerk.
The death of Mr. Robinson caused a dissolution of the firm, and the son, Eugene N.
Robinson, established a private bank, retaining the services of Mr. Barton. In the
spring of 1878 Mr. Barton resigned and removed to Reed City, Mich., where an excellent opening for a private bank was probable, but on looking over the field he decided not to locate there and went on to Muskegon, and later to Grand Rapids. In
the fall of 1878 he was engaged by the Detroit News Company as cashier and
assistant manager; in 1884, while connected with that company, he went to Wooster,
Ohio, and bought out and reorganized the Wooster Metallic Casket Company causing
the concern to be removed to Detroit, and the name of the company changed to the
Detroit Metallic Casket Company. In 1888 Mr. Barton assumed the active management of the firm. May 18, 1872, he married Mary F. Page, of New York, and they
have three boys and two girls.
Bassett, Arthur, son of Nehemiah and Mary (Foster) Bassett, was born in
Lenawee county, Mich., January 17, 1851. His grandfather, Nehemiah Bassett, a
son of Nehemiab, was one of the pioneers of Michigan, whither he migrated from
New York city in 1828. He cleared and cultivated a farm in the wilderness and
built a log house, but later the father of Arthur moved further west in the same
county to a fertile spot, where he erected a log house and spent about fifteen years,
then moved to Monroe county, Mich., where he spent his last days. Nehemiah,
father of Arthur, was born in New York city, where he lived until seventeen years of
age, when he removed to the wilds of Michigan, and it was in the log house in Lenawee county that Arthur was born. He attended the schools and High School at
Saginaw, from which he was graduated in 1868. In the same year he removed to
10




Detroit and entered the employ of Farrand, Sheley & Co., wholesale druggists, where
he remained until 1874. During the ensuing two years he was engaged in the banking house of E. K. Roberts & Co. (now the Citizens' Savings Bank of Detroit). In
1876 Mr. Bassett established himself in the retail drug business, which he successfully carried on until 1893; in 1895 he accepted his present position as special loan
agent for Michigan, with headquarters at Detroit, for the Northwestern Mutual Life
Insurance Company of Milwaukee, Wis. In 1883 he married Elizabeth C. Fancher,
of Detroit, and they have two sons, Gilbert L. and Arthur F.
Baubie, William E. (or Baby), son of William L. and Eliza C. (Chipman) Baubie,
was born on a farm in Kent county, near Chatham, Ontario, Can., September 11,
1853. After attending the public schools of Essex county, Ontario, and Detroit,
Mich., he spent to years in the University of Quebec, and in 1870, after completing
the course in surveying, was graduated with honors from St. Mary's College at
Montreal, Canada. Before he reached the age of twenty he was assistant engineer
under John Scott, C. E., in the building of the Detroit & Bay City Railroad, and
during the ensuing five years was identified with numerous other surveys of importance, including the Sturgeon Bay and Lake Michigan Ship Canal; Chicago harbor
survey for the United States government; the Peshtigo River (Wisconsin) surveys
for Peshtigo Improvement Co. of Chicago; and the laying of double track road in
Michigan for the Michigan Central Railroad Company. While engaged in surveying
Mr. Baubie devoted his leisure time to the study of law and was admitted to the bar
at Detroit in 1875. He then became a partner of his uncle, Hon. J. Logan Chipman,
M. C. (deceased), and continued as such until 1879, when Judge Chipman ascended
the bench of the Superior Court of Detroit. Since 1879 Mr. Baubie has practiced his
profession continuously at Detroit. For the past ten years he has made a specialty
of the laws governing public education, and during that entire period was counsel
for the Board of Education of Detroit. He drew the act and had it passed in the
Legislature, giving the city of Detroit $750,000 for school buildings in 1q91, the result
of which was the building and establishing the New Central High School and other
high grade schools; and also the bill for providing free text books in the schools of
Detroit. Politically Mr. Baubie has always been a Democrat. In 1881 he married
Julia P., daughter of James Beatty of Detroit, and they have two children: Marie L.
and Raymond P.
Baxter, Charles E., son of Daniel C. and Emily M. (Shepherdson) Baxter, was born
in Gorham township, Fulton county, Ohio, March 18, 1863. He attended the West
Unity and Bryan (Ohio) schools, the preparatory department of Oberlin (Ohio) College and later took the classical course at Williams (Mass.) College, class of 1885.
Mr. Baxter began his business career as a newspaper reporter in Cleveland, Ohio,
and afterward for seven years owned an interest in the Charlotte (Mich.) Republican. In 1892 he became identified with the Detroit (Mich.) Daily Tribune, as political correspondent, resigning that position the same year to become deputy treasurer
of the State of Michigan, which office he ably filled until 1894. From boyhood Mr.
Baxter has evinced a keen interest in politics. He is a staunch Republican and has
held several positions of importance under that party. From 1889 to 1893 lie was
secretary of the Michigan Republican State League, also filling the office of assistant
secretary of the State Senate in 1889, and from 1892 to 1894 he was assistant secre

11




tary of the Republican State Central Committee. In 1894 Mr. Baxter was secretary
to Senator John Patton, and although Mr. Patton was defeated, his secretary received due credit for the skill he displayed in handling the campaign. In 1896 Mr.
Baxter was made manager for Michigan, of the Manhattan Insurance Co. of New
York and still retains that position. He is a member of several clubs, and has enjoyed high honors in the Masonic fraternity, as well as Knights of Pythias. In 1886
lie married Dora G. Belcher of Charlotte, Mich., and they have two children: Marie
A. and Kenneth S.
Baxter, Frank G., son of George and Elizabeth S. (Clark) Baxter, was born in
Detroit, Mich., June 17, 1872. He was educated in the public schools of Detroit and
at the age of eighten entered the offices of Almon C. Varney & Co., architects of Detroit, where he remained for several years as a draftsman. He later studied with
Rogers & MacFarlane, architects, and in February, 1896, established himself independently as architect and superintendent of building. He has been successful and
is fast gaining for himself a reputation in business circles.
Baxter, Isaac C.-One of the most widely and favorably known gas engineers and
managers of gas plants is he whose name heads this article. Born in the city of Belfast, Ireland, November 11, 1847, his earliest identification with business was in the
construction of gas plants with his father, who, besides being a merchant at Belfast,
was a contractor in the erection of gas works. When but a lad of fifteen he resolved
to come to America, and we soon find him an employee of Robert Young, engineer
of the Allegheny (Pa.) Gas Company, and with whoni he remained for twelve years.
Starting at the foot of the ladder he made successive climbs and was for several
years Mr. Young's able assistant; also, superintendent of the East End Gas Co. of
Pittsburg. In 1881 he was offered the superintendency of the works at Washington,
D. C., and in two years made such changes for the advancement of the interests of
the company that Congressman Heilman, from Evansville, Ind., induced him to go
to that city to remodel the plant there, in which he was largely interested. For
seven years his services were given to that company, who meantime had purchased
the gas works at Paducah, Ky., which he also remodeled and in which he was stockholder and director. He was in several instances asked to supervise the remodeling
of plants in various cities through the South, and his reputation as an up-to-date live
gas engineer became extended. Alexander Lewis, former mayor of Detroit, and
Jerome Croul were at that time desirous of making extensive improvements in the
gas plant at Detroit, and looking around for the proper superintendent, selected Mr.
Baxter; about ten years since he assumed the direction. About a quarter of a million dollars was invested under his advice and supervision; the most modern machinery and appliances installed for the ready and economical manufacture of gas,
and the Detroit Gas Works are now recognized at home and abroad as a model of
their kind. The cities of Liverpool, Copenhagen and Stockholm sent their engineers
to inspect American plants, and choosing Detroit as their model, expended vast
sums in building plants in those respective cities. Mr. Baxter is vice-president and
treasurer of the Windsor Gas Company, Ontario, Canada; secretary and treasurer
of the Port Huron (Mich.) Gas Company, and a member of the American Gas Association, and has served as president of the Western Gas Association, composed of
gas engineers and managers, from all States of the Union. His paper read before
12




the latter association on " Savings of gases and by products of coke ovens' attracted
wide and favorable attention. Mr. Baxter is a trustee in the Trumbull Avenue
Presbyterian church: a charter member of Damascus Commandery, K. T.; and is a
popular man among those who have known him. His tastes are not for social clubs
or for public life, but he fiuds the greatest enjoyment in the home circle, surrounded
by those friends in whose presence there is a glow and warmth not found in the
formal functions of society. His pleasant home on Trumbull avenue is presided
over by a refined lady whose influence is felt for good among a wide circle of friends.
Bean, Wilbert G., D. D. S., son of Elbridge G. and Alwilda E. (Whetmore) Bean,
was born in Detroit, Mich., February 6, 1860. He was graduated from the Kankakee (Ill.) High School in 1877, and in the autumn of that year entered the dental department of the University of Michigan, from which he was graduated D. 1). S. in
1881. Prior to entering the university Dr. Bean had spent two years in the office of
a leading dental surgeon at Kankakee, Ill., and while a student in the university he
spent his vacation months practicing in the copper and iron mining regions of northern Michigan. Following his graduation he located in Detroit, where he has practiced continuously and successfully since. On Christmas day, 1892, Dr. Bean married Jeanette McGardle of Port Austin, Mich.
Beaufait, Francis, son of Louis and Catherine (Peltier) Beaufait, was born in Detroit, Mich., April 25, 1838. He is a descendant of Louis Beaufait, one of Detroit's
early settlers and owner of the Beaufait farm in Hamtramck. Mr. Beaufait attended
the public schools of his native place until 1853, when he was apprenticed to the
machinist's trade. This he followed until 1865 and was then appointed captain and
engineer of Company 5, Detroit Fire Department, situated at the corner of Lamed
and Riopelle streets, and was stationed at that house for twenty-five years. In 1890
he was appointed master mechanic of the entire fire department and at present retains that position. In 1857 Mr. Beaufait married Mary T. Weber of Detroit, and
their children are Daniel F., Mrs. Josephine Schiel, Mrs. Adolph Marion, wife of
State Senator Marion, Edward, Mrs. Aloysius Rousseau, and Mrs. Ernest Rousseau.
Beck, Howard C., was born at Irvington, N. J., August 4, 1868, a son of the late
Rev. Charles A. Beck of Philadelphia. He attended the public schools in Milford,
N. J., and Havelhill, Mass., and later took the scientific course in the Portsmouth
(N. H.) High School, from which he graduated in the class of 1884. In that year he
removed to Detroit and entered the offices of the Bradstreet Mercantile Agency,
where he remained until 1892, when he was appointed to a clerkship in the controller's
office, and in 1894 was made chief clerk. In the following year he was appointed
deputy controller, which position he still retains. In 1891 Mr. Beck married Flora
McElroy of St. Clair, Mich., and they have two children: Margaret and Howard C.,
jr. Mr. Beck is a member of the Alger Republican Club, and the Detroit Philatelic
Association, being its secretary and treasurer.
Biddle, Major James, son of John and Eliza (Bradish) Biddle, was born in Detroit,
Mich., June 10, 1833. His father was one of Detroit's early settlers, coming here in
1819 as an officer of the United States army and was stationed at Fort Shelby. He
purchased the headquarters building used by General Hull for a residence, and was
actively engaged in the development of the city. The present Biddle House was


13




erected by him during the forties and was long the leading hotel of this section.
Major James Biddle was educated at St. Timothy School, Baltimore, and at Pugnet's
French School, New York city; in 1853 he entered the Ecole Centrale (School of
Mining and Engineering at Paris), completing his studies in 1857. Subsequent to
his stay at Paris Mr. Biddle traveled extensively in Europe, returning to America in
1858 and entered the office of Mr. Bartlet, an architect in St. Louis, Mo. In 1861 he
was commissioned captain of the 16th Infantry, U. S. A., and served during the war
of the Rebellion. He was promoted to the rank of brevet-major and resigned in
1865, owing to large private interests which required his attention, and returned to
Detroit. August 21, 1860, Mr. Biddle married Margaret, daughterof Dr. A. R. Terry
of Detroit, and they have two children, Louisa, and Katharine, wife of Lieutenant
John D. Barrett, U. S. A. Politically Major Biddle has always been a Democrat.
He and his wife are members of Christ Episcopal church.
Bolles, John E., son of Frederick A. and Sarah (Wooster) Bolles, was born in
Chelsea, Mich., November 10, 1847. He attended the Ypsilanti Seminary, and in
1866 was graduated with honors from the Ann Arbor, Mich., High School, with advance preparation for entering the State University, sophomore year. In the autumn
of that year he decided, however, to remove to Detroit, and entered the employ of
James Nall, jr., & Co., dry goods merchants, where he remained for three years. He
later served very acceptably other Detroit firms in the same line. In 1875 he entered
into the iron and wire manufacturing business, as a member of the firm of Snow &
Bolles. In 1877 they sold out their business, and during the ensuing four years was
in the employ of E. T. Barnum, wire and iron manufacturers of Detroit. The firm
of J. E. Bolles & Co. was organized in January, 1882, their special line being the
manufacture of ornamental and architectural iron work, bank railings, fencing, jail
cells, fire escapes, etc. The name of the firm was changed in January, 1897, to J. E.
Bolles Iron and Wire Works. Mr. Bolles is a member of the Detroit Chamber of Commerce; also was one of the incorporators and a member of the Board of Managers of
the t Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children," and other bodies and organizations  He is prominent in church work and has served in nearly every possible capacity in advancing the interests of the Central M. E. church of Detroit, including superintendent of the Sunday school and now a member of the Board of
Trustees. In 1893 he became actively identified in the work of the Wayne County
Sunday School Association, since serving as president, and for the past three years
as chairman of its Executive Committee. The great Sunday school rally days, for
which Detroit has become famous, were made a success largely through his efforts.
They are still an important feature of the Sunday School Association work in
Detroit, having been held annually since September, 1893. In 1872 Mr. Bolles married IHarriet F. Snow, daughter of William Snow, originator of the wire business in
I)etroit, and they have two children, William E. and Howard E. Bolles. Mrs. Bolles
died November 30, 1895.
Book, James B., M. D., son of Jonathan J. and Hannah Priscilla (Smith) Book,
was born in Halton county, near Toronto, Ontario, Canada, November 7, 1843. IHis
preliminary education was acquired at the Milton, ()t., grammar school, and he
matriculated in the medical department of the Victoria University at Toronto in
1862, but lid not complete the course in that institution. He received his degree of


14




M. D. from the Jefferson Medical College at Philadelphia, Pa., in March, 1865, and
in June following, upon his return to Toronto, had conferred upon him the Canadian
degree. He then went abroad for two years, spending one year in Guy's Hospital
Medical School at London, England, and later attended clinics in Vienna and Paris.
Returning to America in the autumn of 1867 Dr. Brook located permanently at Detroit, Mich., and practiced hisprofession continuously until 1892. In 1879 he was appointed as professor of surgery in the Detroit Medical College, and retained that
chair after the amalgamation of said college with the Michigan College of Medicine,
resigning his professorship in the Detroit College of Medicine in 1895, upon his retirement from active practice. He was also for a number of years attending surgeon
to Harper and St. Luke's Hospitals and police surgeon to the city of Detroit. From
January 1, 1880, to the corresponding date in 1883, Dr. Brook served the city of
Detroit as alderman from the Third ward. As a surgeon he is the peer of any in the
State of Michigan, and has always commanded the entire confidence and esteem of
his fellow prac itioners and the public. Since 1895 he has devoted himself exclusively
to the management of his large estate. In 1889 he married Clotilde, daughter of
Francis Palms of Detroit, and they have three beautiful children: James B. jr.,
Francis Palms, and Herbert V., aged respectively seven, five and three.
Bourke, Oliver, second son of Oliver Bourke, was born in Heathfield House, near
Ballycastle, County Mayo, Ireland, July 16, 1823. The ancesters of Mr. Bourke
were Normans and acquired land in Ireland for services rendered the crown in the
early conquest of that country. His father was a landed proprietor and held a commission as captain in the English army, serving on the staff of General Lord Hill
during the Irish rebellion. His son Oliver, the subject of this sketch, was educated
by private tutors and schools, and in 1842 entered Trinity College, Dublin, from
which he was graduated some years later. On the completion of his education, with
his brother Robert, he built a vessel and sailed as supercargo to the west coast of
Africa. While lying in one of the rivers of that country the captain died from fever
and Oliver assumed command and brought the ship safely to England Shortly
after his return home he engaged in the shipping of grain from Ireland to English
and Scotch ports. In 1850 he came to America and after a short stay in New York
located in Detroit, where his brother Walter had preceded him and with him engaged in the wholesale grocery business. In 1856 the connection ceased and Oliver
removed to 122 Jefferson avenue and continued in his former line until 1857, when
he closed out the grocery department of his business and confined himself to the
wholesaling of wines, liquors and cigars. He remained in this line of business until
his retirement in 1883, since which time he has been engaged in the management of
his private affairs. He was for many years identified with the old volunteer fire department and served as acting chief of that organization from 1858 to 1860. In 1862
the Federal government appointed him general inspector of wines and liquors, inspector of distilleries and gauger of liquors, retaining that office for a period of
several years. He was elected a member of the Board of Education in 1869 and
was its president in 1870 and 1871; in 1870 he was elected a member of the Board
of Estimates from the city at large, being chosen president of the board during his
second year in office. Mr. Bourke has been a member of the Masonic fraternity
since 1845, having joined that body in Lodge No. 217 in Bellina, Ireland; is a mem

15




ber of Detroit Lodge No. 3, F. & A. M.; Monroe Chapter; Monroe Council; Detroit
Commandery No 1, Knights Templar, and Grand Lodge of Perfection. For many
years he was grand recorder of the Grand Commandery and the Grand Council of
Michigan. Mr. Bourke and his family are members of St. Paul's Episcopal church,
the membership of the parents dating from 1850. May 20, 1856, he married Henrietta A. McKenna, daughter of Rev. William McKenna, rector of Clane, County of
Kildare, Ireland, and they have four sons living: Henry 0., Charles F., Oliver A.
and Percy E. George Edmund, the oldest, (lied in September, 1874.
Boynton, Rev. Nehemiah, son of Eleazer and Mary (Chadbourne) Boynton, was
born November 21, 1857, in Medford, Mass. His early education was received in the
public schools of Medford, which he attended until 1873, when he removed to Andover, Mass., and attended Phillips Academy. In 1875 he entered Amherst College
and was graduated therefrom in 1879. In the fall of that year he began his theological studies at Andover Seminary, and was graduated in 1882 and ordained on
October 16, 1882, at Littleton, Mass. He was installed pastor of the first Congregational church at Littleton. remaining there until 1884, when he was called to the
North church at Haverhill, Mass. From 1888 to 1896 he occupied the pulpit of the
Union Congregational church in Boston, which he gave up to accept a call from the
First Congregational church of Detroit, his present charge. The degree of D. D.
was conferred upon Dr. Boynton in 1895 by Amherst College. On July 5, 1882, he
was united in marriage to Miss Mary E. Wilcox, daughter of D. W. Wilcox of Medford, Mass. They have seven children, of whom Daniel is the eldest.
Brandon, Calvin K., son of George S. and Nancy (Craighead) Brandon, was born
in New Carlisle, Ohio, September 6, 1841. Shortly after his birth his parents remnoved to Indianapolis, Ind., where they died in 1847. On the maternal side Mr.
Brandon is descended from Rev. Thomas Craighead, who emigrated to America in
1715, and whose grandson, Rev. Alexander Craighead, of Lancaster, Pa., was one
of the framers of the Mecklenburg Declaration of 1l775 and from which the Declaration of Independence was in part taken. He was a Presbyterian of note and force,
who first preached the independence of the colonies in 1741, and owing to which he
was forced to leave Pennsylvania. On the death of Mr. Brandon's parents he was
taken by an uncle, William T. Brandon, and placed in the family of William Morehead of York Sprintgs, Pa., with whom he remained until 1856. Mr. Brandon received
the usual education afforded by the schools of that day and in 1856 entered the academy at Carlisle, Pa., which he attended until 1859, and the following year entered
Farmer's College at Bellefonte, Pa. In the fall of 1860 he traveled in the West,
looking for a location, and at the commencement of the war enlisted in the 16th Illinois Infantry for a term of three months, and in May of that year, for a term of three
years. At the conclusion of that service he was commissioned captain of Company
E, 14th Infantry of Illinois, and served on the staffs of Generals Cyrus Hall and J. C.
Stallbrand. On the conclusion of the war he removed to Saline county, Missouri,
where he took up land and conducted a stock ranch until 1871, when he came to Detroit and became a stockholder and employee of the Detroit Car Works. In 1874 he
accepted a poiition with the Detroit Stave Works and in 1877 purchased the business.
In 1878 he took in Richards Keys as a partner, under the firm name of Brandon &
Keys, and in 1882 the business was incorporated under the title of the Detroit Stave


16




& Heading Works. In 1893, owing to the passage of the " Wilson Bill," the business
became unprofitable, and in 1896 Mr. Brandon succeeded to the business, which he
has since conducted in a successful manner. He is a Republican and was elected to
the Legislature from his district in 1884, serving one term. He is a member of the
Detroit Commandery, Knights Templar; Moslem Temple, Nobles of the Mystic
Shrine; Zion Lodge, F. & A. M.; Loyal Legion; Detroit Post, G. A. R.; St. Clair
Fishing and Shooting Club; and the Alger Republican Club. October 24, 1867, he
married Louisa M. Russel, of Lancaster, Pa., and they had seven children, five now
living: George R., Walter C., Louisa M., Margaret and Samuel C. Mr. and Mrs.
Brandon are members of the Jefferson Avenue Presbyterian church.
Brodie, Benjamin P., M. D., was born in Detroit, Mich., April 6, 1859, a son of the
late Dr. William Brodie, a native of England, but for nearly forty years one of the
leading surgeons of Detroit and familiarly known as the " Grand Old Man " in professional circles; in 1886 he was president of the American Medical Association; he
located in Detroit in the early fifties and passed away quietly in 1890. His wife was
Jane Whitfield. Benjamin P. was educated in the public schools of Detroit, and under the private tutorage of the late Philo M. Patterson, who was one of the ablest
instructors of his day. He completed his preparatory education in the Detroit public schools; in the autumn of 1878 he entered the literary department of the University of Michigan and was graduated with the degree of B. A. in 1882. He took his
degree of M. D. from the Michigan College of Medicine in 1884, then located in Detroit, and practiced in the office of his father until the latter's death, when he
assumed his father's practice and the management of the estate. He has been successful and ranks among the leading physicians of his native city. He is a member
of the American Medical Association; Michigan State Medical Society; Detroit
Medical and Library Association, and of the Wayne County and American Academies
of Medicine. He is a visiting physician to St. Mary's Hospital, assistant surgeon to
Harper Hospital, surgeon to the Detroit Fire Department and local surgeon to the
Grand Trunk Railway. He is also surgeon to the Detroit street railways and assistant surgeon to the Michigan Naval Reserve. Mr. Brodie holds membership in the
Masonic fraternity and is a member of the Detroit Club: Detroit Boat Club, and
Harmonie Singing Society. He is medical examiner for the United States Life
Insurance Company of New York; for the Union Mutual Life Insurance Company
of Maine, and for the Connecticut Mutual Life Insurance Company of Hartford, Conn.
Dr. Brodie has one of the finest medical libraries in the city of Detroit, and among
its hundreds of volumes are numbered many valuable works. He is still a bachelor.
Broegger, Rev. Francis, son of Bernard and Gertrude (Erwes) Broegger, was born
in Fretter, Westphalia, Germany, September 8, 1853. He was educated in the
schools of his native town and the classical school of Paderborn, immigrating to
America in 1872 with his family and settling at Grand Rapids, Mich. Subsequent
to his coming to America he studied theology at Cincinnati, and was ordained to the
priesthood by Bishop Borgess September 10, 1876. After a short assignment as
assistant he was appointed pastor of St. Philip parish at Battle Creek, where he remained four years. He was then transferred to Wyandotte and subsequently to
Silver Creek. In 1885 he was assigned to Dearborn. In 1888 he was given charge
of the parish at Hastings, remaining until 1890, when he was transferred to Deer

17




field. In January, 1897, he was assigned to the parish of the Sacred Heart, Detroit,
where he remains at present.
Brooke, Flavius L., son of John and Sarah (Mann) Brooke, was born in Norfolk
county, Ontario, Canada, October 7, 1858. He attended the public schools and later
took a course in the Albert University of Belleville, Ontario. In 1879 he entered the
law office of the attorney-general of Ontario, where he remained as student and
clerk for four years, being called to the bar in 1884. In the following year he removed to Detroit, Mich., and entered the office of Atkinson & Marston, remaining
until 1887, when he formed a copartnership with John Atkinson and William L. Carpenter, under the firm style of Atkinson, Carpenter & Brooke. After five years this
partnership was dissolved, and in 1892 Mr. Brooke associated with him H. E. Spalding, the firm of Brooke & Spalding existing until May, 1896, since which time Mr.
Brooke has practiced continuously and successfully alone. In 1891 he was elected as
a member at large of the Board of Estimates of Detroit, holding that office until
1893. He is retained as counsel by numerous large firms and concerns in Detroit,
and does a general litigating business. He is a stockholder in and director of the
Michell Table Supply Co.; vice-president of C. H. Michell Co.; is interested in other
business institutions and is active in business and social circles. He has been active
in politics since becoming a resident of Detroit, is a staunch Republican and has
frequently taken the stump in support of his party's principles. He is a director of
the Michigan and Grande Pointe Clubs. In 1884 he married Miss B. Reidy of Ontario, and they have four children: John, Katherine, Josephine and Frank.
Brown, Cullen, son of Cullen and Elizabeth (Leach) Brown, was born in Detroit,
Mich., October 2, 1871. He was educated under private tutors and for a short
period attended the Detroit High School. In 1891 Mr. Brown entered the employ
of Homer Warren, real estate agent, at Detroit, and in the course of a year and a
half became a member of the present firm of Homer Warren & Co. He also has entire control of the fire insurance department of the business, which he purchased
from the former owner, C. E. Burtsch. early in 1897. Mr. Brown is a member of
the Detroit Club and Detroit Boat Club and is popular in both business and social
circles. October 25, 1894, he married Grace J. Wesley of Cleveland, Ohio.
Brown, Edwin C., son of Samuel and Martha (Johnson) Brown, was born in Bristol,
* N. H., February 15, 1831. He received his education in the common schools at
Bristol, which he attended until the age of twenty-one. In 1852 he removed to Milwaukee, Wis., and entered the employ of the Milwaukee and Mississippi Railway,
serving in the position as baggageman and subsequently as conductor. In 1861 he
accepted a situation with the Milwaukee and Chicago Railway as conductor, and was
later promoted to the position of master of transportation. In 1870 he resigned
his position with the Milwaukee and Chicago Railway to accept a similar one with
the Burlington and Missouri River Railroad, and was later appointed to the office of
superintendent. In 1874 he removed to Detroit and entered the employ of the Michigan Central Railway, filling the positions of superintendent, assistant general superintendent and general superintendent respectively. In 1890 he resigned his position
owing to ill health, and was appointed to his present office, that of assistant to the
president. Mr. Brown is a member of Milwaukee Consistory of Wisconsin; Moslem
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Temple, Nobles of the Mystic Shrine of Detroit, and the Fellowcraft Club. In
1859 he married Sarah P. Blake, of New Bedford, Mass.. and they have three children, Mrs. Henry S. Wilson. of Duluth, Minn.; Frank S., of Suspension Bridge, Ontario, and Mrs. F. A. Slocum, of Detroit.
Brown, Owen C., M. D., son of Thomas and Mary Brown, was born at Tudhoe
Hall, Tudhoe, Durham county, England, October 13, 1849. Thomas Brown emigrated to Canada with his children and settled in Kingsey, Province of Quebec,
afterward removing to Acton, P. Q.  Dr. Brown attended the public schools in
Kingsey and Acton, and in 1867 entered the University of Toronto, from which he
graduated in 1874, taking the "Star" gold medal and first university silver medal,
two exceptionally high honors. On leaving college he returned to Acton, where he
practiced successfully for nineteen years, and in 1893 removed to Detroit, where he
has since been engaged in private practice. While in Acton Dr. Brown was justice
of the peace, commissioner of the Commissioner's Court, member of the town council, chairman of the school board and master of the Masonic lodge of that town.
September 17, 1879, he married Georgiana T. Harward, of Richmond, Me., and they
have one son, Campbell Harward Brown, at present thirteen years of age. The
liarwards are from old English stock, and the author of "Hereward, the Saxon
Patriot," a distinguished English general, Gen. I. N. Harward, has traced out the
American branch of that family.
Brown, William Rolston, son of William and Caroline (Abernethy) Brown, was born
in Detroit, Mich., March 26, 1876. He was educated in the public schools and the High
School, being graduated from the latter in 1893; he then took a course in the Detroit
College of Law, and was graduated in 1895, with the degree of LL. B. June 22, 1895,
he was admitted to the bar, and has since practiced his profession continuously in the
offices of Maybury & Lucking at Detroit. He has already won good standing in the
legal profession and gives promise of becoming one of Detroit's leading young attorneys.
Burt, Lee, son of the late Austin Burt, was born at Mt. Vernon, Macomb county,
Mich., December 18, 1842. He was educated in the public schools of his native
town and in Detroit, where his parents had removed in 1856, and later took a course
in Bryant & Stratton's Business College, from which he was graduated in 1860. In
the same year in company with his father he took the agency of the Lake Superior
Iron Company at Marquette, Mich., looking after the shipping of their ore and merchandise until 1864, when he became identified with the Peninsular Iron Company of
Detroit, being first placed in charge of the outside work as superintendent, but later
became superintendent of their furnace in the manufacture of pig-iron. In 1869 he
left the Peninsular Iron Company and during the following two years was connected
with the Burt Manufacturing Company in the manufacture of car wheels, etc. In
1872 he was made superintendent of the Union Iron Company's furnace, the construction of which he had superintended in the previous year. In 1879 he became
manager of the Detroit Iron Furnace Company and retained that position until 1887,
when he organized the Burrell Chemical Company, of which he was made secretary
and treasurer, and still serves in that capacity. In 1891 he organized the Southern
Chemical Company and was made its secretary and treasurer, and in 1895 also be

19




came manager of that company. He is also secretary and treasurer of the Antrim
Chemical Company, which was organized in 1893, and is president of the Union Iron
Company, having succeeded to that position upon the death of his father in February, 1894. Mr. Burt married Abbie L. Kelsey in 1866, and they have one daughter,
Edna L. Mr. Burt has always been connected with the Republican party. He
and his family are members of the Woodward Avenue Baptist church. Personally
Mr. Burt is held in high esteem by a large circle of acquaintances.
Butzel, Magnus, son of Moritz and Hanna (Bachman) Butzel, was born in Schesslitz, Bavaria, Germany, January 14, 1830. At the age of six Mr. Butzel entered
school and studied until he was apprenticed to the trade of making sashes, doors and
artistic glass work in 1844; in 1847 he became a journeyman, leaving a specimen of
his work as an example for others and it stands to-day. He worked at his trade until 1852, when he came to America with his sister, going at once to Saugerties, near
Kingston, N. Y., to the home of his brother, Martin Butzel, who left Germany six
years previous. After a short visit he formed a partnership with his brother and
embarked in the dry goods business in Peekskill, N. Y., and in 1862 the unsettled
condition of the times warranted the closing out of the business. They came to Detroit and became associated with Emil S. Heinneman, under the firm name of
Heinneman, Butzel & Co., manufacturers and jobbers of ready made clothing and
furnishing goods. In 1890 Mr. Heinneman retired, the firm being succeeded by
Butzel Bros. & Co.; in 1893 failing sight compelled Mr. Butzel to retire from business. During Mr. Butzel's residence in Detroit he has always identified himself with
questions pertaining to the welfare of that place and country at large; in the mercantile line he helped to organize the Merchants' and Manufacturers' Exchange; was
one of the first directors of the Chamber of Commerce and resigned in 1893 because
of ill health. In 1881 Mr. Butzel was elected from the city at large a member of the
Board of Education for a term of two years the board being strictly non partisan at
that time. On retirement from office in 1883 he was elected a member of the Public
Library board for a term of six years; was re-elected in 1889 and again in 1895, the
last term to expire in 1902. During his service on the Library Board Mr. Butzel
held the offce of vice-president during the time the late Judge Campbell was president, and on retirement of Mr. Campbell served as president two years. In politics
Mr. Butzel has always been a staunch Republican; he is a charter member of the
Michigan Club and was made vice-president in 1894 and president in 1895. He has
been a member of the congregation of Bethel House of Worship for over thirty
years and for most of that time has been president of the Sabbath school. He is a
charter member of the Phoenix Club, at one time occupying the presidential chair.
February 17, 1869, he married Henrietta Hess, youngest daughter of the late Moses
Hess of Cincinnati, 0., and they have four children: Maurice, Henry, Frederick and
Lawrence.
Campbell, Walter S, son of James and Harriet (Huntington) Campbell, was born
at Galena, Ill., October 4, 1845. His father removed from Galena in 1851 to Springfield, Ill., where Walter attended the public schools. In 1862 he left school and entered his father's office as a clerk; in 1866 he was appointed as clerk in the quartermaster's office of the U. S. army at Detroit, and remained in that position until 1868,
when he accepted a position as bookkeeper for J. B. Fox & Co., manufacturers of
20




confectionery, at Detroit, and held that position until 1880, at which time the business passed under the control of a stock company, of which Mr. Campbell was made
secretary. In 1892 he resigned that office to become secretary of the Michigan Confectionery Company, which position he occupied until 1895. Since July of that year
he has been actuary of the Merchants' and Manufacturers' Exchange of Detroit, and
in October of the same year was made secretary of the Detroit Manufacturers' Club,
and still serves in that capacity; he is also secretary of the Detroit Credit Men's
Association, which was organized on September 15. 1896. Mr. Campbell is grand
treasurer of the Royal Arcanum for the State of Michigan, and treasurer of the Council of that order; he is also a member of the Fellowcraft Club of Detroit. In 1874 he
married Annie Fenton, of Detroit, who died in 1889, leaving four children. In 1892
he married Sarah A. McGrath, of Detroit, but no children have been born to this
union.
Carpenter, Hon. William L., judge of the Circuit Court at l)etroit, was born at
Orion, Mich., November 9, 1854, a son of Charles K and Jennette (Coryell) Carpenter. He attended the public schools of his native town until sixteen years of age,
and then took a course in the Agricultural College at Lansing, from which he graduated in 1875. Soon afterward he entered the law department of the University of
Michigan, and was graduated therefrom in 1878; in March of that year he was admitted to the bar at Ann Arbor, Mich., and spent the following year in the office of the
late Judge Crofoot at Detroit. In 1879 he began the practice of his profession as a
member of the firm of Carpenter & McLaughlin in Detroit, which partnership existed until 1882. From 1888 to 1894 he was in partnership with Col. John Atkinson.
On January 1, 1894, he ascended the bench as judge of the Circuit Court, having
been elected on the Republican ticket. He is a member of the Detroit and Michigan
Clubs, is a Mason and Odd Fellow. In 1885 he married Elizabeth Ferguson, of
Goderich, Ontario, Canada, and they have two children, Lela and Rolla.
Caughey, Frank T., president of the Detroit Board of 'Trade, was born in Ashtabula county, Ohio, June 21, 1853, a son of Samuel S. Caughey, now a resident of
Erie, Pa. Frank T. attended the district schools of his native county and the Pennsylvania State Normal School. In 1870 he located in Union City, Mich., where for
several years he clerked in a general store. From 1873 to 1876 he traveled through
the southwest as a hardware salesman and in the latter year returned to Union City.
During the ensuing ten years he was engaged in the grain and seed shipping business at Union City, also controlling the business at several stations on the Michigan
Central Air Line. In 1888 he removed to Detroit and was a special partner in the
firm of Gillett & Hall for six years, being manager of their large private elevator.
He also maintained his business at Union City during that period. In 1894 he concentrated his entire business at Detroit and since that time all of his operations have
been attended with justly deserved success. In 1895 he associated with him in business Mr. C. M. Carran, with the style of Caughey & Carran, and they have since
that time made a specialty of exporting clover and timothy seed, doing the largest
business of that kind in the State of Michigan. They are also identified with the
real estate and manufacturing interests of the city and are prominent in business
circles. In 1896 Mr. Caughey was elected vice president of the Board of Trade and
in the following year became president of that body. He is prominent in Masonic


21




circles, being a member of the Detroit Commandery No. 1, K. T., and Moslem
Temple, Nobles of the Mystic Shrine; he is also a member of the Detroit Athletic
Club. In 1883 Mr. Caughey married Delia Shumway of Union City and they have
one daughter, Marjorie.
Child, Putnam H., son of Jacob and Samantha (Sumner) Child, was born in Malone, N. Y., October 11, 1841. He is a descendant of Ephraim Child who immigrated to America, settling in Roxbury, Mass., in 1630; on his mother's side he is a
direct descendant of Gen. Israel Putnam of Revolutionary fame. At the battle of
Bunker Hill there A ere twenty-two of the Child family enrolled in one company of
militia. His great-grandfather was a colonel in the Revolution and his grandfather
a major in the war of 1812. Samantha (Sumner) Child is descended from William
Sumner, born in Bicester, Oxfordshire, England, in 1605, and only son of Roger
Sumner; he came to America in 1636, settling in Dorchester, Mass. Mr. Child acquired his early education in the public schools of Malone, N. Y., and in 1859 attended
the academy of Montpelier, Vt., remaining there one year. In 1860 he removed to
Albion, Mich., and entered Albion College the same year; in 1861 he enlisted in the
9th Mich. Cavalry, served during the Civil war and was honorably discharged with
rank of captain in 1865. Returning to Albion at the close of the war he entered the
law office of A. Peck, but was compelled to abandon the study of law because of failing sight. He then engaged in farming exclusively until 1879, when he removed to
Detroit and embarked in the dairy business. In 1894 his business was transferred
to a firm styled the Edgewood Jersey Milk Co., of which he is the largest shareholder
as well as general manager. Mr. Child is a member of Ashlar Lodge and King
Cyrus Chapter, F. & A. M., and Fairbanks Post, G. A. R. In 1865 he married
Elizabeth Creswell of Wellsville, 0. and they had four children: Carl S., Maggie B.,
Walter C. and Harry P. Mrs. Child died in 1888, and 1890 Mr. Child married Lettie
Anderson of Castile, N. Y.
Champion, Rev. Raymond, son of Martin and Annie (Guiraud) Champion, was
born near Bordeaux, France, September 18, 1851. He received his early education
from his parents and entered the preparatory department of Bordeaux Seminary in
1863. In 1870 he entered the theological department and was graduated in 1875,
and ordained on December 18 of that year by Cardinal Donnet of Bordeaux. Subsequently he was appointed pastor of SS. Gervais and Protais church at Sauternes,
France, where hlie remained until 1879. He was next appointed assistant pastor of
Our Lady of Victory church at Rochester, N. Y. He was appointed pastor of St.
Francis Xavier church at Ecorse, Mich., in 1889, where he has done much to improve
the condition of the parish. During his incumbency at Ecorse he founded in 1893
the Church of Our Lady of Lourdes at River Rouge, Mich., whose present condidion
reflects great credit upon him.
Chapin, William W, judge of the Recorder's Court, a son of William M. and
Elizabeth (Carr') Chapin. was born on a farm iear the city limits of Buffalo, N. Y.,
January 2, 1859. HIe removed to Romulus, Mich., when a boy and succeeded in securing his preparatory education in the State Normal School at Ypsilanti and entered
the literary department of the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor in 1882, graduating therefrom in 1886. lD)irect from Ann Arbor Mr. Chapin came to Detroit and


22
c) a




after eight months' diligent application to the study of law was admitted to the bar.
He practiced his profession successfully until 1892, when he was elected on the Republican ticket, judge of the Recorder's Court for the city of Detroit, which office he
holds at the present time. Mr. Chapin takes a deep interest in Masonry, having
received the highest degree in that order. He is a member of the Michigan Sovereign Consistory; Mystic Shrine; Peninsular Chapter of the Masonic Order; A. O.
O. F. the Michigan Republican Club; the Harmonie Society; the League of American
Wheelmen; the Fellowcraft Club, and many other social and political clubs. October 12, 1897, Mr. Chapin married Florence I. Collier of Detroit.
Chapoton, Edmund A., M. D., son of the late Hon. Alexis Chapoton, and brother
of Alexander Chapoton, vice-president of the Peninsular Savings Bank of Detroit,
Mich., was born in Detroit November 15, 1852.' After a thorough preparatory
course of instruction in the private school of the late Philo M. Patterson at Detroit,
he entered St. John's College, at Fordham, New York city, and was graduated therefrom with honors in 1872. Returning in the same year to Detroit he commenced the
study of medicine in the Detroit Medical College, receiving his degree of M. D. from
that institution in 1875. The following two years he spent in Europe, taking postgraduate courses in Berlin under Frerichs, Virchow and others of equal fame, and in
Paris under Pean and Dujardin-Beaumetz. Since his return to Detroit, in 1877, Dr.
Chapoton has practiced his profession continuously and successfully in that city.
For the past twelve years he has filled the chair of professor of the practice of medicine in the Detroit College of Medicine; for twenty years has been attending physician to St. Mary's Hospital and senior physician and surgeon to the House of Providence at Detroit; and for a number of years served as a member of the Detroit
Board of Health. He is a member of the Michigan State Medical Society and of the
Detroit Medical and Library Association. In 1875 Dr. Chapoton married Martha
Sherland of South Bend, Ind., and they have three children; Edith C., Alexis F.,
and M. Sherland.
Chappee, Birnie G. son of Benjamin and Martha (Duncanson) Chappee, was born
in Detroit, Mich., December 29, 1852. He attended school in San Francisco, Cal.
(where his parents resided for a number of years), and later in Monroe, Mich. At
the age of eighteen he entered the employ of Gottschalk Grelling, photographer at
Detroit, and remained there for six years, when he applied himself to the study of
stenography, in which he soon became proficient, and for several years served the
law firm of Moore & Moore as stenographer and amanuensis. In 1880 he became
private secretary to Mr. Joseph Brooks (of theatrical fame) at New York city, and
after a lapse of a year returned to Detroit. From 1881 to 1883 he again served with
Moore & Moore, and did a general business in law and court reporting, being ap_
pointed in the latter year by the Metropolitan Police Commission, on recommendation
of Police Superintendent Edwin F. Conely, as assistant clerk and stenographer at police
headquarters in Detroit. In January, 1888, he was promoted to his present position
as chief clerk, and enjoys the entire confidence and high esteem of his superiors and
all with whom he comes in contact. Mr. Chappee was married twice, first in 1879 to
Marion S De Baptiste, who died in 1884, and second in 1891 to Susie E. Williams, of
Detroit, who has borne him three children: Leon B., Helen and Birnie G., jr.
See sketch of Chapoton family which appears elsewhere in this work.
23




Clark, James J., son of John and Olive (Jackson) Clark, was born in Oswego, N.
Y., October 1, 1833. He is descended from Col. Giles Jackson, of the Continental
army, and whose regiment was at the surrender of General Burgoyne at Saratoga. Mr.
Clark was educated in the public schools of Oswego, and at the age of eighteen he
entered the employ of the Northwestern Insurance Company of that city as office
boy. He remained with this company thirteen years, gradually rising in the scale of
promotion until he was elected secretary. In 1865 he went to New York city, and
later accepted the position of manager of the marine department of the Home Insurance Co. of New York city, and remained there until 1868, when he removed to Detroit. Shortly after his arrival in Detroit he was appointed secretary and manager
of the Detroit Fire and Marine Insurance Co., which had been organized two years
previous. Mr. Clark has nearly completed thirty years' continuous service with this
company, and his thorough knowledge of the business and strict integrity has contributed to the eminent success of the company. He is a nember of the Masonic
fraternity: Fellowcraft and Detroit Clubs, and a director of the Mechanics' Bank.
Clippert, George H., son of Conrad and Fredericka (Pfeifle) Clippert, was born at
Springwells, Mich., March 14, 1860. He was educated in the St. John's German'
School, and the late Philo M. Patterson's private school at Detroit. He then took a
business course in the Bryant & Stratton's College, and at the age of fifteen entered
the employ of Frederick Bornman (grocer), where he remained about one year. He
then entered the service of the Michigan Central Railroad Company as a fireman;
three years later he was promoted to the position of engineer and remained in that
capacity until 1883, when he became assistant in the office of his father, who had
been elected sheriff of Wayne county in 1880 for a term of four years. In 1884 his
father resumed his business as manufacturer of brick, and George H. then entered
the office and learned the business. Upon his father's retiring several years later,
George and his brother Charles succeeded to the business and have since carried it
on with well merited success. Their daily output of building brick is about 64,000
and their trade extends over the entire State of Michigan. Their kilns are located
at Springwells in Wayne county. Mr. Clippert is vice-president of the Builders' and
Traders' Exchange of Detroit, is secretary of the Exposition Brewing Company, and
is otherwise prominently identified with the business interests of the city. In 1892 he
became a member of the Board of Education of Springwells, his term of office expiring in 1899. He is a member of the Michigan, Alger and Detroit Yacht Clubs,
and of the order of Free and Accepted Masons. Mr. Clippert was married in 1886
to Flora A. Lyon of Detroit, and they have three children: Edna H., Phillis F. and
Harrison F.
Codd, George P., a member of the well known law firm of Warner, Codd &
Warner, was born at Detroit, Mich., December 7, 1869, a son of George C. Codd, a
prosperous real estate dealer and former sheriff of Wayne county. George P. attended the public schools and High School of Detroit and was graduated from the
latter in 1887; in the fall of 1887 he entered tie University of Michigan, receiving
from that institution the degree of A. B. in 1891. He then entered the office of Hon.
Alfred Russell where he remained until admitted to the bar in 1892; in that year he
entered the offices of Griffin & Warner, where he remained until 1893, and was then
appointed assistant city attorney, filling that office until January, 1896. He then be

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came a member of the present firm of Warner, Codd & Warner, of which the senior
member is Carlos E. Warner. In 1894 Mr. Codd married Kathleen, daughter of
Carlos E. Warner, and they have two children: John W. and George C., jr. Mr.
Codd is a member of the Omicron Chapter of the D. K. E. fraternity and of the Detroit Athletic Club.
Collins, Lucius H., son of Henry and Elizabeth (Palmerlee) Collins, was born at
Romeo, Mich., July 17, 1855. He was educated in the public schools and High
School of Romeo, being graduated from the latter in 1873. He then entered the
literary department of the University of Michigan and after one year of study entered the law offices of Ashley Pond at Detroit, and was admitted to the bar in October, 1876. Since that time he has practiced his profession continuously at Detroit,
Mich. In 1884 Mr. Collins was elected to the Legislature for a term of two years.
but has held no public office since his retirement from that body. In politics he is a
Democrat and has been a delegate to numerous conventions. He is a member of
the State and Local Bar Associations. and the Society of the Sons of the American
Revolution, being descended from several ancestors who participated in the Revolutionary drama. January 28, 1886, Mr. Collins married Helen L. Johnson of Detroit.
Collins, Alvah N., M. D, son of Lyman and Sallie (Cotton) Collins, was born near
Sackett's Harbor, town of Lyme, Jefferson county, N. Y., January 5, 1861. His early
education was obtained in the public school of his native'town and in the High
School at Elburn, Ill.. from which institution he went to Ann Arbor, Mich., and attended the High School in that town. He entered the Medical Department of the
University of Michigan and was graduated therefrom in 1885, being historian of his
class. In January, 1886, he took post graduate work at the New York Polyclinic
School of Medicine, and shortly afterwards through competitive examination obtained the appointment of house surgeon of the Work House and Alms House Hospitals on Blackwell's Island, New York city. After one year in that position he was
appointed ambulance surgeon to Bellevue Hospital, New York, and served in that
capacity until the autumn of 1888, when he removed to Detroit and became assistant
surgeon of the Michigan Central Railroad and assistant to Doctor Donald Maclean,
then professor of surgery in the Medical Department of the University of Michigan.
In 1889 he opened an office of his own and has practiced continuously with marked
success. Dr. Collins is a member of the Michigan State, American, Wayne County
Medical and Library Associations, and Gynacological Medical Societies, and is
prominent in society and the clubs. He was for several years division surgeon of
the Michigan Central Railroad Company until the office was abolished. In 1892 he
married Emily D., daughter of Dr. Dwight Delavan Stebbins of Detroit, who was a
son of " old" Dr. Nehemiah Stebbins of Detroit, and they have two sons, Russell S.,
and Howard N.
Collins, Charles P., son of Thomas and Mary (Hosie) Collins, was born in Detroit,
December 25, 1848, where he has resided ever since his birth. He attended the public schools until 1861, and then applied himself to ordinary pursuits of life until 1865,
when he shipped on the old steamer Huron, which plied between Saginaw, Mich.,
and Goodrich, Ont. At the close of navigation in the fall of 1865 he went to Chicago
and secured temporary employment in a hotel. In the spring of 1866 he shipped be25




fore the mast on a schooner sailing between the ports of Buffalo and Chicago, but
made but two trips. Returning to Detroit in 1867 he apprenticed himself to Hoffner
& Mayes, sail makers, riggers and ship chandlers. Following four years' connection
with that concern he abandoned the vocation and was engaged as traveling salesman
for Kruger, Zech & Co., cigar manufacturers. During the latter part of his two
years' service for this concern Mr. Collins purchased an interest, the company assuming the name of Hoffner & Collins' continuing in partnership until 1876 Mr. Collins
sold his interest and established a cigar factory of his own, and has personally conducted this business ever since. His active participation in Republican political
affairs was recognized in 1887 at a meeting of the Board of Supervisors, which elected
him auditor of Wayne county for a term of three years; in 1890 he was nominated for
sheriff and was defeated at election by 300 votes. In 1892 he was again nominated
and was elected by a majority of 3,426; his term of two years was rewarded by a renomination at the hands of the Republican convention, and re-election at the hands
of the people by 9,000 majority. Near the close of his second term he became largely
interested in promoting the Detroit Telephone Company, serving as director. Mr.
Collins's second administration closed his official career, and his entire time has been
devoted to the details of his cigar industry and the Detroit Telephone Company. He
is a member of all the Masonic bodies; Knights of Pythias; A. O. U. W.; Royal Arcanum, and a honorary member of the Scott Guard. December 12, 1878, he married
Ida L. Cotton, of Detroit, and they have two children: Charles Percy and Irene B.
Conger, Norman B., local forecast official and marine agent, and in charge of the
United States weather bureau at Detroit, is a son of Major Seymour B. and Mary A.
(Barker) Conger, born September 7, 1859, in Troy township, Richland county, Ohio.
His early education was obtained in the public schools. Beginning ayouth Mr. Con
ger spent thirteen years in the signal corps of the United States army. Following a
brief career in newspaper work Mr. Conger came to Detroit in 1879 and went into
service at the weather bureau office, and was called several times to Washington, D.
C. In 1896 Mr. Conger's service and experience were required as manager of the
weather bureau and marine agent. He is a member of the Michigan Sovereign Consistory of Scottish Rite, and of the Chapter and Council. At Columbus, Ohio, in
1885, he married Eliza R. Lotspeich, and they have three children: Bruce Prosper,
Leslie Norman and Dorothy Kitty.
Cooper, Rev. David M., son of David and Lovicy (Mack) Cooper, was born in l)etroit, Mich., April 18, 1827. He received his early education in the public schools of
Detroit and after graduating from the University of Michigan in 1848 he spent the
year 1849 in the theological department of Princeton College, followed by a special
course of reading under the direction of the Detroit Presbytery with the late Rev.
George Duffield, D. D., as special instructor. Rev. Mr. Cooper's first pastoral charge
was at Saginaw City in 1851, where he remained until 1859, going from there to
Grand Haven and in 1864 to Albion. He returned to the city of his birth in 1876 and
organized and built the Memorial Presbyterian church situated at the corner of Campau and Clinton avenues, at a cost to himself of between $25,000 and $30,000, the
balance necessary to completion, viz., $6,000, being provided for by parties interested
in the enterprise. To this church he gave his service gratuitously for fifteen years.
In 1896 he resigned the pastorate and was chosen as pastor emeritus, which relation


26




he continues to sustain. In 1851 he married Arabella M., daughter of Dr. Baldwin
of Warsaw, N. Y., who died November 5, 1881. In 1884 he married Caroline E.,
daughter of William H. Skinner of Battle Creek, Mich., and he has a family of three
children, two daughters by his first wife. Mattie A., wife of Walter E. Winckler and
Mary L., wife of the late Charles A. Babcock, M. D., and a sonI, William S., by his
second wife.
Corey, Newton J., son of John and Juliette (Meacham) Corey, was born in Hillsdale, Mich., January 31, 1861. He received his early education in the public schools
of his native place and entered Hillsdale College in 1874, from which he was graduated in 1880 with the degree of Ph. B. Subsequent to his graduation he removed
to Boston, Mass., for advanced musical instruction. There his piano studies were
conducted under J. C. D. Parker and B. J. Lang and those of organ and theory with
S. B. Whitney, G. W. Chadwick and W. F. Apthorp. In 1882 he received the appointment of organist at the Unitarian church of Woburn, a Boston suburb, where
he remained until 1885, when he was engaged as organist at Reuen Thomas's church
in Brookline. In 1886 he resigned this appointment to accept a similar one with Dr.
McKenzie's church at Harvard College, Cambridge. He was still in this position
when he received a call from the Fort Street Presbyterian church of Detroit, in January, 1891, where he has since remained. Mr. Corey has been appointed to many
positions of honor in his profession, all of which he has filled with much ability.
On the organization in 1896 of the Detroit Oratorio Society he was appointed conductor and was retained when the society was reorganized as the St. Cecelia. He is
also a member of the American Guild of Organists.
Courtis, William M., son of William and Mehitable (Appleton) Courtis, was born
in Boston, Mass., January 7, 1842. For three years he attended school in England,
then entered Dummer Academy at Newburyport, Mass. He was fitted for college
at the Phillips (Andover) Academy, was graduated from Harvard College at Cambridge, Mass., in the class of 1864, and in September of the same year entered the
Lawrence Scientific School, where he pursued the study of civil engineering till
August, 1865, at which time he sailed for Europe and resided in Freiberg, Saxony,
as a member of the Royal School of Mines until May, 1888. He then spent the
summer in traveling through various parts of Europe and returned to the United
States in September, 1868. From February to August, 1869, he was chief engineer
on the State Geological Survey of San Domingo and from April, 1870, to April, 1871,
he was assistant manager of the Van Buren Iron Furnace in Shenandoah county, Va.
In May, 1871, Mr. Courtis was made assistant superintendent of the Wyandotte Silver Works in Wyandotte, Mich., and remained as such until April, 1872, when he
became superintendent. He held that position until January, 1875, and after giving
a course of lectures on metallurgy at Harvard College went in May as general manager of the Duncan Silver Mine on the north shore of Lake Superior, being appointed
to the latter position in 1875 and held it until 1878. From 1878 to 1879 he had charge
of a complete geological and mine survey of the celebrated Silver Islet Mine on Lake
Superior for his old company. From 1879 to 1881 he was reporting, or temporary
consulting metallurgist to various mining companies, building the Gage-Hagemann
smelter at Leadville, Col., and the Iowa Smelting furnace in Gunnison county, Colorado, in 1879 for the same parties. In 1879 he went for the same company to test
27




coal discovered at Crested Butte, Col., making the first coke produced from these
mines. He spent some time in reporting on properties in Colorado and New Mexico
and in testing the Cosette Mine at Silver City. From early in 1880 to August, 1882,
he was general manager for the late J. R. Waller of all his mining interests in New
Mexico and Virginia, at the same time acting as consulting engineer for other companies. In September, 1882, he reported on some mines at the Isthmus of Panama
and later in the same year reported on the copper mines of Lake Superior. In January, 1883, Mr. Courtis located in Detroit, Mich., where he bought a home and established his office as advising mining engineer and metallurgist. He is never in Detroit many weeks at a time, for his services are sought after in every section of the
country. In 1883 he built for parties a twenty-stamp silver mill in the Judith Basin,
Montana, was in London, Eng., on mining business during the winters of 1886-87-88,
and in 1888 built a forty-stamp gold mill and thoroughly equipped a mining plant in
Rich Gulch, California, which was said to be the most economical working plant in
that belt. Mr. Courtis is at present and has been for some years general manager
of other properties in which he is personally interested. He invented and had patented in 1876 the " hydraulic riffle," a device for saving quicksilver, gold and silver
amalgam in the waste from treating ore, much used now, but patent application was
defective. He is also the author of numerous articles on mining subjects which have
appeared in mining journals during the past few years. He is a member of the
American Institute of Mining Engineers of Detroit, Fellowcraft, Engineers' and
Church Clubs of Detroit, of the International Geological Society of the Michigan
Academy of Science; the American Association for the Advancement of Science,
and numerous engineering and archaeological societies. April 2, 1873, he married
Lizzie E. Folger, daughter of the late Andrew J. Folger of Nantucket, Mass., and
they had three sons and one daughter: Stuart A., Walter F. (died suddenly in 1882),
Reginald P. and Olga.
Cullen, James H., son of James and Abigail (McSweeney) Cullen, was born in Detroit, Mich., July 8, 1859. He received a good common school education and studied
law in the office of Griffin & Dickinson (subsequently Dickinson & Thurber), was admitted to the bar in 1893 and has since practiced his profession continuously in the
office of his preceptors, having been chief clerk since 1884. Mr. Cullen has entire
charge of all matters pertaining to the finances of and collections for the firm and
ably discharges the arduous duties of his position. He is extremely domestic in his
tastes, and although daily brought in contact with politics and politicians, he has
never shown any desire for public office or political honors. In 1887 Mr. Cullen
married Harriet Walters of Grosse Pointe, Mich., and they have two sons, Harry
W. and Don C.
Davock, Hon. Harlow P., son of John W. and Maria (Brown) Davock, was born in
Buffalo, N. Y., March 11, 1848. He attended the public schools of Buffalo and was
graduated from the Central High School in 1865. In the following year he entered
the University of Michigan, taking both the literary and civil engineering courses,
and was graduated with honors in 1870. From 1870 to 1875 he vwas engaged as engineer in the construction of numerous railroads throughout the country, and from
1875 to 1881 acted as assistant United States civil engineer in the construction of the
Sault Ste. Marie Canal in Michigan. During the years of 1881 and 1882 he was civil


28




engineer in the construction of the Cascade locks on the Columbia River in Oregon.
During his service on the Sault Ste. Marie Canal Mr. Davock had diligently pursued
the study of law, being admitted to the bar of the State of Michigan in 1878 and in
1882 located in Detroit, where he has since practiced his profession continuously and
successfully. He is a member of the Michigan State and Local Bar Associations and
has taken a place in the foremost ranks of his profession. In the autumn of 1892
Mr. )avock was elected to the Legislature from Detroit for a term of two years, and
in 1895 was appointed as a member of the Detroit Board of Health and reappointed
to that position in 1896, his present term expiring in 1900  Immediately after his
first appointment he was made president of that body. Mr. Davock is the owner of
real estate and has financial interests in various concerns intended to promote the
development and prosperity of the city of Detroit. He is a member and trustee of
the Westminster Presbyterian church and has the unqualified respect and esteem of
his fellow citizens. January 4, 1883, he married Mrs. Sarah Whiting Peabody of St.
Clair, Mich., daughter of the late Col. Henry Whiting, and they have had three
children, two of whom survive: Clarence W. and Harlow N., aged fourteen and
twelve respectively.
De Forest, Rev. Heman Packard, was born in North Bridgewater (now Brockton),
Mass., August 20, 1839. After a course in the common schools of what was then a
country town, he prepared for college at the North Bridgewater Academy, and
graduated from Yale in 1862. He pursued a theological course at the same university, and in January, 1867, was ordained and installed as pastor of the Oldtown
Congregational church in Attleboro', Mass. In June, 1865, he married Miss Harriet
F. Stacy, of Concord, Mass. In 1869 he was called to the Lincoln Park church of
Chicago. Two years later he returned to Massachusetts, and in August, 1869, was
installed pastor of the Evangelical church in Westboro', Mass. Here he remained
till 1880,when he accepted a call to the Trinitarian church of Taunton, Mass. In May,
1889, he removed to Detroit, and took charge of the Woodward Avenue Congregational church, of which he is still pastor. He is the author of a History of the Town
of Westboro', Mass., from the beginning to 1860, and of a number of published sermons and other brief writings. In 1893 Olivet College conferred on him the degree
of S. T. D. In 1897 he was elected chairman of the board of trustees of the Michigan Home Missionary Society, and moderator of the Michigan Congregational
Association.
De Gaw, Frederick E., justice of the peace, a son of Albert and Margaret J. (Barber)
De Gaw, was born in Detroit, Mich., September 14, 1871. He attended the public
schools until 1885 or thereabouts, and immediately on leaving school entered the
Business University of Detroit, completing a thorough course in 1887. After selecting his vocation he entered the law office of Haug & Yerkes, attorneys, and studied
in that office four years, March 4, 1893, Mr. De Gaw took the required legal examination and was admitted to the bar. From 1893 to November 2, 1896, he applied
himself to the practice of law, when he was nominated and elected to the office of
justice of the peace, to fill the unexpired term of J. B. Simpson. Two years and a
half remain to be served. July 1 1897, Mr. De Gaw married Annie Josephine
O'Connell.
Delamater, De Witt C., son of John and Phoebe 0. (Buell) Delamater, was born in


29




Buellville, Onondaga county, N. Y.. January 1, 1844  He attended the public schools
at Manlius, N. Y., until ten years of age, when he removed with his parents to Michigan, settling on a farm which they purchased near Jackson City, Jackson county.
At the age of twenty-two he entered the employ of Rice, Pratt & Co., hardware merchants at Jackson, and remained with them as clerk until 1874. In that year he became connected with C. B. Tames & Co., wholesale hardware dealers of Detroit, as
a traveling salesman, and when the business passed into the hands of Buhl, Ducharme & Co. he continued with the latter firm in the same capacity until 1890. The
firm of Freeman, Delamater & Co., wholesale dealers in hardware, cutlery, iron and
steel, was then organized, Mr. Delamater being chosen as its secretary and treasurer
and still retains that position. He is also secretary of the Buhl Stamping Co. of Detroit, and a director of the Detroit Savings Bank. Mr. Delamater several years ago
purchased of his father the homestead farm near Jackson, which he maintains as a
resort when in need of rest or recreation. He was married on January 1, 1866, to
Kate Hewitt, of Jackson county, Mich., and they have one child, Belle, now the wife
of D. C. Kay, of Detroit.
Denissen, Rev. Christian, son of Cornelius and Marie Cornelia (Konings) Denissen,
was born in the community of Rozendaal, Nord-Braband, Holland, April 27, 1847.
He received his primary education in the public schools of his native place and entered the college of Oudenbosch in 1857, completing his course in modern languages
in 1861 and the classical course in 1867. He then entered the Philosophical and
Theological Seminary at Hoeven, and was ordained to the minor orders in 1870, and
to the priesthood in 1872, by Bishop Van Genk, of the diocese of Breda. Shortly
after his ordination he was transferred to the diocese of Detroit, Mich., and assigned
as assistant at Anchorville, Mich., and later on at Holy Trinity parish, Detroit. In
1872 he was appointed pastor of St. Denis church, Lexington, remaining until 1889,
when he was called upon to organize the parish of St. Charles, Detroit, where he has
since remained. Rev. Mr. Denissen has labored hard and under many difficulties in
his present charge, his congregation being the most cosmopolitan in the city, consisting of French, Belgian, German, Polish and English speaking people. He has
devoted much time and energy to tracing the genealogy of all the French families of
Detroit and vicinity; the most notable of which is that of the Navarre family, of
which he published a book in 1897. He also published some pamphlets on other
families and local history. The most noteworthy incident in the career of Rev. Mr.
Denissen was the recent ecclesiastical suit over the ' Church Farm" property. The
suit was heard in the highest court at Rome, and decision rendered in favor of Rev.
Mr. Denissen, by which the district of the northeast coast of Detroit recovered from
the diocese of Detroit property valued at $270,000.
Devendorf, Charles A., M. D., son of the late Dr. Charles Devendorf, of Amsterdam, N. Y., was born in the latter city, May 15, 1839. He attended the public
schools of his native town and later entered Williams College, from which he was
graduated in 1859 with the degree of A. B.; in 1862 he had conferred upon him by
that college the degree of A. M. After graduating from Williams College he entered the Albany (N. Y.) Medical College, but did not complete his course, as in
September, 1861, he became a medical cadet, United States army, and was stationed
at Fortress Monroe, Va., until 1862, when he was made assistant surgeon of the 38th
30




N. Y. Regiment of Infantry and afterward appointed assistant surgeon of the 48th
N. Y. Regiment, and in 1864 surgeon of the same regiment. After being mustered
out of service in September, 1865, he completed his course of medicine in Bellevue
College, at New York city, and was graduated therefrom in 1866. From 1867 to 1879,
he practiced his profession at Amsterdam, N. Y., and in 1880 removed to Detroit,
where he has built up a large and lucrative practice. In 1882 Dr. Devendorf was
made professor of physiology in the Michigan Medical College, and later filled the
chair of professor of obstetrics and has held that position ever since, being reappointed upon the consolidation of the Detroit and Michigan Medical Colleges, as the
Detroit College of Medicine. For several years he was visiting physician to the
Harper Hospital and is at present consulting physician to that institution. He is
also chief of staff of the Children's Free Hospital, and has been since its organization in 1887. Dr. Devendorf is a member of the American Academy of Medicine,
the Michigan State and Detroit Medical Associations, the Detroit Gyncecological
Society and of The Association of Life Insurance Medical Directors. In 1892 he
was made assistant medical director of the Michigan Mutual Life Insurance Company and in 1895 was made medical director of that company. Dr. Devendorf was
married, in 1867, to Elizabeth C. Osborn of Albany, N. Y., and they have three children: Frederick S, Elizabeth V. R. and Ella W.
Dickinson, Capt. Julian G., was born at Hamburg, N. Y., November 20, 1843.
While yet a boy his parents removed to Michigan, settling at Jonesville where they
remained until 1857, and then removed to Jackson in the same State. Julian G. attended the union schools of Jonesville and Jackson and in 1862, when the additional
call was made for troops for the war, he enlisted in the ranks of the 4th Mich. Cavalry and joined the Army of the Cumberland in September of that year. He was
made one of the secretaries in the adjutant's office; later promoted to sergeant and
subsequently to sergeant-major and first lieutenant and adjutant of his regiment.
He took part in eighty battles and marched over 10,000 miles of territory during his
term of service from July, 1862, to August, 1865, when he was mustered out, being
brevetted captain, United States volunteer cavalry, by President Andrew Johnson,
and commissioned captain by Governor Crapo. At the close of the war he spent one
year in the law department of the University of Michigan, but completed his legal
studies for admission to the bar in the offices of Moore & Griffin at Detroit, being
admitted to the bar in 1866 on examination before the judges of the Michigan
Supreme Court. In 1868 he formed a partnership with H. E. Burt and in 1889 with
Don M. Dickinson, under the firm of Dickinson & Dickinson, which dissolved in 1873;
Mr. Dickinson has been constantly in the practice of his profession  In 1883 he was
admitted to the bar of the Supreme Court of the United States. June 25, 1878, he
married Clara M., daughter of H. R. Johnson of Detroit, and they have six children.
Dixon, Sidney B., son of Richard Dixon, was born at Utica, N. Y., May 19, 1841.
He attended the public schools of that town until 1852, in which year he migrated
with his parents to Michigan, settling in Detroit. In that city he again attended the
public schools and after leaving school entered business with his father and remained
until 1862, when he enlisted in the 24th Mich. Infantry as a musician. In 1865, when
mustered out of service, he returned to Detroit and for two years was assistant manager of Capt. William A. Owen's meat stores; in 1868 he entered the employ of
31




George H. Hammond in the same line of business and later became a member of the
firm of which he has ever since been vice-president, the Hammond-Standish Company. Mr. Dixon is a member of numerous clubs, Masonic and other organizations.
In politics he is a staunch Republican. In 1861 he married Catherine E. Langley of
Detroit, and they have four children.
Douglas, Charles, M. D., son of Peter and Rose A. (Bowles) Douglas, was born at
Streetsville, Ont., Canada, May 5, 1843. After attending the public and high schools
of Streetsville and Toronto, he entered the medical department of Toronto University and was graduated M. D. in 1864. For one year Dr. Douglas acted as house
surgeon to the Toronto General Hospital and in 1865 entered upon an active and
successful professional career. For two years he was located at Oil Springs (near
Sarina) Canada, and during the ensuing nine years (from 1867 to 1876) he practiced
at Streetsville. In 1876 Dr. Douglas located permanently for the practice of his profession in Detroit, Mich., making the diseases of children a specialty, in which
branch he has been eminently successful. Since 1880 he has held the chair of professor of diseases of children in the Michigan College of Medicine, and also in its
successor, the Detroit College of Medicine. He was for a number of years a member
of the medical staff of Harper Hospital and is at present consulting physician to that
institution, and senior physician to the Protestant Orphan Asylum. He is a member
of the American Medical Association, Michigan State Medical Society, Detroit Medical and Library Association, and of the Jefferson Avenue Presbyterian church at
Detroit. In 1864 Dr. Douglas married Mary A. Busby of London, Ont., and they
have four children: Maud M., Olive M., Kathleen J., and Florence G.
Douglas, Samuel Townsend, a member of the well-known law firm of Bowen,
Douglas & Whiting, and one of the thoroughly representative members of the legal
fraternity of Detroit, was born in Ann Arbor Mich, August 2, 1853, a son of Silas H.
and Helen (Wells) Douglas. He received his primary education in the public schools
of his native place; in 1869 entered the University of Michigan, from which he was
graduated in 1873. He then took a post-graduate course in chemistry and medicine,
upon the conclusion of which he entered the law office of Douglas & Bowen, of which
Judge S. T. Douglas, his uncle, was the senior member. Here he began the study
of his future profession, in the practice of which he has been eminently successful.
He was admitted to the bar in 1879, and later associating himself with his uncle and
Mr. Bowen, formed the firm of Douglas, Bowen & Douglas; this copartnership continued until the retirement of the elder Douglas in 1884. Subsequently upon the admission of Mr. Frederick Whiting as partner, the style of the firm became Bowen,
Douglas & Whiting, continuing thus to the present time. Mr. Douglas is indefatigable in the pursuit of his profession, is a thorough student, extremely methodical and
systematic in all that he undertakes, and most earnest in his efforts to accomplish it.
He is possessed of a keen analytical mind, and his professional brethren have come
to regard him as not only a careful reasoner, but deeply learned in the principles of
law. Mr. Douglas was the first to suggest the organization of the Detroit Club.
He drew up the first articles of association, and from its beginning until 1894 was
a member of its board of directors. In 1891 he married Marion Dwight, daughter of
David F. Dwight, and they have two children: David D. and Marion.


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Dresskell, Frederick S., son of Dr. Dennis and Mary (Smith) Dresskell, was born
in Wooster, Ohio, September 5 1861. At an early age he removed with his parents
to Saranac, Mich., and attended the public schools of that place until 1879, when he
entered Wooster University at Wooster, Ohio. On the completion of his education
Mr. Dresskell secured the position of city salesman with the Cleveland Paper Co. at
Cleveland Ohio, remaining with them until 1886, when he was engaged as manager
of the Chicago branch of the Sheffield Manufacturing Co. of Saugerties, N. Y. In
1890 Mr. Dresskell accepted the management of the western office of the Chatfield &
Woods Co. of Cincinnati, Ohio, with headquarters in Detroit, and was retained in
that position until November 1, 1894 when he engaged in business for himself. He
associated himself with Mr. George F. Kenny, under the firm name of Dresskell &
Kenny, wholesale dealers in paper, and by close application and straightforward
methods they have established a large and prosperous business. Mr. Dresskell is a
member of the Michigan Sovereign Consistory; Mansfield Commandery, Knights
Templar; Moslem Temple, Mystic Shrine; Detroit Club, and Grand Pointe Club.
Duffield, George, M. D., son of the late D. Bethune and Mary (Buell) Duffield, was
born in Detroit, Mich., April 28, 1859. He is a direct descendant in the sixth generation from George Duffield, of the north of Ireland, founder of the Duffield family
in America, who died in 1774 at the age of eighty-four years; and a great-greatgrandson of the Rev. George Duffield, D. D., who held high rank in the Presbyterian
church in Philadelphia, Pa., both as a literary man and theologian, and who was
joint chaplain with Bishop White in the first Continental Congress and chaplain with
with the rank of colonel in the Revolutionary army.1 Dr. George Duffield was educated in the Detroit public schools and under private tutors and was graduated M.
D. from the Detroit Medical College in 1882. The ensuing two years he spent
abroad, taking special courses in medicine in Vienna, Berlin and Heidelberg. Since
his return to America and to Detroit in 1884, he has practiced his profession continuously and successfully in that city. In 1893 he became associated with Dr. Henry
A. Cleland. Dr. Duffield is professor of clinical medicine in the Detroit College of
Medicine; attending physician to Harper Hospital at Detroit: member of the American Medical Association, Detroit Medical and Library Association, and Detroit
Academy of Medicine  He is the possessor of a large and well assorted library which
is a constant source of pleasure to him during his leisure moments. October 2, 1888,
Dr. Duffield married the second daughter of Dr. Henry Cowie of Detroit.
Durfee, Irving W., son of Charles D. and Josephine (Wyckoff) Durfee, was born
in Plymouth, Mich., November 20, 1868. He was educated in the public schools of
Plymouth and Ann Arbor, entering the University of Michigan in 1888, from which
he was graduated in 1893; he was graduated from the law school in 1894. From
December, 1890, to the following June he served the Federal government on the
Missouri River Commission, returning to college in the fall of 1891. Subsequent to
the completion of his education he removed to Detroit and entered the office of S. S.
Babcock, attorney, with whom he remained one year, when he established his present practice. In 1897 he formed a partnership with Elmer L. Allor, under the firm
name of Durfee & Allor. In November of that year they admitted George A.
1 For further genealogy see family history and chart now in possession of the subject of the
sketch.
33




Marston, son of ex-Judge Isaac Marston of the Supreme Court of Michigan, and the
firm name was changed to Durfee, Allor & Marston. Mr. Durfee is a member of the
Fellowcraft and Detroit Boat Clubs, also of the Michigan Naval Militia. September
1, 1897, he married Jenny L. Walker, daughter of George L. Walker, of Flint, Mich.
Dust, William T., son of Frederick C. and Johanna (Mass) Dust, was born in the
town of Wolde, Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Germany, July, 25, 1853. When he was
four years of age his parents emigrated to America and settled at Detroit, Mich.,
which city has ever since been his home. He was educated in the public schools and
the German-American (private) Institution at Detroit, and at the age of thirteen
he entered upon an active and successful business career. From 1868 to 1886 he
served the Calvert Lithographing Co. at Detroit, first as office boy, later as foreman
of their press rooms. For fourteen months, from the spring of 1884 to the autumn
of 1885, he was a member of the City Council and was elected in the latter year as
clerk of the city of Detroit for a period of two years from January 1, 1886, to the corresponding date in 1888. In August of 1890 Mayor H. S. Pingree appointed him a
member of the Board of Assessors, in which capacity he served for six years. In
the spring of 1887 Mr. Dust established himself in the hardware business and after
six years branched out into his present line as a jobber of repairs for all stoves, and
hot air furnace contractor. He is also State agent (Michigan) for the Fox Hot Air
Furnaces, and jobber of North Carolina mica, stove pastes and cements. He is a
member of the Marshland Club; German Turnverein; Concordia Singing Society;
order of Free and Accepted Masons, A. 0. U. W., and American Insurance Union.
In 1875 Mr. Dust married Mary W. Weible of Detroit, and they have three children: Lotta, William R. and Olive.
Dwyer, John Martin, second son of Martin Dwyer of Golden, Tipperary county,
Ireland, and Bridget Mullany, of Cahir, Tipperary county, Ireland, was born in
Bansha, Tipperary county, Ireland, February 7, 1838. After emigrating with his
parents to America, and residing in Rochester, N. Y., for a few years, he came to
Detroit in 1853, and has since that year continued to reside here. Mr. Dwyer's edu.
cation was acquired at the common schools. In 1860 he became associated with his
father in the wholesale and retail fruit business, and after his father's death in 1868,
carried it on for one year alone, when he decided to take in as partner James H.
Vhay, and the firm became known as Dwyer & Vhay. Though Mr. Vhay died in
1895 the name of the firm remains unchanged. Mr. Dwyer has other interests which
claim his attention, but to none is he as devoted as he is to the fruit trade, which he
feels that he has been instrumental in raising to its present high standard in the City
of the Straits. Mr. Dwyer married, in 1871, Miss Mary L. Briody of Detroit. They
have five children: Marie Louise, John Elon, Carrie Lucina. Edward J. and Leo
Martin Bernard. Mr. Dwyer and fam'ly attend the Roman Catholic church.
Ellair, Alexander Joseph, first vice-president of the Board of Trade, dealer in
grains, seeds and commission merchant, Nos. 501 and 502 Chamber of Commerce.One of the best known and most popular men on the floor of the Board of Trade is
this gentleman. He is free from the often found desire of board men to speculate,
andl is thus adapted to operate in his customers' interests. No one knows this better
tlan those same customers, who, reaching into various States, place a confidence in
34




him that would not be placed in one less watchful of their special interests. With
about twenty years' experience in watching the markets, studying the crop reports
and statistics, few men have a clearer or keener insight into speculative possibilities,
hence the constant service demanded of him as an officer of the board and the lespect for financial judgment accorded him by his associate brokers, Mr. Ellair was
born at Grosse Pointe, September 2, 1857, a son of Peter N. and Anna (Michie) Ellair.
Peter came from one of the earliest French settlers and was a real estate dealer; he
died February 19, 1886, and his wife followed one year later. His father was Captain Ellair, who served in the war of 1812 and married Florence Girardin and settled
and died on Grosse Pointe. Alexander J. was educated at his native village and at
the age of twenty joined his brother, Archie Ellair, then a grain dealer, with whom lie
remained as clerk and partner upwards of ten years, when in company with William
Boomer he organized A. J. Ellair & Co. Mr. Ellair's constant operations on the
floor of the board for fifteen years have familiarized him with all the ins an(1 outs of
grain deals; large transactions are handled by him for old customers on the New
York, St. Louis and Chicago markets, as well as at home. June 3, 1896, he married
Mary St. Aubin, daughter of Louis St. Aubin, one of the oldest families in the city.
While Mr. Ellair has kept aloof from active participation in public duties, he is an
ardent Republican and harmonizes with the leaders of his party. While constantly
in the midst of excitement and tendencies that draw men into speculation, and having many friends among the "' plungers," he is so well balanced that all temptation
of the sporty character have had little weight with him, but the very contact has
only strengthened a naturally conservative disposition and thus made him fitted to
conduct the business he does.
Ellis, Griffith Ogden, son of Griffith and Jane Hoge (Woods) Ellis, was born at
Urbana, Ohio, November 19, 1869  He was graduated from the Urbana High School
in 1888, and for two years, 1888-90, attended the Urbana University. Prior to entering the university he had for six months been city editor and managing editor of the
Urbana Evening Herald. In August, 1890, Mr. Ellis removed to Washington, D. C.,
and during the following winter attended the Columbian University Law School in
that city; in August, 1890, he was appointed as expert statistician in the agricultural
division of the United States Census Bureau, and retained that position for one year.
He then located in Detroit, Mich., where he continued the study of law in the offices
of Lodge, Sprague & Ashley, and in the fall of 1892 entered the law department of
the University of Michigan, being graduated therefrom LL. B. in 1893. After being
admitted to the bar in the same year he returned to Detroit, where he has ever since
made his home. Mr. Ellis is vice-president of the Sprague Correspondence School
of Law; vice-president of the Collector Publishing Co. of Detroit, and associate
editor of all of the many publications of that company, giving his particular attention
to its magazines, the Law Student's Helper and the Collector and Commercial Lawyer; secretary and treasurer of the J. F. Eby Printing Co. of Detroit; vice-president
of the Sprague Correspondence School of Journalism; member of the Fellowcraft,
Detroit Boat and Detroit Riding Clubs; and of the Beta Theta Pi fraternity of the
University of Michigan. He has contributed to numerous law magazines and has
written several books that have proved very popular as helps to students of the law.
In the spring of 1897 Mr. Ellis married Ellen Winifred, daughter of William A.
Scripps, of Detroit.
35




Elwood, S. Dow, president of the Wayne County Savings Bank of Detroit, is a son
of Daniel and Hannah (Bushnell) Elwood, and was born in Otsego county, N. Y.,
December 25, 1824. He was educated in the Oneida Castle School, and later became
a teacher. In 1844 he removed to Rochester, N. Y., where he found employment as
a grocery clerk, and remained in that business for about one year, when he was appointed a clerk in the post-office at Rochester, and one year later was promoted to
the position of United States railway mail agent. A change of administration caused
him to be superseded in 1849, and in that year he migrated to California, where he was
engaged in trading in the mines, and he also established an express route between
San Francisco and the southern mines via Stockton. In February, 1851, he returned
to Rochester, N. Y., and shortly afterward was married. Late in the fifties Mr.
Elwood settled in Detroit, Mich., where he engaged in the book and stationery business, which he carried on successfully until 1866, when he sold out and removed to
Petrolia, Can., and opened a banking office, doing a prosperous business for four
years. At the end of that time he resumed his residence in Detroit and interested a
number of moneyed men of Detroit with him in the organization and incorporation
of the Wayne County Savings Bank, of which he has ever since been the principal
manager; after the death of Mr. Weston he was elected president. The only public
office that Mr. Elwood ever consented to hold was that of alderman, from 1863 to
1866, and was most of the time president of that body. He also served as chairman
of the Democratic State Central Committee for six years.
Emerson, Justin E., M. D., son of Rev. John S. and Ursula S. (Newell) Emerson,
was born at Waialua, Oahu, Hawaiian Islands, August 11, 1841. He attended the
Oahu College near Honolulu until 1863, and in 1865 was graduated from Williams
College, Mass., with the degree of A. B., and in 1868 had conferred upon him the degree of A. M. He began the study of medicine with Dr. David W. Miner at Ware,
Mass., in 1865, and after one year in Dr. Miner's office entered the medical school of
Harvard University in Boston, Mass., where he attended two courses of lectures.
After a third course of lectures in Long Island College Hospital in Brooklyn, he returned to Boston and was graduated from the Harvard Medical School in 1868, with
the degree of M. D. Dr. Emerson practiced medicine at West Warren, Mass, from
1869 to 1870, being appointed in the latter year to the position of assistant physician
to the Michigan Insane Asylum, which position he held until December, 1877. He
spent the year 1876 in study abroad and during the winter of 1879-80 took a post-graduate course in the College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York city. In October, 1880, Dr. Emerson removed to Detroit, Mich., which has ever since been the
field of his labors. He is a member of the American Academy of Medicine, and was
its president in 1892-93; member of the American Medical Association; American
Medico-Psychological Association; Michigan State Medical Society; Detroit Medical
and Library Association; and of the Detroit Academy of Medicine. Dr. Emerson
has been attending physician at St. Joseph's Retreat at Dearborn, Mich., since 1888;
neurologist to the Children's Free Hospital in Detroit since 1892, and to -Harper Hos
pital since 1885; and clinical professor of nervous diseases in the D)ctroit College of
Medicine since 1894. He has contributed numerous papers and articles to medical
literature. December 26, 1877, he married Wilimena II. Eliot, A. B., A. M. and M.
D., a graduate of Vassar College, and of the Woman's Medical College of New York
Infirmary. They have three children: Paul Eliot, Filip Law, and Ralf de Pomeroy.
36




English, John G., dentist, son of the late Rev. John D. and S. Adeline (Miller)
English, was born at Middleburg, N. Y., April 17, 1856. He was educated in the
Hartwick (N. Y.) Seminary and the Geneva (N. Y.) Classical School, being graduated
from the latter institution in 1874. For several years following his graduation Mr.
English taught in the public schools of Seneca and Ontario counties, N. Y., and began the study of dentistry in 1875 with Dr. H. S. Miller (an uncle) at Rochester, N. Y.
During the winter of 1877-78 he was a student in the Philadelphia (Pa.) I)ental College, returning to Rochester in the latter year and continuing under the preceptorship of Dr. Miller until 1880. After practicing for a year and a half at Avon Springs,
N. Y., he removed to Detroit, Mich., and from 1883 to 1888 was assistant to Dr. W.
H. Kessler, one of Detroit's leading dentists. The winter of 1888-89 Dr. English
spent in Constantinople, Turkey, returning to Detroit in 1889, where he has since
practiced continuously alone and with marked and well deserved success.
Farnsworth, Col. Frederick Eugene, is the eldest son of Leander L. Farnsworth,
who came to Detroit in 1836. Fred. E. was born in the city of Detroit December 2,
1852, and was educated in the public and private schools of that city. It 1867, at the
age of fifteen, he was given an interest in the shoe business of his father (a house established in 1848), and at this time took active control, which he retained until 1883.
During this time the concern was built up from a comparatively small business to the
largest retail shoe trade in Detroit. Shortly after Mr. Farnsworth took hold of this
business he went to the eastern markets, and was considered the youngest shoe buyer
who ever visited New England. In 1883 he retired on account of ill health; in March
of that year the Detroit Art Loan Association was organized, and Mr. Farnsworth
was elected general secretary, and devoted all his time to this enterprise as its executive officer until the business was closed up. The Detroit Museum of Art was then
organized, and he is one of the forty corporators and was its first secretary, in which
position he served for two years, during the preliminary organization of that institution. In February, 1887, he was elected secretary of the Michigan Club, which position he held for five years, and during this period the club was prominent in all matters political appertaining to the city, State and nation. HIe was again elected secretary of the club June 1, 1895, holding the position until February 28, 1898, when he
resigned on account of his duties as bank cashier. Having been a close personal
fi lend of Hazen S. Pingree, dating from the time Mr. Pingree started in business in
1866, and having had close business relations with him, he was appointed to the position of city assessor on July 1, 1891, and was appointed for a second term, and held
the office till November 4, 1897.  Mr. Farnsworth has been actively and closely
identified with the public enterprises of the city of Detroit for many years; was secretary of one of the committees of the Army of the Potomac Reunion; secretary of
the executive committee of the Army of the Tennessee; National Editorial Association
and Michigan Press Association, when these organizations met in this city. He was
assistant treasurer of the first meeting of the Detroit Fair and Exposition Association;
was one of the secretaries of the famous World's Peace Jubilee held in Boston in 1872,
and secretary of the convention held in New York city in 1887 which organized the National League of Republican Clubs. Mr. Farnsworth has been prominently Identified
with the Masonic fraternity, having joined Union Lodge of Strict Observance May,
1878; a member of Detroit Commandery, Knights Templar; Michigan Sovereign Con37




sistory and Mystic Shrine, and has joined in many of the pilgrimages of these bodies
to other States. He has also been prominently identified with the National Guard
of the city and State. His early military training was in the "Brother Jonathan
Zouaves," a company of boys which existed in 1863 and 1864. He joined the Detroit
Light Guard in March, 18T6, was elected second lieutenant January 1, 1878, and was
promoted to first lieutenant. In January, 1885, he was appointed by Gen. I. C. Smith
to be aide-de-camp with rank of captain, First Brigade Michigan State troops. This
position he held until appointed a member of the State Military Board, with rank of
colonel, in October, 1887, on the staff of Governor Cyrus C. Luce, and held for nearly
four years this position, and treasurer of the State Military Board. While an active
member of the Detroit Light Gugard, he was one of the inaugurators of the governor's levees, and has held the position either of secretary or chairman of the
executive committee in most of those events, as well as secretary of the executive committee for the most successful charity ball ever held in this city. He
was one of the active members of the Excelsior Boat Club during the life of that organization. Mr. Farnsworth has traveled quite extensively throughout the United
States east of the Mississippi and Canada and the West Indies, and in 1890 visited
Great Britain and the Continent. He was married on December 2. 1891, to Henrietta B. Clarkson, of Jackson, Mich., and by this union has two sons. He is very
domestic in his habits, has a comfortable home at No. 70 Frederick avenue, and
being interested in art matters and curios, has a fine collection of these articles
picked up on his various trips; being somewhat of a literary turn of mind, he has
quite a complete library, his particular fad being scrap books, and has upwards of
100,000 clippings. He is a member of the Detroit Club, Michigan Club, Grand
Pointe Club, Fellowcraft Club and Harmonie Society, also the Knights of Pythias, as
well as his Masonic affiliations. At the present time he is cashier of the Union National Bank, having been elected to that position January 1, 1898, and secretary of
the Detroit Museum of Art, secretary of the National Guard Association of the
United States, and secretary of the Veteran Corps of the Detroit Light Guard.
Farrand, Jacob Shaw, son of the late Jacob Shaw and Olive M. (Coe) Farrand,
was born in Detroit, Mich., June 11, 1857, was educated in the public schools and
graduated from the High School. In 1876 he became associated with the wholesale
drug house of Farrand, Williams & Company, of which his father was senior member, and became a partner in 1884, retaining that relation until the spring of 1890,
when the new firm of Farrand, Williams & Clark was established, in which he became a partner. Aside from his interests in this firm he is treasurer of the Peninsular White Lead and Color Works; a stockholder in the Farrand & Votey Organ
Company and was a director in the old Detroit Gas Company. He is a member and
trustee of the First Presbyterian church and has been a regular attendant of that
church since boyhood. He is still a bachelor, prominent in both business and social
circles, and a member of the Michigan Club and Sons of the American Revolulution.
lie has been a lifelong Republican.
Farrand, William Raynolds, oldest son of Jacob S. and Olive (Coe) Farrand, was
born in Detroit, Mich., September 9,13.53. He was educated in the public schools of
Detroit and at the age of seventeen entered the employ of the wholesale drug firm
of Farrand, Williams & Company, of which his father was the senior member. He




remained with this firm several years, having charge of the city trade and sundry
goods department ten years. In 1884 he became a stockholder and was elected
treasurer of the Whitney Organ Company; in 1887 the Farrand & Votey Organ
Company was incorporated, succeeding to the business of the former, and Mr. Farrand was elected to the office of treasurer, a position he has since filled with credit
both to himself and the establishment. In 1886 the present factory was built, covering about three acres, at the corner of Twelfth street and the Grand Trunk Railway,
giving employment to over three hundred persons. The output of their factory is
sold in all parts of the world and their products are the best that can be produced.
Mr. Farrand is a Republican and was elected a member of the Board of Estimates
in 1889 and re-elected in 1891. In 1893 he was appointed by Mayor Pingree a member of the Public Lighting Commission; in 1893 he was elected president of the
Board of Estimates, and in 1897 to the presidency of the Public Lighting Commission; he is a trustee of Harper Hospital, a member of the Michigan Club, Manufacturers' Club and Sons of the American Revolution. October 4, 1876, he married
Cora B., daughter of Dr. Perkins Wallace of Canton, 0., and sister of Hon. George
H. Wallace, minister to Australia under President Harrison, and they have one
daughter, Rebekah Olive. Mr. Farrand has been a lifelong Presbyterian and has
served as an elder in Westminster Presbyterian church since 1884. Ile was a delegate to the general assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Pittsburrg in 1895, and is
president of the Wayne County Sunday School Association.
Findlater, James, son of James and Jane (Davidson) Findlater, was born in Aberdeen, Scotland, April 12, 1839, was educated in the Broad Street Academy, Aberdeen, which he attended until the age of fourteen, when he entered the employ of a
firm of lawyers as clerk. In 1857 he removed to America and located in Detroit,
entering the employ of the commission and forwarding firm of Black & Young, foot
of Wayne street. He remained with this firm until 1863, when he accepted a situation with J. T. Whiting & Co., owners of the Lake Superior line of steamers, where
he served in the capacity of bookkeeper. In 1865 he was appointed clerk of the
steamer Meteor of that line and continued in that capacity until the fall of 1867,
when he formed a partnership with Andrew Brunton, under the firm name of Findlater & Brunton, and engaged in dealing in cut stone, with yards and docks at the
foot of Brush street. In 1870 the partnership was dissolved, Mr. Brunton retaining
the Detroit business and Mr. Findlater taking as his interest a large quarry at East
Cleveland, Ohio. In 1871, disposing of his business in Ohio, he accepted a position
as bookkeeper with the wholesale grocery house of Phelps & Brace, with whom he
remained until 1874. He was next employed as bookkeeper by the Royal Canadian
Insurance Co., serving in that capacity until 1878, when he accepted the position of
clerk on the steamer Japan of the Lake Superior Transit Co. At the close of navigation he entered the employ of the late John P. Clark as bookkeeper; in 1879 the
Clark Dry Dock Company was formed, leasing of Mr. Clark the docks and property
at the foot of Clark avenue, and Mr. Findlater was elected to the office of secretary
and treasurer, a position he has ably filled. He is also secretary and treasurer of the
Vulcan Transportation Company. He is a member of Michigan Sovereign Consistory, A. A. S. Rite; Detroit Commandery No. 1, Knights Templar; Moslem Temple,
Nobles of the Mystic Shrine; Peninsular Chapter, R. A. M.; Monroe Council, R. &
39




S. M., and Ashlar Lodge, F. & A. M. He is past master of Ashlar Lodge, F. & A. M.;
past high priest of Peninsular Chrpter, R. A. M.; past T. I. M. of Monroe Council,
R. & S. M.; and past commander of Detroit Commandery No. 1, K. T.; has been
grand master of Carson Council, P. of J., since 1888; captain-general of Detroit
Commandery No. 1 since 1894, having acted in that capacity since 1887; was created
grand inspector general of the thirty-third degree at Chicago, Ill., September 19', 1893,
of Michigan K. T.; and is at present junior grand warden of the Grand Commandery. March 27, 1867, Mr. Findlater married Eliza Teuton, daughter of James Teuton
of Detroit, and they have three children: James R., Sarah L, wife of William Cleland, D S., of Detroit, and William T.
Finney, Sam, son of Samuel and Elizabeth (Burrows) Finney, was born in Attica,
Ind., January 21, 1864. He received his education in the public schools of Attica,
and in the Wabash College at Crawfordsville, Ind. At the age of twenty one, with
capital furnished by his father (deceased), for twenty years cashier of the First National Bank at Attica, he purchased a grain elevator at West Point, Ind., and established himself in business as a grain and seed shipper and commission merchant.
He was successful from the start, his business increasing to such proportions as to
compel him to lease an elevator from the Wabash Railroad Company, and he is still
operating both. In January, 1892, Mr. Finney removed his residence and offices to
Detroit, Mich., where he has a much larger field for his operations. In 1896 he
formed his present partnership with P. B. McLaughlin of Detroit, under the style of
Sam Finney & Co., their business being principally shipping of grain, seeds and mill
feed, and commission. They are members of the Detroit Chamber of Commerce
and Board of Trade. November 2, 1887, Mr. Finney married Julia I. Aylsworth of
Niles, Mich., and they have three children: Chharles M., Elizabeth Hale and Anna
Katherine.
Fisher, George W., son of Isaac and Esther (Creelman) Fisher, was born in Mount
Vernon. 0., September 29, 1844, and in 1848 removed to Detroit with his parents.
His education was obtained in the public schools and he was graduated in 1860.
Immediately on leaving school he was apprenticed to the mason trade. In the fall
of 1862 he enlisted for three years in the 1st Mich. Horse Artillery Company, and in
December of the same year was ordered to Washington, remaining with his conmpany in reserve until the following spring; his company was next stationed at the
court house, Fairfax, Va., and the first encounter occurred at Aldie, Va. Mr. Fisher
fought at Gettysburg and in other engagements along with the Army of the Potomac. In 1863 he was sent to Nashville, Tenn., with his company, which camped on
the ground later made famous by the battle between Thomas and Hood. After
leaving Nashville Mr. Fisher participated in the engagements at Chattanooga, Atlanta, Peachtree Creek, Resaca, Culp's Farm, Kenesaw Mountain and others, fortunately escaping a wound of any nature. His last battle was at Turner's Ferry.
When Sherman began his march to the sea Mr. Fisher's command was ordered back
to Chattanooga, remaining in camp until July 3, 1865, when he returned to Detroit
and was mustered out on July 14, 1865, having to his record twenty-three sharp battles. The fall and winter of 1865 he attended the Bryant & Stratton Commercial
College and in the spring of 1866 toured Illinois, working at his trade, and returned
the same year. Continuing industriously at his trade until 1880, Mr. Fisher formed


40




a partnership with Ira Topping of Jackson, Mich., and to the firm of Topping &
Fisher the credit of erecting some of Detroit's largest buildings is due, among which
are the Harper Hospital, Church of Our Father, manufacturing buildings of Parke,
Davis & Co., the J. E. Hudson building and the Fire Department headquarters, and
others. The firm was dissolved in 1894 by the death of Mr. Topping. Mr. Fisher
was made superintendent of construction for the new Masonic Temple, serving in
that capacity until 1896. For the past year he has been engaged' in mason contracting. He is a member of Detroit Commandery No. 1, Knights Templar, Michigan
Sovereign Consistory, B. P. 0. E., and Detroit Post No. 384. G. A. R. January
8, 1867, he married Alice M. Stead of Detroit, and of their children one is now living,
Mamie A.
Forster, Charles R., was born at Detroit, Mich., February 17, 1858, a son of John
T. Forster, retired, and a resident of that city. He was educated in the public
schools of Detroit, and when fourteen years of age learned photography, which he
followed until 1885, when he was appointed engrossing clerk in the office of the city
clerk at Detroit. In the following year he was made clerk in the office of the city
treasurer. In 1891 he was elected as city clerk and held that office for two terms,
being re elected in 1893. In 1879 Mr. Forster was married to Miss Augusta Lieckfelt, and they have had five children, three of whom survive. He is a member of
the A. O. U. W., and of the Blue Lodge, F. & A. M., of Detroit.
Frisbie, Rev. Stephen W., son of Russell and Christiana (Van de Venter) Frisbie,
was born at Nashotah, Wis., April 12, 1840. I-e acquired his early education in the
parochial schools of his native place and entered Racine College in 1859 and was
graduated in 1862. Subsequent to his graduation he entered the theological semininary at Nashotah, remaining there until 1865. He was ordained to the Diaconate
in 1864 by Bishop Kemper. He was first assigned as assistant in Grace church,
Newark, N. J., but was recalled and ordained to the priesthood in 1866 by Bishop
Kemper and appointed rector of Trinity church, Platteville, Wis. In 1869 he was
transferred to Trinity church, Niles, Mich., remaining one year, when he was
assigned to All Saints' church at Brooklyn, Mich. In 1875 he was appointed rector
of Trinity church, Hudson, Mich,, where he remained until transferred as missionary at All Saints' church, Detroit, in 1877. He accepted his present charge at St.
James's church, Detroit, February 1, 1880. Rev. Mr. Frisbie was elected secretary
of the Diocese of Michigan in 1880 and has been re-elected each succeeding year.
June 27, 1867, he married Alphine, daughter of Dr. C. C. Barnes of Manitowoc,
Wis., and they have three children: Alphine G., James De Koven and Florence C.
Rev. Mr. Frisbie is descended from Edward Frisbie who settled in Branford, Conn.,
in 1643. The genealogy of the Hayes family from which Mr. Frisbie is descended
contains the following: " Rebecca Hayes, daughter of Ezekiel Hayes and sister of
Rutherford, grandfather of the late ex-President Hayes, was married to Capt. Abel
Frisbie, U. S. N., June 3, 1771. Russell, son of Abel and Rebecca Frisbie, born
July 2, 1788; Stephen W., son of Russell and Christiana Frisbie, born April 12,
1840." The story of Abel Frisbie taken from the record of the Hayes family is as
follows: 'Abel Frisbie, master of a vessel in the West India trade, in 1776 was
shipwrecked, entered U. S. navy and not heard of at home for seven years. In
the meantime, believing him dead, his wife married John Mix of New Haven, and


41




bore to him a daughter, who was one month old when Captain Frisbie returned. It
was after much difficulty agreed by all parties that Mrs. Frisbie should decide between the two husbands, neither of whom she had seen after Captain Frisbie's return. Each was allowed a ten minutes' pleading of his cause, when she decided in
favor of the first husband. Mr. Mix honorably acquiesced, but never recovered from
the shock."
Fuller, William P., son of J. Treadwell and Martha (Stevens) Fuller, was born in
Durham, Conn., September 1, 1831. He was educated in the public schools of Durham and in the Binghamton (N. Y.) Academy. From 1849 to 1856 he was engaged
in mercantile pursuits at Hartford, Conn.; from 1856 to 1859 was a reporter on the
staff of the Hartford Evening Press, the first distinctively Republican paper in Connecticut; from 1859 to 1862 was a member of the reportorial staff of the Hartford
Courant; from 1862 to 1866 was part owner and the editor and manager of the Hartford Daily Post; from 1866 to 1867 was special writer for the New York Tribune at
New York city, and while acting in that capacity was induced by James E. Scripps,
owner of the Detroit (Mich.) Tribune, to accept the news editorship of that paper,
which he retained until the autumn of 1870. In the latter year he was called to Chicago, Ill., to fill a like position on the Chicago Evening Post. Being robbed of his
Chicago position by the great fire of 1871, Mr. Fuller returned to Detroit and assumed
his former position with the Detroit Tribune, which he retained until 1877. During
the ensuing year he was editor of the Detroit Evening Telegraph, published by the
Tribune Company, and from 1878 to 1884 again served as news editor of the Tribune.
From 1885 to 1890 he was a director of tile Anchor Manufacturing Company of Detroit, and in 1890, upon the occasion of the New York stockholders in that company
assuming control of the business, Mr. Fuller was elected vice-president, but resigned
in 1891. In 1885 he was also one of the organizers and principal promoter of the
Detroit Ideal Paint Co., of which he has been president and treasurer from the beginning. The Detroit Ideal Paint Co. is a member of the Detroit Paint, Oil and
Varnish Association and Mr. Fuller was president of that organization from 1894 to
1896 inclusive. During his residence in Hartford, Conn., he was clerk of the Common Council of that city for one year. IIe has been married twice, first in May,
1851, to Lucy R. Ricker of Norwich, Conn., who died in January 1877, leaving three
children, two of whom survive: Mrs. Clara P. Wheeler of Sault Ste. Marie, Mich.,
and Alice. His second wife was Linnie Tracy of Sherwood, N. Y., whom he married in May, 1879.
Fulton, Rev. Charles A., son of Dr. Samuel J. and Harriet C. (Fisher) Fulton, was
born December 22, 1860, in Tecumseh, Mich. Rev. Fulton is descended from
Thomas Mayhew, preacher, who obtained a grant of a considerable part of the island
of Martha's Vineyard in 1641. He began colonization in 1642 and founded Edgartown in 1647. The grandfather of the subject was one of the pioneer preachers of
Michigan. Rev. Charles A. Fulton's early education was received in the publit
schools of Tecumseh and Binghamton, N. Y. He entered the High School at Norwich, N. Y., in 1876 and was graduated in 1879. Ile next attended the Madison
University at Hamilton, N. Y., and was graduated in 1883 with honor, being saluta,
torian and poet of his class. In the fall of 1883 he entered the Hamilton Theological
Seminary and was graduated in 1886, and ordained at Norwich, N. Y., in August of
42




that year. Rev. Mr. Ffulton was installed pastor of the First Baptist church, Camden, S. C., in 1886, remaining until 1888, when he was called to the First Baptist
church of Norristown, Pa. In 1891 he removed to Baltimore, Md., having accepted
the pastorate of Immanuel church, in which field he was employed until 1896, when
he was called to Detroit as pastor of the First Baptist church, which is his present
charge. On March 15, 1886, he was united in marriage to Fannie V. Partridge of
Hamilton, N. Y., who died in Norristown, Pa., November 8, 1888. He was married
June 30, 1891, to Mary D. Eisenbrey of Philadelphia, Pa. They have one child,
Francis F. Fulton.
Gage, William T., was born at Le Roy, N. Y., March 16, 1844, a son of William
and Eleanor (Kimball) Gage. He prepared for college at Concord, N. H., and was
graduated from Dartmouth College in 1864. Iuring the ensuing ten years he taught
school in Iowa and Kansas, returning to New England in 1874 to accept the position
of principal of the Hartford (Conn.) Female Seminary. In 1883 he departed from
educational work into the insurance business, being sent to Detroit, Mich., as
general agent for the AEtna Life Insurance Co. of Hartford, Conn.  After six
years of faithful service with that company Mr. Gage severed his connection with
them to accept the position of general agent for the Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co. of Milwaukee, Wis., and has ever since retained that position, his administration of its affairs having won for him the entire confidence of his superiors and
the unqualified respect of the public. Mr. Gage is a member of the National Life
Underwriters' Association, and one of its executive committee; of the Michigan Life
Insurance Agents' Association, of which he has been president; is commander of Detroit Post, No. 384, G. A. R., and a member of the order of Free and Accepted
Masons. He is also a member of the Detroit Club, and a director in the Central
Savings Bank. In 1868 he married Elizabeth Godwin, of Gloversville, N. Y., and
they have had four children, three of whom survive- William H. and Alexander K.,
both graduates of Trinity College at Hartford, Conn., and Philip S. Mr. Gage and
his family are regular attendants at St. Paul's Episcopal church.
Gailey, John Knox, M. D., son of Andrew and Margaret (Burns) Gailey, was born
at Sterling, N. Y., and at an early age removed with his parents to Birmingham,
Mich., where he attended the public schools, afterward entering the Michigan Agricultural College, from which he was graduated in 1874, with the degree of B. S., and
later had conferred upon him the degree of M. S. by that institution. He began the
study of medicine with Dr. D. O. Farrand at Detroit, and took his degree of M. D.
from the University of New York in 1877. Following his graduation Dr. Gailey was
appointed surgeon to the copper mines of the Minong Mining Company in the
peninsula of Michigan, and retained that position for two years. He then spent
thirteen months in the hospitals of Europe, principally at Vienna, Austria, where he
took private instruction in general surgery. Returning to the United States in 1880,
he located for practice at Detroit, Mich., and was almost at once made house surgeon
and superintendent of Harper Hospital, and served in that capacity for five years.
During his hospital service Dr. Gailey had the privilege accorded him of private
work, and built up for himself a large and lucrative practice. He is at present visiting surgeon to Harper Hospital, to the Children's Free Hospital, in the organization


43




of which he was a prime mover, and to the Home of the Friendless. HIe was married, in 1893, to Florence L. Bullock, of Detroit, and they have a son, John K., jr.
Garrison, John W., son of John J. and Frances (Ames) Garrison, was born in Detroit, Mich., July 2, 1856. He attended the public schools of Detroit until 1868,
when he entered Betts Military Academy at Stamford, Conn., where he remained
until 1869. In the fall of that year he removed to London, Ontario, Canada, and
entered Helmuth College, from which he was graduated in 1874. On completion
of his education he returned to Detroit and entered the employ of Garrison & Depew, wholesale grocers, remaining with them until 1876, when he accepted a position
with Pingree & Smith. In 1877 he formed the firm of Garrison & Davis, the firm
comprising C. M. Garrison, A. C. Davis and himself, and returned to the wholesale
grocery trade, which they engaged in until 1880. He was next employed by Lasier
& Co., brokers, where he remained until 1884, at which time he accepted a position
with the Peninsular Car Works as paymaster. In 1885 he engaged in the brokerage
business, continuing until 1890, when he sold to James Baldwin, since which time he
has been engaged in the management of the estates of his wife and mother, and
carried on a general real estate business. Mr. Garrison is a member of Palestine
Lodge, F. & A. M.; Royal Arcanum No. 34, B. P. 0. E., and Detroit Light Infantry. October 13, 1880, he married Mary D., daughter of Dr. David Henderson of
Detroit, who died in 1888, leaving two children: Earl D. and Helen M. In 1890 he
married Mary S. Earl of Jobstown, N. J.
Gates, Jasper C., son of Rev. Aaron and Amanda M. (Cross) Gates, was born on a
farm near Pleasantville, Venango county, Pa., March 23, 1850. His paternal grandfather, Aaron Gates, was a soldier in the war of 1812, and commanded a company at
Sackett's Harbor. His mother, Amanda M. Cross, was descended from the French
La Crosses, who emigrated to New England in the eighteenth century; she was also
a grandniece of Samuel and Elisha Payne, who founded the Madison (now Colgate)
University at Hamilton, N. Y. Jasper C. was brought up on his father's farm, remaining there with his mother after his father's death in 1861. His early education
was obtained in the district schools and Pleasantville Academy; in 1869 he entered the civil engineering department of Union College at Schenectady, N. Y.,
and later determined to take the literary course as well, and kept up his studies in
both branches, being graduated from the engineering department in 1872 and from
the literary department in 1873 with honors, receiving the degree of A. B.; three
years later he had conferred upon him the degree of A. M. In 1873 he entered the
Albany (N. Y.) Law School and was graduated in the following year with the degree
of LL. B. In 1874 he was admitted to the bar of the State of New York by the Supreme Court, and later in the same year removed to Michigan, locating at Kalamnazoo, when he entered the office of Judge J. L. Hawes, and still later in the same
year was admitted to the bar of the State of Michigan. In 1875, upon the accession
of Judge Hawes to the bench, he succeeded to the judge's law practice. Shortly
afterward he became a partner of Hon. Charles S. May and Elisha A. Fraser, and
in June, 1876, Messrs. Fraser and Gates removed to D)etroit, where they were in
partnership continuously until January, 1897. Mr. Gates makes a specialty of real
estate law, chancery cases and probate practice, and(l some big cases have been
handled by him with consummate skill. Ile is and has been for several years a mem

44




ber of the faculty of the Detroit College of Law, in which he is instructor in real
estate law, evidence and domestic relations, trusts and the law of landlord and
tenant. October 9, 1878, he married Lulu Foster of Kalamazoo.
Gillespie, Harry B., son of Elias L. and Mathilda M. (Boggs) Gillespie, was born
in Allegheny City, Pa., April 20, 1858. His education was acquired in the schools of
Evans City and Zelienople, Pa., and in the Connoquenessing (Pa.) private academies.
In August, 1875, he entered the employ of the Texas Pacific Railroad Company and
served that company for about one year as a surveyor. Returning to Pennsylvania in
1876 he spent a year in the oil fields at Bradford. Oil City and other places, and in
1877 accepted the position of invoice clerk with the firm of Joseph Home & Co.,
wholesale dry goods dealers of Pittsburg, Pa. In 1880 Mr. Gillespie resigned his
position with Home & Co. and removed to Detroit, Mich., where he has since been
continuously identified with The Michigan Stove Company. He is at present confidential secretary to the vice-president, Mr. George H. Barbour, and has the entire
management of the collections, credits and correspondence of that concern. He is a
director of the Merchants' and Manufacturers' Exchange; president of the National
Adjuster Co.; member of the board of managers of the Detroit Credit Men's Association; and member of the board of administration of the National Credit Men's
Association. In November, 1883, he married Emily V. Norvell, of Detroit, and they
have one son, Harry Stevens Gillespie.
Gillis, Ransom, son of Alexander E. and Jane A. (Wilson) Gillis, was born in
Argyle, Washington county, N. Y., December 20, 1838. He was educated in the
public schools and Argyle Academy. At the age of fifteen he entered the employ of
Stiles & Pattison, dry goods merchants at Argyle, and remained with that firm for
nearly two years. During the ensuing eight years he served John Stevenson in the
same line of business at North Argyle until in December, 1864, when he removed to
Detroit, Mich. There he was for several years connected with wholesale dry goods
firm of Town & Sheldon (later Allan Sheldon & Co.), and upon the organization of
the firm of Edson, Moore & Co., in 1872, Mr. Gillis became actively interested in the
business as a member of the firm and general business manager, and is still acting
in that capacity. He is also a stockholder in the Citizens' Savings Bank of Detroit;
has been secretary of the board of trustees of Grace Hospital since its organization;
is a member of the Lake St. Clair Fishing and Shooting Club; Michigan Club; and is
actively interested in church work, having been a member of the First Presbyterian
church of Detroit since May, 1865, and an elder since 1873.
Gordon, Clifton D., son of Capt. George C. and Caroline (Spencer) Gordon, was
born at Bell Branch, Mich., October 14, 1869. After attendance at the district
schools and a three years' course in the State Normal School at Ypsilanti, he entered
the law department of the University of Michigan, and was graduated therefrom
LL.B., in 1894. Since his graduation and admission to the bar in 1894, Mr Gordon
has practiced his profession continuously at Detroit, Mich., making a specialty of
corporation and real estate laws. For one year he was principal of the Highland
Park (Mich.) School, and is at present attorney for that village. He is also attorney
for the village of Delray, which has a population of about 3,500. Among his clients
may be found some of the most prominent business men of Detroit, and he has a


45




number of important suits on his hands. some involving large sums; all this is evi_
dence that Mr. Gordon is meeting with excellent success in his profession. Mr.
Gordon's father, Captain Gordon, was in command of Co. I, 24th Mich. Infantry,
during the war, and being taken prisoner languished for nineteen months in southern prisons, including Libby, escaping with a few other officers in 1865. Captain
Gordon died in 1878
Graham, William (deceased), founder of the widely known printing establishment
at Detroit, Mich., which bears his name, was a native of Kingston, Ontario, Canada,
where he was born on June 8, 1828. He was a descendant of the Grahams of Dumfries, Scotland, and a son of John Graham, who was born in Dumfries, Scotland,
of the estate of Mosknow. John Graham, grandfather of William, became a prominent planter in the Island of Jamaica early in the eighteenth century, but in his
declining years he returned to Scotland and to Dumfries; his great-grandfather was
John Graham of Mosknow. From there John Graham, his son, and father of William, emigrated to America and settled at Kingston, Ontario, Can., thus becoming the
progenitor of his race in this country. He married Hannah Staley, a resident of the
State of New York, who was descended from one of the earliest Dutch families of
New York. William Graham acquired his education in the schools of his native
town and at an early age was apprenticed to the printer's trade, in which he quickly
became proficient. He worked for a number of years as a journeyman, and from
Brockport, N. Y., in April, 1849, he removed to Albion, Mich., where for a period of
about a year he acted as foreman of one of the leading printing establishments. In
1850 he located permanently in Detroit and at once became identified with the Daily
Advertiser; later on he was made assistant foreman of the printing rooms of the
Detroit Free Press. Early in the sixties he established the William Graham Printing Co., of which he was president until his sudden death on March 24, 1897. His
daughter, Miss Caroline L. Graham, succeeded him as president of the company.
Mr. Graham was a man of the strictest integrity of character, highly esteemed by
his fellow townsmen and business associates; beloved by all who knew him; always
a kind and considerate husband and father; and a philanthropist. For many years
he was prominent in the affairs of the Methodist church. September 26, 1850, he
married Caroline Matilda, daughter of Richard and Caroline M. (Wagner) Best.
The parents of Mrs. Graham were natives of Sussex, Eng., where she was born; in
the fall of 1841 the family removed to Detroit. Mr. and Mrs. Graham had four children: Caroline Louise, William Archibald (deceased), Diantha Clara and Clements
(deceased). In 1885 Diantha C. married Duane P. Whitney of New York city, and
they have had four children, two of whom survive, Mildred Graham and William
Graham. At the time of the breaking out of the Rebellion Mr. Graham, to show his
patriotism and love of our institutions and flag, at once declared his intention to become a citizen of the United States and bore his part in that memorable struggle for
the perpetuity of the Union; politically he was a Republican.
Graves, John, son of Lyman and Olive (Gorton) Graves, was born at Ypsilanti,
Mich., March 12, 1829. After a preparatory course in the schools of Ypsilanti he entered the University of Michigan, and was graduated thereform in the literary department in the class of 1858. Ile took his degree of LL. B. from the same institution in 1860, being one of the first law graduates of that university. His preceptors


46




were the late Judges Campbell and Walker and Judge Cooley. He was admitted to
the bar in 1860, and located in Detroit Mich., where he practiced his profession until
1869; he then was appointed deputy clerk of the United States District Court, and in
1873 was made United States commissioner, and is still acting in that capacity. His
first four years in Detroit were spent in the law offices of the well-known firm of
Lockwood & Clarke, composed of the late Thomas W. Lockwood and Hovey K.
Clarke. Mr. Graves has been administrator and executor of several large estates in
the past. He is a member of the Alpha Delta Phi fraternity of the University of
Michigan and of the local Bar Association. In 1858 he married Susan M. MacDowell,
of Ann Arbor, Mich., and they have two children: MacDowell, a graduate of the
Michigan School of Mines, and Olive L., wife of Frank W. Smith, of Denton, Mich.
Griggs, Stephen A., general manager of the Acme Heating and Ventilating Company, and son of Stephen and Lucy (Swift) Griggs, was born in Birmingham, Ohio,
November 16, 1849. His parents removed from Ohio in 1853 and settled in Detroit,
where he was educated in the public schools, which he attended until the age of sixteen. He began his business career as office boy in the Detroit post-office, continuing in the service of the government twenty-one years. In 1869 he was appointed
head clerk in the railway postal service between Detroit and Chicago; in 1872 he was
made superintendent of mails in the Detroit post-office, and in 1876 became also a
chief clerk in the railway mail service, with headquarters in Detroit. In 1886 he resigned and associated himself with H. J. Milburn, John Williamson and F. F.
Ingram, forming the firm of Milburn & Williamson, and engaged in the drug trade
as manufacturing pharmacists. In 1890 the partnership expired by limitation, and
the manufacturing department was taken by the firm of Williamson, Ingram &
Griggs, this firm continuing until 1892, when the business was purchased by Mr. Ingram
and associates. Mr. Griggs's next venture was in the firm of Williamson, Griggs &
Co., perfumers; in 1893 he disposed of his interest to Mr. Williamson, and has since
devoted his time to his interests in the Acme Heating and Ventilating Co., of which
he is general manager. Mr. Griggs is a lifelong Republican, and has been actively
connected with his party for many years. In 1887 he was elected to the Common
Council from the Fourth ward and served two terms, being elected to the presidency
of that body in 1890. He is a member of Oriental Lodge, F. & A. M.; Royal
Arcanum; National Union, and the Detroit Club. September 27, 1876, he married
Minnie W., daughterof William H. Langley, of Detroit, and they have three children: Louise, Edma S., and Elihu C.
Guenther, Fred, son of Peter and Magdalen Guenther, was born in Detroit, Mich.,
April 17, 1859. He attended the parochial schools and German-American Seminary
at Detroit, and was graduated from the High School in that city in 1877. During
the ensuing three years he was a clerk in the office of his father, who was then a justice of the peace, and in 1880 he branched out into business for himself, forming a
partnership with his brother, Louis F. Guenther, as Guenther Bros., general insurance agents. He has continued in that line of business ever since and has been
very successful. Since January' 1, 1883, he has been entirely alone. lie represents
at Detroit the following companies: Northwestern National Insurance Co. of Milwaukee, Wis.; Royal Insurance Co. of Liverpool; North British and Mercantile Insurance Co. of London; British America Assurance Co. of Toronto, Ontario; Mer47




chants' Insurance of Providence, R. I.; Aachen & Munich Fire Insurance Co. of
Germany; American Insurance Co. of Newark, N. J.; New York Plate Glass Insurance Co., and Travelers' Insurance Co. (acccident) of Hartford, Conn. He is also
engaged in the ocean passage business, representing several trans-Atlantic lines.
Mr. Guenther is a director of the Home Savings Bank of Detroit; a member of the
Harmonie and Concordia Singing Societies; German Salesmen's Association of Detroit; Turner Society; Detroit Yacht Club, Mervue Club and honorary member of the
Detroit Boat Club. From 1891 to 1895 he represented the city of Detroit as a
member of the Board of Park Commissioners, the only public office to which he has
allowed himself to be appointed. In 1893 he married Emma Kendrick of Mt.
Clemens, Mich.
Hall, Abram S., son of Thomas and Myra (Langmaid) Hall, was a product of the
farm and born in Haverhill, N. H., January 22, 1851. He attended the public
schools of Haverhill until 1864. In 1867 he entered Eastman's Business College at
Poughkeepsie, N. Y., and in 1869 he removed to Cleveland, Ohio. After a short
time spent in the employ of the Manhattan Life Insurance Company, he removed to
Mt. Clemens, Mich., where he engaged in the shoe business, later removing to
Berlin, Mich. In 1871 he entered Albion College, remaining two years, then entered the law office of Junius Ten Yke and began the study of his future profession.
He was principal of the public schools of Armada, Mich., in 1875 and 1876 and in
1878 he entered the law department of the University of Michigan and was graduated in 1880. Subsequently he began the practice of his profession at Grand Rapids,
remaining there until his removal to Detroit in 1886, when he established his present
)ractice. He is a member of Harmony Lodge, F. & A. M., and of Romeo Chapter;
also a member of Palestine Lodge, Knights of Pythias, of Detroit. He was married,
January 4, 1879, to Miss Phebe L. Sherman of Southfield, Mich. They have a family
of three children, Lula May, Arthur S. and Abram S. Hall.
Hall, Harry C., is probably one of the youngest looking men for his age that it is
possible to find, although he is only forty-two, having been born in Cincinnati, March
21, 1856. he does not appear to be over thirty-five. His father, John C. Hall, came
to America early in the twenties direct from England, and his mother was of what
is known as the Pennsylvania Dutch. His father died recently at a very advanced
age, and his mother has been dead some thirty years. Mr. Hall's early education
was obtained in the public schools of Cincinnati, leaving the High School one year
before graduating to enter the gun firm of B. Kittredge & Co., where he remained
for several years in a very trustworthy position. Leaving this firm he obtained employment with the Robert Carroll Co., publishers of the Christian Standard, the
leading religious paper of the Christian church. He remained with this firm one
year, when the paper was sold out to the Standard Publishing Co., he taking the
position of advertising manager, at a greatly advanced salary, with the new concern.
Hie is still connected with the company, being a large owner of its stock and a director. Mr. Hall is a pioneer in the advertising business, in fact, there are but few
living who are now in the business who were engaged in it in 1871 at the time of his
initiation. By strict attention to business, ambitious, honest, and a strong determination to win a position in the front ranks, besides a firm resolution to save a large
part of his income each year and invest it in real estate, Mr. Hall has not only made
48




a legion of friends, but has accumulated a considerable fortune.  His intelligent
interpretation of the publishing and advertising business won ready appreciation.
He has never entered politics, but is a close student of political economy; a good
business man whose word is as good as his bond. Mr. Hall while living in Cincinnati served on many committees of public enterprises, such as musical festivals,
opera festivals and dramatic festivals, publishing in addition to his committee duties
the official programmes and souvenier books, also an important work on Australia.
Since living in Detroit, he has given special attention to the advertising agency
business and in addition is doing his share to help improve the city (his adopted
home) by erecting many buildings, the homes of honest thrifty people. He is a
member of the First Congregational church; of the Detroit Club and is a Sir Knight.
Hall, Richard H., son of Richard H. and Harriet S. (Fullam) Hall, was born in
Detroit, Mich., February 2, 1860. He received a good public school education and
at the age of eleven years entered his father's office, where he gained a thorough
knowledge of brick manufacture. The immense kilns of Richard H. Hall, sr., were
located at West Detroit and his business extended over hundreds of miles of territory. Richard H. Hall, jr., was a faithful, hard worker, and after a few years took
upon himself the entire management of his father's business. In 1882 he decided to
branch out for himself and in consequence formed a partnership with Mr. F. H.
Wolf, and erected a big plant at Springwells, Mich., where they have successfully
operated until the present year, 1897, when the partnership was dissolved. In 1886
the elder Mr. Hall passed away, and in the same year Richard H. bought out the
interests of the other heirs in his father's business, uniting it with his own and re
moving the plant to Springwells, where his entire business interests are now centered.
Mr. Hall is prominent in Masonic circles and enjoys the unqualified esteem of his
fellow citizens of Detroit. He was married in 1890 to Annie S. Howe, and they have
three children: Richard H., jr., Arline E. and Dorotha.
Harmon, Henry A., is a native of New York State and was born at Charlton,
Saratoga county, August 21, 1846. He was educated in the district schools and at
the age of fourteen went to work on the farm of a cousin. During the winter months
he attended the Charlton (N. Y.) Academy and in 1865 entered Union College at
Schenectady, N. Y., from which he was graduated in 1868. In the autumn of that
year he removed to Detroit, Mich., where he has since resided. He entered the law
offices of Newberry, Pond & Brown and after two years was admitted to the bar in
1870. He at once became an active practitioner of his profession and has since enjoyed a good practice. From 1881 to 1886 Mr. Harmon was associated with Messrs.
Meddaugh & Driggs, under the style of Meddaugh, Driggs & Harmon, but since that
time has practiced entirely alone. He is a member of the American and Local Bar
Associations and is attorney for and a director of the Union National Bank and other
large concerns of Detroit. Mr. Harmon has taken high honors in the Masonic fraternity, being a member of Oriental Lodge No. 240, F. & A. M., Peninsular Chapter
No. 16, R. A. M., and Detroit Commandery No. 1, K. T. He is a member of the
Detroit Club and served the city as a member of the Board of Education from 1884
to 1887, having been president of that body during 1887. He has been for a number
of years a member of the Board of Commissioners of the Detroit Public Library.
Harris, Samuel S., jr., son of the late Rt. Rev. Samuel S. Harris, D D., LL.D.,
49
g




bishop of Michigan, was born at New Orleans, La., March 30, 1872, where his father
was rector of Trinity church. His father having been consecrated bishop of Michigan in September, 1879, he attended a private school at Detroit, was admitted to
the Detroit High School, and graduated therefrom in 1879. In the autumn of the
same year he entered the University of Michigan, and in 1893 he received the degree of A. B. During his senior year in the literary department of the University
of Michigan he took up the study of law and completed his studies in the office of
Dickinson & Thurber. While he was a student in the university Mr. Harris spent
his vacation in the office of Hon. Sidney D. Miller at Detroit, where he gained a great
amount of practical knowledge of law. Since his admission to the bar in 1893 Mr.
Harris has practiced his profession continuously in the office of Dickinson & Thurber. He is a member of the Detroit Bar Association, Detroit Boat, Comedy and
Country Clubs; also of the Michigan Naval Reserve and of the Peninsular Chapter
of Alpha Delta Phi. Mr. Harris is a promising young attorney in general practice
and enjoys the esteem of all who know him.
Hartz, John C., son of John H. and Mary (Behring) Hartz, was born near Kiel,
Holstein, Germany, April 9, 1855. His early education was received in the schools
of his native country and at the age of twelve years he emigrated with his parents
to America. After a stay of two years at New Baltimore, Mich., he located permanently in 1869 in Detroit, where he attended Mayhew's Business College for one year.
He then entered the establishment of C. C. McCloskey to learn the hat business, and
later served J. P. Barry and other prominent hatters, including C. R. Mabley. In
1883 Mr. Hartz became a member of the firm of Hartz & Kernaghan, hatters and
furnishers, and remained as such for three years. Since 1886 he has conducted his
present business alone as manufacturer and dealer in hats and gents' furnishings,
and has been eminently successful. In February, 1896, he was appointed by Mayor
Pingree as police commissioner of Detroit, resigning that office in 1897 to become
city assessor. Mr. Hartz was also under-sheriff of Wayne county. He is a member
of the B. P. 0. E. and K. P.; Harmonie and Concordia Singing Societies, and Detroit German Salesmen's Association. In 1879 he married Lena Orth of Detroit, and
they have four children: Henrietta, Gertrude, Viola and Harry M.
Harvey, William M., M. D., son of James and Harriet (Pennoyer) Harvey, was
born in Romeo, Mich., October 8, 1863  Dr. Harvard attended school in Romeo
and was graduated from the High School in June, 1882. Hle came to Detroit with
his parents during 1883 and the year following entered the Detroit College of Medicine, from which lie was graduated in March, 1887. On leaving college he became
associated with his father, Dr. James Harvey, and later was appointed one of the
city physicians by the Board of Health, serving two years. At the expiration of his
term he was appointed city physician by the Poor Commission, serving two years,
when he devoted his time to private practice; but the year following he accepted a
reappointment by the Poor Commission for another three years. lie is surgeon of
the Fourth Infantry, Michigan National Guard. October 29, 1891, lie married Miss
Alice M. Fox of Ohio.
Hatch, William B., attorney, was born at Macon, Mich., on January 27, 1867,
and is a son of James D. Hatch, a prosperous farmer of that place. William B. at5(0




tended the public schools of his native town, and later took a course inl the Goldsmith, Bryant & Stratton Business College (at Detroit), now the Detroit Business
University, and was graduated in 1885. He then entered the Michigan State Normal College at Ypsilanti, Mich., remaining there three years. In the fall of 1890 lhe
vent to Ferndale (Washington), where he had accepted a position as general manager of the varied business interests of John B. Hatch. In 1891 he was placed in
charge of the public schools of Ferndale, and retained that position until the following year, when he removed to Washington, D. C. In the autumn of 1892 he entered
the law department of Georgetown University. and was graduated in 1894, with the
degree of LL. B, being president of the class. During his attendance at Georgetown University he was employed as clerk and student in the offices of J. J. Darlington, attorney of Washington. In 1894he returned to Michigan, took the bar examin ation and was admitted to the Lenawee county bar. Wishing to pursue some of
his legal studies further, in the fall of 1894 he entered the post-graduate course in the
law department of the University of Michigan, taking the degree of LL. M. the following spring. His U. of M. classmates chose him as class poet. In the summer of
1895 he located for the practice of his chosen profession in Detroit, associating himself with the old established law firm of Brennan, Donnelly & Van de Mark. During this connection he was appointed acting assistant librarian in the Detroit Bar
Library. On March 1, 1898, he formed a law partnership with Bernard B. Selling,
of Detroit, under the firm name of Selling & Hatch, opening offices at 407 and 408
Hammond building, Detroit. Mr. Hatch is a member in good standing of Company
F, M. N. G., but on account of a severe attack of inflammatory rheumatism was
greatly disappointed in not being able to accompany his comrades to the front, under
the governor's order, in April, 1898
Hathaway, Charles S., son of Charles W. and Mary (Tracy) Hathaway, was born
in Grand Rapids, Mich., August 20, 1847. He served as apprentice on the Grand
Rapids Eagle, and later in the capacity of reporter. On leaving Grand Rapids he
associated himself with the Bay City Journal as reporter, and in 1872 came to Detroit
and served on the reportorial staff of the Detroit Post until 1874, when he was engaged by the Detroit Free Press as a reporter, and in 1880 became manager of
Whitney's Opera House when it stood on the present new post-office site. During
the seasons of 1881 and 1882 Mr. Hathaway managed the Anna Dickinson theatrical
company. While in New York he was employed at space writing for the New York
dailies, and in 1883 returned to the staff of the Detroit Free Press. He remained in
this position until 1893 as a paragraph and special writer, and it was during this time
that he began the department of art news, which was continued and was a popular
feature of the Free Press throughout Mr. Hathaway's connection with that paper.
In 1893 he located in Washington, D. C., where he was engaged for a year as special
writer for the Washington Star, Detroit Free Press and other papers. In 1895 he returned to Detroit to accept the position of secretary of the Board of Health, which
position he held until May 15, 1898, when he resigned to accept the position of associate editor for Michigan of the National Encyclopedia of American Biography. On
June 12, 1883, he married Marion A. Johnstone, of Detroit, daughter of Robert F.
Johnstone, editor and proprietor of the Michigan Farmer. She died in August, 1897,
leaving three children: Robert F., Charles W., and Marion Rosamond.


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Heidt, Herman D., son of Lewis and Pauline M. (Roehm) Heidt, was born in Detroit, Mich., March 4, 1860. He was educated in the public schools of Detroit, and
at the age of fifteen commenced his business career. For several years he was engaged in various mercantile pursuits, and in 1877 became a clerk in the large department store of C. R. Mabley & Co., where he remained for three years. From 1880
to 1885 he served the firm of J. L. Hudson & Co. in various capacities, and during
the ensuing ten years acted as general manager for the States of Michigan and Indiana for the Germania Life Insurance Co. of New York city. In April, 1895, Mr.
Heidt formed a copartnership with Frank W. Baumgartner, and under the style of
Heidt & Baumgartner, they established their present fine business as importers of
and dealers in gentlemen's furnishing goods. Close application to business and
splendid business methods have been the keynote to their almost phenomenal success. Their stock in trade is complete and the finest in the city of Detroit, and in
less than three years this firm has come to be recognized as among the leading concerns of that city. Mr. Heidt is a member of the Harmonie Singing Society. October 28, 1895, he married Frieda, daughter of August Dohrman, of Detroit, and they
have one son, Marvin A.
Heineman, David E., was born in Detroit, Mich., October 17, 1865, at the family
residence, No. 428 Woodward avenue, where he has resided ever since, and is a son
of the late Emil S. Heineman, a prominent citizen of Detroit since the early fifties.
David E. was the youngest of the boys at the famous old Philo Patterson's School,
which graduated so many of the now prominent professional and business men of
the city. He entered the Washington School later on and was graduated from the
Detroit High School in 1883, as president-of his class. He spent the subsequent
year in general European travel and in the fall of 1884 entered the literary department of the University of Michigan, completing the four years course in three years
and receiving his diploma of Bachelor of Philosophy in 1887. He then studied law
in the offices of Walker & Walker in Detroit, and followed this up with a year in
the law department of the University of Michigan, being admitted to the bar May 4,
1889. He has since practiced in Detroit, in partnership with Senator Joseph M.
Weiss from 1891 until 1893, when he accepted the office of chief assistant city attorney of Detroit. This position he held for three years, during which time he had
charge of the court work of the city attorney's office and revised and compiled the
present ordinances of the city of Detroit, a volume of over 700 pages. On retiring
from the office, he returned, after a trip to Africa and Southern Europe, to private
practice, making his office at No. 28 Moffat Block. Mr. Heineman is a stalwart
Republican, a member of the Michigan, Alger and other Republican Clubs; a member of the Detroit Athletic Club since its organization; the Detroit Boat Club; Old
Club at St. Clair Flats, and other similar organizations; he is an Elk and (dd
Fellow; president of the Bohemian Club of Detroit; secretary of the Detroit Archaeological Society since its inception and member of many other social, literary and
art organizations. He is a director of the Fort Wayne and Belle Isle Railway Company, also of the Detroit Fire and Marine Insurance Company, director and secretary
of the Merz Capsule Company and connected with various other corporations.
Hislop, Robert, M. D., C. M., son of Thomas and Elizabeth (Clarkson) Hislop, was
born at Rodgeville, County of Huron, Ontario, Canada, November 2, 1855. lie was




educated in the public schools of his native town and at Ottawa and Toronto Normal
Schools and St. Catherine's Collegiate Institute. He then taught school for six years
and a half, three years of that time as principal of the Glen Allen (Ont.) public schools.
In 1880 he matriculated in the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario, and
later in the same year at Trinity University, Toronto, and in 1883 graduated with
honors, M. B., in Trinity University, also becoming Fellow of Trinity Medical College and Member of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario by examination. In 1885, after completing an exhaustive thesis on Erysipelas, the convocation
of Trinity University, Toronto, conferred on him the degree of M. D., C. M. He
then returned to Detroit, Mich., where he had already located in 1883, and has since
enjoyed a large and lucrative practice. He makes a specialty of medical and surgical diseases of women and rectal diseases, and is one of the directors of the Wayne
County Medical Society and a member of the Northern Tri-State Medical Society,
He is a K. P., and an examiner for the Endowment Rank, K. P., United Friends,
Knights of the Maccabees, Red Cross and other societies.
Hitchcock, Horace, son of Rev. Harvey S. and Clementine (Thompson) Hitchcock,
was born in Orangeville, Pa., November 25, 1836. He obtained his education in the
district schools and Gouverneur Seminary, preparing for college, but did not enter.
He became interested in the manufacture and sale of woolens and devoted forty
years of his life to this pursuit. During 1861 he was appointed postmaster of Clayton, N. Y., by Abraham Lincoln, and one year previous to his appointment as postmaster he married Mary Esseltyn of Clayton, and their children are James H.,
Fred H., Willard and Mary. Mr. Hitchcock came to Detroit during the war, and a
year ago was engaged by the New York Life Insurance Company as special agent
for that place. Mr. Hitchcock has been a resident of Detroit about thirty years.
Hopper, Major George C., son of Henry and Almira (Taylor) Hopper, was born
in Jordan, N. Y., March 20, 1831. His education was received in the district schools
of Waterloo, N. Y., where his parents removed in 1837. In 1846 he entered the employ of the Michigan Central Railroad at Detroit, filling various positions until 1852,
when he was appointed passenger conductor. In August, 1861, he enlisted in the
1st Mich. Infantry and was commissioned second lieutenant. His regiment was
actively engaged in every battle of the Army of the Potomac from and including the
battle of Mechanicsville to the surrender at Appomattox, and he participated in the
battles of Mechanicsville, Gaines Mill, Second Bull Run, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, the Wilderness, North Anna River, Cold Harbor and the siege of Petersburg.
He was wounded four times, twice severely, and was a prisoner of war. He was
mustered out in October, 1864, with the rank of major. At the conclusion of his
military servicehe returned to Detroit and was employed by the Michigan Central Railroad, securing his former position as passenger conductor. In 1867 he was promoted
to the position of agent at Jackson, where he remained until 1872, when he was appointed assistant superintendent of the Jackson, Lansing & Saginaw division. In
1873 Major Hopper received his present appointment as paymaster, and with the
exception of the three years in which he served his country he has been continuously
in the employ of the Michigan Central Railroad for the past fifty two years. He is a
member of Zion Lodge, F. & A. M.; Michigan Commandery; Loyal Legion and




Detroit Post, G. A. R. April 11, 1866, he married Martha Van Ness of Newark,
N. J., and they have three children: William C., Kate A., and James S.
Irvine, George W., M. D., son of Robert and Areis C. (Millen) Irvine, was born at
St. Lawrence, Jefferson county, N. Y., June 6, 1866. After attending the public
schools and High School at Chaumont, N. Y., he entered the Dominion Business
College at Kingston, Ontario, Canada, and was graduated therefrom in 1886. In
1888 he removed to Detroit, Mich., and entered the Detroit College of Medicine,
from which he was graduated M. D. in 1891. During the ensuing year he acted as
house surgeon to St. Mary's Hospital, and has since practiced continuously and successfully in Detroit. Dr. Irvine is asssistant demonstrator in the chemical laboratory of the Detroit College of Medicine: a member of the Detroit Medical and
Library Association; Wayne County Medical Society, etc. He is still a bachelor.
Jackson, Harry H., son of Harry and Aurora (Hinckley) Jackson, was born at
Arcade, N. Y., September 25, 1835. He was educated in the Arcade Seminary and
studied dentistry with Dr. A. B. Botsford. He commenced his active professional
career at Gilead, Ohio, and later practiced his profession successively at Farmington and Northville, Mich. In 1874 he located permanently in Detroit. Dr. Jackson
is a member of the American Dental Association; Michigan Dental Association;
Detroit Dental Society, of which he is president; Wayne Club, Old Club at St. Clair
Flats, Mich.; and is a member of the York and Scottish Rite Masons. In 1864 he
married Sarah S. Scott of Detroit, and they have two children: Harry V. Jackson,
M.D., D.D.S., and Virginia M.
Jamieson, Robert A., M.D., son of Andrew and Lois (Andrus) Jamieson, was born
in the township of Brock, Ontario, Canada, June 16, 1843. He was educated in the
public and private schools of his native town and in the McGill University at Montreal. He was graduated M. D. from the University of Pennsylvania in 1866,
located for practice in Detroit, Mich., in 1870, and has ever since made that city his
home. His general practice is an extensive one, but he makes obstetrical work his
specialty. He is a member of the Detroit Medical and Library Association and was
its president in 1886; a member of the Medical staff of St. Mary's and St. Luke's
Hospitals at Detroit, and is professor of clinical medicine in the Detroit College Of
Medicine. He was city physician of Detroit from 1873 to 1875 inclusive and has
been State medical examiner for the A. O. U. W. for the past fourteen years. He
is also local medical examiner for the Pacific Mutual Life Insurance Co. of California
and for the Provident Savings Life Insurance Co. of New York city. In April, 1875,
Dr. Jamieson married Emma L. Thompson, daughter of the late Joseph M. Thompson of Detroit, and they have four children: Mary J., Louise A., Robert C. and
Andrew D.
Jones, Henry K., son of Dc Garmo and Caroline (Sanger) Jones, was born in Detrost, Mich., October 30, 1862. In 1881 he entered Princeton University, where he
completed the academic course and was graduated in 1885. In 1886 he returned to
Detroit, where he has since been actively and successfully engaged in the real estate
business. He is a member of the Detroit Club, Detroit Boat Club, and North Channel Club at St. Clair Flats, Mich. In 1890 Mr. Jones married Anna G. Paddock,
and they have two children: Henry K., jr., and Anna S.
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Kaple, John H., vice-president of the Michigan Savings Bank, and son of Arunah
and Naomi (Carpenter) Kaple, was born in Tyringham, Berkshire county, Mass.,
October 6, 1817. He is of Irish ancestry, being descended from Thomas Kaple, who
emigrated from Ireland about 1735, settling in Connecticut. His son John, grandfather of John H., was a member of the Colonial army and served at the battle of
Bunker Hill. Mr. Kaple received such an education as the schools of that time
afforded and was a student until the age of twenty one, when he removed to Michigan, locating at Utica and entered the employ of Ira H. Butterfield, manufacturer
of fanning mills. He remained in this occupation until 1850, when with Mr. C. W.
Chapel he formed the firm of Chapel & Kaple and engaged in general merchandis
ing. In 1854 he removed to Detroit and was employed in various ways until 1861,
when he was appointed registrar of the Probate Court and served in that capacity
until 1865 and then entered the law office of D. C. Holbrook, taking charge of the
probate practice of his office. In 1866 he was appointed assistant postmaster of Detroit, serving until 1875, when he was appointed postmaster by President Grant and
served in that capacity until 1879. He was originally a Whig and has been a Re-,publican since the organization of the party. On the organizing and incorporation
of the Detroit Casket Company in 1881, Mr. Kaple was elected president of that
corporation and has been continuously retained in that position. He was elected as
a director in the Michigan Savings Bank in 1880 and to his present office of vicepresident in 1890. He is a director in the Michigan Mutual Life Insurance Company
and is interested in various other corporations. December 21, 1843, he married
Fannie A. Chapel of Utica, Mich., and they have one daughter, Mary V., wife of
Claud. H. Candler, vice president and secretary of the Calvert Lithographing Company. Mrs. Kaple died September 12, 1886.
Kendall, John, assistant chief of the Detroit Fire Department, is a son of David
and Eliza (Kitchen) Kendall, and was born in Detroit, Mich., April 13, 1839. After
receiving a thorough public school education he was apprenticed to a carpenter to
learn that trade, which he followed for a number of years. While plying his trade
Mr. Kendall became identified with the Fire Department as a member of volunteer
Hose Company No. 5, and when this company was disbanded in 1855 he joined Hook
and Ladder Company No. 1. In 1856 he was instrumental in the organization of
volunteer Engine Company No. 9, and was elected as foreman, in which capacity he
acted for five consecutive terms. This fact alone was proof of his popularity. In
1865 Mr. Kendall was made assistant engineer of Engine Company No. 5, with
which he served for six years. From 1871 to 1882 he was foreman of Hook and Ladder Company No. 2, and from 1882 to 1883 foreman of Hook and Ladder Company
No. 1, and in the latter year was appointed as chief of battalion. Upon the resignation, in 1895, of Chief Battle, whose entire career had been marked with bravery in
fire fighting, Mr. Kendall was appointed to his present position as assistant chief of
the department. Aside from his other duties he has found time to compile a record
of every " call out " of the Fire Department from 1836 to date; to serve as a member
of the Detroit School Board from 1865 to 1869; and to act as one of the trustees of
the old volunteer department for twenty-one years, from 1857 to 1878. He holds
high honors in the Masonic fraternity, being a member of the Blue Lodge, Chapter,
Consistory and Shrine, and is a member in good standing of the A. 0. U. W. In


55




1861 Mr. Kendall married Julia A. Carpenterof Detroit, and they have two children:
Frederick J. and Harry C., both of whom are identified with the Detroit Free Press.
Kinney, Roland O., son of Jesse and Lodisa (Holt) Kinney, was born in Porte
Roun, Ontario, Canada, November 3, 1859. He was educated in the public schools
of his native town and at Detroit, Mich. He early learned the printer's trade, but
left that to engage with his father in the monumental business, and soon became an
expert marble cutter. From 1879 to 1882 he conducted the J. Kinney & Co. Marble
Works in Detroit, and Port Sanilac, Mich. After selling out that business he entered the real estate business in 1883, with Eugene Schoolcraft, at Port Huron, Mich.,
and continued there until 1891, when he returned to Detroit to assume charge of the
sale and exchange department of the Hannan Real Estate Exchange. In September, 1897, Mr. Kinney opened offices for himself at 26 Hodges Block, where he has a
large business. Mr. Kinney was married in 1880 to Frances Spence of Iondon, Ont.
Kuhn, Franz C., son of John and Anna C. (Ullrich) Kuhn, was born in Detroit,
Mich., in 1872. His father is one of Michigan's leading dry goods merchants, and is
located at Mt. Clemens, to which place he removed from Detroit about 1874. Franz
C. attended the public schools and was graduated from the Mt. Clemens High School
in 1889; he then entered the literary department of the University of Michigan, and
was graduated in 1893 with the degree of B. S. He also studied law in the same institution, being graduated with the degree of LL. B. in 1894. Immediately following his graduation he returned to Mt. Clemens, where he still maintains his residence, and was elected circuit court commissioner of Macomb county and re-elected
in 1896. In the fall of 1894 he opened an office in Detroit, where he has since been
in continuous practice of his profession with well merited success. He was admitted
to the bar while yet a student at Ann Arbor in May, 1894. From March 1, 1895, to
March 1, 1896, he had as a partner Mr. H. E. Candler. In politics Mr. Kuhn is an
enthusiastic Republican, and while at the University of Michigan he took a great interest in all political questions, and was prominent among those who organized the
American League of College Republican Clubs. In 1892 he was sent to Buffalo, N.
Y., as a delegate to the National Republican League Convention. He is a member
of Mt. Clemens Club, Detroit Harmonie Society, Detroit Bar Association, Law fraternity of Phi Delta Phi, and of the K. of P.
Leys, Francis T., M. D., son of Francis B. and Carrie Thompson (Burbank) Leys,
was born at London, Ontario, Canada, June 24, 1867. He was educated in the
Upper Canada College at Toronto, from which he was graduated in 1889. In 1894
he was graduated M. [) from the medical department of the Western University at
London, Ont., and in the same year removed to Detroit, Mich., where for one year
he acted as house surgeon to Harper Hospital. The summer of 1895 Dr. Leys spent
in Europe, studyingin London, Edinburgh and Berlin. Since the autumn of that year
he has practiced continuously at Detroit. He is a member of the Detroit Medical and
Library Association; the Wayne County Medical Society, and is a thirty second degree Mason, a Mystic Shriner, and a member of the K. P., K K., and M. M. F.
Littlefield, Louis B., treasurer of the city of Detroit, was born in Utica, N. Y.,
August 18, 1844. After a rushing, but thorough education, Mr. Littlefield turned
his face westward to Grand Rapids, Mich., where he remained for a number of


56




years, rapidly coming to the front rank among the business men of that city. He
later removed to Detroit, which has ever since been his home. He embarked in the
cattle business soon after arriving in Detroit, and as years rolled by it became evident that Mr. Littlefield was one of the most successful operators in cattle and real
estate in that city. He has also dealt largely in mines and mining stocks and always
with the same success. In 1880 he entered politics and was elected to the Board of
Aldermen; he was re-elected in 1882 and again in 1884 and in the election of 1886,
when his name appeared on the Republican ticket for sheriff of Wayne county, it
was apparent that he was equally popular with both parties, as he was elected by a
unanimous vote and re-elected in 1888. In 1890 he refused renomination for the
office of sheriff and was at once nominated for, and elected to, the office which he
now fills (having been re-elected for three consecutive terms), as treasurer of the city
of Detroit. During the war Mr. Littlefield served with the 26th N. Y. Vol. Infantry
and was severely wounded at the battles of Bull Run and Groveton, Va. He is a
member of the I. 0. O. F., K. P., F. & A. M., and Fairbank Post G. A. R., of
Detroit.
Long, John R., son of Richard and Cornelia (Connor) Long, born January 22, 1874,
in Detroit, Mich. Mr. Long acquired his primary education in the parochial schools
of Detroit and entered Detroit College in 1886, where he remained until 1890. In
the fall of that year he entered Fordham College at Fordham, New York, and was
graduated in 1893. On the completion of his education Mr. Long returned to Detroit and entered the employ of the Peninsular Lead and Color Works, where he has
since remained. In recognition of his value as an employee he was elected to the
position of secretary in September, 1894, in which capacity he is at present serving.
Mr. Long was married April 16, 1895, to Edna, daughter of Richard Beaubien of
Detroit. They have two children, Carlyle R. and John C. Long.
Look, Henry, was born in Detroit, Mich., September 25, 1872, and is a son of the
late Henry Look. He was educated in St. Mary's Parish School, and at fourteen
years of age entered the law office of William Look (his cousin) as office boy, remaining there and making a close study of law until 1895. He was admitted to the bar
in 1893. In 1895 he became associated with Harry F. Chipman, and practiced law
until January 1, 1897, when he was appointed chief deputy sheriff of Wayne county.
Mr. Look is a member of the German Salesmen's Association, commodore of the
Citizens' Yachting Association, vice-commodore of the Interlake Yachting Association, member of the West End Yacht Club, and of the Detroit Light Infantry.
Loomis, De Witt, vice-president and general manager of the Detroit Steel &
Spring Co.-Among the more important industries of the city is that of the above
named company, and its origin dates back many years and its present plant is the
growth of years; springing from a beginning the most insignificant, it is deserving
of more than passing notice. Several years ago Alexander Delano and John S.
Newberry, both since deceased, began in a small way in a little shop that occupied
space that is now but one corner of an extensive plant covering upwardsof five acres
at Michigan and Hubbard avenues. The business had its varied experiences, succumbing to reverse fortune, but with a vigor still left that finally in 1880 resulted in
incorporation under the present style, with Alexander Delano as president, Charles
57
h




G. Choate as vice-president and Allan W. Atterbury secretary. They sought for an
experienced manager, one whose life had been devoted to successful conduct of similar enterprises and being fortunate in securing Mr. Loomis to take the position of
general manager, the success was assured. From that day to the present the business done has justified the most sanguine expectations of its friends. Its output is
largely locomotive, car, wagon and carriage springs, merchant steel and steel castings. The most advanced ideas have been embodied in its processes, the most
skillful and intelligent workmen employed and its product has ever taken high rank
in the commercial world. A capital of $250,000 is now invested on paying basis.
Five hundred men are employed and its pay roll is about $15,000 monthly. De Witt
Loomis, to whose skill, wisdomand intelligence so much is due in the successful issue
of this business, is a man of modest demeanor, unassuming, on easy terms with all
the employees, yet confident in his own power and sure of results. 'The business is
conducted with the ease and assurance that the average man conducts a small business with but few operatives. He knows what is wanted and how to have it done.
This alone has won him the confidence of every workman, and in his dealings with
them there is freedom from the littleness often seen, and no trouble has ever arisen
with the men that has not met with amicable adjustment. Mr. Loomis was born in
Cincinnati, Ohio, and his entire life has been devoted to the steel industry, first for
ten years as private secretary of Andrew Carnegie, and then as partner in the Linden Steel Co. at Pittsburg until 1890, when he was induced to accept his present
position. His tastes are domestic and his fondest pleasure is when with his own
family at his summer home at Harbor Point, where he is an enthusiastic member of
the Golf Club and where he recreates with the fishing rod. He is a member of the
Detroit Club and of the Country Club.
Lutfring, Rev. Casimir, son of Bernard and Bernardine (Impink) Lutfring, born
February 7, 1856, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. His early education was acquired in
the parochial schools of his native city, which he attended until the age of thirteen.
In 1871 he entered St. Lawrence College at Mt. Calvary, Wisconsin. In 1873 lie
joined the Capuchin Order, completing his studies in 1881. He was ordained May
28, 1881, at Milwaukee, by Archbishop Heiss and appointed as assistant pastor of St.
Joseph's church at Appleton, Wisconsin. In 1882 he was transferred to New York
city and assigned as assistant pastor of Our Lady of Sorrows church, where he remained until 1891, when he was appointed as assistant pastor of Sacred Heart
church, Yonkers, N. Y. Rev. Lutfring remained in Yonkers until 1894, when he
was transferred to Detroit and appointed as guardian of St. Bonaventure Monastery,
his present charge.
McMath, Frank M., was born at Niles, Mich., September 23, 1860. His parents
were natives of Michigan, and his grandparents of New York, coming to Michigan
during the great tide of immigration from that State into Michigan in 1825-6. Hlis
education was confined to the public schools and one year at the State Normal.
When eighteen years of age he commenced the study of law in the office of his uncle,
Honi. J. W. McMath, at Bay City, and later associated himself with the late Col.
Sylvester Lamrned at Detroit. He was admitted to practice in 1881. Mr. McMath
has had a special preference for commercial and real estate law, and from the outset
of his professional career has devoted himnself chiefly to these specialties, numbering


58




among his clients some of the best firms in Detroit and Michigan. Of a social disposition, he has connected himself with various orders and societies, including the
Odd Fellows, Knights of Pythias, and Wayne Club. He is married, and resides in
a comfortable home on Cass avenue.
McMillan, James H., son of U. S. Senator James McMillan, of Michigan, was born
at Detroit, September 17, 1866. After attending the public schools of Detroit, he
entered Yale College and was graduated from the literary department in 1888, with
the degree of Ph. B. He then spent one year in the law department of that institution, finishing his studies in the law offices of Hon. William H. Wells at Detroit. He
was admitted to the bar in 1890, and to practice before the United States Courts. In
January, 1892, he became a member of the law firm of Wells, Angell, Boynton &
McMlllan, composed of William H. Wells, Alexis C. Angell, Herbert E. Boynton
and the subject, with Hon. Ashley Pond as counsel. Mr. McMillan is a member of
the American and Detroit Bar Associations and of the Detroit, Yondotega, Fellowcraft, Detroit Boat Clubs and the Country Club of Detroit. His residence is at the
village of Grosse Pointe Farms, Mich., where Mr. McMillan has served as one of the
village trustees since its incorporation. In June, 1890, Mr. McMillan married Julia
V., daughter of Alexander Lewis of Detroit, and they have two children: Gladys V.
and James 2d.
MacLachlan, Daniel A., M. D., son of Archibald and Mary (Robertson) MacLachlan, was born at Aylmer, Ontario, Can., November 10, 1852. He attended the public and high schools until twenty years of age, and after two years spent as a teacher,
in 1876 began the study of medicine in the office of Drs. Clark, of Aylmer, one of
whom, Dr. George F. Clark, was a specialist on diseases of the eye and ear and a
graduate of the New York Ophthalmic College. Soon afterward he entered the
medical department of the University of Michigan, from which he was graduated in
1879 with the degree of M. D.; later on he attended in Toronto and passed the examinations before the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario, and almost
immediately afterwards began the practice of his profession at Pontiac, Mich. While
in college he was president of his class, and three years after graduation was elected
president of the Association of Alumni of his college. After one year of practice
at Pontiac and five years at Holly, Mich., he was appointed to the chair of professor
of theory and practice of medicine in the University of Michigan, which chair he
filled for four years, when he received a leave of absence for study abroad, which he
spent in the hospitals of London, Heidelberg, Vienna and Paris. While in the latter
city he was called to the chair of professor of diseases of the eye, ear, nose and
throat in the University of Michigan, and he resigned the former position to accept
the latter, which he held until October, 1895, and then resigned the chair to locate
permanently in Detroit, Mich. From first commencing practice he had given special
attention to diseases of the eye and ear, and since his appointment to that chair in
the university he has given it his exclusive attention, his success being attested by
the many patients who come from other States to receive treatment at his hands.
During his professorship in the University of Michigan, Dr. MacLacllan was for
several years secretary of the Homeopathic School of Medicine attached to that university. He is at present a member of the American Institute of Homeopathy, and
was its first vice-president in 1896. In 1895 he was elected as president of the Mich59




gan State Homeopathic Medical Society, which office he held for two years, his term
of office expiring in May, 1897. He is an honorary member of the New York State
Homeopathic Medical Society, and one of the founders of the American Homeopathic
Ophthalmological, Otological and Laryngological Society, of which he is still an active
member; he is a member of the Detroit Homeopathic Practitioners' Society, and of
the medical staff of Grace Hospital at Detroit; for many years was editor of the
Medical Counselor, then published at Ann Arbor, but now in Detroit, and is at present one of its editorial staff; he also holds high honors in the Masonic fraternity,
and is a member of the Fellowcraft and Wayne Clubs. In 1893 Dr. MacIachlan
again visited Europe, where he spent several months in the hospitals of Edinburgh,
Scotland, and London, England, closely studying the operations being performed
there on the eye and ear, and making an especial study of diseases affecting the
vocal organs. In his social intercourse Dr. MacLachlan is genial, gentle and unpretentious, and gains the confidence and holds the esteem of all who have the pleasure
of an acquaintance with him. In 1882 he married Bertha Hadley, of Holly, Mich.,
and they have two children: Mary Winifred and Ruth.
Maclean, Donald, M. D., LL.D., was born in Seymour township, Ontario, Canada,
December 4, 1839, a son of Charles and Jane J. (Campbell) Maclean. He first attended the grammar schools of Coburg and Belleville, Ont., following this with a
course in the Queen's University at Kingston, Ont. He subsequently went abroad
to pursue the study of medicine, and matriculated in the University of Edinburgh in
1858 under the professorial auspices of Syme, Simpson, Goodsir, Christison, Miller,
Playfair and others equally noted, and after a full four years' course received in 1862
the degree of M. D. In the same year he became a licentiate of the Royal College
of Surgeons at Edinburgh. Returning at once to Canada he located in Belleville for
a brief period. Attracted by the facilities for acquiring surgical knowledge and experience he came to this side, and during the years 1863 and 1864 he was acting assistant surgeon in the United States army. In 1864 he was appointed to the chair of
clinical surgery and institutes of medicine in the Queen's University at Kingston, Ont.;
this position he resigned in 1869 and returned to Edinburgh for the benefit of his
health and future study. In May, 1872, he was offered and accepted the chair of
surgery and clinical surgery in the University of Michigan, occupying that chair until 1889. In 1883, while he was still a member of the faculty of the University of
Michigan, Dr. Maclean located permanently in Detroit, where he has since been
called to many positions of responsibility and trust. Since 1883 he has been consulting surgeon to Harper Hospital, also to the Children's Free Hospital, and surgeonin-chief of the Michigan Central and Grand Trunk Railways. He is a member of
the American Medical Association (of which he was elected president in 1894), of the
Michigan State Medical Society, of which he was president in 1884; of the Detroit
Medical and Library Association, of which he was president in 1887; an honorary
member of the Medical Society of the State of New York and an honorary mlember
of the Ohio State Medical Society. The Queen's University of Kingston, Ont., the
faculty and trustees of which are intimately acquainted with all the details of Dr.
Maclean's life and career, conferred upon him the honorary degree of LL.D. on the
occasion of its annual convocation in April, 1893, an honor which up to that time had
been accorded to only thirteen individuals, the university having been at that time
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sixty years in active operation. Dr. Maclean is the author of numerous papers,
chiefly upon surgical subjects, which have appeared from time to time in leading
medical publications.  He is recognized as one of the most noted surgeons in
America.
Maire, Lewis E., M. D., son of John E. and Catherine F. (Verpillot) Maire, was
born at Philadelphia, Pa., September 3, 1855. He was educated in the public schools
of Detroit, Mich., whither his parents removed while he was still a child, and in the
Bryant & Stratton's Business College at Detroit: also the Webster Polytechnic Institute, taking a course in higher mathematics and languages. He was graduated
with high honors from the Detroit Medical College in 1881, and afterward took special courses in the diseases of the eye and ear in the New York Post-Graduate, Manhattan Eye and Ear, and New York Eye and Ear Hospitals, and in the New York
Dispensary and Bellevue Hospital College (clinical department). Dr. Maire's first
appointment was as lecturer in the Detroit Medical College in 1881, and upon its
consolidation with the Michigan College of Medicine in 1885 as the new Detroit
College of Medicine, he was elected lecturer on materia medica and therapeutics,
but declined that position, as he desired to devote his entire time to his private
practice, which had grown to be very extensive. Dr. Maire was one of the founders,
in 1887, of the Michigan College of Medicine and Surgery and has been since its organization professor of ophthalmology and otology in that institution, and is now its
secretary. He was also one of the founders of the Emergency Hospital at Detroit,
and in 1887 he founded the Detroit Free Eye and Ear Dispensary. He is a member
of the American and Michigan State Medical Associations; of the Detroit Academy
of Medicine and was its vice-president; is now president of the Wayne County Medical Society (1897-98); member of the Michigan Surgical and Pathological Association
and was president of that body in 1892-93; he is also a member of the Northern TriState Medical Association, and has for years been a liberal contributor to medical
literature. Dr. Maire has been successful in his practice.
Manton, Walter P., M. D., is a son of Walter B. Manton, quartermaster of the
Third Rhode Island Heavy Artillery, who died at Hilton Head, S. C., during the
war. Walter P. was born at Providence, R. I., August 3, 1857, fitted for Brown
University in a private English and classical high school at Providence, R. I., but
was obliged to abandon his college course for the time being on account of ill health.
He spent a year in Dresden, Germany, and began the study of medicine in 1875; he
matriculated in the medical school of Harvard University in 1876, and was graduated with the degree of M. D. in 1881. From 1880 to 1881 Dr. Manton was house
surgeon to the Free Hospital for Women at Boston, Mass. From 1881 to 1884 he
studied abroad under Winckel at Dresden; Crede at Leipsic; Holl at Innsbruck;
and Spaeth, Pawlick and others at Vienna and Heidelberg, and devoted eight
months in London, Eng., to the study of abdominal surgery in the Samaritan and
other hospitals under Bantock, Thornton, Meridith, Sir John Williams, Sir Spencer
Wells and others. In 1884 Dr. Manton was tendered the chair of obstetrics and
gynrecology in the American Medical College at Beyrout, Syria, but declined the
position, and returning to the United States located permanently in Detroit, Mich.
He has continued in the practice of his specialty since 1884, and is at present gynaecologist to Harper Hospital; genesic surgeon to the House of the Good Shepherd;
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gynacologist to the Eastern and Northern Michigan Asylums for the Insane, and
consulting gynaecologist to St. Joseph's Retreat; is vice president of the Medical
Board of the Woman's Hospital and Foundling's Home; professor of clinical gynaecology and obstetrics in the Detroit College of Medicine. He is a member of the
American Medical Association; Michigan State Medical Society; Detroit Medical
and Library Association; Detroit Academy of Medicine, of which he was president
from 1891 to 1894; Detroit Gynaecological Society, of which he was president in 1890;
American Association of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, of which he was vicepresident in 1894; Wayne Co. Medical Society; Pontiac Medical Society; corresponding member of the Kalamazoo (Mich.) Academy of Medicine; fellow of the British
Gynaecological Society, of the Zoological Society of London, Eng., and of the Royal
Microscopical Society of London, Eng.; member of the American Microscopical Society; of the Detroit Club; Fellowcraft Club, and P&re Marquette Fishing Club; Harvard Medical Alumni Association; Detroit Numismatic Club, and was its vice-president in 1894; and of the Nu Sigma Nu fraternity, etc. Dr. Manton was the first
gynecological specialist in America to receive an appointment to the regular staff of
of an insane asylum. He is the author of a large number of medical articles which
have appeared in recent current medical literature, of a hand book of embryology,
and has also published a series of hand books, and has in preparation other medical
and scientific works. He was married in 1870 to Carolyn M. Williamson of Lake
City, Minn., and they have two children: Walter W., and Helen.
Manzelmann, Charles, son of John and Mary (Mester) Manzelmann, was born
November 11, 1861, in Stralsund, Germany. He received his education in the parochial schools of Detroit, where his parents removed in 1869. In 1875 he began an
apprenticeship in the factory of the Detroit Broom Company, where he was continuouly employed until 1882, when he associated himself with Peter Farley, under the
firm name of Farley & Manzelmann, and engaged in the manufacture of brooms.
On the death of Mr. Farley, in 1892, he purchased his interest and continued the
business. In 1895 he built his present factory, Nos. 741 to 749 Bellevue avenue. Mr.
Manzelmann employs a force of twenty-five men in his factory, with a weekly output
of 450 dozen brooms. He was married, November 15, 1884, to Minnie Knack, of Detroit. They have two children: Charles, jr., and Herbert Manzelmann.
Marx, Oscar B., son of Stephan and Eleanora (Busch) Marx, was born in I)etroit,
Mich., July 14, 1866. His education was acquired in the German-American Seminary
at l)etroit, and later received a thorough business training in the Goldsmith, Bryant
& Stratton College in that city. For three years he engaged in truck gardening on a
large scale, his produce being shipped to the ports of Lake Superior. In 1889 he bccame bookkeeper for the United States Optical Co. (now the Michigan Optical Co.), of
which his father is president, and after several years' service in that capacity he
purchased a controlling interest in the business. He reorganized and incorporated the
company, and has since acted as its treasurer. In 1893 Mr. Marx was elected a member
at large of the Board of Estimates of Detroit, but resigned that office in the fall of
1895 upon being elected alderman from the Fifteenth ward for a term of two years.
He is now serving his second term. He is a member of the Harmonic Singing Society of Detroit, and of the local Turn Verein, Concordia, and Detroit Yacht Club.
In February, 1897, Mr. Marx married Lydia I)armstaetter, of Detroit.


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Mason, George D., son of James H. and Zada E. (Griffin) Mason, was born at
Syracuse, N. Y., July 4, 1856. He attended the public schools of his native town
until 187u, when he removed with his parents to Detroit, Mich., where he was graduated from the High School in 1873., He then took up the study of architecture in
the office of Henry T. Brush, with whom he remained until 1878, when the present
firm of Mason & Rice was formed, his copartner being Mr. Zachariah Rice, a fellow
draftsman. In 1884 Mr. Mason spent some months in Europe, studying the architecture of England, France, Germany, Italy and other countries; he took a course under special instructors perfecting himself in higher branches of mathematics. Mr.
Mason is a member of the American Institute of Architects, and of the Michigan
chapter of that institution; of the Detroit and Witenagemote Clubs; Royal Arcanum;
A. O. U. W., and holds high honors in the Masonic fraternity, being a thirty-second
degree Mason. Mr. Mason was appointed a member on the first Board of Building
Inspectors of the city of Detroit, and held that position for a number of years. In
1882 he married Ida Whitaker of Detroit, and they have one daughter, Lillian.
Meginnity, David, son of Robert and Elizabeth (Hanna) Meginnity, was born in
Detroit, Mich., September 3, 1861, was educated in the public schools of Detroit,
which he attended until the age of eighteen, when he entered the employ of the well
known lumber firm of Lindsay & Gamble, remaining with them seven years. In
1887 he formed a partnership with Mr. Walter R. Hall, under the firm name of Meginnity & Hall, and engaged in the wholesale lumber business, which firm continued
until 1890, when Mr. Meginnity withdrew and engaged in the real estate business, his
present occupation. In politics he is a Republican and is among the prominent and
active workers of his party in Detroit. He is one of the organizers of the Alger Republican Club and is ex-president of that organization. In 1893 he was appointed
by Governor Rich a member of the Board of Jury Commissioners for Wayne county
for a term of six years. He held the office of secretary of the Michigan League of
Republican Clubs during the years 1895 and 1896; was elected a delegate to the National Republican Convention in 1896 and was the youngest member of the Michigan
delegation. Mr. Meginnity is a member of the firm of Blakeslee & Co. of 56 Grand
River avenue, and of Franklin Assembly, order of Washington and Lincoln, of
which he was the first speaker. September 9, 1890, he married Grace A. Graves,
daughter of Henry A. Graves of Detroit, and they have three children: David, jr.,
Norman K. and Blanche G.
Metcalf, William F., M. D., son of Lawrence and Elizabeth (Thompson) Metcalf,
was born at Picton, Ontario, Canada, December 27, 1863. He attended the public
schools of Northumberland county, and was graduated from the Trenton (Ontario)
High School in 1881: he was graduated from the Belleville (Ont.) Normal School in
1882, and from then until the autumn of 1885 taught in the public schools. In 1884
Dr. Metcalf passed the Ontario medical matriculation examinations and in the fall
of the following year entered the medical department of the University of Michigan,
from which he was graduated in 1888, with the degree of M. D. In 1886 he completed his course in practical anatomy and during the winter of 1886-87 prosected
for the chair of anatomy. During the following winter he acted as assistant to the
chair of gyniecology. In July, 1888, Dr. Metcalf opened an office in Detroit, Mich.,
and has practiced his profession continuously since. From the beginning he has
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performed all surgical work presented to him and has been conspicuously successful
in his operations. His large general practice led him into the clinical study of the
sympathetic nerve system, which in turn caused him to take up abdominal surgery,
gynecology and diseases of the rectum. In those latter branches he has taken postgraduate work in Chicago, New York, Dublin, London, Berlin and Paris, which have
gained for him invaluable knowledge. He spent a good deal of time during his
studies in Europe in watching the operations performed by some of the world's most
famous surgeons. In February, 1896, Dr. Metcalf gave a four days' post-graduate
course in the Detroit Sanitarium, for the purpose of illustrating the relations of surgery to the sympathetic nerve system. He gave a similar course at the Grace Hospital in October, 1897. These courses were largely attended by the surgeons of
Michigan. Besides suggesting many modifications in operative procedures, he is
the author of a method of intestinal anastamosis by means of a sugar-coated approximator, by which the operation is simplified and the time required for its performance greatly reduced. Among the monographs written by Dr. Metcalf the most
important are: "Reflex Disturbances Attributable to Chronic Cervical Endometritis" (1892), "The Sympathetic Nerve Sys tem" (1894), "Treatment of Habitual
Constipation" (1895), and " Surgical Relations of the Sympathetic Nerve System "
(1896). He is the inventor of several surgical appliances now in general use, among
them a needle for the immediate repair of the perineum, a self-restraining perineal
retractor and a gut-forcep. Dr. Metcalf is a member of the American Medical Association, the Michigan State Medical Society, the Detroit Medical and Library
Association, the Detroit Academy of Medicine, the Detioit Gynmecological Society
and the Wayne County Medical Society. He was married on June 30, 1897, to
Agnes Lovering, daughter of the late William Lovering of Detroit.
Millen, George W., son of Daniel S. Millen, the well known soap manufacturer of
Ann Arbor, Mich., was born at Ann Arbor, October 17, 1863. His mother was Lovicy Booth. He attended the public schools of his native town until thirteen years
of age, when he determined to strike out for himself, and entered the dry goods
establishment of his uncle, C. H. Millen at Ann Arbor, where he remained for
eleven years. From 1889 to 1890 he was with the National Life Insurance Company
of Vermont, and in the latter year took the general agency at Detroit for the Imperial Life Insurance Company of that city and served that company for one year.
In 1892 he formed a partnership with J. B. Harrington and took the general agency
at I)etroit for the New York Life Insurance Company, of which John A. McCall is
president. In November of the following year his partnership with Mr. Harrington
was dissolved and lie was made agency director of the New York Life Insurance
Company and served in that capacity until February, 1897, at which time he was appointed to his present position as manager for the eastern district of Michigan,
known as the Detroit branch. Mr. Millen is a member of Detroit Commandery No.
1, K. T.; is a Scottish Rite Mason, and member of Moslem Temple, Nobles of the
Mystic Shrine; of the Fellowcraft, Michigan, and Alger Clubs, and the Y. M. C. A.
In 1888 he married Jessie C. Wetmore of Concord, Mich.
Miller, Robert, son of Milton and Lydia (Mack) Miller, was born in Ithaca, N. Y.,
April 18, 1840. He was educated in the common schools of Aurora, Ill., where his
parents removed in 1843. In 1857 he entered the employ of the Chicago, Burlington
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and Quincy Railroad, remaining until the breaking out of the wvar, when he enlisted
in the 89th Illinois Regiment of Infantry, and was appointed orderly sergeant. His
regiment was assigned to the Army of the Cumberland and participated in many of the
most important battles of the war. He was mustered out in the fall of 1865 with the
rank of first lieutenant, and returned to Aurora and the employ of the C., B. and Q.
Railroad. In 1867 he was promoted to the position of foreman of the car shop, and
in 1873 to the general foremanship of the company's works at Aurora. In 1876 he
removed to Detroit and accepted the position of master car builder, with charge of
the water works and buildings of the Michigan Central Railroad; in 1884 he was appointed assistant general superintendent and in 1889 he was made general superintendent. In 1896 he was promoted to his present position, that of superintendent of
motive power and equipment. Mr. Miller is a member of the Loyal Legion, and Detroit Post, G. A. R. November 16, 1865, he married Mary Lillie, of Aurora, Ill.,
and they have two children  Edwin L., and Guy A.
Miller, Sidney T., A. B., A. M., lawyer, and son of Hon. Sidney D. and Kate
(Trowbridge) Miller, was born in Detroit, Mich., January 4, 1864. After attending
the public and high schools of Detroit and Brown's Private Academy, he became a
student in the class of of 1885 at Trinity College, Hartford, Conn., and received his
degree of A. B. from that institution; in 1888 he had conferred upon him the degree of
A. M. During the year 1885-86 he studied in the law office of his father at Detroit,
and later spent one year in the law department of Harvard University. He was admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of Michigan in 1887, and at once opened
an office in Detroit. He has been successful, his clientele representing many of Detroit's leading business institutions and large moneyed interests.  He makes a
specialty of corporation law, into which he has gradually drifted through his business connections. He is a member of the American, Michigan State, Wayne County
and Detroit Bar Associations; Detroit, Yondotega and Detroit Athletic Clubs and
North Channel and Gibralter Shooting Clubs of Detroit; he is also a member of the
Delta Psi college fraternity, and a director of the Detroit River and Wyandotte
Savings Bank of Detroit. In 1889 Mr. Miller married Lucy T. Robinson, of Hartford, Conn., and they have two children: Sidney T., jr., and Elizabeth T.
Moody, George T., son of Robert and Elizabeth (Broadley) Moody, was born in
Detroit, Mich., September 16, 1851. He acquired his education in the Detroit public
schools and at the age of sixteen entered the dry goods store of J. W. Farrell as a
package boy. When Newcomb, Endicott & Co. purchased the stock and good will
of J. W. Farrell, Mr. Moody continued with the said firm, and through promotion
filled every possible position in the rapidly growing establishment. In 1887 he was
admitted to the general partnership and is to-day principal partner, Mr. Cyrenius A.
Newcomb having practically retired from the busii4ess, although continuing as
special adviser. In both business and social circles Mr. Moody is equally prominent
and popular, and enjoys the unqualified respect and esteem of all with whom he
comes in contact. He is president of the Y. M. C. A., and a member-of the board of
directors of that organization; chairman of the board of trustees of the First Baptist
church of Detroit, with which he has been identified for more than twenty years;
and a member of the Felloweraft Club, of the board of governors of which he is a
member. He has always voted the Republican ticket, but has never sought or held


65




public office. August 13, 1879, Mr. Moody married Lena C., daughter of James
Riker, esq., of Clintonville, Mich., and they have two daughters, Olive R., aged
seventeen, and Marjorie E., aged ten years.
Moore, Hon. Charles W., son of Stephen and Mary (Boice) Moore, was born at
Canterbury, N. H., March 22, 1845. On the paternal side Mr. Moore is descended
from the Moores of the north of Ireland, and on the maternal side from the historical
Bakers of Scotland. His maternal grandmother was a sister of former Governor
Baker of New Hampshire. Stephen Moore was a sturdy New England farmer, a
man of sterling worth. Charles W. spent his boyhood on his father's farm, attending the district schools during the winter months and devoting most of his evenings
to study at home. When sixteen years of age he removed to Concord and entered
as a clerk the large general dry goods and notion store of James Hazelton. He had
been in the store but a few months when Mr. Hazelton was stricken to his bed with
illness and during the two years of his illness the care of his store devolved upon
young Moore. About this time, however, a serious accident which befell his father
caused him to return to the home farm and assume its management during the ensuing year. In 1865 he went to New York city in search of employment, and, in
company with his brother, who was a member of the firm of J. A. Durkee & Co.,
visited H. W. Richardson & Co., publishers, who immediately offered him the general agency for the sale of their works, principally the lives of Lincoln and Grant, at
Albany, N. Y. He accepted the position and set out at once for his destination; he
met with almost phenomenal success from the start, his energetic manner of doing
business making a deep impression upon his customers. Among the latter was Mr.
M. V. B. Bull, the Albany general agent of the Phoenix Mutual Life Insurance Company of Hartford, Conn., who offered Mr. Moore a splendid salary with expenses
defrayed, if he would abandon his sale of books and return to New Hampshire as
general agent for that territory for his company. The proposition was accepted,
and Mr. Moore soon found himself in an office of his own at Concord, N. H., with a
competent corps of men to assist him. For eleven yerrs he carried the New Hampshire agency, and in 1878 and 1879 was stationed at Albany, N. Y., as superintendent
of agencies for the territory under the control of Mr. Bull; in March, 1880, Mr. Moore
severed his connection with the Phoenix Insurance Company to accept the p)sition as
manager for the State of Michigan for the New York Life Insurance Company. He
made Detroit his residence and headquarters and during the twelve years of his administration of the affairs of the New York company, their business in Michigan increased fourfold. Ill health, due to overwork, caused him to resign his position in
1802, at which time a contract was made between the New York Life Insurance Company and Mr. Moore, providing for the payment to him, in consideration of his long
and faithful service, and a surrender of his then existing contracts, and his agreement to give that company the benefit at various times of his counsel and advice, of
a royalty on all business done in the territory under control of the Detroit office, so
long as he should live. In the course of a few months, however, the company endeavored to cancel the contract, which resulted in a suit being instituted by Mr.
Moore against the aforementioned company, and a settlement being made by which
the company paid over to Mr. Moore a large sum of money. Mr. Moore's first step
into politics was taken in the autumn of 1892, when he was elected to the Michigan


66




Legislature to fill a vacancy, and while a member of that body was honored by being
chosen speaker pro tet. of the house, and receiving a place upon four of the most
important committees. Following upon the expiration of his term in the Legislature
Mr. Moore was appointed controller of the city of Detroit and held that office until
July, of 1896, when in the fall of the same year he was elected as the candidate of
the Republican party to the State Senate and took his seat on January 1, 1897, being
now a member of that body. In church affairs Mr. Moore is equally active and was
for years president of the Wayne County Sunday School Association. He has attained high honors in the Masonic fraternity, being a Knight Templar, a thirtysecond degree Mason and Shriner; and is also a member of the Michigan and Grande
Pointe Clubs. In 1869 he married Lucy A. Baldwin of Newport, N. H., and they had
one child, Clarence Atherton, who died when an infant.
Moore, George Whitney, was born in Cazenovia, N. Y., June 29, 1845. His earlier
training was that afforded by educated parents and the common schools. At twelve
years of age he removed to Utica, N. Y., where in the public schools and the well
known Utica Free Academy he continued his education. Some experience at the
mercantile counter and desk was followed by an appointment in the United States
mustering and disbursing office at Utica in 1861, in the work incident to organizing
volunteer troops. In 1863 he received an appointment in the War Department at
Washington, was rapidly promoted, and a little later, in the deserters' bureau of the
provost marshal-general's office, reorganized the work of returning the then 120,000
reported absentees to their regiments. In 1864 he took the chief clerkship of the
assistant provost marshal-general's office at Hartford, Conn., which position he filled
until after the close of the war. In 1866 he came to Detroit where he has since resided. A serious illness in 1868 required out-of-door life, and the succeeding two
years were spent in the Rocky Mountains in Wyoming Territory in quartz mining,
lumbering, and hunting, with some experiences in Indian warfare. Returning with
restored health in 1870, he resumed the study of law, begun in 1864, and attended
the law department of the Michigan University. In 1872 he associated himself with
George W. Moore (a classmate bearing the same name) in the law firm of Moore &
Moore, and has since been engaged in the active practice of law. In 1874 he became
connected with the business of the late Capt. E. B. Ward in his fight for the control
of the Burlington & Southwestern Railway, and after his death, under the receiver,
conducted its business for a time. He has always been a Republican. In 1878 he
was elected to the Michigan Legislature on the Republican ticket. He received
6,694 votes, Leonard Sale, Democrat, 6,686; Benjamin F. Stamm, Greenback, 2,599.
As a lawyer Mr. Moore has taken a leading place among the practitioners of the
State. He is a clear, erudite, logical and strong in his presentation of his cause before both court and jury. November 21, 1883, he married Zillah, daughter of the
late Cornelius H. De Lamater of New York city. Mr. De Lamater, it may be added,
with John Ericsson, developed the screw-system of propulsion of steam vessels, in
accordance with Ericsson's improvements, and was the principal constructor and
owner of the Monitor at the time she fought and defeated the Merrimac.
Moore, Melford B., son of Edwin B. and Lucy A. (Rettig) Moore, was born at
Stanton, Mich., April 11, 1866. He was educated in the public schools of his native
town and after one year at Swinsburg's Mercantile School at Grand Rapids, Mich.,


67




he entered the Bryant & Stratton Business College at Detroit, and was graduated
therefrom in 1884. In 1883 Mr. Moore's parents had located in Detroit, where his
father owned extensive property, and engaged actively in the real estate business.
Upon the sudden death of his father through an accident in 1886, Mr. Moore assumed
the management of the business and the estate. In 1887 he closed up his father's
affairs and established himself in his present business as general real estate agent.
although most of his time is occupied in the management of his personal estate. He
owns extensive ranch and farm lands in Arkansas, to which he succeeded upon his
father's death. Mr. Moore holds high honors in the Masonic fraternity, being a
thirty-second degree Mason; a Knight Templar and a Shrnner. He is popular in
in both business and social circles and enjoys the esteem of all with whom he comes
in contact.
Moore, William V., son of the Hon. William A. Moore, was born in Detroit
Mich., December 3, 1856. He attended the public schools of Detroit and after a
preparatory course of instruction, entered the University of Michigan, and was
graduated therefrom in 1878; he then took a course in the University of Law at Boston, Mass., being graduated in 1880 with the degree of LL. B. In the same year he
returned to Detroit, was admitted to the bar, and has since been in continuous practice of his profession, winning for himself an honorable position at the bar. Since
November, 1892, Mr. Moore has been a member of the firm of Moore & Goff, of
which his father, Hon. W. A. Moore, is the senior member. Mr. Moore was elected
a member of the Board of Education of Detroit in 1885, serving in that capacity
until 1889, and during the latter two years of his service was president of that body.
He is president of the Frontier Iron Works Co., and is prominently connected with
numerous manufacturing concerns. He is a member of the Detroit Fellowcraft,
Detroit Athletic, and other clubs, and in his politics is a Gold Democrat1 In 1883
Mr. Moore married Jennie Andrews of Detroit, and they have two children, William
V., jr., and Mary. Mr. Moore has been eminently and justly successful in his practice and is popular in both professional and social circles.
Murphy, Alfred J., was born in Detroit, Mich., January 1, 1868. He was educated
in the public schools and the Detroit College, a classical school in his native city,
spending five years in the latter institution, from which he graduated in 1887, with
the degree of A. B. He then became identified with the Detroit Free Press, as a
member of the editorial staff, where he remained for two years, in the mean time
pursuing a post-graduate course in the Detroit College. In 1889 his alma mater conferred upon him the degree of A. M. He organized and became president of the
Young Men's Democratic Club of Detroit, in 1888, this being his first step in politics.
In 1890 he became assistant secretary of the Democratic State Central Committee of
Michigan, and in 1891 was elected by the Legislature as secretary of the State Senate
of Michigan, being the youngest man ever elected to fill that office. In the same
year he entered the Detroit College of Law, and was graduated in 1893, with the degree of LL. B. He had been admitted to the bar in March, 1893, and upon graduation
he at once began the practice of his profession, and has since enjoyed the greatest
success, and has won for himself an enviable position at the bar. lie is a member
of the executive committee of the Detroit Bar Association.


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Neithart, Rev. Benedict, son of Nicholas T. and Gertrude (Klng) Neithart, was
born March 21, 1840, in Flieden, near Fulda, Germany. In 1842 his family removed
to America, settling at Cumberland, Maryland. His primary education was acquired
in the parochial schools of that place, which he attended until eleven years of age,
He next attended a private Latin school for four years, and in 1855 he became a
novice in the order of the Most Holy Redeemer. On March 12, 1864, he was ordained
to the priesthood by Bishop Whelan, of Wheeling, West Virginia. He was first
assigned as pastor of St. James church, Baltimore, where he remained but a few
months, when he was transferred to the parish of St. Michael, where he remained
until 1866. His next charge was the parish of St. Alphonsus at New Orleans, of
which he remained the pastor for seventeen years. In 1883 he was appointed pastor
of St. Alphonsus church at St. Louis, Mo., from which he was transferred in 1893 to
the church of Our Lady of Perpetual Help at Kansas City, Mo., and was also superior
of the seminary of his order situated there. In 1894 he was assigned to the preparatory college of the order at Kirkwood, Mo., and of which he was superior, serving in
that capacity until 1894, when he was transferred to his present pastorate, that of
Most Holy Redeemer Church, Detroit.
Newberry, Truman H., son of the late John S. Newberry, was born in Detroit,
Mich., November 5, 1864. He attended the public schools of Detroit and after a
thorough preparatory course entered Yale College and was graduated therefrom in
1885. He returned to Detroit in the same year and at once became connected with
the construction department of the Detroit, Bay City and Alpena Railroad, later
becoming purchasing agent for and a director of that road. Following his father's
death in 1887 he assumed the management of the Newberry estate; about the same
time he was made president of the Detroit Steel and Spring Co., manufacturers of
railroad car springs; he is also president of the Detroit File Works Co., a director of
the Union Trust Company; of the Commercial National Bank; Union Depot and
Station Co.; Fulton Iron and Engine Works Co., and is prominently identified with
other large business corporations; he is also a trustee of Grace Hospital. In 1889
Mr. Newberry was elected as estimater at-large of Detroit and held that office for
two years. In 1891 he was nominated for the Legislature on the Republican ticket
but declined the nomination  During 1893-94 he was chairman of the Board of Jury
Commissioners for Wayne county. In 1894 Mr. Newberry removed his residence to
Grosse Pointe, Mich., and has been treasurer of that village ever since. He is a member of the Yondotega, Detroit, Bankers' and other clubs of Detroit and is a trustee
of the Monroe Marsh Company. He was one of the organizers of the Michigan
State Naval Brigade in February, 1893, since which time he has been second in command. He is a member of Corinthian Lodge, F. & A. M.; is a trustee of the Jefferson Avenue Presbyterian church and of the Grosse Pointe Evangelical church. In
1888 he married Harriet J. Barnes of Brooklyn, N. Y., and they have three children:
Carroll, aged eight, and twin boys, Barnes and Phelps, aged five years.
Newberry, Hon. John S. (deceased), was born in Waterville, Oneida county, N. Y.,
November 18, 1826. He was the eldest son of Elihu and Rhoda (Phelps) Newberry.
The American branch of the family was founded by Thomas Newberry, who emigrated from England and settled in Dorchester, Mass., in 1625. Mr. Newberry removed to Michigan when he was five years old and after a short stay in Detroit the
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family settled in Romeo, where he participated in such educational advatages as
were to be obtained in the public schools of that day. Later he attended a private
school in Detroit and in 1841 entered the University of Michigan, graduating as
valedictorian of his class in 1845. In the mean time he had acquired a knowledge of
civil engineering and surveying, and subsequent to his graduation he entered the
employ of the Michigan Central Railway in the construction department, where he
remained two years. The following year he spent in traveling through the western
Territories, and on his return to Detroit he entered the office of Van Dyke & Emmons, where he studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1853; subsequently he
formed the firm of Towle, Hunt & Newberry; and later withdrawing, associated
himself with Ashley Pond, under the firm name of Pond & Newberry; this firm took
in Henry B. Brown (now judge of the United States Supreme Court), and upon the
withdrawal of Mr. Pond continued the business under the name of Newberry &
Brown. In 1863 Mr. Newberry abandoned the practice of law. In 1864 the Michigan Car Company was organized, Mr. Newberry becoming the largest stockholder
and its president. From this industry have sprung some of Detroit's most important
industries, notably the Baugh Steam Forge Co.; Detroit Car Wheel Co.; Detroit
Steel and Spring Co.; Fulton Iron and Engine Works and many kindred establishments, in which Mr. Newberry was a large stockholder and held official positions.
The several industries transacted an average volume of business ranging from three
to five millions of dollars annually and giving employment to nearly three thousand
hands. At the time of his death on January 2, 1887, he was a director in the Detroit,
Mackinac & Marquette Railway; Detroit & Cleveland Steam Navigation Co.; Vulcan
Furnace Co. of Newberry, Mich.; Detroit National Bank; Detroit, Bay City and
Alpena Railway; D. M. Ferry & Co.; Detroit Railway Elevator Co. and many other
prominent corporations of Detroit and Michigan. On reaching his majority Mr.
Newberry joined the Whig party, with which he was associated until the birth of the
Republican party when he changed to that candidate for public favor. He was appointed provost marshal by President Lincoln, serving in 1862 and 1863 with the
rank of captain. In 1879 he was elected to Congress from the First district of
Michigan and served one term, during which time he rendered good service to the
commercial interests of the country as a member of the committee on commerce.
Realizing that his personal interests were suffering, he refused a second nomination
and devoted his energies to his various business enterprises. During the last of his
life, in connection with his business associate, James McMillan, he founded Grace
Hospital, to the establishment of which he contributed $100,000. In 1855 he married Harriet N. Robinson of Buffalo, N. Y., who died in 1856, leaving one son,
Harrie R. In 1859 Mr. Newberry married IHelen P. H1andy of Cleveland, O., and
they had three children: Truman H., John S. and Ielen II.
Nutten, Wesley L., son of John B. and Maria A. (Crane) Nutten, was born at Moscow, Mich., April 6, 1869. He was graduated from the High School at North Adams,
Mich., in 1886, and later taught in the schools of Hillsdalc county for two years.
He attended Hillsdale College for three years, taking the classical course, and spent
one year in the University of Michigan. From 1892 to 1893 he was traveling representative in the States of Michigan, Ohio and Indiana for the Detroit Free Press, and
in 1893 entered the law office of Henry M. Cheever, where he diligently pursued his


70




studies until June, 1895, at which time he was admitted to the bar. He has since
practiced his profession continuously and successfully at Detroit, in the office of
Judge John W. McGrath, late chief justice of the Michigan Supreme Court. Mr.
Nutten is a member of the local Bar Association; of the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity
of Hillsdale College; and of the University of Michigan chapter of that fraternity.
He was married on December 25, 1895, to Luna May Van Vleck, daughter of Dr. and
Mrs. P. H. Van Vleck of Sturgis, Mich. Mrs Nutten received the degree of Ph. B.
from Hillsdale College in 1891. They have a son, Clyde V. Nutten.
Oakman, Robert, son of the late John Oakman, was born in Detroit, Mich., August
21, 1860. He attended the public schools until sixteen years of age, when he entered
the employ of the Detroit Post, as an apprentice in the mechanical department, and
during his seven years of service, he mastered all the branches of printing. He was
then called to the business management of the Every Saturday, a journal of society,
and remained with that paper for two years, at the end of which time he started and
ran for one year a weekly paper called the Spectator. In 1885 he became interested
in real estate and made that his business until, in 1893, he was appointed as assistant
city assessor, retaining that office for about one year. In July, 1895, he was appointed
secretary to Mayor Pingree of Detroit, to complete the unexpired term of six months
of Alex. I. McLeod, resigned, and at the expiration of that time he was reappointed
for two years. In July, 1896, he resigned that position to accept the appointment to
his present position as a member of the Board of City Assessors, of which he is
chairman. In 1897 Mr. Oakman married Mamie R., daughter of Joseph A. Moross,
the well known builder of Detroit. Mr. Oakman is a member of numerous clubs and
fraternal organizations.
Paine, De Forest, son of Asa and Jane (Hutchinson) Paine, was born at Albion,
Mich., February 21, 1851. His early education was obtained in the public schools of
Saginaw, Mich., and Albion, Orleans county, N. Y., and after a thorough preparatory course he entered the University of Michigan, pursuing Latin, scientific and law
courses, and was graduated with honors in 1873 In the following year he was admitted to the bar and located in Saginaw, Mich., where he practiced until June,
1878, as a member of the firm of Durand & Paine. During his residence in Saginaw
Mr. Paine served as circuit court commissioner for a period of four years, having
been elected to that office in 1874, and re-elected in 1876. In 1878 he removed to
Detroit, where he has since been in the uninterrupted and deservedly successful
practice of his profession. His practice has been general. Mr. Paine is a member
of the American, Michigan State, and Local Bar Associations; of the Detroit and Fellowcraft Clubs, and enjoys the highest esteem of his fellow practitioners and the
public. In 1874 he married Ida, daughter of Hon. John Moore, of Saginaw, and
they have had three children: John M., Jennie R. (deceased), and Bessie I.
Palmer, Ervin, is a native of the State of New York, having been born in the village of Le Roy, Otsego county, October 10, 1832. His father was born in Stonington, Conn., of pure New England stock and his mother was a lineal descendant of
General Herkimer of Revolutionary fame, a good specimen of a Mohawk German
family. Ervin Palmer moved with his parents from New York to Michigan in 1833,
and settled in what was afterwards named the township of Exeter. The country
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was then new and they were the pioneers of all that region. He began his education in the old log school house and then taught school for a while. After much toil
and self-denial the State bestowed upon him (through its university) the titles of
Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts. Immediately after his graduation in 1857 he
commenced the study of law (the law department of the university not then having
been established) in the office of Howard, Bishop & Holbrook of Detroit, where he
remained about one year and then entered the office of Lothrop & Duffield, all celebrated lawyers of that day. He was employed as office clerk by Mr. Lothrop for
about two years. On October 16, 1858, he was admitted to the bar by the Supreme
Court of the State of Michigan. In the early part of the year 1860 he opened a law
office in the city of Detroit and has continued the practice of law in that city ever
since Mr. Palmer has always been a Republican; he was elected circuit court commissioner for the county of Wayne in 1860 and held that office for two years. January 1, 1863, he formed a partnership with John Ward under the firm name of Ward
& Palmer, which partnership continued for more than twenty years. The firm was
well known throughout the State and they had a large practice and were engaged in
many of the most important suits in Detroit. In 1863 Mr. Palmer was appointed a
commissioner of the United States Circuit Court by Judge Ross Wilkins and for a
long time did much of the business pertaining to that office in the Eastern district of
Michigan. In 1871 he was appointed chief supervisor of elections by United States
Circuit Judge H. H. Emmons and held that office and performed the duties pertaining to it to the satisfaction of all parties for more than twenty years. He was a
member of the School Board of Detroit for four years from the old Fifth ward, when
religious and denominational differences produced heated contentions. Mr. Palmer
has often been urged to accept important official positions, but he has preferred to
pursue the practice of his profession. He has long had a lucrative practice and is
noted as a hard working, faithful and first class lawyer, and enjoys the confidence of
all who know him. December 25, 1860, he married Emma L. Humphrey, and they
have had ten children: Alice E., wife of Edwin A. Henderson of the editorial staff
of the Chicago Tribune; she is quite well known in the literary world as a writer
and author; Henry E. Palmer, a lawyer residing in Cleveland, Ohio; Lewis W., an
architect and engineer and now in Klondyke; George Perry, a lawyer and one of the
assistant corporation counsel; Charles G., an electric and mining engineer and working Claim No. 38 above on Sulphur Creek in Klondyke; Ervin R., a practicing lawyer
in Detroit and now in Klondyke; John W., city buyer in the Freeman, Delemater
Co. of Detroit; Herbert V., country order clerk in the Freeman, Delemater Hardware
Co. store of Detroit; Herbert V.; Zelda M., High School student, and Alfred W. Mr.
Palmer in religious belief is a Congregationalist, and an active and well known
member of the Woodward Avenue Congregational church and has been from its
organization. He is liberal in his religious opinions and accepts the higher criticism
interpretation and mode of studying the Bible, as the more reasonable and satisfactory way of interpretation of the Scriptures.
Palmer, Jonathan, jr., son of Jonathan and Mary A. (Woodworth) Palmer, was
born at Flint, Mich., August 6, 1869. He was educated in the public and high schools
of his native town, being graduated from the latter in 1888 with class honors. After
a course in Kalamazoo (Mich.) College he entered the University of Michigan, taking
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a one year's literary course there and later completing the law course, and was graduated in 1893 with the degree of LL.B. In the same year he was admitted to the
bar and located for practice in Detroit, spending one year in the office of Moore &
Goff. From 1894 to July, 1897, he practiced entirely alone, making a specialty
of insurance, banking and general corporation law, and has met with justly deserved
success. A number of notable cases have already passed through his hands and he
has prosecuted them with consummate skill. He is also attorney for a number of
large estates and business institutions. Mr. Palmer has established for himself a
legal standing in the community that has won him many clients, and he enjoys the
unqualified respect and esteem of his fellow practitioners and the public. He has
practiced before all the courts of the State and has the reputation of losing few cases
which are intrusted to his care. He is now a member of the well known firm of
Bacon & Palmer with offices at suite 63 Moffat building. He is a member of the
Michigan State and Local Bar Associations; of the Alger Republican Club of Detroit;
of the Phi Delta Phi fraternity, and was secretary of the Detroit Alumni Chapter of
Phi Delta Phi; of the Detroit Boat Club, and was for some time president of a debating club known as the "1 Detroit Pros and Cons," which has been in existence for
nearly fifteen years. He also belongs to the Society of the Sons of the American
Revolution, of which his father is a charter member of the Michigan Chapter. Mr.
Palmer is a direct descendant on the paternal side from Col. Jonathan Palmer, who
held seven commissions under Washington; and on his father's mother's side is a
direct descendant of Gov. William Bradford. Jonathan, jr., the subject of this sketch,
on his mother's side is a direct descendant of Lucy Griswold Ball, mother of George
Washington, and the other branch of the family goes directly back to Rufus Hebbard, who was a patriot and soldier in the Revolution.
Palms, Francis F., son of Francis and Martha (Larned) Palms, was born in Detroit, Mich., April 12, 1837. Owing to the death of his mother when a child, he was
taken to New Orleans, La., and placed in the family of his aunt, where he received
a thorough preparatory education.  In 1854 he entered Georgetown College at
Georgetown, D. C., and was graduated in 1857. Upon completion of his collegiate
course he opened an engineering office in Baton Rouge, La., where he remained
until the commencement of the Civil war, when he enlisted in the Fourth Louisiana
Infantry. In 1862 he was commissioned lieutenant and organized a signal corps,
rendering valuable service to the Confederate cause at the siege of Port Hudson.
He established a range of signals extending for fifteen miles on the west side of the
river, by which the besieged were informed of the movements of the enemy. While
in command of this position he was captured by General Banks, and conveyed a
prisoner of war to Fortress Monroe; after a short confinement he was exchanged
and returned to his command, with whom he served until the close of the war. On
conclusion of hostilities he returned to the parish of West Baton Rouge and engaged
in cotton planting. Mr. Palms removed to New Orleans in 1867, having been forced
to leave his plantation by the floods of that year. Shortly after his arrival he was
appointed chief clerk of the register of deeds, which position he held until 1870,
when he was appointed minute clerk of the Fourth Civil District Court, Parish of
Orleans, for a term of eight years; he was reappointed at the expiration of his term,
serving until 1880, when, at the urgent request of his father, he resigned and
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accepted the position of private secretary to his father. He was actively engaged in
the management of his father's affairs until the latter's death. His father left two
heirs, Francis F., the subject, and his half sister, Clotilde Palms, wife of Dr. J. B.
Book. So large a fortune has not yet fallen into the hands of a Michigan man, and
rarely has fortune found one so worthy. Mr. Palms is president of the Michigan
Brass and Iron Works; the National Loan and Investment Co.; Bucks Stove
Co. of St. Louis, Mo.; vice-president of the Peninsular Stove Co.; a director of the
People's Savings Bank; Michigan Stove Co.; Standard Life and Accident Insurance Company; Michigan Fire and Marine Insurance Co.; the Matthews, Ireland
Mfg. Co., and for a time was commissioner of the Park Board of Detroit. In July, 1866,
he married Miss Devall, daughter of a prominent planter of Baton Rouge. Mrs. Palms
died in that same year, and in 1869 he married Celimiine Pellerin, of Breaux Bridge,
St. Martinsville parish, La., who died in Detroit in 1888. In 1890 he married Miss
Marie Aimee Martin, daughter of Hon S. V. Martin, of St. Martinsville parish, La.
Mr. Palms has a family of ten children, of whom Charles L. is the eldest. Politically
Mr. Palms is a Democrat.
Pendleton, Edward Waldo, was born at Camden, Maine, May 22, 1849, a son of
George Pendleton, a native of the same State, who was born on February 22, 1800.
George was a son of Capt. John Pendleton and a descendant of the fifth generation
of Major Brian Pendleton, the founder of the Pendleton family in America, who
came with his family from the town of Pendleton, Lancashire, England, in the year
1632, settling in Westport, Mass. While still a young man George became secretary
to Commander Warrington of the United States frigate Constellation, and while
acting in that capacity took part in the reception tendered to General La Fayette
upon the occasion of his visit to America in 1825, and for a number of years he was
successfully engaged in mercantile business. Mr. Pendleton was aman of conspicuous integrity of character, of broad views, with cultivated and cordial manners. In
1831 he married Susan Johnson, of Canterbury, Conn., who was a descendant of
Edward Johnson, the principal founder of Woburn, Mass., and author of -"The
Wonder-working Providence of Zion's Savior in New England," and also of the historic Huntingtons, Gf Connecticut. Mr. Pendleton died in Detroit, Mich., August
27, 1875, at the home of his son. Edward W. received his preliminary education in
the Gorham (Maine) Academy and in Bowdoin College, at Brunswick, Maine; in
1870 he entered the University of Michigan and was graduated in the class of 1872,
receiving the degree of A. B. During the years 1872 and 1873 Mr. Pendleton was
superintendent of the schools of Owosso, Mich., and subsequently was instructor in
classics in the Detroit High School for two years. For one year he attended the
law department in the University of Michigan, and made his final preparations for
practice in the office of Hon. C. I. Walker, of Detroit; he was admitted to the bar in
1876, and has ever since been in the active and successful practice of his profession
in Detroit. During his years of practice Mr. Pendleton has handled many cases of
importance, among them a famous extradition case, in the conduct of which he was
appointed special agent by President Harrison to go to England. He is a nian of
liberal education and has traveled extensively; in the law, honorable in the methods
of his practice, trustworthy in his statements to the courts, polite and courteous in
his bearing toward members of the bar, and commands the unqualified respect of


74




the profession. He is public spirited and active in promoting the general welfare of
his city. In social life his genial and unpretentious manner gains the confidence
and holds the esteem of all with whom he comes in contact. Mr. Pendleton is president of the Board of Water Commissioners of the city of Detroit. In politics he has
always been a Republican and a persistent advocate of protection to home industries
November 26, 1895, he married Mary E. Leggett, who died March 9, 1897.
Pitts, Thomas, son of Samuel and Sarah (Merrill) Pitts, was born in Detroit,
Mich., October 11, 1841. It is a notable fact that Mr. Pitts was born in a cottage
then situated on the present site of the Union Railway depot. He obtained his preliminary education in a private school. With a complete classical course in view, he
entered the preparatory school at Andover, Mass., in 1857, intending to enter Harvard University, just as many of his forefathers for a century and a half had done;
but a sudden turn in his health, due to an accident received while he was indulging
in athletic sports, compelled him to return home after two years of study. Upon returning to Detroit Mr. Pitts at once turned his attention to the manufacture of lumber and salt, in company with his father, who owned large interests in Bay City,
Detroit and Flint, and his brother-in-law, Thomas Cranage. In 1868, owing to the
death of Samuel Pitts, the business was continued under the title of Thomas Pitts &
Co., later Pitts & Cranage, and on the retirement of Thomas Cranage in 1892, the
firm became Pitts & Co. Since the retirement of Mr. Cranage Mr. Pitts has had exclusive control of the business. He has always resided in Detroit. With the excep.
tion of a few months' service as a member of the board of trustees of the asylum at
Pontiac, by appointment of Governor Jerome, Mr. Pitts has never held public office,
although frequently urged to do so. Despite the extensive business which he has
governed for many years, he has taken considerable time for foreign travel. From
1882 to 1890 he spent more than half his time in Europe, where his children were
then receiving their education. On June 21, 1871, Mr. Pitts married Louise Chapin
Strong, daughter of H. Norton Strong, for many years a large vessel owner and one
of the most prominent residents of Detroit. They have two children: Helen Strong
and Samuel Lendall, the latter a graduate of the class of 1897 of Harvard University.
Samuel L. returned to Europe after his graduation in 1897, and in Paris continued
the study of art under the best masters of the French capital. In college he was
the leader in the most prominent college societies and an editor of college papers.
He is the possessor of high artistic and literary talents, and both are now being carefully cultivated under the direction of illustrious teachers. Mr. Pitts inherited from
his father, who was one of the famous class of Harvard University of 1830, an elegant style of speech and language and has been always a student of the best
English, French and German tongues, all of which he speaks with fluency. His
private library is particularly fine and when he and his brother-in-law, Judge
Henry B. Brown and Col. Henry M. Duffield, lived as adjoining neighbors, their
joint collections nade one of the literary centers of the city. Some of Mr. Pitts's
descriptions of foreign scenes were so clear and admirable that although not written
for publication some of his friends allowed them to be printed in the Detroit newspapers. When the engrossment of business has somewhat subsided, some good
work from his pen as a reviewer, wit and critic may confidently be looked for. Mr.
Pitts's homestead is a museum much prized by the Sons and the Daughters of the
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American Revolution and the Colonial Dames, as he possesses undoubtedly the
largest list of portraits in the West, including his own portrait by Gari Melchres, and
his son's by Franz Till. He has nine generations of family portraits, beginning
with old Joseph Bowdoin of Boston, by Joseph Badger, and including examples of
John Smibert, J. B. Blackburn, J. S. Copley, Cole and others. Among the patriotic
relics are letters of Governor Bowdoin, John Hancock, General Warren, Lendall
Pitts, the leader of the tea party, and of James Pitts, one of the leaders of the Revolution, and the parchment commissions of his grandfather, Major Thomas Pitts, in
the war of 1812, signed by President Madison.
Parker, Clarence L., son of Lorenzo D. and Mary E (Brown) Parker, was born in
Hallsport. N. Y., February 14, 1870. He acquired his education in the schools of
Hallsport and later in Au Sable, Mich., where his parents removed in 1880. At
the age of fourteen he was employed as tally boy for a lumber inspector, and after
three years' service with him was given employment as an inspector, in which
capacity he continued for several years. In 1890, with Mr. Thomas Keer, he formed
the firm of Keer & Parker, and they engaged in the shipping and inspection of lumber, with Au Sable as their headquarters. In 1892 he disposed of his interest at
Au Sable and removed to Detroit, where he engaged in dealing in lumber and became a vessel owner. In 1896 he established his present business, and in 1898 he organized the Parker Chartering Company, which succeeded him, and of which he is
manager; He was married, December 26, 1890, to Miss Anna Forsythe, of Hallsport, N. Y. They have one child, Norma E. Parker.
Parshall, J. Harry, son of Charles and Ellen L. (Darcy) Parshall, was born in Detroit, Mich., February 13, 1866. He attended the public schools and High School at
Detroit, and at the age of fifteen entered the drug store of J. E. Davis to learn the
business. Three years later he left the drug business and entered business with his
father, in the manufacture of lubricating machinery. In 1892 he accepted his present position, as manager for the States of Michigan and Ohio for the Ball Engine
Co. of Erie, Pa., manufacturers of Ball engines for electric lighting and electric railways, which are used in nearly all of the large cities of the civilized world. Mr.
Parshall was married in 1888 to Flora A. Newman, of Pontiac, Mich., and they have
two children: Helen L. and Dorothy J.
Payne, Isaac N., son of Benjamin D. and Mary R. (Baldwin) Payne, was born at
Port Clinton, Ohio, October 27, 1854. He attended the public and high schools until
fifteen years of age, then becoming a teacher for one year. During the year 1870-71
he was a student in the Baldwin University at Berea, Ohio, and from 1871 to 1875
managed the home farm at Port Clinton, his father having passed away some time
before. In 1875 and 1876 he attended the Ohio Wesleyan University at Delaware,
Ohio, and was graduated from the Ann Arbor (Mich.) High School in 1877; he was
graduated B. A. from the University of Michigan in 1881, and after a one year's law
course in the same institution he completed his studies in the office of William E.
Depew at Ann Arbor, being admitted to the bar in 1882. Since that time Mr. Payne
has continuously practiced his profession at Detroit and has won for himself honorable standing at the bar and the respect and esteem of his fellow citizens. He has
contributed several articles to legal literature, some of which are printed in the
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American and English Encyclopaedia of Law. From 1882 to 1885 Mr. Payne had as
a partner Mr. A. G. McKeen, under the style of Payne & McKeen. He was married
in 1882 to Nellie Stanley of Ann Arbor, Mich., and they have two children: Dora R.
and Stanley W. Politically he is a Republican.
Peckham, Cyrus T., M. D., son of Stephen and Frances (Gates) Peckham, was
born at Ledyard, Conn., November 11, 1852. Armed with a common district school
education Dr. Peckham entered a preparatory course of study at East Greenwich,
R. I., and graduated in 1871. In 1872 he entered Harvard University and graduated
with the degree of A. B. in 1876. He was graduated from the medical department
in 1879. On leaving college he practiced in Boston, Mass., for one year, at the same
time taking a private course in diseases of the eye with Dr. 0. F. Wadsworth, Boston. While thus engaged he was selected as acting assistant surgeon in the United
States Marine Hospital service. October 20, 1881, he passed the required examina
tion and was admitted as assistant surgeon, in which capacity he served three years.
In 1884 he was promoted to passed assistant surgeon. He was stationed at New York
for two years. He was given charge of the Marine Hospital at Wilmington, N. C.,
in 1883, and there served four years; next he was ordered to Memphis, Tenn., remaining there three years, and then to St. Louis, Mo., serving four years at that
station. While at St. Louis he was professor of genito-urinary surgery in Barnes
Medical College. Dr. Peckham at this time received orders to assume command of
the quarantine at Angel Island, San Francisco, and served there two years. He then
went to Port Townsend, remaining there eight months, and his next station was
Detroit. He is a member of the various medical associations of the cities in which
he has resided and of the Harvard Medical Association. In 1872 he married Lydia
Ayer at Norwich, Conn., and they have one child. Several years after the death of
his first wife Dr. Peckham married Ella Stanton, also of Norwich, on July 8, 1891.
He remained in Detroit one year and is at present stationed at Pittsburg, Pa., in
command of the service.
Pitcher, Sheldon, M. D., son of Nathaniel and Eliza T. (Strong) Pitcher, was born
in Detroit, Mich., June 10, 1862. He attended the public schools and High School
of Detroit, and in 1887 entered the Michigan College of Medicine and Surgery, from
which he was graduated in 1890 with the degree of M. D. In the same year he
located in Detroit, where he has since practiced his profession with marked success.
He is a member of the Wayne County Medical Society and of the Detroit Pathological Society. Dr. Pitcher is still a bachelor and is popular in both professional and
social circles.
Pittman, Gen. James E., son of Daniel and Eliza (Spofford) Pittman, was born in
Tecumseh, Mich., September 5, 1826. His early education was obtained in the common schools of Tecumseh and at the branch of the University of Michigan in Tecumseh, which he left in 1843 to accept a position with Lawson, Howard & Co. of Detroit, commission merchants and dealers in grain, their warehouse being situated at
the foot of Griswold street. In 1847 he formed a partnership with Cornelius Wickware, under the firm name of Wickware & Pittman, and purchased the business of
his former employers. He continued in this venture until the call of the United
States government in 1847, for one regiment of Michigan volunteers, forthe War
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with Mexico, when he at once enlisted in that regiment, serving through the campaign and returning to Detroit in the summer of 1848. On his return he entered the
employ of E. W. Hudson, commission merchant, foot of Shelby street, with whom he
remained until 1852, and then associated himself with Edmund Trowbridge and J.
Huff Jones, under the firm name of Pittman, Trowbridge & Jones. They engaged
in a general commission business and were the agents of the Detroit and Cleveland
steamers, their warehouse being at the foot of Griswold street. In 1855 he formed a
partnership with Dr. E. M. Clark. under the firm name of James E. Pittman & Co..
and embarked in the coal and commission business, and were the agents in Detroit
of the Erie Railroad Co., their place of business being at the foot of Cass street. In
1856 Mr. Pittman purchased the interest of Dr. Clark and continued the business.
In 1875 he removed to the foot of Riopelle street. In 1885 he formed a partnership
with C. A. Dean and L. M. Pittman, under the firm name of Pittmans & Dean. In
1886 they consolidated with the firms of L. Peocock & Son and Hall & Ashley, forming the present firm of Pittmans & Dean Company. Upon the call of President
Lincoln for troops in 1861, Mr. Pittman was appointed an officer on the staff of Gen.
A. S. Williams and assisted in the work of organization; subsequently he was appointed paymaster of State troops with the rank of colonel. In the summer of 1361
he was appointed second in command of Fort Wayne, where a school of instruction
had been established  In the winter of that year he was appointed inspector-general
of State troops, with the rank of brigadier-general, and in the summer of 1862 he
organized the 17th Mich. Infantry. He was also a member of the State Military
Board until 1868. He was appointed trustee of the Asylum for Insane at Kalamazoo; he also served as inspector of the House of Correction at Detroit. In 1873 he
was appointed commissioner of the Metropolitan Police and served as such until 1885
when he was appointed superintendent of police, filling that position until 1892.
General Pittman is a member of the Third Class of the Military Order of the Loyal
Legion, and a director of the Detroit Savings Bank. Politically he was first a Whig
and on the organization of the Republican party he became identified with it and has
remained a staunch supporter since. In 1851 he married Elizabeth Hutchinson of
Bristol, Pa., and they had four children, all now deceased.
Post, James A., M. D., son of Edmund R. and Almira M. (Collins) Post, and only
brother of Hon. Hoyt Post, of Detroit, was born in Rutland county, Vt., November
18, 1838. At an early age he removed with his parents to Rochester, N. Y., where
he attended public school until 1846; from Rochester they removed to Dayton, Ohio,
and still later, in 1848, to Detroit, Mich. They finally settled at Birmingham, Mich.,
in 1856, and after careful preparation for college in the Birmingham Academy young
Post entered the literary department of the University of Michigan, being graduated
therefrom B. S. in 1861, and then entered the medical department of the university.
In September, 1862, he went to Washington, D. C., where for two months he served
as a medical cadet in the military hospitals. From Washington he enlisted in the
army as a hospital steward, being sent at once to Louisville, Ky., and after six months'
active service in the hospitals of that city he passed an examination before a board
of army surgeons, and was appointed assistant surgeon to the 28th Kentucky Infantry, serving in the Second Division, Fourth Army Corps (Army of the Cumberland), under Col. W. P. Boone. IHe was soon promoted to the rank of surgeon of
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the same regiment, and July 4, 1865, resigned his commission on account of poor
health, while stationed at New Orleans, La., and returned to his home in Michigan.
In the autumn of 1865 he entered the medical department of the University of Michigan, and was graduated therefrom M. D. in the following spring. From 1866 to
1868 Dr. Post practiced his profession at Jeffersonville, Ind., at the same time conducting a drug store in that town. He returned to Birmingham in 1868 and was
actively engaged as medical practitioner there until 1884, when he located permanently in Detroit. In November, 1885, he was appointed to his present position as
general secretary of the Detroit Association of Charities. Ile and his wife are members of the Central Christian church of Detroit, of which he is one of the elders; he
is also a member of the Masonic fraternity In 1864 he married Katherine M.,
daughter of Dr. W. W. Goodwin, of Jeffersonville, Ind.
Proud, Charles I., son of Isaac and Margaret S. (Wagner) Proud, was born at
Ottawa, Canada, May 11, 1857. He was educated in the public schools and at the
age of nineteen entered the employ of the Grand Trunk Railroad Company as billing clerk at Rouse's Point, N. Y. From 1877 to 1878 he was in 6harge of the steamship freight department for the same company at Montreal, Canada; from 1878 to
1880 he was in the employ of the Pullman Palace Car Co. as conductor; from 1880 to
1882 he engaged in the real estate business with his brother at Winnepeg, Manitoba;
from 1882 to 1889 he had charge of the transferring of freight from the D. & M. and
G. T. R. R. Co.,from the road of that company to the Wabash Railroad at Detroit;
from 1889 to 1891 he was in charge of the city business for the Detroit Transit Railroad Co. at Detroit; and later served the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe and Wabash Railroad Companies in their Detroit offices. Since May, 1895, Mr. Proud has
been bookkeeper for the Delta Lumber Co. of Detroit. August 18, 1897, he married
Grace Hartman of Piqua, Ohio.
Reid, Rev. John, D. D., son of Robert and Jean (Wallace) Reid, was born in St.
John, Province of New Brunswick, November 19, 1850. His parents moved to New
York city in 1851 and his early education was received in the public schools of that
city. In 1862 he entered the New York University Grammar School under Moses M.
Hobby, remaining there until the fall of 1866, when he entered the University of
New York, from which he was graduated in June, 1870. In the fall of that year he
entered Princeton Theological Seminary, from which he was graduated in April,
1873. Rev. Mr. Reid was licensed and ordained by the Presbytery of Morris and
Orange, his ordination taking place at LowerValley, N. J., May 6, 1873. In December, 1876, he was installed as pastor of the First Presbyterian church of Hoboken,
N. J., where he remained until 1879, when he accepted the pastorate of the First
Presbyterian church of Yonkers, N. Y. He was called to the pastorate of the First
Presbyterian church of Detroit in November, 1895, and has filled that pulpit up to
the present time. He was moderator of the Presbytery of Jersey City in 1876; was
a commissioner to the General Assembly of 1877 held in Chicago; and also to that of
1884 held in Saratoga; and to the Centennial Assembly held in Philadelphia in 1888.
In 1888 he was a delegate to the Alliance of the Reformed Churches holding the
Presbyterian System, held in Exeter Hall, London. The degree of Doctor of Divinity was conferred upon him by the University of the City of New York, June 14,


79




1888. In 1889 he was elected to the Council of that university, holding this position
and serving as secretary until the time of his removal to Detroit.
Remick, Jerome H., son of James A. and Mary (Hosmer) Remick, was born in
Detroit, Mich., November 15, 1868. He attended private and public schools and
was graduated from the Detroit Business College in 1887. Prior to entering the
business school Mr. Remick had received practical business experience as a messenger in the Commercial National Bank of Detroit. At the age of twenty-one he
began an active business career as log-scaler, book and timekeeper and supply purchasing agent for Whitney & Remick, of which firm his father was a member, in the
lumber camps of northern Michigan, where he remained for three years. In December, 1893, after a sojourn of several months in Europe, Mr. Remick located permanently in Detroit and in the following spring was elected to his present position as
secretary of the Home Building & Loan Association. In January, 1896, he was appointed trustee of the Detroit Chamber of Commerce, his term of office expiring in
January, 1898  Mr. Remick is a director of the "Big 4" gold mine of Leadville,
Col., and a trustee of the Crane Building Co. of Detroit. He is a member of the
order of Free and Accepted Masons; Detroit Club; Detroit Riding and Athletic
Clubs, and the Country Club. In June, 1895, he married Adelaide F., daughter of
Hon. William B. McCreery of Flint, Mich., and they have one daughter, Katharine.
Reves, Frank N., son of Henry B. and Elizabeth (Wilhelm) Reves, was born in
Detroit, Mich., March 29, 1849. He was educated in the Detroit public schools and
at the age of sixteen entered the employ of R. G. Tyler, grocery merchant, where he
remained as a clerk until 1871. In that year he was admitted to partnership in the
business, continuing for six years more. In 1877 he bought out the establishment
where he is now located and has been prosperous from the beginning. He is also
engaged in the management of his mother's estate. Mr. Reves was elected as alder.
man from the Third ward of Detroit in 1885, for three terms of two years each and
was again elected to that office in 1895; his present term will expire on January 12,
1898. In April, 1897, he was elected chairman of the Board of Supervisors of Detroit for a period of one year. Mr. Reves is a member of the orders of Free and
Accepted Masons and K. P.; he was also a member of the old Michigan Yacht Club
of Detroit. In 1872 he married Mary Streeter, and they have had five children, four
of whom survive: Maud M., Elizabeth W. (now the wife of Arthur Rothwell of Detroit), Frank W. and Addie. Hazel died in June, 1895, at the age of eight years.
Rorison, Brainard.-It is authentic that nearly, if not quite all, of the Rorisons in
America are descendants of three brothers, who came from Scotland in the last century. A grandson of the youngest of these brothers, David Barbour Rorlson, settled
in Michigan in the late forties. He took immediate rank as one of the substantial
business men of the State, dying at the age of eighty-seven at the family home in
Ypsilanti, where he had lived for about half a century. The old homestead of four
acres has been recently sold to the State, and now comprises a part of the State Normal grounds. His son, Brainard Rorison, early engaged in business in Indianapolis,
and in 1883, when electrical inventions attracted general attention, he secured the
services of C. D. Jenney (the inventor), and with Nordyke and Marmon organized,
and for many years was general manager and active business head of the Jenney
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Electric Company. This company did an extensive business in the manufacture of
electrical apparatus, its products reaching nearly every civilized country. Mr. Rorison
was also for six years president of the Louisiana Electric Light Company, the largest
lighting and power plant in existence. It was built under his presidency at a cost of
upward of $2,000,000, and in addition to the city lighting, furnishes power for the
electric railways of that city. A favorable opportunity offering, through the concentration of electrical interests, Mr. Rorison, the principal stockholder, with his partners, sold their stock in the Jenney Company, and it was absorbed by the general
electric combination. In 1894 Mr. Rorison, whose family had gone to Europe the
previous year, joined them for a year's sojourn in London. During this time he met
the president of the Barber Asphalt Paving Company, and formed an alliance with
that company in the management of part of its western territory, which still continues with notable success. Mr. Rorison has always been an ardent Republican,
and took an active part in political matters during his twenty years' residence in Indianapolis in the time of Morton-Hendricks and Harrison. He has, with two exceptions, attended every Republican National Convention since the war. Believing
that extensive travel goes far toward a liberal education, he has, in much journeying,
been accompanied whenever practicable by his family, and they have visited every
State and Territory in the Union, as well as the principal countries of Europe, where
Mrs. Rorison spent several years in the education of their daughters. Mrs. Rorison,
of the Vance-Bates family of Indianapolis, is the great-great-grandaugher of Gen.
Arthur St. Clair, of Revolutionary fame, and has in her possession official commissions bearing the signatures of Washington and Adams, and family mementoes of
colonial times.
Ross, William A., son of William and Ann (Allan) Ross, was born in Glasgow,
Scotland, April 25, 1843. He attented the Balfour School at Glasgow until fourteen
years of age, when he entered the immense lithographing and engraving establishment of McLure & McDonald, lithographers to the Queen, at Glasgow, to learn the
business, and remained in their employ for six years. During the years 1863, 1864
and 1865 he served the C. S. A. as a printer at Columbus, South Carolina, and after
the close of the war he returned to Scotland. For a short period, later, he served
the well-known firm of Marcus Ward & Co. at Belfast, Ireland, and in 1866 returned
to America, settling permanently in Detroit, Mich. In 1867 he became a member of
the firm of the Calvert Lithographing Co. of Detroit, and has ever since been connected with that concern. He operated the first steam power printing press used by
the Calvert Co. In 1870 Mr. Ross married Ellen A. Brennan, of Detroit, and they
have three children: Helen Marie, wife of James F. Murphy, of Detroit, Marie
Allan, and Jessie Adele.
Rudy, Robert C.. M. D., son of Preston 0. and Catherine (Harding) Rudy, was
born on a farm near Paris, Ill., November 1, 1862. He was educated in the public
schools of his native town and in the Butler University at Irvington, Ind. In 1883
he entered the medical department of the University of Michigan (Homeopathic
school), from which he was graduated in 1886 with the degree of M. D. During his
senior year in the university Dr. Rudy was assistant to the chair of materia medica;
following his graduation he was appointed resident physician and surgeon to the
hospital and later in the year was appointed to the medical staff of the Alma Sani81
k




tarium at Alma, Mich., resigning that position in 1887 to locate in Detroit, where he
has since been an active practitioner of his profession. Dr. Rudy is a member of
the medical staff of Grace Hospital at Detroit, and is a member of the American Institute of Homeopathy, also of the Michigan State and Local Societies. He is still a
bachelor. He is a member of the K. of P., Royal Arcanum, Wayne Club, the University of Michigan Association of Detroit, and a Mason. He is popular in both the
professional and social world of Detroit.
Russell, Hon. Alfred, was born at Plymouth, N. H., March 18, 1830, a son of William Wallace and Susan C. (Webster) Russell, a kinsman of Daniel Webster. He
attended school in the Holmes Academy at Plymouth; Gilmanton Academy at Gilmanton; Kimball Union Academy at Meriden, and Dartmouth College from which
he was graduated in 1850. He at once entered the law office of William C. Thompson of Plymouth, a son of the preceptor of Daniel Webster, and later took a course
in the law department of Harvard University, being graduated in 1852 as Bachelor
of Laws. He was admitted to the bar at Meredith Bridge (now Laconia), N. H., in
October, 1852, and removed to Detroit in the following month, where he entered the
office of the late James F. Joy, Detroit's Grand Old Man, and after passing one year
there he formed a partnership with Judge C. I. Walker and his brother until 1861, at
which time he was appointed by President Lincoln as United States district attorney
for Michigan, which is the only office he ever consented to hold. During the war he
was sent on diplomatic missions to Canada, by Secretary of State Seward, in connection with the St. Albans and Lake Erie raids. Mr. Russell is a member of the
Michigan Historical Society; Webster Historical Society; is president of the Michigan Political Science Association, and ex-president of the Detroit Club. He was a
founder of the Detroit Boat Club and of the Detroit Light Guard, which sent eighty
officers to the United States army during the Civil war. He was director of the
Chamber of Commerce at the inception of the enterprise and was instrumental in
procuring legislation for it and in selecting a site for the building. He is general attorney in Michigan for the Wabash Railroad Company and holds other offices of importance. October 28, 1857, he married Ellen P. England (nee Wells) of St. Albans,
Vt., and they have four daughters. He received the honorary degree of LL. D.
from Dartmouth College in 1890.
Russell, Francis G., was born at Green Oak township, Livingston county, Mich.,
April 16, 1837, a son of William S. and Jane A. (Knox) Russell. Francis was brought
up on the farm and attended the district schools until seventeen years of age, when
he entered the State Normal School of Ypsilanti, Mich., from which he was graduated in 1858; in the fall of that year he became principal of the Middletown Union
School at Lansing, and remained in that position until April, 1861, when he was appointed to a position in the Census Division of the Department of the Interior at
Washington, D. C. He was soon promoted to the position of examiner of pension
claims, but resigned in 1864, and removed to Detroit, where he built up a successful
business in the prosecution of war claims against the government. In 1865 he was
appointed as the first secretary of the Metropolitan Police Department, which position he held until 1866, when he resigned and returned to his old home to care for
his enfeebled father. In 1867 he returned to Detroit, where he studied law with
Hon. A. W. Buel, and was admitted to the bar in 1868, upon a rigid examination be



fore the Supreme Court, and shortly afterwards became secretary to Governor Baldwin, so acting during his two terms. In 1872 he was elected city attorney and reelected in 1874. He also served as alderman from 1878 to 1880, and in the latter
year was again elected city attorney, making in all six years of service in that capacity. As a municipal official he was particularly energetic and was an active promoter of the purchase of Belle Isle for a public park. He is a member of the Detroit
Bar Association. His professional work has been largely the handling of estates.
September 10, 1863, Mr. Russell married Helen Edwards, who was born at Medina,
N. Y. She died on May 3, 1890, leaving him with a family of three children: Clinton W., Frank P. and Lela (wife of C. W. Harrah), who all reside in Detroit. Another bright and very promising son, Walter K., died in September, 1888, aged
fifteen years.
Sargent, Erle H., M. D., son of Winthrop E. and Louise (Hoxsie) Sargent, was
born in Medina county, Ohio, September 5, 1863. He was graduated from the
Medina High School in 1881, and in 1883 entered Cornell University. After completing the scientific course he was graduated in 1887, and elected to a fellowship in
the university. In the following year he had conferred upon him the degree of M. S.
From 1888 to 1892 Dr. Sargent was in charge of the scientific department of the
Michigan Military Academy at Orchard Lake, and resigned his professorship to
pursue the study of medicine. While in the scientific department at Cornell, Dr.
Sargent also took his preparatory medical course. He was graduated M. D. from
the Detroit College of Medicine in 1894, and from 1894 to 1895 served as resident
physician to Harper Hospital. Since 1895 he has practiced continuously and successfully in Detroit. He is lecturer on bacteriology, and in charge of the Bacteriological laboratory in the Detroit College of Medicine; microscopist to Harper Hospital; microscopist and bacteriologist to the Eastern Michigan Asylum for the Insane;
and examiner of contagious diseases for the Detroit Board of Health. He is a member of the Detroit Academy of Medicine; of the American Society for the Advancement of Science; of the Beta Theta Phi and Sigma Xi fraternities of Cornell University; and of the Nu Sigma Nu fraternity of the Detroit College of Medicine. Dr.
Sargent is popular in both professional and social circles, and one of Detroit's rising
young physicians.
Schwab, Rev. Francis W., son of Philip J. and Mary (Muessle) Schwab, was born
in Wyhl, near Endingen, Baden, Germany, October 1, 1844. In youth he obtained
his education in the parochial schools of Wyhl, and at the age of ten entered the
gymnasium of Freiburg, Baden, and remained until 1857. In that year he removed
to Iourin, Bretagne, France, and in 1858 entered the University of Notre Dame de
Langonnet, from which he was graduated in 1861. After graduation he removed to
Paris and studied philosophy until 1862, when he removed to Chevilly to take up the
study of theology. He was graduated from the Theological College of Chevilly in
1868 and was ordained during the same year. After ordination he entered the monastery of Marienstatt, Nassau, where he remained until 1872, and then emigrated to
the United States. His first charge was at Piqua, Ohio; in 1876 he was transferred
to St. Mary's church at Sharpsburg, Pa. While rector of that church he assisted in
the erection of the St. Mary's parish school, the sisters' residence and rectory. In
1893 he was appointed rector of St. Mary's church, Detroit, where he is now retained.


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Scott, H. Byron, was born in Colborne, Ontario, February 27, 1848. He came to the
United States with his parents when but a small boy. His early education was acquired in the public schools, and his college days were spent at Clarke College.
Aurora, Ill. His business career has been entirely confined to the retail dry goods
business, which he learned in the establishment of Barnes & Bancroft of Buffalo,
N. Y., and afterwards served the firm of L. S. Ayres & Co. of Indianapolis, Ind,
for a number of years. In 1881 Mr. Scott located in Detroit, Mich., where he became connected with the firm of Newcomb, Endicott & Co., through the solicitation
of Mr. Newcomb, who had met and known Mr. Scott as a buyer, when in New York,
for several years. After serving as buyer for this establishment for a few years, he
was given an interest in the business, and since 1896 has been one of the general
partners, and now takes an active part in the business. Mr. Scott is a member of
the Detroit Club; Detroit Boat Club, and the Old Club at St. Clair Flats, Mich. He
has a beautiful home at Grosse Isle called ' Halcyon Place," where he and his wife
spend a greater part of the year. Grosse Isle is a beautiful island situated in the Detroit River, at the head of Lake Erie, and about twenty miles from Detroit.
Sellers, Elias H., son of John and Almira (Filkins) Sellers, was born in the township of Deerfield, Livingston county, Mich., May 5, 1848. He is a descendant of
Samuel Sellers, who emigrated from Germany and settled near Philadelphia, Pa., in
1683. Mr. Sellers attended the district schools of Deerfield, and public schools of
Fenton, Mich., entering the High School at Ann Arbor in 1872, and prepared for
college. In 1875 he entered Cornell University at Ithaca, N. Y., from which he was
graduated in 1878 with the degree of B. A. From 1869 to 1871 he was engaged in
farming, and was elected supervisor of Deerfield township for the year 1871. Subsequent to his graduation from Cornell he removed to Detroit and associated himself
with Levi Bishop in the practice of his profession. In 1880 he severed his connection with Mr. Bishop and was associated with F. A. Baker, which continued until
1883. From 1883 until the present time Mr. Sellers has been engaged in the practice of law. In August, 1897, he organized at St. Louis, Mo., the American party,
and was elected chairman of the National Committee, which position he now holds.
He is a member of Ashlar Lodge, F. & A. M.; Monroe Chapter, R.A.M.; Fenton
Commandery, Knights Templar; and deputy grand master, State of Michigan. of
the I. O. O. F.
Sherwood, Theodore C.-In financial circles there is none better known, or respected, than Mr. Theodore C. Sherwood, who, in October last, after a term of nearly
eight years' service as commissioner of banking in Michigan resigned that office to
accept the presidency of the Peninsular Savings Bank of Detroit. Mr. Sherwood
was born in Geneva, N. Y., January 29, 1839, and attended the common schools of
that State. Coming to Michigan in 1854 with his parents, who settled in Wayne
county, he entered the Ypsilanti Seminary, from which he was graduated in 1859.
After teaching school three years Supt. C. H. Hurd proffered him the position of
cashier in the office of the Michigan Central Railroad at Kalamazoo, Mich. This he
accepted and held for one year, resigning to become bookkeeper of the First National
Bank of Battle Creek, where he remained until 1872, when he was made cashier of
the First National Bank of Plymouth, in the village in which he now resides. He
held this position until 1881, when, as one of the organizers of the Grand Rapids Na84




tional Bank, he was elected its cashier. In 1884 ill health compelled him to tender
his resignation and to return to his home at Plymouth. After a year's rest he assisted
in the organization of the Plymouth National Bank, and was elected its president,
acting as such until 1889, when he was appointed commissioner of banking by Governor Luce, a position he held under three different governors, elected by two distinct political parties. At the earnest solicitation of those interested in the welfare
of the Peninsular Savings Bank, Detroit, Mr. Sherwood resigned the office of commissioner of banking to accept the presidency of this bank, entering upon his duties
as such on November 2, 1896. The sterling character and honorable reputation of
Mr. Sherwood as an able financier, made his services of untold value as commissioner
of banking to the people of Michigan during the panic of 1893, a period when the
most conservative bankers of Detroit gave up hope as to the final outcome, but the
visits of the commissioner to the banks and bankers of Detroit revived their
spirits and caused them to put forth unusual energy in the maintenance of bank
values and credits. His presence at a meeting of the Clearing House Association at
the time a "run " was being made on one of the largest banks of the city, is memorable for the advice given on that occasion, and the renewed confidence aroused by
his wise counsels and words of encouragement. It was to his thorough personal
knowledge of the upright and honorable characters in the directors and official staff
of Detroit banks and bankers that he was enabled to give such latitude in the conduct of bank affairs as to allow bank officials to care for the interests intrusted to
them in a manner that averted the financial disaster, that at one time was apprehended in the financial affairs of this city and State. Mr. Sherwood's talents and
culture as a writer and platform speaker are in continuous requisition on this allabsorbing question of finance and banking. Politically he is a Republican, and
prominent in the ranks of his party. April 16, 1862, he married Martha J., daughter
of S. S. Mason, of Wayne county, Mich., and they have three children: Helen, wife
of C. A. Reekie, of Detroit; Louis C., assistant cashier of the Union National Bank,
Detroit, and Maud, at home.
Smith, Andrew, jr., was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, June 30, 1850, a son of the
late Andrew Smith, who was a prominent civil lawyer, S. S. C. He was educated
in Edinburgh, and at fourteen years of age entered a large book store in that city,
where he remained for five years, thoroughly mastering all the details of the business. In 1869 he removed to London, England, where he was employed for two
years in the book business, and finally, in 1871, he took passage for America, and
upon arriving in this country at once repaired to Detroit, which has ever since been
his place of residence. For about six years he was engaged successively with W. E.
Tunis (wholesale and retail books); James Lowrie & Son (dry goods), and with F.
Buhl-Newland & Co., and in 1877 became bookkeeper for the Michigan Bolt and Nut
Works, where he remained for ten years. In 1887 he was appointed as entry clerk
in the United States custom office at Detroit, and later became special deputy collector, which position he still retains. Mr. Smith is a member of Union Lodge No. 2,
F. & A. M. and of the Loyal Guards of Detroit. In 1875 he married Miss Alison
Gray, and they have had seven children, four of whom survive.
Smith, Dudley W., son of George B. and Juliette (Wetmore) Smith, was born at
Delaware, Ohio, December 10, 1849. At an early age he removed with his parents
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to Marion, Ohio, and in that city attended the public schools; later he took a course
in Kenyon College at Gambier, Ohio, and at the age of eighteen years became a
clerk in the hardware establishment of Donnelly, Rayl & Co. at Wooster, Ohio,
where he remained for four years. From 1871,to 1875 he engaged in various mercantile pursuits and in the latter year formed a partnership with his former employer,
Mr. T. B. Rayl, and under the style of T. B. Rayl & Co. they located at Detroit,
Mich., where they purchased the stock and good will of Arthur Glover, hardware
merchant, and established their present well known business as dealers in builders'
hardware, stoves and ranges, tools of every description for mechanics and general
sporting goods. Since the beginning Mr. Smith has acted as secretary-treasurer of
the company, and to his able management of its affairs is largely attributed the success of the T. B. Rayl & Co. He is treasurer of the Detroit Y. M. C. A.; a member
of the Society of Sons of the American Revolution, being a descendant of the old
New England families of Root, Wetmore and Rathbone; a member of the order of
Free and Accepted Masons; Detroit Athletic Club; and St. John's Episcopal church,
in which he is an active worker. In 1878 Mr. Smith married Susan Beard of Detroit,
and they have one daughter, Bessy E.
Smith, Eugene, M. D., son of J. S. and Elizabeth (Van Camp) Smith, was born at
Albany, N. Y., June 4, 1846. At an early age he removed with his parents to Buffalo, N. Y., where he attended private and public schools and later took a course in
St. Joseph's College. In 1863 he entered the medical department of the University
of Buffalo and was graduated therefrom with honors in 1866, receiving his degree
of M. D. Following his graduation he located at Mansfield, Pa., and practiced for
two years, removing to Detroit in 1868, where he has since practiced continuously.
Several months of 1873 and 1874 he spent in the special study of diseases of the eye
and ear in New York, London, Paris, Vienna and Berlin, and to which branch of his
profession he has since 1868 devoted himself exclusively. While a student in the
University of Buffalo Dr. Smith spent three years as assistant in the office of the
famous surgeon, J. F. Miner, who was at that time a professor in the university.
Since locating in Detroit he has visited each year the hospitals of the principal cities
of Europe, closely observing the operations performed on the eye and ear, and has
gained therefrom a vast amount of knowledge. His practice extends over the entire
United States, as he has won for himself not only a national, but an international
reputation. In Michigan he holds a number of positions of responsibility and trust
in his profession. He is professor of diseases of the eye and ear in the Detroit College of Medicine and has been for many years oculist to St. Mary's Hospital at Detroit. He is a member of the American Medical Association and was one of the
founders and is ex-president of the section on the eye and ear of that association.
He is a member of the Michigan State and local Medical Societies, was vice-president of the former, and is ex-president of the Detroit Medical and Library Association. Dr. Smith holds high honors in the Masonic fraternity, being a thirty-second
degree Mason, and is prominent and popular in both professional and social circles
in Detroit. Ile is a surgeon of excellent ability and sound judgment, a high-minded
gentleman of the purest character, cultured by wide reading and much travel, making him at all times one of the most companionable of men. He has been married
twice, first in 1866 to Jane Townsend of Buffalo, N. Y., who died in 1884, leaving
86


p




him a daughter, Mabel; in 1886 he married Carrie Freeman of Detroit, and they
have one son, Eugene, jr., and one daughter, Karolyn.
Snyder, Emil William, only child of William and Augusta Strecker Snyder, was
born at Zduny, Posen, Germany, December 18, 1867. Both of his parents having
passed away while he was still an infant, the year 1870 finds him in the home of his
maternal grandmother at Breslau, Silesia, Germany. His early education was furnished by private tutors and private schools, the balance being obtained at the
"Gymnasium," a semi-university in Breslau. He had the distinction of being the
youngest member of its graduating class, being but fourteen years of age. In 1881
he emigrated to America, and at once took up his residence in the State of Michigan.
Bay City was the field of his first labors, being for two years in the employ of W. &
J. Sempliner, dealing in fancy goods. For several years thereafter he alternated as
clerk in various enterprises between Bay City and Detroit. In 1886 he engaged in
the retail grocery business at Bay City in partnership with Henry W. Ziegler, under
the style of Ziegler & Snyder, the firm remaining in existence for almost three years.
While engaged in this business Mr. Synder took up the study of law in private. In
1889 he became a permanent resident of Detroit, engaging with Floyd & Foster in
the wholesale turf goods business, with which firm he remained until one year prior
to his admission to the bar. During his connection with Floyd & Foster he spent
nearly all of his spare time in the study of the law, becoming a charter member of
the Cooley Law Association, and being at various times elected as vice-president and
director. In 1892 Mr. Snyder entered the Detroit College of Law and graduated as
Bachelor of Law in 1894. He was admitted by Judge Frazer in 1893, and immediately entered the office of Frank E. Robson, with whom he remained until August,
1894. He then formed a partnership with Alfred J. Ducharme, under the style of
Snyder & Ducharme, and opened offices in the Buhl building, enjoying a good and
growing practice. In April, 1895, he became identified with the Sprague Correspondence School of Law, the first and largest correspondence school in professional
lines in the world, as instructor and chief examiner, which position he still occupies.
Mr. Snyder is the author of a number of well known helps for law students. He became a citizen of the United States in 1889. Mr. Snyder does not belong to any societies excepting the Alumni Association, D. C. L., of which he is one of the directors,
preferring a quiet home life. In 1895 he was married to Charlotte Stahl, daughter of
Mr. and Mrs. Frederick T. Stahl. One son has been born to bless this union. Mr.
Snyder is a prominent member of the Bethany Presbyterian church, and secretary
of its Sunday school.
Standart, Joseph G., son of Henry W. and Anne (Gardner) Standart, was born in
Monroeville, Huron county, Ohio, July 17, 1834. He was educated in the public
schools of Auburn, N. Y., whither he removed with his parents in 1842. At the age
of seventeen he entered the employ of Terrill & Johnson, hardware merchants at
Auburn, but remained only a year, removing to Cleveland, Ohio, in 1853, where he
spent nearly two years in the same business with George Worthington & Co. In
September, 1855, Mr. Standart located permanently in Detroit, Mich., and during
the first eight years of his residence in that city served the firm of Buhl, Ducharme
& Co., wholesale hardware dealers, as a clerk. In 1863 he entered partnership in
the same line with his father and elder brother George, who had come to Detroit
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in that year with a view to establishing the present business, which has grown from
a small beginning to enormous proportions. The firm has always been known as
Standart Bros., wholesale dealers in hardware, and since 1873 has been composed of
Joseph Standart and his brother Robert W., the elder Mr. Standart and his son
George, having withdrawn from the business about 1870. Mr. Standart is a member
of the Michigan, Fellowcraft, and Old Clubs, St. Clair Flats; of the order of Free
and Accepted Masons; and is a veteran member of the Detroit Light Guard. In
1858 he married Mary C. Miller of Austinburg, Ohio.
Stanton, Marvin M., son of Amasa and Hannah (Barton) Stanton, was born in
New Lisbon, N. Y., May 7, 1847. His early education was received in the public
schools of Oxford, Mich., whither his parents removed in 1853; he entered Alfred
University at Alfred, N. Y., from which he was graduated in 1867. On completing
his studies Mr. Stanton traveled through the Western States until 1872, when he
came to Detroit and associated himself with Oliver P. Hazard and James E. Brewster, under the firm name of Hazard & Brewster, and engaged in dealing in men's furnishings at wholesale. In 1879 Mr. Hazard retired and the firm name was changed
to Brewster & Stanton and the business continued until the death of Mr. Brewster
in 1887. Subsequent to the death of Mir. Brewster Mr. Stanton formed a partnership with George L. Sampson, under the firm name of Stanton & Sampson and engaged in the manufacture of laboring men's clothing and furnishings. In 1890 Mr.
Stanton retired and the firm was changed to Stanton & Morey, with A. E. Morey as
junior member; in 1897 Mr. Morey retired and the business was continued by Mr.
Stanton as sole owner. He occupies the stores at 124 and 126 Jefferson avenue, and
employs 400 hands in the manufacture of his products. He is a member of Michigan Sovereign Consistory; Detroit Commandery; Moslem Temple, Mystic Shrine;
Detroit Club and Lake St. Clair Fishing and Shooting Club. Mr. Stanton is a regular attendant at the Westminster Presbyterian church. July 5, 1873. he married
Alice M. Lee of Oxford, Mich., and they have one son, Marvin L.
Steele, Walter D., son of William and Margaret Steele, was born in Keokuk, Iowa,
August 9, 1870, and acquired his eatly education in the public schools of that place,
remaining in attendance until 1888, when he entered the Iowa State College at
Ames, and joined the mechanical engineering class, graduating in November, 1891,
with the degree of B. M. E. He located in Cincinnati, O., and was engaged as chief
draftsman of the Addyston Pipe & Steel Co.'s Foundry, remaining in the employ
of that concern about six months. Mr. Steele then removed to Chicago, Ill., and was
associated as electrical engineer with the Brush Electric Co. until 1893, when he
came to Detroit and was made general assistant to the city electrician. In June,
1895, he was made assistant city electrician, and the sequence of his service for one
year in that capacity was the appointment of city electrician by the Public Lighting
Commission. Mr. Steele is a member of the Detroit Engineering Society and the
American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
Stevens, Charles B., son of Asa W. and Dorcas (Swift) Stevens, was born in Centerville, Mass., November 27, 1858. Mr. Stevens acquired his education in the public schools of his native place, which he attended until the age of twenty. His early
musical education was received from his father and local teachers; at the age of


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twenty he entered the New England Conservatory of Music at Boston, where he remained one year. In 1881 he placed himself under the instruction of John L. Hodsdon, through whom he developed rare talent as a singer. In 1883 he traveled abroad,
where he filled many professional engagements and studied with some of the noted
voice masters of London. He returned to America in 1884 and in 1885 was engaged
as tenor of the New York Casino Opera Company. While filling an engagement in
Detroit with this company he decided to abandon the stage and devote his attention
to teaching, upon an invitation from Mr. J. D. Mehan to become his associate. After
a year Mr. Stevens decided to open his own studio and from that time on he has
occupied a constantly enlarging sphere in the musical life of the city. He has acted
in the capacity of director of the Apollo Club; Madrigal Club; Boylston Club; Mendelssohn Quartet; Westminster Choral Society; Detroit Choral Society; D. A. C.
Glee Club and the quartet choirs of Woodward Avenue Baptist and Jefferson Avenue
Presbyterian churches. Mr. Stevens has wisely chosen to be voice specialist and
during all these years has had the one end in view, viz., to master the art of voice
use and the science of imparting it to others. A large class of pupils, many of them
favorite public singers, attest his success. Mr. Stevens's artistic singing has been
in much demand since he located in Detroit, and although he did not bid for public
engagements, preferring to give his best thought and effort to his pupils, hellas frequently been called upon for concert and oratorio work in Detroit and other cities
where his ability was known. December 22, 1892. he married Isabel P., daughter of
Fred Baker of Detroit.
Stevens, Rollin H., M. D., son of Nathan H. and Ada (Burk) Stevens, was born at
Blenheim, Ontario, Can., January 7, 1868. He was graduated from the Chatham
(Ontario), High School in 1885, and passed his first year's examination in the Toronto
University in the spring of 1886; in the autumn of 1886 he entered the Homeopathic
School of Medicine of the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, and was graduated
therefrom in 1889. In the same year he passed the required examination and became a licentiate of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario, Canada.
After practicing for a few months in Canada he removed to Detroit, Mich, in 1889,
and was almost at once made house surgeon of Grace Hospital, retaining that position for two years. After a year of travel in British Columbia and California Dr.
Stevens located permanently in Detroit, where he has since been an active practitioner of his profession. He is gynaecologist to Grace Hospital and gynaecologist
and vice-president of the dispensary staff of that institution; a member of the American Institute of Homeopathy; of the State Homeopathic and the Detroit Homeopathic Practitioners' Society, having been instrumental in the organization of the
latter society in 1893, and was secretary of it for the first three years of its existence.
He is also a member of the Fellowcraft Club and Fortnightly Club of Detroit; a
member of the board of Midwife Examiners of the Detroit Board of Health; of Grand
River Tent, No. 409 of the Maccabees, and has been physician to that body for several years. While in California he was a member of the California Homeopathic
Society; is late business manager and surgical editor of the Medical Counselor, published at Detroit, taking an active part in founding that journal in the fall of 1895.
He was married on March 16, 1892, to Mary E. Thompson, M. D., a daughter of
Andrew M. Thompson, of Lapeer, Mich. Dr. Mary Thompson Stevens was born at


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Hadley, Mich, January 29, 1864. She was graduated from the Lapeer High School
in 1879, at the age of fifteen, and received the degrees of A. B. in 1885, and M. D. in
1888 from the University of Michigan. Following her graduation in 1888 she was
assistant gynecologist to the University of Michigan for one year; in 1889 she located
in Detroit, Mich., where she has practiced continuously, both prior to and since her
marriage. In 1880 she was librarian to the famous Antioch College at Yellow Springs,
Ohio, and from 1881 to 1884 occupied a like position in the Buchtel College at Akron,
Ohio. She is at present a member of all the medical societies to which her husband
belongs; is pedologist to Grace Hospital at Detroit, and a member of both the regular and dispensary medical staffs of that institution. She is also a member of the
Twentieth Century Club; of the Fortnightly Club; of the Delta Gamma fraternity,
and was instrumental in organizing that fraternity at the University of Michigan;
and of the Association of Collegiate Alumnae of the U. S. During the autumn following their marriage Dr. Stevens and wife visited California, where they together
took a three months' literary course in the Leland Stanford University.
Stewart, Charles C., son of Alexander and Maria (Cummings) Stewart, was born in
Centerville, Mich., February 8, 1851. He prepared for college in the public schools
at AnnmArbor and entered the literary department of the University of Michigan,
graduating from there in 1873. Two years later he was graduated from the law department. In 1876 he took the A. M. degree in the literary department. On leaving college Mr. Stewart came to Detroit and entered the law office of Henry M.
Cheever, and later opened an office for himself, and has had a varied and extensive
practice. In 1883 Mr. Stewart married Susie Ellis of Toledo, Ohio, who died one
year later. October 23, 1893, he married Nellie Nott of Pontiac, Mich. His only
child is by his second wife, and is Nellie Marguerite Stewart. Mr. Stewart is a
member of the Michigan Sovereign Consistory and Mystic Shrine.
Stockwell, George W., son of Isaac and Keziah (Knight) Stockwell, was born in
Detroit, December 1, 1863. He attended the public schools until 1877, when he
accepted a clerical position in the office of the late Daniel J. Campau; in 1878 he entered the service of the American District Telegraph Co., conducted by the Miclligan Telephone Co. In consequence of efficient service he was made inspector in
1881; in March, 1885, he was engaged as chief operator of the fire department telegraph service and retained that position until October, 1893, when he was appointed
assistant secretary of the fire department. On the resignation of Secretary James
E. Tryon, June 30, 1896, Mr. Stockwell was made acting secretary for the term ending April 1, 1897. He was reappointed for one year, April 1, 1897, and again in
1898. He was married, December 26, 1889, to Ottilie Langer of Detroit.
Stoddard, Elliott J., son of Joseph N. and Sophia I. (Budington) Stoddard, was born
at Seymour, Conn., February 14, 1859. He was educated in the Hopkins Grammar
School at New Haven, Conn., and took the course in engineering in the Sheffield
Scientific School of Yale College. He then went to New York city and was graduated from the law department of Columbia College in 1881 with the degree of LL. B.
Returning to Yale he took a post-graduate course in engineering and removed to
Detroit, Mich., in 1883, where he has since been actively and continuously engaged in
the practice of patent law and has met with success. He is a member of the State
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and Local Bar Associations; of the I. O. O. F.; the Foresters, the Berzelius Society
of Yale College, and of the National Association of Stationary Engineers. He is
also a member of the Engineers' and Mechanics' Club of Detroit and consulting engineer for the Henry C Hart Manufacturing Company. In 1895 Mr. Stoddard married Jennie E. Harris of Mayville, Mich.
Stone, James H., son of James A. B. and Lucinda (Hinsdale) Stone, was born in
Kalamazoo, Mich., July 19, 1847. His education was acquired in Kalamazoo College,
and during the year 1863 he taught school. He then removed to Detroit and for a
number of years served the Advertiser and Tribune as reporter, afterward becoming
editor and proprietor of the Kalamazoo Telegraph and Port Huron Times, successfully managing each paper for four years. After a year spent abroad Mr. Stone
returned to Detroit and from 1878 to 1882 acted as manager of the Detroit Post and
Tribune. In 1886 he purchased the Tribune and was editor and proprietor of that
journal until 1891, when he sold out his interest to James E. Scripps, the present
owner. In 1895 Mr. Stone, in company with Mr. Fred Kelly, purchased the stock
and good will of the Thomas Smith Printing Co., and under the style of James H.
Stone & Co., printers and binders, they are recognized as among Detroit's most energetic and enterprising business men, as well as among the most successful. From
1883 to 1885 Mr. Stone administered the affairs of the office of Collector of Internal
Revenue at Detroit, and again served in that capacity from 1889 to 1893, proving
himself a faithful and trusted public servant. He is a member of the Detroit Chamber of Commerce, and of the order of Free and Accepted Masons. In 1879 he
married Margaret Webster of Plymouth, N. H., and they have three children: Webster, Lucile and Blinn.
Stuart, Reed, son of James C. and Anne (Miller) Stuart, was born October 21, 1845,
in Elizabethtown, Va. Mr. Stuart received his early education from his parents.
In 1859 he removed with his parents to Monmouth, Ill. where, in 1865, he entered
the Monmouth Academy, pursuing his studies one year, and then entered the Monmouth College. He was graduated in 1870 with the degree of A. B. and in 1872
received the degree of A. M. During the fall of the same year he attended the McCormick Theological Seminary, Chicago, remaining until 1871, when he returned to
Monmouth and entered the United Presbyterian Seminary. Mr. Stuart was graduated
from the seminary in 1872 and ordained minister in August of the same year. In
the fall of 1872 he was called to Oneida, Ill., and installed pastor of the Presbyterian
church. In 1877 Mr. Stuart accepted a call to Battle Creek as pastor of the Congregational church. He resigned in 1886, removed to Detroit and became pastor of the
First Congregational Unitarian church, May 1, 1872. Mr. Stuart was united in
marriage with Helen Soule, of Monmouth, Ill. Their children are Duane R. and
Donald C. Stuart.
Summers, Frank D., M. D., son of George W. and Isabelle (Wells) Summers, was
born at Utica, Macomb county, Mich., March 31, 1860. He was educated in the
Utica Union School and under private tutors, and read medicine with Dr. William
Brownell at Utica for one year. He received his degree of M. D. from the Detroit
Medical College in 1883, and took special courses in surgical and medical diseases of
women in New York city in the spring of 1895 and spring of 1897. He has been an


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active practitioner of his profession at Detroit since 1883, and has met with gratifying success, particularly in his specialty of diseases of women. Dr. Summers was
for a number of years lecturer and clinical gynecologist to the Detroit College of
Medicine and assistant visiting gynecologist to St. Mary's Hospital; and is at
present visiting gynaecologist to the latter institution.  He is a member of the
Michigan State Medical Society; Wayne County Medical Society; Detroit Medical
and Library Association; and Detroit Gynaecological Society. In March, 1889, Dr.
Summers married Berenice Cline of Detroit.
Sutherland, David S., son of James and Helen (Buie) Sutherland, was born in Detroit, Mich., February 13, 1849. His parents came to Detroit from Scotland in 1835
while Michigan was a Territory. IHe attended the public schools until fourteen
years of age and has since been continuously identified in some capacity with the
Michigan Central Railroad Company. He commenced his railroad career as a messenger boy, was later a car checker for several years, yardmaster for a number of
years and from 1875 to 1881 trainmaster at Detroit. In the latter year Mr. Sutherland was appointed to his present position as superintendent of the Detroit divisions
of the Michigan Central Railroad. For the past three years he has been president
of the Detroit Association of Railroad Officers; is a member of the Detroit and Toledo Railroad Associations; and has served a term as vice-president of the Central
Association of Railroad Officers. Mr. Sutherlaad is a member of Zion Lodge No. 1,
F. & A. M.; Monroe Chapter, R. A. M.; Detroit Commandery, K. T., and for the
space of twenty-one years has been an active member. He is now member of the
Old Guard, Detroit Commandery. He has been married twice, first in January,
1875, to Isabella Hunter, who died in October, 1896, leaving four children: Edward
W., Robert T., James I., and Grace I. In December, 1897, Mr. Sutherland married
Isabella Black of Jackson, Mich.
Taylor, Frank D., son of Nathaniel T. and Laura (Winchell) Taylor, was born at
Dryden, Lapeer county, Mich., June 11, 1842. He is of New England ancestry,
combining Puritan and Pilgrim blood. His parents came to Michigan in 1832. At
the age of six years he removed with his parents to Detroit, where he attended
school until 1854. During the ensuing six years he was in the employ of L. F. Harter, tea and coffiee merchant, and in 1860 became a clerk in the dry goods establishment of Farrell & Bro., rising through several grades and thoroughly mastering the
details of the business. In 1866 when the dry goods firm of Newcomb, Endicott &
Co. was organized, Mr. Taylor became a partner in the firm and continued as such
until 1880, when he became senior partner of the new firm of Taylor, Woolfenden &
Co., and in 1894 when the Taylor, Woolfenden Co. was incorporated he was made
vice-president and still serves in that capacity. This firm is composed of A. W.
Wright, president; F. D. Taylor and J. B. Woolfenden, vice-presidents, and William
H. Perkins, secretary and treasurer. The firm are heavy importers and among the
largest retail dealers in fine dry goods in the State. Mr. Taylor has always been an
active church worker, is a member of the Woodward Avenue Congregational church,
of which he was one of the organizers and has been one of its deacons for a number
of years. He was also one of the organizers of the Detroit Y.M.C.A. and other
Christian bodies and institutions, and is active in charitable enterprises. In 1866
he married Phoebe E. Shourds, who passed away in 1885, leaving him three daugh



ters. In 1890 he married Mrs. Eleanora H. Snover of Detroit. Mr. Taylor has a
pleasant home at 105 Watson street and a cottage for summer residence at Orchard
Lake, Mich.
Taylor, George, one of the leading merchants and representative men of Detroit,
is a native of Scotland, having been born August 22, 1853, near Turriff, Aberdeenshire, a son of John and Jane (Alexander) Taylor. His education was obtained in
the schools of his native place. At the age of ten years he was apprenticed to the
dry goods trade at Turriff, and was thus employed until 1868, when he accepted a
situation in Glasgow. Four years later, in 1872, he came to the United States and
secured employment in Hartford, Conn. After filling other positions in New York
and Indianapolis, he removed to Detroit in 1876, entering the employ of George M.
Traver, dealer in dry goods, located on the corner of Woodward avenue and Congress street. Later he left the employ of Mr. Traver and entered that of George
Peck & Co., where he remained until the firm sold out to W. J. Sparling & Co. In
1888 Mr. Taylor became connected with the firm of Winans & Co., with an interest
in the business. Five years later, in 1893, he with Maurice R. Marr formed the firm
of Marr & Taylor, dealing in dry goods, and is still a member of that firm. Mr. Taylor is a member of Palestine Lodge, F. & A. M.; Damascus Commandery, Knights
Templar, and the A. O. U. W. In 1877 he married Isabella E. Marr, daughter
of Maurice and Jane Marr of Detroit, and they have two children: May J. and
George M.
Taylor, Orla B., son of James and Mariette (Benedict) Taylor, was born at Fowlerville, Mich., September 29, 1865. Mr. Taylor secured his education at Chelsea, Mich.,
and later at the Ann Arbor High School, preparing for college. He attended the
University of Michigan fron which he was graduated with the degree of B. A. in
1886, and B.LL. in 1887. During his residence at Ann Arbor he studied law in the
offices of Sawyer & Knowlton and in 1888 came to Detroit, associating himself with
Edwin F. Conely, where he has since remained and established a lucrative practice
with gratifying success. October 21, 1891, Mr. Taylor married Dorothea De Tromble.
Teagan, John B., justice of the peace for Wayne county, a son of George S. and
Mary (Teagan) Teagan, was born in Detroit, Mich., January 24, 1869. He entered
the public schools of Detroit and received the foundation for an English course in
the Detroit Episcopal Academy, which he completed about 1886. He began the
study of law in the office of James H. Pound and later in the office of Peter E. Park.
Mr. Teagan was admitted to the bar in April, 1890, and December 15, 1890, he established an office of his own which he conducted until 1891, when he was elected
justice of the peace for four years. At the expiration of his term in 1825 he was reelected for another term of four years and retains the office at the present time  Mr.
Teagan is past grand chief of the Knights of the Golden Eagle, member of the Odd
Fellows, Maccabees and Royal Arcanum. On March 27, 1894, he married Lizzie M.
Harger of Detroit.
Ternes, Rev. Anthony P., son of Peter and Theresa (Reuter) Ternes, was born in
Springwells, a suburb of Detroit, Mich., March 1, 1863. He received his early education in the parochial schools of Detroit and entered the seminary of St. Francis
at Milwaukee, Wis., in 1878. In 1883 he returned to Detroit and attended Assump

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tion College at Sandwich, Out., remaining until 1884, when he entered St. Mary's
Seminary. Baltimore, Md. He was ordained July 24, 1887, by Bishop Borgess at
Detroit, and appointed pastor of St. Michael's church at Port Austin, Mich., remaining till March, 1890, when he was transferred to the pastorate of St. Agatha's church
Gagetown, Mich. In September, 1890, he was recalled to Detroit as assistant pastor
of Sacred Heart church, where he remained until 1892 and was then appointed pastor of St. Joseph's church at Adrian. July 14, 1896, he was assigned to his present
pastorate, St. Elizabeth's church, Detroit, and has done much toward placing his
charge in a prosperous condition.
Tibbals, William I., Ph. C., F.C.S., son of Henry E. and Mary (Burr) Tibbals, was
born in Ann Arbor, Mich., April 14, 1867. While still an infant his parents removed
to Connecticut where he received his early education. Ile attended the public
schools of New Haven, Conn., and is a graduate of the Hillhouse High School of
that city. He received his degree of Ph. C. from the University of Michigan in 1890,
after completing a full course in the chemical laboratory of that institution. Since
his graduation Mr. Tibbals has followed his profession, devoting his entire time to
the subjects of analytical and industrial chemistry, and has already attained prominence as an analytical and consulting chemist and bacteriologist. From the spring
of 1890 until the autumn of 1891 he occupied a position of some responsibility in the
New York State Experimental Station at Geneva, N. Y., and during the college year
1891-92 he took a special post-graduate course in chemistry in the University of
Michigan. He then became associated with John A. Miller, Ph. D)., chemist of Buffalo, N. Y., and remained in that city until March, 1895, when he was appointed to
his present position as city chemist, by the Detroit Board of Health. In 1895 Mr.
Tibbals had conferred upon him the degree of Fellow of the Chemical Society of
London, England. He is a member of the American Chemical Society and of the
Fellowcraft Club of Detroit.
Towar, George W., jr., M. D., son of George W. and Hannah (Mathews) Towar, was
born in Lyons, Wayne county, N. Y., December 14, 1835. In 1845 his parents removed
to Oxford county, Ontario, Canada, where he received his early education; in 1851
he entered the preparatory department of Oberlin College at Oberlin, 0., where he
continued his studies until 1855. In the fall of that year he began the study of medicine with D)r. George W. Bingham of Tillsonburg, Ontario, and in 1856 entered the
medical department of Harvard University, from which he was graduated in 1858.
On completion of his medical course he removed to the Western States and engaged
in the practice of his profession in Mountain City, Col., Santa Fc, New Mexico, and
later in Denver, Col. At the breaking out of the late war he returned to Michigan
and enlisted in the 24th Mich. Infantry and was commissioned assistant surgeon,
serving in that capacity until mustered out of service on June 30, 1865. Subsequently he removed to Montana and established a practice at Jefferson City, remaining until the following year, when he returned to Michigan and again enlisted in the
regular army as acting assistant surgeon, and was assignedl to duty in the Departmeut of the Platte, remaining in the service until 1882. In August of that year he
removed to Detroit and established the Michigan Creamtlery, which he conducted until 1885, when he entered the employ of Towar Brothers, of which firm his father
was senior member. In 1889 the firm was reorganized and incorporated under the
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title of the Wayne Connty Creamery, with Dr. Towar as vice-president. On the retirement of his father in 1896 he became the president of the company. In addition
to his large interest in the above establishment he is secretary and treasurer of the
J. M. Flinn Ice Cream Company. November 6, 1878, Dr. Towar married Maria W.
Cook of Chillcothe, Ohio, and they have six children: Eleanor, Henry M., Scott C.,
George S., Mary P., and Mathew S.
Trowbridge, Alexander B., son of Luther S. and Julia M. (Buel) Trowbridge, was
born in Detroit, Mich., September 3, 1868. He was educated in the public schools at
Detroit, and later took a four years' course in the College of Architecture at Cornell
University, being graduated in 1890. He spent the ensuing three years in the offices
of several of the leading firms of architects in Boston, Mass., as a draftsman, and
from 1893 to 1895 studied architecture under Marcel Lambert in the Ecole des Beaux
Arts at Paris, France. He returned to the United States in August, 1895, and later
in that year located in Detroit, Mich., for the practice of his profession. January 1,
1896, Mr. Trowbridge formed a copartnership with Messrs. G. W. Nettleton and
Albert Kahn, under the firm of Nettleton, Kahn & Trowbridge, who have won for
themselves a place in the foremost rank of their profession in the State of Michigan,
being young men of enterprising character and high business qualifications. They
have gained the esteem and confidence of the entire community, as well as the high
regard of all having business dealings with them. Mr. Trowbridge has recently
been tendered the chair as professor in charge of the College of Architecture in Cornell University, which he has accepted, and will assume the duties of that position
in September, 1897. He is a member of the Kappa Alpha Society of Cornell University; of the Michigan Naval Reserves and Detroit Boat Club. He was married
in August, 1896, to Gertrude Sherman, of Brooklyn, N. Y., and they have one son,
Sherman.
Turner, William H., was born on a farm near Fort Wayne, Ind., February 17,
1863. During the winter months he attended the district schools, and employed his
summer vacations in working on the farm. At the age of eighteen he entered the
Fort Wayne College, and was graduated in 1880, having completed the commercial
course. He then took the academic course in the same institution, and was graduated in 1882; he later entered the University of Michigan, where he took both the
literary and law courses, being graduated from the latter branch in 1888. In July of
the same year he was admitted to the bar of Indiana, and upon his removal to Detroit, Mich., in 1889, was admitted to the bar of that State. He then formed a partnership with George B. Yerkes, which was dissolved at the end of one year. Since
that time he has been in active practice alone, and has won for himself a place of
honor at the bar. Since November, 1895, he has been assistant prosecuting attorney
for Wayne county. He is a member of the Fellowcraft and Wayne Clubs of Detroit;
of Zion Lodge, F. & A. M., Michigan Sovereign Consistory, and other fraternal organizations.
Utley, Henry M., librarian of the city of Detroit, is a son of Hiram Utley, and
was born on a farm at Plymourh, Wayne county, Mich., August 5, 1836. He
attended the district schools and the old seminary (now High School) at Ypsilanti,
Mich. He taught school for five years to raise funds to complete his education, and
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later entered the University of Michigan, from which he was graduated with the
degree of A. M. He then removed to Detroit, where he was engaged as a reporter
for the Free Press, and was afterward for several years on the editorial staff of the
Post-Tribune. Mr. Utley filled the position of secretary of the Board of Education
of Detroit for five years, and in 1885 was placed in charge of the Detroit Public
Library, as librarian, and still ably discharges the duties of that position.
Van Antwerp, Rev. Francis J., son of Francis and Mary (Gore) Van Antwerp, was
born in Detroit, Mich., April 22, 1858. He received his primary education in St.
Mary's Academy, Detroit, which he attended until the age of twelve, when he entered Assumption College, Sandwich, Ontario, where he remained until 1876. He
studied philosophy and divinity at St. Mary's Seminary, Baltimore, Maryland, and
was graduated in 1880. He was ordained by Bishop Borgess, May 6, 1881, and appointed pastor of St. Rose's church, Hastings, Mich., shortly after his ordination,
remaining there one year. In 1882 he was transferred to St. Paul's parish at Grosse
Pointe, and in 1885 to that of St. Philip at Battle Creek. In 1889 he was appointed
pastor of the newly established parish of Our Lady of the Rosary at Detroit, where
he has since remained in charge and is building up the parish. He is a diligent
worker and by his genial manners endears himself to all with whom he comes in
contact. He is a pleasing and eloquent speaker.
Varney, Almon C., son of Abner M. and Meriam J. (Clother) Varney, was born in
Luzerne, Washington county, N. Y., March 28, 1849. He was educated in the public and private schools of Luzerne, and at the age of sixteen years removed with his
parents to Grangerville, Saratoga county, N. Y., where he again attended the public
schools. At eighteen he began to learn the trade of millwright and carpenter with
his father, and in 1868 left home to seek his own fortune. During the ensuing ten
years he worked at his trade of carpenter in Massachusetts and New York, part of
the time as journeyman and later as a contractor: all but three years of this time he
was in business for himself. He was of a studious turn of mind and spent his leisure
moments,and evenings in the study of architecture and fine carpentry work. In
1878 he located in Detroit, Mich., and established himself in business as an architect
and superintendent. He was afterward joined by his brother, F. N. Varney, forming the firm of A. C. Varney & Co., under which style they have been eminently
successful in all their transactions and have erected many costly and imposing edifices. Mr. Varney is a thirty-second degree Mason; a member of the Rushmere
Club of Detroit, and has been for a number of years identified as a member of and
regular attendant at the First Congregational church of Detroit. In July, 1896, he
was appointed to fill the unexpired term of F. B Dickerson as commissioner of the
poor of Wayne county, Mich.; in July, 1897, he was reappointed for a term of four
years. In 1872 he married Lizzie C. Scidmore, daughter of Freeman Scidmore of
Saratoga, and they have two children: Eva J. and A. Chester.
Walker, Frank B., M. D., son of Roger T. and Harriet (Banghart) Walker, was
born in Lapeer county, Mich., April 25, 1867. He was graduated from the Lapeer
High School in 1883, and from the Flint (Mich.) High School in 1885. He received
the degree of Ph. B. from the University of Michigan in 1890, and in 1892 the degree
of M. D. from the Detroit College of Medicine. Since his graduation Dr. Walker
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has been associated continuously with Dr. H. O. Walker of Detroit, as assistant in
his practice, and has built up for himself a large independent practice. He is a
member of the American Medical Association; the Michigan State Medical Society;
the Detroit Medical and Library Association; the Detroit Academy of Medicine,
and the Wayne County Medical Society. He is demonstrator of operative surgery
in the Detroit College of Medicine, and registrar of that institution; and is assistant
surgeon to St. Mary's Hospital at Detroit. He is associate editor of the Physician
and Surgeon, and is also a member of the order of Free and Accepted Masons. In
1894 he married Hattie B., daughter of Rev. James Venning of Detroit, and they
have a son, Roger V.
Walters, Henry C., was born in Lac la Hache, British Columbia, August 24, 1870,
and is a son of John Walters, retired, formerly surveyor and miner of that section,
who removed with his family to Canfield, Ontario, Can., in 1871. In the latter place
Henry C. attended the public schools and later the public schools of Essex, Essex
county, Can. In 1885 he entered the Essex Collegiate Institute, and was graduated
in the class of 1888. In August of that year he began reporting for the Essex Liberal, and on January 1 following was made assistant manager of the paper, which
position he filled until July, 1889, when, in company with his brother, Frank Walters,
he purchased the interest of his employer and changing the name of the paper to the
Essex Free Press, ran it successfully until 1892. In that year he entered the law
department of Ann Arbor University and was graduated in 1894. He then entered
the law office of John Atkinson of Detroit, where he remained for two years, until
April, 1897, when he practiced his profession alone, then becoming a member of the
firm of Walters, Humphry & Walters, of which his brother is the senior member.
Mr. Walters is an instructor in the Gutchess College, and devotes a couple of hours
a week to the delivery of lectures on Commercial Law and Political Economy to the
students of that institution. He is prominent and popular in both business and
social circles and is a member of Masonic and other organizations.
Ward, George H., was born at Battle Creek, Mich., October 16, 1862, a son of
Joseph M. Ward, a prominent banker and capitalist of that place, and who was one
of the pioneers of Michigan, settling in that State about the year 1840. George H.
was educated in the public schools of his native town and in Helmuth College at
London, Ontario, Can. In 1881 he removed to New York city, where for several
years he was connected with a prominent stock exchange house. In the summer of
1889, after five years of continuous travel through the southern and western States,
he returned to the State of Michigan, settling in Detroit, where he has ever since remained. For a period of four years he was engaged in business as a receiver and
shipper of grain; in 1896 he established his present business, that of stock and grain
brokerage, having private wires to all the leading exchanges of the country, and has
been eminently successful. He has been a director of the Detroit Board of Trade
since 1890; was its vice-president during 1894 and 1895, and was made president of
that body in 1896, serving in that capacity until the following year. He is also a director of the Detroit Chamber of Commerce and of the Detroit Athletic Club, and a
member of the Detroit Club.
Wermers, Very Rev. Bernard J., son of Gerhard and Marie (Brinkmann) Wermers,
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was born in Germany, September 7, 1836. He received his early education in the
public schools of his native place and entered the gymnasium at Rheine on the Ems
in 1853; in 1857 he entered the gymnasium at Coesfeld, from which he was graduated in 1860. In the fall of that year he began the study of philosophy and theology
at the University of Muenster, where he remained until 1862, and then entered the
University of Louvain, Belgium. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1864 and
continued his studies until 1865, when he removed to Detroit and was assigned to
the pastorate of St Andrew's church, Grand Rapids, Mich. In 1868 he was transferred to St. Patrick's church at Stony Creek, Monroe county, remaining until 1872,
when he removed to Detroit and was assigned to the pastorate of St. Boniface's
church. In 1890 he was appointed pastor of the Sacred Heart church, where he remained until transferred to his present charge, that of St. Joseph's church. During
the time of his service at St. Boniface's church he built the present church edifice and
parsonage at an expense of about $50,000. In his present charge there are about
800 families, or about 4,000 belonging to the parish of St. Joseph's, connected with
which are parochial schools under charge of Sisters of I. H. M. and the Christian
Brothers; also a business college under the charge of the same Christian Brothers.
At the same time Very Rev. B. J. Wermers is dean of E. Detroit Deanery; diocesan
consultor; treasurer of the Board of Missionary Fund, and one of the examiners of
clergy. As pastor of St. Joseph's church, he is one of the five irremovable pastors
of the Diocese of Detroit.
Westcott, John W., son of David H. and Mary J. (Ward) Westcott, was born at
Warnersville, on Lime Island, in the Sault Ste. Marie River, Mackinaw county Mich.,
December 19, 1848.  His parents were both natives of New York State, and
migrated with their respective families to Michigan in the thirties. His father,
David H. Westcott, was born in Livingston county, N. Y., April 24, 1823. He removed to Michigan in 1842, and in the following year began sailing on the steamer
Huron, the first the Wards ever built. He met Mary J. Ward, daughter of the
keeper of the Manitou Island light house in 1843, and wedded her on the steamer
James Madison while she lay at her moorings at Mackinac Island, April 23, 1844,
and for two years the happy couple were the sole white inhabitants of Lime Island,
removing to Newport in 1846. John W. was educated in the schools at Newport
(now Marine City), Mich., and having inherited a love for the water, at an early age
shipped on a steamer plying the Great Lakes. From "boy" he rose through all
possible grades to the station of "master." At the age of twenty-five, in 1873, he
abandoned sailing and settled at Grosse Pointe, Mich., where for one year he
tended the Grosse Pointe channel lights; removing to Detroit in 1874, he established
himself in his present business as marine reporter and general freight and vessel
agent, in which he has met with the success that he so justly deserves. Mr. Westcott was the originator of the present system of delivering and receiving mail by
small boats to and from passing vessels, which is in general use along the lakes;
he is also president and general manager of the Westcott Wrecking Co., doing an
extensive business on the lakes. Mr. Westcott is domestic in his tastes, spending
most of his leisure time in the home circle. He is the proud possessor of a wellstocked library, which numbers among its volumes many valuable works. He has
allowed himself to become a candidate for but one public office, that of alderman


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from the Fourth ward of Detroit, to which he was elected in 1885 for a term of two
years. In 1879 Mr. Westcott married Henrietta E. Crane, of Detroit, formerly of
Newark, N. J., and they have four children: Mary L., Henrietta E, John W., jr.,
and Charles H. 2d. Mr. Westcott is a member of the Fellowcraft Club of Detroit.
He and his family are members of the First Congregational church of Detroit.
Wetherbee, Hon. William H., treasurer of the Detroit College of Law, was born
at Stone Hill, Medina county, Ohio, September 8, 1858, a son of the late Cyrus W.
Wetherbee, who removed with his family to Detroit in 1869. His education began
in the public schools of Cleveland, O. After removing to Michigan, his parents
being unable to give him the education for which he had a consuming desire, he determined to strike out for himself, which he did in 1872, shipping "before the-mast"
on a merchant schooner plying the Great Lakes. Four years later he returned to
Detroit, where he entered a mercantile business, and having procured sufficient
funds he purchased books and during his leisure hours pursued his studies alone.
Later on he attended Professor Jones's Classical School for Boys and still later engaged the services of private tutors. In 1877 he entered the office of Claude N.
Riopelle of Detroit, where for nearly two years he remained reading law. From
there he went to Hon. Horace E. Burt, then a practicing attorney in Detroit, but remained a short time only, as he was compelled to seek more lucrative employment.
During the following twelve years, however, he kept up his reading of law, and in
1891 entered the ranks of his chosen profession, being admitted to the bar in that
year. Mr. Wetherbee was one of the organizers of the Detroit College of Law, established in 1890, and it is through his untiring efforts and progressive business
methods that the present marked success of the enterprise is due. He entered its
first junior class and was graduated with it, receiving the degree of IL.B. In spite
of the exacting duties of a growing practice he devotes much time to the law school,
and no student every finds him too busy or too hurried to give time and attention to
every want. Mr. Wetherbee is also an active church worker, having been a member
of the old First Congregational church of Detroit for the past eighteen years. He is
an active member of the Congregational Club of Eastern Michigan; a member of
the Y.M.C.A.; of the Alger Club; Michigan Club and numerous Masonic, social and
fraternal organizations, being a Knight Templar and a thirty-second degree Mason.
In character Mr. Wetherbee is modest and unassuming and is respected and esteemed by all who have the good fortune to know him. In 1896 he was elected to
the Legislature to represent the city of Detroit, and during his term of office was
called many times to fill the chair in committee of the whole when subjects of importance were to receive consideration. Mr. Wetherbee married Martha M. Noble
of Dearborn, Mich., and they have two children: Mary W. and Ross N.
Wetzel, Henry Adolph, son of Edward and Lina Wetzel, was born at Berlin, Germany, June 1, 1845. His education was acquired in private schools, the Royal Frederick William's Gymnasium, and the Royal Realschule at Berlin, from which he
graduated in 1862. After his graduation he served a four years' apprenticeship in
the drug business at Berlin, and in 1866, when war with Austria broke out, he entered the army as a volunteer for one year. In 1867, immediately following his discharge from the army, he entered the employ of the chemical laboratory of E.
Schering at Berlin, of hydrate of chloral fame, where he remained until the breaking
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out of the Franco-Prussian war in 1870, during which he served as first lieutenant of
infantry guards. In October, 1872, he came to America, and was for a time located
at Chicago, 111., where, to familiarize himself with the affairs of this country, he
spent a year in one of the large commercial agencies. In 1873 he accepted a position
as traveling representative of the G Mallinckordt Chemical Works at St. Louis, Mo.,
and remained with that company until the panic of 1875, when he purchased an interest in the business of Allaire, Woodward & Co., manufacturing chemists of Peoria,
'Ill. In 1877 Mr. Wetzel became identified with Parke, Davis & Co., manufacturing
chemists of Detroit, Mich., as traveling and foreign representative. Later he became superintendent of the extensive laboratories of that company at Detroit, and
in 1891 was elected to his present position as its secretary; he has also been a director
of the establishment since 1880. He is a member of the British Pharmaceutical Conference; of the Society for Applied Chemical Industries; a Fellow of the Chemical
Society; a Fellow of the Imperial Institute of London, Eng.; a member of the Detroit Club; Lake St. Clair Fishing and Shooting Club; Country Club and Detroit
Boat Club; also a member of the Jefferson Avenue Presbyterian church of Detroit.
June 18, 1885, he married Harriet A. Greiner, of Buffalo, N. Y., and they have one
son, Hervey Edward.
Wheeler, Rev. James, son of Michael and Mary (McQueeney) Wheeler, was born
in Pompton, N. J., May 11, 1848. Both his parents were natives of Ireland, his
father having been born in Westmeath and his mother in County Leitrim. They
came to this country when single, and were married here; thus it will be seen that
Father Wheeler is of staunch Irish-American stock. During his childhood his parents
removed to Kalamazoo, Mich., where he received his early education. In 1862 he
entered St. Mary's College at Bardstown, Ky., remaining there until 1863, when he
began his theological studies in Barre Wavre College at Wavre, and afterward at the
University of Louvain, Belgium, from which he was graduated in 1873. Rev. Mr.
Wheeler was ordained May 15, 1873, by Bishop Borgess at Detroit, and appointed
pastor of St. John church, Fenton, where he remained until 1876. He was next
assigned to the pastorate of St. Patrick's church at Brighton, where he remained but
a few months, and was then transferred to St. Paul's church at Owasso. In 1887 he
was appointed to his present charge, that of the church of Our Lady of Help, Detroit, and has done much to place the parish in a prosperous condition. May 1,
1894, he laid the corner stone of the present school edifice, which he has completed
at a cost of $30,000. During his residence here he has been an indefatigable worker
in the cause of his church, and the parochial school is one of the best in the city.
Father Wheeler is a man of genial presence, and has endeared himself to the people
of his parish. He is an able, forcible and eloquent speaker.
Whitaker, Herschel, was born at Turin, N. Y., July 25, 1847, and resided there
until twenty-one years of age, when he removed to Waterloo, Iowa, and engaged in
grain and produce brokerage business until 1872. In the latter part of the year 1872
he removed to New York city and for two years made a close study of phonography
and its uses. In 1874 he settled in Detroit, Mich., where he has since maintained his
residence. Shortly after his arrival in Detroit he was appointed official stenographer
for the United States Circuit and District Courts for the Eastern district of Michigan
and retained that position until 1889, when he was appointed stenographer for the


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Probate Court of Wayne county. Mr. Whitaker also made a special study of law
and was admitted to the bar in 1878. He is an ardent lover of the sport of fishing
and has been successively vice-president, president and member of the executive
committee of the American Fisheries Society, of which he has been a member since
1889 and for which he has written a number of valuable papers. In 1883 he was appointed as first regular secretary of the Michigan Fish Commission, which position
he resigned in the following year to accept an appointment from the governor on the
Board of Fish Commissioners. He has been reappointed four times since that time,
each term being six years in duration, and has been president of the board since
1889. He was also a member of the Detroit Board of Education for two years. Mr.
Whitaker has been president of the State Association of Stenographers, and was
from 1881 to 1890 senior member of the well known firm of Whitaker, Maitla-d &
Co.; since that date he has been practicing his profession alone.
Whitaker, William H., son of Byron and Fidelia (Moore) Whitaker, was born in
Detroit, Mich., January 27, 1862. His education was acquired in the public schools
and he later took a course of instruction in Mayhew's Business College at Detroit.
For two years he served as bookkeeper and shipping clerk for Gordon & Campbell,
cigar manufacturers, and afterward spent a year in the office of his father, who is
one of Detroit's best known vessel and insurance agents. During the winters of
1881, 1882 and 1883 Mr. Whitaker acted as a clerk in the Chicago offices of the Michigan Central Railroad Co., spending the summer months in Detroit with his father.
In 1883 he accepted the position as bookkeeper for the Marine City (Mich.) Stave
Company and later became secretary of that company. In January, 1888, he located
permanently in Detroit and became a member of the firm of B. Whitaker & Sons,
general insurance agents, which firm was changed through the withdrawal of Mr.
Whitaker, sr., in January, 1897, to its present style of Whitaker Bros., fire, marine,
employer's liability, boiler, elevator and sprinkler insurance and general agents in
Michigan for the Fidelity & Deposit Co. (surety bonds) of Baltimore, Md. Whitaker
Bros. have made a specialty of writing fidelity and judicial bonds and have met with
remarkable success. They are members of the Board of Trade and Chamber of
Commerce of Detroit, and otherwise prominently connected in business circles. Mr.
Whitaker is a member of the Michigan Club; worshipful master of Kilwinning Lodge
No. 297, F. & A. M.; a member of King Cyrus Chapter No. 133, R. A. M.; Monroe
Council, R. & S. M., and of Sicily Lodge, K. of P.
Whitman, Charles Rudolphus, son of William G. and Laura J. (Finch) Whitman,
was born at South Bend, Ind., October 4, 1847. He attended the schools of his native
town until fourteen years of age, then removing with his parents to Chicago, was
admitted to the Foster School, receiving upon graduation therefrom the Foster
medal, awarded for excellence of scholarship, and was admitted to the Chicago High
School in 1862. During the winter of 1864-65 he attended the High School at Ann
Arbor, Mich., afterward entering the Ypsilanti Seminary, from which he was graduated in 1866. In the autumn of that year he became a member of the class of 1870
in the literary department of the University of Michigan, from which he was graduated with the degree of B. A. From 1870 to 1871 he was principal of the Ypsilanti
Seminary. In the fall of 1871 he entered the law department of the University of
Michigan and was graduated therefrom in 1873 with the degree of LL. B.; in 1875
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he also received from the university the degree of M. A. Following his graduation
Mr. Whitman located for practice in Ypsilanti, where he formed a partnership (which
existed until 1883) with Hon. Chauncey Joslyn, who subsequently became circuit
judge. Mr. Whitman was elected circuit court commissioner for Washtenaw county
in 1876, serving for two years, and in 1882 was elected prosecuting attorney, being
re-elected in 1884 and serving for two terms. In 1885 he was elected as regent of
the University of Michigan and filled that position during the ensuing eight years.
In 1887 Mr. Whitman removed to Ann Arbor, Mich., where he resided and practiced
his profession until January, 1895, when he located permanentlyin Detroit. In 1892
he was appointed by Governor Winans railroad commissioner for the State of Michigan, and to succeed Hon. John T. Rich. Mr. Whitman was appointed to his present
position as assistant United States district attorney at Detroit in the spring of 1896.
He is a member of the American. State and Local Bar Associations, and as a lawyer,
official and citizen has won the confidence and unqualified esteem of his professional
associates and the public. In 1871 he married Elvira C., daughter of Hon. Chauncey
Joslyn of Ypsilanti, and they have four sons: Ross C., born in March, 1873, a graduate of the literary department of the University of Michigan, class of 1894, and at
present a student of medicine in that institution; Lloyd C., born in June, 1875, a
graduate of the literary department of the University of Michigan, class of 1896, now a
member of the law class of 1898 in that institution; Roland D., born in June, 1877,
a graduate of the literary department of the University of Michigan, class of 1897,,
now a member of the class of 1899 in the law department of the university; and
Bayard J., now a student in the Ann Arbor (Mich.) High School.
Wicker, William W., son of William W. and Charlotte A. (Palmer) Wicker, was
born at Ypsilanti, Mich., November 17, 1861, and attended the public schools there
until fourteen years of age. He then became errand boy in a large clothing store
at Saginaw, Mich., and while there studied stenography. In 1882 he turned his face
westward to Colorado, where for six years he was a court reporter and general
stenographer. In 1888 he returned to Saginaw, Mich., and studied law, being admitted to the bar in January, 1891; in that same year he formed a partnership with
T. E. Tarsney, and under the style of Tarsney & Wicker they successfully practiced
their profession at Saginaw until January, 1894, when they removed to Detroit; they
dissolved partnership in January, 1897. Mr, Wicker married, October 4, 1892, Dora
Ostrander of Saginaw. On the paternal side Mr. Wicker is descended from " Green
Mountain" stock, and on the maternal side from the Saillys and Palmers of Plattsburg, N. Y.
Wild, William L, son of John L. and Wilhelmina Wild, was born in Corunna,
Shiawassee county, Mich., December 28, 1858. He attended the public schools of
Corunna until 1869, when his parents moved to Bay City, where he attended school
until 1875, at which time he entered the law offices of Holmes, Collins & Stoddard,
with whom he remained two years. Mr. Wild came to Detroit in 1877 and was employed in the management of his father's affairs until 1878, when he embarked in
the laundry business. In 1881 he associated himself with C. H. Wheeler and C. A.
Chidsey under the firm name of Wild, Wheeler & Co.; subsequently organizing the
Banner Laundering Co. in 1889, of which Mr. Wild is secretary and manager. He
is a thirty-second degree Mason, a member of the Royal Arcanum, National Union,


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Union League, and Knights of the Maccabees. Mr. Wild has been the representative from this State to the National Union for the past nine years and is the present
chairman of the finance committee.
Williams, Morris L., son of Rev. William and Emma (Prytherch) Williams, of the
Oliver Cromwell-Williams family, was born in the Island of Anglesea, Wales, May
9, 1841. In youth Mr. Williams availed himself of the educational advantages to be
had at Birmingham, England. He chose a banking career, which he began October
20, 1855, in the North and South Wales Bank of Liverpool, and remained in the employ of that bank until he came to Detroit in 1865. Here he became connected with
the American National Bank and served as assistant cashier seventeen years. His
years of service and vast knowledge of bank and commercial affairs made for Mr.
Williams a standing that led to a demand for his services in the establishment of a
new bank. He became one of the organizers of the Commercial National Bank of
Detroit and holds the position of vice-president and cashier and a prominent standing with the bankers of the country. Mr. Williams is a Mason and has attained the
thirty-second degree; he is also a member of the Detroit Club. May 7, 1867, he
married Kate L. Williams. Politically he is a staunch Republican. Mr. and Mrs.
Williams are members of the First Congregational church.
Wilson, Edward, eldest son of the late Capt. William H. and Mary (Ledbeter)
Wilson, was born in Detroit Mich., April 17,1863. His early education was acquired
in the public schools of Detroit, which he attended until the age of twelve, when
through an accident he suffered the loss of his eyesight. Later he became a student
at the school for the blind at Lansing, Mich., taking both the academic and musical
course, and was graduated in 1883. On completion of his education he engaged in
teaching music, a calling he followed until 1891, when he established his present
business at No. 480 Baker street, dealing in musical instruments and merchandise.
Mr. Wilson is a member of Immanuel Presbyterian church, and has been active in
church work for several years. He was married June 20, 1888, to Marianna Whitehead, daughter of James Whitehead of Wyandotte, Mich. They have one child,
Ruth Haviland Wilson.
Wilson, Thomas Ledbeter, son of Capt. William H. and Mary (Ledbeter) Wilson,
was born in Detroit, Mich., March 1, 1868. Mr. Wilson acquired his education in
the public schools of Detroit, which he attended until the age of sixteen, and later
received a year's course in the Goldsmith's Business College. On completion of his
education he entered the employ of the Michigan Central Railway as clerk, remaining with that corporation five years, when he resigned to accept his present position,
that of cashier for Hammond, Standish & Company at their Twentieth street office.
In politics he is a Republican. He is a member of the National Union and of
Immanuel Presbyterian church. He was married, July 12, 1892, to Miss Eda May
Scott, daughter of William B. Scott of Detroit. They have one child, William Scott
Wilson.
Wisner, George Y., son of William and Jane (Downey) Wisner, was born in West
Dresden, Yates county, N. Y., July 11, 1841. He worked on the farm with his
father until 1862, attending the district school in winter with the exception of two
terms in the Ayres Private Seminary at Penn Yan, N. Y., and one term at Starkey


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Seminary, N. Y. Incidental to his other work Mr. Wisner took up studies which
enabled him to enter the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor as a sophmore in
1862, from which institution he was graduated as a civil engineer in 1865. During
the last year of his college life he was assistant to Prof. De Volson Wood of the civil
engineering department. On leaving college he entered the service of the United
States government as assistant civil engineer and was connected with the survey of
the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River for fifteen years, having charge of the
astronomical and triangulation parties of those surveys. In 1880 he was transferred
to the Mississippi River Commission and for three years was engaged in making
surveys and investigations relative to the improvement of the Mississippi, Desplains
and Illinois Rivers. In 1884 he was made snperintendent of construction for the
Tenth and Eleventh Light House Districts with headquarters at Detroit. From
1887 to the present time Mr. Wisner has been engaged in the private practice of his
profession. Among his more important works are the rebuilding of the famous Eads
jetties at the mouth of the Mississippi River; the construction of the deep water
harbor at the mouth of the Brazos River in Texas; and the development of plans
for the regulation of levels of the Great Lakes, by which it is expected that the present annual fluctuations of the lake surfaces of four to five feet will be reduced to a
few inches. In 1895 Mr. Wisner organized the sanitary department of the Detroit
Board of Health and served as chief of that department until 1897. July 28, 1897,
he was appointed a member of the " Deep Waterways Commission " by President
McKinley, the duties of which are to develop routes, design plans and estimate cost
for a thirty foot canal from the Great Lakes to the Atlantic. Mr. Wisner is a member and director of the American Society of Civil Engineers; president of Detroit
Engineering Society; member of the Engineers' Club of New York; Detroit Club;
and of the Detroit Fellowcraft Club. October 15, 1867, he married Carrie Palmer of
Moravia, N. Y.. and they have two children: George M. and Ralph E.
Woodruff, Charles M., LL. B., son of Charles and Mary M. (Jones) Woodruff, was
born in Ann Arbor, Mich., August 18, 1851. When he was six months old his parents removed to Ypsilanti, Mich., in which city he attended the Union Seminary
(the first high school established in the State of Michigan, and founded by his father,
the Hon. Charles Woodruff), being graduated therefrom in 1869. In the autumn of
the same year he entered the literary department of the University of Michigan, and
completed his freshman course; but, being prevented by sickness from attending
during the sophomore year, he returned to the university in 1871 and took up the
study of law, receiving his degree of LL. B. in 1873. On April 16, 1873, after a rigid
examination before the Supreme Court of the State, he was admitted to practice in
all of the Michigan courts. During the ensuing seven years Mr. Woodruff practiced
his profession in Ypsilanti and Detroit, and from 1880 to December 18, 1882, he
acted as telegraph editor of the Detroit Daily Post. Since the latter year he has
been connected with Parke, Davis & Co., manufacturing chemists, at their home
offices at Detroit, as confidential counsel and assistant general manager of the business department. While a resident of Ypsilanti Mr. Woodruff was honored with the
offices of city clerk, 1873 to 1875; and justice of the peace, 1874 to 1875. He was
also regular correspondent for the Detroit Free Press. He is a member of the Detroit Bar Association; past grand regent of the Royal Arcanum; and member of the
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I. 0. G. T. October 9, 1873, Mr. Woodruff married Alice A. Barnaby, of Raisinville, Mich., and they have had six children, five of whom survive: Mary G., John
B., Alice J., Fred B., and Willfred.
Woodbury, Warren H., son of Giles T. and Matilda (Gardiner) Woodbury, was
born at Allendale, Mich., August 22, 1864. He was graduated from Olivet College,
Michigan, as Bachelor of Science, in 1888, and in 1891 the same institution conferred
upon him the degree of Master of Science, In the autumn of 1888 he entered the
law department of the University of Michigan, from which he was graduated LL. B.
in 1890. He was admitted to the bar at Detroit, Mich., in the summer of 1890, and
at once located in Detroit, where for one year he was associated with Mr. George W.
Radford. In May, 1891, he opened an office of his own, and has since carried on a
general law practice with gratifying success. Mr. Woodbury is retained as counsel
and attorney by numerous large firms and concerns, and occupies an honorable position at the Detroit bar. He is a member of the Michigan State and Local Bar Associations, and is popular in business and social circles. In 1891 he married Zella B.,
daughter of Robert D. Wheaton, of Charlotte, Mich.
Wright, John MacNair, son of William J. and Julia (MacNair) Wright, was born
at Oswego, N. Y., August 8, 1860. He attended the public schools of the various
cities in which his parents lived until 1871, when he went to Europe with his parents
and there attended the schools of Scotland, England, France and Italy. After returning to the United States, in 1874, he again attended school, completing his
education in the Pennsylvania State Normal. In 1879 he was appointed to a position in the signal service of the United States army and during his seven years' service was stationed at various times at nearly all the more important signal stations
on the Atlantic coast and in Arizona and New Mexico. Early in 1886 he resigned
from the signal service and in the autumn of the same year became identified with
the Barber Asphalt Paving Co. After a three months' apprenticeship in a minor
position he was promoted to the position of assistant superintendent, later becoming
superintendent of the Erie, Pa., branch of the business. He subsequently filled like
positions with the same ccnmpany at Scranton and Wilkesbarre, Pa., Louisville, Ky.,
and Youngstown, Ohio, building asphalt plants in several of these cities, and in
1892 returned to his original post at Erie, Pa. He was later located at Mt. Vernon,
N. Y., and Fort Wayne, Ind, and in 1895, upon the establishment of the Detroit
office, he was sent to that city as superintendent in charge of the districts of Michigan, Indiana and Ohio, and still serves in that capacity. Mr. Wright is prominent
in Masonic circles and is a member of the B. P. 0. E. of Louisville, Ky. He was
married in 1886 to Eleanore Brown of Erie. Pa., and they have one son, John MacNair, jr., who is the ninth to bear the name of John MacNair in lineal succession.
Mr. Wright's mother, Julia MacNair, the well known author, is a lineal descendant
from James MaQNair, one of the founders of Oswego, N. Y.
Youngblood, Edward B., son of Hon. Bernard and Frances (Meyers) Youngblood,
was born at Detroit, Mich., March 23, 1866. He acquired his education in St.
Joseph's Parish School and later took a course in the Bryant & Stratton Business
College at Detroit. From 1881 to 1886 he served with his father in the grocery and
flour and feed business: from 1886 to 1888 he was a clerk in the office of the treasurer


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of Wayne county, Mich.; from 1888 to 1891, again with his father (as partner) in the
grocery, flour and feed business; from 1891 to 1893 special assessment clerk under
C. K. Twombly, receiver of taxes for the city of Detroit; and on April 9, 1894, he
was appointed to his present position as U. S. custom gauger, weigher, examiner
and clerk at the port of Detroit. In September, 1893, Mr. Youngblood married
Catherine Hawkins of Detroit, and they have three children: Evelyn, Dorathy, and
Bernard J.
Zickel, Harry H., son of Theodore and Nanny (Stark) Zickel, was born at Oil City,
Pa., March 2, 1871. While yet an infant his parents visited Europe and upon their
return to America settled at Cleveland, O., where Mr. Zickel attended private school.
In 1879 the family removed to Akron, 0., and two years later to Detroit, Mich.,
which has ever since been their home with the exception of one year at New York
city in 1883. Mr. Zickel attended the public schools of Detroit and for six years
made a close study of the piano under competent tutors. Although he was for a
number of years associated with the professional musicians of Detroit, his name was
hardly known until 1893, when suddenly he gained international fame through his
composition of the " Columbian March," which has been played by every band and
orchestra of any pretensions throughout the civilized world. This piece was followed
in 1895 by his famous " Black America," dedicated to and published through the
courteous permission of Mr. Nate Salsbury, proprietor of the popular show of that
name. Three other pieces have followed "Black America" in quick succession:
" Belle of Koontucky;" " The Girl of '99;" and his latest success " The Pacemaker,"
all of which have the voluntary endorsement of John Philip Sousa of Sousa's world
famous band and are declared by musicians generally " the hits of the day." In the
tours of Sousa's band Mr. Zickel's music is performed among the compositions of
the world's greatest composers, and his " Black America" was used as a two-step
at the McKinley inaugural ball. Mr. Zickel has also been a contributor to " Fashions," a monthly magazine published in New York, and for numerous other journals
of art and music. He is a member of the order of Free and Accepted Masons,
National Union and Musician's Protective and Benevolent Association of Detroit.
In January, 1898, Mr. Zickel and his brother Edward began the publication of music
under the style of Zickel Brothers. He is still a bachelor and immensely popular
wherever he appears in professional or social circles.
Abel, Frederic L., son of Frederic and Nancy D. (Clary) Abel, was born on a farm
in Huron county, Ohio, near Monroeville, August 29, 1857, while his parents were
there on a visit, their home being in Cleveland, Ohio. Young Abel's father is a
musician of note and for a number of years led a traveling life, residing for a brief
period at a time in numerous large cities of the United States. When Frederic was
four years of age the family removed to Milwaukee, Wis., and later to Chicago;
when the great fire of 1871 swept the latter city they again removed to Milwaukee,
and from there in 1872 to Detroit, Mich., which city has since been their home.
After receiving a thorough preparatory education in Detroit in 1876 young Abel was
sent to Frankfort-on-the-Main, Germany, to pursue his musical studies. He studied
the violoncello under Cossman; singing under Stockhausen; piano under Uhrspruch;
and composition under Raff, who was then director of the Frankfort-on-the-Main
Conservatory. Upon returning to the United States and to Detroit in 1880, Mr. Abel


106




was at once appointed as professor of 'cello, voice and piano in the Detroit Conservatory of Music, and has continued in that position ever since. For the past ten years
he has been secretary and treasurer of the Michigan Music Teachers' Association;
was the organizer of the original Philharmonic Club; and was conductor of the Schubert Club at Jackson, Mich., for two years. In 1882 he enlisted in the Detroit Light
Guard as a private and through promotion finally served as captain of that company
from 1885 to 1888, when he resigned on account of pressure of business affairs. Since
1894 he has been identified with the Michigan National Guard as regimental adjutant
of the 4th Infantry. May 8, 1898, he was appointed regimental adjutant, 31st Mich.
Vol. Infantry, under Col. Cornelius Gardener. He left for the front May 15, and is
now at Chicamauga, acting assistant adjutant-general, 1st Brigade, 2d Division, 1st
Army Corps. He is a thirty-second degree Mason, K. T., and Shriner, and is very
popular in both business and social circles. In 1895 Mr. Abel married Mary E. Leggett, daughter of Mortimer A. Leggett of Drayton Plains, Mich.
Allison, William H., son of James D. Allison, was born in Detroit, Mich., July
28, 1852. He attended the public schools and later took a course in the Bryant &
Stratton's Business College. In 1872 he entered the employ of F. G. Baker (custom
house broker), with whom he remained for eight years, thoroughly mastering a l the
details of the business. In 1880 he established himself in the same line of business
and has followed it ever since with unlimited success. Mr. Allison is a member of
the Rushmere and Fellowcraft Clubs of Detroit, and was president of the Detroit
Light Guard for a number of years. He is also a member of Union Lodge No. 3,
F. & A. M., Peninsular Chapter No. 12, R. A. M., Detroit Commiandery No. 1, K. T.,
and is grand secretary of Michigan Sovereign Consistory, Scotish Rite Bodies. In
1875 he married Agnes Greene, daughter of Charles P. Greene of Detroit, and they
have two children, Harvey C. and Mourton D.
Anderson, John W., was born at La Crosse, Wis., September 25, 1869, a son of
Hon. Wendell A. Anderson, M. D., late United States consul-general at Montreal,
Canada, and Susan M. (Small) Anderson. He attended the public schools at La
Crosse, and after graduating from the High School he entered Cornell University,
where he pursued a two years' special course of study in history and political
economy. Then after a year's course of lectures at the McGill University at Montreal he entered the law department of the University of Michigan and received his
degree, LL. B., in 1890. Following his graduation he located at Detroit, Mich., and
for three years was associated with the law firm of Bowen, Douglas & Whiting.
From October, 1893, to January, 1896, he was in partnership with George P. Codd,
then assistant city attorney, as Anderson & Cobb, and in November, 1896, formed
his present partnership with Horace H. Rackham as Anderson & Rackham, their
offices being at suite 68-69 Moffat building. Their specialty is commercial law, in
which they have been very successful, among their clientele being found the names
of R. G. Dun & Co. and the National Surety Company of New York. Mr. Anderson
is a member of the State and Local Bar Associations; Chi Psi College fraternity
(Ann Arbor and Cornell Chapters); Fellowcraft Club; Comedy Club; Detroit Boat
Club and a director of the University of Michigan Alumni Association. June 19,
1895, he married Gustava C., daughter of the late Hon. William Doeltz of Detroit.
Armstrong, Henry I., of the firm of Armstong & Graham, wholesale manufac107




turers of saddlery and harness goods, Detroit, Mich., was born in Detroit, December
10. 1850, and is a son of Thomas Armstrong.1 Henry I. received his education in
the Detroit public schools, Olivet(Mich.) College and the University of Michigan. At
the age of twenty-one he entered the chemical laboratory of Parke, Davis & Co., at
Detroit where he remained for nearly two years He afterward served Hayden & Baldwin in the harness and saddlery business for one year, and Glover & Campau in the
hardware business for a like period. From 1875 to 1885 he was connected with the
wholesale hardware firm of Buhl, Ducharme & Co. (now Buhl Sons & Co.), at Detroit, and in the latter year severed his connection with that firm and became
actively interested as a partner in the manufacture and sale of saddlery and saddlery
hardware goods with his brother, Edwin E. Armstrong, and Burke M. Graham. Mr.
Armstrong is a member of the Detroit Club, and is active in church work, having
been an elder of the Westminster Presbyterian church of Detroit for a number of
years. March 21, 1877, he married Sarah Aikman, and they have three children:
Estelle R., now a student at Vassar College; Aikman, a student at Michigan University; and Henry I., jr.
Arnold, Rev. Charles L., son of James P. and Emma (Tanner) Arnold, was born
in Louisville, Ky., October 14, 1854. His early education was acquired in the common schools of Louisville and Milton, Ky., which he attended until the age of sixteen and then prepared for college at the Jubilee Preparatory School near Peoria,
Ill. In 1871 he entered Hobart College at Geneva, N. Y., and was graduated therefrom in 1875 with the degree of B. A., being valedictorian of his class. Subsequent
to his graduation Rev. Mr. Arnold returned to Louisville and began the study of law
in the office of Byron Bacon, where he remained until 1876, when he accepted the
position of principal of the public schools of Tidioute, Pa. In 1880 he resigned to
accept a similar position at Kittaning, Pa., remaining until 1884, when he removed
to Warsaw, N. Y., and was engaged as editor of the Wyoming County Democratic
Review; in 1886, at the urgent request of Bishop Perry, of Iowa, Rev. Mr. Arnold
accepted the editorship of the Wilton Review, of Wilton, Iowa, remaining until the
fall of that year, and was then appointed professor of Greek and Latin in Griswold
College at Davenport, Iowa. During his connection with Griswold College at Davenport he began the study of theology, was admitted to the ministry the same year
and ordained to the priesthood May 18, 1887, by Bishop Perry. In February, 1887,
he was called to the rectorship of Grace church at Galena, Ill.,. remaining until
November of that year, when he accepted a call from St. Paul's church, Wilmington,
N. C. In 1890 he removed to Goldsboro, N. C, to accept the rectorship of St.
Stephen's church, remaining there until the fall of 1891, when he was called to his
present charge, St. Peter's church, Detroit. In 1886 he was chairman of the Niagara
(N. Y.) Senatorial District Convention, and in 1896 was appointed arbitrator of the
differences between Pingree & Smith and their employees to the satisfaction of both
parties. In 1897 Mr. Arnold took a leading part in the organization of the NonPartisan League of Detroit; during this year the degree of Master of Arts was conferred upon him by Hobart College. Rev. Mr. Arnold is a member of Michigan Sovereign Consistory; Moslem Temple, Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, and the American
Iistorical Society. TIe is the author of a scientific work about to be published en1 See sketch of Edwin E. Armstrong.


108




titled "The Evolution of the Spiritual."  December 3, 1875, he married Lulu M.
Richardson, of Geveva, N. Y., and they have one daughter, Mabel E.
Baby, Raymond F., A. B., LL. B., was born at Sarnia, Canada, in December,
1876, a son of Capt. Raymond A. Baby, a retired banker of Sarnia, formerly an
officer of the 13th Queen Hussars, and Josephine C. (Chapoton) Baby, a sister of Hon.
Alexander and Dr. Edmund Chapoton,l of Detroit. Raymond F. Bhby was prepared for college in the Upper Canada College at Toronto, Ontario, and received his
A. B. from Georgetown University at Washington, D. C., in 1895. In the same year
he located at Detroit, Mich., and attended the Detroit College of Law, from which
he graduated LL. B in June, 1897. Since September, 1895, Mr. Baby has been associated with the law firm of Dickinson & Thurber at Detroit, as an assistant attorney.
In his individual practice, he is the Detroit representative of several Canadian syndicates, who are making investments in the United States. He is a bachelor; a
member of the Country Club, and an active member of the Comedy Club.
Backus, Theodore L., son of Frederick H. A. and Dorathy (Stange) Backus, was
born in Detroit, Mich., September 10, 1851. Frederick H. A. Backus was a native
of Germany, and immigrated to the United States early in the forties, settling in
Detroit, Mich. While in his native country he had been apprenticed to a manufacturer of and dealer in blank books and other commodities of that sort and had thoroughly mastered all details of the business. Soon after his arrival in Detroit he
formed a partnership with Mr. Arouet Richmond, and commenced the manufacture
of blank books, etc.; the firm was then known as Richmond & Backus. Later B. B.
Richmond was admitted to partnership in the business, and for years thereafter the
style was Richmond, Backus & Co. In 1885 the business passed under the control
of a stock company, since known as the Richmond & Backus Co. Theodore L. at
tended the public schools of Detroit until seventeen years of age, when he entered
the employ of Richmond, Backus & Co., to learn the business. From office boy he
passed through all possible grades, becoming thoroughly conversant with the details
of the business. In 1886, upon the decease of his father, Mr. Backus was elected as
president of the Richmond & Backus Co., and still ably fills that position. Mr. Backus
is a man of energy and enterprise, and is prominent and popular in both business
and social circles. He holds an exalted position in the Masonic order of Detroit,
and is a member of the Detroit Athletic Club. In 1877 Mr. Backus married Anna
L., daughter of Hon. Valentine Geist of Detroit, and they have two children, Frederick C. and Irvin T.
Barker, William E., son of Joseph and Rachel (Brette) Barker, was born in Cambria, Niagara county, N. Y., April 24, 1848  He attended the public schools and
High School of Lockport, N. Y., until twenty-one years of age, then entered the
furniture business as a clerk with Tucker, Cook & Rogers at Lockport. In 1870 he
removed to Detroit, Mich., where he has ever since been engaged in the manufacture and sale of furniture and upholstery goods. For two years he was a member of
the firm of Pixley, Mills & Barker and later for two years was a partner in the firm
of Mills & Barker; subsequently the firm became Mills, Barker & Barker, by the admission of H. B. Barker to the firm. In 1889 Mr. Barker established the business of
1 See genealogy Chapoton family.


109




W. E. Barker & Co., from which he retired in 1898, leaving H. B. Barker as sole
proprietor. In 1884 he also established the Adrian (Mich.) Furniture Manufacturing
Company, of which he is president and general manager. He is a director of and
heavy stockholder in the Wolverine Furniture Manufacturing Co., of which he was
president for several years; is a stockholder in the Michigan Central Savings Banks
of Detroit; and was a director of the latter for a number of years. He is a thirtysecond degree Mason; and a Knight Templar of Detroit Commandery No. 1; also
a member of the Rushmere Club at St. Clair Flats, Mich.
Barton, Frank G., son of Alexander and Elizabeth (Totter) Barton, was born in
Youngstown, Ohio, March 27, 1852. He was educated in the Youngstown public
schools and at the age of sixteen years engaged as a clerk in a large general store in
that town. He was later made manager of the store and eventually became proprietor. In 1875 the entire establishment was ruined by fire and Mr. Barton then removed to Cincinnati, where he became identified with the firm of Snider Bros. & Co.,
wholesale cracker bakers, as a traveling salesman. In 1877 he returned to Youngstown and in company with one of his former fellow clerks, under the style of Davis
& Barton, again engaged in mercantile business and continued as a member of that
firm until 1878, when he sold out his interest in the business to Mr. Davis and erected
a store of his own, in which he carried on a prosperous general store trade for several years. Ill health caused him to abandon his business in 1881 and remove to
Colorado, but after a short stay there he located at Centralia, Ill., and engaged in
the wholesale and retail grocery business. In 1882 he visited Detroit, Mich., and
has remained in that city ever since. In 1883 he took charge of the books and office
of P. A. Billings, manufacturer of and dealer in mantels, tiling, gas and electric fixtures, etc., and was finally made manager of that establishment. A few years later
the firm became known as P. A. Billings & Co., Mr. Barton having been admitted to
partnership. Still later the style became Billings & Drew and Mr. Barton then sold
out his interest in the business and in company with Mr. Arthur MacBean, as Barton & MacBean, in 1894, established their present stand, where they carry one of the
most complete stocks of goods in their line in the city of l)etroit. Mr. Barton is a
member of the Royal Arcanum, and the order of Free and Accepted Masons. In 1878
he married Ida R. Emerson of Youngstown, Ohio.
Batchelder, John L., son of Mark and Ruxby (Conant) Batchelder, was born in
Peru, Bennington county, Vt., April 29, 1833. He remained in Peru until 1851, attending in the mean time the Chester Academy for boys. I)uring his residence there
he spent the summer months at the summer resorts clerking in different hotels. In
1852 he was engaged as clerk of the Bardwell House, Rutland, Vt., remaining there
four years, when he was engaged as clerk of the Lake House, Burlington, Vt. After
a service of one year in that hotel he removed to Northfield, Vt., and was engaged as
proprietor of the Northfield House. In 1860 he removed to I)orset, Vt., and became
connected in the working of the marble quarries of Dorset and Rutland. Mr. Batchelder was justice of the peace in )orset from 1865 to 1870, and in 1880 came to Detroit and founded the Detroit Marble Co., wholesale dealers in marble. In 1885 he
sold his interest and became associated with Leonard Read, the firm taking the name
of Batchelder & Read; on retirement of Mr. Read the firm became Batchelder, Wasmund & Co. In 1892 he was elected alderman from the Fourth ward on the Repub110




lican ticket, and has been honored by re-election three times, the last by a majority
of 1,293, the largest plurality ever given any candidate in a single ward. While
serving as alderman and supervisor he was a member of the committee on public
buildings and assisted in securing the plans and bringing about the construction of
the new county jail. He is a member of the Michigan (Republican) Club, the New
England Society and prominent in Masonic circles, being a member of Zion Lodge,
F. & A. M., Michigan Sovereign Consistory, and Moslem Temple, Nobles of the
Mystic Shrine. January 1, 1858, he married Rachel M. Slocum of Manchester, Vt.,
and they have two children: John M. and Charles L.
Beals, David S., son of Caleb and Lydia (Sherman) Beals, was born in North
Adams, Mass., October 10, 1824. He removed with his parents to Lenawee county,
Michigan, in early childhood, where his father engaged in farming. Mr. Beals received such an education as the public schools of that time afforded, assisting his
father in the management of his farm during the summer and attending school in
the winter. Upon attaining the age of twenty one he engaged in the manufacture
of furniture, continuing in that line until 1851, when he entered the employ of the
Lake Shore Railway Co., in the capacity of car repairer at their shops at Adrian,
Mich. Mr. Beals continued in the employ of the Lake Shore Railway for twenty
years, and in 1871 removed to Detroit, where he accepted a position with the Michigan Car Co., remaining in their service two years. In 1873 he was appointed superintendent of the Detroit Railroad Elevator, and in 1882 the Union Elevator was also
placed under his control. Since his appointment as superintendent of these properties he has given his entire time to his employers' interests and h:s successful management of them has proven the judgment of the owners in placing them under his
control. He is a man of sterling integrity, conservative, yet affable, and is highly
esteemed by all with whom he comes in contact. He is a member of Monroe Chap
ter, R. A. M., Monroe Council, R. S. M., and Zion Lodge, F. & A. M. Mr. Beals was
married, December 8, 1846, to Miss Sarah Mosher, daughter of Shubal Mosher of
Tecumseh, Mich. To them were born two daughters: Marietta (Mrs. H. F. Doane
of Detroit, Mich.), who died in August, 1893, leaving two children: Harry B. and
Sadie L.; and Maria Adelia (Mrs. J. M. Bailey of Jackson, Mich.)
Belanger, Frangois Joseph Denis, was born at St. Joseph, Lower Canada, October
8, 1848. He is descended from an old French family whose first ancestor, Frangois
Belanger, emigrated from Normandie to Quebec, then New France, in 1636. This
ancestor married Marie Guyon, who became the aunt of the wife of Antoine de la
Mothe Cadillac, the founder of Detroit in 1701. Louis XIV, in 1677, conceded to
him, Frangois Belanger, the seigneury of Bonsecours, located on the St. Lawrence
River, below Quebec, a portion of this property, comprising the homestead, having
remained in the continuous possession of a branch of his descendants up to this
day. Mr. Belanger was educated in St. Mary's College (Quebec), from which he
graduated in 1864. He then entered the School of Military Instruction at Quebec,
and graduated in July, 1865, receiving certificates of the second and first class, the
latter entitling him to the command of a battalion in the field. During the ensuing
three years he was a student in the office of a notary in Quebec, and in 1868, removed to Detroit, Mich. Soon after his arrival in that city he began the study of
law, but relinquished it in 1869 to enter the insurance business with Charles Peltier


111




& Son. Upon the death of Mr. Peltier in 1871, Mr. Belanger formed a partnership
with Charles F. Peltier, as Peltier & Belanger, and carried on the business successfully until May, 1892, at which time Mr. Belanger withdrew from the firm and
established his present business as general insurance, loan and real estate agent,
and is also notary public. On March 27, 1889, he was appointed consular agent of
France at Detroit, which position he still retains. Mr. Belanger became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1873, and in the same year was united in marriage to Madeleine Askin Peltier of Detroit, who has borne him three sons: Harvey
Francis, who is associated in business with his father; Joseph Theodore, a student at
Detroit College of Law; and Charles Alfred, student. Mr. Belanger represents some
of the oldest and wealthiest American and foreign fire insurance companies and
handles large sums of money in loans annually. He is a staunch Democrat in national politics, ex-president and present treasurer of the Lafayette and Ste. Jean de
Baptiste Societies, both old French organizations of Detroit, a member of the order
of Knights of Columbus, Wayne County Historical and Pioneer Society, and other
organizations. Mr. Belanger has also been made an honorary member of L'Association Universelle of France.
Bennett, Charles ', M. D., son of Benjamin H. and Rebecca (Mapes) Bennett, was
born in Goshen, Orange county, N. Y., March 19, 1842, and came with his parentsto
Adrian, Mich., when a babe in arms. His early education was obtained in the public schools of Adrian, after which he entered the University of Michigan at Ann
Arbor, from which he was graduated in March, 1872. He began practicing his
profession in Morenci, Mich., and remained there twenty years. Previous to his college career Dr. Bennett enlisted in September, 1862, in the 18th Michigan Vols., and
returned home to Adrian on receiving his discharge at the close of the war in 1865.
July 27, 1871, Dr. Bennett married Lovina A. Rorick, of Seneca, Mich., and they
have two children: Georgia R. and Bessie B. Seven years ago Dr. Bennett took
up his residence in Detroit, where he has since practiced with the exception of the
time his business called him to other cities of the State.
Bowers, Joseph F., jr., son of Joseph F. and Catherine (Lucho) Bowers, was born
at Detroit, Mich., July 4, 1852. He was educated in the public schools at Detroit,
Mich. In the autumn of 1872 he commenced the study of law in the office of A. J.
Lindsay at I)etroit, with whom he remained for a year. From 1873 to 1880 he served
the Pullman Palace Car Co. as a car finisher, having learned the trade at Detroit,
Mich., and during that time he diligently )pursued his law studies at lhonme in the
evenings. He was admitted to the bar in December, 1893. In 1880 Mr. Bowers was
elected as constable from and for the Ninth ward of Detroit, and retained that office
until January, 1896. Since then hlie has practiced his profession continuously at Detroit, with well merited success. In 1873 Mr. Bowers married Annie Bush, of New
Baltimore, and they have a son, who is now associated with his father, as manager
of the collection department of the business.
Briscoe, Benjamin, son of Joseph A. and Sarah J. (Smith) Briscoe, was born at D)etroit, Mich., May 24, 1867. He attended the public and high schools at Detroit, and
at the age of fifteen entered upon ail active business career. From 1882 to 1885 lihe
was in the employ of Black & Owen, wholesale hardware dealers at Detroit, as a


112




clerk and salesman, and later as traveling salesman. From 1885 to 1886 he was a
member of the firm of W. C. Lauther & Co., retail hardware merchants at Detroit,
and in the latter year, at the age of nineteen, he established himself in business independently, as a manufacturer of housefurnishing goods, under the style of The
Briscoe Sheet Metal Works. In 1889 he consolidated his business with the Detroit
Galvanizing and Tinning Works, as the Detroit Galvanizing and Sheet Metal Works,
of which he has ever since been president. Their business covers the manufacture
of steel ranges, sheet iron stoves, oil cans, galvanized ware and sheet metal specialties, and they have been prosperous from the start. Mr. Briscoe is a member of the
Fellowcraft and Detroit Boat Clubs, and a vestryman of St. Andrew's Episcopal
church of Detroit. He was married in 1891 to Lewie S. Price, of Jackson, Mich,
and they have two children: James P. and Sarah J.
Brodhead, Lieut. John T., son of Col. Thornton F. and Archange (Macomb) Brodhead, was born in Detroit, Mich., September 12, 1851. Lieutenant Brodhead received
his early education in a private school at Detroit, which he attended until the age of
ten. In 1861 he accompanied his father's regiment to the front, remaining with
them while they were encamped at Washington. In April, 1862, he was placed in
the family of his uncle, John M. Brodhead, then comptroller of the Treasury. While
a member of his uncle's family he became a student of Emerson Institute, which he
attended for seven years, and in 1869 entered the Brooklyn Polytechnic, from which
he was graduated in 1871. On completion of his education President Grant appointed
him a second lieutenant in the U. S. Marine Corps,and he was assigned for duty at
Boston. After a service of about one year at this station he was transferred to the
U. S. S. Ticonderoga, at the time at Key West. In 1872 he was transferred to the
U. S. S. Franklin, flagship of the Mediterranean squadron. Later he was assigned
to the Congress, but after a short service was returned to the Franklin. In 1877 the
ship was ordered home and on the return trip called at Vigo, Spain, where (Boss)
William H. Tweed was taken on board, a prisoner, and placed in charge of Lieutenant Brodhead with instructions to deliver him to the proper authorities at New York.
On his return to this country he was assigned for duty at the Washington Navy Yard,
and remained there until he resigned from the service in 1880. Subsequently he
returned to Detroit, where he has been engaged in the management of his various
private interests. Politically he is a Republican, and while taking a keen interest
in the welfare of his party, is decidedly adverse to holding a public office. He is a
member of the Loyal Legion and a charter member of the Detroit Club. Lieutenant
Brodhead was married, May 12, 1877, to Jessie M., daughter of Richard Storrs
Willis, of Detroit. They are the parents of six children: Jessie W., R. Thornton,
Archange, John, Alexandrine C. and Willis.
Brown, Mason L., was born in Perry, Washington county, Me., in July, 1864, a son
of Levi P. Brown, a retired farmer of that place. He was educated in the public
schools of Boston, Mass., where his parents removed in 1871, and where they resided
for a number of years. At the age of eighteen Mason L. entered the employ of
Ernest W. Bowditch, a civil engineer of Boston, with whom he remained for five
years. In 1886 he removed to Detroit, Mich, where he has ever since resided and
has been successful as a civil engineer and landscape gardener. In 1889 Mr. Brown
married Marie Vanier of Detroit, and they had four children. Mr. Brown has laid
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out the lines of many of Detroit's suburban electric railroads and has been landscape
gardener for many of the famous parks, cemeteries and summer resorts throughout
the Northwest.
Burt, Col. Lou, was born in Cardington, Ohio, April 18, 1852, and is a son of M.
Burt, at present a resident of Jacksonville, Fla., and a prominent hotel proprietor.
Lou Burt received his education in the public schools of his native town and in Hiram
College, attending the latter institution while Gen. James A. Garfield was a member
of the faculty. Following his graduation from college he entered the jewelry business in Cleveland, Ohio, where he remained until 1882, at which time he removed to
Detroit, Mich., and established himself in the wholesale jewelry business, in which
he successfully operated until the time of his appointment in 1894 to the position of
auditor of Wayne county, of which office he is still an incumbent. Mr. Burt has also
served two successive terms as alderman from the Fourth ward of the city of Detroit,
and was chairman of the Republican County Committee for a number of years.
Colonel Burt is a prominent Mason, and is past eminent commander of the famous
Detroit Commandery, Knights Templar. Colonel Burt was colonel and A. 1). C. on
the staff of Governor Rich for two years. In 1873 he married Mary Ingersoll of
Cleveland, and they have two children: Lou, jr., and Elizabeth.
Candler, Claudius H., vice-president of the Calvert Lithographing Co. of Detroit,
Mich., is a native of England, having been born in the city of London, March 10, 1845.
He was educated in the public schools of Detroit, Mich., his parents having moved
to the latter city in 1853. In 1863 he entered the employ of John Gibson, lithographer and engraver, at Detroit, and upon the business passing under the control
trol of Calvert & Co. in 1865. Mr. Candler remained with the latter named firm. In
1867 the Calvert Lithographing and Engraving Co. was organized; he was made
secretary of the company and held that office during its thirty years of corporate life.
Is now vice-president and secretary of its successor, The Calvert Lithographing Co.
He holds high honors in the Masonic fraternity, being a past commander of the famous
l)etroit Commandery No. 1, Knights Templar, and is secretary of the vestry of Grace
church (Episcopal), of which he has been a member for more than twenty-five years.
In 1871 Mr. Candler married Mary V., daugeter of John H  Kaple, banker of Detroit, and they have one child, Gertrude M., a student at Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, N. Y.
Canfield, George Lewis, was born in Detroit, 12th of October, 1866, and is the son
of Frank H. Canfield, a prominent lawyer of that city, and Adelaide Green. lie is
descended from Thomas Canfield (or Campfield), of Milford, an English Puritan who
settled in Connecticut about 1632, and, on his mother's side, from William Bradford,
the second governor of Plymouth Colony.  His great-great-grandfather, Samuel
Canfield, came west from Connecticut in 1793, and the family has been resident in
Michigan since that time. George L. Canfield was educated in the Detroit pullic
schools and at the University of Michigan and subsequently made an extended tour
in Europe. In 1892 he became associated with his father in the practice of law, devoting particular attention to the work in the Federal courts.  In 1889 he married
Mary Noble, daughter of William H. Croul, and has two children, William and
Adelaide.


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Carhartt, Hamilton, youngest son of George and Lefa Wylie Carhartt, was born at
Macedon Locks, N. Y., August 27, 1855. In 1858 his parents located in Jackson, Mich.,
where he attended the public schools. In 1870 he entered the Episcopal College at
Racine, Wis. In 1879 he accepted a position with the firm of Young, Smythe, Field
& Co. of Philadelphia. In 1884 he located in Detroit, Mich., entering upon the
wholesale furnishing goods business, under the firm name of Hamilton, Carhartt &
Company. This business was continued until 1889 when the firm closed out the jobbing part of their business, and embarked exclusively in the wholesale manufacture
of clothing, their commodious factories, occupying spacious grounds, beautifully laid
out on Michigan avenue on the corner of Tenth street.
Carrier, Albert E., M.D., son of Augustus and Fannie M. (Ainsworth) Carrier, was
born at Cape Vincent, Jefferson county, N. Y., May 16, 1841. He was educated in
the Governeur (N. Y.) Seminary and in the public schools of Detroit, Mich. He
was graduated M. D. from the Bellevue Hospital Medical College at New York in
1865, and at once returned to Detroit, where he practiced for several years. Ill
health caused him to abandon his professional work and he later entered the lumber
business with his father. He again took up the practice of medicine in 1874, and has
ever since been active as a specialist on skin diseases. He is professor of dermatology
and clinical medicine in the I)etroit College of Medicine; dermatologist to Harper
Hospital, St. Mary's Hospital, and the Detroit Woman's Hospital and Foundling's
Home; and was coroner of Detroit during the years of 1882-83. He is a member of
the American Medical Association; Michigan State Medical Society; Detroit Medical
and Library Association, of which he has been president; Wayne County Medical
Society; and the Fellowcraft and Wayne Clubs. On both the maternal and paternal
sides Dr. Carrier is descended from Revolutionary stock. In 1866 he married Irene
S. Hibbard of Detroit, and they have had five children, two of whom survive: Augustus 2d, and Irene S.
Carson, William, a member of the firm of Carson, Craig & Co., grain and seed
merchants, was born in Newry, Ireland, April 10, 1839, of Scotch-Irish parentage.
When but a year old his parents crossed the Atlantic and found a home in the city
of New York, where they resided until October, 1846, when they followed the tide
of immigration to the West, and as Detroit was about as far west as there was any
necessity to go, they decided to make it their home, and William has been a resident
of that city since that time. Detroit then had only 14,000 population. William remained at home in his father's employ until 1860, when he was appointed to a
position in the paid fire department, having been a member of the volunteer force
for three years previous. During his short school days the studies of the grammar school were all that could be obtained in Detroit, and as a fireman he had much
spare time which he employed in mastering the science of bookkeeping, which
served him to good purpose in after years. Although the pay of a fireman was
much smaller than at present, by practicing economy, he saved sufficient in a few
years to go into the grocery business, after resigning his position as a fireman. He
continued in business a few months, when he had an opportunity to dispose of his
stock to a good advantage. Shortly after going into business he was appointed
assistant chief of the fire department, being in that position at the time of the burning of the Detroit and Milwaukee depot, which was attended by the destruction of


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the steamer Windsor with loss of life. In 1866 Mr. Carson was appointed to a clerkship in the assessors' office, and in September, 1867, entered the office of P. Voorhees & Co. as bookkeeper, lemaining with that firm until they dissolved, and then
continued with the firm of Gillett & Hall, who were the successors of the first named
firm. In addition to his duties as bookkeeper he was also the cashier of the firm, and
as the business increased rapidly, rendering more office force necessary, he assumed
entire charge of the office and the finances of the concern, the business reaching
from five to six millions annually. About 1876 he was admitted as a member of the
firm, which continued business under the original firm name. On January 1, 1898,
the firm of Gillett & Hall was. dissolved and was succeeded by Carson, Craig & Co.
In politics Mr. Carson has always been a consistent Democrat and in the late election
a gold Democrat, supporting Mr. McKinley. In National and State politics he has
always supported his party's candidates, except in this last instance, but in local
affairs his vote has been cast for the best men. His first presidential vote was
cast for Stephen A. Douglas, which he has never regretted. In 1891 he was nominated, without his previous knowledge, for alderman of the Fourth ward, and
although defeated, the ward being strongly Republican, he had the satisfaction of
running largely ahead of his ticket, getting more votes than any other Democrat on
the ticket in that ward. In the spring of 1892, accompanied by his eldest son, who
had just been graduated at Ann Arbor, he made an extensive trip through Europe
and the Orient, visiting Egypt, Palestine and Greece. In 1893 he was appointed fire
commissioner by Mayor Pingree for four years, his term expiring in April, 1897.
This appointment was a great surprise, coming entirely unsolicited, he having no intimation of it three hours before being confirmed by the council. Having entered
the fire department in his youth at the bottom of the ladder, it was very gratifying
to attain the highest position, that of president of the department. Feeling that four
years' service was all that could be spared to the service of the city, he refused his
name to be used for a second term. Mr. Carson is an enthusiastic Mason, having
joined Kilwinning Lodge, F. & A. M., in 1875, and has served in all the positions
in that lodge from secretary to master, filling the latter office during 1892 and 1893.
He is also a member of Peninsular Chapter, R. A. M., Monroe Council and Michigan Sovereign Consistory, thirty-second degree.
Chandler, Major George Whitfield, is a native of New York State, and was born at
Livonia Center, February 7, 1835. At an early age he migrated with his parents to
Michigan, settling in Livingston county. He attended school in Howell, MiCh., and
began his business career as a clerk in a country store, later becoming a partner in
the business, and continued there until the death of his father in 1857, when he was
compelled to return home and assume the management of the estate, which engrcssed his attention until 1860. In August, 1861, Mr. Chandler enlisted in the
army as a private in the 8th Michigan Infantry, and served with that regiment until
April 20, 1864, having been promoted to second and first lieutenant; was commissioned as captain and commissary of subsistence April 20, 1864, and March 13, 1865,
was promoted to major in the commissary department, serving until December 27,
1866, when he was mustered out of the service and honorably discharged. He returned to Michigan, and on October 1, 1867, became assistant secretary of the Michigan State Insurance Company at Lansing, which position he held until October 1,
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1870, when he resigned on account of ill health, and traveled for different companies
until June 1, 1872, at which time he connected himself with the Hartford Fire Insurance Company or Hartford, Conn., as special agent for the State of Michigan. He
has remained in the service of that company ever since, becoming local agent at Detroit on June 1, 1882, and is yet serving in that capacity; he is also local agent at
Detroit for the 2Etna Fire Insurance Co., the Atlas Assurance Company of London,
England, the Globe Fire Insurance Company of New York, the German Insurance
Company of Freeport, Ill., the Manchester Fire Insurance Company of Manchester,
England, the Boston Insurance Company of Boston, Mass., the Svea Assurance
Company of Sweden, the Helvetis Insurance Company of Switzerland, and has the
general agency for Michigan for the Employer's Liability Assurance Corporation of
London, England, and the New York Plate Glass Insurance Company of New York.
Mr. Chandler is prominent in the Masonic fraternity, being a thirty-second degree
Scottish Rite Mason and Shriner, and was grand commander of the Knights Templar of the State of Michigan from 1881 to 1882. He is a member of the B. P. 0. E.,
Detroit Post, No. 384, G. A. R., and the Michigan Commandery of the Loyal Legion
of the United States, of which body he is ex-recorder and ex-commander, and is a
member of the Council of the Commandery in Chief, Military Order of the Loyal
Legion of the United States. He is also a member of the Rushmere Club of Detroit. Major Candler was married in 1864 to Adaline Parker Plunkett, of Brooklyn, N. Y.
Clark, Harvey C., of the wholesale drug firm of Farrand, Williams & Clark, is a
native of Ohio. He was born at Cuyahoga Falls, but at an early age removed with
his parents to Warren, Ohio, where he attended the public schools, being graduated
from the High School in 1857. In the autumn of that year he entered the Western
Reserve College at Hudson, Ohio, and was graduated therefrom with honors in 1861.
He at once removed to I)etroit, Mich., and entered the employ of Farrand, Sheley &
Co., wholesale druggists, continuing there as clerk until 1872, when the firm changed
to Farrand, Williams & Co., and he was admitted to partnership in the business. In
1890 another change took place, the firm of Farrand, Williams & Co. being dissolved
and the present firm of Farrand, Williams & Clark being organized. Mr. Clark is a
member of the D)etroit Chamber of Commerce and Merchants' and Manufacturers'
Exchange of Detroit, and a member of the board of directors of several other organizations.
Clark, John E., M. D., son of Frederick J. and Ellen (Petley) Clark, was born at
Worlington, Suffolk, England, January 13, 1850. While yet a boy he removed with
his parents to Toronto, and later to Norwich, Ontario, where he attended the public
schools and was also instructed by a private tutor. He attended lectures in the Long
Island College Hospital and was graduated from the University of Michigan in 1877,
with the degree of M. D. Since that year he has practiced continuously at Detroit,
Mich. From 1879 to 1885 Dr. Clark was professor of general chemistry in the Michigan College of Medicine, and has occupied the same chair in the Detroit College of
Medicine since the amalgamation of the two institutions in 1885. He was elected
Dean of the department of pharmacy of the Detroit College of Medicine in 1892,
also professor of chemistry and toxicology in that institution. He is a member of the
American Medical Association; Michigan State Medical Society; Wayne County
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Medical Society; Detroit Medical and Library Association, and in 1885 was elected
an honorary fellow of the Berlin Chemical Society. He was also a member of the
American Chemical Society (1890); was honorary president of the Detroit Science
Association in 1881-82; is a member of the Association of Military Surgeons of the
United States; was a member of the Board of Education of Detroit from 1892 to 1896,
and president of that body in 1894-95 and 1896; is a commissioner of the Detroit
Public Library; a member of the medical department of the Michigan National
Guards (1881-1893), and surgeon-general of the same from 1891 to 1894 and is also
president of the Board of U. S. Pension Examiners, Detroit. Dr. Clark devotes
much attention to chemistry and makes a specialty of diseases of the kidneys and bladder. He is the author of IClark's Physical Diagnosis and Urine Analysis" (1890),
and numerous papers on scientific and medical and medico-legal subjects. Dr. Clark
has two children, Harold and Frances.
Clark, Rex B., son of Ransom B. and Nellie (Russell) Clark, was born at Detroit,
Mich., May 31, 1876. He was educated in the public and high schools of Detroit and
while a student engaged in agency work, making a specialty of rubber stamps and
other office commodities. He has continued in the same business since leaving
school in 1894, having added the agency for Detroit for the Webster Star brand nonfilling typewriter ribbons, and his efforts have been rewarded with marked success.
He is a member of the Detroit Mandolin Club and secretary of the West Side Club
of Detroit. Mr. Clark's ancestors were among the earliest settlers of Ohio, in which
State both of his parents were born and reared.
Clark, Rev. Rufus W., J). )., rector of St. Paul's church, is of New England origin and
was born at Portsmouth, N. H., May 29 1844. He began his preparation for college
at the Latin School at Boston, and finished at Brooklyn, N. Y.; he graduated from
Williams College, Massachusetts, in the class of 1865, receiving the degree of B. A.
He was in the same class with Drs. Emerson, Lyon and Conner of this city. A part
of his collegiate course was spent at the University of the City of New York. The
degree of M. A. was conferred upon him by Williams College in 1868, and the degree
of 1). 1). in 1890. He graduated from the General Theological Seminary of New
York city in 1868; and that same year was assistant to Rev. Dr. Washburn of Calvary church. He was ordained deacon in Grace church, Providence, R. I., by his
uncle, Bishop Clark, June 24, 1867, the Rev. Phillips Brooks preaching the sermon.
Mr. Clark's family and associations were in many ways connected with the ministry.
His father was the Rev. l)r. Clark of Albany, and his father's three brothers and
three brothers of his mother and three of his own brothers were clergymen. Rev.
Mr. Clark's first parish was at Portsmouth, N. IH., where he was called immediately
after his graduation and after his ordination to the priesthood. It is not usual for a
clergyman to take as his first parish the church of the locality of his birthplace and his
early boyhood. The St. John's church was one of the historic parishes of New England; it was originally established as Queen's chapel in the seventeenth century.
His immediate predecessor as rector of St. John's was the Rev. D)r. )Davies, who subsequently became the Bishop of Michigan. In 1871 Rev. Mr. Clark became rector of
Trinity church, Columbus, O., where he married Lucy Gilbert, daughter of ex-(overnor Dennison of that State. IHe served as trustee of Kenyon College from 1873 to


118




1876. September 1, 1877, he became the rector of St. Paul's church, Detroit, following the Rev. Dr. Pitkin.
Clawson, Firman W., son of Isaac and Abigail (Neal) Clawson, was born in Seneca
county, N. Y., March 26, 1841. He attended the district schools and a private academy at Hector, N. Y. He then taught in the Seneca county district schools for two
terms and on August 21, 1862, enlisted in the army as hospital steward of the 148th
N. Y. Vol. Infantry, having while a teacher taken up the study of medicine. During
the first two years of his war service he was actively employed at the front, being
placed in charge of the Hampton (Va.) Dispensary in 1864. He was mustered out
of the service in June, 1865, and returning to New York State commenced the study
of dentistry with i)r. Stephen Clough at Trumansburg, Tompkins county. In 1867
he began the active and independent practice of his profession at Watkins, N. Y.,
where he resided for two years, then removed to Eaton Rapids, Mich. In 1877 Dr.
Clawson was graduated with the degree of 1). D. S. from the Philadelphia (Pa.)
I)ental College and directly following his graduation located permanently in Detroit,
where he has practiced with marked success. He is a member of the Michigan State
and Detroit Dental Associations and was president of the former in 1885; is a member of the order of Free and Accepted Masons and is past master of Oriental Lodge
of Detroit. For the past seventeen years he has been an active member of the First
Presbyterian church and is liberal in his charities. In 1866 he married Mary E. Van
Liew of Lodi, N. Y., and they have had seven children, five of whom survive: Ina
Van Liew, Edith J., Edna A., Henry Lloyd and Mary Louise.
Coomer, George W., son of Zenas and Clara (Rockwell) Coomer, was born in Oakland county, Mich., November 3, 1843. His father was a native of New York State
and removed to Michigan in 1835, settling in Oakland county, where he cleared and
cultivated a farm and where he died in 1873. George W. was educated in the district schools and in the Birmingham Academy, and later entered the law department
of the University of Michigan, from which he was graduated in 1871. Prior to his
entering the university he had read law in the office of Judge Franklin Johnson at
Monroe, Mich. He was admitted to the bar immediately after his graduation and
settled at Wyandotte, Wayne county, where he still maintains his residence and an
office for the practice of his profession. In 1891 he opened another office in Detroit
and has been eminently successful in both cities. He has been attorney for the city
of Wyandotte for twelve years and was counselor of the Board of Education during
that entire period. In 1884 he was elected to the Legislature for one term from
Wyandotte, and in 1887 was nominated on the Republican ticket for judge of the
Circuit Court, but the ticket was defeated. In 1870 Mr. Coomer married Laura M.,
daughter of Solon Harris of Oakland county, and they have three children: Grace
A., J. Elroy and Harry H.
Cowles, Israel Towne, son of Tertius and Julia Lucretia (Towne) Cowles, was born
in Belchertown, Mass., November 8, 1854. He prepared for college in Monson (Mass.)
Academy and entered Yale University in 1873, from which he was graduated B. A.
in 1877, and in the following year removed to Detroit, Mich., where he studied law
in the office and under the preceptorship of Judge M. E. Crofoot, being admitted to
the bar in 1879. In the autumn of 1881 Mr. Cowles established himself in an office


119




of his own and began the active practice of his profession. In 1887 he formed a
partnership with Judge Isaac Marston and Thomas S. Jerome, and upon the death of
Judge Marston in 1891 continued his partnership with Mr. Jerome under the style of
Cowles & Jerome until January, 1896; since that time he has practiced entirely alone,
occupying his present suite of offices in the Union Trust Building. He has won for
himself honorable standing at the bar and enjoys the respect and esteem of his fellow practitioners and the public. Since 1893 Mr. Cowles has held the responsible
position of manager and legal officer of the Title Guarantee and Abstract Department of the Union Trust Co. of Detroit. He is a member of the American, Wayne
County and Detroit Bar Associations and of the Detroit, Fellowcraft, Yondotega,
Detroit Boat, and St. Clair Flats Fishing and Shooting Clubs. October 30, 1894, he
married Elizabeth A. Howard of Detroit; they have no children. In politics Mr.
Cowles is a Republican.
Crawford, Frank H., son of Oliver H. and Katherine Crawford, is a native of De.
troit, where he was born April 21, 1857. After passing through the public schools
he received a thorough business training in the Bryant & Stratton's Business College, and at once entered an active commercial life, which continues to the present writing. From 1874 to 1877 he had charge of the books of Robinson & Flinn,
prominent pine land operators with headquarters in l)etroit. During 1878 and 1879
he filled an important position with the Grand Rapids Chair Co. of Grand Rapids,
Mich., leaving there to again take charge of the books of Robinson & Flinn, with
whom he remained until 1881, when he accepted the position of office manager and
bookkeeper for the 1). M. Ferry Seed Co. at Windsor, Ont. He remained in this
position until 1886, when he took charge cf the office and books of the wholesale tea
and coffee house of J. H. Thompson & Co. When they retired from business in 1889
he became associated with Mr. J. L. Hudson as assistant bookkeeper in his large
department store. In October of 1889 he was advanced to the position of general
office manager. In 1895, upon the formation of The J. L. Hudson Co. he was made
the treasurer of the company, which position he now holds. Mr. Crawford was married I)ecember 24, 1883, to Mary Josephine, daughter of Capt. Francis and Emily
Beauchamp of Detroit. Two children have been born to them, one of whom, Irene
Louise, a beautiful little miss of seven years, is now living. Mr. Crawford is in all
things a home and family man, and the path that knows him best lies direct from
his desk to his own fireside. He is fond of society either in entertaining or being
entertained. He numbers friends bv the hundreds who know only his courteous
and upright business manners. He is loyal to his triends and has no enemies. A
hard yet rapid worker, accurate, frank and with excellent business perception and
wide executive ability, a typical American in all things, the true gentleman under all
circumstances.
Eby, John F., soin of Jonas and Hannah (Fessant) Eby, was born in Berlin, Ontario,
Canada, June 19, 1839. He was educated in the public schools of his native town
and at Elora, Ont., whither his parents removed in 1847. When he was less than
thirteen years of age he was apprenticed for five years to the printer's trade, and in
1852 began an active business career. He worked at his trade as a journeyman until 1867, visiting many of the larger cities of the United States and Canada, and in
the latter year located permanently in Detroit, Mich., and entered the job printing
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office of the Detroit Free Press as a journeyman. Two years later he became manager of the office and acted in that capacity until June 19, 1880. In this year a stock
company was formed under the style of John F. Eby & Co. with Mr. Eby as manager. In 1895 he withdrew from said company and with Mr. A. N. Safford as his
partner, he established his present printing plant, where he has built up a large and
paying business. He is a member of Union Lodge, F. & A. M.; Peninsular Chapter,
R. A. M.; and Monroe Council, R. & S. M., at Detroit. In 1864 Mr. Eby married
Mary Romaine of Albany, N. Y., and they have had eight children, six of whom
survive: Emma, a graduate of the Detroit High School and now a teacher; Mabel,
wife of A. G. Rice of Detroit; Eugenia, Romaine, Bessie, and Carl.
Elliott, James R., chief of the Detroit Fire Department, and son of Robert T. and
Frances (Shea) Elliott, was born in Detroit, October 2, 1834. He obtained a good
education in the Catholic Parochial Schools, but entered mercantile life before he
had advanced to any great extent. Even in boyhood Chief Elliott was extremely
attached to a fireman's life and evinced considerable skill when his efforts were bent
in the direction of the work required. So keen was his interest that he left his workshop or place of employment many times at the alarm of fire; in those days sturdy
young men were gladly allowed to run with the machine, but were not permitted to
join until they became of age. In 1851 he was entered as a regular and because of his
adaptability to the work was promoted to foreman of Volunteer Co. No. 4, in 1864.
When the volunteer department was disbanded, October 4, 1860, Chief Elliott was appointed foreman of No. 1, of the paid $50 a year department, by the Common Council.
Without neglecting his duties as fireman Chief Elliott became a partner in the firm
of Eagle & Elliott, clothiers, but retained his interest only two years. In 1867 the
fire commission was organized, and on April 1 of that year appointed Mr. Elliott
assistant chief to the famous Chief Battle, which was the commission's first appointment. Of his narrow escapes Chief Elliott refuses to discuss, but it is known that on
October 13, 1880, an oil house at the foot of Second street took fire and exploded
while he was at work in the interior and he was on the sick list for several months
afterward. On the retirement of Chief Battle, February 9, 1895, Mr. Elliott was
made chief of the entire department. His career in that office has earned for him a
standing among the most noted fire chiefs of the continent. On numerous occasions
it has been demonstrated that Chief Elliott exercised every precaution appertaining
to the welfare of his men and never ordered a fireman where he would not venture
himself, usually leading his men to gain a point of vantage in battling with the
flames. Chief Elliott's intimate friends never approach him at a fire with questions,
for they are well aware that only curt replies, if any, would follow. He abhors interruption when his mind is applied to the protection of property and life. He insists on being left alone and only receives his assistants, assigning the various companies and directing the attack against fire. The members of the department
understand their chief and respect his orders as well as his personality. Chief
Elliott is a bachelor. He has manifested a deep interest in children and more than
one child owes support and education to Chief Elliott's benevolence. Notwithstanding his steady mode of life, Chief Elliott is not even a well-to-do man; he gives
liberally to charity, seldom permitting the recipient to know the sourec of the gift.
Enright, Hon. John J., postmaster of the city of Detroit, is a native of Ireland and
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received his education in the private academy, presided over by the late Philo M.
Patterson, one of the ablest instructors of his day, many of whose pupils have distinguished themselves at the bar, in the army and navy, and in business circles.
During the six years, from 1861 to 1867, that he was in attendance there young Enright prepared himself for a business career, and in 1869 entered the employ of Charles
Peltier & Son, insurance and real estate agents, as managing clerk. After retiring
from the insurance business he entered the Second, now the Detroit National Bank
as bookkeeper, serving in that position until 1878. In the following year he was appointed as clerk of the Superior Court, and in 1882 was nominated for the position of
county clerk and elected by a large majority over his opponent, and in 1885 was
unanimously chosen of the Democratic State Committee. He was re-elected in 1884;
in 1887 he was appointed as disbursing officer of the Post-office department by Postmaster-General Don M. Dickinson, and in the following year was made assistant
commissioner of Indian affairs and ably 'discharged the duties of that office until
the incoming of the Republican administration, when he tendered his resignation.
In 1893 Mr. Enright was chosen by President Cleveland as postmaster of Detroit,
and his administration of the affairs of that office has frequently called forth the
highest praise from both parties alike. Mr. Enright is a Jeffersonian Democrat of
unflinching fealty to his party's principles which he has at all times constantly
espoused. From boyhood he has evinced an interest in politics and for many years
has been a prominent figure in campaigns. During the campaign of 1896 he was a
powerful ally of the party of " honest money aI1d good government." He vigorously
opposed the " Chicago platform" from the moment of its adoption and denounced
with eloquence the dangerous doctrines enunciated therein while supporting Palmer
and Buckner, the sound-money candidates. It is conceded by all that his humble
efforts during the campaign contributed largely to the great victory for sound money,
not alone in the State of Michigan, but other States outside to which he was called.
Personally Mr. Enright is one of the most companionable of men, genial and sympathetic. Through Postmaster Enright's efforts and advice the Post-Office 1)epartment, through Postmaster-General Bissell, ordered the opening of the marine postoffice at Detroit, which, though opposed by some people, has proved a great success
from the day of the inauguration of the service. The administration of the )etroit
post-office has given such satisfaction to the public that representative citizens of all
parties petitioned President McKinley to reappoint Mr. Enright to his present posltion, but the fortune of politics decreed otherwise.
Field, Henry George, consulting electrical and mechanical engineer, is a son of
1)r. Henry Goyder Field, and was born in Saginaw, Mich., February 21, 1869. At
the age of five years he removed to Detroit, to live with his uncle, l)r. George L.
Field, and his early education was obtained in the public schools of that place, where
he was graduated from the High School in 1886. During the following two years
he was employed in the Detroit Electrical Works, but left to spend two years and a
half in the University of Michigan. In 1892 he went to Chicago to accept a position
in the Landscape Department at the World's Fair grounds, but was transferred to
the Electric Department where he was soon made engineer in charge of the electric subways, but resigned after fourteen months' service to return to the University
of Michigan, and was graduated in 1893, after completing the course in electrical
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engineering. During this last year in college he became a member of the fraternity
of Theta Delta Chi. He located at once in Detroit, and was appointed electrical inspector for the Michigan Inspection Bureau, which position he held for a year and
a half. Since that time he has continuously practiced his profession, and has been
deservedly prosperous. Mr. Field is a member of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers, of the Detroit Engineering Society, of the Fellowcraft Club, of Oriental Lodge No. 240, F. & A. M., and served three years as a member of the Detroit
Naval Reserves. He is superintendent of the Sunday school of the New Jerusalem
church of Detroit, and is also a member of the board of trustees of that church.
Fink, Leon C., son of i)avid and Mary A. (Simmons) Fink, was born at Sodus
Ridge, N. Y., October 1, 1860. While still quite young his parents removed to Syracuse, and in that city young Fink attended the public schools until thirteen years
of age. He commenced his business career as a clerk in the pharmacy of Brown &
Dawson at Syracuse, and remained with that firm for six years. During that period
he acquired a valuable experience in the retail drug business, worked his way to the
position of prescription clerk and enjoyed the full confidence of his employers. In
1880, bearing a personal letter of introduction to Mr. George S. J)avis, of the firm of
Parke, Davis & Co., manufacturing chemists of Detroit, Mich., he removed to that
city and was promptly assigned to a position in their establishment, where he has
ever since remained. He first served as an assistant in the General Pharmaceutical
Department, and in 1882 was placed in charge as foreman of the Solid Extract I)epartment. In 1884 the General Pharmaceutical Department was also placed under
his control and remained under his direction for seven vears. Mr. Fink is counted
among the pioneers in the Pepsin business. He first took up the manufacture of
this product under the supervision of Edward S. 1)awson, jr., in Syracuse, N. Y.,
twenty years ago. The management of Parke, Davis & Co.'s Digestive Ferment
I)epartment was entrusted in his hands for a number of years. In 1893 he took
charge of the Formula Department, and three years later was appointed to a position at the head of the 4 Control Department, ' ranking as assistant superintendent
of the extensive laboratories, and acting under the direction of the general manager
to control formulae, standards, systematic safeguards, etc. Mr. Fink is also chief of
Parke, I)avis & Co.'s Fire Department, which is conceded to be one of the most
complete and efficient private organizations of the kind in the country. He occupied
the chair of practical pharmacy in the Detroit College of Medicine in 1891. Aside
from his connection with Parke, Davis & Co., Mr. Fink has real estate and other interests in the city of Detroit. He is still a bachelor and finds many things to interest
him in this world.
Freeman, John, son of James and Catherine (Manning) Freeman, was born in Perth,
Ontario, Can., September 29, 1846. His father was one of the early pioneers of that
section, removing there about 1825. Young Freeman acquired his early education
in one of the country district schools, which he attended until about the age of sixteen. It was what was known in those days as " the Log School House." After
finishing school he remained at home with his father on the farm for about one year.
Like most young boys he was anxious to better his condition and in May, 1864, left
his home, going to Salina, N. Y., where he had some friends engaged in the salt
business, who gave him employment. This line not being suitable to him he decided
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to go further west, and in October, 1864, he moved to Cleveland. Ohio, where he
shortly afterward secured a position with the U. S. Express Co. He remained in
the express business for about two years. Being desirous of acquiring a more practical education, with his earnings which he had saved he decided to take a course in
a commercial college and entered the Felton & Bigelow business college, where he
spent nine months at close application and study. Shortly after leaving college he
secured a situation in the wholesale hardware store of George Worthington & Co.,
at Cleveland, Ohio, remaining with this firm for a period of thirteen years, eleven
years of this time as traveling agent. He severed his connection with this company
about 1883 to accept a similar position with Buhl Sons & Co. of Detroit, remaining
with them until January 1, 1888, when he resigned his position to engage in his present business, which was afterwards, in 1891, incorporated as Freeman, Delamater &
Co., of which Mr. Freeman is president. From a small beginning this firm has rapidly forged ahead and to-day is among the leaders in its line in Michigan. Mr.
Freeman is a member of the Fellowcraft, Michigan Commercial Travelers' and
Cleveland Commercial Travelers' Clubs. He was married in December, 1875, to
Elizabeth Conley of Cleveland, 0., who died in that city in 1884. On September 20,
1893, he was married to Josephine C. Herber of Detroit. He has six children, three
by each wife: Mary L. C., James F., Elizabeth A., John H., Henry W., and Helen
Josephine Freeman.
Goodrich, Frederick A., son of Isaac M. and Rebecca S. (Burlingame) Goodrich,
was born at Pleasant Farm Village, Mo., where his father was postmaster,
April 13, 1859. After attending the district schools he took a course in the Mound
City (St. Louis) Commercial College and later entered the Northern Indiana Normal
School at Valparaiso, from which he was graduated in 1883. In the same year he
entered the employ of Charles Himrod & Co., iron manufacturers at Chicago, as
bookkeeper and afterward served them as a salesman. In 1884 Mr. Goodrich was
transferred to Himrod & Co.'s branch house at Detroit, Mich., where he remained as
salesman until the silent partner, Mr. W. F. Jarvis, withdrew from the firm, assuming the ownership of the Detroit house, and from that time, 1889, until April, 1895,
Mr. Goodrich had an active interest in the business. In the latter year a stock company was incorporated under the style of F. A. Goodrich & Co, of which Mr. Goodrich has ever since been treasurer and general manager. This company are manufacturers' agents and dealers in pig iron, steel, coke, etc., and have been successful
from the start. Mr. Goodrich is vice-president and treasurer and a stockholder in the
C. M. Hayes & Co., photograph gallery, secretary and treasurer of the Doherty
Melting Process Co. and treasurer of Peninsular Engineering Co. all of Detroit;
also director of Deseronto Iron Co., Ltd., of Deseronto, Ont. He is a member of the
Fellowcraft Club and a thirty second degree Mason. In 1889 he married Louise A.
Silk of Detroit, and they have one son, Ralph Frederick.
Graham, Alfred, A. M., M. D., son of Henry Armstrong and Sophronia (Tisdale)
Graham, was born in Waterdown, Wentworth county, Ontario, Canada, March 17,
1849. He was educated in the schools of his native place, and in the public schools
of Detroit, and later received the.degree of Master of Arts from Judson University.
Subsequently he entered the Hahnemann Medical College of Philadelphia, where he
pursued the study of medicine and from which he was graduated in 1885. On the
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completion of his medical course he began the practice of his profession in Philadelphia. Two years later he took a post-graduate course in the college from which he
graduated. He removed to Detroit in 1891 and established his present practice. He
has been connected editorially with several medical and religious publications, and
has lectured extensively through the eastern, middle and southern States. He is
associate editor of the Medical Counsellor, of Detroit, department of mental and
nervous diseases. He is a member of the medical staff of Grace Hospital, Detroit,
and was elected neurologist in 1897, which position he still occupies. Dr. Graham
has in course of preparation a volume of lectures embracing a number of religioscientific subjects. He is also preparing for publication a large volume containing
more than one hundred and twenty-five original poems. It is said by competent
critics who have perused his manuscripts that the prose and poetical writings of Dr.
Graham will have a permanent place in the literature of the times.
Graham, Burke M., was born at Rochester, N. Y. April 5,1854. He attended the
public schools and High School of Rochester until fifteen years of age, when he removed with his parents to Detroit, Mich., where he at once entered the employ of
Hayden & Baldwin, wholesale manufacturers of saddlery and saddlery hardware at
Detroit. After serving that firm for eleven years in the capacities of clerk and traveling salesman, he formed his present partnership with Messrs. Edwin E. and Henry
I. Armstrong, under the firm name of Armstrong & Graham, for the wholesale
manufacture of harness and saddlery goods. Mr. Graham is a member of the Detroit Club, Country Club, Michigan Club. and Lake St. Clair Fishing and Shooting
Club. In 1878 he married Carrie Stringer of Detroit.
Grand, Rev. Peter, is the son of Peter and Mary T. Mollaret, and was born in
Montrond, Savoy, France, on January 12, 1845. His early education was obtained
in his home, where he received instruction until he was fourteen years old; at that
age he entered the college at Annonay, Ardeche, where he remained until 1869; he
then entered the novitiate of the Community of St. Basil, at Fezin, Isere, where he
remained one year. During the succeeding three years he taught different classes
in the college at Annonay  On the 2d of September, 1872, he arrived at Toronto,
Ont., where for one year he was engaged as study master; after which, the following year, he was transferred to Assumption College, Sandwich, where he was ordained priest on May 31, 1874. A few months later he was appointed assistant
pastor of the parish church at Chatham. In January, 1879, he was transferred to
Amherstburg, Ont., whence he returned to Assumption College, Sandwich, in 1882.
In 1883 he was sent to the College of Mary Immaculate, Plymouth, Eng. In 1886
Father Grand came to Detroit to take charge of Ste. Ann's church, in which relation
he continues at present, respected and beloved by his parishioners.
Hammond, George Henry, of Detroit, Mich., was a native of Massachusetts, born
at Fitchburg, May 5, 1838. His ancestors were among the early settlers in the
colony, being descended from Benjamin Hammond, who was born in London, England, in 1621, and who came to Boston, Mass., in 1634 and died in Rochester, Mass.,
in 1703. He was the second son of John and Sarah Huston Hammond, who had no
wealth to lavish upon their son, nor the means to provide for him a liberal education.
At the early age of ten years he left school to make his own way in the world, deny125




ing to himself the pleasures that brighten the period of boyhood and afford to age a
delightful retrospect. He entered the employ of a manufacturer of leather pocketbooks at Ashburnham and afterwards conducting the business on his own account,
employing a dozen girls before he was twelve years of age. New inventions in
pocket-books rendered unprofitable the manufacture of the style which he had
learned to make, and he abandoned the work, taking employment for the next three
years with Milton Frost at Fitchburg, making mattresses and palm leaf hats. When
fifteen years old he bought the business of his employer and sold it in six months in
order to go west. He then located in Detroit in 1854 and for two and a half years
worked for Mr. Frost, who had preceded him, in a mattress and furniture factory.
He then started for himself the manufacture of chairs and six months later was
burned out, leaving him with a very limited capital. This fire, regarded at that time
as a disaster, changed the course of his life, and enabled him to achieve large wealth
and renown. Opening a store for the sale of meat, he passed into the business of
packing and slaughtering on a large scale in Dbtroit, and extended the business to
other places in the West. He became the leader in the transportation of dressed
beef to the eastern seaboard and foreign markets. His foresight discovered the
feasibility of the proposition and his energy was the chief factor in making it a
reality. It was in 1868 when Mr. Hammond had the first refrigerator car fitted uip
expressly for carrying dressed beef to market. The first experimental trip of the car
was made in May, 1869, from Detroit to Boston, and was a financial failure, although
subsequent shipments proved successful. The sagacious packer foresaw in it the
revolution of the beef trade and availed himself of its benefits by purchasing the patents protecting the invention. Associating Caleb Ives and later James D. Standish
and Sidney B. Dixon with himself, he formed a Dressed Beef Transportation Company, which in a few years was changed to George H. Hammond & Company. The
business increased from one car to eight hundred in constant use carrying the products of their packing houses to eastern markets and loading three ships weekly for
transatlantic ports. Mr. Hammond's name is inseparably connected with the State
of Indiana and identified with the industrial interests in the town which he founded
and the works which he established on the western border, a few miles from Chicago. He located immense slaughter houses, and gave his name to the town and
his energy to building up a new industry, and a city which has flourished and prospered from the impetus first given to it by its founder. The business of slaughtering
and packing at Hammond aggregated fifteen hundred to two thousand cattle daily,
and another of equal capacity was erected later at Omaha, Nebraska, their commercial product reaching twelve to fifteen million dollars annually. The establishing of
the business and the creating of the town of Hammond are monuments of the foresight and energy of George H. Hammond, a man as remarkable for what he accomplished in his prime and strength as for the assumption of responsibilities in early
boyhood. His preparation for financial pursuits was a course of study in Goldsmith's
Commercial College, prosecuted and completed in the evening. A qualification of
equal value was found in the self-reliance and courage which he displayed early and
at all subsequent periods of his life. He was ready to avail himself of any opportunity
that offered, confident of his ability, strong in his execution.  Few men possessed a
keener financial perception or greater shrewdness in carrying forward a purpose
formed. At the age of forty-eight he was one of the wealthiest citizens of Detroit
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and one of the best business men in the United States. He conducted gigantic enterprises and had a large acquaintance in the financial circles of Chicago, New York
and Boston. His holdings of real estate in and near Detroit were very large and he
realized so fully that his success was gained here, that he desired the city should
reap every advantage due to it. He was vice-president of the Commercial National
Bank, a director in the Michigan Savings Bank and the Detroit Fire and Marine Insurance Company. In the flood-tide of success, when his undertakings had become
substantial achievements and his enterprise had been rewarded by large wealth, his
heart failed to perform its functions and death claimed him suddenly, on the 29th of
December, 1886. He was only forty-eight, but had filled as many years with unremitting activity and labor as the average man of sixty. His name was the synonym
of business honor and his private life was irreproachable. Though not a member of
any church, he was a generous contributor to churches and charitable objects. His
contributions, though liberal, were unostentatious. Naturally reserved, he gave explicit confidence to the few with whom he sustained confidential relations. His recreation and pleasure were found in the family circle, with wife and children,
although he was fond of travel. He made two trips to Europe with members of his
family and visited all parts of the United States, including the Pacific Coast. His
life was short, but left its impress upon the community enriched by his financial and
industrial enterprises, and to his family the rich legacy of a spotless reputation. He
was married in 1857 to Miss Ellen Barry, of Detroit, who was born January 20, 1838,
and became the father of eleven children, seven of whom survive. One daugher is
the wife of Charles William Casgrain, a lawyer of Detroit; another daughter, Miss
Sara Agnes, now deceased, was the wife of Gilbert Wilson Lee, senior partner of a
wholesale grocery firm; one son, George Henry, jr., is the president of the company
of Hammond, Standish & Company, of Detroit; Charles Frederick is a graduate of
the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; John William Hammond, educated at
Fordham College, New York, is now a resident of Detroit; Florence Pauline, Ethel
Katherine, and Edward Percy are in school.
Hanmer, Mrs. Delia A., daughter of Moses and Harriett (Allen) Hill, was born
October 3, 1844, in Palmyra, Wayne county, N. Y. Mrs. Hanmer was educated in
the public schools of Palmyra, which she attended until she reached the age of seventeen. On September 29, 1863, she married Lewis C. Hanmer of Detroit, Mich. In
early life she developed rare musical talent, but not till 1877 did she decide to perfect
herself in the art. With this end in view she began a thorough course of training
under Mr. J.-H. Hahn of Detroit, Mich., and Mr. A. K. Virgil of New York, which
covered a period of eight years, at the conclusion of which she established "The
Hanmer School of Music and Languages," now occupying the large and pleasant
studios at Nos. 53 and 57 West Alexandrine avenue, with an enrollment of three
hundred pupils. The faculty is exceptionally large and well selected, and under the
direction of Mrs. Hanmer, who retains the department of Piano and Harmony.
Hannan, William W., real estate dealer and broker of Detroit, was born in Rochester, N. Y., July 4, 1854. His parents moved to Dowagiac, Mich., when he was
only two years old. His boyhood days were passed in that city. He employed his
vacations in a basket factory in that city, by this means paving the way for further
educating himself. After graduating from the High School at Dowagiac he took, a
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preparatory course at Oberlin, Ohio, entering the University of Michigan in 1876
and taking his degree of B. A. in 1880, and afterwards graduated from the department of law in 1883. He was known as a laborious and painstaking student who
spent his vacations in hard work; he organized popular railway excursions to Michigan summer resorts which proved very successful. Among athletes at the college
he gained considerable fame as a sprint runner, and base and foot ball player, and
even in middle manhood keeps up an interest in field sports. During the winter of
1881-82 he served as enrolling and engrossing clerk in the State House of Representatives, and in 1883 was admitted to the bar and associated himself with Judge William D. Carpenter, under the firm name of Carpenter & Hannan. Shortly afterwards
he entered the real estate business at Detroit, Mich., being connected with the firm
of Hannan & Snow, and later this partnership was dissolved and Mr. Hannan established the Hannan Real Estate Exchange which is known the State over. To enumerate all the great realty transactions in which he has been engaged would be
tedious, the Hammond building purchase, representing nearly $1,000,000, which was
negotiated by him, being sufficient proof of the enormous influences he has brought
to bear in bringing this exchange to its present standing. The Hannan Real Estate
Exchange has the finest equipped offices to be found in any part of the United States.
This exchange conducts a general real estate, fire insurance and loaning business in
all its various ramifications. Properties situated in most every State of the Union
are successfully handled by this agency. Mr. Hannan has so methodically arranged
all his properties that the thousands of descriptions, whether for sale, exchange or
rent, can easily be referred to under its own department. Each one of the large
force of assistants (necessary to conduct this extensive business) has his particular
work and can furnish his many customers all necessary information with dispatch
and satisfaction Mr. Hannan is a member of the Chi Psi college fraternity, which
numbers Senator T. W. Palmer, Don M. Dickinson and many other prominent men
in Michigan; also a member of Corinthian Lodge of F. & A. M., the Scottish Rite
Masons, Detroit Club, Grande Pointe and Rushmere Clubs, and a stockholder in the
Preston National Bank, Citizens' Savings Bank, Peninsular Savings Bank, and the
Union National Bank, besides holding other strong financial and commercial interests. The Detroit "Club," a magazine formerly published in Detroit, Mich., said of
him in 1892: " Indeed if it were not for W. W. Hannan, the beautiful city of the
straits would not be what it is to-day; in this particular way the man must be regarded, not only as a genius, but as a public benefactor on the principles of political
economy which assert that confidence produces increase of capital, and capital induces labor. The livelihood, not to say the fortunes, of thousands of human beings
depend upon this booming which only a clever and cautious man is capable of directing. A sincere friend, a shrewd but indefatigable man of business, ever willing to
advance the interests of individuals, societies and the citizens in general; such is
the character which has made him famous and by which he is best known."
Harrah, Capt. Charles W., son of William D. and Hester (Hartzell) Harrah, was
born in Iavenport, Iowa, February 22, 1862. He attended the public schools of
Davenport until 1875, when he removed with his parents to Detroit, Mich., and in
the latter city was graduated from the High School in 1880. He then took a course
in the Bryant & Stratton's Business College in Detroit, being graduated therefrom
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in 1881. During the ensuing seven years he served with J. K. Burnham & Co., wholesale dry goods merchants, and H. P. Baldwin & Co., wholesale boots and shoes, and
while in the employ of the latter firm Mr. Harrah purchased several tracts of real
estate, which afterward proved a fortunate investment. In 1888 he established his
present business as real estate dealer, and has been eminently snccessful in all his
transactions, especially in the subdivision and sale of his own property, which has
engrossed the greater portion of his time. During his first year in the real estate
business Mr. Harrah had as a partner Mr. P. G. Sanderson, but since 1889 has operated entirely alone. He is a member of the order of Free and Accepted Masons;
captain (senior-ranking) Detroit Light Guard since December, 1892, and has recently
been appointed major of the 31st Mich Vol. Infantry. He is a member of the Detroit Boat Club. December 31, 1890, he married Lela, daughter of Hon. Francis G.
Russell of Detroit, and they have one daughter, Helen.
Harris, Williams C., was born in Pontiac, Mich., July 23, 1866, and is a son of
John A. Harris. He was educated in the public schools of his native town and in the
University of Michigan, graduating from the law department of the latter institution in 1891. He was admitted to the bar in 1887, while studying in the office of
Judge G: W. Smith at Pontiac, and following his admittance, he was associated with
the late De Witt C. Holbrook, for some time. He was for two years attorney for
the Merchants' and Manufacturers' Exchange, and was for one year clerk of the Justices' Courts, at Detroit. Mr. Harris is a member of Damon Lodge No. 3, Knights
of Pythias; of the Michigan Club, and of the Sons of the American Revolution.
Hawley, John Gardner, is the second son of Richard Hawley and Evangelia Gardner. His father was born at Shrewsbury, England, and his mother at Cleveland,
Ohio, of Scottish ancestry. He was born at Detroit, March 21, 1845. He attended
public and private schools in Detroit from the age of five years until 1858, when he
was taken with the family to a country home at Goderich, Ontario, where he ran
loose on the farm until the fall of 1860, when he was sent to Upper Canada College
at Toronto, where he was head boy and first exhibitioner in the fourth form in 1862.
He returned to Detroit in March, 1863. He spent a few months of that year in the
law office of Walker & Kent in Detroit. In March, 1864, in company with his
younger brother Richard, he went to Europe, returning in July. After his return he
was employed in his father's business until the summer of 1866, when he spent three
months at Hiram, 0., attending a course of lectures as a preliminary step to a course
of study for the ministry. In the fall of 1866 he entered Bethany College, W. Va.,
as a junior, where he was graduated A. B. in 1870, being the valedictorian of his
class. In 1868 he again went to Europe in company with his mother, wife and
younger sisters, the party remaining abroad for a year. In the fall of 1870 he decided to make the law his vocation, and disregarding the customary methods of legal
education, he shut himself up alone with the necessary text books until the following
March, when he was admitted to practice on an oral examination, after studying
barely six months. Since that time he has practiced his profession in the city of his
birth. He is the editor of the first three volumes of "American Criminal Reports,"
the author of " Law of Arrest," " Law for Land Buyers," "( Law for Tenants," "Interstate Extradition," " International Extradition," and jointly with Malcolm McGregor
of "Criminal Law." He was prosecuting attorney at Detroit in the years 1875 and
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1876. He is now attorney for the Police Department at Detroit, and lecturer on
criminal law at the Detroit College of Law. He reads and speaks German and
French. He has been twice married. In 1866 he married Mary Lydia, eldest child
of William S. Habberton of Mount Carmel, Ill. She died in 1879, leaving two children: Theodosia de Riemer, now a teacher in Miss Spence's school for young ladies
in New York city, and John Habberton, now in the business office of the New York
Evening Post. In 1881 he was married to Eva, eldest child of William Nicoll of Detroit, by whom he has one child, Maud Nicoll, now a pupil in the Detroit High
School.
Herbst, Col. Charles W., son of Peter and Maria (Lauth) Herbst, was born in Detroit, Mich., June 4, 1866. He was educated in St. John's Evangelical and the Detroit High Schools. He learned the tailor's trade with J. L. Hudson and established
his present business as merchant tailor in 1885. Colonel Herbst is a young man of
energy and enterprise and of the strictest integrity of character. He is popular alike
in business and social circles and in his business dealings has met with gratifying
success. He is a member of the K. P.: I. 0. Foresters; Detroit Light Infantry; and
is captain of the " Detroit Grays," an independent military organization; a member
of the German Salesmen's Association and of the National Guard Association of
Michigan. February 17,1897, he was appointed aide-de-camp on the staff of Gov.
Hazen S. Pingree, with the rank of colonel.
Hitchcock, Charles W., M. D., son of the late Dr. Homer 0. Hitchcock, who was
for thirty years a practitioner of medicine at Kalamazoo, Mich., and Fidelia (Wellman) Hitchcock, was born at Kalamazoo, July 26, 1858. After attending the public
schools he entered the University of Michigan, from which he M as graduated A. M.,
in 1880. Following his graduation he was in charge of schools in Michigan and
Iowa for two years, and in 1882 commenced the study of medicine.  He was
graduated M. D. from the Detroit College of Medicine in 1885, and was at once
made assistant physician to the Eastern Michigan Asylum for the Insane, holding
that position for a year and a half.  He then took a post-graduate course in surgery in the New York hospitals and in 1887 located in Detroit, Mich., where he has
ever since practiced his profession with marked success. He has built up a general
practice, but devotes considerable time to mental and nervous diseases and surgery.
I)r. Hitchcock is chief surgeon to the Standard Life and Accident Insurance Company of Detroit, having held that position since 1889; is attending neurologist to
Harper Hospital at Detroit; is a fellow of the American Academy of Medicine; an
honorary member of the National Association of Railway Surgeons; a member of
the Michigan State Medical Society, of which he was secretary from 1890 to 1895; of
the Detroit Medical and Library Association; and was president of the Detroit
Academy of Medicine 1896-97. He is also a member of the Psi Upsilon fraternity,
the Phi Chapter. In December, 1891, I)r. Hitchcock married Eunice Ingersoll of
Salem, Mass., and they have two children: David I and Charles C.
Holmes, Arthur D., M. D., C. M., son of James A. and Jane (Forster) Holmes,
was born at Chatham, Ont., Canada, July 19, 1863. He attended the public schools
and graduated at the Chatham Collegiate Institute. In 1885 he matriculated in the
medical department of McGill College at Montreal, Can., and was graduated M. D.,
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C. M., in 1889. Since then he has been an active practitioner of his profession at
Detroit, and has met with almost phenomenal success in his specialty of diseases of
children. He is a member of the State Medical Society, also the Wayne County
Medical Society; of the Detroit Medical and Library Association and of the Detroit
Academy of Medicine. He was president of the Detroit Surgical and Pathological
Society in 1896-97, and is yet a member of that organization. He is a member also
of the Fellowcraft Club of Detroit; of the order of Free and Accepted Masons; A. O.
U. W.; K. P., and K. C. Dr. Holmes is at present professor of the diseases of children in the Michigan College of Medicine and Surgery. IHe is prominent and popular in both professional and social circles.
Huston, E. Russell, was born in Dresden, Ontario, Can., July 17, 1870, a son of
Edward Huston, the well known lumberman of the province of Ontario, Michigan,
Washington State and British Columbia. He was edncated in the public and high
schools and was graduated from the Chatham Collegiate Institute in 1888. He spent
four years in Toronto University and one year in Queen's University where he took
special work in philosophy under Prof. John Watson and political science under
Professor Short. In 1894 he removed to Detroit and entered the law office of S. S.
Babcock, also becoming a student in the Detroit College of Law, from which he was
graduated in 1896. He was admitted to the bar in the same year and remained in
Mr. Babcock's office until the formation of the partnership of Huston & Yerkes in
September, 1897, of which firm he became the senior member, where he has met
with well deserved success. Mr. Huston is of the good old Pilgrim stock, his forefathers landing in America from the boat which followed the Mayflower. His grandmother on his father's side is a cousin of Rufus Choate and his father is one of the
Ohio race of Hustons who originally came from Ireland. His mother's mother came
from Ireland and father from England.
Hutter, Rev. Charles J., son of Caspar and Josephine (Schmidt) Hutter, was born
in Wallmerod, Nassau, Germany, August 3, 1865. As a boy he attended the parochial schools of Wallmerod and entered the gymnasium at Limburg-on-the-Lahn in
1877, from which he was graduated in 1885. In August of that year he entered the
Seminary of St. Peter, Glasgow, Scotland, where he remained until 1887, when he
removed to Paris, France, and entered the Holy Ghost Seminary. In 1890 he was
admitted to the diocese of Detroit, and sent for a short course to the seminary at
Milwaukee, Wis. In 1891 he was ordained in the minor orders by Archbishop Katzer of Milwaukee, and to the priesthood by Bishop Foley of Detroit. Subsequent to
his ordination he was appointed assistant pastor of St. Joseph's church, where he remained until 1894 and was then appointed to the Sacred Heart church as administrator. In 1895 he was appointed pastor of St. Anthony church, his present charge.
Rev. Father Hutter has greatly improved the condition of his parish and has built a
school building at a cost of $30,000.
Imrie, Andrew W., M.D., C.M., son of William B. and Mary Laidlaw Imrie, was
born at Spencerville, Ontario, Canada, August 9, 1856. After attending the public
schools of Spencerville and Prescott, Ont., he entered the medical department of
McGill University at Montreal, being graduated therefrom M.D.,C.M., in the spring
of 1879. He then served two years as house surgeon in the Montreal General Hos131




pital. Early in 1881 he went to Europe,, here he studied in London, Edinburgh
and Paris for another year, returning to America in 1882 and at once located for
practice in Detroit, Mich., which city has ever since been his home. Since 1892 Dr.
Imrie has been consulting physician to the Wayne County (Mich.) Home for the
Poor; and for the past two years has served as consulting physician to the Detroit
Board of Health. He is a member of the Michigan State Medical Society; American
Medical Association; Detroit Medical and Library Association; Detroit Gynccological
Society; American Microscopical Society; National Public Health Association;
Wayne County Medical Society; and Montreal Medico Chirurgical Society. He is
also a member of the Detroit Club; Harmonie Society of Detroit; and A.O.U. W., of
which he has been deputy grand medical examiner since 1896. In 1897 Dr. Imrie
went as a delegate from the Michigan State Medical Society to the twelfth International Medical Congress, which convened at Moscow, Russia, August 19 to 26, inclusive. In 1882 he married Isabella McLaren Buntin of Montreal, Canada, and they
have had three children, two of whom survive, Mary Isabella and Walter McLaren.
Jeffries, Edward J., son of John and Mary (Sullivan) Jeffries, was born at Detroit,
Mich., November 17, 1864. He was educated in the public schools of Carlton, Mich.,
where his parents removed in 1866. He learned the printer's trade in the rooms of
the Post & Tribune Co. at Detroit, and continued in the employ of the Post
& Tribune until 1885. In the autumn of that year he entered the law department of the University of Michigan, studying during the winter months and
the balance of the year plying his trade as printer. In the spring of 1887 he left the
university and was at once admitted to the bar at Detroit. From 1887 to 1889 he
was associated with Hon. Henry M. Cheever in his practice of law at Detroit and
during the ensuing four years was engaged in the newspaper business at Spokane
Falls and Seattle, Washington. Since 1893 Mr. Jeffries has practiced his profession
continuously at Detroit. In 1887 he married Minnie Stott, and they have two children: Lola G. I., and Lola C. R.
Jenks, Harrison Darling, A. M., M. D., son of Henry B. and Mary E. (Darling)
Jenks, and nephew of Dr. Edward W. Jenks of I)etroit, Mich., was born at Warsaw,
Mich., October 14, 1867. His maternal ancestors emigrated from New England and
very early in the history of his native town became thoroughly identified with its interests. Here he lived the greater part of his life until he left for college in 1886.
He was graduated from its High School in 1885 and in the autumn of the following
year he entered Harvard College at Cambridge, Mass. In June, 1890, he received
the degree of Bachelor of Arts from this institution. In October of 1890 he entered
the Medical Department of the University of Michigan where he stayed one year.
He then went to the Harvard Medical School. In 1894 he received the degree of
Doctor of Medicine and Master of Arts from Harvard University. He took a hospital course of one year as resident physician to the Children's Hospital, Boston;
and later the regular service as house physician to the Boston Lying-In Hospital.
Dr. Jenks located permanently in Detroit in June, 189.. HIe was lecturer in midwifery at the Michigan College of Medicine and Surgery for two years, resigning in
July, 1897. He is at present secretary of the I)etroit Academy of Medicine, memnber
of the Detroit Medical and Library Association and of the Michigan State Medical
Society.


1 32




Joncas, Edmund, B. A, lawyer, son of Lazarus and Julia (Lebrum) Joncas, was
born in the town of Montmagny, Lower Canada, March 17, 1862, and is of French
parentage. He was educated in Quebec Seminary and Laval University at Quebec,
graduating from the latter institution in 1882. In the year 1884 he removed to Detroit, Mich., where he studied law in the offices of Atkinson & Atkinson, and Weeks
& Randall, being admitted to the bar in 1888. Since then Mr. Joncas has practiced
his profession continuously at l)etroit with success. He is a scholarly gentleman
and an able lawyer and has won for himself honorable standing among his associates
at the bar. Aside from his legal work, Mr. Joncas devotes considerable time to
journalism, being an almost regular contributor to the Detroit daily newspapers and
the French newspapers of both the United States and Canada; his articles bearing
principally on political economy and the general topics of the day. I-Ie is a staunch
Democrat, a member of the Detroit and Wayne County Bar Associations; Fellowcraft Club of Detroit; and Classique Fraternity (class of '82) of Laval University.
Kennedy, Johnston B., M. D., son of Johnston and Annie (Little) Kennedy, was
born near Brampton, Peel county, Ontario, May 8, 1858. Obtaining a substantial education in the public schools and the Brampton Grammar School, Dr. Kennedy entered
Ontario College of Pharmacy in 1876, from which he was graduated in 1879, and in that
year opened a drug store at Brampton, the firm taking the title of Bannister & Kennedy. The business wascontinued until 1881 when Dr. Kennedy sold his interest and
entered Trinity College, Toronto, where he studied three years. He removed to Boston, Mass., remaining there a few months and then came to Detroit, where he entered I)etroit College of Medicine, completing his medical course and graduating in
the spring of 1885. Soon after entering private practice Dr. Kennedy was appointed
surgeon for the Michigan Peninsular Car Co., retaining that position ever since. In
1891 he was appointed county physician for a term of two years, performing excellent service and giving expert testimony in several celebrated murder trials' since
that time he has frequently been called to give expert testimony in celebrated cases
before the courts. Dr. Kennedy is medical director for the Preferred Accident Association of Detroit; medical representative for the Employers' Liability Assurance
Corporation of London, Eng.; director of the Home Building and Loan Association;
director of the Brilliant City Brewing Co. of Findlay, Ohio, and president of the
Wayne County Board of U. S. Pension Examining Surgeons. He is a member and
past master of Corinthian Lodge, F. & A. M.; a member of Damascus Commandery,
Knights Templar; and medical examiner for the A. O. U. W. June 3, 1885, he married Jessie Young of Vittoria, Ontario, and they have three children: Charles S., William Y. and Frederick J.
Kinney, Overton L, son of Abram S. and Elizabeth (Swayze) Kinney, was born at
Livonia, N. Y., May 28, 1852. He attended public school until thirteen years of age
at Detroit, Mich., whither his parents had removed. He began his business career
as a clerk in the office of the Daily Advertiser-Tribune at Detroit, and in less than
a year's time he was subscription clerk of that paper and later bookkeeper and cashier, and became in 1872 one of the proprietors, and in 1879 he sold out his interest
and retired. In February, 1879, he established an advertising bureau and carried
on the business successfully until the autumn of the same year, when he was elected
as school inspector for the First ward of Detroit for a term of two years. In 1881 he
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was appointed an oil inspector of Detroit, by Gov. Josiah Begole, -and held that office
for two years and a half. In the spring of 1884 Mr. Kinney was appointed as clerk
of the justice's court and after a service of four years was elected a justice of the
peace. While occupying that position he commenced the study of law in the office
of James A. Atkinson at Detroit, and was admitted to the bar on March 81, 1893.
Since that time he has practiced his profession continuously and successfully. For
a few months he was associated with Mr. Walter Ross, and later with Mr. W. E.
Baubie, which continued until 1895. He makes a specialty of commercial law. Mr.
Kinney is a member of the Wayne County Bar Association; of the Detroit Bar Association; of the Royal Arcanum (McGreggor Council No. 85); and of the National
Union (Cadillac Council No. 19). He was married, in 1874, to Emma Hart, who
passed away in 1887, leaving him three children, two of whom survive: Overton
L., jr., a clerk in the assistant general passenger and ticket agent's office of the
Grank Trunk Railway system; and Guy B., buyer for the Farrand, Williams &
Clark Drug Company of Detroit.
Kiskadden, Harry S., M. D., son of Alexander and Elizabeth (Williams) Kiskadden, was born at Upper Sandusky, Ohio, March 25, 1857. He is of Scotch-Irish
parentage on his father's side of the house, his grandfather having come to America
from Belfast, Ireland, in 1791; first settling in Pennsylvania, coming to Ohio in 1818,
making the trip down to Marietta in a flat boat, and subsequently locating in Chillicothe. On his grandmother's side he is related to the Ewings of Ohio. Elizabeth Williams Kiskadden was also a native of the Buckeye State, her parents being among
the early settlers of Richland county. H. S. Kiskadden spent his early life in Ohio,
Indiana, Illinois and Kansas, living in Atkinson City during the time his father was
engaged in the wholesale business in Denver, Colo., and in the freighting business
between the Missouri River and the mountains, before the days of railroads west of
the Missouri. The greater part of his boyhood life was passed on a stock farm in
Illinois, where he spent a large part of each year in the saddle. He was educated
in the public schools of Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, taking a two years' course at the
Northern Indiana Normal School, and then putting in three years at Ashkum, Ill.,
with his preceptor, the late Dr. L. H. Mason; and graduated in 1885 from the College
of Physicians and Surgeons of Chicago, Ill. During his college course he was associated with, and received special instructions from the late Urs. Charles Warrington
Earle and A. Reeves Jackson. After completing his college course Dr. Kiskadden
spent two years in Toledo, Ohio, coming to Detroit in 1887. He has built up for
himself a large and lucrative practice and is prominent and popular in both social and
professional circles. His practice is limited to rectal surgery to which he has devoted his entire professional time since locating in Detroit. In politics the doctor
has always been a Republican, though since coming to Detroit he has taken no very
active part in political affairs. He is a member of the Michigan Club, the Wayne
Club, of Corinthian Lodge No. 241, F. & A. M., and of Monroe Chapter, R. A. M.
In religion he is a Protestant, being a member of the First Congregational church;
and is especially interested in city missionary, Sunday school and Y. M. C. A. work.
He has always taken a lively interest in educational matters, especially in the public
schools, and is a strong advocate of Manual Training as a part of the educational
work of our city schools. In September, 1887, Dr. Kiskadden was married to Sarah
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Josephine White, the daughter of an old and historic Quaker family of Richmond,
Ind.; they have two sons: Donald S. and Cameron H.
George C. Langdon, son of Amon W. and Adelaide (Tracy) Langdon, born April
9, 1833, in Geneva, N. Y. Mr. Langdon attended the public schools of Geneva until
1841, when he was placed in the private school of Dr. Ernst at Batavia, N. Y., which
he left in 1850 to enter that of Dr. Hart at Farmington, Conn. In 1852 Mr. Langdon
began his business career as an employee of Lord, Warner & Salter of New York,
wholesale dealers in dry goods. In the spring of 1854 he removed to Flint, Mich.,
and engaged in farming until 1856, when he came to Detroit and entered Gregory's
Commercial College. In the fall of 1856 he accepted the position of bookkeeper with
the Grant Smelting Works, Springwells, which he left to enter the employ of S. H.
Ives & Son, bankers. In 1860 he formed a partnership with Mr. G. Carey, under
the firm name of Carey & Langdon, and engaged in dealing in flour and grain. Mr.
Carey severed his connection in 1862 and the firm was changed to Langdon & Wooley.
In 1864, in connection with Mr. N. G. Williams, he purchased Duncan's Central
Brewery, which they conducted until 1871. In 1871 Mr. Langdon bought the Duncan Malt House and engaged in the malting business until 1891. He was elected
mayor of the city in 1878 and served one term, besides occupying other positions of
trust. During his term as mayor the city purchased Belle Isle for a public park.
In 1859 Mr. Langdon married Fannie Vallee of Detroit, who died in 1888. He has
two children, Ella and Bessie M. Langdon.
Lamed, Charles Pierpont, son of Sylvester and Ellen S., daughter of Charles
Edwards Lester, was born in Detroit, September 30, 1863. Mr. Lamed received his
early education in Patterson's School, entering the public schools from there, and
remaining three years in the Detroit High School. Ill health compelled the cessation
of studies for some time, and he then began the study of law in the office of his
father, from where he was admitted to the bar, in December, 1885. He entered into partnership with his father, and continued the partnership until 1891, when he
took an active part in real estate speculation. Up to the present time Mr. Lamed
has devoted his attention to the practice of his profession, but principally to the management of his personal real estate and business ventures. On March 30, 1892, Mr.
Lamed married Lillie E., daughter of Clark J. Whitney, of Detroit, Mich.
Lau, George H., D. D. S., son of Hezekiah and Catherine (Hollinger) Lau, was
born on a farm in York county, near Abbottstown, Pa., December 1, 1866. Until
fifteen years of age he worked on the home farm, attending district school in the
winter months. In 1881 he removed with his parents to New Oxford, Pa, where he
attended school for fourteen months, and after passing a rigid examination taught
for one term in the schools of Adams county. From 1883 to 1885 he canvassed for
books and made considerable money. In the latter year he took up the shoemaker's
trade, and after becoming expert on hand work was offered a position with the
Hanover (Pa.) Shoe Company, and served that company until 1893 as foreman of
their cutting department. In 1893 Mr. Lau removed to Detroit, Mich., and entered
the dental department of the Detroit College of Medicine, being graduated D. D. S.
in June, 1896. Since that time he has practiced his profession continuously and
with success at Detroit.


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Lee, John, jr., M. D., son of John and Catherine (Doran) Lee, was born in Detroit,
Mich., February 13, 1869. He attended the public schools and High School and in 1887
entered the Detroit College of Medicine, from which he was graduated in 1890 with
the degree of M. D. Directly following his graduation he was made surgeon-incharge of the down town branch of Harper Hospital at Detroit, retaining that position until June, 1891. Since that time he has been assistant to Dr. Edmund A.
Chapoton of Detroit, also enjoying a growing private practice. He is a member of
the Michigan State Medical Society, and of the Detroit Medical and Library Association. Dr. Lee was for three years lecturer on the practice of medicine in the
Detroit College of Medicine, and is now lecturer on electro-therapeutics and clinical
assistant to the chair of medicine in that institution.
Lightner, Clarence A., was born in Binghamton, N. Y., January 24, 1862, a son of
Rev. Milton C. Lightner, who settled in Detroit in 1863. He was educated in the
Detroit public schools and later at Ann Arbor, where he was graduated in 1883 with
the degree of B. A. He at once returned to Detroit and entered the office of Hon.
Alfred Russell, where he remained until the following year. In 1886 he was admitted to the bar and practiced his profession alone until 1890, when he formed a
partnership with James T. Keena, which partnership still exists. Since 1893 Mr.
Lightner has been lecturer on medical jurisprudence in the Detroit College of Medicine. In 1892 he married Frances B. McGraw of Detroit, and they have one son,
Theodore.
Little, Charles H., son of Thomas and Maria Little, was born in Detroit, Mich.,
March 14, 1839. He was educated in the public schools and the private school conducted by William D. Cochran. In 1856 he was employed by F. B. Sibley, dealer in
building material and remained as an employee for ten years, when he secured an
interest in the business, the firm taking the name of F. B. Sibley & Co. In the year
1887 Mr. Little retired from the concern. During October of the same year he purchased his old business and has retained it since. During the war he was enrolled
in the State militia, but was not called on for service. He is a member of Michigan
Sovereign Consistory of the Masonic order. lie is now president and treasurer of
the C. H. Little Co., and also president and treasurer of the Ray Chemical Co., all
of Detroit. In 1869 he married Fannie Wise of Mt. Clemens, and they have three
children. Ida M., Lillia J. and Clara M.
McAlpine, William W., son of Samuel F. and Mary (Whitman) MeAlpine, was born
in Batavia, N. Y., February 22, 1853. Mr. McAlpine received his primary education
in the public schools of Batavia, which he attended until 1867, when he removed with
his mother to Midland, Mich. The following two years he was employed in a shingle
mill and in the fall of 1870 removed to East Saginaw where he was placed in a private school, remaining until 1871, when he entered the employ of C. E. & G. Will
Ball, bankers, of that city. He remained but a short time in this place, resigning to
accept a situation in the office of the county treasurer. In 1875 he was appointed
deputy county treasurer and served in that capacity until 1880, when he removed to
Detroit and entered the employ of Snedicor & Hathaway, manufacturers of boots
and shoes. From 1880 until 1888 he was employed as a traveling salesman, next
promoted to the position of buyer and later became a partner in the business. In
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1892 he severed his connection with his former employers and established with others
the business of the McAlpine Shoe Company at Highland Park, and was made treasurer and manager, filling this position until 1894. In 1896, with B. H. Edwards and
others, he established the Detroit Furnace & Heater Company, of which he is at
present secretary and treasurer, and Mr. Edwards president. He is a member of
Damascus Commandery; Moslem Temple, Nobles of the Mystic Shrine; Union Lodge,
F. & A. M.; King Cyrus Chapter, and the Michigan Commercial Travelers' Association. Mr. McAlpine was married, September 6, 1883, to Miss Mary B. McDougall
of Niagara county, N. Y. They have a family of four children, Lois C., Wilbur S.,
Roy and Ruth McAlpine.
McDonald, Charles S., son of Benjamin F. and Maria (Duncan) McDonald, was
born in Macomb county, Mich.; was graduated from the Ann Arbor (Mich.) High
School in 1871, and spent the following two years in the literary department of the
University of Michigan. In 1875 he went to Europe, where he was a student in
Goettingen University under the preceptorship of the famous professors, Soetheer,
R. von Jhering and Lotze.  His studies were chiefly in civil law, history and
political economy. In October, 1877, he returned to the United States and from
1880 to 1882 was a student in the Boston (Mass.) libraries. Mr. McDonald located in
Detroit, Mich., in 1886 and has since practiced his profession of law continuously in
that city, and has won for himself an honorable position at the bar and the high
esteem of his fellow citizens. He is a member of the Psi Upsilon fraternity and of
the Lake St. Clair Fishing and Shooting Club; Detroit and Michigan Clubs. He
possesses one of the finest private libraries in Detroit, which numbers among its
volumes many invaluable works. Mr. McDonald is unmarried.
McKay, James B., son of James and Mary McClellan McKay, was born in the town
of Limavady, County of Londonderry, in the north of Ireland, June 9, 1848, and
comes of good old Scotch-Irish stock. As a boy he was educated in the Londonderry
private schools. Temple Moyle Seminary and Foyle College, Londonderry, where he
passed his examinations, winning several prizes. In the spring of 1868 he emigrated
to America, coming at once to friends near Detroit, which city has ever since been
his home. For several years he was engaged in mercantile pursuits and for the past
twenty-five years has been one of Detroit's most energetic and successful business
men. For a long period he has given his undivided attention to real estate matters
and is now recognized as one of the best judges of property values in Detroit. He
began by purchasing real estate in and about the city of Detroit on his own account
and his dealings have been both extensive and successful. Mr. McKay is a thirtysecond degree Mason and a member of the Mystic Shrine. He is a director in the
Dime Savings Bank, a trustee of Westminster Presbyterian church, a member of the
Detroit Club, the Old Club, the Bankers' Club, Fellowcraft Club, and belongs to
several other shooting clubs through the State, as he is extremely fond of outdoor
sports and in the shooting season devotes a good portion of his time in the field. In
politics he is a staunch Republicun  He is a member of the Board of Esttmates of
the city of Detroit, having been elected thereto for four consecutive terms. Mr. McKay was married early in life to Miss Matilda Wilson, an old schoolmate of his.
They are the parents of one daughter, Mary Isabella.
McVicar, John, commissioner of Public Works of Detroit, came of Highland Scotch
137




stock and is fifty four years old. He was educated in the Canadian common schools,
came to the United States in 1860, and was finishing an apprenticeship to the printer's trade in the city of New York when the war broke out. To the call for three
month's troops, early in 1861, he responded by signing the roll of the 12th New York
Militia, whose ranks had been ordered recruited to the maximum, to leave the following Sunday morning for Washington. When the captain of the company whose
roll he had signed called his men together that Sunday morning, he found nearly
six times as many as he required, and tossing from his hat a number of rosettes,
announced that each man who got one could go, but the others would have to wait
until later. The scramble that followed proved a regular rough-and-tumble row,
in which young McVicar and a printer chum named Mclntosh were both too slight
to capture one of the coveted rosettes. When the men were drawn up in line in the
street below, the two young typos fell in with the rest to receive canteens, blankets,
and haversacks; but as they had no rosette the distributors of these articles hustled
them out with the announcement that they would have to wait till next week-which
call never came. Later, in the fall of 1861, while employed in the office of the Jefferson County Union, at Watertown, N. Y., he enlisted in the Ira Harris Guards (5th
and 6th N. Y. Cavalry), and while his discharge is from the 5th N. Y. Cavalry, he
was for several months with the 6th, and is a member of the Veteran Association of
the last named regiment. Returning from the army to Rochester, N. Y., he worked
as a journeyman on the Rochester Evening Express. After a few months he went
to Chicago and worked on the Post; also for a short time on the Peoria (Ill.) Mail,
again in Chicago, and thence removed to Detroit, Mich., in 1864, which has ever
since been his home, although employed for a few months in the Michigan State
printing office, during the session of 1871, as a compositor and proof-reader, and in
a similar capacity for a brief period early in 1872 on the New York World and Rochester (N. Y.) Democrat and Chronicle. In Detroit he was employed at book, job and
newspaper work in various offices as a journeyman for a year or more, as foreman
of the Commercial Advertiser five years, as proof-reader for nearly another year,
and in 1872 became editor of the Commercial Advertiser, conducting it as a family
and general newspaper successfully for six years, its circulation increasing from 24,000 to 41,000 during that time. He then resigned and joined the staff of the Detroit
Evening News, within three months becoming its managing editor, remaining as
such for ten years, where he gave eminently satisfactory service. Owing to a disagreement with the directors in 1888, Mr. McVicar resigned from the News, refusing
to remain at increased salary. He went on the paper when its circulation was about
17,00() and left it with over 40,000 daily circulation-unprecedented in Detroit. About
the time he quit the News the State printer, Mr. D. D. Thorp, was in search of a
manager for the State printing house and Lansing Republican. He sought John
McVicar, who looked the ground over and took hold of the work in l)ecember, 1888.
The newspaper was raised in tone and given new life, and as soon as the Republicans
of Lansing began to see the change for the better subscribers increased, as did also
advertising patronage at better rates; and when the office was on a good paying
basis Mr. McVicar, in 1890, resigned against the earnest protest of Mr. Thorp, but
not until he had reconstructed the business satisfactorily to that gentleman. Mr.
McVicar then decided to take a much-needed rest, and H-azen S. Piugree having
been elected mayor of Detroit, Mr. MIeVicar spent his recreation taking notes of the
138




progress, or attempts at progress, being made. Finally Mr. Thorp, for whom he
had so successfully managed the State printing office, and who was an intimate friend
of Mr. Pingree, recommended the latter the get McVicar into his official family.
The public works department needed thorough overhauling and the most necessary
point was deemed to be through the secretaryship. As a result Mr. McVicar was
appointed secretary of public works, September 1, 1890, and on June 30, 1891, published his first report for the board. The press took it up, pronounced it "fearless,"
and commended its comments and recommendations. A vacancy occurred on the
board by the resignation of one of the three members, and Mayor Pingree nominated
John McVicar as commissioner, he entering upon his duties September 1, 1891.
Bringing thereto the same energy of purpose, honesty and force of character hitherto exhibited as secretary, he took the lead on the board, the other two members
supporting his every move and choosing him president in January following at the
annual meeting. For years Mayor Pingree relied upon him asupon few others for
the putting into effect of the reforms he was advocating. His term expired in January, 1898, and he has since gone into contracting. Mr. McVicar's record as a member of the Typographical Union is an exceptionally good one. Within three years
after his settling in Detroit he was chosen delegate to the session of the National
Typographical Union at Memphis, Tenn., in 1867, and did good service. He was
again elected delegate from Detroit to the session at Albany, N. Y., in 1869, and has
been otherwise honored in that connection, being chosen president of the Inter
national body at Philadelphia in 1876. Mr. McVicar is the author of a book entitled
" Origin and Progress of the Typographical Union," published in January, 1892.
It is a historical r6sume of the organization from its beginning in 1850 to the close of
1891, and the only work of the kind ever published. Mr. McVicar is a man of kindly
disposition, but firm of purpose; a good business man, whose decisions are prompt
and guided by strict ideas of right; a man who can say " no " when he means ''no,"
though ever open to conviction when shown to be wrong; and withal, a man of unswerving integrity, whose honesty has never been impugned.
Marr, Maurice R., son of Maurice and Jane (Diack) Marr, was born in Detroit,
Mich., December 27, 1860. His education was acquired in the Detroit public schools
and he was graduated from the High School in 1880. Ambitious to become a business man, at the age of ten years Mr. Marr left school much against the wishes of
his parents and for three years engaged as parcel and office boy in the dry goods
establishment of Campbell, Linn & Co. at Detroit, where he gained his first practical
experience, Following his graduation from the High School in 1880, he received
private instruction in bookkeeping and general business methods and for thirteen
years he acted as bookkeeper and office manager for the firm of James Lowrie &
Sons, dry goods merchants. On July 8, 1893, in company with his brother-in-law,
Mr. George Taylor, he purchased the stock and good will of his employers, and under the style of Marr & Taylor established their present well known business as importers and retailers of staple and fancy dry goods. Since July 1, 1895, Mr. Marr has
been a member of the Detroit Board of Education, his term of office expiring on the
corresponding date of 1899. He is a member of the Alger Republican Club; of the
order of Free and Accepted Masons: K. P.; K. M.; and numerous other social and
fraternal organizations. He is a public spirited citizen, a business man of fine ability


139




and enjoys the unqualified esteem of all who have business or other dealings with
him. May 21, 1884, Mr. Marr married Phoebe E. Shelley of New York city, and
they have a family of four children: Louise E., Helen G., Maurice S. and Evelyn G.
Molony, Hon. John B., collector of customs for the port of Detroit, was born at
Belvidere, Ill., August 20, 1849, a son of the late William P. Molony, who was born
in the State of New Hampshire. John B. was educated in the public schools, at Ann
Arbor University and at Bishop's College at Lenoxville, Ontario, Can. In 1865 he
settled in Detroit, Mich., but later took up farming near Belvidere, Ill. In 1871 he
entered the employ of Backus Bros., lumbermen of Detroit, remaining with them
until 1875, when he was appointed deputy clerk of the Superior Court, later becoming clerk of that court. In 1884 he was appointed colector of internal revenue for
the Eastern district of Michigan, and in 1891 was made controller of the city of Detroit; having resigned to engage in the real estate business, he was appointed collector of customs of the port of Detroit by President Cleveland in 1893. Mr. Molony
served for four years with great distinction as chairman of the Democratic city committee of Detroit, also as chairman of the First District Congressional Committee.
During the ten years he was at the head of the party he did not lose a campaign.
When he assumed the former office the city was controlled by the Republicans, but
during' his chairmanship and largely through his instrumentality, the political aspect
of the municipality was radically changed, the Democratic party gaining control in
all branches of the government. Mr. Molony was also for two years a member of
the Democratic Central Committee.  Upon being appointed collector of internal
revenue he resigned as chairman of the Democratic City Committee, naming John J.
Enright as his successor. Mr. Molony is a member of Lake St. Clair Fishing and
Shooting Club; the Patriotic Sons of the American Revolution; and Detroit Lodge
No. 34, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks; he is an Odd Fellow and Knight
of Pythias. He is held in the highest esteem by the residents of Detroit for the integrity which he has exhibited in all his undertakings.
Navin, Thomas J., is a native of Michigan, and was born at Adrian, December
28, 1854. His education was obtained in the public schools of his native town; at St.
Francis Seminary, Milwaukee, Wis., and at St. John's College, Prairie du Chien,
Wis. For two years he was a fireman for the Lake Shore Railroad Company. He
studied law in the office of Geddes & Miller at Adrian, Mich., and located for practice in that town, after being admitted to the bar in 1876. In 1891 Mr. Navin opened
an office in Detroit, whpre he has since practiced his profession continuously. In
1895 he formed a partnership with Patrick J. Sheahan, ex-police justice of Detroit.
Mr. Navin is a member of the B.P.O.E. and of K. of P. of Detroit. He married Ida
Gray of Sarnia, Canada, and they have had two children, one of whom survives,
Thomas J., jr.
Noah, Hon. Frank A., son of Charles and Frances (Beirle) Noah, was born at
Rieneck (province of Baden), Germany, December 3, 1841. He emigrated with his
parents to America in 1849, settling in Ietroit, Mich., where he attended the public
and parochial schools. He later took a course in Bryant & Stratton's Business College from which he was graduated in 1865. In 1871 he was appointed as clerk of
the Police Court of Detroit, and during his six years' service in that positian made a


140




close study of the law. In the spring of 1877 he entered the office of Hon. John G.
Hawley, where he remained until admitted to the bar in the autumn of the same
year. In 1878 he was elected to the Legislature from Detroit, taking his seat on
January 1, 1879, and serving in that body until January 1, 1881. From January 4,
1893, to the corresponding date in the following year he was a member of the Board
of Estimates of Detroit. Mr. Noah has practiced his profession continuously in Detroit since 1877, and has met with marked success. He was one of the organizers of
the City Savings Bank of Detroit, and has been a director of that institution ever
since. He was a director of the Michigan Club for five years and is a member of the
Detroit Yacht Club. In 1866 he married Christina Schmitt, a native of Germany,
and they had nine children, four of whom survive: Charles W., who is a member
of the firm of Hunt, Roehrig & Noah, one of the leading hardware firms of Detroit;
Frederick G., who is bookkeeper for the Detroit Water Commissioners; Clara B. and
Edward P.
Osborn, Francis C., son of Ozias Osborn, was born at Bridgeport, N. Y., Decem10, 1856. He attended the pub!:c schools of his native town and after a preparatory
course in the Cazenovia (N. Y.) Seminary he entered the Syracuse (N. Y.) University, from which he was graduated with honors in 1835. During the ensuing four
years he was in the employ of Ginn & Co. (text-book publishers) of Boston, Mass.,
part of the time in charge of their Chicago office and the balance of the time as
traveling representative, visiting the high schools and colleges throughout Illinois,
Indiana and Michigan. In 1889 he located in Detroit, Mich., where he secured the
necessary capital to perfect his invention of the Osborn Cash Register, which has
but recently been placed on the market, and which has already won for him an enviable reputation as an inventor. For the purpose of manufacturing the Osborn register, a stock company was formed, styled the Osborn Cash Register Co. (Limited), of
which Mr. Osborn is secretary. In 1890 he married Laura A. Freele of Huntington,
Ind., and they have three children: Ruth, Laura A. and Francis C., jr.
Oster, Rev. Joseph, C. S. Sp., son of John Oster and Mary Acker, was born in
Berstheim, Alsace, France, April 19, 1846. His early education was received in the
parochial schools of Hochstett, Alsace, where his parents removed in 1851. In 1860
he entered the college of St. Hippolyte, remaining until 1862, when he removed to
Langomet, Brittany, continuing his studies at the college of Notre Dame, from which
he was graduated in 1866. In the fall of that year he entered the seminary of Chevilly, near Paris, where he completed his studies in philosophy and theology in 1870.
Rev. Mr. Oster was ordained December 17, 1870, and assigned as teacher of French
and Latin in Black Rock College, Dublin, Ireland. In 1874 he was transferred to
the college of St. Pierre Miquelon, and in 1876 received the appointment of rector
of the college, which position he held until 1890, at which time he was appointed
provincial of the C. S. Sp. for the United States. In 1897 he was assigned to the
pastorate of St. Joachim's church, Detroit, where he is still retained.
Partridge, Levi W., son of John and Harriet (Wheeler) Partridge, was born in
Pittsfield, Mass., October 18, 1851; is a descendant of the old Puritan stock, his ancestor having settled in Hartford in the year 1644; is a direct descendant of Col.
Samuel Partridge of Hatfield, Mass., who was a representative of the Colonies in


141




1685-86, colonel of a regiment, judge of Probate Court, and one of His Majesty's
Council; and after the death of Col. Pynchon, in 1703, "was the most important
man in the Province." Mr. Partridge acquired his education in the public schools
of his native place, which he attended until the age of fourteen. After a short clerkship in a general store at Great Barrington, Mass., and another at Lee, Mass., he
removed to New York city, and entered the employ of Bartlett, Berry & Co., wholesale dealers in dress goods. In 1871 he accepted a position with Kellogg, Hubbard
& Co., wholesale dealers in notions, with whom he remained until their failure in
1872, when he secured a position with Adriance, Robbins & Co., general dry goods.
In 1873 he entered the employ of Tefft, Griswold & Co., where he remained until
1880, when he removed to Detroit and engaged to take charge of the carpet department of Metcalf Bros. & Co. On the formation of The Metcalf Bros. Co., in 1884,
Mr. Partridge was elected vice president and retained the position until May 1, 1887,
when he resigned to form the firm of Gamble & Partridge. In 1893 he engaged in
his present business, dealing in real estate and mining properties, in which he has
been successful. He is a member of Damascus Commandery, Knights Templar, a
director of the Michigan Club and the Chamber of Commerce, and president of the
Scramble Gold Mining Company of Ontario, Canada. May 27, 1885, Mr. Partridge
married Carrie L. Hinman of Battle Creek, Mich., and they have three children,
Henry H., James G. and Edith M.
Patterson, Edward H., son of Hamilton E. and Susan (Martin) Patterson, was
born in Detroit, Mich., January 1, 1848  He was educated in the public schools of
Detroit, and at the age of seventeen entered the employ of the Detroit and Cleveland Steamboat Co., with whom he remained for seventeen years. He went in as
an assistant clerk and resigned from the service of that company in 1882, having
risen to the position of chief clerk, to engage in the undertaking and embalming
business. He has built up an extensive and lucrative business. In 1892 he was
elected alderman of the Fourth ward and his record in the Council was of such a
high character that he was elected for three consecutive terms with ever increasing
majorities. Mr. Patterson is a member of both York and Scottish Rite Masons; the
Shrine; Elks; Knights of Pythias; Knights of Khorassin; Michigan Republican
Club; Alger Republican Club, and many fraternal insurance societies. In 1871 he
married Jane A. Linn of Detroit. They have had three children, two of whom survive: Helen L. and Susan F.
Peck, Edward T.. son of Levi and Harriett (Farnum) Peck, was born in Girard,
Erie county, Pa., October 3, 1839. At the age of four he removed with his parents
to Mottville, Mich. His father was a Methodist minister and farmer, and Mr. Peck
assisted his father with his farm work, except three months of each year, when he
attended the district school. In 1856 he removed with his parents to Cleveland, Ohio,
where he became an apprentice to ship carpentering. Mr. Peck completed and followed his trade until 1872, although he was in the mean time connected with the
D)elaware & Hudson Canal for two years. In 1872 he organized the company of
Q2uelos & Peck, ship builders at Black River, Ohio (now Lorain), and was elected a
member of the city council the same year. In 1879 he disposed of his interest to accept the position of superintendent of the Clark Dry Dock Co. of Detroit, and served
that concern sixteen years. In 1895 he w'as engaged as superintendent by the De142




troit Dry Dock Co., and retains that position at present. Aside from these duties he
is the largest owner and general manager of the Vulcan Transportation Co., which
owns and controls four large vessels. Mr. Peck was married in 1866, his wife dying
in 1876, leaving two sons, Lewis M. and William L. In 1879 he married Sarah M. *
Wadsworth of Berea, Ohio, and they have two children: Sarah S. and Theadore W.
Pitkin, Caleb S., son of Elnathan and Lucy (Seymour) Pitkin, born January 13,
1854, in Ypsilanti, Mich, Mr. Pitkin's early education was acquired at the Ypsilanti
Seminary, which he attended until the age of twelve. In 1866 he entered the employ of the Ypsilanti Commercial, with which he was connected as printer and foreman until 1872, when he associated himself with Orville E. Hoyt, leasing the property, which they conducted for some time thereafter. In March, 1880, he removed
to Detroit and was connected with different printing firms and daily papers of the
city until 1894, when he was appointed to a clerkship in the construction department
of the city water works. Mr. Pitkin remained in this position until July 1, 1897, when
he was appointed to his present office, that of chief clerk of the supervisor's office,
Board of Education. In 1893 he was elected a member of the Board of Education
for a term of four years. During the first three years of his term he held the chairmanship of the building committee, serving in this capacity while the Central High
School was being erected. In 1896 he was unanimously elected to the presidency of
the board. Mr. Pitkin is a member of the Knights of Pythias, I. O. O. F., and the
Maccabees. He was married July 7, 1874, to Lucy T., daughter of John Boughton
of East Bloomfield, N. Y. They have three children: Walter B., Grace and Edith I.
Pitkin.
Pitts, Alvah Grenelle, was born in Pittsburg, Shiawassee county, Mich., February
8, 1863. His grandfathers, Moses Pitts and John S. Grenelle, were among the very
early settlers of Michigan, the former having migrated from Vermont, and the latter
from New York. Moses Pitts was of English descent, belonging to the same family
as James Pitts, a Boston merchant, prominent there during the opening scenes of
the war of Independence. The Grenelle family is of French origin. Mr. Pitts's
father was a farmer and also postmaster at Pittsburg from the time of Lincoln until
1885. Alvah G. Pitts's education began in the most unpretentious of Michigan country
schools and from this school he was admitted directly to the High School at Owosso,
at the age of eleven. From this he was graduated in 1879, having been kept at
home one year in the mean time by his parents, who feared he was devoting himself too closely to books. For the same reason they did not allow him to enter college for two years after leaving the High School. During this interval he taught in
country schools. He entered the University of Michigan in 1881, at the age of
eighteen, and was graduated in 1885 with the degree of B.A. He devoted his time
at the university especially to languages and was also prominent in college journalism. In the fall of 1885 he came to Detroit, began at once the study of law and in
January, 1887, was admitted to the bar, which profession he has since followed. In
1894 he married Katharine M. Newell. Mr. Pitts has never taken any part in politics, but has been active in fraternal circles, particularly in Free Masonry and in the
Royal Arcanum, of which latter order he was grand regent of Michigan in 1897.
Prall, William, was born in the city of Paterson, N. J., on the 6th of April, 1858.


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He is the third son of the late Hon. Edwin T. Prall, sometime mayor of Paterson,
and colonel of the Second Regiment, Passaic Brigade, and Rachael Moore Thomson,
his wife. He comes of Dutch stock, being a descendant of Arendt Prall, who settled
in Staten Island in 1660. He was educated as a boy at Edwards Place School,
Stockbridge, Mass., and afterward at the University of Heidelberg, Germany, from
which institution he received the degrees of Master of Arts, and Doctor of Philosophy in 1873. Subsequently he matriculated at Columbia University, New York city,
from which institution he received the degree of LL. B., in 1875. He was admitted
to the New York bar, but afterward took up his residence in his native city and was
admitted as attorney and counselor at law to the bar of New Jersey. Almost immediately he secured a practice, and was engaged in some of the most important
cases that ever came before the bar of the State, among others the celebrated labor
case, of the State vs. Joseph P. McDonnell, et al., editors of the " Labor Standard."
In 1881 Dr. Prall married Lillian porter, daughter of the late Thaddeus Clapp, esq.,
of Pittsfield, Mass. Mrs. Prall died in 1884. In 1883 Dr. Prall was elected to the
Assembly of New Jersey on the Democratic ticket. He took a leading part in what
was called the " Railway Taxation Issue," having charge of the tax bills. Chancellor Runyon appointed him an especial master in chancery, which office he now holds.
He drafted and secured the enactment of the Free Public Library Law, under which
all the free public libraries of New Jersey have been established. Subsequently he
became the first president of the Free Public Library of Paterson, and did much to
make that institution fulfill the requirements of his community. For personal reasons Dr. Prall determined to give up the practice of the law, and to study for Holy
Orders in the Episcopal church. He became a student in the De Lancey Divinity
School, Geneva, N.Y., and at the same time was instructor in Hobart College. In 1886
he was admritted to the diaconate, and in 1887 to the priesthood, by the Bishop of Newark. His first cure was as assistant in St. Paul's parish, Albany, N. Y. He then
became rector of the Church of the Holy Communion, South Orange, N. J., and in
1891 was called from there to St. John's church, Detroit, Mich., one of the largest
and most prominent parishes in the United States. Dr. Prall was a member of the
General Convention of the Episcopal church in 1892, and again in 1895. In 1894 he
was a delegate of the Convention to the Synod of the Church of England in Canada.
Dr. Prall is a preacher of civic righteousness, and his utterances in Detroit have
done much to formulate a social conscience. In 1895 he published a volume of
sermons on "Civic Christianity." In 1892 Hobart College conferred upon him the
degree of S.T.1). In 1897 he married Helen Ames, daughter of the late Hon.
George V. N. Lothrop of Detroit. Dr. Prall is a member of the Holland, the
Huguenot and St. Nicholas Societies of New York, also of the Society of Colonial
Wars, Phi Beta Kappa and Kappa Alpha.
Rayl, Thomas B., son of John and Hannah (Somerville) Rayl, was born in Wooster, Ohio, January 26, 1838. He attended the public schools until fourteen years of
age, then entered the hardware business with which he has ever since been identified. In 1865 he formed a partnership with M. R. Donnelly and as D)onnelly & Rayl
they conducted a large business at Wooster, with a branch store at Salem, Ohio.
In 1871 Mr. Rayl sold out his interest in the business at Wooster and removed to
Detroit, Mich. Later on he formed a partnership with Mr. Dudley W. Smith and


144




under the style of T. B. Rayl & Co. they purchased the stock and good will of Arthur
Glover and established the business which has since passed under the control of a
stock company known as the T. B. Rayl & Co., of which Mr. Rayl is president. He
is a thirty-second degree Mason; a member of the Knights of Honor; Scotch Presbyterian church of Detroit and of the Rushmere Club. In 1864 he married Amelia
A. Davis, who died in 1894, and in 1896 he married Mrs. Jennie Fisher of Detroit.
Raymond, Alonzo C., son of Alonzo B. and Elizabeth (Wyman) Raymond, was
born in Parma, Monroe county, N. Y., May 16, 1847. From Parma Mr. Raymond
wvent to Brockport and entered upon a preparatory course of study at the Brockport
Collegiate Institution. In 1865 he attended the Rochester University, Rochester,
N. Y., and was graduated from there in 1869. Mr. Raymond then returned to Brockport and remained there until 1874, when he removed to Detroit, where he embarked
in the grain and commission business. In 1888 he took up the study of law and was
admitted to the bar shortly after. His first work was before the Interstate Commerce Commission, and in that particular line he has attained a gratifying reputation. Then he was retained to represent the interests of various railroads. In fact,
his legal career has dealt wholly with the Interstate Commerce Commission and railroad matters. Before leaving Brockport, in 1874, Mr. Raymond married Ida M.
Graves, and they have five children: Helen G., Alonzo H., George C., Edwin P. and
Jack K.
Raymond, Charles L., son of Francis Raymond, jr., a manufacturer of and wholesale dealer in cigars, now of St. Louis, Mo., was born in Detroit, Mich., March 23,
1872. He was educated in the public schools of Detroit and at the age of sixteen
entered the employ of Roehm & Son (jewelers) to learn the business. In 1891 he became connected with P. G. Smith's Sons & Co., in the same line of business and remained with that firm as a clerk until 1894. In that year he accepted the position of
special agent for the State of Michigan for the Fidelity & Casualty Co., of New York
(casualty insurance), and one year later resigned that position to become resident
agent at Detroit for the same company. In December, 1897, he was appointed general agent at Detroit for Southern Michigan of the London Guarantee & Accident
Co. Ltd., of London, Eng. In November, 1894, he married Jennie E. Pratt of
Detroit.
Reilly, William E., son of Alexander M. and Jane (Beattie) Reilly, was born in
Detroit, Mich., October 10, 1858. He attended the public schools and was graduated
from the Detroit High School in 1876. He then took a course in Bryant & Stratton's
Business College, after which he spent two years in the insurance office of James A.
Jones. In 1880 he became cashier and bookkeeper for Black & Owen, wholesale
hardware dealers at Detroit, and remained with that firm until 1882, when he was
made assistant general bookkeeper of the Merchants' and Manufacturers' National
Bank of Detroit. In 1883 he was promoted to the position of general bookkeeper
and in 1887 again promoted to the position of assistant cashier, which he retained
until 1894. In that year the M. & M. Bank consolidated with the Preston National
Bank of Detroit and Mr. Reilly resigned his position and entered the note brokerage
business as senior partner of the firm of Reilly & Noble. In July, 1897, he was
appointed to his present position as cashier of the Detroit River Savings Bank, in
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which he is a stockholder. He is a member of the Bankers' Club of Detroit, and
Detroit Boat and Athletic Clubs. He attends the First Congregational church and
politically is a Republican. Mr. Reilly was married in April, 1887, to Carolyn L.
Bigelow of Detroit, and they have three children: Raymond W., Elliot H. and
Leila E.
Robinson, William E., son of Loami and Isabelle E. (Edmunds) Robinson, was
born in Washtenaw county, Mich., September 14, 1845. He acquired his early education in the public schools and later attended the State Normal School at Ypsilanti,
(Mich.) During the early winter months of 1864 and 1865 he taught in the Michigan
public schools, and from 1866 till the autumn of 1870 he taught in the Central Union
School at Ann Arbor. For the next five years Mr. Robinson was engaged in mercantile business, and in 1875 located in Detroit, where he served as principal of the
Bishop School for eleven years. In August, 1986, he was chosen as superintendent
of the Detroit public schools, and ably discharged the duties of that responsible posi
tion for another period of eleven years, his term of office expiring in July, 1897. It
is a noteworthy fact that for fifty years prior to July, 1897, some member of Mr. Robinson's immediate family has been identified in some capacity with the Detroit public
schools. Mr. Robinson holds high honors in the Masonic fraternity, being a member
of Union Lodge No. 3, F. & A. M.; King Cyrus Chapter, R. A. M.; Monroe Council,
R. & S. M.; Michigan Sovereign Consistory; past commander of the Detroit Commandery No. 1, K. T; member of Moslem Temple, A. A. O. N. M. S.; and Royal Order of Scotland. He has been married twice, first in 1867 to Belle Kellogg of Ypsilanti, Mich., who died in 1882, leaving a son, Oscar L.; and his second marriage was
in 1884 to Minnie P. Thorne of Detroit, who has borne him a son, Loren T.
Scripps, James E.-About the middle of the eighteenth century, a Scripps rebuilt
the famous dome and lantern of the Ely Cathedral. One of his sons emigrated to
America in 1791 and settled at Cape Girardeau, Mo. A son of the latter who remained in England published the London Daily Sun and the Literary Gazette, the
latter the pioneer publication of its class in England. A son of his was a bookbinder
in London, and was the father of James Edmund Scripps, the subject of this sketch.
The bookbinder came to America with his family in 1844, landing in Boston after
six weeks on the sea in a sailing vessel. After a long and laborious journey by the
Erie Canal, the great lakes, by wagon and by river, the family finally reached their
destination in southern Illinois in midsummer, and settled on a farm near Rushville,
in Schuyler county. The hard conditions of pioneer life afforded young Scripps but
little opportunity to add to the infant school education he had received in England.
The first year in Illinois, the tenth of his life, was spent entirely in hard labor.
After that until he was fifteen he shared the meagre advantages of a winter school,
while continuing the work during the summer. In spite of the wretchedness of these
opportunities, he was studious enough to have prepared himself for college, which,
however, the limited means of his father did not permit him to attend. At fifteen
he was compelled to take up a man's work on his father's farm, and to finish his own
education by solitary study in the brief intervals of leisure which the hard circumstances of western life at that time afforded him. That he made some progress was
evidenced by the fact that he was chosen to teach a local school before he was a man
in years. This occupied two winters, while he continued his labor on the farm in the
146




summer. Early in 1857, at the age of twenty-two years, he made his way to Chicago,
took a course in a business college, kept books for a lumbering firm for a few months
and then secured employment as a collector, proof-reader and general utility man
on the Chicago Tribune, thus making his advent in the profession in which he has
since attained so extraordinary a success. His industry and capacity soon secured
for him promotion to the post of commercial reporter and marine editor, but the hard
times of the panic of that period compelled a reduction of the staff, and he came to
Detroit the following year and became commercial editor of the Daily Advertiser, to
the duties of which position he soon added those of news editor. At the breaking
out of the war of the Rebellion in 1861 he resigned to enlist in the army, but a
tempting offer of a partnership in the business induced him to return to the Advertiser. In the following year, 1862, he brought about the consolidation of the two
Republican papers of Detroit, the Advertiser, which was a morning paper, and the
Tribune, which was published in the afternoon; became business manager of the
united enterprise and shortly afterwards, managing editor. From that time forward
the business, which had previously languished, became highly successful and continued through the war to pay very substantial dividends  The establishment of a
rival paper, the Daily Post, in 1866, by Senator Chandler and other Republican leaders
who were dissatisfied with the political tone of the Tribune and Advertiser, but
slightly affected the success of the latter, but the rivalry in course of time brought
about internal differences in the management of the older paper, and Mr. Scripps,
in February, 1875, severed his connection, sold a part of his stock and prepared for
the establishment of a newspaper on a new line, without partners to interfere with
the management and without party ties to embarrass its political conduct. On
August 23 of that year the first issue of the Evening News was emitted from the
presses of the Free Press on the corner of Woodbridge and Griswold streets. Such
thorough preparation had been made that over 10,000 copies were printed for actual
subscribers, but the limited press facilities at command, although the best in Detroit
at the time, required the whole afternoon to print the edition and scarcely more than
half the subscribers got their paper. From sheer mechanical inability to supply the
demand the circulation fell off during the first few months to less than half the original number, while the most energetic preparations were being made to install more
modern machinery in a building which was bought on Shelby street opposite the
office of the Daily Post. With installation of the new plant by the following spring,
the circulation quickly advanced again to the original figure, which at the time was
quite double the total circulation of all the other daily papers of Detroit. Within
six months of the issue of the first number the business of the Evening News was on
a paying basis and in one year it was the leading daily paper of Detroit in profits
and influence as well as in circulation. In 1880 its bona fide daily paid circulation of
30,000, was, according to the Federal census of the year, a full half of the total
daily circulation of all the daily papers in the State of Michigan, a position of supremacy in its own province never before or since relatively equaled by any of the
great papers on the planet. From the day Mr. Scripps severed his connection with
the Advertiser and Tribune the business of that concern began to languish and before long was in as bad a condition as that of its rival, the Post. The two were
ultimately consolidated, passed through various ownerships, each more disastrous
than its predecessors, until finally in 1891 the whole property was sold to the Even147




ing News Association, and has since'been conducted in business and political harmony with the Evening News with satisfactory success. The extraordinary success
of the Evening News encouraged similar enterprise elsewhere. In 1878 a paper
called the Press was established on the same model in Cleveland; 1880 saw another
started in St. Louis called the Chronicle; 1881 witnessed the purchase and re-organization of the Post in Cincinnati, which had been struggling in incompetent hands,
and in later years the Scripps family of dayly papers received additions in Covington
and Chicago. All these were manned in chief by persons trained on the staff of the
Detroit Evening News under Mr. Scripps's direction, and are now all flourishing and
influential journals in their respective fields, with a combined circulation that runs
into the hundreds of thousands, and readers who number at least two millions. In
politics Mr. Scripps was an original Republican, having cast his first vote for Fremont in 1856, and adhered loyally to that party until he was compelled to part from
it on the question of the coinage of 1896. He has, however, never permitted his personal party allegiance to sway the political conduct of the many daily journals he
has owned and controlled since he severed his connection with party journalism in
1873. He has regarded each as a separate and distinct legitimate business enterprise to be conducted and controlled according to the circumstances of its own environment, and to be bound by no allegiance except that it owed the best interests
of the community it served, the general public interested as indicated by the broadest patriotism and the most fearless truth-telling. It is to these principles, adhered
to through good and evil report that his newspapers owe the great public confidence
they enjoy, and to that confidence, combined with the most careful business management, that he owes his extraordinary success. Failing health, in 1886, which happily
has since been entirely recovered by rest and recreation, compelled Mr. Scripps to
retire from active work. He had made two trips to Europe, respectively in 1864 and
1881, and has combined his observations in an interesting volume entitled "Five
Months Abroad." He now crossed the ocean again to renew the impressions and
studies of those earlier voyages and remained on the other side, visiting all points of
interest on the Continent and in the British Islands, during 1887, 1888 and part of
1889. During this period and since his return, however, he never entirely relaxed
his literary activity. Besides preparing and publishing a volume of family records,
called " Scripps Memorials," he has been a constant voluntary. almost weekly, contributor to the Evening News or Tribune, and has also written and published several
pamphlets, mostly on economic subjects. But his activities have not been confined
to journalism, the arduous business management of it, and to literary labor aside
from it. Conceiving the project of an art museum for this city in 1883, he was the
first substantial contributor of cash to its foundation, became one of the original
forty incorporators, served actively on the board of trustees for twelve years, and
occupied the office of president of the institution for two years. Besides his cash
contributions he collected and donated to the museum about seventy pictures, examples of the old masters, which formed the nucleus for the fine collection which is now
one of the noblest educational influences in Detroit. He has been an indefatigable
collector of paintings of a high order, of rare prints and books, and especially of
works and plates illustrative of architecture, of the Gothic school of which he is passionately fond and with which he has acquired a considerable expert familiarity. It
was this fondness for the Gothic which impelled him when he had resolved to build a
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church for the congregation with whom he worshiped, that of Trinity Episcopal
parish, to devote nearly three years, 1890-1893, to a personal supervision of the construction. The result, at a personal cost to himself of about $70,000, is, although
somwhat of a miniature, one of the purest examples of Gothic styles in the United
States. He also served for some years on the board of directors of the Dime Savings Bank, which was one of his few business investments outside of the newspaper
business and real estate, and he was also for three years a park commissioner of this
city. These activities filled a large portion of the period after his retirement. An
ordinary man would hardly call it a period of rest. Nurtured in the Church of England as a child he found himself associated with his family in the Presbyterian communion in Illinois, where no Episcopal society existed, but drifted naturally back to
the faith of his childhood in later years, when Bishop Cheney of Chicago founded
the Reform Episcopal Church. He assisted in the organization of Trinity church
near his house, later built the present Gothic church for the congregation and followed the congregation when it subsequently transferred its allegiance to the regular
Protestant Episcopal church. Mr. Scripps's domestic life has been a singularly
happy one. Married in 1862 to Miss Harriet J. Messinger of Detroit, the union has
been blessed with six children of whom four survive. Rostored to health and vigor,
but having little taste for the amusements which occupy and interest most men, he
now spends his well earned leisure in the domestic circle, in the delights of his well
chosen and expensive library, or in adding to his splendid collection of pictures, rare
old books and prints, while still manifesting his interest in the grasp of current
events by an occasional article or pamphlet on leading topics of public concern.
Such a life needs no commentary. It supplies its own.
Shook, Major Edgar H., was born April 17, 1840, on the banks of the Hudson
River, in Lower Red Hook, Dutchess county, N. Y., emanating from the original
Dutch stock of that section. At the age of three years he was taken to Michigan by
his parents, who settled at Mt. Clemens, Macomb county. He was educated in the
public schools of that town and at Detroit. He learned the printer's trade, but did
not continue at it. For a number of years he was interested with his father in the
erection of lighthouses for the U. S. government, and in operating a large saw mill
near New Baltimore, Mich. From 1858 to 1861 he was postmaster at Mt. Clemens.
He was filling the position of orderly sergeant in the Mt. Clemens Rifle Guard when,
on June 19, 1861, he enlisted in the United States military service; he was mustered
in as first lieutenant of Co. B, 5th Michigan Infantry, at Fort Wayne, Mich., on
August 13, 1861, and started with his regiment for the front on September 11, 1861.
On June 22, 1862, he was mustered as captain of Co. E, same regiment, and as major
of the regiment on February 22, 1865. He was mustered out of the service on July
5, 1865, at the close of the war. But few officers of his grade served in as many and
as responsible positions during the Civil war as did Major Shook. A brief summary
of the duties he performed during his term of service is all that can be given here;
but they are sufficient to evidence his ability, patriotism and trustworthiness as an
officer. In October, 1861, he was in Richardson's Brigade of Heintzelman's Division,
Army of the Potomac; in May, 1862, in the 3d Brigade, 3d Division, 3d Corps; and
from May, 1864, to the close of the war, in the 2d Brigade, 3d Division, 2d Corps.
During December, 1861, he was in the camp of " Signal Instruction " at Georgetown,
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D. C. He was in command of a detailed fatigue force of one hundred men in the
rifle pits in front of Yorktown, on May 5, 1862, at daybreak, and was the first officer
to discover that the Confederate forces had evacuated their works. In June, 1862,
he was assistant adjutant-general on the staff of General Berry, 3d Brigade, 1st
Division, 3d Corps. By special order of General Kearney, a few days before General McClellan's noted seven days' retreat on the Peninsula, he was detailed to take
charge of one hundred picked men, detailed from four different Michigan regiments,
to re-establish a portion of the picket line captured by the enemy, which resulted in
a twenty minutes' determined and decisive struggle, and the capture of the same.
While the army was moving up the Peninsula he sat on four " drum-head courts
martial." He was in command of the left wing of his regiment and a section of artillery as rear guard to the Army of the Potomac while in the retreat from the Peninsula in August, 1863; and also commanded the left wing of his regiment atthe
Second Bull Run Battle on August 28, 1862. During the second day's battle of the
Wilderness, May 6, 1864, he was in command of the regiment, owing to the major,
colonel and four line officers of the regiment being wounded the day before. During
the winter of 1864-65 he was detailed by special order to command the brigade
picket lines. While at home on veteran furlough, February 1, 1864, he was detailed
by General Heintzelman on court martial duty for six weeks in the city of Detroit;
the court tried and sentenced thirty-five prisoners, four to be shot for desertion.
He was assistant inspector-general, 2d Brigade, 3d Division, 2d Corps, from November 17, 1864, to February 21, 1865. He was temporarily in command of the brigade
during the battle of Dabney's Mills, owing to the general commanding being crippled
in the first round from the enemy, Major Shook being at the time brigade inspector
on the staff. He received a slight wound in the head at the battle of Mine Run,
November 29, 1863; a severe wound, at the battle of the Wilderness, May 6, 1864,
in the right shoulder, by a minnie ball striking one inch below the shoulder joint,
cracking the same and fearfully gouging the main bone of the arm. He was taken
prisoner at the battle of Boydtown Road, Va., October 27, 1864, and escaped the
same day. He was knocked down by an exploding shell while in a charge with his
regiment at the battle of Sailor's Creek, April 6, 1865, bruising his left side. the concussion from the same causing the blood to flow from his ears and nose. He participated in the battle of Pohick Church, Siege of Yorktown (April 4 to May 4, 1862),
Williamsburg, Fair Oaks, Peach Orchard, Glendale, Malvern Hill, Gainesville,
Second Bull Run, Groveton, Chantilly, Fredericksburg, Burnside's Stick-in-the-mud,
Kelly's Ford, Locust Grove, Mine Run, Wilderness (May 5 and 6, 1864), before
Petersburg (July 10 to 22, 1864), Weldon Railroad, Deep Bottom (July 27 and 28,
1864), Mine Explosion, Strawberry Plains (August 14 to 17, 1864), Reams Station,
Poplar Spring Church, Boydtown Road (October 27, 1864), Fort Sedgwick, Hatcher's
Run, White Oak Road, Boydtown Road (April 2, 1865), siege of Petersburg (June 17,
1864, to April 3, 1865), Sailor's Creek, New Store, Farmville and Glover Hill, and at
the surrender of Lee's army, April 9, 1865; actually participating in thirty-one heavy
engagements. Of the thirty eight officers, Col. John Pulford and Major F. H. Shook
were the only original officers of the 5th Michigan Infantry who returned with the
regiment. Pulford was first lieutenant of Co. A, and Shook first lieutenant of Co.
B, when the regiment left the State. The National Tribune of Washington, D. C.,
has referred to this fact and asked for a similar case in the two thousand regiments
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or more in the Union service, but none could be found. Out of more than two
thousand regiments in the Union army, the 5th Michigan Infantry stands fourth in
number of officers and men actually killed in battle. Returning to Michigan after
the close of the war, Major Shook located permanently at Detroit where, during the
ensuing five years, he engaged in mercantile business. Since 1870 he has been continuously identified with the Detroit Paper Co., with the exception of five years,
when he was in charge of the supply division of the Post-office I)epartment at Washington, D. C., and one year as a partner of William C. Jupp, paper jobbers at D)etroit. Major Shook is a member of Michigan Commandery of the Military Order of
the Loyal Legion of the U. S.; Fairbanks Post, G. A. R.; and of the Free and Accepted Masons. He was appointed by the postmaster-general, November 9, 1897,
as United States agent and inspector of postal cards, agency located at Piedmont,
W. Va. Major Shook was married while on veteran furlough in 1863, to Mary E.
Woodward, of Lockport, N. Y., and they have two children: Mira, wife of William
Gore of Toronto, Ont., and Mabel.
Sloman, Adolph.-One of the leading attorneys of the Detroit bar is Adolph Sloman, senior member of the law firm of Sloman & Groesbeck. Mr. Sloman was born
in Detroit September 12, 1859, and, after attending its public schools, he entered the
employ of T. A. Parker, wholesale grocer, with whom he remained three years,
during which time he laid the foundation of a practical business education. He then
took up the study of law in the offices of the late Robert P. Toms, City Counselor
De Witt C. Holbrook, and the firm of Brennan & Donnelly, after which he entered
the law department of the Ann Arbor University, graduating therefrom before he
had reached the age of twenty years. The statutes of Michigan required an applicant for admission to the bar to be twenty-one years of age, but Judge Thomas C.
Cooley, then chief justice of the Supreme Court, and dean of the Law Faculty, to
whom this matter was referred, held that Mr. Sloman's efficiency warranted his
being admitted. Mr. Sloman then struck out boldly for himself, and it was not long
before his vigorous, active and capable qualities were appreciated, and he soon succeeded to a large and lucrative practice. While adopting commercial law, Mr. Sloman believes an attorney should be fitted for any emergency, and about a year ago
defended Emil Defauw against a charge of the murder of Mrs. Seifferlein. The trial
occupied a week in the Wayne Circuit Court, and secured his acquittal at the hands
of a jury against an overwhelmingly unfavorable sentiment. Mr. Sloman is a member of the Michigan State and Detroit Bar Associations, Michigan Club, Royal
Arcanum, Knights of Honor, Ancient Order Ukited Workmen, Congregation Beth
El, and president of its Sunday school board; and although he has been urged to become a candidate for circuit judge, he has thus far refused to enter politics, and has
never sought political preferment. In 1881 he married Miss Lottie L. Teichner,
and with his family of six children now occupies a beautiful home at 451 Fourth avenue. In addition to his legal profession, Mr. Sloman is vice-president of the Detroit
Alaska Knitting Co., and also a member of the wholesale grocery firm of S. A. Sloman & Co.
Sloman, Eugene H., son of Mark and Amelia (Schlesinger) Sloman, was born in
Detroit, Mich., June 8, 1866. He attended the public schools and High School of
Detroit and entered the Bryant & Stratton Business College, from which he was


lbl




called before graduating to enter the service of his biothers, Morris and S. A. Sloman, in the manufacture and sale of saddlery and leather goods and purchase of
hides, wool, etc., at Fremont, Neb., and later assumed charge of their Chicago
trade. He returned to Detroit in 1886 and since then has been actively engaged in
the real estate and bond brokerage business with success. In the fall of 1892 Mr.
Sloman, with others, organized the St. Clair Heights Syndicate, controlling a tract
of 160 acres of land, which they subdivded into what is known as the "St. Clair
Heights Subdivision," which adjoins Detroit's eastern city limits. He is a stockholder in the State and Citizens' Savings Banks of Detroit and otherwise identified
with the business interests of the city. Mr. Sloman holds honors in the Masonic
fraternity, being a thirty-second degree Mason.  In August, 1890, he married
Pauline Higer of Detroit, and they have two children: Irene E. and Russell R.
Smith, Edgar B., M. D., son of Charles F. and Easter Ann (Moran) Smith, was
born in Prince Edward county, Ontario, Canada, June 29, 1861. After a public
school training he took the elective course in the Albert College and University at
Belleville, Ontario, being a student in that institution during the sessions of 1882-83.
He commenced the study of medicine in the Michigan Ccllege of Medicine in 1884
and continued his studies in the Detroit College of Medicine after the amalgamation
of those institutions, being graduated M. D. in 1887. He at once located in l)etroit,
Mich., and has practiced continuously in that city since, building up for himself an
extensive and lucrative practice. He is a member of the American Medical Association; Pan-American Medical Association; Michigan State Medical Association;
I)etroit Medical and Library Association; Mississippi Valley Medical Society; and of
the Wayne County Medical Society, of which he is a member of the board of directors and has been its president for two terms and also its vice-president and secretary. He is also an honorary member of the Southwestern Kentucky Medical
Association. Dr. Smith was for one year assistant to the chair of minor surgery in
the Michigan College of Medicine and Surgery, and later filled that chair as professor for two years. He was also for two years lecturer in the department of dental
surgery in the Detroit College of Medicine and has been the Michigan correspondent
of the American Medical Association Journal published in Chicago for the last three
years. The doctor is chairmain of the section on surgery and ophthamology of the
Michigan State Medical Society. He is local surgeon to the Detroit, Lima & Northern Railroad. May 1, 1884, Dr. Smith married Margaret H., daughter of Cornelius
Thompson of Prince Edward county, Ontario, and they have three children: Minona
B., Sprague and Charles J. Lillie Sprague was accidently killed March 2, 1898.
Smith, Jesse Merrick. son of Henry and Lucinda (Salsbury) Smith, was born in
Newark, Ohio, October 30, 1848. In 1862 he removed with his parents to I)etroit,
Mich., where he received his preliminary education under the instruction of the late
Philo M. Patterson. lie afterward attended the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute at
Troy, N. Y., for three years, then went to Paris, France, where he entered the Central School of Arts and Manufactures and was graduated with honors in 1872 as a
mechanical engineer. He also attended the Berlin (Germany) Polytechnic Institute,,being a student there during the Franco-Prussian war. From Paris, in 1872, Mr.
Smith traveled through England, carefully studying and noting the manufacturing
industries, and upon his return to the United States and Detroit, in November, 1872,
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he at once established himself as a mechanical engineer. During the years 1874 to
1880 inclusive he had charge of designing and erecting blast furnaces and coal mines
in the Hocking Valley coal region of Ohio. Since 1880 he has practiced his profession as consulting engineer continuously at Detroit, and has been eminently successful. He is an expert in patent causes and is constantly engaged in giving testimony
before the United States courts. Mr. Smith is also a member of the firm of Smith &
Conant, consulting mechanical and electrical engineers, his partner being Mr. William S. Conant, an expert in electrical matters. He is a member of the American
Society of Mechanical Engineers, of which he has been vice-president; of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers; Society of Civil Engineers of France; Detroit
Engineering Society, of which he has been president; and Detroit Club. In 1879 he
married Ella A. Moore of Newark, Ohio.
Standart, Robert W., one of Detroit's thoroughly representative business men, is
a son of the Empire State, having been born in Auburn, N. Y., June 12, 1846. His
parents were Henry W. and Anne (Gardner) Standart. He attended the public
schools of Auburn until he reached the age of sixteen years. A year later he removed to Detroit, whither his father and elder brothers, George and Joseph G., had
preceded him, for the purpose of establishing the present business, which has always
been known as that of Standart Brothers, wholesale dealers in hardware. Since 1873
Mr. Standart has had an active interest in the business, with the exception of two
years spent at Ithaca, N. Y. The present firm is composed of the two brothers,
Joseph G. and Robert W., and their establishment, located at Nos. 80, 82, and 84
Jefferson avenue, is one of the largest and most important of its kind in the State of
Michigan. In 1876 Mr. Standart married Harriet C. Hyde of Brookline, Mass., and
they had three children, two of whom survive: William E. and Robert W., jr.
Though intensely devoted to his business, Mr. Standart, unlike many men who are
closely wrapped up in their vocations, is one of the most companionable and agreeable men. For a quarter of a century he has been closely identified with the development of the trade and commerce of the city of Detroit and his name and that of
his firm is known far and wide. He is a broad-minded man of the strictest integrity
and rightly deserves a place among the landmarks of modern Detroit.
Stearns, Frederick Kimball, son of Frederick and Eliza (Kimball) Stearns, was
born in Buffalo, N. Y., December 6, 1854. He received his primary education in
Patterson's School at Detroit, and later entered the University of Michigan, in the
class of 1877. He entered the Frederick Stearns & Company in the capacity of secretary and treasurer, and on the retirement of hisifather in 1887 succeeded him as
president of the company. During the twenty-two years in which Mr. Stearns has
been actively connected with this establishment he has done much toward placing
his firm among the leading houses of the world in its respective line. Mr. Stearns is
a public spirited citizen and takes part in all the affairs of public interest, and is a
liberal giver to all charities.  He was president of the famous Detroit Baseball
Club in 1887, when it won the national championship, and is an ex-president of the
Detroit Musical Society, as well as of the Detroit Athletic Club. He is a member of
the Detroit Club; Detroit Athletic Club and the Country Club. October 16, 1878, he
married Helen E. Sweet, and they have four children: Helen Louise, Frederick
Sweet, Marjory and Alan Olcott. Frederick Stearns was born in Lockport, N. Y.,
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in 1831. He is of the Puritan ancestry, being a lineal descendant of Isaac Stearns,
who with Governor Winthrop and Sir Richard Saltonstall, and other colonists, settled in Watertown, Mass. A portion of the land, once the property of his ancestors,
is now a part of Mt. Auburn Cemetery. On the maternal side he is descended from
Samuel Chapin, one of the earliest settlers of Springfield, Mass. The boyhood days
of Mr. Stearns were spent as a student in the schools of Lockport. At the age of
fifteen he became apprenticed to the drug firm of Ballard & Green of Buffalo, N. Y.,
where he served three years and later attending a course of lectures at the University
of Buffalo, entered the employ of A. I. Matthews, a retail druggist of Buffalo, with
whom he remained until 1854, serving in various capacities and the last three years
as a partner in the business. In 1853 Mr. Stearns married Eliza H. Kimball of Mendon, N. Y. In the latter part of 1854 he decided on removing to Detroit and arrived
in Windsor, January 1, 1855, crossing the Detroit River on the ice. In April of that
year, in connection with L. E. Higby, he opened a retail drug store on Jefferson
avenue, where he remained until 1859 and then removed to the Merrill Block and in
1863 to the corner of Woodward avenue and Congress street. Mr. Stearns purchased
the interest of Mr. Higby and in addition to the retail business began the manufacture of pharmaceutical preparations, both official and non-official. In 1871 his establishment was twice destroyed by fire, the second time resulting in serious loss; the
business was established a third time and from a beginning, where the entire working force consisted of himself and one girl as helper, the business has grown until
the present laboratory covers twenty-four acres of floor space and affords employment
to over 500 persons. In 18~7, after forty years of active business life, Mr. Stearns
retired from the management of the business, leaving it in the hands of his sons,
Frederick K. and William I. L., and the younger associates who have been with him
many years. Since his retirement in 1887 and indeed during several years prior to
that time, Mr Stearns had devoted his leisure to extended travels in many parts of
the world. He has visited not only every State in the Union but has traveled extensively in Canada, Mexico, the West India Islands and South America. He has
visited all the countries of Enrope except Russia; has traveled in North Africa from
Morocco to Egypt; has circumnavigated the world twice, spending two years in
Japan and several months each in the Hawaiian Islands, China, Malay, India and
Egypt. Mr. Stearns has been an ardent collector of objects of art and natural history prior to and during these years of travel, which have been donated to the Detroit Museum of Art and the Detroit Scientific Society, all of which have been classified, mounted, labeled and cased at the donor's expense. Of these objects there are
over 50,000. Mr. Stearns, at the writing of this paragraph, enjoys during the summer the quiet of his home in Detroit but on the approach of winter, journeys to some
one of the best known and milder winter climates, such as those of the Bahamas,
Madeira or Egypt.
Steinbrecher, Albert H., M. D., son of John and Maria (Fuchs) Steinbrecher, was
born in Detroit, Mich., January 11, 1858. He was educated in the public and high
schools of Detroit and at the age of fifteen entered the drug business, to wvhich he
devoted four years of hard work and study. In 1878 he commenced the study of
medicine and was graduated M. D. from the Detroit Medical College in 1881. During his entire college course he was house surgeon of St. Luke's Hospital, Detroit.
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Directly following his graduation Dr. Steinbrecher removed to St. Ignace, Mich.,
where he practiced successfully for eight years and for that entire period served as
county physician; health officer for both county and city; local surgeon for the railroads passing through that place; a member of the U. S. Medical Pension Board,
and proprietor of the St. Ignace Union Hospital. In October, 1889, he went to
Europe and took post-graduate courses in the universities of Berlin, Vienna and
Munich, returning to the United States and to Detroit in April, 1891. Since that
time Dr. Steinbrecher has been an active and successful practitioner of his profession in Detroit. He is attending physician to St. Mary's Hospital and professor of
clinical medicine in the Detroit College of Medicine. He is a member of the American Medical, Detroit Medical and Library, and the Wayne County Medical Society,
also of the Detroit German Salesmen's Association, and Harmonie Society, and a
member of Corinthian Lodge, F. & A. M. In December, 1891, Dr. Steinbrecher
married Julia E. Henkel of Detroit, and they have two children: Elsa L. and Albert
Henkel.
Stoneman, Lewis A., son of William and Sarah (Miller) Stoneman, was born inl
Indianapolis, Ind., September 7, 1868. He was educated in the public schools of his
native town and later entered the law department of the University of Michigan.
from which he was graduated in 1894. Subsequently he removed to Detroit, where
he was admitted to the bar and began the practice of his profession, in which he has
become well and favorably known. In 1896 he was elected a member of the lower
house of the Michigan Legislature on the Republican ticket. He is a member of the
Detroit Boat Club and the Michigan Naval Reserves.
Sullivan, J. Emmet, was born at Grand Rapids, Mich., November 29, 1863, and is
a son of John C. Sullivan, who settled with his family in Detroit in 1865, and who is
at present one of the leading cigar manufacturers of that city. He attended the
public schools of Detroit and later entered the Detroit College, from which he was
graduated in the class of 1884, receiving the degree of A. B. He then entered the
law department of the University of Michigan, from which he was graduated in
1886. During the following three years he studied in the offices of Dickinson, Thurber & Stevenson, and then practiced alone until 1891, at which time he formed a
partnership (which was dissolved in the fall of 1897) with William L. Mason and has
been eminently successful in the practice of his profession. In the autumn of 1896
Mr. Sullivan was nominated for the office of judge of Probate Court and received a
very flattering vote, but was defeated by the Hon. E. 0. Durfee, his Republican adversary, who held that office for sixteen years prior to the election of 1896. Mr. Sullivan is considered one of the brilliant young attorneys of the city of Detroit and
much is expected of him in the future. In 1897 he helped to organize the Detroit,
Ypsilanti and Ann Arbor Railway Company, a suburban road equipped with electricity and at the present writing (May, 1898) about ready to operate. He has acted
as the attorney of this corporation and was instrumental in securing franchises,
right of way and effecting consolidation with the Ypsilanti & Ann Arbor Railway
Co. He is a prominent club man, was one of the organizers of the Mohawk Bimetallic Club and is a member of the Detroit Chess Club; he is also a member of
numerous fraternal and other organizations. Mr. Sullivan has speculated with great
success in real estate and is an extensive property owner. In August, 1892, he mar155




ried Marie Paradis of Detroit, and they have two children: Adele M., and Gertrude
Isabella.
Swan, Thomas, son of George and Agnes Swan, was born in St. Andrews, Fyfeshire, Scotland, May 12, 1841. When six years old his parents emigrated to America
and settled at Toronto, Ontario, Canada, where young Swan attended the public
schools. His parents were in modest circumstances and at the age of eleven he decided to strike out for himself. His experiences during the ensuing eighteen or nineteen years were varied. He successively served as office boy and apprentice with
the Leslie Nursery Co. at Toronto; as an apprentice in the harness and leather goods
trade at Toronto for four years; as messenger for the Great Western Railroad Co. at
Toronto for one year; as news agent on the Grand Trunk Railroad in Canada for
nine years; as conductor, brakeman and baggage master for the same company for
four years; as news agent on the Detroit & Milwaukee Railroad for three years; and
for a period of six months was half owner in a large Indian traveling company,
which toured Canada and the United States. In the autumn of 1862 Mr. Swan located permanently at Detroit, Mich., where he became proprietor of a small restaurant from which he received large returns, and each year he has enlarged his establishment until to-day he is at the head of the largest and finest restaurant in the
State of Michigan. His success has been almost phenomenal and he enjoys the respect and esteem of all with whom he comes in contact. He is a member of the
Knights, Royal Guards, B.P.O.E., and A.O.U.W. of Detroit. In 1860 he married
Honor M. Canham of Toronto, Ont., and they have had eleven children, four of
whom survive: George T., Irving R., Mrs. E. A. Hubbell and Florence D.
Sweet, George H., D. D. S., son of George Sweet, business manager of the Sanford
Clothing Manufacturing Co., of Hamilton, Ont., was born in Hamilton, February 4,
1873. He was educated in the public schools and collegiate institute of his native
city, and matriculated in medicine, in 1893, in the Trinity University at Toronto.
In the same year he successfully passed the matriculation examination at the Royal
College of Dental Surgeons, Toronto, and attended the lectures and clinics of this
college for one year. l)esiring to obtain a more thorough knowledge in operative
work, he entered the Philadelphia Dental College, under the immediate tutorship of
some of our foremost professors, and graduated from this institution in March, 1896.
Early in the same year he located in Detroit, where he has since practiced continuously, with well deserved success. He is a member of the Alumni Association of all
the colleges in which he has been a student, of the Michigan State and local Dental
Societies, and of the Y. M. C. A. Dr. Sweet has also been a musical student, and
has held the position of organist in several churches in his native city.
Tappey, Ernest T., M. D., son of Leopold C. and Ann (Parrish) Tappey, was born
at Petersburg, Va., March 30, 1853. He attended the public schools of New York
city from 1864 to 1868, and was graduated from the University of Michigan in 1873,
with the degree B. A., receiving the degree of M. A. from the same institution in
1876. He began the study of medicine in 1873 in the office of Dr. I). 0. Farrand at
Detroit, Mich., and attended one course of lectures in the D)etroit College of Medicine. He was graduated with the degree M. D. from the College of Physicians and
Surgeons at New York city in 1879, and continued his studies during 1879 and 1880


156




in Berlin and Vienna. For two months during 1890 he studied under Dr. Tait in
Birmingham, England, and was with Schede in Hamburg, in the same year. Since
1880 Dr. Tappey has been an active practitioner of his profession at Detroit, has
been clinical professor of surgery since 1892 in the Detroit College of Medicine, and
surgeon to Harper Hospital since 1880. He is a member of the American Medical
Association; Michigan State Medical Society; I)etroit Gynecological Society; and
Detroit Medical and Library Association, of which he was vice-president in 1894.
He is also a member of the American Association of Gynaecologists and Obstetricians. Dr. Tappey is chiefly engaged in general surgery, including gynecic and abdominal work. He has performed many of the abdominal operations, such as removal of ovaries, opening gall bladder, successful end to end suturing of intestine
after resection, and in 1894 removed by lateral perineal section a bullet from the
bladder. He has also been successful in the use of the X-rays and has recently by
their aid removed a coin from the larynx of a child. He has invented a number of
surgical appliances and instruments, including a needle for repairing lacerated cervix
uteri. In 1880 Dr. Tappey married Pamela W. Waterman of Detroit, Mich, who
died in 1881, leaving him two daughters, Ernestine D. and Pamela W. In 1891 he
married Sally H. Lightner of Detroit.
Thomas, Mrs. Emma A., daughter of Delos E. and Emily H. Rice, was born November 2, 1854, in Detroit, Mich. Her early education was acquired in the public
schools of Detroit, which she attended until the age of eleven, when she entered the
private school of J. M. Sill, remaining until 1867. In the fall of that year she attended the High School, and was graduated in 1871. From early childhood she received a thorough musical training under C. H. Levering, E. S. Mattoon and L. A.
Thomas, her late husband. She was united in marriage December 30, 1872, to L. A.
Thomas, of Detroit, who died in 1885. She has two surviving children, Jennie
Louise and Louis K. Thomas, the eldest child having died at the age of twenty-one.
In order to fit herself for supervisor of music Mrs Thomas took a special course of
training under noted teachers, prominent among them being the late Dr. Luther
Whiting Mason, of Boston. In 1888 she established the Normal Training School for
Public School Music Teachers in connection with the Detroit Conservatory of Music,
and in the management of which she is assisted by her daughter, Jennie Louise
Thomas. In 1897 she was elected vice-president of the National Educational Association, Musical Section, and in 1895, chairman of the Michigan State Teachers'
Association, Musical Section, and re-elected in 1896 and 1897. Mrs. Thomas has
charge of the Public School Department of W. S. B. Mathews's publication, " Music,"
and is a contributor to a number of musical works. Her work is national, and she is
very widely known throughout the country, having representative teachers in almost
every State in the Union.
Thompson, William B., son of Thomas and Bridget (Barlum) Thompson, was born
in Detroit, Mich., March 10, 1860. He attended the public schools of Detroit, and in
1876 was graduated from Bryant & Stratton's Business College in that city. He began his business career as clerk in the meat market of his uncle, Thomas Barium,
and in 1880 was given an interest in the business. In 1882 Mr. Thompson established
his present stand in the same line of business, and has enjoyed prosperity from the
start. From 1890 to 1894 he served as a member of the Detroit Board of Aldermen,


157




representing the Eighth ward, and voluntarily retired in 1894. In 1896 he was again
elected to the same office for a two year term. In the fall of 1897 he was nominated
for city treasurer on the Democratic ticket, and proved the main strength of the
ticket, being elected by a majority nearly double that of any other candidate. Mr.
Thompson is domestic in his tastes, caring little for club life or society, occupying
most of his leisure time with the pleasures of the home circle. He was married in
1887 to Nellie Hymes, of Detroit, who has borne him six children: Mary E., Kathleen, Irene, William G., Francis L., and Helen M.
Tibbals, Frank Burr, M. D., son of Henry E. and Mary B. (Burr) Tibbals, was
born on a farm near Ann Arbor, Mich., October 14, 1864, and a few years later removed to Monroe, Conn., where his boyhood was spent. He attended the public
schools at Monroe, and later the Fairfield Academy, and the Hillhouse High School
at New Haven, Conn. He was graduated from the literary department of Yale
College in 1888, with the degree of B. A., and took his degree of M. D. from the
University of Michigan in 1891. In the same year he located in Detroit, where he
has since practiced his profession continuously and successfully, associated with I)r.
Donald Maclean, one of Michigan's most skillful surgeons. Dr. Tibbals is a member
of the American Medical Association; 1)etroit Medical and Library Association: D)etroit Gynecological Society; Wayne County Medical Society; Detroit Academy of
Medicine; and Michigan State Medical Society, of which he has been one of the
vice-presidents. He is junior surgeon to Harper Hospital, assistant surgeon-in-chief
of the Michigan Central Railroad Company, Detroit physician to the Actor's Fund
of New York, and medical examiner for the American Union Life and United States
Life Insurance Companies of New York; the Pacific Mutual of San Francisco; the
Banker's Life Insurance Company of Iowa; and several fraternal organizations.
D1r. Tibbals is a member of Palestine Lodge No. 357, F. & A. M., King Cyrus Chapter No. 133, R. A. M., of the Fellowcraft Club of I etroit, and of the National Union.
lie was married in January, 1893, to Laura Adelaide West, daughter of James H.
and Sophia (Griswold) West of New Haven, Conn., and they have one child, Helen
Stanley, born August 27, 1897.
Van Deusen, James H., son of John and Margaret (Jones) Van l)eusen, was born
in Reidsville, Albany county, N. V., May 7, 1857. He attended public schools at
Albany until thirteen, and then removed with his parents to Warren, Ill., where he
again attended school until 1874. From 1874 to 1876 lie was a student with I)r. W.
S. Caldwell and from 1876 to 1878 a clerk in the drug store of J. J. Knapp at Warren,
Ill. From 1878 to 1880 he was associated with Allaire, Woodward & Co., manufacturing chemists at Peoria, I1l., and since February, 1880, he has been connected with
Parke, I )avis & Co., manufacturing chemists, at their headquarters in )etroit, Mich.
He was foreman of the milling and extract manufacturing departments of that
concern until 1891, when he wvas appointed as assistant superintendent. In I)ecem)er, 1896, he was promoted to his present position as general superintendent. Mr.
Van D)eusen was married on January 2, 1882, to Mary Anna Lamson of D)ctroit,
and they have two children, Frances M., and John H.
Vet, Charles M., son of Charles M. and Henrietta (Altermatt) Vet, born March 16,
1855, in Neuchatel, Switzerland, descended from a long line of notable musicians


158




and graduated from the University of Neuchatel in 1870. He began the study of
music at five years of age under his father, who, as solo violinist, orchestral conductor and choir master, was associated with the leading quartettes, orchestras and
choral societies of Europe. In 1870 the subject of this sketch went to Stuttgart to
continue his studies and the following year he studied at Halle, remaining until the
fall of 1872, when he moved to Paris with his father and became the pupil of private
tutors. During the next few years he had the privilege and benefit of most valuable
professional association as student and assistant with some of the eminent teachers
and writers in Paris, and it was during this time that he became well grounded in
harmony, composition and the arts of conducting, solo, quartette and orchestral
work. Coming to America and locating at Richmond, Ind., for a short time, he
moved to Detroit in 1880 and established the Vet Musical Academy which he has
conducted successfully ever since. In 1892 he accepted, temporarily, a professorship
-violin and piano-in the Academie Internationale de Musique of Paris, remaining
there two years. During this he studied under Marsick and Berthellier, violinists,
and the piano, under Phillipe. Mr. Vet has composed several works for violin, piano
and vocal, among them is a Sonate for violin and piano, an E16gie and Berceuse for
violin, and several piano compositions which have been most successfully received.
In October, 1874, Mr. Vet was married to Mathilde Jaccard of Neuchatel, she being
a lady of exceptionally fine mental equipment and a thoroughly artistic musician.
They have two children, Blanche and Coralie, who upon graduation (1898) from the
world famous Paris Conservatoire, were at once and together started upon a professional career, as solo violiniste and solo pianiste, respectively, under most flattering
auspices.
Warner, Willard E., was born at Orleans, Ontario county, N. Y., October 14, 1860,
and was a son of Ulysses Warner (deceased), who was a prosperous farmer of that
section and had represented his county in the Legislature of his State for several
terms. Mr. Warner was educated mainly at Canandaigua, (N. Y.) Academy, and
taught school for a while in the vicinity of his early home. In October, 1883, he entered the law department of the University of Michigan and took a one year's course
in that department, after which he entered the law office of Griffin & Warner in
Detroit, and remained associated with that firm, the firms of Griffin, Warner, Hunt
& Berry and Griffin, Warner & Hunt, until the 1st day of January, 1893, when he
became a member of the reorganized firm of Griffin & Warner, and, upon the retirement of Mr. Griffin on December 31, 1895, he then became a member of the present firm of Warner, Codd & Warner. He was admitted to practice at the bar of the
State in 1885, and later, on motion, to the Federal Court. He is a member of the
Detroit Boat Club, Fellowcraft Club, Wayne Club, and the Wayne Club Branch of
the American Whist League.
Warren, Charles B., son of Robert C. and Caroline (Beecher) Warren, was born at
Bay City, Mich., April 10, 1870. He prepared for college in the Albion Preparatory
School, later entering Albion College, and after two years of study there entered the
literary department of the University of Michigan from which he was graduated in
1891 with the degree of Ph. B. In the same year he began the study of law in the
office of Dickinson & Thurber at Detroit, also taking the course in the Detroit College
of Law under the preceptorship of Professor Mecham. He was admitted to the bar


159




on October 17, 1892, and in the following year had conferred upon him the degree of
LL. B. by the Detroit College of Law. During Mr. Thurber's residence in Washington as secretary to President Cleveland Mr. Warren was entrusted with the care
of Mr. Thurber's practice, and has practiced continuously with Dickinson & Thurber
since 1892. Mr. Warren has taken part in many important cases in the trial courts
and before the Supreme Court of Michigan and is actively engaged as counsel and
in the trial of cases in the State and United States Courts. In 1896 Mr. Warren was
appointed by Secretary Olney as solicitor and associate counsel for the United States
before the Behering Sea Claims Commission which held its session at Victoria and
Halifax for four months, Hon. Don. M. Dickinson being senior counsel for the
United States. Mr. Warren was president of the freshmen class at Albion and
managing editor of the college paper and while at the University of Michigan
founded the present "Inlander Magazine,' of which he became the first editor-inchief. He was also first secretary of the U. of M. Philosophical Society. He is still
a bachelor and a member of the Detroit Club, Detroit Country Club, Detroit Boat
Club, and Michigan Naval Reserve, of which he is a veteran.
Whitehead, James T., son of James and Mary (McEvoy) Whitehead, was born September 28, 1864, in Wyandotte, Mich., where he attended the public schools until
1874, when his family removed to Detroit and he became a student of the city
schools. In 1879 Mr. Whitehead entered the employ of Rathbone, Sard & Co., remaining with them until 1888, when he entered into business on his own account,
purchasing the plant of the Detroit Metal and Heating Works from John B. Dyar.
This business he conducted until the spring of 1893, when he disposed of an interest
in the same to Henry B. Lewis, and continued under the firm name of Whitchead &
Lewis until January, 1897, when Mr. Whitehead severed his connection with Mr.
Lewis and established himself in the same line at 42, 44 and 46 Randolph street,
where he has since remained, the firm name being J. T. Whitehead & Co. On April
8, 1885, Mr. Whitehead married Ida M. Frazer, daughter of Abram C. Frazer of Detroit, Mich., and they have three children: James Frazer, Thomas Cram and Mary
Elizabeth Whitehead.
Wormer, Clarkson C.-One of the prominent business men of Detroit is a native
of the Empire State, having been born in Oswego, N. Y., October 25, 1859. His parents, Grover S. and Maria Crolius Wormer, are both of Knickerbocker stock and of
Holland descent. Mr. Wormer's family moved to Detroit when he was a small boy,
so it may be truthfully said that he is essentially a lifelong resident of Michigan.
Mr. Wormer received his education in the public schools of Detroit. After having
graduated therefrom he entered the employ of the banking house of Kennedy & Taylor, afterwards known as the Detroit City Bank, as clerk, remaining in that position
three years. In 1870 he entered into the employ of his father and older brother as
clerk, the firm then known as G. S. Wormer & Son having been established in 1857 by
G. S. Wormer. Three years later he was admitted into partnership (1873) and has
ever since devoted his energies to the development of the machinery business entirely.
In 1884 G. S. Wormer, the father, retired from the firm and the business was continued
by his three sons. In 1889 the new firm was incorporated under the name of C. C.
Wormer Machinery Company, being located since 1881 at the corner of Woodbridge
and Shelby streets (Old Board of Trade Building), he having held the office as its


160




president since its organization. It has become one of the most important of its line
in the country. He is also treasurer of the Austin Separator Company. Socially he
is a member of the I )etroit
Club, Loyal Legion, Royal Arcanum and h)etroit
Light Guards. The latter organization he has
been identified with for
twenty-seven years, haylmng served as an activer, w                           h f        u   1.
for thirteen years and is                       t     tt
now a member of the Vet-kus., w
eran Corps. He has al-t, w                                           h
ways been greatly interested in athletic sports,
having been a member
of the old l)etroit Ball
Club, I)etroit  Skating
Club, Excelsior Boat Club
and i)etroit Athletic Club.
Mr. Wormer married, in
1875,  Minnie  Horton,.
dlaughter of William War-.~~ %i?.("
ren and Deborah Carleton
Horton, of New York city.
They have three children,
Marie Louise, Hazel Horton  and  Clarkson  C
Wormer, jr.
Backus, Charles F., son
of Frederick H. A. Backus, was born in I)etroit,
Mich., July 30, 1862. He
was educated in the De-                    c.c. WORMER.
troit German-American
Seminary and in the private school of the late Philo M. Patterson. In 1879, at the age
of sixteen, he left school and learned the bookbinding and printing trade with Richmond & Backus, of which firm his father was a member, which he followed until 1882.
From that year until 1885 he acted as bookkeeper for the Detroit Metal & Heating
Works Co., and upon the termination of his service with that company he became secretary-treasurer of the Richmond & Backus Co., which had in that year become incorporated as a stock company, with Frederick H. A. Backus as its president, which position he still holds. Since his father's death, in 1897, Mr. Backus has been a stockholder in and director of the Richmond & Backus Co., and is also treasurer of the
Bookkeeper Company, publishers of a journal of that time. He was one of the
organizers of the Peninsular Printing & Publishing Company, which was incorpo

161




rated in 1889 and which was later amalgamated with the Richmond & Backus Co.
Mr. Backus was appointed by Governor Pingree trustee of the Northern Michigan
Asylum at Traverse City, to fill the vacancy occasioned by the resignation of Hon.
George A. Hart of Manistee, whose term will expire in January, 1899. Mr. Backus
is a member of Union Lodge No. 3, F. & A. M.; Peninsular Chapter No. 16, R. A.
M.: Detroit Commandery No. 1, K. T.; Moslem Temple of the Mystic Shrine and
the Detroit Harmonie Society. In June, 1886, he married Louise C., daughter of
Col. August Goebel of Detroit, and they have four children: Adele G., Christine D.,
Carl F., and Margarett L.
Baker, Hon. Fred A., was born at Holly, Oakland county, Mich., June 14, 1846,
and comes of a long line of English ancestors. His father, Francis Baker, was a
representative in the Michigan Legislature in 1846, and was for more than thirty
years the leading justice of the peace of his township (Holly). He died in 1887 at
the age of eigety-three. Fred A. Baker attended the public schools of Holly and
Flint, Mich., and later spent one year in the Michigan Agricultural College at Lansing. He then took a course in Eastman's Business College at Poughkeepsie, N. Y.,
and was graduated in 1864. For some time following his graduation he served as
clerk and bookkeeper of his father's store at Holly, Mich. In September, 1865, he
entered the office of Col. Sylvester Lamed of Detroit, and pursued the study of law.
On his twenty-first birthday, June 14, 1867, he was admitted to the bar; in October
of the same year he accepted the position of chief clerk in Colonel Lamed's office
and remained there for three years, when loss of health due to overstudy caused him
to return to Holly. In 1872 he returned to Detroit, and has since enjoyed a successful professional career. Mr. Baker has never sought for political preferment, but
while in Holly he served one term as a member of the village council and also as
village attorney. In 1876 he was elected as one of the representatives of the city of
Detroit in the Legislature, and in January, 1878, was appointed counselor of the city
of Detroit, a position he held for three years and a half. He has also served the city
as a member of the board of park commissioners, but resigned because the position
took up too much of his time. August 4, 1896, he was chosen chairman of the DIemocratic State Central Committee in place of Elliott G. Stevenson, resigned, and on
August 26, 1896, was unanimously elected to the position by the Democratic State
Convention at Bay City. August 8, 1867, Mr. Baker married Josephine M., daughter of Edward Bissell of Holly, and they had four children: Belle, George J., Frank
E. and May.
Baumgartner, Frank W., son of Casper and Barbara (Tremmel) Baumgartner, was
born at Altoona, Pa., June 14, 1865. He acquired his education in the public schools
of his native township and in St. Vincent's College, being graduated from the latter
institution with honors in 1881. In the same year he removed to Cleveland, Ohio,
where he learned the gentlemen's furnishing business with Stein, Block & Co. He
became an expert in window-dressing and as soon as this fact became apparent
numerous large firms bid for his services. Mr. J. L. Hudson, proprietor of Iludson's
big stores in Cleveland, St. Paul and Ietroit, offered him an inducement and Mr.
Baumgartner assumed charge of the windows of the Cleveland establishment. Later
on he served in the same capacity in the St. Paul store, and from 1891 to 1895 he
cared in a like capacity for the 1 )etroit store. In April of the latter year he fornied


162




his present partnership with Mr. H. D. Heidt, and under the style of Heidt & Baumgartner they have become within a period of three years the leading haberdashers of
Detroit. Mr. Baumgartner is one of the most affable and courteous of gentlemen
and a model business man. He is a prominent member of Detroit Lodge No. 34, B.
P. 0. E., and popular with all classes. In June, 1890, he married Anna Belle Connolly of Milwaukee, and they have three children, F. Royden, Marjory C. and
Shirley M.
Beardsley, Carleton A., son of Lockwood H. and Catharine (Myer) Beardsley, was
born in Castile, N. Y., October 4, 1852, His early education was acquired in the
district schools of Castile and later in the High School of Pontiac, Mich., where he
removed with his parents in 1866. During the winter of 1869-70 Mr. Beardsley was
employed as teacher in the schools of Pontiac and later was given charge of the
schools at Central Mine, Lake Superior. In 1873 he entered the Ohio Business University at Toledo, Ohio, from which he was graduated in 1875. He then began the
study of law with A. C. Baldwin, of Pontiac, and was admitted to the bar in 1877.
The following year he entered the law department of the University of Michigan,
from which he was graduated in 1880. Subsequent to his graduation he removed to
Detroit and established his present practice. Aside from his law practice, Mr.
Beardsley has dealt largely in real estate and has been successfully engaged in the
manufacture of furniture, operating a factory in which he employs 150 persons. lie
is a member of Union Lodge F. & A. M., an honorary member of the Detroit Light
Infantry, Pontiac and Cass Lake Aquatic Clubs. In business he is progressive and
enterprising; socially agreeable and well informed. April 2, 1879, he married Sarah
Hance, a daughter of Merk and Susan Hance of Farmington, Mich., and they have
two children.
Beck, George, son of William B. and Anna (Lee) Beck, was born in Tivorton,
I)evon, England, August 27, 1843. His parents came to the United States in 1850
and settled in Memphis, Tenn. His early education was given him by his parents
and at the age of ten he was employed by Smith & Coles, butchers, Woodbridge
street, Detroit. In April, 1857, he accepted a position with William Wreford of the
Central Market, with whom he remained until 1862, when he embarked in business
for himself, buying and selling country produce. In 1863 Mr. Beck entered the Chicago live stock market and purchased cattle for Detroit, Buffalo and Albany markets, remaining there until 1874, when he changed to the St. Louis market. In 1890
he organized the Michigan Beef & Provision Co. and was elected president and
treasurer, which position he has occupied to the present. In 1892 he was elected a
member of the city council on the Republican ticket and re-elected in 1894; he was
the first Republican commissioner elected to the city council from the Eighth ward;
he was elected president of the council in 1894, was again elected to the council in
1896 and as president in 1897, after ninety-seven ballots had been cast. Mr. Beck
was elected treasurer of the National Butchers' Protective Association in 1888 and
again in 1889. He was a delegate to the Republican State Conventions of 1892,
1894 and 1896. He is a member of Michigan Sovereign Consistory; Damascus Commandery, Knights Templar; Royal Arcanum; and Michigan, Fellowcraft, Alger
and Detroit Bowling Clubs. In 1863 he married Minnie A. Millerof Detroit, who


163




died in 1893, and in 1895 he married Jennie M. Smith. He has two children by his
first wife: Mrs. A. B. West and Mrs. Charles G. Wynn.
Beckwith, Whitney C., son of Dr. E. C. and Fannie F. (Forest) Beckwith, was
born at Harmer, Ohio, August 3, 1861. He was educated in the public schools of
Zanesville and Columbus, Ohio, in Farmer's College at Cincinnati, Ohio, and in the
Ohio State Military College. He took a special course in the Ohio State Normal
School and later became an instructor in that institution. He studied music with
Prof. Webster in the Granville (Ohio) Seminary and became very fond of the pipe
organ. During his leisure hours he made a close study of the law and in 1880 entered the University of Michigan, where he pursued the classical and law courses,
being graduated with honors in 1885 with the degree of LL.B. While in attendance
at the university Mr. Beckwith made frequent trips to Detroit, where he gained practical experience in the office of H. M. Cheever, and after being admitted to the bar
in 1882 spent much time in the office of Judge Willard M. Sillibridge at Detroit. He
located permanently at Detroit in 1885 and has since been in the uninterrupted and
successful practice of his profession, having made a specialty of corporation law.
Mr. Beckwith is domestic in his tastes. He married Margaret A., daughter of
Charles A. Gaylord of Detroit, and they have two sons: Charles G. and Irving G.
Bennett, Ebenezer O., M. D., son of Ebenezer 0. and Laura (Scott) Bennett, was
born in Maumee, Ohio, January 16, 1838. His paternal ancestors were English and
his maternal Scotch. Both parents were born in Ridgetown, Conn., and his mother
was a niece of Gen. Winfield Scott, U. S. A. His parents came to Ohio in 1837, and
in 1840 they removed to Michigan, locating at Nankin, Wayne county. Their family consisted of five sons and one daughter, Ebenezer, the subject of the sketch,
being the third.  His primary education was received in the district schools of
Nankin, where he was a student until the age of seventeen, and then entered the
State Normal School at Ypsilanti, from which he was graduated in 1858. He then
engaged in teaching, which he followed until 1862, and then enlisted in Co. M, Detroit Engineers and Mechanics. His regiment was engaged in several battles, and in
1864 he was detailed on detached service until mustered out in 1865. On his return
to his Michigan home he again engaged in teaching, which he continued until 1875,
and then entered the University of Michigan, from which he was graduated in 1878
with the degree of M. D. On conclusion of his medical course he was appointed
house surgeon of the University Hospital, serving but one year, when he resigned to
accept the position of medical superintendent of the Wayne County Asylum for the
Insane. Since his appointment to this position Dr. Bennett has introduced many
radical changes in the management of the institution and also in the treatment of
the inmates. He has profited by the field offered for observation, and is recognized
as one of the leading experts on insanity in this country. The perfect condition
which the institution has assumed since being placed under his control, and the
affection and esteem of those under his charge testify to the good qualities of his
heart and executive ability. He is a member of the Michigan State Medical Society,
American Medical Society, and was a member of the Ninth International Congress
which was held at Washington city in 1887. In 1863 he married Janetta D. Fulton
and they have two children: Joseph E., M. I)., and Mary A.


164




Bentley, William E., M. D., son of George D. and Sarah (Buck) Bentley, was born
at Deanville, Lapeer county, Mich., June 15, 1865. After attending the public
schools of his native town and the Michigan State Normal School at Ypsilanti, he entered the medical department of the University of Michigan, and was graduated
therefrom M. D. in the spring of 1892. From then until the autumn of 1893 he pursured the'special study of the eye, ear, nose and throat with Dr. Eugene Smith at
Detroit, Mich., which he supplemented with a course in the Michigan College of
Medicine during the winter of 1893-94. Since that time Dr. Bentley has practiced
continuously and with gratifying success at Detroit. He is a member of the Wayne
County Medical Society, and Michigan Pathological Society. He is still a bachelor,
and popular in both professional and social circles.
Bolton, Edwin C., was born in Detroit, Mich., June 17, 1869, and is a son of Robert
Bolton, retired, and a resident of Detroit. Edwin C. was educated in the public
schools of Detroit, and studied law in the offices of Moore & Moore, being admitted to
the bar in 1891. For one year he had as a partner Thomas M. McVey, andhas since
been in the uninterrupted and successful practice of his profession. He is a member
of numerous legal and other organizations, and is popular is business circles. November 27, 1895, he married Theresa M. Rolshoven, and they have one child, Frederick R.
Bourke, Fred W., son of Walter and Maria L. (McKenna) Bourke, was born in Detroit, Mich, February 26, 1865. After attending the Detroit public schools he took
a full course in Bryant & Stratton's Business College at Detroit, being graduated in
1883. He then entered the offices of the American Eagle Tobacco Co. as billing
clerk and later became cashier and manager of the city trade, which position he held
until 1888, when he became associated with his father in the flour and grain brokerage business, and upon the death of his father, in 1891, Mr. Bourke established his
present stand as flour broker and millers' agent at Detroit. He holds high honors
in the Masonic fraternity and is a member of the Chamber of Commerce; Detroit
Board of Trade; and Detroit Boat Club. October 11, 1893, he married Nellie E.
Gray of Detroit, and they have one child, Helen M.
Brand, Frederick W., son of Charles R. and Elizabeth (Jack) Brand, was born in
Detroit, Mich., September 12, 1869. His education was acquired in the public
schools of Detroit, and at the age of twenty years he entered the employ of his
father to learn the painter's and paper hanger's trade, which he has ever since followed. In 1890 he was admitted to partnership with his father, under the style of
C. R. Brand, Son & Co., house, sign and decorative painters, their stock in trade
also including an elaborate assortment of wall papers, window shades and enamel
letters and signs. Mr. Brand is a member of the Detroit Light Infantry; Alger Re- /
publican Club; Mervue Club; and Old Club at St. Clair Flats, Mich.
a Brewster, James H., Ph. B., LL. B., son of Joseph and Sarah (Bunce) Brewster,
was born in New Haven, Conn., April 6, 1856. He attended the public schools and
Hopkins Grammar School at New Haven, and received his degree of Ph. B. from
the Sheffield Scientific School of Yale College in 1877, and degree of LL. B. from
the law department of Yale in 1879. He spent the following two years in the offices
of E. P. Wheeler and Shearman & Sterling at New York city, and from 1881 to 1883
165




was identified with the legal department of the Delaware and Hudson Canal Co. at
Albany, N. Y. In 1883 Mr. Brewster removed to Detroit, Mich., and located for the
practice of his profession, in which he has been continuously and successfully engaged ever since in that city. From 1883 to 1885 he was associated in a partnership
with Gen. L. S. Trowbridge, but for the past twelve years has been entirely alone.
In the spring of 1897 Mr. Brewster was tendered the chair of conveyancing (general
professor of law) in the University of Michigan, which he accepted, and on October
1 of the same year withdrew from his practice in Detroit and assumed the responsibility of his new office. He is a member of the Michigan State, Wayne County and
Detroit Bar Associations; Fellowcraft and Witenagemote Clubs of Detroit; the A.
0. U. W,; and holds high honors in the Masonic fraternity. In 1888 Mr. Brewster
married Frances Stanton, and they have four children: Susie, Chauncey Bunce, Edith
Navarre and Oswald C..
Carran, Charles M., son of James and Anne (Herbage) Carran, was born in Oakland county, Mich., September 21, 1857. He attended the district schools of his
native county and at the age of fourteen entered upon his business career as errand
boy in a large general store at Clarkston, Mich., where he remained for twelve years,
rising through every possible grade. In 1883 he removed to l)etroit and during the
ensuing four years was connected with Lichtenberg & Co., general commission
merchants. Later he became a traveling salesman for George C. Langdon, malt
operator, and served with that gentleman until 1892, when he formed a partnership
with A. C. Conn under the style of Carran & Conn, grain operators and commission
merchants, and continued this partnership until January, 1895, when the present
firm, Caughey & Carran, was organized as wool, grain and seed merchants and
commission. Their operations are extensive, and they have met with gratifying
success in all their transactions. They are members of the Detroit Chamber of
Commerce and Board of Trade, and their offices are connected by private wire with
all of the larger exchanges of the country. Mr. Carran is a member of the order of
Free and Accepted Masons, and of the Detroit Yacht Club. In 1895 he married
Elvira Morris of I)etroit.
Carter, G. Lewis, son of George C. Carter, was born in l)etroit, Mich., January 5,
1874. He was educated in the public schools and was graduated from the I)etroit
High School in 1892. In the same year he entered the law offices of Frank T. Lodge
at Detroit, and at the same time became a member of the class of 1894 in the I)etroit
College of Law, from which he was graduated with honors, and with the degree of
LL. B. He was admitted to the bar in January, 1894, and has since practiced his
profession successfully in l)etroit. In the summer of 1897 Mr. Carter associated
himself in business with Mr. Delos 1). Jayne, under the style of Jayne & Carter.
Chapoton, Alexander, jr., builder, contractor and banker, is a scion of one of the
oldest and most respected of the original French families who settled I)etroit at the
time of Cadillac. It is to France and Frenchmen we, as a nation, are largely indebted for our advance in art and its various forms and applications. The Chapotons turned their artistic taste and skill to the practical application of architecture,
and they have for several generations been builders in the United States. Many of
their buildings in Michigan are of a public character and of more than State rcputa

166




tion; the magnificent State capitol at Lanslng; the Russell House; Board of Trade;
Campau block; Moran block; Parker building; Newberry building; M. S. Smith
building; Westminster church; First Congregational church; St. Mary's church; St.
Vincent's Orphan Asylum; St. Mary's Hospital; and the Detroit College, all of Detroit, and the great St. Joseph's Retreat at Dearborn are some of the more notable
of the buildings. It is from Dr. Chapoton, the second surgeon who came in 1706
to old Fort Ponchartrain (now the city of Detroit), on its occupation by that famous
Frenchman, De La Mothe Cadillac, in 1701, that Alexander Chapoton, jr., is descended. A history of the Chapoton family would include the early history of Detroit, for they intermingled by association and marriage with the Campaus, St.
Aubins, Godfreys, Cicotts, Peltiers, Labadies, etc., families who made up and comprised early Detroit. Mr. Chapoton's father, Hon. Alexander Chapoton, was a son
of Eustache Chapoton, who was born in Detroit, February 2, 1818, and died in the
the city of his birth, May 8, 1893  He served the city and State in many important
public positions with honor to himself and to the advantage and benefit of the
people. Alexander, jr., was born in Detroit October 13, 1839, and after completing
his scholastic education, which comprised an attendance at Bacon's Academy, Detroit, and Notre Dame College, South Bend, Ind., he entered upon his career in the
profession of his forefathers. On the organization of the Peninsular Savings Bank
in 1887 he was elected its president; in the autumn of 1896, owing to the pressure of
other business, Mr. Chapoton resigned his position as president and accepted the
position of vice-prestdent of the bank, which he still retains. In politics he is a
Democrat and his religious faith is that of the Roman Catholic. In April, 1868, he
married Marion P. Pelthier, the estimable daughter of Charles and Eliza (Cicott)
Pelthier, also descendants of the first French settlers of Detroit, where in those early
times they were fur traders. The many fine buildings which Mr. Chapoton has constructed are monuments of his skill and ability. In banking circles, also, his name
is the synonym for honor and integrity. All of his fellow citizens appreciate and
evince their appreciation by the confidence they place in him. In the family circle
he is the loving husband and affectionate father. His family consists of one son and
four daughters.
Chipman, Hon. J. Logan, the late, son of Henry and Martha (Logan) Chipman,
was born in Detroit, Mich., June 5, 1830. He attended the public schools and later
entered the University of Michigan, but left before he had completed his university
course to enter the services of the Montreal Mining Co., and was sent by them into
the upper peninsula of Michigan to seek desirable locations for mining enterprises.
While in their employ he spent his leisure hours in reading law and was admitted to
the bar in that remote region. He returned to Detroit and in 1856 was elected the
city attorney and ably discharged the duties of that office for four years. In 1864 he
was elected to the Michigan Legislature and during his term was one of its most upright and influential members. In 1867 he was appointed as attorney for the Police
Board of Detroit, and served in that capacity until 1879, when he ascended the bench
as judge of the Detroit Superior Court, and in that position he won a great reputation. At the expiration of his first term (of six years), he was unanimously re-elected.
Judge Chipman was a man of the people and frequently remarked, "that no man
should suffer injustice in his court because of poverty." He resigned his position on


167




the bench to become a member of the Fiftieth Congress of the United States, where
he distinguished himself as a member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs; as the
friend of the soldier, and for the manner in which he advocated a vigorous foreign
policy, declaring that he never closed a public address without the thought that Canada should be annexed to the United States. Judge Chipman died on January 25,
1894, while yet in the full prime of his splendid powers, but his career as a judge
and representative are preserved in the history of a nation and there his place is
secure. He filled many positions of trust and left a record without a stain.
Chittick, William R., M. D., son of William and Mary (Morrisie) Chittick, was born
at Oshawa (Ont.), Canada, January 14, 1858. With his parents hlie removed to Detroit, Mici., in 1859, and in that city attended public and private schools until
twenty.one years of age. During the winter of 1880-81 he was a student in the Detroit Medical College and in the following winter in the Michigan College of Medicine. In June, 1882, he was graduated M. D). from the Long Island College Hospital
at New York, and at once returned to Detroit, located for practice, and a year later
formed a partnership with Dr. George P. Andrews, which partnership existed seven
years. In 1889 Dr. Chittick went to Europe, where he took special medical courses in
Vienna and has practiced continuously since his return. He has been attending
physician to St. Mary's Hospital since 1883, and is also attending physician to Harper Hospital. He is a member of the American Medical Association; Michigan State
Medical Society; Detroit Medical and Library Association; Detroit Gynaecological
Society; and Detroit Academy of Medicine, of which he was president in 1895 and
1896. Dr. Chittick is a member of the Detroit Club, and holds high honors in the
Masonic fraternity. In 1894 lie married Adeline S. Kent, a niece and adopted
daughter of Hon. C. A. Kent of Detroit.
Clark, Willis S., was born in Detroit, Mich., February 7, 1867, and is a sonl of E.
Minor Clark, a resident of Marine City. Willis S. was educated in the public schools
of l)etroit and Marine City, removing with his parents to the latter city in 1879. Ile
later entered the law department of Ann Arbor University, and was graduated in
the class of 1895. During the following two years he studied in the office of C. S. Pierce
at Oscoda, Mich., where he was admitted to the bar in 1892. From 1891 to 1893 Mr.
Clark was editor of the Oscoda Press. He is a member of the Kappa Sigma Fraternity of the University of Michigan, and a popular club man. In 1895, following
his removal to D)etroit, he formed a partnership (which still exists) with P. B. Champagne of Merrill, Mich., and they have been eminently successful in the practice of
their profession. They also do a general real estate business.
Collier, Hon. George X. M., was born at Claremont, N. H., September 28, 1838,
a son of Charles S. and Eliza (Currier) Collier, both natives of New Hampshire
George X. M. passed his boyhood in his native town, attending the pubHlic schools
and later the different academies of the State. The family removed to Michigan in
1853, settling at Pontiac, where his father died in the following year. George attended the University of Michigan and studied law in the office of the late Hon. D.
Darwin Hughes, who was one of the ablest lawyers in the State of Michigan, and
was admitted to the bar in 1866; he at once entered upon the practice of his profession in Pontiac, where he remained for ten years, later removing to D)etroit.
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In the latter city he has built up a large and lucrative practice and is considered an
authority on many points of law and is frequently consulted by his fellow attorneys.
Mr. Collier is recognized as one of the ablest jury lawyers in l)etroit, and especially
strong in criminal cases. Since the organization of the party he has been a Republican, voted that ticket since he was twenty-one years old and has exercised a potential influence in the party in the city and State. In 1873 he married Jennie M.,
daughter of William Turpin Brown of Troy, N. Y., and they have one daughter,
F. Ione B.
Crocker, George M., son of Samuel H. and Harriet (Furgeson) Crocker, was born
in Greenville, Bond county, Ill., August 9, 1848. He acquired his early education
in the district schools of Greenville and at the age of fourteen entered the Normal
School at Bloomington, ll., completing a classical or regular school course in one
year. In 1863 he went to Vermont and studied one year in the Newbury Seminary;
on leaving the seminary Mr. Crocker shifted for himself, coming to Mt. Clemens,
Mich., where he took up the study of law in the office of his uncle, Thomas M.
Crocker. About 1870 he was admitted to the bar. The people of Mt. Clemens honored Mr. Crocker with several elective offices: justice of the peace two terms; prosecuting attorney two terms; judge of probate two terms; alderman two terms; and
mayor two terms. I)uring his administration as mayor the last time Mr. Crocker
was a prime mover in erecting the court house against the odds established by Romeo,
a neighboring city claiming the right of the county fountain head. The court house
was subsequently presented by the city to the county. Mr. Crocker was one of the
original partners of the banking firm of Ullrich & Crocker, retaining his connection
with the bank until three years ago, when it was reorganized as a State bank. In
1893 Mr. Crocker removed to l)etroit, and was engaged by Don M. I)ickinson as
auditor of the Detroit, Bay City and Alpena Railroad, for which Mr. 1)ickinson was
receiver. When the road was reorganized as the D)ctroit & Mackinac Railroad, Mr.
Crocker was retained as auditor and purchasing agent.  He is a member of the
higher Masonic bodies. He has married thrice; first to Katherine L. Iickinson
(deceased), then to Harriet Steele.  About 1887 he married Cecelia Steele; Mr.
Crocker has nine children.
Dederichs, Peter, son of Peter and Elizabeth (Klein) Dederichs, was born in I)etroit, Mich., August 8, 1856. Peter Dederichs, sr., emigrated to America in 1840,
settling in the same year at Detroit. Elizabeth Klein is a daughter of the late Dr.
Matthew Klein, one of the early settlers of Detroit. Peter Dederichs, the subject of
the sketch, attended the parochial (St. Mary's) school and later the school of the
Christian Brothers; for four years he made a close study of architecture and early in
the eighties opened an office of his own and has since continuously plied his profession with well deserved success. He has made a specialty of churches and has
erected numberless imposing and costly edifices in the principal cities of Indiana,
Tennessee, South Carolina and Michigan. In 1885 he made an extensive tour of
the continent of Europe, studying closely the architecture of all the leading cathedrals and churches. In 1893 he was appointed by President Cleveland as superintendent of construction of the Post-office building at Detroit, as yet in a partial state
of completion, but which when completed will be one of the handsomest buildings
of its kind in the United States. Mr. Dederichs is a member of St. Joseph's Catho169




lie Church at Detroit; of the Harmonie Singing'Society, and Marshland Club at St.
Clair Flats. In 1876 he married Anna Muer of Detroit, and they had nine children,
four of whom survive: Lythia, Addie, Leo and Roumania.
Demine, Rodolph A., son of the late Dr. Rodolph Demine, professor of medicine
in the University at Berne, Switzerland, and world renowned for his works on the
treatment of the diseases of children, was born at Berne, the capital of Switzerland,
March 5, 1868. His early education was obtained in the public schools and at the
request of his father, who was of the third generation of surgeons in the Demine
family, he entered the University at Berne and pursued the study of medicine.
From boyhood Mr. Demine had had a consuming desire to see something of the
world on his own account. Although the scion of an old and wealthy house and
surrounded as he was with all that makes life most pleasant, at the age of nineteen
he determined to strike out for himself. He first removed to Hamburg, Germany,
where he secured a position as office boy with the great German-American Sugar
Trust, later becoming buyer and seller for that corporation. He remained with
them in all three and one-half years. In 1891 he visited America and after a few
months in the office of Mr. Patterson, an electrical engineer of the Havermeyer
building in New York city, and about one year in the service of the International
Navigation Co. (as German and French translator and correspondent), he began his
travels through the United States. About this time he made some lucky investments in real estate, mortgages and mining stocks in Canada, and in the vicinity of
Detroit, Mich., and he ultimately decided to settle in the latter city.  In the mean
time his father had passed away and he had inherited a considerable fortune; he invested further in mining stocks and later assumed his present position as president
of the Foley Mining Company, owning and operating a rich gold mine located near
the Rainy Lakes, in the Province of Ontario, Canada. Mr. Demine has succeeded
in practically carving his own fortune, a fact of which he is justly proud. From
office boy (at nineteen) he has risen to the position of successful mine owner and
capitalist (at twenty-nine). Aside from this business Mr. Demine transacts a general real estate and loan business, in which he has also met with marked success.
lie was married in 1895 to Flora N., daughter of the Hon. David Whitney of Detroit, and they have one daughter, Katherine.  Mr. Demine is domestic in his
tastes, spending most of his time in the bosom of his family.
Dohany, Frank H.-Prominent among the younger members of the fraternity and
one whose native talent, coupled with careful reading and diligent investigation,
has won recognition from professional brothers and the people, is the gentleman
with whom we are briefly dealing. Looking upon life as the great reality, his earnest
endeavor has been to search foundation principles of truth, and to that end his own
life has been one of close and heartfelt study and research. Few men of his age
have -won sturdier or more respectful attentions from those older in years but not in
the knowledge of the underlying principles of justice. In the case of The People vs.
George W. Jones, involving the proof of former marriage, he, arguing from fundamental legal principles, took the ground that proof of marriage was not sufficient by
showing marriage certificate, by swearing minister, and by two witnesses, but that
it must be shown that the ceremony was performed, according to law, where parties
resided. His argument was at first treated with contempt in the lower court, blut
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carrying it at his own expense to the Supreme Court he was sustained by a full bench.
This was his first case before that court, and the point had neverbefore been argued.
The court sustained his contention at every point, and the case is now cited in every
State as precedent. This won for him a recognition and influence that probably is
accorded to no other of the young attorneys in the city. Thrown entirely upon his
own efforts at seventeen, he devoted some time to teaching and studied one year at
the Normal School, and in 1895 was admitted to the bar, not yet having reached his
majority. His reading had been in the office of Hon. James S. Pound, where his
originality was recognized and encouraged. He is attorney for the Atlas Insurance
Company, serving also as a junior member on its board of directors. He was recently chosen as the official arbitrator for the Street Car Men's Association, having
ably argued a case touching the rights of the laboring classes, of whose cause he is
an earnest advocate, having sprung from them himself. He has a pleasing address
and fluent speech that makes him much in demand on occasions where oratory is appreciated. As a speaker arguing the cause of free silver for the State Committee in
the campaign of 1895 he won many friends, not only for the cause, but for himself.
Few men are more ready or afford greater pleasure as an after dinner or presentation speaker or at social functions; widely read in the world's history and in the
striking incidents of individual lives, with a mind well stocked with poetry of the
common people, he is never at a loss for felicitous expressions appropriate for the
occasion, illustrating with happy allusion to the famous in song or story.  Mr.
Dohany was born at Farmington, Oakland county, Mich., November 11, 1874, a son
of William and Bridget (Egan) Dohany, and reared upon the farm settled by his
grandfather, William Dohany, in 1837. He came to Detroit in 1835, and assisted in
improving the Grand River road to Farmington, where he became a prosperous and
widely known citizen, residing there until his death in 1876. Mr. Dohany is serving
on the Democratic County Committee, and is a private in Co. A, of the 4th Regiment, Detroit Light Guards. A lover of football from his school days, he is most
generally, however, found with a book of Farm Ballads or history before him.
While he is keenly appreciative of the ludicrous and enjoys a good joke, his mind is
active in all the serious problems of life, and they ever hold the uppermost position
in his thought.
Donaldson, John M., was born at Sterling, Scotland, January 17, 1854, a son of
John W. Donaldson, who emigrated with his family to America in 1855, settling in
Detroit, Mich., and who is now retired from business and a resident of Port Huron,
Mich. John M. was educated in the public schools of Detroit and at an early age
developed a taste for architecture. He first entered the office of J. V. Smith, one of
the pioneer architects of the city of Detroit, with whom he served his apprenticeship,
and later studied in Munich and Paris. Returning to the United States in 1877 he
took charge of the office of George Metzger in Buffalo, N. Y., for one year, at the
end of which time he returned to Detroit and formed a partnership with H. T.
Brush. Mr. Brush died in 1880 and about two years later Mr. Donaldson associated
with him in business his present partner Henry J. Meier. The firm of Donaldson &
Meier have built up a large and lucrative business and are rated as one of the leading
firms of architects in the city of Detroit. Among the buildings in this city built
after plans made by them are the splendid Union Trust building; St. Claire Hotel;
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Schmidt building; Moffat building; Wayne County Savings Bank; Bagley Commercial buildings; the store of Edson, Moore & Co.; Unitarian church; St. Elizabeth
Roman Catholic church; Detroit Boat Club house; and the Woodmere Cemetery
entrance. Mr. Donaldson is a member of the American Institute of Architects and
of the board of directors of that organization. He is also identified with the Architectural League of New York, the National Sculpture Society of New York, Detroit
Club and the Detroit Boat Club. He is also a trustee and a member of the executive
committee of the Detroit Museum of Art. In 1888 he married Charlotte Grosvenor
of Malden, Mass., and they have three sons.
Donnelly, Hon. John C., son of Capt. William and Eleanor (Boulger) Donnelly,
was born at Kertch, Ontario, Can., November 27, 1851, and was educated in the
public schools and at home. At the age of eighteen he began the study of law in the
office of Col. John Atkinson at Port Huron, Mich., and in the following year when
Colonel Atkinson removed to Detroit, Mr. Donnelly accompanied him. In 1871 he
entered the law department of the University of Michigan, where he spent one year,
then returned to Detroit and resumed his studies of law in Colonel Atkinson's office.
He was admitted to practice upon examination in the Wayne county Circuit Court
and after his admission to the bar completed his course in law at the university.
Since 1873 he has been a member of the law firm of Brennan, Donnelly & Van de
Mark, Mr. Van de Mark being admitted to partnership in 1893. In 1883 Mr. Donnelly was admitted to practice in the Supreme Court at Washington. He is counsel
for the Detroit Citizens' Street Railway Company and the Detroit Gas Company.
In 1878 he was elected to the State Legislature (serving one term) from Detroit. IIe
was captain of the Montgomery Rifles for two years and was also adjutant of the
First Battalion of the State troops. He is a member of the Detroit Club; Yondotega
Club and Detroit Riding Club. Septemcer 1, 1875, he married Anna Minton of
Alpena, a daughter of Martin J. Minton, one of the pioneer lumbermen of that
section, and they have four children.
Donnelly, Thomas M., was born in Kertch, Canada, September 24, 1859. a son of
the late William Donnelly. He was educated in the public schools and in Ottawa
College (Ottawa. Can.), and began the study of law in the offices of Brennan & Donnelly, being admitted to the bar in 1880, and was associated with Brennan & Donnelly for about two years. Since that time he has practiced alone, and has met with
justly deserved success. In 1883 Mr. Donnelly removed to Sarnia, Can., where he
established a weekly newspaper, the Sarnia Sun, which he operated for nine years.
In 1892 he sold out his interest and returned to Detroit. In 1885 Mr. Donnelly married Mary J. Fowler of Sarnia, Can.
Eyre, George F. C., son of John and Calista A. (Stevens) Eyre, was born in Brighton, Ontario, Can., October 9, 1866. He was graduated from the Brighton High
School in 1882, and from the Upper Canada College at Toronto, in 1886. After several years of travel through the United States he returned to Canada and in 1890
established the G. F. C. Eyre Manufacturing Co. at Lynn, Ont., which he conducted
for two years. In 1892 he sold out the business and during the ensuing years acted
as a traveling salesman in Canada for a large Chicago mercantile establishment.
Mr. Eyre spent some months in the office of John W. Gordon, barrister at Brighton,
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and in the fall of 1893 removed to Detroit, Mich., where he again took up the study
of law. He attended the Detroit College of Law for one year and later served in
the offices of Judge Philip T. Vanr Zile and Brennan, l)onnelly & Van de Mark. In
September, 1894, he entered the law department of the University of Michigan and was
graduated therefrom LL. B. in 1895. After a sojourn of nearly a year in the West
he finally located for practice in D)etroit early in 1896, and in that year formed a
partnership with M. Wallace Bullock, under the style of Eyre & Bullock, attorneys,
with offices in the Chamber of Commerce, and has since been active and successful
in the prosecution of legal business. Mr. Eyre is an extensive property owner an(l
has large interests in the stone and asbestos quarries near Belleville, Ontario. He
is a prominent Mason, a member of King Cyrus Chapter, Detroit; of the K. P., I. 0.
0. F., and is an enthusiastic yachtsman, having at one time owned the famous racing yacht, Atalanta. He is a member of the Royal Canadian Yacht Club of Toronto,
and an honorary member of the Rochester and Oswego (N. Y.) Yacht Clubs. In
1888 Mr. Eyre married Ada B., daughter of Capt. Charles Perry of Toronto, Ont.,
and they have one daughter, Marie G. In politics Mr. Eyre is a Republican.
Fenwick, William E., son of the late William E. Fenwick, M. D., was born at
Davisburg, Mich., December, 28, 1859. He attended the public schools of his native
town until fourteen years of age, when he removed to Detroit and entered the Cass
School (later the High School), from which he was graduated in 1878. He then took
the literary course in the University of Michigan, graduating with the class of 1881.
After leaving college he was principal of the Marince City School for one year. I-He
began the study of law in the offices of Wilkinson & Post of Detroit, was admitted
to the bar in 1884, and was afterward associated with the firm of Conely, Maybury &
Lucking, with whom he remained for three years. From 1887 to 1889 he was engaged in the theatrical business, and during the following year practiced his profession. In 1890 he was made deputy county clerk of Wayne county, and held that
office until 1894, since which time he has continuously practiced law. He is secretary of and attorney for the Home Mutual Life Association of D)etroit, is a member
of Oriental Lodge No. 240, F. & A. M. In 1885 he married Glen F. Eton of Ypsilanti, and they have two children: William E., jr., and Donald A.
Finn, Matthew, son of Matthew and Margaret (Coleman) Finn, was born in Detroit, Mich., in August, 1867. He was educated in the public schools of Detroit and
later entered the law department of the University of Michigan, from which he was
graduated with honors in the class of 1888. He at once located in Detroit, where he
has since practiced his profession with marked success. During the first four years
of his practice he was associated with the Hon. S. S. Babcock, and Robert E. Frazer.
Mr. Finn makes a specialty of real estate law, and is a thorough and painstaking
practitioner. He is extremely domestic in his tastes, and his leisure moments are
spent in the family circle. He was married, in 1895, to Frances M. Chene of Detroit.
Foster, Lemuel H., son of Charles J. and Julia A. (Hill) Foster, was born in Kalamazoo county, Mich, July 18, 1858. He attended the public schools at Kalamazoo
and later took a special course of instruction (including law) in a private academy at
Augusta. Ga. From 1875 to 1876 he was employed as clerk in the United States
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weather bureau at Washington, D. C., and while there continued his studies of the
law. Upon returning to Michigan early in 1876 he entered the law office of Robert
F. Hill at Kalamazoo, where he remained for several years; he was admitted to the
bar in September, 1876. Mr. Foster marrried Mary A. Bates of Chicago, and they
have one son, Frank L. In 1882 he removed to Chicago, Ill., and during the ten
years of his residence in that city built up for himself a large and paying practice,
making his specialty corporation law and was attorney and counsel for many large
corporations. On account of the ill health of his wife Mr. Foster removed to Detroit
in 1892, and has since practiced his profession continuously in that city with well
merited success. He holds an honorable position at the bar and enjoys the friendship of his fellow-practitioners and the respect and esteem of the public. Although
sought after on numerous occasions to fill positions of responsibility and trust, Mr.
Foster has never allowed his name to be used as a candidate for any public office.
He is a staunch Republican in politics and has won an enviable reputation as a
campaign orator. He is retained as counsel by several of Detroit's leading business
houses and is prominently identified with the general business interests of the city.
He is a member of the Michigan and Fellowcraft Clubs of Detroit; he was one of the
organizers of the Pointe aux Barques Resort Association and has been president ever
since its organization,
Gartner, Hon. George, son of the late Bernard F. and Katherine (Kerger) Gartner.
was born at Grosse Pointe, Mich., October 10, 1850. His early education was tobtained in the public schools of his native town and he later spent two years in the
Michigan State Normal School at Ypsilanti. In the autumn of 1869 he began teaching in the public schools and one year later entered the law department of the University of Michigan, graduating from that institution with honors in 1872; he was
admitted to the bar in the same year and at once began the practice of his profession
in Detroit. During the years 1865-66-67 he was assistant prosecuting attorney of
l)etroit, and in 1883 was chosen as a member of the Board of Education of that city
for three years, being president of that body in 1895. January 1, 1888, he ascended
the bench as judge of the Wayne county Circuit Court, and served in that capacity
for six years. In his private practice Judge Gartner lias an enviable position at the
bar. He is a member of the American and Michigan State Bar Associations, and
enjoys the unqualified esteem of his fellow practitioners and the public. In 1879
Judge Gartner married Lena B Brooks of Ietroit, and they had two children, one
of whom survives, Oliver, aged ten years.
Goebel, Licut.-Col. August, son of Jacob and Marghereta (Schaartzenberg) Goebel,
was born in Germany, September 2, 1839. He acquired his education in the schools
of his native place and removed to America in 1856, settling in Detroit. He was
first employed by S. Dow Ellwood, with whom he learned the trade of bookbinding
and remained with him until 1861, when at the breaking out of the war he enlisted
in Co. A, Second Michigan Infantry. lie served until 1863, when he was forced to
resign owing to defective hearing. He returned to Detroit and to the employ of Mr.
l1llwood, remaining until 1868, when he engaged int the grocery business at the corner of Fort and Orleans streets. In 1873 he formed a partnership with Theodore
Gorentlo ulnder the firm name of A. Go-ebel & Co., and engaged in brewing. In 1889
The Goebel Brewing Company was formed, of which Mr. Goebel is president atnd


174




general manager. In 1868 he was elected superintendent of public parks and in 1879
to the Legislature. He was a member of the upper house of the Common Council
during 1884-85, and was appointed a member of the Water Board to fill the vacancy
caused by the resignation of Marshall Godfrey in 1887, and in May of that year, to a
term of five years. In May, 1897, he was again appointed a member of the board
and did much toward reorganizing the department and in reducing the water rates.
Colonel Goebel has been a lifelong Democrat, but a firm believer in the absence of
politics from municipal affairs. Owing to his large private interests claiming his attention, he resigned from his position on the Water Board January 1, 1898. He was
elected captain of the Scott Guards in 1880. serving in that capacity until 1882, when
he was elected major of the First Battalion. On the organization of the Fourth
Regiment in 1884, he was elected lieutenant colonel, serving until 1888, when he resigned, owing to a proposed trip abroad; he was elected commander of Detroit Post,
G. A. R., for 1898. Colonel Goebel is a member of Michigan Sovereign Consistory;
Detroit Commandery, Knights Templar; Moslem Temple, Mystic Shrine; A. O. 0.
F.; Fellowcraft Club and the Harmonie Society. June 7, 1873, he married his present wife, and they have eight children: Mrs. C. H. Backus, August, jr., Theodore
I'., Fritz, Eda, Meta, Gretchen and Clara.
Goodfellow, Bruce, son of Archibald Goodfellow, was born on October 6, 1850, at
Smith's Falls, Ontario, Canada. He was educated in the lublic schools of hisnative
town, and at fourteen years of age entered upon his business career, securing employment in a large woolen mill, where he divided his time between the carding
machines and keeping the company's books. His father remonstrated with him, as
he wished to give Bruce a classical education, but the boy had formed a determination to become independent, and against the advice of parents and friends he removed to Toronto, and there entered a large mercantile establishment as bundle
boy. He was soon promoted, and when his employers failed he easily found employment in a gents' furnishing store, and later followed that business in Coburg and
Peterboro, becoming thoroughly conversant with every detail of the business.
Young Goodfellow's entry into Detroit business circles was marked with a good deal
of hardship and privation. At one time, shortly after his arrival, he was compelled
to peddle novelties on the streets to gain a livelihood. In the course of time he
found employment with George Gassman, a tailor, who afterward, strange to say,
worked for Mr. Goodfellow. In 1870 he had occasion to hand a business note to Mr.
C. R. Mabley, who took a fancy to him, asked him numberless questions, and finally
offered Bruce a clerkship in the furnishing department of his store, which was at
once accepted. At the end of two weeks he was placed in charge of his department, and in 1875, when Mr. Mabley opened a furnishing store under the Russell
Hotel, Mr. Goodfellow was its manager. He afterward became general manager of
Mr. Mabley's entire business. In 1884 a stock company was formed, under the style
of Mabley & Co., to control the business, and Mr. Goodfellow was elected its secretary-treasurer, and retained that position until 1885. In that year Mr. Mabley died,
and Mr. Goodfellow succeeded him as president of the company, and is to-day at the
head of the Mabley-Goodfellow Co., the largest department store in the city of Detroit. Mr. Goodfellow was married in 1884, to Mrs. T. W. Davey, of Windsor, Ontario, Canada.


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Gourlay, Alfred L., son of Robert and Helen (Lawson) Gourlay, was born in Edinburgh, Scotland. July 31, 1845. He was instructed by private tutors in Edinburgh
until eleven years old, when he emigrated with his parents to America, settling in
New York city, where young Gourlay attended the public schools for three years.
He then learned the printing business with Wynkoop, Hallenbeck & Thomas, of
New York, and later, for a number of years, acted as foreman of their establishment. From 1867 to 1869 he was associated with Mr. George Gray, printer, at
Omaha, Neb., but returned to New York in the latter year and again assumed his
former position for a period of two years. In 1871 Mr. Gourlay became identified
with the firm of Downs, Gourlay & Finch, shirt manufacturers, as superintendent of
their factory at New York, and following the dissolution of partnership of that firm
he removed in 1875 to Detroit, Mich., where, in company with his brother, James
Gourlay, he established the present business of Gourlay Bros., shirt makers and
men's furnishers. From a small beginning this business has grown to be one of the
largest of its kind in the city of Detroit. Mr. Gourlay was married in 1872 to Laura,
daughter of A. A. Andruss, of New York city, and they have two children: Helen
Lawson and Charles A.
Grant, John, son of Archibald and Mary (Smith) Grant, was born in Detroit, Mich.,
May 12, 1862. He attended the public schools and High School of that city until
seventeen years of age, when he took up the trade of garment dyeing in the employ
of his father. In February, 1887, he entered upon his successful railroad career
with the old Detroit City Railroad Co. as a clerk in their offices. He afterward became paymaster and purchasing agent for that company, and in 1889 he was made
manager and superintendent of their Grand River system. October 1, 1891, when
the Detroit Citizens' Street Railway Co. organized and purchased the Detroit Street
Railway Co. and Grand River Railway Co., Mr. Grant was placed in charge of several important divisions for the new company. From April to June, 1895, he was a
member of the firm of Sterling, Grant & Co., in the street railway supply business,
but in the latter month returned to railroading as general superintendent of the Detroit Citizens' Railway Co.; January 5, 1897, he was made general superintendent of
the Fort Wayne and Belle Isle system and on June 1 of the same year general superintendent of the Detroit Electric Railway Co., being at the present time general
superintendent of the entire street railway system of the city of Detroit.  Mr.
Grant is a member of the West Side Club and Detroit Athletic Club; B. P. 0. E.,
and is popular in both business and social circles. October 12, 1887, he married
Elizabeth Lang, daughter of Augustus Lang of )Detroit, and they have four children:
Archibald L., Marguerite M., Helen M., and Mary E.
Grummond, U. Grant, son of the late Stephen B. Grummond, founder of the
Grummond line of steamers plying the Great Lakes, and ex-mayor of Detroit, was
bern in Detroit, Mich., October 31, 1867. He was educated in the public schools of
Detroit and under private tutors; he also attended the Pennsylvania Military Academy and later took a course in Shortlidge's Academy at Media, Pa. At the age of
eighteen he entered his father's office and (luring the ensuing six years acted as
bookkeeper and manager of the Grummond tug boat lines. Upon his father's death
in 1894 he and his brother assumed charge of the business, and he has ever since
been general manager of the steamers plying between Cleveland and Detroit. Mr.
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Grummond is popular with all classes. Modest and unassuming in his bearing, yet
shrewd and energetic in business matters, he makes and retains friends among all
with whom he comes in contact. He is a member of the Detroit Yacht Club; of the
Michigan Athletic Association, and numerous other organizations.
Hall, Philo E., son of George W. and Ruth A. (Andrews) Hall, was born at Rockford, Ill., November 28, 1856. In 1857 his parents removed to Saline, Mich., where
young Hall attended public school until seventeen. He then removed to Detroit, and
during the following two years served the dry goods firm of James Frisbie at Detroit
and Williams Bros. at Ypsilanti as a clerk. In 1875 he entered the Bryant and
Stratton Business College at Detroit, and a short time before he was to have graduated he received an appointment as bookkeeper for J. M. Arnold & Co., booksellers
and stationers. He later acted in the same capacity for several other leading firms,
and for two years (1878 to 1880) he was entry clerk in the dry goods house of Allan,
Shelden & Co. Since May, 1880, Mr. Hall has been continuously identified with the
firm of Parke, Davis & Co., manufacturing chemists at Detroit, with the exception
of a few months in 1884, when he was the secretary of the Western Knitting Co.
He entered the service of P., D. & Co. as invoice clerk and was shortly afterward
promoted to the position of cashier. For the past thirteen years he has had entire
charge of all collections, credits, etc., within the pale of the office of auditor, of
which he is the incumbent. Mr. Hall is a member of the order of Free and Accepted Masons, and of the Royal Arcanum. December 24, 1879, he married Frances
Ingles, and they have had three children, two of whom survive: Clara E. and Louis S.
Hart, Joseph C., was born at Adrian, Mich., May 3, 1843. After graduating from
the literary department of Michigan University, in 1864, he and his brother, Henry
C. Hart, bought out the dry goods store of their father, who wished to engage in
other business. They managed the store several years. But the dry goods business
was not profitable in the years just following the war, and young Hart's tastes and
inclinations led him in other directions. So about the year 1869 he sold out and
went to Grand Rapids with some notion of buying an interest in the Grand Rapids
Democrat, then published under the direction of M. H. Clark. Mr. Hart was appointed city editor, and filled that position for a short time. While gathering local
news Hart had plenty of time for reflection, and looking ahead could see no encouragement to remain in the newspaper business. The work was pleasant enough,
but the emoluments were small. He accordingly resigned his literary ambitions in
1870 and betook himself to Detroit, where, after some minor business experiences,
he entered the office of Merrell & Ferguson, general agents for the Mutual Life Insurance Co., of New York. Their territory covered a number of States, and Mr.
Hart found in the details of general agency work, with the mass of intricate correspondence on technical subjects which it involved, during many years of financial depression, a field of labor that was at once congenial and profitable. In the fall of
1887 Mr. Hart saw an opportunity to establish another bank. Leaving Merrell &
Ferguson's office he got C. K. Latham and others interested, and in June, 1888, the
Central Savings Bank, capital $100,000, opened for business in the Detroit Opera
House block, where it has remained ever since Mr. Hart became cashier and active
manager of the bank. The present officers are: President, Gilbert Hart; vicepresidents, Conrad Clippert and C. K. Latham; cashier, J. C. Hart; directors, Gil177




bert Hart, Conrad Clippert, Charles K. Latham, William T. Gage, Joseph C. Iart.
The bank originally had about fifteen directors, but experience showed that better
results could be obtained with a smaller board. When vacancies happened they
were not filled, and thus by a gradual process of elimination or survival of the fittest
the number has been reduced to five, including those who have the largest interests
in the bank and are willing to give it most attention. President Gilbert Hart and
Cashier J. C. Hart are not related to each other, though the similarity of names
causes many people to have that impression. While a small bank, comparatively,
the Central Savings has a record which some of the larger institutions cannot boast.
It does a very careful and conservative business. There has been a remarkable
absence of losses, and such a thing as a bad debt is practically unknown. It prefers
to do a small business and stand on solid ground. During the panic of '93 there
were few days when the Central Savings failed to pay any demand made by its
customers or took advantage of the law in regard to ninety days' notice. At no time
was there any lack of currency, and it did not issue any certified checks or fall back
on clearing house certificates. Not a dollar was lost from bad debts that year, and
the result of its rigidly conserative policy in the matter of loans was more than gratifying. Mr. Hart was married in 1870 to Mary J. Parker of Adrian, and they have
three children: Miriam (who is an artist), Laura L. and Frederick P.
Hatch, Charles H., son of Judge Herschel H. Hatch, was born at Bay City, Mich.,
November 22, 1866. He attended the public schools and later entered the University of Michigan, from which he was graduated in 1888. He studied law in his
father's office at Bay City, and has been associated with him in his practice ever
since. He was admitted to the bar in 1891 and in January, 1895, was appointed as
prosecuting attorney of Bay City, but resigned that position in June of the same
year, at which time Judge Hatch removed his office to I)etroit. In the latter city
he has already won for himself an honorable position at the bar, and the respect and
esteem of his fellow practitioners and the public, In 1894 Mr. Hatch married Katy
H. Gower of New Haven, Conn., and they have one son, John G. Mr. Hatch is a
stockholder in the First National Bank of Bay City, and is a member of Jappa Lodge,
I. & A. M., of that city.
Hatch, Hon. Herschel H., was born at Morrisville, Madison county, N. Y., February 17, 1837, and was educated in the schools of his native town and under his
father's tutorship. At the age of twenty years he entered the law department of
Hamilton College, from which he was graduated in 1859. After admission to the
bar he practiced law in his native county for five years; in March, 1863, he removed
to Bay City, Mich., where he formed a partnership with Isaac Marston, then a practicing lawyer of that city, and which partnership remained unbroken for ten years.
In 1873 Mr. E. A. Cooley was admitted to the firm, which was changed to Marston,
Iatch & Cooley; two years later Judge Marston was elected to the bench of the Supreme Court and the firm of Hatch & Cooley existed with ever increasing prominence
for twenty years. In 1895 Judge Hatch removed to Detroit, where lie has continued
in the practice of his profession; associated with him are C. H. Hatch, his son, and
C. W. Chapman. The title of "Judge" belongs to Mr. Hatch by virtue of his services as probate judge from 1868 to 1872. He was a member of the first Board of
Aldermen of Bay City after its incorporation as a city. He was appointed in 1874
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by Governor Bagley one of the eighteen members of a commission provided for by
statute to revise and amend the constitution of the State. In 1881 he was appointed
by the governor one of the tax commissioners selected to revise the tax laws of the
State. In 1882 he was nominated by the Republicans and elected to represent the
Tenth district of Michigan in Congress of the United States; after serving a single
term of office he declined renomination and returned to his practice of law. As a
Republican he has for many years exercised a potential influence in the ranks of his
party in this State. Judge Hatch was married in June, 1864, to Eliza E. Haughton
of Morrisville, N. Y., and they have four children: Charles H., Helen L., Alice E.,
and Frank A.
Heffron, John, son of John and Mary (Sullivan) Heffron, was born in Cork, Ireland, in 1835. He attended school in his native town until eight years of age, when,
in company with his mother and his five brothers and sisters, he emigrated to
America, his father having preceded them. The family settled in Monroe county,
N. Y., where for twelve years young Heffron was engaged in various pursuits, latterly as a clerk in the Hotel Clinton at Rochester. In 1855 he removed to Detroit,
Mich., and with what ready capital he possessed he established himself in the restaurant and catering business; later in wholesale fruits, etc., which he followed until
1874. In that year he identified himself with several Detroit capitalists in the building of a levee on the Mississippi River, which afterward caused him heavy financial
losses. About the same year Mr. Heffron was instrumental in the organization of
the People's Saving Bank, of which institution he served as vice-president for several
years. In 1879 he withdrew from all other pursuits and became special agent at
Detroit for the Equitable Life Insurance Company of New York. In 1885 he engaged in the real estate and patent business, in which he actively labored until 1896.
Since April of that year he has been the Michigan State agent for the American
Union Life Insurance Company of New York. From 1881 to 1887 Mr. Heffron was
a member of the Michigan Board of Prison Examiners, under appointment of Governor Begole; and since 1857 he has been a member of the Detroit Light Guard,
being at present vice-president of the veteran corps of that organization. In 1855
Mr. Heffron married Ellen Bowen of Rochester, N. Y., but no children have been
born to this union.
Henderson, Edwin, son of Walter (deceased) and Julia (Cabot) Henderson, was
born in Wayne county, Mich., February 28, 1867. He attended the public schools of
Wayne county until 1885, in which year he removed to Detroit, where he spent one
year in the High School. He studied law in the office of James H. Pound at Detrot, was admitted to the bar in December, 1888, and has since practiced his profession continuously in Detroit with marked success. In 1893 Mr. Henderson was
nominated for the office of city attorney on the Democratic ticket and received a
flattering vote, although defeated by his Republican opponent. In June, 1896, he
was appointed on the Public Lighting Commission of Detroit, and held that position
until the following December, when he resigned to accept his present position as a
member of the Board of Police Commissioners. In the autum of 1896 Mr. Henderson was nominated by the Democratic party to represent the First Michigan district
in Congress, but was defeated with the entire ticket. He is a member of the American, Michigan, State and Local Bar Associations; of Detroit Lodge No. 2, F. & A.M.;


179




King Cyrus Chapter, R.A.M.; Monroe Council R.S.M.; Damascus Commandery K.
T.; Damon Lodge of the K. of P., and an enthusiastic Shriner of the Moslem Temple. In 1888 he married Laura Martindale of Detroit, and they have one daughter,
Evelyn L.
Holz, Charles, son of Henry and Sophia (Prestin) Holz, was born in Mecklenburg,
Germany, July 29, 1847, and was educated in the public schools of Mecklenburg and
private schools of Hamburg. On leaving his studies he served nine months in the
German army as required by the government. In 1868 he was apprenticed to the
tailoring trade which he mastered in 1872, and sailing for America during that year,
he settled in Detroit where he has since resided. Mr. Holz followed his trade for
the first five years after coming to Detroit, and then launched into merchant tailoring for himself, gratifying success attending his efforts of twenty years. On October
6, 1872, he married Minnie Holz of Detroit, and they have eight children.
Hurd, J. Stanley, son of John T. and Emily F. (Brldgman) Hurd, was born in Detroit, Mich., June 5, 1872. He attended private school in Detroit, and later entered
the Detroit High School, from which he was graduated in 1889. He received the degree of A. B. from the University of Michigan in 1893, and the degree of LL.B. from
the same institution in the following year. In 1894 he was admitted to the Detroit
bar and to practice in the United States courts in 1895. His specialty is admiralty.
He is a member of the Phi Delta Phi and Psi Upsilon fraternities of the University
of Michigan and of the Rushmere Club of Detroit.
Hurst, William A., son of William and Margaret (Storey) Hurst, was born in
Lampton county, province of Ontario, Canada, April 8, 1862. He attended the public schools of Canada until ten years of age, when he removed with his parents to St.
Clair, Mich., where he attended school until 1879. During the ensuing seven years
he served with the firm of N. & B. Mills as lumber inspector at Marysville, Mich.
While in Marysville Mr. Hurst took a full course of instruction in Bryant & Stratton's
Business College, being graduated in 1884. In 1886 he removed to Detroit and
after a service of one year with the Delta Lumber Co., he entered the employ
of J. H. Thompson & Co., wholesale tea and coffee merchants, as bookkeeper,
later acting as traveling salesman, and remained with that firm until 1890, at
which time they closed out their business. For two years following he engaged
in real estate and insurance at Detroit, and in 1892 was appointed as clerk of
the circuit court commissioners. While occupying that position Mr. Hurst attended
the Detroit College of Law and was admitted to the bar in July, 1896. In the autumn
of the same year he was elected to his present office as circuit court commissioner.
Mr. Hurst is a staunch Republican; a member of the Alger Club, of which he was
president in 1896; vice-president of the State League of Republican Clubs, having been elected to that office in February, 1898; and in 1895 served his party as secretary of the city and county committee. He is also a member of the Pellowcraft
Club of Detroit, the Bar Association of Detroit and holds high honors in the Masonic
fraternity. Since July, 1896, he has been a member of the law firm of Fales, Hurst
& Fenton. September 16, 1889, he married Ida E. R. Clark of Detroit, and they
have one daughter, Helen Claire.
Ingersoll, Jerome, son of Justus and Mary R. (Hines) Ingersoll, was born at Leav

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enworth, Kans., August 30, 1872. He attended the public schools of his native city
until 1884, when upon the death of his father he removed with his mother to I)etroit,
Mich., his father's former home. In the latter city he attended the University of
Michigan, where he pursued both the literary and law courses and was graduated
with honors, LL.B., and A. B. in 1895. In the same year he was admitted to the
bar and has since practiced his profession continuously at Detroit, in the offices of
Cutcheon, Stellwagen & Fleming. He is a stockholder in the Peninsula Savings
Bank; and a member of the Detroit Boat Club; Michigan Naval Reserve and Sigma
Phi fraternity, University of Michigan.
Jayne, Delos D., son of Delos Jayne, was born in Chenango county, N. Y., June
12, 1859. He was educated in the public schools and after a preparatory course of
instruction he entered Cornell University, from which he was graduated in 1881.
After graduating he taught in the Miami Valley College, Ohio, and in 1884 was
called to fill the chair of professor of political economy and history in the Michigan
Military Academy at Orchard Lake. In 1890 he resigned his professorship and took
up the practice of law, of which he had made a close study while at Orchard Lake,
and he was admitted to the bar in 1887. In 1890 he located in Detroit, where he has
since been in continuous practice with justly deserved success. He is secretary and
a director of the Pontiac and Sylvan Lake Railroad Company and a director in several other local corporations. He is a member of the Michigan State Bar Association; Oriental Lodge, F. & A. M., and of the K. T. and K. of P. In 1894 Mr. Jayne
married Annie E. Fehling of Belleville, Mich. In the summer of 1897 Mr. Jayne
associated with him in business Mr. G. Lewis Carter of Detroit.
Joy, William S., son of Frederick C. and Martha J (Sherman) Joy, was born in
Detroit, Mich., June 28, 1864. He attended the public schools of Detroit, and was
graduated from the High School in 1880. He then entered the office of Mortimer L.
Smith, architect of Detroit, with whom he remained for thirteen years. In 1893 he
established himself in his profession and has since met with marked success. In
1884 he married Ida F. Wilder of Detroit, and they have one son, Frederick C., 2d.
Keena, James T., son of the late John C. Keena, was born at Ogdensburg, N. Y.,
on November 19, 1850. His parents removed while he was still quite young to Buffalo, N. Y., and later to Detroit, Mich. From 1860 to 1865 they again resided in
Buffalo, and settled permanently in Detroit in the latter year (1865). James T. attended St. Mary's parish school at Buffalo, and the public schools of Detroit, and in
1867 enlisted in the U. S. navy (on board the Quinnebaug) as ship's writer and captain's clerk, and served in that capacity until 1870. During that time, and by the
advice of the captain, he read law, and upon returning to Detroit he entered the law
department of Ann Arbor University, and was graduated thereform in 1872. He
continued his studies in the offices of Trowbridge & Atkinson, at Detroit, and was admitted to the bar in 1874. In that year he formed a partnership with Messrs. John
and James Atkinson, which continued for two years. From 1876 to 1880 he was
associated with Gen. L. S. Trowbridge, and in the latter year was nominated for probate judge, but was defeated by Judge Durfee, who has been an incumbent of that
office for twenty-five years. In the same year (1880) he was appointed attorney for
the Peoples' Savings Bank, of Detroit, and still acts in that capacity, devoting him181




self almost exclusively to corporation practice. He is also chief counsel for the
Standard Life and Accident Insurance Company, the C. M. B. A., and Catholic Diocese of Detroit, the estate of Francis Ponds, and for the Wilhelm Bowling Association. In 1890 he associated with him in his work Mr. Clarence Lightner, who is a
rising young attorney. Mr. Keena is a member of the Detroit and other clubs, and
was one of the organizers of the Detroit Riding Club, being an enthusiastic equestrian. He was married, in 1874, to Miss Etta M. Boyle of Detroit, and they have a
family of four children: Pauletta M., Leo J., Trafton J., and Mylne N., aged respectively, twenty-one, eighteen, fourteen and ten years.
Kellogg, Charles C., assistant postmaster of Detroit, was born at Plymouth, Wayne
county, Mich., December 25, 1858, and removed to Detroit with his parents about
1866. He attended the public schools and was graduated from the High School in
the class of 1878, being one of the three class orators and in the following year was
orator of the High School Alumni Association. In the autumn of 1878 he entered
the University of Michigan, but before the completion of his course he left college
to accept an appointment as deputy county clerk of Wayne county, and ably filled
that position for twelve years, resigning on January 1, 1895, to accept his present
position as assistant postmaster of Detroit. On account of his wide acquaintance
acquired in public offices, Mr. Kellogg's name has been more than once before the
people, but he has each time refused to become a candidate for any other than the
position of which he is now an incumbent. After entering upon his official duties as
assistant postmaster, Mr Kellogg quickly familiarized himself with the workings of
the office; his soundness of judgment and courteousness of manner soon made it
evident that he was admirably fitted for his position. He has studied and been
graduated in law and is a member of the Detroit bar, but has never practiced that
profession. He is a Mason, a member of the Detroit Bowling Club; of the Royal
Arcanum and of the Veteran Corps of the Detroit Light Guard, of which he was the
president for four years. Mr. Kellogg is married and has one daughter.
Lathrop, H. Kirk, jr., D. D. S., was born at Orion, Mich., December 27, 1847, a
son of the distinguished physician and surgeon, H. Hirk Lathrop, now a resident of
Royal Oak, Mich. Dr. Henry Kirk Lathrop, sr., was born at West Springfield,
Mass., February 24, 1824. The record of his family takes us back to the springs of
American history. The head of this family was a clergyman, who fled front Holland in 1634, coming to Massachusetts by the ship Griffith, and settling at Barnstable. It is remarkable that the succession has been maintained by an unbroken
line of professional men for during 262 years; the Lathrops have been clergymen,
lawyers, or physicians. H. Kirk Lathrop, sr., was but twelve years of age when the
family migrated to the State of Michigan, settling in Oakland county. He attended
the district schools and later studied in the Romeo (Mich.) branch of the University
of Michigan; after completing the classical and literary courses, he took up the study
of medicine, was graduated in due time, and settled at Orion, Mich., where he began
the active practice of his profession in 1847. Dr. Lathrop studied astronomy systematically for a number of years, and is familiar with the face of the skies; he is a
careful observer, a scientific reasoner and a practical man in every sense of the term.
He has been a lifelong member of the Congregational church, which is looked upon
as the hereditary church of the Lathrops, and in politics Dr. Lathrop has been an
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Independent since the Greeley campaign. H. Kirk Lathrop, jr., attended the public and private schools of his native town, and later entered the Ohio Dental College,
from which he was graduated in the class of 1870. In that year he settled in Detroit, where he has ever since resided, in the active and successful practice of his
profession. Dr. Lathrop is prominent in both business and social circles. He is,
and has been for years, treasurer of the Michigan Dental Association, and was its
president in 1892 and 1893. He is a member of the American Dental Association, of
the Detroit Dental Society, and has been a member of the State Board of Examiners
since 1886. He is treasurer and a director of the Leland & Faulconer Mfg. Co.
(machinery and tools), and is a director of the American Harrow Mfg. Co. of Detroit;
and a stockholder in the Detroit Chamber of Commerce. In 1871 Dr. Lathrop married Mary W. Gillett, and they had three children: Rufus G., a graduate of the
University of Michigan, and a practicing lawyer, Kirk and Charles.
Lathrop, Joseph, jr., son of Joseph and Ada M. (Pulling) Lathrop, was born in Detroit, Mich., December 27, 1871.  After attending the public schools and High
School of Detroit, he entered the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, where for
two years he pursued the literary course; subsequently entering the dental department of the university, from which he was graduated in 1894, with the degree of 1).
D. S. During the ensuing year he was associated with his father in his practice at
Detroit. In September, 1895, Mr. Lathrop departed from the practice of dentistry
into his present business, forming a partnership with Mr. C. A. Roberts, under the
style of Roberts & Lathrop, and establishing a dental depot from which they furnish
supplies of every description to the dentists of the States of Michigan, Ohio and Indiana. Notwithstanding tremendous competition, the firm of Roberts & Lathrop
have from the first enjoyed prosperity.  Keen foresight and splendid business
methods have insured their success. Mr. Lathrop is a member of the Detroit Boat
Club, and is popular in both business and social circles. Like his father he is an
ardent adherent to the principles of Republicanism. He was married in September,
1894, to Harriet M. Davison, of Detroit, and they have a son, Crosier D.
Lawrence, William B., was born at Gainsville, N. Y., February 23, 1870, a son of
George D. Lawrence, a prosperous dairyman of I)etroit, to which city he removed
with his family in 1879, after a residence of one and a half years in Buffalo, N. Y.
William B. received his education in the public schools of Buffalo, N. Y., and 1)etroit, Mich. At the age of sixteen he left school and entered a mercantile business
which he followed for a number of years, spending his evenings at the old Whitney
Opera House, where he acted as programme boy. He later relinquished the mercantile business and gave his entire time to the theatre, where he found steady employment, and rose through all possible grades to the position which he now occupies, as treasurer of the Detroit Opera House, the duties of which office he has ably
discharged for the past eight years. Mr. Lawrence was sole owner of the Seattle
(Washington) baseball team in 1896, and during the season of 1893-94 he was proprietor of the Star Theatre Opera Company of Buffalo, N. Y. He is a member of
the Fellowcraft Club of Detroit, of Corinthian Lodge, F. & A. M., and of the B. P.
O. E. In 1890 Mr. Lawrence married Nellie A. Kelly of Detroit. Mr. Lawrence is
popular in both business and social circles in Detroit, a fact which was attested at
the late benefit tendered to him by his friends, at which the Detroit Opera House
was packed to the doors.
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Lennox, Levi J., M. D., son of William and Anna (Johnson) Lennox, was born
near Toronto, Can., in 1858. Following the teachings available near his home he
attended the Victoria College at Cobourg, Ont. Fully prepared he entered the Trinity Medical College of Toronto and was graduated in 1880. Dr. Lennox practiced
four years in Toronto then came to Detroit, where he has since practiced. In 1874
Dr. Lennox married Ella Cooper of Richmond, Mich., and they have two daughters:
Genevieve and Myrtle.
Lewis, Henry B., son of Alexander and Elizabeth (Ingersoll) Lewis, was born in
Detroit, November 18, 1865. Entering the public schools at an early age Mr. Lewis
was graduated in 1876.  In pursuit of educational advancement he entered the
Trinity College School at Port Hope, and studied four years, preparatory to entering upon a classical course in Trinity College, Toronto. Mr. Lewis began his
studies in Trinity College, Toronto, in 1882, remaining there three years. In 1885
he returned to Detroit and was employed in a clerical capacity by Ducharme &
Fletcher, hardware merchants. In 1887 Mr. Lewis removed to Seattle, Washington,
and purchased a blind, sash and door factory and saw mill, managing the establishment for four years. In 1891 he returned to l)etroit and in 1893 became associated
in business with James T. Whitehead, purchasing Mr. Whitehead's interest in 1897,
and the firm is now known as Henry B. Lewis, operating in trade circles as the Detroit Metal and Heating Works. Mr. Lewis is a bachelor.
Linn, Alexander R., son of Alexander and Helen (Lambie) Linn, was born in
Paisley, Scotland, July 17, 1841. While yet an infant his parents emigrated to
America and settled at Detroit, Mich., where young Linn attended the public and
high schools and later took a course in Ward's Academy at Newport (now Marine
City), Mich. At the age of fourteen years he entered upon his business career as a
clerk in the shipping offices of J. L. Hurd & Co. at Detroit, where he remained for
several years. He afterwards spent six years in the employ of Campbell, Linn &
Co., dry goods merchants at Detroit, and in 1863, in company with his brother,
under the style of A. R. & W. F. Linn, established himself in business as wholesale
and retail importer and dealer in teas, coffees, spices, etc. In this business he was
successfully engaged for twenty-seven years, becoming well known as one of the
most expert testers of the goods in which he dealt in the country, and doing the
largest business of its kind in the State of Michigan. In 1890 Mr. Linn sold out his
interest in the tea business and has since been engaged in general brokerage. He
is a member of the Michigan Republican Club, and is prominent in musical and
social circles of Detroit. In 1864 he married Jeanette F. Craig of New York, who
died in 1874, leaving three children, two of whom survive; Catherine C. and Helen
G. In 1880 Mr. Linn married Ella, daughter of John Levington of Detroit, and
they have one child, Marguerite L.
Lydecker, Garrett J., Lieutenant-Colonel Corps of Engineers, U. S. Army, was
born in Bergen county, N. J., November 15, 1843, a son of John R. and Elizabeth S.
(Ward) Lydecker. He attended the public schools of New York city and the New
York Free Academy until fifteen years of age. In the autumn of 1860 he entered
the U. S. Military Academy at West Point, N. Y., as a cadet in the engineer corps,
being graduated therefrom in the spring of 1864. lIe was at once ordered into active
184




service at General Meade's headquarters in Virginia, and until the close of the war
was engaged on surveys and general engineering expeditions before Petersburg and
other beleaguered strongholds of the enemy. Since the close of the war his military
service has been as follows: Until 1867 at New York, Governor's Island, in connection with the fortifications in that section; 1867 to latter part of 1868 at Detroit,
Mich., on lake harbor improvements' 1868 to August, 1869, at New Orleans, La., on
river and harbor improvements and gulf lighthouse service; 1869 to 1872 at West
Point, N. Y., as assistant instructor engineer corps U. S. Military Academy; 1872 to
1874 at San Francisco, Cal., as chief engineer military division of the Pacific coast;
1874 to 1882 at Chicago, Ill., on lake harbor and river improvements and in Missouri
as engineer officer on the staff of General Sheridan; 1882 to 1889 at Washington, 1).
C., as engineer commissioner of the District of Columbia and engineer in charge of
the Washington Aqueduct; 1889 to 1891 at Cooper Barracks, Oregon, as officer in
charge engineering department of the Columbia River; 1891 to 1893 at Louisville,
Ky., in charge of river and harbor improvements, etc.; since 1893 Colonel Lydecker
has been stationed at Detroit, Mich., in charge of the lake harbor and river improvements of Michigan. He is a member of the Military Service Institute (with headquarters at Governor's Island, N. Y.); Army Mutual Aid Society; Army and Navy
Club at Washington, D C.; Metropolitan Club, Washington, D1. C.; 1)etroit Club at
I)etroit, Mich.; and of the New York Commandery of the Loyal Legion of the
United States. September 21, 1869, he married Delia W., daughter of Alexander
Buel of Detroit, and they have one daughter, Olive B.
Lynn, James T., son of James and Jane (Ferguson) Lynn, was born at Pittsburg,
Pa., February 18, 1856. His education was acquired in the public schools and at the
age of fourteen he entered the employ of the Northern Pacific Railroad Co to learn
the machinist's trade in their shops at Duluth, Minn. After a three years' apprenticeship he returned to Pittsburg, where for the next five years he plied his trade in
the shops of the Pittsburg Locomotive Works and other companies. In September,
1877, he entered the employ of the Alleghany City Gas Co. and remained with them
until 1)ecember, 1881, when he removed to Evansville, Ind., to assume charge of the
outside city work for the Evansville Gas Co. From 1882 to 1889 he was secretarytreasurer and superintendent of the Chattanooga (Tenn.) Gas Co., and while in that
city served as alderman-at-large from 1886 to 1888, having been re-elected at the expiration of his first term of office. In 1888 he returned to Evansville, Ind., as superintendent of the Evansville Gas Co. and from 1891 to 1893 he was general manager
of the Memphis (Tenn.) Gas Co. Since 1893 Mr. Lynn has been identified with the
Detroit (Mich.) Gas Co. as its superintendent and he enjoys the respect and esteem
of all who have dealings with him. He is also president of the Western Gas Association; manager and director of the Windsor (Ont.) Gas Co.; a member of the
Rushmere Club of Detroit; K. P. of Memphis, Tenn.; and thirty-second degree
Mason and Shriner at Detroit. February 18, 1896, he married Mrs. R. J. Pelton of
St. Thomas, Ontario, Can.
McBride, Robert D., D. D. S., son of James McBride, a retired farmer, now a resident of Detroit, was born on a farm in Macomb county, Mich., April 20, 1869. He
attended the public schools of Birmingham and later took a year's course in Colgate
University at Hamilton, N. Y.; in the fall of 1889 he entered the literary department
185




of the University of Michigan, but left the literary and took up the dental course,
from which he was graduated in 1893 as a doctor of dental surgery. He then located
in Detroit to which city his parents had removed. He has already shown himself
master of his profession and has built up a large and paying practice. In 1895 and
1896 Dr. McBride was lecturer on bridge work ard operative dentistry in the Detroit
Dental College.
McCollester, Rev. Lee S., son of Sullivan H. and Sophia (Knight) McCollester,
was born in West Moreland, N. H., June 5, 1859. He attended the public schools
of Nashua, N. H., until 1872, when he entered the preparatory department of Buchtel
College at Akron, Ohio, and was admitted to the regular course in 1876, remaining
until 1878. Upon leaving Buchtel College he traveled abroad until the fall of 1879,
when he entered Tufts College, Boston, and was graduated in 1881 with the degree
of A. B. He then took a theological course at the same college, and was graduated
B. D. in 1884, and ordained in October of the same year. He accepted the pastorate
of the First Universalist church at Claremont, N. H., in 1885, remaining there until
called to the Church af Our Father, Detroit, in 1889, where he has since remained.
Rev. Mr. McCollester is a member of Michigan Sovereign Consistory; is prelate of
Detroit Commandery No. 1, Knights Templar; and also belongs to Phi Delta Theta
fraternity and Phi Beta Kappa alumni fraternity. May 1, 1889, he married Lizzie S.
Parker of Claremont, N. H., and they have two children: Parker and Katharine.
McQueen, James W., D.D.S., son of William and Mary (Wigle) McQueen, was
born near Kingsville, Ontario, Canada, April 6, 1867. He was educated in the pub.
lic schools and was graduated in 1892 from the Stratford (Ont.) Business University.
He then entered the department of dental surgery of the Detroit College of Medi
cine, and was graduated therefrom D.D.S. in 1895. Since that time he has practiced
continuously and successfully at Detroit. Mich. He was married in November,
1895, to Ellen E. McCormick. Dr. McQueen is a member of the Detroit Dental
Association.
Mansfield, George A., son of William K. and Caroline (Arnold) Mansfield, was
born at Plainfield, Mich., May 30, 1870.  He was instructed by private tutors
until fourteen years of age and in 1884 entered the Michigan Military Academy
at Orchard Lake, being graduated therefrom with honors in 1888. He then took
a year's civil engineering course in the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor.
During the ensuing three years he resided with his uncle, Senator Francis B.
Stockbridge of Michigan, at Washington, D. C., and while there received advanced
instruction in various branches of study under private tutors. He returned to
Michigan in 1891 and located at Detroit, where for a year and a half he occupied a
position in the Michigan agency of the U. S. Pension Bureau. In March, 1893, Mr.
Mansfield, in company with J. E. Lockwood organized the Michigan Electrical Company (of which he is treasurer) and without any previous experience launched out in
the broad field of electricity. Notwithstanding tremendous competition the Michigan Electrical Co., from a very small beginning, has grown to be one of the leading
concerns and the largest of its kind in the State of Michigan. Indomitable energy,
keen foresight and splendid business methods have won succcess for this company,
while even yet in its infancy. Their stock in trade consists of phonographs, phono18IS




graphic records, animated picture machines and everything electrical; and they are
the Michigan agents for the General Electrical Co. of Schenectady, N. Y., the Simplex Electrical Co. and American Circular Lcom Co. of Boston, Mass., and numerous other large concerns throughout the country. They construct their own apparatus and install it as well, and the electrical power and lighting motors of some of
Detroit's most imposing business edifices are monuments of their skill. Their
phonographic parlors, where are displayed to the public upward of fifty phonograph
and animated picture machines, are among the handsomest and most modern in
equipment in the United States. Mr. Mansfield has made extensive and valuable
experiments in the X-ray field and in the near future there will be added to the immense electrical establishment of the Michigan Electrical Co. a room fitted with
the apparatus necessary for taking the X-ray photographs. Mr. Mansfield is also a
stockholder in the Michigan Paper Co. and is otherwise prominently identified with
the business interests of Detroit. Personally he is one of the most companionable
of men. He is still a bachelor and immensely popular in society and the clubs. He
is a member of the B.P.O.E. and of the Michigan chapter of the Delta Tau Delta
co.lege fraternity of the United States.
Mason, William L., was born in the camp of the famous "Albany and Boston"
mine, in northern Michigan, February 20, 1865, and is a son of Edwin L. and Rebecca (Turner) Mason. He attended the public schools at L'Anse, Mich., until fourteen years of age, when he entered the Michigan Military Academy and was graduated from there in the class of 1884. He then took a course in the law department
of the University of Michigan, being graduated in 1886; in that year he returned to
L'Anse, Michigan, and practiced his profession for five years. In 1891 he removed
to Detroit where he formed a partnership (which still exists) with J. Emmet Sullivan
and has built up a large and paying practice. Mr. Mason is a member of the Detroit
Knights of Pythias and of the Michigan and Fellowcraft Clubs. For four years,
from 1887 to 1891, the filled the office of deputy State inspector of ores, with headquarters at L'Anse, Mich. He was married in 1888, and has two children.
Meier, Henry J., architect, was born in Detroit, Mich., October 29, 1858, a son of
Peter Meier, a retired merchant tailor of that city. He attended the public and private schools and later took a course in the Bryant & Stratton's Business College at
Detroit, from which he was graduated in 1873. During the following four years he
made a close study of architecture and in 1877 removed to Milwaukee, Wis., where
for two years he was engaged in the offices of H. C. Koch & Co., architects, and
while there he took a special course in architectural engineering. He returned to
Detroit in 1879 and entered the employ of H. T. Brush & Co., architects: in that
office he met his present partner, Mr. Donaldson, who was associated in business
with Mr. Brush. After Mr. Brush's death the business was conducted by Mr. Donaldson, Mr. Meier remaining in the office. In 1880 the partnership of Donaldson &
Meier was formed and a fresh start made. They have been eminently successful
and now rank as one of the leading firms of architects of Detroit. Mr. Meier is a
member of the American Institute of Architects; Detroit Club; Detroit Boat Club;
and other organizations. In 1886 he married Matilda Aertz of Detroit.
Milburn, Henry J., was born in the province of Ontario, Canada, June 8, 1847.
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He attended the public schools of Detroit, Mich., whither he had removed while yet
a small boy. In 1860 at the age of thirteen, he entered the drug store of Higby &
Stearns and learned the business. He was a hard worker and close student and in
1871, after eleven years of faithful service, was taken into partnership by Mr. Stearns,
Mr. Higby having withdrawn in 1867. In 1882 Mr. Stearns expressed a wish to retire and Mr. Milburn then bought out his former preceptor's interest in the business
and has since carried it on alone with that success which comes only through constant attention to business and honorable upright methods. His sterling integrity
and enterprise have won for him the confidence and esteem of his fellows in trade
and the public. He conducts a strictly legitimate drug and surgical instrument
business, both wholesale and retail, and has representatives and salemen in many
sections of the United States. Mr. Milburn is one of Detroit's largest real estate
owners, having purchased by the acre lands on North Woodward avenue and elsewhere, which he is improving and placing upon the market. He has just had completed for him at an outlay of over $60,000 a residence building known as the "I Milburn Flats," and adjoining it an imposing structure, "Milburn Hall," which is an
opera house of considerable size.
Millen, Capt. James W., son of Hyland Millen, was born at Lymo (now Cape
Vincent), N. Y., November 27, 1835. His education was acquired in the district
schools, and at the age of fifteen he shipped as "I boy" on board a sailing vessel plying the Great Lakes. He followed the sea continuously, rising through all possible
grades to that of master. In 1858 he went as master for Merrick, Fowler & Esselstyne, ship owners, and was placed in command (at the age of twenty-three) of the
big ship I" Montezuma," which he sailed until 1866. From 1866 to 1868 he was in
command of the " Montpelier " for the same company, and in 1869 took command of
the tug "I Sampson," which he sailed until 1872. From 1873 to 1879 he sailed the tug
"Niagara," and in the latter year entered the steam barge business with Messrs.
Newberry & McMillan, sailing their barges until 1882, when he came ashore, and
has been manager of the business ever since. He is also a member of the firm of
Parker & Millen, ship owners, and general fire and marine insurance agents, which
was organized in 1884; he is president of the Lake Carriers' Association and general
manager of the Red and White Star Line Steamers. He is a member of the Fellowcraft and Detroit Yacht Clubs, and is otherwise prominent in social and business
life. Captain Millen was married in 1861 to Mary Iselin, of Cape Vincent, and their
union has been blessed with five children, four of whom survive: Sidney J., Fannie,
James H., and Marie L. Mr. Millen is a Mason, and enjoys the unqualified esteem
of his fellow citizens of Detroit.                          I
Miller, Christopher C., M. D., son of John B. and Abigail A. (Finch) Miller, was
born at Unadilla, Otsego county, N. Y., April 19, 1846. He was graduated from
the Oxford (N. Y.) Academy at the age of nineteen, and at once began reading medicine under the preceptorship of his brother, Dr. Robert E. Miller, at Oxford. After
one year in the Albany (N. Y.) Medical College he entered the Homeopathic Medical
College at Philadelphia, and was graduated therefrom in 1863 with the degree of M.
D. Directly following his graduation Dr. Miller located at what is now Harlem,
N. Y., where he enjoyed a good practice for three years, removing to the village of
Greene, Chenango county, in 1871, where he remained until coming to Detroit in
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February, 1875. In his twenty-two years of active practice in Detroit Dr. Miller has
come to be recognized as one of the leading homeopathic physicians and surgeons of
the State of Michigan. His success was insured from the start by his earnestness of
purpose, close application to duty and strict integrity of character. He is a member
of the American Institute of Homeopathy, and vice president of that organization;
president of the medical and surgical staff of Grace Hospital; has been physician to
the Thompson Home for Old Ladies at Detroit for the past fifteen years, and is medical examiner for the Michigan Mutual Life Insurance Company at Detroit. From
1890 to 1893 he was a member of the Board of Health of Detroit; was president of
that large body from July 1, 1892, to July 1, 1893, and during. the cholera scare in
the latter year he visited Canada to make an investigation of the quarantine regulations and health conditions in the Dominion. Dr. Miller is a member of the Woodward Avenue Congregational church. In February, 1870, he married Ellen Louise
Stratton, of Oxford, N. Y., and they have two sons: J. Sherman, a graduate of the
Detroit High School, class of 1895, and Raymond Eugene, a member of the class of
1901, Detroit High School.
Minock, Edward, son of Michael and Mary (McCarthy) Minock, was born in Redford, Mich., May 16, 1843. He was educated in the public schools of Redford and
studied law in the office of Gillett & Vining (subsequently Gillett & Chambers) of
Detroit; was admitted to the bar in April, 1867, and from that time until 1870 was
associated with Mr. W. O. Vining, one of his former preceptors. From 1870 to 1873
Mr. Minock was senior member of the firm of Minock & Baker and since the latter
year he has practiced continuously alone with marked success. In 1885 Mr. Minock
was appointed assistant prosecuting attorney of Wayne county and filled that office
creditably until 1889. He was elected as circuit court commissioner in 1868 and reelected in 1870, his term of office expiring on January 1, 1873. From 1877 to 1879 he
was deputy county clerk of Wayne county, and from 1889 to 1891 he held the position
of assistant city counselor (now called corporation counsel) of Detroit. Mr. Minock
is a member of the Detroit Bar Association and has won for himself an honorable
position in the legal profession. He has always beem a staunch I)emocrat and was
elected to these offices on the Democratic ticket. In 1872 he married Melissa J.
Minock (a cousin) of Holly, Mich., and they had ten children, five of whom survive:
Evangeline, Daniel L., Mary L., Edward C., and Annabelle.
Moreland, De Witt H., was born in Livonia township, Wayne county, Mich, July
22, 1855, a son of John Moreland, one of the earliest settlers in that section who emigrated from Western New York to the territory of Michigan in 1832. John Moreland's wife, Lois Bennett, settled with her parents in Wayne county in the same
year. De Witt H. was educated in the public schools of Plymouth, Wayne county,
Mich., and at the age of eighteen entered a mercantile business which he followed
for several years. In 1880 he removed to Dakota, where he took up a tract of land
containing 320 acres and at the end of six months "proved up" on his claim at
Fargo, North Dakota, where he made his residence and where later on he entered
the service of A. J. Harwood & Co., being placed in charge of the abstract of titles
of Cass county, Dak. In the following year he accepted a position with the old St.
Paul, Minneapolis and Manitoba Railroad Company as traveling passenger agent,
with headquarters at Toledo, Ohio, for three years; then removed his headquarters
189




to Detroit as general agent for this line and its branches, which were then amalgamated into the Great Northern Railway system. In 1894 he was appointed agent
also of the Northern Steamship Company, which joint position he held until the fall
of 1895. In 1894 he was appointed water commissioner of the city of Detroit, still
retaining his position with the railway and steamship companies. In the fall of 1895
he resigned from their service to accept the position of commissioner on the Board
of Public Works of the city of Detroit and is still an incumbent of that office. In
1879 Mr. Moreland married Minnie E., daughter of the Hon. T. T. Lyon of Plymouth,
Mich., and they have two children, Claire and Marjorie. Mr. Moreland is a member
of numerous Masonic and other organizations and is justly popular with his fellow
citizens.
Moriarty, Frank C, son of John and Catherine Moriarty, was born in Cayuga
county, N. Y., June 13, 1860. His early education was acquired in the district
schools and in the High School at Hudson, Mich. Following his graduation from
the latter institution he taught school for several terms and later removed to Vacaville, Cal., where for two years he was employed by G. W. Gibbs, a prominent fruit
grower. He then returned to Michigan and entered the law department of the university at Ann Arbor, from which he was graduated with the degree of LL.B. in
1887, and was admitted to the bar in the same year. In January, 1888, he located in
Ypsilanti for the practice of his profession, and after a short residence in that city he
was elected as city attorney, which office he held until the following year, when he
was elected city clerk and clerk of the Board of Water Commissioners, ably discharging the duties of his dual offices until the spring of 1890. From 1888 to 1891 he
was president of the Washington County Republican Club and chairman of the
Washington County Republican Committee. In November, 1891, he removed to
Detroit, where he has since continuously practiced his profession with marked success and has won for hi.nself an honorable position at the bar. While a resident of
Ypsilanti Mr. Moriarity was president of the local branch of the Ancient Order of
Hibernians and also a member of the Fraternal Mystic Circle and of the Catholic
church. In September, 1889, he married Lucy Byron of Ann Arbor, and they have
four children: Francis L., Joseph, Sarah A. and Arthur W.
Morris, Scott Harrison, was born at Indianapolis, Ind., February 26, 1860. He is
the scion of an illustrious family, being a nephew of Benjamin Harrison, ex-president of the United States, and great-grandson of William Henry Harrison, expresident of the United States. His parents are Samuel Vance and Jane Elizabeth
(Harrison) Morris of Indianapolis, Ind. Young Morris was reared on the old Harrison homestead at North Bend, Ohio, in which town he received his early education.
He later attended public and private schools at Indianapolis, and was graduated
from the High School in 1876. During the ensuing thirteen years his name was continuously on the pay rolls of the Atlas Engine Works at Indianapolis, first as an apprentice in the machine shops, later as foreman of the foundry, and during the last
three years of his service with that company he visited all of the larger cities of the
United States, including Detroit, Mich., as a traveling representative for the sale of
their machinery. In 1889 he located at Detroit and was for one year superintendent
for the Detroit Radiator Co. From 1890 to the autumn of 1891 he acted in the same
capacity with the Michigan (or American) Radiator Co. at Detroit, which was estab190




lished during his service with the Detroit Co. In 1891 in company with several
others he organized the Globe Foundry Co. (later Globe Iron Works), in which he
became deeply involved as a stockholder. The general business depression which
followed left Mr. Morris in 1896 (when the Globe Iron Works passed into the hands
of the heaviest stockholder, and president of the company, Hon. Thomas Palmer)
without a dollar to his name, and he was obliged to accept a position as superintendent for the Detroit Furnace & Heater Co. Six months later he formed a partnership
with five prominent Detroit gentlemen, and under the style of the Morris Heater Co.
established their present business and plant for the manufacture of steam and hot
water boilers and hot air furnaces, of Mr. Morris's own design. In this latter undertaking almost phenomenal success has attended his efforts. He also owns stock in
the Globe Electrical Co. of Detroit. He is a member of the Detroit Yacht Club;
and Citizens' Yachting Association; the Mutual Boat Club of Detroit; and several of
the leading gun and fishing organizations. In 1880 Mr. Morris married Laura A.
Pease of Indianapolis, Ind., and they have four children: Mabel M., Jane E.,
Lewis P. and Anna Harrison.
Mott, John, son of Capt. William H. Mott, Corps of Engineers, U. S. A., and
Nancy (Laymon) Mott, was born in Detroit, Mich, October 16, 1863. He attended
both public and private schools and in 1880 after a thorough course of training was
graduated from the local Bryant & Stratton's Business College. During the ensuing
eight years he served in the tailoring department of the big store of J. L. Hudson at
Detroit, as a cutter of gentlemen's garments, and from 1888 to 1894 he was employed
in the same capacity by Mabley & Co. From 1894 to 1895 Mr. Mott was in charge
of the tailoring department of Mabley, Harvey & Co's. big store, and from 1895 to
1896 he acted in a like capacity for the C. H. Mitchell Co. Since July, 1896, he has
been manager of the tailoring establishment of John Mott & Co., which is operated
in connection with the furnishing business of the silent partners, Heidt & Baumgartner. In September, 1889, Mr. Mott married Gertrude Daniels of Detroit, and
they have one son, Edwin J.
O'Connor, Arthur C., son of the late Arthur O'Connor, was born in Detroit, Mich.,
July 28, 1866. He was educated in the parochial schools and at the age of ten began
an active business career as office boy in the law office of James Caplis, where he remained until 1881. In that year he was appointed as messenger in the State Senate
at Lansing, and during the recess of several months he attended the Detroit College.
In January, 1883, he re-entered the office of Mr. Caplis as a clerk and student, and
remained there until 1888. In 1889 he was appointed as index clerk in the office of
the registrar of deeds and held that position for two years; he then became a clerk
in the city assessor's office and after ten months' service was promoted to the position
of assistant assessor, and was an incumbent of that office until January 1, 1896.
January 21, 1896, he was appointed to his present position as assistant corporation
counsel of the city of Detroit. In September, 1892, while in the city assessor's office,
Mr. O'Connor was admitted to the bar and in 1893 was graduated from the Detrcit
College of law.
Osborne, Frederick S., son of Aaron S. and Virtue (Sealy) Osborne, was born in
Bloomington, Wis., May 13, 1867. He was educated in the public schools of his


191




native place, which he attended until fifteen years of age, when he was engaged as
bookkeeper by George K. Sistare's Sons, brokers, for their branch office at Detroit.
In 1888 Mr. Osborne resigned his position to accept the management of the business
of J. V. Campbell & Co., with whom he remained until he formed his present partnership with Cameron Currie under the firm name of Cameron Currie & Co., and of
which he is the managing partner. The firm deal in general stocks on the New York,
Chicago, Boston and Detroit boards and are the only members of the New York
Stock Exchahge in Michigan. On December 1, 1897, they purchased the Baltic
Copper Mine situated at Hougaton, Mich., for $120,000, and which is now selling on
a basis of $1,400,000. Mr. Osborne is a member of the Detroit, Michigan, Wayne
and Felloweraft Clubs. September 22, 1892, he married Tessa A., daughter of
Charles B. Wight of Holly, Mich.
Owen, John, son of the late John Owen of Detroit, and Jane (Cook) Owen, was
born in Detroit, Mich., August 18,186t. John Owen (deceased) was a native of
Canada, born near Toronto, Ont., in 1809. His father died while he was still quite
young and in 1818 he removed with his mother to Detroit, Mich. They were in poor
circumstances and young Owen's education was in consequence acquired under difficulties. For three years he attended a private academy, paying for his tuition by
doing chores about the premises, but in 1821 his preceptor died and he was compelled to seek the means of a livelihood. He became a clerk in the drug store of the
late Dr. Chapin at Detroit, where he performed his duties with such faithfulness that
in the course of a few years he was admitted to partnership in the business under
the firm name of Chapin & Owen. Subsequently Dr. Chapin withdrew and until
1853 Mr. Owen carried on the business under the style of J. Owen & Co. In the
latter year he too retired from active work, selling his stock and good will to T. H.
Hinchman & Son. Mr. Owen then gave his attention to marine and banking interests, judiciously investing large sums of money and soon became prominent as a
vessel owner and the possessor of an extensive estate in Detroit. For many years
he was president of the Detroit & Cleveland Steam Navigation Co., and one of its
heaviest stockholders; president of the Detroit Dry Dock Co.; president of the
National Insurance Bank of Detroit; from 1861 to 1867 treasurerof the State of Michigan; in 1836 alderman-at-large from the First ward of Detroit, filling that office the
second time from 1844 to 1845; a director of the Detroit public schools, 1839 to 1840;
commissioner of grades, 1859 to 1870; water commissioner of Detroit, 1865 to 1879;
from 1841 to 1848 a member of the Board of Regents of the University of Michigan;
president of the Soldiers' Relief Association, 1864; and a trustee and treasurer of
Elmwood Cemetery at Detroit from its organization to the time of his death in 1892.
He was also one of the principal trustees of Albion College and always prominentiy
identified with the work of the Central Methodist Episcopal church at Ietroit. John
Owen (the son) was eduated in the Detroit public schools and under private tutors.
From 1879 to 1883 he served in the employ of the Detroit Dry Dock Co.. of which his
father was president; and after a year or more in Europe he assumed charge of all
of his father's extensive real estate transactions. Upon the death of his father in
1892 the management of the Owen estate devolved upon him and still occupies the
greater portion of his time. He is secretary-treasurer of the Cook Farm Co. of Detroit, and a member of the Detroit, Detroit Riding, Detroit Athletic, Detroit Boat


192




and other leading clubs. In 1891 Mr. Owen married Blanche Fletcher, and they
have two children: Helen and John, jr.
Parker, Charles Maxwell, son of Thomas A. and Elizabeth Jane (Maxwell) Parker,
was born in Detroit, Mich., July 28, 1856. As soon as he reached school age Mr.
Parker entered Helmuth College at London, Ont., where he studied with a view
to literary work. In 1873 he entered Trinity College, Toronto, and after four
years' diligent application to his books was graduated from the literary department
with honors in June, 1877. On leaving college Mr. Parker returned to Detroit and
was immediately engaged on the local staff of the Detroit Post and Tribune. In 1880
he severed his connection with the Post and Tribune and formed a copartnership
with Charles Moore and published the first society and dramatic paper of Detroit,
styled " Every Saturday," a weekly paper. In 1884 the publication was sold ostensibly to establish a daily paper and organize a stock company. Mr. Parker, Mr. Williams and others founded the Detroit Times, Mr. Parker acting as news editor, and
secured the distinction of publishing the first Monday morning daily paper in Detroit.
After a life of one year the Times was sold to a rival company which absorbed it.
In 1886 he established the "Mercury," a paper similar to the " Every Saturday,"
and managed it two years when he disposed of it. In 1888 Mr. Parker became city
editor of the Detroit Journal, serving in that capacity for one year. In 1889 he went
to Chattanooga, Tenn., and joined the staff of the Times, serving in various positions on the staff until he became managing editor and occupied that position ten
years. Mr. Parker returned to Detroit during April, 1897, and assumed charge of
the estate and affairs of the late Thomas A. Parker, his father. He is a bachelor; a
member of the Grand Lodge of Elks, Knights of Pythias and Ancient Order of
Essenic Knights.
Parker, Delos Leonard, M. D., son of Leonard B. and Jane (Sparrow) Parker, was
born in Marine City, Mich., December 27, 1857. He was educated in the schools of
Marine City and at the High School of Ann Arbor, entering the University of Michigan in 1876, graduating from the literary department in 1881 and from the medical
department in 1883. At the close of his freshman year in the university he left college for a year and a half, during which time he sailed on the Great Lakes. Subsequent to his graduation he began the practice of his profession at Marine City, where
he remained until 1890, when he took a review course at the College of Physicians
and Surgeons, New York city. In July of that year he removed to Detroit and established his practice. In 1885 Dr. Parker was appointed by President Cleveland
pension examining surgeon at Port Huron, serving in that capacity until 1889. Dr.
Parker is an original member of the Detroit Naval Reserve and has been surgeon
for that organization since the establishment of the office in 1895. In 1896 he was
appointed lecturer on materia medica at the Detroit College of Medicine and is still
serving in that capacity. He is a member of the Detroit Medical Library Association; Wayne County Medical Society; Michigan State Medical Society; American
Medical Association; and of the social organizations of the city he is a member of
the Yondotega and Detroit Boat Clubs.
Parker, Walter R., M. D., was born in Marine City, Mich., October 10, 1865, a son
of L. B. Parker, M. D., of that place. He was educated in the public schools of his
193
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native town and in the Orchard Lake (Mich.) Military Academy, being graduated
from the latter institution in 1883. He then entered the University of Michigan and
was graduated therefrom in 1888, receiving the degree of B. S.; he then took a course
in the medical department of the University of Pennsylvania and was graduated
with the class of 1891. During the following three years he served on the staff of
St. Joseph's and the Children's Hospitals and Wills Eye Hospital, all of Philadelphia, Pa. In 1894 he removed to Detroit, where he has since remained in the active
and successful practice of his profession and is rated as one of the leading oculists of
the city of Detroit. Dr. Parker is a member of Detroit Medical and Library Association; Wayne County Medical Society; Detroit Academy of Medicine; American
Medical Association, and is popular in both business and social circles.
Penton, John A., son of Thomas and Anna (Ryall) Penton, was born at Paris, Ontario, Can., May 12, 1862. At an early age he removed with his parents to Sarnia,
Can., where he later received a thorough common school education. In 1878 he was
apprenticed for five years to the well known Sarnia foundryman, Francis Blaikie, to
learn the moulder's trade. He was a faithful and earnest worker and soon became
proficient in every branch of the foundry business. In 1883 he removed to Detroit,
Mich., and for six months served the Michigan Car Co. (now the Michigan Peninsular
Car Co.); for the next two years he was a journeyman moulder, traveling through
fifteen States and visiting every large city between Buffalo, N. Y., and Denver, Col.
He made his permanent headquarters at Detroit in 1885, and during the ensuing
three years worked in various large foundries of that city, attending business college
in the evenings. He became interested in the labor movement, was soon prominent
in local labor circles and on January 1, 1888, was elected as national president of the
Brotherhood of Machinery Moulders, leaving a salary of $60 a month to accept this
office. At that time there were only 200 members of the brotherhood and the president received his salary from a taxation of eight cents a month for each member.
The position had been tendered to many and refused on account of the small remuneration; Mr. Penton's acceptance of it being from purely philanthropic motives. He
at once set about organizing machinery moulders' union throughout the country and by
July, 1890, had brought the membership up to the two thousand mark and it subsequently reached a membership of between four and five thousand. In 1892 there
was not a single paper in the country that devoted any space to the iron moulding
trade and Mr. Penton, realizing that there was an opening for such a periodical, resigned his office as president of the brotherhood, formed a stock company with a
capital of $1,800 and opened an office for the purpose of publishing The Foundry, the
first issue of which appeared within ten days. Successful from the start The Foundry to-day ranks as one of the leading business periodicals of the wvorld, its circulation extending throughout the United States, Canada and Europe. Gradually Mr.
Penton bought up the entire stock of the company and for the past four years, since
1894, has been sole proprietor. Unique and progressive advertising and splendid
business methods generally, have been the keynote of his success, He also publishes
"Penton's Official Foundry List," which contains a registration of thousands of
foundries in the United States and abroad. Mr. Penton is secretary of the American
Foundrymen's Association and publishes the Journal of the American Foundrymen's
Association. October 23, 1889, he married Imogene Winship of Chicago, Ill., and
they have one son, George Winship.
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Phelps, Davis S., son of Frank D. and Elizabeth (Ingersoll) Phelps, was born in
Detroit, Mich., July 5, 1860. He attended the Detroit public schools until fourteen
years of age, when he entered the employ of Ducharme, Fletcher & Co., in the hardware business at Detroit. In 1877 he joined his brother, Jesse Phelps, in the sheep
and cattle raising business in Montana and during the ensuing eleven years under
the style of Phelps Bros., with ranches near Helena and Butte, they were phenomenally successful in all of their operations. Though still retaining an interest in the
ranching business, in 1888 Mr. Phelps returned to Detroit, where he purchased the
stock and good'will of the Jacob Welch Hardware Co. and established his present
stand. His stock in trade consists not only of everything in the hardware line, but
he has separate departments for the display of stoves, hotel and family steel ranges,
cutlery, refrigerators, gas ranges and appliances, toys, Japanese wares, sporting
goods and novelties of every description  It is conceded by all that Mr. Phelps has
the most complete store of its kind in the United States. He has also recently
opened a branch store located at No. 34 Woodward avenue, wholesale and retail; a
six story building devoted exclusively to heavy hardware, hotel and steamboat ranges
and cooking apparatus; also a full line of family gas and steel ranges, refrigerators,
rubber hose, lawn mowers, etc. Mr. Phelps has been successful from the start and
enjoys the respect and esteem of all who have had dealings with him.
Post, Hon. Hoyt, son of the late Edmond R. Post, was born in Rutland county,
Vt., April 8, 1837. At the age of four years he removed with his parents to Rochester, N. Y., where he attended the public schools for six years. In 1847 the family
made a westward move and after a short stay in Cincinnati and a year or more in
Dayton, Ohio, finally settled in Detroit, Mich., in 1849, where Hoyt again attended
the public schools and after a preparatory training in the Birmingham (Mich.)
Academy entered the University of Michigan, where he took both the literary and
law courses, being graduated from the former in 1861 and from the latter in 1863.
He was admitted to the bar in 1863 and during the ensuing three years served as a
clerk in the offices of Maynard & Meddaugh at Detroit. In 1866 he formed a partnership with the Hon. Albert H. Wilkinson, under the style of Wilkinson & Post,
which continued until 1873, at which time Mr. Wilkinson ascended the bench as
judge of probate for a term of four years  At the expiration of his term of office in
1878 Mr. Wilkinson again joined Mr. Post under the original firm name and the partnership has since remained unchanged. From 1872 to 1878 Mr. Post acted as reporter
of the Supreme Court of Michigan and during his early law practice has also been a
member of the reportorial staff of the Detroit Free Press, and edited for the Richmond & Backus Co. (publishers) a weekly journal called "The Lawyer." Aside
from his successful law practice Mr. Post is prominently identified with the business
interests of Detroit; he is trustee of the Michigan Savings Bank and Michigan Fire
and Marine Insurance Company; is second vice-president of the Michigan Mutual
Life Insurance Company, and a stockholder in and director of that company; is a
stockholder and director of the Edison Illuminating Company at Detroit, and the
Edison Light Company of Grand Rapids and of the Ideal Manufacturing Company
of Detroit. His firm are attorneys for all of these companies and for the Voight
Brewing Company; Globe Tobacco Company; Michigan Sulphide Fibre Company;
Detroit Sulphide Fibre Company. He is president and a director of the Bar Library
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Association of Detroit; is a member of the American, Michigan State and Local
Bar Associations, also of the Michigan, Fellowcraft, Prismatic and North Channel
Fishing Clubs. In 1867 he married Helen D. Hudson, daughter of George W. Hudson of Detroit, and they had six children, four of whom survive: Fannie H., married
John P. Robison of Elkchester, Ky., and has one son, John P. Robison, jr.; Myra
M., a teacher in the Detroit High School; Helen and Hoyt, jr.
Powell, John H., was born at Porlock, Somersetshire county, England, October
21, 1850. His parents immigrated to America in 1853, and after a stay of two years
in New York State, they finally settled in Huron county, Ontario, where they purchased a large farm. John H. spent his boyhood and early manhood on his father's
farm. attending the district schools during the winter months. At the age of nineteen he left home to seek his fortune, and during the ensuing five years roughed it
among the lumber camps of Michigan and Canada. In 1874 he returned home (at
his mother's request) and until 1876 devoted himself to hard study, in the latter year
passing the necessary examinations and receiving his certificate as a teacher at
Goderich, Ont. For three years he taught in the public schools of Ontario, but be
came restless and in 1880 again left home and journeyed through the southern and
western United States in search of employment. He was taken violently ill while in
Texas, and was brought home by his brother in an almost dying condition. However, he had recovered sufficiently by the following January to be able to enter the
Clinton (Ont.) High School, where he took a short course of study under the Hon.
James Turnbull and Archibald Weir, B. A., now one of the leading barristers in
Sarnia, Canada. In September, 1881, Mr. Powell entered the law department of the
University of Michigan, and remained until March, 1882, when he removed to Detroit, Mich., and completed his studies of the law in the office of Col. John Atkinson,
He was admitted to the bar in the summer of 1882, and has since practiced his profession continuously and with well merited success at Detroit. From 1884 to 1888
Mr. Powell had as a partner Mr. Peter L. Dorland, who is now a professor in the
Corydon (Iowa) College, and superintendent of the schools of that place. Mr. Powell
is a member of the local board of directors of the State House Building and Loan
Association of Indiana, and is otherwise identified with the business interests of the
city of Detroit. He holds high honors in the Masonic fraternity, is past commander
of Kennedy Tent, No. 904, of the Maccabees. Since 1882 he has been an active
member of the Methodist Episcopal church of Detroit. In 1883 Mr. Powell married
Martha M. Corbett, of Clinton, Ontario, and they have had three children, two of
whom survive: John E. and Mary M.
Prince, Herbert S., son of the late George W. Prince, was born in Cambridge,
Mass., September 5, 1861; received his early education in the public schools at Cambridge and later became a student in the schools of Detroit, Mich., where he removed
with his parents in 1874. On reaching the age of fifteen he entered the office of the
Canada Southern Railway as messenger, and was gradually promoted until made
assistant cashier. In 1882 he resigned to accept a similar position with the Wabash
Railway, and served in that capacity until 1889, when he was offered and accepted
the position of State agent for the Ontario Dispatch and Rome, Watertown and
Ogdensburg lines (fast freight), running over the Grand Trunk Railway. In the beginning his territory was confined to the city of Detroit, but he now has jurisdiction
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over the States of Michigan, Ohio and Indiana. Mr. Prince is a staunch Republican,
is treasurer of the Alger Republican Club and a member of the National Union and
Loyal League of Detroit. In 1886 he married Jennie Freeman, and they have one
son, Harold C.
Rackham, Horace H., was born at Harrison, Mich., June 27, 1858, a son of the
late Simon Rackham. He was educated in the Mt. Clemens (Mich.) public schools
and upon the removal of his parents to Leslie (Mich.), he entered the High School
there and was graduated in 1878. For a short time following his graduation he was
employed in a banking house in Leslie, but removed to Detroit in 1879, and entered
the employ of Berry Brothers, where he remained for four years. In 1883 he commenced the study of law in the office of the Hon. Adolph Sloman and was later associated with the Hon. E. E. Kane. He was admitted to the bar in 1885, but did not
begin the practice of his profession until 1896, when he formed a parternhip with
John W. Anderson and has since been very successful. In 1886 Mr. Rackham married Mary A., daughter of Dexter Horton of Fenton, Mich. Mr. Rackham is a
member of Union Lodge No. 3, F. & A. M., and Peninsular Chapter No. 16, R.A.M,
Remick, George B., son of Royal Clark and Lucy (Merrill) Remick, was born in
Lincoln, Me., August 4, 1845. In his youth he came to Detroit with his parents, and
prepared by a high school education he entered the University of Michigan at A1nn
Arbor, graduating from the law department in 1868. He was called by the people to
serve them in the State Legislature during 1881 and 1882. Up to this time Mr.
Remick practiced law, and the death of his father caused his association in the management of the estate of Royal Clark Remick. He remains a bachelor.
Rice, Zachariah, son of John and Sarah (Bebee) Rice, was born at Oswego, N. Y.,
September 9, 1855. He was educated in the public schools of Detroit, Mich,
whither his parents removed in 1861, and was graduated from the Detroit High
School in 1872, and at once entered the office of Brush & Smith, architects, which
firm later became Henry T. Brush & Co., where he remained until 1878, making a
close study of the business. In the later year (1878), he formed a partnership with
George D. Mason under the style of Mason & Rice, which partnership has since existed unbroken. From 1877 to 1878 Mr. Rice was in Europe for the purpose of
studying the architecture of Rome, Venice, Paris and other cities. Since his return
to Detroit in 1878, he has executed the plans for a large number of the most costly
and imposing structures in the State of Michigan as well as in other States. He is
a member of the American Institute of Architecture, of the Felloweraft Club, the
Detroit Athletic Club, the Detroit Hunting and Fishing Association, and holds high
honors in the Masonic fraternity.
Riker, Eugene V., M. D., son of Dr. A. W. and Mary (Windiate) Riker, was born
at Whitelake, Oakland county, Mich., July 21, 1861. With his parents he removed
to Fenton, Mich., in 1867, and in the latter city attended the public schools, being a
graduate from the union or high school in 1879. In 1884 he was graduated from the
literary department of the University of Michigan and at once entered the medical
department of the university, becoming assistant to Dr. V. C. Vaughn, professor of
physiological chemistry. He was graduated M. D. in 1887 and during the ensuing
six years was located as a general practitioner at Parma, Jackson county Mich.
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Dnring the summers of 1891 and 1892 Dr. Riker took post-graduate courses in New
York city. The winter of 1892-93 he spent in study in Vienna, Munich, Paris and
London, and upon returning to the United States located with his brother, then a
practicing physician and specialist on the eye, ear, nose and throat at Pontiac, Mich.
In the spring of 1894 they established a branch office at Detroit, of which Dr. Riker
has since assumed complete charge. His specialty is the same as that of his brother
and he has met with marked success. Dr. Riker is a member of the order of Free
and Accepted Masons and is past master of Palmer Lodge No. 183, of Parma. Jackson county, Mich. In 1886 he married Minnie M. Fikes of Fenton, Mich., and they
have three children: Eugene, Kittie and Olive Windiate. Dr. Riker is also a member of Wayne County Medical Society.
Sauer, William C., son of William and Charlotta (Heller) Sauer, was born in
Mecklinhausen, Westphalia, Germany, February 22, 1842. He attended the public
schools sf his native place until 1856, when he entered the College of Paderborn, remaining there two years. In the fall of 1858 he removed to Arnsberg and attended
the college at that city until 1860, when he began the study of civil engineering at
Segan. In 1861 he removed to Cologne and completed his studies, subsequently engaging in the practice of his profession. In 1871 he accepted a position with the Philadelphia Bridge and Iron Works at Philadelphia, Pa., where he remained until 1873.
In May of that year he was employed by the Federal government, department of
lake survey, with headquarters at Detroit, where he remained until 1875, and was
then transferred to the engineers' department and assigned to duty at the Sault Ste.
Marie Canal as principal engineer. Mr. Sauer resigned in 1888, since which time he
has been engaged in civil engineering and publishing works relating to his profession. In 1888, under the direction of Lieutenant-Colonel 0. M. Poe, he compiled
and published the illustrated atlas of the Sanlt Ste. Marie Ship Canal, and in 1893 a
map of Wayne county, a work of great value. Mr. Sauer is a member of the Royal
Arcanum and the C. M. B. A. of America. November 25, 1875, he married Augusta
Reinnischneider of Hanover, Germany, and they have four children.
Seitz, John H., son of George F. and Sophia (Bolz) Seitz, was born near the village
of Carlsruhe (Baden on the Rhine), Germany, August 24, 1831. In 1834he emigrated
with his parents to America, settling in Detroit. His parents removed to Washtenaw county in 1836 and settled on a farm. Mr. Seitz attended the country log-house
school in the winter of 1836 and early in 1837 he removed with his parents to Detroit,
where he resumed his studies in the Detroit public schools until 1840. In that year
he began his apprenticeship to the printer's trade add was employed in the department of the Detroit Free Press which published the daily journal for the Legislature
which held its sessions in Detroit at that time. During the idle period of the Legislature Mr. Seitz sold papers principally on the boats passing up and down the river,
and undoubtedly he was the first newsboy in the State of Michigan, at least to sell
to passengers of passing boats. In 1846 he was appointed clerk in the post-office by
postmaster John S. Bagg, during the presidential administration of James Polk,
serving four years. The next four yearshe devoted to his trade and in 1854 returned
to the post-office, where he remained until 1861. I)uring the fall of that year Mr.
Seitz served as quartermaster of the First Michigan Cavalry for a few months; late
in the same year he joined issues with his brother, Fred L. Seitz, and purchased a


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small interest in the Detroit Free Press. He took charge of the mechanical department, his brother the business affairs and H. N. Walker the editorship. In 1863, in
company with his brother, Mr. Seitz established a banking and brokers' office, the
firm styled as F. L. Seitz & Co. In 1871 Mr, Seitz sold his interest to his brother and
established an ice industry, following that business until 1891, when failing health
compelled him to retire. For two years after abandoning active business life Mr.
Seitz managed a farm near Detroit. May 8, 1861, he married Mary Chope of Detroit, and their children are Charles H., Frank R. and Fred L., the latter passing
from life recently.
Smith, Frank G., jr., son of Frank G. and Mira (Judson) Smith, was born in Detroit, Mich., November 8, 1856. He attended the public schools of Detroit, and later
spent two years in a commercial school at Berlin, Germany. At the age of eighteen
he entered the employ of the American Exchange National Bank at Detroit, and
served in various capacities for a period of five years. During the ensuing ten years
he was engaged in mercantile and real estate business and from 1889 until January,
1896, served his father in the jewelry business at Detroit. Since the latter date Mr.
Smith has been senior member of the firm of, and representative in Michigan, of the
Palatine, London, Lancashire and Greenwich Fire Insurance Companies of England.
He is a thirty-second degree Mason; an enthusiastic Shriner; and a member of
several prominent clubs in Detroit. Mr. Smith was married in 1883 to Emma C.,
daughter of Edward Smith of Detroit.
Sterling, Col. James T., chief accountant of the city of Detroit, Mich., is a son of
Elisha T. Sterling, and a grandson of General Sterling of Salisbury, Conn., and of
Revolutionary fame. James T. was born in Cleveland, Ohio, November 30, 1834,
and after attending boarding school at Painsville, Ohio, entered Kenyon College,
from which he was graduated in 1856. In the following year he joined the corps of
civil engineers at work on the Mississippi Central Railroad, where he remained until
recalled to Cleveland by the sudden death of his father in 1859. He at once entered
the business left by his father and carried it on successfully until the breaking out
of the war, when at the first call for troops and upon the organization at Cleveland
of the 7th Ohio Vol. Infantry, young Sterling signed its muster roll as first lieutenant of Company B, and on April 30, 1861, his regiment was ordered to the front.
On June 16 of that year he was made captain of his company for bravery in action;
in September, 1862, he was commissioned lieutenant-colonel of the 103d Ohio Vol.
Infantry and was brevetted colonel, U. S. Volunteers, in March, 1865, for gallant
and meritorious services during the war. After the close of the war Colonel Sterling
was engaged in building the Canada Southern Railroad, was purchasing agent for
the Wabash Railroad Company and later became paymaster for the Butler Railroad
Company during their construction work. He was afterward made general manager of the Ohio Central Coal Company, which position he occupied until his appointment as chief accountant of Wayne county, Mich. Colonel Sterling was married, in 1862, to Miss Webster of Detroit, and they have had five children. Colonel
Sterling is a trustee of Kenyon College; past senior vice-commander, Loyal Legion;
junior vice-commander of Detroit Post G.A R. and for the past five years has been
recorder of the Michigan Commandery of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion.
Stevens, James C., D.D.S., son of James H. and Mary E. (Johnson) Stevens, was


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born in Lodi, Washington county, Mich., July 25, 1862. He attended the public
schools of Washington county and Ann Arbor High School, and in 1884 entered the
dental department of the University of Michigan, from which he was graduated
D.D.S. in 1887. Prior to graduation Dr. Stevens passed a rigid examination and
was admitted to practice at East Tawas, Mich., where he spent the summers of
1885 and 1886. From 1887 to 1888 he was located at Cheboygan, Mich., and since
the latter year has practiced continuously at Detroit. He is a member of the State
and Local Dental Societies; and of the order of Free and Accepted Masons. October 12, 1887, Dr. Stevens married Ella Hangsterfer, and they have one child, Laura
May.
Stoflet, Henry L, was born in New York State, February 12, 1842, a son of Lodowick Stofiet. He was educated in the public schools and at the age of eleven years
removed with his parents to Detroit. In 1863 he enlisted with the 4th Mich. Infantry
and served two years at the front; in 1865 he returned to Michigan and until 1895 remained on the farm in Wayne county, which his father had purchased in 1853. He
gave up the calling of farmer to accept the position of county auditor, being one of
the three men who audit the accounts of Wayne county, of which position he is still
an incumbent. In 1866 Mr. Stoflet married Mary J. Hale of Wayne county, Mich.,
and they have two children: Emogene and Mary. Mr. Stoflet is a member of numerous Masonic and other organizations and is esteemed by all who know him as a
man of strict integrity. He is always working in the ranks of the Republican party.
Taylor, De Witt H., LL.B., son of Hon. Elisha and Aurelia H. (Penfield) Taylor,
was born in Detroit, Mich., August 12, 1848.' De Witt H. was graduated from the
Ietroit High School in 1867, and after a year in the literary department of the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor commenced the study of law in the same institution, being graduated LL.B. in 1870; in the same year he was admitted to the Detroit bar and to practice before the United States Courts for the State of Michigan.
For three years following his graduation in law Mr. Taylor was financially interested
in the hardware business of Coulson, Fisher & Stoddard, which firm dissolved part
nership in the autumn of 1873. In the spring of 1874 he began a fifteen months tour
of Europe, Asia and Africa, returning to America and to Detroit in the fall of 1875,
having visited all the principal cities of interest in those countries and having
acquired a fair knowledge of several of their languages. Since his return to Detroit
he has practiced his profession continuously in that city, making a specialty of probate business and the handling of estates, h s own family estate occupying most of
his time and attention. He is a member of the State, Wayne County and Detroit
Bar Associations; Detroit Club; Detroit Boat Club; St. Clair Fishing and Shooting
Club; and Michigan Republican Club. Mr. Taylor is a director of the Ietroit Y. M.
C. A., and has for several years been a member of the finance committee of that organization; he is also a director of and stockholder in the Detroit Lubricator Co., of
which Henry C. Hodges is president. In 1864 Mr. Taylor became a member of the
Jefferson Avenue Presbyterian church at Detroit and is at present acting as chair
man of the board of trustees of that church. November 5, 1894, he married Alice,
daughter of Lorin Andrus of Washington, Mich., and they have one daughter, Agnes
Aurelia.
For genealogy see sketch of Hon. Elisha Taylor which appears elsewhere in this work.
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Walker, Henry O., M. D., son of Robert E. and Elizabeth (Lee) Walker. was born
in Detroit, Mich., December 18, 1843. He attended the district schools, which were
at that time in a very primitive state, and was one of the first pupils in the original
Detroit High School. After two years in the Albion (Mich.) College he took a one
year course in the medical department of the University of Michigan. After entering the university he spent two summers in the Detroit Preparatory School of Medicine, which was afterward the Detroit Medical College. In the spring of 1866 Dr.
Walker was appointed as first house surgeon to the Harper Hospital, where he remained until the autumn of that year, and then entered the Bellevue Hospital College in New York city, from which he was graduated in February, 1867, with the degree of M. D. Immediately following his graduation he returned to Detroit, where
he has since practiced continuously. He hasbeen called to the following positions of
responsibility and trust: The first and third vice-presidencies of the American Medical Association, of which he has been a member since 1874; the presidency of the
Michigan State Medical Society; the presidency of the Mississippi Valley Medical
Society; presidency of the American Medical Editors' Association; presidency of the
Detroit Academy of Medicine and the Detroit Medical Library Association; the
chairs of demonstrator of anatomy and lecturer on genito-urinary diseases in the Detroit Medical College; secretaryship of the board of trustees of the faculty of the Detroit Medical College, prior to its amalgamation with the Michigan Medical College
in 1885, and since the amalgamation the secretaryship of the board of trustees and
of the faculty of the new college and the chair of professor of surgery in, and the
deanship of the veterinary department of the Detroit College of Medicine. Dr.
Walker is also surgeon to St. Mary's Hospital and Harper Hospital in Detroit, and
has been city physician and police surgeon of Detroit and county physician for
Wayne county, Mich. He is a member of the order of Free and Accepted Masons;
of the I. 0. O. F. and A. O. U. W. Personally Dr. Walker is one of the most approachable and companionable of men. November 13, 1872, he married Sarah G.
Esselstyn, of Detroit, and they have one son, Elton W.
Walsh, Joseph J., son of Edward A. and Lillian (Burke) Walsh, was born in Detroit, Mich., February 12, 1871. He was educated in the public and private schools
of Detroit, and at the age of sixteen years entered the office of his father, one of Detroit's foremost architects, to learn the business. In 1889 he was admitted to partnership in the business under the style of E. A. Walsh & Son, architects and superintendents. In November, 1893, Mr. Walsh married Margaret Halloran of Detrpit,
and they have one child, Helen E.
Warren, Homer, son of the Rev. S. E. and Ellen (Davis) Warren, was born in
Shelby, Mich., December 1,1855. He attended public schools in several cities, where
his father was called to the pastorate of different churches, and at the age of seventeen
located permanently in Detroit. For six years he was engaged as clerk in the large
book and stationery establishment of J. M. Arnold & Co., resigning his position to
accept the appointment as deputy collector of customs at Detroit, and was later made
cashier of the customs office. In 1886 Mr. Warren departed into the real estate business in which he has been actively and successfully engaged ever since. He operated alone until 1892, devoting himself to the improvement, subdivision and marketing of several tracts of land which he had purchased previous to resigning from the
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customs service. In 1892 the present firm of Homer Warren & Co. was organized,
the company members being Messrs. Cullen Brown and Frank C. Andrews. Their
business extends over the entire State of Michigan and they also transact business
for numerous large estates in other localities. In 1894 Mr. Warren added to his
business the Michigan agency for four of the largest fire insurance companies in the
world, viz., the English-American Underwriters Co.; Providence, Washington Co.;
German-Alliance Co.. and the Mutual Fire Insurance Co. Mr. Warren is a director
of the Standard Savings and Loan Association of Detroit and is otherwise prominently identified with the business inerests of the city. He is a member of the Michigan, Detroit and St. Clair Flats Fishing and Gun Clubs of Detroit and holds high
honors in the Masonic fraternity; he has always been a Republican. Mr. Warren is
a man of energy and enterprise, of the strictest integrity of character and enjoys the
unqualified respect and esteem of his fellow citizens. In 1878 he married Susie M.
Leach of Detroit.
Warren, William M., son of Major Archibald and Mathilda (Walker) Warren, was
born in Columbus, Georgia, March 16, 1864. He was educated in the public schools
and under private tutors at New York city, whither his parents removed directly
following the close of the war in 1865. In 1880 he entered the New York office of
Parke, Davis & Co., manufacturing chemists of Detroit, Mich., where he remained
for six years, having risen through several grades to the responsible position of
purchasing agent for the New York establishment. In 1886 he was called to the
home offices of Parke, Davis & Co. at Detroit, and after spending a year and a half
in practical experiments in the chemical laboratory, he was sent out on the road as a
traveling salesman for two and a half years. During that time he traversed every
State and Territory in the Union, becoming thoroughly familiar with the details of
the business. He was always an earnest, hard worker and his faithulness was rewarded in 1892 by his being appointed as assistant to the general manager, Mr.
George S. Davis, at Detroit. In November, 1896, Mr. Warren became acting general
manager and on January 1, 1897, he was elected to his present position as general
manager of Parke, Davis & Co.'s extensive business, with his headquarters at Detroit. Mr. Warren is a member of the Ietroit Club; Detroit Athletic Club; Detroit
Boat Club; and the Old Club at St. Clair Flats, Mich. November 28, 1893, he
married Mary C. Buhl of Detroit, and they have one child, Elizabeth Buhl Warren.
Weed, Odillion B., M. D., son of Perry and Mary A. (Dake) Weed, was born at
Mt. Morris, N. Y., October, 12, 1854. He attended the public schools of Mt. Morris
and in 1870 was graduated from the Pike (N. Y.) Academy. During the ensuing
eleven years he taught in the schools of Wyoming and Livingston counties, N. Y.
and in Iowa and Michigan, serving for eight years as principal of the Cheboygan
(Mich.) schools. While yet a student at Pike Academy Dr. Weed read medicine with
his cousin, Dr. Dake, at Nunda, N. Y., and received his degree of M. 1). from the
Detroit College of Medicine in 1888. Since then he has practiced his profession continuously and successfully at Detroit. During his residence at Cheboygan, Ir.
Weed was proprietor of one of the finest drug stores in the State of Michigan and he
later established the second drug store at Charlevoix, Mich. He is at present examiner for the local branch of the A. O. U. W.; Cadillac Council No. 19, National
Union, of which he is a member; is a member of the order of Free and Accepted


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Masons, and K. 0. T. M. In 1874 Dr. Weed married Ellen S. Newton of Cheboygan,
Mich., and they have two children: Millie L. and Mary Ethel, both graduates of the
Michigan State Normal School; the former now a student in the literary department
of the University of Michigan; the latter now preceptress of the Centerville (Mich.)
High School.
Weiss, Hon. Joseph M., was born in the city of Detroit, May 25, 1856. He attended the public schools and was graduated from the High School in 1873. In 1880
he was honored by being made president of the Detroit High School Alumni Association. He commenced the study of law in 1874, about which time he was made
assistant librarian of the Detroit Bar Library, and afterwards had charge of the
Buhl Law Library. He was admitted to the bar in 1877 and shortly thereafter was
appointed by the Hon. l)aniel Goodwin as prosecuting attorney for Chippewa county,
Michigan. He spent the winter of 1877-78 at Saulte Ste. Marie, and returned to
Detroit in the spring of 1878, to resume the practice of law, the Hon. Joseph H.
Steere being appointed his successor. In 1884 he was nominated by the Republican
party for circuit court commissioner and elected; he was renominated in 1886 and
re-elected; his term of office as commissioner expired on the 1st of January, 1889,
since which time he has practiced law at No. 11 Buhl block, L)etroit. In 1890 Mr.
Weiss was nominated for State senator and elected and re-elected to that office in
1892. During his legislative experience he presented, among others, a bill repealing the minor electoral law ( whice was passed in 1891), and substituted therefor the
old system heretofore in vogue in this State. He was also instrumental in having a
bill passed simplifying the niode of taking depositions throughout the State of
Michigan. Mr. Weiss has been very active in politics and has been chairman of
both the city (Detroit) and county (Wayne) Republican committees. He is a member of the National and Local Bar Associations, and is prominent and popular in
both professional and social circles. He is also a member of the B. P. 0. E., and at
one time was known far and wide as the crack "pitcher " of the old Cass Baseball
Club of Detroit. Mr. Weiss is still a bachelor.
Whitney, David, jr., the well known lumberman and one of Detroit's wealthiest
men, was born in Westford, Mass., August 23, 1830. He received such an education
as the public schools of his native town afforded and concluded his studies at the
Westford Academy. In 1854 he removed to Lowell, engaging in the lumber business in a small way, which by his energetic and proper methods was rapidly extended until he counted the whole of New England and some of the adjoining States
his trade territory. About this time he formed a partnership with his brother Charles
and others, and they established large distributing yards at Ogdensburg, Tonawanda and Albany, N. Y., and Burlington, Vt., with their main office in Boston, Mass.
The same concern remains in charge at this time, with the exception of the Albany
yard, under the firm name of Skillings, Whitney & Barnes Lumber Company,
of which Mr. Whitney is the president. In 1857 the lumber industry of this State
began to assume large proportions and a prosperous condition and Mr. Whitney directed his attention to Michigan. In 1861 he removed to Detroit, where he has since
remained, being one of the chief factors in the development of Detroit's varied interests. He has built several of the finest business blocks in the city, notably the
Whitney block corner of Grand Circus Park and Woodward avenue; the stores of
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R. H. Traver, William Reid, W. E. Barker, F. J. Schwankovsky and J. E. Davis &
Co., and the block occupied by the J. L. Hudson Company. Besides his large interests in lumber Mr. Whitney is one of the largest vessel owners on the lakes and
also has heavy interests in various manufacturing, banking and mining industries.
To such men as Mr. Whitney Detroit owes its progress. He has been twice married;
his first wife was Mrs. Flora A. Veyo and his sedond wife her sister, Sara J. McLauchlin. He has one son and three daughters.
Wilcox, Alfred F., son of Freeman and Harriet (Putnam) Wilcox, was born at
Milan, Monroe county, Mich., in January, 1839. He was educated in a log school
house at Milan and at the age of eighteen years entered the Michigan State Normal
School at Ypsilanti, were he spent two years.  During the following year he
taught in the district schools and then attended the Normal School until the spring
of 1861, when he joined the ranks of the 17th Mich. Vol. Infantry, which was recruited at Ypsilanti. In the following August his regiment was ordered to the front,
arriving in time to take part in the battles of South Mountain and Antietam. During the latter engagement Mr. Wilcox was seriously wounded and as soon as expedient was sent to the hospital in Philadelphia, Pa., and then to his home in Michigan.
His wound was slow in healing and caused him immeasurable suffering for more
than two years. However in the autum of 1864 he determined to go again to the
front, and at Jackson, Mich., helped to recruit the 11th Mich. Infantry and was made
first lieutenant of Co. K, of which he was in command during the summer of 1865.
From March, 1865, till some time after the close of the war the 11th saw service in
suppressing the renegade bands which then infested the South; they were mustered out of service at Jackson, Mich., in October, 1865. Lieutenant Wilcox then
returned to his home in Milan and after a short stay entered the law department
of the University of Michigon and was graduated with honors in 1868. In the
autumn of that year he entered the literary department of the same institution for a
special course of study, spending his summer vacations at home studying and in the
management of the home farm, carrying on at the same time a general lumber business. He had previously bought a large tract of timber land and during his college vacations had successfully operated in timber. In the fall of 1869 he sold out
the lumber business and also sold a portion of the farm, removing to Detroit, which
city has ever since been his home. He was admitted to the bar and at once began
the active practice of his profession of the law in the offices of Hon. Levi Bishop,
who gave him the start in life to which he attributes in a large degree the success
which has attended him from the first. His specialty has been and is real estate law
and cases in chancery. Mr. Wilcox enjoys the unqualified esteem of the professsion
and the public, being a man of exemplary habits and upright life and a public
spirited citizen of high standing. He is a member of the Detroit Bar Association;
Michigan Club of Detroit; and of the order of Free and Accepted Masons. In- 1871
he married Mary Millington, daugher of Cicero Millington, a banker of Ypsilanti,
and they have had one child, Winifred, who died in 1886 at the age of eleven years.
Wilkinson, Ralph B., son of Hon. Albert H. Wilkinson, was born in I)etroit,
Mich., September 28, 1868. He attended the public schools and was graduated from
the Detroit High School in 1887. He then entered his father's law office as a student
and clerk and remained until 1888, when he was appointed as deputy clerk of the
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United States Court. He continued his law studies while holding that office and in
the spring of 1890 was admitted to the bar and at once became an active practitioner
of his profession. For the first five years he was associated with his father, but has
since practiced continuously alone and with marked success, making a specialty of
real estate law. In 1890 after being admittedto the bar Mr. Wilkinson went to Denver, Col., expecting to settle in that region, but after a short stay concluded to return
to Detroit, having found the legal profession already well represented in the western
country. He is a member of the Detroit Bar Association and Union Lodge No. 3,
F. & A. M. In September, 1893, he married Isabelle, daughter of Hon. John Leadley of Detroit, and they have two children, a daughter, Ruth, and an infant son.
Winder, Daniel Carey, son of Daniel K. and Mary J. (Miller) Winder, was born in
Urbana, Ohio, January 27, 1863. He was educated under private tutors at Toronto,
Ontario, Canada, whither his parents removed in 1864, and when fifteen years old
he entered the office of his father at Toronto to learn the printer's trade. After a
few years he removed to Detroit, Mich., established himself in business as a printer
and has been successful from the start. He makes a specialty of fine work (hotel
menus, etc.) and practically controls the printing of the leading hotels and business
establishments. Mr. Winder was married on September 8, 1887, to Loia J. Atherton
of Northfield, Vt., and they have two children: Daniel C., jr., and John P.
Wright, Charles, son of the Rev. Thomas Wright, a retired clergyman and a resident of Genesee county, Mich., was born in Wayne county, N. Y., November 26,
1850. With his parents he removed to Ypsilanti, Mich., at the age of six years and
it was in that city that he obtained his early education in the public schools and
State Normal School; he later attended the University of Michigan, where he took a
special course in pharmacy, and Columbia College, New York; he also studied for
about three years in a laboratory at Detroit. In 1874 he engaged as traveling salesman with McKesson & Robbins (wholesale druggists) of New York, his territory extending through British Columbia and California, along the Pacific coast through
Mexico and the Sandwich Islands. His business in the West was done almost entirely by team, there being no railroads except the Central Pacific in that section of
the country at that time, and he frequently rose at 3 A. M. to drive a number of miles
in order to transact his business in the cooler portion of the day. In 1881 he resigned his position as salesman and located in Detroit, Mich., where he formed a
partnership with Randolph Manning and established a laboratory, beginning on a
small scale the manufacture of proprietary remedies. He subsequently bought out
the interest of his partner and incorporated a stock company with the style of Charles
Wright & Co., of which he has ever since been president. The business has increased to gigantic proportions and to-day they have resident agents in all sections
of the civilized world, their remedies having become world famous. Charles Wright
& Co. own and occupy two large laboratories and employ a large number of traveling salesmen; their unique business methods and extensive advertising have given
them the place which they now occupy among the leading establishments in their
line in the world. Personally Mr. Wright is one of the most companionable of men,
genial and mild in disposition and with the strictest integrity of character, he makes
and holds the friendship and enjoys the esteem of all with whom he comes contact. This
fact was attested by his election in 1886 as treasurer of the Republican State Central
200




Committee of Michigan, to which office he has been re-elected six times. Of a modest and unobtrusive nature he has never sought for public office, but has been many
times sought after to fill positions of responsibility and trust. In social matters he
is prominent and popular; he is a member of the Detroit Club; Detroit Athletic; Detroit Boat and Michigan Yacht Clubs; Detroit Wheelmen's Club, L. A.W.; a Mason,
an enthusiastic Shriner, and a member of the K. of P. He is also a member of several college fraternities and societies. In 1880 Mr. Wright married Louise Kemlo of
New York, who was a well-known violinist in that city and is at present a member
of the choir of the Woodward Avenue Baptist church of Detroit. Mr. and Mrs.
Wright are parents of three childreen: Thomas, Charles, jr., and Helen.
Wurzer, Louis C., son of Carl and Theresa (Kuhn) Wurzer, was born in Detroit,
Mich., January 6, 1875. He was educated in St. Mary's and the public schools, and
later took a course in the Detroit College of Law. He then entered the Notre Dame
(Ind.) University, where he took both the literary and law courses, and was graduated with honors in the class of 1896. He then returned to Detroit and was admitted to the bar, since which time he has practiced his profession continuously and
with marked success. During the presidential campaign of 1896 Mr. Wurzer was
president of the Republican First Voters' Society, and is at present a member of the
official staff of the American Insurance Union.
Wyman, Hal C., M. D., son of Dr. Henry Wyman and Zelinda (Carpenter) Wyman,
was born at Anderson, Ind., March 22, 1852. He was educated in the public schools
of his native town and in the Michigan Agricultural College at Lansing, which he
entered in 1865. While a student there Dr. Wyman made researches in animal and
vegetable physiology, and this led him into the study of medicine, which he began
under the tutorship of his father, who had removed to Michigan. In 1870 he entered
the medical department of the University of Michigan, and was graduated therefrom
M. D. in 1873. After a few months of practice he went to Europe and took postgraduate courses in Berlin, Vienna, Paris and Edinburgh, and upon his return to the
United States began active practice at Blissfield, Mich., which was his father's home.
In 1879 he located permanently in Detroit, and has enjoyed a successful practice
from the start. For two years Dr. Wyman was professor of physiology in the Detroit Medical College, and later filled the same chair upon the amalgamation of that
institution with the Michigan College of Medicine. In 1886 he founded the Michigan
College of Medicine and Surgery, in which he has ever since been professor of surgery; and also founded the Detroit Emergency Hospital, which is the clinical department of the Michigan College of Medicine and Surgery, and of which he is
surgeon-in-chief. He is a member of the Wayne County Medical Society; the Detroit Academy of Medicine; the American Medical Association, and numerous other
professional and fraternal organizations. Dr. Wyman was for a number of years
medical commissioner of the State Board of Charities and Corrections, and has written many hand books and medical articles, including a work on abdominal surgery
and a treatise on diseases of the bladder.
Belanger, Henry, M. D., is among the wide awake citizens of the community, and
while he is one of the youngest in his profession, he ranks high in the public estimation. Confidence and esteem are not misplaced when Dr. Belanger is chosen as the
206




recipient. Born in Chatham, Ont., on the 17th of October, 1872, his boyhood was
largely passed on a farm until his thirteenth year, when he was placed in the Ottawa
University, where the next four years were passed in hard study and preparation for
matriculation at McGill University was accomplished. He then studied one year in
Assumption College at Sandwich, Ont., and then entered upon the pursuit of his
medical studies, having selected that profession, at the Detroit College of Medicine,
from which he was graduated in the class of 1894. He chose to enter upon the practice of his profession at River Rouge and soon became so identified with every interest of the place and was so pleased with the results of practice that he decided to
make it his permanent home and has every reason to congratulate himself upon his
choice. He is the health officer of the village and is warmly attached to every feature of the village's social life. He participates in church and literary work and his
assistance to the young people is duly appreciated. His love for all athletic sports
is decided and in earlier life he was an active participant in them. The doctor was
united in marriage, October 2, 1894, to Clara E. Reaume, who was also born at the
same town in Canada as himself. One child blesses the union, Clara Amelia. In
August, 1895, he induced his brother Theophilus, two years younger than himself,
to study pharmacy at the Detroit College of Pharmacy, graduating therefrom and
passing the State Pharmaceutical Board examination for the State of Michigan in
1897. The doctor and his brother are now nicely located at River Rouge and doing
a good business. Dr. Belanger has risen surely and rapidly in the ranks of the profession as well as out of it. He is a member of the Wayne County Medical Association; and devotes careful attention to the advanced ideas of his profession, having
also had considerable personal contact in his practice before coming-to River Rouge
among epidemic diseases, thus having had a much wider range of practice than is
generally afforded to the young practitioner.
Briggs, Hon. F. Markham, was born in Livonia, Mich., August 19, 1840, a son of
Lewis and Hannah E. (Pennington) Briggs. In 1832 Pardon and Betsy Briggs settled in Livonia, coming from Niagara county, N. Y.; he lived here a prosperous
farmer during his life, dying at the age of seventy-nine. His son Lewis improved
the homestead adjoining the present home of F. Markham Briggs, where he also
died in 1895, aged seventy-eight; he was a highly respected citizen and had served
the community for two terms as justice of the peace. He was one of the earlier
Prohibitionists, by whom he was named as a candidate for the Legislature. Well
read, with decided opinions and a man in whom the fullest trust and confidence was
placed, he exerted a wide and lasting influence in the State. Few men had more or
warmer friends and none are more deeply mourned. F. Markham Briggs was educated in the High School at Plymouth and the State Normal. His business life has
been devoted to agriculture. He remained twelve years on the homestead after his
marriage and since then has lived on the present farm, which he and his father had
added to the homestead some years before. He was the only child, and while his
father retained his own business interests under his own management, their relations
have been of the closest character. Adhering to general farming, he makes the production of milk a special feature. Livonia stands high as a cheese producing town,
none other in the State surpassing it, there being three successful factories in operation. He is associated with the firm of George W. Hunter & Co., Plymouth, deal207




ers in general groceries, drugs and produce. He is also a stockholder in the Savings
and Exchange banks of Plymouth; he served as State senator in the session of 1895,
and was chairman of the committee on agricclture; is a commissioner of the Industrial Home for Girls, Iona Reformatory, Insane Asylums at Kalamazoo and Traverse
City. He entered actively into the necessary legislation touching those subjects,
and is considered by his associates as an able reasoner and an earnest investigator.
He is closing his twelfth year as a justice of the peace, and his administration of justice has tended to the betterment of his town, making it a warm place for the law
breaker and increasing its desirability as a place to raise children, free from the too
often contaminating influences so often found in other sections of Wayne county.
January 14, 1864, Mr. Briggs married Mary A. Westfall, daughter of Jacob and
Mary Westfall, and they have one adopted daughter, Marv A. Hearn, who, since
the age of fourteen, has contributed much to the pleasure of their home, and whose
intelligence and womanly grace and refinement are highly appreciated by her many
friends.
Burdeno, Augustus I., M. D., son of Louis and Adaline (Roberts) Burdeno, was
born in I)elray, Mich., December 23, 1857. His early education was received in the
district schools of Delray and in 1870 he moved to the township of Romulus, where
he attended the district schools until 1877; he attended the high school at Belleville
and taught and attended school until 1880, when he entered the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, from which he was graduated in 1883. In the fall of that year
he was appointed assistant physician and surgeon of the asylum for the insane and
county house of Wayne county, Mich.. serving in this capacity until 1885, when he
located at Dearborn, Mich., and engaged in the practice of his profession. In 1888
he removed to Delray, Mich., where he has since remained. Dr. Burdeno was appointed health officer of Dearborn in 1886 and again in 1887; he also served in a like
capacity at Delray during the years 1891 and 1892. Dr. Burdeno is a member of the
Maccabees and the American Insurance Union, February 3, 1885, he married Sarah
0. Quirk of Springwells, Mich., and they have one daughter, Verna M.
Burke, Hyacinthe C., town clerk and dealer in real estate, loans and insurance, is
a native of the town of River Rouge, being born there October 23, 1860. His parents
were Casper and Catherine (Riopelle) Burke, he a native of Baden, Germany, coming across the water in 1853. He died June 10, 1867, leaving two sons, H. C. and
Francis, and one daughter, Frances, wife of Isador Nuske. H. C. remained on the
farm until he entered the employ of the Michigan Carbon Works, retaining for eight
years the position of foreman. He then embarked in the real estate trade with results attained by no other man. Meeting with instant success, he continued to plot
various additions, to erect dwellings, etc., which his disposal on liberal terms has
enabled him to keep pace with the demand of the times. His good judgment has
often been verified. He has the name of being a liberal dealer and one whose faith
in the future of his community has never faltered. In politics Mr. Burke is one of
the most active Democrats and is ever found attentive to his party's demands; for
two years he has served as clerk of Ecorse. January 31, 1887, he married Elizabeth
Dunn, daughter of Michael Dunn, and they have four children: Edmond Michael,
Mary C., Rosa D. and Wolfort H.
Cahalan, James, M. D., a native of Ireland, was born in Tipperary, and when five


208




years of age was brought in 1857 to America, and has since resided in Wyandotte.
James Cahalan, for upwards of twenty years watchman at the rolling mills, is well
and favorably remembered. His death occurred at the age of seventy-six. He left
a family, all of whom are highly respected citizens and are among the substantial
men and women of Wayne county. The eldest daughter, Catherine, is the wife of
Michael Norton of Wyandotte. Anna married Patrick Mclnery of Detroit; and
Bridget is the wife of Patrick Needham of Traverse City, Mich.; Richard and John
C. Cahalan comprise the well-known firm of Cahalan Bros. It was the desire of his
parents that their eldest son, James, should become a priest and devote his talents
to mother church and to that end bent their energies, supplementing local advantages with a course at St. Joseph's Seminary at Bardstown, Ky., where he was thoroughly prepared for his theological studies; but certain changes had come over the
spirit of his dreams and he felt that other pursuits would be more to his tastes than
the severe life of a priest, and after long deliberation and consultation he decided to
devote himself to the science of which Esculapius was the honored father. Accordingly he entered McGill University, Canada's great medical school, from which he
was graduated in the class of 1880. He has since been in active and lucrative practice at his old home. Dr. Cahalan has all the qualities said to be so essential to the
medical man, and while his local patronage and estimation is great, he is held in no
less regard by his brethren of the profession throughout the county and State. He
occupies an elevated position with all who have known him. He has often attended
as delegate the various conventions of his party, the Democratic, and served some
years on the Board of Jury Commissioners, being appointed by Governor Winans.
He has been no less honored at home, his fellow citizens keeping him on the Board
of Education for seven years, and he was city physician ten years. The doctor's
wife was also one of the city's lifelong residents, whose maiden name was Anna
Melody. She died some eight years ago, leaving one son, James E. The doctor is
a man of broad and liberal views and one whose opinions deliberately formed carry
much weight with his townsmen, and in fact in all ranks and societies in Wayne
county.
Chase, Capt. James, was born at Toronto, Canada, October 27, 1825. His father,
John Chase, was born in Detroit, Mich., in 1799, being a son of Mark Chase, who
was a native of New Hampshire and a soldier in General Wayne's army and came
into this region with it. After completion of his service he married and settled near
the fort and thus became one of the earliest pioneers of Michigan. His days were
passed in Detroit, dying at a ripe old age. John Chase early in life drifted into
Canada, but after his marriage removed to the interior of Michigan, settling near
Ann Arbor. That country proved even too new for him, and returning eastward, he
and his family became permanent residents of Brownstown, Wayne county, about
1829. His death came early in life, being but forty-five at the time. His wife,
Elizabeth Wilcox, died when James, the subject, was but a child of five. Their
three children are all now living: Mariah, widow of Charles Sprague, residing in
Ohio; John, living in Toledo, 0., and James. Upon the death of his father, when
James was a lad of fourteen, he began sailing on the great lakes, to which he was to
devote so many years. Starting as a common sailor, his activity, readiness and
quickness to learn all, tended to advance him in the estimation of his superiors, and
209;ta




in about four years he had become mate on an important sailing vessel. Circumstances seemed to favor him and when not yet twenty-one he was placed in command
of the J. W. Brown, in which he sailed four successive and successful seasons. He
later commanded in succession the brigs Odd Fellow and Caroline from Buffalo, the
Fortune, Superior and Sunnyside of Detroit. About 1867 he became master and
one-third owner of the steamer Mary Pringle, in company with David Whitney of
Detroit. She was placed in the extensive lumber trade of Mr. Whitney until 1873,
when she was sold and they at once built at Trenton her successor, the Swallow, in
which the last six seasons of Capt. Chase's voyages were made. Health failing he
decided to retire from the water, which he did in 1879, after almost forty years devoted to the vicissitudes of the sailor's life, all of which except one ocean voyage in
early life was passed on the great lakes. Captain Chase was remarkably fortunate in
his life as a navigator, never having any serious disasters resulting in shipwreck or
loss of vessel, and but one man was lost from the vessels during the entire time of
his service. This is a remarkable record, one that but few old masters can claim,
even the ocean masters sailing where ample sea room is afforded, and the more unusual in the experience of a lake captain. Since his retirement Captain Chase has
enjoyed life in his pleasant rural home on the banks of the beautiful river he sailed
so often, a house that was built by himself nearly half a century ago and into which
he took his bride, Harriet J. Peters, to whom he was married January 26, 1854.
Mrs. Chase was born in Seneca county, N. Y., and came to Michigan at six years of
age, residing with his parents at Flat Rock until her marriage. Five children were
born to Mr. and Mrs. Chase: Eudora M., wife of Thomas Schooler of Rock Rapids,
la.; Emma E., wife of W. R. Smith of Trenton; Kittie A., died at age of ten; Arthur
J., a merchant of Sioux City. Ia., now residing in Los Angeles, Cal., for the benefit
of his health; and Gordon 0., who died in childhood. Captain Chase is widely
known, few men having more or warmer friends who delight to gather at his
home, where old fashioned hospitality and good cheer is ever found. Though
holding Republican doctrines the captain has never taken active part in party
politics. He has served the village as postmaster and in other minor offices. He
has shown great interest in the work of the Masonic fraternity, having served
his home lodge as its master. Mrs. Chase has ever been identified with the Methodist church. The captain and wife have lived at Trenton long enough to see every
other couple, who were at the head of families when they came, separated by death,
and now passing toward the close of life they have a satisfaction in looking back and
feeling that their own lives have not been in vain. The community is better for
their having been a part of it. They will be missed when the final summons comes.
Cicotte, Edward A.-This gentleman is in many respects a representative man.
Coming from one of the oldest families of the State, he is the fourth generation of
the name in Wayne county. He himself was born in Ecorse, December 12, 1854, a
son of Edward and Julia (Visger) Cicotte, whose other children were Theodore E.,
W. A. C., Mary A., Francis A. and Susan E. His father was for many years a
merchant at Ecorse, even in the days when the name Grandport (now forgotten) was
the name of the place. For many years he kept the tollgate at River Rouge at the
old blockhouse built by the government and kept by Joseph Cicotte and still standing and owned by Edward E. Joseph Cicotte was a son of Jean Baptiste Cicotte, and
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was born in America. These early pioneers were a sturdy race and became true
loyal citizens; most of them were in service during the war of 1812, not one of whom
but was highly indignant when it was known that disgraceful act was ordered. The
The gentleman whose name heads this sketch spent four years of his early life in the
custom house under D. J. Campau, collector during Cleveland's administration, this
being succeeded by four years in the office of the register of deeds, John A. Heames
being register. He has ever been a staunch Democrat, and every detail of campaign
work and local management has been duly mastered and operated by him. Being
well educated and ever retaining his early love for his old home and its people, he is
one of the popular men of the party, and no one exercises so great influence, or has
the confidence of the people in greater degree. Always in attendance at the various
party conventions few men in the county are more familiar to politicians by whom
his counsels are sought and heeded. Mr. Cicotte is wide-awake to the community's
interests, and has lent his influence to the promotion of those industries and manufactures that give employment and afford wider scope to the citizens. He has concluded several important deals in real estate, and is widely known as a hustler.
Strict honesty in financial dealings was a characteristic of these early families, and
while there is found smartness in too many instances in these modern days, a just
pride is felt in adhering to the training of their fathers. Mr. Cicotte is widely known
as a genuine sportsman, and few men can can show a better record of the chase.
When engaging in the sport with the gun he has the true sportsman's enthusiasm,
and few men would care to follow him in his meanderings and efforts to bag his
game. Enduring cold, wet and fatigue, no hardship is too great; he has been known
to break ice arm deep, to come within gun shot of his quest. January 6, 1884, he
married Eliza Stoner, of Monroe, and they have one daughter, Grace.
Clark, Charles, was born at Brownstown, Wayne county, Mich., in 1826, and is the
youngest of a large family of whom the late J. P. Clark was most widely known.
His family settled at this place in 1818, and his father, John Parsons Clark, was a
well known farmer and was also engaged in the fishing industry in which the son,
J. P. became famous and with whom Charles was associated from the age of eighteen for upwards of thirty years. When the fisheries were established on the coast
of Wisconsin he and his brother Isaac had charge of them for several seasons, and
after being foreman for J. P. for some time, he became his partner and was more
closely identified with him until 1871, when he retired to a 300 acre farm in Brownstown and was quietly engaged in agricultural pursuits until his brother's death called
him from his rural life to again assume management of more diversified interests,
as the administrator of the extensive estate left by J. P. This estate, amounting to
upwards of a half million dollars and comprising varied industries and enterprises,
demanded careful attention for some years. According to the will of J. P., one
steamer, among the many that he owned, should be kept in the family, so the handsome -Wyandotte " is retained and is one of the most popular steamers largely devoted to the excursion trade, to Hickory and Sugar Islands, which were bought by
J. P. Clark who fitted the latter up with parks and buildings as a resort, and it has
lately bec6mefamous as such. The interests of the estate have been carefully conserved under the administrator, much of the landed property and steamers, as well
as ship building features, being sold. The complications of such a vast and varied
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business demand the shrewdest business judgment and capacity, more especially so
after he who built it up has passed away. He was a man who told little about his
business and depended but little upon books or memoranda; the multifarious details were mainly carried in his own head. Charles, however, knew his brother's
life and habits so well that he could step in and keep the business moving with less
friction than could have been possible with another man. Mr. Clark is one of the
most popular citizens of this business suburb and is intimately associated with its
people in almost every social capacity. He is a Mason and a member of Wyandotte
Club. His wife, whose maiden name was Cornelia Maria Wood, passed away in
1895. His family consists of Florence, wife of H. P. Rafter of Wyandotte; Abner
W., who operates his farm; Arthur B., a commercial man; and Clarence Herbert,
clerk of the steamer Wyandotte.
Clark, John Person (deceased), was born on the Hudson River, in view of the Catskill Mountains, April 10, 1808, a son of John and Sarah (Person) Clark. In 1812
the family removed to Black Rock, near where the British crossed the river to burn
Buffalo. While the war of 1812 was still in progress the Clark family removed to
Cleveland, where his father was a pioneer hotel keeper, and in one of whose rooms
the Masonic Lodge, of which he was a member, was held, and during initiation of
candidates rolled a cannon ball across the floor to prevent outsiders from hearing the
ceremonies. In 1818 the family engaged in farming at Wyandotte, finally settling
and improving a farm some three miles back from the river. At sixteen years of age
the future ship magnate entered upon an active business career, working on a canal
in Ohio at $13 per month and board. While others indulged in drinking he formed
a determination to let liquor alone and was thus able to return home much better off
than his companions. His father's death in 1827 decided him to engage in matters
outside the farm, and he bought an interest in a fishing company, a business he continued in as long as he lived. He formed a company and fished with a seine on the
Maumee River, a noted spawning ground. He worked hard directing operations of
both a day and night seine, sleeping but a few minutes at a time, but rushed the
business and personally doing much of the more particular work. In 1832 he invested in land and that year built his first boat, a barge which he navigated on the
canal. In 1836 he explored Lake Michigan and traversed many times, generally on
foot, the shore between Green Bay and Milwaukee. He became familiar with the
Indians and their manner of fishing, and in 1838 engaged in fishing along these
shores on an extensive scale with over fifty men in his employ. The demands of
the business caused him to purchase a vessel, and from this he naturally drifted
into repairing vessels, and as a result, in 1850, he came to Detroit, built a dry dock,
erected a saw mill, built and repaired vessels and also raised several sunken vessels,
employing from 400 to 500 men. He early recognized the superiority of steam navigation and built several steamboats whose names and appearance are as familiar
to Detroiters as any individual living in its limits; the Jay Cooke, Alaska, Pearl,
Gazelle, Riverside, Marion Teller are well known. He owned the line of steamers
running between Detroit and Sandusky, Detroit and Sugar Island, Cleveland and
Buffalo, and others, employing about 140 men on his vessels. For some years before his death he leased the yards and they have since been conducted by others.
He retained his fishing interests to his death and never wearied of reference to inci212




dents connected with that business to which he owed a large part of his great financial success. He invested in real estate, owning several farms and city property.
He had a great natural ability and could attend to the details of an extensive business that involved many interests with great mastery of small matters. He had a
warm heart under a somewhat rough exterior and while he was often gruff, stern
and decisive, it but needed a little tact to get beneath the apparent roughness and
when that ice was broken he could be and was as true a friend and as interesting a
companion as could be found. A deafness in his later years precluded mixing
largely with others, but in his own home he was the loving husband and devoted
father. His death occurred September 3, 1888. His large property (exceeding half
a million) has since been adjusted by his administrators, the yards leased, the steamboats sold and in some cases contemplated improvements made. Clark Park, comprising upwards of forty acres, was one-half donated by him to the city and Clark
avenue is named in his honor. Mr. Clark's first wife was Susan Booth, whose tragic
death cast a gloom over him that only was dispelled by years of constant business
demands. She was the mother of five children: Avis C., wife of T. A. Hicking, residing in Paris; Alice E., now Mrs. Atchison of Los Angeles, Cal; Alvin S. Clark of
Detroit; Florence, Mrs. W. O. Ashley of Detroit; and Norman S. Clark.
Clark, Edward B., son of William M. and Alvira (Terril) Clark, was born in
Blakesburg, Iowa, July 18, 1862. His early education was received in the public
schools of Lansing, Mich., where his parents removed in 1871. In 1875 he entered
the Western Union Telegraph office as messenger boy at Lansing, Mich.; in 1877 he
entered the dispatcher's office of the Detroit, Grand Haven and Milwaukee Railroad
at Detroit, and was appointed ticket agent for the Grand Trunk Railway system at
the Brush Street Depot in 1879; in 1891 he accepted a position as traveling passenger agent for the Manitoba-Pacific Route; in 1892 was engaged as traveling passenger and freight agent for the Great Northern Railway, and in 1895 was promoted to
his present position, general agent for the Great Northern Railway and Northern
Steamship Co. Mr. Clark is a member of Kilwinning Lodge, F. & A. M.; National
Union and Fellowcraft Club. In 1885 he married Margaret O'Brien, of Detroit,
daughter of Martin and Johanna (Howard) O'Brien.
Clippert, Conrad, vice-president of the Central Savings Bank and brick manufacturer of Michigan avenue, Springwells, is one of the best known citizens of Wayne
county. Serving continuously for ten years on the Board of Supervisors, he became
known as a clear headed, careful business man. In 1880 he was chosen sheriff upon
the Republican ticket, with 1,500 majority, at a time when the county was Democratic by 5,000 majority, thus attesting the confidence in him and his own wide personal acquaintance and popularity. While Mr. Clippert has a strong personality, it
is of the attractive and pleasing kind, and he is a gentleman at all times and under
all circumstances. He is an admirable example of the better German element in
our country, and it is largely due to him that the influence of this excellent class of
citizens carries so great weight in our municipal and county affairs. As sheriff he
was one of the most popular officials the county had. Conrad Clippert was born in
Hesse Cassel, Germany, February 14, 1834, and at fifreen years of age joined his
brothers and sisters, one of whom was the wife of Ernest Ranspach, a well-known
citizen of Springwells. He soon entered the employ of Richard H. Hall, the brick
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maker, and for twenty-two years continued with that gentleman a trusted employee.
Much of that time, from 1860 to 1875, he was the general superintendent of his extensive brick yards, where great responsibility rested upon him  He had started at
the lowest round as chore boy, but had made constant advance in favor and position.
That was, in those days, the most extensive brick business in or about Detroit, working from 140 to 175 men. Having saved some money, in 1875 he opened the brick
business on his own account, being for five years in company with Jacob Daniels.
The present yards were opened in 1884, after his term as sheriff had expired. He
took his two sons, George H. and Charles F., into the firm some four or five years
ago, and the details now devolve upon them. They have a large plant with from
eight to ten million annual capacity, and eighty to one hundred men in their employ, with a pay roll of $3,000 per month. Mr. Clippert was married March 6, 1859,
to Christian Frederika Pfeifle, who was also born in Germany, and from four years
old resided in America. Mr. and Mrs. Clippert's family consist of George H. and
Charles F., who are connected with their father; Frederick J., M. D., of Delray;
William, a bookkeeper in the Exposition Brewing Co.; Julius C., a medical student,
and Hattie F., a student in the High School. Mr. Clippert has been one of the successful business men, and besides his business is interested in real estate, and is
vice-president of the Central Savings Bank. He is an active and influential member
of the German Evangelical church; is active in the Alger and Michigan Clubs, and
has retained a like interest in all public matters. His advice is sought in many matters. He has a handsome and commodious residence on Michigan avenue, outside
the city limits, and with his family about him is taking in his retirement the comforts and pleasures assured by his earlier years of toil and close application to business.
Collier, James M., M. D., was born in Defiance, Ohio, September 22, 1852. His
parents were Otho and Elizabeth (Kepler) Collier, he being widely known in Wayne
county as a grain dealer at Wayne, where he died January 21, 1898, aged seventyone. James began to teach at sixteen years of age and was determined to pursue
the studies of which he till then had but small conception. Entering the Illinois
State Normal School at Bloomington, he pursued his studies expecting to complete
the course, but at the close of his junior year found he must recuperate his finances,
and so taught at Orangeville, Ill., three years, during which time he read medicine,
but before taking a medical course traveled one year in Michigan, Indiana, Illinois
and Wisconsin selling school supplies. Then entering upon the course of medical
lectures in the Detroit Medical College he was graduated in the class of 1879. He
spent the next year as interne physician at the Marine Hospital, since when he has
practiced at Plymouth, where he stands at the head of the profession and has an
enviable practice. He is a member of the State and American Medical Associations;
he was twice unanimously elected village president, giving such an administration
as added to his popularity. He is a Republican and is in close touch with the party
at its councils and conventions, where his voice is heard in defense of a purer system
of elections. He is secretary and director in the Local Building and Loan Association, and local treasurer of the National Loan and Investment Company; secretary
and director of the Fair Association, and in many ways has identified himself with
the progress and advancement of the community. March 7, 1877, he married Carrie
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E. Downs; they have no children. Dr. Collier is past master of Plymouth Rock
Lodge No. 47, F. & A. M., and his services as such were highly appreciated as is
evidenced by a handsome past master's jewel presented him by the lodge; he is past
high priest of Union Chapter No. 55, R. A. M.; past eminent commander of Northville Commandery No. 39, K. T., and a member of Moslem Temple, Mystic Shrine,
of Detroit.
Daly, William, one of the few survivors of the sturdy men who conquered the
wilderness and made possible the present advanced condition of the country's civilization is he whose life we are about to review. He is one of the reliable citizens
whose origin Ireland may lay claim to with pride. He was born at Killarney, county Kerry, March 25, 1819. His parents, John and Mary Daly, had fourteen children,
of whom all but one came to this country. That one, a sergeant in the British army,
was a passenger on the ill fated City of Glascow, when she, with all on board, went
down in mid-ocean. One brother, John Daly, remained at Liverpool, a merchant,
although he visited in America; another brother, Thomas, of Detroit, is one of the
oldest lake vessel engineers and now United States boiler inspector at Detroit. The
two surviving sisters, Julia and Hannah, reside with their brother Thomas in the
city of Detroit. Both parents died in Detroit, where the family had lived for some
years. William, landing in Detroit in June, 1836, worked for some time on the
Maumee Canal in Ohio and Indiana and in 1838 was in Chicago helping to grade
the streets at a time when the Chicago River had no bridge and but an old scow was
the means of crossing. I-le sailed the lakes for a time on the steamer Erie, and in
1840 returned to Detroit, where he worked two years for Major Kesley, U. S. land
agent, and on December 26, 1842, married Mary Lester. She was born in Kilkenny,
Ireland, ane was a most estimable woman and an excellent companion for such a
man, and who, after a wedded life of nearly forty years, passed on beyond in April,
1887. Immediately after his marriage William located on the present farm for which
he had paid $4 per acre. It lay deep in the woods with no roads and was in its
primitive heavily timbered condition. He at once built a small log house, a house
that has been preserved by being incorporated into the present residence by various
additions so that the original house has entirely disappeared from view. He worked
hard and long to clear off the timber, burning hundreds of stately trees that would
now be worth fancy prices if they had not been destroyed. Some one had erected a
small saw mill on the River Rouge that flows near him, and here some lumber was cut
from whitewood, but the oak and valuable timber was cut down and burned in great
log heaps. When the Michigan Central Railroad was building in 1848, and later,
the demands of the road gave some source of income for timber, and the little water
mill changed its power to steam and enabled him to realize fair profits for those
stately trees. He prospered and invested savings in more land; his farm now contains upwards of 200 acres, all in prosperous and fertile condition. He has ever been
one of Dearborn's most progressive farmers, and by strict economy and shrewd
business management has accumulated a handsome competence, besides rendering
substantial assistance to each of his children as they have broken away and started
for themselves. Probably no other family can show so much thrift and prosperity,
much of which is traceable directly to the counsel, foresight and sagacious judgment
of him whose history we are briefly tracing. Of his children, John, James, Mary
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Ann (Gleason), Thomas, William, Patrick and Michael, space will preclude adequate
mention. Too much could not be said in their favor; they are a credit and honor to
the community and are most admirable examples for others to follow. They are
honorable scions of a rugged parent stem. Probably no man has been so constantly
connected with the public history of Dearborn as Judge Daly, who for the fifty-five
years he has resided in the town has been in some office continuously. His record
as an official is clean and at no time have the citizens ever feared the safe conduct of business when Judge Daly had voice in its administration. He has filled
almost every office; the first one being poormaster, when but seventy-five votes were
cast in the town; he was supervisor for eighteen years, including the period of the
war when the duties of the office were particular and much depended upon him. In
1864 he was selected as justice of the peace and filled the office for twenty-four years.
His political faith has never swerved from the Democratic party, the principles of
which he most ardently espouses and which have grown nearer and dearer to him
since seeing the harpies and vultures flying for protection within the opposite party.
His voice has ever been given to free speech and broaderliberty. His influence and
advice In the party's councils have be'en constant and effective. Few if any men in
Wayne county are more highly esteemed for their firm faith in everlasting Democracy or who have been more active in its advocacy. Reared under Catholic influence he has ever adhered to mother church. It was he who hauled timber for the
first house of worship at Dearborn and for over half a century he has been a trustee
of the church. His religion is true catholicity with a broadness and liberality the
more commendable and conspicuous as it is so in contrast with too many whose influence may reach into wider fields, but whose sincerity cannot exceed that of this
venerable pillar of the true Catholic faith. A true friend of education, he has never
deserted the public schools, but on the contrary has been outspoken in their praise.
He has helped erect three school houses and no man in the town has served longer
or more faithfully as a school officer, which office he holds to-day.
Dasef, Alem William.-Among the progressive educators of Wayne county and
one whose name is a familiar one in the ranks of the profession is the gentleman
who heads this brief review. Professor Dasef has made an enviable reputation for
himself as a liberal and thorough teacher and superintendent of a school where
mediocre talents would soon prove the necessity of active intelligence, such as placed
the schools of Wyandotte under the direction of Mr. Dasef on a line with those of
the more pretentious cities of the State. The seven years that he has directed this
school have been years of advancement such as the community has never before witnessed. The schools have been systematized and so conducted as to bring out what
is best in pupil and teacher. The one thousand pupils enrolled are carefully taught
by eighteen enthusiastic normal trained instructors, many of whose work shows an
intimacy with the recognized principles of true education rarely found in our common schools. A life and interest is shown in every room that proves the character
of instruction given, and the awakening of pupils to right lives aud methods of
thought that produce the practical results so often lacking in our public schools. A.
W. Dasef was born near Hamilton, Ont., August 25, 1865, and in early childhood
(1869) his parents moved to Stanton, Montcalm county, Mich., where his father,
Joseph Dasef, was engaged in lumbering for some years. In the village schools young
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Dasef showed such aptitude and his ideas were so aroused that he decided to have an
education. At eighteen he began to teach and soon entered Valparaiso Normal
School, from which he was graduated with the class of 1886. He was wholly selfdependent and worked his way through the school and continued to teach in Montcalm county, completing his education at the State Normal College at Ypsilanti,
graduating in the class of 1891. Having studied one year in the university, his work
as a student and teacher was recognized by the school board at Wyandotte, and he
was installed in his present position. The schools have had great growth, seven
new rooms with eight teachers have been added and a proportionate increase in enrollment is shown. All classes now recognize the utility and comprehensiveness of
the work done here, and where the parochial and public schools were antagonistic,
hearty co-operation and general satisfaction now are seen and only highest commendations from those most deeply interested is heard. Mr. Dasef has served as
president of the County Teachers' Association and is recognized as one of the most
enlightened and broad-minded men in his profession. His life touches other interests as well, especially the social side of existence. Mr. Dasef had been in college
less than a year when he became actively interested in society work. He was elected
president of the leading literary society and had the honor of successfully representing her in' oratorical contests. He was fond of athletics and is one of the founders
of the Michigan Normal Athletic Association and for several years brought home
gold medals for the association. He is active in Masonic work, being a Royal Arch
as well as a Blue Lodge Mason, and is a member of the I. O. O. F. August 29, 1894,
he married Roda Watkins of Wyandotte, and they have two children, Laura and
Marion.
De Lisle, Peter B., son of Bienvenue and Zouy (Riopelle) De Lisle, was born in
Ecorse, Mich., January 21, 1846. He attended the common schools of Ecorse until
the age of sixteen and completed his education at Patterson Classical School, Detroit,
in 1864. In the fall of that year he engaged in teaching, continuing in this calling
until 1869, when he embarked in business as a contractor and builder. In 1873 he
removed to Detroit and engaged in the grocery business at No. 721 West Fort street,
where he remained until the fall of 1876, and then removed to Toledo, Ohio, where
he purchased a coal and wood yard. In 1888, owing to the discovery of natural gas,
Mr. De Lisle disposed of his business in Toledo and returned to D)elray, Mich., where
he has since remained. On locating in Delray Mr. De Lisle engaged in the real
estate and insurance business continuing until the present. In 1896 he was elected
justice of the peace in.which capacity he is still serving. He is a member of the
Knights of Pythias, I. O. O. F., and grand secretary of the Society of the Mystic
Circle for the State of Michigan. November 3, 1874, he married Adaline C. Peyette
of Ecorse, Mich., and they have four children: Bertha, George W., Frank and Edward. On November 25, 1897, Mr. De Lisle was elected one of the village trustees.
Desmond, John, was born in Morris county, N. J., December 14, 1832. Left an
orphan in early life by death of both parents, we find him when but thirteen years
old starting upon the line of work that retained his attention and in which he excelled. He worked in a blast furnace at that early age, and at nineteen was in charge
of the furnace, and in 1855 he went to Kalamazoo, Mich., where he was associated
with his wife's father, James H. Conkling, who operated a furnace there. He re217
bb




mained there until 1863, when he came to Detroit with the Burts, the famous iron
manufacturers. He worked for them in their furnaces for seven years, when, in
company with S. L. Fuller, he built and operated two furnaces at Frankfort, Mich.
They had two successful places of business and were on the high road to prosperity
when the panic of 1873 struck the iron industry so severely that they had to succumb,
losing all his investment. His next work was to superintend the furnaces at Bangor,
Mich, for five years; his services were then sought as superintendent of a wood
alcohol or chemical factory at Bangor, a position he occupied until 1879, when he
came to Wyandotte to take charge of the furnaces of the Eureka Iron and Steel
Company. Here his duties were onerous and responsible, having from forty to one
hundred men directly under him and for whose work the company held him responsible. He retained the position to the great satisfaction of the company as long as
it continued in business, a period of some fifteen years. His skill and knowledge of
the delicate intricacies of iron manufacture enabled him to get the best there was in
the furnaces. From a former output of twelve tons the capacity was increased to
over forty tons daily, and in various ways his efficiency was proven. Since the
closing of the iron business at Wyandotte Mr. Desmond has lived rather retired.
He is a director in the Commercial Savings Bank; has served as alderman; is a
Republican, but not known as a working politician; and is a thirty-second degree
Mason, and Knight Templar. His wife, Sarah Conkling Desmond, died January 22,
1869, and on October 5, 1870, he married Carrie Riley, who died October 4, 1895,
lacking but one.day of a quarter century since their marriage. Mrs. Desmond was
a woman of rare personality and her hundreds of warm friends in Detroit, with
whom she had retained her church membership, earnestly testify to her worth in the
church where she was an enthusiastic worker and in the social circle where she was
an ornament. Mr. Desmond is the father of four children by his first wife: Theodore, who was steward on a lake steamer and met an accidental death on board his
vessel in Chicago; Frank, resides at Traverse City, Mich.; James, a coal dealer at
Marion, Mich.; and Lucy, Mrs. Chas. Alvard, Wyandotte. Mr. Desmond is a lover of
athletic sports, especially base and football, and rarely misses seeing a game of
either. He has a host of warm friends who enjoy and appreciate his company.
Dohany, Prof. Emmet E., superintendent of schools at River Rouge, was born in
Southfield, Oakland county, Mich., August 27, 1870. His boyhood was passed on
the farm with attendance at district school, supplemented with a course at Fenton
Normal School, from which he was graduated in the class of 1893. In 1896 he was
also graduated from the State Normal College at Ypsilanti. At eighteen he had
begun to teach and worked his own way through his professional course. He is now
serving the second year as superintendent of the River Rouge schools, where he is
doing splendid work. This school has an enrollment of 450 pupils under nine teachers and its graduating class for 1897 was seven. There is a warm interest on the
part of all in the school and its present standard is such as to meet the local denands.
Prof. I)ohany's ability as a teacher is recognized in the city where he has been chosen
as a teacher in the Newsboy's Night School and where fine results are accomplished.
He is identified with the Teachers' County Association and we bespeak for him a
future that will be commensurate with his enthusiasm and ability as an educator.
Duddleson, William I. —One of the few older residents of Trenton is the gentleman
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whose name heads this sketch, one whose memory is full of interesting incidents and
fund of anecdote relative to the early days of this part of Michigan. Born November
28, 1817, in southern Ohio, of an ancestry combining the sturdy traits of the Welsh
and Irish, his early life was passed in that State working at his father's trade, that
of a hatter, then an important industry. However, the work was too tame for the
spirit of young Duddleson, who determined to see the outside world. He became a
stage driver, a position in those days sought by the ambitious young man as one that
afforded excellent advantages. No more important functionary existed and no one
was looked upon with greater interest and whose every word, look and manner was
commented upon and emulated by the boys along the line of road. In 1838 he came
into Michigan for his employers and for many years drove the stage from the Truax
farm and tavern, located near where the soda ash works now stand north of Trenton,
into Detroit. This was the highway traveled from all Ohio and southern and eastern
points to reach Detroit and many an important personage has Mr. I)uddleson carried
on the line. The old style stage coach was ever heralded with delight by the village
populace who had gathered to see it come and go, and when it was conveying some
important official more than ordinary attention was given to it and the driver was
monarch of all he surveyed. Mr. Duddleson continued to7 pull the lines and crack
the whip about the leaders' ears until the modern steam whistle cast into shade the
less shrill but no less stirring crack of the coach whip. Mr. Duddleson lived at Gibraltar until 1865, when he removed to Trenton, where he and his estimable wife reside in the comfort and ease of advanced life, surrounded by a host of warm friends
and happy in a recollection of upwards of half a century of wedded life. Mrs. Duddleson's maiden name was Maria Louisa Alford, whose parents, John M. and Sylvia
(Brown) Alford, were pioneers of Monroe, coming there in 1818 just after marriage
and assisting in gathering up the bleached skeletons of the soldiers who perished in
the fearful massacre of the River Raisin in the war of 1812. Mrs. Duddleson was
for many years engaged in the millinery business at Trenton. She is a remarkably
well preserved woman and would readily pass for twenty years younger than she
really is. No children have been born to them and their only regret is that the
darker shadows of declining years are not relieved by the sunshine of grandchildren,
but this shadow has its rays of light in the thought of the assurance of the promised
hereafter. Among the reminiscences of Mr. Duddleson is one showing the poverty
of the State in earlier times. Governor Barry had offered a reward of $50 for the
capture of an escaped thief. Mr. Duddleson, it so happened, captured the prisoner
and claimed the reward. The governor, whose office was then in Detroit, said the
county had no money and gave him an order on the late J. L. King for a suit of
clothes. These he got and some years afterward King told him he had never got
his pay for that suit from the county. Sheriff Thompson, father of Bradley Thompson, negotiated the order. Mr. Duddleson has owned some vessels and for many
years was master of his own vessel, the Ino.
Dunn, Michael, was born near the present site of the new county building in the
city of Detroit, December 1, 1831, a son of Lieut. John Dunn, a man prominently
connected with the military history of that day and whose commission is still in the
hands of his son. He came from Ireland to New York, where he married Eliza
Lawless, and in 1830 came to Michigan, living in the city and in Hamtramck until


219




1846, when he settled on the farm where Michael now lives. 'He died April 10, 1880,
aged eighty. Of his family of six, four are now living, Michael being the eldest son.
When some sixteen years of age an accident occurred to his father that threw the
greater burden of the farm upon the shoulders of young Michael, and from that
time he practically had charge of the farm. He was thus at an early age given
heavy responsibilities, the carrying out of which developed a character strong, rigorous and self-reliant, that has remained with him. Much of his late success in life
he attributes to the demands made upon him and from which he could not escape.
Besides becoming one of the most successful farmers in the community he has given
attention to the timber business, in which he carried on a heavy trade for a year,
supplying most of the timbers used in building several dry docks in and near the
city, more especially that owned by the late J. P. Clarke. He has also dealt considerably in real estate. Recognizing his ability, integrity and uprightness the authorities selected him for county superintendent of the poor, the duties of which office
he conducted for six years, years that extended an already wide acquaintance and
that brought him into intimate contact with all classes of citizens. Leaving the position that had been graced by its incumbent, Mr. Dunn again sought the privileges
of home, where he is surrounded with an interesting and intelligent family, among
whom the closing years of an honored life are passed. Always one of the staunch
Democrats, Mr. Dunn has held a close relationship with the party, and, in fact, has
ever been in close touch with public men. July 22, 1863, he married Bridget O'Brien,
and their children are Edward J., the well-known bookkeeper in the Peninsular Savings Bank, a position he has held from its organization; Elizabeth, wife of H. C.
Burke; Mary; Rose N.; Lucy, a teacher in the River Rouge public schools; Annie
F., Lucy and Joseph.
Esper, Mathias, was born in Springwells, August 28, 1844, a son of Peter J. and
Katharina (Teisen) Esper. His parents came from Prussia, Germany, in 1842, settling on a farm on Warren avenue, or near where St. Alphonso's Catholic church
now stands, where they lived and died, aged seventy-seven and seventy-three
respectively. They were industrious and economical and rendered valuable assistance to their childten. His farm originally contained eighty acres, which was increased until he owned 242 acres; he first paid $5 per acre, then $20, and later paid
as high as $100 per acre.  He helped his children as they started in life, giving
each one land or an equivalent in money. He donated four acres of land to the
St. Alphonso Catholic church for a church site and cemetery, and was one of its
liberal contributors and was trustee most of his life. His family consisted of six
sons and two daughters: Gertrude, married Peter Theisen and died leaving six
children; Jacob lives at Port Austin, Mich., his twin sons are Catholic priests; Peter
lives in the town of Dearborn; Margaret married Frank Durnoff and died leaving two
children; Michael lives on Warren avenue, Springwells; John, Mathias and Anthony.
Each one has a farm of from 100 to 200 acres and was started in life by his father.
Mathias Esper remained at home until he was married, May 12. 1868, to Caroline
Thoma of Detroit, born in Germany and came to Michigan at four years of age.
Mr. Esper's father had presented him with a nice farm, which he traded for his
present farm, which contains about 100 acres of fine land; he also has a farm at
Marine City of eighty-five acres. He has dealt extensively in timber, ship timber,
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staves, hard lumber, cord wood, etc., and has been very successful, employing as
many as twenty men in the winter season. Their family consists of Mary Catherine,
married Jake Ferns; Joseph, died at eleven years; Albert; Clara, married George
Rinke; Ben, died at six; Julia, died at four; Theresa; Joseph; Fred; Winifred, died
young; Carrie; Winifred; Matilda; and Alphonso, died in infancy.
Fraser, Oscar A., cashier of the First National Exchange Bank of Plymouth, Mich.
-This financial institution, with a capital of $50,000 and surplus of $5,500, was organized in 1891, being the successor to the First National Bank which had existed
for some twenty years previous. Its officers are R. C. Safford, president; E. W.
Chaffee, vice-president; Oscar A. Fraser, cashier, and it has experienced a most
satisfactory history from  a business standpoint.  It owns its own building,
erected for its own accommodation, and has an average deposit of about $75,000, and has issued bank notes to the amount of $11,000. The cashier of this
institution, and to whose untiring attention and popular business dealings much
of its success is due, was born May 16,1829, in the adjoining town of Livonia, Mich.,
a son of Martin and Charcey (Whitney) Fraser, who came from near Rutland, Vt.,
and after a few years in New York settled in Livonia in 1826, thus being one of the
pioneer families. His father possessed but $50 on reaching this new home and
worked up, encountering the vicissitudes of pioneer life, until he was the possessor
of about 700 acres of valuable land. He was an intelligent, well read man, with the
strong characteristics peculiar to the pioneers who were furnished by the Green
Mountain State. Honest and square in all his dealings, he demanded as much from
others. Oscar was the first white child born in what is now Livonia and his boyhood
was wholly passed amidst the scenes that are never to be repeated in this State.
His first visit to Detroit was when there were but few stores and in fact but few people there. He has seen its growth and is familiar with every feature of its development into the beautiful city that it is. At eighteen he clerked in a store at Plymouth
and a few years later engaged in mercantile life for himself at Clarkson, Oakland
county, for seven years, and in 1865 opened a store at Plymouth, continuing as a
merchant until he became cashier of the old First National Bank in 1881, since when
his attention has been almost wholly devoted to practical banking. Mr. Fraser is a
Democrat, though can scarcely be called a politician. He has a fondness for outdoor
sport, hunting, fishing etc., and few citizens of the town enjoy a quiet game of whist
more than he. He married Emily E. Packard, and they have no children. Mrs.
Fraser is a member of the Presbyterian church.
Gardner, James, was born November 14, 1844, on the farm where he still lives.
His parents were Richard and Elizabeth (Gauld) Gardner, she being of Aberdeenshire, Scotland, and coming to the United States in 1831, and he of Wroxton, Oxfordshire, England, and came to the United States in 1828. They were married in T)etroit, November 4, 1832, and settled on his farm in Dearborn, on which they
continued to live for a period of fifty years. He was a man of strict integrity, and
having a good education, his services were often required by his fellow citizens in
various capacities. He served as supervisor for two years, and assessor and justice
of the peace for twenty-four years, besides repeatedly filling minor positions. The
great confidence his friends had in his honesty and integrity is evidenced by the fact
that he was almost continuously wanted to act as guardian of various orphan chil

221




dren, and as administrator of estates of various persons. Richard Gardner died on
May 15, 1878, in his seventy-first year. His wife and mother of James Gardner possessed a kind and genial disposition and was universally respected and loved. She
had ten children, of whom James was the seventh. When old enough he attended
the district school in winter and worked on the farm in summer. After he had
reached the age of twenty-one he left home, going to Iowa and Minnesota. At the
end of two years he returned and shortly afterward bought a farm in Monroe
county upon which he resided for six years. After his father's death he returned to
Dearborn, and buying out the interests of his brothers and sisters in the old homestead, he moved there and has lived upon it ever since and took care of his invalid
mother until she died in 1885. He was married Noyember 29, 1882, to Miss Jennie
Flaherty, who died on April 6, 1884; they had no children. On June 1, 1893, he married a cousin of his first wife, Thomasine J. Flaherty; she is a practical nurse and a
woman of many social qualities. Mrs. Gardner is the divorced wife of C. N. Carter
of Chelsea, Mass., and has one son, Horace R. Carter, a schoolboy of sixteen years.
Mr. and Mrs. Gardner's family are Esther Alice, born April 10, 1894, and James
Russel, born March 11, 1896. Thomasine Gardner was born June 10, 1857, in Ontonagon, Mich.; her parents, Thomas and Nancy (Ford) Flaherty, came from Ireland to America when children. James Gardner is the only one of the family living
in Dearborn. His sister, Susan Hutchins, widow, lives at Dentonville, Wayne
county. George lives at Sioux Falls, South Dakota. John died at thirty.nine,
leaving three sons. Richard died unmarried; the remainder of the family died in
infancy. James inherited many of the sterling qualities of his father; he is modest
and conservative in disposition and his strict probity has won him the confidence
and respect of his fellow townsmen. He is a Republican in politics, and his neighbors insist on his taking a part in local matters. For eight years he has held some
town office-township treasurer two terms, justice of the peace one term, member of
the Board of Review one term, and was appointed supervisor, entering upon the
discharge of that office January 1, 1898, and is at present on the School Board.
Mr. Gardner is a broad-minded man, recognizing integrity and commercial honor, in
whose hands the affairs of the town are safe. He devotes his time to agriculture and
his farm, which is in a splendid state of cultivation, plainly shows the benefit of his attention. He uses all the latest improvements and labor and time-saving machinery,
and the farm is well stocked with fine breeds of horses and cattle. His farm consists
of 136 acres. He has erected a large barn, 40 by 100 feet, and has expended much
money in other valuable improvements. Mr. Gardner's industry and attention to
his farm has brought him excellent returns, and the future presents prospects upon
which he may well be congratulated.
Gulley, Orrin P., was born November 13, 1858, on the farm where he now lives.
He is a son of Prof. A. B. and S. A. Gulley, she surviving her husband, who died in
March, 1891, age seventy years. Ile was born in New York and came to Michigan
when about nineteen years old with his parents. His father was a pioneer tavern
keeper on the old Plymouth plank road, and died before Orrin's birth. Prof. A. B.
Gulley settled in 1855 on the present farm, lying west of the village and on the line
of the new electric road to Ann Arbor. He was associated from 1875 to 1878 inclusive with the State Agricultural College, two years as professor of agriculture and


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two years as farm superintendent. He also served some years prior to this in the
State Legislature as a Republican. He was an expert judge of stock and farm products, and was frequently selected to act as judge at several State fairs. He was a
thoroughly practical farmer and high-minded citizen, highly esteemed by all who
knew him. Orrin P. Gulley is an able representative of an illustrious sire, and is
the third of four brothers to graduate at the Agricultural College, which he did in the
class of 1879. He had taught part of three years to meet his expenses in college.
He remained on the farm and for some years has made the growing of seeds for the
large wholesale dealers a leading feature of his farm operations. In March, 1896, he
opened his hardware store, still conducting the farm on which he lives. At twentytwo years of age his official life began as school inspector, holding that office for
seven years; then served as highway commissioner for four years. He was then a
justice of the peace for four years, and this was followed by four years' service as
supervisor, resigning this office to become poor commissioner, January 1, 1898. He
has also served on the township Republican committee for some years. He has been
a delegate to county, district and State conventions  December 31, 1890, he married Ida S. Read, a graduate of the Detroit High School, and daughter of William
R. Read, of Detroit, and they have one son, Orrin S. Mrs. Gulley is a member of
the Presbyterian church, he being a trustee and treasurer, although not a communicant. Mr. Gulley is closely identified with local social life, being a master Mason;
he is fond of hunting and is a lover of baseball and other athletic sports, taking
special interest in the wheel, with an eye ever open to wheelmen's good. He is
wide awake to the town's best interests, as instanced by his action as chairman of
the board in granting the franchise to the electric railway, securing for the town and
its citizens most liberal terms. Mr. Gulley may well feel proud of his official career
and the public confidence placed in him. He is much liked and is popular in all
local social life. No citizen of Dearborn is more keenly alive, and comparison with
the action of many only emphasizes the liberal spirit which actuates Mr. Gulley in
his dealings with or for his fellowmen.
Haven, J. De Alton, editor and proprietor of the Wyandotte Herald, was born in
Wyandotte, December 24, 1864. His parents, James R. and Elizabeth A. Haven,
have resided there since 1863. J. De Alton's boyhood was passed here, where he
attended the local schools. At the age of fourteen he learned to set type, and his
entire life has since been devoted to newspaper work, having become familiar with
its every detail. When the Herald was first published, in 1879, he as a lad delivered
the first copies to its patrons. He worked two years at the case in Detroit, when he
went to Lansing, working on the Lansing Journal for five years and while connected
with that paper wrote his first copy. June 26, 1886, he purchased the Herald and
has since devoted his time, energy, skill and intelligence to it. The Herald was first
published by Rev. George W. Owen, a Methodist minister, who after one year's
varying success sold it to&Frank S. Abbott, now of Ann Arbor. He was succeeded
by Henry Egabroad, since deceased. Mr. Haven has enlarged the paper, making it
a six column journal and one that in every issue and on every page shows the hand
of a skilled workman. The business has prospered under his able management and
the Herald has received a most liberal and deserved support from the citizens of
Wyandotte, who appreciate its value as a local organ that is not offensive in its na

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ture, but is a strong and untiring advocate of all that advances the intellectual,
moral, social and religious life of the community. The office is fully equipped with
several presses and bindery and in every respect is one of the best country newspaper properties in the State. Its tone in political matters is independent, though
staunch in advocacy of placing well qualified men, whose ability and integrity is
unquestioned, in the control of local affairs. As a writer Mr. Haven is easy, fluent.
terse and agreeable. As a citizen his every effort is for higher civilization and a
healthier atmosphere. He is an advocate of a better education and a loftier tone in
the management of State and national matters. Mr. Haven has a mind well stored with
reliable and ready information on almost every conceivable subject, as a successful
editor should ever be. He is possessed of pleasing and affable personality, and the
only wonder is that the temptations that beset the aging bachelor have not lured him
into the ranks of the Benedicts.
Horton, Edward S., supervisor of Plymouth,.was born at Warwick, Franklin
county, Mass., September 2, 1844. He came to Michigan in 1856, having at the age
of eleven years been thrown entirely upon his own resources and much of his earlier
boyhood had been passed in the family of his grandfather. At fourteen he entered
a printing office at St. John and for two and one half years filled the various positions
from devil to typo. Returning to Northville he spent three years learning the blacksmith's trade with his uncle, Edward Simonds. Capt. Eli K. Simonds, his uncle, recruited Co. D of the 5th Mich. Cavalry in 1862 and young Horton, then but seventeen years old, enlisted and went to the front with his command. The first year his
service was in the band and then as orderly; he served with his command until the
fall of 1864, when by an accident caused by his horse falling upon him at Yellow
Tavern, Va., he was incapacitated and sent to the hospital. After some months a
furlough was secured for him and he started for Geneva, N. Y., where his mother
then lived. He reached Elmira, but here his strength gave out and he had to enter
the hospital again. Unskillful surgical operation resulted in gangrene, and for five
months he lay on his cot, his life almost despaired of; however, will power and youth
conquered and he reached home but a mere skeleton and shadow of his former self.
For two years thereafter he was compelled to walk on crutches, and the full use of
his leg has never returned and he still after so many years is a frequent sufferer
from the old trouble. When able he entered a drug store as clerk for James P. Donaldson until 1867, when he was appointed postmaster, a position that he filled most
efficiently until 1894, with the exception of part of the time during the Democratic
administration, making about thirty-three years of actual service in that capacity.
Part of this time he carried a stock of goods and also served three terms as town
treasurer. In 1896 he was elected supervisor and again in 1897. He has adhered
closely to the party ranks, though he never has taken a partisan part in active politics. He has handled real estate more or less and has built several desirable residences in the village, some of which, besides a fine farm' he now owns. He was
one of the first men upon whom Northville Masonic Lodge conferred the degree of
Masonry, upwards of thirty years ago, and is now familiar with the rites in all the
York rite bodies of Masonry culminating in Moslem Temple, Mystic Shrine, Detroit.
July 27, 1868, he married Frances I)ubnar, daughter of the Rev. James I)ubnar, and
one son survives their union, Charles Ralph Horton, a pharmacist of Detroit. Two


224




children died in infancy and one, Fred D., late freight agent at the Northville depot
and telegraph operator, died at the age of twenty-two. His untimely death was the
passing of one of the brightest and most popular young men of Northville. He was
ever a gentleman and warmly loved by countless friends. Mr. Horton is proving as
efficient in the duties of his present office as in that he held so long and filled so acceptably. He is an amiable, congenial companion and one whose friendship is prized
by hundreds.
Howe, Elba D., agent of the Michigan Central Railroad, Dearborn, Mich., was
born at Marcellus. N. Y., January 18, 1835, and until he reached his majority remained on the farm with such advantages asthe common and union schools afforded.
Leaving home he secured a position as salesman for a Toledo house, traveling
through Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, when he returned to his early home and spent
two years as clerk in a store, and in 1860 came to Michigan. He learned telegraphy
at Niles, when the old style instruments were used. He was an operator on the M.
C. Railroad until 1864, when he was given the station at Dearborn, and for thirtythree years he has remained in that position, becoming so closely associated with
every local interest that he has repeatedly refused tempting offers to fill more responsible positions on the road. He has served the village as alderman, vice-president and president. His voice has always been given to what would conduce to the
community's advancement. He has been a working Democrat, and in former years
was generally found in his party's conventions. He gives faithful attention to the
duties of the station, taking each year only such vacations as enable him to enjoy for
a few weeks the exhilaration of the chase, a sport he is extremely fond of and attestation to which is proven by the excellent sportsman's relics to be seen at his house.
November 2, 1865, Mr. Howe married Emily H. Sutton, of Battle Creek, and they
have two children: Annie S., wife of Richard H. Hall, of Detroit, and Louis W.
Mr. Howe is a Mason, and stands high in the estimation of all who have had the
pleasure of his acquaintance. His is one of the tastiest and handsomest residences
in this beautiful and healthy suburb, and in it one meets the old style whole-souled
hospitality, whose greatest enjoyment is found in the midst of a company of congenial souls.
Kurth, Frederick W. A. —This popular arbiter of justice and counselor-at-law,
was born near Berlin. Germany, June 6, 1844. His mother dying when he was a
child he was brought to Detroit when a lad of eight years. William A. Kurth is remembered by hundreds as deputy sheriff for thirty years and constable for Springwells; he is is still living in Detroit at the age of eighty-two, a hale and companionable old gentleman. Frederick W. A. received his education mainly in the German
Seminary. His father then worked at the shoemaker's trade; Fred also learned it
and worked with him as a boy and then clerked in various stores until his nineteenth
year, when he enlisted in the regular army. The 19th Regiment was then stationed
at Fort Wayne, but it was soon after transferred to Kansas and the Indian Territory
and held the garrisons at Fort Smith and Fort Gibson, and was for some time at the
Little Rock Arsenal. While at Little Rock the cholera broke out in 1866, Fred
being the first one to take it and never fully recovered from its effects. For some
years after his service he was working as bookkeeper. He was chosen as school
superintendent for two terms, previous to 1879, when he was sent as representative
225
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to the State Legislature for the Second Wayne county district. The following year
he was elected justice of the peace in Springwells and has held that office continuously since. He read law and was admitted to the bar in 1886, and is now in partnership with his son, Charles W. Kurth, a graduate of the Detroit College of Law,
and they have a nice practice besides doing a general insurance business. Judge
Kurth is one of the brightest minds in the town of Springwells and holds the confidence and esteem of his townsmen in a high degree. Keeping in close touch with
public matters his voice is often heard in his party's councils as well as in the various
courts of his practice. February 14, 1870, the married Matilda A. Zimmerman, and
they have four children: Luella M., wife of Fred W. Hawes of Newark, N. J.;
Charles W. of Detroit; George D. of Newark, and Albert L. of Detroit. Judge
Kurth is a communicant in the German Evangelical church. He is a Mason in Zion
Lodge No. 1 and Monroe Chapter of the Royal Arch; also in Monroe Council No. 1.
He was the organizer in 1877 of Riverside Lodge of Odd Fellows, a body in which
he has ever been an active member and of which he is the only survivor of the
charter members.
Lambert, Walter Clement, M. D., former mayor of Wyandotte, was born in Amherstburg, Ont., October 22, 1863, a son of Dr. Walter Lambert, who died when his
son was fifteen years of age. After acquiring such general education as was afforded
in the New Windsor High School, young Lambert being imbued with the spirit of
his father, who ever held his profession the noblest and grandest, entered upon the
study of that science under the tutelage of his early friend, Dr. Bell of Amherstburg,
and completed his medical course at the Detroit College of Medicine, graduating in
one of the finest classes ever educated in that popular institution, that of 1886. In
selecting a suitable location to practice his profession Wyandotte was chosen and
neither Dr. Lambert nor the people of that little city have had reason to regret his
choice. The field presented suitable conditions for the right man and his affability and
adaptability soon proved that the right man had sought the proper ground for practice. His practice grew rapidly until Dr. Lambert was widely and generally recognized as one of Wayne county's leading physicians. Clear headed in emergency
with that self-reliance in his own ability, his skill never failed, and hosts of warm
friends gave him that sympathy that encourages no one niore than the conscientious
medical man. His standing in the ranks of the profession is unquestioned and his
influences reaches in and beyond the county and State medical associations of which
he is a member. His decided views on matters in general were soon rewarded by
his fellow citizens who chose him for their chief executive, where he has recently
finished a third term. Progressive, with an eye ever open for the good of his adopted
town, he has advocated modern improvements in sewerage, water system, electric
lighting and other things that make Wyandotte a desirable place of residence. An
electric plant is owned by the city that affords sixty-five public arc lights and also
has about 300 incandescent lights for private use. The success of this enterprise,
won only after hard and repeated struggle and litigation, being opposed by less advanced citizens, has demonstrated the practicability of town ownership of those enterprises devoted to public service. Various manufacturing enterprises have been
secured to the city, which with help of its more liberal citizens, are taking strong
measures to obtain enduring establishments. Educational interests find in the dcoc226




tor a warm friend, he having served some years on the Board of Education. Dr.
Lambert is prominent in the Masons, Foresters and other societies. In politics he
acts with the Republican party, though not a strong partisan. June 27, 1888, he
married Mary A. Duncanson of Amherstburg, Ont., daughter of Capt. John Duncanson, and they have one son, Walter. Dr. Lambert has recently completed a
handsome residence near the center of the city, which is a fine sample of the later
colonial style of architecture and where he and his popular wife take pleasure in entertaining their numerous friends.
Langlois, Theophilus J., M. D., was born on Grosse Isle, Wayne county, Mich.,
September 7, 1840, a son of Theophilus and Jeannette (Renaud) Langlois. The family is of French descent, the ancestors coming in 1720 from Rouen, France, to
Acadia, and when unhappy fate came to that province in 1740, they settled in Canada.
At fourteen years of age he entered Joliette College, where he acquired during the
next seven years an excellent classical education. He became a teacher and while
thus engaged began the study of medicine, graduating from the Detroit Medical
College in the class of 1871. His practice has been extensive and lucrative; and his
residence for nearly thirty years at Wyandotte has endeared him to its citizens and
established for him an enviable reputation, not only as a reliable counselor and
adviser in times of sickness, but as an honored citizen whose worth has been recognized at various times in being chosen to represent the people in various official capacities. When but three years a resident of the community he was chosen mayor,
and filled the positon with such credit that he was soon after re-elected, and it was
largely through his efforts that a new era was entered upon and many improvements
made which have materially added to the health, comfort and pride of the residents.
While still mayor he served as president of the Board of Education; he has also
served as president of the Water Board and as city physician. He has been the
president of the Board of Public Works since its organization, and has done much to
draw enterprises to his city. Dr. Langlois has identified himself with the leading
social interests. Being an ardent sportsman he is a member of the Turtle Lake
Hunting Club and kindred societies, besides having made an extended acquaintance
with Masonry in its various branches to the thirty-second degree. He belongs to
Damascus Commandery No 42, Knights Templar, besides having followed the camels across the burning sands of the desert in search of the Mystic Shrine. Has
served as high priest of Wyandotte Chapter No. 135, Royal Arch Masons for two
years since its organization; he stands high in the ranks of Odd Fellowship. the
Knights of Honor, in the Royal Arcanum and United Workmen. His professional
ability is widely recognized and his counsels sought in the various societies of the
professon including the State and American Medical Associations. May 5, 1863, Dr.
Langlois married Mary Bertrand, and they had five children, two of whom surviveEugenie, wife of D. W. Roberts of Detroit; andNapoleon T. Langlois, M. D., a
graduate from the Detroit College of Medicine, now in active and successful practice in the place of his birth. After some seventeen years of companionship Mrs.
Langlois passed on before, and subsequently Elizabeth Shoemaker became the wife
of the doctor, and one child, Elfrida, was born to this union. Dr. Langlois is a man
of broad and pronounced views and takes a keen interest in every enterprise, temporal, intellectual, psychological, metaphysical or spiritual that has for its basis the
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general culture, advancement and upbuilding of good citizenship. The personality
of no man is more noticeable in its impress upon the youth of the city and none has
more or warmer friends.
Leslie, William, was born April 6, 1833, in New Deer parish, Aberdeenshire, Scotland,
and was brought to the United States in August of the same year. His parents,
Francis and Mary (Hendry) Leslie, sailed in the " De Notter Castle," from Aberdeen,
being fifty-nine days on the ocean. They came to New York, and to Pennsylvania
to an uncle's, Jonathan Leslie, who had lived there for eleven years, where Francis
Leslie, who was a stone mason, remained for a time and then worked at Dayton,
Ohio. In May, 1834, he came to Michigan. being a week on a sloop on Lake Erie
froni Cleveland, reaching Detroit May 17, 1834. He had two sisters who came to
Michigan; one had visited Richard Gardner in Dearborn, being an old acquaintance
of his wife's and located near there. May 28, 1834, Francis Leslie located on the
land adjoining Richard Gardner's and also, secured a second tract of government
land adjoining that of his brother-in-law, James Robinson. The land was covered
with a vast amount of heavy timber in which no settler's axe had ever resounded.
He lived in a small log cabin near the site of the present house until 1874, when he
built the present house, where he lived until his death, July 17, 1887; his wife died
February 26, 1886. Hers was the first death in this family for fifty-three years, but
the charm being broken, three followed in quick succession. They had three children: William, Mary M., and Anna M. Mary M. is the wife of George A. Walker,
and lives at Ann Arbor, Mich.; Anna M. became the wife of Isaiah Stevenson and
died September 11, 1888. Francis Leslie devoted his life to the farm, placing about
sixty acres under a good state of cultivation. He adopted modern machinery, but
not until he saw it well tested; he grew but little fruit, for, as he said: ' He had
cleared the land once and did not want it covered with trees again." He was not a
skilled axeman, but was an expert with his ox team in handling logs. He was a
well read man, knowing the Bible thoroughly and discussing it with great interest.
He was a Democrat before the war, but Buchanan's administration changed him and
he thenceforth adhered to the Republican party. He held school offices at various
times; he demanded a good deal of his children, using few words but meaning them.
Mrs. Leslie was an industrious and highly domestic woman, but was more lenient
than her husband. William Leslie has lived on the farm except the year 1885, which
he spent in Kansas, where he owned a farm. He received the homestead after the
death of his mother and father. He has been engaged mainly in the production of
milk and other products common to this locality, keeping as large a dairy as the farm
will accommodate. He is a Republican and a member of the Baptist church. Mr.
Leslie is perfectly contented to devote his attention to agriculture, having little ambition for public or commercial life. He has read, as his father did for a quarter of
a century, and for the past thirty-eight years the "' New York Evangelist" and the
larger part of that time the " Courier." Like his father he has a great many characteristics of the Scotch people. He is firm, broad-minded and a good conversationalist. Mr. Leslie is a man who is most highly respected by those who have known
him most intimately, and with whom the reserve that at first conceals excellent
traits is laid aside and the inner mian asserts itself.
Lister, Capt. James J., was born in Ontario, Canada, May 29, 1836. When ten




years of age he accompanied his father to Michigan, and ever after resided in the
town of Monguagon. His father, John J. Lister, who died at the age of sixty-four,
was a farmer and later a prosperous merchant at Trenton, and whose business subsequent to his death was conducted by his son until he enlisted under his country's
call. He rendered active assistance in raising Company B, 9th Mich. Vol. Cavalry,
and upon its organization was selected second lieutenant. The troop was sworn into
the U. S. service January 1, 1863, and was at once sent to the front in Kentucky.
It was one of the active regiments of the war, and participated in many a hard
fought battle, always with honor to itself and credit to its country. In December,
1863, young Lister was promoted to the first lieutenancy, and from that time was
largely in command of the company. ~ Six months later he became captain, and as
such made for himself an enviable reputation. He was always with his soldiers, and
suffered all the privations of the common soldiers in the terrible campaigns in which
his command participated. They were mustered out August 30, 1865. One of the
happiest days of his life was on the 30th anniversary of that day, when a memorable
reunion of the company was held at his own home, and his own hospitality was enjoyed by the dozen remaining companions who had followed, obeyed and loved him.
He was ever popular with his men, and the months of hard service side by side
formed ties of friendship that death only could sever. His was a warm, genial nature, and though slow to form friendships, when once formed they were the strongest ties on earth. February 12, 1866, he married Sophia M. Clark, daughter of James
W. and Julia (Wells) Clark; her father was a brother of the widely-known ship
owner and builder, J. P. Clark. The next year Captain Lister settled on the farm
that had been his home until his death and where his family still reside. It lies on
the west side of Grosse Isle, beautifully located on the banks of the Detroit River,
the residence commanding a grand view of the river. Here he devoted himself to
the ordinary pursuits of the agriculturist, in which he met with commendable success. At the organization of the George R. Alvord Post, No 229, at Trenton, he
took active membership, a relation that remained uninterrupted until his own last
answer to the great roll call, which occurred on the 10th of April, 1897. On the first
of December preceding he visited Detroit for the last time. He retained his faculties
clear and forcible up to the end, even on the day of his death giving some directions
about some minor farm matters. He had held membership in the Masonic order for
thirty one years. In all the social and business relations of life he ever maintained
the high standing and gentle, manly demeanor that had characterized his military
career. His children are Allison C., farmer in Monroe county; Grace M., wife of
James Morey, and resides in Trenton; Alvin T., and Raymond S. at home, and
Florence D., a student in the High School at Detroit. Captain Lister at the time of
his death was a Republican.
Lohr, C. F., proprietor of Wayne Flouring Mills, was born in Canton, Wayne
county, Mich., January 28, 1851. His father, Frederick Lohr, was a native of Germany, and came to Michigan with his father, settling on a farm near Canton, where
his family was one of the first German families to settle there. He died aged fiftyeight years. C. F. Lohr's boyhood was spent in Canton, and at the age of twentyfour he started to farm for himself, after he had devoted three years to farm work in
Ohio. He had also a saw and feed mill on his farm for seven years, when he sold


229




his business and secured the present mill property. This mill is a substantial brick
building erected by Mr. Lohr in 1895. It is located on the Michigan Central Railroad
and possesses excellent shipping facilities. It is equipped with a full modern roller
outfit, and is adapted to the handling of all kinds of grain, corn, oats and wheat. Its
flouring capacity is sixty-five barrels daily and from sixty to seventy-five bushels per
hour of choice feed. It has a fine local trade, besides doing a large merchant and
wholesale business. His choicest brand, " Straight Patent," is a popular flour unexcclled by any made. The mill has proven one of the most important business enterprises in Wayne, and its value to the community is constantly on the increase. Mr.
Lohr is much interested as a chicken fancier and breeder, being proprietor of the
"Millside Poultry Yard." He has exhibited at various poultry shows with great
success and was one of the prime movers in arranging and conducting to a successful
issue the late popular poultry exhibit at Wayne. January 28, 1874, Mr. Lohr married
Sarah Suggitt, and they have two children: Carl W. and Myrtle M. Mr. Lohr is a
member of the Home Forum Benefit Order, and has always been a Democrat, alive
to his party's interests. He is one of the more progressive business men of Wayne;
is careful in his business matters and has shown capacity to successfully handle and
develop an important industry. He takes a live interest in the schools and other
local influences for good and is ever found an advocate of advanced ideas, improved
methods and modern appliances; whatever finds in him a supporter has a warm and
enthusiastic advocate.
Martin, Albert, was born May 20, 1847, in Washington, county of Sussex, England,
where he spent his boyhood up to twenty-one years. In 1862 he went to work in a
store, where he remained until 1868. December 27, 1869, he married Mary H-I. Garten of Scredington, Lincolnshire, England. Mr. Martin came to the United States
in 1873, and when he landed in New York had less than $10 capital to work on
among a strange people. But with a strong will and determination made some savings, though he was not able to send for his wife aiid three childreii for two years.
He was fortunate in getting employment and worked in Detroit four years, saving
something, though wages were low, and in 1877 came to a farm in Dearborn. Owing
to the panic of 1873 it was almost an impossibility to accumulate property, but in
1879 he secured the present farm of eighty acres by going heavily in debt. Mr. Martin devotes the farm to market gardening; the land being well adapted to this line
and with his management has produced great results. He is a Democrat, and although the town is strongly Republican, has led his party twice as candidate for
supervisor. No manl in the town is more alive to its every interest and if elected
Mr. Martin would see that its affairs are conducted most economically. He is a believer of the free school system and is one of the most enthusiastic adherents of the
republican form of government. Mr. Martin is a member of the Episcopal church
and is vestryman in Christ church, Dearborn. He is connected with the Ancient
Order of United Workmen and takes aii active part as a member. Mr. and Mrs.
Martin have six children: Mary Hepzibah, Elizabeth Susannahi, Jane, Albert George
Harry, Bessie and Mabel. Both Mr. and Mrs. Martiii have become intimately associated with the people with whom they live. They are keenly cognizant of home
training, and few families can show a warmer feeling existing among its members
where all is harmony, All the children are still heneath the parental roof, the at

230




tractions of the outside world not yet causing a break in a beautiful home circle.
While college training has not been accorded them, all are endowed with a naturally
high tone, carefully cultivated by a loving mother. While it is impossible to speak
of one excelling, the writer cannot refrain from personal mention of Mary Hepzibah,
the namesake of her mother, a lady of rare native delicacy and refinement, whose
careful, home cultivation and association have combined to make her a noble example of maidenhood.
Miller, John, is a native of Wayne county, having been born in Springwells,
August 12, 1843. His parents were Denison and Jane (Ellis) Miller; he came from
Connecticut when a boy of nine years with his father, George W. Miller, and settled
in Wayne county on the tract of land where John now lives. George W. Miller died
about 1868; his first wife, mother of Denison, died in Connecticut, and his second
wife in Springwells, whom he survived but a few years. His children by the former
wife were Denison, David, who died at the age of seventy-three in Springwells, and
George, who also died in Springwells. Of the second family there were seven:
Horace, died in Springwells early in life and left one daughter, Lizzie; Henry, died
in the West; William, now living in Kansas City, Mo.; Isabel, wife of Henry Larkins,
and died at the early age of eighteen; Mary L., married twice, her first husband
being Alonzo Haggerty, and the second W. Irwin Walters, she died at the age of
forty-five; Emily, wife of Christopher Mayhew, died in middle life; and Harriet,
widow of A, Salisbury of Ludington, Mich. Denison Miller married Jane Ellis, who
came from England in her early childhood. They had always lived on their farm of
115 acres, which was mostly purchased by Mr. Miller. He died at the age of fiftyfive in 1871, his wife survived him eight years, dying at the age of fifty-eight. Denison had a family of three: George, who lives in Bay City; John, and Mary, who
married L. Maple and lives on the site of the old homestead opposite the six-mile
house on Michigan avenue. John Miller's boyhood was spent on his father's farm
and he had charge of the farm during much of his father's life. He has fifty-five
acres of the old farm, which he has in an excellent state of cultivation. Mr. Miller is
a Republican and is an active citizen of the town and alive to his party's interest.
April 27, 1871, he married Eleanor Campbell, daughter of George and Mary (Larkin)
Campbell. She was born in Springwells, April 3, 1848. Her father, George Campbell, died at the age of twenty-eight and his widow then became the wife of Horace
Miller, brother of Denison, and surviving him still resides in Springwells, aged
seventy-five. Mr. Miller has had five children: Frank, who died at the age of
twenty one and left a widow and one child; Walter, died in infancy; John A. is at
home; Edna, a student of Detroit High School; and Elmer at home. Mr. and Mrs.
Miller are members of the Methodist Episcopal church and have a wide circle of
friends who esteem them highly, Mr. Miller is a well read man and their home is a
favorite resort for many old friends.
Moore, George E., is a native of the town of Dearborn, having first seen the light
of day on the farm where he now resides, on the 10th of April, 1842. His parents
were James Moore, a native of Ireland, and Alice Marsh of English birth, and who
were married in New York and in 1833 emigrated to Michigan, taking land from the
government, the deeds bearing signature of President Andrew Jackson. Here they
lived and here died, he surviving his wife but two years, whose death occurred after


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fifty years of wedded life. The house built by him a half a century since is the present residence of his son. They were the parents of eight children besides George:
John, died at twenty-six years of age; Richard, died at forty-three in California,
where he had gone during the gold excitement; William, went west at about the
same time and still resides there; Lucy, wife of James Clay of Dearborn; Sarah,
widow of William Montgomery and resides in Chicago; Alice, wife of John Purchase
of Jamestown, N. D.; and Mary Jane, wife of Moses Duncan of Detroit. Mrs. Moore
had two daughters by a former marriage: Nancy Marsh, wife of Richard Bird, and
Mariah Marsh, wife of William Purchase. George E. Moore remained on the farm
during his boyhood, and being fired with the war cry of 1861, was one of the first to
enlist, which he did in Co. F, 1st Michigan, under the first call of President Lincoln
for three months men. His command reached the war scenes in time to participate
in the memorable battle of Bull Run. His term of service expired soon after and he
remained inactive at home until August, 1862, when he enlisted in Co. D, 24th Regiment, and wearing the sergeant's bars, marched to the front. The history of the
24th has been told frequently and a recapitulation will not be attempted here. Suffice it to say Mr. Moore was constantly with his fellow soldiers and did the soldier's
duty fully, not only in the handling of his musket at Gettysburg and both battles of
Fredericksburg, but also in the camp and wherever duty called him, until he was
compelled by continued failing eyesight to ask for his discharge, which was granted
on that ground in March, 1864. His relations to the old army boys has been preserved and there is no more enthusiastic member of Corey Post, G. A. R., at Wayne.
Since the war his energies and attention have been devoted to the farm, which contains 200 acres of the finest soil in Wayne county and is situated two miles southwest
of the village of Dearborn. He has it well stocked and improved and devotes it to
general agriculture with dairying as a leading feature. Mr. Moore is alive to the
public interests of his town and is a staunch Republican. December 27, 1869, he
married Lydia Catharine Evans, daughter of James and Catharine (Pardee) Evans.
She died in August, 1886, leaving one son, Richard, who is assisting his father on
the farm. February 27, 1889, Mr. Moore married Eva Barton, daughter of George
and Isabel (Johnson) Barton, and they have three children: George Edwin, John
Barton, and Ivadel Alice. Mrs. Moore is a lady of culture and refinement and is a
communicant of the Episcopal church at Dearborn. All educational and civilizing
efforts find in Mr. Moore a warm support and few homes in the county are surrounded with a purer atmosphere.
Pardee, John W. (deceased). —About two miles from the city of Peekskill in Westchester county, N. Y., and overlooking the majestic Hudson, lies one of the most
historic farms of our broad land. It is the reward given by the government to
Major Spalding for the capture of the British spy Major Andre, the scene of whose
negotiations with the traitor Arnold and his final capture were in the near vicinity.
Joseph Pardee, the founder of the family in Michigan, in days of prosperity )purchased that farm, intending to make it the seat of a family who was then in most
prosperous circumstances and holding important position. He had wide personal
acquaintance with such renowned men as John Jacob Astor and others of equal importance, and with wide culture, deep knowledge and personal popularity was well
qualified to be an associate and friend (of such leadersof commerce. Few of them could
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outdo him in drawing interested audiences to listen to tales of war or learn from his
lips wisdom on many general questions. He himself became an extensive government contractor during the period of the war of 1812. In some of these contracts he
was a heavy loser, and at the adjustment of affairs after the close of the war, lacking in some important proofs, his claims against the government were disallowed
and he found his former handsome fortune swept from him. Well advanced in
years, being then past sixty, he decided to seek the newer country where his children, at least, might find the advantages they could not have in the East, though he
could scarcly hope during the few years remaining to him to fully recuperate his
own shattered fortune. In 1833 he came with his wife, Mariah Westcott, and family
to Dearborn, some ten miles from Detroit, and then in the extreme backwoods;
but few others were already here when Mr. Pardee came upon the scene. No roads,
in a dense forest, on a low and often wet flat, the Indians being about his only visitors, he established himself, and subsequent history has verified his wisdom. He
passed away in 1859, ripe in years, being eighty-two, and in the love and respect of
a wide circle of warm friends. His wife, who was many years his junior, surviving
him for eleven years, dying at the age of seventy-five. He acquired a 200 acre farm
and became an extensive cattle drover. His own anticipations when he settled in
the wilderness had been outstripped, and he had not only acquired extensive property but had seen the country become populous and productive with the marks of
advanced civilization on every hand. In early life he had been an ardent Democrat
and was a strong supporter of Andrew Jackson, for whom he ever entertained the
greatest respect, but he felt the darkness of the pall of slavery, and becoming a supporter of Garrison and Wendell Phillips and realizing the opportunity this country
offered to free men, he lived and died an enemy of slavery of every form and
espoused the cause of the downtrodden and the oppressed. He had a family of ten:
Henry; Catharine, widow of James Evans, now in Detroit; Jane, died at sixteen;
Lydia, married Garrett G. Puttman of Taylor, both dead; Joseph, went to California in 1849, age twenty two years, mining during his stay there, thence to Montana,
where he owned a large ranch, and died at fifty-seven years, unmarried; John W.;
Jackson, died at twenty-four years; Elizabeth died in childhood; Emily married
John B. Howard of Detroit; and Adeine, who died young. John W. Pardee remained on the old homestead until his death October 19, 1872. He married Harriet
Patrick, daughter of Joseph and Abigail (Howard) Patrick, and she is now the wife
of Alvin Seaman, 940 Fourth avenue, Detroit, and still owns the old homestead.
John W Pardee with his brother Jackson became partners with their father in the
cattle business, and after Jackson's death, in 1864, John W. bought the old farm and
added to it until it contained about 600 acres in all, being the largest farm in Dearborn. His life was entirely passed upon the farm, and having become familiar with
cattle droving while with his father. he continued to operate in the same line, and in
this he met with more than usual financial success. Jackson H. Pardee was born
on the old homestead, January 29, 1871, where he remained until sixteen years old.
He was a graduate of the Dearborn Union School and was in the employ of the
Grand Trunk Railroad up to 1894. Mr. Pardee was in the employ of the Michigan
Division, G. T. Railroad, mechanical department, about eight years, starting in the
lower grades. He then came to his present farm and erected a fine house and in
four months was burned out, losing heavily. He has, in company with his sisters,
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about 320 acres of land, which he operates in general farming. September 17, 1894,
he married Bessie Hubbard of Port Huron, and they have a family of two, Susie M.
and Clark E. S. Mrs. Pardee is a cultured lady, refined and highly esteemed. She
is a member of the Presbyterian church and the Eastern Star. Mr. Pardee is one of
the rising men of Dearborn, in fact among its citizens none stands higher or is more
highly respected. May D. and L. Belle Pardee reside with their mother in Detroit.
Park, William, postmaster.-Among the older residents of Trenton is this gentleman, who is probably more widely known than any other man in the southern part
of Wayne county. Born in Cazenovia, Madison county, N. Y., February 5, 1832, as
a child he was carried to Preston, Lancashire, England, whence his parents had come
and where his own boyhood until fourteen years old was passed. His grandfather
was a wealthy and influential man, but after his mother's death, when young William was fourteen years old, his father's death some ten years before having left him
an orphan, he decided to return to this side of the ocean, and so, in 1848, we find him
at Ann Arbor, Mich., where he learned the house painter's trade which he followed
until 1857, locating in Trenton in 1850. In 1857 he embarked in a mercantile career
that lasted for thirty-four years, or until 1891. During part of this time he was the
largest merchant in the community, but like thousandsof others his business suffered
heavily by the panic of 1873, and liquidating, he continued a smaller business until
1891. Since 1896 he has been the local representative of the government. Few men
have enjoyed as wide a personal acquaintance and friendship with and for the men
who have been more in public view in Michigan during the last quarter century.
His own connections with public interests has been extensive, especially during the
war, and few men in Wayne county did more according to his environments than
Mr. Park. He has served as president of the village and held other positions. Mr.
Park was first married to Lois Cleveland, who died in 1872. Of this union three
children survive: Mina, who is Mrs. Snyder of Hancock, Mich.; William B., a real
estate operator of Pasadena, Cal.; and Charles, a merchant at Los Angeles, Cal.;
also Helen M., who married Arthur Chase, son of Captain Chase of Trenton, and
since deceased. Mr. Park married, second, Kate Keyes, but she too was taken from
him in less than two years. Mrs. Sarah E. Alvord (nee Roberts), and widow of
Lieut. George R. Alvord of the 1st Mich. Cavalry, Custer's famous regiment, is the
present wife of Mr. Park. Two daughters bless this union: Mabel, a teacher, and
Letitia, a student in the Wyandotte High School. Mr. Park has met with his share
of adverse fortune and cause for grief, but through the vicissitudes of a varied career
he has ever preserved his manly bearing and upright conduct that has retained firm
hold on the affections of numerous friends.
Riggs, Gilbert.-The gentleman whose life we will attempt to review is one of the
most highly respected citizens of the western section of Wayne county, and one
whose life, while largely devoted to the arduous cares incident to a successfully conducted farm, has ever exerted an influence for good and the larger enlightenment of
the community and its moral advancement. The Riggs family furnishes several respected and influential citizens, and in many respects it has largely contributed to
the commercial prosperity of the town, and in every instance its members have filled
with credit every position of trust or honor that has been demanded of them. The
particular member of the family under consideration was born in Lyons, Wayne
234




county, N. Y., January 2, 1822. His father, Peter Riggs, was a son of David Riggs,
a soldier of the Revolution from New Jersey, and who settled soon after in the new
western New York country. Peter himself served with credit in the war of 1812,
wearing a first sergeant's bars. He participated in the battles fought in New York
and Canada, particular that memorable action at Lundy's Lane. He married Harriet Dunham, who was born on the Mohawk. After some years spent in New York
and Pennsylvania they, in 1836, migrated to Michigan, settling on the farm in Van
Buren, where his son, the late Dunham Riggs, resided. He was one of the pioneers
of the community, and was thenceforth devoted to the improvement of a farm. He
died May 6, 1863, in his eighty-seventh year, having survived his wife but about one
year, her death occurring April 14, 1862, aged seventy. She had been a patient sufferer for twenty years, being nearly helpless after a paralytic stroke. Gilbert Riggs,
coming to the State as a boy of fourteen, passed his youth in farm work with his
father and working for other men, his wages being turned over to his father. Upon
arriving at his majority he returned to New York to visit the scenes of his boyhood,
passing two years there doing farm work and receiving from $7 to $11 per month,
and reaching home found himself the possessor of $153 in cash. In company with
his elder brother they purchased 160 acres of wild land, paying $450 therefor; here
they labored for ten years, cutting and burning the great forest trees and living in a
primitive manner known as keeping bachelor's hall. Being so far from roads and
neighbors, they sold this place, and returning to his father's farm operated that for
ten years, when he bought the present farm of 100 acres, paying $15 per acre. It
was partially improved with a small house and barn. On the first of September,
1852, he married Marion H. Ely, who was a commendable helpmate, contributing in
no small degree to their prosperity, and after sharing his joys and sorrows for sixteen years passed away on the anniversary of their marriage. His business prospered and be invested in other lands, so that he now has 133 acres in the home farm,
which is in fine cultivation and is well improved with a large and tasty residence,
large and numerous barns and tenement house, and in every respect it is one of the
most desirable farms in the town. He owns a second farm a few miles distant; he
has also been a dealer in real estate to quite an extent, and has realized quite a revenue from sales of the valuable timber that stood on his land. On March 1, 1869, he
was again married to Frances (Averill) Babcock, of Hopewell, N. Y., who is a lady
of refinement and who takes a live interest in the social and religious affairs of the
community. She was the mother of two daughters, Clara and Hattie Babcock, the
former being the wife of George T. Clark, of Willow, Mich., and the latter is Mrs.
Albert Riggs, of Van Buren. Mr. Riggs's family, all by the former marriage, are
Charles Fordyce Riggs, who is now operating the farm; his wife was Adel Rappleve,
who at her death, January 20, 1896, left two children, Lena and Gilbert; Lizzie Mary
Riggs (now deceased), aged thirty-eight; George Wood, who died in infancy; John
Alanson Riggs, who is a farmer, and Willard Gilbert, who died but a few days after
his mother, aged three. Mr. Riggs is a staunch member of the Republican party,
though never an aspirant for public honor. He has been closely identified with the
Methodist church and with the Patrons of Husbandry, being the one whose active
interest resulted in the organization of the local grange. With much prosperity
Mr. Riggs has not been allowed entire freedom from trials, though the love, confidence and esteem of his wide circle of friends has not been shaken in his integrity
235




of life and honesty of purpose. Few men of Van Buren are more highly respected
or exert through daily example a higher influence for good.
Riopelle, Hyacinthe F.-This worthy representative of one of Wayne county's
earliest pioneer families is in many respects a representative man. Identified with
the best thought of the county in its educational interests as well as in the religious
and political life of the time, he has become an important character and well worthy
of consideration at our hands. The Riopelle family is one of the more extensive and
interesting ones whose ancestors were among the early French settlers of our county
and State. Ambroise Riopelle, son of Pierre Riopelle, an extensive farmer and vine
grower on the River Loire in France, filled with the ardor of La Fayette, enlisted
under that famous general to cast his fortunes in America, where he served with
energy and honor. He also for a time served in the Colonial navy. He finally
found himself in Detroit, where many of his nationality were settling, so cast his
own fortunes with them. He married Miss Campau and had ten children. His sons,
Dominique, was the first silversmith in Detroit, Hyacinth, John, Baptiste and Joseph,
were all soldiers in the war of 1812. The gun carried by Hyacinth is still owned by
the subject of this sketch, and has an interesting history. It was the gun with which
he killed the Indian chief, who advancing, tomahawk in hand, upon Captain Knagg,
whose gun had missed fire, would surely have slain him had not Riopelle, clubbing
his gun when his shot was not effective, knocked out the brains of the Indian. The
blow broke the gunstock, which shows plainly the repairing. Hyacinth married
Miss Melosh, a lady of Scotch origin, and had two children: Hyacinthe, jr., born in
1807 and Frank who died at age twenty. Mr. Riopelle died at age sixty-four, after
an honorable and respected life. Hyacinthe, jr., married Mary A.Vermette, daughter
of Antoine Vermette, who was killed by the British and Indians at the battle of
Brownstown at the crossing of the Huron River. He died at the age of seventyeight. He had become a successful farmer, owning large tracts of land, part of
which is the present home of our subject. He was also in the Black Hawk war under
Captain Thayer and Colonel Holbrook. His family were Hyacinthe, Florence, Joseph
C., Dominique J., Joseph L., James C. and Magdalene. Of these the eldest was
born August 8, 1836, on the farm where he resides and which his great-grandfather
settled in 1809. Young Riopelle, showing an aptitude for learning, was given the
advantage afforded by the Capitol High School in Detroit, and Cochran's Business
and Commercial Law Institute, and was graduated in 1855. He became bookkeeper
for a time and then entered upon the work of a teacher, a profession he has followed
with slight intermission ever since, or until within a few years. His energies have
been devoted to and his sympathies have been with the cause of education; his effort
has been to make better, stronger, more self-reliant citizens, to prepare boys and
girls to better do battle with the difficulties of life. He has little sympathy with
much that is found attached to the modern educational method that discourages the
individuality of the boy, making him a machine, grinding out so many percentages,
but doing little to bring out and develop the thing that is in him. When school exhibitions were to show something that the pupil knew, those given in his school drew
crowds of interested parents. But when a great part of the school work is directed
to fads and preparation for show, with but poor progressive, actual learning, he feels
like thousands of others that the schools have largely missed their purpose and there
23(;




is need for an overhauling. Riopelle is a staunch Democrat and since early life has
been closely connected with the party organization. He is generally found in conventions and his voice and vote are ever cast for the general good as he sees it. To
attest to his personality it is only necessary to refer to his election to the General
Assembly of 1883, from a district strongly Republican, by over 300 majority. In the
house his attention was directed particularly to the Reform School and the Eastern
Asylum for Insane, as he was placed on the committee having these in charge. He
proved himself a careful argumentative reasoner and in more than one instance
showed himself able to cope in debate with more experienced men. In local matters
he has been active for years; at only twenty-two he was elected school inspector;
was elected supervisor in 1867 and held that office for twenty consecutive years; was
elected justice in 1863, serving ever since, and in 1893-94 he was chosen supervisor
to revise the roll of his township, a task that required skill, experience and judgment.
He is a director of the Farmers' Mutual Insurance Company; is a lover of a good
horse and is generally met with pulling the lines over a good one. He has a pleasant
home on his farm, some six miles south of the city. Few men are surrounded with
more of the comforts of life, or have a wider and more intimate circle of friends.
Reared a Catholic, Mr. Riopelle has adhered to the faith, but is a man of liberal
views on that as on all other matters, and recognizes the danger of narrowness in
this as in all subjects that pertain to the general welfare. January 24, 1860, he
Annie Jane Roulo, daughter of Charles and Mary (Rodobaugh) Roulo of New York,
and they have five children: Charles H., James F., Alex. J., who became an expert
accountant and lumber inspector and died at the age twenty-seven, Mary A., and
Victoria.
Salliotte & Ferguson.-This establishment is located on the River Rouge, near
Delray, and its business is commensurate with an investment of $60,000 to operate
it. Its annual output is from seven to eight million feet of lumber; six million of
this being cut at this mill. Employment is given to from seventy-five to one hundred men and the business has had constant increase from its modest beginning.
The plant is an extensive one, covering seventeen acres of land. The company own
one tug and a lighter vessel used on the Detroit River. Mr. Salliotte owns large
tracts of hardwood timber land in Gratiot county, Mich., as well as a great deal of
village property. He, anticipating the value of river front property, has purchased
quite a tract of land along the Detroit River, which adds to his other land holdings
in this locality. This is one of the most important manufacturing plants on the Detroit River, doing a large wholesale business and giving special attention to cutting
dimension orders. It is intended to add a salt manufactory the present year. The
entire territory where the plant is located is underlaid with a valuable bed of salt
three hundred feet thick, and several salt blocks are already in active operation.
Alexis Moses Salliotte was born in the town of Ecorse, in August, 1837, and is a son
of Moses and Charlotte (Cook) Salliotte, she being English, he of French ancestry,
though born in Michigan. His father was Alexis Salliotte, a native of France, who
came with the Hudson Bay Company to Mackinaw, where he remained for some
years in the fur business. Later he came to Ecorse where Moses Salliotte was born.
He died at the age of eighty-five, leaving a family of seven children, of whom five
survive. A. M. Salliotte, whose residenceis now Ecorse, Mich., spent his boyhood
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on the farm; and being an enterprising young man, at twenty-one years of age engaged in merchandising at Ecorse, where he conducted a successful business for
twenty-three years. During this time, in 1877, he began the lumber manufacture in
company with Gustav A. Raupp at Ecorse village, a connection that was unbroken
for nearly twenty years. In addition to their large mill at Ecorse they also had a
mill at Alanson, Emmett county, Mich., much of that time. This business, though
started on a small scale, proved successful, rapidly assumed large dimensions and
became a source of profit to all concerned. Mr Salliotte not being a practical lumberman attended more directly to the financial conduct of affairs, while the details
of the mill and yard received the attention of Mr. Raupp. Mr. Salliotte in company
with Charles E. Chittenden, as Salliotte & Chittenden, owned and operated a large
hoop, stave and lumber mill at Ashley, Mich., for a period of eleven years up to January, 1896. Mr. Salliotte's life has been an unselfish one, having taken in each instance an employee as a partner, thereby rendering them material aid on the road
to commercial prosperity. He is a director in the Commercial Savings Bank of
Wyandotte, Mich., and is also owner of Detroit and Wyandotte city property. He
is a Republican, alive to his party's interest, has served as town clerk and treasurer,
although in a Democratic town. He has not sought for, but often refused office.
He is a popular man socially and politically and has been delegate at times to various conventions of his party. He was married in May, 1867, to Mary S. Rousson,
and has a family of eight children. He is a member of the Knights of the Maccabees, also of the Catholic Mutual Benefit Association, and Knights of Columbus. He
is also a member of the Hoo Hoo's, that association of lumbermen of which so little
is known and of whose secrets its emblem the black cat, affords so little information
to outsiders. Mr. Salliotte is a Catholic, being reared in that faith, but he takes a
very broad and liberal view of religious matters, looking more to the actual lives of
men than to what dogma they preach. He is blessed with pleasing address and a
frank open countenance that bespeaks the high minded nature that his unselfish life
has shown him to possess. For the last three years he has been shaping his matters
so as to confine his large lumber interests at the one point, River Rouge.
Sanders, William, is a native of England, being born in Devonshire, January 30,
1841, a son of William Sanders, who brought his family to Michigan in 1852, settling
soon after on a farm in Mongagon township and which was his home for nearly forty
years, his death occurring in January, 1892, in his eightieth year. He was well and
favorably known and had a wide circle of warm friends, whose memory of his excellent character and that of his wife, whose maiden name was Eliza West, and who
died in May, 1893, aged seventy-eight, is of the warmest nature. They were an admirable couple. When but a lad of thirteen William began to clerk in the store of
the late John Clee, remaining in that capacity until 1865, with the exception of a
couple of years that he clerked in a Detroit store. In 1865 he became for five years
a partner of Clec, doing a general mercantile business at Trenton, but with but small
financial benefits. George W. Crook then became his I)artner for a few years, under
the firm of Sanders & Crook, when he became sole proprietor and remained in the
mercantile trade until 1879. In those days business was done almost wholly on
credit and a merchant never could tell just where he stood, so Mr. Sanders decided
to liquidate and ascertain his true condition. This process was slow and the results


2:38




not over satisfactory; however, he reopened business on a smaller scale in a different location. In the course of years he became largely interested in handling sewing machines, and for some time made that the leading feature of his business and
had an extensive and at times lucrative trade. For some thirteen years now his attention has been divided between the various ideas we now find him connected with.
He is a popular public official and conscientious dispenser of justice. He is not extreinely partisan in his political views, but stands on broad and liberal grounds,
being classed in national affairs as a Democrat. He is a Mason and formerly took
quite an active part in the work within the lodge. March 13, 1867, he married Emma
Stokes of Amherstburg, Ont, and they have one son, Walter F., born January
10, 1868.
Simonds, Capt. Eli K., was born at Walpole, Cheshire county, N. H., November
16, 1828. The Simonds family were among those who first settled Groton, Mass., in
1648, and it is one that has supplied notable men to almost every profession and to
public careers all through our country's history. The captain now has in his possession the conch shell brought from England by his ancestor and used to summon the
Groton men to town meeting or such other gatherings as occasion demanded. Its
intonation brought the minute men to arms upon the alarm from Concord and Lexington, and its owner at that time was a soldier during the memorable struggles that
followed, and participated at the Bunker Hill battle, as did Captain Simonds's
grandfather on his mother's side. Until he was fifteen years of age Eli's life was
similar to that of other boys in the valley of the Connecticut River where the home
was situated. He then came to New York and began as a clerk in a general store
at Penn Yan. The excitement of 1849 had taken an older brother to California and
the next year Eli started with California in mind as his destination. He came via
Detroit, where for a time he clerked for French & Co., who were then laying the
first pavement in the city, a piece of Jefferson avenue from Woodward to where the
Michigan Central depot now is. With California in view he went as far as Cincinnati, where he was stricken with the cholera and when able returned to Penn Yan,
N. Y., where he learned the trade of carriage maker, at which he continued until his
marriage in 1855 to Hattie M. Kidder, and at once came to Northville, where his
brother Edward Simonds had come the previous year. He started a carriage shop,
continuing with a fair and growing business until the demands of the war called him
from the peaceable vocation to one of arms. In 1861 he took steps to raise a company, intending to enter the 14th Infantry, but his commission not coming he let it
pass for some months. August 14th, of 1862, he received his commission of captain
and in ten days had recruited eighty men and with them was mustered as Co. D into
the 5th Mich. Cavalry, August 27, leaving Detroit for the front December 5, 1862.
Space precludes as full a review of the history of the gallant 5th as inclination demands; suffice to say that no regiment of the war showed more meritorious service
or had more brave, unflinching men, or any that lost as many in killed pro rata in
the whole U. S. volunteer service. This was the first regiment to use in battle
the Spencer rifle, which was in Hanover, Pa., June 30, 1863, against Stewart's cavalry. Captain Simonds with two companies drove his videttes clear within his lines
nearly to his headquarters, but Colonel Alger sending orders twice to fall back he
reluctantly obeyed; till orders came from General Kilpatrick to hold his ground, he


239




fought the same field over and reoccupied his advanced position, losing some men
unnecessarily, had he adhered to his own judgment which was so readily seconded
by his general. Colonel Alger denied to General Kilpatrick giving such commands,
but reliable witnesses supported Captain Simonds in the matter and the Colonel
rode away rather crestfallen. At Gettysburg the A Battalion under Captain Simonds
occupied the extreme right in opposition to Stuart during the hottest part of the
memorable and bloody fight. Major Ferry, who was killed, was immediately at his
left; Spencer rifle cartridges (unexploded), picked up twenty-six afterward years at the
time of the unveiling of the Michigan monuments, proved the position held by the
battalion was the most advanced of any of the Federal troops, as no other troops
were around with the Spencer at that time, or until October 19, 1863. The foresight
and coolness of Captain Simonds saved his battalion from capture at one time upon
the retreat of Lee at Newby's Cross Roads, July 24, 1863. Stuart's Cavalry with A.
P. Hill's Corps had completely surrounded the 5th and 6th Michigan Cavalry, as the
supports, the 1st and 7th, had let an opening occur between their advance and the
rear of the 6th, and Stuart had slid his cavalry into the gap and cut off the 1st and
7th Michigan regiments. Colonel Gray " who was temporarily in command that
day," had taken two companies of his own regiment "the 6th" and attempted to
charge out. He was thrown "or fell" from his horse, and his command repulsed.
Then becoming thoroughly convinced that he was in a tight spot, turned the entire
command over to Captain Simonds and fell into the ranks of his own regiment; Captain Simonds assumed the command, ordered his own company to dismount and
fight on foot, led the 5th and 6th down through a wooded ravine and effected the
escape. It is said that Longstreet in his report to General Lee said that Hill and
Stuart were confronted by 20,000 troops, while the fact is, that only the 5th and 6th
Michigan cavalry, numbering less than 1,100 men, fired the only shots that day except one section of Battery M, 2d U. S. A., and they had but three rounds of grape
at close range, and only his own company exchanged more than two rifle shots, and
they guarded that retreat dismounted for four hot and dusty miles back to Anissville. General Custer, who was stationed on a hill some distance back and temporarily commanding the division, commended him highly for this success. After
about one year's service sickness compelled his resignation, though he would have
found his major's commission ready for him upon his return had he remained in the
service. His health was terribly shattered and he has since been engaged mainly in
the insurance business, working for some years as adjuster and special agent. He
was associated as vice-president of the Globe Furniture Co. at its organization; has
served two years as village president and at various times as trustee. A Black Republican in earlier life, he glorified in the name, and while parties have changed he
remains the same as he did when Chase issued the first greenbacks. He was a
greenbacker in the days of Greeley and became a free silver man in the earlier campaign. He sees in Governor Pingree the logical candidate of the liberal men in
Michigan of those who are not tied hand and foot to the party of trusts and combinations. Made a Mason in 1852, he is one of the oldest, and has been a worker in the
various Masonic bodies and is past eminent commander of Northville Commandery.
His wife died in 1878 and on October 13, 1880, he married Addie, daughter of John
and Catherine (Ovenshire) Morse, a family that came to Michigan in 1838 and her
mother is still living with her aged eighty. No children have come to Captain
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Simonds, yet a niece, Belle, now the wife of I. A. Fleming of the Evening Journal,
was reared in his family from early childhood until her marriage. Captain Simonds
is a man of many fine traits of character, no citizen having more or warmer friends.
Stellwagen, George H., was born in Nieder Salheim, Hesse Darmstadt, Germany,
August 12, 1840, and accompanied his parents to Michigan at the age of ten years,
landing at Detroit July 4, 1851, where he attended the private school taught by Joseph Coon. His parents were Michael and Elizabeth Stellwagen, who bought land
three-quarters of a mile west of the village of Wayne in Nankin township, where his
father died not many years after at the age of forty-six; his mother is still surviving
in her eighty-first year. The old farm has always remained in the family, one of
the sons operating it. George H. attended primary school and one term at the
Union School at Ypsilanti under Prof. Esterbrook, as superintendent, and Byron
Cutcheon as principal. During the war he served under Colonel Wright for a term
of eighteen months -in the construction department for the government, being attached the Army of the Cumberland. He returned to the farm after his war experience and remained connected with the farm until his twenty-eighth year, when, in
1868, in company with James R. Hosie, he opened a general store at the village of
Wayne, and in which he continued until 1890. Starting in an unpretentious way,
they became the largest mercantile business house in the county outside of Detroit,
as proved by the report on income tax. They carried all lines of general merchandise and also handled grain, having built an elevator some years ago which grew to
be the principal feature of their business, and which in addition to the wool business
they still conduct. The still own the store buildings which they erected. They began with about $4,000 capital, but buying on credit opened with large stock and
business. They did their own clerking and all store work, cutting their own wood
and in every way managed to do the work themselves. They were both young and
ambitious and were bound to succeed in their business career. The business grew
until 1890 they had doubled the original amount invested. In October, 1890, they
organized the Wayne Savings Bank, with a capital stock of $25,000. which has been
a successful business venture and has paid in dividends $12,500, showing that its
dividends have been about eight per cent., while its stock is worth $150. It has
proved a boon to the citizens, and by its careful conservative management is considered one of the best conducted institutions in Wayne county. Mr. Hosie has
always been its president, while Mr. Stellwagen has been its cashier. They also
hold stock in the Prouty & Glass Carriage Co. This company after two years' existance met with a financial disaster, but Messrs. Stellwagen and Hosie, inducing other
citizens to join them, came to its rescue and succeeded in retaining this important
enterprise in the town, thus conferring such lasting benefit as redounds to the advantage of every citizen. They have stood behind it with their money and counsel,
giving much attention to the detail of its management. Under this wise direction
it has become a source of lasting profit to every citizen. Its capacity is enlarged
and in every way it represents Wayne county's most prosperous enterprise. They
own Park Place, an addition to Wayne, and have stock in other banks, especially in
the Michigan Savings, which they assisted to organize. Mr. Stellwagen at twentyone years old was elected town treasurer and has taken an active part in the community's affairs, being supervisor four years. When but thirty-two years old he was
241
ee




elected county treasurer in 1874, holding the office four years. In 1885 he was elected
sheriff, serving a term of two years. This was the period of the great strikes, most
cities had blood shed, but by shrewd management Detroit escaped this disgrace.
Mr. Stellwagen made friends with the labor element and kept on friendly terms with
them; he had men in all.their meetings and impressed them that they were friends
and not enemies. He is entitled to much credit in this. He was inclose touch with
the police force, then under Chief Pitman, the two forces acting most harmoniously.
He is a Democrat and never found lukewarm to his party's interest. He took an
active part in the free silver idea, giving the issue careful study and conscientious
deliberation. Mr. Stellwagen married Isabel Hall and they have a family of four:
Florence E., a graduate of Wayne High School, and a teacher of music; George M.,
assistant cashier in the bank with his father; Isabel and Estelle Louise Mary. Mr.
Stellwagen is a member of the Congregational church and has been its treasurer for
a number of years. He is a Mason and a Knight Templar of Detroit Commandery
No. 1. He was formerly in the renowned drill corps of tlhat commandery and attended several national conclaves as one of that corps and helped win the banner at
Cleveland. He is fond of outdoor sport, baseball, etc., and each year takes a few
weeks' hunting tour. He is wide awake to every matter relating to Wayne and has
served for years upon the School Board. He has a pleasing personality, no man
having more or warmer friends; he has not allowed financial success to create any
feeling of superiority over those less successful in business, his warmest friends being among the poor.
Stewart, James, manufacturer of hardwood lumber and charcoal and dealer in
cord wood, was born near Glasgow, Scotland, July 21, 1830. His parents were Andrew and Mary (Dickey) Stewart. Andrew Stewart was one of the first men engaged in railroad building, in fact, he with one other man, the engineer, made the
surveys for the first road built in Scotland, the Gankirk & Glasgow Railroad, built in
18z7. He was connected with its building and his success gave him such promotion
that he soon became roadmaster, a position he occupied for eight years, when he be
came a contractor on railway constructions, and was thus engaged until deciding to
come to America, which he did in 1851. James, who had also been in railroad work from
fourteen years of age, first in the locomotive department and later in construction
work, having charge of a train and crew devoted to building and repairing, accompanied his father to this country, both expecting to engage in railroad contracting.
They remained one year in New York, James doing some light contracting on what
is now the Erie road, and his father entering into a large contract with another road,
but finding the work would be delayed at least a year, came on to Michigan, and
liking the opening in the new West, was easily prevailed upon to invest in farming
lands and a saw mill in connection. James soon after came on and took charge of
the mill, his father turning his attention more fully to farming. He continued to
carry on his farm until the death of his wife, in 1859, determined him to return to
his native land, which he did and where the latter years of his life were passed and
where he died some seven years later. The timbered conditions of this country
were such that James Stewart decided it afforded fine opportunities, and his interests
in that line of industry were extended, and we find now in 1898 that for nearly half
a century he has been devoted to the lumber and timber business, and that wholly in
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Wayne county. After some twenty-four years at his original location on the Huron
Rivet he erected a new saw mill at New Boston, and in 1881 built the present plant
on the Wabash Railroad at Belleville. He has had some large contracts in this line,
cutting a half million feet of oak timber for the Union Elevator. He has invested
in timber lands quite extensively and has cut and handled a good deal of lumber
from his own land. While his timber interests have been extensive and lucrative he
has found time to be closely identified with the public life of the county. Always
Democratic, he was the representative of the district in the session of 1868 of the
General Assembly, and while there made extensive acquaintance with many of the
prominent men of the State. The late Senator Stockbridge was there serving his first
term, and his seat was close to Stewart's. For two generations his voice has been
heard in the party's councils, conventions and all public sessions of the leaders of the
forces. It was he who with a neat and graceful speech placed in nomination the popular Grosse Isle lady teacher for school superintendent, and which, striking the convention with power, was endorsed with enthusiasm, resulting in her nomination with
a handsomne majority. Mr. Stewart was again a candidate for the Legislature in the
free silver campaign of 1896, but while his popularity carried him ahead of his ticket
he failed in sufficient show of votes for election. In 1864 he married Rachael Stetson,
whose native place is the town of Plymouth. Their family consists of two daughtersMary, wife of Prof. James Sinclair of Detroit, and Linnie, a teacher in the Detroit
schools. Mr. Stewart is a Mason of thirty-five years' standing, served as master
of Myrtle Lodge of Belleville, and belongs to Ypsilanti Chapter, Royal Arch Masons,
and Union Council at Ypsilanti. Himself, wife and daughter are active in the order
of the Eastern Star, Mrs. Stewart having served not only as worthy matron of Belleville chapter, but also grand electa of the grand chapter. Mr. Stewart has been as
constant in his reading as in his thinking; he has read the "News" from its first
issue and for twenty years has received the Glasgow Herald, the leading paper of
" Auld Scotia," and of which he was a reader sixty years ago. Ever with a warm
feeling for the hills and heather of his native land he has twice revisited her shores.
Having a millionaire cousin, and a boyhood friend, a successful East India merchant residing in London, he has been his guest, and has accompanied him with
other invited guests upon various yachting trips along the Scotch headlands and
into Irish lochs and rivers, witnessing in company with congenial spirits many of
the most interesting scenes of Great Britain made famous by historic incident.
Like all true Scots he is an admirer of Robert Burns and has passed many a happy
hour along the banks of Ayr. Among other scenes made famous by the loved
singer, he visited, while attending the funeral of an old lady, the famous Alloway
Kirk, where the ghosts and goblins made their home. Space disallows further and
closer review of the career of this respected citizen, whose life passed amidst the
active cares of a busy period has been a successful one. Few men have more or
warmer friends and none has ever felt and shown keener interest in every effort at
local advancement and a better and broader civilization.
Voorhis, George W.-To the race track frequenter on the famous courses throughout the northern States few names are more familiar than that of George W. Voorhis, one of the old time famous drivers-a driver and trainer when only high-minded,
whole-souled men were employed, or at least were detained on the turf, and whose


243




names became no less famous than those of the noble animals whose efforts and accomplishments made them household words. For nearly thirty.. years Mr. Voorhis
stood at the head of the Michigan trainers and drivers, and no other man contributed so much to advance the racing interests of this city. As a boy he rode the
quarter races, attaining a reputation as a skillful handler of the race horses of that
day. Ever a lover of the horse, he has never slackened in his enthusiasm for the
advancement of that, the greatest of gentleman sports. Thirty years ago the foremost merchants of Detroit were famous for their love of horse flesh; General Alger,
Dan Campau, Norton Strong and many others were enthusiasts. In 1868 Mr. Voorhis became superintendent for Norton Strong, lessee of the old Park House grounds,
and at his death in 1873 Mr. Voorhis succeeded as lessee, and for the next ten years
made the old grounds the most celebrated resort for true sport in Michigan. Not
only a breeder himself, his judgment was sought by the lovers of horse flesh to select
animals for their private use. Nearly all the old time merchant princes have been
his patrons. The Great Black Cloud, 2:174, the greatest stallion of 1880-82, was
the result of his skill in training, and in one season earned for him $18,000; Cosette,
another familiar 2: 19, was his property, as has been dozens with low records. As a
campaigner he probably was most widely known, standing side by side in reputation with the most famous drivers of the past, those whose honesty, skill and faith in
the future kept racing to a high plane and made it the national sport. Some four
years since he took charge of Highland Park grounds, including the half mile track
and hotel. This track was converted into a mile track, the best in the country, and
race meetings that attracted wide attention and drew thousands of visitors were
held. He is more particularly attentive at present to the conduct of the Park Hotel
and the refreshment privileges on the grounds. He still has a lively interest in the
horse, and now has in his own stables some promising animals, one being out of
Pilot Medium, and one fine mare bred to Directum, 2: 05M. He makes as popular
a landlord as the city affords, and the Park House is the recognized headquarters of
horsemen. Mr. Voorhis was born in Oakland county, April 8, 1847, and at ten years
of age was dependent wholly upon his own efforts. He served two and half years
in Co. C, 13th Mich., and marched with them to the sea. He is a Democrat, and
probably no other man is deserving of so much credit in bringing the present popular governor, H. S. Pingree, forward for mayor, and has ever since retained his
unyielding loyalty to the governor.
Wilson, Peter R., was born October 16, 1838, on a farm in Saratoga county, N. Y.,
where his boyhood was passed. After working two years in a grocery store he
learned blacksmithing and wagon making, but did not follow either trade for a livelihood. He came to Burr Oak, St. Joseph county, Mich., where he remained two
years dealing in patent rights. He then removed to Hudson, Mich., becoming landlord of the Hudson House. IIe is liberally endowed with the essential qualities that
make a popular host and for a period of ten years his attention was devoted to the
entertainment of the public. During this time he was married-on April 21, 1870, to
Isabel Harris, a native of Burr Oak, Mich. Mr. Wilson has always been a lover of
horses and had become an enthusiastic student of the Rockwell system of training
horses, being a pupil of Prof. Rockwell himself. He went to California as a teacher
of that system and devoted a year to this very agreeable work, meeting with most
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remarkable success. After his marriage he remained in the hotel until 1872, when,
having exchanged for property here he came to Wayne county on a farm, and engaging in the livery and horse business, conducted his livery stable until one year
ago. Being a great admirer of horses he has always owned one or more and has
trained driving horses that he has exhibited at the various fairs with success in competition  He is the owner of Chandler, a horse of the 2-28 class, that has a wide
reputation among lovers of horse flesh. He has bred some fine colts and has now on
his horse farm three or four promising ones. He has followed the race courses for
years and has been a competitor in many places with high honors.  He has an
eighty acre farm near Wayne that he devotes to the breeding of horses. Mr. Wilson
was elected supervisor of the town of Nankin in 1891, serving five years consecutively. During this time the selection of the site of the new County Building, now in
course of construction, was concluded. His own action was opposed to the final
selection which the majority of the board saw fit to accept, believing the interests of
the people would be better served with a different location. His election as supervisor was the first break in Nankin township in the Democratic ranks for years, but
since then it has been held by the Republican forces, not the least influence being
the popularity of Mr. Wilson. He resigned the office of supervisor to accept membership on the County Poor Commission, now serving his third year in that important official body. He is chairman of the committee on temporary relief; this duty
requires constant surveillance of the county farm at Eloise, visiting the institution
from two to four times per week. He is a stockholder in the Prouty & Glass carriage
factory at Wayne, and was one of the organizers of the Wayne Savings Bank. Mr.
and Mrs. Wilson have no family except two adopted children, Mabel E., taken at
the age of three and who is now Mrs. Stellwagen of Wayne, and Belle, adopted
when two years old and is now a young miss of six. Fayette Harris, brother of
Mrs. Wilson, was a member of their family also from early boyhood and until grown
and educated. He is now one of the leading merchants of Wayne as well as being
the town supervisor, having been chosen to succeed Mr. Wilson to that office. Mrs.
Wilson is a member of the Congregational church, she being particularly active in
its affairs. Mr. Wilson is an Odd Fellow and a member of the Uniformed Rank,
Knights of the Maccabees and the Red Cross. In addition to other affairs Mr. Wilson has acquired a wide reputation as an auctioneer; he is widely known as a most
successful salesman and his services are in demand when it is desired to bring out
the full merits of stock or other merchandise. His reputation in this line is unexcelled in the State. His fine physique and fluent language combined with great
personal magnetism are such that his voice and manner inspire confidence in the
audience and the highest prices are realized under his excellent exhortation. Mr.
Wilson is a well known official whose pleasing personality and outspoken kindly
manner has made him hosts of warm friends. whose loyalty is unquestioned. His
conduct of the county affairs has been above criticism. He known all the details
of the public business in his department and keeps in close touch with the means
and men identified with the care of the poor.
Wolf, Frederick H., of the F. H. Wolf Brick Co.-One of the most important
manufacturing industries of Detroit and one that has an immense capital invested
and that probably employs more men than any other in the brick industry, is the F.


245




H. Wolf Brick Co. Of the many firms engaged, none occupies a more important
place among the industries than the one of which the above gentleman is the leading spirit and to whom its existence is due. Some seventeen years since he, in company with R. H. Hall, established the plant, which, beginning February 10, 1888,
was conducted under the style of Hall & Wolf Co. for a period of over nine years,
when, in June, 1897, it became incorporated with a capital stock of $75,000, owned
almost wholly by Mr. Wolf and members of his family. The plant covers about
twelve acres out of forty-eight connected with it; its annual capacity is from twelve
to eighteen millions, and it gives employment to from eighty to 140 men, with a
monthly expense in its conduct of about $7,500. These statistics can give but a faint
conception of the magnitude of the business, which, while it is one of the most ancient,
has had to keep pace with others by the adoption of improved machinery and processes, not only of actual mixing of material and shaping of bricks, but of the style
of kiln and of manner of burning. The gentleman to whose business sagacity and
experience this immense plant is due and whose personal attention has made it a
financial success, even during times of depression, came from Prussia at the age of
eighteen, landing in Detroit May 25, 1865. His father, WV. F. Wolf, and four of his
brothers were in the employ of R. H. Hall, the largest manufacturer of brick of the
last generation, and with him also Fred found a situation. Here began a friendship
and relationship that with but a brief interval, from 1869 to 1871, when Wolf was in
Minnesota, and in a saw mill at Ecorse, lasted until the day of Mr. Hall's death.
Beginning at the bottom round Mr. Wolf, by industry, judgment and attention to
details, soon reached a position of trust and importance in the estimation of his employer. He succeeded Conrad Clippert as foreman, and remained general superintendent of Mr. Hall's business for from ten years before to his death. The relationship with his father extended to the son, with whom Mr. Wolf opened up the business on the present site, a relation that was not broken until 1897, when Mr. Hall
retired. The business has prospered until now Mr. Wolf is considered one of the
most successful men engaged in this line of manufacture in or about the city. He
has erected not only a handsome brick residence for himself, but also a large doubLe
house for his son. Mr. Wolf, while alive to local affairs, has not sought nor occupied
public office, though he keeps in touch with the Republican party. He is a thirtysecond degree Mason and a Knight Templar, having taken about all there is in both
York and Scottish rite Masonry, and in some of its bodies has been honored by various
official positions. August 16, 1867, he married Mary Kokesh, and they have seven
children: John E., Fred C., Annie L., Frank H., Mamie J., Charles J., and Richard A. All live at or near home, and are more or less associated with the business.
Campbell, William, president of the First Commercial and Savings Bank of Wyandotte, Mich., was born in Detroit, J une 22, 1859, a son of Gordon Campbell of the
firm of Campbell, Owen & Co., predecessors of the Detroit Dry Dock Company, who
died in 1874. Gordon was born in Canada and followed the life of a sailor until he
came to Detroit and established the Campbell, Owen & Co. about 1856. He continued with this corporation until his death and was the active manager of the business. During the latter years of his life he spent much of his time on a cotton plantation in South Carolina, of which he was the owner. He was married in Detroit
to May Low, wvho still survives.  He left six children. William Campbell was
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educated in the public schools of Detroit, where he received a business education
and removed to Wyandotte in 1879, entering the employ of the Detroit Dry Dock
Company as storekeeper and was later promoted to the situation of cashier. He remained with this company until 1891, when he engaged in dealing in real estate,
both in Wyandotte and Detroit. In 1893 the First Commercial and Savings Bank was
organized and he was elected its first president and has been continued in that capacity ever since. The bank has a capital of $50,000; deposits of $120,000 and a
surplus of $5,700. He is president of the Business Men's Associatian, organized for
the purpose of securing manufacturing establishments to locate in his city, and has
served as mayor three terms, being elected in 1889, 1890 and 1891. He was elected
president of the Board of Education, serving two terms, and is a prominent member
of the Republican party in his district. He is a member of the Wyandotte Athletic
Club; Wyandotte Gun Club and the Fellowcraft Club of Detroit. Mr. Campbell is
one of the most prominent business men of Wyandotte and has done much to foster
the industries of his city. He is unmarried.
Carey, Hugh, M. D., son of Hugh and Margaret (Hamilton) Carey, was born in
Demerstville, Ontario, Canada, June 6, 1852. He received his early education in
the common schools of Demerstville and entered the Provincial Normal School at
Toronto, Ontario, in 1867, where he remained until 1871. In 1872 he removed to
Cobden, Ontario, and engaged in teaching until 1875, when he removed to Renfrew,
Ontario, and taught in the village school until 1881. In October, 1881, he entered
the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor and was graduated in 1884. Dr. Carey
began the practice of his profession in Romulus, Mich., in the fall of 1884, where he
remained one year and then removed to Delray, Mich. He was the first physician
to locate in the present village and has established a large practice. He was elected
township clerk in 1890 and served one term; he was appointed secretary of the school
board in 1888 and has served in that capacity until the present. He is a member of
Zion Lodge, F. & A. M.; Knights of Pythias; I. O. O. F; and Maccabees. August
6, 1877, he was married to Jennie E. Mulbaugh of Brockville, Canada; Mrs. Carey
died in 1891 and in 1892 he married Mrs. Orme E. Mulbaugh of Cheboygan, Mich.
By his first wife Dr. Carey has one son, Howard. The doctor was elected a trustee
of Delray when it was organized as a village in November, 1897.
Gauld, John, was born in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, June 8, 1814. His parents,
John and Barbara (Sharan) Gauld, crossed the ocean in 1832, when it required seven
weeks and two days to cross. They encountered tremendous storms and expected the
ship to sink and each hour to be their last. They lay quarantined at New York for
three days; among other sickness the dreaded disease small-pox was on board ship.
They came via Erie Canal and Lake Erie to Detroit to relatives. His father selected
240 acres of government land in Dearborn, of which John now owns eighty acres,
settled there July, 1832, being among the very earliest settlers. Both parents died
at the age of sixty-five after many years spent in the old log house. There were
nine children in the family, three of whom are now living: John, Barbara, wife of
George Troup of Dearborn, and Mary, wife of Robert Campbell, Corunna, Mich.;
one son, James, died in October, 1876. He was a carpenter by trade, and later came
to the farm. This community has borne the name of, Scotch Settlement for sixty
years and Mr. Gauld's family were of the very first of the Scotch settlers. One man,


247




Charles Mason, lived close by, both being in the heart of a heavy forest and Mr.
Gauld became his most intimate friend, he being one of nature's noblemen. The
Scotch began to come rapidly in soon after the Gauld family and hence it began to
be known as the Scotch Settlement. Anna Gauld, eldest of the Gauld family,
married William Loviner, who died in Detroit of cholera. His death occurred in
the night and his body was buried before morning, as the corpses were not allowed
to lie, but were'buried often within an hour after death. The scare was such that
Detroit was nearly depopulated. His widow married William McCormock some
years later and lived where her son, George McCormock, now lives on a part of the
land originally secured by John Gauld, sr. After James Gauld died John came to
the old farm and has since carried on both farms. Neither of these two brothers
has ever married. John has always been a Democrat. Mr. Gauld, with three
other men, two Irish and one Scotch, became experts with the axe and were known
as the four corner men. They were chosen far and near to cut corners of log houses,
requiring the highest skill as an axeman, and Mr. Gauld excelled in it. In 1860 he
visited his old home in Scotland, remaining there many weeks. This trip is remembered by him with great satisfaction. He visited many places of historic interest, such as the Castle of Edinburgh. Among other things that he saw was the
famous gun, "Mond Meg," that was fired but once, its contents destroying hundreds
of English soldiers. He cut the measurement of the gun in his cane and displays it
with commendable Scotch pride. His niece, Jennie, and her husband, John Munger,
have been with him for three years, carrying on the farm. Mr. Gauld is full of
incidents touching pioneer life and can tell them with proper elaboration. He is
very reserved in his manner, especially with strangers, but quite talkative when once
started and his confidence secured. He is a well preserved man, though bent and
somewhat deaf, and has fine nerves for a man of his age. He has filled an important
niche in the history of Dearborn and is one of the few of those early comers still
living. No citizen has warmer friends than John Gauld.
Gray, Theodore C., proprietor of the Wyandotte City Mills, was in early years
thrown entirely upon his own resources from eleven to seventeen years of age and
worked at farm work with but little schooling. Young Gray at seventeen began to
learn engineering, and for the next ten years was engaged in running an engine,
and then entered upon the present line of work, becoming a practical miller. His
skill in that line was such that but little effort was needed to interest the foremost
citizens of Wyandotte in his proposal to establish a local mill, so that in 1893, with
their assistance, he erected the present mill property and gave to the town an industry that has steadily grown in value and popularity and has done much to revive
the business of the place and bring back to its merchants the custom of many
people, especially those in the country whose trade had gone elsewhere. His mill
has a capacity of sixty barrels daily and besides doing a merchant milling business
of 3,000 barrels, it converts about 35,000 bushels of the farmers' grain into an excellent grade of  Gold Medal" flour each year. Mr. Gray when ready to operate
his mill found himself $6,000 in debt, but with grim determination he entered upon
the duties, and by careful and constant attention to his business has made such a
marked success of the plant that his indebtedness is not only nearly wiped out, but
he has entered upon improvements of the property as well as building a comfortable
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residence. This success has been obtained, not with the universal co-operation, as
would be expected, of all the citizens, but rather in the teeth of bitter opposition,
especially of many merchants who attempted to dictate how he should conduct his
business and thought to use the mill only to further their own selfish interests.
Since finding that it was rule or ruin policy on their part, Mr. Gray has cut loose
from them and now sells his product direct to his customers without the aid of the
grocers, and has great satisfaction that his entire output is readily absorbed by
home demand. His is a spirit that is not easily downed, but opposition only brings
out the latent qualities and tends to insure success. In 1885 Mr. Gray married
Minnie Kreger, and they have three children: Christina, Martha and Florence.
Himself and family affiliate with St. John's Lutheran church.
Haggerty, L. D., & Son, Brick Manufacturers. -This business was established by
Clifton Floyd and John S. Haggerty, and is situated at the crossing of the Flint &
Pere Marquette Railway and Michigan Avenue. In 1881 L. D. Haggerty started
business nearer the city on Michigan avenue, and remained there until 1894. In 1897
he became a partner with his son, John S, of the present firm. The plant has
facilities for manufacturing six million per year, and the business has been a constantly growing one. Their yard gives employment to about fifty men; this yard
now has the famous clamp kiln, the only one in Detroit The yard's output is strictly
building brick; the plant covers several acres and its sales are mainly in the city.
The brick in the new County Building came from this yard. The Newton Haggerty
Ladder Company have erected a building for the manufacturing of combined slip
and extension ladders near their yards. This is anew enterprise, employing about
thirty men, and promises to grow rapidly into an important enterprise. L. D. Haggerty was born in Springwells, April 30, 1808. His father, Hugh Haggerty, came
from County Derry, Ireland, to the United States in 1831, and married Fanny Otis
of New York. They settled in Springwells, where L. D. now lives in the old house
standing near the present one.,The land is still in the family, though he lived one
mile nearer the city when he died in 1853. His widow survived him a number of
years, dying at the age of ninety in 1893. They had six daughters and three sons,
three surviving. L. D. Haggerty went to Kansas in 1856, and for a time was associated with the Kansas pro-slavery leaders, Jim Lane and John Brown. He had
farmed for some years after his return to Michigan and made pressing hay a business for several years, shipping it up the lakes. December 27, 1860, he married
Elizabeth Strong, born in Greenfield, and daughter of John Strong, and settled on
the original place of his father. Mrs. Haggerty died in 1896, and their family were
two sons, Clifton Floyd and John S.
Haigh, Richard, is one of the self-made men whose lives of successful business
have largely been the result of the native genius found in the boy. The family
originated at Bemerside, Scotland, where it has existed for generations, one branch
getting into Wakefield, Yorkshire, Eng., where Richard was born on May 4, 1811.
In 1825, when a lad of fourteen, he accompanied an uncle to the United States, and
was soon after bound until twenty-one years of age to Mr. Williams of Poughkeepsie, N. Y., to learn the wool business, for which, from a boy at ten, he had a predilection. As a boy he had decided views, and having friends in the wool trade he
became interested and decided that should be his own business. He had scarcely
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any schooling, never having been a student in a school after nine years old. But
the best school of all that was to fit him for an active responsible life was the one he
had under the eye of his employer. At twenty-one he had mastered the details of
the wool business, and was an excellent judge of wool grades and value. He remained two years longer with his old employer and then took a position at Roch
ester, N. Y., with the well known firm of E. & H. Lyon, with whom his relations
were close and where a friendship was formed that can terminate only with life itself.
He had a temper and qualities that had ever before this endeared him to those he
was associated with, a fact proven by his marriage in 1836 to Bessie Williams, daughter of his employer. He continued in the wool trade until 1853, for some years
being located on a farm near Geneva, Seneca county, N. Y. At the date above
mentioned he decided, on account of his growing family, to come to Michigan, and
was soon after established on a farm that is still his home at Dearborn, Wayne
county. He bought quite a large tract of land, most of which he has lately sold, retaining, however, the residence which to-day, more than sixty years after its erection, stands a monument to the excellent material used and judgment of its builder,
Col. Howard, of the United States army, then in command at the arsenal which was
established about that time, the main building being erected the same year, 1863.
Mr. Haigh has devoted his attention to agriculture, and in former days gave considerable attention to fruit growing, planting an orchard of some twenty acres. His
life of forty-five years among the people of the vicinity has made him with few exceptions the oldest resident, among whom none is more highly esteemed than he.
Now in life's decline he lives in the enjoyment of the society of friends and the recollection of a well spent life. Death parted his wife from him and three children some
nine years after marriage; his present helpmate was formerly Lucy B. Allen, of
New York, to whom he was married in 1845. One son, George, is a prosperous
farmer at Mankato, Minn.; Thomas died at the age of twenty-seven while en route
home from a season passed in Florida, where he went on account of poor health; a
daughter, Bessie, is the wife of Frank Gully, formerly of Dearborn; Richard and
Henry, sons of the second marriage, both reside in Detroit, the latter being one of
the rising young lawyers whose name has had frequent mention in connection with
the mayoralty. A lifelong communicant of the Episcopal church, Mr. Haigh is still
serving as warden. Mrs. Haigb is also one of the most active and influential members of the church. She is a lady of rare conversational powers, being well read and
possessing a personality always pleasing and congenial.,
Hally, Rev. James A., rector of St. Patrick's R. C. church, and editor of the Catholic Witness, Detroit, was born in St. Clair county, Mich., a son of Patrick Hally,
who for thirty years was a well known resident of Detroit, having moved there when
James was five years old. His early education was acquired in St. Vincent's School;
Detroit College and Assumption College at Sandwich, Ont. He took the theological
course at St. Mary's Seminary, Baltimore, and was ordained in St. Vincent's church,
IDetroit, August 18, 1888, Bishop Foley presiding. He at once entered upon a pastoral life, his first charge being St. Mary's at Wilford, Mich., from where he was
transferred to St. John's at Monroe, Mich., and in August, 1894, took charge of St.
Patrick's at Wyandotte. Here he has a live interesting charge with some 300 families in communion. Father Hally is a wide awake progressive thinker and repre

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sents the liberal side of his church. While having a parochial school where excellent
primary work is done, he is a warm supporter of the public schools and no man in
Wyandotte is more alive to their needs and interests than he. His sympathy and
help is rapidly extended; his liberal views, genial and sociable personality and general interest taken in all that tends to upbuild the community makes him earnest
friends and marks him as one of the live and progressive characters of the city. He
has great ability as an exponent of Catholic truth as shown in the columns of the
Witness, a journal whose broad views have made it a power in the State and demand for it ready recognition at the hand of all denominations and parties of the
State. Father Hallyis a ready, fluent speaker and besides his popularity as a pulpit
speaker stands in high estimation in the inner councils of his church. It is a happy
day for the Catholic church that its great officials have been led to recognize more
and more the material found in men of his stamp, as thev are the ones whose influence is constantly growing and keeping pace with modern thought.
Haltiner, John, sr., was born in St. Galleon, Switzerland, October 2, 1834. In
early life he became a weaver by trade for six years, then was a farmer and held
various public offices until his coming to America in 1863. He has since been engaged in farming, living on his present farm for fifteen years. He has met with
financial success and has plotted several tracts of land on which he has erected several houses, many of which he still owns. His name is preserved in Haltiner's Corners where much of his property lies, in addition he owns farms and other property.
He has a very pleasant home, having erected a pleasant commodious house  He
has served some years on the local board as a Republican, but in local matters acts
rather independent of party. The Evangelical church at Delray has found in him
its earliest and most substantial supporter. It was first organized by his efforts
Mr. Haltiner's first wife was Katharina Dietrick, who died in 1885: his present wife
was Wilhelmina Laskorfsky. The children by the former marriage are John, Anna,
Emma and Marie, and by his second wife, Bertha. Mr. Haltiner is a master Mason,
being a member of Schiller Lodge of Detroit for fourteen years.
Higgins, Frederick W., superintendent of the Woodmere Cemetery, was born near
Carthage, N. Y., June 30, 1830. His father, Archibald Higgins, was from an ol0(
New England family and, being a seventh son, was credited with the healing power
by laying on of hands. Fred being the child of his parents' later years went when
eleven years old to live with a sister and husband, and for the next five years did
much hard work in assisting in clearing up a farm. He struck out for himself, and,
like most boys of that day, found work on the Erie Canal as driver. His capabilities were recognized and opportunity was soon given him to become steersman on a
packet boat. Circumstances threw him at the close of navigation into the family of
Judge Porter of Allegany county, with whom he remained for two and a half years
and received such schooling as was offered at the time. At twenty-one he began to
teach at his old home in Jefferson county and in this work he remained until he had
taught twenty-two terms. In 1863 he entered the commissary department of the
14th N. Y. Artillery and served in the arduous duties of that position till failing
health demanded his discharge in 1864. In 1865 he came to Michigan, teaching in
Clinton county for ten years and then took the school at Delray, where he was teaching when his services were sought at the cemetery there just being opened. He


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was soon made superintendent, and the passing years have but emphasized the good
judgment of the trustees, Having studied trigonometery, surveying and landscape
gardening in his earlier years, they come specially useful to him in laying out and
beautifying the grounds of Woodmere, which is considered one of the most attractive homes for the dead to be found in the State. His life for thirty years has been
thus devoted and every foot of land in the cemetery grounds bears proof of his skill
and efficiency. He was married when twenty-one to Eunice Graves, also of Jefferson county and of ancient New England lineage. Their eldest son, Frank, who died
in 1892 at the age of thirty-eight, was ever in closest relationship with his father,
under whose personal care he was educated and with whom he was associated as
secretary of the cemetery. He was an unusually bright, gentle man, whose bearing
and manner made him hosts of warm friends who keenly felt his loss. Ella is the
wife of Mathew H. Winters, present secretary of the cemetery. Mr. Higgins is a
member of Zion Lodge of Masons and Monroe Chapter of the Royal Arch, as well as
Rouge River Lodge, I. O. O. F. He is a strong character and one whose influence
is ever on the side of the good and the beautiful. Naturally a poet and lover of nature, he has ever sought to beautify Woodmere in harmony with nature, allowing
her as much sway as possible, thus producing the most pleasing effects in the
grounds whose beauty is but to be seen to be appreciated. Mr. Higgins's character
was cast in artistic molds, and while early years gave him some bitter experiences,
the better part of life has run along the pleasanter lines of harmonious existence.
Holden, Hiram, M. D., was born in Strathroy, Ont., and enjoyed in boyhood the
excellent advantages of the collegiate institute in which he was well fitted for the
duties of a teacher. Two years employed in this capacity convinced him that other
pursuits were better suited to his tastes and he engaged in railroad work. He spent
some years in this work, being much of that time agent for the Canada Southern
Railroad at Alvinston, Ont. He was also for a time in the drug business and here
his former ideas of medicine were emphasized and he finally embarked upon its
study. He stuAied for one year at Ann Arbor, but completed a course at the Detroit
College of Medicine, being a member of the class of 1883. After one year's practice
in Detroit he located at Trenton, where his practice has acquired handsome proportions. Being anxious to occupy no minor position in the ranks of the profession, he
in 1890 was graduated from Bellevue Medical School at New York city, supplementing this with a post-graduate course in the Polyclinic, being assistant house surgeon
in Mt. Sinai Hospital for several months, and then resumed his old practice. Dr.
Holden stands high in the profession and is an honored member of the Detroit Medical and Library Association. His time has been given to the demands of an extensive practice which has allowed him but little leisure for other matters. However,
the demands of local affairs have called him to assume some of the more important
village trusts, such as trustee, treasurer, and president. He has also attended various conventions of the Republican party. August 26, 1886, Dr. Holden married
Lizzie E. Fay, of Detroit, a lady of rare qualities of mind and heart. She was a
beautiful personality that carried sunshine into every presence and with a warm
vigorous beauty of person which enhanced the cultivated mind and the true loyal
heart. Death claimed her while still in the prime of life on the 4th of February,
1895. She was widely loved for her many generous traits. She was an accomplished
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musician, was active in all church and social life where hosts of friends mourn her
loss. Dr. Holden has been closely identified with the Masonic, Odd Fellows and
Royal Arcanum societies.
Horger, Anthony, was born in the town of Greenfield, Mich., July 10, 1842, a son
of John Horger, a native of Bavaria, and came to the United States in 1837. He remained one year in Detroit, then settled in Greenfield; four years later he went to
the Holden road, where his son George M. now lives on the Greenfield and Springwells line. He married Margaret Meisel, who was also born in Bavaria, and who
with her brother, Powell Meisel, came on the same vessel as John Horger, and they
were married some months later. They came when the country was a wilderness
and his first improvements were in the heavy timber untouched by man, and here he
succeeded in clearing quite a large farm. He secured eight other farms, three of which
he had improved, about 600 acres in all. He paid $5 per acre for the first forty acres
that he bought and for the last farm $125 per acre. He had four sons who remained
on the farm with him and working in harmony they produced important results.
Mr. Horger did a large business in timber, cutting from his land quantities of piles
and logs. He supplied thousands of piles to the Detroit market and at times made
$100 per day in supplying piles to the city. He died in 1876 at the age of sixty-six
years. Mr. Horger was an industrious workman and good manager, exercising his
brains as well as his brawn. He was liberal to each of his children, encouraging
them to work in harmony with the rest, and gave each of them a fine farm. He
operated three of his farms at the time of his death, so he was in the harness to the
last. Mrs. Horger survived her husband until 1884. She also had great business
ability and was an industrious and economical woman, making an excellent companion to such a shrewd business man. She was very charitable in helping the sick
and the poor; her loss was keenly felt. They had a family of seven, six surviving in
1898. Catherine M., married Jacob Esper, and died at the age of forty-two years;
Anthony; Agatha M., wife of George Kramer; John Adam; Mariah Anna, married
Anthony Ternes; Joseph C., of Springwells, and George M., who remained on the
homestead. Anthony Horger remained at home until his marriage, September 25,
1866, when he settled on his present farm that his father had bought some years before, and had made improvements amounting to $2,000 before his father's death.
He has added ninety-two acres to his farm, making a total of 172, and the production
of milk has been one of his chief features of farming. He married Anna Mariah
Eke, who was born in Grosse Pointe, and reared in Dearborn by her parents, George
and Regina Eke. Their children were Mary Regina, married Joseph Therson of
Deaaborn; John A., died at two years of age; Julia M., wife of Frank Esper of
Dearborn; George Frederick, remained at home; Emma Sophia, also remained at
home; Louisa, is at home, her twin sister Rose, dying at the age of seven; Bernard
A., Matilda, John J., Christina Isabella, and Eleanore M. Mr. Horger is a Democrat
and active in the ranks of his party, though he would not be designated a politician.
Mr. Horger is one of the most progressive farmers of Dearborn, having a fine farm,
well improved and conducted on a business basis. For some months he has been a
sufferer of cataracts forming upon the eyes, necessitating an operation in the near
future. He is a man who is liberal in his views and appreciates similar treatment.
He perceives that education is the road to prosperity and has given his children the
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advantages of the best schools; like his father holding it vise to render suitable assistance to them when starting in life rather than to defer. He proves himself the
wise counselor and partner when assistance is needed and most appreciated.
Kleinow, Herman, market gardener, was born at Mt. Clemens, Mich., April 20,
1848. His father, Frederick Kleinow, who came from Prussia, was a resident of
Military avenue at Wayne until his death February 9, 1898, where he had kept a
summer garden for many years. For thirty-five years Herman has resided on his
present farm of somne sixty acres and where he has been engaged quite extensively
in the business of market gardening. He makes the growing of cabbages and onions
the main feature of his business and in the growth of these important vegetables he
has met with much more than ordinary success. He grows several carloads each
season and is doubtless the most extensive grower of these products in Wayne
county. While vegetable growing has occupied the attention of Mr. Kleinow quite
largely it has not done so to the exclusion of other matters. He has seen over six
years' service on the School Board, where his ability has not been entirely obscured
by others. He has also had many commendations from Detroit's old attorneys upon
his ability in the conduct of large financial matters, even when complicated with
intricate legal questions. He is the administrator of the Chultz estate, an interest
that has required rare executive ability. There has been a constant litigation passing through the various courts in each of which Mr. Kleinow has come out victorious
and the interest of the widow and others has been sustained. Those attorneys who
have watched the progress of this interesting case have passed high compliment on
the skill and ability displayed on his part all through the intricacies of the various
suits. January 25, 1872, he married Mary Willie, and they had seven children
Willie, Louisa, Ada, Herman, Mamie, a pupil in music, Allie and Viola. Mr.
Kleinow is a member of Schiller Lodge, F. & A. M. He is now administrator of his
fathers's estate and has also served two terms as juror in the city of Detroit.
Loss, Henry, was born January 24, 1845, in Mecklenburg, Germany, his father
being Frederick Loss, wvith whom when Henry was but twelve years of age he came
to Michigan. The permanent home of the family was at Dundee, Monroe county,
but it was but a short time when Henry wvas required to shift for himself and at the
tender age of twelve he became his own supporter and director. His life as a boy
was uneventful, working upon a farm in the summer season and for his board in wvinters, attending school pretty regularly, and being a bright and intelligent youth
made good use of his opportunities, so that he picked up a fair business education.
Fired with ambition and being at the most susceptible age when war alarms resounded throughout the land, he decided to join his elder companions who were enlisting, but here he found his desires handicapped. Young and short in stature, the
recruiting officer would not accept him for the ranks and he sought a position as
drummer boy, and in August, 1861, at Saline, Washtenaw county, he entered Coinpany E, of the 6th Mich. Infantry, in that capacity. He served with honorable distinction with the historic Sixth during its memorable campaigns in Louisana, taking
part in the battle at Baton Rouge and the siege and fall of Port Hudson. [he was
struck on the temple by a spent ball at Baton Rouge, was knocked senseless and reported dead. This report reached his friends in Michigan, who to honor the soldier
as was customary, had his funeral sermon preached, an act that made him more


254




popular when it was learned he was alive and well. This is a distinction few men
can claim. In June, 1864, his time having nearly expired and having been sick for
some months, he was discharged and came home to recuperate. A few months
among friends brought recovery and with it came the old desire to be with the boys
in blue and on the fields of action. Accordingly, in September, 1864, he re-enlisted
in Company B of the 24th Mich., as a recruit in the ranks. He joined the regiment
as it lay before Petersburg and participated in the fight of Gaines Mill and the one
at Hatcher's Run. In February, 1865, the 24th Regiment was sent from the Army
of the Potomac over protest of the men to Springfield, Ill., on guard duty in recruit.
ing camp and escorting new soldiers to the front. He was discharged June 6, as
corporal, which he had been for five months, under general order of the War Department. He had many narrow escapes but was never captured. He is a member
of Corey Post, No. 261, Grand Army of the Republic, and has taken an active interest in the work of the post. For a time after the war he clerked in a store in Indiana and in 1870 came to Wayne and opened a hardware store in company with T.
E. Denning, conducting that business successfully for a period of thirteen years.
When Dakota was opened for settlement he in 1883 went to Pierre, South Dakota,
and located on land, remaining there until he had "proved up," requiring about
eighteen months. He had erected a shack and lived upon his claim, experiencing
many hardships peculiar to that new country. In the fall of 1885 he returned to
Michigan and reopened his hardware store; he has just closed his business, being
appointed postmaster and taking charge of the office October 1, 1896. Mr. Loss is a
Republican and has served on committees and in conventions, county, district, State
and congressional. The town of Nankin has formerly been Democratic with about
seventy-five majority. It has now and for some years over one hundred Republican
majority. This has been done largely by the solid German vote which was formerly
Democratic. Mr. Loss has had great influence with that element and it is more to
his efforts than any other man that the change has been effected. He has not sought
office himself, but has used his greatest endeavor to advance the Republican party's
interests. He has served as town treasurer and is now member of the jury commission, being one of two country members; he has served on this commission both under the old and new law, his last appointment being for six years, by Governor Rich.
Mr. Loss was married in December, 1879, to Ella Cole of Shiawassee county, Mich.,
who died in August, 1894. Mr. Loss is a master Moson. As a sportsman he enjoys
the rod and delights in a good fishing outing. He is a member and treasurer of the
Congregational church and has always been an active worker both in the church and
Sunday school. He is one of the most liberal of men; while he is small in body he
is large in mind. His ideas are for a large and better civilization, better schools,
and more exacting and sympathetic home training. Every influence for good finds
in him a warm supporter. He has proved himself a careful business man, a valuable neighbor, a warm friend to his old comrades in arms, a generous citizen, and in
every walk in life the Christian gentleman.
McDonald, John C., brick and tile manufacturer, began to manufacture drain tile
some eighteen years ago, and two years later added to his business brick manufacturing. His yards are located on Warren avenue one mile and a half from the city
limits. His manufactory has an annual output of $10,000 worth of drain tile and
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three to four million brick. Mr. McDonald employs about forty men during the
making season and his pay roll averages $1,400 per month. His market is principally to the builders and he has about two million brick always in stock. His appliances for the manufacturing of both brick and tile is of the latest and most approved
make, one being the Brewer tile machine which makes tile from two and a half to
ten inches in diameter. The business has proved a growing and satisfactory one,
and Mr. McDonald is also farming about one hundred acres. He was born November 29, 1835, on the land still owned by him, and the old orchard that was planted
seventy years ago is still standing upon his land. His father, Richard McDonald,
was born in Scotland and came to Detroit in 1809, when only nine years old. He
married Susanna Longden and in 1818 he and his wife's eldest brother started to
clear land in this vicinity for the Longdens who lived in Detroit. Augustus Longden, her brother, had been a butcher in Detroit and after working three years for
him Richard was given one hundred acres of wild land, receiving the deed for the
same in 1822, on which he settled and made his permanent home. The frame house
he built in 1831 is still standing where his son William now lives. He had also added 160 acres, for part of which he paid $4 and part $16 per acre. His life was devoted to clearing up new land and making a farm; he died at the age of fifty two,
his wife surviving him twenty years. John remained on the farm until about sixteen years, when he spent one season at Sault Ste. Marie, when but two steamers,
the "Napoleon" and the "Manhattan " were on Lake Superior. His work there
was in laying a plank road around the rapids; this road was one and a half miles
long, to carry goods around the rapids. There was then a horse railroad in use for
the same purpose. His father dying when he was nineteen years old and his elder
brother being in California, John remained at home and carried on the farm. In
1861 he married and began to build on his present farm, being a part of his father's
tract, and some twenty years ago he built the commodious brick house and has one
of the most desirable country homes in Wayne county. Mr. McDonald is a Republican and for some years was an active participant in official life; he held the office
of town treasurer for a period of two years, also school director twenty-four years;
from 1879 to 1881 was county superintendent of the poor, and took a prominent part
in securing the legislation under which the affairs of the county respecting its poor
are conducted. Mr. and Mrs. McDonald have a family of seven: Flora, a graduate
of the State Normal School and who was a teacher for a time; Fred J., associated
with his father, married and has a family of four, Myrtle, Grace, Clifford and an infant; Mary C., assistant superintendent in Woodmere Seminary; Katie, Charlotte
and Clara. Mr. McDonald takes commendable pride in his interesting family and
never finds greater enjoyment than when surrounded by them. His daughters are
all living at home, and being cultivated, accomplished ladies of refinement, this is
one of the most interesting families with which one ever comes in contact.
Nordstrum, John, son of Andrew and Brigeta (Erlandson) Nordstrum, was born in
Jaonkoping, Sweden, August 23, 1835. He was educated in the public schools of his
native place until 1851, when he was apprenticed to the glass blower's trade. This
he followed until 1869, and then came to Philadelphia, Pa., and entered the employ
of J. N. Albertson & Son, with whom he remained until 1873. In the fall of that
year he removed to Rock Island, Ill., where lie accepted a position with the Mitchell


256




Glass Works, remaining there until 1879, when he came to Detroit and entered the
employ of Louis Blitz and engaged in the manufacture of glass at Delray. Mr.
Nordstrum remained with Mr. Blitz until 1895, when he embarked in the retail grocery business at Delray and in which he has been quite successful. He is a member
of the A. O. U. W. and is treasurer of Woodmary Rolling Lodge No. 23. December
23, 1859, he married Christine L. Johnson of Whoe, Sweden, and they have two
children: Charles A., and Mrs. R. J. Bueteller.
Northrup, James I., M. D., who is the present postmaster at River Rouge, is one
of the foremost practitioners of Wayne county. Born March 3, 1850, in Ontario, he
received a fair classical education in the Canada Literary Institute, and in 1880
graduated in medicine from the Buffalo University. His first experience in practice
was for a time in Iona county and then he located at Stanwood, Mecosta county,
where he soon acquired an extensive practice and was honored with many expressions of the good will of the people. Among others he was coroner for two years.
county physician for seven years, and also held several minor offices and attained to
an enviable position in the ranks of his party. In 1891 he decided to locate at his
present place and in addition to his practice, opened, owned and operated a drug
store. His standing in the councils of the Republican party was soon known and he
was but a short time at River Rouge before he was selected as postmaster and except
a brief administration has held the position since his last appointment in May, 1896.
His voice is heard in the various conventions of his party and the excitement of
politics affords him pleasant recreation from the duties of a professional practice
that has grown to handsome proportions. Being a staunch Republican Dr. Northrup is an earnest and persistent advocate, but his advocacy of its principles is not
tinged with animosity or bitterness, so that among his warmest friends are those
who are opposed to him in political views, but who have found in him a man of large
views and warm heart. His party keeps him in active harness, having placed him
upon both town and county executive committees. The doctor's chosen life mate
was Mary Powers of Aylmer, Ont., and three children were born to them. William
F., aged twelve; Hubert Earl, aged ten; and Murray Homer, aged eight. Both the
doctor and his estimable wife are identified with the Baptist church. He is also an
active member in the lodge of Knights of Pythias.
Ward, William M. —The above gentleman is one of the progresssive agriculturists
of his community. His birthplace was near the Five-mile House in Springwells and
the date of his birth the 23d of May, 1843. He comes of Irish parentage; their
names were Adam and Catherine (Shaw) Ward, he being born in New York in 1827,
where they were married and ten years later came on to Detroit, settling on the
farm where William was born, and in 1845 on the farm that became their permanent home and where the subject now lives, which was covered with heavy timber,
and an immense amount of work was necessary to place it in a state of cultivation.
Adam Ward was a man whose life was circumscribed with the duties to his family
which he fulfilled to the letter. He had many warm friends who keenly felt his loss
to the community. He died in July, 1862, at the age of sixty-three; his widow survived him nearly twenty years, dying in 1881 aged seventy-six. Of their family of
seven children, four are living at this date (1898), viz.: Catharine, wife of George
Woodworth of Midland county, Mich.; John, of Ottawa, Ohio; Sarah, wife of Peter
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Peilow; and William, who at his father's death secured the farm, buying the various
interests'and has made some additions; he has it in a high state of cultivation and
devotes it to the growing of mixed crops. Mr. Ward, while being a Republican, is
not an aggressive one and cares but little for official designation, feeling that the
free and independent life of the farm is restricted as soon as a man becomes ambitious to attend to the business of the public. He like many other staunch Republicans is rather disgusted with that class who have sought to use the party to advance the interests of trusts and monopolies. April 4, 1872, he married Martha,
daughter of James and Lottie (White) Hawthorne, and their children are Samuel
Robert, Mary Jane, wife of John Ford, and William John. Both Mr. Ward and his
wife are communicants of the Episcopal church at Dearborn. He is a member of
Riverside Lodge of Odd Fellows.
Beach, Elmer H., son of Joseph M. and Jane M. (Mansfield) Beach, was born at
Memphis, Mich., November 11, 1861. He was graduated from the Memphis High
School in 1876 and at once entered upon an active journalistic career. From 1876 to
1879 he edited and published the Richmond (Mich.) Review; from 1879 to 1881 acted
as register of deeds for St. Clair county. Mich.; and during the ensuing sixteen years
served the firm of H. D. Edwards & Co. at Detroit, as bookkeeper and cashier.
Aside from his other business connections Mr. Beach has for the past nine years
found time to edit a monthly magazine known as "The Book-keeper," the official
organ of the National Association of Accountants and Book-keepers, published by The
Book-keeper Co. (limited), publishers and booksellers of Detroit and New York city,
of which company he has been active secretary since severing his connection with
H. D. Edwards & Co. on March 1, 1897. In 1896 he was president of the National
Association of Accountants and Book-keepers and is at present chairman of the executive committee of that organization. He is also secretary and a member of the
board of governors of the Fellowcraft Club of Detroit. On June 27, 1889, Mr. Beach
married Anna G., daughter of Royal G. Rumsey of Detroit.
Biddle, Andrew P., M. I)., was born in Detroit. Mich., February 25, 1862. He is
a scion of the oldest families of Michigan, a son of William S. Biddle; grandson of
Major John Biddle, formerly a member of Congress and one of the first mayors of
Detroit; and a nephew of Major James Biddle of Detroit. His mother was Susan
D. Ogden, daughter Judge Ogden of the Supreme Court of New Jersey. Major
Biddle is a brother of Lieut.-Col. John Biddle, Corps of Engineers, U. S. V.; First
Lieutenant William S. Biddle, jr., 14th U. S. Infantry; and of Eliza (Biddle) Williams, wife of the first Bishop of Marquette,. Mich. Andrew P. attended the public
school of Grosse Isle, the summer residence of his father, until ten years of age,
when he was sent to Geneva, Switzerland, to study under private tutors. From 1874
to 1877 he was a student in the Heidelberg (Germany) High School and returned to
America and to Detroit in the latter year. For a time he attended the Detroit High
School and in 1880 went to Baltimore, Md., to be prepared by private instructors for
admission to the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis. He successfully
passed the competitive examinations and became a member of the class of 1884, but
resigned in 1883. Returning at once to Detroit, he entered the Detroit College of
Medicine and was graduated M. D. therefrom in 1886. From 1885 to 1887 he acted
as resident physician to Harper Hospital, serving his first year in that capacity while


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yet a student. In 1887 Dr. Biddle entered upon the practice of medicine with Dr. J.
B. Book and was successful from the start. In 1890 he went to Europe and took a
special course in dermatology in Leipsic, Germany. and since his return to America,
in 1891, has practiced continuously in Detroit. He was appointed Lecturer on
Dermatology in the Detroit College of Medicine and the St. Mary's Hospital Clinics
in 1892 and still retains that chair. Since 1892 he has been Dermatologist to the
Children's Free Hospital at Detroit and has contributed numerous articles on dermatological topics to the leading medical journals. Dr. Biddle is Secretary of the
Section on Medicine of the Michigan State Medical Society; President of the Detroit
Medical and Library Association, the largest local medical society in the State of
Michigan, and a Fellow of the Detroit Academy of Medicine. Since 1894 he has
been Assistant Surgeon, with the rank of Captain, to the 4th Regiment Infantry,
Michigan National Guard, and on May 8, 1898, was commissioned Major and Surgeon
to the 31st Mich. Vol. Infantry, the first Michigan regiment to leave the State in the
American Spanish war. He holds the position of United States Pension Examining
Surgeon, to which he was appointed upon the recommendation of John L. Chipman,
M. C., in 1892. He is a member of the Michigan Society of the Sons of the American
Revolution and of Union Lodge No. 3, F. & A. M. His experience with life insurance companies is extensive; at present he is examiner for the Travelers Life Insurance Co. of Hartford, Conn.; the New York Life Insurance Company and the Manhattan Life Insurance Co. of New York; the Penn Mutual Life Insurance Co. of
Philadelphia, and the Vermont Life Insurance Co. of Vt. October 20, 1892, he
married Grace Wilkins of Boston, Mass., and they have one daughter, Beatrice
Bradish, born September C, 1897.
Bolton, Edwin C., was born in Detroit, Mich., June 17, 1869, and is a son of Robert Bolton, retired, and a resident of Detroit. Edwin C. was educated in the public
schools of Detroit and studied law in the offices of Moore & Moore, being admitted
to the bar in 1891. For one year he had as a partner Thomas M. McVeigh, now of
the New York Journal, and has since been in the uninterrupted and successful practice of his profession  He is a member of numerous legal and other organizations
and is popular in business circles. November 27, 1895, he married Therese M. Rolshoven, and they have one child, Frederick R.
I)ubois, Henry M., son of Philip and Deborah A. (Brewster) Dubois, was born in
Redford, Wayne county, Mich., August 14, 1850. Mr. Dubois devoted all spare time
from farm work to the district schools until 1865, when he became a pupil in the
Farmington (Oakland county) private school. He studied there three years and devoted two years to a high school in Lapeer, Mich. In 1871 he attended the State
Normal School at Ypsilanti, Mich., and returned to Redford in 1872, where he taught
the district school seven years and devoted one year to farm life. While in Redford
he was elected justice of the peace, school inspector and superintendent of the
schools of his township. While justice of the peace Mr. Dubois took up the study
of law. In 1880 he embarked in the mercantile business at Sandhill, and in 1885 removed to Hudson, where he was engaged in the millinery and fancy goods business.
In 1887 he removed to Detroit, and after two years' study in the office of J. Fuller,
was admitted to the bar in 1890. Mr. Dubois is a member of the Michigan Sover

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eign Consistory. November 30, 1887, he married Emma L. Harris, and they have
three children: Harold, Sarah and Philip.
Durfee, Irving W., son of Charles D. and Josephine (Wyckoff) Durfee, was born in
Plymouth, Mich., November 20, 1868. He was educated in the public schools of
Plymouth and Ann Arbor, entering the University of Michigan in 1888, from which
he was graduated in 1893; he was graduated from the law school in 1894. From December, 1890, to the following June, he served the Federal government on the Missouri River and Mississippi River commissions, returning to college in February of
1892. Subsequent to the completion of his education he removed to Detroit and entered the office of Mr. S. S. Babcock, attorney, with whom he remained one year,
when he established his present practice. In 1897 he formed a partnership with
Elmer L. Aller, under the firm name of Durfee & Aller. In November of that year
they admitted Mr. George A. Marston, son of ex-Judge Isaac Marston, and the firm
name was changed to Durfee, Aller & Marston. Mr. Durfee is a member of the
Fellowcraft and Detroit Boat Clubs, also of the Michigan Naval Militia. September
1, 1897, he married Jennie L. Walker, daughter of George L. Walker of Flint, Mich.
Eyre, George F. C., son of John and Calista A. (Stevens) Eyre, was born in
Brighton; Ontario, Can., October 9, 1866. He was graduated from the Brighton
High School in 1882, and from the Upper Canada College at Toronto in 1886. After
several years of travel through the United States he returned to Canada, and in 1890
established the G. F. C. Eyre Manufacturing Co. at Lynn, Ont., which he conducted
for two years. In 1892 he sold out the business, and during the ensuing years acted
as a traveling salesman in Canada for a large Chicago mercantile establishment.
Mr. Eyre spent some months in the office of John W. Gordon, barrister at Brighton,
and in the fall of 1893 removed to Detroit, Mich., where he again took up the study
of law. He attended the Detroit College of Law for one year, and later served in
the offices of Judge Philip T. Van Zile and Brennan, Donnelly & Van Demark. In
September, 1894, he entered the law department of the University of Michigan, and
was graduated therefrom LL. B. in 1895. After a sojourn of nearly a year in the
West he finally located for practice in Detroit early in 1896, and in that year formed
a partnership with M. Wallace Bullock, under the style of Eyre & Bullock, attorneys,
with offices in the Chamber of Commerce, and has since been active and successful
in the prosecution of legal business. Mr. Eyre is an extensive property owner and
has large interests in lithographic stone and asbestos quarries near Belleville, Hastings county, Ontario. He is a prominent Mason, a member of King Cyrus Chapter,
Detroit; of the K. of P., I. O. O. F., and is an enthusiastic yachtsman, having at one
time owned the famous racing yacht "Atalanta," which sailed for the American
cup against the American yacht Mischief in the fall of 1882. He is a member of the
Royal Canadian Yacht Club of Toronto, and an honorary member of the Rochester
and Oswego (N. Y.) Yacht Clubs. In 1888 Mr. Eyre married Ada B., daughter of
Capt. Charles Perry, of Toronto, Ont., and they have one daughter, Marie G. In
politics Mr. Eyre is a Republican.
Goodell, James M., son of George W. and Celinda D. (Chase) Goodell, was born at
Le Roy, Genesee county, N. Y., October 1, 1841. He was educated in the public
schools of his native town and at Corunna, Michl., whither his parents removed in
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1855. At the age of nineteen he entered the law offices of the Hon. Hugh McCurdy
(at Corunna), and after two years of hard work and study he was admitted to the
bar on September 8, 1863. He at once began the active practice of his profession at
Corunna and continued there successfully until 1895, when he removed to Detroit.
Mr. Goodell was elected as prosecuting attorney of Shiawassee county from 1864 to
1866, and from 1868 to 1870, and was circuit court commissioner from 1866 to 1868.
In 1873 he was elected to the State Senate for a period of two years; in 1875 he was
elected as mayor of the city of Corunna, and held that office until 1876. He also
served the city as supervisor for ten years, and from the time of his admission of the
bar (in 1863) has been a notary public. Personally Mr. Goodell is one of the most
companionable of men; genial and unpretentious in his social intercourse, he gains
the confidence and holds the esteem of all with whom he comes in contact. He was
married in 1865 to Helen F., daughter of Hon. George S. Hosmer, of Wisconsin, and
they have had eight children, six of whom survive: Gertrude K., Kate C., Eloise
F., Genevieve A., Maud C., and James M., jr.
Kenny, George F., son of Michael and Anna M. (Allen) Kenny, was born in
Springport, Jackson county, Mich., June 9, 1867. He attended the district school in
his native village until 1874, when he removed with his parents to Eaton Rapids. In
that town he was a student in the public and high schools until 1885, and during the
latter four years devoted his evenings to learning the printer's trade. He was an
earnest, hard working'youth, and upon his leaving school in 1885 he was made foreman of the printing rooms of the Eaton Rapids Journal. In that capacity he served
until January, 1889, accepting the position tendered him by F. P. Elliott & Co.,
wholesale paper manufacturers of Chicago, as their Michigan agent and traveling
representative. In January, 1893, Mr. Elliott, the president of the company, died, and
the business being closed out, a new company was organized under the style of
Moser-Burgess Paper Co.; Mr. Kenny was elected as president of the new company
and acted as such until November, 1894, when he induced Frederick S. Dresskell of
Cincinnati, Ohio, to join him in a copartnership and thus the present firm of Dress.
kell & Kenny, paper manufacturers and general agents for twenty-five of the leading
paper mills of the United States, came into existence, with their headquarters at Detroit, Mich. Since May, 1895, this firm has been furnishing paper of all descriptions,
under contract, to the State of Michigan, and in January, 1897, they were successful
in securing from the United States government an order for sixty car loads of book
paper for use in the government printing office at Washington, D. C., this being the
first United States government contract ever successfully competed for by a western
firm. Mr. Kenny is prominent in business circles throughout the State of Michigan.
He is a member of the Detroit Club; Fellowcraft Club of Detroit; president of the
Grand Pointe Club; holds high honors in the Masonic fraternity, being a thirtysecond degree Mason, K.T., A. A.O.N.M.S, and Scottish Rite; and is a member of
the K. of P., and Royal Arcanum. While a resident of Eaton Rapids, Mich., Mr.
Kenny was elected, at the age of twenty-one, as chief engineer of the fire department of that city, which is one of the finest departments in the State of Michigan.
In that capacity he served for one year, being the youngest chief in the United
States.
Lane, William P., son of John and Ellen (O'Donohue) Lane, was born in Detroit,


261




Mich., February 13, 1860, in which city his parents had previously settled in 1836.
William P. Lane was the youngest of a family of seven sons; attended the public
schools of Detroit, graduated from the High School in 1878 and admitted to the bar
in 1881. In 1883 he was appointed deputy county clerk of Wayne county, retaining
that position until 1886, when he was elected county clerk and re-elected in 1888,
serving in that capacity until January 1, 1891. Since that date he has practiced his profession of law at Detroit with gratifying success, and in 1893, wishing to create a specialty in the medico-legal line and believing that a necessity for
such existed, he matriculated at the Detroit College of Medicine and graduated from
that institution in May, 1897, with the degree of M. D. He is now the only lawyer
in the West and the second in the United States whose practice is exclusively
medico-legal. The choice of this branch of his profession was the outcome of
several years of deliberation on the part of Mr. Lane, believing that in it he would
find a wide and pleasant field for research and one suited to his tastes. Aside from
his membership in the Detroit Bar Association and the Detroit Medical and Library
Association, he has allied himself with but one organization, the Detroit Light Infantry, of which latter he has at different periods held the offices of president and
secretary. He is a man of energy and enterprise, of the strictest integrity of character and domestie in tastes. In 1885 he married Miss Cora B. Webster of Detroit,
and they have four children: Ellen M., Marguerite L., James E. and Pauline F.
Olin, Rollin Carolus, physician and surgeon, was born near Waukesha, Wis.,
August 17, 1839, son of Thomas H. and Sarah (Church) Olin. His first American
ancestor was John Olin, who immigrated from Wales in 1678. On the maternal side
he is of Irish extraction; his great-great-grandfather was a soldier under General
Greene in the Revolutionary war. Rollin began his education in the public schools
of Waukesha, and attended for a time Carroll College of that place. Deciding to
prepare for the profession of teaching, he entered the State Normal School at
Winona, Minn., and was a student there at the opening of the Civil war. In August,
1861, he enlisted as a private in Company B, 3d Minnesota Infantry, was promoted
to second lieutenant and shortly thereafter was made first lieutenant. He participated in the battles of Pittsburgh Landing, Shiloh, and at Murfreesboro, where his
regiment was captured and all its officers who were present at the engagement except Lieutenant Olin and two others, were sent to Libby prison. Lieutenant Olin
was paroled with the regiment and sent to the parole barracks at St. Louis. From
there he was ordered to the Minnesota frontier to assist in quelling an insurrection
of the Sioux Indians. At the close of that campaign Lieutenant Olin was appointed
judge advocate of the military commission which tried four hundred Sioux; of these
twenty eight were executed. He was in command of eight companies of his regiment in the battles of Wood Lake and Yellow Medicine River, and so deported himself as to win the appointment of adjutant general on the staff of General Sibley,
with the rank of captain, accompanying that officer during the campaign of 1863
across the Dakotas, during which the battles of Pah-Ha-Tonka or " The Big Hill,"
Rice Lake, Stony Lake, and at the crossing of the Missouri River, were fought. He
continued in the frontier service until February, 1865, when he resigned. After several years' experience as a bookseller at St. Paul, and as teller of a bank at Owatonna, Captain Olin came to Michigan and began the study of medicine; he entered


262




the medical department of the University of Michigan, and received the degree of
M. D. in 1877. He adopted the homeopathic system of treatment and opened an
office in Detroit, where he has been in successful practice ever since. Although still
maintaining his general practice he has for the past two years devoted much of his
time to the careful study of diseases of children, and has met with success. Dr. Olin
has been president of the Michigan State Homeopathic Society; a member of the
board of U. S. Pension Examiners; member of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Michigan; and member of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion. He is
a member of the medical staff of Grace Hospital, Detroit, and of the American Institute of Homeopathy. In 1864 Dr. Olin married Georgia A. Dailey of St. Paul,
Minn., who died in 1881, and in 1887 he married Grace Eugenie Hillis of Syracuse,
N. Y.
Wing, Jefferson T., son of Talcott E. and Elizabeth (Thurbur) Wing, was born in
Monroe, Mich., June 4, 1860. He attended the Phillips Academy at Andover, Mass.,
and upon coming to Michigan attended the Michigan Military Academy. Mr. Wing
came to Detroit in 1881 and began his career in the hardware business, serving for
others until 1886, when he established a business for himself known as J. T. Wing &
Co., one of the largest in Detroit. Mr. Wing is a member of many societies, the
more prominent being the Knights Templar, Delta Tau Delta of Andover, the Unity
Club, Detroit Boat Club and the Detroit Yacht Club. In 1891 he married Minnie
Axford of Detroit, and they have one child.
Clark, Frank N., superintendent Michigan stations U. S. Fish Commission.Alpena and Northville, Mich., have the honor of possessing the government stations
for the hatching of fish, the former being devoted almost exclusively to white fish
with fifty million capacity, while the latter hatches and places in the waters in and
around our State twenty-five million of brook and lake trout annually. The gentleman we are considering has the supervision of both of these stations, a position for
which his special education and training make him admirably suitable. His whole
life has been in close touch with pisciculture, and next to hatching and caring for the
little fish there is but one greater pleasure in his compendium, and that is the catching and eating of them when they are grown and suitable for the sportsman's needs.
Probably no man in the State knows more about fish from the tiniest minnow that
wiggles in the rivulet to the whale that sports in the farthest ocean. Clarkston,
Mich., was named for N. W. Clark, father of Frank, who started in 1836, having
settled there the preceding year. He it was who began in Michigan to breed fish
and established the first hatchery at Clarkston in 1865. His first effort with trout
resulted in hatching twenty-five or thirty out of 1,000 eggs, of these one only lived
for three months, but from this almost failure he kept on studying the subject and
persisting in his efforts until success was his, and he became widely recognized as
an authority on pisciculture. In 1874 he reared two and one-half million of trout and
white fish and the lakes and brooks were beginning to be stocked. His agitation
resulted in the Legislature establishing the State Fish Commission and the subject
attracted wide and scientific attention. In 1874 he and his son, who had become
deeply interested, removed to Northville, starting as a private institution what was
the beginning of the psesent plant. Much of the output was for the State, though
many private individuals were supplied. In 1880 the U. S. Fish Commission rented


263




the plant, with Frank N. as superintendent, and in 1891 it was purchased by the
government, since when it has been greatly enlarged and fitted with most approved
accommodations for the purpose intended.  Mr. Clark has been connected with
private and government exhibits of fish at various international exhibitions, notably
those of Berlin, London, Paris, Philadelphia and Chicago. He has received many
medals and expressions of honor and appreciation of his contributions to pisciculture,
both in practical work and methods, and as an author on the subject, his writings
being standard works of reference to those interested in the work, and invaluable
to the student, especially to him who is preparing for civil servioe examination.
Not confining his attention wholly to the demands of the finny tribe, he has assisted
in various mercantile interests, notably the State Savings Bank and in the public
service as a water board commissioner, of which board he was for some time president. He is widely known throughout the State, his friends not being confined to
either party, while he is an ardent Republican and a member of the Michigan Club.
December 20, 1871, he married Prudence Bower, and their children are Clarence D.,
a clerk in the auditor-general's office at Lansing; Mabel, a teacher in the Northville
school and a graduate of the High School, and Genevieve. Mr. Clark is a thirtysecond degree Mason, few men having taken more delight in the work in the chapter, council and commandery than he. His feet have been parched by the burning
sands traversed en route to rest in Moslem Temple of the Arabia Mystic Shrine.
He is past illustrious grand master of the Grand Council; past grand king in the
Grand Chapter, and is the present deputy grand high priest of the Grand Chapter,
Royal Arch Masons.
Barclay, Thomas Sterling, M. 1)., son of Thomas and Mary (Sterling) Barclay, was
born in Stewarton (Ayrshire) Scotland, September 19, 1841. Dr. Barclay attended
the parish schools of his native town until sixteen years of age, when he was placed
with a private tutor, who continued to instruct him until he entered Glasgow Training College in 1859. In 1860 he entered the University of Glasgow, remaining until
June, 1865, when he received a license from the College of Physicians and Surgeons
of Glasgow. He began the practice of his profession as assistant to I)r. David Calderwood, of Glasgow, and remained with him until the fall of 1867. The next two
years were spent in travel on the continent, and on his return he came to Canada
and settled in St. Catherines, Ontario. He entered the University of Michigan in
October, 1869, and remained until March, 1870, when he returned to Canada and resumed the practice of his profession at Hamilton. In September, 1871, he entered
the Toronto branch of Victoria College, from which he was graduated in May, 1872,
with the degree of M. 1)., which he received from the parent institution at Coburg
Ont. He then returned to Hamilton and resumed his former practice, where he remained until June, 1875, when he removed to Detroit, Mich., and established his
present practice. Dr. Barclay is a member of the Masonic fraternity; of Myrtle
Lodge, Knights of Pythias; and of St. Andrew's Society, of which he held the office
of surgeon for nine years, and in 1877 was made an honorary member of that body.
There being but few honorary members of the society, it is considered a high honor,
which he gained by actual service for the society and not by money consideration.
In 1882 he was elected grand prelate of Michigan Grand Lodge, Knights of Pythias,
and in 1883 was made grand vice-chancellor. He was elected surgeon of the Uni

264




form Rank and in 1886 was made colonel of the same body, retiring with this rank
in 1890.
Tillotson, Frank F., son of Miles W. and Parnel (Butts) Tillotson, was born in
Elyria, Ohio, January 21, 1865; came to Ovid, Clinton county, Mich., when about
two years of age with his parents. His father having been accidentally killed by
mill machinery when he was four years of age, and his mother a few years afterward
marrying a farmer, Mr. John Marshall, Mr. Tillotson received his early training in
farm work, attending district school in winter, and working upon the farm in summer. After graduating at the village school at Ovid in 1883 he then taught district
school in the North woods. Wishing for a commercial life, he entered business college at Detroit in 1884, and while there entered the private banking firm of Roberts,
Austin & Co. as messenger in 1885, remaining until it was reorganized into a State
bank, known as the Citizens' Savings Bank. He has since earned promotion, by
faithful application, occupying every position in the bank from messenger to
cashier, receiving his present office in July, 1898. From ploughboy to his present position, starting without financial aid, he has been successful in accumulating considerable real estate in addition to his bank stock, and by determination,
pluck, energy, and uprightness, has illustrated the matchless opportunity this country affords to her young men. He married, in 1891, Isabelle 1. Haight of Lansing,
Mich., and they have two sons. He is a member of the Masonic fraternity and also
the Maccabees.
Chiera, William J., son of Gabriel and Sclema (Frasier) Chiera, was born in Detroit, Mich., October 24, 1870.  He acquired his education in the Detroit public
schools, in Assumption College at Sandwich, Ontario, and received a thorough business training in the Notre Dame (Ind.) University. Following his graduation from
the latter institution in 1889, Mr. Chiera returned to Detroit, which city has since
been the headquarters of his business operations. For many years Mr. Chiera's
father has been one of Detroit's most progressive business men, being proprietor of
the Parisian Steam Laundry and Chiera's famous hotel and bath house. From 1889
to 1892 Mr. Chiera acted as foreman of the former establishment and in February of
the latter year departed into his present business, and conducts the only exclusive
lace curtain cleaning and tinting works in the State of Michigan. He is an energetic and enterprising young man and he has built up for himself a large and lucrative business. In 1894 he married Annie M. Patak, who died in July, 1895, leaving
one child, Irene Annie, and in 1898 he married Augusta Walton, formerly of Pontiac, Mich.
Balsley, Philip H. A., son of Theodore S. and Elizabeth (Aspinall) Balsley, was
born August 13, 1860, at Detroit, Mich. He was educated in the public schools at
Detroit, which he attended until the age of fourteen, when he entered the employ of
his father, proprietor of the Detroit Flower Pot Manufactory. Beginning at the
bottom of the ladder, he soon mastered the details of the business, and gaining the
confidence of his father, was in a short time made his traveling salesman, continuing in this capacity until January 1, 1892, when, with his brother, George S.
Balsley, he was admitted to a partnership in the business. Mr. Balsley is a Republican, and on matters of national concern has ever been one, but as regards local
265
lih




affairs, he believes in the man rather than his political creed. In 1896 he was appointed by Mayor Pingree a commissioner of parks and boulevards, and has since
served in that capacity with credit and to the satisfaction of the public at large. He
is a member of Palestine Lodge, Knights of Pythias, and is a past chancellor of
that body; a member of Michigan Lodge No. 1, I. 0. 0. F.; Detroit No. 6, A. 0. U.
W.; the Western Club and the Detroit Bowling Club. He was married, November 14, 1894, to Miss Mabelle Reeves, daughter of A. B. Reeves, of Detroit.
Balsley, Theodore S., son of Samuel and Eliza (Gray) Balsley, was born October
19, 1830, in Pittsburg, Pa. He is of Swiss Irish ancestry, being descended on the
maternal side from John Gray, whose wife, Rose St. Clair, was a sister of Gen.
Arthur St. Clair, U. S. A., who commanded the armies of the United States in the
Middle States during their early settlement. Jonathan Balsley, his great-grandfather, was a landed proprietor of Switzerland and one of the founders of the town
of Basil. During the Revolution in that country he incurred the enemity of the
ruling faction, and was expelled and his estate confiscated. He emigrated to America and located in Pennsylvania. Theodore S. Balsley, the subject of this sketch,
was educated in the public schools of Pittsburg, which he attended until the age of
sixteen, when he entered the employ of A. M. Stromberg of that city, an importerof
cigars and tobacco, where he remained three years. In 1849 he entered the employ
of the hardware firm of John Walker & Co., resigning his position in 1852 to remove
to Detroit, where he engaged in the wholesale glass and earthenware business at the
foot of Cass street, and later at the corner of Cass street and Jefferson avenue. He
continued this business until 1853, when he closed it out, and engaged in the manufacture of pottery. Establishing a factory at the corner of Fort and Fourteenth
streets, he began the building up of what has since become the only successful plant
of its kind in the State. To his and his sons' untiring energy and strict business integrity, as well as ability of a high order, the present business of the firm is mainly
due. January 1, 1892, he took into partnership his sons, Philip H. A. and George S.
Balsley, since which time he has placed the more active management on their shoulders. Mr. Balsley was married in 1855 to Elizabeth Aspinall, daughter of Philip
Aspinall, of I)etroit. They have a family of three children: Philip H. A., George
S., and Florence D., the wife of George S. Hazard, of Detroit.
Broock, Max, son of Julius and Mary (Schoeber) Broock, was born at Toronto,
Ontario, Can., October 20, 1870. In 1872 his parents removed to Detroit, Mich., and
in that city Max attended the public schools until ten years of age. After leaving
school his first employment was with Newcomb & Endicott as cash boy at $1.50 per
week; later was with C. R. Mabley and Charles Root & Co. He learned the ruling and
stationery trade with Richmond & Backus, at Detroit, and later was identified with
the Schoeber Printing and Stationery Co. for a number of years. He wasof a saving
disposition, and at the age of twenty-two, through careful investments found himself possessor of several pieces of real estate. In 1892 lie entered the real estate
business with John B. Moloney of Detroit, and upon the appointment of Mr. Molonev as collector of customs, Mr. Broock assumed entire charge of the business,
known as the Moloney Real Estate Exchange. On March 1, 1896, Mr. Moloney
withdrew, and until September 1, 1897, Mr. Broock operated it entirely alone and
with gratifying success. On the latter date the firm of Moore & Broock was organ266




ized, the senior partner being Mr. Joseph B. Moore, formerly cashier of the Peninsular Savings Bank of Detroit. The firm of Moore & Broock was dissolved by mutual agreement December 1, 1897, since which time Mr. Broock has operated under
his own name and at the same location, doing a general real estate and insurance
business. Mr. Broock is popular in both business and social circles in Detroit, and
is a member of numerous fraternal and other organizations. He was married on
June 7, 1891, to Elizabeth Forkel of Detroit.
Brennan, Michael, son of John and Mary (Comerford) Brennan,was born in Queens
county, Ireland, October 28, 1851. At the age of ten he emigrated to America with
his parents, settling in Detroit, Mich., where he attended St. Anne's and the public
schools of that city, being graduated from the High School in 1868. During the
ensuing two years he studied under a private tutor in preparation for admission to
the University of Michigan, but the death of his father about that time made it
necessary for him to change his plans, and he was obliged to earn his own living,
and set about doing so. He entered the freight department of the D. & M. Railroad, where he remained about one year, when he secured a position in the law
offices of Hon. Don M. Dickinson, as a clerk and student, continuing there for three
years. After passing the required examination he was admitted to the bar and began at once the active practice of his profession of law. In 1873 his partnership
with John C. Donnelly was formed and has never been dissolved; later Mr. Stewait
O. Van de Mark became a member of the firm, and ever since the firm of Brennan,
Donnelly & Van de Mark has been one of the busiest and most successful in Detroit.
Mr. Brennan is attorney for the Peninsular Savings Bank of Detroit, and is one of
the general attorneys for the Detroit Citizens' Street Railway Company. He is a
member of the Roman Catholic Cathedral of SS. Peter and Paul, and in 1894, at
Philadelphia, was elected as supreme president of the Catholic Mutual Benefit Association for a term of three years. In 1878 he married Margaret F., daughter of
Thomas Healy of Detroit, and they have four children.
Fisk, Charles H., son of Henry C. and Sarah J. (Graves) Fisk, was born in the
township of Manchester, Mich., June 19, 1858. At the breaking out of the Civil war
Henry C. enlisted in the ranks of Co. B, 17th Mich. Infantry, and was killed at
Campbell's Station, Tenn., in 1863. Charles H. remained at home with his mother,
attending the village schools at Clinton until fifteen years of age, when he rented
the farm of eight acres of his maternal grandfather and became a practical and independent farmer. For four years he successfully followed that calling and during
the last year of his farm life attended the Protestant Methodist College at Adrian,
Mich. From 1876 to 1878 he taught in the district schools of his native township, removing to Detroit in the latter year, when he entered the law office of Hon. Alfred
Russell as student and clerk. He diligently pursued his studies of the law for
eighteen months, at the end of which time after a rigid examination he was admitted
to the bar in the spring of 1880, and at once became an active practitioner of his
profession at Detroit. In 1885 Mr. Fisk became a stockholder in the Detroit Furnace
Co., manufacturers of steam heaters, and was made president of that company for
two years; in 1887 he withdrew from the business and has since given his entire
attention to his law practice. From that time he made a careful study of the laws
concerning patents and has applied himself almost exclusively to that branch of his
267




profession for the past ten years. Mr. Fisk is an able lawyer and a man of the
strictest integrity. His character in the community has won him a large clientage
in the special branch of the law to which he devotes his attention. Mr. Fisk is a
member of the Detroit Bar Association; of the Free and Accepted Masons and is the
Michigan grand chancellor of the K. of P. In 1883 he married Ida J. Dorr of
Clinton, Mich., and they had two children, a son who died in 1891 and Isabelle M.,
aged fourteen.
Greening, George B., son of Andrew and Mary (Conlan) Greening, was born at
Chelsea, Mich., May 4, 1865. He attended the public schools of Chelsea and Ann
Arbor, and the Ypsilanti High School and State Normal School. From 1882 to 1884
he taught in the public schools and in the latter year became connected with the
Omaha (Neb.) Herald, as a reporter. He took his degree of LL. B. from the Uni
versity of Michigan in 1889, and practiced his profession at Alpena, Mich., until
June, 1895. From 1889 to 1892 he had as a partner Mr. George H. Slater, under the
style of Greening & Slater. In 1892 he was elected as city attorney of Alpena, holding that office for two terms, until January 1, 1894. Since 1895 Mr. Greening has
been an active and successful practitioner of the law at Detroit. He is a member of
the Michigan State and Local Bar Associations, and is fast gaining prominence in
both professional and social circles. He was married in 1892 to Annie Barlum of
Detroit, and they have three sons, Thomas B., George W. and Andrew J.
Hammell, David, M. D., druggist and pharmacist, was born in Seaforth, Ont., in
1848. In 1876 he became a resident of Michigan. He graduated in the class of 1877
from Long Island Medical College at Brooklyn, N. Y., after attending medical lectures at Ann Arbor. His classical education was acquired in excellent high schools
and Toronto University. As a young man he at seventeen began to teach, a profession he followed for eleven years, being part of that time principal of the school at
Mt. Forest. His medical practice began in New Baltimore, Mich., where he remained until 1893, when he located at Trenton, where in addition to his practice he
has conducted a druggist trade. The doctor has ever been closely identified with
matters relating to education and those things that tend to uplift the intelligence of
the community. He served for some years on the School Board, was elected to several municipal offices and for several years was a member of the School Board of
Examiners of teachers in Macomb county. Dr. Hammell is a live citizen and has
been prominently identified with the growth and development of the city of Trenton.
Being of a studious nature he has given careful attention to local geological formation and chemical research in connection with the great salt and soda industries of
the region. Dr. Hammell was married on Christmas Day, 1872, to Mary Steep, and
one daughter, Gertrude, a graduate of the Wyandotte High School, is the only child
now living. The doctor is a member of the K. 0. T. M. He is a gentleman of
genial nature and one whose presence in the sick room would inspire confidence and
bring a cheer that would go far toward a cure of his patient.
Kelly, George, son of John and Julia (Rosdell) Kelly, was born in Burlington, Vt.,
February 22, 1861. During the year of his birth he removed with his parents to
Troy, N. Y., residing there until 1887, where he attended the public schools the
greater portion of the time. He entered a business college in 1887 and acquired an
2G8




excellent education in that line. On leaving business college he entered the employ
of the Boston & Troy Railroad Company, now the Fitchburg Railroad. In 1888 he
removed to Detroit, and after serving about six years as agent for various sewing
machine companies, he established his present business of merchant tailoring. Mr.
Kelly is vice-president of Branch 1, C. M. B. A., a member of Co. E, Michigan National Guards, and corporal of the Montgomery Rifles.
Sibley, Alexander H., son of the late Alexander H. Sibley and Mary L. (Miller)
Sibley, was born in New York city, October 4, 1871. At an early age he removed
with his parents to Detroit, Mich.', where until ten years of age he was instructed by
private tutors. From 1881 to 1884 he was a student in European schools (principally
in Germany), and upon his return to America and to Detroit in 1884, he at once prepared for college under the late Thomas H. Pitkin, one of the ablest instructors of
his day. In 1888 Mr. Sibley entered Trinity College at Hartford, Conn., and after
completing the classical course was graduated therefrom B.A. in 1892. He then
spent a year abroad in study and from 1894 to 1896 was a student in the law department of Harvard University at Cambridge, Mass. In the autumn of 1896 he returned to the Harvard Law School and was graduated LL. B. in the spring of 1897,
having conferred upon him at the same time the degree M.A. Since his graduation
Mr. Sibley has been associated with the law firm of Russel & Campbell at Detroit.
He is a member of the Psi Delta Psi college fraternity; Detroit Boat and Wanikan
Golf Clubs and Country Club of Detroit.
MacFarlane, Walter, son of Archibald and Mary (Southerd) MacFarlane, was born
at Newark, N. J., June 15, 1862. After a thorough common school education he
took up the study of architecture and in 1876 removed to Detroit, Mich, where he
was employed for some time in the office of Scott & Co., architects, as a draftsman.
He later pursued his studies in Boston, New York and in the large European cities.
He located permanently in Detroit in 1888, and has ever since enjoyed prosperity as
a member of the firm of Rogers & MacFarlane, his partner being James S. Rogers.
The business of this firm is not confined to the city of Detroit, as they have erected
numerous costly and imposing edifices in many of the large cities of the United
States and Canada. They are the architects and superintendents of the large Iroquois Hotel recently finished at.Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. Mr. MacFarlane is a member of the American Institute of Architects; and of the Detroit, Lake St. Clair
Hunting and Fishing, Detroit Boat and Detroit Athletic Clubs.
McMillan, Harold, son of Hon. Hugh and Ellen (Dyar) McMillan, was born in Detroit, Mich., November 11, 1871. He attended public schools in Detroit, private
school at Cornwall-on-Hudson, N. Y., and prepared for college at Lawrenceville
(N. J.) Academy. He took a special academic course in Princeton University, being
graduated with honors in 1893. Returning at once to Detroit, he became one of the
organizers of the Detroit Sheet Metal and Brass Works, of which he has ever since
been treasurer and general manager. The Detroit Sheet Metal and Brass Works
are manufacturers of brass furniture, car trimmings, marine hardware and specialties; contractors for heating, ventilating, plumbing, copper and sheet metal work
and jobbers of pipes, valves, fittings and engineers' supplies, and has been prosperous from the start. Mr. McMillan is also president of the American Sanitary Engi269




neering Co. of Detroit, and otherwise prominently identified with the business interests of the city. He is a member of the Detroit Club; Detroit Riding Club: Detroit
Athletic Club; Wanikan Golf Club of Detroit; the Ivy Club of Princeton University
fame; the Old Club at St. Clair Flats, Mich.; and the Calumet and Brooklyn Clubs of
New York. He is also a member of the order of Free and Accepted Masons. As
this work is passing through the press, Mr. McMillan is serving in the U. S. navy in
the war with Spain.
Sayles, George M., son of Benjamin F. and Ella L. (Wilcox) Sayles, was born in
Chautauqua county, N. Y., April 28, 1865. He was graduated from the Forestville
(N. Y.) Free Academy in 1880, and in the same year removed with his parents to
Michigan, settling in Tuscola county. He taught in the Vassar (Mich.) High School
for two years, and while there took up the study of law with E. H. Taylor. He was
admitted to the bar in 1885, and after two years' practice at Vassar, removed to
Flint, Mich., early in 1887. He practiced successfully at Flint until the autumn of
1894, when he located permanently in Detroit, Mich. From 1890 to 1892 Mr. Sayles
held the office of city attorney at Flint, and is select royal master of Washington
Chapter, F. & A. M., of that city. He is also a member of the I. 0. O. F., K. P.,
and other fraternal organizations.
Scott, John, one of the leading architects of the city of Detroit, was born in Ipswich, England, May 10, 1851, a son of William Scott, who immigrated with his family in 1853 to Windsor, Canada, where John attended the common schools and at the
age of sixteen began studying civil engineering, which profession he followed until
twenty-two years of age, and then departed into architectural work. During his
career as a civil engineer Mr. Scott had charge of the Detroit and Bay City Railroad,
and settled permanently in Detroit in 1875, at which time he formed a partnership
with his father and brother, who were also civil engineers and architects, and that
partnership existed until 1889, at which time his father retired, leaving the business
entirely to the Scott brothers, as John Scott & Co., and under which firm name they
have been eminently successful. Mr. Scott is a menber of numerous Masonic and
fraternal organizations and is a very popular club man. He is also a member of the
American Institute of Architects. In 1874 he married Emma, daughter of Lysander Woodward of Rochester, Mich.
Scott, George G., son of the late Rev. John P. and Martha J. (Gifford) Scott, was
born in Detroit, Mich., September 16, 1871. He was graduated from the National
Normal University at Lebanon, Ohio, in 1890, and spent the following year in the
law department of that institution. He then entered the law department of the University of Michigan, and was graduated with the degree of LL. B. in 1893. In the
same year he was admitted to the bar of both Michigan and Ohio, and since 1894 has
practiced his profession continuously at Detroit. Mr. Scott is a member of the order
of Free and Accepted Masons, of the U. F. of M.; K. P.; and Webster Society of
the University of Michigan. Since becoming a permanent resident of Detroit he has
been a member of the Fort Street Presbyterian church, is assistant superintendent
of the Sunday school in connection with that church, and in 1895 was president of
the Presbyterian Westminster League.
Jenks, Edward W., M. D., LL. D., is a native of New York State and was born at


270




Victor in 1833. His early education was acquired in the La Grange (Ind.) Collegiate
Institute, a school founded and in the main endowed with a generous hand by his
father early in the century, and during its many years of existence one of the most
famous schools of Northern Indiana and Southern Michigan. After fitting himself
here for entering upon his professional studies he entered the medical department of
the University of New York as a private pupil of Professors J. R. Wood and William
Darling. Subsequently he attended the once famous Castleton Medical College in
Vermont, where he was under the tutelage of the late Professor C. L. Ford, famous
as a teacher of anatomy. Upon his return to New York he found his old preceptor,
Prof. J. R. Wood, at Bellevue Hospital, and preferring to remain under his instruction
he entered the Bellevue Hospital College, from which he was graduated in 1864 with
a degree of M. D., immediately after which he located for practice in Detroit, Mich.
His sterling worth as a citizen and physician was soon recognized, and shortly after
coming to Detroit he became connected with Harper Hospital, and was a prominent
member of the first staff. Upon the organization of the Detroit Medical College,
subsequently the Detroit College of Medicine, in 1868, which he was largely instrumental in forming, Dr. Jenks became its first president; also filling the chair of
obstetrics and diseases of women. In 1871 while filling this chair he was called upon
to occupy a similar position in Bowdoin College, Brunswick, Maine, and held the
same for four years, when he was obliged to relinquish the position on account of the
arduous labor involved in connection with his large practice in Detroit. In 1879 he
removed to Chicago, where he filled the chair of gynaecology in the Chicago Medical
College, but the climate proving injurious to himself and family obliged him to submit his resignation of this position and return to Detroit, where he has since devoted
himself to private practice. Previous to his removing to Chicago Dr. Jenks was connected as visiting and consulting physician with Harper, St. Luke's, St. Mary's and
the Detroit Woman's Hospital. He has always stood in the front rank of the medical practitioners of Detroit. Dr. Jenks is a regular contributor to the leading medical journals and other scientific publications, and many of his literary productions
have been translated and are quoted in every section of the civilized world. One of
New York's most distinguished physicians, Dr. Fordyce Barker, has said that, " With
obstetricians and gynecologists, both in the United States and Europe, Dr. Jenks
has long born a high reputation as a most efficient and useful contributor to science
and practice in these departments, and as an able writer whose many published
papers must be well known generally." Dr. Jenks is a fellow of the American
Gyneecological Society, of which he was one of the founders; fellow of the Obstetrical
Society of London, England; member of the American, Michigan State (of which he
has been president) Medical Associations; the Detroit Academy of Medicine (of which
he was president), Detroit Gynaecological Society, Wayne County Medical Society,
and Detroit Library and Medical Association; honorary member of the Ohio State
and Maine Medical Associations, Toledo Medical Society, Cincinnati Obstetrical Society, and Northwestern Medical Society of Indiana; also corresponding member of
the Societe Francaise d'Electrotherapie, Paris, France, Boston Gynaecological Society, and other learned associations at home and abroad. In 1866 he became one
of the founders and for four years was a member of the editorial staff of the Detroit
Review of Medicine, which was the predecessor of the American Lancet. He was
for some time an active member of the Detroit Board of Health, and in his official
271




capacity has rendered the city valuable service. He is connected with nearly all the
prominent medical and surgical societies and associations of America and has frequently held official positions in those bodies. Dr. Jenks is actively engaged in
practice, devoting the greater portion of his time to the specialty in which he has obtained his greatest success, and in which he is regarded by the profession at large as
a recognizd authority. Dr. Jenks received the degree of LL. D. from Albion (Mich.)
College in 1878. He is at present a member of the State Board of Correction and
Charities. He has been married twice; his first wife being Julia Darling of Warsaw,
N. Y., and his second wife the eldest daughter of the late James F. Joy, Detroit's
" Grand old man." They have two children: Martha and Nathan, who has nearly
completed his medical course in Bellevue Medical College, New York city.
Winder, Daniel Cory, son of Prof. Daniel K. and Mary J. (Miller) Winder, was
born near Urbana, Ohio, January 27, 1863. He was educated under private tutors
at Toronto, Ontario, Can., whither his parents removed in 1864. At the age of
fifteen he entered the office of his father at Toronto to learn the printer's trade.
Upon completing his apprenticeship he removed to Detroit where he afterward established the well known Winder Printing Company, an establishment that has been
successful from the beginning. Mr. Winder's taste and skill has made the output of
his office noted for its artistic merit, and in his particular specialty-hotel menushe practically controls the work of the city. Mr. Winder is a member of various fraternal and social organizations and is also a Knight Templar. Mr. Winder was
married September 8, 1887, to Loia J. Atherton, of Northfield, Vt., and they have
two children, Daniel C., jr. and John P. The Winder family is of English origin,
the progenitor of this particular branch coming to Maryland at an early date, where
Mr. Winder's father was born. Mr. Winder has in his possession the Winder family
crest that has been in the family from its earliest days.
Cast, Gustave L., son of William and Elizabeth (Smudt) Gast, born June 18, 1868,
in Poplitz, Prussia. He acquired his education in the public schools of his native
place, which he attended until the age of fourteen. In 1882 his parents removed to
the United States and settled in Detroit. Shortly after his arrival he was apprenticed
to the cabinet maker's trade, which he followed until 1892. In the fall of that year
he associated himself with Herman F. Bock and William Schoenweg, forming the
firm of Bock, Schoenweg & Gast, and engaged in the manufacture of furniture and
office fixtures. In 1895 he organized the Detroit Furniture Manufacturing Company,
which absorbed the former firm, and removed to their present spacious factory building at 803 and 805 Bellevuc avenue. The company employ twenty hands, with a
yearly output of $25,000.
Van Wagoner, Alvil 0., son of Philo Van Wagoner and Phoebe (Tindell) Van
Wagoner, who were early settlers in Orion township, Oakland county, Mich., coming
there in 1836, where Alvil 0. was born March 23, 1865. His early education was obtained at the district schools, afterwards graduating from the Pontiac High School
in the class of 1887. He then engaged in teaching for two years, after which he entered the law department of the University of Michigai at Ann Arbor, graduating
in 1891. He located in I)etroit, opening an office immediately after graduation,
and devotes his time to general law practice. Mr. Van Wagoner was married to
272




Josephine M. Clark of Milwaukee, December 31, 1895. Mr. Van Wagoner's parents
were from eastern New York and New Jersey and were of Revolutionary stock.
Scotten, William E., was born in Branch county, Mich., July 17, 1857, a son of
Walter and Martha Scotten. His father was born in England. His early education
was obtained in the district schools and afterwards in the Detroit High School, at
that time located in the old State Capitol building. Mr. Scotten's first business enterprise was a retail hardware store in Plymouth, Mich., in 1876, which he was soon
compelled to abandon on account of ill health. The next few years he spent upon
his farm near Detroit, until 1887, when he entered the tobacco factory of Daniel
Scotten & Co., in a subordinate position, but by strict attention to the various details
of the business, accompanied by constant industry, good moral habits and sound
business instincts, he advanced through various positions till he was admitted to the
firm in 1894. Mr. Scotten was married in 1891 to Florence Fleming of Windsor,
Ontario. Mr. Scotten has traveled extensively over various portions of the United
States and has always been a careful observer of men and places.
MacLaurin, Rev. Donald D., son of Rev. Duncan and Janet (Drummond) MacLaurin, was born in St. Vincent, Ontario, Canada. He received his primary education in the common schools of his native place, which he attended until he was
about fourteen years of age. He did not resume his school work until he wvas twenty-two, when he entered the academic department of Colgate University, Hamilton,
N. Y., and was graduated from the university itself with the class of '81, with the
degree of A. B. In December of that year he was ordained at Eaton, Madison
county, N. Y., and entered the theological department of Colgate University, where
he remained until 1883, when he accepted a call to the pastorate of the young Immanuel Baptist church at Minneapolis, Minn. His ministry there was crowned with
large success. Between six and seven hundred people were added to the church.
One of the finest church buildings in the city was erected. In 1890 he was called to
the pastorate of the old Baptist Church of the Epiphany in New York city, where he
remained until 1892, when he removed to Detroit, having accepted the pastorate of
the Woodward Avenue Baptist church. During his nearly six years' (at this writing,
June, 1898,) pastorate about $180,000 of money has been raised and expended; the
church has made a net increase of 400; and mission interests in the city have been
prosecuted. He was chairman of the City Mission Committee for five years. In
1896 he was elected vice-president of the American Baptist Missionary Union, and
was re-elected in 1897. In that year he was honored with the degree of Doctor of
Divinity. He was united in marriage June 26, 1877, to Florence Eugenia Page at
Triangle, Broome county, N. Y. They have one child, Eugenia May MacLaurin.
Shipman, Ozias Williams, a son of Horace and Abby A. Shipman, was born at
Pierstown, Otsego county, N. Y., January 29, 1834. About seven years after his
birth his parents took up their residence at Fort Plain, N. Y., and at the seminary
of that place Mr. Shipman received most of his school education. After four years
the family removed to a farm at Union, Broome county, N. Y., and at the end of the
year Mr. and Mrs. Shipman moved to Athens, Pa., leaving 0. W. and a brother to
manage the Union farm. After two years spent on the farm Mr. Shipman went to
his father's home at Athens, remaining there until about twenty-one years of age.
273




Shortly after he embarked in the grocery business at Waverly and in a few years he
worked up a very large trade, where he continued until 1872, when he sold out and
moved to New York. Not long afterwards he bought a quarter interest in the Shawnee Coal Co.'s business and since that time has devoted himself entirely to the coal
business, In 1875 he came to Detroit and quickly built up an extensive trade. so
that he soon had the largest coal business in Michigan. July 1, 1897, his Detroit
business was incorporated under the style of the 0. W. Shipman Co., a number of
his employees who had been with him for a number of years being admitted as
stockholders and members of the company. Besides his coal business Mr. Shipman
was interested in the Frontier Iron & Brass Works, and in the Fireproof
Paint Co. at Chicago. He was also a stockholder in the Commercial National and
American National Banks of Detroit, and a director of the Home Savings Bank.
Mr. Shipman was a man of great energy and perseverance and was possessed of executive and administrative ability of a high order. In commercial circles he was
always considered upright and honorable and his private life was without a stain.
He was prominent in the Masonic circles and had taken the highest degrees of the
order obtainable in this country. He was an active member of St. John's Episcopal
church and served there for some years as a vestryman; he was appointed by Mayor
Pingree in 1893 as a member of the Metropolitan Police Commission and rendered
most valuable services while occupying that position. In June, 1856, Mr. Shipman
married Miss Emily L. Comstock of Newark Valley, N. Y. They had two daughters, Mrs. F. B. Stevens of Detroit, and Mrs. H. S. Lewis of Circleville, Ohio. Mr.
Shipman died Jan. 28, 1898.
Thompson, William B., was born March 10, 1860, in Detroit, Mich. His parents
were Thomas and Bridget (Barlum) Thompson, who emigrated from Ireland in 1855
and located in Detroit. William B. received his education in the public schools of
Detroit. At the age of sixteen he secured a situation with Thomas Barium, who
was located in the Central Market, and in 1880 was admitted to partnership, which
connection was continued until 1882, when Mr. Thompson embarked in business for
himself in the old Central Market. When that market was abolished Mr. Thompson, in connection with Thomas and John J. Barlum, organized the New Central Market, where Mr. Thompson now has -his retail business. He has been an
active participant in Democratic politics. In 1890 he was elected alderman from the
Eighth ward for two years, re-elected in 1892 for a second term, but in 1894, although
great pressure was brought to bear, he declined renomination. In 1896 he was again
elected as alderman, and in 1897 was elected city treasurer by a majority of over
5,000, leading the ticket. Mr. Thompson has achieved his business and political success by a strict, unswerving fidelity to all interests intrusted to his care. He was
married, April 26, 1887, to Nellie, daughter of Francis A. and Mary (Gaffney) Hymes.
They have six children: Mary V. J., Kathleen, Irene Elizabeth, William Grover,
Francis Leo and Helen Marion.
Gartner, George, was born in the township of Grosse Pointe, Wayne county, Mich.,
on October 10, 1850, son of Bernd F. and Catherine Gartner, of German nativity.
His father came to this country in 1843, locating at Grosse Pointe, where he conducted a general store and a manufactory of boots and shoes. George Gartner's


274




early education was necessarily limited to the brief moments he could snatch away
from the arduous toll of those early days, but naturally of a receptive mind, he made
the best of such opportunities as were afforded until he was seventeen, when he attended the Normal School of Ypsilanti. In the winter of 1869-70 he taught school
near Dowagiac, Mich. In October, 1870, he entered the law department of the University of Michigan, where he attended for two terms and was admitted to the bar
April 2, 1872; he immediately began the practice of his profession in Detroit. In
the spring of 1883 Mr. Gartner was elected a member of the Board of Education for
a term of four years, during the third year of which he was president of the board.
During the years 1885-87 he occupied the position of first assistant prosecuting attorney of Wayne county, resigning the same to occupy the office of circuit judge of
the Third Judicial Circuit on January 1, 1888, to which office he had been elected at
the general State spring election in April, 1887. He served as circuit judge until
December 31, 1893, when he again resumed the practice of the law. Mr. Gartner
was married, November 6, 1879, to Lena B. Brooks, and they have surviving one
son, Oliver, born September 22, 1887.
Huston, E. Russell, was born in Dresden, Ontario, Can., July 17, 1870, a son of
Edward Huston, the well known lumberman of the province of Ontario, Washington
State and B. C. He was educated in the public and high schools and was graduated
from the Chatham Collegiate Institute in 1888; he spent four years in Toronto University and one year in Queen's College, where he took special work in philosophy
under Prof. Watson and political science under Prof. Short. In 1894 he removed to
Detroit and entered the law office of S. Babcock, also becoming a student in the Detroit College of Law, from which he was graduated in 1896. He was admitted to the
bar in the same year and has remained in Mr. Babcock's office where he has met
with well deserved success. Mr. Huston is of the good old Pilgrim stock, his forefathers landing in America from the boat which followed the Mayflower. His grandmother on his father's side was a cousin of Rufus Choate and his father is one of the
Ohio race of Hustons, who originally came from Ireland. His mother's mother
came from Ireland and father from England.
Buhaczkowski, Rev. Witold, vice-rector of the Polish Seminary at Detroit, Mich.,
was born December 15, 1864, at Lublin, Russian Poland, and in August, 1887, came
to America, locating in Detroit. Father Buhaczkowski for five years previous to his
coming to America pursued his ecclesiastical studies in Rome, Italy, in the Gregorian
University, receiving his orders as priest from Cardinal Parocchi, vicar of His Holiness the Pope, in 1887, and was immediately appointed to his present position as
vice-rector of the Polish Catholic Seminary, Detroit. This seminary was instituted
a little before the coming of Father Buhaczkowski, and was founded by Rev. Joseph
Dombrowski for the education of Polish young men desiring to study for the priesthood, and contains two departments-the classical or collegiate course, and the
ecclesiastical, and its body of students includes members from all parts of the country
where the Poles have made a residence. A large number of the students ordained
in this school as priests are working among their countrymen.
Wight, Sidney B., was born in Detroit, Mich., February 10, 1856, son of Henry A.
and Sarah Davenport Wight. Henry A., his father, came from Sturbridge, Mass.,
275




at an early age. Sidney B. received his preliminary education in private schools at
Detroit, and entered the University of Michigan, at Ann Arbor, from which institution he was graduated in the class of 1878. At the present time he oecupies the
position of assistant purchasing agent of the Michigan Central Railroad.


27 6




INDEX.


Abbott, Edward, Capt., appointed lieutenant-governor at Fort Sackville, 202
James, 264, 266, 279, 280, 334, 347,
441, 513, 523
Robert, 262, 264-266, 269, 279, 347,
490
Samuel, 279
William S., 469
Abel, Prof., 602
Abend-Post, the. 540
Acadians, forcible removal of the, by the
English, 151
Acts of the United States government
previous to the war of 1812, 304, 305
Adair, William, 596
Adam, John J., 511
Adams, Derrick, 582
Agnes, Sister, 576
Agriculture, opposition to the development of, by fur traders and English
tradesmen, 195
unskillful, of the French settlers, 145
Aikens, Captain, 332
Allgemeine-Zeitung, the, 539
Alger, R. A., 481, 484, 508
Algonquins, the, 39
Allouez, Father Claude, 10, 14, 32
Alvord, Henry J., 410
American District Telegraph, 558
Amherst, Jeffrey, Sir, 128, 129, 150, 153,
166, 189
Ancram, Major, commandant in 1784-86,
236
Anderson, John. 279, 293, 434, 491
Lieutenant, 321
T. S., 482
Andre, Joseph, 353
Andrews, George P., Dr., 493
Angell, George R., 507, 515
James B., Dr., 512; sketch of 513
Anjabram, Father, 19, 20
Antisdel, J. F., 580, 581
W. W., 580


Anti-slavery sentiment, development of
the, 406
Arbeiter-Zeitung, the, 540
Armstrong, James B., Capt., 403
John, 251
Art Museum of Detroit, 480-484
Arzeno, Alexander M., 408
Ashley, Walter, 427
Askin, John, 236, 262, 264, 265, 269, 270
John, jr., 269
John B., 142
Aspinwall, Joseph, 508
Astor, John Jacob. jealousy of the British
of, 296
Athletic and sporting associations in Detroit, list of, 616, 617
Athletics and sporting, 612-616
Atkinson, John, 538
Attwater, Reuben, 309, 396
Audrain, Peter, 262, 265, 332
Avery, Clara A., 482
Elisha, 279
Baby, F., 142
Francis, Col., 332
J. B., 142
Backus, Henry T., 410
Bacon, Daniel S.. 397
David, Rev., 522
Leonard, Rev. Dr., 530
Marshall J., 439, 440
Washington A., 514
Badger, Thomas, Rev., 522
Badin, Francois Vincent, Rev., 518. 519
Bagg, John S., 379, 537
Joseph H., 410
Silas A., 415, 537
Bagley, John J., 443
John N., 483
Bailey, John, 557
Baker, Daniel, 475
H. E., 479
S. A., Rev., 407


277




Baldwin, Ethan, 280
H. P., 383, 481, 493
Lyman, 414
Balfour, James, 482
Ball, Colonel, 345
Martin, 476
Balloon ascensions, fatal, 629
Bank, Detroit City, 442
Detroit Savings, 442
Farmers' and Mechanics', 436, 437,
440, 441
First National, 442
Michigan State, 442
of Detroit, the, 284, 285, 431-434,
of Michigan, 434-436, 440, 441; in
corporation of the, 356
of St. Clair, 442
of the Dwights, the, 434
Peninsular, 442
United States, 437
Banking, the effects of wild cat, 440
Banks, wildcat, 438-440
Baptist churches, 529, 530
Barber, George, 582
Barbour, George H., 507
Barclay, Robert H., Capt., 337, 338
Barker, K. C., 609
Barkley, William, 423
Barlum, Thomas, 467
Barnard, Henry D., 620
John, 582
Barnes, Giles, 280
Henry, 421, 536, 537
Jacob, 537
Barr, Horatio, 515
Barrett, D. T., 612
Lawrence, 597
Barron, Commodore, of the Chesapeake,
302, 303
Barrow, Captain, 332
Barstow, Henry A., 579
James S, 536
Baseball, 613, 614
Bassett, Henry, Major, 190; attempt of,
to inclose common lands, 199
commandant, opposes the sale of
rum to the Indians, 198
Bates, Frederick, 266, 267, 271; sketch
of, 275; 396
George C., 383
Morgan, 461
Bayard, Robert, Major, commandant in
1767, 197
Beall, John Yates, 427
Beard, David, 293
Beaubien, Antoine, 279
Jean Marie, 279
John B., 353


Beaubien, Lambert, 353
Beaugrand, Jean Baptiste, 279, 280, 293
Beauharnois, Chevalier, 139, 140, 141
Governor, 133; efforts of, to improve
communications, 135; 136, 137
Intendant, 68, 69
Beaver trade, and its difficulties and peculiarities, 64, 65
skins, depression in the price of, in
1801, 58
home of the, 63, 64
revival of demand for, 136
Beck, Louis H., 467
Beecher, Luther, 581, 600
Begole, Josiah A., 408
Begon, Intendant, 135
Behr, Fred, 424, 605
Beierle, Constantine, 605, 606
Belanger, Joseph, 33
Bell, Alexander T., 408
Belle Isle Park, 459-462
Beller, Jacob, 598, 599
Bellestre, Francis Marie Picote de, last
French commandant, 148, 156, 161
Benedict, Edwin D., 556
Hiram, 407
Benoit, John, 607
Berdan, 0. F., 594
Berrien, John M., Col., 390
Berry Bros., 482
Thomas, 467
Berthelet, Henry, 266, 293
Peter, 447
Bertrand, Jean Baptiste, 342, 343
Beyer, W. P., 585
Bichan, Robert, 538
Biddle, John, 361, 385, 391, 441, 581, 594
Bidwell, A. F., Capt., 422
Bienville, Pierre de Celeron de, 147, 160
ex-governor of Louisiana, 121, 122
Bierce, Lucius V., Gen., 402
Bingham, Kingsley S., 406, 408
Bird, Henry, Capt., 205, 208; massacre at
Fort Laurens by Indians under, 209
Birney, James G., 406
Bishop, Levi, 383, 516
Bissell, A. E., 508
George W., 508, 612
Black, Clarence A., 453
Frank 1)., 453
Joseph, 453, 481
Hawk war, the, 372
Blackburn, Thornton, fugitive slave, 416,
417
Blades, F. A., 612
Blainville, Pierre de Celeron de, commandant, 142
Blair, Governor, 420


278




Blakeslee, E. S., 582
Blanchett, Charles, 602, 604
Bland, Pierce M., 613
Blindbury, John, 579
Bliss, Frekerick, 516
W. S., Capt., 422
Blodgett, C. C., 482
Blood, Dr., wounded at Hull's surrender,
321
Bloody Run, 188
Bloquelle, Louis, 608
Board of Education, 514
of Trade of Detroit, 508
Boardwell, Warren, 598
Boise, Professor, 512
Boishebert, M. de, commandant from
1728 to 1734, 134, 160
Bond, Lewis, 280
Bonnecamp, Father, 147
Bonnet, H. F., 605, 606, 608
Boone, Daniel, prisoner of Simon Girty,
207
Booth, George G., 536, 538
Borgess, Caspar H., Bishop, 519
Borgman, Martin V., 444, 445, 585
Bourdeaux, Joseph, 280
Bourgmont, August de, Lieut., 159
Louis, Lieut., appointed Cadillac's
successor in 1704, 68
as commandant, 77
departure of, with his mistress, 81
Bourn, Allan, 453
Boutell, Alexander A., 508
Bowles, T. I., 601
Bradbeer, George J., 615
Braddock's defeat in Virginia, 151
Bradel, Richard, 608
Bradise, Alvah, 390, 391, 395
W. K, 484
Bradstreet, John, Col., arrival of, at Detroit, 193
personality of, 195
Brady, George N., 484
Hugh. Gen., 402
Joseph, 293
S. P., 609
Brand, Bishop, 128
Brant, Joseph, the Mohawk chief, 245,
316
Brearley, W. H., 480, 481, 507, 538
Breboeuf, Father Jean de, 10
Brennan, Michael, 555
Bressani, Father, 10
Brevoort, Henry B., Capt., 318, 337, 434
Henry J, 347, 348
Brezee, J. Lloyd, 538, 539
Bridge, Henry P., 508, 576
Briggs, Captain, 233


British agents, plotting of, with the Indians of the west, 240, 241
barbarities, Benjamin Franklin's appeal to France for assistance
against, 227
demand of Hull the surrender of Detroit, 320
evacuate Detroit, 344
excuse for holding surrendered territory after treaty, 238-240
expedition under Bird and Girty
against Louisville in 1780, 228
expedition to the Ohio valley, 211,
212
final surrender by the, of the disputed
posts, 250
governors of Canada, list of, 254, 255
influence with the Hurons, 34
measures to strengthen their hold on
the northwest, 202
policy with the Indians in the war of
the Revolution, 204
posts in the northwest in the Revolution, 209
sympathizers, removal of, from Detroit after the evacuation in 1796,
253, 254
the, evacuate Detroit in 1796, 251,
252
traders, bad practice of the, with the
Indians, 164, 165
Brock, General, dispatches troops against
Hull, 316; 319-323
Brock's opinion of Tecumseh, 319
Brockway, Z. R., 445
Brodhead, Daniel, expedition under, into
Ohio, 210, 211; 219
T. F., Col., 379, 421
Brooke, F. W., 555
Brooks, Edward, 333
Joseph, 600
Brown, Ammon, 410
Brothers, 451
Hiram, 582
H. B., 482
Henry Huutingdon, 390, 441, 442
John, 280
John, the abolitionist, 418
Joseph, Gen., 388
William, 434
William, Dr., 332
Brownlee, William R., 539
Brubaker, J. S., 581
Brueckner, Herman, 593
Brush, Edmund A., 383, 449, 469, 513,
581
Elijah, Col., 266, 280, 310-312, 319,
332, 347


279




Brush, Henry, Capt., arrival of, at the
River Raisin, 316; 319
escape of, 322
Electric Light Co., 453, 454
Bryan, Edward, 490
Buhl, C. H., 481, 483, 493
Fred, 424
Theodore D., 484
Building statistics, 573
Buildings, list of, erected, costing $50,000 or more, 572
Bull, John, Moravian missionary, 230, 236
Buncher, Charles, 484
Burger, Joseph, 607
Burke, John, 584
Burley, Bennett G., 426-428
Burnet, James, 347
Burnett, Jacob, description of Detroit by,
257, 258
John, 279
Burt, John, 557
Burtis, John, Capt., 367
Burton, C. M., 22. 53, 61, 90-95, 116, 590
Busch, Charles, 424
Bushnell, C. S., 542, 543
Bussey, Fred J., 476
Butler, Colonel, heroic death of, at St.
Clair's defeat, 247
John, 205; massacres at Wyoming
and Cherry Valley by, 208
Richard, 244
William A., 493
Butz, Caspar, 608
& Schimmel, 539
Byrne, Frank, 613
Cadillac, Antoine de La Mothe, 159
a conspiracy against, 67-69
affair of, with Lieutenant Sabrevois, 28
and Champigny, dispute between,
35-37
and the Jesuits, beginning of the
quarrel between, 33
and the Jesuits, bitter accusations
against each other by, 57
and the Jesuits, trouble between, on
the liquor question, 34, 35
appointed governor of Louisiana, 119
as a courtier, 30, 31
as one of the originators of the
scheme for a fort at Detroit, 17
biographical sketch of, 21-31
conpanions of, at the founding of
Detroit, 48
criticises the Company of the Colony, 66
death of, 124


Cadillac, description of Detroit and its
surroundings by, 49-52
dismissal of, as governor of Louisana,
122
division of lands by, 55
efforts of, to secure a supply of food.55
grant of estate called Donaquec
to, 29
marriage of, 29
memorial of, in relation to a fort on
the Straits, 38
mythical story of Gayerre concerning Bienville and, 122
names his fort Pontchartrain and the
settlement Detroit, 52
permission given to, to establish a
fort on the Straits, 38
personal characteristics of, 79, 80
purchase of the interests of the Company of the Colony by, 79
recalled from Mackinac, 38
receives the appointment of commandant at Michillimacinac, 32
reinstated after his trial, 76
succeeds in getting thirty Hurons
from Mackinac to Detroit, 65
the coming of, 1-5
treatment of conspiring Iroquois by,
34
unable to realize on his property
when sent to Louisiana, 119-120
Cadillac, Antoine, eldest son of the
founder, 48
Cadillac, Madame, arrival of, at Detroit,
54-55
Cadillac's arrangement with the Company of the Colony, 59, 60
arrival at Louisiana, 121
buildings at Detroit, description of,
90, 91
course in the Le Pesant affair, 81,
82
dealing with Indians in 1703, 61
dislike of Jesuits incurs Vaudreuil's
enmity, 83, 84
denunciation of his enemies in his
letters to Pontchartrain, 80
difficulties with Crozat, 122
enemies plot to have Detroit abandoned, 85-87
explanation of his trouble with Desnoyers, 69
family, 124
friends in the French court, 87
heirs granted his former estates in
Maine, 124
home, site of, 61
horse, Colin, 56


280




Cadillac's imaginary conversation used at
his trial, 70-76
life after his final return to France,
123
opinion of Indian character, 80
opposition to a Jesuit mission at Detroit, 56
perquisites as commandant, 94
profits from trade and otherwise, 94
project to have his soldiers marry Indian wives, 56
quarrel with Dubuisson, 120
report to Count Pontchartrain of his
first year's work, 58
return to France after being deposed
at Detroit, 121
scheme of marriage of French soldiers and Indian maidens a failure, 70
soldiers, desertions from, 66, 67
stormy governorship of Louisana,
121, 122
trial on charges made by Clerk Desnoyers, 68, 69
Caldwell, William, Indian leader, 205,
235, 245, 331, 346
Francis, Ensign, 346
Callieres, Chevalier Louis Hector de, 29,
38, 60
Campau, Alexander Macomb, 461, 482
Barnabas, 280, 434, 461
Charles, mill right granted to, 135
Daniel J., 609
Emile, 461
Jacques, petition for a grant of land
by, 192
John Barnabas, 461
Joseph, 262, 265, 279, 434
Louis 279
Campbell, Alexander, 477.
Donald, Capt., extract from letter of,
1760, 163, 164; 166, 167, 174
career and death of, during the
Indian siege of Detroit, 179 -183; 185, 186
made deputy commandant, 169
Findlay, 490
Gordon, Capt., 424, 565
Henry M., 442, 463
James V., 70, 383, 410, 512
Martin, Dr., 604
Campus Martius, the, 462
Canada restored to the French by the
treaty of 1632, 9
Canadian rebellion, the, 398-403
Canfield, F. H., 482
Caniff, Abram C., 617
Capitol building in Detroit, the, 370, 567


Carleton, Guy, Sir, 128, 206; opposed to
the employment of Indians in the Revolution, 204
Carpenter, W. N., 411, 612
Cartier, Jacques, 7
Carr & Reeve, 585
Casot, John Joseph, 129
Cass, Lewis, 70, 145, 267, 307, 310, 313 -315, 319. 322, 326, 333. 345, 349, 351 -354, 357, 358-360, 367, 368, 371, 376,
383-385, 395, 412, 423, 424, 462, 491, 511,
513, 523
Catlin, Henry B., 555
Cavalier, Joseph, 280
Celebration of the completion of the
Great Western Railroad, 415
Celeron, Pierre de, commandant, 148
Cemeteries, 455-459
Census of 1834, 82
Centemeri, P., 594
Central Market, Cass Avenue and Third
Street Railway Co., 545
Cession of lands south of Grand River in
1821, 359
Chacornacle, Lieutenant, 48
Chaffee, Amos, 415, 495
Chamber of Commerce of Detroit, 507
Chamberlain, Dr., 357, 358
Lewis H., 515
Marvin H., 620
Champ, Nathaniel, 579
William, 579
Champigny, Intendant de, 35-37
Champlain, Lieutenant, 340, 341
Champlain, Samuel, alliance of, with
the Algonquins and Hurons, 9
ambition of, to make New France
an agricultural country, 9
Chandler, Zachariah, 381, 407, 411-413,
536
Chanev, Henry, 516
Willard, Dr, 494
Chapin, Marshall, 469
Chapoton, Alexander, 424, 485, 487
Charlevoix, Father Pierre Francois de,
visit of, to Detroit, 124-126
description of an Indian council, 125
report on the Hurons and Ottawas, 126
Chase, George N., 453
Chaumonot, Father, 10
Chauncey, Commodore, 336, 337
Chesapeake and Leopard affair, the,
302, 303
Chesne, Pierre, 120
Chidsey, F. G., 452
Frank L., 613


281


ii




Children's Free Hospital, 496
Chipman, Harry A., 571
Henry, 369, 371, 373, 377, 378, 396
J. Logan, 424, 603
Chippewa Indians, visit of the, to Detroit in 1826, 368
Chittenden, James, 347
W. F., 579
W. J., 579
Cholera epidemics, 380-383
Chovin, Francois, 279
Christ Church Home, 496
Christiancy, Isaac P., 407, 413
Christie, John, Lieut., 490
Chubb, Harvey, 408
Church, support of the, at Detroit, under
Cadillac, 94
Churches, miscellaneous, 533-535
of Detroit, 517-535
Cicotte, Francis, Capt., 353
George and Edward, 353
Jean Baptiste, 279
Citizens' Yachting Club, 611
Claims, conflicting, of the English, Dutch,
French and Spanish, 17
Clark, Edward, Gen., 395
Eliphalet M., Dr., 500, 600
Ephraim, 425
George Rogers, Gen., 211, 212, 228,
244
capture and recapture of Vincennes by, 214, 216, 217
destructive raid by, in the Shawnee towns, 235
his virtues, faults and disappointments, 218, 219
successful expedition under command of, 213-217
John P., 426
L. E., 442
Park, 462
Clarke, H. K., 507
Clay, Green, Gen., 334
Cleland, Charles, 379
Clemens, Christian, 279
Jacob, 262
Cobb, L. H., 478
Cockran, W. D.. 407
Codd, George P., 615
Colburn, William C., 570
Cole, C. H., Maj., 426, 427
Henry S., 383, 394, 469, 617
James L., 394
Collins, C. H., 584
Charles P., 559
James, 584
Colonies, dates of founding the first, in
America, 6


Company of the Colony of Canada, 58,
59; clerks of, charged by Cadillac with
robbery and mismanagement, 67
profits of the, 66
Comparet, Jean Baptiste, 490
Conant, Harry, 491
Horatio, 389
Shubael, 347, 353, 356, 383, 423, 441,
449, 463, 479, 579, 617
Concordia Society, the, 592
Conely, Edwin F., 444
Confederate plot to release prisoners,
426-428
Congregational churches, 530-532
Congress and Baker Street Railway Co.,
545
Congress, delegates to, 1819-1836, 361
Conner, John, 490
Connor, James, 279, 293
Conrad, Ludwig, 605
Conspirators, railroad, list of the, 414,
415
Constitution of 1850, 409-411
Constitutional conventions, attempts to
hold, 411
Cook, J. M., 603
Levi, 415
Orville, 617
Cooley, J. P., 463
Thomas M., 512
Cooper, D. M., 469, 482, 527
Tom, 612
Copeland, A W., 467
T. J., Col., 422
Copper in Northern Michigan, unproductive efforts to mine, 197, 198
Corbett, M. S., 557
Corcoran, J. P., Dr., 575
Corey, N. J., 592
Corliss, John B., 452, 538
Cornehl, Fred, 540
Cornell, Ezra, 556
Costello, M. D., 604
Cottava, George, 293
Cotter, Philip W., 582, 584
Cotterell, George, 279, 281
George, jr., 279
Cottrell, E. W., 529
Councilors, increase of territorial, 366
Country Club, the, 616
County building, the, 569
farm, the, 466
Insane Asylum, 465
jail and sheriff's residence, 571
poor and provisions for their maintenance, 463-467
Coureurs de bois, the, 44, 45; at Detroit
during the Revolution, 224


282'




Couse, Adam, 594
Couteur, Jean Baptiste, 280
Coutume de Paris, the law of New France,
119
Craig, Thomas C., 514
W. H., 598
Crane, William S., 508
Cranshaw, James, jr., 613
Crary, Isaac E., 391, 511
Crawford, William, Col., expedition under command of, in 1782, against the
Indians, 233-235
torture and death of, 234, 235
Crittenden, Benjamin, 280
Croghan, George, Maj., 164, 336, 349,350
Crooks, Robert, Gen., 327
Crosley, Edward, 425
Crozat, Antoine, 121-122
Cueney, Peter, 599
Cuillerier, Antoine, 181-183
Mlle. Angelique, and Sir William
Johnson, 167; 174
Gladwin's informant of the Pontiac conspiracy, 190-192
Cummings, Julius G., 476
Cunningham, Michael, 582
Curry, Charles, 264, 266, 280
Curtish, Captain, 332
Cutcheon, Sullivan M, 507
Cutter, Manasseh, Rev., one of the authors of code of laws for the northwest
territory, 250; 416
Cuyahoga, capture of, by the British, 310
Cuyler, Lieutenant, capture of the expedition of, by the Indians at the siege
of Detroit, 183, 184
Dablon, Father Claude, 10
D'Aigremont condemns Cadillac in 1703,
85
second report of, 88, 89
Dailey, Charles M., 545
James W., 545
J., 545
Daliba, James, Lieut., 318
Dalzell Captain, 44; futile attempt of, to
raise the siege of Detroit, 187, 188
Murray, 582
Dane, Nathan, one of the authors of code
of laws for the northwest territory, 250
Daniels, J. J., Capt., 422
D'Anon, Jacques, Sieur de Muy, 148, 161
D'Archambal, A. L., Mrs., 498
Darrow, Archibald, 356
Dartmouth, Earl, colonial secretary, appointments made by, 202
Daureuil, M., 87
Daurman, Captain, 316


Davers, Sir Robert, and party, murder
of, by the Indians, 180; 460
Davey, Thomas W., 600
Davis, C. Wood, 424
George S., 482, 483
James E., 629
Lemuel H., 451
Phineas, jr., 448
W. C., Col., 421
Dean, Thomas, 451
De Bruyn, Johannes, Rev., 519
De Caens, the, monopolistic grant to, 9;
59
Dee, M J., 536
Deerfield, Mass., the attack upon, 149
Dees, A. W., Capt., 422
Deginder, Peter, 605
Dejean, Philip, the so-called chief justice
of Detroit, 197
an accomplice of LieutenantGovernor Hamilton in rascality, 202
character of, 203; 217
De la Balme, Augustin Mottin, Col., expedition of, against Detroit defeated,
225
De Lery, Baron, 7
Del Halle, Nichola Constantine, Father,
48; murder of, 77, 78
Dely, Joseph R., 476
De Mill, Peter E., 449
Deming, John J., 434, 469
Denissen, C., Rev. Father, 70, 116
Dennis, J. H., Capt., 422
Denny, Major, 315; left on the Canada
side, 317
Denonville, Governor, 19, 20, 29, 30, 44
Denton, Samuel, 511
De Peyster, Arent Schuyler, Col., 129,
230; charges against, 242
personal sketch of, 243, 244
rewards the Indians at the end
of the Revolution, 237
seizure of Father Potier's papers
by, 237
succeeded by Lieut. Jehu Hay,
242
succeeds Hamilton at Detroit,
218
D'Epinay, successor of Cadillac as governor of Louisiana, 123
Dequindre, Antoine, Col., 264, 279, 317,
318, 332, 348, 349, 449
Louis, 353
Der Arme Teufel, the, 540
Der Kicker, 541
Desnoyers, Peter, 266, 283, 347, 410
Peter J., 264, 332, 434, 617


283




De Soto, Ferdinand, 7
Detroit, advantageous situation of, on
the lakes, 56:3
after the evacuation by the British,
347-349
agricultural work in the first few
years at, 55
and Cadillac, extracts from reports
made to Pontchartrain derogatory
to, 85-87
and its natural advantages as described by Cadillac, 49-52
annexed to the province of Quebec,
195
as a commercial city, 622-628
Board of Councilmen, 620
Board of Education, 514
Board of Public Works, 587
boundaries of, under first charter,
262
British take possession of, in 1760,
162
calling to arms at, in 1812, 309, 310
carrying trade of, on the lakes, 564
ceding of the post of, to the Company of the Colony, 58, 59
cemeteries of, 455-459
census of in 1780, 226
churches of, 517-535
city government, 617, 618
city hall, the, 568, 569
condition of, at removal of Alphonse
Tonty, 133
condition of the fort at, when occupied by Hull in 1812, 312
condition of the post of, after the surrender by the French, 164
cyclone in, 478
decrease of the population after the
first year, 57
demand for troops at, by Beauharnois and Hocquart, 136, 137
descent of Indians, uinder Mackinac
(Turtle) on, 145
description of, by Jacob Burnett 257,
258
development of, after the peace of
1815, 355
disastrous fires in, 471-478
disposal of garbage in, 488
distress in, after the fire of 1805, 278
dress of the residents of, during the
Revolution, 221, 222
during the Revolution, its people,
houses, streets, etc., 220-224
early lighting facilities of, 450
early marine interests of, 560, 561
early ordinances of, 265


Detroit, election and ordinances of, in
1803, 265; in 1804, 266, 267
evacuated by the British in 1796,
251, 252
existing choral societies in, 592
existing hotels in, list of, 585-587
failure of the siege of, 189
feeble attempts to strengthen the
post of, 148
Fire Commission, 478
Fire Department, 468-479
fire of June 11, 1805, in, 276, 277
fire ordinances, violations of the,
264
first charter election in, 265
first charter of, 262
first crop of wheat at, 55
first dock ordinance of, 267
first fire department of, 263, 264
first money in circulation at, 196
first public building of, 566
first public market in, 264
first steam fire engine in, 470
fort at, strengthened in 1784, 201
fortifications and water front of, during the Revolution, 223
gaslighting in, 451-453
grist mnill and saw mill erected at, in
1784, 244
High School, 515
homelife of the residents of, during
the Revolution, 220, 221
hotels, 577-587
in its first year, 53, 54
in 1800, 260, 261
Indians in, during the Revolution,
222, 223
intrigues at, between the Hurons
and English in 1703, 60
Isaac Weld's description of in 1796,
255-257
judicial affairs in, during the British
occupation, 347
lack of skilled artisans at, 199
list of French commandants of, 159 -161
list of the mayors of, 618-620
list of the original colonists of, who
paid taxes, with the amounts, 92-94
little help from the home government
in the settlement of, 48
local government of, measures for,
195
loyalty of, in the Rebellion, 620
Masonry in, 489-492
medical colleges and hospitals of,
493-498
music in, 591-594


284




Detroit, new plan of. under Hull, after
the fire of 1805, 278
newspapers of, 536-542
night patrol of, in 1804, 267
official report of various officers to
Count Pontchartrain, showing'enmity towards Cadillac and disapproval of his course, 85-89
parks and boulevards of, 459-463
plan of an expedition against, in
1778, 208, 209
plans of the Jesuits to hamper the
progress of, 57
police department, 442-446
population the first year, 53
population of, at time of surrender
in 1760, 163
population of, when evacuated in
1796, 254
preparations for the recovery of, 327
public buildings of, 566-573
public schools, 513-517
scalp warehouse at, during the Revolution, 224
second fire company of, 469
selfish policy of British commandants
and officers at, 195
sewers and pavements of, 485-489
slavery in, 416
small-pox at, in early years, 67
street railway controversy, the, 547 -553
street railways of, 542-555
present status of, 553-555
street scenes in, in Cadillac's time,
61, 62
during the Revolution, 222
surrender of, by Hull, 321-323
by Bellestre to Major Rogers,
156-158
system of petty despotism at, under
the British, 197
the founding of, by Cadillac, 1-5
the streets of early, 56
theaters of, 594-608
under British rule, during the decade
after the Pontiac siege, 194, 195
under Gladwin, siege of, by the Indiaus, 178-190
visit of Sir William Johnson to, 166 -168
waterworks, 446-450
Detroit and Grand Junction Railway Co.,
545
and Lima Northern Railroad, 504
and St. Clair Rivers, importance of,
to early traffic, 17
Art Museum, 480-484


Detroit Athletic Club, 611, 614, 615
Baseball Club, 614
Bicycle Club, 612. 613
Board of Trade, 508
Boat Club, 610
Chamber of Commerce, 507, 508
Citizens' Railway Co., 547
City Railway Co., 482, 543
College of Medicine, 493
Crematorium, 459
Cyclorama, 484
Daily Union, the, 538
Deaconess Home, 496
Driving Club, 609
Dry Dock Co., 565
Electric Light and Power Co., 454
Evening Journal, 538
Female Seminary, 513
Fort Wayne and Belle Isle Railway
Co., 555
Free Press, the, 379, 536-538
Garden, the, 596
Grand Haven and Milwaukee Railroad, 500, 501
Grand Rapids and Western Railroad,
504
House of Correction, 445, 446
International Fair and Exposition
Association, 628, 629
Jockey Club, 609
Museum, the, 596
Musical Society, the, 592
National Horse Association, 609
Natural Gas Co., 452
Philharmonic Club, 593
Public Library, 479, 480
Sanitarium, 498
Seaman's Home, 498
Symphony Orchestra, 593
Telephone Co., 559
Thespian Society, the, 596, 598
Times, the (morning), 539
Times, the (evening), 539
Tribune, the, 536-538; predecessors
of, the, 379
Yachting Club, 611
Devereaux, Mary, 434
Deville, John, 605
Dey, Alexander, 451
Dibble, Charles, 581
Orville B., 579, 581
Dickinson, Asa C., 401
Don M., 484, 507
Moses F., 545
Diepenbeck, Rudolf, 539
Die Stimme der Wahrheit, 541
Directory, a, of the adult white residents
of Detroit from 1701 to 1710, compiled


285




by C. M. Burton, 95-116
Dix, John, 279
Dodemead, James, 280, 283
Jane, 578
John, 262, 264, 265, 279, 293, 490
Dollier, Father, 10
Domedian & Kramer, 539
Donaghue, Michael, Lieut., 476
Donaldson, James, 490
Dopp, Raymond, 540
Dorr, Josiah R., 469
Melville, 617
Melvin, 469
Doty, James Duane, 358; sketch of, 364;
373, 396, 515
Douglass, Columbus C., 397
D. B., Capt., 358
Joseph, 490
S. T., 383
Drew, John, 538
Draeger, Frederick A., 540
Draft riots, 424
Drake, Thomas A., 444
Driggs, Frederick E., 451, 544
Drouillard, Dominique, 280
Dubuisson, Joseph Guyon, Lieut., 119,
120, 159
confronted by an Indian war in
1712 130, 131
Ducharme, F. A., 715
Duchesnau, Intendant, 18
Dudley, Colonel, 334
Duester, Captain, 421
Duffield, D. Bethune, 383, 424, 479, 544
George, Rev.. 526
H. M., 482
S. P., Dr., 493
W. W., Col., 421
Dugue, Lieutenant, 48
Du Jaunay, Peter, 129
Duncan, David, 279
William, 478
William C., Maj., 423, 609
Dunham, Josiah, 279
I)unsmore, John Ward, 482
Du Pont, A. B., 555
Durantaye, Commandant, 17-21
Dwight, D. F., 482
Dwyer, J., 482
P. H., 467
Dygert, Kin S., Capt., 422
Dyson, Samuel T., 293
Early discoverers of North America, 6-8
Eastman, John L., Lieut., 317
T., 293
Eaton, Ebenezer C., 410
Theodore H., 451


Eberts, Herman, Dr., 264, 490, 590
Eddy, Frank W., 615
Edmonds, J. M., 407
Edson, James L., 453, 481, 570
Edwards, Abraham, 356, 366, 434
*William, Moravian missionary, 230,
236
Eisenlord, William, 583
Elder, Adam, 424
Eldred, Elisha, 596
Election of first delegate to Congress,
360
first State, 1837, 398
of 1835, 391
of 1840, 375
of 1856, 408
Electric lighting in Detroit, 453-455
Elliott, Colonel (British), 319, 321
at Frenchtown, 328; 332
Jesse D., Capt., 337, 339, 340
Matthew, Indian leader, 142, 205,
207, 224
makes prisoners of the Moravian
villagers and sends them to
Detroit, 230; 233, 235, 237, 245
Richard R., 71; theory of, as to Gladwin's informant of the Pontiac conspiracy, 172-174; 383, 596
Ellsler, John A., 597
Elwood, Isaac R., 557
S. Dow, 383.
Emerson, Justin E., Dr., 459
Emery, A. H., 583
Emmons, H. H., 383, 424
Endicott, Charles, 481
English and French, beginning of the
conflicting claims of, 7
attempts to establish a fort on the
Monongahela, 151
England, Richard, Col., 251, 252
Erichsen, Claus D., 584
Erichson, Hugo, Dr., 459
Erie, H., 279
Erie Canal, impetus given to lake transportation by the, 562
Ernest, Matthew, 279
Esselen, Christian, 608
Esselstyn, Henry, 565
Etherington, Captain, slaughter of the
command of, at Mackinac, in the Pontiac conspiracy, 177, 178
Eureka Iron and Steel Works, 564
Evening News, the, 538
Everett, Henry A., 549, 555
Ewers, Alva, 449
Ewings, Alexander, 280
Exploring party to the northwest in 1832,
376


286




Exploration of the northern peninsula
under Lewis Cass, 358, 359
Explorations of La Salle, 12-16
Fafard, Jean and Francois, 48
Fairbrother, E. W., 583
Familien-Blaetter, the, 540
Farmer, John, 44
Silas, 507
Farms of the early settlers, 144
Farnsworth, Benjamin S., 581
Elon, 383, 393, 511
Fred E., 481, 484
James H., Dr., 609
Farrand, Bethuel, 447
D. O., Dr., 493, 495
Jacob S., 443, 451
Training School for Nurses, 495
Farwell, J., 293
Jesse H.. 538
Faulkner, William, rot over, 424
Federal building, the, 569-571
Ferguson, Eralsey, 580
T., 482
Fenton, W. M., Col., 421
Ferry, D. M., 481, 483, 629
Ferry, the first, 367
Filban, Richard, Capt., 475
Field, Moses W., 459, 482
Financial panic of 1837, 438-440
Findlay, James, 307, 319
Finney, Jared W., 516
Seymour, 583
Fire Commission of Detroit, 478
Department of Detroit, 468-479
Firearms of the explorers and their effect
upon the savages, 45-47
Firemen, peculiarities of, 470
Fires, disastrous, in Detroit, 471-478
early methods of fighting, 468
Fisher, G. E., 454
James, and family, murder of, by
the Indians, 180, 460
Otis, 434
Fisheries, beginning of the, 369
Fiske, John, comments of, on the cession
of French territory in America to Great
Britain, 158, 159
Fitch, William H., 451
Fitzgerald, Thomas, 511
W. H., 454
Flanagan, Mark, 423, 424
William, 284, 432
Flattery, Neil, 424
Fleitz, John P., 482
Fleming, Sampson, 490
Fletcher, M. E., 580


Fletcher, William A., sketch of, 393-395;
511, 567
Flint and Pere Marquette Railroad,
504
Flood, C. B., 379
Floquet, Peter Rene, 129
Florence Crittenden Rescue Home for
Women, 498
Flowers, Charles, 478, 559
"Flying Roll, the, or the Latter Day
House of Israel," 534, 535
Foley, John S., Bishop, 519
Foote, Frank, 459
Forgue, Francis de, 280
Forsyth, Robert A., 358, 469
William, first tavernkeeper, 577
Fort Dearborn, capture of, and slaughter
at, 325, 326
Defiance, Gen. Winchester at, 327,
328
Du Quesne, abandonment of, compelled by General Forbes, 151
Finney built by the Americans in
1785, 245
Laurens, under General Gibson,
massacre at, 208, 209
Meigs campaign, the, 333-336
Niagara captured by Sir William
Johnson, 153
Poutchartrain, 52, 53; enlargement
of, 57
enlargement and improvement
of, 147
enlargement and improvement
of, by the French, 166
fire in, in 1703, ascribed by Cadillac to the Jesuits, 60, 61
rebuilt by Henry Tonty, 132
St. Joseph, abandonment and destruction of, 21
building of, 20
William Henry captured by Montcalm, 151
Foster, Harry A., 601
Fountain, J. H., Q.-M. Gen., 421
Fouquet, Nicholas, France's minister of
finance, 152
Fowler, Alexander D., 538
John N., 565
Stephen, 415
Fox, Kittie, 600
Fralick, Henry, 410
Frances, Sister Superior, 576
Franchier, Everest, 596
Fraser, Alex. D., 415
Frazer, Alexander D., 394
Freer, Charles L., 483


287




French and English campaign of 1759,
153-156
struggle for acquisition of territory, 147
wars, distressing condition of the
settlements during the, 149
claim, earliest, to Detroit River, 21
claims to territory, attempts of the
governors of New York and Virginia to abate, 150
commandants of Detroit, list of, 159 -161
dominion, end of, in 1760, 156
explorations and posts, 1640 to 1675,
10, 11
explorations, early, records of, but
fragmentary, 11, 12
failure of the, as colonizers, 161
governors at Detroit, character of
the, 149
influence of the, with the Indians at
the siege of Detroit, 185, 189
measures of capacity in the time of
Cadillac, 37
money in the time of Cadillac, 37
residents of Detroit, sympathies of
the, with the Americans in the
Revolution, 206
revenge of the, for the loss of Canada, 158
French, David, 463, 617
Freidman, C., 583
Frontenac, Governor, 18, 29, 30, 32, 37;
New York ravaged by, in 1696, 34
death of, 38
Frost, George S., 493
Fulton, James, 356
Fur companies and their influence in the
west, 296, 297
trade, the, under British rule, 194
Furs, prices of, in 1701, 58
Gage, Thomas, Gen., 164, 165
Gallinee, Father, 10
Gallissoniere, Marquis do, 147
Gallissoniere's  expedition  to  renew
French claims in Pennsylvania and
Ohio, 147, 148
Garrison, H. D., 579
John J., 578
Garwood, Charles H., 604
Gascoigne, Mark H., 598
Gas Light Co. of Detroit, 451-453
Gay & Van Norman, 581
Gearing, J. V., 615
General Assembly, election of first delegates to the, 258
Genther, Edward, 475


Gentle, John, 142, 283
Geological survey of the State, the first,
397
George, Cornelius, 477
German Lutheran churches, 532
Protestant Home for Orphans, 498
Gibson, John, 396, 410
Gies, George H., 601
Paul, 588
Gillenck, E., 566
Gillett, Rufus W., 508, 570, 609
Gilpin, Henry D., 386
Girardin, Charles Francis, 262, 265
Jacques, 263
Girty, George, 205, 224
James, 205, 224
Simon, 205, 207, 224, 235, 244, 245;
at Detroit after the surrender by
Hull, 323
at the end of the Revolution, 237
flight of, from Detroit upon the
surrender, 252
forces the Moravians a second
time to Detroit. 235, 236
hatred of, for the Moravians, 230
inhuman conduct of, at the torture of Colonel Crawford, 234
235
siege of Fort Laurens by Indians
under, 208, 209
sketch of, 324, 325
Gladwin, Henry, Major, made commandant, 166, 167
during the Indian siege of Detroit. 178, 179, 181-183, 185 -187, 189
informed of Pontiac conspiracy,
171-174
outwitting of Pontiac by, 174-176
personal characteristics of, 169;
170
retirement of, 193
Glapion, Augustine de, 129
Glegg, Major, 320
Godfrey, Joseph, 424
Godfroy, Gabriel, Col., 279, 280, 332
Goebel, August, 588
Goettman, George, 540
Goffinet, James, 585
Goldsmith, O., 482
Goodale, D. C., 582
Goodman, Alfred, 580
Fred O., 580
Goodrich, Enos, 508
Ichabod, 415
Goodwin, Daniel, 410, 415
Gordan Antoine, 129
Gordon, J. Wright, 375


288




Gouise, Robert, 264
Government, advance in, 363
attempt in 1809 to secure change in
the form of, 289, 290
seat of, changed from Quebec to
New York, 166
Governor and judges, activity of the
grand jury against, 290-293
difficulties between the, 288, 289
disregard of justice by the,
286
Governors of Michigan Territory succeeding the British surrender, list of,
395, 396
Governorship of John S. Horner, 390, 391
Govin, James Knox, 424
Grace Hospital, 485
Grand Boulevard, the, 463
jury, activity of the. against the governor and judges, 288, 290-293
River Street Railway Co., 545
Trunk Railroad, 503
Grant, U. S., Lieut., 412
W. W., 613
Graves, Major, 330, 332
H. W., 581
Gray, Captain, killed at the siege of Detroit. 188
William, 415, 582
Gregg, A. E., 604
Greeley, Horace, 407
Greusel, N., jr., 588
Griffin, Daniel, 584
John, 271; sketch of, 275, 276; 347,
354, 363, 396, 511
John C., 583, 584
Michael, 583
Thomas F., 482
Griffith, Armond H., 483, 484
William, 280
"Griffon," the, 11
Grisolon, Daniel (known as Duluth),
characteristics and labors of, 18-21
Griswold, Stanley, 271, 279, 281, 283, 396
John A., 543
Grummond, S. B., 482, 585
Guvon. Denis, 29
Guenther, P., 588
Guffley, Leo, 582
Guion, M., 181
Madame, 171
Gunsalus, John, 233
Haas, Charles D., 540
Hahn, J. H., 594
Hair, Andrew, 454
Hale, William, 579


Hall, Edmund, 479
George Benson, 142
T. P., 442
Hallock, Horace, 415
Hamilton, Henry, Capt., appointed lieutenant-governor of Detroit, 202; 214 -218, 225
absurd performances of, with the
Indians, 204
and Dejean, indictment of, 203
and Dejean, an instance of the
inhumanity of, 206
and his lieutenants, trial and
conviction of, 217
charges of barbarism preferred
against, 217
chief lieutenants of, in his barbarous plans, 207
employment of the Indians
against the Americans by,
sanctioned by Lord Germain,
204
instances of his abuse of authority, 202, 203
statement of revenues collected
at Detroit by, 241
surrenner of Vincennes by, to
General Clark, 217
M. W., 508
Hamlin, Mrs., humorous sketch of a
militia drill by, 282
Hammond, Charles F., 616
George H., 481
George H., jr., 454
W. J., Dr., 494
Hamtramck, John Francis, Col., 249, 253,
263; sketch of, 267, 268
Hancks, Porter, Lieut., 316, 321
Hand, George E., 612
Hands, William, 142
Hanmer, J., 578
Hannaford, Samuel, 570
Hannifan, John J., 584
Haring, S. H., 579
Harmar, Josiah, Gen., defeat of, by the
Indians, 246
force massed by, at Pittsburg in
1784, 244
Harmon, John, 537
J. H., 379
Harmonie Society, the, 592
Harper Hospital, 494, 495
John L., 481
Wesley, 494
Harrington, Ebenezer, 395
Harris, T. H., 442
Harrison, George, 489, 490
M89


kk




Harrison, William Henry, Gen., and the
battle of Tippecanoe, 298-300
authorized to raise troops for the
Army of the Northwest, 327;
332
campaign of, in northern Ohio,
333-337
invasion of Canada by, 344-347;
352, 395, 405, 406
Hart. Gilbert, Capt., 330, 331, 495
Harvey, Emerson C., & Son, 583
John, 283
Hascall, Charles, 410
Hastings, Eurotas P., 383, 434-436, 469,
513
Hathon, A. H., 448
Haven, Erastus O., Rev., 512
Hawks, J. D., 452
Hawley, Richard, 538
Thomas D., 538
Hay, Jehu, Lieut., 214, 217; succeeds
De Peyster as commandant, 242
Hayes, F. W., 452
James R., 580
Hazeur, Francis, 33
Headley, David S., 582
Heald, Nathan, Capt., 325
Health Department building, 571
Heames, Henry, 467
Heberlein, Hermann, 593
Hecker, Frank J., 452
Heckewelder, John, Moravian missionary, 230, 236
Helm, Leonard, Capt., successful ruse of,
214, 215
Lieut. L. T., 325
Henderson, David, 347
Hendrie, George, 482, 544
George M., 610, 616
Hennepin, Father, 13, 15, 18
Henry, Alexander, trader, 165, 178; interested in the copper deposits of northern Michigan, 197, 198
James, 262, 264, 265, 279, 289, 293
John, 584
John, the traitor, 304
Hergert, Charles, 477
Herzog, P., 588
Hessler, A. W., 424
Hewitt, L. W., 415
Hickok's, Nathaniel, grave, 457, 458
Highland Park Club, 610
Race Course, 610'
Higgins, Sylvester, 397
Hill, G. B., 482
Hinchman, Felix, 469
James W., 469
Theodore H., 478, 612


Hines, James W., 536
Hochgraef, Max, 588
Hocquart, Intendant, 136
Hofmann, Alfred, 593
Hoffman, George, 280, 288, 289
Michael, 511
Holbrook, De Witt C., 424
Holden, E. G., Mrs., 481
Hollister Y's, 498
Holmes, Ensign, murder of, and surrender of the fort on Maumee River, in
the Pontiac conspiracy, 177
Major, 350
S. M., 497
William L., 559
Iome of the Friendless, 498
of Industry, 498
Honfleur, Denis de. 7
Hopkins, George W., 483
Hopper, William C., 555
Horner, John S., governorship of, 390,
391; 396
Horse-racing and race-tracks, 609, 610
Hotels, past and present, 577-587:
American Hotel, 578
Andrews's Railroad Hotel, 578, 580
Biddle House, 581
Brighton House, 583
Bull's Head Hotel, 581
Collins House, 584
Commercial Hotel, 581
Cotter House, 582
Dodemead House, 578
Eagle Hotel, 578
Eisenlord House, 583
Finney House, 583
Franklin House, 583
Grand River House, 580
Hotel Adams, 581
Hotel Cadillac, 585
Hotel Erichsen, 584
Hotel Goffinet, 585
Hotel Henry, 584
Hotel Renaud, 584
Hotel Ste. Clair, 585
Howard House, 582
Kenrick House, 582
Lamed House, 583
National Hotel, 579
New York and Ohio House, 578
Normandie Hotel, 585
Mansion House, 578
Mansion House (second), 578
Michigan Exchange, 579
Miller House, 584
Merchant's Exchange, 582
Perkins Hotel, 580
Russell House, 579


290




Hotels, Sagina Hotel, 578
Steamboat Hotel, 578
Tifft House, 585
Union Hotel, 584
United States Hotel, 578
Wayne Hotel, 580
Western Hotel, 581
Hotels, existing, list of, in Detroit, 585 -587
Hough, Garry A., 595, 597, 600, 601
William H., 600, 601
Houghton, Douglas, I)r., 376, 377, 383,
398, 441
House of Correction, Detroit, 445, 446
of the Good Shepherd, 498
of Providence, 498
Houses of the early settlers, 144
Howard, Charles, 442
John M., 383, 391, 408, 415
William A., 415, 423
Howell & Schoaff, 581
Hubbard, Bela, 63, 145, 397, 481, 483, 568
Collins, B., 491, 484
Hudson Bay Company, absorption of the
Northwest Company by the, 198
Huguet, Joseph, 129
Hull, Abraham Fuller, 280, 318, 319, 321
L. C., 516
Hull, William, Gov., sketch of, 271-273;
306, 307, 395, 431-434, 490
arrival of, with his troops at
Frenchtown, 310
crosses the river to Canada, 312
313
indignation against, on account
of the surrender, 321
infantry and legionary corps organized by, in 1805, 279, 280
march of to Detroit, 309
mercenary scheme of, in connection with the militia, 281
not informed of the declaration
of war. 310
part of in the Bank of Detroit
swindle, 285
presentment of the grand jury
against,. 288
receives orders to invade Canada,
311
surrendered Detroit, 321-323
takes command of Ohio troops
on the Miami, 307
troubles of, with his militia, 280,
281
usurpation of authority by, 283,
284
Hull's, Governor, disgrace, 326


Hull's, Governor, halting action on the
Canada side, 313, 314
loyalty, doubts of, among his
troops, 315
officers, futile efforts of, to get
his consent to oppose the British, 320
Ohio troops, eagerness of, to attack the British, 311
operations in Canada, 312-315
retreat from Canada, 317
surrender of Detroit, other losses
occasioned by, 325, 326
timidity, first sign of, 311
Hume, John J., 402
Hungerford, J. H., 613
Hunt, Charles C. P., 469
Henry J., 264, 280, 332, 353, 356, 361,
434, 447, 457, 523
John, supreme justice, sketch of, 363,
364; 369, 396
Thomas Col., 267
Hunter, William S., 327
Huntingdon, Joseph, 280
Hurd, Alanson M., 469
Hurlbut, Chancey, 424, 449, 450, 485
W. B., 613
Huron mission at Detroit, founding of
the, 56
Huron-Ottawa feud, ending of the, 142
Harons, the, 40
and Ottawas, serious quarrel between
the, in 1738, 137-142
at Bois Blanc Island in 1742, 127
petition of property owners in Amherstburg to remove the, 142
the, adhere to the French in the war
with England, 142
the, lands ceded by, to the British
government, 142
the, sided wvith the British in the war
of 1812, 142
the, since 1836, 142, 143
Huston, Solomon, 425
Hutchins, J. C., 555
Impressment of seamen by Great Britain
301-303
Indian alliances with the whites, 42
atrocities at Frenchtown, 328
characteristics of the, and his family,
when at Detroit for trade, 194, 195
conspiracy of 1747, 145, 146
foray under Joseph Brant in New
York State in 1780, 228
homicide, an, 369
murders between 1783 and 1790, 246


291




Indian murders and tortures in the latter
years of the Revolution, 228
raids and murders continued after
the Revolution under British instigation, 244, 245
slaves, 163
tribes at or near Detroit before 1747,
146
Indians, a case of man-eating by the, 44
alliance of different tribes of, 298
appeal for pardon for two, convicted
of murder, 359, 360
boldness of, in 1811, 298
British instigation of the, against the
Americans before the Revolution,
201
British leaders of the, 205
cannibalism among the, 43, 44
characteristics of the, 41-43
defrauding of the, in trade by the
whites, 42
difference in French and English
treatment of the, after the surrender to the latter, 162, 163
lawlessness of the, after the British
evacuation, 348
methods of the, under Hamilton's
instructions, 205
of the Northwest, the, 39
outlaw leaders of the, 205
possibilities of a joint resistance by
by the, 43
punishment of, in 1814, 353
restlessness of the, under Tecumseh's
appeals in 1806, 294
rum and brandy an effective power
with the, 43
Sir William Johnson's councils with,
166, 167
treaties made and broken by the, in
1784-86, 244, 245
treaty with the, at Greenville, in
1795, 250
troubles with, during the war of 1812,
351-354
Industrial School for poor children, 498
Infantry, the first Michigan, 420
reorganization of the First Michigan,
420
Second Michigan, 420
Ingersoll, Isaac W., Mrs., 426
Walter, 441
Innes, Robert, 269
Iroquois, or Five Nations, the 40
claims to the Straits of Detroit, conveyance of, to the British, 5
condition of the, after the close of
the Revolution, 240


Iroquois, conference with the. in relation
to a fort on the Straits, 38
opposition to French occupation of
the Straits, 20
Irvin, David, 369; sketch of, 373; 396
Irwin, Robert, 264
Ives, Lewis T., 481, 484
Jackson, Cyrus W., 424
Lieutenant, 350
President, and the United States
Bank, 437
S. S., Prof., 592
William A., 452
Jacques, Father, 10
James, Henry, & Son, 583
Jene Rose, Sister, 576
enks, Edward, Dr., 493
Jeraume, Jean Baptiste, 280
Jerome, George, 452
Jesuits  and  Governor Beauharnois,
struggle between, over the Hurons,
139-142
coming of the, 10, 11
escheating of the, of their lands, 129
heroic labors of the, 16
plans of the, to hamper the progress
of Detroit, 57
production of theatrical plays resented by the, 32
regime of the, 128
settlement of the claims for lands of,
130
suppression of, by papal edict, 128
the, at Mackinac thwarted by Cadillac, 65, 66
Jesup, Major, 320
ewett, Harry, 615
Jewish churches, 532
Jobin, Joseph, 280
Johnson, Colonel, 428
H. R., 580
John, Sir, advice of, to the Indians
to consolidate against the Americans, 245
Richard M., Col., 327, 344, 405
S. M., 379
Tom L., 548, 555
William, Sir, 142, 164-168, 190, 198
ohnston, Gordon, 604
oliet, M. Louis, 10
Joncaire, Chabert de, 258, 279, 293
Jones, Czar, 580
De Garmo, 383, 434, 435, 513, 567
George W., 361, 391
Isaac, 283
Richard, 332
Jordan, A. H., 612


292




Jouet, Charles, 490
Jourdon, Andrew, 280
Joy, James F., 384, 424, 441, 493
career of, in railroad building,
504-506; 612
N. H., 415
Justin, 598
Judges, Michigan's early supreme, 373 -375
territorial, list of, 396
Jung, Michael, Moravian missionary, 236
Jungman, John, Moravian missionary,
236
Justa, Sister, 576
Kaminsky, Anton, Dr., 539
Kanter, Edward, 424
Kauffman, Adolph, 540
Kearsley, Jonathan, 435, 448, 513
Keeny, Charles E., 596
Kellogg, Charles, 424
Kenrick & Co., 582
Kenton, Simon, prisoner of Simon Girty,
207
Kentucky troops, loyalty of, 332
Kibbee, Henry C., 609
Kidd, the pirate, 48
Kiefer, Herman, Dr., 607, 608
Kieler, Henry, 606
"King George's War," 149
Harvey, 487, 545, 583
John E., 596
Philip, 43
R. W., 612
S. B., 583
"William's War," 149
Kinnucan, H. J., 558
Kinzie, John, 469
Kirby, Stephen R., Capt., 665
Kirkland, William, 514
Klein, Peter, Dr., 539, 575
Knaggs, James, Capt., 354
James W., 44
Joseph, 280
Thomas, 280
Knapp, Thomas A., 371
Knight, John, Dr., 233-235
Knowlton, Thomas, 617
Kramer, Mathias, 540
Philipp, 539, 540
Kremer, F., 588
Frank J., 613
Krentler, Edwin 0., 478
Kundig, Martin, Rev., 382, 464, 497, 520
Labadie, Peter Descompte, 44
La Caffiniere, Rear Admiral Sieur de,
29, 30


Lacey, Bert, 604
La Chaise, Pere, 35
La Croix, Herbert, 279, 280
La Forest, Francis Dauphine de, 18, 85,
191-121, 160; as commandant, 1712-14,
131, 132
La Foy, Augustin, 263
Lambert, 353
La Franc, Louis M., 129
La Hontan, Baron, 21; extract from
journal of, describing Indian methods
of trade, 62, 63
La Joy, Hyacinthe, 280
Lake Erie, battle of, 338-342
preparations to obtain the control of,
336, 337
Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railroad, 502, 503
Lake transportation, 560-566
Lamson, Darius, 469
La Mothe, Guillaume, Capt., 214, 217
La Motte, Sieur de, 13
Land-grabbers and their operations, 269,
270
grants to the university, 510
sales by the government in 1818, 356
syndicate of 1835, 383
Lands awarded to the renegades near
Amherstburg, 245
Lanergan, J. W., 599, 600
Lang, Christopher, 425
Lanman, Charles J., 434. 435
Lanning, Gideon, Rev. 523
La Prosse, Jean Baptiste de, 129
Larned, Charles, 394, 513
Sylvester, 428. 609
La Roche, Marquis de, 7
Lasalle, James, 280
Jean Baptiste, 280
Robert Cavalier de, 12-16, 33
Lasselle, Francois, 279, 280
La Touche, Procureur-General de, 86
La Tourette, Grisolon de, 18
Laws, new code of, enacted in 1815, 354
Leadbeater, A., 581
Leadley, R. H., 614
Le Baron, Francois, 279
Lecuyer, Philip, 264, 394, 434, 490
Lederle, Anthony, 445
Ledyard, Henry, 449
Henry B.. 452, 480
Lee, Arthur, 244
Lester, 582
Leete, Thomas T., jr., 555
Lefevre, Peter Paul, Bishop, 423, 519
Leffingwell, C. W., Col., 421
Leftwich, Joel, Gen., 327
Legal practice, difficulties of early, 258


293




Leggett, Wells W., 453
Legislative council authorized 363
Leib, John L., 394
Leinger, M., 293
Leland, W. H., 582
Le Moyne, Joseph, Sieur de Longueuil,
160
Lennane, John, 478
Le Pernouche, Joseph, 160
M. C., commandant, 133
Le Pesant, the slayer of Father Del Halle,
78, 79
Lernoult, Richard Beranger, made commandant, 205; builds the fort that bore
his name, 211
Le Roy, Daniel, 356
David, 357
Henry H., 449
Lewis, Alexander, 443, 482
General, 329, 330
Libel suit, first in the State, 364
Lieders. Siegfried, 585
Lincoln, assassination of, 430
Little Sisters of the Poor, 498
Little Turtle, Miami chief, 253,
Livandiere, Hughes Pean de, rascally
commandant, 135; 160
Livingstone, Robert, proposal of, to establish a post at Detroit in 1699, 5
William, 539
Lloyd, Charles W., 623
Lochry, Archibald, Col., massacre of expedition under, 212
Logan, Benjamin, successful raid led by,
upon the Shawnees, 246
John, Cayuga chief, 199, 327
Longueuil, Joseph Lemoyne de, commandant, 142, 146, 147
Loomis, C. O., Capt., 422
Loranger, Alexis, 280
Lord, Captain, commandant, opposed to
Hamilton's orgies with the Indians, 205
" Lord Dunmore's War," 199
Lotbiniere, Director, of the Company of
the Colony, 67, 68
Lothrop, G. V. N., 383, 451, 481, 544
Henry B., 445
James M., 600
Louisburg, fall of, 150
Louisiana, under the French and Spanish, 168
Louvigny, Sieur Francois de, 33, 160;
acting commandant, 132
Louvigny's expedition against the Foxes,
132
Lucas, Ben, 353
Governor, of Ohio, 388, 389
Robert, Gen., 309


Luce, Theodore, jr., 615
Lucker, Henry, 604
Lusigny, M. de, 18
Lynch, Arthur D., 477
Lyon, Edward, 579
E. M., 453
Isaac L., 453
Lucius, 361, 391, 447, 511
McArthur, Duncan, Col., 307, 312, 315,
318, 322
McCabe, Robert, Ensign, 317
McCall, Michael, 581, 584
McChesney, M. H., 594
Robert, 508
McClelland, Major, 233
Robert, 412, 511
R., Mrs., 482
McCloskey, James, 361, 434-436, 510
McConnell, Daniel, Col., 421
McCoskry, Samuel A.. Rev., 423, 527, 612
McCracken, Captain, 331
McCrae, Thomas, 266
McCreary, L, A, 579
McCroskey, William, 279
McCullough, William, Capt., 317
McDermott, John, Capt., 421
McDonald, C. S., 539
D. J., 539
James, Lieut., 460
McDonnell, John, 332
Lieutenant-Colonel, 320, 322
McDougall, Colonel, British commandant at Mackinaw in 1814, 350
George, 279, 281; sketch of, 290; 293,
310, 394, 490, 590
George, jr., 461
George, Lieut., 460
John Robert, 461
Lieutenant, and Captain Campbell,
attempt of, to placate the Indians
at the siege of Detroit, 181-186
McDowell, a trader, killed by an Indian,
198
McEntee, Thomas N., 423, 424
McEvoy, Fred, 601
McFarland, Amasa, 597
McFarlane, Alexander, 415
McGraw, Alexander C., 415, 482, 493, 570
T. A., Dr., 493, 494
McGregor, Helping Hand Mission, 497
Gregor, 590
Mcintosh, Angus, 142
McKee, Alexander, Capt., Indian leader,
205, 207, 224; asks the Indians in 1780
to break up the Moravian Missions in
southern Ohio, 229; 235, 237, 241, 245,
321, 346, 348


294




McKee-Rankin, Mrs., 597, 598
McKenna, William, 612
McKenney, Colonel, 368
McKenzie, J. U., 558
McKinstry, Charles, R., 596
David C., Col., 264, 356, 567, 595, 617
Elisha, 596
McKnight, Sheldon, 378, 537
McLaughliri, J. R.. 508
McLeod, Alexander I., 559
Norman, commissioned      "town
major," by Hamilton, 206
McMeacham, G. J.. 615
McMillan, Ananias, murder of, by the
Indians, 352
Archie, return of, from the Indians,
354
George, 482
Hugh, 545
James, 481-483, 495, 544, 629
W. C., 452, 615
McNabb, Allen N., Col., 401
McQuade, Nat, 603
McRae, Milton A., 538
McReynolds, Andrew T., 408
McVicar, John, 487
McVittie, Alexander, 565, 566
McWade, Robert, 598
Mabley, C. R., 481
Macauley, Barney, 600
Mack, Andrew, Col.. 380, 385, 578
Stephen, Maj., 332, 356-358, 434
Mackay, David Pryse, 539
Evans, Lieut., 358,
Mackinaw capture of, by the British in
1812, 316
disastrous expedition against the
British at, 349, 350
Macomb, Alexander, Gen., 332, 356, 434
David B., 461
William, 347
William, and sons, 461
Macy, J. C., 594
Madison, Major, 330
Magdalene, Sister, 576
Maire, L. E., Dr., 494
Maltz, George L., 555
Mansfield, James P., 508, 545
Mansion House, opened as a hotel, 370
Marantelle, Patrick, 408
Margry, Pierre, 71
Markey, Patrick, 475
Marquette, Alexis, 129
Father, 11, 33
Marryatt, Captain, 402
Marsh, Joseph A., 614
M. H., 538
Marschner, Ed. F., 514,Martin, Ann (Nancy), 494
George H., & Co., 582
Jacques, 280
John, 444
John F., 467
& Borgman, 582
Martindale, Wales C., 515
Mary Clair, Sister, 575, 576
Marxhausen, August, 540. 608
Conrad, 540
Mason, John T., 386, 396
L. M., 443
S. E., 469
Stevens T., 372; sketch of, 384-386;
388, 389, 391, 396-398, 401, 403, 437,
438, 511
Masonry, 489-492; the Morgan affair in,
491
Matthews, Captain, 426
Mattoon, E. S., 594
Maurepas, Count, endeavor of, to improve the settlements and encourage
agriculture, 135
Maurer, George, 608
Maxwell, J. M., 581
Thompson, Maj., 318
May, James, defense of Moravian girls
by, 230; 264, 265, 269, 279, 281, 289,
332, 347, 434, 490, 578
W. J., Col., 421
Mayors of Detroit, list of, 618-620
Mazurette, S., 594
Mead, S. P., 407
Meaurin, Sebastian L., 129
Meddaugh, E. D., 544
E. W., 451
Medical Colleges and Hospitals, 493 -498
Mehl, Fred, 608
Henry, 605
Melchers, Julius, 608
Meldrum, George, 265, 280
William, John and James, 353
Melethon, Father, 13
Meloche, Pierre, 173, 182
Menard, Joseph, 280
Meredith, Eleanor, 598
Merick, Elbridge G., 565
Merrill, Charles, 462
Merritt, Adna, 617
Mersac, Jacob l'Ommespron de, 48
Meserve, W. P. F., 580
Mesnard, Father, 10
Methodist Episcopal churches, 523-525
Miamis, difficulties with, arising from the
Le Pesant affair, 83
Michigan, admission of, as a State, 392,
393


295




Michigan troops, their career in the Rebellion, 429
Athletic Association, 615
Bell Telephone Co., 558, 559
Central Railroad, 501
College of Medicine, 493
College of Medicine and Surgery,
494
Democrat, the, 539
Insurance Co. of Detroit, 441
Journal, the, 540
Volksblatt, the, 539
Volks-Zeitung, the, 540
Michigan's railroad loans, 437, 438
"safety fund" banking law, 438
Michillimacinac, condition of, when Cadillac took command, 33
Military camps during the Rebellion, 421
reserve, the, donated to the city, 368
Militia organizations, 587-589
Miller, Conrad W., 584
Iames, 307
ames W., Capt., 610. B., 585
ieutenant-Colonel, 314, 315, 318,
319
Oliver W., 332
Sidney D., 482, 544, 545
Mills Meriill B., 610
Merrill I., 493
Michael J., " Prince Michael," 535
Miner, L. H., 579
Minty, R. H. G., Lieut.-Col., 422
Mitchell, Nicol, 487
Moffat, Hugh, 424
Mollinger, W. M., 613
Mondoron (Joseph White), 143
Money and finance in early days, 431
Monroe, John, 490
Montcalm, Louis Joseph de St. Verain,
arrival of, 151
victory of, over Abercrombie,
152
death of, 156
Montgomery, A., 588
Monteith, John, Rev., i10, 528
Montreal, surrender of, 156
Moody, George T., 507
Moore, Charles, 171, 539
Franklin, 411
George., 481
Jacob Wilkie, 461,604
(4hn, 582
oseph B., 454, 467.., 599
amuel, 280
William A., 423, 424, 481, 570
William F., 588


Moors, Jeremiah, 617
Moran, Louis, 533
William B., 482
Moravian Indians. massacre of, 231, 232
missionaries harassed by the Indians led by the renegades, 229 -232
Moravians, the, 229; and Delaware Indians, 230
the, a second time brought to Detroit
and their final disposition, 236, 237
the, turned loose, 231
Morrell, George, 369, 374; sketch of, 874;
- 394, 396, 511
Morey, A. G., 580
Morgan, William B,, 454
Morrison, Robert, 307
Morrow, Henry A., Col., 422, 424
Morse, L. L., 379
S. F. B., 555, 556
S. L., 587
Mueller, Henry, 540
Miner, Henry C., 603
Major, 318, 327, 328, 332
W. Howie, 616
W. K., 482
Mumford, Samuel R., 481
Munday, Edward, 391, 398, 511
Municipal building, the, 571
lighting, 454
Munson, J. R., 307
Murphy, Michael, murder of, by the Indians, $52
Seba, 511
Simon J., 508
Murrin, Patrick, 582
Music, schools of, in Detroit, 594
Mutual Gas Company of Detroit, 451
Natural gas, use of, in Detroit, 452, 453
Navarre, Catherine, 434
Francois, 279
Isidore, 280
Jacques W., 280
Mary, 460
Peter, 829, 384
Pierre, 280
Robert, 184, 168
Nav on the lakes, beginning of, in 1777,
206
Naylon, John, 467
New France, constituents of the government of, and their powers, 91
establishment of the colony of,
by Champlain, 8, 9
list of governors of, 161, 162
population of, in 1784 and 1760,
161


296




New France under the control of Sir
William Johnson and Gen. Thomas
Gage, 164
Newald, Eugene, 541
Newberry, Charles B., 601
John S., 495
Oliver, 383-385, 562
Truman H., 616
Walter L., 469
William E., 601
Newcomb, C. A., 481
Newman, L. F., 507
Newspaper, the first, 378
the second, 368
the third, 378
ventures, 1820-40, 379
Newspapers during the Rebellion, 428
list of existing, in Detroit, 541, 542
of Detroit, 536-542
Neyons, M., French commandant in Illinois, 189
Niau, Father Constantine de, 120
Nichols, J. F., 515
Nicolai, George H., 603
Niles, George, 583
Nimock, Charles and Walter A., 536
Noah, W. G., 597
Noble, Charles, 491
Nolan, Patrick, 588
Norburg, Private,first discoverer of silver
ore in Northern Michigan, 198
Norris, Lyman D., 511
North America, early discoverers of, 6-8
Northwest Territory, division of the, in
1800, 259
legislation concerning the, carried on during British occupation, 250
Norton, John, jr., 442
Nicol, 598
Norvell, John, 391, 511
Noyan, Pierre Poyande, commandant,
141, 160
Noyelle, Charles Joseph de, commandant, 133, 136, 137, 139, 160
temporary commandant, 132
Noyes, James F., Dr., 459
William R., 449
Nye, George B., 583
O'Brien, M. W., 508
O'Donoghue, Annie. 477
O'Keefe, George, A., 357, 371
" Old French and Indian war," 149
O'Neil, James F., 602
Oregon, explosion of the boilers of the,
563
O'Reilly, Henry, 556


Orpheus Society, the, 592
Osmun, Gilbert R., 484, 539
Oswego captured by Montcalm, 151
Ottawas, atrocities commited by, occasioned by Bourgmont's brutality, 77,
78
trouble with the, in 1704-05, 69
Ottley, O. S., 598
Overton, Major, 330
Owen, John, 420, 423, 441, 493, 565, 566
John, jr., 615
J. E., 482
Pacifica, Sister, 576
Pack, Albert, 549, 555
Charles L., 555
Greene, 549
Packard, C. C., 538
Pagel, John W., 476
Palmer, C. P., Dr., 600
Friend, 347, 421, 612
J. B., 508
Park, 462
Thomas, 347, 448, 461,567
Thomas W., 462, 481, 483, 507, 539
Palms, Francis, 481, 482
Park system of Detroit, 459-463
Parker, A. L., 507
Bernard, 280
Charles M., 539
Dayton, Dr., 494
Edward H., 478, 559
T. A., 482
& Bradstreet, and their banking
scheme, 431-433
Parkman's theory of Gladwin's informant
of the Pontiac conspiracy, 172
Parmer, W. 0., 610
Parsons, Dr., 338
Philo, 466, 493
Samuel Holden, 250
Patrick, Alexander L., 488
Pattinson, Richard, 269
Paully, Ensign slaughter of the command
of, at Fort Sandusky, in the Pontiac
conspiracy, 177
Pelletier, Louis, 262
Peninsular Cricket Club, 612
Penniman, O., 469
Penny, Orville W., Capt., 582
William, 309
Pepperell, William, Gen., 150
Perkins, William, jr., 580
William B., 580
Perry, H. E., 613
Oliver H., Com., 336-342, 345
Petit, William W., 394
Pettie, John, 482
397


11




Pfeffer, Gus, 588
Phelps, Hugh, 583
Ralph, 415
Ralph, jr., 620
Phillips, Captain,of the cruiser Baltimore,
and the British, 301
Phips, William, Sir, 30
Pierce, John D., Rev., 511
Pingree, Hazen S., 452, 454, 508, 547 -551, 559; agricultural plan of, for helping the poor, 621
Pioneers and adventurers on the borders,
character of the, 201
confusion in names of the, 116-118
Pipe, Captain, Delaware chief, 230, 234
Piquett, Angeline, Mrs., 461
Pitcher, Zina, Dr., 511, 575
Pitt, William, rise and policy of, 152
Pittman, James E., Col., 421, 444, 482,
508, 612
Platt, John H., 434
Police Department of Detroit, 443-446
Political campaign of 1810, the, 404-406
Pollard, Richard, Rev., 142, 332, 522, 590
Pond, Ashley, 452
Pontchartrain, Count, 30, 68, 76
Pontiac, abandonment of the siege of
Detroit by, 189
affiliation of the French residents of
Detroit with, 170
and his plans to crush the British,
165
assassination of, 192, 193
at the siege of Detroit, 179, 180, 182,
184-186, 188, 189
attempt of, to sieze the schooner
Gladwin, at the siege of Detroit,
189
conspiracy of, against the British,
169-176
details of his plans, 169-170
encounter of, with Major Rogers,
156, 157
identity of Gladwin's informant of
the conspiracy of, 171-174
method of, to secure provisions at
the siege of Detroit, 184
outwitted by Major Gladwin, 174 -176
"Pontiac Company," the, and its jollification, 356-358
Pool, Richard, 585
Poor Commission, the, 467
Pope, Jacob, 540
F., 540
Porter, Augustus S., 383, 384
George B., appointed governor, 371;
382, 385, 396


Porter. Geo. F., 469
John F., 511
Moses, Capt., 252
William M., 453
Postal, Fred, 580
Postal Telegraph-Cable Co., 557
Posts, improvement in outlying, 146
Potier, Father Peter, 117-129, 167; death
of 237
evidence from papers of, relative
to the Pontiac conspiracy, 173,
174
seizure of the papers of, by Col.
De Peyster, 129,130
Potter, Milo M., 581
Poupard, Simon, 469
Powers, D., 407
Presbyterian churches, 525-527
Presidential elections of 1844-1852, 406
Prevost, George, Gen., Sir, 335
Prideaux, General, killed in the assault
of Niagara, 153
Pridgeon, John, jr., 620
Prince, John, Col., 403
Printing press, the first in the Territory,
289
Prisoners of war, treatment of, under
Proctor, 347
Proctor, Henry, Col., 316, 329, 330, 332 -335, 347, 348; cruelty of, 385
effect of Perry's victory upon,
342
offers reward for American
scalps, 326
retreat of, from Malden, 334
retreat of to the Thames, 344 -347
Prophet, the, and his proselyting, 295, 296
Protestant Episcopal churches, 527-529
missionaries, early, 522
Orphan Asylum, 496
Prouty, Nathaniel, 545
Public buildings, 566-573
buildings, capital invested in, 571
lands, price of, 376
Library of Detroit, 479, 480
schools, control of, transferred to
town, 370
Purcell, John B., Bishop, 519
J. W., 424
Pur y, William T., & Co., 581
"Quebec act," the, for the government
of the colonies, 200
Quebec, detailed account of the assault
and fall of, 153-156
surrender of, to the English, in 1629,
9


'298




"Queen Ann's war," 149
Quinby, William E., 3i1, 537
Radcliff, Colonel, 401
Railroad building, 499-506
conspiracy, the, 414, 415
termini in Detroit, 501, 502
Railroads, first, planned for Michigan.
499
planned in 1837, 437
Randot, Intendant, 86
Rands, W. C., 613
Rankin, Arthur, Lieut., 461
Ranney, Ruftis P., 428
Ransom, Epaphroditus, 394, 511
Rathbone, Charles A., 616
Raymbault, Father, 10
Raymon, Regina, Mrs., 143
Raynor, A. C., 620
Rebellion, causes leading up to the, 418,
419
effects of the war of, on the country,
424
first war meeting during the, 419
opposition to enlistments during the,
422, 423
Recreations of the early settlers, 143
Reed, Ebenezer, 364
Reform churches, 532
Regiments sent out in 1861, 421, 422
Reid, Duncan, 332
Reilly, C. J., 483
Charles O., Rev., 519
Reitzel, Robert, 540
Relief societies during the Rebellion, 429
Renaud, E. J., 584
George F., 584
Rentz, Theodore, 620
Repentigny, Legardeur de St. Pierre de,
121; fort erected by, at Sault Ste. Marie, 163
Republican party, history of the inception of, 406, 407
Rese, Frederick, Bishop, 518, 519
Reszke, Frank J., 593
Reuhle, J. V., Col., 424
Reynolds, Dr., killed at Hull's surrender,
321
Riboirdier, Father, 13
Rice, John D., 582
R. M., 542
Richard, Gabriel, Rev., 279, 378, 380, 381,
510, 518; story of his election to Congress, 361-363
Richardie, Father, founding of a Huron
mission by, at Sandwich, 126, 127; 139
-141, 146
Richardson, Henry, 461
I. B., Col., 420, 421


Riley, Peter, James and John, 353, 354
Riopelle, Joseph, 353
Riots of 1863, 424 —426
Rivard, Francois, 279
River Raisin, attempts to relieve Capt.
Brush on the, 316, 318, 319
battle of, 329-333
Road building, 355
Roberts, Elijah J., 395
Horace F., 410
John, 357, 415
Robertson, John, Adj.- Gen., 420, 421
William, 269
Robinson, Capt., 460
C. W., 629
Frank E., 539
J. C., Col., 420
William E., 515
Rochementiex, Father Caurille, 16
Rode, Ed., 588
Roehm, Robert, 607
Rogers, Andrew J., 444
Captain, of the first steamers, 562
Robert, Major, encounter of, with
Pontiac, 156, 157; 164
at the siege of Detroit, 188
selfish plans of, 196
sent to the command of Mackinac in 1765, 196
Roman Catholic churches, 517-521
Romeyn, Theodore, 423
Ronan, George, Ensign, 325, 326
Rose. John, 233
Rouville, Hertel de, 149
Rowe, Charles, 604
Rowing, 610, 611
Rowland, Thomas, Capt., 322, 355, 378,
469, 617
Roy, Peter, 70
Pierre, 120
Rudolph & Shipman, 604
Ruehle, J. V., 588
Ruland, Isaac, 279,
John, 279, 353
Rush, Peter, 598
Russell, George B., Dr., 574, 575
Henry, 616
Russell, Alfred, 428, 507
Henry, 482
John A., commercial history of Detroit by, 622
W. H., 579
Ryder, Henry, 495
Ste. Ann's church, destruction of the first,
by fire, 60
the second, burned by Dubuisson, 131; 517-519
St. Bernard, Louis, 279


299




St. Clair, Arthur, appointed governor of
the Northwest Territory, 250
disastrous defeat of, 247; 254,
395, 590
St. Clair, Young, 596
St. George, Col., British commandant at
Maiden in 1812, 309, 313
St. Jean, Joseph Cerre dit, 279
St. Joseph's Retreat, 496
St. Luke's Hospital, 496
St. Mary's Home, 497
Hospital, 496
St. Ours, Jean Baptiste Deschallions de,
commandant, 133, 136, 160
St. Vincent's Female Orphan Asylum,
497
Sabrevois, Jacques Charles, Lieut. 28,
160; commandant from 1714-17, 132
return of, 148
second term of, as commandant,
135
third time commandant, 147
Sacs and Foxes attack Detroit, 130, 131
second expedition against, 136
Sager, Abram, 397
Salter, M., 580
Sanger, H. K., 441, 508, 542
Sargent, Winthrop, appointed secretary
of the Northwest Territory, 250; 254,
396, 590
Savage, George M., 629
Scalps, an invoice of, 227
Schaffer, John, 605
Scheiffelin, Jonathan, 266, 269, 490
Lieutenant, 217, 225
Scheller, George, 582
Schemick, John Jacob, 230
Schimmel, F. & W., 539
Schlosser, Ensign, massacre of the command of, by Pontiac's adherents, 173
Schmidt, T., 482
Schneider, Louis, 613
Schoolcraft, Henry R., 358, 376, 511, 567,
574
Schultz, Louis F., 593
Schwartz, John E., 385
Scott, William, Ir., 266
William McDowell, 279, 280, 347,
490, 522
Scotten, Daniel, 585
Scripps, Edward W., 538
George H, 481, 536, 538
James E., 481, 483, 484, 536, 538
W. A., 580
Scully, Eva M., Mrs., 143
Secret societies, 489-492
Secretaries of Michigan Territory succeeding the British surrender, list of, 396


Seek, Conrad, 347
Seney, George L., 482
Seitz, F. L., 537
Senseman, Gottlieb, Moravian missionary, 230, 236
Seward, William H., 415
Sewell, W. E., 613
Sewers and pavements, 485-489
Seymour, James, 409
John W., 469
Joseph, 378
Shaler, Charles, 390
Sharer, George C., 613
Shaw, Charles A., 603, 604
William, 581
Shea, Gilmary, Dr., 71
Shearer, James, 424, 485
Shelburne, Lord, colonial secretary, efforts of, to have the Indians restrained
in their butcheries, 225
Shelby, Governor, 346
Sheldon, Allan, 481, 493
E. M., Mrs., 70
John P., 364, 366
J. P., affair of, with Thomas Rowland, 378
John P., contempt of court case of,
377, 378; 379, 536
Samuel, 557
Sheley, Alanson, 526
Sherlock, Edward T., 597
James, 597
Sheriffs of Wayne county, list of, 591
Ship building, 562, 563
and dry dock industry, 565, 566
Shipman, 0. W., 452
Shipping, cost of, owned in Detroit, 565
Shrievalty of Wayne county, the, 598-591
Sibley, Alexander H., 616
Ebenezer S., 434
Hiram, 557
Francis E., 482
Lieutenant, 321
Sarah A., 482
Solomon, 258, 262, 264, 265; sketch
of, 266; 267, 279, 283, 289, 310, 354,
356, 357, 359, 361, 363; sketch of,
364;371, 373, 377, 394, 396, 434, 490,
491
Siege of Detroit by Pontiac, 178-189
Sill, J. M. B., 514, 515
Simmons, Stephen G., public execution
of, 370, 371
Sinclair, Commodore, 349
Patrick, Capt., 13; appointed lieutenant governor at Mackinaw, 202
expedition under, against town
in Illinois country in 1780, 226


300




Sisserman, G. 582
Sizer, Henry H., 441
Skinner, Beecher, 538
E. C., Mrs., 481
Slavery and slave hunting in Detroit,
416-418
Slover, John, 233
Small-pox epidemics, 573-577
hospitals, 574-577
Smart, Robert, 352
Smith, H. H. Crapo, Mrs., 481
Jack, 353
John Hyatt, 596
M. S., 481
Rollin C., 415
William, 265
William P., 397
Smolk, Abraham, 383
Smyth, John, 469
Ulysses, G., 469
Smythe, Richard, 280, 281, 490, 578
Snelling, Josiah, Capt., 318
Snow, Frank E., 452
Social festivities of the British and Americans in 1800, 259
Sonntags-Herold, the, 540
Soop, Fred, 583
Spalding, Voltaire, 617
Spanish attack on the British post of St.
Joseph, 232
Speaker, W. H., 613
Specie, the traveling box of, 439
Speed, John J., jr., 556
Sperry, Nehemiah D., 543
Spiegel Frederick. 606
Spinning, James B., 538
Stair, E. D., 603, 604
Stanley, Albert A., 592
Stansbury, Dixon, Lieut., 317
Stanton, Captain, 426
Stephen K., 444
Starkweather, C. C., 444
State capital, location of the, 408, 409
Naval Brigade, the, 589
university, establishment of the, 393
Stead, Benjamin, 356, 434
Steamboat, the first, 356
Stearns, Frederick, 481-484, 493
Frederick K., 614
Sterling, James, 191, 192
J. T., Mrs., 481
Stevens, Charles B., 593
Frederick H., 442
H. P., 579, 581
John, 581
Marcus, 612
Stewart, Charles, 279
Duncan, 423, 424, 508


Stewart, James E., 594
Morse, Dr., 484, 576
Morse, Mrs., 481
Stickney, J. L. 536
Stockton, T. W. B., Col., 421
Stone, James A., 536
Storey, Wilbur T., 319, 537
Street railways of Detroit, 542-555
suburban, 554, 555
Strelezki, Anton, 594
Stroh, Julius, 559
Strong, H. N., 609
J. W., 508
Stuart, David, 415
Sturges, Russell, 284, 431
Sullivan, Constable, 425
Sunday Sun, the, 539
Supreme court, organization of the State,
393
Sutherland, Thomas J., Gen., 402
Sutton, J. W., 478
Swain, Eleanor J, Mrs., 495
Sweeney. John S., 538
Swegles, John, jr., 410
Symmes, John C., 251
Tabor, J. & A.. 581
Tappan, Henry P., Dr., 512
Taxation in Detroit, under French rule,
91
Taylor, C. H., 537
F. D., 507
Tecumseh, 316, 318, 321, 323, 333-335
death of, 347
indignation of, at Proctor's cowardice, 342, 343
plan of, to drive the Americans out
of the West, 293-300
premonition of, 346
upbraids Proctor for cowardice, 345
Telegraph facilities and companies, 555 -558
Ten Brook, Andrew, Rev., 512
Ten Eyck, Conrad, 264, 347, 433
Jeremiah V. R., 469
Territorial boundaries, changes in, 355
changes in 1804, 269
council, authorization of, 363; first
work of, 366
occupation by the different nations
in the eighteenth century, 17
Territory of Michigan, organization of,
271
division of the, into districts and appointment of justices by Gov. Hull,
279
Terry, Henry D., Col., 421
Thames, battle of the, 345-347


301




Thebeau, Prosper, 280
Theatres and the drama, 594-608:
Atheneum, the, 600
Auditorium, the, 603
Beller's Concert Hall, 598
Casino Skating Rink, 603
Coliseum, the, 602
C. J. Whitney Grand Opera House,
601
Detroit Opera House, 600
Dime Museum, 693
Empire Theatre, 604
Gies's Orchestrion Hall, 601
Harmonie Society Hall, 602
Hough's Detroit Theatre, 601
Jefferson Theatre, 604
Merrill Hall, 099
Michigan Garden, the, 595
National Theatre, the, 597
Princess Rink, 608
Whitney's  Grand   Opera House,
604
Young Men's Hall, 599
Theatres, German, 604-609:
Arbeiter Unterstuetzungs Verein,
the, 607
Deutsche Theatre-Verein, the, 608
Funke's Hall, 605
German National Theatre, 605
Kieler's Hall, 606
Lucher's Hall, 604
Social Turner Society, the, 607
Stadt Theatre, 607
Thalia Theatre, 605
Tinnette's Hall,'607
Urania Theatre, 506
Waltz's Hall, 605
Thellar, E. A., Dr., 401
Thompson, Edward, Rev., 512
Home for Old Ladies, 497
Mary, Mrs., 497
Thomas M., 477
William, 856
W. G., 602 608, 614
& Rowe, 685
Throop, George B., 408
Thurman, Charles, 629
Tibbetts, John S,, 588
Todd, John, Col., ambushed by Col.
Caldwell's expedition, 285
Toledo war, the, 887-890
Tomlinson, S. J.. 588
Toms, Robert P., 407, 450
Robert P.. Mrs.,-481
Tonty, Alphonse de, Capt., 48, 159, 160;
as commandant in 1704-05, 68, 69
commandant for seven years,
182, 188


Tonty, Alphonse de, connivance of, with
the Jesuits against the development of
Detroit, 57
mismanagement of the post under, 138
treacherous conduct of, towards
Cadillac, 68, 69
Henri, 13, 14, 33, 182, 160
Madame, arrival of, at Detroit, 54, 55
Topography of the scene of operations
during the war of 1812, 807, 309
Torrey, Joseph W., 469
Townships, division of the Territory into,
367
Transportation as affected by the Erie
Canal, 868
dawn of the era of, 356
Tray, Martin, 582
Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, 150
of Ryswick, 34
of Utrecht, 150
Treesise, Oscar, 582
Tregent, August, 612
Tremble, Thomas, 579
Trimble, Francois, 279
Troops sent out in 1862, 422
Trowbridge, Charles C., 258, 382, 383,
398, 428, 436, 440, 441, 469, 518
Luther S., 883, 482
Truax, J. L., 594
Trumbull, John, 867
Tucker, Giles, 582
Tuesday Musicale, the, 593
Turf, the, 609, 610
Turnbull, George, Capt., commandant in
1767, 197
Tuttle, Christopher, 279
Underground Railway in Detroit, 417
United States Marine Hospital, 497
University of Michigan, the, 509-518
Usurpation of authority by Hull and
Woodward, 288, 284
Vaccination in early days, 574
Vail, George M., 454
Valliant de Gueslis, Francis, Father, 49,
54, 56
Van Arman, J., 415
Van Derbeck, George A., 614
Van Dyke, Ernest, Rev., 5!9
James A., 888, 415, 449, 471
Van Est & Graves, 585
Van Horn, Captain, 850
Van Horne, Thomas B., Maj., 316
Van Husan, Caleb, 498
Van Rensselaer, Rensselaer, 401
Van Vliet, Colonel, 889


302




Van Voorhis, Surgeon, 326
Varney, A. C., 467
Varnum, James Mitchell, 250
Vaudreuil, Governor, 67, 68, 76, 78, 79,
86; an enemy of Cadillac, 83, 84
censures Cadillac in a letter to
Pontchartrain, 83
shirking the punishment of Le
Pesant upon Cadillac by, 81
Vergennes, Count de, prophecy of, 158
Vernor, Frank A., 559
Verrazano, John, 7
Vespucci, Amerigo, 6
Vessels on the lakes during the Revolution, 210
Villeneuve, Stephen Girault de, 129
Vincennes, Sieur de. 69, 131
Vincennes, conflicting stories of the recapture of, by Hamilton, 214, 215
Vineburg, L., 613
Vinter, Joseph, 477
Viot, Ed. N., 475
Visger, Jacobus, 258, 279, 293
Joseph, 353
Voigt, E. W., 481
Vollbracht, Charles, 540
Wadhams, Ralph, 469
Wait, Obed, 567
Wales, Austin E., 578, 579
Edwin A., 596
Walk-in-the-Water, the first steam vessel
on the lakes, 561
Walker, Charles I., 383, 424, 512
E. Chandler, 383, 423, 481
Henrv N., 379, 537
Hiram, 481, 493
H. O., Dr., 493, 494
Willis E., 481
Wall, Bernard, 129
Wallen, Elias, 262, 265
Wanikan Golf Club, 616
War of 1812, causes leading up to the,
301-303
condition of the northern border at
beginning of the, 306
declaration of, 305
reasons for the United State conquering in the, 350
War, adventure and speculation at the
beginning of the eighteenth century,
47, 48
songs, 428
Wars of the French and English, 149
Ward, Eber, Capt., 453
R. A., 615
Warner, Charles E., 508
J. c., 583


Warnick, M. W., 583
Warren, Benjamin S., 616
John L.. 481
Joseph, 406, 407
Washington, George, 151
Waterman, J. W., 612
Waterworks, Detroit, 446-450
Watson, John, 266
Wayne, Anthony, Gen., brilliant campaign of, 249, 250
death of, 253
Wayne county, the formation and naming
of, 254; 290
Webb, James Watson, 404, 594
Weber, Arthur, 477
Carl, 605
George, 582
Welch, Charles M., 589, 599, 601
Welchers, A. C., 604
Weld, Isaac, 255
Wellington, I. M., 516
Wells, Captain, 325, 326
Ensign, 332
John A., 441
Rufus, 447
Samuel, Col., 329
& Cook, 415
Wendell, Abraham, 264
Emory, 442, 482
Wernecker, F. G., 615
Wesson, William B., 482, 493, 545, 583
596
West End Yachting Club, 611
Western Union Telegraph Co., 557
Wetmore, C. H., 482
Wheeler, F. F., 589
Whig, origin of the name of, 404
Whipple, Charles W., 511
James, 434
John, 578
White, James J., 534
Alexander. 143
A. E. F., 508
Charles 0., 601, 602
Joseph, 143
Joseph (Mondoron), 143
Thomas B., 143
Solomon, 143
Whiting, Henry, 383
John L., 356, 469
Whitney, Andrew, G., 356, 434, 617
Bertram C., 600
C. H., 600-602, 604
David, 508
0., 583
W. G., 394
Whittemore, George 0., 511
Whittlesey, H. M., Col., 421


303




Whittmore, J. H., 594
Whitwood, D. C., 542
Wier, J. A., 482
Wight, Buckminster, 415, 419
O. W., Dr., 576
Stanley, G., 424
Wilcox, E. N., 423
0. B., Col., 420
Wilkes, Gilbert, Lieut.-Com., 589
Wilkins, Major, loss of fleet of, bound to
Detroit, 193
Ross, 369, 373, 374, 396, 423, 511
Wilkinson, Joseph, 266, 279
Willebrand, W. H., 613
Willcox, Eben N., 542, 543, 596
Williams, A. S., Gen., 421
A. W., Col., 421
Henry N., 603
John, 280
John R., 310, 361, 372, 412, 434, 490,
617
N. G., jr., 615
N. H., 581
Oliver, 490, 491
Theodore, 469
Thomas, appointed justice by Mayor
Lernoult, 218
Willis, R. Storrs, Mrs., 481
Wilmot, Allen C., 279
Wilson, E. E., 584
John M., 417
R. T., & Co., 548
Winans, Edwin B., 408
Winchell, Alexander, 398
Winchester, James, Gen., 327, 328;
arrives at Frenchtown, 329
massacre of the troops of, 329-383
Winckler, Fred C., 613
Wineman, Henry, 581
Wing, Austin E., 356, 361, 386
Winter Edward B., 539
Wishwell, Silas, 258
Witbeck, C. S. 579
Witherell, B. F. H., 371, 394, 410, 423


Witlierell, James, sketch of, 287; 310, 347
354, 363, 396, 423, 424, 433, 462, 511
Withington, William H., Col., 422
Wolcott, Alexander, Dr., 358
Wolfe, James, Gen., 150; assault and
capture of Quebec by, 153-156
death of, 155, 156
Wolverton, Jacob, 565
Womans's Hospital and     Foundling's
Home, 497
Wood, Morgan, Rev., 531
Woodbridge, William, 356, 361, 371, 373;
sketch of, 375; 377, 394, 396, 434, 516
William L., 596
Woodbury, D. A., Col., 421
Woodward, A. B., 13, 271, 279, 283, 284,
288, 289, 332, 347, 348, 357, 361, 363,
396, 431, 433, 434, 511, 567; part of, in
the Bank of Detroit swindle, 284
pedantry of, in connection with
the university, 509
presentment against, 291-293
sketch of, 273-275
"Woodward code," the, 286
Woodworth, Ben, 371, 378
Woolfolk, Captain, 332
Wormer, Grover S., Capt., 422
Wreford, William, 482
Wright, John, 397
Wyman, Hal C., Dr., 494
J. E., 603
Yachting, 611
Yarnell, John J., Lieut., 340
Yerkes, William P., 424
Young Men's Christian Association, 406 -508
Society, the, 383
Woman's Home Association, 497
Yunck, William, 593
Zeisberger, David, Moravian missionary,
208, 230, 236
Zenobe, Father, 13
Zug, Samuel, 407


304




BIOGRAPHICAL.


Alger, Russell A.. 633
Anderson, William K., 634
Andrews, Myron H., M. D., 636
Apel Franz A., 636
Armstrong, Oscar S., M. D., 638
Barbour, Edwin S., 639
Barbour, George H., 641
Baumgartner, F. J., Rev., 643
Baxter, William H., 643
Beal, Francis R., 644
Bennett, William C., 646
Berry, Thomas, 647
Bielman, Charles F., 648
Bishop, Jerome H., 650
Blackburn, Joel S., M. D., 651
Bradley, Herbert, 652
Brodhead, Thornton F., Col., 652
Brooks, David W., 654
Buncher, Charles, 656
Burroughs, Samuel Whiteside, 657
Campbell, Henry M., 662
Campbell James V., 659
Carstens, J. Henry, M. D., 663
Case, George F., 665
Casgrain, Charles W., 666
Chandler, Zachariah, 666
Cheever, Henry M., 668
Chittenden, William J., 670
Clark, Joseph H., 672
Clippert, Frederick J., M.' D., 672
Conely Edwin F., Col., 673
Connor, Leartus, M. D., 674
Cook, James P., 677
Crawford, Samuel, 678
Currie, Cameron, 679
Currie. George E., 679
Cutcheon, Sullivan W., 680
Davies, Thomas F., Rt. Rev., 682
Davis, Edgar A., 683
Dempsey, Morgan J. P., Rev., 684
Dick, John A., 685
Dickinson, Don M., 686
Dickinson, Julius C., M. D., 865
Dingwall, George, 687
Doherty, James G., Rev., 689
Doman, Robert F. M., Rev., 691
Ducharme, Charles, 692
Du Charme, Charles A., 693
Duffield, Samuel P., M. D., 694
Du Pont, Antoine B., 696
Dwyer, Jeremiah, 696
Farrand, Jacob S., 699


Flowers, Charles, 700
Foley, John S., Rt. Rev., 701
Fox, William D., 702
Fraser, Elisha A., 703
Frazer, Robert E., 704
Gott, Edward A., 706
Graham, James, 707
Greusel, John, 708
Griffith, Armond H., 709
Gue, Arthur E., M. D)., 711
Guelich, Otto E. C., 711
Haass, Charles F. W., Rev., 713
Hahn, Jacob H., 713
Haigh, Henry A.. 716
Hamblen, Joseph G.. 718
Hamlen, William I., M. D., 718
Hanna, Valentine C., Lieut.-Col., 856
Harsha, Walter S., 719
Hayes, Clarence M., 720
Hendrie, George, 721
Henry, Albert M., 724
Hinsdale, Nehemiah C., 725
Hodges, Henry C, 726
Holmes, William L., 730
Humphrey, Ira G., 731
Hunt, Wellington Q., 732
Hutchins, Jere C., 733
Ives, Percy, 734
Janes, Oscar A., Col., 734
Johnson, S. Olin, 736
Joslyn, Charles D., 738
Joy, James F., 739
Jupp, William C., 742
Keep, William J., 743
Kelly, Ronald, 744
Kessler, William H., 746
Knight, Stephen H., 747
Lang, Otto, M. D., 748
Lathrop, Joseph, sr., D.D.S., 749
Lawrence, George C., 750
Ledbeter, Thomas, 751
Leggett, John W., 752
Lennane, John, 753
Le Seure, Oscar, M. D, 753
Lewis, Alexander, 754
Livingstone, William, jr., 755
Lodge, Frank T., 756
Long, Charles D., 758
Look, William, 759
Lothrop, George V. N., 760
305




Lothrop, Henry B., Gen., 762
McGregor, John, 763
McLeod, Alexander I., 763
McMillan, James, 765
McMillan, William C., 767,
McVittie, Alexander, 768
Marschner, Ferdinand W., 769
Martindale, Wales C., 770
Marxhausen, August, 770
Maybury, William C., 772
Mayhew, David P., 773
Mehan, John D. 776
Meigs, Alfred E., 777
Mills, Merrill B., 780
Mills, Merrill I., 778
Moore, George William, 782
Mulheron, John J., M. D., 782
Newberry, John S., 870
Newcomb, Cyrenius A., 783
Ninde, William X., Rev,, 785
Owen, Orville W., M. D., 786
Paine, George H., 787
Palmer, Thomas W., 788
Parke, Hervey C., 790
Parker, Aaron A., 793
Parker, Dayton, M. D., 794
Parker, Ralzemond A., 796
Patterson, John E., 797
Pingree, Hazen S., 798
Price, Orrin J., 804
Quinby, William E., 805
Radford, George W., 806
Raymond, Alexander B., 807
Rich, John T., 808
Rogers, Fordyce H., 810
Safford, Robert C., 811
Savage, James, Rev., 813


Schmid, John A., 814
Scripps, James E., 866
Shaw, John T., 815
Slocum, Elliott T., 815
Smedley, John H., 818
Smith, Hamilton E., M. D., 819
Snow, Edward S., M. D., 820
Snow, Herbert M., 822
Snow, Frank E., 822
Sprague, William C., 823
Springer, Oscar M., 824
Stacey, William, 825
Standish, James D., 828
Standish, John D., 826
Starkweather, George A., 829
Stevenson, Elliott G., 831
Stewart, G. Duffield, M. D., 832
Stoepel, Frederick C., 833
Swan, Henry H., 834
Tarsney, Timothy E., 835
Taylor, Elisha, 836
Taylor, Joseph, 839
Tefft, William H., 640
Thurber, Henry T., 840
Trowbridge, Luther S., Gen., 841
Tuttle, Jonathan B., 843
VanAlstyne, John S., 844
Van Dyke, Ernest, Rev., 847
Wadswortb, Thomas A., 847
Wagstaff, Denman S., Col., 848
Warner, Carlos E., 850
Weadock, Thomas A. E., 851
Wilkins, Charles T., 853
Wilkinson, Albert H., 854
Williams, Nathan G., 855
Willis, Richard Storrs, 857
Wilson, William H., Capt., 859
Wurzer, Carl, 860
Yawkey, William C., 861
Yearick, Cincero R., 865


306




PERSONAL REFERENCES.


Abel, Frederick, 3
Frederic I., 106
Aikman, William, jr., 3
Alexander, Charles T., 4
Allison, William H., 107
Anderson, John W., 107
Robert Henry, 4
Andrews, Frank C., 5
Andrus, Frank D., 5
Ward L., 5
Armstrong, Henry I., 107
Thomas, 6
Arnold, Charles L., Rev., 108
Atkinson, James J., 7
Atwater, Almon B., 7
Babcock, Samuel S., 8
Babst, Earl D., 8
Baby, Raymond F., 109
Backus, Charles F., 161
Theodore L., 109
Bacon, Elbridge F., 9
Bailey, William M., M. D., 9
Baker, Fred A., 162
Balsley, Philip H. A., 265
Theodore S., 266
Barclay, Thomas Sterling, M. D., 264
Barker, William E., 109
Barnes Edward A., 9
Barton, Frank G., 110
James G., 10
Bassett, Arthur, 10
Batchelder, John L., 110
Baubie, William E., 11
Baumgartner, Frank W., 162
Baxter, Charles E., 11
Frank G., 12
Isaac C., 12
Beach, Elmer H., 258
Beals, David S., 111
Bean, Wilbert G., 13
Beardsley, Carleton A., 163
Beaufait, Francis, 13
Beck, George, 163
Howard C., 13
Beckwith, Whitney C., 164
Belanger, Frangois Joseph Denis, 111
Henry, M. D., 206
Bennett, Charles T., M. D., 112
Ebenezer O., M. D., 164
Bentley, William E., M. D., 165
Biddle, Andrew P., M. D., 258
James, Major, 13
Bolles, John E., 14
Bolton, Edwin C., 259


Book, James B., M. D., 14
Bourke, Fred W., 165
Oliver, 15
Bowers, Joseph F., jr., 112
Boynton, Nehemiah, Rev., 16
Brand, Frederick W., 165
Brandon, Calvin K., 16
Brennan, Michael, 267
Brewster, James H., 165
Briggs, F. Markham, 207
Briscoe, Benjamin, 112
Brodhead, John T., Lieut., 113
Brodie, Benjamin P., M. D., 17
Broegger, Francis, Rev., 17
Broock, Max, 266
Brooke, Flavius L., 18
Brown, Cullen, 18
Edwin C., 18
Mason L., 113
Owen C., M. D., 19
William Rolston, 19
Buchaczkowski, Witold, Rev., 275
Burdeno. Augustus I., M. D., 208
Burke, Hyacinthe C., 208
Burt, Lee, 19
Lou, Col., 114
Butzel, Magnus, 20
Cahalan, James, M. D., 208
Campbell, Walter S., 20
William, 246
Candler, Claudius H., 114
Canfield, George Lewis, 114
Carey, Hugh, M. D., 247
Carhartt, Hamilton, 115
Carpenter, William L., 21
Carran, Charles M., 166
Carrier, Albert E., M. D., 115
Carson, William, 115
Carter, G. Lewis, 166
Caughey, Frank T., 21
Champion, Raymond. Rev., 22
Chandler, George Whitfield, Major, 116
Chapin, William W., 22
Chapoton, Alexander, jr., 166
Edmund A., M. D., 23
Chappee, Birnie G., 23
Chase, James, Capt., 209
Chiera, William J., 265
Child, Putnam H., 22
Chipman, J. Logan, 167
Chittick, William R., M. D., 168
Cicotte, Edward A., 210
Clark, Charles, 211
Edward B., 213


307




Clark, Frank N., 263
Harvey C., 117
James J., 24
John E., M. D., 117
John Person, 212
Rex B., 118
Rufus W., Rev., 118
Willis S., 168
Clawson, Firman W., 119
Clippert, Conrad, 213
George H., 24
Codd, George P., 24
Collier, George X. M., 168
James M., M. D., 214
Collins, Alvah N., M. D., 25
Charles P., 25
Lucius H., 25
Conger, Norman B., 26
Coomer, George W., 119
Cooper, David M., Rev., 26
Corey, Newton J., 27
Courtis, William M., 27
Cowles, Israel Towne, 119
Crawford, Prank H., 120
Crocker, George M., 169
Cullen, James H., 28
Daly, William, 215
Dasef, Alem William, 216
Davock, Harlow P., 28
Dederichs, Peter, 169
De Forest, Heman Packard, Rev., 29
De Gaw, Frederick E., 29
Delamater, DeWitt C., 29
De Lisle, Peter B., 217
Demine, Rodolph A., 170
Denissen, Christian, Rev., 30
Desmond, John, 217
Devendorf, Charles A., M. D., 30
Dickinson, Julian G., Capt., 31
Dixon, Sidney B., 31
Dohany, Emmet E., Prof., 218
Frank H., 170
Donaldson, John M., 171
Donnelly, John C., 172
Thomas M., 172
Douglas, Charles, M. D., 32
Samuel Townsend, 32
Dresskell, Frederick S., 33
Dubois, Henry M., 259
Duddleson, William I., 218
Duffield, George, M. D., 33
Dunn, Michael, 219
Durfee, Irving W., 33
Dust, William T., 34
Dwyer, John Martin, 34
Eby, John F., 120


Ellair, Alexander Joseph, 34
Elliott, James R., 121
Ellis, Griffith Ogden, 35
Elwood, S. Dow, 36
Emerson, Justin E., M. D., 36
English, John G., 37
Enright, John J., 121
Esper, Mathias, 220
Eyre, George F. C., 260
Farnsworth, Frederick Eugene, Col., 37
Farrand, Jacob Shaw, 38
William Raynolds, 38
Fenwick, William E., 173
Field, Henry George, 122
Findlater, James, b9
Fink, Leon C., 123
Finn, Matthew, 173
Finney, Sam, 40
Fisher, George W., 40
Fisk, Charles H., 267
Forster, Charles R., 41
Foster, Lemuel H., 173
Fraser, Oscar A., 221
Freeman, John, 123
Frisbie, Stephen W., Rev., 41
Fuller, William P., 42
Fulton, Charles A., Rev., 42
Gage, William T., 43
Galley, John Knox, M. D., 43
Gardner, James, 221
Garrison, John W., 44
Gartner, George, 274
Gast, Gustave L., 272
Gates, Jasper C., 44
Gauld, John, 247
Gillespie, Harry B., 45
Gillis, Ransom, 45
Goebel, August, Lieut.-Col., 174
Goodell, James M., 260
Goodfellow, Bruce, 175
Goodrich, Frederick A., 124
Gordon, Clifton D., 45
Gourlay, Alfred L., 176
Graham, Alfred, M. D., 124
Burke M., 125
William, 46
Grand, Peter, Rev., 125
Grant, John, 176
Graves, John, 46
Gray, Theodore C., 248
Greening, George B., 268
Griggs, Stephen A., 47
Grummond, U. Grant, 176
Guenther, Fred, 47
Gulley, Orrin P., 222


308




Haggerty, L. D., & Son, 249
Haigh, Richard, 249
Hall, Abram S., 48
Harry C., 48
Philo E., 177
Richard H., 49
Hally, James A., Rev., 250
Haltiner, John, sr., 251
Hammell, David, M. D., 268
Hammond, George Henry, 125
Hanmer, Delia A., Mrs., 127
Hannan, William W., 127
Harmon, Henry A., 49
Harrah, Charles W., Capt., 128
Harris, Samuel S., jr., 49
William C., 129
Hart, Joseph C., 177
Hartz, John C., 50
Harvey, William M., M. D., 50
Hatch, Charles H., 178
Herschel M., 178
William B., 50
Hathaway, Charles S., 51
Haven, J. De Alton, 223
Hawley, John Gardner, 129
Heffron, John, 179
Heidt, Herman D., 52
Heineman, David E., 52
Henderson, Edwin, 179
Herbst, Charles W., Col., 130
Higgins, Frederick W., 251
Hislop, Robert, M. D., C. M., 52
Hitchcock, Charles W., M. D., 130
Horace, 53
Holden, Hiram, M. D., 252
Holmes. Arthur D., M. D., C. M., 130
Holz, Charles, 180
Hopper, George C., Major, 53
Horger, Anthony, 253
Horton, Edward S., 224
Howe, Elba D., 225
Hurd, J. Stanley, 180
Hurst, William A., 180
Huston, E. Russell, 131
Hutter, Charles J., Rev., 131
Imrie, Andrew W., M. D., C. M., 131
Ingersoll, Jerome, 180
Irvine, George W., M. D., 54
Jackson, Harry H., 54
Jamieson, Robert A., M. D., 54
Jayne, Delos D., 181
Jeffries, Edward J., 132
Jenks, Edward W., M. D., 270
Harrison Darling, M. D., 132
Joncas, Edmund, 133
Jones, Henry K., 54


Joy, William S., 181
Kaple, John H.. 55
Keena, James T., 181
Kellogg, Charles C., 182
Kelly, George, 268
Kendall, John, 55
Kennedy, Johnston B., M. D., 133
Kenny, George F., 261
Kinney, Overton L., 133
Roland 0., 56
Kiskadden, Henry S., M. D., 134
Kleinow, Herman, 254
Kuhn, Franz C., 56
Kurth, Frederick A. W., 225
Lambert, Walter Clement, M. D., 226
Langdon, George C., 135
Lane, William P., 261
Langlois, Theophilus J., M. D., 227
Larned, Charles Pierpont, 135
Lathrop, H. Kirk, jr., D. D. S., 182
Joseph, jr., 183
Lau, George H., D. D. S., 135
Lawrence, William B., 183
Lee, John, jr., M. D.. 136
Lennox, Levi J., M. D., 184
Leslie, William, 228
Lewis, Henry B., 184
Leys, Francis T., M. D., 56
Lightner, Clarence A., 136
Linn, Alexander R., 184
Lister, James R., Capt., 228
Little, Charles H., 136
Littlefield, Louis B., 56
Lohr, C. F., 229
Long, John R., 57
Look, Henry, 57
Loomis, De Witt, 57
Loss, Henry, 254
Lutfring, Casimir, Rev., 58
Lydecker, Garrett J., Lieut.-Col., 184
Lynn, James T., 185
McAlpine, William W., 136
McBride, Robert D., D. D. S., 185
McCollester, Lee S., Rev., 186
McDonald, Charles S., 137
McDonald, John C., 255
McKay, James B., 137
McMath, Frank M., 58
McMillan, Harold, 269
James H., 59
McQueen, James W., D. D. S., 186
McVicar, John, 137
MacFarlane, Walter, 269
MacLachlan, Daniel A., M. D.. 59
MacLaurin. Donald D., Rev., 273


309




Maclean, Donald, M. D., 60
Maire, Lewis E., M. D., 61
Mansfield George A., 186
Manton, Walter P., M. D., 61
Manzelmann, Charles, 62
Marr, Maurice R., 139
Martin, Albert, 230
Marx, Oscar B., 62
Mason, George D., 63
William L., 187
Meginnity, David, 63
Meier, Henry J., 187
Metcalf, William F., M. D., 63
Milburn, Henry J.. 187
Millen, George W., 64
James W., Capt., 188
Miller, Christopher C., M. D., 188
John, 231
Robert, 64
Sidney T., 65
Minock, Edward, 189
Moloney, John B., 140
Moody, George T., 65
Moore, Charles W., 66
George E., 231
George Whitney, 67
Melford B., 67
William V., 68
Moreland, De Witt H., 189
Moriarty, Frank C.. 190
Morris, Scott Harrison, 190
Mott, John, 191
Murphy, Alfred J., 68
Navin, Thomas J., 140
Neithart, Benedict, Rev., 69
Newberry, John S., 69
Truman, H., 69
Noah, Frank A., 140
Nordstrum, John, 256
Northrup, James I., M. D., 257
Nutten, Wesley L., 70
Oakman, Robert, 71
O'Connor, Arthur C., 191
Olin, Rollin Carolus, M. D., 262
Osborn, Francis C., 141
Osborne, Frederick S., 191
Oster, Joseph, Rev., 141
Owen, John, 192
Paine, De Forest, 71
Palmer, Ervin, 71
Jonathan, jr., 72
Palms, Francis F., 73
Pardee. John W., 232
Park, William, 234
Parker, Charles Maxwell, 193


Parker, Clarence L., 76
Delos Leonard, M. D., 193
Walter R., M. D., 193
Parshall, J. Harry, 76
Partridge, Levi W., 141
Patterson, Edward H., 142
Payne, Isaac, N., 76
Peck, Edward T., 142
Peckham, Cyrus, T., M. D., 77
Pendleton, Edward Waldo, 74
Penton, John A., 194
Phelps, Davis S., 195
Pitcher, Sheldon, M. D., 77
Pitkin, Caleb S., 143
Pittman, James E., Gen., 77
Pitts, Alvah Grenelle, 143
Thomas, 75
Post, Hoyt, 195
James A., M. D., 78
Powell, John H., 196
Prall, William, 143,
Prince, Herbert S., 196
Proud, Charles I., 79
Rackham, Horace H., 197
Rayl, Thomas B., 144
Raymond, Alonzo C., 145
Charles L., 145
Reid, John Rev., 79
Reilly, William E., 145
Remick, George B., 197
Jerome H., 80
Reves, Frank N., 80
Rice, Zachariah, 197
Riggs, Gilbert, 234
Riker, Eugene V., M. D., 197
Riopelle, Hyacinthe F., 236
Robinson, William E., 146
Rorison, Brainard, 80
Ross, William A., 81
Rudy, Robert C., M. D., 81
Russell, Alfred, 82
Francis G., 82
Salliotte & Ferguson, 237
Sanders, William, 238
Sargent, Erle H., M. 1)., 83
Sauer, William C., 198
Sayles, George M., 270
Schwab, Francis W., Rev., 83
Scott, George G., 270
H. Byron, 84
John, 270
Scotten, William E., 273
Scripps, James E., 146
Seitz, John H., 198
Sellers, Elias H., 84
Sherwood, Theodore C., 84


310




Shipman, Ozias Williams, 273
Shook, Edgar H., Major, 149
Sibley, Alexander H., 269
Simonds, Eli K., Capt., 239
Sloman, Adolph, 151
Eugene H., 151
Smith, Andrew, jr., 85
Dudley, W., 85
Edgar B., M. D., 152
Eugene, M. D., 86
Frank G., jr., 199
Jesse Merrick, 152
Snyder, Emil William, 87
Standart, Joseph G., 87
Robert W., 153
Stanton, Marvin M., 88
Stearns, Frederick, 153
Frederick Kimball, 153
Steele, Walter D., 88
Steinbrecher, Albert H., M. D., 154
Stellwagen, George H., 241
Sterling, James T., Col., 199
Stevens, Charles B., 88
James C., D.D.S., 199
Rollin H., M. D., 89
Stewart, Charles C., 90
James, 242
Stockwell, George W., 90
Stoddard, Elliott J., 90
Stoflet, Henry L., 200
Stone, James H., 91
Stoneman, Lewis A., 155
Stuart, Reed, 91
Sullivan, J. Emmet, 155
Summers, Frank D., M. D., 91
Sutherland, Davis S., 92
Swan, Thomas, 156
Sweet, George H., D.D.S., 156
Tappey, Ernest T., M. D., 156
Taylor, De Witt H., 200
Frank D., 92
George, 93
Orla B., 93
Teagan, John B., 93
Ternes, Anthony P., Rev., 93
Thomas, Emma A., Mrs., 157
Thompson, William B., 274
Tibbals, Frank Burr, M. D., 158
William I., 94
Tillotson, Frank F., 265
Towar, George W., jr., M. D., 94
Trowbridge, Alexander B., 95
Turner, William H., 95


Utley, Henry M., 95
Van Antwerp, Francis J., Rev., 96
Van Deusen, James H., 158
Van Wagoner, Alvil 0., 272
Varney, Almon C., 96
Vet, Charles M., 158
Voorhis, George W., 243
Walker, Frank B., M. D., 96
Henry 0., M. D., 201
Walsh, Joseph J., 201
Walters, Henry C., 97
Ward, George H., 97
William M., 257
Warner, Willard E., 159
Warren, Charles B., 159
Homer, 201
William M., 202
Weed, Odillion B., M. D., 202
Weiss, Joseph M., 203
Wermers, Bernard J., Rev., 97
Westcott, John W., 98
Wetherbee, William H., 99
Wetzel, Henry Adolph, 99
Wheeler, James, Rev., 100
Whitaker, Herschel, 100
William H., 101
Whitehead, James T., 160
Whitman, Charles Rudolphus, 101
Whitney, David, jr., 203
Wicker, William W., 102
Wight, Sidney B., 275
Wilcox, Alfred F., 204
Wild, William L., 102
Wilkinson, Ralph B., 204
Williams, Morris L., 103
Wilson, Edward, 103
Peter R., 244
Thomas Ledbeter, 103
Winder, Daniel Cory, 272
Wing, Jefferson T., 263
Wisner, George Y., 103
Wolf, Frederick H., 245
Woodbury, Warren H., 105
Woodruff, Charles M., 104
Wormer, Clarkson C., 160
Wright, Charles, 205
John MacNair, 105
Wurzer, Louis C., 206
Wyman, Hal C., M. D., 206
Youngblood, Edward B., 105
Zickel, Harry H., 106


311




































A