USA > Michigan > Wexford County > History of Wexford County, Michigan, embracing a concise review of its early settlement, industrial development and present conditions > Part 43
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Mr. and Mrs. Cummer have always in- terested themselves in worthy benevolences. and in Cadillac have established and main- tained an institution which will preserve the names in kindly remembrance long after the imposing monument and the costly mansolemn have crumbled into dust and passed from the minds of men. Appreciat- ing the importance of education and the fur- ther fact that its advantages are necessarily sometimes withheld from many children, Mrs. Cummer, several years ago, decided to establish a kindergarten in her home city. Mrs. Cummer was assisted by Mr. Cummer in her plans for the children of Cadillac, and in 1895 the school was opened, with a corps of expert teachers in charge. Mr. and Mrs.
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Cummer afterwards built an addition to the First Congregational church for the kinder- garten, and supplied it with a complete equip- ment for the training-manual and mental -of the little boys and girls and their prep- aration for the higher studies in the public schools. Three teachers and one voluntary assistant are now employed in this kinder- garten, and on the membership roll are the names of nearly one and a half hundred of children. Instruction in this school is with- out money and without price and its useful- ness in the city is recognized and appreciated by all classes and within its walls the chil- dren of the poor and the rich sit side by side. forgetting the inequalities of social condi- tions, and receive the training which is to assist them in after years in the inevitable struggle for place and power in the Ameri- can republic. It is a worthy benefaction, is the free kindergarten established and main- tained by Mr. and Mrs. Cummer, and as a monument to their helpful lives will he more enduring than a shaft of marble or pyramid of stone.
Some idea of Mr. Cummer's present operations may be gained through the state- ment that three hundred and seventy-five men are on the Cummer. Diggins & Com- pany payroll in Cadillac and that four hun- dred and twenty-five men are on the Cunimer Lumber Company's payroll in Jacksonville, Florida. In his relations with his employes Mr. Cummer is kindly, courteous, and in- terested in their welfare. Their personal plans and ambitions have always appealed to him and he has always been willingly helpful to them in whatever they have en- tered upon as a means of advancing them- selves or in preparing themselves for better things in life.
HENRY KNOWLTON.
To present in detail the leading facts of the life of one of Cadillac's enterprising men of affairs and throw light upon some of his more prominent characteristics, is the task in hand in submitting a brief biography of the well-known gentleman whose name ap- pears above. Though still in the prime of life, Henry Knowlton has won an honorable place in the business world, besides impress- ing his strong personality upon the commun- ity where for a number of years he has been a forceful factor in financial circles. Mr. Knowlton is a worthy representative of one of the oldest and most highly respected pio- neer families of Ottawa county, his father. William Knowlton, having settled in that. part of the state when it was a wilderness, in due time clearing and developing a fine farm and becoming one of the leading agri- culturists and representatives of what is now the township of Chester. On the oldl home- stead in Chester township the subject of this review first saw the light of day, his birth dating from September 17, 1861. Reared in close touch with nature in the country, he early became familiar with the varied duties of farm life, and grew up with a proper ap- preciation of the dignity of honest toil, know- ing little by practical experience of the mean- ing of idleness. In the public schools of Ottawo and Kent counties he obtained a fair educational training, and on attaining his majority he came to Cadillac, entering. in October, 1882, the employ of II. D. Wal- lin, Jr., as clerk in the office of the Michigan Iron Works. In his clerical capacity Mr. Knowlton soon developed fine abilities and became one of the useful and trusted men connected with the above enterprise, contin-
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uing with the company until 1887. in Feb- ruary of which year he resigned his position for the purpose of accepting a more lucrative post, with the private banking firm of D. .A. Blodgett Company. Mr. Knowlton en- tered the latter concern in a minor capacity, but, by reason of efficiency and conscientious fidelity to duty, gradually rose to more re- sponsible stations, each succeeding year add- ing to his reputation as an accomplished ac- countant and able financier. Since 1887 he has been constantly before the public in posi- tions requiring the highest order of business talent, holding at this time the office of cash- ier in the Cadillac State Bank, in which ca- pxicity he has gained worthy prestige in financial circles, being a man of mature judg- ment, unimpeachable integrity, a hard work- er, careful in his methods and conservative as well as eminently successful in all his dealings.
As may be readily inferred from the above, Mr. Knowlton occupies no second place in the confidence and esteem of his fel- lowmen, having won the responsible posi- tion he now commands by loyalty to every trust reposed in him as well as by the ability and energy displayed in his peculiar field of endeavor. Ile is a man of wise foresight, whose enterprising spirit no difficulties can discourage, and, with a tenacity of purpose as rare as it is admirable, he seems to pos- sess the faculty of moulding circumstances to suit his purposes, rather than being affected by them. His sagacity in matters coming within his sphere is most pronounced, being rarely mistaken in his judgment of men and things, and he foresees with remarkable clearness future possibilities relative to his business interests and determines with a high
degree of accuracy their probable bearing. He has made a close and careful study of financial questions, is familiar with every de- tail of banking and much of the success of the popular institution with which he is officially connected is due to his able and judicious business methods. In all his tran- sactions he has ever manifested a disposition to do as he would be done by and by reason of his continued success, unblemished char- acter and just and liberal life he has nobly earned the universal esteem in which he is held by his fellow men. It is not as a busi- ness man only that Mr. Knowlton has come prominently to the notice of the people, as he has long been a potential factor in the do- main of politics. Since attaining his majority he has been an uncompromising supporter of the Republican party and as such his influ- ence has had great weight in local affairs, having for five years represented the third ward in the common council of Cadillac, be- sides serving one year as mayor of the city. As a member of the council he was instru- mental in introducing and bringing about much important municipal legislation, and it was during his incumbency as chief ex- ecutive that the present beautiful city hall was planned and erected, in addition to which many other improvements were pro- vided, including the system of free mail de- livery.
While serving in public capacities Mr. Knowlton was untiring in his efforts to pro- mote the city's material welfare and was active in all matters of municipal reform, looking carefully after the people's interests, using his influence to discourage lavish or injudicious expenditures and by every means at his command guarding the public funds
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and conserving all available resources. To him as much as to any one individual is Cad- illac indebted for the prosperity which has marked the last decade of its history, as he has labored earnestly to beautify the city and make it a desirable place of residence, besides advertising its advantages to the world as a favorable locality for the investment of capital.
Mr. Knowlton believes in progress and improvement in all the terms imply, when properly conducted, and he has long been an ardent advocate of all measures looking to the commercial and industrial advance- ment of both city and county, much of the credit for the present excellent highway sys- tem being directly attributable to his efforts and influence. Believing the employment of labor to be among the most judicious and effective means by which a community may become progressive and prosperous, he has been untiring in his efforts to locate indus- tries and other enterprises at Cadillac, using his best endeavors to attract capital and in- duce investments, with the result that every enterprising citizen has well-grounded confi- dence in the future prosperity of this section of the state. He was a leading spirit in the Commercial Club of Cadillac, which, in Feb- ruary, 1903, was succeeded by the Cadillac Board of Trade, holding the office of secre- tary at the present time, and in addition to his interest in city affairs, he is equally active in advancing the agricultural and general prosperity of Wexford county, throughout which his name has become widely and fa- vorably known.
Without invidions distinction, it can be truthfully said that Mr. Knowlton is pre- eminently one of Cadillac's most enterpris-
ing and successful men. In every walk of life his chief aim has been to do his duty and his friends feel proud of him as a broad- minded, intelligent citizen and useful mem- ber of society. While giving personal atten- tion to his private interests and discharging conscientiously all the duties of citizenship. he finds time to devote to the higher claims growing out of man's relations as a social being. hence he is ever ready to assist the poor and unfortunate, not a little of his means being dispensed through the channels of charity and benevolence.
On the 20th of January. 1886, Mr. Knowlton was united in marriage with Miss Allie Bishop, of Ottawa county, a union blessed with one child, a daughter by the name of Josephine. The happy home circle was sadly broken, however, by the death of Mrs. Knowlton, which occurred on the 28th of May, 1903.
From the foregoing brief outline of a busy career, it is not difficult to arrive at a just estimate of Mr. Knowlton's character or to fix his proper standing in the com- munity. Beginning the struggle of life in moderate circumstances, he has not only re- moved from his pathway the obstacles cal- culated to impede his progress and gained an honorable position in the business work, but has also lived to become a power for good in the community where he dwells. Interested in all that tends to benefit his fellows, materially, educationally and mor- ally, his influence has always been exerted in the right direction and from what he has accomplished along the lines to which his talents have been devoted it is easy to see that the world has been blessed and made better by his presence.
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ELISHA M. BOYNTON.
A very large per cent. of those who have attained prominence in this country were born and reared upon the farm. From the woods, the fields and meadows they entered upon careers of usefulness which in very many instances culminated in placing some of them in the most exalted positions in the nation. Life in the woods, in the clear- ing and in the fieldls brings the youth in much closer touch with nature than does any other calling and, when imbued with ambi- tion to rise above his surroundings, the les- sons of industry he has learned, the knowl- edge of nature he acquired and the self-con- fidence which farm life gives are splendid aids in gratifying his ambition. But a very large majority of the youths who are born and reared upon the farm choose to remain there. and although they may be charged with lack of ambition, and accused of "hid- ing their light under a bushel," who shall say that their lives have not been as happy, as worthy or as useful to the world as their more ambitious neighbors who have climbed well up the ladder of fame and whose names have emblazoned the pages of history. The subject of this article, Elisha M. Boynton, of Greenwood township, is one of those who preferred to continue his life on the farm rather than engage in other pursuits, even though more profit might be realized there- by. He was born near Plattsburg, New York, October 29, 1843. His parents were Elijah and Polly ( Hazen) Boynton, he a native of New York and she of Vermont. They settled near Plattsburg, New York, on a farm, where they continued to reside until their death. He died in 1846, at the age of sixty-seven years, while she died
a number of years later, being seventy years old at the time of her death. They were the parents of four children, one son and three daughters. The son is Elisha M., the sub- ject of this review, who was the third child of the family. Until reaching the age of thir- teen he resided on the old home farm near Plattsburg, and then moved to Clinton coun- ty, New York, where he remained until the breaking out of the war of the Rebellion.
In October, 1861, Mr. Boynton enlisted in the United States service as a private sol- (lier, a member of Company M, Ninth New York Cavalry. Ile served with his regi- ment eighteen months, taking part in many important engagements, when he was dis- charged and returned to Clinton county. After devoting a few months to rest and recreation, he again enlisted, this time in Company H. Second New York Veteran Cavalry, and served with that regiment until long after the close of the Civil war. No- vember 8, 1865, he was mustered out of the service and again returned to Clinton county, where he took up his old vocation, that of a farmer, and continued to prosper.
In the spring of 1879, having been im- pressed with the possibilities of a life in cen- tral Michigan, he moved to Montcalm coun- ty and readily secured employment in the woods, logging and lumbering. Hle fol- lowed this vocation in Montcalm county until the autumn of 1884, when he came to Wexford county and settled on a tract of forty acres of wild land, a part of section 35. Greenwood township. It is the same piece of land on which he now resides, but a vast change has taken place in the ap- pearance which it presented then. About thirty of its acres have been thoroughly cleared of wood and stumps and for many
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years the farm has been splendidly culti- vated. The land is fertile and productive and each year the subject has been gratifiedl by garnering in satisfactory crops. His farm buildings are all that could be desired. large, substantial and conveniently arranged. It is a most comfortable home and the re- turns from the little farm, in stock and crops, furnish them each year a song income.
December 9, 1867. Elisha M. Boynton was united in marriage to Miss Nettie Dun- das, a native of New York, born in Clinton county, May 4, 1845. She is the daughter of James and Jane ( Doran ) Dundas, resi- dents of Clinton county, New York. Mr. and Mrs. Boynton are the parents of ten children, four of whom died early in life. Those living are, Eugenie, John. Herbert, Mabel, Harvey and Ada. The children are all intelligent, possessed of a fair education and have been schooled in habits of industry which cannot fail to make them capable and useful. During his residence of nineteen vears in Greenwood township Mr. Boynton has been actively interested in all public af- fairs, particularly those relating to that sec- tion of the county wherein he resides. He served as highway commissioner a number of times and was school inspector several years. . At the present time he occupies the position of justice of the peace and township treasurer. While his life has been an ex- ceedingly active one, largely devoted to patient toil, it has been by no means devoid of happiness. Many a man whose possess- ions are many foll greater than his has known but a very small part of the content- ment and pleasure that has come to Elisha M. Boynton during the various stages of his career. He is a good man, who has lived a worthy life, and goodness, equal with vir- tue, is its own reward.
EUGENE F. SAWYER.
The law is generally conceded to be the most exacting of the learned professions and to achieve distinction therein requires not only natural abilities of a high order. but long years of patient study and pains- taking research, supplemented by a knowl- edge of human nature such as the ordinary mind does not possess. Whatever else may be said of this calling, it has always been the great arbiter of human rights and it cannot be denied that members of the bar have been more active and influential in public affairs as directors of thought and moulders of opinion than any other class of men. This is but the natural result of causes that are manifest and require no explanation. The ability and training which qualify one for the practice of law also fit him in many respects for duties which lie outside the strict path of the profession and which touch and affect the general interests of society and the state. Hence the majority of lawyers are broad-minded. many-sided men, capable of grasping questions, appreci- ating situations and controlling conditions upon which the well being of the body politic very largely depends.
Holding marked prestige among the leading lawyers of Wexford county is Eu- gene F. Sawyer, at this time the oldest prac- ticing attorney in the city of Cadillac and one of the most successful members of a bar long noted for the high order of its legal talent. Mr. Sawyer was born May 8, 1848, in the city of Grand Rapids, being the son of James and Susan C. ( Nardin ) Sawyer, the father a native of England, the mother a descendant of an old Huguenot family whose ancestors in this country came from France. James Sawyer came to the United
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EUGENE F. SAWYER.
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States as early as 1834, settling at Grand Rapids when that flourishing city was but a mere backwoods hamlet, the Nardins mov- ing to the same place about four years later. The subject's parents were married in Grand Rapids, and there reared their family and spent the remainder of their days, both dying a number of years ago.
Engene F. Sawyer spent the years of his childhood and youth in his native town and received his education in the public schools, graduating in 1868 from the high school of Grand Rapids, with a creditable record as a student. During the early years of his manhood he followed farming and of winter seasons taught school. in this way earning sufficient money to defray the expenses of a course in the Michigan University, which he entered in the fall of 1870, for the pur- pose of preparing himself for the legal pro- fession. Three years later he was gradu- ated from the law department of that insti- tution and immediately thereafter came to Cadillac, where he opened an office and soon took high rank among the leading members of the Wexford county bar. For two years he was associated with S. S. Fallas, but at the expiration of that time effected a copartnership with James R. Bishop, which, under the style of Sawyer & Bishop, has continued to the present time. and which is universally conceded to be one of the strongest and most successful legal firms in the northern part of the state. As a lawyer Mr. Sawyer has always been a safe counsellor and judicious practitioner, being well grounded in the fundamental principles of jurisprudence, with the ability and tact to apply the same in the most obstruse and technical cases. From the be- ginning of his professional career he has
exhibited fine legal talent, his chief aim be- ing to acquire a critical knowledge of the law, which, coupled with the ability to pre- sent and successfully maintain any cause undertaken, has won him a large and lucra- tive practice in the courts of Wexford and neighboring counties. He is a close, logical and judicious pleader, prepares his papers with great skill and caution so that when his cases come to trial he is amply able to meet the issues with little fear as to results at the hands of either court or jury. llis treat- ment of his cases is always full, compre- hensive and accurate, his analysis of the facts clear and exhaustive, and he sees with easy effort the relation and dependence of the facts and so groups them as to en- able him to throw their combined force up- on the points they tend to elucidate and prove. In the trial of a cause he is always master of himself, deferential to the court, kind and courteous towards opposing coun- sel, examining witnesses very thoroughly. but treating them with the respect that sel- dom fails to gain their confidence and good will. As a speaker he is direct, logical and forcible, presenting his facts clearly and concisely and impressing them with strong and eloquent appeals which seldom fail to impress juries with the justness of his cause. The firm of which Mr. Sawyer is senior member has been identified with nearly all important litigation at the Cadillac bar for many years past, and in every case of any prominence the subject is retained either for the prosecution or defence, his well-known abilities causing his services to be in great demand. Aside from his pro- fession, Mr. Sawyer has been an influential factor in the material growth and prosperity of Cadillac, taking an active interest in all
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public improvements and spending no little of his time and money to make this city the center of trade and culture for northern Michigan. For a number of years he has been secretary of the Cadillac Improvement Board. the objects of which are to locate industries, inaugurate improvements and in many other ways promote the industrial, commercial and financial advancement of the city and advertise its advantages to the world as a favorite place for the invest- ment of capital and as a beautiful and health- ful locality in which to reside. Mr. Sawyer was one of the chief promoters of the west- ern division of the Toledo & Ann Arbor Railroad and for several years served as its local attorney, the success of the line in this part of the state being largely due to the interest he manifested in its behalf. As an ardent friend of popular education he has done much to promote the efficiency of the public schools of Cadillac, serving for a number of years on the board of trustees. in which capacity he was untiring in his efforts to improve the system, by weeding out incompetent teachers and securing those of a higher order of intellectual and pro- fessional training. In the language of an- other, "It is claimed that while serving as trustee, he was, and still is, better acquainted with the public schools of Cadillac than any other person in the city not engaged in teaching," the justness of which compliment everybody at all familiar with the circum- stances cheerfully concedes.
While prosecuting his legal studies in the University of Michigan Mr. Sawyer became acquainted with an estimable lady of varied culture by the name of Miss Kate Sipley. whom he afterwards married and with whom his life has since been spent in the
most felicitous home relations. Mrs. Saw- yer is the daughter of John F. Sipley, of Ann Arbor, and she has borne her husband two children, Christobell and Olive, both bright, intelligent and popular with the social circles in which they move.
Politically Mr. Sawyer may be classed as an independent, holding to no particular party but supporting men and measures which in his judgment make for the best interest of the public in both local and state affairs. It has been his boast that he has not voted a straight ticket of any kind since he could remember, which course has doubt- less prevented his elevation to high official stations, which he is so well and worthily qualified to hold.
All who know Mr. Sawyer recognize his sterling worth as a lawyer and citizen and appreciate his many efforts and self sacrifices for public good. He is constitutionally honest and true, with a high conception of the dignity of manhood and the genuine pride of character that make it impossible for him to do anything little, sordid or in any way disreputable. He possesses in an eminent degree the moral courage which more than any other human attribute con- stitutes the man, the steadfast, reliable friend. the true Christian and the patriotic citizen. He is a man of deep and profound religious convictions, belonging, with his family, to the First Congregational church of Cadillac, for the material support of which he contributes liberally of his means. He makes religion a part of his every-day concerns, demonstrating by a life singularly free from faults the pure, simple faith which he has long professed. In every relation, Mr. Sawyer is easily the peer of any of his fellows in all that constitutes strong,
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vigorous manhood and during his long period of residence in Cadillac his name has been synonymous with all that is moral and upright in citizenship. He has honored every station to which he has been called and in years to come his name and fame will be cherished by a people who look upon him as a lawyer of distinguished ability, a citizen without pretense, a public benefactor whom the attractions of office could not entice, and as a man who, seeing and under- standing his duty, strove by all means within his power. to do the same as he would answer to his conscience and his God.
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