Portrait and biographical album of Gratiot county, Mich., Part 45

Author:
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Chicago, Chapman brothers
Number of Pages: 856

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Francis E. French was born in Grand Rapids July 26, 1858. Emma Dubois, his wife, was born in Wayne Co., Ohio, Feb. 29, 1864, and is a daughter of Edward and Mary A. (Burkhart) Dubois, who came in 1865 to Isabella County, this State, where they now reside. Francis French is politically an anti-Monopolist. He was chosen Clerk of his town- ship in the spring of 1882. He and wife have one son, Francis E., born March 4, 1884.

afayette Sweatland, one of the pioneer set- tlers of North Star Township, resident on section 12, was born in Franklin Co., Vt., July 25, 1829. He is a son of Philetus and Hannah (Barton) Sweatland, natives of Con- necticut and Massachusetts, respectively. They moved to Cuyahoga Co., Ohio, in 1831, and Mr. S. remembers Cleveland at that time as no larger than Ithaca, this county, is at present. The family re- mained there until 1843, when they removed to Hu- ron County, same State.

In 1854 Mr. Sweatland came to this State and en- tered 320 acres of Government land on the north

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GRATIOT COUNTY.

half of section 12, North Star Township, a portion of which he still owns and on which he is now living. He brought his family here, consisting of his father, mother, wife and child, in December of that year and entered at once upon the arduous task of clearing and improving his land.

Mr. Sweatland experienced all the trials of the early pioneer. ITis customary "log cabin " was erected in the woods and under the most adverse circumstances. He had only one neighbor within a radius of seven miles, and incessant individual toil were necessary to accomplish the aim so fondly cher- ished in his energetic mind. He worked diligently and earnestly, and to-day can look back upon the past and smile at the difficulty and adversity they offered.

Mr. Sweatland enlisted in the late civil war, enroll- ing in Co. D, 26th Mich. Vol. Inf., Aug. 9, 1862, and was discharged June 13, 1865. He was detailed to accompany the ambulance train and had charge of one consisting of 18 wagons.

He was married in Seneca Co., Ohio, April 28, 1853, to Lydia, daughter of Dr. Elias Sower, whose biography we present in this work, and six children have been born to them, namely : Lorena, Josephine (died Jan. 14, 1875, aged 19), Hortense (died Dec. 2, 1872, aged 14), Theodore (died June 25, 1871, aged four years and ten months), Arthur E. and Benson D.

Mr. S. is recognized as one of the prominent men of the Township, straight-forward and honest in his dealings with his fellow man and one who has never sought political favor. He owns 240 acres of land in the County, and devotes his time to the cultivation and improvement of the same.

Mr. S. is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and likewise of the Knights of Honor and I. O. O. F.

athaniel Walker, farmer, on section 24, Fulton Township, is a son of Stephen and Lydia (White) Walker, natives of New York and New Hampshire. They settled first in Seneca Co., N. Y., and came to Lenawee Co., Mich., about 1832, where they lived until their death. He died May 27, 1878, and she Aug. 7, 1882. Their family comprised four sons and one daughter.

Nathaniel, the third son, was born in Lenawee Co., Mich., Feb. 19, 1836, and worked on the farm and attended school until 21 years of age. In the spring of 1859 he came with his wife and one child to Gratiot County, and settled on 80 acres of land which he had bought two years previously. He at once built a log house and commenced to improve his place. He has since added 80 acres, and has now under cultivation 125 acres. He has recently erected a fine dwelling-house.

Nov. 2, 1856, in Fairfield, Lenawee Co., Mich., he married Miss Ellen E. Reynolds, daughter of Job and Lydia (Laycock) Reynolds, natives of Rhode Island and New York State. Mrs. Walker was born in Jackson Co., Mich., Jan. 26, 1838, and is the mother of 10 children, eight of whom survive: Sterah B., Effie E., Martha J., Anna C., J. D., Glenn A. A., Nora M. and Gertie Z. The two deceased are Lydia A. and John M. Mr. Walker has been Super- visor of his township two years. In politics he is a zealous and life-long Republican.

arius Reid, of Reid & Bro., farmers and sheep-raisers, section 18, Arcada Township, was born in Almont Township, Lapeer Co., Mich., July 28, 1841 ; and is the son of Hul- bert Reid, a native of Genesee Co., N. Y. The father is a farmer in Lapeer County, where he located in 1835, in a then new country. Having his full share of the hard work incident to clearing and improving a timbered farm, his time for study was limited. Such opportunities as he had, however, were assiduously improved, so that he acquired a very fair education. On the breaking out of the Rebell- ion, his patriotic impulses led him to offer his ser- vices to his country; and accordingly, when only 20 years old, Aug. 15, 1861, he enlisted in Co. L, ist Mich. Vol. Cav., which belonged to Custer's brigade, and served in the Army of the Potomac. He fought in all engagements in which his regiment participated. lle was never wounded, though he had some narrow escapes. At one time, in the Shenandoah Valley, he bad a horse shot from under him, but he soon obtain- ed another, and was off in pursuit of the enemy. At Perrysville, Va., after three years' service, he was honorably discharged.

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GRATIOT COUNTY.

Returning home, he taught school one winter, and then studied in an academy with a view to teaching. He next took a course in the Iron City Business Col- lege, at Pittsburg, Pa., studying also telegraphy. He was, after completing his course, then employed on the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, and then as operator on the Detroit & Milwaukee Railroad at St. John's, Mich. Here he remained until 1869.

June 4, 1869, in Shiawassee County, he was married to Jennie, daughter of Edward and Isabella (Savage) Lawrence, natives of the North of Ireland and of Scotch descent. The father was by occupation a farmer, and died at his home in Vernon Township, Shiawassee County, in August, 1876; the mother resides on the old homestead, enjoying a hale old age. Jennie was born in Brownsville, Jefferson Co., N Y., Feb. 25, 1847, and when very young she came with her parents to Shiawassee Co., Mich., where she was educated and lived till her marriage. In July, after that event, Mr. Reid quit the railroad, and with his brother engaged at St. John's in shipping wheat and other produce. In May, 1872, they came to Gratiot County and purchased 280 acres of partly improved land on section 18, Arcada Township. Messrs. Reid & Bro. have 175 acres under good cultivation, and keep 200 and upward fine sheep on hand.

Mr. and Mrs. Reid are the parents of six children, four of whom are living: May Lillian, born Jan. 4, 1870; Adelia, born Oct. 13, 1873 ; Anna, born Oct. 13, 1875 ; and Frank, born June 1, 1882. Mr. Reid is an active citizen as well as business man. He was elected Supervisor of Arcada Township in 1881, and again in 1883 ; was for some time Superintendent of Schools, and is now School Director. Politically he is a staunch Republican. In February, IS83, he was appointed for three years President of the Farm- ers' Mutual Fire Insurance Company of Gratiot and Isabella Counties.

atrick Sheridan, farmer, on section 21, Fulton Township, is a son of Michael and Mary (Healey) Sheridan, natives of Ireland, where the mother died. The father came to the United States in 1827, and settled in Monroe Co., N. Y., where he died, Nov. 9, 1850. Patrick was born in Ireland, Jan. 5, 1826, and came

to this great republic with his father when 16 years old. He lived for eight years in Monroe Co., N. Y., and then went to Orleans Co., same State. A year later he went to Ohio, afterward returning to New York. He lived in the Empire State until October, 1853, when he came to Brooklyn, Jackson Co., Mich. During his stay here he was for a few months in the employ of the Government, as a blacksmith. He lived there until February, 1865, when he came to Gratiot County and settled on So acres of section 21, Fulton Township, which he had bought the year previous. He now owns 110 acres, of which 90 are improved.

Oct. 2, 1849, in Rochester, N. Y., he united him- self in marriage to Miss Margaret, daughter of Richard and Ellen (Murphy) Hughes, natives of Ireland. She was born in County Down, Ireland, Nov. 10, 1828. Mr. and Mrs. S. have been the parents of ten children, six of whom survive : Michael H., Margaret A., Francis E., Tom J., Mary A. and Agnes. The deceased are : Ellen, Thomas, Patrick H. and Teresa. The parents are attached to the Catholic Church. Politically, Mr. S. votes with the Democratic party.

homas Culy, farmer, section 25, New Ha- ven Township, is a son of Benjamin and Mary E. (Wykes) Culy, natives of England, who came to this State in 1835, and died in Scio Township, Washtenaw County, where the subject of this sketch was born, Sept. 22, 1835. He remained with his parents until 16 years of age, working on the farm. He then apprenticed himself to Alex. Sonier, in the vicinity of Dexter, that coun- ty, to learn the cooper's trade. In six months he commenced work as a " jour," but after a short time he tried farming; then resumed his trade a few years; next he worked at blacksmithing some time at Williamston, Ingham Co., Mich .; then worked on a farm again for a year, for his brother in his native township, then followed railroading three years, and then for a time alternated between farming and coop- ering.

He lost his wife, mother and sister at nearly the same time, an affliction seldom experienced by any one. At this time he lived in Parma, Jackson Coun-

GRATIOT COUNTY.

426

ty. Soon afterward, in the fall of 1867, he came to Gratiot County, settling first on 40 acres of section 25, where he still resides. To this he has added So acres, and made good improvements, recently erect- ing a fine house and barn. He is now considered a first-class farmer.

Mr. Culy was first married in September, 1856, to Miss Charlotte Baker, who was born and brought up in the State of New York. After a short residence with her parents in Washtenaw County, whither the family had moved, she was married, and then resided in Jackson County until her death, which occurred Aug. 29. 1865. Nov. 7, 1867, Mr. C. was again mar- ried .to Miss Elizabeth Myra, who was born June 1, 1849, in Clinton Co., Ohio. She has become the mother of six children, namely: Clara, Sarah E., Rosa M., Frederick J., Emma G. and Ansel B.

Mr. Culy is in politics a Democrat, and has held several township offices.

eorge W. Pulfrey, proprietor of the Pul- frey House, at Alma, was born Jan. 18, 1852, in Seneca Co., N. Y. His parents, Alexander and Susan A. (Longwood) Pulfrey, were natives of the State of New York, where they established their home after marriage. In 1863 they came to Michigan and settled in Wash- ington Township, Gratiot County. After a stay there of five years they went to St. John's, Clinton County, where the father is yet living. The mother died there in 1874.

Mr. Pulfrey became his own master when he was 16 years old. About the time his parents removed to Clinton County, he began to drive stage between St. John's and St. Louis, and acted in that capacity about three years. In 1875, he engaged as a clerk in the Exchange Hotel at St. Louis, and was there em- ployed until the spring of 1878 when he leased the Seaman House, at Alma. A year and a half later he bought the property and is still conducting the same business. The hotel is now known as the " Pul- frey House " and has accommodations for 35 guests. Mr. Pulfrey is a Republican in political principle.

He was married at Maple Rapids, Clinton County, Sept. 2, 1873, to Eliza, daughter of Joseph and Eliz- abeth Eicher. Mrs. Pulfrey was born Jan. 24, 1855.

in Gratiot Co., Mich. Her parents were born on the river Rhine, in France and Switzerland. Three chil - dren born to Mr. and Mrs. Pulfrey are named Her bert G., Grace M. and Iva M.

illiam Smith, farmer, section 34, New Ha- ven Township, is a son of Joseph and Mary (Stifler) Smith, natives of Pennsylva_ nia and of English descent. William was born in Stark Co., Ohio, Nov. 31, 1839, where he lived till he was nine years old, when the family removed to Seneca County. There our sub- ject worked on the farm, attending school during the winters, till he arrived at manhood's estate. He re- mained in his father's employment till he was 24 years of age, at which time he was united in marriage with Catharine Brillhart. The newly wedded couple settled down at once on a farm in Seneca County, where they remained for 16 years. At the end of that period they came to Gratiot County and pur- chased the farm owned by James Blain. This con- sisted of 80 acres, part of which was improved. He has since made some excellent changes in the farm buildings, has added 50 acres to his farm, and now has 93 acres under the plow.

Mrs. Smith was born in Stark Co., Ohio, Dec. 25, 1841, moving with her parents when 11 years of age to Crawford County, and afterward to Seneca County, where she was married. She is the mother of three children, as follows: Clara A., born Sept. 25, 1864; Jennie M., March 3, 1868 ; and Sarah B., May 31, 1872. Mr. and Mrs. Smith are members of the Ger- man Baptist or Dunkard Church, of which Mr. Smith is a Deacon. He has held several offices of his town- ship and in politics is a strong Republican.

eorge H. Yerington, agent of the Amer- ican Express Company, resident at Alma, was born at lonia, Mich., Aug. 19, 1853, and is the son of William and Amanda (Ben- nett) Yerington. His father was a native of Connecticut, his mother of Michigan. In the spring of 1865 they came to Alma, where they are yet resident.

At the age of 16 Mr. Verington entered the em-

THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY

ASTOR, LENOX AND TILDEN FOUNDATIONS R

Diles Kennedy M.L.

GRATIOT COUNTY.

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ploy of his brother Almon, then a druggist at Alma. He was occupied there five years, until the business terminated by a change of proprietorship, and he was variously employed until June, 1881, when he engaged as clerk in the drug store of Geo. C. Waller. A year later he obtained a situation with George C. Beebe, and operated in the capacity of assistant sev- eral months. In January, 1883, he secured a posi- tion with Joseph .B. Salisbury in the drug business, which relation continued until March, 1884. He is now with B. S. Webb, druggist. In the fall of 1883 he received his appointment as express agent. He is a Republican in political principle.

Mr. Yerington was married at Alma, Oct. 26, 1881, to Ada, daughter of C. P. and Maria Sherman. She is a native of the State of New York.

tiles Kennedy, M. D., physician and sur- geon, at St. Louis, is the son of Rev. George W. and Ellen (Jennings) Kennedy, and was born April 1, 1838, in Lebanon, Ky. His father was born in 1805, in New London, Pa., and was educated at Princeton College, at which institution he graduated with honor. He studied theology and entered the ministry of the Presbyterian Church, in whose interests he has labored since he commenced his career of active ministerial service. He has labored chiefly in Ken- tucky, Maryland and Delaware, and is still acting in his vocation in Middletown, Del. On the paternal side Dr. Kennedy is descended from the sturdy race known and distinguished as Scotch-Irish. His grandfather, accompanied by two brothers, came to the American continent just prior to the colonial struggle for independence, and all three adopted the issues of the Revolution, engaging in the war, in which one of them held the rank of Major. They settled at New London, Pa., and founded the academy at that place. The institution has always held first rank in educational standing, and they continued its management a number of years. On the mother's side Dr. Kennedy is a lineal descend- ant of John Jennings, Duke of Ghent, better known to history as John of Gaunt. Humphrey Jennings, son of the Lancastrian ancestor, resided in Birming- ham, England. He had five sons and two daugh-

ters. Three sons-Daniel, Augustin and William- came to America. The daughters were : Sarah, wife of the Duke of Marlborough, and Frances, Duchess of Tyrconnel. women whose beauty turned the heads of kings and revolutionized courtly circles. Daniel Jennings was born in 1690, in Suffolkshire, England. He sold his estate and came to Maryland in 1722, afterward removing to Virginia. His sons, Daniel and James, were in the colonial service during the entire period of the Revolution. The former was born Oct. 3, 1737, in Fairfax, Va., and died in 1783. The latter was born in 1735 and died in 1811. Daniel Jennings (third) was born in Virginia in 1769, was married in 1799, and died at Lebanon, Ky., in 1846. He married Sarah Jennings, a de- scendant from a collateral branch of the same family, born 1776, died 1852; and his daughter, whose full name was Mary Elinor Foster Jennings, was the mother of Dr. Kennedy. She was born in Virginia in 1808, and died in Lebanon, Ky., in 1840.

The parents of Dr. Kennedy removed to Delaware when he was in his boyhood, and soon after he be- came a pupil at the Milford Academy, where he was a student until he was 17 years old, when he entered the University of Pennsylvania, and was graduated from the Medical Department in the spring of 1858. Hle spent two years in prospecting through the West and Southwest, and finally settled in the Shenandoah Valley, Va., where he engaged in practice about one year, when he was appointed Surgeon in the Con- federate Army, in the corps of Stonewall Jackson. He was afterward assigned to the command of Beau- regard, and later to that of Gen. Robert E. Lee. He was taken prisoner at Newbern, N. C., and held in durance about one month in the city of Washington. After the close of the war he returned to private practice in Newark, Delaware.

The professional standing of Dr. Kennedy during the war is fully evidenced by the fact that, after the battle of Antietam, he was sent under a flag of truce by Gen. Lee to Frederick City as chief of a corps of surgeons to co-operate with the surgeons of the Fed- eral army in relieving the wounded of both armies. The special order of Gen. Lee prescribed that all bills created by Dr. Kennedy in the line of his offi- cial duty and approved by him should be paid in gold by the Secretary of the Confederate Treasury at Richmond. He was at Frederick six weeks, and on his return was appointed Inspector of Hospitals as a

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mark of appreciation of his services in the discharge of his responsible and arduous labors. Gov. Jervis, of North Carolina, while in attendance at the Yorktown celebration m 1881, related the following incident to Judge Brown and Robert Smith, Esq., of Ithaca. He was terribly wounded at the battle of Drury's Bluff in the shoulder joint, and the examining surgeons had decided on amputation as a necessity, and loss of life as more than probable. Dr. Kennedy chanced to pass at the moment, and Gov. Jervis called his attention to his case, and stated the determination of the other surgeons. After an examination Dr. Kennedy stated his opinion, which was that the arm could be saved with a loss of several inches in length. The instruments were turned over to him, and he successfully performed the difficult and, at that time, rare operation, resection of shoulder joint, to the great satisfaction and admiration of the surgeons present. On concluding his remarks, the Governor extended a very useful arm, observing: " Here, gentlemen, is the arm, shortening and all." He declared that he was furthermore indebted to Dr. Kennedy for his life. After the close of the war in 1865, Dr. Kennedy was offered the chair of Medical Practice in Richmond Medical College, but declined the honor.

In 1871 Dr. Kennedy came to St. Louis, where he has established a prosperous and popular business. HIe has taken a conspicuous part in the establish- ment of all public improvements, as the Holly water works, a good system of sewerage and splendid pub- lic schools. He is the owner of considerable village property, and is a member of the State Medical So- ciety of Michigan. He is also known in the circles of medical literature as a contributor to the medical journals of the day.

‹

In 1866-7, Dr. Kennedy wrote a series of papers, which were published in the Medical and Surgical Reporter of Philadelphia, on " Mistakes in Surgical Diagnosis," and cited many cases of patients and practitioners then living. These were the occasion of many acrimonious professional disputes, but the general consensus of opinion settled in favor of Dr. Kennedy. In 1869, he published a statement of his experiences in treatment of scarlet fever by cool baths and cool regimen. The idea was unique at that time, and called forth a storm of denunciation, but its great merit was soon demonstrated, and the treat- ment may now be found in all works on practical

medicine. In 1872, he wrote "The Mineral Springs of Michigan," a work which gave the first and only authenticated account of the quality of the famous waters of the State and its health results. It was published in a handsomely bound octavo volume, the first edition of which was soon exhausted. A second edition was about to be issued when the establish- ment doing the work was burned, and the plates were destroyed. Dr. Kennedy's work is mentioned by re- cent publications on the topic of mineral waters and summer resorts as authoritative. In 1870, through the Medical and Surgical Reporter, he called the at- tention of the profession to the value of Iodoform as a remedial agent, and recited numerous cases illus trating its use. These papers were copied by the leading medical journals of this country and Europe, and Iodoform has taken a high position all over the world as a therapeutic agent. Since 1872, he has been a contributor to the Detroit Review of Medicine and its successors. Among his recent contributions to medical journalism which have attracted much notice are, "The Direct Abstraction of Heat as a Method in the Treatment of Typhoid Fever," and on the " Philosophical Treatment of Diphtheria."

Dr. Kennedy is prominent in local politics, and has been for several years Chairman of the Demo- cratic County Committee.

In 1876, at the beginning of the " absolute money " furor, Dr. Kennedy made a speech at the Democratic convention in Ithaca in favor of "honest money." This speech was published in nearly every paper in the United States that was opposed to the absolute money scheme. The following paragraph caused it to be known as " Kennedy's milk-ticket speech :"

Gentlemen, I show you another paper credit used a good deal in my neighborhood. It reads :

GOOD FOR

ONE QUART OF MILK.

E. Goodrich.

Now, Mr. Goodrich is a very worthy, energetic farmer who lives near me. Last winter we had a lit- tle deal, and I got several dollars worth of these paper counters. Now, suppose, when I applied for milk, Mr. Goodrich had fallen back on his dignity and said : "Sir, do you doubt my solvency ? Are not my farms, lands, tenements and chattels pledged for that milk ? Are not my resources as large as any man's

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GRATIOT COUNTY.

in Gratiot County ? What you want is not milk but faith! You ought to have more faith in these tick- ets." Most of you would think Mr. Goodrich a very singular man. Now, suppose the murrain breaks out in Mr. Goodrich's herd of cows, or a drouth comes on and makes his pastures fail, and the quantity of milk is decreased by one-half, so that every morning, in- stead of giving him two of these tickets and getting two quarts of milk, I can only get one quart and give him one ticket. Everybody is served the same way. Pretty soon a part of our population get tired of half rations of milk and they hold a rousing indignation meeting, and a terrific resolution is passed that Good- rich shall issue-not more milk-but more milk tick- ets! which shall read, " This is one quart absolute milk !"

But, gentlemen, I have a piece of " absolute "mon- ey here. It was on white paper originally, but it has become yellow with age. It is rudely engraved. On its face is a ship, a plow, and three sheaves of wheat, emblematic, of course, of agriculture and commerce. It bears this legend, "This bill shall pass for six- teen shillings." This bill is about in the hundredth year of its existence, and it has failed to pass for any- thing for about 95 years. The " faith and credit " of the grand old commonwealth of Pennsylvania that issued this paper was as great as the human mind can conceive. Her men were of the highest order of patriots; they gave fortune and life as a free libation on the altar of their country, in the cause of freedom. There is a sweet odor of liberty still clings to this old bill-political liberty, individual liberty, for which martyrs have died and heroes contended for ages. The charter of human rights, the habeas corpus, was not suspended to print this bill. No arrests without warrant of law was made. A speedy trial by jury was denied no one. All the great rights of personal and community independence were held sacred. If gov- ernment can create money out of nothing, this was the supreme moment of the world's history for the ac- complishment of so great an end.

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Portrait and biographical album of Gratiot county, Mich., Part 45

Author: Publication date: 1884 Publisher: Chicago, Chapman brothers Number of Pages: 856

Author:
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Chicago, Chapman brothers
Number of Pages: 856