USA > Michigan > Bay County > History of Bay County, Michigan, with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 47
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For the manufacturing of salt this point offers advantages over every other in the valley. Brine can be got any where in the neigh- borhood at a depth of from 400 to 800 feet, of a purer quality than any procured elsewhere.
Let those who would see Bangor to the best advantage and en- joy the prospect leisurely, be persuaded to reach it by way of Wenona, following the highway through what might be aptly des- cribed as Druidic Nursery-with its thousands of oaklings, its cool Summer vistas of light and shade, its green carpet and variegated roof, its mimic groves, and delightful seclusion from sun, dust, heat, flies and disquiet generally. From Wenona to Bangor village is a distance of about two miles, which affords the pleasantest drive or walk in the valley; the most inviting places for picnics, and the pleasantest spots for residences within view of Bay City. The place is much indebted to nature, but absenteeism has helped her to pre- serve it in its primitive beauty; and, if, while roving through the Sylvan Avenue, pedestrians are tempted to aid the feathered choir in their hymns of praise, let the air be the appropriate one of "Woodman Spare that Tree," and if druid like they are invited by the oaks to worship, let them pray that the absentees may long be spared to spare the dear green trees.
WILLIAM CROSTHWAITE'S SHIP YARD AND DRY DOCK.
This branch of industry has been a great acquisition to Bay City and its locality. The enterprising proprietor came from Buf- falo in 1864, and in September of the same year commenced opera- tions in Bangor, which afforded good facilities for his trade. In Buffalo he was long and favorably known in his line, and the lakes bear abundant evidences of his handicraft. Since he came to this point he has floated from his yard-where they were built by him-
.
Peter Smith
HISTORY OF BAY COUNTY.
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several vessels of different sizes, among which were his namesake, a fore-and-aft schooner the " William Crosthwaite," the three- masted vessel " John Kilderhouse," 500 tons; the tug " E. P. Dorr;" the canal boat "Charlie" and the " American Giant," a three- masted schooner. He has a saw mill connected with his trade, for sawing long oak, and a dry dock 180x40 feet, which he intends enlarging in view of the bar at the mouth of the river, by which vessels of the largest size can come to his dock and be repaired. His ship-yard covers 8 acres of ground, and he employs about 30 men. He has done a large amount of repairing since he established himself here, and turns out a good job every time.
WEED'S SHIP-YARD.
JOHN A. WEED, the head of this young enterprise, came to Ban -. gor in July, 1865, and began boat building and repairing, in which he had done considerable. One of his feats was the lengthening of the schooner " John S. Minor" eighteen feet. He built the ferry boat ".Ben Trudell," and the sail boat "Phil Sheridan;" and many a craft now riding the waves in safety owes its "tight" character to the influence of Weed. He also turns out spars, booms, flag- staffs and bob-sleighs; when occasions offer, making himself gener- ally useful in the community. Mr. Weed resided in Bay City for a number of years, where he went in 1849. At first he was in the fishing business, then in the carriage building trade. He was the first to start a factory of that kind in Bay City, and was prosperous, when the fire of 1863 swept away his means. He is a nice, frank, industrious fellow, and we wish him prosperity, plenty and peace.
SOME OF THE EARLY SETTLERS.
BENOIT TROMBLEY, of whom Judge Miller purchased the land where the Sixth ward of Bay City now is, died at his home below Banks in 1873, and at the time of his death was one of the oldest men in the State of Michigan. He was a brother of Leon Trom- bley, and was born in Detroit, March 31, 1781. His father was a Frenchman and his mother a Dutch woman. He came to Saginaw in 1831, and about two years afterward came to the vicinity of Lower Saginaw. After selling his land in Portsmouth to Judge Miller, he bought a large tract of land below Banks, where he re- sided until his death. His wife died about 1859. Until the last days of his life he was never sick, and had expended but fifty cents for a physician, except upon one occasion when his leg was broken by a fall from his horse. He reared a family of eight children, and left them considerable property.
PETER C. SMITH, deceased, was a native of Scotland, but came to Canada with his parents when a mere child, remaining there until 1836, when he came to Port Huron, Mich., where, in 1838, he was married to Miss Sarah Cross, of that place. Six years after his ar- rival in Port Huron he removed to St. Clair, where he resided four- teen years, during which time he was generally engaged in mill- wright work. In 1854 he came to Saginaw County (now Bay), and built a saw mill in Bangor (now First ward in West Bay City), in which he was a partner, the style of the firm being Moore, Smith & Vose, which was subsequently changed to Moore & Smith, and in 1878, by the purchase of Mr. Moore's interest, to Peter Smith & Sons. The mill did a large and successful business in manufacturing both lumber and salt, the latter product having been added in 1864. Mr Smith took an active part in the management of the mill up to the time of his death, which occurred November 28, 1880, since which time his sons, C. J. Smith and H. J. Smith, have conducted the business under the firm name of Smith Bros. Mr. Smith was a successful business man, but a man of generous impulses and sterling integrity. His memory will be cherished by many friends. His widow still resides in West Bay City. Of their children, two sons are men-
tioned above; the other, P. C. Smith, is proprietor of the P. C. Smith Tug Line, and an only daughter is now Mrs. J. M. Kelton, of West Bay City.
CAPT. GEORGE W. KING was born near London, Ontario, in 1830, and in 1843 removed to Detroit and worked in hotels for some time as office boy. His first experience in boating was on the "Fashion" as cabin boy, between Detroit and Port Huron. The next season he engaged on the "Hendrick Hudson, and for four or five years was on different boats. In 1850 he married Julia Causeley, of Mooretown, Lambton Co., Ontario, and the same year commenced running a ferry from Mooretown to St. Clair, and two years thereafter built a small steamer, the "Traffic," which he used as a ferry till 1853, when he brought her to Saginaw and commenced towing logs and vessels, locating himself and family in Banks, where he has since resided. The captain has been on the Saginaw River for nineteen seasons, and during that time has owned at least a dozen boats, of which can be named the "Canada," "John Lathrop," "Tiger," "Hercules," "Haight,""G. B. Dickson," and "T. M. Moore." The captain is father of sixteen children, eleven of whom are living. Four of his sons are boatmen, three of them masters and one an engineer, running with him.
ROBERT LENG was born in 1811, in Cheshire, a county in the northwest of England, from whence he emigrated to the United States in 1848. Previous to coming to this country he was a salt manufacturer in his native country, among whose industries were the making of salt and the celebrated Cheshire cheese. After ar- riving in this country he lived for a time in Syracuse and Oswego N. Y., coming to Michigan in 1862, since when he has been a resident of the township of Bangor, and that part of it afterwards known as the village of Bangor, then Banks, and now a part of West Bay City. Mr. Leng was the senior member of the firm of Leng & Bradfield, who built a salt block in 1862 in Bangor. He has held a number of public positions. He was first president of the village of Banks several years; has been justice of the peace for the past sixteen years, and is now one of the superintendents of the poor for Bay County. He was married in 1849 to Miss Phoebe Ursula Tripp, of Broome, Schoharie Co., N. Y. Their family con- sists of five children, four of whom were girls and one a boy, now living, all married and residents of Michigan. The other, the youngest, a boy, died in 1866.
W. F. BENSON was born in Manchester, England, and is the son of Henry Benson, of Bonouss, New Windermere Lake. His mother was the daughter of John Wilcock, of Manchester. W. F. Benson was married in1853 to Ann Ellen Savage, of the same place. Six months after, he emigrated to the United States, coming directly to Flint, this state, when his wife joined him two years afterwards. They remained in Flint several years, then moved to East Saginaw and stayed there three years; then they moved back to Flint on account of sickness of the family. Two years after that he again moved to Bay City, where they remained two years, then he bought and built a general store in West Bay City, and has since continued in the business.
Mr. Benson is one of the oldest merchants in Bay County, and the first shipper of fresh fish from that place to the leading cities of the United States.
Before West Bay City was incorporated, he held the office of village trustee, and for several years was postmaster at Banks, and named the place after Gen. Banks. Mr. Benson had ten children, but only three sons are now living.
CAPT. P. C. SMITH, proprietor of P. C. Smith's Tug Line, came to West Bay City in 1856, where he still resides, in the First Ward. In 1868 Mr. Smith purchased the "Ben Trudell," which he sailed
10
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HISTORY OF BAY COUNTY.
one season, when he sold her and bought the steamer "Wayne," and engaged in towing logs till 1874, when she was burned. In the Spring of 1875 he purchased the tug "S. S. Rumage," and in. 1878, the "Little Ady," a blockade runner built on the "Clyde, Scotland," which he renamed the "Peter Smith," and in 1882, the "Ellen M. Smith."
Capt. Smith does a large business in raft towing, having handled upward of 100,000,000 feet of logs the past season in this vicinity, besides towing to Detroit, Cleveland and Buffalo. His vessels and equipments are valued at $50,000 at a low estimate.
JOHN M. KELTON, of the firm of J. M. Kelton & Co., general merchants, came to West Bay City in 1865, and for a number of years was with the Keystone Lumber & Salt Co., in charge of their woods department. In 1878 he opened his present store, and a year later admitted C. I. Christman as a partner. They are doing a large business and are the leading merchants of the First Ward.
HENRY S. WALRATH was born in New York in 1838, and followed farming with his father until 1862 when he came to Michigan and located at Saginaw, where he worked in saw mills two years, when he came to West Bay City and engaged with Moore & Smith as filer and remained with them seven years. He then engaged with the Keystone Mill and remained there until 1882, with the exception of three years he was in the grocery busi- ness. He next engaged in business with a steam carpet-beater and feather renovator, which he has lately sold to Seth Bourn. He was married to Annie J. Fraszer, also of New York. They have three children.
J. HAYWOOD was born in Dutchess County, N. Y., April 10, 1823, and at Pittsford, near Rochester, N. Y., did his first work, and afterward, at Rochester, was in the employ of Miles, Force & Barton, as engineer. In the Spring of 1858 he came to Michigan and engaged with V. A. Ripley & Co., of Bangor, with whom he remained one year, when he entered the employ of Moore & Smith, staying with them seventeen years. For the past eight months he has been engaged at the Keystone Mill as engineer. He married Elizabeth Clark in 1858. She is a native of Ireland.
W. BEUTEL is a native of Prussia. In 1856 he came to New Baltimore, Mich., remaining two years, when he came to Bay City After a short residence there he removed to Banks, (now First Ward of West Bay City,) where he still resides. He worked in saw mills and at packing salt for fourteen years. About 1869 he engaged in fishing, in which business he has been quite successful, and still continues. He was married to Augusta Wolf, also a Prussian. They have a family of eight children, three of whom are sons.
AARON WELLMAN was born in Ontario, Canada, in 1842; the son of George Wellman, who was a native of Vermont, born in 1772; moved to Canada in 1842, thence to St. Clair, Mich., in 1845, where he resided until his death in 1857, at the advanced age of eighty-five. Aaron lived with his father to the time of his death, and soon after went to Lapeer, and engaged as sawyer in a mill three miles from Lapeer, and remained four years, thence to Bay County, Village of Bangor, in 1861. He sawed for McEwan two years, then engaged in salt-boiling for Leng & Bradfield one year. Since that time he has given his attention to buying and selling horses, cattle and real estate, occasionally attending to jobbing busi- ness. He has held the office of street commissioner and of constable, also policeman of the Third Ward, West Bay City. For the past two years he has been a member of the Board of Health. He married Miss Eliza Smith, of Ontario, then living at Bloomfield Junction, Tuscola County, in 1864. Has had six children, three sons and three daughters, four of whom are living. Mr. Wellman
is pleasantly located, corner of Seventh and Washington Streets, Third Ward, West Bay City.
EPHRAIM J. KELTON was born in Salem Co., N. J. Came to Michigan in 1868, since which time he has been connected with the Keystone Salt and Lumber Company as a book-keeper. In 1870 he was one of the trustees, and in 1871 president of the village of Banks. In 1877-'79 he was an alderman for the First Ward of West Bay City, and also president of the Board. He was married in 1871, to Mary Cumming. They have one child.
C. S. FORD is a native of Jefferson Co., N. Y. Came to West Bay City in 1865, and engaged with the Keystone Company as tally man. In 1870 he made an engagement with H. Matthis as clerk in his clothing house, and after Mr. Matthis' death took charge of the store under Charles Miller, administrator. In Novem- ber, 1876, Mr. Ford commenced business for himself in the Tschau- ner Building. He still continues in the clothing business.
DARWIN BROWN is a native of Western, N. Y. In 1871 he came to West Bay City and engaged in the saw mill of Taylor & Moul- throp, remaining with them eight years, when he entered the employ of Smith Bros., with whom he still continues as head sawyer, in their mill. Mr. Brown owns a farm in the county, partially under cultivation. He married Sarah Leggett, of Wyoming, Lamb- ton Co., Ont. They have five sons living, and have lost one child, a daughter.
ยท EVANDER B. GILKEY was born in Aroostook Co., Me., in 1836. His father having died when he was fifteen years of age, he remained and took charge of the homestead until he was thirty-five, when he came to Michigan and settled in the village of Bangor, now part of West Bay City, and in 1879 bought on State Street in the Second Ward of West Bay City, where he now resides. While a resident of Maine his principal business was farming, but he devoted a portion of his time to lumbering. Since coming to West Bay City he has followed jobbing under contract Summers and lumbering in Winter, sometimes buying the stumpage and getting out and selling the logs. He married Miss Mary Tracy, in 1860, whose birthplace was New Brunswick, by whom he has had nine children, eight sons and one daughter. Seven sons are living. Mr. Gilkey is comforta- bly situated for this world's goods, having a pleasant home and convenient surroundings, the results of a life of industry and economy.
BANKS INCORPORATED.
The village of Banks was incorporated by an act of the Legisla- ture, approved April 15, 1871, which act defined the boundaries as follows :- "That so much of the Township of Bangor, in the County of Bay, and State of Michigan, as is embraced in the following de- scribed lands, to-wit: Commencing on the north bank of the Sagi- naw River, where the north and south quarter line of Section Fif- teen, Town Fourteen north, of Range Five east strikes said river; thence north on said quarter line to the northeast corner of the south half of the north half of the northwest quarter of said Section, thence west along the north line of said south half of north half of northwest quarter of said section to the west line of said section, and the northeast corner of the south half of the north half of north- east quarter of Section Sixteen in said town; thence west along the north line of said south half of the north half of said northeast quarter of Section Sixteen, to the north and south quarter line of said Section Sixteen; thence south on said quarter line to the Saginaw River; thence easterly along said river down stream to the place of beginning."
"The village of Banks" was the corporate name specified in the act.
Mr. Robert Leng was the first president of the village.
In 1875 the charter of the village was amended by an act of
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HISTORY OF BAY COUNTY.
the Legislature, creating new boundaries as follows :- "All of Sec- tions Fifteen and Sixteen lying north and west of the Saginaw River, and the east half of the southwest quarter of Section Seven- teen, all of said lands being in Town Fourteen north, of Range Five east are made and constituted a village corporate by the name and title of the village of Banks." The act was approved March 31, 1875.
The charter was also amended in some other particulars re- lating to the government of the village, one of which provided for the election of recorder, treasurer and assessor by the people, whereas they were theretofore appointed by the Board.
The first election under the new charter was one of unusual interest on account of the election of the three officers named. There were three tickets in the field, but the contest waged especial- ly warm only on the office of Assessor-the regular nominee finally coming out largely ahead. The following officers were elected.
President-Fred W. Bradfield, no opposition.
Recorder-John B. Pririer, Jr., forty majority.
Assessor -- Robert Leng, fifty-three majority.
Treasurer-Bernard Lourim, no opposition.
Trustees-John Brown, Peter Smith, Joseph Trombley; very little opposition.
The next important event in the history of Banks was that by which its existence as an independent village was terminated, and it became the First Ward of West Bay City, in 1877.
The people of Banks were enterprising, and in matters of im- provements were not out-ranked by any village of equal size. The history of schools shows the degree of interest and enterprise ex- hibited in securing ample educational advantages.
SALZBURGH.
In 1862 Dr. D. H. Fitzhugh, who owned a large amount of land on the west side of the river, platted a strip fronting on the river, and extending from the present line of the Twenty-third Street bridge, north to the section line. He named the place Salzburgh, after a great salt mine and resort of that name in Austria, and be- cause of the salt excitement here at that time. The place never became an incorporated village, and the name was applied to that general location without reference to the platted tract.
In 1862 Dr Fitzhugh built a salt block which he operated until about 1868.
The first white inhabitant of that locality was Benjamin Cush- way, the government blacksmith for the Indians, who came here about 1834 and built a log house a short distance north of where the Twenty-third Street bridge now is. The old house is standing yet, disguised in a covering of clap-boards. Just above were the Indian corn fields.
In 1842, the late Capt. Solomon S. Stone and wife, arrived in a canoe, having made the trip around the lakes. He built a bark wigwam on the Indian corn fields, and lived there two or three years. At the end of that time he had made money enough, selling muskrat skins, to buy "Stone Island," where he lived until his death, which occurred in the Winter of 1883.
Dr. Fitzhugh, Hill & Son, Johnson & Walsh and the Huron Salt & Lumber Co., were the early salt manufacturers of Salzburgh.
The Laderach Brothers settled here in 1861, and built a stave mill and cooper shop. Their history is given as a part of the lum- bering history.
Jacob Laderach was the first school director of school district No. 2.
The Huron Salt & Lumber Company's mill commenced run- ning in 1864, and cut that season 1,800,000 feet of lumber.
. Stone's mill commenced running in 1866, and cut that season 2,500,000 feet of Jumber.
In 1866 the salt blocks of C. C. Fitzhugh, Fisk & Clark, Chi- cago & Co., Huron Salt & Lumber Co., W. S. Tallman and H. P. Parmalee were credited to Salzburgh. All kettle blocks. The blocks of Tallman and Parmalee were not then in operation.
In 1867 John Arnold & Co., and the Huron Salt & Lumber Co. were manufacturing lumber, and Jacob Laderach and M. A. & A. H. Root were manufacturing shingles.
Laderach & Bro. afterward engaged in the manufacture of lumber, and have been the leading men of that locality to the present time.
KOLB & WESTOVER.
In 1870, the brewery now owned by the above named firm was started by Mr. George Kolb, one of the early settlers of Bangor. The operations of the gentlemen composing this firm have been as follows :
GEORGE KOLB is a native of Germany, born in 1827, followed farming till 1852, when he came to America and went to Fort At- kinson, where he resided two years. In 1854 he came to Bangor and worked in mills and on farms till 1870, when he opened a brewery in West Bay City, which he continued until his son Fred erick and his son-in-law Morris Westover, took the business which they are still running. Under Mr. Kolb's management the busi- ness increased from 500 barrels of beer per year to 6,000, and in the hands of Kolb & Westover to nearly 8,000.
FREDERICK KOLB, son of George Kolb, was born in Germany in 1850, and in 1852 came to America with his father, and has shared with him in trials, hardships and successes, and is to day a partner in the brewery above mentioned. Married Amelia Rosa, of West Bay City, in 1874; they have three children.
MORRIS WESTOVER was born in Germany in 1849, and followed basket making in his native land until 1862, when he came to the United States and stopped in New York three years, during which time he learned shoe making, working at this trade Summers, and Winters attending the Mexico Academy, at Mexico, Oswego Co., N. Y., and afterward a course of instruction in Eastman's National Business College at Poughkeepsie. In 1865 removed to Detroit, Mich., where he worked at shoe making and basket making till 1867, when he came to Bay City, working for a time for the Jackson & Lansing Railroad, then returned to Detroit and worked in a harness shop two years. In 1869 came to Wenona, and after working about one year at shoe making opened a shop for himself. From 1872 to 1876 drove the beer wagon for George Kolb, after which he was proprietor of Westover House, West Bay City, two years, when he removed to Salzburgh and opened the Westover Hall, after which he entered into partnership with Fred Kolb in the brewery, where he still continues. Married Mary Kolb; they have six children. Has been highway commissioner of the Township of Bangor and is now supervisor of the Third Ward West Bay City.
JOHN W. BABCOCK, born in Wayne County, N. Y., in 1831. His father moved to Washtenaw County, Mich., in 1835, with whom he remained until the age of twenty-one. In 1851 came to the Saginaw Valley through the woods, having only a compass to direct him, camping out alone three nights out of five. Reached Bay City in November. Came down the west side of the river to the bay, returned to the point where the village of St. Charles now stands, helped make the first clearing there. Spent the winter of '51 and '52 in Flushing, and returned to the Saginaw Valley in March. Engaged to work for Col. Raymond, of Lower Saginaw, now Bay City, during the Summer, and returned to Washtenaw
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HISTORY OF BAY COUNTY.
County in the Fall. Remained until September, 1853, and has made this place his home ever since. In 1858 jobbed on the opening of the Bay City and Vassar road. From 1861 to 1866 jobbed on the Bay City, Au Sauble & Duncan State Road, which name was after- ward changed to Au Sauble, Alpena & Duncan, having built 155 miles of said road. Drove the first team that traveled the entire distance from Duncan to Bay City. Received as a larger portion of his pay 72,000 acres of land. Located a part of it himself and sold the remainder of the script to parties to make their own loca- tion. During the three years following July, 1867, built for the General Government, a military wagon road from Ft. Howard, Wis., to Ft. Wilkins, Upper Peninsula, Mich. Distance 1783 miles. . For which he received three sections of land per mile, or 348,060 acres. Bought the property known as the Huron Salt and Lumber Co., in April, 1868, consisting of saw mill, salt block, boarding house, tenement houses and sixty-five acres of land, having 120 rods river front on each side of the Salzburgh channel. Said com- pany's stock was $100,000, for which Mr. Babcock gave 33,600 acres of the Wisconsin land. In 1873 took up his residence on said property, where he now lives. Exchanged 40,000 acres of the Wisconsin land for an improved farm of 800 acres, valued at $45,- 000, and stock thereon at $8,000, lying in the central part of Fond du Lac County. Commenced life depending on his muscle and will power, and has thus far continued in active labor. Worked for Mr. James Fraser, helped clear and grub a portion of Center St. Bay City. Married in 1856 Miss Jane Ellis, of Clinton, Lenawee Co., who died in 1861. Married his present wife, Miss Helen N. Newton, of Oakland County, by whom he has one son.
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