Des Moines, the pioneer of municipal progress and reform of the middle West, together with the history of Polk County, Iowa, the largest, most populous and most prosperous county in the state of Iowa; Volume II, Part 157

Author: Brigham, Johnson, 1846-1936; Clarke (S.J.) Publishing Company, Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1911
Publisher: Chicago, The S. J. Clarke publishing company
Number of Pages: 1464

USA > Iowa > Polk County > Des Moines > Des Moines, the pioneer of municipal progress and reform of the middle West, together with the history of Polk County, Iowa, the largest, most populous and most prosperous county in the state of Iowa; Volume II > Part 157

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On the 3d day of June, 1908, Mr. Messenger was united in marriage to Miss Grace Maude Cooper, a daughter of William A. and Isabelle (Witmer) Cooper, natives of Pennsylvania. The father came west and located at Wilton, Iowa, where he engaged in the clothing business. In 1889 he entered the life in- surance business in Des Moines and later purchased a suspender factory, be- coming the head of the Northwestern Suspender Company. He conducted his business so successfully that he bought out the Diamond Suspender Company and continued in the same line until his death which occurred in July, 1907,

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when he was in his sixty-second year. The mother is now living at No. 1437 Ninth street, and has arrived at the age of sixty-two.

Mr. and Mrs. Messenger occupy a beautiful home at Urbandale and he also owns nine acres of land in the same place. In religious faith they are identified with the Presbyterian church and are regular attendants at its ser- vices. Fraternally he is connected with the various Masonic bodies and politi- cally he gives his support to the republican party, believing that its principles are highly important in forwarding the prosperity of the country. Thorough in everything he does, pleasing in appearance and manner and highly capable in business, he is fully worthy of the confidence and esteem of all with whom he comes into contact.

RICHARD HOLMES DELMEGE.

Among the men who have left the impress of their individuality upon the city of Des Moines in its business development and in its material progress was Richard Holmes Delmege. He may well be called one of nature's noblemen. He was actively concerned with the things of this life in business affairs and in his duties of citizenship, but at all times his course was guided by his belief in the moral and religious teachings of the church in which he long held mem- bership. He was born December 20, 1839, at Holmes Grove, Ireland, in an old house which is still standing and which was formerly the property of his grand- father who at one time was collector of the port of Dublin. The life record of Richard Holmes Delmege covered the intervening period from 1839 until March 12, 1908. In his boyhood days he accompanied his parents when they crossed the Atlantic to Toronto, Canada. Later the family removed to Bristol, Illi- nois, and in 1869, when a young man of about thirty years, Richard Holmes Delmege came to Iowa, taking up his abode in Afton, Union county. In his youth he became a carpenter, later was a contractor and subsequently a large lumber merchant. At Afton he conducted a general contracting business for a number of years and in this was very successful, erecting many public and private buildings in southwestern Iowa, many of which still stand in Creston, Red Oak and other county seats and leading towns, indicating honesty of con- struction which at all times was characteristic of the work done by Mr. Delmege. After the building of the Chicago Great Western Railway he removed from Afton to Lorimor where he engaged extensively in the lumber business and thus gradually worked his way upward, winning that success which follows earnest and persistent effort, unfaltering enterprise and keen sagacity. When he took up his abode at Lorimor there was practically nothing there. He erected the majority of substantial buildings which still stand and are now the property of his widow. He was a very public-spirited citizen and gave much of his time and means toward making Lorimor the enterprising and progressive city that it is today. Before removing to Des Moines he became a heavy investor in the Anchor Fire Insurance Company but disposed of his stock at the time the com- pany sold out. He continued a resident of Lorimor until 1899, when he came to Des Moines and during the period of his residence in this city was closely, actively and prominently connected with the insurance business, having organized the Century Fire Insurance Company, of which he was the first president and remained as such for a short time. He then resigned but for a number of years was its heaviest stockholder. He formulated its plans and its policy and instituted the business upon a substantial basis, guiding its destinies until it had become recognized as one of the reliable insurance companies of the state. He resigned the presidency of the insurance company in order to give his attention

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to other interests in which he had made investment. Whatever he undertook seemed to prosper because his judgment was sound and his discrimination keen.

While at Lorimor Mr. Delmege was married to Miss Mary R. Taylor, a daughter of K. P. and Asenath (Cox) Taylor. Mrs. Delmege had been a suc- cessful teacher and acted as principal of the school at Lorimor. By her marriage she became the mother of one child, Ruth, who died at the age of five years. Mrs. Delmege still survives her husband and makes her home in Des Moines. The death of Mr. Delmege occurred at the family residence at No. 1615 Arling- ton avenue on the 12th of March, 1908, and a life of usefulness was thus closed. At the time of the Civil war he enlisted in the Ninth Illinois Cavalry and served for three years at the front, doing active duty in defense of the Union. He was well known as an exemplary member of the Masonic and Odd Fellows lodges and was prominently identified with the First Baptist church of which he was deacon and trustee. He had become a communicant of that denomination in early life and was therefore closely associated with its interests and active in its upbuilding. He found in its teachings the source of his strength and an in- spiration for higher living, and guided his life according to its precepts. He was indeed a man of worth and the honor and integrity of his life gave him firm hold upon the affectionate regard and high esteem of his fellowmen. Perhaps no better estimate of his life and character can be given than in quoting from a little paper published by the church of which he was a member. It said: "He met numerous misfortunes in the loss of property through treachery, the death of his children, and the dreadful affliction that wore him down. But in it all he was patient, submissive, heroic and serenely triumphant in his faith. As a citi- zen he was loyal and law-abiding. As a business man he gained material pros- perity without losing spiritual aspirations. As a home-maker he provided well for his family and has left them tender memories, wholesome example, com- forts of home, and the priceless heritage of 'a good name rather to be chosen than riches.' As a soldier he served with honor in the dark days of war and maintained inspiring heroism when face to face with the long sufferings and gloom of a relentless disease, a soldier to the end of consciousness. As a mem- ber of this church he held strong convictions, had a deeply sympathetic nature, was a cheerful giver, a lover of truth, and devout in his spirit of worship. As a man he lived among us, met human frailties, rose above the carnal, grew strong in character, linked the human to the divine and revealed in his nature how it is possible for a 'son of man' to become a 'son of God,' and the 'mortal' to put on 'immortality.'"

JAMES E. SPENCER.

From the humble duties of a clerkship to the responsibilities of manager of the Valley Junction branch of H. S. Chase & Company, is the creditable record of James E. Spencer, whose long connection with that house is proof positive of the confidence and trust reposed in him by his employers. He has passed his entire life in Des Moines, where his birth occurred on the 20th of May, 1890, a son of Henry and Olive (Willis) Spencer, who were also natives of Iowa. In early life the father learned the trade of meat cutter and for fifteen years was thus employed, at the expiration of which period he purchased a tract of forty acres near Adelphia, Iowa, which he cleared and improved. To the opera- tion of this farm, which is devoted exclusively to fruit-raising, he has since ap- plied himself and in its cultivation is proving most successful. His wife also sur- vives and both are well known and highly respected in the community which has long been their home.

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James E. Spencer, whose education was acquired in the public schools of Des Moines, remained at home with his parents until sixteen years of age when, eager to enter the business world, he made his initial step as an employe of H. S. Chase & Company, grocers of Des Moines, with whom he has been connected continuously throughout the intervening years. Ambitious to forge ahead in the business world he was prompted to apply himself diligently to the tasks assigned him and it was not long before his worth and ability were recognized by promo- tion. Continuous advancement has followed as the logical result of conscientious effort and fidelity to duty on his part until today he occupies the creditable posi- tion of manager of the Valley Junction branch of H. S. Chase & Company. In the performance of the duties which thus devolve upon him he exhibits a keen business sagacity remarkable in one of his years, and the spirit of enthusiasm and enterprise which marked his initiation into the business world is still a salient quality in his career, prompting him to exert his best energies in the conduct of the business interests intrusted to his care.

On the 23d of April, 1910, Mr. Spencer laid the foundation for a happy home of his own by his marriage to Miss Fern C. Clark, daughter of Henry C. Clark, a native of Iowa, within whose borders his entire life has been spent. He is now a resident of Cedar Rapids where he is well known as a furniture dealer. Mr. and Mrs. Spencer make their home at 1802 High street, Des Moines, and are well known socially among the younger residents of this city. Mrs. Spencer is a member of the Christian church while politically Mr. Spencer is a stalwart advocate of republican principles. He is a public-spirited young man, interested in all those subjects which bear upon the welfare of his native city, and is a firm believer in progress along all lines. He has gained an enviable place for himself in business circles, his record being all the more creditable because of the fact that although he has but recently attained his majority-a period in life when most young men are preparing to cross the threshhold of the business world-he has already established himself well on the way to suc- cess and the excellent progress which he has made seems to augur well for continued prosperity in the future.

ALFRED H. McVEY.

The members of the McVey family in America are all descended from a common Scotch ancestry ; the name being spelled by different families in several ways, McVey, McVay, McVeigh, MacVey, MacVeigh, the original spelling being MacVeagh. The American branch originally emigrated from Scotland to the north of Ireland and from there to America. The ancestors of the subject of this sketch were in the vanguard of the great Scotch-Irish emigration to Amer- ica, which later furnished so many distinguished statesmen, jurists, clergymen and warriors to the public service; and citizens of distinction in all departments of life. No less than five Presidents of the United States were of Scotch-Irish ancestry.

Alfred Henry McVey, a member of the family above referred to, is a native of Fayette county, Ohio. His ancestors came to America when but few people lived on its eastern border. Their arrival antedates what is usually denominated Colonial Times. They preceded the arrival of William Penn, emigrating to America in the year 1656. They ultimately settled in Virginia and Pennsylvania. His grandfather, James McVey, removed from Washington county, Pennsyl- vania, where his father was born, to Southern Ohio in the year 1809. On the maternal side Mr. McVey is descended from an old English family, which located in what is now the state of New Jersey about the middle of the seventeenth cen- tury. His maternal grandfather, Marmaduke Eastlack, removed from the state

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of New Jersey more than one hundred years ago, with his family to Southern Ohio, where he lived to the age of ninety years; these ancestors on both sides, were people of property and were influential citizens.

Mr. McVey's preliminary education was acquired in the common schools of Ohio; he was prepared for college at the Southwestern Normal School at Leba- non, Ohio. These studies were interrupted during the Civil war, when though a mere boy, he enlisted and served as a volunteer in the Seventy-ninth Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Afterward he entered the Ohio Wesleyan University at Delaware, from which college he graduated with high honors. He was imme- diately elected a teacher in that institution, but this position he soon resigned, and entered upon the study of the law becoming a student of the law depart- ment of Cincinnati College, the oldest law school west of the Alleghanies, and which numbers among its alumni some of the most distinguished lawyers of the country, including President Taft. Mr. McVey graduated from this institution, and first opened a law office at Wilmington, Ohio, and there at once secured a successful practice ; later on he removed to the city of Toledo, where in addition to local practice he devoted his attention more especially to business in the United States courts, and was for several years general counsel for the Toledo, Cincin- nati & St. Louis Railroad Company, "Now the Clover Leaf Route." But the west, and especially Iowa, had a great attraction for Mr. McVey, and in 1882 he came to Des Moines with the intention of making it his permanent home, and here he still resides.

Judge McVey has for many years been engaged in the trial of important cases. His practice has frequently called him to adjoining states, and few law- yers have tried more cases in the courts of last resort ; many of them being cases involving serious questions of law, and of large pecuniary interests.

Judge McVey served five years as district judge of the Ninth Judicial district, Des Moines, where his scholarship, legal attainments, and uniform courtesy were favorably recognized, by both the legal profession and the general public. After his retirement from the bench he resumed the practice of the law, which he still continues.

In January, 1869, he was married to Miss Anna Holmes, a lady of education, rare force of character and lovable disposition. The branch of the Holmes fam- ily from which she is descended is among the very oldest families in America. She is the daughter of Rev. William Holmes, and a direct descendant of Rev. Obadiah Holmes, who came from England in 1639, and settled at Salem, Massa- chusetts. He was, with Roger Williams, the founder of the Baptist church in America, and one of the original proprietors of Colonial New Jersey, where with others he secured very extensive land grants and patents, from the English crown. These estates embraced one-third of what is now the state of New Jersey.

He located his sons on these extensive estates where a large number of their descendants still reside, being among the wealthy and influential citizens of the state. The father of Mrs. McVey removed to the state of Ohio in 1835, where he recently died at an advanced age, as a highly respected, useful and honored citizen.

Both the McVey and Holmes families are among the very oldest in America. The first members of these families located in what is now the United States long before the colonial governments were organized, they have been efficient forces for nearly three hundred years, during which time they have borne their full share of the hardships, responsibilities and successes attending the first set- tlements in America, and on down through the colonial revoltuionary and national epochs.

Mr. and Mrs. McVey have five children. Frank L. graduated from the Ohio Wesleyan University in 1893, and from Yale University in 1896, with the degree of Ph. D., and was for some time a professor of political economy in the Uni-

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versity of Minnesota. He is now president of the University of North Dakota, which is rapidly developing into one of the great state universities. Edmund is also a graduate of Yale, where he gained high honors, and was presented with a gold medal by the alumni of the university on the occasion of winning the great debate between Yale and Princeton Universities. He is now a successful lawyer of Kansas City. William P. is a graduate of Des Moines College, and of Drew Theological Seminary at Madison, New Jersey, where he took first honors, and a fellowship, and afterwards was a student at the University of Leipsic, Germany, and is now president of Hedding College, Illinois. Kate, the only daughter is a graduate of Woman's College, Baltimore, Maryland, and is a post-graduate of the University of Minnesota. She is now the wife of Judge John G. Park, and resides in Kansas City, Missouri. Charles H., the youngest son, a former stu- dent of the University of Minnesota, and a world-wide traveler, having recently returned from a trip around the world, is now a student of law at Boise, Idaho, where he expects to practice his profession.

Judge McVey resides on his country place, Lindenwood, adjoining the city limits of Des Moines on the west, in a large and well appointed house, with mod- ern conveniences, located on a lawn of several acres decorated with a growth of fine trees consisting of hard maples, linden, elm and many other varieties ; sur- rounded by one hundred and twenty acres of fertile land, consisting of groves, blue grass pastures, and well tilled fields, which constitute an almost ideal resi- dence setting. The rooms in this residence are very commodious, and on every day of the year cool enough to make its warmth pleasant. There burns in one or more of the large fireplaces a wood fire, making cheerful, as no other mode of heating can, the rooms of a country house, and supplying the furnaces below with additional warmth and ventilation.

In this home Judge McVey has collected one of the most select and valuable private libraries in the west. The hours which are usually devoted to pleasure or recreation he has utilized in study, his acquaintance with the best books and general literature is extensive, and his scholarly attainments are generally recog- nized.

WILLIAM HARRISON LANGAN.

William Harrison Langan, president of the Langan Brothers Company, wholesale dealers in paper and wooden ware, is one of Des Moines' veteran busi- ness men, having been an active factor in the city's commercial and financial de- velopment for nearly a third of a century. The methods he has pursued have commended him to the confidence and good-will of all and through close applica- tion to business and capable management he has been largely instrumental in devel- oping a commercial enterprise of large and profitable proportions and at the same time has extended his operations into other fields.

A native of Pennsylvania, Mr. Langan was born in Washington county, on the 21st of April, 1840, his parents being John and Hannah (Mason) Langan, who were also natives of the same county, whence they removed to Huron county, Ohio, in the year 1844. In 1863 they came to Iowa, settling in Wapello county, where they remained for two years, on the expiration of which period they took up their abode in Monroe, Jasper county, in 1865. There the mother died in the year 1882, while the death of John Langan occurred in Des Moines in 1886.

William H. Langan, taken by his parents to Ohio when but four years of age, was educated in the public schools of that state and, entering business life, became connected with the dry-goods trade in Ohio. He was a young man of twenty-three years when, in 1863, he came with the family to Iowa. For six years thereafter he engaged in farming and stock-raising in Jasper county and

W. H. LANGAN

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then again entered the commercial field, devoting eight years to the conduct of a dry-goods business in Monroe. Removing to Des Moines, he has for the past thirty years been engaged in the wholesale paper business in this city under the firm style of Langan Brothers, and the later corporate name of Langan Broth- ers Company. The business, begun on a small scale, has been developed sub- stantially along well defined lines of labor and in accordance with the strictest commercial ethics. Promptness and reliability have always been characteristic of the house in its dealings with its patrons, and the firm name is today an hon- ored one in trade circles where paper and wooden ware are in use.

Mr. Langan is an advocate of cooperation as a business principle. With the change from a partnership to a corporation Charles N. Pierce, George B. Voor- hees and Frank L. Townsend, long-time employes of the house, became active members of the organization, William H. and Thomas M. Langan being chosen president and vice president respectively. The success of the business is due to the labors of all, for the activities of one ably supplement and round out the efforts of the other and the firm is a well balanced one in administrative direc- tion and executive force. The brother, Thomas M. Langan, was a soldier in the Civil war, serving in the One Hundred and Sixty-third Regiment of Ohio In- fantry.

In addition to his connection with the wholesale paper and wooden ware trade, William H. Langan is a director of the Kratzer Carriage Company of Des Moines and also a director in the Central State Bank. His opinions on im- portant questions of business are sound and his judgment discriminating and his initiative spirit has led to the formulation of new plans, which have proven re- sultant in the attainment of success.

In Springport, New York, Mr. Langan was married to Miss Frances Eliz- abeth Tone, a daughter of Lewis and Olive Tone. Mrs. Langan was born in Cayuga county, New York, and for several years was a resident of Ohio. The children of this marriage are John T., Lewis M., Charles C. and Mabel Langan.

The parents are identified with the Plymouth Congregational church of Des Moines, of which Mr. Langan has been a member for thirty years. He has al- ways been a loyal republican and has been a member of Grant Club of Des Moines from its organization to the present time. He is a member and was one of the organizers of the Des Moines Commercial Club, and has served at various times on the board of directors. In matters of citizenship he brings to bear the same sound judgment and sagacity that characterize his business life, and with equal firmness of purpose he works for that which he believes to be for the best interest of the community at large. While his life history is less spectacu- lar than that of the political or military leader, the dominating elements in his career-industry, determination and integrity-are no less essential and no less valuable in the country's progress.

WILLIAM MEDILL BAIR, M. D.

Unlike many members of the medical profession Dr. William Medill Bair has never specialized in any particular field, but has continued in the general practice of medicine and has done excellent work in this connection. As a fam- ily physician he is widely known and the excellent results of his labors have made his services in large demand. Ohio numbers him as a native son, his birth having occurred in Bucyrus on the 21st of January, 1856. His parents, Levi and Barbara (Cramer) Bair, were natives of Germany and the former was a son of Adam Bair, of the same land.

Dr. Bair has been a resident of Iowa since June, 1870, residing in Humboldt county with his parents who were owners of farm lands there. He completed

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his public school education by study in the high school of Marion, Ohio, and later attended the Humboldt (Iowa) College. His professional training was begun in Humboldt county about 1874 under a preceptor and he has continued his studies to the present day. His college training was received in the medical department of the Iowa University and the medical department of the Nebraska University, where he won the M. D. degree in 1884. He also attended the Ensworth Med- ical College and Hospital at St. Joseph, Missouri, where the M. D. degree was conferred upon him in 1886. He has done post-graduate work in Rush Medical College of Chicago and as a physician and surgeon has proven his ability in vari- ous connections where complex professional problems have arisen. As he has prospered Dr. Bair has made investment in real estate.

On the 20th of March, 1881, in Fremont, Mahaska county, Iowa, Dr. Bair was married to Miss Rose Cook, a daughter of Dr. S. S. and Sarah (Eastburn) Cook, who came of good old Quaker and English stock. Dr. and Mrs. Bair have the following children: William P., an attorney of Des Moines, who mar- ried Mabel Y. Dunbar ; Philip A., a farmer of Letcher, South Dakota, who mar- ried Elsie McCurdy ; Carl M., who married Hazel Collins and is engaged in teaching in Des Moines; and Fred Harrison, a student at Iowa College, Grin- nell, Iowa. The parents hold membership in the Central Presbyterian church of Des Moines and reside at No. 1122 Sixth avenue, their pleasant home being the abode of warm-hearted hospitality which is freely extended to their many friends. The Doctor is winning success through his professional and business activities and displays notable sound judgment in his real-estate imvestments which are bringing to him a substantial financial return.

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Des Moines, the pioneer of municipal progress and reform of the middle West, together with the history of Polk County, Iowa, the largest, most populous and most prosperous county in the state of Iowa; Volume II, Part 157

Author: Brigham, Johnson, 1846-1936; Clarke (S.J.) Publishing Company, Chicago, pub Publication date: 1911 Publisher: Chicago, The S. J. Clarke publishing company Number of Pages: 1464

Author: Brigham, Johnson, 1846-1936; Clarke (S.J.) Publishing Company, Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1911
Publisher: Chicago, The S. J. Clarke publishing company
Number of Pages: 1464