History of Mason County, Michigan, Part 61

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

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CHARLES F. RUGGLES was born at Naples, Me., in 1887. While he was yet a boy, his parents removed to Oshkosh, Wis., where they remained until 1866. His father was extensively engaged in lumber- ing and dealing in pine lands, and Charles was early schooled in that business. In 1867 the field here offered such inducements that he came to Manistee, and began dealing in logs, pine lands, etc. He is naturally a man of original methods and thorough busi- ness habits. He has always relied upon his own efforts for success, and his business prospered from the first. After a time he added a banking business to his other enterprises. This business he con- ducted very successfully until his general business gradually shaped itself so that he deemed it best to close up the banking part of it. In 1871 he erected the large building on the corner of River and Poplar Streets. The building is seventy-five by forty-three feet in size, and is wholly occupied by himself. In 1876 he instituted an agency of temperance reform, after his own peculiar notions. He believed a thirsty public should be provided with a healthy drink, in order that people upon the street might not feel compelled to quench their thirst at the bar at the liquor saloon. Acting upon his theory, he established a public drinking place, for man and beast, in front of his block. A deep well was dug under the back part of the building, and by means of a pump the water is forced up to a tank, and from thence it is conveyed to the street. In front of the sidewalk is a large trough, that is constantly supplied with pure, cold water for horses, and at the corner of the building is a faucet and cup, where thirsty mortals may refresh themselves with the most delicious beverage ever drank. During the Summer months hundreds of people every day are refreshed by Mr. Ruggles' bounty. In this practical and considerate generosity he has earned a right to the title of public benefactor, while it is a continual proof of his

enterprise and liberality. Mr. Ruggles' present business consists largely in loaning money for the purchase of pine lands and logs. He keeps a large force of clerks constantly engaged, and his office is a model of system and neatness. He keeps complete abstracts of five counties, which are arranged after a plan of his own, and are very accurate and valuable. While he has built up a large busi- ness and a handsome fortune, he has also established a reputation that makes him one of the foremost business men of Northern Michigan. He is yet a comparatively young man, and is full of energy and public spirit. Genial and courteous to all, he allows nothing to divert him from his own business interests or those of others committed to his care, and it is this thorough knowledge of the requisite elements of success that has given him such prestige as a business man.

ABEL S. HAINES is one of the business men of Manistee who by his own ability and sagacity has made his way into the front ranks. He is a native of the state of Pennsylvania. In the year 1856 he set out for the West, to see what it had in store for him. He came as far as Indiana, and remained there one year. He then came to Muskegon, where he remained twelve years. Early in 1869 he came to Manistee, and went into the lumber business. In 1876 he engaged in the mercantile business, and at the present time has one of the leading dry goods and grocery establishments in the city. Mr. Haines is a man of liberal and enterprising views, and one who carries his undertakings steadily forward to a successful issue.

B. W. KIES is the senior member of the firm of Kies & Ward, general insurance agents, and is a native of Hillsdale County, Mich. In 1867 he came to Manistee, and for about six years was steamboat clerk on the Engelmann Line. Since that time he has been super- intendent of the Boom Company for a year and a half, and in the shingle mill business for several years. In the Summer of 1880 he engaged in the real estate and insurance business, the firm being as above stated.

JOHN P. BAXTER is a native of Ireland, and came with his parents to this country in 1852. They located at Milwaukee, and he graduated from the Commercial College in that city. At the breaking out of the war, he was eager to enlist, but being only a lit- tle over sixteen years of age, was deemed too young to be accepted. In 1862, however, his father and himself enlisted as members of Company G, Twenty-fourth Wisconsin Volunteers. His father was killed at Kenesaw Mountain. The following testimonial from his commanding officer shows what kind of a soldier Mr. Baxter was:

"HEADQUARTERS COMPANY A, FIRST U. S. V. V. ENGINEERS, NASHVILLE, TENN., Aug. 9, 1865.

"To whom it may concern:

"The bearer hereof, John P. Baxter, late a member of my com- pany, and formerly a member of Company G, Twenty-fourth I, Wis- consin Volunteers, by his uniform good conduct, promptness to duty, and faithfulness to the discharge of his duties as a soldier, has won for him the respect of all his old comrades, both officers and men.

"Entering the service in 1862, he served with credit in the Twen- ty-fourth Wisconsin, at Perryville, and with the Pioneer Brigade at Stone River, and during the campaigns of Tullahoma, Chickamauga Mission Ridge, and Atlanta. Made an orphan by the death of his father, a member of the Twenty-fourth Wisconsin Infantry Volun- teers, who fell at the assault on Kennesau Mountain, he joined this command and participated in the pursuit of Hood's Rebel Legions till they were driven beyond the Tennessee, and deserves well of his country. WM. M. LOUGHLIN,

Capt. First U. S. V. V. Engineers, Commanding Company."

At the close of the war he returned North, and came to Manistee as book keeper for Green Bros. He remained in their employ sev-

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SW.FOWLEY

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S. W. FOWLER'S STANDARD BLOCK & RESIDENCE. MANISTEE.

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HISTORY OF MANISTEE COUNTY.

eral years, and then, in 1871, built a grist mill which he operated for about ten years. This was the only grist mill ever operated here for any length of time. He held the office of supervisor for five years, and was school inspector for two years. In the Spring of 1881 he was elected city recorder, now called city clerk, which office he still holds. The office is an important one, and its duties require his entire time. He is a genial, whole-souled gentleman, and is an ex- cellent public officer.

OTTO BAUMANN, sheriff of Manistee County, is one of the early settlers of this region. He is a native of Germany, and upon reach- ing this country in 1857, made his way directly to Manistee, where he has ever since resided. At that time Manistee was a new world in the fullest sense. The wilderness was here, and the sand was here, but there was no village nor any indication of a future city. But Mr. Bauman belonged to a thrifty class of Germans, who came to this country after homes and fortunes, and he settled into busi- ness at once. For eighteen years he "butchered" and sold meats, and did a large and lucrative business. For several years he sold meat from a wagon and in 1864 started the first meat market in Manistee. In 1870, he built the two-story brick block on River Street that is just west of the Dunham House. From 1878 to 1880 he was supervisor of Filer Township, and in the Fall of 1880 was elected to the office of sheriff of the county, for the term ending the 1st of January, 1838. Mr. Bauman is a good officer and one of the substantial citizens of the county. He has been successful in busi- ness and takes an active interest in all public matters.

JAMES H. SHRIGLEY was born in Chicago in June, 1888. At that time his father was keeping the first hotel ever built in that city. In 1856 he came to Manistee as clerk in the store of J. L. McVickar & Co. He remained in that position about two years, and then went into partnership with H. N. Green, and they operated the Mc Vickar mill, and afterwards the Smith mill. In 1862 he enlisted and was in the army until the close of the war. He then returned to Manistee and kept books for John Canfield, in his old store at the mouth of the river. In about a year, he went in company with Mr. Canfield, in the mill across the lake, known as the Shrigley mill, which was built by him in 1867-'68. In 1879, he sold his interest in the mill to Mr. Canfield. He is a member of the firm of Wheeler, Johnson & Co., proprietors of the machine shop, and also owns an interest in the steam barge "Shrigley," which runs between Man- istee and Chicago, in the lumber trade. His family consists of a wife and one daughter, and their home is an elegant brick residence on Cedar Street, built by him in 1874. Mr. Shrigley has grown up with Manistee, and from his business operations has accumulated a handsome fortune.

DR. J. KINSLEY is a native of Pennsylvania, and with one ex- ception is the oldest resident physician in Manistee. After study- ing medicine in New Jersey, he attended lectures at the Pennsylvania University in Philadelphia. Early in the war he went into the army with Company F, First New Jersey Cavalry, and did good service until he received his discharge in 1864. He was wounded at the battle of Sulphur Springs, Va., and still carries the bullet in his shoulder. In 1866, he began the practice of medicine in Philadel- phia, and in 1870, having a desire to plant himself in a new field, came to Manistee, then a city less than one year old. Here he has remained to the present time, and is too well established to think of changing. He has always had an extensive practice, and has been very active in all public affairs. In 1876-'77 he was alderman from the Third Ward, and mayor of the city during 1880-'81. He is a prom- inent member of the Odd Fellows, Masons, and Knights of Honor. At the time of the fire in 1871, he had a drug store and was burned out. He opened another store directly after the fire, on River Street, but in 1877 removed to his present location, at the corner of First and

Division Streets, where he does an extensive business in connection with his practice. Dr. Kinsley is a very genial gentleman, of large culture, and is popular both as a physician and citizen. In practice he belongs to the regular school of medicine.

HENRY S. UDELL is a veritable pioneer of Manistee County, and one who has done his share in the development of its interests. He was born in Albany County, N. Y., in 1824. In 1845 he went to Walworth County, Wis., where he operated a sawmill. In June, 1852, he came to Manistee as clerk in the Canfield store. The population of the entire county at that time did not exceed 200, and Manistee consisted of a little settlement at the mouth of the river. It was a dreary and desolate looking region, but the pioneers of those days were bent on business rather than pleasure, and paid but little attention to their surroundings. Mr. Udell remained in the store about a year and then superintended the mill for awhile, after which he took a contract for handling logs on the lake. At the first county election in the Spring of 1855, he was elected clerk and register, and held the office until the next election, which was in the Fall of 1856. In 1859, he went away from Manistee, and was ab- sent until 1864, when he came back and went to surveying and ex- amining lands. He has followed this business most of the time since. He held the office of county surveyor one term, and was deputy surveyor two terms. He has aided in the purchase of a large amount of the pine lands owned by Manistee lumbermen. He owns a large amount of land in the county. He has one large farm which he carries on. He has a wife and eight children, and lives in the city.

M. R. DENNING came to Manistee in 1866, from Iowa. The following year he brought his family and located here permanently. He is a native of the state of Maine, and from a boy has been engaged in logging and lumbering. For several years he was lum- bering on the Susquehanna River, but in a freshet on the river lost heavily, and then determined to retrieve his losses in a new field. After coming to Manistee, he went to driving on the rivers, first on the Little Manistee. In 1879, he took the contract from the Man- istee Boom Company, for driving the Manistee River for five years. He has also for several years been dealing more or less in pine lands, and in all of his operations since coming here, he has been suc- cessful. He is one of the directors of the Manistee National Bank. His family residence and office are in the Fourth Ward.

JOSEPH HYLAND is a native of England. and came to Manistee in 1869. His father, John ' Hyland, came to Manistee about 1860. He served in the navy during the war, and was awarded a medal for personal bravery in capturing a battery. He received severe wounds during the service, and died soon after the close of the war. In 1878, Joseph Hyland started a boiler shop on the north side of the river, where he does an extensive business. He is also a member of the firm of Yoss & Hyland, commission merchants. In 1878 a man was buried in a well, by the sides caving in upon him, and at the risk of his life, Mr. Hyland succeeded in rescuing the un- fortunate man from death. A number of citizens gave Mr. Hyland a purse of money for his heroic efforts in saving life.

PETER A. Yoss, of the firm of Yoss & Hyland, commission mer- chants, is a native of Wisconsin. In 1861 he went into the army and served until the close of the war. In 1868 he came to Manis- tee, and was in charge of a dry goods store until the fire of 1871. He was sheriff of the county from 1878 to 1877, and chief of police in 1878. He has been a prominent member of the Democratic party, and for several years was a member of the Democratic state central committee. In the Spring of 1882, in company with Joseph Hyland, he opened a commission store on River Street, and at present de- votes most of his time to that business.

APPLETON M. SMITH was born in Florida, in the year 1845. His

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HISTORY OF MANISTEE COUNTY.

father was a Methodist preacher, and when Appleton was three years of age, removed to Georgia. Appleton remained with his father until 1861, when he enlisted in the Confederate army. He was but a mere boy, and at first went in as marker for the regi- ment, and was afterwards promoted to corporal. He evidently was possessed of a good amount of grit, for he stuck by his regiment and was with Longstreet in seventeen or eighteen battles. In June, 1864, he was taken prisoner by the Union army at Cold Harbor, Va., and after being confined a short time at Point Lookout, Md., was taken to Elmira, N. Y. After a while he was released and went to Toronto, Canada, where he worked as a common laborer. From Toronto he went to Windsor, and finally to Detroit. About this time he began to write articles for newspapers, and soon came in contact with Rev. John Russell, who was publishing the Peninsular Herald, a temperance paper. Mr. Russell engaged him as assistant editor, which position he retained about two years. He then went upon the Commercial Advertiser, and subsequently was local editor of the Jackson Daily Patriot. He then published a temperance paper at Jackson for a short time, after which he returned to Detroit, and from there went to Toledo as city editor of the Toledo Commer- cial. In 1874 the temperance agitation in Manistee was at its height, and being a radical temperance advocate, he was attracted hither. He came here and purchased the Times, and published it until last Spring, when he sold the office to Mr. Hilton. Mr. Smith has a wife and three children, and resides upon a small farm just south of the city, where he spends his leisure in fruit-growing and gardening, for the apparent purpose of astonishing his visitors with the remarkable feats of Manistee sand. Mr. Smith is a strong Republican, and a staunch temperance man. As a journalist he has more than average ability, and the files of the Times during his administration show the work of a live editor.

As an instance of how the scenes of life shift and bring men into new and strange relationship, Mr. Smith relates that at Knox- ville he was in command at the charge of Fort Saunders, and inside the fort were General Cutcheon and several other Manistee soldiers. They returned to their homes, he was captured, and after re- lease drifted hither and thither for a time, and at last became their neighbor, and colaborer in the pursuits of civil life.

Mr. Smith has taken an active and prominent part in local mat- ters, and has the esteem of the people of the county.

E. N. SALLING is a native of Denmark. He came to this coun- try in 1862, and was in Milwaukee about a year. In 1868 he came to Manistee, and worked in the mills. He was too practical to build castles in the air, but ready to branch out for himself when the right time came. In 1866 he began business by getting out square tim- ber, and gradually extended his operations until he secured a firm footing. At one time he was a member of the firm of Engelmann, Babcock & Salling, and since his first ventures has held a promi- nent position in business circles. At present he is extensively en- gaged in logging and dealing in logs and lumber. He was inter- ested in the hardware business with Mr. Krogen, for a time, and now owns the two-story brick block occupied by Krogen & Leonard. This block he built in 1880. His elegant residence on Fourth Street in the Second Ward was built by him in 1875.

BENJAMIN SWEET is one of the men who has grown up from boyhood in the lumber business. He first came to Manistee with his father, John Sweet, in 1852. His first lumbering operations were in logging, and afterward, in company with his brother and Mark 'T'yson, went into the manufacture of lumber, the firm being Tyson, Sweet & Co. This firm did a very extensive business for a time, but was finally forced into bankruptcy. Mr. Sweet, however, had been in the lumber business too long to give it up, and has con- tinued to deal in pine lands and logs to the present time. He

has been successful in his operations, as he deserves to be. Mr. Sweet has a family, and occupies a handsome home on the hill.

J. M. RAMSDELL is a native of Plymouth, Wayne County, Mich., and came to Manistee in 1872. In September, 1877, he purchased the interest of A. Landolt in the insurance and real estate business of Landolt & Ward, and the firm was changed to Ward & Ramsdell. In May, 1879, Mr. Ramsdell purchased Ward's interest, and since that time has conducted the business alone. His business consists of general insurance, real estate and sewing machines.

T. P. STEADMAN is a native of Ohio, and for several years was in charge of telegraph lines. In 1872 he came to Manistee and engaged in the business of general painting. In 1878 he returned to Ohio and built a line of telegraph for a railway company. Re- turning to Manistee in 1879 he resumed the painting business, which he has since carried on with wonderful success. He keeps upwards of thirty men employed at house, sign and decorative painting. He has contracts for a great portion of the work that is done in the city. In 1881 he opened an intelligence office which proved a signal suc- The present season he opened a marble shop and has already worked up quite a patronage. Mr. Steadman is a thorough and active business man, one of the kind that succeed at whatever they undertake.

DAVID W. MOWATT is a native of New Brunswick. He came to Manistee in 1864, and since that time has been indentified with the lumber mills of this city. For ten years he was superintendent of the Canfield mill at the mouth of the river, and since that time has been in charge of the Engelmann mill. He is thoroughly posted in everything pertaining to the manufacture of lumber, and is a man of sound judgment, and thoroughly reliable. He is a prominent member of the Masonic Fraternity, and is extremely pop- ular in the city. He has a wife and five children, and resides in the First Ward. In the Spring of 1881 he was elected alderman from that ward. A view of Mr. Mowatt's residence appears in this work.

SEYMOUR BROS. is the firm name of one of the leading business firms in Manistee. It is composed of four brothers, viz., R. A. Seymour Jr., John, Frederick and Elwin. Their father, Richard Seymour, is a native of England, and came to Manistee in 1866, from Canada. He went into trade here and was burned out in 1872. In 1878 the sons started an ice-cream room. They had but little capital but were determined to do business in some way and an establishment of the kind they started, seemed as promising as any, with the small amount of money they possessed. They succeeded from the start, and when their capital had increased sufficiently they opened a grocery store, and prospered so well that in 1879 they added dry goods. They now occupy two large stores on River Street, and do a very extensive business. In addition to their mercantile business, they deal extensively in pine lands and do considerable logging. They also own the large propeller "Champlain" which runs between Chicago and Cheboygan, Mich., and a schooner and barge. In the division of their labors, Frederick attends to the vessel property, Richard to the pine lands, and John and Elwin to the stores. These young men are deserving of great credit for the splendid success which they have achieved. They are all working men, and their close application to business and correct views of economy have placed them where they are to-day, in the front rank of Manistee business men. It is this kind of business energy and sagacity that has made Manistee what it is to-day.

PETER JONES is a native of Prussia. He came to this country in 1856 and in 1868 settled in Manistee. He was a carpenter by trade, but soon after coming here bought some land of D. L. Filer, and started the first brewery here. He continued in that until 1866, and then engaged in the drug business in the Third Ward. He

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HISTORY OF MANISTEE COUNTY.

built a frame building which was afterward burned, and he rebuilt of brick, and still continues in the same business. When he first started in business he was quite a distance beyond the town, but it has grown past him and his store is now in a good business location. Mr. Jones has a wife and three children.

JOHN OGLETHORPE is a native of England, and first came to Manistee in 1865. In 1871 he settled here, and for several years managed the store of Ruddock, Palmiter & Co. In 1881 he bought out the store of C. Michelson, in the Fourth Ward, at the corner of Sibben and Third Streets. He also has a meat market in connec- tion with his grocery store. Mr. Oglethorpe is a careful and enter- prising business man, and has secured a large patronage.

CHARLES BIGGE is a native of Germany, and came to Manistee in 1865. He worked at the millwright's trade until 1872, when he lost one of his arms, and was obliged to give up his trade. He erected a building in the First Ward, and engaged in the saloon busi- ness, which he still continues. Mr. Bigge was alderman from that ward from 1876 to 1881.

THORWALD PETERSON was born in Denmark, in the year 1852. He was educated at a graded school, and at an early age learned the mercantile business. In 1872 he came to this country, and set- tled in Manistee. Most of the time he has been in the employ of Louis Sands in various capacities. He now has charge of the log- ging camps on the river, and also attends to various other things connected with Mr. Sands' business.

P. M. BRISTOL, filer at the gangmill of Louis Sands, is a native of New York State, and came to Manistee in 1878, from Luding- ton. Mr. Bristol has been filing and engaged at mill work since he was sixteen years of age. He has been in his present place since he came to Manistee. He went to Ludington in 1862, and was engaged there until coming here, in 1878.

ERNST MAMEROW is a native of Germany, and came to Manis- tee in 1870. He had early learned the blacksmith trade, and after coming here followed it until 1878, when he built a boarding house and saloon building on Harrison Street, and engaged in business. In 1879 he was elected alderman from the First Ward, and re-elect- ed in 1881. He has the Manistee agency for the sale of Ph. Best's and V. Blatz Milwaukee beer, and does an extensive business. Mr. Mamerow is an enterprising man. An excellent view of his build- ing appears in this work.

H. D. FOSTER, millwright, is a native of Erie, Penn., and at an early age learned the carpenter's trade. In the Fall of 1866 he came to Manistee and went to lumbering. He remained one year and went to Wisconsin. In June, 1871, he returned to Manistee, and has remained here since that time. For the past eight years he has been engaged at millwright work, and for four years has been in the employ of Louis Sands. He has a wife and one child.

FRED. NOBLE is a native of Burlington, Wis., and came to Man- istee in the Fall of 1871. He was mostly in the employ of others until 1879 when he went into a grocery with his brother, the firm be- ing F. & W. Noble. In June, 1881, the firm dissolved, and since that time Mr. Fred. Noble has continued the business alone. He has done a large and successful business. Aside from his store he owns an interest in vessel property. He is a prominent member of the Odd Fellows' Lodge and the Royal Arcanum.

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History of Mason County, Michigan, Part 61

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