Portrait and biographical record of the state of Colorado, containing portraits and biographies of many well known citizens of the past and present, Part 41

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

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A LSTON ELLIS, A. M., PH. D., LL.D. Presi- dent of The State Agricultural College of Colorado since 1892 and for the same period a resident of Fort Collins, is a member of an old Virginia family, from which state his great-grand- father enlisted in the war of the Revolution and after its close removed with his family to Ken- tucky. His wife was a woman of great worth of character and lived to be ninety-nine years old. Their son, Rev. John G. Ellis, was born in the Old Dominion, but spent his life principally in Kentucky, and was well known, not only in that state, but also in Ohio and Indiana. Thongh his residence was in a slave state, he strongly op- posed slavery.

Absalom Ellis, father of the subject of this sketch, was born in Kenton County, Ky., a de- scendant, on his mother's side, of Holland-Dutch ancestry, and on his father's side of Scotch pro- genitors. He married an own cousin, Mary Ellis, whose mother was Miss Susan Arnold, of Irish descent; and her father, William G. Ellis, a brother of Rev. John G. Ellis, was one of the largest land owners and wealthiest men in Kenton County. He owned a large number of slaves, but rather inclined toward emancipation on prin- ciple; and when, one night, all his slaves but one superanuated old man took the underground rail- road .for Ohio, he made no effort whatever to capture them.

After spending some years as a farmer in Ken- ton County, Absalom Ellis removed to Coving- ton, Ky., in 1863, where he engaged in the man-

ufacture of all grades of tobacco. About 1888 he retired to his farm in Kenton County, and there died July 2, 1894, when past seventy years of age. He was an active worker in the Christian Church and served as deacon in his congregation. His widow is living in Covington, Ky., and is now (1898) in her sixty-sixth year.

The only child of his parents, Alston Ellis was born on a farm in Kenton County January 26, 1847. When he was a boy schools were con- ducted on the subscription plan, and were far in- ferior to the free schools of the present day, but he nevertheless secured from them a substantial basis for his present knowledge. When fifteen years of age he accompanied his parents to Cov- ington, where he attended a private school con- ducted by S. Mead, a noted teacher of his day. There he prepared for college, but before enter- ing his collegiate course he taught a country school near Carrollton, Ky., for five months, re- ceiving $8 per month of public money and suffi- cient voluntary subscriptions to swell the total to $40 per month. At the expiration of the term he returned home and worked for some months in the factory owned by his father.

In September, 1864, he entered the sophomore class of Miami University at Oxford, Ohio, and three years later graduated with honor. While in college he was known as a splendid Latin and Greek scholar and as a ready debater and an ex- cellent speaker. During his senior year he de- livered four public addresses besides being chosen by the students to deliver the oration on Wash- ington's birthday. Soon after he graduated he was married, July 23, 1867, to Miss Katherine Ann Cox, who was born in Westchester, Butler County, Ohio, a daughter of Capt. Abram P. and Elizabeth ( Howery) Cox. Her father, wlio gained his title through meritorious service in the Union army during the Civil war, studied law in the office of Hon. Lewis D. Campbell, uncle of the late governor of Ohio, and afterward became associated with Gen. Ferd. Van Derveer in the practice of law at Hamilton. At the time of his death, in 1872, he was one of the most prominent members of the Butler County bar. His widow is now living in Westchester.

In September, 1867, Mr. Ellis became princi- pal of a ward school in Covington, Ky., at a sal- ary of $900 per year, which was increased to $1,000 before the expiration of the school year.

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In January, 1869, he was chosen principal of a Dr. Alston Ellis while he was engaged in super- intending the schools of Sandusky, be it

school in Newport, Ky., at $1,200 per year, and was re-elected at $1,500. In July, 1871, he was made superintendent of the schools of Hamilton, Ohio, which position he filled with the greatest efficiency for over seven years, resigning in March, 1879, to accept a position with Harper Brothers, with headquarters in Columbus, Ohio, at a salary of $3,000 per year. In February, 1875, he was appointed a member of the Ohio state board of school examiners and was at once made clerk of that body, continuing until April, 1879. In 1887 he was again made a member of the board, and in 1891 re-appointed for a term of five years. While filling this position, in 1876, he wrote a chapter entitled "The Ungraded Schools of Ohio" for the History of Education, issued as a centennial volume and published by authority of the general assembly. In 1872 he was made Master of Arts by his alma mater, and the same year delivered the diplomas to the grad- uates of the Erodelphian and Miami Union liter- ary societies of the university. In 1888 he was chosen by the same societies to deliver the annual address. He received the degree of Doctor of Philosophy from Wooster University in 1879, and the same degree from the Ohio State University in 1888. Two years later the Ohio State Uni- versity conferred upon him the degree of Doctor of Laws, and the same degree was conferred upon him by his alma mater in 1894. In 1880 he was made a member of the Victoria Institute, the philosophical society of Great Britain, and sub- sequently was made a life member of this noted institution, of which Queen Victoria is a noted patron. In the fall of 1880 he delivered the ora- tion at the biennial convention of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity at Indianapolis, he having been an active member of this fraternity during his college course.

From 1880 to 1887 Dr. Ellis was superintend- ent of the Sandusky (Ohio) schools, and brought them to a high state of efficiency. Here he man- ifested a warm interest in the work of the teach- ers of Erie County and received recognition there- for in action taken by the Erie County Teachers' Association at Milan, Ohio, October 15, 1887, as follows:

" In consideration of the valuable services ren- dered the Erie County Teachers' Association by

"Resolved, That we; the teachers of Erie Coun- ty, in assembly here, do tender him a vote of thanks for the interest which he manifested in behalf of our association.

"Resolved, That in token of our appreciation of his aid in the upbuilding of this association, we authorize the special committee, appointed this morning, to prepare and forward to him such a badge or pin as can be purchased with the do- nations made to-day by individnal members who shall subscribe to the fund for that purpose."

(Signed) H. A. MYERS, A. A. BARTOW, ELIZA G. HORTON,

Committee.

This action was taken two months after he had accepted his former position at the head of the Hamilton schools and entered upon the duties of the office. In Hamilton his salary was soon in- creased from $2,700 to $3,000 per annum. Soon after he first went to that city he began to work in teachers' institutes, and his services as normal instructor have been in demand ever since. For some years he devoted the summer months to work in Ohio farmers' institutes, under the au- thority of the Ohio state board of agriculture. When the Ohio Agricultural and Mechanical College was made, by legislative act, the Ohio State University, he became a member of the new board of trustees, serving for five years. In all teachers' associations of his state he main- tained a deep interest. He was a member of the State Teachers' Association, also the Central Ohio, Northeastern Ohio, Northwestern Ohio and Southwestern Ohio Teachers' Associations, and was president of the two last named. He was president of the superintendents' section of the Ohio Teachers' Association in 1875, and president of the General Association in 1888. For more than twelve years he was clerk of the Butler County Board of School Examiners.

On the departure of Dr. Ellis from Ohio the Butler County Teachers' Association passed the following resolutions:

"Resolved, That we take leave of Dr. Alston Ellis with sincere regret, feeling that his depart- tre is a serious loss to our county and state; but we congratulate the people of Colorado on hav- ing secured the services of so distinguished an educator,

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"Resolved, That the members of the Butler County Teachers' Association extend to Dr. Ellis their hearty congratulations and their best wishes for his success in his distant field of la- bor.

"Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions be presented to Dr. Ellis, and that they be furnished for publication in the county papers and in the Ohio Educational Monthly."

(Signed) B. B. HARLAN, JOHN MORRIS, W. P. COPE, Committee.

On the afternoon of the day Dr. Ellis left Ham- ilton for the west a number of the prominent citi- zens repaired to his office in the courthouse to give him "hail and farewell." They left with him a beautiful and substantial token of their re- gard for him as a citizen and their appreciation of his services as an educator, in the shape of a heavy gold watch of superior workmanship with the following inscription within the case:

"Presented to Dr. Alston Ellis by the citizens of Hamilton, Ohio, 1892."

The presentation speech was made by Judge P. G. Berry, since deceased, and was an eloquent and timely tribute to the worth and professional zeal of the man who had given the schools of the city thirteen years of devoted service. Hon. Thomas Millikin, the Nestor of the Butler Coun- ty bar, and others of those present made fitting remarks expressive of regret at the near depart- ure of their friend and best wishes for his future success and happiness.

In the fall of 1891, when Dr. Ellis was first tendered the presidency of the State Agricultural College of Colorado, he declined it, but on the renewal of negotiations in January, 1892, he ac- cepted it for a term of five years, at an annual salary of $6,000. The college was opened in 1879, and at the close of the college year of 1891 it had one hundred and six students. Since he assumed its management it has had its great suc- cess, and at the close of the school year of 1898 it had three hundred and forty-seven students. The course of study has been broadened and the standard of attainment materially increased. The grounds and buildings are attractive and well kept, and the annual revenne, amounting to almost $90,000, is received equally from the state and the general government. Most of the build- ings have been erected since 1891, and the other

buildings have been remodeled and enlarged. A sum not less than $50,000 has been expended for scientific and technical apparatus. The li- brary, which is open for the entire year, contains eleven thousand choice volumes. The total val- uation of college property is $275,000.

The college is one of the land-grant institutions established by congressional acts, known better as the Morrill Bills of 1862 and 1890, by the pro- visions of which the institution is required to pro- vide for the liberal and practical education of the industrial classes. The courses provided are ag- ricultural, mechanical engineering, civil and irri- gation engineering, ladies', and commercial. The location of the grounds is picturesque. They lie in the valley with the beautiful moun- tains in the rear, and form a picture to delight the eye and satisfy the mind. The grounds have been highly improved since Dr. Ellis became president, and most of the buildings have been erected under his personal supervision.

At the convention of the Colorado State Teach- ers' Association in Colorado Springs, in Decem- ber, 1893, Dr. Ellis delivered the annual address. In 1895 he was chairman of the college section of the same association. He is even more active in institute work in Colorado than he was in Ohio, giving his services gladly and without remunera- tion. He has lectured before associations of every kind in the state, and in the last six years has probably given more addresses than any other-one in the entire state. During vacation months he travels in the interests of the college, lectures in various places and attends to the in- terests of the college at home, so that he is kept constantly busy. His private library is one of the best in the state, and much of his leisure time is given to literary and historical research, for he continues to be a close student.

While in Sandusky, Ohio, he was raised to the rank of Master Mason in Science Lodge No. 50, A. F. & A. M. Later he became a member of Erie Commandery No. 23, K. T. He is now identified with Collins Lodge No. 19, A. F. & A. M., Chapter No. 11, R. A. M., and DeMolay Commandery No. 13, K. T.

June 8, 1893, Dr. Ellis was made a director of the Colorado Experiment Station, which position he has since held. February 18, 1893, he was. commissioned colonel and aide-de-camp on the staff of Governor Waite, commander-in-chief of

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the military forces of Colorado. Again, May 28, 1895, he was commissioned colonel and aide-de- camp by Gov. Albert W. McIntire. He is a prominent member of the American Association of Agricultural Colleges and Experiment Stations. At the annual meeting of the association held at Minneapolis in July, 1897, he was made chair- man of the college section and vice-president of the general association.

On the evening of July 3, 1895, at Johnson's Island, in Sandusky Bay, Ohio, President Ellis delivered the annual address before the Ohio Teachers' Association. The subject was "Edu- cation and Citizenship." At the session of the convention held the following morning the chair- man of the executive committee introduced the following resolution, which was unanimously adopted:

"Resolved, By the teachers of Ohio in State As- sociation assembled, that we most highly appre- ciate the generosity of our former associate and friend, President Alston Ellis, and that as an ex- pression of our thanks, we hereby elect President Ellis a life member of our association."

At the afternoon session of the association on the same day, the committee on resolutions made report as follows:

"Resolved, That the thanks of the association are due to the old friend of its members, who came from such a distance to meet again with us and to stir in us noble sentiments by his eloquent address, patriotic in the highest sense of the word."

Dr. Ellis has a fine presence and a genial per- sonality, from which an air of dignity and re- serve force is rarely absent. Not only is he a fine scholar and executive officer, but as an in- spiring and thought-provoking teacher he has but few equals. In class-room work in his specialties, logic, economics and civics, he stands almost without a rival. Students under his in- struction have the best that scholarship, enthu- siasmı and experience can bring to bear upon the studies they are pursuing.

President Ellis has added to the material wel- fare of his adopted state not alone through the rapid upbuilding of its great industrial school and the wise direction of the practical workings of the experiment stations; he has invested largely in real estate in Fort Collins and vicinity and is to-day one of the heaviest tax-payers in

Larimer County, Since assuming the presidency of the college he has used his means in the erec- tion of a number of handsome dwellings, possess- ing architectural merit and having modern con- veniences, which now ornament some of the spacious avenues of Fort Collins and afford eligi- ble homes for a number of families. .

Dr. and Mrs. Ellis are closely identified with the best social life of Fort Collins and northern Colorado. The doors of their elegant home are frequently thrown open to the members of the social circle to which they belong, on which oc- casion geniality and open-hearted, but not osten- tatious, hospitality characterize the manners of host and hostess. The " President's Reception," given annually in commencement week, is one of the events in college social life. Faculty par- ties, dinners to members of the college governing board, receptions and luncheons for students, and other functions connected with the life of hospit- able entertainers, make the parlors of President Ellis' home almost as well known to those con- nected with or interested in college work as are the interiors of the college buildings themselves.

President Ellis takes a high moral view of pub- lic education in all its phases. As the head of a great state school, whose financial support comes largely from the pockets of tax-payers represent- ing, as they do, almost every shade of religious belief, he recognizes that religious instruction, as bounded by denominational lines, would be out of place in the daily chapel exercises, attendance upon which is required of all students; yet these exercises, planned as they are by the president and prepared in most cases by him, are not with- out sound moral, and even religious lessons. Private religious belief-even unbelief-of stu- dents is respected in all the work of the college, but wrongdoing is never suffered to pass unre- buked, and the necessity of educating the heart and directing the conscience, character building, is never lost sight of. The religious affiliations of Dr. and Mrs. Ellis are with the Congregational Church, of which organization they became mem- bers in 1881, in the time of their residence in Sandusky, Ohio.

C OHN J. FRASER. The Brown-Iliff Cattle Company, of which Mr. Fraser is a member, is among the best-known concerns of the kind in Colorado. They own an immense tract

Hedley Brannund

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PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

of land, lying principally in Weld County, and embracing the territory extending from the South Platte to the Wyoming line. Of the land twenty thousand acres lie along the river, thus furnish- ing an abundant supply of water for the stock. The headquarters of the company are five miles west of Merino, and shipments are made from Snyder, Colo., to various points in the east, but chiefly to Omaha. The entire management of the ranch and range is in charge of Mr. Fraser, who, though making his home in Denver, neces- sarily spends much of his time on the range.

The father of our subject, Henry Fraser, was born in Scotland, but removed to Ontario, Can- ada, and engaged in farming near Ottawa, where he died when John was five years of age. The wife and mother, who bore the maiden name of Sarah Wright, was born in Canada and died there when John was an infant. They had a large family of children, of whom three are living: Samnel, in Oakland, Cal .; John J., the youngest of the fam- ily; and a sister, who was formerly Mrs. J. W. Iliff, but who is now the wife of Bishop Warren. One brother, Brock, fought all through the con- flict. He enlisted with the Chicago Zouaves and later joined other organizations, serving last in the heavy artillery. He was accidentally killed while engaged in the construction of the Union Pacific Railroad west of Cheyenne.

When quite young our subject left the farm near Ottawa, where he was born, and went to Henry County, Ill., where he grew to manhood on a farm. He attended the Henry County dis- trict schools and Lake Forest Academy. In the spring of 1870 he came to Colorado, where he spent a year near Pueblo, and then entered the employ of his brother-in-law, Mr. Iliff. In time he became financially interested in the business, and after the death of Mr. Iliff he became a mem- ber of the Brown-Iliff Cattle Company. In the winter of 1873-74 a large camp of Indians, prin- cipally Sioux, camped around Mr. Fraser's ranch, but to their credit be it said they never stole any- thing from the ranch nor made a disturbance of any kind. Since 1878 he has resided in Denver, where he is a member of the Grace Methodist Episcopal Church. In national politics he is a Republican.

In Denver Mr. Fraser married Miss Lois Morse, who was born in Berea, a suburb of Cleveland, Ohio, and is of English descent, her

ancestors, eight generations back, having been among the Puritans who settled in Dedham, Mass., in 1635. They were prominent in public affairs, serving as selectmen and in other offices of trust, and later having representatives in the Colonial and Revolutionary wars. Her grandfa- ther, Nathaniel Morse, was born in Massachu- setts and removed to Shelby, N. Y., where he died. Her father, Charles Morse, a native of Warwick, Mass., was a pioneer of Berea, Ohio, where he engaged in the lumber business until his death at forty-eight years. He married Emma Robards, who was born near Saratoga, N. Y., her parents being natives of England. She is still living and makes her home in Cleve- land. In her family there are three children, namely: Lucius D. Morse, M. D., a retired phy- sician of Atlanta, Ga .; Mrs. Laura Andrews, of Cleveland, a graduate of Baldwin University in Ohio; and Lois, Mrs. Fraser, also a graduate of Baldwin University, with the degree of B. S.

2 JOL. WESLEY BRAINERD, president and manager of the Chicago and Colorado Mining and Milling Company, owners of Camp Tal- cott, at Ward, Boulder County, was born in Rome, Oneida County, N. Y., September 27, 1832, and is the descendant of a family that settled in Haddam, Conn., early in the seven- teenth century. His grandfather, Jeremiah Brain- erd, who was born and reared in that old town, subsequently removed to New York state, be- coming a contractor on the Erie Canal.

Alexander Hamilton Brainerd, a native of Haddam, Conn., and father of the subject of this article, became a civil engineer and railroad con- tractor, and had the contract for a part of the Hudson River Railroad, also in 1848-50 built allthe bridges on that road. Among his other contracts some were in Canada. For a time lie operated car manufacturing shops in Niagara, Canada, and large iron mills at St. Albans, Vt. After his retirement from active business he made his home in Rome, N. Y., where he died in 1879, aged seventy-two years. His maternal grandfather, Col. Daniel Greene, was a colonel in the Revolu- tionary war and a Mason of the Royal Arch de- gree; he died in York state, as did also his daughter, Elizabeth, wife of Jeremiah Brainerd. The mother of our subject was Mary Gouge, a descendant of a

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French-Huguenot family that settled at Trenton Falls, N. Y .; she died in Rome, that state, when thirty-two years of age.

The only child of Alexander H. and Mary Brainerd that attained years of maturity was Wesley. He was educated principally in Rome Academy. At the age of fifteen he went with his father, as assistant in the construction of the Hudson River Railroad contract. Continuing there until 1850, he then went to Philadelphia, Pa., and became an apprentice in the Norris Lo- comotive Company's works, where he completed the trade of dranghtsman and locomotive builder in 1854. For four years afterward he continued with the company as draughtsman and aided in the starting of locomotives in different sections of the United States and Canada. Next going to Georgia, he accepted a position as master mechanic of a railroad, where he remained until, seeing that war was inevitable, he returned north to Rome, N. Y., and engaged in manufacturing and milling.

At the opening of the war, in 1861, he was the captain of a local company known as the Ganse- vort Light Guards of Rome, which took its name from an old colonel who had been in command of Fort Stanwix. He at once raised a company for the Fiftieth New York Engineers and was com- missioned captain of Company C, which was mustered into service at Elmira, and went to the front in August, 1861. Among the engagements in which he participated were Yorktown, Gaines' Mills, White Oak Swamp, Savage Station, Mal- vern Hill, second battle of Bull Run, Antietam, Harper's Ferry and Fredericksburg. In Decem- ber, 1862, he laid the pontoon bridges at the Lacy House in front of Fredericksburg, and while thus engaged he was wounded in the left arm. For meritorious service he was promoted and commissioned major. After a short time in the hospital he returned to duty and took part, in the following months, in the battles of Chan- cellorsville, Franklin's Crossing and Gettysburg. Receiving a second promotion for bravery, he was brevetted lieutenant-colonel of the same regiment, his commission being signed by President Lincoln. The next engagements in which he participated were the battles of the Wilderness, Spottsylvania, North Anna, Cold Harbor, and the battles before and during the siege of Petersburg in 1864. In November, 1864, he was promoted and commis-

sioned colonel of the Fifteenth New York En- gineers by Governor Seymour, and continued in active command of his regiment until the close of the war, with the exception of the time (1864-65) when General Grant had his headquarters at City Point and Colonel Brainerd had command of the defenses of that place. He took part in the final assault and fall of Petersburg in April, 1865, and shortly afterward participated in the grand review at Washington, where he led the Fifteenth as their commander. He was mustered out of the service in June, 1865.

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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 41

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