USA > Iowa > Pottawattamie County > History of Pottawattamie County, Iowa, from the earliest historic times to 1907, Vol. II > Part 2
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575
HISTORY OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY
ALBRECHT C. MEITZEN.
The distinctive and specific office of biography is not to give voice to a man's modest estimate of himself but rather to leave the perpetual record es- tablished by the consensus of public opinion, and determined by this standard Albrecht C. Meitzen's value as a citizen places him among the foremost residents of Avoca, where he is perhaps best known in his business connection as cashier of the Citizens' Savings Bank. To those who read the following it should be said, in justice to the extreme modesty of Mr. Meitzen, that this sketch was pre- pared without his knowledge, through the desire of his friends to have his sketch follow that of his warm admirer and confidante, the late J. W. Davis.
He was born on the 17th of August, 1867, in Breslau, Germany, which was also the birthplace of his parents, Albrecht and Clara (Erber) Meitzen, the former born in 1837 and the latter in 1846. The father was reared to farm life and became a scientific agriculturist in his native country. He was twice connected with military service in that land, taking active part in the Austrian war of 1866 and in the Franco-Prussian war of 1870. He is now the proud possessor of a medal bestowed upon him by the late Emperor William of Ger- many. In 1883 he left his native country with his family and on coming to America established his home near the village of Persia in Harrison county, Iowa, where he was actively engaged in general agricultural pursuits until 1896, when he removed to Avoca, since which time he has made his home with his son Albrecht, the eldest of a family of five children. The others are: Susanna, the wife of Charles Eggerss, of Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Margaret, the wife of A. J. Eggerss, of Omaha, Nebraska; Curt J., also living in Omaha; and Ella, who is with her parents.
In the schools of his native country Albrecht C. Meitzen began his educa- tion and while attending the Cadet Academy at Kulm (to which only the sons of army officers are eligible) he studied both French and English. He found his knowledge of the former very useful while traveling through France : but when he arrived in the new world he had the experience of many another man of foreign birth, in that his English was difficult to understand and his sentences of most peculiar construction. He was not long, however, in master- ing the language here and today speaks the tongue as if "to the manner born." Continuing under the parental roof until 1889, he then started out upon an in- dependent business career by accepting a position in a hardware store in Persia. After three years there passed he went to Omaha to assist in organizing the Omaha Paper Box Company, which is still carrying on business under the firm name of Eggerss & O'Flyng.
His identification with the banking business dates from the 20th of No- vember, 1893, when he entered the employ of J. W. Davis, proprietor of the Commercial Bank of Avoca. His military training had made him accurate and methodical in his work and, his ability being quickly recognized by his employer, he was advanced to positions of trust and responsibility. Within two years after entering the bank he was made its cashier and was given charge of much of the routine work and business of the house. After the re-organization of the Commercial Bank and its incorporation as the Citizens' Savings Bank on
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HISTORY OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY
the 1st of July, 1901, Mr. Meitzen was placed at the head of the institution in the position of cashier and is now practically in control. He has made a close and thorough study of the banking business in every detail and under his able guidance the institution has made rapid and substantial progress. As a banker and business man he is eminently successful, basing his business principles and actions upon the rules which govern unswerving integrity, unfaltering in- dustry and close application. His progressiveness is tempered by a safe conserv- atism that prevents him from making any false steps, yet he forms his plans readily and is determined in their execution. No word has ever been uttered against his probity and he is well known as one who employs no dishonest methods nor will he tolerate any such in a business transaction with which he is connected.
In matters relating to public welfare Mr. Meitzen has manifested a devo- tion to the general good which makes him a valued citizen. He is patriotic in his allegiance to the stars and stripes, and local advancement and national progress are both causes dear to his heart. He votes with the republican party, believing that its platform contains the best elements of good government. He is now serving as a member of the town council of Avoca.
In his fraternal relations he is connected with. Mount Nebo lodge, No. 297, A. F. & A. M., of Avoca, with Raboni chapter, No. 55. R. A. M., and with Mount Zion Commandery, K. T. He belongs to the Gesang Verein and the German Congregational church. In his family relations as a brother and son, he has proved himself to be most affectionate, kind, chivalrous and devoted. He holds high ideals in relation to citizenship, to business and io social rela- tions, and is known throughout the community as a man of generous im- pulses, a genial companion and a faithful friend.
His efforts in behalf of soldiers and soldiers' widows in making ont their vouchers gratuitously have been greatly appreciated by those who have bene- fited by his aid and in token of this appreciation he was recently presented with a pair of diamond cuff links, which he prizes most highly. The presenta- tion was made on February 27, 1906, by William Leslie with the following:
Appreciating the friendship and kindness which prompts you to render such valuable assistance in so many ways to us as soldiers and the widows of soldiers, we beg to offer you a small token of our esteem and friendship, with our sincere thanks for the many favors we have received from you and trust that it will be as much pleasure to you to receive this small remembrance of our appreciation as its giving af- fords us.
C. H. Norton, William Leslie,
Matt Sarvis, Henry Russell, James I. Moore, Charles Swartz, Mat. Stoeffel, Charles Swift, William Pickerill, A. W. McCart,
F. N. Leslie, Joseph Gingrass, Steve Sanders,
Jacob Wasser,
J. A. Bunnell,' J. B. Galbraith, Mrs. Mary Frantz,
Mrs. W. Buck, C. L. Dunham, E. A. Wood.
577
HISTORY OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY
HON. EDWIN WILLIAM DAVIS.
There are few men whose lives are crowned with the honor and respect which were uniformly accorded to Edwin William Davis, a brother of J. W. Davis, but through long years of active connection with the history of Potta- wattamie county and western Iowa his was an unblemished character. With him success in life was reached by his sterling qualities of mind and a heart true to every manly principle. He never deviated from what his judgment would indicate to be right and honorable between his fellowmen and himself. He never swerved from the path of duty and he had the consciousness of hav- ing gained for himself by his straightforward career the confidence and trust of the entire community in which he lived. He was a man of kindly spirit, of broad philanthropy, of marked patriotism and of excellent executive and busi- ness ability, and all these combined to make him a man of prominence and influence in every locality in which he resided for any length of time.
Several generations of American ancestry precede Edwin William Davis, the family having been founded in the new world at an early period in its colonization. His father, Randall Davis, was a typical New Englander, large of frame and of marked mental vigor. Independent in thought, he was un- able to accept the narrow creeds of his day and yet was rugged and sturdy in his integrity, teaching the severest ethics of honor and of honesty and most absolute righteousness. His wife, Mrs. Phylia (Kies) Davis, was a woman of great intellectual strength and exceptional Godliness. She was a great-aunt of the late Dr. Marietta Kies, altruist, who was the first woman upon whom the University of Michigan ever conferred (1891) the Doctor of Philosophy de- gree and who, accepting the invitation of Edwin W. Davis to spend some time at his home in Colorado for the benefit of her health, there died of consump- tion in 1899, her needs being ministered unto by Mrs. Davis during her last days. Randall Davis was one of four brothers whose united height exceeded twenty-four feet and whose united weight, mostly bone and muscle, was over eight hundred pounds.
His son, Hon. Edwin William Davis, was born at the old family home- stead in Danielson, Connecticut, about a mile and a half above the postoffice, on what is now Main street, April 25, 1839. At the usual age he began his education by attending the public schools of Danielson and subsequently con- tinued his studies in Killingly in the West Killingly Academy and in the Rhode Island Normal School at Bristol. The liberal education which he thus acquired qualified him for teaching and he followed that profession for several terms in Windham and New London counties. in Connecticut. Attracted by the opportunities of the middle west, he made his way to Michigan in 1862 and taught in the schools of Saginaw and Ontonagon. His next step brought him into the field of commercial operation. He entered the employ of the firm of Condon & Holland, of Hancock, Michigan, and soon afterward was given charge of their branch store at Carp Lake, Michigan. Later he purchased the store and removed the stock to Rockland, Michigan, where he disposed of it.
In 1866 Mr. Davis arrived in Iowa and taught one term of school in Prairie City. In the spring of 1867 he began general merchandizing at Har-
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HISTORY OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY
lan in partnership with his friend, A. G. Vinton, under the firm style of Vin- ton & Davis. This relation was maintained until Mr. Vinton's health failed in 1868, when he sold his interest to his partner, Mr. Davis conducing the store alone until 1870, when he was joined by his brother, J. W. Davis, to whom he. sold a half interest. In April, 1871, nearly two years after the completion of the Rock Island Railroad to Council Bluffs, Edwin W. Davis, in partnership with his brother and his former partner, A. G. Vinton, established at Avoca, Iowa, a large general mercantile store, which they conducted until 1873. In that year Mr. Vinton became proprietor of the Avoca store, while the firm of Wood & Robbins (soon afterward and better known as William Wyland & Com- pany) became owners of the store which the firm of Vinton & Davis had es- tablished at Harlan. E. W. Davis disposed of his commercial interests in order to give his entire time and attention to banking and for some years was closely associated with the financial interests of the county. On the 1st of August, 1872, the banking house of J. W. & E. W. Davis was organized and opened for business in the brick building now occupied by the Journal-Herald office in Avoca. In 1874 they erected a business block especially designed for banking purposes and now occupied by the Avoca State Bank. To the new structure they removed in the spring of 1875 and in less than ten years this bank de- veloped its business until it was the largest of any financial institution in the state of Iowa located in a town of like population. The business was incor- porated under the name of the Avoca Bank on the 1st of August, 1885. About two years later E. W. Davis sold his interest to his partner and withdrew from the banking business. In his early days Edwin W. Davis was known to walk often from Dunlap to Harlan and from Avoca to Harlan in the morning, tak- ing a couple of hours for the trip and making better time by an hour than the stage when roads were good. In the evening he would return to Avoca. He would even walk to Council Bluffs at times, making the trip in eight or nine hours from Avoca. Throughout those years of remarkable physical strength he was making steady progress in the business world, utilizing his ad- vantages in the best possible way and gradually working upward from a com- paratively humble position to one of prominence and affluence.
In the autumn of 1885 Edwin William Davis removed to Minneapolis. where he was identified with the real-estate and brokerage business until 1890 and during that time laid out the Vinton Park addition to the city, so naming it in honor of his old-time friend and partner. During the succeeding nine years he was connected with various financial interests, particularly in Colo- rado, making his home in Pueblo, where he opened up a brokerage office m 1893. In 1899 he returned to Harlan, having purchased on October 4 a controlling interest in the Shelby County State Bank, and assumed the presi- dency of that institution, which under his capable control more than doubled its business in three years. At the time of his demise, which occurred Septem- ber 17, 1903, the bank ranked among the large institutions of the state in towns of about three thousand population. On the organization of the Copi- mercial Exchange of Harlan for the purpose of promoting the moral and ma- terial growth of the town Mr. Davis was chosen its president and put forth most earnest and effective efforts for the benefit of his city. He was instru-
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HISTORY OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY
mental in securing the location of the canning factory in Harlan, whereby em- ployment was furnished to a large number of men. A gasoline engine factory and several other smaller business enterprises were secured through his influ- ence and Harlan acknowledged its indebtedness to one of its earliest business men for his effective efforts in its behalf. He was also president of the Old Settlers' Association and contributed largely to the success of its annual re- unions.
Mr. Davis' aid and co-operation could always be counted upon to further progressive measures and in fact he was the promoter of many movements that were of decided benefit to the community in which he lived. He presented on August 28, 1893, to his native town of Danielson, Connecticut, a park in men- ory of his father and mother, now called Davis park. He was the donor of a site for the Congregational church and parsonage at Harlan. He and his brother each gave five hundred dollars toward the erection of a church of the same denomination at Avoca. Edwin W. Davis gave a block of lots to the Young Men's Christian Association in Minneapolis, but perhaps the gift which he made with greatest sacrifice was bestowed when he was but a boy of twelve years. He attended a Fourth of July celebration in Danielson, carrying with him some spending money which his father had given him for the occasion. At the celebration he met the first and only Revolutionary soldier he had ever seen and when some appeal was made for contributions he gave freely all that had been given to him. This was indeed a sacrifice for a boy of his years when so many amusements are offered that are dear to the heart of a youth. The same generous spirit, however, characterized Mr. Davis throughout his entire life and no worthy person ever sought his aid in vain, while his contri- butions to benevolent and charitable objects were liberal and most freely be- stowed.
Mr. Davis remained throughout his entire life a student of current events, of the signs of the times, and the questions of the day and a conversation with him displayed a mind trained in the severest school of investigation and to which close reasoning had become habitual and easy. He was not rash in forming his opinions but on the contrary gave earnest consideration to each question which came up for settlement. This was manifested in his legislative career, when in 1884 he was called to represent Pottawattamie county in the twentieth general assembly. He never faltered in expressing his opinions upon any question of public moment and was ever loyal to his belief. He labored for the interests of the commonwealth and for his home locality as well and was foremost in encouraging and advancing every enterprise that in any way helped to make the city of his residence more prosperous and more progressive. He loved the plain people and early learned the invaluable lesson concerning the brotherhood of man. The cause of his neighbors he made his own when he felt that he might benefit or aid them in any way. He was rugged but sympathetic and those who knew him best trusted him most.
E. W. Davis was married on the 24th of May, 1874, to Miss May Benham, a daughter of Dr. Lucius and Rebecca (Van Horn) Benham, of Cascade, Du- buque county, Iowa. Mrs. Davis is a lady of much native ability and natural refinement and has carefully utilized her advantages and numerous opportuni-
580
HISTORY OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY
1
ties for self-culture through means of travel and study. She has visited vari- ous sections of the east and middle west in her native land and has also made a trip abroad to include Egypt, the Holy Land and various points of modern, historic and scenic interest in Europe. She is an entertaining conversationalist and her home surroundings indicate her love of music, art and literature, while many souvenirs of her travels are proof of the keen interest which she felt in the places and scenes which she visited in foreign lands. She was made admin- istratrix of her husband's estate in Colorado, South Dakota and Minnesota and is now residing in Minneapolis, being actively interested in the management of property in that city belonging to the family.
Four children were born of the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. E. W. Davis, of whom three are yet living: Vinnie D., a graduate of the Pueblo (Colorado) high school and now the wife of Thomas A. Duke, of the firm of Henckel & Duke, wholesale grocers of Pueblo; Joseph V., who is a graduate of the Provi- dence (Rhode Island) Business College and is now associated with the Farm- ers & Merchants Savings Bank of Harlan, Iowa; and Ada E., who will gradu- ate from Wellesley College near Boston, Massachusetts, in June, 1908. Mrs. Davis is a member of the Minnequa club and of the chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution at Pueblo, Colorado. Since her husband's death in the administration of the estate she has displayed excellent business quali- fications, as well as those truly womanly traits of character that indicate natural culture and refinement and bespeak an ease in the highest social circles.
In July, 1857, Mr. Davis joined the Westfield Congregational church of Danielson, Connecticut, and during the early days of his residence in Harlan he became affiliated with the Masonic fraternity. In his business career he was successful, justly believing that the talent given him for business was one which should be used. He was never selfish in the accumulation of wealth, however, and was ever ready to extend a helping hand to those less fortunate than himself. He has been spoken of as a large man, large in his intellect as well as in his physique, large in his loves and his interests. He belonged to that class of men and women who shed around them much of the sunshine of life, a man who though strong in his physical and mental manhood yet was not without gentleness and kindliness-a splendid type of that American man- hood which is the chief glory of the nation.
NATHAN PHILLIPS DODGE.
Among the most prominent and reliable citizens of Council Bluffs is Nathan Phillips Dodge, who has been identified with that city for more than half a century. He has always been an active business man ready to give aid and encouragement to any enterprise he thought beneficial to the city.
A republican in politics, yet his duties and inclination influenced him in refusing to enter the field for public honors, hence he has held no public office except treasurer of the city and school district and trustee of a state institution.
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Nathan, P Dodge
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HISTORY OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY
As a member of the Congregational church he has been a liberal con- tributor to church and benevolent objects; has often represented the church in its national councils and was a delegate to the International Councils in London in 1891 and Boston in 1899. He is also a corporate member of the American Board of Foreign Missions.
Mr. Dodge was born in Peabody, Essex county, Massachusetts, on the 20th of August, 1837. He was educated in New England, attending the public schools. When Mr. Dodge was sixteen years of age he came to Iowa and joined his older brother Grenville, who was a civil engineer. During the summer of 1854 the party of which he was a member was engaged in locating the line of the Mississippi & Missouri Railroad, now the Rock Island, between Iowa City and Des Moines, which had been completed to the Miss- issippi river the year previous. In the fall Mr. Dodge returned home to assist his father in closing up his affairs and in the following March they both came west, crossing Iowa in an open wagon, on their way to Council Bluffs, which they reached about the first of April, 1855. They did not locate here, however, but crossed the Missouri river into Nebraska and pro- ceeded twenty-three miles northwest of Omaha to the Emigrant Ferry Cross- ing of the Elkhorn river, where the older son had already located. There Nathan Dodge staked out a claim adjoining his father's and brother's, which he owns today.
The Dodge cabins marked the extreme western limit of civilization. The next white settlement being the Mormon colony in Utah about one thousand miles west. The Indians in the region when they settled were far more numerous than the white men. One tribe of about two thousand Pawnee Indians was located across the valley on the west side of the Platte river in sight of their claims. The Indians becoming hostile, the Dodges were forced to leave their Elkhorn farms in the fall and return to Omaha, which had been founded the year previous. They took up their residence in the only available house in the village, a log cabin, where they remained during the winter, being joined by the mother and sister on their arrival from Massachusetts. Gov. Izard sent out a company of militia to the relief of the Elkhorn settlers and this company occupied the cabins which had been vacated and under their protection Nathan Dodge gathered the crops and brought them to Omaha.
It was in February, 1856, that Mr. Dodge returned to Council Bluffs to make it his permanent home, accepting a position in the banking and land office of Baldwin & Dodge, a firm composed of John T. Baldwin and Grenville M. Dodge. He remained with them four years, when he succeeded to the business. Three years later, in 1863, Caleb Baldwin, then chief jus- tice of the supreme court of Iowa, resigned and joined him, and the firm was again Baldwin & Dodge, but formed by brothers of the original firm. This partnership continued five years or until Judge Baldwin resumed the practice of law in 1868, after which Mr. Dodge carried on the real estate and banking business alone until November 1, 1870, when he organized the Council Bluffs Savings Bank. He served as president of this bank for thirty-two years, resigning in 1902, on account of impaired health. The
584
HISTORY OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY
real estate business he still continues under the name of N. P. Dodge & Com- pany, W. W. Wallace being his partner.
During the early settlement of western Iowa this real estate branch of his business was very large, as he represented the men who had entered many of the lands as well as the railroads, who had obtained grants from the government. It is safe to say he has sold more lands in Pottawattamie county to the actual settler than any other agent. His dealings in city property were likewise very large during those earlier years.
In 1864 Mr. Dodge was married to Susanna C. Lockwood, a daughter of Isaac Lockwood, of St. Louis, and they became the parents of five chil- dren, of whom two sons and two daughters are still living. John Lockwood and Nathan Phillips, Jr., are both graduates of Harvard University and also prepared for the legal profession in the Harvard Law School, while the daughters, Caroline Louise and Ellen, now Mrs. E. H. Scott, are graduates of Smith College, in Massachusetts, Caroline having graduated at the Law School connected with the New York University, and is practicing law.
JOHN CLAUSEN.
John Clausen, known as "Honest John," one of the pioneers of Coun- cil Bluffs, who came to the city in 1856, was for a long period proprietor of what was known to the old settlers as the One Horse grocery store, at the corner of Park avenue and Broadway. Starting in life without capital he placed his dependence upon the safe and substantial qualities of enterprise and diligence and thus gradually worked his way upward, justly earning the proud American title of self-made man.
He was a native of Germany, his birth having occurred near Hawkeye, on the 25th of September, 1832, so that he was about twenty-three years of age when he arrived in Council Bluffs. His parents were also natives of Germany, where they spent their entire lives. The common schools of the country afforded to John Clausen his educational privileges and he continued a resident of the fatherland until he attained his majority, when he sought the opportunities and privileges of the new world, hoping to benefit his financial condition thereby. Accordingly he bade adieu to friends and na- tive country, and in 1853 sailed for America. He reached New York without capital and his pecuniary condition rendered it imperative that he seek and obtain immediate employment. He eagerly availed himself of every oppor- tunity that offered to secure work and was employed in various ways. He saved his money, and after a residence of three years in the east he came to the Mississippi valley, establishing his home in Council Bluffs in 1856. Here he was again employed in different ways until he had saved enough from his earnings to enable him to engage in business on his own account. In a few years he opened a small grocery store in an old log school-building at the corner of Park avenue and Broadway, where the Ogden Hotel now stands. This was called by his fellow townsmen the One Horse grocery store and it
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