USA > Idaho > History of Idaho, the gem of the mountains, Volume II > Part 31
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Raymond C. Wilson was largely reared and educated in Pueblo, Colorado, being there graduated from the Central high school with the class of 1904. He spent one year as a student in the Colorado School of Mines at Golden, but when his father died it was necessary that he go to work and provide for his own support. He secured the position of hookkeeper with the Woods Investment Company and remained with them for three years. He then entered the employ of the Golden Cycle Mining Company at Cripple Creek and was with them for eight years. The company then purchased two banks and Mr. Wilson was made assistant cashier of the Cripple Creek State Bank, in which capacity he served until 1917. This was a Carleton institution. On leaving that bank he removed to St. Anthony, Idaho, and accepted the position of assistant cashier in the Commercial National Bank, where he proved his capability in so efficient a manner that after four months he was made cashier. He is also a stockholder in the bank and is now largely shaping its policy, which is of a most progressive character, tempered by a safe conservatism.
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In August, 1909, Mr. Wilson was married to Miss Emma Ridell, and they now have three children: Ruth M., who was born in September, 1910; Clark L., born in June, 1914; and Howard G., born in February, 1919.
Mr. Wilson belongs to the Masonic fraternity and is a loyal follower of the craft. His political support is given to the republican party and he stands stanchly for every interest which he believes of benefit in matters of citizenship. His religious faith is that of the Presbyterian church.
JAMES THOMAS LAUGHLIN.
Mercantile interests in Boise find a prominent representative in James Thomas Laughlin, who has one of the highest class jewelry stores of the city, his establish- ment being located at No. 802 Main street. Not only does he carry well selected lines but he also enjoys a high reputation as an optometrist, His store is known as one of the Hallmark stores, which alone gives to his patrons the highest guaran- tee of reliability. The Hallmark stores are members of the United Jewelers, Inc., an association which is composed of more than eight hundred of the leading jewelers throughout the country, and only one jeweler in any community is eligible to membership. It need not be said that standards must be of the highest. The mem- bers of this national association do an annual business of over twenty-five million dollars and cooperatively own and control the product of many great factories, so that virtually each member is his own manufacturer. In this way goods can be sold at a minimum without endangering the quality of the merchandise handled. The design and workmanship of the goods handled by the Hallmark stores are always of the best, for they carry only exclusive designs. As far as value, style, workmanship, quality and distinctiveness of the merchandise are concerned the Hallmark stores have therefore an advantage over competitors and it is but natural that Mr. Laughlin has built up one of the foremost establishments of its kind in the capital city. In fact his store is a credit to Boise and besides the advantages set forth there has entered into his business that creditable enterprise which is one of his personal characteristics. His customers are always treated with consideration and satisfactorily served, and his list of patrons is therefore a long one and is continually growing.
Mr. Laughlin came to Boise in 1895 and has therefore been a resident of the city for twenty-five years. He was born on a farm in Harrison county, Ohio, Feb- ruary 5, 1863, a son of Andrew Jackson Laughlin, also a native of Harrison county, where he was for many years quite successful as an agriculturist. He is now living in Wayne county, Nebraska, and has reached the venerable age of eighty-two years. He at first removed from Ohio to Illinois, thence to Iowa and subsequently to Nebraska. The mother of our subject passed away when her son, James Thomas, was but seven years of age, in 1870. Subsequently Mr. Laughlin, Sr., married Mrs. Margaret Clark, the ceremony being performed in the state of Iowa, and this esti- mable lady fully took the mother's place in regard to James T. Laughlin and his four brothers. She has also passed away and her demise was sincerely mourned by all of the family. Our subject has one brother living, Eli Laughlin, who makes his home in Wayne county, Nebraska.
James .T. Laughlin remained with his father until he reached the age of twenty-one years. His early life was spent in Ohio, Illinois and Iowa and in those states he received his education. At the age of twenty-one, however, he left home and went to Avoca, Iowa, where for two years he was employed in a jewelry store. In 1886 he began his westward course by going to Omaha, where he entered the employ of a large wholesale and retail jewelry establishment which also was engaged in manufacturing. Six months later, in August, 1886, he went to the famous watch city of Massachusetts-Waltham-where he spent eight years with the Waltham Watch Company. During that period he was a valued employe in the finishing and adjusting departments. He already was a competent jeweler when he arrived in Waltham but in that factory be greatly improved 'his knowledge in regard to all the infinitesimal details of watch making. Desiring, however, to make himself independent in the business world, he concluded that the west offered better oppor- tunities and in 1895 he came to Boise, which has since remained his home. Here he has built up a substantial establishment, so that he is now considered one of the
JAMES T. LAUGHLIN
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leading business men of the city as well as one of the pioneer jewelers. The quality of his goods ever comes up to the expectations of those who purchase them and it is therefore but natural that confidence and trust have grown up between him and his large patronage.
In Waltham, Massachusetts, on the 17th of July, 1889, Mr. Laughlin was united in marriage to Evelyn S. Elliott and they reside in a handsome home at No. 1101 Jefferson street, Boise. A number of years ago he purchased the lot with a view toward building and in 1907 erected thereon a modernly appointed, high class apartment building which in every way meets the highest demands of the most discriminating renter. He thus has provided not only a splendid home for himself but also receives a most gratifying income from the investment. It is surrounded by a perfectly level velvety green lawn and maples and elms set off the picture and afford the necessary shade.
Mr. and Mrs. Laughlin are Christian Scientists, and fraternally he is connected with the Masons, in which he has taken the thirty-second degree in the Scottish Rite, and is also a Shriner. He is likewise identified with the Elks. He is an active member of the Commercial Club, ever giving his support to measures under- taken by that organization in the interests of a greater and better Boise, and along the line of his business is a member of the Idaho State Association of Optometrists. There is much that is creditable in the career of Mr. Laughlin, as he has made his way in the world practically unaided, and his career furnishes a valuable example of what may be accomplished when there is the will to dare and to do.
HON. DREW W. STANDROD.
Hon. Drew W. Standrod has long been a consistent and conscientious worker for the welfare of Idaho without idea of material gain for himself, and while he is now living retired from public office and partially from business, it would be impossible for a man of his studious nature and discriminating mind not to keep in close touch with the vital problems and questions of the day and exer- cise at least in a quiet manner a marked influence over public thought and action. A lawyer by profession, the strength of his argument in the discussion of any public question is at once evident and his opinions are at all times based upon a thorough study of the points at issue. Aside from his profession, in which he won marked success and high judicial preferment, he figured most promi- nently in banking circles, but all this has been largely put aside that he may live retired in the enjoyment of those pursuits to which a discriminating taste and an habitual trend of mind direct him.
Judge Standrod was born at Rockcastle, Kentucky, August 12, 1859, and comes of Scotch ancestry of a remote period, however, the family having been represented on American soil from early colonial days. His grandparents were Basil and Rebecca (Rogers) Standrod. His parents were Dr. Samuel and Elvira (Campbell) Standrod, also natives of Kentucky where the father practiced for many years as a physician and surgeon of Rockcastle. His wife died of cholera in 1873, when but thirty-three years of age, after which Dr. Standrod removed to the west and for some years was a resident of Malad, Idaho, where he passed away in 1885, in his sixtieth year. The family numbered seven children, of whom three reached adult age, but the only two now living are Drew W. and Mrs. Frances Nicholas, a resident of Ogden, Utah.
Judge Standrod continued his education at Cadiz Institute, Kentucky, after mastering the branches of learning taught in the public schools, and was there graduated as a member of the class of 1880, following which he was at once admitted to the bar, and it was not long afterward that he entered upon the practice of his profession at Malad, Idaho. No dreary novitiate awaited him. Almost immediately his ability was recognized and he was soon accorded a large and distinctively representative clientage. The thoroughness with which he pre- pared his cases was at once evident and he was seldom if ever at fault in the application of a legal principle. Recognition of his ability came to him in elec- tion to the office of district attorney in 1886 and at the close of a two years' term he was reelected' to that position, in which he served until 1889. That year brought him election to the office of judge of the fifth judicial district
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of Idaho and his record upon the bench was in harmony with his record as a man and a lawyer, distinguished by marked fidelity to duty and by a masterful grasp of every point presented for solution. His decisions were the highest expression of justice as interpreted by the laws of the land, and his capability led to his continuance upon the bench through popular suffrage until 1899.
Four years before his retirement from office Judge Standrod became a resi- dent of Pocatello and at the close of his judicial service he reentered upon the private practice of law and was soon accorded a most extensive clientage. He possesses much natural ability but was withal a hard student and was never contented until he had mastered every detail of his cases. He believed in the maxim "There is no excellence without labor" and he followed it closely, fortifying himself as well for defense as for attack, so that he was never sur- prised by some unexpected discovery by an opposing lawyer. Whatever he did was for the best interests of his clients and for the honor of his profession. No man gives to either a more unqualified allegiance or riper ability than did Judge Standrod and so high was the respect entertained for his legal ability and integrity that his assertions in court were seldom questioned seriously. Following his retirement from the bench he entered into a partnership under the firm style of Standrod & Terrell and thus practiced for a number of years. While upon the bench he presided over one of the largest districts of the state, including Oneida, Bingham, Bannock, Fremont, Lemhi, Custer and Bear Lake counties.
In banking circles, too, Judge Standrod won a notable place and most hon- orable position. He became interested with J. N. Ireland, W. G. Jenkins and D. L. and L. L. Evans in eleven different banking institutions in the Inter- Mountain country, nine of these banks being rated among the strongest national and private financial institutions of Idaho. In 1895 the five partners acquired the First National Bank of Pocatello, of which Judge Standrod was elected vice president, while later he was chosen for the presidency. He afterward became president of the bank of D .. W. Standrod & Company at Blackfoot, a director of the private bank of J. N. Ireland & Company at Malad, the D. L. Evans & Company private bank at Albion, the W. G. Jenkins & Company bank at Mackay, the Evans State Bank at American Falls and the Bank of Commerce at Arco, a stockholder in the State Bank at Downey and the executive head of the First Savings Bank of Pocatello. In 1915 he sold his interests in the First National Bank of Pocatello and the First Savings Bank. He had been the organizer of the latter and wrote the charter under which the bank did business. In 1913, associated with J. N. Ireland and Captain Healey, he purchased the Haywood interest in the Commercial National Bank of Ogden, Utah, which has a total capital of over two million dollars and is one of the oldest and strongest bank- ing institutions in the state. In the same year he assisted in the organization of the National City Bank of Salt Lake City, Utah, which was formed with a capital of two hundred and fifty thousand dollars, while it now has a capital of five million dollars. Judge Standrod also organized the Lava Hot Springs State Bank and assisted in the organization of the Idaho Falls National Bank, of which he is a director. While he is still financially interested in various important banking concerns and business enterprises, he has practically retired from all active business.
On the 24th of September, 1888, Judge Standrod was married to Miss Emma Van Wormer, a native of New York and a daughter of John and Nancy (Van Patten) Van Wormer, who were likewise born in that state and belonged to old Knickerbocker stock. Mrs. Standrod is a representative of one of the oldest American families, dating in America from the earliest settlement of the island of Manhattan and figuring prominently in the history of the little Dutch colony and of the state through the period of British occupancy and on through the Revolutionary war period. The ancestral line is traced back to Dominie Ever- hardus Bogardus, the first settled minister of the New Netherlands, who came to America from Holland in 1633, with his friend, Governor Wouter Van Twiller, and arriving in New Amsterdam, founded the first Dutch . Reformed church of the new world. He was its pastor until he met death by accidental drowning September 27, 1647. His home was located on what is now Broad street in New York city. One of his descendants was the Rev. Cornelius Bogardus, founder and pastor of the Dutch Reformed church of Schenectady, New York, From
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his branch of the family Mrs. Standrod is descended. Her first American ances- tor in the paternal line was Casper Van Wormer, who was also one of the earliest colonizers to settle in the Hudson river valley. He married Eva Van Dyke, whose parents were also from Holland and were of the same family as was Fiscal Van Dyke, the treasurer of the New Netherlands in colonial days and one of the two associates of Governor Peter Stuyvesant. The grandfather of Mrs. Standrod in the maternal line was Captain John Van Patten, who served as an officer in the Revolutionary war and who through intermarriage with the famous Condé family of Huguenot blood was united with the house of Van Patten. The great-grandmother of Mrs. Standrod was Catalina Bogardus, who married Adam Condé. To Judge and Mrs. Standrod were born two children: Elvira Campbell, who died in 1906 after a brief illness; and Drew W., Jr.
Judge Standrod has long been recognized as one of the foremost repre- sentatives of the republican party in the northwest. In 1896 and again in 1898 he was the candidate of his party for the office of supreme judge of Idaho. In 1900 he became its candidate for governor although political conditions were such in the state that all knew there was no hope of election. He has never failed to consistently support the republican party in all of its campaigns, both as a campaign speaker and as a writer. He presents his question in the same manner in which he has put forth his evidence in the courts. Having taken active part in promoting and encouraging power and water projects in Idaho, being connected with such public utilities at American Falls, Montpelier and Downey, it was not a matter of surprise that Governor John M. Haines urgently requested him to accept an appointment as a member of Idaho's first public utilities com- mission, his appointment being for a term of six years. He helped to organize the commission which had under its control all utilities of the state, its oper- ation proving a remarkable success. Judge Standrod remained a member of the commission until 1914, when he resigned.
At the time of the World war Judge Standrod was called upon to give his son to the service of the country, for at that time Drew W. Standrod, Jr., enlisted in the Officers Reserve Corps and was commissioned first lieutenant. He was transferred from Camp Lewis, Washington, to Blacksburg, Virginia, and was made a teacher in the Polytechnic Institute there. Later he was commissioned captain as a reward for his efficiency and valuable service. Although twenty- seven years of age he was one of only two in his class who were marked excellent in military examination. In 1916 he had been admitted to the bar and was in active practice until war was declared. He is a young man of splendid mental powers and capacities, "well descended and well bred," whose ideals of life, professional and otherwise, will undoubtedly bring him most prominently to the front. While his son was on duty in the east Judge Standrod was serving as food administrator, without pay, for Bannock county, doing most excellent work in this connection. He has used every possible opportunity of raising himself to the level of the high American ideals which he entertains.
WILLIAM L. FRAZIER, M. D.
Dr. William L. Frazier, physician and surgeon of Boise, was born on a farm in Randolph county, Missouri, May 4, 1877, a son of Dr. Joseph H. and Deniza E. (Epperly) Frazier, both of whom have now passed away. The father, who was born in Virginia, was both a farmer and physician. He was graduated from a medical college at Keokuk, Iowa, and practiced for about a third of a century in Missouri, where he passed away in 1892. His widow survived him for more than two decades, her death occurring in 1913. Dr. Frazier of this review is the only member of the family living in Idaho but has four living brothers and four living sisters. One of the former, Dr. Leland Frazier, was formerly a surgeon of the United States Army, but is now practicing in Rupert, Idaho. Another hrother is Joseph Frazier, a graduate of the West Point Military Academy of the class of 1891 and now a lieutenant colonel in the United States regular army. Oliver Frazier is an attorney of St. Louis, Missouri, and Aubrey C. Frazier follows farming in Missouri.
Dr. William L. Frazier was reared upon a Missouri farm and acquired his early education in a country school. He was but fourteen years of age when his
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father died, after which he assumed the burden and responsibility of operating the home farm, to which he gave his attention until he reached the age of twenty, being the eldest son at home. Thus he assisted in caring for his mother and the younger children of the family, and in this and other ways he earned the money necessary to pay his expenses while in medical college. After reaching the age. of twenty he taught school for three years and at the age of twenty-four he entered the Missouri Valley College, a Presbyterian institution, in which he pursued a two years' academic course. When twenty-six years of age he matriculated in the medical department of the Missouri State University at Columbia, Missouri, and was there graduated in 1908, winning his professional degree-when thirty years of age. He practiced medicine first at Warren, Texas, from 1908 until 1910 and in the latter year came to Idaho, settling at Mountain Home, where he followed his pro- fession until December, 1917. He had previously taken a post-graduate surgical course under the famous Mayo Brothers of Rochester, Minnesota, in 1915. Re- moving from Mountain Home to Boise in 1917, he has since practiced in the capital city. While he still continues in the general practice of medicine, he is particularly skilled in surgery and his practice is largely along that line. He has done much research work, particularly as to the cause of diabetes, and at all times he keeps in touch with the latest scientific discoveries and investigation. He has been a frequent and valued contributor to the standard medical publications and he is now preparing a treatise on typhoid fever which will be published in book form. He finds his chief interest, recreation and delight in research work.
On the 23d of June, 1908, Dr. Frazier was married in the state of Missouri to Miss Mary S. Walsh, of Miami, Missouri, who had formerly been a teacher. They have become parents of three sons: William Lawrence, Jr., Edward Leland and Virgil Lowry. All are strong, healthy boys.
Dr. Frazier is a Presbyterian in religious faith and in early manhood was ordained to the ministry. He is a Master Mason and a Knight of Pythias and to every cause which he espouses he is ever found true and loyal, cooperating to the extent of his time and ability in its support. His success is the result of direct and earnest effort, the pursuit of a well defined plan and the stimulus of a laudable ambition. Helpfulness has been a keynote of his character, manifest from the time when at the early age of fourteen years he took up the responsibility of aid- ing in the support of his mother and her younger children. He is continually ex- tending an assisting hand to those who need aid and his cheerfulness and encour- agement constitute a vital force in his success in medical practice.
GEORGE D. SNELL.
George D. Snell is the vice president and cashier of the First National Bank of St. Anthony, Idaho, the oldest and strongest bank north of Idaho Falls. He was born at Spanish Fork, Utah, January 23, 1872, and is a son of George D. and Alex- anderine (McLean) Snell, who were natives of Massachusetts and England respec- tively. The father came to Utah in 1854, settling in Salt Lake City, but after a short time removed to Spanish Fork, where he became a bishop of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He purchased land there and continued its cultivation for many years, while subsequently he became interested in merchandising and in banking, devoting a considerable portion of his life to those interests. In 1906 he retired from active business and removed to Salt Lake City, where he resided until his death, which occurred in May, 1911. The mother came to America in 1857 and is still living, her home being now in Salt Lake City.
George D. Snell was reared in Spanish Fork and there pursued his education. He remained at home until he had attained his majority and worked in the cooper- ative store for several years. In 1892 he was sent upon a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to the British isles, where he lahored for two years. Following his return home he became a candidate for the office of county collector on the republican ticket in 1894 but was defeated. He then entered the Bank of Spanish Fork as cashier and subsequently bought the controlling interest in the busi- ness, remaining as the executive head of the bank until 1906. In the meantime he and his brother, Cyrus E. Snell, had purchased the Payson Exchange Savings Bank, at Payson, Utah, and in 1906 George D. Snell acquired an interest in the First National
GEORGE D. SNELL
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Bank at Caldwell, Idaho, becoming cashier of the latter institution and occupying the position for five years, or until 1911, when he sold out. He and his brother, Francis M. Snell, became purchasers of the First National Bank of St. Anthony, Idaho, buying out G. E. Bowerman. Later their building was destroyed by fire but they immediately erected a fine two-story structure seventy-five by one hundred and twenty- five feet at a cost of forty-five thousand dollars. Such a building today could not be put up for less than seventy-five thousand dollars. They have recently remodeled the bank building, installing new marble fixtures and making it in equipment and in banking methods an institution that would be a credit to a city of much greater size. The bank was organized in 1889 as a state bank hut was nationalized in 1901. The present officers are Francis M. Snell, president, and George D. Snell, vice president and cashier. The bank has a capital stock of fifty thousand dollars, all paid in, has a surplus of fifty thousand dollars and its deposits amount to eight hundred and fifty thousand dollars. The bank has enjoyed a prosperous business from the beginning. Its business methods have always been such as would bear the closest investigation and scrutiny and from the beginning its officers have recognized the fact that the bank is most worthy of support and confidence which most carefully safeguards the interests of its patrons. Mr. Snell still retains an interest in the First National Bank of Spanish Fork, Utah, of which he is one of the directors, and he likewise has farm- ing interests in Fremont county and is connected with the Fremont Abstract Company of St. Anthony. His real estate interests embrace residence property in both Salt Lake City and St. Anthony.
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