USA > Michigan > Kalamazoo County > Compendium of history and biography of Kalamazoo County, Mich. > Part 77
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SAMUEL MCKEOWN.
The life record of this worthy and enterpris- ing citizen of Ross township in Kalamazoo county, is the "old, old story" of a man born and reared in a foreign land, and longing for the larger opportunities and greater consequence
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open to him in this country of equal rights before the law and generous reward for honest effort and capacity, who finally takes his destiny into his own hands, courageously braves the interven- ing obstacles, joins our great army of industrial progress and secures his share of the fruits of the conquest. Mr. Mckeown was born on No- vember 17, 1827, in Ireland, county Antrim, and is the son of John and Mary ( Moore) Mckeown, who was born and reared in Scotland and finally located in Ireland, where they died after a career of useful industry in farming. After receiving his education in the common schools, Mr. Mc- Keown worked on farms in his native land until his marriage in 1850 with Miss Eliza Burns, of the same nativity as himself. Two weeks after their marriage they set sail for the United States on a sailing vessel, and after a tedious but uneventful voyage of nine weeks and one day, landed at New York. They went at once to Liv- ingston county, N. Y., and there they made their home for a short time, then moved to Steuben county, the same state, remaining until 1865, the husband working on farms for wages, as he had done in Livingston county. In the year last named they migrated to Michigan, and locating in this county, bought a farm of eighty acres of wild and unimproved land in Ross township. They applied themselves at once with character- istic energy and determination to clearing their land and making it habitable and productive. In the course of a few years they added another eighty-acre tract, and of the whole body they have since sold twenty acres, so that they now own one hundred and forty acres, all cleared and under advanced cultivation, and improved with good buildings and the other accessories of a comfortable and valuable country home. On this land they have passed all the years since they took possession of it, now thirty-five years ago, and here they have prospered and won the respect and good will of all their fellow citizens, so ordering their industry as to get the best returns for it, and their daily lives as to commend themselves to the people around them as worthy and useful citizens, deeply interested in the land of their adoption and the particular section of it in which they cast
their lot, and carnest in aiding to promote its wel- fare in every desirable way. Of their three chil- dren Mary E. and Louise J. have died, and Sam- tel T. is now a resident of Battle Creek, this state. The parents belong to the Presbyterian church, and the father is an energetic and cor- clially interested member of the Masonic frater- nity. To have lived for more than a generation of human life in one community and suffer no re- proach, but rather grow steadily in the. esteem of the people, is abundant evidence of merit, and this has been the experience of Mr. and Mrs. Mc- Keown, yet they are modest in their worth and make no claim to unusual consideration, being well satisfied with the opportunity they have had to live acceptably, and content if they have done so in the general estimation.
BENJAMIN RESII.
Benjamin Resh, who in 1891 retired from ac- tive pursuits after conducting extensive farming operations in Portage and Oshtemo townships, this county, for a period of fifteen years, during which he made valuable improvements on his place and won the regard of all who came in con- tact with him, was born in Berks county, Pa .. on November 22. 1836. His parents, Peter and Catherine (Schwonk) Resh, were also natives of Pennsylvania, where the father wrought at his trade of a blacksmith and operated a grain threshing outfit for a period of thirty-six years. In 1838 the family moved to Stark county, Ohio. where the father died in 1875 and the mother in 1804. They had a family of six sons and four daughters. Benjamin was reared to manhood from the age of two years in Ohio, and after re- ceiving a common-school education there learned the trade of a blacksmith in that state, which he followed five years. In 1862 he enlisted in the Union army as a member of Company A. One Hundred and Seventh Ohio Infantry, and was soon at the front in the Army of the Potomac. Mr. Resh took part in a number of sanguinary engagements, among them the battles of Chancel- lorsville and Gettysburg. In the latter he lost his left arm in the first day's fight, but he was
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not discharged from the service until 1864. He in all lines, until now Kalamazoo College stands then returned to Ohio and bought a small farm for good scholarship and high morals. The his- tory takes one back to the pioneer days of Michi- gan, when this college was founded by the Rev. Thomas Merrill in 1835, at which time the resi- dents of Kalamazoo subscribed two thousand five hundred dollars with which one hundred and fif- teen acres of land, which has trebled in value, was purchased. which he operated until 1876, when he came to Michigan and purchased a farm in Portage town- ship. This he lived on and worked until 1887, then moved to Oshtemo township, where he lived and farmed until 1891. Since then he has been living retired in Kalamazoo. He was married in Ohio in 1860 to Miss Mary Boch, a native of Stark county, that state. They have eight chil- It was not until 1855 that co-education was introduced into this college. By a charter granted at this time young women were given equal privileges with young men. Kalamazoo College enjoys the distinction of being one of the first co-educational colleges in America. Mrs. L. H. Stone was for ten years at the head of the women's department. About this time seventeen students of this college figured very bravely in the Civil war. dren living, Peter M., of Kalamazoo, Margaret, of this county, Emma and Theodore W., of De- troit, and Eva M., James H., Phileta B. and Jacob, of Kalamazoo. Mr. Resh belongs to the Grand Army of the Republic and takes an active interest in the proceedings of his post in the or- ganization. In politics he has never been an ac- tive party worker, finding his greatest comfort in performing the duties of citizenship well out- side of the arena of political contentions. Throughout the county he is well known and highly esteemed.
KALAMAZOO COLLEGE.
The citizens of Kalamazoo are justly proud of their beautiful city for many reasons, not the least of these being the exceptional educational advantages that it can claim. These institutions are not only numerous, but are all speedily com- ing to the front in the ranks of institutions of a like nature. No western city of equal size and very few eastern cities enjoy such a variety of splendid and prosperous institutions of learning. These are all of a high standard, and have be- come favorably known throughout the state as institutions of the highest type. The property represented by these institutions represents thousands and thousands of dollars. Most of it is splendidly located and is increasing in value every year.
Kalamazoo College, which is so beautifully and picturesquely situated among the fine old trees on College hill, is the oldest established educational institution in the city, and was one of the first colleges established in Michigan. Its career has been one of sure and steady progress
In 1892 Dr. Arthur Gaylord Slocum was unanimously chosen to fill the office of president. The progress of the college within the last fourteen years is largely due to Dr. Slocum's un- tiring effort, and the school is to be congratu- lated in having such a princely and scholarly man at its head.
An agreement for mutual advantage was consummated in 1895 between the college and the University of Chicago. By this affiliation the ev- ident advantages of a smaller college are com- bined with the stimulus of constant intercourse with a great university. Kalamazoo College has a large endowment fund, at present three hun- dred and fifty thousand dollars. Scholarships are given along various lines. Their real estate is valued at one hundred and twenty-five thou- sand dollars. Four buildings are owned by the Kalamazoo College-the men's dormitory, which was erected in 1848; Ladies' hall, built in 1857 by the citizens of Kalamazoo; the lower college building and Bowen hall, named in recognition of the valued personal services and the great lib- erality of the late C. C. Bowen, of Detroit, which was dedicated June 16, 1902. A splendid and rapidly increasing library is owned by the col- lege. At present it consists of nine thousand bound volumes and over three thousand five hun-
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dred pamphlets. Four literary societies of a high order have been formed as follows: The Sher- wood Rhetorical Society, 1851; the Philolexian Lyceum, 1855; the Eurodelphian Society, 1856; and the Century Forum, 1900.
The faculty consists of cultured and compe- tent instructors, who have the interests of Kala- mazoo College closely at heart. The standing of the college is such that after graduation a course of a few weeks at the University of Chicago en- titles one to a diploma from the latter univer- sity. All students that graduate in pedagogy are given college teacher's certificates by the state board of education. Eleven of the class of 1903 are at present teaching in high schools and col- leges.
The faculty, which has done so much for Kal- amazoo College, is as follows: Arthur Gaylord Slocum, LL. D., president and professor of men- tal and moral philosophy ; Samuel Brooks, D. D., Latin and literature; Stilman George Jenks, B. S., chemistry and physics ; Clarke Benedict Wil- liams. A. M., mathematics ; Herbert Lee Stetson, D. D., LL. D., psychology and pedagogy ; George Abner Williams, Ph. D., Greek language and lit- erature; Elias John MacEdan. A. M., English language and literature ; Orlando Clarke Charl- ton, A. M., biology and geology ; Peter A. Claa- sen, A. B., German and French; Lucy Howard Johnson, A. M., Latin and history; Ella Louise Fulton, A. B., English and mathematics ; Mrs. E. A. Read, piano, organ and harmony.
ANDREW YOUNG.
Nearly seventy years ago, when he was but a child of six years old, the interesting subject of this brief biography became a resident of Michi- gan, and during the whole of the subsequent pe- riod of trial and triumph, of arduous toil, deferred hope, much privation, yet steady progress, he has given of his best endeavors to the develop- ment of the section of his residence, the promo- tion of its best interests and the enduring wel- fare of its people, illustrating in his daily life and fidelity to duty the best attributes of Amer- ican citizenship, and furnishing an example
worthy of all emulation in its sterling, upright and useful manhood. Now, after the heat and burden of his long day, he is living retired from active pursuits, in the enjoyment of the fruits of his labors and the esteem of his fellow men. Mr. Young was born in Otsego county, N. Y., on March 3, 1831, and is the son of Joseph and Bet- sey (Van Wert) Young, scions of old New York families, long resident in that state, where they also were born and reared. They were there prosperous farmers, but in 1837, inspired by the exalted promise of future greatness and present opportunities in Michigan, they left the home of their youth, and became residents of this state, locating first at Battle Creek, and soon after- ward buying a partly improved farm near the town, on which they lived a number of years. The father died at Battle Creek and the mother on the farm. They had a family of five sons and five daughters, all now deceased but three sons and one daughter. Of these, Andrew is the only one living in Kalamazoo county. He grew to manhood in Calhoun county and was edu- cated at its public common schools. In 1860, bidding good-bye to the paternal rooftree, he went to Illinois and for a number of months lived in that state. He then came to this county and bought a farm in Charleston township. One year later he sold this and purchased another in Calhoun county ; but he soon afterward sold the latter and purchased the one in Charleston township, this county, which he still owns. He also owns two good houses in the village of Au- gusta, and in that village he has lived during the last thirty years, vigorously prosecuting his farming operations until a recent date. The farm has smiled with plenty and grown in come- liness under his skillful management, and is now one of great value and well improved. While working it he omitted no effort to secure the best returns for his labor, and at the same time to build up the place into attractiveness, a high state of productiveness and enduring worth : and its present condition, which wins general commen- dation from all who inspect it, is the best proof of the wisdom and intelligent system he has ap- plied to it. He was united in marriage in 1854
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to Miss Keziah Trowbridge, a native of the state of New York, who died in 1900. They had one child, a son who died in infancy. Secure in the esteem of his fellow men, and with his daily vision gladdened with the triumphs of progress in a region he helped to redeem from the wilder- ness, he adds to the rest he has so well earned the satisfaction of having done his part to make the efforts of his day and generation effective and establish a civilization which is a priceless heritage to its descendants.
CAPTAIN JOHN DUDGEON.
This gallant citizen of soldierly qualities and bearing, who died at Kalamazoo in 1891, at the age of seventy, was the organizer of the old Kalamazoo Light Guards and the first captain of the force. He was a native of county Tyrone, Ireland, born in 1821, and his parents were also born there. They passed their lives in that county and when death ended their labors, they were laid to rest in the soil on which they were born and on which their forefathers had lived and died for generations. Captain Dudgeon re- mained in his native land until he reached the age of twenty-five years. He received a limited education there, and in his boyhood began to learn the hardware business and afterward ac- quired also a knowledge of the drug trade. In 1846 he came to the United States and located at Detroit, entering the employ of his brother, An- thony Dudgeon, who was then carrying on a commission business. The Captain afterward clerked in a drug store in Detroit until 1848, when he moved to Kalamazoo- and engaged in the grain trade, buying the commodity and ship- ping it East, in which he continued until his death in 1891. From his arrival in this city he took a great and intelligent interest in its welfare, and with other enterprises which he inaugurated for the benefit of enjoyment of its people, he or- ganized the old Kalamazoo Light Guards, of which he served as captain many years. He was also active and zealous in public affairs as a Democrat, and as such was elected president of the village before the incorporation of the city,
his term covering the time of the installation of the first water works system. In 1849 he united in marriage with Miss Cornelia Clarke, a daugh- ter of Samuel Clarke, a pioneer in this county and the first representative of the district in the United States congress, he having also been a congressman from his native state of New York before coming to Michigan. Mr. and Mrs. Dud- geon had two sons and one daughter. One son is dead, and the other, Frank C., lives in Kala- mazoo. The father was a devoted member of St. Luke's church, to whose welfare he gave freely of his time and means. Throughout this county and elsewhere where he was known he was held in high regard by all classes of the peo- ple, and well deserved their esteem. In the earlier years of our history in this country the militia occupied an important place and was one of the most valued public institutions. Its officers were men of prominence and capacity in most cases, and were looked upon as leading citizens every- where. Of this class Captain Dudgeon was a fine type and exemplified in his connection with the service all its best and brightest attributes, being as courtly in social life as he was gallant in military circles and duty.
NATHANIEL ALDRICH BALCH.
. This distinguished advocate, accomplished scholar and genial gentleman, whose long pro- fessional career and life of active usefulness in the city and county of Kalamazoo was an orna- ment to the section and an inspiration to its younger men, was born at Athens, Windham county, Vt., on January 22, 1808, and was the son of Nathaniel and Sally (Bennett) Balch, the former a native of Douglas, Worcester county, Mass., the latter a daughter of Nathaniel Ben- nett, of New Jersey. John Balch, the great pro- genitor of the family, arrived in America from Somersetshire, in 1623; they set sail from Plym- outh, Eng., with Robert Gorges as commander, and they found lodgment at Cape Ann. A part of the party returned, but four of the company, among whom was John Balch, reached Salem in 1626 and was one of the "Old Planters," who re-
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ceived an original grant of land, being in the country five years before Governor Endicott, for be it understood the community of which he was one of the four founders was in fact the first place settled and thereafter continuously occu- pied by Europeans on the shores or territory di- rectly contiguous to Boston bay. The father of Mr. Balch died at the age of seventy-eight, and his mother at that of more than ninety-seven. The son began going to a New England common school at the age of three, was rarely tardy and never absent until he reached the age of ten, when he was able to render his father assistance on the farm, and after that he seldom had oppor- tunity to attend school regularly, until he was sixteen, when he passed three months at a select one in Townsend. Here he made such profi- ciency, that at the end of his term he was consid - ered capable of teaching a district school, which he did the following winter to the satisfaction of his pupils and patrons. From then on he taught three or four months every winter until 1835. when he was graduated from Middlebury Col- lege, Vt. He also taught the academy at Jericho, that state. one term. Immediately after his graduation he had an application from the trustees of the academy at Bennington to be- come principal of that institution, and this posi- tion he filled for two years with marked success. Among his pupils there he had young men who afterward became famous, among them Chapin Robinson Hall, Trenor Park, Lodowick Thayer. and others of similar renown, while at Benning- ton he began the study of law under the direc- tion of John S. Robinson, of that city, an advo- cate of great ability and national reputation. Hc studied medicine and theology in order to make himself a more competent jurist. On the com- pletion of his term as principal of the. Benning- ton Academy and after securing his second de- gree of Master of Arts at Middlebury College, he and his brother Samuel came west and ar- rived at Kalamazoo about August 20, 1837, and here Mr. Balch passed almost all of his subse- quent life. He at once renewed the study of law under the tuition of Stuart and Webster and also became manager of Huron Institute, which is
now Kalamazoo College. In 1838 he went to Marshall, Calhoun county, and during the next two years taught in what was intended to be Marshall College, but hard times rendering it impossible for the institution to realize on the wild Michigan lands with which it was endowed, and some of its trustees having failed, the enter- prise was abandoned. Here he had among his pupils L. D. Norris, of Ypsilanti, afterward a graduate of Michigan University, who began and carried through the case which led to the famous Dred Scott decision, and many others of national importance. Although he never taught again, Mr. Balch kept up his active interest in the cause of public education through life and has often been called the father of the high-school system in western Michigan. He was for over twenty- five years president of the board of education in Kalamazoo. He was admitted to the bar at Cen- treville. St. Joseph county, this state, on March 19. 1840. In 1842 he was elected prosecuting attorney for Kalamazoo county and the same year was appointed by the circuit judge prosecu- ting attorney for Barry county. There being no lawyer in that county, he held the office for sev- eral terms to the satisfaction of the judge and the people of the two counties. In the early his- tory of the Kalamazoo Bar Association he was unanimously elected president. a position which he filled for more than twenty-five years with credit to himself and benefit to the, association. During his long practice in this state he was en- gaged in many murder trials and others of wide renown, and in them he often measured swords with some of the most eminent men in the pro- fession : and he has been associated, from time to time, with a number of the leading lawyers of the state in partnership. Mr. Balch's pro- found study and extensive reading enabled him to speak fluently and impressively on almost any subject at a moment's notice, and gave to his conversation a breadth, versatility and piquancy which made it highly agreeable and instructive. In 1846 he was chosen to represent his district in the state senate, and in 1857 was appointed postmaster of Kalamazoo, discharging the duties of each position with his accustomed vigor, abil-
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ity and integrity. He was also president of the village of Kalamazoo. In 1862 the Democratic party, to which he always gave his support, nom- inated him to represent his district in the con- gress of the United States, and by his cogent. convincing and masterful advocacy of the cause committed to his care at that time succeeded in . largely reducing the hostile majority against his party. He was a professed Christian, a member of the First Presbyterian church, patriotic, phil- anthropic, charitable, a sympathetic friend and wise adviser. He was first married to Miss Sarah Chapin, daughter of Rev. Walter Chapin, of Woodstock, Vt., a profound scholar and accom- plished lady who died of consumption on May 18, 1848, about nine years after her marriage, leaving three children, two daughters and a son. The youngest daughter died in the same year as her mother, at the age of three. The son, Wal- ter O. Balch, lived to be thirty-four. He was a good student, was graduated from the law de- partment of the Michigan University, and prac- ticed his profession for a number of years with the firm of Balch, Smiley & Balch. He died of consumption in December, 1876. The older daughter, Mrs. John den Bleyker, is living. In 1849, at Philadelphia, Mr. Balch married Miss Elizabeth E. Dungan, a lady of fine appearance and a wide range of scholarship. She was mis- tress of the French and Spanish languages, as well as the English, and possessed an extensive knowledge of history. Her conversational pow- ers were of the highest order. By this marriage there were two children born in the household, a son who died at the age of three months, and a daughter who passed away suddenly at a more mature age. being stricken with diphtheria.
JOHN DEN BLEYKER, the oldest son of Paulus den Bleyker, came with his father to Kalamazoo from Holland in October, 1855. He began his education in his native land before coming to this country. On his arrival here he continued his education at the old Branch, afterward the Baptist College in Kalamazoo. He began his business career as a clerk in the store of William B. Clark, remaining there two years. He then passed two years as a deputy in the office of the
register of deeds, and at the close of that period went into the real-estate business in company with his father. He has been engaged in farm- ing, and has one of the most beautiful and pro- ductive farms in this section. It is a part of section 12 in Kalamazoo township, east of the city. Mr. den Bleyker was born on the island of Lexel, Holland, on September 5, 1839, and after leaving the Baptist College here attended the Kalamazoo Commercial College for a time, and afterward Gregory's Commercial College, from which he was graduated in 1859. On Octo- ber 25, 1864, he was united in marriage with Miss Amna Balch, daughter of the late Hon. Nathaniel A. Balch, a sketch of whom precedes this one. Mr. and Mrs. den Bleyker have had nine children, six of whom are living, Paul, Sarah, Gertrude, Harry, Walter and Anne. John died at the age of two years and nine months, and Mattie when eight years old. Mr. den Bley- ker owns one hundred and eighty-five acres of fine land. He has bred Holstein and Jersey cat- tle and registered sheep, which have taken a number of first premiums at the state fairs. He is also a great lover of good horses. In the gen- eral welfare and progress of his township he is always earnestly and actively interested, being a director and stockholder in the Kalamazoo Na- tional Bank, and connected with various other enterprises in whose prosperity the substantial good of the community is deeply involved. He has, moreover, devoted some time to the real estate business with profitable results. In poli- tics he is a Democrat and served sixteen years as a notary public. He and his family belong to the Presbyterian church, of which he is a liberal supporter.
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