USA > Michigan > Kent County > Grand Rapids > Grand Rapids and Kent County, Michigan: History and Account of Their Progress from First. Vol. II > Part 33
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heard the cries of the Indians, mementos of whom Scott P. Lowe still has in the form of fifteen arrowheads, picked up on the farm. The Lowe family maintained friendly relations with the redskins, who formed a great liking for the pumpkin pies made by Grandmother Lowe, who made many trades with them, receiving calico, for the most part, in exchange for her toothsome pastry. Abraham Lowe continued to be engaged in farming in Bowne township during the remainder of his life, cleared off the greater part of his 200 acres, and sold some of this land to James Thompson. He was an excellent type of the sturdy pioneer and his name and reputation were known all over this locality. Hiram Lowe was the oldest of five children, the others being: Almina, deceased wife of the late James Lee, who was a soldier in the Civil war; Cordelia, who married Nelson Dotty and lives at Central Lake, Mich .; Henry, who enlisted in the Union army when a lad of but fifteen years, contracted disease and died in a field hospital as a victim to the Civil war, and John W., whose home is in Kansas. Hiram Lowe grew up on the home farm, amid pioneer surroundings, and when he came of age purchased sixty acres of the home farm, upon which he engaged in general operations until within three months of his death, caused by an attack of la grippe. At that time he had accumulated eighty acres of land and was considered one of the skilled and energetic farmers of his locality, as well as a citizen who took an active part in public affairs. He served as school director several times, was a stanch Republican, and at different times attended the United Brethren and Methodist Episcopal churches. He and his wife were parents of the following children: Emery H. and Harry, twins, the former engaged in farming with his brother, Scott P., and the latter deceased; Alice, who lives in Colorado; Scott P .; Clara B. and William, residents of Grand Rapids; Hannah, of Colo- rado; and Arthur, of Saranac, Mich. After attending the district schools of Bowne township, Scott P. Lowe began farming with his father, at whose death he bought the homestead place of sixty acres, to which he has since added by purchase. He carries on general farming and is skilled in all departments of agricultural work, which he prosecutes in a modern manner and with up-to-date machinery and implements. Mr. Lowe has long been prominently before his fellow- citizens in various ways, having been for twenty years incumbent of the office of township treasurer and for eight years justice of the peace of Bowne township. His political belief makes him a Republi- can. He has also been prominent in church work, having been a trustee of the Methodist Episcopal church for the last quarter of a century, and at present being chairman of the board of trustees, in addition to which he has for twelve consecutive years been super- intendent of the Sabbath school. No movement for community better- ment as to morals, education or civic management is considered com- plete until his name is enrolled as a supporter, and he was one of the strongest adherents of temperance in the recent work that resulted in Michigan being voted dry. Mr. Lowe was married Dec. 22, 1897, to Margaret A. Robinson, who was born in England, in which country. her parents still reside. Mr. and Mrs. Lowe have had two children : Laura Grace, who is attending high school at Lowell, and Scott Robin- son, who died Aug. 30, 1914, at Bowne Center.
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FARNHAM LYON
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Charles M. Luce, present proprietor of the Hotel Mertens, was born at Battle Creek, Mich., Dec. 2, 1883, son of Charles A. and Ellen (Hall) Luce. After attending the public schools of Grand Rapids he went to Chicago, where he attended the Chicago Manual Training school and while there joined the Tau Delta Phi fraternity. In 1907 he started traveling on the road as a salesman of furniture, on a com- mission basis, but in 1910 left the road to enter the purchasing de- partment of the American Sheeting Company, with which he was connected for one year. Mr. Luce next went to Wickenburg, Ariz., where he engaged in the general merchandise business under the firm style of Luce & Campbell until 1913, when he came to Grand Rapids and became associated with Mr. Mehrtens in the building of the new Hotel Mertens, of which he has been proprietor and manager since the elder man's death. This hotel, at the corner of Oakes and Com- merce streets, was thrown open to the public, Jan. 6, 1914. It is a fire-proof structure, sanitary in every particular, 100x50 feet in dimen- sions, and has eight floors and 133 rooms, forty rooms being with bath. The house has become extremely popular among those of the traveling public who appreciate real comfort, an excellent cuisine and attentive service, and who know that their every requirement will be gladly and intelligently catered to. Mr. Luce is a Republican in his political tendencies and is fraternally affiliated with the Benevolent & Protective Order of Elks. He has shown himself as being in sym- pathy with progressive movements and as a citizen has supported public-spirited enterprises. Mr. Luce was married, Sept. 10, 1913, to Gertrude Ann, daughter of Charles H. Mehrtens, and they are the parents of a son, Charles Mehrtens.
Maj. Farnham Lyon .- While more than seven years have passed away since Maj. Farnham Lyon was called to his final rest, he lives in the memory of his many friends as the highest type of loyal citizen and progressive, honorable business man. He never faltered in the performance of any task that was rightfully his, and throughout his career his dealings were just and straightforward and he never sought to take advantage of the misfortunes of others. Actuated by high ideals, his life was passed in strict conformity therewith. As a de- fender of the American flag in the Civil war, as a business man and as a supporter of worthy movements which have their root in un- selfish devotion to the best interests of the country, Maj. Farnham Lyon has left his impress indelibly inscribed upon the history of Saginaw, where so many years of his life were passed. Major Lyon was born Nov. 5, 1829, at Shelburn Falls, N. Y., a son of Truman Hawley and Louise (Farnham) Lyon, natives of the Empire State. Truman Hawley Lyon brought his family to Michigan, in 1837, and four years later located at Grand Rapids, where he became one of the prominent and influential men of his day, serving both as post- master and as judge of the Superior court. The early education of Farnham Lyon was secured in the public schools of his native state and completed in the schools of Michigan, whence he had accom- panied his parents when still a lad. When he reached more mature years he gained his first business experience in the hotel business, being associated with his uncle, Edward Lyon, who was proprietor of the old Michigan Exchange Hotel at Detroit. He was acting as clerk of this old-time hostelry when the Civil War came on and was one of the
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first to enlist in answer to President Lincoln's call for troops. He became a member of the Seventh Michigan cavalry, with the rank of lieutenant and quartermaster, and subsequently was advanced to captain and quartermaster. For a long period he was on the staff of General Custer, with whom he served until the fall of the Con- federacy, and during their army life a strong friendship sprung up between the two men that existed until the untimely death of the latter. On March 20, 1866, Captain Lyon was advanced to the rank of major, and it was with this title that he returned to the duties of civil life. The intrepid soldier had established a splendid record for gallantry and fidelity, and had passed through some of the greatest actions of the war, but he dutifully laid aside the weapons of the soldier and took up the prosaic tasks of the civilian, confident that his responsibility called upon him to do so. For some years he was proprietor of the Rathbun House, at Grand Rapids, and in 1874 opened the Morton House, in partnership with A. V. Pantlind, but in 1876 he removed to Saginaw, where he had charge of the Bancroft House. His interests branched out and his activities found an outlet in other directions, and for years he was a director in the Home Savings Bank, the Saginaw Savings Bank and the East Saginaw Savings Bank. A Democrat in politics, he worked hard for his friends but did not seek personal preferment, although in 1892 he was a delegate of his party to the National convention. He belonged to the Loyal Legion, the Masons, the Saginaw club and the Saginaw Country club. His death, Feb. 14, 1911, removed one than whom no citizen had in larger measure the esteem of his fellows, nor exerted a stronger influence for the promotion of honor and good citizenship. Major Lyon was married, Sept. 17, 1867, to Miss Carrie Merchant, daughter of Joel and Adeline (Dodge) Merchant, of Grand Rapids, but natives of New York. Mrs. Lyon's parents came to Grand Rapids in 1854, Mr. Merchant securing employment in the dry goods store of John M. Fox and later he entered into partnership with Mr. Sears as proprietor of a cracker factory, which they conducted with much success until Mr. Merchant's retirement some years before his death. He passed away, Feb. 15, 1888, while his widow survived him until July 16, 1904. Mrs. Lyon, since the death of the Major, has resided at No. 46 Lafayette street, S. E., Grand Rapids, where she has a beautiful home and hosts of friends. By a former mar- riage Major Lyon became the father of a daughter, Fannie, who married Arthur O. Poinier, of Saginaw, and at her death left two children-Catherine Lyon and Margaret Farnham.
Dell Mabie .- The agricultural element of northern Kent county forms a class of independent men who have hewed their own way to prosperity and position and who have in many cases been wit- nesses of the entire changes that have so developed this region during the past half a century. The list of these men includes Dell Mabie, of Solon township, who has been the architect of his own fortune and who has fairly won the independence and standing that are now his. Mr. Mabie was born in Solon township, Kent county, Michigan, June 24, 1865. His father, Elias Mabie, was born in the town of Naples, N. Y., May 15, 1834, and in his native state followed farming and lumbering for some years. It was in the latter capacity that he came to Michigan. during the early '60s, but when he had engaged
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as a lumberman for some years realized the fertility and produc- tiveness of the land here for agricultural purposes and accordingly secured a tract from the Government. The remainder of his life was passed in the pursuits of the soil, and his farm was developed abso- lutely through his own efforts, from the time of the first rude log cabin in the little clearing until he saw his broad acres covered with crops and his substantial buildings the abode of his family and the shelter of his live-stock and implements. He died on the farm which his industry had reclaimed from the wilderness. Mr. Mabie was unable to serve as a soldier in the Civil war, but was a warm Union sympathizer and had three brothers in the army. Mr. Mabie mar- ried Rhoda Rounds, a daughter of Russell Rounds, one of the early settlers of this region. Mrs. Mabie frequently related to her chil- dren incidents and recollections of the early days, when there was only one house at Cedar Springs and that built of logs. At nights the wolves and panthers would howl around the lonely little cabin, with its blanketed doors and windows, wild game of all kinds being plentifully found in Solon township. Even the bare necessities of life were hard to secure, and absolutely no comforts or conven- iences were to be secured. Mr. and Mrs. Mabie were the parents of two children: Charley, born Sept. 29, 1860, and Dell. The educa- tion of Dell Mabie was somewhat neglected in his youth, although he attended school at White Creek, in Solon township. The greater part of the time that he should have been at his studies he spent in work at the shingle factory and following this he entered the woods, where he remained for nearly a quarter of a century. He was frugal and careful with his earnings and eventually came to his present farm in Solon township, where he has made many improvements. In the way of progressiveness he has adopted modern methods of farming, and his operations yield him a handsome income under his careful and painstaking management. Mr. Mabie married Miss Nettie Tuttle, daughter of Walter and Orpha Tuttle, farming people of this com- munity. Mr. Tuttle was a volunteer in the Union army at the out- break of the Civil war, fought through that struggle and eventually returned unharmed to his home. Mr. and Mrs. Mabie are the parents of four children: Lowell is unmarried and one of the energetic farmers of Solon township; Vern is his father's assistant in the work of the home farm; Roy is also engaged in assisting his father; and Don is still attending school. Mr. Mabie has not been an office seeker, but has served for some years as school director and holds that position at present. As a voter he supports the candidates of the Republican party.
Nelson Mabie .- More than sixty-three years have passed since Nelson Mabie, one of the old and honored residents of the Cedar Springs community, first came to Kent county. He was then in the flush of early manhood, a hardy and ambitious youth, competent and willing to cope with the question of developing a farm from the timbered land which he saw all around him. The history of the progress of this section is largely his own history, for he has shared with others the task of bringing a fertile and productive country into existence and has done much to aid its institutions and promote the welfare of its people. Mr. Mabie was born on a farm in Gaines- ville township, Genesee county, New York, Dec. 6, 1832, son of Amos
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C. Mabie. His grandfather, Elias Mabie, of New York, is supposed to have been a farmer, for there has always been a predilection for this kind of work in the family and many of its members have engaged therein. Born in Dutchess county, New York, Amos C. Mabie fol- lowed farming in that county and later in Genesee county until 1855, when he emigrated to the newly-opened West and settled in Solon township. Despite his fifty-five years, he entered actively into the work of clearing his eighty-acre farm, which he had purchased from the Government at seventy-five cents an acre, lived in his little log cabin which he had erected in the clearing, and enjoyed such com- forts as his industry could obtain for him. He did not live to see his entire farm cleared, but during his life acquired a modest compe- tence, so that his declining years were passed in the quiet contentment of retirement. Mr. Mabie married Anor Fisher, daughter of Joseph and Sarah Fisher, also of New York. As far as is known, Mr. Fisher, who was a shoemaker by trade, never came to Michigan. There were ten children in the Mabie family: Phoebe, Nancy, Allen, John, Sarah, Jonas, Nelson, Elias, Susan, and Edward. Nelson Mabie was educated in the district schools of New York and as a young man worked by the month among neighbors, as well as on the farm of his father ; thus obtaining his first experience. He was something more than twenty-two years of age when he first came to Kent county, in November, 1854, and for a short time worked by the month, but eventually decided to become a landowner himself, and accordingly bought 160 acres of land from the Government, paying therefor seventy-five cents an acre. He had faith in the future of the com- munity in which he had settled and worked hard to clear up his land, and has since seen the forest replaced by prosperous homesteads and broad fields of fertility and productiveness. After clearing practically all of his land, Mr. Mabie sold off eighty acres, but since then has bought another forty, so that his farm now consists of 120 acres. He has conducted his operations in a scientific manner, with modern machinery, and his marked business ability has assisted in making his success a worth-while one. Mr. Mabie has reached advanced years, but still continues actively engaged in the work of his farm. He married Catherine Young, daughter of Edward and Sarah (Cass- ner) Young, some of whose family came from Canada to Grattan, Mich., where Mr. Young was a farmer and blacksmith. His wife died in Canada in 1830, and he died in Solon in 1882. Mr. and Mrs. Mabie have no children. Mr. Mabie was drafted for service in the Civil war but was never called into the ranks. His younger brother, Edwin, however, served throughout the war and returned uninjured to the family. He was one of the party detailed to capture Jefferson Davis, for which capture each member of the party received $200. Nelson Mabie has been variously identified with public affairs in his township, having been a member of the board of school directors, commissioner of highways and served in other offices. He has exerted much influence in the building and improvement of highways and roads in his locality and has to his own credit a road which is accounted one of the best in this part of the county. Mr. Mabie is a strong supporter of temperance and in politics is a Prohibitionist. As a fraternalist, he was a member of Cedar Springs Lodge No. 213, A. F. & A. M., and he belongs to the Wesleyan M. E. church.
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Otto Kan Malih
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George F. Mackenzie .- In financial circles of Grand Rapids, a name that carries weight because of its owner's banking ability and general reputation is that of George F. Mackenzie. While he has been a resident of this city only since 1909, he has already become recognized as a capable financier and one whose position as vice- president and cashier of the Old National Bank has lent decided strength to that institution. Mr. Mackenzie, as his name would sug- gest, is of Scotch birth. He is a son of Roderick Mackenzie, of Stornoway, Island of Lewis, Outer Hebrides, Scotland, where George F. Mackenzie was born, Feb. 15, 1866. After an ordinary education in the public schools, at the age of fifteen years he entered the British Linen Bank in his native town and for four years was employed in that bank, then coming to America, where he entered the services of the American Exchange Bank, of Duluth, Minn., an institution with which he remained for the next twenty-one years. When he left that bank it was to go to the Northern Crown Bank of Winnipeg, being connected therewith for three years in the capacity of manager of the main office of that bank, and in 1909 he transferred his resi- dence to the United States and located at Grand Rapids, as assistant cashier of the Old National Bank. Later he was advanced to the post of cashier, and finally to his present position as vice president and cashier. During his connection with banking affairs at Grand Rapids, Mr. Mackenzie has gained a reputation for astuteness and conservatism and for executive ability of a high order. He is a valued and active member of the Association of Commerce, and be- longs to the Kent Country club and the Peninsular club.
Ottokar Malek .- When the history of music in Michigan shall be properly written, few men will be found who have more indelibly stamped their individuality and genius upon their period and their community than has Ottokar Malek, of Grand Rapids. The complete history of his busy life would be inspiring and serve as an example to those seeking achievement; but within the limits assigned to this brief sketch, it is possible to give only a brief outline of his career and of the famous institution of which he is the head and guiding spirit, the Malek School of Music. Ottokar Malek was born at Bud- weis, on the Moldau river, Bohemia, Dec. 20, 1875, son of Joseph and Anna (Koneck) Malek. His father, who was a civil engineer at Budweis and Prague for a number of years, is deceased, and Mrs. Malek makes her home with her son at Grand Rapids. The early education of Ottokar Malek was secured in the public schools and his musical training began when he was still a small child. When he was twenty years of age he graduated with highest honors in the celebrated Prague Conservatory and was engaged as instructor to the Duke of Fuerstenberg, winning this most enviable position from many competitors. Later he went to Vienna, where he studied for three years with the famous Alfred Gruenfeld, court pianist to the German and Austrian emperors. After this, Mr. Malek took up the system of piano technic with the celebrated Leschetizky, and this great master's influence has been of inestimable value to Mr. Malek in his musical career, as it has perfected the much desired gift of being able to impart knowledge to others. In 1896 Mr. Malek began to tour Europe as a concert pianist, and everywhere won the highest commendation. Shortly before coming to this country he held the II-16
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position of professor at the Eichelberg Conservatory in Berlin, be- sides being one of the "Capellmeisters of the Berliner Tonkuenstler Orchester," of which Richard Strauss was then the first conductor. In 1902 Mr. Malek came to the United States and won wide recog- nition while touring the United States and Canada. Since 1908 his time has been given mainly to teaching and coaching pupils for the concert stage, beside playing publicly and occupying the position of director of piano departments of different large music schools in and about Chicago. Among the number of artist-teachers, who are help- ing to free the piano study from the old traditional dictums, handed down in a sort of apostolic succession from teachers of past genera- tions, Mr. Malek has been looked upon as an authority. The results realized by his pupils as well as their musical and artistically finished playing were commented always by the press and public as very unusual. The Malek School of Music was founded by Mr. Malek in 1914, at 254 Fulton street, East, and his efforts to provide the com- munity with opportunities to obtain the best teaching and the most helpful artistic surroundings have been crowned with success, for its artistic activities and high standard have made the school a lead- ing factor in the musical life and gained for it the prestige of being "the school whose reputation and success is built on merit and results." Not only is the student of the Malek School of Music given every op- portunity to broaden his artistic horizon by providing him with instruction in more than one branch, but he is surrounded by that musical atmosphere which is so stimulating to earnest study, as well as by the example of others who are laboring to bring their talents to perfection. The reputation won by the students as performers and teachers, the professional character of the students' recitals, and above all, the wholesome and comprehensive schooling given every student, be his talent great or small, afford evidence of the high standard maintained by the school, and are responsible for the bril- liant reputation it has achieved. The school consists of a piano department, a vocal department, a violin department, an organ de- partment, a theoretical department, a children's department and an elocution department, and languages are also taught, in addition to which there is chamber-music and orchestra-practice under the in- struction of Mr. Malek, and a choral class under William Beard. The work of the school is divided into regular and special courses, the former including the prepartory, the academic, the teacher's and the artist's course. The system of instruction used in the Malek School of Music affords the pupil direct individual instruction, public appearances of the pupils, alternating with recitals given by the teach- ers, thus bringing the pupils, teachers and parents in constant contact, lending a healthy impetus toward diligent work and good progress. In making up its faculty, the school consistently has endeavored to obtain instructors whose qualifications for their work are of the highest order. The members of the faculty are exponents of modern, rational and progressive methods of instruction, and form a strong assembly of workers with unity of thought and purpose. A short reference to these instructors may prove not without interest. Mrs. Florence Krumme-Malek is a pianiste and teacher of unusual ability. At an early age she showed a great talent for music. In Chicago she studied piano with the renowned composer-pianist, F. A. Kern, and
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harmony with C. Graham. At the age of thirteen she was awarded a free scholarship by a prominent Chicago musical college, but this she did not accept, preferring to study with Mr. Malek. Under his instruction she became his foremost pupil, winning everywhere admir- ation and success with her finished and artistic playing. For the last eight years Mrs. Malek has given preparatory instruction to Mr. Malek's pupils and has demonstrated that she is an exceptionally thorough and competent teacher. She has won high praise from the public and the press of Grand Rapids by her numerous appearances as soloist and also with her husband in two-piano ensemble work. Mrs. William H. Loomis had the advantages of a most thorough collegiate and musical training in America and Europe. She received her first musical education from her mother at an early age and continued to study piano and harmony with H. C. Post. After this, Mrs. Loomis studied organ with the well known Brooklyn organist, Dudley Buck, Sr., and took the musical lecture course of the Columbia University under McDowell in New York. In connection with her theoretical studies, Mrs. Loomis continued her vocal training with Signor Agramonti, and after years of study in New York, went to Berlin, Germany, to become a pupil of Edgar Stillman Kelly in composition, and Wilhelm Fisher in organ playing. She has been connected with the Malek School of Music as teacher of theory and harmony since it was established, and has taken a pedagogic course in modern piano teaching under Ottokar Malek, to prepare herself thoroughly in the uniform system used in the piano department. Mrs. Loomis has been for years very successful as director of church choirs, and is well known as an influential factor in the uplift of the musical life of Grand Rapids. Her unusual success as a teacher is due not only to her enthusiasm but also to her thorough knowledge of the subjects she teaches. Miss Hazel M. McEachron, a talented pianiste, through careful and conscientious work with her pupils, has made an enviable reputation as a teacher. In addition to her regular piano study, Miss McEachron had a full course in harmony with Mrs. William H. Loomis. Miss McEachron has had a thor- ough preparation for teaching in the piano department of the Malek School of Music, where she has been for the past three years with great satisfaction to her students and the institution. She had a thorough preparation for teaching the modern piano technic under Ottokar Malek. Miss Anna Cada, a graduate of the Malek School of Music, received all her piano training under Ottokar Malek. She studied theory extensively under J. C. Graham of Chicago, and the last two years under Mrs. William H. Loomis at the Malek School of Music. Miss Cada appeared frequently in public in Grand Rapids with remarkable success. She is thoroughly prepared for the work of training pupils in the technic of the piano. The management of the Malek School of Music takes much pride in the fact that it has been able to re-engage the services of William Beard for the vocal department, whose experience as teacher covers a period of four- teen years and who has attained results that have secured for him a place among the best teachers of Chicago. Mr. Beard is universally known, and has won recognition not only as a concert and oratorio singer, but has had a large share in the making of many artists now before the public. Mr. Beard has appeared before most of the large
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