USA > Michigan > Wexford County > History of Wexford County, Michigan, embracing a concise review of its early settlement, industrial development and present conditions > Part 39
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CHAPTER XII.
OLD PIONEERS WHO HAVE REMOVED FROM OUR MIDST.
Thomas J. Thorpe came- to Wexford county in the fall of 1871, and took up a homestead in the township of Selma. It was then necessary to come by way of Trav- erse City, and it took two full days to go from that place to Mr. Thorpe's homestead. Mr. Thorpe was born in AAllegany county. New York, in 1837. From a sketch of Mr. Thorpe's early life we quote the following : "At the breaking out of the Rebellion he enlisted in the Eighty-fifth New York Regi-
ment : served with distinction during the Peninsular campaign ; was wounded twice during the seven-days fight when General McClellan changed his base of operations from the Pamunky to the James river, once at Fair Oaks and again at Malvern Hill: in 1862 he was made lieutenant colonel of the One Hundred and Thirtieth New York Infantry. After the battle of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, his regiment was mounted and afterwards known as the famous First
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New York Dragoons, and took an active part in all the great cavalry battles until the close of the war. In June, 1864, he was wounded and taken prisoner at Travillion, Virginia. On the Fourth of July of that year, while a prisoner in the stockade at Macon, Georgia, Colonel Thorpe made a Fourth of July speech, which was inter- preted as incendiary, and for which he was taken out of the stockade to be hung, but the Confederate authorities became con- vinced from the demonstration made by the two thousand prisoners in the stockade that the safety of the city of Macon, as well as the lives of their guard, would be better con- served by returning him to the stockade, which was done at the close of that day. In December, 1864, he was made a full colonel of his regiment for meritorious conduct on the field. July 17th of the same year he was honorably discharged from the service of the United States, after a service of four years and seventeen days, during which time he participated in forty-six engagements."
After a stay of over a year in the county, Colonel Thorpe went back east, and for five years he had charge of a large public school in the city of Buffalo, New York. He then went into the school book business for the A. S. Barnes Publishing Com- pany, of New York, covering several middle and western states, and making two trips to the Pacific coast. He re- turned to his Wexford county farm in 1879, and in 1880 was elected clerk and register on the Republican county ticket. Ile was re-elected in 1882, and was re-nomi- nated in 1884, but defeated by George .1. Cummmer. He took an active part in the struggle which resulted in the removal of the county seat from Sherman to Cadillac
via Manton. He was a talented speaker and could hold an audience, no matter what the subject under discussion might be. In politi- cal campaigns his services were in great de- mand, both in his home county and in sur- rounding counties. After his defeat for a third term as clerk and register he removed to Chicago, where he remained several years and at last went into the educational work, which was his delight.
Silas S. Falloss was the first attorney to settle in the village of Clam Lake, arriving in the summer of 1872. He was elected prosecuting attorney the same fall. He served one term as circuit judge and was a member of the board of supervisors for sev- eral years. In 18844 he removed to Chicago and resumed the practice of law in that city, making that his home until the present time.
John Mansfield was born in Connecticut in 1842. At the breaking out of the Civil war he enlisted in the First New York Cav- alry and served to the end of the war. lle came to Wexford county in 1872 and took 111 a homestead on section 12, in what is now Boon township, at the same time pur- chasing another quarter section adjoining the homestead, later buying another eighty- acre piece, making four hundred acres in all. Being a practical farmer and a hard worker, he soon had sufficient land cleared to begin to realize a profit from the crops he raised. Being of Irish descent, he had great faith in potatoes, and devoted a large part of his land to the cultivation of that crop. raising from five hundred to four thousand bushels a year. Another crop he found very profit- able was hay. Being in close proximity to the lumber camps in the vicinity of Cadil- lac on the east and the Manistee river on the west, he could start out on a winter's
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morning with a load of hay or potatoes. dispose of it at camp and reach home by nightfall. Ile served his township several years as supervisor, and in 1880 was elected county treasurer, serving two terms. In 1804 he was elected judge of probate, filling the office for eight years. . At the expiration of this service he sold his farm and removed to Newaygo county, where he still resides.
Capt. C. K. Russell came to Cadillac in 1879. purchasing the American House, which he managed for over fifteen years. Ile was a native of New York, where he was born in 1826. He started out to be a sailor, and so well did he apply himself to the work that he became master of a vessel at the age of twenty-one, after which he was always familiarly known as "Captain Rus- sell." He enlarged and improved the hotel property, making it one of the best public houses in the city, or, in fact. north of Grand Rapids. Becoming at length some- what tired of the hotel business, and having saved a nice sum of money in the meantime. he removed to Grand Rapids in 1891, where he still resides. He makes occasional visits to Cadillac. having still some landed inter- ests in this city to look after.
Daniel McCoy. formerly a Wexford county lumberman, and now state treasurer of Michigan, was born in Philadelphia. Pennsylvania, in 1845. and lived in that city until 1867, when he came to Michigan, lo- cating in Macomb county, where he lived until 1872. when he went into the lumbering business on the Manistee river. In 1873 he transferred the scene of his operations to the village of Clam Lake, purchasing quite an extensive tract of pine land and erecting a large saw-mill about one mile north of the village. He remained a resident of
Clam Lake, now Cadillac, until 1883. when he removed to Grand Rapids. Michigan. He filled the offices of president of the vil- lage and mayor of the city. He was chair- man of the Wexford county Republican committee for several years, and only once was he known to waver in his support of that party. That was when Hon. Jay A. Hubbell, of Houghton, was in the field for the office of United States senator from Michigan. Mr. McCoy was an ardent Hub- bell man and tried hard to secure the nomi- nation of a candidate for representative in the legislature who would support Mr. Hub- bell for senator. In the strife which oc- curred in the representative convention. which lasted two days and in which nearly two hundred ballots were taken, the coun- ties of Kalkaska. Lake and Missaukee, which with Wexford county constituted the rep- resentative district, pooled their issues and drew lots as to which of the three candidates from those counties should receive the nomi- nation. The lot fell to .1. A. Abbott, of Kalkaska, and he was accordingly nomi- nated. Mr. Abbott was an anti-Hubbell man. and Mr. McCoy undertook the task of bringing about his defeat. He prevailed upon a friend by the name of Bonnell, of Missaukee county, with Democratic lean- ings, to announce himself an independent candidate for representative. This was done and Mr. Bonnell was endorsed by the Den- cratic representative convention. This did not alarm the Republicans of the district, as it was normally Republican by over a thousand majority, but when the vote was canvassed it appeared that the lumber camps around the Clam lakes and in Missaukee county had cast an almost solid vote for the independent candidate and he was elected
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by a small majority, and Mr. Bonnell was one of the very small minority who caused a deadlock in the legislature, preventing the re-election of T. W. Ferry to the United States senate and causing the election of a compromise candidate. After removing to Grand Rapids Mr. McCoy organized the Edison Light Company, and in 1892 he or- ganized the State Bank of Michigan, being elected president of both corporations, which positions he has continued to hold until the present time. He was elected state treasurer in 1900 by a plurality of 99,706, and a clear majority of 83.386. He was re-elected in 1902 by a plurality of 74.335 and a clear majority of 58,266, on a vote that was 146,- 944 less than the vote of 1900.
H. C. McFarlan was one of the success- ful merchants in Manton, locating in that village in 1874. He carried a full line of general merchandise and did a very lucra- tive business. He was born in Wayne coun- ty. Michigan, in 1848, and in 1862, at the age of fourteen years, he enlisted in the Twenty-seventh Michigan Infantry, but was soon afterward discharged. He then went into the Sixth Michigan Infantry, and served until the end of the war. After his army service he led the life of a sailor for six years on the lakes. An estrangement between him and his wife led to a final sep- aration some time in the early 'nineties, and he sold out his business at Manton and for a year or two his Wexford county friends lost sight of him. He finally went into busi- ness again in Williamsburg, Grand Trav- erse county, where he still resides.
H. F. Campbell was born in Quincy, Michigan, in 1852, his parents removing to Grand Ledge, Eaton county, Michigan, in 1861, where he lived until he came to Wex-
ford county in 1876. He had worked on the Grand Ledge Independent at the print- er's trade, having acquired a good degree of proficiency in that line before coming to Wexford county. Ilis first work in the county was on the Cadillac News. After a short time in Cadillac he went to Sherman and worked in the Pioneer office for some time, finally purchasing a half interest in that paper, with J. II. Wheeler as the other half owner, the company being known as Campbell & Wheeler. Mr. Campbell lost his first wife by death some time before coming to this county, and in 1880 he mar- ried Miss Lizzie Cummings, of Conneaut, Ohio. Soon after this second marriage he sold out his interest in the Pioneer and re- moved to Manton. He held the Sherman postoffice for two years, resigning his po- sition upon his change of residence. In 1883 he received the appointment of postmaster at Manton, which office he hekl for four years. Soon after his appointment as post- master he purchased the Manton Tribune, which he sold when he left the postoffice, and soon afterward moved back to Sher- man. In 1892 he was elected to the legis- lature from the Wexford district, serving two terms in that body. He was engaged in the drug business at the time of his elec- tion and finally quit that and for several years he has been on the road selling drugs and perfumes. He is now living in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
B. Woods was born in Albany, New York, in 1847, his father moving to Lock- port, New York, in 1850, where they lived until 1865. Mr. Woods then left home and went to Oil City, Pennsylvania, which was then the center of the oil operations of that state, and, in fact, of the whole world. Here
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he worked about six months and then went to Grand Rapids, Michigan, where he en- tered the employ of Cook & Skinner, stage coach proprietors. In 1870 he came to Wexford county, driving the first stage coach over the new mail route established on the Newaygo and Northport state road from Cedar Springs to Traverse City. He soon quit the stage and went into the hotel business at Sherman, in which he remained until 1874. He then, in company with E. Gilbert, secured the mail route between Sherman and Manton, and also between Sherman and Traverse City. He finally pur- chased Mr. Gilbert's interest in the business and followed it until the routes were discon- tinned. He engaged in the drug business, in company with Dr. F. E. Corbin, in 1881, continuing in this until he removed to Ilelena, Montana, in 1886, in which state he still lives.
William Derr was born in Salem, Co- lumbiana county, Ohio, in 1846. He came to Grand Traverse region in 1866, stopping first in Grand Traverse county, where he worked several years in the lumber camps in the winter and on farms in the summer. He came to Sherman, Wexford county, in 1872, and took up the occupation of stage driver, the mail route then being from Clam Lake to Traverse City via Sherman. He was engaged in this work for six years, a part of the time as proprietor of the line and part of the time as driver only. In 1878 he went into I. H. Maqueston's grist-mill as assistant, under Mr. Bennett. After a couple of years' service he became so pro- ficient that he was given full charge of the mill, which he managed to the entire satisfac- tion of his employer and the public at large. After some seven or eight years' work in
the mill he bought a farm in Wexford township and turned his attention again to farming. Owing to the protracted illness of his wife he decided to move west, think- ing the change might improve her health. He chose what was then the territory of Washington as his future home. The change did not bring the benefit hoped for to his wife, who died a few months after reaching their new home. Mr. Derr will long be remembered by the residents of the county in those days, both for his sturdy and genial characteristics and his Jehu-like driving on the mail routes. He still lives in Washington.
Moses Cole was one of the early pio- neers in Wexford county, settling on a homestead in what is now Wexford town- ship in 1867. He was born in Niagara county, New York, in 1836, and came to Michigan in 1857, living for several years near Detroit, and for three years having charge of a toll-gate on the Detroit and Erie plank road at Conner's Creek. Ile traded his homestead for village property in Sher- man. and purchased a half interest in the saw-mill which was situated one and a fourth miles east of Sherman village on a stream known as Cole's creek. He replaced the muley saw with a circular, and at one time had a shingle mill in connection with the saw-mill. He sold out his interest in the mill in the early 'nineties and removed to Grayling, Michigan, where he still lives. Frank D. Hopkins, a former merchant at Sherman, was born in Livingston county. Michigan, in 1856. He was a messenger boy in the Michigan state senate during the sessions of 1874-5 and 1877-8. He came to Sherman. Wexford county, in 1876. and for several years was employed in driving team
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and driving the stage from Sherman to Manton, after which he entered the employ of H. B. Sturtevant as clerk in the latter's store. In 1881 he went to Grand Rapids to take a commercial course, and in 1883 purchased a half interest in Mr. Sturte- vant's store, later becoming sole owner. After a few months he sold out and went on the road as traveling salesman for a De- troit firm. He soon after purchased a drug store at Alba, Michigan, where he remained in business until fire destroyed his stock in 1893. after which he returned to Sherman, Wexford county, and entered the store of E. Gilbert & Company as salesman. He re- moved to southern Michigan after a short stay at Sherman, and is now a resident of St. Louis, Missouri.
L. A. Avery came to Grand Traverse county in 1863 from Steuben county, New York, where he was born in 1835. He first settled near Monroe Center on a homestead claim, clearing up a farm and working at his trade, that of a blacksmith, until 1874. when he moved to Sherman, Wexford county, built a blacksmith shop, and for nearly twenty years carried on this business. to which he added the wagon repairing business. He moved to southern Michigan some nine or ten years ago, and now lives a few miles north of Petoskey on the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad, where he still works at his trade.
D. V. Emmons was born in Oakland county, Michigan, in 1841. He enlisted in the Third Michigan Infantry in June, 1861, serving three years in the Army of the Po- tomac. lle was in the first real battle of the Civil war at Bull Run, and in many of the battles fought by the eastern army. He came to Wexford county in 1878, and en- 19
gaged in the drug business in Sherman. He continued in this occupation until 1886, when he bought an eighty-acre farm on sec- tion 5 in Antioch and engaged in the occu- pation of farming. After three or four years at this business he moved to Allegan county, Michigan, and later went to Gales- burg. Michigan, and purchased a flouring- mill. He was still operating this mill at last tidings from him.
Il. H. Skinner, the first sheriff of Wex- ford county, took up a homestead on section 4 in Wexford township in 1865. He had served several years in the army prior to locating in Wexford county, and in conse- quence of the infirmities brought on by army exposure his health became so poor that he had to abandon his farm, and finally, some eight years ago, he was obliged to accept the state's proffer of aid to the ex-soldiers and entered the Soldiers' Home at Grand Rapids, Michigan.
E. D. Abbott, formerly sheriff of Wex- ford county, was born in Sodus, Wayne county, New York, in 1841 .. On the 26th of February. 1864, he enlisted in Company E, First New York Dragoons, afterwards known as Company C, Nineteenth New York Cavalry. He served imtil June 27. 1865, when he received an honorable dis- charge. Not content to settle down to the old life in the east, he determined to take Horace Greeley's advice to "Go west, young man, go west," and in November. 1867. he reached Wexford county, taking up a home- stead five miles west of the village of Man- ton, although it was five years before that village was thought of. Upon the resigna- tion of Joseph Sturr, who was elected sher- iff of Wexford county in 1870 and moved to southern Michigan soon after entering
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upon the duties of the office, Mr. Abbott was appointed to fill out the balance of the term. At the following election in 1872 Mr. Abbott was elected to the office he had acceptably filled, and held the office during the years 1873 and 1874. He then went into the drug store of M. S. Emmons at Sherman, and has made that business his principal occupation since. He now owns a drug store at Aiba, Michigan, having re- sided at that place for the past eight or ten years.
Henry Clark came to Wexford county in 1868, his occupation at that time being land looker and timber estimator, and he came in the interest of those who were de- sirous of getting the choicest selections of pine lands, of which there were many thou- sands of acres in the county at that time. It was largely through his efforts, together with those of his uncle, Sylvester Clark, that the county seat was located where the vil- lage of Sherman now stands, instead of a mile farther north at the Manistee river. It was also largely through his influence that the Maqueston Brothers, Isaac H. and E. G., who were the first merchants to lo- cate in the county, were induced to come into what was then an almost unbroken wil- derness. After a few years' residence, dur- ing which he married Alice Fox. he went with his bride to live in Big Rapids, and after a short stay there they removed to Grand Rapids. About the year 1880 he moved to Duluth, where he lived until the death of his wife, which occurred in 1885. After this sad event he left Duluth and re- sumed his old occupation of timber esti- mator, finally taking up a homestead near Two Harbors, Minnesota, where he has since resided. He has never remarried, his son Neil being his only companion in their
little cabin on the homestead until a year ago, when the latter married Dora. the daughter of Mi. and Mrs. S. Gasser, of Sherman, Wexford county, and took her to the backwoods home in Minnesota.
Alonzo Chubb was born in Monroe county, New York, in 1823. His people moved to Michigan soon after the state was admitted to the Union. Mr. Chubb enlisted soon after the beginning of the war of the Rebellion in the One Hundred and Fifth Ohio Volunteers, serving two years, at the end of which time he was mustered out on ac- count of wounds and sickness, having at- tained the rank of lieutenant. In 1867. he came to northern Michigan, settling in what is now the township of Cleon, Manistee county. Ile often tells of how he wintered some pigs he brought with him when he moved into the woods. The snow got so deep that it was impossible to get to Trav- erse City, the only place where feed couldl be procured, and as a last resort he drove them to the woods with the rest of his stock to see if they would "browse." To his utter surprise they took right hold of the tender maple twigs and lived on a "browse" diet the balance of the winter. Mr. Chubb also says that there are not many people who can truthfully boast of holding office in two counties, living in two representative and two senatorial districts, and yet never chang- ing his residence from the town he first set- tled in. Of course this state of affairs came about by reason of the township of Cleon having been attached to this county for a number of years, during which time Mr. Chubb served a term of four years as judge of probate of Wexford county. He is still hale and hearty at the age of eighty and has a real estate office in the village of Copem- ish, in Manistee county.
JOHN H. WHEELER
BIOGRAPHICAL.
JOHN H. WHEELER.
John H. Wheeler was born in Cattarau- gus county, New York, April 19, 1840. He was brought up on a farm until about eigh- teen years of age, when he went to work at the carpenter's trade, soon mastering it so that he could take charge of any ordinary work in that line. In September, 1861, he enlisted in the Forty-fourth Regiment, New York Volunteers, known as "The Ellsworth Avengers." He was mustered out in Octo- ber, 1864, at the expiration of his term of enlistment. He took part in some of the hardest fought battles of the Civil war, among which were Gaine's Mills, Savage Station, White Oak Swamp, Malvern Hill, Gettysburg, Mine Run, the Wilderness and Spottsylvania Court House, besides numer- ofis engagements of lesser note. He was on detached duty during the winter of 1862-3. superintending the construction of barracks foi a convalescent camp about three miles southwest from Alexandria, Virginia.
October 17, 1865, Mr. Wheeler was mar- ried to Georgiana I. Fox, whom he had met while home on an invalid furlough in the summer of 1863. He started on his wedding day for Wexford county, where he arrived
October 31, severe storms on the lakes de- laying the boat several days during the trip. He took up a homestead on section 30, in what is now Hanover township, and at once commenced work on the construc- tion of a saw-mill. This mill was the first frame structure erected in the county, and as soon as it was started and the necessary lumber could be cut out Mr. Wheeler put up the first frame house that was built in the county.
Mr. Wheeler was the first treasurer of the county and hell the office for two years at that time, and was again elected county treasurer in 1898 and re-elected in 1900. After running the saw-mill a few years, he resumed his occupation of builder, and se- cured the contract for building the court house at Sherman and other large buildings, such as stores, hotel, school-houses and many private dwellings. He was supervisor of Sherman, Concord and Antioch town- ships for ten years, during two of which he was chairman of the board of supervisors of the county. In the summer of 1878 he purchased a one-half interest in the Wex- ford County Pioncer, and two years later became the sole owner of that paper, which he retained until January 7, 1891. He was
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appointed postmaster of the Sherman post- office in January, 1880, and held the office nearly five years. Ile received the appoint- ment of census enumerator in 1880 and took the census of five towns in the northwest corner of the county, including the township of Cleon, now in Manistee county, but then a part of Wexford county. He has filled the office of county superintendent of poor, secretary of the Republican county committee, and served two years as great sachem of the Improved Order of Red Men of Michigan.
Mrs. Wheeler died October 8, 1882, leav- ing two daughters ( two sons having died in their infancy ), one of whom still lives in the county and the other at Lansing, Michigan. Two years later Mr. Wheeler married Ella. daughter of ex-Sheriff W. W. Bartlett, of Grand Traverse county. For the past four years Mr. Wheeler has been engaged in buy- ing and selling timbered lands, in company with Judge Chittenden, of Cadillac. They also are proprictors of a large addition to the city.
GEORGE A. MITCHELL.
The name of this public-spirited and in- fluential citizen will always be inseparably associated with the history of Cadillac, as he was the founder of the city and for many years so closely identified with its growth and material development as to be called the real father of the place. In October, 1871. the village of Clam Lake was platted under his direction and the lots put upon the mar- ket and subsequently when the name was changed to the one it now bears he took a leading part in the transaction and contrib-
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