USA > Michigan > Mason County > History of Mason County, Michigan > Part 54
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" Scandinavian House, Mrs. Hanson. This house is 111 feet front, and 68 feet deep, and two stories high.
" German Home, B. F. Schoenbeck.
"Lake House, P. Neihoven.
" Fireman's Hall, city building.
"Grocery store, Thomas Kinney & Co.
"German Hall, German Workingmen's Society, 148 members.
" Store, Cushman & Calkins.
" Meat market, Solomon Rothchilds.
" Store, grocery and supplies, Green & Milmoe.
" Grocery store, Charles Grunde.
MARINE LIST.
There are in constant service and belonging to Manistee har- bor nine tugs and steamers, as follows:
"Tug ' Margaret,' Capt. John Crawford; Tyson, Sweet & Co., owners.
" The Canfield Tug Line, O. A. Wheeler, superintendent; con- sists of the following tugs: Tug ' C. Williams,' Capt. C. Gnewuch; tug ' Parsons,' Capt. C. Myers; tug . Edwards,' Capt. E. Taggart; tug ' J. C. Osgood,' Capt. T. Ackerman; tug . Hunter Savidge,' Capt. Peter Marsh; tug ' Mud Hen,' Capt. L. Lavine.
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HISTORY OF MANISTEE COUNTY.
" Next we have the tug ' Ida M. Stevens,' Capt. Togood; Demp- sey & Cartier, owners.
"The passenger steamer ' Ida,' Capt. Smith; Smith & Son, proprietors.
" There are three steam barges owned in the city, as follows:
"Barge ' Hilton,' Capt. J. Cochrane, Wing & Buckley, owners; barge ' Chas. Rietz,' Capt. owned by Rietz Bros .; barge ' M. Groh,' Capt. -, owned by Gifford & Ruddock.
" There are seven sailing vessels belonging to the city, as fol- lows:
" The bark 'Sanborn,' Capt. -; belonging to Lyman & Wright.
" The scow . J. M. Hill,' Capt. Dan Mabee; same owners.
"Schooner . Nellie Church,' Capt. Charles Otto, Wing & Buck- ley, owners; schooner ' Parker,' Capt. John Larson, Tyson, Sweet & Co., owners; schooner 'Napoleon,' Capt. D. Douglass, same owners; schooner ' L. McDonald,' Capt. - , Cushman, Calkins & Co., owners; schooner ' J and A. Stronach,' Capt. Hall, Gifford & Ruddock, owners, from Racine; schooner . J. B. Newland,' Capt. H. Jones, same owners, from Racine; schooner ' Gladiator,' Capt. Anderson, Rietz Bros., owners, from Chicago.
" The barge ' Harmony,' Capt. . -, Rietz Bros., owners;
barge . Windsor,' Capt. -, Gifford & Ruddock, owners.
" There are three hookers:
" The 'Jenny Lind,' Gregory Bros., owners; 'The Great West,' Geo. A. Ford, owner; and another belonging to Mr. Sey- mour.
" Of fishing boats there are three, owned as follows:
" One by Messrs. Horton & Hall, one by P. C. Taggart, and one by Norwegian Bill.
" The Custom House books show that in the first twenty days of this month, there were 126 arrivals and departures at this port, and 225 since the opening of navigation."
There were one or two omissions in the above list which the editor subsequently corrected as follows:
" The blocks thus omitted were the fine, large brick blocks on the corner of Maple and River Streets. The first, that of Messrs. Lucas & Nungesser, is the best brick block in the city, and contains the extensive furniture ware rooms of Lucas & Nungesser, the ele- gant new drug store of W. E. Short & Co., the law office of A. V. McAlvay, and the restaurant of Hornkohl & Conrod. The other, that of Messrs. Cushman, Calkins & Co., contains their extensive mer- cantile establishment, on the south side of the river, and the mer- chant tailor rooms of Wilkes Edwards. Messrs. Cushman, Calkins & Co. probably sell more dry goods at retail than any other firm in the city."
MANISTEE BANKING BUSINESS.
There appears to have been quite an extensive brokerage and exchange business carried on in Manistee between the years 1860 and 1879. The pioneers in this business were T. J. Ramsdell and E. G. Filer, who opened a brokers' office here in 1860. In 1868 Van- derpool & Field came here and engaged in the same business, which terminated in 1869, in the terrible tragedy which gave to Manistee a wide spread celebrity. In 1869 the " Bank of Charles Secor & Co." was started. Soon after Jeremiah Taylor started the " Merchants' Bank," and the "Lumberman's Bank " by N. W. Nelson. Still later Charles F. Ruggles established a brokerage and exchange bus- iness, under the name of the " Bank of Charles F. Ruggles."
The first incorporated bank was the " State Bank of Manistee " incorporated in February, 1879. Its officers were T. J. Ramsdell, president; James Dempsey, vice-president; William Dunham, cash-
ier. The capital stock was $50,000. July 1, 1881, it became a national association, under the name of the "First National Bank of Manistee," with its capital increased to $100,000. The officers are T. J. Ramsdell, president; M. Engelmann, vice-president; George A. Dunham, cashier. The directors are T. J. Ramsdell, M. Engelmann, James Dempsey, Joseph Baur, William Wente, John Mee and R. R. Blacker.
The folowing is its
REPORT OF CONDITION AT CLOSE OF BUSINESS JULY 1, 1882.
RESOURCES.
Loans and discounts. .$323,653.67
Overdrafts.
634.03
U. S. Bonds to secure circulation. 34,000.00
Premiums paid.
4,710.00
Five per cent. Redemption Fund.
1,530 00
Due from banks.
34,601.81
Cash on hand.
32,664.72
$431,794.23
LIABILITIES.
Capital stock paid in
.$100,000.00
Surplus. .
13.000.00
Undivided profits
723.05
Circulation .
30,600.00
Due to other banks
229.99
Deposits.
287,241.19
$431,794.23
The " Manisteee National Bank " opened for business January 10, 1882, with a capital stock of $100,000. The directors are R. G. Peters, E. N. Selling, Horace Taber, Louis Sands, M. R. Den- ning, John F. Nuttall, B. M. Cutcheon, John Seymour, William Vincent. Officers, R. G. Peters, president; Louis Sands, vice-presi- dent; George M. Burr, cashier.
The following is its
REPORT OF CONDITION AT CLOSE OF BUSINESS JULY 1, 1882.
RESOURCES.
Loans and discounts.
.$156,753.94
Overdrafts
669.66
U. S. Bonds to secure circulation.
50,000.00
Due from approved reserve agents .
25,793.50
Due from other national banks.
1,049.55
Real Estate, furniture and fixtures
1,500.00
Current expenses and taxes paid.
20.83
Checks and other cash items.
1,147.74
Bil's of other banks.
1,608.00
Fractiona! paper currency, nickels and pennies.
5.38
Specie.
Legal tender notes.
8,500.00
culation) .
2,250.00
Total,
$251,355.10
LIABILITIES.
Capital stock paid in
$100 000.00
Surplus fund. .
2,700.00
Undivided profits.
472.47
National bank notes outstanding ..
45,000.00
Individual deposits subject to check
63,666.47
Demand certificates of deposit.
39,516.16
Total,
$251,355.10
U. S. LIFE BOAT STATION.
This station was established at Manistee in the Fall of 1879. The first year it was in charge of James Morgan. He resigned April 1, 1881, and was succeeded by Capt. Henry Finch, who is still in charge. The building is a neat two-story structure, and every- thing is kept in the most perfect order, and ready for use at a mo- ment's notice. This is what is known as a complete station.
The crew consists of nine men, including the captain, as follows: Henry Finch, captain; James Finch, No. 1; Calvin Bradley, No. 2;
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HISTORY OF MANISTEE COUNTY.
Nicholas Johnson, No. 3; Gunner Clauson, No. 4; Benjamin Gen- son, No. 5; Thomas Miller, No. 6; Frederick Manigold, Fo. 7; Jason Pratton, No. 8.
HENRY FINCH, captain of the station, is a native of the state of New York, and since a boy has followed sailing on the lakes. When the station was established at Manistee, he came here as assistant, and since April, 1881, has been in charge of the station. He is a thorough sailor, and a very efficient officer. Everything about the station denotes the most perfect discipline.
LONELY RELICS.
Just back of J. G. Younger's grocery store, on River Street, stands a little old one-story house, that has successfully defied the elements for thirty years. In 1852 Samuel Potter built this frame building in order to provide more sleeping room for his boarding house, which stood just in front of it. When this was built, River Street was only a crooked track among the stumps, and it had but one companion. The pine had not even been cut out of the valley where the business part of the city now stands, and there was only one track from the valley of the river over the bluffs above; that led up the gulch in what is now the Second Ward. The old Tyson House, three stories high, stood within thirty feet of this little build- ing, when it was destroyed by fire; Burpee's Hall was equally as near on the other side when it was burned down; the great fire of 1871 swept away two-thirds of the city-other fires have consumed buildings in its immediate vicinity, but no mark of fire appears on this insignificant looking structure. It is the only remaining wit- ness, on the south side of the river, of the days of '52.
On the north side of the river, not far from the mouth, stands the first frame house ever built in Manistee. It was built by O'Neil, in 1850, and used as a saloon. Poor whisky was a staple article in those days.
Great changes have come to this region since those two build- ings were erected. They were palaces in their day, but a city has grown up around them, and now, like abandoned creeds, they are chiefly valuable as relics.
PUBLIC BUILDINGS.
The public buildings of Manistee are an enduring tribute to the liberality and intelligence of the people of the city and county.
THE CENTRAL SCHOOL BUILDING
was the first building of any considerable importance erected in Manistee. Its erection was undertaken in 1866, and completed the following year, though it has been greatly enlarged since that time. The contractor was Hon. T. J. Ramsdell. It is located upon one of the high points in the city, the grounds occupying an entire square. It is built of white brick, two stories and a basement, and is furnished with all the modern facilities for heating, ventilation, etc. At the time it was built the enterprise was an undertaking of startling magnitude. Manistee was then only a township organiza- tion of twelve or fourteen hundred population. Everything was new, and it reflects great credit upon those who were instrumental in its erection, that the education of the youth was so munificently provided for. It has been worth many times its cost, to Manistee, as an exhibition of the real spirit and temper of her citizens.
THE COURT HOUSE
is the most showy public building in the city. It was finished in January, 1878, at a cost of about $50,000. It is located upon a high eminence of heavy clay soil, about the centre of the city, be- tween Maple and Oak Streets. The ground is about eighty feet above the level of the lake, and the distance from the top of the spire to
the ground is just 191} feet, or, in other words, the top of the spire stands about 210 feet above the level of the lake, and any one going into that can get a finer view of the city and surrounding country than from any other point in the city. The body of the building is 72x88 feet on the ground, and has a basement and two stories with high ceilings. The basement contains the sheriff's residence of seven rooms, and one of the best arranged and most securely built jails in the state of Michigan. There are ten cells 4x8 in size, and eight feet high, all of them opening into an inner hall, about eight feet wide, formed by heavy iron lattice work all around. Outside the lattice work is a large hall secured by iron bars over the windows. The southeast corner of the basement contains the heating apparatus, which carries warmth to every part of the building.
There are also cells for women prisoners, and the turnkey's room, all in the basement.
The second floor contains large handsome rooms for each of the county officers, and a room for the board of supervisors. In the office of the clerk and register and treasurer is a large vault for the records. In the third story is the magnificent court room, 46x70 feet in size, with a ceiling thirty-eight feet high, having large rooms for attorneys, juries, and the judge, opening into it. The room is handsomely finished and furnished in the most modern style. In short, it is one of the handsomest brick and stone buildings in the West.
The grounds are nicely graded and surrounded by a handsome iron fence.
TEMPERANCE HALL
is situated on River Street. It is built of white brick, two stories high. This building is the enduring monument of the great tem- perance movement of 1874, and by the noble women of Manistee was built, paid for, and dedicated to all that is good and beautiful and true. The first floor is the reading and lounging room for the Red Ribbon Club. It has two rooms in the rear-one being fur- nished with cooking stove and apparatus for giving suppers and fur- nishing refreshments for entertainments. The other is used now for files of papers and books, but will no doubt be kept for the use of the business meetings of the Womans' Temperance Association, by whom the hall is owned. The upstairs is the large hall for public uses. It has a gallery, handsome stage and scenery, and a seating capacity of about 1,000. The hall is reached by two large wide stairways leading up from the street in each side of the building. The entire building was erected by subscriptions, donations, and the proceeds of lectures, entertainments, celebrations, etc., under the supervision of the noble and industrious women who compose the association.
UNION HALL.
This magnificent building was erected by Mr. R. G. Peters and finished last Spring. He built it for his wife, who dedicated it to the noble work of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union. A formal dedication was made, with appropriate exercises, May 28, 1882. It was situated at the corner of Maple and South Water Streets, and cost about $30,000. In August it was destroyed by fire, and the whole community felt the misfortune. Mr. Peters, however, is not one to be daunted by misfortune, and immediately gave orders for rebuilding, and the work is now in progress. The new building will be of the same plan as the one burned, with basement fitted up for a kitchen, furnace room, etc. On the first floor the audience room, 80x60 feet in size, galleries arranged in semi-circle, class rooms, platform, and the whole elegantly finished. This enterprise of Mr. and Mrs. Peters not only adds a splendid ornament to the city, but is an enduring monument to the noble generosity and public spirit of its founders. From the time it was dedicated until it burned, the building was in almost constant use in the
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HISTORY OF MANISTEE COUNTY.
interest of Christian temperance work. The beautiful motto upon its walls: "For God and home and native land", was the watchword, and prompted by this spirit a noble work was being done. And when another temple of Christian philanthropy shall stand in its place, the great work to which it will be dedicated will again have a habitation in every way worthy of it.
BUSINESS BLOCKS.
Manistee has a large number of neat and substantial business blocks, and the frame buildings of earlier days are rapidly giving place to more pretentious brick structures. In the new buildings that are being erected, as in all other improvements in progress, there is especial attention given to durability and permanency. The future welfare of the city appears to be kept in view. Among the buildings finished or in process of erection, the finest, and, in fact, the finest in this part of the state, is
HON. M. ENGELMANN'S BLOCK.
The location of the building, corner of Maple and River Streets, is as central as could be desired. Its frontage on River Street is 68 feet by 102 on Maple, and from basement to cornice the height is eighty-nine feet. The material is Milwaukee pressed brick, with Illinois freestone trimmings and foundation. Underneath the basement are three cellars-two for the use of Friend, Joys & Co., and the third a boiler room for furnishing the steam with which every room in the great building will be warmed. Next above the cellar is the basement.
The first floor, containing four as fine business fronts as can be found in the very center of Milwaukee or Chicago, and which arrests the attention and elicits the admiration of all passers-by, is fifteen feet in the clear, and these lofty rooms are rendered as "light as day" by a window frontage composed of fourteen French plate glass 102x78 inches, and fourteen of 41x78 inches-simply a crystal palace. The corner apartment will be occupied by the First National Bank, Mr. Engelmann's private office and the bank directors' room. The other three stores are already occupied by Friend, Joys & Co.
The second floor is arranged for offices.
The third floor is the grand Masonic Hall, the finest in Michigan, beyond any question. The ceilings are loftier still than even those of the first floor, being nineteen feet in the clear. The various rooms are the lodge room proper, entirely surrounded by a hall for use in the Knight Templar degrees, a drill room and danc- ing floor, obligation room, kitchen, banquet hall, cloak room, ladies' dressing room, etc., etc. The wood-work is largely oak, carved with Masonic emblems. The furniture of the lodge has already been selected, and will alone cost $2,500, with everything on a pro- portionate scale of magnificence.
The building is an enduring monument to the enterprising spirit of its builder, and is an ornament to the city.
THE "STANDARD" BLOCK,
in process of construction, is the property of Hon. S. W. Fowler. Its erection was begun last Spring, and it is now nearly finished. A fine full page view of this block appears in this work. The building is three stories high and occupies a sightly place on Maple Street.
The first story has two stores and the printing office proper. The second story is for offices and the third for & hall and rooms. The walls are solid brick one foot thick. The body brick are red, and from the Manistee Brick Works, while the pilasters and cornice are of Milwaukee brick. On the front is a stone tablet twenty inches wide and eight feet long, on which in raised letters is the name of the proprietor; above this is a pediment sixteen feet long and five feet high, of galvanized iron, in the centre of which in raised letters
are the figures "1882". On the north front is a similar stone tablet with "Standard" in raised letters and the date below in marble.
The whole is, nearly as may be, fire proof, and with the excep- tion of the Engelmann Block, is the largest solid brick building in the city. It is undoubtedly the best printing office building in northern Michigan.
H. B. LARSEN'S BLOCK
is located on River Street and has been built during the past season. It is built of brick, two stories high, and is occupied by him as a dry goods store. The first floor is a double store room arranged expressly for his mammoth business.
ELEGANT RESIDENCES.
Manistee is justly famed for the large number of magnificent private residences with which the city is adorned. In this respect the city is probably without a successful rival in the Northwest.
The most elegant residence in the city, and, in fact, one of the finest in the state, is that of John Canfield, Esq., the pioneer lum- berman of Manistee, and its wealthiest citizen. The structure is built of brick, three stories high, and is 75x100 feet in size. The interior finish is elaborate and elegant. The value of the house and grounds cannot be much less than $100,000.
Among the other residences which are especially fine, are those of Hon. T. J. Ramsdell, A. O. Wheeler, Louis Sands, S. Babcock, R. G. Peters, M. Engelmann, D. W. Filer, J. H. Shrigley, E. E. Benedict, A. B. Leonard, Charles Secor. Besides there are a very large number of tasty homes ranging in value from $5,000 to $10,000. Just outside the city are the residences of E. G. Filer and Charles Rietz, both of which are elegant homes.
In this work will be found fine lithographic views of the resi- dences of Louis Sands, R. G. Peters, A. B. Leonard, D. W. Mowatt, E. G. Filer, D. W. Filer, E. E. Douville.
CHURCH SOCIETIES.
The early history of religious work in Manistee is given in our extracts from Gen. Cutcheon's centennial address. As the city has advanced in the scale of commercial importance, the number and strength of church organizations have proportionately increased. All the various societies are liberally sustained, and the attendance upon Sabbath worship is unusually large, especially for a lumbering city.
THE CONGREGATIONAL SOCIETY
dates from the year 1862. For a considerable portion of the time prior to the erection of the church edifice, services were held in Dr. Ellis' hall. In 1867 the society was formally organized as a corpor- ate body. In 1870 the present church edifice was completed, at a cost of about $16,000. It is built of white brick, and is located upon a high elevation, making it one of the most conspicuous struc- tures in the city. The membership is about 200, and the general attendance upon the Sunday services is very large. The pastors of the society have been as follows: Revs. John M. McLain, O. A. Thomas, Herman Gear, John B. Fiske, Joseph F. Gaylord, E. G. Chaddock, T. C. Jerome. The last named pastor resigned in July last, since which time the society has been without a pastor, until, a few weeks since, Dr. E. B. Fairfield accepted a call to the pastorate of the society. The present trustees of the society are R. G. Peters, A. V. McVay, A. O. Wheeler, John Canfield, Louis Sands, E. E. Benedict.
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There is a flourishing Sunday-school, having a membership of about 200, 'of which Dr. L. S. Ellis is superintendent.
ST. MARY'S CATHOLIC SOCIETY
is one of the oldest and is the largest religious society in the city. The membership includes upwards of 1,000 families, and the average attendance upon Sunday services is not less than 2,500. The church edifice is a mammoth brick structure, located in the Fourth Ward, just east of Maple Street. The first story is used for the school, and the second story for the church. The present pastor is Rev. D. Callaert.
THE FIRST METHODIST EPISCOPAL SOCIETY
is a leading religious organization of the city, and one of the oldest. It has a large membership, and for many years worshiped in the church building near the Canfield store. Last year this property was sold, and the society is now finishing a new brick structure, very large, and which, when completed, will be a credit to the soci- ety and an ornament to the city. The present pastor is Rev. Geo. L. Haight.
THE FIRST BAPTIST SOCIETY
was organized in the Winter of 1872. The church edifice is a neat, frame building, in the Fourth Ward. The membership, at the pres- ent time, is about fifty-five. The present pastor is Rev. V. Pilblad.
THE MAPLE STREET BAPTIST SOCIETY
was organized about four years ago, with a small membership, and for a time services were held in Armory Hall. The society is at present building a church edifice on Maple Street. The present pastor is Rev. Wm. Snashall.
THE GERMAN LUTHERAN SOCIETY
is one of the prominent religious organizations in the city, and has a large membership. The church is a neat frame structure, located on First Street. The present pastor is Rev. H. Lemke.
There is also another German Lutheran society, which was organized in 1881, and purchased the M. E. Church property, near the store of Mr. John Canfield. This society has a membership of about 100. The pastor is Rev. Mr. Koehler.
THE SCANDINAVIAN M. E. SOCIETY
was organized in 1878, under the Rev. Mr. Gustafsen, and has enjoyed a very marked degree of prosperity. The church edifice is a commodious building, on Fourth Street. The present pastor is Rev. Mr. Daniels.
GRACE EPISCOPAL SOCIETY
was organized about four years ago. The organization has been maintained, and services held most of the time, but the society is yet without a church edifice. The present rector is Rev. Mr. Hay- wood.
In addition to the above, there are also Danish and Norwegian Lutheran societies of recent organization. The pastors are Rev. Mr. Lillesoe, of the former, and Rev. Mr. Norman, of the latter.
There is a suburban Congregational church at Maxwelltown, under the pastorate of Rev. W. E. Sillence, and another at Eastlake, under the pastorate of Rev. W. Beal.
PUBLIC SCHOOLS.
The first school taught in Manistee was in 1852 and 1858, at Canfield's mill, near the mouth of the river. Mrs. Parsons was the first teacher and the school was mainly supported by Mr. John Canfield.
The first public school was established in 1854, and Miss Clark the first teacher employed.
In 1866 the erection of the Central School building was under- taken, and completed in 1867. Hon. T. J. Ramsdell being the contractor. The first teachers were, D. Carlton, principal, and Miss Ellis, first assistant.
The graded Union School was established in 1870, and ward schools established in the First and Third Wards, and in 1871 the ward schoolhouse was built in the Fourth Ward. This building has given place to a new and elegant structure, furnishing ample facilities for the needs of that part of the city.
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