USA > Michigan > A history of northern Michigan and its people, Volume II > Part 30
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In the year 1907 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. St. Peter to Miss Josephine LaFare, who was born at Oscoda and who is a daughter of Peter and Mary (Roberts) LaFare, both of whom are now living in Mikado. To Mr. and Mrs. St. Peter have been born two children,- Lonisa and Leonard.
JOHN PEHRSON, county register of deeds of Mason county, Michigan, is a native of Sweden, that country which has given to America one of her most important and valuable sources of emigration. The Swed- ish element has shown itself to be possessed of all the essential ele- ments of good citizenship and these in fullest measure characterize him whose name initiates this review. Mr. Pehrson was born near the town of Karlstad, December 14, 1859, and it was there that he was reared and educated. The names of his parents were Pehr Olson and Christina Olson, the farmer being a farmer by occupation, and Mr. Pehrson was the last in a family of ten children.
In 1880, shortly before the attainment of his majority, Mr. Pehr-
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son hearkened to the voice of opportunity from the shores of the New World, and severing home ties set sail for America. In course of time he found his way to Ludington, Mason county, and there re- mained for about two years, engaged in general work. He then found himself in a position to marry, and after that happy event he purchased land in Amber township and removed to it. It was new land, much of it wooded, but he set about taming the virgin acres and clearing them and soon had a most valuable farming property, which he still owns. This contains one hundred and fifty-five acres, and is most advantageously situated about four miles east of Ludington. He engages for the most part in the cultivation of hay and general farming.
The subject is everywhere known as a publie-spirited and pro- gressive citizen, and one to whom it is eminently safe to entrust the public interests. He is one of the captains in the ranks of local Re- publicanism and his unselfish devotion to the party was recognized in 1904 by his election to the important office of register of deeds. As signal mark of the satisfactory character of his services and the esteem in which he is held he was re-elected in 1906, again in 1908, and again in 1910. In the latter year he received a majority of eight hundred and twenty-four votes, which shows his popularity. He is assisted by his daughter, Agnes L., as deputy eounty register. This is not his first experience as a factor in public affairs, for he was supervisor of Amber township for eight years, has served on the town- ship school board, and has been the eneumbent of several other local offices. For thirty years he has been a resident of Mason county, in that time witnessing great change and progress, while contributing in no small measure to the same. Mr. Pehrson in 1907 returned to his native country where he spent six weeks visiting his boyhood home and associates.
On the 7th day of October, 1882, Mr. Pehrson was united in mar- riage to Miss Hilma Anderson, a native of Sweden and a daughter of Andwew Johnson. Their union has been blessed by the birth of four children, namely: Louis G., Victor C., Charles W., and Agnes L., all educated in Michigan.
Mr. Pehrson is not one to allow all social and fraternal proclivities to be sacrificed to the demands of business, and he is one of the promi- nent lodge men of the county, his membership extending to the In- dependent Order of Odd Fellows, the Knights of Pythias and the Swedish Aid Society.
JOHN J. WALKER, the present postmaster of Levering, has been iden- tified with the business growth of that town since 1890, and his own interests have extended with the progress of this place from the pioneer conditions which existed in that year.
Mr. Walker was born in Bruce county, Ontario, May 30, 1864, a son of Benjamin and Ann (Dobson) Walker, both natives of Ireland. His father died at the age of eighty-nine, and his mother at the age of sixty-five. John J. is the fourth of their eight children, six of whom are living. The father emigrated to Canada and was engaged in farm-
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ing there until 1871, was a resident of North Carolina until 1877, and in that year moved to Harbor Springs, Michigan, and later to the vicinity of Carp Lake, in Emmet county, where he spent the rest of his life on a farm. He was a Democrat in politics.
John J. Walker received his schooling in the state of North Carolina. and in 1879 came to Levering with his parents, he first engaged in the merchandise and sawmill business with his brother Benjamin in 1890, the firm of Walker Bros. being for many years one of the most suecess- ful in this part of the state. In 1909 John J. Walker succeeded to control of the business, and he carried on a large trade in dry goods, clothing, groceries, etc. In 1908 he organized the Levering Telephone Company, and is its secretary-treasurer, manager, and owner of ninety- five percent of the stock.
For a number of years Mr. Walker has assumed various public re- sponsibilities in his community. In 1903 he was appointed postmaster, and by reappointment in 1907 still holds the office. For eight years he was supervisor of Carp Lake township, and of MeKinley township three years. He has been a school director fourteen or fifteen years, and has also served on the board of review, as justice of the peace and highway commissioner. He is one of the influential Republicans of northern Michigan. Ilis fraternal affiliation is with Durand Lodge No. 344, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, and with Lodge No. 190, Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows.
December 7, 1893, John J. Walker married Miss Susie Luesing, and they have two children, Ralph D. and Charles B. Mrs. Walker was born in Ontario, a daughter of Andrew and Sophia (Pamperine) Lnesing, both natives of Germany. Iler mother is still living. There were five children in their family. Mr. Luesing, who was a carriage maker by trade, was one of the early settlers of Emmet county, having located near Levering in 1878. Ile held township offices, and in polities was a Republican.
JESSE ALLEN .- One of the large-minded and enterprising men who have found journalism an appropriate field for their energy and breadth, Jesse Allen is employed in a profession which is peculiarly exacting, and as editor and publisher of the Clare County Cleaver, a weekly newspaper published in Harrison, is meeting with well deserved success. He was born. February 8, 1879, at Bridgeport, Michigan, a son of Henry Allen, who served as a soldier in the Civil war, belonging to the Twenty-second Volunteer Infantry.
When Jesse Allen was a child his mother came with him to Harrison to take charge of a family of children left motherless by the death of her sister. Here he received his rudimentary education, attending the public schools until fourteen years of age. Having a natural taste and aptitude for journalism, he then went to Lansing, Michigan, where he was apprenticed to the printer's trade, remaining there several years. In 1900, owing to failing health, Mr. Allen sought out-door work, and for a time was engaged in farming in Wexford county, afterward find- ing employment in a saw-mill. Returning to Harrison in 1905, Mr. Allen entered the employ of Mr. Asa II. Aldrich, then editor and pub-
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lisher of the Cleaver, and in 1909 purchased the interest of his em- ployer in the paper, which he has since edited and published. De- voting his thought and energy to his chosen work, he has maintained the reputation of the journal as a bright, clean, and newsy sheet, and is constantly adding to its attractions, and largely inereasing its cir- culation. Mr. Allen is successful in business, and has accumulated a good property, in addition to owning his newspaper being proprietor of a farm of eighty acres, located near Harrison.
. Mr. Allen married, in March, 1907, Martha Payne, a daughter of George E. and Stella (White) Payne. She was born in Greenwood, Michigan, where her father was a merchant. Two children have blessed the union of Mr. and Mrs. Allen, namely: George E., born February 14, 1908; and Mary Estella, born April 1, 1910.
A stanch Republican in his political affiliations, Mr. Allen has been a delegate to the County Republican Convention for the past four years, and is now serving his fourth year as city elerk. He is liberal in church matters, and a generous contributor to all worthy enterprises, being noted for his public spirit and benevolenee.
·ANTONIE E. BONNEVILLE, M. D .- Other men's services to the people and the state can be measured by definite deeds, by dangers averted, by legislation secured, by institutions built, by commerce promoted. The work of a doctor is entirely estranged from these lines of enter- prise, yet without his capable, health-giving assistance all other accom- plishment would count for naught. Man's greatest prize on earth is physical health and vigor; nothing deteriorates mental activity so quickly as prolonged sickness,-hence the broad field for human help- fulness afforded in the medieal profession. The successful doctor re- quires something more than mere technical training,-he must be a man of broad human sympathy and genial kindliness, capable of in- spiring hope and faith in the heart of his patient. Such a man is he whose name initiates this article.
Dr. Antonie E. Bonneville was born at Bresier Falls, New York, on the. 15th of June, 1855, and he is a son of Antonic and Genevieve (Le- blane) Bonneville, hoth of whom were born and reared in Paris, France. The father was summoned to the life eternal in 1888, at the age of seventy-five years, and the mother lived to the patriarchal age of one hundred years and two months, her death having occurred in 1905. Mr. and Mrs. Bonneville were married at St. Aniseet, Huntingdon county, province of Quebec, Canada, and they became the parents of twelve children, three sons and nine daughters, and of the number nine are now living, the subject of this review being the eighth in order of birth. John Bonneville, grandfather of the Doctor, was banished with his family from France to Arcadia on account of his liberal views in regard to government. At this time Antonie Bonneville, Sr., was a lad of but twelve years of age. Ilis parents were of the nobility in Franee and his wife's ancestors were famous generals under Napoleon. Antonie Bonneville, Sr., received his preliminary edueational training in France; in 1835 he came to Bresier Falls, New York, where he prepared himself for the legal profession. After being admitted to the
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bar he tried only one case and deciding that the business was not to his taste, he located in Glengarry county, province of Ontario, Canada, where he engaged in farming and where he became editor of the paper known as the Canadian Farmer. He was a great lover of fine stock and was the owner of thoroughbred cattle and fine horses imported from Europe. He was a friend of Sir John McDonald, one of his neighbors being Ronald S. MeDonald, a brother of Sir John. As a member of the 1860 Agricultural Society, he did much to heighten interest in good farming and he and his wife were devout communicants of the Catholic church, in which he served as a trustee.
Dr. Bonneville was educated in the public schools of Lancaster, Ontario, and he completed a course of study in the normal school at Montreal. In 1865 he was matriculated in the University of Paris, at Paris, France, in which he was graduated as a member of the class of 1868, with the degree of Bachelor of Arts. After his graduation he studied medicine in this excellent institution for a period of two years, at the expiration of which he returned to Ontario. In the fall of 1871 he removed to New York and worked in a drug store at Fort Covington, where he was also assistant-surgeon to Dr. A. L. Gillis. In 1882 he established his home in the city of Chicago, Illinois, where he was interne in a private hospital for two years, after which he studied medicine in the Physicians and Surgeons College in that city. Thereafter he took charge of the Wisconsin and Michigan Hospital, at Ashland, Wisconsin, continuing to be identified with that institution until 1888, when he removed to New York city, where he became a student in the University of New York, in which he was graduated June 12, 1890, with the degree of Doctor of Medicine. He then re- turned to Ashland, Wisconsin, where he had charge of the Ashland City Hospital until 1896, in which year he came to Alpena. Here he conducted the Alpena Hospital until 1908, since which time he has devoted his attention to the general practice of his profession. He has a natural predilection for surgery and has been eminently successful in various delicate operations which have required the greatest of skill. He controls a large and representative practice and is recognized as one of the leading physicians and surgeons in this section of the state. In connection with his profession the Doctor is interested in horticulture, having a tract of sixty acres of most arable land and a general truck farm on which he raises peppermint and all kinds of medical plants and herbs.
Dr. Bonneville is a member of various professional organizations of representative character and he is also affiliated with the Knights of Columbus, the St. John the Baptist Society, the French Canadian So- ciety and the Knights of the Maccabees. His religious faith is in harmony with the teachings of the Catholic church, in which he is a devont communicant. When he was a mere child he memorized the small and large Catholic catechisms and he was confirmed when but eight years of age. At the age of sixteen years he made stump speeches against Laurie and Eventurelle in Ontario. In politics he accords a loyal support to the cause of the Republican party and though he has never manifested aught of desire for the honors or emoluments of
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political office he takes a deep and intelligent interest in all matters tending to advance the general welfare of the community in which he has elected to maintain his home. The Doctor has traveled very extensively, having visited the different countries in Europe and Asia, including Japan and China, besides which he has made an extended tour of Australia. He also visited Arcadia, the place to which his grand- parents were banished, and he has paid his respects to the institution at Acadia which bears the name of Bonneville and which was dedicated by his ancestors.
In the year 1899 was solemnized the marriage of Doctor Bonneville to Miss Elizabeth D. O'Brien, who was born on the 25th of September, 1872, at Wausau, Marathon county, Wisconsin, and who is a daughter of James and Elizabeth (Hasse) O'Brien, the former of whom is a native of England and the latter of whom claims Germany as the place of her nativity. Mr. and Mrs. O'Brien became the parents of three daughters and four sons, all of whom are living, Mrs. Bonneville being the first born. Mr. O'Brien is a railroad man, having been in the employ of the St. Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha Railroad Company for fully twenty years. He is a Democrat in his political proclivities and is a communicant of the Catholic church, as is also his wife. His son, James T. O'Brien, was general superintendent of the Pere Marquette Railroad and boat-line for a number of years. He has now retired from active business and is traveling. Another son, John, is a noted actor and Edward G. O'Brien is an interne in a hospital in Detroit, Michigan. Dr. and Mrs. Bonneville have one son, Antonie E., Jr., who was born on the 21st of May, 1902.
ALEX. C. HORNKOHL .- It is most gratifying at this juncture to accord recognition to Alex C. Hornkohl, a representative business man of Manistee, Michigan, and a citizen who has always stood for honesty and efficiency in public office and whose influence has ever been exerted in the direction of general progress and development.
Alex C. Hornkohl was born in the city of Manistee on the 16th of September, 1877, and is a son of Daniel and Sophia (Kamschulte) Hornkohl, the former of whom was born at Hamburg and the latter at Berlin. The father was identified with the bakery business during the greater part of his active business career, and he has been deceased since April 17, 1908. The mother preceded him by a number of years, her death occurring March 9, 1895. Alex was the seventh in order of birth in a family of eight children, and those now living are: Mrs. Marie A. Casey, of Burlington, Vermont ; Miss Clementine Hornkohl, of Manistee; and Gustave A., Adolph G. and Alex C., also of Manistec. After completing the curriculum of the public schools of Manistee Alex C. Ilornkohl pursued a commercial course in the Manistee Business College. In 1901 he rented the bakery business from his father and continued to operate the same for a period of one year. He then sold the business to his father and ran the same until 1907, in which year he bought the business himself and since that time he has leased it out. The bakery is located on First and Grant streets and its greatly ex- tended business makes this concern one of the most important bakeries
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in this section of Michigan. Mr. Horukohl is also interested in the flour, grain and hay business, which is conducted under the title of Alex C. Hornkohl, and which carries on a large trade in carload lots, besides which he is also ineumbent of the position of president of the Manistee Glove Company.
Like his father before him, Alex C. Hornkohl has ever manifested a deep interest in public affairs. His father was for eight years a member of the Manistee board of aldermen and for eleven years he was . chief of the fire department. In politics Mr. Hornkohl, of this sketch, is aligned as a stanch supporter of the cause of the Democratic party and he has held many important offices of public trust and responsi- bility. Concerning him the following statements were made at the time when he was candidate for the office of county treasurer, in 1910. "In love for his home city Mr. Hornkohl has been excelled by none. He has always taken the lead in movements looking to the betterment of Manistee. This faet was recognized by his election to the office of vice-president of the board of trade when it was organized last spring. Mr. Hornkohl has done a great deal toward the growth of this organiza- tion during the past few months and has been prominent in the various lines of work earried on by the board of trade to seenre more factories for Manistee." Mr. Hornkohl has served the city in the capacity of city treasurer and his broad experience in financial and business affairs, together with his careful attention to the duties of the office, made him a model official. In 1910 he was candidate for the office of county treasurer and in the ensuing election was elected.
On the 29th of September, 1897, at Manistee, Michigan, Mr. Horn- kohl was united in marriage to Miss Lulu Mary Cole, a native of Oswego, New York, and a daughter of William Cole, who has been a resident of Manistee for some twenty-six years. To Mr. and Mrs. Hornkohl have been born five sons and one daughter, namely,-Alex C., Jr., William, Faye, George, Carl and Margret, all of whom were born in Manistee. In a fraternal way Mr. Hornkohl is prominent in Mich- igan Masonry, having passed through the circle of York Rite Masonry and holding membership in the Manistee Commandery, No. 43, Knights Templars. He is also an appreciative member of the Knights of Pythias, of the Elks, the Eagles, the Independent Order of Foresters and the Modern Romans.
DANIEL D. BRUCE, who is the owner of extensive real-estate property in Mikado and who has one hundred and sixty acres of farming lands in Alcona county, is the genial proprietor of the Bruce House at Mikado. This modern and well equipped hostlery was built by Mr. Bruce in 1886, and it is a commodious well furnished hotel, capable of accommodating as many as twenty guests. Mr. Bruce is a popular host and as a citizen is recognized for his impregnable integrity of character and deep and sincere interest in all matters of public import. He was born in the province of Ontario, Canada, on the 8th of April, 1857, and is a son of Duncan and Christina (Johnson) Bruce, both of whom were reared and educated in Scotland, whence they emigrated to the Dominion of Canada about the year 1844. In 1863 removal was made to Huron
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county, Michigan, and in 1869 the family home was established in north- ern Michigan. In 1873 location was made in Alcona county, where the father entered a tract of eighty acres of government land, which he improved and on which he farmed until his demise, which occurred in 1898. His widow survived him for several years and she was sum- moned to the life eternal in 1906. To Mr. and Mrs. Duncan Bruce were born six children : Elizabeth, now Mrs. P. J. McDonald; Mary, who is the wife of John McPerson and who resides at Mikado; Daniel D., who is the immediate subject of this review; Christina, who became the wife of A. W. Kenneddy and resides in Ionia county ; Jessie wedded Albert North, of Mikado; and Annie, is now Mrs. James Carham, of Oregon.
Daniel D. Bruce grew to years of maturity and was educated in the public schools of Huron and Alcona counties. After leaving school he passed a considerable portion of his time in the lumber camps, continu- ing to be variously identified with the lumber industry until 1886. In 1881 he purchased one hundred and twenty acres of land in and adja- cent to Mikado and when the village was laid out in 1887 it covered a portion of his holdings. He ploughed the ground for the main street and he now owns forty-two lots in the village, besides which he has two tracts, of eighty acres each, adjoining the village. He has ever· mani- fested the keen interest of a benefactor in the town of Mikado and shortly after its corporation he donated half an acre of land to Philip O. Part- ridge, upon which to build the first store house in the place. Mr. Bruce has been a continuons resident of Mikado since 1887. In his political adherency he accords a stanch allegiance to the principles and policies of the Republican party, in which he has been chairman of the county com- mittee. As public official he has given efficient service as highway con- missioner of the township. In 1886 Mr. Bruce. constructed his present fine hotel and the same has added materially to the progress and develop- ment of the place, attracting many travelers by reason of its excellent equipment.
In 1888 was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Bruce to Miss Mary A. McGillis and to this union have been born seven children, whose names are here entered in respective order of birth,-William W., Sarah A., Duncan D., Mary E., Lula C., Catherine L. and Daniel L., all of whom remain at the parental home. In their religious faith the Bruce family are devout members of the Presbyterian church at Mikado.
JOHN M. HARRIS, of Boyne City, probate judge of Charlevoix county, and one of the leading lawyers of northern Michigan, was born in On- tario, September 10, 1861. The success of his career has been achieved throughout by his own industry. As a boy he worked on the farm dur- ing the summer and attended school in the winter. At the age of sev- enteen he left Canada and in Charlevoix county, Michigan, worked as a carpenter and mason, and during the winter season taught school. He was principal of the schools at Ironton, and in 1888 became principal of the Boyne City school. During the five years he served in the schools here he read law with R. L. Corbett and in April, 1893, was admitted to the har. He began practice in July, 1893, and when Mr. Corbett was
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elected to the circuit bench Mr. Harris succeeded him, in 1893, as gen- eral attorney for W. HI. White Co., whose legal affairs are still en- trusted to Mr. Harris. In 1890 Mr. Harris was a member of the school board as examiner. In 1896 he was elected prosecuting attorney, serving two terms, and in 1900 was elected judge of probate, and has succeeded himself in this office to the present time. As probate judge he is active in the State Association of Probate Judges and served as president of the association one term. He is an active Republican.
Mr. Harris is a son of Chester and Mary Jane (Gray) Harris. His father was born in Pennsylvania in 1835 and died at Charlevoix in 1903, and the mother was born in Ontario in 1840 and died in 1904. They had two children, John M. and Mary, the wife of James M. Iseman. The father, who was taken to Ontario by his parents when he was young, spent his active life in lumbering and farming.
February 22, 1888, John M. Harris married Miss Nellie Noyes. She was born in Banks township, Antrim county, Michigan, a daughter of Amos and Hannah (Hardey) Noyes, both now deceased. Her father and mother were born near Rochester, New York, and her father was one of the early settlers at North Adams, Hillsdale county, Michigan, and in 1863 moved to northern Michigan, locating in Antrim county and taking up land in 1864. He later lived for a time in Charlevoix county, and in 1887 moved to Ironton, where he spent the rest of his life. In pol- itics he was a Democrat. He and his wife had three children. Seven children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Harris, five of whom are living: Bessie, wife of Fred Wenzel; Lyle, Kate, Helen and June. Mr. Harris affiliates with Boyne City Lodge No. 391, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, with Boyne City Chapter, Royal Arch Masons, and with the Knights of Pythias and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows.
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