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. 2 > Part 10
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He remained with Mr. Cone about seven years, being promoted from time to time, until, in 1868, he had almost the entire charge and control of the business.
For the next two years he was employed as book-keeper, cashier and office manager of the
Mutual Life Insurance Company of Chicago. The change was to him most opportune. The boy be- came a man, catching glimpses of the busy world lying outside that to which his life had thus far been confined, and discovering in himself a pecu- liar tact and skill in dealing with men, he was un- able longer to content himself in the narrow rou- tine of clerical life, and resolved, at any cost of self-sacrifice or labor, to fit himself for the practice of law. Giving up a lucrative position, he started for Chicago with the determination to study law. After a week's search he secured a position in the law-office of Messrs. Dent and Black (October 10, 1870), his duties being to keep the books of the firm and do general office-work, for which he was co receive seven dollars per week. He went to his task with a will and soon became a proficient law- tlerk. In addition to his law studies, he pursued other branches under private tutors, and thus early and late applied himself to study and work.
In June, 1873, Mr. Gartside was examined by the Supreme Court, sitting at Mt. Vernon, Illinois, and was admitted to the bar. He continued, how- ever, with Messrs. Dent and Black until February, 1876, as chief clerk, and was entrusted with many important matters in the courts, and during the last year of his clerkship received, aside from the privilege of practicing on his own account, a salary of twelve hundred dollars. To most young lawyers this would have been satisfactory, but Mr. Gartside, with characteristic independence, re- solved to establish a reputation and practice for himself, and accordingly resigned this position and opened an office on his own account. The decis- ion proved a wise onc. The few clients, who had entrusted their business to him while a law-clerk, Inntuosoed with him and baughto thers, and from
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the first he had a fair practice which has gradually grown, cach year exhibiting a marked increase of business, which finally became more extensive than he could superintend individually, and led to his associating with himself Mr. Frank P. Lef- fingwell, under the firm name of Gartside and Leffingwell.
As a lawyer, Mr. Gartside shows thorough and careful professional training ; readily analyzes and comprehends the bearing of questions presented ; quickly applies his knowledge, and in whatever he undertakes shows himself a skillful master of the situation. As a counselor, his advice and opinions are reliable ; as a special pleader he excels, while as an advocate before court or jury, he ranks among the most successful.
On September 22, 1874, Mr. Gartside was mar- ried to Miss Annie L. Davis, daughter of Levi Davis, editor and founder of the Davenport (Iowa) Gasette. Mr. and Mrs. Gartside are blessed with two happy children : John Love, aged five, and Grace Louise, aged two. They met with a sad bereavement in the death of their oldest child, Lily Claribel.
Mrs. Gartside is a highly educated and refined woman, and is in full accord with Mr. Gartside in all his work. She is a connoisseur in works of art, and has executed many paintings of merit, both in oil and water-colors. She is esteemed by all who know her.
Socially, Mr. Gartside is much esteemed. He is a member of the Union League Club; but outside of his busines, it is with his family in his elegant home on Drexel boulevard, that he finds his highest enjoyment. He is interested in church matters, and is an active member of the First Baptist Church. Personally he is genial, companionable and generous.
In conclusion it should be stated that among those esteemed members of the bar of Chicago, who are respected and honored for their worth, none is more deserving than he. He has climbed from the bottom round of the ladder that reaches to success and fame ; step by step he has sur- mounted the difficulties that were in his path, and now, while still in his younger manhood, he has attained to a position of influence of which any man might justly be proud.
D. V. PURINGTON,
CHICAGO, ILL.
T HE Purington-Kimball Brick Company of Chicago ranks high among the brick manufacturers of the United States. There was a time when Chicago imported, chiefly from the east, the greater portion of the brick consumed, but to-day, so great is her out-put that her pro- ducers ship great numbers to other places.
The subject of this sketch, the founder of the Purington-Kimball Brick Company, was born January 22, 1841, at Sidney, Kennebec county, Maine. He is the son of Daniel S. and Sarah (Varney) Purington, both members of the Society of Friends. His carly education was obtained in the public schools of his native place, which fitted him for a course at Oak Grove Seminary, Vassal- borough, Maine, where he was graduated in 1859.
After leaving school he taught for two years in New Jersey. At the outbreak of the Rebellion, young Purington enlisted as a private, August 23, 1861, in the Fourth Regiment New Jersey
Volunteers, Infantry. A year later he was made quartermaster sergeant, and in January, 1863, first lieutenant and quartermaster of the regiment. In January, 1864, he was commissioned captain and assistant quartermaster United States Volun- teers. One year later we find him on the staff of Gen. Weitzel, and holding the important position of depot quartermaster at Brownsville, Texas. The Maximilian trouble was at that time causing much uneasiness in Mexico, and the presence of our troops on the border was required to maintain neutrality and non-interference. Gen. Bragg was also at this time in Texas, but, upon the approach of the Union troops, fled to the woods and ultimately disbanded his force.
Mr. Purington was mustered out of service on January 8, 1866, with an exemplary record, having served on the staffs of Generals William Birney, Joseph Hawley, Godfrey Weitzel and Frederick K. Steele.
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Immediately after his discharge he joined his brother in conducting a country store at Ames- bury, Massachusetts, but soon tired of that and became connected with the Freedman's Bureau of Virginia. There he was associated with Gen. S. C. Armstrong, who founded the Hampton In- dustrial School, at Hampton, Virginia.
In 1869, Mr. Purington embarked in the lumber business at Chicago. The disastrous fire of 1871 caused a great demand for building materials of a substantial nature, which led him to abandon the lumber business, and turn his attention to the manufacture of brick. He first became general manager of Messrs. Straus, Hahnes and Com- pany's works, having at that time under his super- vision four brick yards. In 1874 he formed a co- partnership with Mr. Christopher Tegtmeyer, under style of Tegtmeyer and Company. This partnership was dissolved in 1878, and in the following year he associated himself with Mr. Norman B. Ream, under the firm name of D. V. Purington and Company. This firm contin- ued in business two years.
In 1881, Mr. Pu- rington, with Mr. Spencer S. Kimball, organ- ized the Purington-Kimball Brick Company, which has conducted a prosperous business to the present time (1892).
In 1885, Mr. Purington founded the village of Purington, on the Chicago, Rock Island and Pa- cific Railroad, where their works are located, and where two hundred and fifty men find regular employment. The Purington-Kimball Brick Com- pany is noted for its just and liberal treatment of . its employés.
Politically, Mr. Purington is a staunch Republi- can, and a firm believer in the principles of that party, as advocated by Mr. McKinley. He takes deep interest in political affairs, both local and na- tional. He was county commissioner of Cook county from 1879 to 1882, and was elected to serve out the unexpired term of one of the "boodler " commissioners, who had been sent to the peni- tentiary.
He is a member of the Loyal Legion, Grand Army of the Republic, and of the Union League Club. In 1878, he became a member of Lakeside { Lodge, No. 727, A. F. and A. M., and is now a ¡ member of Chicago Chapter and Chevalier Bayard Commandery.
In July, 1886, Mr. Purington married Mrs. Jennie F. Crandall, a lady of estimable worth, social and refined, and in the circle of his home, in the society of his wife, he passes the happiest moments of life.
WILLIAM DEERING,
CHICAGO, ILL
T HE history of the great west contains many characters of real worth and excellence, as is attested in this work; characters furnishing such practical illustrations of the value to society of the cardinal virtues of business life, as to make it not only desirable, but eminently important that record of the more prominent examples of per- sonal commercial integrity and success should be presented to the world, not only for honorable commendation of that life, but as a worthy guide for the footsteps of those who follow after.
Men who live in the eye of the public asincum- bents of office, conferred by suffrages of the peo- ple, reach places in history by the force in cir- cumstances, as well as by personal worth and the faithful employment of great abilities for the good of the nation. Men in business life can rise into
prominence, and become objects of high considera- tion in public estimation, only by the develop- ment of the noblest attributes of manhood and mentality, in enterprises that largely affect the well-being of communities.
The subject of this sketch finds an appropriate place in the history of the men of business and enterprise in the great west, whose force of char- acter, whose sterling integrity, whose fortitude amid discouragements, whose good sense in the management of complicated affairs, whose con- trol of agencies and circumstances, and whose marked success in establishing great industries and bringing to completion advanced schemes for the betterment and comfort of mankind, have con- tributed to such an eminent degree to the solidity and progress of the city and country.
William seung
ـاس
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The biographical data in Mr. Deering's life claim a brief space. He was born in Oxford county, Maine, April 24, 1836. His father and mother were James and Eliza (Moore) Deering. His ancestors immigrated from England in 1634, and in all the histories of New England from that time the name of Deering finds most honorable mention. Elwell's History of Maine, Savage's Genealogical Dictionary, Cushman's New England and Williamson's Genealogy of New England, all devote honorable notice to the Deering family.
William Deering's boyhood was much the same as that of other boys reared by earnest Christian parents. His scholastic education consisted of the full and regular course of studies in vogue at that time in the common and graded schools, and was finished in the high school of Readfield, Maine. He went into business while yet in his " teens," and while yet in his earliest manhood he assumed for a time the duties of his first impor- tant position, that of manager of a woolen mill in Maine, in which he was interested by natural taste and inclination. He discharged every trust re- posed in him to the eminent satisfaction of his directors, and after the termination of his labors there he engaged in various business enterprises, to which is doubtless largely due his marked fer- tility and genius in handling manufacturing de- tails.
In 1871 he became interested in the manufac- ture of the Marsh harvester, in which he had un- limited confidence for a great future, and in 1873 he removed with his family to Evanston, near Chicago. The confidence Mr. Deering had placed in the true merits of his manufacture was not misplaced ; the demand for harvesters increased so rapidly in the first few years of his management that he decided to remove to a point of greater railroad facilities, and in 1880 he removed his en- tire harvesting machine works to their present location, in Chicago. The twelve years intervening since that removal has amply demonstrated the wisdom of it ; as it has not only placed the archi- tect of its great fortune in the first rank of manu- facters, in the United States, but has afforded steady, uninterrupted employment of thousands of men, and placed its name as a household word throughout the agricultural world.
Mr. Deering's religious views are fitly those of a good Christian, both in theory and practice.
In politics, Mr. Deering is an old-school Repub- lican, ever faithful to the patriotism of that grand old party, and ever unchanging in his belief in its principles, as the basis for hope and security in the rights and privileges of man's personal liber- ty, as proclaimed in the sacred lines of our con- stitution.
Mr. Deering differs widely from many of the leading men of to-day, in that he has never sought nor accepted office, with but one exception, when he was in the council of Governor Perham, of Maine, during that gentleman's incumbency. Mr. Deering is a liberal subscriber to public and pri- vate charities, and to many of Chicago's most thriving public institutions. He is a trustee of the Northwestern University and also interested, as a philanthropist, in several other like institutions ; but is not associated with any secret society, political or social, either as a member or patron.
Mr. Deering has been twice married, his first marriage being to Miss Abby Barbour, of Maine, daughter of Charles and Joanna (Cobb) Barbour, October 31, 1849. From this union there was one child, Charles, born in 1852, and now the secretary of the great firm of Wm. Deering and Company. Mr. Deering's second wife was Miss Clara Ham- ilton of Maine, daughter of Charles and Mary (Barbour) Hamilton. This marriage took place December 15, 1857, from which there were two children, James and Abby Marion, both born in Maine ; the former in 1859 and the latter in 1867- Mr. James Deering being treasurer and general manager of the Deering firm.
Personally Mr. Deering is tall, sparely built, and weighing in the neighborhood of 170 pounds ; he is modest and retiring and rather given to se- clusion during business hours, but out of the office and when not engaged in evolving some new im- provement for the future advancement of his vast business, he is the soul of affability and liberal consideration.
Mr. Deering's interest in his employés and his great qualities of sympathy find fitting place as a factor of success in his business life. Fairly un- derstanding men he is not afraid to trust them, and the confidence thus reposed in his em- ployés inspire them with strong attachments to his person and his fortunes. Their fidelity and devotion to his interests always meet with ample reward.
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Mr. Deering's business career has been singu- larly free from all troubles involved in the relation of capital to labor. The attachments and friend- ships that associate themselves around him, make his life a rich inheritance as thoughts of age steal
in upon his vigorous understanding. The highest relation that man sustains to society and his race, furnish the concluding observation on Mr. Deer- ing's character-a Christian gentleman and a manly man.
EDWARD S. STICKNEY,
CHICAGO, ILL.
E DWARD SWAN STICKNEY was born in the old Stickney homestead in Newburyport, Massachusetts, on October 7, 1824. The Stickney family is of English descent. Its first representa- tive in this country was William Stickney, who immigrated from Hampton, Lincolnshire, England, in 1637 ; and a monument to his memory is erect- ed in the old grave yard at Rowley, Massachusetts. Several generations of the family lived in New- buryport, and there the grandfather and father of our subject were born.
Enoch Stickney, his father, was born on De- cember 20, 1789; he married, November 16, 1823, Sarah Wyer, a daughter of Nathaniel and Sarah (Nevins) Knapp, whose family history dates from early colonial times. He was a merchant in Newburyport, and highly esteemed for his upright and virtuous character. Edward's mother lived in the house in which he was born until her decease in 1891, at the advanced age of ninety-five years.
Mr. Stickney was naturally inclined to study, and in early life evinced that love for literature and the arts that characterized his subsequent ca- reer; but owing to his father's long illness and death, while he was yet a youth, the care of his mother and younger brother and sister devolved upon him, and he was compelled to forego his studies and turn his attention to business. His aptitude and efficiency are best evidenced by the fact that before he attained his majority he held important positions of trust with the Boston, Concord and Montreal Railroad Company and the old Mechanics' Bank of Concord, New Hamp- shire. In 1855 he removed from the last named city to Chicago, which was thenceforward his home until his decease, which occurred on March 20, 1880. For about four years after his arrival in Chicago he was a faithful and trusted employé of Mr. S. Wright, a manufacturer of agricultural im-
plements. During the financial crisis of 1859 and 1860, Mr. Stickney was made manager of the special clearing-house which was established in Chicago, and made necessary by the unstable con- dition of the paper currency then circulating in the west; and such was the skill with which he managed this office, making satisfactory and equit- able daily settlements for the banks of Chicago, when a fluctuating currency made such settlements exceedingly difficult, that he became widely known as an able financier, and was tendered a responsi- ble position in the banking house of Messrs. Drexel & Company, which he accepted and held until 1868. Upon the organization of the Stock Yards National Bank he was elected its cashier; and during the ten years that he filled this office the institution grew, under his careful and skillful management, from a modest beginning to be one of the largest and strongest financial houses of Chicago. He became president of this bank in 1878, and so continued until the time of his de- cease.
In all his business relations Mr. Stickney was careful, cautious and conservative, and uniformly successful. But his success in business never, in any degree, dwarfed the finer sensibilities of his higher, nobler nature; his love for the fine arts, his passionate fondness for music and his tastes for literature and general culture increased more and more as life advanced. His was a well rounded character ; thoroughly a business man, he was yet neither austere nor selfish. He never forgot the struggles of his early life, and always had a word of cheer and a helping hand for worthy young men battling for a start in life. He was a man of marked personality, but withal, modest and unas- suming. His religious instincts were strong and his sense of honor gave color to all his actions. He was a firm friend to those who won . his confi-
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dence, and in all his social relations he was genial, courteous and chivalrous. His was a knightly soul ; he knew not meanness, and in his thought and care for others he lost sight of self. To him business and its emoluments were only means to an end, and he prized riches only as they contributed to making the world better and brighter, and building up noble manhood and womanhood. Upon his first arrival at Chicago he identified him- self with musical and literary culture, then in their infancy in his new home; he was one of the found- ers and promoters of the Philharmonic Society, to which Chicago is largely indebted for her present standing as a musical center. The following tribute to his character and worth is by one of his intimate friends and associates :
" Mr, Stickney had a refined taste and cultivated mind. Early in life he developed an earnest de- sire for the study of the choicest classics in English literature. He had a great avidity for first and rare editions. In his earlier manhood he denied himself many well-earned luxuries for the sake of securing costly copies of the great writers of the Elizabethan period, and other literary treasures and rarities ; and he not only owned these works, but read them with assiduous care and untiring interest and pleasure. His love for the best authors and for the greatest masters of the Eng- lish language, and his companionship with friends of kindred taste, bore fruit in a life of high intel- lectual enjoyment. He was also a collector of fine editions of standard authors, and never wearied in the search for choice additions to his remarkable library. His fondness for music, and for the great productions of the masters was a marked and charming trait of his character; and for the kin- dred arts of the painter, the etcher and the engraver, he had an intelligent and glowing admiration. He collected the best productions of these arts and made his home delightful with the atmosphere of books and pictures and music and all the gentle arts. He was devoted to his home and domestic circle, and his loyalty to his friends was of that chivalric character that won their earnest and enthusiastic admiration."
Another intimate friend writes of him: "He was the center of that group of congenial men who set out together, when they and Chicago were young. They were all men more or less gifted and promising, and were given to thinking and
saying, in after days, that the tone of that little society was good. Looking back now we know that he had himself, unconsciously, contributed to maintaining the gentleness and refinement of the little circle, which now is broken and scattered. But those who remain always speak of him with honor and affection. That which impressed them most, and had the most lasting influence upon those near him, was his singular purity. Other virtues of his are as familiar, to those who knew him well, as are the refined gentleness and genial sweetness of his bearing ; but this, naturally, is known only to those who were his companions when young men. He had a robust, manly nature, with the sensitive modesty of a girl. When he was present, the talk and story were always kept within their proper license. He shrank from an indelicate allusion with visible pain, as from a blow. In this he stood above all the men whom I have ever known. He was truly pure in heart."
The following resolution adopted by the Com- mercial Club of Chicago, at its meeting held at the Palmer House on the day of his decease :
WHEREAS, It has pleased an all-wise Providence to take from our midst and from the various scenes of his earthly use- fulness our esteemed associate, Edward S. Stickney, and
WHEREAS, The high estimation in which he was held by all his associates, and their sorrow at his death, demand a record in the minutes of this Club; therefore,
Resolved, That in the death of Edward S. Stickney the Commercial Club has lost a wise counselor, a genial associate and a warm-hearted friend.
Resolved, That in his death the city has lost an estimable citizen, high-minded, honorable and conservative, intelligent, active and generous in his liberal and cheerful support of its religious, benevolent and literary institutions."
The Chicago Historical Society, on April 21, 1880, at the first meeting after the death of Mr. Stickney, adopted the following :
Resolved, That in the death of the late Edward S. Stickney the Chicago Historical Society has lost a valuable member, the cause of fine arts a fostering patron ; music, a zealous supporter ; literature, a worthy and polished sympathizer ; the city of Chicago a valuable citizen, and Chicago at large an ornament.
Resolved, That this declaration of our estimate of the de- ceased be entered upon our records, and that a copy of it be sent by our secretary to the widow of our late friend, with the expression of the cordial sympathy of our association with her in her bereavement.
Such testimonials, from persons who knew the genuineness of his varied achievements and attain- ments, present a fine portraiture of the man in his
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different phases of character. He was a good man and true, of whom his intimate friends and asso- ciates can speak no ill.
At the time of his decease Mr. Stickney owned a large collection of rare books and engravings and etchings, to which he was making constant additions. Many of these have since been pre- sented to the Chicago Art Institute, in which he was deeply interested. His collection of prints from the hands of Edelinck, Masson and Nantueil was especially fine ; and in these, as in other old rare works of art, he was a recognized connoisseur. His home was a veritable museum of art, with its library filled with the choicest volumes ; its walls hung with rare paintings; its portfolios filled with costly prints, and every nook and corner adorned with fine bronzes, rare pottery, and ex- quisite specimens of the sculptor's chisel.
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