History of Berrien and Van Buren counties, Michigan. With biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 51

Author: D.W. Ensign & Co. pub; Ellis, Franklin, 1828-1885; Johnson, Crisfield
Publication date: 1880
Publisher: Philadelphia, D. W. Ensign & Co.
Number of Pages: 821

USA > Michigan > Van Buren County > History of Berrien and Van Buren counties, Michigan. With biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 51
USA > Michigan > Berrien County > History of Berrien and Van Buren counties, Michigan. With biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 51

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).

Under the pastoral labors of the Revs. Hurd, Jackson, Reese, Lucas, and the occasional services of the Revs. Carpenter, Sias, and others, the church has prospered. Its present membership is 100, but the aggregate of members has been much larger. The present minister is the Rev. Henry Burton. J. W. Rose is the superintendent of the Sunday-school, which has at present 75 members.

The present house of worship at Millburg-a frame structure, 36 by 60, with a shapely tower-was commenced in 1870, but was not completed until three years later. It is a very neat edifice, of which the value is reported at $5000. The building was consecrated by the Rev. William M. Roe.

196

HISTORY OF BERRIEN COUNTY, MICHIGAN.

The First Congregational Church of Benton Harbor .- This church was organized June 13, 1866, in the old white school-house, by a council called for this purpose, and at which were present as delegates Rev. P. B. Parry and S. Hess, of Three Oaks; Rev. J. B. Fairbanks and L. Whit- ney, of St. Joseph ; and A. J. Nowlen, in behalf of the society at Benton Harbor. The latter acted as secretary, and P. B. Parry served as chairman. The following persons assented to the articles of faith and covenant, and became the constituent members of the church : Enoch Osborne, Ira Nowlen, Ralph Grow, Amos Eastman, Alfred Osborne, Martin Green, David Hurd, Zistorene Nowlen, Fanny Os- borne, Clarinda Nowlen, Sophronia C. Eastman, Sarah A. Winans, Mary Ann Grow.

A. Eastman, Ralph Grow, and E. Osborne were elected the first Deacons, and A. J. Nowlen, Clerk. These officers in 1879 were H. F. White, R. Grow, and A. R. Nowlen, Deacons ; and J. H. Darche, Clerk. Other deacons have been R. E. Winans, J. H. Darche, S. Devereaux, Charles E. Hull, Horace H. Garland, and G. K. Hopkins ; and clerks, A. Osborne, George W. Toles, and H. F. Colby.

In 1868 the society built the church edifice which is yet occupied as a place of worship, and which was the first meeting-house in the township. It is a plain but inviting frame, and is at present controlled by a board of trustees composed of J. C. Ingham, V. A. Shankland, George Wilson, J. H. Darche, C. J. Hall, and R. Grow. The first named is the clerk of the society.

The church has had the following pastors and supplies :

1867, Rev. S. Morton ; 1868-69, Rev. S. S. Hyde; 1870, Rev. George A. Dickerman (supply) ; 1871, Rev. H. P. Welton ; 1872, Rev. N. A. Willard ; 1873, occasional supplies; 1874-75, Rev. S. B. Goodenow ; 1876-77, E. L. Hurd, D.D. ; 1878, J. C. Thompson.

Since April, 1879, the Rev. Abel Wood, of St. Joseph, has supplied the pulpit, and ministers to the 70 members who compose the church.

As soon as the church building was completed, a Sunday- school was opened there, under the superintendency of J. P. Thresher, although a union Sunday-school had been organized in the village at the school-house two years earlier. The present superintendent of the school at the church is V. A. Shankland. One hundred and nineteen members are enrolled, from which an average attendance of 80 is secured. A good library is maintained.

The First Baptist Church of Benton Harbor .*- This body was organized at Heath's Corners, May 30, 1863, under the title of the "St. Joseph Baptist Church." There were 28 persons who associated themselves into church membership, namely : S. F. Heath, Julia Heath, Omi Simms, Sophia Simms, Henry A. Simons, Arthur E. Simons, Sarah Simons, Clara Swartwout, Sarah Woodin, A. F. Stiles, Lucinda Stiles, Emily Stiles, Caroline Row- ley, Ellen Jones, Mrs. McAllister, Thomas Swartwout, Nancy Swartwout, John H. Swartwout, Sarah Swartwout, Imogene Swartwout, William A. Coats, Maria Coats, Anna Coats, Deborah Hayward, William Boughton, Eliza Hop- kins, John P. Edwards, and Maria Edwards.

At the time the church was organized S. F. Heath was

elected clerk, and has since been annually re-elected to per- form the duties of that office, being the present clerk.

The deacons also are elected annually, and the following have been ordained to that office : J. P. Edwards, William A. Coats, A. F. Stiles, Samuel Rockafellow, E. St. John, Henry A. Simons, M. A. Harrington, Hiram Dusenbury, Jerome F. Smith, Charles Fisher, E. V. Green, E. S. Fox, A. B. Carmichael, Jadutha Withey, E. A. Clark, William Edwards, S. F. Heath, Joseph Watkins, James Lason, William J. Barrett, and E. H. Bovee.

The church has had the pastoral services of six clergy- men, as follows : Rev. Arthur E. Simons, from August, 1863, till June, 1866 ; Rev. Stephen Wilkins, from Octo- ber, 1866, till October, 1867, when the Rev. Wm. Gates acted as a supply for one year, serving very acceptably. Rev. Thomas Allen began his ministry October, 1868, but at the end of eight months retired, and the pulpit was again supplied by Rev. Mr. Gates till January, 1869. In January, 1869, the Rev. J. G. Portman began a pastorate which was continued until October, 1873, followed by a vacancy of three months, at the end of which the Rev. C. W. Palmer became pastor for eight months. In Sep- tember, 1874, the present pastor, the Rev. J. D. Pulis, began his labors with the church, and for more than five years has served the church worthily and well.

The church has prospered, and at present reports 260 members. Four houses of worship have been built at as many different places. The first was the " Brown Chapel," at Heath's Corners, which is still owned by the church, and used in summer for a mission Sunday-school. It is a frame house, and was erected in 1864, at a cost of $1000, by S. F. Heath, J. P. Edwards, and J. H. Swartwout, as a build- ing committee. It has accommodations for 150 persons.

The second was a brick lecture-room, which was built at the village of St. Joseph in 1865, by a committee composed of the Rev. A. E. Simons, L. F. Chapman, and Thomas Swartwout. It cost $2000, and was used by the Baptists until 1868, when it was sold to the Evangelical Associa- tion, and has since served that body as a place of worship.

In order to accommodate some of the members residing in Bainbridge, the church united with the Methodists, in 1866, to build a frame meeting-house in that township for mutual occupancy, each incurring an expense of $1000. On the part of the Baptists the building committee were A. F. Stiles and Riley Merrill.

The fourth building was erected at Benton Harbor, in 1869, by S. F. Heath, E. St. John, and J. P. Thresher, as a building committee. In February, 1868, it was decided by the church, in view of the fact that the larger portion of the membership resided on the east side of the St. Joseph River, that the property in St. Joseph be sold and the in- terest transferred to Benton Harbor. In accordance with this determination, the name of the " First Baptist Church of Benton Harbor" was assumed, and the present beautiful and commodious house begun. It is built of Racine brick, in an imposing style of architecture, and cost $16,000. It seats 600 worshipers, and its general appearance is seldom surpassed in villages of the size of Benton Harbor. The trustees are S. F. Heath (chairman), W. E. Higman, E. A. Clark, J. P. Thresher, John Ingraham, and A. J. Kidd.

* From data furnished by S. F. Heath.

RES. IN BENTON HARBOR.

MR. L.SUTHERLAND_

MRS. L.SUTHERLAND

RES, OF LEWIS SUTHERLAND, BENTON TP., BERRIEN Co., MICHIGAN,

TOWNSHIP OF BENTON.

197

The Sunday-school (sustained by the church) was or- ganized at Benton Harbor in 1870, and is at present super- intended by H. W. Miller. It has 245 members.

Benton Harbor Methodist Episcopal Church .*- Pre- vious to 1868 there were a few adherents of Methodism at Benton Harbor, who were supplied with occasional preach- ing by the ministers from St. Joseph, but no organization appears to have been effected until September, 1868, when a separate charge was here formed, with 46 members. A board of trustees was chosen, composed of James F. Miller, Aaron H. Smith, Wm. D. Sherwood, J. M. Sorter, and E. G. Reynolds, and the work of building a church edifice begun. In 1870 it was completed and appropriately consecrated. It was a very handsome brick house, 40 by 75 feet, two stories high, and cost about $16,500. In this the church worshiped and prospered until June 1, 1875, when the beautiful edifice was struck by lightning and almost totally destroyed. This calamity, added to the depression in busi- ness which prevailed in the township in consequence of the failure of the peach trees, was so heavy a blow to the church that it was almost crushed, and for several years was obliged to live a struggling existence. The American Insurance Company refused to pay the amount of its insurance, and obliged the society to compromise at the loss of several thousand dollars ; some of the members removed, and other circumstances prevented the work of rebuilding from going on until the summer of 1879. At this time a one-story edifice is being reared upon the foundations of the old church, which will cost about $5000, and will, when com- pleted, be a comfortable place of worship. The trustees in 1879 were B. F. Rounds, James Bailey, Joseph Richards, E. N. Hoe, and W. L. Hague.

In spite of its financial difficulties the church has been measurably prosperous, and at present reports 140 full and 15 probationary members, who are under the tutelage of the Rev. E. A. Whitwam. Other pastors, from the forma- tion of the church till Mr. Whitwam's accession, have been the Revs. J. P. Force, A. J. Van Wyck, T. H. Jacokes, H. Worthington, H. Hall, G. W. Gosling, William Prouty, E. H. Sparling, and J. K. Stark. The Rev. John Atkinson is a local elder, and Rev. J. R. Oden a supernumerary preacher.

There is an excellent Sunday-school of 150 members connected with the church, which is doing a good work, under the superintendence of the pastor, the Rev. E. A. Whitwam, and the future of the church is rich with prom- ise. The struggle for a place among the many churches of the land has nearly ended, and ere long this much-afflicted people will pass from under the cloud into the full light of prosperity, to perform its allotted work with the success that attended it before its troubles came on.

The First Universalist Church of Benton Harbor .- This society was organized in April, 1870, with 8 mem- bers, 6 of them being Sterne Bronson, S. Ogden, W. T. Durry, Allen Bronson, E. Nickerson, and Alonzo Plummer. The first meetings were held in Masonic Hall, but in the latter part of 1870 the old white school-house was adopted as a place of worship and has been the house of the society

ever since. The church having but a small membership at the time of its organization, has been somewhat hampered by the expenses necessary to maintain an existence, but has lately discharged its debts, and now enters anew upon a career of prosperity and usefulness. The number of mem- bers is reported at 30.

The church has had but one settled minister, the Rev. A. H. Laing, who left several years ago, and since then there have only been occasional services by visiting clergy- men.

In some of the school-houses of the township religious meetings have been held by various denominations, but, so far as we have been able to learn, no organizations followed the efforts of those who conducted them.

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.

ELEAZER AND HENRY C. MORTON.

Eleazer Morton, a native of the State of Massachusetts, was born Aug. 1, 1786, and when about twenty years of age removed to Syracuse, N. Y., purchased a farm, and began the manufacture of salt. About 1811 he was mar- ried to Joanna Cotton, a native of Vermont, who had been

ELEAZER MORTON.

engaged in teaching at Syracuse. The wedded couple re- moved soon after to Alexander, Genesee Co., N. Y., where Mr. Morton engaged in farming and the manufacture of cloth. In the spring of 1831 he sold out his interests at Alexander, and removed to Brockport, Monroe Co., where he became interested in matters pertaining to the Erie Canal. Excessive competition and the cutting of rates rendered the season disastrous, and in the fall of the same year Mr. Morton changed his place of residence to Medina, Ohio, where he opened a hotel, and carried it on until the spring of 1834, when he finally removed to Michigan, and located near Toland Prairie, near what is now Galesburg,

* Compiled from a sketch by the Rev. E. A. Whitwam.

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HISTORY OF BERRIEN COUNTY, MICHIGAN.

Kalamazoo Co. He had conceived the idea of founding an establishment for the manufacture of sugar from potatoes, and for that purpose came to Michigan. In the fall of 1835 he abandoned the project, and removed with his family to St. Joseph, Berrien Co., where they passed the winter. During the few succeeding months he purchased, of different parties, 160 acres, on sections 18 and 20. In the spring of 1836 he built a log tavern on the Territorial road, which was the only house for a distance of seven miles eastward from the mouth of the river St. Joseph. He cleared his farm, started a nursery, and commenced to raise fruit; his orchard, which was set out in 1840, containing apple, peach, pear, plum, nectarine, and apricot trees. The principal variety in the peach line was the " Yellow Rare- ripe," which was to a great extent superseded by the " Craw- ford," the latter becoming a general favorite, and still enjoying an enviable reputation. The first peaches fromn this market to Chicago were shipped by B. C. Hoyt, and the second by Mr. Morton.

In his political views Mr. Morton was an old-line Whig, and subsequently a thorough Republican, and was decided in his opposition to the principles and encroachments of slavery. He was a deep thinker, and was possessed of an ardent desire to benefit his fellow-men. He was in corre- spondence with Horace Greeley and other philanthropists, and furnished articles for the press upon his favorite topics. He was also the author and publisher of a volume entitled " Morton's Guide to True Happiness." His wife died in September, 1856, and Mr. Morton's death occurred July 4,1864.

Mr. and Mrs. Morton were the parents of ten children. Sarah M. married Thomas Conger, who practiced law from 1834 to 1849 in St. Joseph. He finally removed to California for the benefit of his health, and is now police judge of Sacramento. His wife died in California in 1850. One of their daughters became the wife of Senator Jones, of Nevada. Charles A. was in the forwarding business, with Britain, Sawyer & Co., at St. Joseph, and died in 1838. Henry C. Morton, now living on the old home- stead at Benton Harbor, was in the Legislature in 1863, and was also largely interested in the construction of the canal at the Harbor. William E., who was engaged in the lumber business at Chicago, died in that city in 1859, and his brother, George C., is now engaged in the same business at the same place. Jane E. became the wife of William Hammell, and lived for some time at St. Joseph and Niles. Mr. Hammell was connected with the Michigan Central Railroad. He subsequently removed to Morris, Grundy Co., Ill., and engaged in the lumber business, and his wife died in that place in December, 1859. Joanna D. Morton married William Raymond, a merchant of St. Joseph, and died in 1849. James M. Morton made an overland journey to California, with a party from St. Joseph, in 1849, and died in December following, of typhoid fever. Mary A. married S. A. Raymond, a merchant of St. Joseph, and subsequently removed to Toledo, Ohio, where she was president of the Soldiers' Aid Society during the war, and is now living at San Francisco, Cal. Caroline D. married S. G. D. Howard, a Chicago lumber merchant, and is now widowed and living in that city.

HENRY C. MORTON,

son of Eleazer and Joanna (Cotton) Morton, was born in Genesee Co., N. Y., Jan. 27, 1817. He attended the dis- trict school at home, and in 1834 came to Michigan with

HENRY C. MORTON.

his parents. Upon his arrival at manhood he became in- terested, with his father, in the development of Benton Harbor, with which place he has since been prominently identified. His father once remarked, "Henry lived with me until I lived with him." One-half the property of the father was deeded to the son, the former retaining the re- mainder until his death, although the affairs of the farm were managed by Henry during the last few years of his father's life. Henry C. Morton was married, Feb. 8, 1848,

LITTLE

JOSEPHINE MORTON.

to Josephine Stanley, of Bainbridge, a native of Le Roy, Genesee Co., N. Y. Four children were born, of whom but one, James S., is now living. He is a member of the steamboat firm of Graham, Morton & Co. Mrs. Morton died Aug. 1, 1859. Mr. Morton still resides on the old

199

TOWNSHIP OF BENTON.

homestead, and has been prominent in politics as well as in other connections. In 1863 he was the representative from this district in the State Legislature. The famous " Cincinnati Peach-Orchard" was upon leased land belong- ing to Mr. Morton.

JEHIAL ENOS.

To this gentleman belongs the distinction of being the first settler in the township of Benton ; therefore no one is better qualified to relate tales of pioneer life, with its at- tendant hardships and struggles to obtain a livelihood and build a home in the midst of a wilderness. Mr. Enos was born in Norwich, Chenango Co., N. Y., Oct. 24, 1799, and is the only one now living of a family of seven children, of whom he was the oldest. He worked during summers on his father's farm, and in the winter attended district school, until he was eighteen years of age, when from a pupil he

LITTLE

JEHIAL ENOS.

became a teacher, and spent his winters in the endeavor to inculcate knowledge into the minds of those less advanced than himself. As he grew older, the desire to be more of a scholar obtained strong hold upon him, and, while pursu- ing his duties as a teacher, he also took up the study of surveying, and applied it practically whenever opportunity offered until 1825. In that year he came to Michigan, and located at Ann Arbor, Washtenaw Co., where he re- mained four years. During the time he assisted Lucius Lyon in his duties as deputy United States surveyor. In the year 1828, before many white persons had settled in the State west of Dexter, Mr. Enos, in company with a party of explorers, visited what is now Berrien County. In 1829 he was again here, and assisted Mr. Lyon in survey- ing that portion of the county lying south of the river. The same year, Major Britain made the first permanent settlement in St. Joseph. In 1830, Mr. Enos was married to Miss Nancy Kavanaugh, who was born in Ohio. Her parents were natives of Ireland. The fruit of this marriage was nine children, of whom but two are now living. In

1844 four of their children died of scarlet fever, within the space of three weeks. A son, who had " gone at his country's call" to do battle for freedom, fell in the field of strife in 1863.

Soon after his marriage Mr. Enos built and occupied a house in St. Joseph, where he remained one year. He then sold out and purchased a lot of wild land in Royalton township, and began the task of hewing out a homestead in the midst of the forest. About three years later he again disposed of his property, and located in the village of Millburg. In 1836 he settled on the place he now occu- pies, section 13, Benton township. His wife, who was a most kind and amiable lady, died in March, 1855, and in December, 1856, he started on a second matrimonial journey with Mrs. Wilcox.

Mr. Enos was originally a Democrat, but has been a Re- publican since the formation of the latter party. He has twice represented the county in the State Legislature, as a Democrat in 1847, and as a Republican in 1856. He was one of the organizers of Benton township, and was its su- pervisor for several years. He has also been several times chosen to the position of county surveyor. He has been a member of the Baptist Church since 1823, and has always been among the foremost in the advancement of public interests.

STERNE BRUNSON

was born in Genesee Co., N. Y., in 1806. About 1812 the family removed to Cincinnati, Ohio, where they re- mained three years, changing their place of residence to

KASAMS

Photo. by H. L. Bingham, Kalamazoo. STERNE BRUNSON.

Wayne Co., Ind., where they remained eighteen years. In the latter county, on the 27th of April, 1826, Mr. Brunson was married to Sarah Shank, with whom he lived for more than fifty years, and who survives him. Their children were six in number,-five sons and one daughter,-of whom all are living except the oldest son, who died May 17, 1835.

200

HISTORY OF BERRIEN COUNTY, MICHIGAN.

From Wayne Co., Ind., Mr. Brunson moved to Elkhart, in the same State, where he remained till 1859. In the latter year he came to the site of Benton Harbor, and soon after his arrival conceived the idea of building a town on the east side of the St. Joseph River, which should be connected with the lake by a canal, nearly a mile in length, and of sufficient width and depth to admit of the passage of large steamers. Des- pite the unconcealed ridicule of many, he, with the aid of a few friends, accomplished the enterprise .* The village received the name of Brunson Harbor, which was after- wards changed by others to Benton Harbor. Mr. Brunson lived a sufficient length of time to witness the wonder- ful growth of his village and see it ranking among the important commercial centres of Western Michigan. He was always extremely liberal towards every project tend- ing to the public benefit. In his habits he was strictly temperate, never tasting intoxicating drinks nor indulging in the use of tobacco, which he rightly considered as hardly a lesser evil. His health, therefore, was always excellent, until his career was suddenly terminated by a stroke of paralysis. His funeral drew a larger attendance than any before held in the village, the ceremonies being held under the auspices of the Odd-Fellows, to which he belonged, and in which body he was prominent.

Mr. Brunson's parents were both natives of New York, and those of his wife were born in Pennsylvania. Mrs. Brunson is living with her daughter, Mrs. Antisdale, whose husband causes this brief sketch and the accompanying por- trait to be inserted in this work, as a slight token of the es- teem in which he held the person for whom this is written.

LEWIS SUTHERLAND

is of Scotch descent, the son of Lot Sutherland, and was born in Barker, Broome Co., N. Y., Feb. 28, 1831, being the sixth in a family of nine children. His mother died when he was but seven years of age. In 1836 he came with his father's family to Michigan, and lived with them near Kalamazoo. About 1839 his father removed to Bain- bridge township, Berrien County, and purchased one hun- dred acres of land on section 27, and there the boyhood days of the son were passed, without incident save such as are common in the lives of farmers' boys. He acquired a fair education, enabling him to engage in any ordinary business. When nineteen years of age he took up his residence at the home of John Morgan, in Bainbridge, and remained with him three years. Being desirous of witness- ing life in the mining region of California, Mr. Morgan went to that State, leaving Mr. Sutherland to care for his family, and promising to pay him one-fourth of his net earnings in the land of gold. When the time for settle- ment arrived the sum amounted to five hundred and sixty- two dollars and fifty cents, and with it Mr. Sutherland purchased one hundred and sixty acres on section 23 in Benton township. In 1860, when twenty-nine years of age, he was married, at Battle Creek, to Miss Matilda

Howard, who was born in Kane Co., Ill., March 12, 1843. She is the daughter of Joseph and Anna D. Howard, and the oldest of seven children. Her parents settled in Bain- bridge township, Berrien County, when she was but four years of age. Mr. and Mrs. Sutherland have been the parents of six children, of whom but four are living.

Sterling L. Sutherland was born Feb. 23, 1861; Edgar B., born April 17, 1864, died Aug. 14, 1866; Grace C., born Jan. 1, 1866, died Aug. 18, 1866; Addie E., born Aug. 4, 1867 ; Darwin B., born May 16, 1869; Lot F., born May 16, 1871. In 1860, Mr. Sutherland sold his farm on section 23 and purchased eighty acres on section 36, and has since purchased an equal amount adjoining it. He also owns real estate in various other localities, and is the possessor of three hundred and ten acres in all. At the death of his father, in 1866, Mr. Sutherland received as his share of the estate two hundred and fifty dollars.

Mr. Sutherland is, politically, a Democrat; has held the position of highway commissioner for three years, and has filled other minor offices. On religious subjects his views are liberal. He is a man of strictly temperate habits, thoroughly upright in his business transactions, and by his fellow-townsmen is classed among their most valuable citi- zens. He is a most successful farmer, and has triumphed over all difficulties since his humble beginning in the battle- field of life.

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History of Berrien and Van Buren counties, Michigan. With biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 51

Author: D.W. Ensign & Co. pub; Ellis, Franklin, 1828-1885; Johnson, Crisfield Publication date: 1880 Publisher: Philadelphia, D. W. Ensign & Co. Number of Pages: 821

Author: D.W. Ensign & Co. pub; Ellis, Franklin, 1828-1885; Johnson, Crisfield
Publication date: 1880
Publisher: Philadelphia, D. W. Ensign & Co.
Number of Pages: 821