USA > Michigan > A history of the northern peninsula of Michigan and its people; its mining, lumber and agricultural industries, Volume III > Part 60
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"With his command he did provost duty for about a year, and took part in numerous important engagements. On the 3rd of December, 1862, he participated in the battle of Tallahatchee, Mississippi; Holly Springs, December 16, 1862; and Parker's Cross Roads, Tennessee.
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He participated in the Vicksburg and Meridian campaigns; on the 3rd of November, 1863, he took part in the battle of Colliersville; De- cember 4, 1863, in Moscow; December 27, in Lafayette. His service in 1864 was arduous and he fought for the Union in many hotly con- tested battles, including Marion Station, February 9; Paducah, March 25; Decatur, Alabama, April 30; Cortland, July 26; the siege of At- lanta, in August; Jonesboro, August 31; and the siege of Savannah, in December. The war was now drawing to a close, yet ere the south was conquered much blood was yet to be shed and many homes made deso- late. In the last year of the war Dr. Phillips was in the battles of Salkehatchie, February 3; South Edisto, South Carolina, February 9, 1865; Orangeburg. South Carolina, February 12; Columbia, South Carolina, February 17; Cheran, in March; Fayetteville, North Carolina, March 12; Bentonville, North Carolina, March 21; and Raleigh on the 13th of April. He then took part in the Grand Review in Washington, the most brilliant military pageant ever seen on the western hemi- sphere, where wave after wave of bayonet-crested blue passed by the reviewing stand on which the president watched the victorious army. The Doctor was mustered out in Milwaukee in July, 1865, after four years of faithful service. He was wounded at Atlanta and Decatur, but as soon as possible he was again with his regiment, always found at his post of duty, valiantly defending the old flag which now floats tri- umphantly over the united nation."
After the close of his service as a gallant soldier of the Union, Dr. Phillips returned to his home in Wisconsin and in the autumn of 1865 he entered Lawrence University, at Appleton, where he continued his studies about one year. In the meantime he formulated definite plans for a future career, and in harmony with same he began reading medi- cine under the preceptorship of Dr. Hurlbut, of Appleton. Later he had the privilege of continuing his technical studies under the direction of Dr. John C. Noyes, of Oshkosh, Wisconsin, who had served as sur- geon of his regiment during the war. After due preliminary discipline of this order Dr. Phillips was matriculated in the celebrated Rush Medical College, in the city of Chicago, in which he was graduated as a member of the class of 1870. having received his well-earned degree of Doctor of Medicine on the 3rd of February of that year. He forth- with opened an office at Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, where he served his novitiate in his profession and where he remained until October, 1871. At Marinette, Wisconsin, after the great Peshtigo fire, he was commis- sioned by Governor Fairchild to take charge of the relief hospital in which the many injured in that disaster were cared for. In the sum- mer of 1872 Dr. Phillips removed to Menominee, where he has since been engaged in the active practice of his profession and where the success of his labors has amply attested his splendid skill as a physician and surgeon. He has continued at all times a close student and has kept in constant touch with the advances made in the sciences of medi- cine and surgery. He is a member of the American Medical Associa- tion, the Menominee River Medical Association, the Fox River Valley Medical Association, the Brainard Medical Society, and the Wisconsin State Medical Society. He was the president of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan Medical Society in 1908, served as vice-president of the Fox River Valley Medical Association, of Wisconsin, and in 1892 he was president of the Wisconsin State Medical Society. He has deliv- ered many able addresses before the various professional bodies with which he is thus identified and was appointed Professor of Surgical Anatomy and Operative Surgery of the Cadaver, of the Wisconsin Col-
1
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lege of Physicians and Surgeons, in the city of Milwaukee. For forty years he has held the office of surgeon for the Northwestern Railroad Company, for a considerable period he held a similar position with the Milwaukee & Northwestern Railroad Company, and has been president of the Board of Pensioning Examining Surgeons since 1872.
In his home city Dr. Phillips is affiliated with the lodge, chapter and commandery of the Masonic fraternity, in which he is also identified with the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine in the city of Grand Rapids, this state. He holds membership in Lyons Post, Grand Army of the Republic, of Menominee, of which he has served as surgeon and commander, and in which he has held other offices, ever showing a deep interest in his old comrades in arms. He has given an unfaltering allegiance to the Republican party from the attaining of his legal majority and has shown a lively interest in all that has contributed to the advancement of its principles and policies. For about sixteen years he was a valued member of the board of education of Menominee; for four years he represented the Second ward as a member of the city board of aldermen and for four years he had the distinction of holding the office of president of the city council. Concerning him the follow- ing words have been written: "Few men have exercised an equal in- fluence over the political, social and professional interests of Menominee and none deserves commendation of a higher order than does Dr. Phillips."
On the 21st of November, 1871, was solemnized the marriage of Dr. Phillips to Miss Olive J. Rogers, who was born in the city of Oshkosh, Wisconsin, on the 21st of November, 1851, and who is a daughter of the late George Rogers, a sterling pioneer of that city. Dr. and Mrs. Phil- lips have one child, Jessie R., who was graduated in the Northwestern University as a member of the class of 1894, and who is now Mrs. Fred Raper, of Menominee. Mrs. Phillips and her daughter are both de- voted members of the Presbyterian church.
ROBERT MCKEE .- It is with marked gratification that the publishers of this work present within its columns a brief review of the life his- tory of this sterling pioneer of Chippewa county, where he has main- tained his home for more than thirty years, and where he is the owner of a landed estate of more than five hundred acres, the greater portion of which is located in Bruce township. Robert McKee still resides upon his homestead farm and his postoffice address is Donaldson. He has contributed largely to the industrial development of this county, where he has been prominently identified with lumbering operations, as well as with the great basic industry of agriculture. He and his de- voted wife are well known in the county, where their circle of friends is limited only by that of their acquaintances.
Robert McKee, a scion of stanch Scotch-Irish ancestry, was born in Peterborough county, province of Ontario, Canada, on the 23d of Feb- ruary, 1837, and is a son of Samuel and Margaret (Roseborough) Mc- Kee, both of whom were natives of Ireland. The father was born in the county Donegal, and the mother in county Antrim. Their marriage was solemnized in the province of Ontario, Canada, and of their twelve children, seven are now living, the subject of this sketch being the eld- est of the number. Samuel McKee came to America in 1832, making the voyage on a sailing vessel and passing eleven weeks on the ocean. He landed in the city of Quebec and thence made his way to Peter- borough county, Ontario, where he instituted the reclamation of a farm from the wilderness and where he continued to reside until 1842, when
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he removed to Waterloo county, in the central part of the same prov- ince, where he repeated his pioneer experiences and reclaimed a farm from the forest wilds. He continued to be identified with agricultural pursuits during the residue of his active career and passed the closing years of his life in retirement in that county, where he died at the venerable age of seventy-six years; his wife was seventy-five years of age when she was summoned to the life eternal.
Robert McKee gained his early experiences in connection with the herculean work of the pioneer farm and his life during this period was far from being of sybaritic order. When but six years of age he found requisition for his services in chopping wood and he assisted materially in the reclaiming of the home farm to cultivation. He continued to re- side at the parental home until his marriage, in 1860, when he removed to Huron county, Ontario, where he was independently engaged in farming and stock-growing until 1878, when he came to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and numbered himself among the pioneers of Chippewa county. He secured a tract of land in Bruce township and on the same erected a saw mill, which was the first mill in the county located away from navigable waters. He has continued his identifica- tion with the lumbering business during all the intervening years and still operates his well equipped saw and planing mill. His landed es- tate comprises five hundred and twenty-five acres and his homestead farm of two hundred acres is well improved, one hundred acres of the tract having been reclaimed to cultivation by him, making the place one of the most valuable farms of the county. Upon establishing his home in Bruce township Mr. McKee erected a log cabin of the type common to the locality and period and this constituted the family home until 1904, when he erected his present commodious and substantial residence, which is modern in its design and equipment. Mr. McKee is a stanch Democrat in his political allegiance.
On the 18th of January, 1860, Mr. McKee was united in marriage to Miss Eliza Jane Lutherford, who was born in the province of On- tario, Canada, and who is a daughter of Samuel and Mary (Freeborn) Lutherford, both of whom were born in Ireland and both of whom passed the closing years of their lives in Ontario, where the father was a prosperous farmer. They had fourteen children. On the 18th of January, 1910, was marked the golden wedding anniversary of Mr. and Mrs. MeKee but the celebration of the event was held on New Year's day when, surrounded by their children and children's children. they duly observed the gracious occasion, while they received the con- gratulations and expressions of good will from their wide circle of friends in the community. Mr. and Mrs. McKee became the parents of ten children, of which six are living,-namely: Mary, who is the wife of John Taylor, of St. Ignace, Michigan; Agnes, the wife of George Aitkens, of Sault Ste. Marie, this state; John, who married Miss Jessie Fredericks, and who resides at Donaldson, Chippewa county; Mar- garet, who is the wife of Thomas Crawford, of Donaldson township: Susan, wife of Ephriam Sawyer; and George R. Mr. and Mrs. McKee have nine grandchildren.
WILLIAM L. PIERCE .- Possessing undoubted ability and integrity, William L. Pierce has been prominently identified with the business interests of Ironwood since its inception, although at the present time he is not a resident of the city, but is living near by, on his finely im- proved farming estate. A son of William J. Pierce, he was born March 13, 1843, at Sackett Harbor, New York, in Jefferson county.
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His grandfather, James Pierce, was born, reared and married in England. Emigrating with his family to America, he was a pioneer settler of Sheboygan county, Wisconsin, where he bought land, and from the forest cleared and improved a farm, upon which he resided until his death. To him and his wife, nine children were born and reared, as follows: William J., Jane, Henry, John, Richard, Melvin, George, Helen and Eliza.
William J. Pierce was born in England, and when a small child went to live with a family named Pease, who brought him to America when he was but nine years of age, locating in Jefferson county, New York. While there he learned the trade of candy-making, and followed it at Sackett Harbor until 1844. Coming then with his wife and their only child westward, he traveled by way of the Lakes to Wisconsin. Locat- ing in Sheboygan county, he bought a tract of timbered land about eleven miles from Sheboygan, and there, in the dim woods, erected a log cabin. Long before the days of conservation, he ruthlessly felled the giant progeny of the forest, and having rolled the huge logs into piles burned them, it being the only way to get rid of them. Game of all kinds was plentiful, especially wild pigeons. Laboring with willing hands, he cleared about one hundred and twenty acres of land, split- ting the rails with which he fenced his farm. Selling out at the end of twenty years, he moved to Onion River, where for five years, in partnership with Mr. Horneman, he was engaged in mercantile pursuits. Disposing of his store, he purchased a foundry at Sheboygan Falls, and after operating it successfully a number of years purchased a farm near by, and there resided until his death. He married Mary Ann Roberts, who was born in Maine, which was the birthplace of her par- ents. Her father, Shadrach Roberts, served as a soldier in the War of 1812. To Mr. Pierce and wife four children were born: William L., Charles W., Clarence S., and Alfred E.
Brought up in Sheboygan county, Wisconsin, William L. Pierce was taught to read and write in the rudely furnished log schoolhouse of his district, with its slab benches made of split basswood, having wooden sticks for legs, and no desks in front. As soon as stout enough to be put to work he began to assist his father in clearing the land and tilling the soil, later learning the miller's trade. In 1864 Mr. Pierce enlisted in Company G, Second Wisconsin Cavalry, which was assigned to the Western Army, went South and saw service in the states of Tennessee, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Arkansas. Serving with his regiments in camp and on the battlefield, he was honorably discharged with his com- rades at the close of the war. Soon after his return home, Mr. Pierce embarked in the mercantile business at Gibson, Wisconsin, and was soon appointed postmaster, serving in that capacity two years, when he sold out, and resigned his position. Purchasing then a half interest in a mill at Onion River, he operated it two and one-half years, and then bought out the mercantile firm in which his father was one of the part- ners, and for three years conducted a general store. Disposing then of his stock, Mr. Pierce moved to Pecatonica, purchased a steam grist mill, which he operated for ten years, when he sold out, and bought a mill at Newark, Rock county. Three years later Mr. Pierce sold that mill, moved back to Sheboygan county, Wisconsin, purchased a farm near his father's home, and was there engaged in tilling the soil until 1885, when he settled in Ironwood, Michigan. This entire section of the country was then a vast wilderness, and formed a part of Ontonagon county. Engaging in the real estate business, he became agent for the railroad company that owned the townsite selling town lots as rapidly
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as possible. He has since been active and influential in the upbuilding of the place. In 1887 he built the Opera House, which he still owns, and has likewise other property of value. Since 1905 he has resided on his farm, which is located in this township, but he still retains his interest in the welfare of the city.
Mr. Pierce married Helen Fanny Brigham. In his political relations he is a stanch Republican, and has served his constituents in various capacities. He was the second supervisor of the township, having been a member of the board when Gogebic county was organized, and has likewise represented the First ward as supervisor, and is now supervisor for the township.
HON. JUDD YELLAND, probate judge, living in Escanaba, Michigan, was born in Saline, Washtenaw county, Michigan, March 1, 1866. His father, Charles Yelland, was born in England, in 1821, and came to America in 1844, locating in the state of New York; later coming to Michigan about 1844 and locating in Washtenaw county about 1854. From there he removed to Livingston county, and is now a resident of Howell. Charles Yelland married May Staples, born in Quebec, Canada, of English parents ; she died at the age of seventy-three years. They were the parents of eight sons and three daughters, all of whom grew to maturity, the youngest of the family being Judd.
The boyhood of Judge Yelland was spent in Livingston county, and he received his education at Howell. He took his course in law at Ann Arbor, and was graduated in 1890. In 1889 he was admitted to the Michigan bar, but continued his course until graduation. He engaged in the practice of his profession at Howell, where he resided until 1891, and then came to Escanaba, where he continued in active practice. He formed a partnership known as Commiskey & Yelland, and afterward practised alone for some years.
He served two years as city attorney and four years as prosecuting attorney. He was elected judge of probate in November, 1908. Judge Yelland is a stanch Republican and active in the interests of the party. He has always taken a keen interest in public affairs, and is a public-spirited, representative citizen. He has become well known in the community, where he is highly esteemed. Judge Yell- and has a host of friends and stands high in his profession. In 1903 he married Maud Graham, and they have one son, Harlan J.
ANDREW STANTON GILL .- A man of much force of character, hon- est, upright and eminently trustworthy, Andrew Stanton Gill is well known throughout the Upper Peninsula as an efficient officer of the United States Government, being inspector of customs at Sault Ste. Marie. A son of Andrew B. Gill, he was born September 24, 1882, at Byng Inlet, Ontario.
Born in the province of Ontario, Canada, in 1844, Andrew B. Gill learned the trade of a millwright in his native land, and there superin- tended the building of various mills. Migrating with his family to Michigan in the early '80s, he located at Bay Mills, Chippewa county, Michigan, where he was superintendent of a sawmill for a time. He subsequently built the pulp loader near Brimley, Chippewa county, installing the machine that cut and loaded the pulp wood on the boats. Going to Marquette, Michigan. in the spring of 1893, he remained there a short time, and then settled in Ontonagon, Michigan, where, in the employ of the Diamond Manufacturing Company, he superintended the making of match wood. Returning to Sault Ste. Marie, he was for
Rudd Helland.
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awhile connected with the Edison Electric Company in 1896, building the Carbide works. Retiring from active work in 1899, he spent the last year of his life in leisure, passing away in 1900. He married Mary Jane Stanton, who was born near Chesterfield, England, and is now living in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. Six children were born to them, four of whom survive, as follows: Bernice, wife of William C. Hicks, of Lansing, Michigan; Katherine, wife of A. L. Wood, of New York City; Andrew Stanton, the subject of this sketch; and Robert, who married Ella Walz, of Pickford, Michigan. Both parents united with the Episcopal church when young. Politically the father was a sound Republican, and fraternally he belonged to Bethel Lodge, No. 358, F. & A. M.
Spending his youthful days with his parents, Andrew Stanton Gill attended first the Marquette schools, continuing his studies in Sault Ste. Marie. After coming to this city he worked during his summer vaca- tions for the old Michigan State Telephone Company and the Edison Electric Company, gaining a good reputation for industry and thrift, and acquiring in the meantime some spending money. After complet- ing his studies, he obtained a situation in the freight department of the Duluth, South Shore and Atlantic Railroad Company, working in the office under F. E. Ketchem until 1904. In that year Mr. Gill was ap- pointed inspector of customs at Sault Ste. Marie, and has since served most faithfully in this position. Inheriting the politics and religion of his father, Mr. Gill is a straightforward Republican, and a member of the Episcopal church.
Mr. Gill married June 15, 1903, Mae Van Wyck, who was born in Meaford, Ontario, a daughter of Gilbert F. and Elizabeth (Smith) Van Wyck, natives of Canada. She is one of a family of four children, of whom but two are living, her elder brother, Albert Van Wyck, of Minneapolis, Minnesota, and herself. Mr. and Mrs. Gill have two chil- dren, Mary Elizabeth and Robert Albert.
HON. AUGUST C. COOK .- Among the men that are meeting with suc- cess in the legal profession in the Upper Peninsula is Hon. August C. Cook, of Iron Mountain, senior member of the well-known firm of Cook & Pelham. Talented and cultured, he has a vigorous mentality that enables him to retain whatever legal knowledge he acquires from books or from any other source, this learning becoming a part of his equip- ment and ready for use at any demand. He was born May 12, 1857, at Mulhausen, Prussia, the home of his ancestors for several generations, and where his grandparents spent their entire lives.
Christian Cook, his father, was born, reared and educated in Mul- hausen, and as a young man learned to make shoes by hand, that be- ing the only way then known. He followed his trade in his native land until 1867, when, accompanied by his wife and six children, he emi- grated to America, and for about twenty years thereafter worked at his trade in Marquette, Michigan. Going then to Wrightstown, Wis- consin, he was there a resident until his death, November 29, 1896. He married Mary Hill, who was born in Mulhausen, Prussia, and died in March, 1901. To them six children were born and reared, as follows : Matilda, wife of Nicholas King, of Seattle, Washington; Martha, wife of Henry W. Potter, of Eureka, California; Dorothea, wife of Joseph Jackson, of San Jose, California; Mary, wife of Carl Regolin, of Ap- pleton, Wisconsin ; August C., the special subject of this sketch; and Emma, wife of Fred H. Hunter, of Appleton, Wisconsin.
Obtaining his early schooling in his native village, August C. Cook Vol. III-27
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completed his elementary education in the public schools of Marquette, Michigan. At the age of eighteen years he began the study of law in the office of E. J. Mapes, of Marquette, and subsequently continued his studies under the tuition of W. P. Healy. Being admitted to the Michigan bar in 1879, Mr. Cook located soon after in Norway, which was then included within the limits of Menominee county, and was there engaged in the active practice of his profession until 1889, when he removed to Iron Mountain. Continuing the partnership which he had previously formed with Mr. Herbert W. Pelham, he has here built up an extensive and remunerative general practice, and is especially strong in his interpretation of chancery laws.
Mr. Cook has been twice married. He married first, in 1880, Cather- ine J. Flannigan, a daughter of James and Mary Flannigan. She was born in Ontonagon, Michigan, and died in Norway, Michigan, January 7, 1883. Mr. Cook subsequently married Anne W. Bolen, who was born in New York, where her parents, Michael and Mary Bolen, were early settlers, emigrating there from Ireland, their native country. By his first marriage Mr. Cook became the father of two children, Matthew F. and Catherine J., and by his second marriage has two children also, John J. and A. Clarence. Matthew F. Cook prepared for college in the public schools. But instead of entering college, as he had intended, he thought he would recuperate his strength by a year of travel, and went accord- ingly, to the Pacific coast, and in June of that year was accidentally drowned at Seattle, Washington. Catherine J. is the wife of W. H. Crago, of Duluth, Minnesota. John J. is a student in the University of Michigan, while Clarence, the youngest child, is attending the Iron Mountain High School.
An earnest supporter of the principles of the Republican party, Mr. Cook made his first appearance in the political arena in 1885, when he was elected supervisor of Norway township. In 1889 and 1890 he was prosecuting attorney for Menominee county, and when in 1891, Dickinson county was organized, he was elected prosecuting attorney of the new county, a position which he has filled for about ten years. He has represented his ward as an alderman in the City Council of Iron Mountain, and in 1895 was elected to the State Legislature.
ROBERT C. HENDERSON .- Devoting his time and energies to the suc- cessful prosecution of his chosen calling, Robert C. Henderson occupies a noteworthy position among the active and prosperous law- yers of Norway, where he has been engaged in the practice of law for several years. He was born, September 15, 1871, in Altoona, Penn- sylvania, a son of William W. Henderson. His paternal grandfather, Edward Henderson, was born and bred in Scotland. Coming to America when young, he located in Juniata county, where he con- tinned at the ship carpenter's trade, which he had learned in the old country, until his death.
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