USA > Michigan > Monroe County > History of Monroe County, Michigan : a narrative account of its historical progress, its people, and its principal interests Volume II > Part 17
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PETER T. JOHNSTON. The combination of attributes that are neces- sary to be possessed for a man to be successful in several lines of en- deavor have enabled Peter T. Johnston, of Milan, to rise to a prominent position in commercial life after having spent his earlier years exclu- sively in farming, and at this time he is recognized as a leader in the industrial affairs of his city, where he has spent the last fifty years. Mr. Johnston was born at Macon, Lenawee county, Michigan, December 15, 1846, and is a son of John Johnston, a native of Seneca county, New York. John Johnston was educated and reared to manhood in the Em- pire State, and was there married to Charlotte Vescelius, also a native of New York. Shortly after their marriage they came to Macon town- ship, Lenawee county, Michigan, where they made a home in the woods, and there by industry and perseverance developed a home in the wilder- ness, and became leading people of their locality. Mr. Johnston, who was born August 20, 1809, died September 3, 1889, while his wife, born October 11, 1817, passed away July 13, 1886. They had a family of eight children, as follows: Andrew, who was a Union soldier during the Civil war and died in Andersonville Prison; George, who served for four years in the Fifth Michigan Cavalry during the War of the Re- bellion, and died in December, 1910; Peter T .; Margaret; Sarah; Albert; Frank and Nettie.
Peter T. Johnston received his education in his native neighborhood, and was reared to agricultural pursuits. He continued to reside under
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the parental roof until he was twenty-eight years of age, when he was married, in Washtenaw county, Michigan, to Scelora Hanson, who was born, reared and educated in Milan township, Monroe county, daughter of Peter Hanson, of New York, who is now living at the age of ninety- one years, and whose brother, Allen Hanson, served in the Union army during the Civil war. After his marriage, Mr. Johnston purchased a farm of sixty-five acres of wild land in Milan township, on which he first erected a pole shanty and one year later bought a log house, afterwards a frame. As the years passed he prospered in his undertakings, and added to his holdings from time to time, now having one hundred and sixty-one acres in his home farm, as well as eighty acres on the Ridge road, in section six. On both of these properties he has made numerous improvements, including good residences, large barns, and well-kept fences, modern machinery and first-class equipment. In addition he became a large raiser of sheep and cattle and was very successful in this line, becoming one of the leading shippers in his part of the county. In 1908, however, Mr. Johnston decided to enter the field of business, and with his sons purchased the Lamb Lumber Yard, which they have since conducted, and which under their able management has grown and ex- tended materially. They now handle a large stock of all kinds of lumber, lime, cement and hard and soft coal and have built up an excellent busi- ness through progressive and honorable methods. Mr. Johnston owns a handsome home on Wabash street, where he has four acres of land, and his sons have residences near him. He is a Republican in his poli- tical views, but has never cared for public office, and his fraternal connections are limited to the Masons. Through the half a century of years that he has resided in Milan, Mr. Johnston has made and retained numerous friendships both in and outside of business life, and his career has been that of an honorable and upright business man and public- spirited citizen.
Mr. and Mrs. Johnston have had two sons and two daughters: Allen C., Reuben H., Mrs. Mamie Lewis, of Macon, and Miss Ada, at home.
Allen C. Johnston, a member of the firm of P. T. Johnston & Sons, was born July 15, 1875, and grew up on the homestead farm, his educa- tion being secured in the district schools and graduated from the Busi- ness College of Ypsilanti, Michigan. On July 17, 1899, he enlisted for service in the Thirtieth Regiment, United States Infantry, under Captain Charles P. Newberry, for service in the Philippines, and was sent with his regiment to Tayabas Province, where he spent one year in scouting and skirmishing with the natives. He then returned to San Francisco, California, via Japan, and was duly discharged from the service, April 3, 1901. He subsequently served in the government employ at the Pan- American Exposition at Buffalo, New York, at the time of the assassin- ation of President Mckinley, and held a like position at St. Louis, and then returned to his home. He has been engaged in business with his father and brother since 1907, and is known as a progressive and enter- prising young business man of much more than ordinary ability. He was married to Miss Louise J. Liersch, and they have one son, Peter E.
Reuben H. Johnston, who is engaged in the lumber business at Milan with his father and brother, and like them is well and favorably known
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to the business citizens of this locality, was born January 20, 1874, in Milan township, and has here spent his entire life. He married Miss Susan McKee, and they have one daughter, Mabel C.
LACHLAN J. BELL, M. D. Among the professions the one making the most demands upon time, experience and study, is probably that of medicine, and to make a success of his profession the doctor must at all times be willing to sacrifice everything for it. Monroe county can boast of many successful men of medicine, who have devoted their lives to the alleviation of the ills of suffering mankind, and among these may be mentioned Lachlan J. Bell, M. D., who for the past fifteen years has been engaged in the practice of his profession at Milan. The Doctor, like many of Monroe county's prominent professional men, is a Canadian, having been born at Chesley, county Bruce, Province of Ontario, a son of James and Catherine (McCalder) Bell, natives of Ontario, both of good old Scotch families.
The early education of Dr. Bell was secured in his native place, and he began the study of medicine under the preceptorship of Dr. Wyman, of Detroit. After some preparation, he entered the Medical and Surgi- cal College of Detroit, Michigan, and was graduated therefrom in 1896, with honors, and immediately began the practice of his profession in that city. Later he removed to Azalia, Monroe county, but after eighteen months changed his field of practice to the village of Milan, where he has since continued. He has been a close student all of his life, and has kept in constant touch with all the advancements and discoveries of the sciences of medicine and surgery. In 1910, he took a trip to Europe, where he prosecuted a post-graduate course in the medical colleges of Vienna, Austria-Hungary, and also took special work in surgery. His success in a number of complicated cases has established him firmly in the confidence of the people of Milan and the surrounding country, and as a result he has a large and lucrative practice. He takes an active interest in the work of the various organizations that have for their object the advancement of the various branches of the medical and surgi- cal sciences, and among his confreres he is recognized as a man who has gone far and will go further in his profession. Dr. Bell is a man of forceful personality and strong physique, weighing in the neighbor- hood of two hundred and thirty-five pounds, and his kindly manner and sympathetic nature make his presence in a sick room of much benefit to the patient. He belongs to the Blue Lodge and Chapter of the Masonic fraternity at Milan and to the Commandery at Ann Arbor, and holds membership also in the Odd Fellows. He takes an active interest in all matters that pertain to the welfare of Milan and its people, and can al- ways be relied upon to give his hearty support to movements of a pro- gressive or beneficial nature.
Dr. Bell was united in marriage with Miss Violet Fitzpatrick, of Mon- roe county, April 14, 1897. Mrs. Bell is a lady of refined tastes, and like her husband is widely and favorably known in social circles of Milan. They have two bright and interesting children: Gladys, who is thirteen years old, and Hal C., eleven years of age, both of whom are pupils in the Milan schools.
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LINN BARNES. A brave defender of his flag, always ready for duty wherever his services have been needed, either in peace or war, Linn Barnes, a prominent farmer and one of the most desirable citizens of London township, Michigan, sets an example of noble-minded living and true patriotism that the rising generation will do well to follow. Mr. Barnes was born in London township, Monroe county, Michigan, Feb- ruary 17, 1841, the year of the birth of the late King Edward, of Eng- land, and is a son of Eleazer and Calista (Troop) Barnes.
Eleazer Barnes was born at Rutland, Vermont, a member of an old and prominent New England family, and was there reared and educated, and married Calista Troop, of New York, daughter of Joseph Troop. Mr. and Mrs. Barnes came to Michigan in 1833, settling in Monroe county, where Eleazer Barnes was engaged in agricultural pursuits throughout his life, his death occurring when he was eighty-one years of age. His wife passed away when she was advanced in years, having been the mother of four children : Helen, who is deceased; Linn; Helen, (deceased), and Dora, who is also deceased.
Linn Barnes was reared on the old homestead farm in London town- ship, and received his education in the district schools, which has been supplemented by much reading and observation in after life. At the time of President Lincoln's call for three hundred thousand troops, Mr. Barnes responded by enlisting, August 24, 1861, in the Eleventh Regi- ment, Michigan Volunteer Infantry, under Captain Nelson Chamberlain and Colonel May. The regiment was ordered to the south and became a part of the command of General Rosecrans, following which it partici- pated in numerous hard-fought battles and bloody skirmishes. Among the most important engagements in which this hard-fighting regiment took part may be mentioned Louisville, Beardstown, Murfreesboro, Chickamauga, Stone River, Missionary Ridge and New Hope church. After serving three years, Mr. Barnes was honorably discharged, with a brave and gallant record of which any man might well be proud. Re- turning to his home, he took up the peaceful occupation of farming, till 1900, in which he had been engaged to the time he located in Milan, Michigan, with much success. He was married to Miss Nellie Dodge, of Dundee township, daughter of Joshua Dodge, an early settler of Dundee township, and six children were born to this union: Myra, Maggie, Penn, Charles H., William and Eleanor died in infancy.
Mr. Barnes is now the owner of forty acres of finely cultivated land, located in London township. He is considered one of the substantial agriculturists of his section, and in his declining years is enjoying the fruits of his early labor. He is a popular comrade of Lucius Taylor Post No. 274, Grand Army of the Republic, at Milan, and as one who offered his life that the country might live is honored and esteemed by all who know him. Mr. and Mrs. Barnes have given their children good educational advantages, fitting them for whatever position in life they may be called upon to fill, and they have grown to sturdy manhood and womanhood, a credit to their parents and to their community. The sons have followed in the footsteps of their father, and two sons have valuable farming land in London township, where all the members of the family
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have numerous friends. Mrs. Barnes is a consistent member of the Methodist church.
GEORGE W. PENCE, whose career as a soldier, citizen and agriculturist has reflected the greatest credit upon himself and his community, is now one of the well-known residents of Milan township, among whose citizens he numbers many warm friends. A native of Huntington, In- diana, Mr. Pence is a member of an old and honored family, and was born November 27, 1840, a son of Jonas and Susan (Offenbacker ) Pence, the former a native of Germany and the latter of Pennsylvania. Mr. Pence's parents had four sons: George W .; Harrison, who was a member of the First Michigan Volunteer Cavalry, and died at Milan; Isaac, who was a soldier in the regular army, enlisting at the time of the Mor- mon trouble in Utah, and Samuel D., also a veteran soldier, who died at Milan. The father of these children died in the faith of the Methodist church, at the age of seventy-nine years, Mrs. Pence having passed away when she was sixty years of age.
George W. Pence was reared on his father's farm, and secured his education in the district schools of his native locality. As a young man he accompanied his parents to Monroe county, Michigan, and was work- ing at agricultural pursuits at the time of the outbreak of the Civil war. Shortly thereafter, August 2, 1861, he enlisted at Trenton, Monroe county, as a member of Company K, First Regiment, Michigan Volunteer Infantry, under Captain Mann and Colonel Broadhead. The regiment subsequently went to Detroit, where Mr. Pence was mustered into the service for three years or during the war, and later traveled to Wash- ington, D. C. The First Michigan was known as one of the hard-fighting, competent regiments of the Union army, and participated in many bloody engagements, at all time conducting itself with the greatest valor and bravery. Such great struggles as Second Bull Run, Winchester, Orange Court House, Martinsburg and Cedar Creek saw this regiment in the thick of the battle, and at the last named engagement seven thousand prisoners and twenty-two battle flags were captured by the victorious Union troops. Thirty-six pieces of heavy artillery were captured at Travillion Station, and at the great battle of Gettysburg the First Michigan, after a thrilling charge, captured three hundred wagons Later they crossed the river on pontoon bridges, and subsequently par- ticipated in the Wilderness campaign under General Grant, where the Federal troops were forced to endure a heavy fire all along the line of battle from the breastworks thrown up by the Confederate soldiers. Mr. Pence was never wounded in spite of the terrific battles in which he was a participant, but became sick and was confined to the hospital for a number of weeks. With this exception he was always on hand to do his duty cheerfully and faithfully, earning alike the respect of his officers and the admiration and friendship of his comrades. He participated in the Grand Review at Washington, D. C., after the close of the war, following which he was sent west, via Cairo, Illinois, to Fort Leaven- worth, Kansas, and to Denver, Colorado, and then over the old Cali- fornia trail to Fort Bridger, on the Platte river. In Detroit he received
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his honorable discharge, June 30, 1866, with a record of which any vet- eran of the War of the Rebellion might well be proud.
At the close of his military career, Mr. Pence returned to the peace- ful vocation of farming, in which he has been engaged to the present time, owning an excellent property just on the outskirts of the village of Milan. He was married to Miss Mary Ann Markel, who died in January, 1911, when past eighty years of age, a woman of Christian character, and an active worker in the Methodist Episcopal church. Mr. Pence is a popular comrade of the Grand Army of the Republic, belonging to Lucius Taylor Post, at Milan. He is known as a progressive, enterpris- ing man, who is honored not only for his faithful services during the great war between the states, but also because of his signal services to his com- munity as a developer of its interests and industries.
HERMAN D. KELLER. Holding prestige as superintendent of the second largest plant of its kind in the United States, Herman D. Keller, of the Ideal Furnace Company, at Milan, Michigan, belongs to that class of citizens, who, born in the Fatherland, are possessed of the ability, industry and perseverance to gain a successful position in the world of business, even though their start in life has been conspicuous by its lack of advantages. Mr. Keller was born November 1, 1855, in Germany, a member of a family that had long been known for its thorough probity and honesty. He received some training in his native tongue in the German schools, and since that time has thoroughly mastered both the German and the English languages. He was nine years of age at the time he came to the United States, his parents settling in Buffalo, New York, in the schools of which city he completed his education. On fin- ishing school, Mr. Keller entered a foundry, and during the years that followed thoroughly familiarized himself with every detail of the busi- ness, from the very humblest position to the highest. He spent some time with the Iron and Brass Manufacturing Company, of Detroit, Mich- igan, and later secured a position with the Rathbone & Sard Company, at Albany, where he was foreman for three years. Subsequently he entered the employ of Fuller, Warren & Company, at Troy, New York, and later went to Chicago as superintendent of the Cribben & Sexton Company. The next twelve years were spent as manager for the North- western Foundry and Supply Company, of Detroit, Michigan, and in 1907 he accepted his present position of superintendent of the Milan branch of the Ideal Furnace Company, of Detroit.
The Ideal Furnace Company, the second largest concern of its kind in the United States, the Milan plant being the largest of any kind in Monroe county, is an old-established firm, and one which has built up a widespread reputation through excellence of products and thorough integrity in all business dealings. It manufactures heating apparatus of all kinds, for steam heat, hot air or hot water heating. A fine plant was erected at Milan in 1903, 825x400 feet, and was equipped with modern machinery and appliances for the manufacture of heating de- vices. This handsome plant was destroyed by fire in December, 1906, but within forty days was rebuilt and was manufacturing at full speed. On an average of one hundred and seventy-five men are employed in Vol. 11-9
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this concern, all kinds of heating apparatus (including castings and flat irons) being shipped to every state in the Union. Mr. Keller is thoroughly competent to handle a business of the magnitude of the Ideal Furnace Company. A man strong in his convictions as to what consti- tutes right and wrong, he is known among his employees as an abso- lutely fair-minded employer and as one who will at all times conserve their interests. Of a kind and genial personality, he has hosts of friends both in and outside of business circles.
In 1879 Mr. Keller was married to Miss Mary Miller, who was born, reared and educated in Toledo, and to this union there have been born the following children : Mary J., wife of P. F. Closhey, of Detroit; Frank H., cashier of the Gottlieb Merchandise Company, of Cokedale, Colorado; John G., with the Ideal Furnace Company, Milan; Catharine, the wife of R. L. Parisian; Louis; and Herman, in the sales department of the Ideal Furnace Company at Detroit. Mr. Keller has one of the finest homes in Milan, a modern bungalow which is furnished with all modern improvements, and furnished comfortably and tastefully. He and his wife and children are members of the Catholic church, Mr. Keller being secretary of the board of church trustees and an active worker in religious movements.
ST. MARY'S COLLEGE AND ACADEMY. To the citizens of Monroe who take pride in the growth and progress of the city, no institution is more dear than St. Mary's-its convent, academy and magnificent new college, -to which they point with feelings of just pride as the crown and glory of the "Floral City." They witnessed its humble beginnings, sixty-six years ago, when the seeds of this pioneer organization were planted on the north bank of the Raisin river; and they have also witnessed its marvelous growth through all the intervening years. A great and noble institution has been here built up and its influence has far transcended local limitations, as even the brief record here entered will show.
It was in the autumn of 1845 that the Rev. Louis Gilet, C. SS. R., rector of the Redemptorist Fathers, who was at that time in charge of St. Mary's church, showed himself eager and anxious to establish a school for the children of the parish, and, not being able to secure relig- ious teachers from any one of the few orders then in this country, determined to organize a congregation of religious women who would devote their lives to the education of youth. Three young women responded to his call, received the religious garb of St. Mary's church and assumed the religious names of Sister Teresa, Sister Ann and Sister Celestine. Two months later they were joined by M. Godfroy Smith, whose brother was at that time mayor of Monroe, and she took the name of Sister Alphonsine. These four members became the foundation upon which Father Gilet began the work of building up the Congregation of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. He builded wiser than he knew; for although he was denied the joy and satisfaction of completing the work, as he had been called to the missionary fields of France and Italy, yet he had laid the foundation broad and deep, and the Redemptorist Fathers continued the work until it was taken up in 1857, by Rt. Rev. Monsignor Edward Joos, who carried it on to com-
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pletion and who devoted forty-three years to the best interests of the community, temporal and eternal. To Father Joos a brief memoir is dedicated on other pages of this work. Today the sisterhood, dissemi- nated through various dioceses throughout the United States, has a membership of more than twelve hundred teachers, while the enrollment of pupils is nearly fifty thousand.
The first school was opened in January, 1846, but so great was the increase in the number of pupils that the founder was obliged to erect a large, two-story frame building, which was supplied with a tower and a bell. Small beginnings were marked by rapid growth-a growth that during the long intervening years has kept pace with the organiza- tion it represents and which has crowned with success the ceaseless effort, the earnest and steadfast endeavor of these self-sacrificing women who are devoting their lives to the education of the young and who are constantly exercising an uplifting influence upon all life around them, making the world better because they are in it, though not of it.
Before the close of the last century there was a change in the world in regard to women, due largely to industrial conditions. The material and not the ideal marked the progress of the human race. Woman was forced into industrial employments and compelled to assume the man- agement of commercial responsibilities. Entering higher employments, woman required higher education. St. Mary's, realizing that this change of condition was one of expediency whose trend and impetus are of God, put forth every effort to meet the demands of the young women entering her gates. "Right knowledge and right training in a spiritual atmosphere are the things that make for noble womanhood." Without changing their standard or their ideal, which are essentially the same that Christianity established for womanhood twenty centuries ago, the Sisters of the Immaculate Heart have established a system of education that is best adapted to insure the development of mind and soul and body ; and today they. have the gratification of knowing that their princi- ples of instruction have not only won the recognition but also the em- phatic commendation of educators in the leading American institutions of learning.
Knowing that environment and the invisible presence of moral forces strengthen and elevate the character where mind development alone fails, the sisters have beautified their surroundings and built up an ideal school that ranks among the leading educational institutions in the country. It has a pleasant home atmosphere that renders it attrac- tive, and its beautiful campus, its island park and the adjoining farm offer every inducement to outdoor exercise.
The new college is unsurpassed by any other of its kind in Michigan. It has a complete system of physical, chemical and botanical laboratories, a department of natural history, a museum, library and gymnasium, class rooms, art studios, conservatory of music, an auditorium with seat- ing capacity of one thousand, parlors, private rooms, recreation halls, dining halls, dormitories, kitchen and a special department of domestic science. This last mentioned department is in charge of a special teacher, as is also the gymnasium. A capable chef is in charge of the kitchen and provides an excellent and varied menu.
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