USA > Michigan > Wayne County > Detroit > History of Detroit and Wayne County and early Michigan: A Chronological Cyclopedia of the Past and Present, Vol. II > Part 23
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argument of law cases, withdrew from the firm in January, 1857, since which time he has had no partner in the practice of his profession.
Soon after his second coming to Michigan, Mr. Walker began to direct his attention to the early history of his adopted State. In 1854 he was elected president of the Young Men's Society, which at that time wielded a strong influence. During 1854 he delivered the opening lecture of the society course, taking for his subject "The Early History of Michigan," in the preparation of which he was assisted by General Cass. In 1857 he was prominent in the re-organization of the Historical Society of Michigan. In July, 1858, on the one hundred and fifty-seventh anniversary of the found- ing of Detroit, Mr. Walker read an elaborate paper devoted to the " Life of De La Motte Cadillac and the First Ten Years of Detroit." Among his other historical papers are "The Early Jesuits of Michigan," "Michigan from 1796 to 1805," and "The Civil Administration of General Hull." In 1871 he read before the Historical Society of Wis- consin a paper on "The Northwest Territory During the Revolution." It excited wide attention from the many interesting facts it contained-never before printed ; was published in the third volume of the Wisconsin Historical Collection, and has since been reprinted in the collections of the Pio- neer Society of Michigan. Mr. Walker's taste for historical research led to the collection of a choice library of books and manuscripts relating to the early history of Michigan and the Northwest, which were of real service to the author of this work in the preparation of the first edition of the His- tory of Detroit.
Mr. Walker has taken a warm and active inter- est in educational matters; was elected a member of the Board of Education in 1853, and during much of the time since then has been officially connected with the Board, serving as president at two different times. His vote and influence are ever given to the broadest and most liberal pro- visions in all matters relating to educational affairs.
In the spring of 1859 he was appointed one of the professors in the law department of the Michi- gan University, a position which he ably filled for fifteen years, and then failing health and the de- mands of business forced him to resign. On the death of Judge Witherell in 1867, Mr. Walker was appointed by Governor Crapo judge of the Wayne County Circuit Court to fill the vacancy. At the time of his acceptance of the office a proposition to increase the salaries of circuit judges was pend- ing in the Constitutional Convention, but, upon its rejection by the people, Judge Walker, after hav- ing held the office about ten months, resigned, as he could not afford to sacrifice a lucrative practice
for the small salary then attached to this judicial position. Since that time he has devoted himself very closely and laboriously to his large law prac- tice, and though now past three score and ten, is regularly at his desk or in court, clear and vigorous in mind, and with bodily strength apparently equal to many years of work.
Under a joint resolution of the Legislature in 1869, he was appointed by Governor Baldwin one of the commissioners to examine the penal, reforma- tory and charitable institutions in Michigan, visit such institutions in other States, and report the results to the Governor. The commissioners made extensive examinations and an elaborate report, which led to the passage of a law creating a Board of State Charities, of which Judge Walker was ap- pointed a member and acted as chairman many years. He represented the Board at the National Prison Reform Congress at Baltimore in 1872, and at St. Louis in 1874. Into the scientific considera- tion of the great problems of charity and correction, Judge Walker has gone with his whole heart, and has been justly recognized as an authority in vari- ous branches of these important questions.
He was reared in the faith of the Quakers, and continued to observe their forms until he left home. He then became a member of the Presbyterian Church. When at Grand Rapids he gave his aid in the organization of an Episcopal Church, was one of its officers and a regular attendant while a resi- dent there. While in Vermont he attended the Congregational Church, and on returning to Detroit became a member of the First Congregational Church. He is not strongly denominational in his feelings, his church relationships having been deter- mined principally by circumstances.
Politically he has ever been a Democrat. He is a strong believer in the morality and advisability of free trade, and an equally strong opponent of the centralization of political power. When twenty- one years of age, he was a member of the Anti- Slavery Convention at Utica, New York, which was broken up by a mob, but reassembled'at Petersboro by the invitation of Garret Smith. While an inflex- ible anti-slavery man, he was in sympathy with the Free Soil party in 1848, and supported Van Buren. He was a hearty supporter of the government war measures from 1861 to 1865, and in the war meet- ings held in that critical time to raise funds or vol- unteers to prosecute the war he was a frequent and influential speaker.
Personally he has a pleasant, agreeable manner, with inflexible integrity and strong common sense. His life has been characterized by faithfulness in every trust committed to him. His private life has been without reproach, and in public affairs he has been unusually active, influential,and useful.
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He was married in 1838 to Mary Hindsdale, sis- ter of Judge Mitchel Hindsdale, a pioneer of Kala- mazoo County. She died in May, 1864. In May, 1865, he married Ella Fletcher, daughter of Rev. Dr. Fletcher, of Townshend, Vermont. By his first wife he had one son and by his second, two chil- dren, the younger of whom, a son, is a student at Yale College.
EDWARD CAREY WALKER, the youngest of the thirteen children of Stephen and Lydia Walker, was born at Butternuts, Otsego County, New York, July 4, 1820. At an early age he be- came an inmate of the family of his brother Fer- dinand Walker, then living at Hamilton, Madi- son County, New York. He prepared for college at the academy of that place, but at the age of fif- teen left his studies to accept a position in an engi- neer corps engaged in building the Chenango canal under the charge of William A. McAlpine, after- wards so distinguished as an engineer. After two years' service, a broken knee, the result of being thrown from a carriage, unfitted him for further work in his chosen profession, and in September, 1837, still suffering from his injury and obliged to use crutches, he came to Detroit to visit his sister, Mrs. Alexander C. McGraw. Mr. McGraw advised him to renew his studies, and offered to send him to college at his own expense. He accepted the offer, attended the branch of the University then at Detroit, conducted by Rev. Chauncey W. Fitch, afterwards Chaplain in the United States Army, and in 1840 entered the junior class of Yale College and graduated with honor in 1842.
He then returned to Detroit, taught school for a time in the branch of the University, and then be- gan the study of law in the office of Joy & Porter, and subsequently spent a year in study under Judge Story at the Harvard law school, and was admitted to the bar in 1845. He at once began the practice of his profession in Detroit and has since continued therein with success and honor. In 1850, at his request, he was joined by his brother, Charles I. Walker, under the partnership name of C. I. & E. C. Walker. In 1853 Alfred Russell became a member of the firm, and so continued until 1860, when he became United States District Attorney. In the meantime, in 1857, C. I. Walker retired from the firm, and for fifteen years following Charles A. Kent was associated as a partner with E. C. Walker, under the firm name of Walker & Kent. At the present time, and for several years, Mr. Walker's only son, Bryant, has had a partnership interest in his father's legal practice, Walker & Walker becoming the firm name.
Mr. Walker's practice has largely pertained to commercial business and the management of prop-
erty interests for eastern parties. His knowledge and skill as-a lawyer, combined with his high per- sonal integrity, have eminently fitted him for this branch of practice. In matters connected with land titles, and in questions affecting the rights and responsibilities of corporations, his counsel is much sought and highly esteemed. Painstaking labor, persevering and incessant effort, have been rewarded by a large and profitable business in the line of his profession.
He has manifested a warm interest in educa- tional matters, and has particularly interested him- self in the advancement of the Detroit public schools. For many years he was a member and Secretary of the Board of Education of Detroit, and though during late years not officially connected with the Board, he has been enthusiastic in support of all measures designed to increase the efficiency of the educational institutions of the city. He has ever been active in benevolent and reformatory work, freely giving his time and money to every project he deemed to be for the public good. He is a strong advocate of temperance, and in 1846 was secretary of one of the first temperance societies organized in Detroit, and through the various phases of this reform has been a staunch sup- porter of the principle of total abstinence. He has served as president of various literary and religious societies, and has long been a member and elder of the Fort Street Presbyterian Church, and actively interested in the management of the church.
He is a Republican in political faith, was for four years Chairman of the Republican State Central Committee, and has had many opportunities to enjoy political honors, but for the most part has declined, preferring the more congenial work of his profession. In 1863 he was elected by the popular vote of the State a regent of the University of Mich- igan, and drawing by lot the short term, served two years, and was then re-elected for eight years, and again elected for the same period in 1873. He was chosen to represent the city of Detroit in the Legis- lature of 1876, his most important service during his term being as chairman of the Judiciary Com- mittee of the lower house.
During the War for the Union he was a persist- ent and conscientious supporter of the federal gov- ernment, and gave liberally of time and money to aid the Union cause. He was one of the organizers in 1863 and chairman of the Michigan Branch of the United States Christian Commission, which sent delegates to the hospitals and fields, and ex- pended over $30,000 in ministering to the welfare and comfort of the Union soldiers. As a member of the commission, Mr. Walker personally spent six weeks in caring for the wounded after the battle of the Wilderness.
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During a residence of half a century in Detroit, Mr. Walker has sought and served the public weal in many ways, and every trust, either of a public or private nature, committed to him, has been zeal- ously guarded and faithfully executed. He pos- sesses naturally a kindly, sympathetic, and genial nature, that kindles responsive feelings in those with whom he becomes associated. All his influence is on the side of morality, temperance, good govern- ment, obedience to law, and the elevation of his fellow citizens. Other citizens have attracted a larger share of public attention, but few persons have exerted a more helpful or manly influence in the community where he has so long resided, and where he is justly respected and esteemed.
He was married in 1852 to Lucy Bryant of Buf- falo, New York. They have had two children, Bryant, now his father's associate in business, and Jessie, wife of Rev. Wallace Radcliffe, D. D., of Detroit.
WILLIAM PALMER WELLS, the son of Noah Burrall and Phoebe Palmer (Hewitt) Wells, was born at St. Albans, in Franklin County, Vermont, Febru- ary 15, 1831. His father, a lineal descendant of Thomas Wells, an early Governor of Connecticut, was born in Old Canaan, Litchfield County, Con- necticut, in 1794, and settled in St. Albans, Ver- mont, in 1812, where he was engaged in mercan- tile pursuits until his death in 1857. His mother was born in Pawlet, Vermont, in 1801, and was a descendant of the Palmer family of Stonington, Connecticut. She died at Detroit in 1882.
William P. Wells took a preparatory college course at the Franklin County Grammar School at St. Albans, and then entered the University of Vermont at Burlington, and after spending four years, graduated with the degree of A. B. in 1851. After graduation he commenced the study of law at St. Albans. In 1852 he entered the law school of Harvard University, and in 1854 graduated with the degree of LL. B., receiving the highest honors of his class for a thesis on "The Adoption of the Principles of Equity Jurisprudence into the Adminis- tration of the Common Law." The same year he received the degree of M. A. from the University of Vermont, and in 1854 was admitted to the bar of his native State at St. Albans. In January, 1856, he settled in Detroit, entering the law office of James V. Campbell. In March following he was admitted to the bar of Michigan, and in November of the same year became a partner of James V. Campbell, the partnership continuing until Judge Campbell's accession to the bench in 1858 as one ·of the judges of the Supreme Court of Michigan. From that time to the present Mr. Wells has con- tinued the practice of law alone in Detroit. His
legal talents early won just recognition, and his practice has extended to all the courts of the State and United States. He has been counsel in many of the most important litigations of the past twenty- five years, notably in cases involving the constitu- tionality of the War Confiscation Acts, heard in the Supreme Court of the United States in 1869 and 1870.
He was a member of the Legislature of Michigan in 1865-6, as a representative from the city of De- troit. As a member of the Committee on Elections, he took an active part in the contested election cases, and made a report strongly urging the Legislature to follow the decision of the Supreme Court upon the "Soldier Voting Law."
He was a member of the Board of Education of Detroit in 1863-4, and chairman of the Committee on Library. In the latter capacity he made an elaborate report in favor of the foundation of a library which became a basis for the plan of the present Public Library, and at its opening in March, 1865, he made the principal address.
In 1874-5, during the leave of absence of Judge Charles I. Walker, Kent Professor of Law in the University of Michigan, Mr. Wells was appointed to the vacancy. On Judge Walker's resignation in 1876, Mr. Wells was appointed to the professor- ship, a position he held until December, 1885, when he resigned because of the interference of its duties with his legal practice. The subjects assigned to this professorship, and of which Mr. Wells had charge, were Corporations, Contracts, Commercial Law generally, Partnership, and Agency. Upon his resignation an address was presented him by the students, and resolutions of commendation adopted by the Regency.
From January 1, 1887, to the close of the col- lege year, Mr. Wells held the position of Lecturer on Constitutional History and Constitutional Law in the University of Michigan, temporarily dis- charging the duties of Judge Cooley, Professor of American History and Constitutional Law in that institution. In June, 1887, he was again called by the Regency to the Kent Professorship in the law school, and he now holds that position. The sub- ject of Constitutional Law was added to those of which he has charge.
Outside of his professional work, Mr. Wells has given attention to general studies within the wide range of intellectual culture, and is often called upon for addresses upon literary and other occa- sions. At the commencement of the Law Depart- ment of the University of Michigan, in 1870, he de- livered an address on " The Public Relations of the Legal Profession," and in 1875 one on "The Relations of Educated Men to American Politics," before the Associate Alumni of the University of Vermont ; in
Miliam ? Telles.
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1876 on "The Civil Liberty of New England " before the New England Society of Ann Arbor, and on "The Relations of Lawyers to the Reform of the Law," at the commencement of the Law De- partment of the University of Michigan in 1883. At the Legislative Reunion at Lansing in June, 1886, he delivered an address upon "The Legisla- tive Power in a Free Commonwealth;" also memo- rial addresses in Detroit, on Decoration Day, 1883 and 1884.
Always an earnest advocate of the free trade policy, he is vice-president of the American Free Trade League, and an honorary member of the Cobden Club of England.
He was one of the earliest members of the American Bar Association, organized in 1878, which holds its annual session at Saratoga, N. Y., and for several years has been a member of the General Council; and in 1888 was elected chairman of the General Council. At the meeting in 1886, he pre- sented a paper on " The Dartmouth College Case and Private Corporations," which has been re- printed from the transactions of the Association, and widely circulated, attracting much attention.
Among the members of the legal profession, Mr. Wells stands in the front rank. As an advocate, a lecturer, and a gentleman of broad and liberal cul- ture, he holds a place among the best, and his legal attainments, tested by long practice in important cases, justified his selection as an associate with Judges Cooley and Campbell in the law faculty of the University.
His legal studies, however, have not fully en- grossed his attention, and the intervals of freedom from pressing professional duties have been devoted to following avenues of intellectual culture opened by a liberal education.
Naturally a clear and vigorous thinker, and pos- sessing the valuable gift of clear and forcible ex- pression, he needed only the opportunities he has enjoyed to secure eminence as an orator, alike at the bar, in the political arena, and in the halls of the University.
For his duties in connection with the University he possesses special fitness, and it is by that work that he will be most widely remembered. The professional successes of a lawyer, however useful or beneficial, are comparatively ephemeral, but the teacher who has been the means of giving an intel- lectual impetus, and who has imparted the clear light of absolute knowledge to the inquiring mind, is sure of being held in grateful remembrance. That Mr. Wells has been greatly successful as a professor is conceded by all who have any knowledge of the University, and especially by the students who have been fortunate in having him as an instructor. His abilities are such as to command
acquaintanceship with many persons distinguished in professional and political life.
He has long taken an active and leading part in party politics; he is, however, always dignified, self- respecting and courteous to his political opponents, and incapable of descending to the ignoble practices so common in the political arena.
His party affiliations have always been with the Democratic party, and he has been prominent and active in its councils and efforts in Michigan. Dur- ing the War for the Union he was a strong War Democrat and ably supported the Government in the suppression of the Rebellion. In 1866 he was a delegate from Michigan to the Union National Con- vention in Philadelphia. In 1868 he was a mem- ber of the Democratic State Central Committee, and in 1883 and in 1888, President of the Demo- cratic State Convention. Often urged by his party, especially since its accession to control in the Federal Government, for high positions, he has steadily refused to seek office. His religious affili- ations are with the Protestant Episcopal Church, and he is a member of St. Paul's Parish.
He was married October 14, 1857, to Mary Campbell, youngest daughter of Henry M. Camp- bell. They have had four children, of whom only one, Charles William, is now living.
ALBERT HAMILTON WILKINSON was born at Novi, Oakland County, Michigan, Novem- ber 19, 1834. His father, James Wilkinson, was of English descent, and was born in Henderson, Jeffer- son County, New York, February 24, 1800. In 1825 he purchased from the Government a tract of land in Novi, upon which, as one of the earliest pioneer farmers, he continued to reside until his death on February 3, 1872. The maiden name of his wife was Elizabeth Yerkes. She died in 1863. Her ancestors were of German descent, and came to America in the Colonial period. James Wilkinson had six chil- dren, five of whom reached mature age. The eld- est was Harmon, who died at the age of nineteen. The other children, in their order after A. H. Wil- kinson, were James Milton, now a banker at Mar- quette, Michigan ; Melissa, wife of Homer A. Flint, Register of the Probate Court of Detroit; William Lewis, deceased, and Charles M., a lawyer, at Minneapolis.
Albert H. Wilkinson was reared in the country, but early in life evinced a taste and desire for a pro- fessional career. His education began in the dis- trict school, and was continued at the Cochrane Academy, at Northville, Michigan, conducted by the father of the late Lyman Cochrane, first Judge of the Superior Court of Detroit. After leaving Northville, Mr. Wilkinson conducted a winter school in Milford Township, Oakland County, and subse-
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quently entered the State Normal School at Ypsi- lanti, being one of the earliest students of that insti- tution at its opening in the spring of 1853. At the end of a year and a half he left the Normal School to accept the position of principal of the Union Graded School at Centreville, St. Joseph County, Michigan. Being determined to perfect himself in his studies, he remained only five months at Centre- ville, and then, for the purpose of studying Greek, went to Rufus Nutting's Academy at Lodi Plains, Washtenaw County. From there, in 1855, he entered the Michigan State University, graduating in the classical course in 1859. He then attended the law department of the University, remaining during the school year, afterwards studying in the office of Judge M. E. Crofoot, of Pontiac, and in June, 1860, was admitted to the bar.
In the fall of 1860, and for a short period there- after, he practiced in partnership with Henry M. Look, and afterwards with Oscar F. Wisner. In August, 1861, he came to Detroit, and for the follow- ing five years continued the practice of law with W. P. Yerkes, Probate Judge. On January 1, 1866, with Hoyt Post, he established the law firm of Wil- kinson & Post, which was continued until 1873, when Mr. Post retired, and Mr. Wilkinson formed a part- nership with his brother Charles M., under the firm name of A. H. & C. M. Wilkinson. In 1877 Mr. Post again became a partner of the firm, and from that time until 1884, when Charles M. Wilkinson retired, the firm was known as Wilkinson, Post & Wilkinson. Since 1884 it has been Wilkinson & Post. Mr. Wilkinson's practice has been general, but of late years has pertained largely to the settle- ment of estates.
His party affiliations have been with the Repub- lican party. He has been a member of the School Board from the Fifth Ward, and from 1873 to 1877 served as Judge of Probate.
He was one of the organizers of the Michigan Mutual Life Insurance Company and of the Mich- igan Fire and Marine Insurance Company, and has been attorney and director of both companies. He was also one of the organizers of the Michigan Savings Bank, and has always been its attorney.
When quite young he became a member of the Baptist Church, and is an earnest and influential spirit in that organization, and for several years has been a trustee and deacon in the First Baptist Church. He has been active in Sunday School work, and for many years was Superintendent of the First Baptist School, and also of the Clinton Avenue Mission School. He assisted in the organization and was the first president of the Detroit Baptist Social Union. His reputation in the community is that of an upright, consistent Christian gentleman, an honest, painstaking lawyer, a good neighbor and
a firm friend, and he has received and fulfilled many important trusts faithfully and honorably.
He was married July 4, 1859, to Elvira M. Allen a graduate of the State Normal School in 1858.
JAMES WITHERELL was born in Mansfield, Massachusetts, June 16, 1759. His ancestors came from England between 1620 and 1640. In June, 1775, when only sixteen years old, he voluntarily enlisted as a private in a Massachusetts regiment, and served at the siege of Boston and entirely through the War of the Revolution. He was severely wounded at the battle of White Plains, was at the battles of Long Island, Stillwater, and Bemis Heights, and present at the surrender of Burgoyne. He was also with the army at Valley Forge when it endured the severest of its sufferings, and the fol- lowing summer fought at the battle of Monmouth. During the latter part of his services he held a commission of Adjutant in the Eleventh Massachu- setts Regiment. He witnessed the execution of André, at Tappan, and with other soldiers partici- pated in the final disbanding of the Continental Army in 1783, at Newburg.
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