USA > Michigan > Cass County > A twentieth century history of Cass County, Michigan > Part 72
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EDD W. EASTON.
Edd W. Easton operates and occupies a fine farm of two hundred and twenty acres, pleasantly situated on section 21, Silver Creek town- ship. It was upon this farm that his birth occurred on the 17th of Febru- ary, 1861. Throughout his entire life he has lived in Silver Creek town- ship and has become widely recognized as an enterprising, progressive agriculturist, whose business interests are capably conducted and who in all his dealings is upright and reliable. His father, Thomas Easton, was a native of Kentucky and came to Michigan with his parents when a boy. locating in Berrien county, where he was reared amid pioneer surround- ings. Wlien a young man he removed to Cass county and was married
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here to Miss Emily Ilinchman, a native of Virginia, who came with her parents to this state in her early girlhood days. Following their mar- riage Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Easton located on Section 21, Silver Creek township, where the husband devoted his time and energies to general agricultural pursuits, placing his land under a high state of cultivation and developing an excellent farm. He continued in active farm work until his life's labors were ended in death, when he was in his seventy- hfth year. Ile is still survived by his wife, who is one of the worthy pioneer women of the county. In their family were four children, three sons and a daughter, namely: Dr. W. W. Easton, who is living in Dowagiac; Jennie, the widow of William Allen, also a resident of Dowagiac ; Dr. J. M. Easton, of Decatur ; and Edd W., of this review.
The youngest of the family, Edd W. Easton, was reared under the parental roof upon the farm where he now resides, and pursued his edu- cation in the common schools of the township. When not busy with his text-books or engaged with the pleasures of the playground his atten- tion was given to the work of the farm, and in early life he became familiar with the best methods of cultivating the soil and caring for the crops. He remained at home until his marriage, which was celebrated on the 14th of October, 1883, the lady of his choice being Miss Florence Mason, a daughter of A. H. and Temperance ( Cross ) Mason, the former a native of New York and the latter of Canada. They came to Cass county in an early day, being among the first settlers of Dowagiac. The father is a carpenter by trade but has conducted a hotel and planing mill and has been closely associated with the business development of his adopted city. Mrs. Easton was born in Dowagiac August 7, 1862, and is the seventh in order of birth in a family of nine children. She re- mained with her parents during the days of her girlhood and is indebted to the public school system of her native city for the educational priv- ileges which she enjoyed. At the time of their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Easton located npon the farm where he has since resided with the excep- tion of a brief period spent in Dowagiac. He has here two hundred and twenty acres of land belonging to his mother. He has placed the farm under a high state of cultivation and it richly repays his efforts in splendid crops which the fields annually yield. Everything about the place is kept up in good condition and its neat and thrifty appearance indicates the careful supervision of a practical and progressive owner.
Unto Mr. and Mrs. Easton have been born two daughters. May, who finished the eleventh grade in the Dowagiac city school, took the normal course in 1906, and also has taken instrumental music. She will take charge of District No. Six in Silver Creek. Alina, the youngest, is in the fourth grade. The family is well known in the community and have many warm friends here. Mr. Easton is an earnest Repnh- lican in his political views, and in 1904 was elected to the office of supervisor of his township, in which capacity he served for a year. He has been a school director for a number of years, and the cause of edu-
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cation finds in him a warm friend. In fact he is a recognized supporter of all progressive movements, and his co-operation has been of value in measures for the public good. Ile belongs to the Knights of the Mac- cabees at Dowagiac. He has known no other home than Cass county nor has he wished to change his place of residence. The lives of such men are an indication of the attractiveness of the county as a place of residence and of the opportunities liere afforded to the citizens, for were conditions otherwise enterprising men like Mr. Easton would seek homes elsewhere. On the contrary they recognize that they have good ad- vantages here and they are always laboring to promote the welfare and progress of the county, while at the same time carefully conducting pri- vate business interests.
HON. HENRY B. WELLS.
Hon. Heury B. Wells, whose position in public regard has long been a creditable and enviable one and who has been entrusted with various duties of a public nature, showing the confidence reposed in him by his fellow townsmen, makes his home on Section 28, Wayne township, where he conducts and cultivates a farm of two hundred acres. Its excellent improvements are indicative of his progressive spirit, which has been manifest in all the associations of public and private life.
Mr. Wells is a native of the state of New York, his birth having occurred in Otsego county on the 4th of February, 1829. His father, Werden Wells, was a native of Rhode Island and a son of Joshua Wells, who was a son of one of seven brothers who came from England and, settling in Rhode Island, established the town of Wellsville. When a young lad Werden Wells accompanied his parents on their removal front New England to Otsego county, New York, where he acquired his edu- cation and was married. In early life he learned the trade of a harness- maker and continued in that business for a number of years. Ile wedded Miss Julia Baker. a daughter of Henry Baker and a native of Otsego county. New York, where they began their domestic life, remaining there for a number of years. In 1835, however, the father brought his family to Michigan, making his way to Kalamazoo county, where he took up government land in Charleston township. It was wild and unimproved, but he at once began its cultivation and developed therefrom a good farm, which he made his place of residence until he was called to the home be- yond, when about eighty-five years of age. His first wife died when forty-five years of age and he afterward wedded Mrs. Elipha Filkins, a widow. There were ten children born of the father's first marriage and two of the second marriage. Of the first family only three are now living.
Henry B. Wells, the second child and second son born of that union, was a youth of seven years when he accompanied his parents to Kalamazoo county, where he remained until nineteen years of age. He then came to Cass county in 1848 to enter upon an independent business
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career here. Ile had mastered the branches of learning taught in the little log schoolhouses of the early days and feeling the necessity of providing for his own support, following his removal to this county, he at once began working for the Michigan Central Railroad Company at or near Dowagiac. Ile was employed as station hand at Decatur, and about 1851 he took the contract for loading piles for the railroad com- pany, which supplied him with an engine and train. He afterward made arrangements to run a construction train for the company and continued in that department of the railroad service until 1854, when he was called upon to take charge of the construction of the St. Mary ship canal, which was to be completed by the following May. He pushed the work for- ward so vigorously that he had fulfilled the terms of the contract by December of the same year. In 1905, fifty years after the work was completed, he made a visit to the canal. Following its building he re- turned to the Michigan Central Railroad Company, which he repre- sented as wood and lumber inspector for a number of years. He was afterward made conductor on a regular train of that line running from Marshall to Chicago, in which capacity he served for about fifteen years. Each step in his career has been a forward one. He has eagerly watched his opportunities for advancement and his capable service, unflagging in- dustry and promptness in the discharge of his duties won him recog- nition and gained him promotion. Ambitious, however. to engage in business on his own account, he at length left the railroad company and with the money which he had saved from his own earnings he em- barked in merchandising at Dowagiac, opening a general store in 1866. He continued in that business for four years and was then in the grain trade for about six years. In 1876 he located upon the farm which he had purchased in 1849 and which he had carried on in connection with the management of his other business interests from the time that it had come into his possession. During a part of that period he had also made his home upon the farm. He is now giving his undivided attention to agricultural pursuits and is the owner of two hundred acres of land which is rich and productive. The fields annually return good harvests and there are modern improvements upon the place which indicate a pro- gressive spirit.
In December, 1854. Mr. Wells was married to Miss Phebe Carr, a daughter of Cary and Eliza ( Hazlett) Carr. Mrs. Wells was born in the Empire state but was brought to Cass county when eleven years of age and has resided here continuously since. They now have two living children, a son and daughter : Alice, the wife of Judge Harry B. Tuthill, of Michigan City, Indiana. : and Elbert C .. who is in the mail service on the railroad and makes his home in Grand Rapids.
Mr. Wells is a stanch Republican, having supported the party con- tinuously since its organization. He voted for Fillmore in 1852, for Fremont in 1856 and Lincoln in 1860 and he has since supported each presidential nominee of the party. He has been township treasurer and
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supervisor for six years and held other local offices. 111 1800 ne was elected to the legislature to represent the northern district of Cass county and in that position as in local offices he was found worthy the trust reposed in him, discharging his duties with credit to himself and satisfaction to his constitutents. In the Congregational church at Dow- agiac m which he holds membership he has filled most of the offices, acting as treasurer, trustee and in other positions and co-operating in miany movements for the extension of the influence of the church and its power as a moral force in the community. He has been a continuous resident of Cass county for fifty-seven years, active in all things per- taining to its good, and now in the evening of hie, for he has passed the seventy-seventh milestone on life's journey, he receives the venera- tion and respect which should ever be accorded those of similar years whose career has been characterized by all that is honorable and straight- forward.
F. H. ROSS.
The German poet, Goethe, has said, "Merit and success go linked together," and this statement finds verification in the life record of F. Il. Ross, who by his diligence and unabating energy acquired the compe- tence that now enables him to live retired in the enjoyment of well- earned ease at his pleasant home in Dowagiac. He was born in Essex, New York, August 3, 1834, a son of Henry H. Ross, who was also a native of that county. The paternal grandfather, Daniel Ross, was born in Rosshire, Scotland, and following his emigration to the new world became a manufacturer at Essex, New York, where he was connected with the operation of iron works and also the conduct of a lumber indus- try. Henry H. Ross followed the acquirement of his literary educa- tion by the study of law and became a practicing attorney in the village of Essex, New York, where his last days were passed. He was one of the electors on the presidential ticket when Zachary Taylor was chosen chief executive of the nation. His ability in the trial of important law cases won him prominence and enabled him to command high fees. For a single case he received ten thousand dollars. His mind was keenly analytical, logical and inductive and he had comprehensive knowledge of the principles of jurisprudence and displayed great accuracy in their application to the points at issue. He filled the office of judge of the circuit court in New York and was also a general of the state militia. serving as aid-de-camp on the staff of General McComb, at the battle of Platsburg. He lived to be seventy-two years of age and was regarded as one of the most prominent and honored men in his portion of the Empire state. His wife bore the maiden name of Susanna Blanchard and was a daughter of Judge Blanchard of Salem, New York, who was of French Huguenot descent and became a distinguished attorney of the Empire state. Mrs. Ross was also a representative of the family of Dr. Proudfoot, who was a noted Presbyterian minister. She was reared and
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educated in Salem, which was the place of hier birth and she lived to be seventy-two years of age. In the family were seven children, two daugh- ters and five sons, all of whom reached adult age, while the daughters and two of the sons are yet living, namely: John, who resides in Platts- burg, New York, where he is connected with manufacturing interests ; Frances Ellen ; and one daughter who is living in New York City.
F. H. Ross of this review was the third in order of birth of the seven children. He acquired a common school education in Essex and was graduated at Burlington College. He studied law but on account of his eyesight was compelled to relinquish the plan of following the profession and came west to Detroit, where he entered upon his business career as a clerk in a hardware store. In 1860 he removed to Dowagiac and established a hardware business on his own account, conducting the same with success until 1886, when he disposed of his stock and turned his attention to the real estate, loan and insurance business, in which he soon secured a good clientage, continuing in that business until 1901, when he retired altogether from active connection with commercial or industrial interests. He won a fair amount of prosperity in his under- takings and in fact accumulated capital sufficient to now enable him to rest in the enjoyment of his fruits of his former toil, having all of the necessities and comforts and some of the luxuries of life.
Mr. Ross was married in 1859 to Miss Frances Dixon, daughter of Captain William Dixon, of Burlington, Vermont. She was born in that city, where her girlhood days were passed and her education was acquired. Two children have blessed this union: Frances Minnie, at home; and Susanna D., who became the wife of R. W. Sheldon and died, leaving a son, Frederick R., who is the only grandchild of Mr. and Mrs. Ross. ยท In his political affiliation Mr. Ross is independent, voting for the candi- dates whom he regards at best qualified for office. He has served as president of the village board, but has never been an office seeker and has refused to become a candidate. He belongs to the Masonic frater- nity, in which he has attained the Royal Arch degree. For many years he has been identified with the interests of Dowagiac, his residence here covering four decades. The town contained only about seven hundred inhabitants when he arrived, and from that time to the present he has been closely associated with its business interests and its material, in- tellectual, moral and social progress. His life has been actuated hy no mad rush for wealth, for he has heen content with a fair share of the world's goods and is now enjoying life in well-earned rest.
CHIARLES T. AMSDEN.
Charles T. Amsden, the secretary of the Dowagiac Gas & Fuel Company and also partner in a grocery enterprise of this city. possesses excellent business and executive ability that have gained him prominence and won his success in his business operations. He was horn in Red
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Wing, Minnesota, on the 3Ist of October, 1856. The ancestral home of the family in this country was in New York and one of its representa- tives served as a soldier in the war of 1812. The Amsdens came of English lineage. George W. Amsden, the father of our subject, was born in New York and came to Michigan in 1857, while at the present writ- ing, in 1905, he is living in Baldwin, Kansas. Following the occupa- tion of farming throughout his entire business career, he located on a farm in Wayne township when he took up his abode in Cass county and while residing here served as supervisor of Wayne township for a number of years. He was at one time an active and valued member of the Masonic fraternity and his political support has long been given to the Republican party. He now makes his home in Baldwin, Kansas, at the age of eighty years. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Caroline Turner, is a native of Ohio. She belongs to the Congregational church. In their family were seven children: Israel, deceased; Charles T., of this review; Israel, the second of the name, who has also passed away; Lois, the wife of Roland E. Morse, a grocery merchant of Dowagiac: Clara, the wife of William Stillwell, a farmer of Ocosto, Washington; Ida, the wife of A. C. Vaughan, who is also a farmer of Ocosto; and Daniel C., who is engaged in the hardware business at Dinuba, California.
Mr. 'Amsden of this review was reared to farm life and early became familiar with the duties and labors that fall to the lot of the agricult- urist. He was only about a year old when brought by his parents to Michigan and he pursued his education in the schools of Cassopolis, after which he engaged in teaching school for four years. He then became connected with mercantile interests as a clerk in the employ of Mosher & Palmer, grocers of Dowagiac, with whom he remained for four years. He then embarked in the grocery business on his own account in association with James P. Bond, and that partnership was maintained for four years. In 1888 Mr. Amsden and Julius Becraft purchased the Dowagiac Republican and in the second year thereafter Mr. Amsden retired and embarked in the grocery business in connection with Roland E. Morse, with whom he is still associated, their business being a profitable enterprise of the city. In 1891 the Dowagiac Gas & Fuel Company was organized and the following year the plant was installed. Mr. Amsden has been secretary and manager since that time and devotes the greater part of his attention to the duties of this office in connection with the management of the interests of the gas company. which has given to its patrons good service and is a valued industrious enterprise of the city.
In 1882 Mr. Amsden was united in marriage to Mrs. Susan E. Jewel, a native of Cass county and a daughter of John N. and Mary A. (Bonnell) Jewel. Her father was a farmer by occupation. In his fraternal relations Mr. Amsden is a Mason, having attained high rank in the craft. for he is now a Knight Templar and a Shriner. He also
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belongs to the Elks lodge, the Knights of the Maccabees, the Legion of Honor and the Knights of Pythias. In politics he is an unfaltering Republican, and has served for two terms as city treasurer, as city clerk for one term and as alderman for the second ward for two terms. In the discharge of his official duties he displays the same fidelity and care which are manifest in the management of his private business interests and in Dowagiac he has a wide and favorable acquaintance resulting from a genial manner and an upright life.
THEODORE F. WILBER.
Theodore F. Wilber, an honored veteran of the Civil war, who enlisted in defense of the Union when only seventeen years of age, is now living in Dowagiac. He was born in Seneca county, New York, at the family home on the west bank of Cayuga Lake, June 12, 1846. His father, Gideon S. Wilber, was also a native of Seneca county, where he resided until 1854, when with his family he came to the middle west, settling first on a farm in Wayne township, Cass county, where he lived for about a year. In the spring of 1855 he bought a farm in La Grange township, removed to that property and continued to make his home there throughout his remaining days. His entire life was devoted to general agricultural pursuits and he tilled the fields and cultivated the crops until his life's labors were ended, being a dili- gent, energetic man. He was also a public-spirited citizen and his fellow townsmen, recognizing his worth and loyalty, frequently called him to positions of trust and responsibility. He held many offices during the years of his residence in this county. He was superintend- ent of the poor for about fifteen years and was deputy sheriff for two years. He gave his political allegiance to the Republican party from the time of its organization, watched with interest the progress of events in the south prior to the Civil War and when the Republican party was formed to meet existing conditions, he joined its ranks and was one of its most loyal advocates. For forty years he was a reader of the semi-weekly New York Tribune and at one time was the only subscriber to the paper in this part of the country. He was well known in the county as a man of public spirit, interested in everything relating to the material, intellectual and moral as well as political progress of the community, and he assisted in building three different churches, although he did not ally himself with any denomination. He was, how- ever, a man of high moral principles and genuine worth who was re- liable in business affairs and at all times commanded and merited the confidence and esteem of those with whom he came in contact. He married Miss Louisa M. Hause, also a native of Seneca county, New York, and a daughter of John Hause, whose birth occurred in the Em- pire state and who died in Cass county at the age of eighty-three years. The death of Gideon Wilber occurred when he had reached the vener-
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able age of eighty-five years. In his family were five children, one daugh- ter and four sons, all of whom are living with one exception.
Theodore F. Wilber, the second child and eldest son, was about eight years of age when brought by his parents to Michigan and has since remained a resident of Cass county. He began his education in the public schools of New York and continued his studies in the district schools of LaGrange township. Through the summer months he aided in the work of the fields and remained at home until seventeen years of age, wlieu, in response to his country's need, he enlisted as a private of Company MI, First Michigan Cavalry, in 1863. With that command he served until the close of the war and was then sent among the Indians on the frontier to aid in the suppression of the uprising's among the red race. He thus did duty in the far west until March, 1806, after serving for nearly three years. Ile was ever a faithful and loval soldier, never faltering in the performance of any duty that devolved upon him whether it led him to the firing line, stationed him on the lonely picket line or called him to the frontier.
When the war ended Mr. Wilber returned to his old home in La- Grange township and resumed farming on his father's place. He gained intimate knowledge of the best methods of tilling the soil and caring for the crops and was thus well qualified to carry on farm work on his own account when he established a home for himself. He was married on the 24th of December, 1868, to Miss Fannie Jennings, a daughter of Milton and Margaret ( Burns) Jennings. Her father was born in Connecticut. Her mother died when Mrs. Wilber was only two years old. There were three children in the family, the eldest being Charles, who en- listed for service as a soldier in the Civil war and was killed in battle. The elder daughter. Martha, is now deceased, leaving Mrs. Wilber, the youngest member of the family, as the only one now surviving with the exception of a half sister, for the father was married twice. Mr. and Mrs. Wilber have one son, Fred J., who is a civil engineer, who was graduated on the completion of the engineering course in the Michigan state university at .Ann Arbor in 1900 and is now located in Buffalo, New York.
Mr. Wilber is executor for the father's estate. comprising two hun- dred and sixty acres of land. and in the management of this property dis- plays good business ability and executive force. He belongs to H. C. Gilbert Post. G. A. R., of Dowagiac, and is now senior vice commander. He has always taken an active part in the work of the Grand Army of the Republic and is a stalwart advocate of the principles upon which this order is based. He enjoys recounting incidents of army life around its campfires amid the genial companionship of his old army comrades. He was but seventeen years of age when he enlisted and twenty years of age when honorably discharged and was therefore not a voter until one year after he had completed his term of military service. His first presidential ballot was cast for General Grant and he has always been
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