History of Mason County, Michigan, Part 17

Author: H. R. Page & Co.
Publication date: 1882
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 373

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CHANCY GIBBS was born at Russell, St. Lawrence Co, N. Y., in the year 1838. He remained at home until about twenty years of age, when he started West and located at Muskegon, Mich . At the breaking out of the war he raised a company in Muskegon and was offered the captaincy, but declined it and was made first lieutenant of the company, which was Company C, Twenty-Sixth Michigan Infantry. He was afterwards promoted to captain. He remained in the service until the close of the war, when he received his discharge and returned to Muskegon, where he remained until 1870, when he came to Ludington. Mr. Gibbs has always been engaged in lumbering, and has been very successful in his operations. He now owns a large quantity of pine on the north branch of the Pere Marquette River. He is also an extensive owner of real estate, and has a large farm in Sherman Township, which he is improving for a fruit farm. He has a fine residence property in the Fourth Ward, a view of which appears in this work. His grounds contain a fruit orchard of 2,000 trees. Mr. Gibbs was married at Muske- gon, October, 1862, to Miss Ellen Patterson. Four children have been born to them, three of whom are now living-one daughter, Laura M., and two sons, Harrison C. and Louis Leon Gibbs. Por- traits of Mr. and Mrs. Gibbs appear upon the same page with the view of their residence.

JOHN S. WOODRUFF is one of the busiest men of Ludington, and a man of sterling worth. Mr. Woodruff was born in St. Clair County, Mich., in 1841. While yet a young man he entered the employ of the late Capt. E. B. Ward, and for some time attended to the silver mining interests of that gentleman. In 1871 he came to Ludington to superintend the lumbering interests of Capt. Ward at this place. After the death of that gentleman Mr. Wood- ruff took charge of the business as agent for the estate, and subse- quently as ugent for Mrs. Catharine L. Ward. The first mill was

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RES. OF CHANCY GIBBS , LUDINGTON, MICH.

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HISTORY OF MASON COUNTY.

built the year Mr. Woodruff came here, and from that time the business increased with wonderful rapidity, and its prosperity increased with its magnitude. Another mill was built in 1872. A large store was opened, and all these vast interests were carefully guarded and successfully managed by Mr. Woodruff for about seven years, when Mr. Lyon obtained an interest in the business and took its management. He was, however, too good a judge of men to part with Mr. Woodruff, who still remains with the business and has charge of the mills, vessels and stores. Mr. Woodruff was secre- tary and treasurer of the Boom Company from 1872 to the present year. . He is a man of large business capacity and great energy, but from the multitude of business cares finds time to render efficient service to all worthy enterprises in which the community is interested.

JAMES FOLEY is a native of the Empire State, having been born in Ontario County, N. Y., in 1836. He came to Ludington from Wisconsin, in 1864, and engaged in logging and lumbering, in which business he was exclusively engaged until 1877, when he became one of the tug firm of Caswell, Breining & Co. In Feb- ruary, 1882, in company with H. B. Smith, he purchased a shingle mill in the Fourth Ward, which is now in operation under the firm name of Smith & Foley. Mr. Foley also continues to be interested in logs and lumber. The shingle mill has a capacity of 25,000,000 a season, and gives employment to twenty-five men. Mr. Foley is one of the most stirring business men of Ludington, and in all his undertakings has been successful. His family residence is a very tasty edifice with pleasant surroundings, an excellent view of which appears on another page.

HORACE BUTTERS was born in Maine, in 1838. In 1852 he went to Manistee and there made choice of the pursuit which he has since followed with remarkable success. His first work was in the woods and afterwards went to logging on his own account. Gradually working his way along, he extended his operations in logs and lumber. In 1874 he came to Ludington and in addition to his lumber business operated a shingle mill, which he sold to Smith & Foley in 1878. At this time the style of the firm was H. Butters & Co. For two or three years prior to 1878, Mr. Butters had been look- ing up a large tract of pine land in Sherman and Branch Townships, and in the Fall of 1878, at a most favorable time, consummated the purchase for the firm of Butters, Peters & Co., Mr. Peters being a resident of Manistee. Soon afterward Mr. Butters erected a mill and laid out the village of Tallman, both of which are fully described in another place. This purchase and the subsequent operations for utilizing the timber included in the purchase, show a degree of sagacity which few business men possess, the fruits of which are now yielding a handsome fortune every year. Mr. Butters resides at Ludington, but spends a portion of his time at Tallman, directing his large lumbering operations at that point. He is a genial, whole- souled gentleman, in whose prosperity every one who knows him rejoices. In another place in this work appears an excellent sketch of the mill and surroundings, and also a description of the business center which Mr. Butters planted in the wilderness.

W. H. WILLIAMS, of the well known hardware firm of Wil- liams & Wheeler, is a native of Bridgeport, Conn. In the year 1854 he went to Milwaukee, and was a resident of that city for sixteen years, and one of its leading citizens. While there, he was for several years engaged in the hardware business, on an extensive scale. He was a member of the board of aldermen for two terms, and president of the board one term. In 1870, Mr. Williams removed to Pentwater, where he was engaged in the hardware business. In 1874, he came to Ludington, where he has continued the same business, and since 1875 has been the senior member of the firm of Williams & Wheeler. Since coming here, Mr. Williams has built one of the finest residences in the city, on Court Street, which

is now his home. He is a prominent member of the Odd Fellows Order and Knights of Honor, and is a gentleman well versed in general affairs.

. JAMES E. DANAHER is vice-president of the Danaher & Melendy Company, and a son of Patrick M. Danaher, the pioneer business man of Ludington. Mr. Danaher was born at Kenosha, Wis., and came to Ludington in 1863. In the choice of an occupation he followed in the footsteps of his father, and for a number of years was in charge of the Danaher & Melendy Mill. At the organization of the Danaher & Melendy Company, Mr. Danaher was elected vice- president, and still continues in that office. He is a thorough business man; occasionally takes a hand in local politics, but never loses sight of the lumber interest.

PHILIP P. SHORTS, M. D., one of the leading physicians at Ludington, was born in Canada, in 1846. At an early age he made choice of the medical profession, and entered the office of a noted physician and surgeon at Belleville, Canada, and subsequently studied at the Toronto Medical College. Deciding to locate in the States, he went to New York, and after graduating at Bellevue Hospital, began practice in Flint, Mich. After remaining there a short time, he came to Ludington, where he has since remained and built up a very extensive practice.

HARRY A. SCOTT, lumber inspector, is a native of Quebec, and came to the States in 1865. After stopping in Chicago a few months, he went to Muskegon, where he was engaged at lumber inspecting until 1873. At that time he came to Ludington, and established himself in business as lumber inspector. In 1881, he was elected alderman from the Fourth Ward, to fill the unexpired term of C. C. Rice. Mr. Scott has an office near the Ward mills in the Fourth Ward, and does a prosperous business. He sustains an excellent reputation as a business man and citizen, and is liberal and enter- prising in all deserving matters. A view of Mr. Scott's residence in the Fourth Ward appears on another page in this book.

PELEG EWING, manufacturer of carriages and wagons, Luding- ton, was born at Sand Lake, N. Y., in 1838. In 1855 he came to Tuscola County, Mich., where he remained until 1864, when he en- listed in the service. At the close of the war he returned to Tuscola County, and stayed until 1870, when he came to Ludington, and engaged in the manufacture of wagons, carriages, etc. His business prospered, and at the present time is very extensive. Two large buildings are occupied in the manufacture and for sales rooms, and a number of workmen employed. Mr. Ewing is a very active man in advancing public interests and improvements, and was one of the originators of the Ludington Tax Payers' Improvement Association. He represented the First Ward in the city council during the years 1874-'75. He is a man of sound, practical views, and his judg- ment upon matters in which he interests himself is considered reliable.

DR. A. P. McCONNELL is a native of Ohio, and graduated at the Ohio Medical College, Cincinnati, in 1850, and has been in active practice for thirty-two years. After practicing about a year in Cincinnati, he removed to Pontiac, Mich., in 1851, and practiced there until 1862, when he went into the army as surgeon of the Twenty-Second Michigan Infantry, and remained until the close of the war. He then returned to Pontiac, and remained until the Fall of 1872, when he came to the then village of Ludington. Dr. McCon- nell had then already had over twenty years of active professional experience, and he at once commanded a large practice, which he has always retained. He is the oldest physician in the city, and is very popular with all classes.

JAMES A. ARMSTRONG, grocer, Ludington, is a native of Flint, Mich. In the early part of the war he enlisted, but after being in the service about a year, was discharged for disability. In 1879 he

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HISTORY OF MASON COUNTY.

came to Ludington, and was with his father in the grocery business until the Winter of 1882, when he purchased the stock, and is now alone in the business.

ISAIAH H. MCCOLLUM was born in Palmyra, N. Y., June 14, 1820. In 1848 he came to Michigan, and after spending some time at Hillsdale, went to Detroit and took a clerical position in an insur- ance office. In 1871 he came to Ludington and started a bank called " The Lumbermen's Exchange Bank." This was the first bank started in Ludington, and was located in a frame build- ing on Ludington Avenne opposite the building which is now the Filer House. At that time there were no brick and but few frame buildings in the village. He also purchased an insurance business and attended to that in connection with his banking business. In 1878 he went out of the banking business and devoted his entire time to insurance, in which business he still continues. His thorough and practical knowledge of insurance matters acquired while at Detroit was of great value to him and during the four years that have elapsed since devoting himself exclusively to insurance he has succeeded in establishing a prosperous agency, the business of which inereases with the growth of the city. Mr. McCollum is a careful business man, and is noted among all who know him for strict integrity and a fine sense of honor and honesty in all his dealings.

JOHN A. MAY, M. D., is a native of Ingham County, Mich. He took a literary course at Ypsilanti, Mich., and graduated in 1876. After graduating he was principal of the public schools at Eaton Rapids and afterward at Lowell, this state. From Lowell he went to Chicago and took a medical course, graduating in 1881. In February, 1881, he came to Ludington and entered upon the practice of med- icine and surgery as a homeopathist, and has met with excellent · success.

WILLIAM HEYSETT was born in England in 1841, and went to Canada in 1866. He was educated for the ministry and was en- gaged in church work while in Canada. In 1870 he came to Ludington as pastor of the Methodist Episcopal society at this place. He remained in charge of the society for one year, and the records show him to have been one of the most successful pastors the society has ever had. In 1871 he retired from ministerial labor and engaged in the drug business. He began business in the building built by Whittaker & Alexander, on Ludington Avenue. Subsequently he removed to the corner of James Street and Lud- ington Avenue, where he now has one of the finest drug stores in this part of the state.

OTIS A. ELLIOTT, proprietor of the Hanson House, Ludington, is a native of Ohio, but most of his life has been spent in Michigan. Mr. Elliott came to Ludington in August, 1881, and became propri- etor of the Hanson Hotel. He has had twelve years experience in hotel life, and with a natural adaptation to the business, has made the Hanson House a popular hotel.

J. S. STEARNS is one of the successful lumbermen of Ludington, although his mill is located in Lake County. He is a native of New York State. In 1876 he came to Ludington from Conneaut, Ohio, and for a time was connected with the lumber interests of the Ward estate. In 1880 he built a mill in the heart of a pine section in Lake County, and is at the present time doing a prosperous busi- ness. Mr Stearns has built an elegant residence in the Fourth Ward during the past season.

R. RASMUSSEN is a native of Denmark, and came to this country in 1870. In 1876 he came to Ludington from Manistee and opened a boarding-house and saloon in the Fourth Ward. Mr. Rasmussen is a stirring man, and is actively interested in public affairs. He is president of the Danish Aid

Society, and has held the office of supervisor of the Fourth Ward for three terms.

LUCIUS K. BAKER, although a young man, is one of the "City Fathers" of Ludington from the Fourth Ward. Mr. Baker is a native of Ashtabula County, Ohio, and came to Ludington in 1874. Upon coming here he entered the employ of John S. Woodruff, agent of the Ward estate, as clerk in the store. He has remained in the store since that time, but for the past year has occupied the posi- tion of head clerk, and has charge of the two new and elegant stores recently erected and occupied by T. R. Lyon, Agent. Mr. Baker is an active and reliable business man.

HENRY B. SMITH was born in Auburn, Ohio, in 1849. In 1868 he enlisted at Cleveland in the Ninth Ohio Veteran Volunteer Artillery and served in the war until its close in 1865. In 1872 he came to Ludington from Flint, Mich., and engaged in lumbering. In February, 1881, he purchased an interest in the planingmill business of Stanchfield & Foster, and the firm was Smith, Stanch- field & Foster. The following July he purchased Mr. Foster's interest, and in February, 1882, bought out Mr. Stanchfield, and since that time has operated the business alone. Mr. Smith is also senior member of the firm of Smith & Foley, shinglemill. Both mills are located in the Third Ward near the Washington Avenue bridge.

LUKE A. SMITH was born in Canada in 1843. When eleven years of age he came to the States, and in 1870 went to Missouri and engaged in the hardware business. In 1880 his attention hav- ing been directed to Ludington, he came here and purchased a building in the Fourth Ward, at the corner of Washington Avenue and Second Street, and opened a new hardware store. Mr. Smith is a careful and thorough business man, and has always succeeded.

GEORGE GOODSELL, of the firm of G. Goodsell & Co .. proprie- tors of the Ludington Iron Works, was born in Germany in 1843, and came to this country in 1845. In 1861 he enlisted at Adrian, Mich., in the three months' service, and afterward re-enlisted in the Seventeenth Michigan for three years. He remained in the service until the close of the war. In 1865 he went to Pentwater and engaged in the foundry business, which he continued until 1875, when he moved his works to Ludington. In 1881 the name of the firm was changed from G. Goodsell to G. Goodsell & Co. Mr. Goodsell is also a member of the firm of Allen & Goodsell, lumber manufacturers. Mr. Goodsell is a practical machinist and a successful business man. The firm of which he is the senior member does an extensive and prosperous business. A view of Mr. Goodsell's family residence appears in this work.

JAMES W. ARMSTRONG & SON, dealers in tobacco, cigars, liquors, etc., Ludington, have been in business here since 1873. James W. Armstrong came to Ludington in 1878 from Flint, Mich. He was born in Erie County, N. Y., in 1817. He was with the Tenth Mich- igan Infantry from 1862 to the close of the war in 1865. Soon after coming to Ludington he erected the building corner James and Dowland, in which their store is located. James Street was not graded, and there were only a few small frame buildings in that part of town. William E. Armstrong, the junior member of the firm, came here from Nevada in 1878. He went to Nevada from Flint in 1861, where he remained until coming here.

CHARLES H. CRAWFORD, of the firm of George Goodsell & Co., proprietors of the Ludington Iron Works, is a native of Bennington, Vt. In 1858 he went to St. Louis, Mo., as master mechanic of the St. Louis and Iron Mountain Railroad. Afterward he was master mechanic of the railroad shops at Holly, Mich., and after the Flint and Pere Marquette Road was built was conductor of a passenger train for a while. In 1878 he came to Ludington to reside, and in February, 1881, became a partner with Mr. Goodsell

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LAKE HOUSE

LAKE HOUSE , R. RASMUSSEN, PROPR. LUDINGTON, MASON CO.MICH.

KW ARMSTRONG & SON.

GROCERIES & PROVISIONS

WINES LIQUORS

GROCERY

TOBACCOACIGARS

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J. W. ARMSTRONG'S BLOCK, Cor. JAMES & DOWLAND STE, LUDINGTON, MASON CO. Mich.

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HISTORY OF MASON COUNTY.

. in the iron works. The firm do a very extensive business. Mr. Crawford is a practical mechanic, and his long experience is of great service to the business in which his firm is engaged.

WILLIAM SURPLICE is a native of Canada, and came to this country in 1864. In 1872 he came to Ludington and was lumber inspector until November, 1880. At that time he opened a restau- rant on Ludington Avenue, and in connection with it deals in tobacco, cigars, confectionery, fruits, etc., and is doing a prosperous business.

CHARLES H. FRALICK is the senior member of the flour and feed firm of Fralick & Hammond. Mr. Fralick is a native of Michigan, and came to Ludington from Brighton, in 1875. The present co-partnership was formed about that time, and in 1878 they removed to their present location and built a store, which was burned in the fire of June, 1881. Immediately after the fire they rebuilt, and are at the present time doing a prosperous business.

DEXTER P. GLAZIER, dealer in jewelry and crockery, was born in Worcester County, Mass., in 1823. At an early day he came to western New York, which at that time was very near the western limits of civilization. In 1855 he came to Michigan, and for several , years was in trade at Whitehall. In 1880 he came to Ludington and opened a store with a large stock of jewelry and crockery. Mr. Glazier is an active man'and a successful merchant.

CHARLES G. SHERMAN was born in Columbia County, N. Y., in 1824. His father was a farmer, and his early life was spent at home upon the farm. When fourteen years of age he removed with his parents to Oakland County, Mich. Upon arriving at an age when Mr. Sherman began life for himself, he worked at the carpenter trade, and afterward became a contractor and builder. In 1872 he removed to Ludington and became interested in real estate. He became the owner of a hotel property on Loomis Street, which was burned in the fire of June, 1881. Last- Spring he purchased a valuable building site, consisting of several lots on the corner of Ludington Avenue and James Streets, and the choicest location in the city for hotel or business purposes. At the time of writing this sketch it is his purpose to erect upon these lots a three-story brick block, to be occupied with a hotel and stores. Mr. Sherman has been successful in life and is full of. enterprise and public spirit, which results in advantage to himself and the community in which he lives. Mr. Sherman has two sons -- John A. and Frank P. Sher- man, who were born at Oakland County and came to Ludington with their parents in 1872, and engaged in the book and stationery business. Until 1878 the firm name was F. P. Sherman & Co., and at that time the style of the firm was changed to Sherman Bros. They were burned out in the fire of June, 1881, but immediately resumed business, and now have a large and elegant store on James Street, and carry a fine assortment of books, stationery, fancy goods, etc., and are doing a very extensive and successful business. Both members of the firm are young men of excellent business habits and devote themselves to their trade with a degree of energy that cannot fail of succes.

MARSHALL G. SMITH, proprietor of the Filer House, Ludington, was born in Essex County, N. Y., in 1845. In 1847 his parents removed to Ohio. In 1859 he went to East Saginaw, Mich., and subsequently engaged in the hotel business at that place. For twelve years he was proprietor of the Everett House; was chief of the fire department three years and a member of the city council four years. In May, 1875, Mr. Smith came to Ludington and leased the Hanson House, which he kept for nine months, and then changed to the Marshall House, which he kept until the Spring of 1880, when he purchased the Filer House, of which he is still proprietor. He is a man of great activity and energy, and constantly on the alert for public improvements. He has been very active in the efforts to

secure a harbor of refuge at Ludington, and was one of the orgin- izers of the Ludington Tax Payers' Improvement Association, of which he is president. As a hotel man he is very popular, and is a very efficient citizen of the city in which he lives.

WILLARD C. STARR, grocer, Ludington, is a native of Lorain County, Ohio, and came to Eaton County, Mich., in 1867. In 1876 he came to Ludington and started in the grocery business. In 1878 he erected the brick building which he occupies with his store. The fire of June, 1881, burned the building adjoining but was prevented from destroying this one. Mr. Starr served in the war with Company B, One Hundred and Twenty-Fourth Ohio, from 1862 to the close of the war in 1865. He comes from a family of merchants and has been very successful in his enterprises here.

DR. FRANK N. LATIMER, druggist, Ludington, is a native of Duchess County, N. Y., and came to Michigan in 1860. In 1878 he came to Ludington from Muskegon, and engaged in the drug business. In the fire of June, 1881, he was burned out, but immediately after the fire built a substantial brick block for his occupancy. Dr. Latimer is a stirring business man, and has one of the most elegant drug stores in this region.

HARLIN ALDRICH is a native of Wayne County, Mich., and came to Ludington in 1876. At that time H. C. Stewart was doing an extensive business in general merchandise, on the corner of James and Loomis Streets. Mr. Aldrich, upon coming here, took charge of the business connected with the store, and continued in that position until 1879, when he succeeded Mr. Stewart in business. He continued in business until the fire of June, 1881, when his store was the first to be destroyed. Previous to this time Mr. Aldrich had built a mill at Custer for the manufacture of wooden bowls and turned ware, and he immediately built a store at Custer and engaged in merchandising at that place. He resides at Lud- ington but visits Custer every day to look after his business interests.

OLIVER N. TAYLOR is a native of Grand Rapids, Mich., and came to Ludington in 1879. The firm of Sweet & Bean had just completed a new mill, and Mr. Taylor bought Mr. Bean's interest. Mr. Sweet continued to hold a half interest in the property until 1880, when Mr. Taylor bought him out and has been in business alone since that time. The mill cuts from 16,000,000 to 18,000,000 a season. Mr. Taylor enlisted at Grand Rapids in the Sixth Michigan Cavalry, and served in the army until the close of the war, in 1865. He is a very careful business man and is thoroughly posted in every- thing pertaining to the manufacture of lumber.

BENDIX P. LANDT is a native of Germany, and came to this country in 1869. He was at Milwaukee and Stevens Point in Wis- consin, until 1871, when he came to Ludington and scaled lumber until the Fall of 1881, when he opened a saloon and restaurant in the Fourth Ward, at the corner of Washington Avenue and Second Street, in which business he is now engaged.

JAMES A. BOYD, proprietor of the Ludington Omnibus and Hack Line, is a native of Vermont, and came to Indiana in 1854. In 1868 he came to Riverton Township, Mason County, and located a farm under the homestead law. He worked his farm until 1872, when he sold out and came to the then village of Ludington, and started a dray and express line. He succeeded in that business and in 1880 started an omnibus and hack line. The hotels at that time were running free busses and he bought them out and made it an independent business. In December of last year, in company with another man he started a similar line at Manistee, and is now doing a prosperous business in both cities.

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History of Mason County, Michigan, Part 17

Author: H. R. Page & Co. Publication date: 1882 Publisher: Number of Pages: 373

Author: H. R. Page & Co.
Publication date: 1882
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 373