USA > Indiana > Allen County > Fort Wayne > The pictorial history of Fort Wayne, Indiana : a review of two centuries of occupation of the region about the head of the Maumee River, Vol. II > Part 6
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dations proved inadequate, with the result that in 1915 the company erected its present modern building of five stories, at the corner of Cal- houn and Lewis streets, the same affording the aggregate floor space of seventeen thousand square feet. The high grade of the products of this manufactory constitutes its best commercial asset, and the annual out- put of cigars is now in excess of four million, while the trade is eon- stantly being expanded into a broader field. Conrad (Coony) Bayer was born in the Kingdom of Wurtemberg, Germany, on the 27th of November, 1871, and thus he was a lad of about ten years when, in 1881, he accompanied his parents, Michael and Dorothea (Stuber) Bayer, on their immigration to America, the family home having soon afterward been established in Fort Wayne, where he was reared to adult age and where he continued to attend the Lutheran parochial schools until he was eligible for entrance in a local business college, in which he com- pleted an effective course. In the establishment of Dessauer & Company he learned the trade of cigarmaker, and later he was in the employ of W. H. Ortman, engaged in the same line of business. In 1891 he severed this alliance to establish his independent enterprise as a manufacturer of cigars, and from a small beginning he has evolved one of the large and prosperous manufacturing and commercial industries of the metrop- olis of Allen county, besides having shown his progressiveness and self- reliant energy in connection with other lines of enterprise. He is president of the Bayer Realty Company, and is a member of the directorate of the German-American Bank of Fort Wayne. In politics Mr. Bayer accords staunch allegiance to the Democratic party, he is a valued member of each the Fort Wayne Commercial Club, Rotary Club and Retail Merchants' Association, and is affiliated with the Masonic fraternity, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, the Knights of Pythias, the Order of Buffaloes, and the Turnverein. On September 30, 1901, Mr. Bayer wedded Miss Anna Hofer, daughter of Andreas and Christine Hofer, of Fort Wayne, and the two children of this union are Ralph Conrad, who was born July 12, 1904, and Dorothy Christine, born November 21, 1916.
Mrs. Mary J. Beardsley-It is specially gratifying to present in this history a brief review of the life record of this venerable and revered native daughter of Allen county, who is a representative of one of the best known and most honored pioneer families of the county, her par- ents having here established their home more than four seore years ago. Mrs. Beardsley celebrated in November, 1916, the eighty-third anniversary of her birth, and as she has lived in Allen county all her life it may well be understood that her memory forms an indissoluble link between the pioneer past and the twentieth century of opulent prosperity and progress in this section of the Hoosier state. Mrs. Mary Jane (Wood) Beardsley has the distinction of having been the first white child born in Perry township, this county, and the time of her nativity was November, 1833. She is a daughter of Albert and Nancy (Dunton) Wood, both of whom were born and reared in Jefferson county, New York, where their marriage was solemnized and whence they soon afterward, in 1833, came to Indiana and numbercd themselves among the very first settlers in the wilds of what is now Perry township, Allen county, where the father set to himself the herculean task of reelaiming a farm from the forest. Of the twelve children Mrs. Beardsley was the first-born, and in the year that marked the establishing of the new home in Allen county she here gained the prestige of being the first white child born in Perry town-
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ship, as previously noted. Of the other eleven ehildren, all likewise natives of this county, one died in infancy, and the names of the others are here indicated in their respective order of birth: John Wesley, Richard Freeman, Amos Mason, Oscar B., Julia, Etta, Lucy, Commodore, William and Charles. Besides Mrs. Beardsley only four others of the children are living at the opening of the year 1917-Richard F., who is now a resident of the state of Kansas, where he has been for many years a prosperous farmer ; Oscar B., who resides at Monroe, Grant county, In- diana; Lucy, who is the wife of Henry MeCarthy, of Columbia City, Whitley county, Indiana; and William, who owns and resides upon his father's old homestead farm in Perry township, one mile west of Hunter- town. William Wood is one of the extensive landholders of Allen county and is one of the substantial and representative citizens of his native township. He has five sons, two of whom are successful teachers in the publie schools. Albert Wood, father of the gracious pioneer woman to whom this sketeh is dedicated, reelaimed much of his land to cultivation and was influential in community affairs during the entire period of his residence in Allen county. IIe died on his old homestead when he was sixty years of age, and his wife attained to the remarkable age of ninety years. He left to his widow and children the old homestead of one hundred and ten aeres, and a part of the tract which he originally ob- tained from the government is now owned by Henry N. Williams, of Fort Wayne. Mary Jane Wood was reared under the conditions and influ- enees of the pioneer days and acquired her early education in the old- time log schoolhouse, the while she gave active assistance in the domes- tie activities of the modest but happy pioneer home. In 1849, at Hunter- town, was solemnized her marriage to James Oliver Beardsley, and lie was fifty-six years of age at the time of his death, in 1878. During all of the long years from the time of her marriage to the present Mrs. Beardsley has lived continuously at Huntertown, save for a period of one year which she passed at Auburn, Dekalb county. Under the administra- tion of President Grant her husband served two terms as postmaster at Huntertown, and for a time he held the position of deputy postmaster, besides having given effective service also as justice of the peace. Mr. Beardsley was a citizen of sterling chiaraeter and marked ability, and he ever commanded the unqualified confidence and esteem of his fellow men. His politieal allegiance was given to the Republican party, he was a Master Mason, and was an earnest member of the Universalist church, as is also his widow, who owns and resides in one of the attractive homes of Huntertown and who is surrounded by a host of loyal and appreciative friends who accord to her the most sincere affeetion. Physical disability prevented Mr. Beardsley from serving as a soldier during the Civil war, but he supported the Union cause to the fullest extent of his ability, be- sides having paid for a substitute for one of his friends who had been called to the Union service but whose circumstanees were such as to make it almost impossible for him to leave home. Mr. and Mrs. Beardsley be- came the parents of no children, but, lacking filial solicitude on this ae- eount, Mrs. Beardsley feels a gracious compensation in the devoted love of her many friends.
Montgomery G. Beaver, one of the essentially progressive and repre- sentative business men of his native city of Fort Wayne, is virtually the successor to the substantial lumber business that was here founded by his honored father more than half a century ago, the history of the enter- prise having been consecutive and having continued at all times in the
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control of the Beaver family, so that the extensive and important business now conducted by Montgomery G. Beaver, in the retail lumber trade and the operation of a most modern planing mill, may consistently be noted as one of the pioneer industrial and commercial enterprises of the metropo- lis and judicial center of Allen county. Mr. Beaver was born in Fort Wayne April 10, 1867, and is a son of Augustus and Mary Emily (Parks) Beaver, both of whom are now deceased, the father having been born in Pennsylvania and the mother in Indiana, in which latter commonwealth their marriage was solemnized. Of their two children the subject of this review is the younger, and his sister, Florence, is the wife of Watson Nicholson, of Ann Arbor, Michigan. Augustus Beaver established him- self in the wholesale lumber business at Fort Wayne more than fifty years ago, and as a man of energy, uprightness and sagacity, he developed a most prosperous business, his status as one of the prominent business men and influential citizens of Fort Wayne having been maintained until his death, which occurred when he was about 80 years of age. He con- tributed materially to the civic and commercial prosperity of the city and county and his name merits an enduring place in the history of Fort Wayne. Montgomery G. Beaver made good use of the advantages afforded in the public schools of Fort Wayne and as a youth became closely associated with his father's lumber business. By personal inclina- tion and ambition, as well as through paternal direction and encourage- ment, he thoroughly informed himself in all details of the business, and he is a recognized authority in lumber and building material values, as well as in the technical details of manufacturing in this line. At the age of 21 years he was admitted to partnership in his father's business, and after the death of his mother he purchased the entire business, which he has since conducted in an individual and distinctively successful way, the enterprise being now of retail rather than wholesale order and a well equipped planing mill having been operated as an important adjunct of the enterprise. In the spring of 1917 Mr. Beaver completed the erection and equipment of a new planing mill of the best modern standard, the building being of brick and steel construction and thoroughly fire-proof. The plant has its own electrical equipment throughout, the machinery and accessories are of the latest improved order, and the mill has ample capacity for turning ont the best work in an expeditions way. The office headquarters of the mill and lumber yards are at 2047 Broadway. In this connection Mr. Beaver gives employment to an average force of from fifteen to twenty men, including a number of skilled operatives in the mill. He is not only an alert, vigorous and progressive business man but also a loyal and public-spirited citizen, with secure place in the confidence and good will of the urban community that has ever represented his home. His political allegiance is given to the Republican party, he is a valued member of the Fort Wayne Commercial Club, in the Masonic fraternity he has received the thirty-second degree of the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite, besides being affiliated with the Ancient Arabic Order, Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, and both he and his wife are members of Plymouth Congre- gational church. January 10, 1893, recorded the marriage of Mr. Beaver to Miss Edith R. Cutshall, who likewise was born and reared in Fort Wayne, and whose father, William H. Cutshall, is now a retired farmer of this county, his wife being deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Beaver have one son, Melvin Montgomery, who is associated with his father's lumber business. He was graduated in the University of Michigan, at Ann Arbor,
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as a member of the class of 1916, and in that institution completed both literary and business courses.
Sylvanus B. Bechtel .- The application of ability and energy to his service with S. F. Bowser & Company has brought to Mr. Bechtel consecu- tive and noteworthy advancement with this important Fort Wayne con- cern, and he now holds the exacting and responsible office of general manager, with secure status as one of the representative business men of the younger generation in Allen county's metropolis and judicial center. Mr. Bechtel was born in Barry county, Michigan, June 17, 1878, and the place of his nativity was the fine old homestead farm of his parents, Joseph K. and Mary (Benjamin) Bechtel, the former of whom was born in the province of Ontario, Canada, and the latter in the state of Pennsylvania. The father long held prestige as one of the substantial farmers and honored citizens of southern Michigan, where he continued his identification with the basic industries of agriculture and stock- growing until the time of his death, his widow now being a resident of Toledo, Ohio. Of the children the eldest is William H., who resides at Caro, Tuscola county, Michigan; Barbara is the wife of Guy E. Pierson, of Wayland, Allegan county, that state; Clarence W. died when about 37 years of age; the subject of this review was the next in order of birth ; and Roy W. is now a resident of the city of Toledo, Ohio. Sylvanus B. Bechtel continued his studies in the public schools of Michigan until he had completed the prescribed curriculum of the high school at Way- land, in which he was graduated as a member of the class of 1894. There- after he proved the solidity and efficacy of his academic discipline by three years of successful service as a teacher in the schools of his native state and after his retirement from the pedagogic profession he went to the city of Grand Rapids, Michigan, where he held a position in the business department of the Daily Democrat until 1899, when he came to Indiana and established his home in Fort Wayne. He arrived in this city in July of that year and entered the employ of S. F. Bowser & Company, his original post in the office of this representative manufacturing concern having been that of correspondent. He was soon given charge of the collection department, and of this position he continued the incumbent until June 1, 1901, when he was promoted to the post of superintendent of salesmen. One year later he was advanced to the management of the mail-order and advertising department; on January 1, 1906, he became assistant general manager ; and on the 1st of March, 1914, there came the ultimate in the recognition of his ability and efficient service, when he was appointed to his present important office, that of general manager. The record made by Mr. Bechtel during the period of his association with this company bears its own significance and denotes the fiber and pro- gressiveness of the man himself. In politics Mr. Bechtel is arrayed with the progressive wing of the Republican party; he and his wife hold membership in the South Fort Wayne Baptist church ; he is affiliated with York and Scottish Rite bodies of the Masonic fraternity, as well as the adjunct organization, the Ancient Arabic Order, Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, and he is a popular member of the Fort Wayne Commercial Club, the Quest Club, the Fort Wayne Country Club, and the University Club of Fort Wayne. On the 27th of June, 1900, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Bechtel to Miss Marie M. Russell, who was born in Fort Wayne and who is a daughter of William J. and Mary (Brew) Russell, her parents being now residents of Grand Rapids, Michigan, where her father
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holds the position of master carpenter for the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad. Mr. and Mrs. Bechtel have two children-Kenneth B. and Mary Catherine.
Henry W. Becker has proved a loyal and influential figure in connec- tion with business and civic affairs in his native city of Fort Wayne, where he is now giving characteristically efficient service as a member of the municipal board of public works, an office of which he has been the incumbent continuously since 1905 and in which he has done much to further the efficient and important work of this department of the munici- pal government. Mr. Becker was born in Fort Wayne February 21, 1859, and is a son of Frederick and Margaret (Jennewein) Becker, both natives of Swaarbruken, Prussia, Germany, where they were reared and educated and where their marriage was solemnized. The parents of the subject of this review came to America in 1848, a year specially marked by large immigration from Germany to the United States, and the father became one of the successful exponents of the blacksmith trade and business in Fort Wayne, where he commanded unqualified popular esteem and was a substantial citizen at the time of his death, in 1882, at the age of sixty- three years, his widow having survived him by several years and both having been earnest communicants of the Lutheran church, his political convictions having been shown forth in the loyal support which he gave to the cause of the Democratic party. Of the children the eldest is Frederick, Jr., who still resides in Fort Wayne, as do also Minnie, Charles and Mary, Henry W., of this review, being the youngest of the number. Henry W. Becker acquired his early education in the parochial school of the Lutheran church on Barr street, and as a youth he served a thorough apprenticeship to the stonecutter's trade, which, as a skilled artisan, he followed for the long period of twenty years, within which he was concerned in much important contract work in his native city. His induction into public service came when he was chosen deputy assessor of Wayne township, and his effective service in this capacity made him a normal candidate when, in 1900, he was elected township assessor, on the Democratic ticket. Of this office he continued the incumbent four years, and then, in April, 1905, he was appointed a member of the board of public works of Fort Wayne, under the administration of Mayor Henry C. Berghoff. He has received reappointment under each successive mayor and is one of the valued factors in connection with the administration of public affairs in his native city, to which his loyalty is of the most insistent type. As may be inferred from a foregoing statement, he is found arrayed as a staunch advocate of the principles of the Democratic party. On the 3d of September, 1883, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Becker to Miss Lavina Englert, a daughter of the late Frank Englert, of Fort Wayne, and of the children of this union Magdalin and Margaret still remain at the parental home; Florence is the wife of Paul Lauer, of Fort Wayne; and Henry Roy and Frederick are still members of the parental circle.
William Becker .- The German contingent in Allen county, Indiana, has from the early days been one of prominence and influence in the furtherance of social and industrial advancement and prosperity. He whose name initiates this paragraph was born in the province of Hanover, Germany, October 25, 1860, and was a vigorous and ambitious young man of twenty-three years when he came to America and established his home in Allen county. His parents, Henry and Sophia (Tye) Becker, passed
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their entire lives in the German fatherland, and of their seven children the subject of this review was the sixth in order of birth; Henry died in Germany; Jacob still resides in his native province; Ferdinand died in Germany; August is a retired grocer residing in Fort Wayne and now gives his attention to the handling of bonds and other high grade secur- ities, he and the subject of this sketch being the only representatives of the immediate family circle in the United States; Minnie and Sophia, the only daughters, both died in their native land. After duly profiting by the advantages offered in the excellent common schools of his home province William Becker there attended the Lutheran parochial schools for four years, after which he completed an effective course in a business college at Petershagen. The promptings of youthful ambitions led him to sever the home ties when he was a young man of twenty-three years, and his success during the intervening period has fully justified his course in immigrating to America and establishing the stage of his activities in Allen county. Here he has become one of the specially energetic and pro- gressive farmers of Adams township, though his original field of activity was in Wayne township, where he lived during the early period of his residence in the county. When Mr. Becker purchased the present model farm of one hundred and thirty acres the place was equipped with eleven primitive log buildings and in general had little suggestion of the thrift and prosperity now in evidence. The old buildings have been replaced by modern structures of the best type, including the attractive and com- modious farm residence, which is equipped with modern improvements, including a hot-water heating system, and Mr. Becker has further im- proved the place by constructing good fences, by clearing away much underbrush and by bringing his land up to the best stage of productive- ness. He is essentially one of the vigorous, progressive and successful representatives of the basic industries of agriculture and stock-growing in Allen county, and in all of the relations of life he has so borne himself as to command the confidence and good will of his fellow men. He is a staunch and valiant supporter and advocate of the cause of the Republican party and has been one of its influential representatives in Adams town- ship, where he served one term as township supervisor. He and his wife are active communicants of the German Lutheran church in the village of New Haven, which is about 11/2 miles distant from their fine rural home. November 3, 1887, recorded the marriage of Mr. Becker to Miss Sophia Fuelling, who was born and reared in Adams county, Indiana, a daughter of Frederick and Lizetta (Mayland) Fuelling, both of whom were born in Germany, both having been young folk when they became residents of Fort Wayne, Indiana, where their marriage was solemnized and whence they removed to Adams county, where the father passed the remainder of his life as a prosperous farmer, the widowed mother having later returned to Fort Wayne, where she died at a venerable age. Of the children of this honored couple the eldest was Louise, who became the wife of Frederick Kukelhan, both having been killed in a railroad accident at Maples, Allen county, November 9, 1907; Frederick is a resident of Root township, Adams county ; William and Charles died in infancy ; Mrs. Becker was the next in order of birth; William remains on the old home- stead farm in Adams county; Otto died in infancy; Elizabeth is the wife of Gottlieb Berger, who is engaged in the dry goods business in Fort Wayne, with a well appointed establishment on Calhoun street; Ernest maintains his home in Root township, Adams county ; and Minnie died in
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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES
infancy. Mr. and Mrs. Becker have but one child, Arthur, who is asso- ciated with his father in the work and management of the home farm; he wedded Miss Edith Behrman, and their two children are Naomi and Wilma.
Fred C. Beckman is a son of Edward Beckman and the grandson of Henry Beckman, who settled in Washington township as early as 1832, spent his life there and there reared his family. Among his chil- dren was Edward, who married Eliza Gerding, and they became the parents of ten children-Edward, Louis, Louise, Sophia, Justine, Eliza, Fred C., Herman, Julia and Charlotte. The two named last are deceased, each dying at the age of six years. In 1892 Edward Beckman was elected treasurer of Allen county, was re-elected in 1894 and served in that capacity until January 1, 1897. Fred C. Beckman was born on August 9, 1881, reared in Washington township and educated in its schools. He began farm life on the home place, continuing to make that his home until 1906, when he took up his residence in St. Joseph township. He is living now in that community and is the owner of one hundred and forty acres in Section 6. He has made practically all the improvements himself and the place is in a much better state of productiveness than when it came into his hands. The buildings have been remodeled under his supervision, fences have been erected and tiling has been put in, so that the farm is today one of the fine places of the township. General farming and stock-raising are carried on suc- cessfully. Mr. Beckman was married on May 24, 1906; to Miss Amelia Henschen, daughter of Frederick and Amelia (Rehorst) Henschen, farm- ing people of Washington township, where they are still resident. Four children have been born to the Beckman house-Lucile, Herbert, Ruth and Morris. The family are members of St. Paul's Lutheran church at Fort Wayne.
Herman Beckman has been the exponent of progressive methods in his operations as a farmer in Washington township, and his home is one of the finest examples of modern building that is to be found in the township today, if not, indeed, the finest. His farm is up-to-date in every detail and reflects much credit upon its owner. Mr. Beckman is one of the younger farmers of the community. He was born on Jan- uary 11, 1884, in Washington township, son of Edward and Eliza (Ger- ding) Beckman, concerning whom extended mention will be found on other pages of this work. Herman Beckman attended the common schools of his native village as a boy and applied himself to farming on the home place, where he is still in charge. He now is the owner of one hundred and seventy acres in Washington township, on which he has carried on progressive and profitable farming that has placed him in the front ranks of the successful men of the village. He has
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