USA > Illinois > Biographical and memorial edition of the Historical encyclopedia of Illinois > Part 85
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Temple, a life member of St. Andrews Society, and a member of the Union League Club of Chicago. In 1907 Mr. Dalzell moved from Spring Valley, Ill., to Chicago, where he died Wednesday, January 27, 1915, after a brief illness.
On December 29, 1875, Mr. Dalzell was mar- ried at Sharon, Pa., to Miss Elmora King, and three children were born to them, namely : Liz- zie Elnora, who died in infancy; Mrs. E. M. Sweet and Mrs. Bessie Jared of Chicago. The Congregational Church had in Mr. Dalzell a faithful and generous member, and he served it as president of the local board of trustees. . 11- though he always voted for the candidates of the Republican party, he did not take an active part in politics, being too absorbed in business. Sympathetic in a marked degree, Mr. Dalzell never let his appreciation of the needs of others blind him as to the justice of their claims, and for this reason was able to render such efficient aid in settling labor questions. A man of vast experience and possessed of intimate appreciation of the necessity for a better under- standing on the part of both sides, he was equally the friend of capital and labor, and is gratefully remembered by the representatives of both classes for what he accomplished in their behalf.
DANIEL ATKINSON KING STEELE.
Dr. D. A. K. Steele was born in Delaware County, Ohio. March 29, 1552, son of Rev. Daniel and Mary L. O. (Anderson) Steele. He was graduated from the Chicago Medical College in 1873 as M. D., and from the University of Illi- nois in 1906 as LL. D. He was one of the founders of the College of Physicians and Sur- geons of Chicago (1882), and has been its pres- ident and professor of principles and practice of surgery, and clinical surgery.
Dr. Steele was influential, in 1912, in bringing about the permanent affiliation of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Chicago with the University of Illinois, as its Medical Department. and, in recognition of his services to medical education, he was appointed Senior Dean and head of the Department of Surgery in the Col-
lege of Medicine of the University of Illinois in 1914.
In 1907 he was elected president and profes- sor of the University Hospital, professor of clin- ical surgery of the Post-Graduate Medical School in 1894, and consulting surgeon of the Michael Reese and University hospitals. He is a member of the American Medical Association, the Chicago Surgical Society, of which he was made president in 1907, and was president of the Chicago Medical Society in 1884 and 1SS5.
In February, 1911, Dr. Steele was appointed first lieutenant United States Army Reserve Corps. He is a member of the Calumet and Physicians CInbs of Chicago.
Dr. Steele was married. September 7, 1876, to Alice Tomlinson of Rantoul, Illinois.
JAMES P. BUCK.
Rationalism unbalanced by reasonableness is not a desirable quality in any man, whether his efforts be directed along professional or com-
mercial lines. The extremist is not the man who succeeds, but the one who is able to visual- ize improved economie conditions in the future
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and to aid in bringing them about through great movements of readjustment. This is particularly true among the men who are engaged in promot- ing scientific discoveries and the developing of a better education of the people with refer- ence to the laws of health and sanitation. These physicians and surgeons are constantly seeking to find adequate expression of their views, and the gradual awakening of the pub- lic to the facts they have long been seeking to disclose, has a significant timeliness during periods of warfare when human life appears to be held cheaply. and the necessity arises to conserve the vital forces of those who are left to carry on the work of the world and hand down to posterity the torch of life.
One of these eminent medical men of Chicago whose trenchant personality has long impressed his generation is Dr. James P. Buck. Hle was born at Carrollton. Pa., February 19. 1856, a son of John and Rachel (Sherry ) Buck. John Buck was born in Pennsylvania, and he- came a prominent man in his community, serv- ing his county as sheriff several times, for some years represented his district in the state sen- ate, and was a member of the county com- mittee of his party. His death occurred in 1910 when he was eighty-six years old. The mother died three months before the father. when she was eighty-one years old. They had twelve children as follows: Celestine, who died in 1910: Michael J., who resides at Pittsburgh. Pa .; Sylvester H .. who resides at Adair, Ohio; Peter, who died in 1885; James P .: Anacitus W., who is a banker at Edensburg. Pa. ; Mary. who is the wife of James S. Scanlon ; Ambrose C., who is a resident of Pittsburgh, Pa .: Ed- ward, who is a resident of Colorado: Annie, who is the wife of James Eck : Vincent, who is a resident of Pittsburgh, Pa. : and Albert, who is a banker of Hastings. Pa.
From the age of six years until he was four- teen years old, James P. Buck attended the dis- trict schools of his native place, but in 1870
entered St. Vincent's College at Latrobe, Pa., where he spent three years. After his return home, he taught school for two years,'and then entered Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, from which he was graduated in 1879 with the degree of M. D. Immediately thereafter Dr. Buck went to Pittsburgh, Pa., where he prac- ticed for five years. In 1885 he went to Vienna, Austria, where he spent two years in further study. and was then made a surgeon in the Austrian army, holding the rank of captain during the difficulties that country had with Servia, Bulgaria and Roumania. Later he took a course during the summer at Heidelberg University, Germany, but returned to Vienna and became first assistant to Prof. Hoek of the University of Vienna. In 1SSS, Dr. Buck re- turned to Chicago and established himself on La Salle avenue where he has since been located, being engaged in the practice of his profession.
On June 30. Dr. Buck was married to Miss Mary Katherine Grass, daughter of Martin and Margaret Grass, pioneer settlers of Chicago. Although for many years one of the prosperous business men of Chicago, for some years prior to his demise Mr. Grass lived in retirement. Dr. and Mrs. Buck have three children as fol- lows : Marie Georgietta. Harold Francis Jerome, and Cecil Clement.
Dr. and Mrs. Buck are faithful members of the Catholic church and have reared their chil- dren in the same belief. Dr. Buck has not entered public life. being content to exert bis influence as a private citizen. He is a member of the Chicago Medical Society and the American Medical Association, and stands exceedingly high in his profession. While he carries on a general practice to some extent, Dr. Buck preferably specializes in surgery, and he has invented and placed upon the mar- ket a number of instruments and appliances for operative surgery.
CHAUNCEY BUCKLEY BLAIR.
The late Chauncey Buckley Blair, for nearly thirty years the president of the Merchants' National Bank of Chicago, was for several decades one of the financial powers of this city and the West. He is accorded unanimous credit of having twice in his remarkable career saved the financial situation in Chicago, restored pub- lic confidence and averted a general disaster to
its banks and a far-spreading and incalculable financial calamity. Conservative while tread- ing the safe paths of prosperity, he always met the threats of commercial and financial disaster with confident and brave hearing, and was most bold when he seemed to be leading a forlorn hope. Moreover, in his attitude as friend, father and husband he was helpful, tender and
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thoughtful, combining in his character the strength and gentleness which spell the true man and gentleman. Mr. Blair was a native of Blandford, Mass., and a member of one of the oldest families of that place, his great-grand- father having settled there in 1753. The Blair family are of Celtic origin and are traced in Scotland as far back as the twelfth century. Early in the fifteenth century they migrated from Ayrshire, Scotland, to the north of Ire- land, settling at Aghadowey, County Antrim, in the province of Ulster, from whence they came to America about 1718. The line of descent is designated by Roman numerals in the following: (1) Robert Blair, son of James and Rachel (Boyd) Blair, of Aghadowey, Coun- ty Antrim, Ireland, was the eldest of two broth- ers who came to America and settled at Rut- land, Worcester County, Mass., before 1720. He married Isabella, daughter of David Rankin, who came to Aghadowey from Scotland in 1685. They had eleven children. (II) Robert Blair, junior, eighth child of Robert and Isabella (Rankin) Blair, born in Rutland, Mass., mar- ried Hannah Thompson, a native of Ireland, and settled in Blandford, Mass., in 1753. They had seven children. (III) Rufus Blair, sixth child of Robert, junior, and Hannah (Thompson) Blair, was born in western Massachusetts; spent his life in Blandford, where he married Dolly, daughter of Samuel Boise, and had seven children. (IV) Samuel Blair, eldest child of Rufus and Dolly (Boise) Blair, was born in Blandford, where he married Hannah, youngest daughter of Jonathan Frary. He removed to New York State in 1511, and died at Cortland. Their children were: Caroline, Justus P., Chauncey B., Lyman, William and Anna E., three of whom, Chauncey B., Lyman and Wil- liam, are prominently identified with the early history of Chicago.
(V) Chauncey B. Blair, the third child of Samuel and Hannah (Frary) Blair, was born at Blandford, June 18, 1810. In the year 1S14 the family moved to Cortland County. N. Y., where Chauncey remained until he was eleven years old. He then returned to his native town to live with an uncle, a farmer, and there he remained employed on the farm until he had at- tained his majority, when he went back to Cort- land County, where his family still resided. He remained there until 1835, when he determined to try his fortunes in the West. In the spring of that year, without business experience, but with a strong body and character, the young
man came west and commenced to locate and sell lands in Wisconsin, Indiana and Illinois. Guided only by the imperfect maps then fur- nished by the public land offices, he rode over this vast territory on horseback, and thus gain- ing intimate knowledge of the property which he offered for sale was enabled to do a "land office business" until 1837 when, by the with- drawal of such lands by presidential procla- mation, he was obliged to abandon this profita- ble tield. In the fall of that year he associated himself with his brother, Lyman, in the grain business in Michigan City, Ind., and the opera- tions of the firm covered a large territory, as Michigan City was then the only shipping point to eastern markets. The firm name was C. B. & L. Blair, and at one time they owned the largest warehouse in Indiana. They also built the first bridge pier on the east side of Lake Michigan, and were among the pioneer shippers of grain to the East. Chauncey B. Blair se- cured a charter and built a plank road thirty miles long for the purpose of making transpor- tation inland from the lake easier. Notes were issued on the stock of the plank road corpora- tion and a banking business was started. He was made president of this banking company and so first entered upon the business to which he practically devoted the remainder of his life. The notes issued by this company, known as the Union Plank Road Company, were accepted by all the state banks in the Northwest and were all finally redeemed in gold. Some of them were held in the South at the time of the commencement of the War of the Rebellion, but were promptly honored when presented at the close of the war.
During this period, he went a little into rail- road building, being one of the incorporators of the Northern Indiana Railroad Company, which was the first road to impair the useful- ness of his plank road. The Northern Indiana was afterward consolidated with the Michigan Southern. He next became interested in the State Bank of Indiana, and when it was re- chartered, under the name of the Bank of the State of Indiana, he secured a controlling in- terest in its La Porte branch, later becoming its president. In 1859 he came to Chicago and established a private bank, which he conducted until 1865. He then organized the Merchants National Bank of Chicago, which began to do business at No. 36 South Clark street with a paid-up capital of $450,000. The officers were : president, Chauncey B. Blair, and cashier, John
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DeKoven. At its last statement prior to the fire, its capital was $650,000, surplus $300,000, deposits $1,149,756. Mr. Blair had been presi- dent of it continuously during that time and had made an enviable record as a financier, sometimes pursuing a policy against the judg- ment of all his friends. At the time of the great fire of 1871 he insisted upon an immediate and full payment to all the depositors of this bank, although nearly every other financier in Chicago advised against such a course. His decision was greeted with admiration in all parts of the country, and his action resulted in establishing on a firm basis the credit of Chicago, at that time greatly impaired.
When, by reason of the inability of the city to collect the taxes of 1871, 1872, 1873 and 1874, and on account of the fire losses and subse- quent staguation of business and other compli- cations the credit of Chicago became materially impaired, Mr. Blair was one of the few to come to the rescue of the city and by bis faith in the city and his advances may be said to have saved Chicago's credit a second time. During the panie of 1873, when the banks of Boston, New York and other large cities had suspended payments and most of the Chicago banks favored the same course, proposing to issue clearing-house certificates, he made a firm stand at the clearing house meeting and an- nounced that he proposed to pay all demands. His arguments convinced the other bankers that it was the proper course to pursue, and, as a result, they passed through the panic with- out serious harm and Chicago's credit was placed on a firmer basis than ever. Mr. Blair continued in the presidency of the Merchants National Bank until his death in 1891, and was succeeded by his son, Chauncey J. Blair. In 1902 that institution was consolidated with an- other, becoming the Corn Exchange National Bank, one of the foremost of the city today. The principle on which Mr. Blair managed his bank, as shown by the reports to the comptrol- ler of the currency, was remarked upon by many of the best bankers of the country. The cash reserves held by the bank were probably larger than those of any other bank in the country in proportion to its liabilities, with possibly one exception, the Chemical National Bank of New York.
Upon the death of Mr. Blair, January 30, 1891, the local press, from which we make the following extracts, was replete with tribute to his successful career and noble character :
"Mr. Blair was a man of the old style. Wholly unassuming, positive in his convictions, ready to give his last dollar to meet a bit of paper or an obligation in which his honor was in- volved in the faintest degree; his whole business career was one of protest against the rapid methods adopted by men of fewer years and less honor. The writer recalls a remark made to him by the deceased in 1877: 'Don't try to argue with me about silver. It will never do for a medium of exchange beyond the frac- tional part of a dollar.""-The Chicago Post, January 30, 1891. Under the heading of "One Model Citizen," the Chicago Times of January 31, 1801, reports "The Eventful Career of a Man Who Had the Welfare of Chicago at Hleart." "Passing away at the ripe age of eighty-one years, the career of Chauncey B. Blair, so long identified with the largest finan- cial interest of the city, becomes in its personal phase one of greatest interest to the citizens of Chicago. Always a busy man, and altogether a business man, Mr. Blair had in his long life neither the time nor the inclination for else than the advancement of constantly Increasing commercial interests. Ile threw his whole en- ergies into his work. He cared neither for amusements, which generally seemed to him frivolous, nor for vacations, which were es- teemed a waste of time. In his banking life he was daily, throughout the year, at his desk early in the morning and the last to leave at night. He was eminently conservative in all his ideas and most closely allied with the cus- toms of the more rigid past. He often referred to the time when he had to work sixteen hours out of the twenty-four and deprecated many of the innovations of later days, which seemed to him a relaxing of those stern convictions of old. Unostentatious generosity to the deserving was a characteristic of Mr. Blair. It had always been his custom to care for the sick among the employes of his large bank, aiding the families in their illness and helping to bury their dead. At Christmas they were all remembered with gifts of money, which was distributed accord- ing to the needs, rather than with regard to position or the salary earned. In personal habits and demeanor Mr. Blair was plain and old-fashioned. He generally voted the Repub- lican ticket, but did not mingle in politics. He was not a church member, while a regular at- tendant at Trinity Episcopal Church. He died in the peace and quiet of his home, as he had lived. In more than a half century of unre-
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mitting energy, with the record of never having had a mortgage recorded against him nor a piece of paper protested, he had left a reputa- tion for shrewdness and absolute diligence and integrity in a rigid business life. The residence of the late Chauncey B. Blair, No. 1011 Michi- gan Avenue, was crowded with those who had come to attend the funeral yesterday. So many of the friends of the deceased banker were there that the upper part of the house was opened to the throng, while a line of men reaching from the curb to the door stood with uncovered heads, listening to the opening chant, 'Rest Ye Weary Ones,' given by the choir of Trinity Chapel. In the parlor where the coffin lay were seated men whose clothing showed they were ordinary workmen. They had evi- dently been among the many to whom Mr. Blair had shown kindness in life. Their sorrow was
touching. No demonstration was made beyond the fact that they wept, an evidence of feeling men rarely show."-Chicago Tribune, February 2, 1 91.
Chauncey Buckley Blair married in Michigan City. Ind., June 11, 1844, Caroline Oliva De Groff, daughter of Amos and Harriet ( Sleight) De Groff, who was born in Poughkeepsie, N. Y .. August 7. 1822, and died in Chicago, December 5, 1867. A family of six children was born to them, five sons and one daughter. Two of the former, George G. and William S., are deceased, while Chauncey J., Henry A. and Watson F. have become prominent Chicago financiers and are all identified with the Corn Exchange Bank, which is the successor of the Merchants' Na- tional, founded by their father. The daughter, Harriet, is the widow of the late John J. Bor- land, of this city.
CHAUNCEY J. BLAIR.
While it is undoubtedly true that in the ยท majority of cases circumstances make the man, there are some men big enough to mould cir- cumstances so as to meet with their ideas of right and justice. Such are the men who make history. They are pivots about whom revolve the wheels of human progress, the cen- ters of commercial, industrial and financial activity. The great 'panic of 1893 has long passed and the record of it is written upon the pages of the history of that time. Yet the influence of the men who brought prosperity out of financial chaos is felt to this day, and will continue to wield a power as long as present civilization exerts its strength. Cer- tain combinations brought about the panic. Once the country recognized its presence, the great thing was to avert its direful conse- quences. It was then that Chicago came to the front as a maker of financial history. The stand then taken by the Chicago banks against the issue of clearing house certificates, did more to impress moneyed men all over the country with the solidity and conservative char- acter of the men at the head of these institu- tions than any other action could have done, and gave the city a prestige it has never lost. Back of this action, however, stood one man, Chauncey J. Blair, who as a member of the clearing house committee, led with unqualified success the opposition to the proposed plan of adopting as a means of restoring confidence in financial conditions, the issuance of clearing
house certificates. Had Mr. Blair never accom- plished anything else, he must be recognized as a great man in the financial world. How- ever, he is equally prominent in many other directions, and fully sustains the prestige of the name his father, the late Chauncey Buck- ley Blair, made synonymous with personal in- tegrity and lofty business principles.
Chauncey J. Blair was born in Michigan City, Ind., April 6, 1846, being the eldest son of Chauncey Buckley and Caroline O. (DeGroff) Blair. An extended sketch of the elder Mr. Blair will be found elsewhere in this volume. In 1879 Chauncey J. Blair began what was to be a long and honorable career as a banker when he was made vice-president of the Mer- chants National Bank of Chicago, one of the sound financial institutions of the city, of which his father was the executive head. Mr. Blair continued in that office until the demise of his father when he. being the logical suc- cessor, was elected president, and during the last eighteen years of his administration he was successively re-elected to succeed himself. In the spring of 1902, the Merchants National Bank was consolidated with the Corn Exchange National Bank, and Mr. Blair was honored by election to its vice-presidency. During the many years with which he had been connected with the former institution, Mr. Blair had drawn heavily upon his strength and mentality. so that for several years after 1902. he traveled
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with his family in foreign countries, securing the relaxation he so much needed.
In addition to his heavy banking interests, Mr. Blair has given much time and energy as president of the Kennicott Company of Chicago, and is a director of the South Side Elevated Railroad. For some time was vice-president of the Chicago Home for the Friendless, for like so many other men of wealth. Mr. Blair is humanely benevolent and contributes largely towards the furtherance of worthy charities. His political affiliations have always been with the Republican party. His social connections are with the Bankers. Chicago, Union League. Washington Park, Chicago Athletic, Onwentsia. Quadrangle, Saddle and Cycle, Caxton, Home- wood and Casino ( Edgewater) clubs.
On October 26, 1882, Mr. Blair was united in marriage with Miss Mary A. I. Mitchell, and they have had four children, namely: Italia
Mitchell, Chauncey R., Mildred M. and Wil- liam M.
While essentially a man of conservative ideas, for he is opposed to a headlong plunge into unknown difficulties, Mr. Blair presents the anomaly of being at the same time a man of a remarkably broadaminded outlook upon life. Habituated as he has always been to handling vast moneyed interests, he compre- hends as few can the immense responsibility thus entailed, and this appreciation has worn upon him at times as it must upon anyone in whom such boundless trast is placed. There are few men who are better types of the men Chicago business life has produced than Mr. Blair, and both at home and abroad he always commands that, respect and unmeasured con- fidlence that is only given to those who have fairly . won them. through their actions and personality.
HENRY AUGUSTUS BLAIR.
The satisfaction of ambitious ideas is likely to result in the accomplishment of every ulti- mate aim, and a consequent cessation of effort and an inactivity that must of necessity be supine. Those who rise, however, recognize the possibilities of successful attainment and con- tinually strive energetically and perseveringly, actuated by a determination to win, that results in the reaching of a position of power and influ- ence among men of moment in the business world. To reach this desirable consummation. success must be based upon a definite aim, and persistency of purpose which enables the indi- vidual to continue on a given course regardless of the obstacles which may strew his path. . A review of those who have attained success shows that those who have reached their goal are those who have possessed self-reliance, con- scientiousness, energy and honesty. for these are the traits of character which work for the high- est rewards. . One of the men who has always possessed just these traits is Henry Angustus Blair, who has reached his present position through successive promotions until he is now a leading figure in the country on matters re- lating to finance and commercialism.
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