USA > Illinois > Cook County > Chicago > The biographical dictionary and portrait gallery of representative men of Chicago, Minnesota cities and the World's Columbian exposition : with illustrations on steel. V. 1 > Part 17
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51
He is affable and courteous in manner, and each new acquaintance he makes is another friend added to the long list of those who delight to know him.
LEVI BARNES DOUD,
CHICAGO, ILL.
TO O a student of human nature, there is noth- ing more interesting than to examine into the life of a self-made man, and analyze those principles that have caused him to become a man of eminence in the community, and an object of respect to all that know him.
Levi Barnes Doud is prominent among the self- made men of Chicago. He was born in Mahon- ing county, Ohio, on April 7, 1840. His parents, James and Mary (Barnes) Doud, were reared in Canfield, Ohio, but their parents were descended from old colonial settlers of Connecticut and Vir- ginia. After finishing his education at the Salem (Ohio) Academy, Levi returned to his father's farm, and remained there until his nineteenth or twentieth year, when he began life for himself as a cattle dealer, in Allegheny City, Pennsylvania. He had good success in this business venture, but being of an ambitious nature and foreseeing a great future for the live-stock trade at Chicago, he began operations there in 1864, and in the following year removed thither and took up his abode. He has been largely connected with the cattle interests of Chicago for over a quarter of a century, and at the present time (1892) is the
senior member of the live-stock commission firm of Doud and Keefer: He has also been identi- fied with the packing business-but has disposed of all his packing interests in Chicago-but still retains an interest in the packing house of L. B. Doud and Company, located at Atlantic, Iowa. For many years Mr. Doud has been interested in banking institutions. He was a stockholder in the old Stockyards Bank, and in January, 1889, was elected a director in the National Live Stock Bank, and six months later (in July) was chosen its president. This position he now holds.
In December, 1875, he was married to Eliz- abeth R. Dunham, by whom he has one child, Marion. Mrs. Doud is a native of Newark, Ohio; she was educated in Chicago, and at the time of her marriage was a resident of Iowa.
Our subject is a native of Ohio, a State that has been aptly spoken of by an eminent historian as " The lap of Patriotism and the mother of Repub- licanism." He has followed in the footsteps of his father, one of the leaders of the anti-slavery move- ment in Ohio, and is a staunch Republican-a firm believer in the principles of Republicanism as ad- vocated by Lincoln, Grant, Garfield and Blaine.
-
154
BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY AND PORTRAIT GALLERY.
Mr. Doud is a man of domestic tastes, and when not employed in his business, in which he takes a natural and just pride, he finds in no place such solid enjoyment as in his own beauti- ful home, at No. 3257 Michigan avenue. During the heated season of each year, he seeks re- cuperation and rest at the sea-shore, with his family.
Such is a brief outline of his biography: Prc- eminently a self-made man, he has attained to a position 'among Chicago's representative men of which he may justly be proud. He started in life with no capital save health, a persistent pur- pose and an honorable ambition, and, by perse- vering effort, uprightness and fidelity, has risen, step by step, to his present commanding position.
CHARLES T. YERKES,
CHICAGO, ILL.
C HARLES TYSON YERKES, President of the North Chicago Street Railroad Company and the West Chicago Strect Railroad Company, and Director of the World's Fair, was born in Philadelphia, June 25th, 1837. Up to the time of the settlement of his father's estate he added " junior" to his name, as the two were the same.
His mother was Elizabeth Link Broom, who came from an old Philadelphia family, descended from the Dutch. The name "Yerkes" is Welsh, the first settlers coming to this country from England a few years before the Penn colony of Quakers arrived. The subject of this biography is descended from these people, who assimilated with the followers of William Penn. The farthest the lineage can be traced being to their arrival in Philadelphia with that good man on board the ship "Welcome," in 1682.
Mr. Yerkes' parents were Quakers, and he was brought up in that faith; but like many other members of that sect, the straight coat, broad brimmed hat and quiet manners were not adopted by the rising generation, and the mem- bership in his family will, in all probability, go out with him. He received his education at the Quaker school in Philadelphia, and afterwards graduated at the Central High School in that city.
In early life he was an active young man, always desiring to be at the head of all schemes, whether it was mischief at school or a money making project. An anecdote of the boy has found its way into print, showing his natural thrift. When about twelve years old, he was very fond of attending the auction sales which were held on Saturdays, at an auction store, in
the vicinity of his home. One day, arriving early, he discovered a number of boxes of soap which bore the same brand that was being used by his family, which he had often been sent to purchase at the corner grocery. Twelve cents per pound was the retail price he had always paid. An idea struck him and a plan was immediately formed. He went at once to the grocer and asked what - soap was worth by the box. The latter thinking the boy wished to purchase, told him, eleven cents per pound. The boy de- murred, saying it was too much. The grocer replied that very little profit was made on soap, and facetiously remarked he would pay nine cents per pound for any quantity. Young Yerkes secmed hardly satisfied and left the store, going immediately to the auction. Soon the lot of soap was reached and the auctioneer announced the soap would be sold, a box at a time. "What is bid per pound for the soap?" "Four cents," said one bidder ; " Four and one-half cents," and so on up to five and one-half cents. While the auctioneer was clamoring for another bid, "Six cents," came from a shrill but sturdy voice, and every one looked to see the new bidder. The box of soap was knocked down to young Yerkes at six cents per pound. "What is the name?" said the auctioncer as he leaned forward. "Charles T. Yerkes, Jr.," shouted the boy, and the man repeated, "Put it down to Charles T. Yerkes, Jr.," and every one but the boy laughed. Another box was put up and the youngster bid again six cents. No one else bid. They were all amused to watch the carnest boy. Again the auctioneer asked the name and received the same reply. It was most amusing to the by-
Sincerely yours nellas
I57
BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY AND PORTRAIT GALLERY.
standers. Box after box was put up until fifteen boxes had been sold. The auctioneer then said there were ten more boxes and he would sell them in one lot. The boy bid five and one- half cents. No one else would bid- There was too much fun in seeing the little fellow get the soap, so it was put down to him. Then there was a bee line made by young Yerkes to the grocer. "What did you say was the price of - soap?" said he. "I told you I would sell by the box at eleven cents, which is low for it, or I would give nine cents for a big lot of it." " Well," said the boy, "I have sold you twenty- five boxes at nine cents a pound, and I will run over to Frank's auction store and tell them it is to go to you." Of course, mutual explanations followed. The grocer took the soap, paid the amount due and then gave the boy the balance. He has said the making of this money so startled him that instead of being filled with the idea that money was easy to make, his great fear was that he might in some way lose it. He, therefore, did not repeat the venture.
After leaving school, he went as a clerk into the flour and grain commission and forwarding house of James P. Perot and Bro. In those days it was a great privilege to be permitted to enter a first-class house to learn the business, and he, consequently, had no salary. However, on ac- count of his close attention, he was presented with fifty dollars at the end of the year. In 1859, although no more than a boy, he started a money and stock broker's office on Third street in Philadelphia, and in three years was so pros- perous as to be able to purchase the banking house at No. 20 South Third street, and estab- lished himself as a banker. The negotiation of first-class bonds was his specialty. It was during the war, and Government, State and City bonds were heavily dealt in. The high premium for gold made City bonds sell low, owing to the fact that the interest was payable in currency. How- ever, he conceived a scheme to raise the price from eighty-five cents to par, which was carried into effect with the anticipated result, and the city was able to raise money to pay bounties to the soldiers and for park purchases which were then being made. It should be understood that, in accordance with their charter, no City bonds could be sold by the city at less than par, conse-
quently, when the price was below that figure, the city could not pay the bounties or make improve- ments. This close alliance with the city, however, proved his " Waterloo." At the time of the Chi- cago fire, he was very prominent in Third street. He had made money rapidly, and, as he says, was feeling that he might begin to take life more easily. He never took a holiday, but was always attending to business. The panic occasioned by the fire caught him carrying a large load of secu- rities, and he was in debt to the city for bonds sold for it, it being the custom to make the pay- ments at the end of every month. The city au- thorities demanded settlement at once, and know- ing to pay it in full would be unfair to the balance of his creditors, he suspended and made an assign- ment. The fact that the law did not provide for his having possession of the city's money was tortured into a criminal offense, and as he refused to give the city preference over his other credit- ors, severe measures were resorted to to compel him to do so. He was firm, however, and in- sisted that, as he had given up everything he possessed, it should be divided to every one alike. He declared this was the most trying period of his life, and while he and his friends feel proud of his action, the severe strain he was obliged to pass through was such that few men could stand. While it made his friends stronger, it gave his enemies, for all time, an opportunity to cast re- flections upon him, and as he has said, when any one wished to throw mud at him they could easily manufacture the material by giving a one- sided view of his old trouble.
At the time of his failure he lost the large in- terest which he held in the Seventeenth and Nineteenth Street Railway Company, which had been in his possession since 1861, and which was sold to help pay his debts. In 1873, at the time of the Jay Cook failure, he commenced the recu- peration of his fortune. His business was rapidly growing at that period, and appreciating, at once, that Mr. Cook's suspension meant a very serious decline in everything, sold stocks heavily before purchasing. Immense and quick profits were the result, and he soon found himself well established again. In 1875, he purchased an interest in the Continental Passenger Railway of Philadelphia, and saw the value of the stock rise from fifteen dollars per share to over one hundred dollars. In
158
BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY AND PORTRAIT GALLERY.
1880, he made his first visit to Chicago. At that time, gold was coming from Europe in almost every steamer which arrived at New York from that point, still money was not easy there. In- quiry developed the fact that it was going west, principally to Chicago. The idea forced itself upon his mind that a new money center was be- ing formed and from natural causes, and he re- solved to investigate. The result was that he concluded to extend his investigations still fur- ther, and, consequently, after returning to Phila- delphia, he started to go through the Northwest and see for himself. After visiting St. Paul, Minneapolis and Duluth, he pushed on over the Northern Pacific Railroad, but was stopped by a severe snow storm at Fargo. It was here, sitting around the stove at the hotel, he listened to the tales of the boomer who had arranged to make a grand Dakota demonstration in the spring. The crops had been good and prices high. No one who has not had experience can fully appreciate the wondrous tales told under these circum- stances. It was not long before he joined a syn- dicate and afterwards bought out his associates. When the spring opened he built business blocks, dealt heavily in acre property, and organized the first Fair held in North Dakota. It is said the display of farm machinery was the best ever made. All the large manufacturers were repre- sented. The shafting to run the machinery was about a quarter of a mile long. Having sold out most of his Dakota interests he came to Chicago, in the autumn of 1881, and opened a banking house at the corner of La Salle and Madison streets. This was operated in conjunction with his house in Philadelphia, which was being man- aged by his partner. From the time of his ad- vent in Chicago, he had looked with longing eyes on the street railways-particularly the North side-but it was not until 1886 that he was able to enter into negotiations for it. A satisfactory arrangement was then made with the stockholders having a majority of the stock, and after associat- ing with himself some Chicago capitalists and a few of his old friends in Philadelphia, he took possession of the North Chicago City Railway Company. The company was completely reor- ganized, and after many difficulties in which he was obliged to work single-handed against the most remarkable efforts of those who were jeal-
ous of his appearance in the street railroad field, he at length accomplished the reorganization and change of motive power from horse to cable, the greatest success achieved being the utilizing of the old La Salle street tunnel (which had almost entirely gone into disuse), thereby overcoming the great detriment which was experienced by the people of the North side on account of the swing bridges. Two years later he closed the negotiations for the majority of the Chicago West Division Railway Company stock, and that company was reorganized in the same manner as the North side road.
In all his business, Mr. Yerkes acted with full authority from his associates, and it is said their confidence in his experience and management was such that they refused to advise with him, but left him to act entirely as his judgment should dictate. The results show the wisdom of their course. Notwithstanding the fact that tempting offers are constantly made to him to take hold of other street railroad properties, he invariably refuses. He is of the firm opinion that success can only be accomplished by con- stant and undivided attention to the properties he has taken hold of, and that small cities are unprofitable for the introduction of the improved systems of street railroad management.
Mr. Yerkes is a Republican, although not an active politician. He believes in a protective tariff, for the reason that while all articles used in his business would be cheapened by free trade, yet he is of the opinion that the prosperity of the country demands that labor should be pro- tected by such duty on imported goods that our home manufacturers can compete with foreign makers.
In 1881, Mr. Yerkes married Miss Mary Adc- laide Moore, daughter of Thomas Moore, of Phil- adelphia, who had been for a number of years connected with the firm of Powers and Wright- man, manufacturing chemists in that city.
To his regular habits, care, and abstemious life, he probably owes his remarkably well pre- served physical condition. He has lived in the line of the old adage, "early to bed and early to rise," and has for it a ruddy, robust appear- ance, sustained by a constitution which would indicate, that though he has passed the half cen- tury mile-stone, for years to come he will still be
I59
BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY AND PORTRAIT GALLERY.
in the prime of life. And what precision of habit has accomplished in the way of physical develop- ment, observation, application and cultivation, have brought about in his mental character. That he is a quick thinker, a keen observer, and the possessor of a bright intellectuality, is told at a glance. His well rounded head is evidence of the evenness and fullness of his mental develop- ment ; and his dark piercing eye tells of his pow- er to perceive and the deep earnestness which has been characteristic of his life. There is with it all, too, a firmness that is often mistaken for rigidity ; but to this seeming cloud there is a sil- very lining which constantly stands out in bold relief to those who know him best. As the world sees him, he is a calm, austere, pushing business
man; but as he is seen after office hours, he is the most genial of men, and presents a nature radiant with pleasantry. He has very little taste, however, for society, and as a consequence is almost a stranger to club life. In fact, he is very seldom seen away from home and family after his day's business. He is devoted to his fireside and revels in home life, and is a lover of the beauti- ful. To him, his pictures-rare works of art with which his gallery abounds-and the flowers of his conservatory are open books. He reads them with peculiar delight and finds in them a sooth- ing influence, which not only wears off the day's contact with the busy world, but sweetens his life by their sublimity, and renews his mind for the labors which the successive morrows bring.
OSCAR C. DEWOLF, A.M., M.D.,
CHICAGO, ILL.
O SCAR C. DEWOLF, whose name has be- come familiar in connection with his faith- ful and successful service in the health depart- ment of Chicago, was born at Chester, Hampden county, Massachusetts, in 1836. His father, Dr. T. K. DeWolf, was born in 1801, and continued in the successful practice of medicine till his eighty- ninth year, working with the vigor and alacrity of a boy. Our subject's mother, Cornelia (Benham) DeWolf, born in 1806 in Barkhamsted, Connecti- cut, came of an old Revolutionary family, resident in the Northeast since Colonial days. Gen. Ben- ham, of the engineer corps, was of the same family. Dr. DeWolf is probably of English descent; but members of his father's family were engaged in the Revolutionary war ; his ancestors have been in Connecticut and Rhode Island for two hundred years. He has one brother, one half brother, and one sister, the sister being the wife of Dr. Har- low Gamwell, of Westfield, Massachusetts. His brother is an attorney in Cleveland, Ohio, and his half brother a member of the well-known firm of Phelps, Dodge and Palmer, of Chicago, and vice- president of the Chicago Coal Company.
Our subject received his preliminary education in the common schools of Massachusetts, and later pursued a course of study in, and was gradu- ated from, Williams College, afterward study-
ing medicine at Pittsfield, Massachusetts. He graduated in medicine from the Medical College at Berkshire, in 1857, and from New York Medi- cal College in 1858. The same year he went to Europe and entered the medical department of the University of France, where he remained until 1861. Two days after his arrival home, he was appointed assistant surgeon of the First Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Calvalry, and afterward became surgeon of the Second Regi- ment Massachusetts Cavalry, and later surgeon of the reserve brigade of the regular cavalry, where he continued till the end of the war. After the close of the war in 1866, he settled at Northamp- ton, Massachusetts, and remained there until 1873. He then removed to Chicago where he has since made his home, filling many positions of trust with marked ability. He was appointed Commissioner of Health for the city of Chicago in 1876, filling that position with a zeal and integ- rity of which he may well be proud. A promi- nent city official has said that Dr. Oscar C. De- Wolf was the first man to place the work of that office on a high plane, and that his was an effi- cient and honest administration. He made that department an executive part of the city govern- ment. He had the nerve and decision to act, when sure he was right in the premises. That
160
BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY AND PORTRAIT GALLERY.
Dr. DeWolf is an eminent authority on sanitary matters is further shown in the fact that he was appointed one of the sanitary commission to examine the site for the World's Columbian Ex- position. His associates in this work were Dr. H. A. Johnson and Dr. Fernand Henrotin. This commission will continue its sanitary supervision till the close of the Exposition.
Dr. De Wolf is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic, and was made an honorary member of the French Society of Hygiene. He is also a member of the British Association for the Ad- vancement of Science. These honors were con- ferred upon him in recognition of his eminent
services in the health department of the city of Chicago. He is a member of all the prominent medical societies, also a member of the Illinois Club, and a man of high social standing and an extensive acquaintance. Dr. DeWolf is professor of State medicine and public hygiene in the Chi- cago Medical College, a position he has occupied with distinction for many years. He holds his religious affiliations with the Third Presbyterian Church. Always a Republican, yet he numbers among his intimate friends many who differ from him in his political belief.
He was married December, 1872, to Harriet T. Lyman, of Northampton, Mass.
HON. WILLIAM ERNEST MASON,
CHICAGO, ILL.
A MONG the representative men of Chicago, whose position is due solely to their own efforts, none deserves more honorable mention than William E. Mason. He was born in the village of Franklinville, Cattaraugus county, New York, on the 7th day of July, 1850. His parents were Lewis J. and Nancy (Winslow) Mason, his father being, at the time of William's birth, en- gaged in mercantile pursuits. He was a man of high character, and very active in politics, and in his early manhood was identified with the Abo- litionists. Upon the organization of the Repub- lican party, he became an enthusiastic member of that body, and was an ardent supporter of John- C. Fremont for the presidency, in 1856.
In 1858 the family removed to Bentonsport, Iowa, and lived there until the death of the father, in 1865. William was thus, at the tender age of fifteen, practically thrown upon his own resources and left to battle with the world. He had re- ceived the rudiments of his education in the public schools of Franklinville, and later at Ben- tonsport. He had also studied two years at Birmingham College, and was making fair pro- gress in the way of a liberal education, when called upon to make his own way in the world.
This shouldering of the responsibilities of life developed in the boy a self-reliance and strength of purpose which have been distinguishing charac- teristics of the man. He began teaching school,
and devoted himself alternately to teaching and studying until 1868. During the next two years, he taught in the public schools of Des Moines, Iowa. He then began the study of law in the office of Hon. Thomas F. Withrow, an eminent corporation lawyer, who was, soon after this time, appointed General Solicitor of the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad Company, and re- moved to Chicago. Our subject accompanied him, and remained in his office one year, and then became a student in the office of Hon. John N. Jewett, where he finished his preparation for admission to the bar.
For several years he remained in the office of his distinguished preceptor, leaving it to form a partnership with Judge M. R. M. Wallace, in 1877. He soon became known as a good lawyer and safe counselor, and especially as an able and eloquent advocate. Upon separating from Judge Wallace, he became the senior member of the firm of Mason, Ennis and Bates, with which he is still identified.
Mr. Mason has always been a staunch Republi- can, and, as his record will show, an enthusiastic and effective worker in the interests of that party. Before he was thirty years of age, he was a mem- ber of the General Assembly of Illinois, and in 1882 was sent to the State Senate from the Ninth Senatorial District of Illinois. In both the lower house and the senate, he was conspicuous for his
BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY AND PORTRAIT GALLERY.
163
ability, his devotion to the interests of his con- stituency, good judgment in the consideration of proposed legislation, and close attention to busi- ness at all times.
In 1888 he was elected Congressman from the Third Congressional District of Illinois, and as a member of this popular branch of the national legislature won honor for himself and reflected credit upon those who elected him by becoming, in a comparatively short time, one of the most serviceable members of that body. Possessing oratorical powers of a high order, a ready wit and a broad knowledge of public affairs, he distin- guished himself on the floor of the House on numerous occasions. He was noted for brevity, conciseness and pointedness of statement, and in the debate on the location of the World's Colum- bian Exposition, made the following five-minute speech, which is a model of its kind, and for which he was highly complimented by all, and the Speaker (Mr. Reed) expressed his opinion that it was the best five-minute speech he had ever listened to :
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.