USA > Missouri > Jackson County > Kansas City > A memorial and biographical record of Kansas City and Jackson County Mo. > Part 41
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0 OCTOR WILLIAM A. FORSTER, homeopathic physician and sur- geon, has attained a prominence in the medical profession that is in keeping with his fine abilities as a general practitioner and surgeon.
He is a native of Denmark, born May II, 1856, and is a son of Dr. Andrew Peter and Keturah (Green) Forster, the former a native of Denmark, the latter of England. They became parents of ten children, eight of whom are living at the present time: Hannah, wife of Ed. Nafziger; William A .; Julia, wife of E. R. Goings; Gussie, wife of E. A. Puterbaugh; Peter T., John O., B. Frank and Rushia.
The father was a physician of note and died at Fort Scott, Kansas, in 1888, at the age of seventy-one years. Mrs. Forster is living and is now a resident of Kansas City. In their church connection they were Bap- tists, Dr. A. P. Forster being the first mis- sionary sent out from London to Sweden, where he organized the first Baptist church. The paternal grandfather of our subject, Andrew Forster, was a noted surgeon of Copenhagen, where he died, well advanced in life. He was a gentleman of learning and skillful as a surgeon. He was a man of large physique and striking personality. Two children constituted his family. The maternal grandfather of our subject was Rev. John Green, a Baptist minister of En- gland, his death having occurred in his na- tive land after he had reached an advanced age. He was the father of a numerous family.
Dr. William A. Forster was eleven years old when his parents emigrated to America. They settled in La Salle county, Illinois, where young William lived till he was eighteen years old, when he entered Shurt-
leff College at Alton, Illinois, where he com- pleted his literary education. He then went to St. Louis and entered the Homeopathic Medical College, of Missouri, at which he graduated in 1880, and won the first prize in surgery offered competitively to his class. Thereafter he went to Fort Scott, Kansas, and entered into partnership with his father. Was surgeon in charge of the free dispensary of the college, and assistant surgeon to the Good Samaritan Hospital at St. Louis for one year. From Fort Scott he went to Nevada, Missouri, where he practiced two and a half years; then returned to Fort Scott, where he remained a year, and in June, 1885, he came to Kansas City, where he has remained ever since. His specialty is surgery and gynecology, in which lines of practice he has not a superior in the city. He is devoted to his profession, and is a close student in the literature of materia medica and surgery.
He was married December 6, 1894, to Mrs. Fannie C., the widow of Thomas T. Roe and a daughter of John A. and Sarah E. (Fogle) Cannon. The Doctor has two children by a former marriage: Jessie H., born December 13, 1885; and Walter L., born January 3, 1888.
In the societies of the profession Dr. Forster is widely represented, being a mem- ber of the American Institute of Homeopa- thy, the Missouri Institute of Homeopathy, Kansas State Homeopathic Medical Society, the Missouri Valley Homeopathic Medical As- sociation and the Homeopatic Club of Kan- sas City. For six years he was professor of surgery in the Homeopathic Medical College of Kansas City, of which he was one of the founders. Of all these societies Dr. Fors- ter is a valued member.
Socially he is urbane and pleasant in
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speech and manner, never indulges in soph- isms or pedantic generalities; is method- ical and systematic in all his doings; and his conclusions are always founded on hon- est convictions. If ever wrong he has the moral courage and frankness to admit his error. He is a member of the Baptist church, and also worthily connected with Knights of Pythias and Ancient Order of United Workmen.
ARMON BELL is a man of high professional attainments and is known as one of the most able members of the bar of Missouri. No field of human endeavor is more open to a successful career than that of law, but he who would attain this measure of success must have been endowed with a native force of character and must work his way upward through indefatigable effort and untiring energy. These characteristics are possessed in a high degree by Mr. Bell, who is regarded as one of the most prominent representa- tives of the legal profession in Kansas City.
We usually regard the east as the birth- place of most of those who have become residents of the more recently settled states, but Mr. Bell is a native of California. In the pioneer days of that region he was born, in Oakland, on the 23d of March, 1855. His father, Rev. Dr. S. B. Bell, who was highly esteemed in New York, emigrated to the Golden state in a very early day. The son attended the public schools of his native city, and later, as he evinced an eager desire for the acquirement of knowledge, he was enabled to pursue a course of study in Hills- dale College at Hillsdale, Michigan. He com- pleted his collegiate course in Washington College, in California, and with a broad gen-
eral knowledge as a foundation entered upon the work of preparing himself for the practice of law. It is said that success awaits each individual if he but follows that course for which nature intended him, and if success be a criterion by which to judge it would seem that nature intended Mr. Bell for the legal profession.
In 1876 he took up the study of law in the office of Dirlam & Leyman, of Mans- field, Ohio, leading attorneys of that state, and completed his studies in the office of Hon. Turner A. Gill, of Kansas City, now one of the judges of the Kansas circuit court of appeals. He was admitted to the bar in 1878, and with zeal and enthusiasm entered upon his practice. From the beginning he displayed careful and painstaking effort in the thorough preparation of his cases, and when upon the floor it was at once seen that he was master of the situation, and his logical statements, clear reasoning, quick preception and keen repartee told with both judge and jury. It was not long before he had succeeded in gaining a large clientage. His standing at the bar is well indicated in the following reference, which was made to him by an attorney who knows him well and intimately and can therefore capably judge of his ability. He said: "Mr. Bell possesses fine ability as a lawyer, integrity and uprightness, and has an enviable repu- tation both as an attorney and as a man. He is a forcible speaker, a logical reasoner and an earnest debater, and has won in many important questions. He has man- aged the office of public administrator with great honesty and fairness and with scru- pulous regard to guarding the estates and rights of deceased persons and also orphans and minors. He is well read in all branches of the law, and being a diligent student
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thoroughly investigates every subject in his profession that comes under his considera- tion." He has for seventeen years engaged in practice in Kansas City, retaining a dis- tinctively representative clientage, which is constantly increasing in extent.
Mr. Bell had not long been in Kansas City before he left an impress on political affairs. In 1880 he was elected to the leg- islature by a very flattering majority on the republican ticket. His democratic prede- cessor had been elected by a majority of over three hundred. This Mr. Bell over- came and won the election by more than five hundred votes. At that time he was only twenty-five years of age, just one year beyond the age of eligibility for the office. During his two years as legislator, both in the regular and extra sessions, he was con- spicuous in the advocacy of measures for the public good, especially in the promotion of the cause of education. In 1884 he was nominated by his party for the office of pub- lic administrator of Jackson county, and such was his popularity and the confidence reposed in him that many democrats gave him their support, and he was elected by a majority of over one thousand, although the opposite party usually carried the county by fifteen hundred votes!
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On the 16th of January, 1880, Mr. Bell was united in marriage with Miss Catherine Wilson, daughter of A. J. C. Wilson, of Santa Barbara, California. Their children now living are Traylor W. and Joseph Sam- uel, - Margaret, Sophie and Walworth having died in infancy.
Mr. Bell is a member of the Presbyterian church, and is prominent in Masonic circles, having taken the Knight Templar and Mys- tic Shrine degrees. He is deeply interested in the growth and upbuilding of the order,
frequently delivers public addresses in its behalf, and is also a campaign orator of superior ability, being an entertaining, in- structive and fluent speaker.
6 EN T. HARDIN, for the past seven years a member of the Kansas City bar, is a native of this state and one of its leading lawyers.
He was born in Randolph county, Mis- souri, October 8, 1852, son of Ben and Susan G. (Hubbard) Hardin, the former a native of Kentucky and the latter of Mis- souri. Nine children composed their family, of whom eight are now living: Sarah F., wife of S. W. Downing, Centralia, Missouri; James H., Moberly, Missouri; Zerelda, wife of James A. Huffman, Atlanta, Missouri; Mary E., deceased wife of John G. Herold, of Denver, Colorado; Nannie N., wife of Thomas B. Patton, Kansas City; John H., Randolph county, Missouri; Ben T., Kan- sas City; Susan J., wife of W. B. Jackson, Pueblo, Colorado; and Asa K., residing near Fayetteville, Arkansas. The father of our subject passed his life as a farmer and stock- raiser in Randolph county, Missouri, where he settled as early as 1837, and where he died, in 1879, in his seventieth year. He was a veteran of the Black Hawk war. His first wife died May 2, 1864, and for his sec- ond wife, he wedded a Mrs. McAnally, by whom he had two children, Dr. George S., of Marshall, Missouri; and Martha C., wife of Arthur Maxwell, of Boone county, this state. Both the father and mother of our subject were devoted members of the Chris- tian church.
Mr. Hardin's paternal grandfather, James Hardin, was a native of Kentucky, and was
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by occupation a farmer and stock-raiser. Much of his life was passed in Howard county, Missouri, near Fayette, where he settled in 1814, and where he died about 1850, well advanced in years. His widow lived to the ripe old age of ninety. The maternal grandfather of our subject was Asa K. Hubbard. He was a native of North Carolina, was also a farmer, and lived to be about ninety-eight years old. Those who knew him best attributed his long life to his cheerfulness. No one enjoyed a good joke or hearty laugh more than he, and few had a larger circle of friends.
Ben. T. Hardin grew up in his native county, received his early schooling there and later attended Mount Pleasant College, at Huntsville, and the State Normal School at Kirksville. He is a graduate of the latter institution, with the class of 1875. He early showed a preference for mathematics, always excelling in this study, and while in the normal school his grade in mathematics given by Prof. J. M. Greenwood, now su- perintendent of the Kansas City public schools, stood 100 plus! Following his graduation, he was for two years engaged in teaching, being employed as superintendent of the public schools at New London, the county seat of Ralls county, Missouri. In the meantime he began the study of law, under the instructions of Martin & Priest, of Moberly, Missouri, and July 2, 1877, was admitted to the bar. In 1881, when the firm of Martin & Priest was dissolved, on the removal of Mr. Priest to St. Louis, Mr. Hardin formed a partnership with Mr. Mar- tin, with whom he was associated in prac- tice until 1885. Prior to that in 1879-80, Mr. Hardin was city attorney of Moberly. In the fall of 1884 he was elected prose- cuting attorney of Randolph county, was
renominated and elected without opposition in 1886, and served most efficiently in this capacity until the expiration of his second term, January 1, 1889.
May 17, 1889, is the date of his arrival in Kansas City. Here he at once estab- lished a good practice, which has been con- stantly growing during the past seven years. His office is at 409-410 in the American Bank building. While he devotes himself to general practice, he has attained his notority chiefly as a criminal lawyer, having won many difficult criminal cases, prosecut- ing and defending. He was the prosecutor in the hotly contested case against Lewis Maupin, who killed young Watson in Fay- ette, Howard county; represented the state against Christ Young, of Lexington, Mis- souri, whom they convicted and executed for the murder of Stephen Ferguson of La Fay- ette county; defended Mckenzie, who killed John Emery at Moberly and cleared him; defended Oscar Arnold, who killed George Parker, in Independence, the trial being at Liberty, and cleared him; defended and cleared Frank Cameron at Kansas City, charged with murder in the first degree; de- fended and acquitted Pate, Pike, Coleman, and Birney, in what is known as the fifth ward riot case, tried in Liberty, Missouri, in June, 1895; and another important case with which he was connected, as prosecutor for the state, was that against Lewis and Fan- nie Griffin, of Moberly, Missouri, who had drowned a child they were raising. During the four years he served as prosecutor, in Randolph county, he sent one hundred and thirty-five men and one woman to the peni- tentiary! Also during his residence in Kan- sas City he has had charge of some of the largest corporation cases tried in the courts here; and it is said by the circuit judges in
Flavel B. JTiffany.
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Kansas City that he has few equals as a trial lawyer.
Mr. Hardin's residence is at No. 2406 Forest avenue. He was married October 8, 1879, to Miss Clara Phillips, daughter of Judge Richard Phillips, of Audrain county, Missouri. Her mother, whose maiden name was Mary A. Harrison, was a native of Callaway county, Missouri. Mr. and Mrs. Hardin are members of the Christian church. Fraternally, he maintains a mem- bership in good standing in several branches of the Masonic order, namely: Kansas City lodge, No. 220, A. F. & A. M .; Orient chapter, No. 102, Royal Arch Masons; Oriental commandery, No. 35, K. T .; and Ararat Temple, A. A. O. N. M. S. His political affiliations have been with the democratic party; but he is a liberal non- partisan, believing in fair elections and an honest count.
LAVEL B. TIFFANY, M. D., stands at the head of the medical profession in Kansas City as an oc- ulist and aurist. Thorough prep- aration and superior skill have given him the pre-eminence in this line second to none in the southwest. There is no profession that has made more rapid strides toward perfection than the medical, and Dr. Tiffany has not only kept abreast with the times but has also been a leader in the progress that is fast transforming imperfection to perfec- tion in his chosen calling.
A native of Oneida county, New York, he was born on the 28th of April, 1846, and is a son of Ambrose B. and Electra (Shepard) Tiffany. The Tiffany family originated in England, and was founded in
America by three brothers who sought homes in the New World in early colonial days. The father of our subject was the captain of a vessel on Lake Erie in early life and subsequently engaged in hotel-keep- ing and farmning. In 1847 he emigrated westward, taking up his residence in Wis- consin, where he made his home for seven or eight years. He then removed to Min- nesota, and his death occurred at Rice Lake, Dodge county, that state, at the age of seventy-four. His wife passed away many years previously. They were members of the United Brethren church, and were peo- ple of the highest respectability. Their family numbered seven children, four sons and three daughters, of whom the following named are now living,-Edgar, Oscar, El- len, Flavel and Theodora. Fred and Le- nora are now deceased. The paternal grandfather of the Doctor, Flavel Tiffany, was a native of New York and followed farining as a means of livelihood. His fam- ily numbered three sons and two daughters. The maternal grandfather, Benjamin Shep- ard, was also born in the Empire state.
The Doctor, although born in the east, was reared in the west, spending his child- hood days in Wisconsin, Minnesota and Michigan. He began his education in the Badger state, and pursued his studies in the schools near his home until seventeen years of age, when, prompted by a spirit of pat- riotism, he enlisted in the second battery, light artillery, of Minnesota, under com- mand of Capt. Hotchkiss, and served from the fall of 1864 until the close of the war. Returning then to Minnesota, he continued his education in the public schools of Fari- bault, and afterward in Bishop Whipple's College. For three years following he en- gaged in teaching, and entered the State
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University at Minneapolis, where he com- pleted his literary education.
Attracted by the medical profession, for which his tastes and talents seemed to fit him, Dr. Tiffany entered the office of his preceptor, Dr. A. E. Johnson, taking up the study of medicine under the direction of that gentleman. Later he entered the medical department of the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, and was graduated with the class of 1874. Being now fitted for prac- tice, he opened an office at Grand Haven, Michigan; but after a short time removed to St. Louis, and subsequently to Medford, Minnesota, where he remained for two and a half years. Possessed of a nature that could never content itself with mediocrity, but which constantly seeks for improvement, the Doctor, in order to continue his studies, then made a trip to London, where he remained for two years, devoting his time and attention to a special study of the dis- eases of the eye, ear, nose and throat. He continued his investigations in London, Paris, Berlin and Vienna, and on his return to his native land in the fall of 1878 located in Kansas City, where he has since remained with the exception of the year 1887, when he returned to Europe with the view of again making a special study of the diseases of the eye. He has been remarkably suc- cessful in his practice as an oculist. Al- though he is thoroughly versed in the science of medicine, and his broad, general informa- tion is a needed foundation for his special knowledge, he has concentrated his energies upon a few lines of the science of medicine and has therefore attained a higher degree of proficiency than he could hope to gain if he gave his time to general practice. Some of the cures which the Doctor has performed are truly remarkable and appear almost
miraculous. Many of the mysteries of the science have been brought from the region of the unknown to the known through his systematic and thorough investigation and the high reputation which he now enjoys is justly deserved.
The Doctor is an honored and valued member of the county, district and state medical societies, also an honorary member of the Kansas State Medical Society, and belongs to the American Medical Associa- tion, the American Microscopical Society, the Pan-American Association, and the In- ternational Medical Congress. He is an author of much note in the medical world, having made valuable contributions to the literature of his profession in this country. Among the articles of which he is the author is one recently published entitled " An- omalies of Refraction and the Muscles of the Eye," which is attracting widespread attention and favorable comment. He is the professor of ophthalmology in the Uni- versity Medical College of Kansas City, and occupies the same position in the Womans Medical College of Kansas City, of which he is dean. He is oculist for the Missouri, Kansas & Texas Railroad Com- pany, is connected with the German and All Saints Hospitals, and is the associate editor of the "Eye, Ear and Nose Clinic." He has recently issued a book known as the Oculist Office Record Book, which is to be sold to the profession. It is a very valuable book to oculists.
In May, 1879, was celebrated the mar- riage of Dr. Tiffany and Miss Olive E. Fair- banks, daughter of Joseph Fairbanks. She is a member of the Unitarian church, a lady of culture and refinement, who presides with graceful dignity over their pleasant and hos- pitable home at No. 2457 Troost avenue.
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The Doctor is a Knight Templar Mason and in politics is a republican, manifesting a com- mendable interest in political affairs, as all true American citizens should do, but never seeking office, as he prefers to give his time and energies to his profession, in which he has met with such marked success.
UTNAM FRANCIS PEET, who is engaged in the practice of medi- "cine in Kansas City as a member of the homeopathic school, was born in Farmersville, New York, July 6, 1847, and is the youngest of the three children of Levi and Eliza (Carpenter) Peet, the for- mer a native of the Empire State, and the latter of Massachusetts. The father carried on agricultural pursuits, and in 1816 located at Farmersville, New York, where he cleared the land of timber and gave the town its name. He was twice married, his first union being with Eunice Carpenter, a sister of the mother of our subject. Of the eight children born of that union, five are now living: Cornelius; Minerva, wife of Daniel Noble, of Montana; Delosha, wife of Armander Bartlett, of Shellrock City, Min- nesota; Frederick and Silas. After the ยท death of his first wife, Levi Peet married Eliza Carpenter, and their living children are Abram, of Farmersville, New York; and Putnam Francis. The father died in 1862, at the age of sixty-nine, and the mother passed away in 1865.
Silas Peet, the paternal grandfather of our subject, was a native of Vermont, and belonged to one of the old New England families. He reared seven children and died at an advanced age. The maternal grandfather, Frederick Carpenter, was a native of Massachusetts, and was of Eng-
lish descent. He served as a soldier in the American army during the war of 1812, and as a business carried on hotel-keeping and farming. He, too, attained to an ad- vanced age.
Dr. Peet was reared on the old home farm, his boyhood days being spent in the usual manner of farmer lads, working in the fields and attending the district schools. It was his desire, however, to obtain a more advanced education, and in consequence he entered Oberlin (Ohio) College, whence he returned to New York. In 1876 he went to Pennsylvania, and for seven years was connected with the oil industry. In 1883 he came west, and in 1885 took up the study of medicine in the Kansas City Homeopathic College, at which he was graduated in 1892. He had, however, dur- ing all that time engaged in practice. He now has an office located at 536 Main street, in the new Ridge Building, and is doing an excellent business. His specialty is genito-urinary and venereal diseases. He is thoroughly versed in his profession and uses every opportunity for improvement and advancement, and to-day he is recognized as one of the most capable members of the pro- fession. For four years he has delivered lec- tures in his alma mater.
On the 25th of March, 1872, Dr. Peet was united in marriage with Miss Marie An- toinette Baker, daughter of Marcena and Elizabeth (Benton) Baker. They have two children, Frank B. and Antoinette, but the last named died at the age of four years and seven months. Mrs. Peet is a most cultured and highly educated lady, and is a graduate of the Kansas City Homeopathic Medical College. Their son is also determined to engage in the practice of medicine and has entered upon a course
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of study in the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Kansas City.
In his political views the Doctor is a re- publican, and socially is connected with the Independent Order of Foresters. In social as well as professional circles both he and his wife occupy an enviable position, and it is with pleasure that we present to our read- ers this record.
O HARLES W. ADAMS, A. M., M. D., dean of the University Medical College of Kansas City, Missouri, was born in Rochester, New York, August 7, 1854. When he was only six years of age his mother died, but he was reared by a loving father, guarded by his tender care and as much as possible pre- pared for life's responsible duties. His early years passed as the average of those of the ordinary American boy. He completed the common-school course, graduating in the Rochester free academy or high school, and at the age of seventeen entered Rochester University, at which he was graduated in the year 1876 with the degree of A. B. His college course gave no promise of brilliancy but simply demonstrated that the underly- ing traits of his character were determina- tion, caution and a marked executive ability for controlling and moulding other people. While in college, during his junior and senior years, he was one of the editors of the col- lege monthly paper.
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