History of Calhoun county, Michigan, With Illustrations descriptive of its scenery, Part 41

Author: Peirce, H. B. (Henry B.); Pierce, H. B; L.H. Everts & Co
Publication date: 1877
Publisher: Philadelphia, L. H. Everts & co.
Number of Pages: 442

USA > Michigan > Calhoun County > History of Calhoun county, Michigan, With Illustrations descriptive of its scenery > Part 41

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The children of this union were as follows: Wareham, now deceased; Julia M , now Mrs. C. A. Green, of Clinton, Iowa; Martha, now Mrs. Philip Weitzel, of Marengo, Calhoun County ; Hettie E., now Mrs. Henry Bradley, of Eckford, Calhoun County ; Lura A., now Mrs. C. B. Wisner, of Ionia, Michigan ; Man- dana G., now attending Albion female college; William R., Mary T., R. Belle, and James D., the last four named being residents under the home-roof on the old homestead. Mr. Warner is Democratic in politics, and liberal in religion.

LONGAGRE -CO

WAREHAM WARNER.

One of the original proprietors of the village of Albion, a man of energy and undaunted purpose, of strict integrity, and remarked for his benevolence and charitable works during a long and useful career, Wareham Warner has been accorded a position in our work among the pioneers of Calhoun, his portrait and biography being presented to the people of the county by his children, who still linger amid the pleasant places hallowed by the memories of him who led them forward from childhood to maturity, and taught them industry, integrity, and charity. He was born in Connecticut in 1779, during the great struggle for American independence, and died amid the fierce and bitter strife of the Kansas- Nebraska times, in 1854, aged seventy-five years. When a child he emigrated to Chenango county, New York, where, at the age of twenty-one years, he married Cynthia Adams, with whom he lived most happily for many years. He removed to Ontario county, New York, and in 1816 took up the line of march for Parma, Monroe county, in the same State. During his sojourn in the State of New York his life was that of a pioneer, full of the arduous toil consequent upon clearing up heavily-timbered farms, and checkered with the incidents that unavoidably attend life in a new and wild country. In the year 1831 the news from the oak openings and prairies of Michigan reached him, and though past the meridian of life, the desire for a " better country" so strongly influenced his mind, he obeyed its dictates, and followed in the train of the fast increasing emigration to the west, and stopped at Marshall, Calhoun County, where he found a few log houses and a score of live, energetic men trying to build a city. Here he remained a brief period only, but sufficiently long to carry the chain in the survey of the village plot of the now prosperous and beautiful city of Marshall, and to so fix his admira- tion of and desire for a residence in Calhoun County, that though he returned to his eastern home, it was for a length of time sufficient only to close out his busi- ness and dispose of his property there, and return to the forks of the Kalamazoo in 1834. Here, in company with Tenney Peabody, he began to build up the village of Albion, and erected the first house built on the south side of the river therein, and cooked his first meal by the side of a log, ate the same from a board, and drank for his beverage the clear water from the Kalamazoo that rippled by his feet. In 1835 the company began the building of a dam, digging a race and erecting a saw-mill. Mr. Warner also built the first frame house in the village, dug the first well, built the first barn, and thus began, as his children say, to live in a civilized way. He also purchased several tracts of land from the government, some of which include the best farms in the townships in which they are located. In politics, Mr. Warner was a Democrat, and was a liberal and generous supporter of the church. He was the father of ten children.

112

HISTORY OF CALHOUN COUNTY, MICHIGAN.

THERON SOULE.

Every one comes within the observation of others, and the impress of character is unconsciously received, not alone by personal association, but by record of existence. Hence the advantage of extending the field of biographic research and instancing examples not among the opulent and entitled, but among the con- servative and substantial middle class. A fit subject in this connection is found in the life and services of Theron Soule, son of Isaac and Cynthia (Carter) Soule, born in Freehold, Greene county, New York, on May 26, 1807. He was the third of a family of eleven children, seven sons and four daughters.

In 1821 and in 1823 removals were made by Isaac Soule and family, in the first instance to Livingston county, and thence to Murray, Orleans county, New York. Prior to 1835 Mr. Soule engaged in farming, and later gave his attention to mercantile pursuits. In 1837 the north part of the township of Murray was organized into a new township called Kendall, and at the first election Mr. Soule was chosen town clerk. On September 7 of the same year he married Sarah, daughter of Captain Luman and Ruah (Scofield) Foot. Mrs. Soule was born at Saratoga, April 19, 1816, and previous to marriage was known as a teacher in Brockport, Monroe county, New York. Her death took place April 7, 1841, and was followed by the removal of Mr. Soule to Michigan. He took up his residence in Sheridan, where, on December 7, 1841, he married his present wife, the widow of Seth Dean, and the daughter of Andrew and Eunice Pickens. Mrs. Soule is a native of Ernestown, Upper Canada, where she was born July 18, 1815. In 1818 her parents moved to Orleans county, New York, and their child resided

with her grandfather, Felix Auger, until November 12, 1834, when she married Seth Dean, who moved to Sheridan in 1856, and there died four years later.

Shortly after his second marriage Mr. Soule removed to Homer, and engaged in keeping a hotel, but soon returned to Kendall, where he remained until 1843. On May 4 of that year he set out with his family, in a two-horse wagon, for Michigan, and once more settling in the town of Sheridan, has made that locality his permanent residence. He bought two hundred and eighty acres of section 22, in Sheridan, and there lived for ten years; and when, in 1866, he sold this farm, now owned by A. Schenck, it was reputed one of the best in Sheridan.

During the spring of 1866, Mr. Soule purchased the brick house now his resi- dence, and in 1869 associated with G. N. Davis to erect the opera-house in the village of Albion. Of a speculative turn, he has dealt largely in both wild and improved lands, and by uniting industry with forethought has obtained a com- petence. Believing that he who subserves public interest advances his own, Mr. Soule has ever been forward in advancing public measures of utility, and has ranked among the leading men of the town. His life presents an example of the success which awaits all who, however poor, are willing to make the efforts which are indispensable to wealth. A self-made man, Mr. Soule has been fortunate in his companion in life ; his wife has been a true helpmeet, and is held in esteem by all her acquaintance. Mrs. Soule had by her first husband one daughter, Laura M. Dean, born August 29, 1836, now married to Mr. G. W. Davis, of Grand Rapids. Mr. Soule had by his first wife two daughters, Sarah R. Soule, born May 30, 1838, now married to Mr. James Fleming, of Nashville; Frances A. Soule, born Sept. 14, 1839, married Edwin Densmore, of Mackinaw, Mich.

LONGACRE-CO J. Souli

RESIDENCE OF THERON SOULE. ALBION, MICHIGAN.

LONGACRE-CO

MRS. THERON SOULE.

LONGA CRE-CO

MRS. L. S. GOODRICH.

LONGACRE-CO

TENNEY PEABODY.

LONGACRE-CO

MRS. TENNEY PEABODY.

TENNEY PEABODY.

One of the prominent citizens of Calhoun County was Tenney Peabody, whose name forms the caption of the present sketch. He was the first settler in the village of Albion, or its near vicinity, coming thereto in the year 1831 while yet it was an unbroken forest, his family, consisting of his wife and seven children, and a nephew, named Charles Blanchard, arriving on his location March 4, 1832. He emigrated from Campville (now Alcott), Niagara county, New York. He was born in Nottingham, Rockingham county, New Hampshire, December 28, 1792, being the son of David and Eunice (Cross) Peabody, natives of the State of Massachusetts. In the year 1814 he was united in marriage to Eleanor Thompson, by whom were borne to him eleven children, six sons and five daughters, of whom the following survive at the present time : Louisa P., now Mrs. W. H. Johnson, of Kalamazoo; Julia A., now Mrs. M. H. Crane, of Albion ; James W., now of Albion ; May E., now Mrs. James W. Sheldon, of Albion, and John M., of Albion.

He built the first house in Albion, a log cabin, on the site of the Presbyterian

church now standing in the village, but afterwards removed to a new location on the opposite side of the street, in the township of Sheridan. Mr. Peabody was connected with the Albion company, which was formed to build up the town, and was foremost in all work which he considered conducive to the prosperity of the same. He was, however, careful to weigh closely all enterprises, and when con- vinced they would be likely to secure the results sought for, gave them a libera and judicious support, and never contracted an obligation he could not see his way clearly to discharge. In politics he was originally a Democrat, but on the organi- zation of the Republican party, cast his influence on the side of the same, and remained true to his allegiance until his death.

He would not assume political office, but looked after the general interests of the township and village with commendable zeal and judgment. He was not a member of any church organization, but was liberal in his religious views, and a close thinker, and tenacious in argument on scriptural questions.

Mrs. Peabody was born in Pittsfield, New York, October 18, 1794.

WILLIAM M. KNICKERBOCKER.

MRS. WILLIAM M. KNICKERBOCKER.

WILLIAM M. KNICKERBOCKER.

As the family name suggests, he of whose life we essay a brief sketch was of Dutch extraction. Tradition has it that the heads of the family in America were three brothers who came from Holland and settled,-one in New York city, then known as Manhattan of the New Netherlands, one on Dover Plains, and the other on Pine Plains, New York. The subject of this sketch claims his descent from the Pine Plains branch of the family, where he was born, August 29, 1811, being the twelfth of a family of thirteen children. His father, Hugh Knicker- bocker, was born July 30, 1761, and his mother, Rachel Scram, December 1, 1769. The parents were married June 11, 1786. They were of the world's poor, and in consequence William was thrown at an early age upon his own resources. He obtained as good a common-school education as the times in which he lived and his opportunities afforded. In the fall of 1829 he went to the town of Elba, Genessee county, in the same State, and engaged in farming, continuing the business until the fall of 1835, when he came to Van Buren county, Michigan, and located a farm, which he afterwards sold, and purchased his present location on section 23, in the township of Albion. Returning to Genessee county imme- diately after his last purchase, he was united in marriage to Miss Harriet S. Babcock, August 17, 1836. She was born in the town of Elba, April 18, 1816, and was a daughter of Asa and Lydia (Tupper) Babcock, and the third in a family of seven children. She was a most excellent teacher. After their mar- riage the young couple removed to the location the husband had previously secured, where for forty years they have shared life's struggles and sorrows, its joys and

pleasures, building for themselves and their children a pleasant home, around whose hearth-stone four of the latter have gathered and gone out from, two to the "undiscovered country whence no traveler returns," and one, a daughter, to a home of her own and the man of her choice. The children were George M., Harriet E.,-now deceased,-Jane Ellen, now the wife of C. W. Dalrymple, Esq., and Sarah A., also deceased.

Mr. Knickerbocker has been a prominent and useful man in his township, and enjoys the confidence of the people, who have largely intrusted their interests to his care in the position of highway commissioner, which he has held fifteen years from the reorganization of the township as now constituted, and township treasurer, supervisor, and justice of the peace for several terms each. During the Rebellion he was a stanch upholder of the Union, and held the position of enrolling officer of the township. Mr. and Mrs. Knickerbocker are members of the South Albion Methodist Episcopal church, of which he has been the chor- ister for thirty-five years, and is at present one of its trustees. Mr. Knicker- bocker is and has ever been a liberal, public-spirited man, generous in his dona- tions to Albion college and other public institutions, religious and otherwise. His children have had the advantages of acquiring an education, which their father had not, all of them attending on the instruction of the college. This pioneer pair, after surmounting the difficulties and privations of their early lives, are now enjoying the fruits of their labor, richly merited, and possess that price- less jewel, " a conscience void of offense," intentional, towards their fellow-men.

LONGACRE-CO

TENNEY PEABODY.

MRS. TENNEY PEABODY.

TENNEY PEABODY.

He built the first house in Albion, a log cabin, on the site of the Presbyterian

Mrs. Peabody was born in Pittsfield, New York, October 18, 1794.

WILLIAM M. KNICKERBOCKER.

MRS. WILLIAM M. KNICKERBOCKER.

WILLIAM M. KNICKERBOCKER.

pleasures, building for themselves and their children a pleasant home, around whose hearth-stone four of the latter have gathered and gone out from, two to the " undiscovered country whence no traveler returns," and one, a daughter, to a home of her own and the man of her choice. The children were George M., Harriet E.,-now deceased,-Jane Ellen, now the wife of C. W. Dalrymple, Esq., and Sarah A., also deceased.

T. P. WALKER.

MRS. T. P.WALKER.

RESIDENCE OF T. P. WALKER, SEC. 10. LEE TP, CALHOUN CO., MICH.

LEE TOWNSHIP.

IT is not unfrequently observed that a roadway marks the division between lands totally different ; so physical features common to one section are absent from another, and townships varying in position are unlike geographically. Amidst eastern nations, known as civilized and enlightened, the boundaries of provinces, and even parishes, mark distinctions of race, language, and custom ; hence the individual detail of township features, far from monotonous, tends to a complete description.

The location of Lee township, Calhoun County, is in the northern tier of town- ships, between Clarence and Convis. An extensive marsh, commonly known as the " Tamarack Swamp," extending through the centre of the town, comprises nearly one-half its area. The land on each side of this morass was originally covered with a heavy timber growth, of which some portions are yet preserved. The woodlands of Lee have been the source of considerable revenue to the towns- men, and have furnished a supply of lumber to the lower portions of the county. The oak, beech, maple, ash, basswood, and whitewood are among the principal woods. A strip of land, about two miles wide, extends from east to west, through the north of the town ; and a similar strip, a mile in width, located southward, lies in the same direction. These tracts are available for cultivation, and from them good average crops are raised. Wheat and corn are staple products. Fruit is also grown to a considerable extent. Garden vegetables for home consumption are cultivated. From the maple some sugar is annually manufactured, but not in the quantity earlier known, when settlers were thrown upon their own resources. During the years of settlement the sugar from this source was the only supply of the inhabitants, the difficulty of obtaining any other making its production a necessity.

It was a matter of rivalry among the good housewives as to which should pro- duce the finest quality. By some process of clarifying, this home-made sugar would rival the refined products of the cane made at the present day. This choice article was only brought upon the table on special occasions, to honor the guest and exhibit home handiwork. But few maple-orchards remain at this day, and these are opened more as a rarity than as a means of subsistence. In the early days the need of a stimulant to replace coffee resulted in the substitution of acorns, rye, and wheat, none of which proved as palatable as the coffee berry of Brazil or the Indias. Tea was steeped from the wild sage, and barely answered as a substitute. Various expedients were adopted in keeping with those named to supply the place of luxuries grown to be necessaries by use, but with growth and convenience all were long since abandoned for the original, and the day of substitution has gone by.

Difficulty of transportation was a serious check to progress. What availed the treasures of timber and the wealth of grain without a market ? There was abund- ance at the farm, but it was raised at home and there remained.

The construction of railroads has wrought many changes, and, linking State with State, has created a market in every county and brought to each village the products of distant lands. The time has nearly arrived when the people of Lee shall hear the trains rumbling upon an iron road through their territory. Already cuts have been made and grading is far advanced upon the Marshall and Cold- water Railroad, whose route is across the western portion of the township. It is intended to lay the rails and operate the road during the summer. The land- owners and others look to this event with hopefulness as an opportunity to market the surplus lumber and grain to the best advantage, and it is expected that the completion of the road will mark an era of growth and prosperity. Mills for sawing will be erected, depots for grain purchase established, and teaming will become obsolete.

Lands now timbered will be cleared for tillage, and agricultural resources greatly strengthened. Such has been the result elsewhere, and the railroad is regarded, with reason, as an agency of much importance.

To pioneers upon these lands the outlook had little to encourage. Heavy woods covered the land, and harbored wild beasts, while straggling Indians, quarrelsome and thievish, contributed to the settlers' annoyance. The wolf and the bear were destructive to live stock, and Indian depredators aroused the townsmen to drive them from the township. A party organized and made an attack upon an Indian village located near what is now . Lee Centre. Lodges were demolished, and the occupants rudely ejected from their homes. The act was variously regarded, and

parties in Marshall, friendly to the Indians, entered complaint against the leading raiders. Several were arrested, taken to Marshall, tried, found guilty, and sen- tenced to fines of from twenty-five to one hundred dollars, and three months' confinement in the county jail.

THE PIONEERS OF LEE.

Opinions differed as to the best lands and the choice locations. In many places the comparatively high lands were denuded of timber and given to a semi-profitless cultivation, while the rich lowlands, partially water-covered, were left as found. There were those who traversing the territory of Lee saw enough of promise to induce permanent residence. In the spring of 1835 Amos Hadden and Nicholas Stanley entered and occupied a part of section 36, in the southeast part of the town. The former yet resides on the old place. His neighbor, Mr. Stanley, lost his life by the caving in of a well in which he was at work.

Children are lost in populous cities, and press, police, and detective, stimulated by promised reward, fail to restore them to their homes; how much the more peril in the early day to the child lost in pathless woods and impenetrable morasses tenanted by fierce beasts, and exposed to starvation ! What anxiety experienced by the parents and what sympathy bestowed by neighbors !

In 1837 a child of Mr. Stanley became lost in the woods and created an ex- citement not soon forgotten. The incident is thus related: one evening Mr. Stanley, hearing the tinkle of the cow-bell a short distance from the house, started his son, a child of six years, into the woods to drive the cows home. The cows soon came in, but the boy was not with them, and repeated calls brought no reply. Immediate search was instituted and fruitlessly maintained for three days. The neighbors, turning out, scoured the country for an area of ten miles. The child was found at last, distant from home but a short half-mile. He sat at the foot of a tree with his back leaning against it, and was dead. He had perished from cold and hunger. The Rev. Mr. Hobert officiated at his funeral, at which were held the first religious services in the town.

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History of Calhoun county, Michigan, With Illustrations descriptive of its scenery, Part 41

Author: Peirce, H. B. (Henry B.); Pierce, H. B; L.H. Everts & Co Publication date: 1877 Publisher: Philadelphia, L. H. Everts & co. Number of Pages: 442

Author: Peirce, H. B. (Henry B.); Pierce, H. B; L.H. Everts & Co
Publication date: 1877
Publisher: Philadelphia, L. H. Everts & co.
Number of Pages: 442