USA > Michigan > Men of progress : embracing biographical sketches of representative Michigan men with an outline history of the state > Part 61
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eight years. For a time he had charge of the books and other offiee work and subsequently was manager of the outside work. On the or- ganization of the Thayer Lumber Company in 1878 Mr. Munroe was appointed superinten- dent of its workings and business, which have sinee been under his management. The com- pany is operating two saw mills, with a yearly output of about fifty million feet of lumber, and employing over three hundred men. Their product is handled largely by rail and finds a market chiefly in the east and southeast. The company was incorporated in 1880, Mr. Mun- roe having been superintendent from the first, and now combined the double function of su- perintendent, secretary and treasurer. In ad- dition to the mills the company has over seven hundred feet of lake frontage as part of its plant in Muskegon, and is also a large holder of pine lands in Kalkaska and Missankee counties.
Mr. Munroe is president of the Common- wealth Lumber Company of Frazee, Minn., of the Indiana Box Company, of Anderson, Ind., is vice-president of the Hackley National Bank of Muskegon, and a director in the Muskegon Savings Bank. He is a Republiean in politics, but has never held political office, devoting his entire time to his numerous business interests. The only official position ever held by himn was as a member of the local school board.
Mr. Munroe is prominently associated with the Masonic fraternity, being a Past Master of Lovel Moore Lodge 182, of Muskegon, Past High Priest of Muskegon Chapter Royal Arch Masons, Past Eminent Commander of Muske- gon Commandery 47, Knights Templar, first Lieutenant Commander of Dewitt Clinton Consistory of Grand Rapids, and became a 33 Degree Mason in 1898. Mr. Munroe was married June 19, 1872, to Miss Katherine A. Jones, daughter of John R. Jones, of Remsen, N. Y., who as a resident of Muskegon has en- deared herself to its people by her many es- timable qualities and as an active participant in church and other charitable work.
455
HISTORICAL SKETCHES.
CHASE, CHARLES HENRY, Mr. Chase was born at Cato, N. Y., Dec. 19, 1852. From New York his parents, Daniel B. and Catherine (Switzer) Chase, moved in 1862 to Michigan, settling on a farm near the village of Maple Rapids, in Clinton county. The Chases are direct descendants of William Chase, who came from England with Gover- nor Winthrop in 1630. Charles Henry Chase was one of a family of eight children. Ile had the advantages of the district schools until he was fifteen, followed by a couple of terms at the Maple Rapids Union school. At the age of sixteen he secured a third grade teacher's cer- tificate and began teaching school, his first engagement paying him one hundred dollars for one hundred days school in Lebanon, Clin- ton county. He began a preparatory course for college, working at home on the farm dur- ing vacations, and entered Albion College in February of 1875, graduating therefrom in 1878, with the degree of Ph. B. During his vacations, while at Albion College, he acted as tutor and as assistant to Prof. Geo. B. Merri- man, who was employed by the United States government to compute the positions of the standard stars for the Nautical Almanac, and in this service he earned means to pay his way through college. After leaving Albion he be- came assistant principal of the St. Johns High School, year 1878-9. The next year he was principal of the Zeeland public school, and during 1881, 1882 and 1883 was principal of the high school at Lansing, and the next two years was in charge of the public schools at Leslie. He then abandoned pedagogy for the road, and during four years was traveling sales- man in the western states, the last year for the Nonotuck Silk Company. Quitting the road, he, with his brother, purchased the Herald newspaper at Anderson, Ind., which they pub- lished in 1SS9-90 during the natural gas boom. They then sold out and purchased from Robert Smith, in June, 1890, the Gratiot (Mich.) County Journal. In 1893 three of the Gratiot county papers (the Gratiot County Journal, Alma Record and St. Louis Republican
CHARLES HENRY CHASE.
Leader) were combined under one manage- ment and under the name of the Gratiot County Printing Company, and as secretary and treasurer of this company, Mr. Chase lived at St. Louis from 1893 until 1896, when the corporation was dissolved. He continued to manage the Gratiot County Journal until 1896, still retaining his connection with it in company with his brother, A. E. Chase. The Journal was started in 1856 as the Gratiot County News, and re-named the Journal in 1866.
Mr. Chase is a well-known writer on econ- omic questions and is author of the work, "Ele- mentary Principles of Economics," which is recognized as a standard work in the colleges and schools of the country. He was a Repub- lican until after the St. Louis (Mo.) conven- tion in 1896, when he became known as a sil- ver Republican. Hle was that year nominated on the combination ticket for Judge of Pro- bate, and was elected by 395 majority. Hle is a member of the Masonic fraternity, of the Order of Oddfellows, of the Royal Arcanum and of the Delta Tau Delta (literary). Miss Mary E. Church, daughter of M. M. Church, of Albion, became Mrs. Chase in 1879,
456
MEN OF PROGRESS.
COL. FRANK DWIGHT BALDWIN.
BALDWIN, COL. FRANK DWIGHT. Col. Baldwin is a representative type of Michi- gan citizen sokhiery. His father, Francis L. D. Baldwin, was a farmer, descended from Massachusetts and Connectient stock. Ilis mother, Betsey Richards, was a native of the state of New York. The parents were early residents of Manchester, Mich., where Frank D. was born June 26, 1842, they removing to Nottawa township. St. Joseph county, while the son was a small child. He attended the local school until fourteen years old, the last three years only during the winter months. In 1856 the family removed to Constantine, where the son had the advantage of the graded school, graduating from the High School in 1860. He had just begun a preparatory course when the capture of Fort Sumpter sounded the key note of the great Civil War. Hle at once began organizing a company, which was first mustered into the service as the Chandler Horse Guards, in which he held the commis- sion of second lieutenant. In November, 1861, this company was merged with the Nineteenth Michigan Infantry, Lientenant Baldwin taking rank as first lieutenant of Company B, in which he served until the close
of the war, holding, when mustered ont, the rank of captain, and has been commissioned as lieutenant-colonel, though not sworn as such. During his service he participated in the battles of Thompson's Station, Resaca, Cassville, Atlanta and during Sherman's march to the sea, and was wounded once. He resumed his studies at Constantine after the war was over, and entered Hillsdale College, but was called therefrom in February, 1866, to accept a lieutenancy in the Nineteenth reg- ular infantry, being promoted from second to first lieutenant, transferred to Thirty-Seventh Infantry Sept. 21, 1866 and to the Fifth In- fantry May 19, 1869, promoted to the rank of captain March 20, 1879. He was breveted major Feb. 27, 1890, for gallant services in actions against the Indians, on the Salt Fork of the Red River, Texas, Ang. 30, 1874, on MeLellan's Creek, Texas, Nov. 8, 1874, for gallant and successful attack on Sitting Bull's camp of Indians on Red Water River, Mont., Dec. 18, 1876, and conspicnous gallantry in action against Indians at Wolf Mountain, Mont., Jan. 8, 1877. He was commissioned major of the Fifth Infantry AApril 23rd, 1898, and transferred to the Third Infantry Nov. 3, 1899. He was commissioned lientenant-col- onel and inspector-general of volunteers, serv- ing from May 9, 1898, to May 12, 1899, and on Dec. 18, 1899, was made lieutenant-colonel of the Third Regular Infantry, and is now serving as sneh in the Philippines.
Col. Baldwin has twice been voted medals of honor by Congress : for distinguished brav- ery at the Battle of Peach Tree Creek, Ga., July 20, 1864, and for most distinguished gallantry in action against hostile Indians near MeLellan's Creek, Texas, Nov. 8, 1874, attack- ing them with two companies, forcing them from their strong position, and pursuing them until they were utterly routed. Most of the facts of Col. Baldwin's military record above are kindly supplied by L. R. Hammersly of New York, publisher of the U. S. Army List, soon to be issued.
C'ol. Baldwin is a close friend of Maj .- Gen. Miles. His society connections are Loyal Le- gion, Society of Indian Wars, G. A. R. and Masonic. He was married Jan. 10, 1867, to Miss Alice Blackwood, daughter of Dr. C. D. Blackwood, of Northville. They have one danghter, Juniata, wife of A. C. G. Williams- Foote, First Lieutenant Thirty-second U. S. Infantry, now on duty in the Philippines.
457
HISTORICAL SKETCHES.
BUCKLEY, EDWARD. Edward Buck- ley, president of the Buckley & Douglas Lum- ber Company, of Manistee. He is of English ancestry of the yeomanry class, his father own- ing and tilling his own land. He was born at Biddleford, Devonshire, August 8, 1842. In 1847 his parents, Robert and Mary (Selden) Buckley, moved to Montreal, where the father died, leaving two children, Edward, and a daughter, two years his junior. Shortly after the death of his father, Edward's mother went with her two children to Toronto, where the son received his first school training. When he was twelve years old he began work on a farm for his board and clothing. where he remained three years. In 1855 the mother. with her family, removed to Cheboygan, Wis., where the son learned the trade of a tinsmith. Later, when the family moved to Milwaukee, he started out for himself. He was not con- fined to one line, however, but had worked at a variety of vocations for a young man, in- cluding one season on a river steamer, plying between St. Paul, Minn., and St. Louis, Mo. While in Milwaukee he realized the inport- ance of a better educational equipment and took a six months' course in a commercial college, attending both day and evening ses- sions as a necessary measure of financial econ- omy. On August 5, 1862, he enlisted in the Twenty-fourth Wisconsin Infantry, with which he joined Buell's Army of the Cum- berland, participating in the battles of Perry- ville, Stone River, Chickamauga, Mission Ridge and all of the battles of the Atlanta campaign. Upon his discharge in August, 1865, Mr. Buckley returned to Milwaukee, where he entered the employ of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad Company, in the capacity of a tinsmith. In 1867 he came to Manistee and took charge of a tinshop for a local hardware firm, and six months later opened a hardware and tinsmith business for himself under the name of Edward Buckley & Co., having HI. V. Marchant, of Milwaukee, as his business associate. In 1874 he closed out his hardware business and together with Mr. Ruggles carried on a general land business
EDWARD BUCKLEY.
for several years. In 1880 Mr. Buckley en- tered into a partnership with William Doug- las for the purpose of carrying on a logging and lumber manufacturing business, in which they were very successful, six years later pur- chasing the Ruddock, Nuttal & Co. timber lands and mill property, and beginning the extensive improvements which have made their plant one of the most complete of its kind in the Northwest. Mr. Buckley is a member of the Republican party and is one of the candidates on the Republican electoral ticket at the pending election (1900). Hle is president and treasurer of the Buckley & Douglas Lumber Company and president and general manager of the Manistee & North- eastern Railroad Co., running between Manis- tee and Traverse City. He is a 32nd degree Mason and has held all of the important offi- ces of the several lodges to which he belongs, including the office of Eminent Commander of Manistee Commandery, No. 32 Knights Templar. Ile is also a member of Saladin Temple of Grand Rapids and of the Grand Rapids Consistory. In 1869 Mr. Buckley was married to Miss Mary D. Ruggles, who died in 1886. In 1894 he was united in marriage to Miss Jonnie Sloan, daughter of Hon. Jolm Sloan, of Savannah, Georgia, by whom he has one daughter.
458
MEN OF PROGRESS.
EUGENE T. SAWYER.
SAWYER, EUGENE T. The oldest law practitioner in the county of Wexford bears the well-known name foregoing. He was born at Grand Rapids, May 8, 1848, his father, James Sawyer, having come from England in 1834 and located at Grand Rapids. Under contract the father removed the stumps from what is now the principal street of the second city, and later was connected with the first company that opened the plaster beds at Grand Rapids, and for years burned the stucco that supplied all of western Michigan. The mother of the present Mr. Sawyer was Susan C. Mar- din, of a French Huguenot family, that eamne to the French settlement at Grand Rapids in 1838. Mr. Sawyer's primary education was received in the neighborhood schools and in the Grand Rapids high school, from the latter of which he graduated in 1868. His first re- sources were secured by work as a farm hand and teaching a district school, he having been employed as a teacher near Grand Rapids for two years, his ambition having been to save money enongh to defray his expenses in a col- lege course. He entered the law department of the University in the fall of 1870 and graduated therefrom in 1873. He borrowed
$200 to complete his course, following which he located at Cadillac. Having taken a eom- mereial course at Grand Rapids in 1869 he im- proved the knowledge there acquired by keep- ing books for a couple of business firms in Cadillae to meet his eurrent expenses. He opened a law office in the same building with the "Cadillae News," and for two years acted as reporter, solicitor and collector for the pa- per, attending to his bookkeeping at night, while building up a law practice. At the end of the second year he was elected Justice of the Peace, which gave him a start and an extended acquaintance. He was a law partner with S. S. Fallass for two years, and in 1878 became associated with his present partner, James R. Bishop.
Mr. Sawyer has contributed very largely to the material development of the eity of Cadil- lac. He was for years secretary of the Cadil- lac Improvement Board, which was organized to promote the manufacturing interests of the eity, and was the means of securing several new industries, notably the Cadillae Handle Company, Cadillae Stave & Heading Com- pany and the C. M. Oviatt Manufacturing Company, besides many smaller eoneerns. He was one of the promoters of the western divis- iou of the now Toledo & Ann Arbor railroad, and was for years its loeal attorney. To Mr. Sawyer is given the credit of having seeured for Cadillac its handsome brick and stone school buildings. A majority of the sehool board favored wooden buildings, but during an all night session, elosing at 4 o'clock in the morning, Mr. Sawyer converted them to the solid plau.
Politieally, Mr. Sawyer is an independent, not affiliating with any party and never having voted a straight party ticket. Beeanse of this he has held public office very little, exeept where politics did not enter. He was eight years a member of the loeal school board, was for four years its president and two years its secretary, serving one year in the double eapa- city. Mr. Sawyer and his family are affiliated with the Congregational church. Miss Kate M. Sipley, daughter of John F. Sipley, of Ann Arbor, beeame Mrs. Sawyer in 1875. Of the two daughters, Christobel is a graduate of the University and a teacher in the Cadil- lac high school, and Olive is a student at the University.
459
HISTORICAL SKETCHES.
APLIN, HENRY H. One of the most popular of Michigan's sons, wherever he is known, is Henry H. Aplin, of West Bay City. His parents, Thomas and Elvira (Metealf) Aplin, came to Michigan in 1835, settling in Shetford township, Genesce county, where Henry H. was born April 15, 1841, the fam- ily removing to Flint in 1848. The son's edu- cation was received in the public schools of Flint. The family returned to the farm in 1856, where the son remained until the out- break of the Civil War, when he enlisted on July 3, 1861, in Company C, Sixteenth Mich- igan Infantry, which was attached to the First Division, Third Brigade, Fifth Army Corps, Army of the Potomac, serving until the close of the war and leaving the service July 16, 1865, with the rank of second lieutenant. Re- turning to Michigan, he engaged in mercantile business at Wenona, now West Bay City, where he has since resided. He was postmas- ter at West Bay City from November, 1869, to June, 1886, and was again appointed to the same office Oct. 1, 1898. At the November eleetion in 1886 he was elected Anditor Gen- eral of the State. His personal popularity is shown by his having led his party ticket (the Republiean) by over 10,000 votes in the State and nearly 2,000 in his own county. Ile was re-elceted to the same office in 1888. After the expiration of his term he, with others, un- dertook the construction of a system of elec- tric street railways in West Bay City, of which he was the general manager until he closed out his interest in the enterprise in 1891. In 1894 Mr. Aplin was elected to the lower honse of the State Legislature from the second dis- trict of Bay county, serving during the ses- sion of 1895. He has represented his party in local and state convention for many years and was a delegate to the national convention that nominated Blaine and Logan in 1884.
HENRY H. ALPIN.
He was a member of the Republican state central committee 1888-92 and has been chair- man of every local committee, congressional, senatorial, representative, county, township and ward. The Republicans have been snc- cessful only when he was at the helm, and he never lost but one (county) campaign, He served as Township Clerk and Township Treasurer, each three years, and was never defeated but once, when he was a candidate for Village Trustee.
On his father's side Mr. Aplin is of Scotch descent. Ile is a member of the Masonic fra- ternity, of the Knights of Pythias, the Na- tional Union, the Royal Arcanmn, the Order of Foresters, and the G. A. R., and has been commander of Ralph Cummings Post of West Bay City several terms. Mr. Aplin was mar- ried at Maumee City, Ohio, in 1879, to Miss Frances L. Patchen, daughter of Malcolm B. Patchen, of Maumee City. Their one dangh- ter, Daisy A., is the wife of Charles B. Cone, a traveling salesman of Chicago.
460
MEN OF PROGRESS.
BRAKIE J. ORR,
ORR, BRAKIEJ. Mr. Orr was born May 15, 1860, and received his education at the public schools of Saginaw. After leaving school he learned the trade of a stone entter with Woodruff & Caswell, of Saginaw, after which he spent about two and one-half years in various places in the United States and Canada, improving himself in his trade. Re- turning to Saginaw, he entered the employ of Woodruff & Caswell as a traveling salesman, and while thus employed came into competi- tion with Mr. Edwin Pryor, since deceased, of the Bay City Stone Co. Mr. Pryor was so favorably impressed with his manner and style of doing business that he offered him the posi- tion of manager of the marble and granite de- partment of the Bay City Stone Co., which he accepted, and where he remained until he laid down the mallet and chisel to take up the practice of law. The law was the profession to which Mr. Orr aspired, and his hope was to earn sufficient money at his trade to enable him to pursue his law studies withont interruption. Shortly after taking up his residence in Bay City, he met with the young lady (Miss Euphemia Augusta Calvin) who is now his
wife, to whom he was married in 1883. A fast increasing family did not bring his cher- ished plans any nearer; he therefore deter- mined to pursue his studies while working at his trade. Under the tutelage of Curtis E. Pierce, of Bay City, he pursued the study of law for several years, and was admitted to practice in March, 1894. On the same day of his admission he was nominated for justice of the peace, on the Republican ticket, and was elected by 329 majority, the Democratic ma- jority the year before having ranged from 200 to 600. While filling this position he was ten- dered and accepted the position of assistant prosecuting attorney, in which capacity he made the remarkable record of fifty-two con- victions in one term of court, surprising not only the members of the bar, but the most san- guine of his friends. In April, 1897, Mr. Orr's name was presented to the common coun- cil for the appointment of city attorney, but the Democratic candidate was successful. Two years later he received the entire twenty-two votes of the council for the same position (which he now occupies), although several prominent Republican attorneys of the city were aspirants for the place. As a lawyer he is careful, painstaking and thorough, fair and courteous to his opponents, almost disregard- ing technicalities, but taking advantage of everything of merit advantageous to his clients. His rapid advancement is but a just tribute to his studiousness and energy. This was said of him by a gentleman of his city, "Why shouldn't he succeed ? He not only hasn't an enemy in the world, but everybody is his friend ; he's a gentleman at all times, to all persons, under all circumstances, and is the same common everyday Brake now that he was when a stonecutter.
Mr. Orr is well known throughout the United States and Canada from his contribu- tions to trade journals. He is fair and just in his treatment of labor questions, his sympa- thies being with labor and labor organizations, and believes that organization and education are the only solutions to the many labor prob- lems. In polities he has always been a Repub- lican. Ile is a member of the Oddfellows, Masons, Maccabees and Modern Woodmen. On his father's side of the house Mr. Orr is descended from the Irish of County Cavan, Ireland, there being among his ancestors such names as Cavendish, Breakey and Courtenay. His mother's people are Dutch Quakers.
461
HISTORICAL SKETCHES.
BROWN, MICHAEL. Many a man prominent in civil life at the present day re- ceived his baptism in the Civil War, and Judge Michael Brown, of Big Rapids, is one of them. The Brown family, of which he is a represeu- tative, came from the Netherlands and were sailors by profession. The parents of Judge Brown were farmers in Pulaski county, In- diana, where the son was born April 20th. 1841. Ilis earlier years were passed in con- nection with home duties and the district school. At the age of seventeen he went to Logansport, twenty-four miles from the home of his parents, to attend the county seminary there. He boarded himself, his parents bring- ing him supplies every second week, but when the roads were bad he made the trip home and baek on foot, to procure the necessary supplies. In the fall of 1859 he entered Franklin Col- lege at Franklin, Ind., boarding himself as be- fore, where he remained until the first of the voar 1860, when he entered Wabash College at Crawfordsville, from which in May, 1862, he enlisted as a private in Company B, Second Indiana Cavalry, for service in the Civil War and remained in the service until the close of the war in 1865. His service in the army entitled him to promotion, which was offered him, but he declined, preferring to do his duty in the ranks till the end. He was made pris- oner during the advance on Atlanta, May 9, 1864, was sent to Andersonville, where he was eonfined until October 16, when he was sent to Florence, Alabama, and paroled, that is, the ninety-four pounds of him that remained. IIc was furloughed, but returned to the service as soon as he was able to do so. Returning home after the close of the war, the young soldier took a course in a business college at Chicago, and in the fall of 1866 entered the University of Michigan, taking a mixed law and literary course, and graduated from the law depart- ment in March, 1868. He located in Big Rap- ids, then an isolated lumber town forty miles from any railroad, and hung out his sign as attorney at law. Clients were slow in coming and he became county superintendent of schools for two years, and also worked as sup-
MICHAEL BROWN.
ply clerk in a humber office, packing supplies to be sent to the eamps. As the beginning of the second year the law business began to brighten up, since which time Judge Brown has had no scarcity of clients. He was elected mayor of Big Rapids in 1873 and served one term. In 1876 he was appointed Cireuit Judge by the Governor in case of a vacaney, to which office he was elected at the next general election. Ilis judicial service was highly satis- factory, but he resigned in 1881, preferring the active practice of his profession in which he is still engaged. Ile was appointed a mem- ber of the first board of managers of the Sol- diers' Home at Grand Rapids and was its sec- retary for five years. He has been a member of the G. A. R. since 1868. Was judge advo- cate of the department in 1887 and department commander in 1889. He has the higher de- grees in the Masonic fraternity, including the Templar and Mystic Shrine degrees.
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