Compendium of history and biography of Minneapolis and Hennepin County, Minnesota, Part 93

Author: Holcombe, R. I. (Return Ira), 1845-1916; Bingham, William H
Publication date: 1914
Publisher: Chicago : H. Taylor & Co.
Number of Pages: 1190

USA > Minnesota > Hennepin County > Minneapolis > Compendium of history and biography of Minneapolis and Hennepin County, Minnesota > Part 93

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Mr. Boutell was born at Bakersfield, a little interior town in Franklin county, Vermont, on Jan. 3, 1837, and was reared on a farm, obtaining his scholastic training in the country school in the neighborhood of his home. He began his business career in the leather business in Massachusetts, remaining not far from his native heath and amid the civic, social and industrial associations of his nativity until he reached the age of thirty-four years. He prospered in his business and stood well in his community. But there was within him a longing for larger opportunities and a freer air, and the great Northwest seemed to offer him all he desired in this respeet. His own section of country was not lagging behind or losing ground. It was keeping pace with the march of events in its way. But the great sweep of advancement seemed to be in the regions which bask in the arms of the Mississippi and the Missouri, and he was irresistibly impelled to be in it and a part of it.

When his passion for the West became a ruling one he yielded to it, and in 1871 came to Minneapolis, after being in business three years in St. Paul. Soon after his arrival in this city he founded the large furniture business which is now carried on by his sons, Walter D. and William T. He conducted this business and other mercantile enterprises until

1907, when he retired, turning the management of the under- takings he had started over to his sons. Before coming to this city he was a member of the firm of Nelson, Rice & Boutell, tanners on an extensive scale in Worcester, Massa- chusetts. His connection with that firm gave him a wide and accurate knowledge of business, and he lost none of the lessons which the hard but thorough taskmaster, Experience, set for him.

When he located in this state to start an enterprise of his own, therefore, Mr. Bontell was well prepared for the project he had in mind. And he was by no means deterred or daunted by the magnitude of the undertaking, or even much dispirited by the uncertain state of his health, which had driven him from the bleak and humid climate of New England to the more salubrious one of this region, severe as it often is in winter. He arrived in St. Paul in 1868, and at once became a member of the firm of Coon, Boutell & Company, wholesale dealers in hardware.

After moving to Minneapolis from St. Paul he passed three or four years in the hardware trade as a retailer, then, in 1875, opened a small retail furniture store, which was the beginning of the vast business his establishment now does in its six story building at the corner of 1st Avenue South and Fifth Street, which is 165 by 140 feet in dimensions.

Mr. Boutell. was married in Massachusetts on Sept. 12, 1863, to Miss Maria C. Wellington. They have three sons and one daughter living. The daughter is now the wife of J. H. Reuttell. The father was a Republican in political faith and allegiance, but he never was an active partisan. But served on Governor Van Sant's staff with rank of colonel. His business ability and high eharacter were recognized, however, by his appointment on the city park board, of which he had been a member for six years. In fraternal circles he was connected with the Masonic order, the Knights of Pythias and the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. He was presi- dent of the Elks' Building association, which had charge of the erection of the new Elks' Temple in the city. He was also president of the Indemnity Life and Accident association. In religious affiliation he was a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and for many years he served as president of the board of directors of the Asbury hospital, to the interests of which he gave a great deal of time and attention, seeing that its affairs were properly cared for and made to result in the largest possible good to the beneficiaries of the institu- tion. Mr. Boutell was one of the best known and most highly esteemed residents of Minneapolis and deserved to be.

CHARLES A. HOHAG.

Mr. Hohag has been a resident of Minnesota since his boy- hood and is a member of one of the sterling pioneer families. He was born in Prussia, on the 10th of August, 1848, and is a son of William and Dorothea (Henchel) Hohag. He was about ten years of age when, in 1858, he accompanied his parents on their immigration to America, and his father established a home at St. Anthony, where he engaged in the work of his trade. that of carpenter. He became one of the successful contractors and builders of Minneapolis and here his death occurred in June, 1884, at which time he was sixty-eight years of age. His widow survived him by a dec- ade and was seventy years of age when she died. Of the

P. D. Boutitt

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HISTORY OF MINNEAPOLIS AND HENNEPIN COUNTY, MINNESOTA

children, the subject of this review is the only survivor, Wil- liam and Anna having died, of consumption, when in middle life.

Charles A. Hohag gained his rudimentary education in the schools of his native land and thereafter attended school in Minnesota. When eighteen years of age Mr. Hohag went to the home of his maternal grandparents. He assumed virtual charge of the farm, and during the winter terms attended school at Parker Lake. Two years after he thus assumed the work of the farm his grandmother died, and thereafter he and his venerable grandfather kept house at the old homestead for two years. A radical change was then made, as Mr. Hohag, in 1871, took unto himself a wife and devoted helpmeet, in the person of Miss Emily Moser, daugh- ter of the late Karl and Margaret Moser, who were natives of Germany and who came from Detroit, Michigan, to Minne- sota, in 1854, Mr. Moser entering a preemption claim to a tract of wild land in Golden Valley township, where he reclaimed a valuable farm. He was a millwright by trade and assisted in the erection of the first grist mill at St. Anthony Falls. He continued to reside in Golden Valley but became a successful contractor and builder in Minneapolis. Mrs. Hohag was born in Germany, in 1847.

Mr. Hohag early gave evidence of his public-spirited inter- est in local affairs, and a few years after establishing his residence on his present farm he was elected treasurer of the school district, a position of which he continued the incum- bent about ten years. In 1879 he was elected township super- visor, and in this important office he served for thirty con- secutive years, during twenty of which he was chairman of the town board of supervisors. When the village of Rich- field was incorporated, in 1907, he was elected its first president and in this office he continued to serve during the first year of his incumbency of the position of superintendent of the county farm and infirmary. He made an admirable record as a member of the board of supervisors. In 1900 Mr. Hohag was a candidate in the first Republican primarie's in Hennepin county for the office of county commissioner, but was defeated, as was he also in the contest four years later, after having made an excellent showing at the polls and having been defeated by a small majority on each occasion. In 1909 he was appointed to his present respon- sible office, that of superintendent of the county farm, and his able administration has been signally fortified by the effective co-operation of his wife.

In politics Mr. Hohag has never wavered in his allegiance save on the one occasion when he supported Grover Cleve- land for the presidency. Both he and his wife are zealous members of the Third Christian Science church in Minneapolis and both have a wide circle of friends in Hennepin county. They had seven sons, concerning whom brief record is made in conclusion of this sketch: Arthur owns an adjoining farm in Richfield; Walter, who held an office position in con- nection with the construction of the Panama canal, for a period of four years, is now identified with railroad operations in British Columbia; Augustus is a large farmer, his farm also adjoining the old home, Richfield; Herman died at the age of twenty-four; Frederick likewise owns a farm in Richfield; John is in charge of the old homestead; and Cleve- land Henry, who was named in honor of President Cleveland, resides at Seattle, Washington, where he is engaged in the fruit and produce commission business.

JOHN HARVEY HORTON.

The late John Harvey Horton, who is well remembered in Minneapolis for his activity in the lumber trade in the early years and still better for his skill and artistic taste as a house decorator, was born at Chazy, Clinton county, New York, in 1828. His father was a lawyer, farmer and merchant, and his mother was a Beach, a member of which family was one of the distinguished lawyers connected with the trial of Rev. Henry Ward Beecher.

At the age of twenty-one John H. Horton became one of the great host of "Forty-niners" who crossed the plains in search of gold. He remained in California several years, and on his return to the East found that his father was dead and that his mother and two brothers had come to Minneapolis. He followed them in the spring of 1856, thenceforth making it his home and the scene of his subsequent activities.

The two brothers were Milon and Myron, twins. Milon was a grocer and Myron a druggist on Second avenue south, the then business center. Milon died in the service of the Union during the Civil war and Myron returned to Malone, New York. The mother died in Minneapolis, and a daughter, Zerviah, became a homeopathic physician who enjoyed a large practice among the women, continuing her professional serv- ice until her death in 1893, after thirty-seven years of active practice. She was one of the earliest homeopathic physicians in the city, being preceded only by Dr. Hatch and Dr. Higby.

John H. Horton was engaged in lumbering for a number of years. He then turned to house decorating, in which work he is best and most favorably remembered. He became an expert, his services being in demand, the best homes receiving final decorations from his hand. His own first home here was at the corner of Nicollet avenue and Ninth street, and when he and wife built on that site there was but one other house within the range of vision. Later they built a new home on Diamond lake just south of the city. Mr. Horton's death occurred in April, 1892.

In politics he was a Democrat of the old school and a zeal- ous worker for the success of his party, although never an office seeker. In religious affiliation he was a Methodist, and a liberal supporter of the church. He was accounted a skill- ful sportsman, being companion of T. B. Walker in deer hunt- ing trips. He was also a great lover of fine horses and enjoyed driving in contests of speed on the street and on the Lake of the Isles.

He was married in 1857 to Miss Helen J. Scrimgeour, a daughter of E. J. and Mary (Morrison) Scrimgeour, whose mention is found on another page. Six children were born to them. Florence Isabel is the wife of L. E. Kelley of Minne- apolis. Addie S. is the wife of George Colton, and for twenty- three years has resided at Yokohama, Japan, where Mr. Colton is an importer of merchandise, but whither he first went as resident buyer for a New York mercantile firm. Mrs. Colton is active in the work of the Union church in Yokohama. Helen Morrison is the wife of Arthur E. Hammond, dealer in farm loan's and farm lands. For some years he was in with the Kelly loan office, having come from Vermont to Minneapolis in 1881. Mary Louise and Jessie Phoebe died in childhood. James Harvey Horton, the only son, is a farmer at Backus, in Cass county.

Mrs. Horton is a charter member of the old Hennepin Avenue Methodist Episcopal church, and one of the two or three survivors of the seventy-two who made up the

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HISTORY OF MINNEAPOLIS AND HENNEPIN COUNTY, MINNESOTA

first congregation. She was active in church work until affected by age and infirmities. She has made three visits to Japan, passing four years in that country. With a quick wit, a habit of close observation, a memory that is richly stored with incidents and events of pioneer life, and a cordial, genial manner in social intercourse, she is an agreeable companion and popular among the many who know her. She makes her home with her youngest daughter, Mrs. Hammond, whose four son's, Arthur Horton, Lawrence Darwin, Wray Ells- worth and John Morrison, are sources of great companion- ship and comfort to their grandmother, as are the con- siderate attentions she receives from her large circle of ad- miring friends and acquaintances.

JOHN R. HUGHES.

The late John R. Hughes, who passed the last two years of his life in Minneapolis, and died in this city on April 26, 1912, was one of the earliest settlers at Gettysburg, South Dakota, and during his residence in the town one of its most important, useful and valued citizens.

Mr. Hughes was born at Lewiston, state of New York, on December 28, 1866, the son of Hugh R. and Margaret Hughes. He passed his boyhood at Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and obtained his education in the schools of that state, finishing at one of its State Normal Schools, at which he pursued a special course of training for the profession of a teacher. He followed this profession for a short time, but soon yielded to an increasing longing for a newer and more unsettled region, and in 1884, took up his residence at Gettysburg, South Dakota, almost at the beginning of its history, and while its possibilities were as yet wholly undeveloped, but full of promise for men of nerve like him.

On locating at his new home Mr. Hughes started a bank there. He was familiar with the banking business, having had experience in it at Emmittsburg, Iowa, for a number of years. His bank proved to be a great convenience and advantage to the people around him, and a fruitful means of assistance in building up the community and providing for its growing needs. He managed it with skill and judgment, and in such a manner as to make it of great service to the public and very profitable to himself. He also dealt exten- sively in land in South Dakota, and had interests in other banks besides the one he owned and conducted at Gettysburg. He was therefore of considerable importance in the develop- ment of the new country in which he was located, and he supported with ardor all undertakings having this in view, and originated many of them himself.

Failing health caused him to retire to some extent from active pursuits, and in 1910 he temporarily changed his residence to Minneapolis, locating in this city on June 9, on account of medical assistance and making his home in the Lake Harriet section of the metropolis which had his warm admiration. While living there he assisted in organizing the Lake Harriet Commercial club. This made him friends here, and in seeking his co-operation in furtherance of other projects of value they always found him genial, obliging, liberal and highly intelligent in his views as to what would constitute judicious improvements.

Before leaving South Dakota Mr. Hughes served as a member of its legislature, and for a number of years was president of the South Dakota Bankers Association. He

attended the conventions of this association and made many strong and illuminating addresses before them. He also attended bankers and other conventions in other states, and always took an active part in the proceedings of any gather- ing of which he was a part. By appointment of the governor he also served as a member of the board of directors of the State Orphan Asylum at Sioux Falls for some years.

Mr. Hughes was always ready to do all he could to aid in promoting any worthy enterprise. He took a cordial interest in the fraternal life of the country as a Freemason of high degree, and in social alliances, through his active membership in many clubs and other organizations. Nothing was foreign to him that was human, and everybody who came in touch with him felt the quickening influence of his strong mentality, wealth of general information and companionable disposition.

Mr. Hughes was married in Wiconsin in 1892 to Miss Mary J. Williams. Two children were born of their union: Lucille, who is a graduate of the West High School in the class of 1913, and Harold, who is now (1914) a high school student. The wife is very active in connection with the affairs of the Gettysburg Literary club, and in 1912 was the secretary of the State Federation of Clubs, and a delegate to its conven- tion in 1913, and is now secretary of the Ramblers Literary club. The father's usefulness was cut short by his early death at the age of fifty-six on April 26, 1912, and the event was universally mourned throughout South Dakota, in Min- neapolis and in all other places where the people had knowl- edge of the genuine worth and conspicuous usefulness of the life which then closed.

MOSES P. HAYES.

Living now retired from all active pursuits, and serene in the enjoyment of the rest he has well earned by many trials and triumphs in business in his long and active career, and by his arduous labors in conducting a variety of useful enter- prises at different places and in different lines of industrial and mercantile endcavor, Moses P. Hayes enjoys the respect of all classes of the people of this city, and the cordial regard of all who know him well and associate with him intimately. He was an early settler in St. Anthony, as East Minneapolis was called when he located here, and if he did not assist at the birth of the new metropolis at the head of the Mississippi, he was at least one of the guides and guardians of its boy- hood, to personify the place, and a wise and helpful aid to its growth and development.

Mr. Hayes, whose home is now at 525 University avenue, was born at Limerick, Maine, on December 6, 1829. The circumstances of his parents compelled him to begin caring for himself at an early age, and the self-reliance thus taught him has been a valuable asset through all his subsequent years. As a boy he went to work in a butcher shop in Brighton, Mass., at a wage of $150 a year. He proved capable, industrious and attentive to the interest of his employers to such an extent that his pay was raised to $200 for the second year, and to $300 for the third year. After that he received $600 a year as long as he continued to work for the employers with whom he began his career; becoming head butcher.

By the time he reached the age of twenty-five years he had accumulated $1,000 by frugality and good management, and with that as active, ready and responsive capital to

Me P Hayes

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HISTORY OF MINNEAPOLIS AND HENNEPIN COUNTY, MINNESOTA

begin any new venture he might wish to make in business, he came to St. Anthony, arriving in October, 1854. Albert Stimson of Stillwater had married his sister, and Mr. Hayes accompanied them to their home in what was then the far West. Albert Stimson's cousin Charles had come to St. Anthony in 1850, and was engaged in the lumber trade here. About 1857 he erected the big mill on the island, but the undertaking proved disastrous. He is still living, now past ninety years of age, and has his home at Elk River.

Mr. Hayes, in association with Charles Stimson and his brother Daniel, built a butcher shop, Mr. Hayes assuming the management of it, and engaged in supplying the local market with meat. The shop was located on Second avenue just off Main street, and for a number of years the firm had an extensive local trade. In the course of time Charles Stimson withdrew from the firm, and some time afterward Daniel sold his interest in it and moved to Oregon. Harman Martin then became a partner of Mr. Hayes.

The butchering business was not to Mr. Martin's taste, and he induced Mr. Hayes to join him in the purchase of a foundry and machine shop at Belle Plaine. This they moved to St. Anthony at once, locating it near First avenue and the river bank. Here they manufactured flour and saw mill machinery, and while neither of them had had any previous experience in the industry, they made their undertaking successful and built up an extensive and profitable business in it.

Mr. Martin in time sold his interest in the establishment to C. R. Bushnell, and the business continued to prosper and grow until the plant was destroyed by fire in 1879. The loss of patterns by the fire was great, and other difficulties were in the way of going on in the industry, and so the firm determined to abandon it and not rebuild the plant. More- over, other persons had started in the business, and the competition promised to be keen. Altogether, the conditions did not look promising and the machine shop was given up for other engagements.

In company with the late Senator W. D. Washburn and Capt. John Martin, Mr. Hayes built a lot of grain elevators on the line of the Minneapolis & St. Louis Railroad, locating one at nearly every station from Albert Lea to Britt, Iowa. Mr. Hayes took charge of the construction of these elevators and afterward of the operation of them, buying grain for the mills at Minneapolis for eight or nine years. At the end of that period the elevators were sold, and Mr. Hayes then joined Mr. Grinnell and Mr. Jordan in putting up a cold storage plant. This was not a success financially. Mr. Hayes lost $1,500 in interest and $3,000 he had loaned on the business.

But he was game and not to be deterred by disaster. His next venture was an investment of $25,000 in the stock of a school furniture company. This proved more disastrous than the cold storage enterprise. Mr. Hayes not only lost liis investment in the stock of the company, but was forced to pay notes he had indorsed to secure funds with which to carry on the business. This company has since been placed on a paying basis, but he is no longer connected with it.

In company with Thomas F. Andrews Mr. Hayes erected an important business block on Bridge Square. This invest- ment has been profitable, as has his purchase of stock in the First National Bank, which he acquired when the bank was started. In politics he has ever been a firm and loyal Republican, but has never sought or desired a political office.

He was made a Freemason in 1864, in Cataract Lodge, and he also belongs to the Royal Arch Chapter, the Council of Royal and Select Masters and the Commandery of Knights Templar in the Masonic fraternity. For more than sixty years he has been a liberal contributor to the Congregational church.

On June 17, 1855, Mr. Hayes was married at Limerick, Maine, to Miss Elizabeth Stimson, a sister of Charles Stimson. When he came to St. Anthony this lady was one of the party, she coming out here to visit her brother. She died on October 10, 1900, after a residence in Minneapolis covering forty-six years. Of the four children born of the union all are living. They are: Nellie, the wife of W. E. Chamberlain, a jeweler in Great Falls, Montana; Carrie, the wife of T. J. Dansenberg; Emma, the widow of a Mr. Arthur N. Monroe, who is living with her father, and Frank M., who is also living at home.

ADAM HORNUNG.

The late Adam Hornung, who died in San Diego, Cal., on March 30, 1912, aged sixty-three, after a residence in this city of nearly thirty years, gave the community in which he lived and labored on this side of the Atlantic a striking example of German thrift, frugality, and business capacity.

Mr. Hornung was born in the busy commercial city of Mainz in the province of Hesse, Germany, on January 28, 1849. For a number of years he passed his winters in California, and in San Diego, that state, he obeyed Nature's last call on March 30, 1912. His remains were brought to Minneapolis for interment, and they now rest in Lakewood cemetery in this city. Germany gave him birth and Minneapolis burial; and in his active and useful life he reflected great credit on both. He was reared and educated in his native land, and according to the requirements there served his term in the army. His period of service covered the Franco-German war of 1870 and 1871. He took an active part in the short but decisive contest, and was called on to undergo many hardships and privations in doing so. He faced death in a number of battles of the war, but escaped unharmed, and at the closc of the struggle returned to his former occupation of jeweler.

In the meantime Mr. Hornung's father had come to the United States and located in Cleveland, Ohio. He sent for his two sons, Adam and Vincent, and they joined him in Cleveland, where they also had a sister living. Vincent, his sister and their father remained in the Ohio lake metropolis, and Vincent died there in 1913. Adam, however, came on to Chicago, where he engaged in dyeing and cleaning, carrying on a profitable business and growing into extensive favor with the residents of the city. In 1875 he was married in Chicago to Mrs. Mary Penning, who was born in the grand duchy of Luxemburg, but rearcd in Paris, her parents being French. She came to Chicago a widow, with two children, but was married soon after her arrival in that city to Mr. Hornung.

After their marriage the couple remained in Chicago for about eight years. In 1883 they changed their residence to Minneapolis, and here Mr. Hornung bought the dyeing and cleaning plant of a Mr. Myer on Bridge Square. He continued the business until his retirement from all active pursuits in

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Compendium of history and biography of Minneapolis and Hennepin County, Minnesota, Part 93

Author: Holcombe, R. I. (Return Ira), 1845-1916; Bingham, William H Publication date: 1914 Publisher: Chicago : H. Taylor & Co. Number of Pages: 1190

Author: Holcombe, R. I. (Return Ira), 1845-1916; Bingham, William H
Publication date: 1914
Publisher: Chicago : H. Taylor & Co.
Number of Pages: 1190