Album of genealogy and biography, Cook County, Illinois, Volume 1899, Part 14

Author: La Salle Book Company (Chicago, Ill.)
Publication date: 1899
Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : La Salle Book Co.
Number of Pages: 910

USA > Illinois > Cook County > Album of genealogy and biography, Cook County, Illinois, Volume 1899 > Part 14

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In June, 1836, General Stewart attended the letting of the construction contracts on the Illinois & Michigan Canal, and contracted for a large amount of deep-rock work near Lockport. He had as partners A. S. Stewart, Lorenzo P. Sanger, James Y. Sanger, and others, who took personal charge of the work, while he continued in charge

of his personal and official interests in Michigan. In 1840 the inability of the State to meet its financial obligations compelled the contractors to abandon the work, at great loss, and ruin in many cases. About this time General Stewart took up his residence in Chicago, and in 1842 he was elected a member of the Legislature, and was active in securing the acceptance of the for- eign bondholders' proposition to complete the canal. None of the contractors had ever received anything for their losses previous to that time. While ou a trip to Canada to secure workmen for the canal in 1839, General Stewart was placed in arrest, under the impression that he was a spy in the interest of the "Patriot War." Through the influence of friends, his mission was made known to the Canadian authorities, and he was discharged and furnished every facility for carry- ing out his business. From 1845 to 1849, under the administration of President Polk, General Stewart served as Postmaster at Chicago, being the first presidential appointee in that office.

He now turned his attention to railroad con- struction, and became interested in some of the largest contracts ever given in the West to a single firm. The history of these undertakings is fully related in this volume in the biography of James Y. Sanger, who was associated with General Stewart in this work, and need not be repeated here. During the progress of their work, in partnership with several others, they became proprietors of the Rhode Island Central Bank, and this, in common with many others, was wrecked by the financial upheaval of 1857, though its proprietors were enabled to close up its affairs honorably and with little loss to them- selves.

General Stewart became a member of the Masonic fraternity in 1824, and subsequently took all the chapter and encampment degrees and several others. In political sentiment, he was a Democrat. He was one of the few brave spirits who stood with Stephen A. Douglas at North Market Hall, on the evening of September 1, 1854, when a mob of political opponents refused to let the "Little Giant" be heard, and even threatened him with bodily harm. In religious

J. H. RICE.

faith, General Stewart was a true "neighbor," a Presbyterian, and for forty years rarely failed to listen to Rev. Dr. Patterson's sermons in the Second Presbyterian Church of Chicago. He was an able leader, quiet and gentle in his man- ners, sociable and genial, making his home a happy place for the frequent reunions of a large and interesting circle of friends.

On the 12th of February, 1849, authority was granted by the State to five individuals, one of whom was Hart L. Stewart, to incorporate the Chicago Gas Light and Coke Company, which was granted the exclusive right to supply gas to the city of Chicago for ten years. Before the close of the next year, the streets of the city and many private buildings were for the first time illuminated by gaslight. In 1857 General Stew- art was Vice-President of the Great Western In- surance Company, with a capital of half a million dollars, and office at No. 160 South Water Street. The Stewart Building, at the northwest corner of State and Washington Streets (which was torn down in 1896, to make way for one of Chicago's famous high office buildings), was the fourth structure erected by General Stewart on that spot-the first one having been for many years his family home.

Hannah Blair Mckibbin, wife of General Stewart, was descended from old and honorable families. Her maternal grandfather, William Nelson, was a brother of the famous Admiral Horatio Nelson, the hero of Trafalgar. His wife

was Mary Harvey, and their children were Will- iam, James and Mary Esther. William Nelson, senior, died in 1803, at which time his daughter was about fifteen years old. She married Col. James McKibbin, of Franklin County, Penn- sylvania, and their eldest daughter, Hannah B., became the wife of General Stewart, as before re- lated, and the mother of the following children: Mary Esther, Frances Validia, Amelia Mott, Catherine E., Jane, Anna Waldo, Hannalı Mckib- bin and Helen Wolcott. The first married Henry A. Clark in 1850, and both are now deceased, being survived by a son, Stewart Clark, of Chi- cago. The second died at St. Louis, Missouri, while the wife of Watson Matthews, leaving one child, Fannie V. Matthews. Amelia and Cath- erine died in childhood. Jane Stewart married John C. Patterson, and died in 1875, leaving a son, Stewart Patterson. Hannah Mckibbin is the wife of George Sydney Williams, of Chicago. The youngest is the wife of Lorenzo M. Johnson, manager of the Mexican International Railroad.

Mary C. Mckibbin, sister of Mrs. Stewart, married James Y. Sanger, whom she survives, and is among the most interesting surviving pioneers of Illinois. She is spoken of by General Stewart as the "Daughter of the Regiment," during the campaign against Black Hawk. She was then a miss of fourteen years, and ready to ride on any expedition, carrying dispatches and otherwise aiding in conveying information.

JAMES H. RICE.

AMES HARLOW RICE, one of the oldest and most highly respected business men of Chicago, passed away at his home on Michi- gan Avenue, in that city, February 6, 1896. He was born in Tompkins County, New York, in 1830. His parents, Asa and Polly (Reed) Rice, were natives of Massachusetts, and settled

in New York in 1811, shortly after their mar- riage. Asa Rice was a prosperous farmer, well known and esteemed for his great moral worth. Both he and his wife were members of the Metli- odist Church and active in good works. They attained a venerable age, the former dying when eighty years old, and the latter at seventy-five.

E. W. EVANS.

Mr. Rice was an "old-line" Whig, and in later life became a Republican. His nine children reached mature years, and three came West, namely, Henry, Columbus T. and James H. Rice. The first two are now residents of Adair County, Missouri. Columbus Titus Rice came with his brother to Chicago in June, 1854, and proceeded to Missouri four years later, and has resided there ever since. In early life he was a carpenter, and worked at that occupation while a resident of Chicago. On going to Missouri he engaged in farming, but is now retired from act- ive life. He was married in New York in 1855 to Miss Catherine Wickoff, who is still his com- panion on life's journey. They are the parents of six children, namely: Edward, Flora, Mary, Elizabeth, Charles, Augusta and James.

James H. Rice was also a carpenter, and very early after arriving in Chicago began contract- ing for the erection of buildings. Among the structures erected by him were the old Tremont House and the Commercial Hotel. He built the first structure put up after the fire of 1871, which was located on Quincy Place. From 1856 to 1878 he was associated in this business with Mr. Ira Foote, with whom he was acquainted in early life in New York.

In 1872 he engaged in the plate and window- glass trade, and built up an extensive and pros- perous business. This passed into the control of an incorporated company, known as the James H. Rice Company, of which he was President. He also became President of the Stewart Estep Glass Company, which engaged in the manu-

facture of glass at Marion, Indiana. Both these institutions were flourishing at the time of his death. In trade circles for years he had been a leader, and his counsel had ever been sought and his sterling qualities of mind and heart thor- oughly appreciated. Among Mr. Rice's personal friends was the late Cyrus H. McCormick, for whom he did much work during his building ca- reer. He was widely known during the early days in Chicago, and was esteemed and respected by all classes of citizens.

In 1876 he was married to Miss Margaret Su- san Gilliland, a native of Ohio, at that time a resident of Perry, Iowa. She died February 4, 1896. During the last eighteen years of her life she had been an invalid. In life they were to- gether and in death not divided. No children blessed their union, but his wife was ever to him his child and care, and his devotion in this rela- tion was most beautiful. The double funeral from their late home was conducted by Rev. J. L. Withrow, a personal friend of Mr. Rice, with whom he was for some time associated on the Board of Directors of the Presbyterian Hospital. He spoke feelingly of the man and woman and their works, aims and ideas. The remains were laid away in Oakwoods Cemetery, the active pallbearers being workmen in the employ of the James H. Rice Company. By Mr. Rice his em- ployes were ever considered as his "boys." Some of these "boys" are men, aged and gray, who had been in his service for a quarter of a century, and all of them will miss his kindly, genial presence.

ENOCH W. EVANS.

NOCH WEBSTER EVANS, who for a score of years ranked as a leading member of the Chicago Bar, was born at Fryeburg, Maine, in 1817, and died in Chicago, September 2, 1879. He was one of eleven children born to

Capt. William and Anna Evans, further notice of whom will be found elsewhere in this volume, in connection with the biography of Dr. Moses Evans.

Enoch W. Evans received his early education

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JOHN DICKINSON.

at Fryeburg Academy and Waterville College, in his native State. Later he went to Dartmouth College, where he pursued a classical course, and gradnated with the Class of 1838. He then en- gaged in teaching at Hopkinton, New Hamp- shire, and simultaneously began to read law in the office of Judge Chase, a noted jurist of that State.

In 1840 Mr. Evans came to Chicago, where he was admitted to the Bar during the same year, soon after removing to Dixon's Ferry, Illinois, remaining at that place two or three years. Thence he went to Kenosha, Wisconsin, where he practiced his profession until 1858. At that date he again located in Chicago, and was en- gaged in general practice in this city up to the time of his death. During this time he tried many important cases, which he managed with marked ability, gaining a numerous and profit- able clientage.

On the 16th of September, 1846, Mr. Evans was married, Miss Caroline Hyde, of Darien, New York, becoming his wife. Mrs. Evans, who is a daughter of James Hyde, still survives, at the venerable age of seventy-four years, making her home in Chicago. She is the mother of four living children: William W., a prosperous at- torney at Chicago; Lewis H., a civil engineer, at present connected with the track elevation of the Chicago & Northwestern Railway in Chicago; Carrie, Mrs. William L. Adams, and Mary W., the two latter also residents of Chicago.

Mr. Evans was a gentleman of quiet, un- ostentatious habits, and gave but little heed to public affairs. He confined his labors and at- tention almost exclusively to professional sub- jects, and achieved an enviable standing among his contemporaries, which justly entitles this brief record of his life to a place among the annals of his adopted home.

JOHN DICKINSON.

OHN DICKINSON, a highly successful operator upon the Chicago Board of Trade,

1 residing at Evanston, was born in the his- toric old town of Deerfield, Massachusetts, No- vember 21, 1855, and is a son of Philander P. and Mary A. (Feeney) Dickinson.

The Dickinsons were among the earliest Colonial families of Massachusetts. Philander R. Dickinson, the grandfather of the subject of this notice, was a wholesale and retail shoe dealer in New York City for many years. He attained the great age of ninety-eight years, dy- ing at Springfield. Massachusetts.

Philander P. Dickinson became an extensive manufacturer of brooms at Springfield, and had at one time the largest factory in that State. This establishment was destroyed by fire, inflicting upon Mr. Dickinson a financial loss which he was never able wholly to retrieve. In 1860 he removed to Iowa, locating first at Claremont,

and settling later at McGregor. At the latter point he again engaged in the manufacture of brooms, and built up a fair business On account of failing health, he retired from active business about 1865, and returned to the East. The last ten years of his life were passed at Norwalk, Florida, where he died in 1884, at the age of sixty-nine years. He was a member of the Baptist Church, and a steadfast Republican.

Mrs. Mary A. Dickinson died at Evanston in 1878, aged forty-nine years. She was born in New York City, her parents being of Irish de- scent. Her father was a wholesale shoe mer- chant in that city. She was a member of the Baptist Church. Her children are named and reside as follows: Millie D., Mrs. Julius Ball, Montague, Massachusetts; Mary J., and Delia, wife of F. H. Bennett, Chicago; John, Evanston; Hattie M., Denver, Colorado.

John Dickinson was a small boy when the fam-

101

BENJAMIN SHURTLEFF.

ily came West, and he received his education at the Evanston High School. He began his busi- 11ess career in a furniture store, and established himself in business as a shoe dealer at Evanston, with success. In 1879 he sold out and joined the Chicago Board of Trade, with which he has ever since been identified. He was among the younger members of that body, but soon demonstrated his capability and soundness, and has won the confidence and esteem of the entire membership. He handles all kinds of grain and provisions, as well as stocks and bonds and other paper securi- ties, on his own account, and has met with al- miost uniform success. His profits have been largely invested in real estate at Hammond, Indiana, and in Florida timber lands and orange groves.

Mr. Dickinson was married, November 25, 1875, to Miss Mary Alice Johnson, daughter of Anthony Johnson and Catherine (Ganer) John-

son. Mrs. Dickinson was born at Port Jervis, New York, where her father was connected with . important railroad interests for some years. Mr. Dickinson is identified with the First Methodist Church of Evanston. He is a man of domestic tastes, and devotes little time to social recreations. He supports the Republican party, whose policy he believes to be in the interest of good govern- ment and the commercial prosperity of the country.

In 1889 he built an elegant residence at the northwest corner of Asbury Avenue and Church Street, Evanston, which is surrounded by one of the handsomest and best-kept lawns in Cook County. In short, the home of Mr. and Mrs. Dickinson, throughout its exterior and interior appointments, bespeaks the refined tastes and cultivated instincts by means of which, only, such an establishment can be designed and main- tained.

BENJAMIN SHURTLEFF.

ENJAMIN SHURTLEFF, one of the found- ers of Lake View, whose identity is rapidly becoming lost in the vast city of Chicago, is still a resident of that former suburb, and affords an excellent type of the pioneers of the metrop- olis of the West. He was born in Ernesttown, Lennox County, Ontario, July 19, 1812. His ancestors were English, and were very loyal subjects of the British crown. The first one in the American colonies settled in Massachusetts, whence Lemuel Shurtleff, grandfather of the subject of this notice, removed to Canada at the beginning of the American Revolution. He settled in Ernesttown, Lennox County, Ontario, where he engaged in farming, reared a large family, and reached a good old age. He had three sons, Seldon, Jacob and Gideon.

The last-named passed his life in Canada, exceeding the age of eighty years, and was a farmer. He was a quiet, faithful Christian,

devoted to the Methodist Church, and the welfare of his fellow-men was dear to his heart. His wife, Mary Ward, probably of Irish descent, was a tender and true wife and mother, and, like himself, a faithful member of the Methodist Church. She died at the age of sixty-two years. Of their twelve children, eleven grew to maturity, and three of the sons became residents of the United States. Their names were Samuel, Jacob, Gid- e011, Lemuel, Benjamin, Miles, John, Polly, Amy, Lydia and Amanda. Lemuel was an able me- chanic, and built some of the large iron mills at Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, at which place he died. Miles was admitted to the Bar in New York, and became interested in the manufacture of iron at Rochester, New York, for many years.

Benjamin Shurtleff passed the first eighteen years of his life on the home farm, receiving such intellectual training as was afforded by the dis- trict schools and good hoine surroundings. At

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BENJAMIN SHURTLEFF.

the age of eighteen years he began learning the · joiner's trade, of which he became master. In 1837 he joined his brother in Pittsburgh, Penn- sylvania, and was associated with him in erecting large manufacturing plants there. Among these may be mentioned the immense iron mills of Spang, Chalfant & Company at Ætna, and the rolling mills of Louis Dalzell & Company at Sharpsburgh, another suburb of Pittsburgh. Among his fellow-workmen was Mr. C. K. Gar- rison, since one of the most successful business men and capitalists of that city, who was regarded by Mr. Shurtleff as one of the brightest business men he ever met. Twelve years of industrious application there gave Mr. Shurtleff a small cap- ital, which he resolved to invest in a newer place, and he set out for Chicago.

Arriving here in 1851, he immediately made investments in real property, which his foresight told him was sure to appreciate greatly in value. He secured twenty acres in Lake View Town- ship, beside three twenty-acre tracts in section 33, town 39 north, range 14, most of which has been subdivided and sold off. Shurtleff's Addi- tion was one of the most valuable and well-known subdivisions on the old maps, and he now has valuable property on the South Side of the city. His present possessions include about ten acres of the most valuable land in the city, including many improved lots in the vicinity of his home, on Oakdale Avenue. In 1870 he built six sub- stantial houses on the corner of Fremont and Oak- dale Avenues, which were beyond the ravages of the great fire of the next year and became immediately profitable.

May 5, 1853, at Sharpsburgh, Pennsylvania, Mr. Shurtleff was married to Miss Lucinda J. Sewell, daughter of James H. Sewell, an old resident of Pittsburgh. Judge James Sewell, a well-known character of that city, was a brother of Mrs. Shurtleff. Mrs. Shurtleff was born in Baltimore, Maryland, and died January 10, 1856, in the prime of young womanhood, being but twenty-seven years old at the time of her death. She left a daughter, Lucy J., who was reared by her aunt, Mrs. J. B. Roberts, well known in Pitts- burgh, Pennsylvania, society. She was educated

at Ferry Hall Seminary, at Lake Forest, Illinois, and Hellmuth College, London, Canada, and is now the wife of Bruce M. Myers, of Chicago. Subsequently, at Chicago, Mr. Shurtleff married Mrs. Margaret A. Buker, who was born Sep- tember 2, 1837, at Greenwood, Maine. She was a daughter of Capt. Isaac P. Furlong, who was a native of Maine, and commanded a company in the War of 1812. His father took up the first claim in the town of Greenwood, Oxford County, Maine. Mrs. Shurtleff was a genial companion to Mr. Shurtleff in every sense of the word, and also a good business manager. She was a woman possessed of more than ordinary native ability, and esteemed for many good qual- ities of head and heart. She passed away July 7, 1894, leaving two sons by her first marriage. Harry Leslie Buker, who was educated principally at the Schattuck Military School, Faribault, Minnesota, is well known in musical circles in Chicago, and was associated twelve years with the Slayton Lyceum Bureau of that city. The other son, William F. Buker, is an actor by pro- fession and a resident of New York City.

Mr. Shurtleff was among the early members of the old Fullerton Avenue Presbyterian Church of Chicago, and has been a stanch supporter of the political principles of the Republican party all his life. In 1844 he voted for Henry Clay for Presi- dent of the United States, and he was among thie promoters and organizers of the Republican party, voting for Fremont in 1856. His has been a quiet life of industry and attention to his private affairs, with no seeking after public honors. He has ever given of his time, influence and means toward the promotion of any movement calculated to further the general welfare, and his example is commended to the careful attention of every youth who hopes to make something of himself in the business, social or moral world. His suc- cess has not been the result of accident, but has been built up by shrewd calculation, and the prudent use of means acquired by the practice of habits of industry and right living. He refused his share of his father's estate, preferring it should go to his sisters.

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D. B. FONDA.

DAVID B. FONDA, M. D.

12 AVID BARTHOLOMEW FONDA, M. D., is a representative of an old and prominent Empire State family which settled in and named the county-seat of Montgomery County, New York. His grandfather, John Fonda, was a native of Holland, and settled at a place called Bogt, in Albany County, New York, where he owned an estate comprising several thousand acres. His only son, Henry Fonda, was born there and inherited this estate. Most of his life was passed at Watervliet, New York, where he died at the age of sixty-six years, in June, 1841. His wife, Rebecca Hall, was born at Mayfield, Fulton County, New York, and died in August, 1840, at the age of fifty-six years. Henry Fonda was somewhat active in political affairs, though he never sought or accepted office for himself.

David B. Fonda was born November 6, 1834, in Watervliet, Albany County, New York, where he remained until he reached the age of sixteen years. In his native township, at a place called Elisha's Kill, he received his primary education, completing the course of the upper school before he was sixteen years old.

He was then appointed principal of the Second District School of the Third Ward of Schenectady, New York, where he taught one year. His first teacher's certificate was granted by Jonathan Pearson, professor of languages in Union Col- lege, at Schenectady, and superintendent of the public schools of that city. The scene of his labors for the next four years was a place called

Lowell's Corners, where he taught in the joint district embracing portions of the towns of Cherry Valley and Seward, in the Counties of Schoharie and Otsego. While teaching here he pursued a private course in moral and mental philosophy, and the Greek and Latin languages, under the tutelage of Franklin Pierce, a cousin of the Presi- dent who bore the same name. At the end of this time he was prepared for matriculation at Hartwick College, a Lutheran Theological institu- tion.

It is evident from the progress made up to this time that Mr. Fonda was a close student. By the time he attained his majority he had occupied a responsible position as teacher for a period of five years. The hard work involved in these labors, coupled with the diligent pursuit of his studies preparatory to further advancement, made deep inroads upon his physical strength, and a connec- tion which he formed at this time changed his plans and the entire course of his life. March 22, 1855, he was married to Miss Clarinda Lowell, a descendant of the famous New England family of that name, who was born at Lowell's Corners. She was a daughter of Nyram Lowell.

In 1855, with his bride, Mr. Fonda removed to Chicago. Having a relative who was in the service of the Galena & Chicago Union Railroad, he sought and secured employment as a brake- man on this line for the sake of the outdoor labor, and at the end of fourteen months spent in this capacity, he found his healthi fully restored.

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D. B. FONDA.

He then accepted a position as teacher at Rose- hill, and began the pursuit of a medical course at Rush Medical College. He attended lectures at this institution during the two years beginning in 1859 and ending in 1861.

Early in 1862 he enlisted as a private soldier, in Company C, Eighty-ninth Illinois Volunteer Infantry known as the Railroad Regiment, being composed entirely of railroad men. By the time the regiment was mustered he was promoted to Orderly Sergeant, and continued in service through Kentucky with the Army of the Cumber- land until the battle of Perryville. After this engagement he was sent with a detail to escort an ambulance train to Bardstown, Kentucky. On his arrival there he found that he had been ap- pointed chief steward of the hospitals at that point. He continued there until the latter part of 1863, and became secretary of the medical corps, which embraced eight army surgeons. When he entered the army his weight was one hundred forty- five pounds, but during his service it was re- duced to ninety-four pounds, and through the recommendation of the surgeons he was honorably discharged on account of disability, although he had never as yet asked for a release from duty. On his return to Chicago he was prostrated by a severe illness, which continued for a period of three months.

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Album of genealogy and biography, Cook County, Illinois, Volume 1899, Part 14

Author: La Salle Book Company (Chicago, Ill.) Publication date: 1899 Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : La Salle Book Co. Number of Pages: 910

Author: La Salle Book Company (Chicago, Ill.)
Publication date: 1899
Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : La Salle Book Co.
Number of Pages: 910