Portrait and biographical record of the state of Colorado, containing portraits and biographies of many well known citizens of the past and present, Part 199

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 199

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r HARLES T. CARNAHAN, manager of the Resurrection Gold Mining Company and a large owner of its stock, has his office in the American Bank building in Leadville, but makes his home in Denver. He is a member of a family that was represented among the early settlers of western Pennsylvania, where his great- grandfather settled in early manhood. Born in Cadiz, Ohio, in 1861, he is a son of Andrew Hen- derson and Elizabeth (Wood) Carnahan. His father, a native of Ohio, has spent the principal part of his life as a produce dealer and at this writing is still actively engaged in business. He has never held or sought public office, but is nevertheless interested in public affairs and is a stanch Republican. His straightforward, honest life has brought him the respect of all his asso- ciates, and he is highly esteemed in his home locality. He is a son of John Carnahan, who re-

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moved from Pennsylvania to Ohio at fourteen years of age and engaged successfully in farm pursuits. The maternal grandfather of our sub- ject, Williamı Wood, migrated from Massachu- setts to Ohio when a young man; he was a de- scendant of an English family that was repre- sented among the pioneers of New England. Further reference to the family appears in the sketch of T. S. Wood.

The family of which our subject is a member consists of five sons and three daughters. Of these, Frank W. is engaged in mining in North Carolina; John S. is interested in mines in Mon- terey, Mexico; George H. is connected with mines in Mexico; Lee, the youngest son, is still with his parents; Florence is the wife of Percy Ham- mond; Tempe L. and Alice are at home.

After having received a fair education in the high school of his native town, the subject of this sketch came to Colorado, arriving in Leadville in January, 1881. Since that time he has de- voted himself to mining. For a time he was assayer of the Billy Chief mine. Now, as before stated, he is manager and part-owner of the Res- urrection gold mine, and has been connected with this company since its organization in 1893. By giving strict attention to his business he has met with a commendable degree of success. He is a Republican in politics, but is not active in public affairs and has no desire for prominence in muni- cipal matters, preferring to devote himself to the development of his mining interests in Leadville. In 1893 he married Cora, daughter of Eben Smith, who resides in Denver, and has been en- gaged in mining at Leadville and Cripple Creek. Mr. and Mrs. Carnahan have two children, Har- old and Doris.

AMES HENRY HARRISON LOW, justice of the peace, and a resident of Pueblo since January, 1891, is a representative of a New York family that were pioneer farmers of Indiana. His father, Erastus M. Low, was born in Indiana and was orphaned at an early age. He was reared in Elizabeth, Harrison County, and in youth learned the blacksmith's trade, which he has followed through his entire active life. He is now living in Gibson County, Ind. His mar- riage united him with Martha J. Hubbard, who was born near New Albany, Ind., and was a member of a Pennsylvania family; her father, John Hubbard, was a merchant and engaged in freighting goods down the Olio River.

Of six children (all living) the subject of this sketch was next to the oldest and is the only one in Colorado. He was born near New Albany, Ind., October 18, 1856, and in youth attended the public and high schools. At eighteen years of age he began to teach school. Three years later he went to Bloomington, Ill., and in March, 1879, entered the State Normal School at Nor- mal, Ill., where he remained for three years, teaching during vacations in order to defray his expenses. In 1882 he became an employe of the Bloomington Daily Leader, for whom he traveled until September, 1884, and then resigned in order to come to Colorado.

As principal of different schools in Custer County, Mr. Low spent his first years in Colo- rado. At the same time he continued the study of law, which he had carried on in Indiana and Illinois. He also served as deputy assessor of Custer County. In 1889 he was admitted to the Colorado bar and engaged in practice at Silver Cliff, remaining there until his removal to Pueblo in January, 1891. For a short time he was a member of the firm of Reeve & Low, after which he practiced alone. In 1891-92 he was city at- torney of Bessemer, and, being the first to hold that office, he has in his charge the drawing up of the city ordinances.

In 1896 Mr. Low was nominated on the Re- publican ticket as justice of the peace of precinct No. I, of Pueblo, and was elected by a majority of seven hundred. He had already had some ex- perience in the office, having in July, 1896, re- ceived from the county commissioners an ap- pointment to fill a vacancy in the position. He took charge of the office by election, in January, 1897, and in the fall of 1898 was again nomin- ated by the Republicans to continue in the posi- tion he had so efficiently filled.

The marriage of Mr. Low took place in El Paso, Ill., and united him with Miss Ella D. Smith, who was born in Ohio and received an excel- lent education in- the State Normal School of Illinois. Four children comprise their family, Harold Townsend, Percy Hubbard, Sibyl and James Henry Harrison, Jr. The family are con- nected with the Episcopal Church, in which Mr. Low has been a vestryman. While in Illinois he was made a Mason. He became a charter mem- ber of Silver State Lodge No. 95, A. F. & A. M., of which he is the present master. He is also identified with Pueblo Chapter No. 12, R. A. M. The Benevolent Protective Order of Elks number

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him among their members. In the Independent Order of Foresters he is high secretary for the jurisdiction of Colorado, which includes Colorado, Utah, New Mexico and Arizona. He was a char- ter member of Court No. 79, at Pueblo, the first conrt organized in the state. At the organiza- tion of the high court of Colorado he became the first high secretary, and has held the position since. At the session of the high court in 1898 he was elected delegate to the supreme court of the order and in August of that year attended the triennial session at Toronto.

ILLIAM H. YOUNG, M. D. No resident in Rio Blanco County has a higher repu- tation for professional skill and intellectual ability than the subject of this sketch. Since he established his home in Meeker he has built up a good practice in medicine, and has also given considerable attention to the management of his ranch and the discharge of his duties as a county official.

Dr. Young was born in Ohio in 1846, a son of John and Lydia (Booth) Young, natives respect- ively of Prussia and Ohio. His father came to America in boyhood and afterward spent the most of his life in that state, where he followed his father's occupation of farming and milling. He was a soldier in the war of 1812 and the Mexican war, and his oldest son, Isaac, rendered excellent service as a physician and surgeon in the Twenty-seventh Ohio Infantry during the Civil war.

Inheriting from his father a patriotic spirit, the subject of this sketch was led in early life to offer his services to the government during the Civil war. In 1864 he entered the One Hundred and Ninety-seventh Ohio Infantry, in which he served until the close of the war. On returning home he taught school for a short time, and also carried on the study of medicine. He attended medical colleges at Cleveland, Ohio, and Keo- knk, Iowa. He commenced the practice of his profession in his home town, and continued there until 1883, when he removed to Kansas. He became prominent in his community in Kansas. In connection with his practice of medicine, he also carried on a drug store. But business af- fairs and professional interests did not represent the limit of his activities. He served two terms in the state legislature and was most helpful in promoting the welfare of the state and the special needs of liis constituents. On account of poor

health he was obliged to dispose of his property interests in Kansas and seek a climate that would prove more congenial. Hoping to be benefited in Oregon he settled at Salem, where he engaged in practice for two years. From there he returned as far east as Colorado, where he has engaged in practice since 1890. He has erected a neat resi- dence and owns a fine ranch joining the village of Meeker. As a stock-dealer he has been quite successful, and this industry affords a relaxation from his professional duties and official cares.

While Dr. Young has never affiliated with any political organization, he has recently acted with the People's party, whose platform more nearly represents his views than any other. In 1890 he was elected county superintendent of schools, and has been re-elected at each succeeding election. For years he has been a member of the Masonic order, and he is also connected with the Odd Fel- lows. In 1876 he married Miss Eliza J. Taylor, who was born in Ohio, and by whom he has four children.

LIAS W. KEARBY, M. D. The village of Rocky Ford was started in 1887 and two years later the county of Otero was formed from Bent County. During the latter year, while the town was still in its incipient stages of growth, Dr.' Kearby began the practice of his pro- fession here, at the same time carrying on a drug store. With the subsequent growth of the place he has been intimately connected. Its enter- prises have received the impetus of his encour- agement and assistance. Among the local busi- ness enterprises with which he has been most closely associated is the canning factory, which he assisted in organizing, and of which he has since been president and a director.

Born in Paoli, Orange County, Ind., Septem- ber 17, 1853, our subject was only one year old when taken by his parents to Madrid, Iowa, and in the latter town his boyhood days were spent. He attended local public schools and was a stu- dent in the college at Grinnell, Iowa. The study of medicine he began under the preceptorship of Dr. G. W. Gwynn, of Madrid, with whom he re- mained for three years. He then entered the Louisville (Ky.) Medical College, from which he graduated in June, 1881. His first place of prac- tice was Elkhart, Polk County, Iowa, and there he remained until he came to Colorado in 1889. He spent a month in Colorado Springs and from there came to liis present location in Rocky Ford.

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As a worker in the Republican party, Dr. Kearby has been active in politics, and especially interested in local issues. During his connection of seven years with the school board of Rocky Ford, he rendered most efficient service. Since 1891 he has held office as secretary of the board of pension examiners, and since 1890 he has been local surgeon for the Santa Fe Railroad. Fra- ternally he is associated with the Woodmen of the World, the Maccabees, the local lodge of Odd Fellows (in which he has passed all the chairs) ; and he is also connected with St. John's Lodge No. 75, A. F. & A. M., at Rocky Ford; and the chapter and commandery at La Junta. He is married and has one son.

A B. BOYLAN, police judge of Victor, was born in Allegany County, N. Y., July 21, 1847, a son of Firman Boylan. His father and grandfather were natives of New Jersey; on his mother's side he is of Revolutionary stock. En- gaged in the mercantile and lumber business, and also heavily interested in agricultural pursuits, Fir- man Boylan was a prominent and influential citi- zen of his locality, and a village near his home was named in his honor. Our subject was edu- cated in the public schools and commercial col- lege of Elmira. His first work was as a tele- graph operator on the Erie Railroad, and he re- mained with that company from the age of four- teen until nineteen. Then going to Chicago, he accepted a position with the Western Union Tele- graph Company, but soon resumed his connec- tion with the Erie Railroad Company as relief agent, and for eighteen months continued in that position.

Upon resigning his connection with the rail- road, Mr. Boylan went to Minnesota, but owing to ill health soon crossed the 'line into British America, where he was with the Hudson Bay Company for two years. Later he was with the St. Paul & Pacific Railroad, running from St. Paul to St. Cloud, at which latter place he was cashier for two and one-half years. For six years he was agent for the St. Paul & Sioux City Rail- road. In 1873 he removed to Kansas and set- tled at Lincoln, where for teu years he was con- nected with the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad.

Finally turning his attention to other work, Mr. Boylan became interested in the stock busi- ness, and also conducted a newspaper in Kearney County. For thirteen years he served as trustee

of Lakin Township. In 1892 he came to Colo- rado as agent for the Santa Fe at Monument, where he remained for four years. In Novem- ber, 1895, he settled in Victor, and embarked in mining and the real-estate business, since which time he has done much to develop the interests of this district. Active in the Democratic party, he has been a delegate to county and state con- ventions, and has served as a member of the state central committee ever since coming to the coun- ty. In April, 1898, he was elected police jndge, and has been efficient in the discharge of his duties. Fraternally he is a Mason. He and his wife have a daughter and son: Lenora V., wife of Harry Tate, of Lakin, Kan .; and Am- brose B., who is in Albuquerque, N. M.

ALTER I. BRUSH, who is one of the well-known residents of Logan County and carries on a livery business in Sterling, was born near Greeley, Colo., April 26, 1868, being a son of Hou. J. L. Brush, ex-lieutenant governor of Colorado, and a man of great influence in the northern part of the state. In his boyhood he was the recipient of excellent educational advan- tages, having, in addition to the public school course, the advantage of study in the Denver University. He can scarcely recall the time when he was not interested in the stock business. The cattle industry had a fascination for him, and when he was ten he began working on the round- ups. In this way he spent the summer months for some years, while during the winter he at- tended school. His first independent venture was at sixteen years, when he secured a bunch of horses and began the breeding and raising of stock.

In 1888 Mr. Brush came to Sterling and en- tered the employ of the Western Union Beef Company, at that time one of the largest cattle companies in northeastern Colorado. Two years later he was made foreman of the company, and in this important position continued until the Ist of January, 1897, in the meantime superintend- ing his own stock interests as well. When the company closed out their cattle business he rented their ranchi and conducted it for himself during the summer of 1897. In the fall he sold his in- terests and purchased his present livery business, thinking in this way he could handle his numer- ous horses to better advantage. Through his superior business capacity, combined with geni-

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ality of manner and energy of character, he has built up a remunerative business, and stands high among the business men of the town.

For four years Mr. Brush was a member of the town council, after which he held the office of mayor. He has proved himself a public-spirited citizen, willing to foster all plans for the benefit of his town and county. Fraternally he is a member of Logan Lodge No. 69, I. O. O. F. He has always favored the men and measures of the Republican party, in whose principles he was reared, and to which he steadfastly adheres. In 1891 he married Miss Sarah Perkins, a daughter of R. C. Perkins. One child was born of the union, but is now deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Brush are identified with the Cumberland Presbyterian Church.

AVID B. DELZELL, county treasurer of Logan County, is one of the leading and representative business men of Sterling. In January, 1898, he purchased the general store of L. M. Judd, but after some six months he dis- posed of the business. At the beginning of the year 1899 he became a partner in the grocery business of O. E. Smith & Co., which firm con- ducts the only exclusive grocery business in the town, occupying a handsome business building which he erected for the purpose. He is serving his second term as county treasurer, in which office he has displayed accuracy, good judgment and fidelity to the county's interests.

December 20, 1855, Mr. Delzell was born in Richland County, Ill., to James Harvey and Mary E. (Wilson) Delzell, and was one of three children, his sisters being Dorcas A., wife of F. M. Jackson, agent for the Continental Oil Com- pany and also engaged in the express business in Sterling; and Mary E., wife of W. H. Conklin, a general merchant of Sterling. His father, a na- tive of Tennessee, born in 1831, accompanied his parents to Illinois in youth and settled in Rich- land County, where he married and settled on a farm. He was an enterprising man and, had his life been prolonged, would undoubtedly have at- tained success, but he died when only twenty- nine years of age. His wife afterward kept her three children together until they were ready to start out for themselves, and in 1881 was again married, her husband being John Young, with whom she came to Sterling, Colo., in the early '90s and here died in 1894.

When a boy our subject learned the carpenter's

trade. At twenty years of age he married Miss Lavina C. Atkinson, their wedding being solem- nized January 30, 1876. Afterward he engaged in farming in his native county, cultivating a tract of fifty acres received from his father's es- tate and also an additional thirty acres which he acquired by purchase. While cultivating his farm he also devoted considerable time to work- ing at his trade. In the spring of 1882 he emi- grated to Colorado and secured employment at his trade in Denver, where he also engaged in contracting and building. From Denver, in 1885, he came to Sterling, which was then in its in- fancy. For three months he worked at carpen- tering here, after which he accepted the manage- ment of the lumber yard of W. F. Thompson, which position he held for nine years, until the business was sold to the present owner, A. G. Sherwin. The latter, being unfamiliar with the business, retained Mr. Delzell's services until he had gained a comprehensive knowledge of de- tails, after which our subject turned his attention to his trade. He was elected county treasurer in 1896 and is now serving his second term in the office.

The first wife of Mr. Delzell died in 1883. Of her two children, one is living: Daisy D., wife of John B. Garst, of Marshall, Mo. In January, 1886, he was a second time married, his wife being Miss Hattie Isom, a native of Mississippi. One child blesses this union. Fraternally Mr. Delzell is connected with the Knights of Pythias; Logan Lodge No. 69, I. O. O. F., in which he has filled all of the chairs; and Sterling Lodge No. 54, A. F. & A. M. In his political opinions he is in sympathy with Republican principles. He is an active worker in the Cumberland Pres- byterian Church, and was the foreman in the construction of the building in which this congre- gation worships.

B YRON H. BRYANT, general superintend- ent of the Colorado Midland Railroad Com- pany, is a member of an eastern family that has been identified with the history of our conn- try from an early day and has borne an honorable part in the development of its resources. Of English and Irish extraction, they have inherited from one race, determination of character and force of will, and from the other, the faculty of making the best of every circumstance. The old home in Swansea, Mass., where several genera- tions were born, stood seven miles from the place

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where King Philip was killed. At that old homestead Caleb and his son, Emory D. Bryant, were born; and from there they removed to a farm near Woonsocket, R. I.

Emory D. Bryant, the father of our subject, was a soldier in the Florida or Seminole war. Prior to the Civil war he removed to Muskegon, Mich., and opened a mercantile store. During the war he raised Company H, Third Michigan Infantry, of which he was commissioned captain. Later he served in the One Hundred and Second United States, and marched with Sherman to Atlanta and the sea. The hardships and expo- sutre incident to army life injured his health, and he returned home, at the close of the war, an in- valid. In 1867 he passed away, at forty-five years of age. He had married Samantha P. Bal- lou, who was born near Woonsocket, R. I., and died in Milford, Mass., in 1853. She was a mem- ber of an old family of Rhode Island. Of her four children two died at twenty-four years of age, and one, Mrs. Julia S. Coon, is living in Ann Arbor, Mich.

At Woonsocket, R. I., where he was born July 25, 1847, the subject of this sketch acquired his education in public schools. In 1863 he removed to Michigan, and the following year, when less than seventeen years of age, he enlisted in the Fifth Michigan Cavalry, one of the four Michi- gan cavalry regiments which made up Custer's brigade of Sheridan's cavalry corps. He served with this regiment until July, 1865, when he was transferred to the First Michigan Cavalry at Fort Leavenworth, Kan. This regiment, together with the Sixth and Seventh Michigan, left Fort Leavenworth on July 9th for the Indian coun- try to protect the overland stage line during the Sioux war of 1865. Early in August the regi- ment arrived at Fort Collins. The soldiers were stationed at the various stage stations in the mountains, his assignment being at Fort Hallock. With every stage that crossed the plains, six mounted men were sent as guard. Finally, the Indians ceased to harass the white men and the troops were withdrawn. After spending the winter at Camp Douglas, Salt Lake City, our subject was mustered out and honorably dis- charged in March, 1866. He returned to Michi- gan in July and soon afterward matriculated in the college at Kalamazoo, but the death of his father the following year brought his college studies to an end.

Turning his attention to civil engineering, Mr.

Bryant secured employment on a survey for a rail- road line from Litchfield, Mich., to Fort Wayne, Ind., and after a time was employed at Battle Creek on the Pennsylvania Railroad, later was assistant division engineer at Kalamazoo on the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad, and from that position was promoted to be division engineer. In the spring of 1871 he accepted the position of chief engineer of the Grand Rapids & Holland Railroad, in which capacity he continued until the completion of the road. At Detroit he was lo- cating engineer and division engineer on the De- troit and Bay City Railroad, after the completion of which he went to Meadville, Pa., as locating engineer on the Atlantic & Great Western Rail- road (now the New York, Pennsylvania & Ohio). On his return to Michigan, in July, 1873, he was employed as chief engineer on the Chicago, Sagi- uaw & Canada Railroad.

In 1879 Mr. Bryant came to Colorado and ac- cepted a position as locating engineer on the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad and continued as resident engineer in charge of construction until March, 1884, during which time he had charge of the construction of nearly four hundred miles of that road. On resigning, he became construc- tion engineer with the Canadian Pacific, after which he was locating engineer on the Montana Central. In December, 1886, he resigned, and became assistant chief engineer with the Colorado Midland, establishing his headquarters in Colo- rado Springs. In August of the following year he was promoted to be chief engineer, and in July, 1890, was also made chief engineer of the Busk Tunnel Railroad, during the construction of the Busk tunnel. The position of superintendent of the Colorado Midland was tendered him in De- cember, 1892, in addition to that of chief engi- neer, and in May, 1895, the title was changed to general superintendent. He is a member of the Western Society of Civil Engineers of Chicago. In politics he is a stanchi Republican.

In St. Louis, Mich., Mr. Bryant married Miss E. A. Keunen, who was born in Coldwater, Mich. They have one son, Walter B.

HARLES J. ROBINSON, who is engaged in ranching near Fort Garland, Costilla County, was born near Chattanooga, Tenn., September 2, 1849. The years of his boyhood and youth were spent in that state. In 1875 he became interested in the cattle business on the Arkansas River west of Fort Dodge, Kan. In

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1881 he became special agent in the United States postal service, and as such continued until 1885. A severe blizzard in Kansas killed his cattle and destroyed the business he had established. In 1887 he came to Colorado. For a time he served as deputy sheriff under Daniel Gould.

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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 199

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