Portrait and biographical record of the state of Colorado, containing portraits and biographies of many well known citizens of the past and present, Part 111

Author: Chapman Publishing Company, Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1899
Publisher: Chicago, Chapman Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 1530

USA > Colorado > Portrait and biographical record of the state of Colorado, containing portraits and biographies of many well known citizens of the past and present > Part 111

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In this city, March 25, 1888, Mr. Holmes mar- ried Miss Kittie A. Myers, who was born in Fort Scott, Kan., but had resided in Lamar for some time prior to her marriage. They have three children, Ray M., Carston F. and Olivia.

Politically a Democrat, Mr. Holmes was twice elected on that ticket as mayor of Lamar and for two years also served as member of the city

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council. He was reared in the Lutheran faith, but is now identified with the Methodist Epis- copal Church. In fraternal relations he is a charter member of Lamar Lodge No. 90, A. F. & A. M., of which he has twice served as Wor- shipful Master. He has also taken the Royal Arch degree. A member of the Knights of Mac- cabees, he was the first commander of Lamar Tent No. 18 and has always been one of its most active workers.

JOSE VICTOR GARCIA, a pioneer of Conejos County, was born in 1832 in New Mexico, forty miles north of Santa Fe, and was of Spanish descent. He spent his early life upon a farm and at twenty-eight years began to trade with the Apache, Navajo and Ute Indians, which business he followed for seven years. In 1855 he settled in Conejos County, Colo., and in 1859, was elected to the territorial legislature, which met at Santa Fe, N. M., and continued its session through 1860. He served two terms in the New Mexico legislature prior to coming to Colorado; also two terms as councilman in the territory be- fore it was admitted into the Union, and three terms in the territorial legislature.

On retiring from the legislature Mr. Garcia began ranching on the Conejos River, where he now lives. He took a squatter's claim to a sec- tion of government land and engaged in farming and stock-raising, which occupation he has since followed on the same place. He was the first man who applied to the national government (through the influence of George M. Chilcott, member of congress) to have the San- Luis Valley surveyed, which was done in 1861. During the latter year, when Governor Gilpin was the chief executive, Mr. Garcia was again a member of the territorial legislature of Colorado, and he applied to the governor to establish the line between New Mexico and Colorado. He was opposed to the land grants and, while he had many cases in the New Mexico courts, he won in every instance, turning several thousand acres of land over to the government. In 1866 he was appointed col- lector for Colorado by Governor Boone. In 1871 he was a member of the Colorado council. The next year he was commissioned by Governor McCook as brigadier-general of the Colorado National Guard, second division. In the year 1874 Governor Elbert appointed him a member of the board of managers of the Centennial Exposition at Philadelphia. He served for five terms as a

member of the Colorado territorial legislature. In local affairs he was elected justice of the peace in 1857, county commissioner in 1884 and general road master in 1896. Always stanch in his allegiance to the Republican party, he has long been one of its leaders among the Mexican resi- dents of Colorado. He is a Roman Catholic in religious belief and in 1895 was chosen a mem- ber of the San Miguel Union Catholic conference. His ranch comprises nine hundred and forty acres, six hundred and forty of which comprise all of section 10, lying on the Conejos River and forming one of the valuable ranches of the county of Conejos. During the early days of his residence in Colorado the Indians were very troublesome. In 1858 the Utes destroyed his crops and killed five of his cows, while three years afterward the Arapahoes killed thirteen of his cows; and at other times they destroyed other stock and valuable property.

The first marriage of Mr. Garcia took place in 1854 and united him with Maria Candelaria Jaques, who died in 1862, leaving three children, Jose A., Celestino and Placida. For his second wife he chose Trinidad Silba, by whom he had eight children: Sevia, Juan C., Lafayette, Adolfo, Fidela (Mrs. Derrera), Dolores, Ignacio and Gala Sancio.

OSE AMARANTE GARCIA, sheriff of Conejos County, was born in this county in 1858, and is a son of Jose Victor and Can- delaria (Jaques) Garcia. He attended the public schools in Pueblo during 1869 and 1870, making his home with George M. Chilcott. He then at- tended public school in Denver in 1871, where he was known by his schoolmates as Joseph. At the age of fifteen, in 1871, he was elected by the house of representatives as interpreter for that body, and in 1877 was elected by the senate to fill the same position for that body. At the age of seventeen, returning to Conejos, he began ranching with his father, but in 1881 bought property of his own. He now has nine hundred acres on the Conejos River, where he is engaged in the stock business, raising both sheep and cattle.

On the Republican ticket, in 1881, Mr. Garcia was elected to represent Conejos and Costilla Counties in the legislature. After one term he retired from office. In 1887 he was chosen sheriff of the county and has since filled the posi- tion, having gained a reputation as one of the

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best sheriffs the county has ever had. Being of fluence is felt among the teachers and pupils in a daring, courageous and resolute temperament, he is qualified to discharge his official duties with fidelity and success.

Fraternally Mr. Garcia is a member of Antonito Lodge of Odd Fellows. In the year 1881 he mar- ried Sophia Espinosa, who died in June, 1898. They were the parents of six children, namely Candelaria, Alejandro, Nea, Reginaldo, Rufinata and Placida.

AMES R. DURNELL, superintendent of the public schools of La Plata County, was born in Christian County, Ill., in 1863, a son of John and Mary A. (Beeson) Durnell. His fa- ther, a native of Tennessee, and a descendant of English Quaker ancestry, removed to Illinois in early life and has since resided in that state, his present home being in Palmer, Christian Coun- ty. By his marriage to Miss Beeson, who was born in Indiana, a descendant of Daniel Boone, he had eleven children, six of whom are now living, viz .: A. N., who is engaged in the lum- ber business at Bloomfield, Mo .; Matilda, wife of J. H. Adams, of Idaho Falls, Idaho; W. J., a merchant at Fairfield, Ill .; Mary E., who mar- ried William Teasley, a teacher at Palmer, Ill .; M. Luvina, wife of D. O. Hatfield, of Ignacio, Colo .; and James R.

Upon completing the studies of the common schools, our subject entered the Illinois Wesleyan University at Bloomington, where he completed his education. For a number of years he taught school in Illinois, from which state he came to Colorado in 1887, settling in La Plata County. For three years he was principal of the graded school at Animas. In 1891 he became associated with the Durango Daily Herald as city editor. July 1, 1892, he accepted the business manage- ment of the new daily, The Great Southwest, and he is still interested in journalism, contributing to local papers as well as others.

Until the campaign of 1896 Mr. Durnell re- mained with the Republican party, but when it declared for a single gold standard he could no longer consistently remain among its members, and he has since adhered to the silver wing of the party. In 1893 he was elected superintendent of the county schools, and in 1895 and 1897 was again elected to the office, which he now fills. Having given so much of his life to educational work, he is well qualified for his position, which he fills with efficiency. In countless ways his in-

the county, and indeed it would be strange if it were not so. Imbued with a love for educational work, and thinking it one of the noblest in which men and women can engage, he enters with en- thusiasm into everything that tends to raise the standard of education in his county. In other :parts of the state, as well as in his home neigh- borhood, he is known as a successful teacher and superintendent of schools. At one time he was nominated as a member of the board of regents of the Colorado State University at Boulder, but he declined the nomination, on account of being a Teller adherent. During the campaign of 1896 he was visiting in Illinois, and attended both the St. Louis and Chicago conventions. His en- thusiasm in behalf of the silver cause led him to make several speeches for it and also to engage in campaign work.

In the year 1891 Mr. Durnell married Annie E. McBride, of Illinois. They have four children, John Maurice, James Rowland, Jr., Charles Herschel and Margaret Elizabeth. Fraternally Mr. Durnell is a member of the Modern Wood- men of America, his membership being in an Illinois camp. He is also connected with the Ancient Order of the Pyramids and the Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows. He is the owner of real estate in Durango, among whose citizens he occupies a high position.

AMUEL ANDERSON. Since coming to Colorado in 1893, Mr. Anderson has made his home on section 35, township 22, range 52 west, near Las Animas, Bent County. Sur- rounding his residence are ten acres, bearing first-class farm improvements, and in addition he has two hundred and fifty acres, upon which he raises the various cereals. In local matters he takes an active part, voting the Republican ticket at elections. In 1895 he was elected a member of the board of county commissioners and served efficiently for one term. He has also represented his party in various conventions.

Jonas and Christine (Peterson) Anderson, the parents of our subject, were born in Sweden, and emigrated to America in 1852, when quite young. Both settled in Minnesota and there be- came acquainted and married. For some years they resided upon a farm in Carver County, that state, but they are now living, retired from active cares, in the city of Minneapolis, the father being sixty-five and the mother sixty-four years of age.

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PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

Our subject was born in Carver County January 25, 1864, and was reared on the home farm. His education was acquired in the public schools and the college at St. Peter's, Minn., where he was a student during three winter terms. At twenty years of age he went to McPherson County, Kan., and secured employment in a hardware store, where he remained for ten years.

May 4, 1887, while residing in Kansas, Mr. Anderson married Miss Hilda C. Sannquist, who was born in Paxton, Ill., of Swedish parentage. She accompanied her parents to Kansas and at- tended college in McPherson County, after which she became a teacher of music and also had charge of a Swedish school. Four children com- prise the family of Mr. and Mrs. Anderson, namely: Ahda H. E., who was born in Mc- Pherson County, November 25, 1889; Blenda J. E., born in McPherson County, February 8, 1892; Annie C., born in Bent County, Colo., November 29, 1894; and Samnel Marion, born October 14, 1898, on the home farm in this coun- ty. The family are identified with the Swedish Lutheran Church, in which Mr. Anderson has officiated as a trustee for several years. As a man it may be said of him that his integrity is unquestioned. He is kind in disposition, genial in manner, and has many friends among the people of Bent County.

ON. JOHN T. SHUMATE. Identified with the history of Glenwood Springs from the time that it was a town of tents until the present time, when it is a beautiful city, with healing springs that attract thousands of inva- lids, Mr. Shumate has established a reputation as an able attorney and counselor. The numer- ous positions of trust to which he has been called he has filled with credit to himself and satisfac- tion to all. On coming to this place in 1886, he was made deputy county clerk and recorder, and at the same time took up the practice of law. In 1887 he was elected city attorney of Glenwood Springs and county attorney of Garfield County, and during the same year he was appointed re- ceiver of the United States land office at this point, but declined the position. Again, in 1895, he was elected attorney of Garfield County, con- tinuing in the office for three years. Upon the Democratic ticket, with the endorsement of the silver Republicans, he was elected to the house of representatives in 1897. In January of 1898 he was chosen to serve as district attorney of the

ninth judicial district, comprising the counties of Garfield, Pitkin and Rio Blanco, and this office he has since filled with ability and impartiality.

Born in Fauquier County, Va., September 22, 1852, our subject is a son of Hon. Bailey Shu- mate, M. D., a native of Virginia, born in Clarke County, in the Shenandoah Valley, and a graduate of Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, after- ward a practicing physician in Fauquier County, Va. His last years were spent upon a farm in that county in retirement from professional work. He was prominent in public affairs and repre- sented his county in the state legislature and state senate. Fraternally he was a Mason. His death occurred on his farm in 1875. He was a descendant of the Huguenots who left France after the repeal of the edict of Nantes by Louis XIV, and many of whom settled in Virginia. His wife, Ann E., daughter of William Weaver, a planter, was a descendant of German ancestors who, in the sixteenth century, founded German- town, Va., a place that is now extinct. On her mother's side of the house she was connected with Chief Justice Marshall, while on both sides she was of Revolutionary stock. In her family there were three sons and one daughter. Of these, W. B. G. Shumate is a planter residing on the old Virginia homestead; Edward J. is fore- man of the freight department of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad at Washington, D. C .; and Bettie is the wife of Lucien Holtzelaw and lives on a part of the old homestead in Virginia.

After graduating from Norwood College in 1873, our subject took the law course in the University of Virginia. After the death of his father he returned to the old homestead and set- tled the estate. In July, 1877, he came to Den- ver, and entered the office of Hon. T. M. Patterson. During the same year he was admitted to the Colorado bar and began to practice in Denver, but the next year he went to Leadville, where he engaged in mining. In February, 1880, he be- gan mining in Gunnison County, and in the spring of 1884 went to Ouray, where he served as clerk of the district court under Judge M. B. Gerry, and in July, 1885, engaged in mining at Aspen, from which place he came to Glenwood Springs the following year. From 1888 to 1890 he served as a member of the city board, to which position he was elected on the Democratic ticket. He is actively connected with the Red Men and the Ancient Order of United Workmen. In 1887 he married Sara E. Churchill, daughter of

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PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

Samuel Churchill, formerly a prominent hardware months made Leadville his headquarters. He merchant of Allen, N. Y., but later a resident of Aspen, Colo. They have had three children: Churchill, Ruth, and John Edward, who died when about the age of seven.

EDWARD FORRESTER, D. D. S., who is one of the successful professional men of Pueblo, has his office in the Swift block, corner of Sixth and Main streets. During the years of his active practice he has met with un- usual success, as a result of the care and thought he devotes to his work, and his thorough infor- mation concerning its every department. He has made a specialty of crown and bridge work, in which he is considered an expert, and the peer of any dentist in his city.

Dr. Forrester was born in Elmira, N. Y., in 1860, a son of Henry and Mary (Howell) For- rester, natives of New York state. His father, who was a prominent wholesale grocer of Elmira, and for many years an influential citizen of that city, is now living in Denver retired from the business cares that formerly engrossed his time and thought. While he has never held official position nor sought prominence in public affairs, he has positive opinions in politics, being a stanch Republican. He had two sons and two daugh- ters. George E., who resides in Salt Lake City, is traveling auditor of the Rio Grande Western Railroad; Mary E. is deceased; and Lena May lives in Denver.

In the old-established academy at Elmira, N. Y., our subject supplemented the knowledge he gained in the public school. He studied dentistry in the Philadelphia Dental College of Philadel- phia, and upon his graduation opened an office in Lyons, N. Y., where he gradually built up a valuable practice. Many of his patients were people of wealth and high standing. Among them were the family of Lieutenant Brownson, who purchased in England the war vessels used by the government in the Spanish war.

The close confinement incident to professional work and the unhealthful climate of New York so affected Dr. Forrester's health that he was forced to leave the city. With the hope that California might benefit him he went to San Jose, and he became connected with the dental department of the College of Physicians and Sur- geons of San Francisco, but was compelled to seek a higher altitude, so he resigned his posi- tion. He came to Colorado in 1881, and for nine

spent some years in Pueblo later, when he was connected with the dry-goods house of T. P. Peale & Co. Since he settled permanently in Pueblo in 1898 he has greatly improved in health, and has engaged steadily in professional work. Without in the least underestimating the extent of his knowledge and his skill as a dent- ist, it may, however, be truthfully stated that his success is, to a large extent, due to his genial, pleasant disposition, and his manly qualities of heart and mind, which have won for him the friendship of the best people in every place where he has resided.

In 1886 Dr. Forrester married Adelaide Kern, of Terre Haute, Ind., and they have one son and two daughters: George Kern, Margaret Esther and May Anna. In politics the doctor is a stanch Republican and a firm friend of the present (Mc- Kinley) administration. He and his wife are identified with the First Presbyterian Church, of which he was recently unanimonsly elected Sun- day-school superintendent.

ARRY H. RUSSELL, clerk of Conejos County, and a resident of the village of Conejos, was born in Cheyenne, Wyo., Jan- uary 27, 1869, a son of George H. and Mary (Hubbard) Russell. He spent his boyhood days in Wyoming and received his primary education in public schools there, but later was a student in the Keokuk (Iowa) public schools, where he went in 1879, and finished his education in the Cincinnati (Ohio) high school. In 1883 he be- gan to study the drug business in Silver Cliff, Custer County, Colo., and in 1887 opened a drug store at Conejos, continuing in the general drug business at this point until April, 1898, when he sold out.

As a Republican Mr. Russell has been active in village and county affairs. In 1891, on the Republican ticket, he was elected county clerk, and in 1893, 1895 and 1897 was re-elected, being the present incumbent of the office, which he has filled with efficiency. In all the local questions, as well as leading issues of the day, he has kept himself well posted, and is a man whose opinion carries weight. He has attended not only local, but also some of the state conventions of his party, and has been interested in its policy and prog- ress.

The marriage of Mr. Russell, in 1889, united him with Dollie E. McEntire, daughter of Eli

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McEntire. To this union three children have been born: George Oscar, Ray McEntire and Harry J. In fraternal connections Mr. Russell is a member of Antonito Lodge No. 63, I. O. O.F., of which he is past grand, and he is also identi- fied with the grand lodge of the state.

ACOB SEITZ, manager of the Bradford greenhouses in Colorado Springs, has held this position since March, 1897, but had been employed by the same company for sev- eral years previous. He has bought an in- terest in the company and has been the means of enlarging its business and promoting its pros- perity. The greenhouses have about thirty-five thousand square feet of glass and are filled with plants of every variety, the specialty being roses, of which there are many varieties. Flowers are sold, both wholesale and retail, the principal business in winter being the sale of cut flowers. In 1898 Mr. Seitz designed and executed "Our Heroes," a monument of dahlias, the top of which was white, and the lower part colored. He was awarded the first prize for the most appropriate and finest design in the parade, it being a large cannon with rifles, etc., made of flowers. In 1897 he executed the emblem of Colorado in natural flowers. He is often called upon for decorative work, his taste in this line being well known. Violets and chrysanthemums of every variety are grown in the greenhouses, and he is now growing a new rose, the "Belle Siebrecht," the only one of the kind in the state.

The parents of Mr. Seitz were Tobias and Rose (Switzer) Seitz, natives respectively of Hesse- Darmstadt and Weil, Baden, Germany. The latter was a daughter of George Switzer, who brought his family to America and settled in Tell City, Ind., where he owned coal lands and a large farm. Tobias Seitz, who was a teacher in Ger- many, engaged in the gardening business after coming to the United States; he settled in Cincin- nati and through economy accumulated a fine property. He and his wife are still living. They have five children: Theresa, who is in Montana; Frances, Jacob, Rose and John, the last-named in California, while Frances and Rose live in Cin- cinnati.

The subject of this sketch was born in Cincin- nati, Ohio, February 5, 1860. His mother was much interested in flowers and from her he in- herited the taste for floriculture. At the age of thirteen he was apprenticed to a florist in Cincin-

nati, with whom he remained for three years as an apprentice, and four years as an employe. In 1880 he came to Colorado, but at first engaged in railroading in Leadville, in the employ of the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad. In 1882 he went to Denver. The next year he took charge of the greenhouses owned by E. C. Witter & Co. Later, with a partner, he bought five acres in North Denver and started greenhouses there, but his partner proved to be dishonest, and after three months the business was discontinued. In 1884 he leased the Witter place. A year later he hired to Russell, the rose grower, with whom he re- mained for two years, and afterward was mana- ger for Witter & Co. In 1890 he came to Colo- rado Springs and for three years was foreman for William Clark, later was employed by the Brad- ford Nursery Company for four years as an assis- tant, and since 1897 as superintendent. In poli- tics he is a Republican and fraternally is identified with the Royal Arcanum. His marriage took place in Denver, and united him with Miss Pauline Berger, who was born in Sabula, Iowa, whence the family moved to Missouri and from there went to Marshalltown, Iowa. They have two children, Hattie and Earl.

RANT E. RHODES, proprietor of the Pal- ace livery stables in Pueblo, came to this city in 1888. He had nothing to call his own except a team of horses, and with these he engaged to do hauling for the Pueblo Smelting and Refining Company. He gradually increased the number of his teams, and after a time began to employ others as drivers, and at this writing he has between sixteen and twenty men employed to drive his teams; these drivers, with their fore- man, continue to haul for the same company. Since 1897 Mr. Rhodes has given his attention principally to the livery business, having given the superintendency of the other work over into his foreman's hands. He is a thorough business man, and without the assistance of even a dollar from anyone, has worked his way forward to a position of assured success.

Our subject's father, Edwin C. Rhodes, was a contractor in Iowa. During the Civil war he en- listed as a member of the Second Iowa Cavalry, in which he served until the close of the struggle, afterward returning to his home. His wife, Mary (Cady) Rhodes, who was born in Iowa, died when her children were quite small, and he soon followed her, leaving our subject with the care of

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three smaller brothers and two sisters. With heroic determination and courage he resolved to keep the family together, and this he succeeded in doing, rearing and educating them, and pre- paring them for the responsibilities of life. One of the family, a younger brother, who was ill during almost his entire life, died March 8, 1899.

With this responsibility resting npon him, it may be understood that Mr. Rhodes had little opportunity for enjoying the usual boyish sports, or for acquiring an education. He was born in Tama County, Iowa, October 16, 1872, but spent his boyhood years principally in Holt County, Mo. Any kind of employment it was possible to secure, from that of errand boy to grocery clerk, he gladly accepted, and worked from early in the morning until late at night, in order that he might provide clothing and food for the other members of the family, for with generous self- forgetfulness he thought less of himself than o f them and their needs. Since he came to Pueblo he has been successful and has secured a compe- tency, of which he is very deserving. The close attention which he has given to business has pre- vented him from identifying himself with polit- ical or public affairs. Fraternally he is a mem- ber of the Woodmen of the World and the An- cient Order of Foresters.

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Portrait and biographical record of the state of Colorado, containing portraits and biographies of many well known citizens of the past and present, Part 111

Author: Chapman Publishing Company, Chicago, pub Publication date: 1899 Publisher: Chicago, Chapman Publishing Co. Number of Pages: 1530

Author: Chapman Publishing Company, Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1899
Publisher: Chicago, Chapman Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 1530