USA > Michigan > Wayne County > Detroit > Compendium of history and biography of the city of Detroit and Wayne County, Michigan > Part 43
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Mr. Russel is a staunch adherent of the old Democratic party, and, though he has never been a seeker of public office, he has ever shown a deep interest in local affairs of a pub- lic nature, holding the welfare and progress of his native city closely to heart. He was the first president of the present board of park and boulevard commissioners of Detroit and was a useful and diligent member of that body. In 1893, as an official of the clearing-house com- mittee of the city, he did much to uphold the financial supremacy of Detroit during the panic which began in that year. He is a valued and popular member of the Detroit Club, the lead-
ing organization of the sort in the city, and was its president in 1889 and 1890. He and his family attend the Presbyterian church.
In 1872 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Russel to Miss Frances E. Bagg, daughter of the late John S. Bagg, the well known editor of the Detroit Free Press. They have four sons and five daughters.
The following estimate of the character and labors of Mr. Russel has been given by one familiar with the details of his career: "He is firm and pronounced in his individual views, but is considerate of and attentive to the opinions of others, and has a kindly, genial disposition, which invariably wins to him the friendship of those who come to know the man as he is. He leads men not simply be- cause they have confidence in his honor and integrity but because they respect and like him. In all the affairs and relations of life he is a typical American,-a good citizen, de- voted to his family and friends, liberal in public affairs and industrious in business."
JAMES F. JOY.
That "man lives not to himself alone" is an assurance which is amply verified in all the af- fairs of life, but its pertinence is most patent in those instances where persons have so em- ployed their inherent talents, so improved their opportunities and so marshaled their forces as to gain prestige which transcends mere local limitations and finds its angle of influence ever broadening in beneficence and human helpful- ness. There are thousands of men of fine character and ability ever looming up among us, and in even a cursory review of the lives of such lies much of incentive and inspiration. Apropos of these statements there is peculiar consistency in according in this volume an epitome of the career of Detroit's distinguished citizen, the late James F. Joy, whose produc- tive activities were gigantic and whose life was one of impregnable integrity and honor. He was a man of the nation but was essentially a citizen of Detroit, whose people may ever take pride in his character and his accomplish- ment.
James 7 toys
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James Frederick Joy was born in Durham, New Hampshire, on the 2d of December, 1810, and was a son of James and Sarah (Pickering) Joy. His father was a black- smith by trade and in later life was a manu- facturer of scythes and a ship builder at Dur- ham. The original American ancestor in the agnatic line was Thomas Joy, who immigrated from England about the year 1632, locating in Boston, where he became a land holder in 1636, as shown by the town records. From that city his descendants removed to various localities in New England. The father of the subject of this memoir was a man of much en- terprise and of strong intellectuality; he was a Federalist in politics and a Calvinist in re- ligion. His influence was potent in fixing cor- rect principles in the minds of his children and all of them honored him in their after lives.
The early education of James F. Joy was secured in the common schools and in a neigh- boring academy, in which he took a two years' course. He then engaged in teaching and through the compensation thus received, sup- plemented by such financial assistance as his father was able to accord, he realized his am- bition and entered upon a collegiate course. In 1833 he was graduated, at the head of his class, in Dartmouth College, which conferred upon him the degree of Bachelor of Arts. He soon afterward entered Harvard Law School, at Cambridge, where he made rapid advance- ment in the accumulation and assimilation of technical knowledge, but his pecuniary status was such that he was compelled to withdraw at the end of the first year. He thereafter was for several months preceptor in the academy at Pittsfield, New Hampshire, and for a year was a tutor in Dartmouth College. He re- signed the latter position to resume his law studies at Cambridge, where, within a year, he completed the prescribed course and was duly admitted to the bar, in Boston. He had decided to locate in the west, and in Septem- ber, 1836, he arrived in Detroit, where he en- tered the law office of Hon. Augustus S. Por- ter, "one of the noblest men that ever repre- sented Michigan in the United States senate." In May of the following year he opened an
office of his own, and in the ensuing autumn he formed a professional partnership with George F. Porter, who had an extended ac- quaintanceship with prominent capitalists and financiers, so that the firm at once secured a clientage of representative order, and became known as one of the leading legal firms in the western country. During the height of the speculative craze in the late '30s and early '40s Michigan had established what was known as the internal-improvement system, under whose operations the state had purchased the Detroit & St. Joseph Railroad. In 1846, through the workings of this system, the state became bankrupt, and as a means toward solvency proposed to sell this railroad, whose name had been changed to the Michigan Cen- tral. In the interest of a corporation formed to buy the property Mr. Joy largely framed its charter, completed the organization of the corporation and induced capital to embark in the enterprise. The sale restored the state to solvency and general business resumed normal ramifications. The new company undertook to extend the road to Chicago, and in the im- portant litigation incident thereto Mr. Joy was engaged to such an extent in Michigan, In- diana and Illinois that he was gradually drawn away from his practice in Detroit. He grad- ually made railway law a specialty and for a long period he was one of the foremost figures in railway litigation in the United States, his practice being extensive and profitable. From being the legal adviser of railway companies he was gradually drawn into the field of man- agement, becoming prominent in extending railway connections and in the construction and executive control of new lines. The case of George C. Bates in ejectment against the Illinois Central and Michigan Central Railroad Companies, in the United States court, was the last very important cause in which he ap- peared as the leading counsel and advocate. The case involvel title to the Chicago station grounds of the two companies,-property at that time valued at two million dollars,-and in this celebrated case Mr. Joy's remarkable powers were so exemplified as to gain him un- precedented prestige. The necessarily pre-
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scribed limitations of this publication of course prevent a detailed review of this cause célèbre, but the same is a matter of historical record.
Mr. Joy became extensively identified with the railway interests of the country and was largely engaged in the extending of lines. He organized the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad Company, whose line cost sixty millions of dollars, and before construction was instituted he made a trip on foot over the proposed route. For many years he was the executive head of the corporation, and under his direction the lines were extended to Quincy and Omaha. The line from Kansas City to the Indian Territory was another enterprise pro- moted by him. Incidentally he also built the first bridge across the Missouri river at Kan- sas City, thus giving great impetus to the de- velopment of that city. About 1857 Mr. Joy became associated with J. W. Brooks and en- tered into a contract, through a company or- ganized for the purpose, to undertake and complete the Sault Ste. Marie canal. The work was pushed forward with utmost vigor and was completed within two years, to the great benefit of navigation and commerce.
About the year 1867 Mr. Joy became presi- dent of the Michigan Central Railroad Com- pany, of which he had been general counsel for many years. As chief executive the road was largely rebuilt and every department was made adequate to meet the demands placed upon it. These improvements were made at great ex- pense, double track being laid on a large por- tion of the line and the steel rails used having cost, in gold, one hundred and thirty dollars per ton, in England. Mr. Joy also promoted the building and finally acquired control of the Jackson, Lansing & Saginaw Railroad, from Jackson to Saginaw and Mackinaw City, and also of the road from Jackson to Grand Rap- ids,-both now parts of the Michigan Central system. He also built the Detroit & Bay City and the Detroit, Lansing & Northern Rail- roads, and the Michigan Central's air line from Jackson to Niles, the Kalamazoo & South Haven, and the Chicago & West Michigan Railroads, were alike the results of his activity and progressiveness. He was the prime fac-
tor in the building of more than sixteen hun- dred miles of railroad in Michigan alone, and the beneficent influence of this work may well be understood. In the early 'zos Mr. Joy be- came interested in a proposed railroad to run along the western bank of the Mississippi river from Dubuque, Iowa, to a point opposite La Crosse, Wisconsin, and through his efforts the line was completed, being now a part of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul system. Mr. Joy was also largely instrumental in securing to Detroit its connection with the Wabash Railroad and in providing adequate station grounds for its business. He and other De- troit citizens furnished most of the money by which the connecting line was built from De- troit to Logansport, Indiana, and with four others he built the large and elaborate union depot in Detroit, together with the railroad, through the western part of the city, connect- ing with the Wabash. Mr. Joy was also one of the organizers of and attorney for the Sault Sainte Marie Ship Canal Company (in 1852-3-4), which built the first "Soo" canal and locks, thus making possible the navigation of Lake Superior by vessels from the lower lakes.
For several years prior to his death Mr. Joy lived essentially retired from active business, though still financially interested in a number of the corporations mentioned. Of him it has been said: "His life was of great benefit to his city and state, as well as to Chicago and the western country. Few men have guided and invested for so many years such vast sums of money as did he." In 1845 he was one of those who purchased the stock of the Michigan State Bank, which thereafter paid ten per cent. dividends regularly until the expiration of its charter, in 1855, at which time its stockholders received one hundred and thirteen per cent. for their shares. He was a director of the Second National Bank of Detroit, and when its charter expired, in 1883, it was succeeded by the Detroit National Bank, of whose direc- torate he continued to be a member until his death.
Though never active in the domain of "prac- tical politics," and never a seeker of public
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office, Mr. Joy was intrinsically loyal to all the duties of citizenship and exerted his influence in the promotion of good government, being an uncompromising advocate of the principles and policies of the Republican party. In 1838 he was chosen to the office of school inspector in Detroit, and in 1848 was elected city re- corder. In 1861 he was induced to accept the nomination as representative of the Detroit district in the state legislature, to which he was elected and in which he held a place of much prominence and influence in the climacteric period marking the opening of the civil war. He served a short time as regent of the Uni- versity of Michigan, but resigned on account of the exactions of his business interests. In 1880 he was a delegate to the Republican na- tional convention, in Chicago, and there made the address nominating the Hon. James G. Blaine for the presidency.
From a sketch of the career of Mr. Joy pre- pared several years ago by the writer of the present article, the following pertinent extracts are made: "Although always an active man, Mr. Joy never neglected mental recreation and improvement, but at all times kept up his early acquaintance with the classics and with all that is best in literature. When business hours were over, business cares were laid aside and never carried home. As is inevitable in the life of such a man as Mr. Joy, he encountered many and large financial losses, but, no matter what their magnitude, it is believed that there never was an evening when he would not lose all thought of them in reading the pages of some favorite author. His love of books was a taste that he had cultivated from early youth. His library, including many costly volumes, was the result of the steady accumulation of years and contained the best editions of the best authors. Not only were all the great lights of English literature represented but also the works of the best of foreign authors in the original text, and the latter he read with the same facility as did he those in his native tongue. Well thumbed editions of the ancient classics and the works of the ablest French authors found prominent places in his
collection and gave ample evidence of having been read and reread many times."
Mr. Joy was twice married. He first wedded Martha Alger Reed, daughter of Hon. John Reed, of Yarmouth, Massachusetts, member of congress for several years and also lieutenant governor of his state.
Upon her death Mrs. Joy left the following children: Sarah Reed, who married Dr. Ed- ward W. Jenks, both of whom have passed from life; Martha Alger, who married Henry A. Newland, both of whom were killed in a railroad accident; and James Joy.
Mr. Joy's second wife was Miss Mary Bourne, of Hartford, Connecticut, and the chil- dren of this union were: Frederic, who died in 1893; Henry Bourne, who is at the head of several large business interests in Detroit, among them being the Packard Motor Car Company; and Richard Pickering Joy, who is president of the National Bank of Commerce, of Detroit.
James F. Joy was summoned to the life eter- nal on the 24th of September, 1896, and his life on earth stands as perpetual voucher for nobility of character and of definite usefulness in the complex scheme of human activity and accomplishment.
HENRY P. BALDWIN.
No name is more honored in the history of Michigan than that of the subject of this brief memoir. His influence permeated the public life of the commonwealth, of which he became governor and which he later represented in the United States senate; his consecration and noble efforts as a churchman of the Protestant Episcopal church stretched forth until his name became familiar and revered by the clergy and laity of the church throughout the entire Union; he contributed in magnificent measure to the business and civic advancement of De- troit, where he maintained his home for more than half a century; and, above all and dom- inating all, was the personal exaltation of character which denoted the man in all the relations of his life. His was the faith that makes faithful, and this fidelity to duty in
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every form is what made his character distinct, noble and inspiring. His lineage was one of distinguished and most interesting order, and greatly did he himself add to the honors of the name which he bore. Strong in his convic- tions but not intolerant, always firm in the right but with no room in his heart for revenge, compassion and pity dwelt with him as con- stant guests. Flattery could not cajole him into compromise nor power awe him into silence. His life, character and services are pre-eminently entitled to careful study, and this investigation can not but beget a feeling of objective appreciation, reverence and incentive. He well exemplified the truth of the state- ments that, "The bravest are the tenderest; the loving are the daring."
Henry P. Baldwin was born at Coventry, Rhode Island, on the 22d of February, 1814, and the eventide of the last day of the year 1892 witnessed the release of his spirit to the realm of the immortal, which gained added glory when this transition occurred. The direct genealogical line of Governor Baldwin traces authentically to Nathaniel Baldwin, who was of the staunch English Puritan stock and who took up his abode in Milford, Connecticut, in 1639. From this worthy ancestor the direct line touches Rev. Moses Baldwin, who had the distinction, in 1757, of being the first to receive a degree from the College of New Jersey, now known as Princeton Univer- sity. Rev. Moses Baldwin was ordained to the ministry of the Presbyterian church and for more than fifty years he was incumbent of a pastoral charge at Palmer, Massachusetts, where his death occurred in the year 1813. John Baldwin, son of Rev. Moses Baldwin and named in honor of the founder of the American branch of the family, was born in Massachusetts, was graduated in Dart- mouth College in 1791, and died in North Dartmouth, Rhode Island, in 1826. John Bald- win, father of the subject of this memoir, married Margaret Williams, daughter of Rev. Nehemiah Williams, who was a Harvard grad- uate and who was for a score of years pastor of the Congregational church at Brimfield, Massachusetts, where he died in 1796: he was
likewise a scion of staunch Puritan stock, hav- ing been a lineal descendant of Robert Will- iams, who settled at Roxbury, Massachusetts, in 1638. From these brief data it will be seen that the future governor of Michigan had much in his favor in an ancestral way. His natural heritage was that of culture and refinement, which few men have more beauti- fully exemplified throughout life as did he. He was afforded the advantages of the common schools of his native state and had entered upon higher academic studies when the death of both of his parents compelled him to assume the active duties and responsibilties of life, while he was still a mere youth. To those who knew him in later years came full ap- preciation of how admirably he rose above the educational deprivation of his early life, for he was a man of broad culture and erudi- tion, having read wisely and well and having shown that ready power of assimilation which ever designates the receptive and sensitive temperament.
After leaving school Mr. Baldwin secured a position as clerk in a mercantile establish- ment, in which he was employed until he had attained to the age of twenty years, when he initiated his independent business career by opening a general store at Woonsocket, Rhode Island. It is natural to infer that his beginning was on a modest scale, but he was equipped with energy, and ambition, self-reliance and courage; practical experience and unswerving integrity of purpose,-the very essentials of definite success in temporal affairs. In 1837, three years after engaging in business at Woon- socket, he closed out his interests there and made a trip to the west. He visited Michigan, which was admitted to statehood in that year, and with marked prescience and judgment de- termined to number himself among the per- manent residents of Detroit, in which embry- onic city he located in the spring of the follow- ing year. Soon after coming to Detroit the future governor opened a small shoe store on Jefferson avenue, near Woodward avenue, in the center of the principal retail district at that time, and there he continued in the retail trade until 1851, when he expanded the scope of the
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enterprise into a jobbing business, which grew to be one of the largest and most important of the sort in the west and through which Mr. Baldwin laid the foundation for his ample and well earned fortune. He continued his active connection with the business until 1860 and retained his interest in the same until 1878, when he retired, having been identified with the enterprise, of which he was the founder, for the long period of forty years. He gained prestige as one of Detroit's most progressive and substantial business men, achieved a note- worthy success and left an unsullied reputation when he finally withdrew from the domain of commercial pursuits. Here, indeed, as in all other relations of life, he "kept himself un- spotted from the world."
To men of such character political history must ever owe a debt, for in this great arena of political affairs chicancery, subterfuge and malfeasance readily creep. As has been well said of him in this connection, by Right Rev. George D. Gillespie, the venerable and hon- ored bishop of the diocese of Western Mich- igan (Episcopal) : "Even in politics, that common field of urgent criticism and calumny, he had only honorable mention." In 1860 he was elected to a seat in the state senate, serv- ing during 1861-2,-the crucial period which marked the opening of the civil war and which taxed to the utmost the political powers of the state. Incidentally he was chairman of the finance committee and the committee to whom he was assigned charge of the improving of the Sault de Ste. Marie canal, the chief work of internal improvement then in charge of the state. He also served as a member of the Within the limits necessarily prescribed for a sketch of this character it is impossible to offer full details concerning the public career of Governor Baldwin; indeed, the record is a very part of the history of the state itself, and to that generic source reference should be made for a comprehensive review of his efforts and accomplishment in the sphere of high pub- lic service. In 1876 he was elected delegate at large to the National Republican convention, and in 1879, upon the sudden death of Hon. Zachariah Chandler, Michigan's brilliant repre- committee on banks and corporations, and was an effective and valued worker both on the floor of the senate and in the deliberations of the committee rooms. His success here but presaged that which was to be his in more exalted public offices. In 1868 he was the candidate of the Republican party for the office of governor of Michigan, being elected by a splendid majority and being chosen as his own successor two years later. Of his labors as governor Farmer's history of Detroit and Michigan has spoken as follows: "The sentative in the United States senate, Mr. Bald-
period of his incumbency was marked by the establishment and improvement of sev- eral public enterprises. He assisted mate- rially in the advancement and broadening of the scope of the state charities. He founded the state public school for dependent children, which is a model of its kind. He also secured the permanent organization of a commission to supervise the state charities and penal in- stitutions. He recommended the establish- ment of the Eastern insane asylum, the state board of health and the state house of correc- tion. He obtained appropriations for the en- largement of the university and was instru- mental in the erection of the elegant state cap- itol building, at Lansing. He not only recom- mended the appropriation for its construction, but the contracts for all the work were let under his administration, and he appointed the build- ing commission under whose direction and supervision the capitol was begun and com- pleted. During his last term the fire of 1871 destroyed the city of Chicago, and other fires swept, with devastating consequences, through the state of Michigan. Governor Baldwin is- sued a call to the state of Michigan on behalf of the western metropolis, and it is a matter of history that that call was nobly answered. Soon afterward he issued a similar appeal in aid of the people of his own state and sup- plemented it with such admirable and system- atic methods for the collecting of donations and administering relief, that within three months he was enabled to make the gratifying public announcement that no further aid was needed."
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win was almost uniformly recognized as his legitimate and logical successor, and there was hearty public commendation when Governor Croswell appointed him to the vacant seat. Sen- ator Baldwin's term of office was brief, cover- . ing two sessions of congress. But there, as elsewhere, he was methodical, industrious and far-seeing. He did excellent work in behalf of his state as a member of the committee on commerce and inaugurated the legislation which gave to Detroit its present magnificent federal building. While a member of the sen- ate he was elected chairman of the Republican state central committee, and served in that posi- tion during 1880-1.
What the Protestant Episcopal church in De- troit and Michigan owes to Governor Baldwin never can be expressed in words, and few laymen have been more prominent and influen- tial in the work of the church at large than was he. In a memorial address delivered by Hon. William R. Bates at a joint convention of the two houses of the state legislature, Febru- ary 28, 1893, the following pertinent sentiments were uttered :
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