Biographical history of northern Michigan containing biographies of prominent citizens, Part 108

Author:
Publication date: 1905
Publisher: Indianapolis : B.F. Bowen
Number of Pages: 966

USA > Michigan > Biographical history of northern Michigan containing biographies of prominent citizens > Part 108

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

At Ravenna, Michigan, Mr. Porter was united in marriage with Miss Phila A. Knowles, and to them have been born two sons, who are both employed in their fa-

831

NORTHERN MICHIGAN.

ther's mill. One of the public-spirited citi- zens of the county and ever ready to aid in all things that tend to the public weal, Mr. Porter is enjoying a splendid standing among his fellow citizens.

ORIN B. ROOT.

For the high rank of her bench and bar Michigan has always been distinguished, and it is gratifying to note that in no sec- tion of the commonwealth has the standard been lowered in any epoch of its history. To the subject of this review, who is en- gaged in practice in the city of Petoskey, we may refer with propriety and satisfaction as being one of the able and representative young members of the legal profession in the state. He has prepared himself most care- fully for the work of his exacting profession and has ever been ambitious and self-reli- ant, gaining success and securing his tech- nical training through his own determina- tion and well-directed efforts. In addition to controlling an excellent law business, he is also incumbent of the office of circuit court commissioner for Emmet county.

The old Buckeye state figures as the place of Mr. Root's nativity, since he was born in the city of Elyria, Lorain county, on the 29th of January, 1870. He is a son of Joseph and Mary (Stranahan) Root, both of whom were likewise born and reared in Ohio. Joseph Root was a farmer by voca- tion, and his death occurred at the National Soldiers' Home in Dayton, Ohio. He was a valiant soldier in the Union army during the war of the Rebellion, having been a member of the regiment which was com- manded by Colonel Rutherford B. Hayes,

who later served as President of the United States. The parents of our subject removed from Ohio to Eaton county, Michigan, in the early '70s, and here the mother died when the boy was about five years old, his father passing away a few months later. Of the ten children born to this worthy couple Orin B. is the eighth in order of birth.

Mr. Root lived on a farm in Eaton county, Michigan, until he was about thir- teen years of age, early beginning to assist in the work of the place, while his prelimi- nary educational training was secured in the district schools. After leaving the county mentioned he passed about three years on a farm in Manistee county, and about 1886 he came to Emmet county, where he became associated with his brother-in-law in the hemlock-bark business, with headquarters at Alanson. He continued to be identified with this line of enterprise about seven years, at the expiration of which he came to Petos- key and entered the Petoskey Normal Acad- emy, in which he prosecuted his studies for one and one-half years, being determined to secure a liberal education and to fit himself for a wider sphere of usefulness. After teaching one term of school he entered the Harris Industrial School, at Big Rapids, re- maining a student in this institution for one vear. He then returned to Petoskey. where he was for a few months employed in the office of the judge of probate. He then lo- cated again in Alanson, where he was asso- ciated with his brother-in-law in the lumber business for the following two years. He then turned his attention to the manufactur- ing of wooden ware, in Petoskey, continuing to be identified with the enterprise about eighteen months, and then, in the autumn of 1899. matriculated in the law department of the University of Michigan, having pre-

832

BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY OF

viously taken up the study of law in a private way. He was graduated as a member of the class of 1902, and was simultaneously admitted to the bar of the state. Immedi- ately after his graduation Mr. Root returned to Petoskey and opened an office, and his energy, ability and personal popularity have together conspired to gain to him a repre- sentative clientage, so that his novitiate in his profession has been of brief duration, while his business is a substantial one and is constantly expanding in scope. In the au- tumn of 1902 he was elected circuit-court commissioner, and has since remained in- cumbent of this office, giving a most dis- criminating and satisfactory administration of its affairs. Mr. Root is a stanch advo- cate of the principles and policies of the Re- publican party and is an active worker in its local ranks, while he has shown a lively interest in educational affairs and in other matters pertaining to the well-being of the community. He is affiliated with the Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows and the Knights of the Maccabees. He has made judicious investments in real estate in north- ern Michigan, and is an alert, enterprising and reliable business man and a worthy rep- resentative of the legal profession.

On the 4th of May. 1897, in Petoskey, Mr. Root was united in marriage to Miss Annie Watts, who was born in England, whence she came as a child to the United States, being a daughter of Charles and Mary (Hill) Watts.

JOSEPH CAUCHON.

There are many residents of French Ca- radian blood scattered throughout northern Michigan and they have proved our sturdi- est and most progressive citizens, being in

the vanguard of all movements looking to the advancement of the best interests of the region. The subject of this sketch was born in the county of Portneuf, province of Que- bec, Canada, and is the son of Charles Cauchon. The family has for many years been one of the prominent French families of Quebec and it is worthy of note that Sir Joseph Cauchon, governor of Manitoba, and Sir John McDonald, his principal aide, were cousins of the subject. Joseph Cau- chon was reared to manhood in his native country and there worked on a farm until twenty-five years old, receiving no educa- tion to speak of. In 1894 he came to Michi- gan and went into the timber camps, but a few years later he engaged in lumbering in Montmorency, Oscoda and Otsego counties, buying the land and then cutting and selling the timber from the same, and afterwards selling the cleared land to farmers. He did a large business, employing about twenty- five men. Retiring from that business, he then engaged in the real estate, mortgage, loan and banking business at Lewiston, and in 1903 he purchased the Quebec Hotel, tak- ing possession of it the following year. This is now one of the leading and popular hotels in this section of the state and the subject has gained a wide reputation as a successful caterer to the wants and needs of the traveling public. In 1903 he purchased the Northern Michigan Telephone Line, of which he is now the efficient treasurer and manager. At the time he assumed control there were but two phones in connection, while now there are about fifty connections and many new applications for service. Mr. Cauchon has been the prime spirit in this en- terprise and its success is largely due to his sound judgment and executive ability.

The subject married Miss Alphonsine Lefebvre, of Quebec, Canada, and they be-

833

NORTHERN MICHIGAN.

came the parents of two sons, Joseph L. and Arthur, who are associated in business with their father and are able and popular young men. This wife died five years afterward and he was later married to Miss Mary Desanges Darveau, also of Quebec. As a citizen the subject easily ranks with the most enterprising and progressive in the commun- ity and, in all that constitutes upright man- hood and true citizenship he has long been conspicuous in this section.

A. S. ROSE.

The subject of this sketch has been an actual eye-witness of the wonderful growth and development which has characterized northern Michigan during the past two dec- ades, and has himself played an important part in the drama. Mr. Rose is a native of Sullivan county. New York, and is the son of William and Jeanette (Stewart) Rose, the latter a native of Scotland, while the sub- ject's paternal ancestors have long been res- idents of this country, his grandfather hav- ing served during the Revolutionary war as a scout on detached duty along the Delaware river. William Rose came to this county in March, '1872, and settled on land here, and it was because of his illness that the sub- ject came here on the 26th of the following September. A sight of the pine and hard- wood timber here so favorably impressed him that he decided to make this his future home and has since then continuously resided here. He began lumbering and in 1876 erected a mill and acquired considerable timber land. When the county was organ- ized, in 1876, he was elected register of deeds, holding the office for two terms. In

1880 he was elected county treasurer, hold- ing the office for one term, and in 1875 he was appointed postmaster of Rose City, be- ing the incumbent of this position for eight- een years. He was also county agent for the board of corrections and charities for two years. In 1892 he was elected a mem- ber of the state legislature, and was re- elected in 1894. During his second term he was honored by the chairmanship of the committee on ways and means, one of the most important committees in the legisla- ture. During the long period of twenty- nine years he served as justice of the peace, certainly a testimonial to his hon- esty, integrity and ability. It may be men- tioned in passing that the city of Rose City was named in his honor and that upon its organization as a city, in 1905. he was elected as its first mayor. During eighteen years of his residence here Mr. Rose con- ducted a merchandise business, selling as high as sixty thousand dollars' worth of goods a year. That was in the days of the great lumber camps, and yet even at the present time his successor's sales now aver- age two hundred and fifty dollars per day. Rose City has the reputation of handling more goods than any other town of the same size in the state. It is surrounded with a fine and well settled agricultural country and the town is rapidly growing, so that the future outlook is full of promise. Mr. Rose, who platted the original town site in 1892, still owns all the vacant land on the west side of Main street. besides houses and a fine residence and several store buildings.

During the dark days of the Civil war Mr. Rose evinced his patriotism by enlist- ing. on May 13. 1861. for military service. being discharged on May 13. 1866. He served in the Twenty-eighth and Fifty-sixth

834

BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY OF

New York Regiments, and was commis- sioned second lieutenant in the One Hun- dred and Third United States Regiment, be- ing made commissary at Fort Pulaski, Sa- vanah, Thomasville and Macon. He keeps alive his old army associations through his membership in the Grand Army of the Re- public, and is also a Mason.

Mr. Rose married Miss Helen Crippen, of Sullivan or Delaware county, New York, her ancestors also having been veterans of the war of the Revolution. In religion the subject is an active and consistent member of the Methodist Episcopal church. Mr. and Mrs. Rose are now enjoying in retire- ment the fruits of their former toil and pri- vation and are the possessors of the sincere respect of all who know them. They came here among the very first settlers of this community, it being a fact that for eight months after locating here Mrs. Rose saw the face of no other white woman excepting that of her mother-in-law, the elder Mrs. Rose. For them the wilderness has cer- tainly blossomed as the rose.

FRANK A. KENYON.

Frank A. Kenyon, incumbent of the im- portant office of register of deeds of Charle- voix county, is well entitled to representa- tion in this publication. Mr. Kenyon is a native of the old Empire state, having been born in Mannsville, Jefferson county, New York, on the 28th of December, 1869, and being a son of Hosea J. and Lasira (Potter) Kenyon, who were likewise born and reared in that state, whence they came to Michi- gan when our subject was an infant, locat- ing in Vermontville, Eaton county, where

the father died in 1874, in the prime of life. He was a cheese maker by vocation and was engaged in this line of work after coming to Michigan. The subject of this review was about five years of age at the time of his father's death, and soon afterward his mother returned to her old home in New York, Frank being reared to maturity in his native town, where he secured his early ed- ucational training in the excellent public schools, while later he took a course in a commercial college. In the spring of 1887 he came with his mother to Charlevoix county, Michigan, his uncle, James Potter, being then located in East Jordan, as secre- tary of the East Jordan Lumber Company. With this concern our subject found employ- ment, having filled at different intervals practically every position about a sawmill and also in the company's general store, con- tinuing with this company nearly a decade and up to the time of his election to the of- fice of county clerk, in 1896. He proved a most capable and popular official and the estimate placed upon his services by the voters of the county was shown in his being chosen as his own successor in the election of 1898, when he received a most gratifying majority. At the expiration of his second term he was made the Republican nominee for the office of register of deeds, again roll- ing up a notable majority at the polls and in his new official capacity gaining an even firmer hold upon public confidence and es- teem, so that he was re-elected in Novem- ber, 1902, and will undoubtedly be again chosen for this office or other official perfer- ment at the expiration of his present term. He has been in the county service for eight successive years, has proved genial, obliging, competent and loyal and the county may well consider it expedient to hold him in its offi-

835

NORTHERN MICHIGAN.

cial ranks so long as he is willing to serve. He is a stanch adherent of the Republican party and has been a frequent delegate to conventions of the same in the county and district, while he keeps well informed on the questions of the day and is able to give sound reasons for his political faith. He is a member of the local lodge of the Masonic fraternity and is also affiliated with the Knights of Pythias, the Knights of the Mac- cabees, the Improved Order of Foresters, and the Sons of Veterans. He is eligible for membership in the last mentioned for the reason of the fact that his father ren- dered valiant service as a Union soldier dur- ing the Civil war, serving three years and three months as a member of Company B, Ninety-fourth New York Volunteer In- fantry. For four years Mr. Kenyon held the office of secretary of the Charlevoix County Agricultural Society, whose annual fair was held at East Jordan.

In Windsor, Ontario, Canada, was sol- emnized the marriage of Mr. Kenyon, to Miss Alice Palmeter, and they have one child, Harold.

FRANK KELLY.

It is always pleasant and profitable to contemplate the career of a man who has made a success of life and won the honor and respect of his fellow citizens. Such is the record of the well-known gentleman whose name heads this brief article and who is now occupying a high standing among the progressive and enterprising business men of Vanderbilt, Otsego county, Michigan. Prior to coming to this place Mr. Kelly was the owner of a shingle mill, located on Bear

creek, Manistee county, this state, having a capacity of fifty thousand shingles per day, but in 1901 he removed to Vanderbilt and, in partnership with a Mr. Parks, bought from Zlickgraf Brothers the shingle and . lumber mill, which was subsequently run under the firm name of Parks & Kelly. The mill is a thoroughly modern and well- equipped mill, having a daily capacity of fifty thousand shingles and twenty thousand feet of lumber, twenty men being employed. Mr. Parks died on May 24, 1905, and Mr. Kelly now has the entire management of the enterprise, which has proved a very suc- cessful undertaking. Mr. Kelly is also in- terested with a brother in the operation of a store in Vanderbilt, which proved a popu- lar establishment and a profitable source of income to them. By paying strict attention to his business interests Mr. Kelley has been enabled to acquire a comfortable property and is now considered one of the leading citizens of the community. He is a hustler in the full sense of the term and has done much to advance the welfare of the commu- nity. Fraternally he is an appreciative member of the Free and Accepted Masons. the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks.

LEWIS T. KLINE.

One of the important industries of Al- pena, Michigan, is that conducted by the sub- ject of this sketch, who is engaged in the manufacture of Kline's excelsior and wood turning machinery, the former of which is in use in all the wood-producing counties of the state and indeed of the country. Mr. Kline is a native of the Wolverine state,

836

BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY OF

having been born at Flint, Michigan, on January 4, 1857, and is the son of Joseph Kline, who came to Flint in 1837, at the age of fourteen years. The subject's great- grandfather came to America from Frank- fort-on-the-Rhine, Germany, while his son, the subject's grandfather, was one of the pioneer settlers of Michigan. The subject himself saw the first train run over the Pere Marquette Railroad. The subject received a fair education in the public schools and upon attaining his majority started out on his own account. In 1879 he came to Alpena and was first employed by C. B. Warren and was later engineer for the Minor Lum- ber Company. In 1883 he obtained a pat- ent for a log roller and in 1887 a patent for a log roller and log deck apparatus, which have come into extensive use in the United States and Canada and other parts of the world. He later obtained patents on a steam feed valve, an automatic lathe and his excelsior machinery, all of them being marvels of ingenuity and greatly simplify- ing and cheapening the cost of production. The factory for the manufacture of these articles was at first a modest affair, but has rapidly grown in response to the demand for the product. until it ranks with the lead- ing enterprises of this city. Mr. Kline does not allow his attention to be diverted from his business interests and is rapidly acquir- ing a reputation throughout the trade for the value of his productions and high qual- ity of their manufacture.

Mr. Kline has been twice married. His first wife was Miss Gazlay, of Flint, Mich- igan, by which union were born two sons. Arthur L., of Detroit, and Herman J., who graduated from the Alpena high school and is now taking a course in mechanical engi- neering at the State University. at Ann

Arbor. Mr. Kline's second union was with Miss Elizabeth Mckinnon, of Alpena, and to them have been born four children, De- Ette, Joseph and George, twins, and Flora. Mr. Kline is a gentleman who in all circum- stances in which he has been placed has borne himself with that spirit which brings to a man the respect and esteem of the en- tire community. He has in all respects been the architect of his own fortunes and has builded wisely and well.

JOHN B. THIELEN, M. D.

The allied sciences of medicine and sur- gery have made marvelous advances within the past two decades, and the younger mem- bers of the profession have been signally favored in being able to avail themselves of the advanced methods of treatment and prac- tice through the excellent technical discipline which they secured in the collegiate and hospital work exemplifying all these notable advances in the great profession which en- lists their co-operation and earnest effort. Among the distinctively representative phy- sicians and surgeons of the city of Charle- voix is the subject of this sketch, and though a young man his prestige is such as would be significant in the case of one whose years of professional work were greater by one- half. while his success has been the direct result of his admirable professional equip- ment and reinforcement and his devotion to the noble vocation which he has adopted.

Dr. Thielen is a native of the Empire state of the Union, having been born in the town of Potter, Yates county. New York. on the Toth of April, 1870. The Doctor passed his youthful years in his native

NORTHERN MICHIGAN.

837

county, and after completing the curriculum of the public schools he continued his literary discipline in the Canandaigua Academy, where he took a preparatory collegiate course. In 1892 he was matriculated in the University of Michigan, in which noble old institution he continued a student for five years, graduating as a member of the class of 1897, with the degree of Doctor of Medi- cine. His health had become somewhat im- paired through his close application while in the university and he made a trip to the northern part of the state for rest and recu peration. In the connection he visited Charle- voix, and, becoming much impressed with the attractions of the place, he determined to here establish himself in the practice of his chosen profession. Both in a professional and social way the Doctor met with a most pleasing reception in his new field of en- deavor, and he has built up a large and representative practice, while he enjoys dis- tinctive popularity in the community and is prominent in social and business circles. He holds membership in the county and state medical societies and takes an active inter- est in their work, while he continues to be a close and appreciative student of his pro- fession and keeps in touch with the advances made from day to day, having recourse to the best standard and periodical literature pertaining to the two branches of his pro- fession. His practice is of a general order and he is retained by many of the leading families of this section. While in the uni- versity he did much special work in the line of experimentation, original research and special study, while he was also fortunate in being for two years a member of the sur- gical staff with the able and distinguished surgeon, Dr. Nancreid. In a fraternal way the Doctor is identified with the Knights of

Pythias and the Masonic order, in the latter of which he has attained to the capitular degrees at the time of this writing, holding membership in the lodge and chapter at Charlevoix, while he is affiliated with Chi Psi fraternity, one of the oldest of the Greek letter fraternities of the Union and the oldest at the University of Michigan, where he be- came identified with the organization.

In the city of Ann Arbor, Michigan, Dr. Thielen was united in marriage to Miss Louise M. Harris, daughter of Dr. J. Har- ris, of Richmond, this state. Mrs. Thielen was graduated in the University of Michi- gan as a member of the class of 1895, re- ceiving the degree of Bachelor of Philos- ophy, and thereafter she was successfully engaged in teaching until her marriage, hav- ing been employed in the public schools at Racine, Wisconsin. and Hancock, Michigan. Dr. and Mrs. Thielen have two winsome little daughters, Eleanor and Elizabeth.

SIBLEY G. TAYLOR.

Among the leading attorneys of north- ern Michigan the subject of this sketch oc- cupies a high standing, having been en- gaged in the practice of the legal profession at East Tawas for practically thirty-three years. The subject is a native of the state of New York, but was brought to Michigan at the age of five years, so that he is prac- tically a product of this state. His father was Rev. George Taylor. a Methodist Epis- copal minister and a member of the Detroit conference, but now deceased. He was a native of England and became a minister in the Established church, but because of his liberal and independent views he was perse-

838

BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY OF

cuted to such an extent that he came to wide and accurate judgment, the possession America and entered the ministry of the of which constitutes marked excellence in the profession. Mr. Taylor is now presi- dent of the bar association of the twenty- third judicial circuit, and it may be also noted that for several years during the con- struction of the Detroit & Mackinac Rail- way he was attorney for General Alger, se- curing the most of the right of way for that road. Methodist Episcopal church. He was a man of strong convictions and force of character, possessing clear ideas and liberal views, and stood high in Freemasonry. During the Civil war he was chaplain of the Eighth Michigan Regiment, and after- wards was one of the most influential and instrumental in raising the money and pushing to completion the soldiers' monu- Mr. Taylor married Miss Sapphona L. Lyon, of Owosso, the daughter of Daniel Lyon, an early settler of that place, and to them have been born the following children : G. L. has been cashier of the Citizens' Sav- ings Bank of Owosso since its organization ; Carrie L. is the wife of A. S. Larabee, a druggist of Bay City, this state; Leroy D. is with the Pacific Express Company at Pittsburg, Pennsylvania: George is a printer. ment at Detroit. The subject of this sketch received a good, practical education in the public schools and later the law department of the Michigan State University at Ann Arbor, receiving the degree of Bachelor of Arts in 1862 and that of Bachelor of Laws in 1863. In the latter year he was admit- ted to the bar at Ann Arbor and at once entered upon the active practice of his pro- fession there. After a successful career there of fifteen years, he came to East Tawas and here at once his abilities were recog- nized and he soon commanded a leading po- HORACE HOFFMAN. sition at the bar of this county. In 1890 Mr. Taylor withdrew from the legal profes- As one of the distinctively representative business men and public spirited citizens of Antrim county, Michigan, where he has for a number of years maintained his home and where he commands unqualified confidence and regard. Horace Hoffman, of Mancelona. is well entitled to consideration. Mr. Hoff- man is a native of the old Keystone state of the Union, having been born in Union- town, Fayette county, Pennsylvania, on Feb- ruary 13. 1850. He is the son of Frank and Catherine (Peidex) Hoffman, also na- tives of Pennsylvania. The father was in « early life a tanner, but later, on his removal to Ohio, he entered the grocery and butcher business. His death occurred in the home of the subject at Mancelona, Michigan, in 1894. sion and entered the ministry of the Meth- odist Episcopal church, in which he was suc- cessfully engaged until 1904. being sta- tioned at Cheboygan and other prominent points in this part of the state. In the year last mentioned, however, he returned to East Tawas and resumed the practice of the law, in which he has attained to an enviable degree of eminence. As a lawyer, Mr. Tay- lor evinces a familiarity with legal princi- ples and a ready perception of facts, together with the ability to apply the one to the other. which has won him the reputation of a sound and safe practitioner. Years of conscien- tious work have brought with them not only increase of practice and reputation, but also that growth in legal knowledge and that

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

Biographical history of northern Michigan containing biographies of prominent citizens, Part 108

Author: Publication date: 1905 Publisher: Indianapolis : B.F. Bowen Number of Pages: 966

Author:
Publication date: 1905
Publisher: Indianapolis : B.F. Bowen
Number of Pages: 966