USA > Michigan > Bay County > History of Bay County, Michigan, and representative citizens > Part 81
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85
The parents of Mr. Letourneau were of French extraction. The father lived to the age of 76 years, but the mother died when our sub- ject was an infant. Of their 18 children, only two remain,-Nelson and Joseph, the latter of whom owns a 40-acre farm in section 9, Kaw- kawlin township.
Our subject was only a child when his father settled at Chatham, Ontario, and he worked there as a laborer until 1880 and then came to Michigan. He had learned the car- penter's trade and was employed for 10 years in F. W. Wheeler's shipyard in West Bay City, being a master workman in the ship carpen- ters' and caulkers' union. In 1891 he bought 40 acres of land in the northwest corner of sec- tion 9. Kawkawlin township. which he has operated ever since in connection with a gen- eral store. In 1902 he bought his second farm.
-160 acres of good land in section 2, Garfield township.
Mr. Letourneau was married first on May 18, 1868, to Elizabeth Pachett, who died in 1874, the mother of five children: Elizabeth (La Pane), deceased, who left one daughter, Elizabeth ; Noel, who died aged 16 years; Emma (Duroshire), deceased, who left one daughter, Louise; Gilbert, who married Caro- line Poirer and has five children; and Rosa, who married James Lagenness and has four children. In April, 1882, Mr. Letourneau was married to Maggie De Lisle, born in Canada, who died July 20, 1890, leaving two children, now deceased. Mr. Letourneau's third union was to Fanny Dupuis, who was born in Canada, and is a daughter of Boniface and Matilda (La Bounte) Dupuis.
During his residence in West Bay City, Mr. Letourneau took an active interest in city af- fairs and served as alderman of the First Ward for four years. He served also as school di- rector and has held this position in Kawkawlin township for three years. He is a consistent member of the Catholic Church.
€ DWARD E. EVANS, the rising young man of affairs, alderman and prom- inent fraternity man, modest as he is popular, was born at Selkirk, Prov- ince of Ontario, Canada, November 5, 1873.
The whirr and buzz of Bay City's many sawmills attracted many people from Queen Victoria's domain about 1882, and among the number was the Evans family. They came pre- pared to make their way by dint of hard and honest labor, and their expectations were not disappointed.
Edward E. Evans received a good common- school education and although always a mere
686
HISTORY OF BAY COUNTY
mite of a boy, early began life in Bousfield & Company's woodenware works in the South End. For three years he worked in the Leaver & Vance box factory, part of the time cutting boxes by the thousand on contract, with Orpha Coffin, since deceased, and demonstrating thus early the qualities of enterprise and energy, that have since given him marked prominence and success in other fields. Desiring a still wider field of action, he entered the coal busi- ness with Charles Coryell in 1896, remaining for three years, and then taking a larger posi- tion with C. H. Klumph & Company in 1899, until in 1901 he became the active manager for Boutell Brothers & Company, the largest dis- tributor of coal, cement, brick and masons' sup- plies in this part of the State. The success at- tending his well-directed efforts in this new field has earned for him the appreciation of the company, and the plaudits of the business com- munity.
Though charged with the supervision of ex- tensive and varied business interests, he has managed to find time for devoted and appre- ciated public service, being elected alderman of the IIth Ward by the largest popular vote ever given a ward candidate on the Republican ticket. He was reelected in April, 1905, for two years service on the first Council of Greater Bay City, and is chairman of the important committees on judiciary and ways and means. He has brought to his public duties the same exacting business methods and integrity that have brought him success on other fields of en- deavor. The "Midget" of the City Council, tipping the scales at little above the century mark, he has in his brief public service made his presence felt along lines of public enter- prise, tempered with sound business judgment.
Mr. Evans became a member of the Bay City lodge of Elks in 1899, and almost imme- diately was honored with official positions by
the antlered tribe. He was a knight for two terms, and exalted ruler for two terms, stepping out of this position to accept "the rumpled and wrinkled robe of District Deputy for Eastern Michigan which has been ironed out and prop- erly creased, and it now enfolds, by virtue of Grand Exalted Ruler O'Brien's dictum, the small stature but mighty form of Ald. Ed. E. Evans of Bay City," to quote the exact an- nouncement made by The Friendly Elk, upon the promotion made in April, 1905, the recip- ient of the honor being too surprised to adjust the robe properly, until he had the commission, under the great seal of the order, and this com- mission verified by wire through Grand Esquire Phelps, as the real thing and no counterfeit. Deputy Grand Exalted Ruler Evans was the representative to the Grand Lodge meeting at Cincinnati in 1904, and is one of the best known and most popular members of the order in Michigan. Equally exemplary has been his home life, being ever a devoted husband and fond father. In public or private life, Ald. Evans is one of those favored few, whose friends are indeed legion.
e HARLES F. KUHLOW, deputy county treasurer of Bay County, and one of the prominent and influential men of affairs at Bay City, was born in Bay City, January 21, 1874, and is a son of John and Caroline (Zahrt) Kuhlow.
The paternal grandparents. of Mr. Kuhlow were Frederick and Maria (Erdman) Kuhlow, both of whom were born in Mecklenburg, Ger- many. In 1873 Frederick Kuhlow came to Michigan and settled in Bay County. He be- came an employee of a lumber company at Bay City and was injured in one of the sawmills two years later, which incapacitated him for the
L.
DAVID H. YOUNG
689
AND REPRESENTATIVE CITIZENS.
rest of his life. He died in Monitor township. His five children were : John, of Monitor town- ship; William, of Bay City; Fredericka, wife of John Black, of Monitor township; Frederick, of Bay City ; and Lena.
John Kuhlow, father of our subject, was born in 1844 at Strelitz, Mecklenburg, Ger- many. He was reared on the parental farm un- til he had reached the age of military service and then served in the army during the Franco- Prussian War. In the fall of 1872 he came to Bay City, where a brother was already settled, and for several years he was engaged in the lumbering industry, but later went into con- tracting, owning a team of horses. In 1891 he moved to Monitor township and settled on a farm which he had taken up soon after coming to the county, and he has resided upon that property ever since. He is a supporter of the Republican party but is a man of domestic tastes and quiet life and has never desired po- litical office. His marriage with Caroline Zahrt resulted in the birth of five children, the two survivors of the family being : Charles F., the efficient deputy county treasurer, and Gus- tave. Both Mr. and Mrs. Kuhlow are con- sistent members of the German Lutheran Church.
Our subject enjoyed the educational ad- vantages offered by the German Lutheran par- ochial schools and later the public schools of Bay City. After the completion of his educa- tion, he learned the trade of bookbinder and paper ruler, one which he followed first at Chi- cago and later at Detroit. In 1899 he re- turned to Bay City and embarked in a book- binding business of his own, one which he con- ducted with satisfactory success for several years, but increased business brought about the necessity of a partnership and he associated with him O. W. Widman, the firm style becom- ing Widman & Kuhlow. This continued until
the latter part of 1902, at which time other du- ties demanded his attention and he sold his interest.
Mr. Kuhlow's life-long fidelity to the Re- publican party was recognized about this time by his appointment to the position of deputy county treasurer of Bay County. This position Mr. Kuhlow still fills, his services giving entire satisfaction to the public at large.
Mr. Kuhlow has one of the very pleasant and attractive homes of Bay City. He married Alma Zagelmeyer, who is a daughter of Alex- ander Zagelmeyer.
In addition to being prominent in political and business life, Mr. Kuhlow has long been active in several fraternal organizations. He is a member of Joppa Lodge, No. 315, F. & A. M .; McCormick Grand Lodge of Perfection ; Bay City Council, Princes of Jerusalem ; Sag- inaw Valley Chapter, Rose Croix, all of Bay City; and Michigan Sovereign Consistory, S. P. R. S., and Moslem Temple, A. A. O. N. M. S., of Detroit. He is also an Elk and a Knight of Pythias and a member of the Na- tional League of Veterans and Sons. From 1892 to 1894 he was a member of Company C, Third Infantry, Michigan National Guard.
D AVID H. YOUNG. The late David H. Young, whose portrait is shown on the opposite page, was one of the most highly respected citizens of Bay County, Michigan, and at the time of his death owned 140 acres of fine land in sections 15 and 22, Monitor township. Mr. Young was born December 6, 1833, in Schoharie County, New York, and died in his comfortable home in Monitor township, on September 6, 1900, aged 67 years.
Mr. Young's residence in Bay County dated from 1871, when he came to West Bay City as
37
690
HISTORY OF BAY COUNTY
overseer of Henry W. Sage's salt-block. Mr. Sage owned one of the first salt-pits in this section, and, through Mr. Young's careful and economic management, this industry reached immense proportions. He continued as a valued employee of Mr. Sage until 1888. For seven years he made salt by the barrel and during his whole period with Mr. Sage was regarded by the latter as his "right hand man."
While Mr. Young's duties confined him to the salt-pits, he looked forward to the time when he could retire from that arduous work and settle down to peace and rest on his own farm. He therefore bought several tracts of well-located land,-one of 60 acres and an- other of 80. These he hired cleared and put under cultivation, making the second tract his home, to which he retired in 1898. For some 10 years Mr. Young enjoyed an agricultural life, growing on his fertile fields the crops best adapted to them and carrying on a large dairy, selling the milk product of 50 cows.
In 1870, Mr. Young was united in mar- riage with Elizabeth Davis, who was born in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. She had one brother, Charles Davis, whom she lost sight of some 40 years ago. She accompanied Mr. Young to Bay County and materially assisted him during the early days, when hardships in this section were many and comforts few. She still survives and resides on the homestead.
Mr. Young was always identified with the Democratic party and, while he never would accept any office, he took a lively interest in his party's success. He was a charter member of Wenona Council, No. 38, Royal Arcanum, of West Bay City. His religion was one which must be recognized as a good one both to live and die by, a conscientious following of the "Golden Rule." He is remembered by all who knew him as a hearty, whole-souled, liberal, God-fearing man.
e APT. AUGUSTUS H. GANSSER, the editor and compiler of the his- torical features of this volume, whose portrait is shown on page 16 of this work, was born among the foot-hills of the Alps, in Wurtemberg, Germany, July 5, 1872. The quaint little village nestling among vine- clad heights lies on the headwaters of the Neckar, one of the main tributaries of "Father Rhine." Its rushing waters turned the old water-wheel of the primitive sawmill which for generations had been owned and operated by the Gansser family. The quaint old church, where he worshiped in his youth, had then cele- brated its 350th anniversary, and his ancestors dated back their direct lineage even centuries beyond that period. Among the weather- beaten stone crosses in the churchyard ceme- tery, the young student delighted to decipher the names of both branches of his family, who had helped to build that church and the chapel that had preceded it. In the old town hall were records that proved that the ancestors of both father and mother had stood high in the military annals of the "Fatherland," while others had served with equal loyalty, but less public clamor, in the pursuits of the sciences and the arts of peace.
Captain Gansser's grandfather, surnamed Augustus, according to time-honored family tradition took an active part in the revolution- ary movement in Germany in 1848, and only his previous good service for his king and country saved him from banishment. But the sacrifices then made brought the family into financial difficulties, which eventually brought the last survivor of the family to Michigan in 1873. Peter Baur, grandfather of our subject on his mother's side, was for over 30 years dis- trict treasurer and moderator, positions of trust held by his family for many generations before him, a family heirloom, like the sur-
691
AND REPRESENTATIVE CITIZENS.
name Peter. His only son, also named Peter, died at 21, leaving as the last sprig of the fam- ily tree, the daughter, Johanna.
Augustus Gansser, the father of Captain Gansser, was educated at the University of Tubingen, but early found the confines of the little kingdom too narrow for his roving na- ture. Before marriage he traveled almost around the globe, his trip including a stay among the gold fields of Australia. Returning to take up the burden which age compelled his father to surrender, he wooed and won Miss Baur in 1865. The first three children died in infancy, but Emma (now Mrs. R. Boehringer) and the subject of this sketch brightened the lives of their grandparents' declining years. Both families would survive through these in- fants, and to the good old people who prized their family tree above all else, this meant much.
By 1872 a business depression throughout Germany brought the climax to the entangle- ments of the sawmill and gypsum properties, and reluctantly enough the family relinquished this heirloom of many generations to strangers. Hearing of the "big mill" in Wenona, the head of the family determined to apply his practical sawmill experience in the heart of the world's lumber industry in Bay County, and that very year began life anew as gang foreman for Henry W. Sage on the West Side. Emma accompanied her parents, while Augustus H., the immediate subject of this sketch, remained with his grandparents, at their earnest solicitation. One by one the old folks passed away, Grandfather Baur dying after only a few days illness in the fall of 1880. The following March his daughter returned to the old home to straighten up family affairs, and in June the little lad, who never remembered see- ing his mother, and who had studied assidu- ously in the German district school, was united
with his family at Bay City. Eugenia and Emil, born on the West Side in the meantime, and Emma took the little foreign stranger to the Sherman School, and for two years he worked hard to master a new language, trying experiences never to be forgotten by the prin- cipal.
In June, 1884, Augustus H. Gansser grad- uated from the Ninth grade and was admitted to the High School. The loss of father left the little family entirely dependent upon the invalid mother that summer, and the oldest son assisted by working before and after school, for local newspapers as carrier and mailing clerk. That fall he secured, in addition, a po- sition with B. H. Briscoe & Company, then a box factory (in 1905 the Quaker Shade Roller Company), which he held for three years, con- tinuing his newspaper work evenings, and studying nights. In 1887 August Rathke was accidentally killed at this factory while he and our subject were adjusting a broken belt, and this fatality changed the whole course of the young man's life. His mother insisted other fields might be less remunerative at first, but they offered a wider field, were less dangerous, and within a week he began more than nine years experience in the carpet department of Capt. A. J. Cooke (formerly See Brothers & Cooke), for many years subsequently, city librarian.
In 1897 our subject was given charge of the carpet and curtain department for the Bay City Cash Dry Goods Company, which position he held when President Mckinley's call for vol- unteers brought him to the colors in 1898. He had enlisted in the Peninsulars, June 16, 1892, and been promoted, through competitive exam- inations, to Ist sergeant, Company C, Third Michigan Infantry, by 1897. Shortly before war was declared he was united in marriage to Elizabeth Almira Henrietta Richardson, daugh-
692
HISTORY OF BAY COUNTY
ter of Mr. and Mrs. Robert Richardson, of the West Side, and when on April 26, 1898, he marched forth with his company he left in care of his brother Emil not only the aged mother and two sisters, but also a young, brave but dis- consolate bride. Rejected through a technical error on the regular army medical examination, later corrected, he became a member of Com- pany D, 34th Michigan Vol. Inf., and orderly to Colonel Petermann, commanding the regi- ment, having charge of the regiment's mail at Camp Eaton, Camp Alger, Virginia, and much of the time before Santiago. The regimental staff correspondent of the Detroit Tribune and Evening News declined to go to Cuba, and at the last moment the assignment was given Cap- tain Gansser, and during the stirring scenes before Santiago, in addition to his regular mil- itary duties, he did his best to keep the people of Michigan informed of the doings of their regiments serving with General Shafter's Fifth Army Corps, through the Detroit Tribune, Muskegon Chronicle, Detroit News, Bay City Times and Bay City Freie Presse. On July 3d, when the hospitals in the rear of the San Juan battle-field and the supply trains for the front were being fired on by Spanish sharpshooters from the chaparral west of General Shafter's headquarters, he volunteered with 20 members of his regiment under Lieut. Angus McDonald, for special duty with regulars to clear the San Juan valley of these bushwhackers, and for 10 days, armed with Krag-Jorgensen rifles and ammunition secured from the dead American regulars, this detachment did its share of the work in protecting the extreme right flank of the army. Tropical heat and insect pests made trailing through the rocky and wooded heights near Santiago an arduous task, and a number of that detachment were so weakened by the strain, that the first attack of prevailing fevers, shortly after the surrender, brought death.
Some weeks after the surrender (July 17, 1898) were spent in guarding the prisoners and in a vain endeavor to make a tropical camp in the rainy season habitable for men direct from the North. Devoted nursing saved many, and peace brought speedy relief, yet 21 of that fated company of 86 gave their lives for "Cuba Libre." Assisting the sick of the regiment on the homeward trip, the robust volunteer of April, weighing 154 pounds, came home in September, a mere skeleton, weighing 118 pounds on arriving at Detroit. Then followed months of intermittent fever and ague, cam- paign reminders that spasmodically torment to this day. Outdoor life, nature's best remedy, prevented a return to former avocations and perforce Captain Gansser entered the insurance and free lance newspaper field. In 1902 with a class of 48 he took the civil service examina- tion at Detroit, standing sixth, being appointed United States gauger for the Michigan Chemi- cal Company, a position he still holds.
Mrs. Johanna Gansser, the devoted mother, died May 29, 1902, in her 60th year. She lived to see two little girls bless the home of her daughter, and four sons the home of Cap- tain Gansser, three of whom survive,-Emil Augustus, Webster Homer and Victor Lincoln.
Since 1898 Captain Gansser's promotion in the State militia service has been rapid. He was commissioned Ist lieutenant and adjutant by Governor Pingree in June, 1899, 2d lieu- tenant of Company B, July 17, 1900, and cap- tain commanding Company B, by Governor Bliss, May 15, 1901, being in 1905 senior cap- tain of the regiment. With Company B, he had the distinction of being Michigan's sole military representatives and body guard to Governor Bliss at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition, October 8 to 17, 1904.
Always an active Republican, yet never seeking an office, he was secretary of the Re-
693
AND REPRESENTATIVE CITIZENS.
publican County Committee for four years, 1898-1902, and for 10 years past has com- manded the marching divisions of the Young Men's Republican League. He is editor and published of The Modern Archer; a regular contributor to various journals; for nine years secretary of the local Clerks' Association ; mem- ber of the Knights of Pythias, Arbeiter Unter- stuetzung Verein and Spanish War Veterans; is inspector general, National League of Vet- erans and Sons ; member of the Modern Wood- men of America, Union Life Guards, Knights of the Loyal Guard and Modern Archers of America. As a citizen, Captain Gansser has always been ready to assist worthy public en- terprises, intended to benefit the city of his adopted home.
ERMAN RUTERBUSH, whose ex- cellent farm of 70 acres is situated in section 7, Portsmouth township, township treasurer and leading citi- zen generally, was born December II, 1852, in Pommerania, Prussia, Germany, and is a son of Charles and Minnie ( Dummert ) Ruterbush.
The parents of Mr. Ruterbush were farm- ing people in Germany and moved to Canada in 1866. Charles Ruterbush was born March 30, 1819, and found in his declining years a comfortable home with our subject. He died January 19, 1905. His wife, Minnie Dum- mert, was born January 13, 1832, in Germany, and died in Michigan, February 26, 1889, aged 57 years. Of their 14 children, three sons and five daughters still survive, all of whom reside in Bay County.
Prior to leaving his German home, Herman Ruterbush had attended school regularly. The family reached Quebec in 1866 and settled in the village of Arnprior, Ontario, 40 miles from
Ottawa, removing later to Stratford, Ontario. After three years in that section, the family settled at Port Huron, Michigan, in 1871 and came to Bay City in 1873. Previous to settling on the present farm which was originally taken up by the family and contained 144 acres, our subject was variously employed, mainly in saw- mills. After locating on the farm, there was plenty of work to be done by his brothers and himself as the whole tract was heavily tim- bered. They cleared the land and put it under cultivation. On his portion of the property Mr. Ruterbush built his fine brick home, one of modern construction and convenience and prob- ably one of the very best farm houses in the county. With this handsome dwelling he has two substantial barns and numerous other buildings.
In addition to general farming and stock- raising, Mr. Ruterbush has utilized his fine pasture land in raising a first-class grade of milch cows and for six and a half years oper- ated a milk route in Bay City, but now he sells exclusively at wholesale. He has experimented extensively and successfully with sugar beets.
On January 16, 1884, Mr. Ruterbush was married to Rose Hubner, who was born March 3. 1861, in Bay City, Michigan, and is a daugh- ter of Charles and Margaret (Steinbauer) Hubner, natives of Bavaria, Germany. Upon coming to this country, Mr. Hubner settled on a farm in Portsmouth township and both he and his wife spent their last days on their homestead. Mr. and Mrs. Ruterbush have lost four children, namely: Herman, the oldest child, who died when two and a half years old; Max, the second child, who died when a few days old; Carl, who died aged eight years ; and Norman, who died four days later, aged 18 months. In 1900 five of the children were stricken at one time with that dread disease, diphtheria, and little Carl and Norman did not
694
HISTORY OF BAY COUNTY
recover. The survivors of the family are: Alma, Elsie, Hugo, Otto and Martin Bern- hardt. The family belong to the German Lu- theran Church in Merritt township.
Mr. Ruterbush has always been identified with the Republican party and on many occa- sions he has been called upon to serve his fel- low-citizens in responsible positions. In 1889 he was elected township treasurer, served two terms, was again elected in 1893 and once more in 1894 and is now serving in the office. He is a man of sterling character, and has the con- fidence of all who know him and stands as one of the representative men of his locality.
ORLD'S STAR KNITTING COM- PANY, one of the great industries of Bay County, was organized in the spring of 1895 at West Bay City by its present officers, members of the Galbraith family. The story of its rise, from an experiment conducted within the confines of the domestic circle, to the building of great factories and the equipping of them with mod- ern machinery, in order to meet the world's demand, is one of the most interesting con- nected with the growth of this city's many gi- gantic concerns. Archibald Galbraith, the founder of the business, still survives.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.