USA > Michigan > Hillsdale County > Compendium of history and biography of Hillsdale County, Michigan > Part 46
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school. They have been the parents of four chil- dren, Loie E., deceased, Clifford G., Walton W. and Harry W. The sons reside in Duluth, Minn., well established in useful occupations, profitable to themselves and to their communities.
WILLIAM HUGHES.
William Hughes, of Allen township, who is a well-known and prosperous farmer in that por- tion of the county, is a native of Canada, born on February 19, 1823. His parents were Lawrence and Fanny Hughes, who were born and reared in the North of Ireland. When he was yet a young man, the father emigrated to Canada, there he met and married the mother of his children, and soon after moved to Monroe county, New York, where he aided in the construction and operation of the Erie canal. He died in that state, and the mother some years later passed away from earth at the home of her son, William, in this, county. They had three sons, one of whom is now living in Indiana, and another died in the South. Wil- liam Hughes was partially reared in the Domin- ion and partially in New York state, and received portions of his limited school education in each place. In 1842 he came to Hillsdale county, Michigan, and, in the winter of that year, pur- chased eighty acres of land, which he has trans- formed from a state of nature, rank with the growth of ages, to a well-improved and highly cultivated farm, with all the concomitants of a comfortable home. He has added forty acres to his estate, has made that also fertile and product- ive, and, on this land he now resides in comfort and prosperity, after many struggles and hard- ships. His marriage with Miss Sally Ransom occurred in 1848, in this county, the ceremony being performed on April 19. Mrs. Hughes died on January 12, 1894, and he has since remained a widower. They had four children, two of whom are living, their sons Lawrence, of Branch county, and Eli, now of Oklahoma. Mr. Hughes is well known and widely respected, and has taken a zealous and active interest in the development of the portion of the state in which he has made
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his home, but he has never been active in party politics, and has not sought or held office.
LAWRENCE HUGHES, the oldest living son of William Hughes, was born in this county on his father's farm on March 3, 1849. He was edi- cated in the public schools near his home, from his early youth he has been engaged in farin work, first aiding in clearing his father's land and after- ward in cultivating it, thus learning by practical experience the groundwork of his life business. He has stuck to the farm, giving it his best ener- gies and his most progressive thought, and has come to be an excellent farmer, now having the evidence of his capabilities and enterprise in this line of productive activity exhibited on every acre of the land he cultivates. On June 22, 1890, hc married with Miss Ellen Daniels, a native of Steuben county, Indiana, and a daughter of Shel- don and Nancy Daniels, early settlers in this part of Michigan. Mr. Hughes has carried forward successfully the farming operations so prosper- ously begun and for years conducted by his fa- ther, being regarded as one of the most advanced and progressive tillers of the soil in this part of the state. He allows no side lines of any kind to draw him away from his chief interests, and con- tributes his share of the stimulus and energy necessary for the promotion and development of the best elements of prosperity and progress among his people. Among the younger gener- ation of successful farmers of southern Michigan, he holds a deservedly high rank, and is well es- teemed also by a large circle of friends, for his engaging social qualities and for the generous hospitality he and his excellent wife dispense at their inviting and comfortable home.
WILLIAM KEOUGH.
William Keough, supervisor of Fayette town- ship, in Hillsdale county, is a native of Galveston, Texas, a member of a family which has through other members rendered distinguished service to the American people, as he has done himself. He was born on May 13, 1842, a son of Michael and Jane (Hall) Keough. The father, a native of Ireland, came to the United States about 1833,
and, after remaining one year in the middle At- lantic states, went to Texas, locating at Galves- ton and obtained employment as a civil engineer. Soon after the commencement of the trouble be- tween Texas and Mexico he warmly espoused the cause of Texas, associating himself with Davy Crockett, Gen. Sam Houston, and the other noted men who were leaders in the struggle for Texan independence. During these exciting times he was engaged in the hotel business, often having the most distinguished men of the period as his guests. His force of character and unquestioned capacity secured him public recognition as a man of importance, and he filled a number of local of- fices, the first being that of sheriff of the county in which he lived. In this position the duties were arduous and trying, for society was turbulent and the lawless element bold and dangerous, but he served the county with great credit to himself and with advantage to the people. His marriage to Jane Hall, a Pennsylvanian by birth, occurred in New York, and he became the father of three children, two sons and one daughter.
William Keough grew to manhood and re- ceived his education in Mansfield, Connecticut. In 1861, at the age of nineteen, he enlisted in the Union army as a member of Co. B. Tenth Con- necticut Infantry. His regiment was at first a part of the Army of the James, but later was of the Army of the Potomac under General Grant. He served until the close of the war, almost con- stantly in field service, participating in most of the important and noted engagements of the army to which he belonged. At Kingston, N. C., his regiment led the charge that won the day and captured most of General French's artillery and a part of his force. In this charge, in which it was unsupported, it bore the brunt of the battle alone. He received a medal for conspicuous gal- lantry at the capture of Fort Sumter in 1863. He was once wounded in the left leg by a piece of shell, and, while it was not a serious wound, it disabled him for some time, and occasionally yet reminds him of the exciting scenes of the past. His regiment fired the last shot in the neighbor- hood of Appomattox where the Confederate cause was finally and forever subdued.
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After the war Mr. Keough returned to Michi- gan, and, locating at Jonesville, in this county, was employed as engineer at the cotton mill for five years, then entered mercantile life as the pro- prietor of a bazaar, which he conducted for ten years, from which time he has been almost con- tinuously in public office, as recorder of the vil- lage, as supervisor of the township, postmaster for four years under Cleveland, then again as su- pervisor, being elected to this position each time by a handsome majority although a Democrat, and the township usually Republican. His re- peated election to this office is evidence of the skill and fidelity with which he discharged his duties. His record in every other official position is above reproach. He has been secretary of the Hillsdale Soldiers' Relief Committce during the past eleven years, is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic and of the Union Veterans. In politics he has been a lifelong Democrat, firm in the faith, loyal at all times to his party. His wis- dom in its councils, and his zeal in its service, have placed him in a high rank among its leaders. He was married in 1870 to Miss Mary E. Ketchum, a native of New Jersey.
REV. GROVER A. JACKSON.'
Rev. Grover A. Jackson, secretary and treas- urer of Hillsdale College, enjoys the unique dis- tinction of being graduated from this college in the same class with his father, Rev. Chester Jack- son, the class of 1888. His mother was Sarah G. (Grover) Jackson, a native of New York state as was her husband, and in Cattaraugus county of that state their son was born on November 24, 1865. The father is a Free Baptist minister and is now connected with the college, but in earlier years he followed farming in connection with his ministerial work. His father, the grandfather of the secretary and treasurer, was Nelson Jackson, a Free Will Baptist minister and farmer of New York, where he died.
Rev. Grover A. Jackson passed his early school days in his native county and at Pike (N. Y.) Seminary. In the fall of 1884 he matricu- lated in the classical department of Hillsdale Col-
lege, in 1888 being graduated in that course with the degree of A. B. Three years later he received his Master's degree. After his gradu- ation he entered the theological department and in 1892 was graduated therefrom. He at once devoted himself to ministerial work, near Adrian. in this state, and also in New York. In April. 1899, the trustees of Hillsdale College appointed him the assistant secretary and treasurer of the institution, and, in June of the same year, made him secretary and treasurer, a position he has most capably held continuously since that date. having succeeded S. E. Kelley, who also served as field agent. Since taking charge of his office, Mr. Jackson has performed its duties with great energy, zeal and success, showing admirable tact and wisdom in the service of the college in every way. He still occasionally accepts calls to preach as he did during his college life ; while he was in New York he took a prominent and very ac- tive part in the state work of the Sunday-schools and of the Christian Endeavor Society. He was also secretary of the State Association of the Free Baptists in Michigan from 1892 to 1895. He was married on August 7, 1890, to Miss Arda Hyatt, a native of Vermont, the marriage occurring at the village of Gilford, N. H. Mrs. Jackson en- ters warmly into the work of her husband, both official and evangelical, and is of great assistance to him. They are highly esteemed in church and social circles, where they are both known and valued as elevating and refining forces in the community.
DR. CALEB C. JOHNSON.
The life story of a good man who has grown old in the service of his fellows, by his fidelity and zeal winning their universal esteem and affection- ate regard, is always interesting and inspiring, however it may lack the element of tragedy and all that is spectacular or extraordinary. The very smoothness and regularity with which it moves along the beaten track of its daily routine, seeking no notice, claiming no special merit, is a high tribute to its fidelity and usefulness, a strong factor in its hold on public confidence and the
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good will of men. Such a life story it is the prov. ince of these paragraphs to narrate in brief form and plain words in the hope that its good example may not be without effect on those who read it.
Dr. Caleb C. Jolinson was born at Kendall. Orleans county, New York, on July 1, 1817, of respectable, well-to-do parents, who were natives of the same state. His father was an industrious and frugal tailor and farmer in the rural part of northern New York. Both of his parents lived lives of serviccable diligence and were held in high esteem by all who knew them. In the ful- ness of years their final summons to another world came to them on the very spot which they had hallowed by their long and useful labors. Of their twelve children, only two are now living, both being residents of Branch county.
Doctor Johnson was educated in the district schools and at an excellent academy at Rochester, N. Y., and soon after leaving the academy began the study of medicine, being graduated in due course from a medical college with the degree of M. D. He began the practice of his profession in his native village, and there remained until 1864, when he came to Michigan and settled at Hills- dale, making this town his home until he died in August, 1898. Thus, for more than a generation of human life, he was closely identified with this people, during the whole of the time being at the service of all who were in need of his medical or surgical knowledge and skill. He was a close student of the literature of his profession, a care- ful and thoughtful observer in every phase of his practice. He belonged actively and serviceably to several medical associations, notably the coun- ty, the state and the tri-state organizations, and gave them careful attention and valuable aid, serving for a time as president of the county as- sociation. With a commendable aspiration to keep in the front rank of the profession, he at- tended several courses of lectures from time to time on special subjects or branches of practice, and applied intelligently the knowledge he there- by gained, but he never found time to take a regular post-graduate course of instruction.
Doctor Johnson married in New York state in 1843 with Miss Julia Bates, who was born and
reared in his native county, the daughter of a sol- dier of the War of 1812, who was a prominent man in his part of the state. She was one of four children, among them being Herbert B. Bates, who, a graduate of Union College, New York, and of Albany Law School, was well established in the practice of law in Chicago at his death in 1897, and Julia M. Bates, who died in 1874. The mother is still living at the old home in Hillsdale. In early life the Doctor was a Whig in politics, but, at the organization of the Republican party, he became an ardent supporter of its principles, so continuing to the end of his life. But he was never willing to accept official station of a political character, and was in no sense an offensive or nar- row partisan. During the Civil War he volun- teered his medical services nad assisted in caring for the wounded at the battle of Gettysburg and on other fields. For many years he was a devoted Freemason in fraternal connection, and, in church affiliation, was a Free Baptist.
CHAUNCEY A. KIES.
The pleasing subject of this review, whose life of more than seventy years, all but one passed in Hillsdale county, makes up a record of good deeds, useful labors and generous consideration for others highly commendable and full of helpful suggestiveness, is a native of Cayuga county, New York, where he was born on March 28, 1833. In 1834 his parents, John and Betsey (Lock) Kies, the former born and reared in New York, the latter in Massachusetts, came with their young family to Moscow township, Michi- gan, and Mr. Kies is therefore one of the oldest citizens of this part of the state, both in length of days and by continuance of residence, his Michigan life covering nearly the whole period of the white man's occupancy of the soil. His father was a farmer in New York until he mi- grated to this state, coming on the Eric canal to Buffalo, thence by boat across Lake Erie to To- ledo, from there with ox teams through the Black Swamp to Moscow Plains.
Entering a tract of government land compris- ing 160 acres of oak openings, he erected a small
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log cabin and made a little clearing, but soon sold this land and entered 240 acres south and east of Moscow. Here he cleared about seventy acres, then disposed of it and purchased a farm a mile and a half east of Moscow on the Chicago road. Himself and wife here passed the remainder of their days, she dying on November 23, 1865, and he on January 23, 1866, aged seventy-five years, at the home of their son, Chauncey. Of their four sons and four daughters, three are living, one son and two daughters. The father was well educated and in his early manhood taught school. The grandfather, John Kies, was a native of Scot- land who came to America when a young man and at once became deeply interested in the strug- gle for independence. When hostilities with the mother country started, he promptly joined the Colonial army and fought in its ranks during the seven years of the Revolutionary War. After its close he settled in the state of New York where he was a farmer and died at a ripe old age. The maternal grandfather, also a Revolutionary sol- dier, suffered all of the hardships incident to the service in that memorable contest.
Chauncey A. Kies grew to manhood in this county and became thoroughly inured to pioneer life, mingling freely with the Indians, making their sons his playmates. He attended the rude schools and aided his parents in clearing and cul- tivating the home farm, remaining with them as long as they lived. Seven years of his youth and young manhood were passed in the old foundry at Moscow in the manufacture of plows and other farm implements, acquiring during this period a one-third interest in the establishment. In 1864 he purchased the farm on which he now resides and which his thrift has made one of the best in the county. In 1859 he married Miss Mary J. Bolton, a native of the township, a daughter of John R. Bolton, one of the most respected of the pioneers of this county. They have two children, Charles L. and James O., the former living at the parental home, the latter being in South Dakota.
Mr. Kies is independent in politics and with- out active partisanship. He has been chosen to several local offices, by reason of his recognized ability and integrity rather than on account of po-
litical predilections or conditions ; the manner in which he has performed his official duties fully justified the confidence of his friends. He holds membership in the Masonic lodge at Moscow and for many years has been a devoted supporter of the mystic tie. His life has flowed on in a calm and even current of active goodness, bringing peace and contentment to himself and his family, also many benefits to the community. The respect of his fellows he has always enjoyed, their confi- dence he has always deserved, their advantage, along with his own, he has always promoted, their general welfare he has always had actively in mind. Now living at ease in the evening of his life, there is none among them that does not do him reverence.
ALAMO MANUFACTURING CO.
The Alamo Manufacturing Company of Hills- dale, for the production of high grade gas en- gines and gasoline engines, was organized on April 16, 1901, with a capital stock of $25,000. This was later raised to $75,000, and, in February, 1903, was again raised, being now $150,000. The officers of the company are: A. D. Stock, presi- dent ; Dr. W. H. Sawyer, vice-president ; C. H. Rittenhouse, secretary; E. T. Prideaux, treas- urer; E. J. Gulick, superintendent ; and A. D. Stock, Dr. W. H. Sawyer, C. H. Rittenhouse, F. M. Stewart and J. Will Marvin, directors. In 1902 the company erected a factory by the side of the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern Railroad tracks, which is 50x450 feet in dimensions, con- structed of brick with a slate roof and cement floors. It is equipped with electric lights, travel- ing cranes, and the best and most complete ma- chinery and tools for its purposes. In this plant engines to be driven by gas or gasoline, and all the proper appurtenances of such engines, are made on a scale of considerable magnitude, the capacity of the works being now not sufficient to supply the demand for their output. Their market em- braces the United States from ocean to ocean and from the Gulf of Mexico far across the Canadian line ; while a new field for the sale of the engines has recently been opened in Mexico. Wherever
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they have been used or are well known the pro- ducts of this factory have an unexcelled reputa- tion, and easily hold their elevated place in the commercial world, owing to their high standard of excellence and the superior material and work- manship employed in their manufacture.
A. D. Stock, president of the company, and the controlling spirit of the enterprise, is a native of Indiana who came to Hillsdale city in his childhood with his father, F. W. Stock, and was educated in the schools of that city and at Peeks- kill Military Academy in New York.
He commenced practical business life in asso- ication with his father, and has from that time been known as one of Hillsdale county's leading business operators. He was one of the number who established the first electric lighting system in the city, and he is now a member of the firm conducting it, F. W. Stock & Sons. He is also a stockholder in the shoe factory at Hillsdale. The business and manufacturing interests of Hillsdale count him as one of their most active representatives.
JOHN F. KING.
One of the leading business men of southern Michigan, now retired from active pursuits, en- joying the fruits of his many years of activity, is the subject of this sketch, John F. King. A man of large ability and of keen business judgment, he has not only built up a com- fortable fortune for himself, but contributed in no small degree to the upbuilding and develop- ment of the section of the state in which he made his home. He is a native of the Empire state, born in the town of New Lebanon, Columbia county, on August 26, 1830. His father, Luther King, was a native of the same county, born on November 8, 1806. Amos King, the paternal grandfather, was a native of Massachusetts, a soldier in the armies of General Washington dur- ing the Revolutionary War. He was at the bat- tle of Bunker Hill, and it was the regiment of which he was a member which was largely in- strumental in bringing about the surrender of General Burgoyne at the battle of Saratoga.
A Continental note for the sum of six dollars, which was received by the old hero in part pay- ment for his services in the Revolutionary army, is now in the possession of the subject of this sketch, being highly prized as a family heirloom.
The mother of John F. King was, before her marriage, a Miss Emeline Campbell, like her husband being a native of New Lebanon, New York, where she was born on April 27, 1809. She was the daughter of John Campbell, also a native of New York state, but of Highland Scotch descent. The ancestors of the family came to America during the sixteenth century, and settled near Stonington, Connecticut, while the ancestors of the King family made their home in Massachusetts at about the same time. In the family of Luther King there were but two chil- (Iren, a daughter, Elizabeth, now the wife of Norman Kent, of Hillsdale county, and John F. King. The latter grew to manhood in Columbia county, there received the limited early educa- tion which was then possible to acquire in the common schools, and at the age of twenty years, removed with his parents to Niagara county, New York, where he completed his education and resided until 1867, engaged in the occupa- tion of farming with considerable success.
In 1855, Mr. King was united in marriage to Miss Sarah Knowles, who died within one year. In 1858, he married a Miss Roxana Post, a resident of Niagara county. To this union were born two daughters, Emma F. and Hattie F., Emma being now the wife of Russell S. Peterson, who resides in Hillsdale county. She had one daughter, Hattie E. King, who mar- ried with Everett L. Ranney, of Allen township, and died without issue. In 1866, Mr. King resolved to seek a new home in the country farther west, and, disposing of his property in the state of New York, started with his family for the western states. He first settled in Illinois, where he remained about one year, then removed to Hillsdale county, Mich., which has since been his home. Settling on a farm in Hillsdale town- ship, he engaged successfully in agricultural pursuits until 1880. By that time he had ac- quired large property interests, and decided to
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retire from business. He therefore purchased the fine home in the city of Hillsdale which he now occupies, which he has since made his resi- dence, still owning and operating his farms in the county. During his residence in Hillsdale coun- ty, Mr. King has taken an active part in public affairs, by the promotion of every movement calculated to be of benefit to the community. At different times he has yielded to the solicita- tions of his neighbors and served them as jus- tice of the peace, as school trustee and on the board of water commissioners.
In every position Mr. King has discharged its duties with the same conscientious care that he has given to the management of his private business interests, and has met with the same success. His aged father passed away on Decem- ber 10, 1891, at the age of eighty-five years, his mother dying on February 15, 1893, at the age of eighty-five. Both were members of the Univer- salist church, as is also Mr. John F. King. They assisted in the founding of that churchin Hillsdale township, being active and prominent among the workers of that society in the locality where they lived so long. Mr. King is one of the directors and stockholders of the Savings Bank of Hillsdale, of which he was one of the founders. He still takes an active interest in the management of the af- fairs of this successful institution. In the ma- turity of his years and judgment, having had an extended and honorable business experience, and contributing in no small degree to the promotion of the settlement and the development of the resources of southern Michigan, and especially of Hillsdale county, he is looked upon by all as an honored citizen, as a successful and pro- gressive man of business, as a high-minded pub- lic official, faithful in the performance of every duty, loyal to every interest in the community in which he has maintained his home.
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