Portrait and biographical record of the state of Colorado, containing portraits and biographies of many well known citizens of the past and present, Part 65

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 65

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In athletics Mr. McReynolds has always been greatly interested. He has become a prominent football player, and the probable champion wrest- ler in Colorado, his reputation being such that no amateur can be prevailed upon to make a match with him. He has played as center rush, guard and tackle, and plays any point to advantage. In 1897 he and Mr. Carruthers held the first, sec- ond and third tandem records in the world, mak- ing one-third of a mile in thirty-four and four- fifths, one-half mile in fifty-five and three-fifths seconds, and two-thirds of a mile in one minute seventeen and two-fifths seconds, the first of which has never been beaten. As a wrestler, as already intimated, he ranks first in the state; he won the prize for middle weight boxing in the local club of 1891. He is a member of the Broth- erhood of American Yeomen and of the Junior Order United American Mechanics.

In Colorado Springs Mr. McReynolds married Miss Maggie M. Messing, who was born in Ohio.

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PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

He is a Republican in national politics. In 1892 he enlisted in Troop A, First Regiment, C. N. G., and served for four and one-half years, when the company was mustered out of service and honor- ably discharged. During his period of service as a member of the guard he was called out to quell the Bull Hill riots in Cripple Creek.

12 AVID S. ELLIOTT. Seven miles northwest of Caddoa, Bent County, on section 21, township 22, range 50 west, lie one hundred and sixty acres that comprise the homestead of Mr. Elliott. This land he secured by homestead and timber claim, and in 1886 he settled upon it, beginning the improvement and cultivation of the property, which is now one of the best farms in the neighborhood. He has secured water right for the entire tract, and has built the strnc- tures necessary for the proper management of his farm affairs. In addition to the raising of grain, he raises stock.

The son of John M. and Ann (Stephenson) Elliott, our subject was born in Baltimore, Md., December 6, 1857. When he was eight years of age, his father, who was a boilermaker, removed to New Jersey, and there secured employment at his trade. His education was obtained in schools in Baltimore and New Jersey, and he also spent one year in a Pennsylvania school. When six- teen years old he began to learn the machinist's trade, at which he served an apprenticeship of four years, receiving liis board and fifty cents a week during the first year, while during the last year his wages were abont $40 a montlı. After his apprenticeship had expired he ceased to work at the trade.

In 1876 Mr. Elliott went west to Michigan, but soon removed to Indiana, and after a short time went south to Sherman, Tex., where for a few months he worked in a brickyard. Later, for several months, he was employed in driving freight teams to Fort Worth, and afterward worked on a farm for nearly four years. From Texas he went to Kansas as a drover of cattle, thence to Missouri, and from there to the Indian Territory, where he remained during the fall and winter. In the spring of 1881 he came to Colorado, and worked in the mountains at any employment that he could obtain. Returning to the Indian Territory in the fall of the same year, he was united in marriage with Miss Janie Clark, of Vinita, I. T., and a native of Iowa. In

the spring of 1882 he came to Bent County, where he worked on a ranch during the summer, and in the winter was employed by the Prairie Cattle Company, remaining with the latter con- cern for seven years. Meantime he pre-empted the land that constitutes his present ranch prop- erty, and here he engages in general farm work. He and his wife became the parents of four chil- dren, Oscar, Robert, May and Thomas, all of whom were born in Bent County. The wife and mother passed away April 27, 1898, and was buried in the Las Animas cemetery.

Politically Mr. Elliott is a firm supporter of the silver standard, and favors its restoration to its proper basis. After Bent County was divided into two counties he was elected county commis- sioner in 1889, and served in 1890 and 1891. In 1895 he was nominated by the People's party for county treasurer and made a good race, bnt was defeated with others on the same ticket. In his fraternal relations he is connected with Elder Lodge No. 11, I. O. O. F.

EORGE E. MC CAULEY, proprietor of the Bent County Democrat and county super- intendent of schools, was born in Adamıs County, Iowa, April 14, 1870, a son of Prof. J. S. and Emma (Reid) McCauley. His father, a native of Ohio, born on a farm near Manchester, received his education at Oberlin, Ohio, and was almost prepared to graduate when he was taken ill and obliged to discontinue his studies. After recovering his health he engaged in teaching. After his first marriage he went to Iowa, where he was employed as principal of graded schools. In Iowa he married a second time, and of that union four children were born, George being the third.

Upon his father's country home in Adams County our subject passed the days of boyhood. When he was about sixteen he accompanied his parents to Colorado, settling near Denver. The object in making the change was to benefit the health of his father, who for a time seemed greatly helped, but after some years he died at Platteville, Colo., and was buried on the twen- tieth anniversary of our subject's birth. When about eighteen years of age our subject gained his initial experience in printing, his first work being in Greeley, Colo. After two and one half years he went to Las Animas, where he and his mother opened a general mercantile store, he

MAJOR W. G. SHAPCOTT.

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PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

being the manager for five years. When the financial depression came on and times became hard, he sold out.

December 17, 1890, Mr. McCauley married Miss Etta Cain, of Las Animas, a native of Nod- away County, Mo., and daughter of John R. and Jennie Cain. They have three children: Mabel Vivian, George Kent and James Russell.

Although his father was a Republican until the silver issue was raised, our subject has always been a believer in Democratic principles. He voted for Weaver in 1892. In 1894 he was elected a mem- ber of the city council, in which capacity he served for four years. In 1895 he was elected county superintendent of schools, and his service in this position was so satisfactory that at the next election he was again called upon to serve in this office. In religion he is connected with the Methodist Episcopal Church. He was made a Mason in King Solomon's Lodge No. 30, A. F. & A. M., at Las Animas, in which he served as secretary for a year, junior deacon for a similar period, and is now senior warden. At various times he has been chosen to represent the Demo- cratic party in local and state conventions, and his service in his party's behalf has been of the highest value. In 1890, in partnership with his brother, he bought the Bent County Democrat, but in the fall of the same year he sold his inter- est to his brother, and in 1896 purchased back the entire plant, which he has since superintend- ed. Both in the field of journalism and as a county official, he has ably represented the inter- ests of his fellow-citizens, and has championed, with pen and voice, those measures which will advance the cause of education, morality and religion.

M AJ. WILLIAM G. SHAPCOTT. The annals of early days in England show that the Shapcott family were prominent in the southwestern part of that country. Later gen- erations became prominently identified with the history of Cornwall, and there Thomas Shapcott engaged in contracting and building. His son, John N., who was born in Cornwall and was a shipbuilder by trade, brought his family to the United States in 1871 and settled in Chicago, where he has since superintended large ship- yards. He married Anna M. Fisk, a native of Cornwall and a daughter of James Fisk, who was an officer of the English coast guards. Their family consists of three sons and one daughter

now living, the latter being the wife of a promi- nent contractor and builder in Chicago, while one of the sons is with Crane Bros., of that city, and another is employed by the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad Company.

The oldest of the family, who forms the sub- ject of this sketch, was born in Cornwall, Eng- land, June 29, 1859, and was educated in a pri- vate school in his native land. Immediately after the family settled in Chicago he secured employment in a dry goods house, and worked his way up to the position of cashier. In 1882 he went to London, England, and from there around Cape Horn to San Francisco, thence went to Bakersfield, three hundred miles south, where he remained for two years, as paymaster of a large land and live stock company. His next location was in Cheyenne, Wyo., where he became connected with the Warren Live Stock Company, as manager of their office, later as a director of the company, and its assistant secre- tary and treasurer. The company was one of the largest of its kind in the west, and owned live stock in seven different counties.

On selling his interest in the stock business in 1895 Mr. Shapcott removed to Colorado Springs, where he started the William G. Shapcott Agen- cy, and engaged in the real-estate, loan and in- surance business. In November, 1897, he formed a partnership with Edward Ferris, and estab- lished the Ferris-Shapcott Agency, but in Angust, 1898, he bought his partner's interest, and car- ries on the business under its original name. He has a large business in loans, real estate and mining investments, with an extensive eastern clientage. He was among the first to invest in mines and real estate at Eldora, Colo., and is president of the Upper Ten Gold Mining Com- pany, which owns nineteen mining claims, and is successfully operated. He is also interested in the Virginia mine at Eldora, which has pro- duced ore that has run over $11,000 to the ton, and owns interests in other mines and in business properties there. In common with many of the citizens of Colorado Springs he has interests in the Cripple Creek region, and has the greatest faith in the future of that camp. He is presi- dent of the Jordan Gold Mining Company of Crip- ple Creek, which owns three claims on Wilson Creek. As an insurance agent, he represents . about ten of the old-line standard fire insurance companies.

The marriage of Mr. Shapcott, in Cheyenne,

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PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

in 1885, united him with Miss Martha B. Glea- son, who was born in Worthington, Mass., and three children bless their union: Mabel J., Wal- lace G. and Edith M.

In Wyoming Mr. Shapcott was interested in organizing a regiment of National Guard. He enlisted as a private in Company B, First Wyo- ming Infantry, of which he was made first ser- geant, and after two years was appointed adju- tant, then one year later became assistant adju- tant general of Wyoming, with the rank of major. Since coming to Colorado Springs he accepted an invitation to act as drillmaster of the national reserves, who were organized to go to the front (either Cuba or Manila) during the Spanish war. He is a member of the Chamber of Com- merce. In politics he votes the Republican ticket. Active in the work of the Y. M. C. A., he is now its treasurer and a director. He is chairman of the board of trustees of the First Congregational Church, and also holds the office of Sunday-school superintendent.

RLANDO BLODGETT WILLCOX, at- torney-at-law, of Colorado Springs, and member of the law firm of Brooks, Stim- son, Willcox & Campbell, descends from an old colonial family, whose first representative in this country was William Willcox, a pioneer of 1634 in Connecticut, serving in the colonial council. Later generations participated in the Revolution- ary war, and also served in the various Indian wars. His father, Gen. Orlando B. Willcox, was born in Detroit, Mich., and graduated from the military academy at West Point. During the war with Mexico he served under General Scott. He also participated in the Indian wars of the middle half of the century. Afterwards he resigned from the army and began the practice of law in Detroit, and then married Marie Louise Farns- worth, our subject's mother.

At the opening of the Civil war General Will- cox was commissioned colonel of the First Michi- gan Volunteers and at once went to the front. In the first battle of Bull Run he was wounded and captured, and was imprisoned in Confederate prisons for thirteen months, after which he was exchanged, and during the remainder of the war served with much distinction. When the war closed he was breveted major-general and com- missioned colonel of the Twelfth United States Infantry, and was stationed at Lynchburg, Va., in charge of the reconstruction work in that dis-

trict. It was during the period of his residence there that his son, Orlando B., was born, August 19, 1867. In 1886 and 1887 General Willcox, as brigadier-general of the regular army, was in com- mand of the department of the Platte (including the state of Colorado), with headquarters at Leavenworth, Kan. Since his retirement in 1887 he has resided in Washington, D. C.

The maternal grandfather of our subject, Elon Farnsworth, a distinguished jurist residing in Detroit, was called the "father of equity" in Michigan. The first three volumes of equity re- ports of Michigan, prepared by himself, estab- lished the equity jurisprudence throughout the north west.

At the various points where his father was stationed the subject of this sketch passed the years of youth. He was educated in the Uni- versity of Michigan, matriculated with the liter- ary class of 1889, and graduated with the law class of 1889. He came to Denver, Colo., in 1890, and was there associated in the practice of law with Hon. Charles S. Thomas until 1893. From that time until the last of 1897 he resided in Cripple Creek, where he experienced the great miners' strike in 1894, and the various fortunes of mining camp life. He took an active part in an immense amount of the litigation which char- acterized the development of the camp. Busi- ness demanding his removal to Colorado Springs, he came here in January, 1898, and formed his present partnership, with offices in the First Na- tional Bank block and at Cripple Creek. He and his firin are counsel for many mining and other companies representing large interests through- out the state and in Arizona. He is a member of the El Paso Club, the Sigma Phi Fraternity and the Sons of the Revolution.

In June, 1898, Mr. Willcox married Miss Jessie Gilpin Cooke, of Bethlehem, Pa., member of an old Quaker family of that state, and has since re- sided at Colorado Springs.

OHN CLEGHORN, warden of the state pen- itentiary at Canon City, was born in Clarence- ville, Canada, May 9, 1852, a son of John and Roselia E. (Nichols) Cleghorn. His father, who was born and educated in Glasgow, Scot- land, emigrated to Canada at nineteen years of age, and engaged in mercantile pursuits there for years. In 1854 he removed to Minnesota and embarked in the practice of law, for which he had prepared himself by careful study. In 1862 he

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PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

enlisted in Company D, Sixth Iowa Cavalry, and served from that time until the close of the war in the campaign against the Indians. At the close of the war he went to Sioux City, Iowa, where for four years he served as register of land office, later resuming the practice of law. He made a specialty of land law and was sent to Washington by the senate of Iowa to secure the swamp lands due the state from the general govern- ment. Remaining in Washington until 1875, he then came to Colorado, having been appointed register of the land office in Del Norte. He served as temporary chairman of the first Repub- lican state convention held at Pueblo. at which John L. Routt was nominated for governor. He lield the office of register at Del Norte until December 20, 1880, the day of his death. During his residence in Minnesota he had been a member of the constitutional convention of the state, and attended as delegate other important conven- tions. Fraternally he was a Royal Arch Mason and a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. All of his children are still living, namely: Johnston R., who is engaged in business in Trinidad, Colo .; Willard N., a ranchman in Rio Grande County, Colo .; John; Alvira C .; Ada May, who married James E. Hasbrouch, of Syra- cuse, N. Y .; and Eva G., wife of T. H. Lee, of Philadelphia.

When the subject of this sketch was two years of age his parents removed from Canada to Min- nesota, and twelve years later he accompanied them to Sioux City, Iowa. Upon completing his studies, in 1869 he entered the office of the Sioux City Journal and there learned the printer's trade, but within three years his health broke down1. A change of occupation being made necessary, he went to Yankton, S. Dak., and opened a mercan- tile store. Later he was similarly engaged at Le Mars, Iowa, but owing to the failure of the crops there for two or three successive years (the ·result of the grasshopper plague, etc. ) he found himself the loser by this undertaking. Selling out, he came to Colorado in February, 1875. From that time he engaged in prospecting and mining until the fall of 1878, when he was elected sheriff of San Juan County, an office that he filled with efficiency until he was appointed, in Jan- uary, 1881, to succeed his father as regis- ter of the land office at Del Norte. Upon the election of Grover Cleveland as president Mr. Cleghorn immediately resigned his posi- tion. Shortly afterward he was elected sheriff

of Rio Grande County. He held the office for two consecutive years, and after an in- terim of one term was elected for a third term. Upon retiring from the office he was elected county clerk, and continued to serve in that capacity until January, 1895, when he was appointed warden of the state penitentiary by Governor McIntire. In this position he gave such excellent satisfaction that he was retained in office by Governor Adams. Politically he is an adherent of the Republican party. For a number of years he was captain of the state militia, in which he made a record as a very efficient officer. Fraternally he is connected with the Knights of Pythias and Knight Templar Masons. August 17, 1881, he married Anna M. Lamoreaux, of Del Norte, and they have three children, Willard V., Miriam and Madeline.

ILLIAM WOODSIDE, a hardware mer- chant of Silver Cliff, Custer County, was born in Scotland August 18, 1829, a son of Matthew and Marian (McGrouther) Woodside. His father was in early life a weaver of Paisley shawls and later engaged in the sale of weavers' supplies. As was the custom in that locality and day, the son followed in his father's footsteps; however, his tastes did not lie in that direction and as soon as possible he left the loom and learned the carpenter's trade. In 1852 he departed from his native land and came to America, where he settled in Alton, Ill., for a time engaging in work as a carpenter. There he put up the first woolen mill erected in the west, and for ten years was in charge of the repairing of machines. Afterward he worked at car repairing in the shops of the Chicago & Alton Railroad for nearly five years.

Coming to Colorado in 1880, Mr. Woodside brought with him about $800 worth of tobacco and cigars and opened a cigar store in Silver Cliff, but later removed to the camp at Williamsburg, Fremont County, and on selling out there in 1887 came to his present location. Here he owns two stores, in one of which he has hardware and stoves, while the other contains crockery and no- tions. Besides this, he handles lumber, sash, doors, etc. Both of the store buildings are his personal property, one having been bought when he embarked in business, the other two years later. His trade aggregates $10,000 per annum . and is all under his immediate oversight, which fact in a large measure accounts for its success.

While Mr. Woodside has never sought politi-

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cal preferment, he has decided opinions regarding public issues and is a stanch Republican. Since coming to Silver Cliff he has been an elder in the Presbyterian Church, and for twelve years he held a similar position with the congregation in Alton, where he was also Sunday-school superintendent for a time. He is deeply interested in the work with children and for years has been super- intendent of the Sunday-school in Silver Cliff. Fraternally he is a member of Silver Cliff Lodge No. 38, A. F. & A. M. While in Scotland, in 1851, he married Christina McKeller, and they became the parents of seven children, but only one survives, Marian, wife of Darius Eyer, of Canon City, Colo. Mrs. Christina Woodside died of consumption in 1879, while living at Alton. In July, 1888, Mr. Woodside was married a second time, his wife being Mrs. Frank E. Adair (nee Bagley), of Pennsylvania.

ARRISON NORRIS, postmaster and a gen- eral merchant of Rosita, Custer County, was born in Butler County, Pa., November 19, 1839, a son of James and Christina (Carn- aghan) Norris. His father, who was engaged in farming in Butler County, was a Whig in early life and later a stanch Republican, while in re- ligious matters he was identified with the United Presbyterian Church, in which he served as a deacon. Of his eight children only three are liv- ing, namely: John C., a farmer in Pennsylvania; Harrison; and Melissa E., wife of Samnel Mar- shall, of Natrona, Pa.

When twenty-one years of age our subject en- listed in Company G, First Maryland Cavalry, and remained in the army for four yearsand two weeks. Among the important engagements in which he bore a part was the memorable battle of Gettysburg. He served as regimental commis- sary sergeant and regimental hospital steward. After being honorably discharged from the army at the close of the war he began to teach school in Pennsylvania, where he continued to reside until 1869. He then came to Colorado and taught in Pueblo for some months, but returned to Pennsylvania in 1870. For the following eight years he was employed as freight conductor on the Pittsburg, Fort Wayne & Chicago Railroad.

Returning to Colorado in February, 1879, Mr. Norris spent some months in Pueblo. From there he came to Custer County, where he has since made his home. He took up one hundred and sixty acres under the pre-emption law and

one hundred and sixty under the homestead law, and was engaged in ranching and prospecting until September, 1897, when he embarked in the mercantile business. Since February, 1897, he has acted as postmaster, the office being in his store. He has done considerable toward the de- velopment of the mining interests of this county, but in 1896 sold his propositions to the Avalanche Mining Company, and since then has held no mining interests. The silver cause finds in him a friend, and he is firm in his allegiance to the silver Republican party. In 1888 he was elected county commissioner, which office he held for three years, and afterward was elected a member of the town board. In 1898 he was a candidate for superintendent of schools, and he now fills the office of mayor. He has been thoroughly interested in and identified with the growth and development of his town and county, and is well known by all the people of this section. Frater- nally he is connected with the Grand Army Post at Silver Cliff. January 24, 1864, he was united in marriage with Mary A., daughter of Thomas Westerman, of Butler County, Pa.

ON. NEIL N. MC LEAN, a member of the state legislature representing the counties of Kiowa, Baca and Prowers, came to Lamar in January, 1895, and opened what is now known as the Palace drug store. In June of the follow- ing year he was burned out, which caused a heavy loss. He then erected a brick structure, in which he has since carried on business, hav- ing, in addition to his stock of drugs, a full line of gents' furnishing goods. Besides his substantial . residence in Lamar he owns a ranch of one hundred and sixty acres, three miles east of town, where he has a well-improved tract of land, irrigated by the Bent Ditch.

Near Lindsay, in the province of Ontario, Canada, the subject of this sketch was born in 1868, a son of Donald and Euphemia (McGinnis) McLean. Until eighteen years of age he made his home on a farm in Ontario, and meantime attended the local high school, from which he graduated at seventeen. In 1886 he accompanied his parents to the States and settled upon a farm near Caldwell, Kan., where he attended school for one term. Afterward he entered the employ of Swayer & Gabbert, dealers in drugs, with whom he remained for a year.

I11 1887 Mr. McLean came to Colorado and settled on a ranch in what is now Baca County.

JOSEPH A. MERRIAM.

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PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

For five years he remained on his ranch, which comprised land taken up from the government. During the first winter in Colorado he also had a feed store. Later he engaged in freighting and for a time he taught school. As a ranchman his specialty was the raising of cattle. From Baca County he came to Lamar, where he now resides. In 1896 he was united in marriage with Miss Sadie C. McDonald, who was born in Pennsyl- vania and in 1885 settled in what is now Prowers County. One child blesses their union, Beryl May.

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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 65

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