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 20
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be, or by whom represented. The young law- yer never has just cause to complain of the treat- ment he receives ; the poor man's cause is listened to with as close attention as that of the rich cor- poration, and all alike find in him an able jurist -- a just judge. He is firm in all his convictions of duty, and under all circumstances has the cour- age of his convictions, and this gives color to all his acts.
Judge Gresham has always been a great reader, and in matters of history and general literature he has at his command a wide range of valuable in- formation ; in fiction, especially, he delights ; and the best that has come through that source, from the world's best authors, he has made his own. His peculiarity is to appropriate what he reads, and as a result he is not only well informed, but also has his knowledge at ready command.
In stature the Judge is six feet high and some- what slender; he has clean-cut, regular features, with black hair and beard, liberally streaked with gray ; has a dignified, manly bearing ; is pleasing in his address, and courteous and affable in manner, and withal exceedingly modest. He is popular with his friends, and universally esteemed for his noble, manly qualities, and it would be difficult to find any one who would say aught but in his favor.
In 1858 he married Miss Matilda McGrain, a daughter of Mr. Thomas McGrain, an old settler of Harrison county, Indiana, of Scotch-Irish de- scent. They have one son and one daughter.
JOHN STOCKTON MILLER,
CHICAGO, ILL
O NE of the most honored members of the Chicago bar is John S. Miller, present corporation counsel of Chicago. He is a man of refinement, and manifests kindness and courtesy toward all.
He was born in Louisville, St. Lawrence county, New York, May 24, 1847, the son of John and Jane (McLeod) Miller. His father, a lawyer, was a man of sterling worth, who was highly esteemed in his community, and for many years county clerk of St. Lawrence county. Pater- nally Mr. Miller traces his ancestry to an old Massachusetts family, while maternally he is of
Scotch-Irish descent. He received the usual common school and academic education, and then entered the St. Lawrence University at Canton, New York, and was graduated therefrom at the age of twenty-two. He then took a course in the law department of the same University, and was admitted to the bar at Ogdensburg, New York, in 1870. The next three years he filled the profes- sorship of Latin and Greek in his alma mater. Meantime he kept up his study of the law, in the law offices of the late Judge Sawyer, of the Su- preme Court of New York, and Leslie W. Russell, late attorney general, and now (1892) Judge of
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the Supreme Court of New York. With such pre- ceptors, Mr Miller became well grounded in the principles of the law, and desiring to make a name for himself in the world, he resigned his professor- ship in 1874, and removed to Chicago and en- gaged in practice. He practiced alone until 1876, when he formed a partnership with Messrs. George Herbert and John H. S. Quick, the firm name being Herbert, Quick & Miller. This part- nership continued until the death of Mr. Herbert, when the firm became Quick & Miller, which con- tinued until May 1, 1886, when Mr. Miller be- came associated with Senator Henry W. Leman ; about May 1, 1890, Mr. Merritt Starr was ad- mitted to the firm.
While Mr. Miller's practice has been general in its character and yearly increasing, yet he has devoted himself more especially to chancery causes, and he ranks among the ablest chancery lawyers at the Chicago bar.
In religion he is an Episcopalian, and a mem- ber of Grace Church. In politics Mr. Miller is an
earnest Republican, but is not what is termed a politician, and the position he now holds is not on account of any political obligation, but solely on account of merit.
Mr. Miller married in 1887, Miss Annie Gross, daughter of Dr. J. E. Gross, of Chicago. They have two children, John S., Jr., and Janet.
Mr. Miller was appointed corporation counsel of the city of Chicago, May 1, 1891. He is a member of the University Club of Chicago.
His life has been more or less of a struggle, and his achievements have been the result of hard work. He loves his profession and takes delight in unravelling its mysteries, and when not so en- gaged loves to be with his family, in whose pleas- ures he takes the keenest delight. He is a man of genial character, kind and true, and possesses those sterling qualities of the New England race from which he sprang, namely : industry, integ- rity and perseverance. Success has crowned his efforts, and has made his name worthy to be re- corded among the representative men of Chicago.
CYRUS HALL McCORMICK,
CHICAGO, ILL.
T' HE subject of this sketch is the eldest child of Cyrus H. and Nettie (Fowler) McCor- mick. His parents spent the winter of 1859 in Washington, D. C., his father being occupied in securing patents upon his celebrated reaper, and there, on May 16th of that year, our subject was born. He passed successfully through the gram- mar and high schools in Chicago, graduating from the Chicago High School at the head of his class, and then went to Princeton College, from which he was graduated with the class of 1879.
In the autumn of that year he entered the cm- ploy of the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company ; and in order to thoroughly acquaint himself with its affairs, he not only filled vari- ous positions in the office of the company, but also served a time in the several departments of its Works.
Upon the death of his father, which occurred in May, 1884, he was elected to succeed him as president of the McCormick Harvesting Ma-
chine Company, an office which he holds at the present time.
On March 5, 1889, Mr. McCormick was married to Miss Harriet Bradley Hammond, niece of Mrs. E. S. Stickney of Chicago, at the beautiful little Church of St. Mary's-by-the-Sea, at Monterey, California. They have two children, a son and daughter.
Although a young man, Mr. McCormick has been called to numerous positions of trust, in all of which his careful methods have shown him worthy of the confidence reposed. For several years he has been a director of the Merchants' Loan and Trust Company of Chicago. He was elected a member of the Board of Trustees of Princeton University in June, 1889. He is also a member and secretary of the Board of Trustees of the McCormick Theological Seminary of the Presbyterian Church, and first vice-president of the Young Men's Christian Association of Chi- cago.
During the summer of 1889, Mr. McCormick
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spent several weeks in Paris looking after his Company's exhibits at the great exposition, and soon afterward was decorated by the President of the French Republic, "Officer of the Merite Agricole," and as stated by the Courier d'Illi- nois this is one of but a few instances where that decoration has been bestowed upon a citizen of
the United States, it being rarely conferred upon a foreigner.
In all his relations, Mr. McCormick [has shown rare good judgment, and by his fine personal qualities, and his straightforward, manly deport- ment, he both merits and receives universal esteem.
CLIFFORD MITCHELL, M.D.
CHICAGO, ILL.
T HE Nantucket Mitchells have furnished many eminent men and women to the learned professions ; among them not the least noted is the subject of this memoir. Dr. Clifford Mitchell was born January 28, 1854, in Nantucket, Massa- chusetts, and is the descendant and last scion on his father's side of that noted family of Mitchells who came here in the eighteenth century from the Isle of Wight.
The son of Francis M. Mitchell, his paternal grandfather was William Mitchell, one of the overseers of Harvard College, and a scientific man of much repute. His father's sister was Maria Mitchell, so celebrated for her achieve- ments in astronomy. No less richly endowed from the maternal side, his mother's people belonged to the same family as the immortal discoverer and sage, Benjamin Franklin. His mother, whose maiden name was Ellen Mitchell, has a wide reputation as a lecturer on literary topics. She was one of the founders and at one time president of the Fortnightly Club of Chi- cago, and enjoys the distinction of being the first woman ever appointed on the Board of Education in this city. Her brother is Dr. J. S. Mitchell, the eminent Chicago physician, and her father, Mr. Joseph Mitchell, was at one time auditor, and for a long term served as member of the legislature of the State of Massachusetts.
Having pursued a thorough course of study in the Chicago private schools, chiefly under the direction of Mr. E. S. Waters, an educator of very high character, he entered the academic de- partment at Harvard, and graduated with honor in 1875, His medical studies were for a time pur- sued at the Chicago Medical College, and in 1878 he received the degree of M.D. at the Chicago
Homœopathic Medical College. Dr. Mitchell is a member of the Chicago Academy of Homo- pathic Physicians and Surgeons, of the Illinois State Homœopathic Medical Society, and of the National Institute of Homeopathy. He is also a member of the Harvard Club and Twentieth Century Club. His reputation in this city as a practitioner is of the most honorable character, and in certain departments of medical science he has gained a more than national fame. Having made a specialty of the study of diseases of the kidneys, he is the author of several important works upon the subject, notably : " The Stu- dent's Manual of Urinary Analysis," a small book published in 1879, and soon supplanted by the " Practitioner's Guide to Urinary Analysis," now in its second edition. Within the present year (1890) he has published a book of over four hun- dred pages, entitled : "A Clinical Study of Dis- eases of the Kidneys." He also wrote the " Phy- sicians' Chemistry," which has passed through several editions and is much referred to, and in 1888, at the request of the National Dental Asso- ciation, he compiled a treatise on Dental Chemis- try and Metallurgy, which was accepted by the association, and is now the standard text-book on Dental Chemistry in the dental colleges of Amer- ica. Dr. Mitchell's name is well known among medical journals by his frequent and valuable contributions, and to the medical profession as perhaps one of the earliest translators of Pasteur's great papers on "Chicken Cholera " and " Sple- nic Fever."
Doctor Mitchell has traveled much in many lands, and, in addition to a thorough acquaintance with his own country, has sojourned in almost every portion of the Old World, being conversant
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with the French, German and Italian languages, the latter of which he studied under Mr. James Russell Lowell at Harvard. He is an enthusias- tic mountain-climber, and a fine example of the hardiness and vigor gained in that most magnifi- cent of gymnastics.
In 1878, with what seemed a singularly appro- priate and felicitous choice, Dr. Mitchell was united in marriage to Miss Susan Peason Lillie. His wife's father was the Rev. James Lillie, of Scotland, a graduate of Edinburgh University, a profound scholar and very learned man, whose name is familiar as the author of several notable works on theology. Mrs. Mitchell has spent
many years abroad in travel and study. She is an accomplished French scholar, and is remarka- bly well versed in English literature. She has also pursued the study of art-herself an ama- teur of no mean ability. Mrs. Mitchell is a mem- ber of the Protestant Episcopal Church.
To return to Dr. Mitchell, and speaking of him in his social aspect, no higher praise is needed than that he is a gentleman after Bacon's own heart, who, though traveled and acquainted with the world, " doth not change his country manners for those of foreign parts," and though young to be so highly honored, is yet not envied, because " his fortune seemeth due unto him."
WILLIAM T. BAKER,
CHICAGO, ILL.
W ILLIAM TAYLOR BAKER, president of the World's Columbian Exposition and ex-president of the Board of Trade, was born at West Winfield, New York, September 1I, 1841. His parents were William and Matilda (Peabody) Baker. His father was a farmer by occupation. In 1855, at the age of fourteen, William became a clerk in a country store in Groton, New York ; a little later he removed to McLean, New York, and entered the service of Messrs. D. B. Marsh & Co., with whom he remained six years. He had a strong desire to visit the rapidly growing Western States, and in 1861 he made a tour of inspection through the West, which resulted in his locating at Chicago.
His first position there was as book-keeper for Messrs. Hinckley and Handy, commission mer- chants, with whom he became a partner at the end of one year, under the firm name of Hinck- ley, Handy & Co. In the following year the partnership was dissolved, Mr. Baker succeeding to the business, which he continued until 1868, when he formed a copartnership with Messrs. WV. F. Cobb and C. H. Knight, under the firm name of Knight, Baker & Co., which continued until 1872, when Mr. Knight retired, the style of the firm became W. T. Baker & Co. Imme- diately after the fire of 1871 the firm occupied temporary quarters in the Wigwam, on the West side, but afterward removed to No. 86 La Salle
street, where they remained some seven years. They then removed to the Chamber of Com- merce Building, corner Washington and La Salle streets, and in the spring of 1885, on the com- pletion of the new Board of Trade Building, they removed to No. 240 La Salle street. Two years later they changed to more commodious offices at Nos. 427 to 420 Phenix Building, corner Jackson and Clark streets.
Mr. Baker was elected president of the Board of Trade on January 1, 1890, and re-elected in 1891, an honor which abundantly evidences his popularity and ability.
His firm does a large commission business, both in grain and provisions, and he is also a prominent operator on the Board. His speculations are bold, while they are combined with that practical knowledge so necessary to success, and a judg- ment and foresight that seldom err.
Mr. Baker has come to be known as a man of great executive ability, and it was but natural that he should have been chosen president of the local directorate of the World's Columbian Expo- sition. He is a member of the Union League and several other prominent social clubs. Mr. Baker is a man of deep religious convictions and liberal in his views, and cheerfully contributes to all worthy objects of benevolence.
In 1862 he married Miss E. H. Dunston, who died in 1873. Six years later, in 1879, he married
yourharly many Baker.
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Miss Anna F. Morgan, of Troy, New York. He has five children.
Beginning life with a capital consisting only of health, honor, ability and enterprise, he has
worked his way up, step by step, to his high position among Chicago's citizens and represen- tative men, and is a worthy example of the self- made man.
JOHN THORPE,
PEARL RIVER, N. Y.
O NE of the most extensive and most attract- ive departments of the World's Columbian Exposition will be the department of Floricul- ture. It will occupy the greatest area, attract the greatest number of visitors, and will probably contain the greatest variety of exhibits of any department. There will be specimens of our na- tive plants and flowers, gathered in every climate and culled from every soil from Maine to Florida and from New Jersey to California. We shall have, also, the Giant Croton from Cuba, Trec Ferns from Australia, with the bulbs of Holland, the Pansies of England, and the rare and beauti- ful of every country. They will be spread for exhibition not only in the vast building appro- priated to them, but they will surround every building and occupy every island, and even thrust their beautiful forms from the bottom of the artificial lakes, and rest in peace and repose on their surface.
At the head of this department is placed the subject of this sketch, John Thorpe, a man whose professional experience and ability as a florist is acknowledged by all.
Mr. Thorpe was born in Keyhan, Leicester- shire, England, on the 3d of April, 1842. His parents were horticulturists, as their ancestors had been for two centuries. Like the flowers he so much loves, he was born, reared and grew up in a garden. His early education was obtained in the village school, and when old enough he was ap- prenticed to his uncle, a well-known horticulturist. In this way he received a practical training from an early age in all the details of gardening; and gave early proof of his ability as a horticulturist, which has since made him one of the foremost men of his profession. After many years of study and practice in his native country, Mr. Thorpe, desiring a wider field for his labors, came to this country in 1874. Since that time he has
earned for himself, in this country, the reputa-' tion of being a man of energy, ability and suc- cess. He is progressive in his methods, earnest in his undertakings, and holds the foremost posi- tion amongst the men of his profession. He is the founder of the Society of American Florists, and was elected its first and second president, eight years ago in this city. To him is due the great advance made by this society and the im- petus which it has given to improved methods and progressive ideas. Mr. Thorpe is also presi- dent of the American Chrysanthemum Society.
The World's Fair Directors, recognizing his ability and experience, have selected him for the important position of Chief of the Bureau of Floriculture. Mr. Thorpe has accepted the offer, and has temporarily left his home at Pearl River, New York, and will remain here until the close of the Exposition in 1893. In his hands this depart- ment will be shown to the best advantage, and the exhibits will be made a revelation of the pro- gress of the present and possibilities of the future.
The arrangement and classification of millions of rare and beautiful plants, spread over hundreds of acres of ground, in a climate well adapted, is a labor to which Chief Thorpe brings a refined taste, practical experience, and scientific knowl- edge; and we have no doubt that he will make this division of the Exposition one of its most beautiful and most successful . features. The Chief has already commenced active work, and the selection and arrangement of specimens for his department is daily receiving his personal attention ; and many new features will be intro- duced if the time and the means at his disposal permit. Soon after his appointment as chief of the department, Mr. Thorpe invited some of the best florists of this country to meet him here to devise the best means of making the exhibits in this department extensive, representative, com-
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plete and successful. The result was most satis- factory to all. While the visitors were here the Chicago Florist Club tendered Chief Thorpe a banquet at Kinsley's, to which the visitors and a large number of guests were invited. This was a very high compliment paid to the chief, but was also the means of increasing the interest of many in the floral exhibits.
Chief Thorpe is a man of fine physical devel- opment, in the prime of life, and is the picture of robust health. Strong, active and rugged, he
looks like one that can attack his work early in the morning and not be afraid of it if it occupies him until late at night.
He was married on Christmas day, 1863, to Miss Clara Soars, the daughter of a well-to-do farmer of Leicester county. They have a family of six children, two boys and four girls. Chief Thorpe is a domestic man, and in the bosom of his family he finds his greatest happiness, and to afford them every comfort and pleasure is his constant endeavor.
BENJAMIN F. AYER,
CHICAGO, ILL.
B' ENJAMIN FRANKLIN AYER, a native of Kingston, Rockingham county, New Hampshire, was born April 22, 1825, to Robert and Louisa (Sanborn) Ayer. He is of the eighth generation of the New England family, whose father, John Ayer, emigrated from Norfolk county, England, in 1637, and in 1645 settled at Haverhill, Massachusetts. Here Benjamin's father was born August 14, 1791. His mother was a daughter of Benjamin Sanborn, of Kings- ton, New Hampshire, a descendant of John Sanborn, grandson of Rev. Stephen Batchelder, who emigrated from Derbyshire, England, in 1632, and on the settlement of Hampton, New Hampshire, in 1638, became the first minister of the church in that town. Lewis Cass and Daniel Webster were among his descendants.
After closing his preliminary studies, young Ayer prepared for college at the Albany Acad- emy; he then entered Dartmouth College, from which he was graduated with the class of 1846. He spent part of the next three years in the law department of Harvard University, was admitted to the bar in 1849, and at once began the prac- tice of his profession at Manchester, New Hamp- shire. He was a close student, and had an analytical mind. More than all, he possessed a genius for hard work, and soon came to be known as a conscientious, painstaking and successful lawyer. His fellow-citizens appreciated his abili- ties, and in 1853 elected him to the legislature of the State; and the following year he was ap- pointed prosecuting attorney for Hillsborough
county, New Hampshire, and held that office until he removed to Chicago, in 1857. On the 15th of May in that year, he was admitted to practice in Illinois. His ability was soon recog- nized, and within a few months he held a leading position at the Chicago bar. From 1861 to 1865 he was corporation counsel of Chicago, and was the author of the revised city charter of 1863.
Soon after his term of office closed he became a member of the firm of Beckwith, Ayer and Kales, which continued until 1873, when Mr. Beckwith withdrew and the firm name changed to Ayer and Kales. While engaged in the gen- eral practice of his profession, Mr. Ayer gave his attention largely to the law of corporations, and in that branch of jurisprudence has few equals. His success in the management of corporate matters, involving the law governing railroads, brought him into special prominence; and al- though he had a large and constantly growing practice, he was induced, in 1876, to give it up and become general solicitor for the Illinois Cen- tral Railroad Company, of which he was made a director, one year later.
Since January 1, 1890, he has been general counsel of this company. The following tribute from a brother attorney, who knows him inti- mately, is as true as it is beautiful :
" Benjamin F. Ayer has stood in the first rank of lawyers in Chicago for'more than thirty years. Nothing has been allowed to divert him from his profession ; he never relies on others to do his work : every question is investigated until the
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subject is exhausted. While not controlled by precedents, he personally examines every case where the subject has been involved, in order to extract the principles applicable to the matter in hand. The most remarkable quality is the ability to make a connected and logical statement to the court. This is done in language that cannot be misunderstood ; and when presented orally, it is with a clear voice and appropriate emphasis, giv- ing the greatest pleasure to the listener. The manner is one of honesty and candor, which leaves no room to doubt as to his own convictions. He has always had the credit of sincerity with the court, stating facts in a conservative way and sup- pressing nothing, regardless of the effect upon his case. He has always endeavored to aid the court in arriving at correct conclusions, both as to fact and law, believing that the highest duty of a lawyer is to see that justice is done. In short, he commands the confidence and respect of judges and lawyers, and as a citizen is without reproach."
He is clear, logical and concise as a speaker, and, without any attempt at oratorical display, his addresses seldom fail to carry conviction. His sincerity and conservativeness enter into everything that he does; and these, combined with his wide range of legal learning and ready use of pure English, make him a power before either court or jury.
Mr. Ayer is, withal, a man of rare modesty ; and, while inclined to reticence, is a most enter-
taining and agreeable companion. His years of varied experience, his knowledge of general lit- erature, his observation of men and events, and his constant endeavor to keep himself in touch with the trend of current thought, combined with his courteous manner and gentlemanly bearing, win for him universal respect, and make him especially popular in his wide circle of friends.
He is a prominent member of the American Bar Association, and has been president of the Chicago Bar Association.
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