USA > Michigan > Calhoun County > History of Calhoun County, Michigan, a narrative account of its historical progress, its people, and its principal interests, Volume II > Part 35
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New York is his native state and the date of his birth was May 7, 1838. Henry Spring, his father, was born in New York in June, 1803 and died in 1879 at the venerable age of 76 years. He was married in New York to Louisa Steadman, whose birth occurred in Massachusetts June 20, 1822, and whose father, Arnold Steadman, was a native and a life long resident of New York. Henry Spring removed with his family to Ohio in the earlier years of his career and there became the owner of a farm of fifty acres, which he successfully operated during his active years. His wife joined him in death in 1881. Of the six children that came to their union Franklin B. was the eldest and is one of three now living (1912). Henry Spring was a Whig in politics until after the organization of the Republican party and then gave his allegiance to the latter party. As a citizen he entered actively into the public life
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of his community and held various township offices. Both he and his wife were devout members of the Methodist Episcopal church. His fa- ther, also named Henry, was a native of New York and was one of the very early settlers in Ohio.
Brought up on the Ohio farm, Franklin B. Spring obtained a prac- tical common school education in the district schools of his locality and when of responsible age he chose as his occupation the one to which he had been reared, that of farming, to which he has now devoted over half a century of honest and fruitful toil. Allured by the promises which newer states offer in the way of opportunity he removed from Ohio to Wisconsin, but in 1887 returned eastward to Michigan and bought his present homestead in Calhoun county. He built a nice country residence and as the years have passed he has added to the home and grounds touches here and there which lend it an air of com- fort and convenience.
In 1866 he wedded Sarah, daughter of George Myers, who was a native of Pennsylvania but had been a resident of Ohio many years prior to his death. A son and a daughter have blessed the union of Mr. and Mrs. Spring, namely : Edgar B. and Elizabeth May, the latter of whom became the wife of Millard Cooper and now resides on a fine farm in Jackson county, Michigan. Mr. and Mrs. Spring are members of the Methodist Episcopal church. Mr. Spring is affiliated with two of the oldest of fraternal orders, being a member of Springport Lodge No. 284 Free and Accepted Masons, of which he has passed all the "chairs," and of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows at the same place. He is a Republican in politics and in an official way has served as township supervisor three terms and also as a justice of the peace. Mr. Spring started in life a poor boy. Through good business acumen and untiring effort he has become a man of competence and well-to-do and has also assisted his children in making their start in life. It is such men that any community welcomes and values as a citizen.
HON. WILLIAM H. PORTER. Conspicuous among the leaders of the Calhoun county bar is Hon. William H. Porter, of Marshall, who is now serving as judge of probate, a position for which he is amply qualified, and which he is filling with credit to himself, and to the acceptance of all concerned. A son of Robert H. Porter, M. D., he was born, Septem- ber 27, 1839, in Marengo township, Calhoun county, Michigan, and was there brought up.
Coming from Irish ancestry, Robert H. Porter, M. D., was born, in 1812, in New York state. As a young man he took up the study of medicine, and in 1836 migrated to Michigan, settling in Calhoun county, where he continued the practice of his profession until 1880, being one of the leading physicians of that part of the county for many years. Giving up active work in 1880, he lived retired until his death, in 1890. Dr. Porter married Mary Northrup Bull, who was born in Washington county, New York, near the Vermont line, a daughter of Henry Bull, a citizen of prominence and influence, active in business circles and in the political arena. She died in 1864, leaving six children, three sons and three daughters.
Laying a substantial foundation for his future education in the rural schools of his native district, William H. Porter entered Kalamazoo College at the age of fifteen years, and was there graduated with the class of 1859. In 1861, going to Ann Arbor, he entered the law depart- ment of the University of Michigan, which, in 1862, conferred upon him the degree of LL. B. Then passing a successful examination before a committee of which ex-Governor Felch was a member, Mr. Porter was
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admitted to the Michigan bar. Coming to Marshall a few months later, he entered the office of H. A. & L. G. Noyes, well-known lawyers of this city. The junior member of the firm passed to the life beyond in April, 1864, and Mr. Porter succeeded to his position in the firm, and continued as a partner of Judge H. A. Noyes until 1877, when, owing to ill health, Judge Noyes retired from business. Since that time Mr. Porter has engaged in the practice of his profession alone, and through his untiring industry and thoroughness of application has won a place of distinction in the legal fraternity of Calhoun county. In the fall of 1908 he was elected judge of probate for a term of four years, his popularity with all parties being made evident at the polls, when he overcame an adverse Republican majority of twenty-seven hundred votes.
A stanch supporter of the principles of the Democratic party, Judge Porter has been a potent factor in municipal affairs for many years, having served as city attorney 12 terms, and as mayor of Marshall 5 terms. In 1884, he was elected prosecuting attorney, and for 30 years prior to July, 1911, was a member of the school board and its president for 5 terms. Fraternally, the Judge is a member of Saint Albans Lodge, No. 20, Free and Accepted Order of Masons, of which he was master two years; of Lafayette Chapter, No. 4, Royal Arch Masons, which he has served as high priest the past five years; of Marshall Commandery, No. 17, Knights Templar, of which he was for three years eminent commander; and is likewise a member of Knights of the Maccabees. Religiously, Mr. Porter is inclined to the Baptist persuasion but attends the Trinity church, and is a generous contributor towards its support.
Judge Porter married first, in 1866, Miss Frances E. Reed, of Jackson, Michigan. She died six months later, in early womanhood. Judge Porter married second, in 1869, Miss Jessie Chesebrough, who was born in Connecticut, of excellent New England stock. Talented and cultured, she was fitted when young for a professional career, and at the time of her marriage was teaching school in Marshall. Four children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Porter, two of whom have passed to the higher life, Robert Burnham, who died at the age of seven- teen years; and George W., who lived but six short months. Two daughters are living, namely : Jessie C., a graduate of the Marshall high school, of the University of Michigan, and who has taught in high schools in Port Huron, Marshall and Charlotte for nine years and who is now probate registrar in her father's office; and Anna Bernice, wife of George H. Miller, employing superintendent of a well-known Chicago firm, Sears, Roebuck & Company.
SAMUEL F. DOBBINS. Clear-sighted, practical and capable, posses- sing an excellent knowledge of men, and a wonderful power of organiza- tion, Samuel F. Dobbins, president and general manager of the Marshall Furnace Company, is justly entitled to the high position which he has attained among the leading business men of Calhoun county .. A son of the late Charles M. Dobbins, he was born, November 4, 1856, in Ply- mouth, Michigan. His paternal grandfather, Charles Dobbins, was for many years an honored resident of Victor, New York.
Brought up and educated in the Empire state, Charles M. Dobbins went to Canada as a young man, and was there a resident until after his marriage. Migrating to Michigan in 1841, he located in Plymouth, Wayne county, where he followed his trades of a blacksmith and wagon maker for many years. Later in life he bought land, and turned his attention to agricultural pursuits. being engaged in general farming until his death, in 1889. He married, in Canada, Lucy A. Smith, a
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native of New York. She survived him, passing away February 18, 1911, at the venerable age of ninety-five years.
The youngest of a family of 11 children, Samuel F. Dobbins attended first the public schools of Plymouth, Michigan, later continuing his studies at the Buffalo, New York, high school, and Bryant & Stratton's Business College. Thus equipped for his future career, Mr. Dobbins re- turned to Michigan, and for five years was bookkeeper for J. L. Dobbins, of Marshall. In 1881, in company with E. H. Grant, Mr. Dobbins began life on his own account as a manufacturer and seller of hot air fur- naces. Succeeding well in his undertakings, he bought out his partner's interest in the business at the end of seven years, and continued his operations alone for a long time, building up an extensive and lucra- tive trade, which has extended into all parts of the Union. In June, 1908, Mr. Dobbins was instrumental in having the Marshall Furnace Company incorporated with a capital stock of $100,000, an amount that was increased in 1911 to $150,000. The company is under control of men of unquestioned ability integrity, its officers being as follows : Samuel F. Dobbins, president; Charles W. Dobbins, vice-president; Claud S. Stout, secretary and treasurer; and G. H. Dobbins, superin- tendent. This firm, which deals in mantels and metals as well as in furnaces, has acquired an extended reputation as manufacturers of the celebrated Wolverine Furnaces, which are adapted to all kinds of fuel, and are especially noted for their excellent heating powers, and for the economical use of fuel. These furnaces are sold in every city and town of prominence throughout the United States, the company being represented by live, wide-awake salesmen, who faithfully exploit the good qualities of these furnaces.
A Republican in his political affiliations, Mr. Dobbins takes an in- telligent interest in the growth and prosperity of Marshall, and has filled various municipal offices most acceptably, having been mayor of the city one term, a member of the City Council three years, represent- ing the First ward, and for nine years was a member of the Marshall Board of Education, a part of that time being its secretary. Fraternally Mr. Dobbins is a member of Saint Albans Lodge, No. 20, Free and Accepted Order of Masons; of Lafayette Chapter, No. 4, Royal Arch Masons; and of Marshall Commandery, No. 17, Knights Templar, of which he has been captain general for the past seven years. He is a regular attendant of the Presbyterian church, of which he is one of the trustees.
On February 14, 1883, Mr. Dobbins was united in marriage with Marie L. Mitchell, who was born in Brooklyn, New York, but was then living in Owosso, Michigan, where her father, William Mitchell, was engaged in business as a merchant. Mr. and Mrs. Dobbins have three children, namely : Dale M., Charles W., and S. Fremont.
ERNEST C. SAWDY. One of the best known and most highly es- teemed residents of Marshall, Calhoun county, Ernest C. Sawdy has for upwards of a score of years been identified with the Michigan Central Railroad Company as agent at this place of its freight department, and is also distinguished for the honorable record which he has won as mayor of the city, an office which he is now filling for the fourth term. Progressive and enterprising, he is greatly interested in the welfare of Marshall, his achievements as a citizen and a public servant proving his loyalty to one of the best cities of Michigan. A son of the late Ed- win Sawdy, he was born in Marshall, December 25, 1863, and has here spent his life.
A native of Pennsylvania, Edwin Sawdy grew to manhood in that
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state, and there married Martha Pratt, who was likewise born and reared in the Keystone state. In 1850 he came with his wife to Mich- igan, locating in Marshall, where he soon found remunerative em- ployment. In 1864, he enlisted for service in the Civil war, becoming a member of Company -, Fifteenth Michigan Volunteer Infantry, and died while in the army. His wife survived him many years, dying in Marshall, Michigan, in 1909.
Acquiring his early education in Marshall, Ernest C. Sawdy left the high school while a young lad to enter the employ of the Michigan Cen- tral Railroad Company, finding a position in the Railroad Dining Hall, of which he was subsequently manager until it was abandoned. Enter- ing the freight office of that road in 1890, Mr. Sawdy has since served in different capacities in that department, for many years having been its agent at Marshall. Competent, experienced, and intelligent, he can always be depended upon to fulfill his exacting duties to the letter, his thorough acquaintance with the freight business making his services of great value to the company.
Politically Mr. Sawdy supports the principles of the Democratic party, and his popularity with all classes of people is amply proved by his election, in 1909, as mayor of the city, and his subsequent re-elec- tion every term since.
Mr. Sawdy married, in 1888, Miss Elizabeth O'Leary, a native of Marshall, and they are the parents of two children, Donald S. and Harold.
FREDERICK G. FISHER, who has been a resident of Battle Creek since 1895, is a well known business man and citizen. For the past two years he has been manager at Kalamazoo of the branch office for Hulburd, Warren & Chandler, stock brokers and commission merchants of Chi- cago, one of the best known firms in the Chicago Stock Exchange, and affiliated by membership with the exchanges of other large cities.
Mr. Fisher is a native of Lind, Wisconsin, where he was born De- cember 26, 1868. His family were among the pioneers of that vicinity, where his grandfather, Josiah Fisher, took up government land in the early days. His parents were Henry H. and Mary (Randall) Fisher. The mother who died in 1874, when Frederick was six years old, was of a family which came to Wisconsin from Erie, Pennsylvania, and she was married in Wisconsin. Henry H. Fisher, who now lives retired at Fresno, California, was for many years a substantial farmer in Wis- consin. During the war he served three and a half years in the Fourth Wisconsin Cavalry. Another member of his company was Hon. George W. Peck, who acquired fame as the author of "Peck's Bad Boy" series. Frederick G. is the oldest of the three children who grew up, and he has a brother, William H., of Beatrice, Nebraska, and a sister, Mrs. George M. Coone, of Red Cloud, Nebraska.
Mr. Fisher spent his early life in his native state, and attended high school at Waupaca. He has been in the grain and brokerage business since 1902, and for the last two years has had charge of the Kalamazoo branch office already mentioned. He is prominent in the social life of both cities. He is a member of Battle Creek Lodge No. 12, F. & A. M., and is also a Knight Templar, a thirty-second degree man, and a mem- ber of the Moslem Temple of the Shrine at Detroit. He is a member of the Park Club, the leading business men's and social organization of Kalamazoo.
His home in Battle Creek is at 41 Washington avenue North. He was married at Loyal, Wisconsin, September 9, 1896, to Miss Harriet E. Brasier, of that place. Mrs. Fisher is an active member of the Woman's League of Battle Creek and also connected with the Eastern Star chap-
.
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ter in this city. She was born at Sheboygan Falls, Wisconsin, and is a graduate of the schools at Loyal, that state. Mr. and Mrs. Fisher are the parents of three children, all natives of this city :- Maud V., now in the high school; Ernestine L. and Gertrude G.
ELMER E. DOTY. The triumph of a genius, that is surely the title that should be applied to the story of the life of Elmer E. Doty. But it must not be understood that he was a genius in the ordinary sense of the word, that is he did not possess a wonderful gift by which with a com- paratively small amount of effort on his part he was able to bring Fame to his feet. His genius might be called the Genius of Hard Work, for it was by determined effort, close application and a spirit that was never satisfied, but that always longed to do something better that he succeeded. He was born with a desire to do something worth while, and the circumstances of his life forced him to do his work a little better than others, for he was a photographer, and at first the keen competi- tion which he had to meet, forced him to excel others in order to live. ยท His life has been a courageous struggle, in which he always had some definite aim to work towards, and his story should be an inspiration to any young photographers who are ambitious, but who must often face disappointment and defeat. With the production of Mr. Doty's mas- terpiece "Gladys S," he sprang from an almost unknown photographer into the rank of the world's greatest craftsmen, and he is ever ready and eager to help others over the road along which he has toiled.
Elmer E. Doty was born on the 16th of July, 1873, in Steuben county, Indiana. When he was a child of three years, his parents moved into Greene county, Missouri, and there he lived until he was eight. This part of the country was wild and mountainous, and the wonders of Nature and of the busy life of her creatures in the fields and woods, left a strong impress on the mind of the child, and inculcated in him a love for the open which he still clings to. He was educated in the common schools of Indiana, and then entered Battle Creek College. He had always been very fond of sketching and drawing and when he was seven- teen, he took up crayon enlarging with a view to making something out of it. Part of his school expenses were paid in this way, but better than that, his work came to the notice of an engraving and printing house in the city, and they were so impressed by the quality of the work that they sent for the young artist and induced him to give up his college work and devote himself to pendrawing for reproduction and to wood engraving. He was eminently successful and remained with this house for four years, though he was not employed as an engraver during all of this time. When the panic of 1893 made engraving work hard to find, the house took him into the office and the experience that he gained in business methods has since proved to be very valuable to him.
It was about this time that he became interested in photography, though at first only in an amateur way. After a time although he had risen to a very good position, he decided that photography was too inter- esting to dabble in, and went into the work seriously. Early in 1897 he opened his first studio, or as it was then called, gallery, at Ashley, Indiana. He had no capital and no practical experience, and in addi- tion to these drawbacks, he had a wife and two small children, who though they were very far from being drawbacks, yet had to be pro- vided for. Conservative people would call him a fool, but it takes nerve to succeed in these days, and by reading and experimenting he managed to produce some work that was fairly good for those days. Meanwhile with the help of his wife he managed to scrape along, but business was
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mighty slim. In the same block with his gallery were the offices of a doctor, a dentist and a lawyer, all just starting out in their various professions, and the four were known all over town as "The Hungry Quartette." The four of them very likely did not have busi- ness enough for one man, and most of their time was spent on the back veranda of the block, shooting at rats with a target rifle. When the animals had become exterminated for the time being, the doctor con- tributed pill boxes which were tossed up for targets.
After a year in Ashley, Mr. Doty came back to Battle Creek and opened up the Werstein studio. He was only employed on a salary to run this business, and although the financial backing was ample, yet he was not satisfied with the position, and when an opportunity was offered by which he could learn photo engraving he was glad to resign from the studio. He began his new work as an apprentice at $5.00 a week but owing to his previous knowledge and to his natural ability he ad- vanced rapidly and after about a year he was earning a good living. After serving his apprenticeship he continued to work for the house and remained with them for six years, getting a valuable experience in practically every branch of commercial work. He credits his rapid progress since leaving there to the thorough drill in the technical side of his work that he there received. He was now no longer a servant to his tools, but was free to devote himself to the artistic side of his work.
Upon leaving this house he came to Belding, Michigan, and here after setting his business on a firm financial footing, he began to look about him and see what other men in his profession were doing. The first convention that he attended was the Toledo meeting of the Ohio-Michi- gan Photographers Association, to which he took his best work. Out of a possible one hundred per cent his work received twenty-five, but he awoke to the fact that some of the men of the organization were doing work that he came no where near touching, so he went back home with a mind made up to show them that he too could do something worth while. For a year he did nothing but work, experiment and study, and at the end of that time he went to the Detroit meeting and received the highest per cent given by the Ohio-Michigan Photographers Associa- tion, for that year. The first national convention which he attended was one held at Niagara Falls, and while he was there his ambition was given further impetus by the announcement of the diamond medal which was to be given by the Daguerre Memorial Institute, and he made up his mind to win that medal if it was within his power. When he reached home he ordered the best authority on composition, lighting and kindred subjects, together with all the reproductions of the Old Masters which he did not already own, and once more set to work with a definite end in view.
The result of this work was the picture "Gladys S," and it received the diamond medal of honor, in July, 1907. The picture which is valued at $500, hangs in the salon of the Daguerre Memorial Institute. It is eight by ten inches in size and represents a young girl, whose soft dusky hair is crowned by a drooping hat. The high artistic merit of the picture lies in the lights and shadows, in the beauty of the lines of the figure, and the grace and ease of the pose. There is nothing strained about it; it is quite simple and free from affectation, but in this very simplicity lies the high art of its creator, for simplicity is the most difficult and the most exquisite of all art. The jury who awarded the medal to this picture said: "In the Doty picture the Daguerre Memorial Institute comes into possession of the most artistic photograph we have ever seen."
In October of 1910. Mr. Doty returned to Battle Creek, and opened a studio, at 42 North Washington avenue. Here he is kept very busy,
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although his patrons are of the class which really ask artistic work, and as a rule this is not a large class.
Besides his purely photographic portraiture he also does work in oil and water color, and expects in the future to make this a prominent feature of his business.
Mr. Doty has won seventeen gold medals from different societies in all parts of the world since 1907, among them being the gold medal, which was the world's highest honor, given at the International Photo- graphers Exposition, held in Dresden, Germany, in 1910. Mr. Doty is a member of all the American societies of his profession, and he has been made an honorary member by many. It is a great honor to Battle Creek to possess such an artist, and it is to be hoped that she values him at his true worth, for other cities would be only too glad to claim him as one of their citizens.
JAMES L. DOBBINS, of Marshall, Michigan, is a native of the old Keystone state, born in Jefferson county, December 2, 1833. He is the son of Joab and Elizabeth (Guyant) Dobbins. Joab Dobbins married Elizabeth Guyant, daughter of William Guyant, a native of Scotland, and his wife, Anna (Butts) Guyant, who was born in Victor, New York, July 15, 1805. Three children were born to Joab and Elizabeth (Guyant) Dobbins, of which number James L. is the eldest. Emily A., the second born, married S. W. Dunning and makes her home in Alle- gan, Michigan, while Helen M., unmarried, lives in Marshall. After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Dobbins lived for some years in Pennsyl- vania and there the father and husband was engaged as a dealer in merchandise, and after their removal to Michigan in 1842 or there- abouts, he was occupied for some time as a boot and shoe dealer in Battle Creek. He removed from that city to Marshall, where he passed his remaining days and died in this city on March 27, 1884, his faithful wife having preceded him some months previously, the date of her death being December 11, 1883.
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