Portrait and biographical record of the state of Colorado, containing portraits and biographies of many well known citizens of the past and present, Part 80

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 80

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The marriage of Mr. Ross in 1874 united him with Miss Samantha, daughter of A. E. Stock- well, of Michigan. They have three children, Albert John, Esther P. and Robert R., Jr. Fra- ternally Mr. Ross has passed all the chairs in Walsenburg Lodge No. 73, I. O. O. F., is a charter member of Walsenburg Camp, Woodmen of the World, and belongs to Trinidad Tribe of Red Men. When he was a youth of about sev- enteen he was sent to Vermont and New York to take charge of the Split Rock mines on Lake Champlain, and while there became a member of the Vermont state militia. He was later captain of the Tabor Highland Guards at Leadville, Colo. In addition to his other business enterprises he is interested in mining in New Mexico, and to some extent in Colorado.

12 ENNIS J. GIBBS, high sheriff of Rio Grande County, and proprietor of a furni- ture and undertaking establishment at Monte Vista, was born at Benson, Rutland County, Vt., in 1860, a son of Andrew and Hen- rietta Gibbs. His father, a native of Vermont, and a farmer by occupation, removed from New England to Colorado in 1880 and settled in Sa- guache County, where he became extensively in- terested in ranching and stock-raising. He is still living there and is now (1899) eighty-four years of age. Of his children four are now liv- ing, Amoretta, George, Wilber and Dennis.

When eighteen years of age the subject of this sketch settled in Colorado. For a time he was employed as clerk in a hardware store in Sagua- che, but in 1880, in partnership with his brother George, he opened a general store in that town. After three years the business was disposed of, and he turned his attention to farming and stock- raising in the San Luis Valley. In 1886 he moved to Del Norte, from which place six years later he removed to Monte Vista, and embarked in the hardware, furniture and undertaking busi-

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ness. He continued in these several lines until 1896, when he sold his stock of hardware and harness to Horn & White, but retained the fur- niture and undertaking business, which he now conducts. Since coming to Rio Grande County he has erected two residences, one of which he occupies, while the other he has disposed of.

After having for some years supported Demo- cratic principles, in 1895 Mr. Gibbs transferred his allegiance to the People's party, of which he is now a member. In 1896 and 1897 he served as coroner of his county, and in the fall of 1897 he was elected to the office of high sheriff. He is connected with Monte Vista Lodge No. 73, A.F. & A. M. His marriage took place in 1883, and united him with Miss Della Widick, who was born in Iowa, but spent her girlhood years principally in Saguache. The two children born of this union are Ava Lovel and Herman. Mr. Gibbs is well known throughout his county, where he is regarded as a capable and trustworthy public officer. He is also an enterprising business man and has the trade of the town and surrounding country in his special lines.

AMES B. DICK, treasurer of Huerfano County, was born in Fifeshire, Scotland, in 1859. His early life was passed in his na- tive land, where during a few years of his youth he engaged in mining. With his brother An- drew he crossed the Atlantic in the spring of 1879, landing in New York on the 15th of May, and going from there to Youngstown, Ohio. After a short time devoted to mining there, he went to Pennsylvania, where he continued min- ing until 1881. In that year he came to his pres- ent location, Walsenburg, Colo., and for two years engaged in mining in this vicinity. In 1887 he established a retail mercantile business. Five years later he opened a wholesale and retail liquor and cigar store. Since 1888 his brother William has been in partnership with him, under the firm title of Dick Brothers.

As a Republican, Mr. Dick is active in local and state politics. For four years he served as a member of the council of Walsenburg. In 1895 he was elected treasurer of Huerfano County, and in 1897 was re-elected for a second term. In the state conventions at Denver and Colorado Springs he has represented his party as a dele- gate. All enterprises for the benefit of his town and county, as well as matters pertaining to the success of his party, receive his cordial endorse-

ment. As the owner of real-estate interests in the town, he has done much to assist in the building up of Walsenburg. He was one of the principal organizers of the building and loan association of this place, and served as a director for some time. Fraternally he is connected with the Foresters of America; Diamond Lodge No. 49, K. P., in which he has served as chancel- lor and grand representative to the state grand lodge; and Unity Lodge No. 70, I. O. O. F., in which he is past master and representative to the grand lodge.

The first wife of Mr. Dick, who was Jeannette Robertson, of Scotland, died in 1894, leaving one son, James Dick, Jr. Afterward our subject was united in marriage with Victoria Mandolini, and they have one son, George.

James B. Dick is a son of John and Ann (Brand) Dick, natives of Fifeshire, Scotland. They emigrated to the United States in 1881 and came direct to Walsenburg. For a few years the father was engaged in mining, after which he turned his attention to farming and stock-raising, and owned several ranches in Huerfano County. His death occurred at his home near La Veta March 29, 1899. His wife preceded him in death a few months only, passing away June 25, 1898. They are buried side by side in the cemetery at La Veta.

ENRY BELKNAP has done much toward the development of the Wet Mountain Val- ley, of which he is among the most prosper- ous farmers and stock-raisers. He came to his present property in 1884 and has since made Fre- mont County his home. Buying six hundred and forty acres of land he has since devoted his time mainly to stock-raising, in which he has been eminently successful. The land is largely under cultivation in hay, of which he raises from three hundred and fifty to four hundred tons per annum, the same being used for cattle feed in the winter. Among the improvements of the place are his residence, built in 1888, and a number of shade trees, besides some fine varieties of apples and pears.

Mr. Belknap was born in Sutton, Braxton County, W. Va., in 1837, the sixth among the nine children of Thomas and Mary (Friend) Bel- knap. His father, a native of England, emi- grated to America in young manhood and settled in West Virginia, where he married and engaged in farming. Henry was educated in public schools

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CARL L. STANLEY.

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PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

and early took up the work incident to farm life, remaining on the home place until 1856, when he went to Salt Lake City, Utah, after spending a few months in Missouri. In 1857 he returned to Missouri and engaged in farming. In 1863 he came to Colorado and began stock-raising, his headquarters being in Canon City. From there, in 1885, he came to Wet Mountain Valley, Fre- mont County. His present ranch was but partly improved when he took it. He has fenced the greater part of the property and has brought it to its present fine state. By a fine system of irri- gation he has enhanced the value of the place. Besides his ranch interests, for four years, under contract with the government, he ran the stage between Cotopoxi and Silver Cliff.

January 8, 1863, Mr. Belknap married Mary C. Young, who was born near Kansas City, Mo. The two children born of their union are: Lucy, wife of Elmer Glanville, of Canon City; and James, who assists in the cultivation of the home place. For years Mr. Belknap has served as a member of the school board. In political mat- ters he affiliates with the Democratic party. He has, however, never desired office, but has pre- ferred to give his attention wholly to his business interests. His well-ordered ranch and its neat, thrifty appearance testify to his ability and suc- cess as a ranchman.

ARL L. STANLEY is one of the most ex- tensive land owners and stock-raisers in southern Colorado and is now occupying a very large ranch in Pueblo County, twenty miles south of Pueblo, on the Greenhorn River and on the old stage route from Denver to Santa Fe. On this place he has made his home for a quarter of a century. A native of Ohio, he was born near Canton, Stark County, close to the home of Pres- ident Mckinley, August 16, 1835. His parents, Henry and Margaret (McCoy) Stanley, natives respectively of Westmoreland County, Pa., and Ashtabula County, Ohio, were married in Stark County, Ohio, where they afterward continued to reside until their death. They were the parents of three children, but our subject is the only one now living. His boyhood days were spent at home and he acquired his education in the public schools of Canton. When the agitation concern- ing the slavery question resulted in the attempt of some of the southern states to withdraw from the Union, he determined to enlist in the Union service, and on the 9th of September, 1861, his

name was enrolled as a member of the Fifty-first Ohio Infantry. He was with Sherman's army, and participated in the engagements of Pittsburg Landing, Nashville, Stone River, Buzzard's Roost, Atlanta and other important battles. He served for four years and four days. After Rich- mond was captured his regiment was ordered to Texas, where he remained until honorably dis- charged. He was a brave and loyal soldier, al- ways found at his post of duty, and returned to his home with a most creditable military record.

Soon afterward Mr. Stanley went to Montana, where he engaged in stock-raising, in freighting and in trading with the Indians. His experience in that state between the years 1867 and 1873 was remarkable. He freighted for a distance of one hundred and fifty miles when the thermometer was sixty-five degrees below zero. At one time he drove a large herd of cattle to a certain place, but a heavy snow fell to the depth of seven feet, in which all of the cattle perished.

In 1870 Mr. Stanley came to Pueblo County, but afterward returned to Montana, where he re- mained until 1873. During that year he made a permanent location in Pueblo County. For a few years he conducted a ranch on Huerfano Creek, but in 1876 came to his present location, where he has since resided. The tract was then raw and unimproved, with no building save an old adobe house. His labors have wrought a great change. The barn which he built is the largest and best arranged of any in the state. It is 160x50 feet, and is supplied with several box stalls for fine horses, as well as stabling for a large number of work horses; also stabling with the most modern appliances for about fifty milch cows. Ample storage is provided for hay and grain, also commodious shed room for carriages, wagons and agricultural implements. Adjoining the barn are a number of paddocks, where are kept separately the different grades of stock. Running water is supplied to the different pad- docks by pipes and is furnished for the use of the stock in the barn.

The comfortable residence is surrounded with beautiful shrubbery, flower gardens adorn the lawn and an excellent orchard yields its fruits in season. Water is piped to all of the buildings and no accessory of a model farm is lacking. The ranch is one of the largest bodies of land owned by a single individual in the state of Colorado. It extends a distance of twenty-five miles from east to west, and is all fenced. Mr. Stanley raises

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PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

enormous quantities of alfalfa and in 1898 cut over fifteen hundred tons of this product. During the winter of 1898-99 he fed over one thousand head of cattle, but kept most of his stock in Old and New Mexico, as they can be wintered there cheaper than in Colorado. He has recently begun the breeding of Hereford cattle and now has a herd of one hundred and fifty head. The place is operated with the aid of Mexican help, to whom Mr. Stanley is most considerate and just.

June 7, 1874, occurred the marriage of Mr. Stan- ley and Miss Della Snyder, a native of Stephenson County, Ill., and a cultured lady, who presides with gracious hospitality over their pleasant home, extending a hearty welcome to all of their many friends. Her father, Mahlon E. Snyder, went to California in 1849 and remained there for three years, after which he returned to Stephen- son County, settling on a farm there. In 1865 he removed to Livingston County, Mo., where he died at the age of fifty-two. He married Cath- erine Barber. The family of Mr. and Mrs. Stan- ley consists of one son and three daughters. The former, Mat L., who is engaged in business with his father and has charge of the ranch in New Mexico, married Miss Florence Hughes. The daughters are: Sue, who was educated in Pueblo; Lalla and Catherine, who are attending school in Pueblo. The youngest, a girl of fifteen years, possesses such exceptional business ability that she could almost equal the foreman in superin- tending the ranch.

Mr. Stanley is a man of excellent business and executive ability, and through his own efforts has achieved a most remarkable but well-deserved success. In politics he has always been unfalter- ing in support of the men and measures of the Republican party, but has had neither time nor inclination to seek office for himself. The cause of education finds in him a warm friend and for several years he has done most efficient service in its behalf while serving on the school board. He is widely known throughout the state and the west, and wherever known is held in the highest esteem, his sterling worth commanding uniform respect.

EROME F. PEBBLES, who is one of the successful wool-growers in El Paso County, was born in Wyoming County, N. Y., May 2, 1844, and descends from a family that years ago lived in Peebleshire, Scotland. They bore the same name as the shire in which they lived,

and as such were long known, but the name was changed to its present form by the generation preceding the present. Robert Peebles, of York state, removed to Wisconsin in an early day and settled near Monroe, Green County, upon raw and unimproved prairie land. He improved a farm and continued to make it his home until he died. His son, Samuel Pebbles, was born in York state, and became a merchant in Waupun, Wis. In 1876 he removed to Oak Park, a suburb of Chicago, Ill., and there he died in 1891, aged seventy-four years. His wife, a native of York state, bore the maiden name of Mary J. Warren; she still makes her home in Oak Park, where her two oldest sons, Frank M. and Alonzo W., also reside. The youngest son, Samuel E., died there in 1898.

From infancy until eight years of age our sub- ject lived in Monroe, Wis., after which he accom- panied his parents to Waupun and attended the grammar and high schools there. From boyhood he assisted his father in the store. In 1872 he went to Chicago, where he was employed by a brother at the painter's trade. Two years later he came to Colorado and for one year carried on a sheep ranch for F. H. Austin near Colorado Springs. In September, 1875, he located on a ranch of his own, thirty miles northeast of Colo- rado Springs, in El Paso County, at the head of Bracket Creek. Pre-empting one hundred and sixty acres, he started in the sheep business, taking one thousand ewes on shares. After two years he sold and settled on a ranch in Pleasant Valley, eight miles east of Squirrel Creek. In 1878 he formed a partnership with C. E. Noble, and bought about four hundred acres, comprising what was known as the Big Springs ranch, thirty miles east of Colorado Springs. Afterward he bought from David King two hundred acres, and since then has added other property, until his total possessions aggregated one thousand acres, with three miles of running water on the land. In 1892 he purchased his partner's interest and continued the business alone. He has leased state land, and now has, by deed or lease, four- teen sections in one body, with over twenty miles of fencing. In addition to the about nine thou- sand acres, he also has range for his cattle. At one time he had nearly nine thousand sheep.

In 1889 Mr. Pebbles formed a partnership with J. F. Seldomridge, and brought sheep from New Mexico, Arizona and Texas into Colorado, where they were fed and afterward shipped to Nebraska,

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Kansas, Missouri, Iowa and Illinois. They were the first to engage in the trailing business, and would often bring as many as one hundred thousand head into Colorado. The two con- tinued together until Mr. Seldomridge died, since which time Mr. Pebbles has carried on the sheep business alone. His specialty has been the im- proved merinoes. The property which he owns is known as Big Springs ranch and is one of the finest in the county. Since 1889 he has made his home in Colorado Springs. In 1896 he built "Woodburn" at Ivywild, on the Cheyenne road. In 1890 he built two houses on North Nevada avenue, Colorado Springs, but these he after- ward sold. He is identified with the National Wool Growers' Association, and in politics ad- heres to the Republican party.

In Marengo, Iowa, Mr. Pebbles married Miss Julia Simpson, who was born in that town, a daughter of John G. and Martha (Hosmar) Simpson. Her father came from Perthshire, Scotland, to America, in 1843 and settled in Buf- falo, N. Y., where he engaged in building. In 1856 he removed to Iowa County, Iowa, where he engaged in farming and building. From there in 1889 he came to Colorado Springs and in 1892 settled in Denver, his present home. His wife, who was born in England, is still living. Mr. and Mrs. Pebbles are the parents of five children: Alice, Helen, Julia, Kenneth and Frances. The family attend the Congregational Church, of which Mrs. Pebbles is a member.

ESSE RADER, who is a successful stock- raiser and the owner of a ranch at Four Mile, Fremont County, was born in East Tennessee, May 25, 1829. His grandfather, Jacob Rader, with two brothers, emigrated to America more than one hundred years ago and settled upon a plantation in Virginia. About 1805 he removed to East Tennessee and took up land, which he improved. His brother, John, served in the war of 1812. William Rader was the oldest of the six sons and two daughters comprising the family of Jacob Rader. He was born in Virginia and was nine years of age when his parents moved to East Tennessee. Though he attended school but three months, he applied himself to the acquiring of an education with such diligence that he became one of the best-posted men of his section, and was consulted, for legal advice, by many of his neighbors. Farming was his principal occupation', though he also followed

the blacksmith's trade. Starting without means or property, in time and through good judgment he became a large landed proprietor. Politically he was a Democrat. A man of reserved and dif- fident nature, he was averse to participation in public affairs, but, upon the solicitation of his friends, consented to fill various local offices. For almost twenty-five years he served as a justice of the peace, and also held office as county commissioner. In religion he wasidentified with the old-school Presbyterians.

By the marriage of William Rader to Eliza- beth Rader, his second cousin, there were born seven children, and of these six attained ma- turity, viz .: Valentine S., a stock-raiser and farmer in Kansas; Lavinia, wife of E. M. Drake, of Greene County, Tenn .; Jesse; Lemuel and Lewis F., who live in Greene County; and Cornelius, who was an officer in the Confederate army and fell in battle. The subject of this sketch was born and reared in Greene County. He remained on the home farm, until twenty-five years of age, when he married, and three months later moved to northwest Missouri, where he was extensively engaged in the improvement of land and in stock- raising. In the spring of 1860 he started for Pike's Peak, making the trip via wagon, and during the journey had a fight with Indians. After reaching Denver, he started for the placer mines near Breckenridge, and for five years was engaged in mining there.

In October, 1865, Mr. Rader came to Fremont County and camped on Four Mile Creek, near where he now resides. The result of his mining experience not having been satisfactory in the end, he turned his attention to stock-raising and farming, in which he has been signally success- ful. His good judgment and sound common sense have assisted him in gaining prosperity. For twenty years he has not had an unsuccessful year in his business. He runs from six to eight hundred head, which he has on the range twenty miles north of his home. Of his farm forty acres are under cultivation and seven acres are in an or- chard. His ranch house is situated at Four Mile, which is not a postoffice, but a local name designating the locality near Four Mile Creek, four miles from Canon City. While he is still very active for a man of seventy years, it is no longer necessary for him to engage in manual labor, and he has rented his ranch. He makes his home in Canon City, where he has built one of the finest residences in this section. Here

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PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

he enjoys, in leisure, and amid pleasant sur- roundings, the ease and rest which his long years of activity have earned for him.

In politics Mr. Rader have affiliated with the Democratic party, and was formerly active in at- tendance upon conventions and participation in local affairs. When Custer was still a part of Fremont County, in 1871 he was elected county sheriff and served for two years. In 1883, after the division of counties, he was elected sheriff of Fremont County. For twenty years he held office as school director, and during that time donated the land on which the present school building was erected. June 21, 1854, he married Elizabeth D. Bell. Of their nine children, two sons and four daughters are living. Mary J. is the wife of W. A. Stump, a stockman and farmer of this county; Sarah A. is the wife of L. W. Gardner, an extensive stockman in this county; Cornelins V. is a stock-raiser in Lamar, Colo .; Emma married Louis Ried, a successful business man of Canon City; Addie is the wife of Perry Black, a stockman at Lamar; and Lewis F. is successfully engaged in the stock business at Lamar, with his brother, C. V., and brother-in- law, Perry Black. Besides the children, there are twelve grandchildren, who share the affection of Mr. and Mrs. Rader.

EORGE PHILLIPS, who is engaged in the dry-goods business at Silver Cliff, Custer County, is of English birth and lineage. He was born at Bell Lake, parish of Cam- borne, county of Cornwall, on November 9, 1851, being a son of George and Mary Lemin (Pearce) Phillips, the former steward of one of the largest estates in England. He re- ceived his education in his native land and at twenty-two years of age crossed the ocean to America. For six months he worked in the cop- per region of Michigan, but from there came to Colorado and engaged in mining in Gilpin Coun- ty. One and one-half years were spent there. He then came to Rosita, Custer (at that time Fremont) County, where for nine years he en- gaged in prospecting.

Returning to his native country Mr. Phillips spent nine months visiting his relatives and early associates. On his return to the United States he secured a clerkship in Silver Cliff, where he has since resided. After clerking for eighteen months for L. Slavic & Brother he started out in business for himself, purchasing the stock of his

former employers. In 1889 he bought his pres- ent store building and moved his stock into the room where he has since carried on trade. He carries a stock valned at $5,000, while his annual sales average from $10,000 to $12,000. In addi- tion to the building that he occupies he owns an- other store building and also has two residences in the town. Besides his other interests he owns mining stock and now has three patented claims at Rosita.

Politically Mr. Phillips is a Republican and a strong adherent of the gold standard. In the various local positions held by him he has dis- charged every duty faithfully. For some time he was a member of the town board. In 1893 he was elected county commissioner and served for three years. When he was again nominated, in 1896, he was opposed by both Populist and Democratic candidates, but nevertheless was de- feated by only fifteen votes. He is interested in every measure for the benefit of his town and is regarded as one of its most deserving citizens. Fraternally he is connected with Silver Cliff Lodge No. 38, A. F. & A. M., and Silver Cliff Lodge No. 34, I. O. O. F. He is a wide-awake business man and justly merits the position he holds among the merchants of Custer County.

OHN A. BLACK, M. D., is recognized as one of the skillful and successful physicians and surgeons of Pueblo, where he has en- gaged in general professional practice since May, 1882. Besides his private practice, which has grown to large proportions, he acts as surgeon for the Philadelphia Smelting Company and since 1889 has been surgeon for the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad Company. Among the life in- surance companies for which he is examiner may be mentioned the New York Life, United States Life and Pacific Mutual. His office is in the Strait building, on the corner of South Union avenue and B street. The various medical so- cieties of the county, state and nation have received him into membership; he has been es- pecially active in the first-named, of which he has officiated both as secretary and president.

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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 80

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