A History of Northern Michigan and Its People, Volume I, Part 18

Author: Perry F. Powers
Publication date: 1912
Publisher: Lewis Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 597


USA > Michigan > A History of Northern Michigan and Its People, Volume I > Part 18


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 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57


CIRCUIT COURT OPENED IN CHARLEVOIX COUNTY


The first session of circuit court in and for Charlevoix county was held in the hall over Fox & Rose's store, in August, 1869, Hon. J. G. Ramsdell presiding. The record shows that court opened on the 24th of August, but no judge being present it adjourned to the following day, when Judge Ramsdell having arrived the business before the court was dispatched. The first case on the docket was "The People vs. Walker McCool," on information for maliciously burning wood. The cause was continued to the next term of court. The appointment of Archibald Buttars as county clerk was approved, and the Antrim county jail was designated as the common jail for the county.


THE FIRST LAWYER


Edward H. Green, the pioneer lawyer of Charlevoix county, who located at Charlevoix in 1868, was born at Reamstown, Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, Oct. 31, 1834. His early education was ob- tained at the district school and at the normal school at Millersville. At the breaking out of the Civil war he was one of the first to respond to the call of President Lincoln for troops to defend the nation. On April 19, 1861, he enlisted at Maytown, Pennsylvania, in the three months' service. Afterward he enlisted in Company E, One Hundred and Seventh Pennsylvania Infantry; made a brilliant war record and endured all the suffering and hardships possible to pass through and live. He was first promoted to lieutenant, then to captain, and at the


Hosted by Google


131


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


close of the war was breveted major in recognition of gallant services. At the battle of Bull Run he received gun-shot wounds through the foot and thigh and was obliged to lie upon the ground for several days before his injuries could receive attention. He was taken prisoner but turned over to a hospital for treatment, and as soon as he was able to get about he returned to service, although entitled to discharge for disability. He was then made lieutenant and shortly afterward cap- tain. At the battle of Spottsylvania, in 1864, he was taken prisoner and for ten months endured the suffering of Libby, Macon and other southern prisons. In July, 1865, after the close of the war, he was mustered out of service, a physical wreck, as many another who sur- vived that terrible conflict. In the winter of 1865-6 he taught school, and then entered the University of Michigan, from which he gradu- ated in March, 1868, and immediately thereafter was admitted to prac- tice law in the supreme court of Detroit.


Mr. Green then started in pursuit of location, and, acting upon the suggestion of Judge Ramsdell, of Traverse City, located in Charlevoix, then a part of Emmet county. He was the first lawyer to locate be- tween Traverse City and the Straits, and the field at that time was not calculated to fascinate a young attorney who had both fortune and fame to acquire. Just about that time the county seat of Emmet county had been located at that point, and the immense forests of tim- ber surrounding Pine Lake led Mr. Green to reason that this must sometime become a business point.


At the August term of court Mr. Green was appointed prosecuting attorney for Emmet county, and upon the organization of Charlevoix county, in 1869, was elected its first prosecuting attorney. He was also the first circuit court commissioner and also held the offices of county treasurer, supervisor, and deputy collector of customs, besides having been twice elected on the Republican ticket to the state legislature. His early experience was diversified. He cleared the lot for his dwell- ing and built it himself. It was while working upon this house that he received his first retainer, which was twenty dollars from Dennis T. Downing to defend him in the county clerk embezzlement case. He was editor of the Charlevoix Sentinel, from its first issue in April, 1869, to February 11, 1871. During the winter of 1868-9 he taught the village school. It will thus be seen that Major Green's pioneer experiences covered a wide range, but it will be observed that they were all in line with the theory that working for success is surer than idly waiting for it. In addition to his practice as a lawyer Major Green held the offices of treasurer of the county and deputy collector of cus- toms.


TWENTY-EIGHTH CIRCUIT AND WEXFORD COUNTY


When Wexford and Benzie counties assumed civil organization in 1869 they were attached to the Thirteenth judicial circuit, the unor- ganized county of Missaukee being attached to Wexford. In 1873 Wexford county was made a part of the Nineteenth, and in 1881 of the Twenty-eighth. The latter circuit then composed Wexford, Mis-


Hosted by Google


132


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


saukee, Kalkaska, Benzie and Roscommon-the only change in the cir- cuit since its establishment in 1881, being the excision of Roscommon which is now included in the Thirty-fourth circuit. Early judges of the Twenty-eighth have been Hons. J. G. Ramsdell, Shubal F. White, H. H. Wheeler, A. V. McAlvay (now associate justice of the state su- preme court), S. D. Haight, J. B. Judkins and Silas S. Fallass.


Judge Fallass, one of the old and respected lawyers of Cadillac, came to that city in 1872, soon after his graduation from the law school of the state university and his admission to the bar. In the fall of the same year he was elected prosecuting attorney, which office he held for two years. He was a member of the board of supervisors for five years and was a leading actor in many of the stormy events of the famous Wexford county seat war. In April, 1882, he relinquished a lucrative law practice to accept the position of circuit judge by ap- pointment from Governor Jerome. He was unanimously nominated for election as his own successor by the bar convention of the circuit and was elected in the following November. Judge Fallass took a prominent part in all the local affairs of Wexford county, and in 1885 was a strong opponent of General B. M. Cutcheon in the congressional race in the Forty-ninth district.


The first judge of the new Twenty-eighth judicial circuit, created by the legislature in January, 1881, was Hon. John M. Rice, who re- signed from the bench in April, 1882, and was succeeded by Judge Fallass. The other residents of Wexford county who have presided over the Twenty-eighth circuit have been Hons. Fred H. Aldrich, Clyde C. Chittenden and Fred S. Lamb.


The first lawyers in Wexford county were T. A. Ferguson, who was appointed prosecuting attorney soon after the county was organized in 1869, and E. W. Stewart, both of whom located at Sherman. The next lawyers were Silas S. Fallass and D. A. Rice, who located at Clam lake, now Cadillac, in 1872. W. H. Cavenaugh, R. L. Rice, E. F. Saw- yer and D. E. McIntyre came soon after. The members of the bar in 1884 were: E. F. Sawyer, J. R. Bishop, W. C. Haire, J. B. Rosevelt, S. J. Wall, E. Eugene Haskins, D. A. Rice, W. H. Parks, H. M. Dun- ham, D. E. McIntyre, M. L. Dunham, Clyde C. Chittenden.


While the county seat remained at Sherman, that place always had one resident lawyer, generally two and sometimes three. Since it was removed to Cadillac the village has been without an attorney at law most of the time. As facetiously remarked by one of its citizens: "An old saying that 'blessed be nothing' can well be quoted by Sherman just now, as it has no lawyer."


Among the leading members of the bar now residing at Cadillac are Judge Fred S. Lamb, of the Twenty-eighth circuit; Fred C. Wet- more, ex-probate judge and now district attorney for the Western dis- trict of Michigan; Eugene E. Haskins, D. E. McIntyre and E. F. Saw- yer.


Hon. Clyde C. Chittenden, for ten years judge of the Twenty-eighth circuit, first came to Cadillac in 1883, and prior to ascending the bench had served as circuit court commissioner, prosecuting attorney and state senator. He was both a professional and a public leader. He


Hosted by Google


133


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


was first elected circuit judge in 1900 and resigned from the bench in the fall of 1910, moving at that time to Seattle, Washington, where he is still successful in the practice of his profession.


KALKASKA BENCH AND BAR


In 1840, when the northern part of the southern peninsula of Michi- gan was divided into unorganized counties the present territory of Kalkaska was laid off and named Wabassee. In 1843 it assumed the name by which it is now known, and the county was successively at- tached to Grand Traverse and Antrim counties for judicial purposes. Kalkaska remained attached to the latter until its own civil organiza- tion was completed in 1871, it being included in the Thirteenth judi- cial circuit.


Burton S. Howe was the first lawyer to locate in Kalkaska county for the purpose of practicing law. A. T. Kellogg had been admitted to the bar and held the office of prosecuting attorney of the county, but did not make the practice of law a pursuit. Mr. Howe was born at Centerville, St. Joseph county, Michigan, in 1838. In September, 1861, he enlisted in the Fourth Michigan Battery. At Pittsburgh landing he received severe internal injuries, and a gun-shot wound in his left hand. At the end of eighteen months he was discharged for disability and returned home. He engaged in the hardware business but, suffering from injuries received in the war, was led to take up the study of law. He was admitted to the bar in 1868, and practiced in St. Joseph county until the winter of 1874, when he removed to the village of Kalkaska and was the only attorney in the county for about two years. He held the office of prosecuting attorney one term.


Arthur A. Bleazby was the second lawyer to locate in Kalkaska county. He is a native of Ireland and emigrated to Canada with his parents at the age of six years. He attended school there and subse- quently entered college. Before completing the course he came to the States, and in 1861 enlisted at Lockport, New York, and went into serv- ices with Colonel Ellsworth. He remained in the service about two years, and soon after his return north went to Kalamazoo, Michigan, and entered Kalamazoo College. After graduating from that institu- tion he studied law in the office of Severance & Burroughs, and was admitted to the bar in 1873. Having business interests at Niles re- quiring his attention, he went there and remained until March, 1876, when he removed to the village of Kalkaska, and engaged in the prac- tice of law. He held the office of prosecuting attorney one term and was extensively connected with the business interests of the village.


Iosco COUNTY


It was a matter of "journal" record that the first term of the cir- cuit court for Iosco county was commenced at the courthouse in Tawas City, on Tuesday, the 17th day of May, 1859. The circuit judge failed to arrive and no business was transacted until August 9th following. Court was held in the room over the Whittemore store, Judge W. F.


Hosted by Google


134


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Woodsworth presiding. The first case tried was that of Amos Miner vs. Archibald Phillips. The next court was held August 1, 1860; and the case tried was that of William Daggett vs. Charles Harris. On May 25, 1861, Judge James Birney held court one day, and Judge Birney presided June 24, 1862. The peace and dignity of the State of Michigan and County of Iosco seem to have been held in great re- spect during those years, and but little business came into court. Upon what meat lawyers fed is not explained in the recorded proceedings of the court. It was the custom of the court to open in due form at the stated time, but the honorable circuit judge only appeared at long intervals.


The next business done in court after June, 1862, was upon June 13, 1866, at which time Judge J. G. Sutherland presided. This session lasted two days and in September following a term of like length was held. In June, 1867, Judge Sutherland held court one day and Hon. Josiah Turner occupied the bench on September 17, 1867. From this time, as the population increased and civilization tightened its grasp upon this ambitious region, litigants multiplied and the cloud began to turn its silver lining toward the legal fraternity.


In 1868 Judge Sutherland held court one day in May, and two days in October, and was an incumbent of the circuit bench for three days in May and two days in October, 1869. In 1871 Judge Sutherland was succeeded by Hon. Theophilus C. Grier, who continued judge of this circuit until his death in 1872, when he was succeeded by Hon. San- ford M. Green. Judge Green held court at Tawas City until the divi- sion of the Tenth circuit in 1877, when Iosco county became a part of the Twenty-third circuit, with Hon. J. B. Tuttle as judge. It has since remained in that circuit.


The first session of the Probate court for Iosco county was held on the first Monday in March, 1859, Gideon O. Whittemore presiding. The first entry in the records is the application of William Hill of Alcona county for appointment as guardian to a minor son, Sam Hill. Gideon O. Whittemore was succeeded in 1864 by James O. Whitte- more, who was succeeded by David J. Evans in 1868, by O. E. M. Cutcheon in 1874, and James E. Whittemore was then reelected and held the Probate bench for some years thereafter.


MEMBERS STATE BAR ASSOCIATION


The Michigan State Bar Association is now in the twenty-second year of its corporate life and is one of the strongest organizations of the kind in the northwest, its membership numbering over 660. It is safe to say that there are few members of the Michigan profession, in substantial standing, who are not identified with the association, and its published membership is a fair index of the personnel of the fra- ternity. We have therefore collated therefrom the names of lawyers who reside in the counties covered by this publication :


Alpena .- James Frances and Michael O'Brien.


Boyne City .- James M. Harris.


Hosted by Google


135


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Cadillac .- F. O. Gaffney, D. E. McIntyre, E. F. Sawyer and Fred C. Wetmore.


Cheboygan .- Maxwell W. Benjamin and James F. Shepherd.


Clare .- Joseph F. Bowler and C. W. Perry.


East Tawas .- Edwin Rawden.


Gladwin .- Isaac Foster.


Grayling .- George L. Alexander.


Harrison .- George J. Cummins, Francis M. Morrisey and John Quinn.


Kalkaska .- J. L. Boyd and Ernest C. Smith.


Ludington .- M. B. Danaker, Henry C. Hutton, A. A. Keiser, John Phelan and C. G. Wing.


Manistee .- Charles N. Belcher, Frank L. Fowler, Leland S. Mac- Phail, Roy M. Overpack and R. D. Smith.


Marion .- W: L. Kinney.


Pellston .- Frank L. Keating.


Petosky .- C. J. Pailthorp.


Reed City .- B. N. Savidge.


Roscommon .- Charles L. De Waele.


Standish .- John J. McCarthy.


Traverse City .- H. C. Davis, Parm C. Gilbert, Fred H. Pratt and M. W. Underwood.


West Branch .- Nelson Sharpe.


Google


Hosted by


CHAPTER VI


PROFESSIONAL LIFE CONTINUED


NEWSPAPERS OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN-BIRTH OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN JOURNALISM-THOMAS T. BATES-MANISTEE AS A CLOSE SECOND- MASON COUNTY-IOSCO COUNTY-CHARLEVOIX COUNTY-WILLARD A. SMITH-ALPENA COUNTY-WEXFORD COUNTY-ANTRIM COUNTY --- OSCEOLA AND LAKE COUNTIES-KALKASKA COUNTY-EMMET COUNTY -ROSELLE ROSE-OTSEGO AND ROSCOMMON COUNTIES-CHEBOYGAN COUNTY-LEELANAU COUNTY-PRESQUE ISLE COUNTY-OGEMAW COUNTY-CLARE AND CRAWFORD COUNTIES-OSCODA COUNTY-ARE- NAC COUNTY-MISSAUKEE COUNTY-BENZIE COUNTY-GLADWIN COUNTY-EXPLANATORY-FIRST REGULATING ACT-THE PIONEER PHYSICIANS.


Such professional life as relates to newspaper work and to medicine is essentially of a personal nature; unlike that which centers around the bench and bar, it has primarily little connection with the state or with public affairs. The editor and the physician are concerned in the proper conduct of the newspaper and medical and surgical prac- tice, while the judge is the state's officer of justice and the lawyer is bound to the court by all the ties of official connections and self-in- terest. This chapter is therefore to deal with those professions which are especially personal in their nature, although the calling of the journalist has so expanded as to partially transform its functions from a personal to a public nature.


NEWSPAPERS OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


As a solid basis for a sketch of newspaper work and newspaper life in Northern Michigan, with a somewhat extended mention of the pio- neer newspaper men who have contributed to its establishment and growth, is herewith presented a list of existing newspapers in the counties included in this history. It is rather an exposition of the survival of the fittest in the newspaperdom of that section of the state. In the first division of the list, where names of newspapers are placed in parentheses it is an indication that the two are associated under one management; in the last division the appearance of two dates indicates the years when weekly and daily editions were established, or the years when consolidated papers were founded :


136


Hosted by Google


137


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


ALCONA COUNTY


* Alcona County Review, Harrisville; Rep., 1877.


*Herald, Lincoln; Ind .- Rep., 1907.


ALPENA COUNTY


*Argus-Pioneer (Evening News), Alpena; Rep., 1871.


+Evening Echo (Farmer), Alpena; Ind., 1890.


tEvening News (Argus-Pioneer), Alpena; Rep., 1899.


*Farmer (Evening Echo), Alpena; Ind., 1898.


ANTRIM COUNTY


* Argus, Alden; Ind., 1910.


*Independent, Bellaire; Rep., 1895.


*Torch, Central Lake; Rep., 1893.


*Antrim County News, Elk Rapids; Ind., 1909.


*Progress, Elk Rapids; Rep., 1872.


*Herald, Mancelona; Rep., 1879.


#News, Mancelona; Rep., 1908.


ARENAC COUNTY .


*Enterprise, Au Gres; Rep., 1906.


*Progress, Omer; Rep., 1895.


*Arenac County Independent, Standish; Ind., 1882.


BENZIE COUNTY


*Benzie County Patriot, Frankfort; Rep., 1897.


*Banner, Benzonia ; Rep.,


*Benzie County Leader, Honor; Rep., 1908.


Alert, Elberta ; Ind .- Rep., 1911.


*News, Thompsonville; Ind .- Rep., 1894.


CHARLEVOIX COUNTY


** Citizen. Boyne City; Rep., 1881.


t*Journal, Boyne City; Rep., 1883, 1909.


*Times, Boyne City ; Rep., 1911.


*Courier, Charlevoix; Rep., 1883.


*Sentinel, Charlevoix; Rep., 1869.


*Charlevoix County Herald, East Jordan : Rep., 1897. *Enterprise, East Jordan; Rep., 1882.


*Weekly.


* * Semi-weekly. +Daily.


t*Daily and weekly.


Hosted by


Google


138


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


CHEBOYGAN COUNTY


*Democrat, Cheboygan; Dem., 1880.


*News, Cheboygan; Ind., 1886.


*Tribune, Cheboygan; Rep., 1875.


*Courier, Wolverine; Rep., 1904.


CLARE COUNTY


*Courier, Clare, Ind., 1895. "Sentinel, Clare; Rep., 1878.


"Clare County Cleaver, Harrison; Rep., 1881.


*Sun. Farwell; Ind., 1907.


CRAWFORD COUNTY


"Crawford Avalanche, Grayling; Rep., 1879.


EMMET COUNTY


*Graphic, Harbor Springs; Rep., 1895.


*Republican, Harbor Springs; Rep., 1876.


"Journal, Pellston; Rep., 1903.


+ Evening News & Resorter, Petoskey; Ind., 1883.


#Independent, Petoskey; Ind., 1875.


GLADWIN COUNTY


*Clarion, Beaverton; Ind., 1895. *Gladwin County Record, Gladwin; Rep .. 1878.


GRAND TRAVERSE COUNTY


** Grand Traverse Herald and Traverse Bay Eagle, Traverse City ; Rep., 1858, 1864.


t Record-Eagle, Traverse City; Rep., 1897, 1893.


*Monitor, Fife Lake; Ind., 1891.


#Echo, Kingsley ; Ind., - -


Iosco COUNTY


#Iosco County Gazette, East Tawas; Rep., 1868.


#Press, Oscoda; Rep., 1877.


*Tawas Herald, Tawas City; Ind., 1883.


KALKASKA COUNTY


*Kalkaska Leader and Kalkaskian, Kalkaska; Rep., 1874, 1878.


* Weekly.


* * Semi-weekly. +Daily


Hosted by


Google


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN 139


LAKE COUNTY


*Lake County Star, Baldwin; Rep., 1873. *Observer, Luther; Rep., 1892.


LEELANAU COUNTY


Journal, Empire; Rep., 1900.


Leelanau Enterprise, Leland; Rep., 1877.


Leader, Northport; Rep., 1900.


Leelanau News, Sutton's Bay ; Rep., 1903.


MANISTEE COUNTY


*Beacon & Onekama Lake Breeze, Bear Lake; Ind., 1888.


*Progress, Copemish; Ind., 1902.


+*Advocate, Manistee; Rep., 1883, 1885.


tNews, Manistee; Ind., 1894.


*Michigan Volkszeitung, Manistee; Dem., 1890.


** Times (News), Manistee; Rep., 1866. Kindergarten Primary Magazine (monthly), Manistee; 1888


MASON COUNTY


*Review, Fountain; Rep., 1910.


*Chronicle, Ludington; Rep., 1901.


tNews, Ludington; Rep., 1901.


*Record-Appeal, Ludington; Rep., 1867, 1874.


*Enterprise, Scottville; Rep., 1885.


MISSAUKEE COUNTY


*Missaukee Republican, Lake City; Rep., 1884.


*Plain Dealer, Lake City; Ind., 1887. *Chronicle, McBain; Ind., 1890.


MONTMORENCY COUNTY


*Tribune, Atlanta; Rep., 1886.


*Herald, Hillman ; Rep., 1901. *Journal, Lewiston; Rep., 1893.


OGEMAW COUNTY


*Review, Rose City; Rep., 1904.


*Herald-Times, West Branch; Rep., 1878, 1890. *Ogemaw Republican, West Branch; Rep., 1896.


* Weekly.


** Semi-weekly.


+Daily. ** Daily and weekly.


Hosted by


Google


140


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


OSCEOLA COUNTY


*Review, Evart; Rep., 1871.


*Osceola County News, Hersey; Rep., 1908.


*Sun, Le Roy ; Ind., 1910.


*Dispatch, Marion; Rep., 1890.


*Clarion, Reed City; Rep., 1872.


*Osceola County Herald, Reed City; Rep., 1870.


OSCODA COUNTY


*Mail-Telegram, Mio; Ind .- Rep., 1881.


OTSEGO COUNTY


*Otsego County Herald & Times, Gaylord; Rep., 1875, 1905.


PRESQUE ISLE COUNTY


*Presque Isle County News, Millersburg; Rep., 1901.


*Inter-Lake, Onaway; Rep., 1902.


*Outlook, Onaway; Rep., 1898.


*Presque Isle County Advance, Rogers; Rep., 1878.


ROSCOMMON COUNTY


*Herald, Roscommon; Rep., 1907.


*News, Roscommon; Rep., 1875.


WEXFORD COUNTY


Enterprise, Buckley ; Rep., 1880.


+*Globe, Cadillac; Ind., 1898.


tEvening News (News & Express), Cadillac; Rep., 1900.


*News and Express, Cadillac; Rep., 1872, 1886.


*Tribune, Manton; Rep., 1879.


*Sun, Mesick; Rep., 1901.


*Pioneer, Sherman; Rep., 1872.


BIRTH OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN NEWSPAPERS


It was at Traverse City that the first newspaper of Northern Michi- gan had its birth, in 1858, its sponsor being Morgan Bates, founder of the Grand Traverse Herald, who also had the honor a quarter of a century ago of issuing the first real history of the Grand Traverse re- gion (written by Dr. Morgan L. Leach).


As Mr. Bates was the father of the press in that section of the state


* Weekly.


t Daily.


t*Daily and weekly.


Hosted by


Google


141


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


he is certainly worthy of an extended notice. Born at Queensbury, Warren county, New York, near Glen's Falls, July 12, 1806, at an early age he became a printer's apprentice at Sandy Hill, and when twenty established the Warren (Pennsylvania) Gazette. Here Horace Greeley worked for him as a journeyman printer, and a strong friend- ship grew up between them, which continued till the close of Mr. Greeley's life. Afterwards he worked for Greeley as foreman in New York as Greeley had worked for him at Warren. In Greeley's office he was associated with several other young men who afterwards made their mark in the newspaper world, among whom were Elbridge Gerry Paige, better known by his nom de plume of "Dow Jr.," and George Wilkins Kendall, the projector and first publisher of the New Orleans Picayune.


In 1883 Mr. Bates came to Detroit, and was employed as foreman in the office of the Advertiser. In 1839 he purchased that journal, in company with George Dawson, afterward connected with the Albany Evening Journal. Mr. Dawson soon retired from the firm, and Mr. Bates becoming sole owner, conducted the paper till 1844, when, in consequence of the defeat of the Whig party whose policy he had ably advocated, he prudently sold out.


In 1849 Mr. Bates went to California, by way of Cape Horn. Af- ter two years, he returned by way of the Isthmus. In 1852 he again sought the land of gold, going again by way of Cape Horn. He re- mained in California until 1856 and during that period he was for more than a year sole owner and publisher of the Alta California, daily and weekly. The daily was at that time the only one published west of the Rocky mountains. Returning to Michigan, he was employed for some time in the auditor general's office, at Lansing, till he removed to Traverse City, in 1858.


To most men Traverse City would have seemed the most unpromis- ing place for establishing a newspaper, while in reality it was the most eligible in the state, a fact Mr. Bates's experience and knowledge of the business enabled him to see. The first number of the Herald made its appearance on the 3d of November, 1858, and in his salutatory Mr. Bates defined his editorial position in unmistakable terms. "In pol- itics we admit no such word as neutrality," he writes. "We hate slav- ery in all its forms and conditions, and can have no fellowship or compromise with it. We entertain no respect for any party or any religion which sanctions and supports it, we care not from what source they derive their authority; and regard that politician, minister, or layman, who advocates its extension and perpetuity, as an enemy to the human race and false to the God we worship. Entertaining these views on what we regard the great political issue of the day, we shall support, with zeal and firmness, to the best of our ability, the Repub- lican organization, so long as that party shall be true to the principles that now govern it."


When the control of the general government passed into the hands of the Republicans, in 1861, Mr. Bates was appointed by President Lincoln to the registership of the land office at Traverse City. He held the office till 1867, when his outspoken condemnation of the policy of




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.