USA > Michigan > Kent County > Grand Rapids > Grand Rapids and Kent County, Michigan: History and Account of Their Progress from First. Vol. II > Part 45
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Frank G. Row .- In the insurance field of Kent county, few men are better known than is Frank G. Row, who has built up a large busi- ness in this direction since locating at Grand Rapids, in 1905. Recog-
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nized as a man of fine executive ability and directing power, in Feb- ruary, 1917, he was honored by the business men of Grand Rapids by election to the position of president of the Grand Rapids Association of Commerce, in which capacity he is contributing materially to the forces which are working for the continued progress and future pres- tige of the Furniture City. Mr. Row was born at Lansing, Mich., Nov. 11, 1866, a son of Samuel H. and Elizabeth (Wilson) Row. His father, who served in Company B, Twentieth Michigan infantry, in which he rose from private to the rank of captain, went to Lansing, Mich., at the close of the Civil war, and there, in the office of the Secretary of State, performed the duties that are now the work of the Insurance Commissioner of the United States government. In recog- nition of his capable and faithful services, in 1869, he was appointed the first insurance commissioner of Michigan, and discharged the duties of that office efficiently for fifteen years. His death occurred March 10, 1909, on his sixty-ninth birthday, at Lansing, where Mrs. Row still resides. Frank G. Row's education under instructors was confined to attendance in the public schools of Lansing, and these he attended only until he was fourteen years of age. At that time he became self-supporting as assistant in a drug store in his native city, and, applying himself assiduously to his duties, learned the business in its details and was registered under the first state pharmacy board of Michigan. The drug business continued to occupy his attention until July 1, 1885, but the same vocation which his father followed must have possessed an attraction for the family, for in the year mentioned Mr. Row went to Chicago and entered the old and well known insurance office of Fred S. James & Company, one of the first concerns on LaSalle street. For three years he received the best of training and experience in this office, and then became a traveling solicitor for the Springfield Fire & Marine Insurance Company of Massachusetts, with which old line concern he was identified for twenty-one years. On June 1, 1905, he came to Grand Rapids, where he formed a partnership with Mr. Grinnell in an agency that has since grown to be one of the largest and most important in the field, con- tinuing to act as state agent for the Springfield company until 1911. In the line of his vocation, Mr. Row was coming constantly into con- tact with the leading business men of the city, with whom he became more fully acquainted as a member of the Association of Commerce. In this body he was a hard and continuous worker, giving freely of his time and abilities in the furtherance of its interests, and in Febru- ary, 1917, came his election to the presidency of this organization. His administration thus far has been characterized by hard work on the part of the chief executive and the handling of much, important business which has resulted beneficially to the body and therefore to the city. Mr. Row is a member and vestryman of Grace Episcopal church, and a member of the Highland and O-wash-ta-nong clubs. He was married, Nov. 25, 1891, to Miss Louise B. Cheney, of Lansing, Mich., and they have two children: F. Damon, who is engaged in the insurance business at Grand Rapids; and Rosina E., who reside with their parents.
William E. Rowe, M. D .- In professional circles of Grand Rapids the name of Dr. William E. Rowe is generally recognized as that
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of one of the most skilled of the city's surgeons, a thorough master of his calling, whose achievements have placed him far above the plane of mediocrity. The son of a physician, he inherited much of his talent, and this has been developed to its full strength and usefulness by a thorough training, both in this country and abroad. Dr. Rowe's accomplishments in the broad field of surgery have been of the sub- stantial rather than of the spectacular kind, but his success in numer- ous delicate and extremely difficult operations has stamped him as a man of sound ability and has brought him prestige and reputation in his honored calling. Dr. Rowe was born at Lawrence, Van Buren county, Michigan, May 18, 1858, son of Sylvanus and Helen P. (Car- penter (Rowe). Dr. Sylvanus Rowe was a graduate of the Eclectic Medical Institute, Cincinnati, Ohio, but the greater part of his career was passed in Michigan, and for many years he was the leading physi- cian and surgeon of Lawrence, having a practice that extended to vari- ous other points in Van Buren county. Both he and Mrs. Rowe died at Lawrence. Dr. William E. Rowe attended the graded and high schools of his native place, and, early displaying a preference for medicine as the field in which to spend his life's activities, was sent, after some preliminary training under the preceptorship of his father, to the University of Michigan. He made a creditable record in col- lege and was graduated with the class of 1879, receiving the degree of Doctor of Medicine, and at once returned to Lawrence, where he began to secure his first professional experience while associated in practice with his father. During eight years he had the benefit of the advice and counsel of the elder man, and at the end of this period felt com- petent to embark upon an independent career. Accordingly, in March of that year, he went to Allegan, Mich., where he established an office and began to minister to the needs of the people of that com- munity. During more than twenty years he served that locality, winning the respect, admiration and friendship of a large and con- stantly growing practice, but, having given more and more thought, study and attention to surgery, in April, 1908, left the community where he had been located so long and went on a tour through Europe, attending surgical clinics in England and France. On his return he visited also the leading institutions in this country, and finally opened his office at Grand Rapids, in the Ashton building, where he has since continued. Almost immediately he became known as a careful, skilled and steady-handed surgeon, and his services came more and more into demand until he has now a large and important clientele. He is a member of the staff of Blodgett Hospital and consulting surgeon in obstetrics at St. Mary's Hospital, where he is also lecturer in the nurses' training department. His professional connections are with the Kent County Medical Society, the Michigan State Medical Society and the American Medical Association, and he is also a fellow of the American Clinical Congress. To talents of an enviable character, he adds a cheerful personality that does much to irradiate the sick room. Dr. Rowe is a Mason, belonging to the Lodge and Chapter at Allegan, and the Council at Grand Rapids. He was married, July 19, 1887, to Emma H., daughter of Anson Rowe, of Allegan, Mich. Mrs. Rowe died without issue, May 18, 1916. Dr. Rowe was again married, June 20, 1917, to Alice Newport, a graduate of the U. B. A. training school for nurses.
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George A. Rumsey .- One of the oldest native-born citizens of Grand Rapids, George A. Rumsey, now approaching his seventieth year, is still active in business pursuits, although practically the entire development of the Furniture City has taken place during his life- time. He has watched its growth with the eye of a proprietor, has assisted in the advancement of many of its interests, and throughout his career has proven a good citizen who, while seeking his own bet- terment, has never been indifferent to the needs of his community. Mr. Rumsey was born at Grand Rapids, Dec. 26, 1848, a son of James A. and Cornelia L. (Stone) Rumsey, natives respectively of Newburgh and Ogdensburg, N. Y. His father came to the then new West in 1837, accompanied by Deacon Henry Stone, who subsequently became his father-in-law. In this connection it should be stated that they built a raft at Jackson and floated to Grand Rapids. The only high- way at that time between Jackson and Grand Rapids was an Indian trail. Upon arriving at the Rapids, Mr. Rumsey, after going ashore, spent the last money he had (ten cents) for a bowl of mush and milk. Locating at Grand Rapids, he assisted in the construction of the old Sweet Mill, in which he subsequently worked for some time after its completion. Later he was employed in the J. W. Squier Mill, as a miller and cooper, and in the latter capacity constructed the first flour barrel ever made in Kent county. In 1842 he began working for Henry R. Williams, first mayor of Grand Rapids, with whom he re- mained for several years as an employe in his plaster mill, but eventu- ally turned his attention to agricultural pursuits when he purchased 120 acres of land at Fuller Station. He continued as a farmer until 1855 and worked in plaster mills as a superintendent. In 1855 he bought what was known as the Red Mill on Silver Creek, a saw- mill, which he reconstructed in 1860, and made into a plaster mill. He operated this enterprise until 1870, when he retired from active pursuits, although his death did not occur until March 16, 1906, when he was greatly advanced in years, being nearly ninety-two years of age. He was a Republican in politics but his only public service was as supervisor, in which office he served one term. Mrs. Rumsey died in November, 1905, in the faith of the Baptist church, of which she had been a lifelong member. There were five children in the family : George A .; James L., of Grand Rapids; Ellen M., wife of Harvey Wyman, of Bristol, Tenn .; Martha E., wife of O. C. Simonds, of Chicago; and Henry, who died at the age of four years. George A. Rumsey was educated in the early schools of Grand Rapids and spent much of his boyhood and youth on the farm on Grandville avenue, where he assisted his father in cultivating the fields and oper- ating the plaster mill. When he left home, in 1870, he went to Big Rapids, where he purchased an interest in a machine shop and re- mained for four years, following which he returned to the parental roof. For one winter he worked at logging for Wyman & Buswell, near Sand Lake, and in 1880 went to Montcalm county, Michigan, and engaged in lumbering. In 1883 he became the founder of the Rumsey Lumber Company, near Paris, Mich., an enterprise which he con- ducted until 1887, in which year he went to Knoxville, Tenn., and engaged in the handling of lumber and timber lands. Mr. Rumsey returned to Grand Rapids, in 1893, and became superintendent of the
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James a. Busy
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Mecosta Lumber Company, of Mecosta county. In 1900 he became superintendent of the Foster-Winchester Lumber Company, at Slo- cum's Grove, Muskegon county, and retained this position until the death of his father, since which time, 1906, he has been handling the elder man's estate. Mr. Rumsey is a director in the Grand Rapids Savings Bank and has numerous other business interests and connections. He has been greatly interested in the beautify- ing of the city, and for the past seven years has been a member of the Park Board, being also a director in the Park Board and Boule- vard Association. Mr. Rumsey was married first to Miss Clara G., daughter of Samuel Winchester, of Grand Rapids, and she died in 1894, having been the mother of two children: James R., of Grand Rapids, and Elizabeth B., deceased. Mr. Rumsey's second marriage occurred June 20, 1900, when he was united with Mrs. Lillian N. Holmes, a native of Cazenovia, N. Y.
Edward Ryan .- Two vocations, hotel keeping and farming, have occupied the attention of Edward Ryan since he started upon his inde- pendent career, and the latter is now receiving his undivided interest. He has been a resident of Kent county all of his life, and at present his chief concern is the development of his valuable farm, located in Nelson township, near Sand Lake, a part of northern Kent county that is being rapidly developed into one of the fertile farming com- munities of this part of the state. Mr. Ryan still belongs to the younger generation of agriculturists, for he was born Sept. 10, 1884, his birthplace being Tyrone township, Kent county. James Ryan, his father, was a native of Canada and came to Michigan at an early date in the history of Kent county, settling in Tyrone township. In his native country he had learned the trade of blacksmith as a youth, and that vocation he followed for many years, or until about 1899, when he took up farming. He also operated a mill at Dutchman's Lake. He has continued as a tiller of the soil and his operations have been rewarded by a well-earned success, his present farm, in Nelson township, being a well-cultivated and valuable one. Mr. Ryan mar- ried Hattie, daughter of Thomas and Margaret (Gorman) Gorman, of Kent county, and Edward is the only child born of this union. Ed- ward Ryan was educated in the public schools of Grand Rapids and as a youth showed himself ambitious and industrious. He was reared to agricultural pursuits, but other matters attracted his attention and he accepted all honorable employment that presented itself and prom- ised to be profitable. In this way he accumulated the necessary capital with which to purchase the hotel at Sand Lake, with which he was connected as proprietor for a period of fifteen years, and in the con- duct of which he was entirely successful. However, opportunities in farming held out attractions that were not to be denied and he eventu- ally disposed of his hotel property and bought his present farm of 315 acres in Nelson township, not far from Sand Lake. In the long time that Mr. Ryan has been located in this community he has become widely known, and those with whom he has been connected in business matters will testify to his industry, integrity and honorable dealing. It has been his fortune to have accumulated a handsome farm, upon which he has made improvements that raise it above the ordinary, and in its operation he has used intelligence and judgment, having
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discriminated between methods that have shown merit and those that have been merely revolutionary without being beneficial. Nat- urally, he is progressive, and this fact has been shown in his support of movements which have been launched with the idea of contribut- ing to the general advancement of Kent county and its people. Mr. Ryan is a member of Grand Rapids Lodge No. 48, of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, and is popular with his fellow lodge members. His political allegiance is given to the Democratic party, although he is not an office seeker nor a politician. Prior to her mar- riage, Mrs. Ryan was Lula, daughter of William Seafure, a con- tractor and builder of Sand Lake. They have one son, Edward, Jr., born July 1, 1916.
James Samuels .- As in other lines of work, in the professions, in business, in all of life's avenues and activities, much specializing is being done today in agriculture. Instead of endeavoring to make an equal success of the various branches of farming, many of the more progressive men of Kent county have found it prolific of greater profit to give the greater part of their attention to some one special life; to concentrate their energies thereon. In the list of men of Kent county who thus specialize is found James Samuels. Mr. Samuels' special line is dairying, a field in which he has worked out an admir- able success through industry, natural ability and a thorough knowi- edge of his business, his Solon township property being one upon which he has accomplished good results. Mr. Samuels was born May 20, 1860, in Franklin county, Pennsylvania. He was reared on his father's farm and received his education in the district schools, and when he was ready to start upon his own career chose farming as his vocation. In his native state, or that portion from which he came, the business of dairying is carried on much more extensively than in many other parts of the country, and Mr. Samuels was well instructed in this branch of agriculture. For some years he carried on this business in Pennsylvania, but about the year 1902 or 1903 he disposed of his holdings in the Keystone State and came to Michigan, where he settled on a farm in Solon township. Mr. Samuels' loca- tion is a fortunate one, as the village of Cedar Springs is located near his property and the creamery there furnishes a splendid market for the product of his large herd of cattle. He has made a decided suc- cess of his business and at the same time has won a firmly established position in the confidence and respect of his associates who have found him to be a man of integrity and sound practicality. He has not mixed in public affairs as an office seeker, but votes the Repub- lican ticket and supports all public-spirited movements. Mr. Sam- uels married Mary Richards, of Franklin county, Pennsylvania, and they became the parents of two children: Peter and Rachel, the lat- ter of whom was born in Kent county and the former in Pennsyl- vania.
Merritt Sayles .- Foremost among the qualities which have made the life of Merritt Sayles of practical use to his fellow-men are courage and faithfulness, evidenced in many ways, particularly in his military service as a soldier of the Union during the Civil war. In the village of Lowell, of which he is now a retired resident, in- debtedness is felt for his excellent management of the rural mail
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route of his locality, where he has been carrier for the past nine years. Mr. Sayles is a product of the farming community of Ionia county, Michigan, where he was born, June 22, 1846, son of Chapin C. and Eliza (Gardner) Sayles. His father was born in the State of New York, June 20, 1812, and in young manhood was engaged in farming in his native locality, but in 1844 turned his face toward the West and, June 10 of that year, arrived in Ionia county. Here he took up uncleared land at ten shillings per acre, erected a small log cabin and began life among the pioneers of the region. A hard- working and industrious man, he succeeded in clearing his land, and developing it into a good farm, and he spent the remainder of his career in agricultural pursuits, being able in his declinining years to enjoy the rest and comforts of retirement. He was a Republican in politics and an active worker in the ranks of his party, but rather in behalf of his friends than from any thought of personal reward. His family at one time was considered one of the most remarkable in the state, for as there were fifteen children, there were seventeen able- bodied men and women in the one family. Five of his sons enlisted in the Union army in the Civil war and all withstood the rigors and hardships of the southern battlefields and returned safely to their home. Since then the members of the family have scattered to vari- ous communities, but wherever found they have always been hon- orable and useful citizens, reflecting credit upon their name and their training. Merritt Sayles, the seventh in order of birth of his par- ents' children, divided his boyhood between attending the district schools and assisting his father with the work on the home farm. He was little more than a lad when he donned the uniform of his country and marched away to fight the battles of the Union, but the records show that he proved a courageous and at all times a faith- ful soldier and that he conducted himself in a way to win the ad- miration of his comrades and the respect of his officers. He was promoted to the rank of corporal before receiving his honorable dis- charge, and when his military service was over he returned to Ionia county, where he again took up farming. For a time he was a rent- er, but eventually engaged in farming on his own account, continu- ing to be so engaged until he retired from active affairs and moved to the edge of Lowell, his present home. For nine years he has been engaged in carrying the mail, and few of the old-time residents are better known in the locality or more highly esteemed. He has always been an adherent of the principles of the Republican party and has worked actively in political campaigns for the candidates of that organization. Mr. Sayles was married, Dec. 16, 1866, to Mary Etta, daughter of William M. and Sarah J. Andrews, the for- mer a native of New York State and the latter of Canada. Three children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Sayles: Ada, wife of C. D. Mil- ler, of Lowell, has two children-Merritt and Maurice; Phebe, de- ceased, was the wife of George Severy and had one son-Luther ; and Elba is the wife of Fred Pinckney and has had four children- Carlyle, deceased, Phebe, Tilden T. and Elaine.
John H. Schouten .- The satisfying rewards that are attainable in character, influence and position through a life of industry and integrity are illustrated in the career of John H. Schouten, secretary
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of the Michigan Trust Company of Grand Rapids. With no extra- ordinary endowment of faculty, with only the education that comes from the public schools, and unaided by inheritance or friendly sup- port, he was content to enter into the life which a rising community offered in a humble capacity and to follow up the opportunities that opened before him with steadiness and industry, gaining, step by step, the rare fruits of well-directed enterprise until he finds himself, while yet his powers are only ripened and matured, the possessor of a substantial position and a trusted repository of important inter- ests. Mr. Schouten was born in Ottawa county, Michigan, July 15, 1869, son of Dr. Roelof A. and Gysberth (Winholt) Schouten. From Ottawa county the family moved to Grand Rapids, in 1872, but sub- sequently Dr. Schouten moved with Mrs. Schouten to Holland, Mich., and there continued to practice medicine and surgery until his death, in 1913. John H. Schouten received his education in the public schools of Holland, Mich., and Grand Rapids, and early displayed the possession of industry and ambition by securing, while yet in his 'teens, a position in a shoe store as clerk. Subsequently he was at- tracted to railroad life, not in the train service, but as a clerk, and for several years was in the employ of the Grand Rapids & Indiana railroad and later the Pere Marquette railway. After ten years of experience of this nature, he identified himself with the firm of Fuller & Rice, and about the month of December, 1900, left this firm to en- ter the Michigan Trust Company, which institution had made him an attractive offer for his services in its bookkeeping department. Gradually, as the worth of his labors became recognized and appre- ciated, Mr. Schouten advanced in position until he became assistant secretary, and in 1916 he was elected to the secretaryship, which he now holds. He is credited with having an excellent knowledge of financial and business matters and as a master of routine work, while his associates place every confidence in his judgment and acumen. He is identified variously with the life of the city, has taken part in a number of movements for civic betterment, and is a member of the Association of Commerce and the Peninsular Club. Mr. Schouten was married, Oct. 3, 1899, to Grace L. Buss, daughter of Henry L. Buss, of Grand Rapids.
David C. Scribner .- Perhaps no name in Kent county deserves more honorable mention than that of Scribner, standing as it does for unusual enterprise and for worthy effort. It is one of the old landmark names that for eighty-one years has represented elemental strength, steady progress and practical achievement. At Grand Rapids interest centers in its leading representative today, David C. Scribner, who is president of the Grand Rapids Wood Finishing Company. He is the youngest of a family of thirteen children born to James Scribner and his wife, Eliza Scribner, who came to Kent county in March, 1837. They were people of mature judgment at that time, born respectively in 1801 and 1807, in New York City, and they had come to Detroit, Mich., in 1836, with the intention of being permanent settlers and home-builders in this state. James Scribner was a merchant and real estate dealer, and when he came to this sec- tion he brought enough capital with him to enable him to purchase large tracts of land in Sparta and Alpine townships. He established
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his home in what is now the west side of the city of Grand Rapids and in improving and developing his property, for he was a man of much energy, he saw the advantages that would accrue through the bridging of the beautiful river that separated one arable section of land from another. It was in his fertile brain that the first bridge across the Grand river was conceived and it was through the skill of his hands that it was built, and so well was the task accomplished and so sound was the structure, that the state was glad to acquire ownership of it at a later date. This was by no means the only example of his enterprise and public spirit. He was one of the early progressive men who recognized the value of the adjacent water power, which, although not so profitably harnessed as at present, even in his day began to be made use of and he became interested and concerned in manufacturing plants and was the founder of the first salt works at Grand Rapids. He was at one time the heaviest real estate holder on the west side of the river; in fact, his holdings in the city were greater than those of any other man, at one time owning as much as 6,000 acres in Grand Rapids and vicinity. It is not surprising that railroad building in this section received his hearty support and co-operation. He was one of the first directors of the Grand Rapids & Indiana railway. To the end of his life, which was prolonged to Oct. 2, 1861, he was felt to be a man in whom confi- dence could be placed, and one whose devotion to the best interests of the state to which he had come coincident with its birth, was many times practically manifested. He was a consistent member of St. Mark's Episcopal church at Grand Rapids and was faithful to his obligations in the Masonic fraternity. His widow survived until Dec. 29, 1898. They were the parents of the following children : Hail C., who died while serving as a soldier in the Civil war, and James L., Stephen R., Charles H., Nestelle B., William R., David C., Margaret A. Pew, deceased; Mrs. Eliza J. Sawyer, of Grand Rapids ; Mrs. Sarah M. Stevens, deceased ; Mrs. Belle S. Temple, of Grand Rapids, and two that were born in New York and died in in- fancy. David C. is the only surviving male member of the family. L. M. Sellers-For nearly a half a century L. M. Sellers has been the owner and editor of the Cedar Springs Clipper, a publica- tion which was founded by him and of which he has been the only proprietor. During this long period of time Mr. Sellers has been one of the energetic and influential men of his community, a factor in public and political affairs, a supporter of beneficial movements both personally and through the columns of his newspaper and a worker generally for what his judgment tells him is best for the village which he adopted as his home forty-nine years ago. Mr. Sellers was born in Franklin county, Pennsylvania, and in his native community received his education in the public schools. His early training in- cluded three years of the printing business, although when he first came to Michigan, in 1869, and located at Cedar Springs, his first work consisted of sawing logs and packing shingles. He made furni- ture evenings for his printing office, and, in a modest way, the Cedar Springs Clipper came into being. Like other enterprises of its kind, its early years were marked with vicissitudes too numerous to men- tion, but the proprietor, displaying the energy, faith and determina-
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