USA > Michigan > Wexford County > History of Wexford County, Michigan, embracing a concise review of its early settlement, industrial development and present conditions > Part 58
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71
Later. in the spring of 1881. Mr. Web- ber went to Big Rapids. Michigan, where for a period of two years he worke:l in a drug store kept by Charles Wagner and at the expiration of that time formed a part- nership in the drug business at the same place with Dr. W. A. Hendricks, the firm. under the name of W. A. Hendricks & Com- pany, lasting until 1885. when the subject purchased the Doctor's interest and became sole proprietor. After running the business at Big Rapids with varied success until 1887. he removed to Cadillac, where he bought a stock of drugs belonging to R. J. Cummer & Company, and from that time to the pres- ent day he made this city his honfe, his busi- ness career the meantime presenting a series of successes which fully entitles him to the high reputation which he now enjoys as the leading druggist in the place, also as one of the most enterprising and progressive men in this section of the state. The drug business
One of the conspicuous figures in the commercial circles of Cadillac is the rep- resentative business man and prominent citizen to a brief outline of whose life and character the reader's atention is herewith respectfully invited. AArthur 11. Webber. the leading druggist of this city and a man whom to know is to honor, is a native of ficanga county, Ohio, where his birth oc- curred on the 26th day of April. 1859. he , is only part of Mr. Webber's general busi-
455
WEXFORD COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
ness. His first venture in Cadillac was a drug store only, but from time to time he has added new departments as the wants of the people seemed to demand, until at the present time the business includes drugs, stationery, books, furniture, crockery, wall paper, carpets and bazaar lines ; in fact, it is what might be considered a modern, up-to- (late department store. The store space oc- cupied by this firm is about sixteen thousand square feet, making it the largest retail in- 1
stitution north of Grand Rapids. Mr. Web- ber is also interested in real estate, the growth of Cadillac having demonstrated to him the need of more homes, The Home Building and Realty Company of Cadillac, of which he is president, is the outgrowth of this fact.
From the beginning of his career Mr. Webber has been remarkably prosperous, owing to the energy he has injected into the business and to the good judgment and discretion displayed in the purchase and dis- play of his stock, to which may be added his careful selection of clerks, as he employs none but well qualified and judicious men to assist him in handling the large amount of business that has come to him with each re- curring year. Mr. Webber is a close student of pharmacy and has investigated the science from every conceivable standpoint. Ile has a strong analytical mind, which has been strengthened and disciplined by thorough training, the result being a broad and com- Fraternally Mr. Webber belongs to sev- eral secret and benevolent orders, promi- nent among which are the Masons, Kiughts of Pythias and Knights of the Loyal Guard. Additional to these he is a leading spirit in the Board of Trade of Cadillac, of which he is now president. He has done much to prehensive knowledge which he is able to apply practically, his ability and skill so win- ning the confidence of the public as to bring him a large and constantly increasing pat- ronage. Keeping in close touch with the times on all matters relating to his chosen calling, Mr. Webber has achieved more than promote the city's material welfare, also by
local reputation, as is attested by the fact of his having been elected, in 1889, president of the Michigan Pharmaceutical . Association. an honorable post to which only the best known and most highly qualified men of the profession are called. Later he was chosen delegate to the meeting of the National Re- til Druggists' Association, which held its session in Cincinnati in 1899, and in 1900 he was further honored by representing the National Association of Retail Druggists at Detroit. His wide-spread popularity as a learned and skillful pharamacist has re- cently found expression in his appointment by Governor Bliss to a place on the state board of pharmacy, an honor which he greatly appreciated and in which his many friends in Cadillac and throughout Michigan feel something akin to personal pride. In his political affiliations Mr. Webber has been a lifelong Republican. While deeply inter- ested in his party's welfare and laboring zealously for its success in local, state and national affairs, he is not an office seeker, neither has he any ambition for public dis- tinction of any kind, nor has he ever aspired to leadership. His services, however, have been duly recognized and appreciated, as witness his appointment in 1899, and again the year following, to the chairmanship of the senatorial committee for the twenty- seventh district, which position he has since held by successive reappointments.
456
WEXFORD COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
means of this agency spreading the reputa- tion of the place abroad and inducing men of means to put their capital in Wexford county real estate as a safe and remunera- tive investment. Mr. Webber's efforts since becoming a citizen of Cadillac have not been circumscribed within the bounds of his own business interests, as he has been, in a large sense, a public-spirited man, lending his in- fluence and at times his more tangible aid to encourage enterprises for the upholdling of the city, materially and along other lines. Ile is an earnest friend and zealous advocate of all agencies tending to the social advance- ment and moral welfare of the community. hence churches, schools, benevolent societies. public charities and like organizations en- list his encouragement and support. A man of broad mind and progressive ideas, there is nothing little or narrow in his nature ; de- spising what is mean and low, detesting the base and recognizing the false and hypo- critical, he discerns in every honest man. however poor and humble, the true essence of honorable character which bespeaks ties of brotherhood and reciprocity of interests. Mr. Webber possesses a pleasing personal- ity, is easily approachable and all who come within range of his influence are profuse in their praise for his many amiable qualities, among which a genial disposition, a com- panionable nature and an optimistic tempera- ment are especially conspicuous. His in- tegrity is above reproach, his character strong but clear and transparent as an open book in which are no black or blotted pages, and his name is synonymous with all that is honorable in manhood and upright and straightforward in citizenship. Religiously the Congregational church represents his creed and for a number of years past he has
been an active and zealous member of the society worshipping in Cadillac, being at the present time chairman of the church board of trustees.
Mr. Webber has a beautiful and attractive home, the presiding genius of which is a lady of culture and refinement to whom he was united in marriage September 1, 1886. Mrs. Webber was formerly Miss Lucie M. Morri- son, of Grand Rapids, whose father was for many years one of the leading citizens and founders of Kent county, also one of the first probate judges, while her mother was an active participant in the organization and work of charitable institutions in Grand Rapids.
Mrs. Webber has been a true wife and helpmate, a fit companion for the husband whose name she honorably bears, assisting him in many ways, co-operating with him in his business enterprises, encouraging him in all his laudable endeavors, and proving a constant inspiration to him in all the walks and relations of life. One child. Harold, a bright son, eleven years old, completes the subject's mutually helpful and happy family circle.
DANIEL E. KAISER.
A person travelling through almost any of the states bordering on the Canadian line cannot fail to be impressed with the number of native Canadians who have located be- neath the stars and stripes and become true and loyal American citizens. The first question that suggests itself to the traveler is, was it simply a spirit of restlessness and desire for a change that caused this large immigration on the part of our neighbors
457
WEXFORD COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
across the border? If it was, would not an inquiry into the nativity of the population on the other side of the line disclose an equal number of natives of the United States domiciled in Canada? It does not, how- ever, disclose any such conditions, so that the conclusion is forced upon us that this coun- try affords better opportunities for the average man of moderate means than does the Canadian provinces. Zealous Cana- dians would, doubtless, be inclined to deny this, but the facts are certainly against them. However it may be, it is quite certain that a very large percentage of the most enter- prising citizens of the state of Michigan came originally from the Dominion. The subject of this review, Daniel E. Kaiser, has benefited himself and added to the wealth of the state of his adoption by abandoning the place of his nativity to become an inhabitant of the great republic.
Daniel E: Kaiser, a resident of sec- tion 26, Clam Lake township, is a native of Canada, born near Toronto, Vaughn county, Ontario, June 6, 1844. In his na- tive country he was reared, educated and grew to manhood. When twenty-one years of age. in 1865, he came to Montcalm county, Michigan. where he engaged in farm- ing and resided until 1881, when, in Febru- ary of that year, he came to Wexford county and located on his present farm in Clam Lake township.
have since continuously resided, cultivating the soil and yearly adding to their possessions. Nine years of the time he has resided on the farm he was in the employ of La Bar & Cornwell, in Cadillac. He owns eighty acres of land, sixty of which is improved and in a fine state of cultivation. To Mr. and Mrs. Kaiser two children, Nettie and Jerry, have been born, both intelligent and possessed of much strength of mind and body.
The politics of his adopted country has no little fascination for Mr. Kaiser and there are few men in Wexford county better in- formed on every political topic that may be under consideration. He is a loyal Repub- lican and actively interested in the success of that party. In religion he is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, is de- vout and regular in his attendance upon its services, and the cause of religion, morality and charity have no more staunch and true friend and advocate than he is. Personally he is pleasant and genial, frank and candid to the utmost degree, a man whose friend- ship can always be depended upon and an enumeration of whose friends would be as his acquaintances.
RALPH W. CRAWFORD.
In Cedar Springs, Kent county, Michi- In the perspective of human thought and action is often found the lamentable condi- tion which justifies the words of the poet, "Some with lives that come to nothing ; some with deeds as well undone," and yet the close observer needs never lack for objective lesson and incentive through worthy lives gan, on the 31st day of December, 1868, Daniel E. Kaiser was united in marriage to Miss Amanda Van Meer, a native of Canada, born October 10, 1851. Immediately after inariage they came to Clam Lake township and took up their residence upon the farm owned by him on section 26, where they ,and worthy deeds in all fields of human en-
458
WEXFORD COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
dleavor. In every AAmerican community to- day the young man in business is a distinc- tive factor, and in the city of Cadillac the field of newspaper enterprise has an able rep- resentative in the person of Mr. Crawford. who is associated with John M. Terwilliger in the publication of the Cadillac Globe, an individual sketch of the life of his partner ap- pearing on another page of this work, while in the connection is also given an outline of the history of the paper, so that a detailed re- capitulation is not demanded at this juncture. The editors and proprietors of the Globe are both alert and thorough-going young busi- ness men and the success which has attended their efforts stands to their credit and is in justice dne.
Mr. Crawford was born in the town of Woodhull, Henry county, Illinois, on the 27th of January, 1874, being. a son of Rev. John W. Crawford, D. D., who was a prom- inent and scholarly clergyman of the Presby- terian church and who died in Monett, Barry county, Missouri, in 1897, at the age of six- ty-three years, his life having been one of signal consecration and usefulness. His wife, whose maiden name was Emma Van Vice, is still living. Seven children were born of this union, of whom the sixth was Ralph W., the immediate subject of this sketch, while of the number five are still liv- ing. The early years of Ralph W. Crawford were passed principally in Kansas and Mis- souri, the family removing from place to place, as the clerical duties of the father de- manded. After receiving a common-school education he entered the Strickler Business College, in the city of Topeka. Kansas, where he completed a course of study. after which he secured employment in a printing office at FlIsworth, that state, where he re-
mained three years, gaining a thorough and practical knowledge of the mechanical de- tails of the art. He later was employed at his trade in various places. In 1896 he as- suimed charge of a weekly paper, the Eagle, at Monett, Missouri, and about eighteen months later he located in Purdy, that state, where he conducted a paper for a short time. and then disposed of the business and came to Cadillac. Michigan, where, in July. 1899. he purchased a half interest in the Cadillac Globe, which had been established by his partner, Mr. Terwilliger. In politics Mr. Crawford gives his allegiance to the Repub- lican party, and fraternally he is identified with Clam Lake Camp No. 1596, of the Modern Woodmen of America. He is pop- ular in the business and social circles of the community and is known as an able and dis- criminating newspaper man, the Globe hay- ing attained marked prestige and a liberal supporting patronage.
JOHN HARVEY.
The farming interests of Wexford coun- ty find a worthy representative in John Har- vey, who is living on section 14. Antioch township. fle is one of the valued citizens of Michigan that England has furnished to the state, his birth having occurred in War- wickshire on the "merrie isle." on the 20th of March, 1848. His father also bore the name of John Harvey and the mother's maiden name was Elizabeth Faulkner. They spent their entire lives in England, Mr. Harvey passing away between the age of sixty and seventy years, while his wife de- parted this life at the age of seventy-six years. They were the parents of nine chil-
JOHN HARVEY'S FARM.
459
IVEXFORD COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
dren, of whom the subject of this review is the seventh in order of birth.
In his native country John Harvey was reared and at the usual age he entered the public schools. He remained in England un- til twenty-two years of age and in his early life he was employed as a groom and also worked as a farm hand for about a year prior to his emigration to America. Hearing favorable reports of the opportunities af- forded in the new world, he determined to seek his fortune here and in the spring of 1870 he bade adieu to his friends and native land and sailed for the United States. Landing at New York he came then to Kent county, Michigan, where he located for about three years, during which time he lived upon a farm. In May, 1873, he ar- rived in Wexford county and here he ac- quired and cleared a tract of land. Later he purchased one hundred and twenty acres of land in Antioch township and since the spring of 1873 he has made his home in this township. During the winter months he worked in the lumber woods and in the sum- mer seasons devoted his attention to agri- cultural pursuits. The result of his labors is seen in the fine farm which he now owns. He has one hundred and eighty acres on section 14. Antioch township, and of this about one hundred and forty acres is under cultivation. He has erected good buildings upon his farm and has a very fine orchard of apple and peach trees, comprising ten acres. Michigan is celebrated throughout the length and breadth of this land for the high grade of peaches which it produces and there are no better specimens of this fine fruit to be found anywhere than is shipped from the farm of Mr. Harvey.
On the 5th of April, 1884. in Colfax 28
township, Wexford county, Mr. Harvey was united in marriage to Miss Emma Pettit, who was born in Valparaiso, Indiana, on the 13th of July, 1858, and is a daughter of Thomas and Mary Ann ( Martin ) Pettit, who were early settlers of Colfax township. taking up their abode there in 1871. They continued their residence in that locality 1in- til called to the home beyond, the father pass- ing away when about seventy-two years of age, while the mother's death occurred when she was seventy-eight years of age. In their family were nine children, of whom Mrs. Harvey was the eighth in order of birth. The home of the subject and his wife has been blessed with but one child, Anna E. Mrs. Ilarvey is an estimable lady, possessed of many excellent traits of character of heart and mind and these have endeared her to a large circle of friends. She presides with gracious hospitality over her pleasant home and her genial. cordial manners have made her popular with all with whom she has come in contact.
Mr. Harvey has held some of the minor offices of Antioch township, but has never been an active politician in the sense of of- fice seeking, preferring to devote his energies to his business affairs, in which he has la- bored untiringly. His excellent property is indicative of his life of industry and useful- ness, and, moreover, his business methods have been honorable and in all things he is straightforward, living a life that is as an open book which all may read.
GUSTAVE ANDERSON.
It is considered by those in the habit of superficial thinking that the history of so called great men only is worthy of preserva-
400
WEXFORD COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
tion and that little merit exists among the masses to call forth the praise of the histor- ian or the cheers and appreciation of man- kind. Few greater mistakes have been made. No man is great in all things and very few are great in many things. Many by a lucky stroke achieve lasting fame, who before that had no reputation beyond the limits of their neighborhoods. It is not a history of the lucky stroke which benefits humanity most, but the long study and ef- fort which made the lucky stroke possible. It is the preliminary work, the method, that serves as a guide for others. Among those of foreign birth and education who in this country have achieved a fair measure of suc- cess along steady lines of action is the sub- ject of this review, Gustave Anderson, of the third ward in the city of Cadillac. The fact that the first thirty years of his life were spent in his native land. Sweden, did not militate against him in the least in the accomplishment of a successful business career in America, the land of his adoption.
every energy to make immigration to the United States possible. The better to ac- complish so desirable a consummation, he became engaged to be married to a comely young girl in the neighborhood and, appre- ciating the fact that with her to help him practice economy his savings would be greater. he hastened the ceremony by which they were united. It was only a very short time after Miss Johanna Johnson became Mrs. Gustave Anderson that the worthy young couple found themselves financially in a position to pay all necessary expenses of the voyage across the ocean and leave them a comfortable little sum to give them a start in the new world. On arriving in America. in 1871. he procured employment on a railroad in New Jersey. They fitted themselves up nicely in housekeeping and for two years prospered most gratifyingly. Knowing that New Jersey was only a small part of the United States and believing that opportunities along the Atlantic coast might be far inferior to what they might find farther in the interior, they moved to Minne- sota, but remained there ouly a short time. when they came to Wexford county. They arrived here in the spring of 1873, and. true to the energy in which he had been schooled, he lost no time in finding employ- ment in the mills in Cadillac. For eleven years he worked in the saw-mills, losing little time and allowing none of the dollars that he earned to escape him except for absolute necessities. When his savings justified it, he purchased a tract of land in what was then Haring township and he is
Gustave AAnderson was born in Sweden September 11. 1841. The first thirty years of his life were spent in his native land. where he secured a good common school edu- cation and where he learned habits of in- dustry, thrift and economy, which have been most useful to him in the land of his adop- tion and have contributed not a little to the success which he has achieved. In no part of Europe, indeed it may be truthfully said that in no part of the world are the advan- tages and opportunities equal to those to be encountered by the average individual in the United States. A knowledge of this truth t now the owner of one hundred and twenty- was early brought to the attention of the seven and a half acres, fifty-four of which subject of this sketch. He therefore bent , are well improved with good buildings, a
461
WEXFORD COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
nice residence, barn, stables, outhouses, and other necessary appurtenances for making it a well equipped and desirable farm. Hav- ing established himself comfortably on the farm, he turned over his job in the saw- mill to some one less fortunate than himself and has since devoted himself exclusively to the tilling of his land, the planting and the gathering of his crops and making such improvements upon his farm as his time and lis means will allow.
Early in the spring of 1875, but four years after leaving his native land and only two years after having taken up her abode in Wexford county. Mrs. Johanna (Johnson) Anderson departed this life, leaving two children as pledges of her love to her be- reaved husband, both girls, Belinda and Ma- tilda. The latter has since become the wife of Charles Olson. Four other children were born to this union, but they died in early childhood. On November 1, 1875. Gus- tave Anderson was again married, his bride on this occasion being Louisa Johnson, also a native of Sweden. She has shown herself to be a worthy woman, a faithful wife and a kind and indulgent mother. They are the parents of five children, viz. : Anna, Al- fred. David, Ralph and Silas. Anna, the oldest child of the family, is the wife of Charles Anderson.
The subject of this sketch permits no outside issues to interfere with his business. Ile is as prudently parsimonious of his time as he is of his means and year by year he is adding to his possessions in a manner to as- tonish persons not inclined to pursue the same methods. Scrupulously honest, pru- dent in all things, simple in his habits and content with the conditions which sur- rounded him, the next ten or twenty years
will certainly see him among the most pros- perous people in that part of Michigan where he resides.
T. HENRY CALLIS.
Some men are ever seeking positions in the public service. They are standing candi- clates at each successive election and though often encountering defeat, they come up smil- ingly at the next convention with all the easy grace and confidence of a man who has never known disappointment. Then there is an- other class of men who are modest even to docility, lacking in self-assertion, to whom aggressiveness is wholly foreign, yet who find it impossible to keep out of office. With- out solicitation whatever on their part, they are chosen again and again to offices of pub- lic trust and responsibility. There is a cause for this and it doubtless will be found in the fact that modesty, when coupled with abil- ity, is ever appreciated by the general public. while the blatant place-hunter, who is ever a most selfish creature, is sure to receive the contempt which his self-assertion merits. The subject of this biography, T. Henry Callis, is one of those men whom his fellow citizens love to honor. Ile has held various public positions, none of which, however, were secured through his own seeking. For nearly thirty years he has been a resident of Wexford county and during that time the people have had ample opportunity to form a just estimate of the man, with the result that he occupies today an enviable position among his fellow citizens.
T. Henry Callis is a native of the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, born August 27. 1854. His parents were John and Eliza
462
IVEXFORD COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
( Morris) Callis, natives of England who came to America about the middle of the last century and settled in the "City of Brotherly Love," where they remained a number of years. They were the parents of ten chil- dren, of whom the subject was the eighth. When he was two years old, in 1856. the family came to Washtenaw county, Michi- gan, locating on a farm in Augusta town- ship. The mother is now deceased, while the father still resides on the place. On this farm the subject was reared and grew to manhood. He attended the district school during the winter months and devoted him- self during the other months of the year to the duties of the farm. So well did he em- ploy his time in the school room that by the time he was old enough to take charge of and govern a school he was amply qualified for the employment. He continued to reside in Washtenaw county, devoting his time to farming unitl 1874, when he came to Wex- ford county, where for a number of years he followed the same lines of labor.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.