USA > Michigan > Van Buren County > A history of Van Buren County, Michigan a narrative account of its historical progress, its people, and its principal interests Volume II > Part 19
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On September 22, 1881, Mr. Foster was married to Miss Mary Lillian Buck and five children were born to this union, of whom three survive, namely: Gladys, who finished eighth grade in the common schools and in 1908 graduated from the Hartford High school and is now a student at Valparaiso, Indiana ; L. Dean, edu- cated in the common schools, and graduated from the Hartford High School in 1910, and later from the Van Buren Normal School, is now one of the successful young teachers of Keeler township; and Newton B., also a graduate of the Keeler common schools and now in the tenth year of the Hartford High School.
Mrs. Foster was born in Keeler township, October 19, 1857, and is the third of a family of six children, one son and five daughters, born to Lucius and Celina A. (Wise) Buck. Five of her parents' children still survive: Marcia, who married Oscar Adams, one of the prominent farmers of Keeler township; Luella, the wife of C. H. Tuller, a furniture dealer and undertaker of Shelby, Michi- gan; Mary Lillian, who married Mr. Foster; Nellie, the wife of E. C. Parmlee, a dealer in real estate and insurance at Auburn Park, Chicago, Illinois; and C. Edwin, an agriculturist of San Jose, California.
Lucius E. Buck was born about 1823, in Livingston county, New York, and his death occurred in 1889. He received a good educa- tion for his day and locality, and during the early settlement of Van Buren county, Michigan, came to this section as a teacher, although the major portion of his life was spent in agricultural pursuits. Settling first in a log cabin in the heavy timber, at a time when bear, deer and wolves were to be found in plenty and the red man roamed the woods, Mr. Buck bravely started to work to establish himself and his family in a comfortable home, and after years of untiring, persistent toil he accomplished his object, and at the time of his death was the owner of two hundred and forty acres of magnificent farming land. He was a Jacksonian Democrat, and a stanch advocate of good roads and public educa- tion facilities, and served his community well as supervisor and town clerk of Keeler township. Always a faithful member of the Methodist Episcopal church, he served for many years as trustee and was liberal in supporting movements of a benevolent or char- itable nature. His wife, who was also a faithful Christian, was born about 1825 and died in 1901. She was a child when she came with her parents to Livingston county, New York, from her native state of New Jersey, and was educated in the Lima Ladies Seminary. Both she and her husband are interred in the Keeler Cemetery, where beautiful tablets mark their final resting-place.
Mrs. Foster was educated in the township and public schools of Keeler, and for a number of years was successfully engaged in teaching school in Keeler and Hamilton townships. An estimable,
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Christian lady of cheerful and loving disposition, she has done much to assist her husband in attaining his success, her counsel and active advice being helpful and bracing in times of discourage- ment. Mrs. Foster has been prominent in social circles and in the work of the Methodist church, she having been a teacher in the Sabbath-school for many years. She has been a member of the Keeler Thursday Club, an organization of some literary distinc- tion, and has served very ably as its president.
VOLNEY ROBERT HUNGERFORD .- The standard of excellence among educators all over the country is being raised higher and higher, and especially is this true in Michigan, where the people are so proud of their public school system. Van Buren county keeps well abreast of her sister counties in this, as in other things, and is fortunate in the possession of a superintendent of schools that comes of a line of educators and has many years of practical experience back of him. Volney Robert Hungerford was born in Branch county, Michigan, August 6, 1874, and is a son of Henry W. and Sophia (Mabbs) Hungerford.
Henry Hungerford was born in Oakland county, Michigan, in 1834, and as a young man began teaching school. Later he took up the occupation of farming, and he was so engaged at the time of his death, January 30, 1901. His widow, who was born in New York, still survives, and makes her home at Coldwater, Michigan. They had a family of five children, namely : Virgil U., residing at Coldwater; Bertha, the wife of Edgar Conklin, of Branch county ; Mary, the wife of Loren H. Draper, of Branch county; Volney Robert; and Emily E., a teacher in the high school at Coldwater.
Volney Robert Hungerford graduated from the public schools at the age of seventeen years, and in three years completed the four years' course in the high school and began teaching, but af- ter one year decided that he was in need of a more comprehensive education, and for the next four years attended Olivet College. Graduating in 1900, with the degree of Bachelor of Sciences, he was for one year assistant at the Schoolcraft High School. In the following year he became superintendent of schools, and then went to Decatur, where he served in a like capacity for five years. His perfect fitness for the position at this time resulted in his election to the office of county superintendent of schools, and he has ably continued to act in that capacity to the present time. Mr. Hunger- ford has brought to his work an enthusiasm that is contagious among his fellow workers. Modern ideas, progressive innovations and a well expended effort to learn and cater to the needs of the young minds under his fostering and developing care have made the school system of Van Buren county something to model other systems by. Mr. Hungerford is a man of delightful personality and a close student, not only of books, but of mankind. That he has been successful in his life work, the host of his former pupils, now his warm, personal friends, testify.
On June 19, 1901, Mr. Hungerford was married to Lula Knapp, and one child, Harlan, was born to this union June 15, 1902. Politically a Republican, Mr. Hungerford has taken a deep inter- est in matters pertaining to the welfare of his party and his com- Vol. II-10
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munity. He is past grand master of the Odd Fellows, and a con- sistent and liberal member of the Presbyterian church.
CHARLES B. MOLBY .- An honorable farmer-citizen of Waverly township is Charles B. Molby, who has resided in this locality since boyhood and who, although leading a quiet life, has been a factor for good in the community, never failing to yield support and co-operation to any measure that has appealed to him as likely to be conducive to the public good. He has spent his life as a farmer and on his small, but well-improved farm of forty acres conducts successful operations in general farming.
Mr. Molby is one of that large portion of the citizenship of Van Buren county, Michigan, which the section owes to the state of New York, his birth having occurred in Onondaga county, that state, February 2, 1857. He is the only child of Benjamin and Betsy (Stanley) Molby, both likewise natives of New York. They came to Van Buren county in 1866, when the subject was less than ten years old, and here resided until their demise, that of the father taking place on February 19, 1906, and that of the latter in June 1881. Benjamin Molby, whose death removed from the community a venerable and esteemed citizen, was a Democrat in politics and a Spiritualist in religious conviction. During his active career he pursued the occupation of a carpenter, joiner and farmer.
Charles Molby received his education in the public schools and under the preceptorship of his father became well versed in the many secrets of seed time and harvest. When his school days were concluded he gave his time to the great basic industry and has ever since remained thus engaged. He secured his present farm December 17, 1903.
Mr. Molby laid the foundations of a home of his own when on October 27, 1878, he was united in marriage to Amelia Palmer. daughter of Harvey and Aurilla (Baker) Palmer. She was born in Genesee county, New York, November 7, 1855, and came to this county with her parents when only about ten years old. The union of Mr. and Mrs. Molby has been blessed by the birth of two daugh- ters. Mertie is the wife of Ivan Sergeant and her two children. Ima J. and Boyd C., entitle the subject to the distinction of grand- father. Kitty Christine is the wife of John Weiner.
In politics Mr. Molby is independent, giving his support to what he esteems the best man and the best measure and deeming partisanship a secondary consideration. Fraternally he is a mem- ber of the Modern Woodmen of America and the Royal Neighbors and in each carries a thousand dollars insurance.
WILLIAM H. MILLER .- The farming interests of Van Buren county are in charge of efficient, capable men who have given to their labor that application of scientific effort that is bound to bring the best results. Years of observance of the best methods have brought the occupation of farming up to the standard of one of the sciences, and the constant improving of farming machinery has done wonders in making the harvesting of large crops a surety. One of the leading agriculturists of Antwerp township. now spe-
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cializing in fruit growing, is William H. Miller, of section 25, a prominent citizen and veteran of the Civil war, who has met with much success in his operations. Mr. Miller was born in Hadley, Lapeer county, Michigan, September 17, 1844, and is a son of Jacob and Elizabeth (Randolph) Miller, natives of New York.
As a young man Jacob Miller came from New York to Lapeer county, and here the remainder of his life was spent in farming. Here he was a pioneer and endured all the hardships and hard work incident to pioneer life, such as cutting wood at fifty cents a cord, and walking four miles each way to and from his work. The nearest market in those days was Detroit, and there he took his beef, a distance of fifty miles, traveling with an ox team, and taking nearly a week to make the trip. His death was a sad one, he having been murdered in Lapeer City by a man who had forged his name to a note, and his body was burned to destroy the evidence of his crime. His wife, who died in 1851, bore him the following seven children: Charles, Daniel and Jane, who are de- ceased ; James, residing in Mattawan; Henry, who lives in Fenton- ville; William H .; and Otis, who is deceased. William H. Miller was reared to an agricultural life and was employed on his father's farm until he was twenty years old, at which time he en- listed in the Third Division of Colonel Jewell's Department, Sev- enteenth Army Corps, and as a member of a Michigan regiment was with General Sherman on his famous "March to the Sea." He was seriously wounded at Hilton Head, South Carolina, and after being mustered out of the service there went to New York, from whence he returned to Michigan, and for about four years was engaged in land speculation. He then purchased a tract of one hundred and twenty acres in section 25, Antwerp township, where he has since been engaged in farming and fruit growing, and his undertakings have met with unqualified success. His life has been that of an upright, honorable and public-spirited citizen, and he enjoys the respect and esteem of the community.
On December 9, 1873. Mr. Miller was united in marriage with Miss Emily Burgess, daughter of Charles O. and Ludencia (Morey) Burgess, natives of New York state, and to this union there has been born one daughter, Emily. Mr. Miller has been so occupied with his farming interests that he has had little time for public matters, but he takes a keen interest in measures that are apt to prove of benefit to his community, and votes the Demo- cratic ticket. He is prominent fraternally as a member of the Masons and the Eastern Star.
MRS. SOPHIA L. NESBITT .- A venerable and notable figure in the life of Van Buren county, Michigan, is Mrs. Sophia L. Nesbitt, mistress of one of the fairest and most valuable country estates in all Michigan, a great tract of two hundred and eighty-two of the state's most advantageously situated acres, ornamented by one of the most beautiful mansions in the county. In the evening of life this admirable woman may look back over a career of great usefulness, of faithfulness and helpfulness, as a wife and devotion as a mother, for she has been
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"Earth's noblest thing, a woman perfected."
Mrs. Nesbitt is a native of Brockville, Canada, situated on Lake Ontario, on the "Broken Front," her birth having occurred on October 23, 1828. She is the youngest member of a family of four children, equally divided as to sons and daughters, born to Crin- ness and Mary (Baxter) LaRue, she being the only one surviving. Her father was of French descent, as is indicated in the name, his father having come to America at an early day. He was a de- scendant of the Huguenots. He was a Parisian and of the mer- cantile class. He was of a noble family, the name originally hav- ing been De laRue, but upon coming to this country the French government deprived him of his honors. Mrs. Nesbitt's father was a prominent man and engaged in banking about the time of the war of 1812. One of the LaRues-Henry-was aide-de-camp to General Washington. Among the most prized possessions of the family are the shaving implements and other personal belongings of the "Father of his Country." In course of time the family took up their residence in the Dominion of Canada and it was while they were there residing that she whose name inaugurates this review was born. She received her education in the schools of Canada, eventually entering the National School at New Castle and she later taught for some years, proving a gifted young in- structor.
She was first married in 1846, when a damsel in her teens, be- coming the bride of George Griffin. To their union were born four children, three daughters and a son, two of the number sur- viving: Addie is the widow of Thomas Nesbitt and resides in Schoolcraft, Michigan ; Emma is the wife of O. M. Geer and makes her home in Harrington, Montana. She is the mother of eight children. The subject and her first husband were married in Dunham county, Canada, and there resided until the death of Mr. Griffin, who was an agriculturist. He traced his lineage to Scot- land. His religion was that of the Methodist Episcopal church. His untimely demise was caused from becoming overheated on the occasion of a conflagration, which caused typhoid fever and from which sudden death resulted, in June, 1853.
On September 22, 1858, the widow was united in marriage to Robert Nesbitt, of Decatur, Michigan. To this union three daugh- ters were born and reared to maturity, two of whom are living at the present time. Miss Minnie Nesbitt is well known in Van Buren county as a particularly gifted business woman. She is in charge of the great Nesbitt estate and manages its affairs worthily and successfully. She received an excellent high school education in Decatur, but the best part of her culture is self acquired and her mind and business ability are of the highest order. She takes pleasure in the higher things of life, is literary in her tastes and is a valued and active member of the "Corwin Woman's Literary Club" and the "Every Tuesday Club" of Decatur. Miss Nesbitt is affiliated with the Christian Science Society of Decatur and is a firm believer in its wonderful and beautiful teachings. She be- longs to the Order of the Eastern Star, No. 333, at Decatur, and has served as secretary of the same. She is a friend of the town-
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ship Grange and has assisted in its achievements. She has as- sumed full charge of the affairs of her mother's estate and worthily does the robe of responsibility rest upon her shoulders. She is fond of travel and in 1904 she and her sister made an interesting voyage to Cuba. She has also journeyed through the middle west and has had a season in the Adirondacks. In her father's life- time he was wont to take various members of his family with him to New York and the east. He had charge of the affairs of Mrs. Nesbitt's first husband, who although young when summoned to the Undiscovered Country had already shown fine capacity and would doubtless have made a fortune had his life been spared. The second daughter, Nellie, died at the age of three years. Dora, who resides with her mother and sister, was educated in the schools of the county. She has a taste for good books and would doubt- less say with the poet :
"That place that does contain My books, the best companions, is to me A glorious court, where hourly I converse With the old sages and philosophers; And sometimes, for variety, I confer With kings and emperors, and weigh their counsels."
George Nesbitt, of Decatur, Michigan, is a son of Mr. Nesbitt by a former marriage.
Mr. Nesbitt, the father of these children, was born in the parish of Glanova, county Antrim, Ireland, his birthplace being twelve miles from Belfast. The date of his birth was March 18, 1810, and that of his demise, April 11, 1888. He lived until his fourteenth year in his native land and came to this country in 1824, with his elder brother, John. They came on a sailing-vessel, the Rob Roy, landing at Quebec, Canada, after having experienced a voyage eventful from the fact that they were blown out of their course. The two young fellows worked their way to Plattsburg, on Lake Champlain. Mr. Nesbitt clerked in a store in the winter and also learned to tally lumber. He went thence to Detroit and became a clerk in his brother William's store and bakery. William became a banker and real estate dealer and found the highest success in his adapted country, leaving a fortune at his death.
Mr. Nesbitt received a common-school education in his native land. He was of good family. His father, George Nesbitt, was a member of King George's Royal Guards and his grandmother was a daughter of Lord Ireland. The first Nesbitt came from Bonnie Scotland. Robert Nesbitt's uncle, William, was one of the first teachers in the Carolinas. To revert to the early years of Robert, he came from Detroit to Monroe, Michigan, in 1825 and there re- mained for a time, then going to Kalamazoo county, where he lo- cated lands from the government. There he remained until 1834, when he came to Van Buren county. His wife and daughters pos- sess six of the parchment deeds signed by Presidents Van Buren and Jackson,-valuable heirlooms, indeed. At one time he owned as much as two thousand six hundred acres in Van Buren county. The first home of the Nesbitts was a log cabin, located on the site
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of the present magnificent residence. At that time there were plenty of deer and wild turkeys on the farm. St. Joseph was the nearest market and wheat sold at twenty-eight cents a bushel, while salt was ten dollars a barrel. Journeys to market were made with ox teams. While in Monroe Mr. Nesbitt learned the trade of a millwright and 'most of his life in Michigan was devoted to the milling industry. He erected four mills in the vicinity of his home, these being saw and grist mills and a steam saw mill in Allegan county.
Mr. Nesbitt was a man of wonderful activity and indomitable will, and he had a most remarkable memory. He marketed lum- ber by hundreds of thousands of feet and his part as a maker of Van Buren county was considerable. He served as a soldier in the Black Hawk war, being a lieutenant, and he well remembered Chicago at that time and Fort Dearborn. All his life he was a Jackson Democrat. He was a valued official, serving as super- visor of his township for several years. He was the champion of good education and in the pioneer days of Van Buren county he maintained a school in his own home. He was a Spiritualist and entertained such noted mediums as the Davenport Brothers.
In 1871 Mr. and Mrs. Nesbitt began the erection of their mag- nificent country residence, one of the country's finest homes, erected at a cost of twenty-five thousand dollars, and finished in hard woods, such as oak and walnut. This is known as "The Nesbitt Homestead," and is graciously presided over by the daughters of the subject, whose gentle and lovable personality impresses all who come within the sphere of their influence. Like all citizens who stand high in the esteem and respect of all of Van Buren county, it is with pleasure that we present this record of an admirable woman and those nearest and dearest to her.
JOSEPH C. ALLEN .- The casual observer would seem justified in his conclusion that not many years ago the state of New York suffered a real misfortune in the exodus of a great number of its best citizens to Michigan. For in looking over the biographical data of those representative men and women who form the sub- ject matter of the History of Van Buren county it seems the rule, rather than the exception, to meet with the information that the subject was born in New York and eventually came hither. Then, judging by the high standard of citizenship here, New York must produce a particularly fine type of men. Joseph C. Allen is one of the great company of New Yorkers who make their present residence in Waverly township, Van Buren county. His eyes first opened to the light of day on January 12, 1847, his parents being Job and Hannah (Odell) Allen. His paternal grandfather was Daniel Allen.
In 1866 Job Allen severed the old associations and brought his family to the state of Michigan, first locating in Kalamazoo county, where he remained four years, engaged in farming and in his trade of chair-making. In 1870 the Allens came to Van Buren county, which they elected to make their permanent abode. The father passed away in November, 1886, but his cherished and devoted wife survived him some years, her demise occurring on
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September 10, 1894. They were the parents of seven children, six of whom survive (1911) namely : Daniel, Joseph C., William, Alberta, Lydia, Job and Allen.
Joseph C. Allen was about eighteen years of age when he first came to the Wolverine state, his education having been previously secured in the district schools of his native state. He chose farm- ing as his life work and first became an independent agriculturist in the year 1870, when he secured forty acres of land. He is now a considerable land holder, owning eighty acres in sections 8 and 9 and eighty acres in Section 29, all in Waverly township. This estate is well situated and highly improved.
Mr. Allen contracted a happy marriage on August 12, 1889, when Mary M. Epley became his wife. She, like her husband, was born in New York, Alleghany county, the date of her birth being October 26, 1854, and her parents being S. W. Epley and Charlotte C. (Bird) Epley. The father was born in Danville, New York, and the mother in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Mrs. Allen re- ceived an excellent education, graduating from the Buchanan (Michigan) high school and the Normal School at Valparaiso, Indiana. They share their delightful home with one daughter, Ruth L., born August 25, 1897, an alert young high school student.
Mrs. Allen is a valued member of the Congregational church at Bangor. The subject is found marching under the standard of the party which produced Lincoln, Mckinley and Taft and is helpfully interested in all matters concerning the public welfare. He served two years as township drain commissioner and as a member of the school board. The Allens enjoy the esteem of the community.
HARLAN P. WATERS .- A soldier in the Civil war at the age of seventeen, and remaining in the service nearly three years, during which he took part in many engagements on the battlefield, and has ever since borne the marks of his fidelity to duty in wounds that still trouble him at times; then a school teacher, a farmer, a sales- man, and since again a farmer and merchant, Harlan P. Waters, of Paw Paw, has followed several pursuits and given valuable serv- ice to the people in each of them. He is now nearing the limit of human life as fixed by the psalmist, but is still hale and vigorous in spite of his long years of arduous labor and the wounds he re- ceived in the army, and ranks as one of the most prosperous, pro- gressive and esteemed citizens of Van Buren county, which has been his home for more than forty years.
Mr. Waters is a native of Ohio, where he was born on Septem- ber 9, 1843. His parents were Asa M. and Caroline (Evans) Waters, the former born in Ohio, the latter in Vermont. The father came to Michigan and Van Buren county in 1868, and took up his residence on a farm in Antwerp township. There he passed the remainder of his life, following the pursuit in which he started, and that of his father and other members of the family for generations. He died on his farm in Antwerp township in April, 1900. The mother's life ended in February, 1901, at the same place. They were the parents of five children: Harlan P., the immediate subject of this memoir; Celia, who was the wife of
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