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 33

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 33

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treasurer, was one of the first graduates of the school. Also many graduates of this school became judges and justices of the supreme courts in several states of the Union. Judge Cole had great delight in teaching. He expressed to his class with marked distinctness and perspicuity the information which he desired to impart and the response of the class to his instruction afforded him much pleasure. In recognition of Judge Cole's labors as a teacher of law for forty-two years he received, unsolicited, on the 5th of January, 1907, a letter from the Carnegie Foundation in aid of teaching stating that he had been voted a retiring allowance of twelve hundred and eighty dollars a year, payable in monthly installments. This allowance was voted to take effect whenever he might choose to resign the active work of teaching and was extended to him solely in recognition of the service he had rendered to the profession in the field of teaching. At the age of eighty-three years, Judge Cole at the earnest solicitation of his family, yielded to their request and at once retired from active teaching, fur so advised the Carnegie Institute. He was then made dean emeritus of the department of Drake University which position he still holds. A splekw ye byopf forty-two years as a teacher of law well entitles him to all the cniww an umfor which is his in this connection. Not seeking honors but simpist ¿ to do his duty, undertakings. honors were yet multiplied to him and prosperity.iii

On the 25th of June, 1848, Judge Cole was mardinodd Amanda M. Ben- nett, a daughter of Egbert and Gertrude (RichtmomhoffQi' Seven children have been born unto them: Calvin S. and WilliamPr Gertrude A., the wife of A. C. Atherton, of Des Moines . ry E., widow of D. C. McMartin, a Des Moines lawyer who died in a895% , nester C., who died in infancy ; Frank B .; and Carrie S., widow of J. R. Hurlb to

Juth now deceased ;.

Judge Cole has been a member of the Masonic frate wy since 1849 and has ever been regarded as an exemplary representative of the craft. He has served as chancellor commander of the Knights of Pythia : lodgt d is an elder in the Presbyterian church. He is still an active man notwithsta ing his eighty-seven years and young and old, rich and poor, enjoy his compal .. onship. He is very courteous and genial and his long experience at the bar, bringing him a knowl- edge of the frailties of men and their temptations, has led him to judge leniently and speak charitably of those whose power of resisting temptation has not been sufficient. His record has been most creditable in every relation of life. His is a noble character-one that subordinates personal ambition to public good and has sought rather the benefit of others than the aggrandizement of self. En- dowed by nature with high intellectual qualities, to which were added the dis- cipline and embellishments of culture, his has ever been a charming personality and the strength of honorable, upright manhood is his.

E. M. ELLINGSON.

E. M. Ellingson, a leading produce commission merchant of Des Moines, may be designated as one of its most worthy citizens. He is essentially a self-made man, having won his way from the foot of the financial ladder to a place of com- parative ease. He was born in Benton county, Iowa, March 23, 1856, a son of Elling and Gurie .(Halverson) Ellingson. The father came to Iowa from Ger- many with his parents in 1856, traveling by wagon, and was one of the sturdy settlers, who contributed in hastening the establishment of civilization west of the Mississippi river.

E. M. Ellingson received his early education in the country schools, later at- tending college, and devoting his attention to his studies with an earnestness that gave bright promise as to his future. He began his active career in the re- tail grocery business at Story City, Iowa, but after a short time returned to Ben-

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ton, where he spent about a year before settling down to his life work. In 1879 he entered the poultry commission business at Story City in his own name, ship- ping to the Boston market. After a year's experience as a commission man he sold out and became a hotel proprietor. Six months' activity in this line con- vinced him that his talents lay in other directions. Accordingly, he sold out and again became a dealer in produce and poultry at Story City. In 1886' he dis- posed of his business and for five years engaged with gratifying success in a simi- lar line at Webb City. Coming to Des Moines in 1901, he established himself permanently, at first handling principally butter and eggs gradually widening the scope of his activities, until today he is known as one of the largest produce commission men in the city. He has ample floor space in his establishment and every facility for receiving and shipping according to the most approved and up-to-date methods. The house is directly connected with a similar one at Webb City and both enjoy a goodly measure of prosperity.

On the 7th of September, 1879, Mr. Ellingson was united in marriage to Miss Mary Ludvigson, whose father, Falen Ludvigson, came to Benton county in 1868 and is one of its large farmers and stock-raisers. Eight children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Ellingson : Elizabeth; Josephine, who married a Mr. Corbett and has one child, Louisa Corbett; Fred, who married Miss Edna Ashem ; Edwin; Victor ; Chester ; Ellis; and Marion. Victor and Chester are attending the high school and Ellis is a student in the public schools.

Mr. Ellingson is recognized as a man of fine business ability and as a pa- triotic and progressive citizen who has performed valuable service by his worthy example. He is greatly interested in the study of religion and also that of litera- ture, and has a large and well selected library with which he is thoroughly fa- miliar, spending many hours weekly over his books. He is a member of the Apostolic church and is an avowed prohibitionist. He is devoted to his family, his home being the center of hospitality and good fellowship. In business he has attained a handsome competence, so that he is today numbered among the sub- stantial citizens of the community.

THEODORE F. GATCHEL.

There came to Theodore F. Gatchel strong recognition of the fact that the purposes of life are best attained in service for others, and especially in his later years his course was the exemplification of this truth. A splendid type of Christian manhood. his record is a demonstration of the Biblical utterance : "Seck ye first the kingdom of Heaven and all these things shall be added unto you." There came success, honor. admiration and warm friendships-not be- cause he sought the praise of his fellowmen, but because the world instinc- tively pays deference to a man of high and honorable character. He pros- pered in business, but it is not the fact that he was one of the chief executive officers in a leading corporation of Des Moines that will make him long remem- bered, but because he sought to do good to his fellowmen, his heart going out in warm sympathy especially to the poor and needy to whom he gave with generous hand.

Theodore F. Gatchel reached but the age of fifty-six years, yet within his span of life he accomplished what many men do not accomplish to whom are allotted the Psalmist's three score years and ten. He was born in Chester county, Pennsylvania, April 16, 1845, and in his youth became a resident of Cecil county, Maryland, where he was living when, following the outbreak of the Civil war, he enlisted at the early age of fifteen in the Fifth Maryland Regiment for defense of the Union. His father secured his release from the

T. F. GATCHEL

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army on account of his youth from Secretary of War Stanton, but Mr. Gatchel refused to accept the release. For four years he was in active military service and the boy became a man through the experiences, hardships and rigors of army life. He was captured and taken to Libby prison in Richmond, Virginia, and afterward was paroled. Following the war he became prominent in the affairs of the government in the District of Columbia, holding office during the two terms of President Grant's administration and enjoying the friendship and confidence of the hero of Appomattox to an unusual degree. General Grant maintained a high respect for Mr. Gatchel's business ability and integrity and entrusted him with the management of many of his private business affairs. Secretary Stanton appointed him a clerk in the war department in considera- tion of his refusal to accept the release, but later Mr. Gatchel resigned this position and opened a real-estate office in Washington, D. C. In that city he served for years as president of the Metropolitan police board. He was ap- pointed by President Hayes a member of the police board of commissioners and served as president of the board for several years, when he resigned. When head of the Metropolitan police board it had been proven that the department was corrupt and inefficient and he was selected to reform the department and 1 emedy the situation. The gallant fight he made in this direction is still remem- bered by the older residents of Washington who were familiar with the strenu- ous effort made by the saloon keepers and gamblers to retain their hold and continue their nefarious business. One writing of this epoch in the life of Mr. Gatchel said: "How depressed every good citizen felt when his efforts failed through a change in the administration, and yet none of us were so deeply wounded as the man who had made the fight. The men who brought about this defeat have passed away and their memory has been forgotten, but the gallant Gatchel who fought for the right will be remembered so long as right actions are cherished and good government endure."

While a resident of Washington Mr. Gatchel also organized the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, this being the second in the United States, and was its first president. He was successful in introducing the drink- ing fountains for man and beast. He held membership in the Hamline Meth- odist Episcopal church when in Washington and at his death Mr. Boream, who had been his associate in the church work and in organizing and continuing the affairs of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, spoke in highest terms of Mr. Gatchel's conscientious discharge of his duties, saying : "He was a thorough, efficient and consistent Christian, and those whose good fortune it was to have been numbered among his friends and fellow-workers now find peculiar pleasure in being able to testify to his unceasing fidelity. He did his work well. He always urged upon his friends and those who listened to his testimony the all-important duty of living out before the world the re- ligious life which they professed to enjoy and of which they were an integral part. The fruit of his sowing could not be otherwise than good. As the months come and go it is plainly evident that his labors have not been in vain. Brother Gatchel possessed a dominating spirit of earnest determination. He pressed home his own convictions of right and duty. His faithfulness was unflagging ; his zeal was but the earnest of the spirit that dominated his whole being. He was uncompromising in his denunciation of wrong and spared not his expres- sions of contempt and derision of wrongdoers and the violators of the law, whether of God or man. It was this characteristic that pervaded his adminis- tration of the affairs of the society of which he was the projector, the organizer, and the presiding genius. Brother Gatchel built better than he knew. From the small beginning of the society of which he was the honored head there has grown up in the capital city an association which now reaches out not only for the protection of the dumb beasts, but for the betterment of the conditions of the homes of many of its citizens, and the humanitarian interests of our

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people are now largely centralized around the great purpose of the society in caring for the unprotected childhood of our great commonwealth."

In 1879 Mr. Gatchel removed to Des Moines, where for a time he engaged in the life insurance business, but later organized the Des Moines Fire Insur- ance Company, of which he became secretary and general manager. In this connection he developed a strong and stable company and one which enjoyed substantial growth. Among insurance men he was recognized as a leader and for two decades or more ranked with the prominent representatives of insur- ance interests not only in Iowa but throughout the west. Mr. Gatchel rejoiced in his prosperity because of the opportunity which it gave him to do good to others. After removing to this city he allied himself with the First Methodist Episcopal church and served on its official board for a number of years. He took a deep and helpful interest in all of the departments of the church and himself instituted kindred movements. He was the founder of the Humane Society of Des Moines and one of its strongest supporters. He had much sym- pathy for the oppressed, whether man or beast, and he was ever a generous and helpful friend of the poor. One of the last acts of his life was to find a place for a poor boy and put him in school, and his interests in later years centered above all things in the establishment of a hospital for the poor. With charac- teristic energy he undertook this work and to his efforts more than to any other Des Moines owes the founding of the Methodist Hospital. This hospital was started with a sum of twenty-five thousand dollars, but its worth is now three hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars, two hundred thousand dollars of which is in buildings. One who knew him well said: "He cared nothing for personal glory. When the success of his plans became manifest he gave up the leader- ship to others. A hard worker himself, with a wide range of experience and reading, and broad sympathies, quick to see the solution of a problem, he was sometimes impatient of the slower movements of others. Once convinced that a thing ought to be done, he wanted it done quickly."

In other fields which indicated the extent and breadth of his sympathy Mr. Gatchel called forth his energies and activities. He established the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Des Moines as well as in Washington, and also introduced drinking fountains in Iowa's capital. He was the father and chief promoter of the deaconess work in Des Moines and was chairman of the Conference Board of Nine and vice president of the Deaconess Association. He thoroughly believed in the movement and in its development into broader fields of usefulness. To this end he encouraged the workers in every possible way and in him they found they had a loyal friend. He was for many years an exemplary member of the Masonic fraternity and was always in sympathy with the beneficent principles of the craft. He was also a member of the Ancient Order of United Workmen and of the Grand Army of the Republic.

In May, 1871, Mr. Gatchel was united in marriage to Miss Blanche Morrell, of Washington, D. C., and unto them were born three children: Dr. Margaret M. Gatchel; C. Hatfield, now living in California; and David P. Gatchel. Mr. Gatchel was ever devoted to his family and found his greatest happiness in ministering to their welfare. Death came to him without previous warning. He was attending a meeting of the board of directers of the Iowa Methodist Hospital with the intention of joining his wife and daughter at the First Meth- odist church, where services were being held. Someone reported that losses had been sustained in the hospital through their care of so many charity patients. Mr. Gatchel, who was preparing to leave, replied: "Well, I am sorry that we haven't lost more money in that way." Those were his last words and death came to him almost instantly. In his passing "the poor lost a good friend and the business world a strong, commanding personality." His great, loving heart beat with sympathy for every living thing, his thought was for the suffering poor and in the deaconess work in the homes and in the hospital he saw the solution

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of how best to permanently benefit them. For years his time and money had been freely given to bringing about this supreme purpose of his life. His favor- ite hymn, "Higher Ground," was indicative of the motives of his life. He sought always to attain an advanced plan in Christian activity and service to his fellowmen. Following his demise, which occurred on the 7th of Novem- ber, 1901, memorial services were held in the Methodist church of Des Moines and also in the Methodist church to which he had belonged in Washington.

At the funeral services held on the following Sunday his pastor said : "Brother Gatchel was a man who brought things to pass. He could not be placed in a commonplace groove and be expected to stay there. He was the spirit of the initiative in an unusual degree. He was recognized as one of the best projectors of any worthy enterprise that the city has ever had among its citizens. Impulsive and rugged, but generous and loyal-hearted, he was sure to run against men sometimes who were of slower gait, but he made warm friends and had many admirers. Stagnation is impossible where such a man is. He moves mountains, breaks up fallow ground, is a pioneer of larger things. His was the faith that 'laughs at impossibilities and says it shall be done.' He would have been conspicuous anywhere and might easily have been eminent in any of many spheres of life. His splendid physique was a fitting home for such a spirit. He undertook to remove misunderstandings between himself and others. When wrong he was frank to acknowledge it. He went more than half way to set things right with his fellowmen. Always of generous and humane impulses, he gave thorough and persistent and patient attention to the doing of good." In Washington one said: "No man can be great who is not a good man, and Mr. Gatchel was a good man, and the good impulses of his heart and the brave activities he wrought out in pushing them forward cost him time, money and the friendship of weak men who were actuated by less generous and unselfish motives. There are many men in our city today who would gladly pay tribute to the man who helped them to live lives of temperance, morality and good citizenship. His manly example was an inspiration to the best things in life, and his unselfish interest in the establishment of good government and the upbuilding of a public sentiment in favor of morality, purity and temper- ance stands without parallel in this our capital city."

CHESTER J. ELLER.

Chester J. Eller, engaged in the practice of civil law, specializing to some extent in corporation and commercial law practice, was born in Hedrick, Iowa, August 17, 1876, and was reared upon a farm in Jefferson county, meeting the usual experiences of country life while spending his youthful days in the home of his parents, Alexander H. and Lucy Jane (Peck) Eller. The father, who was born and reared in North Carolina, is now living retired after many years devoted to general agricultural pursuits. His wife, a native of La Crosse, Wis- consin, is also still living. The paternal ancestors of our subject were German people, who settled in North Carolina, and his father was the first of the fam- ily to leave that state and become a resident of Iowa. In the maternal line C. J. Eller is of Scotch-Irish extraction.

In the public schools of Hedrick Chester J. Eller pursued his education to the age of seventeen years and afterward became a student in the Northern Indiana Normal School at Valparaiso. Later he entered Drake University of Des Moines in the fall of 1898 and pursued a college course in the University of Iowa City, where he was graduated with the class of 1902. He also com- pleted two-thirds of the law course and successfully passed the required exami- nation for admission to the bar at Des Moines. He then took up the active work

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of the profession on the 5th of March, 1905. He has never given any atten- tion to criminal law practice but has confined his energies entirely to civil law and has done important work in the field of commercial and corporation law practice. His early reading was done in the office and under the direction of Roland J. Wilson, of Fairfield, Iowa, for about eighteen months and later he was a law student in the office of White & Clark, of Adel, Iowa. From the outset of his professional career he has been very successful and is today num- bered among the representative young lawyers of Des Moines.

On the Ist of May, 1907, occurred the marriage of Chester J. Eller and Miss Mary G. Johnson, of Boone, Iowa, a daughter of Theodore Johnson, who was one of the early settlers there. Mrs. Eller was born in Boone and like her husband has always lived in this state. They are members of the University Christian church and are interested and active in its work. In politics Mr. Eller is a republican of the progressive type, yet believes in that measure of conservatism which holds the party in a stable course and prevents an undue plunge into the unknown whereby a safe and established order of things is dis- turbed, causing uneasiness and uncertainty in business as well as in other lines of life. He belongs to the Polk County Bar Association and in his chosen field of. labor has made continuous advancement. The zeal with which he has de- voted his energies to his profession, the careful regard evinced for the inter- ests of his clients and an assiduous and unrelaxing attention to all the details of his practice have brought him a large business and made him very successful in its conduct.

CLARENCE DEAN BURKHEIMER.

Clarence Dean Burkheimer, enjoying a large practice as a member of the Des Moines bar, was born in Union county, Iowa, July 25, 1876. He is of the fourth generation of the representatives of the family in America, his great- grandfather having come from Germany, at which time he settled in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The father, Ira C. Burkheimer, was born in Perry county, Penn- sylvania, February 22, 1854, and, removing westward in 1866, settled in Union county, Iowa. He is now successfully engaging in the real-estate business in Creston. He married Sarah Elma Martin, who was born in Columbiana county Ohio, September 2, 1858, and is of Scotch-Irish lineage, her grandfather having been the founder of the family in the new world, at which time he took up his abode in Pennsylvania.

Clarence Dean Burkheimer was a pupil in the district schools of Jones town- ship, Union county, while his parents were living upon the farm. Later he at- tended the public schools of Lorimor, Iowa, continuing his course in the high school until graduated with the class of 1894. He also pursued a commercial course in the Capital City Commercial College, of Des Moines, after which he entered upon the study of law in the State University of Iowa, completing his course with the class of 1906, at which time the LL. B. degree was conferred upon him. He was admitted to the bar on the 14th of June, 1906, and then began the practice in Des Moines. Immediately afterward he took up the active work of the profession and became associated with Howard R. Churchill under the firm name of Burkheimer & Churchill. A year later the partnership was dis- solved and since that time Mr. Burkheimer has remained in the practice alone giving his attention to all lines of the profession to meet the demands of a grow- ing clientage. At the bar the elements of success must be individual forces. No fortunate combination of circumstances nor the influence of friends can aid the lawyer in his presentation of his cause before the courts. He must base his case upon intimate and accurate knowledge of the law and his ability to clearly pre-

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sent the points in litigation. These essential elements of success are possessed by Mr. Burkheimer and while advancement at the bar is proverbially slow he has nevertheless worked his way upward and is now enjoying a large and sat- isfactory practice.

In his political relations Mr. Burkheimer is a republican of the progressive type and is an active worker in the party, especially during the campaigns. He is regarded as an eloquent, earnest and able speaker on the issues of the day and is frequently called upon to address the people on numerous questions of im- portance to the welfare of the public. Fraternally he is connected with the Masons, the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, the Royal Highlanders, the Modern Woodmen of America, the Redmen and the legal fraternity of Phi Delta Phi.

On the 25th of October, 1898, in Lorimor, Iowa, was celebrated the mar- riage of Mr. Burkheimer and Miss Lena Winning, who was born in Warren county, this state, February 18, 1877, and is a daughter of Samuel Winning, one of the pioneers of Iowa who for many years was actively engaged in merchandis- ing at Lorimor, but is now living retired there. The home of Mr. and Mrs. Burk- heimer has been blessed with three sons: John Winning, who was born at Lorimor, January 17, 1900, and died August 15, 1908; William Dean who was born March 31, 1903, at Creston, Iowa; and Frederick Howard, who was born December 16, 1910, at Des Moines. The parents hold membership in Grace Methodist Episcopal church and adhere to its teachings as basic principles for the guidance of their lives. They have gained the kindly regard of all those whom they have met socially, and their good qualities are manifest in the con- stantly growing circle of their acquaintance.

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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 33

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